The man accused of pushing an 89-year-old woman from behind on Yonge Street, leading to her sudden death, at the start of last year has been found guilty of manslaughter.
Ryan Cunneen, from Toronto, pushed Xiaoxia Wang, 89, while she was walking in the downtown core on Jan. 20, 2023.
After a judge-alone trial in June, Superior Court Justice Rita-Jean Maxwell told a Toronto courtroom on Tuesday that the Crown had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the offence was not an accident, but rather an assault.
Maxwell found Cunneen, who was running at top speed, deliberately put his two hands on Wang’s upper back and pushed her, causing her to fall to the ground where her face hit the pavement with significant force to cause her head to snap backyards.
The post-mortem found the cause of death to be hyperextension neck trauma due to blue force facial trauma causing spinal cord and brain damage, leading to her sudden death.
Court heard that Wang was in remarkably good health for someone who was 89 years old, other than hearing loss which was treated with hearing aids.
Cunneen testified in his own defence that he was having a difficult day and was feeling stressed out so he decided to sprint up Yonge Street from King Street to Adelaide Street, Having years of experience as a runner who could, at his best, run the 100-metre dash in under 10 seconds, he said running helped his stress. The sidewalk seemed clear, though he testified there were people walking with bags but he was able to avoid them.
He said he didn’t see Wang until the last minute and described how she abruptly turned at a sharp 90-degree angle and at the speed he was running, there was no way to avoid her. He testified he put his hands up as a reflex to avoid falling and collapsing with the elderly woman.
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Cunneen testified he kept running because Wang was probably hurt. She was smaller than him and he was fearful paramedics and police would arrive and he would get in “big trouble”. He believed he heard the fall and accepted he stumbled over her body but kept running up Yonge Street and didn’t look back, saying it was out of his control and there was nothing he could do to help her.
Justice Maxwell found Cunneen’s recollection inconsistent with video evidence which showed the then-37-year-old running northbound along the westbound sidewalk. She also said she had concerns about the reliability and, in some instances, the credibility of his evidence. “I don’t accept that she veered in front of him nor that he pushed her as a sudden reflex.”
Maxwell also rejected his evidence that he didn’t see Wang on the sidewalk and could not avoid a collision with her. “He could have adjusted his trajectory and passed her on the right side even if he was running at a high rate of speed. Further, there was room on the left as well,” the judge said.
She also pointed out that that his lack of hesitation and continuing to run north on Yonge Street, including his failure to pause or look back to see what happened, is relevant to his evidence that the contact was accidental. “One would expect someone to hesitate before continuing on when they do something accidentally.”
The judge did find Cuneen’s testimony credible that he was having a difficult day and was stressed out and was running up Yonge Street to alleviate stress. “I accept he was frustrated by Ms. Wang. He may have perceived her to be in his way, not because she veered into his way only because she was on the sidewalk, impeding his way.”
Just five minutes before the fatal assault, Cunneen was captured on video surveillance at a Subway restaurant on Church Street. He can be seen speaking to a clerk while holding a brick in his hand behind his back. The clerk testified at trial that Cunneen asked what she was selling and when was closing time. She thought it was strange and said after she turned her back to the door, she heard a loud sound. Video captured Cunneen throwing a brick at the exterior window of the store before walking away. He appeared to be shouting and gesturing. At the close of the Crown’s case, Cunneen admitted his guilt to the charge of mischief.
A minute later, surveillance video captures Cunneen on Colbourne Street approaching a parking enforcement vehicle, opening the driver’s side door
The police takedown was also captured on body-worn camera footage shown in court. Police Const. Minchin can be seen approaching Cunneen, who matches a photograph of the suspect. Cunneen can be heard saying, “Put your hands in your pocket and we’ll go for a walk to the courthouse, OK?” Cunneen then walks away before the officer can be heard asking for backup on her radio. Moments later after a short foot pursuit, he is taken down to the ground and placed under arrest.
Crown prosecutors said they would be seeking an application for an NCR (not criminally responsible) assessment, telling the court “there are reasonable ground to doubt Cunneen was criminally responsible at the time of the offence”.
At first, defence lawyer Maureen Addie said Cunneen vehemently opposed the application, but after a recess and speaking with her client, told court the defence would be consenting to the NCR assessment.
Maxwell ordered an NCR assessment. If a forensic psychiatrist finds Cunneen is NCR and suffered from a mental disorder at the time of the manslaughter, he could be exempt from criminal responsibility and would be ordered to be treated in a psychiatric facility.
Cunneen will return to court on Aug. 9 to set a date for a sentencing hearing.
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