reporting live in newtown, connecticut, i'm randall pinkston. back to you. >> randall, i wanted to ask you in the aftermath of this one of the things that's come up is gun control and the suggestion that maybe we need to take meaningful measures. with respect to that, do you hear much of that from the parents of these children or from the people in the community? is that something that they seem to be advocating? >> reporter: two points. first of all, newtown is a community that has two shooting ranges here, shooting is very popular, gun ownership is something that a lot of people want to maintain. what we are also hearing not so much about gun control when i was doing interviews this morning. they say that attention must be paid to mental health, providing mental health screening and services for people who need it especially young people who are obviously very troubled, whatever adam lanza's life was about, at some point, there was -- had to have been some mental issues. so they -- people need to be given assistance. >> absolutely. seems to be

randall pinkston heads up the cost of uncertainty for one owner. >> a therapy already used with adults shows promise in treating children with advanced leukemia. this young girl shares her experience. >> and holiday return. >> it's my pleasure to return this to you. >> jeff: tony guida watches as a famous hotel welcomes back long missing items, no questions asked. >> this is the captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news." >> good evening, everyone, i'm jeff glor. syrian rebels tonight are ramping up their adult-- assault on damascus and a legalo the country's largest city. the u.n. peace envoy met with u.n. and russian diplomats trying to broker a cease-fire. at the same time there is growing concern tonight over al qaeda's influence in the rebel ranks. david martin is at the pentagon. >> reporter: video said to show the aftermath of a syrian air strike provides graphic evidence of a life-and-death battle which high level diplomats say is bad and getting worse. despite its air power the assad regime appears increasingly on the defensive against rebel forces which accord

randall pinkston has the very latest. >> reporter: the gnat is close to a daily as the clock ticks towardid nature and the nation teethers on the edge of the so-called fiscal cliff. >> let's pass the tax relief portion now. let's take what's been agreed to and get moving. >> reporter: the tentative deal would extend bush era tax cuts for families making $450,000 a year and individuals making 40 o,000. it would also extend unemployment benefits for one year. president obama said he would have preferred a grand bargain that solves all of washington's revenue and spending problems. >> with this congress, that was obviously a little too much to hope for at this time. it may be we can do it in stages. >> reporter: negotiations have been going on all day, lawmakers and aids moving back and forth between meeting rooms on what is normally a quiet new year's eve. the major sticking point now is spending. the president suggested lawmakers take action on deficit reduction in the next few months and that more tax revenue could be involved in those discussions. but republicans are furious at that poss

randall pinkston, cbs news. >>> did you see them, the weird life that were spotted above the bay areawhat can and can't be ruled out. >>> a new warning about apple maps and a life threatening wrong turn. >>> the new financial experiment. ,,,,,, [ female announcer ] for those who love sweets, your season is here. let's just call it the baking time of year. you need special ingredients. you need the staples. that's a given. you need safeway sugar for just $1.97. and that magic thing that makes everyone want another -- only $2.99 for challenge butter. and when hands get messy, quite surely they'll say, "yum! wow! yay! what a sweeter holiday." their truck got tangled with >>> two men cheated death not once but twice. take a look at this. their truck got tangled with high-voltage power lines and then burst into flames. it happened has they pulled into the camp wilmont sweeney juvenile detention facility in san leandro this morning. as the driver and passenger scrambled to escape the fire, they made a split-second decision that saved their lives. >> they jumped out. and they cleared the veh

randall pinkston reports. >> reporter: a bus carrying students drove up to the high school as a grief stricken town tried to get to some routine. police were on hand to make sure everything ran smoothly. >> i wouldn't send my children to school if i had the choice right now. i wouldn't. >> i think it's important the children do go back to school. >> reporter: all schools except sandy hook elementary are open. the scene of the massacre will remain closed for months. when those children do go back, they'll attend a school in a nearby town. people lit candles to remember the lives cut short. they paid their respects at the memorials set up for the 26 victims. the grieving process continues. the families of two more children are saying a final farewell. the family of james mattioli used to joke he was born four weeks early because he was hungry. >> jessica rekos will also be laid to rest. tonight there will be a wake for victoria soto, a teacher who shielded her students from the gunman. she was just the best. she loved her family more than anything. >> reporter: it's one of several wakes

