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Man Accused of Stealing Packages of Shrimp from Hamden Grocery Store

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Hamden police are trying to identify a man who is accused of stealing bags of shrimp from a grocery store on Monday.

Officers were called to the Stop and Shop on Dixwell Avenue around 10 p.m. after getting a report of shop lifting.

Investigators learned that a man, described as having short stature and a beard, left the store with five packages of stolen shrimp.

In a photo provided by police, the man appears to be wearing a navy blue sweatshirt and black pants.

According to police, he was last seen traveling eastbound on Skiff Street in a silver Dodge caravan.

Anyone with information is asked to call Hamden Police at (203) 230-4030.



Photo Credit: Hamden Police Department

List Ranks Connecticut Among Best States to Live In

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Connecticut is one of the best states to live in, according to a new listing from the website 247wallst.com. 

24/7 Wall St. used the United Nations Development Programme Human Development Index to rank the states based on life expectancy at birth, bachelor’s degree attainment, and poverty and Connecticut ranks fifth. 

Connecticut, along with Massachusetts, is one of two states in New England to rank among the top five states. 

Among the factors that 24/7 Wall St. cited is that Connecticut’s median annual household income of $76,348 is about $14,400 higher than national median. 

They also said Connecticut has a relatively well-educated population – with 39.6 percent of adults in the state having a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to just 32.6 percent of adults nationwide.

Read the full 24/7 Wall St. story here.   

Connecticut residents also tend to be healthier than most Americans, with a life expectancy of 80.8 years, over a year and a half longer than the national life expectancy of 79.1 years. 

10 Best States to Live In:

  1. Massachusetts
  2. Colorado
  3. New Jersey
  4. Hawaii
  5. Connecticut
  6. Minnesota
  7. Maryland
  8. New Hampshire
  9. Washington
  10. Virginia

10 Worst States to Live In:

  1. Mississippi
  2. West Virginia
  3. Louisiana
  4. Arkansas
  5. Kentucky
  6. Alabama
  7. Oklahoma
  8. New Mexico
  9. Tennessee
  10. South Carolina

Take a closer look at the rankings here. 



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut/ DroneRanger

'I Was Numb': Family Secrets Emerge as DNA Testing Explodes

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Monday night on NBC10 News at 11 p.m., Jim Rosenfield spoke with a family whose 50-year secret is uncovered by an at-home DNA test kit. It was the first of two parts on how the rise in consumer DNA testing is changing what we truly know about ourselves. Part 2 airs Tuesday night. Rosenfield will delve into a shocking discovery by two brothers from New Jersey.

Eight months ago, Ryan got a call from his father, Gerry. It was a shocking conversation from the first words.

"My dad gave me a call one night, very distraught, crying," Ryan said. "He said, 'I have some news.' At the time I thought there's a death in the family."

His father's news was family-related, but it wasn't a death. What Gerry showed his son proved even more shocking.

"He sent a picture … It was a screen shot of Ancestry.com," Ryan said. "And he said, 'Your brother is not mine.' I said, 'What are you talking about?'"

Then he asked his father, "What about me?"

Gerry and his wife divorced years ago, but only earlier this year did Gerry and both his sons find out that they are not biologically-connected.

Ryan, 29, and his older brother, now 33, spent part of their childhood in New Jersey. They always thought their mother was their mother and their father was their father.

Instead, a home DNA test kit proved that a former New Jersey state trooper fathered both brothers. Ryan's mother confirmed to NBC10 that her sons' father is the New Jersey state trooper, but insists that she had no idea until the DNA tests this year. She declined to be interviewed on camera.

"It’s difficult. It's sad. But in the end, it really changes nothing as far as my relationship with my entire family goes," Ryan said.

Shocking results that took the family by surprise are expected to grow in number as millions more take home DNA tests in the years ahead. The idea that your life could be turned upside down from some spit on a cotton swab isn’t what most people expect when they go looking for their ancestry.

