Michigan Sex Crime Attorneys Blog

Original Case Details

An individual was charged with criminal sexual conduct in the first degree upon the accusation that he threatened an 11-year-old girl with a belt, forcing sexual penetration on the girl. The girl told her brother about this accusation, and they both went to the police. The defendant voluntarily went to the police department and answered questions from the police for approximately three hours. The entire interrogation was recorded on videotape, but the videotape was never admitted into evidence at trial. During the trial, a detective testified that the defendant said that the truth was “probably somewhere in the middle” of the defendant and alleged victim’s story.

Defense counsel cross-examined the detective on this statement, asserting that this statement was actually made by a detective, and not the defendant himself. Defense counsel requested the court show the video to the jury, but the prosecutor objected, and the judge refused to allow the video into evidence. The defendant was convicted at the conclusion of the trial and sentenced to 25-60 years in prison. On appeal, the Michigan Court of Appeals viewed the video and found that the detective, in fact, made the statement in question, not the defendant.

Original Case Details

As detailed in a previous blog, former Grand Traverse County Jail Administrator Todd Ritter is facing multiple allegations relating to inappropriate relationships with current and former female jail inmates. Investigations into Ritter uncovered explicit text messages and photographs involving female inmates of the Grand Traverse County Jail. He is also accused of misappropriating funds by allegedly taking a female inmate to a Lansing hotel and expensing the hotel room to Grand Traverse County. Other accusations include stealing drug test kits and keeping certain female prisoners past their sentences for personal satisfaction. As an overall maximum, Ritter is facing up to 15 years in prison based on his current criminal charges. A listing of Ritter’s criminal charges and potential penalties are listed below.

Criminal Charges and Penalties

Original Case Details

A now-former Flint police officer is facing multiple charges for multiple child sex offenses now with two alleged victims. Justin McLeod is alleged to have molested a girl under the age of 13 and another young female whose age has not been publicly disclosed. McLeod faces nine criminal charges related to each alleged victim. The second alleged victim is reportedly now an adult. She alleges that McLeod sexually abused her for a period of two and a half years while she was a child. McLeod faced initial investigation when the first alleged victim contacted a forensic nurse examiner and discussed her allegations of sexual abuse against McLeod. In response, the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, the Flushing Township Police Department, and the Genesee Human Oppression Strike Team (GHOST) worked together to raid McLeod’s residence to take him into custody. He was initially arraigned on nine felony charges related to the first alleged victim and about a week later was arraigned on nine more on a second alleged victim who just came forward. McLeod worked with the Flint Police Department for five years and was part of the K9 and motorcycle units. He remains in custody at the Genesee County Jail without bond.

Criminal Charges and Potential Penalties

Original Case Details

A man from the Northern Michigan County of Roscommon was recently found guilty of multiple sex crimes that allege he held a woman against her will and forced her to clean his house and perform sex acts. The woman was actually herself arrested for stealing a vehicle, but she told Roscommon County police officers that she escaped from a home where she was being held against her will and was being forced into prostitution. She said that two men, James Jarrell and Jeffrey Kobel were her captors and that they also dealt drugs from the home. She told police that she was taken from her home in Ypsilanti and was forced to be in Northern Michigan by the men. Multiple police and investigative agencies cooperated to respond to the home where these men were alleged to live. The Michigan State Police sent the Emergency Support Team (EST), the Strike Team Investigative Narcotics Group (STING), the Houghton Lake Post, and a police canine to join the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office in executing a search warrant on Jarrell and Kobel’s home. The men were arrested and criminally charged. Jarrell was recently found guilty on his charges while Kobel awaits his trial.

Criminal Charges and Penalties

Original Case Details

An Allegan County Judge is under fire for emails uncovered that show the judge communicating privately with a prosecutor about a case she presided over during a jury trial. Allegan Circuit Court Judge Margaret Zuzich-Bakker emailed Allegan County Prosecutor Myrene Koch as witnesses testified in front of her and inquired about the answers she was hearing and about the general investigation of the case. The Allegan County Prosecutor responded to the initial email and continued to have substantive conversations about the case. The case in question was a multi-count criminal sexual conduct case. The defendant in the case was charged and convicted with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, and two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. He was later sentenced by Judge Zuzich-Bakker to a minimum of 20 years in prison for each conviction which run concurrently. When it was discovered Judge Zuzich-Bakker had privately communicated with the prosecutor’s office during the trial in question, an appeal was made to the court. Judge William Baillargeon decided in favor of the appellant and granted him a new trial. If you are facing an investigation or criminal charges related to accusations of sexual assault, then it is important that you speak to an experienced criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.

Trial Judge’s Objectionable Emails

Original Case Details

A 17-year-old from Detroit is facing multiple criminal charges as an adult stemming from four different incidents that allege that he sexually assaulted multiple women and used a firearm to commit multiple crimes. Jaden Deangelo Jones is firstly accused of sexually assaulting a woman 41 years of age on Grand River in Detroit. He is also accused of firing a single shot at a 36-year-old woman who rejected his sexual advances about an hour later on Pierson near Grand River in Detroit. Investigators also believe that Jones grabbed a woman 67 years of age by her buttocks, robbed her at gunpoint, and followed her home before he fled after seeing the woman’s husband. Lastly, he is alleged to have robbed a woman 43 years of age at gunpoint and also sexually assaulted her on Lahser in Detroit. Jones is currently being held on all four cases separately. He is currently being held on cash bonds that total over $2 million.

Criminal Charges and Potential Penalties