A lawyer who says she feared for her life at the hands of an abusive husband took at least $200,000 from her clients, partly to escape the relationship.

A man who threw plastic chairs at his frightened neighbours before letting off a gas bottle in the shared hallway and shouting "Boom, boom, you can all die", has lost his Salvation Army flat.

The coalition could hold on to power, while National, Labour and ACT all lose support in the latest 1News-Verian poll.

More 90,000 humans - and tens of thousands of animals - have signed a petition in support of a ban on the public sale of fireworks.

Police are frustrated after extremely high breath alcohol levels were recorded by Otago drivers over the long weekend. 

A young teenager who nicked his parents' car for a joyride around Allanton soon found himself ringing mum and dad after getting the car stuck in a hedge.

A dispute over a stolen motorbike led to one Dunedin man shooting another with a high-powered crossbow, a court has heard.