CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Count retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor among those troubled by West Virginia's 2004 state Supreme Court election.

In recent public speeches, O'Connor has cited the more than $3 million spent by Massey Energy chief executive Don Blankenship to help Brent Benjamin win a seat on the Mountain State's highest court.

Benjamin later helped reverse a judgment against Massey totaling $82.7 million with interest. The coal company that had won the verdict, Harman Mining, and its president have since appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that Benjamin should have recused himself from the case.

"It does not look good, does it?' O'Connor told a county Bar association audience in Indiana last month. "Why would a state want to subject itself to an influx of money into its courtroom?''

O'Connor also said that the specter of large contributions to elected judicial officers "destroys the credibility of the judgment.''

The Reagan appointee similarly invoked the Blankenship-Benjamin situation last week, at a North Carolina forum co-sponsored by the American Bar Association and the National Center for State Courts.

"The mere appearance of bias is enough to irreparably harm'' public confidence in courts, the lawyer group quotes O'Connor as saying. "West Virginia cannot possibly benefit from having that much money injected into cases.''

Benjamin and his four fellow state justices declined comment Wednesday through a spokeswoman. The court's administrative director noted the pending appeal in declining to comment.

O'Connor has spoken out against judicial elections since retiring from the nation's top court in 2006. Her advocacy of an independent and respected judiciary has prompted West Virginia: A Vision Shared to tout her as a potential honorary chairwoman of the overhaul it seeks of the state's judicial system.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Count retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor among those troubled by West Virginia's 2004 state Supreme Court election.

In recent public speeches, O'Connor has cited the more than $3 million spent by Massey Energy chief executive Don Blankenship to help Brent Benjamin win a seat on the Mountain State's highest court.

Benjamin later helped reverse a judgment against Massey totaling $82.7 million with interest. The coal company that had won the verdict, Harman Mining, and its president have since appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that Benjamin should have recused himself from the case.

"It does not look good, does it?' O'Connor told a county Bar association audience in Indiana last month. "Why would a state want to subject itself to an influx of money into its courtroom?''

O'Connor also said that the specter of large contributions to elected judicial officers "destroys the credibility of the judgment.''

The Reagan appointee similarly invoked the Blankenship-Benjamin situation last week, at a North Carolina forum co-sponsored by the American Bar Association and the National Center for State Courts.

"The mere appearance of bias is enough to irreparably harm'' public confidence in courts, the lawyer group quotes O'Connor as saying. "West Virginia cannot possibly benefit from having that much money injected into cases.''

Benjamin and his four fellow state justices declined comment Wednesday through a spokeswoman. The court's administrative director noted the pending appeal in declining to comment.

O'Connor has spoken out against judicial elections since retiring from the nation's top court in 2006. Her advocacy of an independent and respected judiciary has prompted West Virginia: A Vision Shared to tout her as a potential honorary chairwoman of the overhaul it seeks of the state's judicial system.

The nonprofit group promotes economic development and recommended a review of the court system, including the way judicial officials are selected, to Gov. Joe Manchin last year. He has since commissioned a wide-ranging study in an April executive order that allows him to appoint "a person of special expertise'' as honorary chair.

Manchin spokesman Matt Turner said the governor has spoken with O'Connor about her possibly working with the commission, but has yet to appoint any of its members.

O'Connor attended the March arguments in her former courtroom for the appeal brought by Harman and company President Hugh Caperton, who allege that Massey bankrupted them both by hijacking a coal supply contract.

The U.S. Supreme Court's four liberal members and Justice Anthony Kennedy all expressed support for a ruling that the Constitution's guarantee of a fair trial could require judges not to participate in a case in which there was a likelihood of bias. A decision is expected in the next several weeks.

Legal ethics experts have criticized Benjamin's presence in the case, but some also question whether the nation's highest court can craft a practical ruling governing such circumstances.

West Virginia's recusal rule requires justices to disqualify themselves from any proceeding in which their "impartiality might reasonably be questioned,'' but it also gives the targeted jurist the final say.

In a 58-page concurring opinion to the ruling in Massey's favor, Benjamin defended his decision not to recuse himself. Among other grounds, he argued that he has no personal or financial stake in the Richmond, Va.-based company and that his election campaign was independent of Blankenship's efforts.

Through the court, Benjamin has also cited cases in which he has ruled against Massey's interests. They include a unanimous refusal to hear the coal producer's appeal of a $260 million judgment won in another contract dispute.

The American Bar Association is among 47 groups, ranging from Common Cause and 27 former state judges and justices to Wal-Mart, PepsiCo and defense lawyer groups, that have signed off on "friend of the court'' briefs siding with Harman and Caperton in the appeal. Massey's side attracted four such filings, including one from 10 current and former state justices and another from legal officials in seven states.