general is now fighting. wolfe was 20 when he was convicted in 2002 of murder for hire in the killing of daniel petrole. he was wolfe's marijuana supplier. both were dealers. today petrole's father told 9 news that the federal court's ruling is unfortunate for the commonwealth. he said, "we miss danny every day, but we hold no animosity toward justin wolfe. we don't think he's innocent. there is evidence supporting that he did it, but we have forgiven him. he is very lucky and i'm happy for his mother and family. i hope he does some good with his second chance." owen barber admits to killing danny petrole, but in 2005 he recanted his testimony and told a federal court that wolfe had nothing to do with the murder. twice federal judge raymond jackson has ordered the charges against wolfe tossed out because of alleged misconduct by prince william county commonwealth attorney paul ebert. in court yesterday special prosecutor ray morrogh said

after reading every word of the case he believes the federal judge got it wrong. ray morrogh says he can retry wolfe without the testimony of barber because barber's former girl friend can confirm that wolfe did hire him to kill petrole. >> i don't know if i'm surprised. i'm more grateful, just grateful that it's maybe finally over. >> reporter: all that hope yesterday now turned to great disappointment. i did speak with their attorney, kimberly irving. she said this is something the family and n the back of their mines thought could -- in the back of their minds thought could happen, so they weren't totally surprised. what it does, this stay just slows everything down. justin wolfe stays behind bars and that family will keep fighting to have him released. in the meantime the commonwealth will be filing briefs to fight judge jackson's order for his release and also the removal of the charges

against him. the commonwealth will continue to try to retry justin wolfe. i'm peggy fox reporting live and i'll have more and you'll hear what that attorney has to say coming up at 6:00. back to you. >> a long ways to go from here, thank you. joining us now to talk more about this case is criminal defense attorney john swirling. you have been watching this case closely and know all the key players. in fact, you've known paul ebert 42 years. what went wrong? >> the problem is that prosecutors start cases with the presumption that the defendant is guilty. if they didn't have that presumption, they wouldn't be prosecutors, but that's not the presumption in the eyes of the law. the presumption is the presumption of innocence and so when they try to manipulate evidence or don't disclose evidence tending to help the defendant escape punishment, they don't see a problem with that and that's the problem. >> and the judge said this case

was irrevocably tampered because of essentially what he called prosecutorial misconduct. ebert was caught on tape going in to talk to barber basically saying if you change your testimony, here are the consequences. >> well, if you don't change your testimony. his last testimony was that wolfe was innocent and paul obviously believed that that was perjured testimony because he believes wolfe is guilty, same with the current special prosecutor and so what he was trying to do is to get him to get off of the perjury and onto the original story which paul believes is true. the problem is he threatened him with the possibility of facing the death penalty if he didn't change his story. and so that was the obstruction and he wasn't caught on tape. paul ebert arranged to have the interview tape recorded because he didn't see that he was doing anything wrong. >> he didn't see anything wrong and you said that many prosecutors may not have seen anything wrong with this.

>> because of their presumption of guilt. >> let's talk a bit more about paul ebert before we losa lot of our time. he sent more murderers to the death penalty than any other prosecutor. he's handled very big cases, the sniper, the lisk sisters. the list goes on. but this case clearly came undone. does this tamper or affect his legacy in your mind? >> well, it will unfortunately for him. i really like paul. he runs a great office. he has great people working for him, but death penalty cases are different. they skew everything. the stakes are so high. everything that can go wrong in a normal criminal case might not be a problem is a big problem in a death penalty case because everything will be scrutinized, you know. it costs millions of dollars, these cases, on both sides and every dot had better be on top

of that i. >> we'll see what happens as the special prosecutor believes that wolfe did have something to do with this, intends to try him and in could go on for some more time. >> that's part of the same problem -- and this could go on for some more time. >> that's part of the same problem that paul had. an international operation by homeland security investigators at i.c.e. led to the direct rescue of 44 children from their sexual abusers. another 79 kids exploited outside the home or who are now adults have also been id-ed. andrea mccarren was at today's i.c.e. news conference and joins us live from our satellite center. this sounds like major sting. >> reporter: it was. 245 people were arrested in operation sunflower. the vast majority were in the united states, but there are still alleged pedophiles out there, some of whom hopefully our viewers can help identify and we do want to warn you some of the details you're about to hear are very disturbing. take a close look at these

photographs. three men and a woman identified as sexual abusers of children who need to be taken off the streets. they're part of a startling trend in which the victims are younger and younger. >> recent case that we did last year in holland, the youngest victim was 19 days old. >> reporter: operation sunflower earned its name after investigators tracked clues including this highway sign to rural kansas and in doing so were able to prevent the rape of an 11-year-old girl. >> we have found that over 79% of the offenders have been known to the victim. >> reporter: technology has spawned a shocking new demand for child sex abuse in realtime. >> we're seeing a number of instances of live child abuse that has been streamed over the internet. >> and then transmitting that abuse around the world for either financial gain or trading and collecting with other predators. >> reporter: women are increasingly the abusers like

this one dubbed jane doe. she and this man allegedly molested a young teenage girl and distributed photos of the abuse. the woman has distinctive tattoos. >> we're talking about the sexual abuse, the rape, the molestation of very, very young children who have no ability to speak up for themselves, defend themself, get to law enforcement. >> reporter: this man depicted in an internet video was sexually abusing a prepubescent boy. he has a large tattoo on his upper right arm and this man abusing a toddler. we have put those videos on our website www.wusa9.com as well. we've also put information, contact information where you can report any leads you may have to help investigators identify those alleged child predators. back to you. >> you're right, sickening details. hopefully they will find more

of them. a plea bargain is expected in the case of a former corrections officer that caused an uproar in prince george's county. anthony mcintosh is accused of ignoring a dying inmate ronnie white who was accused of killing a prince george's county police officer. the death was ruled a homicide, but corrections officers insist white killed himself. the washington post reports a plea hearing for mcintosh is scheduled tomorrow. the 113th congress is officially underway. leaders of both the u.s. senate and the house were swearing in their members today. there are nearly 100 new members in this new congress and it is one of the most diverse in history, got a record number of minorities and women taking the oath of office. democrats still control the senate, republicans the house, with the very same leaders of both houses coming back for the brand-new term. >> we're standing here not to be something but to do something. >> nice sentiment. the new congress faces the same

budget challenges that produced the stalemate in the last one and in the first few months lawmakers face a looming government shutdown, the battle over the debt ceiling and automatic spending cuts. surae chinn joins us live from capitol hill with more on the new local lawmakers. how was their first day on the job? >> reporter: not a lot of work getting done. today was about the families, ceremonies and celebrations, everyone happy and cordial, but the new congress knows they have to figure out and get down to business our nation's financial problems. newly sworn in senator tim kaine joins his old partner mark warner in the senate. the former virginia governors will be working side by side again this time in a divided congress. >> we do have a lot of work right out of the gate. i'm happy that again the committees that i'm on, armed services, foreign relations and budget, are committees that are going to require some heavy lifting right a way, but as much as i'm enjoying today,

what i'm really going to enjoy is being at my desk with my sleeves rolled up and i'm very excited to start. >> we've made some incremental change, but we're going to have to be willing to break some more eggs. the status quo here just isn't working. >> reporter: in the house newly sworn in maryland democrat john delaney knows the tough road ahead in the majority held republican house. >> i think the way congress in general has to prove its image is by doing things. i think the country understands the cost of doing nothing is not nothing and we're paying a very significant cost as a country because congress hasn't acted. >> reporter: the incoming freshmen will have to work hard to change its image having the lowest approval rating in history. >> i think if congress starts doing something, i think the approval rating will go up. >> reporter: but take it from the senior senator. the road ahead won't be easy. >> it was embarrassing to see what happened over the last week or so. americans have got a right to be frustrated with the partisan gridlock, the fact that while we avoided the cliff we didn't really do anything to pay down our $16 trillion in debt.

