Homer District Court Judge Margaret Murphy on July 21 continued a preliminary hearing for Stephen R. Boyle, 43, a Homer man charged with six counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor.

Boyle is the deputy fire chief for Kachemak Emergency Services. Boyle was released on bail last month and remains on administrative leave with his Kenai Peninsula Borough job. Because he has not yet been indicted by a grand jury, a preliminary hearing was required.

Boyle’s lawyer, Andy Pevehouse, waived court rules requiring an indictment and a speedy trial. Pevehouse said he was waiting for information from the Homer Police.

Boyle’s next hearing is 3:30 p.m. Aug. 22.

In a press release, Homer Police said on May 31 they received a complaint from woman in her 20s that over a period of six years and when she was between the ages of 9 and 15 she had been sexually assaulted by Boyle. The woman now lives in Florida, but grew up in Homer.

Homer Police Chief Mark Robl said the woman contacted a county sheriff in Florida and that office contacted Homer Police.

According to a criminal complaint by Sgt. Lary Kuhns, the woman claimed that from about 1997 to 2003 and on six occasions she was sexually assaulted at Boyle’s home and other locations. To protect the woman’s privacy, the Homer News is not providing details regarding her exact age or her relationship to Boyle.