tragic story. >> it just shows the courage and dedication of these officers. >> reporter: around 1:00 this afternoon two prince george's county police officers spotted a car that may have been involved in a theft earlier in the day. >> they transmitted their location to the dispatcher. >> reporter: prince george's county police chief mark magaw said the officers started pursuing the suspects' car on 95 near powder mill road on beltsville when for some reason the officer driving lost control, swerved off the road and was thrown from the car. a two year veteran of the force was in the police department's explorer program as a teenager. the 23-year-old officer was pronounced dead at the hospital. the second officer is now being treated for nonlife threatening injuries. >> this is not an easy job by any means and there's dangers in everything that we do just about, but these officers were dedicated to doing their duty and that's what they were doing is following up on this theft report. >> reporter: the suspects' car

is described as a silver acura with temporary tags. if you think you've seen it, you're asked to call 911 immediately. a legitimate rape, feet mail body has ways to try to -- the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. >> the embattled missouri congress member apologized for those remarks and insists he'll stay in the race despite calls that he step aside, but as andrea mccarren tells us, the firestorm over those remarks may take quite some time to die down. >> disgusting, revolting, medieval, time for him to go. >> reporter: that was reaction after republican congressman todd akin apologized for these controversial remarks. >> if it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down, but let's assume that maybe that didn't work or something. you know, i think there should be some punishment, but the

punishment ought to be on the rapist and not attacking the child. >> no apology or retraction can change the fact that he's not fit for public service. >> reporter: not only is the missouri congressman a public serve at, but a member of the congress -- servant, but a member of the congressional science committee (. >> rape is rape is rape. every single rape is legitimate. that trauma and pain is to minimize women, to minimize survivors. >> reporter: melinda coles is the director of the d.c. education of the rape crisis center in d.c. >> the female body responds the same way during rape that it would during consensual sex in terms of reproduction. that does not change. >> reporter: even president obama at his daily white house briefing said the controversial comments underscore an important issue. >> that's why we shouldn't have a bunch of politicians, a majority of whom are men, making healthcare decisions on behalf of women. >> reporter: statistics on

rape and pregnancy are difficult to come by since it's a crime that often goes unreported, but it's clear that congressman akin's claim that rapes rarely lead to pregnancy is simply untrue. in fact, a 2004 study reveals that of the 64,000 rapes reported that year 3,200 of them ended in pregnancy. andrea mccarren, 9 news now. >> we have to note for you akin's chances of getting elected are getting tougher by the hour. crossroads gps is now pulling out of the missouri race. the conservative group was all set to start an ad list tomorrow supporting contain. republican presidential candidate mitt romney and his campaign call the comments insulting, inexcusable and frankly wrong and two republican senators scott brown and ron johnson are also calling on akin to step aside. another republican senator john cornyn who coordinates gop senate campaigns released this statement. congressman a ken's statements

were wrong. i -- akin's statements were wrong. i recognize this is a difficult time for him, but over the next 24 hours he should best consider what is best for him, his family and republican party and the values he cares about and has fought for throughout his career in public service. this is your chance to weigh. in does akin have any choice but to get out of the race for senate or should the voters who nominated the guy have the final say on his future? you can have your say in mcginty's mailbag. the address is mailbag@wusa9.com. d.c. police now looking into a number of leads trying to solve a disturbing robbery on capitol hill that nearly killed a 29-year-old husband and father. >> reporter: i'm scott broom at eastern market on capitol hill where police today are following a number of leads in the disturbing attack against 29-year-old thomas maslin. what's so upsetting about what happened to maslin is how long he may have been injured before anyone found him. according to a police report, maslin was discovered by a

passer-by on this porch in the 700 block of north carolina avenue at 8:30 in the morning saturday, so badly beaten and incoherent rescuers thought he was having a seizure. he was just a few blocks from home. according to a police report, maslin was last seen at the tune in bar and restaurant on pennsylvania avenue. it was 12:45 a.m. police don't know what happened after that, but clues include a neighbor who reported shouting near where maslin was found between 3:30 and 4 a.m., five hours before he was discovered on the porch. meanwhile maslin's wife reported his credit card may have been used about 5 p.m. the next day. at eastern market scott broom, 9 news now. 11 weeks from tomorrow voters will head off to the polls and cast their vote for president and today republican candidate mitt romney and his running mate paul ryan kept up their push to win over the voters in swing states, this time in new hampshire and the gop ticket used its town hall meeting in new hampshire to slam president obama on the

issue of medicare. >> medicare should not be a piggy bank for obamacare. it should be a guaranteed promise that our seniors can count on. >> the republican campaign accuses the president of taking $716 billion out of medicare to pay for the healthcare reform law, but president obama's campaign says that's not what happened and he took the podium at the daily white house briefing to defend himself. >> everybody who's looked at this says what governor romney is saying is absolutely wrong. not only are his super pacs running millions of dollars worth of ads making this claim, governor romney himself is approving this and saying it on the stump. >> president obama heads back on the campaign trail tomorrow. he'll have events in nevada and ohio. seems like any time we get a downpour folks in d.c.'s bloomingdale and ladroit park neighborhoods get flooded. it happened three separate times last month with water and raw sewage backing up into

