person they think is responsible for those incidents involving the bananas. there was a town hall meeting today, university officials during that town hall meeting talked about the things they are doing, including working with the fbi and d.c. police. now, university leaders declined to be interviewed, but have said in a statement that racist and hateful images like this have no place here and that student safety is number one. but students we talked to today say that what they've heard so far from the university is not enough. >> black lives matter! >> reporter: american university students marching through campus. in solidarity, they took their frustration, their outright dissatisfaction to the registrar's office, to request withdrawal slips from the university to send an urgent message. >> if our existence isn't valued on this campus, then we don't need to be here. >> we as a community have not been feeling safe, like we can

>> reporter: a group of mostly african american students walked out of a town hall meeting. media was not allowed even on campus, but students posted video to social media. >> these are children that are doing this. >> reporter: au administrators addressed racially charged incidents on campus. bananas hanging on campus marked with aka, the black sorority. the new government's president is the first black woman to head student government at au. students are demanding more than town halls. >> we felt like we weren't getting the answers to the questions that we had. we really wanted to get specific solutions to the problem. >> i would hope that they hear our concerns and that they are willing and able to address exactly what we're asking for. the administration does a great job of going around the question. >> reporter: coming up today on news4 at

happening is affecting students who are just beginning final exams. wendy, back to you. >> thank you, kristin. it's a case of murder that has taken years to solve. this evening, we know who did it, thanks to a killer's confession. but in a twist, he will not be facing any charges for a brutal stabbing of a leesburg father and grandfather, jamie lane. we are now hearing from the victim's loved ones who spoke with david culver. he's live outside the courthouse in loudoun county this evening. david? >> reporter: hi there, wendy. here's the thing, normally folks come here to the courthouse, the leesburg courthouse, or any courthouse for that matter, in search of justice. the family of jamie lane, not getting justice today. instead they say they have found peace, knowing that the man who killed the 44-year-old father and grandfather back in 2009 has confessed to that killing.

other over his grandmother. tyreke allen was nine when he learn pd someone murdered his grandfather. >> he was outgoing. he would give you the shirt off his back, the last dollar in his pocket. >> reporter: his widow remembers a happy man. >> he was a people lover. he loved everybody. >> reporter: which made his brutal killing back in march 2009 all the more baffling. who? why? >> that was the worst day of our lives. the worst day of our lives. >> reporter: jamie was murdered inside his home in leesburg. it was a few years later that the family learned that the man who killed him lived just a few feet away in this house. they were neighbors. >> reporter: but the man's name didn't surface until more than a year after jamie's murder. police were looking for him in connection with a series of other stabbings. they found him in atlanta, trafford h transferred him back to michigan. but jamie's case

unsolved until a couple of weeks ago. when the man reached toout to detectives. >> and agreed to speak with them with mr. lane's death. >> reporter: in exchange for immunity, police say he confessed but won't be charged. >> i think he's getting punished enough just being in jail the rest of his life. >> and just to know he's the one. >> knowing that he's the one and having the answer that i had been looking for. >> it won't bring my dad back, but we know that now he can finally rest in peace knowing that we know who did this, who took him from us. >> reporter: the family says their christian faith has kept them going. david culver, news4. and a developing story tonight, that former south carolina police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black man has now pleaded guilty in a federal civil rights case. michael slager pled guilty in exchange for the state dropping a murder charge against him. slager's accused of killing walter scott during a tra

2015. cell phone video there appears to show him shooting scott in the back as scott ran away. with today's plea, slager could still face a possible life sentence. president trump has suggested that a good shutdown could be what this country needs. if senate democrats force a budget battle this fall. today the president and white house accused democrats of claiming victory over the bipartisan deal that was reached this weekend. they say the deal includes hundreds of millions for a border wall. when asked what a good shutdown could be, budget director mick mulvaney had this to say. >> it's not a goal. it's not a negotiating tool. but to the extent the president advocated for one today, if you want to imagine what a good shutdown was, it would be one that fixes this town. also today the president spoke with vladimir putin. they discussed syria, north korea, possible in-person meeting at a summit in germany.

