MEC&F Expert Engineers : 08/16/18

Thursday, August 16, 2018

Edmonds, WA asbestos removal company, Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal, LLC, fined more than a quarter-million dollars for exposing workers and the public to unsafe conditions





Edmonds asbestos removal company fined more than a quarter-million dollars for exposing workers and the public to unsafe conditions

July 16, 2018

Tumwater – An Edmonds-based asbestos removal contractor has been cited by the Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) for multiple willful safety violations for improper handling of asbestos. Along with the citations, the company faces fines totaling $229,700.

L&I has cited Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal, LLC in connection with two separate inspections. Along with citing and fining a company, L&I may also decertify an asbestos contractor for multiple willful violations. This company is under review.

"This company has demonstrated a continuous indifference to Washington's asbestos handling rules which protect workers and the public from harm," said Anne Soiza, L&I's assistant director for the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. "This fine delivers a clear message that asbestos is a deadly hazard and we won't tolerate any company that doesn't follow the rules to keep the public and workers safe."

Asbestos is extremely hazardous and can cause potentially fatal diseases like asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer. Only a certified abatement contractor that follows the specific asbestos related safety and health rules may remove and dispose of asbestos-containing building materials.

The two recent inspections of Above & Beyond each uncovered several similar violations. One worksite involved the emergency removal of boiler insulation in a Seattle apartment complex, and the other concerned the removal of asbestos popcorn ceiling material in a single-family residence.

In both cases, the workers did not use proper safety equipment, required air sampling was not performed, and asbestos-containing material was left exposed to the public and was improperly taken through public areas. Asbestos-containing dust can harm both workers and the public until it is eliminated.

The two inspections resulted in multiple willful and serious violations. A willful violation is one where L&I finds evidence of plain indifference or an intentional disregard to a hazard or rule.

Above & Beyond has been cited in the past for similar violations and has been identified by L&I as a severe violator — a designation that carries consequences, such as follow-up inspections at any of their facilities or sites that could have similar hazards.

The employer has 15 business days to appeal the citations.

Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers' compensation supplemental pension fund, helping injured workers and families of those who have died on the job.

For a copy of the citations, please contact Public Affairs at 360-902-5413.



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About Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal LLC

Contacting an asbestos removal contractor like Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal LLC that specializes in this removing asbestos will assure you the job is done safely and correctly.

Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal LLC, located in Edmonds, WA, offers a range of consulting, inspection, testing and analysis services to assist clients at each step of the removal process, including demolition, historic preservation, auditing and construction and implementation deployment. Collaborative communications and a highly disciplined management methodology ensure that asbestos abatement projects are completed on schedule and within budget.

Above & Beyond Asbestos Removal LLC is a licensed asbestos abatement contractor that specializes in residential removal of asbestos projects. As with all asbestos removal work, specialized cleaning equipment and confinement techniques are required. But in homes, additional precautions are necessary. For example, extra care must be taken to prevent damage to home finishes and furniture.

National Products, Inc. that manufactures electronics mounting systems and other products is facing more than $250,000 in fines for multiple serious and willful worker safety and health violations.


Serious injuries at two worksites lead to fines and citations for National Products, Inc.

August 1, 2018

Tumwater – A Seattle company that manufactures electronics mounting systems and other products is facing more than $250,000 in fines for multiple serious and willful worker safety and health violations.

The state Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) recently cited National Products, Inc. after finding numerous violations during three separate inspections this year.

L&I opened one of the inspections after a worker was burned by molten aluminum, and another inspection followed amputation injuries at another National Products worksite. The inspections identified 26 total violations including multiple serious and willful violations collectively resulting in fines totaling $253,320.

"We've cited this employer before for several of these very serious hazards, but the company continues to put its workers at risk," said Anne Soiza, L&I's assistant director for the Division of Occupational Safety and Health.

The amputations, which involved several fingers of one worker, occurred in a facility where there were five trimming presses, each of which was in some sort of disrepair. Among other problems each machine had an emergency stop button that was either blocked, missing or in disrepair. Worn out and unaligned springs that made the operator visually line up levers were a contributing factor in the injury.

The burn injury happened at another National Products facility where workers were carrying molten aluminum from one machine to another in ladles slung over their backs, and they were not wearing proper personal protection equipment.

"Workplace injuries and illnesses are preventable, and many of these hazards are easy to control," Soiza said. "L&I offers free tools and expertise to help Washington employers create safer workplaces so they can save lives and money. There's just no excuse for continually putting workers at risk."

Since National Products, Inc. has been cited in the past for similar situations, the company is now considered a severe violator — a designation that carries consequences, such as follow-up inspections at any of their facilities or sites that could have similar hazards.