several homes and businesses. today the mayor sustained a flood prevention task force specifically to look into those things in the neighborhoods. it will take a close look at the infrastructure to figure out what's causing all the flooding. >> in the meantime we're getting some rain now and the yellow weather alert kicking in, top. >> we've got a line of showers and storms. in fact, it's raining rather what are here in northwest, one reason i ducked inside from the weather terrace, a little thunderstorm pushing through the immediate part of time. this will head toward the ballpark. don't freak out. you'll get the game in. may be a little delay. let's go to live doppler 9000. here's the line essentially around the i-95 corridor everything moving east at 15 video cells moving northeast at 20 -- individual cells moving northeast at about 25 miles an hour. heaviest rain is in northwest d.c. inside the beltway in montgomery county from silver spring to chevy chase.

if you're going out connecticut avenue, if you're going on east west highway 410 in between college park and bethesda, big time rains and this is pushing off to north and east. everything gets out of here by 10:00 tonight. because of that we got the baseball forecast for you. look for some showers, but again it would be a brief delay, temperatures around 80. then temps fall. if you are going to the game, take an umbrella if you're going early. if you're already there, hopefully you've got a jacket because it will be a little on the cool side. we'll come back, talk about the prospect for showers again tomorrow and tell you if any meet is lurking around the corner. still to come a steak dinner with pint size participants. we'll tell you how these kids got a trip of a lifetime to the white house. >> plus first a 12-year-old banned from playing peewee football? hear why the league won't let him suit up. i'll give you a hint. he's not exactly peewee. that's up next.

have you heard about elijah earnhardt? 6' 1 and in a helmet and pads a solid 300 pounds. after this weekend sign him up for the redskins, right? maybe not this season. see, elijah is 12, yeah. and this self-described gentle giant does want to start his football career, but like most other 12-year-olds in texas he wants to play peewee, but the peewee folks in mesquite say look, dude, you're just too huge. he'd crush some of the little kid. elijah is upset. you can't -- kids. elijah is upset. you can't blame him and so is his mom who watched him put in a lot practice of this summer. >> we put in a lot of hard work with that team and he went out there and was dedicated to that team three weeks blood, sweat and tears every single night. he wanted to play for them. >> wow, the head of the mesquite peewee football league says look, we need to look out for the welfare of the other

kids who weigh about 95 pounds. it's tough for them to go up against a 300-pounder. no argument here. that kid is a big huge kid. eyes also tall, about the size ofour average -- he's also tall, about the size of your average college or nfl lineman. if the league is worried about safety, couldn't they let elijah move up and play with the other kids. the address is mailbag@wusa9.com. cool and cloudy, now chilly and rainy, topper tells us when the weather may take a turn for the better, his forecast coming up. >> but first she was a comedic legend and tonight fans mourn the loss of phyllis diller. we'll look back at her amazing career up next.

[ laughter of phyllis diller ] >> that iconic laugh is no more. tonight fans all over the world mourning the loss of phyllis diller. her family says she died peacefully in her sleep in her l.a. home. she was known for g humor. she became famous following numerous appearances with bob hope on television and, of course, the uso tours. phyllis diller, 95 years old. we will miss you. the aviation world and u.s. military remembering a legend tonight as well. george hickman, one of the original tuskegee airmen has died. hickman along with the other members of the fighter group were the country's first black military pilots and ground crew and they fought for the united states in world war ii.

their iconic tail color gave the tuskegee airmen their nickname the red tails, hickman 88 years old. first lady michelle obama has made fighting child obesity in this country her mission and her let's move campaign champions the importance of physical fitness and heart pumping exercise. today she celebrated healthy eating from a kid's perspective with some young and very excited chefs. anita brikman has more on their visit to the white house. >> look, just look around the room. this is all for you. ok at it all, reporters from everywhere. they're just everywhere. they never show up like this for something we do. >> reporter: the first lady held a state dinner in the middle of the day in the east room of the white house. the gantt ceremony today was the first of its kind -- the elegant ceremony today was the first of its kind. it is the first ever kids state dinner, 54 children from all 50 states, three territories and the district were invited.

