avoid police could now come back to haunt him later. plus, a new bullet in the battle over gun control. the vote late today that brings people in the city one step closer to packing heat in public. first tonight at 6:00, new video from u.s. central command coming in shows the dramatic escalation in the nation's battle against isis. >> these are some of the first air strikes on the isis stronghold inside syria. the battle is wider as well tonight with five arab nations joining the fight. >> it's a coalition president obama worked very hard to build and steve handelsman joins us live at the white house with the latest tonight. steve? >> reporter: jim, erika, thanks. at the white house in his address to the nation two weeks ago, president obama vowed to go after isis if need be, and said it would obviously be needed in syria. and he promised to do it as part of a coalition, including arab nations. now he's done it.

out of the syrian sky came predecision guided warheads. 120 terrorists reported killed in all. here in isis command building, two dozen targets reportedly struck. in an air campaign that's just starting. president obama said it sends his message. >> to anyone who would plot against america and try to do americans harm that we will not tolerate safe havens for terrorists who threaten our people. >> reporter: u.s. pilots flew from the persian gulf. four dozen tomahawk cruise missiles. three u.s. navy warships hitting four isis target areas in syria. five arab nations took part in the attack in new york this afternoon. the president thanked leaders of bahrai bahrain, qatar, saudi arabia and the uae saying this is not america's fight alone. >> we now have an opportunity to send a clear message that the world is united. >> reporter: this video, unconfirmed by nbc news, is said to show damage not to isis, but to rival al qaeda offshoots

struck, like khorasan, that pentagon commanders said was nearly ready to strike in the u.s. or europe. >> these terrorists have established a safe haven in syria to plan external attacks, construct, test, improvise, explosive devices and recruit westerners to conduct operations. >> reporter: but critics warn, isis and company can survive air strikes. >> unless and until we can find an arab force that's going to get on the ground and eliminate isis. >> reporter: or maybe a turkish force. turkey offered support, but not yet boots on the ground. now that the war is wider and the fighting coalition is bigger. over the next few days, up at the united nations, in a major speech at the general assembly and in lots of private meetings, president obama hopes to grow the anti isis, the anti khorasan coalition for a war that the pentagon warned today could last years. i'm steve handelsman, news4. >> steve, thank you. tonight it appears that more

countries could be joining the battle against isis. great britain did not take part in last night's air strikes, but in an exclusive interview with brian williams today, british prime minister david cameron says this is a fight many nations will be unable to avoid. >> this is a fight you cannot opt out of. these people want to kill us. they have got us in their sights and we have to put together this coalition to make sure that we ultimately destroy this evil organization. >> cameron also said he's confident isis is already planning attacks against innocent people in europe and the u.s. you can see much more of brian williams' exclusive interview with the prime minister on "nightly news" immediately following our broadcast. late word out of charlottesville tonight that police will hold a news conference in about an hour to discuss the disappearance of hannah graham. there is an anxious wait for results expected from the state crime lab, which could reveal whether a person of interest had

anything to do with hannah's disappearance ten days ago. northern virginia bureau chief julie carey joins us live from police headquarters. julie, this late-breaking news, a 7:00 press conference. >> reporter: we wondered all day whether we would be hearing more from the crime lab and minutes ago police said they would have a news conference at 7:00 p.m. so we expect to get an update on the investigation then. in the meantime, dual searches continue here, one for a missing uva student, hannah graham. the other for the man who might know something about her disappearance, jesse matthew. a new poster is going up along charlottesville's pedestrian mall for jesse matthew. police have named him as the last known person to have seen uva second-year student hannah graham before she disappeared september 13th. the security video shows him on the mall in the early morning hours that day. for now, matthew is wanted only to face two charges of reckless driving. within the next 12 to 24 hours,

though, police expect to get results from the state crime lab on the items seized from matthew's apartment last week. that information could tie matthew to graham's disappearance or keep police searching for more evidence. they did a second search yesterday, taking away some clothing. >> through the investigation, we determined there were other items we needed to look for, and that's why. we made a note about these items when we did the first search warrant. so things change, and we went ahead to look for those items. >> reporter: jesse matthew's whereabouts are unknown right now. i knocked on the door at his grandmother's home today, but a relative told me the family had no comment, and politely asked we leave. this charlottesville defense attorney says this investigation has followed an unusual path. matthew has been named a person of interest before it's known whether a crime occurred. but he says matthew's decision now to avoid the reckless driving charges could put him behind bars if he does turn himself in. >> when and if he is apprehended

