A battle between the Department of Justice and an East Peoria, Illinois diesel performance company over aftermarket defeat devices is finally over. As a result of the settlement, the defendants will pay a $600,000 penalty and stop selling defeat device products. Employees of the business will also have to attend compliance training.
The companies at the heart of this matter are River City Diesel LLC, RCD Performance LLC, and Midwest Truck and 4WD Center LLC, (collectively RDC) along with Joshua Davis. According to the EPA and the DOJ, these companies knowingly sold and installed defeat devices on diesel trucks that effectively violated the federal Clear Air Act. The original complaint dates back to August of 2022.
The $600,000 judgement against the defendants was based on their financial situation. Beyond that, RCD must notify customers that it will no longer honor any warranty claims nor provide technical support for any of the defeat devices it sold.
More: Mercedes-Benz May Need To Compensate Owners Of Vehicles With Defeat Devices
“By providing devices that avoid air emissions controls, defendants helped others cheat a system designed to protect the public’s health, in particular, elderly and young children,” said Acting Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
“Today’s settlement holds them accountable for their unlawful acts and not only prohibits the future sale of aftermarket defeat devices by the Defendants, but also mandates Clean Air Act compliance training for all of their employees.”
The EPA has long held that emission-defeat devices such as the ones sold by River City Diesel contribute to serious public health problems. Those concerns include aggravating existing asthma, cardiovascular disease, and decreased lung function. River City Diesel is only the latest to get stopped in its tracks over such products though.
Around the same time that the aforementioned case began, the EPA fined two firms in the Detroit metro area $10 million dollars over similar products. In fact, the agency believes that some 15 percent of trucks in the USA feature some sort of emission-defeating device.
