surprise confession. a man says he murdered a young new york boy. >> the questions about the admission, did he really do it? >> hi. i'm kai jackson. and i'm mary bubala. here's what people are talking about. >> the suspect accused of killing 6-year-old etan pates 33 years ago, is expected to be arraigned today from his hospital bed. dick brennan has the latest for wjz. >> reporter: the new jersey man who confessed to murdering etan pates was hospitalized this morning to get medication for an undisclosed condition. he was also given a psychological evaluation. hours later, the wife and daughter of 51-year-old pedro hernandez, arrived at the courthouse, refusing to answer questions. >> were you surprised by this? or did you know? did you expect his confession? >> reporter: hernandez admits to hurring the boy -- luring

the boy into the store he worked, choking him to death and throwing his body in the trash. >> reporter: witnesses say the lack of physical evidence and eyewitness testimony make its almost impossible for investigators to verify hernandez's confession. >> reporter: john miller says hernandez's story may not be enough to convict him. >> a jury wants to see evidence beyond that, especially if the defendant's lawyer is going to challenge that confession issue saying my client is mentally ill, he made it up. >> reporter: hernandez was arrested after police received a tip. authorities say he told authorities years ago, he killed a child in new york. the suspect's brother-in-law says the confession could help bring closure to etan's parents. >> they don't have to suffer anymore, wonder figure he's alive or who killed him. >> reporter: etan's parents were said to be surprised and overwhelmed with the arrest. they were not expected to appear at the arraignment today.

dick brennan, wjz eyewitness news. >> wjz has learned hernandez has been hospitalized because he's making threats of suicide. an explosion of violence in baltimore. now police are investigating several shootings. denise is in the newsroom with the latest development developments. >> reporter: seven people were shot in three separate incidents over the span of just two hours. the first shooting happened around 6:00 last night in southwest baltimore. police say three people were shot in the 2500 block of west fayet during a dispute over money. an hour later, three others shot in the 2600 block of east preston street. and one victim died. another man was later shot and killed in north baltimore on york road. so far, in all of those shootings, no arrests have been made. mary? >> denise, thank you. the crimes bring baltimore's yearly homicide total to 80. that is one more than this time last year. tonight, fallout as what witnesses describe as a flash mob robbery. mike hellgren has the latest.

>> reporter: with a huge weekend ahead, police are putting an extra focus on downtown security, after some very public and very negative incidents. >> reporter: witnesses say dozens of rowdy young people stormed a 7-eleven near light and pratt downtown early this week, for free slurpee day and started stealing items from the store. the young crowd, they say, turned out of control. >> they went in. they start going into every random store and grabbing things. i saw them running out. i knew they didn't buy, because they just run out. they ran that i wayand that way. and the guy tried to catch them, but there were so many. >> reporter: this is similar to flash mob robberies last year. this is video from a 7 eleven in montgomery county. but while authorities there released the video in that incident, in hopes that people would recognize the youth, baltimore has not done the same. this comes after a series of violence and fights, after stabbing and out-of-control crowds shut down streets st. patrach's day weekend.

the incident has upset many. >> where are the parents when the kids are running rampant, running amuck? where are the parents? >> it was horrible. and kids should know better. >> reporter: in this latest report, after some kids ran away, a manager blocked the door to keep the rest from leaving the 7-eleven. but those kids forced their way through, punching that store manager. >> reporter: police are also beefing up patrols downtown, with at least 50 more officers and better cameras. mike hellgren, wjz eyewitness news. >> according to our media partner, the baltimore sun, the mob was made up from students from mergen thaller votech in northeast baltimore. an investigation under way tonight after a passenger on an american airlines flight gets out of control. pat warren has more on what happened. pat? >> reporter: according to federal authorities, an unruly passenger aboard a flight from jamaica had to be restrained. the 24-year-old canadian man allegedly rushed toward the cockpit, once the plane touched down in miami.

