Today, Massey Energy's former CEO, Don Blankenship, was convicted of conspiring to violate mine safety rules. These violations were connected to the 2010 explosion that killed 29 workers at Upper Big Branch in West Virginia. This misdemeanor charge has a maximum sentence of one year in prison. The other serious charges against him, securities fraud and making false statements, would have seen him in jail for 31 years had he not been acquitted of the two felonies, reported Fortune.
After the explosion, an investigation was conducted and many warning signs were found at the site, such as sparking machinery and a buildup of dangerous gases. "I think the consequences will send ripple effects through the industry, and not just mining," said Davitt McAteer, who had headed the investigation of the mining site, reported the Washington Post.
