gained steam. for months, he was denying wrong doing. >> i was not going to settle on something i did not do. i think my integrity is more important than anything. if you asked me, i think about my children first. >> reporter: now, prosecutors are charging him with felony counts of stealing $353,000 in city funds he used to support his lavish lifestyle and filing false income tax returns from 2007 to 2009. he's expected to appear in federal district court friday morning to respond to the charges. the criminal information document fired normally indicates that thomas will plead guilty and reached a plea agreement with prosecutors. thomas, the son of harry thomas sr. was reelected in 2010 but dogged with complaints he was misusing city money.

irving nathan forced him to repay the district in $300,000 in funds. he admitted no wrong doing. the charges are criminal, not civil. he faces certain jail time with the plea agreement. he's expected to resign from the council soon. he's accused of embezzlement and theft. he would become the first councilmember in the history of government to resign under a legal cloud. thomas is due in federal court tomorrow morning to answer the charges. jim and doreen, back to you guys. >> if thomas resigns, what will happen to his seat in ward 5? >> reporter: if thomas resigns, he sends a letter to the board of elections and ethics saying the seat is vacant. the board of elections and ethics schedule a special election within about 114 days. it's possible that could be held

on april 3rd, the date of the city's primary. until there's a special election, the seat is vacant. >> if he doesn't resign, can he still serve on the council? >> reporter: if he goes to prison, he can't serve. until the moment he walks into prison, he can serve. i don't think it's going to happen. >> tom sherwood with the late developments today. all day at the wilson building live for us. thank you, tom. there's been a lot of reaction at the wilson building. news 4 pat collins has been getting reaction from city leaders today. pat continues the live coverage at the wilson building. pat? >> reporter: doreen, an em bar r raszing day for our government. a councilmember indicted on felony charges. there's calls for his resignation, talk of jail time, weeks of whispers and rumors. today, they became a reality.

at the wilson building today, the main topic of debate, the plight of harry thomas jr., charged today with felony theft of federal funds. from mayor vincent gray, this statement, given today's filing by the u.s. attorney's office, i urge councilmember thomas to resign and focus time and efforts on defending himself in court. that resignation would likely be tendered to council chairman kwame brown. do you think he should resign? >> i have not yet received his resignation. i expect to receive it. >> reporter: should he leave office? it could have dire consequences for his staff. this is what it was like in his office today. what is your reaction to this? >> i don't really have a reaction. >> don't have one. >> it's a regular day.

>> reporter: if he leaves office, what happens to you? >> not quite sure yet. >> reporter: upsetting, huh? one of the first councilmembers to call for his resignation. >> finally, there will be resolution. itis been a cloud hanging over us for some months now. i wish him strength and dignity. no one is above the law. he's going to have to accept the consequences of what he did. >> reporter: deep roots in the city of washington. he graduated from wilson high school. his mother was a principal in the city's school system. his father, harry thomas sr. represented ward 5 for three terms. harry thomas jr., ward 5 councilmember since 2006. here now from councilwoman

alexander. >> my thoughts are with ward 5. you know, let's hope they get their representation. we are going to move forward. >> reporter: ward 5 is one of the largest in the city with 74,000 people. it's bounded on the north by eastern avenue, on the south by florida avenue, on the west by north capital street and on the east by the anacostia river. vincent used to represent ward 5. he's at large now. he says he'll act as a foster councilman for that ward. >> it's my intention to call a meeting of the ward 5 leadership and see how we move forward. >> reporter: let me correct something i said. it came as a result of information not indictment. that means a plea agreement would be forthcoming. this is uncharted waters for the city. it's unclear what impact this

