A Bethel man is accused of groping a 10-year-old child he was supposed to be babysitting.
Nathan Shupp, 42, was charged with fourth-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor. According to police, the victim reported that Shupp touched intimate parts of the victim’s body. Shupp was watching the child at the time.
Shupp is being held on a $50,000 bond and is due to be arraigned Thursday.
A Southington man was killed when a tree branch fell on his car during storms in Fairfield Wednesday.
Police said 21-year-old Jarrod Marotto was driving in Park Avenue when lightning struck a tree and sent a limb crashing down on his car. Marotto was rushed to the hospital where he died of his injuries.
No one else was in the car at the time.
Severe thunderstorms moved through parts of the state Wednesday, causing tree damage in several communities.
The Fairfield Police Crash Reconstruction Unit is investigating.
NBC Connecticut Meteorologists have issued a First Alert for extreme heat expected this weekend.
The heat will start to ramp up as we head toward Friday with high temperatures climbing into the middle 90s.
Temperatures on Saturday are expected to reach the upper 90s with some cities and towns hitting 100 degrees.
The bigger concern will be heat index value of 105 to 115. The heat index is calcuated by combining the temperature and dew point values.
Conditions will remain dangerously hot for Sunday with highs once again rising into the upper 90s.
Take a look at the Exclusive 10 Day Forecast which shows the hot and humid conditions.
INLAND
SHORELINE
Meriden Police say a tractor trailer has crashed into a house on Preston Ave.
The tractor trailer hit at least one vehicle beofore hitting the house. Officials say part of the tractor trailer is inside the home.
The driver of the tractor trailer is injured but is conscious and alert, according to police.
Residents inside the house were able to escape without injury.
Preston Ave. is closed near Patton Dr.
Please check back for updates.
You’re trying to be eco-friendlier, but you just can’t turn off your AC unit and open your windows when it feels like 115 degrees outside.
We get it.
So how can you conserve energy while still staying cool in a heat wave?
Buildings account for approximately 40 percent of the world’s annual energy consumption, so it’s never too early to start practicing energy-efficient, long-term ways to cool your home.
Take our quiz below to see how much you know about green ways to cool your house and maintain your AC unit during these dog days of summer energy consumption:
With the first Democratic debate of the 2020 presidential election in the bag, here's a primer with information on what you should know about that two-night event and future debates.
The Democratic National Committee has approved up to 12 debates. Six debates are scheduled in 2019 and six more set for 2020. NBC News went first which makes CNN's the next debate up in late July.
CNN will host its debate on July 30 and 31 from Detroit, Michigan. Ten candidates are debating from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m ET each night. Qualifying rules are the same as for the first debate (more on that below).
The debate will air on CNN, CNN en Español and CNN International. The network said it will not require a log-in from a cable provider for accessing its live debate stream.
Candidates will be allowed opening and closing statements, 60 seconds to answer questions from moderators and 30 seconds for responses and rebuttals. In contrast to NBC News' debate, CNN said its would not include "show of hands" questions or ones calling for one-word answers. The network also vowed to reduce time for candidates who repeatedly interrupt.
ABC News will host the third presidential debate on Sept. 12 and 13 in Houston and also air it live on Univision with a Spanish translation. This debate will be harder to qualify for than the first two (more on that below).
The first debate, sponsored by NBC News, MSNBC, and Telemundo, took place on June 26 and June 27 at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami, Florida. Watch everything each candidate said on night one and night two.
Qualifying were: Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado; Vice President Joe Biden; Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey; Gov. Bullock; South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg; former housing secretary Julian Castro; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; Rep. John Delaney of Maryland; Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii; Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York; Sen. Kamala Harris of California; Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper; Washington Gov. Jay Inslee; Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota; Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas; Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio; Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont; Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; author Marianne Williamson; and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
This time Montana Gov. Steve Bullock made the cut, having secured his spot after Rep. Eric Swalwell of California exited the race.
