The father of a seven-month-old baby boy who drowned in a lake at a popular camping spot has been identified as he is charged over the child’s death.
Jaye Lee Walton, 42, did not appear in Ipswich Magistrates Court on Wednesday when his case was first heard.
His defence lawyer Mark Butler indicated that his client could make a bail application when the matter returns to court on Thursday.
He told Magistrate Robert Walker he would need to determine whether Walton was entitled to bail or would need to show cause for his release.
‘It’s a discussion with (the prosecutor’s) office about a point of law issue, whether (Walton) finds himself in a show-cause position and if agreement can be reached on that point,’ Mr Butler said.
‘I anticipate an application for bail will be made tomorrow.’
Walton will remain in custody for a second night and will appear in court on Thursday.
He was charged with manslaughter (domestic violence) on Tuesday, three days after the boy was pulled from the water at a campsite near Gympie on Saturday morning.
Jaye Lee Walton (pictured during his arrest) was charged with manslaughter on Tuesday
Walton was charged over the death of his seven-month-old son near a campsite on Saturday (the site is pictured cordoned off with police tape)
Emergency services raced to the Chatsworth Park campsite (pictured) on Saturday morning
Multiple witnesses, including the boy’s mother, performed CPR before the toddler was rushed to Gympie Hospital, where he died later that night.
A makeshift memorial dedicated to ‘Joey’ has been set up at the Chatsworth site.
‘RIP little one,’ a large banner decorated with a child’s foot and handprints reads.
Police have released footage of Walton’s arrest in the Ipswich suburb of Bundamba, 213km away from the campground.
The footage showed heavily armed police storming into a home and leading Walton out in handcuffs.
He was seen sitting outside the front door having a cigarette before being bundled into a police vehicle.
Acting Police Commissioner Shane Chelepy earlier this week described the baby’s death as ‘absolutely tragic’.
‘My heart really does go out to everyone involved in that, including the emergency workers and the police that had to attend that job,’ he told ABC Radio.
Jaye Lee Walton (pictured being arrested on Tuesday) is expected to apply for bail
Walton was arrested at a home in the Ipswich suburb of Bundamba, 213km from the campsite
Police revealed earlier that the boy’s family was passing through on their way back to far north Queensland when they camped at Chatsworth Park, about 50metres from the water’s edge on Friday night.
The mother found her baby unresponsive in the lake the following morning and raised the alarm. She was unable to explain how the baby ended up in the water.
‘The mother of the child did retrieve this child from the water. It’s been a very traumatic experience for her, clearly,’ Detective Inspector Craig Mansfield said.
A post-mortem was carried out on the baby’s body on Monday.
Chatsworth Park is a popular free camping and stopover spot off the Bruce Highway – a major route between Brisbane and Far North Queensland.