on the two misdemeanor reckless driving charges, the police will be able to argue to the judge this man should be held, because he's a flight risk. >> reporter: residents in charlottesville, especially women, say that dual searches under way leave them feeling unsettled and less safe. >> i'm obviously a woman of collar. but, like, you know, i don't even like to be out at night. i was at the gym last night, and it started getting dark, and i heard the woman next to me say, oh, i should get home, it's getting dark and i don't feel safe. >> reporter: now over on the uva campus, president theresa sullivan has been hearing from parents and alumni in the wake of hannah graham's disappearance. she sent out an updated safety letter today that says they will be increasing patrols and officer presence on campus and they're also going to be adding vans to their safe ride program. we are eagerly awaiting information at a 7:00 news conference put on by charlottesville police and that will stream on our website, nbcwashington.com. for now, i'm julie carey, news4.

>> thank you. new at 6:00 tonight and just into our newsroom, a judge familiar with high-profile cases will now oversee the trial of severance in alexandria. judge jane rausch will preside. she is the same judge who oversaw the conviction and life sentence of beltway sniper, lee boyd malveaux back in 2003. severance is charged with the murders of nancy dunning, ron kirby and ruth ann la dado. all recused themselves because la dato is the daughter of a judge. doug let's us know how much rain we can plan for. >> it could be a lot of rain in some locations and it's going to be mostly likely the most rain some of us have seen all month long. we're well below average. right now temperatures a bit

below average. 74 in d.c. 66 at the river, the easterly flow. here's our storm system down to the south moving right up the coast and eventually will move into our region during the day tomorrow. i think tomorrow you're going to start off with cloud cover. here comes that storm system, not just the clouds, but the rain moves in. some of it will be heavy at times. i'll show you when the heaviest rain moves in, what else will come with this storm, because this storm could pack a punch as it moves through. i'll show that in a minute. >> thanks, doug. a temporary buffer zone is in place outside the white house after an iraq war veteran managed to jump the fence and get inside the executive mansion. there's a live look right now at the white house, where they have increased security on the grounds, along with ground patrol. a gate set up in front of the short stone wall now runs along the entire white house fence on the north side. and in the evening, pedestrians

are being pushed further to increase the perimeter. meantime, we are hearing more from those who know the man bind month the security breach. omar gonzalez's ex-wife says she doesn't think he would hurt anyone. samantha bell says she believes serving in iraq changed him, saying he suffers from paranoia and post traumatic stress disorder. >> he's not in his right mind. who jumps a fence knowing you can get shot and killed? who goes and tries to tell the president the atmosphere is collapsing? who does that? he did, because he's not -- he's mentally unstable. >> prosecutors say following the incident, authorities found 800 rounds of ammo, two hatchets, and a machete inside gonzalez's car. it's a huge change of course for a city known for its strict gun laws. about an hour ago, the d.c. city council voted to allow licensed

gun owners to apply for a concealed carry permit. news4's mark segraves live outside the wilson building now with more on the implications of this vote today. mark? >> reporter: that's right, jim. and the reason we're here today is because a federal judge weeks ago struck down the district's ban on carry permits saying it was unconstitutional and then today we learned that u.s. attorneys office is no longer prosecuting handgun carry violations until this is all resolved. so the council knew they had to do something. this is not what they wanted to do. the d.c. council reluctantly voted to allow for residents and nonresidents to apply for concealed carry permits. >> this is always a difficult situation for the district of columbia when we are put here. we would like to have much stricter, no carry rules at all and preferably no guns at all. but the courts are ruling against us on this on a regular basis. and if they're not, then the congress is coming down on us. >> reporter: while the council

