Customs make prickly find in lingerie package
A woman has been convicted after falsely declaring packages as shoes and lingerie when they were actually illegal cacti.
crime, law and justice
‘Abusive obsession’: Latham targeted over sex act tweet
Isolated MP Mark Latham has complained about a "whinge-athon" and been rebuked for repeated interjections as he battles a homosexual vilification claim.
Court apology over error finding in MP blackmail case
The judiciary is apologising for an error in a case involving senior members of South Australia's parliament.
Wheelchair user walked naked before stabbing woman
A man accused of stabbing a woman to death was covered in blood and had some of his organs hanging out of his torso, a witness has told a murder trial.
Tourist pleads guilty over fatal e-scooter crash
An English tourist has pleaded guilty over the death of a man after she collided with him while riding an e-scooter drunk.
China drone boffin loses visa appeal over weapons claim
A doctoral candidate has fought a multi-year battle to study in Australia after being accused of links to China's military and weapons of mass destruction.
Premier doubles down as Folbigg slams ‘unfair’ $2m deal
The NSW premier is not budging on a $2 million compensation offer to wrongfully jailed mother Kathleen Folbigg after she described it as "a slap in the face".
Accused murderer claims drug altered his state of mind
An accused murderer claims he was not in control of his actions when he stabbed a woman to death after taking an illicit drug to manage pain.
Judge ruled to split Patterson trial to avoid prejudice
A Supreme Court judge has released his pre-trial rulings more than a month after mushroom cook Erin Patterson was convicted of triple murder.
Three dead in Texas parking lot shooting, man arrested
Police say three people are dead after a shooting in Austin, Texas, and a man has been arrested.
School principal’s historical sexual abuse appeal fails
An ex-school principal's appeal has been dismissed after his defence argued a child abuse conviction was based on a victim's "dreams and nightmares".
Harsh penalties won’t fix youth crime problem: experts
Crime experts have convened to discuss trends in youth offending, suggesting blunt approaches taken by some states and territories aren't it.
Snowtown murderer granted parole after decades in jail
Convicted Snowtown killer James Vlassakis is no longer considered a threat to the community and has been granted parole after 26 years in jail.
Accused murderer remains on bail without monitoring
Prosecutors have failed in a bid to place an alleged murderer back on remand after a state government outlawed private ankle bracelets for those on bail.
Outback Wrangler star ‘tampered with helicopter dash’
Outback Wrangler star Matt Wright interfered with a helicopter's dashboard at a crash site in an attempt "to cover up previous rule breaking", a jury has heard.
Rwanda agrees to take deportees from the US
Rwanda has agreed to accept up to 250 deportees from the United States under the Trump administration's third-country deportation program.
Trump under mounting pressure over Epstein documents
Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyers say the release of her grand jury materials will jeopardise a potential re-trial, as Donald Trump faces more pressure over the case.
Accused wife killer’s family offers $250,000 bail
A man accused of murdering his wife joked about killing her and moving overseas before she drowned in a kayak trip and he relocated to Thailand, a judge heard.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs seeks Trump pardon, lawyer confirms
Sean 'Diddy' Combs' legal team have "reached out" to US President Donald Trump about the possibility of a pardon.
Russia fights edict Canberra embassy a security threat
Diplomatic tensions between Australia and Russia are playing out in the High Court after a new embassy in Canberra was denied by the federal government.
US sergeant shot five soldiers before arrest at base
A US Army sergeant shot and wounded five fellow soldiers with his personal handgun before he was subdued by other troops.
Croc egg collector’s tears at reality TV star’s trial
Reality TV star Matt Wright failed to hand over a crashed chopper's maintenance release to air safety agencies and gave orders to "torch it", a jury has heard.
Sex offender MP to face expulsion bid after court loss
A state MP convicted and jailed of rape and indecent assault has been rebuked by a court after losing a rushed bid to prevent his parliamentary expulsion.
Female bodybuilder jailed for drugs and cash on parole
A bodybuilder who won international competitions has been sent to prison for drug possession, years after being released on parole for similar offending.
Wrongly convicted Folbigg ‘failed again’ by $2m offer
A payment offered to Kathleen Folbigg after she was wrongfully convicted of killing her children and jailed for decades has been savaged by her supporters.
‘Felt like forever’: pilot details crash scene at trial
A bush pilot has described the scene after being first to arrive at a fatal helicopter crash at the trial of an Outback Wrangler reality TV star.
‘Disgraceful’ sex offender MP resigns parliament seat
Jailed MP Gareth Ward has resigned after being convicted of sex offences as former parliamentary colleagues prepared to vote on his expulsion.
Patterson husband’s poison fears pre-dated deadly lunch
Erin Patterson's estranged husband feared she was poisoning him on several camping trips in the years before she murdered his loved ones.
Bail for murder-accused man after wife’s kayak death
A man accused of drowning his wife on a kayak trip has been granted bail after a judge found he did not have the financial means to flee overseas long term.
‘Not good enough’: thousands of DV calls go unanswered
Thousands of women have abandoned their calls to a domestic violence helpline after they went unanswered, with a state minister saying it is "not good enough".
‘Utterly brutal’: man’s multiple life term appeal fails
A man who argued he should be given credit for calling an ambulance after subjecting a woman to weeks of torture will continue to serve multiple life sentences.