Guantanamo Bay detention center's top commander was fired “over a loss of confidence” in his leadership, officials said and NBC News reported Sunday. U.S. Navy Rear Adm. John Ring was relieved of duty and will be replaced by Adm. Craig Faller, the U.S. Southern Command said in a statement.

Command spokeswoman Amanda Azubuike said the firing occurred after an investigation that began in March.

Hundreds of alleged terrorists have been held at Guantanamo since it opened in 2002, though no new detainees have arrived since 2008. In November, NBC News reported that 40 still remained, including a 71-year-old.

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. John Hussey was designated acting commander of the center, the command said in the statement.

Ring became commander of Guantanamo last April. In an interview last year with NBC News, he described parts of the detention camp as “falling into the ground and deteriorating rapidly.”

People gathered at a West Hartford synagogue for a solemn occasion and security was more top of mind after recent events.

Police were on watch as hundreds headed to an event at the Beth El Temple in West Hartford on Sunday.

“People are concerned about security. We do take that very seriously,” Rabbi James Rosen, Beth El Temple, said. “At the same time we go about our business and our business is to deepen ourselves with our values, with our worship, with our ethics and making sure we live full and complete and good lives.”

People attended a Holocaust remembrance event at the synagogue on Sunday.

They honored the six million Jews who were murdered by the Nazis and they paid tribute to those who survived.

Among the survivors was Ernest Gelb, who conveyed several messages to the crowd.

“People are good but it is possible for most civilized people to be cruel. I don’t know how or why,” Gelb said.

Avinoam Patt is a professor of modern Jewish history at the University of Hartford.

“We still have an obligation to remember and try to work together to make the world a better place, to prevent the evil that is amongst us, to stand up against hate speech, to welcome a stranger, to be kind to others,” Patt said.

More Holocaust commemoration events are planned across the state later this week.

Hollywood actress Lori Loughlin, her fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli and 15 others are scheduled to be arraigned Monday for their alleged participation in the nationwide college admissions cheating scandal.

All parents who have a hearing on Monday have waived their right to appear in court and will be represented by attorneys.

Federal prosecutors added money laundering to the list of charges against 16 parents who allegedly participated in the scheme, including Loughlin and Giannulli. The added charge increases the pressure on the parents to plead guilty like others in the scheme have.

Dozens of wealthy parents were charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud after an investigation determined they bribed their children's way into elite universities.  Some parents paid to have their children recruited as athletes to get admitted into their university of choice while others paid to have their children's entrance exam results altered.

Parents who participated in the scheme made payments disguised as charitable donations and some were allegedly able to get tax write offs for them.

The alleged ringleader behind the scheme, William "Rick" Singer, pleaded guilty for his role in the scandal and is said to be cooperating with officials.

Hollywood actress Felicity Huffman also agreed to guilty in the scheme, along with 12 other parents and a coach.

A long-time member of the Chabad of Poway synagogue, Lori Gilbert-Kaye, 60, died from her injuries after a gunman opened fire during services to celebrate the end of Passover. Her rabbi, 57-year-old Yisroel Goldstein lost his index finger when he put his hand up as the gunman approached him. He later wrapped his wounds in a prayer shawl and told his congregants, "we are a Jewish nation that will stand tall." 

Almog Peretz, 34 was declared a hero after he was shot in the leg while shuffling out a group of school-aged children, a group that included one of his nieces, 8-year-old Noya Dahan, who was hit by shrapnel and who described the shooting in an interview with NBC News.  

Here are their stories: 

Lori Gilbert-Kaye: "Jewel of Our Community"
As a gunman unloaded bullets inside the synagogue filled with about 100 worshipers, Kaye performed what her friends and Rabbi Goldstein called a last act of heroism when she protected the rabbi from gunfire.

"In my own interpretation, Lori took the bullet for all of us," Goldstein said outside the synagogue a day after the deadly shooting. "She didn’t deserve to die right in front of my eyes." 

The word "giving" was used repeatedly by friends to describe the 60-year-old woman, who has lived her entire life in San Diego. She leaves behind a husband and a 22-year-old daughter. 

"When you ask me, 'Why’d she put herself in front of the rabbi,' it’s like, anyone who knows her, that’s what she would do," her friend Roneet Lev said.

Both Lev and another friend of Kaye's, Audrey Jacobs, said that as the rabbi was being wheeled into surgery, he said, "Let everyone know Lori Kaye saved me."

Lev said Kaye was a pillar of San Diego's Jewish community and was known by people across the globe for her acts of kindness. Jacobs described Kaye as a "jewel of our community." 

Kaye was attending Saturday's service to pay tribute to her late mother with a traditional prayer for the dead. She was a member of the synagogue since its founding. According to the rabbi, Kaye helped secure funding that helped open the Chabad of Poway in 1986. 

