Taney County Prosecuting Attorney, Jeffrey M. Merrell, announced today that MANUEL C. CORTEZ, DOB: 06/06/1956, of Branson, Missouri, was sentenced on Thursday, July 21, 2011, to seven (7) years in prison by Judge Mark Orr in the Taney County Circuit Court. On May 17, 2011, Cortez was found guilty by a Taney County jury of the class C felony of Deviate Sexual Assault. As a result of the verdict and sentence, Cortez will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.