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Former Navy SEAL Wins Gold at Paralympics

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A double amputee and Navy SEAL veteran who served in Afghanistan won a gold medal in the men’s 7.5-kilometer biathlon during the first day of competition at the Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, on Friday.

Commander Dan Cnossen didn’t realize he had won at first because there was a staggered start.

"A guy who was taking the transponder off was saying, 'I think an American is in at first,' and I was like, 'Maybe that’s me,'" he told NBC.

The next day, Cnossen earned a silver medal in the men's 15km sitting event. 

"I've already exceeded my expectations," Cnossen said after the event.

Cnossen led Coronado-based SEAL Team One in Afghanistan in 2009. He lost both of his legs at the knees when he stepped on an IED.

He learned his legs had been amputated after being unconscious for eight days.

Cnossen went through rehabilitation both at the Bethesda National Naval Medical Center and Walter Reed National Military Center, where he learned to walk with prosthetics.

He was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star with Valor. 

Cnossen told NBC Sports after his injury he missed being part of a team. 

"I love being part of a team in the military, and when I became injured I was looking to seek that out again," Cnossen told NBC Sports. "The Paralympic team has been the most perfect fit for me."

Cnossen first went to the Paralympics in 2014 in Sochi, where he placed sixth in the cross-country sprint, 10th in the biathlon individual and 10km cross-country, 11th in biathlon middle-distance, 13th in 15km cross-country and 14th in biathlon sprint.

The 37-year-old is also getting master’s degrees from Harvard University in Public Administration and Theological Studies.

Cnossen, who is originally from Kansas, had been on four deployments. 



Photo Credit: AP

Dramatic Video Shows Drivers Try to Stop Car From Escaping Crash

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Cellphone video captured a driver's intense escape after an alleged hit-and-run crash in Miami Sunday afternoon, where at one point someone bashed in several of the car's windows with a mallet.

In the video, the driver of a badly damaged silver Infiniti SUV reversed the car out of the scene of the accident, trying to leave as part of its fender hung off the side of the wheel well and scraped the ground. Two people then approached the driver, shouting and banging on the window. Other drivers could be seen trying to block the car.

The driver was next blocked by a black SUV around the corner from the scene of the initial accident. Other people could be seen in the video trying to pry open the car doors and taking pictures of the car’s license plate.

At one point, a man exited his van with a mallet and started smashing the driver's side and rear windows of the fleeing car.

The driver of the silver Infiniti SUV eventually got away. But police said the driver was later taken into custody.

The incident happened on Biscayne Boulevard and Northeast 36th Street. According to City of Miami police, the crash involved several vehicles. The cause of the crash is unknown.

According to police, no one was injured.

Musk Projects Mars Spaceship Ready for Short Trips in 2019

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Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk spoke Sunday about the timeline for sending a space vehicle to Mars, CNBC reported. 

Musk told the audience at the South by Southwest festival held in Austin, Texas, that the milestone for sending a space vehicle to Mars is as early as next year. The venture, announced in 2017, aims to send a cargo mission to the Red Planet by 2022. SpaceX's ultimate objective is to plant the seeds to put a human colony on Mars.

A flight on SpaceX's BFR rocket system could cost in the $5 to $6 million range. 

The billionaire told the audience that "we are building the first Mars, or interplanetary ship, and I think well be able to short trips, flights by first half of next year."






Photo Credit: Getty Images/Mark Brake

Power Restoration Nearly Complete as Another Storm Moves In

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The lights are finally back on for thousands of Eversource customers after Wednesday’s storm but some have already set their sights on another nor’easter.

A statement from Eversource said the storm broke hundreds of poles and took down thousands of feet of power lines. The company said it was replaced around 400 utility poles and strung more than 110 miles of new wires.

Eversource, which supplies power to more than 1.2 million customers, said it has restored power to over 243,000 customers since the beginning of the storm. United Illuminating, which provides power to more than 330,000 customers, reported restoring power to more than 46,000 customers.

As of 6 a.m. Monday, Eversource was reporting just 227 scattered outages remaining. United Illuminating reported 15 customers still without power Sunday evening.


The Haddam-Killingworth Middle School has served as an emergency shelter since the storm. The shelter closed at noon Sunday, after serving around 125 people. But with another storm on the way officials are already preparing for more issues.

