welcome to "news4 today." i'm erika gonzalez. >> and i'm angie goff. it is sunday, march 18th. did you have a good st. patrick's day? >> i did have a good st. patrick's day -- >> cabbage? >> no, none of that. but the top was down, the windows were down. it was absolutely beautiful. >> oh, wow. >> and we had spectacular weather yesterday. >> we did, and i wish it'd be as warm as today. we turn to chuck bell to find out. >> you know, the reason that you're more pessimistic about today is because for a lot of people who haven't been outside yet, it's very foggy. >> right.

>> and it's cold! i didn't wear a jacket in. i was spoiled yesterday. >> it's not cold! >> well, 52 degrees is cold after what we've experienced the last couple days. >> you realize the average high in march is 56. >> okay, all right. >> so, 52 before the sun's even up is very mild. let's look at our temperatures this morning. as angie mentioned, it's a bone-chilling 54 degrees here in town. but yes, indeed, lots of thick fog out there this morning, a very thick blanket of fog awaits you on your outside activities this morning. 50 now in gaithersburg and germantown, 51 in fairfax, 54 in leesburg and 54 in hagerstown. nothing showing up on doppler close to us. a few sprinkles in the mountains of west virginia, that's about it. steadier showers way down in southwest virginia. i think they stay away from us today, but off to a very thick and foggy start today. fog will probably last here about 9:00, 10:00, 11:00 this morning and leave us with a partly to mostly cloudy afternoon. i think we'll flirt with 70 degrees again today. >> nice. >> most of the day spent in the 60s, whereas yesterday we made

75, thanks to all the sunshine. going to be a good day. and for a lot of the photographers, sometimes a little cloudy day like this is even better. the canopy of cherry trees and flowers and all that, just gorgeous outside today. so, today may be a very good day. >> that's a perfect segue into our next story. >> it is? >> it is! were you reading our scripts before the show? >> love when that comes together. >> thank you, chuck. >> all righty. speaking of which, it is an annual celebration in d.c., the blooming of the cherry blossoms, and this year we are celebrating a little earlier than usual. >> you can't say chuck didn't tell us so. unseasonably warm weather means a chance to get out and enjoy the blossoms before the festival starts. news4's darcy spencer explains as she takes a stroll around the tidal basin. >> reporter: here it is, mid-march, and already, the cherry blossoms on the tidal basin are starting to bloom. >> we came in, actually, for a conference, and we decided to come into the city for the evening, and we've just been

enjoying the cherry blossoms and the different monuments and everything. >> reporter: locals and tourists are taking in the beauty of the blooms, and there's more to come. they're not even at peak yet. >> is that a good thing, though, that they're out? >> oh, it's great! it's great. i mean, i would like to see snow in the winter, but the fact that they're out early is wonderful, yeah. i'm loving it. >> reporter: the snow, well, that's not likely to happen, but the cherry blossoms, the national park service predicts they'll begin their peak on tuesday, thanks to that warm winter. >> it's been really great to walk around and just kind of see the trees and see them bloom. >> reporter: earlier in the day, the tidal basin was swarming with thousands of people getting a sneak preview of what's to come. >> it is a surprise that everything has bloomed so early. it's beautiful. >> i decided to bring all the kids with me, and we are all very happy to see the cherry blossoms. >> reporter: some actually prefer this nighttime view and the moment it creates. >> it's a romantic time. >> and we're intruding upon that. >> that's okay. it's for lovers.

>> d.c. is for lovers? >> yes, it is, absolutely. this is the place to be when you're a romantic. >> all right, thank you, guys. >> and it's a cheap date, guys. [ laughter ] >> reporter: starting today, a new shuttle service will be offered between haynes point and the jefferson memorial. it's only going to cost you a buck. also, two new capitol bike share stations are going to be added, all in an effort to make it a little easier to come here and check out the cherry blossoms. at the tidal basin, darcy spencer, "news4 toid. >> it's a cheap date, he said. come on, now. all right, this morning, many of you are recovering from st. patrick's day celebrations. ♪ >> d.j. clark's set the irish tone with bagpipes outside the famed downtown d.c. bar. inside, the day kicked off with eggs and kegs on the brunch menu. later, p.j. clark's served up corn beef and cabbage, and of course, a lot of beer.

over in gaithersburg, people lined the streets for a parade. dozens of groups walked washingtonian boulevard, including dancers, clowns and bagpipe bands. the city also hosted an after party at the nearby lakefront plaza. [ cheering ] >> cheers! from president obama. the president surprised revelers at the irish pub near union station and even had a beer. a distant cousin from money gall, ireland, joined him for the trip outside the white house. one of president obama's great, great, great grandfathers emigrated from ireland in 1850, believe it or not. now to "decision 2012." puerto rico's holding their primary. the tiny island offers 20 delegates to the republican candidates. despite participating in this primary, the people of puerto rico cannot vote in the november general election. the country does have a referendum on their ballot in

november asking voters if they want to become a state. congress would have to approve the request, if it passes. >> that's enough! that's enough! >> tempers flared in missouri as voters participated in their republican caucus. supporters of ron paul clashed with other voters and police arrested two people. yesterday's vote simply paired down the number of possible caucus members. missouri has a state convention in june, and that's when delegates will select their candidate. rick santorum won a nonbinding primary in the show me state last month. two days before the illinois primary, mitt romney picked up another key endorsement. the "chicago tribune" endorsed the former massachusetts governor, saying he's the best choice for the republican nomination. the state's largest newspaper said romney is most likely to help return the gop back toward its traditional values of financial responsibility and

limited government. illinois's primary has 54 delegates up for grabs. meanwhile, rick santorum has a bold prediction ahead of the illinois primary. he says if he wins on tuesday, he'll go on to win the republican nomination. santorum says that while chicago will mostly support mitt romney, he has the support of the more rural areas of the state. he added that romney and president obama are so similar, he feels like he's already participating in the general election. erika? >> thanks so much, angie. alexandria police say the number of tickets issued by red light cameras is disturbing. officers told wtop they've mailed nearly 9,400 tickets in the last year alone. at $50 a pop, that amounts to about $234,000 in fines. last july, alexandria installed the red light cameras at three intersections, duke and walker streets, gibbon and south patrick streets and franklin and south patrick streets as well.

and you've also got to watch your speed when you roll in through the district. d.c. ranked number five in the country with the most speed traps and red light cameras. that list came from trapster.com. the website lets users report police activity and speed traps. the d.c. area has about 350 traffic enforcement cameras, according to poi factory, which is a website that tracks the cameras in your cities. new york city topped the speed trap list. >> and they will get >> yeah. it always cracks me whup people race past me in washington and go through this red light because they're going to the very next one, which you can already see is red in front you. it's like -- >> i know, i know. >> i used to get honked at all the time coming down fox hall road right before they put in the red light camera. now all of a sudden, everybody's going the same way, 25 miles an hour. too many tickets handed out. >> no doubt. well, remember to use your low beams this morning, no doubt about that, fog lights down on

the bumper in your sporty ride. maybe you turn those on, because normally you don't need them all that much. so, a foggy start. how long does that last? how about the rest of the week? your forecast is next.

welcome back, everybody. well, i know you were working last night. >> i was. >> did you find some time to do an irish jig or enjoy? >> well, i got pinched a lot because i didn't wear green. i said, first of all, i'm half irish, so i don't have to wear the green, and a lot of people don't know about our weather trick here, my weather wall is green. so if i were to wear green, it would be transparent. >> yes, you'd be a floating head on the screen. >> exactly, and i've got enough troubles in the floating head range, so i don't need that all

going against me as well. so, that's the reason i didn't wear a lot of green yesterday. but nonetheless, i can fake an irish accent with the best of them, and my grandfather was born in ireland. that's got to be good enough. so was my grandmother, actually. anyway, outside we go on your sunday morning. look out for the fog this morning. it is really thick in places. we can still make out the lincoln memorial, as viewed from our city camera view. the city camera's actually on the other side of the river near national airport, so you're able to see all the way over the river into downtown washington, but boy, once you get outside the immediate downtown area, some of the fog has gotten real thick this morning, so be on the lookout. 52 now at national airport. the dew point at 50. so again, these two numbers only about two degrees apart, not about, exactly two degrees apart. 93% humidity with a light south breeze at only 5 miles per hour. and an unbelievably mild start here in march. temperatures this morning are 20 degrees warmer than average for start-off temperatures in the day. and your sunday's going to be a mild one, temperatures today into the upper 60s to near 70 in

many spots. but i think the extra fog this morning and more clouds this afternoon will keep us just below where we were yesterday. yesterday we made 75. we'll be about five degrees cooler today. nothing showing up on radar. there may be a chance for a couple light sprinkles out here in the mountains of west virginia, so really, anywhere along and west of the blue ridge mountains, i-81 westbound into the mountains, a little better chance you'll see a shower today. not much, if anything, in the way of rain chances right around town. all this is being held at bay by our area of high pressure, which is slowing down the progression, the eastward progression of these rain showers. so, i think we'll squeak out a mostly dry day today. then on monday and tuesday, little better chances as this area of high pressure loses its influence a little bit and allows some rain shower chances to sneak east of the mountains. a little better chance coming up for your monday and your tuesday afternoon. today, though, generally dry but off to a foggy start. so, thick fog this morning becoming a partly sunny afternoon today. a few showers, again, mainly i-81 westbound up into the mountains. highs today upper 60s and low

