By Eric Levenson, CNN

(CNN) — In March 2021, a Brown University doctoral candidate wrote an op-ed in the school paper criticizing Brown’s increasing use of surveillance cameras and lack of transparency.

“In the span of two decades, Brown University quietly deployed an expansive surveillance apparatus, unbeknownst to many in the community; it’s well past time we critically examined our University’s pervasive surveillance of College Hill,” John Wrenn wrote.

“It is impossible to cross (or even approach) Brown University without being surveilled,” he added. “I encourage you to try.”

The extent of that surveillance coverage is now under scrutiny amid the ongoing search for a gunman who killed two students and wounded nine others last Saturday before disappearing from the scene.

Law enforcement has released a series of videos from nearby homes and vehicles showing what the FBI has called an “unknown suspect,” but none of those appeared to come from Brown’s own surveillance cameras or from the building where the shooting took place. The shortage of visuals has led to sharp questions about surveillance at Brown.

“Why did Brown University have so few Security Cameras?” President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social just after midnight Wednesday. “There can be no excuse for that. In the modern age, it just doesn’t get worse!!!”

In fact, Brown University has an “expansive network of security cameras,” with more than 1,200 cameras installed in buildings with both interior and locations, university spokesperson Brian Clark said.

The problem, though, is the shooting took place at the very edge of the university in an older part of a building that has “fewer, if any” cameras, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said Tuesday. That left police to rely mainly on videos from the neighboring residential area to try to identify the person of interest.

“This building is on the literal edge of the campus, and the person of interest walked out the door (and) as soon as he stepped onto the sidewalk, was no longer on campus,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said.

“It’s part of the reason we keep asking for the community’s help so much, is because even though this occurred on campus, the route of travel and all of the video evidence you’ve seen, other than that very first video, has been video from off campus,” he said.

CNN spoke to several security experts to better understand the growth of Brown’s surveillance system, why its cameras failed to capture the attack or suspect, and the concerns about privacy and academic freedom that are the biggest resistance to their growing use.

“You would think that, ‘Hey it’s a school like Brown, they would have this investment, and they can figure out who this suspect is or at least help in identifying,’” said Glen Kucera, the president of the security company Allied Universal Enhanced Protection Services. “I’ve talked to a number of campuses across the country and some are more thorough in their surveillance system than others. Some have invested in it, and some haven’t.”

How many cameras is enough?

Like many modern institutions, Brown’s use of surveillance cameras has increased dramatically over the years. The university had just 60 surveillance cameras in 2000, a number that rose to Read more

By Katelyn Polantz, Evan Perez, CNN

(CNN) — Frustration is mounting inside the Justice Department as it races to redact thousands of pages of files related to Jeffrey Epstein before they must be released Friday, multiple sources familiar with the process told CNN.

A substantial number of redactions are needed, one of the sources said, and the documents each attorney is processing since Thanksgiving week can number more than 1,000 — a time-consuming task that likely will come down to the wire. The sensitivities of executive and legal privacy, victims’ protections and other concerns all could play in to the choices the lawyers must make when it comes to potential redactions.

Lawyers working on the Epstein files at the DOJ’s National Security Division also believe they aren’t getting clear or comprehensive direction on how to make the most information available under the law, several sources said.

Counterintelligence specialists were asked to drop nearly all of their other work to process the Epstein documents, two people said, but some lawyers declined to participate.

An act of Congress has mandated the Trump administration release troves of Epstein-related documents — from grand jury records, to FBI files and internal Justice Department discussions — by Friday, after months of the Trump administration promising and not delivering transparency.

The situation suggests that the persistent political headache connected to transparency for the Epstein files may not disappear with Friday’s deadline.

In whatever becomes public on Friday, sources said there will still be extensive amounts of information redacted — the type of lack of transparency that the American public may continue to scrutinize.

Some legal document specialists are already preparing for the possibility that the Department of Justice’s release of the files will have more redactions than what is required, and that there may be mistakes in what’s redacted and what’s made public. Mistakes especially could relate to the disclosure of sensitive personal information, because of the volume of documents and how fast the lawyers have had to work, the sources said.

“Either they’re going to screw it up or they’re going to withhold things. It wouldn’t surprise me,” said one lawyer outside the Justice Department who is awaiting the release to determine whether there should be complaints made about how the redaction work was done. “Some of it may be incompetence as much as deliberate.”

A challenging task

The Epstein files are vast, and thousands of records held by different sections of federal law enforcement have to be picked through to determine whether they are responsive to the transparency law’s requirements or need to be redacted because of various confidentiality rules and to protect Epstein’s victims.

There are only four pages the lawyers have been given as internal guidance to follow to make the redactions, one of the sources said. And nearly all of the guidelines the lawyers have received articulate exemptions to the transparency law.

There are also logistical headaches in the work. Duplicates in what the lawyers are working through haven’t been taken out of the cache, one source told CNN. That creates more of a possibility there may not be consistent redactions acr

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Las largas filas y los estacionamientos llenos solían ser un indicador de una temporada navideña con mucha actividad comercial. Sin embargo, en la Costa Central, la ausencia de esas señales hace difícil saber dónde está hoy el poder de compra de los consumidores.

Parte de esas compras podría estar ocurriendo frente a una computadora. Además, el ritmo parece haberse enfriado.

Una nueva encuesta publicada por ABC News revela que más del 40 % de los compradores planea gastar menos este año en comparación con el año pasado.

En Paseo Nuevo Mall, en Santa Bárbara, el día después del Día de Acción de Gracias se vivió un ambiente animado que recordó a años anteriores. Pero desde entonces, las compras han transcurrido con más calma, sin ese sentido de urgencia por encontrar ofertas.

En el Camino Real Marketplace, en Goleta, alrededor de las 10 de la mañana era posible encontrar estacionamiento en la primera mitad del lote, una buena noticia para quienes compran entre semana y temprano. Sin embargo, se espera que el panorama cambie durante el fin de semana.

Las compras en línea continúan reduciendo el tráfico en muchas tiendas físicas. Aun así, quienes buscan artículos de boutiques o productos hechos localmente prefieren salir a comprarlos en persona para verlos y tocarlos. Algunos compradores también aseguran que apoyar a los comercios locales es una prioridad, ya que son una parte esencial de la economía de la comunidad.

The post Las condiciones se ven favorables para los compradores de última hora a solo una semana de la Navidad appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

Los mamut lanudos desaparecieron hace más de 40,000 años, pero ahora investigadores están explorando la posibilidad de traerlos de vuelta.

Un ejemplar muy bien conservado en el permafrost permitió extraer su ARN, que fue insertado en el ADN del elefante asiático por la empresa de biotecnología Colossal Biosciences en Dallas.

Aunque recrear un mamut completo es un gran desafío, los científicos esperan descubrir qué lo hacía realmente lanudo y avanzar en la ciencia de la conservación de especies extintas.

The post Científicos trabajan para revivir al mamut lanudo appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Chelsea Bailey, CNN

(CNN) — In the hours after police discovered the bodies of Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner inside their Brentwood, California, home, speculation was rife over what could have led someone to murder the beloved Hollywood director and his other half, a charismatic photographer and producer.

That speculation reached a fever pitch when it became clear authorities suspected the Reiners’ middle son, Nick, of killing his parents – and was further fueled by rampant interest in his past struggles with addiction.

On Wednesday, three days after his parents were found dead, Nick Reiner stood before a judge in a Los Angeles courtroom, accused of their murders.

The 32-year-old has been charged with fatally stabbing his parents in the early morning hours Sunday.

And his appearance in court, while brief, marked the first time Nick Reiner spoke publicly about the incident. He only said three words:

“Yes, your honor,” he said, acknowledging he was willing to waive his right to a speedy arraignment on the murder charges.

If convicted, he could face life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.

The Los Angeles Police Department and the city’s district attorney’s office have declined to share many details about the case as the investigation continues. But what sources have revealed to CNN paints a fragmented and fraught picture of the hours before and immediately after the Reiners’ murders.

A Christmas tradition turned tragic

By all accounts, Conan O’Brien’s annual Christmas Party is attended by a veritable who’s who of comedy legends.

Adam Sandler – O’Brien’s neighbor – has joked he looks forward to the gathering every year because of the ham. Bill Hader once regaled O’Brien’s TV audience with a tale of a Christmas “inferno” after a wayward flame ignited an outdoor couch.

Tom Hanks has been known to stop by, as has comedian Martin Short.

Rob Reiner – who had long cemented his place among Hollywood’s comedy set with his affable nature and signature observational humor – fit right in at O’Brien’s festivities Saturday night.

But, according to a source familiar with the incident, the holiday cheer that typically forms the soundtrack to the celebration was ruptured when an argument broke out between Rob Reiner and his son.

The source did not share details of the argument, but they said Rob Reiner’s wife, Michele, had also attended the party.

Nick Reiner drew the attention of some partygoers earlier in the evening because of his scruffy appearance and how little he engaged with the other attendees, another source told CNN.

That partygoer recalled seeing Nick Reiner standing alone by the firepit, smoking a cigarette and speaking to no one. At a party where most guests were dressed up, the source told CNN, he was dressed casually in a hoodie, hat and jeans.

Investigators are now zeroing in on the c