A former superintendent of the Upper Big Branch mine says his
lawyer was ineffective, had conflicts of interest and made him a scapegoat for
the disaster that killed 29 men in 2010.
May says defense attorney Tim Carrico refused to let him testify
that illegal advance warning of inspections was common practice at Massey
Energy operations now owned by Virginia-based Alpha Natural Resources.
Carrico didn't immediately return a phone message Tuesday.
May says he was muzzled to protect Massey executives from
prosecution, and that longtime Massey general counsel Shane Harvey directed
Carrico's actions.