The story of Ryan and his family is both a forewarning for others and an outlook people should consider if all new family history comes out in test results.

"The results change nothing for me," Ryan, who now lives in Miami, told NBC10. "My dad is my dad. I don't have to have a relationship with the other guy."

He added, "I'm grown up now. (I have a) family of my own. It’s easier that way."

20 Million DNA Test Kits and Counting: Surprises Come With the Data

Home DNA testing kits, like those done by Ryan and his brother on Ancestry.com, have grown in popularity the last decade. More than 20 million Americans have taken tests provided by companies like Ancestry.com, a Utah-based company, and 23andMe, of California.

The pace of submitting DNA via consumer tests is rapidly speeding up, according to West Chester University professor Anita Foeman, who has studied the industry since 2006.

More than 100 million people will submit their DNA for testing in just the next few years if the trend continues, Foeman said.

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"It is changing the way that we think about each other, our relationships to one another, and what’s sort of out there and what we can keep secret," she said.

The tests also raise ethical questions about the Big Data aspect of such personal information: What can companies do with your DNA results? Should law enforcement agencies have access to the results?

And of course, there is the upheaval within families when the results from a home DNA kit yield big surprises.

"We see them all the time," Foeman said. "The tests are far better at pinpointing genetic relatives than they are at ancestry. So if someone had some unclear ancestry, I could say, 'Well, you know, the test isn't perfect. But people are finding out, again, that their parents are not their parents, et cetera."

New Cousin Found, New Secret Unearthed

When Anna Marie’s DNA test results came back, the findings confused her.
For one thing, her results showed no Russian lineage. That contrasted results from a DNA test her brother took that confirmed he was 31% Russian.
"I remember looking at it and I was like, 'Oh, that’s interesting because you have that and I don’t have that,'" the Maryland woman told NBC10. "Eric, my youngest brother was like, I don’t know what that means."
Anna Marie’s mother, Anna, professed confusion as well.
"My mom was like, 'I don’t know how any of this works,'" Anna Marie said.
Yet she couldn't shake the feeling that the scientific data confirmed an unmistakable something she long held in her mind — something she couldn’t quite put into words all her life.
"You always feel that something’s not right. Something's missing," Anna Marie said. "I don't know. It's just some part of you that knows there’s something you don’t know."
Nearly 400 miles away, a woman in Virginia came across a similarly unpredictable result from her own DNA test result.
This woman, a nurse named Tina, had a first cousin from Maryland named Anna Marie, according to her findings on Ancestry.com. She reached out to her newfound Maryland relative, but didn’t hear back for several months. Eventually, though, first cousins emailed each other.
"I said, 'Do you know my uncle?'" Tina, a nurse who lives in XXX, remembers initially asking Anna Marie. "She said, 'I've never heard of him.' And I said, 'Well, ask your mother.'"
When Anna Marie got back to her, Tina said, "the cat was out of the bag."

When DNA test results came back for Anna Marie, a 50-year-old Delaware woman, the findings confused her.

For one thing, her results showed no Russian lineage. That contrasted results from a DNA test her brother took that confirmed he was 31% Russian.

"I remember looking at it and I was like, 'Oh, that’s interesting because you have that and I don’t have that,'" the Delaware woman told NBC10. "Eric, my youngest brother was like, I don’t know what that means."

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Anna Marie’s mother, Anna, professed confusion as well.

"My mom was like, 'I don’t know how any of this works,'" Anna Marie said.

Yet she couldn't shake the feeling that the scientific data confirmed an unmistakable something she long held in her mind — something she couldn’t quite put into words all her life.

"You always feel that something’s not right. Something's missing," Anna Marie said. "I don't know. It's just some part of you that knows there’s something you don’t know."

Nearly 400 miles away, a woman in Virginia came across a similarly unpredictable result from her own DNA test result.

