speaks out. >> what was your first reaction when all this stuff was brought forward? >> i was angry. larry: she denies doing anything wrong in an abc7 exclusive interview. kimberly: first on abc7, another massage envy arrest. a therapist in olney accused of assaulting a client. larry: the busiest holiday travel season every and we are in the middle of it. the forecast here and where you are going moments away. kimberly: "abc7 news at 4:00" begins with the "7 on your side" i-team investigation. faking the grade. larry: students graduating despite a surprising number of absences, some with as many as 100 days out. abc7 has team coverage. q mccray spoke with ballou's recently reassigned principal. kimberly: and the "7 on your side" government watchdog nathan baca has new developments from the d.c. teachers. we begin with q mccray and the exclusive interview. q: kim, larry, i spent 30, 40 minutes with the

today. with her lawyer present because there is still an investigation ongoing. there is only so much allowed to talk about. she is charismatic and personable and she spoke highly of the time at ballou high school and about her love for the school and the students. she made one thing perfectly clear. when it comes to fudging grades and fixing attendance number under her leadership, that did not happen. >> i didn't do anything wrong. i operated within the spirit of the policies. i know the investigation isgoing. it might reveal that something was done incorrectly. if that is four under to be true then i would -- if that is found to be true i would work on my return to be fully compliant with the policies. my messaging to staff is never a directive to do anything wrong, illegally, morally unsound. i pride myself on messaging

right decision. kimberly: we covered a lot of subjects in the cushion. q: from grades and attendance, pressuring the teachers and the 2017 graduating class. we have more on the hot button topics at 5:00 and 6:00 on abc7 news. from the newsroom, back to you. kimberly: thank you. teachers who worked at ballou -- [audio interruption] larry: "7 on your side" government watchdog nathan baca was the first to break the story. go to him and hear more about that from nathan. nathan: >> it cape from principals and others to give absent students grades they did not earn. there are three investigations in the ballou high school and the district wide policies.

some teachers are telling the item the recollection of grade inflation. >> that mind set to allow the students that they can give nothing and get the half credit is a lot. >> i have students walking the halls unattended. >> we will hear more from the teachers. larry: we want to hear from you about any problems on your school. at 5:00, q mccray has more on how st

urgent message to share with you. about a 15-year-old girl and her reported miss -- her son reported missing in d.c. please share these pictures to make sure they are home for the holidays. new at 4:00, a man arrested for stealing from a teacher at a bladensburg school. nakym sheffield accused of stealing credit cards at several schools in the area and charged last summer for similar incidents. kevin lewis broke a story about another massage envy massage therapist and he is live outside the location. kevin: the allegation paint a picture of an unashamed attack

the 28-year-old masseur sidefied as anton zaitsev was many sajing a woman when he groped her and forced her to perform sex acts. when the woman resisted zaitsev left the room. the woman immediately told the receptionists and drove to a police station. they collected evidence at this olney massage envy. zaitsev lives at his father's gaithersburg home. per the court records works as a self-employed massage therapist. today by telephone his attorney told us so no comment. so far no response from massage envy either. we are into viewed a man who just purchased his card so his wife could get a facial and a full badge massage at this location. >> it is a concern.

christmas present and have reporters say guess what? >> we don't know yet. you never know. >> in september a woman sued massage envy. live in olney, kevin lewis. lindsey: breaking news. i'm lindsey mastis. a terror plot is foiled in san francisco. we lished that it's planned for christmas. this is a pier 39. popular tourist destination. and a man admitted he was partly inspired by the halloween day attack in new york. when a man drove along a bike bath. according to the

was discharged from the marine corps and has expertise as a sharp shooter. larry: thank you for that. friday before christmas. you can't ask for the better weather if you are arriving or trying to get out of town. we have both sides covered for you. let's go to bill. bill: this is a good travel forecast. at least for now. what is going on with the travel, all airports are green. that means 15 minutes or less. that is great news. there is not a ton going on. this is dallas to tennessee

this is cold to the north. temperature wise is not bad. there is just cold air in the center of the country. we are 56 in d.c. we are dry for the evening commute. 53, 52, 52 for the 5:00, 2:00, -- 6:00 and the 7:00 time frame. no problem there. look at the airport. tonight "sweeney todd" at dulles and he -- sam sweeney is at dulles and he has happy holiday reunions. that's fun! >> we have had good weather across the country. that means we had no airport problems to talk about. this is what we want to do. come out to arrivals hall at the dulles airport.

