How Far Will Flint Investigation Go?
Attorney Todd Flood: Criminal charges will be considered wherever the evidence takes his legal task force.
Thousands of people affected by lead-tainted water. Millions of dollars spent on repairs and the investigations. Nine people charged to date.
Attorney Todd Flood, the special counsel for the state Attorney General’s office who is investigating the Flint Water Crisis, says he is not sure how far the investigation will go but his team has more work to do.
“This being one of the biggest cases, I think, in our state’s history, we’ve moved pretty quickly,” Flood told Host Sandra Svoboda on WDET’s “Detroit Today.” “The impact that it’s having on the world, I think the cost of the investigation is small in comparison.”
The Detroit News reported earlier this week that $2 million has been spent so far on Flood’s task force. The Royal Oak-based attorney defended the bill, saying it’s a complicated investigation involving multiple governments, agencies and private corporations as well as his team of 31 investigators, attorneys and other staff.
“These efforts cost money, and these talents cost money,” Flood says. “The impact that it’s having on the world – I think the cost is small in comparison.”
How serious could charges be? Is Gov. Rick Snyder a potential target of Flood’s work?
“Wherever the evidence leads me is where I’m going to go,” Flood says. “You follow the evidence to a conclusion.”
His team is “very much” examining the deaths from Legionnaire’s disease and whether they are related to the change in water supply that led to the lead contamination. “If we can show where that may lead, that could be a very serious charge, and I’ll let that unfold as we investigate that,” Flood says.
Click on the audio link above to hear the entire interview.
