The mother was granted permanent name suppression and will serve three months of home detention for assaulting her 5-year-old daughter. Photo / RNZ
WARNING: This story discusses child abuse and may be upsetting.
A 5-year-old girl assaulted by her drunk mother told relatives: “Mum drinks too much and that’s when I got hurt.”
The girl suffered a “significant haematoma” on her forehead after the attack, the Hutt Valley District Court heard during sentencing of her mother today.
The woman, who was granted permanent name suppression, was sentenced to three months’ home detention and will be subject to six months’ post-detention conditions.
She was found guilty at trial last year by Judge Arthur Tompkins of two charges of assaulting a child, assault with intent to injure, possessing an offensive weapon and threatening to kill.
Details of the assault were not read aloud in court. However, victim impact statements revealed the trauma the incident had on the young girl.
Judge Tomkins found the woman assaulted her daughter while she was drunk.
The same night, she assaulted a visitor to the house who, according to the judge, “was able to escape” and call police.
When police arrived, the daughter was taken to hospital, where doctors observed bruising and the large haematoma on her forehead.
The woman’s lawyer, Andrea Mobberly, said her client spent months in prison on remand, and even longer on restrictive bail.
Mobberly argued her client should be sentenced to community detention and intensive supervision, so she could access community support services in rehabilitation.
However, Judge Tompkins ruled home detention was appropriate given the offending.
“In the end, the seriousness of the offending and the ongoing trauma to the young child mean, in my view, home detention is the least restrictive option,” he said.
“The grandmother’s victim impact statement records the ongoing trauma experienced by the young child, noting that even at her young age she is able to identify, ‘Mum drinks too much and that’s when I got hurt’.”
The woman was supported by her family, who showed “ongoing commitment” to helping her rehabilitate and reintegrate into the community, despite them all dealing with the trauma of the incident.
Several reports were presented to the court for her sentencing, including a drug and alcohol assessment and letters of support from her family.
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