Prosecutors: Supreme Court decision closes door on criminal prosecutions in Flint water scandal

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan attorney general’s office says the state prosecution of former Gov. Rick Snyder and other officials for their roles in the Flint water scandal has ended. Prosecutors said a decision Tuesday by the state Supreme Court to decline to hear appeals of a lower court’s dismissal of misdemeanor charges against Snyder “effectively closes the door on the criminal prosecutions of the government officials.” The Michigan Supreme Court in September rejected a last-chance effort by prosecutors to revive criminal charges. The attorney general’s office used a one-judge grand jury to hear evidence and return indictments against nine people, including Snyder. But the Supreme Court has said the process was unconstitutional. Snyder was charged with willful neglect of duty.