Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

By Tatiana Pina
Journal staff writer

PROVIDENCE -- The murder trial of Gilbert Delestre, who is accused of beating his girlfriend's nephew to death, wrapped up early today. Testimony of the medical examiner who conducted the child's autopsy is expected tomorrow.

Retired Woonsocket Police Detective Sgt. Todd Brien finished giving testimony in Superior Court about the videotaped interview he conducted with Delestre, 27, who is charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy for the beating death of 3-year-old Thomas "T.J." Wright.

Prosecutors say Delestre and Katherine Bunnell inflicted such a beating on T.J., after getting home Oct. 30, 2004 and finding a mess in their living room in Woonsocket, that he suffered broken bones, bruises and head injuries so severe his brain shifted inside his skull. He died Oct. 31. Bunnell was convicted of second-degree murder in May and was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole.

A day before T.J. died, Delestre, who had been uncooperative with other police officers, spoke with Brien, whom he had gotten to know through a police basketball league Brien was running years earlier. In the interview held at police headquarters, Delestre admitted he hit T.J. and that the child fell down the stairs.

According to a typed transcript of the interview, Delestre says, "...then we went upstairs, like I was walking away from him upstairs and then I tapped him in the head and he like fell like 6 stairs down, and he fell backwards, so then I, I went over, I see him and then he like he got unconscious right away. I put him upstairs, you know, I was talking to him, he was looking at me, everything; you know he, he said, I told him to say something, you know. He said 'yes', you know."

I didn't mean it you know, it's to tap him in the head or nothing, its just I was mad, I just tapped him, and he just fell backwards..."

"I was trying to catch him, you know, but I was drunk," he told Brien.

Brien asks him if he threw T.J. when he was downstairs as baby sitter Kayla Roderick, 19, alleged. Delestre said no.

Delestre is expected to take the stand Wednesday. Judge Netti C. Vogel told jurors they would be dismissed early Wednesday and that they would not meet Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. She said she expected the case to conclude on Dec. 2 followed by their deliberations.

 Tags  Gilbert Delestre murder trial T.J. Wright

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