now "good morning maryland." it will be an emotional graduation in baltimore county today. how one high school honors those who served and serving to protect our freedom. another graduate is celebrator her degree after serving in a war zone. how she was able to achieve a perfect gpa. and before you hit the road, ask yourself this question and pondering, could you pass a driving test? the bad news is a survey says many here in maryland wouldn't. we will tell you what the results were coming up on this friday morning. it's the eve of the memorial day who will day. i am charley crowson. >> i am megan pringle. hope you have fun plans for the weekend and if you do, you want to know what the weather will be like. here's meteorologist justin berk. >> reporter: good morning. we start off with -- >> good morning. we start off with a look at towson. we have cloud cover that's thin

enough to allow the sun come through and there's a little haze in that glaze out there in the eastern sky. it feels like summer and checking out baltimore conditions right now dundalk 70. towson at that view 68. and a little cooler up towards the hereford zone at 65. five degree spread across the county this morning. we are looking at showers back into the mountains. looks like they were training more north but as the next wave of showers and severe weather tries to break out in the mountains of western maryland, they will get it today, we will push more cloudiness our way. more sun expected on the eastern shore. and we are going to be right on the edge of developing more storms. we were on the edge yesterday. slight risk they may turn severe. 88 to near 90 depend willing on -- depending on the sun. tonya has look at traffic. >> reporter: expect delays on 50 near row boulevard due to the naval graduation. so far 50 is doing all right. let's look at 50 at 97. looking east, we have traffic moving smoothly in both directions. that's the westbound traffic to the left of your screen.

we have an accident reported in cockeysville. that accident is going to be west padonia at deer co road so be aware of that. 6:32. earning a college degree is hard enough on its own. but imagine doing it in a war zone. one local woman did just that atan arundel community college. and be -- at anne arundel community college. show was in afghanistan but that's the beginning of her remarkable story. abc2 news linda so is here with more. >> reporter: well, not only is this soldier -- this woman a soldier but a mom with a two- year-old son. that's not all. staff sergeant huggins-hodge graduated as valedictorian cement stood before her classmates last night and gave a speech. her husband, and son and other family members were right there in the front row. the staff sergeant took classes online and did homework while halfway around the world. she earned straight a's while

deployed in afghanistan. so while serving in that war zone and doing everything she needed to do as a sold year, she managed to earn a 4.0gps. she says her 2-year-old -- gpa. she says her son inspired her to go back to school and is glad she did because having something to do overseas kept her mind off things at home. >> cool would take -- school took my mind away from constantly worrying about what was going to happen next. you know, it's all these deadlines to meet, and that's what consumed me. >> you can't think about how hard it's going to be. you figure out how to work "ñthe and get it done. and that's what she did. that's what we do as a family. that's how we raise our kids. it's just do what you have to do. >> reporter: and the staff sergeant used skype to take her exams. she juggled her online classes in a time zone almost 9 hours ahead of us. in the studio, linda so, abc2 news. an atlanta area beauty

supply store, latest target in what appears to be a nationwide rash of hair extension theft. look at this. the video shows masked suspects running into the store jumping over the counter and grabbing packs of human hair. they rammed no a car into the building to get into the building early thursday morning. hair was worth around $10,000. stores across the country have been hit in recent months. and it's believed that the hair is destineed for online sales. so trying to stick it to the man for giving him a ticket because david stephenson doesn't trust the man. he drove from arkansas to get his two cents over a fine. he was pulled over for having tint too dark and gave ticket that was about $127. and when he went to pay it he decided to use abe lincoln but one penny is no longer money because they wouldn't accept it and the -- he went to the bank and took all those pennies and paid that fine with a roll of

quarters and one dollar bill. forget shrimp on the barbie. a video is now putting the small sea creature in the big spotlight on capitol hill. senator coburn put out a report mocking the national science foundation for funding research projects such as a shrimp on a treadmill with a half a million dollar grant. the lab director is defending it saying they subject the shrimp to environmental stresses like low oxygen or pollution, and then measure the response using blood tests and checking respirations. this is done to do sigh thanes might help seafood survive. -- science that might help seafood survive. it's neat video. >> it's great video. emafraid someone will say it was a hoax. >> we want to know what you think. that's the hot topic. >> yeah that will be on facebook. and who's your favorite muppet. but if you use facebook for your job, your friend could cost you great opportunities. >> see the story. a survey about facebook use

says people need to clean up their language on the social networking site. why this could be costing you a job. as you hit the road for memorial day weekend, why you might be spending less on gas than you my have planned. [ dog barking ] mom!