Kaye's husband, a doctor, rushed to the shooting scene to help and while performing CPR on a victim fainted when he realized it was his wife, Lev told The Los Angeles Times. 

Lev said that despite the tragedy, the Jewish community will continue to "make this world a better place." 

"She did not die in vain, Lev said. "Her death must bring goodness to the world. If anybody does some good act, whatever it is – calling a friend, saying hello, anything kind – would bring a blessing to Lori’s memory and keep her memory alive."

Noya Dahan: "Too Scary to Not Cry"
Eight-year-old Noya Dahan remembers she was playing with the other children her age before the service started on Saturday when she heard loud noises as she entered the doorway to the synagogue. 

Dahan described the chaos to NBC News, detailing the moment her uncle, Peretz, scooped up more than a half-dozen kids and rushed them away from the shooter.

"I was one of them and the person was aiming right at [Peretz] and he was holding me so it hit him and the second one hit me," she said. 

Meanwhile, her dad was screaming, "Everyone run! Run! Run! Someone's shooting," she recalled. 

The 8-year-old said the whole incident happened so quickly it seemed like movie. "It was like too scary to not cry," she said. 

What she does remember, though, was the feeling of getting hit.

"Yes, I definitely remember when it was coming straight at my head like, I'm like 'what's happening"' and then I realized that something hit me and didn't go out so I was really afraid," Dahan said.

Dahan said her family has been the target of anti-Semitism in the past. Five years ago, swastikas were etched into their home and someone tried to light it on fire, she said. 

"I'm still worried, like I still picture things in my head and I still picture the sounds and noise stuff and it's just scary," Dahan said. "But, um I don't really feel safe here. This is not the first and definitely not the last time this happened."

Dahan's family moved to the U.S. a few years ago from Sderot, Israel, which has been the target of rocket attacks from the nearby Gaza Strip, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported. 

"We came from fire to fire," Noya's father, Israel Dahan, was quoted as having told Israeli radio. "We left Sderot after our house was hit a few times. My mother's house was hit. I was wounded."

Noya Dahan was released from the hospital Saturday night.

Almog Peretz
Peretz is also from Sderot, Israel, and came to visit his family for Passover, according to Jacobs.

When he first heard the gunshots, he immediately gathered the children and lead them to safety, Jacobs said.

He scooped up Noya, his niece, and rushed the rest toward the exit, attempting to dodge bullets along the way. He was hit in the leg, but did not feel it.

He continued his mission to shield and protect the children of the synagogue. He said he couldn't think about his bullet wound because he was nervous.

After leading a large group of kids to a safe place, he paused and noticed that he was missing one, his other niece, so he ran back in.

Terrified, but not immobilized by her fear, she locked herself in the bathroom and sheltered. The shooter was gone by the time Peretz got to her, and that's when congregants pointed out that he was bleeding.

When asked what led him to run back inside, Peretz said simply, "My niece."

"I don't care," he said, responding to a question about whether or not he was scared. "She was alone."

"Because the kids, they stand in shock," he continued. "They're like frozen, they stand. I'm scared they'll run the wrong way. I tell them, 'No, this way, this way!' And I scream."

In the moments that followed, the congregation was beginning to realize what had just happened. Peretz said there was a sense of disbelief that they all shared.

Peretz saw medics trying to resuscitate Kaye. He also passed by the rabbi and saw he was missing his finger.

"You know, I want to forget," Peretz said. "I want to forget. I hope I forget that, but it's coming all the time."

Peretz said he hasn't been able to get the terrifying image -- the shooter standing there with his weapon raised, sight at his eye, firing rounds -- out of his mind.

He didn't eat or sleep that night.

“This is sad, but I am originally from Sderot so we know a bit about running from the Qassam rockets,” Peretz told Israel’s Channel 12 from his hospital bed, according to The Times of Israel.

Peretz is recovering from shrapnel wounds and a gunshot to the leg. He has since been released from the hospital.

Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein
Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein said he heard a “large bang” as he walked into the banquet hall before services at the synagogue, then immediately found himself in the line of fire.

“A young man standing with a rifle, staring right at me, he had sunglasses on," Goldstein said. "I couldn’t see his eyes, I couldn’t see his soul."

Within seconds, bullets were fired in his direction. All he could do was put his hands up to protect himself, he said. 

“I turned around and I’m face to face with this murderer -- terrorist -- who was holding a rifle and looking straight at me, and then as soon as he saw me, he started to shoot toward me, and that’s when I put my hands up and then my fingers got blown away,” Goldstein told NBC's TODAY show in an exclusive interview Sunday morning.

He was struck in both of his index fingers. As he fled from the shooter he spotted a group of children, his grandchild among them, and he gathered them together and rushed them outside all the while not knowing his right index finger had been severed from his hand.

