Thursday, May 31, 2007

05312007 - Assist Prosecutor Kevin Floyd - Kent County






On May 31, 2007, Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd attempted to have a May 10th parenting time ruling appealed...in his five year ongoing divorce /child custody case.




ALSO SEE:
Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. May 23, 2007: Assault and battery; aggravated stalking charges.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2003/10/october-22-2003-assistant-prosecutor.html


Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. October 2003: Jailed for 7 days.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2003/10/assistant-prosecutor-kevin-floyd-kent.html


Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. February 27, 2004: Pretrial release revocation hearing for failure to pay electronic tether fees.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2004/02/assistant-prosecutor-kevin-floyd-kent.html


Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. July 12, 2005: Violation of probation.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2005/07/assistant-prosecutor-kevin-floyd-kent.html


Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. December 30, 2005: Criminal contempt in civil case / divorce case.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2005/12/assistant-prosecutor-kevin-floyd-kent.html


Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Floyd. August 21, 2006: 30 day suspension ordered by State of Michigan Attorney Discipline Board for Floyd's assault and battery conviction.
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2006/08/assistant-prosecutor-kevin-floyd-kent.html















Tuesday, May 29, 2007

05292007 - Officer Ken DeKleine - PPO Violation - Holland PD




Officer Kenneth DeKleine [Holland PD]: Allgations that on Memorial Day / May 29, 2007, Officer DeKleine had violated the Personal Protective Order that his ex-wiffe [Lori] had obtained against him.

The Holland PD responded to Lori's 911 call, but claimed that there was not enough evidence to support Lori's claim that Officer DeKleine had violated the PPO.





Lori DeKleine's PPO that she obtained on January 31, 2007, and which was filed with the Holland Police Department.
 











 












After Lori was murdered by Officer DeKleine [January 10, 2008] Chief Kruithoff admitted that he didn't even know what was contained in Lori's personal protective order [that had been filed with his police department in January 2007].











COP'S WIFE LORI DEKLEINE TERRIFIED [CHANNEL 8]













OFFICER DEKLEINE CHARGED FOR KILLING WIFE LORI [CHANNEL 8 NEWS]














Officer Ken DeKleine [Holland PD]: MURDER OF LORI DEKLEINE  [January 10, 2008]

http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2008/01/officer-ken-dekleine-holland-police.html








Update: Chief says cop charged in slaying seemed stable

Posted by Muskegon Chronicle
January 14, 2008 19:21PM
http://blog.mlive.com/chronicle/2008/01/update_chief_says_cop_charged.html

HOLLAND -- Police Chief John Kruithoff this afternoon said there no clear signs that Officer Ken DeKleine, accused of murdering his wife, might be unstable.

Police knew DeKleine was going through a divorce and that Lori DeKleine had a restraining order against him, Kruithoff said, but prosecutors did not find enough evidence to charge him with any violations in two 911 calls she made about him.

The first call involved their meeting at a Memorial Day parade in which their son was a marching band member. The second was in August when Ken DeKleine went to see a pastor at Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church, where Lori DeKleine worked, but he believed she was not there at the time.

"He didn't suppress the fact he was having marital problems," Kruithoff said. "But obviously he suppressed something enough where he committed this act.

"Nobody came to me and said, 'Boy, there is something wrong with Ken,'" he said. "Ken came to work and did his job."



Officer Ken DeKleine - Murdered ex-wife Lori - Holland PD [Jan 10, 2008]
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2008/01/officer-ken-dekleine-holland-police.html

Officer Ken DeKleine - PPO violations & Abuse allegations
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2008/01/officer-dekleine-ppo-violations.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, PPO violation :January 10, 2008
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2008/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd_10.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, PPO violation: January 08, 2008
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2008/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, PPO violation: September 2007
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/09/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, PPO violation: August 2007
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/08/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, PPO violation: May 2007
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/05/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine, Breaking and entering complaint: January 27, 2007
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine: Allegations he abused Lori
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd_3364.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine: Allegations he used recording devices to stalk Lori
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd_2294.html

Officer Kenneth Dekleine: Allegations he raped Lori
http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2007/01/officer-kenneth-dekleine-holland-pd_31.html

Sunday, May 27, 2007

05262007 - Deputy Jeffrey Stromer - Houghton County SD




Under MCL 769.4a [Michigan's loophole to the  Lautenberg Gun Ban Amendment], Stromer pleaded no contest to the DV charge - and the three charges of CSC were dropped. Stromer was placed on probation.... 