70s. tomorrow, mostly cloudy, better chances of a few showers tomorrow afternoon. but whoo, it's not going to be anywhere near cold or cool or chilly or icy or anything like that. temperatures 70 or better. and 70 is 13 degrees warmer than average for a high temperature. 70 or better each and every day all the way through the next seven days. >> we have no excuses to not be outside. >> it may actually be bad for the cherry blossoms. the cherry blossoms love those nice, cool mornings. that's how you keep those things fresh and long-lasting. so, these 75-degree sunny days may be more of a detriment as we work on through the week. >> so, get out there and enjoy them while they last. >> get your pictures ready and get them going now, because they may not stick around for long. >> all right. >> thanks, chuck. >> all right. well, vcu's final four dreams have been dashed. >> hakeem dermish has highlights from their matchup with indiana in this morning's "sports minute." >> good morning, everyone.

your "sports minute" begins with nfl news. quarterback rex grossman has reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with the redskins. grossman threw 16 touchdowns and 20 interceptions last season. now to the ncaa tournament. today, georgetown matches up against 11-seed nc state. the hoyas are coming off a 15-point win against belmont. now, georgetown trying to earn a spot in the sweet 16 for the first time since 2007. the hoyas and wolfpack scheduled to tip off this afternoon at 12:15. in portland, oregon, the vcu taking on four-seed indiana. 20 seconds to go, game tied at 61. will sheehy knocks down the jumper, part of a 15-4 hoosiers run. last chance for the rams. rob brandonberg for the win. no good. they edge vcu and the hoosiers will play number one seed kentucky in the sweet 16. the wildcats' only loss in the regular season was to the hoosiers. women's ncaa tournament,

two-seed maryland hosting 15-seed navy. alyssa thomas, acc player of the year, finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. thomas also scored her 1,000th career point. the terps beat the midshipmen 59-44. maryland will play louisville on monday night. and later today, the georgetown women play fresno state in the first round. tip-off scheduled for 12:20. that's your "sports minute." i'm hakeem dermish. have a great day. >> thanks, hakeem. next up is "reporter's notebook," a look at stories affecting our community. >> and we will be back in 15 minutes with the morning's top stories, and of course, your sunday forecast. but for now, here's jim handly. and welcome to "reporter's notebook." a lot to get to this morning. gentlemen, let's start with gas taxes. gas prices have been on our mind for weeks and months. governor martin o'malley is stepping before the state senate and house to pitch his proposal once again to phase in 20-cent hikes for transportation. this money would be funding transportation projects.

timing on this? going to happen or not going to happen? >> that's the thing about timing and also the thing about me. number one, the timing, because we hear every day how gas prices are going up. now you're going to talk about taxing that. a lot of people have problems with that, and he's gotten a lot of criticism because of that, although his initiative originally called for a holdback, a delay, if gas prices continued to rise. but the other side of the story is the infrastructure, as president obama has said in his state of the union how many times, the infrastructure in all states, maryland included, is so bad, and this is the reason why the governor's pushing for this, the transportation and infrastructure. >> well, he seems to have support. it looks like it's moving through. they haven't done any final work yet. and as jerry said, the point is, we need this work done on our infrastructure. we've got to get some help. there's a senate bill that's passed that would give maryland some help on its infrastructure, but the house hasn't decided yet, and congress, where it's

going. so, we're slowing down on that kind of aid from congress with an end of the month delay approaching. so, they've got to rely on local resources, and he said it's painful. i hate paying more at the pump. you do, too, but in fact, we have to increase the gas tax as the price itself goes up because we need all these things done. >> yeah, but as somebody reminded governor o'malley, he gets driven to work every day at taxpayers' expense. and although i agree that we've got infrastructure that has to be paid for -- i think baltimore, they're going to end up maybe having to shut down some bridges because they may be unsafe. and montgomery county, there are roads that need to be repaired. and that's probably the governor's best chance that he can talk about the need for the infrastructure, like jerry and dave said, and jobs. this would increase jobs. my personal opinion is, i don't think it's going to happen this year. again, i think it's a question of timing, and i don't think it's as easy as sell as some people might think it is,

because democratic state senators and legislators have got to go back and explain this to their constituencies. >> some are pulling back now we're seeing here. we're in an election year and the need may be great out there, but you know, day-to-day, what people are feeling are these penny, five-penny increases. >> but i think you hit on the point there. when you talk to the public, they see the raise of prices at the gas pump. >> sure. >> more than they understand the holes and potholes in the street. >> as far as the governor getting driven around, that's a good point. a lot of critics would say. but the protection people would say we need to do it because it's a security issue. he has to be in a car. we have to drive him. that's an added expense. i don't think we're going to see governor o'malley take his own car and drive around any time soon. that would be interesting. >> well, that's my point, and it's at taxpayers' expense. and then to have him somehow -- >> the image, yeah. >> it's almost a mitt romney moment, you know, to somehow, oh, i can relate because, you know, gee, i have to pay at the

pump, too. and maybe he really does, but that's going to be an argument. i'm not saying that's a main argument. i think the biggest problem is timing. when he initially proposed this, gas prices were not rising. >> exactly. >> and again, presidents don't control, politicians don't control gas prices. it's usually gasoline or oil is global. it's global. >> apparently, marylanders have money to gamble away. anne arundel county -- >> but he did put a safeguard in this thing by saying that -- >> sure, yeah, we talked about that weeks ago. >> by saying if gas prices rise, then i'll hold back. >> moving on to anne arundel county, slot machines. a big batch of them, thousands arrived this week. this train has left the station for casino gambling in the state, do you think? >> well, it certainly has there. >> yeah. >> and again, you have the classic argument -- do you really raise enough money that offsets the social evils, critics say, this creates, that people who shouldn't be gambling

gamble? it's a tax on them, in a sense, although voluntarily, because they tax themselves. they're spending money on things they shouldn't be spending it on. and has, you know, analyses are beginning to come in that are beginning to show, at least in some ways, that these particular taxes, these particular activities don't bring in the revenue that they're credited with bringing in, but they do bring in people that are bad associations, people of low repute, and the tenor of the area is down where these slot machines are being put in. so, there's a lot of criticism about this kind of thing, too, even though, ironically, because we need so much money, is moving forward. >> low repute. he's going to find me at the casino. no, i was laughing, because -- >> i was thinking of the so-called criminal element that often is associated -- >> yeah. >> i certainly did not want to include my friend. >> and this is -- >> you are high repute. >> when i'm at the casino with the one-armed bandit. but i mean, this place is huge,

though. >> yeah. >> if i'm not mistaken, it's 4,750 machines. >> machines. >> and i think in vegas, it's like 2,500. >> right! >> but think where they're putting it. it's anne arundel, where at the shopping, you know, there. >> which is already at some cities. >> so, folks go off, wife and lady friends and others go out shopping and the husbands and everyone else, they -- but the reality is, it's here. >> yeah. >> it's here. >> it's here. >> and the reason why it's here is because maryland for the last five or ten years have been most concerned about people going to delaware and people going to west virginia. now, with anne arundel right on the border, just about, if you consider the fact that you can get to anne arundel very quick, rather than delaware, across the river there, across the bay, the fact is that marylanders are a little happier that those dollars will stay in maryland. >> but i agree with dave,

though. i don't know if it really brings in the kind of revenue that you really, honestly need to offset, because there's also a lot of other social ills that go with it. >> that's also the political spin, joe, the fact that this will go towards schools, this will go towards transportation. >> right. >> but does it really? >> lottery and everything else. >> that's what you're saying. >> let's cross the river to virginia. good news on unemployment, at a three-year low. politically speaking, how much is this going to help bob mcdonnell for his national aspirations, or does this help and reflect upon president obama, that things are turning around? >> well, whenever times are good, the person at the top of the heap gets credit for it. when they're bad, he or she takes blame. the same is true in virginia. the same, ultimately, if things change nationally, could be true for president obama. so, for the moment, that's certainly good news for governor mcdonnell, and as he tries to become somebody's vice presidential nominee, makes him look better there. and he can't run again on this record, but it probably helps,

might to a certain extent, help other republicans. >> well, i think it helps really the president, president obama, because not only virginia had this rate decrease, but you're also looking at 45 states across the nation that are going through the same mode. so, i think it helps president obama. but let's go back a little bit. mcdonnell did do some things to help. for instance, remember when he took that trip to asia to bring jobs back to virginia? >> sure. >> also, more companies are moving in. northrop grumman, for one. microsoft is talking about coming to virginia. so, all of this plays into this whole scenario of why the unemployment rates are dropping. >> well, you also have mcdonnell who will claim he dealt with unions. this is sort of an antiunion commonwealth. so then you have to question how much of these jobs really paying compared to other states.

he's going to talk about that they cut rather than raise taxes, and that's what attracted. >> right. >> but at the same time, president obama is touting the importance of community colleges, of education, and a lot of that has to do with the state of virginia. i mean, we've got in this area alone, in northern virginia, tremendous community college program. so, reality -- i think what's going to happen, it's going to help both, because they're both going to take credit. >> exactly. >> for certain aspects of it. >> but there is a cloud on the horizon. as defense cuts come in and defense contracting, perhaps, shrinks, that's a big part of virginia's economy. >> that's a very good point. >> and they're very, very worried about this. i hate to use a bureaucratic word, but the so-called sequester, automatic spending cuts, certain amount out of defense and out of domestic, that could hurt virginia and all of their lawmakers know that and

they're working to find a way around that, but it could still be tough. >> something to keep in mind and think about. all right, we've got to leave it there for this moment. we'll be right back to talk more about some d.c. politics after this short break. people! look at you! texting...blogging... all this technology, but you're still banking like pilgrims! get high yield free checking at capital one bank. why earn bupkis, when your checking could earn five times the national average!! and free atms anywhere. five times the national average!!! that's new school banking. sign up for high yield free checking at a capital one bank. what's in your wallet? somebody help me down.

