Despite the passage of 24 years, a man who committed a sexual assault in a Pacific Beach alley has been sentenced to 15 years to life in state prison.

The facts of the 2001 cold case against John Edmund House, now 53, were given to a jury in November 2024, and they convicted him of forcible oral copulation with kidnapping.

On Feb. 5, San Diego Superior Court Judge Kimberlee Lagotta sentenced House to 15 years to life in prison and he must serve a minimum of 15 years before he can be eligible for parole.

“The victim waited more than 20 years for this defendant to be brought to justice for his horrific kidnap and sexual assault,” said District Attorney Summer Stephan.

The victim was walking down a Pacific Beach street on a late morning in August 2001, when House put his hand over her mouth, threatened her with a knife, and dragged her into an alley, according to the DA’s office.

Deputy District Attorney Zachary Wallace said the 15-year to life term was triggered because House was convicted of the “One-Strike” sentencing law that applies when a kidnapping occurs during a sex crime.

DNA technology was limited in 2001, but a breakthrough came in 2022 when the DNA sample collected was retested. It matched House, and San Diego Police arrested him on Aug. 24, 2022.

It turned out House was busy in 2001 in court because he was convicted of sexually battering five different female joggers from behind. That case did not involve DNA, but he was sentenced to seven years.

“Through the tireless work of specialized prosecutors and investigators in our Cold Case and Sex Crimes units along with our law enforcement partners, we can solve these crimes that leave victims and their families living in fear and looking behind their shoulders for years,” said Stephans.

House is awaiting a transfer on a prison bus, but for now, he is in the South Bay Detention Facility without bail.