Three years after they toasted Flint’s ill-fated switch to the Flint River, several former officials will be in court Tuesday.
Former state-appointed emergency managers Darnell Earley and Jerry Ambrose, along with former city officials Howard Croft and Daugherty Johnson, are charged with “false pretense," among other things.
The “false pretense” charge stems from an allegation the city officials misled the state to get money to pay for a pipe to connect to a new water pipeline. The money was supposed to take care of an environmental emergency. They face up to 20 years if convicted of the most serious charge.
Tuesday’s probable cause hearing will give prosecutors and defense attorneys a chance to update the status of the case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June.
In all, 13 current and former state and local government officials and employees have been charged criminally in relation to the Flint water crisis. Two have agreed to cooperate with a special counsel investigating the crisis, in exchange for lesser sentences.
