no one can understand why someone could end his life this way. we begin our story now with some words from the victim's brother. >> even though he was in this condition, he was more happier than any normal person in the world. he was more happier than i am. >> reporter: by all accounts, douglas reyes was a happy, friendly young man. everybody on his street knew him. >> he was a wonderful guy. real wonderful. he didn't mess with nobody. he was always speaking to everybody. a wonderful guy. >> reporter: douglas reyes liked to go to the playground at the gaywood elementary school. he would walk his dog, sparky, and sit on the bench here. yesterday that walk cost him his life. 24-year-old douglas reyes stabbed to death on this bench on that playground in broad daylight yesterday afternoon. douglas reyes was disabled.

he was in a car accident when he was 5. he had trouble walking. he had truck moving his arms. and so for someone to go after him in his condition -- >> he's heartless. he has no sympathy. he's an animal. >> reporter: a short time after it happened, police arrested 31-year-old alex james jones. he lives about a mile from the murder scene. today, i talked to his mother. >> my son never had any trouble with the law. he's never been arrested. my son is diagnosed with multiple mental disabilities and even if someone had provoked him, he has never defended himself. >> reporter: now, nothing was taken from douglas reyes. nothing. so what was the motive here? well, we have the court documents. they detail what happened. coming up at 6:00. jim, back to you. >> pat collins. pat, thank you.

now to that wild weather impacting much of the country right now. >> from the midwest to the pacific northwest. we are seeing snow and ice. creating some dangerous driving conditions. >> across parts of the south heavy rains have led to mudslides and flooded out homes and businesses. >> and in texas, communities still picking up the pieces after that string of tornadoes killed nearly a dozen people. >> let's get straight to storm team 4 chief meteorologist doug kammerer with a look at all this extreme weather out there. doug? >> yeah, guy, the weather has really been a story all across the country especially in the middle part of the country with the tornadoes they've had out there, the flooding that they've had. nearly four dozen people have been killed by all the severe weather. this is one place, st. louis. take a look at missouri. the mississippi river. continuously flooding over its banks right now. going to continue to be that way. record-breaking flooding. this will be the worst flooding in parts of that region since 1993. that, as far as the weather community is concerned, a famous flood that happened along the

mississippi over 100,000 homes were lost at that time. you can see what's happening right now. numerous homes will once again be lost as the mississippi continues to crest. it will crest in some locations at all-time record high levels. so once again, just a traumatic situation down there in that area. see the water up toward the middle and even the roof of some of the buildings and the businesses down that way. now, take a look at the rest of the country. the good news is that system is now out of this region so at least they can begin to maybe dry out just a little bit but it's going to take days. still under flood warnings, back to the west, the system that came through us is the same system but once again, it was severe back to the west but for us it just brought us some rain and brought us some warm temperatures, too. not much to talk about right now. no rain to talk about. the temperatures have been very warm to the south. got to 80 in virginia beach. for us 5r3 for a high temperature. temperatures the next couple days will continue to be on the mild side.

your headlines tonight, more showers. we have another storm system moving our way. a very minor storm, though. we'll watch that. mild for now just for the next few days before it gets cold for the new year. we'll talk about how mother nature wants to bring in some real winter cold as we make our way toward 2016. see you in a minute. >> doug, thank you. he was just 19 years old. out for a bike ride on his new wheels he got for christmas. but that would be the last night and the last ride for frank towers. he was hit and killed in a crosswalk in montgomery county. this happened just before 7:30 last night at the intersection of viers mills road and turkey branch parkway. news 4 ee's chris gordon is liv after speaking with a house mate who wases actually trying to keep him safe. chris? >> reporter: yeah, we will hear from her in just a moment. first, montgomery county police tell me they know that this is a dangerous crosswalk. last night in the falling rain, it was deadly.

the report of a bicyclist struck in the crosswalk on viers mills road was broadcast on police radio. alyx walker says her dad who's a volunteer firefighter heard the call. they didn't know at the time it would turn out it be alyx's friend and house mate, 19-year-old frank towers. she says she couldn't eat or sleep but it really hit home this morning. >> i just collapsed on the kitchen floor and started wailing because it was really unreal. you know? and then that's what everyone is saying, it's just so unreal. >> reporter: alyx sent me these photos and the eulogy she wrote on facebook which says "this is my best friend, frank. he likes painting his nails. we played video games together." we also learned today he lofded h loved his new job as an instructor at dynamite gymnastics. he was riding his new bike from work when he was hit five minutes from home. >> actually the bike he was riding, my dad had just given him for christmas, so he was really excited about it. >> reporter: montgomery county

police captain thomas didone says one car in the right lane had stopped. another was slowing down in the middle lane. the car in the left lane failed to yield to frank in the crosswalk, hitting him. >> under maryland law, clearly you have to not only yield to pedestrians that are in crosswalks, but the law specifies if there are cars stopped in the roadway at a crosswalk, you can't pass those cars. >> reporter: today, we watched as cyclists and pedestrians used this crosswalk and coming up tonight on news 4 at 6:00, you will see some close calls that happened right in front of our camera and you'll hear calls for improved safety at crosswalks. that's the latest live in montgomery county, wendy, back to you. >> all right. chris gordon. and arlington man is facing abduction charges after police say he threatened to kill a computer technician. police say joseph mondello refused to let that technician leave until he fixed the computer.

this happened in a home about a mile from reagan national airport. investigators say at one point he pulled a knife on the man. arlington now reports that mondello is registered in our area as a lobbyist. that chicago police officer who shot an unarmed teenager 16 times last year is pleading not guilty to murder. jason van dyke entered his plea this morning. he's charged with first-degree murder for the killing of laquan mcdonnell. dashcam video shows mcdonald holding a knife but walking away from police prompted protests around the city. van dyke is free on more than $1 million bond. we're hearing from cleveland's mayor after a grand jury decided not to indict officers in the deadly shooting of tamir rice, the 12-year-old boy shot and killed a year ago after he was waving a pellet gun around in park and police thought it was real. news 4's chris lawrence is here with that story. >> this afternoon a small group

of protesters have been gathering outside cleveland's justice building to protest that grand jury's decision. the mayor says now that the criminal review is over, they can start the administrative process to determine what, if any, disciplinary action should be taken. the grand jury's decision came more than a year after officers shot and killed rice. surveillance video appears to show the 12-year-old boy with what's later revealed to be a pellet gun. but attorneys for the officers maintain they acted based on what they knew at the time. cleveland's mayor and the police chief say they won't question the reasoning behind the outcome of the grand jury. >> the fact is a 12-year-old has lost their life. it should not have happened. it should not have happened. it simply should not have happened. >> rice's family issued a statement yesterday that read in part, "they no longer trust the criminal justice system and believe the prosecutor sabotaged the case. the prosecutor called rice's

death an absolute tragedy but says it would have been unreasonable for the officers to wait to see if that gun was real. jim? >> chris lawrence. thank you. getting a parking space, no surprise in the district, can be a challenge no matter where you are and now hundreds of parking spaces all over the national mall could be going away to make room for tour buses. our transportation reporter adam tuss has been looking through documents now that talk about this new plan. he joins us live from the national mall details and some reaction for us, too. adam? >> reporter: ah, yes, the parking wars in the city, jim, aren't they fun? they could be ramping up even further. yeah, the problem is that there are too many tour buses coming through the city. we simply don't have enough places to put them all. when you stop for a second and admire the beauty around the mall, you remember why so many people want to come check it all out. that's part of the issue. so many people and specifically tour buses are flooding the streets around the mall. there's not enough space to put

them all. that's leading to more congestion and fewer parking spaces. sarah and family found that out firsthand. >> we probably spent as much time driving around looking for a parking spot as we have done walking around and touring. it took forever. >> reporter: while it may take even long ever hundreds of regu parking spaces along jefferson and madison drives and independence and constitution avenues they have to be turned into tour-bus-parking-spaces only so all the buses can fit, not good news for the drivers. >> tough to find any parking space here. >> yesterday when icome here, i need to spend time around here to get parking. >> reporter: now obviously tourism is a good thing but consider this, of the 25 million people that visit the mall each year, a third of them get here by tour bus. there are now over 1,200 tour buses that pass through d.c. every day. these are numbers from the national park service. dave schneider is with the region's transportation planning board which is studying the issue. he says drivers need to look at the bigger picture in all of

this and this is really a plan about moving more people. >> the overall trend in d.c. is that's it's going to be more and more difficult to drive a single-occupancy vehicle. we got to realize that. >> reporter: right now it's estimated a lack of parking spaces for the buses around the mall translates into them driving around an extra 20 miles per day looking for parking. and back here now live on the national mall. now, straight ahead at 6:00, a few suggested fixes for this whole problem including one that involves digging deep here under the national mall. won't that be fun? wendy, back to you. >> all right. adam tuss. the al jazeera reporter at the center of that scandal that involves one of the nfl's biggest stars is standing by her story. jason pugh joins us in the newsroom with the strong words she had today. jason? >> reporter: wendy, debora davies is defending al jazeera's report. she's not pointing out peyton

manning took performance enhancement drugs but shipments were being sent to his wife. the report centers around a pharmacist named charlie sly. he tells al jazeera human growth hormone was being sent from the clinic he worked at to ashley manning. he's saying he completely made up the story. davies was very adamant about the allegations her program is making. >> when charlie sly worked in the guyer doing part of his training, his rotation for pharmacy, the clinic was sending out not one shipment, but repeated shipments of growth hormone to ashley manning in florida. that's it. >> now manning and his wife were both patients at the clinic in question. the quarterback told espn the treatments he received were, quote, holistic in nature but never hgh. now also nationals first baseman ryan zimmerman was linked to this report as well but his lawyer called the claims reckless and completely false. from the newsroom, jason pugh.

since the murder of a local postal worker, we found that something new is being done to keep your neighborhood mail carriers safe. and the teenager who was made famous by claiming he was too rich and spoiled to take responsibility for a deadly dui accident is not the only one in his family now in trouble with the law. coming to you from reagan national airport where overnight, some passengers were left stranded. we're going to show you what they went through just to get home after the holidays.

it's made for a messy holiday weekend. that massive storm that has pounded the heart of our country finally on its way out of here. >> but not before it dumped a dose of winter on new england. the weather channel is in massachusetts with a look at conditions there. >> reporter: andover, massachusetts, dealing with snow, then sleet. the sleet still sticking around. see it bouncing off my gloves. more so, starting to see the rain. factually what it's expected to do right now. the wind will pick up. eventually winter storm is out of here. police have been reporting spinouts, some car crashes but not any real big injuries. that's a real good thing.

about 4,000 plows, all kinds of equipment, have been moving this white stuff everywhere they can. so commuters, the people who have to go to work, can get there safely. school is out. that means that the roadways, there's more room to move the snow. but this snow is not the only thing. we got the sleet, too. so i know that everything's white. we're going to try to make the best example as we can. i'm going to bring this up. you can see there was snow on the bottom. you can also see pellets of this sleet. this is going to freeze. when it freezes, it's like a solid block of ice. good luck getting that out of your driveway, off your sidewalk. so winter storm, what's going to happen for the rest of the day? we got the wind and got the rain starting to fall right now then by the evening commute, by bedtime, it's going to be nothing. because the winter storm out of here. in time for maybe another winter storm because it's that time of year. >> better them than us. >> oh, yeah, exactly. that snow is just the latest in a wild week for weather. creating problems for people trying to get home from the holiday.

>> hundreds of flights have been canceled just since sunday leaving travelers stranded. news 4's david culver is reporting from reagan national. >> reporter: where'd you sleep? >> i haven't slept yet. >> reporter: it was a little after 5:30 in the morning. we first caught up with sarah pauley. sprawled out on an airport bench. three cancelations in the past 24 hours. she's dreaming of being home. >> we're just like, can you get us to texas? i mean, if you can't get us to dallas, get us to austin or san antonio or houston or something because those are close cities to where i'm trying to go and still can't get us there. >> reporter: she's not alone. we found this man keeping close to the heat vent as he napped. tablet by his side, this guy curled up on the baggage claim conveyor belt. even the luggage, nowhere to go. among the destinations feeling so far away today, chicago. the morning departures board showed the first four out of five flights canceled or delayed. frustrated travelers like sarah decided to switch from one airline to another.

