#Ex-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder charged in Flint water crisis

Former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has been charged for his role in the Flint water crisis, which caused an outbreak of Legionnaires disease and contaminated residents’ homes with lead-based water.

An indictment filed by the state attorney general’s office charged Snyder with two counts of willful neglect of duty after a years-long investigation into one of the worst environmental disasters in US history.

The misdemeanor charges could put Snyder behind bars up to a year along with a $1,000 fine.

Snyder, a Republican, was in office in 2014 when the state decided to alter the water supply, which contaminated homes in Flint with lead-tainted water.

Other officials are expected to be charged, including the state’s former health department director.

In 2014, officials switched Flint’s water supply to the Flint River as part of a cost-cutting measure while a pipeline to Lake Huron was under construction.

However, the water wasn’t treated properly and lead from old plumbing was released into the homes of the largely-black city.

Bacteria found in the contaminated water was also blamed for the Legionnaires outbreak that infected at least 90 people and killed 12 in Genesee County.

Residents sickened by the tainted water reached a $600 million settlement with the state.

With Post Wires