BP’s “Brash Conduct” Caused Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster, Judge Rules

U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier has determined that “brash conduct” by BP led to the explosion of a Gulf of Mexico oil rig in 2010, killing 11 workers and leading to one of the worst environmental disasters in history. Judge Barbier’s decision has the potential to quadruple the civil penalties faced by the British petroleum giant, which has already paid billions in criminal fines. Barbier also specified that BP holds 67 percent responsibility for the incident, with 30 percent allocated to drilling rig company Transocean Ltd. t of and with Halliburton – which agreed to a $1.1 billion settlement for its role in the spill earlier this week – responsible for three percent.