Local Assault Leads to Olivet PD Monitoring Cases More Closely

The trail where the assault occurred in Olivet

OLIVET, Mich. -  On Aug. 3, 2025, a 37-year-old woman endured a sexual assault by a 38-year-old man she knew while walking the trail along Indian Creek near 186 First St. in the city of Olivet. The Marshall Post, which is a part of the Michigan State Police, responded to this incident. The man was not arrested that night because the officers needed to conduct further investigation. During a city council meeting on Dec. 8, 2025, Olivet Chief of Police Johnny Lopez mentioned that both he and former Chief Shawn Garcia were unaware of this incident. Since this incident has occurred, Lopez has stated that he will start looking out for incidents that the department might have missed overnight.

The city of Olivet is a small town. According to Census Reporter, Olivet is only one square mile. The Olivet Police Department currently has two officers on staff, including Chief Lopez. They are on call Monday-Friday, but they don’t have any officers working on weekends and currently have none working at night.

“What happens is when agencies that don't have 24-hour seven police services, either the sheriff's office or the State Police will take over for calls, for service, calls in their jurisdiction,” said Lopez. 

The office of the Olivet Police Department.

This means that the Marshall Post and the sheriff's department are responsible for any calls placed on weekends or at night. 

With Olivet being such a small town, working with a larger police force is likely to have some miscommunication with cases that happen in their jurisdiction. This was shown in the sexual assault case back in August. State Police Specialist Lieutenant Rene Gonzalez, who works for the Michigan State Police, says that when an officer takes a call, “they follow that all the way to the end.”

“We will not turn it back over to an agency because it happened, even if it happened in their jurisdiction,” says Gonzalez.

Olivet Police Commissioner Joseph Davis said that “there wasn't an obligation to let us [Olivet Police Department] know” about that case or any others that the Michigan State Police respond to, even if it’s in their jurisdiction. 

“We are now reviewing the incidents that happened while we're not in service, while the Olivet Police Department is not in service. We're going to look at those and see what's going on, analyze them, compile them, see the actual activity that's happening while we're away,” said Davis.

The Marshall Regional Law Enforcement Center, where the Michigan State Police is located.

According to Gonzalez, “The complaint [the assault] is currently at the Eaton County Prosecutors' Office for review of charges.” Chief Lopez has stated that he will continue to monitor call logs from previous nights to see what kind of calls came in. He said he will also be reviewing monthly reports to see what kinds of calls came into the city that the state police or the sheriff's office would have handled to avoid missing any other cases that occur in Olivet.