Ky. mine officials face prison for violations
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Plea agreements say two supervisors at an eastern Kentucky mine where a coal miner was killed last year knowingly violated federal safety laws.
The documents filed this week say Jefferson Davis and Joseph Miniard are planning to plead guilty and are facing prison time when they are sentenced during a March hearing in U.S. District Court.
The men were supervisors at Manalapan Mining's P-1 Mine in Harlan County when an underground collapse in June 2011 killed miner David Partin. He was crushed by a large rock.
The proposed plea deals say Miniard, the mine's superintendent, is facing up to six years in prison for two safety violations. Davis, the operations manager, is facing a maximum one-year sentence.
The agreement also says Manalapan could be fined up to $250,000.
