>4 this is 9news now. hello, i'm j.c. hayward. thanks for being with us. right now, an italian jury is deciding whether to set amanda

knox free. the seattle native is fighting a 2009 murder conviction for stabbing to death her british roommate. monique reports. >> reporter: amanda knox made a tearful plea to an italian appeals court begging jurors to set her free. she spoke fluent italian as she insisted she did not kill her british roommate. i am not what they say i am, she said. i did not kill, rape or steal. knox and her ex-boyfriend, raffaele sollecito are fighting a 2009 conviction killing exchange student meredith kirchner. a judge sentenced knox to 26 years in prison. but knox's lawyers say dna from the first trial should be thrown out. they're hoping the flawed evidence will persuade jurors to let knox go. the jury hear at the courthouse has several options. they can keep knox in prison and reduce her sentence or even lengthen it or they could decide to acquit her and set

her free. knox's family says if she does walk free, they'll take her back to seattle as quickly as they can. the kerchers say knox's guilty verdict should stand. >> there were only eight people there that night. >> after knox made her ten- minute emotional plea, police vans hauled her back to prison for an excruciating wait for the verdict. perugia, italy. >> the judge says the jury will not finish deliberating before 2:00 p.m. eastern standard time at the very earliest and the verdict is expected sometime after that. >> cbs news is planning a special report when the outcome is announced. a judge will likely deny bail to 26-year-old res juan ferdaus at today's detention hearing. ferdaus is the massachusetts man plotting to fly remote controlled planes into the

pentagon and the u.s. capitol. authorities say that undercover agents kept tight reigns on ferdaus throughout the operation. the public was never in any danger. a campbell county, virginia, woman, held nearly three months by militants in the philippines is finally free. however, guests for his 14- year-old son is being held. authorities believe that the gunman have ties to al-qaeda. lundsman and her son, kevin were abducted over the summer while visiting family in the philippines. we have learned that a soldier from prince william county was killed during an ambush in afghanistan. 32-year-old army first sergeant billy sercks was severely injured during an attack in eastern afghanistan. siercks was flown to the medical center in germany where he later died.

he leaves behind a wife and two sons in virginia. new jersey governor chris christie is reportedly close to deciding whether he wants to run for president. he is now reconsidering jumping into the g.o.p. race and apparently has a team investigating a possible presidential bid. political observers say with the first republican caucus just months away, governor christie will have to make up his mind very soon. susan mcginnis has more. >> reporter: rick perry is still trying to drum up support, despite the latest hit to his campaign. on sunday, "the washington post" reports that the texas governor and his family leased a hunting camp named after a racial slur, n head with n being the n word. >> that is very insensitive and since governor perry has been going there for years to hunt, i think it shows a lack of sensitivity. >> republican presidential candidate herman cain shared

his outrage sunday. >> but perry's camp says "a number of claims made in the story are incorrect, inconsistent and anonymous." the governor denies he used the camp when the racial slur was still visible on a rock saying his father painted over it. while perry tries to get his campaign back on track, political observers are still waiting to see whether another potential candidate jumps into the race. new jersey governor chris christie didn't answer questions sunday. but he's reportedly closing in on a decision and apparently even has a team looking into a possible presidential bid. >> i think he's done a great job as governor. i think he would be a very viable candidate. >> some high profile republicans are ready to see christie run but others believe his moderate views on issues like gun control and immigration could hold him back. >> i think that that is absolutely a liability for him if he gets in the race. >> with only about 100 days before the first republican caucus, christie will have to make up his mind soon.

susan mcinnis for cbs news, washington. also, if he decides to run, governor christie will have to set up an effective strategy and raise enough money for a campaign. well, the supreme court began its new term today. the justices will begin deciding which cases they will hear over the next few months. they usually take only one in ten cases but one case that they are expected to decide is president obama's healthcare law. 28 states, including virginia, claim that that law is unconstitutional because the federal government requires people to buy health insurance. tom goldstein of blog says a decision could come months before next november's presidential election. >> the law itself is obviously really important whether you like it or not. it has tremendous consequences for president obama's re-

election because it is a signature achievement. >> another case at the court may decide is whether police can put a gps unit on a suspect's car without a warrant. and whether indecency rules on television violate free speech rights. get ready to pay more for those long taxi rides in washington, d.c. because last week, the d.c. taxicab commission announced plans to remove the $19 cap on fares. now that means that the meter keeps running no matter how long the ride. riders will still have to pay any surcharges for extra bags or additional passengers. and the $1 gas surcharge, you'll still have to pay that also. >> metro's extension through tysons corner and on to dulles is going to be delayed again. "the washington examiner" reports that the project is six months behind schedule. that means the so-called silver

