A Massachusetts man was killed in a crash on Route 32, or River Road, in Ellington, early Thursday morning. 

State police said 48-year-old Christopher Robicheau, of Oakham, Massachusetts, was behind the wheel of a Toyota Camry when his vehicle crossed the center line of the road and hit a tractor-trailer at 1:43 a.m.

Robicheau was pronounced dead at the scene, according to state police.

The crash happened near Plains Road at the Willington-Stafford line and the road was closed, but it has reopened.

A man who is accused of shooting at a Coventry home while children were inside and killing a dog was arrested after a police chase that ended in Vernon, according to police.

The investigation started a just before 7:30 p.m. Thursday when a woman called police to report a domestic assault on High Street.

She said she had taken her children and drove to a friend’s home on Flanders Road, police said, and the dispatcher told the woman to go straight to police headquarters.

At 7:48 p.m., police received a call from the victim’s friend, according to a news release from police. She said she was watching her friend’s children and someone outside was shooting at her house and trying to kick in the door.

The woman, who told authorities she was hiding in a bathroom with the children, provided police with the name of the person she thought was firing the shots and a description of his 2011 Chevy Silverado.

Police responded, but the shooter was gone. A witness reported hearing around 20 gunshots.

No people were injured, but a dog inside the house was shot and was later euthanized because of the injuries, according to Coventry police.

As police searched for a suspect, local police departments were alerted and a truck matching the description provided was seen on Route 32 in Willington.

A UConn officer tried to stop the driver, but he kept going, driving at speeds over 90 miles per hour, according to state police.

As the driver approached Interstate 84, state police used stop sticks, which flattened a wheel, but the driver kept going and entered Tolland, going 85 to 90 miles per hour until stopping at exit 66 in Vernon, according to state police.

Police took 36-year-old Daniel Ballard, of Coventry, into custody and arrested him. Several charges, including reckless driving and engaging police in a pursuit, were filed and bond was set at $500,000.

Coventry police expect to file charges later in connection with the domestic violence incident.

Five adults and nine children from three families were able to escape from a fire at a home in Hartford early Thursday morning. 

The fire broke out around 4:30 a.m. at 67-69 Martin St. and appears to have started on the second floor, in the bedroom of one of the adults and spread to the third floor, officials said. 

Crews attacked the fire from the outside before entering through the back of the house and it took them around 20 minutes to knock down the flames. 

Officials believe the house had working smoke detectors. 

The fire marshal’s office is investigating the cause of the fire.

After an Escondido teenager murdered his best friend, he used his phone to share his crime on social media, looking into the camera and saying "No regrets." 

On Wednesday, that teenager was sentenced to 25 years behind bars for the brutal crime in which he posted audio of his victim's cries on Snapchat. 

Salvador Alejandro Sanchez, 19, killed 20-year-old Maithem Alfuraiji in April 2017.

After the bloody fight, Sanchez looked into the camera and said "no regrets," the prosecutor said.

"He violently, brutally murdered his best friend," prosecutor Claudia Plascencia said outside of the courtroom in Vista. "The victim had no idea that the defendant had plans to murder him, somebody he considered a brother." 

The victim's mother cried as she addressed the court, asking for the maximum sentence allowable under the law. 

“It’s been a year, one month and three days since this horrible, horrible tragedy,” Brenda West said.

Alfuraiji was last seen on April 27, 2017, before he went to go meet a friend in Mountain View Park where they were going to smoke marijuana and drink alcohol.

During that meeting, Sanchez challenged Alfuraiji to a fight to the death. 

The victim's body was found three days later by homicide detectives in a remote area in Valley Center.

Evidence in the trial included audio and images posted to Snapchat, white clothes found covered in the victim's blood, a statement from a friend who helped transport the victim's body and the defendant's alleged confession to police.

Maithem’s father, Brent West, described the pain his family is going through as “unbearable.”

“I’m trying to be strong and move on forward in my life. Maithem will never, ever be forgotten by any of us,” he said.

The defendant’s mother, Zayra Sanchez, stood with her back turned toward her son. She said there were no words to describe how she feels.

She said at night, she is “thinking where I went wrong. Thinking what I could have done so this wouldn’t have happened,” she said.

