Blankenship Case Shows Perils Of Post-Crisis Assurances

Law360, New York ( December 17, 2014, 11:00 AM EST) -- The recent indictment of Don Blankenship, the former chairman and CEO of Massey Energy Co., stands as a warning for company leaders confronting a crisis and raises questions about the continued viability of common approaches for responding to a crisis. The indictment stems from the 2010 explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia, an incident that killed 29 miners. On Nov. 13, 2014, a federal grand jury in West Virginia charged Blankenship with conspiring to violate safety regulations and to circumvent inspections and with making false statements immediately after the incident. It is unusual to see a chief executive indicted on safety-related charges, but even more notable about the Blankenship indictment is its inclusion of charges based on the public statements made by Massey Energy after the incident....

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