San Diego

A sailor who ran a red light and killed a 7-year-old girl was sentenced to one year in custody.

James Henry Parker, 20, a crewman on the Navy’s dock landing ship Rushmore, also was fined $1,100 Thursday by San Diego Municipal Judge Terry Knoepp.

Knoepp recommended that Parker serve his time in a work furlough program if he qualifies. Parker is to surrender Feb. 12 and would be locked up at nights and weekends in a halfway house facility if he is able to work during the days.

The judge placed Parker on five years’ probation. The maximum term he could have received was six years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Parker pleaded guilty Dec. 31 to vehicular manslaughter in the Oct. 21 death of Vanessa Esquivel, a second-grader at Emerson Elementary School.

Alcohol was not a factor in the case, according to court records. The girl was struck at 7 p.m. as she attempted to cross National Avenue at 38th Street in Southeast San Diego. Parker drove away from the accident without stopping to identify himself.