David Bruce Mitchell Receives A 36 Month Prison Sentence For Attempting To Sexually Abuse A Child - 01/02/20

January 2, 2020

David Bruce Mitchell receives a 36 month prison sentence for attempting to sexually abuse a child

Today, Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill announced that 71-year-old David Bruce Mitchell appeared in Multnomah County Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sexual abuse in the first degree and one count of attempting to use a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct.

Mitchell received a 36 month prison sentence, five years of formal probation and will have to register as a sex offender for life.

Upon his release, Mitchell will not be allowed to have any unsupervised contact with children, unless permitted by the Oregon Department of Human Services and his probation officer. Furthermore, he will not be allowed to live at any residence with any child present unless approved by Oregon DHS, his probation officer, and his sex offender treatment provider.

This investigation started on November 2, 2019 when Gresham Police received information that a child disclosed to school staff that a person she knows sexually abused her.

As a result of the allegation, the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Team worked with Gresham Police, the Portland Police Bureau’s Child Abuse Team and the Oregon DHS to investigate the claims.

By pleading guilty, Mitchell is admitting that he unlawfully attempted to touch a sexually intimate part of the child’s body and that he unlawfully and intentionally attempted to permit, compel or induce the child to participate in and engage in sexually explicit conduct. 

“We know how difficult, scary and stressful it can be for a child to come forward and talk about being victimized,” said Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Amber Kinney, who prosecuted this case. “Every child will react differently to trauma. There can be emotional, behavioral and physical effects when a child is the victim of a crime. The recovery is long and difficult.”

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office encourages parents, guardians and teachers to remind children about appropriate touching and other potential signs of child sexual abuse, including “grooming behavior.” Children should be encouraged to report any unwanted touching, comments or behavior to a trusted adult or law enforcement.

Upon Mitchell’s release, he will be on approximately 24 months of post-prison supervision.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office recognizes Gresham Police Detective Aaron Dressler and Officer Robert Harley for their dedicated efforts investigating this case. We also recognize the Portland Police Bureau’s Child Abuse Team, Oregon DHS and CARES Northwest for their investigative assistance throughout this case.

The District Attorney’s Office also recognizes Victim Advocate Malia Bruni for her commitment to supporting the victim and her family throughout the criminal justice process.

It was through the coordination, communication and collaboration of the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Team that this case was investigated and prosecuted.

The Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Team includes representatives from local law enforcement, public schools, hospitals, courts, health departments, the Oregon Department of Human Services, and the Oregon Department of Employment Child Care Division.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Multidisciplinary Child Abuse Team is responsible for reviewing and managing child abuse and neglect cases in Multnomah County. The team also handles all child homicides, felony child physical abuse cases, felony child abandonment cases, custodial interference cases, and felony sex crimes where the victim is currently under the age of 18 and where the perpetrator is determined not to be a stranger to the child.

CARES Northwest, Multnomah County’s child abuse assessment center, is a community-based medical program for the assessment, treatment and prevention of child abuse. The organization is one of the largest child abuse assessment centers in the nation and serves more than 5,000 children annually.

#MCDA#

Contact: Brent Weisberg, Communications Director 
Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office
Phone: 503.988.6567 | Email: Brent.Weisberg@mcda.us