Fiscal cliff talks hung up on taxes

Speaker Boehner calls his talks with President Obama "deliberate" and "frank" Source: Republicans still refuse Obama's call for higher tax rates on the top brackets House leaders say they will work until the end of the year for an agreement Without a deal, the nation faces tax hikes and spending cuts on January 1 Washington (CNN) -- Public posturing or possible stalemate? Continued sniping by both sides in the fiscal cliff negotiations shows little movement on the core issue - higher taxes on the wealthy. House Speaker John Boehner chose different language on Wednesday to describe his latest talks with President Barack Obama, calling a phone call the night before "deliberate" and "frank." That contrasted to his use of "cordial" in labeling the previous discussion between the two men on Sunday. Read more: Obama, Boehner talk about GOP offer Another snag in debt talks Rep. Blackburn talks cliff compromise Rep. Cummings talks fiscal cliff deal Mother worried what no deal would mean Such a seemingly minor shift can speak volumes in the roller-coaster reality of Washington brinksmanship. Boehner clearly sought to indicate little progress in the negotiations on an agreement to reduce chronic federal deficits and debt. However, the latest talks involved counteroffers by both sides that included two shifts by the White House. Democratic sources said Obama lowered his revenue demand from $1.6 trillion to $1.4 trillion, but also added changes to the corporate rate to his proposal involving income taxes. No further details were available, but Boehner sounded unimpressed. He told reporters that Obama's latest stance remained far from a deal that he could accept or would win approval from the House and Senate. "There were some offers that were exchanged back and forth yesterday," he said, adding that "the president and I had some pretty frank conversation about how far apart we are." In particular, the Ohio Republican said that Obama's proposal failed to offer a balance between increased tax revenue and spending cuts promised by the president. "In the five weeks since we've signaled our willingness to forge an agreement with the president, he's never put forth a plan that meets these standards," Boehner said. " And frankly, it's why we don't have an agreement today." Read more: Fed drops hints on economy The White House and congressional Democrats rejected the Republican contention that the president's proposal lacked serious spending cuts and reforms to entitlement programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security as part of a comprehensive deal. Instead, they said Republicans were the ones making inadequate offers instead of seeking real compromise by agreeing to Obama's demand to maintain current tax rates for most Americans while allowing an increase on the top two income brackets. Obama has held a series of campaign-style public events to back his call for extending Bush-era tax cuts for 98% of Americans, with rates returning to higher 1990s levels on income over $250,000. That would address the main concern of the fiscal cliff, a set of automatic tax hikes and spending cuts that will begin on January 1 without an agreement between Obama and Boehner. Republican opposition in the face of support from the White House, Democrats and a majority of Americans, as shown by Obama's re-election and consistent poll results, showed GOP conservatives were holding hostage the continued tax cuts for the middle class to prevent higher rates on nation's wealthiest 2%, argued House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi. While Republicans have offered to increase tax revenue by eliminating some deductions and loopholes, they so far refuse to accept any increase in tax rates as demanded by the president. Generals: Get real and cut Pentagon spending A Democratic source told CNN that the latest Republican offer included extending all the Bush-era tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year, including rates on the top income brackets. According to the source, that signaled to Democrats that Boehner and Republicans were "unwilling or unable to do any sort of deal that can pass the Senate or be signed by the president." Obama campaigned on higher taxes on the wealthy in winning re-election last month, and he and Democrats say Republicans must concede on that issue for an agreement to happen. In an interview on Tuesday with ABC News, Obama said that he was "pretty confident" Republicans would relent on taxes in order to get a deal. At the same time, the White House complained Republicans have yet to offer details on which deductions or loopholes they would eliminate to raise revenue. It was implausible for Republicans to contend that "we can somehow magically achieve significant revenue on the order that we need for that balanced deficit reduction package simply by closing loopholes that they will not name or capping deductions that they will not specify some time in the future," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters. "Those magic beans are just beans and that fairy dust is just dust," he added. "It is not serious and the president will not sign an extension of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest." Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said Wednesday that Republican talk is meaningless until they show a genuine commitment to include significant revenue in any agreement. "The American people are not going to be under the illusion that the Republicans are sometime in the future going to come up with revenue," Reid said. "They are going to come up with raising the rates" or "we are going over" the fiscal cliff. Homes, cars, jobs: Americans already making big decisions over fiscal cliff Time is running out for an agreement on a short-term deal to avert the fiscal cliff and set up further negotiations in the new Congress that convenes in January or a more comprehensive approach that both sides say they want. Without a deal, everyone's taxes go up and the government faces deep spending cuts, including for the military. However, the administration has signaled it can delay some of the effects to allow time to work out an agreement next year. The House is supposed to end its current session on Friday and go home for the year, but Majority Leader Eric Cantor made clear the chamber would stay later than planned. "We are going to stay here right up to Christmas Eve, throughout the time and period before the New Year, because we want to make sure we resolve this in an acceptable way for the American people," Cantor said Wednesday. With a deal needing time to be written into legislation and approved by Congress, the working deadline for an agreement this year is around Christmas Day at the latest. "You`re talking about having to have something done by Christmas, but the sooner the better," Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, told MSNBC on Tuesday. Polls consistently show the public favors Obama's stance in the negotiations. Nearly half of Americans -- 49%--say they approve of the president's handling of the talks, compared to 25% who say Boehner is doing a good job, according to a new ABC News/Washington Post poll released Wednesday. Meanwhile, a new Bloomberg National Poll indicated that nearly two-thirds of respondents, including nearly 50% of Republicans, believe Obama's re-election gave him a mandate to seek higher taxes on the wealthy. Also Wednesday, an administration official said the Business Roundtable --an association of CEOs of major corporations -- has dropped its opposition to raising tax rates on the top two tax brackets after lobbying by the White House. Despite Boehner's adamant stance against such a tax rate hike, some cracks have appeared in his party's anti-tax facade, prompting a conservative backlash. From my home to the House: How to fix the fiscal cliff Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, promised the newly re-elected Obama "one hell of a fight" next year if the president forces through his plan for high-income earners to pay more taxes without agreeing to substantive steps to reduce the nation's chronic federal deficits and debt. "There will come a time in February and March where we have to raise the debt ceiling," Graham said Tuesday on "Piers Morgan Tonight" on CNN. "I will not raise the debt ceiling ever again until we get significant entitlement reforms, because if we don't reform entitlements, we're going to become Greece." Pelosi, however, argued Tuesday that more than $1 trillion in spending cuts agreed to by Congress in the past two years should be counted toward deficit reduction in the current negotiations. Both sides call for eliminating tax deductions and loopholes to raise more revenue, but Obama also demands an end to the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 for the top brackets. Republicans oppose the return to higher rates, saying it will inhibit job growth because small business owners declare their profits as personal income and therefore would face a tax increase. In response, Obama and Democrats note that their plan -- already approved by the Senate and needing House approval to be signed into law by the president -- affects just 2% of taxpayers and 3% of small business owners. While Republicans argue those small business owners account for about half of all business income, Democrats say that's because they include law firms, hedge funds traders and other high-income operations. Retiring Sen. Kent Conrad, D-North Dakota, predicted Tuesday on MSNBC that a deal would get worked out in a week's time. "It would be wise on their part not to come too quickly with a deal because that would give all the interest groups a chance to get organized and try to kill it," Conrad said. "And we know that on the right, on the left, special interest groups are just salivating at the chance to attack any agreement because, look, any agreement is going to have controversy attached to it." How will the 'fiscal cliff' affect you? CNN's Paul Steinhauser, Deirdre Walsh, Jessica Yellin and Ashley Killough contributed to this report.

Struggling student wins $1 million lottery prize

View more videos at: http://nbcchicago.com. By NBCChicago.com CHICAGO -- A college student who moved from India to Illinois has won $1 million in a scratch-off game. Asif Kahn, 21, who lives in Chicago suburb Villa Park, bought a ticket for the Illinois Lottery's Gold Bullion game three days before Thanksgiving at a Shell station in Hillside, Ill. "I just took the ticket and went to my car, and I made a U-turn and went straight back home," Kahn said. "I walked into my house and I said, 'Mom, you're not gonna believe what happened." He said he plans on using the majority of the money to pay off thousands of dollars in student loans, and then to eventually pay for medical school. Read more stories from NBCChicago.com "I can actually imagine my life ... a better future," Kahn said. "My long-term goal is to be a cardiologist, relating to the heart. Science has always been a very broad field for me and I love it," Kahn said at a Wednesday news conference. Kahn borrows his mother's 2003 Honda Accord every day to drive from his home to classes at East-West University. He said his one splurge will be a new Mercedes. He also plans to transfer to University of Illinois at Chicago, now that he can afford the tuition.

Court: Nurse in prank call found hanging by co-workers

An undated family photograph of Jacintha Saldanha, the Indian-origin nurse who died after being hoaxed by an Australian radio show trying to reach Prince William's wife in London, is shown to journalists in Shirva town, some 400 kilometres (250 miles) from the southern Indian city of Bangalore, on December 8, 2012. NEW: The nurse's body was formally identified by her husband, the inquest hears NEW: Australia's media watchdog opens an investigation into the prank call by 2Day FM Court: Jacintha Saldanha was found by co-workers hanging from a scarf The nurse left three notes, two of them at the scene, a police officer says London (CNN) -- A nurse who took a prank call from an Australian radio station was found by work colleagues "hanging by her neck by a scarf from a wardrobe door" at her hospital living quarters, a coroner's court in London heard Thursday. Jacintha Saldanha, who was found dead last Friday, left three notes, two at the scene and a third with her belongings, Westminster Coroner's Court heard. The details of the notes were not disclosed. Read more: Who was Jacintha Saldanha? There were also "some injuries to her wrist," Detective Chief Inspector James Harman said. The nurse, who was married with two teenaged children, put through the prank call December 4 to a nurse on the ward where Prince William's wife, Catherine, was being treated for acute morning sickness. Some details of her condition were given to the radio DJs, who impersonated Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth II. The details emerged as an inquest into Saldanha's death was opened. The coroner's court was told that Saldanha's body was formally identified Tuesday by her husband, Benedict Barboza. Police are looking at e-mails and telephone records, Harman said, and will speak to Saldanha's friends and co-workers about what could have led to her death. At this time there are no suspicious circumstances, he said. Police will also be in touch with Australian police in New South Wales to find out what would be the best way of gathering evidence, Harman said. This could involve either going to Australia or collecting evidence remotely. Saldanha, whose tragic death triggered wide public anger against the radio station, Sydney-based 2Day FM, was represented at the coroner's court by co-workers from the hospital. The Australian Communications and Media Authority, the country's media watchdog, on Thursday opened a formal investigation into 2Day FM's broadcast of the prank call. "The ACMA will be examining whether the licensee has complied with its broadcasting obligations," said chairman Chris Chapman. The station's owner, media network Southern Cross Austereo, pledged Tuesday to donate at least 500,000 Australian dollars (US$524,000) to a fund for the nurse's family. It lifted a moratorium on advertising Thursday, with all profits to the end of the year to go to the fund. The 46-year-old nurse, who moved to the UK from India a decade ago, had worked at King Edward VII's Hospital, where Catherine was being treated, for the past four years The coroner adjourned the inquest until a provisional date of March 26.

Who was Jacintha Saldanha?

