Hi, I'm Carl Azuz.
And happy to be back with you for this Tuesday edition of CNN STUDENT NEWS.
Thanks to Natisha Lance for filling in yesterday.
First up today, a criminal mystery that officials in Texas describe as shocking and uncomfortable.
This weekend, Kaufman Country District Attorney Mike McClelland and his wife Cynthia were shot and killed in their home.
Two months ago, assistant prosecutor Mark Hasse was shot and killed outside the country court house.
Prosecutors like McClelland and Hasse are part of the U.S. criminal justice system.
They represent the government, in this case the county government in criminal trials.
It's their job to present evidence against accused criminals.
Authorities say, they don't know who's responsible for the deaths of the McClelland's and Hasse.
But concerns that prosecutors may be targets has led to other Texas officials getting round-the-clock security.
Authorities have launched this massive investigation.
Local police, Texas rangers, now dozens of FBI agents, all getting involved.
Just the facts.
Autism is the general term used for a group of developmental disorders.
These disorders generally affect social interaction, behavior and language.
There's not a single known cause for autism, and there also isn't a cure.
Officials estimate that about one out of every 88 kids has an autism disorder.
Because autism covers a spectrum, a variety of disorders, it affects people in different ways.
The symptoms can range from mild to severe.
April is national autism awareness month.
And today, April 2nd is world autism awareness day.
The goal of both of these is to raise awareness and help educate people about the disorders.
That Alexis Wineman's goal as well.
She was a contestant in this year's Miss America pageant.
For her, autism is a personal cause.
Miss Montana surrounded by more than 50 other beauty queens on stage, all hoping to become Ms. America.
But for most of her early life, Alexis Wineman spent her time alone.
I was very quiet because I couldn't say anything right, I was picked on for the way I spoke.
I really didn't have any friends.
Her parents knew there was something wrong, but their small town of Cut Bank, Montana, didn't have the resources to help them figure out what it was.
And that at the age of 11, after years and years of searching for answers, a doctor finally put a name to Wineman's condition.
Pervasive development disorder:
a mild form of autism.
Typically, children with autism are very intelligent, but very quiet, socially awkward, and they don't respond appropriately to interactions with other people.
I learned to really accept myself and my autism, and I realized that my autism isn't what defines me.
I define what is autism.
She entered the Miss Montana Pageant as a way to prove to herself she can do anything she set her mind to.
I fell in love with the program, good thing, too, because I won.
I wasn't expecting to win, but it's funny how things work out sometimes.
That win put her on the national stage in Las Vegas.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN.