"news4 today" starts now. >> where in the world is santa claus? tonight he's getting ready to make a big move. actually in certain parts of the world -- >> he's already landed. >> yeah. >> santa's busy. >> we have to get norad to keep a tracker on santa claus. we are getting ready for the holiday. a lot of kiddos excited about a lot of families are excited. thank you so much for waking up with us on a sunday morning. good morning. >> i'm meagan fitzgerald. merry christmas to you. so much excitement. >> if you don'te

grinch. >> the kids are waking up in just 24 hours from now to all these gifts, you know? and it's a wonderful time of year. i hope you're feeling the holiday spirit and it sounds like you're going to be getting into it if you step outside. lauryn ricketts -- >> no white christmas. you don't have to travel far to find a white christmas. it is mainly just to the north. those areas will have a white christmas in pennsylvania. however, a few showers overnight, but they're highly spotty. let's look outside, beautiful conditions. we do have some clearing skies. we have some cloud cover. i think we'll have more clouds than sunshine out there today. temperatures at 40 degrees. we will stay at 40 through 7:00. then those temperatures will come up a little bit. it is breezy out there today. winds are the main story.

an hour. so again, we'll have windchills tomorrow. spotty rain and snow showers are possible. we'll talk about your christmas forecast. ever-important christmas forecast coming up. >> thank you very much. the time is 6:02. breaking news coming to you this morning. a two-car crash on the bw parkway at powder mill road at md 197. the parkway reopens at 198. no word yet on any injuries. we'll continue to update you as the details coming in. meanwhile, fairfax county police are planning to charge a teenager with a double murder. the husband and wife killed are dealing with an unimaginable loss today. the neighbors were shocked by the family tragedy. >> reporter: fairfax county police returned to the home in reston. it's where a prominent attorney and her husband were murdered

christmas. flowers and candles dropped off by friends and neighbors line the end of the driveway. >> they were very friendly and very kind people. >> reporter: a quiet vigil was held across the street. neighbors still in shock. the couple who just moved in months ago are gone. buckley kuhn-fricker was killed along with her husband scott when they confronted a teenager known to them at 5:00 in the morning that 17-year-old also shot himself but survived. he remains in the hospital in critical condition. police have obtained petitions charging him with these murders. many were thinking of the fricker's young son whom they would see playing basketball in front of the house. >> it's hard to imagine that -- he doesn't have parents anymore and i can imagine that christmas will never be the same for him again. >> reporter: janet kuhn told police that her 16-year-old

who was a supporter of naziism. >> they found out about -- my daughter and her husband found out about the nazi stuff and they forbade their daughter to see again. >> reporter: the daughter posted on facebook a reference to her personal battle against the nazi ideology. >> the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. that was the last post. >> reporter: police pulled down the tape surrounding the house and end to the investigation here, but no end to the many questions still being asked about how and why this tragedy happened. in reston, darcy spencer, news4. >> just devastating. this morning, ten people are without a home after a destructive fire broke out. look at the flames here. they just ripped through this home and then jumped to other homes in southeast d.c. this happened on saturday. we are looking at some

phone video. three homes were damaged. news4 spoke with a neighbor who says this is a tight knit community but they're all going to come together to make sure the families are okay. >> the whole house was engulfed in flames. like it was surreal. it was the biggest thing i have ever seen. and i was just praying and worried. we're a pretty tight community here so i think we'll make sure that they're going to be okay. >> everyone was able to get out in time and no one was hurt. the cause of the fire though is still under investigation. and we have a reminder for you. make sure you lock your cars and keep your valuables out of sight especially of course this time of year with your christmas packages in your car. police in west springfield say three people rifled through dozens of cars, stealing property. they even stole a car of a person who is parked on stan hope place. 17 calls were called in saturday morning and in two

people's homes to grab their car keys. well, cruel or necessary, the trump administration is mulling over a plan that would separate parents from their children if they're detained for immigration status. advocates say it will help reduce illegal immigration, but others say this is going too far. nbc's pete williams breaks it down for us. >> reporter: with illegal border crossings up sharply last month the department of homeland security is considering a tough new measure that would send immigrant children to one detention center and their parents to another while they wait to be see if they'll be admitted as refugees or sent back. cracking down on illegal immigration was a theme of the trump campaign and routinely separating families was considered last spring, but john kelly rejected it when he was homeland security saying it would be used sparingly. >> you know, the mother -- if the mother is sick or addicted to

>> reporter: now with a surge at the southern border it is again under discussion to look at every possible way to discourage illegal migration. a group that lobbies for tougher enforcement said it would be an act of compassion. >> it would dissuade them getting them to the smugglers and those that operate along the border treat human beings like merchandise. >> reporter: but advocates for immigrants saying separating families is inhumane. >> ripping a child from a mother's act is never a compassionate act. >> reporter: the plan has not been approved by the new homeland security, but it's getting a serious look. pete williams, nbc news, washington. well, immigration is just one of the many issues that the new president has decided to tackle and today on "meet the press" moderator chuck todd will take a look back at 2017 and president trump's first year in

today are going to be regulars. they'll talk about the relationship between the press and the commander in chief. you'll want to stay tuned for a special edition of "meet the press" coming up right here at 10:30 this morning on nbc4. and a cold start to your holiday, taking a live look outside at the monument. pretty. lauryn ricketts will tell us how cold it will get. >> today is the day to get in this and get your shopping done. you may not be alone if you're planning on doing your shopping today. we'll tell you what's hope, how late and where you can go get

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welcome back. it is game day at fedex field. game doesn't matter that much in terms of the standings but still the redskins are taking on the broncos

from the playoffs. so the best they can do is try to finish 8-8 on the season. the broncos are known for their pretty good defense. creating a test for quarterback kirk cousins today. now, up until last week the broncos had not won a game on the road. see if they get it done today. >> we'll see. it's christmas eve. we want to say merry christmas eve to everyone out there. >> we do indeed. for all the last-minute shoppers out there -- did you get yours in? >> i'm the guy that commercial, have you seen the commercial, it's raining men, the guys are running into walmart -- it's a tradition. >> well, these malls, you know, they're like coping for it. >> they have. >> they have stores open until 11:00. anyway, if this applies to you, time is quickly running out for you to get those gifts wrapped and put them underneath the tree. and if you still have some shopping to do you're not alone though, because listen to the facts here. we have some numbers for you. the national retail

predicts about 126 million people are still checking off gifts on their christmas gift. >> not alone. >> you're joining the millions. most national chains will stay open until 6:00 p.m. today. that includes kohl's and macy's, but walmart is open until 11:00 tonight. i just finished yesterday. wrapped, sealed, i'm going to deliver them tonight. >> look at you. >> i know. anyway -- >> let's see what the weather is look for the people who are doing the last minute shopping. can you tell people they'll have a nice day today or continue to bundle up? >> you know, they need to bundle up. yesterday, you need the umbrella. you have the showers on and off and then in the -- then the line came through really quick. then we dried on out. we're drying out today. a little breezy out there. but much cooler. we'll stay in the 40s for your christmas eve with plenty of clouds. outside the beltway, we have got

