A Sharon man was sentenced Jan. 31 to serve 8 to 24 months for statutory sexual assault of an 8-year-old girl.

Scott Wayne Tatta, 33, of 311 N. Oakland Ave., was sentenced for the second-degree felony by Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael J. Wherry.

Tatta was charged Feb. 27 with rape of a person younger than 13, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and aggravated indecent assault of a person younger than 13, and faced 10 to 20 years in prison.

Hermitage police said he performed oral sex on the child between June and December 2000 in a Hermitage home.

Tatta pleaded guilty Nov. 5 to an amended charge of statutory sexual assault and the other charges were dropped because, according to assistant district attorney Robert Kochems, "it saves the victim the trauma of a trial. He didn't plead to a little crime. He was convicted of a second-degree felony."

Kochems added that "it's a balanced judgment. It's within the guidelines, which were 6 to 14 months plus or minus 6 months."

He also said it's possible Tatta will go on probation after serving 8 months, but that "there's a good chance he'll have to go through sexual offender classes and there's a waiting list." The waiting list means he would have to remain in jail until he could get in a class, Kochems explained.

Tatta failed to show up for his sentencing Jan. 9, and Judge Wherry swore out a bench warrant for his arrest. A call from Tatta's attorney Timothy Blatt of Mercer explaining that his client had been sick, got the warrant vacated and the sentencing rescheduled, said a spokeswoman in Judge Wherry's office.