Brimer v. Tower Energy Group

On August 22, 2012, the Contra Costa County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Brimer v. Tower Energy Group, which resolved citizen enforcer Russell Brimer's allegations that the defendant Tower Energy Group ("Tower") sold flashlights containing the heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

Tower represents that it stopped selling the specific flashlights identified in the Consent Judgment in California prior to June 8, 2012. However, as part of the settlement, Tower agreed that should it resume selling those flashlights, the company shall not to sell them in California after June 8, 2012, unless the flashlights contain less than 100 parts per million of lead content when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Due to Tower's commitment to comply by these heightened standards, Brimer agreed to credit a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $47,000, to be divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Brimer and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.