The closure of a South Los Angeles recycling plant on Monday was accused of spreading toxic waste and leading the grounds of a nearby high school, a major victory for community activists and student groups who have been fighting the facility for two decades.
L.A. County Superior Court Judge Terry Bork said that according to Zara Lockshin, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, S&W Atlas Iron & Metal can no longer accept or process new materials and “basically shut them down.”
This move comes a few days later Bork imprisons factory owners Matthew and Gary Weisenberg repeatedly violated court orders.
The factory and its owner are charged In 2023, there are 23 counts of failing to properly dispose of hazardous waste and two counts of failing to minimize exposure or fire risk. The Watts factory has been operating next door to Jordanian high school for about 70 years. Prosecutors said the plant has exposed several explosions, metal projectiles and potential customer levels at Jordanian high schools, nearly 75 times, and 75 times that of federal regulator DEEM SAFE.
after The explosion of the map atlas Last year, Jordan students were stinged on their first day at school, and the judge set bail conditions for Weisenbergs to limit the types of cans the factory can handle.
However, a California Department of toxic substances investigation found that at the scene earlier this month, acetylene is a container of highly flammable gas. Prosecutors asked Bock to cancel Wesenberg’s bail, and Bock agreed.
At a hearing on Monday, Bolk set new bail conditions requiring investigators from the Department of Toxic Substances to conduct weekly inspections of the factory. According to a spokesperson for the District Attorney’s Office, if the factory wants to reopen, it must seek Bock’s approval.
“For years, Atlas Metal has put our community at risk. Today, the judge shows them that they are not in line with the scope of the law. “No longer business as usual.” Watts has been paying too long for their greed, and this decision shows that their unrestricted days are coming to an end. ”
Defense attorney Benjamin Gluck said in an email to The New York Times that the company “will continue to work hard to be a good neighbor and member of the community.”
“We do not agree with the characteristics of the District Attorney’s atlas, but we welcome the court’s instructions and will comply with it,” Gluck wrote.
Bork is on bail for 37-year-old Matthew Weisenberg, for $1 million. His father, Gary Weisenberg, 78, was ordered to replace $100,000. It is not clear whether any man has posted Bond as of Monday afternoon.
Weisenbergs will return to court on March 28.
