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 off-duty 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 12-year 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 capital's 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 saint-denis, 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. france's 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 45-thousand 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 off-duty 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 u-s 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 i-d's near a shopping area. activists continue to call for resign following a federal investigation into the city's 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 die-in. 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 didn't 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 don't know.. can't believe, don't 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 burned-out pickup truck earlier this week in northeast, nebraska. ktiv's 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 couldn't be the sportsman's 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. minimum-security state prisioner, dustin emery, walked away from the unit just before midnight last night. the 26-year-old is 5-feet-9 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, you're asked to call authorities. many companies around the world give back to their communities during the holiday season. but coming up, we'll 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. nbc's 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 charlotte's assistance league ...it's teen court.. nat: (burned in: "volunteer teen attorney" "he's 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 teen's criminal record is cleared. sot: seth glazer / attorney and teen court judge 1:10-1:17) "it's 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 multi-generational 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. she's getting back up on stage and singer her way back to a healthy life. > you don't 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 who's proving that to be true. this is the christmas party for the pediatric unit. today - there's another special guest besides santa. two months ago - teenager alyssa wacker wasn't 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, "there's a risk with this surgery bececse we have to move your vocal cords." for her sixteenth birthday, alyssa's parents gave her this s-u-v. 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. here's her x-ray...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 guitar's neck kind of got broke, too." this type of injury carries plenty of uncertainty. alyssa: "i've 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: "she's made tremendous progress here. it's awesome to see that. it's 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: "there's so much more o it than anyone thinks. it improroes life in general which is a huge goal of music therapy." that's her partner on this day - katelyn schroeder. a music therapy student at the university voluntee"it 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 aren't waking up to a white christmas, but we could see some more of the white stuff later today. t-j's got the detaililafter the break. and you've heard of elf on the shelf. but one elf has joined the police force in pennsylvania. we'll show you what he's been up praised as one of america's 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, there's 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) i'm 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 department's facebook page. sarge is quickly making friends. (sgt. toby wildasin/ west manheim township police department) it's been an overwhelming response. it's kind of made it enjoyable. i've 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, it's a great concept and we're sure it is reaching our great town of hanover. it's special that one person, or elf, can make such a big difference in life. his fellow officers say he's 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 he'll be heading back to the north pole ... but he'll surely have a spot on the force next year. >> and, the woodbury county sheriff's department had it's 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 santa's 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 jerry's shenanigans on the woodbury county sheriff's office facebook page. you can find a link in this it's . time for a break. but we're back in just a moment with more news and weather for you on news-4 today. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the ktiv-dot-com community calendar. welcome back and thanks for joining us on this christmas morning. i'm 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 week's storms. flooding has also been an issue. and many holiday travelers have been stranded in airports due to the severe weather. we'll have the latest in just a minute. and one salvation army volunteer is going above and beyond this year. he's not just ringing a bell, he's also handing out free teddy bears. we'll show you his story in a little bit. and later in healthbeat four, we'll meet a child prodigy who is determined to keep playing his violin, despite having sickle cell disease. it's an inspiring story you won't 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 7-day. >> 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. that's 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 it's a big inconvenience for me." (mos) " he got flewn up to memphis because... couldn't land." (mos) "so me and my son aren't 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, four-hoofed friend is hoping to shoppers in wisconsin what christmas is really about. jessica bringe has the story. "i loved the smiles on the parent's faces, i loved the smiles on the kid's faces." for the first time, mocha and owner holly are ringing in the holidays with the salvation army at gordy's market locations..giving back in more ways than one. holly schindler/moc ha's 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 elf's ears about her christmas gift." jessica bringe/report er :52-1:02 "not only is mocha is bringing the holiday spirit but he's 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/gordy's market 1:05-1:09 "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 santa's helper. holly schindler/moc ha's owner 1:15-1:18 "i think mocha and i might do it again." as for birthday on christmas eve and named holly after the holiday. holly schindler/moc ha's owner 1:27-1:30 "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 ha's owner 1:35-1:39 "we wanted to wish everyone mmrry christmas. i thought this was a pretty good way to do it." (nats) "merry christmas!" >> the giving spirit was alive this week in sioux city. donald baumgardner spent most of the day outside fareway on war eagle anyone who walked by. in addition to volunteering as a bell ringer for the salvation army, donald hands out teddy bears and other stufufd animals to anyone who wanan one. he said it was important to him to give his time to help make the holiday season for others a little brighter. "it makes you feel so good and wonderful, it's a small thing i do, but some people just enjoy. it's like you gave them a million dollars just for one toy." said donald baumgardner. by early yesterday afternoon donald had given away more than animals. we have an update on a sioux city woman who goes nuts over nutcrackers. last week, we showed you the nutcracker collection of jacque in that story, jacque, who is a retired nurse, mentioned that she was only missing one nutcracker... a nurse nutcracker. just a few days later, she received a package in the mail from an anonymous elf. said jacque "it's unbelievable said jacque goettsch. "i had tears in my eyes. i believe it." goettsch still,doesn't know who sent her the special nutcracker, but is grateful that the christmas spirit of giving is alive and well. "i was on t.v. and said i don't have a nurse doll and it came in the mail anonymously. it was like a gift," said goettsch. "if they're watching, they made my christmas. it was wonderful." goettsch started her collection back in 1988 and as of last nutcrackers. now, that number is 244. it's been 38 y yrs since there has been a full moon sighting on christmas day. today's full moon is the last of called the full cold moon because it occurs at the start of winter. there won't be another christmas full moon until 2034 --- and that one will only be visible in the 48 contiguous states... gander today. up next in healthbeat four... living with sickle cell disease is never easy. but we'll show you how one boy has accomplished a lot, depsite the disease ben: and i'll have your > wx timer @ 2:30 after our little burst o osnow across siouxland on christmas eve, christmas day will remain relatively quiet with overcast conditions and temperatures in the 30's. another storm system will move its way out of the four corners region this afternoon which will give us our next chance of wintry weather this evening into the overnight hours tonight. minor accumulations are possible with a good bet of 1-3" in the centr parts of the viewing area with more snow as you head north and west where 3-6" is be the scenario for 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 t tnd to start the possible, along with highs in the 20s for when most toddlers were learning to walk and play nicely on the playground -- one little boy in north carolina was learning to play the violin. his natural talent was soon apparent... but now as a 7 year old.... health problems may derail a promising child prodigy. erika edwards has his story in healthbeat four. one... not two... but three strokes -- all related to sickle cell. nat: "you ready?" "i'm not.." "you're not??" he must undergo blood transfusions every three weeks to help prevent a fourth stroke. sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder.. both caesar and his little sister have it, though hers has been less seveve. red blood cells in people with sickle cell disease are shaped like a crescent moon, and become sticky vessels. the disease can be extremely painful, and cause organ damage and stroke -- as in caesar's case. sot: daniel mcmahon, md - carolinas healthcare system :1:06-1:10 "what we ultimately would like to do is do a stem cell transplant which is a curative form of treatment for sickle cell disease." the procedure -- which takes stem cells from the bone marroroof a donor -- is complex and risky.. but a potential cure. nat: caesar playing violin the