now. [captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> good morning. i'm mindy basara. >> and i'm stan stovall. thank you for joining us this morning. >> it will be another warm day today. it is in the upper 40's right now. anytime you start in the upper 40's in february, it will be above average. 49 at the airport right now. no rain to content with with the morning commute. we have a chance for a rain shower or sprinkle later today. most of the one not see it. high temperature of 63. we will come back and check the forecast going into the weekend. first we say good morning to sarah. >> good morning. let's check your commute. looking pretty good. on the west side, no problems.

looking good on the north side as you make your way towards the harrisburg expressway. problem free on the j.f.x. into town. the rest of the major roadways are cooperating. eight minutes on 895 south to the harbor tunnel tolls. 12 minutes to travel on the outer loop west side down to 95 on the south side. captain roy taylor and we start with 95 south of 32. southbound traffic is building in howard county. we'll show you what it looks like. this is 95 at 695. so far we're running smoothly. you can see a buildup in volume in the southbound direction heading down to the beltway. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11.

>> guilty is the verdict in the murder trial of george huguely. >> it took little time to convict him of second-degree murder in the death of yeardley love. lowell melser has emotional reaction to the volatile trial. >> it took the jury about nine hours to find george huguely guilty of second-degree murder and grand larceny, sentencing him to 26 years in prison. huguely crossed himself before that verdict was read. both attorneys now reacting to the verdict. >> there is nothing that we can say that will make good the terrible and tragic loss to the love family. there are no winners in this case. there is nothing but loss everywhere. >> we are of course disappointed with this verdict, but we've been proud to

represent george in his fight for fairness over the last couple of years. he has the support of a loving family. he has displayed amazing resilience and courage. >> after deliberating about nine hours, a jury of his peers felt that there was enough evidence to convict the former u-va lacrosse player with second-degree murder in the killing of yeardley love. sharon love and her sister lexie testified about how grief-stricken they remain. sharon love told the court through tears about her daughter. "every day that goes by i am afraid i am losing pieces of her." love was found by her roommates back on may 3 of 2010 in her off-campus apartment face-down on her bed, her head resting on a pillow in a pool of her own blood. the prosecution presented a case that huguely, after

spending the day before in a drunk haze, went to love's apartment that night, busted through her bedroom door, and in some way struck her, causing blunt-force trauma, which led to her death. the defense tried its best to say the death was an accident, never denying huguely went to love's apartment. it seems in some way the jury believed that huguely never intended to kill her. the 26-year prison term is a recommended sentence by the jury. in the coming months, the judge will reconvene once again to either ok that sentence or knock it down. i'm lowell melser, wbal-tv 11 news. >> junius doubt discuss some of the specifics is an attorney. thank you so much for coming in. the jury when with second-degree murder. >> i think it was a reasonable compromise. there was evidence of

premeditation and evidence that he was intoxicated. manslaughter was probably a little low. second-degree was probably a reasonable compromise. >> the jury came back with 26 years for the six convictions. how likely will they be to stick with the recommendations? >> in maryland, the jury does not make a recommendation for sentencing. they do in virginia. historically, the judges give the sentence about the same thing. i do not think he will knock it down. he has a reputation of being more defense-oriented. >> the deliberations were relatively quick. >> they were.

i predicted two to three days of deliberation. the 37 counts and a couple weeks of evidence is a lot to work through. maybe because they're all for three days everybody spent more time thinking about it. nine hours is fairly quick. >> there is a possibility for appeal. how does this work? do they file the appeal right away? >> you have to file the appeal within a certain amount of time. that time does not start until there is a final judgment. that appeal process will start after cable 16. -- after april 16? basically on appeal you're putting the trial judge on trial. you are trying to show the judge made a legal rulings.

one of eight is overturned on appeal. >> why do think this case captured the attention of the nation? >> they are two good-looking kids. the classic things of the boy- girl, love-hate. they were both athletes. >> and the issue of domestic violence. >> we're seeing a little of the penn state issue where we realize that people kind of sweep things under the rug. there was a lot known about his conduct and a half to get through the championship and then we will deal with some of that after may. >> thank you so much for coming in. you can subscribe to breaking news e-mail alerts. you can sign up for free and to

see an interactive timeline of the case. if you know someone in an abusive relationship, you can help them. find out how on wbaltv.com. >> the state senate is expected to take up the debate and of allowing same-sex marriage in maryland. it was delayed on wednesday. mike miller does not believe any of the senators have changed their position on the issue since last year's vote. >> matters of life and death up for debate in the general assembly. jennifer franciotti joins us with the growing concerns over the death penalty. >> a coalition of clergy urged legislatures to repeal the death penalty law making life in prison without parole the harshest punishment. religious representatives all gathered on lawyers mall.