will be on the people of ward 5, what impact it will have on the people of our city. back to you. >> pat collins reporting. thank you, pat. the thomas investigation is one of three major scandals being investigated by federal prosecutors. major gray's campaign for corruption. staffers are accused of giving cash and promising a government job to suleman brown. that initial investigation has now expanded to include tracking a large amounts of money that flowed into the gray campaign. >> d.c. council chairman kwame brown is under investigation over his 2008 campaign. the u.s. attorney's office is looking into how brown raised and spent $300,000 in campaign money. when he took office as chairman, he was in controversy after

revealed the staff ordered a fully equipped suv for his leased car. he rejected it because the interior color was wrong. the city ordered a second suv lease. kwame brown gave up both vehicles after criticism. the government was stuck with thousands of dollars in lease costs. stay with news 4 and www.nbcwashington.com for continuing coverage of the harry thomas case. tisha thompson will have an update where his constituents are sounding off today. turning to the weather, it's not nearly as cold today as yesterday. the frigid temperatures are starting to thaw a bit. >> improvement is the word of the day. doug is in storm center 4 with the first forecast. >> many areas saw 50 degrees with sunshine. high clouds from time to time. 47 degrees right now as the sun just making its way down.

winds out of the west-northwest at 7 miles per hour. storm 4 doppler radar, nothing to show across the area. we are going to stay clear as far as the rain is concerned. for the most part, next week, too. current temperatures, 47 in d.c. 40 in hagerstown. down to the south, 46 in fredericksburg. as we make our way through the night, on the chilly side with temperatures mid to upper 30s. waking up to temperatures above the freezing mark. at 7:00 a.m., a temperature of 33 degrees. some areas will be cooler than that. most of you in the mid to upper 20s overnight. not that bitter cold we have seen the last couple days. i'll show you how much warmer we'll get for the weekend, coming up. >> thank you, doug. in decision 2012, the new hampshire primary is five days

away now. the candidates are expressing their messages for the post iowa landscape. romney hopes a big win in new hampshire will solidify his front-runner status. santorum is trying to gain on his momentum. both candidates saved their criticism for obama while gingrich took aim at santorum. >> if you think of us as partners, in historical business he would be a junior partner. he's not a bad person. i don't know that he has any track record of being able to organize a large scale campaign that i'm describing or being able to then govern on a large scale. >> jon huntsman skipped the iowa caucuses to focus on new hampshire. he's hoping a win in new hampshire would help him breakaway from the pact. president obama announced

deep budget cuts for the u.s. military. the plan calls for $480 billion to be cut from the budget over the next ten years. the number of troops in the army and marine corps will be reduced significantly. the president says the military will be the best in the world. defense secretary, leon panetta, vows to protect troop benefits. >> we are going to maintain the armed forces that are agile, flexible and ready for the full range of contingencies and threats. >> we are going to protect the benefits that are provided to our troops and to their families. >> some say any reduction in troop levels, puts national security at risk. details of where the cuts are coming from will be released when the president unveils his

budget next month. as president obama was making that announcement, family members were saying good-bye to two d.c. army national guard movements headed for afghanistan. it was held at the d.c. armory. the group is headed for training before they head to afghanistan next month. news 4 at 5:00 is just getting started. he survived a car crash while his friend lays dying. tonight, a maryland man learns his fate. a little girl dies after suffering an allergic reaction at school. what went wrong? what virginia's governor has to say about a rule that requires voters to take a pledge before they cast their ballots. more live team coverage of harr

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here's a better idea... pillsbury grands! flaky layers biscuits. in just 15 minutes, the light delicate layers add a layer of warmth to your next dinner. pillsbury grands! dinner ideas made easy. >> we are following breaking newsing right now. police are investigating the county's first homicide of the year. it happened around 2:00 this afternoon in suitland. officers called to the 2000 block to check on a man's welfare. when they arrived, they found a man shot to death. no word on the identity or if there are suspects. a young man learned his fate in court today. a judge sentenced kevin coffay. derrick ward is live outside the

