Ex-prosecutor charged with misconduct in assault case

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. (AP) — A former Michigan prosecutor was charged Thursday with misconduct in office, more than a year after he was  forced to resign when authorities learned he had an intimate relationship with a woman while handling her allegations of sexual assault.

Brian Kolodziej, who was an assistant attorney general, was charged by Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker, who was appointed to investigate the matter.

Becker declined to say whether the misconduct charges were directly related to Kolodziej’s relationship with the woman or his other work on the case.

“Ethically we cannot, and will not, delve into the specific facts or evidence that led to these charges,” Becker said.

A message seeking comment was not immediately returned by Kolodziej’s attorney.

Kolodziej was prosecuting Ian Elliott, a former Central Michigan University student. Elliott insisted he had consensual sex with the woman in 2016 after meeting her at a Mount Pleasant bar, but he pleaded no contest to third-degree criminal sexual conduct and was sent to prison.

Attorney General Dana Nessel agreed that Elliott could withdraw his plea after Kolodziej’s relationship was uncovered in 2019. Elliott subsequently pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor and was moved to a county jail for the remainder of his one-year sentence.

Nessel dropped charges in another Kolodziej case. Two men in Oakland County had been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13.

Becker investigated Kolodziej’s role but didn’t file charges.