. >> reporter: councilman jim kenny says the changes come after an agreement was made with the nutter administration. he says some of these amendments to the bill will now allow police to cite and fine those who are smoking marijuana in public. also, allowing police to confiscate any amount of the drug that they come across. now, the bill was set to be voted on for a final vote today in council but is now set to pass next week so the changes can be implemented. the new bill does not mean marijuana is now legal in the city of philadelphia. if is still illegal. what this bill and the new law will mean is the penalties will change from jail time to fines and community service. under the new law, you'll face a $25 fine if you're caught with fewer than 30 grams or about an ounce. if you're smoking it in public, it will be about a $100 fine or several hours of community service. the offenses would not go on the permanent record. >> the mayno reason we shouldn' it and the mayor agreed to sign it immediately.

are supporting the bill. >> tomorrow city councilman jim kenny will introduce a bill or amend the bill soft ening the penalty for having a small amount of marijuana, it's no longer a crime but people have to pay a fine. before considering the measure the mayor has agreed to sign it. mayor michael nutter and james kenny have come to an agreement on the bill, championed by the councilman who wants to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana in philadelphia. >> it will not result in an arrest or a criminal record. >> now people will pay a fine of $25 for the possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana, a little less than an ounce, anybody caught smoking marijuana in public faces a $100 fine that can be waived with nine hours of community service. they say it disproportionately impacted african-americans. >> 40,000 or so people in philadelphia being arrested for this, if we could reduce that down to practically nothing, those folks have a better chance of a future and better life. >> they say legalize it, but others say possessing any mar one should be a crime. >> there is nothing wrong wi

. >> reporter: councilman jim kenny sent this letter to the u.s.orney's office asking them to take the case and prosecute it as a hate crime. federal officials confirm they were looking into the case but say no decision has been made to move forward. >> i think we ought to cover every base to make sure this did not happen or if it did happen that the federal government should take the case. >> reporter: and police say this case is a complicated one and they are still working to try and get a very clear picture into exactly what happened. if any charges are filed in this case, sources tell us they likely won't come down until monday at the earliest. we're live outside of central detectives, matt rivers, "eyewitness news" at 10:00 on the cw philly matt, thank you. >>> fears are growing tonight about the safety of some americans stranded in mexico by hurricane odile. >> some in the heavily damaged resort town of cabos san lucas have been told to go to the airport to secure their well being because there is chaos in the aftermath of that storm. noel mc

. >> reporter: thursday philadelphia councilman jim kenny sending a letter with raw language to the u.s. attorney calling for a federal investigation under the national hate crimes prevention act. the as it stand, pennsylvania law only attacks motivated by race, religion and ethnicity can be prosecuted as hate crimes. >> i think we ought to cover every base and make sure this did not the happen or if it did happen, that the federal government should take the case. >> reporter: within the hour we spoke with the u.s. attorney who says he received that letter from kenny and they are looking into the the matter at this time. also within the hour we do expect more people of interest to come right here to central detectives and deliver their statement, so, of course, we will have much more at 6:00 o'clock. it is latest now from central detectives i'm steve paterson for cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >> steve, thanks. >>> philadelphia city council votes to decriminalized marijuana that vote was 14-two. bill now to mayor michael nutter's desk for his signature. nutter has expressed support for the bi

joining me now, the sponsor of the bill, philadelphia councilman at large, jim kenny.any way contradict pennsylvania state law? >> no, it doesn't. pennsylvania state law is a may provision. they say you may arrest someone for the possession of a small amount of marijuana, but you don't have to do it. in philadelphia on average, we arrest over 4,200 folks a year. 83% of them are african-american, mostly young people. they are handcuffed, they are transported, put into a cell, booked, photographed, fingerprinted and given an arrest record that follows them again for the rest of their life. it makes it difficult, if not impossible to find a job, keep a job. in addition tho that, we take 17,000 hours of police work off of our streets processing these people for this active which resulted in 2,800 eight-hour shifts lost for real crime fighting in philadelphia. it will save the city and court system about $7 million a year, and it will also create a new social attitude where some of our community people will not be adverse with the police. an arrest is a traumatic experience