they presented the assembly with a letter signed by more than 200 clergy members, urging action by the legislature to end capital punishment in maryland. >> the idea behind the death penalty is that we can kill our way out of a culture of violence. when the state sponsors killing, it loses its moral voice to say that others do not kill. we can kill but you can kill. that is not the way to build a peaceful, just society. >> religious leaders are asking state house leaders to bring the issue up for a vote this year. reporting live, jennifer franciotti, wbal-tv 11 news. >> thank you. 52 degrees on tv hill. good news when it comes to job growth in maryland. >> a bloody day in iraq as the violence escalates. >> a virginia lawmaker waters

down a controversial abortion bill. >> moonlighting with ava continues today at the national aquarium. i spend some quality time with a dolphin and the bowl constrictor. >> we will take a look at your morning commute. morning commute. working in public relations is not for the faint of heart. i love what i do, i enjoy the work, but it's a very hectic pace. strayer university met my needs

in terms of my family, my work-life balance. the fact that leading companies are hiring strayer graduates is impressive, but it's not surprising. these companies want us so badly. i'm felicia blow, and i earned my mba from strayer university. >> good morning.

this is a sunrise few from the chopper. a beautiful shot as the sun is inching its way over the horizon. that is not far from where i am as we continue our series, moonlighting with ava, this time at the national aquarium. i got up close and personal with some interesting animals. it is not every day you get to paet a dolphin or feet and octopus, -- or feed an octopus. my first task was to check in on the dolphins' s. the trainers teach them to do

many tricks. most of these tricks help the trainers do their job, like teaching the dolphin to open its mouth to check their teeth and gums. >> good girl! we get close tabs on what the normal body condition looks like and the normal behavior and appetite. >> each dollar but eats between 18 and 35 pounds of fish per day -- each dolphin. the learning process goes both ways. >> it is an amazing process and to be a part of their lives and to learn from them. >> next we stopped by the birds and reptiles. the parrot was it when you blow bubbles for her. she loves the brazil nut.

then it was time to feed the bearded dragon. his favorite meal -- live crickets. then i spent some time with a bowl constrictor. -- both constricta constrictor. >> we have rules here in case he gets a little excited. he likes to play tug-of-war, just like a dog. >> wow. he was a picky eater. his favorite food is crab. he's a true marylander. to an end tomorrow -- tune in tomorrow. we will go for a swim with the

sting rays. it was strange feeling the octopus. he was quite powerful. we'll go back to tony. >> you were brave. what was that like/ >> i felt every single muscle in his body squeezing around me. >> one time a bigger one was brought into the studio and it started wrapping itself around me in the chair. it took three people to get this off of me. >> instinct. >> thank you. glad you're having so much fun at the aquarium. that is a baltimore gem. 49 at the airport. -- i think i was just in

sulted. it is a warm start for us this morning with partly cloudy skies. we could see a couple of sprinkles trying to develop over the mountains. there is a cold front that will slide over towards baltimore. i will put a 30% chance for a rain shower. most of you will have a dry day. there will be a sunshine mixing in, kind of like yesterday. a mixture of sun and clouds. 30% chance for rain shower. high temperatures between 60 and 65, way above average for this time of year. the average high temperature is 47 and we are already there. we will not break any records. partly cloudy tonight as temperatures drop back into the 40's.

60's tomorrow. we will see some scattered storms and thunderstorms. temperatures back into the 40's on saturday and it will be windy. we'll stay in the 40's after the beginning of next week. back to winter over the weekend. 6:18. >> all that smack you talk about ava is bound to come back. 50 miles on the west side just past 795. 57 around the late in the outer loop. 49 towards the airport on telegraph road. ofll update you on some archemorus. -- will update you on some of

our cameras. captain roy is flying over the harrisburg expressway. volume is building at this hour approaching the beltway and on the outer loop over towards the harrisburg expressway. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> thank you. a string of explosions in baghdad killed more than 30 people. this was a car bomb blast that killed at least nine people. ook.dings were ship six police officers were killed in the soon the area of northern baghdad -- in the sunni area. the new version pass in the lower house would require an external ultrasound rather than having the ultrasound wand inserted into the woman's

uterus. free speech or fraud? the issue of lying about military honors. it is illegal to lie about the congressional medal of honor. a california man said his life was nothing more than an expression of free speech. that brings us to our water cooler question of the day. do you think it should be illegal to lie about a military medal or is it free speech? you can share your response at wbaltv.com and on our facebook page, or send us an e-mail to watercooler@wbaltv.com. 6:20. 50 degrees on tv hill. we have the look of the roads before you head out to start your morning commute. >> it is about to get more crowded at orioles' training camp in sarasota today. keith mills has the new additions to the pitching staff. >> here is a look at last

night's winning maryland lottery numbers.

