RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring is suing a Texas company for selling the state what he calls unapproved highway safety equipment.
Herring announced the legal action against Trinity Industries and Trinity Highway Products on Thursday.
Trinity stopped shipments of its ET-Plus guardrails in October after a Texas jury ordered it to pay at least $175 million for misleading regulators.
A whistleblower says the company changed the guardrails' design but didn't inform regulators for several years. Critics say that the 2005 change turned the ends of the guardrails into spears that could impale vehicles.
Virginia and state contractors purchased and installed thousands of these products on Virginia highways.
In the complaint filed in Richmond Circuit Court, Virginia is seeking civil penalties and costs relating to replacing Trinity's products if necessary.
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