Hamden police are investigating are a woman was mugged on Cherry Ann Street Sunday night.

Police said the victim told them she was walking around 11 p.m. when she was approached by a man who pressed a hard object into her back and demanded her belongings. He took off on foot with electronics, money and personal items.

The suspect is described as male with a medium build and was wearing a hood at the time.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Hamden Police Det. Donald Remillard at 203-230-4040

At least one D.C. public school marching band has participated in the past five inaugural parades, but none applied for consideration this year.

Ballou High School's Majestic Marching Knights performed Destiny's Child's "Lose My Breath" at George W. Bush's second inaugural parade in 2005, and stepped along Pennsylvania Avenue as they played James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)" at Barack Obama's second inaugural parade eight years later.

But the beloved band decided to take a break in January and not apply to play in the inaugural parade after several other recent performances, the principal said.

Dunbar High School's band marched in Obama's first inauguration in 2009 but the school will sit this one out because they are rebuilding the band, the principal said.

Eastern High School also chose not to participate, the principal said, without elaborating.

A D.C. Public Schools spokeswoman said she was not aware of any band in the district that had applied to participate in President-elect Donald Trump's inaugural parade Jan. 20.

The band at D.C.'s Howard University, which marched in Obama's first inaugural parade, also did not apply to march in Trump's parade. Band director John Newson said the band had too few members and was facing budgetary constraints.

He said he suspects that many band directors' and school administrators' political beliefs played into whether they applied to participate in the parade. 

"I think everybody knows why and no one wants to say and lose their job," Newson said.

Applications to participate in the parade were due Dec. 5, and the Presidential Inaugural Committee is expected to announce soon which bands were selected. The committee did not respond to inquiries about how many applications were received.

Bands' applications were accepted by the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region (JTF-NCR), a group of U.S. Armed Forces service members that assists the inaugural committee. The inaugural committee then selects the bands.

The application deadline initially was Nov. 28. It was extended by a week to allow groups more time to apply, a JTF-NCR spokesman said.

Bands from the hometowns and home states of the president and vice president often are selected to play, Drum Corps International events director Sue Kuehnhold said. She has worked with bands for more than 40 years.

An Arizona company that organizes band trips for schools across the country has seen lower interest than usual in this inaugural parade.

"We didn't get the response that we got the last time, with Obama. Some groups responded, but with some groups it was crickets," Music Celebrations International marketing director Luke Wiscombe said. "We're seeing a little less enthusiasm to be a part of this event."

Still, after Trump won, the tourism company received several inquiries from bands in the South. Then, band directors in the Midwest and Northeast got in touch for a chance at what is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many musicians.

"It's a huge deal to march on the national stage," Wiscombe said.

Like in D.C., many school bands in the surrounding counties opted not to apply to participate in Trump's inauguration. No bands in Arlington County or Prince George's County public schools applied, according to district representatives. A Fairfax County schools spokesman was not aware of any schools that had applied, and a Montgomery County schools spokeswoman did not have information available.

Local universities also did not apply. University of Maryland, College Park, which played in 2013, did not apply. Neither did Bowie State University or University of the District of Columbia.

The Lesbian and Gay Band Assocation, which included the D.C. group Different Drummers, also opted to skip Trump's inaugural parade. The association played in Obama's second inaugural parade but did not to apply this year because of political and safety concerns.

"While the parade route itself should be a safe zone, we cannot hope to guarantee our safety while traveling, while rehearsing in public or while out and about in the D.C. area during the weekend," the band's board of directors said in a statement. "All minorities are at risk and any opportunity we give the new administration to co-opt a minority organization will likely be exploited to our detriment."

The majority of voters in the D.C. area cast their ballot for Hillary Clinton, with Trump winning 4 percent in D.C., 8 percent in Prince George's County, 17 percent in Arlington County and 29 percent in Fairfax County. Many area high school students participated in anti-Trump protests in the wake of the election.

But politics may not explain the low interest in the inaugural parade; an unwritten rule of the band world may play into why some bands didn't apply. University of Maryland band director Eli Osterloh said that after performing in an inaugural parade, some bands opt to wait about 10 years before applying again, as a courtesy to other applicants.

Bands are generally notified in mid-December of whether they are invited to play, Wiscombe, of the band trip company, said. Then, communities scramble to fundraise to cover costs that can top $200,000 for a 100-member band to travel across the country.