jim kenny sent a letter because pennsylvania's hate crime laws do not apply to sexual orientation. philadelphia police department has updated their list of most violent fugitives and they are asking for your help to track them down. they are wanted for homicide, rape and armed robbery and some warrants were issued just within the past few weeks, some go as far back as 1999. you can go to 6abc.com for a full list. >> philadelphia city council has cleared the air when it comes to possessing and smoking small amounts of marijuana, lawmaker as prove a bill and vernon odom was there. >> the majority of members voting in the affirmative, the bill passes. >> the vote was 14-2 allowing philadelphia pot smokers to breathe easier. the fine will be $25, and those caught smoking in public will be fine the $100 or get nine hours of community service and no arrest, finger printing or criminal records, an arrest record can stigmatize a teen for life seeking school loans or trying to join the military. >> 83% of them are african-american, usually young people of color, 17% white when it's pretty m

city councilman jim kenny said the need for to be added to the hate crime law sexual orientation should be added to that law. >> the federal government has a responsibility to protect them. >> reporter: kenny said federal law does add such attacks as a hate crime. >> eric frien is now on the fbi's most wanted list. the hunt intensified in canadensis. police received a dip that he could be in the area. he is accused of gunning down bryon dickson outside a barracks in northeast pennsylvania one week ago. >>> happening today, jury selection begins for the civil trial of before it reid one of -- britt reid one of andy reid's sons. a suit was filed against him in 2007. johnson claimed he pointed a handgun at him in a road rage incident. he pled guilty carrying firearm without a license and possession of instrument of crime and drug possession and served jail time. >> the philadelphia school reform commission agreed to sell school buildings. they include germantown school, the bach high school was sold for 2.1 million. the philadelphia housing authority purchased four school buildings for a t

because of their sexual orientation the federal government has a responsibility to protect sglem jim kenny draft aid letter to federal investigators today and said sexual orientation may not fall understate hate crime law but does under federal law. >> we have responsibility to send a strong message this is not tolerated anywhere, anywhere in this country let alone the birth place of dem of course. >> i his friend started a petition on-line hoping to push pennsylvania lawmakers to push state law to recognize a task on sexual orientation as a hate crime good we spoke with a friend of the victim tonight. the victim tonight -- they she they are not smd by the group's stories and remain hopeful the gruj will be cleared and justice will come. investigate towards tell us this process will take time and they want to speak with everyone involved in this situation. before any arrests are made. we are live here at central detectives in spring garden, eva pilgrim, "channel 6 action news," jim. >> thank you, eva. mees are looking for the man that walked into south philadelphia employment agency this m

you can actually say mayor nutter and councilman jim kenny as have deal on weed trying to slash the criminalenalties for pot. the plan those caught smoking a joint in public would be charged with non criminal offense. they could be fined about 100 bucks and do about nine hours of community service. get caught with little over an ounce of pot and you'll be fined 25 bucks. kenny likely candidate for mayor in this city says current pot laws ruin lives. >> simple arrest for small amount of marijuana is cutting off our youth from opportunities to i guess make their lives as best as possible. everyone in high school or college has had their stupidity moments and had their inn discretions, you don't pay the rest of your life for that mistake. >> kenny says a lot of pot arrests about 80% he says for african-americans. a bill reflecting the change is expected to be introduced thursday when the city council returns from summer break. if it all goes as planned, the change of law could be in place by mid october. >> iain. >> jeff, thank you. >> in north philadelphia tonight, the search is on for a missi

use and possession of small amounts of marijuana mayor nutter says he is supporting councilman jim kenny's effort to spare young people from getting a criminal record and ruining their lives. under this bill someone caught with less than an ounce of marijuana will face a $25 fine. if people catch someone smoking in public, smoking marijuana in public, the penalty would be a hundred dollar fine or nine hours of community services. >>> artist has been chosen to design memorial to victims of the deadly building collapse at 22nd and market in philadelphia. bar fox is an alumni of the pennsylvania academy of the fine arts and university of pennsylvania. her winning design resembles a house with windows for each of the six people killed. there will be a seventh window for those injured. >>> still to come, abc's and one, two, three's. >>> it does not add up for many people at school when it comes to one certain subject. >> math? do americans have it all wrong. i'm carol erickson and we will have that story coming up. >>> in weather we are tracking showers and thunderstorms a line of them, this co