“My granddaughter -- 4 and a half years old -- sees her grandpa with a bleeding hand and she sees me screaming and shouting, ‘Get out! Get out!’ She didn’t deserve to see her grandfather like this,” Goldstein said.

In the midst of his life-saving dash, he wrapped his hand in a prayer shawl.

After the shooter fled the property, synagogue congregants sheltered in an outdoor area waiting for authorities to arrive. Goldstein saw an opportunity to speak from his heart and remind his people of their resiliency.

“I got up there, and I just spoke from my heart and giving everyone the courage to know -- you know, it was just 70 years ago during the Holocaust, we were gunned down like this. And I just want to let our fellow Americans know, we’re not going to let this happen here -- not here in San Diego, not here in Poway, not here in the United States of America,” Goldstein said.

At a Sunday press conference, the rabbi said that President Donald Trump called him and spoke with him for about 15 minutes. He said President Trump offered his condolences on behalf of the U.S. and was very comforting.

"I’m really grateful for our president for really taking the time," Goldstein said.

Goldstein, a rabbi at Chabad of Poway since he co-founded it in 1986, wondered how the suspected shooter could arrive at a point where he would want to inflict this kind of pain.

”How does a 19-year-old, a teenager, have the audacity, the sickness, the hatred?” he said. “How does he come to our house of worship and do what he did?”

Goldstein called Kaye a dear friend that he's known for 33 years. He said she died to protect everyone in the synagogue, and said her legacy will continue.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the attack Sunday morning, calling the shooting "an attack on the heart of the Jewish people. We send condolences to the family of Lori Gilbert-Kaye and our best wishes for a quick recovery to the wounded."

The Poway Unified School District is encouraging students to wear blue on Monday in support of the victims and their families.

The district has also prepared teachers on how to deal with children's emotions and questions about the incident. Extra counselors will also be on hand to provide individual help for students who may want to talk to someone.

Global drug giant Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. has joined the increasing number of companies yanking a popular blood pressure and heart medicine from shelves over concerns long-term use could develop into cancer.

Teva voluntarily recalled thousands upon thousands of bottles of Losartan Potassium USP Tablets (six lots of 25 mg strength and 29 lots of 100 mg strength) on Friday because a possible carcinogen -- N-Nitroso-N-methyl-4-aminobutyric acid (NMBA) -- was found at higher than federally accepted levels in an active ingredient manufactured by Hetero Labs Limited. 

It was the third such recall in about a week and the latest in a series of nearly two dozen similar recalls sweeping the country since last summer. 

Losartan Potassium USP is a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and nephropathy in Type 2 diabetes patients. Teva says the recalled lots were sold exclusively to Golden State Medical Supply of Camarillo, California. Golden State Medical Supply packages this bulk product under its own label and distributes in retail bottles of 30, 90, and 1000 tablets.

The affected Losartan Potassium tablets being recalled are described as: 

• Losartan Potassium tablets, USP 25 mg, are light-green, film-coated, teardrop-shaped biconvex tablet with “LK 25” on one side and ">" on the other side.
• Losartan Potassium tablets, USP 100 mg, are dark green, film-coated, oval-shaped biconvex tablets with “LK100” on one side and ">" on the other side.

Teva says it has not received any reports of adverse events related to the recall issue to date, but said "based on the available information, the risk of developing cancer in a few patients following long-term use of the product cannot be ruled out." See details on Teva's full list of recalled lots here.

No other Teva Losartan Potassium finished drug products have been identified in the United States with the same levels of possible carcinogen detected. Teva says it promptly notified Golden State Medical Supply of the presence of the impurity and will recall 35 lots of bulk Losartan Potassium tablets sold to that company. The tablets, which have been packaged and sold by Golden State Medical Supply, will be recalled from their customers and patients.

Distributors and retailers that have the recalled product should stop distribution, quarantine all remaining product in their control, and return the recalled product per the instructions given to them by Golden State Medical Supply, Teva said.

Consumers taking the affected medication should speak with their doctors to discuss the recall before they stop taking the drug, or if they have experienced any adverse effects that may be related to the drug.

Other manufacturers have recalled losartan in recent months, but some have involved different potential contaminants. Be sure to contact your health care provider or pharmacy if you have any questions about losartan overall. 

Anyone with medical-related questions, who wish to report an adverse event, or quality issues about the Teva recall should contact Teva Medical Information by phone at: 888-838-2872, option 3, then, option 4. Live calls are received Monday-Friday, 9:00AM-5:00PM Eastern Time with voicemail available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week or by email at druginfo@tevapharm.com.

Police are investigating a woman's death as a homicide after she was found dead in a driveway on Edin Avenue in Waterbury on Monday morning.

Officers were called to 96 Edin Aevnue around 1:30 a.m. after getting a report of a person lying in the driveway bleeding.