and welcome back to "reporter's notebook." we're talking about politics again in virginia. democrat tim kaine running for the u.s. senate, proposed to george allen, which he rejected, this idea of releasing the names of super pac committees. >> well, it's an interesting political ploy. we'll see how much yardage kaine gets out of it. he's raised it before. allen will not do that. he's denying it. he's saying look, my opponent gets a lot of money from labor unions, why if i get it from somebody else. of course, we all know who's in labor unions, but it's hard to tell who's in the super pac, although they're not shy of telling who they are in the

presidential race. we generally know who rick santorum's angel is, who newt gingrich's angel is, and we have a general idea who's helping mitt romney. nonetheless, a lot of people are concerned about why these people shouldn't be disclosed. there is legislation in congress to deal with that, but it may not get through in time. >> as little person on the block who would not deal with the super pacs, but this is big money. but little people on the block would be interested in who is actually giving money to certain campaigns, because people have a tendency to align themselves with people. for instance, if corporation "a" is giving millions of dollars to a republican candidate, and i don't necessarily want that republican candidate to win, this does have some political fallout. >> i'm one of these people who i think the supreme court decision that brought this about is a big mistake. what kaine basically told allen, let's just make it simple, no secret money.

>> right. >> and to me, that rings with, i think, the need for transparency for the reasons jerry mentioned. we should know who's contributing to kaine. you see the ads on tv, and most of them have these very simple names. >> sure. >> you know, and they have to -- >> right, fine print. >> that's absolutely right. the other interesting thing is that presidentbama doesn't want super pac money. but now he's forced to take it. >> right. >> he says he has to play the game. they've got to play the game. >> hey, let's move into d.c. we have a couple minutes left. this flurry of subpoenas that went out to elected officials, current and past, too, is this investigation with respect to political corruption broadening and speeding up? >> well, i think it's speeding up, and i think also, we're going to see a summer and a fall of some maybe embarrassing situations when it comes to

political. they're going back to the year 2003. >> 2003, right. >> this goes back to not only adrian fenty, but also back to the williams administration and those persons in the council at that time. so, this is a big investigation. i was talking to what i consider an expert lawyer in this whole area, and he was telling me, he says, listen, when the fbi knocks on your door, they mean business. and the fbi -- we saw what happened in prince george's county -- the fbi is knocking on the door of the man, the money pot. >> we're talking about jeff johnson. >> jeff johnson, yeah. >> the biggest issue is it continues. this story won't go away. >> right. >> every day. the mayor and the council have to get up and they have to confront this and talk to reporters about it, what does it mean, are you involved, is it getting closer? and it takes away from all of the other issues that mayor gray wants to move ahead with, economic issues, social issues, and it just becomes one huge, as, i'm not likening this to

marion barry, but when he had the problems, everyone focused on one thing and all the rest was thrown out. >> there is a word for this, dragnet. i'm not talking about the old tv show. >> the tv show, no. >> this is the typical definition of a dragnet. everybody's going to get into it. so, if you aren't clean, and i've said this before on this program, this is a prosecutor who was trained in detroit, he has seen it all, he worked for a judge named damien keith that's an upstanding, retired federal judge. i would just end by saying you'd better have your ducks in order. >> he means business. >> he means business. >> and we'll be talking about this for days to come. >> for days and months, perhaps. >> we definitely will be. >> gentlemen, thank you. and thank you for joining us on "reporter's notebook." now back to "news4 today." enjoy the rest of your weekend, everybody.

welcome to "news4 today," everyone. i'm angie goff. >> good morning, i'm erika gonzalez. >> and we are going to begin with our weather, because -- >> as well we should. >> as well we should, because that's what people want to know when they're waking up on the weekend. a lot of people have plans, and today not as spectacular as yesterday, is that what you're saying? >> yesterday was pretty far up the list on how pretty can a saturday be. >> right. >> you know? so, today, the bar is now way up here. so, we're going to fall a little short of that bar today, but still an awfully nice day by march standards. and you can make anything out of the reasonable day if you've got the afternoon off, even with the cloud cover still going to be a mild day. temperatures will flirt with 70 degrees once again, but we are off to a very thick and foggy start this morning. the top of the monument just about obscure now in downtown washington. temperatures are in the low 50s.

visibilities are poorest from washington into montgomery county, the inner harbor in baltimore, annapolis, down into southern maryland. all those have visibilities below four miles. so, thick fog first thing this morning. nothing showing up on doppler except for a couple sprinkles out in the mountains of west virginia, and they will not be bothering us today. a foggy start and cloudy finish, but still very mild, highs near 70. so enjoy that. >> all right, we will. >> thank you, chuck. and new this morning, a big day for the occupy wall street movement as they reach a major milestone. this weekend marks six months since the beginning of the protests, but it hasn't been all good news. new york police arrested dozens of protesters after sweeping through zuccotti park yesterday, the birthplace of the occupy movement. earlier in the day, demonstrators gathered at the park before marching through lower manhattan. many protesters say they drew inspiration from the arab spring

uprising. the protests spawned similar demonstrations across the country, including here in d.c. protesters hope the occupy events help bring attention to what they believe is an unfair gap between the rich and the poor. this morning, a man faces drunk driving charges after his car and a tow truck got hit by a train. a viewer sent us pictures from the scene. alexsion got stuck on the tracks in riverdale, maryland. that's where police showed up and called in a tow truck. unfortunately, the train hit both vehicles before the tow truck could pull the car off the tracks. no one was hurt. a woman is recovering this morning after falling from a virginia parking garage. it happened at the ballston commons mall in arlington. police have not released details on how far she fell or her condition. they're still investigating whether she fell off the garage or jumped. we'll continue to bring you updates on this story when more information becomes available.

this morning we're getting more insight into the american soldier accused of going on a shooting rampage and killing 16 afghan villagers. staff sergeant robert bales is in solitary confinement at ft. leavenworth, kansas, as his family tries to come to terms with the allegations. here's nbc's brian mooar. >> reporter: these photos show staff sergeant robert bales, the decorated war veteran, the devoted family man. but those who love him are struggling to reconcile the man they knew with this grisly scene in afghanistan, where bales is accused of killing 16 civilians in a cold-blooded rampage. >> they're suffering a lot. they're confused a lot. everybody's very concerned. they're scratching their heads more than anything else. >> reporter: bales has been transferred to ft. leavenworth, kansas, to await formal charges, but his attorney is already laying the groundwork for his defense. >> he was told he would not be going back to the middle east. he was trained to be a military

recruiter and then overnight he was told he was going back. >> reporter: bales served three tours in iraq, where he suffered a head injury and lost part of a foot. he had only been in afghanistan a few months. >> there was an incident right before these allegations where one of his fellow soldiers was mortally wounded. >> reporter: experts say the insanity defense is rarely used and rarely successful in the military court system. >> i think you would have to assume that that's going to be an uphill battle, just on general principles. >> reporter: staff sergeant robert bales, back on american soil, but far from home. brian mooar, nbc news. >> as bales waits to be charged, his family is living in protective custody on a u.s. base in washington state. and the time right now is 6:37. up next, david gregory, moderator of "meet the press," will join us live in our studio to break down the race for the republican presidential nomination. also ahead, it's one of the

most ambitious developments in recent fairfax county history. why developers say maryville will soon be unlike any other community in the entire country.

it was a wild week on the campaign trail. rick santorum won the alabama and mississippi primaries, but mitt romney, who won in hawaii and american samoa, declared himself tuesday night's big winner. >> that's right. now the scene shifts to puerto rico today and illinois on tuesday. joining us now with more on the race is moderator of "meet the press," david gregory. good morning to you. >> good morning. good to see you. >> good to see you, too. so, 20 delegates up for grabs, but puerto rico is not a state. so talk to us about why all eyes are on puerto rico. >> well, because they still have a winner take all scenario there

in puerto rico, so it's all about the delegate hunt here, and they're leading up, particularly, to tuesday in illinois, which is a much bigger prize, 54 delegates at stake there, and another kind of must-win for romney, where he's got his back up against the wall. it's a midwestern state that favors him a little bit more than some of the more recent contests. this is where he wants to begin to get some of that momentum going back his way after a pretty rough stretch here. >> and it looks like romney has a slight lead over santorum in illinois, but is it more, when we're talking about santorum, is it really more about not so much racking up the delegate count for him, but trying to limit romney's delegate count before he crosses that threshold before the convention? >> i think if you're rick santorum, you want to win as much as you can, even if you're still falling behind on delegates, because you want to keep making the argument that the heart and soul of the party is not with romney. now, he's got a problem in that gingrich is still in the race, and he's dividing up some of

