he's 30 years old. he's married and the father of a little boy. he had a good job working as an energy consultant. according to his doctor, he will never fully recover from what happened that night on capitol hill. it was august 18th. it was after midnight. mr. maslin was walking home when he was robbed and beaten to the edge of death. three men charged in connection with the crime. the focus of this trial, 22-year-old tommy branch. the prosecutor said branch hit mr. maslin in the head with an aluminum baseball bat. mr. maslin was comatose by the time he got to the hospital. he's undergone six operations and today more than eight months later, he walks with a limp, has limited use of his right arm and has diffley speaking.

there is more rehabilitation in his future. >> i've got a long ways to go too, to be honest. i'm not worrying that and i'm just going to move forward, keep working on it. >> reporter: in this trial, four days of testimony from 26 witnesses, including one of the robbery suspects arrested with tommy branch, who took the stand to testify against tommy branch. now, in addition to that the jury also saw security camera video of the suspects allegedly trying to use mr. maslin's credit card at a gas station about ten blocks away from the robbery scene. tonight reaction to the guilty verdict from abby maslin, t.c. maslin's wife. she says we are relieved to hear about today's vert. even though this is the verdict

we hoped for, we remain extremely saddened by the devastation that was caused and the lives shattered by this senseless act. now, tommy branch was also convicted of four other charges linked to another robbery in adams morgan. with all those guilties, he faces a maximum penalty of about 100 years. sentencing is set for july. live at superior court, pat collins, news4. big breaking news today in the boston marathon bombing investigation. a court appearance just wrapped up at this hour for three new suspects charged in connection with the case. they are friends with suspect dzhokhar tsarnaev. they are accused of hiding, then destroying dzhokhar's laptop and backpack containing fireworks, then lying about it to federal investigators. news4's aaron gilchrist at the live desk with more from the attorneys for the two men charged with conspiring to obstruct justice. aaron? >> reporter: yeah, jim.

two very quick hearings for three friends of the bombing suspect at the federal courthouse in boston today. their attorneys spoke very briefly right after that. we're talking about all 19-year-olds here, all of them arrested today. two of them, azamat tazhayakov and dias kadyrbayev charged with conspiring to obstruct justice of the the third suspect, robel phillipos, charged with making false statements to federal investigators. again, we heard from the lawyers for these men this afternoon. here is kadyrbayev's lawyer. >> he told the fbi about that. he had not know that those items were involved in a bombing or of any interest in ibombing or of any evidential value. that's all we have to say on that. but we are the ones, dias kadyrbayev, cooperated with all law enforcement that came to him without the benefit of counsel to assist them in the investigation of this horrible tragedy. >> reporter: now the fbi says these three men helped dzhokhar

tsarnaev after the fact by removing that backpack and by removing the laptop. the backpack had some fireworks that were emptied of gun powder in it. they are accused of having thrown them in a dumpster. they're all due back in court. one suspect on mon shaday, the r two in two weeks for a probable cause hearing. we'll bring you more as soon as we get it. >> thank you, aaron. you can see michael isikoff's report on "nbc nightly news with brian williams" that comes on right after news4 at 6:00. now a news4 exclusive. federal authorities confirm this evening they're investigating a possible case of human trafficking in virginia. immigrations and customs enforcement agents were called to a home on orris street and jackie benson found out a big part of this story is who owns that home. she joins us now with the latest. >> reporter: jim, investigators are looking into whether the two women, both described as foreign nationals, were held here

against their will for an extended period of time. now, our presence here was obviously unsettling to the occupants. do you live at this building or are you with the embassy? >> no, the embassy. >> reporter: sir, do you know what happened last night? don't touch the camera, please. don't touch the camera. fairfax county real estate records list the mcclain compound featuring three security gates, security staff on foot patrol and a guard shack as being owned by the kingdom of saudi arabia. the man who spoke to us on the street outside the gate said he worked for the embassy and would contact the owner of the home whom he said was currently at the embassy. the vehicles driving in and out of the gates had diplomatic license plates. agents from u.s. immigrations and customs enforcement, homeland security investigations and fairfax county police were called to the home overnight. and in the words of a source familiar with the investigation, rescued two women. one woman had reportedly tried to flee by squeezing through a