When police arrived, they said an adult female was found dead in the driveway. Her identity has not been released.

The investigation is active and ongoing.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Waterbury Police Detective Bureau at (203) 574-6941.

This is a developing story. NBC Connecticut will update this story as details become available.

Greenwich Police have arrested three people in connection to an incident allegedly involving fraudulent use of a credit card at a high-end store on Saturday.

Officers were called to the Saks Fifth Avenue store on Greenwich Avenue after getting a report from store asset protection investigators of possible fraudulent credit card activity.

Police said they saw two men, later identified as 24-year-old Kimaley Olando Barrett and 23-year-old Dwayne Michael Powell, both of New York, leaving the store.

According to investigators, 22-year-old Tamoya Miller, of New York, drove Barrett and Powell to the store and waited for them outside while they purchased items totaling $2,940.58 with a fraudulent credit card. The card displayed Barrett's name, but belonged to another store customer.

A search revealed that Powell had several other fraudulent credit cards hidden in his boots, police said.

During the investigation, Powell continued to change his story and lied to police, officers said. He was arrested and is facing multiple charges including larceny, identity theft, forgery and interfering with an officer. He was unable to post his $75,000 bond.

Investigators said Barrett also continued to change his story and lied to officers throughout the investigation. He was arrested and is facing charges including larceny, identity theft, criminal impersonation, forgery, interfering with an officer and illegal sale / buying of a payment card. His bond was set at $150,000, which police said he was unable to post.

Miller was also arrested and is facing charges including conspiracy to commit larceny. She was unable to post her $5,000 bond.

Barrett, Miller and Powell are all due in court on May 13.

Maren Morris will be performing in Connecticut this fall.

The 28-year-old singer-songwriter from Arlington, Texas has added new dates to “Girl: The World Tour” and Morris is heading to the Toyota Oakdale Theatre on Sept. 5.

Some of Morris’ hits include “80s Mercedes,” “The Middle,” I Could Use a Love Song.”

Tickets go on sale Friday. Special guests include Kassi Ashton and Hailey Whitters.

Reserved tickets are going for $39.50, $49.50 and $69.50.

Messages of love and heroism emerged from tragedy Sunday as hundreds gathered at a park less than a mile from where a gunman unloaded rounds of ammunition on a Jewish congregation, killing a long-time synagogue member and wounding three others.

"It's all about peace, all about love, and it's all about kindness," said Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein, one of the injured, who was moved to tears by the showing of support at Valle Verde Community Park. "Wow, wow, wow. Look at love."

In attendance were rabbis from Chabad houses across the country, Poway Mayor Steve Vaus and all three surviving shooting victims: Rabbi Goldstein, 57, whose index finger was blown off in the attack; 34-year-old Almog Peretz, who is being heralded a hero for shepherding more than a half-dozen children away from gunfire; and his niece, 8-year-old Noya Dahan, who was struck by shrapnel. 

The rabbi's friend of 33 years, Lori Gilbert-Kaye, 60, who helped him secure funding to open the church in 1986, was killed. A funeral for Kaye will be held at Chabad of Poway on Monday. 

And while the members gathered at the park mourned the loss of a dear member of the Jewish community, they celebrated the heroism that witnesses say averted greater tragedy. About 100 worshipers were gathered at the synagogue to celebrate the end of Passover when the attack happened.

"[Dahan] was wounded yesterday, and tonight she's here with us. That is bravery," Goldstein screamed over cheers from the crowd. "Almog was shot in his leg, and he's also here tonight. And he saved a room filled with children, so he's brave and a hero." 

Peretz said his thought at the time was not bravery but that someone had to lead the children out of the synagogue. 

"It's kids. It's kids," he told NBC News. "Because the kids, they stand in shock. They're like frozen, they stand. I'm scared they'll run the wrong way. I tell them no, this way this way and i scream." 

As Peretz was working to get people out of the building, another congregant ran towards gunfire but Oscar Stewart wouldn't call himself a hero.

"All I remember is everybody was running. Heard the gunshots, everybody ran out." Stewart told NBC 7. "I ran to fire, that's what I did. I didn't plan it, I didn't think about it. It's just what I did."

Stewart, an Army veteran, said he thinks his military training is what called him to action. He shouted curse words at the gunman as he ran towards him. 

"I yelled at him very loud. I have a very loud voice... and he looked at me and I must've scared him because he dropped his weapon and then I turned and then he ran away," Stewart said. 

He said he doesn't know if his actions stopped the gunfire -- there were reports from witnesses that the gunman's assault-style rifle jammed -- but at that point the shooting stopped. 

Stewart chased the shooter until he got to a car and turned the ignition, he said. The gunman went for his weapon again and Stewart struck the car to scare him off. 

