The NBC Connecticut meteorologists have issued a First Alert for snow, sleet, and rain moving through Thursday evening.

Snow will develop across the state Thursday afternoon and evening, then change to a sleety mix then rain. Accumulation is possible in some areas before the changeover, and a glaze of ice is possible Thursday night before the change to rain.

We’re tracking the system and will provide updates as we go through the week.

For your current forecast anytime, click here.

President Donald Trump faces a growing backlash over his choice of Matt Whitaker to serve as acting attorney general, with liberal and conservative legal experts questioning the appointment, NBC News reported.

The controversy arises because Whitaker was serving Jeff Sessions as the attorney general's chief of staff, a position that was not confirmed by the Senate, and because a federal law specifies that the deputy attorney general takes over when there's a vacancy at the top of the Justice Department.

But in making the choice, Trump bypassed Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who had been overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the election and Trump. 

Hamden police are trying to identify a suspect accused of attacking another person at a local gas station.

Police said the suspect, described as a man in his 50s, “became very upset” when the victim backed up a vehicle near the gas pumps at the Gulf Gas Station at 1624 Dixwell Avenue on Friday. The two men began arguing, and the suspect then took an ax handle from his car and hit the victim several times, according to police.

The suspect fled in a silver minivan. He is described as 5-foot-5 with a medium build and black curly hair.

Emergency crews responded to treat the victim.

Anyone with information or who recognizes the suspect pictured above is asked to contact the Hamden Police Department at 203-230-4030.

Following in the footsteps of her father and siblings, Leesa Philippon joined the U.S. Army in 1979 as a French Language interpreter. 

While she didn’t end up in war, she was stationed in Fort Bragg North Carolina where she met her husband, Ray, a sergeant in the Army. They married, moved to West Hartford and began a family. 

Larry, their oldest son, followed in the family’s military tradition. 

“Larry was hilarious,” Leesa said. “He was tall. He was 6’4. He was a hockey goalie.” 

She said Larry decided to join the Marines on September 11, 2001. 

“They were sitting there in front of the TV; they couldn’t believe what was going on. A seed was planted,” she said. 

Three and a half years later, Leesa got the message no mother wants to hear. Larry was killed in action while serving in Iraq. 

“May 8, 2005, it was Mother’s Day,” Leesa said. “It was mine and my husband’s anniversary. I think of how Larry would want us handle this and he would want us to stay strong.” 

It wasn’t long before Leesa’s other son, Bryan, decided that he wanted to serve. 

“We tried to hold him off,” Leesa said. “He came to us one day and said, ‘I’m losing the memory of my brother. If I become a Marine, I will be his Marine brother.’ So at that point, we had to give him our blessing.”’ 

Leesa Philippon is now an advocate for veterans their families. She spoke at a Veterans Day Observance and Awards Ceremony at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford. 

“For our troops and all of our population, we need to address all forms of mental health and strive to remove the stigmas that stifle the quality of life,” Leesa said. 

Although she, her husband and son are no longer active military, Leesa continues to serve. She said she will serve until she meets her son Larry once again. 

“I will hug him and thank him for being able to speak for those men and women who he’s served with because he just adored them and loved them and the feeling is mutual — they loved him,” Leesa said.

Surveillance video obtained by NBC Connecticut shows the moment of impact Saturday morning when a Coach USA bus packed with more than 40 Princeton University students crashed into a business on Campbell Avenue in West Haven.

Four students and the bus driver were taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital, but police said nobody was seriously hurt when the bus exited I-95 northbound, came down a steep ramp and slammed into the Anderson Glass Company building.

The students were traveling to the Yale Bowl for the Princeton-Yale football game.

According to public records from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the bus had a satisfactory safety rating as of late July.

As seen from DroneRanger’s exclusive images above the scene, the accident leveled part of the shop. The debris clean-up continued Monday afternoon after the business reopened.

The glass company’s president John Anderson called the bus driver "a hero," knowing the damage and injuries could have been worse.

"From what I understand, he was telling all the students 'I don’t have any brakes, get ready,' and he drove his bus into the softest target here, which was the garage and fortunately nobody was in that," Anderson said.

