Half of the residents of troubled Gold Coast nursing home Earle Haven were being physically restrained, and 71 per cent received medical restraint, in the weeks before it abruptly closed its doors last month, the aged care Royal Commission hears.

Criminologist and former detective Terry Goldsworthy says the move to reduce Queensland's police zones is a key factor behind a rise in the state's crime rates over the past 12 months.

The Adelaide Crows fan favourite says other clubs have shown interest in him, but he has not been offered a contract from a rival team, as the club continues to search for answers after missing the finals for a second year in a row.

One of the region's major dams is already at half capacity and with another dry spring forecast, Seqwater warns mandatory water restrictions could be in place by mid next year.

Acting Queensland Premier Jackie Trad says the Gold Coast hinterland fire that swept through the area over the weekend included areas of rainforest a highly unusual event, but one that experts say is occurring more frequently in recent times.

A man is taken into police custody in relation to a car that crashed through the front of a house on the Gold Coast early on Sunday morning, leaving a teenage girl trapped inside.

An investigation is underway after two police officers fired their weapons during the dramatic arrest of a 53-year-old man suspected of lighting up to four fires in north Queensland.

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 28-year-old man is charged with murder of Jayden Mason, who was found unconscious on a road on the NSW Central Coast last month, while two other men are arrested in connection with his death.

A taser is deployed as police seize two vehicles and raid properties after the arrest of three people over a fatal shooting at Wyong on the New South Wales Central Coast yesterday.

Usain Bolt has turned down a two-year deal to play in Europe, but that won't make Mike Mulvey and the Central Coast Mariners rush into offering the eight-time Olympic champion a deal.

MORNING BRIEFING: Police charge a man in Parramatta after finding tools to make a homemade bomb in his backpack, while Sydney residents can soon expect formal water restrictions as dry conditions continue.

A man and a woman are arrested in connection with the murder of Danielle Easey, whose body was found last month, wrapped in plastic and dumped in a creek near Newcastle.

For the first time two overall winners have won the prestigious David Malin Awards which honours the best in Australian astrophotography.

After four decades, a rural community farewells the family behind the town's first and only Chinese restaurant and celebrates their role in diversifying its culinary palate.

NSW has no 'standard definition' for water restrictions, leaving it to councils to work out for themselves.

The NSW Farmers Association is lobbying the State Government remove the interest on loans provided to farmers during drought.

Imagine diving between giant kelp that reach more than 30 metres from the bottom of the ocean to the surface. The east coast of Tasmania is one of the few places in the world where these underwater forests exist. But how much longer will they survive? Watch this clip to find out why these magnificent ecosystems are disappearing at an alarming rate.

Compound interest will be one of the most important things you ever learn. Don't believe it? Gen Fricker will explain why. Learn how compound interest works, and why saving now can help you later. Game changer! Then test yourself with ASIC Moneysmart's "Things to think about" classroom exercises.

Few large sectors have been hit as hard by the coronavirus-related economic fallout as restaurants, bars and coffee shops. Many have closed temporarily. Some have shifted to delivery or to-go orders. An increasing number are closing permanently.

Airport temperature screenings mark latest discord between Trump administration and CDC over federal coronavirus response and science of public health

Rates have risen just slightly, and buyers are coming back.

(Supreme Court of California) - Reversing the judgment of the Court of Appeal insofar as it determined that a 2011 analysis of greenhouse gas emission impacts prepared as part of a project for the development of transportation infrastructure in San Diego was inadequate and required revision.

RT @IsaacScher__: NEW: Half of all Brooklynites are white, but 97.5% of the borough's social distancing arrests were of people of color.

(United States Federal Circuit) - Summary judgment for defendant on plaintiff's state law business tort claims is vacated and remanded, where the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over plaintiffs' claims because: 1) defendant's allegedly inaccurate statements regarding its patent rights concerned conduct taking place entirely in Taiwan; 2) the use of a patented process outside the United States is not an act of patent infringement; and thus, 3) there is no prospect of a future U.S. infringement suit arising out of the Taiwan company's use of the parties' products in Taiwan, and accordingly no prospect of inconsistent judgments between state and federal courts.

(California Court of Appeal) - Dismissed part of appeal and affirmed part. Plaintiff filed a class action complaint against Defendant alleging wage and hour violations and a unfair competition law claim (UCL). Defendants sought to compel arbitration. The trial court granted Defendant’s motion as to Plaintiffs individual claims, allowed the arbitrator to decide the class action claims, and denied the motion as to the UCL claim. The appeals court found that the motion that granted arbitration could not be appealed and found no error in the denial of arbitration for the UCL claim.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Held that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services improperly calculated two Mississippi hospitals' Medicare reimbursements, specifically, so-called Disproportionate Share Hospital payments. Reversed the decision below and remanded to the agency.

Mr James Morrison, the Trustfund Loan Lender. Sounds like a 419 superhero.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Revived environmental organizations' lawsuit seeking to compel the U.S. Forest Service to ban hunters' use of lead ammunition, which is ingested by scavenger wildlife species and causes lead poisoning. Held that the suit for declaratory and injunctive relief was justiciable. Reversed a dismissal and remanded.

(United States Fourth Circuit) - Vacated federal agency decisions approving construction of a natural gas pipeline through a national forest. Several environmental groups challenged the Bureau of Land Management's and U.S. Forest Service's rulings allowing the pipeline to be built. On a petition for review, the Fourth Circuit agreed with the environmental groups that the federal agencies failed to fully comply with the National Environmental Policy Act, the Mineral Leasing Act, and the National Forest Management Act, and therefore the appeals court vacated and remanded to the agencies for further proceedings.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Held that an oil company did not breach its contract with several other oil companies. The dispute arose out of a joint agreement to cooperatively develop oil prospects in Texas. Reversed the judgment below.

