Attorney General's Office to prosecute suspected shooter

LANSING – Attorney General Bill Schuette, Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings, Livingston County Prosecutor David Morse and Shiawassee County Prosecutor Randy O. Colbry today announced that the Attorney General’s Criminal Division will lead the prosecution of Raulie Casteel, 43, of Wixom, for crimes allegedly committed in three counties.  The assignment of the case to the Attorney General, which spans four counties to date, came at the request of the three prosecutors.  The Oakland County Prosecutor will continue to handle the case filed in that county.

“Already, local, state and federal authorities have come together to protect the public, and this prosecution is a continuation of that cooperation,” said Schuette.  “I look forward to working with my colleagues from Ingham, Livingston, and Shiawassee counties to bring these cases to a close.”

“These alleged crimes spanned multiple jurisdictions over several counties,” said Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III.  “Given the nature of the allegations, we believe the Attorney General can best prosecute this matter.”

“I believe it is beneficial for the prosecution of this case and for the convenience of the witnesses to have a single source of prosecution,” said Livingston County Prosecutor David Morse.  “It will provide a consistent approach to the case that is not possible with multiple jurisdictions handling multiple cases.”

“The most sensible way to prosecute these crimes, which occurred across county lines and were investigated by a joint task-force, is to involve the Attorney General,” said Shiawassee County Prosecutor Randy Colbry.

Casteel has been charged and arraigned in Livingston County with six counts related to an alleged shooting incident on I-96 in Howell. The felony charges include: Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, Carrying a Firearm with Unlawful Intent and Discharging a Firearm from a Motor Vehicle.

In Oakland County, Casteel is charged with 60 counts for incidents alleged to have occurred in that county.  Casteel has not yet been charged for alleged incidents that occurred in Ingham and Shiawassee Counties.  Schuette’s Criminal Division will review evidence collected by the multi-jurisdictional task force and make a decision about what criminal charges should be filed, if any.

Casteel was taken into custody on October 17, 2012 by Michigan State Police troopers and has been arraigned on the charges in Livingston and Oakland Counties.  On November 14, 2012, judges in Oakland County and Livingston County each ordered Casteel to undergo two separate competency and criminal responsibility tests to determine whether he is competent to stand trial in the respective counties.

A criminal charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.