Aaron Archer has been found guilty of manslaughter in relation to the death of his former girlfriend's two-year-old daughter Ariah Roberts in Mangawhai last year.
Archer was on trial at the Auckland High Court charged with her murder, with the Crown alleging he inflicted a fatal head injury on Roberts while he looked after her in August 2018.
- Jury begin their deliberations in the trial of Aaron Archer, accused of killing Mangawhai 2yo
- Ariah Roberts' mother accused of lying to 'protect' former partner Aaron Archer, who allegedly killed the 2yo
- Tensions high as Ariah Roberts' grandmother says 2yo was 'covered in bruises' days before death
The decision by the jury was by a majority - not unanimous.
Pathology records show Ariah Roberts died of a catastrophic brain injury, and had at least 20 bruises on her head.
The defence maintains Archer had been spinning Roberts around playfully when he lost grip and the child hit her head on the wall and then fell to the ground. Defence lawyer Ron Mansfield said two of the most significant bruises were the result of this accident.
Mansfield said Roberts already had multiple bruises on her head prior to her death, with her mother and grandmother attributing them to the toddler's habit of hitting her head against her cot.
He also urged the jury to consider Archer's behaviour on the night of the Roberts' death, describing his vomiting, crying and distressed conversations as the reaction of an innocent man.
"This was an accident. Something that doesn't happen every day but sadly happened to Ariah. And one that this man will have to live with for the rest of his life," Mansfield said on Tuesday.
Roberts' maternal grandmother gave testimony during the trial that there had been bruises on the child's head days before the tragedy.
But the Crown prosecutor, Brian Dickey, said Archer's explanation was unbelievable, questioning if someone would swing a child around in a small living room like in the couple's Mangawhai residence.
He said expert witnesses believed it was also highly unlikely many of the bruises came from the child being clumsy, as some were in protected areas - like behind the ears.
Dickey also said Archer's story was inconsistent, and he had changed it five times on the night of Ariah's death.
"Does that suggest the truth is something far worse than what he's cobbled together?"
The jury have been deliberating since Tuesday afternoon.
Newshub.
