General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSnyder's outside legal bills for Flint water hit $1.2M - Guess who he wants to pay them
LANSING The costs of the Flint drinking water crisis continued to climb Tuesday as Gov. Rick Snyder asked the State Administrative Board to approve contracts worth up to $1.2 million to cover his outside legal bills and Attorney General Bill Schuette asked for approval of a $1.5-million contract with attorney Todd Flood to cover the cost of his investigation into the public health disaster.
Snyder's request Tuesday increases the estimated cost of his outside legal fees from just under $500,000 to more than double that, with up to $400,000 going to civil attorney Eugene Driker and up to $800,000 going to Brian Lennon, a criminal defense attorney who Snyder officials say has been hired in an investigative role to research and process e-mails and other records.
A Royal Oak attorney Flood is the lawyer Schuette tapped to head his investigation into whether any state laws were violated in the lead contamination of Flint drinking water, which has led to state and federal emergency declarations and instructions to Flint residents not to drink tap water without using a lead filter.
The contracts were approved Tuesday by the finance and claims committee and now go to the full State Administrative Board on March 15. The board, which has representatives from the governor's office, the attorney general's office, the lieutenant governor, the secretary of state, the treasurer, the superintendent of public instruction, and the director of the transportation department, is generally an administrative rubber stamp for state contracts worth $250,000 or more.
Snyder's bills are controversial because they are in addition to the costs of attorneys from Schuette's office who are defending him in a raft of civil suits related to the Flint crisis. Schuette's selection of Flood to lead his Flint water investigation has also been criticized by Common Cause in Michigan and Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Brandon Dillon because Flood has been a campaign donor to both Snyder and Schuette.
"It's beyond outrageous that Snyder wants to take $1.2 million from Michigan taxpayers to pay for defense attorneys over his involvement in the poisoning of Flint's water," Dillon said. "That money should go toward replacing lead pipes and getting safe drinking water to Flint families, not for Snyder's defense attorneys."
Instead of conducting a truly independent investigation into the cause of the Flint water crisis, Bill Schuette is funneling $1.5 million in taxpayer dollars to Todd Flood, who has contributed thousands of dollars to Bill Schuette, and thousands more to Rick Snyder -- the man he is supposed to be investigating, Dillon said. The people of Flint deserve better.
More at:
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/flint-water-crisis/2016/03/08/snyders-outside-legal-bills-flint-water-hit-12m/81476922/
daleanime
(17,796 posts)Dont call me Shirley
(10,998 posts)Co-conspirators can pay the scumbags legal bills. Fuck Rick Snyder!
corkhead
(6,119 posts)SamKnause
(13,043 posts)He would have had all of his assets seized;
money, stocks, bonds, land, buildings.
That is what would happen in a country that cares about its people.
It is unfortunate that the U.S. is not a country that believes in justice
or fairness.
angstlessk
(11,862 posts)they would bill the family for the bullet!
SamKnause
(13,043 posts)I said prison.
I don't believe in the death penalty.
angstlessk
(11,862 posts)I am just saying what they would do in China
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Siwsan
(26,178 posts)All of us peons gotta feed the pig.