A Bay of Plenty regional councillor and school principal killed outside a pub yesterday is believed to have been king-hit by a stranger.

As teenager is facing up to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to helping a close friend take his own life.

The partner of the Napier siege gunman received nearly $10,000 in ACC compensation after he committed suicide.

A senior judge has vowed to crack down on a violent crime wave, which he says is sometimes "little more than sheer sadism".

A man has been charged with assault and police have launched a homicide inquiry after a man died in Queenstown overnight.

A teen who brutally attacked war veteran Eric Brady, 85, had days earlier held a knife to the stomach of a Queen's Service Medal holder and stolen his car, it was revealed yesterday.

A mother who beat her 10-year-old child up to 15 times with a piece of hosepipe for wagging school has been sentenced to 15 months in prison.

An unemployed teen has been charged with the murder of Barbara Julian, 70, who died in what police said was a brutal home invasion.

Police have launched a homicide investigation after a man died when a drinking session dissolved into violence early today.