Three candidates who again failed to qualify after missing the first debate were Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Miramar Mayor Wayne Messam. Former Rep. Joe Sestak of Pennsylvania and billionaire activist Tom Steyer, both new entrants to the race, also did not qualify.
CNN will hold a live drawing on July 18 to determine the order of who will debate which night.
The first group of 10 who appeared on Wednesday, June 26: Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former Rep. Beto O’Rourke, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, former Rep. John Delaney, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, Rep. Tim Ryan, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.
NBC News has a full transcript here.
More coverage from night one:
The second group of 10 who appeared on Thursday, June 27: Sen. Kamala Harris, former Vice President Joe Biden, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Sen. Michael Bennet, author Marianne Williamson, Rep. Eric Swalwell, entrepreneur Andrew Yang and Gov. John Hickenlooper of Colorado.
NBC News has a full transcript here.
More coverage from night two:
At NBC's debate candidates were allowed closing statements but no openers.
Three candidates who failed to make the cut for the first debate were Gov. Bullock, Rep. Moulton, and Miramar Mayor Messam.
Here is more information about all the candidates and how they are trying to stand out.
That's ultimately for the voters to decide. Kamala Harris received an initial bump in the polls and Joe Biden slid, according to some polls. Here is how NBC News' political team assessed the hopefuls on round one and round two.
In February, the DNC published specific debate guidelines spelling out what candidates have to do to participate.
Democratic candidates may qualify for the first and second debate by meeting one of the two following sets of criteria:
Criteria 1- Polling Method: Participants must register 1% or more support in three polls (which may be national polls, or polls in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and/or Nevada) publicly released between Jan. 1, 2019, and 14 days prior to the date of the debate. Qualifying polls will be limited to those sponsored by one or more of the following organizations/institutions: Associated Press, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, Des Moines Register, Fox News, Las Vegas Review Journal, Monmouth University, NBC News, New York Times, National Public Radio (NPR), Quinnipiac University, Reuters, University of New Hampshire, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, Winthrop University. Any candidate’s three qualifying polls must be conducted by different organizations, or if by the same organization, must be in different geographical areas.
Criteria 2 - Grassroots Fundraising Method: Candidates may qualify for the debate by demonstrating that the campaign has received donations from at least (1) 65,000 unique donors; and (2) a minimum of 200 unique donors per state in at least 20 U.S. states.
If more than 20 candidates qualify, here is how a tiebreaker would work, according to NBC News. Candidates who meet both the polling and fundraising criteria would get preference. If that still doesn't winnow the field, then preference goes to candidates with the highest polling average.
For the third debate, the DNC is essentially doubling the polling and fundraising thresholds set for the first two debates — and requiring candidates to meet both standards, instead of just one or the other, NBC News reported.
Candidates will need to register at least 2 percent in four major polls conducted this summer and receive donations from at least 130,000 individual donors, including at least 400 in 20 states.
CNN's Dana Bash, Don Lemon and Jake Tapper will moderate the second debate on July 30 and 31, the network reported.
There were five moderators for the first debate: "TODAY" co-anchor and NBC News chief legal analyst Savannah Guthrie, "NBC Nightly News" and "Dateline" anchor Lester Holt, "Meet the Press" moderator and NBC News political director Chuck Todd, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and "Noticias Telemundo" and "NBC Nightly News Saturday" anchor José Diaz-Balart.
Holt moderated for both hours. Guthrie and Diaz-Balart co-moderated for the first hour, while Todd and Maddow joined Holt for the second hour, NBC News said.
Specific hosts and moderators have not yet been revealed for subsequent debates.
The DNC has said it will have at least one female and non-white moderator at each Democratic presidential debate.
"The DNC is committed to an inclusive and fair debate process," DNC senior adviser Mary Beth Cahill told Refinery29, which first reported the debates will have at least one female moderator. "That means that all 12 DNC sanctioned debates will feature a diverse group of moderators and panelists including women and people of color, ensuring that the conversations reflect the concerns of all Americans."
