Latest West Virginia Headlines
All the headlines from our West Virginia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
West Virginia to Start Auto Coverage Verification Program
Jun 18 2012 // The West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles is taking steps to educate motorists about electronic verification of insurance coverage. Vehicle owners will soon begin receiving an informational insert when they get...
West Virginia Man Claims Contractor, Construction Dust Caused Mom’s Death
Jun 15 2012 // The son of a Tucker County employee who died after inhaling dust from a construction project has filed a wrongful death lawsuit and wants the courthouse closed for a thorough cleanup. The Inter-Mountain of Elkins reported...
West Virginia Mine Boss to Be Sentenced
Jun 15 2012 // The former superintendent of the Upper Big Branch Mine will be sentenced Oct. 4 for his actions before the disaster that killed 29 men. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger had scheduled Gary May’s sentencing for August...
West Virginia Residents Settle Final Slurry Pollution Claims with Massey
Jun 14 2012 // Hundreds of Boone County residents who blame coal companies for contaminating their water supplies settled their last remaining lawsuit with Massey Energy and four subsidiaries this week just as a trial was set to begin...
West Virginia Ban on Drivers’ Texting Begins June 1
Jun 7 2012 // The days of legally driving while texting in West Virginia are numbered. A new ban on texting that also targets hands-on cell phone chatter becomes law Friday. It’s among nearly 70 legislative bills taking effect...
West Virginia Mines Cited During May Safety Inspections
Jun 4 2012 // The Mine Safety and Health Administration says it issued 254 citations, 19 orders and one safeguard during special inspections at West Virginia coal mines last month. Among those targeted was Argus Energy’s Deep Mine...
West Virginia Gears Up for Auto Insurance Verification Program
May 31 2012 // The West Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles is taking steps to educate motorists about electronic verification of insurance coverage. The DMV said vehicle owners will soon begin receiving an informational insert when...
Mediation Fails, West Virginia Slurry Pollution Case Going to Trial
May 25 2012 // Mediation has failed to settle a lawsuit by hundreds of Boone County residents who blame coal companies for contaminating their water supplies. Attorney Roger Decanio said this week that the case against Massey Energy and...
West Virginia Coal Miner Claims Alpha Fired Him Over Safety
May 24 2012 // A coal miner who says he was fired for enforcing safety standards that slowed down both production and the sealing of the Upper Big Branch mine in southern West Virginia is suing Alpha Natural Resources. The State Journal...
West Virginia Driver Data Access Eased
May 7 2012 // Individuals in West Virginia involved in a traffic accident will soon be able to access the other driver’s insurance coverage before filing a lawsuit under a new disclosure law. Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed into law...
Federal Healthcare Law to Aid Black Lung Victims
Apr 16 2012 // Proposed changes to U.S. Department of Labor rules would make it easier for coal miners and their families to obtain black lung benefits, while a West Virginia congressman aims to reduce the amount of paperwork they have...
West Virginia Permits Access to Driver’s Insurance Information Before Lawsuit
Apr 13 2012 // Individuals in West Virginia involved in a traffic accident will soon be able to access the other driver’s insurance coverage before filing a lawsuit under a new disclosure law. Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed into law...
West Virginia Mine Blast Survivors’ Cases Still Unsettled
Apr 11 2012 // Nine men who survived West Virginia’s Upper Big Branch mine disaster want to abandon mediation of their personal injury claims and start gathering evidence for trial because they say the mine’s new owner...
New Federal Safety Rules for Mines Finalized
Apr 6 2012 // Federal regulators are issuing a final set of rules for underground coal mine examinations that aim to hold operators more accountable for finding and fixing dangerous conditions — and preventing the deaths of their...
Federal Healthcare Law to Aid Black Lung Victims
Apr 5 2012 // Proposed changes to U.S. Department of Labor rules would make it easier for coal miners and their families to obtain black lung benefits, while a West Virginia congressman aims to reduce the amount of paperwork they have...
West Virginia Residents’ $93 Milllion Settlement with Monsanto Questioned
Apr 3 2012 // An attorney is challenging a $93 million settlement between Monsanto Co. and thousands of West Virginians. Thomas Urban II represents some class members who say the settlement isn’t fair and reasonable, the...
Inspections Improving Mine Safety, Says U.S. Official
Apr 3 2012 // Aggressive inspections at troubled mines are helping create safer working environments for coal miners, the head of the federal government’s mine safety agency said during a visit to Kentucky. U.S. Mine Safety and...
Ex-Mine Chief Pleads Guilty in West Virginia Blast
Mar 30 2012 // The former superintendent of the West Virginia mine where 29 workers died in a 2010 explosion pleaded guilty on Thursday to a federal conspiracy charge that he tipped off employees to safety inspections. Gary May, 43, is...
Judge Won’t Dismiss Massey Shareholder Suit Over Safety
Mar 30 2012 // A federal judge refused Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit by former Massey Energy shareholders who say they were deliberately misled about the company’s safety record before the Upper Big Branch mine disaster in West...
Regulators Say West Virginia Mines Warned of Inspectors
Mar 30 2012 // Three times in a month, regulators have caught West Virginia coal companies illegally warning miners that federal inspectors were onsite. Mine Safety and Health Administration director Joe Main says such warnings let...
