Pennsylvania cancer-stricken girl who got caroling wish dies

  FPN News Berks County,Pa

 

WEST READING, Pa. -- A terminally ill eastern Pennsylvania girl who received support from thousands of Christmas carolers over the weekend has died.

Family spokesman Christopher Winters says 8-year-old Delaney Brown of West Reading "passed away quietly with her loving family by her side" early Christmas morning.
He says the family is requesting privacy now "to celebrate their daughter's life and to mourn her loss."
Delaney, nicknamed Laney, was diagnosed in May with a rare form of leukemia.
Thousands gathered outside her home Saturday night to fulfill her wish for a huge holiday singalong.
An update posted on the "Team Laney" Facebook page says, "My heart breaks right now. Our little angel on earth earned her pink glittery angel wings in heaven. ... I miss her so much already."

Laney made a wish for her neighbors to lift their voices in holiday songs after doctors recently gave her days to live.
"Especially with this time of the year, with her birthday yesterday and Christmas next week, I can't even fathom what they're going through," said Mayor Shane Keller, West Reading.
Tens of thousands have liked her "Team Laney" Facebook page where her family posted updates on her condition.
"Just the different stories her mother has posted regularly showing her strength, her courage, her humor - this is heartbreaking. All she wants is carols and we can do that," said Megan McGee.
Another wish Laney had was to meet pop star and Berks County native Taylor Swift.
Friday night, as her family celebrated her 8th birthday, Laney's wish was granted when the two had a video chat.
Laney was also recognized by the Pennsylvania State Senate and House of Representatives as an ambassador of hope and inspiration as she brings more awareness to childhood cancer.
As so many people walked by Laney's family, including her mother, Team Laney posted a picture saying "I can hear you now...love you."
It's safe to say the little girl heard more than Christmas carols - she heard prayers from the community.
"Just to put her mark on the world as she did in these 8 years is something that I think should make her family very proud," said Melanie Searfoss.
Laney's mother and father thanked the community for its overwhelming support.

(Copyright ©2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Irvington night club shooting kills 3 men

  Eyewitness News

IRVINGTON, N.J. (WABC) -- Police are searching for the gunman involved in a shooting outside a night club in Irvington New Jersey, that left three men dead and two others wounded.

The gunfire erupted at the door of Slick's Go Go Bar on Nye Avenue just after 12:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Police say a dispute with a bouncer at the front door sparked the shooting, which killed the bouncer and the son of the club's owner. A third person, possibly a friend of the gunman, may have been caught in the crossfire.
''It appears the gunman was trying to enter the bar armed and was stopped by the bouncer," said Chief Anthony Ambrose of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.
Two of the dead have been identified. They are Pierre Clervoyant, 34, of Elizabeth and Woodley Daniel, 32, of Irvington.
Two other people were shot, a 27 year old male from Irvington and a 34 year old male from East Orange, and were taken to University Hospital.
Witnesses said about 100 people were in the club at the time. The witnesess heard 7 to 15 shots fired right after some fighting on the steps of the club.
Police say one man fled the scene in a grey vehicle. So far there have been no arrests.
The Essex County Sheriff's Crimestoppers Program is offering up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect.
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(Copyright ©2013 WABC-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

Different Paths, Same Goal: NFC East Comes Down To Eagles, Cowboys

Different Paths, Same Goal: NFC East Comes Down To Eagles, Cowboys

Tight end Brent Celek #87 of the Philadelphia Eagles makes a first down catch and is tackled by linebacker Sean Lee #50 of the Dallas Cowboys

So it has all come down to one game. On Sunday night the Philadelphia Eagles will look to fire back at the Dallas Cowboys after being defeated at home by the NFC East division rivals earlier this season. The Eagles and Cowboys have traveled different paths to get to this NFC East Division winner-take-all finale and both look to be a little different from last time they locked horns on the field.

Here’s a brief rundown of what the Dallas Cowboys have been up to since mid-October.

For full story go to:  http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Salvation Army Toy Giveaway in West Phila. Makes Children’s Christmases Brighter

Salvation Army Toy Giveaway in West Phila. Makes Children’s Christmases Brighter

Maj. Hester Dixon helps a client select appropriate toys for a child at the Salvation Army giveaway in Wynnefield.
 
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — More than 500 Philadelphia families fulfilled their children’s Christmas wishes today with the help of the Salvation Army’s annual toy giveaway.

One client, Brett, left looking like Santa Claus himself, a giant sack of toys on his back.

“The thing that amazes me,” he said, “when we first came in and saw the magnitude of gifts and stuff that  they have here to be given to the different families, we thought it was pretty nice.  That’s why we’re glad we’re a part of it.  And they did help our family out.”

For full story go to:  http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

Mayor Nutter Lends a Hand Again For ‘Operation Holiday Help’ Giveaway

Mayor Nutter Lends a Hand Again For ‘Operation Holiday Help’ Giveaway

“Unity in the Community” founder Anton Moore, center, assists Santa and his elves in loading up toys to be delivered to needy families.
 
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Mayor Nutter joined Santa today for an early delivery of Christmas presents to a half-dozen Philadelphia families.

“Gracious God. We come to you to say thank you…”

With that invocation, a U-Haul truck loaded with gifts and a caravan of honorary elves began their trek through South Philadelphia.

This is the fourth year for “Operation Holiday Help” by the group Unity in the Community, and Mayor Nutter liked the reactions of recipients last year.

For full story go to:  http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/

The race of Jesus: Unknown, yet powerful

The race of Jesus: Unknown, yet powerful 

FILE - In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2013 file photo, a pedestrian walks her bicycle past a silhouette of Jesus Christ projected against the Cathedral-Basilica of Saint Louis King of France in New Orleans, two days ahead of the NFL Super Bowl football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens. "I find it fascinating that that's what people really want to know _ what race was Jesus. That's says a lot about us, about Americans today," says Edward Blum, co-author of "The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America."

For two thousand years, he has been worshipped and adored. Multitudes look to him each day. And yet nobody really knows the face of Jesus.

That has not stopped humanity's imagination, or its yearning to draw Jesus as close as possible. So when this Christmas season brought a torrent of debate over whether Jesus was a white man, it struck a sacred nerve.

