education students. >> unfortune gnatly -- unfortunately, they were not routed. stkphár calling parents to apologize for the dozen of special ed students who missed their buses. students already in their homes, but the buses never arrived. >> we left some kids unrouted as a result on home, not out on street corners, but at home. >> reporter: the transportation director, david gilmore, points to a glitch in the new computer system. saying routes were changed and some students names and addresses were erroneously kicked out by the new system. while riding his motorcycle bike, this man is now suing the county, his family is, that is. it happened in maryland in july of 2008. relatives of the 48-year-old,

jones, said that the department of transportation was negligent for not cutting down the 19 foot teem limb that fell and -- foot tree limb that fell and hit him in the head. stkphr-t county has -- the county has a responsibility to safeguard and make sure that they are safe when they are driving along the county roads. and they didn't do that in this case. >> reporter: according to the police report, jones was not wearing a helmet. john cannon, who is riding his bicycle on the same stretch of road, says that probably it wouldn't have saved his life anyway. >> that's like, well, dropping a lead weight of several hundred pounds on your head. >> reporter: he leaves behind four children. >> the messages are accounting for two of the county to get out there and look at their roads. >> at the campus of university and maryland, where classes started today. and today after the 20-year-old student fell off the upper floors of this parking garage. >> and survived. that's the most common reaction from the campus survived that they have serious but nonlife

threatening injuries. >> i can't believe their eyes, falling that high up. >> and exactly why it happened, it's not known. the campus newspaper, the diamondbacks talked to someone who was nearby and heard a woman scream and then a thud. >> was he drunk, drinking? >> reporter: too early to tell if alcohol was involved. >> reporter: well, experts are pulling to yet another sign that the economy might be starting to recover. they say after a dramatic drop off, the traffic jams are back. the good news and the bad. >> reporter: wisconsin avenue, a place that is almost always gridlocked. here it is, lunchtime, check out the traffic. or lack thereof. or look in connecticut avenue near udc, same thing. barely a theupbt of a jam. not that everyone has noticed. >> i have not seen that. >> that's a bunch of p bologna. traffic is crazy. >> reporter: but they say that it is true. at one point, last spring,

americans were driving 122 billion fewer miles than the year before. aaa and a company called out here, that tracks traffic with gps and road sensors blame the bad economy. >> we saw a huge dip for 14 months in a row. and then in june, we saw some light at the end of the tunnel. >> they say that at one point last year, traffic in the d. kráflt area, they -- d.c. area was down by more than a quarter from the previous year. and now it is starting to creep back up again. >> i don't really think that traffic has been that much affected by the economy to be honest with you. >> reporter: but the federal stats say that d.c. traffic in june was up almost 7% from last summer. in virginia and maryland, it was up by about 2%. >> that might be a sign of recovery. that's what's important. >> i have noticed that the the summer turned down. now schools are back in session and they are getting bad. >> reporter: it is miserable to sit in bumper to bumper

traffic. but hey, it could be worse. >> i guess that the one bright side of all of this is that you still have a job to commute to too, right? >> yes, it's like at least you're in your car, going to a job. >> reporter: in washington, 9news now and wusa9.com. now, aaa says we're still waiting for truck traffic to pick back up. when those big rigs are rolling up fast mind you again, take part. the economy is really on the mend. well, a recent economic woes, they have sent them scrambling to make up for the loss revenue. they went as far to legalize that, a decision that was promptly challenged in the courts. and now a federal court, they are limiting sports bedding in delaware, to the national football league games. those would involve multiple wagers on at least three or more nfl contents. the court rejected their plan to offer legalized gambling on all other pro and college gangs. the maryland governor, they are trying to scare up more money for their stakes, offering a tax amnesty to folks who owe

back taxes. you pay the tax, half the interest is due, and none of the penalties. and this amnesty starts tomorrow and runs through october 30. a tax amnesty generated almost $40 million for the state of maryland. virginia's republican candidate is on the defensive tonight. we're tracking views that they wrote 20 years ago as the digital correspondent, they report that mcdonald's 1989 documents, they had breathed new light into the deeds campaign. ta alkteed they talked about statements they made in a master's degree though sus he wrote -- thesis he wrote in 1989. in the paper, describing working mimen and feey st ueastr nito that. an y indications, i didn't at women should work, i absolutely and fully take at in back. that's not my positn. e,d thos any statemenha thatthat

