A Bexar County jury on Thursday ordered a 60-year-old man to spend the rest of his life in prison after finding he repeatedly sexually abused a child over a period of years. Larry Botello was convicted of continuous sexual assault of a child along with four counts of indecency with a child, and the court stacked additional decades of prison time on top of the life sentence. The case moved forward after one victim came forward and relatives reported similar conduct, as per the San Antonio Express-News.
Prosecutors say abuse spanned years
At trial, prosecutors told jurors that Botello abused the child over a four-year period beginning when the victim was 8 years old, with conduct that included sexual acts and inappropriate touching at the family’s home and inside Botello’s vehicle, according to the San Antonio Express-News. After the initial disclosure, a second family member reported similar behavior, which helped build the criminal case. Jurors ultimately returned guilty verdicts on the continuous-abuse charge and on the four indecency counts.
Judge presided over sentencing
State District Judge Kristina Escalona oversaw the trial and sentencing, according to the Bexar County Criminal District Courts. Following the jury’s verdicts, the court imposed a life sentence on the continuous-abuse count, along with additional lengthy prison terms on the indecency convictions. Court records list Escalona as the presiding judge of a criminal district court in Bexar County.
What the law allows
In Texas, continuous sexual abuse of a young child is prosecuted under Penal Code §21.02 as a first-degree felony, with punishment that can extend up to life in prison, as outlined in the Texas Penal Code. Related offenses such as indecency with a child can carry multi-decade prison terms along with mandatory sex-offender registration.
Prosecutors said the jury’s verdict in Botello’s case resulted in a life term without the possibility of parole on the continuous-abuse charge, plus a combined 80 years in prison on the indecency counts, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Broader context
Across Texas in recent months, prosecutors have taken other continuous-abuse cases to trial and secured similarly long sentences in high-profile prosecutions. Hoodline recently covered a separate Austin case in which a jury also handed down a life term in a continuous-abuse prosecution, highlighting how courts are using the full range of penalties for these crimes; see sentenced to life. Authorities routinely urge anyone with information about suspected abuse to contact local law enforcement so investigators can review reports and act to protect potential victims.
