Brevard County—Douglas Louis Ryan, 34, was sentenced to natural life in the custody of the Department of Corrections for the crime of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation (Victim Under 12, Offender Over 18). The sentence was handed down in the Circuit Court of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit in Brevard County, Florida, by the Honorable Charles G. Crawford on April 30, 2025.
Ryan was also found guilty of a second count, Lewd or Lascivious Conduct (Victim Under 16 YOA) , and received a sentence of fifteen (15) years of imprisonment, to run concurrently with the life sentence. The court adjudicated Ryan as a prison releasee reoffender and determined him to be a Sex Predator.
Ryan’s arrest followed an investigation initiated on September 27, 2023, after the Department of Children and Families (DCF) notified the Melbourne Police Department of a lewd or lascivious incident that occurred the day before, September 26, 2023.
The victim, a fifth-grade student at Sabal Palm Elementary School provided a sworn, recorded statement detailing the incident. She volunteered to help Ryan move boxes between trailers when he allegedly pinned her down, kissed her, and inserted his tongue into her mouth.
She stated that Ryan pushed her onto an air mattress on the floor , positioned his body on top of hers while he continued to kiss her. When she tried to resist, he held her down by pinning her wrists and forced her mouth open with his. J.W. reported that Ryan touched her “private part” (vagina area) on top of her clothes and reached his hands under her shirt and training bra to touch her breasts.
When asked why he was doing this, she stated that Ryan claimed, “I haven’t had sex or made out with anyone in nine (9) months because of prison”. Ryan only stopped when she told him that they were at the trailer for too long and that someone would be coming soon to check on them. The next day, she told her teacher at school, leading to the investigation.
During his initial sworn interview with Melbourne Police officers, Ryan denied the allegations , stating he only “tickled her on her sides and… gave her a kiss on the forehead. That’s all I did”. He did, however, ask if he was going to be arrested and disclosed that he had recently “got out” of jail a couple weeks ago. He also advised officers that he was a sexual offender and was living in a tent in the wood lot near the Budget Inn in Cocoa. He also stated that his goal was to get out of the woods and “get” to Palm Beach County. Furthermore, the investigation noted that Ryan was not registered to live at the address where the incident occurred. Although he had been staying in the area and helping the family move boxes, the affidavit later noted that on September 29, 2023, Ryan had registered a sexual offender address with the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office.
A computer search of Ryan’s criminal history revealed a prior conviction in 2010 for Lewd or Lascivious Battery (victim 12-16 years of age) , for which he was placed on 10 years of Sex Offender Probation.
Ryan was arrested on December 17, 2022, and released from the Brevard County jail on September 17, 2023. The new offense occurred approximately nine (9) days after his release.
Ryan was represented by attorney Renee Torpy. He was granted credit for a total of 560 days served in time incarcerated before the imposition of the sentence.
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