State child labor charges against former owners and managers of a Postville meatpacking plant won’t be dimissed, but they also won’t be heard in court until next year.

The case, which had been scheduled to start next month, was delayed after Judge Nathan Callahan received requests from both prosecutors and defendants. A new date has not been set, but the groups are scheduled to come back before the judge on Jan. 6, 2010 for a status hearing.

Agriprocessors TowerIn September 2008, the Iowa Attorney General’s Office charged several persons affiliated with the Agriprocessors plant — the site of a massive immigration raid in May 2008 — with more than 9,000 counts of child labor law violations. Named in the state charges were A. Aaron Rubashkin (company founder and owner), Sholom Rubashkin (day-to-day chief executive officer), Elizabeth Billmeyer (director of human resources), Laura Althouse (human resources worker) and Karina Freund (human resources employee).

Nearly all of those facing these state charges have also been charged and/or faced federal immigration-related charges.