Since opening on Nov. 1, the Relief Center for our Caribbean Friends in Hartford managed by Capitol Region Education Council (CREC) has helped about 1,100 people displaced by hurricanes.

"They don't have anything left in Puerto Rico. There's just nothing. I've had families tell me there's nothing to rebuild," Aura Alvarado with CREC said.

Dozens of volunteers and multiple agencies and groups from CREC to FEMA to the Red Cross to Foodshare to local school districts work together to help meet the needs of families coming from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

On Wednesday, Hartford City Council hosted a fundraiser called Neighbors Helping Neighbors. Council members, Mayor Luke Bronin, state representatives, representatives from Hartford Public Schools, CREC and others attended the event where they got a tour of the building, donated by CREC, to learn how families are helped.

"There is an emergency that is happening right here in our community, in our state, and these families need all the help they can get," Hartford City Council Minority Leader Wildaliz Bermudez said. 

Families are able to pick up outfits and winter clothes as well as food.

"Everything here is donations: clothing, food, toiletries, diapers, formula," said Alvarado. "We give people bus passes. We give people gift cards to go shopping because sometimes I don't have their size of clothing here, so they have to go buy a coat. We've been giving children toys and books to take, so financial donations are definitely something we need."

Families also get career assistance, medical screenings and ESL class information along with other resources to help get them on their feet.

Families who came to Hartford from Puerto Rico in November talked about the difference the relief center has made for them.

"It was a very difficult time in Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria," an emotional Ileana Santana-Barada said as Bermudez translated.

Santana-Barada has two children and said thanks to the relief center she has a place to stay and a job.

"It was a place I found hope because given the information that I have received here in the center, I knew I could get ahead and start a new life," Santana-Barada said.

The center raised nearly $11,000 during the fundraiser on Wednesday and hopes to raise even more. A private donor has offered to match donations up to $25,000.

CREC says that because everything is donated, including the building and staff, that 100 percent of donations go to those families in need.

People who want to donate can make checks payable to "CREC Foundation - Relief Center" and mail it to CREC Foundation, 111 Charter Oak Ave, Hartford, CT 06106.

People can also donate online.

Four more staffers at the state’s maximum security mental hospital have been put on administrative leave following an ongoing patient abuse investigation.

 "New systems and processes in place helped to identify the incident quickly, allowing us to respond immediately,The Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) Commissioner Miriam Delphin-Rittmon said. "Client abuse will not be tolerated and staff will be held accountable for their actions."

In addition to the four workers put on leave on Wednesday, 37 staffers at the Whiting Forensic Division were also put on leave during the investigation, 13 have either been terminated, resigned or retired, while 10 have been arrested. 

The alleged abuse involves a 59-year-old patient that investigators said was kicked, spit upon and even had a dirty diaper placed on his head.

All of it was caught on surveillance tape over a one month period last winter.

DMHAS said in addition to installing video monitoring staffed by a contracted security company, they have changed the Whiting Maximum Security Unit management team, increased staff training and managerial presence, hired additional staff and improved communication. 

President Donald Trump on Wednesday commuted the sentence of an Iowa kosher meatpacking executive who had been sentenced to 27 years in prison for money laundering, marking the first time he's used the presidential power.

The decision to intervene on behalf of Sholom Rubashkin, who ran the Iowa headquarters of a family business that was the country's largest kosher meat-processing company, came at the urging of numerous members of Congress and a long list of high-ranking law enforcement officials, who argued the sentence was far too harsh for a first-time, non-violent offender.

The action was "encouraged by bipartisan leaders from across the political spectrum, from Nancy Pelosi to Orrin Hatch," the White House said.

Rubashki was convicted in 2009 for submitting fake invoices to a bank that made Agriprocessors' finances appear healthier than they were so that it could borrow more. His prosecution came after federal authorities raided the plant and arrested 389 illegal immigrants in 2008.

The 57-year-old father of 10 has served more than eight years of his sentence, according to the White House, which stressed the action is not a presidential pardon and does not vacate Rubashkin's conviction.

Trump has used his pardon power just once so far: to spare former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio the prospect of serving jail time by wiping away a federal conviction stemming from immigration patrols that focused on Latinos.

Rubashkin's long-time attorney Guy Cook praised Trump's decision, saying Rubashkin "has finally received justice."

"The sentence previously imposed was unfair, unjust and essentially a life sentence," he said via email. "President Trump has done what is right and just. The unrelenting efforts on Rubashkin's behalf have finally paid off."

Rubashkin's attorneys last year accused prosecutors of improperly interfering with the sale of Agriprocessors and depressing its sale price by millions. The drop in value left Agriprocessors' bank with a $27 million loss — a figure used to calculate Rubashkin's sentence under federal guidelines. The U.S. Attorney's Office denied the allegations.

