Allegan County Circuit Court Judge Roberts Kengis was asked to disqualify himself from the case and agreed to do so in a hearing Thursday. The plea agreement was announced Friday afternoon in a court hearing before Judge Roberts Kengis. Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Bowman, 72, is charged with her murder. George Field, 60, of Dowagiac, had been scheduled to face trial starting Monday in Cass County Circuit Court on 17 criminal sexual conduct, insurance fraud and perjury charges. Get unlimited access to our local coverage, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Appeals court walks back new trial for man after prosecutor, judge emailed during trial, Man wins new trial over email exchange between judge, prosecutor, Judges recused from hearing mans request for new trial, Allegan man says judge, prosecutor denied him a fair trial, Get unlimited access to our local coverage, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Judge Bakker says, "Myrene has demonstrated an outstanding ability to represent the peoples interests in criminal prosecutions before this Court and as Chief Assistant has demonstrated strong administrative abilities that will serve her and the County of Allegan well as Prosecutor.. AGC investigations are confidential, and investigations of the Judicial Tenure Commission only become public if the commission decides to proceed with a formal complaint against the judge, typically reserved for allegations of serious misconduct. Free viewers are required for some of the attached documents.They can be downloaded by clicking on the icons below. Kengis and Bakker have worked closely together over the years when making final decisions on a variety of issues. Villar lost the primary election in August and a recount of votes conducted last week affirmed that Koch had won re-election by 19 votes. The case was tried by assistant prosecuting attorney Emily Jipp. If you would like to help our coverage scope grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia. Please enable JavaScript in your browser for a better user experience. In August 2019, Loew was convicted by a jury of multiple rapes of a relative of his wife, a girl who was 13 at the time of the first assault. A more recent docket listing may be available from PACER . The emails between Koch and Judge Margaret Bakker showed the two discussing the case while Loew's trial was occurring in Bakker's courtroom. "Maybe it wasn't the case, but it creates the appearance of coaching, or at least flagging, 'This is something you're going to need to address,' and that's my worry," Baillargeon said. . The same date Kengis starts as a Circuit Judge. Bakker, who remains on the bench, served in the role for 11. Cheshire Hills Golf Course . ", Koch responded, "They do but not typically for CSCs. The prosecutor said the emails and information were not shared with the assistant prosecutor trying the case. The emails were unearthed by Allegan-based attorney Michael Villar, who was challenging County Prosecutor Myrene Koch's re-election bid in summer 2020. 57th District Court Honorable Joseph S . Its one of the most outrageous things Ive seen in my career, defense attorney Heath Lynch, a former federal prosecutor in Grand Rapids, told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. The point is she tried. *Not location specific. Jim Wheat, MD. Judges Jon Van Allsburg, Mark Feyen and Bradley Knoll were reappointed to two-year terms as chief judges of Ottawa County's 20th Circuit Court, Probate Court and 58th District Court, respectively. Ex parte translates from Latin to mean out of the party; in the context of the legal system, it is communication about a case between a judge and one sides attorney that occurs without the other partys counsel present. In this case, she was comfortable with the agreement. Judiciary Courts of the Stt can be contacted via phone at (269) 673-8471 for pricing, hours and directions. If any of these apply to you, contact the court to verify they observe the exemption. The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan has jurisdiction in Allegan County. This trooper has been given additional personal training since this investigation., Bakker then wrote: One more question..this victim was not referred for a medical, do you know why?, Koch replied a few minutes later: Yes, because the prior (assistant prosecuting attorney) assigned to the case did not catch that it was missed nor did anyone else who touched the file., Lynch said that the ex parte communication, or communication with only one side, showed bias and violated the Code of Judicial Conduct. Allegan County Circuit Judge Margaret Zuzich-Bakker (MLive File Photo)Emil Lippe | MLive.com. Download the WZZM 13 app now. Michigan Court of Appeals Lynch said that emails obtained through the Freedom of Information Act showed improper communication between the trial judge, Margaret Zuzich-Bakker, and the prosecutor, regarding substantive matters that gave the prosecution a tactical advantage.. The emails were made public by Villar during the 2020 Republican primary for the Allegan prosecutor post. Myrene Koch will replace Robert Kengis as Allegan County Prosecuting Attorney on March 19. Interns wanted: Get paid to help ensure that every voter has unbiased election information. COURTS _____ Pursuant to MCR 7.201, IT IS ORDERED that the Honorable Elizabeth L. Gleicher is appointed as chief judge of the Court of Appealsfor the two year period - commencing . Judges Elections Allegan County, Michigan Circuit Court 48th Circuit Court, Michigan Margaret Bakker (Chief judge) Kevin W. Cronin [1] District Court Michigan Fifty-seventh Judicial District Court William Baillargeon (Chief judge) Joseph S. Skocelas [2] Probate Court Allegan County Probate Court, Michigan Michael L. Buck [3] See also The defense said the emails show misconduct. She has been recognized for her volunteer work with South Haven Public Schools and the Allegan County Coordinating Council on Domestic and Sexual Violence. The appointment was made by the Michigan Supreme Court after reviewing applications completed by the candidates. Judiciary Courts of the Stt is located at 113 Chestnut St in Allegan, Michigan 49010. 