cbs evening news is captioning sponsored by cbs >> o'donnell: tonight, the country's strictest vaccine mandate, the new requirements for private employers in new york city, why the move is described preemptive strike against the omicron variant. the big apple's big mandate, impacting nearly 200,000 private businesses. plus what we're learning about the symptoms of the omicron variant, as a new wave of delta infections dominate. >> if you haven't gotten vaccinated yet, you're playing with fire. >> o'donnell: behind bars, the parents to have the accused gunman in that deadly school shooting in michigan now in the same jail as their 15-year-old son. could school officials face charges next for allegedly ignoring the warning signs? american hostages, three more

christian missionaries released in haiti, tonight the latest on their condition. boycotting china, the big announcement from the white house about the winter olympics, what it means for u.s. athletes. plus biden prierps for a -- prepares for a crucial meeting with russian president vladimir putin. jussie smollett testifies, what the actor accused of staging a racist attack on himself said on the stand. a final salute to bob dole, flags at half staff tonight as we look back on the life and legacy of an american hero. and a time-honored tradition, the kennedy center honors here in the nation's capitol. ♪♪ ♪♪ this is the "cbs evening news" with norah o'donnell, reporting from the nation's capital. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> o'donnell: good evening and thank you so much for joining us. we begin with an alarping surge

in covid infections in the u.s. for the first time in the month the country is averaging more than 100,000 new cases per day. more than 1100 are dying each day from covid and 50,000 treated in hospitals, while the delta variant remains the dominant strain of the coronavirus, the new omicron variant is also spreading rapidly. cases have now been detected in at least 18 states but scientists still aren't sure if it is more dangerous than previous variants, and scientists in south africa where omicron was first detected say symptoms in most cases have been mild. well, the mayor of new york city today announced one of the nation's toughest covid vaccination mandates in the country forcing all private businesses to require workers to get their shots by december 27th, three weeks from now. cbs's nikki battiste is going to lead off our coverage in new york with the details. good evening, nikki.

>> reporter: good evening. new york is now believed to be the first city to require vaccines for all workers and now children here as young as 5 must be vaccinated before any indoor dining or entertainment. the new york mayor today called his mandate requiring all private workers be fully vaccinated a preemptive strike against the cold weather and the few omicron variant. >> look, this is how we put health and safety first, by ensuring that there is a vaccine mandate that reaches everyone universally in the private sector. >> reporter: the mandate will affect 184,000 businesses but not apply to people working from home and there will be no testing alternative. early data shows the new omicron variant produces mild symptoms at worst. in fact, it is believed to be the delta variant driving a new wave of cases across the u.s., averaging more than is hundred thousand a day, with an increase in hospitalizations as well. with much about omicron still

unknown, dr. anthony fauci urged americans not to get complacent. >> we've really got to be careful before we make any determinations that it is less severe or really doesn't cause any severe illness comparable to delta. >> reporter: the new variant has now been detected in at least 18 states including louisiana where 17 n covid s were discoveren a norwegian cruiseline ship that just returned to port sunday. all crew was required to have vaccinated. a south african crew member was thought to have the omicron variant. is there any data to show how effective our current vaccines are when it comes to omicron. >> all vaccines have shown some degree of cross protection in terms of virus neutralizing antibodies so i suspect the same will be true of omicron. >> reporter: dr. peter hotez says vaccination remains the best protection.

