Kalamazoo man convicted in 2005 cold case sexual assault of 14-year-old
CBS DETROIT) — A Kalamazoo man was convicted last week of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old in 2005.
Shawn Darnell Robinson Hopkins, 39, was found guilty of two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct.
The victim reported the assault by a then-unknown man in 2005. Robinson Hopkins was identified in 2022 by DNA evidence.
"I am grateful for the efforts of the Kalamazoo SAKI unit to secure this conviction, 19 years following this terrible assault," said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. "It can be extremely difficult to bring about justice in cold-case sexual assault trials, but the talented prosecutors of our state's Sexual Assault Kit Initiative continue to bring these cases before juries, secure convictions, and make our communities safer. I applaud the remarkable bravery of our victim, who, as a child 19 years ago, had the courage to speak out and seek accountability for her abuser. Her strength is a reminder that justice is worth pursuing, no matter how long it takes."
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. The Robinson Hopkins case is SAKI's 22nd cold-case sexual assault conviction.
"I continue to be impressed time and again by the work that the Kalamazoo County SAKI team does on behalf of sexual assault survivors," said Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey S. Getting, in a statement. "These are complicated, difficult, important cases that not only bring justice for survivors but are also making our community safer."
Robinson Hopkins will be sentenced on Feb. 5, 2025.
According to the attorney general, the Kalamazoo SAKI Team is investigating more than 200 cold-case sexual assaults that happened in Kalamazoo County between 1976 and 2015.
