. breaking overnight, deadly weather hammers the south and mid-west, industdestroying homes not over. there is another system pull eming parts of the u.s. . also developing this morning, a suspicious fire at a houston mosque is now under federal investigation after officials find multiple points of origin.

reports of a top syrian rebel leader killed in an airstrike. who he was, what this means to the war on isis. your "new day" starts right now. >> happy saturday to you. i'm kristi paul. >> i'm errol barnett in for vict victor black well. >> we want to deal with this unrelenting weather the region hit by a tornadoes outbreak earlier this week, now, look at these pictures we're getting in. drenched with double digit rain totals. terrible flooding in some parts. we're talking 14 million people today facing new severe threats. more than 22 million tomorrow overnight the death toll from this week's tornado disaster did go up. at least 15 people are now confirmed dead. dozens more are injured.

>> good morning, kristi, some of the states battered by this brutal string of storms the last couple days hit hard again overnight. we are talking mississippi, georgia, tennessee and alabama to those states affected. >> reporter: severe weather batters southern states, parts of alabama, at least 20 inches fell in less than 24 hours at the airport in gasden. rescue crews helping residents trapped in their homes. a potential tornado touched down in birpingham, causing damage to several blocks. >> the damage was done, confined to approximately one square mile. we have three houses that collapsed. we transported, there were two

others removed but we're report knock injuries. alabama's governor declared a state of emergency, at least 117 homes overcome by water. in georgia the rain damaged roads and made driving treacherous. >> and in mississippi, flood warnings and relentless rain add more misery to areas deservetated by tornadoes that killed 18 people in the state. many roads are flooded. some people are dealing with rising what under the circumstances in their home. in mississippi, victor and tamika hail watched as their home of ten years was overtaken by water him. >> the trailer, it floated away. >> it happened so fast. we had to get up and out of there. >> reporter: the couple and their 9-year-old son now homeless and staying with relatives. >> it's discouraging. we lost everything.

unique christmas items. >> that damage looks devastating. at least 15 people lost their lives. many others have to spend their christmas in shelters. the concern is moving west. blizzards, heavy snow, a brutal mix of that wintry mix that allison chin char will tell you about. >> we will check in with her here. something to keep in mind here, you have millions of holiday travelers trying to get home at this hour. they can expect everything from blizzard conditions to unseasonably warm weather. meteorologist allison chinchar joins us from the severe weather center. is this severe weather far from over? >> i wish i could tell you it was. here is a look at heavy rains moving out of nashville, starting to move into chattanooga, huntsville and birmingham as well.

let's take a look at where the current threat is going to be. notice, parts of alabama and georgia have picked up over ten inches of rain and more is on the way. we've bought the severe threat in parts of texas and louisiana today. out behind this system, we're talking blizzard conditions and some ice, which is very dangerous for travel. severe threats up towards dallas. then we move into sunday. the severe threat pushes east. again dealing with isolated tornadoes as well. all the green areas indicae we have flood watch, flood warnings, we still have flash flood warnings. many roads completely under watt. we have water flowing into folks' homes. again, this is not a good condition. notice the front, it begins to lift and push east.

notice this by mon morning, we could be dealing with a mix of snow, possibly ice and rain for chicago. so if you are planning to head back to work or you have late travel plans on monday in chicago, it's not going to work with you, along with any other city across much of the central and southern united states, guys. >> that is intense stuff. we will continue to check in as folks try to make it home safely this weekend. now we want to get you to breaking news. take a look at this video just in of a wildfire in southern california. it is the wee hours of the morning there at this moment. it's forced officials to close two major roadways and issue mandatory evacuations, fire officials say the 101 freeway and pacific coast highway, they now have to be shut down. firefighters there are working to battle an uncontained 900 acre fire north of the city.

this fire is growing rapidly as well t. beach community is now under a mandatory evacuation. we will continue to follow this breaking story. we'll have more for you on this throughout the morning. the. >> the atf have been called in after a suspicious fire hit a texas mosque. this happened yesterday evening at the friday prayers. no one was injured. firefighters were frightened that the ceiling would cave in. >> reporter: muslims gathered friday night for prayers in a bank wet hall. just feet away, tear burned mosque, investigators inside rummageing through charred debris. >> a brnled synagogue, it's not

good to see that. >> reporter: a man got a look at the flames that enveloped the mosque friday afternoon. >> when i left there, everything was fine a. whole bunch of people in there. >> reporter: just an hour before the mosque capacity filled with 200 people for prayers. >> it's just a place where people look for peace. people look for solutions. and people come this and it's very sad. >> reporter: the flames so intense, firefighters stayed outside for fears of the roof collapsing. people who called this mosque home want to see change. >> the mosque is doing a great jobble not to hurt people. to educate people for the good and the evil. >> an evil that may have entered this place of worship. >> kathy hernandez, a cnn affiliate. thank you so much for that report. we'll have more on this story, including a look at that

investigation with former fbi special agent jonathan gilliam. up next, immigration controversy. should the u.s. deport all undocumented central american migrants in the nation? there is strong reaction to a plan that can begin as early as next month. also coming up for you the childhood home of president clinton is torched. why officials suspect arson is behind it. an indiana woman gets a secret surprise, oh, it's caught on tape. why did you have this reaction? we'll show you.

12 minutes past the hour right now. so grateful to have you with us. a lot of reaction this weekend. plans of a nasty deportation in the u.s. the washington post reporting undocumented central american migrants. they reportedly have not given final approval to. we need to make that point. this is nationwide. it applies to families fleeing violence in central america.

specifically adults and children already ordered removed from the u.s. by immigration judge. they would be detained wherever they can be found and immediately deported. even though it's a holiday weekend, the presidential candidates are reacting to this. i want to tell you first of all what bernie sanders sad said. he plasted the plan saying we must take steps to protect children and families seeking refuge here, not cast them out. donald trump tweeted wow, because of the pressure put on by me, ice to launch large scale deportation raid. it's about time. hillary clinton is trying to land somewhere in between it seems. it's critical that everyone has a full and fair hearing and that our country provides refuge to those that need it. let's talk about this with cnn commentator errol lewis. so i want to go with trump first

t. fact that he's taking credit tore this, which there is no sign he is to be credited for. no sign he's not. two american people, however, really believe the federal government is taking its queues from trump. >> oh, i doubt that in a political season, this is being turned into a football. i mean, there is a remarkably. you did a great job of summarizing it. this is a remarkably complex set of problems that are going on. donald trump has called for the deportation of 11 million people estimated to be here, who are undocumented. you are talking about and what the department of homeland security is talking about is a very, very small sliver of that. what they're saying is that if you have been adjudicated as not eligible for asylum and if you are here improperly and you have been hurt by an immigration judge, you have got to go. >> that is a relatively small set of people.

it's certainly emotionally potent. it's certainly politically very much in the news i guess or on the list of the candidates, but this is not something new. in fact, of all of the problems we had, as far as trying to get our arms around this whole immigration problem, this is one of the relatively simple up withs. you know, again, these are people whose names are known. whose cases are heard. whose disposition has been ordered by the federal government. >> with that said, you know, we look at the timing here, it does seem to put hillary clinton in a tough spot per se. she didn't necessarily go one way or the other with this, with that stap. i'm wondering. how do you think it is she might be able to balance this without seeming to look oppositional to her base. >> you are talking about the clintons, you do have to look a little at the fine print. just the quote you read suggests that. that's the category that we're

talking about right here. their claims were heard. as unfair as it may seem, as inhumane as some might be for political or religious pounds. the reality is once you have gone to an immigration judge. once the law has been tested. that's the hard part is just getting somebody to show up in court, getting the claim process processed. once it's processed, however, you know, at some point, you got to identify, at least in this category, we went through those flames. i think that's where hillary clinton will say lots of people are in the shadows and never, ever, see the light of day in court. i think most americans for political purposes as well as if reality believe that you should have that day in court. hillary's position, we have to take that seriously.

>> let's talk about the callen damp. as we look at what's happening for the first in a long time, iowa caucuses can late. this year, they're not until february 1st. i'm curious if that will do anybody favors headed into that caucus? >> i think some of the candidates think it will do them a favor. in this next week, it looks like chris christie the governor of new jersey, will make a swing through iowa and meet and greet itself. and he hasn't been polling there very well at all. most of his attention and time and polling rules are focused on new hampshire. he thinks he has enough time to sneak in there and get something going. >> historically, will this really make a difference, any candidate? >> i think it's absolutely food.

kristi, if you look back to 2008, mike huckabee snuck in at the last minute. he ended up winning the caucuses. up until a couple weeks before the caucuses four years ago, rick santorum was in seventh place, he came from hein. you know, this is a process, the caucuses in particular that reward multiple attempts to reach people and set things up so that when the caucus arrives, you can execute and get your people out into the polling site. four weeks is an eternity within it comes to that hole in the ground organizing. >> errol lewis, always appreciate your insights. thank you for being with us. sure. >> all right. sure, this is the first day since we had two errols on the show, still to come on this new day weekend, we got a new development in the case of that texas judge shot outside of her home last month.

coming up, a christmas miracle. why a georgia family is happy their daughter is alive after a close shot at death. more on that after this. zplmplt

zplmplts. >> welcome back, everyone. a child at bill clinton's home in arkansas is being investigated as arson.

police say the fire began in the back of the home early friday morning and in addition to the damage from flames, the home's walkway and door were vandalized with graffiti. the home is a national historic site, he planned to live there the first your years of his life. a texas judge is home this morning from the hospital. she was shot and wounded in her driveway november 6th. a person of interest in the aattack is still in jail. police believe he was targeted. again the news is, he is finally home. pope francis called for peace in the holly land and throughout the world in his christmas day message. the pope called forisse real-palestinian talks and they appeared to endorse a two-state solution. he agreed they would succeed in holding that country's devastating civil war. a florida family is so grateful for what they're calling a christmas miracle because they say this is something that saved here daughter's life there

they're not just being thankful. they're paying it period, this morning, they had a message for parents about one of the gift you can give your child. cnn correspondent elizabeth cohen with that story. >> reporter: errol kristi, a family spent the day here at this intensive care unit. their daughter was perfectly healthy until the flu attacked her heart. she was a completely healthy 4-year-old little girl. now she is fighting for her life because of the flu. >> you thought she was not going to make it? >>. >> on sunday, december 13th. she had a slight fever. >> she was extremely sick. >> on monday, she felt better. she even danced in her school christmas play. three days later. >> when she was pale, she had cold hands, cold feet.

