here, at the board of elections, he took the formal oath declaring he is a cant in the april 1st democratic primary. he'll join more than a half dozen others, including three councilmembers who want to take his job. gray says he's been a good mayor since taking office in january, 2011. he surprised many people with his quiet move today. >> came down and filed to take out petition for re-election. >> this is your declaration you are seeking re-election? >> this is my decdeclaration. we'll have a kick off event in early 2014. the goal now is to get the required number of signatures to get on the ball. >> you told us before it might take a few days. you are giving yourself about a month to do. you'll be out as early as tomorrow or tonight? >> we'll get started on the process. we have lots of people that want

to help. lots of people prevailed upon me to do this. lots of people who had events in their home, asking me to come and urging me to run for re-election. i really think, you know, that people feel the city is going in the right direction. >> reporter: the mayor did say he will start collecting signatures right away. live at the board of elections, tom sherwood, news 4. >> tom, mayor gray's previous campaign, mayoral campaign has been under investigation for several years for possible ethics violations. where does that stand? >> reporter: wendy, that is the biggest question hanging over all of this or whether the mayor is going to run. a lot of people thought he wouldn't run because they are looking into the 2010 campaign. there have been four felonies as recent lly as two weeks ago.

people are wondering why the investigation hasn't been wrapped up. the mayor hasn't talked to prosecutors. jeffrey thompson, the businessman who funneled money into the 2010 campaign has not talked to prosecutors, doesn't talk to the press. this is a huge cloud, not just a cloud, a huge, wet mattress hanging over the mayor's head. what happened in 2010 and what will you tell us about it as you go forward with the next election. >> that' a question, i'm sure you will ask repeatedly. developments in the deadly train derailment. cell phone video is giving us a look at the train. the train in the bronx. you can see the emergency crews going into the rail cars to help the dozens of injured passengers. just about an hour ago,he ntsb says preliminary data reveals the train was going 82 miles per

hour. it's more than double the speed limit. it is faster than the 70-mile-an-hour speed limit. investigators say break pressure dropped completely five seconds before the train derailed. they still say it's too early to determine a cause. >> for a train to be going 82 miles an hour around that curve is just a frightening thought. and the fact it was going at 82 miles an hour even in a 70-mile-an-hour zone before the curve started is -- raises so many questions. >> still ahead, we'll have more details about the victims killed in that crash, uncolluding one that hits close to home for the nbc family. people out of their homes in clarksville. their homes caught fire this morning. two homes damaged. no one was home at the time.

neighboring homes has to be evacuated. one of them was injured during the fire fight. no jail time for a schoolteacher accused of molesting his students. two 11-year-old girls said he sexually abused them in february. he was their teacher in rockville. today, he pleaded guilty to second degree assault charges. his 12-year sentence is suspended. he's now on probation for three years and won't be allowed to have contact with children. we now know the name of the man shot to death inside a prince george's county gas station. it happened this morning in forestville. as police hunt for the killer, new numbers show violent crime is down in prince george's county. tracee wilkins is live from police headquarters with more on that. >> reporter: this is something the county and this police department has been focused on for years. try to get the homicide numbers

down. it's a difficult thing to talk about after a man is killed earlier this morning. but the numbers show they are maintaining the trend of keeping homicides down. >> somebody shoot the guy and that's it. >> why, do you think? >> i don't know. >> reporter: the 22-year-old was shot inside a bp gas station this morning. it marks the 52nd homicide of the year. >> we are establishing motive. this homicide investigation is in infant stages. a reward is being offered and detectives are looking for clues. the first steps helped solve a number of murder cases in the county. they hope to end with less homicides than last year. the county had one of the highest drops in homicides and overall crime in the county last year. it's on track to do that again this year. so far, there have been 52 homicides since january until