HuffPost later reported that the debates will also include at least one person of color as a moderator, who could also be the same person as the female moderator.
Interstate 84 East in Newtown was closed at exit 10 after a box truck caught fire, but traffic is getting by again.
State police troopers and firefighters responded and police warned drivers to expect delays if you are traveling in or around the area.
The truck was carrying wooden pallets and cardboard, according to state police.
No one is injured and the fire has been put out.
The CT Travel Smart website says the highway is closed between exits 9 and 10.
Berkeley is always leading the way when it comes to progressive laws and Wednesday it added another to the list.
The City Council is moving forward with a plan to remove all gendered words from the city code. That means personal pronouns like "he," "she," "him" and "her" will instead be "they" and "them." But it doesn’t just stop there.
Berkeley’s youngest city council member, Rigel Robinson, is behind the proposed change to the city’s municipal code.
"A male-centric municipal code doesn’t reflect the reality of the city of Berkeley," Robinson said.
Robinson asked the city manager for a plan to remove all the gendered pronouns and words and replace them with gender neutral words.
For example: "fireman" will become "firefighter." Out with "brother," in with "sibling." Forget "manpower," it’s "human effort" now.
"Language has power, this matters," Robinson said.
Some Berkeley residents say other issues matter more.
"That’s Berkeley!" a resident named Sara said. "I think they should put their time into figuring out homelessness."
There will be a second reading of the ordinance next week. If the council approves it, it will go into effect in late August.
It will cost the city about $600 to update the municipal code.
Lightning caused a fire at a multi-family home in Stratford during storms on Wednesday afternoon.
Fire officials said lightning struck the chimney and started a fire in the attic of 1790-1792 Main St.
Stratford firefighters put the fire out within 30 minutes and no injuries were reported.
The Nichols Fire Department provided assistance with responding to other emergency calls in Town during this incident.
A Central Florida man found himself behind bars after police say he tried to seal a car from an elderly man – only to realize he didn’t know how to drive the stick shift vehicle.
News outlets say 25-year-old Jaelyn Alexander attempted to carjack the victim on Tuesday in Orlando before he realized that he couldn’t drive the manual transmission car and stealing another vehicle and fleeing the scene.
Alexander was spotted a short distance later and placed under arrest.
Orange County Sheriff’s officials say he will be charged with carjacking, battery on a person over the age of 65 and grand theft.
A black family in California said they were racially profiled at a Nike store in Santa Monica when a white manager accused them of stealing a $12 basketball they had bought and then flagged down police officers, NBC News reported.
The incident happened on July 5 as Joel Stallworth and TaMiya Dickerson were at the Santa Monica Place shopping mall with their 18-month-old son, Sammy, according to a press release from the family's lawyer and a video of the incident that Dickerson posted on Facebook.
The couple said they were not planning on buying anything but changed their mind and purchased a Nike Swoosh Mini basketball after their son picked it up and started to carry it around.
Stallworth and Dickerson said that as they were leaving the manager of the store followed them outside, accused them of stealing the basketball and demanded they give it back. Stallworth explained that they bought the ball for their son and continued to walk down the street with his family.
The manager continued to follow them and flagged down Santa Monica police officers for help.
Santa Monica police and Nike did not immediately return NBC News' request for comment. NBC News was also not able to immediately reach Stallworth, Dickerson or their lawyer.
A 14-year-old boy has died after an ATV accident in Bethlehem Wednesday night.
State police said they responded to Wood Creek Road at 4:41 p.m. Wednesday after receiving a 911 call reporting that a boy had been involved in a crash and was unresponsive.
EMS performed CPR on the boy, 14-year-old Tyler Palmer, of Watertown, and transported him to Waterbury Hospital.
State police said Tyler had been riding a quad on a track on the property while his father was working on the course further into the woods.
When Tyler’s father realized he had not seen or heard his son for a while, he went looking for him and found Tyler pinned under a quad.
Police said it appears Tyler was trying to jump the ATV over a ramp, lost control and the vehicle rolled.
