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tv   News 6 at 7 pm  CBS  March 21, 2016 7:00pm-7:30pm EDT

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>> lisa: developing right now, three police officers are off
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why surveillance video just released could cause prosecutors to reevaluate dozens of cases. >> plus a victory in court for missing missing missing mom, michelle parker. >> lisa: thanks for joining us. >> ginger: i'm ginger gadsden. also a news 6 investigation, getting results. >> so all of those phones were approved? >> yes. >> even though the program didn't exist? >> yes. >> ginger: months after we uncovered the veterans being signed up for free subsidized cell phones. there's a new twist. that's coming up in minutes. >> julie: the top story right now, you may still see and smell the smoke in east orange county
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it came within feet of dozens of homes in the avalon park community. firefighters tell jennifer ortega they now have this contained. it burned near wild tamarin drive. the homes are now out of danger. the firefighters will be out there all night to make sure it doesn't flair back up. >> ginger: all day long, we've been under a red flag fire danger warning. >> julie: that warning just expired moments ago. as we take a live look over daytona beach, let's check in with meteorologist troy bridges in for tom tonight. why was the fire danger so high today? >> it's all about the dry air in place and the winds kicking up. the winds were gusting near 30 miles per hour earlier today around the area of high pressure that continues to dominate the forecast. that's leading to a lot of sunshine tomorrow that will help us to warm up after a chilly start early in the morning. it's all behind a front that moved well to the south of us, brought some severe weather yesterday to south florida. you can see the winds right now
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much higher than the sustained winds. sustained between 10 and 15 miles per hour across florida. night. there's a frost advisory in effect through all of marion county through tomorrow morning. temperatures are dropping into the upper 30's. at 9:00 tonight, we're down to 55 and 53 by 10:00 tonight. we'll talk more about the 30's and 40's for tomorrow morning and we'll talk about rain chances returning as early as mid-week. we could use it because of the fire threat, it will likely continue, the fire threat, for the next few days. back to you. >> julie: thank you, troy. >> don't forget, you can get breaking weather alerts and live radar anytime on our free news 6 pinpoint weather app. just search wkmg in your app store. >> ginger: still developing now at 7:00, the prosecution of dozens of cases or more is on hold and three kissimmee police officers are all off the job. all because of surveillance video. news 6 reporter troy campbell
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left an entire unit of the kissimmee police force suspended. >> reporter: the three officers were taken off the job last thursday after the public defender discovered the surveillance video. once state investigators were able to review it, they say they had no other options but drop the charges against the suspect. the surveillance video captured at the tropicana motel on november 24th shows three kissimmee police officers walk into a room where a drug suspect was staying. shortly after, all three leave with the suspects in cuff. the problem, in the charging affidavit, the officer tiffany hall said she was alone without the help of the two officers. now all three have been suspended from the department's street crimes unit. >> cameras are wonderful things as long as we understand that a picture. state attorney jeff ashton calls it a sad situation for anyone in law enforcement when a representative of the law is questioned for their credibility. forward.
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contradiction between the tape and what was testified to and so the case was dropped at that point. >> reporter: ashton says he's contacted the attorneys for all open cases the three officers are involved in. >> there's a lot of questions about exactly what happened and how. >> reporter: personnel files shows that one of those three officers have been suspended from the job in the past. as of now, no criminal charges have been filed. outside the orange county courthouse, troy campbell, news 6. >> ginger: a big victory in court for the family of missing mom, michelle parker. >> lisa: dale smith must take part in a deposition according to a judge. here's more on what that means. >> reporter: dale smith has not officially been charged in the death or disappearance of michelle parker. he's still a main suspect. his attorney says testifying in this civil case could come back to haunt him in the future. still, michelle's parents are here saying they're fighting for the answers.
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come out and we'll be able to find michelle and we'll know what happened. >> reporter: yvonne stewart is still holding on in the fight to find her daughter, michelle parker, last seen alive in 2011. right after she and her ex fiance dale smith were seen on an episode of people's court. smith has been a main suspect, but never charged. parker's mother is seeking the answers another way, filing a lawsuit against smith for negligence. but smith's attorney says his client is staying silent. >> he has the fifth amendment. that's the whole purpose. this is america. >> reporter: the attorney asking a judge today if his client could skip out on testifying. but a judge said no. so knowing what smith is going to say or not say, stewart's attorney, belvin perry, plans to get the deposition on video. >> a video deposition gives you the advantage of being able to look at a person and judge their
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>> reporter: smith's attorney plans to fight that, too, asking for that video not to be released to the public. >> that's sort of a lynch mob mentality that someone thinks they're guilty because they take the fifth amendment. it creates a swell of public opinion against my client. he's entitled to a fair trial should he ever be indicted. this will destroy that right. >> lisa: an alert for parents in the daytona beach area. >> julie: a 14-year-old says he she narrowly escaped from a man who tried to grab her. it happened friday night near deltona state college. that teen shared her story with news 6. >> i was thinking am i going to be kidnapped, taken away and never seen again? >> julie: the 14-year-old says one minute she was walking down the street picking up her boyfriend's little sister. the next, a man tried kidnapping her and she had only one chance to escape.
