An upcoming trial for a Jefferson man will take place next week in another county.

Forty-six-year-old James Hubert Exline will have a jury trial starting May 1st. According to court documents, the location of the trial was supposed to be Mitchell County, but the District Court Judge assigned to the trial, Judge James Drew, ordered last week to move the trial to Cerro Gordo County.

Exline faces a Class A Felony for his second or subsequent offense for second degree sexual abuse and a Class C Felony for third degree sexual abuse. Court documents show that Exline allegedly abused his 12-year-old daughter, Paige Exline, from June 2016 to April 2017. Paige was one of the victims that died in a house fire in Guthrie Center on May 17, 2017.

Greene County Assistant Attorney Thomas Laehn will be sitting second chair and the Deputy Iowa Attorney General Denise Timmins will be the lead prosecutor. Laehn tells Raccoon Valley Radio that he’s helped the AG’s office with preparatory work for the trial.

“There are some arguments that occur before the trial ever takes place regarding the admissibility of evidence. I’ve been assisting with that process (and) helping the Assistant AG formulate arguments as to why certain types of evidence should be allowed in. And all of those things happen behind the scenes before the jury is ever selected.”

Laehn notes that jury selection begins the process on May 1st and he anticipates the trial to last no longer than four days. Raccoon Valley Radio will have daily updates of the trial’s proceedings as they become official.