The family of Jacintha Saldanha -- daughter Lisha, husband, Ben Barboza, and son Junal -- in London on Monday. Friends of Jacintha Saldanha in India say she was a generous, caring woman Her family has paid tribute to "a loving mother and a loving wife" Nurses who trained with her say she was confident and a bold decision-maker "We are not able to digest the news about her death," a family friend says London (CNN) -- Jacintha Saldanha should never have become a household name. But within a few hours of her apparent suicide after being duped by a radio prank call, the nurse's name was in headlines around the world. Her husband and two teenage children have said little, overwhelmed by the shocking death of a wife and mother thrust suddenly into the public eye. Read more: Radio personalities apologize for prank call to duchess's hospital An inquest, expected to open Thursday, may shed more light on the reasons for her apparent decision to take her own life early Friday, three days after putting through the fateful call from two Australian DJs who impersonated Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles to gain medical details about Prince William's pregnant wife, Catherine. In the meantime, a picture is starting to emerge of a generous, caring woman who was caught up in a media maelstrom. Read more: Prank call pitted 'the great' against the powerless Radio station faces criticism Australian DJs break silence over prank UK media attacks Australian DJs Prank on royal hospital turns tragic The 46-year-old nurse moved to the UK from India a decade ago, and for the past four years, she had worked in the hospital where Catherine was being treated for acute morning sickness. She spent her time off duty in the family home in the southwestern city of Bristol, according to UK media reports. British lawmaker Keith Vaz -- who accompanied Saldanha's husband, Benedict Barboza, and their children, Lisha and Junal, on a visit to the hospital living quarters in central London where she was found dead -- said they were devastated by the loss of "a loving mother and a loving wife." With the family standing beside him, looking shell-shocked, he added: "This is a close family. They are devastated by what has happened. They miss her every moment of every day, but they are really grateful to the support of the British public and to the public overseas." UK media reports have quoted an online testimonial for her driving instructor in which Saldanha apparently described herself as "a very nervous person." Read more: Nurse death sparks outrage, casts glare on 'shock jocks' But for her classmates and colleagues back home in India, she was a deeply religious, benevolent and bold young woman. "Jacintha was loving and caring," recalled the Rev. Sister Aileen Mathias, chief nursing officer at the Father Muller Medical College in the southern Indian city of Mangalore. Both trained at the institution's nursing school in the 1980s. Mathias still remembers her night shifts with Saldanha, who was a year her senior. "She would share her bread, coffee and sweets with the patients," Mathias said as she reminisced about her time with her old friend. Saldanha, at that time single, was a nursing student from 1984 to 1988 and said to be a devout Catholic. Read more: Hospital slams prank call radio station over nurse's death "She was very religious. She will pray for the patients. Both of us will pray together for the patients," Mathias said. Last year, Saldanha visited her alma mater and donated money for the needy receiving treatment at the hospital, the nursing chief said. "Jacintha was a generous person. She would help patients whenever she was here." A condolence message posted on the website of Mangalore's Father Muller Charitable Institutions described the late mother of two as a "dedicated and caring nurse." But Mathias also recollected Saldanha's lighter side. "She was a forward-looking girl. And she was very humorous. We cracked jokes. It was fun being together." Read more: Australian prank call radio station boss calls nurse's death 'truly tragic' Her friends have not forgotten her diligence in her studies. "Jacintha was pretty studious. She would often score as much as 75% or even more (in exams). And she was an active participant in several activities of the college," Mathias said. Nathalia Martis, 46, was in Saldanha's class. She cannot believe that her classmate committed suicide. "I was shocked to hear that. She was not that type who would do that," she said. Now a staff nurse herself at the Father Muller Hospital, Martis remembers Saldanha as a "bold girl." "She was very good, polite, but a very bold girl. She was always ready to face any kind of a situation," Martis said of her friend. She praised Saldanha for her "leading capacity." Martis wouldn't elaborate, though, saying she doesn't remember specific incidents from more than 25 years ago. But she found Saldanha to be a decisive woman. "She was a good decision-maker. ... I mean she will take quick decisions during problems," Martis said. A family acquaintance, Ivan D'Souza, also considered her a "confident" person. "She was a student here at Father Muller. She was a confident girl. And that's what her teachers also tell us about her. She would not normally make mistakes," he said on the phone from Mangalore. "We are not able to digest the news about her death." Others back in Britain also praised her as a professional and caring person. Lord Glenarthur, chairman of the private King Edward VII's Hospital where she worked, described her as "a first-class nurse who cared diligently for hundreds of patients." And the hospital's chief executive, John Lofthouse, spoke of her as "a much loved and valued colleague" who would be greatly missed by her co-workers. For now, D'Souza said, much of Saldanha's family is in her birthplace, waiting for her body to arrive. "We should get it as soon as possible," he said. The decision on when to fly her remains back to India is one for her relatives to make, London's Metropolitan Police said. So far, her family's most public expressions of grief have been made via Facebook. Barboza, Saldanha's husband, wrote over the weekend: "I am devastated with the tragic loss of my beloved wife Jacintha in tragic circumstances. She will be laid to rest in Shirva, India." Saldanha's daughter, whose Facebook page is headed by a photo of herself with her mother and brother, wrote: "I miss you, I loveeee you. (Heart) Jacintha saldanha." CNN's Harmeet Shah Singh reported from New Delhi; and Laura Smith-Spark wrote from London.