jim kenny is the the co sponsor. >> basic thought fist you see two men or women holding hands and you don't like it, tough. >> the victims are recovering at home, they are recovering from their adjustor and through their friend, karen, they said this to the crowd, we are two every day guys who love each other, and that should not be a big deal. reporting live from love park, pat ciarrocchi, cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >> pat, thank you. >>> tonight a coastal storm is moving out but in the before drenching cities from the shore to the suburbs this was the the scene this morning down the shore in atlantic city. heavy rains flooded the streets there and waves crashed over walls. but it wasn't just the rain, you probably felt that those whipping wind made it tough to walk with umbrellas out the there today. meteorologist kathy orr joins us now to let us know when we will dry out, kathy. >> it will be a slow process, guess contact our storm system is slowly pulling away dragging the bulk of the moisture to the north and east. you can see ate long long island and new england. for us a few scat

councilman jim kenny compares it to the parking ticket and allow to focus on other crimes in the city. the bill could be voted on next week and take effect in november. >>> the smoking section along the delaware coastline could soon shrink even more. lewis is the latest delaware beach town to consider a smoking ban at its public beaches. the city council met last night to talk about expanding its current smoking ban to include the beaches. a no smoking policy has been in place there for several years and beaches surrounding lewis has also banned smoking at the beach including bethany. >>> a roller coaster once featured in a well-known movie goes up in flames, but it wasn't just a fire that presented a challenge for emergency workers. >>> and the lost work of dr. seuss. the new discovery that has the literary world buzzing this morning. some people think vegetables are boring. but with green giant's delicious seasonings and blends, we just may change their minds. ho ho ho green giant! (yawn) (ding!) toaster strudel! more fruit in the filling, ya? mmm! ya! warm, flaky, gooey, toaster st

. >> reporter: thursday philadelphia councilman jim kenny sent a letter with raw language to the u.s. attorney calling for a federal investigation, under the national hate crimes prevention act, as it stands, pennsylvania law says that only attacks motivated by race, religion, ethnicity can be prosecuted as hate crime. >> we ought to cover every base to make sure this did not happen or if it did happen that the federal government should take the case. >> reporter: meanwhile across the river in camden a lgbt workshop for confronting challenges that face same sex couples. >> i think it is a great that pennsylvania does not have a hate crime law. >> reporter: rebecca levin says is there in the enough on the books in pennsylvania to protect gays and lesbians and last week serves as an example. >> now we are an marriage equality state but is there still so much work that needs to be done. >> reporter: police continue to dig for the truth as others call for a larger search party. >> it doesn't take a lot of courage for 12 or 15 people to beat up two. >> reporter: we have placed the call to

mayor michael nutter says he'll sign a bill introduced by city councilman jim kenny.e mayor says he wants to spare young people from getting a criminal record and ruining their lives. under this bill anyone caught with less than an ounce of marijuana will only have to pay a $25 fine. if police catches someone smoking marijuana in public the penalty for that would be a $100 fine or nine hours of community service. >>> well, the stage is set thursday night football debuts on our sister station cbs3 tomorrow night. >> the pittsburgh stealingers take on the ravens in baltimore. eyewitness sports director beasley reece takes us to m and t bank stadium for a look behind the scenes. >> preparation wills go late into the night here in baltimore as cbs prepares for the debut of thursday night football. it takes an army to put something like this together and i spoke to the man in charge. >> basically we're taking the super bowl and moving it every week. we got a lot of people. we got a lot of trucks. we got a lot of cameras. we got everything and we have to move it every week.

a few hours earlier and just across the street, city council members blondel reynolds brown and jim kenny introduced legislation designed to gift philadelphia's hate crime code. an assault motivate beside hatred toward a person's actual or perceived sexual orientation gender or gender identity would be its own offense. that could bring the offender an extra 90 days behind bars and $2,000 fine. >> the word needs to go forth that philadelphia celebrates diversity. philadelphia celebrates people who look different than me. people who have disabilities. people who have a different sexual orientation. >> philadelphia if you're a philadelphia or resident and you see two men holding hands or two women holding hands. get over it, behind your business and keep your hands to yourself. >> you butchered my boyfriend's beautiful face. >> a statement from the beating victims to their attackers was read by the victim's friend. to those at the rally. the men said they appreciated the support shown by the community and joked as they described their road to recove recovery. >> despite the pain and disappoi