The White House said the president's decision to review Rubashkin's sentence was driven by concerns raised by a bipartisan group of more than 100 former high-ranking law enforcement and Justice Department officials, including multiple former attorneys general, as well as prosecutors, judges, and legal scholars.

"Mr. Rubashkin is a devoted husband and father, a deeply religious man who simply doesn't deserve a sentence of this length, or anything remotely close to it," they wrote in a letter that urged Trump to use his "executive clemency power to commute the patently unjust and draconian 27-year sentence imposed upon Sholom Rubashkin -- a first time, non-violent offender and father of 10, including an acutely autistic child."

More than 30 current members of Congress also submitted letters to the White House supporting a review of Rubashkin's case.

But former prosecutor Bob Teig, who retired in 2011 after serving as a prosecutor and spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa, said Trump's decision to commute Rubashkin's sentence "makes no sense" given Trump's repeated promises to get tougher on illegal immigration.

Teig said that every court that looked at Rubashkin's sentence had concluded it was fair, and suggested that former Justice Department officials and lawmakers who supported leniency were unaware of the facts of the case.

"The outrage is backwards," he said.

In securing his first legislative victory Wednesday, President Donald Trump demonstrated that he's capable of leading his party in Congress and added another plank to his re-election platform, according to NBC News.

For a large portion of the next 11 months, and the two years after that, Democrats and Republicans will fight over whether the $1.5 trillion tax cut is the best catalyst for the economy, whether more of the relief should have been distributed to the working and middle classes and whether it should have included its repeal of the "Obamacare" tax on people who don't buy health insurance.

"It is a fundamental challenge to this presidency: Can we communicate the good news of the president's economic reforms to counter Democratic spin in the other direction. That may determine whether or not the president is re-elected in 2020," Trump's 2016 campaign advisor Michael Caputo said. 

Trump's supporters say enacting the tax cut is crucial because his 2020 re-election hopes rely heavily on Republicans' ability to keep control of Congress in the midterms. If they lose either chamber, his agenda will stall. If they lose both the House and Senate, his first term could devolve into an impeachment fight.

On the orders of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Justice Department prosecutors have begun asking FBI agents to explain the evidence they found in a now dormant criminal investigation into a controversial uranium deal that critics have linked to Bill and Hillary Clinton, multiple law enforcement officials told NBC News.

The interviews with FBI agents are part of the Justice Department's effort to fulfill a promise an assistant attorney general made to Congress last month to examine whether a special counsel was warranted to look into what has become known as the Uranium One deal, a senior Justice Department official said.

At issue is a 2010 transaction in which the Obama administration allowed the sale of U.S. uranium mining facilities to Russia's state atomic energy company. Hillary Clinton was secretary of state at the time, and the State Department was one of nine agencies that agreed to approve the deal after finding no threat to U.S. national security.

Hillary Clinton has denied playing any role in the decision by the State Department to approve the sale, and the State Department official who approved it has said Clinton did not intervene in the matter. That hasn't stopped some Republicans, including President Trump, from calling the arrangement corrupt — and urging that Clinton be investigated.

An FBI spokesman declined to comment.

You wouldn't know it from President Donald Trump's rhetoric, but the tax overhaul coming into effect is heavily tilted to the rich. It also leaves "Obamacare" in place, despite his assertion that the tax plan repeals the health care law. Nothing about the plan provides the fuel to achieve economic growth at the levels he's predicted.

Trump's penchant for exaggeration and sometimes pure fiction has clouded the realities of the overhaul as it has shaped up over months. As for Democrats, you wouldn't know to hear them talk that middle-class people are getting a tax cut out of the deal, too.

A look at remarks made Wednesday and earlier about the tax plan Trump will shortly sign into law.

TRUMP: "It's the largest tax cut in the history of our country." — remarks Wednesday.

THE FACTS: It isn't. For months Trump has refused to recognize larger tax cuts in history, of which there have been many, or to grant that other presidents have enacted big tax cuts since Ronald Reagan in the 1980s.

An October analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that it would be the eighth biggest since 1918. As a percentage of the total economy, Reagan's 1981 cut is the biggest followed by the 1945 rollback of taxes that financed World War II. Trump's plan is also smaller than cuts in 1948, 1964 and 1921, and probably in other years.

Valued at $1.5 trillion over 10 years, the plan is indeed large and expensive. But it's much smaller than originally intended. Back in the spring, it was shaping up as a $5.5 trillion package. Even then it would have only been the third largest since 1940 as a share of gross domestic product.

___

VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE: "You're delivering on that middle-class miracle." — to Trump at a Cabinet meeting Wednesday.

THE FACTS: Modest doesn't make for a miracle. Pence's praise to the boss reflects Trump's assertion that "it's a tax bill for the middle class," as he put it earlier and many times, but average people are not the prime beneficiaries of the tax cuts. Aside from businesses, rich people get the most.

