An Atlanta man, Jeffrey Briney, has been sentenced to eight life terms plus 185 years in prison for his role in a series of sexual assaults that occurred nearly four decades ago. The verdict was delivered on September 19, 2025, following a trial in DeKalb County Superior Court.
Briney, now 61, was found guilty of multiple charges related to two separate incidents in 1986. These charges included rape, kidnapping, armed robbery attempts, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. On March 28, 1986, four men entered an apartment on Briarwood Road—now within Brookhaven—and assaulted five college students at gunpoint. Two women were raped during the incident. A second attack took place on October 27, 1986, when two men broke into an apartment on Buford Highway and raped both female residents before stealing valuables.
The cases remained unsolved until advances in DNA technology provided new leads. In June 2023, DNA evidence from one of the victims led to a match with Jeffrey Briney through the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), which had been launched by the FBI in 1998 to enable broader comparison of DNA samples nationwide. Further testing also linked Briney's brother, David Briney, to these crimes as well as several others in Cobb and Fulton counties; his trial is pending.
At Briney's sentencing hearing on October 23, all four surviving victims addressed the court about how the attacks affected their lives but also spoke about finding strength to heal and move forward. After considering statements from survivors and defense counsel, Judge Tangela Barrie imposed the maximum sentence allowed under Georgia law for crimes committed at that time.
Prosecution was handled by Senior Assistant District Attorney Agatha Romanowski with support from other members of the District Attorney’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Unit and investigators from various agencies. The investigation benefitted from collaborative work between local prosecutors and law enforcement through the Georgia Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (GASAKI) Task Force—a partnership formed under a federal grant with participation from offices including DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office and supported by resources such as those from Morgan County Sheriff’s Office and Bridging Hope.
Unprocessed sexual assault kits played a crucial role in reopening this case. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) safeguarded untested kits for years until funding secured by the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council enabled around 2,500 kits—including 74 from DeKalb County—to be sent for private lab analysis in 2023.
"After hearing from the survivors and Briney’s defense attorney, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Tangela Barrie, who presided over the trial, sentenced Defendant Briney to the maximum allowed under Georgia law, 8 Life* terms plus 185 years to serve consecutively."
The sentencing guidelines follow state law as it existed in 1986. More information can be found at the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles website: https://pap.georgia.gov/.