Jurors in the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz viewed graphic video Tuesday of him murdering 17 people as he stalked through a three-story classroom building at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School four years ago.

The video, compiled from 13 security cameras inside the building, was not shown to the gallery, where parents of many of the victims sat. Prosecutors say it shows Cruz shooting many of his victims at point-blank range, going back to some as they lay wounded on the floor to kill them with a second volley of shots.

The 12 jurors and 10 alternates stared intently at their video screens. Many held hands to their faces as they viewed the 15-minute recording, which has no sound.

Some started squirming. One juror looked at the screen, looked up at Cruz with his eyes wide and then returned to the video.

Cruz looked down while the video played and did not appear to watch it. He sometimes looked up to exchange whispers with one of his attorneys.

The video was played over the objection of Cruz's attorneys, who argued that any evidentiary value it has is outweighed by the emotions it would raise in the jurors. They argued that witness statements of what happened would be sufficient.

Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer dismissed the objection, saying a video that accurately reflects Cruz's crimes does not unfairly prejudice his case. Prosecutors are using the video to prove several aggravating factors, including that Cruz acted in a cold, calculated and cruel manner.

Cruz, 23, pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of first-degree murder, and 17 more counts of attempted murder for those he wounded. The jury must decide if he should be sentenced to death or life without parole for the nation's deadliest mass shooting to go before a jury.

Later on day two of the trial, jurors heard testimony from Christopher McKenna, who was a freshman during the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting. He had left his English class to go to the bathroom and exchanged greetings with two students, Luke Hoyer and Martin Duque, as they crossed paths in the first-floor hallway. McKenna then entered a stairwell and encountered Cruz assembling his AR-15 semiautomatic rifle.

"He said get out of here. Things are about to get bad," McKenna recalled.

McKenna sprinted out to the parking lot as Cruz went into the hallway and began shooting. McKenna alerted Aaron Feis, an assistant football coach who doubled as a security guard. Feis drove McKenna in his golf cart to an adjacent building for safety, and then went to the three-story building McKenna fled from.

By then, the sounds of gunfire were already ringing out across the campus. Feis went in and was fatally shot immediately by Cruz, who had already killed Hoyer, 15, and Duque, 14, and eight others. Cruz then continued through the second floor, where he fired into classrooms but hit no one. When he reached the third-floor, he killed six more.

The jurors also heard testimony from English teacher Dara Hass, who had three students killed and several wounded in her classroom when Cruz fired through a window in the door.

"The sound was so loud. The students were screaming," said Hass, who wept and dabbed her eyes with tissue as she testified. She thought it might be a drill, but then she spotted the body of 14-year-old Alex Schachter, who had been fatally shot at his desk.

"That's when I saw it wasn't a drill," she said. Two 14-year-old girls also died in the classroom: Alaina Petty and Alyssa Alhadeff.

When police arrived and evacuated her students, Hass said she did not want to leave but officers convinced her.

"I wanted to stay with the students who couldn't go," she said, referring to Schachter, Petty and Alhadeff.

One student in her class, Alexander Dworet, said he originally thought the loud bangs were the school's marching band, but then he felt a "hot sensation" on the back of his head where he had been grazed by a bullet and "I realized I was in danger."

Dworet's 17-year-old brother, Nick, was across the hall in his Holocaust studies class. Cruz fired into that classroom, too, killing him.

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Jury selection

The jurors currently on the main panel are two banking executives and two technology workers, a probation officer, a human resources professional and a Walmart store stock supervisor. Also included are a librarian, a medical claims adjuster, a legal assistant, a customs officer and a retired insurance executive.

The jury selection was filled with setbacks and possible mistrials over the questioning of possible jurors and COVID-19 cases on the defense.

The defense asked to delay the trial because of the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 21 dead. McNeill’s team argued that the shooting has again raised emotions in Broward County and makes it impossible for Cruz to get a fair trial currently.

Many of the possible jurors were not able to hold seat because of the time commitment for the lengthy process.

Full Recap: Jury sworn in to sentencing trial for Parkland high school shooter

Pleading guilty to all charges

Cruz pleaded guilty in October 2021 to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the deadly shooting.

Legal analysts said Cruz’s plan to plead guilty to all charges in the Parkland shooting — along with the guilty plea in a battery on a jail guard charge — is a calculated move by his attorneys for him to avoid the death penalty.

Video below: Cruz pleads guilty in court

By pleading guilty to killing 17 people and attempting to kill 17 more in 2018, legal experts said Cruz is hoping to convince the jury that he is taking some responsibility for his actions.

"He’s trying to save his life, and the only way to do that is to take responsibility and not put all these poor people through a trial," criminal defense attorney Marc Shiner said.

Death penalty trials in Florida and much of the country often take two years to start because of their complexity, but Cruz's was further delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and extensive legal wrangling.

If Cruz is sentenced to death, that will still not be the end of the process. Death sentences in Florida are given automatic priority review by the Florida Supreme Court.

Trial preparations

Trial preparations were extensive for what was expected to be the biggest murder trial in Broward County history for one of the most infamous crimes in Florida history.

Cruz was arrested about an hour after the attack with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle on Valentine's Day 2018.

Video below: Body camera of arrest of Nikolas Cruz released

His lawyers repeatedly offered to plead guilty in return for a guaranteed sentence of life in prison, but prosecutors refused to drop their pursuit of the death penalty.

Video below: Cruz interrogation video released

Much of the penalty phase is expected to focus on Cruz’s mental condition at the time of the slayings, with prosecutors emphasizing their horrific nature and Cruz’s intensive planning beforehand.

Victims of the Parkland school shooting

Seventeen students and staff were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. Seventeen others were injured.

Can't see the graphic? Click here.

Settlement with Broward School District

The Broward County School District will pay more than $26 million to the families of the victims.

Board members approved the two legal settlements on in December 2021.

A total of $25 million will be shared by 51 plaintiffs, including families of the 17 dead as well as students and staff who were injured. Another $1.25 million will be paid in one lump sum to Anthony Borges, who suffered some of the most severe injuries.

Video below: Nikolas Cruz outlines shooting plan in video recording

Four years after shooting

For many families, they said there will never be closure for the loss of their loved ones.

Students and families turned into activists.

'I still can't believe this is my reality': Parkland parent creates way to track school violence after son is killed in school shooting

Jim Gard, a math teacher that day, said they were all victims.

"These kids that were in the class, just because they weren't hit doesn't mean they weren’t hit," he said.

And since that day, so many of those victims have refused to just sit back and do nothing. In the days following the shooting, a movement called March For Our Lives was born.

David Hogg was one of the founders.

"When we started doing the march, we thought there would be about 90 people that we could get up to D.C.," Hogg said. "We got near a million."

Video below: Father of Parkland victim hangs banner in view of White House four years after shooting

Four years later, March For Our Lives is still going strong with chapters across the country.

They’ve helped pass state laws designed to keep guns away from violent offenders. They’ve worked to get more federal funding to control gun violence.