an american airlines spokeswoman said the plane was taxiing at the time. and the man refused to sit down. two passengers helped restrain him. he's now in custody, and faces federal charges, including interference with a flight crew. >> the fbi says the incident wasn't terrorism-related and the man was not on the no-fly list. on this big travel weekend, the transportation security administration is getting ready to expand the program, designed to ease the screening process for elderly flyers. danielle nottingham reports for wjz, of the changes in airport security. >> reporter: at age 74, marvin rosen is happy to take his shoes off when he goes through airport security. but it's not easy. >> i have a problem walking. so i have a problem bending down and getting my shoes and picking them up. >> reporter: his wife phyllis had a hip replaced. so she's used to spending lots of time with security screeners. >> i know the tsa are only doing their jobs. but sometimes it was a little

upsetting because they really pat you down. >> reporter: it's experiences like these, the transportation security administration hopes to cut down. >> people that are over 75 and young people, 12 and below, really those folks pose a relatively small risk. >> reporter: the tsa is expanding a program that allows passengers, 75 and older, to go through security, with their shoes, belts and light coats on. >> reporter: the new screening procedures will also allow elderly passengers to get a second pass through airport scanners if they set off an alarm. if screeners still detect a problem, then seniors may have to take off their shoes and jackets. >> they'll have a better opportunity to get through the process without having a patdown. but again, this is not a free pass. >> reporter: the changes follow outrage over highly-publicized incidents, like the strip search of 85-year-old lenore zimmerman last december. >> i mean, who can imagine that such a thing could happen?

>> reporter: rosen and his wife are looking forward to the changes in the security line, and seeing their grandchildren when they land. >> reporter: in washington, danielle nottingham, wjz eyewitness news. >> as always, it's best to arrive early for your flight to avoid any security holdups. and of course, if you are not flying through your holiday weekend destination, chances are, you're driving, maybe to the beach. triple a is projecting nearly 35 million people will travel at least 55 miles away before memorial day. that is a million and a half more than last year. the automobile association says almost nine out of 10 travelers will drive. let's take a look at the gas prices in maryland, ahead of the holiday weekend. when you hit the road, the average price for a gallon of regular is $3.59. a month ago, that average was $3.88. >> how is the weather shaping up for the weekend? let's take a live look outside. seems like it's off to a pretty good start, as mary mentioned. wjz has weather and traffic together. meteorologist tim williams is

here with the updated numbers from first warning weather. >> good afternoon, everyone. a very nice, pleasant afternoon shaping up. just enough cloud cover out there to kind of give us a bit of a break from time to time. and a southeast wind that has been responsible. the southerly component bringing in warm air. east component, bringing in just a little cool air off the water. right now, just one shower to be kind of focused on right now. elkridge, just around howard county or so. and what we're watching is a little pop-up activity over the course of the next few days or so. and that's really the way it's all going to play out. right now, taking a look at this graphic, we have one bit of, i guess, advisory to tell you about. and that is going to be hot and humid over the next few days. temperatures, teetering right around 90 degrees. and that hot, humid air stays with us right on through the memorial day holiday weekend. we'll talk about the impact of that on you. maybe even talk about a heat index for you coming up in just a few moments. mary? >> all right, tim.

thank you. let's check in on the roads right now, with kristy breslin. let it roll, kristy. tell us how it looks out there. >> well, mary, you guys couldn't have said it better. it is going to be a busy weekend, with so many people traveling than last year. expect 30 minutes at this point. from park heights avenue to harford road. west side inner loop, 25 minutes there around to security boulevard. and on the outer loop, a good 20 minutes there. and that is from security boulevard to park heights. if you are traveling, 70 eastbound, heavy there, as you make your way towards the beltway. and northbound 95, just bumper to bumper there, from dundalk avenue, past the beltway on the northeast corner. accidents include york road, at belfast, jarrettsville pike at heft road. and let's take a live look. as you can see, for those people heading to the beach, that is a look at 50 eastbound. that's right in the middle of the delay. it begins at 4:24, and ends at the severn river bridge. this traffic report is brought to you by the mazda motor corporation.

