>> breaking news at noon. looks like the obama administration will compromise on the battle over control coverage, and the announcement could come within the half-hour. many religious employees are upset because the policy does not let them deny coverage for contraceptives under their health plan even if the organization is opposed to use of contraceptives.

the george q. we murder trial under way right now in charlottesville. it has been an emotional week at the courthouse. yesterday, the jury saw the graphic images and sought e- mails where hughley allegedly wrote, "i should have killed you." the defense says at most it is a case of accidental manslaughter. if convicted, he could face the death penalty. for the latest updates on that tile, be sure to visit our web site, wbaltv.com. our team is following every development. you can see new reports tonight. a conviction in the league stephen's murder fuels the debate over maryland's death penalty law. thursday, stevens was found guilty of first-degree murder for stabbings a corrections officer in 2006. now, stevens is the first criminal eligible for the death penalty under the new rules that only permit the penalty if the

suspect is linked to the crime through video evidence, a taped confession, or dna evidence. lawmakers are trying to repeal the death penalty in the state. >> this year, we have added language that says from some of the money that would be saved by not having the death penalty, we would put money into victims services for the family members, the survivors of people who were murdered. life without the possibility of parole is the appropriate sentence. >> stevens was linked to the crime through dna evidence. sentencing is that set for monday. -- sentencing is set for monday. the appeal will be heard next month. that a new winter storms on the way, and would not seem to many that have had big results around our area. it has been a mild winter without much snow. this one has a little more moisture than the one from the middle of the past week.

there's two parts to it. they will come together over the mid-atlantic region. looks like the storm will really crank up once everything gets out over the atlantic, which means a little too late for us to get anything significant, but with the low passing to our south and a cold front coming in after it, it does prolong any rain or snow chance into saturday and through much of saturday. yes, we will get something out of it. probably someone will get snow accumulation, and we will talk about how much coming up in just a minute. >> thanks, john. getting birth control the same way you get a candy bar. tech university may put the morning after pill in vending machines -- tuft university. right now, it is available over- the-counter for women under 17. it might be made available in the health building after hours. another university did the same thing this week.

officials say women need access to the pill without having to make an appointment to maintain privacy. >> in 2011, we dispensed about 155 doses right from the health center, but again, now that it is over the counter, people could go to a pharmacy, but that is not convenient to a lot of students who live on campus and do not have transportation. a vending machine could solve that issue. >> officials say they of just talking about it at this point and still do not know where funding would come from. the republican race for the white house runs right through the nation's capital today with gop candidates are hoping to grab the attention of the right people at an annual political action conference. >> good morning. the candidates are coming to d.c. today because that is where the conservatives are. three of the four republican presidential candidates will be in washington, d.c., today courting conservatives at the

annual conservative political action conference, which attracts influential leaders and activists from across the country. the white house hopefuls are looking for votes. >> we need someone who can lead this country, who can motivate and surround themselves with strong, principled conservatives. >> rick santorum and newt gingrich continue to try to top themselves as the conservative alternative to mitt romney. gingrich has consistently said that romney's views are too close to president obama. mitt romney try to flip the argument. >> senator santorum and speaker gingrich are the very republicans who acted like democrats, and when republicans act like democrats, they lose. >> he believes he will ultimately win the gop presidential nomination. ron paul is hoping to win main this weekend and a skipping cpac to campaign in the state, saying he has decided to give his

supporters a break. >> we made a decision a couple of months ago not to do it. it is a matter of resources. we have a lot of young people involved in our campaign, and we ask a lot of them. >> the result of the week-long series of caucuses will be announced tomorrow in maine. >> the mayor of baltimore city is standing behind her use of the city's skybox in the stadium after the release of the guest list was forced. the look finds many of the mayor's family, friends, and political supporters frequently in attendance. when asked by jane miller if she thought this was proper use for the tickets, the mayor defended her decision. >> do you think it is proper for your campaign officials to use that box? >> i think as long as they are city residents, there are no governing rules. >> but i'm asking as a matter of ethics, if it is right. is this box to be used by your

