with this mix of precipitation is moving. hi, doug. >> the rain and snow are moving quickly through the northeast and out of the area. the areas of white are designating the areas of snow, and they have really contract. west of baltimore and west of the city of washington, some rain dissipating. we are pretty much in the final inning of this system. we still at winter weather advisories opt for parts of the washington area, and our next concern is the temperature. above freezing road surfaces and as skies cleared overnight tonight, he 28 to 33 degree temperatures in the morning, and at the morning we could have some icy patches because the water on the ground will be freezing. i would join you in the studio and just a couple of minutes. >> looking at conditions around the area. >> not everybody thought snow.

this is video from maryland brunswick. the snow did not make too much of a mess on the road. jennifer donelan is live with a look at what is going on there now. >> maureen, i am in gaithersburg, and we do still have the white stuff falling in gaithersburg. a view of that with the street light. this is the parking lot at lowe's, and we are thinking everyone is still stuck in that awful traffic, but today has been a mix of snow and rain. >> i cannot stand it. i am not a big snow person. >> this resident is no fan of the white stuff, no matter how much or how little. he drives home from frederick where snow began falling this afternoon. >> i like it as long as i do not have to drive or it turns to ice. >> i think because of the cold

weather, we are going to get a big storm, but not right now. >> the shoppers at a safeway in germantown before the snow rival. >> a blizzard. at the pharmacy, there were so many prescriptions light there was going to be a blizzard. >> the effort to fill up trucks with salt was nonstop in gaithersburg as rush-hour approached. >> to be ready when the snow is coming. >> as the afternoon went on for, from maryland to virginia, -- as the afternoon went on. >> never did in a hurry. >> -- never get in a hurry. >> piles of assault were ready. >> you have got to be ready. -- piles of salt were ready. >> it hits the ground it's the

sidewalk, and it is just -- it hits the sidewalk, and it is just wet as it turns to water. reporting live from gaithersburg, i am jennifer donelan, abc7 news. >> thank you, jennifer. you can always count on abc7 news and wjla when it snows. our live weather page has live radar, and we also have traffic conditions and closings and delays when there is a winter weather event. >> are other big story tonight testimony under way at the uva murder trial. george huguely some graphic details about the state of the victim's body when it was discovered. gail pennybacker is live with the latest from the courthouse. gail. >> the women sobbed when they

were on the stand. they were not even cross-examine treat the most heart wrenching testimony at this point after eight witnesses by the prosecution was that of a woman who found the body of yeardley love. george huguely never did anything that would lead to ending the life of yeardley love as his attorneys said. it was said they had a combative relationship that yeardley love from being intoxicated and suffocating in a pillow, and they had women sobbing. the attorney chapman said he would present an email that contained a threat on her life. the medical examiner said she died of blunt force trauma and had a massive injuries and that the dna of huguely was spent indicating a fight. this case has captivated the uva

community. >> i am just watching with interest as we all are and i just hope justice is served three >> while the mother and sister testified, it was caitlin whiteley his testimony was the most graphic. she found yeardley love, face down in the pillow, and she said there was blood and that she was not moving. "i called 911." it appears the prosecutor is moving in a chronological order. they had caitlin whiteley and another man, and on the stand a police officer who responded to that 911 call. reporting live in charlottesville, va., gail pennybacker, live abc7 news. >> it is described as the worst case of animal cruelty they have ever seen. they found a wooded spitball wondering -- a wounded pit bull

that was suspected as being used as a biat dog in a dogfighting operation -- as a bait dog in a dogfighting operation. >> a new bill forbids a special access and another bill talks about government pensions. majority leader eric cantor wrote the bill. it is expected to pass easily. >> a federal judge is ordering the release of documents in a case against the late senator ted stevens. the judge denied motions to seal a report about misconduct in the corruption case against the alaska lawmakers. a jury convicted ted stevens in 2008 on corruption charges but the case was dismissed after the justice department admitted

wrongdoing. ted stevens died in an airplane crash two years ago. still to come on abc7 news, a timesaving way to get through airport security is heading to the d.c. area. we will tell you what you have to do to be part of the program. >> and mcdonald is making a lot of money even with the fight on fat under way. >> and rick santorum and his three wins are changing the course of the race. what he had to say, and [ female

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>> we continue now on the latest with the republican candidates for the presidential nomination. a lot of action at the polls last night for rick santorum. >> that is right, rick santorum swept the caucuses and primaries in three states, including colorado, and this is raising new questions about the standing of mitt romney among conservatives and the reach to the white house. scott thuman is live with the latest from the campaign trail. scott? >> maureen let's take a look. eight contests so forth. rick santorum has got four, mitt romney 3, newt gingrich one. the reset button has just been hit again.

