Boy's uncle concerned for safety

A concerned uncle met  his niece over safety concerns for her 15-month-old son just 11 days before he suffered fatal head injuries.
In the the High Court at Whangarei, Pat Durham said he and his wife were concerned for Riley Osborne living at the communal flat in Cobham Rd, Kerikeri, where stepfather Kyle Skerten also lived.
Skerten, 23, has been charged with murdering Riley, who died on December 23, 2008, less than an hour after his life support was switched off at Auckland's Starship Hospital.
Skerten also faces drugs-related charges, including eight of offering to sell cannabis, nine of supplying pseudoephedrine, and four of offering to supply methamphetamine.
In the meeting on December 8, Mr Durham told his niece they were concerned when doctors raised the alarm after  Riley was constantly injured with black eyes, bruising and a broken leg.
The family  was concerned about drug use in the house and the communal living arrangement.
He offered to help find a place of their own so they "could evolve as a family".
However, during the meeting Ms Osborne said all was well and there was no reason for alarm.
Eleven days later Riley suffered a complex fracture to the back of his skull which lead to extensive bleeding on the brain and swelling. Emergency surgery failed to save the youngster and he was left brain dead.
In a police video interview two days after Riley was injured, Skerten told police  he found his stepson on the floor of the bedroom with his head up against the leg of the cot.
The interview was played in court yesterday. Detective Chris Fouhy asked Skerten to think hard about what happened on the night of December 19.
He said Riley had been put to bed by his mother about 6.40pm. A friend at the house, Rosalyn Warmington, had gone to the toilet and changed, returned to the lounge and reported Riley was grizzling. Skerten said he went to the closed bedroom door.
"I could hear this weird noise. It was out of it. I opened the door and that's when I saw him on the floor and freaked out," Mr Skerten said.
He said Riley's blankets and pillow were piled up in the corner of the cot. Skerten assumed Riley had climbed and fallen.
During the interview Detective Fouhy left the room and while he was gone Skerten received a call on his cellphone.
"They really reckon it's one of us," he said, to a person that was not identified.

 "We need Riley to be better . . . we need our boy back," Skerten said.
The trial will run into the third week when it resumes on Monday.