RICHMOND, Va. – A three-judge panel focused its attention on asking former Massey CEO Don Blankenship’s attorneys a multitude of questions during oral arguments for an appeal.
Blankenship, who was jailed in May for his one-year sentence, is seeking to have his conviction overturned.
The three-judge panel includes Senior Judge Andre M. Davis, Judge James A. Wynn Jr. and Chief Judge Roger L. Gregory.
Blankenship’s attorneys argue that jurors were wrongly instructed about the meaning of “willful disregard” during his trial that followed the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster.
His attorneys have also argued that District Judge Irene Berger’s jury instructions did not properly define and weigh the presumption of innocence.
Oral arguments began Wednesday morning and the judges began questioning Bill Taylor, Blankenship’s lead attorney, about precedent and how “willful disregard” should be defined. Taylor argued that Blankenship was aware of the mine’s safety violations but that he had not intended for conditions at Upper Big Branch to be unsafe or to cause the explosion that resulted in the deaths of 29 miners.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Ruby argued that Berger’s instructions to the jury were adequate.
The panel asked both attorneys questions about the preferred phrasing of the presumption of innocence in jury instructions.
The panel will make a decision in the months to come regarding the appeal.
A federal jury convicted Blankenship of one misdemeanor count, while acquitting him on felony charges of securities fraud and making false statements. He has already served six months of that sentence. He is scheduled for release on May 10, 2017.
