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A woman sentenced to 16 years to life in prison for stabbing her girlfriend to death during a fight must wait 24 years before making her first appearance before a parole board.

The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole has set Victoria Mendoza's original parole hearing for October 2039.

Mendoza, 23, pleaded guilty to first-degree felony murder for the October 2014 death of 21-year-old Tawnee Baird.

Mendoza was sentenced in November.

The two had been driving from Salt Lake City to Ogden when they began to argue and Mendoza stabbed Baird 46 times, according to court documents.

The victim's father, Casey Baird, says he and his family will continue fighting to keep Mendoza in prison beyond 2039, The Associated Press reported.