The employer has 15 business days to appeal the citations.

Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers' compensation supplemental pension fund, helping injured workers and families of those who have died on the job.

For a copy of the citations, please contact Public Affairs at 360-902-5413.


National Products, Inc. distributes mounting system electronic equipments. The company manufactures fishing rod holders, tube holders, chartplotter and ball mounts, and propeller removal tools. The company was founded in 1994 and is based in Seattle, Washington.

Massachusetts workers died of opioid overdoses at vastly different rates depending upon their job. The highest rates were seen in construction and extraction.




Outside NIOSH:


Massachusetts Opioid-related Deaths Vary by Job, with Highest Rates in More Dangerous Jobs

Massachusetts workers died of opioid overdoses at vastly different rates depending upon their job. The highest rates were seen in construction and extraction, including quarrying, mining, and oil and gas removal, according to a CDC-funded study by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

To understand which industries and occupations have the highest rate of opioid-related deaths, investigators looked at 4,302 publicly available death certificates filed in Massachusetts from 2011 through 2015. They also used data from four national surveys to explore occupational factors that may contribute to differences in rates of opioid-related deaths among workers in different occupations and industries.

More than 24% of opioid-related deaths occurred among construction and extraction workers during the years studied, with 1,096 opioid-related deaths in this group alone. This number translates to a rate of 150.6 deaths per every 100,000 workers—6 times greater than the 25.1 average rate for all Massachusetts workers. By job type, nearly all—97%—of these opioid-related deaths were among construction workers.

After construction and extraction, the agriculture, forestry, and fishing occupations had the second highest rate of death from opioids. Although the number (61) of opioid-related deaths was fewer than in construction, the rate was 143.9, which was more than 5 times the average rate for all Massachusetts workers. Among those who died in agriculture, forestry, and fishing, 74% had worked in fishing occupations.

Similarly, several other occupations had much higher than average rates of opioid-related deaths:
  • Material moving (59.1)
  • Installation, maintenance, and repair (54.0)
  • Transportation (42.6)
  • Production (42.1)
  • Food preparation and serving (39.5)
  • Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance (38.3)
  • Healthcare support (31.8)
The study also found differences by gender. Overall, most of the opioid-related deaths were among males, which is similar to findings for all opioid-related overdose deaths in Massachusetts. The rate was highest among male workers in agriculture, forestry, and fishing (205.9), followed by male workers in construction and extraction (152.3) and in material moving (71.9), as compared with the average rate for Massachusetts male workers (38.2). Among females, healthcare support (30.1) and food preparation and serving (28.9) were the two occupations with much higher rates than the Massachusetts average for female workers (11.6).

The rate of opioid-related overdose deaths was higher among workers employed in industries and occupations that have high rates of work-related injuries and illness based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistic Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses. This finding is consistent with previous research documenting common use of prescribed opioids for management of pain following work-related injury. The rate of fatal opioid overdose was also higher among workers employed in occupations with lower availability of paid sick leave (data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Employee Benefits Survey) and high job insecurity, or the worry of becoming unemployed (data from the National Health Interview Survey).

Although more research is needed to understand how injury, job insecurity, paid sick leave, and other work factors may contribute to opioid overdose deaths, this study’s findings highlight the critical need for immediate interventions. For example, educational programs and policies targeted toward occupations with a high rate of fatal opioid overdose should aim to decrease workplace hazards that could cause injury resulting in opioid prescriptions. Other critical steps include post-injury pain management with safer practices for prescribing opioids, overdose prevention education, and effective treatment for opioid use disorders among workers.

More information is available:

The safety triangle is a useful, yet complicated, theory when considering how to prevent severe work-related injuries



The “Safety Triangle”: A Useful, Yet Complicated, Theory

Occupational safety and health specialists study past work-related illnesses and injuries to understand how to prevent future ones. More than 80 years ago, the occupational safety and health pioneer Herbert Heinrich used this approach to devise the so-called “safety triangle.” After questions arose about the safety triangle’s validity, a NIOSH study found that the safety triangle is a useful, yet complicated, theory when considering how to prevent severe work-related injuries. In the sections below, lead author Patrick Yorio, Ph.D., NIOSH statistician, explains the study, which was published in the journal Risk Analysis.
Heinrich safety triangle, 1-Major Injury, 29-Minor Injury, 300-Near Misses
A NIOSH study of the Heinrich safety triangle, pictured above, found that lower-severity events within a mine can help predict a future fatal event within the same mine. Image from NIOSH.
Q: Why did you do this study? A: In the 1930s, Herbert Heinrich first theorized that severe injuries often occur after many less severe injuries and near misses, and that these events occur in a fixed ratio of 300 near misses to 29 less severe injuries to 1 major injury—the famous safety triangle. In this image, near misses form the base, and smaller, less severe injuries form the middle of the triangle. A severe, even deadly, injury forms the pinnacle. Since then, however, critics have asked whether this ratio is valid and if controlling the risks related to near misses and less severe injuries can prevent a severe injury from occurring.

