Ryan Todd Nelson
A Topaz Ranch Estates man accused of lewdness with a child entered a guilty plea on Wednesday afternoon.
Ryan Todd Nelson, 40, pleaded guilty to one charge of attempted sexual assault that dealt with both of the children involved. The charge carries a potential for up to 2-20 years in prison.
Prosecutor Chelsea Mazza said the parties are free to argue for any lawful sentence at Nelson’s Feb. 24, 2025, sentencing.
The agreement filed in Douglas County District Court indicated that Nelson was entering the plea as part of a legal fiction and that Nelson understood the state had evidence that both victims were under the age of 14.
Nelson has been in custody since his July 12, 2023, arrest. He was scheduled for a weeklong trial starting on Jan. 6, 2025, but that was vacated as a result of the plea.
In order to received probation, Nelson must undergo a psychosexual evaluation and be found not to be a high risk to reoffend. Under the plea, he will have to register as a sex offender. Nelson is also facing a charge of battery by a prisoner.
A preliminary hearing scheduled for Friday on that case was canceled. He is scheduled to appear in East Fork Justice Court on Feb. 14, 2025, according to jail records.
