Most of us working in the water industry remember when former Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette in 2016 promised to investigate “without fear or favor” the scandal over Flint’s lead-tainted drinking water and pledged that state regulators would be locked up for misleading the public and other crimes. With that said three years later, not one person is behind bars and it is not certain that anyone ever will be. Seven of fifteen defendants have been allowed to plead no contest to misdemeanors, some as minor as disrupting a public meeting. It is quite possible that their records eventually will be scrubbed clean and they will be allowed to put this matter behind them. That is something that the citizens of Flint and the children who were affected by the tainted water will never be able to do.

The anger that exists in Flint where people believe that several of the key players who could and should have prevented this disaster are getting off far too easy. Four of five people at the state Department of Environmental Quality who should have prevented these problems have been allowed to strike deals to avoid more serious charges. The few remaining cases mostly center on a deadly outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease and early disastrous decisions to use water from the Flint River.
Flint was possibly the worst totally preventable man-made environmental disaster in US history. It was allowed to happen in Flint, a poor minority city where 41 percent of residents are classified by the government as living in poverty. Because of these factors and others, Flint was being run by financial managers appointed by the governor.

Liane Shekter Smith, who was at the time the head of Michigan’s drinking water office, had been charged with misconduct in office and neglect of duty. She has also been investigated for an involuntary manslaughter charge. Those charges were dropped on Jan. 7 in exchange for a no-contest plea to a misdemeanor, disturbance of a lawful meeting. Two other key agency employees, Michael Prysby and Stephen Busch, made deals on Dec. 26. All three will have their records erased if they cooperate with authorities.

State Sen. Jim Ananich of Flint, stated in January “At the beginning there was a feeling of good, someone is going to be held accountable. Now people don’t believe anyone is going to be held accountable.”

The public is left to wonder why these outcomes are so far is different than what they heard in 2016 when former Attorney General Bill Schuette, a Republican who ran in the last election for governor and lost, said in Flint when he announced felony charges against two state employees, Mr. Prysby, a DEQ engineer and Mr. Busch, a DEQ regional supervisor. It is alleged that Mr. Busch and Mr. Prysby misled federal and local authorities and regulatory officials. Attorney General Schuette declared at that time. “When we prove these allegations — and we will — Mr. Busch and Mr. Prysby will be facing five years in prison for this count alone.” Mr. Schuette is now a private citizen.

Andy Arena, a current Flint water investigator and former head of the FBI in Detroit, believes the plea deals are appropriate. “There are culpable folks out there that we need to get to,” he said. “This is how it works: You cut deals with certain people to move the case up the line. I believe these people have some information that could significantly assist in our ongoing investigation.”

The newly elected Michigan Attorney General, Dana Nessel, who is now in control of the case, has asked a Detroit-area prosecutor to review the remaining cases, including involuntary manslaughter charges against Nick Lyon, the former head of the Michigan health department who has been ordered to trial. He is accused of failing to alert the public in a timely manner about the Legionnaires’ outbreak, which has been linked to foul water and at least 12 deaths. Dr. Eden Wells, who was Michigan’s chief medical executive, is also facing an involuntary manslaughter trial, although both cases are tied up in appeals. Gerald Ambrose and Darnell Earley, who were state-appointed emergency managers when Flint was using river water, are also charged. All have pleaded not guilty.