sean: the number of overdose deaths in new hampshire continues to rise. federal funding could be on the way to help fight the crisis. erin: this woman told police she never actually happened. kevin: the focus today is on the rain chances. look ahead to the weekend coming up. sean: a mistrial declared in the trial of a police officer involved in the death of freddie gray. a jury cannot reach a decision on any of the charges. like we do.

thanks for starting your day with us. sean: good morning, everybody. day. we' there. kevin: we have even seen some areas. temperatures above the freezing mark in a lot of locations. we get down between 32-34 degrees. some of the elevated surfaces could be a bit slick early on. we start off in the 30' s. most are in the 40' s through the afternoon. some showers moving and later on this afternoon. let' s take a look at your morning ride in the granite state. we are joined live by 95.7 wzid' s deb davidson.

if you are starting on 89, it looks like a good ride. be aware of those icy spots in the low-lying areas. same for 93 north of tilton. later on today, the everett turnpike -- the dot says they will be at the everett turnpike south of exit one in the left lane. please plan accordingly. there will marlen likely -- more than likely be some delays. heading into massachusetts, 93 south is heavy in andover, woburn, and stoneham. 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: new hampshire is likely getting more money from the federal government to help deal

with the drug crisis here, as long as the new federal spending plan is approved. erin: the number of overdose deaths continues to rise for the year. ray: the funding is contained in the new budget bill that is expected to pass congress. 342 people have already died this year from drug overdoses -- half of those cases involving fentanyl. that is already higher than last year and 73 cases are still pending toxicology reports and the year is not over yet. the federal budget bill includes a $91 million increase in funding at programs across the abuse. >> resources for prevention, solutions. funding for law enforcement and command. >> it is a very good start.

it is a down payment on recognizing the challenge that we are facing in new hampshire and other states. ray: it is not clear how much money would get -- new hampshire would get, but we did try to speak with the state drug czar, but he was not available for comment. erin: thank you. a middleton man accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl is due in court. 20-year-old thackeray garland is charged with 3 -- zachary garland is charged with three counts of sexual assault. he sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl in august. a woman is accused of making up a story about being kidnapped and held at knife .4 hours in mount vernon. lauryn mont was not even in town at the time and she later admitted that it never happened.

car keys, and an suv were stolen from a cafe . when officers found the vehicle, lauryn mont was inside. 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 was being provided drugs the night she died and that she has her own drug problem. the defense noted during a hearing yesterday that rood is not charged with giving the fentanyl to her daughter. two other people have been charged in the case. rood can get out of jail once she proves she has a safe place to live with substance abuse counseling in place and degrees to gps monitoring. erin: the governor has ordered flags be lowered to half staff on saturday in honor of u.s. army ranger corporal andrew aimesbury. 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 law enforcement division has passed away. culture retired -- poacher retired back in 2010. he passed away peacefully with his handler by his side. fish and game has three trained canines. sean: a judge has declared a mistrial in the case against a police officer charged in connection with the death of freddie gray. jurors to liberated for three days, but could not reach a verdict on any of the charges. andrew: with no clear outcome for officer william porter, many people see no news as bad news. >> if he is convicted, it will be of no significance if he is convicted on his first or second trial, but the perception is that it is a victory for the defense. >> i don'

t buy the nonsense that this is a victory for either side. it is not. it is a bump on the road to justice andrew: the attorney for the family of freddie gray says the hung jury is a disappointment. legal analysts say the outcome of the trial goes beyond the fate of william porter to the other five officers waiting to stand trial. >> the technical legal term is up a creek. the prosecution has big problems. they were counting on using porter as a witness against the others and now, he is in this hyperspace. andrew: the driver of the police van, caesar goodson, who pleaded not guilty to a second-degree murder charge after great half death. -- freddie gray' s death. if porter is still on trial, he might not be available to testify in a different case. >> in my mind, that is the most

to have porter' s testimony crucial. andrew: as porter told "the baltimore sun," it is not over yet. erin: still ahead, an incredible outpouring of support for a devastating fire and the money continues to pile up. sean: "star wars: the force awakens" opens tonight. theaters are asking fans to leave a few things at home. erin: why one local high school has canceled all school dances other than the prom until

kevin: a live look from the port city. dry roadways. move inland andrainfall moving in. that will be heavy at times tonight. the details coming up. sean: help is pouring in for a family in hampstead days after a fire destroyed their home. erin: last year, the mother passed away and now they have lost everything in their fire. julian edelman share the link on his twitter account and it has been sent to "the ellen degeneres show." i love it. m so thankful. anymore. it is here. erin: certainly is.

