Chris Blanchard Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Four Things to Know as the Blankenship Trial Wraps Up

As jurors begin to deliberate a verdict in the trial of former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship, all eyes in West Virginia turn to Charleston.

More than six weeks after the trial began on Oct. 1, jurors will weigh testimony and evidence on whether Blankenship conspired to violate federal mine safety standards and lied to investors about the safety record of his company following the April 2010 Upper Big Branch mine disaster.

Here are four things to know as the trial comes to a close and jurors deliberate on a verdict:

1. The charges: Explained.

Blankenship was originally indicted in November 2014 by federal prosecutors on four counts. Two of the charges were streamlined together in March 2015 and the total was reduced to three.

The charges against Blankenship are:

Conspiracy to willfully violate mandatory federal mine safety standards or to defraud the United States
Knowingly and willfully making or causing to be made a materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement related to a material matter within the jurisdiction of the Securities and Exchange Commission
Willfully, knowingly, and with the intent to defraud making or causing to be made untrue statements of material fact or omissions of material fact in connection with the sale or purchase of securities

If convicted on all charges, Blankenship faces 30 years in prison. He has maintained his innocent since the charges were filed.
It should also be noted that Blankenship is not charged in the death of the 29 miners at Upper Big Branch.

2. The defense called no witnesses.

In a surprise move Monday morning, Blankenship’s defense team rested its case without calling a single witness. Former assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia and Charleston attorney Mike Hissam called the strategy “highly unusual” but also said it might allow them to go “on the offensive” in attacking the government’s case.

Don Blankenship leaves the Charleston federal courthouse on October 1, 2015 for a lunch amidst a break during jury selection.

3. The prosecution’s witnesses were wide-ranging.

Prosecutors called 27 witnesses over the course of 24 days of testimony. Witnesses included FBI special agent James Lafferty, former Massey safety specialist Bill Ross, former Performance Coal Company operator (the Massey-owned company that was responsible for the Upper Big Branch mine) Chris Blanchard and miners who worked at the Upper Big Branch mine.

4. A key witness for the prosecution spent days on the stand.

Chris Blanchard took the stand for the prosecution under an immunity agreement with the government. However, Blanchard’s testimony was a surprise to the prosecution when Blankenship’s defense team questioned him during cross examination.

According to an Oct. 30 report from the Associated Press, Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Ruby told Judge Irene Berger: “Much of what the witness said in [cross-examination] was a surprise to the United States.”

In a second line of questioning, Ruby asked Blanchard to double-check his 2014 grand jury testimony.

The defense entered a motion to also question Blanchard a second time, although Judge Berger denied that request.

Judge Denies More Questioning of Blanchard

A federal judge has denied a motion made by defense attorneys Friday to again question a government witness in the trial of former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship.

Blankenship’s lead attorney, Bill Taylor, made the motion to re-cross examine former Performance Coal President and Upper Big Branch mine operator Chris Blanchard after he said extensive new evidence was entered by the prosecution during his redirect.

Taylor listed multiple items, including more than 40 new documents, as reasons to question Blanchard a second time. They included:

The government’s impeachment of the witness on redirect using his previous grand jury testimony
Testimony Blanchard gave about the process of giving advanced notice of safety inspections at his mines
The disciplinary action Blanchard took against a former Upper Big Branch employee
Testimony about Blankenship’s direction to create smaller coal pillars in the mine, resulting in more coal produced, but weaker roof supports

Blanchard spent more than a week on the witness stand which included some five days of cross examination by Taylor.

The defense still has the option to call Blanchard as a witness of their own later in the trial.

Blankenship is charged with conspiring to violate federal mine safety laws and lying to securities officials and investors about Massey’s safety practices following the 2010 Upper Big Branch mine disaster that killed 29 men.

Defense Wants 'Another Crack' at Blanchard, Requests to Re-Cross

The prosecution wrapped their redirect examination of former Performance Coal President and Upper Big Branch mine operator Chris Blanchard late Friday afternoon, but the unconventional witness may not be done on the stand just yet. Defense attorneys Friday moved to “take another crack” at Blanchard.

Blanchard has been on the stand since Oct. 22, testifying in the trial of former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship. Blankenship is charged with lying to investors and securities officials about Massey’s safety record and conspiring to violate federal mine safety laws.

Blanchard, although immune from being charged in the case because of an agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for his testimony, is named in the federal indictment as one of Blankenship’s co-conspirators.

Blankenship’s lead attorney, Bill Taylor, requested the right to again cross examine Blanchard on a number of issues, the first of which was a host of new evidence introduced during the prosecution’s redirect examination this week.

Taylor said Friday the government introduced more than 40 new documents under the witness’s testimony that the defense had not had an opportunity to discuss with Blanchard. Taylor’s other reasons for a re-cross include:

The government’s impeachment of the witness on redirect using his previous grand jury testimony
Testimony Blanchard gave about the process of giving advanced notice of safety inspections at his mines
The disciplinary action Blanchard took against a former Upper Big Branch employee, Brian Collins
Testimony about Blankenship’s direction to create smaller coal pillars in the mine, resulting in more coal produced, but weaker roof supports
The re-calculation of the rate of accidents that resulted in injuries in both the Upper Big Branch and Massey mines after the 2010 Upper Big Branch mine explosion, resulting in an increase of those rates

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Ruby responded to the request by saying the defense is free to call Blanchard as their own witness if they wish to have him testify further, but said all of the areas of argument listed by Taylor came as a response to the witness’s cross examination.