After Deputy Jeffrey Stromer completed his probation, Sheriff Brian McLean rehired Stromer at the Houghton County Sheriff Department.

Sheriff McLean's reasoning behind rehiring a man who had been charged with THREE counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct?

"He [Deputy Jeffrey Stromer] tried to change his life around," he said. "We gave him an opportunity to work ..." Sheriff’s candidates talk drugs, jail - 10012016 - The Daily Mining Gazette



Where was Sheriff McLean's obligation to the safety and concern of  Stromer's victim ... The Houghton County Community ... And Houghton County Sheriff Department staff?


Has Sheriff McLean underestimated the public's voice on Officer Involved Domestic Violence -- as the Southgate Police Department did, earlier this year? How many voters in Houghton County, will be the voice for Deputy Stromer's victim, and Sheriff McLean's disrespect for her?













Sheriff’s candidates talk drugs, jail
October 1, 2016
By Garrett Neese (gneese@mininggazette.com)
The Daily Mining Gazette
http://www.mininggazette.com/page/content.detail/id/554686/Sheriff-s-candidates-talk-drugs--jail.html?nav=5098

HANCOCK - Questions about drugs and the Houghton County Jail dominated the sheriff portion of Thursday's Copper Country League of Women Voters forum for candidates in contested countywide seats.

Republican Sheriff Brian McLean, who has held the post since 1996, is running for re-election against Democratic challenger Derek Poyhonen, who has been a corrections officer with the county for the past 15 years.

McLean said his biggest priority for the next term would be reducing the drug problem, which he said has become "a tidal wave." After law enforcement and the medical community clamped down on opiates, illegal drugs, particularly heroin, rushed in to fill the void.

"When we start to see people losing their lives because of this terrible addiction, that is one of our biggest looming problems right now," he said.

Poyhonen said he would like to address the area's drug problem through educating local children. Reducing drugs could also reduce violent crime and help ease the strain on the jail, he said.

"I would like to get into schools, 2 through 6, build a relationship with the kids, get a junior deputy program going," he said. "That will carry on in the upper grades. That is where I would like to get into drug and alcohol awareness. It might not pay off right away, but it will pay off in the long run."

Poyhonen said his other main goal was returning "integrity, accountability and transparency" to the sheriff's department. He pointed to the department's rehiring of Jeffrey Stromer, a former deputy who was convicted of a misdemeanor domestic assault charge against his ex-wife after first-degree criminal sexual conduct charges were dropped.

"I will never question my opponent's heart," Poyhonen said. "I will never question his compassion for the voters. But mistakes are being made within the department."

McLean said Stromer had been rehired after his sentence and probation was completed.

"He tried to change his life around," he said. "We gave him an opportunity to work at a time where a couple of our corrections officers left their job early and we needed some immediate help. He worked for a couple months and then resigned."

McLean said he had worked closely with community groups and maintained an open-door policy, something which Poyhonen said he would also follow.

McLean keeps him home number listed in the phone book, though he said he doesn't get many work calls at home.

"People will call at the office, stop by, come in," he said. "They want to see sometime, hear about something, we're always very accountable."

The most audience questions came on the subject of the aging jail. Voters most recently voted down a proposal for a combined jail, sheriff's department and district court in 2010.

Poyhonen said he would like to see a bigger police presence for higher-profile cases, particularly in district court. With the jail, he said, the county needs to respect the voters' judgment.

