A Kingsland man, Christopher Broadus, age 53, has been sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison, no parole, after a Burnet County jury convicted him of Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child, according to CBS Austin. The heavy sentence was a result of Texas law, which mandates an automatic life sentence for such a conviction, particularly because Broadus had a prior similar conviction.
The victim, a child, came forward in February 2020, revealing that Broadus, a family friend, had sexually abused her around when she was eight years old. During the trial, it came to light that jurors also learned of the accused's prior conviction from the early 1990s.
"The jury heard compelling testimony from the victim, who told jurors that she had originally hoped to keep this secret forever, because she was afraid no one would believe her due to the close friendship between Broadus and the victim’s family," stated the DA’s office, as per CBS Austin news. The victim’s older sister testified as well, disclosing that she too was victimized by Broadus when she was in high school. The sequence of events sheds a light on a past cloaked in silence, bringing dark truths to bear in the courtroom.
In response to the verdict, District Attorney Sonny McAfee lauded the collective efforts of law enforcement and community partners. McAfee said, “Thanks to the diligence of the Burnet County Sheriff’s Office, Milam County Sheriff’s Office, Scotty’s House in Bryan, and our local Hill Country Children’s Advocacy Center, this Defendant will never again be able to put his hands on another child. Our community is a safer place because of their commitment to this work.”
With Broadus now behind bars for good, the communities involved hope to move forward, knowing that one more predator has been permanently removed from society's streets, bringing a measure of justice and safety to the assaulted and the public alike.