This woman, a nurse named Tina, had a first cousin from Delaware named Anna Marie, according to her findings on Ancestry.com. She reached out to her newfound Delaware relative, but didn’t hear back for several months.

Eventually, though, first cousins emailed each other.

"I said, 'Do you know my uncle?'" Tina, a nurse who lives in Roanoke, remembers initially asking Anna Marie. "She said, 'I've never heard of him.' And I said, 'Well, ask your mother.'"

When Anna Marie got back to her, Tina said, "the cat was out of the bag."

Advice for DNA Test Takers: Talk With Family First

Foeman, the West Chester professor of media and communications who has studied DNA test kits for 13 years, said families should have frank discussions about the past ahead of time.

"Ask them if there is anything you should know," Foeman said. "And I can tell you that I've had people decide not to take the test based on conversations they've had with their families."

Their decision is not always based on a discovery as shocking as finding out about a secret relationship, Foeman said. It could be simply that they were born through in-vitro fertilization, or are adopted.

"Most people are not floored by what they find," she said. "Most people find immediate relatives, or what they thought. And sometimes, it's distant relatives. And then it's that rare person, I'll test two classes of 50, and two people will find something where they’re like, 'Woah!' So it’s not typical, but it happens regularly."

A lot of the shock comes from changing cultural dynamics and lifestyles.

Access to DNA-analysis technology has emerged only a few decades removed from vastly different societal acceptance around scenarios like having children out of wedlock.

"Times have changed, and people have made decisions 10, 15, 20 years ago based on what we knew, and based on the social stigmas and attitudes that we had at that time," Foeman said. "And they didn't expect 20 or 30 years later, that somebody was going to uncover some of this."

Secret Born of 'Summer of Love' Finally Uncovered 50 Years Later

The connection between suddenly first cousins, Anna Marie in Delaware and Tina in Virginia — thanks to Ancestry.com — actually uncovered a family secret 50 years old.

What Anna Marie discovered about herself and her mother dates to what is often called "the Summer of Love," 1969.

Her mother, Anna, was 16. She spent that summer on the beaches of Ocean City, Maryland.

A lifeguard named Cecil became a friend, and then a lover. What happened after the summer would stay hidden for five decades.

Anna became pregnant by the lifeguard, and eventually gave birth to Anna Marie in secret. A few years later, Anna got married, and her husband adopted Anna Marie.

The truth about Cecil and the Summer of Love in Ocean City might have stayed hidden forever if not for the DNA test kit that Anna Marie bought.

After Tina and Anna Marie began talking about their Ancestry.com findings, it was clear to Anna that her daughter deserved to know the truth.

“I took her to lunch... one of the restaurants here by the ocean and I told her,” Anna told NBC10 in an interview in October in Ocean City.

“I was numb,” Anna Marie said of her initial reaction to the truth.

Unlike others who don’t care to meet their newly-discovered biological parent, Anna Marie says she would have liked to meet Cecil.

That fate was not meant to be: Cecil died five years ago.

"I’m very sad because if it had been five years sooner, just five years, he would have gotten to know his child,” Anna Marie said.

Digital editor Brian X. McCrone contributed writing to this series.



Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
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West Haven Man Shot Multiple Times in New Haven: Police

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A West Haven man is recovering after getting shot multiple times in New Haven early Tuesday morning.

Officers said they responded to reports of gunshots near Chapel Street and Central Avenue shortly before 1 a.m.

Shortly after, police said they learned a gunshot victim had driven himself to Yale-New Haven Hospital to be treated for his injuries.

According to authorities, the 24-year-old West Haven man had multiple gunshot wounds. His injuries were determined to be non-life threatening.

The shooting remains under investigation.

Anyone with information is urged to contact New Haven Police Department at (203) 946-6304.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Bush Sisters Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush to Speak in Clinton

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Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush are coming to Connecticut to talk about their new picture book, “Sisters First.” 

The book by the two former first daughters celebrates the bond between sisters, according to a posting on the RJ Julia Bookseller website.  

Their talk, a R.J. Julia Booksellers event, takes place at The Morgan School in Clinton at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 12. 

The daughters of former President George W. Bush and former First Lady Laura Bush will “share personal stories and universal revelations during this celebration of sisterhood and all of the complicated, messy, hilarious, life-defining moments that accompany it,” according to the event listing.

Lauren Weisberger, the author of “The Devil Wears Prada,” will moderate. 

The price of a ticket is $27, plus tax and includes admission for one attendee and one signed copy of “Sisters first.” 

You can also buy one companion ticket for $10 plus tax, which admits one attendee, and that person must accompany a standard admission ticket. 

To learn more about the book and/or to buy tickets, see the R.J. Julia Bookseller website. 

 



Photo Credit: NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via

Officials ID Man Who Died After Boat Capsized Off Bridgeport

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Officials have identified the 64-year-old New Jersey man who died and three other men who were transported to the hospital after a boat capsized in Long Island Sound off Bridgeport on Sunday morning.

Eul Lee, 64, of Fort Lee, New Jersey, was pronounced dead at Bridgeport Hospital, according to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

Officials from the DEEP said the four people were fishing in the vicinity of the Stratford Shaols (Middle Ground) Light Station when the vessel capsized around 9:45 a.m. and Bridgeport Police, Fairfield Police and the U.S. Coast Guard Eaton’s Neck responded.

The Coast Guard rescued Jack Phommachanh, 65, of North Haven; and Bill Chanthavone, 66, and Thipada Ngaoluangrath, 67, both from Bridgeport, from the water and they were released after being transported to Bridgeport Hospital.

Bridgeport Police recovered Lee and he was pronounced dead at Bridgeport Hospital, according to DEEP.

Bridgeport Police, along with the Suffolk County Police in New York and the U.S. Coast Guard are assisting EnCon Police with the investigation.



Photo Credit: United States Coast Guard

Tickets on Sale for Miss America 2020 Competition at Mohegan Sun

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Tickets are now on sale for next month's Miss America 2020 competition at Mohegan Sun.

Miss America 2020 will feature two preliminary competitions, a special tribute show for Miss America 2019 Nia Franklin in Mohegan Sun's Cabaret Theatre and finals.

The competition will feature 51 candidates as they compete for scholarships to be used to help with community service and education. You can learn more about the candidates here.

The preliminary events will take place on Sunday, December 15 and Monday, December 16 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the Earth Expo & Convention Center.

The Nia Franklin Tribute Show will be held Tuesday, December 17 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the Cabaret Theatre. Guests will be able to enjoy music that Franklin has composed and hear from other Miss America candidates. Tickets to the tribute show can be purchased separately here.

Finals will conclude the event on Thursday, December 19 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the Mohegan Sun Arena. They will be broadcast on NBC live.

You can purchase tickets from Miss America's site or at the Mohegan Sun Box Office. Tickets range from $75 to $100 each.

Bad Science Making California Fires Worse, Says Congressman

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Congressman Ro Khanna says U.S. Forest Service policy to clear cut after a wildfire is making California’s forest fires spread faster and burn hotter. Khanna points to the work of nearly 300 scientists whose research backs him up. Because of that, the Santa Clara Democrat wants a complete overhaul of forest management policy.

“Because we don’t have the right science, it is costing us lives, and that is the urgency of getting this right,” said Khanna. In a letter to the U.S. Forest Service, he writes: “Logging operations leave behind flammable debris commonly known as slash. Wildfires spread faster and burn more intensely in an area that has been clear cut for timber.” 

Khanna is basing his criticism on research by 290 scientists, who say their studies prove that clear cutting a forest after a fire sets the stage for a hotter, more damaging fire in the future.

Dr. Chad Hanson is one of those scientists, a forest and fire ecologist and founder of The John Muir Project. Hanson says decades of research show that logging is the worst thing to do after a forest burns. “It basically spreads these invasive grasses called cheat grass, for example, and other ones that form this really thick mat across the area after logging and that grass just spreads flames very rapidly and fires burn very intensely through that,” said Hanson.

For decades, that’s precisely what the U.S. Forest Service has done - partnering with private logging companies to clear away burned trees after a wildfire. Frank Aebly is a geoscientist and district ranger with the U.S. Forest Service. He says that after a fire, dead trees begin to fall and create a serious hazard. “They'd start coming down - the smaller ones first - the larger ones later but eventually they most of them would be down on the ground. And that presents a fuel loading problem when brush and other understory vegetation starts to grow up around these large logs. The brush and the understory vegetation is very volatile.”

Aebly says the Forest Service has a multi-stage process of thinning a forest, removing flammable material, and planting new seedlings. “Once all those treatments are completed the fire intensity is significantly less,” he said.

But Hanson vehemently disagrees with Aebly.

“It’s a dangerous falsehood. It’s actually the opposite of the truth,” said Hanson.

Hanson points to research which concludes that when dead trees fall, they become natural fire barriers. “They soak up and retain huge amounts of soil moisture, so they're actually much more like giant sponges than they are like fuel,” he said.

Hanson joined hundreds of other scientists, including professors from Harvard, Stanford and UC Berkeley – who have written Congress, urging lawmakers to scale back post-fire logging, citing research that shows removing dead trees can “increase the flammability of a forest.” Their field studies show removing dead trees can “increase the flammability” of a forest.

Based on that research work, Rep. Khanna is spearheading a movement which he hopes will bring forest policy in line with the latest science.

“Our government too often has not paid attention to science, reason and technology,” he said, adding, “what’s at stake is the safety of Californians, what’s at stake is the safety of our forest and open space.”

Khanna plans to hold hearings on Capitol Hill focusing on this issue of how to use the latest science and technology to control wildfires, and says it’s time scientists – and new ideas - had a seat at the table.



Photo Credit: NBC Bay Area
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Hallmark Christmas Movie Filmed in Norwich Premieres Friday

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A Hallmark Christmas movie that was shot in Norwich back in February is debuting this week on the Hallmark channel.

Norwich will be the setting for some scenes of "Holiday for Heroes," which premieres on Hallmark this Friday at 9 p.m. Scenes were also recorded in other parts of southeastern Connecticut as well. 

The movie stars Marc Blucas and Melissa Clare Egan.

On Hallmark's website the movie's "about" section said "After a year's worth of letters exchanged between Audrey Brown and soldier Matt Evans, their worlds collide for the first time off the page. Will the spirit of the season bring Matt and Audrey's love beyond their letters?"

“There were people everywhere. Every which direction and everyone seemed to have a plan. They seemed to know what they were doing,” John Johnson, of Griswold, said during the filming.

Hallmark released some behind the scenes video of the movie shooting on location.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

Gas Leak at University of Hartford Over

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There was a natural gas leak on the University of Hartford campus and the issue has been rectified.

A Tweet from the school says there was a natural gas leak on campus near Park River and Lincoln Theater.

People are still being asked ot avoid the area around Lincoln Theater, Park River, Village 7 and the road between Mark Twain Drive and D Lot.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut
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Runner Struck in Putnam has Serious Injuries: Police

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A runner was struck by a vehicle in Putnam on Tuesday morning and has serious injuries, according to police.

Police received a 911 call around 9:50 a.m. and responded to Woodstock Avenue after a vehicle heading south on Woodstock Avenue hit a woman who was jogging north on Woodstock Avenue.

The runner sustained serious injuries and was transported to Day Kimball Hospital and later transferred to UMass Medical Center, according to police.

Police are investigating, and no charges have been filed.

Anyone who witnessed the crash is encouraged to call Detective Donna Brown at the Putnam Police Department (860) 928-6565 or email www.putnampolice.com.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecituct

Newington Police Release Photo of Plaza Azteca Assault Suspect

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Newington police continue to investigate a fight in the parking lot of Plaza Azteca on July 1 and they have released a photo of a suspect.

Police said the man in the photo is suspected of assaulting several people at the restaurant on the Berlin Turnpike, and he might be from the Waterbury area.

According to police, a man used a pistol to hit at least two men in the face and the pistol fired. One person was struck with the ricochet or bullet fragments, according to police.

Newington police are looking for information and ask anyone with information to contact Detective Larry DeSimone at 860-594-6239 or email at LDeSimone@NewingtonCT.gov.



Photo Credit: Newington Police Department

Man Killed at Md. Popeyes Had Cut to Front of Sandwich Line

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The man stabbed to death at a Popeyes in Maryland Monday evening had been cutting in front of people in the line for ordering chicken sandwiches, police said.

A group of people was already in the line at the restaurant in the 6200 block of Livingston Road when Kevin Davis arrived about 7 p.m. For 15 minutes, he methodically cut in front of people to get to the front of the line, where he was confronted by another customer, Prince George's County Police Chief Hank Stawinski said.

Fifteen seconds later, Davis was stabbed outside one time by the man who confronted him, police said.

"How does a confrontation lead to a homicide in 15 seconds?" Stawinski said. "That's a question they have been working on since we stood together in that parking lot last night."

Police said the 28-year-old victim was from Oxon Hill. He died less than an hour later at a hospital.

Many children were among the large dinner time crowd at the restaurant when Davis was killed.

Investigators with the Prince George's County Police Department are calling on a suspect to surrender. They believe he left the scene in a vehicle but have no information about that vehicle.

Police released a surveillance image of the man they are looking for.

Popeyes resumed selling its chicken sandwich on Sunday. It was first released in August, and the chain credited popular demand to its supply selling out that month. Marketing around the sandwich has built a frenzy that's causing long lines and waits at the chain's restaurants.

Stawinski noted the national attention this slaying has received in less than 24 hours.

“People are asking, ‘How can something so pointless occur?’” he said.

Police spent hours at the crime scene Monday night and were trying to identify a suspect. There were many people in the restaurant at the time. Anyone with information that can help should call 1-866-411-TIPS.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



Photo Credit: Prince George's County Police Department
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9 U.S. Citizens Who Were Killed by Drug Cartel Gunmen in Mexico Belonged to a Mormon Offshoot Group

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The nine U.S. citizens who were killed in a brutal ambush by drug cartel gunmen Monday while traveling in Mexico belonged to a Mormon offshoot group that has been touched by cartel violence before, NBC News reports.

The group was part of the extended LeBaron family, Mormon fundamentalists who first came to Mexico nearly a century ago — when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City started cracking down on members who were still practicing polygamy.

To escape persecution in the U.S., Alma Dayer LeBaron brought his wives and children across the border to Mexico in 1924 and founded the LeBaron colony in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It was there in 2009 that drug cartels took another member of the family, anti-crime activist Benjamin LeBaron, for ransom, and murdered him.

While the LeBarons' fundamentalist offshoot group is distinct from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said Paul Reeve, Simmons professor of Mormon studies at the University of Utah, there are many Mormons in Mexico: The Salt Lake City-headquartered church currently claims over a million members there.



Photo Credit: Rick Bowmer/AP

Man Accused of Sexually Assaulting 75-Year-Old Woman in Derby

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Derby police have arrested a man suspected of sexually assaulting a 75-year-old woman on the Derby Greenway on Saturday. 

Derby police arrested Artay Drinks, 46, of Waterbury, around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday and said he has been charged with sexual assault in the first degree, robbery in the third degree and assault of an elderly person in the third degree. 

On Monday, Derby police said in a Facebook post that Drinks was in custody for existing arrest warrants on unrelated criminal charges from other jurisdictions and the mug shot they posted was the same one that Westport police released on Monday from an arrest in their town.

On Monday, Westport police said they arrested a 46-year-old Artay Drinks, with an address listed in Ansonia, after an investigation into the thefts of several items from a men’s locker room at Staples High School in October. 

Bond in the Westport case was set at $6,500 and Drinks was not able to post it, according to police. 

Drinks is being held on an additional $400,000 bond and will be arraigned today in Derby Superior Court.



Photo Credit: Derby Police
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Man Charged in Shooting at House Party in Norwich

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Norwich police have arrested a man accused in a shooting during a fight at a party early Friday morning.

Police said they were called to a home on East Main Street just before 2 a.m. Friday for a loud house party. According to police, during a fight at the party, the suspect, identified as 18-year-old Joseph Desir, brandished a gun and shot another partygoer. There was at least one juvenile at the party, police said.

The victim’s injury was not life-threatening and that person was not admitted to the hospital.

Desir was charged with first-degree assault, unlawful discharge of a firearm, reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a minor. Bond was set at $100,000.

The investigation is ongoing.



Photo Credit: Norwich Police Department

Wallingford Family's Christmas Invention Hits Stores Nationwide

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A Wallingford family’s Christmas tradition is now on store shelves available nationwide.

It’s called Santa’s Enchanted Mailbox, and it’s a device that delivers letters to Santa.

“They place it in the mailbox and the letter magically disappears to the North Pole,” said inventor Chris Cirri.

Cirri got the idea from his kids. He brought it to his father-in-law and brother-in-law, and together they created a prototype.

“When I first saw it I was like this is pretty cool we should make this into something,” said Steve Signore, Cirri’s business partner.

They signed a deal with toy company, Mr. Christmas, to mass produce the mailbox overseas and launched sales online last Christmas.

“We sold just under 10,000 of them,” Cirri said. “Every single unit that was made was sold.”

This year, they’re going even bigger. The mailboxes are now on store shelves at more than 2,000 Walmart stores nationwide.

“When Mr. Christmas called us to tell us about it I almost fell out of my chair,” Cirri said.

“It has just taken on a life of its own and it’s just unbelievable,” said engineer David Seales.

Cirri says it’s a trial run for Walmart, but so far sales seem good. None of the men have experience making toys. This is all new to them. Maybe it’s a $1 million idea.

“I think everyone has those ideas and it’s a matter of taking those steps to bring your idea to reality,” said Cirri.

For now they’re keeping their day jobs, but believing in the magic. Magic they’re working to spread past the holiday the season.

“We’re working a second book right now,” said Cirri. “We’re working on a version that involves the tooth fairy.”



Photo Credit: Chris Cirri

Young Voters Take to the Polls in Middletown

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In Middletown, nearby students at Wesleyan University took the time to take part in voting for local elections Tuesday.

Many students told NBC Connecticut that they have never voted before yet alone in local elections within the state.

Giovanni Ortiz is a junior at Wesleyan University and was too young to vote in the 2016 election.

“To be honest, I wasn't going to vote,” said Ortiz. “After talking with my friends, I thought I needed to take advantage of my right to vote."

Tuesday marked the start of a new democratic process experience for Ortiz.

“I had no experience and even filling out the bubble was a little difficult because I had never done it before,” said Ortiz. “I believe going through the voting process will definitely prepare me for next year.”

In Middletown, all eyes are on the mayoral race between Republican candidate Sebastian Giuliano, Democratic candidate Ben Florshiem and write-in candidate Valeka Clarke.

Leah Pensler also attends Wesleyan University and happens to study politics and government. Pensler says that this is a great time for first-time voters to learn about elections and ask questions ahead of 2020.

“It’s really going to be like on the shoulders of young people to show up in November of 2020,” said Pensler. “I really appreciate the ability to exercise the right to vote and a lot of people have fought for the right to vote and died for the right to vote.

Pensler is encouraging other young people and all voters to make their voices count in both local and national elections.

“I believe and totally encourage that all young people come out to vote,” said Pensler. “I think it’s important and very crucial in democracy.”

College students have a few options when it comes to voting. They can register to vote in their college town, or they have the option to complete an absentee ballot for the election in their hometown.

Kate Sundberg is a senior at Wesleyan University who’s filled out absentee ballots for local elections back home. However, this year Sandberg wanted to take park in Middletown’s mayoral race.

“I think that a lot can happen from the local level and radiate outwards,” said Sandberg. “A lot of times people get wrapped up into national politics that they forget about federal and local elections.

Each of those Wesleyan students took part in same-day registration at Middletown’s City Hall.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

Florida County Votes Against Library's NYT Subscription

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Florida lawmakers refused to vote on a request from their county's library to pay for a subscription to The New York Times, siding with President Donald Trump's position on the paper and citing concerns over "fake news," NBC News reported.

On Oct. 24, the Citrus County Board of Commissioners held a meeting in which they addressed a librarian's plea for a digital subscription to The New York Times.

County staffers recommended the purchase, but it failed to even reach a vote.

"Fake news, OK, I agree with President Trump," said Commissioner Scott Carnahan. "I don't want the New York Times in this county. I don't agree with it, I don't like them."

The dispute came soon after Trump ordered federal agencies to stop any subscriptions to The New York Times and The Washington Post, though it remains unclear how the plan will be carried out or enforced.

Citrus County's library currently has no digital newspaper subscriptions, but the system has hard-copy subscriptions to the Citrus County Chronicle, The New York Times, The Tampa Bay Times, USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.

A digital subscription to The New York Times would cost $2,657.20 for the first two years and $2,714.40 for the third.

County staffers told NBC News there is the possibility for the five commissioners to change their mind; the item will appear on the board's agenda again on Nov. 19.



Photo Credit: Mario Tama / Getty Images

Video Shows Florida Boy Fall 20 Feet From Mall Zip Line Attraction

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A 10-year-old boy fell 20 feet to the ground from a zip line attraction in Lakeland, Florida, resulting in serious injuries to the boy's body and head, as well as a lawsuit against the attraction park. 

According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the boy was injured Sept. 1 when he slipped out of his harness while riding the "Sky Rider" zip line at Lakeland Square Mall's Urban Air Adventure Park. The lawsuit says he had not been properly strapped in before taking off from the platform and fell just moments after he had taken off. 

“It killed me to watch it,” Kim Barnes, the child's mother, told NBC affiliate WFLA. “His life is not the same anymore because of this. It’s affected him mentally and emotionally and physically.”

The boy was flown by medical helicopter to the hospital, according to the lawsuit, and has since been released.

Morgan & Morgan, the law firm representing the family, filed a lawsuit on Monday.

“At the employee level, they obviously could’ve done more but at the organizational level, there should’ve been more measures in place to prevent something like this from happening,” said attorney Steven Capriati.

The Department of Agriculture’s investigative report informed that the incident had been the result of operator error: inspectors found the leg straps of the child’s harness were not buckled.

Communications director Karol Molinares says state inspectors found no deficiencies in the equipment and Urban Air did not have a history of device deficiencies.

The department will be taking enforcement action and fining Urban Air, according to Molinares.

Urban Air released the following statement to WFLA's investigative team:

“Urban Air is fully committed to the uncompromising safety and well-being of our guests and employees. As a family-owned and operated company, safety is at the heart of everything we do. We take matters of this nature very seriously and can assure that appropriate measures have been taken. All staff members have been retrained on all attractions and the employees in question are no longer with us. We are thankful to hear that the child is back in school and we will continue to keep him and his family in our thoughts and prayers through his full recovery.”

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