tonight, this terror suspect is behind bars can and another is on the run after an alleged plot to assassinate the saudi ambassador. that is one of two big stories tonight. we'll have more on the terrorist plot in this moment, but we begin baltimore county, where school superintendent dr. joe hairston and the school board announced that he will not stay on the job after his contract expires in june. kai reed is live in towson. we understand the board will begin a search for replacement right away, is that correct? >> by law, the superintendent did not have to make this announcement until february 1, but now the board has nine months instead of just four to come up with his replacement. joe hairston told us he feels good about the job he is done in the last four years, but now he feels like it is time to move on. baltimore county school superintendent kept his announcement short and to the

point. he will leave the job when his contract ends next june. 12 years is unprecedented for a school system of this size. we have served in one school system with over 100,000 students for 12 years. >> schmidt would not confirm published reports that the board had already decided not to extend his contract several weeks ago. >> i have no comment on that. it is a personnel issue, and that is a statement about his future as to where he is going, that is for him. >> schmidt praised joe hairston work and announced a search for his replacement will begin immediately. >> i have established a committee to begin to institute the search process in baltimore county for a superintendent to take the reins from dr.

hairston in 2012. >> i feel very fortunate that i had an opportunity to experience great kids, a tremendous staff, good support, and i think it is, a good time to move on. >> we expect to hear a lot more about what went into his decision later on this week. he has scheduled a news conference for this friday at 10:00 a.m.. kai reed, wbal-tv 11 news. >> u.s. officials say they have thwarted a high price terrorist plot on american soil. according to the u.s. justice department, two readiness plan to assassinate the saudi arabian ambassador to the united states. what appeared in federal court today and the others still at large. officials said they plan to pay

a mexican drug cartel $1.5 million for his death. what they did not know was that their contact was an undercover source for the feds. reports showed the alleged murder for hire scheme involved a kidnapping in plastic explosives. u.s. explosives did not name names, but they are holding the iranian government responsible. >> the complaint alleges that the conspiracy was conceived, sponsored, and directed from iran and constitute a flagrant violation of u.s. and international law. >> the u.s. does regard iran is a state-sponsored of terrorism. mahmoud ahmadinejad has dismissed the plot and says it is a fabrication. the defense skipped opening statements in the trial of a man accused of trying to blow up a detroit downed plane on christmas day 2009. abdul mutallab abdul mutallab is representing himself, getting help from an attorney.

prosecutors laid out their case, saying witnesses saw the defendant's pants on fire and that he told the fbi that he was working for al qaeda. information sharing was the focus of a forum on homeland security here in maryland today. governor martin o'malley and homeland security secretary janet napolitano participated. >> many of you have heard the story of how one of the 9/11 hijackers was actually stopped by a maryland state police officer on i-95 just a couple of days before those attacks, but the trooper in the field was not able to run that name against any sort of backup database to determine whether that person was on a watch list or not on a watch list. that has greatly improved. >> the forum was moderated by the director of the national consortium for the study of

terrorism and responses to terrorism. maryland could soon be one of the most expensive state in the country for smokers if a campaign to rate -- raise the tobacco tax exceeds. a-smoking advocates want to tack on an extra dollar to bring the state's cigarette tax to $3 a pack. >> cigarettes bring in by far the most money becomes to so- called vice taxes and our state, but anti-smoking advocates point out that the tobacco tax revenue leveled off last year, an indication that smoking is on the decline, and they believe another tax hike will keep it that way. >> cigarettes are big business in maryland. they have brought in nearly $400 billion in tax revenues last year. now anti-smoking advocates want to raise the tax to $3 per pack. >> public health needs and health care for maryland's

uninsured. we all will benefit. >> the honor of federal hill wine and spirits as last year's tax of 2 cents per bottle beverage has already cut into his sales, and he fears an increased tobacco tax would further strain his store. >> is really hard for my business. that is why put in seven days here. a cannot hire anyone, because everything is going up. >> they also want to go after the smokeless tobacco industry. >> and people at other people have been switching to cigars and smokeless, which are just as deadly. this time, we want the tax to go up on non cigarette tobacco products. >> if maryland races this cigarette tax to $3 per pack, it would be almost twice as steep as surrounding states like delaware and pennsylvania. maryland's tax rate would be almost 10 site -- 10 times as high as delicate -- as

virginias. >> political insiders tell us the new tax proposal is not expected to pick up much support from lawmakers in annapolis. >> we want to know how much tax would stop you from smoking, if you do. the survey is on our website, wbaltv.com where we also have tips to help you quit. tonight, senate republicans and a pair of democrats and block the president's new jobs bill. it failed on a vote of the-48, 10 votes short of the 60 needed for full senate consideration. the president blasted republicans, saying the bill contains the kind of proposals their party has supported in the past. two democrats also voted against the measure. anticipating defeat, the

administration says it will try to get the measure passed in smaller parts. no mitt romney stumbles, no rick perry break through is, and 9-9- 9, that is the headline tonight from the republican national debate in new hampshire. [applause] >> mitt romney came to guard brett favre head in new hampshire polls and selling certain. -- came to dartmouth ahead in the new hampshire polls and sounding certain. herman cain is second, along with rick perry. >> 9% national sales tax. >> it is the best known recovery plan. 9-9-9, jobs, jobs, jobs. >> we don't need any plan to

