feel for his family. firefighters say it could be several days before the home can be lived in again. reporting live.. jordan burgess. 9 on your side. we have a breaking traffic alert for you right now ...a car overturned on i-71 near race street ...it's causing a backup on the northbound side of the interstate.we are keeping an eye on this situation and will bring you the latest information as we learn it. here's a first check of your nine first warning forecast new at noon, we are learning much more about kentucky youth minister accused of a sex crime with a minor. timyka artist just got her hands on the court documents. she has new details and strong reaction from someone close to the suspect. suspect. joseph niemeyer jr. has been arraigned here on charges of rape and sodomyand according to these court papers, the victim just 7 years told investigators the alleged the past 3 years ---------vo niemeyer .. the youth minister at new banklick baptist church in walton was booked on those charged on monday. telling investigators and tim cochran. the senior pastor of the church that he had to come cleanwe went to his home in independence where the alleged abide occurred. the woman who answered the door was less than friendly and refused to come outside ((nat sot) "gonaway or i'll turn my dogs loose on you. now you don't want to talk. now!!))((timyka on cam tag))church members are in shock. we spoke w a neighbor who described niemeyer as cochran as a friendly upstanding family man he is currently on house until his next court appearance next tuesday his bond set at 100,000 dollars. timyka artist 9 on your side right now an ohio mom is waiting to find out if she's facing charges ... after her from opiate overdoses. overdoses.warren police believe the 9 month old boy and 21 month old girl ate the drugs ... presumably heroin. their 18 year old mother reported finding the children unconscious on the floor tuesday ... they were treated with narcan at the hospital. 29-3940-49"we also believe it's possible that the little one might have given it to the younger one one because of the age difference one's not crawling and walking the other one is so it would only make sense."//"never did i anticipate the doctor to go oh they just responded to narcan never heard of it." it."the children were flown to akron childrens hospital where they spent another night in treatment last night.police are expected to announce criminal charges against their mother today. a kentucky family's mission trip to haiti took a turn for the worse... when the entire family was exposed to the zika virus. virus.the carroll family... from murray, kentucky... has spent 16 months in the their 21-year old son first contracted the disease. eventually... five members of their family started showing symptoms.making it worse... the only medicine they had access to was tylenol and benadryl. (cole carroll/13-year-old son) "i mostly had a headache and was hurting behind my eyes the whole time really badly." badly."now that everyone is feeling back to normal... jennifer says they'll be stocking up on the mosquito repellant. today two state senators will be in cincinnati to hear what 'you' think about medical marijuana. senators dave burke and kenny yuko are holding a forum today at the university of cincinnati to hear public opinion on the issue.the legislature is contemplating its next move on medical marijuana ...last fall ohioans defeated a ballot measure that would have legalized the drug for medical and recreational use ... but lawmakers believe a future question focused just on medical use could pass. sad news to bring you this afternoon ... a young of his short time on earth battling cancer passed away overnight.taylor grant was five years old. old.he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at the age of two ... late last year the hashtag team taylor started trending locally and nationally when his mom created a fundraising page ... to help him live the rest of his life to the fullest with visits to the museum, chuck e cheese, and the movies.when 9 on your side spoke to her in december ... she told us she hopes 'team taylor' will soon become a non-profit to help children with cancer. a judge makes a decision about a sexual assault case against bill cosby.will cosby have to defend himself in court? and trouble for anyone trying to file their taxes electronically!the big issue that still not fully resolved. and an ohio home is damaged by fire.the *toy the family blames for it all -- next on 9 on your side at noon! at noon puffs knows winter... ...is hard on your nose there's the endless runny noses. the sneezes that just won't quit and of course, the biting cold of snow day play. that's why puffs is soft. puffs plus lotion tissues... ...are gentle on skin. they help soothe irritation by locking in moisture better. so you can get out and enjoy winter a nose in need deserves puffs indeed. for softness that fits a sexual assault case against bill cosby will go forward .. after a judge refused to throw out the case. case.cosby's