2023 www.hollandsentinel.com. The emails were something between idle chat and administrative communication.. Generally, ex parte communications between a judge and only one party in a legal matter are prohibited by ethics codes for judges and attorneys because they can give an unfair advantage to one side in a case. In August, Bakker also recused herself from hearing the motion for a new trial. He was sentenced last November to at least 20 years in prison. All rights reserved. Dont they have detectives with MSP anymore? Lynch responded: Thats not the point. Field has been free on $50,000 cash or surety bond since July 2018 after being held on a higher bond for several months after his arrest in September 2017. Judge Kengis noted that Field will be sentenced before him on Friday, Sept. 10 in Cass County Circuit Court at 8:30 a.m. Bowman, 72, is charged with her murder. He said Field will be given the opportunity to withdraw his plea if Kengis decides to sentence him to more than a year in jail or change any other terms of the agreement. The jury was thereby improperly influenced.. 113 Chestnut Street, Allegan, MI49010 In Wednesday's announcement, the state Supreme Court said it would hear the appeal, but would limit the scope to the ex parte communications between Bakker and Koch, whether they were administrative in nature and whether Loew is entitled to a new trial. Michigan Circuit Court After the emails were discovered, Villar saidhe filed complaints against Koch and Bakker with the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission and Attorney Grievance Commission, respectively. In the nonpartisan primary, the two candidates who receive the greatest number of votes advance to the general election. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. The half hour hearing Friday afternoon featured Field being sworn in and agreeing to the no contest pleas on the seven charges. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. ALLEGAN Two Allegan County judges have recused themselves from hearing the case of Daniel Loew, who is asking for a new trial after emails between the judge and the Allegan County Prosecuting Attorney were released during the prosecutors re-election campaign. While he was a prosecutorinthe Allegan County Prosecutor's Office, he participated in discussions about the unsolved disappearance of Aundria Bowman with the Allegan County Sheriff's Office and a cold-case panel of other prosecutors and detectives in Lansing. Ballotpedia features 395,436 encyclopedic articles written and curated by our professional staff of editors, writers, and researchers. Call, or visit the court's website if listed above. Kengis was the chief prosecuting attorney when. Contact her at sarah.leach@hollandsentinel.com or follow her on Twitter @SentinelLeach. He replaces Judge Margaret Zuzich Bakker, who served 11 years as chief judge. The case has volleyed around the higher court system after Loew's conviction in August 2019. By using this website, you agree to comply with all of the terms of use . prosecutorial candidate Michael Villar accused his opponent, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. They began investigating and recommended she contact the sheriffs department. His case was bound over for a jury trial in Allegan County's 48th Circuit Court last month. She said the counseling took place there and the sexual relations at Fields home next door to the center. Dobrich said Allegan Circuit Judge Roberts Kengis will preside over the trial, which will take place in Cassopolis. He buried Aundria's body on their property, later moving her body when the Bowmans moved from Holland to the Hamilton area shortly afterward. They have four children. Penny Brown . *Please call to verify. Herman was a member of the board of directors of the counseling center where Field worked and where some of the incidents took place. The victim was 13 at the time of the first reported assault. We routinely discuss cases with the victims, said Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz. Field had been a popular instructor at the college before his dismissal. Ascension Borgess Allegan Foundation Director . Koch and her husband married in 1993. Allegan County Circuit Court Judge. Share & Bookmark, Press Enter to show all options, press Tab go to next option, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Requests, Annual Reports and State of the County Report. The murder was onlyconnected to Bowman in 2018 when detectives used a genealogy database searchingtechnique toidentify a DNA sample from the decades-old case. Kengis replaces Judge Margaret Zuzich Bakker who had been elected to the circuit court in 2010. In the same order appointing Kengis, the Court also reappointed Judge Michael Buck to chief probate court judge for Allegan County