d.c. police are back at the scene this evening of a brazen daylight shooting. dozens of shots fired with people out and about. this happened near the potomac gardens apartment complex near 13th and pennsylvania avenue in southeast. and that's where we find news4's pat collins with new details for us. pat? >> reporter: jim, a lot of police out here tonight. police down there. police over here. there are enough cops out here to have a union meeting tonight. come on over, i want to show you this. this is the fence around potomac gardens. this is where one of those bullets hit here yesterday. but it's only part of the story. when you hear what happened here, when you see what happened here, you know how lucky we are that no one was seriously injured here. >> the volley of shots went off and the plume of gun powder wafted over the top of us. >> the man asked

he's a witness. he was here when it happened. here with his two young sons, one 8, one 6, they were walking home from a birthday party when a car pulls up into the intersection. a man gets out with a gun, and bullets start flying into the potomac gardens housing complex. >> the shooters were very brazen. they were standing right in the middle of the street, broad daylight. kids around them, people walking their dogs around them. >> in the intersection, a sea of evidence markers. in all, 30 shots fired from three different guns. some of the bullets hit the metal fence, here, up there, and down here. and then ricochetted to parts unknown. robe robert was inside the fence when it happened. >> they were screaming, kids, teenagers, and grown-ups. back there, everybody was ducking for cover. >> reporter: the man with the

911, he couldn't get through. >> i was on the phone with 911, on my hands and knees on the ground, no one was answering at 911. i had to call the commander directly. she answered immediately. >> reporter: now with me, assistant police chief bob konti, you know the situation here, what's the police department going to do about it? >> right now, we're covering the neighborhood and we're looking for the public's help in this case. right now, we're asking anyone who was in this area, about 6:45 p.m. yesterday to give us a call if they saw anything. we're looking for a gray nissan altima. we believe the gunman exited that vehicle. and an orange-colored minivan in the area. >> you want to get these guys off the street? >> this is unacceptable. it will not be tolerated by the community and the metropolitan police department. >> thank you very much. assistant police chief robert konti. >> more about life inside the

6:00. wendy, back to you. >> thank you, pat. things are getting back to normal at frederick memorial hospital after a hazmat scare in the emergency room led to a lockdown earlier today. two men say they got a package in the mail at their home on military road. when they opened it, they experienced a burning, tingling sensation, and drove themselves to the er. here's the problem. they brought that package with them. so officials had to block off that area around noon today. they say the hospital has been checked. it's now safe. the package is being tested. a man who owned several tobacco stores in northern virginia is charged with having more than just cigarettes behind the counter. fairfax county police tell us he was selling stolen goods. northern virginia bureau chief julie carey reports only on news4. >> we didn't really know. >> reporter: these customers regularly make the

tobacco mart, low prices, the big draw. but last week, just as they left the store, they got a big surprise. >> bought cigarettes and we came out and all of a sudden the police started rolling in, about ten of them. plain clothes. it was scary. >> reporter: drugs are one reason police were here wednesday. after a served a search warrant, police arrested the owner, he owns two other tobacco stores in the area, including tobacco world on richmond highway. these court documents reveal that starting last summer, a confidential informant took stolen property into the tobacco mart under the watchful eye of police. a female employee gave him $270 and put the item behind the counter. it's happened here and at the other store, as recently as last week. stolen property brought in for cash. when police raided the place, they also found marijuana. the store owner is charged with receiving stolen property and drug

>> very surprised. just surprised. >> that was the reaction of one regular customer today when we told him about the charges. i thought he was clean as a whistle. that's why i come in here. there's a lot of shady establishments in this state, but when you go -- when you feel a homey atmosphere in a place, you patronize it. but these maryland customers say now that they know what the police activity was all about, they'll probably find a new place to shop. >> reporter: now because this investigation is ongoing, police will not reveal what types of stolen goods were being offered behind the counter here. as for the suspect after he was arrested last wednesday, he was released on personal recognizance. i tried to reach him by phone and e-mail, but i haven't heard back. julie carey, back to you in the studio. so it's a question of whether customer service is taking a back seat to profits.

