South African Olympian Oscar Pistorius is spending time his family today after the athlete was freed on $113,000 bail Friday.
"We realise that the law must run its course, and we would not have it any other way," the Olympian's uncle, Arnold Pistorius said in a statement on Saturday.
The Pistorius family expressed their gratitude that the former Olympian was allowed out of jail before the trial.
"This constitutes a moment of relief under these otherwise very grave circumstances" said Arnold Pistorius."We are extremely thankful that Oscar is now home."
Pistorius, 26, is charged with premeditated murder in the Valentine's Day shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
While the prosecution argued that the world-renowned athlete was a flight risk and had a history of violence, South African Magistrate Desmond Nair, who presided over the case, disagreed.
FULL COVERAGE: Oscar Pistorius
"He regards South Africa as his permanent place of abode, he has no intention to relocate to any other country" Nair said during his two hour ruling, before concluding with, "the accused has made the case to be released on bail."
'Blade Runner' Murder Charges: Oscar Pistorius Out on Bail Watch Video
Oscar Pistorius Granted Bail in Murder Case Watch Video
Pistoriuis will have to adhere to strict conditions to stay out of jail before the trial. He must give up all his guns, he cannot drink alcohol or return to the home where the shooting occurred, and he must check in with a police department twice a week.
Oscar Pistorius is believed to be staying at an uncle's house as he awaits trial.
RELATED: Oscar Pistorius Case: Key Elements to the Murder Investigation
During the hearing, the prosecution argued that Pistorius shot Steenkamp after an argument, while the defense laid out an alternate version of events saying Pistorius mistook his girlfriend for an intruder.
Nair took issue with the head detective originally in charge of the case, who he said "blundered" in gathering evidence and was removed from the case after it was revealed he is facing attempted murder charges.
RELATED: Oscar Pistorius Case: Lead Det. Hilton Botha to Be Booted From Investigation Team
After the magistrate's decision, cheers erupted in the courtroom from the Pistorius camp. Pistorius' trial is expected to start in six to eight months, with his next pre-trial court date in June.
Reeva Steenkamp Family Reaction
Steenkamp's father, Barry Steenkamp told the South African Beeld newspaper that the 26-year-old athlete will "suffer" if he is lying about accidentally shooting 29-year-old model.
PHOTOS: Oscar Pistorius Charged with Murder
Barry Steenkamp went on to say that the Pistorius will have to "live with his conscience" if he intentionally shot Reeva.
Bersani wins he may be forced to form a coalition with incumbent PM Mario Monti
Center-left leader Bersani says he plans to make the property tax "more progressive"
Berlusconi is using his showman charm to mount a comeback for his PDL party
London (CNN) -- Italy's electoral run-off between an ex-communist and a former cruise ship singer threatens to throw the country back into the spotlight of the European debt crisis.
The enigmatic leader of the center-left Democratic Party, Pier Luigi Bersani, goes head-to-head with scandal-laden former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi -- back from the political grave following his resignation in November 2011.
Incumbent technocrat premier and eurozone darling Mario Monti, meanwhile, is lagging behind in the polls.
The cigar-chomping Bersani is favorite for Italy's top job and proposes to steer the country's battered economy through a debt crisis that is still plaguing the eurozone three years on.
Following six consecutive quarters of recession and with unemployment at 11.2%, Bersani is pursuing the euro area's latest fad to revive Italy's ailing economy; a pro-growth agenda.
Read more: Can the anti-Berlusconi pull Italy out of the mire?
Such policies are a stark contrast to Monti's cocktail of cuts and taxes served up to woo policymakers in Brussels and Frankfurt.
Read more: Berlusconi renaissance would be 'disaster' for Italian economy
Growth will be the "golden rule" to attract foreign investment, according to Democratic Party number two Enrico Letta. A similar sentiment was key in sweeping socialist French President Francois Hollande into the Elysee Palace in 2012.
But Letta stresses that Bersani will not follow Hollande's lead by proposing a 75% income tax for the country's wealthiest residents.