mayor nutter says he's supporting councilman jim kenny' bill that would spare young people from gettingminal records. under that legislation, someone caught with less than an ounce of marijuana would pay just a $25 fine. if police catch someone smoking marijuana in public the penalty weren't a $100 fine or nine hours of community service. >> well, a nice day. people out and about night. nice evening, too. but i saw those changes on the way. >> yeah. >> earlier. >> it's up, it's down, it's rain, it's cool, it's all over the place. for tonight we'll see increasingly humid conditions and during the day tomorrow some summertime september storms. we are looking at more heat and humidity in the near future. take look outside. it is a pleasant night. temperatures falling through the 60s. that's a view from our campbell field cam. down the shore, cool, busy along the back bays there. we're looking at showers and thunderstorms for everyone for the most part. they will be scattered but it is going to have some bad timing. on storm scan3 you can see all this moisture moving eastward. the moisture

the measures sponsored by councilman jim kenny passed in june.the mayor has yet to act on it until now. the legislation would mean no arrests or jail time for people caught with 1 ounce of pot or less. instead, they would get a $25 fine. council says prosecuting small time users not only expensive to taxpayers and clogs the legal system but it disproportionately targets african-americans. the mayor's compromise includes adding higher fines or community service for smoking marijuana in public. the law is expected to take effect on october 20th. >> voters go to the polls this morning in delaware. republicans will choose candidates for state treasurer and the u.s. senate. the winner of that will race today will take on the democratic incumbent chris coons in november. democrats will pick a candidate for state auditor today. you should know the polls open at 7:00 this morning and then they close at 8 o'clock tonight. >> the delaware and southeast corridors could see a little bit of rain, flight a little spotty rain and drizzle today i think. showers

councilman jim kenny sent this letter to the u.s. attorney's office, asking them to look into the case and prosecute it as a hate crime. federal investigators reached out to local authorities, but they haven't decided if they'll move forward. >>> we want to cover every base, to make sure this did not happen or if it did happen that the federal government should take the case. >> detectives say, they've questioned six persons of interest, the scene in this surveillance video, some who say the victims are the ones who instigated the fight. so far, no charges have been filed, in connection with last week's attack. >>> there is concern this morning, over the safety of americans strand in the mexico by hurricane odile. vacationers from philadelphia who went to cab owe san lucas stuck there amid chaos and confusion, far from the vacation they planned. their communication via skype was the first touch with the outside world since odile hit their hotel mondayment hoping the us law make kearse help out. >> now the growing fear people around h

. >> reporter: city councilman jim kenny was interested in seeing our video. >> clearly, he's kids aren danger, and city should be -- any police officer riding by this should put an end to it. this little girl you can't even -- you can't see her. she doesn't come up to the window. >> councilman kenny seen an increase of concern panhandling across the city and the danger isn't just the potential for car hitting a child. it's when their buckets are full of money. >> these days, it's not beyond someone to pull a gun or take the money from them. >> reporter: councilman kenny told us he think this is a dhs issue and will ask them to look into the matter. if you see children panhandling and in danger call police and dh self. have story you want theism team to investigate, send us an e-mail to i-team at cbs- cbs-3.. charlotte huffman, cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >> frightening moments for jet blue passengers. what happened inside this flight that forced an emergency landi landing. >> kathy? >> we are looking ahead to cooler temperatures flirting with fall. at left for tomorrow. but what happens

jim kenny compares this to a parking ticket and says the new law will allow police to focus on other crimes in the city. the bill could be voted on next week and take effect in october. earlier this year charles ramsey said his department would ignore this new law and negotiated and made a lot of changes in the structure of that law, including stiffer penalties for using marijuana in public and that was the fear that people would be doing that in public. now they made the law stronger and ramsey is behind it and that's why the law has passed. >>> not fall yet, but in some places beginning to look like winter. check it out, a little snow falling. where some folks are dealing with a taste of what we don't care to see any time soon. >>> a roller coaster goes up in flames and all are no plans to make any repairs to the ride. we'll tell you why. >>> leave that snow away for now, right, guys? we're dry outside at least for now. some wind blowing out there, too. what can you expect for your tuesday? ? i'll have all the details when we come back. stick around. >>> well, the calendar says sep

city council jim kenny said the incident points out a need to add that into the state law adding attacks because of sexual orientation. >> if the state will not protect them, the federal law has a responsibility to protect them. >> he said he sent a letter to the federal lawmakers to take up the case. >> the manhunt intensified in eric frein's hometown of can -- canadensis last night. he is accused of gunning down bryon dickson during an ambush outside a state police barracks in northeastern pennsylvania one week ago. >> a neighborhood eye sore in berks county turned out to be harboring a massive drug operation. investigators believe the house was in such disrepair the operation probably went unnoticed for years. an unrelated traffic stop tipped off police to the crime. the man was on the way to deliver drugs that were grown in the home. >> you're about to hear about the chinese company called ali baba. >> reporter: the co-founder of ali-baba will make $8,900,000,000. he'll hang on to a an 8% stake in the company. the 22 billion ipo is the talk of wall street. it's one of the largest sto

