COEUR d'ALENE - A 20-year-old Kingston man was sentenced on Wednesday to up to 25 years in prison for the sexual abuse of a 5-year-old girl.

Reid L. Yergler, however, might not have to serve much of that term.

District Court Judge John Mitchell decided on what's called "retained jurisdiction," giving himself the opportunity to review Yergler's conduct in prison after one year to determine whether Yergler is then an appropriate candidate for probation.

"You'll have a lot of things to prove to me," Mitchell said.

Meantime, "You simply need to be punished," he said.

He told Yergler to get every bit of treatment he can in the next year.

Mitchell said, "You need to come to full grips with the extensive damage you caused."

He said the victim - the daughter of family friends - will never be the same because of Yergler's sexual abuse.

"She broken," the judge said.

Before sentencing, Yergler told the court, "I wish every day I could take it back. It tears me up inside every time I think about it."

He faced the parents and family of the girl and apologized.

His parents also spoke at the sentencing.

They said Yergler is a good kid who made a mistake. They also told the victim's family they are sorry.

Yergler's father, Gary Yergler, a police officer in Kellogg, said, "I know what my son will bear for the rest of his life."

People will always wonder whether his son will re-offend, he said. And his son will always be a registered sex offender.

To the victim's family, through tears, Gary Yergler said, "I am so sorry that I can't do more to ease your suffering."

Reid Yergler also is the nephew of Shoshone County Commissioner Larry Yergler, who attended the sentencing.

Kootenai County deputy prosecutor Josh Studor said Reid Yergler manipulated the victim and abused the trust he had as a friend of her family.

Studor said Yergler is not a "monster," but he added, "He definitely is deeply disturbed."

He described Yergler as a young man who was "lonely" and "unhappy" and "unwanted" by girls his own age.

Studor said Yergler is "profoundly selfish," and used a young girl for emotional support.

Studor is handling the prosecution because of the Shoshone County prosecutor's relationship with Yergler's family.

Defense attorney Suzanna Graham said Yergler was going through a lot in his life shortly before and around the time of the sexual abuse.

She said a grandfather he was very close to died, an older brother was accidentally shot and seriously injured, his mom had a stroke, and two sisters got into a rollover car accident.

"Emotionally, he was out of control," Graham said.

She said he has no prior criminal history and is a low to moderate risk to re-offend.

Part of the sentencing hearing was conducted two weeks earlier when the mother and father of the victim gave victim-impact statements.