randall pinkston has more from capitol hill. >> reporter: members of congress left meetings on capitol hill sunday without a deal. hours before the nation is set to fall off the so-called fiscal cliff. >> there is still significant distance between the two sides, but negotiations continue. >> reporter: if republicans and democrats can't strike a deal before midnight monday, taxes will go up for most every american. automatic spending cuts will kick in. millions will lose unemployment benefits. >> i'm willing to get this done but i need a dance partner. >> reporter: republicans introduced but quickly withdrew a proposal to cut the deficit by slowing social security. >> there is a lot of give and take going on right now but republicans don't want to see tax increases used for new spending. >> reporter: vice president joe biden was called on to help with the negotiations, this as the white house places a lot of the blame for the impasse on the gop. >> they say their biggest prior is making sure we deal with a deficit in a serious way. but the way they are behaving is their only priority i

randall pinkston, cbs news. >>> did you see them, the weird life that were spotted above the bay areawhat can and can't be ruled out. >>> a new warning about apple maps and a life threatening ,,,, lysol believes no toilet is complete, until it's completely clean. lysol toilet bowl cleaner kills 99.9% of germs and removes stains better than clorox toilet bowl cleaner with bleach. so if you want to do the whole job, lysol's got you covered. their truck got tangled with >>> two men cheated death not once but twice. take a look at this. their truck got tangled with high-voltage power lines and then burst into flames. it happened has they pulled into the camp wilmont sweeney juvenile detention facility in san leandro this morning. as the driver and passenger scrambled to escape the fire, they made a split-second decision that saved their lives. >> they jumped out. and they cleared the vehicle completely before they hit the ground. so they didn't have contact with the ground and the vehicle, which would prevent them from being electrocuted. >> no one was hurt. the driver said he thinks the

live in newtown, connecticut, i'm randall pinkston. back to you. >>> randall, have investigators learned anything as to how adam lanza gained access to these high powered ammunition? >> reporter: we know that his mother obtained those weapons legally. they were applied for. she had to fill out a lot of paperwork to get them. we don't know whether she kept locked. we don't know whether he had permission to use them whenever he wanted to. we know she took him with her to shooting ranges several times over the course of the past several years. today we learned from investigators that both adam lanza and his mother had made visits to multiple gun ranges. so obviously, he was familiar with weapons with his mother's permission. whether he had access to those firearms, we can't say at this time. >> randall pinkston in newtown, connecticut, thank you. >>> schools throughout the bay area are reviewing their security procedures, following friday's tragedy in connecticut. ann notarangelo is in antioch where they admit there is a limit to what they

randall pinkston, cbs news, michigan. >>> "cbs moneywatch" time now on a wednesday. scandal and a $50 cup of coffee, but you might not want to know how it's made. ashley morrison here in new york with more. good morning. >> you really don't. good morning to you, too, terrell. asian stocks got strength. tokyo's nikkei added half a percent to its highest closing in nearly eight months while hong kong's hang seng gained nearly 1%. wall street remains hopeful that washington will reach a budget deal. the dow added 78 points while the nasdaq gained 35. >>> authorities in britain have arrested three people in connection with the manipulation of the libor interest rate. the arrest follows an investigation launched this summer after barclays bank was fined more than $400 million for falsifying reports related to the libor. the rate indirectly affects consumer borrowing, things like cars and home loans. >>> beyonce is the new face of pepsi. the singer inked a deal worth a reported $50 million to promote the soft drink. pepsi will issue a limited edition can featuring beyonce.