“It’s often the case that after redirect, the party that conducted the cross examination will be dissatisfied and want another crack at the witness,” Ruby said in court Friday, “but if the redirect deals with what’s been brought in the cross, it does not require a re-cross examination.”

On cross examination, Blanchard testified he had not committed any crimes while working as the president of Performance Coal and did not have an unwritten agreement nor understanding with Blankenship to violate safety laws. That testimony directly contradicted Blanchard’s previous testimony, both in his direct examination and in previously sworn testimony given before a grand jury.

Because of those statements, Taylor claimed the government had withheld evidence from the defense, evidence that consisted of statements of innocence Blanchard made “over the course of several years” to the government before the trial.

Ruby argued while the government had previous conversations with Blanchard’s attorneys, those conversations started only shortly before Blankenship was indicted in November 2014, and the government did not know Blanchard would testify he was innocent.

“Much of what was said on cross came as a surprise to the United States, but apparently not to the defense,” Ruby told Federal District Judge Irene Berger. “We did not understand the witness was going to testify he was not part of a conspiracy.”

Berger dismissed the courtroom after 5 p.m. Friday, telling attorneys she would “notify you via email Monday or before” about her decision on a re-cross examination. Berger has not allowed defense attorneys to question any other government witness a second time so far in the case.

The trial will resume Tuesday morning.

Blankenship on Trial: Prosecution Attempts to Get Blanchard Back on Track

After a week on the stand and nearly five days of cross examination by the defense, prosecutors are attempting to save their case set off track by former Performance Coal President Chris Blanchard. In this week’s episode of the podcast “Blankenship on Trial,” host Dave Mistich discusses Blanchard’s testimony with West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Ashton Marra and Charleston attorney Mike Hissam.

Blanchard repeatedly contradicted himself during cross examination and late Thursday morning, Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Ruby attempted to recoup his case, first by pointing to sworn testimony Blanchard had given before a grand jury admitting to giving miners advanced notice of safety inspections and other safety infractions.

While the defense chose a more deliberate, slow pace for their cross examination, Ruby intentionally sped up his questioning during his initial redirect, but later slowed as he began to work his way through dozens of documents essentially attempting to regain control of his witness.

Judge: Massey Safety Meeting Videos 'Puffery,' Inadmissible

As defense attorneys continued their fourth day of cross examining a government witness, a federal judge has once again ruled to exclude defense presented evidence from the trial of former Massey CEO Don Blankenship.

Blankenship’s lead attorney, Bill Taylor ad attempted to enter videos of a 2009 Massey safety meeting as evidence in his cross examination of former Performance Coal President and Upper Big Branch mine operator Chris Blanchard.

Blanchard’s cross examination began Thursday. Blankenship is charged with conspiring to violate federal mine safety standards and lying to investors and securities officials about the safety record of his company after the 2010 Upper Big Branch mine explosion that killed 29 men.

Federal District Judge Irene Berger ruled Wednesday the videos could not be admitted as evidence and shown to jurors, saying they are riddled with inadmissible opinions delivered by other Massey members and not the defendant himself.

“This meeting was seemingly designed to talk about the Hazard Elimination Program,” Berger said from the bench, “to tell what was expected and to get the so-called 700 leaders who were in the room excited about the program such that they would take it back to people with whom they worked.”

“There is a lot of what I would generally call puffery and there are a lot of opinions.”

Berger said the videos include comparisons between state and federal mine safety standards and the Bible, calling state standards the “little testament” and federal standards the “big testament.”

The videos contained speeches from a 2009 safety meeting at Scott High School for ranking Massey members including resource group presidents and mine superintendents.

Previous witnesses for the government, including multiple underground miners, testified they had not attended the Scott High School meeting nor were they ever informed about the Hazard Elimination Program, the specific safety program discussed at the meeting.

Blanchard Discusses Violations, Safety Actions During Cross Examination

In his third day in the witness seat, former Marfork and Performance Coal President Chris Blanchard continued to answer questions about safety priorities at Massey Energy.

Blanchard is testifying in the trial of former Massey CEO Don Blankenship who faces charges for conspiring to violate federal mine safety standards and lying to investors and securities officials.

Blanchard’s coal group oversaw production at the Upper Big Branch mine.

The former president, who was granted immunity by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for his testimony, is named in Blankenship’s indictment as a co-conspirator, but Blanchard again testified Monday he had no unwritten understanding with Blankenship to violate safety standards.

Instead on the stand, Blanchard testified both he and Blankenship knew violations were inevitable, but not “acceptable” or ” encouraged.”

Blankenship’s lead attorney Bill Taylor walked Blanchard through dozens of documents Monday that included emails to show Blankenship had never communicated to Blanchard a condoning of safety violations, federal Mine Safety and Health Administration citations to show violations cost the company more money than having followed the standards, and more than 20 written warnings against Upper Big Branch miners who were found responsible for creating hazards in the mine that led to violations.

Taylor also listed a number of safety “innovations” a Massey committee called the Safety Development Group chartered. Referred to as the SDG, the group was made up of Blankenship, Massey COO Chris Adkins and other top ranking Massey officials.

Taylor credited the group with requiring all miners to wear reflective clothing, installing safety netting in certain underground equipment and using proximity detectors on continuous miners. Those detectors, also worn by a miner on his or her belt, automatically shuts off the equipment if it gets too close to a miner.

Blanchard has previously testified the proximity detectors were not in use at the Upper Big Branch mine.