almost $54,000 in just a couple of days. sean: wow. a teenage from massachusetts got the chance encounter of a lifetime at the celtics game on tuesday night. aaron miller lives with a form of cerebral palsy, but also has a big passion for basketball. his favorite player is lebron james. he was introduced as one of the celtics heroes among us the for tuesday' s game. lebron took time during the game to say hi to aaron and handed over his sneakers from the game afterward. >> i was talking to my friend and he tapped me on the shoulder and he goes, he is running toward you. it is lebron james. i almost melted on the parque. >> i saw his story>>. i was a part of him. i was showing my respect and they give him my shoes. sean: that'

aaron was also wearing a special pair of sneakers that had been designed by james for those with disabilities. lebron also wears size 15 shoes. erin: i love how he said he' ll most melted on the floor. [laughter] erin: coming up, if you are heading out to dinner in boston, bring your own booze. new rules just got approved by city leaders. sean: americans have spent a lot less on gas this year.

prices continue this is the best block of all. it's like candy cane lane. i know. oohhh. oh, holiday ferris wheel. i kind of love it. look at those reindeer. jeffrey, you're awfully quiet back there. i was just thinking... maybe it's time we finish this test drive and head back to the dealership? that is so jeffrey... soooo jeffrey... so jeffrey... oh. elves.. it's practically yours. but we still need your signature. nthe volkswagen sign nthen drive event. p zero due at signing, p p zero down, zero deposit, p p and zero first months payment p p on a new passat nand othernselect models. people are working harder than ever, but the everyday cost of perscriptions, child care, or even just buying groceries can be a stretch for too many families. hillary's plan: raise the

minimum wage, get equal pay for women, cut taxes for the middle class, and new incentives for business to share profits with employees instead of just rewarding ceos. those at the top are doing just fine. it's your family that needs a raise. i'm hillary clinton, and i approve this message. sean: the boston city council as ended the ban on bringing your own now called to restaurants.

it only applies to restaurants that do not have a liquor license and have 30 or fewer seats in dorchester, hyde park on the roxbury, and south boston. trader joe' s is recalling triple ginger brew soda because the bottles could suddenly explode. there have been several reports of unopened bottles breaking, though no one has been heard. trader joe' s says the soda itself is fine. maybe they are shaking it up first? erin: i don' t know. gas prices are a lot lower than they were a year ago. the current average is $2.04 in new hampshire. nationally, the averages $.94 lower than 2014. most people are using the extra money to eat out more. regulators in california have unveiled a set of rules for

cars by 2017. [laughter] erin: manufacturers still have safe. the cars must have a steering wheel and a licensed driver who must be ready to take over rules will slow development of the technology. sean: "the force awakens" tonight. this movie has already broken preshow ticket sales records. expect added security and leave a few things at home. most theaters will allow costumes, but fans are asked not to wear masks and absolutely no and blasters. many theaters have their first showings tonight at 7:00. kevin: i was planning my jar jar

erin: i hope that jar jar is not in the big movie. kevin: there are very few things that i now, but i know when i mentioned that, people go, really? he is instantly my favorite character in "star wars" without ever seeing it. just because of the reaction i ever -- i always get. there are a few wet highways out there. a little bit of freezing drizzle. bear that in mind as you head out. you will notice on storm tracker .

this is the main batch of rain that approaches this afternoon. as far as the radar scopes are concerned, fairly quiet early on. southwestern areas starting to get in on more numerous scattered showers which will turn to steadier rainfall this afternoon. the temperatures themselves don' t look all that daunting as you head out. some of the central valleys that hang onto the colder air may mean that you not only see a couple of snowflakes early on, but also the potential of a little bit of freezing rain. colder air back to the west. then it is back to reality for us. back to the averages by the weekend. on and off rain showers through 2:00 or 3:00.

it should wrap up early tomorrow morning. patchy fog giving way to sunshine in the afternoon area from there, we are talking fair skies into the weekend. we may see even a couple flurries or snow showers try to wander through western and central and southern areas. don' t be surprised if you see a couple of snowflakes out there in places. high temperatures today backed up into the 40' s. anything we do see as far as any scattered or light precipitation goes over to rain showers this afternoon. patchy fog tonight. tomorrow, we are talking mid and upper 40' s. two of the coldest days in your extended forecast over the weekend before we start another

