Toddler could have bounced out of cot, court told

File photo / Martin Sykes

An Australian child-abuse specialist has told a jury he considered some cracks shown in scans of a toddler's shattered skull were naturally occurring and not fractures resulting from a blow to his head.

Adelaide specialist Doctor Terence Donald told a jury in the High Court at Whangarei that of the fractures in the the scan of Riley Osborne's head, five of them were, in his opinion, skull sutures - the junctions between the various pieces of bones in the skull.

Kerikeri toddler Riley Osborne died from serious head injuries suffered at his Cobham Rd home on December 19, 2008.

His stepfather, Kyle Skerten, has been charged with murdering 15-month-old Riley.

Earlier in the trial, crown witness Starship pediatrician Doctor Silvana Campanella said the fractures, which looked like a "river delta", were all fractures and was clear to point out the skull sutures in the scan.

In an unusual move, due to the conflicting evidence over the fractures, the Crown elected to call another witness - a paediatric radiologist.

Yesterday Mr Donald also suggested it was possible Riley had used the mattress in his cot to help bounce himself out on to the floor. He said Riley could have cast himself out of the 93cm-high cot and generated the energy and force to cause the serious head injury.

Mr Donald agreed in cross examination by Crown prosecutor Mike Smith the fractures were the result of a serious high impact, but did not believe they were abusive head injuries.

During earlier evidence for the Crown, paediatric eye specialist Shuan Dai told the court that Riley's fatal injuries were not accidental. He said the damage to the child's retinas was the worst he had seen in six years, with severe haemorrhaging and separation of tissue.

However, Mr Donald said children had suffered detached retinas without abuse.

That included a case where a child had fallen 11 metres and another where a television had crushed a child's head.

After the completion of the Crown case, four drugs charges were amended and Skerten pleaded guilty to 22 drugs charges including offering to supply methamphetamine.

That left the jury with just the murder charge to consider.

The extra Crown witness was to give evidence today followed by the Crown and defence lawyers addressing the jury before Justice Hugh Williams gave his directions.