A man who intentionally drove his truck off Sunset Cliffs with his twin toddlers inside in 2020 was sentenced to 31 years in state prison on Friday.
Robert Brians, 51, pleaded guilty in August to multiple charges, including two counts of attempted murder, two counts of kidnapping, as well as one count each of child abuse, burglary and domestic violence.
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The plea deal came four years after he drove his then 2-year-old daughters off Sunset Cliffs on the morning of June 13, 2020. All three were rescued from the water, injured but alive.
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“Knowing that this day was coming has been haunting us for four years,” the girls’ mother Jenna Brians said following the sentencing. “But it's nice to finally have closure today, not just for myself, but for my daughters most of all, to know that their dad is taking responsibility for the horrific acts that he made that day, the choices that he's made."
Jenna Brians previously testified that she called police that morning after Robert Brians took the children and sent her threatening text messages, including one that read, the “girls are going to Heaven and I’m going to Hell to wait for you.”
“Domestic violence comes in many forms,” Deputy District Attorney Franciesca Balerio said after the hearing. “In this particular case, using children, innocent children, and in this case even worse, your own children, to get back at your spouse is the epitome of evil.”
Police tracked Robert Brians to the Sunset Cliffs area, where they watched the truck speed up before careening over the side of the cliff, a roughly 30-foot drop.
San Diego police Officer Jonathan Wiese used a 100-foot leash for his service dog to rappel down the cliff to save them — a quick response that all sides praised on Friday.
“Without him and that amazing dog leash, today we wouldn't be standing here with a victory,” Jenna Brians said. “So I'm just eternally grateful for life.”
“He already won this case. His two girls are alive. And he lived,” Robert Brians’ public defender Manuel Avitia said during the hearing.
Speaking briefly before the judge, Robert Brians thanked law enforcement as well and said in part, “I love my babies, and I’m sorry.”
The judge approved a 10-year no contact order prohibiting Robert Brians from communicating with Jenna Brians or the girls. She said the twins needed time to heal, noting when they’re older they can make up their own minds about if they choose to have contact with their father.
The judge also asked Jenna Brians how the girls – Aubrey and Hailey – were doing. Now 6 years old and in first grade, she said they were happy, healthy and thriving.
For their family, she said what’s next is moving on.
“Life, living it to the fullest, enjoying every moment watching those girls grow into the beautiful women that they're going to be one day and just being able to watch what they're going to do in life,” Jenna Brians said. “They're going to do something amazing. There is a purpose for them here — an amazing purpose — and I’m thankful that I get to be their mom and I get to be a part of that.”
