Governor Speaks Out on DuPont Case (Updated)

Gov. Joe Manchin has issued a statement and appeared on MetroNews Talkline to respond to scrutiny of his decision to file a brief in the pending appeal of a nearly $400 million judgment against DuPont.

"What we did is file a brief based on the due process the court should allow. That's all," the governor told MetroNews, which also offers audio.

Reaction to Manchin's presence in the pending case has been mixed. The Charleston Daily Mail, for instance, opines in an editorial today that the governor was correct when he "asked the court to clarify what rights companies have in West Virginia. That is an important policy issue."

But with Manchin up for re-election this year, the Republican nominee for governor has weighed in against the Democratic incumbent.

"If he wants to try to influence the courts to do something, he should not do it through the venue of the case that's before them," Russ Weeks told MetroNews."He should do it before or after."

WSAZ-TV also has an item on the governor's response. Public Broadcasting has a report, with audio.

Update: A lawyer and ethicist at a Beltway firm that consults and trains on the subject tells The Associated Press that Manchin "compromised the public's trust and created the appearance of impropriety, regardless of whether he did anything underhanded."

"You don't really have to get to the question of motives and what was really going on behind the scenes," said Jack Marshall, president of ProEthics Ltd. and editor of ethicsscoreboard.com. "The plaintiffs look at this and say, 'It's not fair.' The public looks at it and says, 'Hmm.' This undermines the public trust.''

Those who think otherwise include Steve Roberts, president of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce.

"We don't think it's inappropriate or wrong,'' Roberts told AP. "He appropriately gets high marks for hearing people out.''