A Milford man charged last year with the alleged rape of a fellow student at Western Michigan University in 2013 was found not guilty at the conclusion of a jury trial last Friday.
Caleb James Watson, 31, was acquitted of all crimes he was accused of: Four counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of assault with intent to commit penetration.
In 2023, Attorney General Dana Nessel claimed the assault happened in an 18-year-old woman’s dorm room and “resulted in both physical injury and long-term mental anguish to the victim.”
The jury wasn’t convinced.
Watson, age 20 at the time, reportedly lived in the same dorm and was an acquaintance of the woman.
Watson was charged following a “lengthy investigation,” according to Nessel. He was arrested in Livingston County in April 2023 by the Michigan State Police fugitive team.
First-degree criminal sexual conduct is punishable by up to life in prison.
Watson’s trial was held in 9th Judicial Circuit Court in Kalamazoo before Judge Kenneth Barnard.