Ohio High Court Says Nitrogen Isn’t Toxic Under Old Safety Rules

The Ohio Supreme Court said Wednesday that nitrogen gas isn’t considered “toxic” under a previous version of state safety rules, and ruled that a steel company doesn’t have to pay extra benefits to the widow of a security guard who died on the job.

The rules in place in 2016—when Kenneth Ray Jr. of the formerly-named TimkenSteel Corp. died of asphyxiation in an elevator control room seconds after being exposed to a high amount of nitrogen—had a definition of “air contaminants” that only included “toxic gases,” the Republican-dominated court said in a 6-1 ruling. Nitrogen, which makes up 78% of ...