so having one more person here who says he wants to work with both sides, i say amen and he will be a great addition to the senate. >> reporter: still some optimism there. the senate has gained 15 new members including those who have retired and the late senator inouye. the house has gained 84 new members, but the balance of power remains the same. so the new congress knows they have to get to work. they know there's a lot of business including team where billions of dollars hangs in the balance for hurricane sandy victims and also, of course, the national debt ceiling and the mandatory cuts. back to you, derek. >> we weren't sent here to be something. we're sent here to do something. i guess we can always hope. as we mentioned earlier, there is a record number of women in this new congress. house minority leader nancy pelosi held a group photo with all the house of representatives and 78 are women, 58 democrats, 20 republicans, but there are no women leading any of the

prestigeous house committees. coming up on 9 news retracing his steps, police investigate how a missing montgomery county man ended up dead in the ventilation shaft of an adams morgan apartment building. >> the clouds have gone away, but the winds will pick up tonight. let me show you temperatures because if you're headed out, dress for the teens and 20s. it's 37 downtown, 36 in gaithersburg and manassas. we'll come back and talk about wind chills and playoff sunday weather. >> a new beginning for newtown sandy hook elementary school. i'm randall pinkston in monroe, connecticut, with the story coming up.

students from sandy hook elementary school returned to class for the very first time since the newtown tragedy. now the figures are depressingly familiar, 20 children dead, six staff killed in that mass shooting.

>> today their classmates traveled to their new school 7 mails away in monroe, connecticut. -- miles away in monroe, connecticut. randall pinkston is there. >> reporter: this is a new beginning for the children and staff members of the sandy hook school after that horrendous event december 14th. today they went to a new building and a newtown to start over. police say the first day of school went smoothly for students at the new sandy hook elementary three weeks after 20 students and six adults were killed. classes resumed inside a renovated building renamed sandy hook in the nearby town of monroe. >> watching them get off the bus most of the kids were excited. they had seen friends they hadn't seen in a while. they were anxious to get into the hallways and meet up with the other kids. you could see the teachers were quite excite god see the students. >> reporter: -- excited to see the students. >> reporter: handwritten signs greeted the students. their desks, backpacks and other belongings were moved from the old building. security was beefed up. reporters were kept at a

distance. police want students to feel safe. >> we don't want them to feel this is a police state. we want them to know this is a school and it's a place where they tore come to learn, enjoy their -- they are to come to learn, enjoy their friends and grow up. >> reporter: police say it was almost full attendance on the first day. some of the parents attended an assembly in the building where school board members answered questions. >> i think we're going to ease back into. it. >> reporter: newtown board of education chair says getting back to a familiar routine will help the school heal. >> it's definitely a new beginning for sandy hook, but we won't be able to forget. >> reporter: parents say schoolworkers and volunteers did a great job of making the new sandy hook feel like home. in hartford connecticut's governor announced he's appointing a special panel to look into ways to prevent tragedies like the december 14th shootings from happening again. he will hold hearings throughout the state. in monroe, connecticut, i'm randall pinkston.

prosecutors in india say they will seek the death penalty in the gang, rape and murder of a woman on a new delhi bus. today police filed charges against those five men for attacking the woman and beating her companion on december 16th. a sixth suspect is charged as a juvenile. that woman died of her injuries at a hospital in singapore last saturday. the case sparked outrage and protests across the country. folks demanded greater protection for women. a new alarm is being raised tonight by some prince george's county volunteer firefighters. they say there's not enough of them to go around and that the county may be laying plan that will make the situation worse in some neighborhoods. scott broom is in college park tonight with the story. >> reporter: here at the branchville volunteer firehouse in college park there are only enough volunteers to go around to keep things safe at night which is why prince george's county supplies paid, unionized

career firefighters to keep things safe during the day, but that may be changing. >> they just need more people and you can't take them from one just to put them somewhere else. >> reporter: according to the volunteers here, they are among six firehouses where the county is considering pulling out its paid staffers to consolidate forces elsewhere leaving the volunteers hoping that neighboring fire companies will send help when there's no one around at branchville to answer the call. >> why jeopardize the citizens of prince george's county. >> reporter: in the last week rescuers dispatched from branchville have turned out for two fires in nearby greenbelt including one where an 85-year- old woman died. examples the volunteers say that removing paid county staff is a life and death matter. county fire ems spokesman mark brady says the fire department is studying how to realign its staff, but no decisions have been made yet. >> when the administration started out, we had 600 some approved firefighter positions.

