A former Littleton youth soccer club coach and chair president pleaded guilty to third-degree assault in Arapahoe County District Court on Monday, according to court records.
James William Bain, 74, was charged with five counts of sexual assault on a child as part of a pattern of abuse in September 2022. Bain was a coach at Colorado United/Littleton Soccer Club for more than 30 years before he stepped down in June 2022, according to previous reporting.
Bain pleaded guilty to two lesser counts of third-degree assault, both misdemeanors, in a plea agreement with the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. The sex assault charges were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.
Bain was sentenced to 18 months probation in court Monday.
In a statement, District Attorney John Kellner said several witnesses were unavailable during the scheduled trial dates and the judge denied their request to reschedule.
“There are cases where we believe a tougher sentence is appropriate – like this one – but we are confronted with making a difficult decision based on what we can prove in court,” Kellner said in a statement. “Given these difficult circumstances, a plea deal was the only way to guarantee a conviction.”
An attorney for Bain could not immediately be reached for comment.
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Originally Published: June 13, 2024 at 2:16 p.m.