'I have to accomplish her dream': Hunter Pollack changes career path after sister is murdered in Parkland massacre

It's become a full-time job nobody wants.

"We want our job to be done so we can go back to being college students or high school students and young people and young professionals," Hogg said.

When they watched the Parkland shooter plead guilty to the murders he committed, both Hogg and Gard are pleased to see this chapter end.

Video below: School safety changes made following Parkland school shooting

They just ask you not to call it closure.

"It's the parents of the kids, the parents who lost their children, I don’t know if there can ever be closure on that," Gard said. "I know for a lot of the people that I talked to, families that I talked to, there is not closure that can come. There’s nothing that will ever bring their kids back, their siblings back, their best friends back."

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, call 211 or the National Suicide Hotline at 988.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz walked casually into a sandwich shop minutes after he murdered 14 students and three staff members at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School four years ago, showing no signs of stress or nervousness, video played at his penalty trial Thursday showed.

Cruz then walked to a nearby McDonald's, where, by coincidence, he unsuccessfully sought a ride from the brother of a girl he had seriously wounded. The boy did not know who Cruz was.

Thursday's abbreviated court session focused on Cruz's attempted escape after the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting and his arrest, about an hour after he fled the campus. The mostly low-key testimony and evidence stood in contrast with the previous three emotional days, which covered the seven minutes Cruz stalked a three-story classroom building firing his AR-15 semi-automatic rifle into crowded classrooms and hallways.

After the shooting, Cruz fled the building, dressed in a burgundy shirt from the Stoneman Douglas Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps — he had been a member when he attended the school — and a New York City Police Department cap.

The former Stoneman Douglas student blended in with students who were evacuating campus and went to a nearby Walmart, where security video shows that 25 minutes after he stopped shooting, he turned into the Subway sandwich shop inside the entrance.

Store manager Carlos Rugeles testified that Cruz ordered a cherry and blue raspberry Icee. The video shows that when Cruz got his drink and change, he tossed the coins into the tip jar, stuck a straw into the lid and walked out.

Eight minutes later, Cruz entered a nearby McDonald's, still drinking his Icee, store video shows. He climbed into a booth with then-Stoneman Douglas freshman John Wilford, who did not know him.

Wilford testified that he didn't know exactly what had happened at the school, but after evacuating, he had been trying to call his older sister Maddy — he didn't know she had been seriously wounded by this stranger. When he couldn't reach her, he called his mom, who said she would pick him up.

He then tried to make small talk with Cruz.

"I told him, 'This is so chaotic, it's crazy with all these helicopters and squad cars. What do you think this could be?'" Wilford recalled. "He didn't say much. He had his head down."

A minute later, Wilford went to meet his mother in the parking lot. Cruz followed and asked for a ride, but Wilford said no.

"He was pretty insistent on it. I wasn't really thinking much of it. I just wanted to get home and my sister wasn't answering her phone," Wilford said.

Cruz walked away. He was arrested about a half-hour later by Michael Leonard, an officer with the neighboring Coconut Creek Police Department. Leonard testified he was driving through neighborhoods looking for anyone matching the shooter's description.

The officer was 3 miles from the school and about to drive back toward it when he spotted Cruz walking on a residential street. He said he stopped and Cruz looked at him. He pulled his gun and ordered Cruz to the ground. Cruz complied.

A search found $350 in Cruz's pocket.

Cruz, 23, pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of first-degree murder. The jury must only decide if he should be sentenced to death or life without parole for the nation's deadliest mass shooting to go before a jury.

Nine other gunmen who killed at least 17 people died during or immediately after their shootings, either by suicide or police gunfire. The suspect in the 2019 slaying of 23 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is awaiting trial.

When jurors eventually get the case, probably in October or November, they will vote 17 times, once for each of the victims, on whether to recommend capital punishment.

For each death sentence, the jury must be unanimous or the sentence for that victim is life. The jurors are told that to vote for death, the prosecution's aggravating circumstances for that victim must, in their judgment, "outweigh" the defense's mitigators. A juror can also vote for life out of mercy for Cruz. During jury selection, the panelists said under oath that they are capable of voting for either sentence.

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Jury selection

The jurors currently on the main panel are two banking executives and two technology workers, a probation officer, a human resources professional and a Walmart store stock supervisor. Also included are a librarian, a medical claims adjuster, a legal assistant, a customs officer and a retired insurance executive.

The jury selection was filled with setbacks and possible mistrials over the questioning of possible jurors and COVID-19 cases on the defense.

The defense asked to delay the trial because of the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 21 dead. McNeill’s team argued that the shooting has again raised emotions in Broward County and makes it impossible for Cruz to get a fair trial currently.

Many of the possible jurors were not able to hold seat because of the time commitment for the lengthy process.

Full Recap: Jury sworn in to sentencing trial for Parkland high school shooter

Pleading guilty to all charges

Cruz pleaded guilty in October 2021 to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the deadly shooting.

Legal analysts said Cruz’s plan to plead guilty to all charges in the Parkland shooting — along with the guilty plea in a battery on a jail guard charge — is a calculated move by his attorneys for him to avoid the death penalty.

Video below: Cruz pleads guilty in court

By pleading guilty to killing 17 people and attempting to kill 17 more in 2018, legal experts said Cruz is hoping to convince the jury that he is taking some responsibility for his actions.

"He’s trying to save his life, and the only way to do that is to take responsibility and not put all these poor people through a trial," criminal defense attorney Marc Shiner said.

Death penalty trials in Florida and much of the country often take two years to start because of their complexity, but Cruz's was further delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and extensive legal wrangling.

If Cruz is sentenced to death, that will still not be the end of the process. Death sentences in Florida are given automatic priority review by the Florida Supreme Court.

Trial preparations

Trial preparations were extensive for what was expected to be the biggest murder trial in Broward County history for one of the most infamous crimes in Florida history.

Cruz was arrested about an hour after the attack with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle on Valentine's Day 2018.

Video below: Body camera of arrest of Nikolas Cruz released

His lawyers repeatedly offered to plead guilty in return for a guaranteed sentence of life in prison, but prosecutors refused to drop their pursuit of the death penalty.

Video below: Cruz interrogation video released

Much of the penalty phase is expected to focus on Cruz’s mental condition at the time of the slayings, with prosecutors emphasizing their horrific nature and Cruz’s intensive planning beforehand.

Victims of the Parkland school shooting

Seventeen students and staff were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. Seventeen others were injured.

Can't see the graphic? Click here.

Settlement with Broward School District

The Broward County School District will pay more than $26 million to the families of the victims.

Board members approved the two legal settlements on in December 2021.

A total of $25 million will be shared by 51 plaintiffs, including families of the 17 dead as well as students and staff who were injured. Another $1.25 million will be paid in one lump sum to Anthony Borges, who suffered some of the most severe injuries.

Video below: Nikolas Cruz outlines shooting plan in video recording

Four years after shooting

For many families, they said there will never be closure for the loss of their loved ones.

Students and families turned into activists.

