last year fairfax county police recovered nearly $200,000 worth of stolen merchandise. they are at it again this year. erica gonzalez reports from tysons corner mall where thiefs are doing it all over again. >> reporter: fairfax county police say they already recovered nearly $30,000 worth of stolen merchandise this season. but the thieves aren't just local. at $10,000 rolex watch. that's what one man tried to get away with by using a fraudulent credit card at a high-dollar store at tysons corner last week. the store clerk called them after they said that the suspect's behavior was off. that's why retail anti-theft teams are hitting the streets. some are in regular uniform but most will be undercover. dressed like anybody else. >> what we are looking for now in tysons corner, which is the out-of-state crime ring coming into this a. area. tysons corner, fair oaks, fairfax county in general is known for a very wealthy population. >> reporter: what do the professional con artists look like? police say they tend to go for store corners. they are always looking over their sh

an officer spotted him driving the wrong way in fairfax over the weekend. in a statement, babbitt said he was, quote, unwilling to let anything cast a shadow on the outstanding work by his colleagues at the faa >>> the city of fredericksburg is now getting federal fund to go repair public buildings damaged in the east coast earthquake. city officials estimate at least $64,000 in damage was done to city owned buildings in the 5.8 magnitude quake. that includes a collapsed chimney at the fredericksburg museum, damaged ceilings at the general district courthouse, and cosmetic damage to city hall, the library, and the circuit court. as of now, city residents are not eligible for the aid. >> tom kierein is monitoring big changes in the weather. you're talking about plunging temperatures and winter weather moving in. tom, what is going on? >> maybe even flooding rains too. this has got a multi-facet to it on this particular storm. right now we're getting the rain. it's coming down moderate to heavily in washington. here's a live picture from the city camera. you

doug is out live in fairfax. doug? >> i tell you what, it's hard to believe we are talking 62 degrees out here now. in the middle of the of december, normally we start to think of snow like in the middle of this iced snowman. believe it or not, we could see a couple flakes. i think that's all it is. don't expect accumulation. accumulation on rooftops and the cars on sunday. the family here with me. i want to show you first off, what's going to happen in a couple days. let's look at the four day and seven day forecast and show you what to expect. as i'm talking ability the colder air moving in, 49 degrees tomorrow for a high temperature. 12 or 13 degrees colder tomorrow. then we see cold air come in on saturday. highs only in the mid-40s. sunday, we could get really cold air. some areas could stay in the upper 30s sunday. we could see snow showers during the day on sunday, too. we'll continue to watch out for that. i told you, i have the cutest thing ever coming up now. you can't get cuter than kids. guys we practice th

in fairfax. >> the happy house in fairfax. i love how you say that, wendy. it's definitely a happy house. the christmas spirit here. wave hello, everybody. we are going to talk about the weather. the weather was a big concern for us. the reason why, stephanie worried about the winds. let me show you why. look at some of the inflatables. they are not just five to ten to 15 feet. we have one guy, how big is he? >> 20. >> 20 feet tall there. i was going to exaggerate and say 50 feet. you corrected me. be realistic here. 20 feet high. we'll go 21. let's show you how things are going as far as temperatures go. temperatures around 62 degrees out there at the airport. trust me, they are not going to stay that warm. we'll talk about the temperatures and the four-day forecast. and what happens in seven days. >> dan is here. talk about some unique career opportunities. >> yeah, we are talking george washington las sis. they were in the news because of a transgender player. it could have been awkward for pe

iniciamos con la búsqueda de la policía de fairfax, después de un tiroteo fatal en virginia, un hombre fue baleado en la cabeza en un estacionamiento de un complejo de apartamentos. los posibles sospechosos se fueron de la escena en una camioneta oscura y la policía dice que el tiroteo no fue un hecho al azar. - la ruta 50 fue cerrado por algunas horas debido al choque entre un camión cargado de cemento y un automóvil, dos personas quedaron atrapados, los conductores fueron llevados a un hospital, dos helicópteros se presentaron para transportar a los heridos. - las leyes que castigan a los que participan de robos relámpagos podrían cambiar en ella. una legislación propuesta daría a los involucrados sanciones más severas que en algunos casos tendría varios días tras las rejas. >> reportera: robos relámpagos en las que jóvenes han saqueado en grupo tiendas de la región ha llevado a los legisladores a tomar cartas en el asunto, proponen una ley estatal que haría a cada una de las personas involucradas responsables por el valor total del robo y no solamente por el valor de

we begin with sue palka at the greenbrier station in fairfax. how's it out there? >> reporter: it's traffic. we're delighted that it's a comfortable day like last night for the lighting of the christmas tree. we have chantilly high school's touch of class here. they're lending some beautiful music to get the tag of the shoppers here at the -- the attention of the shoppers here at the greenbrier shopping station. the food bang needs your donations. we're collecting and they're distributing. they have only four boxes full right now. we have a ways to go. we're getting donations there and that is traffic. i wanted to talk more -- that is terrific. i wanted to talk more about the greated in in this area. joining us is amy hendricks. tell us what you do and the surprising statistics you told me about for this area? >> sure. i'm the northern virginia kids catholic coordinator, working with a program that provides at- risk youths food after school. we're one of the wealthiest counties in the country, fairfax and louden county and still one in six childrennia in hunger. th

