A Long Island couple with a 2-year-old child thought they were opening their door for trick or treaters but were instead accosted by masked home invaders who tied them up while ransacking their house, police said Saturday.

The 34-year-old woman answered her door at around 8:45 p.m. and encountered three masked adults, two of them armed with handguns, according to Nassau County police. The three forced their way into the Farmingdale home and demanded that the woman and her 48-year-old husband sit down; when the husband refused, he was repeatedly pistol whipped, receiving lacerations to the head, police said.

According to police, the couple's hands and feet were bound with duct tape. Two more people joined the attackers and began rummaging through the family's house, police said.

When the woman was able to free herself, she grabbed her son and ran to a neighbor's to call 911; the attackers fled, according to police. The husband was taken to a hospital, where he was treated for lacerations, police said.

Police are searching for the attackers - four men and a woman. They're asking anyone with information to call 1-800-244-TIPS.

The former mayor of Murrieta told police he had been driving at about 25 mph at the time of an alleged DUI crash that left four cheerleaders injured.

Alan William Long, 44, said he had been going at that speed as he headed south on Jefferson Boulevard, Murrieta when suddenly a car in front of him slammed on the brakes for no reason at the causing him to rear end the vehicle, according to a police report obtained by NBC4.

However attorney Jean Simon Serrano, who is representing driver Chloe Rogers and her sister Camille, was not impressed with the claim.

"The photos we are seeing of the cars.. I don't see how he was only going 25 Miles and hour," Serrano said, "One of the girls is still sleeping on a hospital bed."

The attorney insisted Chloe Rogers was making a legal left turn at the time of the Oct. 16 incident, and did not slam on the brakes.

In addition, the officer who wrote the police report stated Long was visibly intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test.

The crash victims, ranging from 14 and 17 years old, were taken to hospitals, two of whom suffered major injuries, according to Murrieta police Lt. Ron Driscoll

Despite his resignation and an ongoing felony case, in which he faces one count of driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury, along with four sentence-enhancing bodily injury allegations, Long is running for city council again in the forthcoming elections this coming week.

However his former rival for city council Douglas Gibbs says he should quit the race, especially in light of the fact he is a battalion chief for the Anaheim Fire Department.

"As a first responder he should know better," Gibbs said.

However Murrieta residents seem to be backing the embattled politican.

"I know him to be a man of his word, I know him to be somebody who follows through," Heather Rawlings said.

"We all make mistakes.. None of us are perfect. So we should give a chance," Terry Carter said.

Detectives on Friday arrested a mother whom they believe abandoned and endangered her two toddler sons when she left them alone in a Long Beach street one day earlier.

Shenae Irene Dixon, 23, was found "in good health" Friday near Alameda Street and Firestone Boulevard in Los Angeles after receiving a tip from a witness who recognized her from news reports, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

Her two children, a 1-year-old boy named Kenneth and a 2-year-old boy named Sir Kingston, were found alone at Atlantic Avenue and 60th Street about 8:45 a.m. Thursday, more than a dozen miles from where Dixon was located Friday, police said.

"The preliminary investigation leads detectives to believe Shenae Dixon had endangered and abandoned her children," Long Beach police said in a statement. "In the interest of not wanting to jeopardize the integrity of the case, no further details on this crime can be shared at this time."

Dixon faces charges of child abandonment and endangerment, police said. She was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail and is expected in court next week.

Passer-by Amber Revels said she found the toddlers Thursday morning and called police.

"It was a car smashing off slamming the door ... What else could I think? That somebody dropped those kids off and drove off," Revels said. "That's the first thing I'm thinking. There's nobody in clear sight. It's just two little babies and a cup and a car smashed off with no license plate."

While Revels said she believes a black Toyota with paper license plates left the children on Atlantic Avenue, police said they are still trying to figure out how the boys got there.

A relative told police Friday morning Dixon made via social media, and while police thought the relative was referring to Dixon's Facebook page, they could not find the post in question.

"We want to be sure that if there was a post on social media that, one, it was her, and two, if it was, have her come forward for us," Long Beach Sgt. Robert Woods said at a news conference just before Dixon was located.

The boys were turned over to the Department of Children and Family Services, police said.

Anyone with information about the children was urged to contact Long Beach police at 562-435-6711.

Toni Guinyard contributed to this report.

