A 20-year-old father was sentenced Wednesday to 25 years in prison for putting his baby daughter in microwave and causing her severe burns.

Joshua Mauldin tried to convince the jury he had suffered from temporary insanity when he harmed the child, but the jury considered his deed as felony injury to a child.

The man and his mother, who was also in the courtroom, both burst into tears when hearing the sentence.

Mauldin abused his child when he was alone with her in a Galveston motel room last year. Apparently, Mauldin was in Galveston together with his mother, his wife and his younger brother, but they were all out when the man started to behave strangely.

Mauldin declared he felt he could not control his actions anymore. He suddenly felt the urge to hit his daughter Anna, before placing her in the room’s safe, in the refrigerator and then in the microwave. He then turned the oven on for about 10 seconds or more, causing the infant second and third-degree burns on her face and her left hand. As a consequence, the girl’s left ear had to be amputated and she can hardly use her left hand.

The baby’s father lied at first, saying that he had accidentally spilt hot water on the girl or that the burns had been caused by the sun. But eventually, after the situation got tense, he admitted the truth to a social worker.

Mauldin’s prosecutors concluded Mauldin may have harmed his child, as he was depressed due to an unhappy marriage. They also pointed to the fact that he had been violent in the past.

The prosecutors also fined the man $10,000 and had initially wanted to sentence him to the maximum of life in prison. But Galveston County prosecutor Xochitl Vandiver said the sentence was satisfying enough for her.

"It's extremely important for people to know that just because this case was sensational, it doesn't mean that (child abuse) goes away," she said, according to the Associated Press. "Child abuse is an important issue. It should be focused on."