5 people, including Michigan health chief, charged in Flint

FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Five people, including the head of Michigan’s health department, were charged Wednesday with involuntary manslaughter in an investigation of Flint’s lead-contaminated water, all blamed in the death of an 85-year-old man who had Legionnaires’ disease.

Nick Lyon is the highest-ranking member of Republican Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration to be snagged in a criminal investigation of how Flint’s water system became poisoned after officials tapped the Flint River in 2014.

Lyon, director of the Health and Human Services Department, is accused of failing to alert the public about an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in the Flint area, which has been linked by some experts to poor water quality in 2014-15. If convicted, he could face up to 15 years in prison.

“The health crisis in Flint has created a trust crisis for Michigan government, exposing a serious lack of confidence in leaders who accept responsibility and solve problems,” Attorney General Bill Schuette told reporters.

Lyon also is charged with misconduct in office for allegedly obstructing university researchers who are studying if the surge in cases was linked to the Flint River.

The others are people who were already facing charges. They are: Darnell Earley, who was Flint’s emergency manager when the city used the river; Howard Croft, who ran Flint’s public works department; Liane Shekter Smith; and Stephen Busch. Shekter Smith and Busch were state environmental regulators.

The state’s chief medical officer, Dr. Eden Wells, was charged Wednesday with obstruction of justice and lying to an investigator.

“Dr. Wells vehemently denies the charges,” defense attorney Jerry Lax said.

Messages seeking comment weren’t immediately returned by other attorneys in the case.

San Francisco UPS shooting leaves 4 dead, including gunman

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A UPS employee opened fire inside one of the company’s package delivery facilities in San Francisco on Wednesday, killing three co-workers and then himself as officers closed in and workers ran frantically into the streets, police and company officials said.

Fleeing a barrage of gunfire, some workers sought refuge on the roof of the 4-story facility and others ran outside and pounded on the windows of a public bus, witnesses said.

“They were banging on the bus and they were screaming, ‘Go! Go! Go!'” said Jessica Franklin, 30, who was riding the bus to work when it made a regular stop in front of the UPS facility. “As they got on the bus, they were all ducking.”

Two other United Parcel Service employees were wounded in the shooting that prompted a massive police response in one of the city’s industrial neighborhoods, about 2 miles from downtown San Francisco, Assistant Police Chief Toney Chaplin told reporters.

Officials, UPS employees and witnesses described other scenes of chaos as shots rang out during a morning meeting before drivers were sent on their delivery routes. Neighbor Raymond Deng said he heard up to eight rapid gunshots.

“They were all in rapid succession,” said Deng, a 30-year-old tech worker who lives across the street from the warehouse. “It was like tat, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat, tat.”

Police arrived in minutes.

“This was a frightful scene,” said Chaplin. He said officers found two victims outside and others inside and pulled the wounded to safety as they confronted the gunman, who was armed with an “assault pistol.”

“The suspect put the gun to his head and discharged the weapon,” Chaplin said, adding that police did not fire any shots during the operation.

Chaplin said police have not determined a motive and were interviewing families of victims and witnesses to piece together what led the gunman to act. He said authorities won’t release the names of those killed or the gunman until their next of kin are identified.