strokes have left caesar struggling sometimes to find the right note... but he still plays beautifully thankso months of rehabilitation. his father credits the violin for saving caesar's life. sot: lucas santos - father "the more you exercise your fingers, the more you strength the brain connection." nat: caesar stops playing and takes a bow his family hopes the combination of music and medicine will lead to caesar's best performance yet. erika edwards, nbc news. >> caesar hopes to get a bone marrow transplant in 2016. still ahead this morning on news 4 today.... most stores and restaurants are closed today. but wewel give you a few plalas that will be open, just in case you need to eat out today. and if you can't exchange a gift you got for christmas, but want to get rid of it, don't worry. there's an app for that. we'll show you how it works, christmas eve is almost always the quietest trading day of the year, and this year was no exception. stocks closed slightly lower in extremely light trading. the dow fell 50 points to finish at 17,552. the nasdaq rose just over 2 and the s&p fell 3 points. the stock market closed three yesterday and will remain closed today for christmas. are you looking for a place to eat today? maybe your fest didn't turn n reheat leftovers? kaitlyn's here with a list of kaitlyn? finding a place to eat on christmas day can be difficult. but there are a few places that will be open. "denny's" will be serving christmas s eer with breakfast, lunch and supper. last year, denny's welcomed more than 1 point 4 million guests on christmas day, making it the diner's busiest day for the fifth consecutive year. "applebee's" will be open, but times and locations will vary, so call l ead before heading out. select "golden corral" restaurants will be open as well. and if you need a caffeine fix, some starbucks locations are open today. a buffet of new movies will be offered up on the big screen today as folks look for something to do after opening gifts. it's opening day for "joy," "concussion," and "the hateful eight". check your local listings to find out which films are being offered at your local theater. christmas gifts are just being opened but people are already planning to return or re-gift what they don't want. an american express survey found that 66- percent of consumers plan to shop on december 26th. already, eight percent of those shoppers plan to return or exchange gifts tomorrow. though a bigger percentage, 38-percent say they will be hitting the stores for the great deals. and if you can't return that sweater that's not there's an app for that. the folks at five-miles suggest selling your unwanted gifts on re-gifting to yourself.. so you can get cash to buy something you really want. the app is like craigslist.. connecting people who live near each other to buy and sese goods. t.j.'s back with a look at our christmas day forecast. and we'll have the stories making headlines in siouxland. and robert downey jr. recently received a pardon. plus other celebrities took time out of their schedules to visit children in hospitals. it's coming up in the > > if you're just tuning in, here's if you're just tuning in, here's a look at the top stories in siouxland. officals have released the names found inside of a burned- out pickup truck earlier this week in ngrtheast nebraska. the vicitms were 37-year- old josh klinetobe of tilden, nebraska and his wife, 33-year-old bobbi jo klineotbe of meadow grove. investigators say it appears to be a murder- suicide with the evidence showing that josh killed his wife, bobbi jo, before killing himself. friends of the family have set up a fund to collect donations for the seven children the couple leaves behind. donations can be made out to tilden bank. the tilden library is also accepting donations for the family. in sioux city, one man was in the giving spirit yesterday. donald baumgardner spent most of his day outside of fareway. he's a volunteer for the salvation army. in addition to bell ringing, baumgardner decided to hand out teddy bears and other stuffed animals to anyone who wanted one. he said it's important for him to give of his time to make the holidays a little brighter for others. as of yesterery afternoon, he had already handed out more than four hundred stuffed animals. and one siouxland woman has been collecting nutrcrackers since we shared her collection with you last week. jacque goettsch is a retired nurse and d id the only nutcracker she didn't have was a nurse one. shortly after her story aired on ktiv, she recieved a surprise in the mail. an anonymous elf sent her a nurse nutcracker. goettsch still doesn't know who sent it to her, but she's thankful to that person for keeping the christmas spirit alive. with her new nutcracker, she now has 244 in her collection. one celeb receives a christmas eve pardon...while a few others spread christmas cheer. david daniel has today's hollywood minute. gun in his car. he spent nearly a year in prison in 1999 after violating his probation. several celebs are taking time to spread holiday cheer to sick kids. for the second year in a row, jennifer lawrence visited patients and staff at a children's hospital in her hometown. meanwhile luke skywalker himself... mark hamill... skipped a recent promotional appearance for "the force awakens" to