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Ketchikan Superior Court Judge Trevor Stephens continued the sentencing hearing for Brian Todd Ervin on Tuesday after another person came forward and accused the former Juneau police officer of sexually abusing him.
With Ervin on the stand, District Attorney David Brower asked him if he ever abused his half-brother.
“Did you ever sexually abuse him?” Brower asked.
“No, I did not,” Ervin responded.
“Would it surprise you to learn that he said you did?” Brower asked.
“It would surprise me,” Ervin replied.
Ervin, 39, was charged in the fall of 2010 with three counts of sexual abuse of a minor for abusing a girl who is now 18. Those charges were dismissed in a plea deal reached with prosecutors. He pleaded no contest in August to one count of attempted interference with official proceedings. That charge stemmed from trying to contact the victim as the criminal matter was pending in court.
Outside the courtroom, Erik Ervin, 33, of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, told the Empire he was very young when the abuse began in the early 1980s, and that Brian, then a teenager, would stay over at the house on the weekends and for one summer. Another relative was also allegedly abused, Erik said.
“I knew it happened. I knew it was wrong. The details got more and more vivid the older I got,” he said. He also said Ervin couldn’t look him in the eye during the hearing.
Erik said he flew to Juneau to support Ervin’s accuser in court. He just learned of the charges against Ervin last week.
“He doesn’t need to be around kids. Period. There needs to be some sort of sex crime charge ... whether that means he’s locked up forever or he’s got some kind of strict guidelines when he does get out. He needs more than just a year or two to think about it.”
The Empire does not publish the names of victims of sexual abuse unless they give their consent, which Erik Ervin did.
Brian Ervin on Tuesday denied the allegations against him while under oath. He has denied the allegations ever since charges were brought.
“Your honor, I’m not a perfect man. I have made mistakes both as a father and as a son, but I have not sexually abused, touched or in any way been sexually inappropriate with any of my children or any child,” Ervin told the judge.
“The charges against me have been dismissed, as they should have been because I did not commit them. I’m innocent of those charges.”
Ervin gave the testimony to protest factual allegations contained in a pre-sentencing report (PSR) authored by a probation officer. Ervin’s defense attorney Julie Willoughby argued the report should be struck down because it was biased and because the report erroneously assumes there is a victim in this case.
Stephens disagreed, and denied Willoughby’s request to dismiss the PSR. He said that a probation officer is entitled to his or her own opinion, and the girl can be considered a victim in this case. He noted the PSR was a “legitimate factor” in deciding the sentence.
Since there was a testimonial denial in this case by Ervin, prosecutors bear the burden of proving the evidence of the crime is true. So prosecutors called the victim, who asked to be called “SAM,” to the stand to testify.
SAM testified she was abused “in the hundreds” of times beginning at age 10 and had never told anyone until her family moved to Juneau. On a Juneau beach, SAM said she admitted the abuse to a close friend.
The friend’s sister overheard a later phone conversation between the two, in which SAM worried she might be pregnant, and the concerned sister reported it to authorities.
When asked why she never told any one what was going on, SAM said, “I knew what would happen, and apparently everything that I thought would happen, happened. ... That I would lose everything, I knew my mother wouldn’t believe me.”
When a criminal investigation into the matter began, SAM said she was scared and nervous to admit to an adult about what had happened, but she said, “At the same time, I knew this was my one time, my one time to speak up, to try to make it stop. And you know, if I didn’t speak up, then anything that happened from that day on would pretty much be my fault. This was my one chance.”
Stephens scheduled the sentencing hearing to continue on Feb. 10. He said he could reject portions of the plea agreement that was reached in August.
“What’s happened today is that evidence was presented that I had not anticipated would be presented and is indication that there’s going to be additional testimony,” Stephens said. “Not only did I not anticipate it would be presented, but I just did not have any idea that it was out there. I want the parties to understand still that the possibility remains that the court could reject those two portions of the sentencing agreement: the time to serve and the probation condition restriction.”
The current plea agreement reached says there would be no conditions of probation prohibiting Ervin from contacting minors and that there would be no sex offense designation violation, meaning he would not be required to register as a sex offender.
• Contact reporter Emily Russo Miller at 523-2263 or at emily.miller@juneauempire.com, or Klas Stolpe at 523-2268 or at klas.stolpe@juneauempire.com.
Comments (24)
Add commentWow!
And this guy was a cop? Anybody else like this hiding out at the JPD?
Snagger, there are people
Snagger, there are people like this hiding everywhere - in our neighborhoods, schools, churches, youth sports programs, medical facilities, in our own families. You name it, they are there. 25 percent of young females will be sexually abused or assaulted by age 18, and the statistics for young men is not much less, but under-reported so its hard to say. It is epidemic, and we are not doing enough to protect our children.