attorneys had asked the judge to dismiss the charge ... which alleges the comedian drugged and assaulted a woman in 2004.the judge rejected attorneys' claims that a former district attorney had granted cosby immunity from prosecution during a civil suit a decade ago.the case moves to hearings that will determine whether prosecutors have enough evidence to prove cosby assaulted the woman. if you had trouble filing your taxes online yesterday ... it's not just you.the i-r-s says it experienced a hardware failure yesterday ... and they're still working to fix part of the problem. problem.the agency says taxpayers refunds will 'not' be affected ... but the e-file system and a number of other processing systems shut down. you can still prepare and send your tax return through an e- file provider like turbo tax or h-and-r block ... they'll just hold onto it until the i-r-s resumes accepting one of this year's most popular holiday gifts is apparently the cause of a house fire in miamisburg.the family blames their son's hoverboard. hoverboard.homeowner josh putnam says he checked the toy's safety reviews online before buying his son a hoverboard for christmas.but investigators say yesterday the batteries burst apart ... catching the carpet on fire.a damage with a fire extinguisher before firefighters arrived.putnam says he knows it could have been much worse... and has a warning for people today. "don't buy them. do your research before you buy them. we thought we were buying the right one, but obviously we weren't." weren't."fire officials say even though reviews may say hoverboards are safe ... you should still consider possible dangers before buying one. the battle for new hampshire is now more vital than ever -- and not just for the repubulican candidates.the fight brewing between hillary and bernie. and john kasich has a game plan for success in new hampshire.what he's doing to winter is hard on your nose. from first sniffles to endless runny noses. puffs plus lotion is soft. they help soothe irritation by locking in moisture better so you can face winter happily. a nose in need deserves puffs indeed. you're watching 9 on your side at noon short forecast tease.i'll have nine first warning forecast in about two minutes. the iowa caucuses are over but, due to his strong showing, they've placed a target on marco rubio's back. with the next contest in new hampshire just days away, candidates are attacking rubio and scrambling to get their own message across.abc's marci gonzalez is in manchester with the latest. today- marco rubio- moving up in the polls?the latest - showing the florida senator now in 2nd place behind donald trump?and other candidates are taking aim?christie: he's a first term united states senator and he's had no experience at all of ever still going after ted cruz - accusing him of "fraud in iowa? the billionaire businessman - also running into - some *unexpected drama on the trail?.atc "we have an inbound emergency, runway is gonna be shut down."his plane forced to make an emergency landing yesterday in nashville because of mechanical problems?trump- eventually making it to his campaign stop in little rock. sot-trump"some of my guys said, oh that's ok, we can go back to new york, mr. trump. we'll come another day. i said, there's no way. i love arkansas."today- the front- runner?and other candidates are campaigning across new hampshire.the democrats - after taking on voters' questions in last night's cnn town hall-hillary clinton - defending being paid big-money for giving speeches-"did you have to be paid 675,000 dollars?".//"i don't know. that's what they offeredand sanders- defending his plan to raise taxes to pay for universal healthcare-(sanders) yes, you'll pay a little bit more, but your health premiums will disappear.tag-and the in a debate tonight?two days before the big republican debate here on abc.mg abc news manchester, nh it looks like ohio's governor john kasich is betting it all on the new hampshire primary. primary.at a breakfast in the granite state he says if he quote "gets smoked" next week, he'll drop out of the presidential race.he placed eighth in the iowa caucus, but he's spent considerably more time and resources in new hampshire... where he is polling much better.new hampshire goes to the polls on a video of a boy and his best and the fun time that has everyone talking. and prepare for a slow down on *one busy cincinnati road today.where you'll find road crews in the coming hours. and later -- moving isn't just good for your fitbit numbers the *real benefit of getting a duck has never been called 'man's best friend' ... but don't tell that to a little boy in texas who 'loves' his pet duck.together they make an entertaining pair. they're called "mr-t" and "bee" for short. the boy's parents say they had no idea the two would bond when they brought home a duckling about a year ago. and now their popularity is soaring online after the boy's mom shared a video on her facebook page. super jennifer young/mother< "i never in a million years thought, i mean 