believe it's not his fault. >> reporter: crystal testerman and robyn eisner haven't spoken in years but it was this young face that brought them back together. what was your reaction when you saw this baby face? >> breaks my heart. he's just a kid. it breaks my heart. we're all moms. >> reporter: a support effort that started and is growing on afternoon. these moms and their kids said they saw and heard enough anecdotal evidence sparking them to help pool funds for a private attorney. by no means condoning it but helping the teen leverage a better fight. >> even though he was a nice kid, there had to be more than yelling doing on.

he snapped. >> reporter: but did he? the harford county said they responded to the richardson household 16 times in the past years but nonfor domestic abuse or violence. many of it involved the 16-year-old disappearing but returning home safe and unharmed. still, abuse may be hashed out at trial. today the teen waived his right to a preliminary hearing. it was full of a courtroom of mothers emergencying support for a child they believe is a victim rather than a murderer. >> we think he fell through the cracks. they should have yanked him from the house and put him in a better environment. >> reporter: there were some

family members. richardson's sister did tell us she would, quote, fight for her brother until he is free. brian kuebler, abc2 news. a memorial pays tribute to popular wbal radio host ron smith. smith was known as the voice of reason for many years and died last month after a battle with pancreatic cancer. the airman was killed by an explosive device on january 5th. funeral services were held in sidler. the 24-year-old was buried at arlington national cemetery. well, the day started out rainy and gloomy. now the sun is setting and the temperatures have warmed up just a bit. what can we expect for the rest

of the workweek? wyatt is here with a look at the forecast. what a change in the weather. the skies cleared. it was a pretty nice day, temperatures shooting up above 50 degrees. gusty southerly winds up near 30 miles an hour. temperatures near 60 baltimore, d.c., east ton -- easton. we'll talk about how temperatures will take a sharp drop before they bounce back up. it as all coming up. a baltimore county woman barely escaped a two alarm fire that started just after midnight. the homeowner was home alen when the fire broke out.

>> i hear like a thunder. i thought someone was trying to break in the house. i run to the door to see if i can lock it and i see this red hue under my door. i said oh, my god. the house is on fire. >> fortunately, shes not hurt. there's no word on what started the fire. in howard county fire ripped through an ellicott city city. it was on meadow road and this heavily damaged the house next door. roosevelt leftwich joins us with more. >> reporter: when firefighters got to the scene just after 1:00, they immediately pulled the second alarm. the fire was moving very, very quickly. the brightly colored christmas decorations stood in stark contrast to what was left on

middle meadow road. they said they were awakened in the middle of the night by a loud noise and then there were several more. >> i noticed the garage was engulfed in flames. so apparently something had ignited, and it just took off. >> i asked what happened. he said the neighbor's house was on fire. >> reporter: the house was so involved that the fire started melting the siding on the house near it. >> dealing with the different gases that could be involved, oil and so forth and also trying to combat the flames. when they got there, there was heavy fire, heavy smoke. >> at this point firefighters don't know what touched off the

fire. investigators are going over the scene to determine the cause. >> everybody got out from what i understand, sherry and dave and the two boys and their pets. i just watched. it it was horrible. >> reporter: three people in the home next door also had to escape. the fire marshal is trying to figure out what happened here. rosie leftwich. >> are you looking to get a head start on your taxes? it's your lucky day. the irs began accepting e file returns. they will be the first of the expected 140 million, 2011 tax refunds. the average refund about $3,000. you can expect to get your money back within eight to 15 days. before you e file beware of the

common mistakes. >> the most common is transposing numbers, getting the social security wrong, taking a deduction that isn't allowed. you should consult a professional at h&r block. >> if you're ready to file early but don't have your w2's, they have teamed up with businesses. the tax deadline this year is april 17th. well, in democracy 2011 tonight -- 2012 tonight the momentum is growing for mitt romney. a poll finds 72% of republicans and republican leaning independents think he will be their nominee. that same poll shows romney with a nearly 20 point lead over his opponents. his lead is giving him the confidence to go straight after president obama.

