Latest news with #MichiganAttorneyGeneral'sOffice
NBC News
02-07-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Flint replaces most lead pipes, 10 years after the Michigan water crisis
Flint has replaced most of its lead water pipes, more than ten years after contaminated water was found in the Michigan city's water system, prompting national outrage. State officials submitted a progress report in court on Tuesday showing that they replaced 11,000 lead pipes in the city and restored more than 28,000 affected properties. "Thanks to the persistence of the people of Flint and our partners, we are finally at the end of the lead pipe replacement project," said Pastor Allen C. Overton of the Concerned Pastors for Social Action, one of the lawsuit's plaintiffs in a 2017 lawsuit against officials over the scandal. "While this milestone is not all the justice our community deserves, it is a huge achievement." The Michigan Attorney General's Office did not immediately return a request for comment. In 2013, officials stopped buying water from Detroit and created a pipeline to Lake Huron as a cost-cutting measure. Until the pipeline's completion, the city's primary water source came from the Flint River in 2014. Quickly, residents reported a murky, foamy quality of the water coming from their pipes. After testing positive for high levels of trihalomethanes — a disinfectant byproduct — E. coli bacteria, and lead, city officials lamented that the water was still safe for consumption. It wasn't until October 2015 that the majority-Black city switched back to Detroit water. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the water crisis exposed nearly 100,000 residents of Flint to lead due to the crisis. Criminal charges were brought for several deaths related to the contamination, but were later dismissed. The 2017 lawsuit was settled in 2021 for $626 million, which included an agreement to replace the lead pipes free of charge. "We would not have reached this day without the work of so many Flint residents who worked to hold our leaders accountable," Overton said. "I have never been prouder to be a member of the Flint community." The report says that roughly 4,000 homes still have lead pipes. Those homes were likely either vacant or homes that belonged to Flint residents who opted out of having the pipes replaced, according to a spokesperson for the advocacy group that led the lawsuit, the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Yahoo
Chemical company president bound over for trial on 4 felony charges related to Michigan oil spill
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The president of a Michigan chemical company has been bound over for trial on four felony charges related to a in the Flint River. Rajinder Singh Minhas, 60, from Rochester, has been charged with falsely altering a public record, uttering and publishing a false or altered public record, endangering the public and discharge of 'injurious' substance into public waters. Minhas was president of when the chemical processing facility in Flint dumped approximately 15,000 gallons of an 'oil chemical mixture' into the Flint River, the Michigan Attorney General's Office . A 'chemical fingerprinting analysis' traced the pollution back to Lockhart. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced criminal charges against Minhas last December. He also faces two other misdemeanor charges and nine violations of the state's Liquid Industrial Waste law. 'Serious violations by businesses that endanger the health and well-being of Michigan residents and our environment cannot be tolerated,' . 'I am grateful to the talented prosecutors in my office, the dedicated experts from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, Michigan State Police, the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, the Oakland County Sheriff's Office, and detectives of the EGLE and DNR Environmental Investigation Section, who all played a significant role in advancing this case through the judicial process.' The felony charges carry penalties between two and 14 years in prison. The misdemeanors carry a six-month incarceration and fines. A trial date has yet to be set. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Former Michigan House Speaker and wife heading to trial on embezzlement charges
Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield (left) and his wife Stephanie Chatfield (right) stand at the first day of their preliminary exams as the couple face multiple charges related to embezzlement on Feb. 26, 2025 | Photo: Anna Liz Nichols Former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield and his wife were bound over for trial on embezzlement felonies and other criminal charges Friday, after an investigation by the Michigan Attorney General's Office found the pair funneled money from their political nonprofit to fund their personal purchases. Ingham County Judge Molly Hennessey Greenwalt heard arguments from the defense for Lee and Stephanie Chatfield and the Michigan Attorney General's Office in February, determining this week that there was probable cause for the charges and the case should proceed to trial. The Michigan Attorney General's Office contends that through investigatory efforts by authorities beginning in 2021, it was discovered that the Chatfields had for years used nonprofit money to reimburse themselves for purchases at souvenir shops at Universal Studios during a family trip, transactions at retail stores like Coach and expenses at a strip club, amongst other expenditures. The Chatfields' attorney Mary Chartier has asserted that the charges brought against the former House Speaker, a prominent Republican in Michigan who raised millions of dollars while he was Speaker, are