Mendocino County Assistant DA Paul Sequeira gets life in prison sentence for man who sexually abused his daughters over 15 years

Life in prison for Mendocino County father who sexually abused two daughters

A Mendocino County parent was sentenced Tuesday afternoon to 81 years to life for the chronic sexual abuse of his two daughters over a 15-year period.

In preparatory remarks made before imposing sentencing, Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Ann Moorman described the case against Donald Earl Dunakin, age 63, as one of the worst child sexual abuse cases she had ever seen. The oldest victim also eventually addressed the Court, while also confronting her father. Those in the packed courtroom sat silently as the victim courageously explained what he had forced her and her younger sister to endure. She thanked some of those who have since helped her in recovery.

Assistant District Attorney Paul Sequeira then echoed Moorman’s sentiments. “The defendant has asked for leniency so that he can have some hope, but he doesn’t deserve any hope. What hope did the defendant give his daughters as he abused them day after day, month after month, year after year? Mr. Dunakin deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison for what he did,” said Sequeira.

Dunakin plead guilty back in October to six felony counts of child sexual abuse, including four counts of perpetrating a sexual act with a child under the age of ten. Sequeira said all the charges stem from continuous sexual abuse of two separate victims during a time period spanning from 1997 to 2014.

Dunakin, along with his longtime live-in companion Ina Selene Medina, age 49, were arrested at their Talmage area home in January 2014 after the county’s Child Protective Services unit was made aware of the abuse happening in the Dunakin home. CPS, in turn, reported the information to the Sheriff. Sheriff investigators gathered evidence that the couple -- who had lived together in the Ukiah Valley for 30 years -- had been sexually abusing at least two of their children for many years, sexual abuse which included sharing their children as sex objects with male adult friends of Dunakin.

Medina eventually entered guilty pleas in April 2015 to charges that included aggravated sexual assault on a child under the age of fourteen years, and lewd and lascivious acts on a child under the age of fourteen years. Judge Moorman sentenced Medina in June 2015 to a stipulated sentence of 20 years to life in state prison. Assistant DA Sequeira also handled the prosecution of Medina.

Paul Sequeira