and now, from washington's leading news station, this is news 4 at 6:00. breaking news tonight. more suspicious letters arrive in d.c. white powder sent to a restaurant not far from the white house. good evening, everyone. i'm chris gordon. this breaking news is happening at blt steak. that's in the 1600 block of i street in northwest. news 4's darcy spencer joins us live from the scene with no information she has just gathered. >> reporter: yeah, chris, just within the last couple of minutes i was able to find out that they actually found two letters at this restaurant with white powder, with what's

believed to be white powder. you can see this investigation is still taking place about half the block up here on i street. initially a restaurant employee opened one letter and found white powder. that initiated the investigation. during the course of them being inside the restaurant, they found a second letter. the first letter, that substance was tested and deemed to be harmless. d.c. hazardous materials crews were called to the blt steak restaurant in downtown washington near the white house just before 4:00 this afternoon for a suspicious letter. apparently a letter containing white powder was delivered here and opened by a restaurant employee in an office. what do you think about that given the fact that you're close to it? >> it's kind of scary, but you know, it's 2012 and that's just how the world operates, unfortunately. those people that like to do silly things. so just a part of everyday life now. >> reporter: there have been several incidents just this past week in d.c. where white powder letters were delivered to

restaurants and schools. the fbi says they may be connected to another series of letters delivered in 2010 and last year. they have a dallas postmark. so far the mysterious powder in each case has been field tested and deemed harmless. in today's incident the restaurant was closed at the time but the response blocked some from getting out of the parking garages. >> the coat is in my car and the impact right now is i'm freezing. >> reporter: you can't get your co car out of the garage. >> just tried to enjoy lunch with my girlfriends. i don't mind being cold as long as everybody's okay. >> reporter: the latest on this investigation, two letters containing suspicious powder were located here inside this restaurant here in downtown washington. this afternoon the letter was opened and the substance was determined to be harmless. a second letter was collected into evidence. all this has been turned over to the fbi for further

investigation. reporting live from downtown washington, daers spencer, news 4. >> we are also following more breaking news in d.c. a young boy has been hit by a car. it happened just before 4:00 near 12th and hem lock in northwest washington. the boy was between 4 and 6 years old. when they arrived he was bleeding from the head. the boy was taken to the hospital. no word on his condition at this hour. the driver who hit him did stay on the scene. leslie johnson will spend the next 12 months behind bars. the former prince george's county council member reported to the federal prison in west virginia yesterday. johnson and her husband, former county executive jack johnson, both pleaded guilty in a corruption scheme. leslie admitted to flushing a $100,000 bribe check down the toilet and stuffing $80,000 in cash in her bra. she is serving her term at alderson federal prison camp. it is also known as camp

cupcake. the most notable former inmates, martha stewart and blues singer billie holiday. tonight redskins fans are hoping the team's fortunes are about to change. fans are tweeting about robert griffin iii hoping that he'll be the elite quarterback to lead them to the playoffs. rg-3 is trending right now on twitter. hakim has more. >> you know how important this is to this area, to this team, to this fan base, how huge that the redskinses need this. they need a franchise quarterback and robert griffin iii could be the answer. >> let's hope. >> i mean, who would you maybe describe this guy next to? >> over peyton manning because he might be a limited future. this guy hopefully is the future. >> this guy is a game changer, for sure. when robert griffin iii won the heisman, he described it as unbelievably believable. general manager bruce allen

confirmed today that the redskins will trade up for the second pick in this year's nfl draft. to get that pick, the redskins will reportedly trade their first round pick and a second rounder this year and two future first round picks. the man they're likely going after, robert griffin iii. highs a game changer certainly. during his junior season at baylor he threw for 237 yards. he also rushed for ten tds. here is reaction from lorenzo alexander. >> it's exciting. it wasn't surprising or anything. because rg-3 is a great talent. i knew they were going to try to make a move especially hearing he wanted to play in the nfc. a great move for our team. and hopefully we'll pick him and it will be a great season as he develops into a franchise quarterback. >> and the trade cannot be finalized until the league year begins on tuesday. but this is huge for the

redskins, getting a guy like rg-3. that, of course, is if the colts take andrew luck with number one pick, which it's safe to say they'll probably do that. >> got to give me a fist bump. there you go. rick santorum gets a boost in his quest for the white house. he grabbed a win at the kansas caucuses ahead of mitt romney. republican presidential candidates are being held today -- the contests being held in wyoming, guam and the virgin islands but the deep south is also getting quite a bit of attention. bri bryan moar has the latest. >> with a strong showing in the kansas caucuses rick santorum nochd another victory. and he's making the case he's the conservative choice. >> we have to have a candidate,