The nonpartisan Tax Policy Center estimates the biggest benefit of the new law will go to households making $308,000 to $733,000. Households making over that should get a tax cut worth 3.4 percent of their after-tax income. For the richest 0.1 percent (making over $3.4 million), the tax cut should be worth 2.7 percent of their after-tax income. For middle-income earners: 1.6 percent, the center estimates.

Moreover, only high-income people would get a meaningful tax cut after 2025, when nearly all of the plan's individual income tax provisions are due to expire.

Republicans argue that the middle class will also see benefits from the business tax cuts, in the form of more jobs and higher wages.

___

DEMOCRATIC SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER: "Their bill increases taxes on lots of middle-class people. ... According to the Tax Policy Center, the top 1 percent of earners in our country gets 83 percent of the benefits." — remarks Tuesday.

THE FACTS: The tax cuts are not nearly as lopsided as many Democrats are portraying them. Almost all of the middle class would initially pay less in taxes.

For the next eight years, the vast majority of middle-class taxpayers — those earning between $49,000 and $86,000 — will receive a tax cut, albeit a small one. In 2018, nine-tenths of the middle class will get a cut, according to the Tax Policy Center. In 2025, 87 percent will. The tax cut won't be very big: just $930 next year for the middle one-fifth of taxpayers, the center's analysis concludes. For those paid twice a month, that's about $40 a paycheck.

Schumer and other Democrats are basing their assertions on the fact that nearly all personal tax cuts expire after 2025, which would result in a slight tax increase for about two-thirds of the middle class by 2027. The top 1 percent would still get a cut that year.

Only in 2027 do the wealthiest taxpayers get 83 percent of the benefit, as Schumer says. In 2018, roughly 21 percent of the tax cut's benefits go to the richest 1 percent, a much smaller figure, though still a disproportionate share. Just 11 percent will go to the middle one-fifth.

___

REP. NANCY PELOSI, House Democratic leader: "86 million middle class families get a tax hike." — tweet Wednesday.

THE FACTS: She's ignoring all the middle class tax cuts before 2027; that year, taxes will be slightly higher for the middle class unless the cuts are extended.

___

TRUMP on his tax legislation: "Obamacare has been repealed in this bill." — remarks Wednesday.

THE FACTS: It hasn't. The tax plan ends fines for people who don't carry health insurance. That's a major change but far from the dismantling of the law.

Other marquee components of Obama's law remain, such as the Medicaid expansion serving low-income adults, protections that shield people with pre-existing medical conditions from being denied coverage or charged higher premiums, income-based subsidies for consumers buying individual health insurance policies, the requirement that insurers cover "essential" health benefits, and the mandate that larger employers provide coverage to their workers or face fines.

Also, the tax bill doesn't repeal fines for uninsured individuals until the start of 2019, meaning the "individual mandate" is still in force for next year unless the administration acts to waive the penalties.

___

TRUMP: "When the individual mandate is being repealed, that means Obamacare is being repealed because they get their money from the individual mandate." — remarks Wednesday.

THE FACTS: This is also wrong. The fines on people who don't carry health insurance only provide a small fraction of the financing for the program. Most of the money comes from higher taxes on upper-income people, cuts in Medicare payments to service providers, and other tax increases.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated that fines from uninsured people would total $3 billion this year, while the government's cost for the coverage provided under the health law would total about $117 billion.

___

TRUMP: "So we're at 3.3 percent GDP. I see no reason why we don't go to 4 percent, 5 percent and even 6 percent." Speaks of GDP "getting up to 4, 5, and even 6 percent, because I think that's possible." — Cabinet meeting last week.

THE FACTS: There are no signs the economy is capable of delivering a phenomenal and rarely achieved growth rate in the order of 6 percent, or 5 or even 4. Federal Reserve officials and most mainstream economists expect economic growth to hew closer to 2 percent. The economy last cleared the 6 percent hurdle in 1984 and only for that fleeting year, at 7.3 percent. This was a different time, when baby boomers were at prime working ages, instead of today when they're starting to retire. The Federal Reserve had boosted growth by steadily slashing a key interest rate from its 1981 peak of 20 percent, while the Fed today is slowly increasing the same rate. Also, the national debt was much lower.

Trump's tax cuts are forecast to max out at roughly $280 billion in 2019, says Congress' Joint Committee on Taxation. Yet to generate growth of 6 percent, those cuts would have to spur a massive $1.2 trillion gain to the gross domestic product. No administration analysis emerged to show how this could be possible.

___

HOUSE SPEAKER PAUL RYAN: "We are making things so simple that you can do your taxes on a form the size of a postcard." — remarks when the tax bill came out Nov. 2.

