 Hello. Good afternoon and welcome to BUTV News at Noon. I'm Stephen Sisto. And I'm Taylor Walker, leading the news at this hour. Both coasts are getting soaked by record-breaking rain brought in by ocean moisture systems. And what the West Coast is enduring the worst storm in years. And here in Boston, it is still raining after a Northeastern drenched roads and basements. Let's take a look at some of the worst of the wet spots. Rain Tuesday. More than four inches fell in New England. Several drivers taken by surprise. Stuck waist deep. I started to come in. I started to get my feet all soaked and I'm soaked all the way through. They had to put a ladder through my window. I had to crawl, belly crawl out from my window. Police were forced to close multiple roads. The downpours so intense that the green line suspended service between Kenmore and Fenway stations. And yet another round of power outages in the Granite State. Thousands of people stuck in the dark in New Hampshire. Right now crews are working to get that electricity back on. Police say several accidents were caused by the slick roads yesterday and overnight. We'll bring you more details on the forecast and when you'll see the sun later in the hour. Boston Red Sox fans are in for a huge disappointment this morning. We are joined here in the studio by Malia Moses. What do you have for us Malia? Thanks Steve. It turns out that free agent John Lester will sign with the Chicago Cubs. Sources say that the deal is worth six years for $155 million. Lester, a three-time all-star, will join former Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein who is now the Cubs president. The lefty pitcher who turns 31 next month was 16 and 11 with both the Red Sox and the Oakland Athletics last season. The Chicago Cubs who have suffered five straight losing seasons are expected to make a serious run in their division with the new addition of John Lester. Back to you Steve. Thank you Malia. Stay tuned later in the show for more from Malia Moses on how the Boston Red Sox will move forward following this major free agent letdown. President Obama defending the release of that new report that outlines the CIA interrogation tactics post 9-11. The report discloses grueling depictions of torture practices experienced by detainees. In defending the decision to the release of the report President Obama acknowledges the importance in admitting our mistakes. There's never a perfect time to release a report like this but it was important for us I think to recognize that part of what sets us apart is when we do something wrong we acknowledge it. Obama calls the CIA's actions contrary to our values. He ensures that the practices mentioned in the report will not take place on his watch. Rebelle Filippos the friend of Boston Marathon bombing suspect is motioning for a quiddle or new trial. A jury found Filippos guilty on two counts of lying to investigators during the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings. He faces up to 16 years in prison at his sentencing in January. South African prosecutors have won the right to appeal the acquittal on murder charges of Oscar Pistorius. A judge found Pistorius guilty of cul-able homicide for killing his girlfriend and sentenced him to five years of jail time. The case will now go before South Africa's Supreme Court of Appeal. Congress has now agreed to a new spending plan that will avoid yet another government shutdown. The trillion dollar spending budget will cover all of the government's expenses for the upcoming fiscal year. Congress has until tomorrow to finalize the plan. If it is not completed then the House will put in place a short-term spending measure. However both partners are confident that a new deal will be reached by tomorrow. Ride sharing services Uber and Lyft are hitting roadblocks abroad and potentially here in the Boston area. There are lawsuits about Uber drivers hiring practices in San Francisco and Los Angeles and here in the Bay State the governor excuse me is calling for a more regulation. The UTV News reporter Ashley Paul has reaction from both Uber and taxi drivers. Thanks Steve. With the increase in popularity of ride share apps such as Uber and Lyft cab companies have taken a serious hit but now during his last weeks in office Governor Deval Patrick is pushing for government regulation of Uber and Lyft and I have this report on its reactions. Uber acts and Lyft are both 100 illegal. Stephen Sullivan the manager of Metro cab argues that the ride share apps are illegal because they don't have livery plates or proper insurance. They have so much money invested they don't care they can spend a hundred million dollars on lawsuits every year it won't affect them. With Uber becoming a worldwide company worth billions of dollars it's impossible for smaller local businesses to keep up. So they come into Boston and we have all these small people they're bullying us right it says oh well it doesn't matter that we're not legal as long as the politicians don't stop us that means they authorize it and that's that's their business philosophy as they go around. Despite local companies distaste for the app Uber drivers are confident that with government support and innovative practices the app will survive. The ride sharing companies are very innovative so with whatever result you know in respect to policies whatever policies are implemented I think they'll find a way to kind of make it lucrative for the folks who are you know on the streets driving around. As cities continue to meet to discuss the future of the app Ash thinks the outcome in each city may not be universal. It'd be interesting to see like how these types of meetings affect like a Boston versus a New York City