Hearing Scheduled For Daycare Operator Accused Of Child Sexual Abuse
INDIO (CBS) — A preliminary hearing for a daycare operator accused of sexually abusing a young girl was rescheduled Wednesday to Aug. 17.
Jose Manuel Mercado, 38, of Palm Springs, faces three counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and one count of lewd acts with a child under 14 -- all felonies -- for crimes that allegedly occurred between December 2003 and December 2004.
Mercado and his wife ran a daycare center in their unit at the Tahquitz Court Apartments at 2890 Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs police Officer Rhonda Long said.
Officials have not said if the child was in Mercado's care when the alleged abuse occurred. Mercado was arrested last October and is in custody in lieu of $1 million bail.
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