SANDPOINT — A preliminary hearing is set for a Sandpoint woman accused of lying under oath in court is set for next month.

Brooke Heather Jensen is free on $5,000 while her perjury case is pending. A hearing to determine if the state has sufficient evidence to justify at trial in 1st District Court is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan 9, 2019.

Jensen, 32, is accused of perjuring her testimony during a shelter care hearing in Bonner County Magistrate Court on March 27. Jensen alleged that her ex-husband had been sexually abusing their daughter, which touched off Idaho Child Protection Act proceedings. Under oath, Jensen testified that their daughters were afraid of her ex-husband, according to court documents.

However, one of the couple’s daughters contradicted that testimony, telling investigators that she was made to leave her father a voicemail in which she claimed that she didn’t want to take part in an upcoming visitation, a probable cause affidavit said. The daughter told authorities that she left the message against her will and was not in fact afraid of her father, court documents indicate.

Jensen’s supporters contend she is being persecuted and that teachers, neighbors and counselors have also reported the abuse of the couple’s children for nearly a half-dozen years. They argue the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare wants the case to go away and has struggled to investigate the claims because the father lives out of state.

Bonner County prosecutors have not shied from charging witnesses who allegedly offer falsified testimony. Two western Bonner County residents were prosecuted for perjury earlier this year, after falsely testifying in a criminal proceeding.

Perjury is a felony punishable by 1-14 years in prison, according to Idaho Code.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.