Two men have been convicted for the murder of a good Samaritan on Halloween three years ago, prosecutors said Friday.

Diamonte McGhee of Canyon Country and Eric Edwards of Lancaster, both 20, were found guilty Thursday for one count each of first-degree murder and second-degree robbery, and four counts each of attempted murder and assault with a semiautomatic firearm, according to a news release from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

The jury was unable to reach a verdict on a third defendant, Branden Trevaughn Higgs, who will return to court in early December.

On Oct. 31, 2011, Alejandro Sánchez-Tórrez, dubbed a good Samaritan, came to help a man being beaten and robbed by McGhee, Edwards and Higgs, authorities said.

McGhee then shot at the victim and shot and killed Sánchez-Tórrez in the chest, prosecutors said. The victim was struck by gunfire but survived.

McGhee was convicted of an additional count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm for a separate incident on Oct. 29, 2011.

McGhee and Edwards are scheduled to be sentenced early 2015. Because they were juveniles at the time of the crime, they face life in prison without the possibility of parole, prosecutors said.

A former Southern California state senator convicted of perjury and voter fraud served half an hour of a 90-day sentence behind bars.

Democrat Rod Wright appeared Friday at a Los Angeles County jail to begin serving his sentence. But the 62-year-old former lawmaker was released almost immediately after the paperwork was completed -- just 34 minutes after he was booked.

Wright was convicted earlier this year on eight felony counts, including perjury and voting fraud, for lying about where he lived when he ran for office.

He had said he moved into an Inglewood property he owned so he could run in 2008 to represent the 25th Senate District, but jurors found that Wright actually lived outside the district.

The Los Angeles Times reported Saturday that Wright was released because of jail crowding. Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department officials could not confirm the reason for his release.

Wright resigned his seat rather than face possible expulsion. In separate cases, two other Democratic state senators have been indicted on federal bribery and corruption charges.

Wright was also ordered in September to complete 1,500 hours of community service and will be on probation for three years.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Police arrested a well-known mummer and his daughter in connection with an Oct. 25 attack that included hitting a man with a bat and then shooting him in the leg on a South Philly street.

Carmen "Butchie" D'Amato, 62, and 36-year-old Rita D'Amato, both of the 900 block of South Front Street in Philadelphia, are facing aggravated assault and other charges.

The father, a member of the Mummers' South Philly Vikings group, and his daughter surrendered to police Friday night after their arrest warrants were issued and they were contacted by authorities, according to officials.

Carmen, who was inducted in the Mummers' Fancy Brigades Hall of Fame in 2006, was armed with a handgun on Oct. 25 -- when he and his bat-wielding daughter approached the unidentified 36-year-old victim near the intersection of 2nd and Carpenter streets in the Queens Village section of the city, investigators said.

Philadelphia Police released surveillance video of the attack earlier this week in the hopes of identifying the suspects, who can be seen talking to the man moments before Rita struck him with a bat, according to officials.

The victim started to run away from the pair, but Carmen chased him and began firing his gun, striking the man once in his left leg, authorities said.

The victim was treated for a broken leg at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. A source told Philly.com the suspects believed the man was breaking into their car.

Both father and daughter are due in court Nov. 18 for their preliminary hearings.

An attorney for the suspects, Frank Desimone, as well as several other mummers, declined to comment on the case.

Carmen previously spent four years behind bars on a tax fraud charge, according to Philly.com. He was indicted in 1988 after being accused of manufacturing and distributing methamphetamine, as well as defrauding the IRS, Philly.com reported.  He was acquitted on the drug charge.

The message has been sounding for months across the country, blaring on Florida airwaves, landing in voter mailboxes and even barreling through the roads of New Hampshire in the bed of a pick-up truck.

The focus of the multi-million dollar election blitz isn’t jobs, the threat of ISIS or the Ebola crisis dominating the news. It’s the environment.

Environmental groups are spending big on the midterm elections, with an eye on pushing climate and other issues to voters casting their ballots this year and elevating the issue ahead of the 2016 presidential campaign.

“Together we’re sending an unmistakable message to Washington,” Tom Steyer, a billionaire activist bankrolling much of the campaign, said in a YouTube video to supporters. “Climate change is not just an important issue, it’s the issue. And we need leaders who will take it seriously.”

Steyer, a former San Francisco hedge fund manager, seeded his new Next Gen Climate Action political committee with $58 million, a figure that may make him one of this cycle's biggest individual spenders. His unprecedented effort is taking its climate campaign to races that could determine the control of the U.S. Senate, some of the nation’s most competitive gubernatorial elections and even state legislative seats up for grabs in the Pacific Northwest.

Even with the cash infusion, elevating the environment into one that drives votes is a challenge. The issue trails more traditional stump issues like the economy, health care and immigration in surveys asking voters which issues are “very important” to their vote for Congress.

“The hurdle is that it’s never seemed imminent,” said Barbara Baudot, an environmental professor who chairs the politics department at Saint Anselm College in New Hampshire. “I think the issue is, 'Well this is 50 years off and we’re really concerned about these issues that are going to be on our dinner plate right now.'”

That’s changing, Baudot said, as extreme weather events such as superstorm Sandy and the threat a changing climate presents to states’ thriving natural tourism industries raise public awareness. In September, an estimated 100,000 people turned out for a climate march in New York City. 

In the meantime, the climate crusaders are also deploying more tested campaign messages for motivating voters. NextGen’s ads blast targeted Republicans, including New Hampshire Senate nominee Scott Brown and Florida Gov. Rick Scott, for ties to the oil industry and billionaire businessmen David and Charles Koch, who have poured their own fortunes into political organizations backing conservative candidates and causes. 

In New Hampshire, where Brown, a former U.S. senator from Massachusetts, is seeking to unseat Democratic incumbent Jeanne Shaheen, the campaign on the airwaves is “related to the environment, but it’s not saying necessarily that his policies are bad for the environment,” according to political science professor Christopher Galdieri. The broader focus overall, he said, is "more that the policies put him on the side of someone other than New Hampshire."

“I don’t think that necessarily a straight-up environmental pitch would necessarily carry as much weight as saying look, this candidate isn’t on your side because he’s too cozy with the oil companies," he said. 

But NextGen says its goal is to make that environmental pitch stick this year and into the future, especially in states like New Hampshire that have "an outsized role in the national political dialogue," according to state director Pete Kavanaugh. Hundreds of volunteers and staff have spent months targeting college campuses, where the group says 10,000 students have signed pledges committing to vote on climate issues, and knocking on more than 275,000 doors heading into the final weekend of the campaign. They expect to visit 100,000 more homes by Tuesday.  

Kavanaugh, who was the Obama campaign's state director there in 2011 and 2012, said he's been surprised to see how much the issue has resonated with voters as it has "become a much bigger part of the narrative in 2014." Polls showing the topic lagging, he said, fail to reflect the ways climate policy plays into other top issues, like the economy, particularly in states with large natural tourism industries, and public health. 

“I think people are starting to connect this all into the umbrella of climate change," he said. “This is no longer an issue that is 50 years out."

Campaigns on the receiving end of the attacks, meanwhile, say those more traditional issues, such as the economy, are going to be deciding factors this year. Scott, who has been bashed as a “climate change denier” by NextGen in Florida, has been quoted dismissing the attacks as coming from a" radical, left wing billionaire from the West Coast." In New Hampshire, Republicans have countered with ads highlighting reports that energy prices are going to rise this winter. Brown emphasizes he is for an "all of the above" approach on energy. 

“While I understand that many of the climate groups are discussing these sorts of issues on the trail, what’s really at the forefront of peoples’ minds are energy costs they’re facing on their daily lives,” said Lauren Zelt, spokesperson for the Republican Party in New Hampshire.

Major Spending Still a Sliver of Overall Activity 

The push by NextGen could boost total spending by a quintet of environmental groups to a record $85 million, according to a memo obtained by The Washington Post. One political media executive predicted this fall that the 2014 could be “the biggest cycle for energy/environment-related advertising, ever.”

“I think we have seen more mentions of environmental issues this year, driven largely by NextGen’s involvement,” said Erika Franklin Fowler, co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project, which is tracking campaign ads.

Still, it's a small portion of the overall spending in this year's Senate, House and gubernatorial elections, which have already seen more than $1 billion in ads, according to the Wesleyan Media Project.

NextGen's New Hampshire expenditures are "north of" $4 million, including about $1 million on ads, Kavanaugh said. Total spending by outside groups there has exceeded $29 million, according to OpenSecrets.org. Jobs and the economy and Obamacare have been the most popular topics on the airwaves for Democratic and Republican groups respectively, the Wesleyan Media Project analysis found.

