Ex-Alabama lawmaker says he was paid to oppose EPA cleanup efforts

A former Alabama state representative says he accepted money to oppose Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleanup efforts in Birmingham, Ala., according to AL.com.

The news outlet reported earlier this week that ex-state Rep. Oliver Robinson (D) testified on Tuesday that he accepted money to oppose cleanup efforts in Birmingham and that those bribing him wanted him to use his “influence” to oppose the EPA. 

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The Associated Press reports that Robinson’s testimony came as prosecutors try to prove that two attorneys with a prominent Alabama law firm and a coal company executive paid bribes to Robinson with the goal of avoiding cleanup costs at a Birmingham Superfund site. The bribes were in the form of a consulting contract, according to AP. 

The three defendants — lawyers Joel Gilbert and Steven McKinney with the law firm Balch & Bingham and Drummond Co. vice president David Robertson — are each charged with one count of conspiracy, one of bribery, three counts of honest services wire fraud and one count of money laundering.

Robinson, who pleaded guilty last year to bribery and tax evasion, said in his testimony that he felt he sold out his constituents by accepting the bribes. 

According to the AP, in 2013, the EPA had notified Drummond Coal Co. that it may have been responsible for pollution at a Superfund site in Birmingham. The organization had designated the area due to elevated levels of arsenic, lead and other chemicals, and said in 2014 that it may add the site to a national priority list. 

Robertson, the president of Drummond’s government relations department and a registered lobbyist, then approached Robinson, a former NBA player, in the summer of 2014, according to AL.com. The newspaper reports that Robertson asked Robinson to help with the company’s issue related to the Superfund site. 

In addition, AL.com reports that Robinson listed talking points from Gilbert while speaking with EPA officials and an environmental group.

Assistant U.S. attorneys are arguing that the three men bribed Robinson to object to adding the EPA cleanup to the organization’s National Priorities List. They are also arguing that he was bribed to oppose the expansion of the Superfund site.

The three defendants have maintained their innocence, with defense attorney Jack Sharman arguing that Robinson is hoping to get a reduced sentence by cooperating with prosecutors.