tonight randall pinkston with the worries of small business. >> reporter: retired army officer rod hudson runs a 13 man business that operates at the centre of national security. >> we make sampling kit for weapons of mass destruction. >> reporter: quicksilver analytics allow them to test for anthrax, chemical and nuclear materials. >> every air force base recently bought a sampling kit. all the special forces guys, coast guard strike teams. >> reporter: but now with the post-election budget fight in washington over the fiscal cliff, hudson's business faces a battle on three fronts. all of which are up in the air. defense cuts, tax hikes, employee health-care costs. >> uncertainty kills businesses, because you can't plan. you can't program, you can't forecast. >> reporter: with defense spending on the chopping block, even with congress avoids the fiscal cliff, hudson predicts that 15% slowdown in orders next year. >> it could be june before we start seeing orders and if that's true, i will end up laying off people. >> reporter: hudson is also concerned about taxes. because it's profits ar

randall pinkston, cbs news, new york. >>> looking ahead to next year, mcafee labs expecting hacking on mobile devices now to expand in the coming year. the santa clara-based company is worried about so-called ransomware. that is the type of virus that thalocks up a phone or tablet and threatens to keep it locked up until a ransom is paid. other concerns for mobile customers include trojan horse programs that buy apps without user permission and the hacking of digital wallets; however, mcafee is predicting a decline in attacks by so-called hacktavists like the group anonymous because their technical sophistication stagnated. >> and hard to think about your cell phone being locked up and how much that would affect your lives those days. >> sad but true. >> a murder that has a big city- like in new york. >> and an arrest, the lightest case of a man pushed to his death at a subway station. >> we'll be right back. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, a man in front of a subway train. . >>> a woman in new york is charged with a murder as a hate crime for allegedly pushing a man in front of a subway train. the pol

in newtown, connecticut, randall pinkston, wjz eyewitness news. >> investigators say the gunman, 20-year-old adam lanza, had fired guns at shooting ranges during the past several years, but there was no evidence he did so recently as practice for the rampage. >>> well, of course everyone is asking what can we do to stop these mass killings. wjz's complete coverage continues. adam may with more on the calls to improve mental health care. adam. >> today's experts in that field say if we do not do more to improve mental health care in this country another school massacre is pretty much guaranteed. it's been widely reported school shooter adam lanza suffered some kind of personality disorder, but it's still unclear if his family ever tried to get him help to prevent him from turning violent. >> do we want connecticut to happen again? three times? four times? five times? ever again? never. >> reporter: linda kohler is a mental health advocate in baltimore. her organization nami overwhelmed by requests for help every day. >> a mother wanted a teenager to go to a psychiatrist. they could not get in

randall pinkston reports. >> reporter: coming to newtown tonight, new hampshire police confirming that nancy lanza the first shooting victim of her son adam lanza, there was a memorial service for her today in new hampshire. meanwhile, here in newtown, more funerals for the victims of last friday's shooting rampage. a large portrait of 6-year-old benjamin wheeler stood outside trinity episcopal church in newtown, connecticut. about two dozen boy scouts lined up outside to honor the former cub scout. [ belmont stakes ] >> reporter: his was one of several funerals and wakes held today. earlier in the morning a hearse left another church with the coffin of 6-year-old catherine hubbard a little girl known for her love of animals. friday is a week since the massacre. for many in this grief-stricken town the loss hasn't sunk in. >> it's unfathomable. it's still, you know, even in look -- even look at all this it's unbelievable. it's is this really happening? >> reporter: family and friends also said good-bye to 52-year- old teacher ann marie murphy. cardinal timothy dolan the new york archbi