impressions, they are absolutely wrong. >> reporter: mcdonald says he has changed his views that government should favor married couples over cohas been tea tors -- homosexuals. contraceptions shouldn't be true for unmarried couples. they say that the document is proof that mcdonald's views are not mainstream. >> he wrote this when he was 34 years old. outlining his vision for what the role of the government was, so that the government, they should only be involved in social agendas, not in anything else. the next 20 years, legislaturing this year. he was going to use it as a blueprint should he be elected in november. >> you bet your life that the deeds campaign is going to comb through his voting record and his record as attorney general and show that in fact, a lot of the things he now talks about were indeed supported by his voting and by his records. in just saying i don't agree with my thesis won't wash. >> reporter: another political scientists sees things

differently. his thesis is no game changer. >> people who suspected that bob mcdonald had views like this are now confirmed. his career in the state legislature indicate that these are his views. >> reporter: dismissing it as an academic exercise from long ago and noing listen e believes -- no longer believes much of what he wrote then. go to wusa9.com if you would like to read that thesis. prosecutors are rejecting claims by the baltimore mayor that they abused the process. claiming maryland state prosecutors, they improperly issued subpoenas to gather evidence for the trial.

scott broom has the story from the montgomery police headquarters. >> police are still trying to solve a badly hit-and-run here on capitol view avenue. >> the 22-year-old, and the 29-year-old, roosevelt. struck while walking in this crosswalk at the interaction of capitol view -- intersection at capitol view out here. today through an interpreter, the families appealed for the hit-and-run driver to contact police and put an end to the mystery. >> my family, they would like to send a message to this individual. and to face these responsibilities. >> we can't believe that the persons didn't know that he or she struck these two women. and from all indications, it appears that they were on the crosswalks when they were struck. >> reporter: police displayed a new key here. the frill of the toyota four runner suv.

model year, 1988 to 2000. witnesses said it was black or dark colored. in silver springs, scott broom, 9news now and wusa9.com. the two victims from that hit-and-run, they are still in the hospital. if you know anything about this, please call them with information. we want to update you now on two big stories that are making headlines nationally. the first involved in the northern california man, charged with kidnapping jaycee dugard and hiding her in his backyard for 18 years. police combed through their areas today. investigating whether he was also involved in the slayings of some prostitutes. garrido and his wife nancy pleaded not guilty to the dugard case. at least 12,000 homes are threatened by flames tonight as wildfires roar through parts of southern california. two firefighters were killed yesterday. the fire has burned across more than 85,000 acres so far. dry windy weather, making it

tough to contain those flames. stkphr-frpblgs the town of north beach in the counties, known for their beautiful public beach. the problem is tonight, that a part of the beaches, they are missing. it was washed away by a storm last month. and now, the town officials are asking the state of maryland for an emergency permit to replenish the beach. otherwise the town may have to have sand, trucked in. erosion is always a problem. they are here with your nine forecast first. another beautiful evening. we're beginning to clear it out now. we had some clouds that was not great for everybody. except for temperatures. that was great. here is your forecast first now. quite itolcool, urning clear to actually. lows in the low 50s in the suburbs and low 60s downtown. winds northeast at about 5 to eyogoif ouu' reu'ingo g out, if you're going to tig thneat e dsunsoitly s soundsa swter. 72 downtown, and that eater.sw edericor fem thand 72 out w there and 73 here. we're going to fall into the 60s very quickly when the

nss here shortly. the radar combined, a lot of clouds and showers across here, cearnland and out lot , aiy a t of showers. but now everything is beginning to push south and east. we'll come back and talk about looking ahead to the weekend. you might as well, it's a holiday weekend. show you the hurricane out in the pacific that might help the fires. that and more coming up. >> all right, topper, thank you. hundreds of kids go back to school. it all has to do with what they were carrying on their backs. we'll talk about that as well as the return to classes, which brings renewed fears about h1n1. we'll find out what one local college is doing to combat the flu when 9news now continues. abrasive on dentures? look, scratches collect and grow cause bad breath instead clean without scratching causing bacteria every day

yes, the wac-to-school bells are ringing for thousands of kids out here today. resuming in the montgomery county. that school system is growing. an additional two months of the kids will attend that school this year. today, hundreds of them are returning to the class. and that is not all the kids that they got. the county executives, they game the elementary school children a healthy dose of motivation as well. you all want to see that.

i think that all of us can learn from that. the way, making with the recycled materials. >> more than the prince george's county kids are still having problems with their class schedules at the start of school this morning. that's down from some 8,000 high school students who either had no kennels or partial ones for them had they went back to school last monday. and the problems are now limited to them. the area at the high schools. and the school leaders, they say that glitches in a new computer system, called school max. that's what caused the problem. back-to-school is also fueling new h1n1 fears. they are preparing for the possibility outbreaks this fall. at the university of maryland, students are getting a crash course on hygiene. the moment that they arrived on campus. >> we want students not to attend the class if they are

feeling ill. we have asked them to prepare the food kits for themselves and to have some nourishments and the fluids and the fever medications, in their own residences. >> aalso nt to have hand sanitizers. and some of them are teaching cost etiquette. keep it right here on 9news now.

