The former executive director of Bike SLO County could serve up to a year in jail after pleading no contest to one count of lewd act upon a child.
The plea was entered May 14 by Richard Ellison, 69, and followed an April 2 preliminary hearing where San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow says sufficient evidence was presented “to believe that the defendant committed the offense charged.”
According to Dow, the girl was 7-years-old at the time of the March 30, 2025 offense, which reportedly occurred at Ellison’s Arroyo Grande home. The no contest plea means the girl will not have to testify at trial.
“Conduct like what happened here is often a first step of desensitization or grooming which leads to much more grave sexual abuse in future acts. This plea to a 'strike' offense under California’s Three Strikes Law will hold Mr. Ellison accountable without the necessity of inflicting further trauma on the child by a trial which would have required her to testify and be cross examined in Court. I am pleased that the defendant took legal accountability for his actions after having previously expressed his remorse in a letter to the victim’s family less than 3 weeks after committing the offense,” Dow said in a statement.
He adds that the DA’s Office assessed the case and found it justified a three-year grant of supervised felony sex offender probation and up to one year in the county jail.
A judge will ultimately decide the terms of Ellison’s probation or jail time. Sentencing is set for July 28.
A protective order was previously issued in the case, which prohibited Ellison from any contact with the victim and ordered that he not have unsupervised contact with any children while he remains out of custody.
