The U.S. U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals has sent the case filed by Delorice Bragg and Freda Hatfield to the West Virginia State Supreme Court. The widows filed a suit after the 2006 Aracoma mine disaster, saying MSHA should be held liable for the deaths of their husbands, Don Bragg and Elvis Hatfield, who became separated from 10 other crew members in a belt fire at Aracoma Coal’s Alma No. 1 Mine in Logan County. Their bodies were located two days later. A three-judge panel heard the appeal from Bragg and Hatfield on May 22nd in Richmond, and many of the judges’ questions focused on whether MSHA's actions at Aracoma violated West Virginia state law. The attorney for Bragg and Hatfield, Bruce Stanley, argued MSHA's inspectors didn't do their jobs at Aracoma and must be held accountable in part for the fire that claimed their husbands' lives. The lawsuit against MSHA was dismissed by U.S. District Judge John Copenhaver in July 2010.
