LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On Wednesday, November 17, a federal jury cleared four former coal company officials who were accused of skirting dust rules in two underground Kentucky mines.
The federal jury in Louisville deliberated Wednesday for about two hours. All four men were found not guilty. The trial was a rare attempt to prosecute coal company officials on criminal charges.
Defense attorneys had argued that prosecutors lacked evidence that the men conspired to cheat the rules.
The company, Armstrong Coal, went bankrupt in 2017. Nine people were originally charged in the case, but five reached plea agreements with prosecutors to avoid felony charges.
A former safety director testified Monday about how he attempted to cheat underground safety rules. Ron Ivy, a former safety director, says he was told by a superior to make sure the mine’s dust pumps were reading at the desired range. The pumps measure the amount of dust in the mines.
Attorneys for the former coal company officials have argued that none of them were directly involved in manipulating the pumps.
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A criminal fraud trial in Kentucky aims to determine whether four officials of the now-bankrupt Armstrong Coal company skirted federal rules meant to reduce deadly coal dust in underground mines.
Federal prosecutors say they ordered workers at two Kentucky mines to rig dust-monitoring equipment to pass air quality tests.
The situation came to light when some Armstrong miners contacted a lawyer. One of the men set to testify, Mike Wilson, says he couldn’t see his hand in front of his face down in the mine.
Attorneys for the former managers and a supervisor at Armstrong say they're innocent of the charges.
The alleged incidents occurred between 2013 and 2015.
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