A blood-stained sandbag was seen on the grass in front of the site.

Jamie Gill was drinking with the siblings before his body was found in a paddock.

Tim Walz and JD Vance will meet for their first and possibly only vice presidential debate on Wednesday, in what could be the last debate for both campaigns to argue their case before the election.

The debate in New York hosted by CBS News at 11am (AEST) will give Vance, a Republican freshman senator from Ohio, and Walz, a two-term Democratic governor of Minnesota, the chance to introduce themselves, make the case for their running mates, and go on the attack against the opposing ticket.

The matchup could have an outsized impact.

YOU CAN WATCH THE DEBATE LIVE AND FREE ON 9NOW FROM 11AM

READ MORE: Trump escalates personal attacks on Harris

Polls have shown Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump locked in a close contest, giving added weight to anything that can sway voters on the margins, including the impression left by the vice presidential candidates.

It also might be the last debate of the campaign, with the Harris and Trump teams failing to agree on another meeting.

The role of a presidential running mate is typically to serve as an attack dog for the person at the top of the ticket, arguing against the opposing presidential candidate and their proxy on stage.

Both Vance and Walz have embraced that role.

Vance's occasionally confrontational news interviews and appearances on the campaign trail have underscored why Trump picked him for the Republican ticket despite his past biting criticisms of the former president, including once suggesting Trump would be "America's Hitler."

Walz, meanwhile, catapulted onto Harris' campaign by branding Trump and Republicans as " just weird," creating an attack line for Democrats seeking to argue Republicans are disconnected from the American people.

A new AP-NORC poll found that Walz is better liked than Vance, potentially giving the Republican an added challenge.

After a Harris-Trump debate in which Republicans complained about the ABC News moderators fact-checking Trump, the debate will not feature any corrections from the hosts.

CBS News said the onus for pointing out misstatements will be on the candidates, with moderators "facilitating those opportunities."

Both sides are trying to lower expectations

Ahead of the debate, allies of both men were lowering expectations that their candidate will have a decisive performance.

Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., called Vance "an accomplished debater" and contrasted that with Walz, saying he was "not a lawyer-debater type." Klobuchar said Walz spent time growing up thinking about football, not debating.

Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, portrayed Walz much differently than Klobuchar.

READ MORE: US election poll-tracker: Who will win on November 5?

"Tim Walz is very good in debates, really good. He's been a politician for nearly 20 years. He'll be very well prepared for tomorrow night," Miller told reporters Monday.

He predicted the Democratic governor of Minnesota will be much more "buttoned up" than he is on the campaign trail and ready to defend his record, but added, "That's not to say that JD Vance won't be prepared tomorrow, or that somehow he isn't up to the challenge."

Vance, speaking to reporters last week, said he didn't "have to prepare that much" for the debate because he had "well-developed views on public policy."

But Vance has been doing debate prep sessions where he's been joined by his wife, Usha Vance, Miller, senior Vance aides, and Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., who has played Walz, according to a person familiar with his preparations who requested anonymity to discuss strategy.

Moderating their mock debates was Monica Crowley, who served in the Trump administration, hosts a podcast and contributed to Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for remaking government that Trump claims he knows " nothing about."

"JD Vance is prepared to wipe the floor with Tim Walz and expose him for the radical liberal he is," Emmer told reporters on Monday.

READ MORE: Fear, confusion at being transformed into target for nation's vitriol

Walz's debate prep has included sessions hunkered down in a Minneapolis hotel, with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg standing in for Vance, according to a person familiar with the process who requested anonymity to discuss the campaign's internal dynamics.

Others helping in the preparations include Rob Friedlander and Zayn Siddique, who helped Harris prepare for her debate with Trump, along with other aides to Walz and the campaign.

Klobuchar said Walz will show the American people "a real person" who brings "buoyancy" and positivity to the debate stage that will contrast with Vance, but "he is not going to be shy about pointing out the problems."

"Just because he's an optimistic, positive person doesn't mean he's a pushover," she said.

FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, celebrity and sport via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.

People will die if plans to scale back are carried out, the Nurses Organisation says.

Lower Hutt locals are shutting themselves indoors to escape another wave of putrid odours.

A witness said they saw a man with what appear to be a large gun strapped around his neck.

Stanford made her comments at the annual PPTA meeting.

OPINION: Luxon has just sold two of his houses, reportedly making a capital gain of $460k.

An elderly doctor has been admonished in court for bringing a box-cutter on a long-distance flight to treat his skin condition, causing hours-long delays for hundreds of fellow passengers.

Adrian Francis Rodney Russell was spotted with the potential weapon at Sydney International Airport on July 23, 2024 as his United Airlines plane taxied out to the runway to take off to Los Angeles.

The 75-year-old took the blade out of his black toiletries bag, where it was placed along with his medications, and placed it on the tray table in front of his seat.

READ MORE: Search under way for woman, 79, missing from Perth care facility

It was spotted and seized by a passing flight attendant, who passed it onto the US air marshals aboard the plane.

The device contained an 8cm-long blade, according to an agreed statement of facts tendered in court.

"(The) knife had a substantial amount of dirty stains on it," the document said.

The plane was returned to the terminal, all passengers were required to be screened again through security and police searched the plane for any other prohibited items, delaying the departure by two hours and 40 minutes.

Australian Federal Police officers interviewed Russell, who was hit with one charge of possessing a prohibited item on board an aircraft.

The 75-year-old doctor, who runs a pathology clinic out of his home in Terrigal, on the NSW Central Coast, pleaded guilty in September.

He appeared from his home by video-link for sentence at Downing Centre Local Court on Tuesday with numerous pieces of artwork seen hanging behind him.

READ MORE: Woman, 74, dies in hospital after being hit by SUV in central Queensland

Russell told police he had not noticed the blade until he opened his medicine pouch on the plane.

He said he used the knife to open letters and as a "habitual scratching implement" to peel scabs and dead skin from his hand and arm because of a dermatitis-type condition.

His lawyer Kim Stapleton and crown prosecutor Kristen Wakefield agreed Russell did not need to be convicted for the crime.

Magistrate Jennifer Atkinson concurred, finding the offence proven but dismissing the case without conviction.

In handing down the sentence, she took into account his age, complete lack of criminal history, good character, co-operation with the authorities and remorse.

While the AFP had done their jobs properly by taking these kinds of offences seriously and charging Russell, Atkinson said his actions were at the low end of seriousness.

But she still reprimanded the 75-year-old, saying he needed to take extra care to check his hand luggage before boarding a flight.

"It's simply not appropriate to have these things on a plane," she said.

The maximum penalty for the offence is a $6260 fine.

Major changes have been made to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), including officially banning sex work claims.

NDIS Minister Bill Shorten announced a sweeping reform to the scheme and what types of support participants can access.

Under the revamp, NDIS participants won't be able to have access to sex work, dating apps, concerts, reiki, crystal and cuddle therapy and vapes.

READ MORE: 'Almost mission impossible': Inside Koala's attempt to disrupt Australia's domestic airline industry

The changes will come into effect on October 3 and come after a lengthy wait for Australians with a disability for the final list.

NDIS participants will be given a one-year grace period to get used to the changes and administrators will have the power to waive mistaken claims under $1500.

Those using a support now under the new banned list will also be allowed to retain the service until their NDIS plan expires.

Shorten said new guidelines would give Australians using NDIS more clarity.

"We are just putting certain therapies beyond all reasonable doubt that they are not what service providers should be offering," he said.

READ MORE: Woman, 74, dies in hospital after being hit by SUV in central Queensland

READ MORE: Qatar Airways to buy 25 per cent of Virgin Australia

"We're just being really clear that this scheme is going to be run properly, transparently, in the best of participants, not some service providers who are selling therapies, which we cannot find much in the way of scientific or evidentiary basis."

The government say the reforms will save taxpayers $14 billion over four years.

Shorten previously vowed to rule out sexual services under the NDIS after arguing it was "not a sustainable proposition".

He said the vast majority of people "aren't seeking these services".

"I think the vast majority of Australians are pleased to see that the scheme is sustainable, but they also want to see clear rules," Shorten said today when asked about the exclusion of sex therapy.

Shorten also said he will "do as much as we can" before he departs federal politics and his role as NDIS Minister in February 2025.