>> gabe gutierrez in atlanta tonight. thank you, gabe. >>> a federal judge in new york ruled today that the nsa's vast collection of telephone records is legal. that contrasts with a ruling two weeks ago from a judge in washington who said the nsa program likely violates the constitution. this latest decision is a legal victory for the obama administration with the judge saying the nsa's program is valuable and only a minimal intrusion. we get our report tonight from our justice correspondent pete williams. >> reporter: today's ruling says the program is the government's counterpunch to the 9/11 attacks and al qaeda's ability to conceal communications. only by scooping up all the records of telephone calls, the ruling says, can the nsa find and follow the stream of terrorist contacts in an ocean of data. the cost of missing such a thread can be horrific, says federal judge william pauley of new york. he says the effectiveness of collecting bulk telephone data cannot be seriously disputed citing examples of disrupted plots.

>> gabe gutierrez in atlanta for us. thank you, gabe. >>> it's been an ice christmas for folks in parts of the midwest and northeast still in the dark and cold and still dealing with misery following the sunday ice storm. and tonight it appears for some the situation could get worse. nbc's kevin tibbles is in east lansing, michigan. kevin, good evening. >> reporter: natalie, it's going to be another miserable night for thousands after all this ice has brought down trees, damaged homes, and left a lot of families in the dark for christmas. on the second day of christmas, all more than 100,000 people want is their electricity back. across the midwest and northeast crews have been scrambling to restore power to those who lost it during last weekend's massive ice storm. >> blitzing the area and going along. >> reporter: in lansing michigan, the danzigers spent the last three nights in a hotel room. >> still no power. >> reporter: they spent christmas day shivering in coats at home under the christmas tree opening presents. >

gabe gutierrez, nbc news. >> and coming up, a big night in basketball, the warriors on the national stage. a little basketball, a little wrestling, dave feldman has all your highlights in comcast sportsn sportsnet. >>> dave feldman, comcast sports. i have to tell you, the national audience got everything they could have asked for tonight for christmas. >> good hoops and some fighting. right? sometimes fighting happens on christmas. >> it does happen, clippers and warriors, there was no holiday spirit. rather a healthy disdain that hoops fans will get to see two more times. festive fans at oracle. it was a whiteout, and santa was there. end of the third quarter, blake griffin. in the face. in the face, double teams issued, andrew bogut, grabbed griffin's jersey, they get locked up. double teamed again, griffin's second, he's gone. under three minutes left, warriors down one. warriors up two, next clippers possession, chris paul drives for the layup. game tied. next warriors possession, curry splits the defenders and makes the layup. warriors up two. paul's shot. and it's a pretty good look

it's where we begin tonight with nbc's gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: in the wake of one of the largest retail breaches in u.s. history, many customers are changing the way they shop. >> i think i'll start using cash. cash only. >> reporter: even after target offered a 10% discount and free credit monitoring, some customers aren't satisfied. to contain the damage jpmorgan chase is now restricting shoppers who use their chase card at target to a $100 limit on withdrawals and a $300 cap on purchases. >> 10% discount, as opposed to identity theft and all the problems involved with that, isn't worth it to me. >> reporter: so far, there are several class action lawsuits against target. and attorneys general in at least four states have asked the retail chain for information about the breach. today target said it's cooperating fully and working around the clock to make things right. but the reporter who broke the story says cloned cards are selling on the black market for $20 to $100. >> we don't know a whole lot about how the bad guys got in. >> reporter: the u.s. relies on magnetic strips t

here's nbc's gabe gutierrez with more.chlt this morning anticipation is growing. >> we brought in a staff of people. we have three people that have been rolling joints for two days straight. >> reporter: colorado about to become the first state to allow the sale of recreational marijuana. since the federal government banned it. >> this is one ounce of ak-47. >> reporter: at denver's evergreen apott carry the owner calls it historic. >> i really think the end of prohibition is a3;u phenomenal time. >> reporter: colorado pioneered medical marijuana, but voters went the extra step in 2012 approving pot just for fun. no smoking in public. taxes topping 25%, and strict rules for growers. >> we'll be carding every single person that comes in the door. >> reporter: colorado expects to rake in tens of millions of dollars a year in tax revenue. 0 set aside to schools, but technically -- >> every transaction and every one of these dispensaries is still a federal crime. even the federal government has promised at least for now that w