West Haven Police told NBC Connecticut they suspect brake failure for two reasons: statements from the Princeton students on board and the lack of skid marks at the scene, leading investigators to believe the brakes were never applied.

On the highway, signs warn about the steep ramp and say "No Trucks."

NBC Connecticut reached out to the state Department of Transportation to ask if that “No Trucks” sign applied to large buses, but a spokesperson said he had to wait until after the holiday to provide a response.

"There have been a few accidents here before, nothing to this scope though," Anderson said.

According to the Connecticut Transportation Safety Research Center at UConn, since 2015 there have been 30 crashes by NB Exit 43 and Campbell Ave. None resulted in any deaths or serious injuries.

This past July a speeding car being operated in a reckless manner took a similar path of the bus crash, Behavior Analyst Marisa E. Auguste, MS, told NBC Connecticut by email.

"We can fix the building," Andersons said. "Just happy everyone is safe."

A representative from the bus company had no comment for NBC Connecticut on Monday other than they are cooperating with the police investigation.

New London County is known for its military involvement from the Coast Guard Academy to the Naval Submarine Base New London. Many veterans who have served and protected our country are now doing that in a different way.

Long before Glenn Penkofflidbeck joined the ranks as a fifth and sixth-grade science teacher at East Lyme Middle School, the former Air Force Major was already giving back to his community and country.

An eye injury halted his career as a pilot. So he turned to defense intelligence.

"About a year before the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein, I got a call to go to the White House and to meet with President Bush," Penkofflidbeck said.

From which he gained some notoriety and responsibility.

"Shortly thereafter I was working for the J2, which is the officer on the Joint Chiefs of Staff and I was briefing General Colin Powell, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. And once things got going, the Vice President," he said.

Penkofflidbeck put in 14 years of service between active duty and the reserves. He’s received praise for his work during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, including a Joint Service Commendation Medal for meritorious service for the armed forces of the United States from Sept. 1987 to Oct. 1991.

"I felt like I was Jack Ryan in a Tom Clancy novel for a bit," he said, adding that the stress and amount of moving was a reason for leaving.

Penkofflidbeck credited education helped open the doors to these opportunities.

"I wanted to teach. I wanted to give back to my community," he said.

He started his teaching career in Essex, took a hiatus to start Three Sisters Farms, a business that sells raw and natural products, and is now back teaching in East Lyme, paying it forward.

So is First Class Petty Officer Larry Watson, who joined the Navy and is now serving the East Lyme community as a police officer.

"Whether we really realize it or not, everybody has that certain want to do something that’s bigger than yourself," Watson said.

He served on the USS Springfield and the USS Connecticut both stationed at the Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton.

His father, uncle and grandfather were all in the military. He’s the only one in his generation of his family who decided to join.

He’s still in the U.S. Navy Reserve.

"It certainly is a privilege, I think. I look back fondly and I’ll always have that with me," Watson said.

As several key contests across the U.S. remain close, President Donald Trump has zeroed in on Florida, making a slew of unsubstantiated claims about "forged" ballots and "found" votes, NBCNews reported.

"Trying to STEAL two big elections in Florida! We are watching closely!" he tweeted this weekend, referring to the extremely tight Senate and governor's races, which have been forced into a recount.

There is no evidence of widespread fraud or forged ballots in the state, election observers and law enforcement said.

Hartford police are trying to locate a man who suffers from severe dementia.

Police said 67-year-old Mario Sementilli was reported missing around 1 p.m., after he left the Immanuel House at 15 Woodland St. Sementilli is 5-foot-11, 210 pounds, with brown eyes and salt-and-pepper hair. He was last seen wearing a brown coat, white t-shirt, brown sneakers and a black skull cap with two gray stripes.

A Silver Alert has been issued.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact Hartford police.

The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is reminding drivers to watch out for deer and moose on the roads as we move into their breeding season.

Fall is peak breeding season for moose, and breeding season for white-tailed deer runs from October through late December.

Drivers should pay attention to “deer crossing” signs along the highway and keep an eye when driving through wooded areas, particularly during early morning and evening hours.

DEEP officials said there were more than 4,000 deer strikes in Connecticut last year, though many go unreported. Approximately 4,122 deer were killed.

