Great Lakes Wire

Former Fabius Township Supervisor Kenneth Dwayne Linn, 58, of Three Rivers, has been sentenced to 19 to 50 years' incarceration for a sexual assault committed in 2010, as revealed by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting. Linn was found guilty of four counts of First-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct by a Kalamazoo County jury in March, following a cold-case investigation led by the Kalamazoo County Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) team.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel commended the SAKI units for their work, stating, “Our SAKI units in Kalamazoo and across the State perform incredible work in our pursuit of justice in cold-case sexual assaults.” She expressed gratitude for the efforts of the SAKI teams and the partnership with Prosecutor Getting in securing convictions.

Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Getting also expressed pride in the Kalamazoo SAKI team, stating, “This trial was the culmination of hundreds of hours of work by dedicated investigators, victim advocates, and attorneys.” He highlighted that through their support, a survivor of sexual assault has seen that the justice system works.

The case involved Linn taking advantage of a young female victim who was extremely intoxicated and unable to give consent after a golf outing in 2010. The victim, who suffered physical injury, bravely appeared at the sentencing and shared, “No amount of time will erase the scars that he left behind...I will always feel the need to protect myself.”

Judge Kenneth Barnard, who presided over the sentencing, acknowledged the victim's courage, stating, “One of the joys of being a judge is seeing someone stand up for themselves the way this victim did against someone who had the whole backing of society and their community.” He acknowledged that the sentence imposed on Linn will never undo the harm suffered by the victim.

The case was brought to light through the state’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI), which investigates and prosecutes sexual assaults related to previously untested sexual assault evidence kits. The Kalamazoo SAKI team, a collaborative effort, is currently investigating over 200 cold-case sexual assaults in Kalamazoo County.

The sentencing of Kenneth Dwayne Linn serves as a stark reminder of the importance of continued efforts to seek justice for survivors of sexual assault and to hold perpetrators accountable for their actions.