Our Journalists

Laura Placella is a court reporter for the Herald Sun. She was previously the city reporter for the masthead. She graduated from Monash University with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and a Bachelor of Arts.

@lauraplacella

Laura Placella

Latest

UpdatedVictoria

Ruby, 11 and Grandfather Hugh, 84Echuca prepares for the impending floods from both the Murray River and the Campaspe River. Authorities have started building a Levy and also lifting an existing levy, cutting some parts of the community off. Picture: Jason Edwards

Help for flood-affected students, Echuca on high alert

The Andrews government has announced support to VCE students and free kinder in flood-ravaged areas, while Echuca is bracing for more flooding.

Leader

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, NCA NewsWire, Sunday, 9 October 2022Weir Reserve PenrithNSW Picture: NCA NewsWire / Monique Harmer

Farmers worried for stranded livestock

Anxious farmers say Goulburn-Murray Water’s decision to release more water from the Lake Eildon catchment is putting livestock at risk.

Education

Students at Mount Waverley senior school after English VCE exam.Caleb Benson ponders his English paper.Picture: Stuart Milligan

Errors you must avoid to nail VCE English exam

Top students, teachers and tutors share their best tips, dos and don’t to blitz the VCE English exam.

North

Generic picture of a Victoria Police car. Picture: Liam Beatty

Car smashed, fence mowed down before fatal stabbing

A stabbing victim who lost his life in Heidelberg West on Sunday has been identified as a 25-year-old Thomastown man. Read the latest.

Victoria

Feds defend $2.2bn spend on Dan’s pet project

The Albanese government has defended its decision to pledge $2.2 billion towards the Suburban Rail Loop, despite a report finding the project doesn’t stack up.

VIDEOVictoria

People start leaving their homes as Shepparton has begun to flood with the lake Victoria Park lake overflowing. Sunday, Oct 16, 2022. Picture: David Crosling

Nervous wait for Shepp as record floodwaters approach

Battered Shepparton residents are bracing for the worst, with the swollen Goulburn River tipped to peak at a record 12.2m in the early hours of Monday.

Victoria

DEAL-20181019 EMBARGO FOR THE DEAL19 OCT 2018crying child Pic : iStock

Warning as parents hire unvetted babysitters online

Parents are offering overnight accommodation to strangers they met online in exchange for minding their children in a babysitting “free-for-all”.

ExclusiveBehind the Scenes

Lynley Le Grand (Lynley Huguenin), right, a 42-year-old who survived the Bali Bombing, and Sevegne Newton, 60-year-old, left, her rescuer during the bombing, are both Australian women who smile as they want to appear happy, reunite during their visit to Bali on Tuesday, October 11, 2022. Victims, families, and relatives of the Bali Bombing 2002 arrived in Bali to attend the 20th Bali Bombing Commemoration, which will be held on Wednesday, October 12, 2022.

‘I got told to peel her skin off’: Aussie pair’s unbreakable bond

Lynley Le Grand has been reunited with her “guardian angel” after a horrific night in Bali bound her with fellow Aussie Sevegne Newton for life.

Weather

Aerial photos of flood waters enter homes and streets by the Maribyrnong River in the Flemington area. Flemington Racecourse under threat of rising flood water. Picture: David Caird

Review into Flemington Racecourse flood wall

A review will determine whether a wall around Flemington Racecourse exacerbated floodwaters that devastated Maribyrnong.

Police & Courts

An elderly woman was left bloodied and bruised after a savage attack outside a church in South Yarra, Penelope Katsavos was left bloodied and bruised after the horrific attack.

Thug’s bizarre reason for bashing grandma in South Yarra

A student who assaulted a 79-year-old woman in an unprovoked attack outside a church had spent the night partying on Chapel St to “cheer up” after the death of his grandmother.

Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/journalists/laura-placella/page/54