Our study aimed to find out whether or not the ideas found within the safety triangle are valid. Specifically, we first wanted to understand if near misses and less severe work-related injuries affect the number of work-related fatalities that occur over time in mining establishments. Secondly, we sought to examine if the probability of future work-related fatalities decreases as the severity of near misses and minor injuries decreases—thereby taking on the safety triangle form.

Q: How did you measure these effects? A: We used records from two databases that the Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) makes publicly available to create a third database addressing our research questions. We included 27,446 establishments over the 13 years from 2000 through 2012. Most of these mines were sand and gravel mines, followed by stone, coal, and nonmetal and metal mines. With this information, we were able to calculate the probability of a work-related fatality due to the previous number of near misses and less severe injuries.

Q: What did you learn? A: Our results showed that lower-severity events within a mine may be used to predict a future fatal event within the same mine. Further, there is validity to the safety triangle in mining, although it depends upon the definition of injury severity. Specifically, we found that the safety triangle exists, but not for all approaches used to define severity levels. Severity metrics linked to the number of days lost due to work-related injuries produced a systematic decline in the effect as severity decreased. But, that was not the case when defining severity based on MSHA’s predefined categories of severity.

Q: What are the next steps? A: An important area for future research is to explore potential common causes that contribute to both lower-severity injuries and deaths in the mining industry. Also, research that helps us understand the patterns of causes underlying lower-severity injuries and near misses is important to help improve mining safety.

More information is available:

Cal/OSHA Issues Citations to Outdoor Advertising Company after a worker suffered third-degree burns when a metal pole he was using to install a sign on a billboard came into contact with an overhead power line.





Cal/OSHA Issues Citations to Outdoor Advertising Company for Billboard Electric Shock Accident
Los Angeles, CA—Cal/OSHA has issued citations to an outdoor advertising company for serious safety violations after a worker suffered third-degree burns when a metal pole he was using to install a sign on a billboard came into contact with an overhead power line. 
On February 6, two sign hangers for Outfront Media were working 25 feet above ground on the billboard’s platform to install a vinyl sign over West 3rd Street. The workers were using 11-foot poles to place the 14-by-48-foot sign. One of the metal poles touched an energized high-voltage power line located near the edge of the billboard, which resulted in serious burns to 25 percent of the sign-hanger’s body.
“Employers must identify and evaluate all hazards in the workplace,” said Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum. “When energized overhead lines are present, the employer must ensure that employees maintain required clearances, or minimum safe distances from the overhead lines, to protect employees from electrical shock or electrocution.”
Cal/OSHA issued three citations to Outfront Media totaling $32,435 in proposed penalties. A serious accident-related citation was issued for the employer’s violation of provisions for preventing accidents due to proximity to overhead lines, which requires a minimum clearance of 6 feet be maintained for work done near 34.5 kilovolt lines. A serious citation was issued for failure to identify and evaluate hazards related to installing signs on billboards in proximity to power lines. Cal/OSHA also issued a general citation to the employer for an inadequate heat illness prevention plan for its outdoor workers.
Since 2015, Cal/OSHA has opened 11 inspections with outdoor and display advertising employers. Among those inspections were six accidents, including an electric shock incident last year when a worker’s ladder came into contact with overhead power lines during preparations to hang a sign.   
A citation is classified as serious when there is a realistic possibility that death or serious harm could result from the actual hazard created by the violation.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA, is the division within the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) that helps protect California’s workers from health and safety hazards on the job in almost every workplace.
Cal/OSHA offers a fact sheet for safety meetings on working safely on or near high voltage overhead lines. Cal/OSHA’s Consultation Services Branch provides free and voluntary assistance to employers to improve their safety and health programs. Employers should call (800) 963-9424 for assistance from Cal/OSHA Consultation Services.
Employees with work-related questions or complaints may contact DIR’s Call Center in English or Spanish at 844-LABOR-DIR (844-522-6734). Complaints can also be filed confidentially with Cal/OSHA district offices

OSHA cited ArtiFlex Manufacturing for exposing workers at its Wooster location to amputation hazards after an employee suffered a partial finger amputation.



August 16, 2018

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Ohio Tool Manufacturer
After Employee Suffers Amputation

WOOSTER, OH – 


The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited ArtiFlex Manufacturing for exposing workers at its Wooster location to amputation hazards after an employee suffered a partial finger amputation. The company faces $213,411 in proposed penalties.

