welcome to 9 news now at noon. we have a developing story to tell you about. we just found out in the past few hours that an aide to jack evans was found dead in

baltimore's inner harbor. his name is desi deshane and disappeared during a boating party. his body was found later in the water and there's no word on how he died. he is described as being 30 years old. we're getting more on the story moment by moment and we will bring you the latest on our website at wusa9.com. of course, we will have more information coming up on 9 news now at 5:00. all right. now let's go to captiol hill where president obama's selection for the supreme court is answering critics. judge sonia sotomayor is tackling questions about her experience and how she would rule from the high court's bench during day two of her confirmation hearings. >> reporter: supreme court nominee sonia sotomayor wants the record to be clear. if she's confirmed to serve on the high court her personal feelings won't decide cases. >> the process of judging is a

process of keeping an open mind. >> reporter: it is day two of sonia sotomayor's confirmation hearings. she will field questions from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. republicans are focusing on what they see as her biases but the top democrat gave her an opportunity to go on the offensive. >> you have heard all of these charges and countercharges the wise latina and on and on. here's your chance. you tell us what's going on here, judge. >> i do not believe that any ethnic, racial or gender group has an advantage in sound judging. i do believe that every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge. >> reporter: democrats hold a large majority in the senate. so barring any major slipups sonia sotomayor's path to the supreme court should be relatively smooth. >> republicans will do their

best to get her off the script. she already knows the questions coming largely from the democratic store to senators. >> if she is confirmed she is not supposed to shift affirmative action or abortion rights. after the committee grills they are they will hear from witnesses on wednesday and thursday. cbs news, the supreme court. >> you can get the latest on judge sonia sotomayor's confirmation hearings throughout the day by going to our website at wusa9.com. by the way, the u.s. supreme court has stayed the execution of a virginia death row inmate. the high court agreed to consider whether or not whether or not paul warner powell is facing double jeopardy. his original conviction was overturned because prosecutors could not prove rape or robbery. but after writing a letter describing how he raped and killed a 16-year-old manassas girl and raped and killed

another girl, which happened to be the 14-year-old's sister was tried again and he was sentenced to die. >> i do feel sorry for the victims in this case. those folks came a long way hoping to get some solace and some closure. and now they are going to have to wait. >> reporter: there's no word when a final decision will be reached in this case. a contract that ward 8 council member marion barry awarded to a former girlfriend will be a part of today's dc council meeting. the council chair, vincent gray is openingening an investigation in to the matter. barry was adating her when she was awarded a $5,000 a month contract that was funded by taxpayer money. bennett would lead the council's investigation.

we have a followup on that midair scare that involved a southwest airlines jet bound for bwi. southwest is inspecting hundreds of its planes today. all the aircraft being inspected are boeing 737 passenger jets, the same kind of plane involved in that scare yesterday. the flight from nashville to bwi marshall airport made an emergency landing in charleston, west virginia. a one foot by one foot hole ripped through the plane's fuselage and cabin pressure was lost but no one was injured and the plane was able to make a safe landing. airline spokesperson says the crew took quick action. >> the captain has to take the plane to a safe altitude and then we diverted. we made the option to divert and get the plane on the ground as quickly as possible. >> reporter: southwest does not expect the emergency inspections to affect any of

its flights today. metro manager and the national transportation safety board representative will appear before a house can senate committee to discuss the deadly metro crash. yesterday the ntsb urged metro to upgrade the train control system with continuous backup protections. cato says the agency is currently monitoring its computerized train control systems daily but not constantly. the dulles rail project just got an $85 million boost. the house transportation transportation appropriatuation which committee approved the plans last night. this is the first since the u.s. department of transportation signed the full funding grant agreement in march. so far the government has pumped $440 million in to the project. the fairfax county board of supervisors is putting off a decision on the expansion of an islamic saudi academy until next month.

our digital correspondent, armando trull reports the decision to delay followed a heated public hearing last night. >> reporter: some of those opposing the expansion were concerned by the international saudi academy's text books. >> which talked about killing jews, talked about assaulting christians. >> reporter: others called isa found in 1984 by the saudi government a breeding ground for terrorists. >> we believe the tradition of being taught in the schools. >> reporter: not true says the academy's students and parents. >> it should be my kids not any other kids. you will never have this feeling. >> my school produced teachers, educators, doctors, musicians, politicians and it is -- not terrorists? >> no. not terrorists. >> reporter: the school was condemned by a federal committee. its then director was convicted of failing to report abuse made

by a 5-year-old student against her father. >> the father, the male muslim is running the show and the girl has no rights. >> reporter: the school has since ree sethd cu icum and text bo oks and consultant paid by the isa say the books do not contain hostile material. >> the hostility is based on lack of knowledge. >> reporter: some cite traffic congestion and accidents on pope's head road. >> we signed a petition because we are concerned about safety of the neighbors and our loved ones. >> reporter: in fact the fairfax board of supervisors said the decision will be based on land zoning issue and not on any matter related to the curriculum. that vote which had been scheduled for last night is rescheduled for august 3rd. in the information center, armando trull for 9 news now and wusa9.com. the vote on the expansion is now scheduled for august