that conservative vote slightly. but santorum needs pure wins, needs momentum as he keeps making the case that he should be the nominee. this is why, again, illinois becomes important, wisconsin important after that. >> go ahead, angie. >> i feel like he's making more of a case than what he recently came out and said -- if i win illinois, i will get the gop nomination. how much do you give him for that? >> well, i mean, just because he says so doesn't make it the case. the problem is, if you're -- for romney to make a case about the delegate math only at this point misses the point that he has yet to really reach the party, the heart and soul of the party. it's something that makes him different, say, than now president obama was in 2008, where he was energizing the base of the party back in 2008. he had taken on, you know, such an important figure in the democratic party in hillary clinton and was winning. and then he could say, look, i'm doing those things and i've got an inside track on the delegate math. so, i think it's a different

proposition where, you know, romney is not really winning heart and soul of the party but is saying, you know, by the numbers, i should win this. >> i've got to ask you, lastly, that, rick santorum facing a lot of controversy because of his remarks on making english the primary language in puerto rico. is that going to hurt him? >> well, you know, i don't think it's going to take on the sort of importance that other comments he's made have, but i think it gets to a fundamental point with him, which is that he's got to find a way to drive primarily an economic message as his one calling card as he moves through these states and not become undisciplined, because i think that tends to sidetrack him. and in states where you have less of his core supporters to make up that gap, it becomes a problem. >> coming up on today's show? >> well, we're going to be focused on the campaign. we've got senator mccain to talk about mitt romney's travails, but we're also going to spend a lot of time talking about afghanistan and the cost on our soldiers of redeployments, where the strategy goes next as we're

learning more about sergeant bales, as you've been talking about this morning. we'll have a special roundtable discussion as well. >> wonderful. and "press pass." >> yeah, well, we'll talk to george clooney. george clooney will be part of the program. >> tune in! >> some guy named george clooney. >> you know, george stops by. >> and the entire interview with clooney, you'll see some of it on the program, but the entirety will be available on "press pass" on the website. we talk about sudan and the week and also politics. he talks about president obama and his re-election prospects. >> and we'll be watching. >> he's something of a draw. >> i know, just a little bit. >> yeah. >> all right, david, thank you. >> thanks so much, david. >> sure. >> and chuck will be back with your weather. >> yeah, no doubt. >> complete check of your sunday forecast after these important messages.

today is gonna be an important day for us. you ready? we wanna be our brother's keeper.

what's number two we wanna do? bring it up to 90 decatherms. how bout ya, joe? let's go ahead and bring it online. attention on site, attention on site. now starting unit nine. some of the world's cleanest gas turbines are now powering some of america's biggest cities. siemens. answers.

and congratulations to all the runners who put mind over matter to finish a major race this weekend. 21,000 people ran in yesterday's suntrust rock and roll marathon. stopping traffic in several neighborhoods along the way, the 26-mile course is the only marathon entirely within d.c. a special congrats to michael wordian of arlington, who finished first with a time of 2 hours, 26 minutes and 35 seconds. good lord! the first-place finisher for the women was meg bishop from blue bell, pennsylvania. she crossed the finish line in 3 hours, 1 minute and 32 seconds. >> true story. >> whoo! >> 2:26. >> i ran a race with michael

wordian and he's really cool. he wears the cool running sleeves. >> oh, really? >> i guess they make you go faster. and i kid you not, it was an 8k and i think i got into a mile of the race and it was one of those where you race and loop back around. >> oh, okay. >> and he was already passing me back this way. >> oh, yeah. >> it was hilarious. >> people, 2 hours and 26 minutes is about -- it's probably just a smidgen under a 5-minute mile time, you know. that is really smoking it. those of us who live in the 7:30 to 7:50-mile timerange look at the 5-minute mile and go -- >> i'm not even going to tell you what i finished my marathon at. it was just brutal. >> i was in the top 1,000 men, i was the 995th man across the line! >> way to go. >> that was at 3:29. so i was pretty happy with that. 2:26. he's not my age, i can tell you that right now. >> well, there's one thing for sure -- >> he's not me!

>> don't sell yourself short. yeah, outside this morning, foggy outside for you on your sunday morning. not a bad day to actually get outside and do a little morning jog, but just be careful out there if you're on some of the darker side streets. a little bit of reduced visibility out in the western suburbs this morning and alongside of the bay as well. so, don't expect quite as pretty of a day as yesterday, but it's still going to be pretty doggone nice by march standards the day after st. patrick's day is off to a mild start. 52 now at national airport. winds are light from the east at only 5 miles per hour, but again, that easterly breeze is going to continue through the rest of the day and tonight, into tomorrow, and that easterly wind, that brings in that cold marine layer off the atlantic. and so, that may start to complicate our forecast a bit. that colder easter wind, east in maryland, 46, cambridge, maryland, 50. patuxent river 52, annapolis 51, but milder across western maryland, hagerstown at 54. culpeper, virginia, 54 this

morning. so, temperatures mostly in the mid-to-upper 50s this morning with the fog around. fog should last through about 9:00 or 10:00 this morning. then we'll be left with a partly sunny to, at times, mostly cloudy afternoon, but still, temperatures more than ten degrees warmer than average. nothing's showing up right around town on the radar, but there are some spritzes and sprinkles now far western maryland, up in the mountains of west virginia. so, we're watching these. i think they stay west of us for today. you folks up into the mountains of west virginia, you have a better chance for a sprinkle or shower today. most of this action, though, i think misses the d.c. area today. and then as we get into monday and tuesday, a little better chance for some hit-and-miss showers coming back into the picture, even in metro washington. so, here we are on our future weather forecast. high pressure off the coast and low pressure down across the outer banks of north carolina. that combines to provide that easterly wind. friends out at the beaches today, that's going to be a very chilly day today. moist onshore winds will gradually increase the moisture in the low levels of the atmosphere, so i think another foggy start tomorrow morning and then shower chances increase a little bit more monday and

tuesday afternoon. so, for your sunday, thick fog this morning leaving us with a partly sunny to mostly cloudy afternoon, a few showers possible, mainly west of i-81 up into the high spots. highs today upper 60s and low 70s. tomorrow, mostly cloudy and a little better chance for some second half of the day rain showers. not everyone's going to get wet today, tomorrow or tuesday. in fact, a lot of people might be missed entirely by this. but nonetheless, some showers chances lingering about. as we get on down the rest of the week, temperatures once again nearing in on 20 degrees above average as we get to thursday. 77 thursday would be plus 20. >> wow. >> so, yeah. you can stay ahead of the forecast calling me on twitter @chuckbell4. and we'll be talking more about the climate and all the craziness. >> thanks, chuck. >> all righty. hundreds are hoping to hit the jackpot when a new casino opens at aanne arundel mills in june. and we're not talking about the gamblers. >> the casino held a job fair

yesterday, looking to fill 900 positions ranging from food service to slot adwraentsd. this casino won't have any live table games, only electronic games. if you're interested in applying for the casino, we've got a link on our website. you can go to nbcwashington.com. that's where you can find it. just search "as seen on nbc 4." people who live in maryfield, virginia, are watching their community transform. construction crews are building new stores, hotels, town homes, and more near the dunn lori metro station. >> reporter: for years, fairfax county's merrifield area has been known for gridlocked intersections and for hundreds of small businesses and industry-style warehouses. >> it's been an ugly duckling, let's put it like that, i'll say it was an older industrial area here in the heart of the county. >> reporter: well, take a look at the merrifield makeover. the county approved a redevelopment plan for a town center back in 2002 to make

better use of a location just blocks from the dunn lori metro. this what has emerged. developer edens has created what they call the mosaic urban district. >> when we started this process ten years ago, we visited 100 different places and we determined we wanted to create a place that was unlike any other in the country. and to do that, we needed a merchandise mix that reflected that vision. >> reporter: under construction, a hotel and office space, a shopping area that will eventually have as many as 100 stores and restaurants. already on board there, target, a nhemen's studio concept store and anthropology. the angelica theater will bring arthouse movie fare, and new town homes on the site are selling fast. developers say it will not be a mini tyson's. >> having uses here that are geared towards an experience that's really an exhale from the tyson's experience in that they're more intimate, they're

local, they're artisinal, so elevating the experience became part of the dna of what we were trying to create. >> reporter: and it won't be much longer before some of these buildings are completed. the theater opened in september. the target up here on the fourth floor slated to open in october. a few blocks away, more construction. at the dunn lori metro, a partnership between the developers will bring in 628 high-end departments, a harris teeter grocery and a new metro parking garage. more metro units are popping up along gallows road. improvements to it and lee highway will also be completed soon to end the traffic jams. in merrifield, virginia, julie carey, news4. >> the project at the metro is scheduled to be finished by the end of the year. president obama celebrated st. patrick's day by enjoying a pint at union station. >> he did raise a glass, but he was also spotted down in

colombia. that's because the country was holding an obama look-alike contest. i love it! the 18 contestants -- hello, mr. president. hello, mr. president, again! stepped out of a vehicle and gave their best presidential wave to the crowd. the winner, carlos bettes, says his co-workers pushed him to enter the contest. he hopes to meet the real president obama next month when the president visits colombia for the summit of the americas. he actually does favor him quite a bit. >> yeah, you know? i can see it. >> you don't think so? >> it's a look. >> i would say michelle obama competition as well. that would be nice. >> absolutely. >> the first lady. >> the first lady. >> see if anybody else has guns jim wilson? here is the chase freedom 5% cash back you get on amazon.com purchases. wow! and your kindle fire. thank you. do you have any bubble wrap? activate your 5% cash back at chase.com/freedom

