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Judge: Justice who presided over Nassar trial to remain

Posted at 2:39 PM, Aug 14, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-14 14:49:18-04

A Michigan chief judge says a colleague who sentenced former sports doctor Larry Nassar to prison for molesting women and girls will remain on the case.

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Ingham County Circuit Judge Richard Garcia ruled Tuesday in defense of Judge Rosemarie Aquilina's status on Nassar's case. Nassar's appellate lawyers, accuse her of bias during a seven-day hearing in January when roughly 150 victims spoke and say he deserves another hearing.

At sentencing , Aquilina said Nassar deserved cruel punishment if the Constitution would allow it .

Garcia says Aquilina's statements "do not constitute impermissible bias." He added that Nassar apparently wants to be resentenced by a judge "who is ambivalent about the suffering of his victims," and that "standard would disqualify any judge with a pulse."

This month, Aquilina said she wouldn't disqualify herself.