right now on "news4 midday," constricted sniper, mohammed is given his execution date. also, do not enter. another interstate rest stop is closed in our area. there is just no money to keep them open. and then a major donation that could dramatically change the hospital. new"news4 midday" begins right . welcome, everybody.

i am barbara harrison. >> i am craig melvin sitting in for joe krebs. convicted d.c. aa sniper mastermind, mohammed is said to die september 10 lt. the death sentence comes from the sniper attacks back in 2002. mohammed and malvo are both in prison. mohammed's attorney says he will appeal the death sentence. breaking news, set to be executed november 10th. new today, children's national medical center is about to receive one of the largest donations given to an american pediatric hospital. a press conference just wrapped up. what did they have to say?

>> reporter: i can tell you people are extremely excited. the donation is huge. $150 million they have big plans for this money. now, imagine surgery without paying or a hospital where a doctor uses a child's own immune system to fight cancer so that surgery is not necessary. sound like a dream? well not to the folks here. the hospital just received $150 million from the government of abu dauby, and the money will be used to build a pediatric surgical center that will hopefully revolutionize pediatric surgery. >> you are thinking one day to the next. this allows us to think big, and change things for families all over the world. >> 15 years ago, if a patient came in with a mass in their

stomach, it won't be explore tory but guided therapy. we may not have to do surgery. >> reporter: with this money, the folks here at children's national hope to or plan to hire 125 surgeonens and researchers over the next five years. and they will be matching a donation, adding another $150 million over the next five years. so it's a staggering amount of money. this is all made possible by a man named joe robert jr. he reached out to the royal family and made the $150 million donation possible. so amazing work should be done here over the next five to ten

years. that's the goal of all of the doctors and folks that we talked here today. they want to fast track this. once they get the money they want to get down to work. they want to change the way things are done. they want to, if you can imagine, take the pain out of surgery. they will do that through research and break throughs in research and using imaging equipment, and the mapping of the human gee noem. >> that sounds very exciting. thank you. we are learning new details this morning about a metro bus driver that hit a jogger near dupont circle. it was her third accident while on the job. that's the word from the "washington post." the paper says the driver stepped off the bus and then it rolled down the hill. and then the next year she crashed the bus in the back of a car. right now she is on paid

administrative leave. the woman she hit this month is still in intensive care. if you speed through the chevy chase section in montgomery, listen up, there will be laser cameras. they will make it easier to tell which vehicle is speeding. with the current cameras, if it's too different to tell, all of the vehicles are off the hook. the laser cameras could be up and running by friday. the top democrat on the senate finance committee released his long-awaited health reform bill. so far no republicans have signed on. and some democrats are complaining. brooke hart has more from capitol hill. >> reporter: max baucus is confident gop backing will come. but today he releases his health care reform measure without it.

>> i expect by the end of the day, by the time we vote in the committee on the final passage, there will be republican support. >> reporter: gop senators helped shape the reformed plan. it would require americans to buy american insurance or be fined, and tax insurance on high-end plans. >> are you fired up? >> reporter: in pittsburgh, president obama rallied union members for reform. >> it's the broken health care system sucking up all the money. when we will stop it? >> reporter: late yesterday after house lawmakers rebuked joe wilson for his outburst. and jimmy carter says race explains it, and anger shown

this summer. >> i think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity towards president barack obama is based on the fact that he is a black man. >> reporter: wilson dismissed that claim. >> that's totally a distraction. >> reporter: earlier brushed off the punishment, too. >> when we are done here today we will not have taken any steps closer to helping more american families afford health insurance. >> reporter: a step one center hopes to take today. senator baucus expect his committee will take up the measure this week. there is no guarantee gop input so far will survive the wrangling still ahead. >> baucus' measure would make changes to the health care system including all individuals to purchase health care or pay a fine. a press release says the bill would cost $856 billion over the

next ten years. the u.s. military say they arrested three militants during joe biden's surprise there. three rockets hit in the green zone last night killing civil n civilia civilians. biden just turned in for the night when the rockets struck. he was not hurt. and he is hoping to smooth political differences as the u.s. military moves ahead with the plans to pull tops out of the country. japan has a new prime minister this morning. center left politician. he has been elected to lead the world's second largest economy. haud yauma says he won't back down to plans to push forward the review of the military presence in the japan. he vowed to cut government waste and restart the economy by not raising taxes.