-- early next week. erin: rainy christmas. kevin: almost exactly like last year. erin: we do want to check our top stories. ray: help could be coming to new hampshire from the federal government as the state struggles to deal with the opioid crisis. the new federal budget bill includes a $91 million increase in funding across the country aimed at programs fighting opioid abuse. sean: erin: zachary garland is charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault in connection with an incident in august. a woman told police that she was kidnapped and held at knife .4 hours, but officers say that she was not even in town at the time and that she later admitted that it never happened. sean: coming up, the new hampshire spca hopes that you

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kevin: we do have a very little bit of light precipitation. the temperatures are above freezing. there could be a little bit of patchy, freezing drizzle, and some of the sheltered valleys. we are going to look ahead to pretty big changes coming up. there could be some slick spots out there. sean: the new hampshire spca is teaming up with some of saint as helpers for a special offer. erin: dozens of animals are looking for new homes. if you adopt between this sunday and christmas eve, you can bring the animal home with you or you could have elves deliver the animal on christmas morning within 15 miles of the shelter in stratham. they will even come with a gift pack and a scroll from santa.

sean: i think that is a great idea. erin: yeah. sean: there is also another pet option available. you might need a little more space. erin: bob the triceratops is being auctioned off this weekend. he is the largest triceratops fossil in the united states. he is privately owned and experts predict he will sell for nearly $1.5 million. sean: maybe i will put this in my private collection. coming up in the next half hour, the owner of the gun that was used to kill gregg smart says that 25 years of past and he wants the weapon back. erin: the londonderry high school marching band is tuning up for another big performance

>> no one covers new hampshire like we do. now, wmur news 9 daybreak. erin: good morning to you. welcome to daybreak. 39 degrees in portsmouth. up north, it is a little cooler. sean: a little bit of rain is falling. let' s get to our top stories. funding is on the way to help combat new hampshire' s drug crisis. 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 exception of the junior and senior proms.

the man whose gun was used to kill gregg smart in 1990 has been denied a request to have his weapon returned. erin: we are hearing there are areas that are a little slippery out there. kevin: temperatures in most locations are above the freezing mark. elsewhere, it has been a little bit of light rain. it is a matter of the exact temperature. we have a lot of clouds out there. temperatures are starting the day in most locations in the mid and upper 30' s. a mild start to the day as far as the temperatures are concerned. we are talking temperatures moving back to the mid-and lower 40' s. erin: we do want to check the roads for you. kevin: for a look at the morning drive, we are joined live i 95.7 wzid'

deb: good morning. we are seeing building volume on 93 from londonderry into salem. everything is moving well and it is up to speed. 293, you are traveling a bit below the speed limit, but no major problems. the dot will be at the everett turnpike working in the left lane later today. commuting into massachusetts right now, 93 south, there is a crash that has traffic backed up to methuen. 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 pace to finish

erin: fentanyl and heroin are the biggest problems. ray brewer is here with a look at the funding aimed at helping to curb the crisis. ray: fentanyl has been driving the overdose deaths this year. there are still dozens of toxicology reports pending. in new hampshire, deaths from drug overdoses have already at a new record. the numbers continue to climb. 342. overdoses. reports. whatever the final total is, it will be far higher than the 326 deaths in 2014. some help is on the way in the form of funding.

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 block grant. >> resources for prevention and treatment. getting help for those who are addicted. ray: senators are calling the funding a down payment on the fight against the drug epidemic. money will also go to research and law enforcement. the emphasis on those struggling with addiction getting clean. >> we' ve got to get people into treatment. that is the biggest challenge we are facing. there is additional funding that will help states like new hampshire. ray: there is no word on how

see, but -- will receive, but a wide range of services will be helped. ray brewer, wmur news 9. sean: exeter high school has canceled its dances for the rest of the school year. the superintendent said the owen labrie case was the tipping point. dances are canceled indefinitely with the exception of the junior and senior proms because respectful behavior has not been present. students were notified yesterday. dances were also canceled in 2013 after two students were dance. we are asking you what you think

let us know what you think by leaving a comment on her facebook page. erin: a judge has granted a seacoast woman a final order of protection against a ballet director after she accused him of sexually assaulting her on a trip to an international competition. 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. curtis has said they are. cosmin marculetiu did not show s hearing. sean: tilton police busted an illegal drug operation on chestnut street. detectives found drugs believed . home. dcyf was notified. they are planning to file charges against multiple suspects.

