SKUNK WORKS CASE TO GO TO TRIAL CLAIMS TO BE HEARD IN OPEN COURT FOR 1ST TIME.

Byline: Katie Cooper Staff Writer

A federal judge has ruled a jury may hear the cases of five current or former Burbank residents who allege that toxic contamination from Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works plant caused them to suffer severe health problems.

The ruling Thursday by U.S. District Court Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer means long-aired claims that the company released cancer-causing chemicals into Burbank's water supply will be heard in open court for the first time.

Since paying $60 million in a confidential settlement in 1996 to 1,350 Burbank residents who alleged health problems from the plant's operations, thousands of similar claims filed in state court have been dismissed in the early stages of litigation.

``After all the dismissals and the settlements, we're going to get our case aired, and that's very gratifying,'' said Steven N. Williams, an attorney for the plaintiffs.

The company also settled a separate class-action lawsuit last year. In both settlements, Lockheed denied liability for any injury.

Lockheed spokeswoman Gail E. Rymer said the company was looking forward to the trial.

``All along, we've wanted to have our day in court ... to vindicate ourselves that we didn't harm anyone,'' said Rymer.

A pretrial conference on the matter is scheduled for June 11. Williams said he anticipates Pfaelzer will set a trial date so the cases can get under way in short order.

``They've been pending for five years and that's a long time,'' he said.

The cases were originally filed as a class-action suit in 1996 with more than 100 plaintiffs. But over time, the number of plaintiffs alleging health problems, including cancer, have been whittled down to the current five.

A sixth plaintiff whose case will be heard with the others is alleging the plant's operations interfered with the enjoyment of her property.

The claims are centered around the company's use of trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene (PCE), cleaning solvents used at the former defense plant. The plaintiffs claim the solvents seeped into the soil and contaminated underground drinking water supplies starting in the 1940s.

The thousands of similar cases that were dismissed since 1996 were tossed out because either the plaintiffs had missed the statute of limitations deadline or had failed to show a link between their illnesses and the plant's operations.

But Williams said his clients had shown enough evidence to justify a trial.

They were diagnosed with cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma and thyroid cancer before the statute of limitations expired, Williams said.

Rymer said Lockheed believed the judge struck a balance by trimming back the number of plaintiffs.

``They will have their day in court, and we're prepared to show the claims are without merit,'' she said.