15-thousand people would like my son and his duck. who knew?" knew?"their bath time video was the first to go viral, and mom says every bath is just as hysterical as the one she a judge in pennsylvania is getting attention for this sign posted in his courtroom ...banning pajamas!you wouldn't think such an instruction would need to be given ... but the district judge says he's seen more and more people come into his courtroom dressed in pajama bottoms.he doesn't think that kind of attire is appropriate and hopes the new sign in his office will get people to think twice before wearing pajamas in the courtroom. a cincinnati company is using some extreme testing on its new line of winter wear.check this out... oros apparel claims it sprayed liquid nitrogen on its newest winter jacket.the temperature of the liquid nitrogen... minus 321 degrees.they say the human test subject brave enough to wear the jacket stayed at a toasty 89-degrees.the secret ingredient... "solarcore aerogel"... an extremely lightweight material that's one of the lowest thermal conductors on the planet. oros has launched a kickstarter to fund the nasa- cost... 400 dollars. firefighters race to a tri- state home -- but it's too late to save someone inside. what we've just learned from investigators about an deadly fire early this morning. and a pastor is charged for sex crime with a minor.the arrest. and a second day of severe weather hits parts of the united states.the damage left behind and what comes next for right now a family is devastated after a mother escapes a fire but her adult son can't get out in time. time.neighbors and firefighters say they tried to rescue the son who was inside the home on kuntz drive. but it was too late to save 66- year-old wilson "scott" thacker who everyone says they knew as scott.crews say thacker was found in bed. the fire started on his mattress. they believe it was from smoking but that is still under investigation.911 calls reveal how desperate neighbors were to try to get him out. 13 seconds combined :35 you can definitely see the flames. i wanted to go back over there. get my husband something to cover his mouth with so he can continue to go in.no cg ginger gibsonneighbor :17 i don't really know scott that well. he was more quiet and kept to himself. the times i did see him he was a really family.firefighters say it could be several days before the home is repaired enough to be lived in again. in the meantime the red cross is helping the family with a place to stay. a kentucky youth minister is facing rape and sodomy charges after police say he committed a sex crime against a minor. joseph niemeyer junior was arraigned on those charges earlier this week ...according to court documents, the 7 year old victim told investigators the alleged abuse has been going on for the past three years. niemeyer is the youth minister at new banklick baptist church in walton.tim cochran is the senior pastor there ... he told 9 on your side that niemeyer confessed to him ... and cochran brought him to turn himself in to police.we went to his home in independence wehre the alleged abuse occurred ... the woman who answered the door refused to come outside. ((nat sot) "gonaway or i'll turn my dogs loose on you. now you don't want to talk. now!!)) speak to a neighbor who described niemayer as a friendly and upstanding family man.neimayer is on house arrest until his courtappeara nce next tuesday...his bond was set at 100,000 dollars. a butler county mother pleaded guilty to child endangering charges.. as her husband prepares to stand trial. katina and anthony gevedon were arrested last week in middletown. police removed their eight children from the house. police say the house on tyus avenue was horrible... floors were covered with cat feces.... and there were cockroaches and gnats.the couple's children ranged in years. construction at the banks is shifting traffic on joe nuxhall way today ... ...it's reduced to two lanes of traffic between mehring way and east freedom way until 9 tonight.crews are completing a concrete pour for the a-c marriott hotel.one lane in each direction will be open. flaggers are there to help direct drivers and pedestrians. the next pour is scheduled to tonight the cincinnati police chief and other community leaders will be at the freedom center ...talking about the tough issue of stopping violence on our streets. streets.the symposium is called "kin killing kin."it's the same name of an exhibit currently on display at the freedom center.the charcoal drawings by a local artist named 'james pate' show scenes of black men in k-k-k robes ... committing acts of violence.the symposium tonight aims to address reducing the number of homicides ... especially in urban communities.children's hospital trauma surgeon doctor victor garcia will be there ... he says current programs aren't working. 