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available in an automobile. [ tires screeching ] the all-new 2013 lexus gs. there's no going back. good morning, everyone. i'm angie goff. >> and i'm erika gonzalez. welcome to "news4 today" on this sunday, march 18th. and here's a look at your top stories. in just a few hours, puerto rico will open its polls for their republican primary. rick santorum and mitt romney spent a few days campaigning in the country, which has 20 delegates up for grabs. despite having a primary, voters in puerto rico can't vote in the november election. police in riverdale, maryland, say a drunk driver caused a train accident. a viewer sent us pictures from the scene.

a lexus got stuck on the tracks. the train hit the car and a tow truck before crews could get the car off the tracks. thankfully, no one was hurt. and despite the calendar saying mid-march, the cherry blossoms are already starting to bloom. residents and tourists alike enjoyed the beautiful weather on st. patrick's day. the cherry blossom festival starts on tuesday with peak bloom happening just a few days later. and with that, chuck bell? >> yes? now, there's one record we somehow managed to not break, which was the earliest peak of the cherry blossoms, march 15th of 1990 was the earliest peak. and so, here we are on the 18th of march and they're still not quite there, so we missed that one. >> did they have temperatures in the 70s like we have now? >> four record highs in the 80s the week leading into march 15th. >> that's why. >> yeah, so that's why the blossoms were just cooked right out of the branches. outside this morning, a foggy start, indeed, very low cloud ceilings here in the washington area. temperatures generally in the

low 50s in nearly every neighborhood. visibilities down to five miles at national airport, a mile and a half at andrews air force base and below a mile for gaithersburg, baltimore and annapolis. so, locally thick fog. nothing showing up on radar close to us other than a few fading showers out in the mountains of west virginia. the steadier rain in southwestern virginia stays away from us today. so, foggy to start and then we'll have a mix of clouds and sunshine, but it will be mild again with temperatures near 70. short sleeves and short pants, no doubt about it. >> and if you're out and about enjoying the cherry blossoms, that cloud cover's going to offer some nice lighting for pictures, right? >> i couldn't agree more. >> all right, thanks. >> thanks, chuck. all right, well, next is nbc 4's "viewpoint." >> and we'll be back in a few minutes with another news update. good morning, i'm aaron gilchrist and welcome to "viewpoint." you know, there is a community in the washington area that is large and diverse and has a unique set of issues. we're talking about the asian american community. and fortunately today, we have two organizations here with us

to help us better understand that community and how they, those organizations, serve that community. with us this morning are three women who are from two organizations. first, farthest from me is anovia lei with the asian pacific region resource center and next to me, rosetta lei, no relation? >> no. >> the executive director of asian american lead and sergia alawia also. thank you for joining us this morning. help us to learn more about your organizatio organizations. i know the legal resource center has been around since 1998. tell us what it is you do. >> we've been around since 1998, and one of the reasons we came about was that at the time, the asian american law students and lawyers in the d.c. area realized that while asians were not accessing legal services, what's the problem? so they figured maybe it's a language or cultural problem. so, they rounded up all the

folks in the area and set up two phones and have people sign up for shifts and people can call at the designated number and time and then start doing intakes and referral so that people can access the legal system. we still use the phone system, but not in that very primitive way. so, we actually have two offices, one in d.c. and one in wheaton, and we serve low-income asian immigrants with fairly limited english proficiency, making it difficult for them to access the legal system or government services. so, that's what we do, offer the services to advance the legal rights of asian americans in the area. >> and you have a staff now, but you also use volunteers. >> yes. >> and we can talk more about that in terms of the program's need for volunteers. ladies, tell us what lead does. your focus is on young people. >> right. >> rosetta? >> sure. we have been incorporated as a non-profit since 1998, but our work preceded that. it started with the influx of

the vietnamese refugees who came to this country in large numbers in the late 1970s. and what they have is that they clustered around what is now the columbia heights area. and the founder of this organization is a refugee herself, and so she kind of made public the plight of these immigrants. and with very limited resources. and as we grew, we focus on youth because we felt that when you work with the youth, you really touch generations of people of generations to come. and what we try to do is work with the youth as they develop, and in terms of specific programs. but what we try to do is also dispel the myth of the model minority. >> the myth of the model minority. >> correct. >> all right, define that for us. what does that mean? >> the myth is that, generally,

it is very easy and simplistic to describe all asian americans with one broad brush, to say that asian americans are studious, are hard-working, they are math kids, they are successful, they make lots of money, which is true with a segment of our population, but it really makes the complexity and the people that need help and the diversity among asian americans invisible, especially the southeast immigrants that came from war-torn countries. >> let's talk a little bit more about that diversity. we know that the asian american population in this area is significant. virginia ranks number nine in terms of asian american population in the country. maryland is 12th, the 12th largest population. talk a little bit about how diverse that population is. it's not just -- you know, we think, you hear asian american, you think korea, japan, china, but really, it covers folks who come from such a huge portion of

the world. >> right. in the united states, there are 17 million asian americans, so it's 6% of the entire country's population. so, we've grown like 46%. that makes us the fastest growing population. a third of those people are in california. but in virginia, there are more than 500,000 asian americans. in maryland, almost 400,000. and d.c. is a little smaller but still 4% of the district's population. so, in terms of in the metro d.c. area, a lot of the asian americans are in northern virginia, like fairfax county and that area. and in maryland, half of the state's population is in montgomery county, and d.c. is in d.c. >> right. you talked about language being a barrier a lot of times for folks who fall into this community. what are some of the issues? what are some of the big problems that is facing the asian american community in this region? >> language is the major issue because as we were talking earlier, that 20% to 30% of adults don't speak english. so, even higher earning people

don't have the language capacity. so, for the young people, they are serving as translators often, so they are dealing with their own issues, trying to be in between two cultures, trying to be american and speak english and then go home and be part of their home country. and so, there's a lot of pressure on the kids to be able to figure out how they identify and on the adults who are not able to access a range of services that most of us just take for granted every day that we can access without an issue. >> and obviously, with asian american lead, you've identified some academic sort of things that you think your young people need help with. explain what need you found out there that brought you into existence. >> sure. it's that asians are highly regarded or favored sometimes in schools because of the whole myth again that asians excel in school. but imagine yourself in a home where your parents are

illiterate, especially in the language area, that your parents are doing medial jobs and multiple jobs and you don't have parental guidance or support. you go to school, you get bullied, you get made fun of, and then the teacher have high expectations on you that you know you cannot meet. >> right. >> so, we provide a community of adults, a community of supporters that listen to them. >> that sort of helps to guide young people in the direction they need to go in. >> right. >> we're going it take a quick break here. we need to get a quick break in, but grab a pen. we'll show you websites where you can access more information about these organizations. when we come back, we'll talk about some of the programs that you can find with these two groups. stick around.

welcome back to "viewpoint." this morning we're talking with two asian american organizations in our area, aa lead and the asian pacific american legal resource center. ladies, let's start with aa lead and talk about some of the

programs that you offer. i know that you've identified four key factors that help you help young people find success. >> that's right. >> talk to us about those. >> that's right. so, we target four key success factors that we really have identified to be important in helping young people to develop. first is academic attainment. so, as we discussed, education can be a priority for many of our families, but for some, it isn't, and our kids need extra help with that. the second is positive self-identity. i think this is where we really excel because we have a lot of kids who are struggling with feeling comfortable with where they came from and where that fits in the american mosaic. the third area is responsible behavior. we really focus on helping kids to make responsible decisions. and the last is civic engagements. and actually, this year we're doing an expanded focus on that. we want our kids to know that as americans, they have rights and responsibilities to get involved, and many of our kids are coming from countries that are not democracies, and we want them to feel that responsibility and that right. >> so, you've got two branches

to what you do. you have a mentoring element and an after-school mentoring element. talk to us about each of those and how you use those two to help the kids. >> great. so, we have an after-school program that is k-12. it's in different segments, of course. we have an elementary school program, a middle school program, a high school program in d.c. and in montgomery county. we serve 300 students across those programs. and that program is focused on those four key success factors. we do cooking exercises, we do service learning, we do a range of activities. the mentoring program is 50 of our kids have mentors, 50 of the 300, and that is matching with an adult who will spend time and help guide them as a role model, take them out for new experiences. so, we recruit those mentors, we train them, we match them, we screen them and figure out, you know, who would be a good fit for each of our kids. >> so, it sounds like we think about the big brothers and big sisters type program. >> yes, it's a very similar program. >> but why, then, does a program

like yours need to exist? i would imagine there's some cultural things that, obviously, you can be more sensitive to than maybe an organization like that. is that what it is? >> that's right. i think generally, mentors that express interest in working with us, they want to be mentors to asian kids because they've had similar experiences and they want to be able to help a young person figure out these identity issues, deal with the model minority myth, figure out how they can be american and still be chinese, still be indian, still be wherever they're from. and so, many of our mentors are looking for that, and our students as well are looking for that match, especially many of our parents don't speak english, so often we have mentors. we have a chinese student, we're trying to match them with somebody who speaks chinese so that there is that cultural bridge and that the parents understand what the mentoring relationship is about. >> that's phenomenal. zenovia, your group obviously provides legal services. talk a little bit about what people -- what needs people can come to you with that you can address for them? >> sure, our clients are

