sean: the number of overdose deaths in new hampshire continues to rise. funding from the federal government could be on the way to help fight the crisis. erin: this woman told police she was kidnapped and held at knife .4 hours, but police say it never actually happened -- point for hours, but police say it never actually happened. kevin: a look at the forecast coming up. sean: mistrial declared. a jury cannot reach a decision on any of the charges against one of the officers being tried in freddie gray'

>> no one covers new hampshire like we do. now, wmur news 9 daybreak. erin: good thursday morning. thanks for waking up with us. sean: we are one week from christmas eve. kind of felt a little cooler yesterday. but not like december. kevin: certainly not. the temperatures easing their way back to the freezing mark this morning. we have had a couple of what highways develop -- wet highways develop. we will keep our i out for -- eye out for any precipitation. we start off near the freezing mark in spots. afternoon. s take a look at your morning ride. we are joined live by 95.7 wzid'

good thursday morning. deb: good morning. keep in mind that there is a lot of heavy traffic out there right now. traffic is moving well through the state. 93, no delays right now. 293 is moving well through the mill yard and at the lane shift between exit 5 and the everett turnpike. right now, 101, 111, and 95 are all looking good. this report is being brought to you by peters honda, nissan, and kia of nashua. from the wzid traffic network, i' m deb davidson for 95.7 wzid. sean: thanks. new hampshire is likely getting more money from the federal government to help deal with the

federal spending plan is approved. erin: hundreds of people have already died from drug overdoses in the granite state already this year. ray: the funding is contained in the new budget bill that is expected to pass congress. 342 people have died this year from drug overdoses, half of those cases involving fentanyl. that is already higher from the total last year and 73 cases are still pending toxicology reports. help is on the way. there could be a $91 million increase in funding for programs fighting opioid abuse. >> resources for prevention, treatment, and local-based solutions.

>> it is a very good start. it is not all that we need to do. but it is a down payment on recognizing the challenge we are facing. ray: it is not clear how much money new hampshire would get. we did try to speak with the state' s drug czar, but he was not available for comment. erin: a middleton man accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl is due in court this morning. 20-year-old zachary garland is charged with three counts of aggravated for loney us sexual assault -- felonious us sexual assault. a woman is accused of making up a story about being kidnapped and held at knife point for hou rs.

mont was not even in town at the time and she later admitted this never happened. a purse, car keys, and an suv were stolen from a cafe . she faces charges in both towns. sean: the mother of a teen who died from an overdose may soon be free on bail. 41-year-old jazzmyn rood knew her 17-year-old daughter eve tarmey was being provided drugs the night she died and that she has her own drug problem. the defense noted that rood is not charged with giving the fentanyl to her daughter. the judge decided that rood can get out of jail once she proves she has a safe place to live with substance abuse counseling in place. erin: the governor has ordered that all flags be lowered to half staff in honor of u.s. army

he was seriously wounded last week during a live fire training exercise in georgia and later died from his injuries. his funeral will be held at dover baptist church. the first certified canine to serve with the new hampshire fish and game has passed away. he retired in 2010 after eight years on the job. injuries sustained during his career finally took the toll. poacher passed away peacefully with his handler by his side. sean: a judge has declared a mistrial in the case against a connection with the death of freddie gray. days, but could not reach a charges. andrew: with no clear outcome for officer william porter, many people see no news as bad news.

be of no significance. the perception is that it is a victory for the defense. >> it is not a victory for either side. it is a bump on the road to justice. the road to justice has lots of aunts -- bumps. andrew: the attorney for their family of freddie gray says that it is a disappointment. >> the prosecution really has big problems. they were counting on using porter as a witness against the others. now, he is in this hyperspace. andrew: the driver of the police van, during his first trial, his

s safety was the driver' s responsibility. >> that is the most important case. to have porter' s testimony available for that case is crucial. andrew: porter said it is not over yet. sean: for the first time in nearly a decade, the federal reserve is raising interest rates. it announced yesterday that it will raise short-term interest rate to between 0.25% and 0.5%. the rate increase only controls bank to bank lending and is unlikely to affect loan rates. >> a recession is due at some point in the future and the federal reserve needs to raise rates in order to have some ammo in the gun where they could

stimulate the economy again if it does go back into a recession. sean: in response to the move, several banks are raising prime lending rates to 3.5%. a sign of a healthy economy. erin: i guess so. an incredible outpouring of support for a family after a devastating fire. the money continues to pile up. sean: it has finally arrived. "star wars: the force awakens" arrives tonight. erin: why one local high school has canceled all school dances

kevin: thursday morning, december 17. temperatures ranging between 32 and 37 degrees early on.