gap in the front gate as it was closing. >> i thought i heard some sirens and i assumed that someone was ill up there and there was some medical attention necessary. >> reporter: it's not clear who called investigators to the home, whether it was the women themselves. sources say they are from the philippines. when asked for comment, a d.c.-based spokesman told news4 homeland security investigations d.c. did encounter two potential victims of trafficking and the investigation is ongoing. obviously this investigation is in its very early stages and complicated by the fact that some of those involved may have diplomatic immunity. coming up on news4 at 6:00, we'll talk to an organization that helps victims of human trafficking. reporting live, jackie benson, news4. >> thanks so much. there is a guilty plea tonight in a deadly hit and run for northeast washington. joel bromwell kept driving after he hit a woman crossing the street in front of a church on

florida avenue. the victim in this case, 71-year-old ruby whitfield, worked at the church as an usher and had just left a meeting in the building. bromwell faces up to 30 years in prison. he'll be sentence elds at td atf august. two lanes of 95 are now open after a six-car accident closed all of the northbound lanes at the mile marker 119 this afternoon. the virginia department of transportation is warning drivers expect delays on 95, mud tavern road and route 1 in thornburg. vdot says drivers should use route 1 as an alternate. this accident comes after a chain reaction crash early this morning caused a backup as long as 14 miles at one point. our cameras were there this morning when the d.c. taxicab commission unveiled the new uniform colors for the city's taxicabs. under the proposed design, taxis

would be red with a gray stripe, the same colors as the city's circulator buses, those new street cars and the bike share program. once the final design is approved, all new cabs will have to comply with the design. existing cabs will too if they're repainted for any reason. the taxicab commission is giving the public 30 days to comment on this new look. more finger pointing tonight over who is responsible for the serious structural problems at the silver spring transit center. today the county council and the county executive were not on the same page. transportation reporter adam tuss has the latest drama in what has turned into something of a soap opera. >> reporter: as the troubled silver spring transit center sits idle behind a fence and the grass grows, the entire county now seems to be trying to figure out what to do next. today the county council asked county executive ike leggett and members of his team to show up for a briefing, but he didn't

show because of an apparent conflict. the county council not happy with that and that is how the meeting started. >> it is disappointing that the executive is not here today because of a conflict. we would have been happy to accommodate his schedule. >> reporter: the latest piece came recently when metro told montgomery county leaders in a letter that it would not accept the transit center, even when serious structural issues are mixed. the county says metro has to honor its commitment and during a meeting that was pretty much all about metro, no one from metro is on hand. >> is there anybody here from metro in the room? anybody? no. >> reporter: a lot of nondefinitive answers, but the key takeaway still for the people who live and work in downtown silver spring, no idea when the building will be fixed, and still no date for what it will open. >> i'm not surprised by it. >> outside the transit serccent today, reaction as the story continues to unfold. >> everything is so delayed

here, especially when it comes to road construction, transit. >> reporter: while all this discussion happens here at the county council office building, the county council is telling the county executive team it believes it's holding things back from the county council. follow all of that? we'll have that part of the story coming up at 6:00. adam tuss, news4. the furloughs for air traffic controllers are officially over. today the president signing a bill that gives the secretary of transportation the authority to transfer funds within the agency. the furloughs took effect a week and a half ago because of the sequester budget cuts and quickly caused hundreds of delays at airports across the country. do you think that it was right for the -- >> i'm going to call you right now -- >> to fly planes into the united states. >> i'm going to call you to the police. >> cell phone camera audio could reveal what really happened to a cab driver. he says he was attacked and accused of being a terrorist. find out why this nearly made him break down in tears.

plus, it's a facebook post that's going viral tonight and making a lot of people angry, all over how one community leader thinks muslims should be groe greeted. and montgomery county are known for having great schools so why are some of the students failing math? news4 is working to get answers for parents tonight. an easterly wind across the area means 52 by the ocean in ocean city, 80 out towards the west. where does that put us the next couple of days? my forecast coming up in just a minute.

