News

Actions

Former vice president of Walt Disney sentenced to more than 6 years in Portland sex abuse investigation

Posted at 1:14 PM, Jun 17, 2019
and last updated 2019-06-17 13:14:42-04

PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) — A former vice president for the Walt Disney Company has been sentenced to more than 6 years in prison following a child sex abuse investigation.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office said Michael Laney, 73, was sentenced on Friday to 81 months in prison.

Along with his prison sentence, Laney will have to register as a sex offender and pay a $4,000 fine.

Laney was found guilty of four counts of first-degree sexual abuse on May 7.

Evidence presented during trial showed that in March 2017, a young girl disclosed she had been sexually abused by the Laney. The disclosure was first reported to law enforcement in Washington state where the victim lived at the time of her disclosure.

The Portland Police Bureau assumed the investigation after it was determined that the abuse had occurred in Portland starting in approximately 2009 when the victim was about 7 years old, the attorney’s office said.

The court found sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Laney was guilty of repeated sexual abuse involving the girl.

While conducting their investigation into the first reported disclosure of rape and sexual abuse by the defendant, PPB detectives learned of other allegations of sexual abuse involving Laney.

One person told law enforcement Laney had sexually abused her while she was a minor in approximately 2007 when she lived in Portland, but the court found there was not sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Laney was guilty of this allegation.