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Notice of claim filed over 2022 death of child at Scottsdale extended-stay hotel

Claim alleges the state failed to protect brothers from abuse
Notice of claim filed over 2022 death of child at Scottsdale extended-stay hotel
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SCOTTSDALE, AZ — A $60 million notice of claim has been filed against the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS), alleging the state agency did not do enough to protect a child who died at a Scottsdale hotel in 2022 and his brother.

The notice of claim, which is the first step toward a potential lawsuit, says multiple reports were made to DCS dating back several years, alleging abuse at the hands of the boys’ grandmother and her husband. But the claim says the children were never removed from their living conditions.

The 62-page claim alleges the brothers endured “systematic torture and abuse” inflicted with “relentless cruelty.”

The claim also accuses the state of withholding crucial information from attorneys representing the boys despite repeated requests for information.

In January 2022, 11-year-old Chaskah Davis Smith was found at a Scottsdale extended-stay hotel near Old Town Scottsdale with injuries. He did not survive.

His grandmother, 51-year-old Stephanie Davis, and her husband, 33-year-old Thomas Desharnais, were indicted on several felony counts. Both have pleaded not guilty. Their case is still going through the courts. The other boy, who is now 12 years old, was taken into DCS custody.

According to police reports, Davis told police dispatchers she found her grandson unresponsive in the bathtub. First responders said they found numerous injuries on his body that were at various stages of healing.

Davis told police she had been homeschooling the boys. The family had been living at the extended-stay hotel for several years and was known to panhandle in the area, police said.

The notice of claim alleges that after years of abuse, “Chaskah’s little body ultimately gave out, unable to endure the torment any longer” leading to his death and his brother’s permanent trauma.

ABC15 reached out the DCS for a response, but has not heard back.

Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at: anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter, and Facebook.