Judge sentences SLO County man to 100 years to life for crimes against children
A Santa Margarita man convicted of eight counts of felony child sex abuse has been sentenced to 100 years to life in prison.
Judge Jacquelyn H. Duffy sentenced Michael Anthony Brians, 61, to the hefty term for multiple incidents of felony child sex abuse over 24 years, according to a news release from the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office. Brians was convicted by a jury in October.
Investigators and victims testified that Brians committed sex crimes against children between 1992 and 2016, according to the release.
Other witnesses testified that Brians sexually abused two other children in 1988, when he was 23 years old, according to the release. The statute of limitations expired, meaning those crimes could not be tried in this case, but testimony from these victims was permitted as prior instances of sexual abuse under the California law, the release said.
The three survivors read victim impact statements during Monday’s sentencing hearing.
“I saw you testify bravely, strongly, courageously. … You became a strong advocate, a strong successful person and loving parent. …You are remarkable person, and you matter,” said Judge Duffy after hearing a victim impact statement from Jane Doe #1, according to the release.
District Attorney Dan Dow said that crimes against children should be strongly punished. He said the life-in-prison sentence punishes Brians but also sends a strong message to other child sex abusers, according to the release.
“We sincerely applaud the courage of the survivors who testified and the tenacity of the law enforcement personnel who gathered and reviewed all of the evidence,” said Chief Deputy District Attorney Lisa Muscari, who supervises the District Attorney’s Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Prosecution Unit, according to the release. “These verdicts send a clear message that we will prosecute child sexual predators to the maximum extent of the law.”