courthouse in rockville with more on the sentencing. derrick? >> reporter: prosecutors said this is the harshest sentence he's seen in a case like this. it came after a day of emotional hearing here in montgomery ke n county court. the 20-year-old told the court he prays to god every night asking why the victims died and not him. he says it night of the accident is a blur to him. his mother pleaded with the judge to consider his entire life, not that night's actions. the 18-year-old spener debt t, haeley mcguire and johnny hoover died. >> it was not an accident. it was a crime. >> reporter: the 20-year-old is looking at spending the next two decades behind bars. >> we are changing culture. i think this is as stiff a sentence as i can recall in a

automobile sentencing case. >> reporter: two hours of emotional statements of friends and family. some in attendance spoke after the hearing. >> there's so much pain and hatred in the courtroom. >> justice is a definition of punishment fitting the crime. those people are going to live with that forever. >> reporter: weighing heavily, he alluded police for hours. his son would not have left his friends had the rolls been reversed. the judge didn't believe he was a bad person, but a reckless person. the prosecutor said he could do that best after he served time. coffay will be eligible for parole after serving five years. conditions of probation are extensive. he has to attend alcoholics

anonymous meetings five times a week and have a vehicle fitted with a driving device where they blou into a device. he's required to serve 500 hours of community service. more on the story coming up on news 4 at 6:30. >> thank you. hey, do you take the blue or orange line in metro, expect delays this evening. the transit agency says crews are working on the station. trains will single track on the blue and orange lines between eastern market and stadium armory stations. you can expect crowded stations through the rush hour and 20 to 30 minute delays. repairs should be completed by 7:00. >> cold temperatures caused problems for them. >> they are out of here. they are long gone. they are going to be long gone for about a week or so. if you wanted warmer temperatures, i think they are

moving in and moving in now. out there now, looking good. we saw cloud cover moving in earlier today. we'll call it mid to high level clouds. temperatures on the mild side. 47 degrees. the temperature after a high of 50 degrees, winds out of the west-northwest at 7 miles per hour. today, they go down as an above average day. 39 degrees in gaithersburg. 39 in culpeper. we are going to cool off for the evening and overnight hours. for the month of january, not bad at all. current temperature 44 in rockville. 44 in camp springs. 46 in annapolis and p friends toward warrenton 45 degrees. what are we going to see? no rain. no snow in the immediate forecast or long range forecast. doppler radar is clear at the moment. as we widen out, it's clear in pennsylvania toward the carolinas. really, most of the country extremely quiet now as far as storminess is concerned.

satellite and radar showing a few clouds making their way in across the region. all from the north. we are going to see changes as we take a wider view of the picture. here is the current temperature. 47 in washington. 36 in boston. it's where the cold air is now. to the west, 68 in omaha, nebraska. 64 in denver. 65 in st. louis. 66 now in dallas and the ft. worth area. all that warmer air will move our way. tomorrow, 56 in washington. that's the high temperature we are going for. 63 in raleigh and 62 in atlanta. the mild air making its way up to new york city. new york, i think into the 50s during the day tomorrow. a lot warmer as we make our way through the late week and weekend. clouds cool. nice this evening. 42 to 46 degrees. tomorrow morning, cool but not too bad. not nearly as cold as it has been. 24 to 33 degrees with clouds out there. the winds will pick up late in

the afternoon. mild but breezy. a fantastic friday. 54 to 57 degrees. winds gusting upwards of 20 to 25 miles per hour. in the next four days, nice weather on saturday. 57 looking very, very good. sunday cooler with a high of 49. 46 on monday. slight chance of showers. most should stay to the south. i visited kids at an elementary school. i told them i would show the picture at 5:15. >> where is it? >> i'm going to have it at 5:40. >> okay. we are count iing on it. it's developing. >> thanks, doug. coming up on news 4 at 5:00 tonight -- >> i'm liz crenshaw. wendy's revamps their cheeseburger recipe. the taste test is coming up. a little girl left on the school bus.

