one of them has confessed. news4's pat collins is live in northwest d.c. with details on this. pat? >> reporter: they robbed six banks in virginia, two banks in maryland but when they robbed this wells fargo here in d.c., curtains. now a confession. a 66-year-old man, a 66-year-old man says he's the black hat bandit. it appears the fbi has solved the case of the black hat bandits. a group of armed bank robbers said to be be responsible for nine bank jobs in d.c., virginia, and maryland. they were known for their military- military-like precision, their brazen guns-drawn tactics, fake beards and of course the black hats. according to court documents 66-year-old thomas anthony george has confessed to the

robberies. officials say george's last bank job was here at the wells fargo on connecticut avenue. they say he walked in pulled a gun and said give me money or i'm going to kill a customer. they say he said that three times. according to court documents, on that march 13th day george and an accomplice made off with $9,000 from the bank. minutes later george was arrested at this apartment on 19th place in southeast. the fbi showed up in full force. they say george had about $4,000 in cash in his pocket. also arrested in connection with the connecticut avenue wells fargo robbery, 37-year-old dawit hall. he's said to be an xmris in this case. it's unclear if he's linked to the others. now, over the last year and a half, the black hat bandits made quite a haul, more than $80,000. at this wells fargo bank in

falls chuxrch, they got $35,000. in another case they got $6000 with a tracking device embedded in the money. but the tracking device didn't work. and at a bank of america in vienna they got $47,000 in cash. but the dye pack went off and so they left all the money in the parking lot. now the investigation is continuing on. there could be more developments. watch this space. live in northwest pat collins news4. it's been kind of a dreary day out there. a lot of green on our radar tonight, and that rain is sticking around for now. but, doug, when is the delicious weather coming back? >> you mean kind of like yesterday? >> yeah. >> i think that comes back during the day tomorrow. not quite as warm tomorrow as yesterday, but still a lot better than today. today kind of dreary. look at the radar over the last four hours, and you notice the

rain just continuing to move on through the region. that rain was on the moderate to heavy side in some areas, although we didn't see any real heavy rain. we do have one report of someg back toward the burke area around fairfax county parkway parkway. other than that, not a lot of issues. take a look at the rain right now here is the latest version showing you heavy rain along culver county and the chesapeake, back toward frederick county in virginia. all of this still has to move on through. we still have a couple of hours of rain. we'll talk about when the rain moves out and when that delicious weather does return. >> thank you, doug. now to a new step forward in the u.s. relationship with cuba. today president obama officially informed congress that he is removing cuba from the list of state sponsors of terror. congress has 45 days to try to block that move. the president is likely to veto their action if they do. the terror designation has been a stumbling block in negotiations normal relations and reopen embassies in havana and washington. in the meantime president obama vowed to pressure late

today and agreed to give congress the right to reject a nuclear agreement with iran. steve hansdelsman is on capitol hill where democrats and republicans demanded a say in the deal. >> reporter: bipartisan, the sure way to get any president's attention. this could still turn into a fight between congress and the white house. president obama still on a run, does not want lawmakers ss looking over the shoulder of his secretary of state who was up here today in his old stomping ground. john kerry came to capitol hill to buy time and keep congress out of his nuclear negotiations with iran. >> are you opt mission tickmystic. >> reporter: a key senate committee demanded that congress approve any deal. >> the ayes have it. >> reporter: it was unanimous. democrats joined with republicans. >> it's necessary because at the core, this is a negotiation about what must iran do to get out from under a congressional sanctions regime. congress will be involved. >> reporter: kerry's pushing an agreement with the iranians by

july 1st. they'd freeze their nuclear program and allow close monitoring to get what they're already celebrating, the u.s. lifting sanctions. but congress would get 52 days to review any agreement. >> and sure there is something that holds iran accountable. it's enforceable and certainly it's very transparent. >> reporter: president obama who met today with iraq's prime minister and warned iraq is moving too close to iran indicated he might go along with congressional review. >> enough substantial changes have been made that the president would be willing to sign it. >> reporter: some conservatives still oppose any agreement. >> iran the world's worst state sponsor of terrorism it puts them on the path to a nuclear weapon. >> reporter: but kerry says iran's support of terror is why a deal to deny them nuclear weapons is needed. most up here agree of course iran can't be trusted and iran should not get nuclear weapons. now congress has made it clear