his election is a half century of rule for the conservative party. no rain today. at least not yet. let's talk to tom kierein about what we can expect today? >> not right here in washington, but earlier this morning we had rain in southern maryland and parts of the eastern shore. right now on radar we are getting a few sprinkles here right where prince will come county meets the potomac river. and then east of there into charles county, they are getting light sprinkles. this is slowly drifting off to the east at this hour. and then temperatures around the region are hovering right around 70 degrees with the northeastly breeze. and it's rather a damp and cool day under way. and over the last six hours, we have had quite a bit of cloudiness around this morning. sunshine in and out. overall mostly cloudy. it will probably stay this way throughout the rest of the afternoon. a slight chance of light rain or drizzle. and temperatures climb into the low and mid-70s by midafternoon with a northeast breeze around 5

to 15. i will show you the forecast for the rest of the week. we will take a look at the weekend as well. that will be in just a few minutes. barbara and craig? >> thank you, tom. jerry edwards standing by with traffic. >> this is a very good shot now that the sun is up. i can show you what it looks like. the narrow left hand exit off 66 eastbound to get on the inner loop, that's part of the problem we have had the last several days with the significant delays throughout the morning rush hour. these folks continuing past the beltway into falls church, that's fine. there is a delay threw vienna because of this. and work zone, about mid -- almost to the d.c. at the end of the 14th street bridge.

>> appreciate it, jerry. now to a developing story at yale university. police have released a man after questioning him in the murder of a grad student. annie le's body was found on sunday, what was supposed to be her wedding day. they have collected dna samples from a man that worked with her at the lab. jeff rossen reports. >> reporter: late last night police handcuffed raymond clark and pulled him away, and calling him a person of interest. clark was not under arrest. instead police had a court order to take physical evidence from his body. >> the physical evidence that we are looking for is dna. we will take samples of his hair, and a saliva sample of him. scrape his fingernails. >> reporter: if clark cooperated, he would be

released. as investigators collected evidence from clark himself they searched his apartment, too. >> we have a lot of evidence from the crime scene. we will be looking at that to see what matches and what doesn't. >> reporter: investigators told us they focussed on clark after collecting 150 pieces of evidence, and questioning 150 people and reviewing 700 hours of surveillance tape. most of it taken at the crime scene, the campus research lab. this is the basement where annie le worked and where her body was stuffed in a wall. her body discovered on what would have been her wedding day. >> there was nobody that could have had access to annie except for somebody in the building, who had permission to be there. in other words, nobody came off the street. >> a lab technician failed the lie director test and had defensive marks, scratches on

his chest. >> we will narrow this down and do it as quickly as we can, and make sure there are not other suspects out there. >> the motive is clear, and so is the relationship between the two. clark's dna. >> we need to know what happened to annie. we need to know who this person is. >> that was jeff rossen reporting. authorities will test clark's dna to see if it matches evidence found at the crime scene. >> a swine flu vaccine is closer to making it into doctor's offices. mass evacuavaccinations could b possibility. and a new extreme sport.

it's called kite surfing. barbara harrison has done it and will talk about it. we will have highlights from the wave riders.

it's still the target for the large scale campaign to get under way. we anticipate having limited amounts of vaccine available a week or ten days earlier. >> the vaccine will be available at up to 90 different sites and schools around the country. everybody that wants a shot will be able to get a shot. meanwhile, a last refuge for smokers in the halls of congress is going away. the last two designated smoking rooms in the canyon and longworth housing will be gone after today. they are being closed to make way for cafeteriapace and to promote healthier living. a new poll suggests the virginia governor's race is tightening. and the claiandidate deeds talk

about the harmful impact of working women, feminists and nontraditional families. mcdonnell says his views have now changed. we took joy is watching the sun come up around 6:50 this morning, and it has been scarce ever since. >> yeah, and the clouds are winning the game here today. as we get going this morning, we have temperatures down in the 60s. 's still rather cool for a mid september day. and looking off to the west, a live picture from the sky watcher camera showing cloudiness. weak sunshine may be breaking here and there. a little sunshine trying to come through. some of the cloud cover over the potomac. a live picture from the city camera. right now temperatures are around 70 in washington. the average high is 80 degrees.

a month from now, the average high is 68 by october 15th. let's take a look at radar now. no precipitation in washington, but the blue there in charles county, it's light rain. it's sort of spreading out from near southern prince georges county, and slowing drifting off to the east and will be around for the next hour or so. and elsewhere no precipitation on radar elsewhere. and in washington, the low this morning was 68. there is a northeast breeze. and the dew point at a cool 61. the monthly rain about 1.7 inches. and we have had other showers on the eastern shore, down through southern virginia, and in the carolinas, we had a weak front passing through us, and it stalled just to the south. we will have the clouds around as a result.

we are at the peak of hurricane season, but we don't have hurricanes or tropical storms or anything that will likely be developing into hurricanes or tropical storms. this is the remanence of what was hurricane fred. it does not look like it will redevelop in a tropical storm. there is another low cluster of pressure in the far east. this is a trough of low pressure off the coast. that does not appear to be any sign of development as well. so thankfully from washington, we should not have any tropical storms developing in the next day or two at least. for us, we have had the showers here, and they are just south of the front. and they stretched down not only to the carolinas, and tennessee and down through arkansas. and it's associated with low pressure spinning away there. and the front allowed cooler air and moisture coming off the north atlantic. this front will slowl drift further to the south by tomorrow. but as it does, it should allow

drier air begin to move in by tomorrow afternoon. between now and then, it appears we will have a chance of a little light rain from time to time, perhaps and passing shower and maybe a little bit of patchy drizzle around later this afternoon. otherwise, mostly cloudy with highs reaching the mid-70s. a northeast breeze around 5 to 15. and then a light chance of sprinkles. rain may be around tomorrow tomorrow. some of the drier air should move in from the north on thursday, and then into friday and saturday. we will get sunshine back. highs in the mid-70s. and then for sunday, we may have a return of some rain by the afternoon. and the skins and rams may see a passing shower. highs in the 70s. that's how it looks on this wednesday morning. >> a little rain may help the

skins. >> we will take anything we can get. >> yeah, try something new, huh. let's check on traffic. we had some traffic this morning. >>ome down from river record and headed towards the american legion bridge. construction equipment just pulled up to the scene of this morning's accident. they need to repair the wall that was damaged this morning. on the outer loop between river road and the american legion bridge the two next lanes will be closed. and 95 northbound, very heavy, and that is up towards the work zone. one of the windiest spots of the country is home to one of the fastest growing sports in the world. welcome to the north carolina oute banks. it's the perfect place to kite

board. you are using the wind and a kite instead of using a boat. >> people see us out there and say they are tough and buff. but we are not. the pull of the kite is on your harness, not your arms. >> and you are leveraging your weight against the kite. your arms are outsmarting the kite by telling the kite which way to go. >> can you fall and get back up. >> have you tried it yet? >> i have not. do you think you would like it? >> no. too dangerous for me. >> too extreme. it's 23 minutes after 11:00. still ahead on "news4 midday," the battle over the washingn redskins name headed back to court again. we will have details. what motorists have to say about the latest interstate rest

stop closure. and toys expanding. and first, here is a look at what is hot on nbcwashington.com.

the battle over the washington redskins' name could be headed to the supreme court.

seven native americans have worked to have the trademark declared invalid. and the courtsided with the nfl on a legal technicality. they have appealed to the high court to see if the name is inflammatory. look at this. the team was facing the philli. and during the game, a philadelphia fan makes a nice catch on a foul ball. and check it out. the man gives the ball to his daughter, and ye, to the dad's surprise, she throws it back. all he can do is give his little girl a hug. she didn't want that ball, daddy. >> i wonder if it fell down into the next tier. >> it looked like that girl had a rocket on her. one of the men convicted in the 2002 sniper attacks is given an execution date.

