>> i'm jennifer leigh. >> i'm josh benson. thanks for being with us tonight. 8 on your side say found out some important sculptures are in storage. they are to help identify victims. lindsey mastis has the story. >> reporter: i'm at the courthouse. i want to show you where these sculptures used to identify unknown victims are being kept. follow me. they are deep.

in the state attorney's office. behind lock and key. here they are. stored in a vacant office. there is very little chance that friends and family would be able to see these. and recognize them. these sculptures could help solve nine cases. artists modeled each one from remains discovered in tampa bay. >> you could have a million people see it. if it is not the right person, it will not make a difference. >> reporter: kathlene knows what the families of these unknowns are going through. her dad george went missing in citrus county florida 11 years ago. >> he was just a good guy. he would help anybody. he would do anything for anybody. >> she just found out phones recovered are his. bones are his. >> i needed an answer of where he was. maybe i will never know how he died.

i have to live with. but at least i have him back. >> reporter: thousands of family ins florida are wondering what happened to their loved ones which is why it is unfathomable that these sculptures have not found a home. >> what we need is public awareness. >> reporter: where should these busts be? state attorney mark over is open to ideas. they need to be on display in high traffic areas but they are fragile and need to be protected. >> it could help catch a killer. >> reporter: we are putting pictures of the skulltures and artifacts on our website wfla.com. take a look and share them. let's bring closure to their families. in tampa, lindsey mastis, newschannel8. >> even though the remains have been discovered or recovered in the tampa bay area, some of these victims could have come from out of state.

you can see where each body was recovered. please share the story on social media and you could help solve one of these cases. and right now, marco rubio is in sarasota. the republican presidential candidate is talking to supporters as we speak. and newschannel8's john rogers joins us now live at that rally in sarasota. how is it going so far john? >> reporter: hey there josh. good evening to you. it is a pretty packed house. you can take a look. marco rubio is spoking at this moment talking about how he plans to reform the va. he is seen as an underdog at points. but he says he has played the role of underdog before. when he ran for senate here a number of years back. he is optimistic he can make up this ground. he is criss-crossing the state, setting himself apart from trump.

saying he will be fighting for the second amendment. he will be fighting for limited government. giving more power to the states. let's take a listen to what rubio had to say. >> you will have a president for the first time in eight years that believes the federal above is supposed to be a limited government. that most of the problems don't come from government. if government has a role to play, it's at the state level. you will have a president who believes and follows the tenth amendment and returns power to the states. >> reporter: rubio is hopeful he will be able to gain some delegates in tonight's primaries going on across the country. i asked him earlier about the recent cnn report that some staffers are asking him to bow out. he says it is lies. cnn cannot identify the

prepared to go all the way. >> definitely ramping up the campaign a week away from that important must win florida primary. john, thanks so much. a lake whales man is in critical condition. 29-year-old david brian was with his niece on state road 60. their car ran out of gas and brian was trying to push it out of the way. and that's when he was hit. investigators say the driver, oliver simons jr. of tampa was not impaired at the time. but they found marijuana and drugs in his car. he is now facing drug charges. sarasota deputies arrested a man caught on camera stealing purses from women at a nightclub. here is a surveillance video from the beach club in siesta key. the man in the middle grabs a woman's purse from right off the bar and slips away. that is 23-year-old raymond console. he stole six purses the night of february 27.

victims who have not yet come forward. governor rick scott could soon sign a bill that would hit abortion clinics with tougher rules. capital bureau reporter matt galka tells us more. >> reporter: senate democrats trying to tack on amendments to derail the legislation. >> this would say if you are a provider you can still provide services to make sure that we have birth control. >> reporter: it puts new restrictions on abortion clinics around this state and increases inspection requirements. it already cleared the florida house so amendments would potentially have kept it from reaching the governor's desk. >> all opposed? >> no. >> not adopted. >> reporter: senators on both sides got heated when the conversation turned forward victims of rape and incest. senator jeff clemness called out colleagues who would not support an amendment for funding to go toward victims.

do for women who have been through very, very difficult times. >> reporter: but his comment was not well received by supporters of the bill. >> when members on the other side say the result of this vote is that myself and others are not in favor of victims of human trafficking, it is appalling, disingenuous. >> reporter: planned parenthood says they are being targeted by the legislation. it takes away funding for clinics performing abortions. parenthood organizations across the state of florida. the impacts of this bill may impact six of them. >> reporter: stop getting money procedure. in tallahassee, matt galka, newschannel8. >> part of the bill requires physicians performing abortions have admitting privileges. a similar requirement in texas shut down.

by the supreme court. well, a tennis star is feeling the fall-out. >> we will tell you who is dropping maria after she failed a drug test. >> plus, an inside look at a very special classroom. where in the bay area people can learn inside a boeing 727. >> 81 degrees today. a nice day around the bay area. other spots reaching a little warmer than that. we will have a great forecast, coming up.