campaign officials? >> there is absolutely no ethical violation. >> the mayor's use of the skybox became a source of controversy after the city council president had his tickets to the boxer but following a public dispute with the mayor's office over next week's grand prix race. the mayor also use the tickets to benefit charities, lower- level staffers, and members of the faith community. and man charged with killing his mental hospital roommate is found competent to stand trial. he is accused of first and second-degree murder in the beating death of his roommate. it happened in the maximum- security section of perkins hospital. his attorney says he will argue his client was sexually abused and acted in self-defense. hundreds of people in washington say they will be at the funerals of-paul's two young sons, but they say the real reason is to

shield family members from protesters -- the funerals of two young sons. back after he killed himself and his young boys in this fire, this message pop up on twitter. the westboro at his church in kansas announcing it will protest outside the memorial to remind the governor that they died because of her rebellion, a reference to same-sex marriage. >> it is disgusting. i do not even understand it. >> the fact that they are trying to capitalize on this tragedy is just -- it is an outrage. >> the smiths are so upset with the threatened protest that they have joined hundreds of others on facebook and other social media sites to condemn what this anti-gay church is planning. >> they want to take their agenda -- they think that they are christian -- and shove it

down people's throats during a time of bereavement. >> they also plan to attend the memorial and are looking for ways to shield mourners from even having to see the protesters like holding up blankets or sheets of fabric. >> they should be able to mourn in peace. >> occupy seattle members say they will join them. others will come from olympia to counteract any impact the church might have. members have shown up at funerals for soldiers and celebrities in the past, claiming their debts were god's way of punishing america for sins. >> it is not appropriate for anyone to intrude on another family time of morning. >> coming up, bleeding money. we knew the post office was having cash flow problems. wait until you hear how much they lost recently. and money for homeowners. a big deal means help for p

>> we are falling breaking news into the 11 news room. captain roy in an amount of county, a car into a house here. what more can you tell us? >> we can tell you this happened on king malcolm avenue where a vehicle ended up crashing into

this house. we are not sure about injuries involved in this crash. we can tell you county police and fire had requested the building inspector to check the house out. the building inspector has just arrived. investigation is still ongoing, and as we get more information, we will update you. >> thank you. new this noon, the u.s. postal service is bleeding money. the service loss $3.3 billion between october and december. they lost about that much the same time last year. officials say it is because of declining mail volume and the high cost of retiree health benefits. usps officials say if congress does not step in to help, postal service may soon be drastically cut. maryland homeowners who lost their homes due to questionable methods will be able to take part in a settlement. the agreement will let homeowners restructure their mortgages in some cases or seek

compensation that they lost their home due to improper bank practices. >> this is just a first step, a literal down payment for the havoc caused by the behavior of the banks. >> some consumer groups support the settlement, but only some of the estimated 11 million homeowners nationwide who are under water on their mortgages will get the hell. still to come, see sections have become one of the most commonly performed procedures performed campbellc-sections -- c-sections have become one of the most commonly performed procedures, but we have new information that may make your reconsider. >> cold front and pressure center both coming our way. rain and snow. how much? we will tell you in a minute.

>> breaking news out of washington. president obama announced a change in policy that forced religious employers to cover birth control. let's listen in. >> we decided to follow the judgment of the nation's leading medical experts and make sure that free preventive care includes access to free contraceptive care. whether you are a teacher or a small business woman or a nurse or a janitor, and a woman's health should depend on who she is or where she works -- no woman's health should depend on who she is or where she works. every woman should be in control of the decisions that affect her own health. this basic principle is already the law in 28 states across the country. as we move to implement this rule, however, we have been

mindful that there is another principle at stake here, and that is the principle of religious liberty, and in a legal right that is enshrined in our constitution. -- and inalienable right that is enshrined in our constitution. my first job in chicago was working with catholic parishes in poor neighborhoods. my salary was funded by a grant from an arm of the catholic church. i saw the local churches often did more good for a community than a government program ever could. so i know how important the work that faith based organizations do and how much impact they can have in their communities. i also know that some religious institutions have a religious objection to directly providing insurance that covers contraceptive services for their employees. that is why we originally exempted all churches from this requirement, an exemption, by the way, that eight states did