. >> jim kenny draft aid let to federal investigators today and said it may not fall understate hate crime law but does under federal law. >> we have a responsibility to send a strong message it should not be tolerated anywhere. >> the victim's friend started a petition on-line hoping to push pennsylvania lawmakers to change state law to recognize tax on sexual orientation as a hate crime. >> now, we spoke with a friend of the victims tonight who says the group story does not surprise them. they remain hopeful that the truth will be clear and justice will come. police tell us that they are being very careful with this case they want to talk about everyone involved all the people in the surveillance video before any charges will be filed. we're live at central detectives in spring garden, eva pilgrim "action news" at 10 on phl17. >> thank you, eva. a woman in the business of helping people find jobs is recovering from stab wounds to her chest tonight. a man walked into trinity staffing near broad and rittner this morning and asked caroline franklin about work. then he stabbed her mult

either way, it it woub go on your record and that's the point according to councilman jim kenny who spearheadede bill. >> think back to the youthful indiscretions over our own lives how you do things in high school and college and regret them but happy it didn't cause you life long pain and disappointment. >> reporter: was commissioner ramsey involved in the discussions and negotiations leading up to this? >> absolutely. philadelphia police department is central to anything that we would do in this regard. it's our police officers who are out in the street dealing with these issues. >> they can worry about bigger fish and not the small fish. >> i think it's the wave of the future. it's what a lot of other cities are doing, i think it probably makes sense. it's a tough thing, though to do because i worry about children and influence it might have. >> reporter: the mayor and councilman insist, young adults are the ones they're thinking of, those who make a mistake, can't get a job or join the military. >> lousy petty crimes are bogging down the court system and, therefore, anything that you can d

councilman jim kenny legislation proposed a $25 fine for anyone caught with less than an ounce of the drug, and it passes a veto proof majority but in exchange for the mayor's approval the bill also, included a $100 fine or community service for those who smoke, in public. the violations would not appear on a offender's record, the new law is expected to take effect october the 20th. >>> and there are pictures of a creepy suspect maybing neighbors in see cain delaware county very uncomfortable tonight. there is a peeping tom, keeping busy in their community. "action news" reporter dann cuellar is live at the laurel manor apartments at the center of this investigation. dann? report report upper darby police are hoping that someone in our audience will recognize a person of interest captured on surveillance footage. until he is caught and... no audio. >> thinks man upper darby police investigators are focusing on right now wanted for questioning in connection with the the rash of peeping tom incidents in the laurel manor apartments in the see cain section. >> it is scar toy know until i

councilman jim kenny has been listening to the people and that's part of the motivation behind his billhe believes possessing or smoking a small amount of pot isn't something that should haunt you the rest of your life. >> government, i think, should never be in the way of people reaching full potential. >> trying to make sure for small amounts of marijuana and people not dealers, not distributing, not engaged in some huge crimen ter prize but have whatever their personal amount is we don't destroy their lives at 19, 20 years old, 23 years old, and all of a sudden you have an arrest record. >> i'm sure the district attorney's office is stretched thin. now they don't have to worry about small things like that and that's not clogging up the system. >> reporter: in exchange for no jail time, the small amount of marijuana means you're paying a fine. >> i wonder what message it sends about drugs and if it might make people who would never have considered using pot start using it. >> reporter: here's the time line on the bill. tomorrow, councilman kenny will make amendments he and the mayor a

. >> reporter: in city council, jim kenny and blondeel ren held in brown moved to close that loop in that same law in philadelphia violence because of who these folks are or what they express or how they express themselves is totally abhorrent. >> sometimes we have to teach by example and teach by penalty. to the parent have of those kids you have some work to do. to the parents like myself, we have to remain veg lint in teaching our young people that tolerance is the normal, always. >> reporter: well, pennsylvania is one of 15 states in the nation that does not include sexual orientation, in a hate crimes law. new jersey and delaware both do. they are called here today is to have that pennsylvania law changed, by the end of the year. reporting live from love park, pat ciarrocchi, cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >> all right pat, thank you. >>> gray, dreary thursday all across the region as the coastal storm that brought strong wind and heavy rain, makes its way out. "eyewitness news" in atlantic city where storm riled up the the surf there, that boardwalk understandably desserted. some hom