and Judge Joseph Skocelas to chief judge of the 57th District Court. Kengis will continue as Prosecuting Attorney until March 19 when he starts his role as a Circuit Judge, a position he was appointed to by Governor Rick Snyder. Loew's attorney, Heath Lynch, argued it's impossible to know whether Koch shared the communications with Jipp and whether trial strategy was altered due to what Bakker wrote in the emails. SMC completed its investigation in late September 2017 when they fired Field. Contact reporter Carolyn Muyskens at cmuyskens@hollandsentinel.com and follow her on Twitter at @cjmuyskens. Honorable Roberts A. Kengis . Dont they have detectives anymore?, The next morning, Koch replied: They do but not typically for CSCs. Allegan County Friend of the Court et al 1:2021cv00195 | US District Court for the Western District of Michigan | Justia Collet v. Allegan County Friend of the Court et al RSS Track this Docket Docket Report This docket was last retrieved on March 3, 2021. Community Volunteer . Judge Kengis is an Allegan Circuit judge who was assigned the case when Cass County Circuit Judge Mark Herman recused himself. To learn more about judicial selection in Michigan, click here. 269-226-5014. craig.chindemi@ascension.org. The incidents occurred between September 2015 and early 2018 when he perjured himself during a court hearing. Michigan District Courts The Michigan Supreme Court will ultimately decide after agreeing to hear oral arguments in the case of Daniel Loew. Rob Kengis. None of the communications were ever intended to influence or provide advice nor did they. Plaintiff Jonathan King Meyer filed a pro se complaint pursuant to 42 U.S.C. The communications provided nothing of any tactical use to the prosecution, even if Defendant had been able to show Ms. Jipp was aware of them. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Before taking the bench, Kengis served as the elected prosecuting attorney for Allegan County. If there are not more than twice the amount of candidates than there are persons to be elected, the race will not appear on the primary election ballot, but only on the general election ballot. She noted that he has already conducted trials in his home county during the pandemic, which should be a help as Cass County starts holding them. ALLEGAN COUNTY, MI -- Allegan County Prosecutor Rob Kengis has been appointed to a recently vacated judgeship with the Allegan County Circuit Court. ALLEGAN Judge Roberts Kengis took over supervision of the 48th Circuit Court on Jan. 1 as chief judge after he was appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to replace Judge Margaret Zuzich Bakker in the role. Judge Kengis handles all the case types that are dealt with in circuit court: criminal felonies, civil cases with a value over $25,000.00, divorce, custody, and paternity cases, personal protection order cases, child protective proceedings, guardianships, adoptions, and appeals from district court and administrative bodies. Jury trials routinely require two to three days to decide amidst other . Judge Kengis noted that Field will be sentenced before him on Friday, Sept. 10 in Cass County Circuit Court at 8:30 a.m. Judge Roberts Kengis is the new chief judge of the 48th Circuit Court in Allegan County. ALLEGAN COUNTY, MI - A judge ordered a retrial for a man convicted of sexual assault because the trial judge emailed the county prosecutor - who was not trying the case - during. http://www.allegancounty.org/Government/CC/Index.asp?pt=, The Public Access to Court Records (PACER), 36th Judicial Circuit Court Van Buren County. Bakker also asked why the victim in the case had not been given a medical exam. They claim that Loew did not receive a fair trial. On Jan. 1, theMichigan Supreme Court announcedJudge Roberts Kengis would replace Bakker in supervising the 48th Circuit Court. The chief judge holds "administrative superintending power and control over the judges of the court and all court personnel, including the friend of the court," according to Michigan Court Rule, managing staffing, caseload, court finances, making county clerk and prosecutor's office appointments and managing assignment and reassignment of cases. In November 2020, Allegan District Court JudgeWilliam Baillargeon's granted Loew'smotion for a new trial, saying such one-sided communications, called ex parte communications, between the judge and the prosecutor gave the appearance of impropriety. Bowman says he hid Aundria's body in a barn on the property and called police to report that she had run away. The case likely will be heard in 2023. The sentences run concurrently. Allegan, MI 49010 Sarah Leach is editor of The Holland Sentinel. Daniel Albert Loew, 26, was convicted by an Allegan County Circuit Court jury of two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC), two counts of third-degree CSC and a single count of second-degree CSC. Friday, Judge Kengis kept Fields bond the same. ", Bakker wrote back, "One more question this victim was not referred for a medical, do you know why?". "We think the court wants to hear and have robust conversations on these issues. Chief Circuit Court Judge, Honorable Margaret Zuzich Bakker *county-courthouse.com is not affiliated with the Official US Government, or any state, local, or federal office. Beginning January 1, 2022, Judge Roberts Kengis assumed the chief judge leadership of the 48 th Circuit Court. Dont they have detectives with MSP anymore?. 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