filed charges against george zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who claims that he shot the 17-year-old martin only after martin attacked him. >> today we file an information charging george zimmerman with murder in the second degree. >> special prosecutor angela corey who was named to the case three weeks ago declined at a well attended press conference in florida to talk about the evidence in the case. she would say that zimmerman is now in custody, though she would not say exactly where he's being held. >> i will confirm that mr. zimmerman is indeed in custody. mr. zimmerman turned himself in and by turning himself in was arrested on the habeus that had already been issued >> if convicted, george zimmerman could be sentenced 16 years to life in prison. trayvon's parents and their attorney are right here in washington d.c. taking part in the national action network convention and within the last hour they spoke about the latest developments in this case and our bruce leshan is live outside the washington

convention center with what they had to say. >> reporter: hey, derek, we're actually inside in the ballroom where the news conference with trayvon martin's parents wrapped up just two minutes ago literally and the organizers here said this is a night for all americans to come together in a search for the truth. they paid tribute to the republican governor of florida rick scott for appointing a special prosecutor in this case. they paid tribute to the special prosecutor angela corey for pursuing this, for bringing these second degree murder charges against george zimmerman. they said that this is not a night for celebration because this is a night that never should have been. they that said this is not a night for high five's. this is a night when two parents still grieving for their son. here's what they had to say just moments ago. >> first of all, i want to say

thank god. [ applause ] >> we simply wanted an arrest. we wanted nothing more than, nothing less. we just wanted an arrest and we got it and i say thank you. thank you, lord. thank you, jesus. [ applause ] >> secondly, i just want to speak from my heart to your heart because a heart has no color. it's not black. it's not white. it's red and i want to say thank you from my heart to your heart. >> this is just the beginning. we are a long way to go and we have faith. the first time we marched i looked to the sky and i just told myself when i walk, i will walk by faith. >> reporter: the news conference here one of the

organizers said that this is an affirmative statement to every child of every race that your life is worth something. they say that they will continue to seek justice in this case. they will follow it 3 , but they believe that the truth will come out -- through, but they believe that the truth will come out and that george zimmerman will be found guilty of murdering trayvon martin. derek, back to you. >> a lot of emotion there at convention center today. here in our studios we're joined by new york prosecutor and now criminal defense attorney jim shallick and delve deeper into the day's development and again angela corey said we don't prosecute by public pressure, yet you believe it's part of the reason for the second degree murder charge. >> absolutely. she has to say that, but the political pressure, community pressure, pressure from the press, enormous. it certainly was a factor no, question. >> that pressure not up over the month and a half since trayvon was actually killed. she said 45 days was not that

long to make an arrest. what do you say? >> i take issue with that. in a murder case every day there's a risk the assailant could flee. a quick arrest is very important so the person doesn't leave the jurisdiction. >> we now have an arrest and charges in the works. florida city's your ground law is all mixed in here somehow. if that law doesn't exist, is this case a slam dunk? >> yeah. it's basically self-defense. you stand your ground, you can protect yourself. what she did is charge him with murder 2. he can face life in prison. now she says the burden is yours, zimmerman. you make the affirmative defense of self-defense stand your ground and we'll fight you on that. she didn't take into consideration his view. she just took the view that you killed him. come with us. we're the defense. >> now this case as we just saw in the press conference has come to stand for so much more than trayvon's death or whether or not george zimmerman killed him in self-defense. it's come to stand for black

america and the grievance against a criminal justice system. when a case becomes spottic, how does that affect how the -- symbolic, how does that affect how the attorneys operate? >> the whole proceeding will be under the microscope of national and international attention. it's certainly a factor. everybody will dot their i's, cross their t's to take their position publicly that won't embarrass them. >> this is a big question for george zimmerman. is it possible for him to get a fair trial in the county where this went on? >> well in, this case the question is can he get a fair trial anywhere in america? there are people marching in streets all over this country. so the fair drier issue is beyond this one county. anywhere -- trial issue is beyond that one can. anywhere it it would be an issue. >> -- one county. anywhere it would be an issue. >> this is just getting started. we're sure we'll talk to you again. alexandria police now searching an abandoned building for evidence in an attack on two women, that building

located on mill road near eisenhower avenue. the two women were attacked there around 6 p.m. last night. they had gone to the building to see apparently which they'd seen advertised online. on-- an apartment which they'd seen advertised online. >> when they got there, they encountered a man who told them to come on into the building. at that point the man grabbed them, pulled them into the building and started physically assaulting them. >> those women fought the man off, got away, called the cops. officers searched the building and area but couldn't find the suspects. police did interview somebody matching the description of the suspect, but no charges so far. wildfires now burning more than 14,000 acres in virginia. the virginia department of forestry says firefighters are battling with five large wildfires and several smaller ones in counties all over the state. in page county one single fire has burned more than 47 acres and now spans 5.5 miles and in the shenandoah many roads and

