San Diego

A Linda Vista man was sentenced Thursday to 25 years to life in prison for the March 30, 1985, beating death of his 3-year-old stepdaughter.

Larry Gene James, 35, of the 2500 block of Ulric Street, was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the death of Christa Hawkins. He also was convicted of one count of child abuse stemming from a Jan. 3, 1985, incident in which the child suffered a broken leg.

Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Nay Zumwalt suspended James’ sentence on the child abuse count after refusing his attorney’s request to reduce the jury’s murder conviction to second-degree.

“The child had suffered multiple bruises that were inflicted over a period of time,” Zumwalt said. “I don’t feel it’s possible for this to occur from a single accident.

“There was no justification for the infliction of any of these bruises on the child. I think (James had) intent to cause pain. There’s ample evidence the child suffered.”

An autopsy showed that Christa died of internal bleeding caused by a rupture of her pancreas and an artery in her abdomen and other traumatic injuries.

Defense attorney Deborah Carson argued that James’ “heavy use of cocaine closely parallels the injuries to this child. . . . It reduced his ability to function, and while it doesn’t amount to a defense, I think it’s something the court can take into consideration about his state of mind at the time of the attack.”