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tv   9 News Now at 6am  CBS  December 9, 2011 6:00am-7:00am EST

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suspects. >> a sentencing day today for leslie johnson, the former prince george's county councilwoman and the former administrative law judge could get up to 18 months in prison for her role in a bribery scheme. her husband, former county executive jack jon was sentenced to seven years in prison earlier this week. she is hoping the judge only gives her probation. >> we'll get to all of the stories in the next nine minutes. monika has traffic coming up soon. >> olga breese is in for howard bernstein. her teeth have stopped chattering. >> i've got the feeling back in my fingers. that's always a good thing. it definitely will be staying cold most of the day today. we have some great conditions outside. mainly clear skies. take a look at the view. a live view of our full moon in effect. so, definitely going to be an interesting day today. mainly clear skies for most of the day into the late afternoon before the clouds start to move on in. plenty of sunshine. you want your sunglasses today as well.
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forecast today stays on the cool side. we're down into the 30s and 20s outside the beltway this morning which means our day planner is going to take a little while to move on up with the winds out of the west though, we should be seasonably warm by later on today. in fact, your forecast is calling for temperatures to really move out of the 30s and into the 40s by late afternoon. i think we're going to see close to 49, main even a 50 degree mark or so -- maybe even a 50 degree mark. it will be on the chilly side tonight with partly cloudy skies. we're going to drop back down into the 20s and 30s. monika? >> thank you so much, olga. we'll take a look at the beltway, all around town right now. it is still light. early this friday morning. but we do have an incident for you if you're planning to head over into manassas. i want to make you aware that route 234, north of route 29, there is an overturned vehicle. be aware of that. our sky 9 is headed to the scene. we should have pictures shortly. 66 is looking ok. let's take a live look in centreville. you have a bit of slow traffic
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at route 234. beyond that, you are still pretty good heading over into fairfax and the beltway. let's take a live look at 95 on the northbound side. if you're planning to head northbound 95 at the prince william parkway, you'll be ok heading up into springfield. 14th street bridge, no problems to report. although there is a water main break at 13th and l street northwest. watch out. you may be detoured around that area. coming up in my next report, if you're planning to head over into manassas, i should have some live pictures for you at 6:13. back to you guys. at 6:02, we want to get up to speed on the latest regarding the shooting at virginia tech. police identify the first victim as virginia tech police officer derek crouse, the 39- year-old man was an army veteran and father of five. the suspect killed officer crouse then used the same gun to take his own life. that suspect's name has not been released. >> tech students held an impromptu vigil to remember the
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officer. it was held at the same spot a vigil was held four years for victims of the 2007 shooting. >> after those shootings, the school put into place an alert system to notify the campus in an emergency. in the coming days, administrators will review whether the system did its job. >> the start of the exams today has been postponed now following the tragedy. >> we want to go live to the virginia tech campus, peggy fox joins us there this morning from blacksburg. peggy, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, andrea. this is where officer derek crouse was killed. it is a familiar place for hokies and hokey alums. the parking lot on game day is filled with maroon and orange and people tailgating, having a good time but today, this spot is now a scene of tragedy where gun violence revisited itself to this campus. >> let's go! >> a spontaneous vigil formed last night at virginia tech's memorial to the 32 victims of
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the 2007 massacre. >> shock. shocked that this happened again. >> this time they mourning for derek crouse killed in yesterday's campus shooting. tech sent alerts out immediately and often. >> it is not real until you're on campus that day and you get the text, gunshots fired. lock down, go inside, lock your doors. >> officer crouse was killed during a traffic stop near the stadium, the gunman not involved in the traffic stop, walked up and shot the officer then fled. >> is this really happening again? i wasn't here forethe first shooting but it was just terrible. it was a tragedy. >> authorities won't talk about a motive. the shooter was found dead of a gunshot wound a half-mile away. >> it is devastating. i can't believe that something like that can happen like again. it is so unfortunate. >> you can see some flowers
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here put right at the spot in memory of officer derek crouse. today, we're expecting to hear the name of the shooter. we're awaiting notification of next of kin and we believe we'll know his name and who he is and perhaps more about why this happened coming up later on this morning. i'm peggy fox reporting live in blacksburg. back to you. one question before you go. i heard the shooter may have possibly been a former officer himself and may have a military background. have you heard anything on that yet? >> reporter: we're still waiting more information on that but hopefully we'll get some in a news conference this morning. >> thanks, peggy fox live in blacksburg, virginia, this morning. >> we're getting a look inside campus buildings while the school was on lockdown from inside a building at targenson bridge. >> do not leave this room until you're told, do you understand?
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>> they were making sure the students were safe there. our coverage continues on web web be on web be web. >> all lanes of southbound 95 are back open in caroline county. they were closed until just a few hours ago as police investigated an officer-related shooting. that officer was shot during a traffic stop thursday afternoon. he returned fire, injuring the suspect. both were taken to a hospital in fredericksburg. police have not yet said what led to the shooting. the investigation tied up traffic during the evening rush hour last night. now, to maryland. where it is sentencing day for leslie johnson. >> she's the former county councilwoman who admits to her role in a bribery and corruption scheme. now, however, she wants to get out of any prison time. >> surae chinn is live outside
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the courthouse in greenbelt with a preview. good morning, surae. >> reporter: good morning. you know, her husband was sentenced early in the week on tuesday to seven years in prison. now, it is his wife's turn. leslie johnson also faces prison time much less time in fact but still time behind bars. 12 to 18 months for her role in a pay to play scheme to cover up that -- what her husband was doing and she is charged with conspiring to commit witness and evidence tampering in this infamous episode as fbi agents closed in. >> er what do you want me to do with the check? do you hear them banging? >> tear it up. >> it is the fbi, jack. >> i know. that's why i'm telling you. >> you want me to put it down the toilet? >> yes. >> you want me to flush it? >> yeah, flush that. >> reporter: then it became more bizarre as she stuffed
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$80,000 in cash in her bra and underwear. the wiretaps clearly show she was aware of her husband's misdeeds and tried to cover it up. her husband asked for house arrest instead of prison time. leslie johnson would like to have probation but federal prosecutors say if she asks for anything less than the regular guidelines, that it would be in violation of their plea agreement. this judge who sentenced jack johnson will be the same judge who will be presiding over leslie johnson's sentencing. he's a fair judge and he usually goes by the book when it comes to sentencing. he did give some leniency off for jack johnson's cooperation. we'll see if he gives the same kind of leniency for leslie johnson. her sentencing is at 9:30 this morning in federal court in greenbelt. back to you, andrea. >> surae chinn reporting live from greenbelt, maryland this morning. >> in just a few hours, democrats in virginia head to court. there is a hearing to decide
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which party will have control of the state senate. right now, the parties are evenly split 20/20. lieutenant-governor bill bolling has the tie breaking vote and he, of course, is a republican. democrats say he should not have a say in things like committees and organizations. when the senate was evenly split in the 1990s, the parties reached a power-sharing agreement. at a time when ridership on mass transit is up nationwide, it is actually going down on metro. so far this year, metro ridership is down 1/4 of 1%. only subways here in atlanta have seen a drop in ridership. metrobus is up 6%. vre has seen a 13% jump. our time is 6:09. criminals on the prowl in prince william county and their target is copper. >> it is chilly this morning. we're not far from the freezing mark. will it be that cold this weekend? your weather first is next here on 9news now.
