Years of litigation for children exposed to lead-contaminated water created the largest child screening and assessment program in the US.
Lead-tainted water places a community in crisis
During 2014–2015, lead from corrosive river water contaminated Flint's public water supply. The incidence of elevated blood lead levels, which can cause serious cognitive declines in school-age children, nearly doubled in local children.
Defending vulnerable victims of a toxic legacy
Working with the ACLU of Michigan and the Education Law Center, we launched a class action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of Flint children and used a preliminary injunction to force interim relief. In 2018, the Michigan Department of Education and local schools agreed to universal screening and assessments of children affected by the lead-tainted water. This creates the most extensive screening program in the US to carry out the federal "Child Find" mandate to identify students with disabilities.
Groundbreaking initiative creates hope for future care
Michigan must carry out a US$4 million program to screen up to 30,000 children. This includes using cross-disciplinary testing to identify individual children with special education needs, providing essential educational programs and preventing diagnosed children from being re-victimized due to their disabilities. The process of monitoring and treating survivors of Flint’s water crisis may continue for many years.
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