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A long-time criminal and meth addict who was arrested after an 11-month-old was rushed to hospital has told a judge the boy’s injuries were an accident - the result of him falling out of his motorised wheelchair and on to the baby while attempting to travel down a hill.
Kurtis David Innes, 36, limped into the dock in Waitākere District Court today as he was sentenced to home detention for ill-treating or neglecting a child and multiple unrelated offences.
The West Auckland resident, whose profession was initially listed as “prostitute” in arrest documents, was still recovering from a serious motorcycle crash in Henderson that had occurred months earlier while fleeing police when he offered in August 2022 to take care of a friend’s baby for a few days to give her “a break”. He was described in the agreed summary of facts for the case as “the closest thing to a father” the baby boy had and as having on all prior occasions treated the child “in an affectionate and caring manner”.
But Judge Ophir Cassidy appeared somewhat dubious of the “accidental” injuries claim today as she held up a photo of the baby at Starship Hospital with dried blood on his face and a tube coming from his mouth. A doctor listed over 60 scratches, deep abrasions and bruising on the child’s legs, face, body and groin and opined that they could not have all been incurred at once.
“Luckily and by the grace of God, these injuries were not life-threatening ... and they have healed over time,” the judge said, describing the child as “this most precious taonga” and referring to New Zealand’s “terrible history” of child abuse deaths. “[The baby] could have potentially been part of this terrible history...
Kurtis Innes appears for sentencing in Waitakere District Court after an 11-month-old boy received critical injuries while in his care. Photo / Jason Oxenham
“It’s very clear he was in a bad state. Anybody could have seen that, Mr Innes. But for whatever reason, you didn’t take him to see a doctor.”
Police chase, babysitting proposal
Innes’ current set of offending dates back to February 2022, when police in Henderson spotted him weaving between traffic on a Suzuki motorbike. After activating their lights and sirens, police said the motorbike sped off at an estimated 100km/h in a 50km/h zone, prompting police to call off the pursuit for public safety reasons.
However, police found him four minutes later after he crashed into a berm in Swanson and was thrown from the motorbike. Police found a meth pipe in his side bag and a large knife nearby. A blood test later revealed that he had meth, cannabis and ketamine in his system.
He was charged with possession of a knife in a public place, driving while disqualified, failing to stop for police, driving in a dangerous manner, possession of methamphetamine utensils and driving while under the influence.
Exactly one month later, he was charged again with driving while disqualified after police caught him behind the wheel in Eden Terrace. It was the 12th time he had been charged with the offence.
The judge noted today that Innes still wasn’t “100 per cent well” and was in no condition to watch the baby when he agreed to do so six months after the motorbike crash.
The child was described in court documents as healthy and well when the mother dropped him off. Three days later, she asked Innes to send her a photo of the boy because she missed him.
A constable standing guard outside Kurtis Innes' Swanson home in September 2022 after an 11-month-old boy in his care was found injured there. Photo / Hayden Woodward
“Mr Innes refused, claiming [she] was being too demanding, and an argument developed between the two,” documents state.
Concerned about the child’s welfare, the mother returned to Innes’ home at 7.40am the next day and was let in by another occupant. She found the injured child asleep next to Innes in his bedroom. The baby was initially unresponsive and an ambulance was called. The child’s mum would have been terrified, the judge noted.
‘Lifetime full of s**t’
Innes could have faced up to 10 years’ imprisonment for the child abuse charge, which he pleaded guilty to last year. Defence lawyer Harry Redwood argued home detention would be the best outcome for all involved so that Innes could continue his efforts at self-improvement.
“He has been clean and sober for some time now,” he said of his client, who he also described as extremely remorseful for having got in over his head when he agreed to watch the baby.
He emphasised that Innes pleaded guilty because he recognised he should have taken the baby to a hospital rather than hide the injuries out of fear of getting in trouble - not because he felt the injuries were intentional.
Innes’ mother, who accompanied him to court, described him as a father of four who has always been “amazing with children” but has only in the year and a half since his arrest “found himself spiritually”.
But Crown prosecutor Michael Kilkelly said the judge should decide Innes’ sentence based on the agreed summary of facts for the case, which make it clear the child’s injuries were non-accidental. When taking the additional offences into account, he added, the judge might not reach an end sentence of less than two years - the point at which prison sentences are often swapped out for home detention.
However, the prosecutor conceded, if a sentence of less than two years was reached, the Crown wouldn’t take issue with home detention “given the progress Mr Innes had appeared to have made in the time since this incident occurred” and the roughly four months he already spent in jail awaiting resolution of the case.
Kurtis Innes claimed the 60-plus injuries suffered by an 11-month-old boy were caused accidentally when Innes fell out of a motorised wheelchair. He is pictured appearing for sentencing in Waitākere District Court. Photo / Jason Oxenham
The judge noted Innes’ criminal history dates back 21 years, meaning he has spent over half his life either behind bars or in and out of court. But she also noted his traumatic childhood, which had been described by his lawyer as “extreme and shocking” and among the worst he’d ever seen. His father was a patched Mongrel Mob member, he was expelled from school at 14 and at a young age, he fell into a “spiral” of methamphetamine abuse and crime.
“You’ve been fighting with a whole lot of demons for most of your life,” Judge Cassidy said. “You’ve seen violence, you’ve been raised in it. It’s become normalised, almost... In your words, you’ve dealt with a lifetime full of s**t.”
But she commended him for his clean record since the arrest and his attempt to kick his addiction. Innes, who wiped at his eyes several times during the hearing, did appear to have genuine remorse, she also agreed, settling on an end sentence of 10 months’ home detention and three years with a suspended driver’s licence.
The child’s mother did not attend today’s hearing, but she did submit a victim impact statement that was not read aloud in court. She remains “quite traumatised” by what occurred, the judge said.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