unanimously approved allowing for carry permits, one issue facing lawmakers that wasn't resolved today is the question, whether the names of those who are issued a concealed carry permit should be made public. on that issue, the council members are divided. >> we should at least give our neighbors and residents a chance to know who has the gun. put it up there. let people be proud if they want to carry a concealed weapon. but at least we'll know who it is and we can treat them differently. because they have a deadly threat in their possession. >> i'm uneasy about that. it runs the risk that we're providing a means for somebody to find out who has a gun that could burglarize. >> who cares about the confidentiality of a gun owner? we don't want it. >> the issue of gun owners' privacy remains in the air. one thing is clear. gun rights advocates still aren't satisfied, saying the new law is still too restrictive. we don't live in a country where rights are enjoyed only at the

police's pleasure. the this is a right. the city should comply with, not resist, the court's decision wrote allen gura, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, who tells news4 he plans to go back to court and challenge this new law. new important to note, this new law when it takes effect will not allow for open carry. and as we said, the d.c. government is still keeping open its option to appeal the original ruling that struck down the entire ban, and allan gura for the plaintiffs, that attorney, he does plan to appeal this new law and challenge it in court. and, of course, you won't be able to register right away, but when you can, applications will be open to both d.c. residents and nonresidents alike. reporting live from the wilson building, mark segraves, news 4. the story captured headlines. now a new controversy for an officer convicted of beating a maryland student. why the crime could be cleared from his record. he's accused of driving drunk and hitting a state trooper.

tonight the suspect talks to news4 and wait until you hear what he admits to doing just before the crash. the anacostia high school indians. should it stay or should it go? i'm pat collins. the story, coming

it is a stunning public admission. a prince george's county man is

accused of injuring a state trooper in a hit and run. tonight he admits to news4 he was drinking, but says he didn't realize he actually hit anyone. this accident happened early this morning on the interloop of the beltway in green belt. chris gordon caught up with the driver today, now charged in this case. and he joins us live with more. chris? >> reporter: good evening from above the beltway. you know, the maryland move over law is supposed to protect emergency responders at traffic stops. but since may, we have covered at least three local police officers injured on the roadways. one in prince george's county, one in montgomery county and overnight a maryland state trooper. and today i spoke with the person police allege struck him. >> the door was open, all right? and i hit it. >> reporter: it happened on the interloop of the beltway. the state police patrol car had its emergency lights on during a stop in search of a vehicle on the right shoulder near the green belt metro station. police say this vehicle hit and injured 30-year-old corporal

brian hirsch. police tell me the driver fled the accident scene with damage showing on the right side door of his 2005 chevrolet equinox. >> after the collision, the driver did not stop. we contacted him a very short distance later at which point in time he was demonstrating some indicating things he was impaired. >> reporter: you have been charged with driving under the influence. were you drinking? >> yeah, i was. >> reporter: how much? >> you know, i just have, like -- i would say five beers. >> reporter: in what period of time? >> in about 30 minutes. yeah. >> reporter: do you feel you were drunk? >> i would say i was -- i was, you know, drunk, but i was okay to drive. >> reporter: hernandez has also been charged with violating maryland's move over law, which is supposed to protect police. but is often ignored. in may, prince george's county police officer olisah was injured by a minivan that ran

him over at a traffic stop. a officer was struck on the beltway. and that brings us back to mr. hernandez. >> i never thought it was a person or something like that. >> reporter: and how do you feel right now about that? >> i tell you, i'm so sorry about that. i am so embarrassed. and believe me, if i can do something, i will. >> reporter: now the maryland move over law will be expanded come october 1st. it protects not only emergency vehicles and personnel, but tow trucks and their operators, as well. you have to move over a lane or slow down to give them a barrier of safety. that's the latest, live tonight at prince george's county. chris gordon, news4. >> thank you, chris i am. >> so i have never heard more talk about shaving than sitting with two men, okay? now, doug -- >> it's all new, right, doug? and it's huge. >> doug and henley didn't just decide to not care today. this is -- >> this is a week's worth.

