On Wednesday, July 9, Louis Armstrong appeared in court in front of County Court Judge Nicholas Catanzarite at the Grand County Judicial Center for a preliminary hearing to decide if there was enough evidence to take the case to trial.

Armstrong is accused of sexually assaulting and imprisoning a woman who was working for him as a cleaner in his trailer in Granby. He was arrested on May 21 and faced charges of felony sexual assault and false imprisonment, a Class 2 misdemeanor.

Previously, the bond was set as a $50,000 cash surety bond by Moffat County Judge James Hesson due to the severity of the accusation and concerns about community safety. This decision was based on information presented in the affidavit.

A special operations lieutenant with the Grand County Sheriff’s Office who responded to the incident took to the witness stand and was questioned by both the defense and prosecution. He answered questions about the victim and her demeanor on the day of Armstrong’s arrest.

The prosecution showed body cam footage of an interview between law enforcement and the victim. The video was around an hour long and showed the victim answering questions about the incident and herself. Her statement was scattered at times and occasionally became emotional while speaking.

She repeated multiple times that Armstrong would command her to “Come take care of daddy,” while working for him, and that she suspected he drugged her because she would pass out after consuming alcoholic beverages he gave her and wake up in different locations. She said she suspected Armstrong would then sexually assault her after passing out because she would wake up in his bed with vaginal or anal injuries.

In the body cam footage, she mentions dialing 911 and “hoping and praying” that operators would send someone.

The arrest warrant wrote that the victim, at the time of contact, was only wearing underwear with no shirt or pants and was covered up by only a few towels and blankets. When police responded to Granby Jones Mobile Home Park on May 21, Armstrong barricaded himself in his trailer, leading to a five-hour neighborhood lock down.

During the court hearing, Armstrong’s attorney, public defender Chris Hamsher, questioned the lack of evidence presented by the prosecution. The prosecution relied mainly on the victim’s testimony, but prosecutor Matt Tjosvold said that other evidence was still being collected and processed at the time.

The defense questioned why no authorities were notified after the victim’s multiple visits to Middle Park Medical Center in the days leading up to the 911 call for injuries she claimed were caused by Armstrong.

In Colorado, survivors of sexual assault between the ages of 18-69, who do not have intellectual or developmental disabilities, can choose to receive medical care or have evidence collected without being required to speak to law enforcement.

Hamsher asked the judge to reconsider bond and asked to set it to $2,000. Catanzarite agreed to lower Armstrong’s bail to $5,000 cash surety, an amount more typical for a case like this.

Catanzarite ruled that the case would continue to trial and mentioned that the evidence threshold is lower at this stage in court proceedings.

Armstrong’s next court date is Aug. 28.