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Washington State

Office of the Attorney General

Attorney General

Nick Brown

AG's High Tech Unit Sues Online Client Search Firm

SEATTLE - Attorney General Christine Gregoire has filed a lawsuit against a Seattle firm that charged a fee to provide certified public accountants with leads on clients, but then did not make good on its promises.

The firm, Marketing Systems of America, uses the Internet to advertise that it can provide accountants with lists of potential customers in need of accounting services.

States, FTC allow Chevron/Texaco Merger to Proceed

Seattle - Sept. 7, 2001 - Washington state, along with 11 other states and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), today filed settlement papers that clear the way for the merger of Chevron Corp. and Texaco Inc.

Today's settlement was reached after the companies made major concessions, including agreeing to sell all of Texaco's refining and marketing assets in the United States to another buyer, possibly Shell.

Siding contractor charged with felony sales tax evasion

EVERETT, Wash., March 22, 2001 - The operators of Pacific Siding Company of Bothell were charged today with eight counts of first degree theft in connection with the alleged theft of nearly $255,000 in state and local sales taxes.

Lana Martuscelli of the Criminal Justice Division of the Attorney General's office filed the felony charges in Snohomish County Superior Court against Melinda L. Miller and Stephan A. Johnson, both 43. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

Attorney General's Office Helps Shut Down International Lottery Scam

Seattle -February 7, 2001- Operators of a cross-border lottery scam that targeted elderly Americans have agreed to pay more than $334,000 to settle a complaint filed by the Federal Trade Commission and the attorneys general of Washington and Arizona.

The operators of Canadian companies Win USA Services Ltd., IRAL Services Inc. and IRAL Enterprises Inc. bilked U.S. consumers out of more than $2.1 million by selling tickets in foreign lotteries while misrepresenting the odds of winning.

PDC, AG, King County Reach Agreement on Campaign Finance Violations

Olympia – October 24, 2001 - A settlement with the state will require King County to change its payroll deduction procedures, provide training on the new procedures, educate other public employers on proper payroll deduction procedures and pay a monetary penalty to settle claims that it illegally withheld money for political activities from employees’ paychecks.

"I’m pleased that we could reach an agreement with King County that saved the taxpayers the cost of a lawsuit on these issues," Attorney General Christine Gregoire said.

Pierce County Man Sentenced in Hazardous Waste Dumping Case

Olympia - November 8, 2000 - A Pierce County clean-up contractor and junk hauler was sentenced in Pierce County Superior Court Wednesday for dumping dangerous waste onto the property of a 66-year-old Lakewood woman.

Dell L. Merritt, Jr. pleaded guilty July 20 after being charged by the Attorney General and the Pierce County Prosecutor with second-degree malicious mischief and with criminally violating the Washington Hazardous Waste Management Act.

State won't oppose Swedish-Providence merger

Seattle - July 19, 2000 - The Washington state Attorney General’s office has completed its review of the proposed sale and merger agreement between Providence Health Systems and Swedish Health Services and will not oppose the plan. The Attorney General's approval of the plan came after the parties agreed to certain modifications in their agreement to ensure continued competition between the two entities.

States, BP and Arco Agree to Postpone Merger Trial

Olympia - March 15, 2000 - Significant progress in settlement talks between the states and BP Amoco and Arco, have resulted in the postponement of the proceedings challenging the proposed merger of the two oil companies.

The state of Washington joined the Federal Trade Commission and the states of California and Oregon in requesting a stay to allow time to pursue settlement negotiations that were bolstered with constructive new proposals from the oil companies.