In Florida, NextGen has reportedly poured $12 million into helping former Gov. Charlie Crist oust Scott. That race, expected to be the nation's most expensive gubernatorial campaign, has attracted more than $100 million in ads alone, The Associated Press reported. 

Polls heading into Election Day show many of the races where Next Gen is active stil neck-and-neck . But win or lose, the effort likely won’t end Nov. 4. 

"We’ve said from day one in New Hampshrie that we were going to be here long-term," Kavanaugh said.  "...The work we’re doing on the ground allows us to build that foundation." 

In the face of a statewide drought and new restrictions in water use, golf courses in San Diego County are undergoing renovations and changes to the style of play in order to stay in business.

Aside from personnel, water is the most expensive part of a golf course operation. This summer, some courses reported water bills nearing $80,000.

The Carmel Mountain Ranch Country Club is a perfect example of how golf courses in San Diego must adapt to survive.

They're just days into a $4.4 million dollar renovation, tearing out 50 acres of grass and replacing it with low water using native plants.

By eliminating the grass in non-essential playing areas, course managers estimate the new landscaping will save upwards of 54 million gallons of water a year.

Meantime other courses are closing down.

"Most golf courses are going to what they call target golfing," said Howard Fujimoto, General Manager of Carmel Highland Golf Resort down the street.

His course is closing next year, partly because of the statewide drought. He fears others will follow.

"There's courses in the area already in the works that are going to be happening because of water,” he said.

Starting this weekend - courses on San Diego city land will have to comply with new regulations limiting watering to three days a week.

They can apply for more flexibility - but the tradeoff means they'll have to reduce their total water usage by an additional 5 percent

The Rancho Sante Fe golf club and Del Mar Country club are also doing similar renovations, although they're staying open.

Next year the north course at Torrey Pines will have 20 acres of grass removed as it moves a little closer to target golf.

Golfers say target style makes a tough game even tougher but they also know it's the cost of staying open.
 

The San Diego-area doctor accused of taking hundreds of explicit photos of his patients has had his license suspended by the State Medical Board.

Dr. Jeffrey Abrams has not been charged criminally, but the Board has moved forward with temporarily suspending his license.

A lawsuit has been filed by a former patient who says Abrams took nude photos of her during an exam on Jan. 4 at the Volunteers in Medicine free clinic in El Cajon.

The uninsured woman said she was examined for a complaint of belly button pain.

She claims Abrams told her take off all her clothes then inserted his gloved finger into her vagina and asked "You have pain?"

Then, she claims he had her stand in front of him, pushed her hair away from her exposed breasts, pulled out a cellphone and took five pictures of her.

Attorney Jessica Pride says her client reported the incident to authorities because she didn’t want any other patient to go through the same experience.

A state investigator said more than 1300 explicit photos were on the doctor's work cellphone, court documents show.

Many of the 1,300 explicit photos showed women’s vaginas, breasts and buttocks, documents alleged.

There was one explicit photo of a very young girl and video of a patient touching herself in the exam room with Abrams, the documents allege.

Abrams and his attorney agreed to the temporary suspension, according to court documents obtained by NBC 7, but that does not mean Abrams is admitting guilt. It’s all a part of the Medical Board's process.

After receiving a complaint, the Board investigates. It eventually may file an accusation or "charge" against a physician that sets off a hearing process.

While he is being investigated, Abrams has agreed to an interim suspension until he knows if there will a formal accusation against him.

Past President of the San Diego County Medical Society, Dr. Ted Mazer, told NBC 7 the suspension doesn't mean guilt.

"They feel they can move forward with the case. The doctor is basically saying okay, I agree to a suspension of my license while you're bringing up that formal accusation. He still has the right to defend himself against the formal accusation,” Mazer said.

The Medical Board now has 15 days to file a formal accusation. NBC 7’s phone call and email to Abrams' attorney were not returned.

When NBC 7 called to see if the San Diego County District Attorney's Office was investigating potential criminal charges, a spokesperson for the DA declined to comment on pending investigations.

Volunteers in Medicine, issued a statement calling the allegations "very troubling" and said the allegations are not a reflection on  the staff at the health care center, the only free medical clinic in the East County.

A truck drove off a National City freeway and onto the street below early Saturday morning.