After apologizing to Maithem’s parents, she asked them to forgive Sanchez.

“I’m asking you to forgive my son. Not because he deserves it but because it will also set you free,” she said.

The victim's parents asked for life in prison without parole for their son’s killer.

However, the judge imposed the maximum penalty legally possible under the circumstances - 25 years to life. 

Sanchez, a 2016 graduate of Escondido High School, will be eligible for parole after 25 years. 

A New Haven man was arrested in Hamden after police received reports that a person was exposing himself on the Farmington Canal Line in Hamden. 

Police said officers responded to the trail behind the Town Walk housing complex on Hamden Hills Drive at 5:41 p.m. to investigate after someone contacted them and said an older man in a blue plaid shirt and black jeans was on a bench and exposing himself. 

Officers patrolled the trail to look for the man and saw several children walking with their parents and several others walking and riding bikes. 

As they were searching, a jogger approached officers in the Sanford Street area and said a man who was sitting on a nearby bench was “playing with himself," police said. 

She said he was wearing a plaid shirt and dark pants, police said. 

Officers found someone wearing similar clothing and said his body was “exposed to eye level of individuals traveling on the Canal Line.” As they approached, they saw his pants were unzipped and he was holding his genitals, according to a news release. 

When officers approached the man, who they later identified as Francis Keen, a 63-year-old New Haven resident, he immediately zipped his pants. When officers asked what he was doing, Keen did not reply and placed his head down, police said. 

Officers handcuffed him and placed him under arrest. Keen was charged with risk of injury to a minor, breach of peace in the second degree and public indecency. 

Police said he is on the sex offender registry with several prior arrests on charges including sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor. 

Bond was set at $50,000 and he is due in court on June 13. 

A retired U.S. Marine Corps colonel hated D.C.-area drivers so much, his family mentioned them in his obituary.

Col. Robert F. Gibson died in Annandale, Virginia, on Dec. 26, 2017. He was 77. In an obituary published Sunday in The Washington Post, his family wrote about his distinguished military service — and his feelings about local drivers.

"A native of Northern Virginia for the last 30 years of his life, he hated how all of you were incapable of driving competently," the obituary says.

Gibson's widow, Barbara Gibson, told News4 her family wanted to capture in the obituary a part of her husband's daily life.

"It’s a general sentiment a lot of folks have," she said. "He traveled on the Beltway, and traffic is horrendous."

News of the obituary was first posted on the Reddit page for Washington, D.C.

Gibson, who was from Dayton, Ohio, served as a Marine officer for 30 years and was deployed to Vietnam twice. Also, he participated in operations in Operation Desert Storm, Kuwait and Lebanon, among other countries. His obituary says he was awarded the Legion of Merit with Gold Star and the Bronze Star with Combat Distinguishing Device.

He is survived by his wife of 36 years, his children and a grandson. He was set to be buried Thursday with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.

President Donald Trump is considering commuting the sentence of imprisoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, he told reporters Thursday.

Trump said he was "seriously thinking about" commuting the sentence of Blagojevich, who was once a contestant on Trump's "Celebrity Apprentice" while awaiting trial. He added that he was also considering a pardon for Martha Stewart, who was prosecuted by James Comey and convicted in 2004 of obstructing justice and lying to the government.

Trump told reporters Blagojevich had said something “stupid” but that it was similar to what other politicians have said. He called the 18-year sentence “really unfair.”

"Plenty of other politicians have said a lot worse," Trump said. "And it doesn’t... he shouldn’t have been put in jail."

He suggested he was more interested in “curtailing his sentence” than a full pardon.

"And he’s a Democrat. He’s not my party. But I thought that he was treated unfairly," Trump said.

The news comes after last week's rare posthumous pardon to Jack Johnson, boxing's first black heavyweight champion. News also broke Thursday that Trump planned to pardon conservative commentator Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty to campaign finance fraud.

"Obviously, we are hopeful that Pres. Trump will do something for Blagojevich," attorney Leonard Goodman. "He has the power to correct this injustice. Blagojevich did not ever improperly enrich himself in office. He did not take gifts or loans from supporters. He followed the rules for campaign fundraising set out by the Supreme Court. He did not take a penny from his campaign fund for his personal benefit. Blagojevich’s priorities as governor benefitted ordinary Illinoisans and not special interests. He pushed through the All Kids insurance program which greatly expanded health care for children in Illinois, and another program that gave free rides on public transport to senior citizens. Yet he was prosecuted anyway by a federal government that had determined to target Blagojevich for removal from office early on during his first term as governor." 

