Newstalk ZB
The mother of slain baby Soul Turany has publicly accused her ex-boyfriend of causing the 3-month-old’s fatal head injury. Storme Turany has repeatedly denied she did anything to hurt her infant son and today pointed the finger at the only other person in the house when the non-accidental injury was inflicted – Tony Farmer. Soul suffered a catastrophic head injury, the result of “a hard impact”, on August 30, 2014. Emergency services were called after Soul became “limp” and had difficulty breathing. The baby was flown to Christchurch Hospital by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter in a critical condition. His injuries were not survivable and he was taken off life support the next day. Police launched a homicide investigation. They soon confirmed the only people at the house when Soul was hurt were his mother, Storme Turany, and her then-partner, Farmer. More than a decade later, nobody has been charged in relation to Soul’s death and police have confirmed Turany and Farmer remain the only suspects. They have “consistently denied” having any part in the baby boy’s death. Soul Turany suffered a serious head injury in August 2014 and died in hospital the next day. Both were ordered to give evidence at an inquest before Coroner Ian Telford. Farmer was the last witness to be called. As with Turany, Coroner Telford said he did not have to answer any questions that he felt would “incriminate” him. “I didn’t really have a lot to do with Soul... because I was at work during the day,” he said. “Often when I got home... Soul was going to bed... I would try to help in the mornings.” Before emergency services were called, Farmer recalled Soul being “grizzly”. “He was crying and quite unsettled... he had a cold or a flu or something,” he said. Farmer’s evidence continues. Earlier today, Farmer’s lawyer Andrew McCormick questioned Turany on her account of Soul’s death. He put to her that she was responsible for Soul’s death, not Farmer. He suggested there had been “an accident”. “That’s not what happened,” she said. “I did not hurt my son.” Mum: I am telling you the truth Turany’s evidence spanned two days. Yesterday, she gave her account of Soul’s death before she was questioned by Jamie O’Sullivan, counsel assisting the coroner, and Kerry White, the lawyer representing police. White continued her questioning this morning, suggesting repeatedly that Turany was responsible for her baby’s fatal injuries. Turany became upset and frustrated, saying she only had “snippets” of memories of the day. “It does make sense for someone with PTSD, it does for someone who has lost a baby… it does make sense,” she cried. “This is really hard… I am telling you the truth… I promise you I am. “In all my statements, I was telling the truth… I’ve been questioned like this before. I know what they’re getting at. I’m not stupid. I know what the point is we’re getting to. “I just want to be able to help as much as I can – and I’m not, and I’m sorry… I want the answers as much as you do.” Soul's mother Storme Turany. Photo / Pool / Chris Skelton White put it to Turany that before she called Healthline on the day Soul was injured, she already knew he was critically unwell. Before she made the call, she told Farmer she wanted to take Soul to the hospital. Turany said that was because the baby had a cold and “wasn’t himself”. He was “unsettled” and she was “worried”. Turany called Healthline and hung up after 17 seconds, then called her sister a number of times before calling the service back and speaking to an operator about Soul. White accused Turany of knowing from the outset that Soul was in a bad way. She said medical experts had told the court that “Soul was unconscious or significantly affected from the time of the injury”. “It’s likely his breathing was impacted immediately… [one doctor] also said the adult who caused the injury would have known the gravity of the injury, and that’s because Soul couldn’t have injured himself – he was too little. “You knew So...
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