flooding problems. we do not need the rain anymore. it will come back tonight and tomorrow. we do not expect any problems with this morning. it will be noticeably cooler this morning, 55 degrees at the top of the hour at bwi. after 4:00 p.m., there will be a chance for some rain coming in from the south. we expect a high temperature near 71. heavy rain is possible. first we say good morning to sarah. >> good morning. when the rain moves in, things are going to change. 95 at down towards eastern, 49 miles per hour. we have no significant delays on the j.f.x., and a smooth ride on the west side. 57 miiles per hour mere shawan road. so far so good all the way down

to the beltway. 48 on southbound 95 near 32. this is the northeast corner of the beltway near harford. on 95 just south of 100, problem-free both north and southbound. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> president obama is back on the campaign trail this morning. >> and finishing up a trip to try to get democrats to the polls in november. kate amara is live with details cahill. >> good morning. president obama is in iowa this morning. he is having more backyard discussion with voters. he is trying to boost turnout in november. a rally at the university of wisconsin. >> i am fired up. >> president obama trying to

reach energize voters ahead of the crucial midterm elections. >> we face another test on november 2. the stakes could not be higher. >> hoping to get younger voters cast ballots in november, telling this crowd to get to work and stay involved. >> the biggest mistake we can make is to let frustration lead to apathy and indifference. that is how the other side winds. >> the president's party needs of this winds. republican's lead the way in voter enthusiasm 47% to 27%. the outcome often hinges on turnout. >> what he needs to do is to communicate to young people, to young voters that even though it is not a presidential election, there is so much at stake and on the line. >> this was the first of four

large rallies that was planned. the president has planned stops in iowa as well as richmond, virginia. kate amara, wbal-tv 11 news. >> tell us more about those trips to ohio and virginia. >> the president has been hosting backyard discussions with voters about the economy and how they have been struggling. that is what he will be doing more of today. he will meet with a family in des moines, iowa, and he will be doing the same thing when he travels to richmond, virginia. >> kate amara, thank you. jimmy carter is expected to be released from the hospital this morning. he felt ill on a flight to cleveland. he said it was just an upset stomach. he is expected to resume his book tour this week. >> we have an update.

some of baltimore county residents are speaking out about a man who was found dead in cockeysville. violence is expected. a witness says the victim was beaten with a bat by a group of people. police are not going into details. >> the police department is mourning the loss of one of their own. james fowler was killed on monday. he was on his way to a trading program at penn state. he leaves behind a wife and two children. [sirens] >> a ban on handheld cell phone use behind the wheel goes into effect on friday. >> kim dacey has the details

this morning. she is live on federal hill. >> the law makes it a secondary offense to hold your cell phone while you are driving. now you have to buy a handsfree devices. the best buy in glen bernie was packed yesterday. todd heap stopped by to have people comply, and also to sign autographs. law enforcement's know just how dangerous it distracted driving can be. >> i have a firsthand experience when a family member was in a crash. it was attributable to the use of the cell phone while driving. >> anything we can do to help focusing on the road will make a difference in the jobs. >> maryland will become the

banned handheld cell phone use while driving. kim dacey, wbal-tv 11 news. >> thank you. ultrasound made it possible to determine the sex of a child before it was born. now there is gender selection. doctors conduct this through in vitro fertilization, making it possible to determine which are male and which are fameemale. the procedure is raising some eyebrows. >> it is potentially problematic and it does raise serious ethical issues. but the balance so far favors autonomy on the part of the parents in making reproductive decisions that were before them. >> supporting doctors say time

has a tendency to change minds. some doctors have restrictions, often turning away parents who options for selective reasons. that brings us to our water cooler question of the day. what do you think about technology that allows parents to choose the sex of the child they are having? you can e-mail your response to watercooler@wbaltv.com. >> 57 degrees on tv hill. a man behind bars is not a free man. we will tell you why. >> a chaotic day for students after a man opens fire on campus. this >> is the beltway at liberty road. it looks fine right there. it looks fine right there.

(sfx: coach's whistle) "the car coach" - lauren fix. >> in case your car repair shop hasn't noticed - there's been a shift. sfx: shifting. over 70% of women make the car repair decision sf shifting. auto service plus is one auto repair shop that has geared their business to earn women's respect. sfx: shifting. 'cause when it comes to car repair, it's women who are in the driver's seat. announcer >> auto service plus. service you can trust.

