The Latest: 2 of 3 people plead not guilty in Flint crisis

FLINT, Mich. – The Latest on the lead-tainted water crisis in Flint, Michigan (all times local):

5:25 p.m.

Two state employees charged with crimes in the Flint water debacle have pleaded not guilty.

Stephen Busch and Michael Prysby appeared in court Wednesday on several charges, including conspiracy and misconduct in office. They’ve been suspended without pay at the Department of Environmental Quality.

Lawyers for the pair didn’t immediately return phone messages seeking comment. Busch and Prysby were released on bond.

Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow is also charged and has been placed on leave.

The three are accused of failing to do their duty to provide safe drinking water. Flint used the Flint River for 18 months but didn’t treat the water to reduce corrosion. As a result, lead leached from old plumbing as water moved through the system.

___

4 p.m.

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder says two state employees facing criminal charges in connection with Flint’s lead-tainted water crisis have been suspended without pay.

The governor says Wednesday that the suspensions were triggered once Stephen Busch and Michael Prysby were charged. Busch had been on paid leave under civil service rules.

Snyder says his administration will review whether the state should pay for the defendants’ representation in the criminal case and civil lawsuits once a state police investigation is complete.

State Attorney General Bill Schuette (SHOOT’-ee) charged Busch and Prysby, who both work at the state Department of Environmental Quality, with several things, including misdemeanour violations of Michigan’s safe drinking water law.

Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow is charged with tampering with evidence for changing lead water-testing results and wilful neglect of duty as a public servant. Glasgow is on administrative leave, according to Flint’s mayor, but it wasn’t clear whether it was paid or unpaid.

___

3:40 p.m.

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder says charges against two state employees and a Flint utility worker in connection with the city’s lead-tainted water crisis are “deeply troubling.”

Snyder says Wednesday that if the accusations are true it would take the issue “to a whole new level.”

State Attorney General Bill Schuette (SHOOT’-ee) charged Stephen Busch and Michael Prysby, who both work at the state Department of Environmental Quality, with several things, including misdemeanour violations of Michigan’s safe drinking water law.

Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow is charged with tampering with evidence for changing lead water-testing results and wilful neglect of duty as a public servant.

Flint used water from the Flint River for 18 months but it wasn’t treated to reduce corrosion. As a result, lead leached from old plumbing.

___

3:20 p.m.

Michigan lawmakers have taken a step toward directing another $144 million to Flint’s water crisis, including $25 million to replace thousands of underground lead pipes.

The Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday approved the fourth round of emergency spending requested by Gov. Rick Snyder. More than $67 million has been authorized already.

The additional money would help the beleaguered city stay on Detroit’s water system until switching to a regional pipeline and cover costs like intervention services for children with developmental delays associated with lead exposure.

Flint remains under a state of emergency. Residents are using filters and bottled water until pipes are effectively recoated with a protective layer formed by anti-corrosion chemicals.

The budget measure next will be considered by the full Senate and, if it wins approval, then the House.

This item has been corrected to show that a committee approved $144 million for Flint, not $126 million.

___

2:40 p.m.

Michigan Attorney Bill Schuette (SHOOT’-ee) says “no one is off the table” in his investigation of the Flint water crisis.

Schuette was asked more than once whether Gov. Rick Snyder, a fellow Republican, was being investigated. He said there is “no target and no one is off the table.”

Schuette held a news conference Wednesday after charging two state employees and a Flint utility worker with felonies and misdemeanours. Snyder says he’ll comment later Wednesday.

Flint used water from the Flint River for 18 months but it wasn’t treated to reduce corrosion. As a result, lead leached from old plumbing, contaminating the water.

Snyder has said his environmental regulators failed miserably. He insists he didn’t know about dire lead problems until last fall.

___

1:20 p.m.

Michigan’s attorney general says two state employees and a Flint utility worker charged in the Flint lead-tainted water crisis “failed Michigan families.”

An investigation led by the office of Bill Schuette (SHOOT’-ee) began in January.

Two state employees and a Flint utility worker were charged Wednesday with several crimes.

Schuette also said at a news conference Wednesday that he’d “guarantee” there will be more charges.

For nearly 18 months after Flint’s water source was switched while the city was under state financial management, residents drank and bathed with improperly treated water that coursed through aging pipes and fixtures, releasing toxic lead. Blood tests have revealed high lead levels in children.

___

11:55 a.m.

Two state employees facing charges related to the Flint water crisis are accused of refusing to order chemical treatment that could have prevented the release of lead in old plumbing.

The charges filed Wednesday against Stephen Busch and Michael Prysby, who work at the state Department of Environmental Quality, include misdemeanour violations of Michigan’s safe drinking water law.

Corrosion control wasn’t added to water from the Flint River while the city used it for 18 months. That lack of treatment caused lead to leach from pipes as water flowed into homes and businesses.

Busch and Prysby also face felony charges.

While under state management, Flint switched water sources to save money while it awaited construction of a new pipeline to Lake Huron. Blood tests have revealed high lead levels in children.

___

11:05 a.m.

Two state regulators and a Flint employee are charged with evidence tampering and several other felony and misdemeanour counts related to the Michigan city’s lead-tainted water crisis.

The charges, filed Wednesday in a state court, stem from an investigation by the Michigan attorney general’s office.

Michael Prysby, a district engineer for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and Stephen Busch, who is a supervisor with the DEQ’s Office of Drinking Water, are both charged with misconduct in office, conspiracy to tamper with evidence, tampering with evidence and violations of water treatment and monitoring laws.

Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow is charged with tampering with evidence for changing lead water-testing results and wilful neglect of duty as a public servant.

For nearly 18 months after Flint’s water source was switched while the city was under state financial management, residents drank and bathed with improperly treated water that coursed through aging pipes and fixtures, releasing toxic lead.

___

2:30 a.m.

Michigan’s attorney general is set to announce criminal charges against two state regulators and a Flint employee, alleging wrongdoing related to the city’s lead-tainted water crisis, according to two government officials familiar with the investigation.

The charges will be filed Wednesday against a pair of state Department of Environmental Quality officials and a local water treatment plant supervisor, the officials told The Associated Press late Tuesday. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the investigation publicly.

The charges would be the first levied in a probe that’s expected to broaden.

A spokesman for Attorney General Bill Schuette’s office declined comment Tuesday night. Schuette and other investigators have scheduled a news conference Wednesday afternoon to make a “significant” announcement in the investigation.