'I still can't believe this is my reality': Parkland parent creates way to track school violence after son is killed in school shooting

Jim Gard, a math teacher that day, said they were all victims.

"These kids that were in the class, just because they weren't hit doesn't mean they weren’t hit," he said.

And since that day, so many of those victims have refused to just sit back and do nothing. In the days following the shooting, a movement called March For Our Lives was born.

David Hogg was one of the founders.

"When we started doing the march, we thought there would be about 90 people that we could get up to D.C.," Hogg said. "We got near a million."

Video below: Father of Parkland victim hangs banner in view of White House four years after shooting

Four years later, March For Our Lives is still going strong with chapters across the country.

They’ve helped pass state laws designed to keep guns away from violent offenders. They’ve worked to get more federal funding to control gun violence.

'I have to accomplish her dream': Hunter Pollack changes career path after sister is murdered in Parkland massacre

It's become a full-time job nobody wants.

"We want our job to be done so we can go back to being college students or high school students and young people and young professionals," Hogg said.

When they watched the Parkland shooter plead guilty to the murders he committed, both Hogg and Gard are pleased to see this chapter end.

Video below: School safety changes made following Parkland school shooting

They just ask you not to call it closure.

"It's the parents of the kids, the parents who lost their children, I don’t know if there can ever be closure on that," Gard said. "I know for a lot of the people that I talked to, families that I talked to, there is not closure that can come. There’s nothing that will ever bring their kids back, their siblings back, their best friends back."

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, call 211 or the National Suicide Hotline at 988.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The trial for a 30-year-old Ohio man whose family was accused of murdering eight members of the same family six years ago is set to begin.

According to the New York Times, George Wagner IV's trial is set to start this month or early next month.

The Associated Press reported Wagner IV, his parents, and his brother Edward Jake Wagner was charged for fatally shooting eight members of the Rhoden family in 2016.

Prosecutors said the alleged motive for the fatal shooting was over the custody of a child Jake Wagner had with one of the victims, the New York Times and the Washington Times reported.

The Associated Press reported that Jake Wagner pleaded guilty last year after admitting to killing five of the victims.

The news outlet reported that Angela Wagner also pleaded guilty to helping plan the murders.

The newspaper reported that George Wagner III is set to stand trial at a later date.

The Associated Press reported that a judge ruled in June that Jake Warner could testify at his brother's upcoming death penalty trial, the Associated Press reported.

The news outlet reported that Jake Wagner had told prosecutors that his brother didn't kill anyone.

The family of a Georgia mother is blaming a severe allergic reaction to fire ant bites for her recent death. On Saturday, Cathy Weed's family told WSB-TV that she stepped on an ant pile at her home in Lawrenceville shortly before her death. According to Weed's family, she had a severe allergy to fire ants and they believe the reaction was so strong that she died before she could get her medicine. An official cause of death is pending investigation by the medical examiner's office. Weed's community instantly gathered together to support her son, a 15-year-old sophomore on his high school baseball team. Many players on the team said Weed was a mother figure for them."The first inclination was, what can we do to help? They've done so much for other people, they've treated other people the right way, always, you know, what can we do to help them and to take care of them," Jason Johnson, Weed's son's baseball coach, told WSB-TV. "His mom was everything to him. And he was 100%, even more so to her."The community has already raised more than $9,000 for Weed's family through an online fundraiser.

COLUMBIA, S.C. —

A judge will determine whether evidence of disbarred South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh's alleged financial crimes is admissible in an upcoming double-murder trial that has drawn worldwide attention for its bizarre twists.

Prosecutors recently said that Murdaugh killed his wife and youngest son last year to gain sympathy and distract others from his damning financial crimes. On Friday, prosecutors and defense attorneys debated the relevance of those years of alleged financial misdeeds that lined Murdaugh’s pockets with nearly $9 million.

Murdaugh, the disgraced heir to a Lowcountry legal dynasty, has pleaded not guilty and repeatedly denied any involvement in the June 2021 slayings of his wife, Maggie, 52, and their son Paul, 22.

According to prosecutors, at the time of the killings, Murdaugh was terrified about a pending motion that threatened to expose years of substantial debts and illicit financial crimes by revealing his personal records. Such a move would have spelled “personal, legal, and financial ruin” for Murdaugh, state grand jury chief prosecutor Creighton Waters wrote in a filing Thursday.

Prosecutors said Murdaugh was a drug addict who helped run a money laundering and painkiller ring and stole millions from settlements he secured for mostly poor clients to fund an increasingly unsustainable lifestyle.

According to Waters, high-profile, six-figure cases had failed to alleviate Murdaugh's financial woes, prompting Murdaugh to do anything to avoid his “day of reckoning” — including murder.

Conveniently for Murdaugh, Waters said, the discovery of his slain family members temporarily suspended the increased scrutiny over his finances. Murdaugh would spend the following days collecting money to account for missing fees sought by his law firm, Waters said.

“This is a white-collar case that culminated in murders," Waters told Circuit Judge Clifton Newman on Friday.

A motive is not necessary for a prosecutor to win a murder conviction — a point Waters made in the state's latest filing. But Murdaugh's lawyers asked the state to spell out the motive in order to justify including a million pages of evidence related to over 80 counts of alleged financial crimes.

Murdaugh’s defense attorneys insisted Friday that the alleged crimes amounted to character evidence that is not admissible into murder trials.

Defense attorney Jim Griffin said it is ridiculous to claim that a person seeking to distract from financial crimes would then put themself at the center of a murder investigation.

Griffin also said there is no reason to admit the financial documents since there’s no evidence that Murdaugh’s family knew of any alleged crimes or that Murdaugh stood to benefit from collecting any life insurance policies.

The idea that Murdaugh sought to engender sympathy through the deaths is also illogical, according to Griffin, considering Murdaugh's father was dying on the day they were slain — an experience sure to provide plenty of pity.

The defense has criticized what they see as the slow release of evidence linking Murdaugh to the slayings.

Central to the defense's concerns is the presence of blood stains on a white T-shirt allegedly worn by Murdaugh on the night of the killings. Attorney Dick Harpootlian has argued that South Carolina Law Enforcement Division agents successfully persuaded a forensic consultant to reverse his initial judgment and instead say the stains must be backspatter from a bullet wound. Harpootlian said SLED destroyed the shirt and had evidence suggesting the stains were not a human's blood.

Defense attorneys on Friday sought an evidentiary hearing compelling the state to provide all communications with the consultant. Prosecutors said any ruling on the bloody shirt's consideration would be premature as they themselves are still assessing whether they will use it as evidence.

Throughout Friday’s hearing, Murdaugh, donning a blazer, sat unshackled and could occasionally be seen speaking with his attorneys.

Prosecutors shared inklings of new details earlier this week. Within a minute of his first conversation with responding officers on the day of the killings, Murdaugh allegedly claimed the slaying must have been connected to the February 2019 boat wreck that killed teenager Mallory Beach.

