The oil and gas industry drills natural gas wells with a technique called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. And for decades, both industry executives and regulators have maintained that it’s safe. In an appearance before congress in January of last year, Rex W. Tillerson, the chief executive of ExxonMobil, claimed that "there is not one, not one, reported case of a fresh water aquifer having ever been contaminated from hydraulic fracturing, not one." Now, there is one.

Earlier this morning, BP released the results of its own investigation of what caused the oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico over the summer. The inquiry states that "no single factor caused the Macondo well tragedy," and heavily lays blame on BP's contractors, particularly Halliburton and Transocean.

The report is being seen both as an attempt at spin control by the beleaguered company, as well as their likely defense strategy in what could be years of litigation. Ian Urbina of our partner, The New York Times joins us with the latest.

Kenneth Feinberg officially took over the $20 billion fund allocated for those affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil gusher. BP, the company responsible for the crisis, has already paid $368 million to individuals and businesses who suffered financial losses. But thousands of claims are still left unresolved and will fall now on Feinberg's desk. 

As oil from a mile-deep wellhead in the Gulf of Mexico continues to gush, BP is set to break records by drilling two miles below the sea's surface off the coast of Alaska in pursuit of what they believe is a 100 million barrel reservoir of oil. 

"You have a company in the Gulf that was pushing the envelope in technology which played a role in this disaster," says Ian Urbina, national correspondent for The New York Times. "In the Arctic, the one project that is being allowed to go forward is by BP, and once again they are pushing the envelope."

Internal documents released to The New York Times last week show that BP reported problems mid-March with the undersea well that exploded a month later. However, the company delayed the testing of a critical piece of equipment – the well’s blowout preventer. And some BP engineers expressed concerns about the oil rig's safety as far back as 11 months ago.

It's still not known what caused the fatal explosion at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch Mine, a powerful blast that killed 29 miners in the worst mining disaster in a generation. But, in today's New York Times, a foreman from the Upper Big Branch Mine, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed a pattern of lax safety practices that pointed to disaster.

We look behind Monday's coal mine explosion that killed 25 and left 4 miners trapped in Montcoal, W. Va. into the Massey corporation, which owns the mine.

Two miners are in critical condition and four are still missing following the explosion of the Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia yesterday. Ellen Smith, editor of Mine Safety and Health News tells us that the mine had an unusually high number of safety violations.

25 miners are dead after an explosion tore through a coal mine in West Virginia's Raleigh County. The mine is owned by the Massey Energy company, which, according to news reports, has a history of safety problems. President Barack Obama sent condolences to West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin while emergency vehicles and helicopters arrived on the scene.

 

At least four times in the last year, Philadelphia has been taken over by flash mobs made up of massive numbers of teenagers who congregate in one place at the same time. The gatherings are usually coordinated through text messaging, Twitter, or other electronic means. It sounds innocent, (and indeed, most flash mobs are utterly benign) but lately, the gatherings in Philadelphia have taken a violent turn, resulting in injuries and damage to properties and businesses.

Two subway trains collided in Washington D.C. yesterday, killing seven people. It's being called the worst metro accident in the city's history. The details currently known are that during rush hour on the red line, one of the system's busiest lines, one train ran into the back of a stopped train. The National Transportation Safety Board warned city officials that the type of train involved in the accident needed to be retrofitted for safety, but the city was unable to follow through with the recommendation. Ian Urbina, a reporter for our partner The New York Times, is following the story.

As the economic downturn hits the states, some governors are considering an unusual cost-cutting measure: abolishing the death penalty. Since capital cases cost three times as much as cases where the death penalty is not sought, cash-strapped states are increasingly looking at the option. Ian Urbina has been reporting on this for the New York Times and he joins us now.

For more, read Ian Urbina's article, Citing Cost, States Consider Halting Death Penalty, in today's New York Times.

Two judges in Eastern Pennsylvania pleaded guilty to wire fraud and income tax fraud for taking more than $2.6 million in kickbacks to send teenagers to two privately run youth detention centers run by PA Child Care and a sister company, Western PA Child Care. Ian Urbina is reporting this story for the New York Times and he joins us now for what this means for those convicted by these judges and for the justice system at large.

For additional details on this story, read Ian Urbina's and Sean Hamill's article, Judges Plead Guilty in Scheme to Jail Youths for Profit, in today's New York Times.

With more people out of work during the holidays, shoplifting is on the rise. Ian Urbina, reporter for The New York Times, talks about the vulnerablity as well as the sympathy retailers feel for their customers.

Provisional ballots are official election documents usually given to voters when they can't prove their identity or registration on Election Day. The state of Ohio usually uses a lot of these tools: In 2004, more than 150,000 provisional ballots were cast there, and they have a legacy of legal trouble attached to them.