introducing the mazda cx5. with the most miles per gallon, including hybrids. milestone mission. the space exdragon successfully docks with the international space station. take a look. the dragon capsule launched tuesday from cape canaveral, florida, carrying a half ton of supplies. the space station crew is expected to open dragon's hatch tomorrow. nassa is going to focus on concentrations like asteroids and mars. since this commercial, are you looking to get a ticket into space, mary? >> no, not really. i would just like to watch. how about you? >> i'm thinking probably not. >> really? i totally thought you would say yes. because you like airplanes and stuff. >> i do. i don't think i'm going to take that trip, though. >> i understand. still ahead on wjz eyewitness news at 4:00. her iphobe is stolen. but she knows who has it. how one woman is calling out the thief through facebook. a milestone improvement. the latest on the condition of the georgia grad student,

fighting a flesh-eating bacteria. a brawl over a bill. find out what happens when ay debate turns violent. meteorologist tim williams will be back with your updated first warning forecast. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

it's partly sunny and 82 degrees in central maryland right now. the complete first warning weather forecast is coming up. we hava breaking news fromind indiana, where a gunman is holding hostage inside a real estate office. the man went to want office because he believes someone owes him money. the unidentified man is inside the prudential real estate group office and has exchanged gunfire with police. some hostages have been released, but there are still others inside being held. we'll monitor this story, and bring you updates as soon as we have them. a debate in ukraine's

parliament gets heat today, sparking an all-out brawl. watch as deputies from the ukrainian government throw punches at one another. the fight broke out over a bill that would make russian an official language in some parts of the country. one of the men involved had to be hospitalized, following a blow to his head. the scuffle forced the session to close without a vote. >> people living out of an apartment complex are hoping a black bear will now find a new place to call home. he's becoming a regular around the neighborhood, usually in search of one thing, food. the bear has been dining in the complex dumpster and seems to have lost his fear of people. he's just like, okay, hanging out. other than the mess he leaves behind, the bear hasn't caused too many problems. but they are dangerous. >> yeah. the red cross is in desperate need of several critical blood types. the news comes just as a slow season for donations kicks in.

monique griego has more on how you can help the summer slump. >> reporter: scott adams has what some might consider an unusual way of relaxing. >> almost sort of a meditative state that you can go into when you're doing. >> as a donor, he is crucial to the red cross blood supply. but during the summer, donors like him are hard to come by. >> we tend to lose a lot of our normal donors who come in regularly. >> reporter: that drop in donations means many times, the red cross doesn't have enough blood to meet the community demanldzs. >> one unit of blood to be able to help three people. >> reporter: they are experiencing a shortage for certain blood types. >> especially type o, when is -- which is always in need, because it's universal and can be transfused into any patient. >> we like to have about five days on the shelf.

and right now, we have less than 2. so we consider that an emergency level. >> reporter: turner is hoping more people like adams will come in to turn things around. >> it's something relatively easy to do. magazines, get a couple of cookies and juice. you're good. >> reporter: monique griego, wjz eyewitness news. >> the red cross says new donors typically spend an hour at the center. another down day, ending a down week on wall street. adding fears about the economic instability in europe. here's a look at the closing numbers. dow is down 75 points. s&p and nasdaq are also down today. let's go to new york, where ines ferre has tonight's cbs money watch update. >> reporter: trade suggest light today, as traders prepare for the holiday weekend. many investors are waiting to see what happens in europe and if greece will drop the euro. the markets did get one bit of

positive news today. a new report shows americans are feeling better about the economy and their own finances. a measure of consumer sentiment is at its highest level in more than four years. people surveyed say they believe the job market is improving. the associated press is out with its list of the highest- paid ceos. at the very top is david simon at $137 million. he runs simon property group, which owns hundreds of shopping malls and outlets around the world. most of his compensation comes from stock. when you break it down, simon makes about $44,000 an hour, or $733 a minute. the fight over sweeteners is turning sour. high-fructose corn syrup is being blamed for adding to the ooh bessity epidemic. so now they have asked them to rename their product corn sugar. but the sugar administration has filed suit, saying high- fructose corn syrup does not have the same nutritional

