Retired Ball State prof reaches plea in molestation case
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) - A retired Ball State University professor accused of molesting a boy has agreed to plead guilty to a lesser charge in the case.
Eighty-one-year-old Melvin Lee Sharpe agreed last week to plead guilty to a felony count of battery resulting in bodily injury.
A Delaware County judge set an April 5 hearing to decide whether she'll accept the plea. If she does, Sharpe will be sentenced at that time.
He was accused of sexually assaulting a boy over a five-year period starting when the child was 7.
The Star Press reports that Sharpe was a journalism professor who retired from Ball State in 2007 and specialized in public relations.
His attorney, Kelly Bryan, declined to comment Tuesday on the pending case.
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Information from: The Star Press, http://www.thestarpress.com