visit kids at a british hospital. still to come in our third half hour this morning.... you've heard of elf on the shelf. but you probably haven't seen the elf who joined the police force. we'll show you what he's been doing the last few days. and the hawkeyes flew out to california to continue preps for the rose bowl. we'll hear from some of the players in the sports good morning. thanks for joining us on this christmas day, friday, december 25th. i'm sarah te slaa. al has the morning off. coming up in this half hour of news 4 today... violence at a charlotte north carolina mall after someone opened fire after a fight broke out. authorites say it was not a random act of violence. details on the way. also, the community of tilden pulls together to support the seven children a couple leaves behind after police rule their dead a murder suicide in northeast nebraska. and later... an iowa girl who loves to sing nearly lost her voice after a terrible car crash, but she regaining her gift of song and using it to help her heal. and now she's taking her talents to the national stage. charlotte police say the deadly shooting inside a mall on christmas eve was not a random violence. sarah hagen reports from north carolina. police department) "well an "active shooter" by definition is somebody randomly taking shots at the public in general. that was not the case this time." officer thomas ferguson, who was working off-duty at the mall, heard the shots. (-- sot --) (chief kerr putney / charlotte police department) "he responded to the location of the shots. when he got to that location he encountered an armed subject. he confronted the armed subject who, according to witnesses and information we're getting, pointed a gun in the direction of the officer. our officer fired his service weapon." the gunman was pronounced dead at the scene and multiple weapons were found. the chief wouldn't say if they're looking for anyone else. (-(- sot --) (chief kerr putney / charlotte police department) "no ma'am. i'm telling you -- i gave you all the facts that i have. right now we're still investigating it. that's all i have for you. thank you." >> that was sarah hagen reporting. the off-duty officer who shot the armed man is now on paid administrative leave. police say the man who was killed --- daquan n westbrook --- has a long rap eet, including a charge for shooting a 12-year 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 e esday on a street in the business district. the man was identified as abdoullah c., a 30-year-old belgian national. 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 saint-denis, 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. france's 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 45-thousand catholic churches... and to protestant and orthodox places of worship as well. the government asked churches to limiting the number of opened doors anansearching 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 a arews to rejoice in christmas eve servrves. the churches paid for a handful of off-duty police officers to help monitor 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 u-s embassy and those of other western nations issued christmas security warnings for their citizens living in china. police and commando units were sent to patrol the district starting on christmas eve. they were seen checking i-d's near a shopping area. activists continue to call for chicago mayor a federal investigation into the city's police department. dozens of people gathered in downtown chicico 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 die-in. the protests are in response to the fatal shooting of laquan mcdonald by a white chicago police officer last yeye. authorities have identified the two bodies found inside of a burned-out pickup truck earlier this week in northeast nebraska. ktiv's tiffany lane traveled to tilden to show how the community is supporting the seven children the couple leaves behind. monday afternoon after responding to a vehicle fire near pierce, nebraska. they are 37-year-old josh klinetobe of tilden, nebraska and his wife, 33- year-old bobbi jo klinetobe of meadow grove. the pierce county attorney says it appearsrsto be a murder- suicide and evidence shows that josh, killed his wife, bobbi jo, before he killed himself. su speaking with the community members, many of them say they didn't know bobbi jo very well, but they only had nice things to say about her. the owner of quick serve oil on tilden's main drag, says bobbi joe was a customer of his. he said she was always pleasant. just nearby, there is a pdj shoppe, a convenience store where she use to work. with the presence she had in tilden, friends and family are coming together to help. they have set up a fund to collect donations for the seven children the couple leaves behind. donations can be made at the tilden bank. the tilden library is accepting donations of clothing and gift cards for the family. and a gofundme account has also been set up. in tilden, nebraska, tiffany lane, ktiv news 4. >> tiffany spoke with the owners of tilden, whwhe bobbi jo worked for fofo years. they say they are grieving for their friend. for anyone interested in donating we have more infomation inside this story on ktiv dot com. authorities are looking for an inmate who walked away