>> fiewcht gotten vaccinated yet you're playing with fire. >> reporter: dr. hotez says a real concern with omicron is reinfection especially for anyone who is unvaccinated. here in new york city, more than 10% of eligible adults have not gotten a vaccine yet. norah. >> o'donnell: nikki battiste, thank you. turning to the deadly school shooting in oxford, michigan where there are new questions tonight about whether warning signs were ignored. the parents to have the accused gunman are now in custody and tonight we're learning more about the spence manhunt that led to their arrests. the latest from cbs's michael george. >> do either of you have any held ineparat ey n in the s son cmbley t allegedshox schoo. the couple was expected to appear for an arequirement friday, arrested saturday insidt after a manhunt. today the owner of the studio

was interviewed by investigators. his attorney says he was unacquire at the time the crumbleys were wanted and confirmed his house is being searched. >> how are you completing to -- pleading to count one. >> not guilty. >> reporter: pleading to not guilty to involuntary manslaughter in connection with the shooting. prosecutors say they provided a gun to their kid and failed to secure it. ed over r over the we understood r weekend, counselors said ethan crumbley did not intend self-harm or harm to others, despite teachers warning twice about disturbing behavior, including a violent drawing found on the morning of the shooting. dana nessel offered to conduct an independent investigation. is it possible the action by school officials could lead to criminal charges? >> i don't know what that information is and i think it would be wrong for me to make phi assumptions. but that's why i think it's so critical that this investigation

be done. >> reporter: as the community continues to grieve, scott taylor, co-owner of sick pizza in oxford offered pizzas for donations. >> we're at $53,000. >> reporter: dozens of volunteers, many of them oxford students, helped raise more than $80,000. >> so many people want to help the kids stop hurting and the teachers stop hurting and the communities to stop hurting and there's not always an outlet to do that. >> reporter: taylor says 100% of the donations are going to the victims' families. the funeral for one to have the four students killed is tomorrow. >> o'donnell: michael george thank you. tonight three more christian missionaries released from captivity in haiti after being held hostage by a violent gang. they were part of a group leaving an orphanage seven weeks

ago. manuel bojorquez. >> reporter: tonight the news three more hostages were freed comes seven weeks after being taken. >> we can't confirm three were released. this is something we treat with the utmost priority. >> reporter: in a statement christian aid ministries says they are safe and seem to be in good spirits but provided no additional information. two others released last month leaving 12 still captive, including 16 americans including five children and one canadian. a gang known as 4 400 mawozo delivered a ransom and said the hostages would be killed if it wasn't met. what kind of information are you wanting to learn from the freed hostages? >> you want to know who, how many, what they looked like, the most seemingly innocuous piece of information can be the margin of victory. >> reporter: james gagliano is a former f.b.i. negotiate. what do the small releases and the length of time tell you

about the negotiations here. >> it could be a whole host of factors. it could be the medical condition of the particular folks being released, it could be just the fact that having 17 hostages and moving surreptitiously is not easy to do. >> reporter: officials will not comment on the whereabouts of the freed hostages, but gagliano says they likely will spend hours debriefing about the f.b.i. about their ordeal and any information that could help secure the release of the remaining hostages. norah. >> o'donnell: manny bojorquez, thank you. the biden administration today announce add diplomatic boycott of the beijing winter olympics set to begin less than two months from now but some lawmakers say the move doesn't go far enough. the latest from cbs's nancy cordes at the white house. >> reporter: u.s. athletes will attend the beijing games next year. u.s. officials will not. that was the middle ground the white house settled on today in response to a series of human rights abuses, including the

persecution of muslims in western china, and the throttles of democracy in hong kong. >> this is just sending a message that given these human riset pceed with business assu>> reporter: e tanding and el there would rte countermeasures. but u.s. lawmakers hailed the move, though some republicans want to go even further. >> no athletes, no administration officials, no corporate sponsors. >> i would support the moving of the olympics. >> reporter: the announcement came less than 24 hours before president biden is expected to confront another authoritarian leader, russian president vladimir putin. the two are slated to talk by phone tomorrow about russia's recent military buildup along the ukraine border. president biden will warn putin that if russia invades it could face severe economic pain in the form of crippling global