we have been watching the arrivals hall, the loves ones jumping in the family member arms. some were kids who hadn't seen their parents in months. some even years. >> this is the best moment ever. the best day. i'm so happy. >> this is amazing. it's been like may this year i haven't seen him. we have family stuff on christmas. be at the house. tour d.c. >> we are excited. i am speechless right now. seriously. i am so happy. you have no idea how happy i am. i'm still shaking. sam: there has been a lot of tears here. all the wiem told me they are most excite -- all of the people told me they are excited to spend time with family and they are looking forward to the home cooked meals. i'm sam sweeney. kimberly: that is so sweet. if you are on a road trip,

download the abc7 news app for traffic alert and real time traffic map to avoid the backup. larry: new developments on the deadly derailment. the ntsb reviewed the trains data recorder. inward facing camera. they were talking about speeding six seconds before the crash. they were not using personal devices like a phone or tablet. it will not run again until positive train control is operational. that is a system that gets slow. it was on the train and it had not been activated. kimberly: mitch mcconnell goes after stephen bannon. the sartistic quip up next -- sarcastic quip up next. larry: and a car ran into a church in capitol heights yesterday. >> the community coming together and offers help. that's up next. kimberly: doug jones defeated roy moore thanks in large part to a significant amount of

we have some of the best and the funniest 58 terntive votes you don't -- alternative votes. you don't want to miss. larry: the bottom falls outs of bitcoin. the drop

larry: a car ran into a church in capitol heights and the seic

and brad bell reports they will have a home for the holidays. kimberly: yesterday was a bad one for the freedom way missionary baptist church in capitol heights. ads a car literally went through the wall. the two in the car suffered injuries but will be okay. the church found itself condemned right before christmas! >> with the support. >> the church says for now the outreach center will work. but if they outgrow it, they

offer of space. >> we all come together. we have the same spirit and the same heart. >> something it doesn't solve is the strange intersection of marlboro pike and benning road in front of the church. this is the third time the sanction ware has been hit by a car -- sanctuary has been hit by a car. brad bell, abc7 news. kimberly: democrat won a senate race in alabama for the first time in 25 years. doug jones defeated roy moore to fill jeff sessions' seat. today, mitch mcconnell was asked if he blamed breitbart's stephen bannon who stumped for moore. >> the political genius on display throwing away a seat on a red state in america is hard to ignore.

didn't blame him exactly. but there was with a write-in campaign. we thought we'd share the best names. bugs bunny. according to a.l..com and he was a popular candidate. kimberly: chuck norris. or any other republican. larry: the ghost of stonewall jackson got a vote. sense of humor. kimberly: that is right. the "7 on your side" consumer alert. apple faces two class action lawsuits. one in california and one in illinois. this is related to the admission they are slowing down phones. it does it after the 500 battery cycles. you can get the battery replacement for the iphones that cost $80 for a pro to install. larry: a roller coaster week for the bitcoin ends with a selloff. the crypto currency worth

$11,000 today before heading back to $14,000. kimberly: this is video of an escaped bull to lift up the front of the sheriff department s.u.v. in alabama. >> if you pick up the front end of the tire, it shows how strong the bull is. kimberly: so nonchalant. larry: no matador needed. bill: no. a bunch of bull, though. kimberly: ohh! larry: there we go. kimberly: good one, bill.

