SUNSHINE - A 42-year-old Ascension Parish man avoided a rape conviction by pleading guilty to a lesser charge of child molestation.

In 2022, Derrick Lodge was indicted for first-degree rape and two counts of molestation of a juvenile. 

That summer, the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office received a complaint that Lodge was sexually abusing a 12-year-old boy. He was arrested and booked into the Ascension Parish Jail. 

District Attorney Ricky Babin's office said last week that Lodge pleaded guilty to two counts of molestation of a juvenile under the age of 13. 

The plea deal removed the rape charge, which imposes a mandatory life sentence in Louisiana. Instead, Lodge was sentenced to 25 years in prison, with credit for time served, and must register as a sex offender.