The West Hartford community is grieving the death of a girl, allegedly by the hands of her 12-year-old brother.

The suspect, who is accused of also stabbing his mother, is facing a murder charge.

Multiple locations around town opened the doors for people who just wanted to talk. There’s been counseling available for the school community, as well as first responders.

The mayor has called this a time to support each other, which they’re doing all across town.

A heartbroken community came together to grieve and pray at Westminster Presbyterian Church in West Hartford

“I came here to show respect and support the family and the community,” said Debra Ofshay.

There’s a makeshift memorial on Stoner Drive. At a home up the road a girl was allegedly stabbed to death by her brother Monday.

Among the flowers, a note reads, “Rest in Peace. We Love You. All of West Hartford.”

“I have two of my own children. So being a mom, it’s hard to imagine a family having to go through something like this at this time,” Ofshay said.

Police say the boy also stabbed his mother. At last check she was in stable condition and was identified by her employer as Jane Murphy.

Chuck Coursey is a family friend.

“They’re so appreciative of the outpouring of prayers and support they have received,” he said.

West Hartford Police said the 12-year-old suspect was charged with murder with special circumstances and assault in the first degree. He was arraigned at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center and now is in the custody of judicial marshals.

In Connecticut, children younger than 15 cannot be tried as an adult according to Jim Bergenn, a partner at Shipman & Goodwin.

“The legislature had made a judgment no matter how mature, no matter how bad the act, they’re still a child. They belong in a juvenile proceeding,” Bergenn said.

Legal experts said because of the suspect’s young age it’s likely this case will be sealed and we won’t find out what happens next. If convicted, it’s possible the boy would serve just several years.

In a statement the boy’s attorney, Trent LaLima, asked for privacy.

Facebook denied Tuesday night that its dozens of "partners" — companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Netflix, Spotify and Yahoo — were able to misuse Facebook users' personal data, NBC News reported. 

The company, however, didn't address explosive new allegations that it gave those companies far broader access to private data than it has previously acknowledged. The New York Times reported Tuesday that Facebook for many years gave more than 150 companies extensive access to personal data — including private messages and contact information for users' friends — than was previously known and without users' explicit consent.

The Times said it based its reporting on more than 270 pages of internal Facebook documents and interviews with more than 50 former employees of Facebook and its so-called integration partners, as well as other former government officials and privacy advocates.

Facebook has said it is ending the "integration partnerships," some of which The Times reported extend as far back as 2010 and some of which were still in effect this year.

Two teenagers who were staying at a migrant center in central Tijuana, Mexico, were killed in an attempted robbery, NBC News reported.

The two boys, estimated to be ages 16 and 17, were stabbed and strangled Saturday, according to Baja California Deputy Attorney General Jorge Alberto Álvarez Mendoza. Their bodies were found shortly after 7 p.m., he said. A third boy with the victims managed to escape. 

The bodies were found in an alley in a neighborhood named for the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, Álvarez Mendoza said. Authorities believe the trio were headed to another migrant shelter, the Benito Juarez sports complex, which was officially closed down after heavy rains doused the open-air encampment earlier this month. 

The violence highlights the dangers migrants face in Tijuana as thousands await a slim possibility of pleading their case for asylum at the U.S. border. Some were part of a caravan that was politicized during the midterm congressional election in November.

A water main break closed Route 17 in North Haven Wednesday morning.

Route 17, also known as Middletown Avenue, is shut down between Quinnipiac Avenue and Westminster Street.

Police did not have know when the road might reopen.

There will be an increased police presence at Southington High School on Wednesday after a rumor of a threat against the school.

Superintendent Timothy Connellan sent an email to parents Wednesday morning about the rumor.

He said some parents reached out to him about the possible threat and he turned the information over to police.

After investigating, police determined the rumor was started after student discussions at school about an incident last week involving a racist video that was posted online, according to Connellan. Police continue to investigate that incident, in which a Southington High School student was recorded making racist statements.

Connellan urged parents to assure their children that there is no credible threat to Southington High School and there is no evidence that a threat ever existed.

Out of an abundance of caution, police will have an extra officer patrolling the school to provide an extra measure of security, police said.

