Foster parents who allegedly assaulted two sisters by dropping them, kicking the eldest and hitting her with a baseball bat pleaded not guilty when they appeared in the Wellington District Court today.
Both former caregivers have name suppression to protect the identity of the children, now aged 14
and 11, who lived with them from 2003 until 2006.
The foster mother, 32, is charged with three counts of assaulting a child, injuring with intent to injure and perverting the course of justice.
The foster father, 28, is charged with two counts of assaulting a child.
Both pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The Crown alleges during the three years the girls lived with them, the mother hit the eldest girl in the face with a baseball bat splitting her lip and perverted the course of justice by telling the youngest girl to lie to police and say that her twin brother had been the one who hit her sister with the bat.
Both parents also allegedly assaulted the eldest girl by kicking her in the behind on several occasions and dropped both girls on the floor causing back injuries.
Preosecutor Claire Boshier told the jury of six women and six men during her opening address the eldest girl had been subjected to physical violence described as discipline.
She said the father had admitted kicking the girl, who he described as a manipulator, in the behind 10 times while she had lived with them, but said it was just discipline.
He had told the police their kind of discipline was not intended to break bones or leave bruises, Ms Boshier said.
However the matter came to a head in November 2006 with the eldest girl running away to Child Youth and Family after being kicked in the behind.
Subsequently staff member had found a bruise on her bottom, she said.
In her opening lawyer for the father, Letizea Ord, said the defence disputed that some of the events, such as the baseball bat assault and the mother telling the girl to lie to police, had ever occurred.
While others were matters of discipline, which were open to the defence of reasonable force because they were committed before the anti-smacking bill came into force this year, Ms Ord said.
The trial before Judge Mike Behrens is expected to last four days.
- NZPA