temperatures in the 30s so again, it's not too bad out there right now. it's feeling like christmas out there. it's certainly going to feel it as we go into the day today with temperatures only into the mid 40s. again, a little breezy, and just a quiet, cloudy day out there. not a lot happening on the radar. we have got some cloud cover. but to the west, we have some snow. a little disturbance that's going to roll through. in fact, create some white christmases for a lot of people in the northeastern corridor of the united states. we'll see that a little bit of that and see a little bit of this system along the coast. this system could create some rain chances for southern maryland, eastern shore today. i would say later on this afternoon, but those will be the only people that would see any rain today. otherwise, we wait until the overnight to get that other system in the midwest here. then we could have some spotty light rain, spotty lisn

showers. increasing clouds, breezy through the morning and calm conditions. let's go ahead and look at what we're dealing with for tomorrow morning. 7:00 a.m., we have nothing out there. a few spotty showers possible. that's it. and then we continue through your christmas day. we'll have plenty of sunshine out there. again, tomorrow it is going to be windy. we'll have winds gusting up to 40 miles an hour. we might have a wind advisory, so when you're driving just know it is going to be very windy tomorrow. windchills are in the teens and 20s. however we'll have plenty of sunshine out there. mid 40s for today. spotty overnight rain and snow showers. tomorrow, 30s but the windchills are in the teens and 20s. we say cool all the way low this week. and we have a storm system to watch for friday and saturday. way too early yet although we could get some snow here. we could have some snow. that's something that will be bear -- bear watching this week. >>

snow this friday and saturday. >> yeah. >> it is what it is. okay. ""reporter's notebook" is up next." >> good morning. the drama drags on in three virginia house races, a court has declared one of them in newport news a tie. and the republican delegate david yancey challenged and said that that vote was his. tom sherwood and mark secretes are joining us this morning. so the judge agreed. now what? >> well, first of all, let's say shelly, she ran two years and lost by 3,000 votes. this time because of the anti-trump fever and all that, she tied 11,608 votes. now, they're tied. pull a name out of the hat apparently. >> yeah. that to me is the headline that

>> it could down to that. a coin toss. >> yeah. "the washington post" reported in 2014, 35 states in the united states actually have this provision where if it ends in a tie there's a coin toss to decide the winner. >> think of how unlikely that is. how many ties we have. why not have another election and let people decide, people who didn't vote can decide who to vote for. people come back out in a few weeks but the law is the law. it says it will pull a name out of the hat. >> so republicans hold on the that seat, they hold on to power in the general assembly, if they don't, the power shifts to the 50-50 tie for first time in two decades. this is the big seismic event though in the state of virginia. >> this is huge. going into november, the republicans in the house of delegates what a hundred seats. 66 of them were republican. and now it's going to be 50-50 if everything stays the way

that means that no one party can pick the speaker of the house. no one party can set the agenda, no one party what's going to be voted on this day or that day. everyone talks about how the two parties ought to cross the aisle and work together, well, they have to now. because they'll have to share power in the house of delegates. then the senate side, you know, only 40 members over there. and the republicans are ahead 21-19. >> yeah. >> very close in the lieutenant governor, who's a democrat, justin fairfax will take office. he will decide the tie breaking votes too. so it's -- if you want the job as reported, go in january to richmond. >> there will be a lot to cover. with sexual harassment cases sweeping the nation, mayor muriel bowser has ordered 30,000 d.c. government workers to complete sexual harassment training and there's a deadline -- there's a deadline on this. the end of february. >> yeah, a quick turn around that the mayor has ordered for

employees. one of the things -- you know, i had been asking tom about it, who all falls under this, whether elected officials. whether the 13 members of the d.c. council and whether the mayor will have to undergo this training. but it's a preemptive shot, clearly. but one we're likely to -- >> i was told they can't allow the council members to do anything, but they themselves. the mayor has said there are about 1,500 supervisory people and they'll get additional training about how to respond to an employee who has a complaint so it doesn't get swept under the rug or somebody is dismissed or whatever. there's clear guidelines. there's a zero policy anyway. but the mayor said it has to be reinforced. >> how will they handle the cases? >> they have been handled by the offices of the human rights, by the attorney general's office. it's a

said we need to have clear goals, clear understanding of what the goals are and clear accounting of what the cases are so we know if they're effective or not. >> this training is online training which some say is not necessarily the most effective way to do it. >> well, you have -- >> yeah, you want it done. again, the city -- i'm not even sure what training this is to avoid being a sexual harasser. you don't mistreat people, men or women or whoever. you can have an online system to know that each employee has signed off and done it. >> the mayor and congresswoman eleanor holmes norton have announced that the d.c. residents can prepay their 2018 property taxes to avoid the new deduction limits being put into place by the new tax reform. mark, you live in the city? >> i do, i'm a homeowner. 30 minutes after this came out, my tax guy called me and told me

at least for someone in my situation, to be able to pay this this year. and be able to take that tax credit i wouldn't be able to take next year under the republican -- the trump tax plan. >> not everyone is prepared to do this. >> you have to come up with a lot of money. >> skip the cheap gifts that you were going to buy -- >> i had one retirement gift on my list. >> you can cancel that one. >> consider it done. so you will have to come up with some cash by the end of the year. i mean, you have to do it before december 31st and governor hogan wants to put something similar in place for maryland as well. >> this is not an individual homeowners, but condo associations, co-op associations, it's real estate taxes. it's dramatically changing because of the new republican bill that passed. >> yeah. lots of things are changing. we'll be right back.

it was one of the most frightening experiences of a parent's life. a d.c. 3-year-old of cleveland elementary sent home with a stranger. a child's mother showed up to pick her up. she was given to the wrong adult. how does something like this happen? >> you know, it was human error. there was nothing sinister or nefarious, but it pointed to the breakdown in the system at this school. this person who showed up was an uncle of a student at that same after care at the cleveland elementary in shaw. so he was allowed in the building. he was supposed to be there. apparently, the two girls -- 3-year-old girls have similar sounding names. he picked up the girl, put her in the car seat, drove -- he was gone for an hour. and when he came back after the school called him and said you have the wrong kid, he said, well, she answered to my niece's name. >> he didn't necessarily recognize his niece. >> it

it's possible she was bundled up for the winter weather. but the mother was frantic. this is not first problem we have reported on at cleveland elementary school. this is tame school where a teacher -- same school where a teacher was charged for hitting a student. the same school where the leader of the after care program was put on administrative leave because she was also accused of assaulting a student. >> what are they going to do? >> well, d.c. ps said they're looking into the incident. they told the parents the same thing, looking into the incident. but, you know, parents at that school are very, upset and that mother -- the last i talked to her hasn't sent her child back to that school. she's just afraid. >> we'll switch gears here and tell you that as we say farewell to this year we've posted some of the top stories of 2017 on nbc washington.com. partying can swing wide open the door to new opportunities. such as the case with an icon in

a fixture at news4 for 28 years. since joining us, he's led the national and the political coverage and changes in the city through marion barry's era, through the cultural renaissance. he's been a fixture here on this program on sunday morning and this morning we say farewell to you, tom sherwood. >> well, thank you very much. >> you're leaving us but not the work you love. >> that's right. i'm refocusing, i'm doing more work on friday, i'm going to expand into maryland, virginia and d.c. and cover extraordinary politics going on. >> well, pat, you said some lovely things about tom sherwood, and they're deserved. tom, you have been great to me as a mentor and a friend and i would not be sitting here today if it were not for tom sherwood. there are a lot of us, a lot of us who owe a lot as

