Category: Blog

The NY Times reports:

“Federal prosecutors are poised to settle a criminal investigation into General Motors, according to people briefed on the matter, accusing the automaker of failing to disclose a safety defect tied to at least 124 deaths. The case, which the prosecutors plan to release on Thursday, would cap a wide-ranging investigation that tainted the automaker’s reputation for quality and safety and damaged its bottom line.

The case is not expected to include charges against individual G.M. executives, but it will impose a penalty of nearly $1 billion on G.M. and an admission of facts surrounding the wrongdoing, according to people briefed on the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity. One of the people said the financial penalty would fall below the $1 billion mark, though not significantly so….

In recent months, some G.M. officials expected that the company would pay more than the $1.2 billion paid last year by Toyota for concealing unintended acceleration problems in its vehicles. The company also faced the possibility that it would have to plead guilty to a crime, but instead has agreed to sign a so-called deferred-prosecution agreement, the people said, a deal that effectively amounts to probation for corporations.

Notably, G.M. employees are also expected to avoid indictment, though the investigation is expected to continue, according to the people briefed on the matter. After more than a yearlong investigation, federal prosecutors in Manhattan and the Federal Bureau of Investigation struggled to pin criminal wrongdoing on any one G.M. employee, concluding instead that the problems stemmed from a collective failure at the automaker.

That outcome, a disappointment for some victims of the G.M. safety crisis, illustrates the limitations of new Justice Department rules that emphasize criminal charges against corporate employees. That initiative, announced last week in a memo to federal prosecutors across the country, represented a tacit acknowledgment of criticism that prosecutors have secured record fines from big banks and corporations, but few indictments of their employees….

Laura Christian, the birth mother of 16-year-old Amber Rose, who was killed in a July 2005 crash in Maryland, said she was shocked to hear that G.M. might pay less than Toyota paid to resolve its case.

“That’s giving G.M. and the other auto manufacturers permission to do it again,” Ms. Christian said. “And all of the people who were killed in these crashes, including my daughter, will have lost their lives in vain.”

The Justice Department should listen to crash victims.  124 deaths at $9.2 million each = $1.14 Billion.  See DOT Policy Guidance on value of a life (copy attached).

Mr. Blair Anderson appears on the newest published NHTSA Org Chart attached.

“Prior to joining the Department in April 2013, Mr. Anderson spent eight years as an advisor for Congressman John W. Olver, most recently staffing the Congressman in his positions as Chairman, then Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development. Notable achievements during this time included providing $10.5 billion for the High Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail grant program and the creation of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program. Mr. Anderson also served as Congressman Olver’s Legislative Director from 2007-2009.

Mr. Anderson has a bachelor’s degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University.”

See http://www.transportation.gov/budget/about-cfo

Lou

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:http://www.autonews.com/article/20150901/OEM11/150909984/u.s.-drops-estimates-for-vehicles-equipped-with-defective-takata

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:Department of Justice Acts – But Not For GM Crash Victims The NY Times reported: “WASHINGTON — Stung by years of criticism that it has coddled Wall Street criminals, the Justice Department issued new policies on Wednesday that prioritize the prosecution of individual employees — not just their companies — and put pressure on corporations to turn over evidence against their executives….” “The new rules take effect immediately, but they are not likely to apply to investigations that are far along, such as one into General Motors over defects. Prosecutors in New York are struggling to charge company employees over problems linked to the deaths of more than 100 people, partly because the laws governing car companies require that prosecutors show that the employees intended to break the law, a higher standard than in other industries like pharmaceuticals and food.” Seehttp://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/10/us/politics/new-justice-dept-rules-aimed-at-prosecuting-corporate-executives.html?ref=internationalCrash Victims Act An announcement by The Safety Institute: “Today, The Safety Institute (TSI) announces that the Melton family will sponsor the Vehicle Safety Watch List in memory of their daughter Brooke, who died in a 2010 crash caused by a well-known ignition switch defect in her 2005 Chevy Cobalt. “Brooke would still be alive if GM had acknowledged the ignition defect and fixed it. Brooke would be alive if the regulators had followed up on their own investigations which revealed the problem,” Ken Melton said. “It’s clear to us that the accountability systems we have in place don’t work as well as they should. The Watch List provides another tool, another way to look at defect trends. So, we are investing in a process that can help uncover emerging problems before they take more lives and turn into a full-blown crisis and cover-up.”

“Brooke Melton, 29, died when she skidded into another vehicle after the ignition module of her 2005 Cobalt slipped into the accessory position. Evidence produced in the Melton case showed that GM knew about that the ignition switch problem as early as 2001.