line is not expected to open until june of 2014. and that's just the first phase. work all the way to dulles airport and ashburn will take another four years. as far as going over budget, the project bosses are not commenting on that but an emergency fund to cover overruns is down to just $83 million. still to come on 9news now at noon, it has been nearly 20 years since andrea roane started her buddy check campaign here at 9news now. well, we are going to reintroduce you to the first breast cancer patient that she profiled. we'll see how she's doing.

last week, of course, they funded the government for one week. and fema. what's going to happen now? >> well, we have to vote when we come back in session for a continuing resolution to fund the government through november 18th. and i think there's good news that we're probably going to reach a bipartisan agreement. >> you need to. otherwise, we're in real trouble. >> absolutely. >> a lot of talk about the postal service, cutbacks, closures. what do you think is going to happen? >> well, you know, i think some people on the hill are rushing into a judgment that would radically change postal service. i think we need to remember the constitution of the united states actually specifies in article one that there will be a postal service serving people of america. i think what we need to do is create a new business model and preup the postal service to go in other lines of business and raise revenue before we decide on radical things like go from six to five day delivery

because that will affect all kinds of industries. the greeting card industry, drugs by mail, things like that would be very negatively affected if we were to rush into that. >> give me an idea of what plan you would put into effect? >> one of the things congress did was a requirement of the postal service, unique only to them that requires them 100% to prefund the pension plan. we could return to the postal service five to $7 billion a year if we change that and made it just like everybody else. then the 2006 legislation severely restricted what the postal service can do. if starbucks wants to open up a unit, a branch in a postal service, let's let them do it. >> all right. ok. we'll see where that goes. i think you're going to have a few problems but we'll see. very quickly, supercommittee. what do you think? what's going to happen? are they going to be effective? can they be successful?

>> i think they'll be partially successful in coming up with a plan. they have, hanging over their heads, if they don't do their job, $1.2 trillion over the next ten years is cut half in half. half defense, half domestic. neither side wants that to happen so i think they're going to get somewhere toward their goal. i am not confident they're going to reach the full $1.2 trillion. >> congressman jerry, always nice to have you. come back and visit me again. >> i promise. >> we'll the go the forecast now from howard. >> outside on the chilly, damp, weather terrace, not raining at the moment. don't leave home today without the umbrella. one good thing about the rains over the weekend, the allergy update has come in and the mold spores, although they're still up there, they're moderate. we'll have a forecast with a warming trend in it and live doppler 9000 hd coming up when 9news now at noon returns.

we begin our observance of breast cancer awareness month with an anniversary. in 1993, andrea roane started buddy check 9 and the subject is the same woman that andrea profiled 18 years ago. jacqueline brown woody. >> after all of the things i've been through, i still have joy. >> 18 years later, it is still

a joy to be alive. >> reporter: even before there were buddy check reminders, jacqueline was doing regular self-breast exams and mammograms but when the self- check turned up a small mass in her breast, she didn't call her doctor right away. like so many other women, she hesitated. >> i procrastinated. part of it, andrea was maybe that's not what i think it is. not really wanting to believe or accept that it might be something going on. >> are you ok? >> perfect. >> overcoming the fear factor and getting women to be proactive about their breast health is one reason why 9news now began buddy check 9 in 1993. >> thank you for watching 9news now at 5:00 on this buddy check 9 day. >> we believe women reminding other women to schedule the mammogram, clinical exam and do breast self-exams could increase survival rates and prevent some cancers.

>> hi, how are you? >> jackie, our first buddy was the perfect example of how early detection pays off. the initial surgeon she consulted recommended a radical mastectomy but because the cancer was caught early and was nonaggressive, the trained librarian had time to research other treatment options. >> i got two other opinions. i decided that i would go with the recommendation to have a lumpectomy. and six weeks of radiation and three cycles of chemotherapy. >> the reason that i am a survivor. >> today, our first buddy remains a buddy to other women and men. in addition to her job in the county executive office in prince george's county, she's an advocate through the susan g. komen foundation. >> i'm working on a project, a grant funded project that will help bring more awareness to women. in this area as well as in the district of columbia.