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>> is it possible to reinvent yourself? wendy's hopes so. they have a hot and juicy cheese burger. even the bun has changed. tasty? let's find out. >> hi, i'm wendy. yep, that one. i'm proud to introduce daves hot and juicy cheese burgers. >> they have reinvented their cheese burger. it's a single, double or triple patty. >> the best yet with thicker, hotter, juicier cheese. >> after four decades in the burger business, the newburgher prompted our taste test. we went to car fax where they ordered three comparable fast food burgers for an employee lunch. we picked the single patty, five guys little cheese burger and mcdonald's quarter pounder. the amount of meat is the same.

we want you to take a half burger of each. take it to your place. take some tastes. according to the library of congress, the hamburger dates back to 1859. it was invented in new haven, connecticut. excess beef served and grilled between two pieces of bread. there's a quarter pound patty and costs $3.69. was it new, special, different? >> i'm used to a square patty. >> a much better burger. the bread was better. >> i went with wendy's today. first time for me. >> really? >> i like the flavor a lot better. yeah, compared to the other two, more flavor. >> other tasters weren't sure the changes were for the better. >> i usually like wendy's. it was just a little bit too juicy, in a bad way. >> the hot and juicy wendy burger was okay. it didn't live up to its name.

>> i'm a sucker for five guys. >> it cost $4.39. the meat was better. more juicy. the bun was much better. >> it tastes fresh. it tastes like home. like something you would make at home on the grill. >> five guys is fresher. the other ones taste like generic cheese burgers. >> not all were five guys fans. >> too much of everything. >> five guys wasn't that great. >> they sampled old faithful, mcdonald's quarter pounder with cheese, $3.59. >> it was the old tried and true mcdonalds. >> i think the mcdonalds. >> that's what i say about mcdonalds. >> mcdonald's was the least favorite with eight votes. it was a close race between wendy's hot and juicy and five guys. wendys 35 votes. five votes five more than

wendy's, 40 votes, taking the taste test. >> five guys takes it. >> we had a few tasters who thought they picked five guys. even though they did, they would go to wendy's and have it again. you know, that wendy's burger was a surprise. they did something. yeah. mcdonald's took it on the chin. >> yeah. >> i grew up on the quarter pounders. there was a time i could eat three of those in the day. >> in the day. >> did you pick? >> i tried all three. >> good girl. >> you are supposed to. >> i like the five guys. i think i would like to try them again when they are hotter. >> okay. they are room temp. >> how come we didn't get them hot? >> i do the best i can. can we just talk about how difficult older people are. i could go on and on. oh my goodness. >> thank you, liz. >> good test.

still ahead on news 4 at 5:00. casey anthony's video diary shows up on youtube. what she says about her new life. a story that sparked outrage. a person who shot a puppy to death. i'm julie carey. it looks like virginia republicans are stepping away from a loyalty to cast their ballot in the march presidential primary. there's a strong statement out today. i'll have it coming up. i'm tisha thompson with reaction to the political story in ward five.

more now on the top story. d.c. councilmember harry thomas jr. was charged with stealing more than $350,000 and filing false tax returns. the felonies are details filed in a u.s. court. it's a document that indicates a defendant intends to plead guilty. it does not detail what he did with the stolen funds, he was accused of spending them on a luxury suv, travel and rounds of golf. it charges him of failing to report $356,000 of income between 2007 and 2009. he's expected to be in court tomorrow. many of his constituents are

not surprised at the charges against him. >> tisha thompson is live at thomas' house with reaction from ward 5 residents. tisha? >> reporter: we have seen police here today. we have seen harry thomas jr.'s family here today but not thomas, so far tonight. residents say it's been a long time coming. they were expecting some kind of charges. they had plenty to say about it. >> i'm sad about it, honestly. you know, it's a sad situation. you vote people into office then they abuse your trust like that. >> reporter: we found her and other ward 5 residents at the shopping center. none of whom were surprised to hear he was charged with stealing government money. >> go to jail. that's all he should have resigned a long time ago. >> he broke the law. he's got to talk to the judge. >> reporter: we showed a copy of the court papers charging him

