Baseball Bat Bludgeoning Nets Killer Maximum Sentence

April 16, 2012 Updated Apr 16, 2012 at 6:12 PM EDT

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Indiana’s NewsCenter) - "My son's in heaven now, and he'll never have to see this monster again."

The mother of Christopher Deaton made that comment Monday at a sentencing hearing for Manuel Silva, before the 46-year old Silva was given the maximum sentence in Deaton's brutal murder.

It was a case of rage gone wild.

Manuel Silva claims he hunted down Deaton to get revenge for abuse against his daughter.

It cost Deaton his life, and Silva his freedom, most likely for the rest of his days.

Manuel Silva received a 95-year sentence from Allen Superior Court Judge John Surbeck, a sentence that included 65 years for murder and 30 years for being a habitual offender.

Silva barged into Deaton's Fort Wayne home last May and clubbed him to death with a baseball bat.

Silva was convicted last month at trial.

He had explained his behavior in various ways, arguing at one point that he acted in self-defense.

He also claimed he had been drinking when he went after Deaton because his daughter told him Deaton had molested her.

Prosecutors contend that Deaton’s daughter changed her story several times, and that there is no credible information to implicate Deaton of such a molestation.

Deaton, who was deaf, probably never knew what hit him.

Steve Godfrey/Deputy Prosecutor: " I mean, he was literally sitting down, having a nice evening watching a basketball game with his friends, and the next thing he knows, he was hit with a baseball bat from behind."

Teresa Tinsley/Deaton's Mother: " This couldn't have happened any better. I mean, the monster got what he deserved. You know, you take a life, you can't expect to go on forever, so yeah, I think justice was done today, I really do."

Deputy prosecutor Godfrey says Silva should have realized his daughter’s story wasn't adding up.

He says at least one of Silva's friends tried to talk him out of the showdown with Deaton.

With good time jail credit, Silva might be able to get out of prison just short of his 90th birthday, if he lives that long.