By The Associated Press
A San Jose judge has increased by $50 million the amount that paint makers will have to pay into a fund to remove lead paint from homes across the state.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge James P. Kleinberg on Tuesday issued a final verdict ordering Sherwin Williams, National Lead and ConAgra to pay $1.15 billion after finding that the companies knew the paint was harmful to children.
A tentative ruling issued in December after a five-week nonjury trial had said the companies would have to pay $1.1 billion.
Throughout the case, the industry had argued that the old paint is not a significant public health risk and that the companies never deliberately sold a harmful product.
Kleinberg rejected those arguments Tuesday, citing documents dating back to 1900.