Authorities are asking for the public's help in tracking down a man who fired shots at police in New Haven last week.

Police said Joseph "James" Henry Newton was involved in a gun battle on Norton Street and shot at a police detective when they chased him.

No one was hurt and Newton got away, police said.

Police have obtained an arrest warrant for Newton charging him with criminal attempt to commit first-degree assault, criminal attempt to commit assault on a police officer, criminal possession of a firearm, carrying a pistol without a permit and unlawful discharge of a firearm.

He's considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to call New Haven detectives at 203-946-6304.

The Oakland teen who set a gender non-conforming high school student's skirt on fire on an AC Bus last year pleaded no contest Thursday to charges of felony assault and inflicting great bodily injury, and agreed to serve seven years in prison.

Richard Thomas, now 17, will be sentenced on Nov. 14 in Alameda County Superior Court, after being charged as an adult in the case, according to the District Attorney's Office. The hate crime and aggravated mayhem charges, which carried a sentence of up to life in prison, were dropped.

The parents of Sasha Fleischman, who identifies as agender rather than as male or female, said in a statement that they had "mixed emotions" about the prison sentence. They have long fought to have Thomas tried in juvenile court, not as an adult.

"On the one hand, we are relieved that Sasha will not need to relive the events of past November in court. They are well on the road to recover and have moved to to the next chapter of their life," Fleischman's mother Debbie Crandall wrote.

"At the same time, our hearts go out to Richard and his family. Because of what seems to have been a childish, impulsive, tragic lack of judgement on the part of Richard, his and his family's lives have been altered even more severely than ours. We have stated before, and continue to believe, that a 16-year-old's actions, however severe the results, have no place in an adult judicial system."

Thomas had set Fleischman's skirt, and subsequently legs, on fire while riding AC Transit bus No. 57 in Oakland on Nov. 4, 2013. Fleischman, who was 18 at the time and a student at Maybeck High School in Berkeley, suffered second- and third-degree leg burns and spent nearly three weeks in the hospital. Surveillance video from the bus led to Thomas' arrest a few days after the attack.

District Attorney Nancy O'Malley charged the then-16-year-old with a hate crime, aggravated mayhem and felony assault. She also took the unusual step of charging the teen as an adult, a move Fleischman's family opposed. Thomas' family told reporters at one of his court hearings that he intended the act as "a joke."

Many in the Bay Area rallied around the agender teen, lining the streets with rainbows and wearing skirts to school, to show their support for Fleischman and the spectrum of gender identities.

Shortly after the arrest, Thomas' attorney William DuBois told NBC Bay Area that the teen hurt Fleischman as a prank, but he was not filled with hate.

"As a matter of fact, he doesn't even know how to spell homophobic, let alone be homophobic," DuBois said at the time."There are members of his family who are gay. He has absolutely not a homophobic bone in his body."

Just before Thomas turns 18 in July, a judge will be able to modify his sentence to five years if he has behaved well in prison, under the terms of the agreement with prosecutors.

NBC Bay Area legal analyst Steven Clark said Thomas should feel lucky.

“He was facing a life sentence because they first charged him with aggravated mayhem and a hate crime," Clark said. "He should be grateful for both the sentence and Sasha’s forgiveness.”

Former Arizona congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who was seriously injured in a 2011 shooting rampage, visited Connecticut on Thursday to help protect women from gun violence.

After a lengthy recovery from serious injuries, Giffords has become an unrelenting advocate for what she calls responsible gun laws. Today her campaign brought her to West Hartford as part of the Protect All Women tour, a national initiative focused on her campaign for stronger gun laws to defend women against gun violence.

“Dangerous people with guns are a threat to women,” Giffords said at a roundtable discussion at West Hartford’s Kingswood Oxford school on Thursday.

She was joined by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal and more than a dozen legislators and leaders in the fields of domestic violence and law enforcement.

“The message is very simple: Enough,” said Blumenthal.

Connecticut was the third stop on Giffords’ tour. The former congresswoman plans to visit nine states in nine days to raise awareness and encourage women to speak up, since the prevalence of domestic violence and the availability of guns often makes for a deadly combination.

“Women can lead the way. We stand for common sense. We stand for responsibility,” Giffords said.

