SANDPOINT — A Sandpoint man accused of having sex with a 15-year-old girl and making sexual advances toward another 15-year-old dodged an extended prison term on Tuesday.

Caleb Daniel Barber was charged with two counts of rape and a count of sexual abuse of a minor. The alleged misconduct dates back to April of last year, according to a criminal complaint.

Barber was ordered to stand trial after one 15-year-old testified that he had sex with her without consent following a party in Oldtown.

Barber, 20, entered into a pretrial settlement agreement which saw the dismissal of one rape count and the sexual abuse count in exchange for a plea to the other rape count.

Barber entered an Alford plea to the offense, which means that he admits no wrongdoing but concedes he could be convicted if his case went before a jury.

Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor Nick Lapire agreed to recommended a 10-year prison term at Barber’s sentencing hearing, court records indicate.

Lapire noted that Barber consistently denied the allegations against him and showed deception during the investigation, according to court documents. Deputy Public Defender Susie Jensen said her client has a job lined up outside the state and recommended a withheld judgment, which could allow Barber to longer have to register as a sex offender once his court-ordered obligations are met.

Barber acknowledged that he is growing up and recently became a father, which he said opened his eyes, court records show.

Judge Barbara Buchanan imposed a two- to five-year term, but adopted the recommendation of an Idaho Department of Correction presentence investigator, who recommended Barber be placed in the retained jurisdiction program. When jurisdiction is retained, a defendant can qualify for probation after serving up to a year in prison.

Barber’s youth and troubled childhood factored into the sentence, court records indicate.

Buchanan, however, declined to consider granting a withheld judgment.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter@KeithDailyBee.