>> a very stark difference between the paths that will be taken by a romney administration if i'm lucky enough to get that job or a continuation of the obama administration. if i'm president of the united states i would stand for the sanctity of human life whether here or abroad. >> but romney did give his rivals an opening today add meting for the first time that his tax rate is about 15%, which is far less than the average person pays. his rivals have been pushing for him to release his tax returns. looks like the good news keeps coming for the ravens. terrell suggs was named the afc defensive player of the year. he's been with the ravens nine seasons, had 14 sacks. the ravens take on the new england patriots in the afc

championship game. coming up this is a real nightmare situation, a cancer diagnosis and a potentially lifesaving procedure is only available overseas. one man's journey from baltimore to europe and back. walking or running can be part of a healthy life-style. why does the new study say adding head phones to the mix could hurt you. we come to count on it for excessive information on the web but at midnight it's going dark. why wikipedia won't be available tomorrow. i want a baby. a baby? but we were gonna see the northern lights in alaska.

and go spelunking with the guys. yeah, i said it-- spelunking. [ whirring ] and i still haven't built one of those fighting robots. come on. it's pretty awesome. okay. just a few things we need to do first. [ laughs ] [ announcer ] before you make your leap, make a list. then get going in the completely redesigned cr-v. all new, from honda. [ male announcer ] get ready for some deli-style delic-ious-ity: the subway big hot pastrami melt. dive into piled-high pastrami,

spicy mustard, pickles and melt-a-licious cheese. treat your taste buds to a fresh toasted subway big hot pastrami melt. subway. eat fresh.

a warning for all of those folks who ware headphones while walking down the street. research shows the combination of the two is deadly.

we have more details. >> reporter: watch this woman texting fall head first into a fountain. we all know it's risky to text and walk. a new study finds the number of people killed or injured while walking with head phones on has tripled over the last several years. at that same time the popularity of digital music players have explode. the problem isn't as obvious as it seems. when you put these on it's not that you can't hear the traffic, researchers say you stop paying attention to it so even with your eyes open, you're essentially walking blind. >> your brain is multitasking. >> reporter: head phones are the

latest digital distraction. >> do you ever worry you could get hit by a car? >> sometimes, yes. >> reporter: in washington, d.c., we saw this man texting almost get run over. there you are texting away. the car goes right by and you barely notice it. what goes through your mind when you see that? >> i don't want to think about it. >> reporter: the problem is bound to get worse as more and more of us listen to our tunes instead of traffic. >> speaking of technology, several website also go dark tomorrow to protest an anti-piracy bill. wikipedia plans to shut down. the protest is in response to the stop online policy act or

sopa. if it passes, copyright holders could complain top law enforcement officials and get some websites shut down. that could lead to people losing access to thousands of sites across the web. customers aren't the only ones unhappy with netflix. some investors are suing the company over money they say was lost after the plan was abandoned. the suit also said netflix was not transparent enough with investors about potential price hikes for the customers. netflix has not yet responded to the lawsuit. some good news tonight. we have our first official ipad winner. want to congratulate william hill. you can join him. text wmar to 46988 right now and

install the free news app and lock for the contest to sign up. again, congratulations once again to william hill. take a look at severe weather now. schools are delayed in seattle and much of the northwest all thanks to a powerful winter storm that could result in record-breaking snowfall. it could dump more than two feet of snow on seattle, twice the annal snowfall in two days. portland is preparing for 10 inches. they are trying to wrangle their resources to the areas expected to be hit the hardest. we'll start off with a check of maryland's most powerful radar. there are showers well out to sea, just south of winchester virginia, tracking the cluster of rain.

the eastern shore will stay generally rain free the next several hours. as we look at federal him and the mighty ravens logo. temperatures 57. winds southwest at 15 miles an hour. it's a warm breeze but a gusty one, no question about that. as we take a look at our weather, from damascus wet roads, the rain pounding us early this morning. midday sunshine to dry things out. new clouds begin to blow out of the west. same deal in middle town with plenty of sunshine after the morning rain. one last stop. imesville. so that's how things are playing out. don't look for new rain to come. temperature wise 40s and 50s, mid to upper 50s. you have to get out into far western maryland. most of us sitting well into the

