5/14/13 - The owner of a Howell recycling company has turned down a plea deal on allegations that he used a device to manipulate weight scales. Regal Recycling owner Vern Brockway was charged with general weights and measures violations last month. Those charges follow a one-year investigation by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Developmentâs Weights and Measures division as well as the Livingston County Sheriffâs Department. He rejected a plea deal in the case on Monday. He is scheduled to appear in court next on May 30th, with jury selection scheduled for June 6th. Authorities say that the DOA discovered a device on one of Brockwayâs scales during a routine inspection in April of last year. They allege that the device could manipulate the scale to increase or decrease the measured weight of cargo trucks by up to half a ton. A review of the Sheriffâs Department reports by WHMI found statements from an employee who claimed to have seen the device used several times, mostly on trucks bringing scrap metal from a General Motors contract job in Flint. The report also included statements from other employees who said it was common knowledge that the scale was used to reduce the weight of incoming scrap. (TD)
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