with embezzle. and not paying taxes. >> keep him. it's wrong. >> reporter: most want him to resign because his legal problems have become a distraction. >> i think he should step down. i don't think that -- i think t it's going to take a lot of his time to straighten out his legal affairs. that's going to be time taken away from his responsibilities. >> reporter: nearly everyone we talked to says they want a special election and they want it as soon as possible. there's a lot of business they want so see done here in ward 5 and want to focus the attention ton communities instead of their em battled councilmember. tisha thompson, news 4. >> thank you. news 4 viewers across the washington area have been taking to social media sounding off about the charges. one person tweeted he should have been gone long ago. now, he should do ten years in prison. another person tweeted this.

about darn time. ward 5 residents deserve better than harry thomas jr. a viewer posted this comment, continued embarrassment for the nation's capital. unfortunately, the news is as common as the redskins losing. another person writes, hey, it's the district. in several years he'll launch a successful campaign. >> stay with www.nbcwashington.com for continuing coverage of the case. we'll continue live coverage at 6:00. in decision 2012, news in maryland's u.s. senate race. he's a democrat from prince george's county. he was born in baltimore and has been a state senator since 2007. he's married to pat lawson muse. virginia governor bob

mcdonnell is calling to ditch plans. voters to sign a pledge at the gop primary in march. he isn't the only republican troubled by the oath. julie? >> the lieutenant governor and others spoke out against the loyalty oath. voters that voted for it in the first place expect to get rid of it. virginia voters will take their place in the gop spotlight march 6th. last month republican party leaders tried to make sure primary voters stick with the gop nominee come november. they asked voters sign this loyalty oath promising to support the republican nominee. >> recently, we thought the more people we could get out to vote in the general election in november the better.

the idea of signing this pledge on march 6th will entice them to vote in november. itis probably having the opposite effect. a lot of people we want voting are not just republicans, independents and tea party folks. they might be offended by this. >> reporter: he and others got an earful over the holidays from voters and other republicans. he was one of the first to speak out against the pledge. they criticize it as unenforceable and will scare gop s supporters away. >> here is something, we are doing it to ourselves. the liberals must love this. >> bob mcdonnell weighed in to rescind the plan. he said the effect of the oath could be one of diminishing participation. his group made a mistake and they will correct it at the next

meeting on january 21st. >> i think in the next meeting, it should be resinded. >> the state republican party chairman was polling members via e-mail to get a head count on it before the meeting. without a pledge, are there worries they could crash the party? >> more to come. thank you. coming up on news 4 at 5:00, casey anthony's video diary shows up on youtube today. what we learned about her life after the trial. frederick county public schools says a 5-year-old sleeping child was overlooked on the bus and the bus driver went home. i'm erika gonzalez. i'll have more on why the school district says they didn't contact the child's parents. a little girl dies after suffering an allergic reacti [ mom ] hey guys. guys... [ female announcer ] pillsbury cinnamon rolls with cinnabon cinnamon

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of murdering her daugt. she appeared in a video leaked to youtube. she recorded it back in october. she's serving probation for check fraud. he expresses optimism about her new life. just a little surreal how much things have changed since july and how many things haven't changed. the good thing is things are starting to look up and starting to change in a good way. >> during the four and a half minute video, she says she adopted a dog that she loves. however, she does not mention her 2-year-old daughter, caylee, the trial or where she's living now. when we come back on news 4 at 5:00, the search for a person who shot a golden retriever puppy to death. wen one of the nfl playoffs.