The silver truck lost control around 2:20 a.m. on Interstate 805, according to the California Highway Patrol. The truck apparently rolled down the hill and landed in the 2800 block of Euclid Avenue.

The front of the truck was smashed in, and the windshield was shattered. Debris from the crash littered the road and hillside.

CHP said at least one person was taken to the hospital. That person’s condition has not been released.

Heavy rain overnight contributed to several crashes across the county, including a four-vehicle pileup on State Route 94 in Mount Hope that injured at least two people and held up traffic for more than an hour, according to CHP.

Homicide detectives are investigating the death of a 22-year-old woman in Spring Valley, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

First responders arrived at a home in the 9100 of Circulo Margen around 9:30 a.m. Saturday. They discovered the victim, Victoria Lynn Lyman, with “visible signs of traumatic injury,” the sheriff’s department said.

Paramedics performed CPR and transported Lyman to Grossmont Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Officials did not comment on the nature of Lyman’s injuries and said it’s unclear if those injuries contributed to her death. The San Diego County Medical Examiner will determine how the young woman died.

Check back for updates on this developing story.

For the second time this year, three San Carlos families were forced to leave their homes because of flooding.

A concrete culvert overflowed after the rainstorm early Saturday morning, sending gushing water into the backyards of three homes on Beaver Lake Drive.

“I heard the fence come down and then the water started to come in. I looked in the backyard, and it just started to rise right up behind us. The whole backyard was like a lake,” said homeowner Dean Talbot.

Water flooded Talbot’s whole house and ruined his new carpet. But he said what’s more devastating is that the same thing happened just eight months ago.

“Everything in the house last time was completely destroyed: Beds, cabinets, furniture, clothes, school books, computers,” said Tracy Kull, another neighbor.

“We just finished redoing our house, and now we have to redo it again,” Kull said.

Talbot and Kull say they’re angry with the city of San Diego for not maintaining the culvert.

“The house value has been depleted. Who wants to buy a house that’s flooded twice in eight months?” Talbot said.

City officials told NBC 7 that crews did clean the culvert several months ago but, they admit, not enough to keep it from flooding in the future. Officials said they submitted a permit to clean the ditch several months ago, but state environmental laws are stalling the process.

On Saturday, the city activated an emergency provision to clean up the ditch. Officials say they’re still working on a long-term solution, which is little comfort for residents.

“There’s only so much a person can take. Your house destroyed twice in a year? All your belongings ruined?” Kull said.

More rain is expected Saturday overnight into Sunday. San Diego Fire Department Battalion Chief Dave Pilkerton said crews will watch the area for more flooding because the ground is already saturated.

Vice President Joe Biden came to San Diego Saturday to weigh in on one of the tightest races in the country, the fight for the 52nd Congressional District.

While campaigning for incumbent Democrat Rep. Scott Peters, the vice president had a few digs for his Republican challenger Carl DeMaio.

“A lot of talk in the campaign about creating good jobs, good decent-paying jobs, and by the way, this guy is still against raising the minimum wage? I mean, 22 million, working 40 hours a week, living $7,000 below the poverty level? Where do these guys come from?" Biden said to a crowd in Kearny Mesa.

About 400 Peters’ supporters came to hear the vice president speak.

“It is a high honor. I've been working really hard the past two years to really approach Washington in the right way and to have him come out and say that he thinks I should go back, it was terrific and people got excited about it," Peters said.

Meanwhile, DeMaio made himself available to the media right in front of Biden’s event and had equal criticism for his opponent.

“The fact that Vice President Biden is here just simply reflects that the Obama administration sees Scott Peters as a rubber stamp for their failed agenda. We've seen people lose jobs. We've seen government programs not held accountable, whether its border security or veterans benefits, and Mr. Peters has voted 90 percent of the time with the Obama administration. I think San Diegans want some who can be an independent voice," DeMaio said.

Volunteers from both campaigns spent Saturday canvassing San Diego neighborhoods.

A man was killed and his son critically injured after they were struck by a car while trick-or-treating in Irvine on Friday.

Emergency services responded to a report of an injury traffic collision at West Yale Loop and Burwood Street involving a vehicle and two pedestrians at around 7:15 p.m.

Irvine Police officers and personnel from the Orange County Fire Authority responded to the incident, in which John Roger Alcorn, 65, and his 4-year-old male son sustained significant injuries, according Irvine officials.

