Amanda but first a man accused in shooting strangers in Pleasant Hill takes the stand hear what he has to say in his own defense. Local 5 news midday in hd starts now. We are iowa amanda good morning and thanks for joining us for local 5 news midday. Im amanda krenz amanda the man police say went on a shooting spree through Pleasant Hill neighborhoods last year took the witness stand in his own trial yesterday. Amanda pete polson told the jury hes been battling drug abuse since the early 2000s and was clean for awhile. The 33 year old said thats until he relapsed near halloween of last year. He lost his job, girlfriend and started using meth again, including using the night before the shooting took place on november 17th. Polson told the jury he doesnt remember shooting at the three victims. He didnt realize anything until the officers arrested him that morning i just know i would never intentionally do any of it, im sorry form the bottom of my heart, i apologize, its i wish i wouldve shot myself that day rather htan shooting these people. I never meant to harm any of you or your families amanda earlier in the day the prosecution revealed evidence of polsons drug habits including more than 20 pounds of marijuana and other drug paraphanelia found in his home. The defense also brought two people to the stand who knew polson personally. Explaining what he was like when he did drugs. Thats when i saw his behavior changed and that night is when, the night before is when i asked him to leave my home. Amanda the defense did not rest after trial continued this morning. Polson took the stand again. Well bring you the latest at 5 and 6 tonight. Make sure to stay local 5 every step of the way. Well also have recaps of each day up on our website thats we are iowa dot com. Amanda plans for another School Redistricting in waukee did not go over well with parents. Last nights meeting had plenty of angry parents in the audience. The ever growing suburb has had to redistrict its schools seven times in the past 20 years. The proposal would have him moving again in two years, so by fourth grade he would have attended three schools. And for you thats not okay. Under no set of facts is that okay. Amanda a group of parents were even handing out fliers at the public forum last night. Speaking out against the most recent rezoning. School Officials Say they have no other choice. Nobody ever wants to change, but the reality is when youre growing as rapidly as we are, every once in a while those boundaries need to be adjusted to accomodate the growth. Amanda the district will use last nights feedback to tweak their scenario before their final proposal will be made next month. Amanda the push against the proposed Bakken Oil Pipeline hit the steps of the capitol thursday. Amanda the project is still awaiting approval from the iowa board of utilities. The project could eventually carry crude oil from north dakota to illinois cutting diagonally across the state. About 80 people held up signs and chanted about their disappointment in Dakota Access for even considering taking over their land. A smaller, counter protest was staged nearby, where folks talked about the benefits of the jobs. But the larger group, made a bigger statement, delivering one thousand complaints about the project. Cecil wright, utility board lawyer this is really people just expressing their opinion. And as i said, the board reviews that, and will take that into consideration. And questions for Dakota Access or some of the other witnesses based amanda the iowa board hold a public hearing for the project on november 12th. More than sixty people are expected to testify at the hearings next month. Amanda plenty of athletes will be in the metro this weekend. All planning to get moving in iowa. Amanda a record turn out last year, means some intense competition for this weekends marathon. Tenthousand athletes from around the world ran the streets of des moines in 20 14. And many of them will be returning to take on the route again this year. Philip lagat of kenya plans to return to defend his title. Drivers should be aware of the street closures that will begin today. Sections of walnut street bridge and east first street will be closed beginning at six this evening. Local five is a proud sponsor of the marathon. So look for much more on the race throughout the weekend. Amanda meteorologist sam schrier joins us again with a look at your forecast. Sam this week started on the mild and warm side, but now were really fall with a cold day and frost night back in looking at mostly sunny skies today with a few more afternoon clouds. Were going to be cold and windy this only climbing into the mid 50s and northwest winds around 1015 mph. Overnight were going to see partly cloudy skies but well probably see wide spread frost as lows fall into the low 30s and 20s. Saturday will start very cold and