Category Archives: News on Crime

A Grand Rapids man who used to be the head of the Hispanic American Council in Kalamazoo is now facing federal charges of criminal sexual conduct. State prosecutors recently dropped their charges and handed the matter over for federal prosecution. Forty year old Ramon Berlanga-Rodriguez is accused of sexually assaulting a young girl multiple times, […]

The complexities of defending a multi-county, multi-state prosecution can pose a challenge for any Michigan criminal defense attorney. If not handled well, the client can end up serving back to back sentences (consecutive) rather than simultaneous sentences (concurrent.) A recent case New Baltimore case illustrates this principle. Three men were recently arraigned in a New […]

The sentencing of Karl Cotton Jr. took place last week in a Kent County circuit courtroom, with Cotton, who was convicted of murdering a young woman named Jamie Powell, receiving life in prison. Judge Mark Trusock gave out the sentence, which did not include the possibility of parole. Reports also indicate that Cotton robbed Powell […]

The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals addressed an issue related to an order excluding evidence of possession of child pornography from an attempted-production of child pornography trial. U.S. v. Sims—released February 28, 2013 The defendant was slated to go to trial on federal possession of child pornography charges (18 U.S.C.§ 2252(a)(4)(B) and (b)(2)) and […]

Human trafficking charges were leveled at two people on February 25th in Southfield. A Florida man, Vinson Alexander, 30, was charged with human trafficking and assault of a woman from Texas. Alexander also faces several other felony charges related to the trafficking, including one count of torture. Police say that Taryn Johnson, Alexander’s 27 years […]

Many criminal defense attorneys and medical marijuana activists have been waiting for months for the Michigan Supreme Court to issue its decision in the case of State of Michigan v. McQueen. This case is only the second case in the history of the Michigan Supreme Court dealing with the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. The defendants […]

A Saginaw County man was recently acquitted of several serious assault and other felony charges in connection with an armed robbery and shooting that took place last May, outside of Celebration Hall in Saginaw. Had Demonte M. Anderson, 20, been convicted he may have been facing up to life in prison. Anderson was accused of […]

In a perfect world, all attorneys would have integrity and all client’s would be able to trust their attorneys. Unfortunately, we don’t live in a perfect world. Nonetheless , It is always shocking when attorneys violate the client trust and steal money that they hold in trust. This appears to have happened in a couple […]

Last week the Supreme Court released one of the most significant opinions to date on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act (MMMA). In State of Michigan v. McQueen, the Court determined all medical marijuana dispensaries are illegal and may be enjoined as nuisances because such businesses facilitate patient-to-patient transfers of marijuana. The Attorney General of Michigan’s […]

Michigan criminal defense and embezzlement attorneys have been busy lately. White collar theft crime was prominent in the local news headlines this week. Several embezzlement cases cropped up around the state Bay County Criminal charges were filed against a Saginaw man, Joel Wilson, for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme. Three victims were allegedly fleeced of […]