>> that's right. a week to clinch the title. this is officially the longest i've ever gone with a beard. >> let me explain, though. this is giving an attitude to help the boys during these next -- >> these are playoff beards. >> we cannot shave them until the nationals are out of the playoffs. >> yeah, sorry. >> so they have to win the world series. and then somebody says you have to keep them for movemovember a then until the capitals win. >> icicles dangling. >> jim handly -- my wife would not allow it. and jim handly is winning this. this is not a competition, but yeah, he's winning. 73 degrees currently, sunshine and clouds moving through. we've got those winds out of the east at 8 miles per hour. and those winds easterly winds are really going to have an impact on what we see over the next couple days. already on the cool side. especially along the bay. only 63 along the river, 64 in

cambridge, 73 in d.c. hour by hour forecast for tomorrow morning. you're going to wake up to a rather cool morning with some clouds. by noon, lots of cloud cover and then the showers move in by armed 4:00, 5:00, 6:00, and they will definitely be here tomorrow night. storm team 4 radar is all clear in our area. but down to the south, there's a lot of rain down here. we've got a couple areas of low pressure that will combine and move right up the coast, and then interact with an area of high pressure. the interaction here gives us that northeasterly wind. so this is almost like a nor'easter that's developing during the day tomorrow. and with that, those northeasterly winds will start kicking up 10 to 15 miles per hour tomorrow, and then upwards of 20 to even 30 miles per hour during the day on thursday. at least early on thursday. but look at the rain coming in tomorrow afternoon. and then some heavy rain coming in by tomorrow night. and i think this rain will last right on through the day on thursday. so what do you expect tomorrow? clouds will be on the increase. showers late. take the umbrellas with you to work. i think you'll need them on the drive home.

becoming rather breezy, especially tomorrow evening into the day on thursday. high temperatures will be cooler than average. 73 in d.c. 70 in easton. that could be too high tomorrow as a result of the clouds and shower activity. temperatures on thursday will only be a high of around 69. and that puts everybody into the mid 60s. so we're talking cloudy skies and rather rainy conditions. the only area that might get out of this or might be safe from this would be west of the blue ridge. any time you have a northeasterly flow, it's kind of hard for the rain to make its way out towards i-81. you may not see much rain at all. east of the i-95 corridor, a lot of rain, especially on thursday. friday, 76 degrees, looking better. and right now the weekend really looking nice. not only nice, but warm. temperatures back into the 80s with plenty of sunshine, so we get the rain during the right time of the week on wednesday and thursday. the weekend looking good. coming up next, a local police officer faces the judge and a shoplifting scandal. why he was able to walk out of court just before his trial.

special needs students are fighting to play football for a school they don't attend. new at 6:00, why d.c.'s mayor is getting involved in the discussion. plus, pumped for the playoffs. as nats fans count down to the postseason. we look at what it's taken to get here since baseball returned to washington. coming up on news4 at 6:00.

we are less than an hour from the opening pitch at nats

park. these beards better be working. there's a lot of excitement building for the team's first home game on their path to the playoffs. >> there is pressure on everybody and it all comes on a big anniversary too. can you believe we have now had a decade of major league baseball here in the district. news4's tom sherwood live at nationals park with a look at the last ten years that led to this big moment. tom? >> reporter: jim, it's gotten a little busier down here and a lot noisier. you might hear two street preachers who have joined the crowd. ten years ago, a big and expensive effort to get the team here. and now a winning team is attracting fans from all over. they're coming from all over for tonight's game. like this fan from purcellville, virginia. >> the brand-new park, the facilities, the team, the management, it's all just great. so i really love it. >> reporter: this fan came in from waldorf to beat the crowd. >> championship shirt.

>> reporter: oh, cool. 30 bucks. >> yeah. well, they were back ordered on mlb.com. because i ordered them the next day they clinched. >> reporter: the nats are headed for the playoffs on the eve of an important milestone this monday. the tenth anniversary of baseball's return to d.c. >> this is a great, great moment in our city's history. >> reporter: ten years ago, monday major league baseball called mayor tony williams to tell him the expo's franchise would be moving to the nation's capital. after that september 29th call, the team played its first game at rfk in april 2005, and its first game here at nats park, they won in 2008. this annandale married couple is on a date night for the nats. and they have a little history with baseball in d.c. >> it was one of our first dates in 1967, the senators game at rfk. >> reporter: do you remember what the score was? you scored him.

>> yeah. >> reporter: we wanted to show you here we're across the street from the nats ballpark. this is the fairgrounds, and you can see down there, there's a huge crowd. we think they're going to finish drinking over there and go to the game. we're not sure. tonight is the first home game since the team clinched the playoff spot. they're expecting a full house. tom sherwood, news4. >> tom, thank you. he could be in the clear, but not without controversy. why a judge is stepping in now months after a police officer was convicted of beating a university of maryland student. growing backlash over some schools mascots. tonight the new calls from local lawmakers to change the name that some consider, quote, offensive. and some teenagers are four times more likely to battle depression or thoughts of sue sight. tonight, one man is sharing his struggles of coming out in hopes struggles of coming out in hopes of changing moins minds.

in cases of rape and incest, just struggles of coming out in hopes of changing moins minds. like the right-wing republicans in congress. they want to overturn roe v. wade. so does she. "i think roe v. wade should be overturned." barbara comstock even voted with right-wing republicans to require women seeking an abortion to undergo transvaginal ultrasounds. that's all i need to know. i'm john foust and i approve this messge.

tonight, a judge's recent ruling is opening up old wounds in a controversial case. it all centers around the beating of a university of maryland student at the hands of police. one officer was found guilty, a second was convicted, but he could get a clean slate now. >> that's right. the victim's attorney is calling the judge's new ruling a mockery of justice. and prince george's bureau chief tracee wilkins joins us live in college park to explain this.

tracee? >> reporter: well, there's a process to this. but if he does not break any laws in the next year, he is looking at having that second degree assault conviction removed from his record, and in another three years, he could have his record completely expunged, which would give him the opportunity to be a police officer again. >> the jury spoke loud and clear about the type of policing they feel is acceptable here in prince george's county. >> reporter: the video of then university of maryland student john mckenna being beaten by cops during a student celebration made national news in 2010 and landed two prince george's police officers, religion demand baker and james harrison, in court. >> the jury really took their time to deliberate this and look at everything, because one officer was acquitted. and one officer in this case, mr. harrison, was found guilty. >> he got essentially 30 days of home detention. and that's all he got. >> reporter: but now a prince george's county judge has wiped that judgment away by issuing

what's called probation before judgment. if harrison, now retired, doesn't break the law over the next year, his second degree assault conviction would disappear from his record. he could even be a police officer again. >> we just felt that it was not appropriate to take the jury's voice away and to basically overturn the conviction. >> reporter: judge beverly woodard, the same judge who heard the initial case, ruled in the reconsideration hearing. during the first trial, it was revealed woodard's former husband was the first prince george's officer convicted of use of force back in 1988. but there was no mistrial, since she promised to be fair. >> in a case like this that received all this attention, the gravity of the case, the importance of the case, merited some reasons for doing what the judge ended up doing. and there was no reasons given for this kind of action. >> reporter: we reached out to mr. harrison's attorney for comment, but our calls are not

returned. the prince george's police department is saying that since this incident, it has changed a number of ways that it deals with civil disobedience issues and they have not had problems since this university of maryland incident. reporting live in college park, i'm tracee wilkins, news4. a man accused of stabbing his boss more than 40 times has now been indicted on murder charges. police say moses gomez castillo wanted to rob the popeye's he worked at in anne arundel county. and late last night went into the restaurant and ended up killing the night manager inside. another employee found her body in a stock room. gomez castillo is being held without bond. a former fairfax county sheriff's deputy has pleaded guilty to shoplifting. robert palmer retired from the force after being charged with larceny back in may when he was accused of taking something from a loudoun county target. he was sentenced to 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, all

suspended, as long as he stays out of trouble. the security officer who reported palmer was fired by target after reporting the incident. the same debate over the name of the washington redskins is now reaching local schools. a d.c. lawmaker is pushing to eliminate all race-based mascots from schools in the city. not everybody agrees. news4's pat collins is live at anacostia high school, where he caught up with some alumni for reaction. pat? >> reporter: erika, for 77 years, anacostia high school has been known as the anacostia indians. but now there is a move to change all that. today i talked to some alumni. >> it's been the anacostia indians for as long as i can remember. >> reporter: they shouldn't change it. >> no, they should not. >> reporter: what would their nickname be? >> lions? i don't know. something. not indians. >> reporter: you don't like that? >> no. >> reporter: since 1937,

