is a memorial set up for all of the victims. sandy hookelementary is still shut down, students are expected to resume classes tomorrow at a neighboring school. >> we have breaking news right now. the national rifle association has just released its first statement since the deadly shootinging. it reads in part that the nra is prepared to offer menning -- meaningful contributions to help ensure this never happens again. thegroup says it stayed silentover the last few days out of respect for the families the call for tougher gun control may have an unintended consequence. >> dealers say people are buying up assault rifles for fear they could soon be ban. >> if assault rifles and handguns and praktly in firearm is in high demand right now.

>> five handguns in the first ninety minutes of business today. the manager of pass dean that pawn and lone says people are coming out of the woodwork. >> i def f nitly feel terrible for the families. i'm achristian man, i don't believe in killing people. to defendyourself is another thing but to open fire on a bunch of f kids,ic that is definitely wrong. >> but he says it would also be wrong to shut down sales of assault rifles like this bush master rifle just like the one used at sandy hook elementary. >> this is a 30 round magazine. it does not go with the gun and i'm not allowed to sell it. >> this owner says you wouldn't be able to get one if you wanted to.

>> bushmaster changed names recently and yesterday, they sold out completely. >> maryland has some of the touchest gun control laws many the country. those charged with conducting the background checks say they can only go so far. >> what that does not alour our investigators to do is access private mental health records. so if an individual was treated in a private mental health facility, we don't have access to those records. >> while talk of renewing the federal assault rifle ban may ultimately a-take many of them off the market, it has apparently created a rush to buy them now and sellers say they're for protection. >> everybody's scared. theytalk about banning stuff and people are just scared. >> firearm applications have

jumpeded from just over 5,000 in october to more than 8,000 this month. state police say i task force is currently looking at maryland's gun control laws and their relation to mental health issues. the findings are due out at the end of this month. >> governor o'malley says he may introduce gun laws in the upcoming legislation. he wantsto address accessibility of assault type weapons, and access of guns to the mentally ill and school safety. he also wants to look into limiting the size of clips that can be used in maryland you look at some of these guns. >> and it's hard to conclude that these guns should be in the hands of someone who is not a soldier or a police officer. >> there are currently 45 type

offense assault weapons legal in maryland. several companies are making changes after the shooting. dick's sporting good is suspending the sale of certain kinds of semiautomatic guns across the country. agroup is looking to sell their stake in the company that makes the bushmaster saults rifle used in that attack. >> some are taking a different approach. . >> less people are hurt doing that than just having them every day. >> texas governor, rick perry says concealed handgun carry permit holders should be able to bring handguns into any public place including schools here we are one week from christmas and no parent thought they'd be attending a funeral for their child.

tj is in newtown today. >> it was a somber day for many parents in newtown, connecticut who sent their kids back to school for the first time since the shooting. sandy hookelementary remains closed and a second elementary school was kept closed for precautionary reasons. >> i know a lot of people are nervous. >> i think getting back to review toon is the -- routine is the best thing. >> at st. rose of lima church, back to back funerals. severalminutes after one casket was placed inside a hears, another casket was carried into the church. several other services are also planned for today. onebody was returned to utah with her family.

in monroe, they are preparing a school for the sandy hook elementary students to attend. >> we're going to work with everybody through the process to provide everything they need. >> the criminal investigation is o proceeding as investigators search through every aspect of gunman, adam lanza life. >> sandy hook elementary will likely begin classes after the holidays in january. . >> and remember, you can find the very latest information about the tragedy at our website at abc2news.com. we have a special session on our home page that links you to the profiles of the victims. >> a woman convicted of stabbing a 16 yeerlgd to death was denied parole today. roberts was a foster parent to the teenager who was found

beaten in a home back in 2002. the teen weighed just 73 pounds. one of the reasons her parole was revoked, robins was given the opportunity to participate in a state program but she opted out of it. >> put it like this, the day she killed sierra, i not only lost a daughter, i lost a granddaughter. >> although roberts parole was denied, the board did recommend cognitive therapy for her. >> a caroline county woman is accused of killing her father on his 90th birthday. she called 911 to say that her father was dead. the 58 year old told the police that two men had broken in but the police say the evidence did not add up. she ischarged with murder,