OSHA investigators determined that the tool and manufacturing servicer failed to adequately guard pinch points on a conveyor belt. OSHA cited the company for similar violations at the same location in 2016, and has placed ArtiFlex Manufacturing in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program.

"This employer's repeated failure to adequately guard machine operating parts put workers at risk for serious injuries," said OSHA Area Office Director Howard Eberts, in Cleveland. "Employers are required to install and maintain machine guards to protect workers from amputation hazards."

Artiflex Manufacturing has 15 business days from receipt of the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to help ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit https://www.osha.gov.





ArtiFlex Manufacturing is a best in the world resource for design, tooling, automation, past model service, factory assist, and low volume tooling/production solutions.  Our team consists of passionate high performance people organized in a lean fashion.   We partner with our customers to implement innovative tooling and manufacturing solutions while managing their complex programs.
With our long standing history in the tooling and manufacturing industry, we have the necessary experience and market knowledge to provide solutions to almost any customer challenge.  We have six facilities located throughout the Midwest and Southern United States as well as partners for tooling in Korea and China. ArtiFlex is vertically integrated, making it possible to provide value from start to finish for customer programs.

Check out our historical timeline of key ArtiFlex events, starting with the opening of Gerstenslager in 1860.
Our services include: 
 
  • Tool & die design and build
  • Tool development
  • Prototypes
  • Blanking
  • Stamping
  • Manual and Robotic Assembly (Spot weld, MIG, TIG, Rivet, Clinch, Pierce, Projection Weld)
  • Conventional Hemming and Robotic Roller Hemming
  • E-coating
  • After Hem Sealing
  • Packaging & Warehousing
ArtiFlex Manufacturing facilities are certified to TS16949 Quality Management System and IS014001 Environmental Management System. We have business systems in place to efficiently manage customers EDI, engineering software capability to manage customer data, and APQP management to comply with customer requirements.

Former corrupt judge Margaret McVeigh steals property valued at $475,000 for $20,000 in undue taxes in Wayne Township, New Jersey.



SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS:  ABUSE OF LAWS AND VIOLATION OF CITIZENS' CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS
Former corrupt judge Margaret McVeigh steals property valued at $475,000 for $20,000 in undue taxes in Wayne Township, New Jersey.  She was forced to resign in 2016 after complaints regarding her criminal acts