complete coverage begins with randall pinkston reporting for wjz. >>> a bus carrying students drove up to the high school in newtown connecticut as a grief stricken town to tried to get back to some sort of routine. the bus had a ribbon on it. police were on hand to make sure everything ran smoothly. >> i wouldn't send my children to school if i had the choice rite right now. i wouldn't. >> i think it's important that the children do go back to school. >> all schools except sandy hook elementary are open. the scene of the massacre will remain closed for months. when those children go back they will attend a school in a nearby town. people lit candles to remember the lives cut short. they paid their respects at the memorial set up for the 26 victims. >> the grieving process continues here in newtown. the families of two more children are saying a final farewell today. >> mourners gathered at st. rose of lima church for the funeral of james mattioli. his family says he used to joke he was born four weeks early because he was hungry. jessica rekos will also be laid to rest. her family say

randall pinkston heads up the cost of uncertainty for one owner. therapy already used with adults shows promise in treating children with advanced leukemia. this young girl shares her

in newtown, connecticut, randall pinkston, cbs 2 news. >> what can i do? a question being asked by many following the school shooting. a former marine stood guard at a school. one paid the toll for 26 commuters. cbs 5 reporter john ramos explains the 26 acts of kindness sweeping social networks around the country. >> reporter: the horror of what happened in connecticut last week has left an entire nation shaken and wonder, what can be done about it? >> imagine if everyone could commit to doing one act of kindness for each precious life lost, an act of kindness big or small. are you in? >> reporter: nbc newswoman curry says she was feeling a bit powerless when she tweeted this suggestion and the world has taken notice. >> it caught my eye but, you know, i say that's a good idea. maybe it will make people better, happier. >> reporter: now the idea has picked up steam and people all over the country have begun performing 26 acts of unexpected kindness to strangers and posting their lists as they go. small things like buying doughnuts for an office or leaving

randall pinkston, cbs news, lansing, michigan. >>> it's something we have heard again and again over the past four years. there just aren't enough job openings out there. >> i'm just floored that we're not deluged with people. >> why this job fair complete with the dancing bear may not be enough to staff one single bay area restaurant. >> and a sweet deal for anyone looking for holiday dungeness. who won and who lost in the great crab price dispute of 2012. [ laughter ] [ girl ] wow, you guys have it easy. i wish i had u-verse when i was your age. in my day, we didn't have these fancy wireless receivers. blah blah blah. if i had a sleepover, i couldn't just move the tv into the playroom. no. we had to watch movies in the den because that's where the tv outlet was. and if dad was snoring on the couch, we muscled through it. is she for real? your generation has it made. [ male announcer ] the wireless receiver only from at&t u-verse. get u-verse tv for $29 a month for six months. rethink possible. means crab boats along the t will be heading back out tomorrow night. crabbers and >>> th

randall pinkston, back to you. >> have they found any prior history are violence in adam lanza's life? >> reporter: if they have, they have not announced it to reporters. we know that they have gone through his laptops, combing through evidence from the lanza home. we also know according to a marriage counselor that adam lanza's parents during their divorce proceedings were very concerned about him. they both were cooperative. they wanted to make sure he was getting the care that he needed. that counselor says that the mother described him as having been diagnosed with asperger's syndrome, a form of autism. >> thank you, randall pinkston in newtown, connecticut. >>> cbs 5 reporter ann notarangelo has been talking to bay area school administrators who admit there are limits to what they can do to keep students safe. >> reporter: there is an one expectation. we send our children to school and they come home safe and a little smarter. what happened in connecticut breached that agreement. >> how do you adequately prepare for something like this? it's just beyond anyone's expectations. it

cbs reporter randall pinkston is live in newtown. another school was forced to close because of threats. >> reporter: what we know is that the students were told not to report to school this morning. authorities say they received threats, they have not given us details but they say that students were advised not to report to classes. we don't know at this point whether the school will be open tomorrow. we assume that it will. we assume that the threats have been checked out and found to be baseless. this would be the third time in the past four days that a church or school in the area has been shut down because of bogus threats. the church a roman catholic church had to shut down and so was a high school. of course, given what happened here last friday, everyone is taking every threat seriously. and they have to be checked out thoroughly before they can allow business to continue as usual. >> reporter: the coffin carrying the body of 6-year- old james mattioli left saint rose church as family and friends hugged each other in their gr

