33-year-old gets jail time for sexual assault on minor

LUDINGTON — Chad Heitz, 33, of 3677 S. Pere Marquette Highway was sentenced to 1 year, 9 months in the Mason County Jail for attempted criminal sexual conduct third degree for incidences involving a 15-year-old girl.

Heitz was arrested on May 11 by Ludington Police Department and charged with two counts of CSC third degree. Had he been sentenced for CSC and not attempted CSC, he would have received a mandatory prison sentence.

“Does the term robbing the cradle mean anything to you?” 51st Circuit Court Judge Richard Cooper asked Heitz. “Is there anything at all that would cause you to think that the age difference is justifiable?”

“I believe everything was wrong and I will try to do what I can to do what is right,” Heitz said.

The victim was a relative of Heitz’. Cooper said she had expressed concern that her family blamed her for the incident.

“When you are 33 and the victim is 15 , it’s dysfunctional for the family to blame the victim.”

Prosecutor Paul Spaniola said the victim is having a great deal of difficulty dealing with the stress of the event and the aftermath that has occurred within the family.

Heitz was also arrested July 21 by Scottville Police Department for operating a vehicle while intoxicated, a violation of his bond. That case is still pending.