trails are closed in the wolf gap area. the fire there charred more than 600 acres, but the biggest fires remain in game and craig counties and that's where -- in allegheny and craig counties and that's where three tykers have burned more than 3,000 acres in -- fires have burned more than 3,000 acres in george washington national forest. that's been going on most of day. firefighter say rocky terrains and high winds are making those fires difficult to contain. any chance they'll get a break from those winds tomorrow? >> they're not going to be as strong, but they'll still be a factor. we really get a break friday. let's talk about the radar. we actually had some showers today and had some snowflakes in the showers. right now we have showers up 270 on the west side of frederick and also down 95 you may encounter some wet roads if you're leaving late from work and into southern maryland going down 3 and 5 into charles county, nothing heavy but showers are still possible. some could still have some wet

snowflakes in it, especially up near hagerstown. 51 downtown, 46 gaithersburg, 45 frederick, 41 cumberland and our poor friends in oakland sat on 32 much of the day. let's talk about baseball because it's going to be a nice day tomorrow. however, that said game time temp at 59, winds northwest at 14. bring a jacket or sweat shirt. you'll need it, especially if you're in the shade, again first pitch 9:00 as the nats host the reds home opener. tomorrow showers ending early, then clearing breezy and cold, winds northwest 10 to 15. like march today. we'll come back and explain how it will feel like april by the end of the week and maybe like may by the weekend. coming up the income tax filing deadline now less than a week way and that has some taxpayers coming up with some let's just say creative deductions. >> but first hundreds of students are told they're accepted to college only to find out it's all one big mistake.

a mistake by ucla has led to some premature exultation for 900 high school seniors. over the weekend those kids were sent an e-mail congratulating them for being accepted to the school, but oops, they hadn't been accepted, at least not yet anyhow. those 900 kids are actually on the ucla waiting list and were sent that e-mail by mistake.

the school says they have since apologized. meantime those students who have been accepted to university of virginia could see a pretty hefty tuition hike. the board of visitors will vote on a proposal this week to raise tuition fees, room and board by 4%. that means in-state opportunities would pay $25,400 a year and out of state kids more than 51,000 bucks. uva's vice president says cuts in state funding forced the school to shift more of the costs to the students. the legal dispute over the holly acres mobile home park is headed for the virginia supreme court. last fall tropical storm lee flooded that park in woodbridge and damaged or even destroyed many homes there. prince william county declared some of the park uninhabitable saying several mobile home sites are in a dangerous flood zone, but many residents want to move back in anyway and the owner has sued the county for $8 million. a little touch of winter in d.c. today, so when will the weather get back to what we've come to expect? topper's forecast is coming

right up. >> but first mitt romney hits the campaign trail and shifts his attacks from rick santorum to barack obama. we'll tell you about it.

with rick santorum now out of the race mitt romney is on the campaign trail taking aim at president obama's record. the former massachusetts governor kicked off his swing through the northeast at a connecticut graphics company owned by a woman.

polls show more women tend to support the president and now romney is hoping to change that. >> 92.3% of all the jobs lost during the obama years have been lost by women, 92.3%. >> president obama's campaign returned the favor with a new web video out today. that video attacks romney's record on the campaign trail. the former governor also has two other republican candidates that are still eyeing him. he has to fend them off, both newt gingrich and ron paul saying they're stay negotiate race despite trailing romney's significant lead in delegates and the polls. with santorum out speculation continues to grow about who romney might pick as his vice presidential candidate should he clinch the nomination. virginia governor bob mcdonnell has been considered on the short list for months now on that spot and they asked him about it on cbs this morning. >> you have said you're not asking for the call, but i'm quoting here, it would be a tremendous honor, you'd be very interested if you did get that

call. what would you bring to the ticket? >> i'm going to let you experts pontiff indicate about pontificate about that. >> the governor said the decision ultimately lies with romney. the governor only has a year and a half in his term remaining and in virginia governors are not allowed to serve two consecutive terms. the tax deadline less than a week away on the 17th this year. so is the temptation out there to fudge a little or a lot sort of getting to you? accountants are dealing with some pretty whacky deductions that taxpayerers are trying to claim. >> reporter: i'm scott broom in washington where local tax master linda demalore is weighing in on whacky tax returns. linda has seen it all like clients who have deducted everything from lady's certain

unmentionables from vet bills. >> do people really try to deduct things like throngs and veterinary bills? >> we could call her an entertainer. however, she does most of her entertaining at very private parties. >> reporter: according to planet bunny, the most common questionable deducts are gym memberships, country -- deductions are gym memberships, country club dues and cosmetic surgery. >> having a child in college, there's several different deductions you can take and credits you're allowed to claim. you're self-employed, you must get professional help. >> reporter: scott broom, 9 news now. >> you know what my weirdest deduction is? makeup. >> yes. >> i spent hundreds a year on makeup and i bet you do, too. >> yes, i do. >> most guys can't say that. >> you can only deduct it if you just wear it here. wear it outside here, can't do it. >> so the amount you wear outside you don't deduct. >> exactly. >> we're looking at kind of a marchlike day. in fact, we have some pictures

