year, somewhere around and within the washington metropolitan area. it does not need to happen. >> police showed up first and the ambulance showed up. they opened up a gerny and brought the person out, whoever got shot. i heard it was a child. >> now in the past hour, we have seen police officers searching the front yard of the next door neighbor's house. perhaps searching for shell casings, but we cannot confirm that. again, we do expect charges on the ownership and accessibility of that loaded gun found in the backpack in this little boy's home. i'm peggy fox reporting live, back to you. >> last year, it was a stabbing, 11 years earlier a shooting that injured seven children. and tonight, people at the national zoo say they are seeing more security than ever before this african american family day. bruce johnson has been there all afternoon and joins us now with more. this is connecticut avenue

outside the main entrance of the national zoo. they are arriving here by the hundreds and zoo officials are determined this year not to have a repeat of last year's violence. last year, an estimated 30,000 people were at the national zoo for easter monday when violence broke out. a teenager was stabbed multiple times inside the zoo. >> this year, it's like, no arguments. it seems much better. >> this year, zoo officials are being proactive while everyone, especially the children on the inside are having a good time. metropolitan police and metro have surrounded the zoo on the outside. even the guardian angels have been brought in to assist with security. >> some people just come out to look for trouble. so that's why we are here. >> did you have a lot of young people out here snatching phones and things like that? >> some of the people with children at today's events remember the violence from last year. >> i started not to come, because we were thinking something like that might happen again. we were here last year when it

happened. >> today, all we could see were scores of people with children. anything out here scare you? >> the gorillas. >> me too. what about you? anything scare you? >> the gorillas mostly. >> good family, quality time. walk around, enjoy. and the weather is perfect. >> scores of local and out of town visitors enjoying the zoo today and the weather and the animals. >> what do you like best about the zoo? >> reptiles. >> tell me about today, why is it important? >> it cost me $98 on the metro to get here. >> 100-year-old tradition that visitors to the zoo and zoo officials are determined to keep in tact. >> this is where my grandmother's parents met in like 190 something. and out of that, they had 12 kids. this is a tradition in our family that we come to the zoo every summer. >> it's open until 8:00 tonight, if you get here by 7:00, you'll be allowed inside. this is bruce johnson reporting live from northwest washington for 9news now.

>> family day at the zoo dates back to the days when african american families were not allowed into the white house for the annual easter egg roll. that was far from the case today as many as 30,000 people took part in today's event on the south lawn. black families were first welcomed by the eisenhower administration that was in 1954 and here you see video of what it looked like today. now next monday marks 150 years since president abraham lincoln freed the slaves in washington, d.c. 8 1/2 months later, he followed up with the emancipation proclamation for the entire country. 100 years after that, the martin luther king, jr., led the march on washington, calling for equality for all americans. today, how far we have come when it comes to race relations. >> it's a question we are asking on a night when two men sit behind bars accused of a shooting rampage. 32-year-old alvin and 19-year- old jake are both being held on

nearly $10 million bond each. police say both men are white and their victims are black, but not yet confirming those shootings were race related. a post england put on facebook that used a racial slur to describe the person who shot and killed his person two years earlier. then in florida, a development in the case that captivated the nation. the special prosecutor looking into the shooting of trayvon martin says she will not bring the case it a grand jury. however, angela is still investigating and that does not mean the charges will not be filed. and that trayvon martin case was the topic of a town hall meeting in d.c. ask and the panel said they wanted to shed light on the political issues surrounding the case and the entire criminal justice system. >> as we move closer to racial equality, we have to get more comfortable with seeing people

of color angry and seeking for justice and understand historically, you know, the reason why, i know. our movement has been as successful as it has been is because it's an extremely disciplined movement made up of people that want justice. want their kids lives to be treated as it is valuable. >> maryland senator is expected to attend a prayer vigil tonight. 7:00 in clump columbia, maryland. with less than six hours to go, they still don't have a budget agreement. >> i'm scott broom where the clock is running out on getting a budget passed this 2012 session because the legislature is hung up on gambling in prince georges county. >> it's not gambling in a shopping center. this is not gambling. >> the issue, a late proposal to put a gambling casino at

national harbor in prince georges county. with the legislative session at its end game, some are refusing to compromise on the state's $35 billion budget. >> if it goes down and the senators are more concerned about the obsession with gaming than they are with school construction, school funding, hospitals, higher education money, and let them wear that when they go home and tell their constituents why they had to spend extra time in annapolis. >> raise property taxes 10% in order to meet the type of revenue that we'll get from the casino bill. >> if legislators can't come to a compromise, maryland's governor will be forced to call a special session to get the budget business done. scott broom, 9news now. >> the general assembly did address other key bills. they passed a flush tax. that's going to add $30 to your annual sewer bill and helps