sanctions. the goal -- >> to make it very, very difficult for mr. putin to go ahead and do what people are worried he may do. >> reporter: there are currently roughly 70,000 russian troops deployed at ukraine's border. u.s. intelligence initials say russia could invade the former soviet yet republic using as many as 175,000 troops as early as january. is president biden prepared to warn that there's is possibility of u.s. military involvement? >> i'm not going to get ahead of the president's conversation, but that is not our first objective. >> o'donnell: and nancy cordes joins us now on this critical meeting tomorrow. so, nancy, what is russia up to? >> reporter: norah, experts say what russia wants is to create a buffer of sorts against what it sees as western expansion by preventing this crucial neighbor, ukraine, from joining n.a.t.o., and perhaps most alarmingly, norah,

cybersecurities officials at the white house say they've seen a huge spike in russian misinformation aimed at justifying a strike on ukraine which is similar to what they saw before another invasion about five years ago. >> o'donnell: let's see whether the president issues an ultimatum. all right, nancy cordes, thank you. in chicago, a dramatic turn in the trial of jussie smollett today when the former empire actor took the witness stand in his own defense. smollett is accused of lying to police being a victim of a hate crime and is said to have staged the attack. >> reporter: the actor took center stage at his trial trying to convince jurors he did not corgraph an attack on himself. the attorney saying were you playing a hoax? hoe said no. when asked why he didn't call police he said "i'm a black plan in america. i do not trust police. i was also a well-known figure

at the time and openly gay. i wanted to play a boxer. i wanted to play a superhero. the moment i got beat i became an expletive who got whopped." three years ago smollett said he was a victim of a racist and hate crime. he said his attackers doused him with bleach and hung a rope around his neck which he still had draped over him when officers arrived at his apartment. initially as identified as his attackers, the brothers in court, abel told the jury smollett orchestrated the hoax. smollett was arrted and then charges were dropped by state's attorney kim foxx. that decision wrought protest and within months a judge appointed a special prosecutor to review the case. he charged smollett with six counts of disorderly conduct for staging and lying to police about the attack. smollett will likely be the last witness for the night. this case could be in the jury's hands as soon as tomorrow, and

if convicted, smollett could serve up to three years in prison. norah. >> o'donnell: charlie de mar, thank you. tonight, more fallout for former cnn host chris cuomo. he says he's quitting his sirius xm radio show sawed "let's get after it" cuomo was fired over the weekend after hit with a sexual harassment allegation, charges he denies. he was suspended from the in effect e! network after new details surfaced about his efforts to help his brother then new york governor andrew cuomo fight off allegations. the body of bob dole will lie in state in the u.s. capitol rotunda thursday. he died sunday at age 98. dole, a republican from kansas is being remembered by members of both parties for devoting his life to public service. here's cbs's major garrett. >> reporter: senator bob dole embodied what many believe washington needs now, a good humored party loyalist who cared

deeply about making government work. >> some of his greatest achievements were bipartisan endeavors. >> an honest broker with deep friendships and working relationships that spanned the aisle. >> i accept your nomination -- dole was the last presidential candidate who served in world war ii and in the '96 campaign said america needed more of the greatest generation's grit and values. >> and i know because i was there, and i have seen it and i remember. >> reporter: growing up in russell, kansas, dole was a star athlete in high school and joined the army as a college freshman. he suffered grievous wounds in italy that cost him the use of one arm. neighborhoods raised money to pay for surgeries and later sent him to congress. >> when i needed help, the people of russell helped. >> reporter: dole spent 20 years in the senate quitting as majority leader in a defeat against clint fen. he became a pitchman for soft

drinks for britney spears and viagra. in 2016 dole became the only g.o.p. nominee to endorse him. >> donald trump can win. >> reporter: dole was a farm belt fiscal conservativive who wielded power quietly and over the years with humor and humility. qualities of what feels like a by gone era of national bricks. >> my pledge one time was to make a difference in the life of at least one person every day. now, i've probably failed part of that, but i still work at itch. >> reporter: major garrett, cbs news, washington. >> o'donnell: a great american hero who dedicated his life to this country. all right, still ahead on tonight's "cbs evening news," details on a snowstorm targeting the northeast, plus the new class of american astronauts. #

