‘Force of a car’: Forensics casts doubt on claim Chinchilla toddler Kaydence Mills fell to her death

The forensic examination of a two-year-old girl’s remains, who was allegedly tortured and killed by her parents in Regional Queensland, has cast doubt on her stepdad’s claim that “she fell”.

Kaydence Mills, Tane Desatge

WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are warned that the following article contains images of the deceased.

During the murder trial of Chinchilla toddler Kaydence Mills, the court heard a fracture to her skull required force equal to that of a child being hit by a car.

The two-year-old’s mother Sinitta Dawita and her stepfather Tane Desatge pleaded not guilty to murder and torture before the Toowoomba Supreme Court in July.

The pair pleaded guilty to moving the child’s body from their home to the Chinchilla Weir where she was buried, sometime between February and May 2017, which was recovered in 2020 after Tane confessed to undercover detectives.

He told detectives when he came home from paying the pokies, Dawita told him Kaydence was unwell after falling downstairs.

The father of 11 said he never hit the child, however during the weeks-long trial before a judge, Crown prosecutor Michael Lehane said he often beat her with a bamboo stick, and Dawita her hands.

Mr Lehane alleged Kaydence was malnourished, ostracised, fed her faeces, and left to sleep alone and naked in her filth in a bathroom.

On day seven of the trial on July 30, two forensic doctors said Kaydence’s skeletal remains showed a healing fracture to one rib, and a fracture at the base of the skull, however, whether it occurred before or after death was unknown.

The front steps of 10 Inverai Road, Chinchilla which were one of three sets of stairs shown to the court. Pictures: Peta McEachern

Forensic pediatrician and expert witness Dr Catherine Skellern said a child could survive the skull injury if medical treatment is provided.

Dr Skellern said the fracture occurred at the “skull vault” where a ring of bones surrounds the space where the spinal cord and brain connect.

She said the injury could be caused by severe impact to the area or high impact to the top of one’s head, and a significant amount of force was needed for that section of the skull to break.

“In the context of injuries that might be seen in a pediatric children’s hospital that I work in, it might be a car versus pedestrian as an example as there is a high level of acceleration, momentum, and impact causing the base of the skull to fracture,” she said.

Kaydence Hazel Mills should be turning 10 in September 2024.

Crown prosecutor Lehane showed Dr Skellern three sets of photographs of concrete stairs, between two to three steps, which were at the Chinchilla property.

Dr Skellern said if a child were to fall down those stairs, they would not sustain that type of skull fracture as the height was not sufficient enough to generate the force and impact needed.

“We don’t see those skull fractures in the context of domestic accidents,” she said.

After the machinery nicked and tore the top layer of the garbage bags, the body was retrieved manually. Picture: Chinchilla Weir crime scene

When questioned by Desatge’s Barrister, Frank Martin, if the skull fracture could be caused by a child being pushed with great force backward down the stairs, Dr Skellern said it was possible.

Mr Martin also asked if a person could inflect enough force with their hand to cause that fracture to which she said it was less likely, however she could not rule it out.

She said a child may die instantly after sustaining the fracture or die within a few days, however, the child would show symptoms of a brain injury as the brain swelled and compressed.

When questioned by Dawita’s Barrister, David Jones KC if symptoms may include a child’s eyes rolling into the back of their head or respiratory issue, Dr Skellern said yes.

Dr Skellern also said a child would likely lose consciousness or have seizures as a result.

An old outhouse was excavated after a cadaver dog scented human remains at the little girl’s home on the corner of Inverai Rd and Burbank St in Chinchilla on the Western Downs in December 2019. Pictures: Peta McEachern

Barrister Jones KC asked both Dr Skellern and forensic anthropologist Dr Beng Beng Ong if the rib and skull injuries could have been caused by Kaydence being forcefully hit with a bamboo stick, and they said yes.

Dr Ong also said other than direct blunt force trauma, there were a number of scenarios of indirect trauma that could lead to the skull fracture which included the head being pulled forward or backward.

When Desatge told undercover detectives about Kaydence’s last hours, he said she was unresponsive, struggled to breathe, and her eyes were rolled back into her head.

The court heard forensics showed Kaydence’s body was in a foetal position before being bound in a white floral sheet.

The body was then wrapped in five layers of black garbage bags, some of which were taped together.

The trial continues.

Originally published as ‘Force of a car’: Forensics casts doubt on claim Chinchilla toddler Kaydence Mills fell to her death