not already have. that is why from the very beginning of this process, i spoke directly to various catholic officials, and i promised that before finalizing the rule as it applied to them, we would spend the next year working with institutions like catholic hospitals -- >> you are listening like to president obama in washington talking about a compromise being reached in policy, asking insurance providers rather than employers to cover the cost of birth control. we will continue to follow this. we will have much more tonight at 5:00 and 6:00. right now, we want to get a check on the forecast. >> none of the storm's coming in have been impressive as far as winter storm so far this year. we will see what this one does. it does not look like it will be impressive. we're beginning to see some

high, thin clouds moved in. there are a few little blips showing out in western maryland, part of west virginia. the air is pretty dry, not really hitting the ground. father was, we see some echoes of north of pittsburgh out over around a house and then back in ohio. again, that is the snow beginning to start with a little rain farther south. the leading edge of the storm is getting closer, but things look like they will stay pretty dry for us, and least for a good part of the afternoon. let's look at what temperatures -- temperatures are going to be critical for this. we had some rather mild weather a few days ago. we've bottomed out. we have been rising a little bit. temperatures will be falling as the storm is coming in, so our temperatures will be getting quite chilly. a wet storm system coming in means somebody gets some snow out of this. temperatures are fairly mild today. annapolis is 44.

28 at oakland right now. in some areas, the stage is set for snow right now. most of the thicker clouds with the moisture in them are out to the west of us. the actual cold front, one part of the storm, is back in illinois just coming to chicago right now. second part of the storm, low pressure in east texas moving into arkansas. these two parts comes together over the mid-atlantic. the storm really will not crank up and get going until it is already out over the atlantic past us, so we do not get the worst of it in this particular case, but nonetheless, as it is all coming together going over us, we are going to get something. setting the stage for snow is some of the cold air behind that cold front. way below zero in canada. there's quite a shot of cold air that will come in behind that cold front, and this week and will definitely feel winter- like. a mix of sun and clouds this afternoon, after dark, rain and snow moving in. the high today in the 40's to

near 50 degrees. futurecast shows -- it takes a while for all this to start happening. the air did not get wet and up. by 11:00 or 12:00, our snow chances and rain chances pick up. there will be a rain/snow line and baldwin this. we could see a little more snow than we got last time around, and the sentences will come in a couple of phases and continue well into saturday, maybe saturday evening, before it all settles down. sunday, a few clouds coming through. now, how much snow are we talking about? maybe an inch or a little less around the baltimore metropolitan area, but these slightly darker blue shades indicate it could get up to two or 3 inches. more than likely, that will be in pennsylvania. we may see a little more snow with this, but we will wait and see how it all develops. does not look like it will be a major problem for us. a rain/snow mixed tomorrow, better chance of higher chance of rain.

high temperatures of the weekend. 38 on saturday and 35 on sunday. the storm goes away. if we may still see flurries in the afternoon. another rain/snow makes possible tuesday. >> thank you, john. in this afternoon's medical alert, there's new evidence c- section deliveries of very small babies may not be the best thing for them and may increase their risk for breathing problems. the necessary inspections are the most common surgery for women. hundreds are performed in hospitals every day, often leading to the delivery of a perfectly healthy child. the surgery has been fine-tuned to a fault. >> people have, over time, forgotten the magnitude of the risk. >> in full term babies, that risk is breathing difficulties. doctors think there's something about the contractions of labor and going through the birth canal that allows extra fluid in the lungs to be squeezed out. >> when they are borne by c- section, they do not have that

time and process, so many times, the lungs just are not quite ready. >> doctors have thought labor and delivery might be too rough for pre-term babies growing in the uterus, but new research challenges the theory, comparing the health of pre-term babies born the birth canal with those born via c-section. >> those born be necessary and delivery had a 30% higher risk of developing respiratory problems. >> maternal fetal medicine specialists say the new research may reshape the way doctors view tiny babies. >> we should be thinking about babies that are small for gestational age as perhaps being better able to tolerate labor than we originally thought. that at least once last three of infants born in the u.s. are c-

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