Calif. Man Convicted of Sexually Assaulting a Child Released 34 Years Early. Here's Why

Mar. 15, 2025

metal handcuffs — stock image.Photo:Getty Images

Getty Images

A 72-year-oldconvicted sex offenderserving a 45-year prison sentence will soon be a free man, more than three decades ahead of schedule.

On Thursday, Aug. 8, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Scott P. Williams approved the release of Frank Duane Brown under the state of California’s “Compassionate Release” law.

judge’s gavel and scales — stock image.Getty

Getty

The law, also known as AB 960 or recall of sentence, applies to inmates who no longer pose a threat to public safety or are terminally ill, among other criteria.

Though Brown pled guilty to six felony counts of forced lewd and lascivious sexual acts on a child under the age of 14 years old in 2013 and was sentenced to 45 years in prison, his metastatic liver cancer allows California’s “Compassionate Release” law to apply,CBS Newsreported.

“While early release has become increasingly common, it is appalling that this release was even being considered given the offender’s violent crime against a child,” Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said.

prisoner in orange uniform holding metal bars — stock image.Evgeniy Shkolenko/Getty

Evgeniy Shkolenko/Getty

The district attorney added that his office “remains steadfast in opposing the early release of felons to protect victims and ensure public safety.”

Hestrin called it “outrageous” that “a clearly dangerous sexual predator” would be released before his full sentence was complete.

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In a video included in the release, the victim, who remained anonymous, shared her story.

“I lived with this man and he raped me almost every single day,” the woman, referred to only as “Jane Doe” said, in part, in the video.

“Finally after all the pain and trauma that I experienced — I’m like, ‘Oh, it’s over, like they said he’s going to jail.’ So all that pain that I had inside – I worked really, really, really hard to try to get myself in a better place mentally and emotionally, that, I’m forever scarred,” she continued.

Brown served 11 of his 45-year sentence.

According toKESQ, the victim’s relationship to the defendant is not immediately known.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go torainn.org.

source: people.com