>> she spoke to us, she was trying to say, something's wrong. she never spoke with me in that tone before, asking for help. >> reporter: her parents took her to the prnlgs room yu in the income of too many. she arrived and went into cardiac arrest. >> it's tough to watch your child right in front of you. >> you thought you were going to lose her? >> yes. >> her heart wasn't doing anything? >> it stopped. >> doctors performed cpr on her for 45 minutes. >> he said, you know, you have to appreciate her how she is. he hugged her. >> reporter: doctors couldn't get gemma's heart working again. they put her on life support and sent her to a transplant center, thinking she'd need a new heart. >> her heart wasn't doing

anything. no, not good. >> reporter: the sunday before christmas, her parents asked friends around the world to say prayers for their daughter. >> in brazil and in miami, 11:00. >> everyone at the same time? >> yeah. >> and that's when lela and alexei, they got their christmas miracle. >> all of a sudden on sunday, gemma's heart started to beat again. can you explain it? >> sometimes we don't understand everything that's happened in medicine. >> what is gemma's prognosis? >> she will make a great recovery. itself from now, this will be a bump in her life. she should be back to doing the things she's done rom nobody can help why some people get so desperately hurt from the flu. did gemma ever get a flu shot? >> no.

>> never. >> because? >> i didn't think of the flu as a serious illness. >> but now they do and the parents of this little girl who dreams of being a doctor when she grows up have a message to other parents. get your child vaccinated for the flu. gemma is doing better. she is still not out of the woods yet. every year, chyron die of the flu. it's not too late to get a flu shot this season. errol, kristi. >> wow. if you want a reminder, that's it. >> people do forget the flu can be deadly. >> take it serious. >> all right, still to come here on "few day," a top commander of a syrian rebel force killed in an airstrike. who was she? how significantly is this on the war on roar? our military analysts weigh in. also the man accused of a shooting rampage at a planned parenthood clinic last month says he wants to represent himself in court.

talking a a criminal defense attorney about the consequences and possibility of that. >> we are keeping a close eye on this breaking news, a wildfire already forcing road closures and mandatory evacuations. stay with us. .

we don't have clothe, all i have is what i have on. it's discouraging.

we lost everything. my child didn't get 18 christmas items. >> you feel for these people. a mississippi family woke up christmas morning a home of ten years ruined, completely flooded. with two feet of water inside a lot of southern states have been drenched. some thoughts getting ten or more inches of rain. we will keep you updated on the weather story. it is certainly severe and dangerous. >> also take a look at this, the atf have been call in to investigate, after a vicious fire destroyed a mosque in texas. eight firefighters, the fire appeared to have multiple points of entry, but it's too soon to determine the cause. in southern california, take a look at some of the pictures we're getting in here a. wildfire forces officials to

close two roadways, mandatory evacuations, fire officials stay 101 freeway and the pacific coast highway fear the city of ventura shut down an uncontained fire north of the city, it is growing rapidly. the beach community under a voluntary evacuation at the moment. we will have a live report at the top of the hour. we have breaking news out of japan. a u.s. airbase ordered personnel to self inflachlt the yokota airbase is located northwest of tokyo. >> list bring in cnn analyst colonel. you have been to this air pace. what kind of incidents would

call for a shelter in place? >> good morning, errol. there are a lot of things that could happen, that cult could result in this. bank robberies do occur on military base every now and then. fortunately, they're very rare, something like that could spark it, a domestic abuse. a hostage situation. so, of course, all of this is speculationtive. . but the basic idea is that any type of incident like this such as what happened navy yard would result in a shelter and yokota is a big base. the headquarters of the fifth air force so there is important regulations. it has great significance for the u.s. presence in that country. >> it certainly does, we should keep mentioning.

this is just a security incident. what are the usual procedure if there is a security threat on what is an important national airbase. >> so when they shelter in place, they are telling people they need to stay where they are. what they are looking for is making sure that who jev this type is contained, they can coup cure them in criminal or violent activity. they shut the access points to the base. they also make sure the access points to big installations. important installations. a sealed and they are monitored. >> that means an airbase the headquarters buildings for u.s. forces, japan in this case or

the major umpbts on that base. >> so they have procedures for this sort of thing. as i mentioned, this is breaking. stay with us, though. as we come up with other big stories. >> you bet. absolutely. >> thanks for staying with us. the group confirmed the death and they've already appointed a few leader apparently. syria state run news agency aired aerial footage from the strike. it's not clear whether syrian on russian teams carried it out. robin, first of all, what do we know about this rebel lead and this group? >> well, effectively, he was the commander of what is being described as one of the most effective rebel groups battling the syrian government. now.

it wasn't just the syrian government that el islam was battling. they were also targeting isis. we know isis was growing and expanding across syria. it was also expanding, especially in eastern damascus in the suburbs of damascus, so there was also video that was released, kristi, of this particular rebel group executing isis prisoners, so in terms of battling the islamic states, we know the group was exited to that as well as not being aligned with al qaeda. so this was supposedly supposed to be a more moderate group and the leader killed if that airstrike still behind a 2012 attack in damascus, which killed a number of people and targeting specifically the syrian and el assad government. >> they are considered a terror

group. can you tell us more about that regime? >> reporter: the assad regime and other rebel groups they do consider them a terror group as is russia. they are on the side of bashar al-assad and his government. they are not on the side of bashar al-assad and his government. he would have been the enemy of some. if those were russian jets that attacked the high level meeting of rebel commanders. or whether it was syrian, it could have been eater. but, indeed, they all battle isis as well. >> no doubt about it. the only commonality they have is fighting isis. >> robin, we appreciate it so

much. thank you. >> colonel layton, you have been listening to our correspondent there in london. as robin was mentioned, one of the may have been rebel groups for the government next year. this was a group that was key, the death of its leader possibly by russian hands. what does that mean? >> well, erom. it's a serious proceed to saudi arabia. saudi arabia was the big sponsor of islam and actually the father of the leader who was killed was also a resident and also is a resident in saudi arabia. they are an offshoot of islam, which has a strict interpretation of sunni islam. they also, interestingly enough, had said some positive things about al qaeda and about osama bin laden specifically. so although they are against the

syrian regime, they are somewhat pro al qaeda that osama bin laden ran, they are against the hamas and iranian president in the syrian civil war and so as a result of this, the death is a very big blow to this group. this group is actually a coalition of 60 different terrorists and what the certain government called terrorist groups and what we generally term as being the fighters against the say saudi regime. so that is a very serious situation. it's designed to help the russians and the syrian government gain the upper hand in the peace talks coming up next year as you mentioned.

>> tactic ally on the ground, they may have opened, made an opening for isis because this group, if you think with the leader of this group killed, that session may change. >> it could, now, of course, they were quick to appoint a few leader. but in these situation, where there is a top down command structure, the group that is affected, in this case, we are talking about a group that has somewhere around 20,000 or so fighters, they could seriously be impacted from a moral standpoint and right now the saudi arabians and the turks were supporters of this group under islam. they are really scrambling to fill that void. because both saudi arabia and turkey want to make sure that

their interests a represented at the syrian peace talks and this could get not only adversely affect that, but it could affect that tactical situation. if it opposite the door to isis that creates another problem for the russians and the syrian government. >> there are so many external forces at play inside syria. it can get quite complicated. i appreciate the colonel coming in. appreciate it. >> absolutely, erom. >> meanwhile, president obama took a break in hawaii, making a trip to see the troops. obama calls the event one of his favorite things to do and promised the men and women their service is never taken for grante granted. >> overseas, it's tough.

even though we were able to deploy folks in iraq and afghanistan, there's still folks over there every single day. it's still dangerous as we saw this past week. we had outstanding brave men and women who are killed. you help keep us free and strong and whatever service you are in, whatever branch we are extraordinarily grateful for everything you do every single day. >> six americans were killed and a suicide bomber if bagram, afghanistan. the president calling them outstanding and brave. now as we look back at the new stories of 2015, we want to focus on one that's a righted controversy here in the united states and europe.

the refugee crisis. >> the planned parenthood massacre plans to represents in court. we have legal analysis on his defense straight ahead. ♪ everything kids touch during cold and flu season sticks with them. make sure the germs they bring home don't stick around. use clorox disinfecting products. because no one kills germs better than clorox.

>> as we head towards the new year, this is that time of year we look at what's happened already. one of the big stories this year

was the refugee crisis. i don't know if you are aware of this, but the number of minute ago dprants that entered europe by land and sea passed the 1 million mark. >> it's staggering. cnn, nick peyton walsh. ivan watkin. they all koufr covered the crisis. in this round table they discuss tear experiences. >> did you ever think you'd see just this masses of people marching through europe like that? >> i don't think i would have imagined a scene like that. >> i don't know if you want to get to greece the votes that keep on coming and coming. >> there is logic out there. why don't they stay in lebanon? they're safe. >> would you? i mean, people forget. you have to build a life. >> you need to be able to build a future for yourself. if you are not going to have

someone sitting in a refugee camp, you can't pursue your education, pursue your life. sadly the reality is, they're not going to go home. the war if syria isn't going to end any time soon. if it were. >> this is a consequence for decades to come, the boring people are not going to be there. they're fought going to want to go home. they will do that job in germany. >> this isn't necessarily the tourists that are making this journey. they can't afford it. >> they are going through serious ports of syria. >> they are in syria. they can't afford to get bombed every single day. or they're the ones in a refugee camp it's not a journey. >> it's the sheer volume of people doing it. >> there is no way the way that refugee trail unfolded is good for any of the refugees and

migrants or the european states. it kind of weakens you're mean institutions. >> it became a debate. >> and that idea of europe or even america, it's meant to be a democracy. it's mane to the uphold all these ideals and values and to be treated like trash. that's how they felt, they were treated like trash. >> i think it depend on the country or the border. that's not entirely fair. there were people that welcomed this. >> people that made political decisions. >> it created more of a poor factor. was that better? >> we had that conversation in the u.k. conservatives say if you stop saving it, they'll stop coming. you have to debate what that does to your humanity? can you watch thousands upon thousands of people washing up on shore? >> why does it have to get that bad? >> i'm not encouraging you on

the beach, for people to begin to react. >> a good question. we'll continue to shed more light on that, next, though the case of the man accused of gunning down three people at a planned parenthood clinic, made his criminal defense attorney weighing in on whether it's a good idea for him to represents? would that really happen neighborhood, coming up next hour, more on this developing story, millions already affected. millions more were hit by it as it moves on. we'll bring you the bleak forecast. more severe weather to come after this short break.

expedia,

. >> it's the 7:00 hour. the case against this man accused of killing three people last month in colorado springs on whether he is incompetent. he interrupted the public defender. the judge ordered him to undergo a mental evaluation. however, in a previous court appearance earlier this month, the suspect indicated he would not cooperate with a mental evaluation. >> and i'm not going to agree

their mental health evaluations, where they want to take me and put me under psych tropic drugs so i can't talk like a fat man does. >> so here's the thing, he is facing 179 felony count, murder and attempted murder, cnn legal analyst joey jackson is with us here. joey, first of all, good morning to you. what if dear won't cooperate in having a mental evaluation? at that point what happens? >> good morning, kristi. well, this is how it's going to go. the defendant has the right to self represent t. law says you can represent yourself. however, it's discretionary to the judge if you are not competent. so the reality is anyone who is competent has an obligation or the constitution that they can represent themselves. the judge can say no in the

event it is not confidence. we have an issue here, he says, i am not going to cooperate. the judge can say, if you don't cooperate, you don't get the ability to represent yourself. so it's certainly possible, while he may be found competent to stand trial, itself, he may have trouble moving forward if he doesn't cooperate. >> if he doesn't cooperate with that, surely you think he will not cooperate then with people assigned to be his attorney. and on top of that, if he is deemed incompetent, if he's deemed incompetent to represent himself, does that mean he is deemed incompetent and cannot go through a jury trial. would that immediately be an insanity defense? what happens then? >> it's the distinction between confident to stand trial and self represent. >> that is, in the event that you are oriented as to time and place you can could understand the proceedings against you, the judge can order the trial will move forward.

however, it requires a high degrees of competency, obviously, in the event you will be questioning witnesses, given an opening statement, et cetera. it's a distinction the court makes between having the ability at a minimum to be there and actually stand trial and, number two, to actually question witnesses, participate in the proceedings and move forward. there is a distinction between the two. the third prong, obviously, what will be his defense. certainly, we can see an insanity type raised. >> that, of course, different as well. now will you have an issue where, were you insane? not at the time that the proceedings are going on, but at the time of the commission of the offense, itself, then, okay, in colorado, the burden would be on the prosecution to prove sanity beyond a reasonable doubt. beyond many jurisdictions, the defendant, him or herself will have the obligation to prove they are, indeed, sane?

>> it does not make sense for him to represent himself and stand up and claim he was insane at the time and we are expected to believe he is saying enough to argue that moment, if he was insane at the time? do you see in any of this, one that, he might actually be able represent himself and, two, that the death penalty could come into play here? >>. >> you know with with regard to the death penalty, it hasn't been used. they've executed one person. you might remember the aurora, colorado, movie theater, killed 12, injured 70. he didn't get the death penalty. in terms of him representing himself, a judge can certainly find he is able to do it. a lot would have to do with whether he participates in the competency proceedings f. he doesn't do that, the judge will say, i am not going to allow to you stand forward and represent yourself. that remains to be seen in terms

of his participation. >> joey jackson, always good to see you, thank you. >> thank you, yvetti, of course. >> still to come at the top of the hour, we are keeping an eye on breaking news out of the west coast a. wild into irin southern california forcing road close years and mandatory evacuations. also, pop star madonna's big custody battle. why her teenage son refuses to live with her in new york. her fight to keep him there. a secret gift sends a woman into a happy frenzy. the video is going environment. this is the story of the day. you are here to see it. zplmplt

zplmplts. >> you got to see this, the moment an indiana woman learns she is a grandmother. the response is priceless. >> oh! oh my god! oh my god! oh my god! i have been dreaming this.

>> oh, that itself the best. she had no idea her son and daughter in law were visiting for the holidays for one, but that is their newly adopted baby girl they brought with them to surprise grandma who is overjoyed as you can see. >> so sweet. congratulations to them, merry christmas to everybody there. >> there is a lot of news that we have to talk to you about this morning. >> the next hour of your "new day" starts right now. >> oh, breaking overnight, deadly weather hammers the south, the mid-west, homes are destroyed, roads are washed out. people are upset. it's not over. there is another system that could impact more than 22 million of us. >> we got breaking news from the west coast out of southern

california. the rapidly growing wildfire has forced evacuations and road closures. we'll talk to officials on the ground to see what condition there is are like. we'll see if they can get the word out to residents. >> a fierce battle under way in iraq, to retake the city. bobby traps are set by isis, though. they are slowing the iraqi forces down. can they finally drive isis out of that key city? >> well, wishing you a good morning on a saturday at 7:00, always grateful for your company and yours. >> hey, everyone, i'm errol barnett. the second hour is a good one. >> good man here. thank you so much. i know, the end of the fifth hour. listen, we want to start with this wild weather across the u.s. blizzards in the u.s., powerful rain storms in the east. 14 million of us facing new

severe weather threats today and that's going to rise to more than 22 million of us tomorrow. >> consider this, in just the past 24 hours the south has been getting drenched with double digit rain totals, forcing terrible flooding in some places. you see the footage there, this same region reeling from the tornado outbreak earlier this week. unfortunately the death toll continues to rise, 15 people are confirmed dead. dozens more are injured across mississippi, arkansas and tennessee. i want to bring in nick valencia. he is following this deadly system. 15 dead so far, that could rise in the next two hours. >> alabama suffers the brunt of the damage overnight. it was a christmas day event there. this is a part of the same winter storms that swept through the south the past couple of days, causing major damage there. a reinto the home. erom was talking about 15

people's lives have been claimed as a result of these storms. among the youngest victim a 12-year-old boy in mississippi. >> severe weather batters several southern states. heavy raynhamers parts of alabama. at least 20 inches fell in less than 24 hours at the airport in gasden. the water made some roads impassable. rescue crews helping residents trapped in their homes. a potential tornado touched down in birmingham, causing damage to several blocks. >> the damage was done, it was confined to approximately one square mile. we have three structures, three houses left. we transported one person from the saskatoon, there were two others that were removed from the structures. we reported no injuries. >> alabama's governor declared a state of mortgages because of widespread flooding. at least 117 homes overcome by water. in georgia, the rain damaged

roads and made driving treacherous. and in mississippi, flood warnings and relentless rain add more misery to areas already devastated by tornadoes that killed at least eight people in the state. many roads are flooded. some people are dealing with rising what under the circumstances in their home. in mississippi, people watched as their home of ten years was overtaken by water. >> the lawn mower the trailer, it floated away, garbage cans, everything is gone. >> everything went away way too fast. >> reporter: the couple is now homeless, staying with relatives. >> we lost everything. py child didn't get any christmas items. >> in the south, two people are unaccounted for. folks there need your help. if you feel compelled, try to

help out those suspected, you can go to cnn.com/impact to help the victims of those deadly holiday storms. kristi. >> thank you so much. of course, coming on this week when a lot of you may be listening from your cars, trying to get home. this wicked weather is not going to make it easy for you, allison chinchar has more on what to expect. because this is one storm. there is another one, is there not, allison? >> we will be dealing with a series of multiple weather events. you can technically tie them back to this same system. here's a look at what we had so far, four-to-six inches, at least over ten inches in parts of oklahoma city, we are talking ten inches in alabama and georgia as well the severe weather threat ramps up yet again today. we have this new system trenching up from san francisco to cincinnati. that system begins to push

farther east as we go into sunday. notice the threat becomes memphis, to dallas, to houston, to new orleans, any of these cities, you have travel plans, you definitely want to check withure airline carrier to make sure there may not be delays. flooding threat sa huge concern. we have flash flood warnings still for alabama. but behind this system, we're talking about a different scenario. this is the cold air. we have winter storm watches. blizzard watches, notice the front begins to push a little farther off to the forth. the low swings up. we have not only rain and severe weather for parts of the southeast. all this snow behind it. take a look, chicago monday morning, not exactly a good location to be. if you are traveling in or out of chicago on mon morning, definitely give yourself extra time or check with your airline ayre i carrier. because we will be dealing with big travel delays there, again in a lot of these cities, kristi, over the next couple of

days. >> we appreciate it. thank you so much. we want to get back to breaking news, this wildfire in southern california, forcing officials to close two major roadways and issue mandatory evacvations. this is video coming into us overnight. ventura fire officials a say the 101, two major thorofares there, shut down this morning. firefighters working to with thele an uncontained 900 acre fire authorth of the city. the beach community is under mandatory evacuations. the community is under a voluntary evacuation. i talked to the captain with the ventura county fire department. thank you so much for being with us. i know a lot of people travel these roads on a daily basis. when do you think they might reopen? >> well, thank you for having me this morning. you know, it's a really good

question, unfortunately, it's one i'm unable to answer. it started over four hours ago. we haven't seen any change in the intensity in the burning along that freeway corridor. we seen multiple spot fires in between the lanes of the freeway, in between the 101 and ch. what we're dealing with here, this corridor along with the i-5 corridor the primary corridors here in california, this can have a major impact on our holiday traffic. we will do everything we can to get this opened as soon as we can. >> sure. you mentioned this has been going on four hours. as i understand, it is still a zero containment, what is your biggest obstacle at this point? >> well, i know, there are multiple forces coming together here. as you know, we had a very exceptional drought here in california. these fields are very, very drive. we haven't had any rain,

significant rain to speak of so far this year and this area is now under a wind advisory. we've had gusts up to 47 to 50 miles an hour in the area. so we had been challenged in every area on this incident, that fuels are very fine, they're burning very rapidly. and this fire was probably up to 100 acres within minutes of being reported if that can give you an idea of what's interpreting. >> any indication of what started i.t.? >> there is a lot of infrastructure up in the hills above where this fire is burning now. that's a possibility. but we're going to have to get in there and take a look at it. >> you mentioned the dry brush. do you see any significant building, homes, companies that are threatened at the moment? >> a lot of that infrastructure i mentioned in this area nor of

highway 101. there is a lot of drilling. there are a lot of oil wells. the structures that come along with that sort of operation. but we do have 30 to 35 homes in the beach area that are currently under a mandatory evacuation and are threatened. and we have a number of homes in areas under a vomtary evacuation. the big factor is which what i is this wind going to pan out? when the sun comes up, if it heads out of the south southwest, it can proceed this fire back towards the north. ten we have a lot of structures. in another area we will be able bypass on the 101 it can create an issue. >> you mentioned the second oil wells. did they pose any particular threat, advanced threat? >> it's something we'll consider, but we haven't seen any problems yet. most of those oil wells we

require the companies to provide a lot of the defensible space around those wells. so often, you're just going to have a well on a pad that is surrounded just by dirt with no vegetation. >> all right. what happened. i know you have a big job this morning. thank you so much, taking some time to talk to us. hopefully, we'll get some updates throughout the morning. best of luck to you and the crews there. stay safe. >> thank you, kristi. >> thank you, bye. >> he said that, that fire moved quickly. we're fighting to get a hand him on it. still to come this hour on "new day," less than a mile away the iraqi military have a visual on isis fighters in ramadi. will they be able to take back control of this strategic city? >> plus, the queen of pop entangled in an international custody battle. the fight to get her son back. also developing, a suspicious

fire at a houston mosque is now under federal investigation. this after officials discover multiple points of origin, back in a moment. . ♪