we break down the weekend's

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for this melty, mouthwatering sub! ♪ i'm feelin' subway ♪ let's go we're following a developing story tonight. d.c. councilman harry thomas jr. has been charged with stealing hundreds of thousands of district dollars and lying on

income taxes. mayor vincent gray is calling on thomas to resign his council seat. we'll have live team coverage at the top of the hour. police in maryland are searching for a person who shot and killed a golden retriever puppy. the 7-month-old, heidi, was found in the back of the owner's home. she was shot between 9:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. they foster abandoned golden retrievers. she can't imagine anyone hating a puppy. >> total disbelief and shock. i could take something happening to her and understanding it but this is beyond understanding. >> investigators will perform an analysis. if you have information about the shooting call animal control in frederick county. investigators will perform a forensic analysis.

school officials are investigating after a 5-year-old girl wound up asleep and alone on a keocounty school bus. erika gonzalez reports, her mother is more upset about what happened next. >> reporter: frederick county public schools says last tuesday a bus driver picked up a 5-year-old at day care and headed to the elementary school where she attends pre-k. the child didn't make it to school on time. the spokesperson for the school district says the driver discovered her sleeping in the back of the bus when she arrived at home. >> this is an oversight on her part. a number of lack of communication instances, a series of them, that resulted in this situation. >> reporter: the driver did not conduct the mandatory sweep before exiting the bus. >> one can never factor into those situations, into those

matters the human factor. there's always that. >> reporter: the district says the bus driver brought the child back to school 45 minutes later and personally walked the child into the secretary's office. this is where they say was one of the biggest confusions. the office or school thought the transportation department was going to notify the parents. the transportation department thought the school was going to notify the parents. none of which happened. instead, the child is the one who broke the news to her mother. the principal was not notified of the incident until the following day. the child was never harmed. we tried contacting the child's parent but were unsuccessful. as for the driver -- >> this is a tendered driver, an experienced driver without a blot on her record. >> reporter: she'll face disciplinary action.

erika gonzalez, news 4. >> now the principal of glade elementary spoke with staff. she told them she needs to be notified if this ever happens again. doug is here with a final check on the weather. doug? >> remember the kids i was talking about? >> yes. >> the second graders from kent garden elementary school. there it is. there we go. we spoke to them and i saw all the other second graders out there at kent gardens elementary school. they are extremely excited about the weather. hey, what do you know, i am, too. thanks for having me there. i appreciate it. temperatures today, 47 degrees. that's the current temperature out there. with winds out of the west-northwest at 7 miles per hour. we're going to see the winds gusting upwards of 15 miles per hour later this evening. it's not a big factor. storm 4 doppler radar shows rain or snow is also not going to be a big factor. the kids not happy to hear about

the lack of snow in the forecast over the next couple days and really over the next week or so. morning temperatures tomorrow, cool but not too cold. 33 in washington, 25 in gaithersburg. 26 in leesburg. 22 back to martinsburg. we'll see cold numbers. you'll be able to take the jackets off. close to 60 in some areas like culpeper, fredericksburg. a great day, a fantastic friday. guys, i have to tell you, probably one of the best things that i have seen in a long time, i got to that school, mcclain and it was obviously recess time. all the kids coming outside, taking off their jackets with the biggest smiles on their faces. made me think about recess when i was that young ten years ago. >> ahh, that must have been a scene. how many of them went home without their coats? >> they will not have them tomorrow morning. >> thanks, doug. turning to sports now, it is playoff season.

>> hakeem is here with a preview of the wild card weekend. >> playoff football, the best kind of football in the nfl is upon us. here with trevor price, 14 year nfl veteran. i want to start with the first game, cincinnati at houston. bangals have a defense. can they contain it to foster the game? >> no. the reason is because they are going to get back andre johnson. he takes all the safeties with him down the field. a chance of stopping the running. now, you have to pick your poison. what's it going to be, run or pass? >> he's given up 100 yards per game. >> it's not so much how many yards, if they get the win, you can get ten. something has to give. the water dam has to break somehow. >> cincinnati or houston? >> houston.