anacostia high school in southeast has always been known as the anacostia indians. >> we are indians, the mighty mighty indians. >> reporter: you were the cheerleader? >> i was the captain. >> reporter: now kenya mcduffie introduced legislation to ban all race-based logos, mascots or team names in schools. >> it's important to remember that these terms are pejorative, very offensive and objectionable to a lot of people. and we should make sure we can fix this. >> reporter: if mcduffie's bill becomes law, anacostia would have to find a new mascot and a new nickname. but that won't happen without a fight. meet now members of anacostia's class of '68 and '69. they have a big reunion coming up next month. they say the school was built on indian ground, they say the name and the logo is an honor and it should stay. should anacostia lose the mascot indian? >> no, it's our history.

simply put, it's our history. >> reporter: if you could talk to councilman kenya mcduffie, what would you tell him? >> do his homework. i could teach a seminar about the anacostia community. >> reporter: learn about the history. don't take the name away. >> don't take the name away. >> reporter: to take away that mascot and take away that nickname would do what to this school? >> i think it would actually divide us and we would lose identity. >> reporter: the statement tonight from d.c. public schools, we would never want a school mascot to offend or upset anyone. dcps says they are reviewing mr. mcduffie's legislation. live from southeast, pat collins, news4. new at 6:00 tonight, the d.c. council has passed emergency legislation today that would allow two special needs students to play football for wilson high school. louis floor and casper attended

the lab school, which does not have a football team. and for the past two years, they have been allowed to play for wilson. but this year, d.c. public schools banned any nonpublic school students from playing on a public school team. >> football, i made a lot of friends. it's my passion. it's what i love to do. >> this really means a lot. me and casper deserve this, because our parents, they really worked so hard to get us this. really. >> and they have been working hard too. mayor vincent gray wrote a letter to the council opposing the bill that would allow the students to play. and now we want to head on over to the weather. we want you to grab an umbrella, because rain is moving in. doug is tracking the conditions from storm center 4. >> we are tracking conditions to the south right now. we have a few clouds that streamed ahead of the storm system. right now the rain towards

raleigh and most of the rain well down towards the south. this is a couple areas of low pressure that are forming. it's going to confine with an area of high pressure as it moves up the coast and combined is going to give us the potential for not only a lot of rain, but we could see a lot of wind in some locations too. and we'll be talking much more about that. break down the timing for you. we'll go hour by hour, coming up in just a few minutes. >> thank you, doug. adding insult to injury, how a local community is rallying behind a disabled man who was recently robbed of his savings. plus new numbers show just how many unaccompanied minors have moved into our area.

an uphill battle for an accident victim in our area just got tougher. john mcelroy was paralyzed in may in a four-wheeler accident. he's endured rehab and just as he was getting ready to buy a specially equipped car he can drive, someone stole a safe from his home in frederick county with the money for that vehicle.

he had $8,000 in there. >> having a vehicle is another step to me being back to normal again. >> john has a 2-year-old son, so he wants to be independent again for his little boy. friends have started a go fund me campaign to help him replace the money. john thinks the thieves targeted the safe to get the pain killers he needs after his accident. among the tens of thousands of children who have crossed the border without a guardian this year, many have ended up in our area. according to new federal data out, maryland ranks fifth among all states with unaccompanied minors with more than 3,200 between january and the end of august. most wound up in prince george's and montgomery counties. virginia close behind with more than 3,000. most of whom have gone to fairfax county. in the district, the number is just above 300. outside our area, texas had the highest numbers nationally with more than 6,200 kids.

new york, california and florida round out the top four. police could reveal new leads tonight in the search for a missing university of virginia student. within the hour, what we are learning now about the case that has captured national attention. plus an alarming statistic. one group more likely to battle depression or attempt suicide. now one man is sharing his story in hopes of changing minds and saving lives.

we're following breaking news right now out of charlottesville in the search for the missing uva student from

our area. police are planning a news conference in just about 15 minutes in the hannah graham case. state lab test results are expected to come in from items taken from the apartment of a person of interest. that man, jesse matthew, was the last person seen with graham. he's wanted now on reckless driving charges, but disappeared shortly after meeting with police. you can watch that news conference live on our website, nbcwashington.com. september is suicide prevention awareness month, and tonight we are taking a look at one community that has a significantly higher rate of suicide and depression than most americans. doreen gentzler has the alarming statistics and what's being done to change minds in the lgbt community. ♪ >> reporter: these are the songs that mclaren wrote to heal. ♪