assault, manslaughter and wreckless endajerment. >> she spent her life keeping us safe and last night she lost her. the judge lost her life last night. she did all of the famous trials and was best at explaining a complicated case nice and easy so a jury could you understand. one of the biggest trials f that of curt bloodsworth. she got him sentenced twice. she said that case turned her into a better prosecutor. judge ann probes, dead tonight. >> three children hit by a car in baltimore county. policetell us a 17 year old, a 7 yeerlgd and a 6 year old were crossing in parkville this morning. the driver came around the corner and didn't see them. the kids were not in a cross walk. the driver did stop. >> and neighbors are pitching in to help a family after this

fire ripped through their home. two children ages nine and 13 were in the home and ran to a neighbor for help. no one was hurt. the cause of the fire is under investigation. now afriend tells us that ms. newman and her family lost everything in the fire. if you'd like to help you can donate clothes and shoes. there are several drop off locations. . >> umbc is sending out word that somebody on campus has been diagnosed with tuberculosis. the university is working closely with if health department to isolate the person and dpet them treated and they're getting in touch with others who might have been in contact with the person. theyare emphasizing that tuberculosis is difficult to contact through typical campus life. here is the number you can call

for more information. >> and also they can take your name, your social security and they can cause a-havoc on your life but police in our state are getting help in the battle against identity theft. theylearned about the new tools they can use in their investigations. baltimore county police already have a special unit to handle these kind of cases but the chief says events like this one helps them stay on top of scammers through their trick sdmrs identity theft and fraud investigations are constantly evolving because the criminal element will change due to law enforcements response. so youhave to have constant education. >> and the chief says there's been a huge spike in id theft and fraud over the years and he expects to have dozens of detectives working on these cases in the future. >> and weather wise, a nice looking day out there. sunshinenow, temperatures

fairly mild through the early part of the day. temperatures in the 40s to the west, low 50s in baltimore. the wind is gusting to 30 miles now. clouds very limited, still a nice clear evening on tap. through the 40s we're going fall to the 30s overnight. a coolsnap now but a much bigger cold snap is on the way. >> thanks wyatt. we've beentalking about the fiscal cliff but to you really know how it can impact your life. >> tonight, abc2 news is working for you with four tax credits that could expire and that's going to greatly impakts your family's budget. >> plus ladies, we know men seem to lose weight so much faster, tonight we'll tell you how we can get around it. >> i'm more worried about this, insfa gram may be able to

sell your pictures. what you need to do to protect your pictures.

. >> lady, i know you've thought about this, have you ever wondered why it seemed so much easier for the guys to drop those pounds? linda tells us what scientists have uncovered that could explain why women collect more stubborn belly fat. >> to get into shape, tammy and chris started working out together months ago. they'veboth managed to drop some weight but tammy says it's a-harder for her than him. >> i have to work extremely hard. >> it's a frustrating reality for women, as they get older, it gets harder to lose weight around especially around the mid section.

now researchers may know why, scientists have found an enzyme that is more prevalent in women than men. >> it could be increased as high as nine fold in female only but not in the mail. >> and the -- male. >> and the older a woman gets, the worse it gets. in youngwomen, es tro appears to -- estrogen appears to help burn fat but as they get older, it slows down. this helps fat to gather around the mid section. >> in females, it's very estrogen dependant. >> in other words, not only is belly fat hard tore lose for women but they must eat healthier to avoid it.

when itcomes to weight loss, it's a matter of how mother nature has tip third degree scales to men. >> scientists say this could give them a starting point for developing his and hers weight management therapy whether you're going to grandmother's house or disney world, traveling during the holidays can be stressful. whatitems should you take with you? always make sure you have a small first aid kit. if youhave a preexisting condition, let your doctor know where you're going. your doctor can refer you to someone if you get really ill. if you're on medications, always take exr extra -- action tra. sto stockup on vitamin c and eat lots of fruit. head to abc2news.com to find health stories.