now. this time last year, in 2012, there were 58 homicides. in 2011, the year ended with 95 homicides and in 2010, there were 90. as it stands, overall violent crime is down 14.6% in the county, property crime is down 11.6% and total crime down 12%. now the chief always says any homicide is one homicide too many, but, it is good news that the county is making a big change in what's happening with the homicides here. they were dealing with triple numbers. coming up, why the changes are happening. i'm tracee wilkins, news 4. in prince george's county, crews are getting rid of an eyesore. that building was gutted from a fire and has been vacant for the past 15 years. the county is now tearing it down. the community long complained

about this on branch avenue. it's on allentown road. the plan is to develop the area. not clear what is eventually going to go there. >> the sun is set on a gloomy, overcast day. on the way, folks, we may have a warm up. >> we could use a warm up, veronica? >> it's going to be like this. warm up and you get more of this. it's the cloud cover that's been extensive across the area. limited sunshine, didn't hurt the temperatures. ok at this, mid to upper 40s. still hanging on from d.c. to fredericksburg. we could have issues starting late tonight. that as the temperatures drop to around 40 degrees. i think fog will start to form. that could cause possible travel dlas early tomorrow morning. i'll take you right to the counties, the neighborhoods where i think the fog will be the thickest for your tuesday. now to the fixes to the affordable care acts website. the health and human services

says repairs to the site met their goal for working properly for 80% of users by december 1st. they say the site is working properly for 90% of users. it can handle 50,000 users at a time. the president has yet to enroll in the program. >> i know that he will and has said that he will. the white house has said he will. >> do you know what he's waiting for when he does do that, will you make it open press? >> i'll get back to you on it. >> now the president has until december 23rd to enroll for coverage that begins january 1st. the supreme court rejected a challenge to obama care. the court declined to take up an aautomobile from liberty university. the school challenged the

constitutionality of several provisions of the law. liberty last in the lower courts and the supreme court refused to hear the appeal. a big red ribbon is hanging to raise awareness of hiv and aids. president obama spoke from the white house about the progress made in fighting this disease and pledging that america will continue to lead the world in finding a cure. the president said that $100 million will go towards an nih project to find new treatments. if we stay focused, if we keep fighting and honor the memory of those we have lost, if we summon the same courage they have displayed by insisting however long it takes, i believe we are going win this fight. >> the president also reminded people that the affordable care act will allow people to get tested for aids free of charge.

a u.s. initiative started under president bush helped treat tloz to 7 million people with aids in africa. despite that, plenty of work needs to be done in this country. more than 1 million people still live with that disease and one in five americans don't know they have hiv. prince george's county has one of the highest aids rates in the state of maryland. as our bureau reporter, zachary kiesch tells us, they are taking steps to try to reverse that trend. >> i got a letter from him stating that he has been infected with hiv. >> darren smith, a freshman in high school when he got the news a family member was hiv positive. it changed his life. since then, he's made education and prevention his mission. >> you need to protect yourself, you need to respect yourself. >> reporter: today, smith and others came to prince george's community college to answer

questions and most important, to get students tested. >> for prince george's county, this is a big deal. we are second in the state of maryland with new on set hiv cases. >> reporter: part of the event was getting students to talk, open up, to help a group perform skits related to choices college students are faced with. >> people will tell you they are using protection because they don't feel comfortable letting you know they met somebody and didn't use protection. they'll be final because he's nice or cute. >> it doesn't discriminate. if you are having sex, it is possible you could be hiv positive and not know it. >> reporter: the disease doesn't discriminate of the 5600 people living with hiv, 86% of them are african-american. because of the stigma, people still aren't getting tested. >> i don't think that is being discussed in our community as

widely and broadly as it should be. >> reporter: zachary kiesch, news 4. door-to-door criminal. why one guy was busted for more than not being neighborly. a teacher telling all. what is happening in one of our largest school districts. >> reporter: doing anything wrong. but when you take a man's john deere, i'm pat collins. the

well, a carroll county man is speaking out hoping a thief will come forward and return a tractor. a tractor he's had for decades. >> someone drove up to his family home last month and stole the antique out of his front yard. >> pat collins is telling his sad story. >> reporter: mount airy, maryland. population, 9,340. it's said to be a safe place. it's safer than 80% of all the cities and towns in america. but, don't tell that to bob. bob is 75 years old. he spent his entire life here in mount airy. he was born in this house.

