Prosecutors Want Records Sealed In Mateen Cleaves Sex Case
FLINT (WWJ/AP) - Prosecutors want a judge to seal some court records in a sexual assault case involving former Michigan State basketball star Mateen Cleaves after his accuser's name was made public this week in a court filing.
The Wayne County prosecutor's office filed the motion Tuesday, the same day a judge canceled a hearing to determine whether the case would go to trial.
Cleaves' attorney Frank Manley said in a motion that Cleaves' accuser is a member of a Wayne County child sexual abuse taskforce and wants the judge to disqualify the Wayne County prosecutor from the case.
Manley tells The Flint Journal the effort to seal records in the case is "unconscionable."
The 38-year-old Cleaves is charged with assaulting a 24-year-old woman at a motel last summer following a charity golf outing.
Cleaves, who is out on bond, has denied any wrongdoing, saying he and the woman had consensual sex.
Charges against Cleaves include unlawful imprisonment (15-year maximum penalty), assault with intent to commit criminal sexual penetration (10 year maximum penalty), second-degree criminal sexual conduct (15-year maximum penalty) and two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct (15-years maximum penalty).
Cleaves led Michigan State to the NCAA basketball championship in 2000, winning the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player award. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the 14th overall pick and appeared in 167 games for four NBA teams.
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