and what the judge told those jurors today. the concern going into thanksgiving now. the number of child covid cases soaring. nearly 142,000 new child infections just last week. overall, cases up 40% nationwide tonight. some hospitals now asking the pentagon for help. one state calling in the national guard. the major verdict tonight after charlottesville. the lawsuit against organizers of that deadly unite the right rally. the hate groups now ordered to pay more than $25 million in damages. there is news on brian laundrie tonight. the man wanted in the disappearance of gab give petito. what the final autopsy results on laundrie now show. the deadly house explosion under investigation at this hour. a 55-year-old woman killed and now the body of a 4-year-old girl has been found, too. 30 homes nearby destroyed or damaged. tonight, nasa just hours away from launching a spacecraft trying to slam into an asteroid. all part of a plan to be prepared to protect earth. and the abc anchor going to space. i'll be watching from here. good evening and it's great to have you with us here on a very busy tuesday night. and we begin tonight with the christmas parade tragedy in waukesha, wisconsin. late today, the suspect in court to face charges. and prosecutors revealing a sixth person has died, a child. the suspect, darrell brooks, will face six counts of intentional homicide. in court today, prosecutors said this was an intentional at to strike and hurt as many people as possible. images of that red suv speeding down the parade route, heading toward a marching band, weaving right there around them and then driving on. and that haunting image from above, slamming directly into marchers. in addition to the six who were killed, authorities say 62 people were hurt. and tonight, those new images of the suspect a short time after the parade crash, authorities say he drove through the parade then and knocked on the door of this home, saying he was asking for help in getting an uber. shortly after, police arriving there and arresting him. tonight, that suspect before a judge and abc's alex perez from waukesha tonight. >> reporter: tonight, with his hands shackled and wearing what appeared to be a bulletproof vest, the man police say plowed into the crowds at a christmas parade in waukesha, making his first appearance in court. 39-year-old suspect darrell brooks audibly sobbing in court when prosecutors announced a child had died and that they intend to charge him with six counts of intentional homicide. >> i wish to notify the court sadly that today we learned of another death of a child. >> reporter: a newly released criminal complaint saying an officer observed brooks looking straight ahead, directly at him, and it appeared he had no emotion on his face when he plowed into parade-goers and participants, honking as officers yelled for him to stop. authorities say the suv appeared to rapidly accelerate and turn into the crowd, injuring 62 people. an officer saying, "it was clear this was an intentional act to strike and hurt as many people as possible." >> the nature of this offense is shocking. >> reporter: and tonight, we're getting our first look at brooks moments after the deadly chaos. this doorbell cam video capturing him knocking on a homeowner's door about a half mile from the parade route, asking for help with a ride. >> hey, can i -- i called an uber and i'm supposed to be waiting for it over here but i don't know when it's coming. can you call them for me, please? >> reporter: minutes later, police arriving, arresting him. >> put your hands up! put your hands where i can see them! >> whoa, whoa, whoa! >> hands up! hands up! >> reporter: we're also learning new details about the six killed. three of them part of the dancing grannies marching group. those three were marching right next to dancing granny clead t,t people wer i spotted her and you could just see her blue dress tight against the doorway. >> reporter: and david, take a look behind me here. you can see a growing memorial for the victims. a lot of people stopping by to pay their respects. in court, prosecutors called brooks a flight risk. the judge set his bail at $5 million. brooks did not enter a plea. he's due back in court in january. david? >> all right, alex perez with late reporting from waukesha tonight. alex, thank you. we're going to turn next here this evening to the major move from president biden today, knowing full well millions of americans have hit the road for thanksgiving. many driving, of course, and facing those gas prices along the way. this afternoon, president biden revealing the administration will now tap into the strategic petroleum reserves, the nation's emergency supply, to help bring down gas prices. the president saying it's just one step in a larger plan, also speeding up action at key ports. americans paying on average $3.40 a gallon, $1.29 more than a year ago. the question tonight, how long before prices fall? abc's rachel scott now from the white house. >> reporter: with americans preparing for what could the most expensive thanksgiving yet, president biden taking action today to blunt some of the pain at the pump. >> the bottom line, we're launching a major effort to moderate the price of oil. an effort that will span the globe