UPPER MORELAND -
Police say 28-year-old Edward Doyle's night of drinking ended early Sunday morning with the death of his 2-month-old daughter Makayla inside an apartment he shared with his wife and a second child.
Now he's behind bars on child endangerment charges and could face more serious crimes .
"She was so precious," one neighbor told FOX 29.
Neighbors and friends were in tears, stunned by the baby's death and Doyle's arrest.
"I'm pretty much numb about the whole thing you know," Paul Sidwell, Doyle's close friend and the infant's godfather, said. "You feel all empty and what not."
"He was a good dad," neighbor Michelle Thompson told FOX 29. "He would never endanger any of his kids, ever."
Police were called to the Wellington Apartments early Sunday morning and discovered the unresponsive baby with a red mark on her forehead and cuts and bruises on her nose.
Investigators say Doyle was drinking at the American Legion Hall in Willow Grove for several hours, where he consumed 6 pints of beer. He returned home to play cards with his wife and friends. At some point, he took his daughter out of her swing, tripped and fell on top of her, then put her back in the swing and fell asleep.
The police report says Doyle's friend said he was "highly intoxicated" and Doyle admitted he "drank too much."
"No foul play at all, just an accident, absolutely. Yeah," said Sidwell.
Police say Doyle could face additional charges after the medical examiner rules on the death.
"I love Ed , he's a great guy, great dad," Sidwell added. "That's what they live around, their children. It's a damn shame."
District Attorney Risa Ferman withheld comment on the case pending the outcome of the investigation and the autopsy.
Doyle remains behind bars on $1 million cash bail. An autopsy on the child could be completed as early as Tuesday. Ferman will then decide whether to file additional charges.
Edward Doyle, 28, was arrested on child endangerment charges. (Courtesy: Upper Moreland Police Department)