we're up to 810 now. there is a tremendous demand for career personnel throughout prince george's county based on the needs of volunteer stations. >> reporter: of course, one solution to all this is to recruit more volunteers, but in this day in age there are not a lot of people who want to do this kind of hard work for free. in college park scott broom, 9 news now. >> combined the career and volunteer rescuers at the branchville station are called out more than 4,500 times a year. >> that makes you admire those guys who are willing to do it for free. >> no kidding. hey, i liked today. >> it was nice. it's cold, but it's january, not snowing. >> very nice sunshine. >> no freezing rain. so we're looking at a pretty quiet weather pattern that's going to continue through the weekend. let's take you back in time. we had a lot of clouds around the metro area. now we're looking at clearing skies. the clouds ran earlier, high

and midlevel clouds. the sunshine came through. it was just kind of a nuisance kind of thing with a little system passing to our south. now we are looking at just clear skies and clouds are moving away quickly. it never brought any precipitation. we'll be left with a little wind, too tonight behind this. we're going to see winds develop, so temperatures will get cold and low again, but you have to factor in the wind chill late tonight. 37 now, dew point 18. so it's going to be cold again, winds out of the southwest at 8, pressure steady 30.19 inches of mercury. so temperatures are primarily in the 30s and mid-30s at that, 34 gaithersburg, 36 rockville, 35 great falls and fairfax, 34 in springfield, 38 college park, 35 in bowie, 34 andrews and we're looking at about 35 in waldorf. so winds will pick up. we will clear out tonight, breezy tonight and friday, still cold on friday and chilly and dry through the weekend which actually is a pretty good

forecast for this time of year. tonight clear, breezy and cold, another two to three blanket night, lows in the 20s, winds west, northwest 10 to 20 and by morning plenty of sunshine, so no clouds tomorrow, mostly sunny, breezy and cold, need your sunglasses tomorrow, 20s and 30s. now the winds west, northwest 10 to 20 and gusty and by afternoon still mostly sunny, breezy and cold, wind chill in the 30s, so i know we're going low 40s, but i would dress for the 30s. we've got westerly winds 10, 20 and occasionally gusty with a small craft advisory for the bay and tidal potomac. 9 weather alerts green the next three days, 42 tomorrow, 44 saturday, 45 sunday, partly cloudy, perfect for the playoff games, but if you're going to the games, dress for the 30s, okay? monday temperatures go down a little, low 40s and then it gets warmer. we're back in the 50s, low 50s tuesday. rain could come in late wednesday or wednesday night and back to 55 thursday with a

morning shower possible, back in the 50s. okay. this is beautiful. this is a little description, almost a poem here. the sunset draws a curtain on its rosy pink hue and gently erases its masterpiece from the canvas of azure blue. still the moon awaits, its grand performance still behind the hill. she went above and beyond what you have to do. go to our website www.wusa9.com. click on weather. up load your picture and you have to include your name, location and a description. you don't have to write a poem, but if you're so moved, well, do not. >> why not? if you missed your opportunity to see the original emancipation proclamation, now is your chance to check out the next best thing. >> but up next souvenirs for president obama's second inauguration already on sale. we've got the details on what you can get right after the break.

so if you're looking for an inauguration souvenir you can start shopping today. president obama's inauguration team has opened an online

souvenir shop. you can also get a commemorative poster by artist chuck close. on friday january 11th a retail souvenir shop will open a few blocks from the white house. one dozen virginia and maryland colleges and universities come out on top at least when it comes to value. kiplinger's personal finance ranks university of virginia second on its annual lis of 100 best values in public -- list of 100 best values in public colleges. william & mary ranks no. 4, university of maryland at college park is 5th and james madison is no. 20. university of north carolina chapel hill took the top spot. the al-jazeera news channel soon could reach tens of millions of american homes because al-jazeera plans to buy the news network current tv. the low rated current was co- founded by former vice president al gore. right now al-jazeera is only available in a few places in the u.s., but that deal would give it a potential audience of 60 million homes, but for now its audience is considerably

smaller. time warner dropped current after the deal was confirmed. coming up after the break a heart shocking vest that can bring somebody back from the brink of death. a maryland man says he's living proof this technology saves lives. >> also ahead more than decade long effort to add finishing touches to a maryland church comes to an end. >> reporter: i'm kristin fisher in adams morgan where the body of a man missing since new year's day was found in a ventilation shaft in between two of these row houses. i'll have the latest on the investigation coming up. ñ??

