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Senior District Judge Doris James on Tuesday ordered William Coder, 25, of the 1300 block of Union Street, to appear in county court on one count of solicitation of prostitution.
The judge also set Coder's bail at $3,000.
Only one witness offered any detailed testimony at Coder's preliminary hearing Tuesday.
That was city police Officer Jessica Higgins.
Higgins said she was working undercover in the 100 block of South Water Street as part of a prostitution sting the night of Sept. 3.
Around 10:16 that night, a Volkswagen stopped in the middle of South Water and Vine streets, Higgins said, and a man called out to her through the car's passenger window.
Higgins went over to the vehicle and saw Coder inside.
Coder asked Higgins what she was doing, she said.
"I told him I was working," Higgins said. "Then he asked me what kind of work I do."
The officer said she reiterated her statement about working, and Coder then told her he wanted to pay for sex.
According to Higgins, the two agreed Coder would pay her $20 for oral sex and $35 for intercourse.
Once the agreement was reached, Higgins said Coder then told her to get in his car, but she refused.
"I made an excuse that I didn't want to get in because there were (surveillance) cameras in the area," Higgins said.
The officer testified Coder asked her where the two could meet, and Higgins told him to meet her in nearby Farnum Park.
Coder then drove off and was arrested by other city officers working as part of the sting.
Defense attorney Roger Laguna of Harrisburg grilled the officer about exactly who said what during the conversation she had with Coder.
Higgins said she couldn't recall much of the conversation word for word, but she said the nature of the exchange was that Coder wanted to pay her for sex.
Coder professed his innocence to this newspaper a week after his arrest.
He said the incident was a "huge misunderstanding" and that he was "not trying to do anything illegal."
Laguna called no witnesses to testify on Coder's behalf Tuesday and asked that the prostitution charge be thrown out due to lack of evidence.
James rejected the request.
Coder, who is married, told the judge he is currently unemployed.
Prior to his arrest, he had been the GOP's top administrator since August 2008.
Coder resigned from that position the day after his arrest.
He declined to comment on the case after his preliminary hearing Tuesday.