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new this morning, a federal investigation in texas. after the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms is called in to investigate a suspicious mosque fire. here's what happened. the plays broke out yesterday afternoon after friday prayers. it took 80 firefighters to get the flames under control. no one was injured. but members of the mosque congregation were understandably rattled. >> i burned more chairs, or i burned synagogues or temples. it's not good to see him like that. the mosque is doing a great job to educate the community. and to educate people to do the good and to beat the evil. >> investigators say it's the quote multiple points of entry for the tire that led them to call this blaze suspicious. joining me now on the phone is jonathan gilliam, a law enforcement analyst and fbi special agent and former navy seal as well.

thanks for joining us on the phone, the fire now being called suspicious because of its multiple points of entry. some attendees are hoping it's just an accident. >> well, i mean, they have multiple points of entry. i'm not an expert on fire safety. but once the atf or those individuals actually handle fire on scene and say the rises to the little of suspicious, we have to concur looking at this, like any other investigation, as though this is the possibility nefarious activity is what led to this. then the investigation will start to unfold similarly to any other type of investigation with understand the fbi gets on scene and takes over, but from i have been reading, the fbi does not have people on right now that they're probably waiting on the experts that do arson investigations to come to their findings before they take over

that investigation. >> okay. because we should note, this is a sekd second mosque fire in recent weeks, there was another one in california coachella valley. do you consider this would be a part of a backlash following the terrorist attacks we all witnessed in san bernardino? >> sure. i mean, i'm positive that they have that in mind. these are a little bit far apart, so they may not be connected. but they will be looking at all those things. i mean, any time a religious institution is involved in nefarious activity, whether it's burns or bombs, especially if it's across state lines, they will start to pay close attention to that, because there's special attention always paid to religious institution. same thing with political individual who are politicians,

same type of special investigation has to be put forward. >> jonathan gilliam on the phone with us there. noting special investigator e versions to arrive at the scene. jonathan, thanks. now, did you wake up christmas morning missing a gift because it wasn't delivered on time? >> i did. well, no, actually i didn't. it wasn't for this week. >> i was going to say, you are not alone, severe weather, parts of the south. it kept fedex from delivering gifts by christmas eve. see how the company tried the make up for the delay. >> they're famed, disadvantaged as we are. in atlanta, a delivery, one special gift. fedex couldn't deliver this one, people. we show you what caused this

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>> 21 minutes past the hour. look at this. that's a bridge in southern indiana that will need repair after that semi truck caused it to collapse. it was too big for the bridge, the trailer got caught. there were two women in the truck. to australia now, hundreds of firefighters there spent

christmas day trying to get a hand him on this massive push fire south of melvin. more than 100 homes have been destroyed and 16 residents evacuated friday, they weren't allowed to return today. some people are waking up furious at fedex because the packages didn't get delivered in time for the holiday t. main hub is in memphis, tennessee, severe weather there. fedex said some employees volunteered to look at cruiseships on christmas to help get packages to customers. irate customers are calling fedex the christmas dprinch. hey, it's the weather, it's not tear fault. >> social media can find sympathy sometimes. now to a gift that was fought going to be lost. you got to see this, my favorite story of the day. the moment an indiana woman learned she's a grandmother, here is her priceless reaction.

>> oh! oh my god! >> she had no idea her son and daughter in law were visiting for the holidays. that was a surprise. it was more special when they handed her that adopted baby girl. you can see, them and hear, dprnd ma is overjoyed. >> we want to talk to them, if you are up and find out more about that moment. >> the baby seems so well behaved. >> so happy there. oh, i had no idea on national television. oh, it brings us joirks thank

you for the smile this morning him with eall need that, no doubt about it. because we're talking about the stories they are fighting and bobby traps set by isis. we have details as the iraqi military is inching close to the strong hold there in ramadi. >> you may not have heard of madonna's international custody battle. mom wants him home, dad to stay in london t. 15-year-old has his own opinion. stay with us.

>> here's a look at this week's mortgage rates for you. .

breaking news, a u.s. airbase ordered personnel to shelter in place after some sort of security incident. now, the yokota airbase, it's a precaution to protect residents on base as professionals respond to this incident. again, we do not know what this incident is. the gates were locked down, there were long lines of cars, as soon as we get more details, we will bring them to you there developing overnight in the middle east, israeli police shot and killed a palestinian man this morning who they say tried to stab an officer in europe on

christmas day, israeli police say they killed a palestinian woman who tried to ram officers in her car. this is in a west bank village near bethlehem, blocks and molotov cocktails, criticism mass celebrations carried on despite that prime backdrop. this morning, we have new video of the fierce battleto retake ramadi from isis fighters and a constant bombing that left that city if ruins at this point. iraqi officials, they say that progress is slow, isis left behind an awful lot of bobby traps and ieds. they predict iraqi troops are close to taking the city completely. >> the enemy began to fall apart. the city is surrounded by 360 degrees. we are one kilometer from the compound. >> cnn correspondent robin creole is with us now. he said they are about a mile

from the main compound. but do we have any idea how close the iraqi forces are to retaking the city in full? >> reporter: well, we understand, kristi, there are about 70% of the city currently is in iraqi forces hand and 30% is still in isis hands, that's the latest information from the iraqi defense ministry. it means, as you said, it is taking a long time. they began this offensive, this real push on tuesday, although, they have been conducting larger operations to strangle the city, isis, in particular, from its supply routes since november, so this has not started in the last few days. it's been an operation they have been preparing for a while. you mentioned bobby traps, sniper fire, as well as the fact they are worried about sivivelyians caught in the crossfire. isis stopped a number of

civilians from leaving. they didn't know this onslaught was coming. the iraqi defenses tell them they should be, many tried to leave, manyp were stopped and there is the concern that isis is using them as human she'lls. >> so, isis fighters, a lot of them, obviously, stayed to try to fend this off. do we know what kind of a consequence this will be for isis in terms of their logistics and morale, if this city does fall and goes back into iraqi hands? >> reporter: well, i understand it will be as large a propaganda queue for the iraqi forces as it would have been for isis if may. it was hugely embarrassing and the ease with which it fell. they simply ran out of ammunition. i believe they were calling for more support from baghdad and from the americans and according to people on the ground in ramadi, the commanders on the ground, they weren't getting that support t. reason, the

embarrassment and ensuing criticism that came out, especially from the united states, ash carter is saying that the iraqis lacked a will to fight in that specific fight. it's hugely embarrassing. it mane at lot for them. i understand it will be the exact opposite for isis, when this folds, it will be a big loss to them. of course, everyone will look at the number of cities fallen out of isis' hands the question will be, loung how long will they be able to hang onto it. isis can launch subsequent attacks. >> my next shot was how long can they hold onto it? all right, robin kriel, we appreciate it. thank you. we want to bring in cnn analyst leiutenant general mark hertling. he always helps us understand the complicated issues as they unfold, general, you see the drugs in ramadi from some of the videos the iraqi military has released. if and when iraqi forces do take the spire city back, we wonder how much will be left of it?

>> well, unfortunately, erom, this is something the iraqi people have gotten used to, rebuilding their cities, rebuilding their houses, it's a direct reflection of how much damage, first al qaeda and iraq and now isis does to communities. they not only impose their will on people that don't want to will imposed to them. then after fighting multiple times and engaging with the iraqi security forces, they will plant bombs inside of houses, what's called improvised exmovies devices, i was in a house once, it was put in a bobby trap mode like this. it will drop the ceiling or cause the house to explode. the only way you can get rid of those bobby traps inside houses, for the most part, is to explode them, themselves, you can't oftentime disarm those bombs. so, yeah, there will be a lot of damage in this city, after the

iraqi security forces gain complete control they're on the verge of doing that now t. food thing, though, the iraqi government and anbar government, primarily sunnis are prepared to take over in an attempt to hold this city against further incursion by isis. >> what about civilians? isis threatens residents, if they flee, they'll be killed. they now have this policy, the iraqi military is trying to institute to wave white flags out of their homes, so they know it's safe. how much danger remains for civilians? >> quite a bit, actually. we're talking about isis has used minarets from mosque, another true disregard of true islam. they told the sids they cannot surrender to the iraqi security forces, they will be killed if they try to escape. this is one more thing isis is doing. the danger is still there. i don't think you will see a whole lot of civilians waving

white flags. they are fearful for tear lives having lived under this organization the last six months or so. as you asked earlier, this is going to be a huge victory for the iraqi government. they have incull pated the sunni tribe the coalition forces trained these fire brigades, they have gone in there and secured the city. it will mean good things for another things that have sunnis and kurds saying, hey the central government is prepared to assist. it's fought as much as a sectarian divide as has been in the past. >> it shows they were able to begin the trust of locals there. quickly, i want to pivot to the breaking news we are following out of japan the yokota airbase, issuing a shelter in place. this broke in the past hour or so. what do you know about what's happening there right now? >> well, a shelter in place is

something that is used by a base commander to make sure people in the community, the military personnel and their family are kept safe. it is my understanding that that shelter in place has been listed. the excuse given for putting it in place was, in fact, an unauthorized person with a suspicious package that entered the airbase. it was an extremely good reaction by the air force security people who guarded the base. this is the location of the u.s. forces japan headquarters. a lot of things go on there, a great action by the air force security people a. shout out to them. >> all right. so this may have been just a precautionary measure. we'll who, to get that confirmed. general mark hertling. >> thank you, errol. all righty, up next, nba star standing up, speaking out. we have details for you on this new public service announcement, creating quite a sfir i stir. >> also, political jabs. a new ted cruz super pack stakes

i takes a swipe at rival marco rubio.

>> 38 minutes past the hour. the iowa caucuses are about a month. political ads in full swing. i'm sure you have seen, attacking some candidates. supporting others. money paid for by big, many i should say are paid by big money donors. we have a look at who is it giving their money and why are they doing it? good morning. >> reporter: good morning, it's rare for big donors and politicians to speak about the relationship and what that money brings them. we recently talked to a top gop money man who has given many to the candidates who benefitted. >> reporter: gop money man foster freeze wrote a big check to support his friend rick santorum. in 2012, he threw him a lifeline when he gave the super packs

supporting him more than $2 million. >> he's a champion. he's very presidential. >> reporter: in his heyday, he was making $10 million a month. he won't say how much he will give this campaign season but explains why he do nates. >> i get a sense of satisfaction i am continuing the process that created my success. >> reporter: he prefers to give to super packs, which can take as much cash as he's willing to give, instead of giving to campaigns, where the limit is $5400. >> when the super pack came along, i realized i can write a check. it's a lot more effortless. >> that seem to work. >> reporter: santorum doesn't think he is trying to buy influence. >> if he was far access, he wouldn't support the guy with 1% in the poll. >> reporter: veteran gop fundraiser barber says they are outgunned by those seeking influence. >> a lot of people give because

they believe in something. they farout number the people that give access. yet, the people for access different much larger dollars. >> according to a non-partisan watchdog, so far, these super packs have raise i raised $350 billion and spent almost 100 million. much of it on atmospheres. they still leave republican candidates far behind the front runner, who hasn't spent a dime on television advertising. >> super packs are a disaster. they're a scam. they cause dishonesty. you better get rid of them, because they are causing a lot of bad decisions to be made by very good people. i'm not blameing these folks, i guess i could. >> reporter: some say they're driven by a mix of business and ego. >> they give people what they think will support what they want. they are giving to people they know will answer their phone calls if they win and will give them access and will listen carefully to what they want on a

public agenda. >> those gop presidential ads on tv, more than 70% have been paid for by super packs. but how successful those ads are is an open question. jeb bush and the super pack backing his campaign have spenting will $26 million airing ads. bush is still polling in the single digits. with the first contest over a month away, now is the time that money could be a game changer for many of the candidates. kristi. >> thank you so much. let's talk to cnn political commentator the one and only been ferguson, of course. >> good morning. >> merry christmas to you, ben, thank you. hey, let's watch one of these ads that the super packs put together for cruz quickly and we'll talk about it. >> he represents the people. he represents me. >> he actually went to washington, d.c. and did what he told the voters he was going to

do. >> who actually stood up not just to democrats but to leaders in our own party. >> he's not afraid to say the honest truth. even if it's unpopular. >> the ad focuss on something, that is quite polar ooizing to a lot of people. the fact that he stood up. some might say, yeah that, led to a government shutdown. how much of a risk is it? >> it depends on the motive of the super packs him some of the ads are there to harm other candidates. some are there to support candidates. i don't mind it wp they're supporting a candidate and saying, heying look, this is who ted cruz is, for example, this is why you should vote for em. it fosters a perfect example when it comes to people like him. he is picking a guy i think he believes rick santorum, bests

his ideals and values. he is willing to support that individual even when they're not at the top of the race a. lot of it. you look at it. you say, okay, some i don't like, some i do like. in reality, that's a part of politics. super packs are here in this election. everybody gets a shot at using them. everybody gets a chance to go after big donors or small donors, it's one of those things, let the best pan win. >> can super packs elect the presidents? >> i don't. i think they can hurt somebody who you have a super pack that you don't like. i think it can make eliminate a candidate if you have multiple super packs kind of focusing in on one individual. look at a great example of how it's had virtually no tluns with donald trump. there have been people with lots of money wanting to get rid of donald trump and down to the top spot. either they have been too afraid to do it or when they have tried

to go after a super pack, it hasn't worked? trump, himself, calls super packs a disaster. >> he didn't say that within are you a multibillionaire. >> he said, as he says, he is self funded. >> he's his own super pack. that's how i look at it. it takes a lot of money to run for the white house. look how much money barack obama spent when he ran the first time and second time. it was unbelievable the amount of cash. donald trump is looking to cast stones at others. not everyone in this race is a billionaire, a multi-millionaire. so he is his own super pack. donald trump, one of the things here, a little hypocrisy, donald trump has been supporting candidates and super packs for years, he has been writing huge checks him he says, i was writing them for influence, now i'm not doing it. you are, are you writing a huge check for you, your own input. the same thing, it happens to have your name this time.

>> a lot of people appreciate that. >> it's always easy to go after other people and tell you how evil they are. donald trump had no problem writing these checks for decades. >> ben ferguson, thank you. >> we have been following breaking news of a wild wildfire in southern california. this video is just into cnn. officials have been forced to close major roads. there are mandatory evacuations on the way. we'll have the latest at the top of the hour. also coming up, madonna's son doesn't want to come home. next, details where rocco doesn't want to come back to live with the queen of pop. it's a power move. see how nba players are using their fame off the court to tackle gun violence. more on that after all this.

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welcome back, everyone. madonna's holiday is off to a very rough start. the pop star's teenage son, rocco, is refusing to come back

to new york. he wants to stay in london with his dad, movie director guy ritchie according to the "new york daily news." now, we have video of rocco from a few years ago. madonna went to court in manhattan on wednesday and won a court order to force rocco to return. but according to the paper, ritchie's lawyer in london says rocco's expressed very clearly he does not want to return to new york. so what happens next here? we've got our legal analyst and criminal defense attorney, joey jackson, joining us. so how will this work -- where are you, joey? right in front of me. how does this work, joey, if madonna's lawyers are essentially working on her behalf in new york, rocco has his dad's attorney working for him in london, who really has the upper hand here? >> good morning, errol. if only 15-year-olds ruled the world. and so, you know, sometimes teenagers can get a little rambunctious, and they can get a little, you know, wanting to go their own way. but at the end of the day, it's really governed and ruled by the court of law.

and so obviously, a new york judge has no say in terms of what happens in london, but in this situation, the judge has a lot of say. why? because the new york court had original jurisdiction. the divorce was dealt with there. as part of that, the custody proceedings were determined there and they will be determined there. and so therefore, london, at the end of the day and any courts in the uk will honor the judge's order that he be returned to new york and it be sorted out here and it's also governed by treaty. what will ultimate happen, that's an open question. but as of now, he'll be returned to new york. there will be hearings on it and a decision made as to where he lives moving forward. >> and that's a good point you make because, look, the law is one thing, but we're dealing with a 15-year-old here. and, you know, any 15-year-old is kind of getting a sense of their own independence, who they are, and sometimes that means disagreeing with mom and dad. so what if rocco decides not to come back to new york and stay in london?

what happens then? >> well, that won't happen because he'll be compelled to come to new york. and at that point, a judge will determine, pursuant to a hearing, what happens next. and what happens in new york is the child himself will have what's called a law guardian. that's a lawyer. and that lawyer will fend for the child's interest. and ultimately, this will be determined by the best interests of the child. that's the analysis that goes into it. and oftentimes, you know, look. 15-year-old, do you know what's in your best interests at 15? not entirely, although you may think you know. the judge will have a hearing, determine where should the child stay, what are the factors, is madonna more suitable to have her child with her? is the father more suitable at this time? what is her schedule? what are the demands of her schedule? how would he be impacted, that is rocco, by that schedule? so all of that will be filtered out to determine whether he stays here or goes there, but make no mistake about it, he does not get to choose himself

unilaterally what he wants to do. >> that's one final point i want you to make. what if rocco gets his own attorney, right? does he legally, 15 years old, have any say so in this case? >> you do. absolutely you do. and so a child has say so, and you do have an attorney, and that attorney, again, is called a law guardian, and they fend for your interest. what you have to say and how it's impacting me and my mom's on tour and we're not get ago long and oh, my goodness and i think it's time to leave, the judge will listen to all of that but will ultimately be guided by long term where's it best? would moving the child to london, how would that impact the entire family unit, his other brother, his half-sisters, how would it impact his future life, his education, his physical and mental well-being, and so after all of that is said and done, errol, the judge concludes whether he will be here in new york, against his wishes, or whether he'll move on and stay with his father, which he currently wishes to do. but at 16, he might feel

differently. at 17, he may feel differently. you know, kids sometimes change their mind all the time. >> apparently he'll be turning 16 in april. he's already had to deal with growing up with madonna as your mother. hasn't he been through enough already? we hope this comes to some kind of a good resolution. joey jackson, thanks for your time today. >> thank you, errol. have a great day. >> you too. at the top of the hour, tornadoes and massive flooding. eight people have died in mississippi from this severe weather outbreak. unfortunately, more rain is on the way today. we'll talk live with the sheriff of one county in mississippi where homes are already under water. and rains -- or i should say raids to round up and deport illegal immigrants from central america could start as soon as next week. today, some of the democratic presidential candidates are speaking out against those raids. and i want to share with you some of the newest pictures we're just getting in of that wildfire that's burning along rincon, north of ventura in

california. more than 250 acres burned and no containment yet. we'll have the update for you. stay close.

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a lot of people watch these games. and this year, stars steph curry, carmelo anthony, chris paul and joakim knnoah, they partnered with everytown.org. the nba stars spoke about their appearances along with people who have been affected by gun violence. and take a listen. here's a portion of it. >> i heard about a shooting involving a 3-year-old girl over the summer. my daughter riley's that age. >> the gun should never be an option. >> we're americans. we don't have to live like this. >> we can all make a difference. >> in the united states, 88 people die of gun violence every day. ♪ i rise up >> so president obama tweeted, saying he was proud of the nba for standing up against gun violence, adding sympathy for victims isn't enough. change requires all of us speaking up. and you can see more of these in-depth interviews with the players on everytown.org. we want to know what you're thinking at home. should pro sports leagues get involved in controversial issues like this? tweet us using #newdaycnn or reach us on facebook.

>> all righty. andy scholes, we appreciate it. thank you. >> thanks. >> absolutely. there is so much news to tell you about this morning. >> that's right. the next hour of your "new day" starts now. two breaking stories overnight to tell you about. first of all, severe weather hitting the southern part of the u.s. tornadoes, heavy rain leaves 15 people dead in 3 states. hundreds are under water, and it's not even over. there is another storm in the days to come. and it's expected to affect millions of us. there's another breaking news story we're following right now. you are looking at live pictures of a rapidly growing wildfire in southern california. and major roadways are shut down this hour. mandatory evacuations connected to this fire that you're looking at. we're so grateful to have you, as always, on our saturday mo mornings here. i'm christi paul.

