ELIZABETHTOWN — A Cadyville man was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Monday for sexually abusing children.

The Essex County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday that Logan M. LaFountain, 26, was sentenced in Essex County Court to a 30 year determinate sentence with the New York state Department of Corrections and community supervision. A determinate sentence is a sentence that has a definite length. It cannot come under review or be changed by a parole board or other entity empowered to shorten prison sentences. Following that sentence, he will be under a post-release supervision period of 40 years.

LaFountain was convicted of sexual abuse felonies against three children. Personal details about the victims have been kept private. However, the DA’s office said that they are all female and between the ages of 5 and 12.

“These cases are difficult to handle and we never want to traumatize any victim by having them testify in court if we can avoid that, especially when they are vulnerable children,” DA Kristy Sprague said in a statement. “A case was built that avoided these children from reliving a nightmare, while making sure that this predator will never harm another child again.”

LaFountain was charged by way of a Superior Court Information. An SCI is a document that is as powerful as a grand jury indictment — it is a written accusation in which a district attorney charges somebody with at least two offenses. Any New Yorker charged with a felony has the right to have their case heard by a grand jury. An SCI is something that the defendant must consent to, thereby waiving their right to a grand jury indictment.

In New York, every person who is charged with a felony must be prosecuted by an indictment, which is a document that lists criminal charges that a grand jury returns after it hears testimony. The document also decides if enough evidence has been presented to charge the accused with a crime. An SCI, on the other hand, is prepared by the District Attorney’s office with the consent of the defendant. A grand jury does not have a say in the charges presented in an SCI.

“(Assistant District Attorney Carrie Daly) along with the New York State Police investigators, Senior Investigator Trever Giroux and Investigator Kyle Kowalowski, did a fantastic job investigating this case, which allowed ADA Daly to negotiate a plea that spared these young victims from having to testify and living the trauma all over again,” said Sprague.

LaFountain, after being charged by an SCI, entered a guilty plea on Aug. 21 to two counts of sexual abuse in the first degree, which are class D violent felony offenses, and one count of criminal sexual act in the first degree, which is a Class B violent felony offense. His plea agreement included the imposition of consecutive determinate prison sentences for a total of 30 years followed by a post-release supervision period of 40 years. The sentence was imposed on Monday.

Other plea agreement requirements include orders of protection for the three victims, a crime victim assistance fee, a DNA sample, sex offender registration and a supplemental offender victim’s fee.

LaFountain was represented by the Essex County Public Defender. The case was prosecuted by Daly.

“The real heroes here are the little girls who were brave enough to say something and helped us do our job to keep them and other children safe,” said Daly. “They were truly courageous and I hope this allows them the opportunity to heal.”

State Police charged LaFountain with sex abuse in the first degree with a victim under the age of 13 on Nov. 28, 2022. Troopers had started an investigation two days prior, on Nov. 26, for a sex offense case involving LaFountain. At the time of his arrest, State Police alleged that he was having sexual contact with a child under the age of 13. It is not clear which victim came forward to State Police first.

He was arrested and transported to State Police headquarters in Lewis for processing, then held at the Essex County Jail to await arraignment. Investigators said in a Dec. 1, 2022 press release that they believed LaFountain had additional victims and asked anybody with information to contact State Police. It is not clear if the other two victims came forward following this call from State Police. State Police did not respond to a request for more information by deadline Thursday.

Daly said Thursday that no additional victims in Essex County have been named to date.

The March/April 2014 issue of “The Volunteer Firefighter,” an official publication of the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York, listed a Logan LaFountain as a member of the Cadyville Volunteer Fire Department starting around 2014. The last post on the department’s Facebook page featuring LaFountain was in January 2021. Reached by phone Thursday, a representative of the Cadyville Volunteer Fire Department declined to comment on LaFountain and then hung up.