Man gets 15-year sentence for sexual abuse

PALMER — A man who took drugs and sexually abused a 14-year-old girl faces five years in prison after a sentencing Monday in Palmer superior court.

Joshua Bryan, 25, was arrested in January 2015 for the crimes. Judge Eric Smith handed down a 15-year sentence with 10 years suspended. Bryan pleaded guilty in September 2015 to one count of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor and one count of fourth-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance.

Documents describing the crimes and testimony at Bryan’s sentencing indicate drugs played a heavy role in the abuse. According to Bryan's attorney, the victim’s parents introduced Bryan to methamphetamine and their drug dealer, allegedly so he could work longer shifts. They also introduced the victim to meth before the abuse began, and consumed the drugs together as a family, according to a sentencing memo filed by defense attorney Hannah Thorssin-Bahri.

Officials couldn't discuss the current custody status of the victim because of confidentiality laws, said prosecutor Brittany Dunlop.

"That's not something that even if I knew, I could tell you," she said.

Neither of the parents has been charged, and Dunlop said a potential drug case against the couple wasn't very strong.

"All we had for evidence was that the victim and the suspect both indicated (the parents) had introduced them to methamphetamine," she said.

Bryan has been in solitary confinement at Goose Creek Correctional since his arrest. He was previously housed in a housing unit formerly known as "K Mod," which prison officials disbanded in late 2015, giving inmates housed there the option of either rejoining the general population or solitary confinement. Bryan chose segregation, Thorssin-Bahri said, meaning his educational opportunities are limited.

Dunlop generally agreed Bryan had taken responsibility for his actions.

“This is the case where the defendant took advantage of a young girl, much, much younger than himself, in a situation that frankly the parents placed her in, that he placed her in, that was pretty egregious,” she said.

Dunlop and Thorssin-Bahri both agreed that the primary focus of the sentencing should be rehabilitation.

Ultimately, crimes like Bryan’s may not be caused by a single factor, Dunlop said.

“It’s really hard to get into the head of somebody who does something like this,” she said. “You can say, well, was it the circumstance where you had this girl who is young but has these parents who aren’t taking the best care of her and providing her with drugs and providing you with drugs, or is it the drugs? Or is it your own mental health issues where you suffer from depression or insecurity or inferiority or whatever it is? Or is it the culmination of all of those things? I think the courtroom isn’t the place where we get to the heart of that matter.”

The victim’s age also mattered, Thorssin-Bahri said.

“Somebody that sexually abuses a 4-year-old, I think that’s much more malignant conduct than somebody that had an inappropriate sexual relationship with a 14-year-old,” she said. “I’m saying this not meaning to minimize the seriousness of the conduct — I know Mr. Bryan doesn’t want to do that — but I think it is different.”

Bryan said he anticipates years of work ahead of him.

“I know I got a long road ahead of me before I can start feeling like a person again,” he said. “All I can ask is that I hope I can get all the treatment I can so that I can become a productive member of society again.”

Contact reporter Brian O’Connor at 352-2270, brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.