afternoon. kimberly: mild outside. bill: mid-50's today. warmer tomorrow. look at this. i posted the picture. not only were there folks on the golf course -- kimberly: of course they were. bill: i don't know if they still have it. i'm watching this. there are backups on this hole. people on the green and in the middle of the fairway. kimberly: people are home and it's warm. bill: mild enough. larry: it doesn't surprise me. >> it doesn't happen often. no weather related issues. hurry along. let us play through. temperature wise we are 56 degrees. winds out of the southwest at 6:00. way up there relative to where we should be. 'degrees right now. bit -- 50 degrees right now. a bit cooler for those in

widespread temperatures in the 50's. mid-and upper primarily. there is some rain to the west to kentucky and west virginia. the leading edge pushing to the western system of virginia. that is the next weather maker and it will work tonight. let me show you. start at 6:00. we are heading to dinner. pause this at 8:00. not out of the question to see a stray sprinkle or two. but generally speaking you are heading out to head the lights out wherever you go. if you are out late, watch for the overnight hours. that is when the rain will kick in. overnight is good sleeping weather. rain outside. overnight to the early part of the

this is raining from 66 up north. there are more rain to come. sunday looks like a dry day. how about the 50's throughout the night. the low 50's. that is it. even the coolest spot are going to be down in the mid-40's. 52 for the highs. rain works in the afternoon. looking ahead we have a cold front. by sunday we are 46. christmasdy is 37 -- christmas day is 37. eyeballing a slight chance, ever so slight for a new snow flakes sunday to monday. the big story after that is a cooldown as we roll to next week. starting wednesday and going

we are in a stretch that is below normal. snow chances for the weekend. friday and saturday both. if you have the travel plans and you want to stay in touch with the forecast. some of the models indicate we could have the first decent snow at the end of next week. that is what we are watching. bring the umbrella. otherwise good to go tonight. larry: okay. see you in a few. still ahead on abc7 news at 4:30 -- president trump credits the tax bill signing today. we'll let him explain it. >> santa claus arriving up on the rooftop at the inova children today to bring smiles to kids in the hospital. i'm amy aubert with the story coming up.

kimberly: we have seen him snorkeling, up in the air, on the ground. a few more days to christmas he is a busy man. larry: no question about it. today he took time to fly by inova children hospital to spread holiday cheer ahead of the big day. amy: up on the rooftop -- chopper laid and out jumps good old santa claus. >> we decided to give the reindeer a rest. >> the hl

>> santa claus walked in the room. >> i heard you were here. you have -- i had to come see you. >> as a parent you are happy they are happy. i'm blessed with that. they hope she will go home before christmas. the elves are bringing along gifts. >> is we brought things for you. >> a little holiday magic. >> for someone to come so far away. that is amazing. >> santa is making hi

the hall and in the room to bring smile and cheer along the way. >> merry christmas. kimberly: what a way to lift the spirits in a tough time. larry: yeah. last place you want to be for a kid is in the hospital at christmas. let santa come to you. kimberly: good job, santa. still ahead -- >> i didn't want you folks to say i wasn't keeping my promise. >> the president talking to reporters as he signs the tax cut into law. why he is citing the press for getting it done today. larry: the house gutted by a fire. we are days before christmas. next, firefighters closing in on a cause this evening. >> ahead new at 5:00. an elderly couple busted with the 60 pounds of pot. the bizarre holiday explamation they g

announcer: you're watching "abc7 news at 4:00". on your side. larry: in the weather center with the chief meteorologist bill kelly. we do a lot of walking in the day. kimberly: we do. larry: mild day. bill: normally in the mid-40's. we are in the mid-50's. all right. it doesn't feel like late december. you are right. now we have clouds through the area. that will hold the temperatures where they are. they have a blanket. they are insulators. th

not even -- they don't even talk they are so far apart. here it is around the region. no problems tonight. all the clouds are out ahead of a weather system that is affecting us tonight and the day tomorrow. if you're traveling tonight, they are dealing with the snow up there. some places could get snow measure for half a foot or more but we are looking at this rain and the green that is cutting in the area. not yet. the evening forecast and the dinner plan and the holiday light and shopping is fine. but that will arrive and be around throughout the day off and on. we will break that down in a few minutes. we have the rain showers there. look at the numbers. we hang in the upper 40's to the low 50's around the region. walk out tomorrow and anytime tonight and you will feel it. wow, mild for this time of t