4:44 "if we understood that in these neighborhoods, there is something akin to post traumatic stress that impacts not only those who are the perpetraitors, but also those who are just living there." there."the solutions symposium starts at 7 tonight at the freedom center,if you can't make it tonight but still want to see the exhibit ... it's there until february in front of congress this morning ...former pharmaceutica l c-e-o 'martin shkreli' refuses to testify about raising the price of a lifesaving medicine by 5- thousand percent ..instead invoking the fifth amendment. the 32 year old smirked when lawmakers told him he could answer some basic questions ... saying 'i intend to follow the advice of my counsel and not yours.'he was subpoenaed to appear before the house committee on oversight and government reform to testify about pharmaceutical industry pricing.shkreli sparked outrage last year when his former company "turing pharmaceuticals" raised the price of a drug used to treat h-i-v and aids patients to 750 dollars a pill. the cleanup is underway after several tornadoes touched down in parts of the southeast. nats sirens + a tornado warning has been issuedfor the second day in a row, tornadoes hit parts of the southin crocket county tennessee, the surveillance camera at a local high school shows the moment an e-f one tornado came crashing through classrooms. fortunately the school day was over when the twister hit. bobby mullins / director of crockett county (tn) schools sot: nobody was hurt. and everybody was gone home. in the area around the school, houses are left with visible damage, like the vandiver home-vandiver: mostly it's cosmetic shingles and stuff like that. my shop is almost completely destroyed. my roofs gone, the contents inside are petty much destroyed, soaking wet. despite the obvious destruction---vandiver says there's a silver lining... vandiver: it's a great day my family was safe. all this money will rebuild. 32 and at fort stewart, georgia?.a twister came through the base. nats "abandon your vehicles and trailers "frightened parents and children couldn't believe their eyes.oh my god it's taking the roof off the military had to move 50 people to new homes. dozens of vehciles were destroyed. and in thomasville, north carolina, jeff lopp considers himself lucky.my mom called me and told me that (covered by mws, destroyed structures) she thought a tornado had come through (on cam) and the garage was gone and the porch was gone and the buildings were gone, but the house was fine."today the national weather service will be out to assess the storm damage and determine if it was caused by a tornado or straight line winds. megan hughes abc news washington you've seen it on social media -- offers that seem too good to be true.so are they legit or are they a scam?some tips to help you decide. and a cincinnati company on the forefront of nasa fashion. take a look next on 9 on your side at noon. we all have that one person we just love working with. the person who just knows how to brighten your day.and as part of our 9 on your side surprise patrol -- we set out to find one of those people -- and surprise them with free cash. julie oneill found a camp washington chili employee who is so thoughtful, she even makes christmas cards for her customers. customers.""we're actually not doing a story on positive people in the workplace, but we wanted to find one because channel 9 is doing a special promotion. so i wonder if you would like to have a hundred much appreciated and i love the fact that the people here understand that i care about everybody. that i always want to see people smile even when they're having a bad day 'cause that makes it better, and it should always be that way." we're giving away those 100- dollar gifts at random 4-days a week. week.and every friday, we are picking a special someone and giving them a 500 dollar surprise.it will be a february to remember as our surprise patrol hands out free money to some of you.you can catch another surprise patrol report tonight on 9 on your side at 6pm. if you spend much time on facebook, you have probably seen all sorts of posts claiming you can win something....from a free cup of coffee to a cruise.some seem legit, but others....how can you be sure?9 is on your side consumer reporter john matarese is here with how to tell a real freebie from a scam. it seems everyone wants us to "like" and share something on facebook these days....as a way to win vacations or money. money."your friend likes this, or your friend sent you this." the latest: a chance to win one of five first class tickets on delta airlines....as part of its 50th anniversary celebration. thousands of people liked a facebook post for a chance to win a $2,000 diamond ring on valentines day.and last year, philip martin -- of batavia -- learned from a friend he had won some facebook sweepstakles. people who have been on facebook for several years, and they randomly pick." pick."but in every case, the winnings are bogus. facebook is not handing out sweepstakes money.... and airlines and jewelry stores are not handing out free tickets and rings ------------------instead, you are about to fall victim to"like farming" ....an attempt to get facebook names. or