Giffords is a co-founder of Americans for Responsible Solutions, which seeks to reduce gun violence and increase “sensible’ gun control legislation. She encouraged those on hand not to give up the fight, regardless of the setbacks.

“We can change our laws. We can win elections,” she said. “Please join your voice with mine.”

Traffic is backed up on the Wilbur Cross Parkway/Route 15 northbound in New Haven following a crash.

The northbound lanes were briefly closed between exits 58 and 59 Thursday evening. Police said minor injuries were reported in the crash.

No additional information was immediately available.

A roofing company based in East Haven has been cited for failing to protect its employees against deadly falls at a Bridgeport job site over the summer, and authorities say it’s not the first time the company has put employees in harm’s way.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, roofing contractors working for Xtreme Restoration & Waterproofing LLC “were exposed to potentially fatal falls at a Bridgeport work site due to their employer’s deliberate failure to supply required fall protection.”

DOL officials said the employees were working at the top of a two-story residence at 1040-1044 Stratford Avenue in Bridgeport on June 16. Some had no fall protection at all, while others wore safety harnesses that were not properly anchored, meaning there would have been nothing to catch them in the event of a fall.

“These hazards were intensified by allowing workers to use a ladder with broken and damaged rungs to access the roof and by failing to train employees to recognize and protect themselves against these hazards,” said Occupational Health and Safety Administration area director in Bridgeport, Robert Kowalski, in a statement Thursday.

Xtreme Restoration & Waterproofing, which is based on Short Beach Road in East Haven, according to the Better Business Bureau, was cited for a “willful violation for lack of fall protection” that was “committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard” for the law or with “plain indifference” to worker safety and health.

The company was previously cited in 2011 for a lack of fall protection training at a job site in Branford and so received a repeat violation as well.

OSHA also issued two “serious violation” for use of the broken ladder and for the company’s failure to train employees on ladder safeguards. “Serious violations” mean there is “substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known,” according to the DOL.

Xtreme Restoration & Waterproofing faces $70,070 in fines and has 15 business days to request an informal meeting with OSHA or contest its findings.

Friends and family will gather in Merdien Friday evening to remember the father and two children who died after a tractor-trailer struck their car on Interstate 95 in Waterford last weekend.

Three-year-old Dacari Robinson was pronounced dead at the scene Sunday. His father, 26-year-old Darin Robinson, and sister, 9-year-old Sanaa Reynolds, died at Yale-New Haven Hospital this week.

The children's mother, 25-year-old Baughnita Leary, was driving the car and remains hospitalized.

State police said the crash happened at 7 p.m. Sunday when a tractor-trailer – owned by Gold Medal Bakery, of Fall River, Massachusetts – crashed into the family's car on I-95 southbound.

Two other vehicles were also involved, but none of those occupants were seriously injured.

A vigil will be held at the Meriden City Park on Franklin Street Friday at 6 p.m.

Police have issued a Silver Alert for 5-year-old Sadelia Harvey, of Hartford, who is considered endangered and is believed to be with her mother, 31-year-old Sonia Harvey.

Sadelia and Sonia Harvey were reported missing on Oct. 15, according to police.

Sadelia was last seen wearing her school uniform: a burgundy-and-gray plaid dress, white T-shirt and black shoes. She's described as a black female with black hair and brown eyes standing 3 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 52 pounds.

Harvey is described as a black female with black hair and brown eyes. She stands 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 160 pounds. Police said Harvey has a tattoo of a heart with Sadelia's name written on it on her left arm.

Police have not released any information on the circumstances of their disappearance.

Anyone with information on their whereabouts is urged to contact Hartford police at 860-757-4138.

A 28-year-old East Hartford man is facing charges after leading officers on a foot chase through Old Saybrook and assaulting a police dog, authorities said.

Police said Jacoun Harden tried to cash a fraudulent check at the Essex Savings Bank around 3 p.m. Thursday and fled the scene when police arrived to confront him.

An officer and his K-9, Zeus, chased Harden in the area of Main Street and Maynard Road. As Zeus approached the suspect, Harden kicked him in the face, according to police.

The officer took Harden into custody a short distance away.

Harden will be charged with assault of a police canine, interfering with police and attempted larceny. Police said he is being held on bond.

Zeus was not injured and is back on duty.