>> welcome back. things are pretty quiet on this wednesday morning. we do not expect any rain for the morning commute. we're in the upper 50's and low 60's. the forecast, i think it will be dry through the middle of the afternoon. late this afternoon, there is a chance for some rain. it will rain tonight and during the day tomorrow. high temperature near 71. we will check the seven-day forecast coming up in just a few

minutes. we will talk about the tropical depression in the gulf and how it will affect us. >> thank you. a gunman terrorizes the university of texas campus at austin. a man opened fire inside the library before killing himself. police believe he acted alone. he was a sophomore math major and used an ak-47 automatic weapon. >> a man who has been imprisoned for years is now a free man after he has been exonerated. he was convicted of a rape of a 5-year-old girl. the judge set aside the conviction after a fingerprint turned up a different suspect. brody claims he was pressured by police to confess. he was interrogated without an interpreter present. >> 57 degrees on tv hill.

coming up, the morning's financial news in the bloomberg business report. >> the troubled economic has put quite a burden on a divorced couples. we will talk about a new service that is trying to make the struggle a little easier. >> sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute. this is harford road. the roads are dry, at least for now. we will get a

>> now traffic pulse 11 and insta-weather plus together. >> the way to work will probably

be better than the way from work. >> we had a terrible morning rush yesterday. we are in great shape on 95 coming out of the white marsh area. 51 on southbound 95. no problems to report on the j.f.x. this morning. a smooth ride so far on the other major roadways. this is southbound 83 around shawan road. eastbound 70, you are looking at about 52 miles per hour. a quick live look outside shows harford road looks just fine. this is outer loop traffic. this is 95 and coming towards us is southbound traffic and it is without the light at this time. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. now let's get the latest on the buses and the trains. good morning. >> we're moving along nicely so far this morning. the 10 and 30 are diverting at

pratt street and light streets. the marc trains, penn, camden, and brunswick lines are operating on time. now back to tony pann. good morning. >> good morning, everyone. it is the calm before the storm. we will drop perhaps two to four additional inches. but for now, things are pretty quiet. it is cooler than yesterday. 54 in parkton. near 60 degrees on the eastern shore. we can see some cloud cover starting to develop. that will continue as we move through the afternoon hours. you can see the storm moved up the east coast. it is all kind of creeping back up towards us. the major weather player is

tropical depression number 16. it is not a tropical storm yet. its name would be nicole. it is heading up towards south florida. this will transition itself from a tropical system to more like a nor'easter as it treks up the coast. it should come up close to the chesapeake bay. it will not be a tropical storm. it will be windy, there could be strong thunderstorms. there could be some flooding rains on the western side. to to 4 inches before it gets out of here. it will be an active weather date --two to four inches. a mixture of sunshine and clouds today. high temperatures in the low 70's. overnight, rain is likely. some could be heavy late tonight. periods of rain on thursday.

it will be kind of a breezy. mid 70's. it will clear up over the weekend with dry weather on friday, saturday, and sunday. 's.rnight lows in the 40 >> are you looking for a job? toys r us is hiring. they plan to hire 45,000 workers for the upcoming season. companies opening some 600 additional pop up stores in malls this year. many of the workers will work get traditional stores and distribution centers as well. walmart is looking to expand in africa. they have chains like macro

with 290 stores. there is speculation walmart would expand into africa with massmart as a eighth likely target. there is a new interest bearing deposit option. the vanguard group is cutting investment fees in half for the college plan. t. rowe price and fidelity have also cut fees in order to have more parents invest. >> the world's largest computer maker is looking for thousands of good men and women character could be in a way to lower your mortgage bill. jane king has the bloomberg business report. >> a bold plan to help struggling homeowners. there is a bill that would allow up to 30 million

homeowners to refinance. it would not matter how bad your income or credit score is. this would stabilize the housing market by reducing the number of foreclosures. the house finance committee is taking a look at revamping the real estate market. trading is looking -. we did have a higher day yesterday. walgreen's shares rallied yesterday. the supreme court agreed to hear an appeal by pharmaceutical companies. they wanted to block hospitals from suing over a discount drug plan. hewlett-packard may still be looking for permanent ceo, but they expect profit and revenue to be better, and they are hiring thousands of new sales staff.