journalists, younger journalists to tom sherwood because he blazed the trail. and he helped us along. he shared when -- it's a competitive business, but tom was always willing to share. that's it. the gloves come off. tom sherwood, we are now going to have to suffer through your opinions. >> yes. instead of saying some people think you're a fool, i will say you're a fool. >> how do you think mayor bowser is doing? >> i think she's doing well. mayor gray should not run for mayor again. mayor bowser is doing a good enough job. >> looking back over your career here -- >> thank you, pat. >> the stories that had the most impact to you? >> listen, marion barry used to say, i made you, sherwood, i used to say, thank you very much, mayor. it was extraordinary covering his era over the city and then the rebound wh

broke. we now have 20 years of balanced budgets, it's been an extraordinary change. a lot of it good, some bad. the gentrification and the displacement of african-americans in this city. 70% were african-americans and now it's under 50%. the city is growing but the size of the african-american community in this hometown of washington, d.c. that we all love is shrinking. it's got to be done -- more has to be done for housing, middle class workhorse housing to keep people in the city. >> it sounds like a platform. a lot of people said you were qualified, you're beloved. >> and they encouraged you to run. >> knowledgeable. smart. intelligent. all of the above. when will you announce? >> i'm working with the show -- >> seriously, there might be a draft movement. we have an election cycle coming

possibility of running for elected office? >> i'm going to richmond to the ralph norton inauguration -- >> answer -- >> here's the answer. serious answer. >> let him answer, mark. >> for 20 or 30 year, people say sherwood, why don't you run? you know the city, you're well known. tv has given you a lot of exposure. well, i have thought about campaigns. i said i would not run against any incumbent because that would be a violation of my ethics of a journalist. i'm not sure at 71 1/2 years old i want to undertake the rigors of running a campaign, but in all things in life, i don't rule anything out, including what i'll very to dinner tonight. >> spoken like a true politician. >> here's the deal, i cover politics. i know how to cover politics and i know how to play them if i want to. >> we'll miss you, tom. but we will be following you. >> i'll

twitter. i'll break news there and segraves has to follow. >> we'll miss tom's intellect, humor and true commitment to journalism and -- >> grumpiness. >> to the city of washington. we'll miss his interrupting us too. thank you for joining us. news4 continues. "news4 today" starts now. >> sad to lose tom. really sad that tom walked out the door, but we wish the best for our friend and former colleague, tom sherwood. >> yes. >> the next chapter -- refocus, not retiring. >> refocusing, i loved how he phrased that. 6:30 on a christmas eve. good morning to you. i hope you're having a good start to your sunday. i'm adam tuss. >> i'm meagan fitzgerald. merry christmas. we're in couwn

santa is in full swing, he already stopped in many places around the world. he making his way to washington, d.c., and we are about 24 hours away from landing. can you believe it? >> let's put the kids to bed right now. >> i know. >> all wait -- you know what i mean? >> just wake up tomorrow. santa will be here. a lot of excitement. we want to know a lot about the weather because a lot of people have last-minute shopping to do. >> i know. a lot of people have -- yeah. a lot of people need to get out and get some gifts, maybe some haven't started their shopping. thank goodness santa is on the way. could we see a white christmas, not likely. you won't have to travel too far to see a white christmas, just to the north of us. we're at 40 degrees right now. yesterday we made it up to 65 degrees.

todays so that's it. look at the radar, we have a coastal system. we have some snow into the midwest. that is headed to the east. we're going to time out some spotty light rain and snow showers overnight tonight. that's coming up and of course your christmas forecast is coming up in about 15 minutes. >> thank you very much. as we mentioned it's christmas eve and believe it or not, some people have last-minute gifts to check off their list. >> this is a real thing. >> i can believe it. i need to go get some more things. >> i just finished yesterday. i can't really talk much. >> well, we're journalist, we wait until there's a deadline. >> we're good under pressure. as jo ling kent reports, waiting until the last minute might save you some money. >> reporter: the rush is on. as shoppers scramble to grab the perfect gifts. stores are pushing their deepest discounts. hoping to capture the last of your holiday spending. by combining the convenience of

guarantee of an in-person pickup. >> they're not trying to ramp up the prices as much as they're trying to get you into the stores to spend your money there. so you'll find a lot of discounts if you waited until the last minute. >> reporter: almost half of americans complete their holiday shopping during the week of christmas or later. toys "r" us and kohls are staying open 24 hours a day until christmas eve. at target, 30% off sweaters and macy's 50% off fine jewelry. and at best buy $150 off the apple mac book. and at walmart, $35 off the barbie play set. target, best buy, walmart, toys "r" us are offering pickup as late as christmas eve night. in some areas amazon is offering same day delivery until midnight

>> people want to shop as late as possible and get their holiday gifts where they need to be by christmas eve. >> reporter: convenience reigning supreme as consumers wrap up the shopping list. >> wow. hundreds of deserving children in our area are experiencing a lot of joy this holiday season. this christmas. all thanks to one local group. firefighters and friends, they welcomed people to samuel elementary in alexandria and handed out gifts. they got to meet santa and play around with his beard. mickey and minnie mouse stopped by too. the organizer's goal was to give 1,000 children a great children. >> we know that families are having tough times so we want to make sure we're providing gifts for the kids and make sure that every child wakes up with something underneath the tree. >> firefighters and others

toys, coats and gift cards. awesome. >> very cool. and the gifts were also flowing in prince george's county. the firefighters handed out gifts to those displaced from their homes. the firefighters and toys for tots donated all the gifts. >> love to see that. the smiles on the faces. the time is 6:34. the ceo of the miss america organization, sam haskell, is stepping down immediately. this comes after top officials were caught in an e-mail shaming scandal. dozens of former contestants signed a petition calling for him and others to step down. the organization's president and chairwoman have resigned. e-mails mocked the appearance and intellect of past miss america's. nbc news has yet to verify the e-mails. a global media power house is apologizing for a boy's cl

inappropriate behavior. yesterday, "the new york times" reported it found four settlements involving sexual harassment allegations defamatory against media companies and their employees. that included andrew creighton. in a statement, to a cofounder said -- the cofounder said that they provide a safe place for women and that cultural elements from our past, dysfunctional and mismanagement were allowed to flourish unchecked. they're addressing the problems. it's been more than 90 days since hurricane maria swept through puerto rico and now a third of the residents there have to spend the holiday in the dark. officials say it could be several more months before there's any help for the people on the island. nbc's tammy leitner has more. >> reporter: for many in puerto rico this will be the only christmas delivery this year. these aren't the gifts you typically

tree. they're basic supplies a life line for the 800 families in the town. do you feel like your mountain community has been forgotten about? >> in a way, yes. because we are behind schedule. >> reporter: this community still has no power and no running water. the family that used to live in this house tells us they haven't seen anybody from fema and they don't if and when help will ever come. meaning this is their new normal. three months after hurricane maria devastated puerto rico, a third of the island is still in the dark. nbc's jose diaz-balart asked about the setback. >> you thought by the end of this year, you would have what 95-plus percent of the island back on the grid. hasn't happened. >> hasn't happened yet. >> why? >> we're very aggressive and we recognize -- well, partly the man hour. partly is the materials haven't gotten here. >> reporter: for the davila family it's a