randall pinkston is live with the lack of opt -- optimism. >> reporter: yes, but the senate and house are in town. unusual between new year's and christmas for that to happen. one senator is calling it not a great attitude in congress right now. >> senator? >> reporter: 7 tors arrived to continue last-minute negotiations hours before the nation is set to fall off of the so-called fiscal cliff. after a day of intense talks, senate majority leader, harry reid said there will not be a deal tonight. >> there is a distance between the two sides, tpheg orbingiations continue. >> if republicans and democrats can not strike a deal, taxes will go up for almost every american, automatic cuts will kick in and millions will loose unemployment benefits. >> i want everyone to know i am will willing to get this done but i need a dance partner. >> they quickly cut the deficit by slowing the growth of social security but the senate says there is a little bit of movement when they are compromising which americans should should get ready to pay a higher tax rate. >> reporter: in an unusual move republic

as randall pinkston reports even small businesses have a lot to lose if huge cuts and spending startse beginning of the year. >>> he operates a business. >> we make sampling kits for weapons of mass weapons. >> reporter: quicksilver an lit ticks makes tests to test. >> every air force base in the world recently bought a sam plirng kit, all the special forces guys, coast guard, strike teams. >> reporter: but now with the post election budget team fight in washington over the fiscal cliff he faces a battle on three fronts, all of which are up in the air. defense cuts, tax hikes, employee health care costs. >> uncertainty kills businesses because you can't plan, you can't program, you can't forecast. >> reporter: with defense spending on the chopping block, even if congress avoids the fiscal cliff, hudson predicts a 15% slowdown in orders next year. >> it could be june before we start seeing orders, and if that's true, i will end up laying off people. >> reporter: hudson's also concerned about taxes. because his profits are treated as income, that puts him over $250,000 a year, the level

reporting live in newtown, connecticut, i'm randall pinkston. back to you. >> thank you. >>> meantime, new calls for gun control laws on capitol hill today. those injured in mass shootings and families of victims were in washington, d.c. to press lawmakers on new restrictions. one father whose son survived the sandy hook shooting says it's time for action. >> we need to make this society safer if not for us, let's make it safer for our kids. >> we heard from the national rifle association today for the first time sinc the shooting. they said out of respect for the families and a matter of common decency we have given time for mourning, prayer and a full investigation of the facts before commenting. the nra says it's prepared to offer meaningful contributions to the renewed gun debate. cbs 5 reporter grace lee is live in hayward with a look at how bay area mayors are taking on guns. grace. >>> reporter: we came here to hayward to meet with the state treasurer phil lockyer and what we learned is that california had invested millions of dollars int

randall pinkston was there. >> reporter: adults sobbed openly as they arrived to remember the 6-year-oldas a huge sports fan and loved the new york giants. family and friends also gathered to say goodbye to noah pozner. his twin sister was in a nearby classroom but survived the shooting. police are trying to figure out why 20-year-old adam lanza burst into the school and started firing a high-powered rifle. 20 first

randall pinkston now with the very latest. >> the senate is close to a deal, as the clock ticks towardd the nation teeters on the edge of the so-called fiscal cliff. >> passed the tax relief portion. now let's take what's been agreed to and get moving. >> reporter: the tentative deal

randall pinkston joins us live from newtown, connecticut. >> reporter: this is a day of overwhelming mind numbs grief in newtown, the first of two of the funerals for the children who were killed in friday's massacre. massacre. children hugged each other at the funeral of 6-year-old jack pinto, adults sobbed openly. family and friends also gathered to say good-bye to noah posner. the youngest victim of the shooting spree at sandy hook elementary school. his twin sister also went to the school and was in a nearby classroom but survived the attack. pozner's mother spoke at the funeral. >> she said, whenever i told him i love you, he would say, not as much as i love you. >> reporter: police are trying to figure out why adam lanza burst into the school and started firing a high power rifle. 20 first graders and six adults were killed. emotions are running high as this community begins to lay them all to rest. throughout newtown there are memorials for the victims and their families. this one is closest to the school. people from across the northeast are traveling here to paei

