CHARLESTON, W.Va.—Don Blankenship ascended from a modest, single-mother upbringing in Appalachia to personally make almost $20 million off coal in one year. He battled unions, spent millions as lead puppeteer behind Republican state politics, and fought regulators over safety and environmental rules, which his mines often broke.
The headstrong former CEO of Massey Energy has never shied from a fight, but his toughest one yet begins Thursday when he goes on trial in the worst U.S. mine disaster in 45 years.
Slapping a coal executive with the kind of charges Blankenship faces is rare.