>> legendary acdc front man brian johnson has to stop touring or he could go deaf. doctors told him to stop touring right away or he may completely lose his hearing. they are postponing some upcoming tour dates. they may make up some of those shows with a guest vocalist. johnson has been with the band since 1980. more fallout from tennis star maria sharapova. nike suspending its deal with her. she failed a drug test during the australian open. her eight year deal is worth $70 million. nbc previews a new series tonight after the voice and lit be a fun one. little big shots combines america's got talent and kids

it is a chance for kids to show their talents. >> everybody will watch this show and get something out of it. kids like watching other kids. i throw a little undercurrent humor for the adults watching. >> little big shots premiers tonight at 10:00 after the voice. you can stick around for newschannel8 at 11:00 to follow. well, one of donald trump's ex-wifes will be competing in dancing with the stars. marla maples married trump back in 1993. they separated in 1997 before divorcing in 1999. with so many food items disguised as healthy, it is hard to know what is really good for you and what's not. well nutrition experts have this advice. skip the frozen dinners. they are filled with preservatives, and very few vegetables.

salad at a fast food restaurant, but toppings and dressings can crank up the calorie count. and when cruising the snack aisle, snick the vegetable chips. if you ever wanted to fly a jumbo jet, you would have to start your training in a classroom with a stack of manuals. that's not the case anymore at the sun and fun expo in lakeland. future pilots and mechanics have a new place to study. inside of a working boeing 727. welcome class. let's fire up the engines. >> the auxiliary power is firing up. engine number one. and two. let's open for business the world's only 727 classroom! [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: you're looking at

aircraft for the aerospace students. it is all thanks to a donated boeing 727 from fedex. students still can't believe it is at their fingertips. >> shoot. i don't know how to put this. >> reporter: freshman makenzie barber may join the air force. being in the cockpit this early, there is nothing better. >> i have only flown in a plane once before which is amazing since i want to be a pilot. but i love being in the cockpit. >> everybody is like when will we be able to get into it? i want to get in the cockpit and turn the engines on. just all of that. and, to be honest i want to turn the engines on. i can't wait to do it. >> reporter: students use closed circuit tablets as peers start the jets and run the systems. they run the show short of taking off. it is experience that is shaping the next generation of

>> not only could they leave here and fly, but more importantly, they can do any job because the skills they learn in aviation prepare them for any walk of life. >> well, the only thing missing from these planes are restrooms away. fedex has begin away a lot of planes in the past. this is the culmination of classroom. hail fell by the buckets full in parts of northern check this out. a late afternoon storm created dangerous driving conditions near fort collins. an oncoming semi truck nearly hit another truck going the opposite direction. so much hail fell, it looked more like snow rather than balls of ice. i remember that happened about 24 years ago in the orlando area. it was like snow on the ground

76 degrees here in freedom plaza. a beautiful view here at sun city center as the sun is setting. we have the time change this weekend making the days a little longer. 77 degrees lows down caesar, north. 3 miles an hour. you can see the temperatures are warm. they have been that way throughout the day. upper 70s near 80 degrees. got the grand prix in saint petersburg this weekend. there is a possibility of a shower. the timing has lifted mostly into sunday. at noon, 79 degrees. we will leave the shower chance in there as well as at 4:00 p.m. hopefully, that will change by the time we get closer to it. but any way you shake it out here looks like great spring break weather for those headed from the north. there are a lot of them this time of year. they are temperature 80 degrees. water temperature 75, cool and refreshing. mostly sunny skies with not much in the way of rain for us. great shot from tony this morning out in the lakeland area. and we had a beautiful sunrise

the bird enjoying it too. the weather max app great to take with you. especially in the bay area. 62 degrees at 7:00 a.m. a bit mild thanks to a southeasterly flow. we are definitely picking up a bit more moisture. 80 currently in tampa international airport. the dew point 53. very nice temp dew point relation. it is very comfortable making for a beautiful evening this evening. 74 degrees in saint pete. big picture again, ridge of high pressure by looking at the jet stream tells us what our surface features will be doing in the bay area. very warm temperatures lifting with this big ridge of high pressure in place. this is acting as a block for the rain. this area of low pressure in the central part of the country. specifically texas, oklahoma, louisiana, arkansas. until the weekend, this ridge won't break down enough or allow this area of low pressure to come out of the west and give us a better chance of seeing some rain. you can see that is what is happening now. high pressure dominates.