THE FACTS: Don't count on it. Few accountants would agree that simplification has been achieved. The combination of temporary provisions, partial elimination of deductions and other loopholes, and differing tax rates for business income and wages in the new law has, if anything, added further complications.

Some middle-class taxpayers may see simpler returns because the standard deduction has doubled in size, to $24,000 for a married couple. Some families will probably stop taking deductions for things like mortgage interest as a result, making their tax returns easier to file. But people who give heavily to charity, for example, will still have to run through their receipts to see if they're better off with the standard deduction or itemization.

Many business owners and upper-income taxpayers are faced with a host of new complexities: Should high-paid employees try to reclassify their salaries as business income, which will now be subject to a lower tax rate? If so, what will they do in eight years, when the lower rate on business income is set to expire? Are they losing their deduction for state and local taxes, which can be worth tens of thousands of dollars for wealthier taxpayers? Many will, but it may not matter if they paid the alternative minimum tax in previous years, which overrode those deductions.

These types of questions will keep accountants busy for months, if not longer.

___

TRUMP on the tax plan: "So there's a great spirit for it, people want to see it." — Fox Business interview in October.

THE FACTS: Polling doesn't find that spirit.

In an NBC-Wall Street Journal poll this week, 41 percent said the tax plan is a bad idea, 24 percent said it was good. That's a deterioration in support over two months.

A Quinnipiac University poll this month found that registered voters, convinced that the benefits will flow mainly to corporations and the wealthy, oppose the plan 55 percent to 26 percent.

In a Gallup poll in September, just 2 percent of respondents named taxes as the country's most important problem. Dissatisfaction with government, race relations and immigration were among the issues at the forefront.

A survey this month by CBS News found that 53 percent Americans say they pay about the right amount in taxes, while 40 percent say they pay more than their fair share. That same survey found 52 percent said corporations pay less than their fair share. The president's plan will cut the corporate tax rate to from 35 percent to 21 percent.

Associated Press writers Josh Boak and Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar contributed to this report.

A bus with four students onboard crashed at Timber Trail and Branden Way in Tolland this morning and no injuries are reported, according to officials.

Both roads are open.

After iPhone users expressed online that their devices seemed to be slowing down, Apple told CNBC that the phone's battery is the reason.

"Lithium-ion batteries become less capable of supplying peak current demands when in cold conditions, have a low battery charge or as they age over time, which can result in the device unexpectedly shutting down to protect its electronic components," Apple said.

To compensate for the battery, Apple confirmed it put algorithms in place to keep the phone running efficiently and to "smooth out" power requirements.

The slow-down feature was introduced for iPhone 6, 6s, SE, and 7, and Apple will add it to "other products in the future" too.

Five people were displaced after a fire in Bridgeport on Wednesday night. 

A structure fire broke out on Bond Street and police said the bulk of the fire was contained to the porch. 

Four engines, two ladders, the assistant fire chief and a safety officer all responded to the scene. 

No injuries were reported but five people were displaced and are being assisted by the Red Cross. 

The fire is under investigation. 

A man was arrested after trying to sell drugs in the lobby of the probation office in Danielson, according to state police. 

The suspect, 32-year-old Eric Starr, of Thompson, is on probation and state police said he was trying to sell drugs to clients in the waiting area of the probation office around noon Monday. 

Troopers who responded to the call found Starr tried to sell heroin to other clients in the waiting area of the probation office, state police said, and they found him with “DABS,”suboxone and a hypodermic needle. 

Starr was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. 

He was held on a $5,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court in Danielson on Jan. 3. 

A 43-year-old Manchester woman has died after a crash on Route 20 westbound in East Granby Wednesday evening.

State police said three vehicles, including a UPS tractor-trailer, were involved in the crash on Route 20 at East Granby Road near Bradley Airport just after 6 p.m.

The driver of a Chrysler Town & Country that was turning left from East Granby Road onto Route 20 and the Nissan Rogue driven by 43-year-old Lynn Lamson, of Manchester, collided, according to state police. Then Lamson’s vehicle spun out and a tractor-trailer struck it. Lamson suffered fatal injuries, state police said. 

The other two drivers did not appear to be injured, but they were taken to Saint Francis Hospital to be evaluated. 

State police are investigating and ask anyone with information to call State Police Troop H in Hartford.

A San Diego horse trainer ran through a wall of flames to rescue his prized filly as a wildfire raced through the barn earlier this month, killing six of his horses.

Arms still bandaged, Joe Herrick visited Lovely Finish in her stable Wednesday. Both have visible scars from their near-death experience in the Lilac Fire.

Flames swept across the North County on Dec. 7, destroying more than 100 homes and scorching 4,100 acres.

Herrick ran towards the flames at San Luis Rey Downs, a training center in Bonsall. He was desperate to save his horses including Lovely Finish.

In the incredible heat, Herrick’s horse trailer caught on fire. In a matter of seconds, the barn caught fire.

