Charlotte police say the deadly shooting inside a mall on Christmas Eve was not a random act of violence. Sarah hagen reports from North Carolina. Well an active shooter by the offduty officer who shot the armed man is now on paid administrative leave police say the man who was killed Daquan Westbrook has a long rap sheet, including a charge for shooting a 12year old a few years ago. Brussels police have arrested a man in connection with the november 13th terrorist attacks in paris that killed 130 people, bringing the total number of arrests in belgium to nine. The arrest took place tuesday on a street in the belgian capitals Central Business district. The man was identified as a spokesman said prosecutors delayed announcing the arrest to avoid alerting potential accomplices. Prosecutors said abdoullah c. Was suspected to have been in contact with the woman killed in a police raid in saintdenis, france, days after the paris attacks. He was detained on suspicion of terrorist murders and participation in a terrorist organization. France tightened security at places of worship ahead of christmas masses, due to concerns over potential attacks. In paris, security was stepped up for christmas services, since france is still under a state of emergency. Frances interior minister sent a note to police and local authorities last week, calling on the heads of parishes to increase security. But government officials said there had been no specific threats against churches. The measures apply to the 45thousand catholic churches. And to protestant and orthodox places of worship as well. The government asked churches to take specific measures such as doors and searching bags. There were no arrests and no disturbances during Christmas Eve services at the two texas churches that received bomb threats in the mail earlier this week. Thousands of people packed the congregation s of Denton Bible Church and nearby Saint Andrews to rejoice in Christmas Eve services. The churches paid for a handful of offduty Police Officers to help monitor the entrances and patrol the parking lots, and brought in a private Security Company for extra help. Denton police are still investigating the threats. Authorities believe the same person mailed the bomb threat to both churches. Security is also tight in a popular beijing diplomatic and Entertainment District today. The us embassy and those of other western nations issued christmas security warnings for their citizens living in china. Sent to patrol the district starting on Christmas Eve. They were seen checking ids near a shopping area. Activists continue to call for resign following a federal investigation into the citys Police Department. Dozens of people gathered in Downtown Chicago to hold a peaceful protest. They held signs and chanted rahm must resign as they marched along michigan avenue. More than a dozen people laid down in the street to participate in a diein. The protests are in response to the Fatal Shooting of Laquan Mcdonald by a White Chicago Police officer last year. The community of beemer, nebraska mourning the loss of joseph lemm, the new york city Police Officer and National Guardsman killed in aghanistan earlier this week. He lived in west harrison, new york, but the loss is being felt in his hometown of beemer. Those who knew and loved him are opening up about their loss. He didnt have a dad there, and i thought he needed a little attention from men, i was like a mentor to him, i wanted to be a mentor to him. I dont know. Cant believe, dont want to believe and i say why are our boys over there getting killed for nothin . He had a lot to give, and he gave a lot, ause he was a really lemm leaves behind his wife and two children. Five others died bomber in afghanistan. Authorities have identified the two bodies found inside of a burnedout pickup truck earlier this week in northeast, nebraska. Ktivs tiffany lane traveled to tilden, nebraska to show how the community is supporting the seven children the couple leaves behind. Murder suicide. Thursday, as people were preparing for the christmas holiday, the tragedy of one family couldnt be the sportsmans bar just outside tilden, where bobbi jo worked for four years. They say they are grieving for their friend. For anyone interested in donating there is information on where that can be done inside this story on ktiv dot com. Authorities are looking for an inmate who walked away from the Yankton Community work center overnight. Minimumsecurity state prisioner, dustin emery, walked away from the unit just before midnight last night. The 26yearold is 5feet9 inches tall and about 170 pounds. He has brown hair and hazel eyes. Emery is serving time for controlled substance out of yankton county. If you know where he is, youre asked to call authorities. Many companies around the world give back to their communities during the Holiday Season. But coming up, well show you one organization that gives back all year. Lingering into the day on saturday with the winds increasing as the low pressure begins to move out. We continue our wintry trend to start the work week off with more snow possible, along with highs in the 20s for in this season of kindness, Many Companies are reaching out to help others. But one National Volunteer organization is in the business of changing lives all year long. Nbcs Chris Clackum has the story. With girl trying on jacket 