A man found guilty of sexually assaulting a 4-year-old had his sentence nearly cut in half after a judge overturned the initial conviction.

Eric Bard, 34, was sentenced to 50 years in prison in 2015 for sexually assaulting the child and recording the acts on his cellphone.

According to CBS 13, the conviction was appealed and overturned after a court ruled that the former Sidney resident was deprived of due process.

Instead of a new trial, Bard and prosecutors agreed to a plea deal and negotiated a sentence of 28 years, more than 20 years less than his initial sentence.

One prosecutor said that the plea deal was made to spare the victim from having to testify in a new trial.