gabe gutierrez explains what's happening to frazier firs. >> on this free farm in north carolina, it is not the most wonderful time of year. >> didn't expect it to be quite this severe this fast. >> jeff has been growing frazier firs for four decades. but this christmas a water mold has flourished due to heavy rains in the state, is crippling his business. >> you see this one right here. see how it's green right here. but already turning brown down here. that's a gone tree. >> he fears a quarter of his trees are gone. >> it kills the root system on the trees. and they can't take up water. >> in north carolina, the problem has cost the industry an estimated $6 million to $8 million a year. in oregon, $300 million. this could affect how much you pay for a tree. maybe not this year but down the line. joanne mcguire and her 7-year-old daughter are shopping for their family christmas tree. >> this one has a nice one. it has a nice smell to it. >> they're in luck. so far the mold threat hasn't affected the supply at this seller in georgia. still, researchers are trying to genetically modif

they will have more gifts to open in a couple of days. >> that was gabe gutierrez reporting. some are turning to online retailers. one of the biggest, amazon.com said they processed all orders on time so it is compensating some customers with $20 gift cards and refunding shipping fees. let's take a look outside. a very chilly start to the thursday morning. in for tom, she joins us now with the first forecast. >> good morning. morning clouds are clearing out of the area. we are in for a nice day. it was chilly out this morning, temperatures are warming up nicely and we will be noticeably warmer than yesterday. i hope you had a wonderful christmas holiday. the satellite and radar showing clouds thinning across the area. as we work through the rest of the midday hours, clouds continue to break up across the area. clouds giving way to increasing sunshine. temperatures right now in the 30s. 36 in washington and 34 in gaithersburg. as we work throughout the rest of the day, here's the day planner. plenty of sunshine into the afternoon. the high this afternoon of about 44 or 45 degr

gabe gutierrez has more on the investigati investigation. >> reporter: the theft was already one of the largest data breaches in u.s. history, under investigation by the secret service and the u.s. department of justice. target revealed hackers had also stolen it's customers encrypted personal identification numbers but the retailers says the thieves can't crack the code and actually use the pins. >> it makes me nervous. >> reporter: we remain confident that pin numbers are safe and secure. when a customer wipes a card and enters a pin, that number is encrypted in the key pad in the store. it's then sent to a company that unlocks it with a digital key to process payment. target says since the digital key is not within it's system the hackers could not steal it on unscramble any stolen pins. >> that would take decades. it's not worth their time to go after those encrypted pins. >> reporter: but other security experts aren't so sure. >> target maybe understating the significance because in the past the criminal have actually decrypted the pin and used it to steal cash from consumers. >> r

gabe gutierrez, nbc news tlants. >>> when we come back, our christmas making a difference report, a flighte just in time for the holidays. >>> our final story tonight is about operation holiday airlift, dubbed the big egest. hundreds of pets are getting a second chance thanks to volunteers. they're making a difference just in time for the holidays. >> reporter: for ten year old brock, the dalmatian mix, this is happiness. >> good dog. >> reporter: checking out his new digs, a 5 acre farm in washington. it's celli here in winter, but brock finds warmth in the arms of his new best friend, betty jo nolan. this is love, a perfect holiday. >> i'll wrap him up with a red ribbon. >> reporter: for brock, a second chance at life after he was abandoned in los angeles, left to fend for himself. his journey to his new hive began early one morning at a busy airport. wings of rescue launched its third annual holiday airlift. volunteers rounded up hundreds of dogs in overcrowded shelters who were living on borrowed time. how tough is it to see so many dogs here? >> it makes me want to cry. this is like t

jonathan, back to you. >> gabe gutierrez, if you have the golden ticket, call me.g up slightly. is the snow finally over? depends on where you are. weather channel meteorologist chris warren is with us to break it down. >> it does depend on where you are. you can see that it has warmed up above freezing from boston to philadelphia, temperatures are running in the mid to upper 30s, even a little bit more yellow on the map here as it is now right at 60 degrees from kansas city, but still on the warm side -- cold side around the great lakes where there's still some snow coming down. in the coming days, in particular this weekend, there will be some wintry weather but a huge chunk of the country will be dealing with rain and some thunderstorms possibly severe thunderstorms on saturday. by sunday morning, there could be a fair amount of snow going into chicago and michigan. this going to be the best bet for wintry weather saturday night into sunday. out ahead of that rain it is going to be very warm in the south. even making it up in the mid-atlantic by sunday, some of