>> we lost everything. >> reporter: jose and his wife built this 112-foot star more than a decade ago. the shining beacon could be seen as far as 11 towns away during the holidays but the hurricane badly damaged it. >> the star is broken. >> you can see it works now. >> yeah. yeah. >> oh, the steel has snapped here as well. >> reporter: with time the family promises the star will shine again. >> it's a lot of work, but he can do it. >> reporter: just like this teeny mountain community. tammy leitner, nbc news, puerto rico. >> that's devastating. gives you perspective on what to be grateful for this holiday season. it is beginning to look like christmas around here. the question is how low will

we have the answer up next. plus, the pain in microblading. it offered at beauty salons in our area but you may think twice after hearing one woman's ♪ whoa! the mercedes-benz winter event is back and you won't want to stop for anything else. [ barks ] ho! lease the gla 250 for $349 a month at your local mercedes-benz dealer. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing.

combing up on "meet the press" -- today we'll take a look back at one of the most extraordinary political years of our lifetime. year one of the trump presidency. and we'll look at a fractured republican party, the ongoing russia investigation, whether democrats embrace or avoid the push for impeachment. and both parties uneasy relationship with the president. and president trump calls us the enemy of the american people and critics on the president and the press. and the politics of shopping. where do you shop

where you shop reveals how you vote. it's all ahead on a special edition of "meet the press." >> that got me hooked. where you shop, how you vote. interesting. reminder, see "meet the press" with chuck todd every sunday at 10:30. it looked like death on my face. >> that's not a good look. >> no. not a good look. i yi yi. she's a local woman, she wanted to try out a popular new trend. but her experience quickly spiralled into a nightmare. the news4 i-team always working for you. they went undercover to see how safe microblading is before you try it out. there's plenty of artists and salons operating without a license. that's scary. here's a look at what news4 i-team uncovered.

>> reporter: christina hernandez's face is her business. thousands watch her makeup tutorials on facebook. so she likes to try out products and services and share with her fans. >> i wanted to get my eyebrows microbladed. >> reporter: microblading is a form of permanent tattooing, where pigment is pushed into the skin in little lines to look like hair. >> i'm a mother of five, i don't have time to get up with the eye pencil and fill in. >> reporter: it's supposed to be fuller, more natural looking brows that can last for years. but that's not what happened when she walked into vera spa in fairfax in september. >> really painful. i expected some swelling but i looked like someone took a pen to my face and drew lines where ever they felt like it. >> reporter: she filed a complaint and she was surprised to find there was already an open investigation into vera's

you know researching all of the reviews for this place. >> reporter: if she had, she might have seen this one from ashley harden. two days after her microblading procedure, she says her skin was inflamed and swollen so she went to the doctor. >> he said it was an infection where the area wasn't properly cleaned. >> reporter: plus her brows are not the color or shape she wanted. >> virginia is very much a buyer beware state. >> reporter: they do license the salons for tattooing. 88 people. board spokesman admits that might not mean what you'd think. >> so the license doesn't mean you're good at it? >> you're minimally competent so consumers have an assurance they're dealing with those who won't hurt them. not the cream of the crop. >> reporter: and the board does not drive around checking for licenses or looking for violations so we sent an i-team producer under cover s

along maple avenue in vienna, all three of the salons offered microblading service, but state records showed none had a license that allowed that. and plus, it should be done in a sterile room and not out in the open. but state investigators have no way to shut them down. >> we can only go into the i licensed facility under law. >> reporter: and the owner had a license or at least she did when our undercover producer paid her a visit. but this state licensed instructor doesn't think so. at least five women including christina came to her, asking her to correct her brows after the visit to vera. >> i can't believe this person is still working. >> reporter: in fact, when she saw the brows she asked

she had been to vera's. wood has volunteerly surrendered her permanent tattooing license and closed the spa. so we tracked her down and tried to ask about the state's ongoing investigation. >> i left you a message. you're lynn? >> no, i'm not. >> you're lynn, one of our producers talked to you. >> i went in feeling beautiful and i left feeling like a clown. >> reporter: despite her embarrassment, christina wants others to learn from her experience. it's not quite the lesson she planned to give her fans. >> would i do it again? not without checking a license and without reading all the reviews. >> reporter: we reached out to the unlicensed salons. a few thought the cosmetology license allowed the microblading but it does not. if there are negative findings it can keep vera's from opening later. >>

this originated with a tip from a viewer. if you have an idea for the next investigation go to our nbc washington app and look up the state licenses for state procedures do some research. >> you guys were saying that trends change. you might get a tattoo, but two days it's a different thing. >> i know. >> early 2000s, they were super skinny. >> now bushier eyebrows are in. >> just go buy your eyebrows at the store. right? you don't -- >> put them on. >> that's a last minute holiday gift. >> there you go. maybe you should get your wife that. >> i don't know if that would be offensive or whatever. >> oh, my gosh. >> now you got me in trouble. >> well, if you are holiday shopping today -- >> yeah, i will be. >> pivot here to weather. >> thank you so much for

me. >> it is supposed to be cold, right? >> yeah. it's not windy right now. >> a little breezy, but windy tomorrow. gusts of wind. >> if we had moisture we could have a white christmas. >> you won't have to go too far for a white christmas. just go to pennsylvania. so let's go ahead to our weather maps right now. we have some nice conditions out there. it is chilly. temperatures are going to be seasonable today. beautiful view out there right know. we have some clouds. we have some clear skies, really depending on where you are. lots of clouds will continue to increase today. now, isolated rain and snow chances overnight. the key word being isolated. very isolated. small chances that we'll see anything. show you that on the futurecast. very windy on christmas. then after christmas, all of our eyes -- all the focus is on next friday and saturday. we could have a storm system coming our way. current temperatures out there, everybody in the 40s

here's your shopping planner. adam, this is for you. cloudy and dry and in the 40s. that's it. you're inside a mall so it doesn't matter. we have some clouds out there. again, as i said clear skies. we have two little things we're watching. this thing off to the coast. now, we could see a few showers try to make it into northern maryland -- i'm sorry, southern maryland, even into the eastern shore. that will be later on this afternoon. that's the only area that could see some rain today. that's this afternoon. then we watched this little disturbance. it will shoot up to the north, but we could get a few light showers out of that overnight tonight. today, what to expect. increasing clouds. a little breezy out there through the morning. but it's quiet out there today. cool and seasonable. here's a look at the little showers down to the south. 6:30 this morning. some of them may try to make their way into southern maryland. again, some spottyig

but everybody else dry. then as we go after 7:00 tonight we are looking at some more rain showers. maybe even some snowflakes out there. that'll continue into the overnight until about 5:00 a.m. then we dry out. and we're looking at sunshine tomorrow. but again, windy conditions tomorrow. windchills in the teens and 20s. that wind will continue into tuesday as we well. on tuesday it will be blustery. very windy and cold. again, it will be just brutal out there. the national weather service may go ahead and issue -- i didn't want to put this in here, issue a wind advisory. that's something we have to watch. so 37 for your monday. if you're headed to the redskins game i was actually working on that graphic, they're not playing the vikings, but the broncos. it will be fine. so 40s today. then in the 30s tomorrow. chilly tomorrow morning but the main tomorrow for christmas are the winds. we stay cold, look at this all the way thro t

in the 20s on friday and saturday and maybe some snow

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welcome back. legions of devoted fans are helping some unlikely hit makers find success at the top of the music charts. >> they are. nbc's kate beck tells us about a sister act making beautiful music. ♪ >> reporter: if you ever wanted to hear a choir of angels sing -- you can find an experience like it. ♪ inside this convent tucked in the woods near ann arbor, michigan. >> i love it. i guess we take too much for granted. when people come here, they say that was so beautiful. >> reporter: a beauty that has made the dominican sisters of mary a hit music sensation. just completing their third album recorded here inside their sacred chapel.

>> each of those panels are different depths to take the sound. >> reporter: the latest album is shooting to number one on the classical music billboard charts. >> when there's something dear to you, you want to share it with other people. >> reporter: song now their signature. drawing fans to the order. but also inspiring a flock of new women to enter. 20 years ago, beginning with just four nuns. the order now at 138 and growing. >> i mean, you literally don't have enough beds. >> we don't. we don't. >> for all the nuns that want to be here. >> reporter: it's the young women who are filling them. the average age of a nun in the united states is 78. here, it's 28. they work and play. >> we study a lot. we cook a lot. we eat a lot and we have a lot of fun doing all those thi

secondary to a life of service. reflective and prayerful. music just one way they'd speak to god. a passion now shared with believers and those who never opened a bible. >> sometimes i'll just stop and just kind of listen. because it's just so beautiful. it's a little bit of heaven. >> reporter: a sound that in this hectic season brings stillness and wonder. catie beck, nbc news, ann arbor, michigan. >> beautiful voices. >> very beautiful. >> love to hear it. all right, well much more ahead right here on "news4 today." >> that includes an hour by hour look at your christmas eve forecast with meteorologist lauryn ricketts. a beautifulook at union l

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dominion energy. "news4 today" starts now. >> and heading into the 7:00 hour here on this christmas eve. the wreaths are out in fashion at union station. a little bit of a gentle breeze there as the wents flap in the winds. and santa shouldn't have a hard landing. he's on the move. i love the wreaths. >> i know. this is

>> amazing look. if you have never seen the wreaths at union station in person, go down and see it. an amazing thing. i want to thank you for waking up with us. i'm adam tuss. >> i'm meagan fitzgerald. merry christmas eve. the clock is ticking, you guys. but we'll get into it. but some places are open until 11:00 tonight. >> they are. will it be a white christmas? let's check in with storm team 4 meteorologist lauryn ricketts. >> no pressure. >> the chances of a white christmas are pretty small and we thought we could see a white christmas because ten days ago we were tracking some snow on christmas day, but now it's a few light showers overnight and not everybody is going to see them. in fact, they're highly isolated. a gorgeous view out there. look at that we have some clouds. we've got clear skies in some other parts of the region. it is beautiful. temperatures at 39 degrees.

go through the 7:00 hour. 7:24, that's the official sunrise. it's already brightening out there. it's a little breezy and that wind will calm later on this afternoon. if you're traveling nothing to worry about right around here. i'll pop out this picture, through the midwest we have this system we're tracking. that's headed our way. we'll let you know if we can squeeze out some snow showers for us and a few snowflakes. meanwhile, we have detail answer breaking news that we brought you earlier this morning. a two-car crash on the bw parkway had all northbound lanes closed after powder mill road at 197 but the parkway has now reopened. all lanes are clear. no word yet on any injuries. meanwhile, covering northern virginia this morning fairfax county police are preparing to charge a teenager with double murder. the children of the husband and wife killed are dealing with an

unimaginable loss. news4 spoke with the neighbors. >> reporter: fairfax county police returned to reston, it's where a prominent attorney and her husband were murdered. candles and flowers dropped off by line the end of the driveway. >> they were very friendly. they were very kind people. >> reporter: a quiet vigil was held across the street. neighbors still in shock. the couple who just moved in months ago are gone. buckley kuhn-fricker and her husband were shot. the 17-year-old shot himself and he survived. he's in the hospital in critical condition. the police have charged him with the murders. many were thinking of the fricker's young son who they see often playing basketball in front of the house. >> it's hard to imagine that he does haven't

parents anymore and i imagine that christmas will never be the same for him again. >> janet kuhn, buckley's mother, said that the daughter was seeing a boy that was into na naziism. >> they found out about it this week and forbade to daughter to see him again. >> reporter: a reference was made to the battle against the ideology. >> the only thing for the triumph of the evil is for good men to do nothing. that was the last post. >> reporter: the police pulled down the tape and no end to the questions become asked about how -- being asked about how and why this tragedy happened. in reston, darcy spencer, news4. this morning, at least ten people are without a home after a destructive fire.

flames just ripped through a house and then jumped on to three other homes in southeast d.c. on saturday. that was cell phone video showing the fiery scene on 21st street. three homes were damaged. news4 spoke with a neighbor who says it's a tight knit community there. and they'll do what they can to help. >> just engulfed in flames. like it was surreal. it was the biggest thing i have ever seen. i was just praying and worried. we're a pretty tight community here so i think we'll make sure that they're going to be okay. >> yeah. longing at that video and how -- looking at that video and how intense it was, good news to report that no one was hurt. everyone was able to get out in time. the cause of the fire is still under investigation. we have a reminder for you this morning. don't forget to lock your car and to keep your valuables out of sight especially after packing christmas presents in your car. police in west springfield say three people rifled through dozens of

property. fairfax county police said they stole a car. officers say in two cases the criminals went inside to the people's homes to bet the car keys. 7:05. a security threat involving the u.s. treasury secretary is now over. this is chopper footage here from los angeles. after the bomb squad was called in. a suspicious package addressed to steve mnuchin was dropped off in bel air. law enforcement sources that the box was filled with horse manure. cruel or necessary, the trump administration is mulling over a plan that would separate parents from their children if they're detained for immigration status. advocates say it will help reduce illegal immigration, but other groups say that this is going too far. nbc's justice correspondent pete williams breaks it all down for us. >> reporter: with illegal

crossings up sharply last month there's a tough new measure that would send immigrant children to one detention center and their parents to another while they wait to see if they're admitted as refugees or sent back. cracking down on illegal immigration was a theme of the trump campaign. and routinely separating families was considered last spring. but john kelly rejected it when he was homeland secretary saying it would be used sparingly. >> the mother -- if the mother is sick or addicted to drugs or whatever. >> reporter: now with a surge in illegal migration at the southern border, administration officials say it's again under discussion as part of an effort to look at every possible way to discourage illegal migration. a group that lobbies for tougher enforcement said it would be an act of compass. >> it would dissuade parents from trusting themselves and others to smugglers. they're heartless individuals who treat human beings like merchandise. >> reporter: but advocates for

>> ripping a child from the mother's arms is never a come passionate act. and no policy is going to deter a mother who is asking to save her child's life. >> reporter: the plan has not been approved by the new homeland secretary, but it's getting a serious look. immigration is one of many issues that the new president has decided to tackle today. today, "meet the press" with chuck todd will look back at 2017 and president trump's first year in office. some of the panel regulars will talk about the relationship between the press and the commander in chief. stay tuned for a special edition of the show, starting at 10:30 right here on nbc4. a cold start to your holiday. we'll get you into the holiday spirit with the sun rising there. lauryn ricketts will be back in a minute to tell us how cold this

get. >> and we have word that santa is on his way to antarctica. he has to go around the globe. still some shopping that people need to get done today. well, if you're on that list you're not alone. details on what's open, who's open. how late. so the

welcome back. it's game day at fedex field. the 'skins take on the denver broncos at 1:00 this afternoon. both teams have been eliminated from the playoffs so the best the 'skins can do is try to finish 8-8 on the season. the broncos are known for their defense which is pretty good. that puts up a test for the redskins quarterback kirk cousins today. up until last week the broncos had not won a game on the road so they have some work to do at fedex field.

well, as the wreaths show you here, we're in the holiday spirit. happy christmas eve to everyone. >> i don't know if you've gone to union station yet, but it puts you in the holiday spirit. time is running out to get the last-minute gifts to get under the tree. if you still have some shopping to do though, you're not alone. the national retail federation they predict about 126 million people are still checking off gifts on their christmas list. most national chains will stay open until 6:00 p.m. tonight. you can shop at walmart until 11:00. >> it's like tradition. >> i want to talk some smack about it but that's when the deals are. if you're still

white christmas, keep dreaming, guys. >> but the white house looks nice. >> the white house looks nice. lauryn ricketts says it will be cold and plenty of that. we're breaking down the forecast for you coming up. also we mentioned santa is going to antarctica. in eight minutes before antarctica he's in fiji. >> wow. >> he goes to fiji which is warm. he has a mai tai. then he goes to antarctica and he has hot chocolate and rudolph getting fueled.re

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well, if you're traveling out there today, not a big deal. we're going to have clouds around. we'll have a little bit of a breeze this morning but really not looking too bad across the united states. definitely compared to yesterday when we had the big system come through the area. the united states pretty dry. we'll talk about that on that forecast coming up. but also christmas day, the thing you have to worry about are going to be the winds. so we'll talk about those wind gusts and just how cold it will feel through the day tomorrow. that's all coming up. >> thank you, lauryn. car crash deaths are on the rise and many experts believe drivers distracting the -- distracted drivers rather, with their cell phones are the problem. there's ways to cut down on distractions behind the

susan hogan has the tips from consumer reports. >> reporter: using a smartphone while driving is a big no no. but 52% of licensed is drivers who own a smartphone texted, played music, browsed the web, sent e-mails or even watched videos. many smartphone and phone technology experts are blocking alerts for both calls or texts. you can download apps for iphones or androids which allows users to set up automatic replies to incoming calls or texts. some phone companies offer similar driving apps bawl of these are -- but all of these are voluntary. put your phone out of sight and use the voice command features in your car. >> call mom. >> distracted driving however is not limited just to smartphones. many newer cars have infotainmenten

your eyes off the road. >> reporter: and there's ease of use and that factors into the overall car ratings. >> ironically, at the same time many car manufacturers are developing newer technologies designed to make new cars safer. >> reporter: like lane departure and collision warning systems. even automatic braking systems. these can be helpful but consumer reports say nothing beats keeping your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road. susan hogan, news4. >> got to stay focused. if you plan to take metro today or tomorrow, keep these opening and closing times in mind. metro will open at 8:00 this morning and close at 11:00 tonight. same tomorrow. plan to pay a parking fee if you are not riding metro going to the fedex field. merry christmas. it's santa. we are tracking him. his reindeer --

>> i wonder -- well, they're headed to fiji right now. stop there and get a mai tai. >> hang out on the beach. why not? >> if your children want to traffic santa, you can do this. you can track it with norad and he is just on the move. so wait, was he in antarctica? and -- he's going to fiji now. and then to antarctica. >> let's get it straight. last season in antarctica. in the cold -- land hoe! by the way, it's been around for 60 years. >> that's cool. >> we're all keeping track. we want to know where he is. when he's going to get to our homes and if he's going to have wind gusts to deal with when he lands on the roof. >> it is going to be brutal out there. winds kicking up tonight and then -- >> oh, no for santa? >> yeah. he'll be all right.

yeah, there's winds up there. but he'll be fine. it will be bitterly cold. we had 65 yesterday. >> but that rain was wind. >> it was like -- all of a sudden, that was a front, then it came through and then it was done. >> yeah. >> but no rain out there today. that's the good news for all those last-minute shoppers, people traveling. >> yeah. >> i'm not dealing with it. there's millions of people. >> there are. actually, there are. we have been running stories all morning. the sun is coming up at 7:24. spectacular sunrise right now as well. but again, you'll notice it's much cooler out there. a little bit of a breeze. that'll die down throughout the day and today is fairly quiet. overnight, the winds pick up. the winds are the main story for your christmas day. i can't stress that enough. and overnight tonight, we could have a spotty rain or snow shower.

current temperatures right now 39 in washington. everybody in the 30s at this point. we'll take them into the 40s today. not much further than that. look at that sunrise. thank you, guys, for moving that camera behind my map. as we go through the next 12 hours, a little breezy. but the winds will cool in the afternoon. not much on the radar, thank goodness. we had that big system that created a lot of travel problems yesterday. that's now off the coast. we're not seeing much of it. there's what's left of it. again, some of this rain could move up to southern maryland/eastern shore this afternoon. that's about it. otherwise, we're watching this little disturbance crawling through the midwest. flying into chicago you're dealing with some snow showers throughout the day. but this system is headed up to the northeast. pennsylvania and new england, we will see some of this system. we'll see a little bit of it, but again a lot will stop at the

but that's it. so increasing clouds today. breezy through the morning. much cooler and calm this afternoon. if you're headed out to the redskins game for those couple people that are headed out to the redskins game against the bronco, temperatures in the 40s. maybe a spotty shower around 7:00. through the day we'll have a chance, southern maryland/eastern shore. but that'll be it. after 7:00, everyone has a chance for some spotty showers and a spotty snowstorm. by 3:00, 4:00, 5:00, a few showers south and east and then some showers here. some snow possibly up to frederick county, maryland, i know they were pretreating the roads in maryland. i think mainly up to frederick county. but we were at 65 yesterday. so a lot of this is not going to stick on the ground. so no problems anticipated for your monday morning but the wind, that's really what's going to kick up. webe

well. plenty of sunshine on tuesday. temperatures are in the 30s. lots of stuff going on there. temperature, 37. windchills are in the teens and 20s. then we stay cool tuesday, wednesday, even thursday. we're watching another system for friday and in to

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massachusetts thought a little live music would help put his customers in the holiday spirit. >> he had no idea that one of his employees would be the star of the show. we have this story. >> reporter: from the chorus of carts, to the serenade of scanners, the sounds of the busy season at russo's in watertown is hardly music to your ears. but if you listen -- ♪ -- this might be. ♪ this is gilly. when he's not perform, among the produce, warming hearts with holiday classics he is warming up food behind the counter. but hardly anyone knew the 23-year-old from brazil who just started a few months ago was a trained singer. >> didn't have any idea at all. >> reporter: until they were setting up for some live music over the weekend and gilly stepped in to help with the sound check. ♪

god. >> reporter: so in awe, they asked him to be a part of the performance. ♪ and the videos of his debut are going viral. >> it had 17,000 views. i was like, how? >> reporter: such a sensation, customers are now requesting a cappella in the aisles. >> happy holidays. >> reporter: proof that above the sounds and the stress of the season, you can find peace and harmony. ♪ hallelujah >> reporter: if you only take the time to listen. >> unexplainable, unbelievable. ♪ >> i love it. shows you not to judge a book by it cover, right? >> beautiful voice. wow. there's another plane full of people headed out an a christmas eve. maybe catch a glimpse of santa up there? how many layers do you need if

"news4 today" starts now. >> 7:30 on this christmas eve. we decorated for you. >> i know. >> really took me all day to put these up. >> i know. and thank you some for your hard work. >> thank you -- >> isn't this beautiful? >> thank you to the good people at union station who put this up every year. it'sst

it's our back drop today which we love. because it's christmas eve. i have some trees on the tie. >> i have got the red. >> tracking santa this morning. a lot going on today. >> yeah. >> we want to thank you for starting with us. i'm adam tuss. >> good morning to you. i'm meagan fitzgerald. where is santa? >> this is an operation. >> oh, yeah. so it takes a village to track santa. that's what they're doing right there. tracking the very steps. was he last seen in fiji, right? >> yeah. going to australia. he has been to antarctica. the reindeer are powered up, ready to go. they have plenty of protein they have been working with. >> where is he again? >> solomon islands. >> that's where he's headed next. >> he's already making stops, kids. make sure you're in bed early tonight. >> that's right. >> we want to know is he going to have a smooth landing? >> there's the

question. >> lauryn, any winds for santa? >> there are, unfortunately. but they know what to do. but for us here it is rather windy as santa making it into town. oh, look at that. on cue. beautiful out there. a lot of people traveling. thank you, naomi, she said, i see that plane. the sun came up at 7:24, less than ten minutes ago. beautiful out there. it will be a great day. i believe that the clouds will fill in throughout the day. the breeze, we have a little bit of a breeze out there this morning. that will calm down into the afternoon. the temperatures are settling into the 40s and that's it. yesterday, in the mid 60s. not a lot on the radar right now. let me pop it out for you in case you're traveling. storm team radar, you can see the showers. that's the showers that came through yesterday. otherwis a

so again, not a lot happening in the united states right now. but this snow may be headed our way. we'll talk about it. you can see some snowflakes overnight tonight. we'll talk about that in 15 minutes. >> thank you very much. hey, it is christmas eve as we mentioned and believe it or not -- well, i can believe it, people have holiday shopping to do. last-minute gifts. this is a tradition for guys like me. >> yeah. >> it's what we do. we wait until the last minute. >> the stores are accommodating too. as we have been reporting, 6:00 -- some are open until 11:00. but as jo ling kent reports waiting until the last minute can save you some money. >> see? >> reporter: the rush is on. as shoppers scramble to grab the perfect gift. stores are pushing their deepest discounts. hoping to capture the last of your holiday spending by combining the convenience of online shopping with the guarantee of an in person pickup. >> they'

the prices as much as they're trying to get you into their stores to spend your money there. so you'll find a lot of discounts if you waited until the last minute. >> reporter: almost half complete their shopping the week before christmas or later. toys "r" us and kohl's are stg ayinopen 24 hours a day through christmas eve. some of the best deals are going strong. at target, 30% off sweaters. macy's 50 to 70% off fine jewelry gifts and amazon 29% off the xbox 1. best buy, $150 off the apple macbook. at walmart, money off the barbie dream set. the only guaranteed option is clicking on the in store pickup. target, best buy, walmart, toys r it offer pickup as late as midnight. >> there are lots of procrastinators in america. people want to shop as late as possible and get

gifts where they need to be by christmas eve. >> reporter: convenience reigning supreme as consumers wrap up the shopping list. jo ling kept, austin hill, maryland. >> good deals indeed. hundreds of deserving children in our area are experiencing a lot more joy this christmas holiday thanks to some local groups. so the firefighters and friends welcomed people to samuel elementary in alexandria on saturday and they provided thousands of gifts. kids got to meet santa. doing a tug on his beard. mickey and minnie house, they stopped by too. that's always fun. and the children had a chance to take pictures with them. organizers say the goal is to give 1,000 children a great christmas. >> we know, you know, a lot of families are having some tough times so we want to make sure we're providing gifts for the kids. we want to make sure every child wakes up christmas morning with something underneath the tree. >> i love that. firefighter

and sheriff's deputies volunteered to hand out toys and gift cards. the gifts were also flowing in prince george's county. the firefighters handed out cards to families displaced in the terrible fire in hillcrest heights earlier this week. you may remember that 40 people were forced from their homes. the fire department and toys for tots donated all of the gifts. >> i love to see the holiday spirit in action. the ceo at the miss america organization sam haskell, he is stepping down immediately. this comes after top officials were caught in an e-mail shaming scandal. dozens of former contestants signed a petition calling for haskell and others to step down. now the organization's chairperson an president has stepped down. they mocked the intellect and appearance of past contestants. a media

apologizing for a boy's club culture. yesterday "the new york times" reported that it found four settlements involving sexual harassment allegations or defamation against the media company vice and its employees including the current president, andrew creighton. the cofounders say that the company stands to provide a safe place for women, saying quote, cultural elements from our past dysfunction and mismanagement were allowed to flourish unchecked. but it's addressing the problem. and believe it or not it's been more than 90 days since hurricane maria swept through puerto rico, knocking down power lines and access to the island. this christmas, a third of the residents there will spend the holiday in the dark. officials are saying it could be several more months before there's any help. nbc's tammy leitner has more from the island. >> reporter: for many in puerto rico this will be the only christmas delivery this year. these aren't the gifts you typically see wrapped

line for many of the 800 families in the town. do you feel like your mountain community has been forgotten about? >> in a way, yes. because we're behind schedule. >> reporter: this community still has no power and no running water. the family that used to live in this house tells us they haven't seen anybody from fema and they don't know if and when help will ever come. meaning this is their new normal. three months after hurricane maria devastated puerto rico, a third of the island is still in the dark. and nbc's jose diaz-balart asked the mayor about it. >> you thought you'd have 95% of the island back on the grid. hasn't happened yet. >> it hasn't happened yet. >> why? >> well, partly is because of the man hour. partly the materials haven't gotten here.

family it's a tough season. >> we lost everything. >> reporter: jose and his wife built this 112 foot star more than a decade ago. the shining beacon could be seen as far as 11 towns away during the holidays but the hurricanes badly damaged it. >> the star is broken. >> you can see where it snapped. >> yeah. yeah. >> oh, some of the steel has snapped here as well. >> reporter: with time, the star will shine again. >> he can do it. it's a lot of work. but he can do it. >> reporter: just like this tiny mountain community. ♪ these sounds from the herndon high school band will soon be heard on the beaches of france. that's cool. >> that's when "news4 today" continues.

good morning. it is still a big game sunday. even if the redskins aren't bound for the postseason. but the best they could hope for is a nonlosing season and a record of 8-8. they need wins at the giants and hosting the broncos this afternoon at fedex field. these players are telling us the only thing on their christmas wish list is a win. the idea of playing on christmas eve a dream come true. >> i have -- i dreamed of playing a game here on christmas eve. or maybe even on christmas. so, you know, the time is now. it's going to be a great opportunity to go out there and play and have fun. >> a lot of my family are coming to town. so maybe it's game they have to come out to and experience that and give us something to clear for and come back with a win for them so they can have that christmas day and have it be more sweete

gear. >> a christmas special on monday, as the steelers visit the tex

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[ bell tolls ] how about that? that right there, the first time in months that anyone has heard london's big ben chime. the chimes sounded off yesterday morning right at 9:00 in the morning local time. the iconic landmark fell silent when a four-year renovation started in august. the next chime is at 1:00 in the afternoon on new year's day. >> very cool. well, apple has gotten some criticism after it admitted it slows down iphones on purpose to fix glitch

the person that discovered this issue is just 17 years old. nbc's rebecca cardenas reports from tennessee. >> reporter: an international tech giant cornered by a psa on reddit after thousands of views and shares the notion that apple could be deliberately slowing down our iphones took the internet by storm. less than two weeks after the initial post, a statement from apple admitting the discovery was correct. >> this was a new battery. >> reporter: tech fire is tyler barney who taught himself how to take apart his iphone after he noticed the newer model was slower than his brother's older one. he replaced the battery. >> i ransom teams with the new and the old battery. the old battery was half as fast as the new battery. >> reporter: tyler discovered a recent ios update that keeps the phone from shutting itself off came at a cost. apple confirms that battery technology just can't keep up so thy

>> it's just outdated by this point. our phones are becoming as fast as our computers if not faster and which need a power source -- we need a power source to provide for that. >> reporter: now a class action lawsuit has alleged that apple withheld the information for more sales but tyler said that wasn't the point of his post. >> i'm trying to help people out. >> reporter: while he does wish that apple had shared the side effect with the user, it doesn't dull his admiration for the tech giant. >> i'm still very much a fan of apple. >> even if you have to invest in a new battery? >> i would like to if i could. >> and that was rebecca cardenas reporting for us. starting to feel like christmas as the sun is rising on this christmas eve. sounds like cold air is moving in. >> but how long and how low are the temperatures going to be there? lauryn has that answer for us coming up right a [lftance] it is absolute chaos out here! ...don't know if you can hear me, can we get a shot of this cold front, right here.

brace yourself for the season of audi sales event.

♪ [vo] the season of audi sales event is here. audi will cover your first month's lease payment on select models during the season of audi sales event. a lot of activity on this christmas eve if you're headed do alexandria you can see the 31st annual skiing santa. that's at 1:00. not looking too bad for that. but dinner time a few spotty showers. the luminaries, if your neighborhood does that, a few spotty showers. again, church services, not looking too bad. but we'll talk about who could see the spotty showers later on

that's coming up on the futurecast in three minutes. >> thank you very much. 75 years ago, the navy commissioned the uss herndon. the mission was essentially to serve as a moving target along the beaches of normandy. >> this is a cool story. so in 2019, local band students will return to the beaches of france for the d-day anniversary commemoration. angie goff worked on this assignment before maternity leave and andrew culver picked up the story. >> reporter: with military-like discipline they practiced hours upon hours, days, weeks, years even. the herndon marching band preparing for a mission like no other. >> we're talking on the international stage and not just representing herndon and virginia, but representing the united states of america. >> reporter: in june of 2019, 165 students will travel to fran

they'll march as part of the commemorations of the d-day invasion. >> with the trip more than a year and a half away the band is already feeling the impact for all their practicing for. the sound of music going beyond the band room and into the community. >> reporter: a herndon alum, angie goff, and herndon became the name sake of the town and the ship. the uss herndon led the armada of 7,000 allied vessels at normandy in june of 1944. an effort to take europe back from the germans. >> they had to go up and down utah and omaha beach very, very slowly with the goal to draw fire so it could figure out where the enemy was posted. >> reporter: this woman is working to keep the ship and the crew members' memories alive. decades passed but the emotion resurfaces. >> these guys were brett much all

>> reporter: it's believed the herndon fired first naval shot of the campaign. yet, enemy fire never touched it. >> this is what the band members will wear in normandy. >> reporter: and she wants the students to carry something more personal. something to honor those aboard, a photo, medals, a journal. >> every day of waiting i strengthen the conviction that d-day was fast approaching. life jackets were checked. >> reporter: norman myers of leesburg, one that margaret tracked down, will carry something back. much like the men of the greatest generation, a virtuous lesson for next generation. >> i'll be thinking about what like he was experiencing, how he was experiencing it. what he was gog

diego, please. get your horn angles up to him as well. >> reporter: on that june date 75 years after the raging battle sounds of normandy, they will bring instead a harmony to the shores of normandy. ♪ >> wow. >> i love that. >> that's a special trip. >> great teammate there. some people want to know if rudolph needs to use his glowing bulb nose tonight to cut through the clouds. >> cut through the clouds and some of this wind. that wind is picking up. it will be all levelled. i mean, we're talk about a strong gust. 40 to 45 miles an hour through your christmas day. so if you're traveling tomorrow, overnight tonight or tomorrow,

it is going to be a brisk and blustery day. look at that sunrise. 7:24 was the official sunrise time. gorgeous. more clouds are rolling in as we continue in the afternoon. lots of clouds today. maybe some isolated rain and snow chances into the overnight. very windy on christmas and of course after christmas then we're focused on next friday and saturday when we could have some snow showers. everybody is stuck in the 30s so a little chilly out there this morning. it will be dry, it will be cloudy. it will be quiet. not a lot happening on the radar right now. the radar is pretty quiet right now. we have some rain showers down along the southeastern seaboard. from the same system that came through yesterday. the only chance of rain later on this afternoon could be northern neck/southern maryland and off to the easter shore. other than that we'll be dry until about 7:00 tonight and then the system will edge closer to us. we could see a few light

3:00 a.m. it will be breezy and much cooler, but calm conditions. temperatures are going to be in the mid 40s. so again, compared to yesterday a little cooler. there goes that rain again, maybe southern maryland getting in on it later on this afternoon through the early evening. after 7:00 tonight, could have a few light rain or snow showers. not going to see any accumulation. then as we head into monday we are looking at sunny conditions, but windy conditions. since we were in the 60s yesterday, not expecting it to stick on the ground, so keep that in mind. again, it looks like it will move right on out of here. as far as the ten-day forecast is concerned, 37 for tomorrow. feeling more like the teens and 20s. we stay cold all the way through next week. friday and saturday, tracking anothertorm that could brin sg

how's it going down there? that's good. lica misses you. i'm over it though. (laughter) that's fine. i miss her more than you anyway. ♪ ♪ hey, my window is closing. yeah that's okay. alright miles. i love you. (phone hangs up) ♪ ♪ yeah i love you too. ♪ ♪

welcome back. here are four things you need to know. a teen boy is expected to be charged in a double murder. fairfax county police say scott fricker and his wife buckley kuhn-fricker were shot to death in their home on friday. you want to follow updates on the nbc washington app. at least ten people are left without homes after the destructive fire tore through a southeast d.c. home on saturday. no one was injured and the cause is still under investigation. game day at fedex field. the 'skins take on the broncos at 1:00 this afternoon. both teams have been eliminated from the playoffs.

so the best that the redskins can do is finish 8-8. time is quickly run out for you last-minute shoppers to purchase the gifts. the national retail federation predicts about 126 million people are still shopping. most national chains will stay until 6:00 and target until 11:00. santa is on the move. he's going over russia right now. keep track of santa all day on the norad tracker. that's going to do it for "news4 today." thank you so much for joining us. >> we will be back here at 9:00.

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501, emergency. >> giant tax cut for christmas. >> the lights went out. >> oh, my! good morning. welcome to "sunday today" on this christmas eve. i'm willie geist. for many of you, it will be a white christmas. 57 million people from coast to coast under winter weather advisories today and tomorrow. we'll have your christmas day forecast. also ahead, a partial set back in court for the trump administration and its travel ban, plus the white house firing back hard