for you. check this out from smithburg. bill and patsy wolfe up in smithburg northeast of hagerstown, about 1,500 feet that. actually covered the ground. they had 6 inches of snow the end of october. then they had want rest of winter and then they had a little snow today. not much has added up this season. here's the deal. here's a at live weather cam brought to you by michael and son. dew point in the 20s, relative humidity low. so the winds will do us a favor and keep the temperatures up a bit tonight, but look at all the showers that move north to south during the day. it will eventually lift out and these showers will i do down when the sun goes down and we'll have clearing -- die down when the sun goes down and we'll have clearing skies. temps are in the 40s in most of

the suburbs, 47 at bethesda, 49 rockville now. we're looking at 47 great falls, reston, 43 already out towards leesburg, 50 in fort belvoir and college park, 48 beltsville and up in laurel. so here's the deal. slowly but surely we'll return to aprillike weather, breezy and cold again tonight, more sun thursday, but breezy and cool on thursday. so again if you're going to the nats game, bring a sweater or a little jacket in case you're not in the sun. spectacular friday, a fabulous finish to the week on friday. for tonight showers ending early, then clearing, breezy and cold, 34 to 42, winds northwest 10 to 15. if we didn't have those winds temps would be more like 28 to 38. we're getting a break. everyone is above freezing. downtown around 40, but we're looking at 36 gaithersburg, 37 rockville, 38 college park, but 35 in leesburg and also in

manassas. tomorrow morning mostly sunny, breezy and chilly. grab a jacket and make sure the kids have one, too. 30s and 40s, winds northwest 10 to 15 and a wind chill tomorrow morning early of 20s and 30s. by afternoon closer to april mostly sunny, breezy, a little cool, a nice day, highs around 60 and winds northwest at 10 to 15. we'll do some zone forecasts. almost 40 tomorrow in oakland, not quite, 52 couplehand, 59 warrenton, leesburg and ma -- cumberland, 59 warrenton, leesburg and manassas, into southern maryland 60, small craft advisory for the bay and tidal potomac because of those breezes tomorrow. the next seven days temps are going in the right direction, 65 on friday, 71 saturday, ready for 80 sound. we got a couple drops but not a -- on sunday. we got a couple drops but not a huge deal. 80 on monday and tuesday, showers and storms on wednesday, temps near 70. it does kind of worry me we may

go into summer dry. that's never a good thing. >> we could use a little rain. from our weird news file we know pet are great for reducing the daily stress of life even if they have no useful purpose beyond looking cute and, well, leaving stuff behind if you know what we mean. to tokyo where a certain cafe serving more than just sugar with your coffee. they've got rabbits, whole loads of them, real bunny rabbits, customers like to play with them and check it out. customers really like to play with the rabbits. in tokyo your apartment is so small you probably can't have a pet, so people come to get their fix of what i call bunny cuddles and the cafe manager says contrary to what you may think rabbits can actually read your feelings and do all they can to make you feel better. in your mind they can't do much than look cute and act friendly, still for a lot ofous a bad day, that just might -- ofous a bad day that, just might -- of us on a bad day,

that might be enough. we want to hear from you at mcginty's mailbag. 9 news now will be right back.

more breaking news in the trayvon martin shooting investigation. george zimmerman's defense attorney, we assume it's his new attorney, says the neighborhood watch captain will plead not guilty to charges of second degree murder. zimmerman has been charged with

second degree murder as we told you earlier in the shooting of trayvon martin. in the mailbag tonight as we noted in the trayvon martin case, the second degree murder charges have been filed, but the argument goes on on the wusa9 facebook page. jerry johnson writes i love the people that are in such a rush to judge zimmerman. let the facts come out. there's already been testimony martin was on top of him beating his head into the ground. anyone that felt their life threatened would have shot martin, also, but gina robinson shaw counters with this. sadly when one major party is dead and unable to speak for himself, only so much rushing to judgment can be done. only zimmerman is around to tell his side. we get some wider perspective here. it's truly a tragic event. hopefully the events will be told as they happened and justice will prevail. the tragedy is that a young life was taken. black or white doesn't matter. it is a young life lost. as the special prosecutor angela corey said today her job

is to search for justice and truth. this is one case that could really use a big dose of both. the reality is at the end of the process some of you out there will be really disappointed. are you prepared to accept whatever happens if the system works even if it was imperfect? mail back at wusa9.com. we want to hear from you on that. that is our report. i'll be here at 11:00 along with anita brikman. we'll have the latest on the trayvon martin case. we'll see you then. bye bye.

now, "entertainment tonight," the most watched entertainment newsmagazine in the world. new video of alec baldwin hounded about his alleged stalker. >> are you worried at all? >> his young fiancee caught reading the headlines in the car. now, why alec is sending out angry tweets about the "today" show and threatening to leave "30 rock." as the howard stern speak about celebrity stalkers. >> i think it's a huge mistake to engage that person. are kim and kanye really a couple? >> i think they're cute together. >> or is their rumored romance a publicity stunt? >> you never know where my life will take me. tv shows on the bubble. which of your primetime favorites will be back? which are about to be canceled? we have the inside scoop.