"That statement carries a whole lot of baggage," said Rockwell Dillaman, pastor of the Allegheny Center Alliance Church in Pittsburgh. "Political baggage, spiritual baggage, emotional baggage. Especially in a culture like ours where the relations of white people to other ethnicities has often been marked by injustice and 

distrust."

Why should we even care what Jesus looked like? If his message is God and love, isn't his race irrelevant? 

Some say God wanted it that way, since there are no references to Jesus' earthly appearance in the Bible.

But the debate was a reminder of just how difficult it is for anyone to transcend race - even a historical figure widely considered to be beyond human.

"I find it fascinating that that's what people really want to know - what race was Jesus. That says a lot about us, about Americans today," said Edward Blum, co-author of "The Color of Christ: The Son of God and the Saga of Race in America."

"Jesus said lots of things about himself - I am divine, I am the son of man, I am the light of the world," Blum said. "What race is light? How do you racially categorize that?"

Jesus can be safely categorized as a Jew, born about 2,000 years ago in the Middle East in what is now Palestinian territory. Therefore, many scholars believe that Jesus must have looked "Arab," with brownish skin.

"Today, in our categories, we would probably think of him as a person of color," said Doug Jacobsen, a professor of church history and theology at Messiah College.

That view was contested by Fox News host Megyn Kelly while critiquing a Slate.com column titled "Santa Claus Should Not Be a White Man Anymore."

"Jesus was a white man, too," Kelly said, launching a national discussion about history, tradition and just how white Christmas should be.

Her statement drew responses from impassioned rebukes to scholarly rebuttals.

"It's just an incorrect statement," Jacobsen said. "It's an ignorant statement, not an intentionally false statement."

Wrote Jonathan Merritt in The Atlantic: "If he were taking the red-eye flight from San Francisco to New York today, Jesus might be profiled for additional security screening."

If this is so obvious, though, why does a Google image search for "Jesus" reveal countless pictures of a European man with straight hair, fair skin and, often, blue eyes? Why is that the prevalent image in America, from stained glass windows to movies to children's books?

The first pictures of Jesus appeared several hundred years after his death, Blum said. Some depicted him in animal form, as a lion or a lamb. Blum said that from about 700 to 1500 A.D., various Jesus images proliferated throughout Europe, the Middle East and northern Africa - including hosts of black Jesus pictures.

"People in every culture portray Jesus looking like people they knew," said Jacobsen. "They depict him as one of their own."

Dillaman, the pastor, has a book that offers Bible images from different world cultures - a last supper where everyone is Thai; images of Jesus as Chinese or African.

"All these ethnicities are trying to capture Jesus in their own skin, if you will," he said.

But in humanity's yearning to identify with the holy, another path gets overlooked.

"Our calling is to know God as he is and to love God with all of our being and be conformed to the image of Christ," Dillaman said, "rather than to make him look like us."

By the 1500s, Blum said, 90 percent of Christians were European. As Europe colonized the globe, they took white Jesus with them.

In America, white Jesus images started to become widespread in the early 1800s, according to Blum, coinciding with a dramatic rise in the number of slaves, a push to move Native Americans further west, and a growing manufacturing capability.

Today, a white Jesus image is ingrained in American culture. "When we live in a world with a billion images of white Jesus, we can say he wasn't white all we want, but the individual facts of our world say something different," Blum said.

"Jesus is white without words. It's at the assumption level," Blum said. "Lodged deep down inside is this assumption that Jesus was a white man. That's where I think (Kelly) is speaking from."

There also is a desire to fit Jesus into modern racial classifications. In America today, this logic goes, Jews are white. Jesus was a Jew, so Jesus must be white.

Yet Jews did not originate in Europe, and for centuries were considered to belong to a non-white race of their own. Only recently have they been moved into America's "white" column, along with Irish and Italians.

"The categories of white and black, coming out of the American experience, it just doesn't make a lot of sense to apply them to Jesus," said Joseph Curran, an associate professor of religion at Misericordia University.

"The best inference is what part of the world he was from - he looked like a Palestinian because he was from that part of the world," Curran said. "Does that mean he was black or white? I don't think those categories matter much."

For Carol Swain, a scholar of race at Vanderbilt University and a "Bible-believing follower of Jesus Christ," the whole debate is totally irrelevant.

"Whether he's white, black, Hispanic, whatever you want to call him, what's important is that people find meaning in his life," Swain said.

"As Christians we believe that he died on the cross for the redemption of our sins," she said. "To me that's the only part of the story that matters - not what skin color he was."

Health care site put to the test as deadline nears

Health care site put to the test as deadline nears

Lisa Donlea, 41, of Irvine, Calif., holds her breath and hopes the Covered California enrollment site will go to the next step, Monday, Dec. 23, 2013, in Laguna, Calif. It did after 12 minutes. The federal health insurance exchange enrollment took nearly two hours for Donlea and a counselor to complete due to the website's slowness.

CHICAGO (AP) -- The government's retooled health care website was put to its biggest test yet as record numbers of Americans rushed to beat Tuesday's extended deadline for signing up for insurance.

After a disastrous, glitch-filled rollout in October, HealthCare.gov, where people in 36 states can shop for coverage, received 2 million visits Monday, its highest one-day total, the government said.

Traffic was not as heavy on Tuesday but still high, White House spokeswoman Tara McGuinness said. She had no immediate estimate of visitors or how many succeeded in obtaining insurance.

"The site is performing well under intense consumer traffic," said Kurt DelBene, a former Microsoft executive appointed last week to take over management of the online marketplace. "With the highest volumes we have seen to date, response time is fast and the error rating is low."

Error rates were lower than 1 in 200, and pages loaded quickly, in less than a half-second, officials said.

For a multitude of reasons, including technical difficulties with the site or trouble understanding the instructions, thousands of people sought telephone help and wound up waiting on hold on Christmas Eve at the government's call center.

Ian Stewart of Salt Lake City said he and his wife, both students, had been trying for weeks to complete their application on the federal site, thwarted by computer error messages each time.

On Tuesday morning, while visiting relatives in Colorado for Christmas, they reached a call center counselor who succeeded in enrolling them. The "silver" plan they chose will cost them $241 a month after a cost-lowering tax credit.

"We're relieved that we got it working, elated that we got insurance again and very frustrated that it took this long," Stewart said.

More than 110,000 people had called the government's help line by Tuesday afternoon, with wait times averaging 27 minutes, officials said. On Monday, the call center received more than 250,000 calls, a one-day record.