content as white sugar. triple a estimates nearly 35 million americans plan to drive to their destination. that's up 12% from 2011. lower gas prices may be the reason why a gallon is down 20 cents compared to last year. that's your money watch. for more business headlines, head to cbsmoneywatch.com. in new york, i'm ines ferre. emotional farewell. dozens of maryland guardsmen and women leave for a final deployment to afghanistan. there's plenty of maryland crabs for the first holiday weekend of the summer. i'm ron matz, in essex. the story coming up, here on wjz. keeping a close eye on the weather this holiday weekend. meteorologist tim williams will have your updated first warning weather forecast. >> wjz 13 is always on. for the top stories on wjz.com, instant updates and first warning weather all the time, click wjz.com. the car on the left was filled up with

low detergent gasoline. while the car on the right was filled up with bp gasoline with invigorate. which helps clean and protect its engine so it can get a few more miles per tank than the car on the left. go a little farther with bp gasoline with invigorate.

well, it's friday. i really don't have anything

else to say other than that. >> that's all that matters. >> you know, i was listening to ron matz' story coming up about the crabs. i think this is going to be a weekend where people are out on their deck, either grilling crabs. i don't know. preferences for you two? >> in terms of? >> crabs, grilling? >> oh, definitely. >> i thought you were saying, grilling crabs. i was like, no. don't go there. >> we'll probably pick up crabsful a preview of ron's story. ron told me there is an ample supply for people who want to get them. >> the weather is going to cooperate. if you want to go outside, take the mallets with you, do whatever you're going to do. probably a snowball weekend, car wash weekend, anything you would want to do that would indicate the first unofficial start of summer. normal high for this date is 82. 62 is our temperature -- i'm sorry. is our relative humidity. we are looking at for the most part, a southeast wind, at 8 miles per hour. and temperatures around the region, well, this is what they

look like. we're talking about just around 83 in hagerstown. we have 89 in cumberland. temperatures down around 72 in ocean city. and around the immediate metro area, everyone right around the low 80s. 80 in annapolis and kent island. water temperature now just around 72 degrees in the bay. only about 63 down in the ocean. but again, that water temperature is warming up very nicely on the shores, both sides of the bay. 8-mile-per-hour winds right now, at bwi marshall. 18 in elkton. that south wind is coming in. southeast winds coming in, southerly component, bringing in warm air. dew points going up as a result. and it is keeping our temperature down just a little bit. because the temperatures off the bay are still a little cooler. we are going to be tapping in, though, with a bit of a shift in the wind to the west and southwest, tapping into very warm air down to our south. it's going to allow for heat to keep pumping into the region. after that, easterly flow off the water gets out of here,

it's nothing stopping all of that hot air, just to run from the south and southeast, right on up the coastline. we will have a chance for pop- up showers. very summer-like pattern and the heat of the day over the increase few days. this front here is going to pass really up to the north. and it kind of goes by, pretty quickly and pretty much without any real hoopla to it. no real impact. but it will trigger a chance of showers or so on sunday. just widely scattered showers. but the humidity levels are going to gun, along with the dew point. and it's going to be very summer like. so even when the winds are coming off the ocean and the bay, the humidity and the dew points and the heat, still going to make it feel like it's right around 90 degrees throughout the weekend. 8:23 is your sunset time. south winds on the bay is 5 to 10 knots. tonight, going down to 66 degrees. warm and humid, with patchy clouds, potential for showers just around 90 degrees tomorrow. partly sunny and warm and humid. should mention that the orioles are playing at 7:05. and we're looking at definitely a chance for just some widely

scattered showers. >> i work with a goof. a total goof. >> i'm ready for crabs. >> well, we don't have any on the set right now. >> by the way, that's the script for the next show. coming up next on eyewitness news. >> i didn't even want to do the microphone. they would go nuts in there. >> that gets you in the mood. all of the paper and the bit. >> what are we dealing with here? >> we're dealing with us on a friday. that's what happens. don't miss tonight's cbs primetime lineup at 10:00, it's anep sode of blue bloods, followed by eyewitness news at 11:00. and as talking about the o's home stand weekend wraps up this weekend against the kansas city royals. sunday, it's masn on wjz. all cleaned up and ready to move on with the newscast. >> ready to go. that's right. still ahead on eyewitness news at 4:30. surprise twist in court. the latest on the campaign corruption trial of john edwards. returning home. evacuation orders lifted in california. what residents say sparked this wildfire. conviction overturned. a former high school football star gets his freedom back,

