Greeley man gets life in prison for death of 2-year-old boy

GREELEY, Colo. (AP) -- A Greeley man convicted in the death of his girlfriend's 2-year-old son has been sentenced to life in prison.

Prosecutors with the Weld County District Attorney's Office say 34-year-old John Melvin White was sentenced Friday for the May 2015 death of Michael Lara. White was convicted in November of first-degree murder and child abuse resulting in death.

Investigators say he told them the family's 60-pound pit bull knocked the boy down some steps, but medical experts testified during the trial that the injuries pointed to further abuse. The boy had bruises to both sides of his head and back, burns to his lips and neck caused by a hairdryer and a wound to his penis.

He died after he was taken to a hospital in Aurora.