"We're overcrowded," he said. "It's a juggling act every day, and we did it today. We're not going to get a new one. It's a dead issue. So we have to find an alternative way to work with what we have."

McLean said the county has the fewest beds of any in the Upper Peninsula. However, he said, they've been able to work with the courts and prosecutor's office to keep some offenders out of jail through means such as community service sentences.

"We always have to ask ourselves: Who do you want in jail? Do you want people in jail that you're just temporarily mad at, or do you want people in jail that you're afraid of?" he said.

Both candidates feared the potential for a lawsuit against the county. McLean brought up Genesee County, where a federal judge decreed the county's jail didn't have enough room, leaving the county to foot the bill for a new jail.

Four jail studies have been done since 1985, McLean said. The public is past the first hurdle of recognizing the problem, he said, but haven't settled on a solution.

"For years people were saying, 'There's nothing wrong with the old jail, it's good enough,'" he said. "Now, I think the majority of people have said 'There is a problem there, and something needs to be done. I just don't know what that is.'"

In the meantime, Poyhonen said, some fixes need to be put in place. He called for what he said would be a "simple fix" to part of the recreation area where a prisoner escaped 10 years ago that has yet to be addressed.

As a corrections officer, he said, the back of the jail staff has been frustrated with the remodeling in the front offices, including a new kitchen put in this year. He acknowledged the obstacles in doing so - namely, a Department of Corrections requirement that changing any part of the secure area requires bringing the jail up to code.

"If we start tearing into it, we've got to redo the whole thing, but we've got to watch where we're spending our money," he said.

McLean said the corrections officers have the worst jobs of the staff, working "essentially out of what is a broom closet." But bringing the entire jail up to code will cost millions of dollars, he said.

"We constantly work with the board, with the citizens' group, educating, hoping to come across with the legislators - we're looking for money," he said.




















Deputy Jeffrey Stromer at his sentencing hearing (Stromer is pictured on the right). In a plea agreement, Deputy Stromer was able to have the three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct against him dropped, in exchange for him pleading no-contest to a domestic violence charge.

Instead of life in prison, on the three first-degree CSC charges, Deputy Stromer only received 6-24 months of probation for aggravated domestic violence.


Stromer was allowed to return to work at the Houghton County Sheriff Department - working in the county jail, following his conviction.




Apparently, Deputy Stromer reutnred to duty at the Houghton County Sheriff Department, following his domestic violence conviction:


http://www.coppercountry.com/HoughtonSheriff.php

Jeffrey A. Stromer,
Deputy Sheriff (Badge #103)
Road patrol officer works traffic, complaints, accidents, court duties, civil process, as well as transporting court ordered mentally ill patients. Has general fill in duties, as well as assisting in day to day operations.






http://wppa.com/news/03-05/Michigan_News.htm
News From The Upper Peninsula of Michigan
By Emil Kezerle
Business Agent/Coordinator, Upper Michigan Office
1342 U.S. Highway 2, Crystal Falls, Michigan 49921 • 906-875-4990 • 800-361-1269
Political Action and the Upper Michigan Law Enforcement Association

UMLEA Board of Directors
Member: Deputy Jeff Stromer
Houghton County Deputy Sheriffs Association














Former Sheriff's Deputy Gets Probation
WLUC TV6-  Houghton
August 2, 2007
http://www.wluctv6.com/Global/story.asp?S=6879283

A former deputy with the Houghton County Sheriff's Department on Monday was sentenced to 6-24 months of probation for aggravated domestic assault.

Forty-six-year-old Jeffery Stromer was arrested in May for domestic and sexual assault and was convicted of a misdemeanor last month.

Three felony charges were dropped as part of a plea bargain. Stromer also lost his job at the Sheriff's Department.

"I'm sure you'll never see him in this courtroom again," said his attorney, Frank Stupak. "And I'm sure he will prove to his family and to this community that justice for him is a term of probation with a delayed sentence.

