YAKIMA — A Yakima jury rejected a murder charge Tuesday but convicted a Sunnyside man of second-degree manslaughter in the death of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reported that Juan Balverde Lopez, 21, faces two to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced, with credit for nearly two years he has already been held in jail.
The boy died in Augusut 2010 while Balverde was baby-sitting three children when their mother was in a hospital.
Prosecutors said Balverde told police he might have struck the child in anger for lack of sleep. The defense lawyer said fatal injuries could have been caused by the boy’s 7-year-old sister jumping on him.
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