More classmates. The pain of saying goodbye has become part of everyday now in newtown. This grieving community buried two more at first graders today. Jessica rekos led to plan and organize so much, their family calls per their ceo. James mattioli ended most of his days cuddled on the couch with his mom. They kept saying the boy had a big gun and a little gun. I could not i could not fathom what they were talking about. He found the boys huddled in his yard after they ran past the gunman to escape. The two boys just started talking. I had no idea what happened. They said we can go back into the school. We cannot go back into the school. Because our teacher is gone. Students did go back today, except those from sandy hook elementary. Every campus had extra security. I do not think you are ever ready. I think that as much as things can get back to normal, we have to. Though most here to understand that normal mean something very different now. But what can be a normal when you are talking about burying 6 and 7yearold kids. One of the first of adults in this tragedy will be laid to rest. Wbal tv11 news. It can never, ever be normal. Gov. Martin omalley is determined to introduce legislation to prevent similar Mass Shootings here in maryland and he is meeting with his cabinet to discuss the issue. He joins a chorus of state and federal leaders demanding action. Lowell melser joins us with more. The police and really began yesterday the pleas really began yester day in towson. You had county executives asking for a closer look at the state gun laws. Gun violence is a Public Health epidemic. The Baltimore County police chief who also chairs the National Law Enforcement partnership to prevent gun violence highlights what many are feeling around the state after the shootings in newtown, conn. , and now the same elected officials are calling for new gun control laws. We must take immediate action to pursue reasonable gun safety legislation, not only in our state, but in our nation. Over in howard county, they have formed a task force to look of School Safety and Mental Health. Also the current gun laws. Hopefully, we can agree that there ought to be basic steps that can be taken to ensure that people are responsible in owning a weapon and take a look at what kind of weapons are appropriate to be on the street. Senator Barbara Mikulski has called for it twostep approach, taking a look at the culture of violence and offering more Mental Health benefits. I think this is a watershed moment in our country. We need each other, whether it is to support guncontrol, or the nra, who should promote good ideas, and we can protect the constitution. But we have to protect our people. Governor malloy says he supports going looking at the gov. Omalley says he supports looking at the gun issue. I do not have a bill to present to your. It is still a work in progress. But it is work that i would guess every state in the union is going to undertake. As far as reaction from gun stores, we call several gun stores that declined oncamera interviews. They confirmed that they are selling guns at record rates. We were referred to a news release that read in part we find it callous and disrespectful that certain politicians and guncontrol advocates are so focused on their political agenda that they could not find it in their hearts to refrain from publicly exploiting this heartbreaking tragedy until after the victims had been returned to their families and their loved ones. The democrat from montgomery county, also the share of the judicial proceeds committee in annapolis, will announce what he is calling an antigun violence package. He hopes to get the ball rolling to look at those maryland gun laws. I am lowell melser, wbal tv11 news. Just in the last 20 minutes or so, an official officials with the National Rifle association have issued their first Public Statement since the shooting on friday. That Statement Reads in part out of respect for families and as a matter for common decency, we have given time for mourning, prayer, and a full investigation before commenting. They say that the nra is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to ensure that this does not happen again. On the very morning of the connecticut shooting, some of the nations top experts on School Discipline were having a conversation here in maryland about troubled students. Hundreds of educators from all over the country met to share notes on where to draw the line when it comes to suspending or expelling students. Nationwide, more than 3 Million Students were sent home from school. In maryland, almost 60,000 students were suspended. If a child cannot read, they act out. If the child does not have any support at home, lets provide that child a mentor in school to make sure they get the guidance they need. The state board of education has approved a new student discipline policy that comes up with ways to reduce nonviolent offenses instead of suspensions. Meanwhile, pink slips are going to hundreds of Baltimore City temporary employees. This could be as early as friday. This has put quite a few School Principals in a tight spot. Our education reporter tim tooten has the story. Tim . It is the season to be jobless. That is exactly what is in store for some Baltimore City employees over the next few days. You can expect administrators to make tough decisions. More building more belt tightening on the way in baltimore. They may have to free of temporary employees by the end of the week. They are the glue that holds the school together. Without them, sometimes you do not have as safe a school or your programs do not work. Top administrators they are making the job cuts to avoid duplicating positions. Some have been on the payroll for more than three years. We said before you hire any temporary employee, the surplus Union Members must be