A mother and her three children escaped a fire early Wednesday morning.

The fire broke out inside their home on Quinnebaug Drive around 12:30 a.m.

The woman grabbed her three children and was able to escape, according to family members.

She suffered minor burns to her face and her 1-year-old child suffered a minor burn to his arm, the woman's husband said.

All four were taken to the hospital to be treated, but have since been released.

The fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.

Newly elected Texas congressman Dan Crenshaw said he reached out to "SNL" star Pete Davidson over what he called Davidson's "devastating" Instagram post over the weekend, NBC's "Today" show reported. 

Davidson, 25, had alarmed fans and friends after sharing a message that seemed to suggest he was having suicidal thoughts. Davidson, who has been candid about his struggles with depression and borderline personality disorder, then deleted his account.

New York police performed a wellness check and the comedian appeared briefly on Saturday's "SNL." 

Crenshaw told KPRC2 Houston that he talked to Davidson on Sunday. "We don't go back very far. We're not good friends," Crenshaw said. "But I think he appreciated hearing from me. I told him everyone has a purpose in this world. God put you here for a reason. It's your job to find that purpose. And you should live that way."

Crenshaw and Davidson first made headlines after Davidson poked fun at the  former Navy SEAL's appearance. Crenshaw lost his eye in an IED attack in Afghanistan.

They pair appeared together Nov. 10 on "Weekend Update" where Davidson apologized for his remark. 

If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide, please call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text TALK to 741741 or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for more additional resources.

A 12-year-old boy was shot and killed on a Bridgeport Street Tuesday night.

The boy was struck at least twice in front of 289 Willow Street just after 9 p.m., according to police.

He was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

Police said they do not believe the 12-year-old was the intended target.

Detectives are working on several leads, according to police.

They have not released the victim's identity.

Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call Detective Cintron at the Bridgeport Police Department at 203-581-5227 or the Bridgeport Police Tips Line at 203-576-TIPS.

The Children’s Place has recalled thousands of snowsuits that could pose a choking hazard to infants who wear it.

The children’s clothing chain on Wednesday issued a recall for around 14,900 girls’ infant snowsuits, saying their metal snaps could detach and cause young children to choke.

The chain got one report of a metal snap detaching from a snowsuit, but hadn’t received any reports of injuries as of Wednesday, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.

The recall includes girls’ infant snowsuits in sizes 0 to 18 months, in the “White Sophy floral,” “Jazzberry ladybug” and “Rosebud heart” patterns.

The snowsuits in question were sold in stores and online between August 2018 and November 2018.

Anyone who has purchased one of the snowsuits should stop using them and return them to the chain for a full refund, the commission said.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed has written a letter asking for outgoing Gov. Jerry Brown’s help to free her brother, who is not eligible for parole for another 15 years in a notorious homicide case.

Back in 2000, he pushed a young mother out of a car and into Golden Gate Bridge traffic. Napoleon Brown, 46, is now serving a 44-year term in Solano State Prison for manslaughter, robbery and other crimes tied to the death of Lenties White.

Both White’s family and legal experts question Breed’s letter, which was obtained by NBC Bay Area’s Investigative Unit.

Breed wrote to the governor as part of an official application in October that while she did not think the four-decade sentence against her brother was fair, “I make no excuses for him. His decisions, his actions led him to the place he finds himself now.”

She says her brother has been through addiction, parenting and other programs in state prison. Outside, she assured, he would have “strong” family support.

“I guarantee we can secure him access to a job, to a good home, to the counselling and services he and every other addict need for the rest of their lives.”

His freedom, she says, is “what’s best for both Napoleon and society overall.”

But Sandra McNeil, the mother of the 25-year-old victim, disagrees.

“I don’t think it would be justice,” she said. “She’s the mayor, so she’s got a little power, so she thinks she can get her brother out.’’

Veteran prosecutor turned defense attorney, Chuck Smith, said the mayor’s letter raises all sorts of ethical questions.

“The timing of it is troublesome,” Smith said. “She could have written this letter six months ago, when she wasn’t mayor -- and she didn’t. The governor obviously is leaving office soon.”

In writing the governor, Breed left out that just last year, according to court records, her brother was caught with heroin in prison. As a result, he had another two years tacked onto the sentence he was already serving for manslaughter, robbery and other crimes.

Brown had a prior robbery on his record when he was originally convicted of murder and robbery and sentenced to 44 years in prison back in 2005. While the murder verdict was overturned by a judge for technical reasons, Brown ultimately agreed to plead to involuntary manslaughter. He was eventually resentenced to 42 years.

The extra time for the drug offense brings his term back to 44 years. He is eligible for parole in 2032.

McNeil says another thing Breed left out in that letter was that Breed herself tried to provide her brother with an alibi, testifying in the trial that Napoleon Brown was sleeping on their couch at midnight. That was when prosecutors said Brown robbed a Marina District restaurant and later pushed White from the getaway vehicle.

The jury heard evidence that White’s dying words implicated Napoleon Brown as her killer.

The governor’s office declined to comment, citing a policy of not discussing such pending requests.

Breed issued a statement, stressing that she was joining in her family’s request to reduce her brother’s term, given that he has already served nearly 20 years.

“I do believe that people need to face consequences when they have broken the law, but I also believe that we should allow for the rehabilitation and re-entry of people into society after they have served an amount of time that reflects the crimes committed,” she said in a statement issued Tuesday.

“Too many people, particularly young black men like my brother was when he was convicted, are not given an opportunity to become contributing members of society after they have served time in prison. I believe my brother deserves that opportunity.”

“I am not asking for my brother to be pardoned or for his conviction to be wiped away, but simply for the Governor to consider initiating the commutation of his sentence. This would only be the first step in a long process that involves a thorough investigation by the Parole Board and a decision by the California Supreme Court.”

“My family and our community is ready and willing to help support my brother, and we will take this responsibility seriously if his sentence is commuted. I believe he will better serve society, the community, his family, and his children outside of prison. Ultimately this determination is up to the Governor and the courts, but I join my family in making this request.”

But attorney Smith said he is troubled by the fact that the letter leaves out key information, like the heroin possession and Breed’s role as an alibi witness.

“If there are negative facts,’’ he said, “it is the obligation of the office holder to bring forth those negative facts and address them. Rather than just try to sweep them under the rug…. It smacks of ethics which are not exactly up to par in my opinion.”

McNeil said the clemency effort, and the mayor’s letter, is reopening old wounds.

“I thought it was done and over,” she said, “Justice was served and that was the end of it -- I never knew there was going to be another beginning of it.”

Several New Haven schools were placed into lockdown as police investigated a shooting in the city's Cedarhill and Fair Haven sections on Wednesday morning.

Police were alerted to gunfire around 7:30 a.m. and got a call from someone who reported being a gunshot victim and was driving to the police substation on Blatchley Avenue, police said.

The person arrived at the substation with what police called non-life threatening gunshot wounds.

While the victim was taken to the hospital, police began investigating several crime scenes in the area.

The New Haven Board of Education placed several nearby schools into lockdown as a precaution and some school buses were rerouted during the incident, police said.

The lockdowns were lifted a short time later.

Police said they do not believe the incident was related to an earlier shooting in the city's Newhallville section.

In that incident, police found a gunshot victim on Bassett Street around 1:40 a.m. That person was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries, police said.

Both coasts are expected to be hit by wet and windy weather just in time for the busiest travel days of the holidays, NBC News reported.

Heavy rains and wind gusts up to 60 mph are expected from Northern California to Washington state Wednesday night and into Thursday. On the East Coast, Central and Southern Florida are anticipating heavy winds, hail and possible tornadoes, forecasters said. The North Carolina coast is facing the same as the storm marches north.

By Thursday, the nation's worst day to travel, the storm will start affecting the Northeast, according to the National Weather Service. Travel hubs Washington, D.C., New York City and Boston could all see up to 4 inches of rain and possible flooding between Thursday night and Friday night.

Before the forecast, holiday travelers were warned that they could see traffic that would multiply their travel time by four. A record-breaking 112.5 million Americans are expected to take to the roads, skies and rails this holiday weekend, starting Wednesday, according to AAA.

