Jefferson County prosecutors are awaiting more evidence before re-charging a Port Townsend man under investigation for allegedly molesting a 7-year-old girl at least twice during sleepover playdates in 2013.

“Right now, we're looking at whether there need to be more charges,” said Chris Ashcraft, deputy prosecutor.

Two counts of first-degree child molestation against Joshua David Larson, 40, were dismissed without prejudice March 20 in Jefferson County Superior Court, allowing investigators to continue collecting evidence and refile charges when ready to prosecute.

Larson’s recent appearance in Jefferson County Superior Court came on the heels of his acquittal by a jury on a first-degree child molestation charge in Clallam County Superior Court.

After charges against Larson were dismissed in Jefferson County, he was transferred to Snohomish County on a $500,000 arrest warrant on a separate charge of first-degree child molestation. Larson now awaits trial there.

PT ARREST, SEQUIM CASE

Port Townsend police assisted Sequim police May 23, 2014 in serving a warrant for Larson’s arrest in connection with the Clallam County charge at his Port Townsend home.

Larson works from home, prosecutors said.

Five days later, on May 28, 2014, the parents of a 7-year-old Port Townsend girl reported that their daughter told them Larson had molested her during a sleepover playdate with his 5-year-old son at Larson’s home, according to court documents.

That incident, according to interviews with the girl, occurred with Larson’s son present in the same room.

Investigators learned of a possible second incident during a July 2014 interview with the girl, who said Larson touched her during a sleepover in early 2013.

On March 19, 2015, a Clallam County jury acquitted Larson of allegedly molesting a 9-year-old girl at the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center in May 2014.

That Clallam County incident reportedly occurred as Larson and his son were playing with the girl, who was at the pool for a birthday party and whose parents were watching nearby. The girl reported that Larson, a stranger to her, touched her repeatedly while playing in the pool.

Michelle Devlin, Clallam County deputy prosecutor, said the girl was allowed to appear by closed-circuit television so she would not have to face Larson in the courtroom.

“That’s the first time we’ve done that here in Clallam County,” said Devlin, who called Larson’s acquittal “disheartening.”

“Though the verdict was not a good one, we did what we could to protect the victim,” Devlin said.

Devlin said she was barred from telling the jurors about Larson’s past child molestation acquittal in King County or his pending child molestation cases in Jefferson and Snohomish counties.

Larson was arrested in Bothell in 1998 on a child molestation charge after a 5-year-old girl reported he had abused her, according to court documents. A jury found him not guilty, according to court records.

Upon Larson’s 1998 arrest, another girl reported he had molested her in 1994 when she was 8. Larson had convinced her family she was mistaken and not to call police, according to court documents.

Both of those girls, now adults, have agreed to testify in an upcoming Snohomish County case.

“These cases are really hard to prove and they frequently come down to one person's word against the other's,” said Ashcraft, adding that Larson was released into Snohomish County's custody because it was ready to proceed to trial, which is set to start May 11, although that date could change.

Larson’s next hearing in Snohomish County Superior Court is set for 10:30 a.m., April 9.

SNOHOMISH CASE

Snohomish County began investigating Larson in December 2013 after learning that a 3-year-old girl known to Larson told her parents he had touched her during a Thanksgiving Day family gathering in Stanwood, Washington.

Larson was arrested in connection with the incident March 27, 2014. A Snohomish County District Court judge released him without bail March 28, 2014, due to a lack of evidence, said Laura Twitchell, Snohomish County deputy prosecuting attorney.

Twitchell also said she might file a motion to admit evidence of past child molestation accusations against Larson to show motive or intent. As for allowing the victim to appear by closed-circuit television, Twitchell said she’s unsure whether the Snohomish court would go for that.