A federal appeals court ordered the removal of a gag order in the criminal trial of a former coal mining company executive indicted after a 2010 mine explosion that killed 29 men. The court commended the trial judge for her efforts to insure a fair trial but said that there was not sufficient showing that withholding trial documents would damage the executive’s rights or prevent the impaneling of an impartial jury. (Courthouse News Service, March 7, 2015, by Dan McCue)
The gag order was unusually broad and not sought by either party in the trial. It prevented anyone connected with the trial even the family members of the dead miners from discussing the case with the media and sealed most filings in the case. The order was challenged by The Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press, the Charleston Gazette, NPR and Friends of West Virginia Public Broadcasting with supporting briefs from numerous other media companies and associations. (The Wall Street Journal, March 5, 2015, by Kris Maher)