3rd. well, montgomery county is considering a proposal too reduce the number of people that can occupy a house or an apartment. the proposal would reduce occupancy by 50%. county officials report the number of complaints concerning overcrowded housing has doubled in the last six years but officials say most of the complaints were unfounded in part because rules pro-hinting more than five unrelated people in the house can easily be skirted. residents merely need to say they are related. death results indicate that students in dc public schools are improving math and reading skills. the dc comprehensive assess system exams show the biggest gains are in the elementary grades and dc school officials expect this trend will continue. there are some new concerns about the h1n1 virus today. we're going to find out about a new warning from the world health organization. plus, make a change in the

way you get to work and get healthier. we'll tell you about that when we come back. and we will get the latest on the tour de france. we are talking about lance armstrong. where is he. he is giving the younger riders a real run thr foeir money. eyewitness news continues in a moment. having the right tools is crucial to being able to manage your diabetes properly. it's very important for me to uh check my blood sugar before i go on stage. being on when i'm feeling low can be like a rollercoaster. it does at times feel like my body is telling me to do one thing... and, my mind, my heart is telling me to do something else. managing my highs and lows is super important. with my contour meter i can personalize my high/lo settings so it really does micromanage where my blood sugar needs to be. i'm nick jonas and never slowing down

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the world health organization is calling the h1n1 unstoppable and they are giving drug makers a full go ahead to manufacture vaccines against this new flu strain. the organization says medical workers in every nation should get the vaccine first in order to maintain a functioning health care system as the virus evolves. and after that health care officials should decide who's next in line to be vaccinated base on which groups are most at risk. the decline in the number of thyroid cancer patients has been attributed to increased screening but research shows other manufacturers like environmental exposures, dietary changes or genetic causes maybing a larger role. despite quicker detection, thigh ride cancer survival rates have not improved. during these turbulent economic times one may think that more americans would save

more money by walking or biking to work. but a study shows only 17% of city workers walk or bike for any portion of their commute. not surprisingly researchers say the active commuters are more fit. and those who remain in their cars sacrum bling sidewalks lack of bike paths and sheer distance make it tough to swap their cars for bikes. if there is anyone who can attest to the fact that biking can keep you fit it is of course tour de france winner lance armstrong. he is trying to make a comeback in the tour de france after being away from competitive cycling for a number of years. well, mark phillips tells us how armstrong's comeback is progressing. >> reporter: the tour de france riders are back on the road again today. heading to the half way mark of the world's most famous bicycle race and the biggest story is

about are about the most famous bike rider lance armstrong. who has won this race a record seven times and currently is in third place. he's back this year after a layoff in discovering even he can't just pick up where he left off. >> the break, the three or 3 1/2, four years, whatever it has been harder than i expected. i don't feel old but time out of competition, that race intensity you can't replicate in any kind of training. >> reporter: armstrong is as famous for his victory over cancer as for winning races but this year is different. he is fighting not just riders from other teams but another star on his own team, spaniard currently sitting ahead of him in second place. >> these two riders will have to go head to head but the rumor is that he said if lance attacks in the mountains he won't chase him. what happens if he attacks? >> the punishing climb through

the alps where armstrong usually triumph are still to come next week and they will determine if the phenomenal story of armstrong is over or still rolling along. >> he's something else. armstrong is 37 years old and his coach says that he is in as good of physical condition as he was when he took a break from racing three years ago. we'll see. we have heard big fish stories in our time. the difference about this fish story is it is true. we will show you one big bad fish and you will find out why it was causing problems for swimmers. kim has the forecast. >> i found out a cousin of that fish we are about to meet switches in our own potomac river. can you believe that. i have the foca ystor fou. you are watching 9 news now. or

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fresh water official aboutth aren't usually known to attack but tell that to this fish. wildlife experts captured this fish that had been biting swimmers recently. it turns out the fish had an unusual hormone imbalance and that made it aggressive. they are normally afraid of people. look at his mouth. >> wow. >> wow. but they caught him. >> i found out in our own potomac we have a cousin of that vander and it is a wall eyed pike and apparently all the hormones are in check. remember, we have crazy snake heads now and they are upsetting the apple cart in the ecosystem. >> they are so ugly. >> they are.