breakfast? in this house? in the morning i can use all the help i can get. that's why i love nutella, a delicious hazelnut spread that's perfect on multigrain toast and even whole-wheat waffles. it's a quick and easy way to give my family a breakfast they'll want to eat. and nutella is made with simple, quality ingredients, like hazelnuts, skim milk and a hint of cocoa. they love the taste and i feel good that they're ready to tackle the day. ♪ nutella. breakfast never tasted this good.

i could use all the help i can get. like nutella, a delicious hazelnut spread that's perfect on multigrain toast, even whole-wheat waffles, for a breakfast that my kids love and i feel good about serving. and nutella is made with simple, quality ingredients, like hazelnuts, skim milk, and a hint of cocoa. it's quick, easy and something everyone can agree on. ♪ nutella. breakfast never tasted this good.

thanks for joining us. a survey find more than half of facebook users need to clean up their act when it come to the language on their pages. but the same survey says more often than not, the dirty words are from your friends posting on your wall. whether you are looking for a job or trying to climb the ladder in your workplace, there's more managing in the digital reputation than just untagging the unflattering parting -- partying pictures. you are known by company you

keep and they say cutting some of the connections. >> it's business not personal. if i have to block you i have to block you because my job or job search is important to me. it's not that we are not friends anymore, but we can't be connected on facebook if you can't keep it together. >> not me it's you. a new app from one of the monitors says the content of your facebook page you have to keep it clean. you can set up a google alert to e-mail you with attached to your name online to see the writing on wall before your employer does. >> not me, it's you. >> that's right. >> that's what she said. just as drivers hit the road for the memorial day weekend, there's relief coming to you at the pump. aaa says the nation average for a gallon of regular unleaded stands at 3.81. down 9 cents from a week ago. travel industry officials say consumers were already showing signs they plan to travel this summer but they were going to offset the increased gas costs by eating cheaper meals or

staying in less costly hotel. in maryland, gas prices are slightly higher than the national average hanging around $3.85. after hitting road, abc # 2 news is working to save at the pump. head to abc2news.com for the --for the gas price and put in the area code to find the cheapest stayss around you. coming up, four boys shot while playing outside in their neighborhood, one is not expected to survive. >> coming up a. call for action from neighbors and their councilman. we will tell you what they want to be done to make homes safer. and under armour makes the equipment for almost every activity you can think of. now they are expanding into the world of lacrosse. get off the road. the majority of us would never pass a driver's test. which state is the worst when it comes to driving and where our state ranks.

introducing honey bunches of oats, raisin medley. there's nothing like it! the only cereal with 1, 2, 3 kinds of raisins and crunchy multigrain flakes. you gotta try new honey bunches of oats raisin medley. mmm. ahh.

yeah. bacon. come celebrate baconalia! only at denny's. america's diner is always open.

this is your abc2 news to go i am megan pringle. >> i am charley crowe sanson.

let's che -- crowson. >> let's check -- let's check on your forecast. >> we appreciate you naming megan and myself muppets. maryland's most powerful doppler radar dry sweep is good news. we will get active today. heading into the mountains, showers and storms uv index will be in the moderate range. look during the eastern shore and look at purple shading towards the extreme range. 10 to 15 minutes burn time you may be look forward to that. but lap on the sunscreen and keep the shade because that sun will be bright in the eastern shore. they -- slight risk severe weather. 88 to near 90 this afternoon. the rest of the weekend forecast in a moment. here tonya with traffic. >> reporter: doing okay at bridges and tunnels. all of the transit service is on time as well. let's look at the beltway. on the southwest side, 6 95 at wilkins doing fine. travel lanes are open.