see the shower activity. thunderstorms. for us, just a few high clouds. and, a few mid level clouds as well. this is all around the southeasterly flow. you can actually see the movement of the clouds around the base of that area of high pressure at the surface. that is why we are picking up a bit more moisture in our atmosphere. high pressure will continue to be the dominant feature throughout the week. that will give us the nice warm weather. as i mentioned for our out of town guests it probably feels pretty good. you can see the stormy conditions will persist which is why they are very concerned for flooding. east texas, western louisiana, arkansas. a warm start to the day. mostly sunny skies with overall warm conditions. things don't change too much here. the stormy conditions will likely persist all the way until the end of the week until the ridge breaks down enough to allow a little bit of west or easterly movement for this area of low pressure. lit be a wet stormy week for sections of texas. pollen forecast, guess what? it is high. no big surprise.

a couple of weeks. 82, 84, 82 friday. spring forward. rain chances creep back in. you will notice if we did shift the rain over to sunday looks like with a greater chance. 79 degrees monday, tuesday, high temperatures near 80 degrees. not much in the way of cooler air after the rain passes through the region. we will stay warm guys. >> all right, message received. thank you. well, a father daughter trip nearly ends in disaster. >> coming up next, a plane falls out of the sky.

>> now to what's making headlines across america. a routine traffic stop nearly turned deadly when a driver shot at a michigan police officer and his cash cam caught the same thing. the officer said what's up man before the driver shot at him. he wasn't hit, but suffered temporary hearing loss. the driver led police on a chase before they caught him.

california highway patrol officer. you can see the officer going into this burning car. he was able to rescue two children. the officer happened to be driving behind the vehicle when he saw it catch fire and it started smoking. all four people in the car were treated for smoke inhalation, but they are doing fine tonight. a kindergarten teacher in washington state has been fired for allegedly drinking on the job. one of clara bowman's kindergarten students went to report the incident in the office. she had an open container in the classroom and allegedly walked into a wall. she was escorted off campus. >> it makes me angry and scared. bowman had a prior alcohol offense in february of 2011 while teaching at a different elementary school. she had signed an agreement

police say lewis oberg was piloting with his daughter when the engine lost power 2,000 feet in the air. the emergency parachute attached to it guided it to safe landing. he and his daughter survived the crash with barely a scratch. newschannel8 at 6:00 is coming up next. >> jenn and keith are here with what we are working on. >> it is shocking and embarrassing. hulk hogan on the stand again in the trial against his sex tape. >> find out what happened when attorneys took their turn. >> plus, an update to the story of patty the dog. what they have decided to do with their investigation. >> this woman's for profit company manages four charter schools that have become financial disasters. see what happens when we hold her accountable for all of that taxpayer money. >> this area could become the next spring training camp for the atlanta braves. coming up, the locals are

could be if baseball comes to town. >> those stories plus your storm team 8 forecast and sports with dan lucas coming up

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>> right now on newschannel8 at 6:00. >> millions of taxpayer dollars mismanaged at charter schools in pinellas county. newschannel8 tracked down the woman in charge to demand answers. >> and shocking testimony in the hulk hogan trial. hear what he had to say during today's cross-examination. >> and pro baseball may be coming. good evening. i'm keith cate. >> i'm jenn holloway.

now, an 8 on your side investigation. schools in chaos. >> well, we have been trying for about a week now to get answers about a financial crisis underway in four public charter schools managed by a private company in pinellas county. tonight, we finally have a word with the president of that company. the company is new point education partners. and today, two dozen concerned parents of children who attend windsor prep launched a campaign to sever all ties. >> mark douglas caught up with new point's president in regard to the parent's concerns about the school. mark? >> reporter: well jenn, aileen quinn is under serious investigation. after a week of playing hard to get, we had a moment with her. >> reporter: mark douglas, newschannel8. what do you tell parents who says your company has to go? >> reporter: school parents,