rooted in the political agenda for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat. The investigation into Lee Chatfield began back in December 2021, when his sister-in-law, Rebekah Chatfield, reported to police in Lansing that he had sexually assaulted her for years, starting when she was 14 or 15 years old. Michigan State Police opened an investigation into the report, also looking into financial behavior, which was later taken over by Nessel's office which did not find sufficient evidence to pursue charges for criminal sexual conduct. Lee Chatfield faces 13 felony counts of crimes related to conducting a criminal enterprise, conspiracy and embezzlement, while his wife faces two felony counts. Nessel released a news statement Friday expressing gratitude that the efforts of her office led to the case moving forward to trial after a long investigation period and legal process. 'Our investigation uncovered extensive evidence of elaborate schemes to embezzle and misappropriate private and public funds to bankroll Lee Chatfield's lifestyle during his time as Speaker of the House,' Nessel said in the statement. 'My office will continue to pursue public corruption with every tool at our disposal and push for stronger transparency and good governance in our state.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Washtenaw County prosecutor announces campaign for Michigan attorney general
Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit | Submitted photo Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit announced Tuesday that he is seeking the Democratic nomination for attorney general. Savit said his role as attorney general would be to 'stand between Michiganders and those trying to take their rights away—whether it's extremist politicians in Washington, corporate polluters contaminating our environment, or shady businesses ripping off workers and consumers.' As prosecutor, Savit created Michigan's only Economic Justice Unit, focused on wage theft, price gouging and consumer abuse, as well as new units focused on domestic violence and sexual assault. He was elected as Washtenaw County prosecutor in 2020 and re-elected in 2024. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Prior to that, he served as a law clerk to Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor. He was also senior legal counsel for the city of Detroit, where he oversaw the city's lawsuits against the opioid industry and led the litigation in a right-to-literacy lawsuit that netted nearly $100 million for the city's public schools. Savit said he would use the office to push back on the Trump administration, who he said is 'seeking to strip our communities of their fundamental freedoms.' 'The attorney general is uniquely situated to fight back, in court, against federal overreach,' Savit said. But he said it's also important to litigate issues closer to home, 'whether it's a slumlord taking advantage of tenants, a business ripping off its workers, or a scammer taking advantage of seniors.' Savit joins a field that also includes former U.S. Attorney Mark Totten, the Democratic nominee for attorney general in 2014. Only one Republican has entered the race so far, defense attorney Kevin Kijewski, best known for his representation of Clifford Frost, one of the 15 defendants charged by the Michigan Attorney General's Office with submitting false electoral votes in 2020 for President Donald Trump. Savit's campaign said he has already earned the endorsements of 15 state legislators, including state Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit), and more than 30 city and county officials, including Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand and Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Michigan Attorney General warns of price gouging amid ice storm aftermath in Northern Michigan
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)– Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel urges northern Michigan residents to watch out for price gouging and deceptive business practices amid the recent ice storm. Nessel notes that some companies might exploit the emergency by inflating prices or engaging in unfair business practices. 'Bad actors often see emergencies as an opportunity to take advantage of people in need,' Nessel said in a news release sent to 6 News. 'We need residents to be our eyes and ears and report potential price gouging or deceptive business practices. Filing a complaint with our office can protect your community against these scammers.' Nessel also warns that tree services could exploit residents. Tree services are not licensed, and customers should vet them thoroughly and request written quotes to show the total project cost before signing any agreements. According to Nessel, Michigan law prohibits service providers from charging prices that are 'grossly in excess' of what others are charging for similar services. The Michigan Consumer Protection Act (MCPA) says illegal practices include: Gross discrepancies between the oral representations of the seller and the written agreement covering the same transaction or failure of the other party to the transaction to provide the promised benefits. Charging the consumer a price that is grossly in excess of the price at which similar property or services are sold. Causing coercion and duress as the result of the time and nature of a sales presentation. Making a representation of fact or statement of fact material to the transaction such that a person reasonably believes the represented or suggested state of affairs to be other than it actually is. mcl-act-331-of-1976Download Anyone could file a complaint about to the Michigan Attorney General's Office. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