13 03 44 al every year they outfit thousands of needy children with new clothes. All free. Sot Susan Brackett president , assistance our focus is for them to be well dressed and equal to their peers so that they can concentrate on their education and this is a unique feature of charlottes assistance league. Its teen court. Nat burned in volunteer teen attorney hes learned from his again a Life Changing Program that gives young people a Second Chance after they have been offender is required to plead guilty, sending the case before a volunteer judge and a peer courtroom for sentencing of community service. After successful completion, the teens criminal record is cleared. Sot seth glazer attorney and teen court judge 1 101 17 its kind of their one chance to make a change in their lives before its too late the aim is to keep teens out of adult positive peer pressure and teaching responsible decisions. A multigenerational effort to make the community better. Coming up next on news 4 today. Music has healing qualities for many of us. And one injured teen from southwest, iowa has proven that fact. Shes getting back up on stage and singer her way back to a healthy life. You dont have to be able to carry a tune to know that music carries some healing qualities. This Christmas Day brian mastre shares the story of one teenager whos proving that to be true. This is the Christmas Party for the pediatric unit. Today theres another special guest besides santa. Two months ago teenager Alyssa Wacker wasnt sure she would ever do this again. Underwood, ia alyssa i was very worried about that actually. The surgeon came up to me ananshe said, theres a risk with this surgery bececse we have to move your vocal cords. For her sixteenth birthday, alyssas parents gave her this suv. Before they had made the first car payment, she hit loose gravel on a road near her home in underwood, iowa. The impact broke her neck. Heres her xray. Her spinal cord was also damaged. Before the crash she sang her own songs the guitar had been in back of her vehicle. Alyssa my guitars neck kind of got broke, too. This type of injury carries plenty of uncertainty. Alyssa ive had some pretty rough days. Some people never regain the use ofof their arms or breath on their own. Super molly thomas, ococpational therapist madonna quick super molly thomas, occupational therapist Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital shes made tremendous progress here. Its awesome to see that. Its been almost daily progress. Hopefully so she can play the guitar like she used to. Alyssa guiter but still had trouble with her left hand. Alyssa i need my left hand for my guitar, so hopefully it will start working soon. Her music has been key to her therapy. Super Katelyn Schroeder, omaha Katelyn Schroeder offomaha theres so much more o it than anyone thinks. It improroes life in general which is a huge goal of Music Therapy. Thats her partner on this day Katelyn Schroeder. A Music Therapy student at the university volunteeit ffor mekatelthialyssa is tmadonna rehthe next day get tappointalen that was brian mastre reporting. As for a career alyssa says she wants to be a music teacher. Snow fell in parts of siouxland yesterday, but most of us arent waking up to a white christmas, but we could see some more of the white stuff later today. Tjs got the detaililafter the break. And youve heard of elf on the shelf. But one elf has joined the police force in pennsylvania. Well show you what hes been up praised as one of americas best mayors who governed as a pragmatist. Bernie sanders passed more amendments in a Republican Congress than any other member. Cracked the gridlock with john mccain to strengthen veterans healthcare. Bernie sanders. A consistent, principled, and effective leader. Building a future to believe in. You know elf on the shelf. But in pennsylvania, theres now elf on the force. The police force, that i i melissa a rdo explains how the new Police Recruit is helping to spread some Holiday Cheer. His oath very seriously, conducting official police investigations. sgt. Toby wildasin West Manheim Township Police Department he is captured photos of the itemized pieces of evidence. Testing out his skills as a sketch artist. sgt. Toby wildasin West Manheim Township Police Department he made use of our leg shackles for that. And even getting into a little trouble. sgt. Toby wildasin West Manheim Township Police Department im able to caature a a hoto of him whh i come in each day at work. Sgt. Toby wildason makes sure to document his every move on the departments facebook page. Sarge is quickly making friends. sgt. Toby wildasin West Manheim Township Police Department its been an overwhelming response. Its kind of made it enjoyable. Ive actually gotten a lot of good comments on our social media. One of his followers even writing a letter. Manheim Township Police department she said what a difference it makes, its a great concept and were sure it is reaching our great town of hanover. Its special that one person, or elf, can make such a big difference in life. His fellow officers say hes doing a great job at connecting different side of law enforcement. sgt. Toby wildasin West Manheim Township Police Department the goal through the use of sarge our scout elf is to get followers that would maybe not otherwise facebook page. And ultimately helping solve department and