Beckett company sues over endangered ocelot

LAREDO, Texas -- A company owned by Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Josh Beckett is suing a pipeline builder on claims that habitat for the endangered ocelot was destroyed on a South Texas ranch.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday in Laredo says Eagle Ford Midstream LP violated the federal Endangered Species Act by clearing land to build a natural gas pipeline.

The suit says the pipeline company was awarded imminent domain on land owned by Beckett Ventures Inc. and falsely told the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service that it wasn't suitable habitat for the ocelot.

Beckett's company claims the pipeline builder engaged in "willful destruction" of the habitat by clearing land after a notice of intent to sue was filed in August.

A phone message left with Eagle Ford Midstream's parent company wasn't immediately returned.