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Convicted sex predator accused in decades-old crime involving child

James Ullery was brought from a Michigan prison to Grand Rapids to face a sexual assault charge involving a six-year-old girl dating back to 1990.

WYOMING, Mich. — A man in prison for sexually assaulting a child in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is now accused of abusing a six-year-old in Wyoming nearly three decades ago.

James Donald Ullery appeared Wednesday in Wyoming District Court on a charge of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, a felony punishable by up to life in prison.

According to court records, a girl approximately six years old was sexually penetrated by Ullery at a home on Celia Street SW in the city of Wyoming. The date of the assault is listed between 1990 and 1995.

He is also accused of sexually assaulting a second girl listed as being approximately four years old, but criminal charges were not filed in that case. The same address on Celia Street is listed as the location.

Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said criminal charges were possible because the statute of limitations was lifted in 2001 for cases of first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

“Criminal sexual conduct in the first degree and murder are the two where we have no statute of limitations,’’ Becker said.

Ullery, 59, was brought to Kent County about two weeks ago from a mid-Michigan prison, where he is serving time for a sexual assault near Sault Ste. Marie in Chippewa County.

Criminal charges were filed in 2016. The offense occurred between 1990 and 2000. The victim in that case was also a young girl. Ullery was in Barry County when he was arrested by Michigan State Police in April of 2016.

He was sentenced in December of 2016 to between five and 15 years in prison for third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Ullery also has a 1996 conviction for attempted sexual assault involving a minor.

Ullery’s next appearance in Wyoming District Court is scheduled for late August. He is being held without bond in the Kent County Jail.

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