A Catholic priest accused of taking indecent liberties with a child in Douglas and Nemaha counties is negotiating plea bargains in both jurisdictions, his attorney said Wednesday.

The Rev. Dennis Schmitz appeared Wednesday afternoon in Douglas County District Court. It was his first appearance since he was charged earlier this month.

Judge Pro Tem Peggy Kittel set a preliminary hearing at 2 p.m. July 17. But Schmitz’s attorney, Steve Mirakian of Kansas City, Mo., said he hoped to have a plea bargain worked out by then. He declined to discuss details of the negotiations.

“Everyone is simply investigating, and we’ll see if we can reach agreement,” Mirakian said.

Schmitz, 41, lived in Lawrence in the mid-1990s and recruited college-age men for the priesthood. He also started a group of basketball-playing priests who called themselves the Runnin’ Revs. They played against youth teams at schools in the archdiocese.

Schmitz made no comments either during court or afterward to reporters.

Schmitz now lives in Marysville. He is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing Monday in Nemaha County. Mirakian said he didn’t know whether a plea bargain would be announced at that time.

Schmitz is accused in Nemaha County of fondling a 15-year-old boy between Jan. 1 and Aug. 1, 1999, at the S&S Ranch, of which he is a co-owner.

The Douglas County charge states that Schmitz is accused of fondling a child of 14 or 15 years of age between June 1998 and May 1, 1999. No other details have been released, and the District Attorney’s Office has declined to make additional comments.

Authorities have said in the past that the cases involve the same alleged victim.

Schmitz is free on $15,000 bond on the Douglas County charge. He is free on $50,000 bond in Nemaha County.

Accompanying Schmitz and Mirakian in Douglas County Court was the Rev. Gary Applegate, a canon attorney assigned to the case by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. Applegate of Leavenworth will assist with the case, Mirakian said.