KEY POINTS:
The case against Oriwa Kemp, one of five people on trial over the death of Rotorua toddler Nia Glassie, is significantly different from that of Michael and Wiremu Curtis, says her lawyer.
In his final address to the jury in the High Court at Rotorua this morning, Bill
Lawson said Kemp simply "wasn't there".
Kemp, 18, is charged with manslaughter along with Nia's mother Lisa Kuka, 35, and cousin Michael Pearson, 20.
Kemp's partner, Michael Curtis, 22, and his brother Wiremu, 19, who is Kuka's partner, face counts of murder.
The Crown says three-year-old Nia suffered fatal kicks to the head inflicted by the Curtis brothers on July 20 last year.
But, Mr Lawson told the jury today, Kemp was out of the house at the time.
"No amount of lumping these people together, focusing on blaming or generalising makes any difference. She was not there."
He said there tended to be public outcry about the kind of behaviour outlined in the Nia Glassie case, an outcry of anger and blame. "And rightly so. A child has died".
The generalisation that the adults in the house must have known what was going on was a "recipe for disaster" and could bring a miscarriage of justice as far as Kemp was concerned, Mr Lawson said. "She simply wasn't there."
He warned the jury about jumping to conclusions regarding incidents where the alleged offenders were unfairly lumped together as "they".
Over what the prosecution said was a sustained period of the bullying and singling out of Nia, Mr Lawson said Kemp was at work or elsewhere.
"There is very little in the way of allegations against her directly. She was a 17-year-old in a relationship with Michael Curtis, who was in control. He used to beat her up for goodness sake."
Although present when Nia was put on a clothesline, Kemp had no involvement in the criminal part of that event, Mr Lawson said.
"She should not be held responsible for something she did not do or encourage."
Harry Edward also submitted Michael Pearson was not present for much of the abuse on Nia.
The Crown had "drawn a long bow" in its accusations against his client, who did not live at Nia's home, but only dropped in to catch up with the Curtis boys.
"Michael Pearson did some things, but there are others he did not do," said Mr Edward. "He is absolutely not guilty of manslaughter."
Pearson did not put Nia into the tumble drier, but he did turn it on, then turned it off.
He told the others "it was not nice, and stop it".
The lawyer said there was no evidence the drier event had resulted in Nia's fatal head injury.
Proceeding.
- NZPA
