Kaitia mother hit and kicked to death a two-year-old girl

A 2-year-old girl died from injuries after being repeatedly punched and kicked like a ball by her mother, a jury has heard.
Jacqui Petersen-Davis of Kaitaia died at Auckland's Starship Hospital on August 8, 2009 from her injuries.
Norefjell Davis is on trial in the High Court at Whangarei.
She is charged with murder and ill-treatment of a child.
Davis, 36, is blaming her partner, Jade, for the child's injuries, including fractured ribs, bleeding in the brain, and bruises on Jacqui's stomach.
Opening his case before a jury of seven men and five women in court yesterday, Crown solicitor Mike Smith said Davis initially told medical staff at Kaitaia Hospital that Jacqui fell on concrete from a height of 5 metres.
When told that 5m was quite a distance to fall from for a baby that age, she then reduced it to 2.5m.
Mr Smith said Davis' story did not make sense to the medical staff who desperately tried to stabilise the gravely ill child in consultation with specialist paediatricians from hospitals in Whangarei and Auckland.
He said Jacqui spent three to four hours at Kaitaia Hospital before she was flown to Starship where she died about 11am on August 8.
Doctors and nurses in Kaitaia, Mr Smith said, noticed signs of old and fresh injuries, and a bruised abdomen which started to swell in their presence.
"She was repeatedly punched, kicked four or more times and once the length of a couch, then she [Davis] sat or stood her up and kicked her like some sort of a soccer ball," Mr Smith told the jury.
The toddler was even kicked down a hallway and after all the beating, attempts by family members to administer CPR failed and she was rushed to the Kaitaia Hospital an hour later.
Mr Smith said Davis could not argue self-defence against a 2-year-old child.
A video interview at Auckland's Central Police Station the day Jacqui died was played to the jury.
In it, Davis admitted punching, kicking, slapping and hitting her two children, including Jacqui, whenever she got angry.
She said she would kick Jacqui hard, similar to kicking a ball.
Davis said she applied CPR, hit her harder and pounded her stomach when she was not responding before rushing her to the hospital about 4am.
Kaitaia Hospital senior nurse Tracy Lee Payne said Jacqui's body was so cold when she came in that she was heading towards hypothermia.
Nurses put her in a bear hug- equipment that blows hot air- to try to warm her up.
She said Jacqui was cold, pale, flat and her condition was classified as Status 1, or life threatening. Ms Payne said three doctors, a radiologist, a lab technician and nurses treated the toddler and her mother was told that Jacqui may have to be flown to Auckland.
Ms Payne said initially Davis did not respond when asked about the injuries but later told her that the girl had fallen 10m from a train at a playground.
"I said 10m is an awfully big height. The other girl [Davis' other daughter] said 'no mummy, she fell off the steps'."
Ms Payne said she advised Davis, Jacqui's injuries were very serious and that she was not sure what the outcome would be.
Davis' lawyer Belinda Sellars said the Crown's case was only half the story and urged the jury to keep an open mind.
She claimed Davis' partner Jade caused the injuries.
The trial is to continue today.