The man charged in an alleged beating outside a downtown tavern in late November must remain in Jackson and continue with daily alcohol tests, a judge ruled Monday.

Joshua Anders Rae’s attorney, Robert Horn, filed a motion last week requesting that 9th Circuit Judge Timothy C. Day allow Rae to move to Texas to take a job there and stop daily alcohol testing. Rae has been submitting to alcohol breath tests twice a day at the Teton County Jail since his release from the county lockup Dec. 2 on a $25,000 bond.

Rae is accused of seriously injuring a Wilson man early Nov. 29 after an alleged confrontation inside the Town Square Tavern.

Brent Owen, 25, was found bleeding and unresponsive in the alley behind the tavern. He suffered multiple facial fractures and bleeding on the brain and spent more than two weeks in a drug-induced coma.

Rae was charged Dec. 1 with felony aggravated assault and battery. He has not yet entered a plea to the charge.

Rae is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing before Day at 8:45 a.m. Feb. 11. At that hearing, Day will determine whether there is enough evidence to send the case to the 9th District Court. If the case is bound over, Rae will enter a plea during an arraignment hearing in the district court.

If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in jail and $10,000 in fines.

Horn said Monday that there are two fictions in the case against his client — first that Rae is a danger to the community and second that Rae is an untrustworthy alcoholic.

Horn said public interest in the case runs high and that for the last week he’s heard “nothing except the cry for blood.” He said Rae has been threatened, lost business and had to move from his rental home because of anger about the case.

“He can’t afford to live in this community any longer,” Horn said.

Horn said Rae has faithfully complied with the court’s terms of release, which included getting a substance-abuse evaluation. Horn said the evaluation showed Rae does not meet the criteria for alcohol abuse or dependency.

He said there’s no evidence Rae is a threat to the community.

“What happened in the alley behind the Town Tavern was a duel,” Horn said. “They both participated in mutual combat.”

Owen said in an interview Dec. 29 that he remembers meeting up with friends at the tavern but nothing else.

Prosecutor Steve Weichman said the only thing at issue during Monday’s status hearing was the requirement that Rae submit to alcohol tests.

Weichman said Rae was dishonest during his substance-abuse evaluation about his alcohol consumption the night of Nov. 28. He said Rae told the evaluator he hadn’t been drinking that night.

Horn said Rae did tell the evaluator he’d been drinking — Rae said he had one beer at home before going out.

Jackson police Detective Michelle Weber, whom Weichman called to testify, said one of Rae’s friends told police he’d had a beer with Rae at Rae’s house. But she said another witness said Rae had a least two drinks from a flask containing whiskey and soda.

Day denied Horn’s motion to stop Rae’s alcohol testing and allow him to leave the state. He said that while Rae’s substance-abuse evaluation does not identify alcohol dependency as an issue it does recommend that he abstain from its use.

“There is now better evidence that perhaps there is reason to believe that alcohol played a role in this violent offense,” Day said. “And the evaluation says no alcohol.”

Day said the case is still at an early stage and he would be prepared to hold a preliminary hearing sooner than Feb. 11 if Horn requested it.

“Leaving the state to find employment at this stage is not a persuasive factor,” he said.