nothing worry about. we have a road closure to tell you about in glen burnie. that is going to be baltimore annapolis boulevard. closed in both directions at harriett drive due to an accident north of mountain road. use route 10 as an alternate. back to you guys. >> they will celebrate graduation but honoring two graduates who lost their lives fighting for their country. abc2 news sherrie johnson joins us live to tell us about the somber and patriotic care moby at hereford high school -- but somber ceremony at hereford high school records they have a very busy and patriotic morning planned. look behind me. they have started to set up for the care mowny. flags are lining the -- ceremony. flags are lining the sidewalk. they have a wreath and pictures and flowers. they are all set. the american legion will raise the colors in front of the school as part of a ceremony at 7:30 this morning. the school will present a new memorial wreath to remember two

of its graduates lance corporal norman anderson ii and corporal josh snyder the both lost their lives in the war in 2005 and students will pass out red, white and blue bracelets to the student body and hand out flags at the school driveway. the choir will sing "god bless america" and the national anthem. and i have two students joining me live here. we have malry and lauren. malory, can you tell us about you know i understand you put this whole thing on the students d that's amazing. why did you decide to do this this year? >> well, the past couple years,our leader, he has been showing us e-mails about memorial day and how it's a grilling and barbeque event and we wanted to bring back what it is about and how it's about the soldiers and remembering what people -- who we lost and who is still fighting for our freedom. >> reporter: exlen. and this is your first year -- excellent. and this is your first year doing that. lauren can you tell us i

understand besides today you do a lot of other things. you also put together care packages and go to bwi and greet the servicemen and women when they return home. why do you do that? >> because our community is very close community and we have many fallen heros and we like to stay close and help them out and support them. >> reporter: okay. very good. thanks ladies so much for being here today. we really appreciate it. and all of your efforts as the military brat, we definitely appreciate people that can remember our servicemen and women. and congratulations to the both of you. you graduate tonight. so congratulations to both of you seniors. >> thank you. >> reporter: so, school administrators also want to note that it's not just about the students here today. they want this entire event to be for the entire community and just show the servicemen and women and their families how much they mean to them. reporting live, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. >> 6:48. this morning the baltimore county man -- a baltimore county man is behind bars accused of sexually abusing a

developmentally disabled man. we are talking about a man named tony chestnut working as a caregiver at a group home with the associated catholic charities. they searched chestnut's home and found a video of chestnut abusing a man. they found a collection of child pornography as well. this morning, fire investigators are trying to figure out what caused an apartment complex fire in mount vernon. the fire broke out yesterday afternoon on west biddle street. one police officer was taken to the hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation. he is expected to be okay. this morning, there's a call for action for the city council -- from a councilman after four boys were shot. he is calling for increased police patrols in a neighborhood in east baltimore. that's where 12-year-old shawn johnson and three others were shot on tuesday night. stokes says while crime may be going down all over the city, some neighborhoods are still being impacted by the violence. he is going to be spending more

about police presence later this morning on cliffview avenue. 12-year-old johnson is in intensive care and sadly, he is not expected to survive. police are searching for the suspects. today, friends and family will say final good-byes to a maryland state trooper. 39-year-old trooper shaft hunter died saturday morning on 95 in howard county. police say he had been pursuing a speeding motorcycle when his vehicle hit a tractor trailer. trooper hunter's funeral is in randalls town at 11 this morning. his burial will immediately follow at due lanny valley memorial gardens. the governor ordered state flags be flown at half-staff until sunset. world war ii hero was -- won the medal of honor in the battle of the bulge has died at the age of 90. the long time parkville resident lied. he won the highest military honor of a charging across the

snow crusted bell jump field to capture 24 prisoners -- bellium field to capture 24 prisoners on christmas day. under armour makes gear for anything you can think of involved in physical activity. so it is no surprise to anyone that they are getting into the game of lacrosse. they are going launch a line of lacrosse gear from stick heads to handles and helmets to goggles. they will use them for the new molded skin technology. it will make the gear lighter and give players more flexibility. well if you want to get a driver's license or permit, forget about it today. state agencies throughout maryland will be closed or offer reduced services as part of a furlough day. the service reduction day on friday is one of five most state employees will have to take for fiscal year 2011. it does not affect emergency workers. >> at love drivers will hit the roads this me marl day, but

maybe they -- memorial day, but maybe they shouldn't be. according to a survey, one in five americans would fail a driving test if they had to take one right now. bad news is maryland drivers third dumbest in the country they say. we come in 49th beating out just washington, d.c. and hawaii. last year we were 20th and makes you wonder what made us slip so far. torches out about 85% of -- turns out 85% of drivers nationellally couldn't identify -- nationally couldn't identify the appropriate action to take when approaching a yellow light. women and younger people are doing the worst. people in the midwest scored the highest. 6:52. five things to know before you head out this morning. the republican race for the president is heating up. presidential front-runner mitt romney will announce his candidacy on june 2nd. he will in iowa for the first time this year. the early caucus state war key