the body of a maryland man who had been missing since new year's dahab found but in a pretty strange -- day has been found, but in a pretty strange place, in the ventilation shaft between two apartment buildings. >> kristin fisher is in adams morgan to try to retrace the final footsteps of michael poe. >> reporter: new year's eve 23- year-old michael poe was ringing in the new year with a big group of friends in adams morgan. he was last seen at the shenanigans irish pub on 8 tonight street. that was around 12:30 -- on 18th street. that was around 12:30. he was last heard from on his cell phone around 2:30. his family reported him missing the next day and police in the district and montgomery county started looking for him. his family went around adams morgan posting missing person flyers and it appears that one

of those flyers got into the hands of the right person. according to the washington post, the woman who lives in one of these row houses on built more street recognized the man in the flyer as the same man that she had seen up on the roof of one of the adjacent row houses. she says he'd been up there talking on his cell phone very early in the morning on new year's day. police were called late wednesday night and when they arrived, they found michael wedged in the ventilation shaft about 50 feet down. he was already dead. homicide detectives are now investigating, but they say so far no indication of foul play. they're still waiting on the results of an autopsy to determine the cause of death. at this point their best guess is that he fell down the ventilation shaft likely from the roof, but exactly how he got up there and why, that's still part of an ongoing investigation. in adams morgan, kristin fisher, 9 news. >> police really want answers. so if you have any information in the case, d.c. police want to hear from you. the number to call is 202-727-

9099. a wake will be held this evening for the prince william county police officer killed in a crash. tonight's viewing for officer chris yung in woodbridge is open to all county government workers. the 35-year-old officer was responding to a crash when a minivan turn left into a shopping center collided with his motorcycle in bristow monday. officer yung's funeral will be held tomorrow at 10 a.m. tonight's health alert is about a guy who looks like the picture of health on the outside. he's got a lesson for all of us with getting to the hospital fast if you think something is wrong. this olney, maryland man also benefited from wearing new technology that saved his life. >> you'll see very much happy guy, work out all the time. >> reporter: fitness and a healthy diet have always been a major part of brian sweeney's life. the 60-year-old businessman and basketball coach takes pride in living his life that way.

>> i'm a workout nut. >> reporter: but one day during a workout brian suddenly felt weak. he started to experience flu- like symptoms with heavy sweating and severe fatigue that lasted two days. >> we went to the hospital the next morning and within 10 minutes i information a helicopter on my way to washington hospital center. >> we opened up one of the main arteries to his heart. it was 100% blocked. >> reporter: brian had suffered a major heart attack and didn't even know it. there was no telltale tight innocence his chest or pain shooting down -- tightness in his chest or pain shooting down his arm, but since he didn't go to the hospital two days his heart muscle sustained a great deal of lasting damage putting brian at risk for a dangerous arrhythmia. >> the goal was to give him so protection so they could see how much of his heart muscle recovered. >> reporter: brian got something called a life vest. it's an external wearable defibrillator. it can detect an off kilter heart rhythm and deliver a shock to bring it back in line. it didn't take long for that vest to kick in during a

spinning class. >> i get through 50 minutes of the class and i'm looking like anybody else and i'm working hard and i get this very euphoric feeling. something's wrong. i'm passing out. i'm checking out. >> reporter: his fellow cyclist witnessed the life vest bring brian back from cardiac arrest. >> the device went off twice. >> it's very clear that would have been the last day of his life. that was. it his heart had stopped 100%. >> zapped me and then it 20 ahead and did it again. i owe my life to them. >> well, brian now has a defibrillator implanted in his chest. doctors had him wear this life vest while they waited to see how much of his heart would heal and it saved him. again so much of the heart attack damage happened because he put off going to the hospital, something he tells other men and women not to do. >> i am listening, thank you. sky 9 today out over a first for a decades old frederick county church.