stay alert for details in this news for your health story right now. some scary details about an ingredient in popular prescription drugs that help you sleep. nearly 20,000 people went to an emergency room in the year 2010 after taking a drug that contains zolpetum. that's the activin creed yent in sleep aids. in january the fda told manufacturers of drugs that contain it to cut the recommended dosage in half for women. the men's dosage was also reduced. parents in montgomery county were not happy when they heard about this. new county test results show that the majority of high school students enrolled in grade level math class failed their first final. chris gordon spoke to school administrators about what

they're going to do to fix this problem. >> do you ever go out and do experiments? >> reporter: martin o'malley and officials came to a middle school to see projects based on the new curriculum called stem. it stands for science, technology, engineering and math. >> this is to give our people a better capacity to innovate and create the new jobs and solutions of tomorrow. >> reporter: the students had just returned from the white house where they discussed the s.t.e.m. curriculum as a national education priority. >> i really want to work on designing computer games. >> i'm thinking of being a doctor. >> reporter: maryland boasts the top-rated schools in the nation for five years now and montgomery county public schools are among the best performing in the state. but recent data shows montgomery county high school students fail countywide math exams given last january. in algebra, 61% failed.

algebra 2, 57% failed. geometry, 62%. and precalculus, 48% failed the test. i asked the school superintendent, dr. joshua starr, if he's concerned as many parents are about the failing grades on the math exams and what he's doing about it. >> we have a really solid curriculum but know some kids need some extra help. we've put a study group together but that is just one piece of the data. it was not released in a way that is typically done. if people take a comprehensive view of our performance. they'll see there's some incredible achievement by our kids and still some significant gaps that have to be addressed. >> reporter: s.t.e.m. puts a priority on math and school officials say they want to make sure math teaching and testing achieve high marks. chris gordon, news4. well, remember this when you're hating the humidity here in the summer. while we are dining al fresco,

darling, they are digging out of the snow in colorado. more than a foot fell overnight from boulder up to wyoming, and it wasn't light and fluffy and pretty, it was heavy and wet and brought down power lines. it is not unusual for colorado to see some snow in may, but it is a little unusual to have this much. the most they have had in 30 years. >> and doug is jealous, he wants to be there forecasting it. >> a place like boulder, they get a lot of snow but this year they have had 113 inches. 50 inches since april 1st. so they have seen four feet of snow the past couple of weeks. so hey, we saw a little fog and some mist yesterday. there you go. >> and we complain mightily. >> and we're all upset. let's take a look outside. it is all out of here right now and look at that, it is gorgeous across the area. bright blue skies, temperatures on the mild side. if you've been waiting for a perfect spring day, today just might be it. temperatures are not too hot, they're not too cool, they're just right.

current temperature right now 69 degrees. we did hit 70 last hour. plenty of sunshine, low humidity, winds out of the southeast at 12 miles per hour. it is that easterly component to the wind that continues to keep us a little cooler than average. storm team 4 radar showing not a whole lot. we're not going to see any rain the next couple of days. that's good news. this is what's happening, though. we've been talking about this area of high pressure to the north. look at that number, 49. that is the current water temperature off the coast of ocean city, maryland. 49 degrees. you're not dipping your toes in that water, that's for sure, but that air is flowing right around that area of high pressure moving right past that 49, right in through the coast and you get much cooler numbers as you get to the shore. cambridge, only 63, 66 in easton and annapolis, 69 in d.c. but farther away you get warmer. 72 in culpeper, 73 in petersburg. cumberland, maryland, at 72 degrees. the closer you are to the beaches, the cooler you're going to be the over the next couple of days we'll continue to see that easterly wind.