Read more: Beppe Grillo: Clown prince of Italian politics
Speaking to CNN, Letta said: "It will be different, we already have a very high level of taxation...the main point is not to increase taxes."
Bersani -- who promises to stick to the outgoing government's plans for pension and labor market reform -- will also keep Monti's reviled property tax, known as IMU. It's a policy that Berlusconi pledges to scrap if elected.
In an interview with CNN, Bersani says he plans to make the tax "more progressive" and focus on the owners of large properties if his party wins.
But for all Bersani's talk of change, bond strategist Nicholas Spiro dismisses the 71-year-old as no reformer and says he is "not up to the task" of hauling the Italian economy out of a "knee deep" recession.
Spiro, managing director of Spiro Sovereign Strategy, says "Bersani could very well go for taxes on the rich, but Italy has a massive tax evasion and compliance problem, that could be difficult."
Can a political marriage survive?
Politics in Italy is complicated and outright victory for any party is unlikely. If Bersani wins he may be forced to form a coalition.
An alliance with the flamboyant center-right leader Silvio Berlusconi is unthinkable -- which leaves Monti the most likely candidate to support a Bersani-lead government.
But Monti is viewed with suspicion Bersani's far-left partners, Left Ecology Freedom, who believe the technocrat would pull a left government too far to the economic right.
If the parties can strike a deal Monti would be offered "an important role" to be discussed "Monday afternoon," Letta told CNN. He refused to say if the technocrat would be appointed finance minister.
Monti, a former European Commissioner in financial services, wields the power to reassure European leaders that Italy is on the right track and can act as a counterbalance to a leftist government.
Bersani, by contrast, is a mystery on the international stage, according to Paola Subacchi, an economist at London-based think tank Chatham House.
"He is not known abroad and he doesn't speak English... But his whole agenda is pro-Europe and pro-euro."
A Bersani-Monti marriage is unlikely to be smooth. The two could clash over unpopular austerity measures implemented by Monti as part of a European agreement.
Filippo Cavazzuti, former Italian senator and economist at the University of Bologna, believes Bersani will be forced to maintain Monti's policies under the European fiscal compact.
He said: "Otherwise Monti leaves [the coalition], the spread [on bond yields] rises and the credibility with the eurozone will immediately disappear."
A coalition agreement is crucial to stifling a power-grab by Italy's political bad boy, Berlusconi, is gaining on Bersani's seemingly unassailable lead in the polls.
Berlusconi is using his showman charm to mount a comeback for his People of Freedom party and holds key regions in Veneto and Lombardy that could prove crucial, particularly in the battle for the Senate.
The election will hand down a "damning verdict" to the policymakers of northern Europe that Italians are fed up with austerity, according to Spiro.
The electoral campaign, Spiro added, has been: "Very ugly, devoid of substance and purely based on personalities."
MADRID: Workers at Spanish airline Iberia on Friday wrapped up a week-long strike that has seen hundreds of flights cancelled, with no sign of agreement in a dispute over the company's plan to cut 3,800 jobs.
Staff marked the last day of this week's strike -- the first of three planned five-day actions -- with a noisy demonstration in terminal four of Madrid's Barajas airport.
They waved banners reading "British Go Home" -- a reference to British Airways, which merged with Iberia in 2011 to form the International Airlines Group (IAG) in a tie-up aimed at slashing costs.
Some protesters wore pirate hats and eye-patches and waved skull-and-crossbones flags symbolising what they saw as an aggressive takeover of their beloved national carrier.
Unions called similar demonstrations in other airports across the country.
A demonstration at Barajas on Monday led to clashes with riot police when protesters tried to force their way into the building, but no incidents were reported at Friday's action.
IAG announced last week that it would axe 3,800 jobs at Iberia out of a total 20,000.
Cabin crew, ground staff and maintenance workers responded by announcing the three five-day strikes this month and next.
Spain is in a recession that has thrown millions out of work and driven the unemployment rate over 26 per cent.
