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Republicans to outline proposals for juvenile justice reformHARTFORD, CT (WFSB) – Cities and towns across Connecticut have been impacted by juvenile crime, an uptick that has been seen more so in recent months. Police say car thefts and break-ins are on the rise, and many of the perpetrators are children, which makes it difficult for them to impose harsher penalties when juveniles commit repeat serious offenses. In an effort to combat crime, lawmakers have been working to come up with a solution. On Tuesday, House Republicans are holding a news conference at 11 a.m. to release proposals for juvenile justice reform. Last week, Gov. Ned Lamont said judges now have access to juveniles' records 24/7, when ruling on requests. The governor said the change would, "make sure the judges know the difference between that first time offender, who is just doing something stupid and can make the appropriate response to that, and that chronic repeat offender." Back in July, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle met to discuss the issue. It came one week after a 17-year-old struck and killed a pedestrian in New Britain while driving a stolen vehicle. Also recently, a Glastonbury woman said she was shot at when she confronted teens who were trying to steal her car.

Dozens of people forced out of historic New Hartford building due to overnight fireNEW HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) - Firefighters took on a 3-alarm fire at a historic New Hartford building Tuesday morning. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries battling the fire at New Hartford House on Bridge Street. Dozens of people were forced from their homes inside of it. According to regional public information officer Jon Barbagallo, the call came in around 2:26 a.m. and reported heavy fire on the roof of the building. Responding firefighters confirmed the fire and requested more aide. Eventually, a second a third alarm was struck. Barbagallo said as many as 29 departments and 100 firefighters responded to the scene. “Well it’s a little different from a city response, when we strike third-alarms, it's mainly to bring in extra man power, and for this incident more tankers,” he said. The building, built in 1850, is located in the center of town near the Town Hall. Barbagallo said it is comprised of 14 residential units and six businesses. The Connecticut State Police helped with making sure the residents were safe. "We were sleeping and we heard a beeping noise," said Christine Civitello, a resident of the building. "My partner got up and was like 'it's raining.' I kind of heard that while I was sleeping. And all of the sudden he came running in. I guess he had tried to push the window open, but he saw a fire and it burned his hands a little. So he came running in. As soon as he came running in to tell us in the other room, the window had exploded in, and a big backdraft flame came shooting in." Civitello said luckily, her partner was in the other room when that happened. "We grabbed our kid and we all just ran out the door without anything," she said. "I had a tank top on. The firemen gave me some clothes. But yeah, it was really intense." Barbagallo said the back half of the second and third floors collapsed and there were no interior operations by firefighters. He also said the two firefighters who were hurt were transported to local hospitals. Other firefighters were treated for smoke inhalation, but there were no civilian injuries. A cause for the fire has yet to be determined.

Dog runs away from home, hoping to find owner at workDEEP RIVER, CT (WFSB) - A dog named Indy ran away from home to look for its owner and ended up at a place where they both spend a lot of time. According to the Deep River Housing Authority, Indy's owner, who works at an elderly/disabled housing facility called Kirtland Commons, went to a wedding in Virginia over the weekend and left the pit/lab mix in the care of her parents. The authority said that Indy's owner would bring her to Kirtland when she worked and that the dog was a great diversion for the residents, especially during COVID precautions. Indy, her owner, and her owner's parents all live in Chester. "On Sunday morning [the owner's] dad took Indy out, but forgot the leash, and went in to get it as they were going to go for a walk. He left Indy on the deck," explained Joann Hourigan, executive director, Deep River Housing Authority. "Minutes later he returned to find her gone." The dad was frantic to find her. About 15 minutes later, Indy ended up at the Kirtland Commons, a little more than two miles away. "The residents called me and I went to Kirtland and could not believe it was Indy, and had on her own found her way to work," Hourigan said. The dog was spotted on the facility's surveillance cameras, sprinting down the driveway: It stood looking through the front door window. One of the residents eventually let the dog in. "We all love this special pup so very much and are grateful she made it safely," Hourigan said. "The residents are in disbelief." Hourigan said that showing up on a Sunday after sprinting 2 miles earned Indy employee of the month honors.