from the yankton community work center overerght. minimum-security state prisioner, dustin emery, walked away from the unit just before midnight last night. the 26-year-old is 5-feet-9 inches tall and about 170 pounds. he has brown hair and hazel emery is serving time for grand theft and possession of a controlled substance out of yankton county. if you know where he is, yououe asked to call authorities. and you've heard of elf on the shelf. but one elf has joined the police force in pennsylvania. we'll show you what he's been up to, next. and i'll have your complete > you know elf on the shelf. but in pennsylvania, there's now elf on the force. the police force, that is. melissa nardo explains how the new police recruit is helping to spread some holiday cheer. police department) as you may or may not know he goes back to the north pole every night. however- this elf, is taking on a little more this holiday season. sarge is the newest officer sworn in to the west manheim township police department. the stuffed officer is taking his oawh very seriously, concting 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 (sgt. toby wildasin/ west manheim township police department) i'm able to capture a photo of him when i come in each day at work. sgt. toby wildason makes sure to cument his facebook page. sarge is quickly making friends. (sgt. toby wildasin/ west manheim township police department) it's been an overwhelming response. it's kind of made it enjoyable. i've actually gotten a lot of good comments on our social media. one of his followers even writing a letter. (sgt. toby wildasin/ west manheim township police department) she said what a difference it makes, it's a great concept and we're surr it is reaching ouugreat town of hanoveve. it's special that one big difference in life. his fellow officers say he's doing a great job at connecting with the community. showing a 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 like a police facebook page. and ultimately helping solve crime. (sgt. toby wildasin/ west manheim township police department) and when we need the communities help in a situation, we already have that base of followers built up. after christmas he'll be heading back to the north pole ... but he'll surely have a spot on the force next year. >> that was melissa nardo reporting from pennsylvania. and, the woodbury county sheriff's department has it's own elf on a shelf. elf jerry spent the last 23 days taking part in some shshanigans 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 santa's arrival. and before taking off for the 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 jerry's christmas fun on the woodbury county sheriff's office facebook page. you can find a link to it on our website... ktiv.com. both the iowa and husker football teams are spending christmas in california. we'll hear from hawkeye players as they prep for the rose bowl. and the huskers take o oucla tomorrow in the foster f fms bowl. the sports fource morning wrap both the hawkeyes and huskers are in california, getting ready for bowl games. ktiv's brad pautsch has more in the sports fource morning wrap. behind iowa's winter for warmer weather. the hawkeye football team hopped on a plane thursday, bound for california and a date with stanford in the rose bowl on new year's day. the football team boarded their flight in cedar rapids surrounded by their families for the christmas eve sendoff. the players were visibly excited as they took pictures of each other and themselfes, to document the big day. once in california, the hawkeyes will share a practice facility with stanford, finishing off the 15 bowl practices that each team is allowed. the hawkeyes have a lot of work, and a lot of fun, ahead of them. "disneyland, i'm sure that's going to be a fun time for the guys, to be able to just enjoy the moment," said senior jordan lomax. "to be able to be in disneyland, i've never been there before, i'm sure a lot of the guys on the team have never been there before, so just being disneyland should be fun for us." "you want the player to enjoy that. they've earned that. this is something they've earned," said head coach kirk ferentz. "but you also want them to have an awareness of what it is we're trying to get accomplished at the end of the day." the rose bowl kicks off at 10 on new year's day. iowa is a six and a half point underdog. the cornhuskers are also in california, getting ready for saturday's game against ucla in the foster farms bowl in san francisco. these two schools have great traditions. this will be the 13th meeting between the two schools and the series is even at six wins apiece. the two coaches met once before -- mike riley beat jim mora in 2012, when riley was at oregon state the bruins are 8-4 -- disappointing for them -- they were ranked as high as seventh in the country early in the season. nebraska got into a bowl game with a 5-7 record, but those seven losses are by a combined 31 points. "we've had what you would call a rollercoaster but at the same time it wasn't a rollercoaster week to week because of the continued work that these guys showed and the example that they set that allowed to even gett better as the seasonnwent along even though we went through some hard times," said riley. "more than anything it's just an opportunity