Baylen Pendergast's injuries that caused his 2013 death ruled non-accidental by coroner

Baylen Pendergast's family, including his father and grandparents, travelled from Tamworth to sit in a Sydney courtroom on Friday morning and watch the findings be delivered, almost 10 years on from his death.

Deputy State Coroner Derek Lee found Baylen's death was not an accident, or a fall from the bed at a Westdale home, but that he suffered complications of blunt head injuries likely by two separate acts.

The inquest heard Baylen - who the family have given permission for the Leader to name - would have been more than 10 years old now but his family "still miss him" everyday.

Mr Lee found the "application of significant non-accidental force" caused the death, which was not the result of misadventure, but he couldn't say at the hands of who, or how he was injured.

READ ALSO:

He told the family in court - as well as the two Oxley detectives that investigated the suspicious death - that the "mechanism" in which the significant force "was applied ... cannot be established" on the available evidence before him.

The 22-month-old boy died in Sydney's Children's Hospital in Randwick on November 30, 2013, from complications from his head injuries, which Mr Lee said likely occurred after a traumatic event days before.

Mr Lee "offered his deepest sympathies" to the family and said "Baylen had enormous love" for his family members, and "their love cannot be measured".

He said it was "truly heartbreaking to know that his life ended" prematurely because of the blunt force trauma injuries he suffered, that were not accidental.

No one has been charged in connection to Baylen's death, but the inquest - which started in Tamworth - was suspended in 2018 when Mr Lee referred the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) because he "formed the opinion" on the evidence he had heard and seen that a known person had committed an offence.

He said on Friday, the evidence then showed a properly instructed jury would be satisfied that "a known person had committed an indictable offence".

In 2020, the DPP advised criminal proceedings would not be commenced against any known person, the inquest heard.

Mr Lee praised the "resilience and dignity that Baylen's family" had shown; and acknowledged the drawn out delays into the investigation and examination of his death were "traumatic, burdensome" for his family, who had a "hole in their hearts caused by his absence".

The inquest heard Baylen was a "bright and intelligent little boy" who was "very advanced" for his age. He loved "being out and about" everyday; loved animals, cars and trucks; had a special relationship with Axel the family dog; and "brought enormous joy" to his family.

Mr Lee said it was clear Baylen "had a wonderful ability to bring a smile" to everyone.

Mr Lee said Baylen's injuries were not witnessed, but were not consistent with falling from a standing height on the bed, rather a forceful blow.

"The precise mechanism of the injury ... cannot be determined," he told the inquest on Friday.

He said the trauma Baylen suffered in November, 2013 "was of sufficient severity"; caused him to lose consciousness and was "not accidental" but rather "the result of application of interpersonal force".

Mr Lee said the "mechanism of how this force was applied" cannot be established on the evidence before him.

The inquest - which resumed last year - examined the cause and nature of the injuries to Baylen; the care and treatment he was given at Tamworth hospital; and the time between his injuries and his death.

He said doctors in Tamworth were told some of his injuries were from an "unwitnessed fall" but he said further consideration should have been given to notifying child protection authorities.

In his findings, Mr Lee made a number of recommendations to the chief executive of Hunter New England health that "urgent consideration for prioritisation" for staff in emergency and paediatrics at Tamworth hospital to complete child protection training; and that handouts for parents of children presenting with head injuries to be given fact sheets of symptoms and signs to watch out for when they left hospital.

He also made recommendations to NSW Health.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: