Stockton businessman sentenced to 90 days house arrest in statutory rape of 5-year-old girl

STOCKTON, Calif. -- (KTLA) -- A longtime Stockton businessman was sentenced Wednesday to just 90 days of house arrest and five years of informal probation after pleading no contest to the statutory rape of a child.

The convict, 79-year-old Lyle Burgess, does not have to register as a sex offender, according to KTLA sister station KTXL in Sacramento.

The girl was just 5 years old at the time, family attorney Ken Meleyco said.

"Normally the sentence is state prison and then when you're released, you have to register as a sex offender," Meleyco said.

KTXL reached out to Kathy Murray, the deputy district attorney for San Joaquin County, to find out why Burgess was charged with just statutory rape and why he wouldn't have to register as a sex offender.

Murray deferred to a media representative, who said to put any questions in writing online. KTXL had not heard back as of Thursday evening.

KTXL also visited Burgess' home in an upscale gated community in Stockton. The person who answered the door had no comment.

Meleyco believes Burgess' affluence and standing in the community were factors in his sentencing.

"He's obviously very wealthy and it's just an example of how the wealthy people, time and time again, escape the penalty for what they did," the attorney said.

Burgess founded Rare Parts Inc., an automotive parts manufacturer and distributor. He was a friend of the girl's family.