patchy freezing drizzle in places. we will look ahead to a pretty big cool down for the weekend coming up. sean: help is pouring in for a family in hampstead days after fire destroyed their home. erin: last year, john ward' s wife passed away, leaving he and his three children on their own. now, they have lost everything. their house was destroyed in a fire. >> people care, they are human, i love it. i' m so thankful. you don' t see that on the news anymore. it is here. it is in hampstead, for sure. erin: the gofundme page has now raised more than $53,000 in just a couple of days. sean: great effort.

massachusetts got the chance encounter of a lifetime at the celtics game. aaron miller lives with a form of cerebral palsy, but has a big passion for basketball and his favorite player is lebron james. he was introduced as one of the celtics' heroes among us before the game. lebron took time to say hi to him and handed over his sneakers from the game after. >> i was talking to my friend ben and detest me on the shoulder. he said, he is running toward you. i almost melted on the parque. >> i was just showing my respect and i gave him my shoes. sean: how cool is that? aaron was also wearing apparel pair of sneakers designed by lebron james for people with

erin: i wonder how many feet he can fit into that shoe. [laughter] erin: if you are headed out to dinner in boston, go ahead and bring your own booze. two new rules approved by city leaders. sean: gas prices continue praised as one of america's best mayors who governed as a pragmatist. bernie sanders passed more amendments in a republican congress than any other member. cracked the gridlock with john mccain to strengthen veterans' healthcare. a consistent, principled, and effective leader. building a future to believe in.

sean: get ready to bring your own beer or wine when you head out to dinner in boston. the city council has ended the ban on bringing your own alcohol to restaurants. there are some restrictions. it only applies to restaurants that do not have a liquor license and have 30 or fewer seats and only in dorchester, hyde park, roxbury, and south boston. customers can bring one sixpack of beer or one bottle of wine.

s is recalling triple ginger beer soda because the bottles can unexpectedly explode. trader joe' s says the soda itself is just fine. erin: interesting. gas prices are a lot lower than they were a year ago. in new hampshire, the current average is $2.04 per gallon. this is saving the average driver $500 or more. j.p. morgan chase says most people are using that money to eat out more. sean: "the force awakens" tonight. the seventh installment is already broken preshow ticket sales records. if you are heading to see it on the big screen, kevin, expect few things at home. most theaters will allow

weapons including light sabers and blasters. [laughter] sean: committee theaters have their first showings tonight at 7:00. erin: you laugh at that, but a lot of people have light sabers ready to go. [laughter] kevin: what is the point of bringing that to the movie? erin: because! sean: it was just the blasters line. kevin: i haven' t seen them, so i don' t understand. erin: as you wait in line, you might want to have a light saber battle. sean: they are trying to be safe. erin: you just don' t understand it. kevin: because it is science fiction. it is not science fact. sean: he has gone to the dark side. [laughter] kevin: starting off with some more science fact. it is raining with temperatures

the best chance for snow will be in the central valleys in the north country. plenty of clouds continued to streamline their way in. there have been a few flurries near mount washington this morning. it is very difficult to detect it on radar, but it may be drizzling in your area. rainfall could be heavy later tonight, ending is a little bit of fog early tomorrow morning. radar scopes look quiet, but there have been flurries in an amount amount -- and around the mount washington valley. beyond that, it is scattered

s later on this evening as the rainfall comes through. a couple of rain showers for the afternoon starting to build later in the day. tomorrow, probably one of those changeable days where we start with clouds, a shower, patchy fog. i want you to notice back to our west, the clouds start diving quickly to the southeast. that is a wind that will be gusting over 25-30 miles per hour saturday afternoon. coming off the great lakes will be areas of light snow and snow showers for western areas of the state. we are not expecting any travel headaches from that. after a chilly weekend, we do start to warm up again and back into the mid-40' s by the middle

