>> this is not gambling in a shopping center. this is not gambling in a rust belt city. this is gambling immediately adjacent to the capital of the free world. >> for crying out loud, there's more important things at stake here than whether or not we have a sixth site for gambling. >> the budget in the state of maryland goes down and the senators are more upset about the construction of gaming than school construction. >> reporter: why all the anger? it's because an 11th hour bid for gambling here at national harbor effectively derailed the fractured legislature as time ran out monday on its 2012 session. the critical tax package needed to pay for state government, it never got a vote and a so- called doomsday budget of deep cuts was passed by default. >> it really, really sucks. >> reporter: at the university of maryland a surprise tuition hike as high as 13% now looms. local school boards face the shocking cuts and that lot on the top of the hill, well, it's

still vacant. no gambling bill got passed either as the clock ran out on the legislature that couldn't get its act together. governor martin o'malley says he is not opposed to giving the dysfunctional legislature a second crack at working this out by calling a special session, but he says he won't do it until leaders work out their differences ahead of time. they've got until july 1st. at national harbor scott broom, 9 news now. >> now that doomsday budget has counties in maryland already bracing for some big cuts. in montgomery county ike leggette is even reintroducing that bill for the ambulance fee. the county executive sent it over to the county council last night and he says the fee could raise between 14 and $17 million a year. voters have already rejected the idea when it was on the 2010 ballot, but leggette said he put it out there again because the state budget is shifting more costs back to the counties. a surprise court appearance today for george zimmerman in sanford, florida, and the

lawyer for the man accused of murdering trayvon martin wants his client out of jail as he waits for trial. the judge today scheduled a bond hearing for next friday, but it could be months before this case actually goes to trial. zimmerman insists he shot martin in self-defense and his attorney argues that's why he deserves bail. >> he deserves a bond because there's certainly questions about how this happened and his legitimate defense is that may be developed and presented. >> yet another twist today, lawyers question whether or not the judge presiding over the case could have a conflict of interest. you see, her husband works with an attorney who had contact with zimmerman. the formal arraignment in the case is set for may 29th and zimmerman's lawyer says he will plead not guilty. should zimmerman be free on bail? we're talking about a guy whose first legal team quit tuesday because they couldn't reach him and had no clue where he was. however, he's also the guy who turned himself into the police the very next day. turn your thoughts into

mcginty's mailbag, the address mailbag at wusa9.com. please include your name and where you're from. preparations underway tonight to remember the fifth anniversary of the worst massacre in u.s. history. that's the virginia tech shootings. on april 16th, 2007, 33 people were murdered including the gunman who took his own life. the gunman seung-hui cho was mentally disturbed, a student from fairfax county where five of his victims were also from. now they live with a constant powerful void in their lives, but as peggy fox reports, they have all found ways to keep their child's or sibling's legacy alive through scholarships. many still receive support through their churches and communities. >> reporter: memories from that dark day at virginia tech april 16th, 2007, are seared into the personal tragedies of every family who lost loved ones. >> we don't go a day without talking about erin. >> reporter: some parents of

the 32 victims like celeste peterson of centreville had bad feelings on early. she hadn't heard from her daughter erin or her friend. >> she said now 20 are dead. she hadn't called. i called my husband and he's like i'll meet you at the house. we'll go down there. >> reporter: she also realized erin who was a freshman had been in norris hall where seung- hui cho started killing people. he started the killing spree two hours earlier killing two students in a dorm. the petersons were only one of two families who sued virginia tech. >> the way i was raised, you tell the truth no matter what the consequences are. >> reporter: the jury found in their favor deciding tech did not give students adequate warning after the first two shootings. >> the students are now going to be safer and that's what erin was all about. >> reporter: peter reed who lost his oldest daughter mary says bad decisions were made at the very top. >> the current administration can continue to deny it, but it doesn't change the facts that a

