WASHINGTON — Former Falls Church Democratic Committee Chairman Michael Gardner has admitted to molesting his niece and three other girls, and has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Gardner pleaded guilty Thursday to charges relating to the molestation of his then 12-year-old niece in 2009, and two other girls at a sleepover birthday party for his daughter in 2011.
He also admitted to molesting a third girl at the sleepover party.
In the 2009 case, he pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual battery.
In the 2011 cases, he pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual battery and one count of object sexual penetration.
“He’s on supervised probation for the rest of his life, he is to register as a violent sex offender for the rest of his life, and he’s not to have any contact whatsoever with these victims or their families,” said prosecutor Nicole Wittmann.
“What this plea gives the families and these little girls is finality. It gives them closure,” Wittmann said. “They were pleased to have a public acknowledgment to put any questions to rest, and to be able to move on with their lives.”
The plea came in the middle of a trial relating to the 2009 charges.
Gardner’s niece, who is now 18, testified for the prosecution, as did Gardner’s wife Robin who is the former mayor of Falls Church.
Wittmann says Robin Gardner didn’t want to testify for the prosecution, but was required to do so and it helped the prosecution’s case.
“There were some things that she said that helped us significantly.”