officers spotted him driving the wrong way in fairfax over the weekend. in a statement babbitt said, quote, he was unwilling to let anything cast a shadow on the work by his colleagues at the faa. >>> jerry sandusky may face his accusers next week in a preliminary hearing after one attorney says his client plus five others plan to testify. the move comes as another alleged victim says he was sexually abused by the former penn state football coach when he was 12 years old. the now 19-year-old says that he also met sandusky through the second mile charity. sandusky is accused of sexually abusing eight boys over 15 years. he denies the charges. the preliminary hearing is set for next tuesday. >>> and penn state university is trying to revamp its image in the wake of that scandal. newly appointed president rodney erickson says he wants the campus to house a national center for the protection of children to help victims of abuse. the center would be initially funded with part of $2 million in college football bowl proceeds. the school is slated to receive from

that's the moderate rain falling in fairfax, southern montgomery, the district, and across most of the prince george's county, charles, southern parts of anne arundel, northern calvert getting moderate rain. that's passing across the bay heading towards the eastern shore. that moderate line of rain stretches farther south and west from fredericksburg to charlottesville. we'll get pockets of rain off and on throughout much of the day. it's mild from the blue ridge to the bay. upper 50s to around 60 or so. blue ridge rest low to mid-50s. all these counties in green under a flood watch. there is the potential for creeks and streams to come out of their banks in the shenandoah valley, parts of west virginia. all these areas in lavender under a winter weather advisory for tonight for snow that may accumulate on grassy areas mainly just north and west of washington. i'll show you my forecast for that amount of snow we may get and the day and evening planner coming up in ten minutes. danella, how's traffic dealing with the rain? >> not very well. >>> let's start with 395, a few problems. if y

reporting live in fairfax county, i'm jane watrel. back to you in the studio. >> thank you. >>> the second big traffic story this afternoon, the 11th street bridge will be open for business. beginning sunday, the first span of the bridge will start carrying traffic from 25 inbound into downtown washington. this morning, the mayor joined transportation officials for a ribbon cutting. it's the largest project v-dot has under taken. when it's finished, it will allow drivers to get on northbound i-295 without having to get off on pennsylvania avenue. >> it's going to be great. i live in hill crest. i have lived there my whole live. the transportation is a nightmare, a true nightmare. >> the inbound freeway bridge opens to traffic on sunday. the bridge is set to open next week and the third span will open in a year from now. >>> the federal government shutdown was set to kick in at midnight tonight p has been averted. they passed a $1 trillion budget bill ten hours before the deadline. it's going to keep the federal gove government running

closer to washington, mid-40s, and arlington and much of fairfax and southern maryland, in the 40s to near 50 degrees. around midnight we were in the low 50s and near 60s, so quite a drop in the last 11 hours. we're seeing clouds increasing, and southern west virginia has a few sprinkles. there's a few sprinkles come into culpepper county and further south and west of there, and that might move into the southern suburbs over the next few hours, but not a rain chance will arrive until this evening. let's go forward as we get into the evening hours, we might have a few wet snowflakes here mixing across virginia. on saturday, we will have sun in the morning and then during the afternoon we will have a few clouds roll back in again, and we will have a quick disturbance from the north and west on sunday morning, and this area of lavender and white, that's a zone of potential flurries, quick snow flurries around dawn on sunday, and then the rest of sunday we will get sunshine back. we will have cloud cover and a few sprinkles this afternoon, and the wind will gust at 30 miles per hour and m

the deal will create 29 miles of hot lanes to fairfax. just like the hot lanes on the beltway, car poolers will be allowed to use the lanes for free, others would pay a poll. construction could start next year. >>> tonight, two u.s. senators are doing tweaking, trying to get their colleagues to support their bipartisan plan to extend that payroll tax cut. now the cut has been letting you take home cash with every paycheck, but it is all set to expire by the end of the month. republican susan collins and claire mccaskill say congress can pay for an extension of the tax cut by taxing millionaires a bit more. a will the of democrats like that plan. several republicans say no way. but speaking to a crowd in kansas today, president obama said, just get it done. >> if we don't do that, 160 million american, including most of people here will see their taxes go up. >> and the white house is now using that fancy countdown clock, reminding congress that the time to make the deal is running out. prosecutors at the group, our d.c. say they are occup

i-95 in virginia, fairfax county parkway starting to hit the brakes. your delays actually start at prince william parkway. look at the travel speed. 37 miles per hour as you make your way from prince william parkway to the beltway. that trip will take you 21 minutes. joe and eun, back to what makes the sleep number store different? the sleep number bed. with the sleep number bed, it's not about soft or firm. it's about support where you find it most comfortable. the magic of this bed is that youe sleeping on something that conforms to your individual shape. on a traditional mattress, there is no adjustment. you get what you're buying that day. with our bed, you change the setting to something you like. this way, if you change your mind once you get home you can adjust it. wow! that feels really good. it's hugging my body. you can adjust it to whatever your needs are. if i'm in pain one day, in less than a minute i can get more support. your body changes over time. the bed can adapt with you. not only does it work for you today, but it's going to work f