Robbery sparks epic chase, college lockdown

View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com. By NBCLosAngeles.com and wire reports LOS ANGELES -- A violent pawn shop robbery on Wednesday sparked a police chase across three California counties, a carjacking, an eight-hour lockdown for thousands of college students and staff, and the arrest of three suspects, including one within sight of Los Angeles' police chief at a charity event. Two suspects remained at large early Thursday but the lockdown at California State University, Fullerton ended at 12:10 a.m. local time (3:10 a.m. ET). The chase began after five men wearing ski masks and armed with handguns robbed at pawn shop in Moreno Valley at about 3 p.m. (6 p.m. ET), shooting an employee of the store. The clerk was shot four times and underwent surgery at Riverside County Regional Medical Center, where he was in a critical but stable condition on Wednesday night. Pawn shop clerk shot 4 times in robbery that sparked pursuits, campus lockdown California Highway Patrol officers responded to a call describing the suspect vehicle and followed it to Fullerton. At 3:47 p.m., the pursuit ended after the car exited the Orange (57) Freeway and stopped after it was involved in a minor collision in front of the university campus, Fullerton police Sgt. Jeff Stuart said at a news conference. Nearly 10,000 students were at the university preparing for next week's finals when two men ran onto campus, where one was immediately taken into custody. The other man fled and was seen going into the school's Mihaylo Hall, where business and economics are taught, Stuart said. The school activated the lockdown at about 4 p.m. local time (7 p.m. ET), sending a text to students telling them to stay where they were, The Associated Press reported. The three other men headed southbound from campus. One was taken into custody, and another carjacked a vehicle and led authorities on a high-speed chase. The driver blew through several stop signs and red lights in residential areas of Compton. Read more from NBCLosAngeles.com The man abandoned the car in the Watts area of Los Angeles and ran through a crowded area before surrendering on a baseball field at Imperial Courts Recreation Center, which was hosting a toy drive held by the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD Chief Charlie Beck was among those attending the event and chased after the suspect as he headed toward the baseball diamond, away from dozens of police officers gathered at the park. Chris Bugbee, a spokesman for Cal State Fullerton, told NBC that police had captured a total of three suspects, but two remained at large. Stuart said SWAT team members were searching the area. "A large number of students were able to flee the building where the suspect ran into. They've been evacuated from the campus. Those students and staff members that are still on campus are in what's called a shelter in place," Stuart said before the lockdown was lifted. "Our goal is to go around and rescue those individuals as we do our search. This is going to be an all-night operation." He added: "It's a huge campus, so it's a very daunting task." Read more US stories from NBC News A student in one of the locked-down buildings said he witnessed officers checking every classroom. "A cop came running through and he said, 'They have guns, they have guns,'" said another witness, Shant Fermanian. "So all these people started rushing so me and my cousin, we looked up, and we just got out of there as soon we can. We had no idea what was going on." Fermanian said he saw a man, who was later taken into custody, run around a nearby building but did not see any weapons. Christine Accetta, locked down in McCarthy Hall, tweeted a photo about 6:30 p.m. (9:30 p.m. ET) of a barricade students created inside a classroom. Four hours later, Accetta tweeted: "We have been released!" Another student, Raquel Mireles, said the university had been regularly in touch with students via text message with updates on the developing situation. "They're just trying ... to keep us safe," Mireles said, who said she was in College Park. "They're being really helpful. The cops have come through and told us to stay calm." She said the blinds had been closed in the classroom she was in, and chairs had been placed in front of the door. "The lights are off. We're kind of just all huddled together right now," Mireles said. While she talked on air to NBC4, a loudspeaker announcement told her to evacuate the building. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Man accused of carving on son's back