Monday was the sign-up deadline for people wanting coverage at the start of the new year. But the Obama administration pushed back the deadline a day to deal with heavy traffic from procrastinators.

"We see this intense traffic as a sign that people are eager for affordable health insurance," said Julie Bataille, a spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency in charge of the overhaul.

After the one-day grace period was announced, critics of President Barack Obama's signature program seized on the latest in a string of delays and reversals as more evidence that the overhaul is in trouble.

"The amazing, ever-expanding deadline? It's clearly a sign of desperation by the administration to do everything they can to increase the number of people signing up," said health economist Gail Wilensky, who ran Medicare for President George H.W. Bush.

The website went through extensive hardware and software upgrades to make it more reliable and increase its capacity.

When the number of simultaneous users reached 60,000 on Monday, site operators employed a queuing system that allows people to either wait or give an email address to be invited back later, the government said. More than 129,000 users gave their email.

On Tuesday, traffic wasn't heavy enough to trigger the system, McGuinness said in the afternoon.

Many states operate their own online marketplaces for buying coverage, and some of them also extended their deadlines.

The insurance industry, too, has pushed back deadlines for payment, with most health plans allowing customers to pay by Jan. 10 and still get coverage retroactive to Jan. 1.

"With deadlines that keep changing, insurers want to alleviate confusion," said Robert Zirkelbach, spokesman for America's Health Insurance Plans. "Health plans are going to do everything they can to help consumers with the enrollment process."

Obama said late last week that more than 1 million Americans had enrolled for coverage since Oct. 1.

The administration's estimates call for 3.3 million to sign up by Dec. 31, and the target is 7 million by the end of March. After that, people who fail to buy coverage can face tax penalties.

 

Macy's has a black Santa, by special request

(CNN) -- 'Twas two nights before Christmas, and I headed down to find Santa in Macy's flagship store in Herald Square, New York City -- the one famously known to be on 34th Street.

The blog Animal New York had reported that this store has a separate, "special" Santa who is black.

It's unclear how long this tradition has lasted, but one woman told CNN affiliate WCBS she's been taking her kids to see this special Santa for 10 years.

This year, however, there's special significance. Santa's race became the focal point of a debate sparked by Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly's comments that "Santa just is white."

So CNN wanted to see this "special" Santa for ourselves.

After seeking assistance from a helpful employee, I rode the escalators to the 8th floor and quickly found crowds of people and merry elves at the entrance to the North Pole.

There were no signs indicating any special, separate line or suggesting that you could have your picture taken with an African-American Santa.

"Is there a special Santa?" I asked one of the first elves I saw.

"We only have one," he responded. "Do you think the line would be this long if we had two?" Then the elf went back to spreading Christmas cheer to children in line.

I braced myself for the two-hour estimated wait.

At the entrance of the line, I asked another elf whether there was a "special" Santa I could see.

"There is a special Santa. He's black," she said. Everyone waits in the same line, so I would have to ask for him at the end, she said.

The treacherous path to the North Pole, lined with exhausted parents and clamoring children, wove through the store, down "PersonELF Only" hallways and even snaked through Macy's Human Resources waiting room.

Most of the kids around me were patient and excited. I overheard them tell their parents they wanted toy Jeeps and Kindle Fires from Santa.

Perhaps it was the fear of being put on the naughty list with less than 48 hours until Christmas that made some of the children surprisingly subdued.

"You can't go and see Santa with untied shoelaces!" one mother told her son. He tied them.

After an hour and a half, the kids started to grow a bit rambunctious. Sometimes, one parent would leave to get the group Starbucks while the other would hold the place in line.

Once I made it inside the North Pole, I asked another elf to make sure I didn't need to divert to see "special" Santa. She assured me all I would have to do was ask for him at the end of the line.

Finally, I arrived at the end of the line and made my request.

Almost all the elves I encountered seemed to know what I meant by "special" Santa. They ushered me just to the side while an elf went to see whether he was ready.

While I waited, 25 families were brought in, escorted by elves, to three separate areas to see Santas. Presumably, the Santas are hidden in separate areas so that no child sees more than one.

During my wait, I made friends with an elf who was, amazingly, even cheerier and more helpful than all the others I met along the way. The kids were mesmerized by all the elves' joy.

My new elf friend told me that my Santa needed a "costume change." After about 10 minutes, he was ready for me.

I headed to a room towards the back -- a fourth route where none of the other 25 families had gone.

In the quiet room was a black Santa, jolly as could be. He asked me what I wanted for Christmas and even urged me to ask for more..

We each wished the other a Merry Christmas, and I was escorted out.

Before leaving, I ran into the first elf I had seen. I asked him why there aren't any signs or notice for the "special" Santa. "I have no idea, that's a Macy's thing," the black elf said.

I asked him whether he thinks Macy's should publicize the "special" Santa. "I have no idea," the elf said. "I just show up and have a good time and shine shiny things."

When reached for comment, Macy's VP of Media Relations Elina Kazan said, "At Macy's, we have upheld the tradition and believe in our hearts that there is only one Santa Claus, and that Santa is all things to all people who believe in the spirit and goodness of Santa."

"I think it's kind of ridiculous," said Macy's customer Harold Buisson of Brooklyn, New York. "It just adds to more division in my mind because if you just put them all out in the same place, then it would just be a choice of whoever walks up as opposed to a form of segregation, which is the way it seems like."

But others express appreciation to Macy's.

"I could have gone anywhere, but I came right here to Macy's because I knew they had an African-American Santa," Elizabeth Kittles, who brought her sons to see the black Santa, told WCBS.

CNN's Julie Cannold contributed to this report.

Police search for killer of teen in Newark

NEWARK (WABC) -- A killer on the loose in Newark. This time cops in that city are looking for the gunman who shot and killed a teenager.

