Michigan dad who locked son in wooden box sentenced to prison

CEDAR SPRINGS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Cedar Springs father who locked his 7-year-old son in a wooden box will serve at least 28 months in prison.

“Mr. Rus was locking his child up in a box basically at night,” said Hon. George “Jay” Quist from the bench Monday afternoon. “Pretty egregious conduct.”

Michael Rus, 48, pleaded guilty in June to second degree child abuse, a felony.

Court records show Rus and his girlfriend, Jessica Ann Kilgore, admitted to locking Rus’s son in a windowless, 3-foot by 4-foot box made of wood in their Cedar Springs Apartment.

Police discovered the boy in the box during a welfare check prompted by a referral from Children’s Protective Services.

Rus’s defense attorney had asked Quist to sentence Rus to a year in jail instead of a longer prison term.

“The main goal for Mr. Rus is to be reunified with (his son),” said assistant public defender A’ndreanna Vanden Berg. “He knows that he missed the mark in parenting. He knows that he fell short in parenting. We’re not disputing that. What we do want the court to realize is that Mr. Rus has taken the opportunity while out on bond to do everything he can to be a better parent in hopes of being reunified with his son.”

Vandenberg said Rus had set up and followed a parent treatment plan with Catholic Charities and signed up for parenting classes.

Vanden Berg told the judge a prison sentence would guarantee the termination of Rus’s rights to his son, adding that the child has no mother in his life.

She blamed her client’s crime on lack of education and said the Cedar Springs dad is capable of rehabilitation.

“He wants to be better,” said Vanden Berg. “He knows he can be better.”

She also pointed to Rus’s stable employment history — eleven years with the same company.

Quist cited Rus’s criminal history as he sentenced the 48-year-old dad to a minimum of two years, four months in prison and a maximum of ten years.

“He’s not new to the criminal justice system,” said Quist. “He’s in his late 40’s and has two prior felonies and thirteen misdemeanors.”

One of those misdemeanors was a conviction for fourth degree child abuse.

Quist said sentencing guidelines put Rus’s potential penalty at 19 to 38 months, and Kent County’s prosecutor recommended a guideline of 12 to 36 months.

“The court does not believe that the maximum penalty is justified under the totality of the circumstances,” said Quist. “I think Mr. Rus has done some good things, but this is also not his first child abuse conviction. He had a conviction for child abuse in the fourth degree in 2018. Given the length of his record, his prior conviction for child abuse and the nature of the crime … a mid-guideline sentence is appropriate, and the court will impose such a sentence.

Rus’s girlfriend, Jessica Ann Kilgore, received a lighter sentence when she went before the court in June.

“I know there was a co-defendant in this case,” explained Quist from the bench. “I think the court issued a lighter sentence on that co-defendant. I do not believe she had much of a criminal record, if any, as distinguished from Mr. Rus.”

Quist also noted that the victim is Rus’s son, not Kilgore’s.

Kilgore was sentenced to time served — 131 days in jail — and three years probation.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NewsNation.