if rick santorum suddenly feels like the anointed one, you cannot blame him. even before this emotional church service in texas today he was clearly feeling good, showing the country what this is all about. >> no one ever thinks i can win anything. [laughter] and i think we may have seen a little bit of that last night. >> he has succeeded for two big reasons, including making mitt romney's seem less collectible. there was dialogue for three weeks before arizona and michigan votes and that gives the mitt romney people time to get support. >> no such thing as coronation in a presidential politics. it is meant to be a long process. >> the next days will be damage control. president obama leads mitt romney in virginia 47% to 43%. just one week ago mitt romney

led by 2%. >> we are just getting going. >> newt gingrich was talking about the clint eastwood super bowl ad, as if obama was talking about its own campaign, with a dismal showing behind ron paul, and he did not place in missouri with no delegates awarded. remember newt gingrich had been the one pushing rick santorum to drop out. meanwhile, rick santorum might have the most states behind him but not the most delegates. mitt romney is still well in the lead there. more rain? >> thanks so much, scott. another outbreak of sickness on a cruise ship the fourth in two weeks. i will tell you where it happened to this time. >> and doug has a look at what is next for our weather after the break. >> and gordon going downtown to see the wizards game tonight.

not much snow. if you want to stay home by the fire, it is a shortage board. top quality players.

>> that new easier and supposedly faster tsa screening program is moving to our area. >> the program allows passengers to keep their shoes and belts on keep their laptops in the bag before boarding, in exchange for offering more personal information. it has been tested at a handful of airports, and thousands of americans are already registered. >> nearly 114 passengers and 60 crew members fell ill on the ship the crown princess this week. the ship had been cleaned before the current sailing after nearly 400 people got sick on the last voyage. two other ships also reportedly recently reported norovirus outbreaks, and the company

quinces proves lines, is offering to give refunds to customers -- the company princess cruise lines is offering to give refunds. >> mcdonald's said its earnings climbed in january. they say customers are spending more money on breakfast, beverages, and the new chicken dish. they have thousands of restaurants in 119 countries. >> our snow is nothing compared to the problems in japan. in coastal ports heavy snow has been coming down. in the northernmost islands, they have got nearly two feet of snow and it is expected to keep falling their right through the weekend. >> but not here. >> nothing like that. >> in maryland, two inches tops so our only concern moving forward is it the skies clear and it gets cold we could see some freezing and icy patches.

taking you out to the campus of frostburg university, cloudy skies the snow, cold temperatures. getting through the late afternoon in this sequence, you will see a clearing out, and the peak of a blue sky coming out before the sun went down. we have not had that much snow around the area locally, and elsewhere, it has been more rain to measure than anything else but on the light side, 700th of rain on the campus of george washington university. a possible re-freeze during the overnight and early morning hours. officially on our board tonight, 43. i think over the next hour or so most of the precipitation will come to an end. this is our super doppler 7 storm watch snow machine mode. maybe some rain along the bay.

a pretty good clip. for the rest of the night, we will be tracking temperatures. 32 in hagerstown. but clouds will clear out overnight, and the temperatures will continue to drop, and that could be a problem. no bitter blast to come in behind it, but certainly colder temperatures will come in over the next several hours and everyone will be watching for the icy patches. in its place high pressure builds in. that will give us sunshine tomorrow and highs in the upper 40's. maybe nicer on friday with highs approaching 50 degrees. let's see what the futurecast has to say. sunshine throughout the day tomorrow very comfortable temperatures. sunshine again for the day on friday. a change. changes, rapid changes every few days another cold front will come through on saturday with gusty winds and falling temperatures. there will be flurries, and then

on sunday, it looks like only low to mid 30's. lots of sunshine a comfortable thursday. the next seven days watching temperatures drop over the weekend with another warming trend next week. >> the toyota sports desk, brought to you by your lorton -- local toyota dealers, moving you forward. >> a big game of college basketball. >> they will be hanging from the rafters. the game is at ninth and ranked duke. then in the biggies, against syracuse at the dome. that, too, is a terrific rivalry.

as it georgetown and syracuse needed any extra dressing. >> the big game. >> add this to the mix. >> the syracuse condition something special. >> indeed, this is probably their last trip to the carrier dome for the hoyas. >> we have been a part of each other's past. they have made a decision that they do not want to be a part of the big east, so we will find someone else and start a whole new tradition. >> for more elite -- for many decades, they did not have to wait for madness. and you can bet the hoyas will be on the receiving end of a not so fond farewell. >> we will stay focused. >> our group understands what

this game and tails. at the same time we understand that the past as well as the present -- >> that game starts at 7:00. meanwhile, the play of the night. the base line, the throw down, hanging on the rim. keeping your flying license. the freshmen with our play of the day. and the jets tomorrow night. but in a game the capitals absolutely had to win, this smackdown with four goals. a share that with 42. the capitals moved from ninth to the no. 3 seed by taking over first place in the southeast division. and a fourth quarter super bowl

play. hundreds of butter figger candy bars. that is not fair. there was a citation for commercial stomping. butterfingers, that is not nice. and we introduced you to the new knicks player jeremy lin. what are you bostonians doing? leave the kid alone. >> a hero. >> only in boston.

>> coming up tonight at 11:00, reconnecting with old flames on facebook. some amazing stories shared by wjla facebook users about how they were able to find each other again. tonight at 11:00. >> and some wet weather. >> some rain and snow. the snow machine shows as some light patches. that will move out the sky will clear, and we have some patches of ice may be. sunshine and warmer weather. much colder over the weekend. bob ryan is in later tonight with a fresh look. it is crazy, is it not? >> "abc world news" coming up.

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