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Federal judge finds city of Flint in contempt over lead water pipe crisis
A federal judge has found the city of Flint in contempt for failing to comply with a court order that spelled out the steps it needed to take to finish replacing old lead pipes following the Michigan city’s lead-contaminated water scandal.
U.S. District Judge David Lawson wrote in Tuesday’s decision that he had found Flint in civil contempt because it had failed to meet deadlines for pipe-removal outlined in his February 2023 order. The city had originally promised to replace the pipes by early 2020.
Lawson’s ruling comes after he held a June 2023 hearing on a motion seeking a contempt finding filed the previous month by the Natural Resources Defense Council, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan and Concerned Pastors for Social Action.
“Based on the evidence, it is apparent that the City has failed to abide by the Court’s orders in several respects, and that it has no good reason for its failures,” Lawson wrote. “The City has demonstrated belated compliance since the hearing, but even now, it has not actually replaced all of the lead service lines, which it originally promised to replace by March 28, 2020.”
A phone message and email seeking comment on Lawson’s ruling were left with Mayor Sheldon Neeley’s office.
The city had agreed to replace the pipes by early 2020, but still has not completed that work, the Natural Resources Defense Council said in a news release. Also, nearly 2,000 homes still have damage to curbs, sidewalks and lawns caused by the lead pipe replacement program, the council said.
Other than offering to award attorney fees, costs and expenses to the plaintiffs, Lawson’s order did not set out other specific penalties for the city if it continues to not comply with the order.
Pastor Allen C. Overton of Concerned Pastors for Social Action, one of the plaintiffs in the case, said it was encouraged by Lawson’s ruling but wants to see the work finished.
“The true outcome we’re seeking is for the City of Flint to succeed in finishing the lead pipe replacement program, including by finishing the overdue work of repairing damage to residents’ properties caused by lead service line replacements,” Overton said.
Lawson’s ruling came nearly a decade after the Flint water crisis began and nearly seven years after a settlement was reached in a citizen lawsuit against the city of Flint and Michigan state officials.
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Paris Hilton’s bill to protect minors at residential treatment facilities heads to president’s desk
Heiress, model and actor Paris Hilton is the force behind a bill headed to President Biden’s desk that’s aimed at preventing the abuse of minors at rehab and other residential facilities.
The House passed the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act in a bipartisan 373-33 vote Wednesday, after the Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent earlier in the week. It’s a cause that’s personal to Hilton, who says she was abused at residential treatment facilities as a teen. Hilton lived in a series of residential treatment facilities from the age of 16, testifying before Congress in June that she had been violently restrained, stripped of clothing and tossed into solitary confinement, among other experiences.
“Today is a day I will never forget,” Hilton wrote on Instagram. “After years of sharing my story and advocating on Capitol Hill, the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act has officially passed the U.S Congress. This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen Industry.”
Now 43, Hilton has championed child protection legislation on Capitol Hill for years, encouraging lawmakers to pass regulations to help protect troubled teens from abuse at treatment centers. Hilton met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill this week, urging them to take up the legislation before the 118th Congress ends.
Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna introduced the legislation in the House and Senate, and they were joined by Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Tommy Tuberville and Republican Rep. Buddy Carter.
“Children across the country are at risk of abuse and neglect due to a lack of transparency in institutional youth treatment programs,” Khanna said in a statement. “The industry has gone unchecked for too long. Paris Hilton and other survivors of abuse in this broken system have bravely shared their stories and inspired change. I’m proud to lead this legislation with my colleagues to protect the safety and well-being of kids.”
The legislation creates a federal work group on youth residential programs to oversee the health, safety, care, treatment and placement of minors in rehab and other facilities. It also directs the Department of Health and Human Services to make contact with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to make recommendations about state oversight of such programs.
Hilton is the great-grandaughter of Conrad Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels.
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