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Jordan Bates with his attorney, Douglas Stevenson.
Branch man, 20, faces up to life in prison for CSC.
#MasonCountyNews #CourtNews
By Allison Scarbrough. Editor.
LUDINGTON — The attorney representing a 20-year-old Branch man who faces up to life in prison for allegedly sexually assaulting a boy who was 10 and 11 years at the time of the incidents made three motions on behalf of his client in 51st Circuit Court Tuesday, Feb. 21.
Jordan Daniel Bates, of 1946 S. Shepperd Rd., is charged with three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC) and three counts of second-degree CSC. His attorney, Douglas Stevenson, made the following motions:
1. That the prosecution provide written transcripts from video statements made in the case;
2. That the court remand the case to district court for a preliminary exam, which was waived when Bates was originally charged; and
3. That the court grant a “motion of particulars.”
Judge Susan K. Sniegowski granted Stevenson’s motion that transcripts be provided, but she put the responsibility on the defense. “The prosecution does not have any burden to prepare those,” Sniegowski said. Because Bates is considered “indigent,” the judge authorized the defense to have the transcripts prepared at the court’s expense.
Stevenson cited the necessity of written transcripts if the case goes to trial.
Sniegowski also granted Stevenson’s motion to remand the case to 79th District Court for a preliminary exam. “There are multiple life offenses, and a preliminary exam would serve the parties,” the judge said.
Criminal cases begin at the district court level, and felony cases are bound over to the higher level of circuit court. Bates’ case has now been returned to the lower court for a preliminary exam, and it would then likely be bound over again to circuit court depending on how 79th District Court Judge Pete Wadel rules.
Sniegowski denied the “motion of particulars,” which argues that the court papers are not specific enough to give the defendant an opportunity to deny the charges, Mason County Prosecutor Paul Spaniola explained.
Bates was arrested by the Ludington Police Department and was arraigned on the charges last October. He remains lodged in the Mason County Jail on a $75,000 cash/surety bond.
A first-degree CSC conviction is punishable by up to life in prison, and second-degree CSC has a 15-year maximum.
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