we will have the latest on the breaking news. and the latest of the man accused of kidnapping a girl and holding her captive for 18 years. they are taking a closer look at co cases similar to that kidnapping. and a monkey who likes playing mom to a big cat. we will explain what is going on there. and tom kierein will come back.

right now at 11:30, more on the breaking news we told you about at the top of the newscast. the virginia circuit court set an execution date for convicted d.c. area sniper, mohammed. he is set to day on november 10th. the death sentence is for the killing of meyers. one of many killed. and max baucus released his long-awaited health care reform. he had bipartisan votes, but so far no republicans signed on. it's also expected to disappoint liberals. there is no so-called government-run option. and children's national medical centerust receive add major donation that could dramatically change that hospital. the hospital is getting a $150 million gift from the government of abu dabi.

it's one of the largest donations ever made to a u.s. hospital. and some say there is no rest for the wary on another highway. this one closes on i-66 in manassas. kimberly suitors reports. >> reporter: these are the last truck drivers to tres here at the welcome center of a 66 in manassas. they likely settled in before midnig midnight, before the exit closed indefinitely. there is no specifics on the t shutdown. and inside the pamphlets are gone, and the furniture looks like it's next. and then in the suggestion box a few choice words expressing the displeasure in the decision to close. get the state budget in the

green, and out of the red. >> i pulled over this morning because i needed to tie my traps down, they were loose. and it's a violation. >> when did you find out about the rest stop? >> i found it closed. now i have to park on the side of the road where it's dangerous. >> we saw that some of the rest areas are as close as 20 miles apart. what we did is try to keep them at least 120 miles a part, about a two-hour gap in between. >> it's sad, especially if you are traveling with a family. it will make it more of a challenge and difficult for travelers. >> the arguments range from a dangerous to the discomfort argument. it's going to be uncomfortable for drivers that have to go two hours without stopping. if the money is not there there is not much the state can do about it. closing the rest stops will save $9 million, and the state is looking at a $2 billion budget short fall.

before this summer, virginia had 42 rest stops, and after these closures about half of them will be gone. some people worry some more jobs mean more traffic. 20,000 people will move here by 2011. and they are trying to get ready. and it means drivers will have to use a detour around the fairfax county parkway for an entire year. . new details in the case of dugard, the california woman held captive for 18 years. police are looking for evidence linking them to not one but two unsolved kidnappings. george lewis has more. >> reporter: what triggered this new investigation at the garrido home is an attempt to find

possible evidence linking the fair to unsolved kidnappings that took place before jaycee dugard was kidnapped. the photos of this girl bear a strong resemblance to jaycee dugard. both girls were grabbed in daylight by somebody in a car. this is a police sketch in the suspected person in the case. >> my first thought when i heard that jaycee was found, was, please, god, let my daughter with be her. >> and then a girl missing since 1989, and a car found in an earlier search on the garrido property is the one witnesses described the girl getting into

on the day she disappeared. >> looking for evidence in a landfill. police say the search will last for several more days. they raised the possibility that they will demolish the garrido house. >> if we find anything to believe that we need to tear down the house, we will certainly pursue that. >> the garridos remain in jail in the dugard case. the prosecutor in the case says it could b at least a year before they go on trial. as investigators search for links to other crimes george lewis, nbc news, los angeles >> investigators are searching the garrido's property and the site next door. they are interested in the floors and walls and anything hidden underground. there is a new policy that

just took affect last month. many drivers say it robs them of the right to choose their own doctor. some said they were subjected to inappropriate behavior during their exam. >> there was specific stories that came out, as far as some of the things -- extensive questions that were asked about your personal life that have nothing to do with a department of transportation physical. >> a school board member said the new policy was enacted in an ever the to bring consistency to the process. the school district superintendent also release add statement saying the statements provided by drivers arp misunderstanding or misrepresentation. we want to bring you up to date on the forecast now. >> hey, tom. we have areas of scattered rain may leave south and east of washington. right now a little sun trying to