AsmSKean@njleg.org; AsmThomson@njleg.org; SenCunningham@njleg.org; AswMcKnight@njleg.org; AsmChiaravallotti@njleg.org; SenSacco@njleg.org; AswJimenez@njleg.org; AsmMejia@njleg.org; SenStack@njleg.org; AsmMukherji@njleg.org; AswChaparro@njleg.org; SenGill@njleg.org; AsmGiblin@njleg.org; AswTimberlake@njleg.org; SenPou@njleg.org; AswSumter@njleg.org; AsmWimberly@njleg.org; SenSarlo@njleg.org; AsmSchaer@njleg.org; AsmCalabrese@njleg.org; SenWeinberg@njleg.org; AsmJohnson@njleg.org; AswVainieriHuttle@njleg.org; SenLagana@njleg.org; AswSwain@njleg.org; AsmTully@njleg.org; SenCardinale@njleg.org; AswSchepisi@njleg.org; AsmAuth@njleg.org; SenCorrado@njleg.org; AsmRooney@njleg.org; AsmDePhillips@njleg.org AswHandlin@njleg.org; AswDiMaso@njleg.org; SenGreenstein@njleg.org; AsmDeAngelo@njleg.org; AsmBenson@njleg.org; SenTurner@njleg.org; AswReynoldsJackson@njleg.org; SenBateman@njleg.org; AsmFreiman@njleg.org; AsmZwicker@njleg.org; SenBSmith@njleg.org; AsmDanielsen@njleg.org; AsmEgan@njleg.org; SenDiegnan@njleg.org; AsmKarabinchak@njleg.org; AswPinkin@njleg.org; SenVitale@njleg.org; AsmCoughlin@njleg.org; AswLopez@njleg.org; SenCryan@njleg.org; AswQuijano@njleg.org; AsmHolley@njleg.org; SenKean@njleg.org; AsmBramnick@njleg.org; AswMunoz@njleg.org; SenScutari@njleg.org; AswCarter@njleg.org; AsmKennedy@njleg.org; SenDoherty@njleg.org; AsmDiMaio@njleg.org; AsmPeterson@njleg.org; SenOroho@njleg.org; AsmSpace@njleg.org; AsmWirths@njleg.org; SenBucco@njleg.org; AsmCarroll@njleg.org; AsmBucco@njleg.org; SenPennacchio@njleg.org; AsmWebber@njleg.org; AswDecroce@njleg.org; SenCodey@njleg.org; AswJasey@njleg.org; AsmMcKeon@njleg.org; SenRice@njleg.org; AsmCaputo@njleg.org; AswTucker@njleg.org; SenRuiz@njleg.org; AswPintorMarin@njleg.org; AswSpeight@njleg.org; SenSinger@njleg.org SenVanDrew@njleg.org; AsmAndrzejczak@njleg.org; AsmLand@njleg.org; SenBrown@njleg.org; AsmMazzeo@njleg.org; AsmArmato@njleg.org; SenSweeney@njleg.org; AsmBurzichelli@njleg.org; AsmTaliaferro@njleg.org; SenMadden@njleg.org; AsmMoriarty@njleg.org; AswMosquera@njleg.org; SenCruzPerez@njleg.org; AswEganJones@njleg.org; AsmSpearman@njleg.org; SenBeach@njleg.org; AsmGreenwald@njleg.org; AswLampitt@njleg.org; SenSingleton@njleg.org; AsmConaway@njleg.org; AswMurphy@njleg.org; SenAddiego@njleg.org; AsmHowarth@njleg.org; AsmPeters@njleg.org; SenConnors@njleg.org; AsmRumpf@njleg.org; AswGove@njleg.org; SenHolzapfel@njleg.org; AsmWolfe@njleg.org; AsmMcGuckin@njleg.org; SenGopal@njleg.org; AswDowney@njleg.org; AsmHoughtaling@njleg.org; SenThompson@njleg.org; AsmClifton@njleg.org; AsmDancer@njleg.org; SenOscanlon@njleg.org
Dear Legislators:
I have been reading about abuse of laws and violation of citizens' constitutional rights by municipal and superior court judges as a way of shaking them up.  In one case reported to the media, former Chancery judge Margaret McVeigh in Passaic County stole homestead property valued at $475,000 for $20,000 in undue taxes in Wayne Township, New Jersey.  Could you please comment on this story?

Sincerely,

Camila Jones
==========================
JUDICIAL CORRUPTION AND ABUSE OF LAWS IN NEW JERSEY
I have been reading your stories regarding local courts that must stop shaking N.J. residents down for cash.
I must inform you that these practices are not limited to the municipal courts.  They are widespread in the superior courts, the Chancery (or general equity) divisions that handle tax sale foreclosures.  They threaten people with forfeiting their homes and with eviction if they fail to pay taxes that may not even owe.
In my case, they stole my homestead property and place of business that was valued at $475,000 for a property tax of $20,000.  The property was over-assessed by more than 40 percent in violation of N.J.S.A. 54:4-23 and the Uniformity Clause of the NJ Constitution (Article VIII, Section 1, paragraph 1(a)), and they knew it, but they confiscated my home, anyway.  Tragic, tragic, situation.  
The corrupt former Chancery judge Margaret McVeigh never issued an application of the law to the facts in violation of court Rule 1:7-4(a).  Furthermore, court rule R. 4:64-6 states that in foreclosure of tax sale certificates, if the defendant's answer sets up the defense of the invalidity of the tax or other lien, or the invalidity of the proceedings to sell, or the invalidity of the sale, those questions shall be tried in the action.  However, here there is neither fact finding nor a trial on any of the issues raised by Dr. Stephanatos.  The corrupt former Chancery judge Margaret McVeigh failed to consider the equities that were in favor of Dr. Stephanatos or that a windfall will result. See M&D Assocs. v. Mandara, 366 N.J. Super. 341 (App. Div.) certif. denied, 180 N.J. 151 (2004) for its rationale that chancery courts "in such foreclosure cases should be alerted . . . that a significant windfall might result if adequate scrutiny . . . is not undertaken[,] In view of our decision, the operation of the tax sale law requires that the entire judgment must be vacated as void based upon equitable considerations.”
Dr. Stephanatos was also targeted by the government due to the filing of several lawsuits, both federal and state; he was penalized by the judges for that.  What the government did was unlawful, unfair and unreasonable. 
The Passaic County sheriff then filed criminal charges against me for refusing to leave my home and they claimed they were assaulted.  The criminal case is pending for 7 years and 1 month now.  It has not gone to trial because of the massive corruption in the judicial system and because the sheriff employees (Ronald A. Lucas and Vincent D'Agostino) committed perjury, i.e. they lied that they were assaulted.  Although an assault case must be brought to trial within 1 to 2 years, it has been more than 7 years now.  A defendant has a fundamental constitutional right to a speedy trial.  U.S. Const., amend.VI; N.J. Const. Art. I, ¶ 10.  But the state judiciary violated that right. 
They also violated my constitutional rights guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment and Article I, par. 20 of the state constitution that prohibit private takings;  no state court had jurisdiction or authority to take a $475,000 homestead property belonging in full to Dr. Stephanatos and deliver it to a third party (American Tax Funding, LLC).  But these corrupt judges did it anyway. 
What has really shocked our conscience is that ATF, LLC/Wayne Township knowingly charged unlawful and/excessive taxes in violation of the Uniformity Clause (Article VIII, Section 1, paragraph 1(a)).  They also charged him 18 percent interest and 6 percent penalties on top of these excessive and illegal taxes.  Thus, a tax dispute of less than $20K (the over-assessment amount) became $60K.  We found that Dr. Stephanatos offered to pay the $20K overassessment amount, but refused to pay the $60K amount.  Then the antitrust conspirators (See the U.S. District Court in Newark Antitrust Litigation that found that ATF, LLC conspired to defraud homeowners of their properties and money) confiscated his residential real estate property, along with his business, Metropolitan Environmental Services. 
PRIVATE TAKINGS ARE PROHIBITED BY BOTH FEDERAL AND STATE CONSTITUTIONS; AS A RESULT, THE CHANCERY COURT EXCEEDED ITS CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY AND ITS JUDGMENT WAS VOID AB INITIO 
We provide the following two precedential New Jersey cases where the courts have ruled that an act of the legislature cannot confer any right upon an individual to deprive persons of the ordinary enjoyment of their property without just compensation.  Here are the two seminal cases:
An act of the legislature cannot confer any right upon an individual to deprive persons of the ordinary enjoyment of their property without just compensation. Oechsle v. Ruhl, 140 N.J. Eq. 355, 54 A.2d 462 (Ch.1947). Constitutional Law.
An act of the legislature cannot confer upon individuals or private corporations, acting primarily for their own profit, although for public benefit as well, any right to deprive persons of the ordinary enjoyment of their property, except upon condition that just compensation be first made to the owners. Pennsylvania R. Co. v. Angel, 41 N.J. Eq. 316, 7 A. 432, 56 Am.Rep. 1 (1886).
See also the following federal law, prohibiting private takings:
The Public Use Clause provides that “one person's property may not be taken for the benefit of another private person without a justifying public purpose, even though compensation is paid.” Hawaii Hous. Auth. v. Midkiff, 467 U.S. 229, 241 (1984) (quoting Thompson v. Consol. Gas Corp., 300 U.S. 55, 80 (1937). Because a private taking cannot be constitutional even if compensated, “[a] plaintiff that proves that a government entity has taken its property for a private, not a public, use is entitled to an injunction against the unconstitutional taking, not simply compensation.” Carole Media LLC v. N.J. Transit Corp., 550 F.3d 302, 308 (3d Cir. 2008). 
UNREASONABLE SEIZURES ARE PROHIBITED BY ARTICLE I, PAR. 7 OF THE NEW JERSEY CONSTITUTION
They also violated the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures (see also Article I, Paragraph 7 of the New Jersey Constitution).  They seized and confiscated a residential property valued at $475,000 (plus his business as well) for a small amount of disputed taxes.  These are truly criminal acts. 
If you can listen and publish my story, you will be shocked of what these judges have been doing to shake people up for money.  They essentially blackmailing them: you either pay, or you lose your home;  you either pay or we put you to jail; you either pay or we take your license away,  and so on.
Here is a link, if you want to learn more about this case.   You will be really-really-really shocked regarding what they have done to me. 
See also the corruption tip regarding Ronald Lucas who defrauded the police and firemen fund by claiming on the job disability.
We have evidence that Dr. Stephanatos was targeted by the government employees because he had filed lawsuits asking for equal protection regarding his excessive property taxes.  That is why they violated the constitution and confiscated his property for taxes that he did not even owe.  These are absolutely unethical and even criminal acts.  Please investigate.
===================================
Report: Local courts reap $400M in fines, fees in 2017