the rainfall starts to pick up. there will be patchy fog forming overnight. a couple of snow showers a possibility on saturday. it will turn brisk. the breeze continues into sunday. those eyes are purely just a number. the wind chill readings are in the 20' s to the 30' s. white christmas is looking very dicey. the mountains are going to have some light snow this weekend. erin: all right. sean: i guess that is ok. erin: we are going to check our top stories. ray: help could be coming from the federal government to help new hampshire deal with the opioid crisis. 342 people have already died this year from drug overdoses in new hampshire. that is already higher than the total from last year. the federal budget bill includes a $91 million increase in

abuse. erin: a middleton man accused of sexually assaulting a 13 euro girl is due in court. zachary garland is charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault in connection with an incident back in august. a lined burrell woman told police -- a woman told police she was kidnapped and held at knife point for hours. lauryn mont later admitted it never happened. sean: the new hampshire spca hopes he will adopt a new pet this christmas. for lynn's family, the big stress is paying four hundred dollars a month in medical and drug costs

higher deductibles, premiums and co-pays that keep adding up. that's why we've got to crack down on price gouging, cap out-of-pocket costs, and fast track approval of less expensive generic drugs. because we've got to get health care costs under control for lynn's family and for yours.

sean: welcome back, everybody. the new hampshire spca is

helpers for a special offer. erin: dozens of animals are looking for a new home. if you dropped anytime between this sunday and christmas eve, you can bring the animal right home with you or you can have elves deliver it on christmas morning within 15 miles of the shelter. sean: that is a great idea. coming up, the owner of the gun that was used to kill gregg smart says that 25 years have passed and he wants the weapon back. erin: the londonderry high school marching band is gearing

>> no one covers new hampshire like we do. now, wmur news 9 daybreak. erin: good morning to you on this thursday, december 17. it is a bit cooler out there this morning. we are dipping into the 30' s this morning. sean: this weekend is going to feel like december. let' s get to our top stories. funding is on the way to help with new hampshire' s drug crisis. at least 342 people have died from overdoses this year. exeter high school has decided to cancel all of its dances for the rest of the school year with

the man whose gun was used to kill gregg smart back in 1990 has been denied a request to have his weapon returned. erin: we may be seeing some flakes out there. kevin: this is far northern areas of the state. little bit of mixed precipitation in some of the lower valleys. you will notice a wave of rainfall making it away in this afternoon and this evening. we are up into the 40' s this afternoon. erin: we do want to check the roads. here is a live look at 93 right now. kevin: for a look at the morning drive, we are joined live by 95.7 wzid' s deb davidson. deb: good morning.

are looking good and moving well and are up to speed. we do need to be aware of those icy spots in the low lying areas. if you are commuting into massachusetts on 93 south, traffic is very slow and congested. this report is being brought to you by peters honda, nissan, and kia of nashua. from the wzid traffic network, i' m deb davidson for 95.7 wzid. sean: thanks. the drug crisis continues to take a major toll on new hampshire. the state is on track to finish with one overdose deaths per day. erin: heroin and fentanyl are two of the biggest problems. ray brewer joins us live with a closer look at the numbers. ray: this started out being called the heroin epidemic, but

driving -- sentinel -- fentanyl that is driving the numbers. in new hampshire, deaths from drug overdoses of already set a new record and the numbers continue to climb. according to the office of the chief medical examiner, the current confirmed total is 342. 292 lost their lives to opioid overdoses. there are 73 cases pending. that means whatever the final total is, it will be far higher than the 326 drug deaths in 2014. some help is on the way. the budget bill expected to pass congress includes a $91 million increase in funding nationally for programs aimed at combating opioid abuse, plus a big bump to funding dedicated to substance

>> more resources and support for prevention and treatment and support for our first responders and law enforcement to go after the high-level drug dealers and get help for those who are at the. ray: senators are calling it a down payment on the fight against the drug epidemic. money will also go to research and law enforcement. the emphasis is on helping those get clean who are struggling. >> we' treatment. additional funding will help states like new hampshire. much money new hampshire will receive, but a wide range of services should be getting much more help. in the studio, ray brewer. sean: exeter high school has of the school year.

