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Randall K. Rathbun #09765
Depew Gillen Rathbun & McInteer LC
8301 E. 21 st Street, Suite 450
W ichita, KS 67206-2936
Telephone: (316) 262-4000
randy@depewgillen.com




                 IN T HE U NITED S TATES D ISTRICT C OURT
                           D ISTRICT OF K ANSAS




                                                                     e
DUANE ANGLETON, BETTY ANGLETON,                 )




                                                                   ic
MICHAEL R. BRADY, GEORGE CHRONISTER,            )
LOUISE STILLS, COOK TEXAS PROPERTIES,           )




                                                                rv
LLC, JERROD M. DETTLE and MARY E. DETTLE        )
d/b/a BLUEJACKET OIL & CATTLE COMPANY,          )




                                                              Se
JOHNNY DODSON, KRINA CORPORATION,               )
SANJIVKUMAR GANDHI, KRINA GANDHI,               )
RENEE HELPHINGSTINE, TY JOHNSON,                )
TAMMY JOHNSON, MARK LIVELY,                     )
EIGHT STREET CAR WASH, INC., LMT                )
                                                       s
                                               ew
ENTERPRISE, INC., KAREN PFISTER,                )
VIRGIL SCOTT f/k/a VS, LLC f/k/a WISE           )
INVESTMENT CORP., LEE ANN GINGERY,              )
                                          N

BOBBY SHAFER, JR. and GINA SHAFER d/b/a         )
TRIPLE B SALES, BOB WILLIS, PHYLLIS             )
                              se


WILLIS, and LARRY WYRICK, individually and      )
on behalf of his agricultural landlords,        )
                                                )
                 ou




                        Plaintiffs,             )
                                                )
vs.                                             )              Case No.: 08-1255-MLB-KMH
              rth




                                                )
COFFEYVILLE RESOURCES REFINING &                )
MARKETING, LLC,                                 )
 ou




                                                )
                        Defendant.              )
C




________________________________________________)



                                        C OMPLAINT

       COME NOW the plaintiffs, by and through their counsel, and for their

claims against the defendant allege and state as follows:
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        1.    The plaintiffs are property owners who reside in the states of Kansas

and Oklahoma. They all reside or own property in close proximity to the Verdigris

River downstream of the defendant's refinery.

        2.    The defendant is a limited liability company organized under the

laws of the state of Delaware and authorized to transact business in this state. It

may be served with process by service upon its registered agent, the Corporation

Service Company, located at 200 SW 30 th Street, Topeka, KS 66611.



                             J URISDICTION AND V ENUE

        3.    This action is brought on behalf of the above plaintiffs for damages

arising out of the hazardous contaminants that escaped from the defendant's

refinery during the flood of July 2007. This Court has federal jurisdiction under

the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, 33 U.S.C. 2717 ("OPA")

        4.    The defendant owns and operates a refinery in Coffeyville, Kansas.

The refinery is a facility as defined under the OPA. Defendant is both an "owner

or operator" and a "responsible party" pursuant to the provisions of 33 U.S.C. §

2701.

        5.    Oil from the facility was discharged into the Verdigris River, which

is a waters of the United States.




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       6.     Pursuant to 33 USC § 2713, the plaintiffs have presented claims to

the defendant 90 days prior to the filing of this action. The defendant has ignored

the claims of these plaintiffs.

       7.      Venue is proper in this Court under 33 USC §2717(b) because the

discharge and damages occurred in this judicial district.




                             B ASIS OF THE C LAIM

       8.     The defendant owns and operates an oil refinery at 400 North Linden

Street in Coffeyville, Kansas. The refinery, which has been in existence since

1906, has been operated by the defendant since 2004. Among other things, the

defendant processes crude oil and produces gasoline and diesel.

       9.     On July 1, 2007, flood waters from the Verdigris River flooded the

refinery. U.S. Weather Bureau reports on the previous day warned the defendant

that there would be severe flooding which defendant should have known would

cause serious damage to the facility and, consequently, its downstream neighbors.

       9.     As the defendant's employees left the refinery in the face of rising

waters, they wantonly and recklessly failed to close a valve on one of the storage

tanks at the refinery and, consequently, over 90,000 gallons of crude oil, diesel and

other pollutants spilled out of the refinery. Oil was carried by the Verdigris

downstream into Oklahoma. The EPA found that a sheen of oil from the refinery

extended 10 miles down the river.

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       10.    Based upon testing by the EPA, a number of hazardous substances

were discovered downstream from the facility, including benzene, toluene, ethyl

benzene, xylene and naphthalene. Benzene is highly toxic to humans. The United

States Department of Health and Human Services has determined that benzene is a

known carcinogen. Both the International Agency for Cancer Research and the

EPA have determined that benzene is carcinogenic to humans.

       11.    The flooding of east Coffeyville was made exponentially more

devastating to the community because of the toxic pollutants and crude that

escaped from the refinery. A similar flood in 1943 resulted in residents moving

back into their homes shortly after the flood waters had receded and going on with

their lives. The toxic substances that escaped from the refinery have made moving

back into their homes a substantial hardship, if not an impossibility, to some of

these plaintiffs. The crude, toxic muck and contaminants have resulted in the

abandonment and destruction of many of the homes and businesses in the vicinity

of the refinery. Some of the plaintiffs still reside in temporary housing or have

simply moved from the area.

       12.    To further compound the damages sustained by these plaintiffs, a

number of plaintiffs have been subject to administrative proceedings from the City

of Coffeyville which is attempting to demolish their homes or businesses.




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       13.    The conduct of the defendant has created a nuisance under the

common law of this state and this Court has jurisdiction to adjudicate these claims

as well as those arising under the OPA.

       14.    The conduct of the defendant evidences a reckless disregard for the

probable consequences of its actions, and as such, the defendant is liable for

punitive damages.

       15.    As a result of the crude oil and hazardous substances from the

defendant's refinery contained in the flood waters, the plaintiffs have sustained

substantial damages, including:

       a.     damages to their homes, businesses, livestock or crops;

       b.     loss of income, profits, and earnings;

       c.     remediation and removal costs; and

       d.     annoyance, inconvenience and loss of peace of mind.

       Wherefore, the plaintiffs respectfully pray for a judgment in actual damages

in an amount in excess of $4,393,000, plus punitive damages, their costs and any

other and further relief as the court might deem just or equitable.

                            Respectfully submitted,

                            DEPEW GILLEN RATHBUN & MCINTEER LC


                            s/Randall K. Rathbun
                            Randall K. Rathbun #09765
                            Attorneys for Plaintiffs



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                      DESIGNATION OF PLACE OF TRIAL

       COME NOW the plaintiffs and designate Wichita, Kansas, as the place of

the trial of this action.

                             Respectfully submitted,

                             DEPEW GILLEN RATHBUN & MCINTEER LC

                             s/Randall K. Rathbun
                             Randall K. Rathbun #09765
                             Attorneys for Plaintiffs



                            REQUEST FOR JURY TRIAL

       COME NOW the plaintiffs and respectfully request a trial by jury with

regard to the above-captioned action.


                             Respectfully submitted,

                             DEPEW GILLEN RATHBUN & MCINTEER LC

                             s/Randall K. Rathbun
                             Randall K. Rathbun, #09765
                             Attorneys for Plaintiffs




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