in its reach and ultimately reach your corner gas station, god willing. >> reporter: for drivers, relief can't come soon enough. in just the past year, the average price for a gallon of gas has soared to $3.40. that's $1.29 higher than this time last year. >> to fill up my car, it's like $65. >> reporter: khadijah baxter and her four kids usually drive to spend thanksgiving with family. but not this year. >> riding around is a no. you are going to have to fill up again by the end of the week. >> reporter: today, the president tapping into the nation's emergency reserve to help, releasing 50 million gallons of crude oil. >> the fact is, we always get through those spikes, but we're going to get through this one as well and hopefully faster. but it doesn't mean we should just stand by idly and wait for prices to drop on their own. >> reporter: i pressed the energy secretary jennifer granholm on when americans will feel the impact. so, bottom line, how soon will americans see prices at the pump drop and how long do you expect that to last? >> it won't happen tomorrow, but it'll happen over the next few weeks that people hopefully will start to see the difference. >> reporter: the administration acutely aware that inflation combined with shipping delays is hitting families hard. today, word the shipping logjam may be easing. abc's kayna whitworth reports there's 33% less cargo sitting on the docks at the port of los angeles, the nation's busiest. port officials creating relief yards to house empty shipping containers, making space for new ones to be unloaded. >> and as this relief yard is already nearing capacity, they're looking to open another one right across the street to hold an additional 6,000 containers. >> reporter: officials say the progress is clear to see. two weeks ago, 101 ships waiting at the port. today, that number down to 63. >> americans following all of this very closely. rachel, of course, the question everyone wants to know tonight, how soon will president biden's announcement late today effect prices at the pump? >> reporter: well, david, it will take 13 days for that oil to be released from the emergency reserves, but economists say the markets are already feeling the effect of the president's decision. so, americans can expect to see those prices come down at the pump in a matter of days. david? >> rachel scott at the white house. rachel, thank you. and of course, the other concern going into this thanksgiving holiday, the numbers tonight. new covid cases up 40% overall in the country, as we near thanksgiving. and cases among children, this number tonight, nearly 142,000 new cases just last week. here's abc's erielle reshef. >> reporter: tonight, pediatricians warning covid infections among children are once again on the rise, up 40% since late october. nearly 142,000 new cases just last week. >> over the past two to three weeks, we've seen a significant increase. >> just a little pinch and it will be over quickly, okay? >> reporter: with children accounting for one in every four new covid cases, there's a push to get more shots into arms. >> as much as we'd all love to be past this pandemic, we're not and cases rising is always a concern. kids are not as severely affected as adults, but they certainly can and do get hospitalized. >> reporter: in virginia, 8-year-old ashlyn south was hospitalized with that rare pediatric inflammatory syndrome weeks after her parents had covid. >> she's always been a healthy kid. i just didn't think this could happen to us and it did. >> reporter: 35 million children who are eligible are still unvaccinated. but tonight, there is more promising data on the vaccine in adolescents. pfizer reporting its shots were safe and 100% effective at preventing covid in 12 to 15-year-olds for at least four months. new covid cases are ticking up across 32 states, with overall infections up 42% in the last four weeks. >> we're dealing with a much more contagious variant than we did before. >> reporter: overwhelmed hospitals in michigan reportedly asking the pentagon for emergency staff. and in minnesota, the national guard is now training teams to help ease nursing shortages. and david, michigan hospital officials say that their e.r.s have more patients than they have rooms. they're using hallways, conference rooms and in some cases, diverting patients altogether. they say things could get worse before they get better and they are urging the public to get vaccinated. david? >> all right, erielle reshef tonight. erielle, thank you. tonight, the final autopsy report is now in on the death of brian laundrie, the man who had been wanted in the disappearance of gabby petito. the medical examiner saying laundrie took his own life with a gunshot wound to the head. laundrie vanished in september, days after his girlfriend gabby petito was reported missing. weeks later, his remains were found in a florida nature reserve near his home. of course, many weeks before that, petito had been found dead in wyoming. her death had been ruled a homicide. we turn next here tonight to that major verdict after charlottesville in the civil trial we've been following. the trial after that deadly unite the right rally in charlottesville in 2017. tonight, a federal jury now ordering white nationalist