Another nor'easter is expected to sweep in Monday into Tuesday. The storm could bring snow totals as high as 9 inches in eastern Connecticut and between 3 to 6 inches across other parts of the state.

The storm will also bring gusty winds with gusts of 40 mph possible.

The Red Cross says they’ll be ready to reopen the shelter if the next nor’easter knocks out power again.

“The Red Cross, we try to stay prepared, we have volunteers all over in different areas who are ready to respond. Our materials actually sit in a trailer here in Killingworth. We have this regional shelter. So, we can activate within two hours, as long as we can get a team here,” said American Red Cross Sr. Director Of Disaster Services Susan Shaw.

Click here for the detailed forecast.


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Man in Critical Condition After New London Shooting

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A man was shot at a convenience store in New London overnight, according to police.

It happened at the Sam’s Food Mart at 290 Broad Street. According to police, the suspect walked into the store around 1:30 a.m. and shot the victim in the back.

The victim was taken to Lawrence and Memorial Hospital then airlifted to Yale-New Haven Hospital for treatment. At last check he was in critical condition, police said.

More details were not immediately available. Detectives are investigating.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

Arrest Made in 32-Year-Old Cold Case Killing of Mass. Teen

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Massachusetts State Police say they have solved a 32-year-old cold case involving the 1986 murder of a 15-year-old girl from Kingston.

State police detectives, as well as the Plymouth police and Kingston police departments, had continued to investigate Tracy Gilpin's murder for the past three decades, resulting in information that led them to travel to North Carolina recently. 

There, over the past week, state police investigators, with assistance from the Troutman and Mooresville police departments in North Carolina, extensively interviewed their suspect, Michael Hand, 61, of Troutman.

Statements made by Hand during these interviews led authorities to arrest him at his home on March 9. He was charged as a fugitive from justice based on an arrest warrant issued for the murder of Tracy.

Hand was then transported to the Iredell County Detention Center where he was brought before a magistrate. Based on the charges against him and his potential to be a flight risk, he was given no bond.

Authorities have already begun rendition proceedings to have Hand brought back to Massachusetts to be prosecuted for Tracy's killing.

Hand is expected to appear in court in North Carolina on Monday to determine extradition. Once returned to Massachusetts, Hand will be arraigned at Plymouth District Court and charged with Tracy's murder.

Tracy's older sister, Col. Kerry Gilpin, is the superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police.

“For the past three decades, we have remained hopeful that Tracy’s murderer would be identified. The much-welcomed news of an arrest in the case leaves us cautiously optimistic that justice for Tracy is within reach," Col. Gilpin said. "My thoughts today are not just with my own family, but also with all the families who have lost loved ones to violence. We will continue to work tirelessly to find justice for all murder victims.”

On Oct. 1, 1986, Tracy headed out to a party not far from her house. She left the party with two friends around 10:30 p.m. to head home. Her friends walked with Tracy until they reached their homes, and she then continued walking by herself. She stopped to buy cigarettes at a local Cumberland Farms, but never made it home.

Three weeks later, on Oct. 22, a woman stumbled upon Tracy's body in Myles Standish Park in Plymouth, about 14 miles from where she had gone missing.

Authorities later said Tracy had been murdered, and the cause of death was determined to be a massive skull fracture. It’s believed she was killed on the night she disappeared.

5 Dead in NYC Helicopter Crash; Pilot Only Survivor

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UPDATE: New Details Revealed in Deadly NYC Chopper Crash

Five people died after a tour helicopter carrying six people crashed into the East River Sunday evening, FDNY and NYPD officials said.

Though helicopter crashes in the East and Hudson Rivers are not necessarily uncommon, this becomes one of the deadliest in the city's history, and one of the worst civilian aviation fatalities of any kind in the United States over the last few years. 

The five passengers became trapped in the overturned helicopter and had to be pulled from frigid waters by divers, officials said. Three of them were taken to area hospitals in critical condition, while the other two were pronounced dead at the scene. 

FDNY spokesman Jim Long said shortly before 1 a.m. Monday that the three critically injured passengers had died; two of them were at Bellevue Hospital and a third was at NYU Medical Center.