chilly, but with some sunshine well warm that air up into the upper 50s. Sunday is going to be gorgeous with highs climbing back into the upper 60s. Next week we have a few rain chances and well have our highs go back into the 70s for a few days. Amanda on to your local president now lots of action on the campaign trail amanda lam as the donald trump and ben carson threaten to boycott the next debate Hillary Clinton confident enough to talk running mates while joe biden keeps the guessing game going about his plans abcs tom llamas tracking it all this morning a republican revolt over the next debate. Sottrump fox now they want to make this an extra hour. Both donald trump and dr ben carson threatening not to show up if host cnbc tries to change the format making the debate longer. The two leading gop candidates writing in a joint letter to cnbc they do not, and will not, agree to appear at a debate that is more than 120 minutes long including commercials breaks. Also demanding the debate include opening and closing statements from all the candidates. Sottrump on fox i think its unfair to the viewers because they are doing it because they want to make more money. But not all candidates are complaining Carly Fiorina telling trump and carson to stop whining. Sotfiorina tonight our intv i think we need to spend as much time as possible answering the american peoples questions so im all for three hours. Im sorry that they apparently dont have the endurance in a statement to abc news cnbc saying we will certainly take the candidates views on the format into consideration as we finalize the debate structure. As for the democrats housing and urban Development Secretary Julian Castro endorsing Hillary Clinton thursday sparking questions if she would consider him as a running mate sotclinton i am going to really look hard at him for anything because thats how good he is, and he deserves the accolades hes receiving. This as current Vice President joe biden continues dodging questions about whether hell run but sources tell abc news hes close to making a decision. Nats biden q dont you owe them an answer . Biden laughs tag last night a top biden political sent this letter, we have a copy, to former biden will need their help if he runs but that he hasnt made a decision yet that his platform will be built on how to change the balance of the economy to help the middle class. If we want a q and a. You can ask me about highlights on the republican side when it comes to fundraising since we have the s now. We are creating graphics for this so itll look good. Q tom the fundraising numbers are in for the last quarter what are the highlights on the republican side . This is as the money game for the republicans coming into full view. Carson raising the most last quarter more than 20 million dollars. But senator ted cruz with the most cash on hand nearly 14 million dollars. And trump who is self funding his campaign is now also accepting moneyabout 4 million in small donations. Amanda dont forget to follow all your Campaign News dont forget to follow all your Campaign News on our website thats we are iowa dot com. amanda coming up on local 5 news midday. It was a chilly start to our morning but could we be seeing Colder Weather this weekend . Sam has all the details in a little bit. Amanda plus. Do you have plans to head to the theaters this weekend . Were breaking down whats new at the box office. Amanda but next. Its a big weekend for metro pet lovers we have expert dog trainer joes silverman and his pup duchess in the studio to tell us all about it. Your wathcing local 5 news midday in hd with amanda krenz and we amanda the great iowa pet expo welcomes anyone who loves animals and pets. Whether youre a current pet owner or just thinking about bringing a Companion Animal into your home, the great iowa pet expo is for you. Its a great event for family entertainment, and with the largest pet related trade show in the state, its a must for your Holiday Shopping list 2015 great iowa pet expo dates saturday, october 17, 2015 10 a. M. 6 p. M. Sunday, october 18, 2015 10 a. M. 4 p. M. Location varied Industries Building iowa state fairgrounds 3000 e grand ave des moines, ia 50317 enter at gate 9 map daily admission adults 6 seniors 5 children 612 3 children 5 and under free pets free cash only accepted at the door highlights an internet sensation earl the grumpy puppy groomer palooza an ija and nash academy dog grooming competition oils and your pets trainer, author and entertainer, Joel Silverman high flying canines in the clouds angelyne, the amazing deaf cattle dog cartoon drawing of your pet from our caricature artist s. O. A. R. Saving our avian resources canine good citizen testing cgc and c. L. A. S. S. Testing can i bring my dog . Spayed or neutered adult pets on a short leash 6 foot maximum, no retractable leashes may attend the great iowa pet expo with a responsible guardian. Bringing a pet with you to the expo . Save yourself some time by filling out your pet paperwork in advance. Just print it out, fill it out and bring the critter release agreement with you to the pet expo front amanda time for a quick break when we come time for a quick break when we come back, sam has a look at your forecast. Independent weather experts sam this week started on the mild and warm side, but now were really back to feeling like fall with a cold day and frost night back in the forecast. Were looking at mostly sunny skies today with a few more afternoon clouds. Were going to be cold and windy this afternoon with highs only climbing into the mid 50s and northwest winds around 1015 mph. Overnight were going to see partly cloudy skies but well probably see wide fall into the low 30s and 20s. Saturday will start very cold and chilly, but with some sunshine well warm that air up into the going to be gorgeous back into the upper 60s. Next week we have a few rain chances and well have our highs go back into the 70s for a few days. Sam amanda sam, do you think itll be a chilly night for football . Well be out at amanda sam, do you think itll be a chilly night for football . Well be out at north polk in alleman for another night of local 5 blitz action. Amanda thats the site of our game of the week. The comets are set to host the cmb raiders. Its definitely shaping up to be a big game tonight. Local five sports director Jon Schaeffer will be live from alleman this evening on local five news. And dont forget about the full hour of blitz at 1035. If youre out watching share your pictures with us using hashtag local 5 blitz. Amanda still to come on local five news midday. Are you a beatles fan . How about kicking off your lunch hour with some great music . We have a band in studio you wont want to miss. Plus sam and i are breaking down whats new at the Box Office Just in time for date night youre watching local 5 news at midday well be right back. Amanda rock to the music of the beatles in an interactive concert other with deadmcguigan buddy the buddy holly story; rave on and his band immerse the audience in the sights, sounds, what makes yesterday and today different from every other beatles show out there . Two things 1. No wigs, no accents. Creator Billy Mcguigan says, once you take those elements away, you get down to this most important part, the magical music. 2. The requests. The band plays the entire audience is encouraged to fill out a request form with their favorite beatles song and reason why they chose the song. Those requests are organized five minutes before showtime. The audiences requests make the set list for the evening and their stories provide the evenings narrative. The mcguigan brothers tribute to their dad stars of yesterday and today, billy, ryan, and matthew mcguigan, originally from largo, fl, were just 21, 18, and when their father, william mcguigan, difficult but with leukemia. Bill sr. Owned every beatles album there was. Even the obscure family, the mcguigans were quite poor. So, rather than going out to entertain the young ones, bill stayed home with them and shared his love of the beatles boys. Little did any of them know it would the greatest gifts a father could pass on to his children. Now, almost 15 years after the passing of ryan, and matthew, have united their charms, and passion create the ultimate greatest man theyve ever known. They now the show, yesterday and today, born out of the idea that everyone, like themselves, has a story or particular memory attached to the Legendary Music of the beatles. What the mcguigan boys have overwhelmingly found, since debuting the show in 2007, is that not only do people have a story to tell, but they are absolutely ready and willing to tell that story when being able to tie it to their favorite beatles song. On some level, it goes beyond sheer entertainment and perhaps becomes a hint of music therapy. Every night the songs change, the faces change and the stories change. But one element always remains the same between the mcguigans and their fans a Mutual Respect for why they are there. Show days times 2 00 p amanda its friday. Time for local 5 at the movies. Amanda first up. A tom hanks cold war movie in bridge of spies, hanks plays a lawyer who gets drafted by the cia to help broker a prisoner swap. They want him to help broker a deal for an american pilot who was arrested after his plane was shot down by the soviet union. In exchange they will hand over a kgb Intelligence Officer arrested for espionage in the us. Bridge of spies is rated pg13. All next, we have a scary movie for adults. In crimson peak, a young newlywed moves into her new husbands stately manor. Only to find out its haunted. The house brings about the terror of her past, and dark visions of her future. Crimson peak is ratedr. All reax amanda rounding out the family. For a slightly lessscary movie, check out a group of children teams up with the daughter of author rlstine after the writers imaginary free. Now they must get all of them back in the books where they belong. Goosebumps is rated pg. All reax amanda coming up on amanda coming up on local 5 news midday. A hacker accused of stealing information from military personnel now in custody. Were bringing you the latest. Amanda and. As the battle over planned parenthood goes on hows it affecting thousands of iowans across the state . Were taking a deeper look. Thats next. Youre watching local 5 news midday in amanda good morning and thanks for joining us for local 5 news midday. Im amanda krenz amanda now to a major arrest in the war against isis. A hacker who stole the personal information of more than a thousand military personnel and passed it on to the brutal terror group in custody this morning. Abcs Pierre Thomas has latest from washington in your national headlines. Prosecutors claim ardit ferizi of kosovo hacked into the files of an american retailer stealing sensitive personal information about more than 1,000 federal employees and members of the u. S. Military. He then allegedly passed the stolen information to Junaid Hussain, a british mastermind behind of an isis social Media Campaign with deadly intentions. An isil operative named Junaid Hussain hussains Islamic State Hacking Division created a kill list posting the names of those military personnel and federal employees onlineaccompanied by this threat we are. Passing on your personal information to the soldiers. Who soon. Will strike. At your necks in your own lands the fbi director said the goal was to inspire lone wolves inside the u. S. To attack here at home. Kill where you are; kill anyone. But especially if you could kill people in military uniform or Law Enforcement uniform, and video it, that would be best of all. Junaid was considered so dangeroushe became a top isis target for u. S. He was killed in syria in august by u. S. Air strike. Amanda meanwhile the president announces big changes in americas plan in afghanistan. Amanda president obama says troops will be staying longer than planned. The 98hundred currently in afghanistan were expected to return home by the end of 20 16. But the president on the recommendation of his top commanders will now leave as many as 55 hundred troops on the ground. It will be a two fold mission similar to the current one of counterterroris m operations and training and assisting Afghan Forces. President obama this modest but meaningful extension of our presence, while sticking to our current narrow missions, can make a real difference. Amanda top pentagon officials believed Afghan Forces werent ready to operate on their own. And theres been a recent surge in violence by the taliban and now isis. Amanda meteorologist sam schrier joins us again with a look at your forecast. Sam this week started on the mild and warm side, but now were really back to feeling like fall with a cold day and frost night back in the forecast. Were looking at mostly sunny skies today with a few more afternoon clouds. Were going to be cold and windy this afternoon with highs only climbing into the mid 50s and northwest winds around 1015 mph. Overnight were going to see partly cloudy skies but well probably see wide spread frost as lows fall into the low 30s and 20s. Saturday will start very cold and chilly, but with some sunshine well warm that air up into the upper 50s. Sunday is going to be gorgeous with highs climbing back into the upper 60s. Next week we have well have our highs amanda continue to wrestle with funding for planned parenthood. Amanda the Health Organization has been under fire since a series of edited videos surfaced online, allegedly showing employees discussing the sale of fetal tissue. Planned parenthood has denied the allegations. But as the battle over funding rages on. Thousands of people depend on Affordable Care at the 13 locations across iowa. Sarah mccarthy has more. [take pkg] suzanna de baca planned parenthood healthcare more than 38thousand patients rely on in iowa alone, according to planned parenthoods suzanna de baca. She oversees 18 midwest clinics, where a little more than half their patients fall below the federal poverty line. Their care is paid for by donations and government funding. Kimberly long planned parenthood patient wouldnt want that for young people. People like student kimberly long, who relied on planned parenthood for Birth Control and wellness exams in her twenties, when she didnt always have health insurance. [take sot to 0 10 duration 0 10]sot< 05 56 47 [take sot to 0 04 duration 0 04]sot< to make some tough decisions. Decisions that could mean terminating a pregnancy for some. Abortions account for two percent of planned parenthoods iowa services, with two clinics carrying out the procedures. But according to the Iowa Coalition for life, even a small number is heartbreaking. Sue martinek coalition for life of iowa thats why martinek is here joining a handful of people who pray outside this cedar rapids clinic. They say any organization providing receive any taxpayer of what that money is used for. One of three lawmakers leading the charge for oversight from the department of health and human collection. Iowa planned parenthood says regular audits ensure all clinics follow the law and procedures, including the steps after an abortion. [take sot]sot for long, sharing her story is one way to ensure others experience the care that inspired her to become a nurse. Care she hopes a future daughter can access. [take sot to 0 18 06 10 20 defund clinics in but branstad does not have the power to do so. Know what you think about parenthood. Share your chance to see your comments onair. You can post you twitter and facebook. Or send us an call. Hear what you think the Contact Information is on your screen. Amanda still to come on local 5 news midday. weather sam has the details in central iowas weatherrate the independent weather experts sam this week started on back to feeling like and frost night back in looking at mostly sunny skies today with a few more afternoon clouds. Were going to be cold and windy this afternoon with highs mid 50s and northwest winds around 1015 mph. Overnight were going to see partly cloudy skies but well spread frost as lows fall into the low 30s and 20s. Saturday will start very cold and chilly, but with some sunshine well warm upper 50s. Sunday is going to be gorgeous with highs climbing back into the upper a few rain chances and well have our highs go back into the 70s for a few days. Sam sam amanda well sam even though this morning was a chilly one, a new report says the winter could be warmer than normal. Amanda forecasters at the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration have issued the us winter outlook. And this years strong el nino is expected to be a big factor. It could lead to a warmer, drier winter in the northwest and plains states. Much of the countrys northern half is forecast to have abovenormal temperatures. Amanda youre watching local five news midday. Well be back after this. Sam were joined now by jerry holub, our resident resident horticulturist. Friday to tell us what we need to know to friday to tell us what we need to know to keep our gardens, plants and yards healthy, happy and green. Jerry, how is it going . Now. Hell be available for all your gardening needs at the Downtown Des Moines Farmers Market on saturdays. About the market support local agriculture and buy direct from iowa farmers while shopping the downtown Farmers Market presented by Unitypoint Health des moines. The downtown Farmers Market presents iowa producers from 58 counties across iowa, offering fresh fruit, vegetables and so much more every saturday, may october. Youll find fresh herbs, beautiful flowers, farm fresh eggs, local wineries, a delicious assortment of goat cheese, an endless selection of baked goods, and many varieties of iowa raised meat such as beef, pork, chicken, turkey, goat, rabbit, lamb and tilapia. Flowers, farm fresh eggs, local wineries, a delicious assortment of goat cheese, an endless selection of baked goods, and many varieties of iowa raised meat such as beef, pork, chicken, amanda and before we go lucky and beforecharms cereal is going all marshmallow but if you want it you have to enter a contest. Just 10 boxes of the all marshmallow lucky charms will be made. Those interested in a box must post a photo of themselves to facebook, twitter, or instagram with an imaginary box of lucky charms. They must also use the hashtag lucky 10 sweepstakes. The contest runs until sunday. Sam this week started on the mild and warm side, but now were really back to feeling like fall with a cold day and frost night back in the forecast. Were looking at mostly sunny skies today with a few more afternoon clouds. Were going to be cold and windy this afternoon with highs only climbing into the mid 50s and northwest winds around 1015 mph. Overnight were going to see partly cloudy skies but well probably see wide spread frost as lows fall into the low 30s and 20s. Saturday will start very cold and chilly, but with some sunshine well warm that air up into the upper 50s. Sunday is going to be gorgeous with highs climbing back into the upper 60s. Next week we have a few rain chances and well have our highs go back into the 70s for a few days. Amanda thanks for watching. You can view todays top stories and an updated Weather Forecast online where is he . Hes never on time. Heyey guys. Sorry im late. Where were you . Oh, sorry, i took the monorail to the magic kingdom. Then the next thing i knew i was on space mououain, and the splash mountain, and then the teacups