CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The latest in the federal trial of ex-Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship. All times local:
10:45 a.m.
The defence in the trial of ex-Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship has rested its case without calling a single witness.
Blankenship’s lead attorney Bill Taylor stood before the court Monday morning and said “The defence rests,” shortly after the prosecution closed its case. The announcements came after jurors heard testimony from 27 witnesses over roughly five weeks.
U.S. District Judge Irene Berger dismissed the jury until 9 a.m. Tuesday. She told the lawyers to report back to court Monday afternoon to discuss instructions to the jury.
Prosecutors asserted that the former coal company executive put dollars ahead of human safety in the years before the worst U.S. coal mine disaster in decades.
Prosecutors call Blankenship a micromanager who cared more about money than safety. His attorneys, meanwhile, used testimony from multiple prosecution witnesses to support his defence.
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10:30 a.m.
The prosecution has rested in the high-profile trial of ex-Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship after weeks of testimony asserting that he put dollars ahead of human safety in the years before the worst U.S. coal mine disaster in decades.
Now the trial pivots to the former coal executive’s multimillion-dollar defence.
Blankenship is charged with conspiring to break safety laws at West Virginia’s Upper Big Branch Mine and lying to financial regulators and investors about safety. The mine exploded in 2010, killing 29 men.
Prosecutors call Blankenship a micromanager who cared more about money than safety. His attorneys, meanwhile, have used testimony from multiple prosecution witnesses to support his defence.
The final prosecution rested its case Monday.
It’s unclear how many witnesses the defence will call or if Blankenship will testify.
