Kalamazoo man sentenced for 2005 sexual assault of teen
(CBS DETROIT) — A Kalamazoo man convicted of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in 2005 has been sentenced, officials said.
Shawn Darnell Robinson Hopkins, 39, was sentenced last week to 12-50 years in prison. Robinson Hopkins was found guilty of two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct in a December 2024 trial.
The survivor reported the assault by a then-unknown man in 2005. Robinson Hopkins was identified in 2022 by DNA evidence.
Attorney General Dana Nessel says the case was prosecuted by the Kalamazoo Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), which was started in 2016 to investigate and prosecute sexual assaults connected to previously untested sexual assault evidence kits.
"After so many years following this tragic assault, I hope this sentence will bring a sense of justice to the victim," Nessel said. "Her courage to come forward and seek accountability for her abuser is truly commendable. I am, as always, thankful for the Kalamazoo SAKI unit in pursuing justice for her and many other survivors of cold-case sexual assaults."
During Robinson Hopkins' sentencing last week, the survivor, now 33, said her childhood was stolen from her and described how the assault continues to affect her as an adult.
"My childhood was stolen from me, which altered my adult life. I sometimes wonder how my life could have been had I not had such a traumatic thing happen to me. I want nothing more than to go back in time and have a healthy childhood like everyone deserves but that's not what I was dealt in life. I've had nightmares for years from the assault all the way into my adulthood.
"I'm now 33 years old and the images of what happened to me as a child will never go away. I've been to therapy and though it's a coping mechanism, it's not ever going to stop me from remembering the things this man has done to me when I was only a child.
"I still need help dealing with this trauma that may never go away but I pray for my own deliverance from the pain and suffering that I've went through and still go through. Even though the case is over, and trial is done, and all the lawyers and jury and everyone who watched during trial gets to move on with life, this incident is something I'll never forget."
The Robinson Hopkins case is SAKI's 22nd cold-case sexual assault conviction.