>> new tonight, listen to they, this, fas book isn't just about catching up with old friends, you can now help decide what's in store this holiday. facebookusers hit the like button and after doing thashgs macy's decided to carry genes in bright colors. and wal-mart let customers vote on which toys they wanted discounted. time isrunning out for you to make christmas brighter for our local kids. tomorrow is the last day to donate new, unwrapped toys. you can bring them to our station on york road, any fire station and for a full list of drop off locations, log on to abc2news.com/toy drive. >> now, maryland's most accurate forecast.. >> good idea, you can make a deference in which a kid in need gets that gift in time for

the holiday. take a look, 49 degrees right now. the air is getting drier. winds arepicking up at northwest at 18. and getting into the shortest days of the year now. sun shetat 4:46. take a look at some of the wind right now and you can see gusty stuff out of the north and west. you know, weather wise through the day it's been an interesting scenario with these winds steady, and the sunshine, plenty of that. youhave some passing clouds but man a good looking beautiful day. our camera is shaking in the wind but look at that sunset. and how about the east side of the chesapeake here at kent island? nice day at the bay bridge marina. we want to take you to the wind gusts and where they've been peeking. you can see #57bd r around 30

miles an hour. makesure you latch down the trash can or whatever you store outside. it's going to be breeze si through midnight. temperatures falling into the 40s. tomorrow we're looking at a nice day by december standards. look south of the city, mid-50s once again. asyou go a little further north, maybe not quite so warm. incarol county, temperatures struggle to get past the low 50s. blue skies though and plenty of sunshine will be on tap tomorrow. take a look at the set up here. disturbancepen wheeling to the north now. we're getting a couple of area offense cloud cover on the south of that. future trend showing nothing tomorrow, bright blue skies. you're going to need the sun glasses tomorrow. but,check this out, another

change, faster moving weather pattern. wo bring in another disturbance on thursday leading with colder air, showers likely sdmurz into friday. there's going to be enough cold air. mid-30stomorrow and then back to ho 40s and 50s but then the cold air builds up to the north here and that will come down the pike as we go into friday and saturday. here it is for you, right now looking at some clearing behind this weather maker off to the north and east. putting downsnow in northern new england but there is a new system brewing north and west that will hit us thursday night into friday. tomorrow the two-degree guarantee, we'll call it 54. and how about tomorrow night, upper 30s, winds going calm and

then late thursday, showers arriving lasting until early friday. some of those could be rain mixed with light wet snow. andhit or miss showers in the early part of friday. things willclear out on friday and the weekend looks pretty decent. itlooks like sunshine will be on tap and low 40s and nights many the 20s as we push toward christmas eve. the good news, we don't see any problems for santa. >> that would be good for his sleigh. >> it just dawned on me that we see santa in the seven-day forecast. >> this year, youtube went gangnam style. there he is, not surprisingly the video topped youtube's list of top trending videos of the year. in sixmonths it became the most

watched video of all time. >> coming up, school safety is a major concern. >> and coming up, many people are now arming themselves but should teachers be armed with guns in the classroom fwl and imagine taking your driving test without even being in the car. we'll take you behind the wheel for this new virtual driving test.

let check did headlines around the nation. four people are dead in colorado in an paerpt murder suicide is. police say a woman called the police to report a shooting, they heard a scream and a

shooting. policenow found a handgun at that scene. >> and dozens of gunshots fired during a nine-hour stand off with a gunman in pennsylvania. tonight the gunman is dead and an officer is is hurt. policewere trying to serve a warrant at a harris burg apartment when he fired a gunshot and threatened to kill himself. during the stand off, can you hear more than 100 gunshots were fired. >> and a man was nearly crushed by a dump truck. he wassleeping inside the dumpster when the truck dumped the can. emergency crews were able able to free the man and he was rushed to the hospital. >> you know, you share your photos on instagram and now the site is planning to sell the photos without even telling you.

>> what you can do to stop instagram from making money off of your photos and during the holidays, we want to show appreciation for the people that are our servers, how much do you tip. >> and admit it, you've regifted. we'll give you the rules coming up.