Heavy D Locked Up in Diesel Brothers Lawsuit, Star Jailed Over $843K Debt, Then Released After 3 Days
David “Heavy D” Sparks, the reality TV star from Discovery Channel’s “Diesel Brothers,” was released from federal custody on October 10, 2025, just three days after his dramatic arrest for contempt of court. The 40-year-old Bountiful, Utah resident says he feels “vindicated” after a judge ordered his immediate release during a contempt hearing.
The Diesel Brothers lawsuit has captivated truck enthusiasts and legal observers alike since 2017. What started as an environmental lawsuit over emissions tampering has evolved into a bitter eight-year legal battle involving hundreds of thousands in attorney fees, multiple contempt orders, and now, jail time.
If you’re wondering what happened to Heavy D, why he was arrested, and what this means for reality TV personalities facing environmental lawsuits, here’s everything you need to know.
The Origins: How the Diesel Brothers Lawsuit Began
2017: Utah Physicians Sue Under Clean Air Act
In 2017, Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment (UPHE)—a private environmental group, not a state regulator—filed a federal lawsuit against several defendants including Dave Sparks (Heavy D), Diesel Power Gear LLC, B&W Auto LLC, and Joshua Stuart. The lawsuit was filed as a citizen enforcement action under the Clean Air Act for the staggering amount of $114 million.
The group alleged Heavy D illegally removed or tampered with emissions control devices on diesel trucks, a practice often referred to as “rolling coal.” This was a civil matter, not a criminal case, and was not brought by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the Department of Justice.
What Is “Rolling Coal”?
“Rolling coal” involves removing the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) from trucks, which allows them to release thick black smoke. According to the EPA’s laws, you cannot remove this filter, which is designed to keep harmful particulates from polluting the air.
Heavy D previously explained to Fox 13 News that at around 20,000 miles, the DPF becomes clogged, costing owners upwards of $5,000 to fix. “Whereas to bypass that, you’re [looking at] $500 to $1,000 bucks,” he said. “The vehicle runs better and gets better mileage, creating more power—that’s why people are interested in taking those off.”
The Evidence Against Diesel Brothers
The lawsuit wasn’t just based on YouTube videos. Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment purchased a truck from Sparks Motors and had its exhaust emissions tested at a lab in Denver, Colorado.
The findings reportedly indicated that the truck expelled 21 times more particulate matter than it would have if it had a properly functioning diesel particulate filter (DPF).
UPHE claimed their lawsuit was aimed at the 3,000 percent increase in pollution caused by trucks without diesel emissions equipment—more than 30 times more than a stock diesel truck with its emissions equipment.
The 2020 Court Ruling: Heavy D Loses the Case
Initial Judgment and Appeals
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Shelby ruled in March 2020 that Sparks and three others must pay substantial amounts for tampering with diesel truck emissions systems.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Utah found Heavy D liable for violations of the Clean Air Act. The defendants appealed the judgment to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld parts of the case and ruled the defendants to pay $843,000 in lawyer fees.
The Appeals Process: A Partial Victory?
According to Heavy D, after the first judge ruled in favor of UPHE, they appealed to the Appellate Court. This court trimmed the fines down to only what he could be liable for in the state of Utah—not the entire country. This meant the $114 million demand got reduced to just 1 percent of damages, covering only those 20 trucks and the diesel emissions equipment.
However, there was a catch. The lawyer fees didn’t get trimmed down—they went up instead. The appellate court judge labeled UPHE the prevailing party, awarding them lawyer fees. Heavy D claims the billing clock “seemingly never stopped.”
“Despite winning a massive part of our appeal, I still got treated like I lost it all,” Heavy D stated.
Financial Penalties Imposed
In 2020, a federal judge ordered defendants to pay civil penalties to the federal government and to the state of Utah, in addition to paying for UPHE’s legal costs, totaling over $851,000.
The court also prohibited the defendants from installing defeat devices and from owning or selling any vehicles with inoperable emissions control systems.
The Contempt Orders: Years of Non-Compliance
First Contempt: June 2024
The defendants in the case were found in contempt on June 24, 2024, for failing to comply with payment orders.
“Over three years later, after Defendants had failed to pay any amount to Plaintiff under the Fees Order, the court found all Defendants in contempt on June 24, 2024 for their noncompliance,” court documents read.
Second Contempt: August 2025
Sparks was found in contempt for a second time on August 4, 2025 for transferring property, which was not allowed under the first contempt order.
The order required Sparks to produce various documents and information to the plaintiff, including numerous business operating agreements and pictures of all “on- and off-road vehicles, trailers, motorcycles, watercraft and aircraft in which any Defendant has a financial interest.”
In August, Sparks was found to have violated four of the court’s orders, including failing to pay fines and submit required documents, and transferring vehicles including a Tesla and a Ram despite being told not to move assets.
October 2025: The Arrest and Release
The Arrest Warrant
Sparks was arrested and booked into Salt Lake County Jail on Tuesday, October 7, 2025 after a federal judge issued a bench warrant for his arrest on October 2.
In an October 2, 2025 ruling, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby said Sparks had “repeatedly and willfully violated” court orders.
The judge’s order was clear: “Having exhausted all other mechanisms to ensure his compliance with court orders, the court will order Defendant Sparks incarcerated until he complies with the specific requirements necessary to purge his contempt.”
Three Days in Custody
Heavy D stated he spent three days in solitary confinement at the Utah County Jail.
Because the detention was civil rather than criminal, Sparks could only secure release by doing what the court had ordered—there was no standard bail or bond.
The Thursday Hearing: A Turning Point
A contempt hearing was held on Thursday, October 10, in federal court. During a break in the hearing, “the parties met and conferred and reached a stipulation about disclosures to be made by defendants to plaintiff within 10 days of today’s hearing. Based on that stipulation, the court orders Mr. Sparks released from custody today.”
According to Heavy D, his lawyer Cole Cannon “came in swinging and shared 40 slides, showing the court how UPHE’s lawyers had been misleading the court for years.” Cannon challenged UPHE’s lawyers to take the stand, and they declined.
Heavy D’s Side of the Story
“Not About Refusing Payment”
After being released, Sparks took to social media to “set the record straight.” “This was not about me refusing to pay money that I rightfully owed. This was about standing up to a broken system that has been hijacked by bad actors, mostly lawyers, who have learned how to twist environmental laws into personal profit machines.”
The Attorney Fees Controversy
Sparks says he has paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal penalties, but does not believe the lawyer fees the plaintiffs are demanding are fair. “This isn’t about clean air anymore. It’s about dirty tactics,” he said.
Heavy D claims the issue is with the attorney fees even after what he feels like he won in court. He says the fees are the real problem—not the environmental penalties themselves.
“A Paperwork Dispute”
In the Thursday hearing, Sparks’ lawyer, Cole Cannon, made the case that “he got arrested not for a crime, but for a paperwork dispute.” The judge decided Sparks didn’t need to be in jail over this particular disagreement, ordering his release immediately.
Heavy D’s Regrets
Sparks says he actually regrets deleting emissions controls from trucks in the past, admitting some of the things he’s suffered from the lawsuit he deserved. That might surprise some.
However, he maintains that certain actions by his opponents—like attempting to stop his garage sale—were unfair.
UPHE’s Position: Public Health Over Profit
The Medical Perspective
Dr. Howie Garber, UPHE Board Member, stated on the group’s website: “Pollution controls on diesel vehicles are mandated by law. These pollution controls are also necessary to prevent the many acute and chronic diseases that are caused by and exacerbated by air pollution. Unfortunately, Diesel Brothers are turning these trucks into disease-generating machines.”
The president of the non-profit organization, Dr. Brian Moench, said that air pollution can lead to problems such as heart attacks. He claimed that diesel exhaust is a form of toxic pollution and can be dangerous for anyone.
Environment vs. Public Health Framing
Heavy D and his lawyer use the word “environment” in their videos, but UPHE says their case was about public health concerns—not just the environment.
This distinction matters legally and rhetorically, as public health impacts can justify different legal remedies than purely environmental concerns.
What Happens Next?
Outstanding Financial Obligations
The exact outcome, as in what Sparks would still have to pay in relation to this matter, hasn’t been disclosed yet.
Sparks agreed to provide certain information within 10 days of Thursday’s hearing to the plaintiffs, Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment.
The agreed-upon disclosures appear to have secured his release, but the underlying $843,602.23 obligation remains unresolved in public records.
The Bigger Picture: Rolling Coal Crackdowns
Heavy D isn’t alone in facing legal consequences for emissions tampering. In August 2024, Tony Lake, a Wyoming-based diesel mechanic and entrepreneur, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act. He’s currently on supervised release from a one year and one day sentence in federal prison (he also paid a little over $50,000 in fines).
Willis and his company Power Performance Enterprises, Inc. paid a $3.1 million fine a few years ago for similar diesel “deletion” work.
The End of Diesel Brothers TV Show
From Discovery Channel to YouTube
While Discovery has not officially announced the end of the show, in a 2023 statement on the Sparks Motor Company website, the reality stars confirmed that “Diesel Brothers” was indeed over—but said they’d taken it upon themselves to stop the show. They said they wanted to return to their roots via self-produced YouTube videos.
Heavy D’s Continued Influence
Despite the negative publicity, Sparks has built an even larger following online. His YouTube channel has 4.47 million subscribers, and his Instagram follower count is slightly below 3.9 million.
Sparks famously bought Ye’s Ripsaw EV2 luxury tank in 2022, followed by several other high-profile purchases like a Blackhawk military helicopter. Collaborations with other YouTube personalities like WhistlinDiesel and Matt’s Off-Road Recovery have kept Sparks in the diesel truck community spotlight.
Legal Implications for Reality TV Stars
Cameras Don’t Create Immunity
The Diesel Brothers case demonstrates that reality TV fame doesn’t shield personalities from environmental law enforcement. The very content that built their brand—videos showing emissions-deleted trucks “rolling coal”—became evidence against them.
Private Citizens Can Enforce Clean Air Act
The lawsuit was filed as a citizen enforcement action under the Clean Air Act, meaning private groups can sue violators without government involvement.
This provision allows environmental groups to act as private attorneys general, bringing enforcement actions when they believe federal agencies aren’t doing enough.
Attorney Fees as Deterrent
The prevailing party in Clean Air Act cases can recover attorney fees. UPHE was labeled the prevailing party, entitling them to substantial legal fees that, in this case, exceeded the original fines.
This structure incentivizes private enforcement but can lead to disputes about whether fees are proportional to the violation.
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Frequently Asked Questions About the Diesel Brothers Lawsuit
1. Why was Heavy D from Diesel Brothers arrested in October 2025?
Heavy D was arrested on October 7, 2025, after a federal judge found him in contempt of multiple court orders following a Clean Air Act lawsuit. He failed to pay $843,602 in attorney fees and refused to provide required financial disclosures to the plaintiffs.
2. How much money does Heavy D owe in the Diesel Brothers lawsuit?
The total amount owed is over $851,000, which includes civil penalties to the federal government, the state of Utah, and UPHE’s legal costs. The specific breakdown between government fines and attorney fees has been a point of contention throughout the case.
3. Is Heavy D still in jail?
No. Heavy D was released from federal custody on October 10, 2025, after spending three days in jail. The judge ordered his release after both parties reached a stipulation about financial disclosures to be made within 10 days.
4. What did the Diesel Brothers do that was illegal?
The Diesel Brothers were found liable for illegally removing or tampering with emissions control devices on diesel trucks, specifically removing the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF), which allows trucks to “roll coal” and release excessive black smoke and pollutants.
5. Who sued the Diesel Brothers?
Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment (UPHE)—a private environmental group, not a state regulator—filed the lawsuit in 2017 under the Clean Air Act. The group consists of medical doctors concerned about air pollution’s health impacts.
6. Is the Diesel Brothers TV show still on?
No. In a 2023 statement, the Diesel Brothers confirmed the show was over, though they said they chose to end it themselves to return to self-produced YouTube content with more creative control.
7. Has Heavy D paid any of the fines from the lawsuit?
According to Heavy D, he has paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal penalties. However, he disputes the fairness of the attorney fees being demanded by UPHE’s lawyers. Court documents indicate that over three years after the fees order, defendants had “failed to pay any amount to Plaintiff.”
Conclusion: A Case Far From Over
The Diesel Brothers lawsuit represents a pivotal moment in environmental enforcement and reality TV accountability. Sparks says he has remained silent since the lawsuit was originally filed, but by arresting him, “these people officially crossed a line that they cannot uncross,” and he is now “done holding back.”
As Heavy D himself noted, “The big takeaway here is the justice system will let people with an appetite to fight endlessly to do just that.”
With Heavy D promising more revelations in upcoming YouTube videos, public interest in this eight-year legal saga shows no signs of waning. Whether you view this as an environmental victory or regulatory overreach, one thing is clear: the days of casually deleting emissions equipment and uploading it to YouTube are over.
The case continues to evolve, and both sides remain entrenched in their positions. For truck enthusiasts, environmental advocates, and legal observers, the Diesel Brothers lawsuit will remain a touchstone case for years to come.
Legal Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The information presented is based on publicly available court documents and news reports. If you face similar legal issues, consult with a qualified attorney in your jurisdiction.
About the Author
Sarah Klein, JD, is a licensed attorney and legal content strategist with over 12 years of experience across civil, criminal, family, and regulatory law. At All About Lawyer, she covers a wide range of legal topics — from high-profile lawsuits and courtroom stories to state traffic laws and everyday legal questions — all with a focus on accuracy, clarity, and public understanding.
Her writing blends real legal insight with plain-English explanations, helping readers stay informed and legally aware.
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