Ex-Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy gets 40 years for sexually abusing 4 young girls

A former Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy was sentenced Friday to 40 years in prison for sexually abusing four girls between the ages of 4 and 13, according to the LA County District Attorney's Office. 

Sean Essex, 53, pleaded guilty to three counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14 and one count of lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14. The DA's office said he also admitted to taking advantage of a position of trust in the commission of a crime, an allegation that leads to special sentencing enhancement. 

Essex, a 22-year veteran of the sheriff's department, also admitted in his guilty plea that one victim was "especially vulnerable," a news release from the DA's office states. Prosecutors have not released further details about that circumstance.

The former deputy was convicted of sexually abusing one of the victims in 2006 and then abusing another three girls between 2013 and 2022, when he was arrested in April of that year. At the time, he was assigned to the department's Training Bureau.

In August 2022, he was charged with more than 30 criminal counts including 18 counts of oral sex acts with a child, 12 counts of lewd acts on a child young than 14 years old, two counts of sexual acts with a child young than 14 and one count of possession of child porn. 

If he had been convicted of all charges, he could have faced life in prison, according to prosecutors. 

While Essex was not criminally charged then, the sheriff's department fired him following a criminal and internal investigation in 2018. The department has said his termination was overturned by the Civil Service Commission, which ordered he be reinstated as a deputy and member of LASD. After he was charged with over 30 counts of sex crimes, the department fired him again. 

At the time, sheriff's officials said they were still working to remove his pay.

The dozens of initial charges included the 2006 case, for which prosecutors had previously declined to bring forth charges.

When Essex was accused that year, the DA's office was being led by Steve Cooley, who served as the county's lead prosecutor from 2000 to 2012. An attorney for the family of the other three victims, who he abused years later, told the Los Angeles Times it was "shocking" that the 2006 allegation was not further investigated and did not result in criminal charges.

"It's absolutely shocking to us that the county didn't do more to investigate and bring this terrible perpetrator to justice in 2006," attorney Spencer Lucas told the Times. "He was a dangerous predator, and this whole terrible abuse that these poor little girls went through should have been stopped, and it never should have happened."  

The three victims were sisters and their mother had previously been in a romantic relationship with Essex, the Times reported.

In addition to spending decades behind bars, Essex must pay restitution to the victims and register as a sex offender. The amount he will pay is expected to be determined later by the court. 

"The horrific sexual abuse that Mr. Essex inflicted on these young victims has not only violated his oath as a law enforcement officer to protect and serve the community, but also has left these children with life-long trauma," LA County DA George Gascón said in a news release from his office.