Whitehouse: BP broke the law

WASHINGTON, June 8 (UPI) -- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said Tuesday oil company BP "absolutely" broke the law in causing the Gulf of Mexico disaster that began April 20.

"It's pretty much agreed they (broke the law)," Whitehouse said, referencing the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, which makes polluting a navigable waterway without a permit a federal misdemeanor.

"It's only a misdemeanor statute, but it provides for at least the avenue of criminal prosecution and that leads to potential criminal fines, potential criminal restitution to individual parties who are harmed," Whitehouse said Tuesday on CNBC, The Hill reported. "So I think it's almost a lay-down hand as a criminal case at this point and the issue really is going to be about penalties and damages."

Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, prosecuted the 1997 North Cape oil spill. The committee is looking at lifting the liability limit on companies that cause oil spills from $75 million to $10 billion.

Last week the U.S. Department of Justice began a criminal investigation of the spill.