With major airlines fighting to respond to competition from low-cost carriers, the Spanish flag-carrier has become one of the latest and most prominent companies to announce job cuts.
Iberia executives say the airline accumulated 850 million euros (US$1.1 billion) in losses between 2008 and September 2012 and the airline aims to cut its capacity by 15 per cent this year.
Workers accuse the management of betraying them and selling off the pride of Spanish aviation to foreign interests.
"The management does not want to negotiate. We want the government to intervene and undo the merger of Iberia and British Airways," said one protester, Silvia Navarro, 40, an air hostess who works on routes to Latin America.
"We haven't given up the jobs for lost yet, if the government intervenes."
The government on Thursday appointed a mediator to try and resolve the dispute. Management did not appear to have budged on the job cuts.
Deafening horns and whistles resounded around the terminal building, where the crowds of demonstrators blocked passengers arriving with their luggage to check in.
An Iberia spokeswoman said on Friday that the four airlines in the IAG group had cancelled 1,288 flights this week, mostly across Spain and Europe.
These included flights operated by Iberia and its low-cost arm Iberia Express, plus partners Air Nostrum and Vueling.
The workers planned to strike again from March 4-8 and again from March 18-22 -- just before the Easter holiday week. A minimum service is operating under Spanish law.
NEW: Drew Peterson's lawyer says his client feels the system he served failed him
NEW: Kathleen Savio's kin say he "battered her to the very end," is "going to hell"
The Chicago-area police sergeant was convicted of murdering his third wife
He is sentenced to 38 years in prison and will get credit for nearly 4 years served
(CNN) -- After years policing Illinois streets for criminals, Drew Peterson is now among them -- and will be for more than three decades, a judge ruled Thursday.
Will County Judge Edward Burmila sentenced Peterson to 38 years in prison in the murder of his third ex-wife, Kathleen Savio, said state's attorney spokesman Charles B. Pelkie.
The former Chicago-area police sergeant will get credit for the nearly four years that he has been in custody, according to Pelkie, a spokesman for Will County State's Attorney James Glasgow. He could have received as many as 60 years in prison; Illinois does not have a death penalty.
"The reason that I never looked Drew Peterson in the eye is because I never acknowledged his existence," said Glasgow, describing the convict as a "cold-blooded killer."
"But I looked him in the eye today," the prosecutor said. "He knows that we did our job."
Peterson was convicted of murder in September but had fought for a new trial, an effort that Burmila denied Thursday, just before the sentencing.
Peterson's lawyers promised Thursday that they would press on with their appeal and expressed confidence they would prevail. They stood by their client, who defiantly claimed in court that he didn't kill Savio.
"Wouldn't you be angry if you were wrongly convicted?" said one of his attorneys, Steve Greenberg.
"In this case, (the prosecution) changed everything ... How would you feel if you were railroaded?"
Savio was found dead in her dry, clean bathtub on March 1, 2004. Prosecutors said Peterson killed her; the defense contended that she fell, hit her head and drowned.
The case did not grab headlines until after Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, disappeared in October 2007. It was during the search for Stacy Peterson -- who still has not been found -- that investigators said they'd look again into Savio's death, which was initially ruled an accidental drowning.
Authorities altered their judgment and ruled Savio's death a homicide in February 2008, setting the stage for the first-degree murder trial last year of Peterson, a former police officer in Bolingbrook, Illinois.
A Will County jury ultimately convicted him of murder after nearly 14 hours of deliberation.
That was four months ago. On Thursday, all the parties were back in court to see whether Peterson would get a new trial or, if not, what his sentence would be.
Perhaps the most emotional part of this court proceeding was Peterson's long and emotional remarks, which were interrupted at times by shouts from Savio family members, several of whom were asked to leave the courtroom.
He unloaded "pent-up anger" that had built up over time -- against Savio and her family, the legal process, the media, even a TV movie about the case, according to his attorneys and the prosecutor. Above all, Peterson loudly insisted that he did not kill Savio.
Why was he upset? One of his lawyers, David Peilet, said part of it has to do with Peterson feeling the system that he served -- as a military veteran and longtime police officer -- had failed him.