after being wrongfully imprisoned for five years. eyewitness news at 4:00 continues with denise ,,,,,,,,,,

it is 4:30, 82 degrees, partly sunny in central maryland right now. hello. thanks for staying with eyewitness news. i'm denise koch. and i'm vic carter. here's what people are talking about. >> conviction overturned. 10 years ago, he was a promising high school football star. but then he was wrongly convicted of rape and kidnapping. teresa garcia reports with more on an innocent man set free. >> reporter: 26-year-old brian banks broke down in court when he heard the judge's decision. banks is now legally cleared of a rape conviction he's lived with for 10 years. banks was a promising 16-year- old long beach high school football star when he was accused in 2002 of kidnapping and raping a girl on campus. instead of going to usc on a

football scholarship, he served five years in prison, then another five years on probation as a registered sex offender. >> i may not ever get the answers as to why i was supposed to go through what i went through. but i know i'm here today, and i remain unbroken. >> reporter: during a videotaped meeting at a private investigator's office last year, the accuser, wan -- juaneta gibson, admitted the crime never happened. >> did he rape you? >> no. >> reporter: gibson agreed her sexual encounter with banks was consensual. but she refused to tell prosecutors because she didn't want to give back a $1.5 million settlement from the school. >> we thought it was important to bring the truth to light in this case. and the truth is that brian committed no crime that day. >> reporter: with his conviction overturned, banks is now focusing his energy on the future. >> this is all that matters to

me is my family and my freedom. that's it. because it's been a long time coming. it's been a silent 10 years. >> reporter: he is training daily, and hopes to one day play for the nfl. teresa garcia, wjz eyewitness news. >> now, banks says he pleaded no contest to the charges 10 years ago because he was scared. the woman who accused him will likely not face criminal charges. the judge clears the courtroom in the john edwards corruption trial. kai is live with the new developments in this case. >> reporter: the judge talked to attorneys privately over a juror's personal matter. jurors have been pouring over financial documents and may ask to see a tape of a tv interview with edwards. in that interview, edwards said he never asked anyone to hide use that money. legal experts say it's too soon to read too much into the length of the deliberations. vic? >> kai, thank you. if convicted on all charges, edwards could face up to 30

years in prison. ecological disaster. the japanese tsunami killed thousands. and now, the debris is washing up on the coast of alaska. john blackstone has more from southern alaska. >> reporter: it shows that it regularly captures whatever is carried by the wind and the tide. what you is carried onto the beaches here now is different. a lot of it is plastic, barrels and bottles, light enough to be carried on the wind, across thousands of miles on the ocean. well, it's bobble to say-- impossible to say for certain any particular item came from japan, many items carry japanese writing. big blocks of foam are believed to be remnants of insulation used in many japanese houses. chris pallister knows these beaches well. >> the influx of debris. and this is just the first wave of the tsunami debris. it's 59, many times what -- many, many times what we would find on a normal season.

it's overwhelming. this just started. tens of thousands of miles of coastline are going to get debris on t. >> reporter: pallister spends summers getting cleanup crews. what has happened this year has hit him hard. [ choking up ] i mean, this is real. this is real. our crew has worked for 10 years to clean this mess up. and now we're back to square 1. >> that was john blackstone reporting. japan estimates 5 million tons of debris was swept out to sea, but most of it sank, leaving 1.5 million tons floating. gone in seven seconds. [ implosion ] that's how long it took to bring down the 17-story hotel in college station, texas. thousands gathered to watch the

meticulously-planned implosion. it was taken down to make room for a mixed-space office and apartment development. 29-year-old smyrna, georgia man, went off the road, crashed through a fence, and landed in the pool. the driver's head was nearly under water and he was unresponsive, when three good samaritans jumped in to rescue him. the driver is doing fine today and will not face any criminal charges. a graduate student, fighting a rare, flesh-eating bacteria is taking another step in recovery. >> amy copeland is now able to set up by herself for hours at a time. copeland splashed herself on a zip line. she was diagnosed with the infection shortly after and had to have her left leg amputated at her hips along with her right foot and hand. initially, doctors said her chances of surviving were very low. earlier this week, her father said she is able to now breathe