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characters that go for it for $4 billion. disney also acquires marvel movie franchises such as spiderman and superman. they would receive $30 per share as well as disney stock. not a bad deal for them. >> that is good. i was going to say young guys out there. but i didn't want to put him in a separate category. >> right. >> we're looking at a very nice pattern here. i also want to talk about a massive hurricane that might throw moisture into southern california. >> have a little positive influence there. >> just a little bit. as far as we're concerned. on a great little streak here. looking at temperatures below average through the week. here's your forecast for the next three days. spectacular tomorrow. mostly sunny, 78. beautiful on wednesday. mostly sunny in the 80s. and then 81 with partly cloudy skies on thursday. still a nice sketch and very cool at night. talking about 50s. tomorrow night, you may actually be in the 40s and the suburbs.

all right, this is it for them and this is the eye of the storm. it's not a particularly large storm. but some kind of power pack that is beginning to move to the north, northwest. already, clouds, they are extending over towards the baja. and there are all kinds of huh kaeub warnings up now for the lower tip of the baja. and winds, they are 155 miles per hour. that is category five. that's pretty unusual. gusts up to 190. remember, we give you the wind speed. this is the sustained winds. imagine the energy it takes to sustain 155 miles per hour winds. now, we'll put that into motion. it doesn't make a deadbeat for southern california. and it weakens a tropical storm by thursday. you get spot golf of the california area, moving up to the north. for and that is towards arizona. but i think that they might get closer to at least give them the clouds which would help and add some humidity into the air. and after lucky, well, some of the showers, they would spill over into southern california. at least we got something to go for them and the good news is that it might be the very least they had get the cloud cover. for us tonight, skies become clear to partly cloudy.

quite cool. 52 to 62 downtown. winds are northeasterly at 5 to 10. and they had no ac for a month, they were fixed today. good timing, huh? >> yes, perfect timing. >> i'll need the heat tomorrow night. temperatures for the lows, 55 out in rockville out here, and 55 in silver spring. mid-50s there. and some areas, they will probably hold in the low 60s. downtown, maybe them out here also and maybe 61 or so in springfield. but still, a very cool night. tomorrow morning, mostly sunny and cool starts. in the 50s and 60s. northeasterly at 10. by the afternoon, mostly sunny and spectacular. highs in the upper 7s. oh, just light wind, and very little humidity. good deal. satellite picture, radar combined. a lot of clouds today. playing cat and mouse with the clouds in the immediate metro area and the south and east zone, they had a lot of rain and the clouds all day. everything, they are now pushing out to the sea which is good. we'll begin to @@clear it. and some forecast here, we'll start out in virginia first. wind chester first, upper 70s

at leesburg. 78 in woodbridge. downtown, upper 70s. pure sun, 77 in rockville. 76 for annapolis. some small craft advisories for parts of the bay that go into effect at 2 a.m. tomorrow morning. all right, next seven day. 78 tomorrow, beautiful 80 on wednesday and beautiful 81 on thursday. and that's not too bad. some showers in for friday. and we'll just see how long they stay on the radar screen sort to speak. 75 out here. saturday looks okay. partly you de. sunday, you could have a couple of showers. then labor day, some thunderstorms. but at least at this point, they don't look like a complete washout. a little unsettled. >> okay. >> and now, cool nice stuff. >> yes. >> on the warm days and cool nights, could you beat that? >> no, you could not. >> we'll be right back. (announcer) fa back to school means back to busy mornings.

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finally from our weird news file, a story that could have you hungering for some chips, salsa, maybe a shot of tequilla. it's the music on the scale. they claim to be the birthplace of this. they also own the world records for the lowest band. 549 musicians gathered in a public square. and people from the world record were there to document the festivities. that's our report. i'll be right here with you again tonight at 11. see you then.

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♪ tell me who's watching. (announcer) it's right here. it's easy. ♪ i always feel like somebody's watching me. ♪ it's the money you could be saving with geico. this is "entertainment tonight" in high definition. >> liza minnelli on michael jackson's drug use. her first on-camera interview. >> i didn't have people using me every second of my life. paula abdul on michael's pain. how she overcame her own struggle. >> and today's wildest lead line is mccaulay culkin the real father of blanket? >> tree days before the funeral, brother marlon spills burial secrets. and will aretha franklin perform? >> i'll tell what the children wille