it was early this morning providence united methodist church in monrovia got its very first steeple. plans for this have been in the works 15 years. it's cost about 17 grand. it was made possible after the church's financial picture got a little better last year. the new pastor says about 80% of the congregation voted in favor of the fancy new steeple. a handwritten draft of the emancipation proclamation actually written by president abraham lincoln went on display today at the library of congress. this is the first time it's been on public display since 2007. the exhibit coincides with this week's 150th anniversary of the proclamation signing. you can see it at the library's thomas jefferson building that runs through february 18th. coming up frosty gets supersized. we'll tell you the story behind this giant snowman still ahead. >> but first an atlanta area school board member accused of ramming her suv into a teenage

student who was trying to hold a parking spot. >> don't forget we're always on www.wusa9.com. stay with us. we'll be right back.

we got an update now on that fatal train crash

involving a float carrying u.s. veterans. a texas prosecutor says a grand jury will consider the case next week. four vets were killed november 15th when the flatbed truck they were on was struck by a union pacific train. it happened during a parade in midland which honored wounded veterans and their wives. in georgia a school board member is accused of driving her suv into a teen during a dispute over a parking space. so this all happened in the parking plot of a wal-mart outside atlanta. surveillance video showed the 17-year-old being hit by that vehicle right there while trying to save a parking spot. the school board member claimed the girl received a tire mark on her leg because she alleged on the vehicle. police didn't buy. it corps net was arrested. the teen -- the driver was arrested. the teen was not seriously hurt. a chopper went down last night as it was trying to get

to a patient in northern iowa. a nurse, paramedic and pilot were killed in the crash. two of the victims were employees of mercy medical center in mason city, iowa. officials used snowmobiles and all terrain vehicles to reach the wreckage. the hospital says it is cooperating with the faa which is trying to figure out what went wrong with the helicopter. an airplane crashed and burned in las vegas. the small plane caught fire after a rough landing forced it to skid off the runway at the north las vegas airport. crews used purple tomorrow to put out the flames. you can see it all there. two people were on board. they got out of the plane before it was literally engulfed by the fire. you know what they say about life, if it gives you lemons, make lemonade. what if it gives you snow? here's a guy who knows what to do about it. build yourself a snowman. this is a bit of tradition in the town of champion and n western new york. vern skoville uses mats for a hat, tire for buttons, a

traffic cone for a nose and he had heavy machinery to move the snow around. about 30 local towns people pitched in to build this gigantic snowman. >> i got a crawler and two tractors that are loading the dump trailers and a hay elevator we modified up to take the snow better. >> i'm sweating pretty hard right now i can tell you. >> yeah, every year, vern has the knack of making thing bigger and better of year. >> he's frosty the snowman and he's got a second purpose as well. people who stop to take photos with him are encouraged to bring along a canned food item. vern says he's collected more than 65-pound of food to go to a local pantry once the snow melts away. >> i didn't know he could hold a tune. >> that's one big portly frosty there. still ahead breaking down this weekend's big game between the redskins and seahawks. >> expecting a tax refund? may not want to make plans for that cash quite yet. we'll tell you why just ahead.

in tonight's consumer alert the last minute passage of the fiscal cliff deal will delay any tax refund you may be expecting. the irs is currently reviewing

the new tax legislation and assessing what impact it will have on this year's filing season. several lines on the 1040 form for 2012 have been reserved for several fiscal cliff provisions like the alternative minimum tax. the irs will issue additional guidance very soon. it's old. we do this every year. we want to lose weight and get fit and joining a gym is just one step in the right direction, but just know that not all memberships are created equal. the new year brings a renewed commitment to a fitness routine, but make sure your finances stay in shape when you sign up for a gym membership. first factor in the new gym costs into your budget. you're likely to pay a first time membership fee in addition to the monthly fee, extra classes, pool or tennis court usage may not be included in the base charge. clubs that off new year's specials to new members may ask you to sign a contract on the spot.

don't. take it home, read it and make sure you understand what you are paying for. the better business bureau says check key membership details like the length of the contract, any automatic renewals, cancellation terms and how long those low intro fees last and do not make a financial commitment to the gym without visiting it first. you want to see how crowded it gets at peak workout times and if it has the right a meants for you. consumer reports -- ammenities for you. consumer reports say consider skipping the january rush to join jail and for as little as 50 bucks you -- join a gym and for as little as 50 bucks you could buy a hoola hoop, jump rope and some elastic bands. we've got a residential about some subaru vehicles, close to 634,000 of them being called back over possible lighting problems that could cause smoke or fire. this affects some 2009 through

