An April trial is set for a Sequim man accused of molesting and raping a child.

Charles Barron, 31, pledged not guilty on March 3, to one count of child molestation in the first degree and five counts of rape of a child in the first degree, with special allegations of an ongoing pattern of abuse to all counts, according to court documents.

Judge Lauren Erickson set a five-day trial in Clallam County Superior Court set to begin on April 17 with Judge Simon Barnhart presiding. A status hearing is set for 9 a.m. March 31.

She also imposed a no contact order for Barron with the child. His bail was originally set at $150,000 on Feb. 21, and later reduced to $75,000.

Chief criminal deputy prosecutor Michele Devlin requested electronic home monitoring as part of a condition of release, should he successfully make bail.

Barron is accused of on at least six occasions allegedly sexually assaulting a child, according to court documents, with these charges carrying life sentences and up to $50,000 in fines per count.

Barron was arrested on Feb. 17 following an investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior since 2019 with a child now almost 10 years old.

According to the probable cause statement from the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were notified of the allegations by a call from Child Protective Services in Sequim.

Information from CPS was that a family friend reported the 9-year-old victim said she was touched inappropriately by Barron and that when she initially told her mother, her mother did not believe her.

An interview with the victim’s mother showed she had become aware of more recent incidents that occurred over the holidays last year.

Sheriff’s investigators asked if the victim’s mother would wear a wire while confronting Barron about the allegations in addition to confronting him in a recorded phone call.

On both occasions, Barron admitted to having inappropriately touched the victim with his hands, mouth and genitals on multiple occasions, some of which while other people were in the home with them, since 2019.

Barron corroborated the information he gave in the conversation with the victim’s mother during an interview with police following his arrest, despite initially denying some of the claims made by both the victim and the victim’s mother, according to court documents.

Barron was appointed a public defender and was last represented by Alex Stalker on March 3 in court.

Reporter Ken Park with the Peninsula Daily News can be reached at kpark@peninsuladailynews.com.