that will be taken into consideration. erin: new developments in the pamela smart murder case connected to a critical piece of evidence. a lawyer for vance lattime sr., the owner of the firearm that killed gregg smart, fired a motion in superior court to have the firearm returned. a lawyer says the gun is lawfully his and that he should get it back after 25 years. pamela smart continues to file appeals and they may needed as evidence in the future. >> you have a defendant doing a life without parole sentence and she has contested her conviction in the past and she plans to contested in the future. we are trying to be careful to preserve the conviction and maintain justice by keeping a handle on the important evidence in the case. erin: the judge denied junior diaz and vanessa monteiro -- the

s returned. education department cannot stop the croydon school district from private school tuition. croydon has one school which goes through fourth grade. after that, parents choose families of four students chose the newport montessori school and asked for their children' s portion of tax money to be used for private tuition. district officials agreed. state officials asked for a stop to that plan. another hearing on the issue is scheduled for january.

had an unusual situation to handle. so many people donated christmas gifts that the presence over flowed offices. the overwhelming response came after first responders but up with two dozen children. >> every room had toys are giftwrapping items or something like that. it is amazing to the with the community can do. >> people started calling and e-mailing and we have a face book community page. erin: how great is that? the gifts are going to be delivered in the next few days. just wonderful to see so many people coming out and donating. sean: it shows you her generous people are. an unusual situation for diners in china. one restaurant was charging a fee for clean air. erin: a close call for one cute kitten. it was rescued at a recycling center moments before it was

kevin: a jump back into the 40' s for the next couple of days. colder air weights back to the west.

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morning with some snowflakes in a few other spots seeing patchy and freezing drizzle with s. it will be a jump into the 40' through the day. we eventually set up steadier details coming up. sean: you have to go pretty far north to find that snow. a survivor of the boston marathon bombing has passed away. erin: kevin white died this week from a sudden illness. he inspired many people by running a marathon one year after being wounded in the bombing. his parents were also seriously injured. sean: the obama administration says the supreme court should reject a lawsuit that seeks to marijuana unconstitutional. oklahoma and nebraska say that their efforts to enforce

anti-marijuana laws in there' s aids. erin: a restaurant in china can no longer charge customers a fee for clean air. the year filtration system was installed due to the smog. authorities made the business stop charging a $.15 clean-air fee saying that air cannot be sold as a commodity. sean: speaking of china, check out this video. the impact through the tractor driver right onto the curb. amazingly, he only suffered a broken hand and bruises. police say he should have yielded. erin: it does not even look like the truck stops. sean: wow. scary stuff. erin: yikes. good news for those of you who like to share your bed with your pet. many people sleep better with animals by their side. researchers at the center for

sleep medicine say that pets and make them feel more relaxed. half of american pet owners allow pets to sleep in their bed or nearby. sean: can i disagree with that? my cat always wants to sleep where my legs want to be. [laughter] erin: the boston bruins took on the pittsburgh penguins on their home ice last night area sean: boston scored first. nice goal. boston went on to win 3-0. the bruins and the penguins will play again tomorrow night in pittsburgh. the celtics played at the detroit pistons last night. both teams went into the game with 14 wins on the season.

boston had an 11-4 lead. they trailed by three at the half. detroit held onto the lead to win the game. erin: the londonderry marching band is gearing up for a very big gig. erin: this is the band playing "celebration" by cool and the gang. they will be marching in the citrus bowl parade before florida plays michigan. all 245 members of the band will be going. as part of this trip to florida, the band will play at disney world on new year' s eve. >> it is a great bonding experience. this is going to be my second time in florida with the band. we have a lot of memories that we get to look forward to. >> you learn teamwork. you learn how to get along. i think it is great.

>> exactly. it is like a vacation and you are working at the same time. erin: they have a history of playing in big college football bowl parades. they have played at the rose bowl and the orange bowl. sean: take a look at this video. a mom was given a chance to score half off tuition for her daughter' s schooling next year if she could sink the half-court shot. it goes in on the bounce. she threw it granny style and on the bounce. the mom was shocked. i thought it missed it. into the net. it went in. that is incredible. a young cancer patient has a special christmas wish. she wants to meet tom brady.

