Flint Official Charged With Manslaughter As Lead Crisis Continues

AFTER FAR
TOO MANY DAYS THE RESIDENTS OF FLINT, MICHIGAN ARE STILL
SUFFERING FROM IRRESPONSIBLE AND MALICIOUS DECISIONS OF THEIR
GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR WATER SUPPLY.
WE
HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF GOOD NEWS, BUT WE WANT TO REMIND YOU HOW
LONG THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN GOING ON.
IT HAS BEEN AT LEAST 1036
DAYS SINCE IT WAS CLEAR THAT FLINT HAD A MAJOR PROBLEM.
WE
ARE TALKING ABOUT OVER 1000 DAYS THAT WE HAVE KNOWN THAT THEY ARE
ISSUES THERE.
PEOPLE STILL CAN'T USE THE WATER THERE.
WE'VE GOT
SOME GOOD NEWS, BUT TO PUT IT IN CONTEXT THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT
HAS GONE ON FAR TOO LONG.
BUT LET'S GET TO THE GOOD NEWS.
THE
GOOD NEWS IS THAT FEDERAL CHARGES HAVE NOW BEEN FILED
AGAINST THEM.
THAT PARTICULAR BACTERIA IS NOT THE ONLY
BACTERIA THAT AFFECTS THE PIPES IN FLINT.
BUT IT IS A DANGEROUS
ONE.
THE OTHER OFFICIALS ARE NOT FACING NEARLY AS SERIOUS CHARGES
BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T ACT IN A WAY
THAT LED TO DEATHS, BUT IT IS GOOD TO SEE A CONTINUATION OF
THE ARREST AND WARRANTS THAT
HAVE BEEN GOING OUT.
12 PEOPLE HAVE DIED FROM LEGIONNAIRES' DISEASE.
12.
IT WOULD BE EASY FOR PEOPLE TO WRITE THIS OFF AS BACTERIA IN
THE WATER, BUT WHEN YOU KNOW THAT IT IS LEGIONNAIRES AND IT
COULD KILL PEOPLE ñ THE IDEA THAT YOU WOULD NOT ONLY SLOW
ROLL MAKING IT CLEAR IT IS THERE SO PEOPLE CAN TAKE STEPS NOT TO
EXPOSE HER FAMILY TO IT, BUT
THAT THEN YOU WOULD STOP THE INFORMATION FROM BEING RELEASED,
I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER IS NECESSARY THE
CORRECT CRIME HERE.
THERE SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN QUITE A BIT OF FORETHOUGHT THAT LED TO
THIS.
I COULDN'T TELL FROM THE STORY BECAUSE IT RESULTED IN THE
DEATH OF AT LEAST ONE PERSON.
CAN YOU FACE 12 COUNTS OF THIS
SAME THING?
I WOULD NOT CHANGE THE NATURE OF THE TRIAL IF IT
GETS THAT FAR.
HE CAN PLEAD OUT TO SOMETHING ELSE.
THAT IS SOMETIMES IS THE CASE WHEN YOU ARE CHARGED WITH
MULTIPLE THINGS.
JUST TO RUN DOWN THE OTHER PEOPLE THAT HAVE
BEEN CHARGED.
YES OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE CHARGES DO HAPPEN TO
PEOPLE IN AMERICA.
IS UP TO 15 THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE
BEEN CHARGED WITH FLINTS WATER CRISIS.
AT THIS POINT I HAVE NO
IDEA IF YOU WILL END UP GETTING ANY SERIOUS TIME IN JAIL.
GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS HAVE A
DEGREE OF PROTECTION, MAYBE NOT TO THE EXTENT OF COPS DO.
THE
ACTUAL, THE DECISIONS THAT LED TO THAT PROBLEM AND THE LARGER
PROBLEM SINCE THEN WERE NOT
LIMITED TO THE EXERCISE OF THIS ONE GUY.
I THINK THOSE PEOPLE
WOULD LOVE TO HAVE SOMEONE AT A
LOWER LEVEL GO AWAY FOR THIS.
BUT OF COURSE IT IS MUCH BIGGER.
HE WASN'T THE ONLY PERSON TO
MAKE DECISIONS THAT RESULTED IN THESE STATS.
HE'S IN THERE FOR MANSLAUGHTER, ALSO FOR
OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE CHARGES.
A TERM THAT THE AMERICAN PUBLIC
WILL BECOME FAMILIAR WITH.
I'M NOT SURE THE MICHIGAN ATTY.
