Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed 36 criminal child abuse charges on Monday against four adoptive parents from DeWitt, according to The Detroit News.

The charges involve eight of the 30 children under the care of the accused since 2007, with Nessel alleging the couples illicitly collected over $1 million tax-free through the adoption subsidy program.

The individuals facing charges are Joel Brown, a former child advocate for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, facing five criminal charges, his wife Tammy Brown facing three, Jerry Flore facing 11, and Tamal Flore facing 17.

The Michigan Attorney General clarified that the charges encompassed incidents not time-barred by the six-year statute of limitations on abuse charges.

"The state believes that the Browns and Flores conspired together to adopt dozens of children who were removed from previously abusive biological homes and subjected them to prolonged, routine, and systemic mental and physical abuse under the guise of discipline and all for personal financial gain," Nessel stated.

Each defendant faces at least one count of first-degree child abuse, carrying a penalty of up to life in prison.

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Michigan Adoptive Parents' Previous Charges

The Browns and Flores had previously faced abuse allegations in Clinton County, M Live noted.

In the prior proceedings, charges against Tammy Brown and Joel Brown were dismissed, while charges against Tamal Flore and Jerry Flore were reduced.

The Michigan Attorney General's office joined the investigation, leading to the reopening of the case and subsequent charges against all four defendants.

As a result, any outstanding charges against them were dropped.

Arrest warrants have been issued, and the defendants have until Friday to voluntarily surrender.

Nessel accused Joel Brown of using his state experience to conceal ongoing child abuse in his home and that of the Flores, asserting that the children were coached and the investigation compromised.

Meanwhile, Defense attorneys, such as David Carter representing the Flores, criticized the renewed charges, calling it a "witch hunt," while Mary Chartier, Joel Brown's attorney, maintained that the previous case was dismissed due to a lack of evidence.

"We believe the same result will occur this time around," Chartier stated. "We won in court once, and we're confident that we'll do so again."

Michigan Adoptive Parents Took in Dozens of Children Since 2007

During a news conference, Nessel revealed that since 2007, nearly 30 children had been placed in the care of the Flores and Browns, Lansing State Journal noted.

As of Monday, the alleged victims, the minor children subject to the charges, are no longer in the Brown and Flores homes, according to Nessel.

She urged the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to review the arrangement to ensure the safety of all children.

The charges specified in the arrest warrants relate to eight children under the couples' care, with other potential victims beyond the statute of limitations.

Nessel highlighted the challenge of child victims reporting abuse promptly and expressed her intent to work with lawmakers to extend reporting time frames.

"I have every confidence that moving forward, we're going to be able to utilize this case as awful and terrible and tragic as it is, but hopefully, the good that will come of it is that we'll be able to make some of these significant changes in the law to better protect children," the Michigan Attorney General concluded.

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Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: Dozens of charges in alleged DeWitt child abuse case - From WLNS 6 News