in newtown, connecticut, randall pinkston, wjz eyewitness news. >> and for the first time since the shooting the nra releases a statement. the group says its members are shocked, saddened and heartbroken. a news conference is scheduled for friday. >>> family members say the gunman, adam lanza, had battled mental health problems for most of his life. what can we do stop these mass killings? well, wjz has live complete coverage with adam may with more on calls to improve health care. >> reporter: experts say if we do not do more to improve access to mental health care, another school massacre is virtually guaranteed. it's been widely reported school shooter adam lanza suffered some kind of personality disorder. but it's still unclear if his family ever tried to get him help to prevent him from turning violent. >> do we want connecticut to happen again three times? four times? five times? ever again? never. >> reporter: linda kohler ask a mental health advocate in baltimore. her organization overwhelmed by requests for help every day. >> a mother wanted a teenager to go to a psychiatrist. they

in newtown, connecticut, i'm randall pinkston, back to you derek. >> we thank you for that report. now investigators had hoped that lanza's computers would yield evidence of a possible motive but he reportedly smashed up the court's hard drive and they're not sure what if any information they can get from those. >>> the debate over gun control continues to pick up momentum in the wake of the newtown school tragedy. several pro gun rights lawmakers have come forward since the shooting to say it's now time to put gun control measures back on the table and the white house says it will push congress to reinstate a ban on assault weapons but many still say gun bans aren't the answer. >> they take away freedom for law-abiding folks and they don't take away the guns from those who end up being the eventual perpetrators. >> 40% of gun sales take place without a background check. no questions asked and felons, the dangerous mentally ill and domestic abusers can easily get guns. >> families of victims at virginia tech and aurora and columbine came to capitol hill today. >>> dick's sporting g

randall pinkston, wjz eyewitness news. >> and for now, seaside heights residents can only visit during daylight. but the mayor hopes they can start moving back by the end of january. >>> howard county police charge an aide with inappropriately touching three girls. the alleged assaults occur between 2009 and 2010 at columbia. clarence mills is facing three counts of sexual abuse of a minor. the girls, now ages 15 and 16, say the assaults occurred while they were overnight students at the school. taylor is now suspended from his job. >>> new information today on the shooting inside a baltimore county hospital emergency room. defees is in the newsroom -- denise is in the newsroom with more. >> reporter: they say 30-year- old brian dargon is going to be charged with attempted murder. a nurse noticed he had a syringe in his clothes. the officer guarding him tried to get it away. and the two struggled. and the officer's gun discharged, hitting the emergency room wall. now, that officer used pepper spray to try to get dargon back into custody but was only able to do so when backup officers a

randall pinkston, cbs news. >> great man.luence. >> got a chance to see him perform. >> wonderful. >>> 5:53, still ahead your old bicycles can help spread some cheer halfway around the world. we're going to explain how you can help coming up. >> plus, we'll preview today's lighting of the national christmas tree in front of the white house. 5:53. here's jess. >> thanks, andrea. we talk a lot about your taxes going up buzz because of the fiscal cliff but your kids could suffer too. the impact on the classroom. that's coming up at 6:07. good morning. you're watching 9news. >>> welcome back. if your kids are getting new bikes for christmas, we have a great place that you can donate one of their old ones. here's an example of one of the old ones that's getting donated. joining us is winston and juang. why did you decide to get involved with this and do this effort? >> i started this charity about seven years ago with our -- our mom and i went over to africa. i saw a lot of people walking and in particular i saw all the women walk