montgomery, arlington, fairfax, prince george's, mid-50s. sunrise at 7:12. we'll have occasional showers through the day. we'll have temperatures, mild, in the 50s. low to mid-60s by later this afternoon. overnight tonight, into the 50s again. again occasional light showers. sunset at 4:46. by dawn tomorrow, into the mid-50s. that may be the warmest part of the day. more rain in the daylight hours on wednesday. turning chillier gradually throughout the day. down into the 40s by late afternoon. upper 30s by late evening. by then we may have the rain change over to a period of wet snow. i-95 that will accumulate on grassy areas mainly. cold on thursday morning. then cold thursday, friday, saturday, sunday, and monday. danella, how's traffic? >> good morning. >>> crews are working 4 reopen your northbound route n lanes. this is at route 50. right now they're still shut down. chopper 4 is oiver the beltway. you're jammed at new hampshire avenue as you make your way towards georgia avenue. you are bumper to bumper. travel speed in that area 23 miles per hour. it'

right now in the mid and upper 50s, prince george's, fairfax, and montgomery counties. for today, we'll have our sunrise at 7:12. we'll have occasional showers throughout the day. allow yourself a little extra time this morning. the roads are all wet. it's fender bender weather. we're going to have that with us all day long. temperatures climbing into the low and mid-60s this afternoon. a mild evening with more showers. sunset at 4:46. we'll be into the upper 50s by midnight. by dawn tomorrow, the mid-50s. that may be the warmest part of the day tomorrow. we'll have occasional showers in the daylight hours on wednesday. then after sunset wednesday evening, when some of that cold air in the midwest moves in, there may be enough moisture left to change over to a period of wet snow that may accumulate. it does appear just on grassy areas. the road temperatures are just too warm for it really to get much accumulation. we could get an inch or two on grassy areas of wet snow wednesday night into predawn thursday. then sunny and cold after that. thursday into the weekend then

this runs from fairfax drive to sycamore street. the virginia department of transportation says this is the first of three improvements to be made to help ease congestion and improve safety along westbound side of 66. the expansion has been a contentious issue because of promises made to arlington county when the highway was first put in that it will always be a two-lane highway. however, advocates of widening the highway if sadek circumstances have changed and now also showed the roadway. this took 18 months to complete. they plan more from lehigh wait to glebe road and another spot as well. vdot will also be holding a meeting to talk about the issue tonight in falls church. reporting live in arlington brianne carter, abc 7 news. >>> today's sentencing date for former prince george's county executive jack johnson. >> he pleaded guilty to extortion and other charges. prosecutors now want a harsh punishment. jummy olabanji is in greenbelt with a preview. it's going to be a big day. >> a very big day. good morning. jack johnson is not

so we'll see what happens in fairfax hopefully tonight. >>> a sigh of relief on capitol hill. congressional negotiators have reached a last minute negotiation on a $1 trillion spending bill to prevent a government shutdown, the house expected to approve the bill tomorrow, the house could follow hours later. they're still working on the payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits for another year. >>> tonight the republican presidential candidates have done all they can do before the nominating process begins. they met in sioux falls tonight for a debate hosted by fox news, the last debate ahead of the iowa caucuses. most national polls have newt gingrich in the lead, so some others took the opportunity to tack him and convince voters that they are the -- to attack hum and convince voters that they are the most electable. >> we can't have someone as a nominee who continues to stand for fannie mae and freddie mac. they need to be shut down, not built up. >> the speaker had a conservative revolution against him when he of speaker of the house. i had conservatives knocking down my d

making your way towards fairfax county parkway. seeing delays right now as you start out of dale city. it is stop and go for you as you make your way towards 395. i'm back in ten minutes with another look at traffic. now back to you both. >> danella, thank you. >>> 6:13 is the time. the annual distinction the occupy protesters, gabrielle giffords, and steve jobs are all in the running for. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices... in more ways than ever. and our networks are getting crowded. but if congress frees up more wireless spectrum... we can empower more people to innovate... putting momentum behind our economy. and we can reduce the deficit... with more than thirty billion dollars paid by america's wireless companies. it's simple -- more spectrum means more freedom. for everyone. >>> 6:16 is our time. jerry sandusky's attorney is apologizing for referring to a gay sex phone line after the former penn state football coach waived his preliminary hearing. during a press conference, joseph amendola said any

montgomery, arlington, fairfax, prince georges counties. we have rain way out farther to the west and the ohio valley, western pennsylvania down to kentucky, that's advancing east along a front. we may get a few breaks in and out this morning. overall, quite cloudy, but a bit milder. rain arice arriving mid to late afternoon and off and on through mid evening. as soon as that rain commences, we'll be right back down near 50 degrees fort rest of the evening. cold weather moves in tomorrow through the weekend. we'll look at that. how is traffic? >> keep in mind in you're traveling route 2, your closures are between harwood road and route 255. choppers in the area now not seeing many delays in that area. if you want to avoid it, police are blocking this intersection here. you might want to jump on 468 to continue north or south if that's your commute this morning. and if you're traveling in mcclain, virginia, still seeing westbound georgetown pike at 1234 south. your right lane is blocked there due to the crash in that area and the heavy areas

the men's basketball team is now a perfect 4-0 in fairfax this year. mason hosted bucknell last night. ryan pierson scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half. patriots win 61-37. >>> on the ladies side, sixth ranked maryland hosted michigan last night. both teams were undefeated going into the game. maryland's alyssa thomas made her team stayed perfect scoring 24. the lady terps win 74-55. >>> it is 6:24. this year's national christmas tree is an entirely new tree. but what else was new? we'll get a sneak peek. >> the d.c. public library is in the giving mood. learn when you can bring back severely overdue books without severe penalties. >> right now, monika has a quick check on traffic. monika? >> we'll take a live look from sky 9 right here inbound 66 at business route 234. crews have arrived on the scene of an accident along the left side. we'll have more on this coming up in my next report. you're watching 9news now. stay with us. >>> sometimes the best gift is something that doesn't cost a thing. our gift to you, a live look at the u.s. capito