If no D.C. bands welcome Trump to the White House, many young musicians from across the country will be eager to take their place.

"Bands from all over are waiting to get that letter," Kuehnhold said.

Police are looking for a 17-year-old Milford girl who has been missing since Saturday and they are asking for help from the public to find her. 

Sonya Collins was last seen at her Milford home on Dec. 10 and might have been heading to East Hartford or Waterbury, according to police. 

Sonya is 5-feet-7, around 120 pounds and has brown hair and eyes. She was wearing a blue winter jacket, black pants and boots when she was last seen.

Anyone with information on where Sonya is should call Milford police at (203) 878-6551 or Detective Sergeant DelMonte at 203-878-6303 or 203-783-4766, email gdelmonte@ci.milford.ct.us or submit a tip online.

Reference case number 6972-16.

A brother and sister are dead after a crash in Fairfield on Interstate 95 early Wednesday morning.

State police said a black 2010 Honda Accord went off I-95 North near exit 21 and into trees at 1:28 p.m. Wednesday and the driver, 33-year-old Brandon Dupee, of Bridgeport, and the passenger, 31-year-old Lindsay Dupee, of Stratford, were pronounced dead at the scene.

The Fairfield Police Crash Reconstruction Unit is investigating.

New York-based Bristol-Myers Squibb has announced plans to shut down several of its facilities, including one in Wallingford, according to a news release.

The company, which employs about 700 people in Wallingford, also scrapped plans to build a new development site in Connecticut.

This all comes as part of an announcement about the future of the bio-pharmaceutical company. Last summer the company had announced they were moving research and development operations out of Connecticut, but stopped short of saying they would no longer have a presence in the state.

Gov. Dannel Malloy said that while he's not pleased with the company's decision, it might be a sign of the times.

"This announcement is more of an iteration of what they had previously announced with respect to consolidation to other facilities. A lot of that has taken place and we’re going to be on the winning side of some of that and we’re going to be on the losing side of some of that. On the other hand of that, what’s gratifying to see if the growth of the overall industry in Connecticut," Malloy said.

Malloy said that over the last year the state had been in talks with the company to try to keep some jobs in Connecticut, but those talks were unsuccessful.

Bristol-Myers Squibb will also close a facility in Hopewell, N.J. by mid-2020 and it will not renew its lease at a plant in Seattle, Washington in 2019.

The company said it intends to transition many impacted employees to other U.S. locations around the company. However, the company did not say how many Connecticut employees would be impacted or if anyone would be laid off.

In October 2015, Bristol-Myers Squibb announced 78 layoffs in Wallingford between Dec. 31, 2015 and March 1, 2016.

The company said the changes are part of a larger plan to change its geographic footprint and that it intends to build up facilities in central New Jersey, the San Francisco Bay Area and Cambridge, Mass.

“These important changes to our U.S. geographic footprint will ensure we have the structural, operational and financial flexibility to deliver as effectively as possible on our mission for patients,” said Giovanni Caforio, M.D, chief executive officer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, in a release Tuesday. “Today’s announcement underscores our commitment to make the right investments to continue to deliver on the promise of our pipeline and to bring transformational medicines to patients, today and in the future.”

Bristol Myers-Squibb said the Wallingford facility will close by the end of 2018.

Wallingford businesses are concerned about what this will mean for them. 

"It's going to impact our business like any other business," Stefano Panno, of Half Moon on North Main Streetm said. "I am sure it's going to impact lots of families. Those incomes are very important."

Residents are concerned about taxes increasing.

"The impact on the toen is not going to be good," John Dichello said. "Taxes are going to go up. It's not good."

After a career in research at Yale, Wallingford resident Roberta Clouet said it's time for Wallingford to think about its next big thing, whether it is enticing tech companies or something else no one has thought of yet.  

"It will give Wallingford an opportunity to rethink its next venture," she said.

State regulators have approved a rate change for United Illuminating that is expected to give customers more control over how much they spend on electricity by using less of it. 

UI’s fixed charge, which every customer pays regardless of how much power they use, will decrease from $17 to just under $10, but the delivery rate itself will increase. 

Officials from the state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority said this will give customers an incentive to use less electricity. 

