Former Massey CEO found guilty of conspiracy in West Virginia mine blast

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – The jury in the Don Blankenship trial has reached a verdict.

In West Virginia, a federal jury has convicted former Massy Energy CEO Don Blankenship of conspiring to willfully violate federal mine safety laws. He was acquitted of a more serious conspiracy charge that could have netted five years in prison. Prosecutors alleged that the false statements to the SEC and investors were aimed at stemming the erosion of Massey’s stock value-with which Blankenship’s personal wealth was closely bound up with-amidst the barrage of damning media accounts regarding the company’s operations in the days following the disaster.

Local U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin called ex-Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship an outlaw in his closing remarks, telling jurors he operated one of the nation’s largest coal producers as a “lawless enterprise”.

Blankenship’s attorney said Thursday that he doesn’t think his client will spend a single day in prison, and thinks the jury’s decision will be overturned once it’s appealed. Joe Manchin, a Democrat, said the former executive had “blood on his hands”. “It leads inspectors to conclude that Massey just doesn’t care”, Ross said in a memo that was entered into evidence.

Taylor went on to call Blankenship “a tireless advocate for mine safety”, adding that his “outspoken criticism of powerful bureaucrats has earned this indictment”.

After the 2010 blast caused Massey’s stock to tank, prosecutors alleged in two additional felony counts that Mr. Blankenship lied to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and to investors in a company news release that stated Massey didn’t condone safety violations.

Goodwin said the prospect of federal prison time for Blankenship sends a powerful message to executives who ignore safety. At the end of 2010, Blankenship was allowed to retire from Massey with a golden parachute worth over 10 million dollars.

MARRA: Shirley Whitt lost her brother in the mine explosion that sparked the investigation into Massey Energy and its CEO. “The case should have never been brought”, Taylor said. I thank the jury for having the courage to send this message and establish a clear deterrent to this kind of activity.

“The charges on (counts) two and three were hard to come to a conclusion; the sentences including strive and condone were worded perfectly to cover Massey as a whole”, Rose said. “We hope this serves as a strong deterrent to all the other fossil fuel executives who have similar moral and legal obligations to protect their workers and the communities in which they operate”, Hitt said.

An ardent free-marketer who blogged under the heading “American Competitionist”, Blankenship argued that inept regulators were largely to blame for the mine disaster and that he sought to crack down on the number of regulatory violations at Upper Big Branch.

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