>> a local college and a fairfax county neighborhood lockdown >> live and then hd. this is abc7 breaking news. >> two breaking stories tonight a college campus lockdown and the surrounding neighborhood in fairfax county, and in just the past hour, from capitol hill tonight, a deal that will most likely to avert a government shutdown. we begin with the situation there in fairfax county where a community was on lockdown for six hours after an armed man holed up in a high-rise. steven is live on the scene with the very latest. >> this all began earlier today when a man on the eighth floor of this building was talking with his crisis counselor. he made some kind of statement to that counselor which prompted the counselor to call police, and thus began this eight-hour standoff. police distended -- descended on the skyline plaza after a call about a man barricaded in his eighth floor unit with a gun. >> this is strange. this is not typical of anyone living here. >> the man's apartment faces northern virginia community college. the college went into lockdown while the stan

navidenos de un jardin en fairfax station.. ocurrio el domingo por la tarde cuando lo que se cree son dos jovenes llegaron en un vehiculo plateado ford taurus, y con bates destruyeron los adornos valorados en siete mil dolares... afortunadamente las camaras de seguridad de la vivienda captaron el ataque... si usted reconoce a los sospechosos, llame a la policia... el presidente baracak obama se adelanto con los regalos para la navidad... la casa blanca anuncio hoy nuevas regulaciones para beneficiar a unos dos millones de personas que trabajan cuidando a otras, especialmente gente de la tercera edad... fernando pizarro nos explica quienes se beneficiaran.. blanca gomez ama su trabajo, cuidando a una persona mayor. la persona que yo cuido son 8 horas y ahorita estoy con 1 personas que son 7 dias a la semana y es 1 trabajo emocionalmente bien estresado y estaria bien si nos dieran 1 beneficio." la casa blanca quiere ir en ayuda de estas trabajadoras y anuncio nuevas reglas para garantizarles salario minimo y pago de sobretiempo a

but at fairfax county parkway, you're jammed. delays start around dale city, and the travel time from the occoquan bridge to the capital beltway, that trip takes about 25 minutes to get there. angie and joe, back to you. >> thanks, danella. >>> nato says five service members were killed in a roadside bomb in eastern afghanistan. we do not know officially the exact location of the explosion or the nationality of the troops. however, a warsaw, poland tv station is reporting that all of the soldiers were polish. so far this year, 530 nato service members have been killed in afghanistan. >>> today attorney general eric holder will lead a memorial marking the 23rd anniversary of the bombing of pan am flight 103. holder will be among the speakers at the memorial at arlington national cemetery. 270 people died when the pan am flight exploded over lockerbie, scotland, 23 years ago today. 189 of those victims were americans. some of their family members will also speak at today's memorial. >>> on the campaign trail today, republican presi

and this is the scene at the greenbrier giant in fairfax. the chorus group from chantilly high school is swing the crowd. we'll join sue there live in a few minutes. >> we're at four area giant stores tonight. bring non-perishable food items to the area until 11:00. >>> and if you can't come out, call (202)895-3307 is the number. to get through to that phone bang you see there. the lovely ladies answering your calls as we speak and volunteers taking donations for the capital area food bank. again, (202)895-3307. >>> still ahead, thanks to local troops. they protected our freedom and a group is helping them out at home. see the progress next. gary. >> hey, brian. hard to get much better around here in december than what we had today. the weekend forecast is coming up. hopefully it will stay just this night.  >> and thigh served their country and are getting -- they served their country and are getting thanks in return. the group was formed last year to help fix up three homes and this year it has expanded the mission and i

live here in fairfax station. i'm shomari stone. back to you in the studio. >>> he is one of the washington area's most-wanted men but he didn't have a name. now, though police are calling him the potomac river rapist as they try to raise his profile to track him down. jackie bensen is live in georgetown where one of his victims was killed. >> reporter: expect to see electronic billboards, a website and the type of full scale media campaign that led to the capture of the east coast rapist. pat brown believes he is hiding in plain sight. >> one of the things with serial rapist and killers they are the guy that lives next door or even worse with you. you may know them. they watch movies like everybody else. and especially the type without a criminal record. and many of kinds do not. >> reporter: between 1991 and 1998 a single man sexually assaulted eight woman and attempted to rape another. the august 1998 murder of a 29-year-old graduate student in georgetown. she was struck multiple times in the head with a rock and her body left ya

fairfax as done a t terrific job. it is likike having a magic johnsoand chael jordan on your basketball team. they are doioing fine. >> but if you have the potential to win a championship, and i s say this as a a newontgomery county residents. i anot proud mtgomerery county resident. -- i am now a proud montgomery county resent. >> if you look at our taxes they are very comparative comparative do what you find in n northern virginia. >> jim dinegar acknowledged that taxes are a problem for businesses. >> the dierence is relatively small when you look at them in totality. in terms of this game, this is america. if you look at it over a longer period of time, i thinknk you will find a a compaparison betweween these two to restrictions. >> you are saying that you will veto a bill that has been inoduceded to the council that says it big box retailelers wilill have to negotiate with h community organizers in orr to establish emselves. >> yes. hopefully they will change the legislation and make it much more compatible to wh