UI filed a request in July that would have increased rates around 5 percent in each of the next three years, as of January 2017, but officials from PURA estimate that customers will instead see a 3.25 percent increase in 2017. 

"PURA's ruling strikes an appropriate balance between UI's need for revenue to maintain a reliable, safe system with customer expectations for fair and reasonable rates," PURA Vice Chairman John Betkoski, III, the lead commissioner in the UI proceeding, said in a statement.

United Illuminating was looking for approval to increase revenue by $98 million, but PURA approved a $43 million increase this year, followed by an $11.5 million increase in 2018 and a $2.9 million increase in 2019. 

After PURA announced the rate change, Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) called on state regulators to reduce fixed charges by setting limits on what electric utility companies can charge as part of the fixed charges portion of the bill.

“The fixed charges that electric companies are forcing Connecticut residents to pay are outrageous,” Looney said in a statement. “Senate Democrats stood up for consumers in 2015 by passing a law that limits what electric companies could charge under the fixed portion of electric bills. United Illuminating’s current fixed charge of $17.25 is nearly three times as high as Eversource’s current charge in Western Massachusetts. Even relative to the highest of these out-of-state charges, United Illuminating’s charge is still 33 percent greater.” 

He said the existing fixed rates hinder low-income customers from decreasing their bills by using less electricity and reduce the financial incentive for customers of all incomes to conserve energy.

Temperatures are expected to reach zero degrees with a wind chill of -10, even -20 on Friday morning and doctors warn people to cover as much skin as possible and dress in warm layers, including wearing a hat, gloves, scarf and warm socks and shoes. Also, limit your time outside to protect yourself from frostbite and hypothermia. 

“When the temperatures get to be around zero, exposed skin can suffer frostbite in as little as 10 minutes, so you really need to be careful,” Kenneth Robinson, chief of emergency medicine at Hartford Hospital, said. 

Symptoms of frostbite include numbness, redness and white or gray colored skin. Dr. Robinson said the most common mistake he sees is people committing is pushing the limit on their time outside. 

“They say, ‘Well, you know my fingers are getting a little tingly or numb, but I can go another 10 minutes.’ You can really get some significant damage if you let it go that long,” Robinson said. 

Robinson recommends that if you start feeling those symptoms of frostbite, cover your skin and get into warmth immediately. 

You can always take off layers if you start to sweat, which is important because your body temperature drops faster when your skin is wet. 

Symptoms of hypothermia include nausea, dizziness or confusion.

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, who is President-elect Donald Trump's pick for national security adviser, "inappropriately shared" classified information with foreign governments, a 2010 military investigation concluded.

The finding, first reported by The Washington Post, contradicts Flynn's previous account of the incident, in which he told the newspaper in August that he had permission to share the material related to CIA activities.

The documents, obtained by the Post under the Freedom of Information Act, do not describe what exactly Flynn shared or with whom while he was the top military intelligence officer in Afghanistan. 

Flynn told the Post he did nothing wrong but the Army documents say the investigation determined that Flynn did not have permission to share the secrets.

During the presidential campaign Flynn frequently attacked Trump's opponent, Hillary Clinton, for mishandling classified material.

A member of the all-female pop group Fifth Harmony was taken into custody at Dulles International Airport Tuesday night after authorities say they found marijuana in her bag. 

Lauren Jauregui was catching an international flight when an X-ray machine detected a knife and torch lighter in one of her bags, a law enforcement official said.

Jauregui agreed to a search of her bag and a "green leafy substance" was found.

The substance was tested and determined to be a controlled substance, the law enforcement official said.  

Police were notified, and Jauregui was taken into custody. 

The "Worth It" singer was charged with possession of marijuana and released on a summons, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.

As news of the incident spread, the hashtag #FreeLauren trended briefly in Washington, D.C. 

Jauregui's attorney, Dina LaPolt, told E! News that Jauregui was never under arrest. 

"She will address the matter appropriately through the legal system. This will not interfere with any future scheduled performances or activities," LaPolt said. 

Fifth Harmony is scheduled to perform Wednesday in Saõ Paulo, Brazil, according to E!News.

Fifth Harmony, best known for "Work From Home" and "Worth It," was recently nominated for a People's Choice Award.

A bottled water plant planning to open in Bloomfield has announced 66 hires.

A statement Niagara Bottling released on Wednesday says about half of the hires are coming from Bloomfield and the eight nearby member towns of the Metropolitan District Commission.

