A Jim Thorpe man will spend a minimum of nine years in a state correctional institution after previously admitting to sexually assaulting a young boy and young girl.

On Thursday Judge Steven R. Serfass sentenced Jared T. Weiss, 22, to serve nine to 18 years on charges of criminal attempt — rape of a child, aggravated indecent assault of a person less than 13 and indecent assault of a person less than 13.

Serfass told Weiss, “By your actions you have impacted the victims for the rest of their lives.”

Serfass also said he was concerned that the fact pattern in the case indicates that Weiss would “reoffend.” He added, “My responsibility as a judge is to protect the public” as he imposed the sentence.

Jim Thorpe police charged that Weiss sexually assaulted a then 8-year-old boy in a residence in the borough on two separate occasions. Police also charged he sexually assaulted a then 4-year-old girl at a residence in the borough. The incidents involving the boy occurred in February 2011 and the assault on the girl in January 2016.

In the incident involving the girl, police said the girl told her mother, “Chubby was bad.” She subsequently told her mother that while baby-sitting her, Weiss tried to make her perform oral sex on him and exposed himself to her. The girl said he stopped after she resisted. Weiss initially denied the charge, but police said he admitted it. He told police that this happened one other time.

In the incident involving the young boy, police said the boy told his stepfather that Weiss had unlawful contact with him at the house he lived in between February 2011 and June 2012. In November 2016, the boy was interviewed at the Children’s Advocacy Center in Scranton. He told the interviewer that Weiss threatened to harm his siblings and hit him in the back of the head about five years ago. After being hit, the boy complied with Weiss’ order to dance without clothing and Weiss touched him inappropriately.

Sometime after the first interview the boy told his mother about a second incident. In January, he was interviewed again and said that about a week after the first incident, Weiss again threatened violence to his siblings and hit him in the stomach several times. He then coerced the child into two sexual acts, police said.

As Assistant District Attorney Seth Miller read the criminal complaint at the guilty plea hearing, Weiss said the incidents with the boy did not occur in a bedroom in the home, but in the kitchen area. Questioned by Serfass if the sexual assaults as described by Miller were accurate, Weiss said they were.

Attorney Jennifer Lynn Rapa, of the public defender’s office, said her client was a person described as “goofy” and “immature.” She said he also quit school just five weeks before graduating and admitted using marijuana at times.

She said she hopes that Weiss takes advantage of what is available to him in the state system to address his problems.

The mother and grandmother of one of the victims asked Serfass to impose the maximum prison term available, stating, “He took my child’s childhood away from him. He’ll never get it back.”

Serfass imposed a 72- to 144-month term on the rape of a child charge and 36 to 72 months on the aggravated assault charge, running the terms consecutively, and 9 to 48 months on the indecent assault count, running concurrently with the others.

Weiss was also ordered to submit to a sexual offenders evaluation, have no contact with the victims or their families, have no unsupervised contact with minors, supply a DNA sample and pay court costs of about $1,000.

The charges fall under Megan’s Law. Weiss must register for the rest of his life as a sexual offender.

Weiss, who has been in prison since his arrest, was given credit for 379 days served to date.