At that point a U.S. Border Patrol officer Johnathan Morales emerged from the synagogue and shouted for the Army vet to step back because he had a weapon, Stewart said. 

"Johnathan pursued him and was able to discharge his weapon and got the car a few times," Rabbi Goldstein said. 

According to Goldstein, Morales was a newer member of the congregation and would travel nearly four hours from El Centro to pray with the temple. 

John T. Earnest, a graduate of Mount Carmel High School and Cal State San Marcos attendee -- was taken into custody by a San Diego police officer who was en route to the scene and spotted the suspect vehicle, SDPD Chief David Nisleit said.

Earnest does not have a criminal history and has no apparent connection with white supremacist groups, according to San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore. He faces one count of murder and three counts of attempted murder for the shooting. 

In the hours leading up to the shooting, a person identifying himself as John Earnest posted an open letter on a social media channel that was filled with racist rants and quotes from the Bible.

The poster said he planned to livestream the shooting on Facebook, though there was no link to a livestream on his Facebook page, NBC News reported. The account has since been deactivated. 

The poster also took responsibility for an Escondido, California mosque arson on March 24 and police said Earnest was also being investigated in connection with that arson.

Officials have not released a possible motive for the shooting though Mayor Steve Vaus called the shooting a hate crime to national news networks. 

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department said Earnest may be charged with a hate crime in addition to homicide charges when he's arraigned later this week. 

Outside the synagogue, a growing memorial of flowers and signs was juxtaposed next to lines of yellow police tape, which blocked worshipers and visitors from approaching the building where the deadly shooting took place. 

A GoFundMe page was created Saturday night to raise money to help pay for "any necessary medical operations for the victims, funeral services, synagogue reparations or anything else the synagogue would need assistance with.

New Haven Police have arrested two men after a stabbing on Saturday. Within hours of the stabbing, there was also a separate bank robbery and shooting that remain under investigation.

Police said there was a bank robbery around 9:45 a.m. at a bank on Foxon Boulevard. The suspect is described as a stocky-build man in his late 30's to middle 40's. He is bald or has a clean shaven head with a gray and black beard.

A few hours later, officers said one person was stabbed on Harding Place between Dixwell Avenue and Sherman Parkway in the Newhallville neighborhood around 1 p.m.

Police said a 46-year-old New Haven man was stabbed multiple times in the shoulder and leg. He was transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital where he was listed in stable condition.

Investigators said they learned that the man had been confronted outside of his home by two men, later identified as 24-year-old Dawud W. Amin and 19-year-old Nadir Amin, both of New Haven.

During the altercation, officials said the Amin brothers physically assaulted and stabbed the man and then left the area on foot.

A short time later, police said they took the brothers into custody on Dixwell Avenue and Bassett Street.

According to police, Dawud is facing charges including conspiracy to commit first degree assault and assault third degree. Dawud's bond was set at $100,000.

Nadir is facing charges including assault first degree and conspiracy to commit assault first degree. His bond was set at $200,000, police said. 

Both men were in court in New Haven on Monday.

The man who was stabbed has since been released from the hospital, officers said.

Fifteen minutes after the stabbing, police said a 44-year-old New Haven man was shot in a parking lot outside of the Harbor Crest Condos on Quinnipiac Avenue. He was transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital where he was listed in critical condition with a gunshot wound to the lower abdomen, officers said. His condition has since improved, according to police, and he is now listed in stable condition. 

The investigations into the bank robbery, the stabbing and the shooting are ongoing.

Witnesses are asked to call the New Haven Police Department Detective Bureau at (203) 946-6304.

There are backups on Interstate 91 North in New Haven after a vehicle rollover on Monday afternoon.

The crash is between exits 3 and 4 and drivers are encouraged to find alternate routes.

There's no word if anyone was injured in the rollover.

The state judicial branch plans to close the courthouse in Bristol.

The state judicial branch announced Monday that they intend to close the Bristol Geographical Area No. 17 Courthouse, effective at the end of the business day on Friday, Aug. 30.

Effective Tuesday, Sept. 3, all cases from Bristol will be heard at the New Britain Judicial District courthouse, at 20 Franklin Square.

The decision to close the courthouse is expected to save $146,776 per year, the amount of the annual lease from the city of Bristol.

“The City of Bristol has valued its long-term relationship with GA 17, but we also recognize the need to seek regional solutions to economic challenges. We are pleased that there will be only a relocation of services to New Britain and no job loss. This is a part of what I see as an evolution of downtown and what type of services we want here,” Mayor Ellen Zoppo-Sassu said in a statement. “While some may see this as a negative, I prefer to view it as yet another opportunity for the city to review options for the space that might help us cut our costs or improve efficiencies.”

Eighteen judicial branch employees and one judge work in the courthouse and a news release from the state judicial branch says no judicial branch employees will lose their jobs.

