Blankenship gets a year behind bars in UBB mine disaster
Guilty verdict was a landmark occupational safety case
Former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship was sentenced today to a year in prison for his role in the Upper Big Branch mine disaster that killed 29 miners.
Blankenship, who was convicted on three counts for conspiring to willfully violate mandatory mine health and safety standards at the mine, was also ordered by Federal District Court Judge Judge Irene C. Berger -- the daughter of a coal miner -- to pay a $250,000 fine, the maximum penalty for the charge. He will have one year’s supervised release after his prison term.