2012 forresters, all 2010 through 2012 legacy and outback vehicles and some 2006 to 2012 tribecas. the accessory lights that brighten areas under your doors in these models can short circuit. >> if i was willing to do all that other stuff on my own like jump rope and do the ball, i wouldn't need the gym. just be real. >> i just invest in running shoes. they take me wherever i need to go. >> got to get some new running shoes every six months. >> i do. >> that a girl. we were looking at a quiet chilly pattern, but really we're back to average quite frankly. let's take a live look outside on our cam scam, temperatures in the 30s, high 38, right now 37, dew point in the teens, humidity under 50%, a cold night again, a few clouds, winds out of the southwest at 8, pressure steady 30.91 inches

of mercury. i'm going to show you the wind gusts, nothing super strong in the immediate metro area, but to the west in cumberland, oakland and petersburg we're seeing wind up to about 20 miles per hour. again we're looking at the chance for winds here after midnight becoming rather gusty, over 20 miles per hour after midnight. temperatures, 36 rockville, 34 vienna and fairfax, 35 arlington and 37 in college park, 34 at andrews and looking at temperatures in the mid-30s down to waldorf. so temps are falling quickly now. winds will pick up, clear out tonight, breezy tonight and tomorrow. we're looking at still cold friday and chilly and dry over the weekend. we're looking at temperatures about in the 40s over the weekend, but that's going to be about average for us. so a pretty nice looking weekend. tonight clear, breezy cold, a two to three blanket night, lows in the 20s, winds

increasing north, northwest 10 to 20 and gusty. by morning plenty of sunshine, mostly sunny, breezy, cold, need your sunglasses, temperatures in the 20s and 30s, winds out of the west, northwest 10 to 20. by afternoon plenty of sunshine, mostly sunny, breezy, cold, wind chills in the 30s, highs in the low 40s, but i would focus on the 30s for numbers, winds westerly 10 to 20 and gusty. next three days our 9 weather alerts will be green, breezy and cold tomorrow, 42. that's right on the money for average temps, a few clouds coming in late saturday, nice day 44, playoffs sunday, partly cloudy, 45. if you're going to the ravens game or fedex, dress for the 30s. it's still a pretty nice day for early january. next seven days colder monday, temps down to the low 40s, but low 50s tuesday, partly cloudy, 52 wednesday, rain late and overnight, maybe a shower early thursday, but temperatures back in the mid-50s. we'll have a thaw before we had

a freeze. oh, well. and now 9 sports with dave owens. >> thank you very much, top. the dmv getting set for its first nfl playoff game since 1999, redskins beat seahawks. here to talk about it cowboys fan himself jared bell, usa today. >> that's totally wrong. >> before he talk seahawks, the squawking seahawks, this is prediction thursday. let's go back to last week there and let's hear about the cowboys/redskins from you last week. >> quickly prediction dallas redskins, who? >> cowboys. >> okay. wow. he's going cowboys. how about that? >> tony romo did not get the memo, okay? that's all i can say. he didn't know he was supposed to try to win this game. >> you're a great sport. nobody covers the national football league like you do. let's get to these seahawks. rg3 keeps saying i'm healthy. we know he's probably about 65, 70%, but how do you beat this

seattle defense, this tough seattle football team, no. 1 in football, points allowed? how do you defeat this football team with an rg3 that's not 100%? >> one thing, you have to do this like they did last week, not make a lot of mistakes to put your defense in a tough situation. i think it's really incumbent on the redskins and say in our house we play defense, too. seattle's defense and those cornerbacks are so physical they're going to be tough. points will be at a premium i suspect. >> browner and sherman both will play this week, no doubt about that. so the defense has got to play well, nine turnovers in the last four games. they've been doing that. alfred morris has to step up big, too. >> both these teams seem to be built for playoff football because they can run the football and not give up a lot with their defense. so i think again it will come down to mistakes and big defensive plays, things like that that could determine this

