Hearing delayed in kidnapping case

A hearing for a man accused of kidnapping and extortion will wait until May 5 while his attorney gathers information about the case.

Robert Christian Pierce, 32, is serving a year in Douglas County Jail as a condition for probation after he pleaded guilty to a count of attempted extortion in connection with an Aug. 25 incident.

Shortly after he was sentenced on April 5, Pierce was served with an arrest warrant in a similar incident that occurred before the one in which he was convicted.

Pierce is now charged with robbery with a deadly weapon and kidnapping in the first degree.

Ence told Justice of the Peace Jim EnEarl that he was named Pierce's attorney on Tuesday and asked the judge to set a hearing date two to three weeks out so the defense could conduct an independent investigation.

Prosecutor Laurie Trotter said the prosecution was ready to proceed and asked that the hearing not be delayed too long.

EnEarl set a May 5 hearing date, pointing out that Ence does have a great deal of discovery to do.

According to the arrest warrant, the victim in the new case claims Pierce and Timothy Young, who was sentenced to prison in the prior case, took him out to Bodie Flats, threatened him with a knife and left him in the desert in his socks and underwear.