Man guilty in beating death of two-year-old

Jury rejects defence claim toddler died by accident

Rodrigo FloresRomero said the injuries that killed Winnie were caused after he accidentally fell on top of her and, later, when she fell in the bathtub

A Toronto jury has convicted a 30year-old man of the reduced charge of manslaughter in the beating death of two-year-old Wynonna (Winnie) Noganosh, rejecting the defence claim the girl died in an accident.

Rodrigo Flores-Romero denied assaulting his girlfriend’s toddler on March 19, 2021, and said the injuries that killed her were caused after he accidentally fell on top of her and, later, when she fell in the bathtub.

He also testified he had consumed bourbon that evening, impairing his judgment and his perceptions.

In its verdict, the jury also rejected the more serious charge of seconddegree murder. To prove murder, the Crown had to establish he beat the little girl and was aware she would likely die from her injuries.

Defence lawyer Paul Mergler asked the jury to accept her injuries were caused by accident and to acquit his client. However, he argued it was open for the jurors to convict him of manslaughter if they believed Flores-Romero assaulted her but that he did not know that it was likely to cause her to die.

“If you think what he did was accidental, as he described, he is not guilty of murder. If you think what he did was an intentional assault, but that he did not know that death was likely as a result, then he is guilty of manslaughter,” Mergler said during this closing address Wednesday. Jurors retired Thursday and delivered their verdict midday Friday.

Crown attorney Allison MacPherson had urged them to reject Flores-Romero’s testimony saying it defied logic, and that the locations of contusions and abrasions on Winnie’s tiny body were “proof of a prolonged and violent assault” that any adult would “know that they were likely to cause her death.”

Her injuries were also inconsistent with a “slip and fall in the tub,” since she was unable to “stand at this point.”

During the three-week trial, jurors watched surveillance video showing Flores-Romero that evening walking down the aisles of a grocery store holding hands with Winnie; a cellphone video he recorded telling the little girl she is cute and that he loved her.

A manslaughter conviction can lead to a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Flores-Romero will be sentenced at a future date.