A 43-year-old Brown County man will serve less than a year in jail after pleading guilty last month to battering a child.

James Melton pleaded guilty to battery on a person less than 14 years of age and maintaining a common nuisance — controlled substances, both Level 6 felonies, on June 22. The guilty plea was part of a plea deal that resulted in two Level 4 felony sexual misconduct with a minor charges being dismissed.

Prosecutor Ted Adams had to request a special prosecutor in this case after he was present during witness preparation days prior to a jury trial last August and the victim disclosed new allegations involving Melton.

After disclosing the additional information from the victim to Melton’s defense attorneys, the defense named Adams as a witness, which caused a conflict of interest.

Prior to the conflict, Adams had planned to take the case before a jury, he said in an email last month.

Monroe County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Rosenberry was appointed as the special prosecutor.

After meeting with the victim and her family to discuss available options along with the circumstances and facts in the case, Rosenberry said the prosecution offered to resolve the case with a guilty plea.

“Our most important goal was to protect and to minimize the impact on the victim,” he said.

“Based on that review, and the consultation with the victim, we then offered to resolve the case with a guilty plea to battery on a child, a Level 6 felony.”

An investigation began after a report was made to the Department of Child Services that Melton had sexually assaulted a teenage girl in November 2017.

Indiana State Police Detective Stacy Brown served a search warrant on Melton’s Salt Creek Road home in January 2018.

The teen reported two assaults initially.

Melton told police he had never had any sexual contact with the teen; he said he was being set up and that she had been “coached.” He refused to take a polygraph test, the report said.

Danielle Melton, 34, also lived at the Salt Creek Road home.

Det. Brown served a search warrant at the Meltons’ home, looking for sex toys the teen had described. He reported finding a zippered pouch in a dresser drawer belonging to Danielle Melton, and inside was a glass pipe with burnt residue.

When Brown discovered that the item in the pouch was a pipe, a new search warrant was requested and granted to look for drugs in the home that day, the report said.

During that search of the home, police reported finding drug paraphernalia and methamphetamine.

Both were charged with maintaining a common nuisance — controlled substances, a Level 6 felony; possession of methamphetamine, a Level 6 felony; and possession of paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor.

She pleaded guilty to maintaining a common nuisance that was reduced to a Class A misdemeanor as part of a plea deal. The remaining counts against her were dismissed.

Danielle Melton was sentenced to serve a year in jail with two days executed. She later violated probation and was sentenced to serve 10 days of her remaining sentence in jail with 90 days of home detention after she was released from jail.

James Melton was sentenced to serve 545 days on each felony. Both sentences were to be served concurrently with 180 days actually served on both and the remaining days suspended. Melton also received credit for 36 days actually served.

He will also serve a year on probation, including having no contact with the victim. His conviction will also be entered as a Class A misdemeanor when he completes probation successfully. He was sentenced to pay $286 fine and total court costs.