there is a significant cooldown in the seven-day extended forecast. we go beyond that and we have the possibility of the first big snow. we look at that and break it down in a few minutes. larry: okay, bill. thanks. the fairfax police are investigating a double murder in reston that happened in a home in the 2600 block of the black fur court this morning. melissa dipane is live in reston with the latest. >> well, the police are still out here investigating. they say the 43-year-old buckley kuhn-fricker and her husband scott fricker were found shot here in their home around 5:00 this morning. this is a picture from buckley fricker's facebook page. she was an attorney specializing in elder law and ran a geriatric care company. the family had just moved in the home a few months ago and they know at least one child lives in the home. one person was injured and taken the hospital. the person's identity has not

for but they haven't said who it is. the neighbors are in shock. >> i just went to sleep and my mom heard screaming and stuff like that. >> this is a quiet neighborhood. we have never had this. a nice couple. they had an open house for the neighbors. >> this is still an active investigation. at this point no additional detail. motive or potential charges have been released. melissa dipane, abc7 news. larry: the ford c.e.o. is apologized for repeated sexual harassment at an assembly plant in chicago. the auto maker settling two lawsuits filed by women who were harassed at if plant. kimberly: a former miss america calling on the head of the organization ouster after he mocked her appearance and sexual

she won the title in 2013, e-mails obtained by the huffington post showed they ridiculed her weight and speculated about her sex life. the g.o.p. bill is now law. president trump adding his signature before heading to florida for the holidays. he says he is keeping his promise. president trump: i didn't want you folks to say i wasn't keeping my promise. i'm keeping my promise, i'm signing it before christmas. i said the bill would be on my desk before christmas. you are holding he literally do that >> the president said the original plans were a big signing ceremony in two weeks. he arrived in florida a couple hours ago. he will spend the next 11 days down there. larry: the president quickly signing the continued resolution to fund the government for another couple of weeks to avoid a shutdown. the got is funded through january 19. firefighter is injured battling a house fire in

christmas. investigators believe that the fire was sparked by the kitchen stove. ryan hughes has the latest. ryan: the fire department tells me it started in the kitchen area and it appears to be an accident. we learned that the owner left for texas yesterday to visit his son for the holidays. now he doesn't really have a home to come back to. take a look. you can see the damage. the windows are blown out. take a look at the roof. there is a whole through after flames were shooting through it last night. they found the rancher with fire. there are no fire hydrants in the area that complicated things. 75 firefighters were able to

under control in ten minutes. >> i saw haze in the air. i came up here. i looked across the street and the flames shoot from the roof. i never saw it before. the owner's home is a total loss. they are trying to figure out how it started. in germantown ryan hughes, abc7 news >> now to a fire overseas. growing anger in south korea after a massive fire killed 29 people. most were trapped in a public bath. flames engulfed the eight story building. there are reports of broken windows and the problems that slowed efforts to get people out. the south korea's present comforted the victim's loved ones in a visit to the site

told you about an encaped -- escaped inmate. identifiable with skeleton tattoo on the face. after several weeks on the run he is back in custody. he was scheduled for release in february. not anymore. the kick in a press release said hughes is home for holidays. they meant jail. larry: sense of humor. after ten days in a tree a virginia family's cat is back on the ground. ten days. luna took a tumble when they climbed the tree to get her but at can'ts do, luna landed on her feet. >> we think something chased her up the tree or maybe she scared to come down from heights. there is something there she is eating on. larry: she wasn't hurt in the fall. tonight she is inside where the tallest thing she can climb is a christmas tree. kimberly: did you see how tall the tree was? larry: way up there. kimberly