to his 2008 campaign strategy. astronauts aboard endeavour are conducting the final space walk along international space station. these are live pictures of them hard at work. it's endeavour's last mission ever. the shuttle is set to come home wednesday and will be retired to california. today's graduation day in annapolis. the naval academy commencement ceremony will take place at navy-marine corps memorial stadium and robert gates will be the speaker today.the blue angels will not do the flyover this year because of a safety breach during a show recently in virginia. hours to spare, congress approved three provisions of the patriot act including wiretaps. the senate and house passed provisions before the deadline. the president was able to review and sign a four-year extension. today ocean city kicks off the municipal bus and boardwalk trams. the city bus also run every 10 minutes from 6 in the morning to 3 in the morning and riding

late you have to wait longer becausebetween 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., they will run every 20 minutes. the fares $3 a day or $1 per boarding. now maryland's most powerful doppler radar and the forecast certified most accurate by weatherate. >> 6:54. pushing extreme for the uv index. protect the eyes. lap on the sunscreen for the kids. you may be going for the different causes of soak of out -- soak up the sun but be careful. we have warm temperaturesstreaming up ahead of this frontal bondry. and it's been cooler -- bondry. it's been cooler than normal temperatures responsible for this tornadic outbreak it will slam up against the mountains. same area that had it yes alongthe i-81 corridor will probably have it again today. showers and thunderstorms west of there. into the mountains, cloudiness

and showers and storms. and there is a slight risk of them turning severe with the boundary near car role and frederick county and central pa. we could get stray thunderstorms pushing into the baltimore area -- p.a. we could get stray thunderstorms pushing up into the baltimore area. there's going to be more sun and that's the burn index out there. the showers and storms igniting in the afternoon and eke. -- evening. right on the threshold of 90 and right on the edge of developing the storms again tomorrow. we will push that boundary to a weakened form by the end of the weekend and hot weather continues through memorial day. 88 i am going on the lower end of the two degree guarantee but we could hit 90 to 92 looking for the difference with the amount of sunshine. scattered showers and stronger severe storms again tomorrow. and 90 sunday. 92 on memorial monday. downright hot. tonya. >> reporter: we are getting a little volume on the beltway.

between dundalk and hawkins point but it's been relatively light. people took the day off i think because of the traffic. let's look at 695 at liberty road. northwest side usually by this time it is getting into stop and go and we don't have any of that. we are doing well in both directions. no problems to report. be aware of delays that could take effect on 50 due to the naval graduation. doors are about to open at 7 and the graduation is at 10. road closures and the road closure in anne arundel county baltimore annapolis boulevard and both directions between harriett drive and faywood due to an accident. use route 10 arundel expressway instead as an alternate. all right. it's a few minutes away from "good morning america." matt stover will be here at nine. >> look forward to. and -- looking forward to that. the shrimp on the treadmill what do you think about government spending. and who is your favorite muppet? >> who is your favorite muppet. >> big bird.

>> yes. >> okay. >> yellow. >> swedish chef. >> animal. >> two guys in the balcony. ♪ ooh baby, looks like you need a little help there ♪ ♪ ooh baby, (what) can i do for you today? ♪ [ female announcer ] need help keeping your digestive balance? align can help. only align has bifantis, a patented probiotic that naturally helps maintain your digestive balance. try align to help retain a balanced digestive system.

try the #1 gastroenterologist recommended probiotic. align. but we still may suffer from nasal allergy symptoms. they can hit you year round... indoors or out. achoo! oh to have relief. prescription nasonex is clinically proven to help relieve nasal allergy symptoms... including congestion, runny and itchy nose and sneezing. [ female announcer ] side effects may include headache, viral infection, sore throat, nosebleeds, and coughing. infections of the nose and throat and eye problems, including glaucoma or cataracts may occur. have regular eye exams. slow wound healing may occur, so do not use nasonex until your nose has healed from any sore, surgery or injury. nasonex can increase your risk of getting infections. avoid contact with infections like chicken pox or measles

while using nasonex. it does not come in generic form. ask your doctor if nasonex is right for you. ♪ just love me ♪ oh oh oh ♪ just hold me ♪ oh oh oh ♪ just kiss me ♪ oh oh oh ♪ just want me ♪ l-o-v-e ♪ love, love, love [ thinking ]he best, another pet name?les. all right, i'm smart enough to notice that my favorite fresh-brewed mickey d's sweet tea is now on the dollar menu,