Father sentenced for biting, violently shaking, and killing his 2-month-old daughter 'out of frustration'

SPIRIT LAKE, Idaho (TCD) -- A judge recently sentenced a 24-year-old father to 50 years in prison for abusing and killing his 2-month-old daughter "out of frustration" in 2021.

The Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office announced Jan. 23 that a jury convicted Dyllan Towles of second-degree murder. After his conviction, Towles received his sentencing. He’ll be eligible for parole after 25 years.

Towles called 911 on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021, and reported that his 2-month-old child was not breathing. According to the prosecuting attorney’s office, law enforcement responded to the scene and located the victim on the floor unresponsive.

Officers performed lifesaving measures and noticed multiple injuries on the infant, including bruising to her cheek and right leg, as well as bite marks on her forearm, ankle, and below the knee. The child was rushed to the hospital, where she later died due to a head injury.

During an interview, Towles reportedly said the child had no marks on her body on Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021, and his daughter "began to sleep excessively" the next day. On the day of the 911 call, Towles reportedly stated the child seemed a little fussy in the morning, but later that day, his daughter would "look off to the side and not respond" when Towles tried snapping his fingers.

According to the prosecuting attorney’s office, Towles said he bit his daughter and also shook her violently around 20 times. He allegedly "played with her legs" in an attempt to get a response, but she "suddenly became unresponsive."

In December 2022, the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the infant sustained blunt force injuries to her head, neck, torso, and extremities, including fractures on the child’s rib, arm, shoulder, and both legs. The autopsy showed the child suffered new and old injuries.

Additionally, the child reportedly experienced a spinal cord injury and brain bleeding and swelling. At the time of the infant’s death, the prosecuting attorney’s office said she tested positive for COVID-19, so the medical examiner’s office could not confirm the exact cause of the brain bleed.

The prosecuting attorney’s office spoke with a professor of pediatrics from the University of Utah School of Medicine, as well as a forensic pathologist from the Washington State University School of Medicine, who determined the infant’s cause of death was not related to her COVID-19 diagnosis. Instead, they determined the child’s death was caused by abusive head trauma.

A grand jury indicted Towles of first-degree murder on July 6, 2023, and police arrested him later that day. After his arrest, Towles eventually confessed that he shook his daughter "because she would not eat and would not stop crying," according to the prosecuting attorney’s office.

At the sentencing hearing, Criminal Chief Deputy Prosecutor Laura McClinton argued the defendant should spend life in prison with parole eligibility after 30 years.

Towles was previously convicted of felony injury to a child in 2019 after it was discovered he engaged in a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl when he was 19. The prosecuting attorney’s office said Towles was on probation for the charge at the time of his daughter’s death.

MORE:

• Spirit Lake Man Sentenced to Prison for Murder of Infant Child - Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney's Office