>> it's always amazing how cats land on all fours. kimberly: wow! larry: incredible. she is okay. don't try this at home. president trump talked about draining the swamp. the republican wrote the book on it literally. buck speaking out of school about the hocking transation -- shocking transitional nature of politics. "draining the swamp: how washington corruption is worse than you think." he lifts the curtain why nothing gets done describing collusion between democrat and republicans to fleece taxpayers on behalf of special interest. >> is what you describe what some call the establishment? >> absolutely. the republican leadership and the democrat leadership getting along and pretending not to but clearly getting along. >> you are describing an entire system where every consideration that ought to be for the constituents is about the special interest and corporate interest and donations. >> it surprised me when i got here. i hav

teenager. getting to this place is shocking. to see the influence that the money has in politics. >> well, for more on the influence of money on politics, watch "full measure" sunday on abc7. kimberly: still ahead at "abc7 news at 4:00" -- "7 on your side." should you buy or lease your next car in the factors to -- the next car? the factors to consider ahead. larry: every once in a while you hear about it. a crazy red kettle donation. how about pure gold? you won't believe the estimated value and more importantly how many people will benefit from t

kimberly: an urban legend turned real for salvation army bell ringer in california. larry: someone dropped a gold coin in his kettle. it's an ounce of pure gold. salvation army is the value is $1300. it will cover the cost of 250 meals. kimberly: wow! larry: that is not just change in your pocket. >> the price of gold has gone up so much. get a tiny thin gold chain and several hundred dollars.

>> don't touch the thermostat or they will melt. >> we have the factors you should consider if you lease or buy the next

alert. you still have a few minutes to mail package in time for christmas. it's

larry: well, spending is off the charts as we approach christmas day. a payment tech firm shows americans shell out 9% more than since november 1 compared to the rest of the year. in 2016, the same period saw a boost of less than 4%. now all this excludes gas for your road trips. online shopping is a huge boost. the regular old stores are also seeing growth, too. kimberly: now to a "7 on your side" consumer aert will. you still have a little time to get the gift in the mail. close of business today is the deadline for a christmas arrival. but you will have to pay up. $23.75 the minimum for priority express shipment. the post office is delivering packages on monday. larry: maybe some of you have been spending on the biggest ticket item. a new home. november saw the biggest surge in new home sales in 25 years. it comes as no surprise with the shortage of existing homes on the market sparking bidding

the commerce department says new home sales jump 17.5% last month. kimberly: opinions on this one are mixed. should you buy or lease a car? it is one of the bigger financial commitments you can make. abc7 on your side with the troubleshooter horace holmes digging in to which one is really worth it. >> we are going to look at more stuff. horace: bernard is out shopping for a new car. >> at this point, the most reasonable thing for me to do because i don't own a business and to me it sounds better to purchase a vehicle. horace: leasing, not an option for him. he is taking out a loan and will buy his new car. but is that the best option? to lease or to buy a new car? which is worth it? this is certified financial planner kevin bradley who helps clients make the best money decisions in their lives. next to buying a home, purchasing a car is the biggest investment most of us will ever make. >> people that drive less than th

in the lease agreement, if they are not paying, or overpaying the down payment up front and they plan to keep the car nowhere more than three or -- car no more than three or four years often time it makes sense to lease. horace: that is his point of view. what does it do with the people who sell you can car? >> it doesn't matter if you get the car for free. it has the same value from now. >> operating of one of the biggest dealerships in the d.c. area and he says people who sell you cars don't have an incentive to push you toward leasing or buying. here are things to know about both options. if you finance a $15,000 car loan over five years, but want to trade it in after three years, what is the difference buying versus lease? >> if it's worse less than $15 -- worth less than $15,000 you can give it back to tess looing company and move to the next car and let

company take the loss. if you are in a finance car and you go to trade the car, then you owe $15,000, if the car is only worth $12,000 now that is your loss. horace: so for buyers -- >> this is my second vehicle from here. that i paid for and purchased brand new. 2012. that is paid for. trade that in and get another. >> the best move is probably to buy. >> they feel if it belongs to me. >> but if you trade cars in every few years take a closer look at leasing. with leases in the past you can only drive up to 1,000 in a year. that has changed. you can negotiate more miles in the lease agreement. we want to give you as much information as we can. we are providing the entire interviews with the planner bradley and darvish. download the abc7 app and click on the link to the interviews or go to wjla.com. i'm horace holmes. abc7

okay. a local paper with uncertain future is in the new year. >> the return here is less financial and give back to the community. something that an important part of the fabric of the region for a long time. should be restored to the place again. nowhere rad is working -- norad is working to give you instant updates to track santa claus. you can watch from the couch and the fire and be like alexa, where is santa? how many gifts has he delivered? you don't have to

