
"You always told me no one would believe a little girl, but they did and still do," said the girl in an emotional victim impact statement after enduring six years of horrific abuse, while her half-siblings did not suffer at all.
After six years of abuses allegedly suffered at the hands of her own stepmother, the 16-year-old victim was in the room as justice was served.
Marisela Garcia, 47, was also present as Judge Thomas West in Waco, Texas' 19th State District Court received a jury recommendation that he sentence her to the maximum terms on each of the two counts of injury to a child.
Her conviction came in less than 15 minutes by the jury of 12 on the first- and second-degree charges. Ultimately, she was given the maximum life sentence and $10,000 for the first-degree charge, and 20 years and $10,000 fine on the second.
By law, she must serve both concurrently, but will not be eligible until she has served at least 15 years. According to local CBS affiliate KWTX, Garcia had rejected a plea deal for 40 years, which would have offered her a chance at parole after 10 years.

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View StoryVictim Impact Statement
Garcia's alleged victim is still a minor, and so was identified by the initials K.V. in court documents. 16 years old now, she was between the ages of 6 and 12 when she endured the alleged abuses at Garcia's hands.
In a victim impact statement, K.V. celebrated her 16th birthday by thanking those who helped to free her from her horrific situation after all those years, per the outlet.
She purportedly said she prayed for escape every day, but thought she'd likely be forced to suffer until she was 18. Thankfully, her rescue would come six years earlier than she believed.
At one point, K.V. said that she had written a lot of mean and harsh things while preparing this statement, but she had decided not to stay them. "I can't be mean to another human being," she said instead. "I accepted her into my life even though she didn't accept me."
Speaking directly to Garcia, K.V. said in court, per KWTX, "You always told me no one would believe a little girl, but they did and still do."
"I hope while you are in jail you repent what you did to me," she continued. "This marks the new beginning in my life and now you have to live with it the rest of your life," she added.
In a rare response to a victim impact statement, according to the news station, those in attendance gave K.V. a round of applause after her powerful and emotional words.
"To any child who is secretly suffering, these heroes are waiting to listen and to protect," said McLennan County District Attorney Josh Teten after K.V. encouraged any child being abused to come forward.
Another uncommon occurrence happened when K.V. asked to thank the jury personally for returning a guilty verdict, and then posed for photos with them.
She was purportedly praised as a symbol of strength and perseverance, per KWTX, with the presiding juror telling the outlet, "It was hard, frankly, but when it came down to it, we all knew what we had to do. It was obvious somebody had to fight for this child and we were not going to let it stop. We had to make sure she got everything she needed."

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View StoryK.V.'s Alleged Abuse
The news outlet notes that Wednesday's verdict is also the four year anniversary of when K.V.'s long walk toward freedom began, after teachers and counselors at China Spring Intermediate School noticed she had a black eye.
The student was called into the office, where officials reportedly uncovered beneath her dirty clothing additional bruises, scrapes and cuts from heat to toe, as well as scars indicating years of additional suffering.
One school employee told KWTX that K.V. would often wear the same clothing for a full week to school. According to the station, this wasn't the first time officials at the school had expressed concern about K.V.'s welfare, but it did mark the first time that action was taken on her behalf.
Initially, K.V. reportedly told officials that the injuries were caused by dogs and cats, but her story changed when the sheriff's office and Child Protective Service workers told her she would never be returning to her home.
Now, she unloaded with details so horrific about what she'd allegedly endured that both she and her younger half-sisters were taken from the custody of Garcia and K.V.'s father, Juan Olvera Velasquez, 33.
According to K.V.'s story, her life was fine until a year after Velasquez got involved with Garcia when she was five years old. She told authorities that the alleged abuses started out more psychological, with Garcia purportedly telling her she would never be loved and that Velasquez was not her father.

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View StoryIn court, prosecutors Will Hix and Jessica Washington told jurors they believe the timing may have saved K.V.'s life, as shortly after she and the younger daughters of Garcia and Velasquez were removed from the house, a crippling snow storm hit the area.
At that time, according to K.V. and as the subsequent police investigation appeared to confirm, she was forced to live in a shed in the family's back yard.
Throughout their investigation, police determined that Garcia had allegedly threatened to kill K.V., encouraged her to commit suicide at other points, forced her to live in squalor conditions inside the shed, beat her regularly, and forced her to eat from a garbage can.
Whitney Crowson, a psychologist who interviewed K.V. testified in court that this was "by far the worst abuse and torture case she has encountered," according to KWTX reporting. She said that K.V. is still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
She recalled one harrowing story shared by K.V. to the jury. In it, K.V. said she was outside in the cold, rummaging through the family's garbage for something to eat while she could see her parents and siblings inside eating around the kitchen table, with video captured by Garcia of this scene show to jurors.
"The torture, the abuse that K.V. has gone through has become a part of her," said Crowson, per ABC affiliate KXXV. "She prayed every night that God would get her out of her situation."
K.V. told Crowson that she locked eyes with her father for a moment, but he looked away. "She is very conflicted about her dad," Clowson told the jury. "She loves him but she also hates him for letting [Garcia] do this to her," she explained.

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View StoryProsecutors showed evidence from K.V.'s body, too, with images including scarring from when Garcia allegedly bit her thumb, cracked her head open with a spoon, and stuck her repeated on the palms of her hands. She also allegedly forced the victim to eat her own and animal feces.
Testifying in court, K.V. alleged that Garcia told her she "would never be part of their family" and that she "didn't belong there." The teen also testified that she was forced to bathe outside, but had to clean the family's bathroom, along with other physical labor on their five-acre property.
She detailed allegations of physical abuse, like choking, and said that at one point Garcia "forced me to the ground and stepped on top of me. I was not allowed to scream or flinch or say anything. If I screamed, she would put her foot on my neck and tell me to shut up."
Prosecutors argued that Garcia allegedly would force spicy peppers down her throat and rub them on the victim's genitals and took nude pictures of her threatening to send them to men she knew so they could rape her. K.V. was also reportedly not allowed to attend church with the family, with church-goers not even aware of her existence.
"Nothing compares to the wholly unnecessary abuse of innocent children and our office will continue to seek maximum sentences to those who do such harm," Tetens said after the jury's verdict and Garcia's sentencing.
"We are grateful for the jury sending this message to abusers throughout the county. You will be held responsible and face the consequences," he continued.
K.V. is now living with her mother. Her father has been charged with two counts of injury to a child for allowing the abuses to occur, though his are second- and third-degree charges.
He faces possible sentenced of 20 years in prison for the second-degree charge, and 10 years for the third-degree one. He was offered a 20-year plea deal, according to prosecutors, but did not accept it. His case is pending.
If you are experiencing or witness child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911.