The former rugby league star pleads not guilty to two counts of aggravated sexual assault against a 26-year-old woman in the NSW Hunter Valley and tells reporters outside court it's been "a very hard time" for his family.

A north Queensland mother is worried for the health of her children after PFAS was found in fish and water samples taken near their Mackay property.

Senior members of the Nomads bikie gang are sentenced over their participation in a criminal group, during a period of what the prosecutor described as "extreme" and "unpredictable" violence across the Hunter region.

MORNING BRIEFING: NSW Police arrest a man in Guildford over the shooting murder of Parramatta FC soccer player John Odisho, while Barnaby Joyce leads an anti-abortion rally in Martin Place.

A man pleads guilty to burning another man alive after dousing him with petrol on a deserted road south of Newcastle last year.

Up to 100,000 litres of water is being used each weekday by a regional New South Wales council to keep drivers safe on its gravel roads all 954 kilometres of them.

MORNING BRIEFING: Police have arrested 38 people following a climate change protest on Monday, and there have been more than 240 major crashes on the roads over the long weekend.

A man who previously admitted to the kidnap and sexual abuse of an 11-year-old girl in Newcastle has pleaded guilty to three further offences.

During the final week of the Federal election campaign, National Party ads accuse Rob Oakeshott of having never "done a hard day's work in his life".

The reliability of roadside drug testing for cannabis is in question after new research reveals a "concerning" proportion of the tests are inaccurate, while a driver argues the 'passive smoking' defence and has charges dismissed.

Police are appealing for witnesses after a car hit two women in an "horrific" incident in Nambucca Heads on Saturday night, with the mother of one of the women later charged with manslaughter.

WA and NSW cane toads are bigger, stronger and can travel further, but they lag behind Queensland toads in one significant feature testicle size.

An Australian region larger than Texas has lost its only commercial television news reporter, sparking an outcry from former employees, community leaders and viewers.

A woman has been left in shock and with a deep distrust of cyber security laws after her ex-boyfriend used an app to control her car and stalk her.

A court releases vision of Aboriginal woman Tanya Day tearful at a Victorian police station on the day she suffered head injuries that led to her death.

Vic Roads and Zoos Victoria

The Victorian Government is starting a trial today to test the ability of automated cars to cope on busy Melbourne roads. The Government says the trial, involving already available technology from four different manufacturers, is the next step in preparing for a future of driverless cars. Motoring groups and the police are supporting the initiative, but say nationally consistent standards will be crucial to the success of driverless cars in Australia.

They are a lifeline for tourist towns, but locals in the nation's regional tourism drawcards say increasing numbers of older travellers are failing to show basic etiquette.

Four children are among eight people rescued from cars trapped in snow as Victoria is hit by unusually heavy May falls.

A New South Wales woman pleads guilty to common assault for throwing an egg at the Prime Minister's head during the election campaign.

Heavy snow, freezing temperatures and "treacherous driving conditions" close access to a popular snow resort as Victoria shivers through its third day of an extreme cold snap that's blanketing towns in snow.

The deadly march of pig-killing African swine fever is continuing, with one quarter of the world's pigs now dead, according to meat and livestock analysts.

Alexandros Deligiannis, the man police believe was the original target of Darwin's June mass shooting, faces court charged with three driving offences including driving with a prohibited drug in the body.

Professor Thomas Madsen with a dead water python

Northern Territory Police send in reinforcements after a woman is shot with a crossbow during a violent outbreak in a remote Arnhem Land community

Two men walked into a Canberra McDonald's restaurant and ordered a meal while still covered in the blood of a man they had just attacked, according to court documents.

A second man pleads guilty to the manslaughter of Bobby Allan, who died on a neighbour's doorstep after being beaten and robbed in the Canberra suburb of Rivett.

All three men charged over a bashing that killed Canberra man Bobby Allan, who died after collapsing at a neighbour's door seeking help for his injuries, plead guilty to manslaughter.

Steve Smith played every shot in the book and then some from outside the coaching manuals as his unbeaten 80 helped Australia to a seven-wicket win over Pakistan in their Twenty20 clash in Canberra.

Gold Coast man John William Chardon, accused of killing his wife Novy, allegedly told her friend she had "packed her luggage and left", before propositioning her about whether she would be interested in an affair, a trial has heard.

As the congestion issue in south-east Queensland brings traffic to a grinding halt on major roadways and a heightened scrutiny of the public transport system, the ABC takes a look at how commuters are being impacted across the region.

A Queensland mother says she experienced a parent's worst nightmare when her car was stolen with her four-year-old son and the family puppy still inside.

As Stanthorpe faces running dry within months the local council discusses its options with the Queensland Government and gets set to impose heavy water restrictions.

A video posted on social media shows a man getting out of a vehicle, walking towards a woman as she stood next to her ute, and appearing to punch her in the face.

A woman who was punched in a road rage incident on the NSW Central Coast, which was viewed thousands of times on social media, enters a guilty plea for throwing nails and a chisel at another car.

Bill Shorten draws a rockstar welcome in enemy territory, Scott Morrison argues with Labor over its support for a Coalition policy and Clive Palmer is personally, yet noticeably, absent from the campaign trail.

As the drought spreads, spending in country towns continues to drop and rural businesses are suffering. As shops close, the owners of those that remain open hope they'll get more support in coming weeks.

A silkworm produces silk thread that is almost as strong as steel. Why does a silkworm need such a strong thread? Find out in this video. How is silk thread being used in medical science, and why is it better than using the polyester alternative? Can you think of other uses for silk thread?

A number of churches, including Elkhorn Baptist in Baker City, argue Brown's executive orders are invalid on “constitutional procedural grounds.”