placed. School officials said that they are feeling pressure from the Teachers Union to make good on contract promises. I have a list right now of surplus employees. Those jobs are being billed by temporary employees . Apparently they are being billed by temporary employees, and that is a problem for us. And the system. We want our people placed in the positions that are available. The School Principal hopes he can avoid passing on bad news. In these tough economic times, where we cannot afford a full position, they are a solution. How are you fighting for these exports i really need my two people. The majority of those temporary jobs are based in schools. Wbal tv11 news. Thank you. Two children and a teenager are recovering. A 6yearold, a 7yearold, and a 17yearold after they were all struck by a car while trying to cross the street. It happened at 8 00 this morning. Baltimore county Officials Say that the teenager was helping the children across the street when all three were struck by a honda accord. Preliminary investigation reveals it was pedestrian error. None of the injuries appeared to be lifethreatening. A 23yearold man is being treated at shock trauma after an earlymorning crash in anne arundel county. Veep twovehicle accident the twovehicle crash shutdown of portion of the roadway for two hours. No word on what caused the crash. It has been kind of a mild day across the region. The gusty winds may make it feel chilly at times. Gusting at over 20 miles per hour. Especially in eastern maryland. It is diminishing, or least trying to, a little bit in the mountains. If you look closely, you will see a Lightning Strike or two in the new york city area. A little under tracking through metro new york to these seven areas of long island. Now in the west, a stronger cold front headed this way for thursday night into friday. Details on that in a couple of minutes. A health scare on the campus of umbc. We have for that someone has contracted tuberculosis. And as some ask questions about the tragedy at sandy hook elementary, parents need to figure out the better way to answer them. About a child psychologist suggests we handle fears and anxieties of children. Looking for a new place to live tonight. The latest on what sparked these destructive flames one week before christmas. Christmas is just one week away. How are an investigation is underway tonight on what sparked these claims that the bauer home in the undock. That consumed this home in done about. Thankfully no one was hurt, but everyone that live there have been displaced. New details in the kidnapping and the rescue findings later of nbc correspondents richard engel. He and his crew are safely out of syria, but we are hearing more about their time in the wartorn country. Engel says there were 15 kidnappers, heavily armed, all wearing ski masks. They drag them out of their car and took them to interrogation areas where the ordeal continued. He spoke about the experience on today this morning. We were not physically beaten or tortured. It was a lot of psychological torture. Choosing who would be shot first. There were mock shootings. When you are blindfolded, but they fire a gun up in the air. The kidnappers did execute at least one of his escorts at the time of their capture. He says that the captors were talking openly about their loyalty to the government during the ordeal. They escaped during a firefight between their captors and rebels at a checkpoint. We begin tonight medical alert with a disturbed during disturbing discovery on the umbc. The Baltimore CountyHealth Department confirmed someone was diagnosed with tuberculosis. A letter was sent to everyone at the university. They will not confirm whether the person is a staff member or a student, but they do say that that person has been isolated. Tuberculosis is an airborne disease. Officials want to emphasize it is difficult to contract through typical campus life. It is difficult to understand why someone would shoot and kill 20 innocent children, but psychologists say you should not avoid that conversation, especially if your child is curious about it. Parents are struggling with their own emotions. Psychologists say be honest, but reassuring that they are safe. You will keep them safe. You want to know how they feel about. Not telling them how they feel. Asking and listening. All the children killed or between the ages of 5 and 10. Be sensitive to the way that your child copes with any dramatic situation. It is also suggested you keep routines at home as normal as possible during this era difficult time. And a new message from medstar in eastern Baltimore County. The facility is launching a massive Fundraising Campaign to improve its neonatal unit. Officials say they need more modernized equipment to treat the babys there with the best care to treat the babies there with the best care possible. We will get every patient a private room. We will give every mother the opportunity to experience the peaks and valleys by themselves and not have to share a curtain. They treat baltimore and Hartford County as well as cecil county. Now your instaweather plus forecast with chief meteorologist tom tasselmyer. Temperatures will cool off a little bit. But so far below for today is lower than the normal High Temperature for today. There with the best care possible. We will get every patient a privatebelow is warmer than norl high. The normal high is 44. We almost hit 60 officially at dwi marshall. We may have hit the 60 degree mark the been the record low for the day 7. The record high, 72 in 2006. We did not get much rain. A lot of wind. Gusty winds. But overall, just a trace of precipitation since midnight at dwi marshall. The total precipitation we have just days ago and we are certainly below normal for the year. 5. 