with the robberies. police say he is 50-year-old henry levi saunders and he is responsible for the three recent attacks over the last five days targeting elderly men. saunders appears to be a career criminal facing other unrelated charges in prince georges county for allegedly committing violent crimes over there. shoppers say they are relieved that someone has been caught. >> i'm getting old and then we have to be more careful and we need to be looking around when you go in or outside the car, you know. >> and now that someone has been arrested. >> it's wonderful. >> saunders is taken into custody at his home in landover. he was released in bond for alleged robberies there. investigators say it was tips from the public that led to this arrest. >> metropolitan police are looking for suspects in four convenient store robberies over the course of two days. the first, just after 2:00 a.m. on sunday when three armed gunmen robbed the cashier on division avenue in northeast. just two hours later, two

gunmen did the same thing at the 7-eleven northeast. that 7-eleven was robbed again at 6:00 a.m. monday morning and 30 minutes after that, two armed men robbing the shop express at 3900 bening road. the suspects made off in a dark colored vehicle and all three of the 7-eleven robberies and police are offering a $10,000 reward for any information loading leading to an arrest. gary giordano back on u.s. soil after being released from prison. he was hustled on his way to new york. he is expected to tell his side to reporters tomorrow. court this afternoon upheld his release order. prosecutors holding out hope of charging giordano with murder, but now he can challenge his extradition in the u.s. courts if they want him back. a bomb shell tonight from prosecutors at the hearing who tried to kill president reagan

three decades ago. bruce leshan is at the courthouse. >> john hinckley who nearly killed president reagan 30 years ago asked a federal judge here for more time outside the mental hospital. but prosecutors outlined a disturbing incident that suggest hinckley may still be obsessed with that attempted assassination. a jury found john hinckley not guilty by reason of insanity in the 1981 shooting of president reagan and three others. a judge remanded him for treatment. the psychologists say medication and therapy put hinckley's depression and psychosis in full remission and they want to double the time he can spend home in williams burg. prosecutors fighting that. they say hinckley is still lying. hinckley told his mom and his doctors in july he was going to the movies. the secret service saw him

pretend to buy a ticket. but instead of going inside, he went down the street to a bookstore and straight to the section on presidential assassinations where he grabbed books on reagan and on the shooting. >> at u.s. district court, bruce leshan, 9news now. >> the u.s. army expanding its test area for ground water contamination. the frederick county board of commissioners has agreed to let the army drill wells on county owned property right near that base. the army will conduct tests on 88-acres of land. that is the area between the main part of fort detrick. the army ran biological testing and dumped waste there. most of the district's firefighters and ambulance personnel live outside of town. some live way outside of town. the fire chief is trying to change that. as bruce johnson reports, he's

running into opposition from the union. >> this is bruce johnson in northwest washington. the question, does it make a difference where your neighborhood firefighter lives? 75% of d.c. fire department personnel live outside the city. some from as far away as west virginia, pennsylvania, north carolina, even new jersey. dc's fire chief says he can provide the same service for a lot less. he wants to eliminate the 24 hour shifts and replace them with 12 hour shifts. >> it's a cost savings of $36 million and all of the costs that go along with housing. >> here's how it works. right now, d.c. firefighters work 24 straight hours. then they come back for another 24 hours. one firefighter here says that he lives in hagerstown, maryland. if the chief gets his way, he would have to quit his job. he built his whole lifestyle around the current shift. >> the firefighters union says it will fight the chief on this.

>> it could be a loss in pay with commuter costs. just moral alone, there's a recruitmented and retention piece. >> but most of the council members seem to like the realignment. >> one of my goals and i talked about it for some time is to increase the number of our first responders and the percentage of them that live in and around the district of columbia. >> over 40% of the fire department personnel travel 30 to 100 miles to work. >> i think it makes the department more efficient. the work force is more alert. >> bruce johnson, 9news now. >> it looked pretty nice outside today. too bad you can't say the same thing about how it felt. >> yeah, it was chilly. we still have the winds blowing around. still producing windchill. we are in the 40s just about everywhere. low 40s in the suburbs. mid 40s downtown. 46 at national. 41 at frederick and 43 in leesburg. 45 in manassas. winds are gusting to 23 miles per hour at national and 24- mile per hour wind gusts in

leesburg or gaithersburg and 20- mile per hour wind gust in leesburg. that's driving windchills into the 30s. if you are headed outside, dress for the 30s. that's what it feels like. for tonight, clear to partly cloudy, breezy, colder. lows in the 30s. winds northwesterly at 10 to 15. we'll come back and tell you when the winds die down and if any milder air is lurking around the corner. the fight over whether homeowners at holly acres get to rebuild goes to another round. what prince william county officials are sage about their appeal. but first, police in two cities tracking down on those occupy protesters. where the raids went down, how many got arrested. that story is up next. the washington, d.c. veterans affairs medical center and wusa9 salute all who serve at home and abroad this season. >> i'm here with my son, my wife, and my daughter.

