Hollywood producer sentenced to nearly 150 years in prison for rape, deaths of two people
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Wednesday sentenced Hollywood producer David Brian Pearce to 146 years in prison for multiple rapes and the 2021 deaths of a model and her architect friend.
Pierce was convicted in February of two counts of first-degree murder in the fentanyl overdose deaths of Christie Giles and Hilda Marcela Cabrales-Azola. Prosecutors said Pierce provided them with the drug.
Pearce was also found guilty of offenses against a series of women between 2007 and 2021, including three counts of forcible rape, two counts of sexual penetration with force, one count of rape of an unconscious or sleeping victim and one count of forcible sodomy.
“This sentencing brings long-awaited justice to Cabrales-Arzola, Giles and the sexual assault victims who bravely came forward to testify,” the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said. Atty. Nathan J. Hochman said in a statement.
“Not only were the victims sexually assaulted, Cabrales-Arzola’s and Giles’ lives were stolen in one of the most devastating ways — a sexual assault triggered by Pierce’s use of fentanyl.”
A call to Pierce’s attorney was not immediately returned.
Pierce’s co-defendant, Brant Osborn, 46, is due for a pretrial appointment on Nov. 18; he could face a second trial after a mistrial in February.
In November 2021, Giles and Cabrales-Arzola, along with Michael Ansbach, dated the producer and his roommate, Osborn, who spent a day filming for a documentary Pierce was producing. Cocaine was high on the night of the East Los Angeles warehouse rave.
In the early hours of the morning, the group returned to Pierce’s apartment in Beverly Hills.
That’s all the parties agreed upon.
According to the District Attorney’s Office, Pierce provided gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and fentanyl to the two women and Ansbach, causing Giles and Cabrales-Arzola to overdose.
Although Cabrales-Arzola called the ride-sharing service, neither she nor Giles left.
About 11 hours later, Pierce took Giles to a local hospital. He did the same thing to Cabrales-Azola 90 minutes later, the DA’s office said.
The car that dropped them off did not have a license plate, and Ansbach said he saw Pierce take the plate away, court records show. Although Ansbach was initially arrested in connection with the woman’s death, he later became a key prosecution witness.
When she arrived at the hospital, Giles was dead. Cabrales-Azola survived for 11 days before her family removed her from life support.
Pearce maintained during his trial that he found the two women unconscious near wine bottles and a powdery substance in his apartment at around 5am. He said he didn’t think much of it at first.
“My lifestyle at the time was not very conducive to normal behavior, if that makes sense,” Pierce, 43, testified earlier this year. “It’s not uncommon for people to use my house as a crash pad, a hangout. I know it’s scary, but at least I have friends passing out in my house every week.”
Pierce said he became concerned when neither woman woke up and checked on them repeatedly, eventually transporting them to different local hospitals.
He said he performed CPR but did not call 911.
Since his arrest in December 2021, Seven women came forward to accuse Pierce of raping them.
During two days of testimony, Pierce denied every rape allegation, saying he had never met at least one of his accusers and viewed the remaining encounters as consensual.
Pierce described a lifestyle of drinking and drugs and said most women found him at parties or through dating apps.
“This case is a stark reminder of the devastation fentanyl can cause,” Hochman said. “Fentanyl poisoners who harm and exploit others will be held accountable.”
Times staff writer James Qualley contributed to this report.
