A grandmother jailed after driving at nearly twice the legal alcohol limit and killing cyclist Frank van Kampen on the Kapiti Coast has been released on parole after serving just half of her sentence.

A Christchurch prostitute who arranged to do an indecent photo shoot with her 15-year-old daughter has been jailed for 20 months and told her behaviour was "almost inexplicable conduct by a mother".

A man found guilty of murdering his elderly neighbour has avoided a term of life imprisonment due to a 'serious psychotic illness.'

The killer of four-year-old James Whakaruru has been released from prison, despite multiple Parole Board reports claiming he remains violent and dangerous.

The mother of a murdered Bay of Plenty teenager said today she was unable to describe how she felt about her son's "brutal, absolutely senseless death". A Mongrel Mob member ran down Jordan Herewini in Murupara last year.