GEN.'S NAME ñ IT'S AN INTERESTING POLITICAL DYNAMIC
FOR THIS IN MICHIGAN BECAUSE HE IS A REPUBLICAN WHO IS BRINGING
THESE CHARGES, HE IS SEEN AS A POTENTIAL GUBERNATORIAL
CANDIDATE IN 2018 WHEN MICHIGAN HAS THEIR GUBERNATORIAL
ELECTION.
HE IS PREVENTED FROM RUNNING FOR REELECTION IN
MICHIGAN.
HOW THIS GUY HAS
SURVIVED IS REMARKABLE.
THE TIMING IS THAT 2 1/2 YEARS AGO
WAS NOT 2014 WHEN HE WAS RUNNING
FOR REELECTION AND THEORETICALLY LOST.
BUT THEY TRIED TO
INTERVIEW THE GOVERNOR AND THE GOVERNOR WOULD NOT TALK TO THEM.
AND THE ATTY.
GEN.
ALSO A REPUBLICAN DID NOT SAY WE ARE
NOT CHARGING THE GOVERNOR, HE SIMPLY SAID HE IS NOT COMMENTING
ON WHETHER THE GOVERNOR WILL AT SOME POINT FACE CHARGES.
I THINK
IT IS FAIRLY UNLIKELY THAT THIS WILL BE THE LAST CHARGED, BUT IT
IS POSSIBLE THAT SOME VERY BIG NAMES IN MICHIGAN COULD END UP
IN LEGAL JEOPARDY.
EVEN NOW I THINK GOV.
SNYDER WAS RAISED
BOTH LYON AND WELLS.
IT IS A HECK OF A JOB.
I WOULD'VE GONE SILENT.
BUT AGAIN, 1036 DAYS AND A LOT OF GREAT WORK HAS BEEN DONE.
WE
HAVE SPOTLIGHTED MULTIPLE TIMES REUTERS INVESTIGATIONS THAT HAVE
UNVEILED THOUSANDS OF COUNTIES WITH AT LEAST AS BAD OF A LEAD
LEVEL PROBLEM.
EARLIER THIS YEAR THEY DID A CONFERENCE OF
ANALYSIS OF EVERY AREA, AND LA SPECIFICALLY, AND FOUND CRAZY
LEVELS OF CHILDHOOD EXPOSURE TO
LEAD.
SOLVING THE PROBLEM IN FLINT DOES NOT SOLVE THE LEAD
PROBLEM IN THE US.
THAT HAS TO BE ACKNOWLEDGED.
BUT THE IDEA
THAT WE CAN ALLOW ñ IT'S NOT LIKE FIXING EVERY PIPE IN NEW
YORK CITY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
THEORETICALLY WE COULD
HAVE THROWN MONEY AT THIS PROBLEM AND SOLVED IT A YEAR OR
TWO AGO.
BUT DESPITE THE FACT THAT THERE WAS A LOT OF OUTRAGE,
ESPECIALLY DURING THE ELECTION,
IT CONTINUES ON.
THE GLACIAL PACE OF PROGRESS THERE.
THESE
PEOPLE'S LIVES HAVE BARELY
IMPROVED DESPITE KNOWING FOR YEARS WHAT WAS GOING ON THERE.
IT'S AMAZING WHAT WE WILL
TOLERATE.
LET ME JUST THROW A COUPLE OF DATES OUT THERE ñ IN 2015, SO
TWO YEARS AGO, THIS WOMAN NAMED
LEEANN WATERS ñ WALTERS, MOTHER OF FOUR CONTACTED THE EPA WITH
CONCERNS ABOUT DARK SEDIMENT IN HER TAPWATER POSSIBLY MAKING HER
CHILDREN SICK.
THE EPA LIMIT IS 15 PPB OF LEAD.
THE FIRST TEST
REVEALED HER AT 104 PPB, SEVEN TIMES THAT.
ANOTHER TEST
INDICATED IT WAS 397.
AND IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE 15, SOME MORE THAN 20 TIMES.
THE 15 IS BASICALLY AN ALLOWANCE FOR CERTAIN LEVELS OF
POSSIBLE LETHALITY.
THERE IS NO AMOUNT OF THE WATER SUPPLY THAT IS SAFE.
IT'S NOT LIKE AFTER A CERTAIN POINT IT IS GOOD FOR YOU.
BUT AS I'M GOING EASY, AND EVEN THEN SO MANY AREAS IN THE US
CAN MEET THAT RIDICULOUS BENCHMARK.
AND BASICALLY SIX MONTHS EARLIER, IN OCTOBER 2014
THE GENERAL MOTORS PLANT IN FLINT STOPPED USING THE CITY'S
WATER BECAUSE IT WAS CORRODING ENGINE PARTS.
THAT STOOD OUT THE MOST I THINK.
IT WAS ROUGH ON THE
SYSTEM OF SOMETHING MADE OF
METAL.
I'M NOT SURE CHILDREN SHOULD BE CONSUMING IT, BUT THIS
IS AMERICA AND IT IS NOT A WEALTHY AREA SO I GUESS WE WILL
ALLOW IT.
WE WILL LET IT GO ON FOR SEVEN YEARS OR SO.

Flint Official Charged With Manslaughter As Lead Crisis Continues

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