then a long walk to another terminal. we caught back up with her a couple hours later. trying to find a comfortable place to doze off. no luck. >> the plan is for check-in. >> reporter: she joined the line to check her bag. >> it's going to be the greatest day of my life if the plane actually takes off. >> reporter: and made her way to the gate. her flight to houston, on time. she's not breathing easy just yet. >> i'll feel even better when we actually get off the ground, though, so, yeah. >> reporter: we'll let you go. and the good news for sarah is she made her 11:00 flight headed to houston and should get there on time. reporting from reagan national airport, david culver, news 4. he killed four people in a drunk driving cash. now police say the so-called affluenza teenager had a going-away party before trying to escape to mexico with his mother. ethan couch and his mother, tanya found in puerto vallarta

last night. they went on the run after a video surfaced of ethan at a party with alcohol. a violation of his probation he earned for that deadly crash. now police say they're eager to get him back into this country. >> we're excited that we have them back in custody, to be honest with you, we're going to breathe a lot easier when they're back in this country and we have them locked up here in tarrant county. that's the ultimate goal. >> prosecutors say they will try to have ethan's case moved to adult court and both he and his mother could face jail time. here at the live desk the pentagon is releasing new numbers that show u.s. air strikes are taking a toll on isis leadership. just this month, ten high-ranking isis leaders have been killed and one of them had direct ties to abdelhamid abaaoud, mastermind behind the attacks in paris. charaffe al mouadan was actively planning attacks against the west. belgian officials arrested two men for plotting to carry out a

terror attack over the new year holiday. wendy? >> thank you, chris. tom sherwood, the redeveloping part of southeast washington near nationals ballpark. but here along the anacostia river, there's still a lot of trash. coming up, i'll tell you about a new law that takes effect friday that will help get rid of it. does your new year's resolution include losing a little bit of weight? whose doesn't? now we can tell you what's working for some people and what is not. and we continue to follow a developing story out of the midwest. more on these catastrophic flooding next. this is the best block of all.

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and now your storm team 4 forecast. >> and that forecast, not looking too bad over the next couple of days. the clouds, they remain. we have seen nothing but clouds really for about the last week, but at least we've been on the mild side. same deal today. the clouds, look at the capitol, the clouds remain. temperatures remaining well above average. 53 degrees at the airport. our average now down to 44. so we were once again close to 10 degrees above average across our region. down to the 60s, la ray at 61, 6 2 in stanton. they saw somsunshine today. i thought for sure we'd get a little bit warmer across the d.c. metro region but we only

got into the low to mid 50s across the area. temperatures will start to cool but not a whole lot as we move on through the overnight hours. no rain to talk about in our region. we saw rain earlier this morning. that moved out very quickly. in behind it we're dealing with the cloud cover and are going to start to see at least some clearing overnight before the clouds, well, they move right back in tomorrow. take a look at the rest of the country. we've got snow back toward minneapolis, snow down toward oklahoma. this is a place that does not need to see more rain or snow at all. they're dealing with major and catastrophic flooding in this area. take a look at oklahoma. the tahlequah. they are dealing with this flooding. some record flooding here as well. not just record flooding in this area. i showed you st. louis earlier. alabama, georgia, mississippi, parts of texas all the way up toward portions of tennessee dealing with major flooding. the mississippi river even closed a little bit earlier today. so a lot of flooding going on there. fortunately, for them, they are going to start to at least dry out a little bit over the next

couple of days. for us, we've got another chance of showers. not expecting much during the day tomorrow. most of the day looks dry. here's future weather. 7:45 in the morning, no problems. we got some cloud cover around but that's about it. the clouds, they remain all day. 1:00, no rain, though until late in the evening hours. we're talking 6:00, 7:00, 8:00 when we start to see showers developing. i think most of them, if not all of them, will stay i-95 south and eastward. so southern maryland, down around the northern neck, maybe around fredericksburg. not expecting much from d.c. to the north and west. maybe take the umbrella. most should not need it. a.m. rush, overcast, temperature at 47 degrees. showers late. down to the south and east. most of the evening rush should be okay, too, with a temperature around 56 degrees. tomorrow morning, or tomorrow afternoon, highs back in the 50s. maybe a little bit warmer in some spots than today but still, most everybody right around 10 to 15 degrees above average and that's where we stay for at least one or two more days before we start to see things come back down. 49 as we start the new year.