jury of peers has found that what they did was wrong. >> reporter: but those feelings have not stopped him from taking his family back to tech on numerous occasions. >> we didn't want our kids to grow up fearing that campus. we didn't want them to be afraid of tech and think of it as the place that mary got shot. we decided that was something we wanted to do so that mary's brothers and sisters would grow up understanding why she loved tech and why she wanted to be there. >> reporter: peggy fox, 9 news now. >> virginia's governor bob mcdonnell has declared monday virginia tech remembrance day and is calling for a statewide moment of silence that morning. well, it is official. vincent orange has beat out sekou biddle for the democratic nomination for the at large seat on the d.c. council. the incumbent council member was officially renominated today after the d.c. board of elections counted nearly 5,000 absentee and provisional ballots. vincent orange received 40.4% of the vote beating biddle by

1,700 votes. there will be no recount since the difference is greater than 1%. orange will face two challengers in the general election, mary brooks beebee, a republican and ann wilcox running as the green party candidate. the one remaining undecided race in maryland has a winner, john la furla conceded the nomination to wendy rosen who led by just 58 votes after the state election officials counted most of the ab 10 see and providingal ballots. -- absentee and provisional ballots. rosen will face incumbent andy harris. firefighters across the country are in virginia helping to battle wildfires that have burned over 20,000 acres in the schenn dough, what page, craig and allegheny -- shenandoah, page and craig and allegheny county. the national forest service has been forced to closes down some

roads. it's also prompted a warning -- close down some roads. it's also prompted a warning. >> just don't use fire in any form, no campfires, no debris burning, no open air fires because it really is dry. >> the cause of the wildfire in columbia furnace has not been determined, but fire officials say hot coals from a campfire may have been behind it. the largest wildfire in virginia is still burning in allegany county. more than 56 firefighters are now working trying to contain the allegheny tunnel fire. that one has been burning since saturday and has charred more than 7,600 acres and at last check it's only 20% capabled. >> we all know -- 20% contained. >> we all know the wind which caused a lot of firefighting problem and also it's very dry. >> we've eliminated the wind today and tonight. however, the winds will pick up tomorrow as they go southwesterly. so that's not good news. i know a lot of folks did like our snow this winter, but we

had no snow to melt. if we had nice snowpack to melt, this would not ab i problem. temperatures are no problem -- be a problem. temperatures are no problem. for tonight we're looking at clear skies. it will be chilly but not as cold, one blanket or sheet needed tonight, 38 to 48 for lows, winds becoming southwest at 5 to 10. those winds will pick up later tomorrow. we'll talk about the rest of the weekend, how warm it's going to get and tonight at 11:00 we'll talk about what is now becoming a drought east of town. coming up the most storied space shuttle in nasa history prepares to come home to washington d.c. we'll show you a behind the scenes look at its historic trip. >> but first a north carolina middle schooler is tossed out of school all because of a hug? that's coming your way up next.

what's the hurt in a hug? afternoon a apparently a lot in bladen county north carolina where a middle school student is serving a 10-day suspension after hugging a teacher. brian blackmon said he gave her a hug after she stepped in to break up a scuffle between ryan and another student. >> i said thank you after she got done. i went to hug her and she just snatched me up by the arm and drug me to the other teacher and started screaming in my face and saying i needed to be wrote up, that something

serious needs to be done. >> wow. the teacher on duty in the lunch room wrote in the report that ryan talked about that ryan hugged her with a tight grip. apparently that is a level two violation of school board policy. so far bladen county schools has not commented on the incident. maryland's highest court will join the battle over the state's dream act. the court of appeals says it will hear casa de maryland's appeal to mock an amendment on the law. the immigrant -- block an amendment on the law. the group argued the dream act is not subject to a public vote, but last month a circuit court judge disagreed. the court of appeals will hear the case june 12th. the cold is behind us, a big warm-up on the way. topper has downright hot numbers coming up. >> but first 100 years ago this weekend the titanic met its fate in the chilly atlantic and now the museum is unveiling a

brand-new exhibit documenting the tragedy. we'll give you a sneak peek up next.

