FLINT, Mich. – Things got heated in a courtroom during a preliminary exam for former Michigan State University basketball star, Mateen Cleaves, who is accused of holding a woman against her will in a motel room after a charity golf event near Flint.
The attorney for 38-year-old Cleaves, Frank Manely, said the prosecutor assigned to the case, Kym Worthy, is unsuited to work the case and should be removed immediately.
Manely insisted Worthy be removed from the case because she once worked for the Wayne County Sexual Abuse Task Force, saying this fact makes her unfit to work a case against Cleaves.
Kim Worthy’s office is handling the Cleaves case because the Genessee county Prosecutors office stepped back due to another conflict of interest.
Manley said he wants Worthy to come to Flint to answer questions, in an attempt to get her office off the case.
“The most important thing here is fundamental fairness for Mateen Cleaves.” said Manley
Cleaves met a 24-year-old woman at the event in September and is accused of sexually assaulting her.
Prosecutors said Cleaves had drinks with the victim, her boyfriend and others at a bar. When the night was over, the woman's boyfriend gave a friend a ride home and she got in a car with Cleaves and expected to be driven back to the golf club, prosecutors said.
Instead, she was taken to a motel against her will, prosecutors said. After being assaulted, the woman escaped the motel room and received help from another woman staying in a different room.
Video: Officer says he was pressured to make Cleaves look guilty
Cleaves led Michigan State to the 2000 NCAA title and later played six seasons in the NBA.
— Mateen Cleaves (@Mateen_Cleaves) March 16, 2016