Snyder hires outside legal counsel related to Flint water crisis
LANSING — Gov. Rick Snyder has hired outside attorneys to represent him in litigation stemming from the ongoing lead water crisis in Flint, his office confirmed.
Eugene Driker, a member with Detroit-based Barris, Sott, Denn & Driker PLLC, will assist with civil representation in addition to the state attorney general’s office, Snyder spokesman Ari Adler toldCrain’s in an email.
Brian Lennon, a partner with Warner Norcross & Judd LLP in Grand Rapids, has been hired as “investigatory counsel,” Adler said. That includes work searching and processing emails and documents.
Both attorneys are being paid with state dollars, Adler said. Their contracts are worth $249,000 each, he said, but the attorneys will be paid only for hours worked. Contracts end Dec. 31, but can be extended.
Douglas Dozeman, managing partner of Warner Norcross, said in an emailed statement the firm is “honored” to represent Snyder.
Snyder and current and former state employees have been named as defendants in a number of lawsuits related to the lead poisoning crisis in Flint. In addition, several federal agencies are investigating what happened in Flint, including the U.S. attorney’s office, the FBI and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Flint, under a state-appointed emergency manager, switched drinking water sources from the Detroit system to the Flint River while awaiting completion of the new Karegnondi Water Authority. Yet a failure to add proper corrosion controls to treat the river water caused lead to leach from pipes and elevated levels of lead in children’s blood.
Driker has represented the state and city of Detroit and was a mediator in the Detroit bankruptcy case, according to his biography on his firm’s website.
Lennon is a criminal defense attorney, with a focus on health care fraud, white-collar crime and internal corporate investigations, according to his biography. He is a former federal prosecutor in Michigan.
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