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here, since you're not going to tell me where you're going. he said you can come to me or i can come to you. he was trying to take me because he leaned out of the car as if he was about to get out and come towards me. i finally just screamed. >> julie: police released this sketch and description of the man, 30 to 40-year-old, 5-6 and weighing 180 pounds. this is important. he was last seen driving a light blue jaguar. for a closer look, head to our website at clickorlando.com, powered by news 6. >> ginger: sky 6 spotted a fiery scene in east orange county late today. a boat burning in someone's yard. take a closer look at what happened. it appears flames from the boat caught a small patch of grass on fire. no buildings were in danger. orange county firefighters tell us this happened on county road 14 in the bithlo area. they're still investigating what caused the boat to burn. >> lisa: and a close call at disney's animal kingdom. a fire broke out in the middle of one of its most popular shows.
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posted this look at the smoke. he tells us the elephant float somehow caught on fire. disney says about a thousand people evacuated safely. and that its cast members had arrived. no one was hurt. >> ginger: it's a news 6 investigation getting results and leading to lawsuits. for months we've told you how taxpayers were taken in a free cell phone for veterans scheme. the problem, there was no such program. tonight we have learned track phone is suing the companies it hired to take applications for safe link phones in florida. >> lisa: the lawsuits claim a software defect allows the companies to sign up thousands of ineligible residents. >> julie: news 6 investigator mike holfeld broke the story. together. >> reporter: track phone, the company behind the free safe link phones in the government's lifeline program is going to court. suing three marketing companies
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allegedly cheating the system by handing over an estimated 350,000 phones with the help of a material defect in the software used to sign them up. >> reporter: what do you think was going on? were they using you to perpetrate this elaborate scheme? >> absolutely. absolutely they used us. >> reporter: news 6 first exposed the defect six months ago. former employees with elite marketing say central florida veterans and cops received phones they were never eligible for. she was one of their top field reps. >> reporter: so all of those phones were approved? >> yes. >> even though the program didn't exist? >> yes. >> reporter: as we first told you, pressing the two buttons on the tablets used to take applications essentially fooled the system. but who was behind the alleged deception? >> we had a new manager come into place and her and the national director at the time
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orlando v.a. clinic. >> reporter: she's convinced the elite marketing former national director of safe link's lifeline program along with the new orlando knew about the button defect. >> reporter: what buttons did you push? >> we pushed medicaid and ssi because the v.a. tab they were creating hadn't been done yet. >> they created 80,000 ineligible politicians. but the elite attorney says we're still investigating the allegations made by track phone, but it should be noted that at no point was elite responsible for approving applications or for the software used to approve applications. investigators have been reviewing the alleged deception for months. accountable? sources familiar with this case says the financial impact is
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>> ginger: out at the cape, launch teams are keeping a close eye on the water. >> in minutes, how the next cargo mission could help astronauts fight fires in space. >> julie: also an elaborate pranks in hopes of getting the girl to say yes. why a high school student coping with cancer says this means more than the date to the dance. >> ginger: but a smelly situation on the space coast. how hundreds of thousands of dead fish are washing up and how brevard county is teaming up to >> we're getting results on news 6 at 7:00 and on our news 6 app.
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>> julie: it is smelly, disgusting and an environmental disaster. hundreds of dead and dying fish washing ashore.
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the indian river lagoon has brevard county teaming up with others to clean up this mess. several brevard county organizations are teaming up to use emergency help to clean up the indian river lagoon. >> julie: it stretches from titusville to the causeway. >> ginger: 15 species of fish are dying from it. some who live along the coast say the sight and smell are unbearable. >> oh, my god. this is terrible. this is the worst i've ever seen it and i've been here since 1970. this is the worst fish kill i've ever seen. >> ginger: florida fish and wildlife and brevard county researchers are investigating the cause of the fish kill. initial findings point to an algae bloom fueled by warm water and fertilizer leaking into the lagoon.
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also be making it worst. >> julie: and there are now 71 zika virus cases statewide. 13 in central florida. all are linked to travel to foreign countries except for a sexually transmitted case in polk county. >> lisa: uber's new partnership with altamonte springs is now in effect. discounts for anyone hiring the ride-share service for trips within the city limits, trips that start and end in altamonte springs will get a 20% discount. the discount jumps to 25% if you start or end the trip at the altamonte sunrail station. the uber partnership is aimed at boosting sunrail ridership and replacing a deal with lynx which is about to expire. >> ginger: these are all about teens asking dates to the big dance in ways as elaborate as marriage proposals.
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football prior sidelined by year. the 17-year-old hid behind a carefully decorated door. in november, the defensive tackle was diagnosed with leukemia and is now coping with chemo. he tells us time off the field left him more time to plan for today. >> would you follow me. >> yes. >> she said yes. >> it was an emotional moment for victoria who says she never would have guessed his plan. deshawn calls her "his light in a dark time." >> she keeps me up, i keep her up, we keep each other up on a high level. >> julie: victoria already has her dress picked out and that will be her surprise. >> ginger: i love that story. the fact he's going through such a hard time, he's still planning for the future, which is great. >> lisa: which is exactly what he needs he said.