A Mazda 3 driven by a female adult was travelling on West Yale Loop near Burwood Street when she collided with the pair as they crossed the street, according to investigators. She stopped at the scene and was not facing charges, police said.

They were taken to a local trauma center, but at approximately 8:40 p.m. the man, who is a resident of Irvine, was pronounced dead.  The child remains in critical but stable condition.

All traffic on West Yale Loop between Warner and Stone Creek North was shut down in both directions while the cause of the collision was investigated. It has since reopened.

A vehicle slammed into a Lancaster home early Sunday morning and burst into the living room that residents had just left, they told NBC4.

No one was hurt in the 1:40 a.m. high-speed crash that left a smoldering wreck in the 27th Street home of April Chamberlain, according to an LA County Fire captain. But the car did cause significant damage to the room and the car.

"I came into the kitchen and said, 'Oh my God, a car is literally in my house,'" said Janice Chamberlain, who lives in the home.

She said she, her daughter and 2-year-old granddaughter were sitting in the living room minutes before the crash, and usually other grandchildren sleep on a couch in the living room.

"Thank God they weren't here," Chamberlain said.

Ernesto Carbajal, 21, was arrested and charged in LA County Superior Court with a misdemeanor count of driving under the influence.

April Chamberlain and a neighbor said Carbajal tried to run from the scene, but was stopped by a neighbor.

"I had three other friends with me," said neighbor Heather Lopez. "They grabbed him, patted him down and grabbed his wallet and said 'You're going to stay here 'till the cops get here."

The driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, officials said.

Two days before the polls open, unaffiliated candidate for governor Joe Visconti has suspended his campaign and endorsed Republican candidate Tom Foley in a ceremonious display of party unity.

NBC Connecticut cameras were the only ones rolling when Visconti appeared alongside Foley in Brookfield on Sunday, surprising a crowded room of Foley campaign volunteers.

"I called Tom yesterday. I took a look at the polls," Visconti explained. "I was very concerned that Tom is in the fight for his life. Connecticut is in the fight of its life."

Visconti, a conservative who failed to secure the Republican nomination, previously said he'd ride out the race until the end, but threw his support to Foley on Sunday and asked his followers to do the same.

The latest Quinnipiac Poll shows Foley in a dead heat with Democratic incumbent Gov. Dan Malloy at 43 percent, with Visconti pulling 7 percent of support from likely voters.

While polling shows support for Visconti draws equally from Foley and Malloy, many believe Visconti's position in the race would negatively affect Foley on Election Day. Visconti will still appear on the ballot Tuesday, but the unaffiliated candidate hopes now to swing the vote in Foley's favor.

"He's a great man and I know he's going to be the next governor. I told him that last night," Visconti said. "We know we have over 100,000 people that are supporting me. We do know that. I need every one of them to not vote for me. I need them to vote for Tom. We need every vote we can get. We will take the state back. We will end the liberal agenda that's across America."

The announcement surprised politicians and voters alike. Visconti said none of his supporters knew it was coming and would hear it for the first time livestreaming on NBC Connecticut, the only television station present for the endorsement.

"It was just one of those things where I had to make the judgment call for the state of Connecticut. Tom will bring the jobs and the policies in," Visconti explained. "We're going to turn this around. We're going to win this and the Democrats can't stop us."

He said his role as an unaffiliated candidate has allowed him to send a message to voters that wouldn't have come across otherwise.

"I could do what other candidates that are major party candidates can't do, you can get out into the little details that I think need to be said, and so we did that, put the message out that we wanted and my people hopefully will come over because we have a lot of them," he said.

Visconti said he made the endorsement with the state's best interest in mind and was not seeking any personal gain.

"I made no deals for anything, I've asked for nothing. I didn't do this for money or the position," Visconti explained. "I've done this for the people. I love Connecticut."

“I don’t feel this is a concession of loss. We proved you don’t need taxpayers' money to make a difference," Visconti said. "But my supporters, all of them, please vote for Tom."

Foley and Visconti embraced and shook hands before Foley took the podium to express his gratitude.

"I want to thank Joe, first of all, for being a candidate and having the interest in running for office and offering change for Connecticut, the same thing I'm offering," Foley said. "He was always a gentleman on the campaign trail, has become a friend and I'm a great admirer of what he's done."

Foley added that Visconti made one small request when the two met Saturday night.