>> and i'm errol barnett in for victor blackwiell. >> let's begin with this unrelenting severe weather. it's been pounding the south. this region that was hit by a tornado outbreak earlier this week is getting dremp inting dr with double-digit rain totals. horrible flooding in some spots. today 14 million of us are facing new severe weather threats, and more than 22 million will face it tomorrow. overnight, the death toll from this week's tornado disaster went up, by the way, at least 15 people are now confirmed dead. dozens more are injured across mississippi, arkansas and tennessee. and cnn's nick valencia is following the latest weather system and really the damage it's already done, right, nick? >> it has just been devastating. you mentioned the southern portion of the united states, tennessee, georgia, alabama, mississippi, all of those affected waking up christmas morning had this deal with this terrible weather. this type of damage you're seeing is more typical for

springtime. but right now at least 15 people have lost their lives. and that death toll could rise. >> reporter: severe weather batters several southern states. heavy rains hammer parts of alabama. at least 20 inches fell in less than 24 hours at the airport in gadsden. the water made some roads impassable. rescue crews help residents trapped in their homes. the national weather service said a potential tornado touched down in birmingham, causing damage to several blocks. >> the damage that was done was confined to approximately one square mile. we had three structures, three houses, that collapsed. we transported one patient from the scene. there were two others removed from the structure, but we're reporting no injuries. >> reporter: alabama's governor declared a state of emergency because of widespread flooding. at least 117 homes overcome by water.

in georgia, the rain damaged roads and made driving treacherous. and in mississippi, flood warnings and relentless rain add more misery to areas already devastated by tornadoes that killed at least eight people in the state. many roads are flooded, and some people are dealing with rising water in their homes. in ren, mississippi, victor and tamika hale watched as their home of ten years was overtaken by water. >> the lawn mower, the trailer, it just floated away, garbage can, everything. >> it happened so fast, we had to get up and get out of this. the rain was coming way too fast. >> reporter: the couple and their 9-year-old son now homeless and staying with relatives. >> it's discouraging. we lost everything. my child, he didn't get none of his christmas items. >> our thoughts and prayers especially with that family right there. and everyone affected, really, in the southern united states. the good news here, the storm prediction center has said that the risk for violent weather has dropped dramatically, but the threat is not over, especially

for potential for flash flooding. if you want to help, if you feel compelled and feeling extra generous this holiday season, you can go to cnn.com/impact to help victims of the deadly holiday storms. they sure could use the help, christi. >> no doubt about it. nick, thank you so much. we want to get more on the situation in mississippi specifically on the phone with us now, monroe county sheriff cecil cantrell. sheriff, thank you so much for being with us. i know that your county is dealing with so much flooding and rising waters. first of all, are people still in danger there? >> well, i would say about 99% or a little better, they're in a safe condition at this time. we do have one person lives in the area that is going to be going in this morning around daylight and get this person. but everything's pretty good here. it's been a rough 24 hours.

a lot of people lost their homes. by floodwaters. a lot of cars off the roads where the water swept them off the roads. of course, we'll be getting those cars -- try to get those cars recovered today. it's just been a rough 24 hours. we're just not equipped for this kind of weather in our part of the country. it's really, really tough. >> i'm so sorry for what you all are going through there. you said that you're going to try to recover some of those cars. so has the water receded in many of the areas? >> well, you know in some areas, yes, and some, you know, of course, it will be days before it goes completely away and down. in some areas where there was flash flooding were swept off the roads, some of those will be probably, it looks like maybe

we'll recover some today, we think. >> okay. what is your most urgent feed right now, sheriff? >> well, you know, we're just asking for, you know, for our folks here just to be -- use some patience because it's just going to take some time to get tease problems solved, and we will get them solved. it's just going to take some time. >> we've been hearing that the storm system could get worse again tonight into tomorrow. how prepared are you, or what does your community need to handle or manage more rain if it is on the way? >> well, you know, what we're trying to do is ask the general public just to be patient with everybody. we've had our fire departments all out helping. of course, we've had mississippi highway patrol, they've helped

us. of course, all our deputies. we've got surrounding towns, emery, nettleton and aberdeen police departments that will help also. the north part of our county was hit a lot harder than the south part. >> okay. >> you know, we've got a lot of people on our road crews. we've got a great road crew here. and our supervisors have been real -- you though, real good to let all those folks come out and help. it's been a team effort. it's not been one person. it's just been a team effort to try to get this thing resolved, and we just thank the good lord that nobody has, as far as i know, has lost their life in this. and i don't see how that's possible. >> in your area. wow. that's something else. well, thank you so much for getting us updated on what's happening there, and we're certainly wishing you the best of luck. the only way communities can get through it is with the help of everybody in it. so you're obviously doing something right there, sheriff, and we appreciate you taking the

time to talk to us. we know you're busy. take good care. >> yeah, have a nice one. bye-bye. >> you, too. thank you, sheriff. and christi, sheriff cantrell also saying people should be patient and really hit the nail on the head because this weekend we've got millions of holiday travelers who now can expect everything from near blizzard conditions to more powerful rainstorms. our cnn meteorologist allison joins us with more on that. allison, just how much will all this extreme weather ruin people trying to get home from the holidays right now, their plans? >> more so if you're driving than if you're flying. if you're driving, you're going to encounter a lot more problems. and that's unfortunate because so many people were on the roads this year for a lot of the holiday travel. here's the forecast of the amount of rain we expect going through monday. again, look at some of these numbers. ten-plus inches just north of oklahoma city. in the city proper, probably four to six inches. we're talking mississippi, ast. alabama and northern georgia. we could be seeing an additional

four to six inches. keep in mind a lot of these areas have picked up about eight to ten in the last 48 hours. they don't need another four to six on top of what they've already had. and not just the flooding but severe weather including isolated tornadoes, damaging wind is going to be a possibility from cincinnati down towards san antonio today. that system pushes a little farther east on sunday. so now we have cities like houston, memphis, also into new orleans that could be dealing with tornadoes, damaging wind and also the potential for flooding. so three different threats that we have going on. here is a look at the flood threat. these are current flood watches, current flood warnings and flash flood warnings as well just to show you the scope. behind this system that could be bringing us flooding and severe weather is also winter weather. we're pulling down that cold air from canada. so we have winter storm watches and warnings for parts of minnesota, south dakota, also into nebraska. and farther south, we're talking blizzard watches and blizzard were with ain warnings for kansas, new mexico,

oklahoma and texas. we have all that moisture coming up from the gulf. but look at this low as it begins to push farther north and east, it brings a lot of that rain to the south where we don't need to see it and a lot of winter weather out behind it. so if you have travel plans especially tomorrow, oklahoma city, st. louis, chicago, des moines, you could be dealing with massive delays because of the snow and ice that will be coming down. and we know especially ice is impossible to travel on. so errol, christi, that is not good news certainly for anybody everythi traveling in the next 48 hours. >> can't take enough patience with you. allison, thanks a lot. want to get you some breaking news we've been looking at this morning. i want to show you these latest pictures we're getting in of wildfires in southern california. right now, it has forced officials to close two major roadways and issue mandatory evacuations. ventura county fire officials say the 101 provide and the pch,

the pacific coast highway, near ventura both shut down. firefighters there working to battle an uncontained 900-acre fire that is north of the city, but this thing is growing rapidly. under mandatory evacuation right now. the barria beach community under voluntary evacuation. a short time ago i spoke with the ventura county fire department, and he talked about the biggest challenges they're having right now fighting this fire. >> there are multiple forces coming together here. and as you know, we've had a very exceptional drought here in california. so these fields are very, very dry. we haven't had any rain, significant rain, to speak of so far this year. and this area is now under a wind advisory, and we've had gusts up to 47 to 50 miles an hour in the area. so we have been challenged in every area on this incident.

the fields are very fine. they're burning very rapidly. and this fire was probably up to 100 acres within minutes of being reported, if that can give you an idea how fast it's spreading. >> any indication what started it? >> no indication at this point. there is a lot of infrastructure up in the hillsides -- or up in the hills above where this fire is burning now. that's a possibility, but we're going to have to get in there and take a look at it soon. >> we're going to continue following this story, obviously, and have more for you through the morning as it develops. also new this morning, a federal investigation in texas. this after the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms is called in to investigate a suspicious mosque fire. now, the blaze broke out yesterday afternoon after friday prayers. and it took some 80 firefighters to get those flames under control. no one was injured, but the members of the mosque's congregation were shaken.

>> a burned mosque, burned church, or a burned synagogue or a burned temple is not good to see. the mosque is doing a great job to educate the community, not to hurt people, and to educate people to do the good and beat the evil. >> investigators say it's the, quote, multiple points of entry for the fire that led them to call this blaze suspicious. for you, when we come back to "new day," a new report says that the department of homeland security is actually planning raids that would force undocumented immigrants out of the country. donald trump now taking credit for this move, but is it legal? we'll have an immigration lawyer weigh in. also ahead on "new day," our senior international correspondents talk about the threat isis poses in the aftermath of the paris attacks. and later this hour, a christmas miracle. why this florida family is thankful their daughter's alive after a close brush with death and the important message they have for other parents giving their kids flu shots. is never easy.

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15 minutes past the hour this morning. so glad to have you with us. donald trump taking credit for

plans of a mass deportation of some central american immigrants. news of these upcoming raids were first reported by "the wall street journal," and the front-runner has been quick to take credit, tweeting, quote, does everyone see that the democrats and president obama are now, because of me, starting to deport people who are here illegally? politics! but politics aside, this is a very real situation for those who are in this country illegally. let's talk about it with craig shagen, an immigration attorney. and we're so grateful to have you here. thank you so much. i'm wondering, have you had any families contact you who may be at risk of deportation? >> well, the news is out, and the various list serves are circulating memos on it. but because the story just came out a couple of days ago, i haven't -- and i haven't seen anybody actually affected by this yet, no. >> i'm wondering, what makes a family particularly vulnerable to deportation in this particular program?

>> okay. so there's a couple of things that i think i should clarify here. first of all, the news accounts that i read said that the people who were targeted were those who had a final order of deportation. there's nothing -- a final order of deportation means that they've been to court. they have presented their case, and they lost. i don't see anything controversial about the deportation of people who have a deportation order. you need that for the proper operation of a justice system of any kind. and i have been bitterly, bitterly disappointed with some of the orders that i've received, and i sometimes think they are quite unfair. and the remedy for that is to take an appeal. sometimes you feel that your disposition on appeal is also quite unfair. but the remedy for that is to take legal action. you have to -- >> how is that fair?

you said that you've seen some things that have been quite unfair. what have you seen that has disturbed you? >> okay. so most of the people who you're now speaking of are people who are coming here or claiming asylum from central america. and the core of the problem is looking at what's forcing them to leave. if, in fact, they are meeting the definition of a refugee under the convention, they should be granted asylum within the united states, and many are. on the other hand, if you look at the definition of the legal statute, there's often a dispute as to whether those affected by the violence in honduras and el salvador and elsewhere are true refugees or whether they're victims of widespread crime within their country. there's an active debate about this, and it's worth taking a look at. but i just want to clarify something. there's nothing shocking happening here in the sense that people get deported every day who have orders of deportation.

it's not like the political campaign of any candidate has had anything to do with this. it's heart wrenching. it's terrible to see. this deportation of a human being is a terribly traumatic event, and the arrest of them and picking up of them and the taking of families, particularly children, is something that is extremely painful. and we shouldn't be looking at that and be smiling about it. there's nothing happy about what is about to happen here. on the other hand -- >> go ahead. i didn't want to cut you off. go ahead. >> on the other hand, there's nothing shocking, per se, about court orders being enforced. that's what happens. >> sure. >> regularly. and that's why i say these cases are so important. >> well, speaking of court orders being enforced, i understand there are some churches who have vowed to offer refuge to people who are facing deportation. how might that play into this? >> well, i would say two things.

one, if it's preordered, that is before they have a final order of deportation, there are people who need places to stay. they need a certain level of comfort so they can properly present their case. they need legal representation. there's a lot of needs they have. and that's a very worthy thing, i believe, to provide help for those who are truly facing deportation in deportation proceedings. after the deportation proceedings, after a final order, i would say you're left with two choices. or two things that you can do that would be helpful. one would be to encourage them to comply with the law so that they don't have to be arrested by i.c.e., and that doesn't necessarily mean going back to their country of origin. perhaps they have other options which should also be explored. very often there are very few options here, and it is very painful. and especially when you look at people who truly do -- truly are afraid of going home for very

good reasons. you have to look at the bind that they're in to see what would motivate, you know, an orderly process of resettlement. >> sure. >> and there are other countries also who could be extremely helpful here as well as us taking a broader look at what our policies are in central america to help people resettle without being victimized -- >> penalized or victimized, right. i understand. craig shagin, so so appreciate your insight on this. thank you for being with us this morning. >> thank you for having me. >> of course. >> have a good day. >> you, too. still to come on your "new day," israeli police foil another attack on an officer in jerusalem this saturday. also, our senior international correspondents discuss the threat that isis poses after the paris attacks. stay with us. (vo) what does the world run on? it runs on optimism. it's what sparks ideas. moves the world forward.

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israeli police shot and killed a palestinian man this morning in jerusalem, a man they say who tried to stab an officer there. in fact, on christmas day, israeli police say they killed a palestinian woman who had attempted to ram officers with her car in a west bank village. a fire at former president clinton's childhood home in hope, arkansas, is now being investigated as arson. police say the fire began in the back of the home early on friday morning.

and in addition to damage from the flames, the home's walkway and door, they were vandalized with graffiti. the home is a national historic site. clinton lived there for the first four years of his life. a u.s. air base in japan has shelter in place order after a - security incident. according to the yokota air base facebook page, a suspecter interested the base with a suspicious package but was caught on the scene. an investigation into that incident obviously is ongoing. pope francis called for peace in the holy land and throughout the world in his christmas day message. the pope also called for israeli/palestinian talks and appeared close to endorsing a two-state solution. he also prayed that the u.n. agreement on syria would succeed in halting that country's devastating civil war. ahead, a top commander of one of the most powerful syrian rebel groups is killed in an airstrike. we're talking about who he was and how big, how significant is

this to syria's armed opposition. also, a wildfire in southern california forcing road closures, mandatory evacuations. take a look here. these are live pictures for you, what's happening there. we've been following this story for a couple hours. the flames keep getting bigger and bigger. we'll have more for you in just a moment. stay close. i accept i'm not the rower i used to be.. i even accept i have a higher risk of stroke due to afib, a type of irregular heartbeat

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28 minutes past the hour. and take a look at the pictures we're getting in from southern california and the wildfire there that has forced evacuations and highway closures already this morning. ventura county fire officials say the blaze near salomar beach is uncontained, has burned 1,000 acres already. a fire official says more than 500 firefighters are battling these flames here. and helicopters are being used to drop water. we've been following this story for a couple hours, and earlier we talked to an official on the phone who said the closing of these two major roadways, the 101 and the pch, pacific coast highway, are creating a holiday traffic nightmare. we'll continue, obviously, to follow what's happening there. you can see it's still dark out there, but daylight should be breaking soon. we'll have a live report for you at the top of the hour. also new this morning, the atf have been called in to investigate after a suspicious fire nearly destroyed a mosque. this is in texas. this all happened yesterday evening after friday prayers at

the savoy mosque. no one was injured, but the flames were so intense, firefighters were scared the ceiling would cave in. let's talk about syria now. a powerful rebel commander has been killed in an arirstrike. they confirmed that he did indeed die and that thiey've already appointed a new leader. they aired aerial footage. apparently what you see here is from the strike, but it's not clear whether syrian or russian planes carried out that strike. cnn's robyn kriel has been following this. rob robyn, this group, just to clarify, they were fighting isis, yes? >> reporter: yes. tad to fighting the syrian government led by bashar al ass assad, christi, they were also part of rebel factions who were battling isis. more moderate group was jaish al islam. around 15,000 to 20,000 fighters, and they were

considered one of the most effective rebel groups battling bashar al assad's regime. >> so help us understand who jaish al islam is because i know that they are considered a terror group by the assad regime. >> reporter: yes. and thus, they would also likely be considered one by russia who is interested in keeping the assad regime in place. however, the united states has also committed to reform in syria, so it's difficult to see exactly who is supporting who on the ground, different actors, different players in the region. but we do foe, as i said, that they are a more moderate group. they were not in favor of the sort of hard-line ideologies of al qaeda and isis. so they were sort of part of countering, really, isis's growth by taking key neighborhoods and key suburbs in eastern damascus. and this was really -- this is really why people are asking if this is a blow to the fight against isis, although it would be seen as a gain in the eyes of the assad regime and those countries who support the assad

regime. >> but how significant is the death specifically of this leader? >> reporter: it's significant. he was 44 years old. he was part of sort of spearheading this group. he was one of those who was part of one of their biggest operations back in 2012 when they bombed the ministry of national security. he was also spearheading the group being part of peace talks which are taking place which are due to take place in geneva. they had a conference leading up to the peace talks that were held in riyadh in saudi arabia. so this was sort of leading towards a peace process eventually. so this could have quite a big impact on the group. >> okay. robyn kriel, thank you so much for all the information. appreciate it. we're going to talk about this more now with lieutenant general mark hurtling. jaish al islam was one of the main rebel groups expected to hold talks with assad's government come next year.

in your view, could the killing of its leader be annest effort the syrian rescream and its allies to essentially eliminate groups that occupy the middle ground between assad and isis? >> i believe -- yeah, i believe that to be the case, errol. and let's talk a little bit, first of all, about the leader. he was a charismatic figure, he was a guy who brought together disparate factions of various rebel forces that had been fighting against assad for several years. this guy was wounded in battle in 2013. about 50 different factions came together under his leadership. and he was very charismatic. his organization, jaish al islam, along with the national coalition that's somewhat supported by turkey were the two main rebel forces that have been fight ago saud for the last several years. his particular organization and him, jaish al islam has been supported by the saudi arabians.

his father was a religious figure in riyadh. so yes, it will certainly affect the peace talks. and i think this was certainly an attempt by syria and russia to make those peace talks a little bit more one-sided by further affecting these various rebel groups that have come together. >> that would suggest that they want continued instability in the country, then. because although a sunni muslim himself, he had, over time, denounced partisan rule of syria. he said he believed the country should be governed by a technocratic body. do you think that his death now will result in sectarian bickering? >> well, i certainly think it will cause disruption within the rebel groups. that's already been a problem, as you've seen russia step up its indiscriminate bombing of the syrian free forces, areas of operation. yeah, it's certainly going to cause some challenges to bring more people to the table. and i think it supports the

russian and the assad regime's attempt at disrespecting all of any government approach to try and bring a diplomatic solution to this problem. remember, they just want to win. they don't want any more rebels. they see all rebels as terrorists, and even the fact that syria has agreed potentially to this peace talk in saudi arabia in january as anticipated and has been driven by the u.n. is going to be problematic if they keep killing the rebel leaders on the other side. it's for the going to provide a whole lot of support for a shared government approach. >> and time is of the essence. so much can happen in just the next few weeks. you know, this group, the leader of which was taken out, apparently he was successful in keeping isis away from damascus. might that change? is there an opening for isis here? >> well, in robyn's report that they have encountered isis is technically correct, but they have also done some things -- again, jaish al islam has been

primarily focused on abandoning and replacing the assad regime. they have fought isis primarily in a way to defend themselves. they have used some of the same techniques isis has used on isis prisoners. they have captured. they have also -- jaish al islam has used human shields on several incidents as well using isis detainees as their human shields. and some of the assad regime members as well. so this is still a very tough regime. it is certainly more moderate than isis. they will fight isis in order to protect themselves, but make no mistake about it, their primary target is mr. assad and his regime. >> all right, we're discussing there how the death of this leader will impact the war, the ongoing war, in syria. general hertling, thanks for your time today. appreciate it. >> thank you, errol. the man accused of gunning down three people at a planned parenthood facility could hinge on whether he's found mentally competent. is he, then, capable of

defending himself, as he would like to do? we're talking about that with our defense expert. and a bit later this hour, a christmas miracle? well, possibly. a young girl dying from the flu and what her parents think saved her life. discover card. hooh, you're real?? you know i'm real! at discover, we're always here to talk. good, 'cause i don't have time for machines. some companies just don't appreciate the power of conversation! you know, i like you! i like you too! at discover, we treat you like you'd treat you. get the it card and talk to a real person.