Channel 3 works to clear teacher classroom wish lists(WFSB) -- In the coming weeks, teachers will return to their classrooms, getting them ready for the arrival of their students. Channel 3 knows that every year, teachers are spending hundreds of dollars of their own money on classroom supplies. This year, Eyewitness News wants to do something about that… So, we’re asking teachers to send in their classroom wish lists. Teachers can <a href="https://www.wfsb.com/site/forms/teacher_wish_list/teacher_wish_list/?block_id=994091" target="_blank">click</a> <a href="https://www.wfsb.com/site/forms/teacher_wish_list/teacher_wish_list/?block_id=994091" target="_blank">here</a> to fill out a form and share the link to their wish lists, whether it’s through Amazon, Donors Choose, or any other websites. Our hope is that together, with our viewers, Channel 3 can help teachers outfit their classrooms without them having to spend so much. Anyone looking to help a teacher clear their wish list can take a look at what they are in need of here:

EARLY WARNING WEATHER ALERT: Dangerous heat, humidity expected this weekHARTFORD, CT (WFSB) – Heat and humidity are expected to rise to dangerous levels this week. Meteorologist Scot Haney said it could last long enough to be the season's third heat wave. Due to the threat of the impending heat, Channel 3 issued an Early Warning Weather Alert for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. A heat advisory was issued for the entire state on Wednesday. An excessive heat watch was issued for northern Connecticut Thursday. "[Tuesday] will be a very warm, humid day with highs in the 80s," said meteorologist Scot Haney. "In some locations, the temperature could peak within a few degrees of 90. There will be a mix of clouds and sunshine." While a shower or thunderstorm is possible, many locations will remain dry. There may be a better chance for a shower or thunderstorm Tuesday night. The third heat wave is expected begin on Wednesday, with temperatures expected to rise well into the 90s for the next three days. "The combination of heat and high humidity will cause the heat index (what you feel) to soar to 100 degrees or higher over interior portions of the state," Haney said. "That means we’ll experience dangerous levels of heat starting [Wednesday]." As of Tuesday morning, the hottest day this week appears to be Thursday, with a possible high of 94 degrees. "We are not forecasting record heat at this time, but it could be close," Haney said. Here are the records for the upcoming three dates: Aug. 11 - greater Hartford area - 98 degrees - set in 1949.Aug. 11 - Bridgeport - 95 degrees - set in 1949.Aug. 12 - greater Hartford area - 98 degrees - set in 1944.Aug. 12 - Bridgeport - 94 - set in 2016.Aug. 13 - greater Hartford area - 99 degrees - set in 2016.Aug. 13 - Bridgeport - 95 degrees - set in 2016. There’s also a chance for showers and scattered thunderstorms Wednesday and Thursday. "The best chance for more widespread shower and thunderstorm activity may occur Thursday night as a weak cold front most across the state," Haney said. At this point, Haney expected Friday to be rain-free with slightly drier air moving into the state. "Relief from the heat and oppressive humidity is on the way for the weekend," he said. For Saturday, the forecast called for highs in the mid to upper 80s under partly-to-mostly cloudy skies with a few possible scattered showers. Sunday should be partly sunny with highs in the mid-80s and tolerable humidity. Read the complete Technical Discussion <a href="https://www.wfsb.com/weather/technical_discussion/technical-discussion-a-cloudy-monday-sizzling-heat-humidity-mid-week/article_53d29258-b603-11e8-8728-130ab5423b29.html" target="_blank">here</a>. For weather updates on smartphones and tablets, download the Ch. 3 app <a href="https://www.wfsb.com/site/station_info/apps/" target="_blank">here</a>.

Guinea confirms West Africa's first case of rare, Ebola-like Marburg virus disease(CNN) - A patient with the rare, but highly infectious <a href="https://www.who.int/health-topics/marburg-virus-disease#tab=tab_1" target="_blank">Marburg virus disease</a> has died in Guinea, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) statement on Monday. It's the first case of the Ebola-like virus in West Africa. Samples of the virus, which causes hemorrhagic fever, were taken from the patient in Gueckedou. The statement added that the detection comes less than two months after Guinea declared an end to its most recent Ebola outbreak. "Gueckedou, where Marburg has been confirmed, is also the same region where cases of the 2021 Ebola outbreak in Guinea as well as the 2014--2016 West Africa outbreak were initially detected," according to the WHO statement. "Samples taken from a now-deceased patient and tested by a field laboratory in Gueckedou as well as Guinea's national haemorrhagic fever laboratory turned out positive for the Marburg virus. Further analysis by the <a href="https://www.pasteur.sn/" target="_blank">Institut Pasteur</a> in Senegal confirmed the result." Health authorities on Monday were attempting to find people who may have had contact with the patient as well as launching a public education campaign to help curb the spread of infection. An initial team of 10 WHO experts are on the ground to probe the case and support Guinea's emergency response. "We applaud the alertness and the quick investigative action by Guinea's health workers. The potential for the Marburg virus to spread far and wide means we need to stop it in its tracks," Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, said in the statement. According to WHO, the virus is transmitted to humans from fruit bats and can then be spread human-to-human through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people or surfaces and materials contaminated with these fluids. There are no vaccines or antiviral treatments to treat Marburg; however, there are treatments for specific symptoms that can improve patients' chances for survival. "Case fatality rates have varied from 24% to 88% in past outbreaks depending on virus strain and case management," the statement said. "In Africa, previous outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda." Marburg virus was first identified in 1967, when 31 people became sick in Germany and Yugoslavia in an outbreak that was eventually traced back to laboratory monkeys imported from Uganda. Since then the virus has appeared sporadically, with just a dozen outbreaks on record. Many of those involved only one diagnosed case. Marburg virus causes symptoms similar to Ebola, beginning with fever and weakness and often leading to internal or external bleeding, organ failure and death. The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.

