Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Friday denied a request from state officials wanting the High Court to block lower court rulings saying they could be sued over lead in the Flint water supply.
Sotomayor, who handles these types of appeals from this region of the country, received it on Monday and denied the request without explanation Friday, according to the court docket.
The four officials worked for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. They are:
- Liane Shekter-Smith, chief of the DEQ Office of Drinking Water and Municipal Assistance
- Stephen Busch, Lansing district coordinator for the MDEQ’s Office of Drinking Water and Municipal Assistance
- Michael Prysby, MDEQ district engineer
- Bradley Wurfel, MDEQ communications director
Shekter-Smith, Busch and Prysby had reached plea deals with Special Prosecutor Todd Flood.
These officials argued they shouldn't be liable after Flint residents Shari Guertin and her child, Diogenes Muse-Cleveland, sued.
Guertin claims in the suit that she and her daughter sustained injuries from drinking and bathing in the contaminated water during the Flint water crisis.
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