Ex-Mich. governor Rick Snyder to face criminal charges in Flint water crisis: Report
Flint #Flint
Former Michigan governor Rick Snyder (R) and several former officials are expected to be indicted for their role in the 2014 Flint water crisis that led to at least 12 deaths and dozens of illnesses in the predominantly Black city, the Associated Press reports.
Snyder, his former health department director Nick Lyon and former adviser Rich Baird were among those notified by the office of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel(D) of the pending indictments and advised to expect imminent court dates, the AP reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the prosecution.
The nature of the forthcoming criminal charges was not immediately clear. Courtney Covington, a spokeswoman for Nessel’s office, told The Washington Post that the office’s investigators were still working “diligently” and declined to comment on the probe or confirm reports of imminent charges.
Brian Lennon, an attorney for Snyder, blasted the reported charges as a “smear campaign.”
“It is outrageous to think any criminal charges would be filed against Gov. Snyder,” Lennon said in Tuesday statement in which he characterized any charges against the former governor as “meritless” and politically motivated.
‘If I could afford to leave, I would.’ In Flint, a water crisis with no end in sight.
Nessel’s office dropped all criminal charges in the case in 2019, effectively restarting the probe.
Mona Hanna-Attisha, whose research in 2015 first documented dangerously high lead levels in children’s blood, welcomed news of the reported charges.
“As a pediatrician privileged to care for our Flint children, I have increasingly come to understand that accountability and justice are critical to health & recovery,” Hanna-Attisha told The Post in a text message Tuesday. “Without justice, it’s impossible to heal the scars of the crisis.”
Hanna-Attisha, director of pediatric residency at the Hurley Children’s Hospital in Flint, warned that while the news was a salve for the many families whose lives had been affected by the poisoned water, criminal charges are only part of the story.
“I am hopeful this news serves as a reminder of Flint’s lessons; where the perfect storm of environmental injustice, indifferent bureaucracy, lost democracy & austerity, compounded by decades of racism & deindustrialization left a city powerless & forgotten,” she said. “Never again should this country have to deal with the generational repercussions of a community poisoned by policies.”
Flint’s lead-poisoned water had a ‘horrifyingly large’ effect on fetal deaths, study finds
The early days of the crisis trace back to April 2014, when Flint switched its water supply to the Flint River in a cost-savings stopgap measure until a permanent pipeline project was complete. After the switch, Flint residents immediately complained about the water’s odor and appearance, eventually reporting health issues such as skin rashes. Even as complaints persisted for months, the city still advised residents that the water was safe.
A dozen people died of a Legionnaire’s outbreak in 2014 amid the crisis, though a 2019 investigation found that the death toll was probably much higher.
For Flint families who continue to live with the irreversible effects of the tainted water, Tuesday’s news symbolized a level of vindication.
“I can’t believe it,” Gina Luster, a Flint community activist, told The Post in a message. “Finally, after 7 years of fighting for justice.”
Reacting to the news via Facebook, Luster added an emoji: The scales of justice.