quien se presume testifico en contra de los asesinos de brenda paz el 2003, la polica del condado de fairfax logro capturarla hoy por la tarde, silvana quiroz nos cuenta mas.. hoy termino la bÚsqueda de la rubia bandida, nombre que le dio la policÍa a stephanie lynn schwap la mujer de 26 aÑos que protagonizo una serie de delitos empezÓ todo a la 1 de la tarde ella entro en un banco aquÍ en el Área de mclean, paso una nota tratando de robar un banco, no copio nada salio del banco, la victima la reconociÓ y obtuvo una descripciÓn bien clara del auto que ella estaba manejando y paso eso a los oficiales los oficiales la vieron monta ndose en la 495 hacia maryland y la siguieron no la persiguieron ellos fueron despacio ellos fueron detrÁs de ella mientras que ella cruzaba a maryland schwap es acusada de robar el banco virginia commerce bank en manassas el 18 de noviembre, un automÓvil del centro comercial de tysons corner el 19 de noviembre, el 20 del mismo mes robo el banco bb&t en el Área de springfield y tratar de robar un vehiculo el dÍa de accio Ón de gracias en el condado de ba

fairfax county, 11 so far, down from 16 last year. decreases in montgomery county and prince william county in virginia. prince george county was the only county to see an increase. 94 murders there this year up from 90 last year. >>> as we look outside, we talk about the weather. this winter has been one of the warmest on record. but, for how much longer? doug kammerer is here with a look at the end of the year forecast. doug? >> i would say a day and a half longer then big changes out there. 48 degrees. a mild evening. it is really going to be nice tonight. i really think over the next day and a half or so until we see the changes move on in here. 45 in manassas. 52 in culpeper. the eastern shore coming in at 46. easton 43 degrees. that number just changing. we are clear right now. a couple light showers overnight and early tomorrow with a frontal boundary that's moving through the region. it's going to continue to keep temperatures on the mild side. temperatures when you wake up tomorrow, 43 degrees. many areas into the upper 30s.

Úblico aun el caso de la desapariciÓn de oscar ha tomado un nuevo rumbo t wright vocera policÍa de fairfax inicialmente teníamos sospechas pero ahora estamos casi seguros que podría tratarse de un crimen segÚn informes extra oficiales, se emitieron o Órdenes de allanamiento a los posibles sospechosos de la desapariciÓn de oscar t wright vocera policia de fairfax no puedo hablar de sospechosos pero los detectives vieron cientos de horas de video y hablaron con mucha gente que conoció a velasco montano para información esta investigaciÓn ha sido muy dura para la familia de oscar, su madre tuvo que venir de bolivia para seguir la investigaciÓn desde aquÍ javier cusicanqui consul de bolivia nosotros hemos ayudado trayendo a la mama para que estuviera participando en la búsqueda con una visa humanitaria que le dieron de seis meses silvana quiroz un 9 de julio oscar velasco montano salio de su casa por la madruga para dirigirse a su trabajo, su familia lo declaro desaparecido dos dÍas mas tarde. la policÍa encontrÓ su vehiculo abandonado el distrito de columbia lanzo hoy la segunda

gaithersburg, howard county, the district, fairfax and prince william all under a flood watch. we could see 1 to 2 inches of rain here. it won't take much to produce small stream flooding. we will see the potential for localized flooding out there. a winter storm watch in effect to the west in west virginia for the most part. but also the western portions of virginia counties. winter storm watch potentially 3 to 6 inches and we could see a winter weather advisory in loudoun county and maybe montgomery county but back to frederick county, virginia and the panhandle of west virginia for 1 to 3 inches of snow there. nothing on the radar right now. but watch what happens when we pan out here. look at all this moisture to the south racing up across the area. it is getting here in a hurry. talk about the timing. 2:00 just a few showers. but about 6:00 a.m. a band of heavy rain around the i-95 corridor it. is going to be wet all day tomorrow. we will see periods of heavy rain throughout the afternoon. at 7:00 very heavy rain. this is 7:00 tomorrow night around rush hour once again. he

on i-95 northbound, still seeing the accident at fairfax county parkway. now back to you all. >> thank you, danella. >>> today jews around the world are celebrating the first day of hanukkah. the eight-day festival of lights began last night at sundown. here in washington, the national menorah was litt on the ellipse. there are hanukkah events going on downtown. you can find them on our website, nbcwashington.com. >>> the debate over how to redevelop the alexandria waterfront in old town has dragged on for years. now a group of local residents has added its voice. the waterfront plan work group has released a report that criticizes a city council plan and calls for studies into how to handle flooding. the environmental impact of redevelopment, and what to do with the warehouses at the robinson terminal. a public hearing and possible city council vote on the plan is set for january 21st. > >> this is approval of a concept, but we still have a plan to implement. there were insufficient materials, we felt, in eight different areas to move forward in implement

looking at fairfax county parkway as well on i-66, seeing delays as well. the good news is on 66, no accidents to report at this time. angie and eun, back to you. >> danella, thanks so much. >>> new from overnight, a man is in critical condition after getting shot in the head in northeast d.c. it happened around midnight near the intersection of 15th street and "w" street. investigators say a man in his 40s was shot in the head. he was immediately taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. right now police don't have any information on the suspect in the shooting. >>> the family of a man accused of killing a virginia tech campus police officer is offering their prayers and condolences to the family of the officer killed. in an unsigned statement, 22-year-old ross ashley's family did not say much. they requested that their privacy be respected and said there would be no more statements from them. this is the first time ashley's family from spotsylvania county said anything at all. police are still trying to find a motive for thursday's shooting. i