win liberty case -- owen a la brie case was the tipping point. they said that respectful behavior has not been present. students were notified yesterday. dances were also canceled that exeter high school in 2013 after two students were arrested for drinking at a dance. we are asking you what you think about this move. let us know what you think by leaving a comment on our facebook page. erin: a judge has granted a seacoast woman a final order of protection against a ballet director, after she accused him

a trip -- on a trip to an international competition. in a petition filed in district court, lissa curtis alleges that cosmin marculetiu, the ballet director of new england movement arts, sexually assaulted her multiple times over 10 days in romania. the fbi would not confirm or deny if they are investigating, but curtis has said they are. cosmin marculetiu did not show up for yesterday' s hearing. sean: police busted the drug ring. police found drugs, methamphetamine and heroin. charges will be filed against multiple suspects in tilton. the home was located near several schools and that will be taken into consideration. the rocking in county sheriff' s office says three people in

in connection to sentinel -- fentanyl and heroin sales. francisco dejesus was arrested. junior diaz and vanessa monteiro are facing conspiracy charges. erin: a lawyer for vance lattime sr., the owner of the firearm motion to have the gun returned. billy flynn used the revolver to kill pamela smart in 1990. the lawyer says that the gun is lawfully his, but prosecutors say pamela smart continues to file appeals in the case. defendant doing a life without contested her conviction in the past. future. because of that, we are trying

justice for the victim by keeping a handle on the important evidence and the murder weapon is one of the most important pieces of evidence. erin: the judge denied the request to have the gun returned to vance lattime sr. and it will remain in evidence. sean: a judge says the state education department cannot stop the croydon school district from using tax money to pay for private school tuition. croydon has one school that goes through fourth grade. after that, parents choose newport public schools. families of four students chose the newport montessori school and asked for their children' s

district officials agreed. a judge disagreed. another hearing is scheduled for january. erin: police and firefighters had an unusual situation. so many people donated christmas gifts that the presence over flowed offices and they had to move a fire truck to make room. the overwhelming response came after auburn' s first responders put out the call for eight families in need with nearly two dozen children. >> every room in the police department had some toys or gift wrapping items or something like that. it is amazing to see with the community can do. >> people started calling and e-mailing and we have a facebook community page. erin: the gifts will be delivered in the next few days. that is quite a problem to have, right? so much generosity.

an unusual situation for some diners. one restaurant was charging customers a fee for clean air. erin: a close call for one cute kitten at a recycling center. kevin: back into the 40' s this afternoon as rain continues to work its way in.

kevin: starting off your thursday morning with a little bit of rain in spots. plenty of clouds early on. we go to overcast skies. we will have the details coming up. sean: a survivor of the boston marathon bombing has passed away. erin: 37-year-old kevin white died this week from what his illness. he inspired many people by running a marathon one year after he was wounded in the bombing. his body. a funeral will be held on saturday.

says the supreme court should reject a lawsuit that seeks to s legalization of marijuana unconstitutional. oklahoma and nebraska say marijuana is coming across their borders and draining their resources. erin: a restaurant in china can no longer charge a need for clean air. the air filtration system was installed due to the smog. authorities made the business stop charging the clean air fee. sean: check out this dramatic video. a dump truck slammed into that tractor. the driver was thrown onto the curb. he only suffered a broken hand in some bruises. police say he should have

erin: the boston bruins took on the pittsburgh penguins last night. boston scored first. boston scored again in the second period. they went on to win this game 3-0. the bruins and the penguins will play again tomorrow night. sean: the celtics played at the detroit distance -- pistons last night. it was a good game for boston. detroit held on to the lead to win the game 119-100 eckstein. erin: the londonderry marching band is gearing up for a very

erin: this is the band playing "celebration." they will be marching in the citrus bowl parade before florida plays michigan. going. they also played at the citrus parade in 2001. disney world on new year' s eve. >> it is a great bonding experience. this will be my second time in florida with the band. we have a lot of memories we get to look forward to. >> you learn teamwork and you learn how to get along. i think it is really great. >> and you get to go to florida. >> exactly. it is like a vacation and you are working at the same time. [laughter] erin: they have a history of playing at big college parades. they have a lot of experience doing that.

