ASHER DRAKE - 4 yo (7/2014) - / Charged: Father and Stepmother; Anthony Deon Dilworth and Kyrie Marie Kyle - Selmer TN

Affidavit: Woman pushed 4-year-old into dresser, left him

David Thomas
4:41 a.m. CDT August 5, 2014


Kyrie Marie Kyle

SELMER – A woman charged with the murder of a 4-year-old told investigators that she pushed the boy into a dresser and left him lying unconscious for about 30 minutes before checking on him, according to court documents.

Kyrie Marie Kyle, who is the girlfriend of 4-year-old Asher Drake's father, is charged with first-degree felony murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated assault and aggravated child neglect or endangerment.

Asher's father, Anthony Deon Dilworth, was not home at the time of incident. But Dilworth is charged with child abuse and child neglect/endangerment because of evidence of prior abuse found on the boy's body, authorities said Monday.

McNairy County Sheriff Guy Buck and District Attorney General Michael Dunavant said additional information is expected to come from the child's autopsy, which could elevate charges against the father.


Anthony Deon Dilworth

"We would have to prove (Dilworth) caused prior injury to the child," Dunavant said. "The severity (of the injury) caused by Ms. Kyle led to the death. We hope to learn more about the facts. The historical condition of the child — that's the basis of the charges for Mr. Dilworth, but we won't know until the full autopsy report."

An affidavit of complaint states that McNairy County 911 received a call from the couple's home at 337 Myrtle Road in Adamsville for a medical emergency on Wednesday.

"The child went to the emergency room (at McNairy Regional Hospital in Selmer)," Buck said. "(Kyle) said her child was having a seizure."

Hospital staff requested that an officer visit the emergency room to investigate possible child abuse.

During an interview with police, Kyle said she pushed Asher into a dresser inside the child's bedroom and then closed the door, leaving him unconscious on the floor, according to the affidavit.

Kyle stated she left the 4-year-old in his room for about 30 minutes before returning to check on him, the affidavit says. When she opened the door, Kyle told authorities, Asher had started "twitching" and throwing up.

Kyle told investigators that she called Dilworth to tell him what happened and that he told her to call 911.

Hospital staff told Buck and Investigator Robert Hitchborn that the child had multiple bruises and teeth marks on his body that had happened over a period of time. Following the head injury on Wednesday, the child was suffering from seizures and bleeding in his brain, the affidavit states.

Asher died at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis on Saturday after being on life support for several days, authorities said.

Kyle told Buck and Chief Deputy Allen Strickland that Dilworth had hit the child hard "all the time with his Crocs," which are a type of shoes, according to court documents. An affidavit also states that Dilworth told investigators that he had in the past hit Asher with his Crocs and his belt "to the point that he felt bad about it."

According to the affidavit, hospital staff said Asher had multiple bruises on his buttocks, chest and arms.

The affidavit also states that Kyle told investigators Asher bit her and that she bit him back, leaving a bruise.

"We knew the severity of the injuries, and how gravely he was injured," Buck said. "We interviewed the parents — actually the father and his girlfriend."

Buck declined to identify the child's mother, who authorities said is not involved in the case.

"We want to respect her privacy and security," Buck said. "She is now planning a funeral."

Kyle, 26, and Dilworth, 39, remain incarcerated at the McNairy County Justice Center. They were taken into custody last week.

Buck and District Attorney General Michael Dunavant announced at a news conference Monday that the charges against Kyle had been amended to include murder after the child's death on Saturday.

"The investigation in ongoing," Buck said. "We're recovering additional information, (and) there may be some additional witnesses. Right now, the father is facing Class D charges of child abuse."

If found guilty of the current charges, Dilworth could be sentenced to two to four years.

Dunavant said charges against Kyle include aggravated assault, a Class C felony, which carries a possible sentence of three to six years; Class A child abuse, 15 to 25 years; and first-degree murder, with a possible sentence of life without parole or death.

Their next court date is scheduled for Aug. 14. Kyle's bond is set at $1 million, and Dilworth's at $500,000.

A memorial including balloons, stuffed animals and a cross bearing the child's name has been placed outside the house in Adamsville.

Denise Hart made the drive from Reagan in Henderson County to Adamsville to pay her respects on Monday.

"I have grandchildren (ages) 4, 7 and 8, (and) I can't imagine," Hart said. "It's my understanding (the abuse) had been going on for a while."

Rick Bellinger has lived in two different homes on Myrtle Road for the last nine years but did not believe he ever saw Dilworth, Kyle or Asher.

"Never, never, ever in a million years I would believe something like that could happen to a kid," Bellinger said. "I didn't know they had kids; no signs."

David Thomas, 425-9637

http://www.jacksonsun.com/story/news/crime/2014/08/04/affidavit-woman-pushed-year-old-dresser-left/13609929/