The lead criminal charge brought on Wednesday against two Michigan state officials in connection with the tainted water supply in Flint, Michigan, could be difficult to prove, lawyers familiar with the state's criminal law said.
The charge against state Department of Environmental Quality water supervisor Stephen Busch and water engineer Michael Prysby alleging "misconduct in office" might also be difficult to deploy against higher-level officials without day-to-day responsibilities relating to the city's water, the lawyers said.
The lawyers interviewed said that to prove official misconduct, the prosecutor, to get a conviction, would have to show that someone acted with intent either by failing to perform a duty or acting in a way that violated a duty.