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time now is 6:12 on this chilly friday morning. olga breese in for howard
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bernstein. we have temperatures inside the beltway near the 30 degree mark. for outside the beltway, we've dipped down into the 20s. today is going to be cool. however, we'll have plenty of sunshine. we'll move through the 30s into the 40s through midday. most of us popping out around average about 49 degrees. monika? >> we'll take a live look from sky 9, olga at route 234 north of route 29 in manassas where there is an overturned vehicle right in front of the historical stone house. a couple of lanes getting by. you might want to use route 209. andrea, back to you. thank you, monika. prince william county is far too familiar with copper thieves and the last six months, there have been 50 reports of copper thefts. >> that's a growing problem and it is a dangerous one as kristin fisher reports, copper thefts in nokesville last weekend almost turned deadly. >> it could have blew up, definitely. >> joe is talking about his vacant second home. on monday, he showed up and smelled oil coming from his
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cellar. >> when he got down there, there were hundreds of gallons of oil from a heating tank covering the floor. >> igniter was igniting. >> it was a close call. the cause -- >> right here. thieves have ripped the copper piping from the heating tank. the oil had been spilling out for days. >> it tore. they left a little bit. >> these copper thieves broke through a window, they tried to break through the back door before finally slamming this piece of wood through the front window. >> i'm pissed off. >> three days later, joe and his wife are packing up. they know all too well the copper thieves target rural, vacant homes typically those still under construction. >> we're taking the rest of our stuff out of here. so they won't steal the rest of it. >> reporter: that's the irony. there were computers inside this home. but the thieves only stole between $30 to $40 worth of copper. >> there were a lot of other things they could have stolen worth more money. >> reporter: prince william county police are still
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investigating but so far, no leads. in nokesville, kristin fisher, 9news now. >> right now, the price of copper is about $3.50 a pound. that's down from record highs that we saw last year. it is 6:15 this friday morning. here are some of the stories making news. president obama says he'll delay his christmas vacation in order to get a deal done on extending the payroll tax credit. republicans have a plan to extend the cuts but it would include improving an oil pipeline across the midwest. the president says no deal to that. >> asian markets are down. investors are watching a meeting of european leaders aimed at saving the euro. every euro zone nation needs to agree for that to happen. britain refuses to be a part of the rescue plan. >> ben roethlisberger threw a pair of touchdown passes including this one that led to antonio brown going 65 yards for a touchdown. the steelers beat the browns 14-3. oh weather time now, 6:15.
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you need a coat definitely and possibly an ice scraper because it was brisk this morning. >> yes, we have some frost on the windshields. we're seeing some sunshine today. so, that's a good thing. we have the string of very wet, messy days. we're going to keep it dry for the long-term at least well into the work week. it will be cool, however and we're already starting it off that way this morning. that bus stoch forecast definitely one where you need to bundle up as you're stepping out. we're look at temperatures this hour in the 30s inside the beltway. even seeing the upper 20s outside the beltway right now. until that sunshine kicks in, things are going to stay on the brisk side for the next couple of hours. with our winds out of the south and the southwest today. as we get into the afternoon though, things are going to be -- i would say seasonable. not too cool but definitely looking pretty good sunshinewise. as we get from 8:00 in toward noontime, we'll see temperatures push those upper 40s, even hit near 50 degrees
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by later on this afternoon. most of us top out into the upper 40s. late in the day, we'll see more cloud cover start to move on through. it will be a pretty good night tonight if you have friday night plans, you definitely want the jacket with you though because it will cool off after sunset. here's what you need to know as you're planning your day today. we are going to see a forecast today that is pretty nice one. sunshine, all around for many of us although it is on the cool side. we do have the pleasant conditions continuing through most of the day with a few of the passing afternoon clouds. overnight tonight, there is going to be a shift in our winds bringing in much cooler temperatures as our winds shift out of the north tonight and into saturday. satellite and radar has been fairly calm. mainly clear skies. we'll continue with lots of sunshine. all of the moisture stays off toward the north and the west. that's a good thing. the temperatures though, definitely cool this morning. 30s and 20s. in and around the beltway, we're looking close to that freezing mark so if there are any roadways that have moisture on them already, you
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could get a little bit of ice there. for most of us, where it is dry, it should be quite nice. the forecast, future cast that projects out into the future about 24 to 48 hours, just pulls in a little bit of cloud cover late afternoon, partial clearing overnight and then tomorrow, a large dose of sunshine. but the northwest winds though will keep temperatures tomorrow a little colder than today. overnight tonight, here's what you need to know. temperatures back down, highs today near the 50 degree mark. tonight, we go back down into the 30s, main even some 20s off toward the -- maybe even in the 20s. the seven-day forecast will feature a good deal of sunshine for us today, tomorrow, and even into sunday but the next seven days ahead, we will start to see things improve, at least get out of the 40s and back to the 50s. monika? >> olga, complaints of icy conditions in parts of the area now popping up around town. so, just be aware of that if you're just now heading out the door. also, the accident i've been telling you about in manassas has been cleared.
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let's take a live look from sky 9 to show you the good news. traffic is getting through right now on route 234 north of route 29. this is north of i-66 in manassas. the back-up to deal with. good news, all lanes are reopened. actually, they just closed them again. i think they're trying to move vehicles out of the road. they were letting people through. they've blocked the roadway. keep that in mind for your travel plans. i would say use route 609 as your alternate route as the cleanup continues. i believe it was icy in this area as well. let's take you over to the northbound side of i-95 here in lorton. it will be slow through the area to the franconia springfield parkway. lorton road, i'm getting word of icy conditions between route 123 and i-95. keep that in mind as well. you may need extra time. now, to the outer loop of the beltway north of town. you've got delays beginning just past this point at university boulevard extending to route 29 and then you're going to be ok as you head over
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to bethesda. over to your trains right now, everything is running on time on metro, marc and vre. coming up, another update on the accident in manassas at 6:27. back to you, andrea. >> thank you, monika. it is time to show off some morning lights! hopefully the rain and wind didn't damage your holiday decorations. >> this morning, we go to frederick, maryland. check out the display in front of the es per family home. it is not just lights. check out the peanuts gang singing. very cute. and there is santa right there in the middle. >> very nice. we want to show off your holiday spirit. snap a photo or take a little video, send it to us. the e-mail address is lights at web with be web er w, usa9.com. >> the question is the sale of which of these items jumped 74% in the weeks leading up to christmas? is it a, jewelry.
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b, gift cards or c, lingerie? >> our facebook friend known as miss boom kitty boom writes b. be b. >> keep the guesses coming. we'll reveal the answer at 6:53.
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time now is 6:24. a cold start to our friday morning. temperatures inside the beltway around 30 degrees. outside the beltway, we're looking at some 20s this morning. and that means definitely bundle up as you're stepping on out. day planner does feature a lot of sunshine as we head through midday and late day. we push through the 40s, maybe even near 50 degrees by late afternoon. we'll pull in some afternoon clouds as well but the winds out of the southwest will be right around our seasonal norm for this time of the year.
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tomorrow, different story. few clouds tonight. we shift the winds to the north. that is going to bring in some chillier conditions for your saturday. we want to turn our attention back to the shootings at virginia tech. joining us on the phone right now is elizabeth morrill, a senior at the university. how are you? were you able to get a decent night's sleep after what happened yesterday? >> hi, andrea. i'm good, thank you, how are you? >> were you able to get a good night's sleep? >> you know, i was. i do feel that with the alerts and everything, i felt very secure. there were a lot of police officers around and i just kind of had the feeling that things would be ok. i just really did feel safe. i was in lockdown at the library. i was informed that we were safe in there. we were secure. that there was no way anyone could enter the library. and you could see through the
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windows that there were a lot of police officers outside. >> mm-hmm. >> i really just feel very secure and just kind of knew that everything would work out. >> elizabeth, how many alerts did you receive? i know you received one alert telling you about stay in place and the lockdown. how much more communication did you get before you were finally able to leave the library? >> well, i received the first alert via text message and i think there were a total of six of them. and they definitely continued to frequently update, letting us know the events that occurred as they were happening. they were very efficient in letting us know what was going on and you know, to remain where we were. stay safe and you know, that they would give us further notice when everything was ok to kind of leave the building. >> elizabeth, you said that faith kept you going. you weren't on campus for the initial shooting in 2007.
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what about your fellow classmates? what was their mood and what kept all of you going, cooped up there, locked down in the library? >> well, i think in any situation, it is easy to get nervous, being unaware of what is going to happen or the magnitude of it. of course, everybody is thinking about the shootings that had happened. i do feel that through the alerts and through the employees that worked at the library, and seeing all of the officers outside, that there was a sense of security and i think that you know, everyone, despite what was going on did feel safe. >> elizabeth, one last question, when will las resume? have you been told about the exam schedules? >> you know, i'm not sure about that, to be honest. >> i can imagine just have a great weekend, try and put this behind you. >> elizabeth morel, thanks for speaking with us. she's a senior at virginia tech. >> we'll have more of the virginia tech shooting coming
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up next. >> we'll go back to blacksburg and check in with peggy fox. >> details on the governor's new plan for transit. >> monika with a quick check of the commute. >> we'll take a look from sky 9. we've been telling you about an accident in manassas. the second one here, north of route 129 with lane closures. you're watching 9news now. stay with us. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices...
