Are Manslaughter Charges Coming For The Flint Crisis?
Brian O Sutter
Personal Injury
Recently an investigator has announced that if officials have been found to be grossly negligent and they could be facing charges as serious as manslaughter for their inactions during the Flint Crisis.What You Should Know About The Flint Crisis
In case you have missed the news about the Flint Crisis, we will give you the basics.
In April 2014, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and other Michigan state officials decided to switch Flint’s water supply in an attempt to save money. Originally, Flint was getting a clean source of water through Detroit. However, they had now been switched to the Flint River, a body of water well-known by locals for being filthy and possibly toxic. Additionally, due to the corrosive nature of the water, the Flint River needed to be treated with an anti-corrosive agent in order to protect it from leeching lead from the water pipes. However, no one did and thus the water became contemned with large amounts of lead.
Despite the worries of Flint locals, the government assured them that the water was perfectly safe to drink regardless of its unusual color or ‘funny’ taste. It wasn’t until the level of lead in the local children begun causing them painful rashes and hair loss, that a local doctor did some tests of her own and found the water to be filled with lead. In fact, the water had been so poisoned by lead that it qualified as “toxic waste”.
The Problem With Lead Poisoning
Lead in any amount is absolutely too much can cause anything from brain damage to death. With the current spike in Legionnaires disease within the region of Flint and the 10 deaths it has caused so far, it is no wonder why Flint citizens are both angry and scared. Currently, Flint citizens are depending on the donations of water bottles in order to survive along with medical treatment for their lead poisoning. However, it is important to note that lead poisoning cannot be cured and Flint citizens will be permanently damaged by the crisis.
If that was not enough, Flint citizens are unable to sell their home due the toxic waste coming straight from their pipes. They are even being forced to pay for the toxic waste or risk having their children taken away since not having ‘running water’ legally counts as child abuse.
The Investigation Into The Crisis
Todd Flood who is part of the special counsel for the state attorney general’s office and in charge of the investigation is currently investigating what possible crimes may have led to or caused the current Flint crisis. Though Flood admits that it could be the result of a few “honest mistakes”, he is also looking for any possibility of the city, county or state officials being guilty of a “breach of duty” or “gross negligence”. He even stated that the most severe charge, manslaughter, may be just as possible.
However, the Michigan government isn’t the only one that is getting the finger pointed at them. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has also been accused of not reacting fast enough to the crisis while they are pointing the finger back at the Michigan government for ignoring federal advice about treating the Flint’s water for its corrosive elements which has led to the eroded lead pipes and poisoning.