endorsement of once rishle presidential candidate donald trump. but today an about face. >> no. i won't permit you to. i told you. only on topic questions so permission denied. >> christie refusing to answer questions about the endorsement and how heavy it will weigh on new jersey. we've been e-mailing his office since 9:00 asking how much time he'll campaign for trump on new jersey's clock. does he agree that new jersey taxpayers should foot the bill of his salary while he jet sets. atlantic city is on the brink of bankruptcy. christie wouldn't budge. >> i'm answering on topic questions today. because i don't want to. >> we can share that in 12 business days since christie dropped his hopes for president he held a budget address, visited a newark school, filed disaster declarations from the blizzard and honored the late justice scalia. >> seems he is more interested in furthering his own career than he is filling out his term as governor.

>> mark laggervis says he spent 241 days last year out of new jersey. >> the last time he had a town hall meeting in new jersey was nine months ago, may of last year. meanwhile, in new hampshire before the primary he had 76 town hall meetings. >> christie will take questions on radio at 7:00 but for now mum's the word. >> you know there is no shot so either you're putting on a performance for the cameras or not. no chance i'm answering those. anything else on topic. >> and governor christie will not be here at the state house tomorrow, trump's campaign managers confirm that christie will campaign with donald trump tomorrow when we asked christie when will be the next on topic press conference here in new jersey, he said today, that's off topic. live in trenton, cydney long, "nbc 10 news." >> get her out of here. get her out. get her out. get her out.

>> a rally for donald trump turns rowdy in virginia. protesters interrupted the candidate several times, many thrown out. and that was just the beginning. take a look at this. this is new video showing a news photographer getting into an altercation with the secret service. you can see right there at the bottom of your screen, the agent grab him by the throat and throw him to the ground. here is a better look at that from the ground. the man was detained and later released. now the chaos comes a day before the all-important super tuesday, 12 states whose votes could alter the course of the presidential campaign. marco rubio threw fresh drabs at donald trump as he made stops in a number of key states. the florida senator made a shortstop shift from policy to personal attacks. senator ted cruz is defending

his home turf in texas campaigning across the state in a bid to win its huge delegate prize on super tuesday. polling in texas shows cruz widening the gap now leading trump there by 10 points. a confident hillary clinton is focusing more on the republican candidates than her opponent. clinton spoke at a rally where she blasted what she called the scapegoating of the republican presidential candidates. >> and bernie sanders campaigns in minneapolis today searching for a win after his shellacking by clinton saturday in south carolina. the vermont senator says he can win the caucus state of minnesota tomorrow if turnout is high enough. 13 states will hold contests for super tuesday, alaska, wyoming, colorado, oklahoma, texas, minnesota, tennessee, arkansas, alabama, georgia, virginia, vermont, and massachusetts. >> and we're less than two

months from pennsylvania and delaware's primaries on april 26. new jersey's primary is not until june 7. police say it is the most organized crime ring they have ever seen and it's hit in just about all 50 states including here in our area. talking about the felony lane gang, targeting victims outside fitness centers and preschools. nbc 10 told me about these 10 days ago. since then police have investigated at least three more cases, they say could be linked to the gang. two of them were today. we find deanna durante. police say catching these thieves really is a lot tougher than you might think. >> reporter: they say those thieves are watching you, now here at this park today we saw a number of people hitting the trails, not one had their purse or briefcase. police tell us that people think if they throw the purses or

bags, cover them up, that's enough. the problem is those thieves are watching what you are doing and they are moving in fast. >> my locker, a lot of times i use my car like today. it's in there and i worry the whole time i'm in the gym that somebody's going to break in. >> beth says she is guilty of leaving personal belongings in her car, not always hiding them. she never heard of the felony lane gang. but police have. >> these gangs will break windows to get the items they need. >> reporter: police say an attempt to steal from a daycare center the cars in the parking lot was thwarted this morning after an alert worker spotted someone who didn't belong. the warning tonight from police, is strong. >> if you're in a daycare, dropping your child off and you see something, your best bet is be the best witness you cannot to get involved. they certainly don't care about you. >> we found a list of victims from reading to ocean city.

>> felt very violated. they took my social security. my daughter's. debit cards, credit karsd. >> kelly was walking on a trail when thieves broke the window and took her personal information. another victim who had no idea this gang was not only targeting the area but across the country. this is video from missouri a suspected thief using a stolen atm card. it's posted open the felony lane gang task force facebook page, a national task force taken to social media to warn you about the thieves. police are pleading not to leave anything in your car. advice kelly wishes she heard before. >> it's terrible to say. that's how the world is. >> reporter: many of these krips though they may be harder to find the people responsible for them, they are all avoidable. don't leave anything in your car, don't leave it out where it can be scene and if you are a victim, many police agencies telling us tonight make sure you file a police report.