By By MIKE CATALINI
Associated Press
July 17, 2018

New Jersey's municipal courts made $400 million in fines and fees in 2017, sometimes imposing "never-ending" and "overwhelming" financial obligations on people, a Supreme Court report said Tuesday.
The Supreme Court Committee on Municipal Court Operations, Fines and Fees unveiled the report including a list of 49 recommendations for changes to the state's municipal courts, which frequently serve as the judiciary's face in communities across the state.
Among the changes recommended are mandated hearings to determine defendants' ability to pay, as well as monitoring the use of contempt of court fees that go directly into municipal coffers.
"The committee was deeply concerned about what can be a never-ending imposition of mandatory financial obligations that have little to do with the fair administration of justice," Judge Julio Mendez, who chaired the committee, said in a statement. "They can be financially overwhelming, can disproportionately impact the poor, and often become the starting point for an ongoing cycle of court involvement for individuals with limited resources."
The report also found that penalties can vary greatly from judge to judge and court to court.
The document, which follows a 2016 Asbury Park Press investigation into municipal court fees and fines, cautions against courts becoming pressured by towns' concerns for greater revenues. The newspaper found, among other things, that residents faced nearly $200 fines for failing to renew a dog license in time. The judiciary cited the newspaper report in its findings.
New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner commissioned the panel in 2017. He says these courts handle millions of cases a year and called on them to adhere to high standards of independence and fairness.
The report said that New Jersey's local courts compared favorably to other states' and pointed in particular to mandatory training that judges and staff are required to participate in.
But it also sketched a number of concerns, including "excessive use" of discretionary contempt assessments.
"The Committee identifies that these practices at times have more to do with generating revenue than the fair administration of justice," the report said.
New Jersey has 515 such courts. Judges are appointed for three-year terms and can be re-appointed. In most cases the appointment process is set by towns' governing bodies.

Lieutenant Alexander Diaz de Villegas of the Miami police department is accused of filing false home insurance claims along with his ex-wife, Barbara Maria Diaz de Villegas


Barbara Maria Diaz de Villegas - very pretty, but not smart; you lie, you lose






MIAMI, FL (CBSMiami) – 


The Miami-Dade Police Department announced Tuesday one of their own has betrayed the badge.

The department said a Miami-Dade police lieutenant has been arrested and charged with scheme to defraud, insurance fraud and grand theft.

Juan Perez, Director of the Miami-Dade Police Department, tweeted about the arrest on Tuesday:


Lieutenant Alexander Diaz de Villegas is accused of filing false home insurance claims.

He was charged along with his ex-wife, Barbara Maria Diaz de Villegas, a public adjuster who was previously arrested for insurance fraud in May.

The couple is facing 18 counts of grand theft and insurance fraud, dating back as far as 2013.

The twosome filed phony insurance claims for water damage on their homes, and collected.

There was never any water damage.

The total take for the couple was $75,000.

Lieutenant Diaz de Villegas was being held on $65,000 bond but was released late Tuesday.

His ex-wife is being held on $55,000 bond but she was already out on bond for a previous felony which will keep her behind bars overnight until she appears before a judge.

Diaz de Villegas’ LinkedIn page says the lieutenant is also a Realtor at Battlefield Investment Group in Homestead.

A number of popular breakfast foods, including cereals, granola bars and instant oats, were found to contain potentially dangerous amounts of cancer-linked glyphosate, the main ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup weed killer




A number of popular breakfast foods, including cereals, granola bars and instant oats, were tested and found to contain potentially dangerous amounts of cancer-linked glyphosate, the main ingredient in weed killer.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG), an environmental advocacy organization that conducted the study, said Wednesday that glyphosate was found in all but five of 29 oat-based foods that were tested.

Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup, the most heavily used herbicide in the United States. Every year, according to the EWG, more than 250 million pounds of glyphosate is sprayed on American crops.

The World Health Organization has determined that glyphosate is "probably carcnogenic to humans" and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set a safety level for the potentially dangerous chemical. Just last week, Monsanto was ordered by a court to pay nearly $300 million to a man who claims his terminal cancer was caused by exposure to Roundup. Hundreds of other cases are working their way through the courts.

Monsanto strongly disputes the finding that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen and notes that over four decades, the EPA has consistently supported the safe and effective use of glyphosate.

The company notes on its website that on Dec. 18, the EPA stated the following: “The draft human health risk assessment concludes that glyphosate is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans. The agency’s assessment found no other meaningful risks to human health when the product is used according to the pesticide label. The agency’s scientific findings are consistent with the conclusions of science reviews by a number of other countries as well as the 2017 National Institute of Health Agricultural Health Survey.

The products tested by the EWG showed levels dramatically lower than current EPA standard for glyphosate.

For example, the amount allowed in grains is 30 parts per million. Most of the products tested by the EWA showed glyphosate levels that measured in parts per billion.
Yet California, which is known for its robust cancer warnings, has determined there is a one in 100,000 risk of cancer from glyphosate when more than 1.1 milligrams is consumed per day. EWG says it has calculated a one in one million risk if more than 0.1 milligrams is consumed and a similar risk for children if even 0.01 milligrams is consumed daily.