the white house has got to come up with an agreement that clearly seems to suit both demands. live from capitol hill steve handelsman, news4. well, hillary clinton is wrapping up her first official day of campaign stops in iowa. as promised she's keeping everything small. the former secretary of state spent time at a coffee shop in claire where she chatted one-on-one with voters there. clinton made her way to monticello for a discussion at a community college. and tomorrow she'll be meeting with another small group for what the campaign is calling a business roundtable. now new jersey governor chris christie is considering a run for president in 2016. he's apparently not afraid of the third rail of politics. today christie laid out his ideas for reforming social security and medicare. spe speaking in new hampshire, the republican proposed gradually raising the retirement age to 69 and asking higher income

retirees to pay more for their medicare benefits. christie also said older americans who make more than $200,000 a year should give up social security payments altogether. and senator marco rubio is back in d.c. after he launched his presidential campaign in miami last night. one of his likely opponents in the republican primary is jeb bush. on the "teedtoday" show this morning he was asked if he was breaking one of the unwritten rules of politics by running against one of his mentors. >> jeb bush is my friend. i think he would tell you the exact same thing. i have respect for him, add admiration for him. i just believe at this moment in our history we need to move in a different direction in the country. >> rubio is a first term senator but says he has more experience than president obama did when he ran for the white house in 2008 as a senator from illinois. agents with the drug enforcement administration have attended sex parties with

prostitutes while stationed overseas, dating back as far as 2001. that's what came out in a dea report released today. it follows a justice department investigation spawned by a secret service prostitution scandal in 2012. so far ten dea agents have been accused of wrongdoing, seven suspended. but none have been fired and their names have not been released. a major face-lift underway for the russell senate office building. crews are planning repairs to the facade windows and doors of the building across the street from the capitol. scott macfarlane reports moisture is damaging the 105-year-old building. heavy pieces of stone are at risk of deteriorating. the architect ever the capitol says repairs are needed soon to prevent the stones from falling down. it's an issue similar to one at the aging cannon house office building where netting was recently installed to keep pieces of the building from falling onto tourists and employees. fixing flooding problems in the district.

the city says a big machine named lucy will help make it happen. residents are hoping they're right. news4's tom sherwood explains how it's going to work. >> reporter: ask any new or long-time resident of bloomingdale or ledroit park in northwest d.c. the flooding is terrible. too much water is feared with every storm. >> when i still tell people that i live here, they go oh, isn't that the neighborhood that always floods? i never expected that i would fall victim to flooding when i moved here. i never knew sandbags would become a way of life. >> reporter: mayor muriel bowser spilled a little more water today. she was dedicating the massive tunnel boring machine named lucy. it will be lowered into the nearly 200-foot shaft under 1st street northwest and create a massive storage tank to hold 9 million gallons of overflow. >> so i'm happy to be here to welcome lucy. we need you, lucy. we can't wait for you to get to work, lucy. >> reporter: neighbors like derek jones are anxious for

progress, too. >> we're moving a step closer to easing not only my fears but all of the fears of every one of us in bloomtiondale, ledroit park. >> reporter: all part of a $4 billion citywide project required when the epa told the city to stop pa luting the an cost area and potomac rivers. >> what we're doing together here is solving a problem that dates back a century or more. >> reporter: lucy is the third of four massive tunnel digging machines to be used around the city. local residents have put up with noise, street closeings and other strupgss that will continue well into next year. in the district, tom sherwood news4. protest in nigeria, europe and here in the states a year after boko haram kidnapped more than 200 school girls in nigeria nigeria's capital city. school girls marched to government cities today. in the year since those kidnappings, nigerian residents have voiced frustration toward the government. some are hoping the country's new president will be able to secure the girls' release.

the kidnappings sparked a global outcry including on social media with the hash tag bring back our girls. today the state department again called for their immediate and unconditional release. the first day of testimony in an alexandria murder trial. next at 6 what moved some jurors to tears when the victim's daughter took the stand. trapped in the belly of an airborne plane. what we're learning about the moments after an airport baggage handler fell asleep on the job. and a pivotal moment in u.s. history. 150 years ago at 10:15 tonight. and the role a young d.c. police department played after the assassination of president lincoln.

