The man who drove his twin 2-year-old daughters off Sunset Cliffs in 2020 and who miraculously survived finally pleaded guilty on Aug. 9 to two counts of attempted murder.
Additionally, Robert Duane Brians, now 46, also pleaded guilty to two counts of kidnapping, two counts of child abuse, burglary, and domestic violence on his ex-wife.
Brians faces a maximum sentence of 31 years in state prison, said District Attorney spokesperson Tanya Sierra on Aug. 9.
Sentencing was set for Sept. 20 by San Diego Superior Court Judge Joan Weber. Brians has remained in jail since his arrest after recovering in the hospital from the plunge into the ocean before 5:00 a.m. June 13, 2020.
Brians’ ex-wife called the police to say he had kidnapped his daughters and had threatened to drive them off the cliffs or the Coronado Bridge.
San Diego Police Officer Jonathan Wiese was one of the first officers at the scene and he took off his bulletproof vest and his gun after spotting the wreckage below. He lowered himself down the cliffs to the girls and Brians via a 100-foot dog leash.
Wiese tied the dog leash around himself and he reached the smashed truck, which remarkably landed on a large rock and not underwater.
Just three minutes before he drove off the cliff, Brians wrote the following sentence on Facebook: “Tonight I’m sending my babies to heaven.” It appeared the motive was to punish his ex-wife.
Brians was still angry even though he and his daughters had just survived the crash. Brians angrily commented about his ex-wife to an officer with the cold water rushing by.
A firefighter stripped to his shorts because his uniform was too heavy and swam to Wiese and the girls, one of whom was unresponsive at the scene. Other paramedics, a lifeguard, and police joined them in a massive rescue operation, and the girls and Brian were lifted to the cliffs.
Both girls had serious injuries, with one girl suffering head trauma and fractures, according to testimony. Both girls had breathing difficulties.
Brians was poised to stand trial before Weber on Aug. 27. His case was delayed many times due to questions about his mental competency, and a change in attorneys. For some months, Brians represented himself before requesting another attorney.
