A Marshall teen charged with sex-related felonies involving a juvenile appeared for an arraignment hearing recently, where his cause was continued for another hearing scheduled later this week in Saline County.
Online court documents say on Friday, January 12, 18-year-old Anthony Gerst appeared in custody via video for an arraignment hearing at the Saline County Circuit Court, and informed the court he plans to seek counsel of the public defender. Gerst has been charged with three counts of an Unclassified Felony for Statutory Sodomy or Attempted Sodomy-Deviate Sexual Intercourse with a Person Less Than 14 years old and a Class C Felony for Third-Degree Child Molestation with a Child Less Than 14 years old. Bond was set at $150,000 cash only with special conditions.
Online court documents also say Gerst is scheduled to appear for a counsel-status hearing at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, January 17, at the Saline County Circuit Court in Marshall.
According to a probable-cause statement, Gerst’s charges arose after a juvenile victim told Marshall Police officers that Gerst allegedly performed several sexual acts on the victim, which reportedly began in late October 2017. Officers then spoke with Gerst, who reportedly stated he has a history of acting out in a sexual manner and can’t control it at this point in his life.