$626 Million Settlement Approved in Flint Water Crisis Case

A judge has approved a $626 million settlement after a slew of lawsuits were filed by Flint, Michigan residents over the Flint water crisis.

The Flint water issue has gone on for years. On Wednesday, a judge agreed to a $626 million settlement after the state of Michigan was accused of overlooking and neglecting water being contaminated in the city, which is home to predominantly Black and Brown people.

In a 178-page document, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy referred to the settlement as a success. “The settlement reached here is a remarkable achievement for many reasons, not the least of which is that it sets forth a comprehensive compensation program and timeline that is consistent for every qualifying participant,” said Levy.

Children who were 6 years old and younger during the Flint water crisis are the biggest potential beneficiaries of the settlement with the state of Michigan, the city of Flint, McLaren Regional Medical Center, and Rowe Professional Services.

Nearly 80 percent of the settlement, which state officials have said is likely the largest in Michigan history, would be paid to children who were younger than 18 when they were first exposed to Flint River water, which contained elevated levels of lead and bacteria in 2014 and 2015.

Attorneys involved in the lawsuit are asking for $200 million in legal fees, AP News reports. The judge hasn’t ruled on that as of yet.

The water crisis in Flint, Michigan, began in 2014 when the city switched its drinking water supply from Detroit’s system to the Flint River in a cost-saving move. Inadequate treatment and testing of the water resulted in a series of major water quality and health issues for Flint residents. Those issues were chronically ignored, overlooked, and discounted by government officials even as complaints mounted that the foul-smelling, discolored, and off-tasting water piped into Flint homes for 18 months was causing skin rashes, hair loss, and itchy skin. The Michigan Civil Rights Commission, a state-established body, concluded that the poor governmental response to the Flint crisis was a “result of systemic racism.”

“This is a historic and momentous day for the residents of Flint, who will finally begin to see justice served,” said one of the members of the legal team, Ted Leopold. Another lawyer, Corey Stern, said he stood up for “many brave kids who did not deserve the tragedy put on them.”

J. Williams

J. Williams (Jimmy Williams) is the editor of Poli Alert, where he leads coverage of Congress, the White House, the courts and the elections shaping communities across the country. A graduate of Coppin State University in Maryland, he has spent years as a writer and social media manager for multiple outlets. His focus is breaking political news down in plain language so readers know exactly what is happening and how it affects them. Reach him at [email protected].

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