Police say 18-year-old college freshman Reginald Terry was apparently caught in the middle of a fight over the weekend. And for that, it cost him his life.
Everyone who knew that 18 year old man thought he would be the one who'd get his college degree be a success and escape the violence here. Everyone who knew Reginald Terry thought he was too good and smart too.
Star Newark Central high school player Reginald Terry was an honor student everyone thought would make it out of town alive he and his family knew the danger living here something he promised his mom he'd do something about.
"He wanted to get out of Newark just because of this. I want to be something to get him out of Newark," said Leandra Terry, Reginald's mother.
He met friends on Christmas break and got caught in someone else's crossfire leaving a downtown party.
Some kids that I used to coach went the right way, and some went the wrong way. My son went the right way," said Reginald Terry Sr.
Friends who've known him since childhood stunned Reginald would become another gun statistic after he spent so much time studying and helping others escape the violence.
"Since I've been away in college I've seen kids dropping left and right," said Sade Corprew.
Police are offering a reward to find the killer.
In Reginald's college essay he wrote his years in Newark were horrible because of all the killings. He said he wouldn't be like everyone else, that he'd chose his own destiny and be successful.

(Copyright ©2013 WABC-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

Homeless Man Beating Caught On Video

Los Angeles Local News | FOX 11 LA KTTV

Venice, CA - WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO. Police need your help in identifying the men who attacked a transient man.
Police are taking a close look at a disturbing video in which a homeless man is being viciously attacked by two men.  It happened last Friday morning in the 1300 block of Ocean Front Walk near Horizon Avenue in Venice.  Detectives say the attack, which was caught on camera, was unprovoked. They don't know the motive for the beating.
Two men strike the homeless man repeatedly with a folding chair and kick him  over and over. The video was taken by a Venice resident  who heard the commotion, went to the window and videotaped the attack. He also called 9-1-1.
The victim was taken to a local hospital for his injuries and he was released. Anyone with information about this attack are asked to contact the LAPD.

 

AP poll: Obama health care overhaul top 2013 story

AP poll: Obama health care overhaul top 2013 story

FILE - This Nov. 29, 2013 file photo shows part of the HealthCare.gov website on a computer screen in Washington. The White House had hoped the Oct. 1, 2013 launch of open enrollment would be a showcase for the upside of Obama's much-debated overhaul. Instead, the website became a symbol of dysfunction. The site gradually improved, but a wave of cancellation notices from insurers undercut Obama's oft-repeated promise that people who liked their existing coverage could keep it.

NEW YORK (AP) -- The glitch-plagued rollout of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul was the top news story of 2013, followed by the Boston Marathon bombing and the dramatic papal changeover at the Vatican, according to The Associated Press' annual poll of U.S. editors and news directors.

The saga of "Obamacare" - as the Affordable Care Act is widely known - received 45 first-place votes out of the 144 ballots cast for the top 10 stories. The marathon bombing received 29 first-place votes and the papal transition 21.

Other strong contenders were the bitter partisan conflict in Congress and the leaks about National Security Agency surveillance by former NSA analyst Edward Snowden.

Last year, the top story was the massacre of 26 children and staff at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn. That result came after a rare decision by the AP to re-conduct the voting; the initial round of balloting had ended Dec. 13, a day before the Newtown shooting, with the 2012 election at the top.

The first AP top-stories poll was conducted in 1936, when editors chose the abdication of Britain's King Edward VIII.

Here are 2013's top 10 stories, in order:

HEALTH CARE OVERHAUL: The White House had hoped the Oct. 1 launch of open enrollment would be a showcase for the upside of Obama's much-debated overhaul. Instead, the website became a symbol of dysfunction, providing Republicans and late-night comics with ammunition, and worrying the president's Democratic allies. The site gradually improved, but a wave of cancellation notices from insurers undercut Obama's oft-repeated promise that people who liked their existing coverage could keep it.

BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING: In seconds, a scene of celebration transformed into one of carnage, as two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon in April. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured, including at least 16 who lost limbs. Authorities soon identified two suspects - 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, who died in a shootout with police, and his brother, Dzhokhar, 20, who faces multiple charges, including 17 that carry a possible death penalty. Though jolted by the bombings and a subsequent lockdown, the city rallied under the slogan "Boston Strong."

VATICAN CHANGEOVER: Pope Benedict XVI stunned Catholics around the world with his announcement in February that he would resign. The cardinal elected to succeed him, soon known as Pope Francis, proceeded to captivate many Catholics and non-Catholics alike with a new tone of openness, modesty and tolerance. Without challenging core church doctrine, he suggested it was time to rethink policy on divorce, focus more on serving the poor, and devote less rhetoric to condemnations of gay marriage and abortion.

DIVIDED CONGRESS: Opinion polls showed Congress with historically low approval ratings, and the key reason was seemingly intractable partisan conflict. Among the consequences were the harsh automatic spending curbs known as sequestration, the partial shutdown of the government in October, and bitterness in Senate after the Democrats used their majority to reduce the Republicans' ability to stall presidential nominations via filibusters.

NSA SPYING: The ripple effect continues, seven months after the world learned of Edward Snowden. The former NSA analyst leaked vast troves of secret documents detailing NSA surveillance operations, including programs that collected Americans' phone records and eavesdropped on allied leaders. After a stay in Hong Kong, Snowden spent a month in Moscow's airport before obtaining asylum in Russia. The leaks have roiled diplomacy, triggered lawsuits and calls for reform, and prompted warnings that terrorists could benefit from the disclosures.

GAY MARRIAGE: Capping decades of activism, the gay-rights movement won a monumental victory in June in the form of two Supreme Court decisions. One cleared the way for ending a ban on same-sex marriages in California, the most populous state. The other struck down a 1996 law passed by Congress that banned federal recognition of same-sex marriages. In subsequent months, Hawaii, Illinois and New Mexico boosted the number of states allowing gay marriage to 17.

NELSON MANDELA: A freedom fighter, a political prisoner, a statesman revered for preaching reconciliation in a nation torn by racial strife. Nelson Mandela was all that and more - the icon of the anti-apartheid movement and South Africa's first black president. With his death at the age of 95, his compatriots, world leaders and countless other admirers mourned the loss of a one-of-a-kind hero.

PHILIPPINES TYPHOON: There were dire warnings beforehand, but the toll wreaked by Typhoon Haiyan was still stunning in its scope after it struck on Nov. 8. More than 6,000 people died; hundreds more remain missing. The typhoon damaged or destroyed the homes of more than 16 million people, with rebuilding expected to take years.

SYRIA: The death toll mounted inexorably, past 120,000, as Syria's nearly 3-year-old civil warfare raged on with no signs of resolution. The government of Bashar Assad did agree to eliminate its chemical weapons, but prospects for peace talks were complicated by infighting among anti-government rebels. Nearly 9 million Syrians have been uprooted from their homes, with many of them seeking refuge abroad.

