Politics & Government
Flint Water Case: 2 Regulators Take Plea Deals
Dept. of Environmental Quality staffers Michael Prysby and Stephen Busch also agreed to testify against others for reduced charges.
FLINT, MI — Two Michigan environmental regulators implicated in the Flint water scandal have pleaded no contest to misdemeanors in exchange for more serious charges being dropped.
Michael Prysby and Stephen Busch, employees at the state Department of Environmental Quality, also agreed to testify against others under the terms of their deals. They entered their pleas Wednesday.
A no contest plea isn't an admission of guilt but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.
Prysby and Busch had been charged with misconduct in office and tampering with water monitoring reports — both felonies — along with misdemeanor violations of Michigan's drinking water law.
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The development means six of the 15 current or former state and local officials charged in Flint's water crisis have agreed to deals. The other cases are moving slowly.
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Photo: A copper water supply line, left, is shown connected to a water main after being installed for lead pipe, right, in Flint, Mich., Friday, July 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)