Lawyer ready to battle BP again

HOUSTON (Reuters) - The Texas lawyer who spearheaded civil litigation stemming from the 2005 explosion at BP's (BP.L)(BP.N) Texas City, Texas refinery said on Monday that the oil spill at its operation in the Gulf of Mexico shows the company's risky reputation remains.

"BP is no better today than they were five years ago," attorney Brent Coon said at the Reuters Global Energy Summit in Houston.

He called BP a "habitual criminal" with a history of cutting corners and unfettered risk.

A BP spokesman declined to comment on Coon's remarks.

BP has said it found no link between years of budget cuts at the Texas City plant and the disaster. A two-year investigation by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board concluded that cutbacks in maintenance and repairs paved the way for the explosion.

Investigations into the cause of the April 20 blowout and explosion that sank a drilling rig continue. The explosion killed 11 offshore workers and sprung a massive oil leak that threatens much of the Gulf Coast. Lawsuits are piling up in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi for potential environmental and economic damage to delicate marshlands, commercial fishing and tourism.

Coon represents a rig survivor suing BP, rig owner Transocean (RIG.N) and others.

"This is a horrible mess," he said. "This ripple effect could affect the whole country at some point."

The Texas City disaster, which killed 15 workers and injured 180 more, cost the company more than $2 billion to settle lawsuits. BP spent another $1 billion overhauling the plant and paid a $50 million fine after pleading guilty to a felony violation of the Clean Air Act.

The company also paid a $20 million fine and pleaded guilty to a federal misdemeanor for oil spills in 2006 from a corroded pipeline that BP operates on Alaska's North Slope.

Coon said such fines are too paltry to effectively deter risky policies or procedures.

He likened BP's actions to those of a habitual drunk driver who faces minor punishments and gets back behind the wheel. No individuals were charged with any crimes stemming from the Texas City explosion or the Alaska spills, though some top executives left the company.

Coon said individuals need to be more accountable, with one real threat of punishment.

"Jail," he said.

(Reporting by Kristen Hays. Editing by Robert MacMillan)