Court needs new attitude

In case they might have forgotten, West Virginians were reminded last week that they deserve better from the State Supreme Court. The national ABC News reported twice on the connections between Chief Justice Elliott Spike Maynard and Justice Brent Benjamin and Don Blankenship, the president of Massey Energy.

Maynard and Blankenship, if you recall, vacationed together on the Riviera at the same time that cases involving Blankenship were before the court. Benjamin, on the other hand, had his election campaign helped when Blankenship funded a media blitz against his opponent. While Maynard removed himself from hearing a recent Massey Energy case, Benjamin refused to recuse himself, claiming he could be fair.

Maynard and Blankenship apparently dine and socialize together often. Just how often is unclear, since the Supreme Court refused an Associated Press request to release Maynard's emails and visitor logs.

Associated Press now intends to sue the court in order to gain access to the public records. While we hate to see tax dollars wasted in a lawsuit, the court could easily resolve the issue by releasing the material.

For the record, Maynard, a Democrat, is up for reelection this year.