break through. now, 72 in washington. on radar, we see the patch of blue, a persistent area of rain is in charles county and across the potomac and parts of staffford and prince william county along i-95. and this is going to persist probably for another hour or so. right now in washington, 72. dew point at a school 61. and cloudiness around the region. mostly a cloudy afternoon, and temperatures reaching to the low 70s. a small chance of a passing light shower. and tonight, cloudy in the 60s. sunsets at 7:14, and by dawn on thursday, a likelihood of passing light showers and drizzle and fog tomorrow morning. and maybe light activity until early afternoon. and thdrying out late on thursd. highs mid-70s. sunday, maybe sun in the morning and then clouding up and could have an afternoon or evening shower, and perhaps passing

showers monday and tuesday as we get into next week. >> thank you, tom. a final check on the midday traffic now. >> jerry edwards, have you get you out of here and get that nap. >> that's a secret. let's see how we are doing. miserable along the 95 corridor. one slow spot. the construction between lorden and knnewington light rain. and the work zone remains mid span. and as a result, as you head up from the navy drive be prepared for very heavy traffic at this hour. back to you. >> we appreciate it. how would you like to pick up your groceries and pick up a

flu shot at the same time? >> you may see them at walgreen's, cvs or any local pharmacies. there are now more than 1,000 health clinics across the united states. but is that added convenience good for the health care system imagine being able to fill a prescription and get a flu shot and pick up milk all in one place. you don't have to imagine anymore. this is reality. health clinics are opening up their door while you shop. meg millgan is one of the uninsured americans. she found a retail clinic and headed off a potentially serious illness. >> i was shopping there one day, and they were offering free screenings. they were able to screen me and

refer me to another clinic. >> they are popping up in malls and grocery scores. >> they often have a wait in their physician' office, and don't have the convenience, and it cost more. they want to be in and out. >> the average wait in an emergency room is four hours, and it could take weeks to get an apartment in a doctors' office, and retail clinics offer a short wait and don't require an appointment. >> i found it was easier than going to the pedestripediatrici in line. >> the american medical association warns that these clinics should be closely monitored and should not take the place of primary care doctors. >> the problem for regular care is that simple symptoms don't

always mean one has simple diseases. so something like a high fever could be just a strep throat, but it could be meningitis or pneumonia. >> although they stick to minor or acute illnesses, some are adding to the scope of preventive cares and physicals. and this clinic is run by doctors and equipped to x-ray for broken bones. >> i can get needs taken care of for my kids or myself and then continue to go shopping and pick up things for the house. it's terrific. >> and terrific that want health care access and shopping. ge owns nbc.

with your daily dose of health news, i am dr. nancy snyderman for news4. >> and the doctor gives us our daily dose of health news. what you need to know about the seasonal flu this year. join us for "daily connections." the doctor is part of a huge tomorrow. join us today at 3:00. it's a case of money see, money do. you are about to meet a chimp that is five years old and lives at a wildlife preserve. she has shown remarkable parenting skills caring for puma and tiger cubs. she learned by wauching the people that care for them. >> she watches them care for them, and she is that great imlater. she says them there and goes out and enter acts. she wants to be involved. you say hey, bring that baby here, and she will pick it up

and you say give it a bottle, and she will do it. she has a great capacity of understanding and being able to interact. >> the bond probably will not last forever. she will have to be separated from the cubs once they are twice as big as she is. a check on the market says they try to keep the momentum going. plus, how shopping for toys could get easier this holiday season. see what one major retailer is

there is a new way to look for information on google. they have fast flip. it allows users to flip through papers as if you had an actual paper. and there is good news. google is sharing ad revenues with several online publishers now, and they expect to expand that in the coming months. of course cnbc's courtney reagan is standing by with us today. nice to see you, as always. >> the dow is up about 57 points. and i want to note we did start the day at the highest close we have seen since october. that was thanks to alcoa and ge.

