Ammon man gets two weeks in jail and probation for sexually abusing child
Published at | Updated at
IDAHO FALLS — An Ammon man got a 14-day jail sentence and eight years of probation for sexually abusing a female family member from the time she was 6 until she was 11 years old.
Nicolas Barr Pulliam, 21, was 12 years old when he started abusing the victim.
He pleaded guilty June 30 to a felony charge of injury to a child, amended from a juvenile charge of lewd conduct with a child younger than 16. He was sentenced Monday, Aug. 24, by District Judge Dane Watkins Jr.
Bonneville County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney James A. Murdock said the charge was amended based on evidence in the case, the age of the defendant at the time of the crime and discussions between officials and the family regarding the charges.
The family, working with the prosecuting attorney’s office, decided probation combined with mandatory mental therapy for eight years was an appropriate sentence.
Should Pulliam violate his probation, he will also be subject to 180 days of discretionary jail time.
Pulliam is ordered to have no unsupervised contact with minors, but he does not have to register as a sex offender. This decision, Murdock said, was made based on Pulliam’s psychosexual evaluation. Murdock said if Pulliam had been charged with lewd conduct with a child younger than 16 as a juvenile, he would have been required to remain registered as a sex offender until he reached the age of 21.
Pulliam’s psychosexual evaluation determined he is at moderate risk to reoffend the abusive behavior, but that he could be treated in the community to avoid such a re-offense, Murdock said.
The victim, now 17 years old, told a therapist in the summer of 2014 about Pulliam’s sexual abuse, according to court records. She told the therapist Pulliam had sexually abused her more than once, mostly in California, and that he threatened her with bodily harm when she refused to engage in sexual activities with him. Pulliam admitted to abusing the victim anywhere between 10 to 20 times, according to court documents.
Pulliam attributes his abuse of the victim was a friend sexually abusing him in 5th or 6th grade. Pulliam’s alleged abuser died in 2009, according to court documents.
During the case, Pulliam told investigators he has not sexually abused the victim since he was 16 years old and that he will continue to stay away from her.