we would like to say merry christmas. [ male announcer ] when you're a coach in the nfl... ♪ ...there are no sick days. ♪ vicks dayquil. defeats 5 cold & flu symptoms. [ snoring ] [ indistinct talking on tv ] [ snoring ] [ male announcer ] vicks nyquil cold and flu. the nighttime sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching,

fever, best sleep you ever got with a cold...medicine. ♪

in more ways than ever. and our networks are getting crowded. but if congress frees up more wireless spectrum... we can empower more people to innovate... putting momentum behind our economy. and we can reduce the deficit... with more than thirty billion dollars paid by america's wireless companies. it's simple -- more spectrum means more freedom. for everyone. 637 miles, that's about ten or 12 hours if you drive it. imagine walking it. well that's what a group from occupy d.c. plans to do starting this thursday. the groups are leave from martin luther king memorial and walk to the grave site of martin luther king in downtown

atlanta. the organizer say group is doing it to mark thursday's anniversary of rosa parks refusal to give up her seat on a montgomery, alabama, bus in 1955. meantime, the occupy protests in l.a. and philadelphia are over at least for now. police in both cities cleared out the occupy camps in their cities early this morning. in l.a., 1400 officers arrested 200 protesters who disobeyed the orders to get up and leave. the city installed fences and concrete barriers to keep the protesters from coming back. up in philadelphia, police cleared out the camp, arrested 52 protesters. the workers used the front end loaders to clear out the tent and trash and other debris. >> meat protesters are free to slaughter horses and sell that meat for human consumption. congress reinstated federal funding for usda inspections of horse meat. a recent study by the accountability office says horses have been abandoned or neglected since the economy

went south and thousands were sold for meat in other countries. congress has an ally in that decision. it's peta. they would like to see a been on slaughter and export of horses, but since that's not likely to get done, funding inspections will at least make sure the horses are euthanized humanly and the meat is safe for us to eat. did congress make the right call on this one? if it's going to happen anyhow, shouldn't the government make sure it's done safely or the thought of killing black beauty or whoever just too much to let the slaughters happen here in the u.s.a.? send your thoughts to mcginty's mail bag. well, looks like another chilly night on the way, but maybe you'll warm up for the weekend. topper will let us know in his forecast. but first, a father told to tear down his son's tree house takes his fight to the county zoning board. the commission's ruling coming up next.

it is not often that a county zoning board meeting gets some attention and it is rare that see a tree house at the center of the debate. but that is exactly what unfolded today out in fairfax county. now we first told you about the church. the iraqi war vet built it for his sons, but the county said no, we want you to tear it

down. you can now score one for the little guy. >> they weighed in our favor. >> oh good job. >> the tree house can stay for now. mark promised to build it for his sons shaun and eric when he came home from his last deployment with the u.s. army. he says he unknowingly broke county code regulations by building it in the side yard and feared he would have to take it down. but today, he appeared again in front of the fairfax county zoning board and appealed. it has to come down in five years. >> obviously we have to keep the tree house in good order. the plants have to be maintained. >> a neighbor volunteered to plant these ever greens around the house. >> they brought a crew out and planted these. he was able to tap the generosity of the gardens. they were very generous. >> he also got help from people around the world. more than 1500 of them filled

out petitions on change.org. >> this is just what i got today. >> navy base also visited grapen to sign petitions in person. and others with the law firm, reid smith, took on the board for free. >> had we not had this offer, the tree house wouldn't be standing behind me. >> when i asked john why the change of heart, he said in part -- >> i thought the findings of fact were presented in a better way. >> the family is pleased, especially sean and eric. >> i was super relieved that the tree house got saved. >> thank you for the support. >> they plan to have a party to celebrate. >> you are all welcome to come and take a trip down the slide. >> in falls church, virginia, i'm lindsey mastis. >> better lookout, we may take him up on on it. he may have to apply for an extension to keep it.

>> supervisors has not decided whether or not it will appeal the decision allowing holly acres mobile home park to be rebuilt. dozens of homes that were washed away by lee back in september and last week, the county board of zoning appealed, but the county board of supervisors could appeal that. it is decided to delay voting. make sure that letting the homeowners rebuild would not threaten the participation in the area. that area is likely to flood again. there you go. >> we had a little reality check today. could you handle it? >> best i could. i have on the heavy coat today. >> okay. we're looking at temperatures really seasonal for the next couple of days. we're looking at temperatures a little bit warmer over the weekend. let's start with the temperatures now. it's mid to low 40s. 43 in bethesda. some of the cooler spots, 41 up to the north as you go up 270

toward gaithersburg. really for the most part, mid 40s. 43 out toward reston. 43 also in leesburg. all right, well here's the deal. we're looking at cool days and cold nights. breezy and colder tonight. sunglasses tomorrow. a coat or a jacket tomorrow. and the good news, winds will diminish tomorrow afternoon. it will be a little bit breezy through tonight and early tomorrow morning. clear to partly cloudy. breezy and colder tonight. one to two blanket night. in fact, that northwest wind and skies clearing out a little bit, a little colder tonight than it was last night. around the freezing mark in gaithersburg. 37 downtown and 34 in bowie. down to the south, 36 in waldorf. upper 30s in arlington and springfield. but mid 30s in reston and fairfax. 33 in sterling and herrin den and right around the freezing mark in leesburg, manassas, and middleburg. tomorrow morning, mostly sunny, but breezy and chilly.