thing. >> we're seeing alfred morris take it to the house, but one thing we know, he's not going to run for two bills against that very good seattle defense. let's pull the covers back on this seattle seahawks football team because everyone sees this team go 58, 50, 42 points in the last couple weeks. they've also had some stinkers as well, but the quarterback is pretty good. russell wilson, what makes this guy so special? >> it's almost like you look at the seahawks and redskins and there are so many similarities, veteran coach coming in with a rebuilding project, rookie quarterback, tougher defense, great running game. so that's pretty interesting. the other thing that's really similar about these teams is that seattle has gotten hot late in the season. those 50 point games came in december. so those seahawks playing their best football this time of year and the redskins going into the playoffs on a roll with a lot of momentum. >> talk about the it factor. we know rg3 has. it this guy russell wilson, listen to this stat, green bay,

cleveland, minnesota and san francisco twice, 12 touchdowns, two pictures. so he's been big and the biggest games rg3 just 3-1, should be a great match-up. all right, man, prediction thursday. who you got? >> i think i'll go with the home team this time. i'm looking at it to be real tight, though. it could still go either way. redskins 20, seahawks 17. >> i'm going to bail you out. seattle 24, redskins 17. i got to go because derek is about to come over here and jump on me. >> you have earned my wrath, owen. you've earned my wrath. still ahead a record breaking low number of homicides for the district of columbia in 2012 and in a few minutes let's take a look behind those numbers. >> plus the 113th congress has been sworn in, but will they be any better than their predecessors? >> right after the break smashing stereotypes and

becoming role models at the same time, we're cheering for science in this week's cool schools report. [ male announcer ] this commercial is not about getting fios;

it's about getting fios. that moment after you finally got it that you actually get it. when you see the difference 100% fiber optics makes, and you say "woah we are not on cable anymore." when online videos aren't herky jerky, you get it. or when a movie downloads in two minutes, you get it. last chance to get fios for just $79.99 a month for two years with a two-year agreement. plus $300 back. go to got2getfios.com today call the verizon center for customers with disabilities for america's fastest, most reliable internet. at 800-974-6006 tty/v. verizon fios. when you think of the cheerleaders for the pro sports, you may think glamorous, but does the word scientist come to mind as well? there's a reason it should. anchor mike hydek found an organization that has a lot of people cheering for science these days. >> reporter: they have one of the most glamorous jobs in sports, performing in front of a national audience on tv.

>> grab the baton and you're going to throw it. >> you want to twirl your wrist. >> reporter: but the message is these nfl and nba -- messages these nfl and nba cheerleaders are sharing at hammond high school are only partially about their time in the bright lights. cheering is a part-time job. their full-time occupations are in science. salmatia has cheered for the ravens and redskins. she has a phd in cellular molecular medicine. >> when you have an advanced degree, you chart your own path, figure out what you want do to do with your own life and create a position for yourself. >> you guys know what oncology is? >> >> reporter: taliza is on track to becoming a pediatric oncologist. >> when someone meets me and they know that i cheer for the redskins and i tell them what else do you do and i'm like well, i'm at school seeking my degree in biology and chemistry

and near like oh. >> reporter: they are -- they're like oh. >> reporter: as they share their stories, they're smashing stereotypes and becoming leaders at the same time. >> that's my goal, to become really smart and go to college. >> we will rock the earth. >> reporter: there are even science lessons in cheerleading. check out how their stomping impacts the earth's surface. >> i think it's always fun to learn new things because i would have never thought that stomping and doing a cheer would actually have an effect on the earth. it was just really cool learning about that. >> reporter: what's also cool? being smart, successful and scientific says mentor and physical education teacher tara reid. >> it's so easy to accept just whatever the crowd does so i don't stand out. so our big deal is really focusing on these ladies understanding we want you to stand out, stand out being the best you can be. >> reporter: which can be pretty amazing. >> we will rock the earth.

>> reporter: mike hydek, 9 news now. >> that blonde woman who just gave mike a high five is lauren thomas, a former washington wizards cheerleader. she now works with weather satellites at northrop grumman. if you've got a cool school or other ideas linked to education, send mike an e-mail, mhydeck@wusa9.com. this is 9 news now. a stunning turn of events in the case of a death row inmate mere minutes from his first steps of freedom in more than a decade, but just a short time ago a federal appeals court granted a stay of justin wolfe's release. peggy fox joins us now live from manassas where the family there is understandably pretty upset. >> reporter: very much so. that is a prince william county jail behind me where justin wolfe remains tonight after so many twists and turns in this case the past few years. his family was hopeful he would