At first, witnesses mistook 2-year-old Qadan Trievel's body for a doll.
The toddler was unresponsive, laying among broken car parts, after he was thrown from his father's SUV. Moments earlier, the vehicle had rolled over along Route 13 in Tullytown, Bucks County.
As Qadan's father, Christopher Kuhn, climbed out of the Jeep he was driving, witnesses and police allege that Kuhn looked at his son's broken body from afar, but never came to the boy's aid.
Instead, Kuhn ran for a wooded area in an attempt to flee police for a petty theft he wasn't being pursued for. Qadan never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead a short time later.
The graphic details of the boy's death were shared inside a Bucks County courtroom Tuesday afternoon as prosecutors outlined a case for third degree murder, homicide by vehilce, theft, and newly approved drug charges against the 27-year-old during a preliminary hearing.
The Oct. 3 crash, which happened when Kuhn ran a red light, was a deadly conclusion to the theft of a TV sound bar from Walmart at the Levittown Town Center, police said.
Kuhn grabbed the $288 electronic device following an argument with store security and ran to his Jeep. Witnesses testified that they didn't see Kuhn strap Qadan into a car seat before he sped away.
Police were called to the superstore, but never pursued Kuhn. When they arrived at the crash scene, they chased Kuhn into the woods. He was taken into custody after resisting arrest, police said.
They performed CPR on Qadan until paramedics arrived. The boy's mother, Mackenzy Trievel, left court as officers outlined his injuries.
Officers testified that Kuhn refused to give them Qadan's name as they worked to save the boy's life. The father cried quietly, with his head in his chest, as testimony carried on.
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Toxicology results later showed Kuhn was high on oxycodone and marijuana when the theft and crash happened. The test results led prosecutors to add driving under the influence charges to the case.
Magisterial district court Judge Robert Wagner, Jr. held Kuhn for trial on all charges. He remains in the Bucks County Prison on $5 million cash bail.