He added that "Trump understands the unfairness" and "it’s time for Rod Blagojevich to come home to his wife and daughters." 

Patti Blagojevich said she and her family are "encouraged" by the president's comments. 

"He’s given us something that has been hard to come by recently…hope," she wrote just moments after Trump's statements made headlines. "From the beginning, we’ve eagerly awaited the day when Rod could come back home where he belongs, and we continue to pray our family will be made whole again soon.”

About an hour before Trump's comments, Patti Blagojevich said she planned to speak with Martha McCallum Thursday night on Fox, a network Trump has openly said he's likely to watch.

The United States Supreme Court announced last month they would not hear Blagojevich's appeal. The former governor is in his 7th year of a 14-year sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in suburban Denver.

It was a devastating blow to Blagojevich, his family, and legal team, who had hoped they would get good news when the court released its order list. Instead, the Blagojevich case merely appeared on the list under the caption “Certiorari denied,” meaning the court would not consider the case.

“Rod, Amy, Annie and I could not be more disappointed in the decision today by the U.S. Supreme Court," Patti Blagojevich told NBC 5 at the time. "From the beginning we’ve had faith in the system and have felt the court would bring Rod back to us. Now, with the judiciary no longer an option, we’ll have to put our faith elsewhere and find another way."

The President is familiar with Blagojevich following his “Celebrity Apprentice” appearance. 

“The president knows Rod, he was on his show,” Patti Blagojevich told NBC5 last month. “He said nice things to him when he was on the show, he’s spoken favorably about Rod subsequent to that. So I think that, of any of our recent presidents we probably have the best shot with President Trump because he does have that relationship with Rod.”

Trump to Pardon Obama Critic Dinesh D'Souza

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he will pardon conservative commentator Dinesh D'Souza, who pleaded guilty to campaign finance fraud. 

As he left Washington for a trip to Texas, Trump tweeted: "Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D'Souza today. He was treated very unfairly by our government!" 

D'Souza, a conservative filmmaker, author and speaker was sentenced in September 2014 in federal court in New York to five years of probation after he admitted making illegal contributions to a U.S. Senate candidate in New York. 

In response to Trump's announcement, D'Souza thanked "those who prayed for me, supported me & reached out on social media" to call for his pardon.

A Look at the President's Pardon Power and How It Works

The president's power can only be used to pardon someone for a federal crime, not a state one.

Someone who has been convicted of a federal crime and wants to be pardoned makes a request for a pardon to the Justice Department's Office of the Pardon Attorney, which assists the president in exercising his pardon power. Department rules tell pardon seekers to wait at least five years after their conviction or their release from prison, whichever is later, before filing a pardon application.

It's then up to the pardon office to make a recommendation about whether a pardon is warranted. The office looks at such factors as how the person has acted following their conviction, the seriousness of the offense and the extent to which the person has accepted responsibility for their crime. Prosecutors in the office that handled the case are asked to weigh in. The pardon office's report and recommendation gets forwarded to the deputy attorney general, who adds his or her recommendation. That information is then forwarded to the White House for a decision.

It's not unusual for presidents to ultimately use their power to help hundreds. During his time in office President Barack Obama granted 212 pardons and commuted the sentences of approximately 1,700 people, including about 300 drug offenders he pardoned on his last day in office and Chelsea Manning, the transgender Army intelligence officer convicted of leaking more than 700,000 U.S. documents. President George W. Bush pardoned 189 people and commuted 11 sentences.

Check back for more on this developing story.

Is there one word you can't spell, regardless of how many times you Google it?

In honor of the National Spelling Bee finals, Google Trends looked at the top "how to spell" words searched by state.

In Connecticut, the top searched word is "sincerely." Missouri is also searching the correct spelling of that word.

For those to the north in Maine, they're the only state Googling how to spell "Connecticut."

This map was tweeted out to show what each state searched the most on Google.

Connecticut Water is warning customers to be on alert after two men posing as company employees tried to access a home in Vernon.

Company officials said the two impostors posing as employees tried to enter the Vernon home, but when the homeowner asked the men for ID, they could not provide it. The homeowner did not let them in and contacted Connecticut Water, which notified Vernon police.

Connecticut Water has a customer protection program that emails a picture of employees to the customer before scheduled appointments so the customer knows the person at the door is legitimate. Company employees always carry photo IDs.

If you are unsure about whether someone is a Connecticut Water employee, you can contact the company at 1-800-286-5700 to confirm. Any immediate concerns or suspicious people should be reported to local police.

For more information, visit the Connecticut Water website.

A man threatened employees of a Dunkin’ Donuts in West Hartford with a hypodermic needle and tried to rob the shop Thursday morning, but the employees fought him off, according to police.

Police said the attempted robbery happened at the Dunkin ‘ Donuts at 970 New Britain Ave. in West Hartford at 6:19 a.m. and the employees fought the man off with a broom and a pot of coffee.

Police identified the man accused of trying to rob the shop as 31-year-old Nicholas Moore, of Newington. He made off without stealing anything, police said, and was charged with criminal attempt at robbery in the second-degree and criminal attempt at robbery in the sixth degree.

He is being held on $50,000.

Gov. Dannel Malloy hosted a ceremony on Thursday, where he signed a bill banning bump stocks into law.

The governor held the ceremony at Bulkeley High School in Hartford and said he held it at a high school because of the way high school students have been energized by advocating to put an end to gun violence following the shootings in Parkland and Santa Fe.

Lawmakers passed the bill earlier this month.

The bill makes it illegal to sell, transfer, possess or use bump stock-type devices that enhance the rate of fire of a firearm.

Bump stocks became a hot-button issue after the mass shooting in Las Vegas last October that left 59 dead. The shooter used a bump stock on some of his weapons, according to police.

Anyone who currently owns bump stocks in Connecticut would be required to move them out of state, surrender them to the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, or render the device inoperable.

Those against the bill said they are skeptical about how a measure banning the devices would save lives or stop criminals from committing crimes. Proponents said making them more difficult to obtain is a step in the right direction.

The federal government is about to help clear the way for a casino in East Windsor, which would be the third in the state.

The Department of the Interior is making a change to the state’s agreement with the Mohegan Tribe, allowing them to operate a casino on non-tribal land.

An official announcement is expected Friday.

MMCT Venture, the joint company of the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes proposing the East Windsor casino, released the following statement.

"We are pleased that the department is taking this step and we expect similar action on the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal amendments in the very near future. Our goal has never changed. We want to do right by Connecticut and to preserve the strong relationship between our tribal nations and the state. Today's decision is the latest step in our overall goal to preserve thousands of good paying jobs and millions in state tax revenue.”

U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D), Chris Murphy (D), Congressmen John Larson (D) and Joe Courtney (D) issued a joint statement on the matter as well:

"The Department of the Interior has made effective the Tribal-State agreement amendments which it was obligated to do months ago. We are hopeful that this development allows the project to now move forward in the interest of tribes and the state. As the Inspector General continues its investigation, that timing will no doubt become a new focus."

A similar change is needed for the Mashantucket Pequot tribe’s company as well.

A New York woman is facing animal cruelty charges after authorities said she was caught on camera choking and throwing a 6-month-old puppy. 

Kiani Wright, 43, was arrested earlier this month after authorities got a call about the dog, named Pebbles, being abused outside a home in Yonkers on May 13, according to the SPCA of Westchester. 

Surveillance footage from the scene shows a woman matching Wright's description walking outside to retrieve Pebbles, who was being held by another man. The woman then grabs the cowering dog by the neck, choking it as she carries it back to her front stoop. 

Then, the footage shows, she chucks the animal into the door and kicks it inside. 

The SPCA said Wright was arrested after they found the video.

Pebbles was taken from the home and will be put up for adoption.

"This beautiful puppy can now be given a second chance at a happy life," said Shannon Laukhuf, the executive director of the SPCA of Westchester.

Waterbury Parks and Recreation is now requiring residents to pre-register online and take a digital ID photo before they can use city pools.

Recreation Director Victor Cuevas said in the past people just signed their name on a paper to enter the pool.

