identified the source of that leak but we just want to bring this picture out so you get an idea. all of this is happening at the intersection of 9th avenue and 50th street. as you travel south toward the left side of your picture, it's taking out several lanes and of course they're still trying to identify the source of that leak. no one injured here. reporting live over midtown, shannon sohn, channel 7 eyewitness news. now that horrific crash. prosecutors say the 23-year-old driver was going three times the speed limit when he lost control and killed two teenagers saturday night. they say he didn't have a valid driver's license. >> within the hour a vigil was held. they released balloons to remember those victims. >> a 16-year-old and 17-year-old were killed when a car jumped the curb. >> just take a look at this sea

people here behind me on jfk boulevard. hundreds of union city classmates, families of the two boys who were killed, their mayors, city officials out here, they're all here to say farewell while the accused driver was in court and we learned more about that driving record. >> reporter: the mother of brian rodriguez saying together since 2nd grade, together we'll bury them. a community together in sadness, losing two young lives in a senseless tragedy. >> he was a great person to be around. he made everybody want to smile and laugh. >> reporter: fundraisers are collecting thousands of dollars to help the families of 17-year-old union city high schooler brian rodriguez and 16-year-old clifton park middle schooler noel herrera. it shows it speeding down jfk boulevard moments before the driver lost control saturday night hitting the children as they walked down the sidewalk.

stopped at the red light. it crossed over the southbound lanes and mounted the sidewalk, striking three teenagers. >> reporter: the accused driver, 23-year-old eric patterson, making his first appearance in court today without his attorney. he was driving more than 70 miles per hour on a street where the speed limit is just 25. new jersey motor vehicle records prove patterson was driving on a suspended license. he's had 23 suspensions, 14 violations including speeding and open container in a vehicle. his license is on indefinite suspension and he's had no driving privileges since 2014. >> eric patterson was charged with two counts of death by auto in the second degree. one count assault by auto, nonfatal. and that's in the fourth degree. he was also charged with

driving on a suspected license. >> so many people are out here to support these families. >> that was toni yates in north bergen in new jersey. there's been a verdict in the erin andrews stalking lawsuit. a jury aawarding her $55 million. michael barrett found to be 51% at fault. that makes him liable for about $28 million. he was convicted in criminal court of stalking andrews. he spent two and a half years in prison. the company who owns the hotel where he took a nude photo of her will pay more than $26 million. a brooklyn deli owner is hoping surveillance video will help catch the man who robbed the store. the man walked in, pulled out a gun, and took one of the customers hostage. he took out a gun. the store's owner gave the

the suspect is still on the loose. it was a murder that horrified a community in connecticut. a teenaged girl stabbed and killed by a boy who she turned down for their junior prom. tonight a plea deal. the killer facing 25 years in prison for the murder on campus of maren sanchez two years ago next month. joe torres at the courthouse in milford with the story. >> fair and appropriate. that's how lourz here at the courthouse in fill mrd described this agreement for christopher plaskon, 18-year-old two years ago when he pulled out a knife in high school and ended the life of his classmate, a classmate who refused to be his date to the prom. >> reporter: christopher plaskon answered clearly and concisely when told his acceptance of a plea agreement amounted to an admission of guilt in the 2014 stabbing death

plea that little if any consolation to her father. >> you lose your daughter like this, there's a hole the size of the grand canyon. and i don't know. there's nothing that's going to fill that hole. >> reporter: prosecutors say evidence showed the then 16-year-old killed his classmate at jonathan law high school in a first floor stairwell after she turned down his invitation to the junior prom. the defense sees it differently. >> it was a function of him being psychotic. the individual that winded up being attacked here was maren sanchez and we wish that could have never happened. but the reality is it could have been any of the students. >> they have their version of how this occurred. since day one i've disagreed with that. >> reporter: prosecutors acknowledge the plea agreement is a compromise that saves the sanchez family from the pain and difficulty of a trial. >> based on all the given circumstances we have in this case, including the defendant's

crime, i think we arrived at the best result possible given all the circumstances. >> maren sanchez was in fact looking forward to going to her junior prom with her new boyfriend. the days before the attack she posted on facebook a picture of her wearing her new blue prom dress. he'll be sentenced to 25 years in prison. in milford, joe torres, channel 7 eyewitness news. we're going to turn to the race for president. within the last hour former new york city mayor michael bloomberg announced he will not enter the white house race as an independent. as for tomorrow, there are contests in four states. michigan and mississippi hold primaries for both parties. idaho has a republican primary and hawaii, a republican caucus. biggest contest tomorrow is michigan. frontrunner donald trump is

primary in south carolina. his closest competitor, ted cruz. trump is still hitting hard on the campaign trail. >> ted cruz, he comes in bible high, bible high, puts the bible down then lies to you. unbelievable. >> cruz was in mississippi today. questions about his citizenship will not stop him from making the ballot, at least in new york. a lawsuit challenging his eligibility to run was dismissed. the democrats are hitting michigan hard. 147 delegates are up for grabs tomorrow. both candidates are making stops around the state. sanders addressed a tense moment between the two about auto industry bailouts. he said clinton's claim that he did not support it was a distraction. >> unfortunately trying to deflect attention from her disastrous record in supporting