A life sentence for this man would not be long enough.
Not surprised...
I don't believe that JPD as a hole is helping to hide this poor excuse of a former officer. If everyone was playing close attention to the case from start to current they should have noticed that fellow JPD officers were more than happy to carry out this investigation against him. They don't like it just as much as we do and if anything he's also dealing with another form of punishment because of the since of brotherhood that exists within law enforcement.
I really hope the case goes retro and does some more investigation to stick a sexual crime on this former office because statistically kids don't lie about stuff like this and the fact that more than one person is saying he did something to them makes it highly suspect. He had a higher expectation placed on him when he became a member of the law enforcement and it is for that reason that they should go just as hard if not harder on him.
Most Sexual Predators are Master Manipulators
I am so thankful a prior victim of this sex offender (he deserves the title) had the courage to also come forward and support the victim and tell his story of being victimized by Brian Todd Ervin. This young lady has had NO support from her family until now. Thankfully, she had advocates and good friends that believed her when she finally had the courage to say something. I’m sure thoughts of her younger siblings came to mind and the fear of not wanting the same thing to happen to them.
These are not things a child should have to worry about like “When asked why she never told any one what was going on, SAM said, “I knew what would happen, and apparently everything that I thought would happen, happened. ... That I would lose everything, I knew my mother wouldn’t believe me.”
This young lady wasn’t just victimized by the perpetrator but also by her own mother. May this woman have the courage to see the truth and beg her daughter’s forgiveness and now stand by her daughter’s side and help her to heal and give her daughter back her family, especially her siblings.
Young lady you are so brave, so courageous, and what you did will save others and give them the courage to speak up. You made the ultimate sacrifice for yourself and your siblings. You had to give up so much and go through so much to get to where you are today. I want you to know that to some people in this community you are a hero and our hearts are very much with you.
A Big Hug From akmammabear
How many more are out there?
If Brian Ervin did this to his own family, how many more are out there? Being a police officer, how easy would it have been to target young teens who are out doing things that they wouldn't want their parents to know and how easy it would have been for this man to make a deal with them in return for their parents never finding out. This is a sick man and I have to agree with risktaker that because Brian was a police officer he should be held to a higher standard and be prosecuted to the fullest extent.
this is sad..
between this article and the "I am SAM" article... to be honest, i would never, ever have imagined that this could happen in Juneau, AK.
Radio
Hearing the guys court testimony on the radio he sounds like he didn't do it. Having the original charges dropped supports his claim. Why did they drop the charges?
Can happen anywhere
No town or community is immune from this. Sexual abuse can occur in any profession, religion, and socioeconomics plays no role. There is no stereotype for a sex offender and that's why they're so hard to spot.
If you believe this is a rare
If you believe this is a rare occurance in our community, see how many names there are on the registered sex offender list. It's a lot, big towns and small.
Kudos to the Empire!
I want to express my gratitude to the Empire staff for running the article titled "I Am SAM."
While I have often been critical of the Empire, it was nice to see their willingness and bravery to run an article of that magnitude.
It shows me they were as outraged as we all felt when our inept lead prosecutor showed cowardice in pleading this out so low that Brian Todd Ervin wasn't even going to have contact restrictions placed on him.
It's a slap in the face to the victim "SAM", the investigators, the social workers, and the folks that put Mr. Brower in his position.
Hopefully Mr. Brower is able to show that he had the smoking gun all along and will share with the public the line of thinking. After all, we are the ones paying his salary.
I was also elated that the honorable Judge Stephens from Ketchikan said:
“What’s happened today is that evidence was presented that I had not anticipated would be presented and is indication that there’s going to be additional testimony,” Stephens said. “Not only did I not anticipate it would be presented, but I just did not have any idea that it was out there. I want the parties to understand still that the possibility remains that the court could reject those two portions of the sentencing agreement: the time to serve and the probation condition restriction.”
The key being he can reject the sentence and the probation conditions...
YES!!!
That judge is my hero!!!!
Retrospect
It's a shame the new allegations didn't come to light before the deal was pled to.
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Thank you, Empire!
I, also, commend the editors for running the "I am SAM" article and for opening up the comment forum on this article. Though I understand the CYOA dilemma that exists in publishing, this is a hot topic in the community when a closed door deal is made with no explanation from the District Attourney's office. Court proceedings are supposed to be public record. It is the citizens' right to know what is being unleashed on the public by the court.
Defender
The main reason I am willing to listen to your point of view that you are someone who has represented victims of sexual abuse.
Newspapers are allowed to endorse candidates, I certainly respect their decision to endorse "SAM."
Clearly Emily and Klas deserve to share their opinions after doing their own investigation. Can you imagine the feelings of helplessness they felt? Along with many of us after the plea deal?