(United States First Circuit) - In a lawsuit over the trademarking and continued sale of a chicken sandwich, alleging violations of the Lanham Act and Copyright Act, the district court's order dismissing the federal claims and declination of jurisdiction over the supplemental Puerto Rico law claims is affirmed where: 1) there was no violation of the Copyright Act because neither the name "Pechu Sandwich" nor the recipe are eligible for copyright protection; and 2) the complaint fails to sufficiently plead that defendant committed fraud in the procurement of a federal trademark for the sandwich.

(United States Federal Circuit) - The final decision of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) Trademark Trial and Appeal Board refusing registration of a stylized form of the mark CHURRASCOS is affirmed over restaurant company-appellant's appeal, where: 1) the Board's decision contains no harmful legal error; and 2) the Board's finding that the mark is generic is supported by substantial evidence.

(United States Sixth Circuit) - In a company's suit under section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) to vacate or modify the arbitration award against it, district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of the union is affirmed where: 1) the arbitrator did not exceed his authority by interpreting the CBA in a way that allowed the company to be found liable for a breach; 2) the arbitrator did not exceed the scope of his authority to decide a representational issue in this case because the arbitrator's successor decision was permissible in furtherance of his interpretation of the CBA; 3) the award's remedy does not violate public policy; and 4) the arbitrator did not dispense his own brand of industrial justice.

Benjamin Crump, a civil rights attorney representing the father of Ahmaud Arbery, called for police to arrest the Georgia man who filmed Arbery being shot and killed, USA Today reported Thursday.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) detailed guidelines on Friday for the state to begin reopening next week under strict restrictions.

(California Court of Appeal) - Held that the trial court erred in dismissing a proposed wage-hour class action on statute of limitations grounds. The issue involved the so-called death knell doctrine. Reversed a dismissal in relevant part, in an opinion after transfer from the California Supreme Court.

(United States Fifth Circuit) - Held that an oil company did not breach its contract with several other oil companies. The dispute arose out of a joint agreement to cooperatively develop oil prospects in Texas. Reversed the judgment below.

Huckleberry Restaurant & Rosedon Hotel recently re-launched its curbside pick-up service with a new online storefront at HuckleberryBDA.com. A...

By Nicole Nixon

Update 6:25 p.m.

As California prepares to enter the first phase of its economic reopening, the state released new guidelines Thursday, both for businesses wanting to expand operations and for counties looking to loosen restrictions on residents.

Moving into phase two “does not mean a return to normal,” said California Health & Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly. “We know that COVID-19 is still spreading.” 

Beginning Friday, some businesses in the retail, manufacturing and logistics sectors will be allowed to reopen, though retail stores can only provide curbside services.

Businesses have to meet a checklist before reopening. It includes:  

• Performing a detailed risk assessment and implement a site-specific protection plan
• Training employees on how to limit the spread of COVID-19, including how to screen themselves for symptoms and stay home if they have them
• Implementing individual control measures and screenings
• Implementing disinfecting protocols
• Implementing physical distancing guidelines

Businesses will have to meet certain industry guidelines for COVID-19 safety as well. The guidelines instruct manufacturers to limit person-to-person contact during production by installing shelving or other “transfer-aiding materials,” for example.  

Retailers are encouraged to prioritize product delivery and pickup. They are also instructed to cut in-store maximum occupancy numbers by half.  

Still, some businesses are still being expressly prohibited from reopening during phase two, including bars, gyms, nail salons, movie theaters and theme parks.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said there’s a reason nail salons are not included in phase two: “This whole thing started in the state of California — the first community spread —  in a nail salon,” he said.

The infection happened despite sanitation measures normally seen in nail salons, including alcohol-based products and nail technicians wearing masks and gloves. 

“I’m very worried about that,” Newsom said. 

How counties can get approval to reopen

While some counties have pressured the governor to allow them to reopen their local economies more broadly, others — including Yuba, Sutter and Modoc counties — didn’t wait for permission. 

Counties and their local health officers are now being given latitude to allow some other sectors to reopen, including malls, car washes, pet grooming, offices and dine-in restaurants — if they meet strict criteria. 

It includes additional surge capacity in local hospitals, the ability to conduct a minimum 15 tests per 100,000 residents daily and going 14 days without a COVID-19 death in the county, among other things.

It could be a long time before more populous counties get there. Dr Peter Beilenson, director of health services in Sacramento County, said the county meets all criteria except for that and having enough contact tracers (15 tracers per 100,000 county residents). 

“We expect to have the appropriate amount of contact tracing staff within the next two weeks,” Beilenson said in a statement to CapRadio. “In the meantime, we encourage everyone to continue following the safe social distancing and other guidelines provided in the Public Health Order.”

Counties that do meet the criteria must consult with the California Department of Public Health and submit their own local reopening plans to the state. Those plans must include what sectors and public spaces the county will allow to reopen, and a contingency plan for modifying local health orders if the disease begins to spread. 

Last month, Newsom unveiled six key indicators that will help him decide when to move the state into each new phase of reopening. They include the state’s testing capacity, hospitalization rates and ability for businesses and public spaces to implement health measures like sanitation and social distancing, among other things. 

The governor noted that he may tighten the statewide stay-at-home order again if the disease begins spreading as restrictions loosen. 

(California Court of Appeal) - Addressed whether an arbitration agreement could be enforced, given that it was signed only after the employee filed her employment discrimination lawsuit. Reversed and remanded for further findings.