♪ there is no royal blood in this country. nothing is reserved for anyone. it's all just out there... ...waiting... ...for someone to reach out... ...and take it. and the ones who do... ...these are the kings and queens of america. ♪

i'm pat lawson muse at the live defkt. hundreds of people roe marching through downtown new york city in the middle of rush hour traffic to protest deadly police shootings. this is video taken a short while ago from nbc new york's chopper. the group is marching from union square to 1 police plaza. this was organized by the activist group stop mass incarceration to protest the recent killing of walter scott by a white police officer in south carolina. earlier today, about 500 people stopped traffic to cross the brooklyn bridge. some were arrested and commuters have been warned to expect major traffic delays because of this.

at the live desk, i'm pat lawson muse. a volunteer sheriff's deputy is now facing manslaughter charges for his role in a deadly shooting in tulsa, oklahoma. robert bates turned himself in today. he was booked and released after posting a $25,000 bond. a video of the april 2nd incident shows deputies chase and tackle 44-year-old eric harris. a gunshot rang out. bates said he mistook his gun for a taser, and the shooting was an accident. he's due to make his first court appearance next tuesday. an emotional day in court just wrapped up in alexandria. dawit say yum is being tried for the murder of d.c. corrections official carolyn cross. julie carey heard that testimony, and she's live outside the courthouse. julie? >> reporter: well today's testimony is the first time we've heard from the family of victim carolyn cross. her daughter's description of finding her mother dead back on september 7th was so heartbreaking even some jurors

were moved to tears. clarissa davis was the prosecutor's first witness as they build their first degree murder case against dawit sayeyoum seyoum. carolyn cross was due to leave town for a women's leadership conference the day she was killed. davis said she became alarmed when she drove to this high-rise to take her mom to the airport and she got no answer on the phone. she began sobbing as she told jurors what she found inside the apartment. i walked in and found my mother, she was laid out in front of me. and i screamed. i walked towards her and she had a plastic bag over her head and there was blood all over her head. that afternoon police responded to a 911 attempted suicide call at a neighboring building. there they found dawit saeyoumseyoum, the words i was the dirty one written on the bathroom wall. officer james young said seyoum told him i did something bad

today. i asked him what. he said, i think i murdered a woman. jurors also heard an audiotaped confession given by seyoum from his hospital bed. he told detectives he had been angry with his mother and decided to kill someone. he targeted cross because he thought when he had encountered her at the apartment complex she'd stared at him in a mean way. asked the detective, was she hit on the head? sayeyoum seyoum yes. what was she hit with? seyoum, a wrej. was she still alive when you put the bag on her head? seyoum, she was not conscious. his attorneys say he was acutely psychotic when he killed cross. they will call experts who believe he was insane and should not be found criminally responsible. seyoum's attorneys say he suffers from schizophrenia. he was found mentally unfit for a time prior to trial. but medication restored him to competency. throughout these first two days of trial he has sat very quietly, showing no emotion.

back to you, doreen. >> thank you, julie. there are growing concerns that we may be in for a rough summer of brush fires across our area. more than 120 acres have already burned in montgomery county so far this spring. county fire officials tell news4 it's early for so many fires to have damaged so much land. they say a contributing factor may be the big amount of debris on the ground in the woods left behind after a rough winter. never really thought about that before. >> yeah. >> it's pretty damp out there right now though. >> indeed. it really is. there was even a threat of some drought down there toward the southeast. this is the same system bringing in a ton of rain. no problems as far as that's concerned. that will help out toward the south and east. outside right now we've got shower activity and look at this, look how much green we have out there. it's like stuff just blossomed overnight. >> it happens fast. >> it does. how long do you think the grass over toward the airport will stay that green? >> maybe a month. >> all right. doreen takes a month. i'll say six weeks. take a look at the numbers right now, currently 56 degrees, winds

