A pair of hearings for the business partner of a Zumba dance instructor charged with running a prostitution business in Kennebunk will determine whether his case goes to trial next week.

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) _ Mark Strong Sr.'s defense lawyer will join prosecutors Friday for a settlement conference. A separate hearing will focus on a request by Strong's attorney to withdraw from the case.

The 57-year-old Strong, an insurance agent from Thomaston, is scheduled to go on trial Tuesday on 59 misdemeanor charges of conspiring with Zumba instructor Alexis Wright to run a prostitution business.

Both hearings were being held in Superior Court in Portland. Assistant District Attorney Justina McGettigan declined to comment on a possible plea deal.