>> both candidates, bernie sanders and hillary clinton, will participate in a town hall meeting this evening. funeral services now set for former first lady nancy reagan. mrs. reagan will lie in repose at the ronald reagan presidential valley in simi valley, california. this is on wednesday and thursday. her funeral, which is closed to the public, will have 1,000 invited guests friday morning at 11:00. former first lady died sunday in los angeles of congestive heart failure. this morning president obama speaking of her graciousness and her charm. >> i think it's been well documented, the extraordinary love she had for her husband. and the extraordinary comfort and strength that she provided them during really hard times. >> respect for mrs. reagan. she is a native of queens. all flags on federal and new york state buildings have been ordered half staff.

monday night, a man accused of not only driving drunk but actually sharing his journey live on the internet. and this. >> i fought a good fight. i finished my football race. and after 18 years, it's time. >> peyton manning with an emotional farewell as he announces his retirement. rob powers has the story. >> really a great speech. i'm meteorologist lee goldberg. great week of weather coming up. we started with a 60-degree day today. fair amount of sunshine but we're just getting started. sunset was at 5:54. we're still at 60 degrees.

new at 6:00. a bizarre drunk driving arrest on long island. police tipped off to the driver because of the internet. >> police say the driver was broadcasting his dangerous drunk driving escapade on a video streaming app live as it was happening. >> and police were watching. n.j. burkett at the state police barracks in farmingdale with the stour. >> that's right. police were watching because the public was watching. you'd think the last thing a drunk driver would want is for someone to notice.

>> reporter: it was an alert state police dispatcher who made it happen after a series of 911 calls. >> this was a cur obative effort to take this guy off the road. >> police say he was weaving all over ocean parkway. but it wasn't other motorists who called 911. police say akmad al-maki was driving drunk and apparently wanted the world to know by using a smart phone app called periscope. anyone with a periscope account anywhere on the planet can see exactly what you're doing as you're doing it live and in realtime. so as he was careening across ocean parkway, investigators say he was telling the world, i'm driving, i'm all over the road, and i'm drunk. when periscope followers called 911, the dispatcher had to think fast.

downloaded the app, created an account, and started watching him live. once they stopped him for his numerous traffic violations, an odor of alcohol right when they approached the car. field sobriety tests all failed. he was placed under arrest. >> reporter: as bizarre as it sounds, it's happened before. >> i'm driving home drunk. >> reporter: this woman was arrested in florida late last year for the same offense. no one answered the door at al-maki's home in oyster bay. the arrest came as a shock to his neighbors who say the state police deserve credit for creativity. >> i think it's a good thing. no question about it. we have to make our roads safe as possible. >> as you can see, i'm streaming the live shot now on periscope. this happened at about 1:00 in the morning on sunday and police say because the driver was charged with felony dwi, it's an incident going back to a dwi

so that's why he's charged with felony dwi and they say shortly before he got in his car, he streamed himself on periscope drinking whiskey. live tonight in farmingdale, long island, n.j. burkett, channel 7 eyewitness news. >> might be tough to refute the evidence in this case. what a bizarre story. just ahead, lee goldberg with his accuweather forecast, and yes, if you're feeling a little feverish, maybe it's spring fever you're getting because it looks like great weather ahead. >> you're warm. [ laughter ] >> i am.

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couple minutes ago there were fire trucks everywhere, now all clear. gas has been turned off at the site of a possible gas leak. some evacuations of the buildings, but the gas has been turned off. now the plumbers have to go to work. all clear. good to see your 7-day up there. got a sneak peek of it.

scratchy throats. a lot of things on this very beautiful week of weather. i won't be breaking a sweat unless i'm outside. a beautiful sunset. our producer is a sunset junkie. he gets so excited when you view it on facebook. check it out. that's very pretty. by the way, that's our last sunset before 7:00 on a monday. our last monday because we have daylight saving time coming up this weekend. yes, the clocks go forward. we've got a 7:00 sunset on sunday. 60 degrees right now. westerly wind, 12 to 20. pressure is on the rise and the high today made it up to 60 degrees. that's 13 above average. we're just getting started. we'll be 25 to 30 degrees above average later in the week. we'll have a 70-degree day midweek for the first time in 2012. it's been a while. records within reach on wednesday and thursday. there is a cool-down later in the week especially over the weekend where we dip in to the 50s but it's still nice. it kill be in the mid 50s. there might be a shower later in the weekend.

but middle 50s and again, turn those clocks forward. temperatures on long island are only in the 40s today. what about the warmup for us? with the wind coming off the cool atlantic ocean, it will be tough get the coastline warmer. even manhasset is doing better than rockville centre because you're a little farther away from that wind. 60 degrees in newark, inland numbers the ones that have the chances to get in to the 70s. winds are a little gusty but wind gusts are definitely backing off as we go in to the evening hours. these water temperatures are in the 40s. see the trajectory coming off the southwest. 58 degrees, clear to partly cloudy first half of the night. tomorrow morning you'll wake up to a fair amount of clouds, might be a stray shower. winds are variable. more as the day wears on. more of a filtered sun and mid 60s. you see the clouds off to the north and east. there's a front sitting to our north. actually inching closer to us overnight before it retreats to the day tomorrow unleashing the mild air to the west. you'll see how much cooler it is in upstate new york. 30s, 50 in boston.

trying to seep in early. tomorrow we get in to this. at least middle 60s. and then the middle of the week, it's about hitting 80 in the middle of the country. i'd not be shocked to see parts of interior new jersey get close to 80 degrees. 38 by 6:00 in the morning in newburg. still a chill in the air tomorrow morning. more clouds and sun. mid 60s, of course 50s along the coast but near 70 across interior parts of new jersey and again, the real warmth will come wednesday and thursday. that's when our best chances of 70-degree readings will come. partly cloudy tonight. a stray shower late. about 47. up to 65 tomorrow. i want to stress the big range. south shores will jersey. drop below 50. year are around 47. so you look at our temperatures, thursday. record high is 74. too. our northern suburbs thursday

little rain coming in by midday. across central and southern new jersey, 75 to 80. on friday, 63. not as warm but beautiful and the weekend, we're dropping down in to the 50s. i don't think it's all that wet. maybe a shower later in the day sunday. rob is up next with sports. >> it's been a busy day down in florida. spring training baseball rolls out. highlights from the mets and yankees. we'll also talk more about

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you met him when he was a rookie.

>> came in to the league with as much promise as anybody. peyton manning leaves with as many records as anybody. eli's big brother walks away from football for good. he said he may not be able to run or play good anymore, but his timing has always been good and it's his time to retire. won a super bowl with the colts. won a super bowl with the broncos. we all knew this day was coming. doesn't mean it was any less emotional for manning. >> after 18 years, it's time. god bless all of you and god bless football. we've got more football. word is the giants have had talks with victor cruz about restructuring that contract. take less money. if not, the giants might be forced to let him go. cruz hasn't played since the early part of the 2014 season. we wait on that. one high profile player was let go today. redskins released robert griffin iii, just a matter of time before that move was going to be made. let's get to florida.

a split start game for the mets up against the tigers. 3rd inning, yoenis cespedes. rbi single. that's a 3-1 met lead. lucas duda hits. mets beat the tigers 7-3. the rest of the team was on the road to play the cardinals. steven matz pitching in this one. struck out the side in the 2nd inning. 12 pitches. allowed a run in the 3rd. mets lose this split squad game 9-4. let's get to tampa. yankees battle the astros. pineda, two hits, no runs. tansis gave up a run. yankees lose 1-0. maria sharapova held a news conference today. a lot of people assumed she was announcing her retirement. nope. she revealed a failed drug test at the australian open. tested positive for maldoniam.

for health issues and said she never looked at the list of banned drugs. >> i don't want to end my career this year and i really hope that i will be given another chance to play this game. hockey's regular season ready for a furious finish. laura behnke with the rangers today for a look ahead. >> the king was at his throne before the rangers practiced today but while henrik lundqvist is feeling better he will miss a third straight game with neck spasms and hopes to return this weekend. >> you want to play. you want to be back there. back to looking at the big picture, it's important when you do decide to play, you're 100%. >> that's a demanding position and he's got to play good about himself. >> reporter: he was back on the ice today and said it's possible saturday. >> when they take away something you can't do, it's always hard. you try to find positives in all of it and try to improve my game.

could get lundqvist and nash back as early as this weekend, they do have a game in buffalo tomorrow night. one they hope will put the disappointing loss to the islanders behind them. >> you've got to be engaged physically and mentally. >> we've got a lot to prove to our fans that we're a better team than what they saw yesterday. >> laura behnke, channel 7 eyewitness news. tonight college basketball conference tournaments. >> see you at 11:00. speaking of 11:00, what are we working on for eyewitness news at 11:00? sade is here. >> coming up tonight we've got new video of a plane crashing on long island over the weekend. we'll have more on what it shows and the investigation. also to the rescue, dramatic video as highway patrol officers rescue children and women from a burning car. plus the vitamin pregnant women need that may be linked to an increased risk of ms in their kids. those stories and more tonight on eyewitness news at 11:00. >> that's it for us for now. thanks for watching. i'm bill ritter. >> i'm liz cho. world news tonight with david muir is coming up next.

we have several breaking stories this monday night. the race for the white house. michael bloomberg says he will not run because it may help donald trump win. trump, and his message for ted cruz. and hillary clinton, what she just asked of bernie sanders. and a major victory for erin andrews. the $55 million verdict. after suing her stalker and a major hotel. deadly storms tonight, powerful winds, flash floods, and lightning strikes. and the system moving from the south to one of the most famous