Former CPS worker will spend no more than a year in jail with sex assault plea deal

ST JOHNS — A former Child Protective Services worker accused of sexually assaulting a teenager will spend no longer than a year in jail with a plea deal. 

Daniel Hulings, 34, of Bath Township, pleaded no contest to two counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct Friday in Clinton County Circuit Court. 

Prosecutors made the offer after consulting with the victim, Assistant Clinton County Prosecutor Sarah Huyser said. The victim was not associated with Huling's work with CPS. The State Journal generally does not identify victims of sexual assault.

Jennifer Kuiper-Weise, Hulings' attorney, did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

The victim said she'd had sexual contact with Hulings multiple times for more than a year, beginning the week after her 16th birthday. She said Hulings always initiated the contact, according to the police report.

The first time, Hulings approached her and asked if she wanted to watch a movie with him, she told a forensic interviewer at the Shiawassee County Child Advocacy Center. They watched the movie in Huling's bed. 

They cuddled, and when she felt his penis touch her, she moved away, she told the interviewer. Hulings then put his hand down her underwear and touched her genitals. 

She told the investigator she remembered the date so clearly because it was when she lost her virginity, according to the report.

Hulings was suspended from his job as a CPS investigator after the charges were filed,  Bob Wheaton, a spokesman for the state Department of Health and Human Services, said. As of July 11, he was no longer employed by the agency. 

Hulings initially was charged with seven counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct in Clinton County. 

He's set to be sentenced Nov. 5 in Clinton County. 

Contact Kara Berg at 517-377-1113 or kberg@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @karaberg95.