He was not wearing a helmet, according to a news release from state police.
Police have arrested a Middletown mother after finding her 1-year-old son along a busy street, wearing only a soiled diaper and a shirt, according to police. After determining where the child lived, police went inside and described the condition as “inexcusable, unhealthy and dangerous.”
A pediatric nurse who was on her way home from work noticed the young child on the side of South Main Street, near Pinewood Terrace, just before 6 p.m. on July 11, so she pulled over and noticed the child’s diaper was soiled with urine and it was leaking, according to police, so the nurse put a towel around the child.
She also noticed bruising on the child’s face, scratches on his arms and blood on his fingers and hand, according to police.
The police officer who responded took the child from the nurse and the little boy fell asleep in the officer’s arms.
Another officer who responded located the child’s home and spoke with the mother, identified as 31-year-old Tosha Cooley, of Middletown.
Police said she did not make it known that she knew that any of her children were out of the home and did not make any attempt to comfort her child, the arrest warrant application says.
An ambulance was called and the baby was transported to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center.
Police said Cooley’s 4-year-old son, who has autism and is non-verbal, was in the home when the incident happened. Cooley told police that she does not get proper treatments for her son’s autism and often loses control of him. She went on to say she tried to get him in programs, but lost his spot because she was not able to get him to his appointments.
In noting conditions of the home, police said the residence smelled of urine and feces and they noted that they saw raw pasta, rice and flour on the kitchen floor and the sink was full of dishes that appeared to have been there for several days.
There was little edible food in the kitchen other than cereal and doughnuts. In the fridge, police found Ensure yogurt and said there did not appear to be any edible solid food inside, the arraignment report says.
Police also reported finding choking hazards in the house, cigarette butts covering the floor and coffee table in the basement and bottles of alcohol that were accessible to the children.
After seeing the home, the 4-year-old was also transported to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center to be evaluated.
Police said Cooley told police she heard her children playing in the sunroom, thought they were safe, began making dinner and only lost sight of the 1-year-old for five minutes, the arraignment report says.
However, police said the call about the child being found on the side of the road came in around 5:42 p.m. and when officers made contact with Cooley shortly after 6 p.m. she was not looking for the child and was not aware that he was not in the house until an officer told her.
Cooley was charged with two counts of risk of injury to a child.
When she was released, the Department of Children and Families requested that the parents and police meet at the family’s home for an evaluation before they went to the hospital.
Jennifer Dulos, a 50-year-old mother of five from New Canaan, has been missing for almost nine weeks and Michelle Troconis, the woman charged in connection with her disappearance, made a brief appearance in court Thursday morning for a pre-trial hearing.
Jennifer Dulos was last seen on Friday, May 24, when she dropped her children off at school in New Canaan.
Court documents say that police who went to search Jennifer's home after she was reported missing found blood and investigators believe she was the victim of a “serious physical assault.” The case remains a missing persons case.
Dulos’ estranged husband, Fotis Dulos, and Troconis, his girlfriend, have both been arrested in connection with the disappearance of Jennifer and have pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution. Both are free on bond.
Troconis arrived at the courthouse just before 9 a.m. Thursday with her attorney and left around 10:15 a.m.
Inside the courtroom, her attorney, Andrew Bowman, said his client has been in complete compliance with the court and her bond release.
This hearing comes more than two weeks after Troconis was granted permission to leave the state to stay with a friend in New York.
As a condition, she was required to wear a GPS anklet. However, it was learned shortly after going to New York that the GPS was not working properly so Troconis returned to Connecticut after only a short period in New York.
On Thursday, her case was continued to Aug. 19.
Fotis Dulos is due in court on Aug. 2, according to online court documents.
His lawyer, Norm Pattis, has posited a theory that Jennifer Dulos faked her disappearance like a character in the novel "Gone Girl."
At the time, Pattis, cited a "very dark 500-page plus novel" that Jennifer Dulos had written.
