Man convicted in 3-year-old’s killing

PROVIDENCE—A man who struck his girlfriend’s 3-year-old nephew because he blamed the toddler for making a mess in his apartment was convicted Thursday of second-degree murder in a case that led to a review of Rhode Island’s foster care system.

Delestre, 27, testified that he hit Thomas “T.J.“ Wright on the head in 2004, causing the child to flip backward down a staircase and lose consciousness. But he said he did not intend to kill the boy, and had asked jurors to convict him of manslaughter instead of murder.

The jury deliberated for more than one day before returning the verdict. Delestre also was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, plus 10 years, when sentenced.

Prosecutors said Delestre and his girlfriend, Katherine Bunnell, took turns beating the toddler early on Oct. 30, 2004, after they returned from a night out drinking and found a mess of eggs, yogurt, milk and feces in the living room and kitchen of their Woonsocket apartment.

The 32-pound toddler was pulled off life support the following day and died of brain injuries and internal bleeding.

Delestre testified that he tried but failed to catch the boy as he fell down the stairs and then lied to police by blaming the teenage babysitter.

Bunnell - who blamed Delestre for inflicting Wright’s fatal injuries - was convicted in May of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. She’ll be eligible for parole in under 25 years.

Wright and his two brothers were placed with the couple because their mother was in prison out of state. The state was processing the couple’s license as foster parents when the death occurred.

“What a tragedy for everybody,“ Delestre’s attorney, Robert Mann, told reporters after the verdict, adding that his client was remorseful and had taken responsibility.

Mann said he was relieved Delestre was acquitted of first-degree murder but had hoped for a lesser manslaughter conviction. Delestre and his attorney have not decided whether to appeal.

Attorney General Patrick Lynch said in a written statement that he was disappointed by the verdict because it “does not adequately address the depth of his involvement or the darkness of his crime.“

The case sparked a review of Rhode Island’s foster care system and is cited in a pending federal lawsuit alleging that children in state custody have been sexually abused, assaulted and shuttled from home to home.

The head of the state Department of Children, Youth and Families, which was criticized for the boy’s death and its night-to-night placement of foster children, was replaced by the governor in January 2005.

A state panel that investigated the death concluded the state should never have placed the boys with Bunnell and Delestre, who each had juvenile records, were unemployed and were already raising their own two children.

“It was a tragedy waiting to happen,“ said Jametta Alston, the state’s child advocate, whose office convened the panel.

The panel report identified at least five missed opportunities to protect Wright. It also offered 15 recommendations, such as reducing caseworkers’ workloads and conducting thorough background checks before foster children are placed with relatives.

Alston said there have been improvements in the foster care system, but flaws remain.

“I sit at my desk and wonder if this will ever happen again,“ she said.