Dionne Batrice Grills (pictured), 34, fronted the Cairns Magistrates Court on Tuesday. She is charged with one count of manslaughter over the death of a three-year-old boy
A toddler who died after being left on a daycare centre bus in stifling heat was sitting in a child restraint just two seats away from the vehicles front door.
The three-year-old boy was found dead in his car seat last Tuesday afternoon at Edmonton, near Cairns in Queensland, six hours after he was first loaded onto the minibus by Michael Glenn Lewis and his colleague Dionne Batrice Grills.
Bus driver and child care director Lewis, 44, and worker Grills, 35, both faced the Cairns Magistrates Court on Tuesday, charged with manslaughter.
Inside the courtroom shocking details of their alleged crimes were revealed, including a distressing Triple-0 call made by Lewis – the manager of the Goodstart Early Learning Centre at Edmonton.
The shattered family (pictured) of the young boy was in Cairns Magistrates Court and heard the shocking details of their love one’s final moments
Police prosecutor Senior Sergeant Maynard Marcum told the court harrowing details about how the boy had allegedly been put in a child restraint just two seats away from the driver and front door.
Yet when the minibus being driven by Lewis arrived at the daycare centre, he and his colleague Grills left the vehicle – but did not take the boy with them.
He allegedly spent the next six hours sweltering inside the bus as the mercury rose to 36C.
At 2.45pm, Lewis returned to the bus to begin the afternoon drop off run, but the court heard it wasn’t until 3pm that he discovered the lifeless boy.
He then called Triple-0 and said: ‘I’ve left a child on the bus… my life is over’.
‘Oh my God, this kid is dead,’ Mr Lewis could be heard saying on the recording.
I’m going to jail, this is all my fault… my life is over
‘Oh my God, I’m the director of the childcare centre… the child was left on the bus all day.
‘I’ve just opened up the bus and he’s here, dead… I’m so sorry buddy.
‘I’m going to jail, this is all my fault. Oh my God. My whole life is over.’
The court also heard allegations that Mr Lewis and Ms Grills had ‘fraudulently’ signed in the young boy more than two hours before the bus arrived at the daycare centre.
Ms Grills (pictured) is charged with manslaughter over the tragic death of a three-year-old boy at Edmonton Goodstart Early Learning Centre on February 18
The grim discovery was made on Stokes Street, Edmonton, in Far North Queensland, at 3.15pm on Tuesday. Pictured: the scene where police are investigating
Police allege that the boy had been signed in by Mr Lewis at 7.35am last Tuesday on the Goodstart Early Learning Centre’s electronic sign-in system.
However, the boy was not collected from his home by the bus until 9.15am, and CCTV footage showed the bus did not arrive at the daycare site until 9.33am.
‘But the defendant and co-accused failed to remove the boy from the bus,’ Police Prosecutor Senior Sergeant Maynard Marcum told the court, The Courier Mail reports.
‘In a short trip it was forgotten that the three-and-a-half year old deceased child was strapped into a seat in the bus.
‘There wasn’t even a cursory glance.’
Police will allege that Mr Lewis – who was granted bail by the Magistrates Court – was obtaining taxpayer-funded benefits as part of the ‘fraudulent’ sign-in process.
Earlier on Tuesday his colleague Ms Grills – who had worked at the daycare centre for less than a month – also faced court.
Police allege Ms Grills was on the bus with Mr Lewis for the morning run, before the centre manager made the grim discovery when he returned to the vehicle later that afternoon.
The court heard that Ms Grills had been employed at the daycare centre for less than a month when the incident occurred.
Ms Grills was granted strict conditional bail and is forbidden from contacting her ex- colleagues, her co-accused or the dead child’s family, except through her lawyers.
The boy was found in a bus outside Hambledon State School, just 1.7km from his daycare, Goodstart Early Learning, in Edmonton (pictured)
She was ordered to return to court on March 18.
The shattered family of the young boy was in court for the brief hearing.
A relative told the ABC they were ‘distraught’ about what had happened and called the young victim a ‘cheerful little boy’.
He was just a cheerful little boy, that’s what I remember of him
Thomas Namok, a relative of the boy
‘We’re all distraught at the moment. We just can’t believe this has happened. We just want answers,’ Thomas Namok said.
‘The last few days have just been terrible but everyone [in the family] will continue to support each other.
‘He was just a cheerful little boy … we would always laugh every time he’s around. That’s what I remember of him. It’s going to be sad he’s not going to be around anymore.’
Queensland Police detective acting inspector Jason Smith said he hoped to provide some ‘answers’ for the family.
Detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the child’s death
‘Her position as an employee of Goodstart Early Learning puts an element of responsibility upon her, and that forms part of the circumstances before the court,’ Det Act Insp Smith said.
‘The family are suitably distressed and very upset about this, and hopefully now that the matter is before the court they will get the answers that they need.’
A spokesman for Goodstart Early Learning, which operated the bus, previously told Daily Mail Australia the company was ‘devastated’ to learn of the child’s death.
‘We are working to support the entire centre team, our families and our children,’ the spokesman said.
‘The matter is now a police investigation and we will be working with the police, Department of Education (childhood education and care), and Workplace health and Safety.
‘Our thoughts are very much with the family of the child at this time.’
The centre was closed on the day after the tragedy, with an ominous sign in its car park reading ‘do not leave babies and children in parked cars’.