Trial confirmed in child sexual assault case

A March 13-17 trial has been confirmed for a man denying three counts of sexual assault on a child under the age of 16.

Anthony Diaz, 45, of Carson City, is accused of multiple sexual acts that occurred between 2014 and 2018. At the time the victim was 6-10 years old.

If convicted, Diaz could face up to life in prison.

On Tuesday, attorneys confirmed they were ready to go to trial. District Judge Tod Young ordered preparations to call a jury.

Diaz has been in custody since March 9 when the charges were filed.

Just a month after the Diaz trial is scheduled to wrap up, another similar trial is scheduled to take place involving a Dayton man.

Julian Amador, 22, is scheduled to face a jury on charges of sexual assault and lewdness with a child under the age of 14.

Amador is scheduled to appear April 4 on a pre-trial conference. He has been in custody in lieu of $25,000 cash or bond since his Sept. 19 arrest. Amador’s trial was set in January, just a few days before a man who admitted two charges of attempted sexual assault on a child under the age of 14 was sentenced to up to 40 years in prison.

Dylan Kenneth Downs, 30, received consecutive 8-20-year sentences on Jan. 17 from District Judge Tom Gregory.

Downs admitted to the charges just four days before a jury was scheduled to be empaneled Nov. 1 for a four-day trial.

At sentencing Downs claimed the incidents occurred once or twice a month over the course of two years, although reports to the court indicated there were scores of times.

The girl’s mother said the day she learned of Downs’ behavior was the most painful in her life.

“I had to hear my 9-year-old daughter tell me she was raped at the hands of a person I trusted to protect us from monsters like Dylan,” she said.

District Judge Tom Gregory ruled that the number of occurrences indicated Downs was not a good candidate for probation.

“The court finds that every bit of the maximum is appropriate, and I impose it without any reservation.”

According to prison records, Downs is being held in the Lovelock Correctional Center and will be in custody for a minimum of 16 years. Once released, Downs will have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.