both rising over 4% yesterday. and if that continues from yesterday, the stocks will have nine days of advances. and that's good news. and now financial mortgages dropped, and fixed rates rose. and there is a first-time buyer tax credit that ends in november. and then federal reserve chairman, ben bernanke, gave a caution out look yesterday saying technically the recession is over, but it will take time for the people to feel that way. it was bernanke's most direct enrsement, believe it or not, that we likely reach aed a bott. blockbuster is trying to

recoup losses due to the economy. it tried to compete by offering online services, but failing to see profits from the physical stores. back to you. courtney, thank you. the time is 11:49. still ahead, a reunion you just have to see happen. also, meteorologist, tom kiein, will come back with a check of the forecast on wednesday. we are looking for people that make the day special in the early-morning hours. if you know somebody like that, e-mail their story and a clear close-up picture or

the search for greener vehicles could get a boost today. the u.s. house may vote on a bill that would allow the energy depositment to spend up to $550 million a year to conduct research. it is the latest move to help the ailing auto industry. the bill would push the government to team up with companies and universities to research technologies like batteries for hybrid vehicles, and infrastructure for the electric grid. as we reported a few minutes ago, toys "r" us -- well, blockbuster is closing, but toys "r" us are expanding. the company is hoping for a big holiday season ahead.

jackie bensen has the story. >> reporter: for the nation's most well known seller, it's locations are us. 80 toys "r" us holiday express stores will open in september. locally the temporary toy stores will be found in virginia at tyson's corner center and manassas mall and a few others. why are they expanding? the company says it's entergize by opportunity this season. they are hoping people will spend more in the upcoming holiday season. >> i will spend less than i did last year, just preparing for savings in the future, just in case another time this happens, we want to be prepared. >> i feel people will spend

about the same amount of money as they did last year in the stores. >> probly the same or a little less. i think we will be more careful this year. >> toys "r" us says it will also open holiday toy centers in existing babies are us stores, including in maryland and virginia. the temporary toy stores will be open until mid january, and after that returns can be made at any other toys "r" us or babies "r" us store. don't cry over milk spilt is a saying. and the farmers say milk prices are solo they cannot make a living. let's go ahead and find out about some of the stories that are in the works for news4 this afternoon. >> jim has a preview. good to see you both.

we have a busy afternoon coming up at 4:00 and 5:00 this afternoon. is that exercise preventing you from losing the weight you want. some people suffer the effects of too much of a good thing. and then celebrating curves. a local fashion designer is putting hips back in hip fashion. we will give aspecial sneak peek at a closing line full figurered women could embrace. you, again, we'll see you at 3:00. >> yeah, come hangout like you did yesterday. >> yeah, it's fun. >> appreciate it. we will get a final check on the forecast, now, tom. we have had a variety of weather around the area. some had clouds and some had rain. at this time looking off to the west, american university in the foreground, and virginia in the distance.

we see a few breaks in the cloud cover there. overall, it's still mostly cloudy. and right now as we take a look at the radar, we have an area of light rain is that in far southern maryland, right in charles county, where you see the area of blue getting light rain as well, across the potomac now into southern prince william county and staffford county. this light rain is stationary right now. it was drifting east the last hour. and so interstate 95 may be wet fr . there may be a sprinkle south of charles town in the panhandle of west virginia. here in washington, now 73 degrees. the low this morning was 68. dew point is a cool 60. and the wind out of the northeast is at around 10 miles per hour over the last six hours we had other showers into the carolinas this morning from

virginia. and so just a sght chance of a little light rain or passing drizzle and temperatures otherwise under a mostly cloudy sky reaching the mid-70s with a northeast breeze. the sunset is at 7:14. a slight chance of sprinkles this evening. and drizzle and fog perhaps tomorrow morning in the mid-60s, and then during the day on thursday, some light rain possible all the way until early afternoon off and on. and then drying out thursday night into friday. both days, highs with sunshine coming back. may get rain sunday afternoon and evening. and perhaps off and on for monday and tuesday. thank you. >> thank you. a lucky australian cat has been reunited with his family after three years. meet claude. he was found by a vet who identified him using one of

those i.d. chips under his skin. he was flown back home. and as for his journey, he's not talking. >> the cat has got his tongue. >> you worked on that all morning! >> it just came to me. >> that's it. that's all we have for "news4 midday." "daily connection" at 3:00, and then news at 4:00, 5:00, and 6:00 as well. >> thank you.