last month, in the middle of the day, in front of god and everybody else, someone came into the front yard of the old family home and stole bob's antique john deere tractor. by trade, bob's an electrician. by faith, he's a mennonite. he doesn't want his face shown for the story. if you could look into his eyes, you could see the hurt that's happened here. how important is this tractor to you? >> i would like to get it back. my son would like to have it. it's something that was pass zed down. >> reporter: it was 1957, bob was 18 years old. he saved up all his money and bought two prize possessions, a dodge car and 1940 john deere tractor. the car is long gone. the tractor, the tractor became part of the family. if you had a chance to talk to the guy who took your tractor, what would you say to him?

>> give me my tractor back and give me whatever money i use to recover it. he gos his way and i go my way. >> reporter: could you forgive him for doing this? >> i could. >> reporter: in mount airy, pat collins, news 4. new rules take effect today for food truck operators. some of the most popular trucks in d.c. have to be reserved through a lottery. district officials tell us the goal is to help control the food truck in eight of the most sought after locations. now the winning vendors can keep their spots for 30 days, then it's up for grabs, again. the benefits now of food trucks are going to come to customers and, you know, the city is going to recognize tax revenue and permanent revenue. it worked out well with respect to the restaurants as well. we are very pleased that it has happened the way it has. >> truck that is don't

participate in the lottery can sell food on district streets but they have to stay at least 200 feet away from the designated locations and pay the parking meter fees. cars will also be ticketed if they park in a vendors reserved spot. up in the sky, changes could be coming to the city's skyline. monday, a congressional hearing takes place about updating the district's building height law that has been around for more than 100 years. it requires buildings to be no taller than the streets they are facing. officials want to allow taller buildings for the growth going on downtown. the planning commission voted for no major changes. >> interesting. looking up today, all we saw, clouds. >> clouds, but -- >> no rain or anything. >> no, no, no. we are not going have big storms, either. up, down, up, down.

this week, we are going back up. hang on, folks. out there right now, temperatures are not too bad. we are still in the 40s across the area. let's take a look at your evening planner. 47 degrees at reagan national airport. 44 by 7:00. by 9:00, we are at 42 degrees. it's around 9:00, 10:00 this evening that i think with a light wind, we are going to see fog form. we are down to 41 to 40 degrees by midnight. it's not going to be a big drop in temperatures. i wanted to show you the visibility. we are doing fine now they are between 7 and 10 miles, the visibility. there could be travel delays on the area roads because the fog may be dense. down through the northern neck to even areas around king george county as well as around stafford.

fredericksburg, anybody traveling north or south along i-95, possible travel delays tomorrow morning. not from the rain. there's only a few showers showing up in western areas of pennsylvania. those are within advancing weather front. itis the reason why it's been cloudy. we have a front moving east. we have an area of low pressure along the coast. the front comes in tomorrow morning could produce a few sprinkles and brief showers. by tomorrow afternoon, there's a chance we could see a little more sunshine than what we had today. we are back into the clouds and even more showers coming our way wednesday afternoon. that's really this week, we get a chance to warm up. every couple days, we are going to see occasional showers moving through. 51 degrees arnds gaithersburg tomorrow. 52 in d.c. you folks around waldorf, 53. the highs 52 around falls church tomorrow. here is a look at your storm team four day forecast. rising temperatures through at least thursday of this week. i think we are going to do okay

on tuesday and wednesday of this week. there's a chance, of course, before early morning sprinkles that i spoke of. lots of clouds around the area. maybe a pass zing shower. for the weekend, right now, we are going to be seeing the rain move out of here on saturday after we hit a high temperature of 57 degrees. on friday, that means a cooler weekend behind this front. 44 to 49 degrees. still, though, seasonable for this time of year. the showers will be ending rather early. we are going to turn mostly sunny by the afternoon. maybe a little bit of rain coming back late sunday. so, the weekend right now, the best day is saturday. guys? >> all right. thanks. he was noun for his "fast and furious" movies. speed may have played a factor in his death. in this week's edition of the cooley report,

well, the headlines on monday morning are redundant these days. another prime time game and defeat for the redskins. >> this loss eliminates them from playoff contention. dianna russini joins us live from redskins park. what is the reaction out there? >> reporter: you almost forget what the redskins park feels like after they win a game.