Beach was killed when authorities say an intoxicated Paul Murdaugh wrecked his father's boat — an event that ultimately led to dozens of charges accusing Alex Murdaugh of stealing nearly $5 million in settlement money from lawyers who sued him over the death. Murdaugh now faces additional charges involving money laundering, a narcotics ring, a staged attempt on his life and millions of additional stolen funds.

And while Murdaugh seemed wealthy, prosecutors said it was a series of land deals worsened by recession that “permanently changed his finances.”

The events of the past 18 months have marked a steep fall for the Murdaughs. The family founded a massive civil law firm over 100 years ago in tiny Hampton County, where — alongside four surrounding counties — Murdaugh’s father, grandfather and great-grandfather dominated the legal scene as the area’s elected prosecutors for more than eight decades.

“The jury will need to understand the distinction between who Alex Murdaugh appeared to be to the outside world — a successful lawyer and scion of the most prominent family in the region — and who he was in the real life only he fully knew — an allegedly crooked lawyer and drug user who borrowed and stole wherever he could to stay afloat and one step ahead of the detection,” Waters wrote Thursday.

DAYTON, Ohio —

More than four years after a family from Mason was killed in a wrong-way crash on Interstate 75, the woman accused of killing them is on trial.

Abby Michaels, 25, of Xenia, faces six counts of murder and three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide. Last Friday, three additional counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and an OVI charge were dismissed.

On March 17, 2019, prosecutors said Michaels intentionally drove the wrong way on the interstate and crashed into another car killing Timmy Thompson, 51, his wife Karen Thompson, 50 and their 10-year-old daughter Tessa.

The Thompsons were on their way home to Mason after visiting family when they were hit head-on.

"By nightfall, that living family was no longer alive," assistant Montgomery County prosecutor Bryan Moore said in his opening statement.

Prosecutors said other drivers saw Michaels' car drive through an emergency turn-around and head north in the southbound lanes.

"And they watch in horror as that vehicle collides with the Thompson vehicle. That vehicle is being driven, controlled by Abby Michaels," Moore said.

Defense attorney Jay Adams called what happened tragic but said there is more to the story.

"This issue is whether or not Abby Michaels acted knowingly. That's the whole case," Adams said.

Adams said Michaels had suffered for years from a seizure disorder.

"At the end of this, Abby Michaels was involved in a tragic event with the Thompson family. That is very sad, but she didn't murder anybody. She suffered from a medical condition," Adams said.

One of the first people to testify Monday was Michaels' husband at the time of the crash, Kyle Pastorelle. He had filed for divorce two days prior and was not with Michaels that night.

Prosecutors showed surveillance footage of Michaels wearing a festive, green and white St. Patrick's Day hat at Ron's Pizza in Miamisburg.

Prosecutors pointed her out in the video leaving the restaurant at 7:43 p.m. that night.

Eleven minutes later, Pastorelle said Michaels called him asking to come over.

"I was pretty adamant on 'No, we're not doing this. It's not going to happen,' and that's when she told me that — she was driving at the time — and that's when she told me she was going to drive backwards on 75," Pastorelle said.

Pastorelle said Michaels sent him a text message a few minutes later and said, "Goodbye. I love you. I'm dying now."

By 8:10 p.m., Moraine police were dispatched to the deadly crash.

During cross-examination, Pastorelle testified to Michaels' medical issues.

"You were asked about seizures and whether you've actually seen any in the seven years. You know she's had them, correct?" Adams asked.

Pastorelle said, "Yeah."

Adams asked, "You know she's been hospitalized for them, correct?"

"Yes," Pastorelle answered.

The bench trial is expected to last most of the week.

AVON LAKE, Ohio, (WEWS) — A few months ago, employees at the Avon Lake Public Library in Ohio found a small stuffed animal among the books in the children's section. From that moment, the toy has had quite the adventure and its story is one of fun, love and the generosity of one young boy.

When the cat was found around November, it was going to be placed in the lost and found bin. But the library's communications manager, Shea Alltmont, had a different idea.

"I said, 'Why not? I'm going to take the stuffy and do a little post and see if anybody knows whose kitty it is,'" Alltmont said.

Alltmont posted a picture of the toy on the library's Facebook page, one with text that said the cat was looking for its owners and other photos with the cat helping around the library. The posts were fun and lighthearted—and well received by friends of the library on the social media platform.

"Reaction, actually, was pretty swift on our social media Facebook page. And I saw a lot of people had already kind of liked it and 'Oh, I hope this stuffy finds its home,'" Alltmont said. "It was doing what I wanted it to do, which was to make some awareness about the little kitty."

But while the first few posts were getting traction, no one came forward to claim the stuffed kitty, which the library had named Aurora.

Alltmont and the Avon Lake Public Library staff didn't give up hope, however. Pictures of Aurora were frequently posted to the library's social media accounts, and her antics increased.

From exploring the library's science-based learning center Discovery Works, to perusing Scottish poetry, and even getting dressed up for movie premieres and fashion shows, Aurora stayed busy through the holiday season.

Still, someone had to be looking for her.

"Kitty's been part of our family for three years," said Maribeth Stahl. "Truly every car ride, every trip to the store. Our family—I feel like one of the phrases was, 'Where's kitty?' So this is not really very surprising that she ended up here at the library."

Stahl's son, 6-year-old Anderson, got the animal he calls "Kitty" at the start of the pandemic.

Since then, the two have been inseparable—until the day Anderson left her at the library.

"I was trying to find Kitty everywhere—in the basement, on the third floor and everywhere," Anderson said.

The family searched for weeks but couldn't find Kitty, but then, the Stahl family stumbled upon the library's picture.

"My mom found the pictures of Kitty on her phone at the library," Anderson said.

Stahl contacted the library and told them she thought Aurora was actually Kitty and they'd been searching for her for weeks. She sent pictures she had and the library confirmed. The goal of finding the owner had come to fruition.

"She was going to go home and the adventure would have kind of a nice little bow tied up and and, you know, be done," Alltmont said.

But after meeting at the library to pick the toy up, Anderson had a different idea.

'He said, 'No, I think she should stay and have more adventures," Stahl said.

Her son had chosen to let the library keep Kitty—now officially Aurora—so she could continue her adventures and let other kids enjoy her as well.

"Such a brave and thoughtful thing for a 6-year-old to have that kind of just big heart and know that her adventures were so much bigger and not finished yet. Sort of a gift that he really gave to all of us," Stahl said.

Aurora now lives at Avon Lake Public Library where she continues her adventures and brings joy to those of all ages.

And of course, Anderson makes sure to visit his old friend often when he takes adventures of his own to the local library.

"She's not lost anymore. She's found that she has a home and that we get to come and visit her any time that we want," Stahl said.

This story was originally reported by Camryn Justice on news5cleveland.com.

Nearly six months after a California family and their dog died of extreme heat exhaustion and dehydration while hiking, phone data was released on Thursday that shows a text message and several phone calls did not go through due to poor cellphone reception.

John Gerrish, his wife, Ellen Chung, their 1-year-old daughter, Miju, and their dog were walking in extreme heat in a remote area close to the Merced River in the Sierra National Forest last August before they died.

Jonathan Gerrish's phone showed the family took multiple photos throughout their hike from 7:44 to 10:29 a.m., according to the release. At 12:25 p.m, they took a screenshot of their location on the trail map.

A single text message at 11:56 a.m. saying, "Can you help us. On savage lundy trail heading back to Hites cove trail. No water or ver (over) heating with baby" did not go through due to not having cell service in the area, the release said.

Five calls were also found to have been attempted but were not successful due to the same reason. The first was at 12:09 p.m. and the last four were attempted within one minute of each other at 12:36 p.m.

They were found dead on Aug. 17 just 1.6 miles from their vehicle after a family friend reported them missing. In October, the cause of death for all three family members was determined to be hyperthermia and dehydration.

Temperatures ranged from 107 to 109 degrees Fahrenheit and their water container was empty, authorities said.

The details found on the phone support the findings of a heat-related incident, authorities said.

"The cellphone data results were the last thing both the family and detectives were waiting on. The extracted information confirms our initial findings. I am very proud of my team and our partner agencies for all the work they put in. Their dedication has allowed us to close this case and answer lingering questions the family had, bringing them a little peace," Mariposa County Sheriff Jeremy Briese said.

A pup has the blues this week after he was stood up by the family he believed would take him to his forever home.

On Tuesday, the Kentucky Humane Society posted a photo of 4-year-old Hendrix looking rather doleful after the family that was supposed to come pick him up never showed.

They said Hendrix got all excited and dressed up to meet his new family.

"All of us at the Kentucky Humane Society love Hendrix so much and we just want him to have a great life with someone who will care about him as much as we do," the team said on Facebook.

According to the Kentucky Humane Society, Hendrix is house-trained, loves to give kisses, enjoys naps and likes to go on walks. He is also a professional toy destroyer.

In describing Hendrix, the team called him a "big snorting goofball!"

With Hendrix still looking for the perfect home, the team said he would do best in an environment with no cats (because they're too tempting to him) and where he is the only dog.

And if the photo isn't enough to make you fall in love with Hendrix, the team said his attitude will: "He has the biggest heart out there and so much love to give."

The team is hoping someone out there will turn Hendrix's frown upside down.

"We can't stand seeing our sweet boy sad. Please spread the word and help us find Hendrix his forever home!"

Click here to learn more about Hendrix.

Sunday marks the start of Kwanzaa and one woman is turning to education to celebrate the special tradition.

It's a seven-day, non-religious holiday observed in the United States. Kwanzaa is meant to honor African Americans' ancestral roots.

"It’s so important to convey this tradition because it’s ancient. It’s not new, it’s old, and it brings us together," Doris Fields, who celebrates Kwanzaa, said.

The tradition often involves symbolic items like a candle holder (Kinara), unity cup (Kikombe cha Umoja), placemat (Mkeka), crops (Mazao), corn (Muhindi) and gifts (Zawadi).

Fields has celebrated the holiday for over 35 years, from paying homage to ancestors to sharing hopes for the new year.

"Usually there are people in their 90s [who attend], and they have so much wisdom," Fields said. "They have so much to offer to us."

While Fields' annual events may look smaller due to the coronavirus pandemic, she said she doesn't stop the opportunity to teach.

On Sunday, her home was a haven for a small group of friends, eager to learn more about the tradition.

"There were people here who had not had Kwanzaa with us before, so it's very nice to be able to share our thoughts," Fields said.

The holiday involves seven principles, represented by candles: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.

"I’ve been celebrating Kwanzaa with my family. probably for the last like 10 or 15 years," Markella Clinton, who also celebrates Kwanzaa, said. "It’s something I look forward to every year. It’s a great family excuse. It’s a great community motivator as well because you don’t just have to be family to be able to come and enjoy."

According to UCHealth, a not-for-profit health care system, Kwanzaa is the fastest-growing holiday in the world.

As popularity increases, Clinton said it's important to ask important questions.

"Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to look for information," Clinton said. "Educate yourself, because it’s not a religious holiday. It’s about community engagement and having faith in yourself and having faith in your community."

The celebration lasts until Jan. 1.

HAMILTON, Ohio —

A nurse from Hamilton said she and her family will be spending their first Christmas without her husband.

He died from COVID-19 at just 37 years old, earlier this year.

Christina Jewett said her late husband, Paul Jewett, 37, was unable to get a vaccine before he got sick.

It has been an incredibly hard year for the family.

Last month, they shared a Thanksgiving unlike any before and now, Christmas won't be the way they imagined.

"It's weird to picture from the beginning of the year to now. You picture you're going to have your family together for holidays, you know, dad's going to be there," Christina Jewett said.

But this Christmas, Jewett's life is very different.

We talked with her earlier this year after her husband died from COVID-19 in April.

She said the father of five had no underlying conditions.

"I didn't imagine I'd be wrapping the presents alone or any of that, you know, having to get the tree together was really hard because it was one of our traditions," she said.

Jewett is making sure she shows her sons pictures of their dad as she pulls together the strength to do it all.

She also welcomed their new baby boy to the world this year after Paul died.

"Benny's great. He's 8 months old now. He just started crawling and standing all at the same time, but he's been absolutely the light of everything," she said.

Jewett is also a nurse and sometimes shares her husband's story when patients have doubts about the vaccines.

"They weren't doing under 40 when he got sick and he was only 37, so, even if he wanted to, he couldn't have got it at the time," she said.

Now, with record-breaking case numbers, she knows others may be dealing with the same loss.

She hopes her husband's story can inspire someone to get vaccinated and keep a family intact.

"The biggest lesson I've had to learn this year is that life is very fragile and very short," she said.

Jewett said since her husband's death, she has made friends online in social media groups that help people with loss and grief.

Those friendships have transcended the internet.

She said at least one of those new friends will be spending Christmas with her family this year.

Jewett said it's important that people never stop praying in these situations.

She also said it's good to lean into your support system when dealing with loss.

A brother and sister are connecting for the first time after finding out they are related.

Days after a tornado took out most of Mayfield, Kentucky, Sean Lynch, and Judy Saxton finally met after ancestry.com DNA tests led them to one another.

In October, they discovered they shared the same father. Lynch says he never met his biological father, who started another family with Saxton's mother years later.

"I thought I was an only child after my biological brother was killed in 1994 in a car accident," Lynch said.

Saxton's daughter discovered the relation through an online DNA test after tracing their family tree.

"She got ahold of him and told him. He thought I was her grandmother," Saxton said. "But then she told him, 'That's my mom, so that's your sister. You're my uncle."

Between COVID-19 concerns and their distance — one in Colorado and the other in Kentucky — the slight chance of meeting in person. Then the tornado hit.

Lynch says he drove 14.5 hours from Littleton, Colorado, just to see his sister and deliver essentials like generators, a space heater, food, water, and love that only family can provide.

"I told my wife when I found out about her, the only thing I want for Christmas is to hug my sister," he said.

Judy is 67 years old, and Sean is 74, so the siblings have a lot to catch up on now that they've been reunited.