versus you know smaller metropolitan areas. These ride share companies plan to expand business here and around the globe but you will see more discussion and perhaps implementation of more regulations and possibly even bans. An Uber driver in New Delhi India is accused of raping a passenger police there reveal today that the suspect is also facing other charges dating back more than a decade. Pakistan's Malala Yousafi is accepting a Nobel Peace Prize today for advocating for girls' rights to education. Malala Youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner in history at 17 two years ago the teenage advocate was shot in the head by the Taliban. The bloodied uniform Malala war will be on display at the ceremony in Oslo despite more threats from the Taliban. Malala is still fighting for Muslim female rights. Time magazine naming the fighters of Ebola as their person of the year. The magazine said the Ebola caretakers fought the biggest Ebola outbreak in history. Others considered were Ferguson protesters following Putin Apple CEO Tim Cook and Taylor Swift. Time editors based their decision on who most affected the news and our lives and exemplified what was important during the past year. Sports Illustrated named Pete Frady's one of its inspirations of the year for his commitment to fighting ALS. Frady's a former Boston College baseball player was diagnosed with ALS also known as Lou Gehrig's disease in 2012. He is credited with creating the ice bucket challenge which has raised over 100 million dollars for ALS research. Former NFL player Steve Gleason was also honored by SI for his contributions to the ALS fight. Coming up part-time professors are fighting for better pay. And the possibility of a 2024 Boston Olympics might be a reality but not everyone is happy with the idea. All that and more when we return. Boston is in the running to host the 2024 summer Olympics. However some residents are not happy with the idea. Those against the sporting event in Boston gathered outside of the Institute of Contemporary Arts to protest the proposal. BUTV's Morgan McGinnis was at the scene and she tells us more. Several Boston citizens gathered outside the Institute of Contemporary Art Tuesday evening to protest the summer Olympic games coming to the city in 2024. We want good health care. Not corporate welfare. We want good health care. Many were concerned with the social and economic impacts the Olympics would bring into Boston worrying about the effect the games would have on lower class areas in the city. Right now we have a lot of challenges in Boston with mass transit. Challenges with health care. Challenges with housing especially. And we don't need a distraction of trying to throw a three-week party in the middle of That's the goal! CEO's! Who gets screwed! Me and you! No justice! No games! Boston is up against Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington D.C. to host the summer Olympic games. And we all know that when major events like the Olympics come to town the people of civil liberties and civil rights take a major hit. If Boston is selected a second bid will have to be put together and sent to the International Olympics Committee a decision that is expected by January. This is not something that this Boston should have anything to do with. A spokesperson for Mayor Walsh said his administration is fully committed to understanding the implications of hosting the summer Olympics in the city of Boston. Reporting for BU News, I'm Morgan McGinnis. While the United States Olympic Committee will make their decision of the summer 2024 host in January the International Olympics Committee will make the ultimate choice in 2017. Harvard Business Professor Benjamin Edelman is in a food fight with Chinese restaurant Shishwan Garden and Brookline. The professor learned that he had been overcharged $4 on his $53.35 order to which he notified the family that runs the business. Ron Duan who helps manage the restaurant apologized for the confusion stating in an email that some of the menu prices on the restaurant's website were outdated. Edelman acknowledged the apology asking to be refunded $12. Three times the overcharge stating this reflects the Massachusetts consumer protection statute MGL 93A. After a series of additional emails both parties are now handling this matter with the authorities. A study out of UCLA is showing some hope for those suffering from Alzheimer's. The study took 10 patients experiencing different stages of dementia and optimized vitamin D levels in their blood which helps to rebuild connections in the brain. As a result nine out of the 10 patients saw reverse Alzheimer's symptoms. While the study claims it is not a cure it is possibly a step in that direction. Next month part-time faculty at Boston University will vote on whether to join a union. The ballot will be secret. So-called adjunct professors have already joined the service employees union at both Tufts University and Emerson College. BUTV news reporter Ethan Levitt has the story. Adjunct professors are not paid adequately. Adjunct professors want a union. They make up 41 percent of BU's faculty but are paid on average 25 000 dollars less per course than full-time faculty and don't have the same access to benefit. Professor Dan Hunter is an active member of the Adjunct Unionization Organizing Committee. We have adjunct faculty who qualify for food stamps. These are people trying to cobble together a living sometimes single mothers and that's why I believe that we need the union. Difficult Chamber went through the unionization process earlier this year at Tufts University and Emerson College and says unionization provides a sense of respect in the community. For me it really is a