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welcome back, i'm olga breese in for howard bernstein. the time is 6:32. we're cold outside! temperatures have really dropped off. we're near the freezing mark inside the beltway but take a look at some of the 20s out toward leesburg, martinsburg, 25. we're even looking at some cool conditions, very far off toward the north and toward the west. we'll keep it on the cool side for this morning. plenty of sunshine as we head through midday and late day. that will help us out. i think by the 9:00 hour, most of us should make it close to 48 degrees. by noontime, still plenty of sunshine. pushing the 50 degree mark by later on today. it will increase our cloud cover late in the afternoon. we start out sunny and we finish partly cloudy. next three days ahead, we'll
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stay rather cool. monika? >> work continues on a couple of accidents in manassas. we'll take a live look from sky 9 on route 234 north of 29. it was icy in this area. again, all traffic is stopped as authorities move the vehicles out of the roadway. one of the accidents involved an overturned vehicle. traffic is building especially on the southbound side trying to get down to 66. main use route 609. this was near the historic stone house in manassas. overall, the beltway is not too bad. you've got your typical delays around town. let's take a live look at route 123 inside the beltway. no problems to report here. but route 123 near georgetown pike right at cia entrance is blocked with a three vehicle accident. keep that in mind. southbound seems to be doing ok past the accident scene. a quick live look of 270. overall, it has been ok.
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route 80 to 109, i-270 down to falls road. more on what's going on around town at 6:46. mike and andrea? >> thank you, monika. in just a few hours, leslie johnson will go before a judge and learn her fate. she will be sentenced for her role in a bribery and corruption scheme. >> the former prince george's county councilwoman is hoping to avoid prison time. surae chinn is live outside the courthouse in greenbelt with a preview. surae? >> well, leslie johnson is a former county council member. she's a former judge who now faces 18 months in prison. federal prosecutors would like to see her do that time behind bars. she would prefer probation for her role in trying to cover up her husband's participation in a pay to play scheme. of course, it happened earlier this year. wiretaps showed her trying to stuff $80,000 in her bra. well, the judge -- judge
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messitte sent jack johnson to seven years in prison. he will be presiding over leslie johnson's sentencing. the judge did give leniency to jack johnson for cooperation. we'll see if he gives some sympathy to leslie johnson for her cooperation. he is pretty much by the book when it comes to guidelines of sentencing. but again, we'll see what happens around 9:30, 10:00 this morning in federal court in greenbelt. andrea? >> surae chinn reporting live with that update from greenbelt, maryland, this morning. mike? >> 6:35. we turn our attention once again to the shootings at virginia tech yesterday. here's the latest on what happened. campus police officer killed has been identified as 39-year- old deriek crouse. he was an army veteran and a father of five. a man shot him during a routine traffic stop. >> ballistic tests show the gunman used the same weapon to kill crouse then take his own life but the gunman's name has
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not been released. >> one big question, the motive. the killer was not involved in the original traffic stop. >> this story is also getting a lot of attention because of how police in the school got the message to students. there were lessons learned after the 2007 shooting rampage. >> now, this morning, the campus is recovering from this latest shock. peggy fox is live on the tech campus, also an alum. how would you describe the mood right there? >> well, it is very quiet. you know, students sleep late. a lot of students told me they were sleeping until noon. they were awokenned by the alerts and sirens that went out. it happened at 12:45. we haven't seen anybody out except for other news crews but this is the spot where deriek crouse was killed. and right here by the emergency call box in the stadium parking lot, a student who witnessed the event said that crouse pulled over a driver who failed to stop for pedestrians in this
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crosswalk. he had him pulled over there in the parking lot and was dealing with the driver when the shooter walked up and killed him. i'm sorry, i thought we were going to roll some more pictures there but we are waiting to talk to some more students as they get up. we're looking at a jogger going by right now. but last night, there was a vigil that happened, spontaneously at first planned and then they postponed it until tonight. so, there will be an official vigil tonight but last night, students just kept pouring out to the memorial for the 32 victims of the 2007 april 16th shooting. they were pouring out to that memorial. they started the vigil with candles and chants and people very sad and in disbelief that this would happen again here on the virginia tech campus. remember, the students who are
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here now, who are freshmen through seniors were here for the shootings. the seniors were seniors in high school when the shootings happened. many of them had brothers or sisters or friends who were here then. they heard about it. but it is not really part of their experiences here. now, this is. and you know, there was one cadet we spoke with last night. he would be here on the campus and experience. more gun violence coming back to the virginia tech campus. back to you. >> peggy fox reporting live from blacksburg, virginia, this morning. >> virginia's governor bob mcdonnell says his thoughts and prayers are with the family of officer crouse as well as the virginia tech community of which he is a part as his daughter is a student on the campus. the governor released a statement saying in part, there will continue to be need in the days ahead as we move forward from this situation and i will ensure that those needs are met
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completely and fully by the commonwealth. our coverage continues at wusa9.com. see our reports from thursday. check out our photo gallery and get updates all day long as we get new information. the 17-year-old arrested for a stabbing at a montgomery county high school has reportedly confessed. police tell "the washington post" briana funes admits she stabbed another girl at northwood high school during a basketball game there. funes turned herself in. the victim will survive her injuries. virginia governor bob mcdonnell wants more money for state roads. he's calling for an extra $110 million without raising taxes. >> he wants to raise the money by shifting how much transportation gets from the state's sales tax. by increasing funding by a quarter of 1%, that will bring in the needed money. mcdonnell wants transportation issues to get a bigger share
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from the state's year-end surplus. coming up in eight minutes, our friends from busch gardens from williamsburg are back and this time, they have animals! >> it will be a sunny morning with temperatures moving into the 40s. not warming up so much. not bad. up next, a check of the weekend forecast and learn when highs will get back into the 50s. what a beautiful way to start the day.
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good morning. welcome back to 9news now. it is 6:45. howard bernstein is enjoying his friday off. olga is here. she's got a smile on her face. maybe not because it is cold but she knows the sun will shine today. >> sunshine always lightens the mood. this morning, for the kids, heading out to the bus stop, they need to bundle up. we have a forecast that's already dropped our temperature down into the 30s. most of the area, in faction, feels like temperature, you can dial it down even a couple of degrees to factor that in. 20s, outside the beltway, 30s inside the beltway this morning. after sunrise, the sun will have the opportunity to do its thing. we'll see some improvement later on in the afternoon. here. >> how it breaks down with your day planner. in all, not a bad day for the beginning of december. we are always expecting our temperatures to be on the cool side. but as we head into midday and late day, the sunshine is going to take awhile to work on through. i would say upper 40s to near 50 degrees for highs today.
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it will take awhile to get there even by the 4:00 hour, most of us should top out around 49, 50. then more cloud cover comes on through. partly cloudy as we head into the afternoon. it would be a pretty nice night tonight if you're headed out for your friday night activities. take the jacket though. things will drop off significantly after sunset. here's what you need to know to plan your day today. sunny and cold to start. jacket required. you might want some gloves, a hat, maybe sunglasses, too, as you step on out with the pleasant conditions for today, not a bad finish to the work week. but with the increasing clouds later on this afternoon, i'm not expecting any moisture to fall. things will be pretty good for us as we head into the weekend. although it will be on the cold side. here's how we're looking in and around the region. satellite and radar has been fairly quiet. future cast forecast model doesn't show much happening. right now, the temperatures are on the cold side. tonight, we'll be cool as well getting back down into the 20s and 30s but the feels like temperature definitely need to have that layer as you are
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stepping on out. with the next seven days ahead, we're looking at a forecast that is going to remain on the cool side. north winds tomorrow take us down into the lower 40s. bundle up for that army/navy game. monika? >> it is kind of a good news/bad news situation. the good news is in manassas on route 234 north of route 29, the earlier accident has been cleared but take a look at what's going on on the south side of town. there are two accidents. one on the northbound side of 95 in lorton. the other on the outer loop. in fact, let's take a live look. on the outer loop of the beltway just after van dorn street. look at what it is doing to traffic trying to get on the eastbound side of the traffic. expect that delay now beginning in springfield. in fact, let's go to northbound i-95 north of lorton road. the accident sits in the right lane. you have this delay forming here and then again in springfield, trying to exit to the outer loop of the beltway past that accident after van
