this final debate. newschannel8's keith cate is joining us now live from the university of nevada in las vegas. keith, i have been where you are a cull of times before. just hours before the debate. the last two have been quite a story. what are we expecting tonight? >> reporter: who knows what is coming. there's a lot of hype. you go around, so many opinions on what need to be done here. but you can see already, just surrounded by members of the press, the media, for talking at 5:30, i showed you the number of people outside. everybody watching this debate that will take place tonight. we are still three weeks away from the election. but this is pivotal for donald trump. hillary clinton could go into prevent defense. she could play it safe. she could run out the clock. she could try to look presidential doing it. i spoke to bryan fallon.

>> reporter: what does she have to do to stay out of trouble? >> well, she just needs to be herself. which is to be unflapable. not allow him to get under her skin. i think a lot of times what she likes to do especially in the first 15 or 20 minutes of the debate is be specific in talking about some of her particular policies. >> reporter: he believes donald trump will take a scorched consultant adam would ask him to focus on the message that got him. >> he should show depth, focus, and collator. and bring home the message in the second debate. and basically, kind of let the chips fall where they may. >> reporter: we have come to expect the unexpected. this one should have plenty of fireworks but sponsors are hoping for something a little

will stack up? >> i done know. i hope there there be more substance on the issues. there are entitlements, the national debt, the economy. supreme court justices. so i'm hoping that is where it goes. and that the personalities that are involved don't get involved until later in the debate. but you never know. we have no control over these things. >> reporter: you never know. perhaps, the tone will be set by the moderator chris wallace he mentioned right there. hillary clinton. then donald trump will follow. we will see how she begin this debate. but again, it is something that everybody is tuned in for. it is almost like a prize fight. it is almost fitting it is in las vegas here. 9:00, 90 minutes, no commercials, no breaks. pressure on both candidates to perform well on this final debate. >> it will be interesting, just a couple of hours before debate number two, we saw historic in a moment with donald trump facebook living with some of the women who accused bill

president obama's half brother to attend this. what kind of impact will that have, if any? >> reporter: you know what? frankly, i don't think it will be much. i think it is a ploy. it is a distraction. it gets the media talking. givers us something to talk about. but when it comes down to it, two people on stage going at each other, i'm hopeful both will engage over issues, immigration is on the table. you are talking about the economy. things important to the people lo president of the united states. we don't want to make a mistake. choose wisely florida. listen for the content and make your choice. >> all right, keith cate reporting live for us. thank you very much. and keith of course will bring us continuing live coverage throughout the night and tonight at 11:00. he will join us with the very latest live recap in fact of the debate and analysis. now, we have an update on breaking news. a corrections officer taken

>> yeah, the prisoner used a knife to kidnap him. jeff patterson joins us live in bartow where all of this started. jeff? >> reporter: good evening rod and stacie. it all started in this park around noon when inmate david ross used a small utility knife to take an unarmed guard hostage. bartow police in polk county sheriffs deputies were on scene quickly jeffrey rexroad had been taken hostage by a prisoner. >> of course, undercover, and police cars coming from everywhere. >> reporter: bartow police say 42-year-old inmate david ross used a small utility knife to overpower rexroad. he locked four other inmates into this building and used the guard's own handcuffs to take him hostage. >> the four inmates left behind were able to get out of the

ross to saint petersburg where he was driving a stolen bartow city truck. somehow, the guard managed to escape at a gas station. and police took ross into custody after a brief foot chase. >> just thank god that they got the deputy. and, he is fine. >> reporter: yeah, david ross had been a minimum security inmate. he now faces charges of armed kidnapping of a correctional officer; and numerous other accounts. >> jeff patterson reporting live for us in thank you jeff. new tonight, she is now a free woman. a former tampa teacher convicted of having sex with her students is out of prison. stephanie ragusa was released early after serving about six years of her ten year sentence. but, she can't live just anywhere. jamel lanee has been learning more about ragusa's new home. she joins us now live in pinellas county. hi jamel. >> reporter: good evening stacie. well, stephanie ragusa will be staying here at the continental

as she works to get back on her feet. after spending about six years in prison, stephanie ragusa is out. she will stay here at the continental inn in clearwater. a place for offenders getting back into society. >> they have to get her to transition into as normal a lifestyle as possible. >> reporter: there transitional homes. he spoke with ragusa and her family prior to her release. >> she is overwhelmed right now. for sure. you know. so, she is worried about many things. >> reporter: ragusa's story made national headlines. the former middle schoolteacher had sex with two students between 2006 and 2007. her victims were then 14 and 16 years old. ragusa was convicted in 2010 at

pain and aggravation i have caused to the victims and their families. >> reporter: judge tharpe called her a sexual predator. >> if i had to sum up your attitude in one word it wow arrogance. >> reporter: she was released for good behavior. broderick believes she is a changed person. >> i know she is a success story. it is time to move on and put it behind everybody so this young person can get her life back together. as best as she can. been no sign of ragusa as of yet. no word yet on how long she has to stay here. again, this has been listed as her permanent address on the fdle website. she has to register now as a sex offender and serve provagues. stacie? >> all right, jamel lanee, thank you. new victims are coming forward tonight claiming a lakeland mental health counselor inappropriately

in court. four more victims claimed to have had sexual contact with him. it is a crime that will make you think twice about what you leave in your car. >> coming up, we will explain how these crooks got into a home while the victims were asleep. >> plus, people who live in puerto rico are not supposed to vote in the u.s. election, but one man claims they are doing so anyway. 8 on your side investigates how it is happening coming up. >> temperatures in the upper afternoon. we are looking forward to the weekend. a cold front is coming our way. it will have significant temperature and dew point shifts. we will look at max defender 8