without a ventilator. >> copeland is in critical condition at a hospital in augusta. hard to believe june is right around the corner. wjz has weather and traffic together. bob is here now with the updated numbers from first warning weather. bob? >> today is a couple of degrees above normal this weekend. we're going to go 12 to 15 degrees above normal. it's going to be a hot weekend. but it's going to feel just like the middle of summer. one of two showers in the region. not a whole lot to talk about. but the eastern shore, two little cells there, one just to the west of cambridge, and around trappe, and one near harrington. that is about it this afternoon. and that's pretty much what we expect to have this weekend. very widely scattered shower or shower thundershowers-- thundershowers each afternoon. temperature-wise now, we're at 82 degrees. 79 up in oakland. and 84 in cumberland. 72 in ocean city. today's temps, running just one degree warmer than yesterday. oakland, 9 degrees warmer. ocean city, just 1 above what they were yesterday.

we'll come back and take a look at that weekend forecast in just a few minutes. denise? >> let's check on the roads now with kristy breslin, at wjz traffic control. hello, kristy. >> hi, denise, hi, everyone. so much traffic there. northbound 95, you can expect those delays past the beltway. it will take you 25 minutes to get through. on the top side inner loop, we're up to 40 minutes there from park heights avenue to harford road. the west side inner loop, expect another 25 in that direction, from baltimore national pike to security boulevard. and the outer loop, really not doing too much better on the west side. heavy from reisterstown road, to security boulevard. as far as 70 westbound goes, just bumper to bumper there from 29 to marriottsville road. expect delayoss the harris burg -- delays on the harrisburg expressway. and shawan road to belfast. and accidents include, 100 eastbound at oak wood road. and also south charles at west pratt. let's now take a live look. you can see, as you're heading to the eastern shore. 50 eastbound, right in the middle of the delay there.

424 to the severn river bridge. this traffic report is brought to you by pizza bolis. stop in and get two medium, one- topping pizzas for $6.99. it is the weekend to remember the men and women who give service in exchange for america's freedom. a difficult goodbye today to wives, husbands, mothers and children at the aberdeen proving ground. it will assist troops in moving supplies and equipment out of afghanistan. and they're anxious to get started. >> never gets easier, but you definitely know what to expect. so i have a high expectation for what we're going to do over there and how our guys are going to operate. i think we're going to do a good job. >> ready to get home. >> reporter: for some of these soldiers, today's deployment is the third, fourth, or fifth. and of course, we hope they get home safely. all over maryland, people are getting ready for the fun that goes with the first holiday of the summer. for many, that means steamed

crabs. with the crab population booming, there should be plenty to go around. >> as they look great. >> got you. good, heavy bushel there now. >> it's the sounds of summer. at fruit land in essex. home of the big bushel, where folks are crab ready for the memorial day weekend. >> it's great. because everybody sits around a table. and they get the shells out and that kind of stuff. and it's family. it's fun. >> you come in, and i'll write you up. and you got your crab. >> reporter: tony walters has been in the crab business 40 years. he agrees with adalis, who says this year's bay crab population is booming. >> we have plenty of suppliers. a lot of different crabbers out here. takes a lot of crabbers to get what we need on the holidays. >> reporter: chuck long drives three hours from western maryland, to bring them back home. >> yeah. i have a big cookout up there. and invite a lot of people. and get the crabs and we all have a good time for today.