Justice Department policies that made it harder for immigrants to claim asylum if they were victims of domestic or gang violence were dismissed Wednesday by a federal judge who found they violated existing immigration laws, NBC News reported.

The policies were announced in June by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who said that fear of domestic abuse or gang violence was an unacceptable basis for granting asylum.

But U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan in Washington, D.C., permanently blocked government "from continuing to apply those policies and from removing plaintiffs who are currently in the United States without first providing credible fear determinations consistent with the immigration laws."

Sullivan ordered the Justice Department to return plaintiffs in the lawsuit who'd been deported and give them new interviews over whether they could credibly claim asylum.

New Britain Police have arrested a second man for his involvement in a robbery scheme that ended in a stabbing in October.

On Wednesday, police served an arrest warrant on 19-year-old William Benjamin Torrales, of New Britain, charging him with robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, assault, and conspiracy to commit assault for his participation in the robbery scheme.

On October 16, 2018, police investigated a stabbing complaint that was reported by the Hospital of Central Connecticut.

Officials said the 22-year-old male victim was transported to the hospital by a friend with several stab wounds.

Detectives said they later learned that the victim was lured to Washington Street to meet up with two men, later identified as Torrales and 18-year-old Darien Marrero, of New Britain.

According to investigators, Torales and Marrero planned to rob the victim during an illegal drug transaction. During the robbery, the victim was stabbed multiple times and suffered non life-threatening injuries.

About a week after the robbery, police said Marrero was arrested for his involvement in the incident.

Torrales is being held at New Britain Police Department on $150,000 bond. He is expected to be arraigned in court on Thursday.

Police have issued a Silver Alert for a 79-year-old man who was reported missing from New Milford on Wednesday.

Kenneth Seger was last seen wearing a black baseball cap, a sky blue heavy-style sweatshirt, blue jeans, a white t-shirt and black slip-on slippers, police said.

Seger is described as a man with white hair and blue eyes. He is 5'8" and weighs 238 pounds.

If you know of Seger's whereabouts, you're asked to call New Milford Police Department at (860) 355-3133.

The City of Waterbury is planning a major face lift for one stretch of road downtown.

The State Bond Commission has approved a $4 million dollar project to improve East Main Street from Exchange Place to North Elm Street. The stretch of road includes the Palace Theatre and the UConn Waterbury campus.

“It’s a high profile roadway,” James Nardozzi, Interim CEO of the Waterbury Development Corporation said. “It has extremely aging utilities. The Water main underneath there is already 109 years old. This is going to be an underground as well as above ground restructuring and re-facing of this entire stretch.”

The project will include putting in new sidewalks, crosswalks and benches. City leaders are asking for public input before coming up with a design.

“Parking is definitely a problem,” said Danielle Madison, who works at Louie’s Pizza on East Main. “They can’t stop in and get their food. They get ticketed, they’re nervous. A lot of times are running the food out.”

“We do need new roads because it’s been really bumpy, the holes in it, it’s messing up cars.” Jazmin Munoz of Waterbury said.

The plan is to begin work in the spring. It’s not clear yet how long the project will take.

The public hearing on the project is tomorrow night at 6:30 at the UConn Waterbury campus.

Republicans in the Connecticut, fresh off a beating at the polls in November that saw them lose five seats, want to work on the issue of health care as a way to start 2019 on the right foot.

“I think Connecticut has gone a long way in a bipartisan manner to make sure that they’re going to have the best coverage at the best price and I think this new session we’re going to be able to bring that to a different degree,” said Sen. Len Fasano, (R–North Haven), who will assume the role as Minority Leader in 2019. He says the state has the chance to, “Offer more products for less price to more people.”

Fasano wrote to top Democrats and Governor-Elect Ned Lamont asking them to form a committee tasked with coming up with actionable solutions to lower the costs of premiums and provide better health care for residents.

He proposes having different branches and caucuses make appointments in addition to having people like Connecticut’s Health Care Advocate and CEO of Access Health Connecticut sit on the panel.

