Honeywell Under Fire

Honeywell International must hope that its lawyers work better than its Zylon.

The Justice Department sued Honeywell today, accusing it of having manufactured and sold defective Zylon Shield, a the supposedly bullet-proof material in bullet-proof vests.

The suit is the latest step in the federal government's crackdown on companies which make defective body armor for police agencies across the country.

According to the suit, Zylon degraded quickly over time, especially in hot and humid conditions, and Honeywell "knew that this degradation rendered bullet proof vets containing Z Shield unfit for use."

Despite knowing this, federal prosecutors said Honeywell did not tell the federal government or Armor Holdings Inc., the manufacturer of the Z Shield vests, about the defect. The case was brought under the False Claims Act.

The vests were used by law enforcement officials, and were not part of the military gear in Iraq.

"The United States will not tolerate a company withholding key scientific information that places out first-responders at risk unnecessarily," said Gregory G. Katsas, the acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.

The Justice Department said its investigation is ongoing. Last October, the Hexcel Corp., agreed to pay $15 million to the federal government for its role in weaving defective Zylon bullet-proof vests to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

by Elizabeth Olson