reporting live deanna durante, "nbc 10 news." >> new at 6:00, a veteran new jersey state trooper claims state police increased the academy's vdiversity ignoring background checks. she was reassigned and denied a promotion when she flagged applicants with criminal records. nbc 10 spoke with a spokesman who says he cannot comment on the lawsuit but he does say state police have dedicated more people to the recruiting process and they put a lot of effort into recruiting qualified and diverse applicants. city health officials confirm the first case of zika virus in philadelphia. the it is a 60-year-old woman, who recently travelled to the caribbean where she contracted the virus. the woman was never hospitalized and is already recovering. in pennsylvania there have been five confirmed cases of the virus linked to severe birth defects. two in new jersey and one case

of the confirmed virus in delaware. >> a panel of judges grilled lawyers in the corruption case involving new jersey senator bob menendez. his lawyers argued that charges against the senator should be dropped due to constitutional protections for sitting lawmakers. menendez is accused of taking gifts and campaign contributions in exchange for political favors, he's pleaded not guilty. the ruling could take several weeks. >> your afternoon pick me up could get more expensive in philadelphia that's if a new proposed texas on sugary drinks like soda goes through. philadelphia mayor jim kenney has propose add soda tax that is three cents per ounce, an extra 36 cents on a 12-ounce can of soda. diet sodas would not be taxed. former mayor michael nutter proposed the 2 cents per ounce tax during his administration but that tax never made it to a vote. mayor kenney says it will help raise money to pay for pre-k and

parks and recs centers in the city. >> i want to do what's right for our kids and our neighborhoods. and if this is the way we'll see whether or not everyone agrees or not. >> the tax would be on distributors, the american beverage association and the teamsters have come out strongly against the idea. happening now, residents protesting a proposed power plant in middle town. it would be along route 301. the group says they sent a petition with hundreds of signatures to the mayor and town council asking for a public information meeting. so far they say that request has been denied. 14 years in jail, that's the punishment handed out to kyery gaye involved in the kidnapping and torture of a store employee. he learned his fate a short time ago. he was sentenced for his role in last year's botched robbery attempt at the national watch and diamond exchange. he and two other men admitted to

kidnapping a female employee in a parking garage last april. slew captured the three approaching the woman, the men attacked her with a stun gun, they bound her and dumped her in a cemetery. the mastermind was sentenced to 30 years behind bars, his accomplice received a 15-year sentence. >> taking action against drug overdoses. the district attorney announced an enhanced charge seeking to punish drug dealers whose clients die. it's called drug delivery resulting in death. it's been filed against one accused drug dealer. >> we're seeing more and more of these deaths a lot of the deaths have been heroin and we certainly have a heroin problem, as i outlined in my last press conference. but we can't lose sight of the fact other drugs like methamphetamine are also making a comeback. >> this comes a month after the

d.a. announced a crackdown on dealers whose drugs kill. tomorrow more than 300 local police departments in pennsylvania will be recognized for carrying the drug. the programs and others will be in harrisburg. officers across the state reversed nearly 650 oppose adoverdoses in little more than a year. >> she is spreading a message of diversity and inclusion. next on "nbc 10 news" at 6:00, our celebration of black history month continues with kelly cornish. >> plus, demolition day for this eyesore in the lehigh valley community. how the building fell apart and the impact construction will have on other businesses. >> pretty warm start to march but winter isn't over yet. i'm tracking a drop in temperatures and a chance for snow. in my exclusive first alert

seven-day forecast. ♪ i had an injury to my neck. it wasn't as serious injury it was a herniated disc. anything that could go wrong went wrong. i've been in the hospital twenty three times since. the bills started to pile up. i had nothing to give. we had nothing in the refrigerator. i would be dead

and not sitting here right now if it wasn't for pond lehocky.

cleanup evidents continue in northampton county. crews worked to stabilize this building on bang street today. the building sustained heavy damage during last week's storms. officials say it could take a week to tear down but

surrounding businesses won't be affected during construction. and look at the repairs volunteers made on an amish farm after last wednesday's tornado. on the left is destruction after the storm, on the right sky force 10 over the scene. the roof is complete. what a difference. most of that debris has been cleared. >> nbc 10's celebration of black history month continues right now at 6:00. you may not know her name but kelly cornish is a history maker. jim gives us a closer look at the woman helping make companies more diverse and inclusive for 20 years. >> i always say any time either the supreme court meets or you have controversy in entertain it or anything like that they point right back to the diversity and inclusion. >> kelly is at the top of her game when it comes to diversity. she worked with some of the biggest names in health care. at 24 she began her career as a

marketing specialist in florida, but that quickly changed. >> been there about a year and a half and got tapped to do interim role. >> now in philadelphia her work has gone from helping create diverse work places to making them inclusive. >> we're all in a room that's great but it's i use the term if there is air of dismissive behavior people feel. okay you're toll rating me. >> african-americans were fighting for the right to eat at the same counter as a white person and for kids to be able to go to school with white children. >> i know personally with myself and my children that we would not have the opportunities that we have if it were not people who shed blood. >> find out the real reason why you want to leave. >> when cornish is not doing her day job she is giving back to her community by coaching people to help them climb the corporate ladder, she's also a public