30s and 40s. winds northwest at 10 to 15. and by a afternoon, mostly sunny and cool, seasonal. you'll need your shades. high temperatures low 50s and good news, it will feel nicer. the winds will die down northwesterly at 10. your zone forecast, oakland up to the 34-degree mark. a little bit above freezing. 42 in cumberland. mid 40s in hagerstown. winchester, you should hit 50. 53 in culpeper and 50 in warrenton and manassas and leesburg. all with full sun. downtown, 51. 51 in gaithersburg and low 50s into southern maryland. 53 for annapolis. that is a small craft advisory for most of the day and title potomac until 1:00 p.m. 30s to start at 7:00. 48 to 53 by evening. under partly cloudy skies. all right, next three days look like this. milder on friday.

very nice finish to the week. 54 with sunshine. a little cooler on saturday with highs back around 50. but the good news, it gets milder again on sunday. temperature in the upper 50s. also the classic at verison center. it is a great event. looking at clouds coming in on monday. showers and rain monday night into tuesday. a little bit cooler on wednesday. i did raise the temperatures from yesterday. we'll say 50 with morning showers on wednesday. >> that's not too bad. >> all right, let's get to our weird news file tonight because my name is santa and i do chimneys well. ropes, however, apparently not exactly my thing. to palm beach garden mall. he's on that rope doing a cool move dropping down to the food court, or at least he thought he was. the beard is caught in my gear. i can't get down. i'm swinging and flailing my arms and the crew is in crisis mode and a system actually led the crowd and singing a

christmas carol, hoping that song might con deer get some magic. after a while, you can hear him singing a christmas carol. not helping. santa is still struggling. some point he has to take the beard off and shimmying his way down and he gets down and says i'm an elf, i'm not santa. he had practiced the move before, but not with the beard. >> the good news is it was a fake beard. ouch. i thought it was beginning to show him beginning all the way down. >> we want to hear what you think. send your e-mails to mcginty's mail bag. the address, mailbag@wusa9.com. 9news now will be right back.

in the mail bag tonight, apparently more to say about that 200 pound third grader in cleveland taken away from his family by social services. they believe his mom is to blame for that, but adrian says that is just putting a band-aid on the real problem. you need a license and or to pass a test for everything but being a parent. hunting, driving, fishing, tagging your dog, tagging your vehicle, getting into college. having a kid, no documental

skills. we are all free to create kids at will. i have two new mottos. spay and neuter all nontaxpayers. number two, implement licensing provisions. a tad harsh there, aren't we? while that license to have kids thing is tempting, it might become less tempting. who would i want making that decision for me? and then there was this from our good friend, devon arlington responding to the news that some santa clause schools are advising apartment school st. nicks to lower their gift expectations because the economic times are hard on their parents. if you think about it, this could be a blessing. but the parents can do is explain to the children that santa has many poor children throughout the world and this christmas will be a little different. then, they can perhaps make gifts and also opt for dare i say really simple gifts like

jump ropes or books or board games the family can play together? also, emphasize the fact that children are loved, have shelter and food. really, what else matters? what else, deb? your e-mails, of course. and your ideas and comments. the address is mailbag@wusa9.com. join the conversation on the facebook page as well. that's our report. i'll be back tonight at 11:00 along with anita brikman. you can log on any time to wusa9.com. have a great evening. we'll talk to you later on. bye bye. ♪

[ jerry ] attention shoppers. your groceries are the size of idaho but the interest rate on your checking is small potatoes. earn more at capital one bank. get new high yield free checking. your interest rate will be 5 times the national average. that's huge. and free atms at any bank. free is good. sign up at capital one bank. what's in your wallet? what is he, a clydesdale.

now, "entertainment tonight," the most watched entertainment newsmagazine in the world. kourtney kardashian, pregnant again. is a wedding imminent? what a family source just told e.t. and why the i dos won't be like him. and why did she say quiet about her breast pregnancy. >> and what she said about this headline and why he's seeking legal separation instead of divorce. brian williams, live news blooper. >> perhaps not something special anymore. again, we have an announcement going on. plus, some of the network's

all-time funniest live news mishaps. fake doctor plastic surgery. >> did this woman really inject patients with cement and super glue, is cheap plastic surgery a new trend? >> they didn't catch me doing anything. then, child star tracey gold once 80 pounds, can she help save these bulimic women? and tom cruise doing his own stunts. his new interview and the footage that you haven't seen on the set of "mission impossible: ghost protocol." >> i love making these movies. now, in depth on the biggest entertainment stories from around the world. hi, everybody. welcome to "entertainment tonight." i'm nancy o'dell. and from the "entertainment tonight" control room, i'm mark steines. well, the kardashians have done it again. they found a way to grab the headlines. for the record, this is our 125th report on the family this year alone. so, how did they do it this time? well, let's ar