>> hi, gwen. how are you? >> hi. i'm fine. >> what are you picking up today? >> i'm picking up crabs, corn on the cob, and a few pieces of fruit. >> reporter: tomatoes, strawberries, and much more. it's crab time in maryland. >> no need to worry, though. if you want crabs. >> no. no need to worry. we've got plenty. crabs are good quality right now. >> we like doing that in the country. throwing horse shoes. and eating crabs and telling lies. >> reporter: ron matz, wjz eyewitness news. >> analysts say the chesapeake bay's blue crab population is at the highest level since 1993. and a 66% increase over last year. >> boy, i just had a flashback. i can't remember the last time i pitched horse shoes. >> me neither. me neither. >> have you ever? >> yes, i have. oh, yes, i've been known to do that. straight ahead on eyewitness news at 4:00. massive protest in canada. what demonstrators are demanding. mothers may want to

consider natural births whenever possible. we'll tell you why. and what's in store for the updated holiday weekend? the updated first warning forecast when we come back. ,,,,,,

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angry students beat pots and pans as they march through the streets of montral. this demonstration is a protest against tuition hikes. clanging pots have rattled the streets of several canadian cities. the pots pots and pans protest has its roots in chili. -- chile. as long as it remains peaceful. tons of rocks covered the earth, stretching across two lanes of a highway. no deaths have been reported. it's not clear when traffic resumes. repair work is under way.

hundreds of people can finally return home, after a wildfire forces them from their homes in california. >> vic, the evacuation orders have been lifted for the residents of san diego county. more than 100 homes had to be emptied. winds caused a 1500-acre brush fire to spread to 12 homes in a matter of minutes. it's not clear how it started. residents say it may have happened when a bulldozer hit a rock and sparked a fire. fire officials have not confirmed that. >> no buildings were damaged. and no injuries were reported. a girl had her iphone stolen on a disney adventure cruise. but what the thief didn't know was that it automatically uploads photos to facebook. lisa bell has the story for wjz. >> reporter: katie mccaffrey's stolen iphone adventures album on facebook is full of pictures, streaming in from our missing iphone. starting with this one. may man who appears to be

wearing this. she says, this is nelson. nelson has my stolen iphone. he likes to take pictures of buildings in mexico with my stolen phone. in a separate post, mccaffrey writes, i can't see any reason why people shouldn't share this. feel free. and here's a beautiful sunset, he took on my phone. hopefully i'll get my phone back and maybe some free passes to disneyland. in a statement, a local disneyland cruise lines public affairs manager says they take matters of this nature very seriously. we have placed the employee on administrative leave, and restricted him from guest areas. we have been in touch with the guests and are working to make it right with her. so as mccaffrey writes, cheers to you, nelson. and cheers to you disney wonder, who nelson loves enough to photo document his entire life, using my stolen phone.

>> more than 3,000 people have shared this album. mccaffrey says she hopes to get her stolen phone back and maybe some free passes to disneyland. having a c-section may harm your future health. a new study finds, babies born by c-section may be at greater risk for becoming obese as children. researchers believe it boils down to the bacteria in a newborn's stomach. c-section babies have a different bacteria type than naturally birthed babies. more studies are needed to confirm the findings. also, new a new warning about epileptic treatment. patients may not be getting the help they need. >> reporter: stephanie conklin is an active mother of two. but for years, she was concerned her epileptic seizures would get in the way of becoming a mom. >> it was a challenge. it was a lot of side effects from the medicine. >> reporter: stephanie suffers seizures and had a brain tumor

removed as a child. she tried all kinds of medications, but nothing worked. the seizures interfered with every part of her life, including the birth of her daughter. >> i had two grand mal seizures while carrying her. so they took her early. >> reporter: a new report shows there are effective ways to treat epilepsy. but many patients don't have access to the care they need. >> less than half of the people who are eligible and good candidates for some of these sophisticated treatments get them. >> reporter: doctors say medicine helps most patients with epilepsy, but others need specialized treatments or surgery, which are oftenned at centers like this one, in hackensack, new jersey. >> this line is the craneiotomy, where the skull is open. >> reporter: doctors determined that stephanie needed a series of brain surgeries. they surfaced the elect rodes to pinpoint the problem. >> we had a very detailed map of her brain. so i could go back in with surgery and do microsurgery to

