New Haven baby sitter to serve 14 years in toddler’s death Boy, 19 months, died of blunt-force trauma; parents also charged in case

Kinjal Patel Kinjal Patel Photo: Journal Register Co. Photo: Journal Register Co. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close New Haven baby sitter to serve 14 years in toddler’s death 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

NEW HAVEN >> A baby sitter charged with causing the death of a toddler was found guilty to first-degree manslaughter in exchange for an agreement by which she will serve 14 years in prison.

Kinjal Patel, 29, is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 29 in the death of Athiyan Sivakumar, who was 19 months old when he died at Yale-New Haven Hospital Jan. 19, 2014. His injuries occurred three days earlier while he was under Patel’s care at her apartment on Middletown Avenue.

The office of the chief state medical examiner ruled the child’s death a homicide and that the cause of death was blunt-force trauma with multiple sites of impact.

Patel’s attorney, Kevin Smith, said she pleaded under the Alford doctrine, in which a defendant does not admit guilt but concedes there is enough evidence to likely secure a conviction at trial. Such a plea results in a finding of guilt by the court. Smith maintained the boy’s death was an accident.

“There was zero intent on her part to harm this child,” Smith said. “This was a horrible, tragic accident, probably due to her lack of experience with small children and not knowing how to handle these types of situations.”

Smith added, “The physical evidence (if the case had come to trial) would not show a plan or thought on her part. It was just split-second reactions with unintended but tragic consequences.”

But according to the police warrant, Patel told police several versions of what had occurred before ultimately stating that after the toddler gave Patel a hard time about eating rice and spat water in her face, Patel picked up the boy and slammed his feet onto the kitchen floor about three times, then shook his head back and forth. The warrant quoted her saying she then pushed the boy in the face and he fell backward, hitting his head.

The prosecutor in the case, Assistant State’s Attorney Stacey Miranda, declined to comment on what had occurred in the apartment or to say why she signed off on the sentencing agreement. She said she will talk in detail about the case during the sentencing hearing.

Under the agreement, the second charge, risk of injury to a minor, will be dropped.

Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Clifford will impose a 20-year sentence, to be suspended after Patel serves 14 years. She also will serve five years’ probation. Smith said that since Patel is not a U.S. citizen, he expects federal immigration officials at that point will detain her and she will be deported to India.

If the case had gone to trial, Smith said, he would have brought in a “short fall expert” to explain to the jury that the boy’s injuries could have been suffered by falling a short distance.

But Smith said Patel accepted the plea proposal because “the risk of conviction at trial was great. The probability of a high sentence (more than with the plea deal) was overwhelming.”

Smith noted Patel potentially could have received a sentence of up to 30 years if she had been convicted on first-degree manslaughter and risk of injury.

Smith said he would have faced “the hurdle” of a statement to police by Patel’s downstairs neighbor that she heard four to five bangs on her ceiling and a baby crying. The neighbor said she then saw the boy’s parents drive up and run upstairs. She said she saw the mother carry the boy’s limp body out of the house.

Smith said jurors likely would have thought about Patel that “she must have done something” to the boy.

In addition to wanting to avoid a long sentence, Smith said Patel “was adamant she didn’t want to put the victim’s family through a trial.”

The boy’s parents also face charges in the case. The father, Sivakumar Mani, 35, and the mother, Thenmozhi Rajendran, 26, both of 77 Weybosset St., have been charged with risk of injury to a child and interfering with an officer.

They were charged because they allegedly lied to detectives about what happened the night their boy was injured. Rajendran allegedly told police initially that she was taking care of her son when she noticed his breathing was abnormal. Then she reportedly said he had fallen while reaching for a doorknob. Mani allegedly backed up his wife’s “abnormal breathing” story.

In addition, police said the boy had been brought to the hospital Dec. 24, 2013, because of facial injuries. Hospital officials notified staffers at the state Department of Children and Families that it was a possible risk-of-injury case. A subsequent DCF investigation led to the finding the boy had also been under Patel’s care on that day in December.

The parents then signed an agreement with DCF barring them from using baby sitters until DCF assessed the December incident.

The attorney for the parents, Charles Tiernan III, said Tuesday he is discussing their cases with Miranda and so he does not want to comment on the allegations.

“Hopefully, between now and the sentencing we can work this out,” Tiernan said.

Call Randall Beach at 203-680-9345.