Left to right: Donna Phillips and Onesimus Skywater (Curry County Detention Centers).
A New Mexico mother and father are behind bars for fatally abusing their 1-year-old baby boy, police say.
Onesimus Skywater, 33, and Donna Phillips, 22, each stand accused of child abuse resulting in death, according to Curry County jail records.
Both defendants were arrested and charged Wednesday after a lengthy investigation into the child”s death, the Clovis Police Department announced in a press release.
In November 2024, Calian Skywater was taken to the Plains Regional Medical Center in Clovis – a medium-sized city located about 9 miles due west of the New Mexico-Texas border. The child was eventually pronounced dead at the hospital and detectives were called.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Investigators immediately noted the presence of “extensive” bruising on Calian’s face, head, and arms, according to police.
Phillips allegedly accounted for her son’s bruises by saying the boy had engaged in “rough play with a sibling” and had also fallen from a high chair, according to the press release.
During the initial investigation into the boy’s death, police provided additional details about the alleged explanation offered by his mom.
“Calian had bruising to his forehead and face,” the original press release issued in December 2023 reads. “When asked about the injuries, the mother explained that Calian had fallen three days prior, causing these injuries. The mother told responding officers that Calian was seen by his pediatric physician for the injuries.”
The 9th Judicial Major Crimes Unit was later assigned to investigate the 12-month-old’s death.
But an initial autopsy by the state’s Office of the Medical Investigator suggested more than playing or falling was to blame, police claim.
The pathologist told investigators Calian had bruising on 70%-80% of his body and also noted additional trauma inflicted on the child’s head, according to the police department.
And, those injuries were likely caused in a relatively short time span.
Calian and his siblings were seized by the New Mexico Children Youth and Families Division around the time of Calian’s birth and placed in foster care, police said. The children were only returned to Phillips in October 2024 — weeks before the boy died.
In April, the victim’s final autopsy returned an “undetermined” cause of death but showed the boy suffered from “major blunt trauma” to his head as well as other physical injuries, police said.
On Sept. 8, law enforcement received the results of a review by a doctor who specializes in child abuse pediatrics. That report apparently did not bode well for Calian’s parents.
“Calian Skywater’s body showed multiple injuries that did not correspond with the statements provided by his parents,” the latest press release reads — before citing the specialist’s review. The doctor wrote: “totality of the findings present are diagnostic of fatal physical abuse inflicted upon Calian.”
Both defendants are currently being detained in the Curry County Detention Center without bond, jail records show.
The couple’s other children are now in the custody of a foster family, police said.