"Special Judge Tim Brennan handed down the sentence of probation instead of jail time.













Deputy takes plea bargain in sex case
Daily Mining Gazette, MI
By KURT HAUGLIE, DMG Writer
Friday, June 22, 2007
http://www.mininggazette.com/stories/articles.asp?articleID=7522

HOUGHTON — A Houghton County Sheriff’s Deputy arrested by a detective from the Michigan State Police Calumet Post in May on a domestic violence charge and three charges of first degree criminal sexual assault pleaded no contest to the domestic violence charge Thursday in 97th District Court in Houghton.

Jeffery Stromer, 46, of Laurium, made the plea to Baraga County Probate Judge Timothy Brennan, who was presiding in place of Houghton District Court Judge Phillip Kukkonen to avoid any conflict of interest since Stromer is a Houghton County deputy.

Baraga County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph O’Leary, who also presided to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest, said a plea agreement had been reached with Stromer and his attorney, Frank Stupak. With the plea, the three charges of criminal sexual conduct were dropped.

“I have also agreed that I will not oppose a delay of sentence,” O’Leary said.

Brennan then asked Stromer if he understood that the domestic violence charge means without intent to commit murder or great bodily harm. He said he may not delay sentence in which case Stromer would not be able to withdraw his plea.

Brennan asked Stromer, also, if he understood that a no contest plea isn’t an admission of guilt, but is treated as such for the purposes of sentencing. Stromer said he understood all the points.

Brennan said he wanted a pre-sentencing investigation of the case, and will try to get an investigator from outside the Houghton County area. He set 3 p.m. Aug. 2 for the sentencing of Stromer and continued the $25,000 cash bond, which was posted.

A condition of the bond is that Stromer can’t have in-person contact with the victim.

O’Leary said the maximum penalty for the domestic violence charge is one year in jail and/or $1,000.













Local deputy placed on leave
Charged with sex crime
Daily Mining Gazette, MI - 9 hours ago
By GARRETT NEESE, DMG Writer
May 30, 2007
http://www.mininggazette.com/stories/articles.asp?articleID=7222

HOUGHTON — A Houghton County Sheriff’s Department deputy arrested on first-degree criminal sexual conduct and domestic violence charges has been put on administrative leave, sheriff’s department Capt. Marjorie Chandonais said Tuesday.

Jeffrey A. Stromer, 46, was arrested by Michigan State Police troopers Saturday, following an investigation into a domestic violence complaint. MSP Det. Sgt. Tom Rajala said the investigation was prompted by a complaint from the alleged victim.

Rajala would not release the alleged victim’s relationship to Stromer, citing a need for privacy.

First-degree criminal sexual conduct is a felony punishable by up to life in prison. Stromer was arraigned on Sunday with a cash bond set at $25,000.

Sheriff’s department Sgt. Chuck Cadwell said Stromer posted bail and was released.

A preliminary examination is scheduled for June 11 in 97th District Court.Investigative assistance in the case was provided by the Laurium Police Department, the Houghton County Sheriff Department, and a detective from the Michigan State Police post in Negaunee Township.

When asked this morning by the Gazette for a copy of Stromer’s mug shot, Chandonais declined to release it, because the suspect had been booked in Baraga County.

A Baraga County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman declined to release the photo, as the sheriff was not present.




MI POLICE OFFICER INVOLVED PERPETRATED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LAW ENFORCEMENT MURDER SUICIDE

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

05222007 - Officer Robert Vargas - Lansing PD












Officer found guilty of verbal abuse
Lansing policeman on trial for incidents with ex-girlfriend
Lansing State Journal, MI - 1 hour ago
Kevin Grasha
Published September 11, 2007
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070911/NEWS01/709110326/1001/news

A Lansing police officer has been found guilty of being verbally abusive toward his former girlfriend over the telephone.

But he was found not guilty of a domestic violence charge.

Robert Vargas, 39, was arrested after a May 22 fight at the woman's Blackman Township home.

They had recently broken up, police said. Both charges are misdemeanors. Vargas, who has been on paid administrative leave since the incident, faces up to six months in jail and $1,000 in fines.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 15 in Jackson County District Court.

Vargas' attorney, Fred Blackmond, did not return calls seeking comment. Vargas' telephone number is not listed.The verdict came Friday after a jury trial before Jackson County District Judge R. Darryl Mazur.

A few days after the woman broke off the relationship, Vargas went to her home, yelled at her, and at one point, pinned her to a bed, according to trial testimony. On the stand, Vargas admitted lying to a superior when he at first denied being at the woman's home.

An internal investigation continues, Police Chief Mark Alley said Monday.
He could not say when it would be completed."Discipline could include, but is not limited to, termination of employment," Alley said. "Whether it's a misdemeanor or a felony, we look at the facts surrounding the incident on a case-by-case basis and make a determination from there."

Jackson County Assistant Prosecutor Daniel Schwalm, who handled the case, said the county's elected prosecutor, Henry Zavislak, instructed him not to offer Vargas a plea deal.

"He wanted to make sure (county residents) know we enforce the law equally with everyone, regardless of position," Schwalm said.

Vargas has worked for the department about a decade.

In 2004, Vargas was shot four times when he interrupted a robbery.

After being wounded, he shot and killed one of two men involved in the break-in. It was determined that Vargas' use of deadly force was justified.












Lansing police officer charged with domestic assault
Evening update
Lansing State Journal
Kevin Grasha
Published May 23, 2007
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070523/NEWS01/705230387

A Lansing police officer, who was arrested Tuesday night on a domestic assault charge, was placed on paid administrative leave today.

Rob Vargas, who has been with the department about a decade, was arrested in Blackman Township in Jackson County.

Vargas could not be reached today for comment.

Lansing Chief Mark Alley said Vargas also will face an internal affairs investigation, "where he could face anything from exoneration to termination.""We do not tolerate criminal misconduct by any member of our agency," Alley said.

In 2004, Vargas was shot four times when he interrupted a robbery at a south Lansing townhouse. After being wounded, he shot and killed one of two men involved in the break-in. Prosecutors determined Vargas' use of deadly force was justified.

The incident was the first time in more than a decade that a Lansing officer was shot in the line of duty.





05222007 - Officer Brandon Robinson - Lowell PD
























Former police officer gets jail time, probation
Published: Friday, April 18, 2008, 11:45 PM
Updated: Friday, April 18, 2008, 11:47 PM
By The Grand Rapids Press
The Grand Rapids Press
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/04/former_police_officer_gets_jai.html

ALLEGAN -- A former Lowell police officer accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy in 2002 was sentenced to 11 months in jail and five years of probation Friday in Allegan County Circuit Court.

Brandon Clare Robinson, 31, of Wyoming, was sentenced for second-degree child abuse as part of a plea agreement where prosecutors dismissed a sexual assault charge.

Allegations against Robinson surfaced last year when the teen, now 18, divulged to his sister the molestation secret he kept for five years.

The victim alleged Robinson molested him several times over at least a year at Sandy Pines Resort near Hopkins, where Robinson had a trailer.

Robinson, who resigned from the Lowell Police Department in February, had worked full time since 2005 and part time since December 2002.

Before that, he worked as a part-time deputy with the Allegan County Sheriff's Department from April 2000 to May 2002.

He had been on unpaid administrative leave before his resignation.

At Friday's sentencing, the victim talked about the molestation's harmful emotional impact, Allegan County Assistant Prosecutor Doug Ketchum said.

The child abuse conviction keeps Robinson off the state's sex-offender registry, but Ketchum said it should end any career in law enforcement.

"I would think anyone with any kind of felony conviction would not be a likely candidate for that type of job," he said.

