The year in review: Top news stories of 2018 month by month

What about the year gone by?  Time for one last look with Jane Pauley:

January

The year began with California becoming the sixth state to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana. Later in the month, a judge sentenced physician Larry Nassar to up to 175 years in jail for sexually abusing more than 250 girls.

• California ready to go green with legalization of marijuana in 2018 ("CBS Evening News," 12/27/17)
  
• California pot dispensaries and consumers face sobering reality ("CBS This Morning," 01/03/18)
  
• Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman confronts Larry Nassar in court (CBS News, 01/19/18)
  
• Focus turns to culture of abuse after Larry Nassar sentencing ("CBS This Morning, 01/24/18)
  
• Aly Raisman speaks out about sexual abuse ("60 Minutes," 09/09/18)
  

February

February brought the Winter Olympics to South Korea; and a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 17 students and staff members. Survivors launched a campaign for stricter gun laws …

• Florida students hid in classrooms, closets in deadly school shooting (CBS News, 02/22/18)
  
• Complete CBSNews.com coverage: Parkland school shooting
  

March

…Which brought hundreds of thousands of protesters to Washington for a rally, the March For Our Lives.

• The March for Our Lives: Taking their message to the streets ("Sunday Morning," 03/25/18)
  
• Emma González: "Fight for your lives before it's someone else's job" (Video)
  
• How the White House responded to the March for Our Lives rallies (CBS News, 03/24/18)
  
• Fox News host apologizes for mocking Florida school shooting survivor as uproar grows (CBS News, 03/29/18)
  
• "39 Days": How Parkland shooting survivors turned grief into action (CBS News, 04/05/18)
  

April

Facebook executive Mark Zuckerberg appeared before Congress to defend his company over data breaches; and Stormy Daniels took center stage after President Trump denied paying off the former stripper over their alleged encounter.

• How to check if your Facebook data was shared with Cambridge Analytica (CBS News, 04/25/18)
  
• Facebook Russian ads that influenced election released to Congress (CBS News, 04/08/18)
  
• 5 nations now demanding Mark Zuckerberg testify on Facebook's data misuse (CBS News, 11/07/18)
  
• Why the Stormy Daniels story matters ("60 Minutes," 03/25/18)
  
• Trump met with Michael Cohen before Stormy Daniels "60 Minutes" interview (CBS News, 03/26/18)
  
• Judge dismisses Stormy Daniels' defamation lawsuit against Trump (CBS News, 10/16/18)
  
• Trump calls Stormy Daniels "Horseface" (CBS News, 10/31/18)
  

May

Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano sprang to life in May, spewing ash thousands of feet in the air. President Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear pact; and some 29 million viewers tuned in to see American Meghan Markle marry Prince Harry.

• The science behind Hawaii's Kilauea volcano and 2,200-degree lava ("CBS Evening News," 05/08/18)
  
• Lava from the Kilauea volcano has added nearly 700 acres to Hawaii's Big Island ("CBS This Morning," 07/18/18)
  
• Obama: Trump pulling U.S. out of Iran nuclear deal "a serious mistake" (CBS News, 05/08/18)
  
• Iran: U.S. would "regret" violating nuke deal (CBS News, 04/09/18)
  
• "Meghan Markle: American Princess" - from child activist to global star to future royal (CBS News, 04/21/18)  
  
• Inside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's love story (CBS News, 05/20/18)
  
• Gallery: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal wedding
  

June

June brought reports that migrant children had been separated from their parents as part of President Trump's "zero tolerance" border policy; and the President traveled to Singapore to meet with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, becoming the first sitting U.S. President to meet with a North Korean leader.

• The chaos behind Donald Trump's policy of family separation at the border ("60 Minutes," 11/26/18)
  
• The businesses making millions from Trump's child separation policy (CBS News, 06/21/18)
  
• Trump says he "trusts" Kim Jong Un after summit ("CBS This Morning, 06/12/18)
  
• North Korea says Kim Jong Un watched test of new "ultramodern tactical weapon" (CBS News, 11/16/18)
  

July

France won the World Cup, defeating Croatia; and President Trump nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, replacing the retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy.

