**** CKPT FOR MON 10 DEC 2007
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1700 to 1707 NEWS
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Pleas for Porirua youths not to retaliate after a fatal stabbing over the weekend are being ignored as the community now faces the prospect of escalating violence. Despite the arrest today of man who is now charged with the murder of 24-year-old Fitzgerald Risati, police have confirmed two attacks on gang members by angry youths. The arrested man, who's also 24, has also been charged with the attempted murder of Fitzgerald's brother Risati Risati, who is still in hospital recovering from a stab wound to his back. Porirua's Deputy Mayor, is Litia Ah Hoi, she's also the Risati family's spokeperson and she joins us now... LIVE
The police believe the killer of a young Auckland man followed his victim for more than a kilometre before stabbing him to death. 24-year-old Daryl Graydon was attacked while walking in Howick early on Saturday morning. Jean Edwards reports. PACKAGE
The former assistant police commissioner, Clint Rickards, has hit back at his critics in an interview which aired this morning on Radio Waatea. Mr Rickards, has twice been cleared of historic sex charges, but resigned from the police last month before facing internal disciplinary action. He denies any wrongdoing, and says his accuser, Louise Nicholas, is a liar. Amanda Strong reports. PACKAGE
The fast actions of residents of a quiet suburban cul-de-sac in Lower Hutt have been credited with saving the life of a woman who was repeatedly stabbed early this morning. The 35-year old woman is in a serious condition in hospital after being stabbed in the back by a man in Wainuiomata just after two o'clock this morning. Police say her quick-thinking neighbours rushed out onto the street, and one then pursued the attacker who fled the scene in a van. Detective Sergeant Brendan Mears from the Lower Hutt police says the attack started indoors but quickly spilled out into the street. PRE-REC
Classrooms at a Tokoroa school went into lock-down this morning when a man carrying a weapon was seen walking through the grounds. A 34 year old man was later arrested at Tokoroa Hospital. It all began with a gang confrontation, as Andrew McRae reports.PKGE
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BUSINESS NEWS WITH Nadine Chalmers-Ross
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A week of unrelenting rain in the Far North has put a damper on Christmas parades and carol services. But it's as if Santa's come early for the region's dairy farmers. Lois Williams ventured out onto the wet streets of Whangarei to see how soggy shoppers are coping. PACKAGE
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17.30 HEADLINES
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In Australia - the new Rudd goverment has started to wind down the controversial 'Pacific Solution" where asylum seekers are held on Nauru. The policy has been denounced by human rights groups since it was introduced in 2001 by John Howard a means of deterring the number of Iraqis and Afghans trying to enter the country. New Zealand has accepted a number of people who Australian authorities refused to let in. Kate Gauthier from the refugee advocacy group "A Just Australia" says Kevin Rudd has moved faster than expected to end a policy she describes as reprehensible. PRE-REC
The Invercargill Coroner's Court has heard that there may have been a missed chance to rescue a trans-Tasman kayaker. 24 hours before Andrew McAuley's kayak was found without him in it, and three days before his scheduled arrival in Milford Sound, the Rescue Co-ordination Centre received a distress call from a kayaker. His land crew believes that message could have been treated more seriously if they'd been better informed. Emma Lancaster has been following proceedings. LIVE
A new study shows at least nine MPs have denied or questioned the risks of second-hand smoke in the last six years despite research to the contrary. The study, by the University of Otago's Public Health Department, analysed parliamentary debates, press releases and media reports between 2000 and 2005. Katy Gosset reports. PACKAGE
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WAATEA NEWS
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A jury is considering whether a south Auckland man who dragged a man underneath his car is guilty of murdering him. Prestman Vesiputa Tauira is accused of killing Faa'Fetai Lafolua following a gang street brawl in August last year. Here's our reporter Joy Reid LIVE
When it come to intelligence, kiwis rank higher than first thought, with bigger brains than predicted.... the birds that is. An Auckland University study says the kiwi's brain is bigger than older birds which it is usually compared with, such as the Moa and Ostrich. The New Zealand icon has a brain of a similar proportion to what are known as new birds such as parrots, which have a larger brain because of their ability to sing and speak. However, it isn't known why the kiwi's brain is larger in proportion. Jeremy Corfield did the study as part of his PHD. PRE-REC
An earthquake in the South Pacific last night is one of the biggest to hit the area for a decade. The 7-point-six magnitude quake hit just before 8-30pm, and was centred 350 kilometres north of Raoul Island at a depth of 188 kilometres. GNS seismologist Martin Rayners says it's not surprising there were more than 200 reports from people who felt the earthquake more than a thousand kilometres away in New Zealand. PRE-REC
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