BOISE -- A Boise man was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 9-year-old boy.
Leroy Mickey, 53, will have to serve at least five years of that sentence before he can become eligible for parole, a judge ruled.
Prosecutors say Mickey, a friend of the child's grandmother, abused the child June 12 at a home in Boise. He pleaded guilty to lewd conduct in November.
The defendant was also charged with three counts of attempted sexual abuse of a child in connection an incident later that month in which prosecutors say he tried to get three boys who he had hired to walk his dog and do odd jobs for him to take their clothes off.
Those counts were dismissed as part of the plea agreement, although the deal stipulated the three boys would be treated as victims - not alleged victims - at the sentencing. Mickey denied the interaction with those children, although he admitted to assaulting the 9-year-old.
Prosecutor John Dinger said the children involved have dealt with anger issues and turned to self-harm in the months since Mickey's arrest.
He argued that Mickey had not taken responsibility for what he had done, pointing out that the defendant had blamed the assault on his use of alcohol.
"The words 'mistake' and 'accident' do not belong in child sexual cases," Dinger said. "Most people drink. They don't all assault children."
He urged the judge to protect the community by sending Mickey to prison for 25 years, the maximum possible punishment for lewd conduct.
But defense attorney Ransom Bailey asked the judge to consider placing Mickey on probation or retaining jurisdiction. Bailey argued that his client was filled with remorse and had "really sort of tortured himself" over what he'd done to the 9-year-old.
A period of retained jurisdiction - also known as a rider - would allow Mickey an opportunity to get treatment for his alcoholism, Bailey said.
Mickey apologized in court, saying he was "very remorseful, very sorry."
But Judge Richard Greenwood said anything less than the 20 year sentence he handed down "would send the wrong message to the community."
In addition to the prison time, Mickey wil be required to register as a sex offender and pay more than $2,000 in restitution.