nbc's gabe gutierrez is at a k-mart store outside of atlanta. >> reporter: tamron, good evening. many retailers were offering extended hours tonight. this k-mart will stay open until about 10:00 tonight. and last minute christmas shoppers have never had so many options. tonight, the procrastinators are out. and the deals are drafting. >> everything we got was on sale. >> reporter: near atlanta, katie shownfelt had just started her christmas shopping this morning. so she is glad many retailers extended their christmas eve hours. >> i think it is great for people who work a lot and have odd hours and don't have a 9:00 to 5:00 job, so definitely it came in handy for us. >> reporter: some k-mart, macy's and kohl's stores are staying open later. one survey found nearly a quarter of last minute shoppers were waiting for better deals, more like 60 or 70% off. >> at the malls we've been reporting from this week, it is striking how many stores are promoting deep discounts, the kind of discounts you expect to see after christmas. >> reporter: amazon.com is already rolling out their after-c

gabe gutierrez, moore, oklahoma. >> that's going to do it for me this hour.man is up next. more snow for tens of thousands still waiting to get their power restored. how long is this latest round of winter weather going to last? we'll get an update from the weather channel on the other side of this break. [ sneezes, coughs ] i've got a big date, but my sinuses are acting up. it's time for advil cold and sinus. [ male announcer ] truth is that won't relieve all your symptoms. new alka seltzer plus-d relieves more symptoms than any other behind the counter liquid gel. oh what a relief it is. >>> i'm brian shactman. right now at 3:00 p.m., the state department is responding to the new video purportedly of an american contractor kidnapped by al qaeda pleading for the u.s. government's help. >> my name is warren weinstein. >> in the video obtained by "the washington post," weinstein asked president obama to negotiate his release saying he feels, quote, totally abandoned and forgotten. end quote. the state department has released the statement saying, quote, we're

gabe gutierrez is in atlanta to explain more about this. gabe, good morning. >> reporter: lester, good morning. the nation's third largest retailer says the encrypted pin data can no longer be unlocked. some security experts worry it's possible. this morning, the investigation into one of the largest data breaches in u.s. history is deepening and customers remain nervous. >> just makes me very leery about going there. >> reporter: at first, target had said up to 40 million of its customers credit and gat credit card numbers had been stolen around the start of the shopping season. now the retailer confirms that encrypted personal identification numbers were also taken in the massive security breach. but it says that hackers can't crack the codes. we remain confident, target says, that pin numbers are safe and secure. >> when you go in and make a purchase with your debit card, target never sees your pin number in the clear. it's immediately encrypted and all they possess is the encrypted number. >> reporter: it unlocks a pin with a digital key

and nbc's gabe gutierrez has our report. >> reporter: it was the moment america's jaw collectively dropped. >> that's going to keep them off the field tonight. holy cow! >> reporter: let's rewind. saturday's iron bowl between number one ranked alabama and auburn, a rivalry so intense a bama fan went to jail for poisoning historic trees on auburn's campus three years ago. on this night, the score tied at 28. one second left on the clock. bama going for the win with with an unlikely 57-yard field goal attempt. >> on the way. >> reporter: but it falls short, right into the hands of auburn cornerback chris davis. >> he's going to run it all the way back. auburn's going to win the football game! auburn's going to win the football game! >> reporter: alabama's hope of a third straight national championship gone. >> oh, my god, oh, my god! [ screaming ] >> whoo! >> reporter: today auburn's coach was still stunned. >> it was a little bit too crazy out there. i barely got off the field. >> reporter: in sports bars and living rooms across the country, many called it the best college football game end

joining me now from atlanta, nbc news correspondent, gabe gutierrez.and ups are blaming bad weather and higher demand due to online sales and many companies are not buying that explanation and they've been sounding off on social media. many of them saying that christmas was ruined although some did express support for employees of both exfedex and ups saying they're working very hard. fedex released a statement saying they handled about 275 million packages during the shortened holiday shopping season from thanksgiving to christmas. this morning here in atlanta, we've seen fed sxeks ups trucks out make those deliveries. they brought in extra workers to sort some of these packages. so the hope is that many of these customers whose packages were delayed and hopefully they can get them perhaps today or tomorrow, brian. >> i wonder, gabe if they'll get lawsuits out of this for their crying kids. amazon is give something people some gift cards. is there any sort of free shipping that they're giving back? are they going credit them or something? >> reporter:

other winning ticket, that was sold at a newsstand in atlanta, and that's where we find nbc's gabe gutierrez so, gabe, you were eating dinner, i understand, just a few blocks away last night. it is not you, obviously, because you are at work. so you don't have the winning ticket, do you? >> reporter: yeah, thomas, unfortunately it is not me, but the high rise office building behind me, they're buzzing because someone there bought the winning ticket yesterday. we spoke with the store clerk, korean immigrant, who had been here, been at that store for nine years. she is just thrilled about this. and the office building houses -- this is a very upscale part of atlanta, the buckhead neighborhood. this particular office building has a law firm, a bank and a global consulting firm. right now the big question is who won this jackpot. the store clerk says that it could possibly be an office pool. she sold several tickets yesterday, several sales to players that pooled their money together. one of the purchases was about 120 tickets. this morning we spoke with several workers who did not win. >> i thi

gabe gutierrez is outside target in atlanta. good morning to you.s target the swiped pins can't be used? >> good morning. the nation's third largest retailer insists it was stronglien cysted and can't be unlocked. so far no evidence to suggest the pin data has been compromised but some security experts worry it's possible. this morning the investigation into one of the largest data breaches in u.s. history is deepening and customers remain nervous. >> it makes me leery about going there. >> at first they said 40 million of its customers numbers had been stolen around the start of the holiday shopping season. now the retailer confirms en crypted numbers were confirmed. we remain confident that pin numbers are safe and secure. >> would you go in and make a purchase with your debit card, they never see your pin number in the clear. all they possess is the encrypted number. >> target says since that digital key is not within their system. >> it would take decades to crack. it's not worth their time to go after the pins. >> but other cybersecurity expert

. >> that was gabe gutierrez reporting. as he mentioned several lawsuits have been filed tlausing two in california and one filed in ourg ourg. looks like after a strong start sales have fallen for three weeks. for the week that ended sunday, sales at u.s. stores dropped about 3% to $42.7 billion compared to the same time period last year. >> boy, a lot of shoppers still have a few less items to get. what about you? >> no. i'm done. i like to jill this time of year. i don't like to try to get to the falls. of course working this early. you need to rest. right now we're looking at temperatures now in the 30s and 40s. you want to grab that extra layer. we have a few high thin clouds. it will help to mix up our atmosphere a little bit. by this afternoon we'll be looking at highs that will top out in the mid to upper 60s. similar to what we were yesterday across the bay area. pick out your microclimate zone. in the south bay we'll find temperatures, 68, 69 from san jose to morgan hill. the peninsula, a couple of degrees toll co

gabe gutierrez is outside the office building in atlanta where the winning ticket was sold.xplain to us why the store owner in atlanta doesn't get the bonus. >> reporter: it was great to see the reaction in california. but here's the thing, california, lottery officials say that they give a bonus to the person that sells the ticket of .5% of the total cash payout and that amounts to a million dollars in this case, up to a million dollars. but here in atlanta, the georgia lottery corporation says that they do not give such a retail bonus to the person that sells the ticket here. retailers get a 6% commission on sales and get the distinction of being the lucky stars and sometimes get a giant promotional check. we spoke with the owner of the newsstand here, she's a korean immigrant that came to the u.s. in 1980 and owned the store for nine years. she says she is sad that she did not -- will not get the retailer bonus but still excited that her store sold for the winning ticket. here's the speculation, we don't know who the winner is and who actually bought these winning tickets

gabe gutierrez in atlanta. people in michigan and maine as crews are now working around the clock in frigid conditions to fix the power line. nearly 200,000 customers have no electricity. they have been out of power sense last weekend's ice and snowstorms and may not get it back until this weekend. >>> if you are having trouble signing up for health insurance. it is still not too late. the obama administration says it will help people get registered even if they miss the tuesday night deadline. they will be covered january 1st as long as they can show they've had trouble with the healthcare.gov website. 2 million visitors have been to that website. ha frl in the last minute rush this week. >>> president obama is thanking the troops for their service in person. the president and first lady spent part of their christmas day in hawaii visiting with marines. president obama also made personal calls to ten service members stationed around the world to express his thanks. >>> a new video shows an american being held

nbc correspondent gabe gutierrez is live in denver. good morning, gabe. >> good morning.stores that is licensed to sell recreational marijuana. tomorrow customers 21 years and older with a colorado id will be able to buy up to an ounce of pot and those customers from out of state will be limited to a quarter ounce of marijuana. colorado has been a pioneer in medical marijuana. they have quite a lot of different varieties, anything called from power durbin, some -- with some of the most complicated regulations in the world. the federal government still sees it as a crime but has said it won't focus on prosecuting it but instead keeping it away from children and drug trafficking. but there are many banking challenges that remain as many of these dispensaries haven't been able to do business. sales are supposed to start here at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow and they expect a lot of lines. >> that's going to be interesting to watch. thank you, gabe gutierrez, joining us from colorado. >> scott wapner has breaking news for us. >> there's been a lot of speculation once hertz adopted that

