A Livingston County judge will hear arguments Thursday in an appeal that could keep a convicted rapist, kidnapper and armed robber behind bars — or set him free.
Floyd Jarvi was sentenced to 25 to 60 years in prison after pleading no contest in 1994 to multiple counts of rape, kidnapping, armed robbery and more. The crimes date to 1993, when Jarvi ran victim Wendy Jo Morrison off the road, kidnapped her at gunpoint and raped her. Morrison was 19 years old at the time and working as a waitress.
Jarvi was first eligible for parole in 2014. When parole was granted in 2022, Morrison fought the ruling. Attorney General Dana Nessel joined her fight, and the decision was reversed. In January of this year, Jarvi was again granted parole, but Nessel secured a stay keeping him in prison while the appeal moved forward. That appeal is now before a judge, with a hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday.
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Morrison said the threat Jarvi made when she escaped him 32 years ago has never left her.
"My last interaction with him, he turned around, I was standing there naked and he had the gun and he said to me 'if I get out, the first thing I'm going to do is kill you and your entire family,'" Morrison said.
Morrison said she does not believe Jarvi has changed.
"I don't believe so, not based on anything he's said over the last 12 years," Morrison said.
In a statement earlier this year, Nessel said, "Mr. Jarvi continues to show a lack of remorse for his heinous crimes. Granting parole in this case completely disregards his refusal to take full accountability, the potential threat to the community, and the substantial harm suffered by the survivor."
Morrison said she views the case as a matter of public safety.
"I believe people deserve to know he could be free and I think it's a public safety issue," Morrison said.
"To me I don't feel safe and I don't think anybody else should," Morrison said.
Morrison said she is grateful for the support she has received heading into Thursday's hearing.
"I'm really grateful to the attorney general's office for helping me to fight this and I'm looking forward to what's going to happen tomorrow," Morrison said.
The Attorney General's Office said it will be in Livingston County to argue the appeal at Thursday's 10 a.m. hearing.
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