go back to wherever the heck. great to see you this noon. how's your day going? got nice weather out there. although my friend scott in virginia called and said he is probably one of the two people who wants it hot and humid. too bad, buster brown, it's not happening. at least not today. share with you the latest allergy update. trees, grass and mold are all in the low category. got to like that. hopefully we will get a handle on your sneezing if that is your situation. tomorrow you will notice the temperatures creeping up and stickies coming in later in the evening, especially on wednesday and thursday. by then we will be firing up some thunderstorms. highs back around 90 degrees. here's the sat lie radar loop. we are cloud and rain-free. it is -- this morning we have delightful lows. 64 in the district. look at 48 in martinsburg, west virginia. in the middle of july. right now 77. it is 80 inside the beltway and at andrews air force base.

it is 81 toward manassas. and the game plan like i said 85 at 5:00. by 10:00 we will be easing to the middle 70s with clear skies and a waning moon. as for the rest of the country, middle 90s in dallas. they will work on a high in the triple-digits along with phoenix. around here we take a trip up to the middle 80s and do it without hardly any humidity in the sky. we can thank northwesterly winds coming down from canada. this low pressure system and front to our south is keeping all of the sticky moisture in the air down that way. but we're going to start to notice a comeback in that humidity and the chance of thunderstorms as we head to thursday. 85 here today. we are heading to boston 79. lows tonight 64. in the 50s in pittsburgh. low 50s. and tomorrow we take a step up to a seasonal high of 88 degrees. put the seven day up. nice today and tomorrow. there's the scattered thunderstorms on thursday

turning hot, 90. 87 on friday. isolated thunderstorm and then on saturday, it looks like that is not the best day of the weekend. sunday is looking better. partly cloudy sky and dry. if you have weekend plans i would be making them for outside on sunday instead of saturday. j.c.? >> still to come, we have some new gear to make traveling easiercyier enmore fun. stay with us. ( crack of bat, cheering )

not playing with the kids? not on these legs. poor leg circulation. doctor says it's p.a.d. peripheral artery disease? hmmm. more than doubles your risk for a heart attack or stroke. so i hear. better ask your doctor about plavix. plavix can help protect you from a heart attack or stroke. plavix helps keepbls from sticking together and forming clots,

the cause of most heart attacks and strokes. my cousin the m.d. call your doctor about plavix. (male announcer) if you have a stomach ulcer or other condition that causes bleeding, you should not use plavix. when taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin, the risk of bleeding may increase so tell your doctor before planning surgery. and, always talk to your doctor before taking aspirin or other medicines with plavix, especially if you've had a stroke. if you develop fever, unexplained weakness or confusion, tell your doctor promptly as these may be signs of a rare but potentially life-threatening condition called ttp, which has been reported rarely, sometimes in less than two weeks after starting therapy. other rare but serious side effects may occur.

it's not just one thing it's everything. tylenol and advil don't do as much as pamprin. it's the everything in one pill. pamprin multi-symptom travel tuesday, let's

explore ways to make our travel more enjoyable. we have all had to haul luggage through airport and train stations and i can be more interesting when you are traveling with children and grandchildren but making it through the airport with children and bags in tow can get easier. earlier today, harry smith talked to the travel guru david greg about the latest in luggage. >> this is from sam sunnite. it incorporates a spinner system. there are four wheels on the bottom. >> okay. >> i actually own this particular bag and the great thing about it is when you are going down the aisle of a plane you can bring it with you like that. you don't have to drag it in back of you. it is extremely light weight. 21-inch model, $150. >> terrific. >> this is called the -- >> here, take that. this is the ride on cut case is good for ages three to 5 and you can see kids can ride on it

and they can store tons of stuff in it, appropriate for ages three to five and weighs 3 1/2 pounds and a great way to pull your kid through the airport opposed to dragging them on the foot. >> i think you enjoyed that. >> the luggage located. now your luggage is coming around the turnstile. >> and they all look the same. >> here. i will give you that. similar to the remote on your car. if you push that button. can you hear that? and you can -- it is a luggage locater. >> so you can always find your luggage. >> okay. >> thank you. >> always be able to find your luggage, just have that little gizmo. so you have taken care of your luggage, what about your pet? a new airline is launching today. it has service out of bwi airport. listen to this. it is attracting very special clientele because it is for pets only. pet airways will fly your pet

in a secure carrier in the main cabin. planes will go to l.a. , new york denver. right now they are offering a special introductory fare beginning 149 each way from new york to chicago or new york and los angeles. guess what no people are allowed. >> there you go. thanks for joining us. have a great day. come back and visit us at 5:00 p.m. bye.