Trump pardons Michigan companies, people for Clean Air Act violations

Grant Schwab, The Detroit News on Jul 7, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday pardoned a series of western Michigan businesses and individuals for violations of the Clean Air Act in connection with an emissions manipulation scheme.

"It is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for 'fixing their car,'" the president wrote in a social media post.

"While I know this sounds ridiculous, it is nevertheless a fact, and part of the Weaponization and Stupidity that our Country had to endure during four long years of Sleepy Joe Biden," he added.

The individuals included Ryan Lalone, owner of truck supply company Diesel Freak LLC in Gaylord, and Wade Lalone, his brother and employee. The businesses included Diesel Freak, Accurate Truck Service LLC and Griffin Transportation Inc., both in Grand Rapids.

The parties involved were convicted and eventually sentenced in late 2023 and early 2024 for their involvement in a scheme to disable the emissions controls on hundreds of semi-trucks. Their penalties included a year of probation and fines from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan totaling $1.8 million.

"Holding corporations responsible for environmental crimes is tremendously important,” said Mark Totten, then-U.S. attorney for western Michigan, after the Lalone brothers were sentenced in 2024.

“This case is one of the largest of its kind ever charged in the United States and today’s sentences send a clear message that polluters who break environmental laws will be held accountable. Environmental rules safeguard the water we drink, the lakes we fish, and the air we breathe. It’s critical that we protect our people and our planet from harmful pollutants,” he added.

Other individuals named in the case include Douglas Larsen, Craig Scholten, Ryan Bos, Robert Swainston, Randy "Jeb" Clelland, Scott Decock and Glen Hoezee. Larsen, Scholten and Bos owned Accurate Truck Service at the time of their sentencing. Scholten and Bos owned Griffin Transportation.

Environmental groups criticized Trump's decision to pardon the parties involved in the Michigan scheme and other emissions manipulation efforts on Friday ahead of the July 4 holiday.

"Doesn't the president have better things to do the day before our 250th anniversary than to pardon people who polluted our air?" said Atid Kimelman, clean vehicles attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, in a statement.

Trump and his administration have worked vigorously over the past 18 months to cut environmental standards on vehicles, including eliminating all fines for violating federal fuel economy rules and repealing a key finding that allowed the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate tailpipe emissions that contribute to climate change.

For heavy trucks specifically, EPA head Lee Zeldin announced in March that diesel exhaust fluid sensors are no longer required. The agency said nitrogen oxdide, or NOx, can instead be used to meet regulatory requirements.

The parties who received clemency had been charged for circumventing emissions rules that are no longer in effect, a White House official told Fox News Digital.

Trump also, in a separate move, signed a presidential memorandum on June 29 promoting the "Freedom to Fix" their vehicles.

Totten, now the chief legal counsel for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. His office explained the scheme in a 2023 press release:

"Accurate Truck Service, LLC, removed or altered the hardware components of trucks with heavy-duty diesel engines; these components controlled the vehicles’ emissions.

"A separate company, Diesel Freak LLC, reprogrammed the engine computers of the trucks so that they would continue to function even after the hardware was removed or altered. This process is sometimes referred to as a 'deletion,' that is, 'deleting' the emissions controls from the vehicles.

“'Deleting' emissions controls from the vehicles can improve performance and fuel economy and save maintenance costs, but also causes significant detrimental environmental impacts. Tampering with or removing emissions controls can drastically increase the emissions of nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and non-methane hydrocarbons found in vehicle exhaust.

"Exposure to and inhalation of these chemicals at greater levels is associated with serious health risks.

"Griffin Transportation, Inc., and the company DeKock formerly owned engaged Accurate Truck Service, LLC, and Diesel Freak LLC to 'delete' trucks owned, operated, or leased by the companies. During the conspiracy, Diesel Freak LLC was involved in at least 362 deletions; Accurate Truck Service, LLC, in at least 83 deletions; Griffin Transportation, Inc., in at least 12 deletions; and DeKock’s former company in at least 4 deletions."

Trump has come under fire for pardoning his supporters since returning to office in January 2025.

Ryan Lalone, according to federal campaign finance records, has donated about $2,000 to Republican groups and candidates since 2016. That includes $800 to Trump's first presidential bid that year.