leaders and organizations to pay more than $25 million in damages to nine victims. here's our chief justice correspondent pierre thomas. >> reporter: tonight, a jury in virginia holding the white supremacist and neo-nazi organizers liable for the violence at their charlottesville rally that turned deadly in august 2017. >> i think this verdict today is a message that this country does not tolerate violence based on racial and religious hatred in any form. >> reporter: jurors awarding over $25 million in civil damages to nine victims, including several caught in the carnage as a racist rammed his car into a crowd, killing heather heyer. charlottesville became ground zero for the nation's racial tension, as a debate erupted over whether a statue of confederate general robert e. lee should remain in the southern city. the neo-nazi who killed heyer was convicted of murder, but heyer's mother has long wanted the organizers of the white nationalists to face justice, as well. >> i hope that not only are they bankrupted, but i hope that other groups realize that there are dire consequences to their actions. >> reporter: david, the jury deadlocked on federal conspiracy charges, but did find a conspiracy charge under a virginia state law that allows for civil damages for racial or religiously motivated harassment and violence. david? >> pierre thomas, who has been following this since 2017. pierre, thank you. now, to the trial of ahmaud arbery. the case is now in the hands of the jury tonight. gregory mcmichael, his son travis and their neighbor william "roddie" bryan, now awaiting their fate. facing life in prison in convicted. here's steve osunsami. >> reporter: there is so much concern about the demonstrations happening outside the glynn county courthouse that the judge moved jury deliberations to a quiet room that doesn't have any exterior windows. jurors are deciding if travis mcmichael, his father gregory mcmichael, and a neighbor, william "roddie" bryan, will each be found guilty or acquitted on nine charges, including murder, aggravated assault, and false imprisonment. in georgia, a murder conviction alone means a minimum of life in prison. >> doesn't matter who actually pulled the trigger. under the law, they're all guilty, even of malice murder. >> reporter: if a person is murdered in georgia, the law says that the convicted getaway driver, for example, can be punished in the same way as the person who is convicted of the actual homicide. it's why william "roddie" bryan, who wasn't carrying a gun, but prosecutors say was part of the chase, could be in so much trouble. he and the others have pleaded not guilty. in her final words today, the prosecutor told jurors that without bryan chasing the black victim with his pickup truck, ahmaud arbery would still be alive. >> once mr. bryan turns around, he went up and down this street at least four times. confined and detained on holmes. that's false imprisonment. >> reporter: travis mcmichael is seen on bryan's cell phone recording shooting arbery dead in the street in february of last year. and prosecutors say arbery is dead because he's black. the three say the shooting was justified under a then citizen's arrest law. but arbery is never seen stealing anything at the neighborhood construction site where he first raised their suspicions. the thanksgiving holiday is, of course, on thursday and the court here is not planning to be open, so if jurors haven't reached a unanimous verdict by tomorrow, the plan is that they will take a short break and return to deliberating on friday morning. david? >> all right, steve osunsami on the case again tonight. steve, thank you. we're going to move on now to the major mission for nasa overnight tonight. the planetary defense mission, a test, they say, to save the earth in the future. tonight, nasa will launch a rocket into space, sending a spacecraft to collide with an asteroid some 7 million miles away, aiming to knock it slightly off-course, a practice run should they actually need to hit an asteroid later to save earth. here's gio benitez. >> reporter: tonight, nasa is just hours away from launching a bold space flight that could one day help save the planet. the dart mission, as it's known, will slam a spacecraft into an asteroid to knock it off-course. >> asteroid impacts into earth are one of the only, maybe the only, natural disaster that we can predict very far ahead of time and that we can also do something about. >> reporter: it will be the first time humans have ever tried to redirect an asteroid. and here's what it will look like. about ten months after launch, the spacecraft, which is about the size of a large vending machine, will reach the massive asteroid about 7 million miles away and crash into it at 15,000 miles per hour. >> basically, we're firing this vending machine at one of the pyramids of egypt very, very fast. >> reporter: it won't destroy the asteroid, but nasa hopes that the high speed collision will knock it off-court just enough to prove we can keep asteroids away from earth. and david, the asteroid nasa intends to hit and redirect is no threat to planet earth. but what we learn from it really could help protect us from any catastrophic collision later on. david? >> all right, this is going to be fascinating to watch. gio, thank you. when we come back here tonight, the deadly house explosion. a 55-year-old woman and a 4-year-old girl both killed. 30 homes and structures destroyed and damaged and the images coming in tonight. ♪ ♪ there are beautiful ideas that remain in the dark. but with our new multi-cloud experience, you have the flexibility you need to unveil them to the world. ♪ with voltaren arthritis pain gel. my husband's got his moves back. to unveil them to the world. an alternative to pills, voltaren is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory gel for powerful arthritis pain relief. voltaren, the joy of movement. tonight, we continue to follow that deadly home explosion in flint, michigan. just the stunning surveillance showing the explosion last night. a 55-year-old woman and a 4-year-old girl were killed. the girl's body recovered late this afternoon. we've learned her parents have been hospitalized. her father in critical condition tonight. the mayor now saying 30 homes and structures damaged or destroyed. this was felt a mile away. so far, no signs of a gas leak. the investigation continues. when we come back, we're going to shift gears here and the announcement today, the abc anchor going to space. 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and 7 on your side's michaelnnet stolen merchandise abc 7 news is finally to finally tonight here, the thanksgiving additions and the families with so much to be thankful for. tonight, with thanksgiving just two days away now, two families extra thankful. in sacramento, california, the surprise. >> hi! >> oh, my gosh! what did i not hear? >> when two parents begin calling their friends and loved ones, they had adopted a little girl. >> i wanted to introduce you to someone. >> shut the front door! what? hold on. oh my gosh! >> mom, alexis, telling family and friends to record their zooms and their facetimes. she knew they'd want to keep them. >> i wanted to introduce you to someone. >> who is that? >> this is our new baby girl. >> hello there! >> no way! >> what? >> no way! no way! >> alexis and her husband gabriel adopting francesca, joining big sister gianna and big brother grant, also adopted. the family telling us tonight, "there's always so much to be thankful for, but this thanksgiving is extra special because we've been infinitely blessed by adoption. and we are so thankful we can finally share sweet francesca with the world." and in bloomington, minnesota, the workoff family about to get bigger, too. >> good morning, everybody, and welcome to this joyous and happy occasion. > zooming with the judge. 3-year-old phoenix about to be adopted. joining her two other biological siblings with the family already. cayden and destin. >> do you all want to have phoenix as your sister? >> yes! >> oh, wonderful. that was a resounding yes. therefore, it is ordered that the petition for adoption is granted. congratulations. it is final! >> yay! >> mom jodi. >> we heard a little bit about a need for some families for kids until they could go home and we thought that we could do that. >> they are now a family of nine. and right here tonight -- >> hi, david! >> the workoffs all together. >> we are so thankful this thanksgiving to introduce phoenix to our forever family. >> happy thanksgiving! >> while back in sacramento -- >> going to make me cry. >> -- the thanksgiving surprise that will never get old. this year, they have something truly to be thankful for. >> oh my god! she's so cute. congratulations! >> that's awesome. >> even the baby's surprised there. happy thanksgiving. good night. good night. >> caught now charge. the process to hold these people accountable. >> and we'll be joined by abc 7 news insider phil mateer about what it will take to stop these crimes and build a better bay area. >> union square is coming back to life after friday's incident. abc 7 news at 6:00 starts now. >> building a better bay area. moving forward. finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. >> lately it's not fun anymore. it's just like, you got to be concerned about everything, everyone. >> her concerns are valid. she doesn't want to be at work when something like this happens. we continue to ask, what's being done to stop it? good evening and thank you for joining us. >> you're watching abc 7 news at 6:00 live here on abc 7, hulu live and wherever you streesm we're working every day to build a better bay area. the slew of organize red tail theft we witnessed in san francisco and other cities over the weekend isn't part of it. since we covered the story yesterday here's what's news tine. >> the p.d. is increasing patrols on streets that run near shop airg yas. they announced charges, felony charges, against those arrested for stealing from union square friday. >> san francisco's police chief is asking the city to revise rules about accessing surveillance cameras so police can see footage in real tame -- real time not just after the fact. and retail workers are opening up about the fear and dread they a face every day we start with their stories because it makes you realize what a big deal these crimes are on a human level. >> in retail, working the holidays yucially means working extra hours for higher pay. today i spoke to several retail