erin: her friends, family, and strangers are coming together to try to make that happen. >> if i ever met him, i would excitedly pass out and faint. erin: she is battling b cell leukemia for the second time. she has been in a hospital in maine since october. you can tell from her room how big of a tom brady vinci is. let' s hope that her wish does happen. sean: i suspect it will. these teams usually come out to the hospitals. i think it will happen. kevin: absolutely. we start off with a little bit of mixed precipitation. anything close to the shoreline will be in liquid form. inland, 34-37. some valleys falling down near the freezing mark. you could have light rain in sports -- spots.

the could be a little bit of freezing rain in some spots. we are going to continue to see the sun come up early this morning. the thickest of the cloud cover will continue to advance in. a lot of this is falling in the lowest cap mile of the atmosphere. not a lot of it is being detected. small droplets coming out of the sky or snowflakes, for that matter. the heaviest rainfall will be around late this afternoon through this evening. likely, a pretty wet evening commute before letting up overnight. not much to show you on storm tracker. there are a few spots within a few degrees of the freezing mark. you get those elevated surfaces. there is that potential of a couple of slick spots. you see how isolated that is with temperatures safely above freezing.

you get up farther north, we are talking temperatures in the mid-30' s, as well. it is more of an isolated situation this morning. bear that in mind if you travel through one of those fog-prone areas. we are talking anywhere from the upper range of the 30' s to mid and upper 40' s in the afternoon. it will be steadiest later tonight before letting up overnight. partial sunshine tomorrow. a breeze out of the northwest will pick up on saturday. notice a couple of lake effect making their way into the granite state. i wouldn' t be surprised in central and southern areas to have a couple of snowflakes flying around in the air. nonetheless, the chance of it looking at little bit more like december because it is going to feel like it this weekend.

it will come with brisk winds. wind chills down into the 20' s before a rebound next week. a huge thank you to the third-graders at the hills garrison school, who i visited yesterday to talk the weather. they had some excellent questions. we talked about floods, lightning, and tornadoes. they are home to the gorillas. this is gary the guerrilla -- gorilla. apparently, he likes bananas. sean: you are able to care for this gorilla in the weather department? kevin: i' m going to do my best. i' m going to have him poised in certain places. he' s going to be our mascot. [laughter] sean: a worker at a recycling facility came to the rescue of a kitten. tony was sorting recyclables

the animal was just moments away from going into the spinning metal blades in a compactor. the kitten survived a ride on a garbage truck before a tractor pushed her onto the conveyor belt. >> it was amazing to see a little kitty survival of this. it made my day today. definitely. sean: after getting a clean bill of health, another worker decided to take the kitten home and name her murphy. she officially has eight lives left. erin: that is amazing. that was traveling pretty quick. sean: the metal thing spinning. erin: oh my goodness. it is now 6:52. still ahead, a final check of your top stories, including a controversial move it exeter

for the rest of the school year. people are working harder than ever, but the everyday cost of perscriptions, child care, or even just buying groceries can be a stretch for too many

families. hillary's plan: raise the minimum wage, get equal pay for women, cut taxes for the middle class, and new incentives for business to share profits with employees instead of just rewarding ceos. those at the top are doing just fine. it's your family that needs a raise. i'm hillary clinton, and i

erin: updating our top stories. sean: exeter high school has canceled its dances. the principal said they are canceled indefinitely with the exception of the junior and

erin: the man whose gun was used to go gregg smart has been denied a request to have his weapon returned. prosecutors say pamela smart continues to file appeals and they may need the gun in the future. sean: a woman is accused of lying to police about being kidnapped and held at knife point. lauryn mont was not even in town at the time of the reported incident and later admitted that it never happened. erin: the mother of 18 who died of an overdose in rochester may be free on bail. a judge decided that 41-year-old jazzmyn rood can get out of jail once she proves that she has a safe place to live with substance abuse counseling in place and degrees to gps monitoring. kevin: we continue on with the clouds out there this morning. a little bit of light precipitation. 39 in manchester out through the coast. you start to get into central and northern areas. a couple of snowflakes.

erin: all right. coming up next, they are going to have a preview of barbara walters' special "the 10 most fascinating people of 2015." this marks the 25th year she has ranked the annual newsmakers. the special airs tonight at 9:30 on wmur. one of those people is donald trump. sean: i know you asked. i was 11th. i did not make the cut. the christmas jammies family is coming catch holiday-cookie cheer on the tip of your tongue with dunkin' donuts' holiday- cookie-flavored coffees. after 12:00 p.m., enjoy any medium latte or macchiato for $1.99.

dunkin's new sweet black pepper bacon sandwich, with double the slices of caramelized crispy pepper bacon.