A nurse's simple three-day trip from Dallas to Cleveland and back triggered a new batch of Ebola precautions Thursday by an airline, an Ohio bridal shop, nine schools and an untold number of people worried about the spread of the potentially deadly virus.

Amber Vinson, the second Dallas nurse to contract Ebola and one of 87 health care workers who cared for Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan before he died last week, is being treated at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta where two other Americans recovered from the virus.

Vinson traveled to Ohio last weekend to visit her mother and fiancé and plan her upcoming wedding. She flew to Cleveland Oct. 10 and back to the Metroplex Monday.

Officials in Dallas and in Ohio worked Thursday to ensure the virus didn't spread.

Ohio health investigators are trying to track down people who visited Akron bridal shop Coming Attractions when Vinson was there with friends Saturday afternoon and set up a hotline for customers who may have been exposed. The shop's owners voluntarily shuttered it after Vinson was diagnosed.

Frontier Airlines, which Vinson flew to and from Cleveland, began taking precautions Thursday to protect its customers on seven flights as well.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials said Thursday that they contacted and interviewed 105 of the 132 people on Vinson's flight from Cleveland to DFW Monday, Frontier Flight 1143, and advised several passengers who were near her on the plane will be monitored by health officials for symptoms.

CDC Director of Public Affairs Dr. Barbara Reynolds said that passengers on Monday's flight will be split into two groups:

• Those who sat close to Vinson: A few passengers, who the CDC wil interview about their potential exposure to Vinson on the flight and be monitored for fever and other symptoms for 21 days.
• People at low risk: The majority of passengers, who the CDC will simpley inform.

Any other monitoring or movement restrictions will be imposed by local or state health officials.

The airline also reached out to passengers on Vinson's flight from DFW to Cleveland, even though she was asymptomatic at the time, the airline said Thursday afternoon.

"We can't rule out that she might have had the start of her illness on Friday," Dr. Chris Braden of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, citing new information developed by investigators tracing all of Vinson's contacts. "This new information is saying we need to go back now to the flight she took on Friday the 10th and include them in our investigation of contacts."

Before returning to Dallas Oct. 13, Vinson called the CDC to report a low-grade fever, a symptom of Ebola. She was not told that she could not fly back to Dallas-Fort Worth, the CDC and Associated Press reported Wednesday.

A day after Vinson landed, she was hospitalized after testing positive for Ebola. Officials flew Vinson, who donned a hazmat bubble suit, to Atlanta Wednesday to be treated at Emory University Hospital.

Vinson's mother remained in Dallas, under voluntary quarantine, and is being monitored for symptoms.

Airline Tracks Passengers Who May Have Been Exposed

Frontier officials also want to talk to about 750 additional passengers who flew on the same plane on five subsequent flights before Vinson was diagnosed to let them know they may be at low risk for infection.

Those five flights included Flight 2042 from D/FW to Cleveland, Flight 1104 from Cleveland to Fort Lauderdale, Flight 1105 from Fort Lauderdale to Cleveland, Flight 1101 from Cleveland to Atlanta and Flight 1100 from Atlanta to Cleveland.

Frontier said Thursday the CDC has no concerns that these passengers are at risk, but they should contact local health authorities if they have any concerns.

In addition to the typical nightly cleaning at the end of the service day, the plane was also cleaned after the airline was notified about Vinson's condition. It was then flown to the airline's hub at Denver International Wednesday, where airline officials said seat covers and carpet in the vicinity of Vinson's seat were being removed.

The six-member crew that worked on Vinson's flight has already been removed from duty and placed on paid leave for 21 days while its members self-monitor for Ebola symptoms.

Schools in Texas, Ohio React to Ebola Threat

Central Texas' Belton Independent School District closed three campuses Thursday after learning that two students were on the same flight as Vinson. The schools, the North Belton Middle School, Sparta Elementary School and Early Childhood School, will all be cleaned.

The Eagle Mountain-Saginaw Independent School District said the parent of a student was on the same flight and that the family is under voluntary quarantine for 21 days and will self-monitor for symptoms.

The district said on its website they disinfected the school twice out of an abundance of caution. Tarrant County Public Health said the district chose to do that, there was no request or requirement because no one has presented symptoms of the disease.

The parents of four Garland Independent School District students who attended North Garland High School and Schrade Middle School were aboard the flight with Vinson. All parents have been in contact with the CDC and have been assured their seating location was in a no-risk area. The schools are being cleaned as a precaution.