>> reporter: songs that have helped him overcome a battle with depression that started when he was a teenager, the result of gender confusion. >> i always believed when i hit puberty my voice is going to drop and i would grow facial hair and the opposite happened. and it kind of threw me for a loop. i became very withdrawn, and ones once i hit high school, the depression hit hard. >> reporter: teeing was born a female but says inside he felt like a man. >> do i really want to spend the rest of my life living like this, or do i want to look deeper into myself and figure out, hey, this might be me. i might not be a woman. i'm a guy. >> reporter: and that inner struggle led to self harm and even a few suicide attempts. and experts say that's not really unusual. lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals have higher rates of suicide and depression, especially among teens, whose rate of attempted suicide is four times higher

than others their own age. >> there really is a significant foundation and fear. fear of losing relationships, fear of disclosure, job loss. >> reporter: steve is director of behavioral health for the whitman walker health clinic. he says depression often surfaces when individuals are first coming out. they fear they won't be accepted by their families or they'll be discriminated against. he warns that those who don't seek professional help often find other ways to cope. things like using drugs and alcohol and engaging in risky behaviors. >> so it could just have a snowball effect for an individual if they continue to try to manage this on their own. >> it's like you have this giant dark hole right in your chest. and no matter what you do, no matter how much food you eat, no matter how much you might self harm, nothing fills that void. >> reporter: mclaren says it took him a while but eventually he realized he was transgender and made the transition from

being a woman to a man. >> once i came out and started hormones, over the course of the following year, i was able to come off all the antidepressants i was on. i calmed down a lot. and i think a lot of that was being able to feel like i was more comfortable in my own skin, because i was being read as my gender that i am. >> you can find much more information about mental health on our website, nbcwashington.com. search changing minds. and you'll find a list of resources and treatment centers close to you. you'll also be able to see other stories on mental health, as well. >> doug joins us now. this time tomorrow we could all be getting rain. >> this time tomorrow, it is umbrella time. that's exactly what's going to be happening, because we do have some rain moving in. it's going to be a little bit of a cool night tonight, but then, yep, the rain moves in during the day tomorrow. right now, a beautiful evening. and yeah, a little bit on the cool side, but not that bad at all. temperatures for most of you in the 60s. 73 at the airport.

dropping to about 70 degrees by 7:00. and down to about 64, much cooler, as we move into the 11:00 hour. so what are we going to be seeing? temperatures already on that cool side. 64 in gaithersburg and bowie. leesburg at 64. 66 down towards warrenton. manassas, though, still on the warm side at 72 degrees. the coolest spot, huntingtown at 61. the onshore flow coming off the chesapeake and atlantic is going to be on the cool side, bringing in cooler weather tomorrow and especially on thursday, i think. look at the rain toward the south. again, we're watching this storm system down here. it's going to continue to develop, and it's going to continue to move our way. as it does, it will interact with an area of high pressure to the north, that's what's going to help us create those northeasterly winds. so you'll see the clouds move in first. here is future weather. tomorrow at 8:30 in the morning the clouds are here and here comes the rain right around 4:00, 5:00, 6:00. so yes, tomorrow night around this time, you will need to have those umbrellas and you might need the big umbrellas, if you're going out, say tomorrow night around thursday morning,

2:00 a.m. that's what some of the heaviest rain could be falling. and that's going to last i think right on through early morning. thursday morning's rush hour could be problematic. and watch what happens thursday. again, if you live to the west of the winchester or leesburg or front royal, i don't think you'll see a lot of rain from this. i think it's going to be from i-95 off towards the east through forces of southern maryland. this is thursday at 5:00 in the afternoon. i still think we'll be dealing with rain and we'll be dealing with some windy conditions during the day on thursday. look at our high temperatures. only 69 on thursday. but 76 on friday. and then this weekend, nice and warm and we dry out too. right now saturday and sunday looking good with highs into the low 80s. >> thank you, doug. someone said there was a game maybe tonight? >> yeah. >> right? >> nats park going to be pretty loud. >> yeah, erika, the nats return home, looking to keep the momentum going into the playoffs. >> i won't change my statement that, you know, this is robert's team. i still stand by that.