to play another game together as a team and test ourselves against one of the great teams head coach jim mora. the foster farms bowl kicks off at 8-15 on saturday for more go to ktiv.com. i"m brad pautsch with the sports fource morning wrap. >> some parts of siouxland could see more snow today.... t.j.'s in next with the details. and music has healing qualities for many of us. and one injured teen from southwest, iowa has proven that fact. she's getting back up on stage and singer her way back to a healthy life. paris: there's a lot to do on a dairy farm. nobody's gonna do it for you. you have to get out there and do it yourself. bernie sanders is a well-known friend of family farms. bernie cannot be bought out by bigigoney. bernie's opinion cannot be purchased. roll up his sleeves, take off the gloves, and take on wall street, take on big business, take on big money, and get the working class back to where they should be. he's a rock. sanders: i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. wx timer @ 1 15 after our little burst of snow across siouxland on christmas eve, christmas day wi remain relatively quiet with overcast conditions and temperatures in the 30's. another storm system will move its way out of the four corners region this afternoon which will give us our next chance of wintry weather this evening into the overnight hours tonight. minor a good bet of 1-3" in the central parts of the viewing area with more snow as you head north ann west where 3-6" is ssible. less than an inchhwill be the scenario for the south eastern parts of the region. we 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 7-day. >> you don't 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 who's proving that to be true. cord was also damaged. before the crash - she sang her own songs - the guitar had been in back of her vehicle. alyssa: "my guitar's neck kind of got broke, too." this type of injury carries plenty of uncertainty. alyssa: "i've had some pretty rough days." some people never regain the use of their arms - or breath on their own. super: molly thomas, occupational therapist - madonna (quick super) molly thomas, occupational therapist - madonna rehabilitation hospital: "she's made tremendous progress here. it's awesome to see that. it's been almost daily progress. hopefully so she can play the guitar like she used to." alyssa wacker is able to strum a 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 of omaha: here's so much more to it than anyone thinks. it improves life in general which is a huge goal of music therapy." that's her partner on this day - katelyn schroeder. a music therapy student at the university of kansas - who volunteers at madonna. katelyn: "it feels like i've known her for a long time." music and medicine combining forces. katelyn: "it does incredible things." alyssa is scheduled to get out of madonona rehab on jananary 22. the next day - get this - she has an appointment on america's got talent. >> that was brian mastre reporting. as for a career -- alyssa says she wants to that was brian mastre reporting. as for a career -- alyssa says she wawas to be a music teacher. it's . time for a break. we're back with our fourth half hour of news 4 today. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the welcome back and thanks for morning. al has the day off. several states have declared a state ofmergency after tornadoes tore through much of the south on wednesday. after this week's storms. flooding has also been an issue. and many holiday travellers have been stranded in airports due to the severe weather. we'll have the latest in just a minute. and on salvation army volunteer is going above and beyond this year. he's not just ringing a bell, he's also handing out free teddy bears. we'll show you his story in a little bit. and santa was a busy man last night, but he took some time out of his schedule to go water skiing. we'll show you his adventure in what's trending. but first t.j..... wx timer @ :50 after our little burst of snow across siouxland on christmm eve, christmas day will remain relatively quiet with overcast conditions and temperatures in the 30's. another storm system will move its way out of the four corners region this afternoon which will give us our next chance of wintry weather this evening into the overnight hours tonight. minor accumulations are possible with a good bet of 1-3" in the central parts of the viewing area with more snow as you head north and west where 3-6" is possible. less than an inch will be the scenario for 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 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. whooshing and it started sucking my bedroom window 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. that's bad news for states like georgia and alabama where flooding is already widespread meanwhile... mother nature has left holiday travelers stranded across the country. (mos) "i had to actually reschedule for tomorrow morning... so it's a big inconvenience for me." (mos) " he got flewn u uto memphis because... couldn't land." (mos) "so me and my son aren't going to new york... for the family." >> tornados were 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. was injured. meanwhile in the midwest, several inches of snow hit parts of nebraska and