KEY POINTS:
Nia Glassie remains on a ventilator because doctors fear she will not be able to breathe on her own.
The Starship hospital yesterday denied reports that the 3-year-old Rotorua girl had been taken off her ventilator and then reconnected because she was unable to breathe alone.
However, police
stood by a statement that Nia's ventilator had been turned off for a time and then switched back on.
"They turned it off and it didn't work," Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Loper said. "It came off and it went back on again."
He would not comment further, other than to say Nia's condition had not changed since she was admitted to the hospital on July 27.
He said she was not deteriorating but not getting better. "She has been serious but stable. There's no more, there's no less."
On Wednesday, he described her condition as life-threatening and said the ventilator had been turned off for a period and then reconnected because Nia was unable to breathe without it.
The Auckland District Health Board also said Nia's condition was serious but stable, which in her case meant she was "profoundly comatose and dependent on a ventilator".
But a spokeswoman said reports Nia had been taken off the ventilator were incorrect, and that she had in fact been on the ventilator the whole time she was in the Starship.
"They [medical staff] don't know what's going to happen if they take her off it," the spokeswoman said.
"If they turn it off and she doesn't look like she's going to pull through, then they'll turn it back on."
The spokeswoman said if Nia was unable to breathe on her own, preparations would then be made to turn the ventilator off permanently.
On Wednesday, Nia's grandfather, Glassie Glassie, also said the ventilator had been turned off. He said Nia's father, Glassie Glassie jnr, had been at the hospital when the machine was stopped and he had been heartened by the sight, believing it was a sign his daughter would "pull through".
Nia was flown to the hospital with head and abdominal injuries after allegedly suffering months of abuse, including being spun in a tumble dryer.
Three of five people charged in relation to the alleged abuse are from the Curtis family of Rotorua.
William Curtis, 48, the oldest of the accused and the one facing the most serious charges, is a first cousin of Hollywood actor Cliff Curtis.
Family spokesman and Te Arawa kaumatua Toby Curtis, who is an uncle of both William and Cliff, yesterday said the whanau were deeply upset to hear Nia's condition was life-threatening.
"That's just hurting everyone when we hear that," he said.
"We're devastated. We're very devastated."
Four of the accused have dropped an appeal to prevent media organisations from filming and photographing them in court.
The four had argued that publication of their images would jeopardise their safety. They had until Wednesday evening to file the appeal with the High Court at Rotorua but did not do so.
The fifth accused, Nia's 17-year-old stepfather, is due to appear in the Rotorua District Court on Monday.
Meanwhile, the condition of a 12-week-old baby boy, also from Rotorua and suffering suspicious head injuries, continues to improve.
The baby was flown to the Starship on Saturday in a serious condition after twice being admitted to Rotorua Hospital last week.
The first time he was assessed as having had a non-suspicious choking episode and was discharged after 48 hours.
The second time, his injuries were deemed suspicious and police were alerted.
