A manhunt is underway for a suspect police believe to be armed and extremely dangerous after a Maine sheriff's deputy was shot and killed in the town of Norridgewock early Wednesday morning.

Somerset County Sheriff's Deputy Cpl. Eugene Cole was shot and killed between 1 and 2 a.m., according to police.

The suspect, identified as John Williams, 29, of Madison, Maine, then allegedly stole Cole's marked cruiser and committed a theft at a Cumberland Farms store on Waterville Road. He was seen fleeing the store in the cruiser.

Cole's abandoned cruiser was found around 5 a.m. off of Mill Stream Road in Norridgewock, and law enforcement officials believe Williams then fled on foot and is still at large.

Williams is described as being 5-foot, 6-inches, weighing about 120 pounds and having blue eyes. He has brown hair that is long enough for a ponytail and is shaved on the sides, according to police. It's unclear if Williams has access to another vehicle.

"The suspect should be considered armed and extremely dangerous," Somerset Sheriff Dale Lancaster said.

A nationwide alert for Williams has been issued, police said. Anyone who sees him is asked to immediately call 911. Maine State Police Lt. Col. John Cote urged residents to "be aware of their surroundings and have a broad situational awareness because he does continue to pose a risk."

The manhunt for Williams is being coordinated by the Somerset Count Sheriff's Office with help from state police, Maine Game Wardens, U.S. Marshals and the FBI.

Police ordered Mill Stream Elementary in Norridgewock to close and part of Route 2 was also shut down amid the ongoing investigation.

A little over a month ago, on March 22, Williams was arrested on multiple firearms charges and traffic violations in Haverhill, Massachusetts, after he apparently drove off Interstate 495 and into a ditch. He was found with a firearm in his possession, and he did not have a license to carry it.

The charges against him included possession of a firearm, improper storage of a firearm, possession fo ammunition without an FID card, possession of a large capacity feeding device, negligent operation of a motor vehicle and a marked lanes violation.

His bail in that case was initially set at $10,000, police said, but a court clerk said a judge later reduced it to $5,000 and he was released on that amount later the same day. He was scheduled to appear in court in Massachusetts for a pretrial hearing today.

Cole, 62, was a 13-year veteran of the Somerset County Sheriff's Office. He leaves behind a son.

Lancaster called Wednesday "a very sad day" for his office and Mainers.

"We have lost an outstanding deputy today who has served with great distinction," he said. "He was an outstanding employee. He was one of the finest deputies that you'd want to meet."

"Our deepest condolences go out to the family of fallen Deputy Sheriff Corporal Eugene Cole," Maine Gov. Paul LePage tweeted out. "If you live in Somerset County and the surrounding area, please cooperate with law enforcement and stay safe."

"I am deeply saddened to learn Cpl. Eugene Cole was killed in the line of duty in Norridgewock this morning," U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said on Twitter. "Cpl. Cole served the citizens of Somerset County for 13 years with honor & distinction, & Maine will be eternally grateful for his brave actions to protect his community."

Cole's death marked the first officer shooting death in Maine since 1989, when Maine State Police Detective Giles Landry was shot and killed while investigating a child abuse complaint in Leeds.

LAPD Officer Arius George hit this one from way downtown, banking in a full-court one-handed shot with his back to the basket. The video was posted on the department's Twitter feed Monday April 23, 2018.
 

An alligator out for a Sunday stroll brought traffic to a halt outside a Deltona, Florida, middle school this weekend.

Karl Miranda told NBC affiliate WESH he drives by Deltona Middle School regularly on his way to work and was surprised to hit traffic on that road on a Sunday evening.

At first, Miranda wasn’t sure why cars were slowing down, but as he got closer, he told WESH, he saw something "huge and murky" sauntering down the sidewalk.

"As I got closer, I saw it was a gator, and the closer I got, it was a big gator," Miranda said.

Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission officials said Tuesday a trapper responded to the scene Sunday night but did not find the approximate 8-foot gator anywhere on the property.

Volusia County Animal Control officers walked the school grounds Monday morning before classes began and did not see signs of the alligator.

The school is near several bodies of water indigenous to wildlife, including alligators, according to WESH.

A magnitude-3.4 earthquake was reported Wednesday morning in the Riverside County community of Moreno Valley.

Weak shaking was reported in Moreno Valley, Loma Linda, Redlands, Riverside, Perris and other locations east of Los Angeles. The quake was reported just before 10 a.m.

Refresh this page for updates. 

The judge who said it was her "honor and privilege" to sentence ex-Dr. Larry Nassar to up to 175 years for molesting young girls under the guise of medical treatment is speaking out and continuing to stand by the victims months after Nassar's verdict.

