Child killer Warren Ross subjected a two-year-old girl to prolonged abuse, but her murder was not the worst case in a technical sense, a court has heard.
And according to his defence team, he wasn't the only person who could have rescued Tanilla Warrick-Deaves and rushed her to hospital after she suffered fatal head injuries.
The 31-year-old was found guilty of murdering two-year-old Tanilla by subjecting her to prolonged abuse in her Watanobbi home on NSW's Central Coast in August 2011.
During a sentencing hearing on Friday, Ross's defence barrister Sarah McNaughton SC submitted the crime was not the worst case in a technical sense.
She urged the judge to take into account that Ross was not in a position of parent and Tanilla's mother Donna Deaves was present during the incident.
Ross had been in a relationship with Deaves.
"When the child was injured, the offender wasn't the only person who could have rescued the child and taken her to hospital," Ms McNaughton told the NSW Supreme Court.
Deaves gave evidence during Ross's trial of watching him inflict the fatal injuries to Tanilla on August 25 2011, including banging her head against a shower door.
Ms McNaughton said Deaves was the final source of protection for the child.
She submitted the episode leading up to Tanilla's death was unplanned, not premeditated, and a loss of control.
However, the crown argued the judge should take into account other events Ross inflicted on Tanilla before her death.
That included Ross forcing Tanilla to run laps of the lounge room in an attempt to toilet-train her.
Crown Prosecutor Eric Balodis said the crime was not an instantaneous and spontaneous event that occurred on one day.
A psychiatrist told the court there had not been a significant change in Ross's behaviour since he stopped using cannabis and he had violent outbursts in police custody.
Ross will be sentenced on May 30.
Share