The pilot of the helicopter, who managed to escape, was the only survivor. Law enforcement sources identified him as Richard Vance, 33, and said he was released at some point overnight.

Separately, sources indicated the dead were four men and one woman, though identities were not immediately available. 

At a press conference Sunday night, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the pilot was able to free himself and was taken by a fire boat to shore. Nigro described the pilot as being OK. He said he was taken to Cornell Medical Center, where he remained early Monday. 

"It's a great tragedy that we had occur here on an otherwise quiet Sunday evening," Nigro said.


The helicopter went down in the waters near East 86th Street and the FDR Drive shortly after 7 p.m., according to officials, who said police received dozens of 911 calls in the minutes after the crash. 


"Mayday... Mayday... Mayday... East River engine failure!" the pilot said during a distress call moments before losing control of the helicopter and plummeting into the water.

Witnesses said the pilot was waving with both arms and yelling "Help!" from the water.

Officials said the helicopter, owned by Liberty Helicopter Tours, was a private charter out for a photo shoot.

Chopper 4 reporter Kai Simonsen says passengers on such flights are usually strapped in as they take photos of the city. The passengers are normally shown a safety video before going up that instructs them to use a cutter on their harness to break free during an emergency, Simonsen says.

But after FDNY and NYPD harbor and aviation units descended on the crash site, divers discovered the five passengers still strapped into their harnesses inside the submerged helicopter. Nigro said the East River had currents of five MPH and waters below 40 degrees at the time.

"The five people besides the pilot were all tightly harnessed, so these harnesses had to be cut and removed in order to get these folks off this helicopter, which was upside down at the time and completely submerged," Nigro said.

The Coast Guard and a private tugboat also assisted in the rescue, according to NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill, who said the tugboat crew were the first to arrive after the crash. 

Videos on social media show the red helicopter crashing into the water around sunset. The chopper's propellers swing wildly in the water before the aircraft overturns and sinks.

Other videos show emergency responders rushing to the water as crowds of onlookers gather at the shore.

The helicopter was recovered and towed to 23rd Street and the FDR Drive, where it was still submerged around midnight.

The crash happened right in front of Gracie Mansion, the official residence of Mayor Bill de Blasio, who was out of town this weekend.

In a statement earlier in the evening, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he was monitoring the situation. 

"Our thoughts and hope for safe recovery are with those who were aboard. We are thankful for our first responders at the scene," Cuomo said.

The FAA said confirmed in a statement that a Eurocopter AS350 went down in the East River near the northern end of Roosevelt Island. The agency said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation in determining what caused the crash.

The Aviation Safety Network, which tracks flight accidents and fatalities, had recorded at least 11 other fatal crashes worldwide involving AS350 variants over the last 18 months alone.

According to that same database, Sunday's crash is likely the biggest U.S. civil aviation fatality since a Dec. 2016 Cessna crash in Ohio. 




Photo Credit: @JJmagers/Twitter/Aaron Brown
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Meghan Markle to Appear at 1st Official Event With Queen

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Two months before her wedding to Prince Harry, Meghan Markle is making her first official appearance with Britain's Queen Elizabeth II on Monday, NBC News reported.

Markle is attending the Commonwealth Day celebration — honoring a group of 53 nations, mostly former British territories, known as the Commonwealth — at Westminster Abbey in London, along with her fiance, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge.

"She is already effectively being treated as a full-blown member of the royal family, even if she hasn't married Prince Harry yet," Roya Nikkhah, royal correspondent for The Sunday Times newspaper, told NBC News.

The marriage is coming on May 19 at St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle.



Photo Credit: Matt Dunham/AP, File

Crews Rescue Driver After Car Crashes into Canton Stream

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Crews in Canton rescued a driver after a car crashed into a stream Saturday.

Canton fire officials said it happened around 6:40 a.m. at a bridge on the 600-block of Cherry Brook Road. When crews arrived they found the driver trapped inside the vehicle.

First responders used a winch, rescue jacks and a cutting tool to free the driver, who was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Crews remained on scene for hours to remove the vehicle.

The Canton Volunteer Fire & EMS Department and the Barkhamsted East Volunteer Fire Company responded.



Photo Credit: The Canton Volunteer Fire & EMS Department

Tractor-Trailer Catches Fire on I-84 in Danbury

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No one was hurt when a tractor-trailer carrying paper goods caught fire on Interstate 84 in Danbury early Monday.

Danbury fire officials said it happened on I-84 westbound between exits 5 and 6 around 3 a.m. The driver had disconnected the trailer from the tractor before crews arrived, and firefighters were able to quickly put out the fire.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

There were lane closures in the area while crews worked, but the highway has seen reopened.

Fire officials asked that drivers remember to move over and slow for emergency vehicles during a response – it is the law in Connecticut. Emergency vehicles include law enforcement, fire vehicles, ambulances, highway maintenance crews and licensed wreckers and tow trucks.



Photo Credit: Danbury Fire Department

Three Brothers Play on Hamden High School Hockey Team Together

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Jack, Michael and Conor Gethings dreamed for years of the one season they would get to play hockey together for Hamden High School and this was the year that it finally happened. 

Conor, a freshman, joined Jack, a senior, and Michael, a junior, on the ice this year for the Green Dragons boys’ hockey team. 

“We would reenact state championships for Hamden High,” Gethings, the youngest of the three brothers, said. 

“It was just a dream come true,” said Michael. 

While it was a dream for the boys, their mom, Margaret Mary Gethings, said she was a little nervous watching the three boys. 

“I get a little nervous, especially with Conor sometimes because he’s a little physical,” she said. 

But she knew for years that this was coming. 

“They all happen to be 18 months apart and one chance opportunity, something they’ve been dreaming about since they were 4, 5 and 6,” she said. 

Gethings said she just tries to enjoy every moment but it was difficult Sunday when Hamden’s season came to an end with a 3-1 loss to Xavier. 

Now Jack is preparing for graduation and said winning isn’t always everything. 

“I can’t ask for more,” Jack said. “They’re two great players and teammates. It’s easy to go home with them every day knowing they gave me everything they had.”




Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Increased Security at Windsor High School After Threat

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There will be an increased police presence at Windsor High School Monday after a threat was made against the school on Snapchat, according to the superintendent.

According to a statement from the superintendent, the threat came in the form of a video on Snapchat. Police have identified the threat and do not believe there is any danger to the school.

“We work closely with our student population to ensure that any concerns are reported immediately as it is our students who are accessing social media most frequently. Additionally our partnership with the Windsor Police Department allows for continued collaboration to keep our schools safe. While I do not believe there is any continued danger for WHS, I have asked the police for an increased presence tomorrow. As always, if you have concerns or suggestions, I ask that you share them with your building principal, through our website, or to me directly. Our work together is one of the most important efforts to keep our schools safe,” read the statement from Superintendent Craig Cooke.

Cooke said the source of the threat will not be at school Monday, but did not identify the source further.

The case remains under investigation.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

Why Australia's Gun Buyback Program Is So Unlikely in the US

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After a gunman killed 35 people at an Australian tourist site with an AR-15 rifle and high-capacity magazines in 1996, a conservative government led the country’s states in passing a sweeping new restrictions on firearms, NBC News reported.

Gun violence and gun suicides plummeted, and no similar attacks have occurred in Australia since. The move has beecome an inspiration for those Americans seeking stricter gun laws, yet almost none of the major U.S. violence-prevention groups or elected federal officials are advocating anything similar.

"I haven't seen any serious proposal like that in the United States," said Adam Winkler, a law professor at UCLA and author of "Gunfight: The Battle Over The Right To Bear Arms In America."

There are millions of guns already available in the U.S. already, and advocacy groups don't want to feed the perception that they plan to take guns away from people in a country where gun ownership is written into the founding document.



Photo Credit: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Image, File

Pilot Hints Passenger Accident Plunged Chopper Into River

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All five passengers aboard a tour helicopter died when the aircraft crashed into the East River Sunday evening, authorities said, marking of the worst civilian aviation fatalities of any kind in the United States in the last few years.

The pilot of the helicopter, who managed to escape the overturned chopper, was the only survivor. Law enforcement sources identified him as Richard Vance, 33. A senior law enforcement official tells News 4 Vance speculated in an initial interview that it was possible one of the passengers hit the fuel cut-off switch with a piece of equipment, which may have caused the engine to sputter and the chopper to plunge into the river. 

The five passengers became trapped in the inverted aircraft and had to be pulled from frigid waters by divers, officials said. Three of them were taken to area hospitals in critical condition and died early Monday, while the other two were pronounced dead at the scene. Sources indicated the dead were four men and one women, though identities were not immediately available. 

Law enforcement sources said Vance was released from the hospital at some point overnight. Details on the nature of his injuries weren't known.

At a press conference Sunday night, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the pilot was able to free himself and was taken by a fire boat to shore. Nigro described the pilot as being OK. He said he was taken to Cornell Medical Center, where he remained early Monday. 

"It's a great tragedy that we had occur here on an otherwise quiet Sunday evening," Nigro said.

The helicopter went down in the waters near East 86th Street and the FDR Drive shortly after 7 p.m., according to officials, who said police received dozens of 911 calls in the minutes after the crash. 

"Mayday... Mayday... Mayday... East River engine failure!" the pilot said during a distress call moments before losing control of the helicopter and plummeting into the water.

Witnesses said the pilot was waving with both arms and yelling "Help!" from the water.

A Long Island woman having dinner with her sister and brother-in-law at their apartment near 92nd Street captured the exact moment of the crash on video

"It was unbelievable to watch because you don't believe it is actually going to hit it and then the next thing you know, it's hitting the water," Arineh Nazarian said.

Her video shows the chopper hovering in the air, then suddenly descend toward the river, where it crashes, its half-submerged propellers madly spraying water. It overturns, then sinks. Other videos show emergency responders rushing to the water as crowds of onlookers gather at the shore.

Officials said the helicopter, owned by Liberty Helicopter Tours, was a private charter out for a photo shoot. The company has not commented on the crash.

Chopper 4 reporter Kai Simonsen says passengers on such flights are usually strapped in as they take photos of the city. The passengers are normally shown a safety video before going up that instructs them to use a cutter on their harness to break free during an emergency, Simonsen says.

But after FDNY and NYPD harbor and aviation units descended on the crash site, divers discovered the five passengers still strapped into their harnesses inside the submerged helicopter. Nigro said the East River had currents of five MPH and waters below 40 degrees at the time.

"The five people besides the pilot were all tightly harnessed, so these harnesses had to be cut and removed in order to get these folks off this helicopter, which was upside down at the time and completely submerged," Nigro said.

The Coast Guard and a private tugboat also assisted in the rescue, according to NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill, who said the tugboat crew were the first to arrive after the crash. 

The helicopter was recovered and towed to 23rd Street and the FDR Drive, where it was still submerged around midnight.

The crash happened right in front of Gracie Mansion, the official residence of Mayor de Blasio, who was out of town this weekend.

In a statement earlier Sunday evening, Gov. Cuomo said he was monitoring the situation. 

"Our thoughts and hope for safe recovery are with those who were aboard. We are thankful for our first responders at the scene," Cuomo said.

The FAA said in a statement that a Eurocopter AS350 went down in the East River near the northern end of Roosevelt Island. The agency said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation in determining what caused the crash. The NTSB asked for any witnesses to come forward.

The Aviation Safety Network, which tracks flight accidents and fatalities, had recorded at least 11 other fatal crashes worldwide involving AS350 variants over the last 18 months alone.

According to that same database, Sunday's crash is likely the biggest U.S. civil aviation fatality since a Dec. 2016 Cessna crash in Ohio. Though chopper crashes in the East and Hudson rivers aren't necessarily uncommon, Sunday's crash has become one of the deadliest in the city's history. 



Photo Credit: @JJmagers/Twitter/Aaron Brown
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Missing 85-Year-Old From East Haven Has Dementia: Police

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East Haven police are trying to locate a missing 85-year-old man with early onset dementia.

Police said James Sommo was reported missing Monday and a Silver Alert has been issued. He is described as 5-foot-3, 170 pounds, with white hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing khaki pants, a black jacket, black hooded sweatshirt, black hat and dark shoes.

Sommo has early onset dementia and police believe he is on foot. Police are concerned that Sommo is not dressed appropriately to be outside for a long period of time.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact East Haven police at 203-468-3820



Photo Credit: East Haven Police Department

Pedestrian Dead After Crash in New Britain

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A 56-year-old New Britain man who was struck by a car Saturday night has died and police are investigating.

