Jeremy Van Eck, 35, of rural Waterloo, is expected to stand trial in late May on multiple charges related to alleged sexual assault and abuse of a family member under 18. 

Van Eck was charged in October 2019 with 11 felony counts in connection with alleged incidents that occured within multiple time frames, the earliest beginning in 2012, the latest in summer 2019. 

Van Eck faces four Class X felony charges of alleged predatory criminal sexual assault (victim under 13), six Class 2 felony charges of alleged aggravated criminal sexual abuse (victim a family member under 18) and a Class 1 felony charge of alleged criminal sexual assault. 

During a pre-trial conference last Wednesday at the Monroe County Courthouse, Judge Gene Gross, special prosecutor Jennifer Mudge and defense attorney Arthur Morris scheduled the trial to begin at 9 a.m. May 23. In court, Mudge said she does not expect the trial to last more than four days. 

The court granted Van Eck’s former defense attorney Clay St. Clair’s motion to leave to withdraw from October. Morris, who is a public defender, was thereafter appointed to serve as Van Eck’s counsel. 

Mudge is prosecuting the case as Monroe County State’s Attorney Lucas Liefer said he had a conflict of interest. Court records show Liefer had been listed as Van Eck’s defense attorney prior to being elected as state’s attorney. 

Gross was assigned to the case after Judge Dennis Doyle recused himself in June 2020 and after the defendant filed a motion to substitute Judge Julia Gomric in August 2020, court records indicate. 

Van Eck, who has entered not guilty pleas to all counts, has posted bond on the charges, meaning he is currently not in jail. 

If convicted, Van Eck will face between six and 60 years on each Class X felony count, charging information states. In Illinois, convictions for Class 1 felony counts carry a sentence of four to 15 years in prison and three to seven years on Class 2 felony counts. 

A final pre-trial conference is scheduled for Friday, May 6 at 1 p.m.