After Flynn released her statement, Pattis released a statement to NBC News 4 in New York, saying in part, “Candidly, Gillian’s ignorant fulminations about the Dulos case play to the very impulses she exploited in her book."
Jennifer Dulos' family dismissed Pattis' theory as well, saying shortly after he stated it publicly that the claim was "false and irresponsible" and that Jennifer Dulos' novel had been written well before Flynn's work. The family also said the missing mother's novel was not a mystery tome.
The mother-daughter duo accused of killing a pregnant Chicago teen before cutting her unborn baby from her womb and claiming it as their own are now facing a new murder charge- for the infant's death.
Desiree and Clarisa Figueroa have been charged with murder after the infant who was ripped from 19-year-old Marlen Ochoa's womb following her death died at a Chicago hospital last month, according to the Cook County State's Attorney's office.
Both were ordered held without bond on the new charge Thursday.
Ochoa's infant child died weeks after his mother's murder. The baby's death was ruled a homicide by the Cook County Medical Examiner, who determined the child died from a lack of oxygen and blood to his brain and cited "maternal assault and demise."
The Figueroas, along with Clarisa Figueroa's boyfriend Piotr Bobak, had already pleaded not guilty in the death of Marlen Ochoa.
The mother and daughter pair were charged with first-degree murder in the Ochoa's grisly killing. Bobak was charged with concealing the homicide.
"Not only will the state not be able to prove him guilty, he’s innocent," said Bobak's lawyer Hal Garfinkel. "Mr bobak is innocent. Both of us look forward to his day in court."
Authorities contend that not long after Clarisa Figueroa's adult son died of natural causes, she told her family she was pregnant. They say she plotted for months to acquire a newborn, and that she posted an ultrasound and photos of a room decorated for a baby on her Facebook page. In March, she and Ochoa connected on a Facebook page for pregnant women.
Prosecutors alleged the mother-daughter pair lured Ochoa to their home, where they offered to give her clothes and other items for her unborn child. As Desiree Figueroa was showing Ochoa a photo album of her late brother to distract her, Clarisa Figueroa sneaked up behind her and strangled her with a cord before her baby was cut from her womb.
Later that day, Clarisa Figueroa called 911 claiming that her newborn baby was not breathing. When first responders arrived, the child was blue. They tried to resuscitate the infant and took him to Christ Medical Center, where he remained until his death.
Prosecutors said 46-year-old Clarisa Figueroa was examined in a birthing center at Advocate Christ Medical Center on April 23 after claiming to have given birth, "but showed no signs consistent with a woman who had just delivered a baby."
A technician at the Oak Lawn hospital cleaned blood from Figueroa’s arms, face and hands, prosecutors said, but it was unclear if anyone verified that she had actually given birth. Figueroa was allegedly able to pass off the baby as her own for weeks.
An investigation from the Illinois Department of Public Health cleared the hospital in the case, but noted deficiencies in their process.
At least 13 Philadelphia police officers will be fired as a result of racist, homophobic and violent social media posts revealed last month by the Plain View Project, Police Commissioner Richard Ross announced Thursday.
These officers were found to be the worst offenders among 328 local cops identified in the project's national database.
One of the most egregious posts included a meme that declared "Death to Islam."
An additional four officers, whose posts were less violent, will be suspended for 30 days and must undergo anti-bias training.
A third class of officers who violated the police department's social media policy but did not advocate hate or excessive force will be suspended for five days. They must also participate in ongoing sensitivity training.
"I continue to be very angered and disappointed by these posts," Ross said. "I am saddened that there are some who would attempt to justify hateful behavior."
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None of the officers disciplined were identified pending final paperwork. Several were still out on vacation when their firings were made public, Ross said. Those officers had previously been informed of disciplinary action.
John McNesby, president of the local Fraternal Order of Police, said the union was aware of the dismissals and "disappointed officers will be fired without due process."
The union is currently meeting with each officer to prepare an "appropriate response to protect our members' rights under the contract," McNesby said.