you can imagine the food. they forgot what it feels like to succeed. mike shanahan spoke to the fans. he said the best players are going to play. the evaluations, preparations for next season already have begun. as for last night's loss to the giants, chris cooley says the reason this team isn't successful is one thing. he explains in this week's cooley report. >> it's a lack of confidence all around. i don't think it's guys that can't do their job, there's a lack of confidence to do their job at such a high level. everyone is doing what they need to do. they are not doing more than that. we have talked about it all season. >> chris, you look at the stats and this game on paper, it looks as if the redskins should have won the game. it's almost odd when you look at it. how do you explain why they can't win based on the numbers

they are doing the right thing? >> it's so strange. you look at, i think five or six games this season they lost. at least four of them, statistically we have won outright. the way i look at it is, we are almost playing practice games, not with the high, emotional level. if you want to have a bright spot for the rest of the season and not care if we win or lose, look at practices. that's what they are. the team is not going quit. ultimately, their practices, they are getting better. they are learning what type of offense they want to run. other than one bad snap, they were good. it was a good practice against the giants. >> we are in the first week of december and it's 2014. it's the position they have put themselves in. >> i'm going to introyou. >> what's that. >> we'll see next year.

i'm getting good at that. next year, i fully believe. we are all on. this is an interesting end of the season, though. there could be a lot of drama. it could be what developed between robert and the special teams and mike staying here or not. it's a big last four games for this team. you can really see what they have and if they are going to move forward in the same direction. >> reporter: all right, no playoffs for this redskins team. over the next four weeks, there's still a lot of issues that need to be addressed. coming up at 6:00, i asked chris cooley if he was dan snyder, if he was mike shanahan, what would he do in the next four weeks? i'll have his answer coming up at 6:00. back to you. >> see you then. at 5:00, cyber monday scams. a warning for shoppers that

goes beyond getting fake deals. the websites look real. an undercover operation revealed they were getting shotty gifts. a death in the nbc family after the tragic train derailment in the bronx. >> there's a huge hole in the heart of this town tonight.

first at 5:30, bold daytime break ins. >> we are learning more about a man arrested in burglaries. he's accused of preying on his girlfriend's neighbors. >> julie carey uncovered interesting information about what the suspect was doing with the stolen property. >> reporter: with the woods all around and the dark of the night, this apartment complex may look like a target but he hit it in daylight. the court documents show he was careless when it came to getting rid of the stuff he stole. the 26-year-old is in the fairfax county adult detention center held without bond. he was arrested after being linked to six home burglaries. the search documents show he may

be a suspect in some 16 cases. neighbors in the poorest cluster have been on guard since early october when this town home was broken into and a laptop and other items were stolen. >> it was -- some of the things that had been taken were pretty special and not easily replaceable. >> reporter: the homes an apartments he hit had several things in common. they are in wooded areas and several right next to walking paths. police spotted the pattern. >> detectives and patrol officers noticed the pattern of daytime burglaries. they were while people were at work or out of the home. they are adjacent to north shore drive. >> reporter: daniel stanley wasn't careful about covering his tracks. once police got a tip that

identified him as the suspect, they learned the laptop taken from this townhouse was sold on craigslist. it turns out he used his real name with the buyer. another lead on a laptop from this apartment turned up at this pawnshop. once again, the seller, daniel stanley. police arrested him november 18th. to hear he's arrested now? >> good news. we'll rest easier knowing he's not out there. >> reporter: the message the police say it should sent not just to reston residents, but everyone. i'm julie carey, news 4. fast forward through the headlines, preliminary data shows the commuter train was going almost three times the speed limit. the ntsb says it was traveling 82 miles per hour in a 32-mile-per-hour zone. it looks like d.c. mayor,