"(He is angry) especially when you are somebody who has defended the Constitution and served and protected the public, now being faced with the same system coming up and biting (you) in the butt," Peilet said.
Glasgow, the state's attorney, had a different take. He called Peterson's remarks "pathetic," especially in how he "attacked" Savio and her mental state.
"Just depraved," the prosecutor said. "... We all got an opportunity to see a psychopath reveal himself in open court."
It was a sentiment echoed by the victim's sister, Susan Doman. She said she couldn't stand to hear "the devil" demean her sister, almost nine years after her death.
"He battered her to the very end."
Pam Bosco, a spokeswoman for Stacy Peterson's family, lauded the prosecution for making "this world a safer, better place" by fighting to convict Peterson and expressed hope he'd next be held accountable for what happened to his fourth wife.
"It's not over for us, but of course, a win for the Savio family is a win for the Stacy Peterson family," Bosco said. "We have a long journey ahead. We still want to see justice for Stacy. We won't give up."
Several Savio family members specifically mentioned Stacy when they addressed reporters late Thursday afternoon in Joliet.
Henry Savio Jr., a brother of Kathleen Savio, said Stacy Peterson's relatives "deserve the same thing that we're getting right now: justice."
As to Peterson's fate, Henry Savio said he wanted him to "stay in jail forever, to die there."
"(Then) he is going to go to hell," the victim's brother said. "And my sister is going to be watching him."
CNN's Elwyn Lopez, Carma Hassan and Michael Christian, from the InSession division of CNN's sister network TruTV, contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON The Justice Department has joined a lawsuit against disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong that alleges the former, seven-time Tour de France champion concealed his use of performance-enhancing drugs and defrauded his long-time sponsor, the U.S. Postal Service, Armstrong's lawyers said Friday.
The suit the Justice Department is joining was filed in 2010 by former teammate Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title for doping.
Settlement discussions had been underway between the Justice Department and Armstrong's lawyers. A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press the two sides are tens of millions of dollars apart on how much Armstrong should pay to settle the case. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the source was not authorized to speak on the record about the private talks.
"Lance and his representatives worked constructively over these last weeks with federal lawyers to resolve this case fairly, but those talks failed because we disagree about whether the Postal Service was damaged," Armstrong attorney Robert Luskin said in a statement to news outlets, including CBS News.
Play Video
Is Lance Armstrong still lying?
Play Video
Armstrong refuses to talk to anti-doping agency
The Landis lawsuit was filed under seal, but it will be unsealed with the Justice Department decision to join, or in essence, take over the case.
Armstrong was the subject of a two-year federal grand jury investigation that the Justice Department dropped a year ago without an indictment.
Throughout his career, Armstrong always denied drug use, but he confessed to having done so in an interview last month.
In October, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency released a report that included affidavits from 11 of Armstrong's former teammates. These affidavits detailed how the teammates were supplied with EPO by Armstrong and saw him inject, and how they were pressured to dope and bullied by Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel, the team manager. The cycling world's governing body then stripped Armstrong of the seven Tour de France titles he won from 1999 to 2005.
Last month, the head of USADA lobbied Attorney General Eric Holder for the Justice Department to join the lawsuit against Armstrong. USADA chief executive Travis Tygart has called the doping by Armstrong and the Postal Service teams a "massive economic fraud."
Accused murderer Jodi Arias believes she should be punished, but hopes she will not be sentenced to death, two of her closest friends told ABC News in an exclusive interview.
Ann Campbell and Donavan Bering have been a constant presence for Arias wth at least one of them sitting in the Phoenix, Ariz., courtroom along with Arias' family for almost every day of her murder trial. They befriended Arias after she first arrived in jail and believe in her innocence.
Arias admits killing her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander and lying for nearly two years about it, but insists she killed Alexander in self defense. She could face the death penalty if convicted of murder.
