Mother of severely disabled Utah woman, 31, who cannot talk and is the size of eight-year-old catches daughter’s stepdad raping her after setting up cameras in room to capture seizures

A severely disabled Utah woman was repeatedly raped by her stepfather, and her mother only found out after installing cameras in the bedroom to monitor her attacks.

Brian Kenneth Urban, 51, pleaded guilty to five felonies after raping his 31-year-old disabled stepdaughter, Ashley Vigil.

The 31-year-old woman has a rare condition known as Rett syndrome, a genetic mutation that affects brain development in girls and affects fewer than 1,000 people in the US.

‘She’s grown to about the size of an eight-year-old girl. She can’t communicate,” said Ashley’s mother, Paula Vigil, 49. “Her seizures had suddenly increased.”

Paula cares for Ashley full-time and has identified her as a victim in this case in an effort to help pass ‘Ashley’s Law’, which she says will help protect vulnerable adults in the same way children and the elderly are protected by laws.

Ashley Vigil, 31, has a rare condition known as Rett syndrome, a genetic mutation that affects brain development in girls and affects fewer than 1,000 people in the U.S.

Paula Vigil cares full-time for her daughter Ashley and has identified her as a victim in this case to help pass ‘Ashley’s Law’, which she says will help protect vulnerable adults in the same way children and the elderly are protected by laws

‘She’s grown to about the size of an eight-year-old girl. She can’t communicate,” said Ashley’s mother, Paula Vigil, 49. ‘Her seizures suddenly increased’

While Urban pleaded guilty to the charges, which include rape and sexual abuse, the victim and her family continue to face the nightmare caused by his repeated abuse.

The disturbing revelations about Urban’s sickening behavior came about in October 2022 – after Ashley’s doctor Paula recommended placing cameras in her bedroom to monitor her daughter’s mysterious seizures to gain some insight into what was going on.

What she saw was far worse than she could have ever imagined.

“Instead of catching the attacks, I caught him,” Paula said 2KUTV.

“In her condition, she (Ashley) cannot move. He had to undress her completely, move her to the couch and take off her diaper to do what he did. Then he had to get her dressed and put her back to bed, so I wouldn’t know.”

Paula believes the seizures were the result of Ashley’s body screaming for help.

“Her body seized up and she screamed for help the only way she could,” Paula said. “Without those cameras I would never have known and I would never have had proof.”

After the gruesome discovery, Paula called 911 and South Jordan police arrested Urban.

The abuser is currently behind bars in the Salt Lake County Jail, but there is currently no mandatory minimum sentence for Urban due to Ashley’s age.

Nathan Woodward, a Utah attorney, saw Paula’s story on Facebook and was “upset.” He decided to reach out and offer to help the family.

“I just want Paula and Ashley to feel heard. There is a real divide in the way our law is written and applied,” Woodward said.

While Urban pleads guilty to the charges, which include rape and forcible sexual abuse, the victim and her family continue to face the nightmare caused by his repeated abuse.

Nathan Woodward, a Utah attorney, saw Paula’s story on Facebook and was “upset.” He decided to reach out and offer to help the family

The heartbroken mother said she promised her daughter that “she would never be anywhere she wasn’t safe.” She said, ‘He took away that one thing I promised’

The lawyer explained that when someone is raped and the attacker is found guilty, the severity of the punishment is determined by whether the victim is an adult or a minor.

However, “no substantive consideration is given to the mental capacity of an adult victim, resulting in an inconsistent underlying philosophy as to why we justify harsher sentences for crimes against children,” he explained.

Paula explained that there is no mandatory prison sentence for Urban, so the family has no idea what the sentence will be.

“She (Ashley) is a baby in an adult body. He did this to someone who couldn’t fight back. He should get a mandatory prison sentence, and there’s just a hole in the system.”

Paula and Woodward hope to pass ‘Ashley’s Law’ to take vulnerable adults into account in response to the broken system.

The heartbroken mother said she promised her daughter that “she would never be anywhere she wasn’t safe.” She said, “He took away that one thing I promised.”

“Brian Kenneth Urban came into our lives and pretended. The act he performed convinced me. He convinced me that he loved my girls and would care for them like I did. That he would protect them,” Paula said on Facebook. “I didn’t know we needed protection from him.”