Brent Troy Bartel was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Police say he carved a pentagram onto the back of his 6-year-old son. His son is found with a large red pentagram carved on his back The father says on the call he acted because it was a "holy day" Wednesday's unusual date of 12/12/12 was seen by many as a noteworthy date (CNN) -- While many people saw Wednesday's memorable date of 12/12/12 as an auspicious moment to tie the knot or start a business, a Texas man appears to have interpreted the day as a reason to carry out a grotesque and sinister act. "I shed some innocent blood," Brent Troy Bartel told a police dispatcher in the small Texas town of Richland Hills in a phone call just after midnight. When the dispatcher asked him to clarify, Bartel responded in a matter-of-fact tone, "I inscribed a pentagram on my son." "Okay, why did you do that?" the 911 operator wanted to know. Bartel responded, "'Cause it's a holy day." At the same time, police say, the boy's mother was also calling police from a neighbor's house. She had run there, they say, to raise the alarm that Bartel was hurting their 6-year-old son. When police officers arrived at the home, they say they found the traumatized boy standing shirtless with a large red pentagram carved into the skin on his back. His blood was smeared on the front door of the house. A pentagram is a five pointed star that has associations with many different religions and belief systems. The police officers wrapped a jacket around the child, who they say was "cold and shivering," and called paramedics, who took him to a children's hospital for treatment. They arrested Bartel, whose manner was flat and emotionless, according to Sgt. Nathan Stringer. He has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a family member. "This is a very bizarre case," Stringer said. What exactly may have motivated Bartel, who is being held in a local jail on a $500,000 bond, remains unclear. Police didn't disclose any comments from him beyond what he said on the 911 call. The pentagram has had links with many of the world's religions and cults through the ages, including Christianity, Judaism and Paganism. It has also been used in certain forms by magicians and Satanists. Wednesday's triple-12 date was considered noteworthy by numerologists because its digits add up to three, which has associations with the planet Jupiter, the largest in the solar system. The number 12 has astrological significance, since there are 12 signs of the zodiac. It was the last such triple date for almost a century -- until January 1, 2101. The boy's wounds were not very deep, Stringer said, and his condition was stable. Police say they believe a box cutter recovered from the scene was used by Bartel to cut his son, but they are waiting for the results of laboratory tests.

Mall shooting response: 'Paradigm shift' since Columbine

Steve Dipaola / Reuters Police move with an armored vehicle at the Clackamas Town Center shopping mall near Portland, Ore., on Tuesday. The sheriff says officers arrived at the shooting scene about a minute after the initial 911 call. By Elizabeth Chuck and James Eng, NBC News A gunman wielding a stolen semi-automatic rifle and several fully loaded magazines opens fire inside a shopping mall teeming with as many as 10,000 people. Yet, only two people are killed and one wounded. Sheer luck, or were authorities and mall officials well prepared? Probably a bit of both, say law-enforcement and security experts, some of whom credit new police tactics and better security training at schools and public venues for helping to minimize the casualties at the Clackamas Town Center near Portland, Ore. "I want to say that we were … well-prepared for this incident because we had practice in active shooter techniques at the Clackamas Town Center this past year for this type of situation," Clackamas County Sheriff Craig Roberts said at a news conference Wednesday. It's not known what prompted the Tuesday afternoon attack. The sheriff said only that the shooter, identified as Jacob Tyler Roberts, 22, of Portland, appeared to be on "a mission" to kill. But he added that the first officers arrived about one minute after the first 911 calls and immediately separated into teams to head into the mall. Mall gunman: Personal setbacks, friends' disbelief Jacob Tyler Roberts is suspected of killing two people at an Oregon shopping mall. NBC's Jay Gray reports. "Law enforcement has learned from past tragedies throughout this country that we can't wait for SWAT teams, and teams need to deploy immediately," Roberts said. "So we trained and equipped each of our individual officers to form up in teams as they arrive and move immediately into engaging the threat, wherever it might be." That's a tactic that many law-enforcement agencies began instituting in the aftermath of the April 1999 massacre at Columbine High School, where two young gunmen, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, shot to death 12 students and a teacher and injured 21 others before killing themselves. At Columbine, law enforcement followed traditional tactics of surrounding the building and waiting for more heavily armed units to arrive. Crucial minutes ticked away, during which Harris and Klebold killed and wounded more people.   