>> new tonight, deputies are looking for a couple of creepy crooks who broke into while the people in the hope were sleeping. investigators believe they took the victim's garage door opener from their unlocked car an used it to get into the house. 8 on your side has learned polk county will conduct a traffic study at the site of a very serious accident yesterday. a mother and her seven-year-old will remain in the hospital tonight after being hit on wyburg road while walking to the bus stop. neighbors want lights and a sidewalk installed there. they tell us that it was only a

accident happened. >> it is heartbreaking. like i said, you know, the family, they have been here for, i would say a good 15 years. and, we had some of their children since they were infants at our head start. so, you know, it is sad. >> the study will take a look at the amount of traffic on wyburg road, the speed and whether sidewalks and lighting are needed in the area. tonight, new allegations of voter registration fraud here in the bay area. >> comg investigates on how people who should not be allowed to vote may have found a way to do just that. it also guarantees that those who don't choose solar don't have to subsidize those who do. amendment 1 means commonsense consumer protections safeguarding seniors-and all floridians from scams, rip-offs, and long-term contract traps. that's the right way to do solar. amendment 1: good for the economy. good for the environment.

this is mike's office. if he doesn't show up, he doesn't get paid. too often marco rubio didn't show up and failed us when he did. i am patrick murphy. to get things done, you've got to show up. you've got to work together. whether it's protecting social security and women's health care or growing the economy, we've got to start solving problems instead of pointing fingers. i am patrick murphy and i approve this message it's not uncommon for autistic kids to flap their hands. and so when i saw that, that was completely disqualifying. i'm a republican, but this election is so much bigger than party. my son max can't live in trump world. so i'm crossing party lines and voting for hillary. i don't always agree with her, but she's reasonable. and she's smart. she can work with people to solve problems.

>> now, 8 on your side investigation. >> a man claims member of his own family plan to illegally vote in florida in november. he is a native of puerto rico but a resident of tampa bay. >> his family me puerto rico and are not permitted to cast ballots. steve andrews, the plan is for them to come here to vote? >> reporter: yeah, as you may know, puerto ricans are u.s. citizens okay? they can vote in presidential primaries. but, not in the presidential election. tonight, more questions about possible election fraud. >> hello. >> reporter: in the shadow of the final debate, a tampa man

jorge rivera visited with family members from puerto rico. they announced plans to vote in the presidential election. >> i said that is fraud. i mean, you can't do that. >> reporter: his relatives told jorge a lot of people are doing it so he claims he contacted the supervisor of elections. >> well, they told me that as long as they have a social security and an address, that's it. >> reporter: a voter registration application asks for a florida drivers license or florida identification card requests the last four digits of your social security number. puerto ricans are u.s. citizens. they can apply for social security numbers. a voter registration application also asks for an address where you live or receive mail. jorge claims he contacted the florida's division of elections about this. >> they said there is nothing we codo about it. >> reporter: he posted this to his facebook page. he claims it was taken down.

began looking into voter registration shenanigans when maria says someone reregistered her without her permission. it listed her as a democrat and it had a different signature and birth date. >> this is one person. and, we haven't heard anything else. we have not heard of other problems. >> the organization that submitted the application for marina, efforts to contact them to find out what they have found have not been successful. >> what are local estate folks saying about this? clearly they have to be concerned. >> reporter: it doesn't sound like they are. the state says says they have not heard of anything like

barn to get to this one. >> and we are three weeks out and people are early voting. >> absolutely. >> all right, thank you steve. >> thank you sir. if you have a problem cru think needs to be investigated, call our help line. 1-800-338-0808. >> now, max defender 8, the world's most powerful radar and your storm team 8 forecast with chief meteorologist steve jerve. we have seen a persistent easterly flow here, but we have not seen much in the way of is so dry. but max defender 8 spotted a few showers off the east coast and further to the south as well. temperatures meanwhile have been very comfortable this afternoon. evenings are a little better. morning a little better. talk about comfortable and drier air. we will see that this weekend. in lakeland, it is 81 degrees. mostly clear skies. overly the same story at veteran's ford. 82. east wind of 10 miles an hour. and that is the view from the plantation crystal river.