Brooke Melton’s 2010 death was initially deemed the result of a loss-of-control crash on a rainy night. But the Meltons’ persistence revealed GM’s longstanding knowledge that its defective ignition module that could shift out of the run position while a vehicle is underway, turning off the airbags at the same time it is cutting off the engine power, anti-lock brakes and power steering. In February 2014, after GM reported the defect and launched a limited recall, the Meltons asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to open an investigation into GM’s actions.

That investigation eventually led to $35 million in civil fines levied against GM, and nearly 15 million vehicles recalled. Congress held hearings on GM’s deception and NHTSA’s failures to probe the defect when it first learned about airbag deployment failures in 2007. The ignition switch defect is also at the center of a multi-district litigation (MDL).

In light of the more detailed picture that emerged, Ken and Beth Melton returned their original settlement and pursued GM for fraud to hold the automaker accountable and improve safety for all consumers. This case was settled in April.”  See

http://www.thesafetyinstitute.org/parents-of-gm-ignition-switch-crash-victim-sponsor-quarterly-vehicle-safety-watch-list/

and watch http://www.nbcnews.com/business/autos/parents-gm-crash-victim-fund-vehicle-safety-watchlist-n421826

Hope

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Contact: Giselle Barry (Markey) 202-224-2742

Sarah Zukowski (Blumenthal) 202-224-0335

Josh Zembik (Blumenthal) 202-224-6452

 

Markey, Blumenthal Continue Investigation of Automotive Cybersecurity and Privacy Practices

 

Lawmakers have introduced legislation to establish federal standards to secure cars from cyberattack and protect drivers’ privacy

 

Washington (September 16, 2015) – Continuing the investigation begun by Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) in 2013, Senator Markey and Richard Blumenthal (D-Ct.) today sent new, expanded queries to 18 automakers asking for an update to the information on each company’s protections against the threat of cyberattacks or unwarranted invasions of privacy related to the integration of electronic systems into and within automobiles. Additionally, the Senators ask the companies for a description of any changes to their vehicle fleet or characteristics, policies, practices and experiences that may have occurred since the company first responded to Senator Markey’s original letter.

 

Last year, Senator Markey released the report “Tracking & Hacking: Security & Privacy Gaps Put American Drivers at Risk,” which detailed major gaps in how auto companies are securing connected features in cars against hackers. Most recently, researchers Chris Valasek and Charlie Miller wirelessly hacked a Jeep Cherokee from miles away while the vehicle was on a highway, showing how hackers could control the air conditioning, windshield wipers and fluid, radio, transmission, the brakes and steering. As a result of the demonstration, Fiat Chrysler recalled 1.4 million vehicles to fix this vulnerability. In July, the Senators wrote to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) urging it to take immediate action and investigate potential widespread risk for consumers because of vulnerabilities in auto information and entertainment systems.

 

“As vehicles become increasingly connected to the Internet and to one another through advanced features and services, we continue to see how these technologies present vulnerabilities that can compromise the safety and privacy of drivers and passengers,” write Senators Markey and Blumenthal, members of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. “We have specifically learned how third parties can access the electronic controls and data of vehicles from many different entry points, including wireless connections, and we appreciate that many automotive companies have begun to take concrete steps to close these security gaps.”   

 

A sample copy of the Senators’ letter to automakers can be found HERE.

 

Senators Markey and Blumenthal sent letters to Aston Martin, BMW North America, Fiat Chrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, American Honda Motor Co., Hyundai Motors North America, Jaguar Land Rover North America, Lamborghini, Mazda North America, Mercedes Benz USA, Mitsubishi, Nissan North America, Porsche, Subaru Motors America, Tesla, Toyota North America, Volkswagen Group of America (with Audi), and Volvo.

 

In July, Senators Markey and Blumenthal introduced the Security and Privacy in Your Car (SPY Car) Act, legislation that would direct NHTSA and the Federal Trade Commission to establish federal standards to secure our cars and protect drivers’ privacy. The SPY Car Act also establishes a rating system — or “cyber dashboard”— that informs consumers about how well the vehicle protects drivers’ security and privacy beyond those minimum standards.

Lou

The first focus of the Karth family is on Truck Underride Guards a subject I had a short involvement with in the late 1970s at NHTSA under Administrator Joan Claybrook.  I, and others, tried to get a strong underride guard rule promulgated.  See http://trid.trb.org/view.aspx?id=214652

and see Byron Bloch http://www.autosafetyexpert.com/Assets/Docs/article-underride.pdf

It was a short lived effort because in 1980 Ronald Reagan became President.  He replaced Administrator Joan Claybrook with a coal industry lobbyist Raymond A. Peck, Jr. with devastating consequences for the safety of Americans that still continue.

People can contribute to this new citizen safety effort athttps://www.fortrucksafety.com/

Lou