montgomery, arlington, fairfax, prince george's counties now, the low and mid-40s. just near 40 parts of the shenandoah valley and out of the mountains as well as the panhandle of west virginia. here's your day planner. sunrise 7:23. we'll be near 50 around 9:00 with light rain. maybe heavier rain later today as we get into the afternoon hours. highs near 60 by then. a look at your evening planner coming up in ten minutes. danella, how's traffic? >> good morning. >>> traveling on i-270, still see some construction. this time traveling northbound 270 at montrose road. can't see anything on camera just yet. northbound, they're still working on sign repair. once they pass the spur, making your way towards montrose road, you're going to see some construction. just be aware of that because it may block your lane depending on which lane you're in. be careful. traveling on i-95, this is the view of prince william parkway, no problem there. traveling onto 395, very clear in both directions, north and southbound on 395. crossing over the 14th street bridge, no problems there

and it's into the upper 50s near 60, prince george's, arlington, fairfax counties. over the last 12 hours, we've had quite a change in our weather. we've had few sprinkles and showers yesterday afternoon and evening. we've cleared out a little bit. a few breaks in the cloud cover. sunrise at 7:20. we'll have sunshine in and out the middle of the day. down through much of the region 50 near midmorning. then drop to the mid-40s by late afternoon. chillier weather moving in. maybe a little precipitation tonight. we'll look at that and your evening planner in ten minutes. danella, good morning. how's traffic? >>> a couple of incidents slowing you down. lower bowie road closed at old chapel road. an accident there that also brought down power lines. crews working to get the lines off of the roadway there. for now, you're closed in both directions. if you're traveling eastbound on 50 at kenilworth avenue, serious crash is taking away your eastbound lanes. earlier, it was affecting the westbound side as well. looks like westbound is flowing again. so far 50 eastbound at ke

montgomery, arlington, fairfax, prince george's counties also in the upper 40s. radar with the clouds showing that area of green. light rain from right near fredericksburg, virginia. charles, prince george's, parts of calvert, and northern st. mary's counties. across the bay near cambridge over towards salisbury, they're getting light rain drifting east. sunrise at 7:22. we'll stay in the 40s to near 50. may briefly get into the low to mid-50s in the afternoon with clouds and a small chance of a sprinkle. sunset at 4:49. a look at the evening planner at 6:11. danella, how's traffic? >>> chopper 4 is live over the inner loop of the beltway where we have a crash at georgia avenue. all that's remaining a tractor-trailer here. police on the scene are in the right shoulder lane. i am seeing relief on the inner loop of the beltway as you make your way towards georgia avenue and drive past the accident here. that's a good sign. traveling i-95 at fairfax county parkway, you are definitely starting to hit the brakes in this area as you make your way towards the interchang

we're live with the latest. >>> another battle involving schools in fairfax county. a decision to keep a better eye on students facing backlash this morning. more controversy over surveillance cameras straight ahead. >>> plus: >> fortunately for the republican party this year, probably anybody up here could probably beat obama. >> the gop presidential candidates not only attacking one another, but president obama as well. so how does the race span this morning? we'll find out as fox 5 morning news at 7:00 starts right now. >>> let's head outside right now and te

a live view right now at fairfax county parkway. traveling east and westbound on 66, looking good outside the beltway as well as inside the beltway. i'm not seeing any issues for you this morning. this is the view at leesburg pike. traveling east from the beltway to gw parkway, your speed is 61 miles per hour. not so bad. give yourself extra time. the roadways are wet this morning. joe and eun, back to you. >> a word to the wise, if you jump on the roadway and see a car coming, get off. >> thank you, joe. 5:13 now. 59 degrees. >>> ahead on "news 4 today," ready to close the book on a mystery that remained unsolved for decades. to make a commitment is to see things through. confident that no matter what the obstacles we can build something better, together. with the planned combination of at&t and t-mobile, we're making a commitment, to create a stronger network for all our customers. we will invest an additional eight billion dollars and build out the next generation of mobile broadband to nearly everyone in america. that'll mean be

police say she robbed banks and stole cars in fairfax and prince william county and baltimore county. >> this particular case, we were very serious about making an arrest and making an apprehension. we worked with other detectives across the region, not just here in fairfax and tried to spread information, share information as much as we could. >> that joint effort helped close that case. the fbi is also involved and that could mean federal charges could be placed against her. andrea, jessica? >> surae chinn reporting. consumer shoppers must feel a sigh of relief having her in custody and also in montgomery county where they have their suspect in custody over the last week in wheaton. henry levi sanders was targeting older male shoppers who were busy putting their bags in their cars. they say sanders would approach his victims, force them into their cars with a sharp object and then drive them to atms to withdraw cash. all three attacks happened in the daytime. sanders now faces three counts of carjacking, kidnapping and robbery as well as first degree assault for the violent beating

