BY DARRELL HALEN

A Pelham man will serve 10 months in jail for sexually assaulting a 7-year-old boy nearly 17 years ago.

Michael Cannon, 72, whose last known address is 11 Hillcrest Lane, Pelham, was sentenced in Southern Hillsborough County Superior Court in Nashua on June 6.

He had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor sexual assault charge, alleging that he had fondled the boy in July 1990 during a family pool party.

The charge had been reduced from a felony charge as the result of a plea bargain.

Cannon was given a one-year jail sentence, with 60 days suspended provided he remain on good behavior. He will spend two years on probation.

The victim is now 24.

Last year, Cannon was also indicted for sexually assaulting a girl, who was younger than 13, in the early 1980s and attempting to sexually assault a 13-year-old girl in 1985.

The first charge was dropped, while the second charge was dismissed by a judge, according to court records.