Kerry Mallard, a former Lexington, Tn., radio sports announcer, who was charged with a sex crime involving a preschool aged child, was sentenced to 40 years in prison by Judge Roy W. Morgan in Circuit Court of Henderson, Friday.

Judge Morgan issued the 40 year sentence to be served at 100 percent on the count of continuous sexual assault.

According to the Lexington Progress, there was also a sentencing of 12 years at 85 percent on each of the 22 counts for aggravated sexual battery.

Due to a case in Tennessee jurisprudence, Mallard’s sentencing was merged into the first count, for a total effective sentence of 40 years.

In October 2019, Mallard was arrested on multiple acts of sexual abuse of a child, according to warrant information.

Mallard had been the voice of Lexington High School sports for multiple years.

The warrant alleges that the child, who was preschool aged, told authorities that over a period of a almost a year that Mallard had the child touch his penis.

The child whose identity, sex and age is protected said that Mallard would show the child his private parts, “where he pees at.”

The child told investigators that the abuse happened almost every day over an eighth month period of time.

Mallard allegedly told the child not to tell anyone that it “was a secret.”

According to the investigation Mallard admitted to investigators from the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office that he did allow the child to “touch his unclothed penis, one time in 2019.”

The abuse reportedly happened at a home in Wildersville when no one else was in the home.

The child had reportedly been babysat in that home since the child was an infant.

Mallard was booked into the Henderson County Jail on a count of Continuing Sexual Abuse of A Minor.

He was released in lieu of $75,000 bond.

(PHOTO: Kerry Mallard)