5 Browns Patriarch Confesses to Sexually Abusing Daughters

Feb 17, 2011— -- Keith Brown, patriarch of the hit classical music quintet the 5 Browns, confessed today to sexually abusing his three daughters when they were little girls.

Brown, 55, pleaded guilty to one count of sodomy upon a child and two additional counts of sexual abuse in Provo, Utah, today, days after he was released from the hospital following a dramatic car accident.

"He pleaded guilty," Brown's lawyer, Steven Shapiro, told ABC News.com. "This was the next step in a long process in attempting to accept responsibility for deplorable contact with his daughters that happened many years ago."

Brown was accused of sodomizing a child younger than 14 between November 1990 and November 1992, according to a criminal complaint filed in court Feb. 10. He was also accused of molesting his children between March 1997 and March 1998.

ABCNews.com typically does not report the names of child sex-abuse victims, but a spokesman for the 5 Browns said all three of Brown's daughters -- Desirae, 32, Deondra, 30, and Melody, 26 -- have chosen to be identified and have cooperated with the investigation.

"There is tremendous relief," group spokesman Kimball Thomson. "The girls handled the situation with such integrity and courage."

Under state law, the sodomy charge carries a sentence of 15 years to life and the two lesser abuse charges carry sentences of 1 to 15 years. Brown's attorney said he will be sentenced next month and will likely serve the sentences concurrently for 10 to 12 years.

Brown's two sons, Ryan and Gregory, are also members of the quintet, whose music has topped the classical charts and who have performed on "Oprah," "The View" and other programs.

All three of the Brown women are now married.Keith Brown has not managed his children's quintet since 2008.

Brown's lawyer said he confessed to his family and authorities after first confessing to a religious leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Charges Preceded Accident

"The important thing is this process began by [Brown] making admissions to ecclesiastical leaders and then his family," Shapiro said. "This prosecution followed those events. He has demonstrated his remorse."

Soon after the charges were filed, Brown and his wife, Lisa Brown, 54, the musicians' mother, were involved in a car accident in which Brown totaled their Porsche when he drove off a Utah cliff. The couple were taken to the hospital.

The group's spokesman said some of the children visited their parents in the hospital.

Brown appeared in court today bruised and with stitches on his face. He did not make a statement.