A plea bargain offer is on the table for a 55-year-old Lyndora man accused of forcing a woman to have sex with a 12-year-old boy.

The proposal would send Chester H. Thompson to prison for 15 to 30 years.

Assistant District Attorney Ben Simon advised Butler County Judge Timothy McCune of the offer at a status conference Tuesday.

“At this point,” Simon told the judge, “I think this is as far as I'm willing to go with an offer. But I'm not completely closing the door to a counterproposal.”

It was the first offer from prosecutors in the case.

Thompson is charged with solicitation to commit the crimes of rape of a child and statutory sexual assault; photographing or videotaping a child engaged in sexual acts; and disseminating and possessing child pornography, all felonies.

He also is charged with three misdemeanors — corruption of minors, child endangerment and simple assault. He is free on $50,00 unsecured bail.

Thompson's attorney, public defender Charles Nedz, said he would discuss the proposal with his client in the “next couple weeks.”

This is an excerpt from an article in Wednesday's print edition of The Butler Eagle