mills high school. parents are asked not to go to the scene but to st. mary's hospital. we have a crouton way and will have more information as we get it. please turn yourself in and no matter what happens i'll stand by your side. >> a mother's plea to her daughter as the police hunt for the woman wanted in two bank robberies and a carjacking. good evening on a busy tuesday night. >> the mother of one of the region's most-wanted begs her daughter to do the right thing. shomari stone now has more on this. >> reporter: tonight ha mother broke her silence. she has not seen her daughter in two weeks and watching this unfold on the news. her daughter is accused of walking to this bank and robbing it. tonight she is still on the loose. >> i'm suffering. and i miss her dearly. >> reporter: in an exclusive

interview helen shward holds back tears thinking about her daughter, a suspected bank robber and carjacker. >> thanksgiving is just two days away. how are you feeling? >> i just feel empty inside. i feel dead. >> reporter: police are searching for the mother of two young children for days. she is suspecting of robbing a bank on saturday morning and carjacked a woman at knife point by posing as a college student who ran out of gas. >> is she the time of person who would do something like this? >> no. >> why do you think she is accused of doing these things? >> i don't know. >> in the latest robbery she walked into this bb & t bank and told the teller she had a weapon and demanded money and walked out with undisclosed amount of

cash. >> the only thing i know is she needs help and she needs a psychiatrist. >> reporter: while police search helen issues a plea hoping her daughter is watching this. >> i want to say i love you and to please turn yourself in. no matter what happens i will be by your side. think about the kids and me. and yourself. >> reporter: now police say that she was last seen in a stolen 2003 silver acura with virginia tags. investigators urge anyone with information regarding stephanie's whereabouts they want to hear from you. call the fairfax county police department. i'm shomari stone. news4. >> does she have the children with her? >> no. the children are with the grandmother. they are inside the home and the grandmother is trying to explain to them you know you need to

just relax and trying to hide this from the kids but this is just a very tough time for this family. >> indeed. thank you. shomari stone reporting from springfield. heavy traffic remains on interstates across the area. was it a frustrating ride for people this evening as 30 minute drives took hours to complete. air passengers are also experiencing delays tonight. at reagan national airport the average delay is 45 minutes as chicago and philadelphia deal with bad weather. storm 4 chief meteorologist doug kammerer will join us with more on that but first to aaron gilchrist with the frustration on the roads. >> reporter: too many cars and not enough concrete. the evening commute was ugly to say the least. this is the outer loop of the beltway just before 8:00 p.m. bumper to bumper traffic moving slowly with no sign of letting up down to fredericksburg and up to columbia.

>> it was good until ten miles south of fredericksburg and then it was a high-speed parking lot. >> reporter: woody and his wife and dog are going to upstate new york. >> it would go a little bit and all of a sudden you are doing nothing. >> reporter: the rain made the commute tougher tonight. and thanksgiving travellers are not helping the cause either. >> i traveled through there and it is still the same problem from washington to richmond. the traffic doesn't move. >> reporter: feeder roads like route 1 have been jammed with off and on random delays. on baltimore avenue a bad crash caused detours. a tow truck plowed into an auto parts store. this car was damaged too. >> i left early in hopes to avoid this. >> reporter: sherry is finishing her drive to new jersey with a

positive attitude. >> a lousy attitude wouldn't change it. i am glad to have this opportunity to go home and see family. it is funky out there. we have said nasty and ugly. but the fact of the matter is it is at least quite warm. >> the temperatures have risen. we were at 55 earlier today and now in the low 60s in the washington, d.c. area. we told you we will warm up overnight and are not done yet. the rain is moving back in. the i-59 corridor just seeing drizzle or fog. some areas seeing fog down to a half mile. but heavier rain in frederick county and along 81 and there is more rain as we widen out to the south and west. some of it will come down heavily overnight and there is a chance for stronger thunderstorms. we'll talk about that and the rest of the changes for the next 24 hours. we will be on a roller coaster

ride. >> thank you, doug. it was a lot of joy being spread at bwi tonight. soldiers were met by cheers and hugs. megan mcgra melissa mollet has some of the stories. >> reporter: home comings that some have been waiting nor for 15 months. >> reporter: it was a homecoming with tears and smiles. happiness and excitement, family and friends waiting for that one person to walk out. >> he has been away since summer. >> reporter: 350 service members mostly air force remember flown in from iraq and afghanistan just in time for thisks. also greeting them volunteers, girl scouts, boy scouts, kids'

camps. the troops were not scheduled to come home until christmas. >> itst incredible. >> reporter: there were flags and flowers, hugs and high fives. goody bags and cards. >> it says thank you on the front and it says for serving our country and all the other things you do love elise. >> reporter: for some this was the first stop before hopping on a plane home. >> we are making them feel special. we are giving them cookies and making them feel at home again. >> reporter: for three long hours this six-year-old lady waited for her homemade sign. >> we are going to have a big party. >> reporter: finally daddy is here. >> i wasn't sure where to look for them. they were right here in front. >> reporter: the tissues come in handy for the moment when the