this video out of minnesota. and mom was given a chance to score a half off tuition for her daughter' s schooling. she threw the ball granny style with her eyes closed and the [laughter] sean: she did not even watch it. [laughter] sean: is it legal? it is incredible. erin: i love her reaction. sean: what are the odds? it is amazing. when you play one-on-one with kevin, he still plays that way. eyes closed, granny style. [laughter] sean: a young girl has a christmas wish. she wants to meet tom brady. >> if i ever met him, i would excitedly pass out and faint. [laughter]

haley stewart is battling b cell leukemia for the second time. media in hopes of making her wish come true. dropped by. sean: we should mention, the patriots and a lot of the sports teams go to the hospital quite a bit. i bet this will happen. erin: we just saw tom brady send out a facebook vestige to another patient. kevin: eventually, it will. trying to find out who he is going to throw to right now. a little busy. we are starting off with a little bit of light precipitation. the areas the drop-down below 35 could have a few issues. elevated surfaces, it is a

what is coming out of the sky -- it is a matter of once it gets to the ground, what it does. there are a lot of services that are above the freezing mark this morning. if you traveled through one of the sheltered valleys, factor in a few extra minutes. not depicting a lot of precipitation. a lot of what is falling is fairly light. as the radar beam climbs, and a lot of those beams are overshooting the precipitation. this batch of rain will continue to navigate its way north easton will arrive through this evening he for pulling away overnight tonight. radar scopes are rather' s quiet. there has been a little bit of patchy drizzle. factor in a little bit of extra

thankfully, a lot of areas are above 35 degrees, so that minimizes the issues. you will notice that there are a lot of 37' s and 38' s across the map. durham is that 33. 35, new boston. range, 34. 34, northfield. 32, new london. we will see a couple spots with slick areas. beyond that, scattered showers for the afternoon. rain becomes steady later on tonight. tomorrow, clouds early to partial sunshine. temperatures will be in the 40' s yet again. notice the flow after that friday night into saturday --

west. we may even have a few flurries in central and southern new hampshire. 30' s to start. 40' s to finish the day. steadier rainfall later this evening leading to partial clearing. from there, colder air builds in. within a few degrees of where we should be for this time of year, but wind chills will be in the 20' s. next system, wednesday or thursday. that will be christmas eve. it is looking like rain right now. erin: what is the windchill? [laughter] kevin: it has been a while since we discussed that. erin: for the first time in decades, the mount washington auto road will open for december guided tours. there is no snow.

s are only to the tree line, which is halfway up the mountain. sean: a worker came to the rescue of a kitten that wound up in a dangerous spot. tony was sorting recyclables along a conveyor belt when he spotted the kitten heading his way. the animal was moments away from going into the spinning metal blade and a compactor. can you imagine? the kitten survived a ride on a pushed her onto the conveyor belt. >> it was amazing to see a little kitty survive all this. it made my day today. sean: after getting a clean bill of health from a vet, another worker decided to take the kitten home and name her murphy. erin: i think he made the kitty haas -- kitty' s day too. it is like toy story 3.

paris: there's a lot to do on a dairy farm. nobody's gonna do it for you. you have to get out there and do it yourself. bernie sanders is a well-known

by big money. bernie's opinion cannot be purchased. it's time for our next president roll up his sleeves, take off the gloves, take on big business, take on big money, and get the working class back to where they should be. he's a rock.

sean: some people in vermont braved the weather to eat lunch outside. it is all part of the coolest lunch event to raise awareness about homelessness. the money raised will benefit burlington' s committee on temporary shelter. not a bad year to hold this event. kevin: do you need ice in the glass? sean: probably not. [laughter] erin: the rankings for happiest country in the world are out. norway tops the list for the 12th year in a row. kevin: australia was listed as the second happiest country

the united states came in second. sean: can we get impressions for all the other ones? kevin: i would have to be wearing different shoes for that. [laughter] sean: coming up in the next hour , it is the day star wars fans have been waiting for. "the force awakens" opens tonight. ray: help could be coming to new hampshire to deal with the opioid crisis from the federal government. sean: if you are planning on getting a pet this christmas, the nhs pca is offering a