Fact-checking claims that migrants on the Southern border are to blame for Covid surge(CNN) - While Covid-19 continues to spike across the country and in southern states with lower vaccination rates, Republicans have tried pinning blame for the rise in cases, hospitalizations and deaths on illegal immigration and President Joe Biden's policies at the southern border. During an August 4 <a href="https://www.wptv.com/news/state/gov-ron-desantis-accuses-president-biden-of-making-pandemic-worse-with-lax-border-security" target="_blank">press conference</a>, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis accused Biden of having a "wide open southern border" which has led to the importation of the virus across the US. "No elected official is doing more to enable the transmission of COVID in America than Joe Biden with his open borders policies," DeSantis said in a <a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/florida-playbook/2021/08/05/desantis-snaps-back-at-biden-493857" target="_blank">fundraising</a> letter the same day. Other Republicans, like Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, have also <a href="https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2021/07/27/iowa-governor-kim-reynolds-suggests-unvaccinated-immigrants-helping-spread-covid-19-cases/5390249001/" target="_blank">blamed</a> migration as "part of the problem" contributing to the coronavirus increase and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has <a href="https://www.cruz.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=5988" target="_blank">criticized</a> Biden, tying migration at the border to the pandemic. Facts First: Public health experts dispute the notion that migrants entering the southern border are largely responsible for exploding Covid cases across a large swath of the country. Instead, experts point to the more transmissible Delta variant and relatively low vaccination rates as primary causes of this latest wave. It's also worth noting that some of the Republicans blaming the surge on migrants have banned mask mandates and pushed back against policies requiring vaccines. Spread of Covid "To my knowledge there is no evidence that migrants are to blame for the spike in Florida or other southern states," Aubree Gordon, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan, told CNN. "We're having significant increases in transmission across many states likely due to the Delta variant." Regarding the surge, current US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy echoed concerns about the Delta variant, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/25/health/us-coronavirus-sunday/index.html" target="_blank">saying</a> near the end of July that "The thing that's making this possible is the fact that we are dealing with the most transmissible version of Covid-19 that we've seen to date." And according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the current situation is also due in part to the country's vaccination rate. "If we had the overwhelming proportion of the people vaccinated, we would not be having this conversation," Fauci <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/27/health/us-coronavirus-tuesday/index.html" target="_blank">told PBS</a> on July 27. Many companies and organizations have begun mandating vaccines for their employees, and in some cases for their customers too. Some governors followed suit, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2021-07-29/these-governors-are-mandating-the-covid-19-vaccine-for-government-employees" target="_blank">requiring</a> vaccines or weekly tests for state government employees. But DeSantis, and a handful of other Republican governors including Greg Abbott of Texas, have refused to do so. Some have even gone so far as to ban <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/08/politics/republican-governors-mask-vaccines-mandates-schools/index.html" target="_blank">mandates</a> for vaccines or other measures that could help stop the spread, such as masks. Ron Waldman, Professor of Global Health at George Washington University, told CNN, "It is clear that states that are not aggressively implementing public health interventions are suffering more than those that adopted policies that encourage and at times enforce those interventions, especially in regard to vaccination. We see this clearly in the rates of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths." "It should be obvious that the greatest risk of acquiring COVID is from neighbors, not from 'aliens' pouring across the 'wide-open southern" border,' Waldman said, noting that Florida does not touch the southern border but it does share a border with Alabama, one of the least vaccinated states in the country. Southern border While migrants continue to arrive at the US-Mexico border in <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/06/politics/us-mexico-border-biden/index.html" target="_blank">record numbers</a>, it's false to claim that the border is "open" as DeSantis did last week. The Biden administration is still using a Trump-era policy which allows for many migrants to be quickly expelled from the US. The CDC announced on August 2 that it would extend the controversial health order -- called <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/02/politics/aclu-title-42/index.html" target="_blank">Title 42</a> -- invoked by the previous administration during the beginning of the pandemic, in March 2020. Out of the migrants encountered at the Southern border by the US Customs and Border Protection from January to June, <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/southwest-land-border-encounters" target="_blank">64% were removed</a> from the US under the health order. The CBP told CNN that migrants taken into custody are required to wear face masks provided by the agency and that if "anyone exhibits signs of illness in CBP custody, they are referred to local health systems for appropriate testing, diagnosis, and treatment." The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.