>> now traffic pulse 11 and insta-weather plus together. >> good morning. sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute. not too bad out there. let's check some of the roads. 56 on the north side around

dulaney valley. showing signs of a sluggish traffic on the west side, 46 just past 795. looking good on 70 in towards the beltway. no delays on the b-w parkway. 68 on southbound 97 down towards route 3. we will update you on the northeast corner at belair road. so far so good. more volume on the inner loop as you make your approach to 95. this is where the beltway meets reisterstown road. so far we're problem free on the major roadways. we will be checking for problems all morning. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> good morning. we're awfully quiet start on this thursday morning. no precipitation. 49 in catonsville. 52 degrees downtown. a mild start.

a mixture of sun and clouds. we will make it into the low 60's this afternoon. we have a chance for a rain shower letter today. i think we'll get to the morning commute with no rain. we'll come back and check the seven-day forecast. here is keith mills. >> good morning. we begin with the ravens and the number 52. that means ray lewis. that is also the number of coaches and front office staff the ravens have hall to indianapolis. 52 coaches, scouts, and members. i wonder if you're the 53rd person and the left you home. the rest of the team joins pitchers and catchers in sarasota. jason hammel came over from colorado in the german guthrie trade. jason is expected to be among the orioles starters.

he wants to make life easier for the rotation and the bullpen. >> i want to be the guy to give the bullpen the day off. you cannot control wins and losses but you can eat up some innings. my goal will be to get to 200 innings. >> another sellout crowd at the guard in new york as the new york knicks hammered the atlanta hawks. leads the knicks. 17 points, nine assists. they expand the lead to 25 at the break. the knicks win. here is something in new york that mickey mantle or a joe namath or derek jeter it didn't

do. never were they on the cover of "sports illustrated" in back-to- back weeks. jeremy lin did it. >> 6:26. 50 degrees on tv hill. the baltimore mother behind bars accused of stabbing her son. >> the 20's and perhaps final republican debate and it was a heated. >> death penalty takes center stage in annapolis. >> sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute. we have captain roy up in skyteam 11. some brake lights on southbound 795. that is not the only delay we're seeing. >> we will check the s

>> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today. >> good morning, everybody. welcome back to 11 news today. i'm stan stovall. >> and i'm mindy basara. thank you for joining us this morning. is it a good day for a run or some golf/

>> it is never a bad day for golf. in the upper 40's to around 50 to start today. we have a chance for a rain shower later this morning or this afternoon, 30%. otherwise partly cloudy with a high near 63. we'll come back and check the seven forecast going into the weekend. some big changes just around the corner. >> the gop presidential hopefuls faced off for the last time to for some pivotal contest in michigan and arizona. >> kate amara has the highlights. >> good morning. rick santorum spent most of last night on the defensive. >> ladies and gentlemen, the republican candidates for president of the united states.

>> the 20th gop presidential debate was a heated one. the four contenders sparring over health care, spending, and bailouts. riding a surge in the polls, rick santorum took heat from all sides, with mitt romney leading the charge. >> senator, during your term in congress, the years you've been there, government has doubled in size. you voted to raise the debt ceiling five times without compensating cuts in spending. >> santorum fought back, attacking romney for creating a health care plan in massachusetts and for supporting the wall street bailout. >> and then when it came to the autoworkers and the folks in detroit, he said no. that to me is not a consistent principled position. i had one. i believe in markets, not just when their convenient. -- not just when they are convenient. >> ron paul also challenged santorum, going so far as to call him a phony conservative. >> you have a new television ad that labels him a fake. why? >> because he's a fake. [laughter] >> unreal, ron. unreal. >> congratulations.

