Frontier man charged with distributing child porn appears in court, exam hearing scheduled

HILLSDALE — A Frontier man charged with numerous counts of both possessing and distributing obscene material will appear in the 2B District Court at 2 p.m. March 5 for a preliminary examination hearing.

Michael Allen Clason, 32, was arrested Feb. 11 by the Michigan State Police on three counts of possession of obscene materials, three counts of distributing obscene materials and six counts of using electronic equipment to commit a crime.

Images found in Clason’s possession do not appear to be anyone known to him but rather were taken off the internet, investigators said.

Clason appeared in court Wednesday, Feb. 26, for a probable cause conference where his attorney, Keith Stickley, met with the Hillsdale County Prosecutor’s Office to discuss the case, evidence discovery and any possible resolutions to the case by means of a plea bargain.

At the preliminary examination hearing the Hillsdale County Prosecutor’s Office bears the burden of establishing probable cause that each crime Clason stands accused of was committed and that each crime was committed by him.

If both elements are met, Clason’s case will then be bound over to the 1st Judicial Circuit Court for further hearings.

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Clason is being held on a $400,000 cash bond in the Hillsdale County Jail pending his future court appearances.

— Contact Reporter Corey Murray at cmurray@hillsdale.net or follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @cmurrayHDN.

This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Exam scheduled for Frontier man in child porn case