A Chillicothe Township official accused of assaulting a private employee has been charged with second-degree sodomy.
An appearance bond for James Edward Gates was posted Thursday, and arraignment is scheduled in the Associate Division of Livingston County Circuit Court on November 8, 2019, at 9 am. Bond was originally set at $100,000 cash only, with a condition to not have contact with the victim.
The Saint Joseph News-Press reports Gates allegedly inappropriately touched a woman who worked for him and his wife, kissed the woman, and requested she perform a sex act on him.
The alleged victim claimed that after she told Gates “no” several times and froze up as he assaulted her, he gave her $25.00, telling her it was for “ignoring him and letting him have some pleasure.”
Gates reportedly told the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office the interaction was consensual.