“It was just a like a hurricane of fire, wind and debris just blowing into the barn,” Herrick said, describing how the lower barns on the property were destroyed within 10 minutes.

“There were horses running wild, kicking each other,” he said. “It was just bedlam. It was crazy.”

Herrick jumped into action, running to get horses out of the barn. One suddenly ran right back into the barn to her death, he said.

As he went to move Lovely Finish, they were hit by flames.

“We had a big fireball hit us as we were trying to get out of the stall,” Herrick said.

When the horse pushed her way out of the stall, he did his best to hang on.

In the process, the two suffered serious burns from the intense heat. Herrick describes feeling as if his shirt and hair were melting.

Once outside the barn, despite the urging of emergency personnel, Herrick refused to leave the area until his prized filly was safe with his groom.

“I knew with my injuries I was going to be in trouble for a while,” he said.

Herrick eventually went into the ambulance and on to the hospital where he was treated for severe burns.

“I was out in 12 days and I don’t need skin grafts,” he said. “I kind of feel like I’m a walking, talking miracle.”

Lovely Finish suffered burns on her chest, her face and her hip. She is far from having the strength and speed she displayed a month before the fire but she should make a full recovery.

Herrick regrets not saving all of his horses. Six died in the flames. It’s difficult for him to think about.

“I’ve been through a lot of fire but I’ve never seen anything like this,” Herrick said. “The palm trees just exploding like Roman candles and started throwing debris everywhere.”

Grooms, who attend to the horses, lost everything in the fire. Some of them went to Del Mar with just the shirts on their back, Herrick said. Donations from the community have meant so much to the victims, he added.  

And the prayers. He believes they helped him recover so quickly.

At Del Mar, in her very first race, Lovely Finish galloped from behind to finish second place. If her determination has anything to do with it, it won’t be her last.

“What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger,” Herrick said. “We’ll be tougher when we come back.”

A senior at Wilcox Technical High School in Meriden is in critical condition after hitting a tree near the school around 7:30 a.m. Thursday, according to police.

Police said the 17-year-old boy was driving toward school when he lost control of the 2003 Honda Odyssey he was driving, swerved and the van spun around and hit a tree.

He was unconscious when first responders arrived at the scene and LifeStar flew the boy to Hartford Hospital, where he is in critical condition. No other passengers were in the car.

“We’ve got a couple of witnesses or at least one witness that we’ll be talking to to see if we can get some details from them as to determine what was occurring right before impact. It’s just early on right now. Our main focus and concern is with the family and the victim,” Sgt. Darrin McKay, of the Meriden Police Department, said Thursday morning.

Police are investigating and looking into whether speed was a factor.

Anyone with information is asked to call Officer Christian Rodriguez at 203-630-6215.

A Connecticut state police bloodhound named Texas joined the search for a man who was reported missing in Danbury. The man was found but now police and firefighters are looking for the search dog.

Danbury police reached out to state police around 6 p.m. Wednesday for help to find a man who was missing in the area of Wooster Mountain. The State Police K9 Search and Rescue Teams, state police bloodhound teams and a state police helicopter responded to help.

K9 Zeus found the man, who was walked out of the woods.

But during the search, a state police handler lost his footing in steep terrain and lost “possession” of K9 Texas’ 15-foot leash.

K9 Texas was pulling strongly up the slope, continued tracking up the ledge and was nowhere in sight when the trooper reached the top of the hill, state police said.

“You tell a Shepherd stop, our shepherds stop. You tell a bloodhound to stop, the bloodhound says, ‘I’m on a scent right now so you’re going to have to catch up with me,” Trooper Kelly Grant said.

K9 Texas, a non-aggressive, brown bloodhound wearing a green tracking vest, has still not been found.

“The terrain, the wildlife, again we’re talking about a bloodhound. A shepherd is probably more likely to fend for themselves against a predator, against the weather, against the terrain, whereas a bloodhound -- not necessarily,” Grant said.

State Police K9 teams and the Danbury police and fire departments were continuing to search for Texas Thursday afternoon.

Anyone who sees the dog can call out his name, Texas.

“Just call him, grab onto his leash and give us a call at Troop A in Southbury,” Grant said.

You can reach Troop A at 203-267-2200.

A San Diego resident's cross-border marriage at Friendship Park last month proved love had no boundaries, but a recently-filed federal complaint shows drug charges may have been what was keeping them apart.

Brian Houston, a U.S. citizen, married Evelia Reyes, a Mexican national, in November through an open gate at the U.S.-Mexico border as part of the sixth annual "Opening the Door of Hope" event, that allows selected families to reunite with loved ones for three brief minutes between two border fences. 

"Love has no borders," Houston said before the ceremony. "A wall might divide two countries, but it can't divide the love of two people." 