pass congress. >> rick barry's polls have dived into fourth in new hampshire and iowa. the texas governor claimed cheaper oil and gas would put americans to work. >> clearly, opening up a lot of the areas of our domestic energy area, that is the real key. >> it was. versus ronnie on health care. >> romney care has driven the cost of small business insurance premiums up by 14% over the national average in massachusetts. >> we have less than 1% of our kids that are uninsured. you have a million kids uninsured in texas. earlier, romney got the endorsement of a popular new jersey governor chris christie. tonight, again, romney looked like the gop front runner, but herman cain is close to the lead and i will polls. rick perry has still got a big war chest. it is not over yet. >> president obama spent much of

the evening raising campaign cash in florida. he intended to make events, one in orlando, where in attendees reportedly paid up to $39,000 to hear the president speak. >> we can either back to the idea that tried and failed in the past decade, where corporations write their own rules and the well-connected get tax breaks slipped into the tax code, and ordinary folks are struggling, or we can build the america that we talked about in 2008 and that we have been fighting for ever since, an america where everybody gets a fair shake and everybody does their fair share. >> while in fort, the president stopped at an irish bar in orlando to share of beer with the unemployed construction workers. >> you can follow the candidates and keep track of who is leading the pack and gain ground in the race for the white house. just go to our website, wbaltv.com, and click on

politics. we will measure the real economic impact of the first baltimore grand prix. note charges against the man suspected of the disappearance of a maryland woman in aruba. >> he was shocked. he did not think i was going to walk in on your one day. >> the two is now siding with the suspect. >> what was the manner of death? >> the matter was homicide. >> that is the medical examiner testifying in the manslaughter trial is michael jackson's doctor, giving insight into whether the pop star gave himself that deadly dose of propofol. >> there is rain on the hd doppler, moving in. right now, cloudy skies, 66 --

x the woman accused of that chemical attack that walmart received some unexpected support to date from the parents of one of the victims. prosecutors contend that theresa jefferson victimized her former boyfriend and his fiancee by pouring bleach and pine sol on .utumn saturday >> he has been messing with that girl a long time ago. why would i defend him if he is wrong? >> court documents say the severson claim sheet wrapped the chemical bottles to defend herself after zero bomb attack her. the attorneys filed an appeal for gary giordano is pending release pending trial.

officials presume 35-year-old robin carter of froedtert is dead. you are donald has not been charged, and denies any wrongdoing. he claimed she was swept out to sea while they were snorkeling. her body has not been found. challenging testimony during week three of the trial of dr. conrad murray. dr. christopher rogers, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy on michael jackson, testified that jackson was in good health for his age. he then it contradicted the defense claim that jackson gave himself the fatal dose of the powerful anesthetic, propofol. >> that scenario does not support self administration from your perspective, is that accurate? >> yes, to me that scenario seems less reasonable to get jurors also heard more of the voice interview recording of dr. murray to days after michael jackson's death. in it, he vividly recall the

shock and grief that broke out among jackson's family the moment they realized the pop star had died. >> some hard figures are starting to trickle in on the final impact -- the financial impact of last month baltimore grand prix race. do those figures meet the city's expectations? jayne miller has a look at the numbers and the reaction. >> the new data compiled by an independent travel research firm shows the grand prix race was neither a big boon nor bust for the city's hotels, at least in terms of hotel rooms used for labor day weekend. race promoters we have it is and have hoped for an years sellout of rooms. fact, hotel occupancy for the race weekend was not that different from labor day weekend last year. the three day average this year was 69.4%. the mayor says it is no reason

to be disappointed. >> it the look at the expected attendance and the actual attendance, we know more people came to town than we anticipated. >> hotels did bring in more money this year, substantially so. 2010, hotel revenue over the three day weekend totaled $2.4 million. beshear hotel revenues were $3.6 million. the result of hotels charging higher rates. still to come, the rates weekend -- the race weekends impact on hiring and local businesses. the mayor says the boy report on the race impact will help. >> i am looking forward to getting the report so we can continue to learn, to make sure we have a second year of a world-class event. >> that for report was expected by october 1. hotels near the airport seem to benefit from the race. their average occupancy for the three-day labor day weekend was

12% higher than last year. jayne miller, wbal-tv 11 news. >> mixed news on the housing front in maryland tonight. new listings for homes on the markets are down 23% in september, the lowest monthly level in 10 years. now the good news, prices went up. analysts say that is the perfect mix for a buyer's market. >> all the buyers across the board want everything in a house. they want it completely done. they want all the newest, trendy kind of materials, and they won it for 2005 prices. >> agents say buyers want the perfect house at the right price, or they are simply not willing to do the deal. you can see how much home you can get for $300,000 in maryland these days and compare it to what you get around the country. check out the slide show on our website, wbaltv.com.

