The trial for a Centre County man charged with sexually assaulting two 6-year-old girls in 1993 will not start today as scheduled.

Carl D. McWilliams, 53, was charged in August of 2000 with one count of statutory rape, five counts of aggravated indecent assault, six counts of indecent assault and two counts of corruption of minors.

He was also charged with not complying with the terms of Megan's Law, which required him to register with his community as being a "sexually violent predator." McWilliams had to register with Megan's Law because of previous sex crime convictions in 1980 and 1987.

McWilliams' trial was supposed to begin today, but conflicts over the Megan's Law violation charge caused his attorney to call for a continuance.

After being charged in 2000, McWilliams fled from his home in Lemont to Priest Pond, Canada, where he eluded law enforcement for three years. He was captured in March 2003, soon after his case was featured on Unsolved Mysteries. He was then extradited to the United States.

McWilliams was extradited to face the statutory rape and assault charges but not the Megan's Law violation. This is because Megan's Law does not exist in Canada.

Centre County Assistant District Attorney Lance Marshall said the U. S. Supreme Court has ruled that people cannot be extradited from a foreign country to face charges that do not exist in that country.

This caused Marshall to drop the Megan's Law violation charge. McWilliams' trial was then continued because the jury had already been informed of the Megan's Law violation charge, meaning jury members were aware that McWilliams had been convicted of sex crimes in the past. Now that the Megan's Law charge has been dropped, a new jury that is not informed of this charge must be selected, Marshall said.

Jury selection will begin in February. A date for the continued trial has not yet been set.