A local man accused of offering individuals an opportunity to perform sex acts with young girls has accepted a plea deal in the case.
Nicholas Duane Hickman, 39, Columbus, has agreed to plead guilty in Bartholomew Circuit Court to one count of child exploitation as a Level 4 felony, court documents state.
His sentencing hearing before Judge Kelly Benjamin is set for 11:15 a.m. Thursday, March 12.
In exchange for the guilty plea, the Bartholomew County Prosecutor’s office agreed to drop three Level 6 felony charges including sexual battery, strangulation, and domestic battery. A misdemeanor charge of distribution of an intimate image is also to be dismissed as part of the plea deal.
Hickman was accused of using the Grindr dating cellphone application to offer individuals an opportunity to perform sex acts with young girls last year, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Besides photos and sexually-explicit messages, Hickman’s cellphone also had a photo of a girl appearing to be between 2 and 4 years old, along with an invitation to engage in sexual activity with that child, the affidavit states.
The offense dates are listed in court documents as July 1, 2019 and Aug 22, 2019, according to court documents. Hickman was arrested Aug. 29.
After spending over two months in jail, Hickman asked Judge Kelly Benjamin during a Nov. 4 hearing to lower his $500,000 surety or $50,000 cash bond. Benjamin denied the request, saying a bond reduction would reduce the seriousness of the charges.
Neither the defense or prosecution are offering sentencing recommendations, and are asking Benjamin to use her own discretion to determine the appropriate punishment. The judge has the option of rejecting the plea bargain terms.
In Indiana, the normal or presumptive sentencing for a Level 4 felony is six years in prison. However, aggravating circumstances could increase the incarceration to 12 years, while mitigating circumstances could reduce the sentence to two years. In addition to the prison term, Benjamin could order Hickman to pay up to a $10,000 fine.
Hickman is asking to be admitted into a relatively new jail addictions treatment program called “Recovery Enables a Life for Men.” Better known as REALM, participants are housed in a separate area away from the general jail population. While the area is secure and housed in the same building as the jail, REALM is part of Bartholomew County Community Corrections — not the jail.
A confidential pre-sentence report has been ordered to be completed by the court. The report contains contextual, historical and personal information about a defendant that assists the judge in determining an appropriate sentence.
