People v. Rolon

Anthony Lopez and Sylvia Torres Rolon (defendant) had six children together, including one-year-old Isaac. A court order prohibited Lopez from visiting Rolon’s apartment or having unsupervised contact with their children. Despite the court order, Lopez stayed at Rolon’s apartment for about a week until one evening around 6:00 or 7:00 p.m., Rolon saw Lopez put Isaac in a tub full of water and chemicals and then throw Isaac against a wall. Lopez then slept until around midnight; Rolon stayed up to watch Isaac. At about 2:00 a.m., Lopez punched Isaac in the chest, and Rolon told Lopez to leave Isaac alone. Lopez told Rolon to shut up. Around 6:00 a.m., Lopez told Rolon to go to bed and that he would take care of Isaac. Rolon went to bed. About one hour later, Lopez woke Rolon and told her Isaac was not breathing. Rolon and Lopez tried and failed to revive Isaac. Lopez told Rolon not to use the phone because “they’re going to take all the kids away,” and they kept their other children in Rolon’s apartment all day. Lopez left the apartment with Isaac’s body at 7:00 a.m. the next morning. Police later arrested Lopez and discovered Isaac’s body in Lopez’s van. An autopsy revealed that Isaac suffered from 24 blunt-force injuries, a lethal amount of children’s medicine, and suffocation. The jury did not believe Rolon’s duress defense at trial and instead convicted her of aiding and abetting a crime and second-degree murder. Rolon appealed, arguing that the trial court incorrectly instructed the jury that she could be liable based on her failure to protect her child from harm.