Man Gets Life For Beating His 2-Year-Old Stepdaughter To Death
HAWTHORNE (CBS) — A Hawthorne man has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for beating his 2-year-old stepdaughter to death.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael E. Pastor denied a defense request for a new trial for James Vernon Ward IV, who was convicted last October of the September 2007 slaying of Kayla Smoot.
"I loved her with all my heart ... A parent's worst nightmare is my reality," Robert Smoot Jr. told the judge, noting that he is a "broken" man since his daughter's death.
"I hope she haunts you every night," he said, speaking directly to the 30-year-old defendant.
The toddler, who was having difficulty with potty-training, suffered a lacerated liver, kidney and pancreas, rib fractures and bruising to the spinal cord.
Ward was convicted of first-degree murder, child abuse causing death and child abuse. Jurors also found true the special circumstance allegation of murder during a forcible act of sexual penetration.
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