>> plus why kirk cousins insists, this is not his team. sports next, guys.

this is the xfinity sports desk, brought to you by xfinity, your home for the most live sports. >> short week for the redskins. two days away, the giants. >> the giants in town. and some good news for redskins fans today.

robert griffin iii at redskins park on crutches, but he's already without that hard cast. now he's walking around in a boot. the quarterback said he will have an update for all of us next week. so while he's recovering, his backup, kirk cousins, is fueling the quarterback debate and this is how he's doing it. in his first start, cousins threw for 427 yards, 3 touchdowns, one interpretation interception. played well. but the redskins didn't get the win, making his record as a starter just 1 and 4. while cousins is confident he could lead this team with rg3 out, he still acknowledges he is just a backup. >> i won't change my statement that, you know, this is robert's team. i still stand by that. i think that he was drafted high for a reason. he's had success here. he's done a lot of good things. and he's done nothing to have that be any different. so this is his team and it's my job as a backup on this team to hopefully when he comes back give him a team with a good record and put him in a good

spot, to have success down the stretch. but by no means does that say i can't go in there as a backup and hopefully get the job done. >> we'll see if he can get the job done this thursday at fedexfield against the new york giants. the nationals have one week left in the regular season and one thing left to accomplish. that's securing home field advantage for the playoffs. finally, the team is back in town tonight. nats playing at home for the first time in 2014, nl east champs. there's the sign. fans getting to sport their gear at the park today. owner mark lerner and rizzo sharing some laughs. they can breathe a little easy. seven games left before the playoffs, and the players feel their best baseball is really yet to come. >> i don't really know if we have -- we don't know what our full potential is. we have played consistently better, guys back from injuries now. and, you know, it's an exciting time.

and we're excited to see what the future has in store for us. >> clinching the division is obviously very important. but i think more importantly to keep the momentum going, keep playing solid baseball, and, you know, be easy to kind of take a breather and not play as hard as you were before. but got to keep going. >> oh, i am. >> always so pumped up. before the nats take the mets tonight, the capitals took the field, unveiling their uniform for the winter classic. alex ovechkin on hand to show off the special jerseys, looking slick there. the winter classic celebrates hockey and much to the delight of the owner, celebrates d.c. >> what better way to do it than in this unbelievable ballpark, and, you know, one of the great cities in the world. and celebrating the great game the way it was meant to be played, outdoors. >> going to be like almost 50,000 people here, you know.

it's going to be a different atmosphere. and in d.c., it's going to be the first time. so i hope our friends are going to enjoy it, and they're going to remember this. >> and you can catch that game on nbc 4 on new year's day. all right. so we've all seen high school football teams run out on to the field, break through the batters, usually the cheerleaders are holding them. there is a team of pee-wee football players in new york who tried to do the same thing this weekend. well, they're only about 50 pounds here. so the little ones try to break through. >> no! >> but they get clotheslined. a big pileup. it's like the sign is made out of papier-mache. >> they're still going. >> you know what, that ain't right. >> the thing is, they're only about 7 or 8 years old, they have to be, what, 50 pounds. they can't break through. but it was a good try for them. >> yeah. >> funny. >> you know the parents feel bad about that. >> they should. that's going to do it for us. "nightly news" is up next. >> and stick around for that

press conference. you can watch that at nbcwashington.com. we'll see you at 11:00.

on our broadcast tonight, the new enemy. as the u.s. unleashes a ferocious air attack against isis targets inside syria, the u.s. has also launched strikes against an mysterious new group said to be in the final stages of plotting an attack. and high alert. in this country what law enforcement is calling the most dangerous time since 9/11. tonight the intelligence t triggered the u.s. to act now. the hidden danger they fear is underground in neighborhoods all across the country. crumbling gas lines and the risk of a sudden catastrophe. and brother and sister, a very personal story from a member of our own family inspiring so many other families tonight. "nightly news" begins now. >> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york,