If you can’t trust (lead) inspectors…

Official health and home inspectors are supposed to protect the public by carrying out unbiased examinations in their respective fields and alerting authorities or owners if they discover anything out of the ordinary.

So what happens if the inspector betrays that trust?

In the case of a former city of Detroit Health Department lead inspector, it put children and residents at risk. The United States Environmental Protection Agency recently released a press release about a former lead inspector, who was sentenced to 3 years and 10 months in prison and 24 months of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to accepting bribes to declare homes free of lead even though he either failed to do an inspection or gave fraudulent lead removal training.


Lead in homes pose health risk

Lead: Children are most at risk.

Lead can be found in many homes since it used to be a common ingredient in construction or renovating materials, including lead-based paint. According to EPA, lead can be found in home dust and residential soil and it can enter drinking water from plumbing materials.

Lead may cause a range of health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities, to seizures and death. Children six years old and under are most at risk.


Fraudulent behavior exposed children to lead

The convicted inspector accepted cash from the homeowners or renters of the home to falsely attest that the homes were lead-free or that lead removal training had been provided.

He admitted that he accepted at least $1,350 in connection with fraudulent abatement of lead hazards.
Children at four separate properties were exposed to dangerous levels of lead.

So thankfully, this inspector’s bad behavior has been stopped, but it is disconcerting to think that some homeowners and parents would opt to put their children at risk and offer these cash payments in the first place. And how many other inspectors are willing to accept them?

If you are worried about lead levels in your home, invest in a serious air purifier with HEPA to collect particles and an activated carbon filter to remove lead fumes and other chemicals from the air.