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dorn street. some trouble spots for you in virginia. we'll take a live look at 395 at duke street. this is just the normal volume here in landmark. off and on for you as you head to the 14th street bridge. coming up, another look at the accidents at 6:58. >> monika, you should be jealous. this is really cool. we're talking with our friends at busch gardens williamsburg about their annual christmastown event. it involves some animals. joining us is anita jackson. this is greer, the barn owl. check this out. i can pet him. he's beautiful. er. >> so, he is the ambassador to the park? >> he's the very first animal ambassador you're going to meet. when you first come in through england, you'll end up in scottland. he will meet. then you have to come into the highland stables which is a wonderful scotland farm. and you get to meet our clydesdales all dressed up for
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christmastown. the whole park looks amazing. so, once you come into the park, you have a choice to make. you can either go left which usually would take you to escape from pompeii but that entire area has been transformed. >> oh, wow. >> now there are millions of lights that have made -- been formed into a big iceberg with a waterfall and it is one of those things -- i can't even describe to you what it looks like. it is one of those -- it is that beautiful. the farther in you go, the more amazing it gets. >> for people who haven't been in awhile. i've been but years ago, there are also rides there. can do you rides in the winter time? >> you can. there are two rides open. we pick them, of course, because of it being christmastown. very winter theme ride. it is very fun and very fast and it is a very thrilling ride. it is a great way to experience christmastown and it is definitely seasonal and then of
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course, we have the tower open. what better way to see the five million lights we have installed from busch gardens than from 240 feet up in the air. you get to drop down. it is an awesome way to experience the park. >> we have greer, a barn owl. isn't he just gorgeous? >> you know how they got their name barn owl? >> because during the cold winter, they're not very water resistant. they don't do well outside so they moved into the barns but also, there's food like to burrow underground. mice usually so if they move into the barn, they have a fresh supply of food and they are out of the rain. >> so, if you go the other way and you go toward ireland, two things to see. first, you'll meet molly. come here. molly is one of our sheepdogs and she does sheep herding. we herd our sheep through ireland every single day. will you see molly working. you're such a good dog. good girl. you're going to see her.
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and then you're going to experience one of the most amazing shows we've but together. >> anita jackson thanks a lot for joining us. christmastown is the event. we'll have a check of the news before you go. we'll be right back.
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today is friday, december 9th. buddy check 9 day. here is a check on the news before you go. police are not commenting yet on a motive for thursday's shooting at virginia tech. police officer deriek crouse was killed. the gunman took his own life. the campus was put on lockdown for several hours. police are investigating the shooting of virginia state trooper. this happened thursday southbound 95 in caroline county. both the officer and the suspected gunman were shot. no motive in that case either. >> there will be a gala tonight ahead of tomorrow's army/navy football game at fedex field, the first time the two games have ever played inside the
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beltway. watch the game tomorrow at 2:30 on channel 9. >> time to answer the question of the morning. here it is... >> guess what? the answer is c, lingerie. >> hooray! >> that makes me happy. >> we'll be right back.
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we're looking at a cool start to the morning. we're going to keep our temperatures on the cold side. in fact, the next seven days, well, northwest winds take on tomorrow. back down to the lower 40s. even cold on sunday but by the time we get to monday and tuesday, we'll hold on to the sunshine and bring back some of the 50s. >> all of the activity has been either concentrated in maryland or virginia. today, it is virginia. northbound 95 heading to the accident right at the beltway along the right side. we'll take a live look on the outer loop of the beltway before telegraph road. two right lanes blocked. delays beginning at van dorn street. a quick look at the beltway north of town. normal slow traffic on the outer loop 95 to georgia. >> early show is next. they'll be live at virginia tech and they'll talk about tim tebow mania coming up. >> olga and i will be back in 25 minutes with an update on traffic and weather. >> have a great weekend. go, navy. we'll see you

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