Stephanie Sandoval at Newsy first reported this story.

A family thanked staff at a New Hampshire hospital for allowing them to see a relative hospitalized on Thanksgiving, albeit at a distance.

This was the first time in 92 years that Joseph Doherty of Plaistow was not at the table for Thanksgiving dinner, so, his family came to him.

“I didn’t want him to fell alone on Thanksgiving Day,” said son Paul Doherty. “We wanted to send him love from a distance.”

Although Joseph Doherty’s treatment is not related to COVID-19, pandemic restrictions meant his family could not go inside.

Nursing staff at Exeter Hospital stepped in to help, while the family stood outside with a homemade sign that said, "Love you Papa."

“They were really gracious. They stopped whatever they were doing, which I’m sure was a lot, and they got him to the window, and they told us right where to stand and we got to see our dad and he got to see us, and it made his day. They told us it made his day,” Doherty said.

“I just felt so happy that I could be there, just filled with joy in that moment and to see him wave back you could tell how emotional he was getting when he saw the sign,” said granddaughter Erin Doherty.

“My family and I would love to express an enormous amount of gratitude for taking the time to make this happen,” she added.

The family is hoping Joseph Doherty will be back home this weekend.

KENOSHA, Wis. — Hannah Gittings and her boyfriend, Anthony Huber, were in Kenosha protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake on Aug. 25, 2020. That night, Huber was shot and killed.

Gittings is now back in Kenosha awaiting a verdict in the trial of the man who pulled the trigger, 18-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse.

Tuesday saw tense moments outside of the Kenosha County Courthouse. For Gittings, it brings back feelings of when she last saw her boyfriend.

"It's been more dramatic than I thought it was going to be. We all knew the trial was coming, obviously," Gittings said.

Rittenhouse's defense team says Huber attacked Rittenhouse with a skateboard, and Rittenhouse killed Huber in self-defense. The prosecution and Gittings said Huber was trying to disarm Rittenhouse.

Gittings said she expected Huber's actions to be more of a focus during the trial.

TMJ4

"I just feel he was so underrepresented in this trial and I don't think that's fair, because what he did was assess an active-shooter situation, and he was just that type of man," Gittings said. "If he could've gotten that gun away, he would've held on to it. I don't think he would've thrown it. But clearly his main goal was to just stop this kid from doing what he just done, which was murdering Joseph Rosenbaum."

Rittenhouse faces charges of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide, two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety and failure to comply with an emergency order. He faces life in prison if convicted of the intentional homicide count.

This story was originally published by Tony Atkins on Scripps station TMJ4 in Milwaukee.

DENVER, Colo. — People rely on hospitals to help them when they need medical attention. Some of those hospitals are the very reason some of the best doctors get into the medical profession.

That is the case for Dr. Woosik Chung, who is the director of Spine Surgery at Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center in Denver, Colorado.

One of the newest spaces within their facility is the smartOR. It's where Dr. Chung does all of his spinal surgeries.

He's the brains behind incorporating some of the newest technologies within this space. However, he didn’t get to where he is by accident.

“Growing up with a dad that was a surgeon and a mom that was an OR nurse, you know, you kind of take it for granted, unfortunately," Dr. Chung said.

His story starts when he was about three years old and it was a celebratory holiday in South Korea.

“I remember I was playing with my friends. I believe we were playing hide-and-seek. I remember hiding behind a tractor and I remember the engine cover was open or it wasn’t there, and there was the propeller spinning and the fan belt around that propeller. I remember I was sitting on my tricycle and I was hiding and nobody could come and find me and I got bored and I saw the propeller moving around and I thought I could stop it," Dr. Chung said.

He severed both of his hands. Both were a clean cut.

“The next thing I remember— my dad is holding me and compressing my arms and I heard my mom say, 'I found them,' and she was referring to my limbs," Dr. Chung said.

They lived right near the hospital. His father had to step in as many doctors weren't working because it was a holiday.

“Luckily, thanks to my parents, my dad and the powers that be, I healed up and I was able to start using my hands again and I think it took me a long time to understand the significance of that," Dr. Chung said.

What could have turned into a tragic story, instead, was the beginning of a remarkable career.

“I was curious about the OR, I was curious about what my dad did because I knew that he had done my hand surgery and so I think it made me want to go to his hospital more when we were living in Malawi and check out what he was doing," Dr. Chung said. “He was as busy as ever so the only times I really saw him were if I visited him at the hospital and then I’d run around with him as he was making his rounds and then I’d kind of look in as he was operating outside of the OR.”

Those times of exploration, combined with his curiosity, gave him purpose to join the medical field.

“Wow, this is pretty unique and it’s an opportunity that doesn’t come by that often and so maybe the best thing to do is to try and use my hands to help somebody else," Dr. Chung said.

That’s exactly what he does now. Day-in and day-out, using his own hands, to change others' lives at this hospital. His outcome, is not the norm. Limb reattachment is far from a guarantee.

“I would still say it’s a rarity. And I would say this only happens in unique circumstances. And I think In my case, thank goodness I was a young kid, thank goodness the injury itself is what we call a clean cut, and thank goodness my father was able to take care of me so quickly right after the injury," Dr. Chung said.

People would never know Dr. Chung's story by looking at him but knowing it, makes people appreciate him as the doctor and surgeon he is.

“Get to know your doctor. Get to know your nurse. Get to know the people that want to take care of you because we want to be able to take care of you, we want to help," Dr. Chung said. “Helping others, and do whatever you can, even if all the odds are against you, and as long as you look at that goal and you work towards it as hard as you can, well sometimes amazing things can happen.”

ORLANDO, Fla. —

A Middletown family's Disney vacation turns into heartbreak as their 12-year-old son ends up in the ICU on a ventilator with the flu.

They've been there since earlier this month and don't think they'll be able to come home until at least Thanksgiving.

"I never imagined us being here this long or even being in the ICU," mother, Vanessa Baker, said.

Baker and her family left Middletown and drove to Florida on Oct. 3 to make magical memories at Disney World.

But after a day at the park and another in the Fun Zone, she said her son, Kameron Miller, 12, had a sore throat and a cough.

"He was so excited to come. He talked about it for weeks. We all kind of needed a break with the whole last year. How it's been, like, stressful," Baker said.

She said he has autism and asthma.

Baker took her son to the emergency room and she said things got worse.

"After the breathing treatment is really whenever he was like, I can't breathe. He was, like, wanting shots. He wanted them to give him something," she said.

Baker said eventually her son was intubated and taken to Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando where they've been since.

She said doctors are considering he may have MIS-C, multisystem inflammatory syndrome, which is a condition linked to COVID-19.

Baker said her son has COVID-19 antibodies, but tests negative now.

She believes he may have had an asymptomatic case at some point in the past year.

Baker told WLWT her son also has the flu and acute respiratory distress syndrome.

"There's no definite time limit on how long we're going to be here and there's, no, like idea of how he'll go home," she said.

For now, she stays by her son's side as he remains on a ventilator.