Two people in Lewisville related to three students and a staff member in the Lewisville Independent School District were also on Vinson's flight. According to the CDC they were at minimal risk of exposure to Ebola and, according to Dr. Matt Richardson with the Denton County Health Department, there is no need to quarantine anyone or close a school. The names of the schools have not been released by the district or Denton County Health Department.

In Royse City, two schools are being closed for cleaning because a family member with children at Davis Elementary and Ruth Cherry Intermediate schools is a nurse at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas and worked on one of the Ebola cases.

"We chose to do what we did. No one told us to," Royse City Indpendent School District Superintendent Kevin Worthy said. "We’re doing it to show our parents and our community we’re committed to the safety of our students."

Worthy said the buses and other seven school buildings will be cleaned during the weekend.

“We’re wiping down keyboards, desks, handrails, flooring, doing everything we can," he said. “It’s important to send a message to our parents and our students and our faculty that we take this serious."

Additionally, two schools in the Cleveland area were closed Thursday after it was confirmed a middle school staff member traveled on a different Frontier flight from Dallas to Cleveland that may have been the same aircraft on which Vinson traveled.

NBC 5's Chris Van Horne, Sam Schulz and Todd L. Davis contributed to this report.

Police are looking for a couple who has allegedly been scamming strangers in New York City into giving them thousands of dollars in cash as part of an elaborate fake-lottery winnings plot. 

In each case, a woman approaches a victim and claims to be an undocumented immigrant with a winning lottery ticket, according to police. The woman asks the victim if they could help cash the winning ticket.

Then a second suspect, a well-dressed man who sometimes carries a Bible, swoops in and offers to help, claiming to know a lawyer who could help claim the lottery winnings and split the money, police said. The man says the lawyer would require money up front, and that's when the victim is persuaded into giving up cash. 

The victims were approached in Manhattan and Brooklyn from March through August, and the suspects have gotten anywhere from $450 to $6,000 in cash from each victim, plus up to $3,600 worth of jewelry, according to police. 

The victims were all women, ranging in age from 28 to 81. 

The male suspect is described as being in his 50s, about 5 feet 3 inches in height with a slim build. The female suspect is in her 40s to 50s, about 4 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 3 inches tall and known to wear a wig. 

Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS. 

An irate group of women, armed with mace and a baseball bat, went after a school bus full of children along the Roosevelt Boulevard in Northeast Philadelphia Thursday afternoon, leaving a teenage student cut up from broken glass, police say.

“For someone to get out of a vehicle and use a baseball bat and break a window of a yellow school bus knowing that it’s full of students – that’s pretty bizarre,” said Philadelphia Chief Inspector Scott Small.

The apparent road rage incident occurred around 3 p.m. when the bus stopped for a red light in the southbound lanes of the Boulevard (U.S. Route 1) near Levick Street, according to Philadelphia Police.

An initial investigation revealed that a group of 14- and 15-year-olds -- 21 students in total -- on the bus began yelling at a Chevrolet Tahoe full of women.

“There was some verbal argument between the students on the bus as well as four occupants of the Chevy Tahoe,” said Small.

The women became angry and pulled their green SUV in front of the bus, blocking its path, said police.

Two women then got out of the SUV and began attacking the outside of the bus using a baseball bat and mace, said investigators. During the attack the women sprayed mace onto the front of the bus and broke the window directly behind the bus driver, sending broken glass onto a student who injured his wrists. Police said that student is expected to be OK.

The unidentified driver of the Tahoe and her passenger got back into her vehicle and drove off down Horrocks Street, said investigators.

Police said there was no indication the women also tried to board the bus.

The bus stopped a short time later across the street from Gilbert Pruance Elementary School at Horrocks and Hellerman streets. The school nurse then treated the injured student and sent him on his way.

It wasn't clear what school the students attend, but they apparently don't attend school in Philadelphia.

Investigators continued to search for the Tahoe and its driver Thursday evening. It wasn't clear if the on-board bus video were operational at the time of the attack.

The 14-month-old old boy critically injured in a crash on Route 20 in Granby last week has died, according to police.

Police said Thursday that the child, Landon Ayers, has died at Connecticut Children's Medical Center. He was in critical condition following a crash the morning of Oct. 9.

