A man who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a then 15-year-old girl while he was a registered sex offender will not serve any time in prison, a judge ordered Tuesday.

Roland G. "Jerry" Madore Jr., 47, of Preston was sentenced Tuesday by New London Superior Court Judge Hillary B. Strackbein to a fully suspended sentence of 10 years in prison with five years of probation. Madore had pleaded guilty to risk of injury to a minor.

He will be required to be on the sex offender registry for a period of time to be determined by the Department of Public Safety, according to court officials. He has already been on the registry for at least a decade.

Jury selection had begun Aug. 10 for Madore's case. Prosecutors said in court that he had sexual contact with the teen at a home on Brickyard Road in Preston between August and December of 2018.

The victim was concerned about the risks and uncertainty of trial, Senior Assistant State's Attorney Theresa Anne Ferryman, who prosecuted the case, said Tuesday. 

The case came down to the victim's testimony, whose disclosure of the allegations was somewhat delayed, Ferryman said. There was no physical evidence or witnesses to the alleged incidents, she added.

Under the rules of evidence, her prior or inconsistent statements could be used to challenge her testimony, Ferryman said. 

The jury would not hear of Madore's prior sexual assault conviction unless he chose to testify, and even then the conviction could only be used against him if he and his attorney opened certain areas of inquiry during his testimony.

The risks to both sides were significant and ultimately the victim did not want to take the risk of an acquittal, so instead elected the certainty of a felony conviction, Ferryman said.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, Madore was living at the home in 2018 and assaulted the teen on at least four separate occasions while she was sleeping in a bedroom and on a couch in the house.

According to the warrant, police were called to a home in Norwich in April 2019 by the girl's mother, who told a state police trooper that her daughter had been sexually abused the year before. She told police that her daughter said she waited to tell her because she feared retribution if she came forward about the abuse, and that Madore had told the girl he would send her family to jail if she told anyone, according to the affidavit.

Madore has a criminal history that includes a previous conviction and prison stint for a sex-related crime and is a registered sex offender, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. The online Judicial Branch records contain no information about a prior sexual assault conviction.

Madore was represented by criminal defense attorney W. Theodore "Ted" Koch III.

t.hartz@theday.com