Boy Faces Rape Charge After Pregnancy of Sister, 12

A 17-year-old boy accused of impregnating his 12-year-old sister was arraigned Wednesday on a felony rape count, but prosecutors are considering an agreement that would allow him to plead guilty to a misdemeanor.

The girl’s family, immigrants who have been in the United States on green cards for about a year, went to court to win the right for her to have a late-term abortion in Kansas.

A plea bargain on a lesser charge of criminal sexual conduct against the girl’s brother would mean he could stay in the country. Convictions on felony charges bring automatic deportation.

Macomb County prosecutor Carl Marlinga, who was criticized for saying the teenager had taken part in “youthful sexual experimentation,” said deporting the boy would further traumatize his sister. The criminal sexual conduct charge could carry a two-year sentence.

Marlinga said he charged the teenager with the felony rape count so authorities will be aware of the case if the boy ever gets in trouble again.

The case made headlines when a judge briefly barred the girl’s parents from taking her out of state for an abortion until doctors showed the procedure would be in her best interest. The girl had an abortion when she was about 29 weeks into her pregnancy.