something else that's going to continue to try to do is bring in some cloud cover from time to time. see these clouds here? that's the marine layer that later tonight may actually be able to come onshore, especially through southern maryland, down through portions of the chesapeake. most of us, however, will stay clear and that's going to allow temperatures to cool off pretty quickly. so cloudy skies are down to the south. i think tomorrow see those clouds real quick come in? i think we may see clouds overnight but they'll quickly burn off tomorrow. nice and warm with highs in the 70s. then that area of high pressure moves closer to us. possibly more cloud cover on friday. we're going a little cooler but i'll still going for high temperatures close to where we are, about 68, 69 degrees even with that easterly flow. once again keeping us three or four degrees below average. tonight we'll be on the dry side and continue to be dry right on through tomorrow morning. tomorrow afternoon turning mostly sunny and looking good. 67 to 72 degrees tomorrow afternoon. friday looking pretty good,

although a few more clouds and a tad cooler. 69 on your saturday. look at sunday, beautiful. a high of 73 degrees. coming up next week, we're looking at a chance for some shower activity both monday, tuesday and possibly even on wednesday too. >> hey, look what veronica left for me, a cupcake because it's her birthday. not for you. she wanted to point that out. >> i said where's the cupcake. she said it's on the oar side of the studio. >> that's a big cupcake, too? >> what did you say again? >> you weren't listening to me again. >> boy, it is good. red velvet. well, they're here. we'll tell you how the district rolled out the big red carpet for street cars. >> oh, they're hot looking. plus a neighborhood that was once in the national spotlight for having crime problems and checkpoints has turned around, but find out why the police tape was back up there today. and one is a high school coach, the other a member of the nats. we'll meet the father-son combo who are changing their

life in the fast lane could be speeding up on part of the beltway in virginia. tonight the operator of the new express lanes is working with the virginia department of transportation to raise the speed limit. it would go up to 65 miles an

hour on the toll lanes. the speed limit on the regular beltway lanes would stay at 55. now, the operator says the speed limit increase was part of the original plan for the road. no final decision has been made yet. well, after retiring from the major leagues, steve lombard dozey sr. -- how did i do? >> good. >> didn't consider coaching pro ball. >> so he and his wife moved to columbia, maryland, to be close to relatives, but he never left the game. dan hellie is here with his game. >> that's usually me that's sounding it out. >> it's like i'm in reading 101. >> he has been instructing young baseball players since he retired. did a pretty good job with his son. steve jr. is the nationals second baseman. during the off-season junior sometimes stopped by senior's new job where he's the head baseball coach. carol maloney has more on them.

>> oh, look at that, how did that happen? >> reporter: steve laombardozi has been working since he retired. steve jr. making a name for himself as the nationals second basemen. >> what are the odds that he makes it to the big leagues and then out of 30 teams for him to be drafted by the nationals. i've got to see him play, it's not just the big leagues but all the minor league teams are close. so i've got to see him play 50-plus games a year. >> reporter: steve sr. played six years in the biggs. he was the hero for the minnesota twins winning the '87 world series over the cardinals. he led all hilters in that series with a .412 batting average. today he's leading young men at good council high school. >> hopefully i can impact them in the way that i did steve jr. that's why i'm here.

there's no other reason. i don't need another ring or a trophy. to me the joy in life comes from helping other people so that's what i'm trying to do here. >> reporter: the team motto this season for the falcons is one they picked up from their new coach. it's also something that perfectly describes the nats second baseman, and that's play with your hair on fire. >> he reminds me throughout the season through a text or a call, keep that in mind when i get my chance to get out there. you prepare for a game, you practice. and then when it is game time, let it all go, let it out, have fun. kind of free yourself up. >> and the falcons have really embraced their new coach's fun, yet fiery approach. >> squeeze the runner on third. as soon as the pitcher goes home, you're gone. no hesitation. >> like a crazy man go all out. >> like, for example? >> if the ball is up the middle dive for it.

hitting, just swing the bat as hard as you can. >> reporter: a lifetime of knowledge passed down from father to son, now coach to athlete. and the best part is that steve jr. is never too far away. and hopefully never will be. carol maloney, news4 sports. >> steve jr. is the ultimate utility man for the nationals off the bench but he will be getting the start at second base the next couple of games. nationals manager davie johnson hopes that he can give the nats a spark, a spark they desperately need after losing three straight to the braves. a u.s. cargo plane goes down in afghanistan. tonight we've got new video of the crash as investigators rush to the scene. plus the man who survived that run-in with the boston bombers is talking. >> and he said i just killed a policeman in cambridge. >> reporter: carjacked and held at gunpoint, the driver who listened to his attackers brag while they were on the run. he explains how he made it out

