In West Virginia, former coal company CEO Don Blankenship has been sentenced to a year in prison for conspiring to violate federal mine safety laws in the years leading up to the 2010 explosion at a Massey Energy coal mine that killed 29 workers. It was the worst coal disaster in the United States in 40 years. The year-long sentence is the maximum allowed for the conspiracy charge. Last year, Blankenship was acquitted of the more serious charges of lying to regulators and investors.