Judge postpones sentencing of PG&E in case tied to blast
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge said Monday he is inclined to require Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to mention its convictions in ads and have employees do thousands of hours of community service as part of its sentence in a criminal case stemming from a deadly natural gas explosion in the San Francisco Bay Area.
U.S. District Court Judge Thelton Henderson made the comment as he pushed back his final sentencing decision, saying he needed more time to consider comments by attorneys for the government and PG&E.
Henderson’s move followed a lengthy hearing that included emotional testimony from three victims of the 2010 explosion of a PG&E natural gas pipeline that killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes in the city of San Bruno.
“The loss of my loved ones, my personal belongings, my neighbourhood, my life happened due to the negligence of a greedy company that put profits ahead of safety,” said Sue Bullis, 56, who lost her husband, son and mother-in-law in the explosion.