Prosecutors plan to appeal after judge tosses Flint Water Crisis charges against 7 Michigan officials
FLINT, Mich. (FOX 2) - Prosecutors said Tuesday that they will appeal a judge's decision to toss Flint Water Crisis charges against seven Michigan officials.
Judge Elizabeth Kelly said earlier this month that "there are no valid charges."
Kelly rejected efforts by Attorney General Dana Nessel's office to just send the cases to Flint District Court and turn them into criminal complaints, the typical path to filing felony charges in Michigan.
The prosecution team issued a statement:
"The residents of Flint have waited years for their day in court. The court proceedings up to this point have been a challenge to the process, not the merits of the case. The public deserves to hear the evidence against these defendants. Remanding these cases for preliminary exam is the next logical step in the legal process based on the ruling from the Michigan Supreme Court.
"The Michigan Supreme Court did not abolish the one-person grand jury, but instead more specifically defined the process, leaving a path for the prosecution to pursue charges against the defendants. The prosecution followed the law in using the one-person grand jury process from the beginning and is prepared to move forward on the valid warrants issued in these cases in compliance with the new process defined in the opinion from the Court.
"The prosecution is ready to present their case and looks forward to seeing the people of Flint have their day in Court."
Former state officials get criminal charges dropped in Flint water crisis, leaving residents fuming
The water crisis began in 2014 when state-appointed emergency managers appointed by former Governor Rick Snyder took Flint off of a regional water system and began drawing from the Flint River to cut costs. They never treated the water to lessen its corrosiveness.