iowa. up to 7 inches 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 r r kettle is a staple of the holiday season, and so is the bell ringer beside it. but this holiday season an unusual, four-hoofed friend is hoping to remind some shoppers in wisconsin what christmas is really about. jessica bringe has the story. mocha and owner holly are ringing in the holidays with the salvation army at gordy's market locations..giving back in more ways than one. holly schindler/moc ha's 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 elf's ears about her christmas gift." jessica bringe/report er :52-1:02 "not only is mocha is bringing the holiday spirit but he's 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/gordy's market 1:05-1:09 "you know, you hear a lot about elves during christmas but now we get like an elf miniature horse. i love it." mocha - even trying his muzzle at being santa's helper. holly schindler/moc ha's owner 1:15-1:18 "i think mocha and i might do it again." as for schindler - celebrating her birthday on christmas eve and named holly after the holiday. holly schindler/moc ha's owner 1:27-1:30 "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 ha's owner 1:35-1:39 "we wanted to wish everyone merry christmas. i thought this was a pretty good way to do it." (nats) "merry christmas!" that was jessica bringe siouxland... we have a very spirited bell ringer. donald baumgardner has been outside fareway on war eagle drive singing christmas carols, and greeting customers. in addition to volunteering as a bell ringer for the salvation army, donald decided to hand out teddy bears ananother stuffed animals to anyone who wanted one. he said he hopes to make the holiday season little merrier for others. "it makes you feel so good and wonderful, it's a small thing i do, but some people just enjoy. it's like you gave them a million dollars just for one toy." said donald baumgardner. by early afternoon donald had given away more than four hundred stuffed animals. we have an update on a sioux goes nuts over nutcrackers. last week, we showed you the nutcracker collection of jacque goettsch in that story, jacque, who is a retired nurse, mentioned that she was only missing one nutcracker. a nurse nutcracker. just a few days later, she received a package in the mail from an anonymous elf. "it was my nurse, a nutcracker" said jacque e t's unbelievable that somebody heard the story," said jacque goettsch. "i had tears in my eyes. i thought, 'wow!' i just couldn't believe it." goettsch started her collection back in 1988 and as of last week, it consisted of 243 nutcrackers. now, that number is 244. it's been 38 years since there has been a full moon sighting on christmas day. this mornings full moon is the last of the year and is cacaed the full cold moon because it occurs at the start of winter. there won't be another christmas full moon until 2034 --- and that one will only be visible in the 48 contiguous states... but why wait? trough the clouds, it just hit its peak viewing time. the warmer weather helped santa yesterday as he made his annual appearance on the potomac river. that's coming up in what's trending. and i'll have your complete > 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 7-day. >> the unusually warm winter weather was certainly a welcome change for a christmas eve tradititn on the potomac river. for 30-years now, the people... but more often than not, people grimaced at the thought of someone being crazy enough to be on the cold river. santa was joined this year by elves, reindeer, and even mrs. claus.s. the grinch climbed up on the dock and tried to put a damper on things... but wasn't successful because people were enjoying the weather so much! and santa will be the answer today on the morning club quiz. so if you want to play, email us this morning. we don't want to wake anyone up or interrupt your so send us an email at [email protected] if you want to play. still ahead... hollywood celebrities enjoy the holidays just as much as what some of them are up to during the christmas season. my mom's name is irene, and she has alzheimer's. adult daycare costs so much, i have to take my mom to work with me. eventually she'll require around-the-clock care. i worry about what the next step is. my mom deserves the best care she can get. so i met hillary clinton. i i uld tell that she was moved by my y ory... because she teared up. being able to pay for daycare... to know that my mom is safe while i work so that i can continue to support us. hillary clinton has proposed real things that could help us. how are your favorite celebrities spending the holidays? mike wilber caught up with them to find out... other things" (sot: terry crews) "i'm getting down with the sweet potato pie, man." ris hemsworth will be playing santa for his three kids! (sot: chris hemsworth) "my daughter wants the shoes with the roller skates on them." (sot: tyrese gibson) "i'm on daddy duty at all time. i just got a bunch of surprises for my daughter who's 8 years old." (sot: joe jonas) "i'll be in new york, spend time with my niece and uh, enjoy it all." "we're gonna go up to washington state and sort of have some good times and some stressful times just like the rest of america." and it sounds like all they want for christmas is a break! (sot: rob lowe) "the