Jodi Arias Testimony: Prosecution's Cross-Examination Watch Video
Jodi Arias Remains Calm Under Cross-Examination Watch Video
Jodi Arias Doesn't Remember Stabbing Ex-Boyfriend Watch Video
Nevertheless, she is aware of the seriousness of her lies and deceitful behavior.
The women told ABC News that they understand that Arias needs to be punished and Arias understands that too.
"She does know that, you know, she does need to pay for the crime," Campbell said. "But I don't want her to die, and I know that she has so much to give back."
Catching Up on the Trial? Check Out ABC News' Jodi Arias Trial Coverage
The lies that Arias admits she told to police and her family have been devastating to her, Bering said.
""She said to me, 'I wish I didn't have to have lied. That destroyed me,'" Donovan said earlier this week. "Because now when it's so important for her to be believed, she has that doubt. But as she told me on the phone yesterday, she goes, 'I have nothing to lose.' So all she can do is go out there and tell the truth."
During Arias' nine days on the stand she has described in detail the oral, anal and phone sex that she and Alexander allegedly engaged in, despite being Mormons and trying to practice chastity. She also spelled out in excruciating detail what she claimed was Alexander's growing demands for sex, loyalty and subservience along with an increasingly violent temper.
Besides her two friends, Arias' mother and sometimes her father have been sitting in the front row of the courtroom during the testimony. It's been humiliating, Bering said.
"She's horrified. There's not one ounce of her life that's not out there, that's not open to the public. She's ashamed," she said.
WASHINGTON: Big Bird is back as a player in big time US politics.
Mitt Romney wanted to get rid of him, but after a reprieve following the Republican's election defeat, the towering Sesame Street puppet has signed up to endorse First Lady Michelle Obama's nutrition and fitness campaign.
The fluffy yellow character known to generations of US kids is seen jogging in the East Room of the White House and checking out a bowl of fruit and vegetables in the presidential kitchen in two new public service ads.
"Gee, I bet you could get just anything you want in this kitchen," Big Bird said in one of the ads, before remarking "those look good" when the First Lady points out some crunchy vegetables.
The ads will be distributed to 320 public broadcasting stations as part of the First Lady's "Let's Move!" campaign which is designed to fight obesity and improve the diets and health of American kids.
The First Lady will kick off a national tour next week to mark the three year anniversary of the program.
"Eating healthy is easy and it's fun and delicious too," Michelle Obama says in one of the ads.
The use of Big Bird may be seen as one last jab at Romney by the Obamas after the famous Muppet emerged as a punch line during last year's presidential election.
Romney said in a debate in Denver that he liked Big Bird but pledged to cut a government subsidy for public television where he appears, as part of efforts to trim the deficit.
President Barack Obama's team seized on the remark to ridicule Romney after the president badly wobbled in the debate.
"Mitt Romney knows it's not Wall Street you have to worry about, it's Sesame Street," one Obama ad said, jokingly describing Big Bird as an "evil genius" towering over financial felons like Ken Lay and Bernie Madoff.
"Mitt Romney. Taking on our enemies, no matter where they nest," the announcer of the television ad said.
Casino visitor to KLAS: I "could see the fireball" out my window
A gunman in an SUV shoots at a car on the Las Vegas strip, causing a multivehicle crash
Three were dead following the shooting and crash at Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo Road
Police are looking for a black Range Rover Sport with large black rims
(CNN) -- Three people were dead and at least three others injured after a shooting and fiery six-vehicle crash along the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada early Thursday, police said.
The incident began about 4:20 a.m. when someone in an SUV -- stopped at a stoplight on Las Vegas Boulevard near Caesars Palace and a number of other casinos -- fired into a Maserati that also had stopped at the light, Las Vegas police said.
The Maserati moved into the intersection with Flamingo Road and collided with a taxi, starting a chain of crashes that involved four other vehicles, police said.
Fire swept through the taxi, where the driver and a passenger were trapped. The taxi's two occupants and the Maserati's driver died, Las Vegas Police spokesman Jose Hernandez said.