when we need the communities help in a situation, we already have that base of followers built up. After christmas hell be heading back to the north pole. But hell surely have a spot on the force next year. And, the Woodbury CountySheriffs Department had its own elf on a shelf. Elf jerry spent the last 23 days taking part in some shenanigans around the community. He even took over making license plates. You can see his favorite one that he personalized for his own little vehicle. He also helped prepare the Woodbury County communicatio ns operators for santas arrival. Before taking off for the north pole, Woodbury County sheriff dave drew and elf jerry wished everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy new year. You can check out more of elf jerrys shenanigans on the Woodbury CountySheriffs Office facebook page. You can find a link in this its. Time for a break. But were back in just a moment with more news and weather for you on news4 today. First though. Heres a look at some of the events on the ktivdotcom community calendar. Welcome back and thanks for joining us on this christmas morning. Im sarah te slaa. Coming up. Several states havee declared a state of emergency after tornados torehrough much of the south on wednesday. At least 14 people are dead after this weeks storms. Flooding has also been an issue. And many holiday travelers have been stranded in airports due to the severe weather. Well have the latest in just a minute. And one Salvation Army volunteer is going above and beyond this year. Hes not just ringing a bell, hes also handing out free teddy bears. Well show you his story in a little bit. And later in healthbeat four, well meet a child prodigy who is determined to keep playing his violin, despite having Sickle Cell Disease. Its an inspiring story you wont want to miss. But first t. J. The south eastern parts of the region. We could see some light snow lingering into the day on saturday with the winds increasing as the low pressure begins to move out. We continue our wintry trend to start the work week off with more snow possible, along with highs in the 20s for the rest of the 7day. The governors of several Southern States have now declared a state of emergency. A storm system has left much of the southeast drenched and damaged this Holiday Season. Reid binion has the latest. Mississippi. Dozens of families are left homeless this christmas. sheriff kenny its unreal what you see from the air a powerful storm system roared through the south, gov. Phil myers mississi ppi we are still in search and according to the storm least 14 tornadoes hit mississippi on wednesdayaybut a single twister did most of the damage. The national weathth service says it might have traveled for 150 miles mos when it started really whooshing and it started sucking my bedroom winw open, i took off to take cover. The tornado in ashland was so strong it likely pulled the pavement off this road. nats draining water forecasters believe the greatest threat to the region has passed but more rain is expected. Thats bad news for states like georgia and alabama where flooding is already y despread meanwhile. Mother nature has left holiday travelers stranded across the country. mos i had to actually reschedule for tomorrow morning. So its a Big Inconvenience for me. mos he got flewn up to memphis because. Couldnt land. mos so me and my son arent tornados are also an issue in california. One touched down in el dorado county, while another was spotted in folsom, california. The tornado left behind a trial of damage yesterday. It is still unclear if anyone was injured. Meanwhile in the midwest, several inches of snow hit parts of nebraska and iowa. Up to 7 inch fell in the omaha area causing several accidents. Conditions were also slick in western iowa. Crawford county saw almost 20 accidents because of the weather. The Salvation Army red kettle is a staple of the Holiday Season, and so is the bell ringer beside it. But this Holiday Season an unusual, fourhoofed friend is hoping to shoppers in wisconsin what christmas is really about. Jessica bringe has the story. I loved the smiles on the parents faces, i loved the smiles on the kids faces. For the first time, mocha and owner holly are ringing in the holidays with the Salvation Army at gordys market locations. Giving back in more ways than one. Holly schindler moc has owner 40 51 i had one mom say my daughter will remember this for the rest of her life that she whispered into mocha the elfs ears about her christmas gift. Jessica bringe report er 521 02 not only is mocha is bringing the holiday spirit but hes a bit of unorthodox santa. Schindler swears if you whisper right into his ear it will go directly to the big guy in the red suit. I wish you a Merry Christmas mocha matt selvig gordys market 1 051 09 you know, you hear a lot about elves during christmas but nowwwe get like an elf niature horse. I love it. Mocha even trying his muzzle at being santas helper. Holly schindler moc has owner 1 151 18 i think mocha and i might do it again. As for birthday on Christmas Eve and named holly after the holiday. Holly schindler moc has owner 1 271 30 this is actually a Birthday Gift for myself and i am loving it. There is no better present than the feeling of christmas. Holly schindler moc has owner 1 351 39 we wanted to wish everyone mmrry christmas. I thought this was a pre