COEUR d’ALENE — The alleged victim of a Hauser contractor told a court Thursday that the man, 44-year-old Joshua LaRue, forced her to have oral sex.

After almost an hour of testimony in Coeur d’Alene’s First District Magistrate Court, Judge James Stow determined there was enough evidence to order LaRue to face four felony charges of lewd conduct with a minor under 16 years old.

The felonies could carry a sentence of up to life in prison.

The alleged victim, a 16-year-old who now lives out of state but who resided in Hauser in 2017 when the crimes allegedly happened, told the court that on at least four occassions beginning when she was 13 years old, LaRue forced her to have sex.

She was an eighth-grader attending school at the time, she said.

LaRue originally was charged with three counts of lewd conduct. Another charge was added after Thursday’s hearing.

LaRue, president of JL Construction and JL Steel Construction, both in Hauser, was arrested on a felony warrant Sept. 5 and had his first court appearance that same day in Coeur d’Alene. Bail was set at $75,000. He posted it, and a Coeur d’Alene judge issued a no-contact order prohibiting LaRue from contacting the victim or others involved in the case.

Prosecutors at his first hearing asked for $250,000 bail because they said LaRue was a predator who should remain behind bars as a public-safety measure. Records show he failed to appear several times for court.

Defense attorneys argued that LaRue has lived in the area for several years, has family in the area and owns a respected construction company.

During the hourlong hearing devoted almost entirely to questioning the teenage witness, defense attorneys on several occasions objected to what they feared was the prosecution leading the witness to give certain answers. The lawyers asked the court to not allow the fourth charge against their client.

Stow, however, said there was enough evidence to demonstrate there was probable cause a crime had occurred.

An arraignment, at which LaRue will enter his plea to the charges, has not been scheduled. The case has been assigned to District Judge Richard Christensen.

According to court records, investigators conducted many interviews with the victim and others for more than two months before bringing charges against LaRue.