FLINT, Mich. — The first criminal charges were filed Wednesday in the Flint water crisis against two state officials and one city employee, while Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette promised it was just the beginning.
Michael Prysby, a DEQ district engineer, and Stephen Busch, who is a supervisor with the DEQ's Office of Drinking Water, were both charged with misconduct in office, conspiracy to tamper with evidence, tampering with evidence and violations of water treatment and monitoring laws. It is alleged the two knowingly misled U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials and the county health department.
Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow was charged with tampering with evidence for changing lead water-testing results and willful neglect of duty as a public servant.
Bush (second from left) seated next to Prysby (right) in court with their attorneys before arraignment on Wednesday. (CNN)
All three face prison time if convicted on any of the charges. Appearing in court Wednesday afternoon, all three pleaded not guilty.
Before becoming Flint's utilities manager, Glasgow served as the city water plant’s quality supervisor.
Both Prysby and Busch have been suspended without pay. Gov. Rick Snyder said Wednesday the suspensions were triggered once Busch and 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.
Glasgow is on administrative leave, according to Flint's mayor, but it wasn't clear whether it was paid or unpaid.
Previously, Glasgow said during a legislative hearing he had planned to treat the drinking water with anti-corrosive chemicals after the city began drawing from the Flint River but was overruled by a state environmental regulator.
Glasgow said he received the instruction from Prysby during a meeting to discuss the final steps before Flint switched from the Detroit water system as a cost-saving measure in April 2014.
"If water is distributed from this plant in the next couple of weeks, it will be against my direction," was read from Glasgow's own email during a March legislative hearing. Glasgow confirmed it was his email.
Last month, a task force appointed by Republican Gov. Rick Snyder described the state as “fundamentally accountable” for Flint’s lead-contaminated water crisis, partly because of the decision on corrosion controls.
"This is a road back to restoring faith and confidence in all Michigan families in their government," Schuette said in announcing the charges, months after officials conceded a series of bad decisions caused the disaster.
Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette detailed the charges during a press conference Wednesday alongside Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton, special counsel Todd Flood and other investigators .
Schuette said "no one is off the table" in his investigation of the Flint water crisis, while promising more charges against others will follow.
Asked more than once whether Gov. Rick Snyder, a fellow Republican, was being investigated, Schuette said there is "no target and no one is off the table."
Several residents waiting outside the new conference Wednesday said they felt the charges against three lower-level officials were not enough.
"These are sacrificial lambs," said Melissa Mays, a Flint-area mother. "But hopefully they'll turn some evidence over to where we can get some actual answers."
Speaking to media after sitting in on Wednesday's announcement, Mayor Karen Weaver said she applauded the first step toward accountability.
"It's part of the healing process for the people to know that people are being held accountable," she told reporters. "We here that there's more to come. We've been anxiously awaiting this information, so we'll see what plays out."
The city has been under a state of emergency for more than four months, and people there are using filters and bottled water.
In January, Schuette opened an investigation and appointed a special counsel to lead the probe because his office also is defending Snyder and others in lawsuits filed over the water crisis. The state investigation team has more than 20 outside attorneys and investigators and a budget of $1.5 million.
In addition to the lead contamination, outside experts also have suggested a link between the Flint River and a deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak. There were at least 91 cases, including 12 deaths, across Genesee County, which contains Flint, during a 17-month period. That represents a five-fold increase over what the county averaged before.
Flint has been under a state of emergency for more than four months, and people are using filters and bottled water.
State officials were slow to respond to experts' and residents' concerns. After the crisis broke open, DEQ Director Dan Wyant and the department's communications director Brad Wurfel resigned. Snyder announced the firing of Liane Shekter Smith, the former chief of the DEQ's Office of Drinking Water and Municipal Assistance.
Susan Hedman, the director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Chicago-based Midwest office, also resigned.
"They failed Michigan families. Indeed, they failed us all," Schuette said. "I don't care where you live."
The Associated Press and FOX 17s Darren Cunningham contributed to this report.