According to DEEP data, the most crashes involving deer happened in Glastonbury.

Because of their height, moose often wind up hitting windshields when hit by cars. Drivers are advised to slow down if they see a moose or deer by or on the road. Moose-involved accidents are more likely than deer-related crashes to cause injury to humans.

All moose and deer vehicle crashes should be reported to local, state, or DEEP Environmental Conservation Police Officers at 860-424-3333.

Connecticut may be known for its steady habits, but on Election Day, some voters expressed their electoral independence. In many General Assembly House and Senate districts, voters picked different parties up and down their ballot depending on the candidate.

In the 53rd House District, GOP gubernatorial nominee Bob Stefanowski received more votes that Democrat Ned Lamont. But voters ultimately decided that they wanted a change in their representation in Hartford. Representative Sam Belsito (R – Tolland) was unseated by Democrat Pat Wilson Pheanious, a major shift in the political leanings of that area.

“He is very conservative and there’s a lot of young families, a lot of progressives,” said Mary Anne Delaney-Tuttle, who’s lived in the district for years, and served on the Tolland Town Council for 17 years.

“We have a strong influence from the university and you know, university areas tend to be socially liberal which is why they went with Pat,” she said.

Rural parts of Connecticut were not the only places to see this trend.

Republicans in Fairfield fared very well, despite Lamont winning their town. GOP representatives Laura Devlin and Brenda Kupchick each won re-election, and Sen. Tony Hwang also won reelection by 1,941 votes. Lamont edged out his win in Fairfield by 1,069 votes.

On Connecticut’s shoreline, Bob Stefanowski was successful in his hometown of Madison, and he won more votes overall in the State Senate district which includes Guilford, Branford, North Branford, Durham, and Killingworth in addition to Madison.

However, the incumbent State Representative Noreen Kokoruda, (R – Madison), currently facing a recount in her bid for re-election, is currently trailing her Democratic opponent, John-Michael Parker, according to unofficial results from the Secretary of the State.

Elsewhere in the district, Christine Cohen, the Democrat running for the open state Senate, defeated Republican Adam Greenberg.

Stefanowski won four of the six towns in the 12th Senate District, but Ned Lamont lost by a narrow margin.

Cohen says even with those results, she has to show voters she represents the entire district and not simply the areas where she performed well.

“I’m representing the district and I have worked together across the aisle with all types of people for many years. Some may agree with your standpoint, some may not, but ultimately I want to bring everybody’s voice to Hartford and represent them as best I can,” Cohen said.

“I think we all recognize that there has been hyperpolarization going on across the country and certainly it’s no different in the state of Connecticut and in the 12th district, and so I recognize that.”

Even though much was made of the impact that President Donald Trump or Gov. Dannel Malloy may have had in Connecticut’s elections, in numerous instances, voters appeared to be looking to make far different statements than simply responding to a sitting president or an outgoing governor.

Democratic Rep. Kyrsten Sinema is the apparent winner in the Arizona Senate race, narrowly defeating Republican Rep. Martha McSally, according to an NBC News projection.

Sinema is the first Democratic senator elected in Arizona in 30 years.

McSally conceded the race in a video statement on her Twitter account Monday evening.

At grocery stores across Connecticut, you can buy beer with your food, but not wine. Those looking to cook with wine, pick up some bottles for a dinner party, or simply enjoy a glass during dinner have to make that purchase at a separate package store. But that’s not the case in most states.

At least 40 other states give consumers the option to buy both wine and beer inside grocery stores, according to the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association. Connecticut is one of a handful where wine is exclusively sold in package stores.

Carroll Hughes, executive director of the Connecticut Package Stores Association and the organization’s lobbyist at the Connecticut Capitol, said wine sales are critical to keeping package stores in business.

Grocery stores currently have 12 to 15 percent of the beer market in Connecticut, according to Hughes.

“If they were ever to sell 12 to 15 percent of the wine, there wouldn’t be package stores. Wine is the primary reason people come in,” Hughes said.

Hughes said competition from supermarkets would likely force package stores to cut costs, which could translate into possible job losses and fewer product offerings.

Limiting competition may be good for the package stores, but is it fair to consumers?