“FOP Lodge #5 and our members condemn racist and hateful speech in any form," he added. “The overwhelming majority of our members serve this city with integrity and professionalism.”
Thursday's announcement comes one month after 72 officers were placed on administrative leave shortly after the release of the Plain View Project database, made public June 1.
All but three will be disciplined in some way.
The 3,000 posts in question were uncovered by a team of researchers who spent nearly two years looking at the personal Facebook accounts of police officers from Arizona to Florida. They found officers bashing immigrants and Muslims, promoting racist stereotypes, identifying with right-wing militia groups and glorifying police brutality.
A sergeant in Philadelphia commented that a young suspect should be "taken out back and put down like the rabid animal he is."
All the posts were public and some dated back to 2010. None of the 72 Philadelphia officers on leave denied the posts, Ross said.
"When this issue first came to light, many of the posts were deeply disturbing," Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said. "We have a duty to represent ourselves and our city ... We will not allow this incident to break down the progress we have made and we pledge to do better" moving forward.
The Philadelphia Law Department, Philadelphia law firm Ballard Spahr and the Internal Affairs Unit of the Philadelphia Police Department worked in tandem over the past month to investigate the Facebook posts and determine whether any were protected by the First Amendment, Ross said.
The Internal Affairs investigation identified and prioritized officers who advocated violence or death against classes of protected people, such as religious and racial minorities.
In addition to that investigation, every member of the Philadelphia police department will be required to watch a training video outlining social media and off-duty policies in regards to race, ethnicity, code and conduct.
"It is so sad that ... a country that is supposed to be the greatest country in the world, that we have such hatred that doesn’t seem to end," Ross said.
The police department will also develop a mechanism to inspect officers' social media posts and identify potential problems, work with outside groups dealing with anti-bias and anti-racism training and consult with the Anti-Defamation League.
The United States Navy has launched a search for a missing active-duty sailor after a reported “overboard incident” onboard USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea.
Navy officials confirmed Thursday that a sailor was missing from Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). On Wednesday, there was an overboard incident onboard the vessel as it operated in the Arabian Sea.
USS Abraham – as well as Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Leyte Gulf (CG 55), Spanish Álvaro de Bazán-class frigate Méndez Núñez (F 104) and Pakistan Navy Ship PSN Aslat (F265) – "are currently conducting search and rescue operations in the Arabian Sea," the Navy said.
The sailor’s name has not yet been released by officials. For now, the Navy has listed his status as "Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown," or "DUSTWUN."
Further details of the incident were not immediately released.
The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is currently deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations to “ensure security in the Central Region,” according to the Navy, “connecting the Mediterranean and the Pacific through the western Indian Ocean and three strategic choke points.”
In May, it was directed toward the Middle East, amid tensions.
Commissioned in 1989, USS Abraham Lincoln was homeported in San Diego from 2006 to 2011 before moving to Norfolk, Virginia. Last August, the Navy announced Abraham Lincoln would be shifted back to its San Diego homeport.
The Platts Mill River Park area in Naugatuck will be closed this weekend after people left trash and debris there, according to police.
Police said several people contacted them earlier in the week to address concerns after a large group of people accessed to the river, leaving the area in such a poor state that local community members staged a clean-up effort to remove trash and debris left behind.
Naugatuck police, along with the borough's Parks Department will be ordering The Platts Mill River Access Area closed this weekend and police said additional closures will be determined later.
Naugatuck Police will also post additional patrols in the area.
Naugatuck police said the area is not safe for swimming and it is intended for “light use that will allow citizens to enjoy the natural beauty of the Naugatuck River.”
They said camp fires, open consumption of liquor and activities that will deteriorate this area are strictly prohibited and enforcement action may be taken.
Interstate 95 North was closed in East Lyme after a tractor-trailer jackknifed, but traffic is getting by again.
The highway was closed between exits 74 and 73.
Part of Main Street in East Lyme was closed because of flooding, but is is back open after flooding subsided.
Main Street was closed at Pennsylvania Ave.