sense of empowerment and of joining a community that was frankly not offered to me at Boston University. BU administration declined to comment but released this statement. It is our position that using the collective bargaining process to establish and monitor the working conditions of our part-time faculty is not in the best interests of our students or faculty as a whole and that a unionized part-time faculty will not be able to provide a better education for our students. Student reaction is mixed. They believe BU could put $60,000 a year on tuition toward benefits for its adjunct faculty but simultaneously fear yet another tuition increase. I think BU could put their money toward a really good cause if they chose to raise the the salary of these professors. I think them unionizing will just raise that and cause more problems for us students to you know to help pay for college to try and pay for college. If the adjuncts vote to unionize next month there's still several steps to be taken. They need to negotiate a contract with BU a process that could take several months to more than a year. For the BU News Service, I'm Ethan Levin. The voting results for unionization will be determined by January 30th. Harvard Law School students are fighting to delay final exams after spending most of their time protesting recent grand jury decisions. Students argue that due to protesting the Eric Garner and Michael Brown decisions they have not had enough time to prepare for their upcoming finals. University officials say that students can petition to delay their finals but each but that each choice is made on a case-by-case basis. Prince William and his wife Kate return home today after a busy United States visit. The royal couple wrapped up their trip, their first official visit to America, and a black tie fundraiser at their alma mater St. Andrews at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met with the President Barack Obama at the White House on Monday. William also traveled to the World Bank to make a speech on the trade of illegal wildlife parts. On Tuesday, the pair paid their respects at the National September 11th Memorial and Museum. Will and Kate even attended a Cavaliers Nets game in Brooklyn where they met LeBron James as well as Jay-Z and Beyoncé? How does the Southwest Airlines flight land with one more passenger? A baby was born on a plane leaving San Francisco yesterday. The plane was bound for Phoenix but diverted to Los Angeles for a emergency landing. The mother gave birth on board safely thanks to the help of fellow passengers including a nurse and a doctor. Mother and baby are at a Los Angeles hospital and are reportedly doing just fine. When we come back we'll have more on John Lester's move to Chicago. And we'll tell you which famous football player was in a car accident. Those stories and more when BUTV News at Noon returns. Big sports news of the day. Boston's loss of John Lester. Our very Amalia Moses is here with updates on the story. Now Amalia where did Boston go wrong? What happened here? Well Taylor, the Boston Red Sox got as far as offering John Lester 135 million for six years but that didn't quite cut it for the picture. The Red Sox fell one year and 20 million dollars short to getting Lester back to Fenway. Last winter Lester said he was willing to give the Sox a discount but in the end he decided to sign with the highest bidder. Sources told ESPN that Lester called the Red Sox just prior to accepting the Cubs offer to let them know of his decision. Just this morning Lester tweeted to Red Sox Nation I understand the disappointment. Boston will always have a big place in my heart and will always consider y'all family. Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is in the hospital after a car accident in Charlotte, North Carolina. Police say Newton's truck and a sedan collided Tuesday. Newton and the driver of the sedan were both transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Newton suffered transverse process fractures in his back but has no additional internal injuries. Panthers spokesperson Charlie Dayton declined to make any speculations whether Newton's injury will force him to miss any upcoming games. The Patriots are returning home this Sunday to face the Miami Dolphins. A winner tie over Miami will give the pass their sixth straight AFC East title. This would also be the 14th division title since the team was purchased by Robert Kraft in 1994. If you're looking to change up your workout routine or lose a few pounds after the holiday season while maybe working out next to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady you should check out the group fitness classes around Boston. Boutique gyms like the Chestnut Hills Soul Cycle where Brady has been spotted are popping up all around Boston. I talked to a few people about why these classes are becoming so popular. Forget going to an everyday gym. Group classes are said to be motivating and fun while still giving you a great workout. Eliza Shirazi a group instructor at Equinox and the creator of Kick It a fitness brand that she started in college and brought to Boston tells us why she's seeing such an increased popularity of boutique gyms and fitness classes. I feel like the community and the atmosphere and the heat and energy that builds in the class just fires you up. You know like when you're with people or someone gets in your face a little bit like with positive reinforcement you just kind of skyrocket. It's almost become like the trendy thing to do not like the healthy thing to do. People are just doing it because it's exciting and what's happening now and sometimes boutique fitness gyms lose the sense of what it's kind of really about which is the good