Marseilles man charged with sex assault

A rural Marseilles man could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted of sexually assaulting a girl younger than 13.

Andrew D. Haines, 39, was arrested Thursday on a La Salle County warrant charging him with five felonies led by four counts of predatory criminal sexual assault, a Class X felony carrying an extended range of six to 60 years in prison, with no possibility of probation. He also is charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse, a Class 2 felony carrying up to seven years.

Haines would, if convicted of multiple counts, serve the resulting prison terms back-to-back for what could amount to a life sentence.

Court records updated Thursday allege multiple offenses committed in October 2019 and again in a 30-day span from late August to late September of this year. All counts involve the same victim, identified only by her initials.

He was expected to appear for a detention hearing Monday in La Salle County Circuit Court before Chief Judge H. Chris Ryan Jr. Illinois abolished cash bail in September and attorneys now must argue for pre-trial detention or release in an open-court hearing. He is being held in La Salle County Jail.