A passenger in the Maserati suffered gunshot wounds and was being treated at a hospital, police said. At least two other people in the other crashed vehicles suffered light to moderate injuries, they said.
John Lamb, who was inside Caesars Palace, told CNN affiliate KLAS he heard the commotion and saw the taxi on fire from a window.
"There was a loud bang, and I hear two other booms. I looked out my window at Caesars Palace ... and could see the fireball," he told KLAS.
Police are looking for the occupants of the SUV, described as a black Range Rover Sport with tinted windows, large black rims and a dealer license plate not from Nevada, said Las Vegas Police Sgt. John Sheahan.
Hernandez said he didn't have information on what led to the shooting. The names of the dead and the injured were not immediately released.
Man kills 3, himself in Southern California shooting
CNN's Carol Costello, Jason Hanna and Deanna Hackney contributed to this report.
ST. LOUIS Blinding snow, at times accompanied by thunder and lightning, bombarded much of the nation's midsection Thursday, causing whiteout conditions, making major roadways all but impassable and shutting down schools and state legislatures.
Kansas was the epicenter of the winter storm, with parts of the state buried under 14 inches of powdery snow, but winter storm warnings stretched from eastern Colorado through Illinois. Freezing rain and sleet were forecast for southern Missouri, southern Illinois and Arkansas. St. Louis was expected to get all of the above — a treacherous mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain.
Play Video
Biggest storm in central U.S. in two years
CBS News weather consultant David Bernard reported on "CBS This Morning" Thursday that very heavy snow squalls were moving from Wichita, Kan., into Kansas City, Mo., where it looks like it's going to snow hard for about the entire day.
Forecast models show the snowstorm pivoting from southwest to northeast throughout the afternoon hours, so Wichita would see improvement late Thursday, but northeastern Kansas and most of Missouri would be looking at heavy snowfall until at least Thursday night, Bernard reports.
Several accidents were blamed on icy and slushy roadways, including two fatal accidents. Most schools in Kansas and Missouri, and many in neighboring states, were closed. Legislatures shut down early in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Nebraska and Iowa.
By midmorning Thursday, the snowfall was so heavy that Kansas City International Airport shut down. About 90 flights were also cancelled at Lambert Airport in St. Louis, where sleet and ice began falling late-morning.
"Thundersnow" accompanied the winter storm in parts of Kansas and Missouri, which National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Truett said is the result of an unstable air mass, much like a thunderstorm.
"Instead of pouring rain, it's pouring snow," Truett said. And pouring was a sound description, with snow falling at a rate of 1 1/2 to 2 inches per hour in some spots. Kansas City got 5 inches in two hours.
Snow totals passed the foot mark in many places: Monarch Pass, Colo., had 17 1/2 inches, Hutchinson, Kan., 14 inches and Wichita 13 inches. The National Weather Service said up to 18 inches of snow were possible in Kansas towns such as Salina, Russell and Great Bend.
With that in mind, Kansas transportation officials — and even the governor — urged people to simply stay home. Drivers were particularly warned away from the Kansas Turnpike, as whiteout conditions meant low visibility for the length of the turnpike, from Oklahoma to Kansas City.
Interstate 70, which runs the length of Kansas, was also snow-packed and icy. State transportation officials closed a 90-mile stretch of I-70 between Salina and Hays.
Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback closed executive offices, except for essential personnel.
"If you don't have to get out, just really, please, don't do it," Brownback said.
Some travelers gave up, filling hotels rather than skating across dangerous roadways.
At the Econo Lodge in WaKeeney, Kan., assistant manager Michael Tidball said the 48-room hotel was full by 10 p.m. Wednesday and that most guests were opting to stay an extra day. He said travelers reported that snow was freezing on their windshields faster than wipers could keep them clean.
The blowing snow didn't stop everyone. Christy Walker, a waitress at the Polly Anna Cafe in Woodward, Okla., got stuck in the 8 inches of snow during her drive into work. But business in the western Oklahoma town was brisk, she said.
"It's affecting everybody who is hungry and wants to come out to eat," she said. "I'm extremely busy right now."