>> unreal. thank you. >> all four candidates criticized president obama for his handling of iran. >> and i believe this is the most dangerous president on national security grounds in american history. >> last night's debate could be the last one of the primary season. kate amara, wbal-tv 11 news. >> a mother wakes up behind bars, accused of stabbing her son. net as smith is charged with first and second-degree assault. police say she stabbed the boy in the leg on wednesday at the home in pikesville. his injuries were not life- threatening. social services is investigating. >> the search continues for to wo men. police have released these surveillance pictures of the suspect.

there was a robbery at the royal farms in hamilton. >> the return of the baltimore grand prix. a new five-year deal was approved with down force racing. the city terminated their contract with another corporation. jack young voted against the deal. thousands of people using city water are getting inaccurate bills. more than 30,000 people were overbuilds. illed. other homes have not received a bill of all. the mayor blames her predecessors for not updating the system sooner. one that jumped into a pool --

why not jump into a pool/ >> that is what ava marie did. what a fun gig. >> it was a fun day. tomorrow i will show my time in the austral rate exhibit and my time spent with the stingrays -- in the australian exhibit. today we're showing you the dolphins and the octopus. they are preparing a lot of the food. cleaning up after them. you can imagine how often they have to clean up after the animals. they have to get the animals to voluntarily do what they need to do to make sure they are ok. how you train a dolphin? not quite like training a dog.

i will show you the process. let's check the seven-day forecast. 50 degrees downtown heading into the 60's today. a slight chance for a shower. most areas will stay dry bank. a call from passers-by -- most areas will stay at dry. dropping below normal this weekend into the 40's. >> word of an accident southbound on 895. you may start to see some delays. northbound 95, another accident location task caton avenue -- passed caton avenue.

starting to see a slowdown on the westbound outer loop that continues down towards liberty. pretty soon it will be stretching down towards edmondson. this is 795 at franklin boulevard. traffic is backed up pretty heavily. those delays continue. this is traffic, on 95 near at 395. nothing major going on from right to left is that ramp on inbound 395 heading into town. watch for delays forming on southbound 895 as you make way just past 95 on the northeast side. we will keep you posted. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> thank you. 6:36. 50 degrees on tv hill. the new security concerns involving smart phones. >> we are still taking your answers to our water cooler question of the day. do you think it should be illegal to lie about a military medal or is it free speech?

you can share your response at wbaltv.com and on our facebook page, or send us an e-mail to watercooler@wbaltv.com.

>> identity thieves are targeting your smart phone. so smart phones and social media

fueled the rise in identity fraud last year. the 12 million americans were victims of identity theft last year. identities thieves are targeting smart phones and social media. if you like to fix things yourself, and chances are your neighbors do, too. jane king has the bloomberg business report. >> more job growth in maryland. about 100 new workers locally over the next 12 months as they expand the commercial side of their business. repositions include software engineers and even a web content and social media specialists. the pope putting out one papal tweet a day during lent.

many of the ideas can be expressed in under 140 characters. jeremy lin putting in a patent on the word "linsanity." we did have a lower close for stocks yesterday. concern about europe weighing on things. the baltimore area ranks eighth in the city's most likely to do yourself. americans want to save money by tackling their own home improvement projects. i'm jane king for wbal-tv 11 news. >> we're number 8.

i like the smell things my self. still ahead, your answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> a mild day today but the changes coming up in the seven- day forecast. a beautiful sunrise. stay tuned. stay tuned.

>> welcome back to 11 news today. police are investigating a pair of late-night shootings. the most recent happened around 11:30 last night on north highland avenue. a 19-year-old was injured after being followed by a group of people.

another incident brought police to north caroline street. a victim was shot multiple times. the state senate is expected to take up the debate over allowing same-sex marriage in maryland. debate was delayed yesterday. mike miller says he does not believe any senators have changed their view on the issue. is it free speech or is it fraud? the u.s. supreme court will talk about lying over military honors. a california law made it illegal to lie about winning medals. a california man was prosecuted under that law. he said his client was nothing

more than an expression of free speech. >> that brings us to your answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> this morning we asked -- do you think it should be illegal to lie about a military medal or is it free speech? >> we will post more of your answers on the front page of wbaltv.com. >> lawmakers in annapolis are discussing life and death as the question of the death penalty laws comes up for debate. jennifer franciotti is live with more on that story. >> religious opponents signed a letter urging the repeal of that law.

it was a letter that was circulated to all members of the general assembly. >> we shall appeal to your heart and your conscience. >> a coalition of clergy urged legislators to repeal the death penalty law making life in prison without parole the harshest punishment. religious representatives from catholic, jewish, presbyterian, and episcopalian communities all gathered on lawyers mall. they presented the assembly with a letter signed by more than 200 clergy members urging action by the legislature to end capital punishment in maryland. >> the idea behind the death penalty is that we can kill our way out of a culture of violence. when the state sponsors killing, it loses its moral voice to say that others do not kill. we can kill but you can kill. that is not the way to build a peaceful, just society. >> religious leaders are asking state house leaders to bring this issue up for a vote this year. jennifer franciotti reporting live. now back to you.