MISSING WOMEN FOUND: The call for help came on May 6, and the revelations that followed were gripping and grim. A former bus driver, Ariel Castro, had abducted three women from the streets of Cleveland from 2002 to 2004 when they were 14, 16 and 20. He periodically kept them chained, restricted access to food and toilets, and repeatedly raped and assaulted them until their escape. Castro pleaded guilty to multiple charges, and in September, faced with life in prison, hanged himself in his cell.

 

Holiday sales down for 3rd week

Holiday sales down for 3rd week 

FILE - In this Nov. 29, 2013, file photo, Best Buy employee Christopher Gervais, right, rings up a 32-inch LED TV in Dunwoody, Ga. Sales at U.S. stores dropped 3.1 percent to $42.7 billion for the week that ended on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2013, compared with the same week last year, according to ShopperTrak, which tracks data at 40,000 locations.

NEW YORK (AP) -- After a strong start to the holiday shopping season, sales at stores have fallen for the third consecutive week as Americans continue to hold back on spending during what is traditionally the busiest buying period of the year.

Sales at U.S. stores dropped 3.1 percent to $42.7 billion for the week that ended on Sunday compared with the same week last year, according to ShopperTrak, which tracks data at 40,000 locations. That follows a decline of 2.9 percent and 0.8 percent during the first and second weeks of the month, respectively.

The numbers, which don't include online sales, are another challenge in what has largely been a disappointing holiday shopping season for stores. The two-month period that begins on Nov. 1 is important for retailers because they can make up to 40 percent of their annual sales during that time.

Retailers started the season cautiously optimistic. But after a strong start through most of November - ShopperTrak said sales were up 3.4 percent for the month - retailers have found it increasingly hard to attract shoppers into stores despite big discounts and expanded hours during the final days.

"It's been a mediocre December," said Bill Martin, co-founder of ShopperTrak.

Karen McDonald, a spokeswoman at Taubman Centers, which owns or operates 28 malls, estimated that business for the week that ended Sunday was unchanged to mid-single digit percentage growth compared with a year ago.

"I felt for sure it was going to be gangbusters. But it was just OK," McDonald said.

At the Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus, N.J. on Saturday, Abercrombie & Fitch, AnnTaylor and Express had 50 percent sales, while Aeropostale was discounting its entire assortment up to 70 percent. Still, shoppers were cautious.

Barbara Jackson, 45, was one of them. She said she's capping her holiday budget at $1,500 - half of what 

she spent last year. That's because Jackson, an aide to the elderly, is earning less than last year.

"I am more budget conscious," Jackson said.

Shoppertrak estimates that holiday sales at stores so far are up 2 percent to $218.4 billion compared with the same period last year. That's below the 2.4 percent forecast for the two-month period, but the company is standing by that estimate with a few days left before Christmas and a little over a week before the season ends.

The National Retail Federation, the nation's largest retail group, also said it's sticking with its forecast that sales in stores and online will be up 3.9 percent to $602.1 billion.

But even online sales, which had been a bright spot for much of the season, aren't growing at the expected pace. Online spending from home and work desktop computers in the U.S. from Nov. 1 through Dec. 15 was up 9 percent from the same period last year to $37.8 billion, according to the most available data from comScore.

That's below the 14 percent growth that the Internet research firm is forecasting for the season. The company still expects online sales to grow at that pace for the season, but the category only accounts for about 11 percent of spending in the three months that include the holiday shopping season.

Final sales figures for the holiday shopping season are expected in January.

 

Woman sets herself on fire outside East Wichita store

Wichita, Kan. -- A woman tried to kill herself by setting herself on fire in the parking lot of an east Wichita hardware store.
It happened shortly after 5 p.m. Sunday outside of the Lowes near Greenwich and Kellogg in East Wichita. Witnesses called 911 to report seeing a woman on fire and crying in the parking lot.
According to police, the 41-year-old Wichita woman had doused herself in lighter fluid, then set herself on fire.
Wichita Fire Investigations Lt. Troy Thissen says witnesses "Made a valliant effort" to put out the flames. According to police, a store customer pushed her into the snow.
EMS transported the woman to Via Christi St. Francis burn unit where she is currently listed in critical condition

NYPD investigates after man throws son, himself off Manhattan high-rise

  Eyewitness News

 

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Police are looking into the relationship between a 35-year old Brooklyn man and his wife, as they try to figure out why he would throw his 3-year old son off of a high-rise building.

The bodies of Dmitriy and Kirill Kanarikov were found near 60th Street and Amsterdam Avenue just after noon Sunday following the 52-story fall from the roof of the Upper West Side apartment building.
They plunged to their deaths in what is believed to have been the culmination of a custody dispute.
Police believe Dmitriy, an immigrant from the Ukraine who worked as a systems analyst, threw his son off the building before jumping himself in what is being investigated as a murder suicide. No suicide note was found.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene and his son was pronounced dead at the hospital. A witness said the boy was wearing Christmas pajamas, described as green and white with red mistletoe.
The boy's mother had custody of the child and the father, who had visitation rights, was supposed to hand the boy over to the mother at a police precinct Sunday afternoon, authorities said. Dmitriy left with his son and was only supposed to keep him three hours.
NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly said that it was the first time Dmitriy had been allowed to take his son alone since the breakup with his wife Svetlana.
"There was a history of domestic turmoil," Kelly told reporters. The couple was married in 2009 and lived in Brooklyn, but separated this past August, triggering the custody fight. Svetlana moved to New Jersey and obtained an order of protection against her husband, Kelly said.
Investigators have no evidence the father ever threatened to harm his son. However, at one point, he had told his wife that "unless she signed over the house to him and some undisclosed property, he was going to take the child," Kelly said.
Authorities said the father did not live in the building listed as South Park Tower, which is a short distance away from Columbus Circle and Lincoln Center.
In September, Dmitriy Kanarikov posted on Facebook, "I want to be the best dad and husband, nothing is more important to me right now."
After the breakup, Svetlana moved to her parents home in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, where friends and family paid their respects Monday.

