More than five months after MSU freshman Olivia Pryor died in her dorm room, two men are awaiting a pretrial in Lansing’s 30th Circuit Court for charges connected to the alcohol-related
death.
Two men, Detroit resident Dishon Tyran Ambrose, 19, and Eastepointe, Mich., resident Marquez Dominique Cannon, 17, neither of whom are MSU students, underwent a joint preliminary examination about a week ago in East Lansing’s 54B District Court.
As the case moves over to Lansing, Ambrose faces a felony charge of selling or furnishing to a minor causing death and a felony charge of accessory after the fact criminal sexual conduct in the first degree. Cannon also faces a felony charge of selling or furnishing alcohol to a minor causing death, injury to an incapacitated victim, criminal sexual conduct in the first degree causing physical injury and criminal sexual conduct in the third degree to Pryor’s roommate using force and coercion without personal injury.
Her roommate testified on Aug. 17 in circuit court that she, Ambrose, Cannon and Pryor were drinking in the girls’ dorm room in South Hubbard Hall the night of
March 18.
The four decided to have a shot contest, where they consumed about two bottles of tequila before Pryor’s roommate passed out, the roommate testified.
When she awoke later that night, Pryor was passed out on the floor, the roommate said.
The roommate had to go into the bathroom to throw up, she said, and while Ambrose was in the bathroom with her, Cannon was alone in the dorm room with Pryor.
“When I came back out of the (bathroom), I got really upset because when I looked on the floor, I noticed Olivia didn’t have her pants on and she didn’t have her underwear on,” the roommate testified.
While Pryor lay on the floor unconscious, Cannon was standing fully clothed over her, she said.
After cleaning up vomit and blood, Cannon raped Pryor’s roommate in the shower of their dorm room, she testified.
Then, the roommate and Ambrose had consensual sex on Pryor’s futon, while Pryor remained unconscious on the floor, she said.
After having sex, Ambrose left with Cannon to take out the trash, the roommate
testified.
When the men came back, they covered Pryor up with a blanket and towel, turned her on her stomach and gathered their belongings to drive back to Detroit, she said, adding Pryor was snoring.
But when the roommate tried to wake Pryor up around 8 a.m. on March 19, Pryor was
dead.
As the case moves to Lansing, Cena White, Cannon’s lawyer, said she will try to separate the two men’s cases so they are not in the same
trial.
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