At the time, Houston declined to explain why he was unable to go to Tijuana, but said the couple's attorney was trying to obtain a green card for Reyes to join him in the U.S.

A month after the wedding, a federal complaint shows Houston was unable to cross into Mexico because he surrendered his passport in March when he was released on bail after he was caught smuggling more than 120-pounds of heroin, meth and cocaine across the border. He pleaded guilty to three felony charges of importing a controlled substance.

A spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said his agents are angry about what happened.

“The agents were there for what they felt was a humanitarian purpose opening Friendship Park up," said Joshua Wilson, Vice President of the National Border Patrol Council Local 1613. "And what they ended up doing was providing armed security for a cartel wedding."

"That's certainly discouraging," he added.

The cross-border event has been brokered annually since 2013 by Border Angels founder Enrique Morones, with the cooperation of CBP.

Morones says though he knew Houston had legal issues, he didn't know details. He says his group submits the names of people who want to participate and it's the responsibility of Homeland Security to do the vetting. He says Houston's name was on the list.

"Border Angels has never done any background checks, as the Border Patrol advised us, they will do all background checks and advise us which families have been cleared," Morones said.

Morones said he was surprised to learn this week that Houston had a "very serious" criminal conviction. That goes against everything Border Angels stands for."

"It doesn't look good for us. It's totally their fault," Morones said. "They're the ones that are the main people that can do it...We had no idea what these people's records are."

CBP did not immediately return calls or respond to emails requesting comments.

Wilson called the partnership between CBP and Border Angels "problematic at best.”

"When you factor in that Morones is not an honest broker, it makes it even more complicated," Wilson said.

According to the complaint, in February Houston attempted to drive a silver 2013 Volkswagen Jetta across the San Ysidro Port of Entry, but the vehicle was flagged twice. During an inspection, agents discovered 67 pounds of drugs in the lining of the car.

Houston plead guilty to the charges in May. His sentencing is scheduled for January 2018.

Houston's immigration attorney, Cesar Luna, said he didn't know the extent of his client's legal troubles because they weren't relevant to helping the immigration process with his bride.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) allows families to see each other through a fortified fence at Friendship Park while still remaining firmly in their countries. But for this special event, agents open the gates that separate them, allowing loved ones to hug, kiss and talk without boundaries. 

Luna called the issue with Houston's case a "miscommunication" and said he hopes it won't put an end to the cross-border event.

A single father who became homeless while taking care of his four young sons was surprised with a temporary home, a standing reservation at a local restaurant, a car for his family, and tickets to a game by his favorite NFL team -- all thanks to the New Jersey community who rallied around their beloved former football star. 

Mike Hudson was the star football player at North Hunterdon High School in Annandale, where former classmates still remember him as an "all-around nice guy." 

After high school, Hudson stayed in his hometown of Clinton, New Jersey, and worked at a local factory. He had four sons, including twin 10-year-old boys -- one of whom has Fragile X syndrome -- and then separated from his wife. Hudson, who by then was working part-time to take care of his sons, went to live with his father along with the boys. 

He returned home from work one day earlier this fall to find his father's house padlocked by the county. In an instant, Hudson and his family became homeless, and they entered a turbulent period of going from hotel to couches to an RV. 

"At first they thought it was kind of cool to be in other places," Hudson said of his young sons. "And then after awhile, they were just like, 'We want our home, please.'" 

Even so, the boys remained resilient through those rough weeks. 

"We tried to keep everything as normal as possible within those parameters," Hudson told News 4. And his sons' school was extremely supportive: "Everybody went above and beyond." 

Hudson's youngest son Devon, a fifth-grader who also plays football, told his best friend at school, Jack, that his family had become homeless. He begged Jack not to tell his parents. Naturally, Jack went home and promptly told his mother.

That mom was Debbie DeLorenzo, the star cheerleader at North Hunterdon High while Hudson was the football star, and an old friend from their Pop Warner days. She immediately sprang into action, borrowing a trailer for Hudson and his boys to stay in for a few weeks. One ask turned into a few dozen on Facebook, and then became a full-fledged fundraising campaign on GoFundMe.

"It was around homecoming, so our class rallied, then the town did, raising almost $30,000," said Barbara Martin, an old classmate who now lives in Washington, D.C. 

The local Italian restaurant kicked in with a standing reservation for a month for the family, and the local car dealer chipped in with a cheap car that would hold the five of them. With the rest of the money, DeLorenzo found a small house in town and prepaid rent for a year.

"She was just relentless -- it was incredible what she did," Hudson said. "It was completely overwhelming." 

Martin, a public relations executive, reached out to the NFL Players' Association, hoping for a jersey from the Atlanta Falcons -- Hudson's favorite team since his high school days -- as a gift that he could perhaps hang in his new home. 

"Once they heard the whole story, they were like, 'Yeah, I think we could do a little better than that,'" said Martin.

Former Falcons quarterback DJ Shockley wound up recording a video message  inviting the whole family to the Falcons game on New Year's Eve. Delta Airlines is flying the Hudsons out from New Jersey, and the team will take care of transportation, meals and hotel.

Shockley, whose brother also has Fragile X syndrome, will give the family a private tour of the stadium, where they will watch the game from the sidelines.

DeLorenzo, Martin and other hometown friends showed up at Hudson's home to surprise him with the news last week. Cellphone video captured the stunned reaction by Hudson and his boys as they watched Shockley's invitation. 

Hudson's oldest son -- who also now plays football at North Hunterdon -- teased his father, "You're going to cry!"

He didn't cry. But clearly moved, the dad said, "This kind of stuff doesn't happen. Doesn't happen for us. We've been through a lot." 

"I'm very appreciative of everything that everybody has done. People I don't even know have done things -- every day is like Christmas for the last couple of months. Especially today," he said. 

When she first set up the page with the initial goal of raising $10,000, DeLorenzo wrote, "I have known this family for most of my life, as have most of you. He is a good man with a good heart." 

"Mike has always been kind, caring, funny, giving, non-judgmental and always strived to do the right thing," she wrote. "His mother, who has passed, would be so proud of him. People like Mike are rare. If only more people were like Mike, this world would be much different." 

The responses poured in: "Always had a soft spot for you and your boys"; "Mike, I love you so much. You were truly one of the shining lights and knights of high school for me"; "Mike, please keep your head up and don't be so humble. Accept the help from others for you have touched all of our hearts with your humor and smiles over the years." 

Now Hudson will spend the holidays in a home with his four sons, who are ecstatic about heading out for the upcoming Falcons game.

"They can't wait," he said. "We talk about it every day. They just can't wait to experience that." 

A New Britain couple has been arrested and charged with animal cruelty after someone brought their emaciated Shar-Pie mix with a severe skin condition to animal control, according to police.

Police learned about the dog on May 24.

They said they received a call just after 10 p.m. that day from someone who reported finding an emaciated tan and white Shar-Pei mix on Willow Street in New Britain and it needed a veterinarian, according to court paperwork.

At the request of police, the woman brought the dog to Connecticut Veterinary Center in West Hartford.

Police later determined that the woman who called them knew the dog’s owners and she told them she didn't want to be involved when police asked if she took the dog from the owners because it needed care, according to court paperwork.

When the dog was taken to the vet, he was barely able to walk and each step looked uncomfortable, according to the police report. He was also so thin that his ribs and hips were protruding.

A veterinarian diagnosed the dog with a severe case of mange, a painful condition caused by mites that can be treated with medication. 

In the event that he had not been brought to animal control and fed, the dog’s organs would likely have begun to shut down from starvation within just a few days, the veterinarian told police.

On May 26, soon after the dog was brought to authorities, the dog pound in New Britain received a phone call from Emily Vazquez, of New Britain, who said she was a friend of the person who brought the dog in, fell in love with him and was interested in adopting him, according to police.

She then filled out an application.

In the hopes of identifying the dog’s owner, police posted a photo of the dog on Facebook with information on where he was found. (WARNING: The photo is disturbing.)

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A veterinarian then reached out to them with information from a client who reported knowing where the dog lived and the conditions he was kept in, according to the police report.

Police later determined that Emily Vazquez, now 21, and her 23-year-old husband, Emmanuel Vazquez, were the owners of the dog.

When police spoke with him, Emmanuel Vazquez told them he “knew" they "were going to get in trouble” when his wife filed the application to adopt the dog, according to police.

He went on to tell police that they had just gotten the dog and he was in bad shape when they got him, according to police.

However, he was evasive about who they got the dog from and said someone they knew would verify that they’d tried to get help for the dog.

Emily Vazquez then called police and admitted to lying to them, police said. She also said they’d had the dog for about four months and he had a skin condition when they got him.

However, someone who reported having seen photos of the dog from earlier contradicted that, according to police.

Police said it appears the couple had not taken the dog to the vet and instead tried to treat his ailments by giving him baths. 

Then there was the issue of the dog's emaciated condition.

Emily Vazquez claimed the dog had stopped eating, but others told police the dog had a healthy appetite when given food and thought he was not being fed, according to police.

After being hospitalized for around 17 days, the dog was transformed and was active, playful and affectionate, according to police.

Charges were filed against the couple and they were arrested earlier this week.

They were both released on a promise to appear and are due in court on Jan. 2, according to online court records. It's not clear if either has an attorney.

NBC Connecticut meteorologists are tracking a wintry stretch of weather and have issued two First Alerts. 

A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for all of Connecticut with the exception of coastal areas.

The first batch of wintry weather arrives in the state Friday and continues into Saturday. We're forecasting a mixture of snow and sleet early tomorrow afternoon which will transition to freezing rain and plain rain by Friday evening and into Saturday. 

We expect the greatest amount of ice accretion to occur in northern Connecticut with little to no icing expected in southeastern Connecticut. 

Take a look at the forecast graphic below for 9:30 tomorrow evening. A prolonged period of icing is possible for parts of Litchfield, Hartford, and Tolland counties. This is where we expect surface temperatures to be at or below the freezing temperature for the longest.

Areas to the north of the red line represent areas that are at or below freezing.

Freezing rain will transition to plain rain for most of the state by Saturday morning however a few areas will be cold enough for the freezing rain to continue. 

Here's a look at forecasted ice accretion from the European forecast model which shows a widespread swath of icing from northern CT into southern parts of the state.

Here's what were expecting for impacts from this icing event.

Conditions will dry out for the Christmas Eve holiday before another storm system moves into the region for Christmas Day (Monday).

Our computer models have trended a bit colder over the past couple of days. We're forecasting a mixture of snow, sleet, and rain for Christmas Day. It appears the best chance for accumulating snow will be in areas of interior Connecticut. Shoreline areas will likely be dealing with mixed precipiation. 

Police in Woodbridge are investigating after several packages were stolen from front porches on Wednesday afternoon and they have released video in hopes of making an arrest. 

Several UPS, FedEx and U.S. Postal Services packages were stolen between noon and 3 p.m. on Wednesday, according to police. 

Investigators have security camera footage from one of the victims and it shows a four-door tan Oldsmobile Alero with a spoiler and a plastic bag over the driver’s side window. It appears to have Connecticut license plates. 

The video shows two people in the vehicle – and the front-seat passenger gets out of the car and rings the doorbell. When he believes no one is home, he takes the packages and places them in his vehicle, police said. 

All of the incidents were in the area of Route 313, which connects New Haven to Seymour and Ansonia. 

Police are trying to find the vehicle and the people inside it. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Woodbridge Police Department’s Investigative Services Unit 203-287-2511 Ext 113 or 118.

A Massachusetts man who has been in immigration custody since July and who faces deportation to his native El Salvador has been released as he awaits his asylum appeal to be determined.

The lawyer for Francisco Rodriguez told the Boston Globe that an agreement was reached Wednesday with the US Attorney’s Office and that Rodriguez will be released from the South Bay House of Correction by the end of day Friday. He was released early Thursday afternoon.

In a statement released today, MIT said: "Many members of the MIT community have strongly supported that Francisco be released from detention to be with his family so the news of his release is extremely welcome. We also strongly believe Francisco should be allowed to remain in the U.S. permanently."

Rodriguez, of Chelsea, was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on July 13.

As a Massachusetts Institute of Technology custodian and father of four US-born children, lawyers argued that Rodriguez has no criminal record and that under the law, he can't be detained indefinitely.

Before being detained, Rodriguez had worked as a custodian at MIT for the last five years. He moved to the United States illegally from El Salvador in 2006.

A federal judge had issued a final order of removal against Rodriguez in 2009. ICE said Rodriguez was also issued four stays to allow him time to pursue his legal options.

"I'm not a criminal, I am a father," Rodriguez had said in July. "My children, my family, I follow the rules. The only mistake that I made was [I] came the way that I came."

He added he twice applied for asylum and was twice denied.

Rodriguez's detention drew protests from lawmakers, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, and Congressman Mike Capuano, as well as people who waited outside his detention hearing.

"The big picture is he doesn’t need to be sitting in jail," Bennett told the Globe.

A Massachusetts man who has been in immigration custody since July and who faces deportation to his native El Salvador has been released as he awaits his asylum appeal to be determined.

The lawyer for Francisco Rodriguez told the Boston Globe that an agreement was reached Wednesday with the US Attorney’s Office and that Rodriguez will be released from the South Bay House of Correction by the end of day Friday. He was released early Thursday afternoon.

Rodriguez, of Chelsea, was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on July 13.

As a Massachusetts Institute of Technology custodian and father of four US-born children, lawyers argued that Rodriguez has no criminal record and that under the law, he can't be detained indefinitely.

Before being detained, Rodriguez had worked as a custodian at MIT for the last five years. He moved to the United States illegally from El Salvador in 2006.

A federal judge had issued a final order of removal against Rodriguez in 2009. ICE said Rodriguez was also issued four stays to allow him time to pursue his legal options.

"I'm not a criminal, I am a father," Rodriguez had said in July. "My children, my family, I follow the rules. The only mistake that I made was [I] came the way that I came."

He added he twice applied for asylum and was twice denied.

Rodriguez's detention drew protests from lawmakers, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, and Congressman Mike Capuano, as well as people who waited outside his detention hearing.

"The big picture is he doesn’t need to be sitting in jail," Bennett told the Globe.