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the atlas 5 rocket is now on the pad. united launch alliance sent us this time lapse video showing the rocket's rollout this morning. on board, a cargo capsule and inside that, 7500 pounds of food and equipment and experiments for the international space station. this is orbital's fifth station supply mission and its second since the fiery disaster heavily damaged orbital's launch complex in virginia in 2014. and fire is the fate for the current capsule after astronauts unpack the cargo, nasa will set off a large-scale fire inside to see how it changes in 0 g. launch is set for 11:05 tomorrow night and we'll carry it live on news 6 at 11:00 and on clickorlando.com. so far, weather has a 90% chance of cooperating. >> lisa: that's sounds really good.
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>> ginger: it's interesting to see what happens there. >> julie: it's also interesting saying weather has a 90% chance of cooperating. it seems like it could be pretty windy. >> today we had wind gusts up to 30 miles per hour across central florida. >> ginger: today would have been a no-go for sure. >> absolutely. the winds are calming down through tomorrow night when the sun sets, things will get better. the fire threat is a little bit lower. now we transition into the cold air as we talk about a frost advisory in effect through 9:00 tomorrow morning in marion county. temperatures will be dropping into the upper 30's there early in the morning tomorrow. look at the temperatures now as we get closer to sunset. we're going to see the temperatures dropping off very quickly tonight with drier air building in. we're at 63 right now in orlando. look, daytona beach already in the 50's. it's 59 in new smyrna beach. 58 in melbourne right now. 63 in ocala and the villages. as we take you through the forecast hour by hour tonight, here's what to expect.
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temperatures dropping to 55 by 9:00. we're at 51 by 11:00 tonight. so as you're heading out on the town, you need to grab a jacket. we'll need that through the early morning hours, certainly tomorrow morning, starting off in the 30's and 40's, right around 49 by 8:00 in the morning in orlando. look at the nice warm-up with the line graph here. we take you through noon tomorrow at 67. we're up to 75 at 4:00 with a little bit of a breeze but not as much wind tomorrow as we saw today. here's the clouds and rain forecast. watch the clock at the top of the screen. we count you down and take you through tonight and through the day tomorrow. a few clouds along the coast. but no rain. we'll stay dry the next couple of days before rain chances do return as the area of high pressure that continues to dominate the forecast eventually moves off the coast. as that happens, south winds will work in more moisture by the middle and end of the week. tonight, more dry air with light north winds and that's why temperatures are going to be dropping considerably, down to
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41 in the villages. 44 in orlando. 45 in sanford. 44 in daytona beach. a lot of spring breakers out and about. it's going to be chilly again in the morning. a nice warm-up into the low 70's tomorrow into the afternoon. we're at 44 early in the morning in flagler county for palm coast. tomorrow in daytona beach, up to 72. the rip current risk will be elevated through tomorrow and likely through the middle of the week there along the coast. we'll have to watch that closely for all the folks out of town who may want to get in the water. 75 tomorrow afternoon in orlando. 76 in leesburg. we warm to 74 in ocala and 72 in cocoa beach. after a chilly start area-wide, afternoon. notice the trend here. we continue to warm into the middle and end of the week. we're up to 81 on wednesday. 85 on thursday. but notice with those south winds, the same winds bringing in warmer air from the south, they'll also bring in more moisture in the form of cloud rain.
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considerably for friday at 40%, on through easter weekend. rain chances elevated at 50%. highs in the mid-80's, both saturday and easter sunday. we're going to pinpoint that timing for the rain. of course, we don't want rain for the easter egg hunts. we don't like it too warm either because of all the goodies, we talked about the eggs spoiling a little bit. think about the plastic eggs if you're one who likes to color the eggs. >> ginger: thank you, troy. you've known me for five minutes, you know win or lose, i love the orlando magic. i love rooting for them as well. >> lisa: but games are even better sitting courtside. >> julie: news 6 is giving you the chance to experience the magic up close. we're giving away two courtside tickets against the brooklyn nets next tuesday night. you can enter all day long on our facebook page at
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flies your way at 8:00 on news 6 followed by the hit drama scorpion at 9:00 and at 10:00, ncis los angeles leading up to news 6 at 11:00. >> ginger: after news 6 at 11, stay tuned to "the late show with stephen colbert" >> lisa: tonight he welcomes comedian chelsea handler. don't miss it at 11:35 on news 6. >> ginger: if you're going out, you need a jacket? >> you will need a jacket. it will be in the 50's. here's the way it looks tomorrow, up to 75. so a nice warm-up. back to the 80's by wednesday. for the weekend, a little rain. we'll pinpoint the timing. >> i have no excuse.
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hulk hogan's ex. >> even she's stunned by the $115 million verdict. >> ka-ching. >> her exclusive reaction. then -- >> come on! >> donald trump sing-along. donald stand by me and spring break hero. the teen pilot flying back from spring break with his girlfriend. >> we've got an engine failure. >> their miraculous emergency landing, on a golf course. >> got a couple of cuts and bruises. >> the black eyes here. then, charged with shooting his wife. he says it was suicide. >> my wife just shot herself in the head!

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