Rob Kidd

The finalists for the national book awards have been announced and local literary talent made a strong showing.

A colleague of a disgraced former Scout leader says his offending has set back the organisation by a decade.

In Sean Christopher Bardwell's meth-addled mind, the man desperately trying to get into the car was trying to kill him.

A former Scout leader caught with hundreds of horrific child sex-abuse videos - some featuring animals - has been jailed for more than two years.

A registered child sex offender who was found to have a secret cellphone and threatened to "smash'' his Probation officer has been jailed.

A violent offender with dubious professional rugby prospects has been ordered to pay his victim $1000.

A top student who attacked two bouncers and kicked a police officer during a boozy night out has evaded conviction so she can go to medical school.

Joking between workmates led to a Dunedin man firing a staple through his colleague's skull, a court has heard.

A banned driver abandoned his car and dog after police chased him through the streets of Dunedin.

A 6-year-old boy who was injured in a head-on crash by a cannabis-affected driver has been left with more than just physical scars, a court has heard.

A Dunedin woman ripped off a 94-year-old for more than $23,000 after striking up a relationship as an informal caregiver, a court has heard.

A cruise ship company whose procedural botches led to the death of a crew member has been ordered to pay his grieving family more than $250,000.

A cruise ship company whose procedural botches led to the death of a crew member have been ordered to pay his family more than $250,000.

When Jessie Lee McNeil De Jonge received a text from his mate saying "cover for me", he knew what to do.

Most people’s summer reading consists of a cold drink and a best-seller on the beach.

A Dunedin woman who attacked her best friend then followed her home to rip out clumps of her hair has been sentenced to home detention.

A sex offender who watered down his urine to dodge a drug test has avoided a return to prison.

When Michael Steven returns to Dunedin, he usually crashes on a mate's couch.

A doctor accused of murdering a teenage girl has failed in his bid to have the trial moved out of Dunedin, but he may yet appeal that ruling.

A Dunedin doctor accused of murdering a teenage girl will stand trial in Dunedin despite a bid to move to case out of town.