72 inches below normal. You can see this weather system tracking to our north. It is scattered and moving off the course. These showers are coming across new england. These are thunderstorms. 52 in new york. We dropped to 49 at the airport. There is cool air trying to come behind this front. There is whether coming from central and eastern maryland trying to work its way in. Partly cloudy skies. The western maryland mountains you will start to see some rain and snow showers mixed in. Generally dry east of the mountains tonight with weather ranging from freezing in the outlying suburbs to 45 in town. Those conditions will be diminishing a bit. You see this one big storm. That already passed through today. There is another one mobilizing out west. That is the one that will catch us at the end of the week and finally bring in some colder weather. So get outside and enjoy it a mostly sunny wednesday. A band of showers maybe some thunderstorms. Those are moving through sunday night. Once that gets off the coast, then this drive through. A lot of lake effect snows. It looks like there is southern snow in western maryland or the winter storm watches in the fact and we could have snow friday afternoon going into saturday. Things are going to change when that thursday night front moves on through. A little on the breezy side, but not like today. When is will only range 10 k nots. Thursday into friday sunshine. Rain changing into snow. Temperatures will fall. It will be quite wintry out there on friday. Ocean city showers, maybe a thunderstorm thursday night into friday. The instaweather plus sevenday gusty winds as the front moves through friday morning. Weaken ties only in the low 40s. All right. Thank you. We are a week before christmas. And the one gift you can expect in your stocking this year better prices at the gas,. How retailers are preparing for december 25. Still no deal on the fiscal cliff, and weather whether or not you have finished your shopping, those gifts are going to be unwrapped a week from now. There you go. As the mad dash for those gifts takes off, there is one thing you can count on. Rob roblin is live. The gas prices are inching down. But according to aaa, they are higher than they were a year ago. They are 6 cents higher than they were a year ago at this time. That is the bad news. The good news people are going to the stores and they are buying. It has been great. We have an extra week this year of shopping. The mall manager says that so far this Christmas Season businesses looking good. This weekend is going to be a big weekend coming up. It is that extra weekend. All signs are it will be better than last year. Store managers i talked with say with the week to go before christmas they are hopeful this will be one of their best shopping seasons peeping every day since the beginning of december we have seen more and more people in the mall and in our store. One more week to go until christmas. What are you expecting . Hopefully tons and tons of people. Well folks while folks hope that the bad weather will help their business so far. One week to go before christmas. And hopefully we will get a few snowflakes to sell the boots. You do need to sell the boots. Sales are strong. Compared to last year, what is it like for you guys . I think it will be better than last year. The early shopping is better than last year. I know the end shopping will be as well as it always has. I think the numbers are going to be better. Now to customers have more confidence in the economy . And does that translate into spending more money this christmas . That depends on who you talk to. Are you buying more or less for Christmas Shopping this year . About the same as we did last year. Friday, we made some presents. Actually, i am buying a little bit more because i have a grandbaby now. More or less or the same . More. It is all for this guy. More or less . I am getting more this year. Spending money, cannot hold onto it. That is the truth. Can not hold onto it. You level week to buy those gifts. Talking about the gas prices. Once again, they are 6 cents higher than a year ago, but aaa expects more people to be driving this holiday. Reporting live, wbal tv11 news. Thank you. Seven days to christmas, but there is another countdown. The fastapproaching fiscal cliff. The president and Top Republicans are digging their heels into the sand. We will talk to a Mental Health expert you are watching wbaltv 11 news. Live, local, late breaking. This is 11 news at 5 00 p. M. With stan stovall, donna hamilton, your instaweather plus forecast with cheap meteorologist tom tasselmyer, and sky team 11 covering chief meorologist tom tasselmyer, and sky team led uncovering the news where you live. A new normal in the town of newtown, conn. Students are coming home for the first day of school after the massacre as the town buries its 20 Young Children. Of course, the tragedy has shined a light on many issues from School Security to a Mental Health. It is a real problem in this trouble in this country. Our 11 News Reporter has our report on how something we should handle Mental Health challenges. Leaders across the country are struggling with how to make sure Something Like this never happens again. On meet the press sunday morning, the governor of connecticut talk about Mental Health and gun control. There are certain problems in our society that have to be addressed. He is part of a number of columbiabased psychologists. He says once a person becomes too old for it Services Offered in school, he or she may slip through the cracks. There have been significant reductions in Mental Health. Community Mental Health care. That system has become frayed over the years. There is no safety net for people who are struggling. He says the profession has gotten better at diagnosing and preventing. But often it takes a brush with the law for people to get access to treatment any.