Ketchum said it is not uncommon for victims to come forward about sexual assaults years after they occur, particularly when the victim is a child. Sometimes, they are frightened to tell anyone until they get older.












Officer in sex case quits Lowell job
Published: Wednesday, February 20, 2008, 9:33 AM
Updated: Wednesday, February 20, 2008, 9:35 AM
By John Tunison
The Grand Rapids Press
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/02/officer_in_sex_case_quits_lowe.html




ALLEGAN -- A Lowell police officer accused of molesting a teenage friend six years ago at an Allegan County campground has resigned from the force after pleading guilty to a lesser charge.

Brandon Clare Robinson, 30, was on unpaid administrative leave from the Lowell Police Department since May. He resigned Monday, police said.

He was charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct after the alleged 2002 molestation surfaced when the teen, now 18, told his sister.

Robinson pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree child abuse, a four-year felony.

Robinson, a full-time Lowell officer since 2005 who worked part time for more than two years before that, was accused of molesting a teen family friend at a trailer Robinson had at Sandy Pines resort near Hopkins.

During a hearing in May, the teen testified he sometimes would spend the night at the trailer and said he was molested several times over months.

Robinson was not employed with Lowell then, but worked as a part-time Allegan County sheriff's deputy from April 2000 to May 2002.

He pleaded guilty to the child-abuse charge just days before his trial was to begin in Allegan County Circuit Court.

"He had to put his family first," said Robinson's attorney, Frank Stanley. "He has a young child at home. He wanted to think about what was in the best interest for his family."

Stanley said the trial may have come down to the teen's word against that of Robinson.

"There was a pretty significant factual dispute about what happened," Stanley said. "This was the best compromise."

Lowell Police Chief Jim Valentine said Robinson came to the Police Department on Monday to submit his resignation. With a felony conviction pending, he knew he could no longer serve, Valentine said.

The allegations against Robinson, described as a capable and respected officer, are still baffling even today, he said.

"It was just a state of total shock and surprise to our entire staff," Valentine said. "He was an outstanding police officer."

The department is close-knit, with seven full-time officers, eight part-time officers and two clerks.

Robinson could receive jail time at his March 14 sentencing, but is not expected to receive prison, his attorney said.












Lowell Police Officer Charged With Molesting 13 Year Old Boy
The Grand River Press
May 25, 2007
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-36/1180015117327330.xml&coll=6

ALLEGAN, MICHIGAN – A Lowell police officer remains on administrative leave while facing criminal charges for an alleged 2002 sexual assault against a 13-year-old boy.

Brandon Clare Robinson, a full-time officer with Lowell for two years, is accused of molesting the teen in a trailer he had at Sandy Pines resort near Hopkins.

Robinson, 30, of Wyoming, worked as a part-time deputy with the Allegan County Sheriff’s Department from April 2000 to May 2002, then became a part-time officer with Lowell in December 2002 before joining the force full-time, according to officials with the two agencies.

“He has been an outstanding officer,” Lowell Police Chief James Valentine said. “It kind of caught us all by surprise when this came up.”

Robinson earlier this week was ordered to stand trial in Allegan County Circuit Court on two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct against a victim 13 to 15 years old.

His attorney, Steven Freeman of Lansing, said Robinson maintains his innocence.

“He denies any sexual involvement with this teen at all, regardless of when,” he said. “And there have been no other complaints by anybody, ever.

“It’s curious to me why he (the alleged victim) wants to come forward five years after something happens. That strikes me as odd,” Freeman said.

Robinson voluntarily came to Valentine in late February to divulge he was being investigated by the state police at the Wayland post. He was placed on paid administrative leave at the time.

Later, when charges were filed, he was placed on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.

The alleged victim, now 18, testified at a Tuesday court hearing that Robinson was a family friend who often drove him from Wyoming to Sandy Pines in 2002. The teen often would spend the night at the trailer.

