HERMANN — Absent a last-minute continuation, the preliminary hearing is set next week for a man charged with killing one Hermann policeman and seriously wounding another during a confrontation March 12 at a convenience store.

Kenneth Lee Simpson, 35, whose last permanent address was in Warren County outside of Warrenton, faces five felony counts stemming from the death of Hermann Police Det. Sgt. Mason Griffith and the wounding of Hermann patrolman Adam Sullentrup. The two policemen were shot after approaching Simpson, who was named in warrants issued in Franklin and Warren counties, on a Sunday night at Casey’s General Store on Highway 19.

Simpson is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree assault, two counts of armed criminal action and a weapons charge.

The preliminary hearing is set for 1 p.m. Friday, Aug. 4, in the Division 4 first-floor courtroom in the Gasconade County courthouse. The case could be moved to the larger courtroom on the second floor. Franklin County Associate Circuit Judge Matthew Houston has been assigned to preside over the preliminary hearing. He is the third judge to have been named to this case. Gasconade County Associate Circuit Judge Ada Brehe-Krueger conducted Simpson’s arraignment in March, during which he pleaded not guilty.

Through 20th Circuit Public Defender Jeff Schellenbergar, Simpson asked for a new judge. Osage County Associate Circuit Judge Sonya Brandt was named and after only a few days as the jurist of record stepped aside after another motion was filed seeking a change of judge. Houston then was appointed to handle the case through the preliminary hearing.

The Missouri Attorney General’s Office will be prosecuting Simpson, replacing Gasconade County Prosecuting Attorney Mary E. Weston, who requested the state take over the case. At least three members of the Attorney General’s Office are scheduled to take part in the prosecuting, including Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who is listed as co-counsel for lead prosecutor Kelly Snyder.

Sullentrup, who suffered a head wound in the shooting, spent several weeks in intensive care in a St. Louis-area hospital. After that, he has undergone extensive rehabilitation services at a facility in Colorado. At last report by officials in City Hall, Sullentrup is making good progress in his recovery.