OTTAWA, Kan. (AP) An eastern Kansas man who pleaded no contest to sexually abusing a child will serve at least 25 years of a life sentence before he qualifies for parole.
The Ottawa Herald reports that 33-year-old Duane Francis Brannan received the maximum term allowed by state law at his sentencing Monday in Franklin County District Court. Four other counts were dropped in exchange for the Ottawa man’s plea last month to a single count.
Brannan’s victim an 8-year-old girl calmly answered questions from a prosecutor before the judge pronounced the sentence. The girl, who was known to Brannan, also read a statement and told Brannan he had made her “very sad.”
The girl was joined in court by family members and about 15 members of the group Bikers Against Child Abuse.