“For generations, prosecutors assigned to the Bristol courthouse have provided outstanding service to the communities they serve. While grateful for that service, closing the Bristol GA courthouse and transferring the cases to New Britain will help the Division of Criminal Justice to consolidate and to more effectively use its scarce resources,” Chief State’s Attorney Kevin Kane said in a statement. “We should also be able to avoid some duplication of administrative staff. I am fully supportive of this consolidation and confident that all of the stakeholders in our criminal justice system will continue to receive outstanding service from these dedicated men and women.”

A police chase in West Hartford is connected to a homicide in a Waterbury, according to West Harford police.

Police said traffic officers saw a vehicle at a liquor store in the North End and it was associated with the homicide in Waterbury, so they called for backup but the driver fled before additional officers arrived.

That led to a chase and police said they believe it ended at Mohegan Drive and Boulevard.

No additional information was immediately available.

Southington police are investigating several overnight burglaries and break-ins at salons and other businesses since the beginning of March. Officers have responded to seven incidents and they are trying to determine if all are connected.

On March 4, officers responded to 31 Liberty St. to investigate burglaries at Pure Skin. Beauty Bar and Beauty Bar Academy.

During the break-in at Pure Skin, $98 was stolen from the salon and the receiver for the surveillance system was damaged. Police said the estimate of the damage is around $250.

Burglars stole $60 from Beauty Bar and nothing was taken from Beauty Bar Academy, according to police.

There was another break-in at Beauty Bar on March 16. Nothing was taken, but the security latch on a window was damaged.

On the same day, police responded to a burglary at Casey’s Image Consultant’s at 51 North Main St. and found that around $40 was taken.

Police responded to two commercial burglaries at 710 Main St. on April 20 and said a bag of sand was used to break a window.

A small safe was removed from the safe at Salon Zurell and $10,000 was taken. The safe was found in the parking lot, according to police.

Police said the other burglary was at Maid Pro and nothing seemed to be missing.

Investigators ask anyone with information to call the Southington Police Department Detective Division at 860-378-1600, extension 5.

NASA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and partners in other countries are holding an exercise to plan what would happen if an asteroid were discovered heading for Earth, NBC News reported.

It will play out over the five days of the 2019 Planetary Defense Conference being held this week in College Park, Maryland.

The exercise is like a fire drill for the kind of impact that is believed to have killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, said Andrew Rivkin, a planetary astronomer at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in an email. He said he was taking part the exercise.

"It's definitely worth doing, if only so people are aware of the issues and how complex some of them are," Rivkin said.

Amid the chaos of finals and upcoming graduation, three miniature horses and a therapy dog visited Quinnipiac Monday to help ease some stress.

“It feels good to pet animals and come outside a little bit,” said biomedical sciences student Puja Patel.

“We’re just here to decrease some stress and anxiety for the upcoming stuff this week,” said Granby-raised Emily Jackson, who is currently studying for three finals and a practical exam.

Quinnipiac students studying occupational therapy organized the day for their peers as part of an animal therapy course.

“This event is perfectly placed right before finals to help calm reduce some stress get a little mindful and just enjoy your day,” said Nicholas Donohue, a fifth-year graduate student in the class.

And the fun is not just for stressed-out students. Mike Cole, who works in admissions at the medical school, says sometimes staff members need a stress-reliever, too.

“Whenever I see the horses, sometimes we’ve had goats come— I just like going out and petting them and stuff like that, just bring some joy to my day particularly on a beautiful day like today,” Cole said.

But they’re not just cute and cuddly, there are actual proven scientific benefits to hanging out with these guys.

“Some studies have shown that animals can give a sensory benefit of touching the animal, being near it, the unconditional love that’s involved with it,” says Occupational Therapy Professor Donna Latella.

Latella says simply petting these animals can positively affect your mental and physical health.

“It can calm, relieve stress, decrease blood pressure, it can increase confidence, even motivational for some people who may not like maybe traditional occupational therapy in a clinic,” she said.

It’s proven to be particularly beneficial to people with physical and social disabilities, according to Latella.

That’s why students from the Cheshire Quinnipiac Transition Collaborative were invited too. The program that prepares young adults on the autism spectrum for adulthood.

“They feel soft to me,” said one of the students in the program, David Rochow.

His friend, Olivia Huang, said petting the animals made her feel “much better.”

It was a timely visit for all, made better by the good weather, and as an early celebration to National Therapy Animal Day on Tuesday!

Formed through a public act, the Connecticut Valley Hospital Whiting Task Force has begun its work.

Members include people from mental health, criminal justice, and patient care fields, who will produce a study on Whiting Forensic Hospital, the subject of a series of NBC Connecticut Investigates reports about patient abuse and poor work environment.