The worst offenders were Quaker oat products, which regularly clocked in at 400 or more glyphosate parts per billion — meaning they would be dangerous for children if even 27.5 grams were consumed daily. A single packet of Quaker's dinosaur eggs instant oatmeal contains more than three times EWG's daily safe limit for children.

Kellogg products largely passed muster — of the two evaluated, only one of the Michigan-based cereal company's oat foods came anywhere near dangerous to children and neither posed a threat to adults. 

The full list of products tested and their results is available below:

Potentially dangerous to children

Back to Nature Classic Granola
Quaker Simply Granola Oats, Honey, Raisin and Almonds
Nature Valley Granola Protein Oats 'n Honey
Giant Instant Oatmeal Original Flavor
Quaker Dinosaur Eggs, Brown Sugar, Instant Oatmeal
Great Value Original Instant Oatmeal
Umpqua Oats, Maple Pecan
Market Pantry Instant Oatmeal, Strawberries & Cream*
Cheerios Toasted Whole Grain Oat Cereal
Lucky Charms (without marshmallows)
Barbara's Multigrain Spoonfuls, Original, Cereal
Kellogg’s Cracklin’ Oat Bran oat cereal*
Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars, Oats 'n Honey
Quaker Steel Cut Oats
Quaker Old Fashioned Oats
Bob's Red Mill Steel Cut Oats*

Contains safe amounts of glyphosate

Back to Nature Banana Walnut Granola Clusters
KIND Vanilla, Blueberry Clusters with Flax Seeds
Kellogg’s Nutrigrain Soft Baked Breakfast Bars, Strawberry
Nature's Path Organic Old Fashioned Organic Oats
Whole Foods Bulk Bin conventional rolled oats
Bob's Red Mill Organic Old Fashioned Rolled Oats

Contained no glyphosate in any tests

Nature's Path Organic Honey Almond granola
Simple Truth Organic Instant Oatmeal, Original
Kashi Heart to Heart Organic Honey Toasted cereal
Cascadian Farm Organic Harvest Berry, granola bar
365 Organic Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats
*This product underwent multiple tests and tested above the dangerous level in one or more and below the dangerous level in one or more.

An Air Tractor AT-802A Fire Boss aircraft force-landed to logging road terrain during an aerial fire suppression flight on the Horns Mountain Fire in Stevens County north of Northport, Washington





FireBoss plane crashes in NE Washington, pilot survives

By:
Melissa Luck


Updated: August 15, 2018 12:43 PM PDT


The pilot of a firefighting plane battling flames in northeast Washington survived a crash near the fire Tuesday afternoon.

The information was originally reported on the Facebook page dedicated to fire information. It said "An aviation mishap occurred on the Horns Mountain Fire at approximately 2:00 pm. We are collecting information and a full statement will be made at a later time. Please avoid speculation and discussion until more details are released."

The Department of Natural Resources tells KXLY the pilot survived the crash and was able to crawl to a nearby road to get help. It was one of five FireBoss planes battling that fire Tuesday.


Air Spray USA, Inc., the company that owns the aircraft, released the following statement.


The aircraft experienced an unknown problem on the fire it was working near the US/Canadian border. The pilot executed a forced landing on a logging road and was able to the exit the aircraft. He was transported to the hospital. No other information is available at this time. An investigation is in process.

The Horns Mountain fire is burning right near the U.S.-Canadian border. It was sparked by lightning and has burned 667 acres. 


=============================

Narrative:
 
The aircraft force landed to logging road terrain during an aerial fire suppression flight in Stevens County north of Northport, Washington. The floatplane sustained minor damage and the sole pilot onboard was not injured during the incident.

Sources:

http://www.khq.com/story/38885866/fireboss-plane-crashes-fighting-the-horns-mountain-fire-in-northeast-washington
https://www.krem.com/article/news/pilot-survives-fire-boss-plane-crash-in-northeast-washington/293-584152617
https://www.asias.faa.gov/apex/f?p=100:95:::NO::P95_EVENT_LCL_DATE,P95_LOC_CITY_NAME,P95_REGIST_NBR:14-AUG-18,LAURIER,N397AS
http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=397AS

https://www.airspray.com/fire-boss.html
https://airtractor.com/aircraft/at-802f-fire-boss/
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uhF5_suNXv8
Date:14-AUG-2018
Time:14:00
Type:Silhouette image of generic AT8T model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
Air Tractor AT-802A Fire Boss
Owner/operator:Air Spray
Registration: N397AS
C/n / msn: 802A-0563
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:0
Aircraft damage: Minor
Location:Stevens County north of Northport, WA -   United States of America
Phase: Landing
Nature:Fire fighting
Departure airport:
Destination airport: