By Melissa Nann Burke
Washington - Police said they arrested a Michigan man (click here) outside the U.S. Capitol on Friday morning after he was found with a fake badge, a BB gun, body armor, high capacity magazines and other ammunition.
U.S. Capitol Police said they arrested Jerome Felipe, 53, of Flint outside the Capitol after he presented officers with a fake badge that said "Department of the INTERPOL" on it.
Felipe, who is a retired New York City police officer, also made a statement that he was a criminal investigator with the agency, according to police....
There are mental health problems with the BB gunman. I honestly never heard of high capacity BB guns. Do they sell this stuff at Walmart? Nice looking car. The Soap Box Derby occurred on Saturday in Flint.
June 2, 2022
By Jake May
Flint - Soap box cars will soar down Chevrolet Avenue in Flint again this year. (click here)
After a two-year pause amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Flint Soap Box Derby returns from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 4 at Chevy Commons.
This year’s return to racing will celebrate the beginning of summer with an emphasis on community and collaboration said Kevin Cronin, executive director of the Flint Soap Box Derby....
There were recent shootings in Flint and people were injured and one death. The CDC is recommending masks for indoors in Flint and in 10 other counties.
A civil suit was postponed becauase a juror came down with COVID (click here). The effects of the lead poisoning is measureable.
May 19, 2022
Math achievement for school-age children in Flint decreased (click here) and the proportion of children with special needs increased as a result of the Michigan city’s water crisis during 2014-16, according to a new University of Michigan study.
Those are the main conclusions from research that for the first time examined data concerning the effects of the lead-in-water crisis on the academic outcomes of school-age children.
Still, there was little difference in the academic outcomes of school-age children living in homes with lead pipes compared to those in homes with copper pipes, suggesting that community crises may have effects on health and well-being beyond those tied directly to exposure to lead in the water supply.
Authors of the report matched student-level longitudinal data from the Michigan Department of Education, via the Michigan Education Data Center, and data from household-level service line inspections conducted by Flint’s Fast Action and Sustainability Program....
By Steve Carmody
A federal judge has given Flint residents more time to file a claim (click here) for a share of a $626 million legal settlement tied to the Flint water crisis.
Monday morning, U.S. District Court Judge Judith Levy extended the deadline for people to file a claim until June 30. The original deadline had been this Thursday.
More than 50,000 people applied to be part of the settlement of damage claims against the state of Michigan, the city of Flint, McLaren Flint Hospital and Rowe Professional Services. But as of last week, only about 13,000 claims had been filed.
As Special Master Deborah Greenspan oversees the Flint water settlement claims process. In a report to Judge Levy, Greenspan recommended extending the deadline.
“Some individuals have...expressed confusion about the settlement process and mistakenly believed that registering for the settlement was sufficient to recover under the settlement and did not understand that they also needed to submit Claim Forms and Claims Materials.”...
The ill juror was dismissed (click here). Recovery from COVID could take weeks if not months, so it was the best decision. The deterioration of math scores for the children of Flint is a result of brain injury. That is what has occurred with the lead poisoning. It caused brain injury.
The Flint Registry (click here) says it’s kicking off a summer of outreach with a citywide mailing that includes a reusable tote and information for city residents.
Approximately 40,000 totes are being mailed to Flint households by the organization, which registers individuals exposed to lead during the city’s water crisis and matches them with available health care and other resources.
Now in its fifth year of operation, Flint Registry was created and funded by Congress in 2016 and is supported by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Environmental Health....
By Ron Fonger
There’s a narrow question that the jury (click here) will have to answer at the conclusion of a civil trial tied to the Flint water crisis.
But beyond determining the culpability of two consultants for Flint’s lead-contaminated water, there’s a subplot that’s just as important to a broader audience as the trial enters a new phase on Tuesday, June 7
What information has and will the trial in U.S. District Court produce about how the water crisis unfolded and why it was allowed to linger for so long?...
The appeals court should uphold the preciding judge's decision, otherwise they will have to disavow the testimony already submitted. If the appeals court allows the demands by the defendents the case may have to be reassessed and charges refiled. The timeline to charges will have to be allowed if the appeals court disavows the current testimony.
May 24, 2022
By Steve Carmody
A federal appeals court (click here) has scheduled a hearing for five former government officials seeking to plead the fifth to avoid testifying during a Flint water crisis civil trial.
Former Governor Rick Snyder, former Snyder aide Rich Baird, former Flint emergency managers Gerald Ambrose and Darnell Early and former Flint city official Howard Croft don’t want to testify in open court.
On the stand Monday, Croft told the judge in the Flint bellwether trial he would invoke his right against self-incrimination if called to testify.
The five men are all facing criminal charges related to their handling of the Flint water crisis.
Since all five did not invoke their Fifth Amendment right during pre-trial depositions for the bellwether trial before they were indicted, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy said they could not use it now.
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The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has scheduled oral arguments on their appeal. A three judge panel in Cincinnati, Ohio will preside over a court hearing on the appeal July 28....
By Steve Carmody
A federal appeals court (click here) has scheduled a hearing for five former government officials seeking to plead the fifth to avoid testifying during a Flint water crisis civil trial.
Former Governor Rick Snyder, former Snyder aide Rich Baird, former Flint emergency managers Gerald Ambrose and Darnell Early and former Flint city official Howard Croft don’t want to testify in open court.
On the stand Monday, Croft told the judge in the Flint bellwether trial he would invoke his right against self-incrimination if called to testify.
The five men are all facing criminal charges related to their handling of the Flint water crisis.
Since all five did not invoke their Fifth Amendment right during pre-trial depositions for the bellwether trial before they were indicted, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy said they could not use it now.
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The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has scheduled oral arguments on their appeal. A three judge panel in Cincinnati, Ohio will preside over a court hearing on the appeal July 28....
What bothers me about the idea the emergency managers alone was responsible for the Flint Water Crisis, is the new job description. Who wrote and enforced the new job requirements of the Emergency Managers? The definition of an Emergency Manager was changed under Snyder to be more invasive to the organization of a mayor and council. Snyder ran his election campaign on the idea of cities being financially responsible. When he took office all the parameters of Emergency Managers changed from focusing on school funding to taking over the mayor and council. I think the charges are short changed. There is far more responsibility by the Governor involved in this Flint crime. So, while the Emergency Managers carried out fiscal changes they were doing it with new job descriptions generated by Snyder.
By Ron Fonger
Michigan water regulators (click here) were unwilling or unable to challenge emergency managers appointed by former Gov. Rick Snyder as Flint prepared to change its water source in 2014, a former state monitor of the city’s water system says.
Adam Rosenthal, an employee of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, made the charge in a videotaped deposition played for a federal civil court jury on Wednesday, June 1.
Rosenthal answered yes when asked if his “ability to implement your duties and responsibilities were superseded by ... the emergency managers.”
“What I understood was the emergency managers were in control of everything,” he testified....
Good night.