fight pollution. lawmakers also made it illegal for employers to ask you for your user names and passwords to sites like facebook from their current or potential employees. and they passed a bill in memory of felicia barnes. she's the teenager that disappeared while visiting baltimore two years ago. that bill required state officials to publish a list of missing children and annual statistics. anita. >> we have breaking news tonight coming out of baltimore. after a week of madness surrounding the winning jackpot. a maryland lottery spokesperson confirmed to 9news now the person who purchased the winning megamillions ticket in maryland has stepped forward to claim that prize. the lottery commission will hold a press conference tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m. to announce the winning ticket, but the winner wants to remain unanimous. the ticket was purchased at a 7- eleven on liberty road. that was on march 31. it is worth $218 million.

>> that's the end of the saga. you were so excited about that megamillions madness. >> it was fun while it lasted. coming up tonight on 9news now at 7:00, metro released its schedule for the rest of the year and you won't believe this. 80% of the weekends, stations will be closed. that's from 2013. >> ouch. >> we'll tell you more about it at 7:00. >> okay derek, still to come, call it the nation's front lawn or backyard. the time has come for a new look and we're going to take a look at some of the ideas to make over the national mall. anny. >> and it has been a windy day today. goeses over 40 miles per hour and it is still breezy tonight. our almanac for today, we got up to 69 degrees. a few degrees above the average of 65. nowhere near the record high of 90 set in 1959. when i come back, we'll talk about a chance for showers and how long the cool weather sticks around. but first, two internet power houses join forces. we're going to tell you about

their merger up next.

back on 9news now with a consume or alert. buy a photo sharing software company called intragram. facebook said it's going to help it running independently. so you'll still be able to run it on your rival social networks like twitter. the deal is expected to close by the end of june and this would be facebook's largest acquisition so far. talk about big things going on. well, little things going down. before you get too excited, it's by .2 of a cent. that brings the national average down to $3.93. here in the greater d.c. area, the average price is up to $4.05. and we have four stations with gas under $4 that we want to share with you. let's start in maryland where

we found a station selling regular unleaded for just $3.91 a gallon. that station is near kensington boulevard. you can pay $3.83 at the gas and company station. that's along crane highway near governor park lane. to virginia now, and we found $3.98 gas at the road service station. and in the district, you can fill up for $3.95 a gallon at the crown along new york avenue at fair view avenue northeast. and you can always find the bets prices in your area at wusa9.com. just click on our pump patrol. still ahead, a new life for the theater that launched dozens of careers. we'll be right back.

d.c. city leaders cut the ribbon on the restored howard theater. the century old theater had been undergoing a $29 million

restoration since september of 2010. now over the years, the howard helped launch the careers of stars like marvin gay, ella fitzgerald, but the mayor says the howard holds a special place for those who sat in the audience. >> and somebody who grew up in this city, that went to school in this city, this was a convening place. it didn't matter what high school you went to. if you went to armstrong, if you went to dunbar. everybody came to the howard theater. >> and they can again. a concert is set for thursday with proceeding helping to defray the costs. lesli. should be a big night. the national mall is getting a makeover and today, we got our first look at some of the designs being considered. >> i'm kristin fisher on the national mall where today the finalists in a yearlong design

competition were unveiled. designs that would truly transform two parts of the national mall. constitution gardens and this sullivan theater. >> what people are seeing today are really the top designers in the country who want to design for the national mall. >> a trust for the national mall has over seen this yearlong competition. it started with 32 entries. now the eight finalists are on display for the museum of american history. designs for constitutional gardens include skating rinks, a stage in the middle of the pond. even places to go fishing. >> national mall is the people's park and so having people get involved and envision the future of the national mall and hear their views is hugely important. comments will go to the jury and the jury will take under consideration the public views. >> i'm kristin fisher, 9news now. >> none of those designs

involve feathers, but there were plenty this weekend. saturday was international pillow fight day. there truly is a day for everything, and plenty of people turned out an the nation's lawn to take part. ladies, one climate scientist is calling march the metrological equivalent of a baseball player on steroids. here's why. according to the national oceanic administration, the average temperature in the lower 48 states last month was 8.6 degrees higher than usual. it was 6 degrees usual than the typical average for the first three months of the year. yup, it's been really, really warm. and this unusually warm winter has ski resorts in colorado already calling it quits for the season. spring skiing is usually a big draw for the area, but this year, the skiers are complaining about the slushy snow, choppy mountain conditions and resort owners say that's bringing the season to an early close. >> not going to have fun, no reason for us to be open.

