Sentenced for relationship with 13-year-old girl

While spared a prolonged stay inside a Michigan penitentiary, 21-year-old Kyle Korabek will still be spending time at the Cass County jailhouse after engaging in a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old.

Judge Michael Dodge sentenced Korabek, of Niles, to one year in jail for third-degree criminal sexual conduct Friday in Cass County court. Korabek had pleaded guilty to the charge on Sept. 29.

The charge stems from an incident that occurred back in March at a Laundromat in Edwardsburg. On that day, Korabek and a teenage girl engaged in an act of sexual intercourse inside one the building’s restrooms, Dodge said.

“You were 20 years old at the time you engaged in this act,” he said. “You also knew that the victim was underage, that she was only 13 and by law not capable of consenting to that type of sexual activity.”

While there were no signs that the man forced himself onto the victim, Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz said that the incident has resulted in emotional damage for both the girl and her family. Both her mother and sister were sitting in the gallery behind Fitz during Korabek’s sentencing that morning.

“This is something that has truly changed this girl’s life forever,” Fitz said. “It could have been even for significantly adverse, but nonetheless it’s a major impact on a child for this type of thing to happen.”

Korabek had been fighting mental and developmental issues from an early age, with his life spiraling out of control after he began abusing drugs, said his lawyer, Gary Stewart. Since his arrest, the structured jail environment has improved his behavior, with him retaking medication and cleaning up his drug problems, Stewart said.

Though third-degree CSC carries up to a 15-year prison sentence, the attorney argued that Korabek should instead serve a term on probation in the state’s Holmes Youthful Trainee Act program.

“I don’t believe he presents any kind of sexual predator like danger,” Stewart said. “This was more a situational occurrence on his part.”

Dodge disagreed with the notion that the defendant should be spared incarceration for this actions, given the severity of the charge.

“I don’t find, based on the evidence that’s before me, that you’ve satisfied or convinced the court that this kind of thing will never happen again,” Dodge said.

The judge did, however, deviate below sentencing guidelines by sentencing him to local jail rather than sending him off to prison.

Korabek was given 186 days credit for time already served.

Also sentenced Friday:

• James Curtis Vest, 21, of Cassopolis, to 18 months of probation for possession of marijuana.

• Eric Jason Dyda, 30, of Edwardsburg, to 18 months of probation for possession of an analog substance.

• Kenneth Harold Scott, 25, of Three Rivers, to 23 months in prison for breaking and entering.