out of the northeast at 10 miles per hour, still light shower activity around. but most of the steady rain is now out of the region. one thing that's a lot different, temperatures. yesterday 80 degrees today we're at 56 in d.c., 52 in huntingtown, 55 back towards winchester. it's a cool evening too. and we still have some shower activity heaviest of which toward the southern maryland fredericksburg, back to the west around winchester, toward frederick. take a look around leesburg, in through portions of montgomery county right along 270 still seeing that rain around gaithersburg bethesda, leesburg and around the ashburn area and toward sterling still dealing with a little bit in the way of lighter rain there. that rain will continue right on through the next couple of hours. you can see where it is, back toward west virginia. once again, a little bit of broken-up shower activity that will continue most likely through 8:00 9:00 p.m. future weather timing it out for us going through 8:00, you notice around 8:00 still showers lingering, most live down to the south of the d.c. metro area south of front royal for the

most part, but still a few showers around. even at 11:00, still showers but they move farther to the west. we're still dealing with cloud cover, however. tomorrow morning more cloud cover, but we're not talking rain. still some damp roadways, however. give yourself a little bit of extra time. a cool start, temperatures around 49 degrees. it is going to be a little bit on the cool side early tomorrow, temperatures at or just a little bit above average to start the day. tomorrow afternoon a little bit above average to end the day. a high of 69 tomorrow with clearing skies between 4:00 and 6:00, driving should not be impacted by the weather unless you talk about sun glare possibly. 67 a high in frederick, 70 in culpeper culpeper, 64 martinsburg and 64 toward annapolis. temperatures looking pretty good and rebounding from where they were today. i do think we'll continue to see that tomorrow. exercise impact tomorrow, good day to get out and play some tennis later in the day. let everything dry out first. 1:00, 66, 69 degrees around 3:00, yes more afternoon sunshine. what about the next couple of days? a few chances of showers, but that's all they will be, just

shower activity. we're not talking about a lot of rain. showers possible late thursday, temperatures around 68 70 on friday with shower activity early. but then clearing late in the afternoon. another chance of showers late saturday. if you have any games planned this weekend i think they may actually be okay here. that's something we'll continue to watch on saturday and sunday. a lot of little league games going on this weekend. 74 on saturday, 68 degrees on sunday. monday coming in with a high of 69 and, yes, we're talking about another chance of some rain. monday right now looks like the time we could see some of the heaviest rain. >> thank you, doug. coming up asleep in the cargo hold. new fallout for the airline worker who nodded off on the job. what his company has to say tonight. and hundreds of voting machines scrapped in virginia. why some counties there are going to have to scramble to re [ female announcer ] business

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or recharging do business travel on your terms. acela. take off. the airport worker who fell asleep inside the cargo hold of an alaska airlines flight in seattle yesterday passed a drug and alcohol test after the incident. tonight his company says he knowingly violated policies and procedures. the man hasn't been charged with a crime and his name hasn't been released. passengers heard him banging on the walls after takeoff. the plane made an emergency landing less than 15 minutes later. the cargo hold was pressurized and climate controlled so the worker wasn't hurt. it's a sweet deal for high

schoolers in loudoun county. college credit without the tuition. but tonight northern virginia bureau reporter david culver explains why this program is not in jeopardy. >> reporter: it may not look like a college physics classroom. these faces a little young. but rock ridge high's mr. hanky is serving as an adjunct professor here and these students getting college credit for free. >> this class would be the opportunity for continuing to pursue those interests at a high level. >> reporter: you can call peggy marco a stage mom. her freshman daughter katie among those accepted into next year's advanced theater course. >> that she would get not only her high school credit but this would be college credit and experience that she could take on to the university level. >> reporter: and that translates into money saved for peggy. >> which is a huge burden lifted for parents who want to pursue higher education but financially find it overwhelming.

>> reporter: rock ridge high school hoped to expand the program next year to include theater, biology, maybe even chemistry. but those plans now on hold. after our report in january, northern virginia community college contacted state education officials essentially challenging richard blaine's jurisdiction in northern virginia. last week richard bland got a partial go-ahead. >> we got the approval from the state now. we're just hoping we can move forward with approval from the county to keep on going for next year. >> reporter: it's now loudoun county public schools that's stalling the program. and it's unclear why. it creates uncertainty for students like jessica howard who's enrolled in next year's course. >> it would be a very sad thing for those of us who have put in work to be in this course. >> we shouldn't put that on hold for our kids. there's no reason. >> reporter: in ashburn, david culver, news4. >> announcer: next, what local store owners are saying about a new tax on electronic cigarettes. she survived a horrible

accident when she was 10. years later surgery left her with new scars. coming up, see how a pair of hollywood doctors turned a local woman's life around. >> announcer: plus, a local family's fight for a 9-year-old boy, alive after surviveing a shot to the head. the emotional

she nearly died in a fire at 10 years old.