Niagara will begin production this month and the company Niagara expects to grow its team to more than 80 people by January.

“We are very excited to be opening our Bloomfield bottling operation and are pleased to have such a well-qualified and reliable staff in place. We expect to be part of the Bloomfield business community for a long time to come, and starting with such a fine employee base is essential to us,” Lloyd Lirio, plant director for Niagara Bottling in Bloomfield, said in a statement.

Niagara’s Bloomfield plant will initially run two bottling lines residents with “Save Our Water Connecticut,” asked the town not to allow the facility on Woodland Avenue to expand any further from two to four lines of production.

The real-life Iron Man has agreed to help Donald Trump.

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX joined the president-elect’s business council on Wednesday, NBC News reported. Two other CEOs, Travis Kalanick of Uber and Indra Nooyi of Pepsi have also joined the council.

Musk, who was critical of Trump during the presidential race, was seen at the president-elect's private meeting with tech titans on Wednesday.

Trump’s Strategic and Policy Forum includes CEOs of some of the country’s largest companies, such as Walt Disney, General Electric, JP Morgan Chase and Wal-Mart. Its purpose is to advise the president-elect on how to create news jobs, according to a press release from Trump’s transition team.

A 13-year-old old boy was arrested at Lincoln Middle School in Meriden Tuesday after bringing a realistic looking air gun to school, according to police. 

Police said the incident might be gang related and the teen has been charged with possession of a weapon on school grounds.

Enfield police are still looking for the driver who hit and killed a skateboarder early on the morning of Friday, Dec. 2 and believe the person responsible was behind the wheel of a 2003 to 2007 Chevy Silverado that would have damage to the right side, including the headlight.

Police said the victim, 20-year-old Jeremy Mercier was hit while trying to help a friend on Route 5 around 1 a.m. that morning. 

Loved ones said Mercier had jumped on his skateboard to bring a can of a gas to a friend who had run out. As he headed out on the several-mile trip, he was hit just around the corner from his home.

The driver who hit Mercier fled from the scene, police said.

Enfield police are asking for anyone with information about the hit-and-run or the pickup to call Officer Nisyrios at 860-763-6400, extension 1359 or 860-763-8911.

The Enfield Police Department Traffic Division is investigating. 

East Hartford police are renewing a call for the public's help to find a man that's been missing since last year. 

David Chapman, 32, of School Street, has been missing since Dec. 11, 2015. Police said Chapman may be in need of medical attention and may be a danger to himself.

There have been no leads since Chapman first went missing, police said Wednesday.

Chapman is described as 5-foot-8, with brown hair and blue eyes. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call East Hartford police at 860-291-7544.

With cold temperatures moving in, New Haven police want to remind drivers to never leave a running car unattended.

Police said driveways become a common place for “warm-up theft” this time of year when drivers leave cars running to warm up or stay warm.

New Haven police remind car owners that leaving a vehicle running unattended makes it a quick and easy target for thieves. Additionally, it’s a violation of state law to leave a running car unattended for more than three minutes.

Keyless entry systems won’t save your car either – police say some thieves use jammer devices to block the signal that locks the car sent from the real key, then use a second device to create a new key that lets them drive the vehicle.

Police offered the following tips to keep your car safe:

• Never leave your car running or the keys in the ignition when you are away from it, even for “just a minute.”
• Keep valuables out of sight or in the trunk. Purses, credit cards, and cell phones in plain view only help attract thieves.
• Always roll up the windows and lock your car.
• Never leave the vehicle title in your car. If stolen, it makes it easier for the thief to dispose of your vehicle. It can also make you a target for identity theft.
• Be alert when approaching your car. Immediately leave the area to get help if you have any concerns for your safety.
• Only park your car in busy, well-lit areas.
• Install a mechanical locking device - commonly called a club, collar, or j-bar - that locks to the steering wheel, column, or brake.
• If your vehicle has an alarm or other anti-theft device, use it.

Temperatures in Connecticut are expected to drop Thursday and by Friday morning wind chills could feel between 10 to 20 below zero.

President Barack Obama says his nearly three-year-old program to help boys and young men of color "is just the beginning."

Addressing a daylong White House summit on the My Brother's Keeper program, Obama urged more people to become mentors and help create opportunities for young people to stay on the right path.