2016. starting off on a pretty good note. temperatures on the mild side for this time of year. 5 degrees above average here. we start to drop. 45 saturday. windchills in the 30s. veronica back coming up in 20 minutes with the latest on the seven-day forecast in a few minutes. guys? >> thank you, doug. now at 5:00 it was a christmas present scare. find out what federal investigators are doing about these hoverboard fires. plus a northern virginia mother is being evicted because her child who has special needs is too loud. but the community is rallying to get her a new home. i'm scott macfarlane in s f cheverley, scene

you're watching news 4 at 5:00. >> right now at 5:30, buried in the snow. a couple running an errand end up stranded in a snowstorm and are now sharing their survival story. asian businesses in virginia targeted. now find out who police arrested in connection to more than to burglaries. and a crook caught on camera preying on a woman who was praying in church. new at 5:30 now, you might start noticing your mail arriving earlier in the day. it's about safety. just as much as service. >> scott macfarlane explains why the postal service is focusing on deliveries made after dark and hiring hundreds of new employees. >> reporter: it was two years ago a u.s. postal worker, a letter carrier was shot and killed right here while on the

job. this is reed street in cheverly. in the time since, there has been huge concerns expressed that too many letter carriers are delivering too much mail in too many parts of our area of dark. jason barnette was delivering mail after dark, someone shot him and left him for dead. this 38-year postal carrier said that raised fears among barnette's colleagues throughout the region. >> apprehensive about being out in the dark, fearing for their safety. just wasn't a good mix. >> reporter: an investigationba killing revealed after dark mail delivery spiked 14% in the d.c. area in months after his shooting. the agency has been under scrutiny and pressure ever since to get the trucks and carriers back earlier. news 4 learned a class of 40 newly hired carriers were sent through orientation at the brentwood facility in d.c. today and union officials tell us hundreds more have been added over the last few months.

enough to significantly reduce late-night deliveries locally. 3,200 total new employees hired this year in the d.c. area, the u.s. postal service tells us. in the meantime, federal and local police are still trying to make progress of their own. two years after the barnette murder, there have been no arrests and the u.s. postal inspection service tells news 4 it's staging daily meetings to review the case and distributed 2,500 postcards and letters to the neighborhood seeking tips and a $125,000 reward remains in place. prince george's county police say their own probe continues, too. >> this is still an active murder investigation and we are working closely with federal partners to try and close this case. we know that there is someone out there who's got to have some information in this case. >> reporter: so just how often was mail being delivered late in our area? after dark? new public records obtained by news 4 will show more often than you think. that part of our story tonight on news 4 at 6:00. for now in cheverly, scott

macfarlane, news 4. a popular dupont circle restaurant is back open tonight, bush and pops closed last week after the owner's son was killed in afghanistan. peter taub was one of six u.s. service members killed in a suicide bombing. a sign now hangs on the front of the restaurant in his honor saying, "might his be the last death." and early next month some people could run into trouble at the airports if the tsa decides to enforce a ten-year-old law surrounding so-called real i.d.s. those are a type of driver's license that typically requires more proof of identification. the federal government can't force states to change their individual licenses, but it can enforce them that places like the airport. if that happens four states, illinois, missouri, new mexico and washington state would have extensions to change their i.d.s, change their i.d.s when they expire next month. virginia is among 21 states with

an extension through october. homeland security would give 120 days' notice for enforcing the real i.d. policy. two suspects are in custody tonight accused in dozens of robberies throughout northern virginia. kai lasana and leah culbreth are charges with robbing businesses in prince william, stafford and fairfax counties along with the leesburg, manassas and fredericksburg communities. in most cases police tell us the suspects broke into the businesses and stole money and other valuables. police connect the pair to more than 20 burglaries so far. they say more arrests and charges could come. well, it's been less than a week since the owner of a marijuana edibles business was arrested in the district, but according to "d.c.ist" he is once again taking orders on an app. the app went live on christmas and allows customers to make a $10 donation for things like pot

brownies and gummies. the business also has a new delivery car to replace the three seized by police. owner nicholas cunning ma'am ha what he's doing is legal. the new year brings a big change to carryout food containers in the district. the city will be banning styrofoam-type cups and plates. as news 4's tom sherwood repo reports, it could lead to cleaner streets and rivers. >> reporter: the new waterfront walk near nats park in southeast washington, it draws all sorts of visitors even on a less than perfect day in late december. but a close-up look at the anacostia shows urban trash collecting. especially piles of polystyrofoam containers known as the brand name styrofoam. >> it is a substance where generally you use it once and gets tossed away and country go way. gets blown into the waterways, comes through the storm drains and it's trash along the side of