(Copyright ©2013 WABC-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

Weak US card security made Target a juicy target

Weak US card security made Target a juicy target

FILE - In this Jan. 18, 2008 file photo, a customer signs his credit card receipt at a Target store in Tallahassee, Fla. The U.S. is the juiciest target for hackers hunting credit card information. And experts say incidents like the recent data theft at Target's stores will get worse before they get better. That's in part because U.S. credit and debit cards rely on an easy-to-copy magnetic strip on the back of the card, which stores account information using the same technology as cassette tapes. The breach that exposed the credit card and debit card information of as many as 40 million Target customers who swiped their cards between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 is still under investigation.

 

NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S. is the juiciest target for hackers hunting credit card information. And experts say incidents like the recent data theft at Target's stores will get worse before they get better.

That's in part because U.S. credit and debit cards rely on an easy-to-copy magnetic strip on the back of the card, which stores account information using the same technology as cassette tapes.

"We are using 20th century cards against 21st century hackers," says Mallory Duncan, general counsel at the National Retail Federation. "The thieves have moved on but the cards have not."

In most countries outside the U.S., people carry cards that use digital chips to hold account information. The chip generates a unique code every time it's used. That makes the cards more difficult for criminals to replicate. So difficult that they generally don't bother.

"The U.S. is the top victim location for card counterfeit attacks like this," says Jason Oxman, chief executive of the Electronic Transactions Association.

The breach that exposed the credit card and debit card information of as many as 40 million Target customers who swiped their cards between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 is still under investigation. It's unclear how the breach occurred and what data, exactly, criminals have. Although security experts say no security system is fail-safe, there are several measures stores, banks and credit card companies can take to protect against these attacks.

Companies haven't further enhanced security because it can be expensive. And while global credit and debit card fraud hit a record $11.27 billion last year, those costs accounted for just 5.2 cents of every $100 in transactions, according to the Nilson Report, which tracks global payments.

Another problem: retailers, banks and credit card companies each want someone else to foot most of the bill. Card companies want stores to pay to better protect their internal systems. Stores want card companies to issue more sophisticated cards. Banks want to preserve the profits they get from older processing systems.

Card payment systems work much the way they have for decades. The magnetic strip on the back of a credit or debit card contains the cardholder's name, account number, the card's expiration date and a security code different from the three or four-digit security code printed on the back of most cards.

When the card is swiped at a store, an electronic conversation is begun between two banks. The store's bank, which pays the store right away for the item the customer bought, needs to make sure the customer's bank approves the transaction and will pay the store's bank. On average, the conversation takes 1.4 seconds.

During that time the customer's information flows through the network and is recorded, sometimes only briefly, on computers within the system controlled by payment processing companies. Retailers can store card numbers and expiration dates, but they are prohibited from storing more sensitive data such as the security code printed on the backs of cards or other personal identification numbers.

Hackers have been known to snag account information as it passes through the network or pilfer it from databases where it's stored. Target says there is no indication that security codes on the back of customer credit cards were stolen. That would make it hard to use stolen account information to buy from most Internet retail sites. But the security code on the back of a card is not needed for in-person purchases. And because the magnetic strips on cards in the U.S. are so easy to make, thieves can simply reproduce them and issue fraudulent cards that look and feel like the real thing.

"That's where the real value to the fraudsters is," says Chris Bucolo, senior manager of security consulting at ControlScan, which helps merchants comply with card processing security standards.

Once thieves capture the card information, they check the type of account, balances and credit limits, and sell replicas on the Internet. A simple card with a low balance and limited customer information can go for $3. A no-limit "black" card can go for $1,000, according to Al Pascual, a senior analyst at Javelin Strategy and Research, a security risk and fraud consulting firm.

To be sure, thieves can nab and sell card data from networks processing cards with digital chips, too, but they wouldn't be able to create fraudulent cards.

Credit card companies in the U.S. have a plan to replace magnetic strips with digital chips by the fall of 2015. But retailers worry the card companies won't go far enough. They want cards to have a chip, but they also want each transaction to require a personal identification number, or PIN, instead of a signature.

"Everyone knows that the signature is a useless authentication device," Duncan says.

Duncan, who represents retailers, says stores have to pay more - and banks make more - on transactions that require signatures because there are only a few of the older networks that process them, and therefore less price competition. There are several companies that process PIN transactions for debit cards, and they tend to charge lower fees to stores.

"Compared to the tens of millions of transactions that are taking place every day, even the fraud that they have to pay for is small compared to the profit they are making from using less secure cards," Duncan says.

Even so, there are a few things retailers can do, too, to better protect customer data. The most vulnerable point in the transaction network, security experts say, is usually the merchant.

"Financial institutions are more used to having high levels of protection," says Pascual. "Retailers are still getting up to speed."

The simple, square, card-swiping machines that consumers are used to seeing at most checkout counters are hard to infiltrate because they are completely separate from the Internet. But as retailers switch to faster, Internet-based payment systems they may expose customer data to hackers.

Retailers need to build robust firewalls around those systems to guard against attack, security experts say. They could also take further steps to protect customer data by using encryption, technology which scrambles the data so it looks like gibberish to anyone who accesses it unlawfully. These technologies can be expensive to install and maintain, however.

Thankfully, individual customers are not on the hook for fraudulent charges that result from security breaches. But these kinds of attacks do raise costs -and, likely, fees for all customers.

"Part of the cost in the system is for fraud protection," Oxman says. "It costs money, and someone's going to pay for it eventually."

 

Health plan sticker shock ahead for some buyers

Health plan sticker shock ahead for some buyers 

FILE - In this Dec. 3, 2013 file photo, actor Adrienne Matzen poses in Chicago's theater district. Matzen, 29, who has been mostly uninsured since she turned 21, is now looking for a low monthly premium insurance plan on the federal website. High deductibles for health plans available on the Illinois insurance exchange may contribute to sticker shock when people start paying medical bills in 2014, if they have elected to pay for insurance under the Affordable Care Act.

CHICAGO (AP) -- As a key enrollment deadline hits Monday, many people without health insurance have been sizing up policies on the new government health care marketplace and making what seems like a logical choice: They're picking the cheapest one.

Increasingly, experts in health insurance are becoming concerned that many of these first-time buyers will be in for a shock when they get medical care next year and discover they're on the hook for most of the initial cost.

The prospect of sticker shock after Jan. 1, when those who sign up for policies now can begin getting coverage, is seen as a looming problem for a new national system that has been plagued by trouble since the new marketplaces went online in the states in October.