• Brett Kavanaugh's views on presidential power could become focus with ongoing Russia probe ("CBS This Morning," 07/10/18)
  
• What does Anthony Kennedy's retirement mean for Roe v. Wade? (CBS News, 06/28/18)
  

August

August saw the passing of two giants: Aretha Franklin, the "Queen of Soul"; and Arizona Senator John McCain.

• Gallery: Aretha Franklin 1942-2018
  
• How Aretha Franklin's "Respect" became one of the greatest songs of all time ("CBS Evenings News, 08/16/18)
  
• Aretha Franklin: A music-filled tribute to the "Queen of Soul" ("Sunday Morning," 09/02/18)
  
• One of a kind: The remarkable life and times of Senator John McCain ("Sunday Morning," 08/26/18)
  
• John McCain: The 2017 "60 Minutes" interview
  
• John McCain remembered: Obama, family and more pay tribute (CBS News, 08/25/18)
  
• Gallery: John McCain 1936-2018
  

September

Christine Blasey Ford found herself in the headlines in September, after she accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of assault during high school. After televised and hotly-debated Congressional hearings, Kavanaugh was later confirmed to the Court.

• Christine Blasey Ford is "100 percent" certain Brett Kavanaugh assaulted her (CBS News, 09/27/18)
  
• A nation is tasked: Whom to believe? ("Sunday Morning," 09/30/18)
  
• Christine Blasey Ford's defenders say Republicans are "smearing" her (CBS News, 09/18/18)
  
• Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh insists on his innocence (CBS News, 09/26/18)
  
• Nancy Pelosi calls Brett Kavanaugh "hysterical," says he is unfit to serve on the Supreme Court (CBS News, 09/29/18)
  
• The confirmation victory of Justice Brett Kavanaugh ("Sunday Morning," 10/07/18)

October

Hurricane Michael made landfall. And there was more gun violence: 11 died after a gunman opened fire at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. The month also brought the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, thought to be the work of agents of Saudi Arabia.

• Hurricane Michael aftermath (CBS News, 10/11/18)
  
• Synagogue shooting survivors recount terror as gunfire erupted ("CBS This Morning," 10/29/18)
  
• Pittsburgh shooting suspect makes court appearance; feds seek death penalty (CBS News, 10/29/18)
  
• The longest hatred: Anti-Semitism on the rise ("Sunday Morning," 12/09/18)
  
• The mystery of Jamal Khashoggi ("Sunday Morning," 10/14/18)
  
• CIA concludes Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi's assassination (CBS News, 11/17/18)
  

November

The mid-term elections saw the Democrats regain control of the House of Representatives. On the West Coast, wildfires left 88 dead in the massive Camp Fire. And there was still another mass shooting, this time at a bar in Thousand Oaks, California.

• How Democrats won the House (CBS News, 11/07/18)
  
• Democrats make gains in state legislatures, governorships (CBS News, 11/08/18)
  
• Exit polls show Trump a major factor in 2018 midterm election voting (CBS News, 11/07/18)
  
• Death toll rises to 81 in Northern California's Camp Fire, as rain could trigger mudslides (CBS News, 11/21/18)
  
• Man who survived Vegas shooting died in Thousand Oaks massacre (CBS News, 11/09/18)
  

December

We laid former President George H.W. Bush to rest in Texas. Later in the month, a deadlock over funding for President Trump's border wall led to a partial shutdown of the federal government, which continues to this day.

• Remembering 41: The life and career of George H.W. Bush ("Sunday Morning," 12/02/18)
  
• George H.W. Bush: Remembering the 41st president of the United States ("60 Minutes," 12/02/18)
  
• George W. Bush says George H.W. Bush was the "best father a son or daughter could have" (CBS News, 12/05/18)
  
• "I am proud to shut down the government for border security," Trump says in Oval Office "tantrum" with Schumer, Pelosi (CBS News, 12/11/18)
  
• 420,000 employees will go without pay during government shutdown (CBS News, 12/22/18)
  
• "We do live paycheck by paycheck": Federal workers struggle as shutdown continues (CBS News, 12/25/18)
  

         
Story produced by Julie Kracov.