美国一位联邦法院法官驳回了埃克森美孚公司对麻萨诸塞州和纽约州提起的诉讼。埃克森美孚公司试图阻止这两个州调查该公司是否在气候变暖的问题上说谎。
联邦法官卡普罗尼（Valerie Caproni）裁决，埃克森美孚公司称这两个州的行为有政治动机以及试图剥夺该公司宪法权利的说法不合情理。
卡普罗尼法官以“终审裁决”驳回了埃克森美孚公司的诉讼，这意味着该公司不得再次提起同样诉讼。
起诉埃克森美孚公司的麻萨诸塞州司法部长希雷和纽约州司法部长施耐德曼对法官的裁决表示满意。
埃克森美孚公司的发言人说，该公司正考虑下一步的法律行动。他在发给媒体的电邮中说：“我们认为气候变化有真正的危险，我们希望参与解决这个问题。我们投资了80亿美元来改善能源效率和低排放技术，包括碳捕获以及下一代的生物燃料。”
麻萨诸塞州和纽约州的司法部长提出调阅相关文件，以查证埃克森美孚公司是否隐瞒全球变暖的信息，并为了维护其利润而对调查人员说谎。随后埃克森美孚公司2016年对这两个州提出诉讼。
A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit by Exxon Mobil against Massachusetts and New York to try to stop their investigation into whether the oil giant lied about climate change.
Judge Valerie Caproni ruled that Exxon Mobil’s allegation that the states are politically motivated and trying to deprive it of its constitutional rights is “implausible.”
Caproni dismissed Exxon’s lawsuit “with prejudice,” meaning it cannot sue a second time.
Massachusetts and New York Attorneys General Maura Healey and Eric Schneiderman, respectively, who pursued the case against Exxon, say they are pleased by the judge’s decision.
An Exxon spokesman said the company is considering its next legal steps. He wrote in an e-mail to the media: “We believe the risk of climate change is real and we want to be part of the solution. We’ve invested about $8 billion on energy efficiency and low-emission technologies, such as carbon capture and next generation biofuels.”
Exxon filed its lawsuit in 2016 after the two attorneys general subpoenaed documents into whether the oil company hid knowledge about global warming and lied to its investors about the effects to protect its profits.