the road. >> reporter: tommy wells says a new law takes effect friday banning styrofoam-style cups and containers in most food uses in the city. a similar ban is in effect in tacoma park, maryland, and another starts friday in montgomery county. more are being passed all over the nation. passersby here like the new tough law in d.c. that imposes fines on multiple violations. >> got to clean our environment up. that stuff lasts forever. i also dive out at virginia beach and you see styrofoam sitting at the bottom. >> oh, i thank that's a great idea because maybe it will push people to bring their own containers like they do in other places so there's less trash. every one of those cups goes somewhere. >> reporter: coming up at 6:00, more about those big fines and what the washington metropolitan restaurant association says about the ban's effect on its businesses. in the district, tom sherwood, news 4. it is the most common new year's resolution and a new study shows good intentions to

lose weight are anot enough. we knew that. national center for weight and wellness finds overweight or obese adults average six unsuccessful attempts to shed pounds. the biggest road blocks, hunger and struggling to make healthy food choices. about 40% of people do have some success with prescription medications, but most find little help from over the counter weight loss products. times square is all but ready to be the annual focal point of the country. this is a look at a right now. take a look. the ball is ready. the 16 has been delivered and installed and even the confetti has been tested. we've been asking what are your plans for new year's eve? going out, having people over, staying home alone or with family? so far it looks like the majority of folks are staying put. so what are the chances you get get a $1,000 speeding ticket in the district? d.c.'s mayor is weighing in on this controversial proposal.

plus remember that ashley madison website? well, it looks like it was big business for people cheating on their spouses.

police officers are back

under the microscope again this week. a grand jury failed to indict two officers for the death of 12-year-old tamir rice in cleveland. now two chicago officers are off the street for shooting and killing two people. as nbc's edward lawrence reports, victims' families are now looking to the justice department to make sure officers didn't violate the civil rights of their loved ones. >> reporter: protests in clee t cleveland and across the united states, no indictment in the shooting death of tamir rice. this protest in new york city. >> i'd like to see a legal system that incarcerates killer cops. >> reporter: on november 22nd, 2014, someone called 911 saying there was a gunman in the park. the dispatcher never relayed critical information to responding officers that it was likely a boy with a toy gun. one second after the officers arrived, they shot tamir.

>> it was horrible, unfortunate, and regrettable but it was not by the law that binds us a crime. >> someone other than the elected county official who works very closely with law enforcement officers of this community day in and day out should have probably made that decision. >> reporter: meanwhile, in chicago, mayor rahm emanuel cut his vacation short amid new calls for his resignation. >> rahm must go! >> reporter: two officers shot and killed a 19-year-old they say was acting out with a baseball bat. chicago police say they accidentally killed a mother of five in the gunfire. edward lawrence, nbc news, washington. well, d.c. could start handing out $1,000 fines for some speeding violations, but now the mayor says that's not likely. thede department of transportation proposed this steep fine for people going 25 miles per hour or more over the speed limit. it's part of the mayor's

initiative to lower pedestrian deaths in the city. mayor bowser says something that steep is unlikely. the d.c. council will discuss the fines next week. although this hike doesn't need council approval. tis the season to return gifts to the store but you should know the policy before you go, and we can help you with that. a couple buried in the snow for 20 hours. we'll tell you how they got out. and confused. are you? so are these trees. take a look at the cherry trees down around the national mall. they're blooming already. no, it's not spring. i'll show you, though, when winter will arrive

there's call for help tonight from a virginia family. >> they're being evicted from their apartment all because their son is apparently too loud and the person who filed the complaint to get that family kicked out is the property manager. news 4's derrick ward live in arlington where an advocacy group is now fighting for the family. >> reporter: yeah, we're outside the oakland apartments on columbia pike in arlington. see the christmas decorations are up but for one family here this holiday season has been anything but festive. we're talking about the diaz family and their son, 10-year-old elder. now back when he was 18 months old he was severely beaten by a childcare provider and left him with developmental issues. when they moved here, they told the folks who live here about this, they told the management company about it. he likes to sing, likes to shout, likes to cry.