she's had almost a dozen surgeries since. >> now i can actually smile front on and not feel weird. >> a local woman's story featured on national tv. how that's helping her and her family to heal. e-cigarettes and vaping are becoming big business. montgomery county wants to tax it. he left his post, and the president was killed. new at 6:30, the d.c. police officer assigned to protect president lincoln 150 years ago tonight. where he was when the fatal shot was fired. there soon could be a new tax on people who use e-cig ritts in montgomery county. we could be talking 30%. >> council members hope it will help them raise money they're not getting from annapolis. as chris gordon reports, some business owners are worried it will cost them. >> reporter: this is vape ink in rockville one of a growing shops in montgomery county that sell everything needed for vaping. >> say if you're getting off of

smoking and you go to bleu electronic cigarettes, then you'll probably pay $20 for the setup. you're more than likely not going to like it so you'll go to a vape shop and probably end up buying something like this like a box mod with a rebuildable at miser on top. >> reporter: that costs about $240. but add another $72 in montgomery county if the council passes a tax on e-cigarettes and vape paraphernalia. >> the bill is intended to add a 30% excise tax on the distributors. >> reporter: montgomery county doesn't know exactly how much revenue the new tax will raise, but they believe it will be in the millions and it will be used as part of the general fund to pay for county services. >> what we generally consider vice taxes like this one assists not a trust fund approach, but they generally support our public health efforts. >> reporter: if passed, the tax will go into effect july 1st. would a tax affect the amount you smoke?

>> yeah. in a way. if you think about it that way. >> reporter: in vape shops a $12 bottle of flavored liquid called juice could cost more than $15.50 because of the tax, which shops say could drive away business. >> really the customers can still get the juice unattached. they don't have to buy it in maryland. you can buy juice extremely cheap online. >> reporter: starting in june, montgomery county is banning the use of e-cigarettes and vaping in public places where smoking tobacco is prohibited. chris gofrden, news4. >> most virginia voters now support legalizing the use of recreational marijuana. according to a new quinnipiac university poll 54% now say they favor legalization. 41% still oppose. but not all of those supporters are looking to light up. just 15% of voters said they would definitely or probably use marijuana if it were legal. the poll found that 86% of voters support the legalization of medical marijuana.

state lawmakers legalized a form of cannabis oil earlier this year. in maryland 121 new laws are on the books tonight. governor larry hogan says taxpayers will benefit. he put pen to paper today to sign bills recently passed by the general assembly. among them, tax relief for military pensions, a repeal of what opponents call the rain tax, and a bill allowing charter school expansion in maryland. however, a number of measures did not pass in the maryland legislature nearly two dozen bills on police accountability. lawmakers could not come to an agreement on any of them. hundreds rallied for against death with dignity this year. that bill has been scheduled for a summer work session. and a bill requiring certain businesses to provide paid sick leave was also tabled. virginia is getting rid of its voting machines that had major technical problems on election day last november. today the state board of elections decertified more than 500 winvote machines that allow

you to punch your ballot on a touch screen. they're used in about 20% of precincts, and that includes spotsylvania county. those precincts will now have to scramble to find replacements in time for virginia's primary, which is in june. virginia children with intellectual and developmental challenges have a better shot at a financially secure future. terry mcauliffe signed the able act into law in arlington today. it allows those with disabilities to set up tax-exempt accounts to save for future living expenses. kind of like the 529 plans for college expenses. it was the idea of a couple whose teenage daughter has down syndrome. they wanted to secure her future when they're gone. parents tell us what it means to them. >> individuals with challenges will no longer be forced to live in a life of poverty, and that's where we were. >> one of the biggest concerns i have, as a parent with a child with special needs, is what happens when we're gone? >> virginia is the first state

