MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – A Marquette man will spend at least seven years in prison for sexual violence against two people, including a 14-year-old girl.
Dalton Riley Duquette, 27, was sentenced to a minimum of seven years, 11 months in prison Tuesday. He could potentially face up to 15 years. The Marquette County Prosecutor’s Office says he will not be eligible for parole until he has served the minimum sentence.
Duquette was convicted of two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the third degree against two victims.
The charges stem from incidents in May of 2020. In the first case, the MCPO says Duquette pleaded no contest to committing acts of sexual penetration against a 14-year-old girl, over whom the prosecutor’s office says he was in a position of authority at the time. While out on bond, Duquette committed another act of CSC in the third degree– based on coercion or force– against an adult female acquaintance. He also pleaded no contest to that charge.
According to Marquette County Prosecuting Attorney Jenna Nelson, had the case gone to trial, the evidence in these cases included Duquette’s admission to sexually molesting a 14-year-old girl he was in a position of authority over and entrusted to protect and DNA evidence that established Duquette sexually assaulted the female acquaintance after he denied the assault.
Duquette will be required to register as a sex offender on Michigan’s public registry for the rest of his life.
“I am proud of the work of my office in taking these types of cases seriously, working closely with survivors of sexual assault, and seeking justice,” Nelson said in a statement. “In both of these cases, Duquette took advantage of Victims who were in vulnerable positions. He will now spend years paying the penalty for violating their dignity. I commend the Survivors in these cases for persevering throughout the pendency of the court process, standing up for themselves, and fighting to ensure that Duquette was held accountable for what he did to them.”