a nominee, hook gwho can get up and draw a clear contrast with the president of the united states. >> reporter: for santorum, newt gingrich and ron paul, the saturday caucuses in kansas and wyoming were another chance to play delegate catch-up, but the contest this next week are about survival. gingrich has to win one or both to keep moving forward. >> it's a big deal. if we win alabama and miss sip next tuesday, by next wednesday this totally wild roller koers ra -- coaster race will be set one more time. >> reporter: for mitt romney a strong showing in the south is critical to show conservatives he can win. >> this president has not succeeded. this president has failed. that's the reason we're going to get rid of him in 2012. >> reporter: before the saturday caucuses romney held a 3-1

delegate count over gingrich and santorum. a healthy lead for a front-runner still showing signs of weakness. bryan moar, nbc news, washington. virginia lawmakers will have to return for a special session. today was the last day of the jnl assembly. republicans and democrats could not reach a budget agreement. democrats want $150 million more to go to education and transportation. they want the state to pay the cost of the ultrasound abortion bill. virginia lawmakers have until july 1th to figure out a new budget or face a partial government shutdown. the special session is expected to start on march 21st. coming up tonight a new look at mother nature's fury. video of the moment a devastating tornado struck kentucky. plus the proposal that could reroute a popular running and biking trail across one of the area's busiest roadways. and showing their muscle.

a competition where only strong men and strong women need apply. chuck? you'll never believe it. we actually had a cooler than average day across the region today. but don't you worry, warm weather lovers, we're warming up again.

it is tough getting to the

national zoo by metro this weekend. both the woodly park and cleveland park stations on the line are closed down for work. to get you around the closures. just like last weekend trains are also sharing track on the blue, orange and yellow lines. all work should be finished by your monday morning commute. well, some of the d.c. area's strongest men and women came out to arlington today to put their muscle to the test. they lifted, they pushed, they pulled as much weight that's could stand. it was for the second annual capital classic strongman challenge. and the winners in class qualified for the north american strongman contest. that's coming up. and speaking of coming up, still ahead, a sunny but chilly day today. chuck will tell us how long our taste of cool weather is going

new video of the momentses that a powerful ef-3 tornado ripped through kentucky last week. several security cameras captured the twister as it rolled through morgan county last friday. the twister killed six people and left more than 600 displaced. locally it appears that a popular running, walking and biking trail in montgomery county is about to get rerouted. it's to make room for a new transit project that's been in the works for years now. erica gonzales reports. >> reporter: the montgomery county council is suggesting

rerouting runner, cyclists and everyone else who uses the capital crescent trail. the plan is to ensure there will be room for construction if a purple line is built. if approved it would force trail users to go from traveling here underground to here. this busy intersection in bethesda, right on wisconsin avenue. courtney wade who uses the tunnel with her run group, it's a safety concern. >> it would be dangerous for everyone to run over and we have big groups. >> friends of the trail president said that they long promised the trail would remain in the tunnel. now they're reneging, he says. >> there are plenty of children who use the trail going to school, children riding their bikes, families riding their bikes. older people that come to downtown bethesda. >> another way to connect d.c. to maryland, so to speak.

>> sign a petition to keep the trail open in the tunnel? >> yes, very much so. >> thanks, guys. >> this weekend he and several other proponents of keeping the trail in the tunnel are signing petitions. >> i'm a biker, and this is how i travel safely is through the tunnel. >> about 11,000 people use the trail every week. council members say it all comes down to money. rebuilding the trail along with the 1200 foot tunnel and the purple line would be too risky and expensive. instead, transit planners say the cost to reroute the trail on to city streets is about $3.5 million. in bethesda, reporting for news 4. it would cost more than $50 million to modify the tunnel to accommodate the train and the trail. the montgomery county council is expected to take a final vote on this in the next few weeks. sunshine today. a lot of people out walking or biking. >> the wind breaker on today, no doubt about it.

the north breeze kept things feeling very chilly. we had near freezing wind chills for much of the morning into the early afternoon today. but boy once the wind started to lay down after lunch time, it didn't feel all that bad outside. although we only made 50 degrees for a high. that's four degrees cooler than average. a true rarity in this hardly cold winter that we're finishing up. so far march more than seven degrees. warmer than average. wait till you see the seven-day forecast. by this time next week, march might be more than ten degrees warmer than average. 46 now in washington. the winds have gone calm. the skies are clear. the dew points are in the teens. it will be a cold evening and a cold start. temperatures in the low to mid-40s right now. with the dry air and the clear sky, temperatures will fall fast into the upper 30s. but a lot of the western suburbs might be down freezing as early as midnight, 1:00 a.m. if you do late night travels