Warrant: Granddaughter found covered in blood when police arrived at Enfield murder sceneENFIELD, CT (WFSB) - A woman arrested in connection with a double homicide that happened in an Enfield apartment on Sunday is being held on a $1 million bond. Two people, a man and woman, were killed in a double murder on Sunday in Enfield. Harlee Swols, 22, who was identified as the female victim's granddaughter, was charged with violation of a protective order after she was located in the apartment. Enfield Police Chief Alaric Fox gave an update on the investigation around 9:40 a.m. on Monday. The female victim was identified as Mary Rose Riach, 72. The male victim was identified as James Samuel Bell, 63. Bell was described as Riach's boyfriend. Officers were called around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday to 17B Alden Ave. after receiving a 911 call for a well-being check. A neighbor reportedly heard sounds of a disturbance, police said. When police arrived, they saw a victim in distress and forced their way into the second floor apartment. When they got inside, they found both a man and woman suffering from significant injuries. The man, later identified as Bell, was pronounced dead at the scene. He was found with a "large laceration to his neck and stab wounds on his arms and back," the arrest warrant said. Riach was transported to Baystate Hospital where she died. The family released a statement on Monday saying "They were just a couple enjoying their golden years. They loved spending time with family, beach trips, and going camping. They had the biggest hearts of anyone I’ve ever known, and they did not deserve this.” Officers also found Swols inside the apartment, covered in water and blood. They also heard the shower running. She faced a judge on Monday. An arrest warrant said Swols had wounds to both hands. "Swols had blood all over her clothes and was showing no emotion at all when I first contacted her," the arrest warrant said. She was handcuffed at the scene and was taken into custody. Investigators said they had several conversations with Swols after her arrest. She was the subject of a prior incident that led to the full protective order. "It was in relation to an earlier dispute with the parties, that having occurred on July 7, 2021, at that same address," Fox explained. "We characterized that as a family disturbance at a misdemeanor level." Records show she had previous misdemeanor charges of assaulting elderly and breach of peace. Fox said they spent the night going through the apartment after a search warrant was obtained. Swols was held on a $1 million bond after appearing in Enfield Superior Court on Monday. A judge ordered a mental health watch. Swols is expected to appear in court again on Aug. 26. State police, along with the Connecticut State's Attorney's Office, assisted with the investigation. "The work at the scene is primarily forensic in nature," Fox said. A canvass of the neighborhood was done to look for witnesses, surveillance video, or other information that may be relevant. Police remained on scene into the early morning hours of Monday. They said the investigation is ongoing and they are working to determine if further charges will be filed. "At this point in an effort to ensure the integrity of the investigation, I can't comment on the manner of death," Fox said. Anyone with any information was asked to contact Enfield police. "We certainly welcome if anyone knows anything or heard anything or [has] surveillance video, they’re welcome to contact the Enfield Police Department," Fox said. Alden Avenue remained closed Monday morning at Lincoln, Church, Windsor, and White streets. Drivers and residents were asked to avoid the area. Refresh this page and stay with Eyewitness News for updates.

New Haven restaurant to require proof of COVID vaccine or negative COVID test for guestsNEW HAVEN, CT (WFSB) – A New Haven restaurant is telling future patrons that starting Friday, it will require either proof of a COVID vaccine, or a negative COVID test. BAR – New Haven took to social media on Monday to post the new policy changes. The restaurant said masks are currently required for all guests. Then, starting Friday Aug. 13, all patrons will need to either show proof of a COVID-19 vaccine, or a negative COVID test result dated within 72 hours. While some patrons on the nightclub’s Facebook page disagree with the requirements, some people Eyewitness News spoke with say it's a good move "I think it’s good. We have to take precautions and I think it’s better we do it that way for now," Varney Hardy of New Haven said. "We should absolutely have mask mandates and we should absolutely be encouraging more people to get vaccinated if not mandating it whenever possible," Hamden resident Eric Goodman said. The policy comes around the same time that New Haven reimplemented a city-wide mask mandate. Last week, New York City announced it will soon require proof of COVID-19 vaccinations for anyone who wants to dine indoors at a restaurant, see a performance or go to the gym, making it the first big city in the U.S. to impose such restrictions. Here in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont had previously said he doesn’t see that kind of a mandate happening here. Channel 3 reached out to the general manager of BAR - New Haven for comment. There has been no response yet.

TRENDING NOW: Wife carrying competition, dynamic cyclist, a dog's birthday present, howling contestA wife carrying competition, a no-pedal cyclist, a dog's overwhelmed by a birthday present, and a howling contest with huskies. Those are the stories trending on Aug. 10.

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