State AG Appoints Benzie County Prosecutor to Hentschel Case

The Michigan Attorney General's Office has appointed Benzie County Prosecutor Sara Swanson to investigate potential charges in an alleged sexual assault case involving Grand Traverse County Commissioner Rob Hentschel.

The Prosecuting Attorneys Coordinating Council (PACC) - an autonomous entity within the Michigan AG's Office - reviews cases for placement with a different prosecuting agency when potential conflicts of interest exist. Because county commissioners oversee Grand Traverse County Prosecutor Noelle Moeggenberg's budget, presenting a potential conflict, she typically refers cases involving any commissioners to the state AG's office for review. Moeggenberg referred Hentschel's case to the state in November. After a review, the PACC appointed Swanson to the case Thursday (January 23).

"Upon receiving the appointment, we promptly reached out to the investigating agency, in this case, the Michigan State Police, and asked that they provide us with everything from their investigation," Swanson said in an email to The Ticker. "Today, January 28, we received the information we requested. From here, this case will be handled in the same matter as any other case that we receive from law enforcement. We will review all the documents and other evidence that was sent to us. If something is not clear or could be investigated further, we will ask the investigating officer to follow up."

Once Swanson's office feels the investigation is complete, "we will make the determination on whether or not we believe we can prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt at trial," she says. "If we believe we can meet this burden, charges will be issued, if not, we will decline to issue charges. We start with the presumption that the suspect is innocent until proven guilty, and he does not lose that presumption even if we issue charges."

Hentschel is being investigated for criminal sexual conduct. According to the complaint, a 38-year-old woman alleged that Hentschel sexually assaulted her at a party he invited her to after they attended an event together in early October. The party was reported to involve heavy drinking, and the woman said Hentschel initiated sex with her against her will. Other individuals are also alleged to have taken part in the assault. The woman went to Munson Medical Center for a sexual assault examination, with the report then sent to the Michigan State Police. More than 900 people have signed an online petition calling on Hentschel to resign.

Hentschel previously provided the following statement to The Ticker regarding the allegations: "Sadly, this is not the first time during my public service that I have been subjected to attacks to hurt me and my family. The implications in the report you were provided are false. Due to the nature of the report, I have been advised against saying anything more than this."

According to Swanson, her office aims to "review and make charging decision as efficiently as possible.  Both victims and suspects deserve expediency in the process. However, we also need to make sure everything is thoroughly reviewed before making such an important decision. For those reasons, I do not want to put a time frame on when charges will or will not be issued."