Brockovich, Masry host press conference to attack Beverly Hills School District findings

Erin Brockovich and Ed Masry

‘This is not about another movie. This is our work. This is what we do.’

––Erin Brockovich, during Wednesday morning meeting in Westlake Village

Erin Brockovich and Ed Masry hosted a press conference Wednesday at the Westlake Village offices of Masry & Vititoe to announce that the firm would be filing additional complaints in a case that alleges contaminants at two Beverly Hills schools have caused hundreds of cases of cancer in students and faculty.

"People in our opinion have been poisoned," Brockovich said. "We now have 300 confirmed individuals that have cancer." She said that most of them are students, alumni and faculty. She said those people sought out the law firm for representation.

"We are filing another 177 claims on top of the 25 filed two days ago against the district and the city of Beverly Hills," Brockovich said.

She started the conference saying that she and lawyer Ed Masry of "Erin Brockovich" the movie are taking a lot of heat over the allegations they have leveled concerning Beverly Hills High School and Beverly Vista Elementary School. Masry and Brockovich won a $333 –million settlement from Pacific Gas & Electric for the residents of Hinkley, Calif. Julia Roberts won the best actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Brockovich.
However, Brockovich was quick to point out that, "This is not about another movie. This is our work. This is what we do."

Brockovich alleged that the Beverly Hills school district knew as far back as 1999 that there were high levels of toxins found at the two schools. The school district is referring to an August 1999 report completed by Beverly Hills High consultants, The Plylmar Group, Inc., to refute the claims.

The two allege that the toxic fumes are emitting in part from an oil-drilling rig on the high school campus.

Brockovich has alleged that as many as 300 claims could eventually be filed on behalf of alumni who attended the school between 1975 and 1997 and have been treated for Hodgkin’s disease, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and thyroid, breast and other cancers.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District and the Beverly Hills Unified School District refute the claims by Brockovich and Masry that the active oil rig by the athletic fields at Beverly Hills High School is emitting high levels of benzene and other cancer-causing chemicals. They say that their own tests show that contaminant levels are well below health limits established by the state.

—Lisa Adams