Controversial coal operator threatens to sue Coal Age editor, Penn State professor over criticism

Articles in The Salt Lake Tribune and Coal Age magazine have Crandall Canyon Mine co-owner Robert Murray (in a Tribune photo by Jim Urquhart) ready to sue, the Tribune reports. Robert Gehrke writes that Murray thinks the two articles were defamatory in their criticism of his actions in handling the mine collapse. Penn State engineering professor R. Larry Grayson wrote an opinion piece in the Tribune that called Murray's news briefings "bombastic," while Coal Age Editor-in-Chief Steve Fiscor wrote that the coal industry reacted to Murray by "hoping that he will go away soon and that no one will notice.”

This week, the two authors received letters from Murray's attorney describing the articles as
“virulent and untruthful” attacks, Gehrke writes. “We demand that you immediately retract the editorial and publish an apology acceptable to Mr. Murray,” Michael O. McKown, general counsel for Murray Energy Corp., wrote in the letter to Fiscor. “Failure to do so in a timely fashion will lead to immediate legal action.” He also claimed no "retreat mining," in which coal pillars supporting the roof are mined, leaving the roof to fall in, was being done at Crandall Canyon, although mine maps show and federal officials have said there was.

Grayson told Gehrke that "the facts speak for themselves," and that "there is ample evidence that there is absolutely no merit in the case." Peter Johnson, publisher and owner of Coal Age, said that while the defamation claim is “a little bit of a stretch,” the magazine would print an apology -- but not a retraction -- in hope of ending legal issues with Murray. In 2001, Murray, a native of Ohio, sued the Akron Beacon Journal for $1 billion over a claim of defamation in a profile of him. While the case was initially dismissed, it was reinstated by an appeals court. Eventually, the two parties settled. (Read more)

In a recent editorial, the Tribune argued that Murray should be subpoenaed to testify before a Senate subcommittee investigating the disaster at the mine. "There are questions that remain to be asked, questions that Murray should be made to answer," the editorial said. "Why wasn't MSHA notified, as required by law, of a March 10 roof collapse that proved to be a precursor of the August accident? Why wasn't the federal Bureau of Land Management informed of plans to conduct risky retreat mining, where pillars of coal that support a mine's roof are removed? And was Murray aware when he bought the mine that the previous owner had refused to remove the pillars due to safety concerns?"