>> jacqueline brown woody living up to her poarnl motto of making every day a great day for the people of prince george's county. andrea roane, 9news now. >> congratulations to miss woody. to get a buddy check 9 packet for you and your buddy, call the lombardi cancer line at 202-444-4000. or you can go to the buddy check 9 page at wusa9.com. congratulations, andrea. well, for 33 years, millions ended their weekends with a few minutes with andy rooney on "60 minutes." last night was the last time. >> a lot of you have sent me wonderful letters and said good things to me when you meet me in the street. i wasn't always gracious about it. it is hard to accept being light. i don't say this often but

thank you. although if you do see me in a restaurant, please just let me eat my dinner. >> it was his 1,097th commentary. he began his career as a writer for the army newspaper stars and stripes then he went to work in radio and television and so far, he hasn't told us what he's going to do next. >> really is an american icon. >> yes. congratulations, mr. rooney. and so far, it has been clear today. but i guess i should keep my umbrella handy. >> we really haven't seen much rain here in the immediate washington area. there have been showers all over the place. you're right. don't go without it. we have more showers and somebody said to me is this it for the warm weather? no, this is not it. this is an early season. usually cold spell. we have a lot more warm days ahead. don't be thinking it is winter time but when i show you this picture that came from snowshoe, west virginia, this is from this past weekend! they had nine -- >> west virginia!

>> that's unusual. >> you know how unusual? we believe and the record has to be checked, this is the biggest, earliest snow in west virginia state history at 9 inches at snowshoe. they're up at 4800 feet. that gives you an idea of how cold this particular storm was. let's talk about this afternoon. we've got clouds and showers at times. a lot of times it won't be raining. temperatures barely moving maybe into the mid-50s for highs this afternoon. winds west, southwest at about 5 miles per hour. although in other spots, depending on where you are, they could be coming from the northeast. if you're east of us with an area of low pressure down toward southern maryland. we're actually looking at this. satellite and radar composite. a little spin right down here. showers are rotating around that and right now, we've got an area just north and west of washington showing up on live doppler 9000 hd. from around westminster, northern baltimore county on the west side of the metro down toward stafford and fredericksburg and then some showers on the eastern shore. we'll zoom in. prince george's county, you had a couple of light showers

this morning. you're clear now. same with charles county. but let's head up toward howard and montgomery county. we're seeing the light rain going on at the moment. from rockville all the way up toward about urbana and southern frederick county. the light showers and areas of sprinkles across loudoun county. western fairfax also seeing it as well. outside the beltway. fairfax, closer in, east of fairfax over to tysons, not raining but western half of the county seeing the rain which goes down to prince william and fauquier, especially as you go south of interstate 66. some of this rain, a little steadier. you can see the darker ban of green here across areas in western stafford down to around fredericksburg. this is slowly moving south and east at the same time. so, what we've got, a couple of sprinkles from st. leonard there in calvert county and down here across route 17 east of spotsylvania. everybody has got a chance to see some showers a little bit later today. cold this morning. in fact, it was 32 in oakland. 41 in cumberland and

gaithersburg. we only get down to 47 here in town. we barely move. only 52 with still some upper 40s west of washington. dew points are holding in the low 40s. humidity is 69%. it feels raw outside. we've got this storm right

there. the only other storm on the map is off the west coast. once we get rid of this, starting tomorrow, we'll have several days of sunny, dry, and warmer weather. in fact, today, we're looking at 55. tonight, we're in the 40s again. tomorrow, 67 but breezy. winds gusting over 20. wednesday, 74. thursday, a little cooler. still nice at 68 then friday, saturday and sunday, fine looking weekend setting up with sunshine. temperatures warming through the 70s. that's it for now. but we'll be back with more 9news now at noon in just a moment.

a capitol hill watering hole closed its doors for the very last time yesterday. the hawk n dove closed after 44 years of serving members of congress, lawyers and college students. not to mention capitol hill neighbors. the hawk n dove has been operating without a lease for seven months and a rival bar owner took over the building lease. customers and the bar's owner lamented the loss of the neighborhood institution. >> it was the heart and soul of capitol hill. it is where people went with friends. it was like cheers in boston. it was the neighborhood bar. >> i have six employees over 35

years and another six over 25. so, it just shows you what kind of place it is and how it developed into a big family. >> the contents are being auctioned off and the restaurant and bar will be closed for five months. then will are reopen as a casual dining spot. go to jchayward.com. don't forget. come back and visit us at 5:00.