Police said the man was struck on Farmington Avenue, between Sidoti Drive and Lurton Street, around 8:46 p.m. Saturday and EMS personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. 

The driver, a 24-year-old New Britain woman, was not injured and is cooperating with the investigation, police said.

No charges have been filed. The New Britain Police Department’s Traffic Safety Bureau is handling the ongoing investigation.

Anyone with additional information or who witnessed the crash is asked to call Sergeant Steven King at (860) 826-3071.





Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Cops in Mass Shooting Cases Reflect Gun Control Divide

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Daniel Oates calls it “a perverse fraternity”: the group of police chiefs and sheriffs from Aurora, Colorado, to Parkland, Florida, who have had to confront mass shooters, and who know the horror and confusion that follow when a gunman fires into a crowd.

As the country grapples with the latest school massacre, their uncommon experience gives them a rare perspective on the debate over armed teachers, background checks, concealed guns and whether military-style assault rifles should be available for civilians to purchase.

Three weeks after authorities say 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz shot 17 people to death at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, four members of that fraternity shared their thoughts about how to prevent violence in the United States, where Americans are up to 25 times more likely to die by gunshot than people in other developed countries. 

But while they faced the same heartbreak, they reflect the same divisions that have paralyzed Congress, where many Democrats have pushed for gun control and many Republicans have stressed mental health and other issues. The question now is whether Parkland will break the stalemate.  

When James Holmes killed 12 people in a movie theater in Aurora, where Oates was then police chief, Holmes was heavily armed. He had a version of an AR-15 rifle and other weapons, he wore body armor, a gas mask and helmet, and the Aurora police officer who found him outside standing by his car later testified he thought Holmes was a fellow officer because of his gear. A movie-goer with a handgun would have been no match in the 2012 bloodbath, Oates said.

“That’s part of the myth that’s put forward from the NRA after these events,” he said.

The National Rifle Association argues, to block gun control, that “the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” an assertion made by its executive vice president, Wayne LaPierre, immediately after the shootings at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Most research does not back the claim.

Oates, now the police chief in Miami Beach, Florida, would ban AR-15-style rifles, a popular weapon based on the military’s M-16 and the weapon of choice in recent massacres from Newtown to the holiday party in San Bernardino, California, the outdoor concert in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the tiny church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Arming teachers, as proposed by President Donald Trump and seconded by the NRA and other gun control opponents, would just add to the potential for tragedy, he said.

“The infinitely smarter answer is to prevent guns from getting in schools. That would be much easier and safer than training the teacher workforce in the United States to be armed,” Oates said. “I don’t think there’s any place in our society for assault weapons except in the hands of police officers.”

In Wilson County, Texas, which includes Sutherland Springs, Sheriff Joe D. Tackitt Jr. said he expected more teachers, churchgoers and others to carry concealed weapons following the Nov. 5 shooting that left 26 people dead at the First Baptist Church, “because sometimes one person could be in the right position to take out an active shooter.”

Tackitt would ban “bump stocks,” devices that effectively turn semi-automatic weapons into faster-shooting automatic ones, and he supports stricter background checks, though he is not sure how they should be implemented.

Currently, background checks are required only for gun sales by licensed firearm dealers, not for unlicensed sales at gun shows or over the internet. It is a loophole gun-control advocates want closed.

But Tackitt said that anyone who could pass a background check should be able to buy an AR-15.

“I know in our area, you’re not going to be able to go and knock on somebody’s door and say, ‘Hey, I want to see all your weapons,’ because they’re not going to let you see them, they’re not going to give their weapons up,” Tackitt said.

No one in Congress has proposed confiscating guns, but top Democrats want a ban on assault rifles while Republican leaders, like the NRA, are focused on school safety. Trump is seesawing from one position to another and the divide is as rancorous as it typically is.

One narrow proposal with a chance, which comes from a bipartisan group of lawmakers, would improve the National Instant Background Check System by tightening federal and state cooperation.