While I respect your opinion, the fact is he pled out to a ridiculous charge. Had he not been guilty, he would have not pled out to anything. Perpetrators always will tell you they pled out to avoid additional harm to their families...
The reality is they plead out to avoid a lengthy sentence.
I'm glad you feel sorrow for him. We will find out in short order that his wife will have a change of heart and feel sorry for the way she has been treating "SAM."
The only honorable thing left for Mr. Ervin to do is come clean and stop making his wife choose him over his daughter.
Hopefully he will accept responsibility for his actions so he can get the treatment he so desperately needs.
@defender
This man had his day in court before the Empire released their coverage of the case. My contention, as has been shared by many others, is that they disallowed comment on their forum by their readers (as is their priviledge). My gripe has also been that cases that have not gone to trial about various other infractions have gotten more coverage than is conducive to a fair trial before an untainted jury. In the Empire's defense, the editors gave Ervin's case more lack of coverage than he deserved. His charges were dropped. The deal has been made. The fix is in. Is that not what you strive for...defender?
As for the victims...
... They came forward voluntarily. How courageous of them! They deserve to be heard.
Why is any sex crime
Eligible for a plea agreement? for that matter, why are any crimes eligible for Charge bargaining or sentence bargaining? Former attorney general Avrim Gross was concerned that very few cases actually went to trial in Alaska and so instituted a no plea policy. it worked very well.... the attorney generals office was forced to prosecute crimes and judges were forced to sentence those who were convicted.
What happened? Why have we come back to the bad old days of plea bargaining nearly every case no matter what the alleged crime?
As for future victims.....
Someone has an obligation to "fix" the perpetual abuse if the justice system is unwilling.
I do not support government capital punishment but I fully support the victim's or a first-hand witness's right to properly judge and sentence the dog who commits this sort of violence on an innocent. Put 'em down and hope I'm on your jury if you get caught.....I'll make sure you are found innocent and reimbursed for the ammo.....
The whole thing makes me feel
The whole thing makes me feel ill.
Child molesters/abusers do
Child molesters/abusers do not deserve the air that they breath. And shame the wife for believing the pedophile over the child.
I really haven't followed
I really haven't followed this case very well so I can't comment on this guy's claims of innocence. Besides, I wasn't there when that alleged acts took place so I can only speculate. However, there is one thing of which I am certain--this guy won't last a week in general population. He's going to have to be kept in almost total isolation. As a former cop and a sex offender who has preyed on children, this guy will have a big, fat bull's eye on his face. I'm willing to bet that the fellows in the slam are already sharpening their shanks.
Let's hope the judge rejects the plea agreement entirely
"Stephens scheduled the sentencing hearing to continue on Feb. 10. He said he could reject portions of the plea agreement that was reached in August."
I hope that he rejects the entire plea agreement and declares a mistrial. Then the DA needs to start a complete new investigation about this perp's history prior to coming to Alaska. If I see Rick Svobodny (Broward's ultimate boss) I'm going to urge him to do so. If they were concerned that the SAM witness might not have credibility, I don't think that's the case now.
Of course if there' s a new trial, it certainly won't be in Juneau because of all this newspaper coverage, but that's fine with me. Thanks to Klas for daring to print the SAM article.
No plea bargain for this scumbag. Life is not good enough (and because of the type of crime and his former police status, it will probably have to be in solitary, where he'll have lots of time to think about the atrocities he has committed).
There are many SAMs here
I hope that SAM is reading and knows the admiration and support coming from the other SAMs in the community. And across the country. Yes, there are countless SAMs in Juneau. My siblings and I belong to that group. One we never signed up to be part of.
This young woman should be honored by her community. She should be proud of her courage and strength. I have shed many tears for your loss, SAM. For we share many of the same losses in our lives. Just know that there are people out there thinking of you and wanting to see you move forward to the many positive things ahead.
Living life as a victim is challenging. But becoming a survivor, that is the real triumph. Even when the offenders don't get the punishment they deserve.
Not knowing what is going on
Not knowing what is going on "behind the scenes" is an unfortunate truth with these types of cases. Many times victims do not want to testify in open court (which I don't think is the issue in this case). Other times it is a case of "he said, she said" and prosecutors must weigh the chances of getting a conviction with a jury. This is especially true when only one victim comes forward. Remember that if an offender is found not guilty there is a chance that he/she cannot be brought up on the same charges because of double jeopardy issues, unless there are a set of new circumstances. I am sure that prosecutors want these types of people behind bars for as long as possible, but there are usually circumstances that the general public is not privvy to, thus the seemingly unfair sentences. In the long run, however, these types of people usually commit other crimes. The problem is, other victims are created.
This case isn't over yet. Others have made allegations against this nutcase. It's only a matter of time and, fortunately, the authorities will know where he is when it comes time for another indictment.