Monday, December 13, 2010

12132010 - Former Deputy John Yeska Jr - Sentenced - Saginaw County SD







Former Saginaw County deputy sentenced for sex crime in Bay County
Published: Monday, December 13, 2010, 3:31 PM
Updated: Tuesday, December 14, 2010, 9:39 AM
By LaNia Coleman
The Bay City Times
http://www.mlive.com/news/bay-city/index.ssf/2010/12/former_saginaw_county_deputy_s.html


BAY CITY — A former Saginaw County Sheriff’s deputy is to spend time behind bars for a sex offense.

John T. Yeska Jr., who resigned as a deputy in 2003 after being accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Saginaw County, was sentenced today for a crime that occurred last year in Bay County.

Circuit Judge Kenneth W. Schmidt ordered the 40-year-old Saginaw Township man to serve 270 days in jail for gross indecency between a male and female, a five-year felony.

Yeska pleaded no contest in October. A no contest plea is not an admission of guilt but is treated as such for the purpose of sentencing.

Schmidt also ordered Yeska to serve 90 days on electronic monitoring and five years on probation, prohibited him from using a computer for social networking purposes and ordered him to complete sex offender treatment.

The judge further deferred another 90 days in jail pending further order of the court and imposed $2,600 in fines and fees.

Yeska will not have to register as a sex offender because his victim was not a minor, prosecutors have said.

Yeska was charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury, second-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury and assault with intent to commit sexual penetration after a Hampton Township woman reported that he had sexually assaulted her Aug. 19, 2009, at her home.

The pair had met on an Internet networking site and met for the first time that day, according to reports.

After having dinner at a Bay City restaurant, Yeska drove the woman to her home, followed her inside and forced her to have sex with him, the victim told investigators.

Yeska had claimed the sexual encounter was consensual.

In January 2003, after seven years of service, Yeska resigned from the Saginaw County Sheriff's Department amid allegations he fondled a woman in his patrol car, Bay City Times archives show.

Though deputies investigated the matter, Saginaw County Prosecutor Michael D. Thomas denied a warrant request, citing insufficient evidence.











Former Saginaw County Sheriff's deputy facing sexual assault charges in Bay County accepts plea deal
Published: Tuesday, November 02, 2010, 10:00 AM
By Cole Waterman
The Bay City Times
http://www.mlive.com/news/bay-city/index.ssf/2010/11/former_saginaw_county_sheriffs_1.html


John T. Yeska Jr.


BAY CITY — A former Saginaw County Sheriff’s deputy charged with several felony sex crimes in Bay County has accepted a plea offer, rather than have his case decided by a jury.

Tuesday, John T. Yeska Jr., 40, of Saginaw Township, appeared before Bay County Circuit Judge Kenneth W. Schmidt and pleaded no contest to gross indecency between a male and a female. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to dismiss single counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury, second-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury and assault with intent to commit sexual penetration.

A no contest plea is not an admission of guilt, but is treated as such for the purpose of sentencing.

Though the charge Yeska pleaded to is punishable by a maximum of five years in prison, prosecutors are recommending he be sentenced to statutory probation, said Bay County Assistant Prosecutor J. Dee Brooks.

Before accepting his plea, Schmidt advised Yeska the recommended sentence could still include one year in jail and five years probation.

Yeska will not be required to register with the Michigan Sex Offender Registry, as his victim was not a minor, Brooks.

The charges against Yeska stem from an incident that occurred Aug. 19, 2009, in Hampton Township. On that day, Yeska went on a date with a local woman he had met on the Internet, court records show.

The woman told Hampton Township Police officers that on the drive back to her home, Yeska allegedly forced her head into his lap. Yeska then followed her inside her home and sexually assaulted her, the woman told police.

Yeska had claimed the sexual encounter was mutually consensual, Bay City Times archives show.

In January 2003, after seven years of service, Yeska resigned from the Saginaw County Sheriff’s Department amid allegations he fondled a woman in his patrol car, Times archives show.

The incident allegedly occurred in Pine Grove Park in Shiawassee County, where Yeska reportedly took the woman after a traffic stop in Oakley, Times archives show.

Though deputies investigated the matter, Saginaw County Prosecutor Michael D. Thomas denied a warrant request, citing insufficient evidence, Times archives show.

Schmidt is slated to sentence Yeska at 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 13.













