1994 rape suspect will not face charges

WARREN, Mich., Aug. 21 (UPI) -- The statute of limitations on a 1994 rape means the man connected to the 14-year-old crime will not face any criminal charges, a Michigan prosecutor says.

Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith said Thursday that while Craig Gonser cannot face charges for the 1994 crime, prosecutors will seek a lengthy prison term for the 40-year-old on a variety of other unrelated criminal charges, the Detroit Free Press said.

Among the new charges to be brought against Gonser are allegations of indecent exposure and distributing pornographic material to a minor, Smith said.

Gonser was finally linked to the 1994 case by DNA evidence, but the discovery of that evidence came long after another man spent nine years in prison for the crime.

The Innocence Project at Cooley Law School managed to get Kenneth Wyniemko freed from prison in 2003 after proving his innocence on charges from the rape case. He later was awarded $3.7 million as part of a lawsuit against the Clinton Township Police Department.

Smith told the Free Press that Gonser is already in custody following a February domestic dispute and will soon be charged with sexual assault against children and other crimes.