Judge Rosemarie Aquilina spoke to the Detroit News Tuesday in her first interview since the sentencing. She gained attention for allowing more than 150 victims to offer statements and responding to each one in the marathon seven-day hearing in January.

"I support the girls," she told The News. "I said that at the sentencing. Nothing has changed there."

Aquilina consistently chastised Nassar and comforted his victims in the courtroom. She turned heads for her pointed language when handing down her sentence for Nassar, who had pleaded guilty to counts of sexually assaulting girls. 

"I just signed your death warrant," she told Nassar from the bench. "It is my honor and privilege to sentence you."

However, Aquilina has continued championing his victims outside the courtroom, retweeting blog posts seeking justice and empowering the army of "sister survivors" on Facebook, The News reported.

Critics questioned whether Aquilina's language and behavior undermined the pursuit of justice. Criminal defense attorney Anne E. Gowen, writing for Time, said Aquilina's choices in court represent "a warning to future defendants that the judiciary and vigilante justice are not as separate as one might have believed," adding that determining someone's fate is a "solemn responsibility." And others wondered how it would affect a possible appeal, should Nassar choose to pursue one before the July deadline.

Aquilina defended her advocacy, saying she no longer needs to be "fair and impartial" once the verdict is reached.

"The case is over," she told the publication. "No judge is fair and impartial (after the verdict). That’s for before the sentencing."

She added that she wasn't concerned her continued advocacy would affect a potential appeals process.

Aquilina also took on Michigan State University after a contentious board of trustees meeting last week, when an abuse victim of Nassar claimed the school interim president pressured her to accept a settlement payoff. Aquilina said the woman, Kaylee Lorincz, should have been allowed more time to address the school officials.

"I don’t like girls being shut down," Aquilina said Tuesday. "Everyone has the right to be heard.”

However, she declined to weigh in on whether there should be more shakeups in MSU leadership, instead keeping the focus on the victims.

"I won't get into a political mess," she told The News. "I’m supporting the girls."

Both the president and athletic director of MSU have resigned from their posts in the fallout of Nassar's abuse scandal, and the Michigan attorney general has launched an investigation into his work at the university.

A tip from the public pointed detectives to a man who was taken into custody overnight in the decades-old Golden State Killer case, law enforcement sources told NBC4.

The tip followed renewed attention stemming from a book and recent documentary about the series of rapes, slayings and residential burglaries across California that began in the mid-1970s, the law enforcment officials said. More details are expected at a noon news conference in Sacramento.

A 72-year-old man named Joseph James DeAngelo, who appears to fit the description of the elusive California killer, was arrested early Wednesday on suspicion of murder by police in Sacramento, law enforcement sources tell NBC News on Wednesday. DeAngelo was being held without bail in the Sacramento County Main Jail, according to records.

Authorities are expected to make the official "major announcement" at noon, according to the Sacramento District Attorney's Office.

The sister of Janelle Cruz, one of the killers last victims, said she received word of an arrest Wednesday morning. Janelle Cruz was killed in 1986 in Irvine. She was only 18 years old.

"I'm so excited and overwhelmed," said Michelle Cruz. "I'm feeling very blessed today and now I will be able to breathe again."

NBC Affiliate KCRA said FBI agents and other law enforcement officials were outside a home in the Citrus Heights area of Sacramento County where property records showed DeAngelo lived for at least two decades. The suspect, also known as the East Bay Rapist, was described as a white male and thought to be currently between the ages of 60 and 75 years old, and approximately 5'10" tall, according to the FBI.

The FBI said the killer is responsible for approximately 45 rapes, 12 homicides, and multiple residential burglaries between 1976 and 1986 in San Francisco, Sacramento and Los Angeles area. The crime spree appears to have started in the summer of 1976 with a series of burglaries and rapes in Rancho Cordova, a suburb of Sacramento. The suspect would pry open a door or window and awaken victims with a flashlight and then tie them up. At times, their attacker would call the victims on the phone later.

The emergence of DNA technology in the late 1990s helped local law enforcement link the suspect to four unsolved murders in Southern California, according to Irvine police Detective Sarah Tunnicliffe.

The first Southern California victims were a husband and wife -- Keith and Patrice Harrington -- in Laguna Niguel. Their bodies were found in their home on Aug. 19, 1980, Tunnicliffe said. On Feb. 6, 1981, Manuella Witthuhn, was found dead in her Irvine home. The last known Orange County victim -- 18-year-old Janelle Cruz -- was found on May 5, 1986, in her Irvine home.

The DNA tests in the late 1990s also helped investigators link the suspect to murders in Ventura and the Santa Barbara area, according to Tunnicliffe, who said the suspect appears to have been inactive from July 1981 through 1986 when Cruz was killed. Investigators theorize he may have been out of the country or in another state during that period.

In 2016, the FBI announced a $50,000 reward and a national campaign to identify the killer.

Refresh this page for more on this breaking news story.

Editor's Note: Officials are expected to make an annoucement at noon. It will be streamed live in the player above.

A man who was dubbed "The Golden State Killer" after he allegedly killed and raped multiple people across the state of California has been arrested, law enforcement sources tell NBC News on Wednesday.

A 72-year-old ex-police officer named Joseph James DeAngelo, who appears to fit the description of the elusive California killer, was arrested overnight on two murder charges by police in Sacramento.

DeAngelo was being held without bail in the Sacramento County Main Jail, according to records.

Authorities are expected to make the official "major announcement" at noon, according to the Sacramento District Attorney's Office.

Michelle Cruz, the sister of one of the killer's last victims, said "I'm so excited and overwhelmed. I'm feeling very blessed today and now I will be able to breathe again."

Janelle Cruz was 18-years-old when she was murdered in 1986 in Irvine.

NBC Affiliate KCRA said FBI agents and other law enforcement officials were outside a home in the Citrus Heights area of Sacramento County where property records showed DeAngelo lived for at least two decades.

The suspect, also known as the East Bay Rapist, was described as a white male and thought to be currently between the ages of 60 and 75 years old, and approximately 5'10" tall, according to the FBI.

The FBI said the killer is responsible for approximately 45 rapes, 12 homicides, and multiple residential burglaries between 1976 and 1986 in San Francisco, Sacramento and Los Angeles area.

"It started on June 18, 1976, with the rape of a female in the Rancho Cordova-Carmichael area of Sacramento," FBI Special Agent Marcus Knutson, who was the case agent on the investigation, recalled.

"It’s personal for me being a Sacramento native. This is my home. This is where I’m from. And the fact that he did his crimes here and committed his crimes here, I kind of take it personally," Knutson said.

In 2016, the FBI announced a $50,000 reward and a national campaign to identify the killer.

Refresh this page for more on this breaking news story.

Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was on hand at Madame Tussauds in New York on Wednesday to help unveil the museum's newest addition — a wax figure of first lady Melania Trump. 

The wax Melania Trump is part of a larger installation titled "Give Melania A Voice," NBC News reported. It will give visitors the opportunity to publish tweets on behalf of Melania on the museum's @MTMelaniaMoments Twitter page beginning on Thursday and lasting until May 31, 2018.

Spicer deemed the wax first lady very life-like, saying, "I’m not kidding, I looked at a photo I had with the first lady before I left and I mean — it's pretty remarkable how life-like it is, and the same thing with the president. It's impressive."

Trump's wax figure was put in place in January 2017. Madame Tussauds said it receives permission from subjects before creating the figures.

The number of cases in the E. coli outbreak tied to Romaine lettuce grown in Arizona has boomed to 84 in 19 states, with 42 people requiring hospitalization, more than a half-dozen of them for a type of acute kidney failure, the Centers for Disease Control said Wednesday.

That's an increase of 31 people in 10 states just in the last week, when the CDC expanded its warning and told people to avoid all kinds of romaine lettuce that may have been grown in Yuma, Arizona. At first, the agency targeted chopped.

Investigators still haven't been able to determine the original source of the outbreak, which has now affected people in New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New York and a wide swath of the south and midwest. The most cases have been reported in Pennsylvania (18), followed by California (13) and Idaho (10). To date, New Jersey has seven cases, New York has two and Connecticut has two. No deaths have been reported.

Illnesses started on dates ranging from March 13 to April 12. Sick people range in age from 1 to 88, with a median age of 31. Most of the victims have been female. Nine of the 42 related hospitalizations were for hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can be a fatal form of kidney failure. 

Ninety six percent of 67 people interviewed in connection with the investigation reported eating romaine lettuce in the week before their illness started. Symptoms of E. coli infection include diarrhea, severe stomach cramps and vomiting. 

Walk through the door of any special event and your eyes are bound to beeline right to a specific sight: The grand chocolate fountain, sitting in the middle of the ballroom or conference space, awaiting anyone who is wielding a sadly un-chocolate'd strawberry or marshmallow.

Those goodies won't remain un-chocolate'd for long, not in the presence of a chocolate fountain. It's a device that's weathered confection-based trends over the decades, one that still brings a lot of dazzle and flash to whatever fancy event it gooeily graces.

But the chocolate fountain must step aside — or is that ooze aside? — for a new contender in town: The caramel fountain currently starring at Justin Chao's new East Hollywood confectionary, Le Bon Garçon.

You know the pastry chef's posh caramels, if you've read O (they've appeared in a past gift guide in Oprah's magazine), but pop-one-in-your-mouth chewies are just the beginning at the dessert-focused destination.

There is, yes, a caramel fountain to behold, a drippy, liquid-luscious caramel delivery systems that's all about the freshly made sweet.

You can also go the caramel-filled waffle route, if that's your pleasure, or go with a non-traditional caramel flavor, such as matcha, yuzu, or lemon elderflower. There are seven caramel flavors in all to choose from.

Coming up? Caramel-making classes, oh yeah. The space feels breezily Parisian, but before you swing by, note that current open days run from Thursdays through Saturdays.

More days and hours are to come, which might be expected of a place that's offering people the chance to enjoy caramel direct from a caramel fountain.

A Florida liquor store clerk was robbed of more than $11,000 as a group of witnesses stood idly by while she fought to fend off the suspect.

The incident was captured on surveillance video outside the 19th Street Liquors store in Fort Lauderdale. According to Ash Raff, the store's manager, the employee was picking up money to deposit.   

Video shows the woman holding a black bag as she walks out of the store. A man then ambushes the woman and wrestles the bag out of her hands while several bystanders watch. The suspect flees the scene on foot. 

"We don't deserve this because we fight to make a living," Raff said.

He believes the robbery was planned. Raff said the employee has been picking up money from the liquore store for 15 years and the suspect may have known which days she stops by.

The suspect was seen on surveillance video loitering in front of the store for more than an hour before she arrived, appearing to be waiting for the victim, Raff said. 

He said he usually walks his colleague to her car, but on the day she was robbed he was not working. The woman was not injured in the attack, but Raff said she is still shaken up over the incident. 

Anyone with any information on the robbery is urged to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.

Google is giving Gmail a makeover for its 1.4 billion users with new tools and features, including most notably, disappearing messages the tech giant announced Wednesday, NBC News reported. 

At first glance, the new Gmail design tweaks are subtle, including a new side panel for accessing calendars and tasks and large, color-coded warnings on suspicious emails, NBC News reported.

Some of the features include a user deciding whether a message could disappear now or five years from now and the option to revoke an email at any time. For procrastinators, a new feature will also "nudge" remind users how much has past since receiving an email, NBC News reported. 

A suspect was arrested Wednesday afternoon after leading police on an erratic chase in the Downey area.

The SUV driver was wanted for grand theft auto and led the Downey Police Department on a chase along surface streets and freeways. 

Shortly before 4 p.m., he hit a light pole underneath the 605 Freeway in the Whittier area and tried to run from police. 

He appeared to be talking on a cellphone as he ran from officers into a residential area near the freeway. 

Two motorcycle officers surrounded the suspect -- who appeared to be out of breath -- and took him into custody. 

Republican lawmakers returned to an Alexandria, Virginia, baseball field Wednesday, nearly 11 months after a gunman opened fire on their practice for a charity baseball game. 

The team gathered at Simpson Field in the Del Ray neighborhood Wednesday morning for their first practice for this year's charity baseball game. 

Texas State Rep. Joe Barton, who also serves as the team's manager, said returning to the field was emotional.

"Obviously, the people that were shot feel very strongly about it," he said. "I had my two sons here, and I brought both of them back to the field that same week so they could see that it’s just a baseball field."

Georgia State Rep. Barry Loudermilk also recalled the emotions brought on by the shooting. He showed up to practice Wednesday wearing the same clothes he had on that day.  

"One of the things that stayed with me was we never got to finish the practice that we started, and that’s why I wore the same uniform I was wearing on the field that day, because it was important to come out here and show the world that we’re not going to be deterred from doing what we do," he said. 

On the morning of June 14, 2017, members of the Republican team were practicing when shots rang out. 

Four people were injured in the shooting. The wounded included House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise; Matt Mika, a lobbyist for Tysons Foods; Capitol Police Special Agent Crystal Griner; and Zack Barth, an aide to Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas). Scalise and Mika were seriously injured.

Scalise was struck in the hip and the bullet shattered blood vessels, bones and internal organs along the way. Doctors said he arrived at a hospital at imminent risk of death.

He was hospitalized for more than a month and has had to endure a number of surgeries since the shooting.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Scalise said he was encouraged that his colleagues returned to the field for practice. Once he's up to it, he said he'd like to get back out on the field, too. He isn't sure, however, that he'll make it to the game. 

"I haven’t been back out to the ballfield yet since the shooting and want to do that on my own terms first and ultimately get back to a practice," Scalise said. 