speaker and author. >> i live every day to transfer knowledge. >> what an incredible lady. kelly cornish is taking the 99 tips she gives people at work to excel and is passing them on to the public. she has written a book called it's work, how will you show up. >> is an officer attacked and robbed. tonight, chance harvey accused of doing both. a wawa robbery. police say he hit an officer as they tried to arrest him. tarpy accused of using a crow bar. two of the holdups happened last night. >> ladies listen up. if you are tired of waiting for your guy to pop the question today could be your lucky day. according to an old irish tradition on leap day women are empowered to pop the question to their reluctant suitor. so mcgillen's ale house is offering $100 gift card to the

first five women who come in and publicly propose at the bar. so far no one has gotten down on bended knee. you know what, there is still time. even though we're headed into march there is time to get snow around here. we often see snow at least some portion of march. and we could see some before the end of the week. but not tomorrow. it's still spring like. then we get rain tuesday night and later in the week that's when we see the chance for snow. we have clear skies right now. it's been windy all afternoon. it's gusting up to 24 miles an hour now. but that's not as fast as it was even one hour ago. we had pretty cold weather on friday and saturday. and then jump way up on sunday to 64, today 64 as well. it is no longer 64, down to 54 and in the 40s north and west. so it's cooling off pretty fast

during the night. plus we have the wind on top of it. making it feel colder. but you notice the wind is diminishing especially north and west down to 8 miles an hour in pottstown. very little wind by morning. the dry air is here, though. sunshine, much of the day tomorrow. this is the next system is going to be affecting us by tomorrow night. and it's going to be rain. the temperature tomorrow morning barely down to the freezing mark in parts of the area. that's not very cold for this time of the year. then we go into the 50s, above average. well above average for most places, during the day tomorrow. by late tomorrow evening, overnight, it's warm and it's wet. but the rain moves out. if not by 6:00 a.m., maybe sooner. and it starts off fairly mild. temperatures go down during the day on wednesday. that sets us up for this next storm and the track is going to

be critical, some of the models bringing it far enough north so that we get snow out of it. especially delaware and south jersey, closer to the center of the storm. after that track. but we give you an update 11:00 tonight with new data coming in. clear and colder with wind diminishing, 39 for the low in philadelphia. 33 north and west. tomorrow a lot of sunshine during the day, the clouds come in late and the rain comes in at night. not much wind tomorrow. but we really pick up the wind on wednesday. we start off closer to 50 and then temperatures fall to 40 during the day. it's cold on thursday, and then the chance of snow on friday, again especially delaware and south jersey. there is a chance of accumulation too. and then cold saturday before another big warm-up. >> i'm john clark. we'll tell you how long the flyers will be without jake voracek. could the eagles work to a closer deal with sam bradford.

i'm john clark. flyers, they did not make any moves at the nhl trade deadline. the gm said he will not sacrifice the future for now. jake voracek is going to miss two weeks with a lower body injury. the flyers had injuries this season but he believes this team can be a playoff team as is. he is being patient with his plan. >> i think we're right on course. i'd like to be 4 points up right

now, but in terms of the dropped picks and the prospects and thing we have i think we're right on track. i'd like to add to our forward group of prospects. we will at this draft. >> the flyers will induct jimmy watson into the hall of fame tonight. he was a five-time all-star, he will join his brother in the team's hall of fame. >> it's just a tremendous honor, came to philadelphia in 1972, just trying to make a hockey team. from there it kind of took off. my career took off and then you know, we won a stanley cup the first year for gosh sakings, we follow up with a second one. >> on to the sixers, no jahlil okafor in washington. he hurt his shin last night. brett brown expects him back wednesday. sixers lost eight in a row. since the all-star break they average giving up 120 points a game. not good. not competing like they were before the break and brett brown

not happy about their efforts. >> for the most part i feel like we gained the respect of the league that we play hard. we haven't done that much since the all-star break. i don't know why. but that's a fact. and that's hard to swallow. it's completely unacceptable. >> is he is not happy. eagles have until 4:00 team put the franchise tag on sam bradford. a feeling they are working toward a deal. villanueva dropped to 3. look at the honda classic yesterday. gary woodland stuck in the mud, so he took them off. he hit his shot in his briefs. he wasn't wearing the tidy whiteys. i'm john clark. back after this.

>> the final look. >> pretty mild tomorrow. rain tomorrow night. and then actually, cold enough for a chance of snow by friday.

>> next on "nbc nightly news" lester holt what could be causing our junk food cravings. tonight the klan controversy exploding around donald trump after refusing to condemn the kkk's former leader. what he's saying now and what we found him saying years ago. plus, tensions boil over at trump's rally, and tonight some republican leaders are scrambling to stop him. school shooting emergency. all-out chaos as police say a 14-year-old suddenly opened fire in the cafeteria. taking the stand, an emotional erin andrews tells the jury about her hotel nightmare as a stalker secretly taped her and posted the video for the world to see. craving sleep. a wake-up call tonight for millions struggling to lose weight and trying to get more rest. and hollywood rocked as controversy takes center stage at the oscars.