SANDPOINT - Idaho's appeals court has rejected a former Bonner County man's claim that he received an excessive sentence after being convicted of molesting a young girl more than 20 years ago.

Richard Albert Schreiber was sentenced in 2007 to five years in prison after pleading guilty to a reduced charge of sexual abuse of a minor. The sentence was the maximum punishment allowed because the charge dates back to 1986.

The current penalty for such an offense is 25 years in prison.

In his appeal, Schreiber argued the sentence was too harsh. But the appeals court rejected the claim and ruled that District Judge Steve Verby did not abuse his discretion, according to an unpublished opinion issued on Dec. 24, 2008.

Schreiber, 67, was originally charged with lewd conduct, when the girl was between the ages of 14 and 15. He was also charged with raping the teen's 15-year-old friend, but that charge was ultimately dismissed because of a witness problem, court records indicate.

The lewd conduct charge was reduced during plea negotiations. The victim testified at Schreiber's sentencing that he began abusing her at the age of nine and attempted to cover up the legacy of molestation by making sadistic threats against her mother.

Schreiber allegedly threatened to gut the woman and make the victim watch her mother's life ebb away. Another threat Schreiber allegedly used to keep the girl quiet was too graphic to be published.

Schreiber's abuse splintered her family, stole away her childhood and left her with lasting emotional wounds, the victim told Verby.

"Your ongoing abuse of (the victim) was and is an all-too-often seen, classic example of a sexual abuser," Verby said when he imposed the punishment.

Schreiber is being held at the Idaho State Correctional Institution. His parole eligibility information was not available on the Idaho Department of Correction Web site.