KALAMAZOO, MI – When he broke into a woman's Kalamazoo Township apartment in January, Danny Vinson mercilessly beat the woman, placed a shotgun to her head and used the weapon's barrel to carry out a sexual assault, authorities say.



For that, Kalamazoo County Assistant Prosecutor Diane Hungerford said, Vinson deserved to die in prison.

“In my 30 years as an assistant prosecutor ... I have never faced a more atrocious set of facts,” Hungerford told Kalamazoo County Circuit Court Judge J. Richardson Johnson. “... This man deserves, in essence, never, never, ever to get out of prison.”

Following a three-day trial in July, it took a jury only 20 minutes find Vinson, 32, guilty of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, armed robbery, first-degree home invasion, assault with intent to commit great bodily harm less than murder, unlawful imprisonment, felon in possession of a firearm and felony use of a firearm.

Danny Paul Vinson

Johnson told Vinson that the trial was “one of the hardest trials I’ve ever had to sit through” and handed down a sentence that will ensure Vinson stays behind bars until he’s at least 94.

Johnson sentenced Vinson as a fourth-time habitual offender to 35 years to 75 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual conduct, 25 years to 40 years in prison for armed robbery, home invasion and unlawful imprisonment, 15 to 30 years for assault, two to 15 years for felon in possession of a firearm and two years for felony use of a firearm.

Johnson told Vinson he must serve the two years for the weapons offense consecutive to his other sentences. Vinson’s sentences for armed robbery, home invasion, assault, unlawful imprisonment and felon in possession of a firearm will run concurrent with each other but consecutive to his sentence for CSC, meaning Vinson must serve at least 62 years in prison before he is eligible for parole.

“What was done to this victim is almost beyond imagining,” Johnson said. “... By your behavior, you have demonstrated you cannot live in the world, you should live behind walls and you should do that for the longest time possible.”

The case against Vinson stemmed from a Jan. 22 break-in at Big Bend Apartments on Gull Road. Michigan State Police investigators said Vinson and two other men – Curtis Hankton, 21, and LaFunta Summers, 38 – were armed with a shotgun during the break-in, during which the woman was severely beaten, sexually assaulted and kidnapped before she was dropped off at a hospital in Watervliet.

At the time of the incident, police said the break-in stemmed from Vinson seeking revenge on the woman for previous incidents that had led to arrests of Vinson.

Hankton pleaded guilty in the case and was sentenced Aug. 5 by Johnson to serve eight to 20 years in prison for armed robbery.

Meanwhile, Summers pleaded guilty in the case Wednesday to first-degree home invasion. One count of armed robbery is to be dismissed when Summers is sentenced Sept. 16 by Johnson.

Before Johnson handed down Vinson’s sentence on Monday, he got a chance to hear from the victim in the case, as well as Vinson himself.

“I just want to say no one can ever imagine ... the things that Danny did to me, how long it endured,” the woman told Johnson. “He had no right to do it ... I’m ready to move on with my life. Whatever happens to Danny, that’s going to happen because I’m going to put it in God’s hands now.”

When it was his turn to speak on Monday, Vinson said he was sorry for everything that happened to the victim in the case, but denied any responsibility.

“In no way shape or form did I commit these charges I stand before you accused of,” Vinson said. “... I just want to get this behind me so I can start the appeal process.”

Contact Rex Hall Jr. at rhall2@mlive.com. Follow him on Twitter.