“We view wine as a food pairing, and people should be allowed to come in to the grocery store and buy wine,” said Wayne Pesce, who represents grocery stores and suppliers as president of the Connecticut Food Association.

He said grocery stores want a free and open market and a chance to grow their sales by offering convenient one-stop shopping for customers.

“We’re not looking to put anybody out of business,” Pesce said.

If grocery stores could sell wine, would people change their buying habits?

According to tax data from the Department of Revenue Services, wine consumption in Connecticut has remained mostly flat over the last five years. That could indicate people will only buy so much wine, but easier access to the product could also increase sales.

Jenny Guerraz, a West Hartford mom of two said it doesn’t make sense to her why beer and wine are treated differently by state law.

“I make the extra step, but I would prefer do it all in one stop,” Guerraz said.

Almost seven out of 10 consumers would like the option to buy wine in the supermarket, according to research commissioned by the Connecticut Food Association. Outgoing Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy said popular opinion has held little sway over the legislature when it comes to liquor laws.

“The industry spends a lot of money making sure that the legislators are fearful of making those kinds of changes that would favor the consumer,” Malloy said.

Malloy pushed for liquor law reforms eight years in a row. Some proposals, like allowing alcohol sales on Sundays, passed. Others, such as eliminating Connecticut’s unique system of pricing, faced strong opposition from the Connecticut Package Stores Association.

Allowing wine sales in Connecticut grocery stores is likely to meet a similar end, Malloy said.

“I don’t think the legislature’s brave enough to stand with the citizens over the corporate interests,” Malloy said.

NBC Connecticut Investigates reached out to Governor-elect Ned Lamont to ask if he intends to continue Malloy’s push to reform liquor laws. He declined to comment.

A young Connecticut boy decided to mark his birthday by lending a helping hand to those serving our country.

At a time when most little boys only want to play with toy soldiers, kindergartner Owen Zavatone used his birthday to help the real ones.

“I want to be in the Army,” Owen said.

To celebrate blowing out six candles on the cake, Owen had a special ask of friends at his birthday party.

"The idea was for kids to not bring presents for me, but to bring presents for the soldiers," Owen explained.

Owen’s request yielded a huge haul of necessities for military members. He’s using the gifts to make care packages.

Owen’s mother Maureen Zavatone said her son has a special appreciation for the country’s armed forces you might not expect for someone so young, so they’ve tried to teach him about the valor and the sacrifice of the women and men fighting for our country.

"He wanted to have an army party and we always talk about the fact that the soldiers are away from home and they’re very brave," Maureen said.

Owen wears a hat that once belonged to his Grandpa Leo when he served.

"My papa was in the Army," Own said proudly.

Owen’s parents say that his love for the troops extends outside of this house. Whenever he sees one out and about, he always salutes.

"We’ve always encouraged him to just show his gratitude to the people that are sacrificing, that are away from their families so we can be with ours," his father Stefan Zavatone said.

The Zavatones plan to send the goods from Owen’s party to service members in time for the holidays.

In the meantime, Owen has a special message for the men and women who will receive his birthday gifts.

“What I would like to say is thank you for your service,” he said.

Monday was a proud day for the LGBT community in Connecticut.

The Pride Flag was flying high in West Hartford center as people celebrated the 10th anniversary of the day same-sex couples were able to start marrying in the state.

“Absolutely, it is very much a day of celebration,” said Robin Levine-Ritterman.

Robin and Barb Levine-Ritterman chatted with us at their home in New Haven about the dramatic events from a decade ago.

“It was a long journey,” said Barb.

They were one of eight same-sex couples who fought for the right to marry in the state.

“I think one thing that really drove me was having kids and having a family,” said Robin.

In 2008, the couples were victorious when the Connecticut Supreme Court struck down the law that created civil unions.

The court ruled gay couples could legally marry starting Nov. 12, 2008. For Robin and Barb, it was a life-changing moment.

“Knowing that the world sees us as in a lifelong commitment with each other,” said Barb.

The New York Times’ front page featured a picture of the couple picking up their marriage certificate on that first day, though they waited six months to be officially wed.

Now all of these years later, Barb and Robin believe there’s still work to be done to secure more rights for the LGBT community.

