A Summit County judge sentenced 20-year-old Indiana Blake, of Frisco, to four years to life in prison — an indeterminate sentence — during a hearing Monday, Dec. 12.

Blake pleaded guilty in September to two counts of sexual assault on a child, both Class 4 felonies. Judge Karen A. Romeo designated Blake a “sexually violent predator” while handing down his sentence on those charges at the Summit County Justice Center in Breckenridge.

“For me it really does come down to impact on the victims and community safety,” Romeo said of the factors that weighed into her sentencing decision.

An affidavit in support of an arrest warrant states that a school counselor contacted child protective services this spring in reference to a child sexual assault, after which at least two juveniles told authorities Blake molested them on multiple occasions.

Those incidents occurred at several residences where Blake lived over the years, including in Frisco and areas of unincorporated Summit County, though the exact addresses are redacted in the affidavit. Police arrested Blake on the sexual assault charges at the Summit Church of Christ in Frisco on May 28.

Romeo said during the sentencing hearing that Blake was under the age of 18 during some of the sexual assaults, which date back years, and the girls were even younger. Blake’s actions impacted the girls during their “formative years” and are going to have a “lifetime impact” on them, she said.

The father of one of the victims told the court Monday it is hard to comprehend how scared his daughter must have been during the sexual assaults and the “fear and shame” she endured after.

“This irreversible offense will have a long-lasting effect on our daughter’s and our lives,” he said. “… Not a day goes by without being reminded of the actions of Mr. Blake.”

At the time of his arrest on the sexual assault charges, Blake had been serving parole stemming from a deferred sentence he had received on a felony charge of possessing sexually explicit images of children, Romeo said. He also was arrested on DUI charges in January, which were dropped as part of his plea deal.

Romeo sentenced Blake to the maximum three years in prison on that child pornography charge — to be served concurrent with his indeterminate sentence — despite the prosecution’s recommendation that he receive a consecutive sentence.

The prosecutor, Stephanie Cava, noted that a psychosexual evaluation of Blake determined his risk level to be high and that he has displayed several “cognitive distortions” that suggest he requires more treatment.

“He continues to express that these victims may have had a role in it,” Cava said. “They didn’t.”

Scott Sussman, the defense attorney representing Blake, said that he agreed that a department of corrections sentence was appropriate. Romeo said that a community sentence — such as parole — was off the table, and Blake told the judge that he never expected such a sentence.

“I think it is clear that Mr. Blake is the one who failed,” Sussman said. “I don’t think the system failed.”

While Blake has a long way to go before he can rejoin the community, Sussman said he has “scratched the surface” and argued he should receive a “pro-rehabilitative sentence.”

Blake has taken responsibility “to some degree,” Romeo said, adding that she believes he is “genuinely remorseful.” But, she said, with an indeterminate sentence her job is only to set the “floor” between two and six years minimum.

Blake will not be eligible for release until he begins treatment, which will not be until several years into his sentence, Romeo said. If he is eventually released, Blake will spend 10 years to life on parole, she said. He received 200 days credit for time served.

Prior to the judge issuing the sentence, Blake addressed the court and apologized to the victims and their families, though the parents who were in attendance left the courtroom, as they did not wish to hear him speak.

Describing his actions as “disgusting and selfish,” Blake said he was born just 15 minutes down the road from the courtroom and that he let the whole community down. He said he knows he missed opportunities to do good in the past but that he really wants to work hard with therapy and rehabilitation while in prison.

“What happened was entirely my fault,” he said. “Entirely.”