Brevard County man sentenced to 16 years in prison 5 years after child sex battery charges filed

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Brevard County man charged with sexual battery of a child in 2016 is back in jail.

Nathan Struttmann was sentenced to 16 years in prison after accepting a plea deal.

His accuser, who’s now an adult, spoke to Channel 9 about the healing she feels can finally begin now that Struttmann is back behind bars.

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Struttman was arrested in 2016 on multiple counts of sexual battery on a child, but was walking free within six months, thanks to pre-trial release and continual court delays.

“My daughter’s life and my life has been almost at a standstill,” said Ashley Lescure, the mother of Struttmann’s victim, Madison Dooley.

Lescure became Dooley’s voice, speaking out to Channel 9 in 2018 about how the court’s hold-up affected her child, despite Florida law meant to speed up the cases of young victims of sex crimes.

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Facing up to 45 years behind bars, Struttmann rejected deal after deal. He finally relented more than five years later, accepting a 16-year sentence.

“Friday night was the first refreshing night’s sleep that I have had in several years, knowing that he was in jail where he belonged,” Lescure said.

Dooley, now 20 years old, was more than ready to tell the court what the process stole from her. She was forced to repeatedly testify at each hearing, never knowing if she’d run into her accuser who still lived in her area.

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“I started and graduated high school in this time frame and that’s a lot of memories and milestones — driving, turning 18 — that were kind of just like, dampened,” Dooley said.

Channel 9 caught up with Dooley and her mom 48 hours after sentencing.

“My entire motivation was just her strength, and I have never met and will never meet anybody ever again as powerful and motivating as my daughter,” Lescure said.

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The mother-daughter pair said they aren’t finished fighting for speedier trials for child victims.

“To not have to live their entire adolescence with reliving this trauma and this pain when they’ve already been brave enough to come forward against their abusers,” Lescure said.

After completing his sentence, Struttmann must register as a sex offender and will spend the next 14 years on probation.