She said she misses hearing him talk and seeing his smile.

It's been three weeks since he has been able to talk, according to Baker.

"He's fun and energetic. He tries to make friends," she said.

She hopes they soon make those Disney World memories together.

"There's hard times and then there's good times. I just know that he's in the best place that he can be," Baker said.

Kameron's mother said he had only turned 12 just before their trip, so he wasn't vaccinated.

She said he has been through a lot so far and had a collapsed lung last week.

They're hoping to wean him off of so much medication and the ventilator in the coming days.

She said Kameron's siblings are staying with his grandmother.

His grandmother told us both children miss their parents and are thinking of their brother.

Baker said they hope to be home by Thanksgiving and neither parent is working as they stay at the hospital.

The family has started a GoFundMe page to help with expenses: https://www.gofundme.com/f/xh7jv-medical-and-expenses

SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, Calif. —

A Modesto, California, family once victimized by a suspected scammer is now the recipient of good fortune, thanks to a generous good Samaritan.

The two families met on a San Joaquin County ranch on Thursday.

As Dave Pechan and Angelica Cuevas stood face-to-face for the first time, the rancher handed Cuevas a cash gift.

Cuevas' son, who translated for her, said to the rancher in English that his mom is grateful as the money will help pay for rent and utilities.

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Pechan first learned of the Cuevas family on Sept. 24 when sister station KCRA shared her story of how a suspected scammer promised them an affordable home to rent, only to run off with their hard-earned money.

"I was very upset because basically, that was hard work money that we saved up for," Angelica Cuevas said in Spanish.

"It was just painful to watch," Pechan said.

Pechan said what he and his wife were most heartened by was the family's work ethic.

"I consider work ethic so valuable to, not only to the people to earn money, but our whole country," Pechan said.

Pechan not only replaced what the family lost in dollars but also their faith in humanity.

"I'm grateful that there are still people with good hearts," Cuevas said.

A police detective said five more people have come forward as victims recently. That number adds to the original four from Turlock.

Investigators believe more victims are out there.

With holidays approaching, health experts said some festivities can start to return to a sense of normalcy — but they also warned that COVID-19 isn't defeated yet.

Experts said Sunday that outdoor trick-or-treating — particularly for children who are vaccinated — should be fine this year.

"It's a good time to reflect on why it's important to get vaccinated. But go out there and enjoy Halloween as well as the other holidays that will be coming up," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN Sunday.

Dr. Megan Ranney, associate dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University, cautioned against indoor Halloween parties for children too young to be vaccinated and encouraged parents in areas with high virus transmission to mask their children, but agreed that Halloween fun could go on this year.

The big picture for COVID-19 in the U.S. is looking a little brighter as new infections and hospitalizations decline. The average rate of daily new cases has dropped below 100,000, to 93,814 as of Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Fauci said he would like to see new daily cases well below 10,000, but the decline is a start. "Hopefully it's going to continue to go in that trajectory downward," he said.

While conditions are improving and the sense of normalcy is expanding, Fauci warned that the fight against the pandemic is not over.

"We have to just be careful that we don't prematurely declare victory in many respects. We still have around 68 million people who are eligible to be vaccinated that have not yet gotten vaccinated," Fauci said.

About 56.4% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although experts don't know the exact percentage of vaccination coverage needed to control the spread of the virus, Fauci has said the "vast majority" of the population will need to get vaccinated.

"We're not there yet," Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said. "This virus can continue in those places where vaccination rates are low."

The potential for spread is especially concerning as winter holidays — often accompanied by gatherings and travel — approach.

Health experts have promoted vaccination requirements for air travel this holiday season; and while Fauci declined to offer his stance on the matter Sunday, Professor of Emergency Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University Dr. Esther Choo weighed in.

"Now is the time for mandates for airlines," Choo said. "It should happen quickly because people are making plans right now for our fall and winter holidays."

Death isn't the only terrible outcome with COVID-19

It's important for people to understand "not dying from COVID is a great thing, but that isn't the only metric we should be using," Michigan emergency room physician Dr. Rob Davidson said Saturday.

He said at his hospital, some COVID-19 patients have been on a ventilator for more than a month, and some have endured invasive procedures to stay alive.

Even if they recover physically, some COVID-19 survivors end up suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, due to time spent in the ICU, Davidson said.

A study published in February found 30% of COVID-19 survivors experienced PTSD, which is a psychological illness that usually occurs after someone has a life-threatening experience.

The virus can also have negative effects on pregnant people infected during their third trimester and their babies, research shows.

Between March and September of last year, symptomatic pregnant people at one Israeli hospital had higher rates of gestational diabetes, a lower white blood cell count, and experienced heavier bleeding during their delivery. Their babies also experienced more breathing problems, a research team reported in the Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine.

The study has limitations since it only looked at women in one hospital, so its findings may not be true for all people who are pregnant.

Then there is long COVID-19 — when symptoms can last months after infection.

A large study published last month showed more than one-third of COVID-19 patients suffered symptoms three to six months after getting infected. Some had multiple, long-lasting complications.

Breathing problems, abdominal symptoms such as abdominal pain, diarrhea, fatigue, pain, anxiety and depression were among the most common issues reported.

Accompanying data showed as many as 46% of children and young adults between the ages of 10 and 22 had experienced at least one symptom in the six months after recovering.

Vaccines for kids under 5 may not come until next year

The Food and Drug Administration is considering a proposal to expand vaccines to children as young as 5, and those younger may not have a dose authorized for them until early next year, former FDA commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, said Sunday.

The FDA is likely to ask for more data and perhaps for studies involving more children, because it is a new vaccine and a new virus, Gottlieb told CBS.

"And that could push it into 2022. Previously we had talked about trying to have that data available before the end of this year, which could have prompted an authorization perhaps by the end of the year, at least in kids ages 2-4. I think that it's more likely that it slips into the first quarter of next year at the very least, but not too far into next year," said Gottlieb, who is also on Pfizer's board.

The FDA has called a meeting of its independent vaccine advisers, the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC), for Oct. 26 to discuss pediatric vaccines. Pfizer has submitted data and a formal request for authorization for its one-third dose vaccine for use in children 5-11. But Gottlieb said he expects VRBPAC to also discuss what might be needed for authorization for the youngest children.

Having more information to consider can raise public confidence in the vaccines, Gottlieb said. He is already confident and plans to vaccinate his own young daughters.

"There's a lot of parents like me that, as soon as the vaccines available for their children, are going to go out and get their kids vaccinated, that see the benefits of vaccination," he said. "There's a lot of parents who still have a lot of questions around vaccination. I think for them, they should have a conversation with their pediatrician to try to get comfortable with the idea of vaccinating kids."

Gottlieb said he thinks it will be years before the CDC recommends making COVID-19 vaccines part of the regular childhood vaccination schedule, which would open the door to school districts mandating them.

"I think it's a very long way off. Certainly, CDC's going to look at children ages 12-17 differently than 5-11," he said.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —

It might just be the best Christmas present ever for one Kentucky woman. An extremely generous gift from an anonymous donor is making her life a lot easier.