For those without insurance - about 15 percent of the population- "the lesson is it's important to understand the total cost of ownership of a plan," said Matt Eyles, a vice president of Avalere Health, a market analysis firm. "You just don't want to look only at the premium."

Counselors who have been helping people choose policies say many are focused only on the upfront cost, not what the insurance companies agree to pay.

"I am so deeply clueless about all of this," acknowledged one new buyer, Adrienne Matzen, 29, an actor in Chicago who's mostly been without insurance since she turned 21. Though she needs regular care for asthma and a thyroid condition, she says she's looking for a low monthly premium because she makes less than $20,000 a year.

Hospitals are worried that those who rack up uncovered medical bills next year won't be able to pay them, perpetuating one of the problems the new health care system is supposed to solve.

The new federal and state health insurance exchanges offer policies ranked as bronze, silver, gold and platinum. The bronze options have the lowest monthly premiums but high deductibles - the amount the policyholder must pay before the insurer picks up any of the cost of medical care.

On average, a bronze plan's deductible is more than $4,300, according to an analysis of marketplace plans in 19 states by Avalere Health. A consumer who upgrades to a silver plan could reduce the deductible to about $2,500. A top-of-the-line platinum plan has the lowest average deductible: $167.

Comprehensive data on premiums isn't available, but in one example, a 30-year-old in Chicago would pay an average of $222 per month for a bronze plan, $279 for a silver or $338 for a platinum.

The complexities of insurance are eye-glazing even for those who have it. Only 14 percent of American adults with insurance understand deductibles, according to one recent study.

The danger of a wrong snap judgment is great for those under financial pressure - especially those with modest incomes who make too much to qualify for the government subsidies available under the new health care system. Subsidies aren't available for individuals making more than $45,960.

Most of the uninsured make less than that, but many still pick the cheapest plans.

"Price rules," said John Foley, a Legal Aid counselor in Palm Beach, Fla., who has been helping people enroll.

Some applicants see the catch.

"The real big surprise was how much out-of-pocket would be required for our family," said David Winebrenner, 46, a financial adviser in Lebanon, Ky., whose deductible topped $12,000 for a family of six for a silver plan he was considering. The monthly premium: $1,400.

While the health law makes many preventive services free - such as vaccines, blood pressure screening and mammograms - most medical care is paid out of pocket until the deductible level is reached. Some of the new plans offer limited coverage for certain services before a patient has met the annual deductible. These services can include primary care, some prescription drugs and routine care for common chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes.

It's unclear how many plans provide this feature, and it may not be easy for consumers to tell.

Lynn Quincy of Consumers Union, a public policy group, suggests that consumers narrow their options to five plans, then go to each insurer's website to read the benefits summary. It spells out who pays what for two common situations: having a baby and managing Type 2 diabetes.

To be sure, the new health law did away with the whopping deductibles in plans previously offered to people without employer-provided coverage. Out-of-pocket costs are now capped at $6,350 for individuals and $12,700 for a family.

But some people who have been paying their own medical bills, or leaving them unpaid at the hospital, seem surprised that health insurance doesn't cover more of the costs.

"They previously had no insurance coverage at all and so they might not be happy," said Cynthia Rahming, an enrollment counselor in Houston.

Fearing the sticker shock, Loyola University Health System in Chicago is offering payment plans to spread the out-of-pocket costs.

Some who had private insurance policies that were canceled may find that keeping the same deductibles may mean higher premiums.

In California, Diane Agnone complained in an online post on her state's health marketplace. "How is this affordable? I am a healthy 62-year-old single woman and these new premiums will cost me over $200 more per month than my existing plan."

The new insurance system requires policies to cover more services than some consumers had chosen to buy in the past.

"It's all a matter of having a budget and it only goes so far," said Agnone, an executive with a nonprofit charity based in Fairfield, which is about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento. "There is no winning in this."

Cryptolocker Ransomware Being Described As ‘The Perfect Crime’

BOSTON (CBS) — It is being called the perfect crime and it has law enforcement around the globe baffled.
It all starts with a simple email.
“They are scared and they are angry. It is a real terrible experience for them.”
Joe Ruthaford is talking about computer users who mistakenly launched a potent internet phishing scheme.
He recently saw one of those ravaged computers in his Beacon Hill repair shop.
“It is extremely damaging. It is one of the worst ones.”
It’s called cryptolocker ransomware.
Kevin Swindon is with the FBI in Boston.
“I would think about this particular type of malware as what would happen if your computer was destroyed,” Swindon said.
In the past 90 days, thousands of people worldwide have opened a seemingly innocuous link to track a holiday package. Suddenly, all the files on their computer are encrypted.
Joan Goodchild is the editor of “CSO,” Chief Security Officer magazine based in Framingham.
“This is a criminal operation. They are holding your folders and files ransom. We call this ransomware because that is exactly what it is. You need to pay in order to have access to them once again.”
And that is exactly what happened last month at the Swansea Police Department.
Cryptolocker ransomware took over the department’s entire computer system and the police were forced to pay a $750 ransom to get back control.
As the ransomware takes over your computer, a countdown clock appears and shows victims how long they have to pay up. That means purchasing a key, or software, to reverse the process. And victims must do that using the online virtual currency known as bitcoins.
“Once you have purchased a bitcoin, then the transaction that you use that bitcoin in is encrypted, and therefore you cannot trace it,” explained Goodchild.
Swindon says it appears to be the perfect crime.
The FBI tells WBZ-TV they are very worried about this spreading in 2014.
The scheme could be the work of organized gangs overseas. So far, no one has been caught.

USC routs No. 21 Fresno St 45-20 in Las Vegas Bowl

USC routs No. 21 Fresno St 45-20 in Las Vegas Bowl

Southern California interim coach Clay Helton celebrates with wide receiver Nelson Agholor (15) after Agholor's 17-yard touchdown reception was ruled good against Fresno State in the second quarter of the Royal Purple Bowl NCAA college football game, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013 in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Southern California wrapped up its rocky season by rolling over Fresno State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Cody Kessler passed for 344 yards and a bowl-record four touchdowns in the Trojans' 45-20 victory over the 21st-ranked Bulldogs on Saturday under Clay Helton, their third head coach in less than three months.

