DETROIT (WISN) -- A Michigan man who raped a girl when she was 12-years-old has now been awarded joint custody of her child, despite being convicted of rape and sexual assault of another child.
Christopher Mirasalo, 27, from Brown City, Michigan, assaulted the victim nine years ago, getting her pregnant in the process. A judge awarded Mirasalo parenting time and joint legal custody after a paternity test concluded that he was the father of the child.
Since being convicted in 2008, Mirasalo has been convicted of another sexual assault of child, and served four years in prison for it.
The victim, now 21-years-old, is seeking protection under the federal Rape Survival Child Custody Act to try and halt Mirasalo's access.
According to The Detroit News., the case was first reported on “The Steve Gruber Show,” a Lansing-based radio program. It is believed the first of its kind in Michigan and possibly the nation. According to the victim and her attorney, it was prompted after the county surveyed the victim regarding child support she had received this past year.
According to the victim's attorney, Mirasalo forcibly raped and threatened to kill her client in September 2008. He was sentenced to one year in prison for that offense, but only served six and a half months.
For more on this story: http://www.wkow.com/story/36552763/2017/10/9/man-who-raped-woman-when-she-was-12-now-awarded-joint-custody-of-her-child