Areas in western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle also had up to 8 inches of snow by Thursday morning. Arkansas saw a mix of precipitation — some got a combination of hail, sleet and freezing rain, while others got up to 6 inches of snow. Forecasters warned that northern Arkansas could get a half-inch of ice accumulation.
Near the Nebraska-Kansas border, as much as 8 inches fell overnight, while western Nebraska saw about half of that amount, National Weather Service forecaster Shawn Jacobs said.
Two fatal accidents were attributed to winter weather on Wednesday. In Oklahoma, 18-year-old Cody Alexander of Alex, Okla., died when his pickup truck skidded on a slushy state highway into oncoming traffic and struck a truck. And in Nebraska, 19-year-old Kristina Leigh Anne Allen of Callaway died when a sport utility vehicle lost control in snowy, icy conditions, crossed the median and struck her car.
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency Thursday morning and activated the State Emergency Operations Center. The declaration allows state agencies to coordinate directly with cities and counties to provide emergency services.
Kansas City-area roads were a mess. Portions of I-70 and I-35 were closed along with many other roads because of snow drifts and slippery conditions. The Missouri Department of Transportation said Interstate 44 near Springfield was completely covered with ice Thursday morning, and traffic was moving very slow.
In Jefferson City, Mo., off-duty police sergeant Randy Werner had been perched atop a hotel for more than 24 hours as a publicity stunt for a charitable fundraiser.
As large snowflakes pelted him in the face Thursday morning, Werner defiantly declared: "The weather's not bothering me, I can assure you."
He then acknowledged that was a lie.
"It's blustery," he said. Werner planned to cut his effort short, having raised less than a third of his goal.
The St. Louis region prepared with some uncertainty. Depending on the temperature and the trajectory of the storm, St. Louis could get snow, freezing rain, ice, sleet or all or some of the above. Crews were hoping to spread enough salt to keep at least the major roadways moving.
Alex Sosnowski, a meteorologist for Accuweather, said the storm will push off into the Great Lakes and central Appalachians, and freezing rain could make it as far east and south as North Carolina. He also said a "spin-off" storm was expected to create heavy snow in New England, and could push Boston to a February record.
Accuweather said that by the time the storm dies out, at least 24 states will be affected.
A drive-by shooting on the Las Vegas strip early this morning by the occupants of a Range Rover SUV, who shot at the occupants of a Maserati, caused a multi-car accident and car explosion that left three dead.
Police said that they believe a group of men riding in a black Range Rover Sport SUV pulled up alongside a Maserati around 4:20 a.m. today and fired shots into the car, striking the driver and passenger, according to Officer Jose Hernandez of the Las Vegas Metropolitan police department.
The Maserati then swerved through an intersection, hitting at least four other cars. One car that was struck, a taxi with a driver and passenger in it, caught on fire and burst into flames, trapping both occupants, Hernandez said.
Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun/AP Photo
California Man's Carjacking Spree Takes 3 Victims Watch Video
Chicago Teen Killed Day of Obama's Anti-Violence Speech Watch Video
Dallas Courthouse Shooting Manhunt Intensify Watch Video
The SUV then fled the scene, according to cops.
The driver of the Maserati died from his gunshot wounds at University Medical Center shortly after the shooting, according to Sgt. John Sheahan.
The driver and passenger of the taxi both died in the car fire.
At least three individuals, including the passenger of the Maserati, were injured during the shooting and car crashes and are being treated at UMC hospital.
Police are scouring surveillance video from the area, including from the strip's major casinos, to try and identify the Range Rover and its occupants, according to police.
They do not yet know why the Range Rovers' occupants fired shots at the Maserati or whether the cars had local plates or were from out of state.
No bystanders were hit by gunfire, Hernandez said.
"We're currently looking for a black Range Rover Sport, with large black rims and some sort of dealership advertising or advertisement plates," Hernandez said. "This is an armed and dangerous vehicle."
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority had no immediate comment about the safety of tourists in the wake of the shooting today.
