James Joseph Ruhe Lawrence

Tortured and killed by stepfather Joel Loffley. Photographs of his bedroom at Takitimu Street in Ōrākei, Auckland, show how little James was cared for. His bed was just a tatty base without a mattress and strewn with his clothing. He had two old toys and an alphabet rug on the floor. His new stepfather subjected James to six months of abuse, which included making him smoke an asthma inhaler full of marijuana and breaking his arm twice. One break was left for several days as his mother Josephine Takutai Crystal Lawrence was too drunk to seek help. James sustained numerous other bruises and injuries from Joel. His fatal injuries were caused by a blow to his tummy so brutal that his liver and pancreas were forced onto his spine with such force they split in two. Afterwards, Joel showered James and put him to bed, leaving him to die while he went out. When paramedics arrived they found that James was cold and "had been dead for some time." A blood test showed cannabis in his system. Source: https://debbiemccauleyauthor.wordpress.com/biographies/new-zealand-....

November 2011: James Joseph Ruhe Lawrence was struck so hard in the abdomen by his mother's boyfriend that his liver and pancreas ruptured. The 2-year-old suffered horrific violence in his short life - two broken arms and 30 other injuries to his tiny body. The fatal attack happened at a house in Orakei. Joel Loffley, expecting his own child with JJ's mother, delivered a blow described in court as "having the effect of a hammer on JJ's internal organs". Loffley would also "quiten" the toddler by blowing marijuana smoke into his face. Loffley denied murdering the boy but was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. Source: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/61-little-names-on-new-zealands-roll-...

Loffley then went to the shops and a friend's place with his brother - who also lived at the house. He came home to "find" JJ not breathing and carried him downstairs to the lounge. Minutes later electrician Roger Lang arrived at the house, sent by Housing New Zealand to replace smoke alarm batteries. "I saw the boy lying down on the rug. I knelt down beside him ... I just got straight into it," he said. He said no one in the house was doing anything to help JJ. "There was absolutely nothing going on ... There was no movement - apart from the chest rising or falling from my breaths ... I could hear talking about getting smokes, wailing and a bit of crying." Paramedics arrived and pronounced JJ dead. Source: https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/two-year-old-died-terrible-pain

JJ was born at Auckland Hospital in March 2009. His father James Robert Ruhe was said to be "devastated" and "lost" when told of JJ's death. Source: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/police-seek-help-over-jj/3LNEPAUWLPEH...