vincent gray, will seek a second term. he went to the board to pick up nominating petitions. he has one month to pick up 2,000 signatures. tom sherwood broke the news this afternoon. we'll have more in a live report at 6:00. health and human secretary kathleen sebelius will testify next week. republicans say problems with the law go beyond the troubled website. the site is vastly improved and more fixes are on the way. fairfax county teachers are venting their frustrations through a new survey. news 4 got an advanced look at the results. david culver is in fairfax now to explain what the numbers show. >> reporter: our region's largest school system faced with worsening teacher moral. he shared with us the look at a

survey. >> you can see, we are at a tipping point when it comes to keeping the best educators. >> 1400 teachers took the survey. has your workload decreased in the past year? 18% said yes. 82% said stayed the same or gone up. >> i would bet for all 82, it's gotten worse. >> reporter: this math teacher spent half her thanksgiving break doing work. more frustrating, she feels some parents don't understand how overworked she and her colleagues are. >> this expectation that this select profession is always on call. >> that's when it just starts to become more of a burden. we are all tired. >> reporter: the survey asks teachers what they would do if they did not get a significant increase in salary or step up in the next year. here is how they responded. 42% said they would keep working here in fairfax county.

13% said they would look for jobs in other nearby counties. 6% said they would teach somewhere else in the country, a place less expensive and 15% said they would leave the education field altogether. most surprising, a quarter of those responding said they would need to get a second or third job. >> i certainly have a second job. most of my peers in the math department already do second jobs. >> we are not asking to be rich by any stretch of the imagination. no one goes into teaching for that. >> reporter: they warned the changes need to come soon. i'm david culver, news 4. fans are trying to understand what happened to a fast and furious movie star. we have the developments on the death of paul walker and what it means for a popular movie he was in the midst of filming. a lot of hot deals for shoppers. if you sign up for a credit card, we have a warning from liz

crenshaw before you sign on the dotted line. if you thought today was fairly comfortable, the temperatures are going to be going up even more. we have a taste of early november coming back. a mild week for us. overnight, that's going to be foggy and could create travel thubls tomorrow morning. i have the forecast coming up on news 4 at 5:00 and when showers will fall from the clouds.

dude, i almost had you. >> you almost had me? you never had me. you never had your car. >> "fast and furious" was paul walker's most famous movie. tonight, in a sad coincidence, police believe speed killed him and retired race car driver, roger. >> a photo shows walker next to the car just before he left a charity event and minutes before the deadly accident. mark shows us how he's being remembered by friends and the film industry. >> reporter: paul walker's "fast and furious" co-star was among those grieving in a makeshift memorial. it was in the same location where a day earlier, a firy crash killed him and his friend. >> they tried everything they could to get him out of the car. they couldn't. there was nothing they could do.

>> reporter: walker seen here alongside the sports car minutes before the crash before leaving a fund-raiser. >> he connected with so many people, young and old. paul never thought anybody was beneath him. >> reporter: walker and his "fast and furious" co--stars made a video. filming had been slated to continue this week with the movie in theaters next summer. now, film makers face unexpected challenges as they move forward. >> to address his death sensitively and to finish a film that is extremely important to the studio and frankly to paul walker's fans. >> reporter: still set for release is his film, "hours," a drama set in the aftermath of hurricane katrina. >> this was a nice guy. this is somebody who treated everybody on set in the way they

would want to be treated. that's a testament to him. >> reporter: a loss felt deeply, even as his memory is on. fake websites busted during a cyber monday crackdown. for shoppers getting counterfeit gifts could be the least of your problems. >> i'm liz crenshaw. holiday shopping is in full swing. the five questions you need to ask before saying yes to

