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Charges dropped against child rape suspects, Mich. asst. AG resigns after relationship with victim surfaces

Published  November 25, 2019 3:46pm EST
Crime and Public Safety
FOX 2 Detroit

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Monday that an assistant attorney general has resigned after it was revealed he had an inappropriate relationship with a sex assault victim.

Nessel announced Monday that former Assistant Attorney General Brian Kolodziej resigned in September in lieu of termination after the inappropriate relationship was discovered.

Additionally, Nessel has filed a motion to dismiss charges against two defendants in the case because of Kolodziej's alleged conduct.

Nessel said that, while she wanted to release information pertaining to Kolodziej, she cannot do so at this time as the office is considering a criminal investigation in Kolodziej's actions.

Nessel said the investigation started in September and took nearly two months to complete. 

In the end, she filed a motion to dismiss charges against Larry Orr and his stepson Sean MacMaster. Both men were charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and could have been spent 25 years to life in prison.

MacMaster, 46, of Jacksonville and Orr, 71, of Oxford, were both charged after a search was completed of Orr's home in March, revealing "significant physical evidence that was consistent with the child victim's descriptions of the sexual assaults".

Orr was arrested in May and MacMaster was arrested in Jacksonville, where he was working as a police officer in the Duval County School Police Department. 

The charges were dismissed without prejudice - meaning they cannot be filed against the men again for this case.

"I am compelled to dismiss the charges in this case following the information we received regarding Mr. Kolodziej's prosecutorial conduct, which are tantamount to serious violations of our prosecutorial standards," said Nessel.

Nessel also spoke with the attorney for another man, Ian Elliott. He pleaded no contest to one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct in Isabella County in August. Elliott was sentenced to 366 days in prison and is in the St. Louis Correctional Facility. Nessel said she offered to set aside the plea deal for Elliot.

"We are committed to doing everything we can to address the issues caused by Mr. Kolodziej's employment as an assistant attorney general," said Nessel. "We will submit all of our internal interviews to the Michigan State Police as well as the Attorney Grievance Commission so they may independently determine appropriate actions.

"While we are not in a position to share our findings, we have taken swift, decisive action and we will continue to cooperate with law enforcement as they move forward," Nessel concluded.