did he get coffee? kimberly: i don't know if he answers all of those. larry: what is the e.t.a.? you said 20 minutes ago. all right. we could go on and on. a merry maryland. governor hogan sharing personalized version of "twas the night before christmas" for his state. >> i knew in a moment it must be st. nick. more rapid than ravens, the coursers they came and he whistled shout and called them by name. now urlch and hughes. on mandell, fabre and agnew. [laughter] a cute take. they posted a length to the video online -- link to the video online. kimberly: that is fun. good to see hogan looking well. we have a 30-degree spread. >> we are going up. dip mid-week. to the 50's today.

60's tomorrow. bills monitoring the golf course. nobody out there now. 56 in d.c. this is where the problem spots are if you are traveling. the rain moving in headlines the forecast. it's not for the early everything hours. if you are shopping or going to the light. zoo. walking around. the type of thing. you should be fine. i d

overnight the rain will move in. you will probably hear that by tomorrow morning. it's not an all day rain. it's not, you know, raining consistently for 13 hours. the farther north and west, the greater the chance is. i expect the rain overnight tonight and the morning. then a lull. mid-to-late afternoon. mid-to-late morning. half an inch of rain in some spots. some more than that. but it will clear out and we roll to christmas eve, it should be nice. cooler than it is outside right now. and tomorrow. but it should be dry if you have travel plans. out the door tonight the temperature wise we will keep it in the 50's. we keep clouds in the forecast. we are dry. there it is tomorrow. going 90. maybe 100% chance of rain. christmas day, 37 degrees. we'll brake it dow

next -- break it down further next time. it's windy on christmas day. the 20% chance is for a little flurry activity that is possible late sunday night and monday morning. kimberly: all right. ahead at 5:00, interview with the principal at the center of the grade fixing allegation in d.c. plus the "7 on your side" consumer alert. the hidden dangers of smart devices. even toys that could compromise the home safety. elderly couple busted with the 60 pounds of pot. the explanation for the giant stash of hash next at 5:00. but first, the last-minute shopping in your future? abc7 on your side. next with the top five items that will be cheaper in the new year. and the three that are only going to get more expensive.

every stores has final sales but unless it's a must-have gift you will get a better chance in january. among them are cars. the best deals of the year are after christmas. plus you won't pay for a big red bow. 4k

the best sales are january. jewelry is best after valentine's day. luggage the biggest sales in march. be but soaring prices on the hard to find items in the final days before christmas. looking for fingerli inegs? the store shelves are empty and the ebay prices can reach $400 for the $14 toy. doesn't that stink? give them a rain check and give them in january when they are on sale. it seems everything is on sale but if the retails were selling off the items at 50% off now they'd lose money. if you wait until the days after christmas for a few mings you won't waste your money. john matarese, abc7 news. announcer: right now at 5:00, ballou former principal breaks her silence. why he is denies any wrongdoing. first on

claims against another massage envy employee. "abc7 news at 5:00". on your side. >> tonight an exclusive in the "7 on your side" i-team look to the allegations 0 grade fixing at ballou high school. kimberly: the principal is speaking out only on 7 and denying any wrongdoing. >> i have didn't do anything wrong and i operated in the spirit of the policies. my messaging to staff is never a directive to doing anything wrong,al legal or morally unsound. >> she was principal at the ballou high school in southeast d.c. until abc7 began reporting on attendance irregularities. larry: we have team coverage. and the exclusive interview is coming up in a moment. kimberly: but first, nathan baca

investigation. nathan? nathan: kim, you have three different investigations in the ballou high school and the district wide policies. the chancellor and the mayor office lining up the witnesses. some are the former ballou teachers that spoke to the i-team about the allegation of the grade inflation. ballou has one of the highest turnovers. we spoke to a teacher. >> i had kids in jand i didn't see them until march. there was a lady that missed almost a first quarter. >> a visual arts teacher until he was terminated and the question if there were no art teachers left who was giving the students passing grades? >> if it was so urgent something april 13,