. >>> gabe gutierrez is in atlanta and he has the latest for us. . >> reporter: david, good morning. ups brought in extra workers overnight to sort some of those packages and already this morning we've seen fedex and ups trucks hitting the road trying to deliver those late packages and calm those angry customers. both companies are apologizing and blaming bad weather and increased demand due to soaringline sales. but that explanation isn't sitting well with a lot of their customers, many of whom are sounding off on social media. this morning fedex released a statement saying the demand was unprecedented and that the shorter holiday shopping period this year between thanksgiving and christmas was just overwhelming. fedex was expected to hand balance 275 million packages during that period. the vast majority of them with no problems. but again, fedex and ups hitting the roads this morning trying to deliver those late packages and trying to calm those angry customers. >> gabe gutierrez is joining us from atlanta. for all the stories we've had to cover

nbc's gabe gutierrez is outside of atlanta at a shopping mall there. be, what are things looking like? is the store open? folks showing up yet? looks pretty empty so far. >> yeah. that's right, kristen. but they are ready. we're here in front of the toys "r" us. it was open all night. as you mentioned, there seem to be more employees inside the store than customers, but they are ready. retailers are trying to lure those procrastinators after a disappointing few weeks. as you mentioned, shopper track released figures yesterday showing that holiday sales last week for down about 3% and foot traffic was down a whopping 21% from last year. that may have had something to do with the weather. but shoppers again seem to be holding back and seem to be holding out for those last-minute details. so retailers are responding in kind. this toys "r" us expecting to be open till 9:00 tonight. it will have been open for 87 consecutive hours. other retailers like macy's, kohl's, and kmart plan to be open more than 100 hours. many retailers are offering discounts of 20%,

nbc's gabe gutierrez is outside a target store in atlanta. let's get the latest revelation.lain all this for us and where it stands. >> the nation's third largest retailer insists stolen pin data is strongly encrypted and just can't be unlocked. so far there's no evidence to suggest that the pin data has been compromised. but some cyber security experts say it might be possible. this morning, the investigation into the one of the largest data breaches in u.s. history is the deepening and customers remain nervous. >> it makes me leery about going there. >> at first target had said up to 40 million of its customers debit and credit card numbers had been stolen around the start of the holiday shopping season. know they confirm encrypted personal identification numbers were also taken in the massive security breach. but it says that hack teres can't crack the codes. we remain confident, target says, that pin numbers are safe and secure. >> when you go in and make a purchase with your debit card, target never sees your pin number in the clear. it's meelds encrypted. all they poss

gabe gutierrez joins us from atlanta. gabe? >> reporter: fedex and u.p.s.trying to deliver those late packages and try to calm angry customers. now, both companies are blaming bad weather and increased demand due to soaring online sales. but that explanation isn't sitting well with a lot of customers. many of them sounded off yesterday on social media. one of them calling u.p.s. standing for undelivered parcel shipment. many saying it ruined christmas for them and their families. other customers are throwing their support behind u.p.s. and fedex saying the employees for those companies are working very hard in the days leading up to christmas and they don't blame the companies at all. but this is also taking a bit of a hit on online retailers. amazon.com is saying that it processed all orders on time and basically pointing the finger at u.p.s. also, amazon is compensating customers, some customers with $20 gift cards and refunds on shipping charges. as for u.p.s. and fedex, both are apologizing for this delay. fedex is calling the increased demand due to th

gabe gutierrez is in denver this morning. gabe, good morning. >> reporter: erica, good morning.he evergreen apothecary. one of the stores licensed to sell recreational marijuana. starting tomorrow, 21 and over with a colorado i.d. can buy an ounce of pot. those out of state will be limited to quarter ounce. >> the rules will be different from january 1st on. >> reporter: this morning, anticipation is growing. >> we brought in a staff of people. we have three people that have been rolling joints for two days straight. >> reporter: colorado about to be the first state to allow the sale of recreational marijuana since the federal government banned it in 1937. >> this is one ounce of ak-47. >> reporter: at denver's evergreen apothecary. >> end of prohibition. >> reporter: voters went the extra step in 2012, approving pot just for fun. since then, the state has built the most complex regulations for weed in the world. taxes topping 25%, and strict rules for growers. >> we will be carding every single person that comes in the door. >> reporter: colorado expects to rake in tens of mill