good news for gamers. nintendo will start selling a 3- d handheld game unit. the nintendo 3ds will cost around $300. that is business. jane king. jane, thank you. we'll see you back here at 6:15 for your next report. the cost and the complications of divorce have more couples sticking it out. women cannot figure out their finances to stay afloat. >> it is shocking. >> nichol is an expert in financial math. this organization helps women navigates the numbers. gather all information. >> it is amazing how much

information you can find the correct document expenses the early. >> that is where the real aha comes in, when they see it on paper. "i could be out of money in 10 years." it will be important that you get credit while you were still married. most companies will get household assets. >> not all assets are equal. >> the house is an asset you have to put money into a pyrrhic there could be repairs and maintenance. you do not have any of that be correct forget about getting even. do divorce math for a bigger payoff. >> it is 57 degrees on tv hill.

we will check your morning commute with traffic and weather together. >> the orioles in dork the sting of an opponent's celebration. -- the orioles endure the sting of an opponent's celebration. >> don't forget to e-mail us your response to our water cooler question of the day. what do you think about technology that allows parents to choose the sex of the child they are having? e-mail your response to

i thought it was crazy feeding in the fall. i always feed in the fall. but, it's the best time. feed your lawn in the fall. the fall feeding makes all the difference in the world. what the fall feeding does is build the roots.. that's when the roots sorta want nutrition. i give my lawn scotts winterguard. it's like a root building machine. it builds your lawn from the roots up. next year you get this! the stronger the roots, the stronger the lawn. all year long. the best time to feed is when it will do the most good. there's no substitute for the fall feeding, trust me. it is the best thing you can do for your lawn. i use scotts winterguard. >> buck showalter wants his players to remember last night in tampa bay. tampa bay made it to the playoffs. hey got there at the orioles' expense. showalter believes the orioles

will have their days. pick up in the fourth. carlos pena home run off of brad bergesen. then a laser shot to left field. gone. it is so long orioles at the port. here it is. adam jones, two strikes. that will do it. the tampa bay rays clinched a trip to the playoffs for the second time in three years. the orioles a wrapup their road schedule as a ploy the final game of the series against tampa in florida. >> any woman who was warned high heels knows the pain they can cause. imagine having to run or sprint in them. there was a relay race over the weekend to help raise money for the national breast cancer

foundation. a group got the world record for the fastest relay race in stiletto heels. they are moving. >> they are. >> i am impressed. >> the winner took a nosedive last week. but she won. she is number one. >> 57 degrees on tv hill. coming up in the next half-hour of 11 news today -- >> it will be illegal to hold your cell phone while driving. i have details on this new law. >> did the high heel raised remind you of anybody? mindy running into the studio? we do have some heavy rain to talk about. >> mindy is a smart lady. your morning com

>> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today in hd. >> good morning, everybody. welcome back. i am stan stovall. >> and i'm mindy basara. thank you for joining us this morning. let's get a check on weather and traffic. >> rain will be the big story for us. we could pick up three, four inches of rain with this storm coming out of the gulf. this morning should be ok. the evening commute will probably be ok, as well. it is cooler this morning. 55 degrees at the airport. the rain will move then from the south. most of you, it will hold off until this evening with a high temperature of 71. things will get rather interesting as we head into

tomorrow. >> nothing happening on the roads. let's check speed sensors and give you an idea of how things are moving. 51 miles per hour on southbound 95. 50 miles per hour on the west side outer loop. problem-free on 795 from owings mills down to the beltway. things are running smoothly on 70. southbound 83 and southbound 97, checking in at 50 miles per hour. harford road is running smoothly at the beltway. both loops are checking out fine. 95 just south of the beltway is in great shape at this hour. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. [sirens] >> maryland will soon join several other states by banning

talking on cell phones. >> the new law goes into effect on friday. kim dacey is live on federal hill with our 3d project report. >> this law makes it a secondary offense to you say hand-held cell phone while driving. the best buy in glen bernie was packed yesterday. the big seller -- hands-free headsets for your cell phone. most of the people we spoke to think the law is a good idea. >> i often get angry at other drivers because they are not paying attention. >> i have been on phones and texting. >> state officials have a press conference to make sure maryland drivers know about the lot.