remove the seizure area. >> stephanie has had just one seizure in four years. she gave birth to her son without complications. and with some medication, doctors say she should be able to enjoy her children, without worrying about seizures. randall pinkston, wjz eyewitness news. >> roughly about 80 to 85% of episensey patients can control their seizures with medicine alone. >> the force celebrates a milestone. 35 years ago today, star wars opened in theaters. the original film was released on may 25th, 1977. since then, star wars has spawned two sequels, two prequels and hundreds of video games. the website has added the theatrical trailer of the first first movie to its home page. >> do we have a star wars lunch box? >> no. i may be a little longer in the tooth than you. [ laughter ] >> you should just take the

line and run with it. >> that's right. i wasn't born. we're keeping a close eye on the weather for your holiday weekend. bob turk has the updated first warning forecast coming up next. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

a live look outside right now. bob said, the temperatures would be arriving. and they have gotten here. it's warm already. >> if you like warm, summer weather. just in time for memorial day weekend. you're going to love this weekend. because it's going to be just amazing. i mean, compared to what we've seen recently. going to get pretty hot. in fact, we'll just call it a minor little short heat wave headed our way. temperatures running about 14 or so degrees above normal this weekend. including monday. right now, we're not that much above normal. 82. normal high is around 76. 62% humidity. pretty high at 68. that is pretty close, actually. southeast winds at 8 right now. that kept us from getting much, much warmer today. the winds off the bay and the ocean. and that might happen this weekend. i think if you get away from the ocean and the bay areas, inland areas will even be

hotter. barometer now, 30.11 inches on the way back up. 79 in oakland. cumberland, the hot spot, way far away from the ocean influence. they're at 88. tomorrow, they're definitely going to get to 90. ocean city, winds off the ocean, only at 72 degrees. d.c. is 86. 80, over in annapolis and kent island. and look at that. last came in at 88, west minister. i'll have to check that one. that doesn't seem quite right. but it's possible. southeast winds here, becoming more southerly later tonight. and tomorrow, that will bring in some of this additional heat. 89, memphis. 93. chicago has some clouds. they've dropped to 76. 89 in detroit. so in between there, sort of a frontal system. 88 in new orleans. 80 in miami. warm, humid, all weekend long. one thing we are watching, however, is a disturbance probably going to become a tropical depression, maybe even later tonight or tomorrow. it's been coming up from the caribbean, east of florida.

and it probably will develop something. it's actually going to be heading more to the west/southwest. i think, let's say you're heading down towards savannah, that area, northeast coast of florida. you can see some rain probably here, i think, by maybe saturday night or sunday, with that system. for us, not going to infect us, not on the near term. probably not at all. clear skies. we've seen one or two pop-up showers. that's approximate it -- about it. hot and humid. maybe a widely scattered shower or thundershower each afternoon. but very widely scattered. south winds, 5 to 10 knots. bay temp up to 72. the ocean water temperature, about 65, by the way. tonight, 66. warm and humid. partly cloudy skies. tomorrow, partly sunny. 85 to 90. probably 90 west of the city. and it will be humid. chance of showers, maybe no more than about 10 to 15%. you get under one of those, may cool you off for a few minutes. otherwise, a great weekend for

all outdoor activities. but please, put the sun screen on. okay? >> that's nice. thank you, bob. still to come on eyewitness news tonight. security concerns downtown. i'm mike hellgren. police beef up their presence, after several incidents. i'll have the latest on a flash mob robbery at a convenience store near the inner ,,,,,,,,,,,

coming up next on eyewitness news at 5:00. security at a robbery. how police are responding to the big memorial day weekend. it's the end of an era. thousands of workers at a historic maryland steel mill are losing their jobs. i'm weijia jiang, with what's next. arrest in a cold case. police say they salved a murder

from 1979. the suspect's confession brings revelations about etan pates. >> check in for these stories and all the day's breaking news. >> eyewitness news at 5:00 starts now. violent 24 hours. multiple shoots in the wake of downtown security concerns. >> the highlightenned concerns for the weekend. >> hi. i'm kai jackson. and i'm mary bubala. here's what people are talking about. >> eight people shot around the city, right before the holiday weekend. it's the latest in the string of concerning crimes, including the takeover of a downtown convenience store. wjz is live at police headquarters. mike hellgren has the plans to step up patrols for memorial day and beyond. mike? >> reporter: kai, you n