A preliminary hearing set for Thursday in the felony battery case against Jackson Mahomes has been postponed until Oct. 24 because the judge who was to preside has contracted COVID-19.

Mahomes — social influencer and brother of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — was charged in May with three felony counts of aggravated sexual battery stemming from a Feb. 25 incident where he is alleged to have forcibly kissed a woman in the office of the Overland Park restaurant she owned at the time.

At Thursday’s hearing the prosecution would have outlined its case against Mahomes and the judge would have heard testimony from witnesses.

Mahomes also faces a misdemeanor count of battery in the alleged assault of a waiter at that same restaurant. Mahomes pleaded not guilty to the charges and is free on $100,000 bond.

Aspen Vaughn, the woman whose encounter with Mahomes was captured on security camera, has since closed the restaurant, claiming that her business suffered as a result of all the publicity associated with the case.

Johnson County District Court Judge Thomas Sutherland has presided over all previous court proceedings and hoped to be well enough to have Thursday’s hearing proceed.

But his current bout of COVID-19 was worse than the last one and he couldn’t be sure how he would feel later in the week, he said during Monday’s scheduling conference over Zoom that was attended by Mahomes, as well as his attorney, the prosecuting attorney and court personnel.

Calling it “a harsh reminder that Covid is still a thing,” Sutherland urged others on the Zoom meeting to take precautions. “Get your boosters as soon as you can.”