William "Bill" Atkinson, Saline County Detention Center mugshot
SALINE CO., Ill. - A well-known Harrisburg man's preliminary hearing on sex assault charges has been moved to next week.
Bill Atkinson, 67, was originally set for a January 5 hearing on his multiple sex assault counts, which were filed in late December.
Atkinson, who is well-known because of his brother Chelsea Atkinson's activities in the Saline County political realm, was arrested and jailed on December 23; however, he was able to post bond on the 28th.
He was originally set for a hearing on January 5; however, on Jan. 3, he advised the court that he'd hired heavy-hitter, Morgan Scroggins of Granite City, to represent him, and Scroggins had filed a plethora of paperwork that will by nature slow things down a bit.
As such, on the 3rd, the hearing set for the 5th was continued to Jan. 12.
On that day, Atkinson - accused of multiple incidents of sexual conduct with an 11-year-old girl who has a diagnosed mental challenge or deficiency of an unspecified sort, this according to court documents - is set for a preliminary hearing.
The likelihood with Scroggins at the helm, however, is that the prelim will be waived and Atkinson will proceed to arraignment within a couple of weeks.
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