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>> o'donnell: here in washington we celebrated an incredible group of artists for their contributions to american culture at the 44th annual kennedy center honors, and the ceremony returned to a tradition. >> tonight is very special for me because when i was just a little did i used to get all dressed up and play honoring

lorne michaels at the kennedy center. >> o'donnell: celebrities and politicians gathered in the nation's capitol and for the first time since 2016, the president was in the audience. the crowd was vaccinated, tested and ready to honor artistic excellence with tributes to stars like singer/songwriter joni mitchell. ♪♪ ♪♪ and the great tony award winner bette midler. ♪ did you ever know that you're my hero ♪ >> she can make us laugh and cry even at the same time, and that is the mark of an artist of the highest caliber. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> o'donnell: cast members of "saturday night live" past and present brought the laughs roasting boss lorne michaels. >> lorne deserves this honor because unlike so many others he

resisted the urge to travel to space this year. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> o'donnell: and the legendary stevie wonder got everyone on their feet saluting motown founder barry gordy. ♪♪ ♪♪ ( cheers and applause ) celebrating the arts is back in the full ceremony will air here on cbs december 22. we'll be right back. oh my goodness... wow, lat all those! you get hungry for more and then you're just like, “wow, i'm learning about my family.” yeah, yep. which one, what'd you find? lorraine banks, look, county of macomb, michigan? look at grandma... hey grandma! unbelievable. everybody deserves to know who they are and where they came from. ohhh...cool. this whole journey has been such a huge gift for our family. ♪ ♪♪ thousands of women with metastatic breast cancer ng ibrance.

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donas helpg to feed hundreds of m >> announcer: fund raiser funny business? >> judge judy: he didn't want to be involved in what he considered a scam operation. so he pulled out. >> announcer: but her hired hand still accepted her pay. >> judge judy: how much money did you receive from ms. francese? >> $1,500, $1,600. >> judge judy: you say that he's the scammer. >> mm-hmm. >> announcer: now, the judge isn't feeling very charitable. >> judge judy: as far as i'm concerned, i'm not so thrilled with either one of you. >> announcer: "judge judy." you are about to enter the courtroom of judge judith sheindlin. mary francese is suing dustin kelly for defrauding her regarding a fund raiser for a sick child. >> byrd: order. all rise. your honor, this is case number 117 on the calendar in the matter of francese vs. kelly. >> judge judy: thank you. >> byrd: you're welcome, judge. parties have been sworn in.

you may be seated. folks, have a seat. >> judge judy: ms. francese, what do you do for a living? >> right now, i'm currently out of work. >> judge judy: how long have you been out of work? >> um, since april 30th. >> judge judy: prior to that? >> um, my son is on disability. i only do minimal work here and there. >> judge judy: okay. who do you live with? >> uh, my mother. >> judge judy: does she work? >> yes. >> judge judy: and what kind of work do you do, mr. kelly? >> heavy-equipment operator. >> judge judy: do you work for a company? >> yes, i do. >> judge judy: what company? >> jr. davis. >> judge judy: how long have you worked for them? >> i've been with jr. davis for about 60 days. >> judge judy: prior to that, who did you work for? >> southern -- southern development and construction. >> judge judy: and how long did you work for them? >> over 3 years. >> judge judy: prior to that? >> prior to that? uh, master site development. >> judge judy: how long were you with them? >> seven years. >> judge judy: so you've had a pretty steady work history. >> absolutely. >> judge judy: and you work for them? you work for them on the books? you get paid? >> yeah. w-2 -- >> judge judy: w-2s. >> weekly paycheck -- >> judge judy: everything. do they cover your medical? >> uh, yes, they do. cover my medical and my children's medical. >> judge judy: okay. this is what the case is about. according to what i read, ms. francese, you had a cousin who was diagnosed with a severe illness. and you decided