“We’ve had some problems at the pool and we weren’t able to identify swiftly who the problem people were,” Cuevas said.

The new system aims to make the pools safer in an emergency.

“If we have demographics and information about that particular kid like where he lives, who his parents are, and if he’s allergic to anything, that’s helpful that’s going to help us save lives,” he said.

In addition to the identification changes, children under the age of 12 are no longer allowed at the pools unsupervised.

Parent Millie Collazo already signed up her family up using the new system.

“It was really easy,” she said. “All you have to do is go online you just follow the link that it says, you just put in your information. It’s more safe at the pool now. And now the lifeguards can actually do their job and not worry about all the little kids are running around by themselves.”

The U.S. military could be caught in the crosshairs following President Donald Trump's move to slap tariffs on some of the nation's closest allies, CNBC reported.

Stephen Biddle, adjunct senior fellow for defense policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, argues that the fresh round of tariffs will undermine America's ability to leverage allies to support U.S. interests.

"The U.S. grand strategy for multiple generations has been premised on the idea that we are going to collaborate with rich and powerful allies that our enemy doesn't have and that this will advance American national security in a variety of ways," Biddle said. "The allies in question are precisely the ones that we are now engaged in these trade disputes with."

A Hartford landlord of about 30 properties has lost his contract with the federal government to provide subsidized housing.

Emmanuel Ku was notified of the termination Thursday, and city and local leaders applauded the move to end the federal government’s relationship with who they describe as a “slumlord.”

Tenants like Josh Serrano, who have been complaining and fighting for better living conditions for years, said the news was welcome.

“We do not deserve to live like this. Our children do not deserve to live like this. My child does not deserve to live like this,” he said during a press conference steps from a Fairmount Street apartment building owned by Ku.

NBC Connecticut’s efforts to reach Ku, whose office is in the Bronx, were unsuccessful.

The buildings have been the subject of numerous local and federal complaints and investigations. They were found to have broken windows, doors, rodents inside, and bathrooms with substandard plumbing and hygenic conditions.

He previously told the NBC Connecticut Troubleshooters last year that the issues with rodents, specifically, were the result of a nearby building being demolished. He also said he had tenant meetings.

Those tenants, however, said their concerns were never taken seriously.

Hilma Jones, who has been a tenant of one of Ku’s buildings for 28 years, said, “I pay my rent every month and it’s not right and I have a disability and sometimes they don’t care.”

Congressman John Larson (D) was happy to see some justice for the people who live in the buildings, and said he hopes Ku does not appeal the decision by HUD.

“It’s a long process,” Larson said. “Our country is based on laws, but hopefully Mr. Ku gets the message here and does the right thing.”

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin said similar landlords should consider themselves placed on notice.

“We’re not going to tolerate slumlords who are just trying to come in, exploit families, extract wealth, make a buck off of substandard housing," he said.

“Now that HUD has revoked Ku’s contract, they must work expeditiously to ensure each and every displaced tenant has safe and affordable housing—tonight,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D).

New Haven homeowners could have sticker shock when their property tax bills arrive in the mail in the next few weeks.

“My taxes are going to go up quite a bit probably about 16, $1700 and you know what just like any other we have to tighten our belt,” Alder Anna Festa (Ward-10) told NBC Connecticut.

This week the Board of Alders approved a $547 million budget with an 11 percent increase to the mill rate.

“We love our home so we’re going to pay,” Janet Strom said of the East Rock home where she and her husband raised their three children. “We love being here, we love the park we love being able to walk downtown.”

But in her neighborhood, Strom said she has seen “a lot of houses up for sale in the last six, eight months.”

After the 11 percent increase, taxes on homes valued at $100,000 are going up $430. Owners of homes worth $500,000 will owe the City of New Haven an additional $2,150.

“Come three weeks from now when people are presented with their bills in the mail there’s going to be sticker shock,” Festa said.

Mayor Toni Harp (D) recommended the tax hike. She told NBC Connecticut in March it was needed to maintain city services and make up for less funding from the state.

“The other challenge is we really don’t have an a true actual number from the state as to what we’re getting,” Festa said.

