Key Court Hearing For State Official In Flint Water Scandal

FLINT, Mich. (AP) - Michigan's chief medical executive is facing the start of an important court hearing tied to a Legionnaires' disease outbreak during the Flint water crisis.

Prosecutors will try to persuade a judge to send Dr. Eden Wells to trial on charges of involuntary manslaughter, obstruction of justice and lying to an investigator. The hearing starts Monday.

Special prosecutor Todd Flood added the manslaughter charge in October. There's no dispute that some officials knew about a spike in Legionnaires' but failed to tell the public until January 2016. Five others face the same charge, including Michigan health director Nick Lyon.

Some experts have blamed the outbreak on Flint's use of the Flint River for water. Legionnaires' is a pneumonia caused by bacteria that thrive in warm water and infect the lungs.

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