well, president obama took a

break from his family vacation in hawaii, making his annual visit to thank the troops at the marine corps base there. president obama calls the event one of his, quote, favorite things to do and promised the men and women in uniform that their service is never taken for granted. >> as we know, when you're deployed overseas, it's tough. and even though we've been able to reduce the number of folks who are deployed in places like iraq and afghanistan, there's still folks over there every single day, and it's still dangerous, as we saw this past week. we had some outstanding brave men and women who were killed. and so we never take for granted what all of you do for the american people. he help keep us free. you help keep us strong. and whatever service you're in, whatever branch, we are extraordinarily grateful for everything that you do every

single day. >> and you heard the president there refer to the six americans who were killed in a suicide bomb attack in bagram, afghanistan, earlier this week. the president calling them outstanding and brave, and we certainly thank all of those folks there, too, for their service. christi, you know full well the war on isis has dominated international stories this year. the rapid spread of the jihadist group and the attacks in paris are really changing the way the u.s. and other nations are fighting isis. well, some of cnn's top foreign correspondents gathered for a look at the war on isis and what we can expect in the year ahead. >> paris has been such a game changer because as closely as i've been following the sort of reach of militant groups like isis in europe and in the west, i had never expected them to be able to pull off something this organized, something this well orchestrated. >> do you think it was that

organized and that well orchestrated? no, i don't think it was. ♪ >> the main thing that didn't go as well as they were hoping were the vests. the suicide vests. >> but they accomplished their goal. >> the difference between extraordinarily complex, well organized attacks that need an infrastructure and eight guys with some vests and automatic weapons. >> i think they had infrastructure. >> what surprises me a little bit about this is i think the lack of the short-term memory. it was a decade ago that we were looking at al qaeda carrying out massive attacks which killed scores of people. and we kind of forget the fear and panic of those days. >> well, also, the whole nature of recruitment was different. like al qaeda was recruiting in the mosques. >> in the mosques. >> and it was an entirely different prospect. >> and now these are facebook

jihadis. >> now these are their own friends. >> who are doing it in their bedrooms. >> i think for intelligence authorities, it's a very frightening prospect. but this kind of i know he grew a beard, he started going to the mosque, these are the tell-tale signs of radicalism, that entire landscape has changed now. >> changed. >> but that also goes to the greater underlying issues that we have in society and what isis has now done for people that are even slightly so inclined is give them that sense of purpose. so then the other question is it's not just in terms of intelligence, how do we fight this, but how do you actually fight that ideology so these kids have a different sense of purpose? >> all of these kids, their parents came to europe for a better life. and the side of irony is that their offspring grow up into people who attack europe. >> and we have this misconception that isis is all about radical islam. isis is a product of, like, a bunch of very complex geopolitical, historical trends

that have been brewing for years. >> identity politics. >> it's not just about islam. >> it's also terrifying that some guys who clearly aren't particularly mentally well configured in san bernardino can go and shoot coworkers with assault weapons and put something on facebook and that somehow joins global movement. >> there's almost like a wave of hysteria that's building on each other. you know, you saw paris happen and then you saw san bernardino kind of crest off it. it's like a contagion in a way. >> i think there needs to be not hysteria, but let's not underestimate the threat either. i mean, it is huge. >> we'll continue to bring you more of that conversation. obviously, really important and interesting to hear it from their perspective because they've been in that region. >> and been up close to it covering it. an interesting conversation. the man accused of gunning down three people at a planned parenthood facility could hinge on whether he's found mentally competent. is he then capable of defending himself, which he wants to do? we'll talk about it. also coming up, a christmas

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well, the case against the man accused of killing three people at a planned parenthood

clinic last month in colorado springs could hinge on whether he is found mentally competent. robert dear appeared in court earlier this week and interrupted his public defender, telling the judge that he wants to represent himself. the judge ordered dear to undergo a mental evaluation. however, in a previous court appearance earlier this month, dear had indicated he wouldn't cooperate with that. >> and i'm not going to agree to their mental health evaluations where they want to take me and put me under psychotropic drugs so that he can't talk like the batman guy. >> finished? okay. >> dear faces 179 felony counts including murder and attempted murder. let's talk to defense attorney and former sex crimes prosecutor a. scott boulden. scott, thanks so much for being with us. first of all, i think a lot of people are looking at this and saying what happened if dear

refuses to cooperate and he won't have that mental evaluation? what then? >> well, christi, thank you for having me. if he won't agree to have the mental evaluation, then he can't be mentally competent to stand trial. but i think here, what the defendant is actualy saying is he doesn't want to take drugs. that doesn't mean they can't do the mental evaluation. and they'll do the mental evaluation. and if he comes back and he's competent to stand trial, that is this. can he assist in his defense? that's one thing. and two, does he appreciate and does he understand the murder charges that are being brought against him in this criminal proceeding? and that's how you proceed. if he's competent, he will go forward with the charges of the prosecution. and if he isn't, then he will be committed back to the state institution until he can be what we call restorative competence. that is until he's brought into the snapshot of his mental state whereby he can stand trial. >> so he's facing, as i said, 179 felony counts including

murder and attempted murder. have you ever seen a defendant with that many charges against them and that serious -- those serious charges against them able to defend themselves and be successful? >> well, he's got a constitutional right to do that. >> right. >> now, this may, in and of itself, mean that there's some mental competence issues there because of so many charges. now, many times when there is a mental issue or some type of philosophical ideological reason why this individual has done this, then sure. we get that all the time across the country. defense attorneys, prosecutors and courts have to deal with it. but the judge did the right thing here. he doesn't want to be reversed by the court of appeals here. and so it's pretty standard and fundamental. can he stand trial? is he mentally competent to stand trial? they'll do the evaluation and then figure out what to do with him. now, remember, if he's not -- if he's found incompetent to stand trial, and let's say he cannot

be restored to competence, right? >> right. >> well, the colorado law, then he is -- he's assigned or ordered to this mental institution for as long as the amount of time he could have gotten if he were convicted of these murder charges. and in this case, it would be three life sentences. so it's not like robert dear is going anywhere any time fast, let alone whether it's bail or whether he's incompetent to stand trial. he's going to go away for a long, long time, especially if he's found incompetent. >> all right. so let's say that this does go to trial, whether he is representing himself or not. do you see the death penalty coming into play here? >> well, that's completely within the discretion of the prosecution. the real issue or the big issue is whether his defense is going to be that he was insane at the time that he committed this heinous act. >> but scott, you can't -- >> it's a little different. >> you can't get up there -- i mean, it seems unfathomable that you would say -- you would be competent to defend yourself, but then you'd be saying that you were insane. >> well, these are -- >> at the time.

>> -- mutually exclusive issues, though. the snapshot of whether you're competent is his current state of mind. in connection with his insanity defense is that what was on his mind and was he mentally stable to commit the act when he killed those individuals? >> but has anybody done that? >> you're talking about snapshots in time. >> has anybody done that they have represented themselves and claimed themselves to have been insane? >> oh, that's an interesting concept. interesting issue. the fact of the matter is, that has happened before across the country. not successfully, though, quite frankly because it seems to be inconsistent with one another. but we'll have to see. the court and the judge will either allow or disallow those types of defenses. but here, remember, robert dear is a, quote, warrior for the babies and an anti-abortion activist. a lot of this is about his ideas and about him getting them on the front page as well as before the court and the public. >> yeah, you wonder -- >> so we'll just have to say.

>> yeah, you wonder if he wants to represent himself just to try to forward his own personal cause. >> he would be his worst client for sure. >> all right. we so appreciate you being here and walking us through it. scott, thank you. >> thank you. >> sure. and stick around for the top of the hour, too. we're working on two develops stories. first of all, severe weather hitting several states today and tomorrow which could impact more than 22 million of us here. and we're going to tell you who can expect what and when. and we're also following a huge wildfire in southern california. it is really just exploded in some ways. over 1,000 acres burned. it's grown rapidly in the last few hours. we'll bring you a live report at the top of the hour. and a florida family grateful to what they're calling a christmas miracle that saved their daughter's life. hear what they credit for this miracle next. ♪

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for a dramatic transformation without the need for fillers your concert tee might show your age... your skin never will. olay regenerist. olay. ageless. i want to tell you about this florida family who is so grateful for what they say is a christmas miracle that saved their daughter's life. >> that's right. they have a message for parents about one of the best holiday gifts can you give your child.

here's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen with their story. >> reporter: errol, christi, the flu season is upon us. and a florida family spent christmas day here at the intensive care unit at this hospital. their daughter was perfectly healthy until the flu attacked her heart. gemma vitello was a completely healthy 4-year-old little girl. and now she's fighting for her life in this intensive care unit because of the flu. >> i really thought it was the end. >> reporter: you thought she was not going to make it? >> no. >> no. >> reporter: on sunday, december 13th, gemma had a slight fever. >> she wasn't extremely sick at all. >> reporter: on monday, gemma felt better. she even danced in her school's christmas play. but then three days later -- >> she was pale. she had cold hands, cold feet. >> the way she spoke to us. how she was trying to say "something's wrong." she never spoke with me with that tone before.

it was like asking for help. >> reporter: her parents took gemma to the emergency room just in the nick of time. she arrived and went into cardiac arrest. >> the feeling of losing your child right in front of you -- >> reporter: you thought you were going to lose her? >> yes. >> yes. >> reporter: her heart wasn't doing anything? >> no. >> no. >> reporter: doctors performed cpr on gemma for 45 minutes. >> he told me that, you know, we just have to look back and appreciate this 4 1/2 years that we had with her. >> reporter: doctors couldn't get gemma's heart working again. they put her on life support and sent her in a helicopter to a transplant center, thinking she'd need a new heart. >> thursday, friday, saturday, her heart wasn't doing anything. >> reporter: no activity? >> no, absolutely no activity, no pulse. >> reporter: the sunday before christmas, her parents asked friends around the world to say prayers for their daughter at mass.

>> one in argentina, in brazil, in italy, and one in miami. 11:00. >> reporter: everyone did a mass at the same time? >> yes, for her. >> reporter: and that's when they say they got their christmas miracle. >> she started to bounce back on sunday. >> reporter: all of a sudden on sunday, gemma's heart started to beat again. can you explain it? >> sometimes we don't understand everything that happens in medicine. >> reporter: what's gemma's prognosis? how is she going to do? >> i think she's going to make a great recovery. a month from now, this is going to be just a little bump in the road for her life, and she should be back to doing the things she's always done. >> reporter: no one can explain why some healthy children like gemma get so desperately ill from the flu. did gemma ever get a flu shot? >> never. >> never. >> reporter: because? >> i -- i didn't think of the flu as a serious illness. >> reporter: but now they do. and the parents of this little

girl who dreams of being a doctor when she grows up have a message to other apparents. get your child vaccinated for the flu. gemma is doing better, but she's still not out of the woods yet. now every year children do die of the flu, and it's not too late to get a flu shot this season. errol, christi? >> elizabeth, thank you. my gosh, if that is not going to influence you. >> just get the flu shot. >> she said a lot of people think, i didn't think it was that serious. we have so much news to tell you about this morning. >> that's right. "cnn newsroom" starts now. breaking news now. deadly weather hammering the south and the midwest. homes are destroyed. roads are washed out. people are trapped, and it's not even over. there's another system that could impact more than 22 million of us today. and we're also following breaking news for you this morning out of southern california. look at t