In 2006, the wells of a neighborhood in Jacksonville, Maryland, were contaminated by a spill of 26,000 gallons of gasoline from an Exxon-Mobil station in the area, resulting in an ongoing court battle. The suit has been filed by the state of Marylands Department of the Environment on behalf of the areas residents, seeking millions of dollars in damages from Exxon-Mobil. Many residents also filed their own separate lawsuits.
The case began in 2006, when a gasoline tank sprang a leak that was not detected for 34 days. Testing of 120 wells resulted in dangerously high levels of MTBE being found. Residents were put in danger by the spill, and in order to prevent further health problems, they required bottled water for cooking, drinking, and brushing teeth. Residents of Jacksonville continue to use bottled water for all activities despite having MTBE filters and alarms installed in their homes. Home values also dropped as a result of the spill.
In September 2008, Exxon-Mobil settled the case with the state by agreeing to pay a $4 million fine, and face an additional $1 million in penalties annually if they did not work to clean up the spill.
In March 2009, a jury awarded $150 million in damages to some of the area's residents.  The jury did not assess any punitive damages in the case, finding that Exxon Mobil did not act fraudulently. A separate case including over 150 property owners as plaintiffs began in early 2011. Punitive damages were awarded to the second group of plaintiffs, on the basis that Exxon acted fraudulently, however this decision was later reversed.