Mother deliberately hurled 42-day-old baby to ground, leaving her terribly brain damaged, cops say

DAILYMAIL.COM • 1h ago

By WILKO MARTÍNEZ-CACHERO, US REPORTER 21:51 08 Oct 2026, updated 21:55 08 Oct 2026

A Nebraska mother allegedly caused her baby girl to suffer serious brain damage after slamming her daughter’s head against the floor of her home, police said.

Kayleigh Lowe, 20, is also accused of throwing her 42-day-old daughter in the air and squeezing her ribs at her Lincoln home, according to Lancaster County Court records obtained by KOLN.

That allegedly caused the girl, who was named as Hazel Marie Kae in social media posts, to suffer bleeding on both sides of her brain, as well as seven broken ribs.

Hazel was taken to a local hospital, Bryan Medical Center, and later transferred to Children’s Hospital in Omaha, about 60 miles northeast of Lincoln, on September 13.

A doctor at Children’s Hospital told law enforcement that Hazel had sustained permanent brain injuries, according to the outlet.

Cooper Miller, the little girl’s father, told the outlet that most of Hazel’s brain is full of fluid, which could take away her eyesight. Doctors believe that Hazel will survive the horrific injuries.

‘Her ribs are healing miraculously,’ Miller, also 20, said. ‘Her bruising is gone on her face. She’s so beautiful.’

Lowe was charged with intentional child abuse resulting in injury last Tuesday.

Miller said Lowe learned she was pregnant in late 2025 and that the pair had been in a relationship until the beginning of 2026.

He had stayed in touch with Lowe throughout her pregnancy, Miller said.

Lowe gave birth on August 20, according to her public Facebook profile.

She looked up ‘shaken baby syndrome’ on her phone on September 2, according to an arrest affidavit seen by the outlet.

The mother took Hazel to an emergency room eight days later but left against medical advice, police claimed.

Lowe told police that she was ‘having a hard time’ with her daughter, per court records cited by NTV.

She allegedly told law enforcement about instances in which she intentionally abused the newborn girl.

That also included hitting Hazel in the mouth, in addition to hitting her head on the floor, throwing her in the air and squeezing her ribs.

Lowe had also searched for ‘how much time are you charged for child murder?’ on her phone, according to the records seen by the outlet.

A GoFundMe started by Shavon Skelton, who said he was Miller’s hairstylist, said the father was ‘doing everything he can to be there’ for Hazel.

It added that Miller had not been able to see his baby girl prior to Lowe’s arrest.

‘Now he is trying to be present for Hazel and do right by her during the long road ahead,’ the fundraiser continued.

As of Thursday afternoon, the fundraiser had raised $330 of its initial $5,500 goal.

The money raised will go towards Miller’s trips from Hastings to Omaha so that he can see Hazel, as well as her hospital bills, rehabilitation and possible equipment needed.

On Thursday, Miller posted on Facebook that a caseworker had called him and said Hazel would be going to rehab.

Miller had said Tuesday that Hazel sustained ‘irreversible damage to her brain and brain matter,’ according to doctors.

He also added that her last name would soon be changed after receiving a call from Nebraska’s Department of Health and Human Services about the matter.

‘She is officially going to be a Miller!!!’ the dad posted, adding that it would hopefully happen the following day.

Miller also said that Hazel had been ‘doing better’ and that doctors would soon evaluate whether she would require rehabilitation.

He said he was ‘really hoping’ for that and that his daughter ‘could really, really, really use it right now given the fact of what she’s been through.’

The concerned father recalled the moment he found out what happened to his daughter.

‘The night I got that call I took work off the whole week,’ he told KOMO News. ‘I wasn’t going nowhere until I knew my little girl was okay.’

Lowe was arrested last Tuesday and booked into the Lancaster County Jail. She was arraigned the following day, with her bond set at $1 million.

The accused mom is set to return to court on November 5 at 10am local time.

The state is working to remove custody from Lowe, according to Nebraska DHHS filings seen by the outlet.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Lowe, Miller, Lincoln police and the Nebraska DHHS for comment.

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