"He did ask one thing of me. And he said, 'Tom, will you invite my mom to the inauguration?' and I said, 'Joe, that's a deal,'" Foley told the room, to laughter and applause. "Anyway, thank you so much Joe. We're going to win this election on Tuesday, we're going to bring change to Connecticut, and I really, really appreciate your support."

The announcement came just hours before President Barack Obama was set to arrive in Bridgeport to rally support for Malloy, of which Visconti made mention.

"I had to wait for President Obama to be in the air to do this," Visconti joked. "I've held off for a couple days."

GOP state party chair Jerry Labriola says "Republicans United!" with @JoeVisconti2014 endorsement of @TomFoleyCT pic.twitter.com/GWDKj4A1HK

— George Colli (@GeorgeColli) November 2, 2014

Tightrope walker Nik Wallenda successfully completed two walks across the Chicago River Sunday evening, breaking two records.

Wallenda first walked from Marina City's 534-foot-tall west tower to the 635-foot-tall Leo Burnett Building. At a 15-degree incline, it was the steepest walk he has ever attempted, and he successfully set the world record.

His second walk was between Marina City's east and west towers. Wallenda was blindfolded during the entire walk setting another record.

Wallenda is a seventh generation member of a family of tightrope walkers. In addition to breaking world records, he also broke a family record for the highest skyscraper walk.

“It’s about challenging myself,” Wallenda said on the “Today” Show prior to his high-wire acts, “and hopefully through challenging myself, inspiring other people to challenge themselves.”

Three people were wounded in a shooting in South Los Angeles Saturday night, authorities said.

It happened just before 9 p.m. in the 4300 block of Crenshaw Boulevard, north of Vernon Avenue, said an officer at the Los Angeles Police Department's Southwest Station.

The victims' ages, genders and conditions were not immediately available.

At least two of them were inside the New Millennium Sports Barber Shop at 4310 Crenshaw Blvd., a witness at the scene said.

Santa Ana police on Sunday announced multiple arrests were made in the hit-and-run that killed three trick-or-treaters on Halloween night.

The names of the suspects have not been released. Police planned to hold a news conference Monday morning. Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido said Sunday evening that five people were arrested but he did not know their names.

Twins Lexi and Lexandra Perez and their childhood friend Andrea Gonzalez, all 13, died Friday night when an SUV struck them in a crosswalk about a block away from their home in Santa Ana.

The driver ditched the Honda CR-V about three blocks away before running off, police said.

"We've done a very strong effort, 24 hours nonstop, in order to find individuals that are associated, and we believe that one of them was the driver," Pulido said. "This is a street where cars can go fast, it's just the nature of the street. So we're going to see what we can do to make it safer."

Andrea's mother and brother spoke out for the first time Sunday night after news of the arrests.

"They're happy that the people who did this, who left them there as if they were nothing, they're finally in custody and they have to answer to justice," said Andrea's brother, Josafat Gonzalez. "That brings such a sigh of relief not just to my parents, not just to the twins' family but to the whole community.

"If I could ask one question to the people who did this, it would be that whoever they were, trying to get to or whatever they needed to do, if it was more important than the lives of three little angels."

Mourners left candles, flowers, stuffed animals and notes on Saturday at Old Grand and Fairhaven avenues, near where the girls were hit.

"She was my whole entire life, my little girl," Andrea's mother Maria Gonzalez said.

GoFundMe accounts for the girls' funerals totaled more than $37,000 in donations as of Sunday night. Anyone who wishes to donate can visit the following links: 

• Donation page for Lexandra and Lexi: www.gofundme.com/gl7l4s.
• Donation pages for Andrea Gonzalez: www.gofundme.com/gm352k and www.gofundme.com/andreagonzalez

In a symbolic moment of New York City's recovery since 9/11, the first employees at One World Trade Center will begin moving in Monday.

The city's tallest building will be opening its doors for the first time to Condé Nast's 2,300 employees. According to the publisher, about 175 employees are expected to move in Monday, in what will be the first of a series of moves which will not be completed until February 2015.

"Condé Nast is proud to be a part of this important moment of renewal for the city of New York," the company said in a statement. "As the first major media company to commit to relocating downtown and as the first tenants of One World Trade Center, we are excited about contributing to the vitality of this community for years to come."

The publisher will occupy over a million square feet, about a third of the 104-story skyscraper, the tallest in the Western Hemisphere, the New York Times reports.