if today is your birthday, you share it with one of the greats in american history. today marked the 269th anniversary of the birthday of thomas jefferson. the national park service and other organizations paid tribute to mr. jefferson with a wreath laying ceremony at the

jefferson memorial and here's a little fact for you. it was president franklin roosevelt that dedicated the memorial back on this date in 1943, the 200th anniversary of thomas jefferson's birth. titanic split open by a burg, her side ripped over as -- berg, her side ripped open like a can opener, just one of the headlines of the sinking of the titanic. it happened 100 years ago this weekend, april, 1912, and as the newspaper saying goes you can read all about it, the museum marking the anniversary with a special exhibit and showcasing the front pages of the titanic in cases that line the museum on pennsylvania in northwest. >> one of the big points of interest is initially the newspapers got it terribly wrong, indicated that all of the passengers had survived. everybody was going to be all right and we know obviously in

hindsight that that's not true, the vast majority of the passengers were not saved. >> the special exhibit runs through next friday. next tuesday space shuttle discovery will arrive at its permanent home, the smithsonian's center. the historic ship will make a low altitude flyover before landing at dulles and heading to the museum. in a story you'll only see on 9, kristin fisher gives us a preview of one of the most impressive aerial displays to ever fly over the nation's capital. >> reporter: the world's greatest piggyback ride, a space shuttle on top of the shuttle carrier aircraft. it's called aer in rei flight. next tuesday the shuttle will be ferried from florida to dulles airport. >> it's something to see when it's flying over you. >> reporter: the flight path was scouted by by two nasa jets last week. the route is a secret due to security, but weather permitting it will include d.c.'s most famous landmarks.

>> it will fly no higher than 1,500 feet above the ground and at some times even lower. it will be hard to miss. >> reporter: 1,500 feet off the ground, that's just three washington monuments up and it's over the most tightly controlled airspace in the country. >> i think the fact that all of the government agencies have approved the flyover is a real tribute to the importance of this space shuttle. >> reporter: dr. valerie neil is the space shuttle curator for the smithsonian's air and space museum. >> we've been working heavily for the last year and we have all the pieces in place now except the one we cannot control and that is the weather. >> reporter: this is the gate the discovery will be coming through. on this side, the center, on that side dulles airport. it will take discovery about an hour to go just a mile and a half. it will then replace the museum's current crown jewel, the enterprise. this will be discovery's final resting place after 39 spaceflights and one final flight over the nation's

capital. >> this will never happen again. this is your chance to see a space shuttle in your own backyard. >> reporter: kristin fisher, 9 news now. >> if you really want to see it, the smithsonian has just released its list of the best places to watch the flyover which include the national mall, georgetown waterfront, gravelly point by reagan national, alexandria waterfront and the national harbor. all we need to know is how sunny it will be next tuesday. >> it will be okay. we are looking at a fantastic weekend, like may tomorrow, like june sunday. let's take a live look outside for our live weather cam brought to you by michael and son. generally clear, temperatures 64 now, dew point still in the 20s, but good news is it won't fall as fast tonight or as far as it did last night. there are no frost or freeze advisories posted for the metro area. the pressure steady over the past hour. temperatures pretty uniform, low to mid-60s, 62 bethesda, 65

rockville, 63 great falls and low 60s in sterling and leesburg, 64 manassas and we're looking at 64 college park, 63 in laurel. here's the deal. more like may tomorrow and more like june sunday and monday, not as cold tonight, breezy and milder tomorrow, breezy and quite mild tomorrow night. remember the nats are in town until a week from sunday till the 22nd. go see a nats game. weather will cooperate. breezy and quite warm sunday. we should top out over 80. we've got abnormally dry conditions across much of the metro area. you go to the east and anne arundel and calvert county moderate drought. the delmarva is already in a severe drought. we don't like to go into summer behind in rainfall because the only way to make it up in summer is really the remnants of a tropical storm. that can lead to flooding. you go from feast to famine. we'll keep you posted on this. we have the fires burning out in shenandoah and page county