State Sen. Heather Somers says the culture needs to change at Whiting Forensic Hospital, where patient Bill Shehadi suffered repeated abuse that led to more than three dozen employees put on administrative leave, 10 of them arrested, some already behind bars.

“These are our patients, this is the State of Connecticut we are paying for their care, we need to insure that it's proper, it's adequate, there's good outcomes, and that the people that are working in these facilities feel free and comfortable to speak up if they see something that's not okay and this task force gives them the ability to do that,” Somers said.

One of those employee says he works at Whiting’s medium security step-down facility. He hopes the task force not only looks at how front line employees do their jobs, but also administrators, in the wake of the Shehadi abuse case.

“It's important that those people get held accountable, because, I love what I do, but that was disgusting, and I can't stand it, and I'm glad this is happening," said Marcus Spinner.

An attorney for mental health patients, Kathy Flaherty with the Connecticut Legal Rights Project, says she is hopeful the task force will help, but is withholding her opinion for now.

“We'll see if their report is something that people act upon, once it's done, and that's really gonna be the critical thing, will it lead to lasting change”, Flaherty said.

A former FCI Danbury correctional officer has been sentenced to 10 months in prison for sexually abusing an inmate at the prison.

The Connecticut U.S. Attorney’s office said 33-year-old Carlos Sanchez had sex with a female inmate at the prison in July and August of 2018. He pleaded guilty of one count of sexual abuse of a ward in December 2018.

Sanchez previously resigned from the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

He was sentenced Friday to 10 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. He was released on a $50,000 bond and is due to report to prison on May 21, 2019.

Tuesday will mark two weeks since the police shooting in New Haven that has sparked days of demonstrations in the Elm City, at Yale University and in the neighboring town of Hamden.

Hamden Officer Devin Eaton and Yale Officer Terrance Pollock remain on paid leave during the investigation by Connecticut State Police and the New Haven State's Attorney as to whether either officer will face charges.

Paul Witherspoon did not get shot as he is seen in surveillance and body camera video exiting the driver's seat as the Hamden officer starts shooting. Stephanie Washington was struck by the gunfire in the passenger seat.

"This is life-changing for those kids," Witherspoon's mother Keisha Greene said Monday morning at a press conference by the Dixwell-Argyle intersection in New Haven where the shooting took place.

Greene said the two officers who shot at her son and his girlfriend should be fired and prosecuted, but she spoke about the need for more meaningful change in her community.

"I always had this fear and this worry with recent things going on you know within last 10 years," she said. "I've always had this worry but never thought it would happen to me."

Greene said she doesn't believe the two officers should be allowed to serve in law enforcement.

"I would also like to see them stripped of any type of way to get another civil service job anywhere else," Greene said. "I don't think they should be able to police officers anywhere else, because wherever they go to me they're a liability."

Police officers in places like New Haven and Hamden need to make a better effort to understand the communities they sign up to serve, Greene said.

"It's an inner city, maybe these people have this fear of the community," Greene said, "but if you fear the community don't work here, if you don't want to get to know the residents, don't come here."

Court documents related to the search of the red car said Witherspoon told investigators that he was instructed to get out of the car and show his hands. 

The investigation so far has confirmed that Witherspoon was not armed, despite the report of an attempted armed robbery at a Hamden call station. The clerk told police he never saw Witherspoon with a firearm, contradicting his original 911 call that led police to go looking for the car driven by Witherspoon.

"My nephew didn't shoot nobody, he got out with his hands up and they tried to kill him," Witherspoon's uncle Rodney Williams said.

Both Williams and Greene said their neighborhood needs improved education, recreational and job opportunities.

"This place used to be a pool hall when I was younger," Williams said, referring to the business that owns the surveillance cameras that recorded the police shooting. "When I grew up in this community we had after school programs, we had schools open up for basketball, we had game rooms at Jackie Robinson (school). Right now we have schools that are closed after school and we got churches in our community that are closed, too."

After surviving the police shooting, Greene said her son is doing the best he can.

"It's like every day reliving it so you can kinda never try to process it but I think as time goes by he'll be OK," Greene said.

Hamden Police have opened their own investigation into the shooting with the help of an outside professional expert focused on use of force allegations, Hamden Mayor Curt Leng announced Friday.

Greene said she appreciated the chance to speak with Leng, and Williams has met with Yale University President Peter Salovey. 

For the first time, several Connecticut bus drivers are revealing the dirty and sometimes dangerous situations they say they encounter on board on a regular basis. The drivers from CT Transit in the Hartford and Stamford regions as well as from the Greater Bridgeport Transit system offered up testimonials to NBC Connecticut Investigates.

"You don't know who's getting on your bus. You don't know what you're up against," said Veronica Chavers, who has been a CT Transit bus operator in the Stamford area for 27 years. "Especially being a woman, sitting in that seat, they'll come at you any way so you have to be prepared for that," said Chavers.

