Pleasant View Man Pleads Guilty to Child Sexual Assault, Second-Degree Assault

Jasper Melton Hurst's first conviction for attempted sexual assault on a child came in Montezuma County in 2010. His second came in Dolores County on March 23, 2026, when the Pleasant View man entered guilty pleas to felony attempted sexual assault on a child and second-degree assault causing serious bodily injury in the 22nd Judicial District Court.

Chief Judge Todd Plewe remanded Hurst into custody immediately after the plea. Sentencing is scheduled for June 15, 2026.

The path to that courtroom took more than three years. Prosecutors first filed charges against Hurst in February 2023, but those charges were later dismissed. A refiling in September 2024 brought an expanded set of counts: sexual assault of a child under 15 by one in a position of trust, pattern-of-abuse allegations, crimes of violence, and habitual sexual-offender enhancements tied to his 2010 Montezuma County conviction. According to the arrest affidavit, the alleged incidents span from roughly 2015-2016 through 2022.

District Attorney Jeremy Reed described the prosecution as requiring sustained effort from law enforcement, child advocacy partners, and his office over multiple years. He also emphasized the survivor's courage in disclosing abuse that persisted for years.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Hurst faces one to six years in the Colorado Department of Corrections, with Chief Judge Plewe set to determine the final sentence in June. The longer-range consequences are more substantial: 20 years of intensive sex-offender supervised probation after any prison term, followed by lifetime registration as a sex offender. Failure to comply with the probation conditions could trigger an additional five to 16 years of incarceration.

In rural Dolores County, prosecuting child sexual abuse requires close coordination across agencies. The Four Corners Child Advocacy Center, which serves both Dolores and Montezuma counties from its Cortez office on North Chestnut Street, works alongside law enforcement and prosecutors to support child victims through investigation and legal proceedings. Colorado law requires more than 40 categories of professionals, including teachers, school counselors, and healthcare workers, to report suspected abuse to the statewide hotline within 24 hours. The multi-year trajectory of this case, from an initial 2023 filing through a 2024 refiling and a 2026 plea, reflects both the difficulty of building such cases in small jurisdictions and the resolve it takes to see them through.

The next court date is the June 15 sentencing before Chief Judge Plewe in Dolores County District Court.

REPORTING CHILD ABUSE AND FINDING SUPPORT

Colorado Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline: 1-844-CO-4-KIDS (1-844-264-5437), available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Mandatory reporters are required under state law to call within 24 hours of suspecting abuse.

Four Corners Child Advocacy Center: 118 North Chestnut, Cortez. Phone: (970) 565-8155. The center serves Dolores and Montezuma counties, providing a child-friendly environment for forensic interviews and connecting families with support services.

Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453. Provides crisis intervention and local resource referrals around the clock.

In an emergency, call 911.