and fires down where 84 and 61 meet in craig county. tonight clear skies, not as cold, one blanket or maybe a sheet will do you. 38 to 48, winds southwest 5 to 10. some areas will make it into the 30s but well above freezing, maybe 39 or so in gaithersburg, 40 rockville, 47 downtown, 39 bowie, 40 in reston and fairfax and maybe 39 in sterling, maybe 38 in leesburg. tomorrow morning mostly sunny, breezy and pleasant. you'll need your sunglasses, 40s and 50s. winds pick up southwesterly 10 to 15. that's not good for the fires in the shenandoah valley. by afternoon partly cloudy, breezy, warmer, more like may, high temperatures 70 to 75 and winds continue southwest 10 to 15. next seven days, look at this, low 80s sunday. are you kidding me? mid-80s monday. this is like late june temperatures. maybe a shower tuesday. all we have is a drought now tuesday that. front could go through dry. a little cooler wednesday, thursday around 70 and mid-70s

on friday. >> hard not to like this spring weather, though. topper. >> it is pretty nice. >> we'll be back in a minute. >> we want to hear what you think. send your e-mails to mcginty's mailbag, the address mailbag at wusa9.com. 9 news now will be right back.

in the mailbag tonight

continuing reaction to the arrest of george zimmerman in the killing of trayvon martin. robin from warrenton says it's about time. if people remember, the 911 operator told mr. zimmerman that he doesn't need to follow mr. martin, but mr. zimmerman still did. why was mr. zimmerman still follow manage martin after he was told not -- following mr. martin after he was told not to? but susan from alexandria wants to know why does this have to all be about the race issue? no matter who was what color, if someone comes up behind you in the dark with a gun in hand, you're going to feel threatened and you're going to fight for your life. i think the nationwide outrage is over the proposition that the one with the gun could claim self-defense. there is a lot more to know about this and i hope it won't be turned into a black/white issue. well, susan, it's apparently a little too late for that. it appears that trayvon martin's race may have been a big part of why he looked suspicious to zimmerman in the first place and some do believe that it is why zimmerman was

not arrested, at least not at first. regardless of what might be more comfortable for all of us involved here, it's hard to argue race is not part of the discussion. finally we get this from jeff in falls church who says he, too, used to be on a neighborhood watch. gung ho like zimmerman i wanted to work only the neighborhood watch captain shift since that is when most crimes were committed, but the motto was observe but don't intervene as we were not police officers. it was always a bit unsettling and disconcerting during that time that we were armed only with a cell phone, harsh language and a clipboard. you know what? i can understand why you may have wanted a gun, jeff, but you seem to understand why confronting potential criminals armed like a cop but without miss training could be airest -- police training could be a recipe for exactly what we have going on right now. the recipe for mcginty's mailbag involves your e-mails and the address is mailbag at wusa9.com. please don't forget your name and where you're writing from.

>> we'll take a quick look at our seven-day forecast, top? >> great weekend, spectacular, 70 tomorrow, low 80s on sunday, even warmer on monday. culpeper might even hit 90 on monday. >> really? >> tonight at 11:00 we'll talk about the drought and things we have to worry about in the next few months. >> we appreciate you joining us. i'll be right back here with topper and anita at 11:00. log on any time to www.wusa9.com. we'll see you a bit later. bye bye.

now, "entertainment tonight," the most watched entertainment newsmagazine in the world. brad and angelina's engagement. what brad's jeweller told "e.t." tonight. amanda bynes' new driving disaster. on a curb. text whiling drive? is she in trouble with police again? then, new clues to heidi klum's new man. is she dating her tv co-star? plus, bruce willis on his new baby. are his grown-up daughters jealous of their new sister. >> they're just talking to her. telling her jokes. the "american idol" judges on the britney spears "the x factor" rumors. could she be their new competition? >>