Raymond Lawrence Perkins - Repeat Sex Offender

Sarah Tofte of the Human Rights Watch says that 25% of all sex offenders re-offend within 15 years

A Westland man was charged Tuesday with criminal sexual conduct amid allegations that he had molested his great-niece.

Raymond Lawrence Perkins, 55, was arraigned Tuesday afternoon before 18th District Court Judge Sandra Cicirelli on two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child younger than 13 years old.

According to Sgt. Debra Mathews of the Westland Police Department, Perkins allegedly sexually assaulted his then-6-year-old great-niece in 2001 when she came to the home he shared with his sister— the girl’s great aunt—and another family member for babysitting while her mother was at work.

“It is something that came out recently,” said Mathews.

The child, now 12 years old, began to speak out about the alleged assaults late last year. Her allegations are not the first time that Perkins has been accused of incestuous molestation.

“He was previously convicted in 1987 of molesting a nephew,” said Mathews.

When the previous court case originally came to light, she said that several other family members claimed that Perkins had allegedly abused them in the past as well. However, the delay between the alleged abuses and the allegations that they had occurred meant that the additional claims did not prompt further charges.

“The allegations were not made until it was too late to do anything about it,” said Mathews.

Cicirelli upheld the arraignment and set the bond amount at $1 million. Proceedings will resume on Feb. 14 when Perkins is expected to undergo preliminary examination. At the preliminary hearing, the burden is on the prosecution to convince a judge that there is sufficient evidence against a defendant to warrant a trial.

According to Mathews, the prosecution is also considering levying additional charges including a habitual offender charge against Perkins in the future.

In a related case, one of the child’s uncles currently faces assault charges after allegedly attacking Perkins when he learned that the older man had allegedly assaulted the girl.

Sarah Tofte of the Human Rights Watch says that 25% of all sex offenders re-offend within 15 years