STOCKTON, Calif. (April 15, 2008) — Jerold Brannon, founder of Brannon Tire in Stockton, said he will fight in court a complaint from the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office.
That complaint, filed Feb. 14, seeks more than $300,000 in fines from the tire dealership/retreading operations for 11 alleged violations including improper scrap tire storage, inaccurate recordkeeping and not maintaining fire prevention procedures.
“We have never disposed of a tire illegally,” said Brannon, who said he believes he's a victim of vague state laws.
David Irey, deputy district attorney for San Joaquin County, said he hopes to meet with Brannon's attorney within the next few weeks. He declined comment on the case, saying he preferred to reserve such discussions for Brannon's attorney.
“The real problem is with the state calling a retreadable casing a scrap tire,” said Brannon, whose business retreads 120 truck and industrial tires a day. “I cannot tell you how much overtime we've spent trying to comply with the regulations. They made us rearrange our yard three times, and each time they told us to do it again.”