Many agencies now train their officers to go after an "active shooter" immediately rather than wait for tactical squads. That rapid-deployment response is exactly what happened in the mass shooting at an Aurora, Colo., theater on July 12 that left a dozen people dead. Aurora police got the first call at 12:39 a.m. Seven minutes later, suspect James Eagan Holmes was arrested. "Ever since Columbine, there's been a paradigm shift," said Mark Lomax, executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association. "In the past, it was the standard protocol if there was a shooting incident or a barricade suspect or a hostage situation, the first responder would secure and contain the crime situation until the SWAT team or negotiators or bomb techs would arrive." Girl, 15, shot in Ore. mall cheats death twice School shootings highlighted a need to teach first responders to handle situations before those specialized units arrival, Lomax said. "It takes a while for a fully equipped SWAT team or hostage negotiation team to get to the scene. We've realized over many sad incidents that time is of the essence when it comes to saving lives and that those first responders should be fully knowledgeable with how to handle those situations. They won't be the experts, but they need to have enough training and equipment to do exactly what they did in Portland," he said. Sgt. A.J. DeAndrea of the Arvada (Colo.) Police Department, who was among the elite team members who searched Columbine High the day of the shooting, says the tactic of going after shooters immediately has helped save lives. He told The Denver Post the first SWAT team didn't even enter Columbine until 38 minutes after the first call. "There are times when you cannot wait. It's an inherently risky job. Our job is to go in and protect innocent lives," he told The Denver Post in an interview earlier this year.  The Clackamas Town Center mall general manager Dennis Curtis says the mall had an emergency plan in place and regularly holds emergency drills. Watch entire comments. Many malls and other public venues now routinely practice responses to emergencies like the one that unfolded Tuesday in Oregon. Clackamas Town Center has a lockdown procedure in place. "Every mall that we own and manage has an emergency response manual and we rehearse for these things all the time. We go through those emergency response plans on a regular basis. We've done drills with the sheriff's office," said the mall's general manager, Dennis Curtis. "Basically, in a situation like this it's either stay right where you're at and lock yourself down or get to the nearest exit and get out of the building. I just have to commend all of the retailers and our security staff. They did an amazing job." Mall shooting victims: Hospice nurse, entrepreneur Sheriff Roberts noted that the gunman's rifle jammed at some point, and that stroke of luck may also have saved some lives. He also said a large number of police officers arrived on the scene very rapidly, curtailing the suspect's ability to move around the mall. Lomax said police departments across the country have been training for "active shooter" situations so they, too, can take down a suspect who has a weapon in a public area rather than waiting for backup or a tactical squad. "I believe that there are a lot of of departments that are being very proactive on this type of training and equipping their patrol officers with automatic weapons and ballistic vests and shields to address these types of things," he said. "It only takes a matter of minutes to do a lot of mayhem out there, and these sheriffs and police chiefs understand that they need a very equipped and trained front line whenever it comes." More content from NBCNews.com: Oregon shopping mall gunman identified; motive unclear Girl, 15, shot in Oregon mall cheats death twice 'Unique' smuggling attempt: $42,500-worth of marijuana shot into Ariz. by cannon Much-criticized 'drum major' quote on Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial to be removed Video: Driver ticketed for truck covered in Christmas lights  Follow US news from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook