FLINT (WWJ) - Jury selection began Tuesday in a rape trial involving former Michigan State University basketball star and former Detroit Piston Mateen Cleaves.
The trial is set to begin nearly four years after allegations of rape were made against Cleaves by a Mount Morris woman who said he raped her in a Flint-area motel in September 2015.
The woman said she twice tried to get away from Cleaves but was pulled back into a motel room and sexually assaulted. A witness testified that the woman was screaming "Help me!" while trying to escape a room at the Knights Inn in Mundy Township, and both times she was pulled back inside by a naked man, later identified as Cleaves.
Cleaves has denied the rape allegations, saying he and the woman had consensual sex. He's facing a number of charges including unlawful imprisonment, assault with intent to commit criminal sexual penetration and second-degree criminal sexual conduct. The charges carry up to 15 years in prison.
A 67th District Court judge initially threw out the charges in December 2016 after days of testimony. But a Genesee County Judge reversed that decision months later, saying there was enough evidence to send the case to trial. Last year, the Michigan Supreme Court refused to hear Cleaves' appeal, setting the case up for trial.
Cleaves led Michigan State to the NCAA basketball championship in 2000, winning the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player award. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the 14th overall pick and appeared in 167 games for four NBA teams.