fairly light at this point. but it is a beautiful view. the orionid meteor shower is taking place thursday night into friday morning. we will have light from the waning moon hampering perhaps the viewing of the meteor shower, but that is going on tomorrow night if you get away from city lights. you might be able to see the meteors. 85-degree it is high temperature thursday and friday. 84. that sour average line. 84 degrees. saturday, sunday, temperatures upper 07s . th 81 degrees. big changes coming. minimal rain chances because we can see it and feel that it is fairly dry. 69 degrees to start the day. 84 in largo. pinellas park. 82 brandon. 81 dade city. 87 in sarasota. you get the idea. a little cooler there in lake placid. 77. these are the dew points in the 60s . a little bit drier today.

that is the red color indicating the high levels of the atmosphere, the atmospheric content. and you don't see much in the way of clouds in central and north florida. a few showers determined there on radar. next five days, an 80% chance of development could potentially become otto, the next name of the list for the atlantic hurricane season. most of the computer models suggest more of a northerly turn staying well off the east coast of florida and really well off the east coast of the u.s. ng plays out. right now, invest 99-l has the potential to sprenten into a powerful storm over the long term. in the short term, thursday morning, a few clouds. upper 60s . note the shower chances. that is not unusual when you see a stronger easterly flow on the east coast. sometimes, they tend to wander inland. especially the inland folks. polk county, highlands county. thursday afternoon, partly cloudy sky. getting into friday, that is where the changes come with the

of precipitation in the rpm forecast model going along with the front. but what we can see and feel is the cooler drier air. it will feel like fall pretty quickly. thursday, friday, saturday is the day. overnight temperatures will fall. upper 50s . yeah, we went ahead and did it. just dropped below 60 degrees. why not? it will feel a little cooler. temperatures below the average and quite warm the past several days so we will turn that back and drop the temperature below our good. low 80s return a little moisture. higher rain chances maybe long term. but in the dry season we don't expect a lot of rain. >> 50s you say. >> you like that? >> we will be cold. well, the tampa bay heart walk is coming up. and we need your help to reach our goal of $100,000 for the american heart association. we want to thank all of you who have donated so far. including these folks.

and gayle grant who gave $25. fuccillo kia is matching the first 50,000 we raise. so every dollar you donate counts as two. the heart walk november 12 at raymond james stadium. it is easy to sign up and donate. go to wfla.com/heartwalk. yeah. >> good stuff. >> yeah it is. >> we are three weeks out by the way. >> three weeks. >> all right, the lightning win again in a thrilling fashion. the bolts captain weighs in on his team's hot start. >> back doug martin faces a setback. his struggle to return from

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>> we'll just have to see when he can make it back. there is no timetable on that right now. >> buccaneers running back doug martin will miss more time than initially expected. two sundays ago, the probowler bowler suffered a setback in a rehabilitation from a hamstring injury. jameis winston will not he held the chains at his little brother's football game. the younger winston, also a qb, scored four touchdowns, three of them rushing. unfortunately, jonah is only nine years old. and not able to suit up sunday. will gerald mccoy suit up? there is reason to be optimistic. however, robert ayers and quentin mcdonald are still out. we will know more about their status tomorrow.

a reality for the bucs. the veteran wide receiver placed on reserve with an acl injury. the buccaneers have three guys clamoring for catches. lewis murphy, cecil shorts who danced, also returning to action from a hamstring injury. and dante dye promoted from the practice squad. it will take a village. >> talking to him yesterday, it is unfortunate, but hopefully, it will turn out to be not as bad as we but, losing him is obviously a big deal. so we will just rally around him. we should go out there and make some plays. >> you can't replace him. he is a special player, a unique player. he brings a lot to the table. my heart and prayers go out to him. i dealt with that last year, i said keep your head up and attack rehab. another night, another comeback for the tampa bay

and eventually a shoot-out against the rival florida panthers. after a questionable goal call, probably shouldn't have stood. bolts 4, cats 3. tampa bay now 3-0. blue still plenty of work to do. >> we still have to polish some things up. i know we are early in the season, but, expectation is high for our team. and for this season. so, we have to play up to those standards. i don't think we are >> also, i want to mention a big match for the rowdies. three game to go. if they win tonight. they are tied for fourth place. that's the fourth playoff spot. so stick around for highlights. >> sounds good sir. thank you very much. appreciate it. >> don't go anywhere. nightly news is up next followed by newschannel8 at 7:00. >> and you can join josh and jenn holloway on great 38 at 8:00. and we will see you here at 11:00 after the presidential debate. have a great night everybody.

when powerful people need someone to do their dirty work, they hire bob buesing. how far will he go? buesing fought to foreclose assisted-living retirement homes, threatening local seniors with homelessness.

buesing's firm was even accused of overbilling local schools , running fees up to seventy thousand dollars. now, buesing's running for senate. how far will bob buesing go?

. tonight from las vegas, wild drama, trump and clinton, the final showdown before the election. donald trump in need of a game-changing moment, unleashing more surprise guests to try to rattle hillary clinton. bracing for a barrage of attacks. nbc news exclusive as wikileaks releases more stolen documents. intelligence sources tell nbc news what the u.s. is doing to block the russians from making off with anything more. but what else do they already have? blown away -- a massive explosion rocks a big american city. firefighters injured as people run for their lives. and clearing the air -- from buying tickets to lost luggage.