Mother pleads not guilty to failing to protect her daughter

A local mother has plead not guilty to failing to protect her daughter despite knowing she was at risk of sexual assault or rape in their home. Photo / File

A Napier mother has been charged after her partner sexually abused her daughter.

The woman, charged under new child abuse laws, has pleaded not guilty to failing to protect her daughter from the risk of sexual abuse.

The 42-year-old, who has interim name suppression, faces charges failing to take reasonable steps to protect her daughter by knowing she was at risk of sexual assault or rape in their home.

The sexual offending, of which her partner admitted to earlier this month, occurred in Masterton and Napier between December 2010 and February this year.

The mother's partner, who is not the girl's father, plead guilty to 10 sex charges spanning six years and is awaiting sentencing scheduled for April 7.

He admitted five charges of unlawful sexual connection, one of rape, two of indecent assault and two for sexual connection with a young person.

Represented by defence counsel Matthew Dixon the mother elected a trial by jury and is understood to be the second person charged under new child abuse legislation.

The first two charges were laid under the Crimes Amendment Act (No 3), which allows police to charge everyone in a household for failing to protect a child and has a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.

The mother also faces a third charge of wilfully neglecting the girl in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering between December 2010 and December 2012.

This charge carries a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment.

She was remanded on bail until June 2 for a case review hearing.