The gunman, 66-year-old James T. Hodgkinson, of Illinois, was shot dead by U.S. Capitol Police officers who were there as a part of Scalise's security detail.

Hodgkinson had nursed grievances against President Donald Trump and income inequality. Hodgkinson had also been critical of the GOP and was reportedly carrying a handwritten list of House Republicans' names, according to officials.

In a tweet Wednesday, Alexandria Mayor Allison Silberberg thanked law enforcement, and posted a photo at the field with Barton. 

"The Republican Congressional Baseball Team came back to kick off their practice at Simpson Field this morning," she wrote. "It is not quite a year since the unthinkable incident."

This year, congressional baseball practices will be heavily guarded, with Capitol police officers to attend each session. Residents and media will also have limited access to the field. 

A 3.1-magnitude earthquake shook the Anza area on Wednesday afternoon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The temblor hit around 4:30 p.m. about 5 miles north-northeast of Aguanga in the Inland Empire. 

Around 11 people reporting feel the quake to USGS. 

Capital murder charges were filed against the suspected "Golden State Killer" in connection with the March 1980 murders of a Ventura County couple, officials said Wednesday.

The charges were filed against 72-year-old Joseph James DeAngelo, a former officer from the Auburn Police Department, who was arrested Wednesday in Sacramento after a tip from the public and DNA evidence pointed detectives to the suspect, said Ventura County District Attorney Gregory Totten.

He was charged in connection with the bludgeoning killings of Lyman and Charlene Smith. He was a lawyer. His wife was a court clerk.

The charges include two counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances of multiple murders, murder during a rape and burglary, Totten said.

"This 1980 murder has long been a source of fear and angst," Totten said.

The case terrorized California in the late 70s and 80s and left 12 victims dead and 50 women raped across the state.

Investigators linked him to four murders in Orange County.

"We've always believed, at least for many years, that this case would begin and end with DNA," Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said. "... Our team is going to work hard to make sure he never gets out."

The emergence of DNA technology in the late 1990s helped local law enforcement link the suspect to four unsolved murders in the Southland, according to Irvine police Sgt. Sarah Tunnicliffe.

The first locally known victims were a husband and wife -- Keith and Patrice Harrington -- in Dana Point.

Their bodies were found in their home on Aug. 19, 1980. On Feb. 5, 1981, Manuella Witthuhn was found dead in her Irvine home. The last known Orange County victim -- 18-year-old Janelle Cruz -- was found on May 5, 1986, in her Irvine home.

"It is time for the victims to begin to heal, so long overdue," said Bruce Harrington, brother of Keith Harrington. "For law enforcement, bravo, bravo, bravo. Their tenacity, their patience, their unrelenting focus. .... Today is also a reaffirmation of the power and the public safety that's associated with forensic DNA technology."

Harrington worked with the Orange County District Attorney's Office in 2004 to secure the passage of Proposition 69, which expanded the state's criminal DNA database to every convicted felon in California.

The sister of Janelle Cruz, one of the killers last victims, said she received word of an arrest Wednesday morning. Janelle Cruz was killed in 1986 in Irvine. She was only 18 years old.

"I'm so excited and overwhelmed," said Michelle Cruz. "I'm feeling very blessed today and now I will be able to breathe again."

On early Wednesday morning, Jason Alvarez was involved in a dangerous car accident that left his car totaled. The dangerous hit-and-run incident spun Alvarez's car and shattered two of his windows.

He's lucky to have survived the crash with only minor cuts and bruises, but Alvarez's primary concern at the moment doesn't appear to be the state of his vehicle.

Instead, Alvarez is frantic about the whereabouts of his missing dog, Panda. Alvarez isn't sure if Panda was ejected from the vehicle or fled out of fear.

When the crash occurred, Alvarez had both his dogs, Panda and Griz, with him. The two pets are Shepard and border collie mixes from the same litter. After he regained his senses following the crash, Alvarez noticed that Griz was still present but Panda had disappeared.

So, Alvarez did what any animal owner would do. He began canvassing the area. Friends joined the search party and helped contact several animal shelters and put up fliers.

Working tirelessly through the moring and into the day, Alvarez remains optimistic that he'll be reunited with Panda.

If anyone has information about the missing pet, please contact Jason at 530-386-1910

A 3.9-magnitude earthquake shook the Borrego Springs area on Wednesday evening, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The temblor hit at 6:36 p.m. about 9 miles north-northeast of Borrego Springs in San Diego County. 

More than 400 people said they felt the quake.

The quake was initially reported as magnitude 3.8 and later upgraded to magnitude 3.9. 

There were no immediate reports of damage or injury.