you could be downloading malware....or giving your credit card number to a scammer.but how do you know? after all some giveaways are page the facebook post takes you to.this is walt disney world's facebook page, it has 14 million likes.now look at this nearly identical facebook page for disney world.but note that it's disney world, not walt disney world.and it links to a survey site....fishing for personal information ....not the real disney website.so check out the links before you take a survey or share something with a friend. better yet....don't share it at all. bottom line: check the links on any contest on freebie.make sure it brings you that company's real website....not some survey or other site. site.john, companies hiring home based workers later today? today?tonight at 6: tri staters earning good money working from home. see how they do it.plus: companies now positions, later today on 9 on your side. coming up ... ohio is failing! that's what an anti-smoking group says in its latest report card ...what they say we need to do to curb tobacco use, next. jason? get up and get walking!that's the message from doctors.why the say sitting down is you're watching 9 on your side at noon for its efforts to prevent smoking and tobacco use... according to an anti-smoking group's latest national review. review.the american lung associations 'state of tobacco control report' gave ohio an 'f' for prevention and control program funding ..and for its tobacco tax structure.but the group says the state is doing a better job helping people 'quit' smoking.ohio's smoking rate is the 7th highest in the country.the state has increased its cigarette tax by 35 cents a pack ... but the association says taxes need to be higher to be effective and encourage people to stop buying them. are you sitting down?there's new research on the hazards of being sedentary...too much couch time could up your risk of diabetes.with more, here's abc news senior medical contributor dr. timothy johnson. sedentary jobs? millions of americans have them. and when we come home - we sit there, heard that sitting around has consequences for your health. now a new study? suggesting that the desk chair? and the recliner? may be tied to a higher risk of diabetes or its cousin, metabolic syndrome. researchers in the netherlands tracked the activity levels of nearly 25 hundred subjects using accelerometers - similar to a fitbit. they wore these devices 24/7 for eight days straight. researchers also tested these participants for diabetes.what they found? those who spent an extra hour per day being sedentary were 22 percent more likely to already be diabetic. what's more, they also found a 39 percent higher likelihood that a subject had metabolic syndrome with each additional hour they were inactive. that's a diabetes precursor -- with increased abdominal fat, bad cholesterol and blood pressure.a reminder? that if we want to cut our risk of diabetes? we can all stand up for our health.with this medical minute, i'm dr. let's turn to your forecast now with a live look from skycam 9. 9.i'm joined now by meteorologist jason adams ... expect mostly cloudy skies with a chance for flurries and much colder temperatures across the tri-state compared to yesterday afternoon. we'll see a little bit of sun mixing with the clouds later today. high pressure builds in friday which means plenty of sunshine for the ohio valley. temperatures should bounce back to more seasonal levels in the low 40s.skies will be partly cloudy over the weekend and each day should bring a slightly warmer high temperature. 460f on saturday and 490f for a high of sunday. 9 first warning: a rain/snow mix will be possible on monday. but behind this, colder air will come in and it supports light snow by tuesday. we are tracking the system now, so stay with us for a better look at when this transition to all snow happens mardi gras is just five days away..but you don't have to go all the way to new orleans to celebrate!mainstrasse village is throwing a mardi gras party this friday and saturday ... amy kummler is here to tell us mainstrasse village mardi gras? - what is up with these about costumes! how are they bring their kids or is this adults only?- anything else we should know? know? a look out over the city from the nine on your side skycam. we'll have a final check of the nine first warning later today at 4 on the now cincinnati... cincinnati... the secrets to designer interior decorating... without the designer price tag. tag.the *only* known wild camera.and investigators show that woman often pay more than men for similar products... today the issue known as "the pink tax"... is going viral. join tanya o'rourke and me for 4. your forecast. that's 9 on your side at noon for this xx.we'll see you again at four for the now cincinnati. cincinnati.and don't forget - keep 9 on your side - at your side - everywhere you go. it only takes a second for an everyday item to become dangerous always keep laundry pacs away from children. keep them closed. keep them up. keep them safe.