if you were in a check out line, you probably heard the pitch, sign up now for the store credit card and you save 20%. >> before you sign and save, listen to liz crenshaw. she has a warning. >> it's called instant credit and who doesn't want to save money around the holidays? before you say yes to a new store credit card on the spot, do ask yourself these questions. >> do you have a rewards card with us? >> reporter: you have heard the pitch, you are checking out, the clerk says get 15% off today's purchase, just sign up for the store credit card. the instant money savings deal may sound enticing as your cart fills up. >> people go out and shop, sometimes for themselves or for friends. >> reporter: the co-founder of credit.com says there are questions you need to ask before

signing up to see if it's really a deal. >> in the moment i wanted 20% off. >> yes number one, how generous is the sign-up offer? how big is the discount on today's purchase. >> i want to hear at least 10% to 15%. if you don't, forget about it. >> reporter: the next question, what is the annual interest rate on the card? general use cards have 6% to 16%, some store cards have aprs of 19% to 25% or more. >> the interest rates are high and the benefits are short term. >> rstioeptethree, what's the grace period? how long do you have to pay off the balance without interest? >> some of them have different levels of grace periods. >> reporter: in fact, some have no grace period. the store can charge interest starting the day of your first purchase. next question, where can you use the card?

>> if it's general purpose, visa or mastercard, you can use it in other places, more flexibility, more opportunities to earn whatever rewards and points you were going get anyway. >> reporter: most are limited to one store. question five, are you trying to build new credit or maintain your credit score? >> if you are trying to build credit and have very little, a store credit card can at least help you somewhat. >> reporter: if you already have a high credit score, opening lots of store cards may hurt more than help. >> it's not a good idea. >> you don't think so? >> no. you save a little more money, but who needs more credit. >> reporter: to your homework like this woman. >> i shop around for my credit cards. >> look at it as a vehicle, not a solution. so, use it when you need to use it. pay it off right away. get whatever benefits you can out of it and then run. >> if there is a store where you

expect to spend a good deal of money, ask these questions ahead of time. it can be hard to do it when there's a line of shoppers behind you at the register. don't just fall for it, ask the questions. >> you hate it when the person says yes, i'll sign up. no! if you are in the line behind them. >> she wants to know this and this. >> they look like real websites advertising deep discounts from dvds to sports jersey's to high end apparel. i.c.e. announced a big bust of more than 700 illegal web domains. authorities say the sites were set up to dupe you into buying counterfeit goods during this busy holiday season. its cyber monday. by the end of the day, the national retail federation expects 131 million people will have shopped online. today, we are getting a better sense of how things went over the long holiday weekend. pat lawson muse is here with the

numbers. the bottom line, more foot traffic in stores, but fewer dollars spent. the national retail federation says 141 million people were out in the stores this weekend up from 139 million last year. 45 million took advantage of the fact the stores were open thanksgiving day. the average spent, $400, down slightly from last year. one reasonage itselves think the numbers are lower this year is the thanksgiving fell later this year in the last week of november. a lot of stores started sales early. this time, people who shop between december 15th and december 25th will make up for 40% of all holiday shopping. and, we are going to have a little warm weather to help you get from your car to the stores. veronica? >> folks are going to have to

get it all in and lots of shopping, hopefully this week because it is going to be fairly mild. this week, you need a jacket, not a coat, and blel. the latest information coming in, storm team 4 radar. folks have been wondering with all the clouds, any rain? no rain to speak of. this is storm team 4 live scanning the area, not showing any rain what so ever. if you like today, folks, temperatures are going to go up more this week. we are in the 40s now. we are at 44 in brandywine. dale city, 47 degrees, your current temperature. weather issues, the fog we are going to have to worry about tonight and tomorrow morning. the fog develops late, 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. it's going to get thick. we drop to 41 degrees by 11:00 p.m. with a light wind in the area.

