Mother gave 'OK to take newborn'

A woman charged with abducting a baby from an Auckland hospital was given permission by the baby's mother to take the infant for a walk, her lawyer says.

The 24-year-old was charged after she allegedly tried to leave Middlemore Hospital with another couple's two-day-old baby on January 4.

Middlemore Hospital's deputy chief medical officer Dr David Hughes previously said a high level of planning and subterfuge was involved.

At a hearing in the High Court at Auckland yesterday, defence lawyer Heeni Phillips appealed against an earlier denial of name suppression by Manukau District Court Judge Sharon McAuslan, who had said the name was widely circulated.

Ms Phillips said name suppression was vital for the wellbeing of her client, who had not been given the chance to put her own side of the story across.

On the day of the incident, her client had been speaking to the baby's mother before she walked away with the baby girl, Ms Phillips said.

"She says that she got the consent of the mother of the child in the hospital. She'd been chatting to the mother for over half an hour. The mother gave her consent to take the baby for a walk."

The woman's boyfriend, who has name suppression, was waiting in the carpark when she walked outside with the baby to meet him, Ms Phillips said.

"He did not know anything about this as it was portrayed. She was on the phone and wandered out to the car.

"She told him that this baby was not hers, he was aware that this baby was not hers and they were about to take the baby back into the hospital."

Ms Phillips said her client had suffered from mental health issues and a miscarriage and feared further media coverage could put her at risk.

"I'm saying that my client is a victim. This is a case about mental health issues and extreme hardship ... The pressure will be too much for her."

Justice Kit Toogood said the court's policy was to allow open reporting. The case was of public interest as hospital institutions and people in situations similar to that of the baby's parents would be interested in her name.

The appeal was adjourned until next week and interim name suppression was continued.