workout. The places I'll say like Barry's Boot Camp awesome workout awesome space like there's no doubt about it but it's evolved into like this fierce competitive nature. Annie Francis a Barry's Boot Camp student ambassador began taking Barry's classes about a year ago and well she's been hooked ever since. When you're at Barry's Boot Camp or any place like that there's someone there telling you what to do and you're motivated by all the people around you who are also working really hard and it gives a nice change of pace from what your regular workout routine may be. Barry's really is the best workout in the world. I hope Brady isn't taking too many spin classes and burning out his legs before the big game Sunday but if students want to give some of these classes a try many of the gyms and studios offer student discounts and packages especially now around the holiday season. Several NBA players are showing their support for the family of Eric Gardner by wearing I Can't Breathe shirts. Exceltic Kevin Garnett, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant were all seen wearing the shirts during the warm-ups this week. I Can't Breathe the last words of Eric Gardner have been a rallying cry for those protesting the grand jury's decision not to indict an officer and Gardner's death. The NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he encourages players to speak out if they have genuinely authentic views and are fully informed on the issue. Well Malia I hope that these players are really doing their research and are really aware of the issues before making any public statement. They certainly have every right to speak out their feelings on this very controversial issue. One middle school student is in Missouri. In Missouri is enjoying a surprise holiday homecoming. Tony Montgomery thought he was getting an award for having a parent in the military. Instead he got his father Sergeant Joshua Montgomery who surprised his teenage son during the school assembly. Tony hadn't seen his dad in nine months. The reunion was weeks in the making arranged by Skype calls between the soldier and his son's classmate. After the break we'll let you know whether the wet weather is here to stay and we'll hear Andy Cohen's advice to BU students all that when we return. It's another wet day in Boston. Amelia Capuzzi is here with the weather and she'll tell us when we can expect relief from the rain. Thanks Steve. Unfortunately we won't be seeing any relief today. As you can see behind me we're still experiencing very wet conditions. Yesterday we received record rainfall with most areas receiving between three and five inches and 50 to 60 mile per hour winds. Thankfully today we should be seeing a little less rain. The northeaster is weakening. Wind is at only 13 miles per hour now. We saw some mist and drizzle in our early morning commutes and now we're seeing some scattered showers. Temperatures are above freezing today. We're in the 40s in the east and falling into the mid to high 30s as we look to the west. Today in Boston we can expect to stay in the 40s throughout the day. We have an area of low pressure sitting right over us and not moving so expect some more widespread showers this afternoon. We could also see some snow showers developing in western mass as the evening approaches. Overnight we can expect some rain and snow showers. It's more of the same tomorrow so we will see those showers continuing. Those will start to clear out by Friday when we're expecting just a few flurries. By Saturday the precipitation should stop but the clouds will stick around Saturday and Sunday. Sunshine will make its return on Monday. Highs will stay around the 40s for the upcoming week. And good news if you're heading for the slopes ski resorts in the northern New England area could receive up to two feet of snow through Thursday. So just hold on for these next few days keep your wet weather gear with you and reporting live here in Boston for BUTV new news. I'm Amelia Capuzzi. Back to you Steve. Well at least we'll have a dry weekend. Thank you Amelia. The founder of the Real Housewives of Real Housewives the founder of the Real Housewives series on Bravo came to Brookline to sign his new book as a BU alumni Andy Cohen has advice for current BU students. BU TV reporter Jennifer Lee has the story. TV producer and talk show host Andy Cohen signed book and it went promoting the Andy Cohen diaries at Brookline Booksmith for about 300 eager fans. The book documents Andy's life in the past year as a house of what happens life staying on the Bravo network Cohen graduate from Boston University's College of Communication and offers this advice to students. So my best advice is while you're in school to get as many internships as you possibly can and you know that's that's those are going to be the building blocks of your very successful careers for all of you. Half an hour before the book signing event started about 50 fans already waited in and outside the bookstore. He just took his love of pop culture and he's made a multi-million dollar career out of it and that's amazing. He knows how to handle all different types of people on the show and everyone he meets he just seems to be make everyone feel comfortable. Brookline is Andy's 12th stop of the book tour he will arrive for the last stop in Cherry Hill, New Jersey on December 11th. For BUTV News at Noon, I'm Jennifer Lee. For more information about the book or about Andy's career go to AndyCohenDatteries.com and that's it for BUTV 10 News at Noon. I'm Taylor Walker and I'm Stephen Sisto. This is our last newscast of the semester and we leave you with a thank you to all the people who have made this newscast possible. Have a terrific holiday break.