to set up these accounts under a federal bill passed in december. dozens of on or about states are now expected to follow. new at 6 tonight a reality tv show helps a local woman and her family heal from a botched surgery. her name is chrissy, and she's been through a lot. from bad burns as a kid to years of surgeries, including one that left her with a physical and emotional scar. now she's sharing her emotional journey with news4's kristin wright before her story airs on e! entertainment tonight. >> i've been through 11 surgeries. >> reporter: chrissy was left disfigured after reconstructive surgery almost ten years ago. >> if you've ever seen a burn victim, that's what i look like. that's what i am. >> reporter: chrissy was badly burned at her home in darnstown, maryland, when she was 10. years of surgeries followed, the worst in 2005. >> just a thick red scar all across my chin. >> reporter: this is where the e! network show "botched" enters the picture. >> the more botched, greatest

potential for improvement. >> reporter: chrissy's story is on the season 2 premiere of the reality show tonight. she goes under the knife again her first reconstructive surgery in almost ten years. her last attempt. >> it has healed me in so many ways i can't even describe. >> reporter: her family. >> my family and i swept a lot of memories and things under the rug that really should have been aired out throughout the years. >> reporter: it's helped them haefl. >> this kind of brought it out of us, and it's been incredible for all of us. i mean, we're closer than ever. >> reporter: chrissy documents her journey on her blog pretty with a scar search "botched" on the nbc washington app. kristin wright news4. i'm pat lawson muse at the live desk. nearly 100 miles of interstate in utah are closed right now after high winds knocked off tractor trailers leading to pileups and at least one death. take a look at some of the pictures from our affiliate in salt lake city. as many as eight tractor

trailers have been blown over. one of the crashes turned deadly when low visibility led to a pileup involving several cars and semis. right now i-80 is closed from the utah/nevada line to about 30 miles outside of salt lake city. that's 99 miles all together. police expect to reopen parts of the road within the next hour or two. i'm pat lawson muse at the live desk. new video of a little boy in the district and his difficult rehab after he got shot in the head. tonight, the family is filing a massive lawsuit. a day after getting scrubbed by weather, a successful launch in florida tonight. but the big challenge, saving the rocket for another launch. doug? we're still talking about that rain moving in across our area. the steadiest rain continues to move on out, but we still have more in the forecast. and not just tonight. we'll talk about that in just a minute.

♪ when a man loves a woman ♪ wow, the song of so many generations. that classic, and it continues to touch listeners today. r&b singer percy sledge passed away this morning at his home in baton rouge, louisiana. that signature song "when a man loves a woman" was his debut single and became a massive hit in 1966 appeared on numerous movie sound tracks over the years. sledge was in hospice care, and he died after a year-long battle with cancer at the age of 74. a concert celebrating gospel music is set to get under way at the white house within the hour. aretha franklin, lyle lovett and others are set to perform. president obama will give a speech pabout the influence of gospel and other american music

forms. michelle obama hosted a workshop for school children earlier today. we're getting a new look this evening at a 9-year-old boy still recovering after he was hit in the head by a stray bullet. tonight his family is demanding more than answers. the family of jadeyden stancil filed a $50 million lawsuit against property management, the apartment complex and security. they say while the partialities are listed as gated, the gates were left open seven months ago when jayden was shot. >> he's doing much better toefd considering he was given only 35 minutes to live. i would hate to see another family go through what i've been through. >> while jayden has seen improvements doctors say he may never recover all of his cognitive abilities. the owners of the apartment complex expressed deep concern for jayden and his family and says in a statement as an affordable housing developer, they are committed to the safety of their more than 9,000$9,000

residents. tributes to president lincoln tonight and tomorrow at ford's theater. up next, a look at who was supposed to be protecting the president that night when he was killed 150 years ago.

two, one, and liftoff. >> one of the most expensive food delivery services is now officially in orbit. an unmanned spaceship with groceries is headed to the international space station. listen to this. it includes an espresso machine for an italian astronaut. the dragon spaceship is bringing supplies for experiments. it launched late this afternoon

at cape canaveral. the attempt to recuseuse part of the rocket did not go as planned. its landing was too hard for survival. marking 150 years since the assassination of president abraham lincoln. it was on this day in 1865 that john wilkes booth shot lincoln at ford's theater. tonight the theater is hosting a tribute performance for the president followed by a candlelight vigil outside. the national park service will host a wreath laying ceremony tomorrow morning at 7:22, the moment that lincoln passed away. and at 8:00 a.m. bells will toll at locations across washington in lincoln's honor. the assassination of president lincoln was a pivotal moment for a young d.c. police department. lincoln helped create the mpd. as mark segraves reports, it was an mpd officer who was supposed to be protecting the president the night he was killed.