alive. plus a local taxi driver attacked. why he says he's a victim of a hate crime. >> i'm really, really angry and frustrated after serving the

today, at the wedding, you streamed the game. and you're not necessarily proud of that. but tonight, you had the gang over for juicy johnsonville brats... made with premium cuts of pork. and you're definitely proud of that. johnsonville. served with pride since 1945. we continue to follow this breaking news out of boston. three new suspects charged in

the marathon bombing. the men are friends of suspect dzhokhar tsarnaev. they're accused of hiding and later destroying dzhokhar's laptop and a backpack that contained fireworks and then lying about it to federal investigators. nbc's chief justice correspondent pete williams has been following this and joins us to clarify all of this. what exactly are they charged with? >> reporter: first of all, the federal officials emphasize there's no suggestion here that they had anything to do with the bombing, that they knew about it in advance or helped plan or carry it out. this all has to do with what happened after the bombing. here's the way the fbi describes it. they say remember the thursday when the fbi released the pictures of the two suspects. according to the fbi, these three college friends of the younger suspect, dzhokhar tsarnaev, started talking among themselves saying, boy, our friend looks like one of the suspects. one of them even texts dzhokhar tsarnaev and says you look like one of them. according to the fbi, tsarnaev responds lol and then says take

anything you want out of my room. so they go to his dorm room, they say, the fbi says, and they see there a backpack, a black backpack. they look inside and see empty fireworks tubes. according to the fbi, one of these students right then knew is the term the government uses here knew that dzhokhar tsarnaev must have been one of the bombers. so they take the backpack home to the apartment two students have in new bedford, massachusetts. the next morning they're watching television. they hear about the shooting, they hear two suspects have been identified as the tsarnaev brothers and they decide to help tsarnaev, that they're going to throw the backpack away. now, five days ago, the fbi actually found the backpack. you're looking at a picture of what the government says was inside, these empty fireworks tubes and other fireworks parts. they found it in a new bedford landfill. so the two foreign exchange students -- or students that were here on student visas are charged with obstructing justice

and the third person, an american citizen from cambridge, is charged with making false statements. the fbi says they asked him about all this, he denied it and slowly came around to the story that they have now. >> what kind of penalties do these charges carry? >> well, you have to emphasize in a case like this that this is the starting point. these are in essence the beginning charges. the government can always bring something more. but obstructing justice has a five-year maximum, lying to federal agents has an eight-year maximum. >> and their attorney, we had a sound bite with one of their attorneys a few minutes ago saying they have been cooperating the whole time. how do we interpret that? >> that's what the attorneys for all three men say. they deny the charges. they say their clients have been trying to be helpful to the fbi. you're looking at dzhokhar tsarnaev and the two students who are charged today, they're both from kazakhstan. their names are azamat tazhayakov and dias kadyrbayev. the third student, the american student is named robel

phillipos. they say that the lawyer for kadyrbayev says when his client threw the backpack away, he didn't think that it was important evidence, that he wasn't trying to impede an investigation. >> a lot of new information coming in today. >> there is a lot of information here. one other thing i should mention is that they say that a couple of friends of tsarnaev were having a meal with him about a month before the boston marathon bombing talking about fireworks and he said, by the way, i know how to build a bomb. >> frightening. nbc's pete williams. pete, thanks so much. good to see you. we are hearing from the man who says he was carjacked by the marathon bombing suspects while they were on the run. >> he talked about the ordeal for the first time on television during an exclusive interview with "today" show's matt lauer. his face and his voice altered at his request. the man says the suspects drove him around boston for an hour and a half at gunpoint. >> at first i can't manage to

drive. i was shaking, my body was shaking. tamerlan told me relax and slow down, don't drive too fast. >> he asked you a question, didn't he? have you been following the news of the bombings? >> i said yes, of course i know. and he said i did that. and i just killed a policeman in cambridge. >> the victim said he managed to escape after tamerlan put his gun down and his brother was inside a gas station. he ran to another gas station, called 911. police were able to track his cell phone and the gps in his car and later found the brothers in watertown and you know what happens next. a northern virginia cab driver used his cell phone to record a passenger calling him a terrorist. that driver is actually an army veteran who served in iraq. he says he was targeted because he's muslim. >> and today his lawyers are meeting with commonwealth attorneys to pursue hate crime charges. richard jordan is here now with the video. >> the driver says he was ready

