Two-year-old James Joseph Ruhe Lawrence. Photo / supplied
Boy's organs were
split by blow, court told
Details of toddler JJ Lawrence's violent and painful death have been
revealed at the trial of the man charged with his murder. Crown prosecutor Nick
Webby outlined the police case against Joel Loffley in the High Court at
Auckland. He said Loffley and JJ's mother Josephine Lawrence had an argument
early on the morning of November 14 last year. Ms Lawrence left the house and
went to a friend's to use the phone. As she left, Loffley allegedly demanded
she leave JJ with him.
While she was away the Crown alleges Loffley struck JJ so hard in the
tummy that his liver and pancreas split completely in half. He then put JJ in
his bed and when Ms Lawrence returned he said the boy was asleep. Loffley then
left the house with his brother Gabriel, who also lived there. They stopped at
a number of shops before returning. Ms Lawrence was watching a DVD in her
bedroom, next to JJ's. Loffley then "discovered" JJ was not
breathing.
The little boy was taken downstairs and laid on the lounge floor. An
electrician contracted by Housing New Zealand to replace smoke alarm batteries
arrived soon after and performed CPR on JJ. Paramedics arrived within minutes
but JJ was dead - his heart was not functioning and there were no vital signs. Loffley
allegedly told police JJ had fallen off his mother's bed and hit his head. But
a post mortem revealed the extent of JJ's horrific internal injuries, and
determined that was what killed him.
Police arrested Loffley on December 13 and charged him with JJ's murder.
Loffley says police "got the wrong person". Defence lawyer Roger
Chambers told a jury in an opening address in the High Court at Auckland this
afternoon that Joel Loffley denied hurting JJ on the day he died. Loffley
acknowledged he had been violent towards other people in the past, but
vehemently denied assaulting JJ, Mr Chambers said.
JJ's biological father, who is serving time at Paremoremo Prison for
burglary, money laundering and escaping, was the first witness called to give
evidence by the Crown on day one of Loffley's trial. Ruhe said he tried
repeatedly to get hold of JJ over the weekend before he was killed, because he
was worried about him. In the weeks leading to JJ's death he been struggling to
get hold of Ms Lawrence - which was the usual way of contacting his son.
He was so concerned that he asked his sister to go to the house and
check on JJ. He told the court that he had been told JJ was being abused and
that Loffley was a "shady character and not to be trusted". The day
after JJ died prison managers and the chaplain gave him the terrible news his
son had died. He then rang Ms Lawrence, who told him JJ died after falling from
the bed and hitting his head. He had, she said, gone to sleep afterwards and
not woken up.
Ruhe told the court that Ms Lawrence had been a loving mother who always
made JJ her "number one priority". Electrician Roger Lang also gave
evidence this afternoon. He arrived at the house soon after JJ died and
performed CPR for about 15 minutes until paramedics arrived. The trial is set
to continue for three weeks. There are 75 witnesses scheduled to give evidence
in the trial, set down for three weeks. Witnesses include members of both
Loffley and Ms Lawrence's families, friends and neighbours who knew the couple
and JJ; medical and forensic experts and police who attended the scene and
worked on the investigation, named Operation Avalon.
NZ Herald
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