tonight, bundle up. a cold start tomorrow morning for sunday services. nary a drop orsnowflake of precipitation. all the action is down here in the southern plains, oak and texas getting hit with a line of showers and thunderstorms going into the red river valley. that moisture is going to eventually make it towards us, but it will probably be monday night or tuesday before we have to worry about it. a bit of a chill in the air this evening and off to a cold start, but bright sunshine returns as soon as the sun comes up tomorrow. a mild day with highs into the low 60s tomorrow. that warming trend will surge our way as we get to monday, tuesday, wednesday, most of the energy and the rain will go to our north leaving us with no more than a passing sprinkle or shower. so for this evening into tomorrow morning, clear skies, cold again. move your clocks ahead when you go to bed tonight and change the battery in your smoke detector. those are important things to remember. then tomorrow sunny, warmer and

three of my favorite words to describe the weather, de- de-lite-ful. monday, ttdz, wednesday, thursday, parts of central virginia might be nosing in on 80 degrees by the wednesday/thursday timeframe. hardly feeling like march at all. >> on behalf of the entire community, we'd like to thank you. still ahead tonight, more on the move to bring rg-

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skins fans are pumped. >> yep, skins fans are pumped. >> i'm pumped. >> you're pumped. >> another big 12 coming to the area. >> exactly. that's great. here's hoping history doesn't repeat itself. in 1968 the redskins traded their first round pick in the 1969 nfl draft to the rams for heisman trophy winning quarterback gary babin. he threw one pass as a redskin. it was incomplete. so was his career. he was backup to sonny jurgen n jurgensen. and he decided to retire from football after just two seasons. robert griffin iii will have pressure to justify a blockbuster trade. the redskins decided to trade

for the second pick in this years a draft. to get the pick, the redskins will reportedly give up their first round pick and two future first round picks. if they take andrew luck, they'll take the next available, that's robert griffin iii. he threw for 37 touchdowns and only 6 interceptions. he's a game changer. for reaction to the trade, here's lorenzo alexander. >> it's exciting. you know, it wasn't surprising or anything. talking about rg-3 is a great talent. i knew they were going to try to make a move especially after hearing that payton doesn't want to play in the nfc. and it will be a great season as he develops into a franchise quarterback. >> if you had your choice, who would you pick? andrew luck or robert griffin iii?

>> you know, i definitely want a stanford guy being on my team being a cal guy. so rg-3. both have great talents and great abilities. rg is off the charts. phenomenal players, phenomenal guys, both will have great career. but to answer your question, i'm going to go with rg-3. >> do you think the pursuit of peyton manning is over or is it just beginning? >> me personally, i don't think they should bring peyton in, with his whole injury situation and neck. i just don't think it would be a great fit. they should allow rg-3 to come in here, groom him, throw him into the fire and let him go. >> the trade cannot be finalized until the league year begins on tuesday. hometown hockey. the capitals playing a saturday matinee on the road against the bruins. the caps haven't won a game in boston since 2010. coach dale hunter.

pick it up in first period. after semin scores, hendrix crashing the net. see it again. just a gritty, hard working goal. caps up 2-0. but the lead wouldn't last. second period, caps turn it over. brad marchand steals it. and, well, he puts it past tomas vokoun. off the stick of orlov. that's too easy for marchand. game tied at two. later same score. puck in the bruins zone. semin passes to beagle. he shoots and scores. caps up 3-2. so here we go. then caps on the power play. final seconds of the power play, they were 0 for 9 on the advantage entering the game. dennis wideman, hashtag awesome. the caps go on to win it 4-3,

thanks to that decisive power-play goal. >> it does help. you get more rhythm going. because if you don't have game -- you try to do it in practice, but it's your own players and you don't shoot the puck as hard because you might hurt them. so you know, with the puck. so it's good to get to the free power plays. >> home at the maple leafs tomorrow. d.c. united kicks off its season against kansas city. you can see the game on comcast sports net plus at 7:30. college hoops today. the howard women's basketball team. this is bigtime. howard and hampton meeting for the title for the second year in a row and a trip to the big dance on the line. holmes, tough jumper to go. we're tied at 51. under two to play. howard down one again. it's holmes off the glass and in. she's a talented young woman. holmes a game high 20 points.

bison up one. but after hampton takes control on the two free throws, last one for howard. holmes shot no good. the bison can't get it back up in time. hampton edges howard. the lady pirates making their third straight ncaa tournament appearance. howard had a heck of a season. congrat to those women at howard. that's tough to lose by one point? maybe they'll still get in. >> our hearts go out to them. redskin fans, hashtag rg-3. >> that's perfect. that's beautiful have a good evening. [ male announcer ] at green giant we know nature

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