executives being dragged before congress. plus, a couple makes money with laub prank posted on youtube, but they lost custody after this alleged prank. and losing 25 pounds. just one of the benefits of going sugar-free. the other ways this guy was rewarded after he changed his diet. we're being rewarded today, temperatures close to 80 today, but we're not getting close to that again for a long time. cooler weather moving in, i'll stronger is blasting her tumors... without risking her bones. it's training her good cells... to fight the bad guys. stronger is less pain... new hope... more fight. it's doing everything in your power... and everything in ours. stronger, is changing even faster than they do.

we want them to grow up stronger.

narrator:to do time is what is right. ralph northam. army doctor during the gulf war. volunteer director of a pediatric hospice. progressive democrat. in the senate, he passed the smoking ban in restaurants, stopped the transvaginal ultrasound anti-choice law, and stood up to the nra. as lieutenant governor, dr. northam is fighting to expand access to affordable healthcare. ralph northam believes in making progress every day. and he won't let donald trump stop us.

less than a month after this happened on board that united flight, congress is now trying to decide if it needs to get involved and help airline passengers. this clip sparked debate over poor service and a lack of customer friendly policies on u.s. airlines. today top airline executives fielded questions from members of congress. meagan fitzgerald is live in the newsroom. it sounds like the airline industry is getting the message now. >> apologies abound today on capitol hill. leaders from united, american, alaska, and southwest airlines testified in front of the house transportation committee. united's ceo apologized again for the way dr. david dao was treatedn

that flight. american airlines apologized for a flight attendant arguing with a passenger after pulling a stroller from a mother. lawmakers told the airlines these things cannot keep happening to paying customers. >> there's something clearly broken when we see passengers treated the way some of them have been treated in recent flights. >> situations like this are an outlier, but it's important for americans to take responsibility when we don't handle things well. >> this has to be a turning point for the 87,000 people and professionals here at united. >> united's ceo took the opportunity to reiterate four changes his company is already making. united employees will only call police when there's a security concern. he says crew members have to be booked an hour before takeoff to prevent last-minute seat changes. united increased incentives for people who give up their seats, and they're retraining front line employees to find common sense solutions to prob.

dulles today who are glad that the airlines are stepping up. >> feel like they did at least what they could have done or should have done initially. you know. but we'll see. hopefully it can continue and nothing like that ever happens again. hopefully moving forward, we can -- they can be consistent with the customer service so that nothing like that ever happens again. >> too soon to tell if any legislation will come from the hearings, but the chair said if congress doesn't see changes, the airlines won't like the outcome. a senate hearing on this same issue is planned for later this week. >> thanks, meagan. in news4 your health, african americans are living longer, but there's still a divide when it comes to race in our country. a new report by the cdc finds african american deaths fell by 25% between 1999 and 2015. and the gap has been closed when it comes

death among people 65 and over. but overall life expectancy for black americans is still four years fewer than it is for whites. the cdc says african americans are also more likely to develop chronic illnesses at a young age. all week a number of us here at news4 are going sugar-free. the gliuidelines we're followin from the world health organization suggest ten teaspoons a day. but many people say they consume more than that, and it can add up easily. doreen gentzler is here now on the health benefits of cutting sugar out. how we doing? >> so far, so good. ten teaspoons of sugar or 40 grams or less than that, and we're honestly trying to go for even less than that. too much added sugar in our diet has been linked to diabetes, heart disease, obesity, even some cancers. so limiting sugar inta

difference. just ask this guy. >> reporter: billy welsh was diagnosed with diabetes when he was 21 years old. first it was type two, and then it became type one. he managed his diabetes at first by giving himself multiple shots daily, but -- >> it became harder and harder to control my diabetes, and so my doctor recommended that i go on an insulin pump. which gives me a continual dose throughout the day. >> reporter: there's a lot more than just medicine involved in successfully managing diabetes. starting this past january, welsh and his wife made significant lifestyle changes. >> we cut out sugars, alcohol and focused on eating healthier. with cutting out sugar, our appetites have decreased a lot, so we're not as hungry as we were and we're not eating as much food. >> reporter: in fact, they've each lost 25 pounds since january. welsh says he's sleeping better at night, has more energy, and be

>> the amount of insulin that i've had to have has gone down. >> reporter: big difference for him. his doctor told us the reason he needs less insulin is that cutting down on sugar has helped his body process glucose more efficiently. if we're looking for inspiration, there you go. 25 pounds since the start of the year and he's feeling better. >> please don't show the cookie plate again. you went grocery shopping, i saw it, you picked up good stuff. almond milk, for instance. >> i'm reading labels, almond milk with zero sugar in it. >> taught me about it last night when i fell off the wagon. >> you two are doing so well, but i'm going to have a glass of wine in honor of both of you to tonight. [ laughter ] more coming up tomorrow about new studies beginning to show

connection between sugar intake and the brain and dementia and alzheimer's. >> scary. >> that's what really gets to me. that issue. >> absolutely. >> more about that tomorrow. >> thank you, doreen. we have breaking news relating to our top story, on the racially charge the hate crime at american university. police released this surveillance video. this is the man police think it responsible for leaving those ugly messages at the school yesterday. two videos show that man walking across campus on monday. administrators think he's the one who left the bananas think haing from nooses. images that were likely targeting a historically black sorority on the campus and perhaps a member of that sorority who was just elected president of the student government association. we have more pictures in our nbc washington app for you. and news4's kristin wright will have more on the new

on news4 at 6:00. from humble beginnings -- ♪ ♪ >> what a voice. -- to the star of the stage after such humble beginnings. only on 4:00 tonight, how this opera singer is using his voice to inspire young people in powerful ways. and blue skies, for now. but they'll be turning gray. storm team4 is tracking a major storm. we have the latest on its arrival and its impact.

[car engine failing to start] [wind blows] yo- wh- ah- he- [gas pouring] [slurps loudly] [engine starting] [loud slurping continues]

don't be fooled by these blue skies behind us, we got storms brewing the rest of the week. >> what's going on? >> do you notice something here? >> are you guys on the wrong side? don't you normally sit over there? >> hello, welcome to 5:00. >> is that what it is? >> 16 years. >> it's always 5:00 somewhere for doug. >> i know. you're not on the sugar diet either, are you? >> i'm not sure what's going on. let's tell you what's happening outside right now. i'm sure how the weather is affecting us today. it's gorgeous across our area, plenty of sunshine. high temperature close to 80 degrees right now. currently at 79 -- sorry, guys. hey, i don't know what you guys are doing over there. out there now, here's the

out of the southwest at 18 miles per hour with the sunshine. temperatures in the rest of the region, 70s to the west. got a nice downslope here. 70 in mart indsburg, 70 in winchester, 79 d.c., 79 fredericksburg. and gusty winds up to 30 miles an hour. 36 right now in hagerstown. near 30 in fredericksburg. we'll be on the prize e. breezy side through the night. that may affect the game a little bit. the d-backs taking on the nationals. looking good for the game. 69 by 9:00, 65, rather cool. so i would take the jacket, maybe the sweater, around 11:00. 65 is nice, but as the sun goes down, it will cool off. no rain to talk about in our immediate river. here's the front in the atlantic, way up to the north and it's got a lot of really cool air. back to the west, 4

58 in indianapolis, and that cooler air will try to slide through. tomorrow we get into the 60s. you know where we're going. tomorrow, 68 degrees. a nice afternoon, seasonably cool tomorrow. back up to 69 on thursday. we will see clouds on thursday on the increase, a late day shower, mostly overnight thursday night into friday. now friday, a day of very heavy rain, especially early in the day. temperatures around 72. rain early, some of that rain will be very heavy and i'm expecting over an inch of rain. most of it should be over by the early afternoon. so if you have plans on friday night, i think we'll be okay. but can't rule out showers. then highs only in the 60s and 50s. look at the lows, back into the 40s. we got some really chilly air. there could even be some snow. back to the mountains, but yeah, that's the kind of air mass we're talking about here. shower activity

>> crazy, crazy year we're having. >> thank you, doug. it's a big complaint to the news4 responds line, water bills out of control. >> the $3 fix that could save you big money. plus, new research raising questions about the value of knee replacement surgeries. how do you know when they're really needed? their youtube channel had hundreds of thousands of subscribers, they shouted and shoved their kids, saying that the youngsters were in on the prank. but now because of action here at the frederick county courthouse, the adults have lost custody of the chiren. ahead,ld h

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it's starts working hard at hour one and works twice as hard when you take it again the next day. stick with zyrtec® and muddle no more®. pawtuxet. you're watching news4 at 5:00. >> now at 5:30, a maryland couple makes hundreds of thousands of dollars pulling mean stunts on their kids, and then posting those clips on youtube. [ shouting ]. >> now the parents are in a custody battle and claim the children were in on the whole thing. news4's chris gordon is live outside the frederick county courthouse. chris, this is a complicated family situation. what are attorneys saying?

we are at the law office of the lawyer representing the biological mother of the children. now he got a judge to order them taken away from the couple who have been making the youtube videos. so tonight, the children are with their biological mother here at a frederick motel. >> you want to play games! let's play games! >> reporter: the couple shouts and shoves the children on their youtube channel. mike and heather martin had hundreds of thousands of subscribers and made lots of money. they said that the kids, 9-year-old cody and 12-year-old emma, were in on it, and played along with the pranks. but the videos prompted complaints, and the couple apologized. >> we realized that we had made some terrible parenting decisions. the lawyer said he got a call from youtubers who asked him to represent the children's

last friday, he went to court and got an order giving her temporary custody, saying the kids are victims of abuse. >> in the video, you can see him throwing the boy cody into a bookcase and he comes away with a bloody nose through the bathroom, while he's tearful and inconsolable. >> reporter: he says the children have also suffered mental abuse. >> the kids are going to be deprogrammed like cult people. 400 videos of this stuff that involves vulgarity, shouting, getting up in their business, physical portions of it. >> reporter: the news about this youtube channel has literally been reported around the world. new york magazine reported that the couple made between

and $350,000 annually from making those youtube. ahead tonight, what happens to these children next. that's the latest live in frederick, maryland. back to you. chopper4 is live over fairfax county this afternoon as a huge tree falls on two cars in mclean on lincoln way. a woman was in one of the cars, but she was able to walk away. everything is fine for her. not her car. americans spend more than 10 billion -- that's a billion, $10 billion a year on knee replacement surgery. but do you really need it? since the year 2000, that procedure has doubled among women, increased almost 80% among men, and now includes far more younger patients as well. a new study is suggesting however that this expensive option is overused and may have minimal effect on

of life. >> i see patients who are very young who come in and just say, let's just replace the knee. they think of it as a way to just alleviate all their pain. it's our job to explain to them that we can do other types of things to eliminate pain and effectively increase their function. until they may need a knee replacement. >> tonight, more on those alternatives to knee replacement surgery and how to know when surgery really is needed. it's fed to shattenkirk again, shooting, scores! shattenkirk has won the game in overtime! >> in a game they had to win, the caps on the right side of an overtime thriller. the penguins now lead the series, 2-1. but all the talk today not about the caps' first win of the series, but the status of an injured star, and if it would cost the caps a

from pittsburgh. >> two on one to crosby. >> shaken up on the play and still down is crosby. >> i hope he's okay. >> certainly didn't mean to injure him. an unfortunate play that happened quick. >> watch nisk nin. it's one of those reaction-type plays. >> reporter: sidney crosby diagnosed with a concussion and out for game four. niskanen ejected and will not face further punishment from the league. >> i thought it was the right decision. you have two forces coming across, that's hockey. >> i wasn't even trying to cross-check him with a serious amount of force. a collision was going to happen there. >> reporter: the capitals hoping to even the series in pittsburgh and hope niskanen is a piece to that puzzle. >> he's good at everything. he's probably not exceptional at anything, but hs

>> he's a game-changer for us, so steady and solid, that he helps the rest of us in our game. >> ovechkin also getting heat for his involvement on this play. the capitals aren't concerning themselves with the outside noise. >> right now, we're down 2-1 in the series. we have to have our best game to this point. we're going to have to raise it to another level. that's in the past. so we'll move forward now. >> reporter: in pittsburgh, sherree burruss, news4, sports. 200 years of history told through the photographer's lens. we're giving you a sneak peek of an exhibit at the mall's newest museum. and it's one of your biggest complaints, sticker shock from your water bill. next at 5:00, susan hogan on the quick fix that is che

complaints have been pouring in about high water bills, and we wanted to know why. >> there's an easy fix. susan hogan gets the answer to why your money is being flushed right down the toilet. >> one of the most common causes of high water bills,

leak. so we're about to show you how to cheaply detect one and how to fix it. you wouldn't flush cash down the toi toilet, but you could be. that's your toilet running and running and still running. and ringing up a high water bill. a running toilet can waste up to 300 gallons of water a day. >> the first thing we ask our customers is, check your toilets. >> they told us they receive hundreds of calls a day from customers with high water bills, and 70% of the time it's a toilet leak and you can easily check for one yourself. >> safely remove your top. ad15 drops of food coloring into the tank and wait ten minutes. >> you got a leak. >> the dye in this toilet means the fill valve isn't shug

corroded. over time sediment can get under it, causing leaks. both parts are cheap and easy fixes. >> this is a $3 part. >> better than a water bill of thousands of dollars. here's four things to know. you can have a toilet leak without seeing any water actually leaking onto the floor. shut off the water connected to any toilet you never use. >> just because you're not using the toilet, doesn't mean it's not going to do something such as leak. >> reporter: if you have an indoor water meter, look at the dial. if there's any type of movement, there's a leak somewhere in your home. if you're water meter is outside, call your utility company and they will check it for you. bottom line, if your water bill is higher than normal, do that simple dye test. if the water is clear, contact the utility company and ask them to do another reading for you. some utilities will offer

one-time adjustment to your high bill, even if it was a toilet leak. back to you guys. >> thank you, susan. it's a proposal that could lead to a huge increase in what you pay at the pump. >> still ahead, why there's an appetite for a gas tax. ♪ ♪ >> and he's a star of the opera, but there's another way he uses his voice that he says is a lot more rewarding. i'm mark segraves with this amazing story you're only going to see on news4.

narrator:to do time is what is right. ralph northam. army doctor during the gulf war. volunteer director of a pediatric hospice. progressive democrat. in the senate, he passed the smoking ban in restaurants,

and stood up to the nra. as lieutenant governor, dr. northam is fighting to expand access to affordable healthcare. ralph northam believes in making progress every day. and he won't let donald trump stop us. ♪ ♪

>> wow. he's a world renowned opera star, and his recent performance at the met in new york was hailed as a show stopper. speedo green not only has an unusual name, he's far from a typical opera star. when he was 12 years old, living in virginia, green was sent to a detention center for threatening to kill his family. he was 12 years old. he sat down with mark segraves to talk about why he's in town sharing his story with at-risk teenagers. >> i spent time with speedo green at a youth center. he told teens he had two transformative moments in his life. the first one, being taken out of his home by police at the age of 12. >> i was actually shackled. they put me in leg shackles and

car and drove me three and a half hours to the detention center and i stayed there for two months. it was the scariest part of my life. it was actually traumatizing. ryan speedo green was in d.c. monday afternoon talking to a small group of at-risk teens, about how he was transformed from a 12-year-old on his way to prison, to a young man on his way to stardom. at 6'5" tall and 300 pounds, speedo green can be an imposing figure off and on stage. ♪ until you see him smile. today's green life seems perfect, newly wed with his first son on the way, and a career that takes him around the world doing something he loves. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: but the bass bear tone is candid. his life could have turned out much different. growing up in newport news, virginia, he could have ended up like two of his older

as a young boy, living across from a crackhouse where gun fights were routine, he admits, he had trouble controlling his anger. he recalls meeting his fourth grade teacher on the first day of school. >> i threw my desk at her and told her i wouldn't be taught by a white woman. >> reporter: it got him in trobl at the age of 12 when he threatened to kill his mother and brother. he was locked up for two months. >> i spent a lot of time in solitary, i spent a lot of time in my cell by myself because i wasn't allowed to be around other children. >> reporter: he spent much of that time in solitary confinement listening to music on a radio from the guards. when he was released, he joined the chorus at school, that led him to be accepted to an elite arts school. he took a field trip to the see the metropolitan opera's production of carmen starring denise graves. >> seeing her on stage, and it being my first opera, seeing someone who looked like me on stage, i knew wh

do. i knew what my purpose was. i'm going to sing at the met. i told them at age 15, i'm going to sing at the met. >> reporter: nine years later, he realized that dream of singing at the met. today at 31, green travels the world bringing to life rugged figures in classic opera before grand audiences. but it's telling his life story to troubles youths at the sasha bruce center in northeast, d.c., that he considers equally if not more rewarded. >> i was incarcerated twr months as a 12-year-old child. >> reporter: he hopes by seeing someone who looks like them, who has faced similar challenges, the teens will realize that just like a kid named speedo, they can realize their dreams too. >> it took half my life to get to a point where i didn't hate mids, where i accepted my past is my past and my future is what i make it. not even that long ago really, i wouldn't have been allowed to sing on an

of the color of my skin. >> reporter: when he sat down with the kids at the sasha bruce center, none of them knew who he was. he asked them to guess. they guessed football player, athlete. most were shocked when he said he was an opera player. he wants everyone to believe they can be whatever they want regardless of the color of their skin. and if you're wondering, yes, speedo is his real name, and yes, he does have a book out. and it's called singing for my life. >> love it. where does he get the name speedo? >> he was born on april fool's day. and his father was a body builder who spent a lot of time in speedo and named him after his favorite underwear. >> there you go. >> there's a lot of teachers out there that it may resonate with, when he threw his deskt

to let a white woman teach him. does she know what happened to him? >> she does. she's still his mentor. when he applied to a magnate school for gifted artists in southern virginia, the principal of the school turned out to be the husband of that teacher that he threw the desk at. >> isn't that cool that it came full circle? >> when he performed for the first time at the met, she was in the audience with denise graves. >> and also, you mentioned the dad. that was part of one of his proudest moments in his entire life. >> he had a rough childhood in life with his family, and he was estranged from his father who lived on the west coast. he called him and said, dad, i might be singing at the metropolitan opera. can you be there? his father borrowed the money to travel to new york and also borrowed a suit to sit in the audience and watch his son. and when the curtain went down and he took his bows and the applause and the bravos came out,

there, woompt woomooh ooh ooh o! he said it was the proudest moment of his life. >> what a story. tom, try to top that. >> have you seen the forecast? >> no, i've got the vocal range of a dial tone. what's a dial tone, people are saying. >> wow, you're right. >> exactly. >> hey, take a look at our temperatures right now. we're in the mid and upper 70s. reagan national at 79 degrees. our by hour, as we get into the evening, it's going to be cooling down quickly. temperatures by 9:00 will be into the mid 60s. and midnight, 60 degrees. by down tomorrow, low 50s, upper 40s shenandoah valley. mid to upper first around the bay and metro area, generally in the mid 50s tomorrow. morning commute,

the mid 50s and noontime, mid 60s. by 5:00 p.m., dry roads, upper 60s. so cooler weather moving in. the azaleas are looking so beautiful. i took this picture a couple of days ago. the azaleas are showing off now as we have it looking like spring, but it's not going to be feeling much like spring as we get into the next ten days. so we'll be having temperatures up near 70 on thursday, with increasing clouds and then thursday night, some rain moving in, rain moderate to heavy at times on friday morning through midday on friday. we could pick up a couple inches of rain, maybe even some flooding by noontime on friday. then we dry out on friday afternoon. and then on saturday and sunday, much cooler. afternoon highs 60 degrees. the average high this time of year is 70 degrees. 60 over the weekend and maybe light showers on saturday. maybe sprinkles on sunday, and that cool pattern continues into next week. highs only near 60 all

morning lows, 40s, but we stay dry. then it moderates toward the end of the week. that's the way it looks. i'm tom sherwood at the national museum of african american history and culture. opening this friday, a new exhibit, 200 years of

>> you know the cliche a picture is worth a tan

how about 160 pictures? opens friday at the museum of african american history and culture. tom sherwood takes us on a preview. >> thank you very much. thank you, thank you. >> reporter: washington native sharon farmer, making her way to her photo of this 97-year-old woman, working a hula hoop. >> the spirit. because no matter how old you get, you gotta keep moving. >> this says spirit at no matter your age. >> and no matter your color. keep moving, keep doing stuff. >> reporter: farmer was among a group of photographers doing a media preview of an exhibit that opens friday of 150 photos spanning more than 200 years of history. 1862 era photo of slaves in alexandria, virginia. modern-day protests. the beach scene of a father and son. >> what

feel when they come in here? >> a connection. an emotion. if you don't know that person, maybe you know somebody else in your family who feels like she teals. >> reporter: farmer's photo of anacostia park is among the work. >> blows my mind. >> reporter: farmer sees the full scope of history. in the 1990s for president clinton, she was the first african american and the first woman to oversee the white house photography office. she has a philosophy about being a first. >> if somebody's gonna be first, pick somebody, would ya! you've got to pick somebody. otherwise your historical status don't mean nothing. >> reporter: the museum director called the 25,000 photos, not just the 150 on display, the joy and struggle of life. in the district, tom sherwood, news4. >> i love her. we have more of these photos, tips on how you can get t

museum. it's in our nbc washington app. just open it up and search african american museum. news4 at 6:00 starts now. >> now at 6:00, a serial killer and getting immunity. his victim's family is finding peace. jamie lane was murdered brutally eight years ago. tonight his loved ones reveal how this confession is changing their lives. >> david culver joins us from the courthouse in leesburg with more. >> reporter: it's here at the courthouse you'd expect the victim's family to find justice. but instead prosecutors stood here today to say that they will not be seeking charges against the man you mentioned, the serial killer. instead, they're giving him immunity in exchange for the truth. >> i don't believe in taking a life for a life. r

long to notice two things about della alen. she's strong in her faith and loves her family. two weeks ago a phone call changed her life. >> i was blown away. but happy at the same time. >> reporter: on the other end of the line, lesburg police detective doug shaw, he told her that abuelazam had confessed to murdering her husband. >> i know it won't bring my dad back. but he can rest in peace knowing that we know who did this. >> reporter: march 2009, jamie was found brutally murdered inside his leesburg home. stabbed to death. >> that was the worst day of our lives. >> reporter: it took police a year to narrow in on abel zam. eventually investigators linked him to ten stabbings, five homicides across four states. in 2012, he was convicted for a separate murder in michigan, sentenced to life without parole. but he never opened up about jamie