Birthday cake first and last for spirited tot

By ALISON HORWOOD

December 3 was a big day for Daniel Marshall Loveridge.

That summer Sunday was the day of the Taranaki toddler's first birthday party.

Described as a happy tot who loved attention, the little boy grinned into the camera as his family took photos of him eating home-made chocolate cake and smearing the rest over his high-chair.

He opened a dinosaur puzzle present from his teenage father, Wayne Loveridge, and spent the afternoon sharing his favourite toy - a little red trolley - with his 4-year-old half-brother and two cousins.

But it was also around early December that an aunt who lived with Daniel rang Child, Youth and Family Services. Concerned over the toddler's well-being, she told staff: "If you don't do something soon we will have a dead baby on our hands."

By then, both Daniel's grandfathers, Bruce Loveridge and Eric Marshall, and an aunt, Kelly Loveridge, had already logged calls to the agency and a family group conference had been held to determine a plan for Daniel's care.

Just over a month later, the family's worst fears came true.

On the hot afternoon of January 7, the little boy who had just learned to take his first steps was found dead and trussed up in a black rubbish bag in the boot of a car outside a relative's house about 1km from his home.

He had been there for at least five hours.

A 21-year-old woman has been charged with his murder and is undergoing a psychiatric assessment at the Henry Bennett Centre at Waikato Hospital. She is due to reappear in the New Plymouth District Court next week.

For the previous six months, Daniel had been living off and on in a ramshackle bungalow in Celia St, Stratford, with Bruce Loveridge - his paternal grandfather - Mr Loveridge's wife (who is also Daniel's maternal aunt), their baby and two adults. Daniel's bedroom was a cupboard-like room with peeling wallpaper, a few toys and an old curtain for a door.

Mr Loveridge said his son had had nothing to do with the boy for the first six months of his life, but became involved mid-year.



Although Daniel's birth certificate names him as Daniel Marshall - father unknown - the two families were working through a long-running feud and had been in the process of changing his surname to Loveridge, he said.

Mr Loveridge son clearly remembers the last day of Daniel's life. The Weekend Herald cannot reveal all the details because what happened in those few hours is the subject of the court case.

But what we can say is that Mr Loveridge woke that morning to find Daniel playing in the lounge. He fed him a bowl of porridge, which may have been his last meal.

About 10 am, Mr Loveridge, his wife and their baby went to visit relatives in Eltham. That was the last time they saw the toddler alive.

Detective Senior Sergeant Grant Coward said the little boy died between 10.30 am and 12.30 pm.

Police are waiting for further post-mortem examination results.

When Mr Loveridge and his family arrived back home at 1 pm they found Daniel missing and phoned police and Child, Youth and Family.

After searches lasting hours, Daniel's body was found in a car outside the relatives' house on Hathaway St at 5.37 pm.

The occupants of the house told the Herald they had spent much of the afternoon swimming at a local creek.

Child, Youth and Family chief social worker Mike Doolan said yesterday that the service was contacted about the care of Daniel last September.

A social worker was immediately appointed and investigations carried out, which included a consultation with police.

The service gained interim custody of Daniel and a counsel for the child was appointed.

A family group conference was held in November and a Family Court judge later granted the service a further order for the boy's custody, Mr Doolan said.

"Leading up to Christmas, Child Youth and Family was not aware of any information that indicated Daniel was at risk of being fatally harmed."

Mr Doolan, who said the service had been unfairly criticised over Daniel's case, said a social worker was available 24 hours a day over Christmas.

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