>> now, your insta-weather forecast with chief meteorologist tom tasselmyer. >> we are beginning to see a few more showers in and around the baltimore area. that trend should continue toward morning, with more rain coming through toward dawn. growing up on the eastern shore from east and up to centreville and southbound on to the lower eastern shore, some showers out that way. substantial rain coming up out of mountains across west virginia at this hour. the beginning of an area of slow-moving low pressure approaching from the south. high temperatures were a little above normal, 72 degrees at b.w.i. marshall. the normal high as 68. it is 75 in downtown baltimore, and the record low for this date is 27 in 1964. all these numbers will cool off with the approaching rain tomorrow.

66 in hagerstown, because in the mountains. sun rises at 6:13, and the east wind will start to gradually increase through the day and bring in some toys to of the ocean. a breezy and generally what wednesday. the clouds are starting to advance and the moisture is moving north as well. it looks like most of the day we will be under those clouds and showers. west of us there is another front. this low pressure system will pass by, and on thursday we will be between systems before the friday whether event gets here. thursday might turn out to be not too bad. tomorrow is looks like rain in the area, especially through the early evening. thursday the skies try to clear out a little bit before the western system arrives with more rain on friday. by friday night, that will be moving off the coast and it looks good for the weekend. temperatures moving back down

toward normal, a bit breezy, wet day. strong enough winds for a small craft advisory with three-foot waves. the autumn glory festival gets under way out for garrett county from wednesday through the weekend. it looks like the start of the festival will feature a little bit of rain. the eastern shore, scattered showers, a little sunshine on thursday before more rain comes in thursday night. the same basic forecast for the lower eastern shore. for the race in town on saturday, 8:00 a.m. it looks like some clouds and sunshine mixed. dry weather, cool and 50's. breezy by early afternoon with west winds of 10-50 miles an hour if not stronger. strong wind gusts out of the west on saturday. scattered showers and only 20% chance of rain during the day thursday. it clears out in time for the

weekend, beautiful weather for football on sunday. sunny skies and a high of about 70. >> gary mason will come back to baltimore for a second time in as many games, but not as a member of the ravens, but as an opponent. we will tell you all about it next in sports. >> tonight's jackpot is an estimated $22 million. you must match these five white balls plus that gold megaball. 25-44-34-56-38. tonight's megaball number is 27.

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>> at this rate, derrick mason will want a plank almost as many games that m&t bank stadium as he would have if he had remained a raven this year. he was traded to houston

tonight. that means the ravens will see mason for a second game in a row. he got into a couple of shoving matches. the ravens all-time leading receiver reportedly fell out of favor after criticizing the jets' offense in recent weeks. john harbaugh said again tonight he just does not know if first- round pick jimmy smith will have recovered from his ankle injury enough to have a role in this week's game. he wants to continue molding this year's team into one that has the same personality in all three phases of the game, offense, defense, and special teams. >> we like players that like to get after it, who love football like to play the game. we want to attack people every way we can in all three phases. that is what we are about and that is the way we are going to

try to play every week. >> denver broncos fans will get what they campaigned for, tim tebow at quarterback. today head coach john fox announced tim tebow will start in denver's next game. next up for the broncos, a trip to miami in two weeks. kibo played college ball in florida and remains more popular in the sunshine state and sunshine. the nfl will run the risk of an outdoor cold weather super bowl in 2014. today nfl commissioner roger goodell announced phoenix has been announced as the side of the 2015 super bowl. while new york will host an outdoor super bowl, phoenix has an indoor stadium. tigers are down 2-0 against the rangers. the tigers win 5-2. texas put up three straight

hitters to start things off. in the fourth, victor martinez with a solo home run to right, triggers the tigers come back. detroit goes on to win 5-2, trimming the rangers' lead in the best of seven series down to two games to one. have you ever wondered what would it look like if an antelope ran into a guy on a bike? i didn't either until i saw this video. take a look. watch the right side of your screen at a south african nature preserve, and antelope bomb weighing more than 300 pounds slams into a biker. three amazing things took place here. one that happened in the first place, to that the guy had his video camera rolling, and three, the cyclists got planted in the turf by the antelope came away with nothing more serious than a stiff neck.

>> that is amazing. that antelope was going for it. >> by nfl rules, it was a legal hit because he did not hit him with the crown of his antlers. >> they with us, tom is up next with a last look at the forecast. first, jay leno. >> we have some incredible animals like these two guys here. here. you can get a flu shot from an experienced professional. we've given over 5 million flu shots over the last 10 years. [ male announcer ] hey, but who's counting? get your flu shot from a specialist you can trust. at the safeway pharmacy.

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>> can you say the word umbrella? >> i can say that word. [laughter] >> you may need it. it is just rain, though. . rarely carry 1 the rain will taper off tomorrow evening. thursday we may get a peak of sunshine for a good part of the day, and thursday night into friday, the next batch of rain comes through. it looks like a real nice weekend. >> that is a look at our news. thanks for joining us. good night. [captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- --www.ncicap.org--

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congratulations virginia. inflamed uvula. i'm virginia. i'm a target pharmacist and i'm here to answer your questions. america's fastest and most reliable 4g network in over 140 cities. verizon. built so you can rule the air. >> announcer: it's "the tonight