UPDATE: This story was updated on 12/18/14 at 9:48 am
Fourteen people face federal charges for mishandling tainted drugs that caused a nationwide meningitis outbreak.
A co-owner of the New England Compounding Center and the supervisory pharmacist face the most serious charges of causing the deaths of 64 people; 23 of those victims were from Michigan.
Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette says his office helped in the federal investigation and he’s pleased to see it led to serious charges.
“This is a significant day,” said Schuette. “It’s a significant day for victims of the meningitis tragedy in or state. We were in the epicenter of this whole sad, tragic, and horrific issue.”
Schuette says a criminal investigation by his office is still underway.
"This is just the first step. Not going to let up. Our Michigan investigation is ongoing and continues," said Schuette. "This ... sends a message out there that we battle and fight for victims."
He won’t say who is being investigated or which Michigan laws may have been broken.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story said the two co-owners of the NECC faced second degree murder charges. That was incorrect. One co-owner (Barry J. Cadden) and a supervisory pharmacist (Glenn A Chin) face second degree murder charges.