low-income people who can't afford to hire a lawyer, but they have legal problems, too. so, i think as of last year, i would say a quarter of our cases involve immigration because these are immigrant communities and immigration is always on top of their needs. and another is family law issue. it could be divorces, it could be child custody, it could be support and all that stuff. and a lot of times, you also work with victims of domestic violence, so they have complicated legal issues that cross all the different areas. but we also have people who have employment issues or accessing health care or housing. so, it's a whole slew of legal problems that anyone could face, except that, you know, they can't afford a lawyer, can't understand what's going on, so they need to have someone to be the link between the cultural bridge to connect them with the legal system. because a lot of times, people may get a rent increase notice. like, okay, either they pay it and continue to live there, or if they cannot afford to pay it, they just leave. and they never realize that they actually have a right to kind of challenge the rent increase, especially in the d.c. area. so, those are the direct service

pieces we see a lot. >> and the other element that you all look at is advocacy. you want to be a voice for the asian american community. >> sure. we want to work with the community to be, you know, the supporting voice for them. one of the examples that i can point to is d.c. has a language access law, which is pretty, you know -- it's not a common thing for the district, other districts to have. so, we actually led a coalition to lead to the passage of that law, and aa lead was actually part of the coalition. so, that was passed in 2004, and we still play a pretty important monitoring role to make sure that the law is good on paper, that it's actually good in practice as well. so, that's one example of our advocacy work. >> all right, and i know you all have a need for volunteers. i want to talk about that and also some events you have coming up in the near future for both of your organizations. we're going to take another quick break here. again, if you'd like more information about either of these organizations, you can go to the websites you see on your screen or call the help line if

you find yourself needing help from the legal resource center. we'll have much more on "viewpoint" in just a moment. every time a local business opens its doors or creates another laptop bag or hires another employee, it's not just good for business, it's good for the entire community. at bank of america, we know the impact that local businesses have on communities. that's why we extended $6.4 billion in new credit

to small businesses across the country last year. because the more we help them, the more we help make opportunity possible. good morning. i'm angie goff. here are some of the stories we're following right now. in just a few hours, puerto rico will open its polls for the republican primary. rick santorum and mitt romney spent a few days campaigning in the country, which has 20 delegates up for grabs. despite having a primary, voters in puerto rico cannot vote in the november election. police in riverdale, maryland, say a drunk driver caused a train accident. a viewer sent us pictures from the scene. a lexus got stuck on the tracks. the train hit the car and a tow truck before crews could get the car off the tracks. no one was hurt. and despite the calendar saying mid-march, the cherry blossoms are already starting to bloom. residents and tourists alike

enjoyed the beautiful weather on st. patrick's day. the cherry blossom festival starts on tuesday with peak bloom happening just a few days later. we're going to have more news, plus your sunday forecast in about 15 minutes, but for now, back to "viewpoint." and welcome back to "viewpoint" as we continue our conversation with asian american lead and the asian pacific american legal resource center. ladies, again, thank you for being here. we know that we live in tough times financially, and there are a lot of non-profit organizations that are trying to figure out how to make things work, how to continue to do the important work that's out there, and your organizations are no different. you're having to be creative in how you do what you do, right? >> right, exactly. and i think you hit it right on the dot. it's that because we believe in what we do, we are committed, but yet, the reality is that we have to have a budget that can support our programs. so, ever since 2008, when the financial crisis hit all over

the united states and the non-profit sector in particular, we have been exploring different models to work together. so, we actually collaborate a great deal, we share resources, like aa lead in montgomery county, we share office space with zenovia's organization. >> okay. >> we try to recruit more volunteers. we try to branch out and cover a lot of activities, so there's a lot of job-sharing. like for example, they would take care of human resources, i spend a lot of time going out meeting new donors and just drumming financial support to tackle both the short-term and the long-term financial sustainability of our organization. >> and i know, zenovia, for you, there's also a manpower element involved. >> yes. >> and woman, for that matter. but you have a need for lawyers. you often turn to universities for that? >> absolutely. actually, like currently, we

have probably 30 volunteers are law students, lawyers or paralegals, aspiring law students, have language skills. they come in three times a week to help us with the help line so that people leave messages and they call people back, you know, so we can have the access point. some of them help us with community education. so, that's one piece. and we also have a legal interpreter project. we actually train bi-lingual people to be an interpreter in a legal setting. we pay them a little. so, it's part volunteer, but without them, we could not have been able to serve. our clients speak like 14 different languages. i speak one and english. so, it's really a problem if we don't have that linguistic capacity, so volunteers help us a great deal. last year, we provided legal assistance in 364 cases with two lawyers. >> wow! that is no small task, i would imagine. to see a case from beginning to end and to give somebody legal advice that is going to be useful to them to get to whatever end result they need to get to has got to take a great

deal of work. >> exactly. so, the volunteers really help us a lot in terms of, you know, language support and also helping with legal research, talking with the clients, investigating the facts. so, all those really make it possible for us to provide the service that we provide. and the need is going to continue. i mean, as you mentioned earlier, the economy hurt everybody. >> right. >> including asian americans, too. so, we are actually seeing a huge demand for our service. so, we count on the volunteers in the area to help us. >> and suji, for your organization, if somebody is watching this and thinking, hmm, maybe that's a group i'd like to volunteer with, what do they need to know? what are you looking for from volunteers? >> yeah, so, we also rely on volunteers to accomplish our work. so, we need volunteers in two primary areas, the after-school program and the mentoring program. in the after-school program, we do have paid teachers that work with our kids, but we need to supplement that. and so, we are looking for program aides who can volunteer one day a week, two days a week, five days a week, to help in our programs. you can bring your talents and your skill sets.

if you like dance, you can teach a dance session. if you like yoga, you can lead a session, several sessions around yoga. we also are looking for mentors, as i talked about earlier. the mentoring relationship is a one-on-one, year-long relationship, and we are looking for people who can commit to a child for at least six hours a month. so, it's really an investment of your time, but -- >> now, some people are afraid of commitment, but it's probably not as intense as it sounds. a lot of times, it means, you know, have lunch, have a conversation. >> yes, exactly. >> just share stories, right? >> just being available, being able to talk to them on the phone, message them on facebook when something is going wrong, being able to take them out once or twice a month as you can. so, the commitment is important, but it isn't overwhelming. and so, for that reason, that relationship isn't for everyone. we want mentors who really can follow through with that, but there are shorter-term opportunities, the after-school program, as i mentioned, being able to do one day a week for six weeks, for a couple of weeks. we need those volunteers, too. >> i know that as someone who's

worked with non-profit organizations, anybody who might be inclined to write a check is not a bad person, right? so -- >> exactly. >> we'll put up some information as we take a quick break here. we want to come back and talk about some of the events coming up in the near future for both of these organizations that they're looking for folks to be a part of. so, here again, the websites for [ male announcer ] for the dreamers...

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solutions to help businesses like yours accelerate receivables, manage payments, and help ensure access to credit. because we know how important cash flow is to reaching your goals. pnc bank. for the achiever in you. welcome back to "viewpoint." the asian american lead or the youth organization has your annual dinner coming up next week, actually, and i know that our own eun yang is going to be participating in that event, delivering the keynote. tell us about that event. >> yes, and i'm so excited. you mentioned this event because this is going to be our 13th annual dinner, and it has been growing bigger and more fun every year as we do it. and of course, as you mentioned, this year we are very fortunate to have eun yang from nbc becoming our keynote speaker.

and we always attract very interesting and inspiring people to either keynote the event or become an emcee. so, our emcee this year is becky lee from the survivors tv program. >> yes, celebrity there. >> and because our students and in the community at large, look at this as role models. and just to show how asian americans are broadening out to all professions. the annual dinner is our key annual gala and fund-raising event. we attract about 350 people. this year it's going to be at the civic center in downtown silver spring. and we expect leaders from the community in government, in education, in the private sector to come. and this year, we are honoring the law firm of lathum & watkins. every year, we give out a leadership award and this year we want to give it to a firm who's been with aa lead from the

start, helping us with legal services and just being a terrific corporate partner. >> spectacular. a dinner, right? >> right. >> entertainment, too. tickets still available for that? >> yes, yes. >> so folks can still get in on that event. and zenovia, your annual event is in may. >> yes, may 22nd at the arts club of washington. this is our 14th anniversary. so, we attract fewer people than aa lead, about 100. so a lot of the participants, attendees, are lawyers, law students and community partners in the area. we also will be honoring a pro bono leader. we haven't finalized our selection yet. we will have a keynote speaker. last year we had chris lu, the cabinet secretary of the white house, to be our speaker. we also want the keynote speaker to be inspiring, to engage people, and a little bit of guilt-tripping, to urge the lawyers in private practice to take up responsibility to support legal services, even

though they may not have the time to it. if they can open their wallet a little bit, that would be always welcome. so, that's also our major fund-raising event for the year, so we put a lot of effort in making sure that it's a success. >> wonderful. we are actually just about out of time for today, but are there any nuggets, any last thoughts you want people to be able to take with them moving forward as they consider your organizations and maybe working with you? what do they need to know about you and about the asian community in general in the d.c. region? >> well, i would just say that the myth of asian americans being successful and well off but not engaging in the community, that is very much a myth and is fast changing. in my work, especially in the fund-raising area, i found asian americans to be very generous, but usually, they express their generosity in just attending the immediate needs of the family, but now i'm seeing that change as well, that asians do support organizations like ours. and i hope that within our

lifetime we will see asians also excel in whole area philanthropy. >> wonderful. >> i actually want to follow up on that point. it is definitely growing asian americans in philanthropy and we are excited to see that. and we could not have been able to do our work without the support of our community and the broader community. in any way, money, manpower, as you say, womanpower. it's all important for our success and continuing to provide a service that we need to provide. >> well, thank you all for being here and for sharing about your organizations and for sharing your messages today. rosetta lei from the asian american lead, also suji alawalia from the same organization and zenovia lei from the asian american resource center. thank you for being here today. >> thank you, aaron. >> that is this edition of "viewpoint." stick around. "news4 today" continues in just a moment.