family and i are off tt hawaii and i'm gonna get in thatt ocean and i'm gonna surf and sleep. but not at the same time." (sot: wilmer valderama) "sleep... sleep in my own bed. i've been in location for the last 10 months" (sot: giacomo gianniotti) "wear pajamas and let myself go." (sot: hailee steinfeld) "i will be home for the holidays... home with my family. i can't wait to be home and in my bedroom. light some festive candles and party!" (sot: chris hemswooth) "yeah, we used to go camping beach. that's how we grew up and we want to continue it as long as we can." (sot: terrence howard) "kicking everybody out after christmas is over and uh that's the fun part. i'll see you next year." (sot: taraji p. henson) "we know who the grinch is!" and will smith's new movie hits theaters christmas day but the family will be hitting the slopes. (sst: will smith) "we go to the snn. we live in la so thre's not a lot of seasons so jada always wants snow so we go skiing for christmas. mw: the kids into that? will yeah they love the skiing and the snowboarding, but i have no desire to be in the snow. i would do christmas in miami, laughs.." mike wilber nbc news. >> friday t.j.- baseball hall of famer rickey henderson is 57 sarah- singer annie lennox is 61 t.j.- actress sissy spacek is 66 sarah- country singer barbara mandrell is 67 t.j.- pro and college football hall-of-famer larry csonka is 69 sarah- singer jimmy buffett is and we have some special kids toto wish a very happy birthday today. our first 4 on 4 birthday of the week is jakoby from sioux city. he celebrated his birthday on tuesday, december 22nd. jakoby loves ninja turtles, basketball, and playing outside. next we have jett. he's from ponca, nebraska. he also celebrated his fourth birthday on tuesday, december 22nd. jett loves to play outside and go anywhere with his dad. from meriden, iowa we have levi. he turned 4 on tuesday, december 22nd. levi loves preschool and dirt bike rides. celebrating another tuesday december 22nd birthday is eliasyn. he's from sioux city. eliasyn loves to go swimming and loves being outside. r last 4 on 4 birthday of the week is paxton. he's from waterbury, nebraska. paxton likes riding his bike, outside. do you have a siouxland kid celebrating a fourth birthday? send us their picture about a week ahead of time, some fun facts about them and we'll put it on friday 4 on 4's. > eve, christmas day will remain relatively quiet with overcast conditions and temperatures in the 30's. another storm system will move its way out of the four corners region this s ternoon which willl give us our next chance oo wintryyeather this evening into the overnight hours tonight. minor accumulations are possible with a good bet of 1-3" in the central parts of the viewing area with more snow as you head north and west where 3-6" is possible. less than an inch will be the scenario for the south eastern parts of the region. we could see some light snow lingering into the day on turday 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 7-day. >> we're wrapping things up on this christmas morning. when we come back we'll rundown the top headlines in siouxland. and a disney favorite made an a look at the top stories in siouxland. officals have released the names of the two bodies found inside of a burned- out pickup truck earlier this week in northeast nebraska. the vicitms were 37-year- old josh klinetobe of tilden, nebraska and his wife, 33-year-old bobbi jo klineotbe of meadow grove. investigators say it appears to be a murder- suicide with the evidence showing that josh killed his wife, bobbi jo, before killing himself. friends of the family have set up a fund to collect donations for the seven children the couple leaves behind. donations can be made out to tilden bank. the tilden library is also accepting donations for the family. in sioux city, one man was in the giving spirit yesterday. donald baumgardner spent most of his day outside of fareway. he's a volunteereror the salvation army. in addition to bell ringing, baumgardner decided to hand out teddy bears and other stuffed animals to anyone who wanted one. he said it's important for him to give of his time to make the holidays a little brighter for others. had already handed out more than four hundred stuffed animals. and one siouxland woman has been collecting nutrcrackers since 1988. we shared her collection with you last week. jacque goettsch is a retired nurse and said the only nutcracker she didn't have was a nurse one. shortly after her story aired on ktiv, she recieved a surprise in the mail. an anonymous elf sent her a nurse nutcracker. goettsch still doesn't know who sent it to her, but she's thankful to that person for keeping the christmas spirit alive. with her new nutcracker, she now has 244 in her collection. a mundane task -- getting gas -- has become a little more fun at a gas station in new york. gas attendant daniel kendrick k dressed up as olaf the snowman from the movie "frozen" this christmas eve. also dressed up as santa and an elf. and it's not just around the holidays. while you might not get a costume at every visit, kendrick is ready to greet every customer all year round with a song, dance, or best of all, a friendly smile. . good morning and merry ristmas. we'll help you celebrate a day laughter, kindness and