>> mark says his resort was lucky with early snow, but overall the skiing is being called some of the worst in colorado history in years past, some resorts have been known to stay open until july. not this year, guys. >> and you know, for all the talk that we did about enjoying this weather, we have to remember there's always the ripple effect. >> yeah. and now we are just seeing some windy conditions around here tonight. and also that red flag warning. so the fire danger remains high. not only tonight, but through tomorrow. we really need the rain around here more than 4 inches below the average. we'll talk about the chances for showers in a minute. first, 65 degrees in downtown. mostly cloudy conditions. west, northwest winds at around 13 miles per hour. lesli was talking about the warmest march ever. just how warm? more than 15,000 records broken during that month across the u.s. 25 states reporting the warmest march ever, according

to the national weather service. california, oregon, washington, even alaska had the tenth coolest march on the west coast. global warming, everybody thinks it's because of global warming, but that is a minor role. it's due to natural causes. the wind gusts are blustery. 30 miles per hour in downtown. 29 in leesburg. 21 in winchester. fire weather watch, the red flag warning in effect. not just for the d.c. area, but toward pennsylvania, new york, and new england area. also just some west of the divide. that blue is the freeze warning in effect. in the higher elevations, it will be a cold morning for you. we have some showers trying to make its way through, but the air is so dry, it will be tough. right now, mid 60s in downtown. 57 in leesburg. upper 60s for fredericksburg. it will be cool the next couple of days and breezy.

isolated showers possible tonight. a high fire danger through tomorrow. because mainly dry and windy conditions for tuesday. cool still for wednesday and thursday. the future cast showing us a chance for some isolated showers for this evening, but not getting a whole lot. it will be scattered in nature. tomorrow looking at partly sunny conditions and most of the showers will be isolated. the north and out toward the east of us. right now, not seeing any in our area for tomorrow. tonight, partly to mostly cloudy. isolated showers possible. 40s in downtown. 42 for leesburg. 43 in frederick. tomorrow morning, partly sunny, breezy, and chilly. grab a jacket and a scarf. here's a look at your next seven days. upper 50s, and on thursday, for the washington nationals home opener against the cincinnati reds, looking dry, mostly sunny. maybe breezy and the warm weather, here it is.

on the weekend, saturday in the 70s and sunday into the lower 80s. so, once we get to the next cool day, we'll get to the warm days by the weekend. >> good timing, way to go, anny. >> we are all excited about the nats. >> caps are still going. caps are still going. they have switched gears to playoff mode now. but their goal tender continues to turn. plus, the latest on bounty gate. what the nfl said to the saints next in sports. [ glass clinks ]

i just wanted to say a few words. first of all, thank you for the lovely meal jane. mom. and let's hear it for sara's paper mache eiffel tower. it's the washington monument. and dad, i'll never forget what you said to me this morning. you said "brian, it's 11:15. get up." so maybe this is just the cake talking but let's celebrate! [ male announcer ] celebrate the little things. buy any kfc 10 pc meal or larger and get a free double chocolate chip cake.

now, 9sports with kristen berset. the best sports in town. >> for the fifth straight season, the capitals are headed to the post season. for the first time in a while, they are the underdogs. the first matchup is against the defending stanley cup champs. that might sound daunting, but the capitals have done a number, winning three out of four games. with preps underway, there is a buzz running through the locker room. >> it's the best you can imagine. but no, it's probably most exciting time. >> the buzz is going pretty good and excited to be here. >> we're looking forward to it. >> the caps have just one healthy goalie that played at the prolevel this season. braydon, a youngster under a

lot of pressure. >> approach it like another game. there's more at stake, but you start putting more on your shoulders and it never works well. >> the pressure we have been under in detroit, philly, and down the stretch here. >> michael did get ice time in this morning. here's a look at the schedule for the first best of seven series. games one and two are at tb garden. then they return to the verison center for game three. the new orleans saints will be without sean payton. denied the appeals of payton and assistant coach. payton's season long suspension will begin monday, the 16th. he is not allowed to have any football contact during that time. lew mishas an 8 game suspension starts at the end of preseason. the redskins have resigned defensive end, kedric, for a

seventh season. no word yet on the exact details of that deal. coming back from a sending knee injury he suffered in week 10 in miami. nationalville's nashville's closer is going to see dr. andrews. he felt soreness. michael morris begins his rehab tonight in hagerstown. time to reveal our high school game of the week poll. we have a wide variety of games for you to choose from. boys and girls lacrosse, soccer, baseball and softball. we'll announce the winner thursday night. finally tonight, brian aracpo. he stands out in the crowd. stands above everybody else. he joined other athletes, helping the kids out there on the lawn. >> he didn't try to outdo one of the kids. >> that's it for us.

good night.