The Slater man accused of raping a juvenile over a decade ago has had his jury trial pushed back to May.

33-year-old Thomas Lee Gibbs Jr is now scheduled to go on trial the week of May 26, 2027 on a single charge of assaulting a girl less than 12 years old in a Gilliam apartment. According to a probable cause statement, the victim told investigators at a Columbia children’s emergency shelter in April 2024 that her mother would allow different men to abuse her in exchange for drugs. During an investigation by the Pettis/Cooper County Children’s Division, the victim recounted an incident that she says occurred between 2014 and 2016 at the Gilliam apartment she, her younger brother and mother had lived. The victim then accused Gibbs of assaulting her while she was watching cartoons.

Gibbs was scheduled to go on trial this October, but had received a continuance after his previous attorney withdrew from the case. A request for a bond reduction was denied Monday, Sept. 28 in Saline County Circuit Court, meaning that Gibbs will remain behind bars on a $250,000 cash-only bond. Another pre-trial conference is scheduled for the afternoon of April 26.