The police chief of Orlando, Florida, where Omar Mateen killed 49 people inside the Pulse nightclub, is, like Oates, opposed to arming teachers. Police officers receive intensive training and carry their firearms every day, said Chief John Mina, who is running for sheriff of Orange County as an independent. Teachers would not have body armor or extra magazines, might not be prepared for a struggle over a weapon and could become targets themselves, once students learn who has a weapon and who does not, he said. Instead, he would add armed security, single entries, metal detectors and random checks of backpacks and lockers.

“I just don’t think arming our teachers is the right fit, for all jurisdictions,” he said. “They have so many other responsibilities. They’re in charge of keeping students educated. Carrying a gun is hard work.”

Florida's Legislature this week approved a previously unimaginable bill that  places new restrictions on firearms in a state that just received an F rating on its gun laws from the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. The bill was signed by Gov. Rick Scott on Friday.

The measure does not ban assault rifles, as Democrats sought, and it would allow school districts to arm librarians, coaches and other employees though not full-time teachers. But it also raises the minimum age to buy a rifle from 18 to 21, prohibits bump stocks and provides millions in funding for schools for safety and mental-health care.

And it allows police to temporarily confiscate guns from people who are involuntarily committed for mental evaluation under Florida's Baker Act, or go to court to remove guns for up to a year from those who poses a threat to themselves or others. 

Mina said he approved making it more difficult for people who are threatening to harm others or themselves from having weapons as the new Florida law does. California, Connecticut, Indiana, Oregon and Washington also have enacted so-called red-flag laws that enable a judge to issue what are known as gun-violence restraining orders to temporarily confiscate weapons.

Mina is in favor of raising the purchase age to 21, expanding background checks and banning bump stocks. As far as a ban on assault rifles, he said it would have little chance of passing.

“Any of that legislation is going to be tough to get passed but I think both sides of this issue need to work a little bit harder and come up with something that’s going to make both sides of the issue a little uncomfortable,” he said. “And I don’t know what that is.”

Mina said that he learned from the 2016 Pulse attack that all police officers need body armor that will stop a rifle round, along with Kevlar helmets. Mateen, who pledged loyalty to the Islamic State, was killed in a shoot-out with law enforcement.

He had been investigated several times by the FBI after making comments about terrorists overseas, and he was abusive toward his wife, Noor Salman, who is now on trial on charges of aiding him before the attack, but the agency found no evidence that he was a threat.

In San Bernardino, California, where Syed Farook, 28, and his 27-year-old wife, Tashfeen Malik, also pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and killed 14 people at the Inland Regional Center, Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said mental-health care needs to be addressed. Police officers can do little with people who lack the ability to take care of themselves, who refuse to take medication or get treatment.

“We are very, very weak on mental-health care,” Burguan said. “We have very, very few resources dedicated to mental-health care. The bottom line is there are a lot of people that are walking the streets and there’s not a lot we can do with them and that’s a very frustrating thing from a law enforcement standpoint.”

Tackitt said his department had not received any warnings about the Sutherland Springs shooter, Devin Patrick Kelley, who killed 26 churchgoers, among them little children, at the First Baptist Church. Kelley had escaped from a mental-health hospital, where he was sent after being accused of assaulting his wife and fracturing his baby stepson's skull, but the military failed to enter his domestic-violence case into a database that would have prohibited his purchase of a rifle.

Wilson is a rural county, with at most five patrol deputies at a time, and before officers could arrive, a neighbor confronted Kelley with his own AR-15. Stephen Willeford wounded Kelley, and then, with another man, chased him down and found him dead. Kelley, 26, had shot himself in the head.

“He says, ’I’m not a hero, I did it what anyone else would have done,’ but there was no one else around,” Tackitt said. “He stepped up. The guy could have easily shot him when he was running up there.”

Opponents of gun control have trumpeted Willeford’s training as an NRA instructor to argue against attempts to ban the AR-15, though without acknowledging that the rifle itself, designed to kill quickly and efficiently, made the massacre possible. Officials have said that a videotape of the attack — the church taped its services — shows Kelley pausing only to reload as he shot his victims in the head over about seven minutes. Willeford’s bravery aside, it was the deadliest shooting in Texas history.

One bright spot for Oates and Mina are the students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, many of whom are lobbying passionately for gun control and other changes. Students who grew up in the shadow of Columbine, who know to silence cell phones and barricade classrooms when gunmen rampage through the hallways, are infuriated with lawmakers inaction.

