A Tyler man who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a young girl in 2020 has been sentenced to life in prison.
David Donley, 72, was sentenced to life on Friday for the aggravated sexual assault of a child, which a jury convicted him of on Aug. 19.
He was arrested for sexual assault on Feb. 6, 2020, for the offense that occurred on Jan. 26 that year, according to judicial records.
Donley entered a not guilty plea in court on Aug. 17 and a jury trial began that same day. Smith County Assistant District Attorneys Richard Vance and Zach Gillmore presented witnesses and evidence over three days.
The jury gave their verdict after hearing testimony from Detective Aaron Hinton with the Smith County Sheriff’s Office and evidence collected at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County.
The prosecution during the sentencing hearing this past Friday asked for the maximum sentence of life in prison based on the nature of the crime. After a review of the pre-sentence investigation report, 7th District Court Judge Kerry Russell sentenced Donley to life in prison.