Colleen Brunetti in West Hartford advocates for better health care and more affordable plans on a regular basis. She also lives with a life-threatening pre-existing condition, pulmonary hypertension, which could lead to heart failure. She says she likes the idea of a panel specifically tasked with addressing the cost of health insurance.

“Absolutely, if we can come to the table in a bipartisan way that can meet everyone’s needs, that’s fantastic. The problem is when patients get stuck in the middle of everyone’s firing squads.”

Brunetti has pharmaceutical bills that cost $7,000 per month, and says she knows of many families around the state who could the kind of relief Fasano is looking to accomplish.

She said, “I worry that the cost of health care will balloon to the point where even though we are well-employed and doing the best we can to be responsible that we simply can no longer afford it. I worry that the fights between high drug prices and insurance companies get too big and the patients become the casualty.”

The announcement from Fasano comes less than a week after a federal judge in Texas ruled the individual mandate under the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. Senate Democrats would not comment on the idea, and a message left for the Lamont transition was not returned.

Only one member of the Senate Republican Caucus voted to allow Access Health Connecticut, the state’s health care marketplace, to be created at the start of the decade. Fast forward to this year when almost the entire caucus voted to protect essential health coverage for things like prenatal and maternal care, as well as emergency room visits.

Fasano says he thinks there an opportunity to focus on Connecticut residents with the new panel.

“We have to say, look, forget Washington, we’ve got to make our own policy in the state of Connecticut and drive premiums down.”

A citizen helped police find and arrest a suspected package thief in Orange on Wednesday.

Police in Orange said they received a call around 11:15 a.m. from an alert citizen who watched someone take a previously delivered package from her neighbor's front porch. She was able to tell officers a description of the suspect and the vehicle he was driving.

Officers were able to find the suspect's vehicle in the area. Police said the suspect, later identified as 28-year-old Corey Roberts, of Monroe, tried to elude police by driving away and ignored the officers' attempts to get him to stop. He then abandoned his vehicle, a blue 2008 Chevy Cobalt, in a parking lot and attempted to flee.

Police said officers found Roberts and he gave himself up shortly after.

Roberts was taken into custody and is facing charges including operating a vehicle without insurance, operating a vehicle with a suspended license, reckless driving, engaging police in pursuit, operating an unregistered vehicle, misuse of a marker plate, criminal trespass and larceny.

Officers said they seized his vehicle from the parking lot of a nearby business and found more packages and suspected stolen items inside.

If you did not receive a package that your carrier or seller claims was delivered (since December 17), you're urged to contact police directly at (203) 891-2130.

Police said it appears Roberts may have targeted Dogwood Road and surrounding residential areas.

An Ohio man trying to cash his paycheck from a new job was handcuffed and put in the back of a police car after a bank teller called 911 on the false belief the check was fraudulent, NBC News reports.

Now the bank is apologizing as reports of the incident have sparked a new hashtag, #BankingWhileBlack.

Paul McCowns, of Cleveland, went to a Huntington Bank branch in the suburb of Brooklyn, Ohio, on Dec. 1 to cash his paycheck of a little over $1,000, according to police and the bank.

McCowns told police he provided two forms of identification, as well as his fingerprints, which is standard policy for non-account holders at the bank.

Patients at Children's National got a surprise visit from a very lean, but still jolly, Santa Wednesday — former President Barack Obama.

Obama made his way through the halls of Children's National carrying a big bag filled with goodies and wearing a red hat with white trim.

"Ho, ho, ho!" he bellowed upon entering a room filled children and their families.

"My reindeer, uh, they were stuck in some snow ... but I just wanted to make sure that I made the trip and I had a chance to see all you guys," he said.

Obama handed out toys and gifts ranging from remote control cars to glittery nail polish.

"Between the lip balm and the little blush, you all just going to be cute!" Obama told one girl after handing her some makeup kits.

He then thanked the hospital's staff for all of their hard work.

"We've had a chance to talk to some of the wonderful kids and their families and, at a time that obviously is tough for folks and as the dad of two girls, you know, I can only imagine in that situation to have nurses and staff and doctors and people who are caring for them and looking after them and listening to them and just there for them and holding their hand - that's the most important thing there is, he said.