>> drivers will have to put down the phone and just drive. we want to make sure our cars and trucks are no phone zones. >> police officers were also on hand to support the new law. >> i have a family member who was in a crash. it was attributable to the use of the cell phone while driving. >> anything we can do to help drivers focus on the road will make a difference in our job. >> beginning on friday, if a police officer pulls you over, they cannot write you a ticket for using a cell phone. >> we invite you to end distracted driving by signing the pledge on our website. you can check out the official data it for yourself. it is on wbaltv.com. >> a man struck and killed a

teenage bicyclist will spend six months in jail. he pleaded guilty to the incident that killed benjamin in august of last year. this happened in howard county. teenager later died in shock trauma. a gang leader will spend life behind bars. timothy rawlings was found guilty. he believed steven parrish was homosexual. rawlings is serving five years in prison for an armed robbery sentence. >> people are being questioned about a shooting in baltimore. this happened on east preston street. one man was shot in the hand and the other was shot in the leg. no word on what led to the gunfire.

homicide detectives are trying to find the person who stabbed a woman to death yesterday morning. the woman was found shortly after 7:00. no word on a possible motive. the education nation summit wrapped up yesterday appeared to talk about improving the troubled school system. >> nobody got a pass. lessonsre possibitive learned. >> we were given a responsibility -- >> they love that. >> what we need is a revolution. >> the urgent need to make the changes for kids to get the best education possible to compete in a global economy. >> the key is people's concern and passion and being thoughtful

and setting agendas. >> and agenda including parents getting involved. >> i said they need a fair chance. my job as a parent, we need to make sure they get its. >> create incentives and policies to keep the best performing teachers and weed out those who do not make the grade. >> we need reward systems for teachers that are different than today. >> poor performing schools in d.c. were closed. but the district is seeing positive results. >> even though we got chalice for it and our political heads got cut off, i believe we have to move faster. >> in michigan, the loss of

manufacturing jobs prompted the state to have high school students take college prep courses. >> when you raise expectations, they will jump over that higher bar. >> raising the bar and taking the conversation to the next level. >> 57 degrees on tv hill. researchers discovered a certain extract may not be as beneficial as previously thought. >> birth control could be prescribed to treat a certain kind of cancer. >> don't forget to e-mail us your response to our water cooler question of the day. what do you think about technology that allows parents to choose the sex of the child they are having? e-mail your response to watercooler@wbaltv.com. >> we have enjoyed a quiet ride for now. we will check the major roads.

>> welcome back. things are nice and quiet on this wednesday morning. it is 63 degrees downtown. you might want to take a light jacket with you. most of the day will be dry. we will get through lunchtime without any precipitation. we could see some rain moving in this evening with a high temperature around 71 degrees. we will go over the complicated forecast for the next 24 hours when we come back. for now, over to the news desk. >> researchers discovered that some extracts are not as beneficial as previously

thought. it was once considered an anti occident to help lower blood pressure. but there were tests on two groups. in the end, researchers found no difference in blood pressure levels. the extract was not beneficial for heart help either. used in birth control could also treat some kinds of cancer in women. when it was removed after a year, the majority of the patients responded to the treatment, and just under half were able to bear children. it allows a higher dose of hormone to the area. does that make sense? 57 degrees on tv hill. a preview of tonight's "law-and- order: los angeles.

>> i will give you a preview of the firefighter show. how they will extinguish that fire behind me. >> this is a live look over the downtown area. we'll update weather and traffic america saves on dunkin', america runs on dunkin', with three freshly baked bagel twists for only $3, like our delicious new tomato basil or sweet chocolate chip, so grab three for 3 today. [ ding! ]

i'm frank kratovil and i approve this message. the real andy harris. buried in his website - a promise to replace the tax code with a 23% sales tax and eliminate the mortgage interest deduction. a bush tax panel said families would pay $6,000 more a year. a reagan tax advisor calls it a very dumb idea. but that's not his only bad idea.

harris was the only senator to vote against expanding the child care tax credit and against the state's cancer treatment program. andy harris' extreme ideas will cost us. >> now traffic pulse 11 and insta-weather plus together. >> good morning. sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute. no problems to report at this hour. we are looking at a smooth ride. 51 miles per hour on southbound 95 around the white marsh area. so far so good on the j.f.x. the harrisburg expressway, speed sensors indicated 52 miles per hour in the southbound direction. the rest of the major roadways are equally smooth at this hour.

northwest corner looking good. going away is inner loop traffic towards the j.f.x. this is a quick live look at traffic of 95 just south of the beltway northeast. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. now let's get the latest on the buses and the trains. good morning. >>e're moving along nicely on the marc trains with no delays on penn, camden, and brunswick lines. the metro subway is on time in east and westbound direction. we do have a diversion on the 10 and 30 buses, at pratt street and light street. now back to tony pann. >> we have some heavy rain to talk about over the next 24 hours. but first we say good morning to sandra shaw who decided to head downtown and play with the baltimore city fire department.

