Litigation

Mine Blast Puts Blankenship Back in News

By Peter Hardin

The explosion at Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia has thrust company CEO Don Blankenship back into the news.

“In 2004, Massey CEO Don Blankenship essentially bought a state supreme court seat,” a National Public Radio blog reported. A  civil case related to Blankenship’s spending went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where the Caperton v. Massey decision “drew a line on how far money can go in judicial elections. It made Blankenship a poster child for advocates of tighter restrictions,” the blog explained.

Blankenship spent $3 million in 2004 to help elect a state Supreme Court justice, and his coal company went on to benefit from two critical votes by the justice to overturn a massive jury award against it. The U.S. Supreme Court required the justice to disqualify himself and pointed out the ?serious, objective risk of actual bias? arising from such a large campaign expenditure.

Blankenship’s role also was cited in a USA Today article, entitled, “Massey Energy is a key player in region.” The Center for Responsive Politics spotlighted the 2004 judicial race and other political spending tied to Massey Energy in a Capital Eye Blog report on the extent of the political expenditures.

You can learn more about Caperton v. Massey, and about efforts taken in West Virginia and elsewhere to shield judges from big special-interest spending, in Gavel Grab. You can also visit Justice at Stake?s resource page about the case.

Full post as published by The Gavel on April 07, 2010 (boomark / email).