to record because of recent incidents involving other cab drivers. the clip is full of profanity. he was giving the passenger a ride from the fairfax country club to his home in clifton, virginia, but now he wants to take him to jail. >> whatever you said, it's recorded. >> i don't give a flying [ bleep ]. >> reporter: the taxicab confrontation caught on cell phone camera. mohammed salim is the driver. he said the unruly passenger downed a beer before getting into the vehicle but the small talk started off cordial enough. >> and that's where he was keep heating up and accusing me of you're a terrorist, jihadist, you hate christians. i'm a christian, are you going to kill me? >> reporter: he said the passenger called him a terrorist. he compared him to the 9/11 hijackers. >> are you a prejudiced [ bleep ]? >> yes. if you're a [ bleep ] muslim flying jets in the world trade

center, then [ bleep ] you. i will slice your [ bleep ] right now. >> so you're threatening me? >> the reason why i'm emotional is because i sacrifice this country. that's the reason only. i put my life in danger and sacrificed. i served the country. i'm a u.s. army soldier. >> reporter: salim said the altercation went from verbal insults to physical violence. >> now you're punching me? you're punching me? >> reporter: ed dahlberg identified as the passenger heechlt is president of emerald aviation in manassas. his attorney released a statement saying mr. dahlberg's comments to mr. salim were regretful and he apologizes to anyone who found them offensive. anyone who listens to the entire conversation and views the entire tape will hear that most of the conversation had a friendly tone. further, mr. dahlberg did not assault mr. salim at any time nor did he get violent in any way. but salim insists it did turn

physical. >> wheegt back again and he hit my jaw and ear. i get fracture, like three days i couldn't hear properly and i was losing my vision. it was a headache. >> the actual punch is not seen in the video. salim says it does make him fearful and apprehensive, but he is still working because he says he has to pay the bills. >> richard jordan, thanks. it's a road war. we're going to find out how one community is fighting a change that has created traffic for everyone who is trying to get to the heart of georgetown. plus scientists reveal the first solid evidence of how american colonists survived

our wednesday's child today is a teenager who seems to always have a big smile on his face and there's nothing that makes him happier than seeing others smile along with him. >> his name is tony and he's been waiting a long time for a permanent loving home. barbara harrison with his story. >> look, you've got a smile for me. good to see you again, tony. great to see you. well, shall we go over and see your teacher? >> hey, tony. good morning. >> reporter: tiawanda booker is one of tony's social workers here at the pediatric center, formerly the hospital for sick children. it's a residential facility where tony has called home the last few years. >> what's he been doing lately? >> tony is the life of the unit.

he really is. he's doing well here. he's been here for a while now. and typically he goes out to school during the daytime. >> reporter: tony has a particular fondness for this toy school bus because it reminds him of the one that picks him up to go to school each day. he's also learning to use color markers at school and we tried to help him with a picture of his school bus, the one he looks so forward to seeing each day. those who know him say he's making significant progress at school. although he doesn't speak, he vocalizes his happiness in many ways. >> tony is a very happy young man. he's able to let you know that by smiling, clapping, making different sorts of vocalizations. >> reporter: in fact everyone who works at the center loves tony, and he's quick to respond to their affection, often clapping or waving or smiling to show his happiness. his adoption recruiter says

she's hoping to find a family to appreciate what tony can offer. >> i'm really looking for a family of any configuration that can bring a lot of love and support to tony. he is a person who loves to go out and be in the community. >> reporter: barbara harrison, news4, for wednesday's child. >> if you have room in your home and your heart for tony or another child waiting, please call our special adoption hotline. that number is 1-88-2-adopt-me or go to nbcwashington.com. you know as the weather gets warmer out there, there are more and more motorcycle accidents on our roads. we have a timely warning tonight for all drivers when we come right back. i'm tom sherwood. street cars coming to the district of columbia. i'll have the story coming up. and we're looking pretty good across the area today, a little bit on the warmer side as we hit 70 degrees.