>> now traffic pulse 11 and insta-weather plus together. >> good morning. sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute. right now we are tracking one accident of note but that is just a fender bender and not having a major impact on traffic. 32 miles per hour on southbound 95. starting to see those normal delays out of the white marsh area. moving pretty well over towards the west side. that is when you start to slow down, 27 miles per hour. those delays continue down towards edmondson. this is the area of the j.f.x. and ruxton road. southbound traffic running smoothly until you get to northern parkway and you begin to tap the brakes. this is a live picture from captain roy. you can see the accident on 895.

just a bit of a delay as you travel southbound on eastern avenue. 95 looks pretty good in contrast. take that to avoid this. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. now we get the latest from ava marie who was moonlighting this week and we are enjoying your series. you are at the aquarium. >> it has been quite a week. i'm at the national aquarium. you have the tune in tomorrow for the second part. very interesting working behind the scenes at the aquarium. they have a wide array of animals. you can imagine what it is like to work with so many animals. they do well being checks on the animals, making sure the animals are ok.

how do you get the animals to cooperate? very hard work. the best thing is to teach them a different tricks that allow you to check them out. teach them to open their mouths. they do this training with them every day. this keeps the animals and the trainers happy. this is so neat. the octopus was quite strong. they work in pairs of two with the octopus. we saw so many different animals. it was a lot of fun. they do a lot of hard work cleaning up after the animals. such a neat day at the national aquarium.

tomorrow i will be swimming with the stingrays. you'll have to check that out. pretty neat. >> you are playing with all kinds of animals -- dolphins, boa constrictors. which one of the animals surprised you the most? >> i think i was most afraid of the stingrays. i felt the most deplorable. the animal-- i felt the most vulnerable. the animal -- you can fill the suction -- you can feel the section. uction. >> that is a great place. 49 at the airport.

45 in parkton. a very mild start for us this time of year. there are some sprinkles out towards the mountains. we should have a dry morning commute. we have a 3% chance for rain showers later today -- we have a 30% chance. a mixture of sun and clouds. chance for a couple of rain showers, 30%. high temperature between 60 and 65 degrees. we will not break any records. the record high is 78. partly cloudy tonight. temperatures drop back into the 40 plus. big changes coming up -- temperature drop back into the 40's.

we will be in the 60's on friday. low 40's on saturday. it will be kind of wendy. -- it will be kind of windy. 40 degrees on saturday. >> time now for a last look at one of our big stories. a guilty verdict in the trial of george huguely. he is accused of murdering yeardley love. lowell melser has reaction. >> and emotional ending to an emotional case. >> it took the jury about nine hours to find george huguely guilty of second-degree murder and grand larceny, sentencing him to 26 years in prison. huguely crossed himself before that verdict was read. the 26 years is a recommendation to the judge for the sentencing.

the judge will reconvene and talk to the lawyers and it will be up to him to keep the recommended prison term or knocked it down. lowell melser, wbal-tv 11 news. >> 50 degrees on tv hill. >> coming up, we'll take a last look at weather and traffic before you head out to start your day.

>> what is the latest on 895? >> it is is still in the

clearing stages and causing a bit of a backup. folks of slowing down to take a look. 26 miles per hour on the west side from 795 down to edmondson. there is a backup on 795 just prior to the beltway. there is a disabled vehicle. 83 at padonia, southbound traffic not that all. normally we see delays down to the beltway. a little light on 95 as folks tried to avoid 895. >> i'm going surfing. you'll hit the links. >> 83 degrees for high temperature today. we have a chance for rain, 30%. kind of like yesterday. big changes over the weekend. >> surf is up on the jones falls.

>> thanks for joining us for 11 news today. >> we will be back with a live update at 7:25. update at 7:25. a beautiful morning out denny's new sizzlin' skillets are here for a limited time. so strike while the iron's hot. starting at $4.99. only at denny's. america's diner is always open. can i have the definition? swapportunity: the opportunity to swap a higher calorie snack for a yoplait light. can you use it in a sentence? mmm. swapping a 300 calorie donut for this 110 calorie strawberry shortcake is a good swapportunity. that's not a real word. oh haha it's real. [ female announcer ] delicious, creamy, yoplait light.

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