“What if the children of America become more powerful than our politicians,” asked Jaclyn Corin, the school’s junior class president, in a videotape produced as part of a series of #WhatIf questions designed to pressure Congress.

Whether they can build a lasting movement could be answered on March 24, when what they are calling a “March for Our Lives” will take place in Washington, D.C., in every state, and a half a dozen cities in Canada.

“They’re articulate as can be,” Oates said. “There are no inhibitions. They’re not particularly beholden to any interest group and their passion and their anger isn’t muffled in any way. And I think it’s very powerful. Yes, that might just make a difference.”



Photo Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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Another Snowstorm Threatens April Break at Tolland Schools

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The Tolland area could be hit the hardest during Tuesday’s nor’easter, and with snow days piling up, school officials are having trouble reworking the schedule.

Students were in class Monday, but depending on how the storm shapes up, they could be out of class Tuesday and possibly Wednesday.

It’s a decision that’s tough for the superintendent and can be stressful for families.

“I’m thinking what have we done to deserve this,” Superintendent Tolland Public Schools Walter Willett said.

Tolland has already had to add 10 days at the end of the school year, pushing the last day from June 8 to June 22.

Now there’s a possibility school could be canceled again. It’s a decision that can leave parents scrambling.

Stephan Veladri, who has two young children, said it can be a struggle.

“The snow days aren’t great. We’ve got to find a babysitter. You got to find something for the kids to do. Somebody always ends up going into work late as a result. And then the worst thing about is the kids could be in school until the end of June at this point,” said Stephan Veladri.

If school is canceled Tuesday, the Tolland Board of Education already decided to start eliminating days from April break, beginning with that Friday and working the way back.

Willett said deciding to delay or cancel school is never easy.

“We take a look at everything starting now and what we think the storm is going to do & keep student safety in the forefront of our decision making,” Willett said.

Willett plans to consult the Department of Public Works, the bus company, school facilities staff and superintendents in nearby towns early tomorrow before making the final decision.

The superintendent is still holding out hope for a delay or early release either of the next two days, but it could be a cancellation.

Developer Cancels Outlet Shoppes at Rentschler Field Project

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The developer of the Outlet Shoppes at Rentschler Field in East Hartford announced Monday morning that it has canceled development on the project, blaming it in part of a tough retail environment. 

Illinois-based Horizon Group Properties, Inc. was planning on building the $100 million project, which promised to bring 70 retailers, 1,200 construction jobs, and 1,300 permanent jobs. 

The company suspended the project in November, two weeks after breaking ground, but has now canceled the development, citing “a tough retail environment and dramatic declines in valuations of already depressed retail-REIT stocks.” 

“This was an extremely difficult decision for us, because we believe that the project would be a success, but unfortunately circumstances beyond our control affected our ability to move forward,” Gary J. Skoien, chief executive officer of Horizon Group Properties, said in a statement. “When the project was delayed last November, we needed all the retailers to re-commit to the project with no changes in the economic terms of their leases, and that didn’t happen. We are also aware that some local contractors took advantage of the situation, and while this alone didn’t cause us to stop the project, it added to the high construction costs that exist in Connecticut. This is sad news, not only for us, but for United Technologies, the residents of East Hartford and the state of Connecticut.”




Photo Credit: Horizon Group Properties, Inc.

Stormy Daniels Offers to Pay Back $130K to Talk Trump

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Stormy Daniels, the adult film star who says she had an "intimate" relationship with President Donald Trump in 2006 and 2007, offered Monday to give back the $130,000 she was paid for her silence so she can speak freely about Trump and release any text messages, photos and videos she might have, NBC News reported.

Daniels sent a letter with the offer to Trump attorney Michael Cohen, who brokered a nondisclosure agreement before the election that she now claims is void, and to a lawyer who said he is representing Cohen and a company Cohen formed in connection with the agreement and the payment sent to Clifford in October 2017.

The White House has denied Trump had an affair with Clifford, and Cohen obtained a temporary restraining order barring Clifford from disclosing "confidential information" related to the agreement.

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, says in the letter that the money would be wired to an account designated by Trump by Friday, though the offer is only open until noon Tuesday.

"This has never been about the money," said Michael Avenatti, Cliford's lawyer.



Photo Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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