Jury unable to reach verdict in child-rape case
The trial for a Chelsea man accused of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 13 ended in a hung jury in Washtenaw County Circuit Court last week.
Michael Kohler, 46, is charged with four counts of first-degree and second-degree criminal sexual conduct for incidents that began in January 1997, court records show.
The girl was about 8 years old at the time the assaults began, police said, but she did not come forward for nearly a decade.
Jurors began deliberations July 7 following more than a day of testimony. However, they couldn’t reach a verdict after more than seven hours of discussions, and a hung jury was declared the next day, records show.
Authorities said the victim is related to Kohler. Kohler remains in custody pending a pre-trial hearing on July 22.
Comments
Nikki
Fri, Jul 23, 2010 : 2:33 p.m.
I think it's BS that he is being held with absolutely NO real evidence.... It is against laws/ rights to hold some1 this long!!! Mike has been around plenty of Teenaged girls throughout his time.... (including myself and a friend of mine Samantha).... I have never felt in harm and he never made me feel this way! Mike's a good guy and was a nice father-figure to my friend Samantha and her sister.... He isn't a criminal.... and his accusers were family to him! they should be ashamed of their selves....
Pat
Mon, Jul 19, 2010 : 9:06 a.m.
so much for getting a fair trial on this in AA now.....how about how many times her story has changed????