AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) A 44-year-old Wiscasset woman has been sentenced to 50 years in prison in the fatal beating a 4-year-old girl in her care.

Shawna Gatto was sentenced Tuesday morning. Her attorney has argued she is not a “monster” deserving a life sentence.

Superior Court Justice William Stokes in April found Gatto guilty of depraved indifference murder in the death of Kendall Chick in her home in December 2017.

The case has sparked child welfare reforms.

Witnesses testified Kendall’s body was covered with bruises and one of her eyes was swollen shut when responders discovered her lifeless body. An autopsy showed Kendall had over a dozen injuries consistent with severe abuse.

A state caseworker visited the home once over the three years the girl lived with her grandfather and Gatto, his fiancee.