50s, near 60 now. ocean city and patuxent river. winds from the south, southwest. that's a warming breeze. gusting to more than 30 in oakland, more than 25 in dulles. you got idea it's a breezy night. we did top out at 60, 20 degrees above average. will it hold up all week, the answer is no. we'll see a sea saw -- see saw ride. i think most of this rain will miss us to the south, an issue for virginia, not so much for maryland. across the east coast, we can see an unsettled pattern but one that's beginning to calm down at least across the baltimore area. there are snows well north of us where the cold air is available. that will not get into maryland until the morning hours, early

morning hours. in the meantime we're in that mild hair flow and still the chance -- air flow and still the chance for hit and miss snow. as we take a look at the trend, you can see things clearing out tonight. as we go forward into the day tomorrow, into the day on thursday, increased clouds and maybe some wintry type showers into pennsylvania and extreme western maryland. on the whole, that's how things shape up right now. stay tuned. it's an e valving forecast -- evolving forecast. overnight down to 37 with some gusty winds and your forecast tomorrow will be in the 40-degree range. sunny and colder. that's the scenario staying windy. tomorrow night temperatures staying in the mid-20s.

less windy and seasonably cold. keep it tuned here for that. >> all right. thanks a lot, wyatt. great news in the fight against breast cancer. find out how combining two cancer drugs could give hope to people dealing were the disease. plus, are you feeling stressed out? have a good laugh. why laughter is the best medicine. [ male announcer ] when you're a coach in the nfl...

♪ ...there are no sick days. ♪ vicks dayquil. defeats 5 cold & flu symptoms. [ snoring ] [ indistinct talking on tv ] [ snoring ] [ male announcer ] vicks nyquil cold and flu. the nighttime sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, fever, best sleep you ever got with a cold...medicine. ♪ my son and i never missed opening day. but with copd making it hard to breathe, i thought those days might be over. so my doctor prescribed symbicort. it helps significantly improve my lung function, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler

for sudden symptoms. with symbicort, today i'm breathing better, and that means... game on! symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections, osteoporosis, and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. [ whistle ] with copd, i thought i might miss out on my favorite tradition. now symbicort significantly improves my lung function, starting within 5 minutes. and that makes a difference in my breathing. today i'm back with my favorite team. ask your doctor about symbicort. i got my first prescription free. call or click to learn more. [ male announcer ] if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help.

we have some good news in the fight against breast cancer. a study published in the an set on col jip finds when two cancer drugs join forces they significantly reduce the tumor

size. women with the drug was treated with the combination of both drugs. after six weeks the patients had tumors that were 22% smaller. herceptin is already approved for breast cancer. this is the first time that they've been tested together. are you trying to make positive changes in your health this year? maybe it's time to let it all out with a good laugh. >> some studies suggestion lowering blood pressure. there have been other investigators that have shown that there may be an effect on immune response, so perhaps better response to someone who has the common cold or infections when they laugh. >> laughing not only loosens you up and opens up your blood vessels, it can also destress you. that's good, stress can cause the brain to overload with

chemicals that could lead to high blood pressure, stroke or heart attack. doctors recommend spending time with friends or see the humor in life. gastric bypass surgery may be a better option for losing weight than gas strick banding. researchers studied more than 400 surgery patients and found those with gastric bypass had a much better body mass index. the gastric banding involves placing a band around the stomach while bypass shrinks the stomach and attaches it to the small intestines. the by pass patients also had a higher rate of complication. >> abc2news.com is the place to find all the headlines.

so how far would you go to save a life? one man's journey across the globe and back to baltimore. and the captain and the passengers still missing. >> you know, france and italy are home to some of the world's best. but guess which country is drinking more wine than any other?

taking a look at the up to the minute details. 16-year-old robert richardson, a teen accused of murdering his father was in court along with a group of supporters who say he

was abused by his father. the group is putting together money to pay for a private attorney and even have a facebook page set up. authorities are trying to determine what caused an early morning fire in ellicott city city. they were able to put it out. four people inside got out safely. a warning for anyone who wears head phones while walking on the street. a new study published in the british medical journal has found that the number of people injured walking with med phones has tripled. a cancer patient has returned to baltimore after a lifesaving trip to europe. today jeff hager spoke to him about his road to recovery. >> reporter: baltimore arguably has some of the top hospitals in the world. yet, chris