A man from Las Vegas who admitted to causing the death of his then-girlfriend's 17-month-old son has been handed a sentence of up to five years on probation. The outcome followed prosecutors' concerns that they lacked sufficiently robust evidence to secure a conviction at trial.
A Plea Deal Amid Evidential Weaknesses
Christian Moniz Rabino, 29, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter over the death of toddler Kai Tesoro in November of last year, as confirmed by court transcripts. According to official records viewed by The Las Vegas Review-Journal, Rabino struck Kai on the head, shook him violently, or did both, leading to the child's tragic death on 6 June 2024.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Dena Rinetti explained in court that inconsistent accounts from witnesses, primarily from Kai's own mother, forced the prosecution to opt for a more lenient probation deal. The alternative was risking an acquittal at trial. 'In these cases, typically, there are no eyewitnesses in the true sense, and so you're relying upon caregivers to give the most accurate information,' Rinetti stated.
She highlighted particular worries about the mother, who provided three statements to police. In the first two, she claimed 'nothing happened,' only changing her story to implicate Rabino in the third interview after she herself became a suspect.
A Judge's Reluctant Sentence and a Grandfather's Anguish
Nevada's 8th Judicial District Court Judge, Jacqueline Bluth, visibly emotional, agreed to the probation sentence with clear reluctance. 'What happened to [Kai] should not have happened. I do not like this deal,' Judge Bluth said. She directly addressed Rabino, warning him that any violation of his probation terms would result in her imposing the maximum ten-year prison term for voluntary manslaughter. 'You will get one shot. You step sideways on this, and I will not bat an eye at sending you away for the maximum,' she cautioned.
The terms of Rabino's probation are strict: he is forbidden from consuming alcohol or drugs, having contact with minors (except his own child), and must adhere to a 10pm curfew. He is also required to complete a six-week anger management course and perform community service if he fails to secure full-time employment.
During the sentencing hearing, Kai's grandfather, Steven Tesoro, made a heartfelt plea for harsher punishment. 'We've got a person here that – we're talking a minuscule amount of time that they have to pay for taking the life of a one-and-a-half-year-old child,' Tesoro said. 'He had no voice... That's why I'm here today for him.'
The Tragic Sequence of Events
The case began when Las Vegas Metro Police responded to a call on 1 June 2024 concerning an unresponsive child, later identified as Kai Tesoro. The boy was rushed to Summerlin Hospital, where doctors discovered he had suffered multiple brain bleeds and a fractured leg, injuries possibly 'caused by a large amount of force'. Medical documents indicated one doctor described the suspected shaking as causing 'non-accidental trauma' to Kai's eyes, calling it 'one of the worst cases he had seen'.
Initially, both Rabino and Kai's mother told police the same story, claiming the toddler had a seizure and fell from his bed. Kai ultimately died from a massive stroke on 6 June 2024. An autopsy later revealed he also had older, unexplained injuries.
Rabino was arrested roughly a month after Kai's death and spent over a year in jail awaiting trial before accepting the plea agreement. Prosecutor Rinetti acknowledged the difficulty of the decision, stating she had to 'live with the facts of the case and what I can prove at trial,' noting the high risk for both sides if the case went before a jury.