>> reporter: in the early 1800s, washington, d.c. was protected by soldiers and a loosely organized group of night watchmen. it wasn't until 1850 that police officers were given badges. then, in 1861 as the civil war was beginning, president abraham lincoln and congress established the metropolitan police department, in part to help control the unruly soldiers who occupied the city at the time. help wanted signs went up. the job paid $480 a year and you had to provide your own gun. >> policing was very different back then. >> reporter: in march of 1865 the mpd oversaw its first presidential inauguration. during that ceremony, john wilkes booth tried to make his way into the capitol rotunda where president lincoln was being sworn in for his second term. booth was intercepted by police. a month later, booth would make another attempt to gain access to the president, this time at

ford's theater. there was no secret service at the time. the president's security detail was made up of metropolitan police officers. the officer assigned to protect lincoln that night was john parker, one of the original officers hired when lincoln formed the department. according to police records from the time, parker left his post outside the president's box seats. it's not clear where parker was, but he had been known to leave his post to get drunk and spend time with prostitutes. the superintendent of the department, a.c. richards was in the audience in ford's theater when the fatal shot rang out. superintendent richards helped to lead the search for booth. as for officer parker, he didn't know up again until the next morning. police records show parker was not fired for leaving his post. instead he was brought before a trial board and disciplined for neglect of duty. >> the disciplinary system has not changed any since the lincoln incident. you know sadly, we do joke

about that a little bit. >> reporter: two years later, parker was fireder he was caught sleeping on duty. in the district, mark segraves. coming up tonight at 11:00 a rare piece of history from the lincoln assassination. we'll see the handwritten police blotter from that night and how it was almost lost forever. and be sure to watch nbc 4 this saturday morning for the lincoln assassination with aaron gilchrist, a special program marking 150 years since the death of our 16th president. will the rain let up tonight for the candlelight vigil downtown? >> it should. the rain has already let up and any rain that comes through may be on the light side. we're talking about a small umbrella, not the bigger ones like we made needed earlier today. take a look outside right now, not clear skies but light rain around the region. national harbor camera looking pretty good as we look toward the woodrow wilson bridge and the calm potomac. a little earlier today, this was an all-wet picture. you can see no raindrops on the

camera. current temperatures at 56, showers through 8:00, 9:00, then cooler weather through 11:00, really through tomorrow morning. currently 54 in gaithersburg baltimore rockville, college park, all coming in at 54 degrees. you can add reston as well. the cool spot campus springs down to 50. it's a little bit on the cool if not chilly side. storm team4 radar showing the rain continuing across the region. we still have some of that rain around the area, heaviest rain back towards luray and the winchester area. that will continue to move on towards the east. and as it does, we have another batch back toward the west. we're not quite done yet but the heaviest rain is now moving through. down to the south temperatures were a little warmer, near 80 degrees around norfolk. look what that brings you thunderstorm activity, strong thunderstorms a little earlier around raleigh, nothing too severe, however. as far as our weather goes tomorrow, all of this gets out of here. we see cloud cover to start but then more sun in the afternoon.

temperature 64 to about 71 degrees, the kids will be able to get outside for a little outdoor recess tomorrow where today they were kind of stuck inside. tomorrow thinking about get out on the bike? looking good, 1:00 66 5:00, 69 degrees. nice and mild during the afternoon, probably the better time to ride the bike if you can. sun goes down at 7:44 as we continue to get more and more daylight. temperature of 68 on thursday. we have a chance for a late-day shower on thursday. then an early chance on friday. but we're just talking about a slight chance, not expecting anything heavy. next chance for heavy rain comes next monday, high temperature around 69. right now the weekend not looking too bad, chance of rain late saturday. >> thank you, doug. coming up in sports, cats scaps looking to get physical with new york. carol is up next to tell why it's key to their playoff hopes. first lester holt with what's next. >> hi, doreen and wendy. we're inside an atlanta courtroom when the judge throws a book at a group of former educateors convicted in a

cheating scandal. also, rita wilson opens up about her breast cancer diagnosis and why she's a big advocate for second opinions. and we'll meet the corporate ceo taking a big pay cut to give his employees b ♪ building aircraft, the likes of which the world has never seen. this is what we do. ♪ that's the value of performance. northrop grumman.

