Thompson gets potential fall trial date
A November trial date has been set in the case of a Sabetha resident charged in Jackson County District Court with sexual exploitation of a child, although that date could be moved to December, it was noted on Thursday morning in Jackson County District Court.
Daniel J. Thompson, 25, waived his preliminary hearing and pleaded not guilty to two felony counts of sexual exploitation of a child, reportedly a 16-year-old girl who lives in Jackson County. The charges against Thompson stem from alleged incidents in April, in which he was charged with enticing or coercing the girl to “engage in sexually explicit conduct.”
District Court Judge Micheal Ireland set a three-day trial for Thompson to begin on Tuesday, Nov. 17. Ireland also noted the start of the trial may be put off until Tuesday, Dec. 15 if defense attorney Chris Etzel does not receive all of the “outstanding discovery” — specifically, a cell phone reportedly involved in the incident and currently in possession of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
Jackson County Attorney Shawna Miller said the phone had been submitted to the KBI for a forensic search shortly after Thompson was arrested on May 15 in Sabetha by Jackson County sheriff’s officers. Ireland asked Miller to contact the KBI and “tell the examiners that they may be under subpoena” in regard to expediting the return of the phone.
Ireland told Etzel that in regard to not yet getting the phone back, “that’s KBI’s problem, not Mr. Thompson’s,” and said that the trial could be postponed if the phone had not yet been returned. He also told Etzel to contact the court if an additional status or motion hearing was needed prior to the trial.
The first of the two counts against Thompson alleges that he enticed or coerced the girl to “engage in sexually explicit conduct with the intent to promote a performance” sometime between April 20 and 23. The second count alleges that he then possessed a “visual depiction” of such conduct, allegedly on the phone currently in KBI possession.
Thompson currently remains at the Jackson County Detention Center on $50,000 bond.