everything is rolling right now for houston. cincinnati is out of there. >> prime time game, detroit at new orleans 8:00 on nbc 4. the featured game. new orleans first in passing, sixth in rushing. new orleans has beat opponents by an average of 47-16. >> at night. >> yes. >> this game is at night. if you want to schedule detroit put them at new orleans at night. that's what they did. the problem is, they are playing with a guy that broke morino's passing record. we are going to dare you to run the ball. drew brees is happy passing 15, 20, 30 times to win the game, so be it. we are not going to let you open it up like run and shoot from the '80s. >> new orleans has that three-headed attack. >> who, who and who?

they play in the nfl, but who, who and who? it's going to be the drew brees show, once again. if detroit says we are going to gamble, fine. run it on us. run it on us. fine. carry and make a touchdown, no big deal. >> calvin johnson, you are going to be a little worried about him. >> very little. take it every day of the week. >> let's take a look at the falcons-giants. eli manning, victor cruz is what everyone is talking about. that big match up, that connection. cruz, fourth wide receiver coming in the season. he leads in receiving yards. he's been phenomenal. last week, 73 yard touchdown. >> okay, same kind of thing, pick your poison. playoff football in january, those kind of months is about

how much can you run the ball? everybody is beat up. the giants, are they really going to run the ball? eli manning is having one of the best seasons of his career. i pick the giants. >> you like new orleans and the giants. last match up, steelers-broncos, 4:30 match up. is tebow time over? >> tebow time is done. >> come on. >> luck runs out. unless the game is going to go for 95 minutes, tebow is not going to catch up with them. what they are going to do, they are going to keep the lead. keep tebow in the pocket and make the wet noodle beat him. it's not going to happen. >> i think there's going to be tim tebow. that's my pick. the broncos. >> i'm upset you picked them. you are going to be upset you picked them.

>> i'm going to take it. playoff football is coming up this weekend. back to you. >> all right. take that. >> it's a playoff throwdown. thanks, guys. coming up at 6:00, cell phone video shows a firy scene. the desperate decision a woman made to save her grandchildren. a new clue in the search for a man who abducted and assaulted a woman in chinatown. those stories and more coming up on news 4 at 6:00. next, what went wrong? a family is looking for answers after a little girl in virginia

the death of a virginia girl is raising new questions tonight about the way schools and parents handle students with severe allergies. 7-year-old girl died on monday after being exposed to peanuts at her school outside richmond. as we report, it's not the only heart ache the family is facing. >> reporter: this was her 7th and last birthday celebrated two months ago. her family showered her with gifts. she was loved and cherished by those around her. she was charismatic. she was. she was one of those children that everyone loved. >> reporter: that joy and love for her now pain and heart ache

as this mother says she is unable to give her daughter a proper burial. with $3,000 in savings. it's not even half of what is needed to lay her daughter to rest. >> i never thought i'd be burying my daughter. >> reporter: for seven years, she was careful to protect her against a long list of allergies she was diagnosed with. nuts, eggs, shellfish and chocolate. as sensitive as she was, her mother says she explained to school officials at hopkins elementary about her allergies. now, she wants an explanation as what what went wrong. >> i'm angry. i don't know who to be angry with at this point. my main concern is how was she exposed? what happened after she was exposed? >> one and one and one --

>> reporter: she just wants to know her school did everything it could to save her baby's life. >> that's news 4 at 5:00. news 4 at 6:00 starts right now. tonight a d.c. councilmember is facing prison time. he's accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in city funds to support a lavish lifestyle. he's accused of lying on his taxes. now, calls for harry thomas jr. to resign are getting louder. good evening, i'm jim handly. >> i'm doreen gentzler. if harry thomas jr. steps down, his resignation would make history in the district. we have team coverage on this. pat collins has reaction but we begin with tom sherwood live outside the wilson building with details of the charges against thomas. tom? >> reporter: