About half of all mental health-related callouts in the past year were not attended by police, as they were called out to other higher priority situations. 

Police's 2020/21 annual report warns that un-met demand for mental health callouts is likely to increase. 

The report states police attended more than 70,000 events in that period which involved a person having a mental health crisis or threatening or attempting suicide, a 10 percent increase on the previous year. 

Domestic violence callouts have increased at the same rate and the report predicts they will increase 35 percent by 2025. 

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Stuff: No warning of rapist's release for victim because she didn't fill out a form 

By law, victims of serious crimes are entitled to updates on their attackers. But our system is clunky, and antiquated, and for many survivors it’s only adding to their trauma. Kirsty Johnston reports. 

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RNZ: Call for College of Psychiatrists to issue apology to Lake Alice abuse survivors 

A group monitoring the work of the Abuse in Care inquiry is calling on the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) to apologise to survivors of abuse at Lake Alice Child and Adolescent Unit in the 1970s. 

The Royal Commission Forum says the College colluded and was complicit in the abuse of children at the unit, which was run by psychiatrist, Dr Selwyn Leeks. 

Children in the unit were subjected to many forms of abuse, including the use of electroconvulsive therapy and drugs as a punishment. 

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The Spinoff: An update on Covid-19 for the kids of Aotearoa 

There are nearly 800,000 New Zealanders under 12 years of age. This update is for them.

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RNZ: As food prices rise, Auckland City Mission sees higher demand for services 

Over the past three months, the demand for Te Tāpui Atawhai Auckland City Mission's services has been the highest in the organisation's 100-year history. 

The mission's staff are worried it will not be able to provide up to 9000 boxes of food and tens of thousands of presents for families who would otherwise go without this festive season. 

Missioner Helen Robinson said the demand showed how many people were living without enough money for food. 

It is currently distributing more than 1600 food parcels every week, more than double what was being given out pre-Covid-19. 

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Stuff: Kiwis in worldwide top five for methamphetamine use, report finds 

A growth in importations of pre-precursor chemicals to make methamphetamine, as well as an increase in quantities of the drug being produced in Nigeria and other African nations, are two emerging trends affecting New Zealand as identified in a new study. 

The first findings of the police-led Methamphetamine in New Zealand Research Programme, one of the largest ever studies carried out on the drug nationwide, were released last week. 

The report, which consolidates 279 documents from a range of different agencies, concluded the magnitude of harm caused by meth in New Zealand communities was not yet known and pointed to growing trends about the drug. 

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NZ Herald: Grace Millane's killing: Murderer's flatmate speaks out in new documentary 

The former flatmate of Grace Millane's murderer says she understands how the British backpacker "fell for him because he was charming", but says those who knew him knew not to be alone with him. 

In an interview for a documentary airing on ITV in the UK this week, Millie Mason, a former flatmate of Jesse Kempson, says the household knew "you shouldn't be near him alone" but also says she understood why Millane was drawn to him as he was "charming". 

ITV2's "The Murder of Grace Millane: Social Media Murders", to air this week, will tell the story of the murder of British backpacker Grace Millane, who was killed while in New Zealand in December 2018, after meeting her murderer on dating app Tinder. 

In the documentary, the former flatmate of the rapist and killer talks about her own experience living with the man, and the suspicions that had already arisen prior to the killing. 

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Stuff: Chief executive pleads guilty to child abuse charges, including rape of young girl 

Just before raping a child, the chief executive of a Christchurch-based company told her “this is our big secret”. 

The man, in his 50s, appeared in the Christchurch District Court on Monday via audiovisual link before Judge Peter Rollo and pleaded guilty to 38 child sex charges, including filming himself sexually violating a child, after two charges were withdrawn. 

The charges include rape and unlawful sexual connection with a female under 12 years, committing an indecent act on a child under 12, and possessing objectionable publications. 

Name suppression was opposed by Stuff and police, but continues while further information is sought. 

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Stuff: Dilworth School: Former music teacher and choirmaster can now be named as accused 

One of the men charged with historical sexual offending against boys at Dilworth School is also accused of going on to offend against another boy at Hamilton’s St Paul’s Collegiate. 

Leonard Cave can now be named as one of 12 men charged with historical child sex offending at Auckland’s Dilworth School. 

The 74-year-old organist has denied a charge of sexual violation, eight of indecent assault, one of inducing an indecent act and two of supplying drugs to boys. 

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Stuff: Abusive father tried to keep assets from his children after he died 

A man who beat, abused and tormented his children when they were young wanted to deprive them of everything, even after his death. 

Now adults, his three children continue to suffer the effects of his abuse; mentally, physically and financially. 

The man abandoned the children and their mother in the early 1980s. Before he died in 2016 he put his assets in a trust to ensure his children would receive nothing. 

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Stuff: Child sex offender claims he reoffended because he felt 'bored' during lockdown 

Warning: This article contains content that may disturb some people. 

Convicted child sex offender Alexander William Power will spend the next four years and ten months behind bars after being sentenced for a raft of new offences, including possession of videos showing the rape and torture of babies. 

Power, 29, was sentenced at Rotorua District Court on Friday after pleading guilty to nine charges including possession of objectionable material, indecent communication with a young person, sexual exploitation of an under 18-year-old and failure to comply with reporting obligations. 

Crown prosecutor Sam Bird said Power claimed he offended “because he was lonely”. 

“I felt a bit ho-hum, bored”, Bird said Power claimed. 

“Not only does that reflect a lack of insight, but a lack of empathy,” he said. 

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Stuff: Oranga Tamariki caregiver indecently asaulted girls in his care 

Two girls who spent years in Oranga Tamariki care feel as unsafe as ever, after a caregiver indecently assaulted the pair. 

One girl is effectively homeless, while the other needed a jury’s verdicts to confirm the caregiver’s poor behaviour. 

The caregiver was sentenced in the Palmerston North District Court on Monday to 11 months of home detention and ordered to pay $10,000 emotional harm reparation. 

The caregiver, who Stuff is not naming to protect the girls’ identities, was their foster parent in April 2019. 

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Stuff: Survivors call for new Government entity to hear allegations of institutional child abuse 

John's* life has been blighted by the sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of his Catholic school principal. 

Forty years on, he is having to appeal to the Marist Brothers for redress, the very institution who employed the perpetrator. 

John was shut out of the investigation before being offered a compensation figure he describes as insulting and an impersonal “computer-generated” apology letter. 

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Stuff: Man guilty of killing one woman, badly burning another with intent to cause harm 

A man who admitted assaulting a woman so badly she had to be put in a neurological ward has been found guilty of beating a younger woman to death. 

Maui Philip Downes , 55, was found guilty in the High Court at Palmerston North on Wednesday of the manslaughter of a 30-year-old woman and disfiguring an older woman with intent to cause grievous bodily harm between October 13 and 16, 2019. 

He was found not guilty of indecently assaulting the 30-year-old and of attempting to pervert the course of justice in relation to a serious assault he committed against the older woman. 

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NZ Herald: Survivor of child sexual abuse finally gets justice by secretly recording abuser's confession 

A survivor of child sexual abuse finally got justice by secretly recording a call where his offender confessed, six years after he says police didn't think there was enough evidence. 

Speaking about his experience for the first time the survivor, who is now a lawyer, said he reported the incident when he was an adult in 2013 but when police interviewed the offender in 2014 he denied the offending and he told the Herald the case was dropped. 

"In March 2019 I called the officer on a whim and went through the Prosecution Guidelines with him. I argued that most of the grounds had been met. As a compromise (to his credit) he agreed to let me call the abuser with a bug on my phone to try to obtain a confession. " 

It worked, and he said from the time of the confession until the sentencing the detective was "incredible" and kept him in the loop. 

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Stuff: Taranaki man jailed for early-morning attacks on partner 

A Taranaki woman assaulted by her partner escaped further violence by leaving the house while he was distracted and running to a hospital for treatment. 

Rick De Jong, 32, appeared before Judge Gregory Hikaka via audio visual link (AVL) in the New Plymouth District Court for sentencing on Wednesday. 

He had previously pleaded guilty to assaulting someone in a family relationship, assaulting with the intent to injure with a weapon, wilful damage, and for breaching a protection order and release conditions. 

The crimes occurred twice in a 24-hour period, in De Jong’s partner’s home. 

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Stuff: Teenager faces an adult sentence after stabbing police officer 

An adult sentence stretches ahead of a teenager who has admitted stabbing a North Canterbury police officer. 

The teen will be sentenced on December 10, after on Tuesday admitting charges of wounding the officer with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, assault with a weapon, and threatening to kill the officer. 

Judge Stephen O’Driscoll continued the young defendant’s name suppression for a week to allow defence counsel Andrew McCormick to decide whether a final suppression order will be sought. 

The automatic suppression that applies to defendants charged in the Youth Court no longer applies once a case has been transferred to the adult jurisdiction. Adult penalties are also available to the sentencing judge after the transfer. 

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NZ Herald: Titirangi arson case: Man accused of West Auckland house fire found competent to stand trial 

A former boxer accused of setting fire to a West Auckland home during a standoff with police has been found competent to stand trial. 

However, interim name suppression will remain in place for now, Judge Karen Grau ruled today. 

The man was arrested at a Titirangi address in October, charged with intentionally damaging a property by fire, assaulting a woman, intentionally damaging household items belonging to the woman and threatening to do grievous bodily harm to a man. 

Police previously said they were called to the residence for a report of a family harm incident, and when they arrived everyone came outside except for the defendant. 

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Stuff: 'Gonna get rid of you': Woman admits months-long campaign of harassment 

A woman who used multiple email accounts and cellphone numbers to threaten a man for months, telling him she was “gonna get rid” of him and stab him in his sleep, has admitted the harassment in court. 

The 28-year-old woman, who has interim name suppression, pleaded guilty to three charges in the Christchurch District Court on Thursday. 

Judge Peter Rollo did not convict her after being told by defence counsel Ethan Huda that he will argue for a discharge without conviction at her sentencing. 

She admitted charges of offensive use of a telephone, causing harm by posting digital communication, and breaching a protection order. 

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