Atlas Metal owners jailed, held without bail on charges tied to Watts explosion near school
Owners of a Los Angeles scrap metal facility which was the site of an explosion near a school in Watts last year were jailed after prosecutors told a judge Thursday that they violated conditional terms of their release.
Gary Weisenberg, 78, of Encino and Matthew Weisenberg, 37, of Los Angeles were taken into custody after a judge revoked their own recognizance release after prosecutors filed a motion saying state inspectors found combustible materials during a visit to the facility this month — a violation of a prior court order. For years, S&W Atlas Iron and Metal Corp. has been accused of polluting a nearby school campus with metal projectiles and harmful toxins left in the soil.
The Weisenbergs, owners of Atlas, will remain in county jail ahead of a Monday bail hearing after pleading not guilty during an arraignment Thursday at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
They face 21 felony counts of knowingly disposing hazardous waste at a site with no permit and one felony count of deposit of hazardous waste. The indictment also includes one misdemeanor count of public nuisance and two misdemeanor counts of failure to maintain or operate a facility to minimize the possibility of a fire or explosion.
There was an explosion at Atlas's metal recycling facility in Watts on Aug. 12, 2024.
The fiery blast happened around 8:20 a.m. just as students were arriving for the first day of classes at nearby Jordan High School. At the time, owners Gary Weisenberg and Matthew Weisenberg were already facing felony criminal charges in connection with years-long allegations of illegal dumping. EPA Administrator Michael Regan and Mayor Karen Bass visited the campus in the days after the explosion, meeting with staff and students.
"No young person should be forced to go to school next to a metal plant known for spreading toxins into the air that could cause long-term health impacts like cancer and other diseases," Bass said in a statement at the time.
Some in the area have said they have loved ones who were diagnosed with serious medical conditions they believe are tied to the pollution. A woman who lived at a housing complex near Atlas's metal recycling facility said her daughter had to undergo multiple operations to remove tumors from her throat.
Community groups, neighbors and students at the high school have also spoken out about incidents of metal shrapnel and projectiles being sent onto the campus as well as loud noises and strong odors coming from the facility.
"We should not have to fight so hard to be able to breathe air that doesn't cause cancer," Genesis Cruz, a recent Jordan High School graduate, said as Atlas faced backlash in 2022. "I'm not a lawyer, yet, but I know that the decision in front of the judge is simple. Stop this company or kids will continue to be exposed to toxic chemicals."
In that case, a federal judge eventually issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting Atlas from launching metal projectiles. Years later, in the summer of 2023, the DA's office filed felony criminal charges against the Weisenbergs.
Students and staff have reported finding metal shrapnel and other debris while unsafe lead levels have been detected in soil samples, showing levels that exceed government safety standards. In the past, school district lab testing has shown unsafe lead levels — in soil taken from the campus's softball field and from inside classrooms — with lead concentrations of up to 790 micrograms per square foot found.
That's more than 75 times higher than the level the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines as hazardous.
Atlas Metal has denied allegations of harmful pollution before, calling LAUSD's claims in 2022 that state inspectors had found dangerous levels of lead and other metals as "factually groundless."
In 2020, the LA Unified School District filed a federal lawsuit against Atlas Metal alleging it was illegally dumping hazardous waste and posing serious health risks to students and staff. The Environmental Justice Unit of the City Attorney's Office later sued the company over allegedly being a public nuisance, saying it pollutes the area with dangerous and illegal waste dumping, noxious fumes and excessive noise.
Jordan High School opened in Watts in 1923. Atlas Metal opened its facility next door more than 20 years later, in 1949.