"It took my breath away. It touched my heart that they had did this for me. So, I thank them for everything they have done for me and my grandkids," said Regina Russell, the recipient of a car from an anonymous donor.

The gift of transportation is something Regina Russell has needed for a long time.

"The car that I had, it was a 2003. I had it ever since, and it just broke down. So, I was getting on the bus," Russell said.

The 61-year-old is raising two of her grandkids. She took her 16-year-old and 9-year-old granddaughters in when their mother was having a rough time. Their father is incarcerated. Despite no transportation, she's managed to get them to and from doctors and dental appointments, grocery shopping and other places all through a pandemic.

"I took the bus for about a year, and getting on it with all this COVID going on, I didn't want to get sick," Russell said.

Russell has been in the Louisville Urban League's senior jobs program for the past two years, which prepares them to find employment. That's currently her only source of income. When someone reached out to the league about wanting to gift someone with a car, they knew Russell would be the perfect recipient.

"When they called me up, I had prayed on it and prayers work. God is good. I prayed every day for me to get some time of transportation," Russell said.

Russell says her grandchildren are just as grateful as she is.

"Giving in life, once you keep giving, you will always get back more," Russell said. "So, what he did for me, that's a blessing. He will get blessed."

DENVER, Co. — Taking children away from parents is a heartbreaking situation. Now, a federal law just put into effect Oct. 1 is hoping to prevent those moments.

The Families First Prevention Services Act aims to move away from placing children into residential facilities or group homes, and instead, keeps them in either a foster home or, preferably, their own home. In order to do that, federal dollars will be put towards services that can be accessed at the home, something that couldn't be done before.

National data says the most common reasons children end up in the foster care system are neglect and drug abuse. By providing treatment in the home, the hope is that it will heal the family unit from within.

"That could be for substance use. That could be for mental health issues that could be for really strengthening families and making more resources available to families to utilize while they're together in their home, rather than having to remove a child before you can access that funding for those support services," said Yolanda Arredondo, a child welfare professional.

She says the new law makes it so children will only be taken out of the home and into a group setting if it is absolutely necessary.

"Because that need is there not just a reaction to this family circumstance, that it really is a need to protect the safety and well-being of a child," said Arredondo, "and hopefully that's temporary and we can provide treatment-focused services to reunify the family as quickly as possible."

In Colorado, where Arredondo works, the state has already been implementing these new federal rules over the last few years. Right now, they serve 70% of children and families in their own home, 30% are with foster families. However, some advocates are concerned that since more foster homes will be needed, there won’t be enough places for children to go.

Arrendondo says she hasn’t necessarily seen that, but anyone interested in becoming a foster parent should seek out resources near them.

Hopefully, this new law means more families getting the help they need to stay together through the tough times in hopes of a brighter future.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —

A Los Lunas, New Mexico, father is trying to stay strong for his family after two of his children became critically ill due to the coronavirus.

Over the past few weeks, Jason Baca has called the University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH) his home.

Two of his sons, 17-year-old Jason Lee Baca and 13-year-old Ayden Baca, are currently fighting for their lives in the facility's pediatric intensive care unit.

It all started Aug. 13 after multiple people within the family of nine started to feel sick and reported similar symptoms, including a runny nose and a headache.

The feeling soon spread to the rest of the household. No one in the family had received a COVID-19 vaccine.

"We were in shock. I mean, within three days, it spread from one or two of us to everybody in the house," Baca said.

Family members were soon tested by health care professionals for COVID-19. Baca says most people came back positive, like his wife, Renee Baca.

"It wasn't a good feeling. I couldn't breathe. I had a really hard time breathing," Renee said.

While she eventually recovered after a two-week hospital stay, other members of her family did not. Her mother, Sandra Moya, was admitted and passed away.

Before her passing, Baca's son Jason Lee was diagnosed with pneumonia and transferred to UNMH from Presbyterian Hospital.

"Now knowing how bad that my sons got, and my wife got, and that everybody was sick, I just think it’s more serious and that people need to take it a lot more seriously then they have been taking it," Baca said.

Ayden was soon admitted into the pediatric ICU.

"They said that he had a 0% chance of making it. They wanted me to say bye to him, and I said, 'I’m not gonna say bye,'" Renee said.

For six weeks Jason Lee and Ayden have undergone surgeries and utilized ventilators due to heart and breathing complications.

Dr. Walter Dehority, an associate professor for the University of New Mexico's Department of Pediatrics, says parents should get their children vaccinated against COVID-19.

"We are finding more and more cases of severe COVID in children," Dr. Dehority said. "Kids can come in and look like they have a cold, and several days later they could be in the intensive care unit on life support. It can go from zero to 60 in a matter of days."

Baca says his sons are still in the pediatric ICU, but they are getting better.

However, he wishes his family got vaccinated to begin with.

"To see your kids in a bed, with that hose in their throat and not being able to breath on their own, that’s horrible," Baca said.

He now spends his time sharing his story with other families, and praying for a full recovery for his two sons.

"There’s so little that you can do when you’re here," Baca said. "I mean, prayers are one of the main things that you can do. I’ve been praying a lot."

CINCINNATI —

It has been three weeks since the United States completed its withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan.

The country is back under the rule of the Taliban, which took over quickly.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced Ohio will resettle 855 Afghan evacuees, including 50 in Cincinnati.

A Cincinnati family who is native to Afghanistan is desperate to get their extended family to America.

Husna Khan, 17, is a senior at Walnut Hills High Schools. She was born in Afghanistan and came to America with her parents and two siblings when she was 8 years old.

"You feel so thankful for the opportunities you have here in the U.S.," she said. "But you also feel this sense of guilt that it's your own people, your own aunts and uncles, your own family members are still stuck there."

Khan and her family visited Afghanistan this summer and left just a few days before the Taliban invaded Kabul. Now the family is fearing for family members still in Afghanistan.

"One of my uncles has already been captured. The Taliban are going door to door," Khan said.

"I have a cousin that literally had one month left of medical school before she got her M.D.," she said through tears. "Completely shut down. She won't be able to do it.

Khan said her mother started the application paperwork to bring her siblings to America, but the timeline is not promising.

"That process typically takes about 14 years for people in Afghanistan. We don't have 14 years," Khan said.

Khan's mother, who we are not identifying by name due to her family ties in Afghanistan, went to medical school under Taliban rule. She is now a doctor in Cincinnati.

"You wake up at night and you think about them and you cannot go back to sleep," she said. "Especially people who are highly educated. They are educated for 20 years and now it's gone. Their education is wasted. Now they have to be under restricted rule, staying at home, especially girls. They do not have any hope."

Khan's mother said she was captured once by the Taliban but released a few days later. She is discouraged hearing that so many women and girls are losing their access to education.

Khan started a virtual mentoring program at the beginning of 2020 to help mentor Afghan women and girls and teach them English. She estimates her program has helped more than 100 women and girls.

"So many brilliant people, they deserve to have opportunities here," Khan said.