camouflage is walking to you waiting for one long awaited hug. >> i'm excited and glad he's home and safe. >> it's great to be home. >> reporter: they say they are very, very thankful especially thankful this thanksgiving holiday. some of the service members have to head back overseas after this holiday weekend. going to be a quick trip for them. >> melissa mollet, thank you. politics now, the republican candidates for president turned their attention to foreign affairs tonight and did so right here in washington. >> the republican candidates for president of the united states. >> reporter: they tangled on cnn near the white house their 11th debate with a new front runner who is a washington veteran. >> i spent years on this stuff. >> are newt gingrich outspoken before 9/11. >> all of us will be in danger for the rest of our lives. >> reporter: he is at 24%.

mitt romney is at 20, herman cain down to 17 and tonight's topic, national security is not cain's strength. >> if we pull out of afghanistan too soon, iran will fill the power vacuum. >> most agreed. >> we have been in for ten years and are winding down. the afghan troops have the capacity to secure their country. >> reporter: they agreed they ran must not get nuclear weapons. >> we would open up oil fileds that the price would collapse. that what we would do if we were serious. >> reporter: tough talk and big ideas and he broke with on immigration saying that long-time illegals could stay. >> it party that says the party of the family will destroy families that have been here a quarter of a centuries. >> reporter: pollsters call gingrich the new leader of the

g.o.p. pack. gingrich is urging republican voters who want a nominate a winner to imagine him in debates against president obama. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, washington. in cairo egypt, protesters are clashing with security forces. the top military leader offered to hold presidential elections by july of 2012. protesters want him to step down. a georgetown university student is in jail in egypt along with two other americans. all three have been studying at the american university in cairo. they were arrested in the protests last night. they are accused of throwing molotov cocktails at security forces. the case has not been resolved. the man they are calling the east coast rapist will likely face his first trial in prince william county virginia. his name is aaron thomas.

he's in jail in connecticut for the rape of a woman in 2007. but authorities say that dna links him to attacks on 17 women from virginia to new england. the prosecutor in prince william don't says he petitioned to have thomas extradited to virginia where he is facing up to life in prison. the u.s. attorney's office released video recordings of jack johnson accepting a bribe. this recording happened the same day that johnson and his wife were arrested in part of a corruption probe. johnson took bribes from developers in exchange for favorable business treatment. he tells one developer he could help him once leslie took office. >> what we're doing is we're attaching it to one of the water sewer bills. >> that's why. >> come before the full council

immediately. and i will get with the group that leslie has and it will slight right through. >> hours later agents raided the johnson's house. jack and leslie johnson will be sentenced on december 6th. the victims of flooding in virginia got an early thanksgiving tonight. back in september most of the families in the holly acres mobile home park were displaced by terrible flooding there. the salvation army and community businesses and other organizations cooked a turkey dinner for them. many of them are no longer neighbors. this is a time to reconnect can with their old friends. the hot holiday gift is a tablet and every maker wants a piece of the market. >> reporter: competition to the ipad is a good thing.

it gives a choice of tablet options and prices. >> the question is, are we able to keep up with the technology? >> reporter: laptops, netbooks, e-reader's, smart phones and a tablet. consumer reports says that the ipad tops the hot gift list and its competitors are hot on its heels. >> a year ago you were looking for an ipad. there weren't a lot of other competitive choices out there. this year it's different. >> best buy has dozens of different tablets on sale. >> the pacer, the blackberry. >> reporter: a tablet is less expensive than a laptop. the screen lets you watch movies, view pictures, surf the web. but among tablets there are big price differences. a tablet can cost 200 to $800.

consumer reports rating the ipad the best tablet. second best, the samsung galaxy. >> which is similar to the ipad and similar price point. unlike the ipad it runs flash videos and that is a service that apple resists. >> just this month two new tablets, amazon's kindle fire and barnes and noble nook tablet. >> it's closer to the i patted experience but it's half the price. the kindle fire is essentially a smaller tablet that offers a more limited set of features but it's half the price of the biggest competitors. >> reporter: what should you consider when buying one as gift? for the college student or professional consider more memory if they carry large files. you can why a tablet with 1 gigabyte. and as much storage as 64 gigabytes with the ipad and playbook and then there is

battery life. some run as long as 11 hours. the ipad and zoom. and as short as four hours, the dell streak 7. and buyer beware make sure you can upgrade the software. >> we have heard from some people who paid less on the front end on the tablet and found out they could not update the software and applications. just know that not all devices are equal. >> tablets typically don't come with keyboards. typing long e-mails will be a trial. and know that return policies. >> good stuff. and some people will be happy with a good book. remember them? >> i'm with you on that one. >> thank you. getting a first look at twin girls who went through separation surgery at the virginia commonwealth medical center. they were joined at the lower chest and abdomen and arrived