Trial or plea awaits former Saginaw County Sheriff's deputy charged with sexual assault in Bay County
Published: Saturday, October 30, 2010, 3:30 PM
By Cole Waterman
The Bay City Times
http://www.mlive.com/news/bay-city/index.ssf/2010/10/trial_or_plea_awaits_former_sa.html

BAY CITY — A former Saginaw County Sheriff’s deputy facing felony sexual assault charges in Bay County is scheduled to either enter into a plea deal or face jury trial Tuesday.

John T. Yeska Jr., 40, of Saginaw Township, is charged with single counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury, second-degree criminal sexual conduct causing injury and assault with intent to commit sexual penetration, court records show.

Tuesday, he is slated to appear before Bay County Circuit Judge Kenneth W. Schmidt. If he does not accept a plea offer at that time, his case is likely to proceed to trial, court records indicate.

The charges against Yeska stem from an incident that occurred Aug. 19, 2009, in Hampton Township. On that night, Yeska met face-to-face with a local woman he allegedly first met on the Internet, court records show.

The two apparently went on a date at a Bay City restaurant then went to her home and engaged in a sexual encounter. Yeska has claimed the incident was mutually consensual, court records show.

In January 2003, after seven years of service, Yeska resigned from the Saginaw County Sheriff’s Department amid allegations he fondled a woman in his patrol car, Bay City Times archives show.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

11302010 - Judge Lynda Tolen - Berrien County [retired]



Also See: Arrested for domestic violence

http://michiganoidv.blogspot.com/2011/12/judge-lynda-tolen-berrien-county-retired.html



Retired Berrien County Judge Lynda Tolen:

2010: Arrested and charged for drunk driving. Placed on probation.

2010: Arrested for a second drunk driving charge while on probation for first DUI. Setenced to 20 days in jail.

November 30, 2010: State of Michigan suspended Tolen's license to practice law for 180 days [due to her DUI convictions].

December 22, 2011: Arrested for domestic violence.

       



 



Warren attorney reprimanded, Stevensville attorney suspended
December 4, 2010
Margaret Lucas Agius

ADB Tri-County Hearing Panel #106 reprimanded Warren attorney Sophie Modelski effective Dec. 1, 2010, the State of Michigan Attorney Discipline Board reported this week.

Modelski, licensed to practice law in Michigan in 1982, entered a plea of no contest to allegations that she neglected a bankruptcy matter, failed to seek the lawful objectives of her client, failed to act with reasonable diligence and promptness, and failed to keep her client reasonably informed of the status of the matter. Based upon the stipulation of the parties, the panel reprimanded Modelski and assessed costs of $767.26.

In another recent Attorney Discipline Board action, Kalamazoo County Hearing Panel #4 suspended Stevensville attorney and former Fifth District Court Judge Lynda A. Tolen from the practice of law in Michigan for a period of 180 days effective Nov. 30, 2010.

Tolen’s misdemeanor conviction for operating while intoxicated formed the basis for the disciplinary action. Based upon the stipulation of the parties, the panel suspended Tolen for 180 days, imposed conditions relevant to the established misconduct, and assessed costs of $755.71.

           




 






Former judge in front of bench again
Lynda Tolen arraigned on domestic violence charge
Posted: Friday, December 30, 2011 12:00 am
Herald Palladium
http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/former-judge-in-front-of-bench-again/article_4aa0a047-5eb1-5bac-b81c-aa597392e046.html

ST. JOSEPH - Retired Berrien County Trial Court Judge Lynda Tolen, who has faced drunk driving charges in the past, was back in court this week on charges of domestic violence.

Tolen, 60, of Stevensville, who retired in 2008 after 21 years as a judge, was arraigned Tuesday on the misdemeanor charge, according to a report from WNDU-TV.

The complaint, which Chief Assistant Prosecutor Michael Sepic showed to The Herald-Palladium, stated that Tolen had assaulted a woman named Lisa Brasseur.

The complaint lists Brasseur as a resident or former resident of the same household as Tolen.

Tolen was arrested Dec. 22 and released the next day on a $1,500 bond. On conviction, the charge carries a sentence of up to 93 days in jail and/or a $500,000 fine.

In 2010, while she was on probation for impaired driving in Leelanau County, Tolen was arrested in St. Joseph for drinking and driving.

Police reported she had a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit.

That case was moved to St. Joseph County, and Tolen served 20 days in jail after being convicted on the charge.

Sepic told WNDU-TV that he has petitioned the state attorney general's office to disqualify his office from the most recent case because of Tolen's previous position with the court.