One case against Marysville school teacher accused of sexual assault dismissed

A Marysville school teacher accused of sexual assault involving three victims had charges connected to a student dismissed.

St. Clair County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Megan Leyva Kelley requested Friday for two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct (student) be dropped against Steven Rogers, of Marysville. St. Clair County Circuit Court Judge Michael West granted the motion and the case was closed, according to court records.

Leyva Kelley said the victim's family decided they would not participate in a second trial, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday, and she wanted to respect the family's wishes.

"This was a difficult decision but mainly the family's wishes and their input was ultimately was drove my decision and to be respectful of them," Leyva Kelley said.

Rogers underwent a jury trial in the former case in May, but the jury could not come to a unanimous decision, so he was scheduled for another trial. Rogers was accused of of groping a student in the locker room in May or June of last year. 

Rogers is also charged in a seperate case with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, third-degree criminal sexual conduct, distributing sexually explicit material and criminal sexual conduct assault with intent to commit penetration in a separate case. 

Rogers is accused of sexually assaulting a woman on two occasions in the fall of 2018 and in spring 2019, and of sexually assaulting a minor victim several times and exposing her to inappropriate sexual conduct. 

While it's under one case file, two trials will take place for each victim in the case. The first is scheduled for Oct. 18.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Leyva Kelley said she will focus her efforts on preparing for those trials and will decide whether to reissue charges on the student case after those trials have concluded.

Lisa Kirsch Satawa, Rogers' attorney, said she will continue to fight all allegations brought forward, and expects that all charges will be acquitted.

"I believe that Steven Rogers is not only presumed innocent, but is innocent and that he never did anything inappropriate to this young lady," she said. "We’re just grateful that we had the opportunity to try the case the first time and that reasonableness has prevailed and we will not have to try it again.”

Marysville school district attorney Gary Fletcher has said as a tenured teacher, Rogers' employment and pay cannot by law be terminated until after a tenure hearing. The district is honoring the St. Clair County Prosecutor's Office's request to defer its review during all criminal proceedings. 

Contact Laura Fitzgerald at (810) 941-7072 or lfitzgeral@gannett.com.