According to police, Landon's father, 24-year-old Kevin Ayers, of East Granby, was driving a 2008 Pontiac sedan eastbound on Route 20 and Daniel Genie, 26, of Springfield, Massachusetts, was driving a 2000 Ford armored truck heading westbound when the vehicles collided.

Ayers had to be extricated from the car and a LifeStar helicopter airlifted him to Hartford Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition after surgery. Police said Thursday that Ayers remains hospitalized.

Landon was in a car seat in the back of the car. He was rushed to Connecticut Children's Medical Center in critical condition and died Thursday.

Ambulances took Genie and a passenger in the armored car, a Christopher Rosado, 23, to Hartford Hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Police said Thursday they have been treated and released.

Police are investigating and said no charges have been filed. 

A Harvard college student who finally got permission to return to the U.S. after he took his dying mother to Mexico spoke to NBC4 Los Angeles on Wednesday about his journey home.

Dario Guerrero Meneses, 21, and his mother left Long Beach in July to find medical help in Mexico when chemotherapy had failed, aware that his illegal status could prevent him from ever returning to United States once he left.

Meneses was granted permission to return home Tuesday.

"I was immensely relieved, because for a second I was starting to believe I would be stuck here for more months, maybe years," Meneses said.

Thanks to a humanitarian parole order, Meneses thinks he'll be back in Long Beach in a week or two.

"We're just counting the days," he said.

Meneses, who came to the U.S. illegally, was granted reprieve from deportation in 2012 under the Dream Act. When Meneses left the U.S. without getting permission to leave, he violated those terms. When he tried to return, his attempts were denied.

He risked never being able to return to the U.S. by going to Mexico -- a decision he says he will never regret.

He was by his mother's side when she died in August.

"What I wanted my mom to know is that she was first in my thoughts, always," Meneses said. "It's unfortunate that I couldn't do more for her, but I'm glad i was able to with her for her journey."

He wants to turn his journey into a documentary he hopes will inspire change.

"Many sway, some people who have a skewed view of what being undocumented means and who the undocumented people in the United States are, what kind of people they are," Meneses said. "What I hope to achieve by sharing my story is to give at least some of the undocumented students hope, hope that they can actually make a future for themselves in the United States, and hope that things will be OK."
 

A new hotline provides support to Spanish-speaking victims of domestic violence who otherwise may not have been connected to a Spanish speaker when calling for help.

"Many people would give up and hang up," explained Sharlene Kerelejza, executive director of Meriden-Wallingford Chrysalis. "So while we had mechanisms though Language Line to connect folks to services, it would take a while."

Kerelejza said one third of her agency's cases involve Latinos. With the help of $150,000 from the state government, the new hotline could save lives, advocates say.

"For the Latino community, 'confianza,' which is trust, is very big," said Wendy Mota Kazonga, of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence. "Until they're able to really connect to someone, it's hard for them to express... the situation that they're in."

She said it's not just about language, but also culture.

The new Spanish number, 844-831-9200, runs round the clock like the English hotline, 888-774-2900. Domestic violence victims can call either hotline to be connected to the appropriate personnel.

All services are toll-free and confidential.

A Southern California community college evacuated part of its campus after a student told an instructor she and her family had been quarantined for possible exposure to Ebola — a story she made up so she would not be dropped for missing class, school officials say.

Students at Southwestern College in Chula Vista were evacuated Thursday morning after the student contacted her instructor to report why she had been absent. She told her professor she wasn't feeling well and her sister was hospitalized after a trip to the Midwest.

As a precaution, school officials shut down one building and sent a safety alert via text to all students and staff, according to Public Information Officer Lillian Leopold.

The student was isolated, and about 50 other students and two faculty members were kept inside the building as the San Diego County Department of Health and Human Services was notified.

Officials quickly brought in a school nurse to evaluate the student.

"Our campus nurse has thoroughly examined the student, and there is no expectation of Ebola," Leopold said.

After the student was found to have no infectious disease, she recanted her story and admitted no one in her family has been in the hospital. The Associated Press reported that she made up the story so she would not be dropped because of her absence.

"This is now a student conduct manner and will be treated in accordance with the district's policy and procedures," a release from Leopold stated.