at this fire station and several others around fairfax county, they are collecting. they hope to have an up toys and coats and food to go out to all the families who need them. reporting live, abc7 news. >> thank you. >>> as soon as january montgomery county farmers around nick's organic farm will be turned into soccer fields. the agreement has been extended through august of next year. >>> st. nick rumbled into georgetown university hospital in to the cancer center atrium. how about that? santa gave out toys to kids who are being treated for cancer, hopefully bringing lots of your. >>> most of the showers have moved out of the area. early morning, we are talking 40's. >> warm. >> yes, unlike last year at this time. a look across the river into the city. pupil. temperatures still in the upper 50's to low 60's across the area. it is 62 at reagan national. 63 in manassas. a little milder, the upper 50's, but still above the average highs for this time of year. there you see west of the appellations -- apple actions -- the mountains. the cold front is being pushed throu

right now he is at the fairfax detention center. the metropolitan washington airport authority put him on administrative leave. we'll update www.nbcwashington.com with the details as they become available. live at dulles airport, i'm shomari stone. back to you. >>> we know the reason for a nightmare commute. an 18-wheeler started leaking dry cleaning fluid. the eastbound lanes were shut down at 4:00 this afternoon and didn't reopen until 6:00. traffic was backed up for 12 miles. >> i was just hoping it wouldn't take us too long to get across the bridge because i have kids. i don't want them to wet their pants. >> another motorist alerted the truck driver to the leak. the fluid was not hazardous. >>> police are warning women to watch their backs and cars near the verizon center that comes after an attack despite a young child being in the backseat. jackie bensen has more from chinatown. >> reporter: the victim was driving a car with ohio license plates. her toddler son was in the backseat. the report was taken by d.c. police about 8:

six in fairfax county. compare the two for us, the challenges of those jobs. >> being a police chief is a tough job. it's long hours. you've got a lot of people who make demands on you. people are not shy about telling you how you should do your job. >> right. >> and all of those come with the job. i wouldn't paebl to be a police officer for 35 years if i didn't enjoy working with the department. virginia is a right to work state. so there was not a union in father fax. collective bargaining and an important part of my job now. it makes a difference in terms of making decisions. you have to have a different strategy to accomplish things. crime-wise, similar crime rates with regard to homicides. you i will tell you we have three times as many burglaries in montgomery as they have in fairfax. fairfax has a little more than a million skpef a little less. they have almost 1400 police officers. and i think that does mac a pit of a stpbs especially when you try to attack things like burglaries. so we try to targe

and 39 in fairfax. tomorrow morning, well we're looking at mostly cloudy skies, but dry. light coat should do it. and then by afternoon, a couple of showers possible. again, not a big rainmaker. you're a gambler. leave your umbrella at home. highs 54 to 58. some areas could hit 60 tomorrow. next seven days. friday is very nice. 51. a little cooler, but still nice. a chilly weekend, but a nice weekend. mid 40s. next chance for rain will be tuesday into wednesday and even so, temperatures in the upper 40s on tuesday and back to 50 next wednesday. so it's time to think about getting it cooler. >> all right. they used to call us the toughest division. >> now the two top teams are 7- 6 and could make the playoffs with almost 500 record. it's pretty bad. so the fact that the redskins are 4-9, maybe not as bad, or could be worse. whatever you want to think on that one. they beat the giants in week one. find out why they think the redskins can do it again this sunday. plus, the terps back in action tonight with a little distraction on the sidelines. find out what coming up next i

fairfax, 28. widespread 20's out there to kick start our friday morning. mid 50's downtown this afternoon. lower 50's in the suburbs. this cold front will dissipate as they move through the washington area. sunshine again tomorrow and your 50 degrees. sunday, a little bit of cloud cover which brain chances for the early part of next week, mainly -- with chances of rain early next week, mainly tuesday. >>> from arlington into the district we are in good shape. a little slow in manassass again and centreville, but still good as you head toward the capital beltway. over to the 14th street bridge, still looking pretty good. right at the top of your screen you can see that there is a bit of attack on the brakes but not a major backer. and we had over to the american legion bridge, where we are seeing volume in both directions and not really slowing down right now. >>> we are now about two hours away from the latest update on the nation's update on economic health. things are looking good. the labor department will release the november jobs report today. it is e

dominion power is reporting 4,400 people without electricity in arlington and fairfax county. nearly 300 pepco customers are in the dark. 91 in d.c., 6 in prince george's county. we invite you to stay with news4 for the latest on the storm. we are on the air tomorrow morning at 4:30 for updates any time of the day we invite you to our website at www.nbcwashington.com. >>> rockville pike at alpine road is back open after a deadly accident. a montgomery ride ones but struck and killed a person at 6:00. an accident reconstruction team is trying to figure out what went wrong and who is at fault. the police have not released the identity of the victim. >>> the search is on for the predator who sexually assaulted a woman in a laundry room. police say the 28-year-old woman was attacked at an apartment complex in gaithersburg at 10:00 this morning. a man followed the woman into the laundry room, pulled out a knife and assaulted her. police only have a vague description of the suspect. >>> a gathering outside the white house marked the end to the day of action by occupy d.c. thousands

