Bureau County man remains in state custody for sexual assault conviction – Shaw Local

A Bureau County man said a sexually violent person would remain in state custody, an appeals court ruled.

Michael Hansen said he served more time than the law requires and should spend his remaining years at large. On Tuesday, the 3rd District Court of Appeals ruled that Hansen’s judge was correct in finding that Hansen continued to pose a threat to society.

Hansen was convicted of aggravated sexual assault in 1992 and sentenced to 23 years in prison, in addition to a previous sentence for drug abuse. At a 2006 hearing in Princeton, the Bureau County District Attorney’s Office asked Hansen’s judge to declare him a sexually violent person. This was explained to Hansen in 2009 and turned over to the Department of Human Services.

In 2021, Hansen requested release from state custody, citing his age (75 at the time) and poor health. Last spring, Hansen faced a hearing before Bureau County Judge James Andreoni, who ruled that Hansen remained sexually dangerous and ordered the creation of a “conditional release” program to give Hansen a chance at release.

Hansen appealed this finding. He said Andreoni ignored a defense witness who testified that the elderly Hansen, 77 last year, no longer posed a threat. The appeals court disagreed.

“The court’s finding that defendant was still a sexually violent person despite his age was a reasonable conclusion,” Judge Linda Davenport wrote in a unanimous ruling. “Given the record, it is not clear that respondent is no longer a sexually violent person.”