The university was following protocols in place that include contacting county officials as well as Chula Vista Police and Chula Vista Fire.

“Help us communicate that Southwestern is OK,” Cash said.

Second year student Michael Hall told NBC 7 that he was in Room 472. He said the student was in Room 471 and then moved to a teacher’s office.

History professor Laura Ryan arrived to campus Thursday morning and was told not to go to her normal classroom, room 471. She said other faculty and union members told her it was being cordoned off by students and faculty.

Ryan said approximately eight of her students were held in a hallway.

Southwestern College posted this message via Facebook:

"A precaution has been taken regarding a student whose family member reported flu-like symptoms and was hospitalized. The Campus Police have cordoned off the 470 area. The County Department of Health has been called and is in transit to assess the situation."

Images posted to social media by students showed a large number of students still on campus but standing outside buildings.

Check back for updates on this developing story. Send breaking news images or video to isee@nbcsandiego.com or hashtag #NBC7 on Instagram. 

Emergency crews are responding to a fire at 11 Randolph Street in Enfield, according to dispatchers.

No additional information was immediately available.

Check back for updates.

Children at Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital are getting ready to trick-or-treat thanks to costume donations that will help them keep the Halloween spirit alive.

"It's kind of nice that we get to make the hospital stay kind of fun," said Laci Gardner, whose 3-year-old daughter, Jasmine, will most likely still be in the hospital on Halloween.

Jasmine picked out an elaborate wig to wear because, she said, it makes her feel like a princess.

Other young patients chose pirate suits, superhero capes and ninja outfits donated by a national costume company. Patients can take the costumes home or wear them in the hospital's parade on halloween.

"I already got my costume," boasted patient Edwin Gonzalez. "I'm a wrestler."

Janice Baker, who runs the art healing program at the hospital, said fun activities help distract children from the difficult treatments many must undergo.

"It's time for families to be together and to do simple crafts of think about what they're going to be for Halloween this year," Baker explained.

Police are searching for the masked man who tried to rob a bank employee when she closed the Nutmeg State Federal Credit Union in East Windsor on Thursday evening.

Authorities believe the suspect is responsible for robbing the bank in July and have offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.

According to police, the suspect waited in his car outside the bank at 137 Prospect Hill Road around 7 p.m. and tried to force her back inside the bank, pulling out a handgun.

The employee ran and the suspect tackled her, pushing her to the ground and pointing the gun at the her.

Police said an off-duty officer was at a restaurant nearby when he hear the victim's screams and ran over, scaring off the suspect.

The victim suffered minor injuries. Police said the suspect didn't get away with any of her belongings.

He's described as standing over 6 feet tall and was wearing a black ski mask, blue hooded sweatshirt, gray sweatpants and black gloves. He was driving a silver hatchback with Massachusetts plates.

Anyone with information is urged to call East Windsor police at 860-292-8240.

Sixth-grade student Alex Kadish did a double take at school today when he looked over his shoulder and who should be standing behind him but his father, who has spent the past six months on active duty in Qatar.

Tech Sgt. Matt Kadish surprised his son by sneaking in behind him during an assembly at Hartford Christian Academy. When the 11-year-old spotted his dad, he ran into his arms and wouldn't let go.

Alex's mom, Trish, said her son was diagnosed with Asperger's over the summer, and even though Kadish has been away before, this deployment was the most difficult for Alex, who missed him terribly.

Alex said he's been praying for his dad and hoping for his safe return. Now that those prayers have been answered, Alex says he plans to "hug him... hug him a lot."

The other students who gathered for the emotional reunion surprised Alex, his dad and his mom with a sentimental rendition of "God Bless America."

Father and son hugged throughout the song.

A man crawled through the window of a home in downtown Meriden early Wednesday morning and sexually assaulted a 10-year-old girl who was sleeping, according to police.

Police said the girl woke up other family members and told them what had happened. Her mother caught a glimpse of the suspect just as he was leaving the house.

The suspect is described as a black man in his mid 40s with a scratch on his cheek. Police said he wore his hair in braids or dreadlocks and was wearing tall black boots and a black hooded sweatshirt. He did not use a weapon.

Meriden police will not disclose whether the suspect knew the family and have not released the location of the home.

Police are analyzing evidence found at the scene and are following all leads.

Anyone with information about the attack is urged to contact Meriden police.