. >> and the search for some people destroyed a holiday display in fairfax county. >> and republican candidates gearing up for a final debate before the iowa caucuses. good morning washington at 5:00 a.m. begins non. -- now. >> live and in hd, this is "good morning washington," on your side. >> 5:00 on this thursday, december 14. i am cynne simpson. >> i am pamela brown. lisa baden standing by to help us navigate the good thursday morning commute, but we start with meteorologist adam caskey. >> in the 40's for the most part this morning. the warmest wwarning of the week. --morning warmest morning. we will have a band of rain moving into town. not that much in terms of rainfall. a lot of that will break apart before it reaches us. we will see a few showers here and there. areas of light rain. temperatures in the 40's right now. the upper 50's later on today. near 60 south of the metro. becoming a breezy this evening. temperatures will drop into the 40's tonight. a low 40's tomorrow with limited sunshine. now, traffic. >>> plenty of open roads. 66 greenway, the toll road, at 81, route

traveling i-95 at fairfax county parkway northbound, starting to hit the brakes at fairfax county parkway. not seeing any accidents in the roadways if you're traveling in virginia on i-95 in either direction. continuing on to 395, this is the view at edsall. in fact, if you're making your way from the beltway all the way to the 14th street bridge on 395, you're in the clear. seeing a little volume as you make your way across the bridge, no major delays just yet. i'm back in ten minutes with another look at your traffic as well as the rails. now back to you both. >> danella, thanks. >>> a traffic alert as you head out the door this morning. expect slow going in northeast washington if you use benning road to get to work. ddot is beginning the final phase of construction work in the center of the street between 39th and 42nd streets northeast. crews will be stripping the road's surface so it can be repaved. traffic will be moving single file along the sidewalks in both sides. ddot hopes to have the project finished by mid-february. >> those charities who provide emergency services like food

the sapodilla sunday morning in the 700 block of wayfarer drive in fairfax station. a surveillance cameras captured the destruction. homeowner mike lester says some of the decorations are irreplaceable. >> you see day young children, the way their eyes glow. police are looking or two teenagers, but lester does not want to press charges. >>> more outraged over another crime involving a christmas display. this one is in fredericksburg. someone stole the baby jesus from a nativity scene yesterday morning. this is the second time this has happened. in 2005 someone stole the same statute but then returned a few hours later. so far, no word on whether this is a prank. >>> d.c. councilman marion barry facing more tax troubles. the irs has filed a lien against a house that he owns, claiming to $3,200 in unpaid taxes in 2010. he is now be paying apparel and the district government for unpaid income taxes due in 1999. -- he is now paying the federal government and the district government. >>> aaa has your trouble forecast. sunny hoskins has that story and more. >> good morning

and it's in the upper 40s, montgomery, arlington, fairfax and prince georges counties. cloudy in the afternoon. sunrise at 7:23. sunset at 4:50. and more rain on the way tonight. we'll look at that with your evening planner. that will be coming up in just about ten minutes at around 4:41. then we will have some big changes on the way for the weekend. now, let's take a look at the traffic on this thursday morning, danella. >> good morning. be careful traveling around the area. a lot of roadways are slick. and i'm getting reports of people sliding on the roadways. give yourself some extra time so that you don't have to rush so much when you head out of the house this morning. bridges in our area look very good. very slick. if you're looking the at the american legion bridge like i am right now, it's clear in both directs. outer loop, no problems there. headlights coming towards us, that's the inner loop and you're clear as you head into montgomery county. crossing over the 14th street bridge making your way into the city, you're clear in that area and traveling to the sou

and again, fairfax, is the other big street. we just spotted it, from the large plume of smoke riseing. we're not sure how many alarms. again, a house fire in oakland with smoke rising. it can be scene from many areas of oakland from the hills and the flatlands. stay with ktvu. we'll find out more about this fire and -- if anyone was injured. that's coming up. >>> thank you, sal. a new report says more partial remains of u.s. troops were sent to a landfill than the military previously acknowledged. the ashes of at least 274 troops were dumped at a virginia landfill. that's more than the military originally revealed, according to "the washington po post." -- "the washington post." >> reporter: the plan aims to bring in more partners from around the country to try to identify radicals bent on violence, from the deadly shooting at a military recruiting station in arkansas, to the massacre at fort hood, officials say homegrown terrorism is a growing threat. we're still trying to get details on the threat but npr is reporting that th

traveling on 66, this is the scene at fairfax county parkway. that's eastbound traffic traveling away from you. you're at 64 miles per hour, not so bad, looking good both inside and outside the beltway on 66. now back to you both. >> thank you very much, danella. >>> just six minutes away from the start of the 5:00 hour. coming up, just how many of us are likely procrastinating on that holiday shopping. >>> welcome back. this is the final chance for holiday shopping before christmas. many people have turned to the internet for shopping. it's expected to slow down a bit. comscore found online sales up 15% this year compared with last year. shoppers spent $30.9 billion online, and that's up $3 billion from the same time last year. online sales surpassed 1 billion on four days last week. holiday procrastinators, you can find some great bargains before christmas. pricegrabber.com reports 41% of consumers will shop between tomorrow and christmas eve. 43% believe they will find the best discounts. the stores could lower their prices right before chris

but that is exactly what unfolded today out in fairfax county. now we first told you about the church. the iraqi war vet built it for his sons, but the county said no, we want you to tear it down. you can now score one for the little guy. >> they weighed in our favor. >> oh good job. >> the tree house can stay for now. mark promised to build it for his sons shaun and eric when he came home from his last deployment with the u.s. army. he says he unknowingly broke county code regulations by building it in the side yard and feared he would have to take it down. but today, he appeared again in front of the fairfax county zoning board and appealed. it has to come down in five years. >> obviously we have to keep the tree house in good order. the plants have to be maintained. >> a neighbor volunteered to plant these ever greens around the house. >> they brought a crew out and planted these. he was able to tap the generosity of the gardens. they were very generous. >> he also got help from people around the world. more than 1500 of them filled out petiti