“We still very much need work place equality and equality in housing,” said Robin.

“I see the struggle for trans rights being similar to where the lesbian and gay struggle was 10 or 20 years ago,” said Barb.

Because of the Supreme Court ruling, Connecticut became one of the first states to legalize same-sex marriage.

It would take another seven years for the U.S. Supreme Court to do the same for the nation.

Jerome Corsi, an associate of Roger Stone, says he expects to be indicted for perjury as part of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian election meddling, NBC News reported. 

Corsi, who has been questioned over his knowledge of WikiLeaks obtaining hacked emails from Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman, said Mueller's team delivered the news at a meeting about a week ago.

"They told me they were going to indict me," he told NBC News in a phone interview Monday.

Mueller's spokesman, Peter Carr, declined to comment. 

The state of Maryland plans to ask a federal judge on Tuesday for an order declaring that Rod Rosenstein is the acting attorney general — not Matt Whitaker, who was appointed to that position last week after the forced resignation of Jeff Sessions, NBC News reported.

Ruling that Whitaker cannot serve as attorney general would be a blow to President Donald Trump, who bypassed Rosenstein in favor of someone who has repeatedly criticized Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian election meddling. 

The Justice Department would immediately appeal any such ruling, and the case could be on a fast track to the Supreme Court.

Hartford Police are investigating two separate shootings that happened within about an hour of each other on Monday night.

Officers said the first shooting happened at 6:59 p.m. on Pliny Street.

According to police, a 17-year-old was transported by a private vehicle to Connecticut Children's Medical Center with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The teenager is currently in stable condition.

Detectives are currently investigating that shooting.

Approximately an hour later, around 8 p.m., officers responded to St. Francis Hospital after getting a report of a gunshot victim being transported there by a private vehicle.

Investigators determined the shooting happened on Wethersfield Avenue.

Officials said a 23-year-old man suffered a non life-threatening gunshot wound to the upper arm and was in stable condition. He was expected to be discharged on Monday night.

Police said the 23-year-old man had two outstanding warrants and was taken into custody after treatment.

Officers have determined the two shootings are not related.

Foodshare is collecting turkeys and other non-perishable food items for families in need for "Turkey Tuesday" on Tuesday morning.

Their goal is to collect thousands of items for about 16,000 families.

Donations can be dropped off at City Place in Hartford until 10 a.m.

Foodshare's hope through the holiday season is to continue to feed the more than 120,000 people in Hartford and Tolland counties who struggle with hunger.

Foodshare is partnering with Bank of America and United Healthcare for this giving event.

A photo has gone viral showing about 50 students, most of them white, from a Wisconsin high school appearing to give a Nazi salute, prompting their school district to investigate, NBC News reported.

The photo is from last spring and was not taken on Baraboo High School property or at an event sponsored by the school, according to the superintendent of the Baraboo School District. It originally appeared on a photographer's website along with photos from the school's junior prom.

"If the gesture is what it appears to be, the District will pursue any and all available and appropriate actions, including legal, to address the issue," superintendent Lori Mueller told parents in a letter Monday.

The apparent Sieg Heil gesture brought condemnation from the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum, which said on Twitter that the concentration camp "with its gas chambers was at the very end of the long process of normalizing and accommodating hatred."

A 33-year-old Uncasville man was shot and stabbed at the Briarwood Apartments on Bricktop Road in Windham on Oct. 16 and Connecticut State Police said they arrested the suspected shooter over the weekend.

Connecticut State Police troopers responded to reports of an altercation in an apartment around 8:30 p.m. that Tuesday night and found a victim in the stairwell with both a gunshot wound and a stab wound.

He was transported to Hartford Hospital, the flown to Windham Hospital, according to state police. No additional information was released on his condition.

The arrest warrant application says the victim identified 20-year-old Alexander Santana, of Montville, as the suspect. Early Saturday morning, police served two search warrants and arrested him.

Santana has been charged with criminal attempt to commit murder, assault in the first degree, threatening in the second degree, robbery in the first degree, carrying a firearm without a permit, criminal use of a firearm, assault on a peace officer and resisting arrest.

Bond was set at $300,000.