Update, Wednesday:
The arraignment for Laurel Lee at the Kenai Courthouse was continued from Tuesday to Wednesday, according to Courtview.
Original Story:
A Sterling woman accused of sexual abuse of a minor has been arrested and charged with violating the conditions of her release.
Laurel Lee, 52, has been charged with three counts of violating the conditions of release for a felony and one count of disorderly conduct, according to Courtview. She was arrested Monday evening after she failed to show up for mandatory alcohol testing in Kenai, said Sgt. Ben Langham with Kenai the Police Department.
Lee was reported to Kenai Police by the monitoring company she was being required to use, and police used the monitoring system to find her at a residence in Kenai, Langham said. Officers found she had been consuming alcohol when they contacted her, he said.
The charge of disorderly conduct stems from Lee’s interaction with the officers, Langham said.
“While the officers were in contact with her … she was making unreasonably loud noise in a public location,” Langham said, adding that Lee was advised to stop and did not.
Lee was arraigned Tuesday morning at the Kenai Courthouse. She was out of custody awaiting an April trial for a 2014 case in which she is accused of sexually abusing a 14-year-old boy in Sterling. In that case, she is charged with first-degree sexual assault, kidnapping and second-degree sexual abuse of a minor.
The conditions of Lee’s release were updated in February, requiring her to take part in a 24/7 alcohol testing program, in which she was ordered to submit to twice-daily testing in Kenai. Lee was living in Sterling and was restricted from crossing to the north side of the Moose River Bridge, other than to check her mail at the post office once a week.
Violating conditions of release for a felony is a class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $10,000. Disorderly conduct is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.
Lee’s trial call for the 2014 case is set for April 13.
Reach Megan Pacer at megan.pacer@peninsulaclarion.com.