let's get right to gabe gutierrez who is outside the winning location in atlanta. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. we're here in buckhead, one of the nicer areas in atlanta. this is outside the high-rise office building. this is leading some people to believe this ticket may have been bought by an office pool. meanwhile, clear across the country in san jose another winning ticket was sold and now several people must now decide what to do with all of that money. $636 million, the second biggest lottery payout in u.s. history, will be split among at least two winners after tickets in california and georgia matched all six winning mega millions numbers tuesday night. the odds of hitting that winning combo, about 1 in 259 million. the owner of jenny's gift shop in san jose will get a payout of roughly $1 million just for selling one of the tickets. >> feels good. come to my store. i feel good. i don't know if i can sleep tonight. >> reporter: it came after days after mega mania nationwide. nevada is one of the states nevada is one of the states normal limits se

nbc's gabe gutierrez explains. >> reporter: on this tree farm in north carolina, it has not been theect it to be quite this severe this fast. >> reporter: jeff pollard has been growing frazier furs for four decades but this christmas a water mold which has flourished due to heavy rains in the state is crippling his business. >> this one right here, see how it's green right here but already turning brown down here? that's a gone tree. >> reporter: he fear ace quarter of his trees are gone. >> it kills the root system on the trees and they can't take up water. >> reporter: in north carolina, the problem has cost the industry an estimated 6 to $8 million a year. in oregon, 300 million. and experts say this could effect how much you pay for a tree. maybe not this year, but down the line. >> look at how nice these trees are. >> joann and her daughter are shopping for their christmas tree. >> this one is frazier and has a nice smell to it. >> reporter: they're in luck. the mold threat hasn't effected the supply of this seller in georgia. still they're trying to genetically modify the furs

nbc's gabe gutierrez has the details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the woman who lives here in suburban atlanta, skipped the press conference. it's unclear if she skipped town. ira curry will take half of the jackpot, the second largest in u.s. history. >> two doors down from millionaires. it's awesome. >> reporter: inside an upscale atlanta office building curry bought the winning ticket at this newsstand. she picked a lucky number based on family birth dates. imagine her shock when she turned on her car radio in the morning. >> she said she didn't veer off the road. that was my question, how did you not veer off the road? she said she was in a state of disbelief. >> reporter: curry will take the cash option for her half of the jackpot worth $173 million. lottery officials will withhold 25% for federal tax and 6% for georgia tax leaving her family with about $120 million. meanwhile in california, the winner has a year to come forward. this san jose gift shop owner is getting a $1 million bonus check for selling the lucky ticket. >> a very good day.

. >> joining me now live in denver right now is nbc's gabe gutierrez, who has been following this hotdown for us. what is the debate? i know it's still raging on. quite a live shot you've got there. >> reporter: hi there, kristen. good morning and happy new year. yeah. the state of colorado expects the sales of recreational pot to bring in $67 million a year in extra tax revenue. much of that will be set aside to build schools. now, starting tomorrow, customers 21 and over will be able to buy, legally buy one ounce of pot if they're colorado residents. they will be limited to a quarter ounce of pot if they're from out of state. but as you can imagine, this is still a huge controversy in this state and across the country. colorado is really one of the pioneers of medical marijuana, but voters in 2012 went that extra step to allow the sale of pot just for fun, basically. and since then the state has been busy coming up with some of the heaviest and most complex regulations in the world really. you can't light up in public. it's going to be heavily taxed. more than 25%. and growers will

nbc's gabe gutierrez is in atlanta with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: willie, good morning. u.p.s. says they will issue refunds to some customers but not all. this as it's drivers prepare for another long day on the road. for many u.p.s. customers christmas has finally arrived. >> we got the package. >> it was almost 9:00 last night when the mayo family got the delivery they had been waiting for. a christmas gift for their 15-year-old son. >> i bought the item on december 16th. so i felt sure that i would receive it in time. >> reporter: across the country, more small victories. >> there you go. have a good holiday. >> reporter: better late than never. some deciding to pick up their late presents at shipping centers. >> after christmas miracle. >> reporter: u.p.s. apologized repeatedly but the company won't say how many packages are still delayed. only assuring customers that it's making every effort to get packages to their destination as quickly as possible. fed ex is now downplaying it's delays calling them isolated inciden