he doesn't like to cry, necessarily, but he cries like any other kid. the family says that the landlord who lives below them has singled them out. that's the only person that's complained. now, there's been some back and forth and at one point they were offered another apartment in the complex but it was smaller and cost $400 more. they can't swing that, they say and said the final straw came when they got a letter saying they had to be out of that apartment by new year's or face eviction. >> translator: i am frustrated. it's an injustice, the things she's doing with us. she is the only one who is annoyed by the noise that my son does. any other neighbor hasn't complained. >> reporter: now, some advocacy groups like casa and other folks here in this area have gotten behind this family. they say they've spoke briefly with the property manager who says that there are other issues but that they won't say what those issues are. now, we spoke to the property manager who would give no comment citing the privacy of

the tenants of his property but those tenants have a lot to say about their plight in the next few weeks. we'll have more coming up on news 4 in the 6:00 hour. live in arlington, derrick ward, jim and wendy, back to you. >> all right, thank you, derek. a couple in new mexico spent 20 hours stranded inside their car after it was covered by a dangerous snow drift. jimmy and betty anderson set out around 8:00 on saturday night because they have a newspaper delivery route. well, the weather took a turn for the worst and they were blinded by the snow. they ended up drifting into a ditch and couldn't get out. they called 911 but conditions were so bad the rescuers couldn't even get to them. they say they kept warm under a thin blanket but help did arrive but not until 4:00 sunday afternoon. the andersons say they will resume their paper route as soon as they get a new car which might take a summer thaw. yeah. goodness. >> those pictures are hard to watch compared to what we're

having. >> i was going to complain it wasn't quite as warm today as i wanted in to be. >> it is winter. the cherry blossoms are kind of confused. they should be fine. it's nothing too unusual this time of year. sometimes there are some blossoms that pop. just not so in. we might not see as vibrant trees come spring. for us around here we're going to go from smiles if you like the warm weather to frowns by the weekend. the cold air is set to move in. just in time, right, for 2016. storm team 4, the rain out of here. the radar, in fact, storm team 4 radar very, very quiet as it scans the area live. by morning i think we're still dry and our temperatures will still be fairly high. 41 to 48 degrees. that puts us still a few degrees even higher than the average high temperature for this time of year. not too cool for tomorrow morning. you will, however, stepping out the door you'll need a jacket. i'd grab the umbrella, too. as the day unfolds, there will be a better opportunity to pick up wet weather. first some sprinkles then more showers by the afternoon.

so umbrella, jacket for tomorrow morning. now, we'll have even a little bit of fog around early in the day. more showers. still the green light. we're not expecting anything too heavy. planning on exercising tomorrow, get out, it's going to be i think mainly dry for the bulk of the day. it's more wet weather for the tail end of the day. out and about, umbrella, again, late afternoon and for the evening hours. now take a look at the nation. this is early tomorrow morning. we'll start out in the 40s here. there's your 30s. all the cold air that's been through the western half of the nation. new storm system developing down south. this one will have an impact on some of the big cities like atlanta, georgia, even down through florida around orlando and raleigh, north carolina, right up to d.c. i think late in the day. for raleigh, areas like atlanta, there may be some airport delays. so if you've got a family member that's flying out or flying in, might want to just check with their flight and make sure it's on time. area that's going to be impacted the most down i-95 outside d.c.,

301 301, too, waldorf, quantico, leonardtown as well. we get the green light relief throughout the day tomorrow, mainly light showers even midday to late afternoon. if the kids plan on going out, mid 50s for high temperatures tomorrow. then that cold air is set to move in just in time for 2016. take a look at friday. 49 the high temperature. early saturday, 20s and 30s starting out with a high temperature at 45 to 46 degrees. we've got a couple days of sunshine at least, so we'll get a chance to get used to at least the cold air without any storm system. as we mentioned, you can always go online and do a search because we've got our winter forecast also posted talking about that snow and active pattern for mid-january and february. guys, back to you. well, so you got a gift you may need to return? some retailers have more flexible return policies than others. news 4's erica gonzalez has the breakdown. >> how long do you have to return the gifts you don't want or that don't fit?

