By Ted Hayes

Westport Select Board member Manuel J. Soares, who faces a host of trespassing, assault and other charges brought by police in Dartmouth, is expected in court this week as a jury trial nears.

Soares, 63, is due for a trial status hearing in New Bedford District Court on Wednesday, Oct. 29. According to court documents, prosecutors are expected to present an estimated six witnesses while Soares presents three in his defense. The trial is expected to take two days, but a trial date was not listed in pre-trial paperwork.

Meanwhile, Soares remains incarcerated at the Ash Street Jail in New Bedford, where he has been held since mid-August after being arrested at Westport Town Hall on a charge of violating a protective order that has been in place since April.

After that arrest,

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