REDWOOD FALLS — A court trial was held this week for a Marshall man charged with insurance fraud.

A judge heard testimony Tuesday in Redwood Falls in the case of Kenneth James DeBaere, and then set deadlines for attorneys to file written briefs in the case.

DeBaere was charged with two counts of insurance fraud and one count of forgery, in a criminal case that was filed in Lyon County in 2023.

A criminal complaint alleged that in 2020, DeBaere backdated and forged a new commercial insurance policy application for a client. The client was involved in a work-related accident connected to a house explosion near Marshall in August 2020, the complaint alleged. The complaint alleged that the client’s liability policy was canceled in February 2020.

In 2020, state investigators reported that the explosion, which killed two residents of the house, was caused by a gas leak from a damaged LP line. The report said there had been a new septic system installed at the house the week of the explosion, and the gas leak was likely from a pipe hit during the septic work.

Earlier this year, jury trial dates for DeBaere’s case were canceled, and a court trial with a judge was scheduled for Nov. 4 instead. Court records said a trial was held with District Court Judge Patrick Rohland on Tuesday, and included testimony from DeBaere, as well as other witnesses.

Court records said both the prosecution and the defense in the case were given time to submit written briefs in the case. The prosecution was given until Nov. 21 to submit a brief, and the defense was given until Dec. 5. Prosecutors would then have until Dec. 12 to submit a response, court records said.

Rohland will take the case under consideration on Dec. 12, court records said.