from the dominican republic this month. they were separated two weeks ago during a rare and difficult operation. they are 19 months old and now walking and talking on their own. doctors say it will take time, however for the girls to adjust to being apart. good for them. >> wow. >> amazing. so i'm thinking some people may have delayed their travel plans because of the weather and the traffic issues out there and they want to know what is coming next. >> and i think tomorrow morning we'll start to see things improve for the weather but i expect to see shower activity and thunderstorms between now and 6:00 a.m. but after that i think we will dry out and the roadways will get better out there. let's look outside where the visibility has come up over the last hour. it was down to about a mile in the last hour but now up to six miles at the airport. but west of 95 it is thick fog

out there. today's high was at 61 degrees. that was at 10:00 tonight. and half an inch of rain. some areas with over an inch and we still have more rain on the way. 59 degrees. dew point of 58. winds out of the south at 10 miles per hour and that wind is going to help us to continue this nice warmup that we have going on right here. but will the continue to bring in the moisture and the fog. 52 in leesburg but 64 in fredericksburg. and right now 61 in gaithersburg. this is where the warmer air is coming in. and we had that fog. 1 mile visibility in gaithersburg. but cull purpose and charlottesville down to a third of a mile in this area. difficult driving to say the least and now the rain moving back in the region too. right now the rain in the blue ridge and loudoun county, frederick county with heavy rain

and damascus and mount airy areas. but there is more to come and look at the yellows and oranges here. that is enhanced rainfall. we could see that tonight as the front comes through maybe a couple rumbles of thunder and strong winds up to 40 miles per hour. we'll have to wait and see on that. it is coming overnight. right around 3:30 will the be on the i-95 corridor. tomorrow morning look how we dry out here and we don't see the rain until late in the afternoon, 5:00, 5:30 in the afternoon with shower activity. the heaviest rain should be out of here by 6:00 tomorrow morning. then we clear out and cool down tomorrow night. for the national weather tomorrow along the east coast upwards of philadelphia, new york and boston you could see problems here. farther south less of a problem. other areas of concern in the northwest. but the central part of the

country not a big problem at all. rain likely early tomorrow but starting to clear out. mild to start but breezy in the upper 50s to low 60s. but then the temperatures cool down. showers possible in the afternoon and wind can with falling temperatures. winds of 15 to 20 miles per hour up to 40 miles per hour tomorrow. breezy tomorrow. but things calm down on thursday. thanksgiving a great day with a high of 57 degrees and we get better. friday and saturday and even on sunday look really, really nice before the next storm system moves in. i think this holiday is going to be one remembered for nice weather not what happened the days before. >> you can get outside and play tennis this thanksgiving. >> thanks doug. dueling burgers in d.c. one for the 99% and one for the 1%. in sports the [ elevator bell dings ]

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hoyas over in hawaii. how are they doing? >> they are doing well. they are representing themselves better than people thought. georgetown is young and their two leading scorers are gone and playing in one of the toughest conferences in college basketball. they could surprise people this year. j.t. iii and the highway yards in the mowaui invitational. ten feet behind the line and he drains it. then they started to play after that. the hoyas with nine threes of their own. he had 17-7. he is a good freshman.

georgetown up 23-20. the big guy down low. second half, the hoyas up 58-41. this is the guy just doing damage. jason -- who needs defense? he had a career high 28 points. georgetown wins 88-61. they are 3-1 on the season. jeff jones and the eagles taking on the bobcats. quinnipiac out 26-18. mccormack all by himself. and au on a 6-0 run. second half now tied at 46. au with good passing to break the press. hinkle and one. hinkle, by the way had 31

points. american wins a close one 74-73. au now 3-2 on the season. tashard choice will not be making the trip to seattle with the redskins because he is no longer a redskins. six carries for 7 yards. the redskins decided to fill his spot with evan royster. promoted from the practice squad. he could play in his first nfl game on sunday. the players off today but that didn't stop them from spreading good cheer today. whole foods handed out 500 turkeys and dinners, enough to feed more than 3,000 people. atogwe was on hand. landry has done this for two years now. it is important for him to give back in the city.

>> my family, you know, thanksgiving is about family, food and football. i'm thankful to have my family around me. and i'm happy i could give back and enable, you know, to have a proud and big show and since i'm able to give back, why not? you know. so i know if you got to give back that's the way my parents raised me. >> laron likes to be in the city and hang out in the city. all of the guys basically live in loudoun county and not in the city much. he said he wanted to dot

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an american and two russians on board the international space station have a sleepless night

ahead. nasa is concerned that a piece of chinese space junk could come very close to the space station tonight. the three men might have to take shelter inside a russian space capsule. the astronauts won't know until 4:30 our time which is ten a 15 minutes before the junk flies by. blt steak is offering dueling burgers in honor of the occupy wall street movement. for the 99% you get a burger for $9.99. but for the 1% a kobe burger with a gold leaf in lieu of cheese. the price tag on that one $58. not a good time to be a turkey. a the 21-week-old turkey is expected to be spared from the dinner table thanks to the

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