>> announcer: this is the xfinity sports desk brought to you by xfinity, your home for the most live sports. so the verizon center is going to be rocking.

>> going to be rocking. the today the question, is it tomorrow yet? and how far will they go? that's all we're hearing. so exciting the best time of year. the sun usually shine plants are budding and so are the high hopes of the washington capitals. playoff hockey is back. caps favored in their first round against the islanders. we'll see how far they can go as the team puts the finishing touches at the game plan. this year's team is known for its physical, punishing style of play, which is perfectly suited for the playoffs, a strategy that seems to be a big hit with the guys in the locker room. >> big hit, nice. >> we've had success by being physical. that's what we're going to try to do. it's no secret other teams will try the same thing. >> we have a big team. if you do, you might as well utilize that and play heavy and make sure that the other team isn't pushing you around. we have guys that makes sure that doesn't happen. i mean, i like it. even if i'm not the most

physical guy anyway i mean playoff time comes, everyone's got to be physical. >> wendy like that's one. that's your favorite. >> one heavy. >> playoff hockey appointment television. clear your calendar, especially this sunday. we're going to have a big day of couch sitting. game three of the caps/islanders right here sunday high noon on news4. our pregame show just for you caps' quest for the cup at 11:30 a.m. you're welcome. the great thing about baseball is that you get a chance to redeem your mistakes. and, boy, do the washington nationals have a lot of issues in the rear view after yesterday's debacle at fenway. a fresh start this afternoon in the middle game of a three-game set. it's under way. jayson werth 0 for 3 in his season debut monday. today it looks like he may have that first hit. but remember hookmookie betts? another great catch on the run. michael taylor moved down from leadoff to the ninth hole today,

coming through rbi single. driving in danny espinoza. right now the nats have a 1-0 lead in the second. to the wizards, second to the last game of the regular season tonight. wiz on the road at indiana. that game at 8:00, the wiz locked into the fifth seed in the playoffs. they'll face either the raptors or the bulgz. the paigscers are battling for the eighth seed, currently a half game up on the nets. they have something to play for tonight. meantime, honest abe, he would be so proud. today the former president's image was seen on hats and t-shirts at the washington capitals. and when asked if it was to honor our 16th president, on this day, the anniversary of his assassination, the players just told the truth. no, it was a total coincidence. they've been channeling inner abe all season. after each win, they awarded the honest abe player of the game to the hardest working guy out there for his honest effort. and today at practice they

debuted the t-shirt, the outline of abe lincoln's top hat and beard with the words "together," the top word english and then in russian and swedish "together." >> that's why we didn't know. >> okay. >> then they have the hat, okay? this is the hat. it's pretty cool. it has "my man" on the outline. fun but a serious message behind all of this. >> abraham lincoln was a difference maker in our time so we sort of use that metaphor to say, who's going to be a difference maker for us each night. that's what we've grasped on to. >> we're a family. it's a family only thing. you will not be getting one. >> was that cruel? he goes, we're a family. i was standing right there. i'm like, i'm in that circle. then he's like, no, none of you will get any. >> that abe image is on the back, by the way. they should keep going with it. >> just players. i don't think you can get one. if you do, tell me.

>> i will. i'll wear it. >> see

on this tuesday night, jail for cheating. we're in the courtroom as an angry judge throws the book at educators convicted in one of the biggest cheating scandals in american history. sentences of up to 20 years. trapped in the sky. the video from on board as passengers hear an airport worker banging and screaming below them. stuck in the cargo hold. fighting breast cancer. rita wilson says getting a second opinion may have saved her life. tonight the staggering number of patients who aren't getting second opinions even though doctor and salary surprise many our cameras are there as employees learn they're getting a huge raise. some doubling their salaries. tonight how their boss is doing it. "nightly news" begins ri