kind of depends on where it was bought. some well-known retailers are return policies that just might fit your needs. let's start with target. toys "r" us. walmart. home depot. and lowe's. they all have 90 day return windows for most items. electronics could be an exception. bath & body works does not have a time limit on returns. it will issue a full refund with original receipt. store credit will be issued for a gift receipt. what about macy's, nordstrom? both have no time limit on returns and exchanges. macy's will issue a full refund with a receipt. nordstrom evaluates returns and changes requests on a case-by-case basis. kohl's, no questions asked hassle-free return policy for all purchases. no receipt is needed for purchases with a kohl's charge card. zappos, if items are no original condition and packaging after one year from the date of

purchase. just go to our website and search "returns." well, some boy scouts put their skills to the test during an ex-stretremely dangerous tim. they scout leader got mauled by a bear last week while the group was hiking in a forest in new jersey. >> and tonight we're hearing the 911 calls and they reveal some surprisingly calm, cool, and in control young scouts. >> 911, where's the emergency? >> my scoutmaster went in a cave and the bear is in the cave with him. >> wow, from inside the cave, scout leader, christopher, told the scouts to try to lure the bear away with food. that did not work. knowing help was on the way, the scouts came up with this idea so rescuers could find them. >> do you want us to make a signal fire? >> yeah, you guys can start a fire. >> all right. on three, everyone's going to yell, hello, can you hear us? >> can you hear us? i see the helicopter. >> all right. he sees the helicopter.

>> we're going to get out of this alive. i love you guys. >> wow, they just took charge, didn't they? the scout leader suffered injuries to his arm, leg, neck, and head, but is expected to recover. he sayses s hhe went into the knowing the bear was in there. hoverboard fires. for the first time we're seeing just how widespread this problem is across the country.

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tonight police in florida are looking for a thief who

preys on a woman praying. surveillance video from a church in north lauderdale shows the man sitting on a chair against the back wall. take a look. after scanning the room, he zeros in on the woman with her purse on the chair next to her. eventually he grabs the purse and dashes for the exit. it seems like we tell you almost every day about another hoverboard fire. now we know just how many cases are being investigated. the consumer products safety commission is looking into 22 reports of fires in 17 states. this is a picture of the most recent fire yesterday in a texas mall. the commission is also investigating 70 reports of hoverboard injuries caused by falls and collisions. a new jersey family knows all the dangers of hoverboards all too ll. theirs exploded in their living room sunday night and as ted greenberg reports, it could have been a whole lot worse. >> it sounded like an actual bomb went off. >> reporter: this is what's left of a smart balance wheel kim

whalen bought her 11-year-old son, craig, for christmas, after it blew up last night in the family's lacey township home. >> i felt pieces flying everywhere. they were just on fire. it was huge flames. and i was really scared. >> reporter: they say the $400 device often called a hoverboard was being charged around 8:30 in the living room when it burst into flames. whalen's older son put out the fire with an extinguisher but not before the blast and flying debris burned the carpet and part of the kitchen floor. luckily, no one was hurt. >> it was like a land mine going off and if my son was on top of that board at the time, i don't even want to think about what could have happened. >> it appears an explosion occurred somewhere in the area of the batteries that were on charge to the unit. >> reporter: that's consistent with similar reports from across the country of the hugely popular self-balancing boards exploding while being charged. federal authorities are investigating the incidents.

>> we have the booklet, the user manual here. there's a warranty card and other information, but nowhere does it tell you an address or the manufacturer of this product. and that should raise some concerns immediately. >> i would advise any parents who have one of these to send it back to the company because it -- it can happen. >> reporter: experts are urging people to charge the boards in dry, open areas, preferably outside and only when closely watched. in lacey township, new jersey, ted greenberg, news 4. now at 6:00, a deadly winter storm delivers a dangerous mix of snow, freezing rain, and floods. tonight, hundreds forced out of their homes as others return to survey the damage. a teenager killed on the bike he got for christmas. now some are calling for changes to this local intersection. a mail carrier murdered in the dark of night, now two years later, new questions about that crime as officials take steps to

get the mail out earlier and get the carriers home before dark. but first tonight, an elementary school playground turns into a crime scene. >> a young man stabbed to death on a basketball court bench for no apparent reason. >> and family members say the victim had challenges stemming from a car accident, and he could not defend himself. >> news 4's pat collins is live for us tonight in lanham with the latest on this random attack. pat? >> reporter: jim, according to court documents, this appears to be an unprovoked attack. it began with a verbal confrontation and it ended in a case of murder. the victim, 24-year-old douglas reyes, stabbed to death as he sat on this bench in the playground of the gaywood elementary school. douglas reyes was disabled. he was in a car accident when he was 5. he had a head injury. it affected the way