Marqise Lee and Nelson Agholor had two touchdown catches apiece, Javorius Allen rushed two more scores, and the Trojans (10-4) answered every question about their motivation by dancing on the sideline while routing a BCS contender for the storied program's first postseason victory since 2009.

Derek Carr passed for just 217 yards and two TDs in his final game at Fresno State (11-2), which fell behind 35-6 at halftime and failed to secure the first 12-win season in school history.

From Kessler's smooth offense to a dynamic defensive effort against Fresno State's FBS-best passing game, USC was uniformly outstanding in its only game under Helton.

The offensive coordinator filled the one-game gap between coaches Ed Orgeron and Steve Sarkisian on the Trojans' coaching carousel, but USC picked up right where Orgeron left off after its desultory start to the season under Lane Kiffin.

Kessler even outdid Carr, his fellow Bakersfield native and friend, setting the Las Vegas Bowl record for TD passes before halftime and finishing 22 for 30. USC scored three touchdowns in a nine-minute burst in the second quarter, and Allen clinched it with his second TD run with 4:44 to play.

The Trojans even put on a show off the Strip: The entire USC bench twice bounced onto the field during spontaneous group dances after touchdowns, displaying the excitement and confidence so common during the Trojans' halcyon years under Pete Carroll.

Carr, the nation's leader in yards passing and total offense, became the fourth player in NCAA history to surpass 5,000 yards passing and 50 TD passes during the game. But Carr leaves Fresno State without a bowl victory, never getting the Bulldogs moving against one of the nation's best pass defenses.

Fresno State's two TD catches by Isaiah Burse and Davante Adams both came on short drives resulting from USC mistakes on special teams, and Derron Smith returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown in the opening minute of the fourth quarter.

The Mountain West champions still haven't won a bowl game since 2007, losing six of their last seven.

Lee had seven catches for 118 yards in likely the final game at USC for the Biletnikoff Award-winning receiver. The junior is expected to head to the NFL after putting a pleasant finish on a crazy season in Los Angeles.

Kiffin was fired in late September, and Orgeron revived the program with a 6-2 finish to the regular season before resigning in anger when USC hired Sarkisian for the full-time job. Sarkisian watched the bowl game with athletic director Pat Haden in a box above the sellout crowd at Sam Boyd Stadium.

After the teams traded touchdowns on their opening drives, the Trojans blocked Fresno State's extra point attempt - and it started a deluge.

Agholor caught TD passes of 40 and 17 yards for the Trojans' next two scores. Allen made a 24-yard TD run through bad tackling midway through the second quarter, and Lee turned a short pass into a 40-yard TD with 37 seconds left in the half.

Kessler threw for 243 yards and set the Las Vegas Bowl single-game record for TD passes in the first half alone, but USC's defense perhaps was even more spectacular against the nation's top passing offense.

Carr went 30 for 54 under constant pressure from the blitzing Trojans, who eliminated Fresno State's running game and twice stopped the Bulldogs on fourth downs in the first half.

Hospital: Teen who was shot at Colo. school dies

Hospital: Teen who was shot at Colo. school dies 

FILE - In this Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013, file photo, Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson holds a picture of Claire Davis, the 17-year-old student who was shot in the head by a classmate, during a briefing at Arapahoe High School in Centennial, Colo. Hospital officials said in a statement Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013, that Davis has died.

LITTLETON, Colo. (AP) -- A suburban Denver high school student who was shot in the head by a classmate died Saturday afternoon, hospital officials said in a statement.

Claire Davis, 17, was in critical condition after being shot at point-blank range at Arapahoe High School on Dec. 13. Friends and well-wishers had posted prayers online and raised money to help pay for her medical care.

"It is with heavy hearts that we share that at 4:29 p.m. this afternoon, Claire Davis passed away, with her family at her side," the statement from Littleton Adventist Hospital.

"Despite the best efforts of our physicians and nursing staff, and Claire's fighting spirit, her injuries were too severe and the most advanced medical treatments could not prevent this tragic loss of life. Claire's death is immensely heartbreaking for our entire community, our staff and our families."

Karl Pierson, 18, shot Davis, who just happened to be sitting nearby with a friend as Pierson, armed with a shotgun, ammunition strapped to his body, Molotov cocktails and a machete, entered the school and headed toward the library. Davis appeared to be a random target, Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson has said.

Pierson likely intended to track down a librarian who had disciplined him, but Robinson said Pierson's arsenal suggested Pierson intended to hurt many others at the school just 8 miles from Columbine High School.

Pierson set off one of the incendiary devices and fired five shots before killing himself just one minute and 20 seconds after entering the building. He knew a sheriff's deputy assigned to the school was closing in, Robinson said at a news conference.

Senior Chris Davis, who is not related to Claire Davis, said she loved horses, had a lot of friends and always seemed happy. Chris Davis, whose locker is next to Claire's, helped organize a fundraising effort for her family.

Students held vigils for Davis after the shooting. Typical was a story told by classmate Maggie Hurlbut.

"One time I remember I was upset in the hallway, and she came up to me and she just - it was like, `Hey Maggie, I know we don't know each other well but are you doing OK?' And I told her yeah, and she was like, `Anything you need, I'm here for you,'" Hurlbut said. "Again, that's who she is, and she just wants to take care of others, and that was really just a good representation of her character and who she was."

Gov. John Hickenlooper visited Davis and her family at the hospital and had asked for prayers.

Sheriff Robinson called Davis "a young woman of principle" and "an innocent young lady."

Pierson's original target was believed to be a librarian who coached the school's speech and debate team. Pierson was a skilled speaker and debater on the team. The librarian, whose name was not released, had disciplined the teen in September for reasons that haven't been disclosed. Robinson said Pierson had made some sort of threat against the librarian in September.

"We are looking into that, to the degree that it was understood, and then what interactions or interventions took place," the sheriff said.

The librarian was able to escape the school unharmed, Robinson said.

Pierson legally purchased his shotgun at a local store a week before the shooting and bought the ammunition the day of the shooting. Anyone 18 and older is allowed to buy a shotgun in Colorado; only those over 21 can legally buy a handgun.

Pierson, whose parents were divorced, lived at least part of the time with his mother in a higher-end neighborhood in suburban Highlands Ranch.

The Arapahoe shooting came a day before the one-year anniversary of the Newtown, Conn., attack in which a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School.