Don Blankenship, former CEO of Massey Energy, is accused of thwarting mine safety enforcement and conspiring to violate mine safety law. Jacquelyn Martin/AP hide caption
Mine Safety In America NPR NEWS INVESTIGATION: Coverage of mine safety in the U.S. after an explosion at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia killed 29 workers.
Special Series
Mine Safety In America
Coverage of mine safety and what led to a blast that killed 29 in West Virginia.
Don Blankenship, former CEO of Massey Energy, is accused of thwarting mine safety enforcement and conspiring to violate mine safety law. Massey Energy owned the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia, which exploded in 2010, killing 29. Jacquelyn Martin/AP hide caption
Mine helmets and painted crosses at the entrance to Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine, as a memorial to the 29 miners killed there. Jeff Gentner/AP hide caption
At an April 25, 2010, service in Beckley, W. Va., for the 29 miners killed in the Upper Big Branch explosion, helmets — placed on crosses — were lined up in their honor. Jewel Samad /AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Internal Probe, Criminal Charges Still Pending In W.Va. Mine Disaster
Howard Berkes
West Virginia State Police direct traffic at the entrance to Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine in Montcoal, W.Va., April 5, 2010. AP hide caption
Mine helmets and painted crosses sit at the entrance to Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine on April 5, as a memorial to the 29 miners killed there one year earlier. Jeff Gentner/AP hide caption
Howard Berkes on 'Morning Edition'
Two officers with the Raleigh County Sheriff's Office stand guard in front of the Upper Big Branch coal mine several days after the April 5, 2010, explosion that killed 29 workers in Montcoal, W.Va. Mark Wilson/Getty Images hide caption