INDIANA
Daily Reporter
By Noelle Steele
Staff Writer
First Posted: December 03, 2013
GREENFIELD — A former New Palestine youth minister pleaded guilty to sexual misconduct with a minor Tuesday morning after admitting to the court he fondled a young girl at his church.
Steve Harding, 61, was sentenced to two years in Hancock County Community Corrections and one year of probation after accepting a plea agreement in which he pleaded guilty to the Class D felony charge. Harding’s community corrections sentence could include participation in work-release, a program that allows offenders to leave the facility to go to and from their jobs, or home detention.
State law does not require someone convicted of sexual misconduct with a minor to register as a sex offender.
Harding did not address the court in detail about his misconduct but was required to answer a series of yes-or-no questions as part of a plea agreement. When asked if he had touched the girl in a sexual manner, he answered, “Yes.”
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