Bar pilot’s appeal rejected by judge

A federal judge has rejected an appeal by the Petaluma bar pilot who was sentenced to 10 months in prison for his role in the 2007 Cosco Busan oil spill.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston denied John Cota’s request to cut the sentence in half.

Last week, Cota’s attorney Jeff Bornstein filed documents with the court claiming that prosecutors misled the court about penalties adopted in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Illston called that incident a “lesson for everyone” in her remarks before sentencing Cota earlier this month.

But Bornstein said lawmakers did not intend to lengthen prison sentences through tougher environmental laws adopted after the Valdez incident.

Bornstein asked that Cota be allowed to serve half his sentence through home confinement.

But on Tuesday, Illston said she believes the 10-month sentence is appropriate and in line with what Congress intended. Cota is scheduled to be jailed in September.

— Argus-Courier