bowie, camp springs, alexandria, to 35 degrees. the fog will be setting up. maybe fredericksburg at 35 degrees to start your day. you could be looking at fog. low 30s to the north and west. winchester going up to a high tomorrow of 50 to 51 degrees. you may be able to shed that jacket tomorrow. just go with a long sleeve. here is a look at the storm team 4 four day forecast. the high hitting on thursday, 61 degrees. yes, on thursday with that high of 61, we have rain posted. right now, thursday, as we get to the high of 61 degrees, big deal, it is. it will be two weeks prior, before or since we have had a high temperature that warm. friday is the best chance of rain for the morning rush and the evening rush. guys? >> thanks, vj. a sign of the times. the letter to santa goes high-tech. we are following metro

silver li

there are stories trending online today. amazon working on plans to open a fulfillment center in baltimore. they hope to break ground and open next year. it comes a day after the company revealed it may be using drones in the near future to deliver

products. >> the technology already exists for dozens if not hundreds of innovative uses of drones. the faa is not allowing them to be used and won't allow it until they work out the safety issues in 2015. >> you can see more ways drones may change the way we live. in a special report on nbc "nightly news" on news 4 at 6:00. ♪ >> she had two prominent performances at the inauguration and the super bowl. now bing says beyonce is 2013s most searched person. she knocked kim kardashian to number two. this is a dear santa letter for the digital age.

it's a handwritten note on twitter. instead of a list, it's got a long amazon.com link. someone typed out the link and checked it out. this kid wants a $20 remote controlled car. delivered by a drone. that's not right. britain's prince harry and his teammates are in the second day to the race to the south pole. so far, he has the early lead. three groups from britain, the commonwealth and the u.s. are raising money for military charities in their home countries. some of the service members in the race lost limbs in the battle. others suffered blindness, burns and post-traumatic stress disorder. >> the fact these guys made it to this point is extraordinary and, you know, i count myself lucky to be part of it. >> this is a gruelling 175 mile race. it got under way yesterday. they hope to finish it in 15

days. one of the people killed in that commuter train derailment worked for nbc news. he was on the train heading into manhattan to set up for the tree lighting this week. matt lauer spoke about him on the "today" show. >> jim was a friendly and talented person. he always did his job with grace even under extreme pressure. he was working tirelessly with a smile on his face. in the words of his son, words can't express how much my dad meant to me. rest easy, dad, i love you. >> we are hearing from one of jim's long time friends neighbors of one of the other victims. mark santia reports. >> from cold spring to newark, they are grieving over the loss of jim and donna, two passengers, two strangers, both heading south on the hudson line

when their train derailed. >> he was a good man. >> reporter: 9,000 people call this place home. jim, his childhood friend stood out. he was a memorable, energetic soul who loved life. he worked for the "today" show. he took the early morning train to set up at rockefeller center. >> he was always there for his family. >> reporter: a loving husband maried to a town councilmember, an active, involved member of this community. for richard, the loss of his friend cannot be measured or put into words. >> there's a huge hole in the heart of this town tonight. i can't say anymore. >> good neighbor. very good neighbor. i think, you know, very kind. >> reporter: just 30 minutes across the hudson and the news of donna's death devastated her neighbors. they have lived next door to her

for a decade. >> really, really nice woman. itis sad. >> reporter: she worked two jobs, gave up her free time to help young people and enjoyed traveling with her sister. >> she cared about people. she cared. >> reporter: two strangers, two new yorkers who dedicated their lives to friends and the community. mark santia news 4 new york. right now at 6:00, breaking news. speculation is over. mayor gray made his plans for re-election official. the train operator went around the curve way too fast. we are learning details about the moment of impact. we have numbers about the murder rate in prince george's county following the deadly shooting inside a gas station. i'm wendy rieger sitting in for jim vance. >> we start with the d.c. mayor's race. mayor gray is officially running

for re-election. tom sherwood broke the story and took this video of him signing the paper work. tom joins us live in northwest washington. hi, tom. >> reporter: hi, doreen. the 2010 campaign is still under federal, criminal investigation. mayor gray said it's time to look to the future. after more than a year of speculation, mayor gray made it official, he's running for a second term. gray took the candidates oath after an unannounced visit to the d.c. board of elections before it closed for the day. what did you just do? >> well, i just came down and filed to take out petitions for re-election. >> so this is your declaration you are seeking re-election? >> yes, this is my declaration. we are actually going to have a kick off event in early 2014. i think the goal now is to get the required number of