The second trial for a Pottawattamie County man charged in the sexual abuse of a teenager, has been delayed again. The Daily NonPareil reports trial for 47-year old John Osborn, of Council Bluffs, was put off, pending an appeal by the Iowa Attorney General’s Office.

In May, Fourth District Court Judge Richard Davidson granted Osborn a new sexual abuse trial. After a March bench trial, Davidson had found Osborn guilty of four counts of third-degree sexual abuse in connection to alleged sexual conduct with a 14-year-old girl last summer. Defense attorney Jordan Glaser filed a motion for a new trial or judgment of acquittal, citing new evidence. Davidson granted the motion for a new trial.

The attorney general’s office filed an appeal of that decision shortly thereafter, arguing that the original verdict should stand. The second trial had been scheduled to start on Aug. 4, but Fourth District Court Judge James Heckerman issued a stay of the trial pending the appeal. The attorney general’s office explained that its attorneys would file a legal brief in the coming days, with the defense then allowed 30 days to file a rebuttal.

The Iowa Supreme Court will review the case and either decide to hear it or send it to the Iowa Court of Appeals. Either way, the appeal will be heard in a Des Moines courtroom. Once a decision has been made, the matter will return to Pottawattamie County court. If the appeal is denied, a new trial will begin. If the court rules in favor of the state, the case would go to sentencing, pending a possible appeal by the defense.