>> this has been going on for more than 50 years. this is a controlled burns. this is one of the demonstrations they have. it is on saturday and you can see a huge tanker truck on fire. this is -- what will happen behind us? >> we have an automobile fire. members from engine company 51 -- >> they could put that out on the beltway. >> they will open up the hose nozzle and begin to extinguish the fire. >> it sounds good. there are a lot of things for kids out here. there is a train ride. there is the firefighters combat challenge. >> that will be our initial competition on that day. we have firefighters competing from around the region.

they compete through a number of evolutions. they run up a five-story building, come back. they will drag a mannequin for approximately 100 feet. then they pick up a hose line and dragged that. >> that is pretty crazy. now you will light this tanker truck on fire. >> we will have partners from the martin state airport who will bring a crash vehicle. it is used for the extinguishment of tanker fires or airplane fires. >> what will be the biggest challenge to try to get this out? " they will use a line which supplies a large quantity of water to be able to suppress the fire and extinguished it. >> it will be amazing to see that happening. you can learn so much.

it is free. we're out here on pulaski highway. let's look at hd doppler. let's talk about so much rain that is bubbling up from the south. there is a tropical system that will be affecting us with heavy rain tomorrow. it will be a nor'easter-type event. it is affecting miami later on tonight with that tropical system. that is it for now. >> i have some advice for you. do not use any extra hair spray this morning. >> i am a very nice difference away from that fire. it is amazing how quickly they extinguished that fire pequot that is pretty cool. thank you. we will talk you again in the next half hour. a fun day doubt that with the

baltimore city fire department. we do have heavy rain to discuss. this morning will be fine. the temperatures are cooler than yesterday. 50's in most spots. we can see some cloud cover moving in from the south. clouds will thicken up. some of this rain will catch up to us by this evening. it should be dry this morning. all kinds of moisture pushing out of the carolinas. after 3:00 p.m., we have a chance for some rain in the baltimore area. the major player is tropical depression number 16. it is not a tropical storm. its name would be nicole. i do not think it will get to that status. as it comes up through the carolinas, it will lose its tropical characteristics.

it will not make a difference because it will have the same effect. we'll have heavy rain on thursday. there could be some severe weather including some tornadoes spinning up. there will be a push of water up the chesapeake bay. there could be some minor flooding, especially during times of high tide. thursday will be an active weather day. flooding. keep that in mind. everything should be gone late thursday night into friday morning. increasing clouds tonight. high temperatures will sneak into the low 70's. rain is likely tonight. temperatures will drop back into the 60's. flooding is possible. there could be a few thunderstorms. things will clear up as we head into the weekend. low 70's on friday. overnight low temperatures

dropping into the 40's. things are ok right now. but we could see heavy rain tonight and tomorrow. >> "law and order" makes a move to the west coast with the khmer of "law and order: los angelos." >> we have a preview. >> stuffing yourself with donut. >> it was quintessential new york city. >> i learned so much about new york city from the show. hopefully we will do the same thing for los angeles. >> are you considering charges? >> we are not considering anything. >> alfred molina stars along with terence howard. >> often times when dreams collide with reality, people are

forced into a strange situations. >> they will alternate appearances on the new series. others will be there every week as investigative detectives. >> there are a lot of expectations and pressure. >> his character d.c.'s law enforcement in black and white. >> i think it will be a lot of fun to play off of somebody who is holding the line. >> the new series eases the disappointment of the cancellation of the original. success is not a given. >> you pay your money and you take your chances. this is a pretty good bet. >> viewers will decide if it is a winning bet. >> that is a successful formula.

peter coyote stars as the district attorney. so much more ahead -- >> including a look at your answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> here is a look at last night's winning maryland lottery numbers.

>> time to get to one of your

answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> this morning we asked -- what do you think about technology that allows parents to choose the sex of the child they are having? >> keep e-mailing those responses to watercooler@wbaltv.com. we will read more of your responses in the next hour and post all of them on the front page of our website. >> a grandmother could face charges for shooting a juvenile. >> the music is being heard once again at the grand old opry. >> a police officer is being dubbed a hero of this morning. that story at 6:33. >> things are quiet right now. we do have some heavy rain in the forecast over the next 24

hours. >> we will let you know if we have developed any new problems, coming up.

>> president obama rallies across the country to try it fire up democrats for the midterm election. we will look at the strategy. >> you have to use say hands- free device if you want to talk while driving in the car. >> science is making it possible to choose the sex