Southeast
Experts warn of biggest ‘scandal in litigation system’ if SCOTUS doesn’t nix landmark energy pollution case
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FIRST ON FOX: A landmark Supreme Court case set to decide whether Big Oil entities can move coastal erosion suits out of local and state courts and cement them in federal courts, as localities continue to seek billions from domestic oil companies, will have far-reaching repercussions, experts said.
Last year, a jury in coastal Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, ordered Chevron to pay more than $740 million for wetlands damage linked to operations by its former subsidiary Texaco in the mid-20th century.
While the Supreme Court case does not seek to overturn the fine and was filed before the Louisiana ruling, a decision by the high court could carry multibillion-dollar implications, several legal experts said.
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A Chevron Corp. flag flies on the drilling floor of a Nabors Industries Ltd. drill rig in the Permian Basin near Midland, Texas, U.S., on Thursday, March 1, 2018. (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
As Chevron argues the suits it is facing in certain Gulf Coast communities — where critics claim some local and state officials are in cahoots against them and aligned with friendly attorneys for the municipalities — many damage claims stem from World War II-era fuel production carried out under federal contract. The companies say that the link to the federal government, along with alleged local bias, means future cases must be heard at the federal level.
Plaquemines Parish argued the claims involve environmental harm that is beyond the control of Washington — meaning that the high court’s decision could reshape where massive suits against Big Oil can be heard; as many companies also seek to ramp up production in line with President Donald Trump’s “energy dominance agenda.”
“There is thus no denying that these petitioners are being sued in state court for production activities undertaken to fulfill their federal refining contracts,” a brief filed by Chevron and ExxonMobil said, in part.
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Prominent NYU law professor Richard Epstein said Wednesday that Plaquemines Parish has pointed to massive erosion dating back to the 1920s amid increased wartime operations, while also citing hurricanes’ devastating impact on the bayou’s already fragile landscape.
Companies used the area to produce “AvGas” for wartime aircraft, and that Louisiana officials calculated the erosion in the billions of gallons, but added that comparisons made to the BP Oil Spill were different because “pollution is very different than erosion.”
“Nobody wishes to deny it, but it had nothing to do with it. So what you do is you have the Supreme Court dealing with a very technical question,” he said.
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“Local bias issue is extremely powerful, which is why you have that statute. It’s the same reason why we have diversity jurisdiction; the home court advantage is really huge and there’s no place where it’s worse than in Louisiana — so you get the bias, you get these jury verdicts, which are completely wacko as far as I can tell,” he said.
He faulted Louisiana officials for siding with plaintiff’s lawyers in the fine-related case to oppose “anything that they bring into court” on such matters, calling it an “outright mischarge of duty” that requires high court intervention.
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Epstein said he is “reasonably confident” that the court will reverse a lower court’s ruling that the parish is the proper legal jurisdiction, warning that if not “it’s a bigger scandal than I think we’ve ever seen in terms of the litigation system.”
Mike Fragoso, an attorney at former Attorney General Bill Barr’s firm Torridon Law, said that there are more than 40 cases filed that allege oil and gas companies have caused erosion through exploration activities in the Gulf; totaling billions of dollars in claims.
Those hefty figures should be a warning against so-called “hometowning” — or the dynamic in which local juries tend to side with their neighbor plaintiffs and against “outsider” companies, Fragoso said.
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“The idea is to prevent local judges and juries from hometowning federal officials as they’re doing the work of the federal government,” he said.
“And Chevron’s view is that because they were in the AvGas business, at the direction of the federal government in World War II, they belong in federal court. The state of Louisiana and the plaintiffs disagree.”
While a supporter of U.S. energy development, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry sided with Plaquemines as attorney general when the saga began.
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Current AG Liz Murrill said in a statement that “virtually every federal court has rejected Chevron’s attempt to avoid liability for knowingly and intentionally violating state law.”
“I’ll fight Chevron in state or federal court — either way, they will not win,” she added.
John Carmouche, an attorney behind the Chevron case and other pending suits, said the appeal to the high bench doesn’t focus on the merits of the dispute itself.
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“It’s more delay, they’re going to fight till the end, and we’re going to continue to fight as well,” he told The Associated Press.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Dashcam video shows a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper navigating around a protester in Memphis, Tennessee, who appeared to play possum in front of a patrol car, leading the agency to swat down viral claims the man was actually hit.
Video posted to social media by the Tennessee Highway Patrol shows the trooper trying to work his way around a group of protesters. A man who appeared to be one of the protesters walked into frame from behind a white SUV.
The man, wearing a bright orange construction vest and holding a handheld radio, raised his hands and stepped in front of the trooper.
The trooper can be heard on camera shouting, “Move! Get out of my way! Get out of my way! Move!”
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Tennessee Highway Patrol released dashcam video showing a protester grabbing a patrol car and falling, disputing viral claims he was struck during a Memphis protest. (Tennessee Highway Patrol)
Instead, the protester shook his head and raised his index finger as if signaling the trooper to “hold on.”
The protester then grabbed the patrol vehicle’s push bars and fell backward, appearing to act as if he had been hit by the trooper’s vehicle.
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The protester dramatically fell backward while holding on to the patrol car’s push bar. (Tennessee Highway Patrol)
He then pulled himself up, raised his index finger at the trooper once more and walked back to his vehicle.
The video circulated on social media with claims the man was hit by a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper, claims the agency called false.
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The protester popped right back up after falling backward. (Tennessee Highway Patrol)
“We respect and protect the right of people to protest peacefully,” the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. “That right, however, does not include entering active roadways or placing themselves in danger.
“In this case, video clearly shows the individual holding onto the front of the trooper’s vehicle, lying down, then standing back up afterward and leaving the scene under his own power,” the statement continued. “At no point does the video show the individual being run over or injured, despite the narratives circulating on social media.”
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The agency added that its priority is public safety for protesters, motorists and troopers.
“When someone enters the roadway, it creates a serious and immediate risk, and troopers are trained to respond to prevent injuries or worse outcomes,” the agency added.
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South Carolina Republican lawmakers have introduced a new bill that would criminalize abortion as murder, applying existing homicide and wrongful death laws from the moment of conception.
The Prenatal Equal Protection Act, introduced in the South Carolina House of Representatives, would be the strongest anti-abortion law in state history if enacted. The legislation has been scheduled for a hearing in the South Carolina House Constitutional Laws Subcommittee on Wednesday.
Supporters argue current heartbeat laws merely regulate abortion and still allow the procedure in certain cases, prompting Republican state Sen. Lee Bright to introduce the legislation as a way to extend full legal protections to unborn children.
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The South Carolina State House is seen in Columbia, South Carolina, where lawmakers are considering the Prenatal Equal Protection Act, a bill that would treat abortion as a homicide under state law. (LOGAN CYRUS/AFP via Getty Images)
“These children deserve equal protection. I will be filing a bill of equal protection today. I know we’ve got hearts and minds to change,” Bright said Tuesday at a press conference at the South Carolina State House.
South Carolina State Representative Rob Harris said that in 2023, the Legislature and the Governor revised the heartbeat law that regulates abortion and still allows the procedure under certain circumstances.
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South Carolina Sen. Lee Bright, R-Roebuck, spoke at a news conference about an abortion bill he is sponsoring on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
“Incredibly, in one section of that bill, it asserts that life begins at conception, but in another section, it writes into law where, when, and how someone may legally murder a baby in South Carolina,” Harris said.
The legislation would apply to all parties involved, including the pregnant woman.
Republicans hold large majorities in both chambers of the South Carolina General Assembly, meaning the bill could pass if GOP lawmakers remain unified. But similar abortion legislation has previously stalled amid divisions within the GOP, raising questions about whether the bill can advance.
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A November bill sought to further restrict abortion under existing law but stalled after some Republicans objected. The Prenatal Equal Protection Act goes much further, treating abortion as homicide from the moment of conception and applying criminal penalties, including for pregnant women — a shift supporters say is necessary to fully eliminate abortion.
Supporters argue the earlier bill failed because it regulated abortion rather than abolishing it, and say incremental restrictions have repeatedly stalled or been struck down, leaving a full equal-protection approach as the only lasting solution.
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A protester held a sign during a news conference on an abortion bill at the South Carolina Statehouse on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
The new bill is backed by national anti-abortion activists who have warned Republican lawmakers they could face primary challenges if they do not support it.
Critics are expected to raise concerns about criminal penalties, enforcement and constitutional issues.
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Southeast
Trans athlete’s lawyer avoids questions about West Virginia AG’s comments about sexual harassment allegations
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American Civil Liberties Union attorney Joshua Block walked away from questions regarding a recent statement by West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey addressing allegations of harassment against Block’s client, a transgender athlete from West Virginia.
McCuskey, who is leading his state’s legal defense against the trans athlete after the athlete sued to block the state’s law to keep biological males out of girls’ sports, addressed the allegations at a news conference Monday.
“Any time you think of a child being harassed, it gives you pause as a parent. And it isn’t really part of our case, but harassment of any child of any kind in this country is inappropriate. And it’s wrong, and we all need to stand up to ensure that children aren’t being harassed in any of their venues, particularly athletics,” McCuskey said.
