The mother of a girl, 5, found dead in her bed after an alleged assault was trying to escape violence in her life.

New claims emerged last night that the nine-year-old girl allegedly tortured by her parents was also sexually abused while in Child Youth and Family care.

Eden Park Trust is hoping the first large crowd at the stadium since the Four Nations rugby league debacle last month will be well-behaved.

NZ's broadcasting watchdog has upheld complaints about 3News showing sex scenes from Outrageous Fortune.

It is with huge regret and disgust that once more, New Zealanders wake up to find 'caregivers' accused on brutally assaulting their children.

At $240 an hour, the job offers one of the best pay rates in Auckland - and any bloke could do it lying on his back.

A 9-year-old girl found by police hiding in a wardrobe had suffered so much abuse that almost every part of her body was covered in injuries, including part of her scalp torn off her head as she was dragged down the hallway.

NZ women still struggle to gain leadership roles and suffer from high levels of domestic violence, a report says.

An alcohol-fuelled Auckland road crash early this morning has left a teenage girl dead and three in shock.

'I love you I'll see you in heaven,' a 15-year-old girl wrote in a text message to her married, 27-year-old lover.

A South American drug syndicate appears to be targeting New Zealand, with the amount of seized cocaine this year increasing more than 10-fold on two years ago, says Customs.

The Netherlands' free-wheeling dope days may soon be over if the country's new centre-right coalition government has its way.