Festa said she supported an unsuccessful last minute amendment asking non-public safety departments to trim spending by 5 percent, in hopes of reducing the tax increase.

“At this point I think it’s everybody’s responsibility to try to do more with less,” she said.

On Maltby Street in Fair Haven, John Haire and Barbara Melotto have lived in a historic home for 40 years.

“I don’t feel like my tax dollars are adequately used,” Haire said.

“This big increase is going to make a big dent in my budget,” Melotto said. “I mean I’m a retired person living on a fixed income and I’m sure many people in New Haven feel the same way.”

They do not plan to leave their longtime home, so they’ll need to live with less.

“Food, a little less food,” Haire said, “I mean I got a gut but it’s going to get smaller with this tax increase.”

The Alders voted to set up task forces to take a closer look at two big spending issues: pensions and health benefits for city employees. They also rejected the mayor’s request to increase school funding by $5 million.

Hurricane season starts June 1 and more than 82,000 homes in Connecticut could see significant damage if any category hurricane surges in the state, according to a new CoreLogic report.

Another 67,207 other would be harmed too, but only by a Category 4 or 5 hurricane, which has never hit and it’s very unlikely one will.

Allen Fee, owner of Shaffer’s Marina on Masons Island Road in Mystic, has learned his lesson when it comes to storms. He now puts heavy equipment on wheels and bought pilings that can withstand very high waters.

“Tie everything down so it won’t float away. Put everything high,” Fee said.

More than five years later he still has peeling paint, some rust, and dents in one wall from where a freezer floated away during Sandy.

Water from the cove swelled into the street and into his shop. Even boats blocked on land started to float, according to Fee.

“You really enjoy (the water) but there’s times when you get a little bit of anxiety,” he said.

It’s not just the hurricanes, Fee said. Nor’easters bring a lot of problems, too. Plus water in the road blocks the only way in and out of Masons Island.

Stonington’s Emergency Management Director George Brennan is pooling together emergency staff and making sure they’re prepared.

“We’re as susceptible as any coastal community in Connecticut. We’re fortunate that the storms that have hit us, have hit us at a low tide,” Brennan said.

Residents need to be able to take care of themselves for 72 hours, according to Brennan. He advises packing a kit with any medications, bedding and clothes. And ensuring people have a gallon or two of water per person, per day, especially if the power goes out and a household relies on well water.

A fire that forced families from their homes on Martin Street in Hartford early Thursday morning was intentionally set, according to fire officials.

Firefighters were called to 67 Martin Street at 4:33 a.m. and found the three-story home ablaze. It took about 20 minutes to knock it down.

Three families, including five adults and nine children, were inside at the time but all escaped unharmed.

“The smoke detectors were going off but it was just too late. It just happened too fast," Krystle Conory, who lives in the home.

She and her husband grabbed their kids - ages 1 to 7 - and ran.

“It was scary. We were passing them through smoke, burning our arms, trying to get them out," Conory told NBC Connecticut. “The plastic was just falling, just falling. And we were just running.”

The heaviest fire was on the second floor, which is where officials believe the fire started.

The American Red Cross is assisting the displaced residents.

The Hartford fire marshal, and Hartford Police Department Major Crimes division are investigating. Anyone with information should contact police.

Gov. Dannel Malloy has ordered flags lowered to half-staff in honor of a Connecticut State Police trooper who passed away Thursday.

Trooper First Class Walter Green passed away following a battle with cancer as a result of his response in New York City in the aftermath of the terrorist attack on Sept. 11, 2001.

State police confirmed Greene's cancer was related to his response on 9/11, and his passing is considered a line of duty death.

Greene was a member of the 101st Training Trooper and most recently assigned to Traffic Services Unit. He served in the US Marine Corps for four years before joining Connecticut State Police in 1990. Over the years he was assigned to Troops A and G, the Statewide Cooperative Crime Control Task Force, and was a master instructor for motor services and a K-9 handler.

“Men like Trooper First Class Greene personify what it means to give back to the community and to dedicate one’s life work in the name of others. His bravery and integrity speaks volumes. On behalf of the entire State of Connecticut, I send my deepest condolences to his family, friends, and State Police colleagues. I ask the people of Connecticut to please keep Trooper First Class Greene and his family in your prayers,” Malloy wrote in a statement.