it was a healthy lunchtime challenge, a competition where these young chefs created nutrition packed recipes. >> you came up with dishes that were packed with nutritious delicious ingredients, dishes that are good for you but more importantly they taste good, too. >> my grandmother taught me how to make tortilla. i put vegetables in them. >> reporter: jewel liliana gonzalez was thrilled to be sitting next to the first lady. >> her dad inspired her to cook and she took classes these past couple years with common thread. she really got to get in the kitchen and she's gotten to meet chefs and learn the techniques in the kitchen as well. >> i made fish chowder with a salad. >> reporter: 9-year-old madeline from mclean created a chowder recipe using low fat milk as one of the ingredients

because milk is the state beverage of virginia. >> i had to crash the party because i did not want to miss out on all the fun. >> reporter: to top off this colorful event for these health conscious kids, a surprise visit from the president himself. >> we're very proud of you. we're very impressed with everything that you have done. >> reporter: more than 1,200 recipe ideas submitted whittled down to those 54. they're all in this healthy lunchtime challenge cookbook which was distributed at the kids day dinner. they're also being published in the epicurious online magazine. >> great stuff. >> well, got some rain out there. >> the rain has rolled in. that long line of thunderstorms has finally gotten here. >> they are in a brief rain delay at the nats game. they'll get it in. >> you said that was going to come. >> it will be out of here in about an hour or so. let's start with live doppler 9000ful everything is essentially kind of -- lawn lawn. everything is essentially -- live doppler 9000. everything is kind of

straddling i-95. pretty heavy rain in northwest d.c. and more activity towards beltsville going up route 1 toward laurel and also up 95. so heavy activity. the red is the rainfall rates of 1 inch per hour and we had. that we don't have any hail and just a little bit of some winds, just light winds, but nothing strong enough to call for a severe thunderstorm. down to the south another little area of pretty good showers and thunderstorms through welcome headed up toward waldorf toward 301. we'll widen the radar and put this into motion. they'll be out of here quickly. behind this is pretty cool air. you can probably open your windows. watch everything push off to the east and weaken. it will go through lanham and bowie, heavy rain there and also go down into southern maryland and st. mary's county and calvert county in the next hour. it may take until 9:00 to get out of southern maryland cleatly. live look outside. you can see the raindrops on

the camera lens brought to you by michael and son. 78 now, pressure rising 29.88 inches of mercury. look at the temps, 64 gaithersburg, 69 vienna. check this out, 65 in lovitzville and 68 in leesburg. ahead of the trough, once that goes through everybody will be in the 60s tonight. we're looking at a brief delay possible at the nats game. some storms tonight between 6:00 and 8:00. storms end by 10:00 across the entire metro area and it will be cool and comfortable overnight. our futurecast by 7:15, right about now, it kind of splits. one area of thunderstorms goes up towards i-95 in baltimore. another kind of hangs into southern maryland but dissipates a little bit. by 9:30 still in southern maryland and by 10:30 pretty much out into the bay. the next three days we'll keep it code green.

yes, we have a chance of some showers and storms, nothing heavy, low 80s tomorrow and mid- 80s wednesday and thursday. next seven days temps stay in check. they go up a little bit next week but stay in check for the most part, shower possible friday, pretty nice day, mid- 80s, mid-80s saturday, maybe a sprinkle, upper 80s sunday and monday but really nice. >> i can't even complain about the shower over the week because the rain is needed. >> yards are a little more green, aren't they? >> except it's dead already. we'll be back. it didn't grow back. >> we want to hear what you think. send your e-mails to mcginty's mailbag, the address mailbag@wusa9.com. 9 news now will be right back.

in the mailbag tonight our wusa9 facebook page just racking up dozens of comments regarding that missouri congress member todd akin and

his remarkable remarks on pregnancy and rape. first he said he apologized but that has not stopped the mounting calls from even his own party asking him to drop out of the race. ed says there is a reason for that. he did not just misspeak. he flushed out a complete theory. also by saying that pregnancies are not likely to result from "legitimate rape" he's calling thousands of rape victims liars. he needs to resign from office. that's the only apology we should accept. we got similar sentiments from charmin, as a victim of rape i do not accept his apogy and feel it's a sad thing when people would even consider voting for a person with that limited intellect and gene writes sadly this is the type of ignorant people who want to make our decisions about our healthcare, but frank said while the statement is out of line and he's not buying the apology, however, my question is why do conservatives always get pegged in the media as the whackos? all politicians are insanely stupid. if the media doesn't seem to cover the political follies of

the left with the same zeal. every politician is not insanely stupid, but i do seem to recall a democrat named weiner was who destroyed by a twitter feed sex scandal in which there was no actual sex. however, i would love to know about a politician of any stripe who said something so outrageous and the immediate yauch norred. it i won't ignore your -- media ignored it. i won't ignore your e-mail. the address is mailbag@wusa9.com. we'll be right back here at 11:00 with anita and topper, so we will see you then. have a great evening. bye bye.

now, "entertainment tonight," the worldwide leader in entertainment news. >> why did the director of "top gun" jump off this l.a. bridge? the latest in our "e.t." investigation. new video of tom cruise getting the tragic news. plus, the reported suicide note. was he terminally ill? where "e.t." just spotted the legendary director. and why did he choose such a dramatic way to end his life? >> he was one of hollywood's most bankable producers. the obamas on what they really think about their star supporters. i was able to ask the kinds of questions the president and first lady aren't normally asked. what do you say to your critics who say you are too close to hollywood? their answers are quite surprising. >> george is wonderful. >> he's cute, too. >> call you on the cell phone? candid, unguarded. my brand new interview. "american idol" reportedly hires a new judge,