California father sentenced to just ONE YEAR in jail after felony incest conviction—his daughter killed herself

A California father has been sentenced to only one year in jail after committing incest with his daughter, which resulted in her suicide. 41-year-old Stephen Vincent Chavez pleaded guilty last month to felony incest and misdemeanor providing alcohol to a minor.

Chavez admitted to taking advantage of his daughter, Makayla Renee Settles, after a family gathering in July 2025. After drinking at the gathering, he bought additional alcohol to consume at home with his daughter, only to then have sexual intercourse with her.

Settles was hospitalized after the incident, and a rape kit confirmed that Chavez’s DNA was present on her. In December of 2025, a Settles committed suicide.

Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko had directed prosecutors to see if more serious charges like rape could be filed against Chavez, but experts concluded that incest was the only felony charge from the evidence available. Prosecutors sought the maximum prison term of three years, but Chavez was sentenced to just one year in county jail and three years of felony probation.

"The People requested the maximum three-year state prison sentence because the defendant exploited his position as a father, violated his daughter’s trust, supplied her with alcohol, and engaged in criminal conduct that forever altered the course of her life," said Deputy District Attorney Tessa McCarty, according to FOX LA. "While we respect the court’s decision, we continue to believe a state prison sentence was warranted under the facts of this case."

Settles’s mother criticized the maximum possible penalty of three years, saying, “It just feels like, you know, my daughter's life is only worth three years.”

"He got her drunk... she was intoxicated. She was taken advantage of physically and mentally. So if that's not rape, I really don't know what is,” she said.