good morning, everyone. i'm erika gonzalez. >> and i'm angie goff. right now we want to begin with a look at weather, because this morning, it's a little cold out there. i know that you keep saying it's not cold -- >> it's a little cooler. >> it's cooler. >> cooler. >> i don't know. but you know, for people like me, they get in the mindset, i don't need a jacket or a sweater. not a bad idea to bring something, right? a sweater? >> and i'm the one from texas? come on. >> i know, seriously. it's cool, i suppose, by comparison. it was 75 yesterday afternoon. it's cooler than that. >> well, it was 50 when we got in here early, so. >> i know. it's warmed up a little bit now. very thick fog in a few spots, including right around the downtown washington area. live picture here from our city camera view peering over the river and across the basin to the famed cherry trees this morning. they're not quite at full peak just yet, but boy, they are racing their way to peak blossom time. my guess is that either tomorrow or tuesday will be the official beginning of peak blossoming.

meanwhile, temperatures are anything but cold this morning. upper 40s in just one or two spots. most everybody in the 50s. fog is a bit of a problem. hagerstown under two miles visibility, half-mile now at andrews air force base. you can see there on radar not much going on around here. a few sprinkles in the mountains of west virginia. they should stay away from us today, even though showers in southwestern virginia stay away from us today. so, plenty of fog this morning leading to some clouds this afternoon, in and out, so not quite as bright and beautiful and sunny and warm as yesterday, but still flirting with 70 degrees today. nothing wrong with that. and wait until you see the seven-day forecast. you know, get ready for june, everybody. >> 7s across the board, right? >> it's all 7s. >> chuck gets a raise. >> absolutely. absolutely. >> all right. thank you, chuck. >> all right. well, it appears old man winter obviously didn't stay long in our area, as spring seems to be here already. >> that's right. this early warm-up means that the cherry blossoms are already blooming, as chuck mentioned. so, you can enjoy the sights

before the festival starts on tuesday. news4's darcy spencer has the story. >> reporter: here it is, mid-march, and already, the cherry blossoms on the tidal basin are starting to bloom. >> we came in, actually, for a conference, and we decided to come in to the city for the evening, and we've just been enjoying the cherry blossoms and the different monuments and everything. >> reporter: locals and tourists are taking in the beauty of the blooms, and there's more to come. they're not even at peak yet. is that a good thing, though, that they're out? >> oh, it's great! it's great. i mean, i would like to see some snow in the winter, but the fact that they're out early is wonderful, yeah. i'm loving it. >> reporter: the snow? well, that's not likely to happen, but the cherry blossoms, the national park service predicts they'll begin their peak on tuesday, thanks to that warm winter. >> it's been really great to walk around and just kind of see the trees and see them bloom. >> reporter: earlier in the day, the tidal basin was swarming with thousands of people getting a sneak preview of what's to come. >> it is a surprise that everything has bloomed so early. it's beautiful. >> i decided to bring all the kids with me, and we are all

very happy to see the cherry blossoms. >> reporter: some actually prefer this nighttime view and the moment it creates. >> it's a romantic time. >> reporter: and we're intruding upon that. >> that's okay. it's for lovers. >> reporter: d.c. is for lovers. >> yes, it is, absolutely. this is the place to be when you're a romantic. >> reporter: all right, thank you. >> and it's a cheap date, guys! [ laughter ] >> reporter: starting today, a new shuttle service is going to be offered between haynes point and the jefferson memorial. it's only going to cost you a buck. also, two new capitol bike share stations are going to be added, all in an effort to make it easier to come here and check out the cherry blossoms. at the tidal basin, darcy spencer, "news4 today." this morning, many spots are cleaning up from st. patrick's day celebrations. ♪ p.j. clark set the irish tone with bagpipes outside the famed

downtown d.c. bar. inside, the day kicked off with kegs and eggs on the brunch menu as well as corned beef and cabbage later. and it would not be a st. patrick's day without a parade. people lined the streets in gaithersburg to see dancers, clowns and bagpipe bands. the city also hosted an after party at the nearby lakefront plaza. president obama celebrated his irish heritage with crowds in d.c. he and his motorcade stopped at the dubliner irish pub near union station, and he even raised a glass and had a beer. a distant cousin from ireland joined the president, one of president obama's great, great, great grandfathers emigrated from ireland in 1850. all right, and now to "decision 2012," where in just a few hours, puerto rico will open their polls. the tiny island's primary offers 20 delegates to the republican candidates, and despite

participating in this primary, the people of puerto rico cannot vote in the november general election. the country does have a referendum on their ballot in november asking voters if they want to become a state. congress would have to approve the request, if it passes. >> that's enough out of you. that's enough! >> in missouri, ron paul supporters clashed with voters at a caucus event. yesterday's vote simply paired down the number of possible caucus members. missouri has a state convention in june, and that's when delegates will select their candidate. rick santorum won a nonbinding primary in the show me state last month. two days before the illinois primary, mitt romney picked up a huge endorsement from the state's largest newspaper. "the chicago tribune" endorsed the former massachusetts governor, saying he's the best choice for the republican nomination. the paper says romney is most likely to help return the gop back towards its traditional

values of financial responsibility and limited government. illinois's primary has 54 delegates up for grabs. meanwhile, rick santorum says a win in illinois means he'll be on his way to the nomination. the former pennsylvania senator made this declaration yesterday while stumping for votes in the land of lincoln. santorum says that while chicago will mostly support mitt romney, he has the support of the more rural areas of the state. he added that romney and president obama are so similar, he feels like he's already participating in the general election. alexandria police say the number of tickets issued by red light cameras is disturbing. officers told wtop that they've mailed nearly 9,400 tickets in less than a year. at $50 apiece, that amounts to $234,000 in fines. alexandria installed them at three intersections last july, including duke and walker

streets, gibbon and south patrick streets. here's a reason to hit brakes more often when you drive in d.c. according to trapster.com, the district ranks fifth in the country with the most speed traps and red light cameras. the website lets users report police activity. the d.c. area has about 350 traffic enforcement cameras, and according to poi factory, a website that tracks the cameras, new york city ranked first for the most number of speed traps in the country. well, the time right now is 7:38. a lesson in poetry lands one fairfax county english teacher in trouble. what led school administrators to investigate that lesson when we return. and they played the role of cinderella last year. did the clock strike midnight for vcu a little earlier this year? highlights from their march madness matchup with indiana, when we re

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new this morning, the u.s. embassy in yemen says it's investigating reports that an american teacher has been killed. a senior yemeni official said two gunmen on a motorcycle shot

the language instructor early this morning in the capital city of tayez. a violent uprising started in yemen about a year ago against longtime lead yer abdullah sale. this month marks six months since the beginning of the occupy wall street protests, but they were broken up in zucchetto park. it started peacefully with folks gathering for a march through lower manhattan, but that night, hundreds of protesters returned. police arrested dozens after sweeping through zuccotti park last night. they cleared out sleeping bags and tents with many people that were led away in handcuffs. this morning, a man faces drunk driving charges after his car and a tow truck got hit by a train. you can see the aftermath of these pictures sent in from a viewer. a lexus got stuck on the tracks in riverdale, maryland. police showed up and called in a tow truck.

unfortunately, the train hit both vehicles before the tow truck could pull the car off the tracks. no one was hurt. a woman is recovering this morning after falling from a virginia parking garage. it happened at the boston commons mall in arlington. police have still not released any details on how far she fell or her condition. they're still investigating whether she actually fell off the garage or she jumped. the "today" show is next on nbc 4. the show starts at 8:00. >> that's right. let's get a preview. lester holt joins us live from new york. good morning, lester. >> good morning, angie and erika. coming up on "today," springing out of winter. over 50 cities across the country will see record-breaking temperatures today. with spring still two days away, how long will this unseasonably warm weather last? then, frightening moments during a soccer game in london. a popular player suddenly collapses during a televised game as fans look on. we'll head over to londo for more on that story. plus, shark attack. surfers in a popular florida beach are bitten back to back to back. is it safe to still swim in the

water? we'll find out. and joan and melissa rivers. i talk with the mother-daughter showbiz duo about their reality show, plastic surgery, and which of them wants to get a tattoo. those stories and much more when jenna and i see you later on "today." right now, we'll send it back to you in washington. >> my money is on joan, lester. >> your money is smart. >> all right, thank you. >> okay. and we heard lester mention the record-setting temperatures that we're seeing across the nation. he mentioned, will they stay, will they go? in washington, what's the case? i know there's no record-breakers here, but close. >> we broke one record last week on thursday, made 82. that beat the old record by one. today not even going to be close to the records. but nonetheless, that doesn't mean it's going to be cold now. >> but the cold's not coming back, right? >> oh, let's -- >> good-bye. >> how can i talk about cold in march after we didn't even have a winter? your sunday forecast is next. look! here she comes!

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chuck's wondering if his tie's straight. let us know. >> yeah, well, i mean, i don't want to come back from commercial and be caught, you know, looking at myself in the mirror, you know, yikes! >> we just care if you get the weather right. >> i figured it was on the down low on the commercial break, but

i didn't know i was going to be ratted out! >> well, we're all family, right? >> absolutely right. >> you have had it easy this week. mother nature has taken the work for you. you've got, you know, just 70s across the board. >> the hardest thing i had to do this week was to run in 80-degree weather! >> don't feel bad. don't feel bad. >> it was harder than i thought it was going to be. hydration is key. and we haven't been that warm in a long time, so you know, you've got to get used to the warm weather. and when we spring 80 degrees on you in march, it takes a little time for the body to acclimate, especially as you get a little older. outside we go on your sunday morning. foggy and not too bad outside this morning. temperatures are well above average. our average low temperature now would be 37 degrees, and we're way above that. we're plus 16 on the low temperature category this morning. we're at 53 now at national airport. plenty of low clouds and fog across the area first thing this morning, and that's going to be a bit of an issue to burn through here over the next couple of hours. after we get about past 9:00, 10:00 this morning, most of the

fog layer should burn away quickly. there are the cherry trees beside the potomac river. good-looking day outside today, but the fog in the morning and i think a lot more clouds this afternoon than yesterday afternoon. so not quite as warm as a result. but uniformly now, we're in the low 50s across most of the area. we'll climb into the mid and upper 50s by 10:00, mid and upper 60s for the middle of the afternoon hours and then back into the mid-60s by 6:00 p.m. as far as the cherry blossoms, they are peaking noticeably earlier than last year. the forecast still from the park service is from the 20th to the 23rd will be the best blooming, and i think that's right on the money. might be able to start on may 19th. but the trick is, peak is as high as 70% or more of the bless yomz actu blossoms on bloom and on average, the blooming period is lucky to last seven to ten days, and our mild stretch of weather may not help the blossoms that much. clear skies, or clear on the radar, anyway, and the nearest rain drops to us, a few sprinkles now in the mountains of west virginia. steadier rain showers down in southwestern virginia, but high

pressure's in charge of our weather and high pressure's sitting right off the eastern seaboard. we'll slow the progression of those rain drops. so, i think most of us are going to be rain-free today. tomorrow, a little better chance of a few scattered showers coming in, an influence as that high pressure moves away. a little area of low pressure off the coast, so that easterly fetch will keep the clouds around. maybe another foggy start in the morning. and again, with that onshore flow of moisture, shower chances slowly increasing, though no washouts in the immediate future. so, this morning, thick fog around to get your day started, then a mix of clouds and sunshine later on. chance of a few showers, mainly west of i-81 today. and then for your back to work day tomorrow, mostly cloudy, better chances of a few late afternoon showers tomorrow, but again, still only a 30% chance. so, no blossom-busting gully-washers or anything like that. and then super warm all the way through the rest of the week, flirting with 80 degrees again by wednesday, thursday, friday time frame. stay ahead of the weather by

following me on twitte twitter, @chuckbell4. and of course, we're all tweeting ourselves. >> staying connected. >> tweet about this tie situation thing. >> it looks great. looks great. thank you, chuck. fairfax county schools are investigating claims of a racial incident from the only black student in a high school english class. a 14-year-old at george c. marshall high school said he was reading a langston hughes poem when his teacher interrupted and asked him to read it blacker. when he refused to continue, the teacher read it herself. the student's teacher complained to administrators. a shooting at a d.c. ihop led organizers to hold a rally. tuesday's march is also in support of a gay man and transgender woman who were also victims of hate crimes. organizers say money raised at the rally will help pay for hospital bills. with this difficult economy,

hundreds are hoping to get lucky when it comes to finding a job. yesterday, hundreds came out to hanover for a job fair for the new arundel mills casino. they're looking to fill more than 900 positions, ranging from 2350d service to slot attendants. the casino won't have any live table games, only electronic ones. but if you're interested in applying for the casino, we've got a link on our website. it's nbcwashington.com. just search "as seen on nbc 4." vcu's final four dreams, they have been dashed. hakeem dermish has highlights from their matchup with indiana in this morning's sports. >> good morning, everyone. if you thought the rex grossman era was over in washington, not so fast. rex has reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with the redskins. the veteran quarterback threw 16 touchdowns and 20 interceptions last season. this season, redskins nation would probably like to see rex just holding a clipboard. turning now to the big

dance, georgetown is trying to earn a spot in the sweet 16 for the first time since 2007. standing in the hoyas' way, nc state. dan hellie explains the wolfpack's game plan from columbus. >> reporter: with belmont in the books, georgetown now focuses on north carolina state, a team playing in the ncaa tournament for the first time since 2006, and the game plan for the guys is simple -- speed up the game to counteract georgetown's methodical offensive approach. >> you can't get frustrated. sometimes when you get beat on the backdoor cuts, you feel like you've given up ten points, but it's still two points, like everything else. that's what they do, they do it well. >> very frustrating playing them because they're the type of team that doesn't want to score 80, 90 points. they don't want to get up and down the floor. they play slow. >> i think we can play both ways. a lot of teams would like to speed us up, but we can play in the fast break game and slow it down in the half court. >> we can play at any pace. we've had success at any pace.

not once have i said to this team, at least, we're trying to slow it down. and so, fast, slow, it doesn't matter. >> reporter: john thompson iii and his guys business-like as usual. the last time they met nc state was last season, a game they won easily. 12:15 tip tomorrow, nc state and georgetown, the winner advances to the sweet 16. from columbus, ohio, dan hellie, news4 sports. >> georgetown and nc state today at 12:15. in portland, oregon, vcu playing for a spot in the sweet 16, taking on four-seed indiana. victor oladipo strong to the bucket, throwing it down. vcu was up one at the break. second half, rob brandenburg drives, his shot no good, but gentleman yo javonte reddick tips it in. rams up by nine, but they would go cold. under a minute to go, indiana within three. oladipo drives the layup and the foul. game tied at 61-61 after the

free throw. 20 seconds to go, same score. oladipo drives, shot is blocked, right to will sheehy. buries the jumper, part of a 15-4 run. last chance for vcu. rob brandenburg for the win. mm-mmm. indiana edges vcu 63-61. the hoosiers will play number one overall seed kentucky in the sweet 16. the wildcats' only loss in the regular season was to the hoosiers. all right, in louisville, kentucky, number three seed marquette taking on six seed murray state. the racers only lost one game this season. second half. marquette's vander blue for the layup. racers going the other way. isaiah cannon, check it out, circus shot, good. #awesome. murray state up three. later, marquette down one. inside to davonte gardner. he scored six straight points for the golden eagles and marquette takes the lead.

then jake crowder, big east player of the year, knocks down the three. he finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds. crowder's dad, corey, didn't get to see the game in person because his flight was canceled. well, he can start packing for phoenix because marquette beats murray state 62-53, earning a spot in the sweet 16. the women's ncaa tournament tipped off saturday morning, and while number two seed maryland is feeling the comforts of playing at home, the goal is to get out of dodge. to accomplish that, the terps would have to win at least two games, their first yesterday against 15th seed navy. midshipmen making the short trip from annapolis to college park, first ever meeting between navy and maryland. first half, terps up six. acc player of the year, alyssa thomas, drives, goes up and under. she only had five points in the first half, but she turned it on in the second. maryland up 15. off the navy miss, terps in transition. thomas out front. she finished with a game-high 17 points, 10 rebounds.

she also scored her 1,000th career point. later, lauren mincey goes to work, drives, spin move, bucket and the foul. she added 14 points. maryland defeats navy 59-44. as for alyssa thomas, a friend said she was too amped up, so the coach challenged her at halftime. >> what is great about coaching alyssa is you can motivate her and you can challenge her in so many different ways. and you know, the coaching staff thought i was a little too hard on her, and i thought i was just right. but you know, when you have that relationship, you can, and just slow herself down, and we needed her to play slower, which -- i mean, what a great thing for a coach to have to say you need to slow down and compose yourself. >> up next, maryland matches up against louisville on monday night. and later today, the georgetown w women play fresno state in the first round, tip-off scheduled for 12:20. that's your morning sports. i'm hakeem dermish.

have a great day. >> thanks, hakeem, same to you. president obama was spotted down in colombia, even as he was enjoying st. patrick's day right here in d.c. >> in fact, there were at least 18 sightings of the commander in chief in colombia. that's because the country was holding an obama look-alike contest. the 18 contestants stepped out of a vehicle and gave their best presidential wave to the crowd. and the winner was carlos bettes. and he said his co-workers pushed him to enter the contest. he hopes to meet the real president obama next month when the president visits colombia for the summit of the americas. and he kind of -- i know we did have a little bit of a debate going on here, but i think he kind of resembles him. >> well, a little bit, you know. i thought the first guy who got out of the car looked more like him. >> i thought so, too. that's where my money was. >> that's me. i didn't have a vote. >> well, i understand he traveled really, really far to enter the contest, so good for him. and he also works at a bank, so

maybe he can make more necessary being an image paternitior now. >> you never know. >> you never know. weatherwise, we're ending on a good note, right, this weekend? >> still a thumbs up kind of day, even with the fogginess and clouds. it won't be as beautiful, bright and sunny as yesterday, but still fine day to be outside today. and you know, spring break in march continues all week long. in the 70s. >> yeah, because we are in the 70s across the board. and we know that the cherry blossom festival starts on tuesday. days like this are prime times to actually take pictures because we have that nice cloud cover. that's always great for the lighting. >> no doubt. >> all right, well, we will be back in 25 minutes with another news update. >> that's right. then join us again at 9:00 a.m. for a full hour of news.