He says he'll be involved with the program for the rest of his life.

The president launched the program in February 2014 to address persistent opportunity gaps facing boys and young men of color.

Initiatives at the federal level could be undone by the Trump administration. But White House officials say much of the work will continue after Donald Trump takes office because more than 250 communities around the country are running their own My Brother's Keeper programs.

Yahoo announced Wednesday that more than one billion user accounts may have been affected in a hacking attack dating back to August 2013.

The Sunnyvale, California, says it believes information, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates and security questions and answers, may have been stolen in the breach. The company says it believes bank-account information and payment-card data were not affected.

The security breach was discovered after law enforcement officials provided the company with data files that a "third party" claimed was Yahoo user data. After analyzing the information, Yahoo concluded that the data belonged to its users.

Yahoo says it has not been able to identify the source of the hack.

"Yahoo is notifying potentially affected users and has taken steps to secure their accounts, including requiring users to change their passwords. Yahoo has also invalidated unencrypted security questions and answers so that they cannot be used to access an account," the company said in a statement. 

Yahoo is also urging users to avoid clicking links or downloading attachments from suspicious emails, and to be cautious of unsolicited communications that ask for personal information.

The tech giant says it's a different breach from the one it disclosed in September, when it reported that 500 million accounts were exposed. 

Based on the ongoing investigation, the company believes hackers accessed the company's proprietary code to learn how to forge cookies that could allow an intruder to access users' accounts without a password. The company says it has connected some of this activity to the same "state-sponsored actor" believed to be responsible for the data theft the company disclosed on September 22, 2016.

The new hack revelation raises questions about whether Verizon will try to change the terms of its $4.8 billion proposed acquisition of Yahoo.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Donald Trump has selected Ronna Romney McDaniel to lead the Republican National Committee in 2017, the RNC announced in a statement Wednesday, NBC News reported.

McDaniel, who currently chairs the Michigan Republican Party, is the niece of 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney. She will serve as deputy co-chair with Trump's Ohio State Director Bob Paduchik before taking the reins from current RNC Chair Reince Priebus. Trump named Priebus his chief of staff shortly after last month's election.

"Ronna has been extremely loyal to our movement and her efforts were critical to our tremendous victory in Michigan, and I know she will bring the same passion to the Republican National Committee," Trump said in a statement.

The governor is activating the state’s Severe Cold Weather Protocol from Thursday evening through Saturday morning because of the forecast for extreme cold and wind chills below zero. 

“As we experience our first bitterly cold weather of the winter season, I am activating our severe cold weather protocol to initiate essential services that will help protect our most vulnerable,” Gov. Dannel Malloy said in a statement. “Anyone in need of shelter is urged to call 211 to find the nearest available locations. I am also encouraging local communities to consider opening warming centers or other facilities to assist people in need.” 

While temperatures on Thursday will be in the 20s, strong winds are expected Thursday night and wind gusts could reach 50 mph, which would push wind chills into the 10 to 20 below range.

Actual air temperatures Friday morning will be in the single digits above and below zero.Friday's high will only be near 20 degrees.

A winter storm moves in Saturday, and it will begin as accumulating snow. A few inches are possible.

While activated, the severe weather protocol directs staff from the state’s Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, the Department of Social Services, the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Department of Housing to coordinate with 2-1-1 and Connecticut’s network of shelters to ensure that the state’s most vulnerable populations are protected from the severe cold weather. 

DESPP’s Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security will activate its WebEOC communications network, an internet-based system that enables local, regional and state emergency management officials and first responders to share up-to-date information about a variety of situations and conditions. The system is used to monitor capacity at shelters across the state, enabling 2-1-1 to act as a clearinghouse to assist in finding shelter space for those who need it. Local officials, working through WebEOC, can alert 2-1-1 and the state when they open temporary shelters or warming centers. 

DSS and DOH will coordinate with 2-1-1 and the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, along with community-based providers, to provide transportation for people seeking shelter. 

DMHAS will deploy teams that specialize in working with people who are homeless to locate those who are at risk, spread the word about the 2-1-1 system, and encourage them to take shelter. It also works with shelters to assess and meet the needs of individual clients. 

In addition to being able to call 2-1-1 over the telephone, a regularly updated list of open shelters and warming centers across the state is made available online at www.211ct.org.