Marion man pleads guilty to aggravated sexual battery of a child

Both the prosecutor and the judge thought the sentence for a Marion man accused of raping a 5-year-old girl was “woefully inadequate” for the crime he was accused of committing. To avoid further traumatizing the child, however, they accepted a plea agreement that called for 29-year-old Jonathan Lee Tuggle to spend a year in jail. Initially charging Tuggle with the rape and aggravated sexual battery of his niece, prosecutors dropped the rape charge against him in exchange for Tuggle’s guilty plea to the lesser charge. Tuggle was sentence on Tuesday to 20 years with 19 suspended on that charge. At the hearing, Commonwealth’s Attorney Phillip “Bucky” Blevins called the case “troublesome” and made it known he believed the sentence did not fit the gravity of the crime Tuggle was accused of committing. “The punishment called for is woefully inadequate, but at the request of the mother, to not revictimize and to preserve the victim’s innocence—or what’s left of it—we do accept this plea,” Blevins told the court. Likewise, Judge Deanis Simmons said she found the sentence concerning, but said she understood that the agreement was made at the mother’s request. Simmons made note that, “I, too, find it inadequate.” In a statement following the hearing, Blevins said “Protecting children is the cornerstone of my office’s mission.” He noted that childhood trauma experts caution against compelling child victims to testify as doing so can exacerbate trauma and cause regression. According to court documents, Tuggle and his defense attorney fought against allowing the child to testify by way of a closed-circuit television. A circuit court judge, however, ruled against those efforts. To avoid having the child relive the trauma, Blevins said his office opted for the plea agreement. “After careful consideration and prayer, we made the decision to pursue justice in a manner that holds the defendant accountable while protecting the best interest of the child,” he said. The case was handled by Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Mark Haugh. In his statement, Blevins noted that prior to coming to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, Haugh spent two decades advocating for children as a guardian ad litem and is a trauma certified prosecutor. Tuggle, who had no prior criminal record, is additionally required to register as a Tier 3 sex offender for remainder of his life. He is also prohibited from having contact with his victim and from being within 100 feet of any school or daycare facility. Upon his release, Tuggle will spend three years on active supervised probation.