amelia segal and i working on that forecast. we'll bring it to you live in a couple

disturbing dashboard video has come to life tonight of that terrible cargo plane crash in afghanistan. this video shows the plane soon after takeoff. it appears to lose power, then slowly fall out of the sky. military officials tell nbc news tonight they have no reason to believe this video is not authentic. all seven people on the cargo plane were killed. an ntsb go team has now been

dispatched to the site to investigate this crash. this facebook post by a county commissioner in central tennessee is sparking outrage on line. you can see a photo of a cowboy staring down a shotgun. but above it is the caption "how to wink at a muslim." a number of islamic groups are calling for the commissioner to apologize. some even want him to be fired. he has since removed the post but has not issued an apology. the families of the newtown shooting victims say that their fight for stricter gun control is not over. last night one of them took the fight directly to republican senator kelly -- >> the principal was shot and killed lunging at the gunman. at a town hall meeting, she asked to have them explain a comment. >> i'm just wondering why my

mother being gunned down isn't as important as that. >> i'm obviously so sorry, and as everyone here, no matter what our views are for what you have been through. when we look at what happened in sandy hook, i understand that's what drove this whole discussion. all of us want to make sure that that doesn't happen again. >> groups on both sides of the gun debate have run tv ads in new hampshire supporting and criticizing the senator for her vote. tonight police in northern virginia are warning drivers about a jump in crashes with motorcycles. >> right now doctors are fighting to save a man after a crash on i-95 near quantico. this is the second serious crash involving motorcycles in two days on that busy corridor. >> northern virginia bureau reporter david culver is live in tyson's now with how police are using this month as a chance to educat drivers. david? >> reporter: jim, already behind me here on the beltway we've seen several motorcyclists out

s nice weather, bviously taking but i should tell you there is a reason we're here in fairfax county. that is because police here tell us more than anywhere else in the commonwealth, this is where most of the accidents involving motorcycles happen each year. by their numbers, 190 last year, seven of those were deadly. now, this morning photojournalist shawn casey and i started our day by heading out to herndon. it's there we met with police as they took us through some of the techniques that you can use to help keep these roads safe. driving along this test track with fairfax county police, we got a lesson on the dangers of the blind spot. >> the blind spot, if they look in the mayor or, they're not going to see you and start to come over on top of you. >> reporter: it's a risk motorcyclists face each day. they're smaller, harder to spot and in the warmer months there are more of them on the roads. >> whether it's because of the economy, whether people

commuting or using them for pleasure, there are record numbers out there. >> reporter: and that increases the chance for crashes. >> this morning chopper 4 is over an accident involving a motorcycle. >> reporter: just this morning we were on air bringing you breaking details on this crash on 95 in stafford county. the rider had to be airlifted to the hospital. >> a fatal accident here involving a motorcyclist. >> reporter: just 24 hours earlier, news4 today told you about a deadly wreck also involving a motorcycle, also on 95. during this awareness month, officials are asking drivers to be more vigilant of motorcycles on the roads and they're pushing riders to get more training. >> one of the primary causes of motorcycle fatalities was failing to control the motorcycle correctly. >> reporter: the police motor squad is made up of 32 officers. they undergo 80 hours of training and every month they're back on the track to freshen up their skills. >> i would definitely advise anybody that was going to throw a leg over a motorcycle to go

and take some standardized training. >> reporter: they also suggest better visibility on the roads. >> whether it be the clothing that they're wearing, the placement of their motorcycle in lanes and things like that. >> reporter: now, this morning i was talking to our web team and they told me at nbcwashington.com the most searched and most viewed story all day yesterday was that deadly motorcycle crash. that is why we have put on nbc.com -- nbcwashington.com, i could say, a link to riders alert. this is a way that you can find out about more training when it comes to riding motorcycles. again, that's at nbcwashington.com. all you have to do is search motorcycle safety. reporting live in fairfax county, i'm david culver, news4. >> all right, david, thank you. it is a beautiful day out there. let's see if it's going to last through the weekend. doug? >> the good news for that is i think we are going to see that last right on through the next couple of days. first off 69 degrees, sunny, occasional breeze. it is just about as perfect of a spring day as you can get after all the clouds and drizzle we've

seen the last couple of days. going down into the low 60s by 9:00, 58 degrees by 11:00. by tomorrow morning we're talking about a fairly cool night. now, the sun goes down tonight at 8:01. check this out. this is pretty cool. the sun will go down after 8:00 between now until august 18th so you know our days continue to get longer and we will have that sun until 8:00 all the way through the middle portions of august. how about that. that's going to mean good news for you if you want to get out and about during the evening hours. 71 tomorrow, 68 on your friday. 69 on saturday. nice weather this weekend, high of 73 on sunday and then next week a little bit unsettled. not a washout here but a couple of chances for rain monday, tuesday and wednesday. saturday a high of 69, a lot of great events including the d.c. 101 chili cookoff. looking good, 63 degrees at noon. 69 degrees for that high temperature at 4:00 and by the time sound garden starts playing, temperatures around 65 degrees. it will be cooling quickly.

it will be a little on the cool side as you make your way out of that area. i'm meteorologist doug kammerer. we'll send it right back in to you. >> and we'll take it, thank you, doug. the district is one step closer now to reintroducing street cars to the transportation landscape here. the first cars that will run on the 22-mile system that's currently under construction are now in anacostia. there they will undergo track testing. tom sherwood tells us when the first riders could be hopping aboard. >> reporter: the first street cars were being unloaded in the anacostia staging yard. they're being eased onto tracks where mechanics will complete their buildout and police and fire will get a chance to practice safety procedures. >> isn't it wonderful to have a street car back in the district of columbia? >> reporter: mayor vincent gray stepped aboard one of the cars along with d.c. council

transportation chairman for a firsthand look. the city hopes to have passengers riding on the revived eighth street northeast corridor near union station by the end of the year. >> we will be running these cars on eighth street in our pretest this fall. >> reporter: the street car plan was first begun under former mayor tony williams and pursued by adrian fenty and now gray. they hope to have 22 miles of street cars by 2020. street cars were once common in the city. robert thompson, the paper's dr. gridlock, said the back to the future street cars and other public transportation help unite communities. >> anything, street cars, any purple line project, for example, up in montgomery and prince george's counties, it's not just about moving people, it's about community development as well. >> reporter: in the district, tom sherwood, news4. right now not a bad rush hour near georgetown but that is not stopping people in one community that is in the middle of a road war.

we'll find out what's got so many families ready for a fight. why people living at this condo lost water last month and what could lose a lot more

if you've ever driven down wisconsin avenue towards georgetown, you know how congested it can be. >> some residents say the new traffic patterns have only made it a lot worse. >> it's so bad many want the

city to undo the changes. we're talking about the stretch between mass av and 34th street northwest. mark segraves has our report. >> driving up wisconsin avenue at all times, day, night, weekends, is dramatically different. >> reporter: every day thousands of cars drive this route that connects georgetown to upper northwest and on up to maryland. studies showed the vast majority of cars passing through here were speeding. on average, three to four pedestrians were hit crossing wisconsin avenue each year. so ddot decided to slow traffic down by adding turn lanes and taking away travel lanes. >> thanks to the street scape project, wisconsin avenue is safer, brighter and a better place to walk, shop and play. traffic is moving slower but not too slow. >> reporter: wisconsin avenue went from three lanes in each direction at rush hour to two lanes. and in nonrush hour it's down to one lane each way. the result has been slower traffic and less parking. >> too many cars, too little

road. >> how's it working out? >> not well. >> why is that? >> sometimes it's just the one lane and if you want to take a taxi, the taxi stops or a bus, you know, and it backs up that traffic. >> reporter: ddot officials say the project isn't finished and the new patterns have only been in place for about four months. they say things will get better. >> it's definitely better for pedestrians. it definitely looks better so it should attract more business and people to the area. it's clear that the traffic has been held up, is slower for the past year, i'd say, on wisconsin avenue. but i trust they will fix that. >> reporter: now, those statistics we cited about the pedestrian accidents and number of speeders that passed through here were all part of a study commissioned by the city that started this renewal project along wisconsin avenue. ddot officials tell me they are open to making modifications along here to make the traffic