“It started out doing truth-or-dare, then it turned into a sexual thing,” he testified.

He said the molestations happened several times over at least a year, but he did not tell anyone because Robinson told him not to and called it a “secret we have to take to our graves.”

“It didn’t seem right, but he told me it was normal and everyone did it,” the teen testified. “He had been a friend of the family for years. I trusted him.

“I was 13. I didn’t know right from wrong, really,” he said.

The teen said he kept the secret until last November, when he told his sister after a weekend hunting trip involving several people, including Robinson. The teen and Robinson did not get along during the trip, testimony showed.

Robinson is a patrol officer for Lowell Police, working an overlay shift between the normal day and night shifts. He is married, and his wife is pregnant, his attorney said.

Valentine said he will conduct an administrative investigation on Robinson when the court case is finished, so as to avoid any perception of conflict with the state police probe.

“Brandon has just been a very dedicated officer,” he said.

Freeman said the case essentially puts Robinson’s word against the teen’s word.

“To the best of my knowledge, there are no witnesses,” he said.

Robinson did not return a call seeking comment, and the state police detective who investigated the case was unavailable for comment.









Lowell officer charged in sex assault against boy
Thursday, May 24, 2007
By John Tunison
The Grand Rapids Press
http://www.mlive.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-36/1180015117327330.xml&coll=6

ALLEGAN -- A Lowell police officer remains on administrative leave while facing criminal charges for an alleged 2002 sexual assault against a 13-year-old boy.

Brandon Clare Robinson, a full-time officer with Lowell for two years, is accused of molesting the teen in a trailer he had at Sandy Pines resort near Hopkins.

Robinson, 30, of Wyoming, worked as a part-time deputy with the Allegan County Sheriff's Department from April 2000 to May 2002, then became a part-time officer with Lowell in December 2002 before joining the force full-time, according to officials with the two agencies.

"He has been an outstanding officer," Lowell Police Chief James Valentine said. "It kind of caught us all by surprise when this came up."

Robinson earlier this week was ordered to stand trial in Allegan County Circuit Court on two counts of third degree criminal sexual conduct against a victim 13 to 15 years old.

His attorney, Steven Freeman of Lansing, said Robinson maintains his innocence.

"He denies any sexual involvement with this teen at all, regardless of when," he said. "And there have been no other complaints by anybody, ever.

"It's curious to me why he (the alleged victim) wants to come forward five years after something happens. That strikes me as odd," Freeman said.

Robinson voluntarily came to Valentine in late February to divulge he was being investigated by the state police at the Wayland post. He was placed on paid administrative leave at the time.

Later, when charges were filed, he was placed on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.

The alleged victim, now 18, testified at a Tuesday court hearing that Robinson was a family friend who often drove him from Wyoming to Sandy Pines in 2002. The teen often would spend the night at the trailer.

"It started out doing truth-or-dare, then it turned into a sexual thing," he testified.

He said the molestations happened several times over at least a year, but he did not tell anyone because Robinson told him not to and called it a "secret we have to take to our graves."

"It didn't seem right, but he told me it was normal and everyone did it," the teen testified. "He had been a friend of the family for years. I trusted him.

"I was 13. I didn't know right from wrong, really," he said.

The teen said he kept the secret until last November, when he told his sister after a weekend hunting trip involving several people, including Robinson. The teen and Robinson did not get along during the trip, testimony showed.

Robinson is a patrol officer for Lowell Police, working an overlay shift between the normal day and night shifts. He is married, and his wife is pregnant, his attorney said.

Valentine said he will conduct an administrative investigation on Robinson when the court case is finished, so as to avoid any perception of conflict with the state police probe.

"Brandon has just been a very dedicated officer," he said.

Freeman said the case essentially puts Robinson's word against the teen's word.

"To the best of my knowledge, there are no witnesses," he said.

Robinson did not return a call seeking comment, and the state police detective who investigated the case was unavailable for comment