Fox News Digital attempted to question Block about McCuskey’s statement after oral arguments for the case in the Supreme Court Tuesday, but Block walked away from the first wave of questioning to take a picture with his team and client.
After the photo op, Fox News Digital again pursued Block to inquire about McCuskey’s statement, but Block again walked away from the questions with assistants surrounding him.
The allegations were leveled against the trans athlete by Bridgeport High School student Adaleia Cross, who was a track and field teammate of the trans athlete when the two were at Bridgeport Middle School.
Cross’ mother, Abby, told Fox News Digital what the trans athlete allegedly said to her daughter when they shared the girls’ locker room during the 2022-23 school year. Adaleia was in eighth grade, and the trans athlete was in seventh. Abby Cross alleges the trans athlete made graphic and vulgar sexual threats to her daughter and other girls on the team.
The trans athlete’s legal representatives at the American Civil Liberties Union denied the allegations.
“Our client and her mother deny these allegations, and the school district investigated the allegations reported to the school by A.C. and found them to be unsubstantiated. We remain committed to defending the rights of all students under Title IX, including the right to a safe and inclusive learning environment free from harassment and discrimination,” an ACLU statement provided to Fox News Digital said.
The Cross family’s attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) responded to the ACLU’s statement.
“Our client has sworn under oath and under penalty of perjury in numerous cases about the events that took place between her and the male athlete. As a result of the situation, [Cross] had to step away from the sport she loved entirely and sacrifice a key element of her school experience to protect herself,” an ADF statement provided to Fox News Digital said.
The trans athlete personally denied the allegations to The New York Times in a story published Monday.
“I was not raised like that,” the athlete said.
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The outlet obtained a letter from the Harrison County School District, stating an investigation determined Cross’ allegations “could not be substantiated.”
The Cross family said when they reported the alleged harassment to the school, nothing was done to reprimand the trans athlete to their knowledge.
“They told me they would do a full investigation into what I told them,” Adaleia said. “And then, all of a sudden, it was like nothing else was happening. It was done, and it seemed like they thought nothing of it because they didn’t talk to us about it at all. They just left it there and didn’t tell us anything else. So, it just made it seem like, ‘Yup it’s done.’”
Her father, Holden Cross, said, “We received no response from the school after filing the report.”
Fox News Digital made repeated requests to the ACLU and the Harrison County School District, which oversees Bridgeport Middle School and Bridgeport High School, seeking documentation related to the school’s investigation and clarification on whether an investigation occurred and, if so, why only the Cross family was not notified of the results. Those requests have not been met.
Meanwhile, former Lincoln Middle School girls track and field runner Emmy Salerno alleges the trans athlete used “intimidation tactics” against her after Salerno refused to compete against the trans athlete during an event in the 2024 spring season.
Salerno’s protest came on April 18, 2024, when she and the trans athlete were in eighth grade. Salerno, along with four other girls, refused to compete in the girls shot put competition that day at a local meet. Salerno claims her team was disqualified from the following meet and then began to face intimidating stares from the trans athlete at public events.
“After we stepped out, it was an immediate personality change. He didn’t want to talk to me. He just wanted to stare at me and just stare down,” Salerno told Fox News Digital.
Salerno has also provided Fox News Digital a screenshot of a Snapchat post, which appeared to be sent by the trans athlete, showing a photo of Salerno with a caption that says, “Reminder that she has more testosterone than me.”
Salerno said there was an incident in which the trans athlete followed her while they were at a local basketball game, making intimidating stares, and Salerno was concerned the trans athlete would try to “fight” her.
“At the basketball game when he just followed me everywhere, I kind of felt like, ‘Is he gonna try to fight me?’” Salerno said. “‘Is he going to try and sneak up behind me and punch me?’”
Salerno and her father say they believe the stares, following patterns and social media posts were “intimidation tactics,” and there have been “lingering discomforts” stemming from the situation.
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Protesters gather outside the Supreme Court as it hears arguments over state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Washington. (Jose Luis Magana/AP)
“I’ve always tried to avoid him everywhere I went,” Salerno added.
The ACLU has not responded to Fox News Digital’s request for a response to Salerno’s allegations.
Salerno said she avoided competing against the trans athlete the following season, but rather than making a public protest, she told her coach not to include her in the lineup for the meets against the trans athlete to avoid a penalty to the team.
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Salerno claims she has also heard other girls in the community speak about the sexual harassment allegations made by Cross against the trans athlete. Salerno said she has never been in a locker room or bathroom with the trans athlete.
“Around track season, it gets more talked about,” Salerno said of the sexual harassment allegations. “I heard through my school, people were talking about it.”
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