For over a year, NBC Connecticut Investigates has been looking into reported assaults on CT Transit buses. In addition to those incidents, bus drivers are now offering first-hand accounts of the other behavior they say occurs on board.

"Sir, excuse me.. you cannot get changed on the bus," said Hartford area CT Transit bus operator, Staci, who declined to use her last name in this story. She described what she said she saw in her rear-view mirror. "He had stripped down to his undershirt and boxers, had his suitcase open and was prepared to get changed on my bus like it was his bedroom."

"We've seen people performing oral sex," said Mustafa Salahuddin, who drove buses for Greater Bridgeport Transit for 23 years. "Nothing's off limits," he said. Salahuddin now serves as President and Business Agent for the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1336.

Drivers described instances of sexual activity as well as gambling.

"They were making money on the bus," said Godfrey Burton, who has been a Stamford area CT Transit bus operator for about 30 years. "They were gambling."

"I smelled it," said driver Calvin Henry. "And I had to tell him listen you can't smoke that on the bus, man." Henry has spent the last 13 years as a CT Transit bus operator in the Hartford area.

Bus operators said they have witnessed the use of much more serious substances as well.

"Twice, you know, I saw a guy shooting up," said Salahuddin. "You get up, walk back there and you see their armed strapped off."

Drivers say there are also passengers who think they are allowed to bring just about anything on board.

"I'm like, 'you can't bring a mattress on the bus'. They're like 'why not, I paid my fare'," said Staci. "I was in awe," she said.

Other items drivers say passengers have attempted to bring on board include a deli slicer, containers full of gasoline, a chain saw and large auto parts.

"He said 'can you open up the back door?' I told him no, you can't bring a transmission," said Salahuddin. "I had a guy try to bring on kitchen chairs. I had a guy bring on a grill."

Salahuddin said he has even seen passengers try to bring wild animals on board.

"Different animals, snakes, boa constrictors, the bright yellow and white ones, monkeys, parrots, everything, ferrets, weasels."

What is worse, these drivers said, is what some passengers may leave behind.

"For somebody to come up and relieve themselves on the bus is the worst," said Chavers. "And you have to drive around with it until the company comes to clean it up. That's the worst and most grossest thing that I've ever dealt with."

"I was spit in the face. I don't do bodily fluids," said Staci. "It's disgusting."

Drivers say some of what they see can be shocking.

"You could literally see the bed bugs walking around on him," Salahuddin said, describing a passenger who entered the bus. "That was grotesque."

The bus can be a dirty and dangerous place, these drivers said.

"On the transit buses, Halloween and Mischief Night, worst two nights of the year," said Salahuddin. "Buses go through, they use it for target practice. Pellet guns, actual 22's where they see the bullet holes where they were literally aiming at the driver or the side of the bus."

"One Halloween night, I got shot in the arm with paint ball gun," said Winsten Anderson, a CT Transit bus operator in the Hartford area for the last 20 years.

"CT Transit strives to create safe environment in order for our employees to provide an efficient, high-quality customer experience for the nearly 28 million riders we carry each year," General Manager Cole Pouliot told NBC Connecticut Investigates. "Occasionally, an unusual incident occurs where our professional staff must respond to ensure rider safety," Pouliot stated.

"Their tremendous efforts are appreciated and we will continue to work together to provide the best service for our customers," wrote Pouliot.

The drivers emphasized that their safety and the safety of the passengers and other drivers on the road are the top priority. Despite all of the instances they described, the drivers said they loved their jobs.

"I just try to keep a smile and say 'oh it's alright, it's a daily thing," said Staci. "I'm used to it'."

The drivers offered insight about how passengers can be safer on board.

"The middle of the bus and the front of the bus are always the ideal place for a senior citizen or just any regular rider to sit," said Salahuddin. The rear of the bus, he said, can often be louder and where most questionable behavior would take place.

"Never keep both earbuds in your ear; always take one out," said Staci, in order for passengers to be more aware of their surroundings.

The bus drivers said they hoped drivers of their own private passenger cars would show more patience and respect for someone who is operating a 40 foot vehicle that weighs 38,000 pounds.

"You've checked all your mirrors and all of sudden, they come from nowhere," said Chavers of other drivers who do not respect the space around a large bus. "It scares you inside. You have this feeling inside like 'I almost could have killed someone'," she said.

"These people on the road don't know how difficult it is to merge into traffic with a big bus," said Burton.

"They'll cut in front of you so they can get to the light first because they don't want to be behind you and then they slam on their brakes," said Staci. "My worst pet peeve is when a mother, father in a minivan does it full of kids."

Management at Greater Bridgeport Transit was also contacted for this story but has yet to respond.