A 52-year-old Lawrence man Tuesday morning pleaded no contest to one count of sexual exploitation of a child.

Amy McGowan, a chief assistant Douglas County district attorney, said prosecutors had evidence Jerry Dale Kerr had exchanged text messages of a sexual nature with a 13-year-old girl last summer and received and possessed explicit photos of the girl.

“She was a friend of the defendant’s son, and that’s how he came into contact with her,” McGowan said.

Defense attorney J.C. Gilroy said Kerr would undergo a sex offender evaluation before his sentencing. Gilroy said he believed Kerr, who has no significant criminal history, would fall under a “border box” meaning the defense could ask District Judge Peggy Kittel to sentence him to probation.

Kerr faces a maximum 136 months in prison, but if he does fall under a “border box” his prison sentence would be between 31 to 38 months if he’s not granted probation.

Gilroy said prosecutors had not yet decided whether they would argue for probation or prison, but McGowan did say in court she opposed a bond reduction because she believed it best Kerr remain in jail until his sentencing.

In exchange for the plea, prosecutors agreed to drop another exploitation charge and a more serious solicitation charge. Kittel scheduled Kerr’s sentencing for Sept. 28.