: a few hours earlier and just across the street city council members blondel reynolds brown and jim kennyntroduced legislation designed to give change to philadelphia's hate crime bill. under their bill gender or gender dent physical would be its own offense that could bring the offender an extra 90 days behind bars and $2,000 fine. >> the word needing to fourth philadelphia celebrates diversity. , people who look different than me. people who have disabilities. people who have a different sexual orientation. >> if you're in philadelphia and you're a visitor or resident and you see two men holding hands, or two women holding hands, get over it and keep your hands to yours. >> statement from the beating victims that their attackers was read by their friend. to those at the rally. the men said they appreciated the support shown by the community and joked as they described their road to recove recovery. >> despite the pain and disappointment, we're doing okay. black eyes, broken bones and bruised bodies heal. plus we have some really handsome doctors that know what it means to look good and

. >> reporter: city councilman jim kenny was interested in seeing our video. >> clearly these kids are in danger and city should be, should not leave. any police officer riding by this should put an end to it. this little girl, you cannot see her. >> reporter: councilman kenny says he has seen an increase in children panhandling cross the city and the danger isn't just potential for a car hitting a child, it is when their buckets are full of money. >> these days it is no the beyond someone to pull a gun or take the money from them. >> reporter: kenny told us he thinks this is a dhs issue and will ask them to look in the matter. just today dhs who declined our interview request says that they will take a look at our video. if you see children pan handling and in danger you can call the dhs hot line at 215-683-6100 and police, we have those numbers on the web site at cbs philly.com. i'm charlotte huffman for cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >> all right charlotte, thanks very much. >>> montgomery county is observing national pow mia recognition day. veterans and local officials placing a wreath

the man pledged to support advocate councilman jim kenny says it will save lives and futures. >> if youd on this activity, you're really doing a bad thing for the entire city because that kid will most likely stay in poverty or wind up in jail. let them get through their youthful stuff and become good adults. >> reporter: thousands were arrested every single year in philadelphia for pot possession. 84% young black men. young folks who couldn't get jobs or apartments oh are a way out the executive director of institute for development of african-american youth. >> we cannot have our young men banished from the main stream society and wonder why they're in the doing well. >> reporter: as a law and order guy philadelphia police commissioner charles ramsay was not a proponent of decriminalization but he is on board. >> right now my focus is on making sure when this becomes law that we can implement it as smoothly as possible. >> reporter: karen hepp, fox 29 news. >> all right. unless you've been hanging out under a rock you've heard about lesean mccoy and his tip troub trouble. >> tonight w

meantime, councilman jim kenny sent this letter to the u.s. attorneys office asking them to look into the case and prosecute it as a hate crime. investigators with the fbi reached out to philadelphia police, but say a decision to move forward hasn't been made. >>> we ought to cover every base to make sure this was -- this did not happen, or if it did happen, that the federal government should take the case. >>> investigators have questioned about six people from this group, seen in this surveillance video. some tell police the victims instigated the fight. so far, no charges have been filed in connection with last week's attack. >>> well, series of domestic violence cases are still in the minds of many football fans, as the nfl kicks off another week. a lot of people are calling on the san francisco 49ers, to bench defensive ends, ray mcdonald, after he was accused of hitting his pregnant fiancee. so far not facing any charges. meanwhile cardinals running back dwyer in jail after being charged with head butting his wife. it looks like adrian p

the measure sponsored by councilman jim kenny passed in june.the mayor has yet to act on it until now. the legislation would mean no arrests or jail time for people caught with 1 ounce of pot or less. instead, they would get a $25 fine. council says prosecuting small time users is not only expensive to taxpayers and clogs the legal system but it disproportionately targets african-americans. the mayor's compromise includes adding higher fines or community service for smoking marijuana in public. the law is expected to take effect on october 20th. >> we definitely feel like we are moving more and more into fall. cool out there this morning. >> yeah, it is a little cool and breezy, too, tam. storm tracker 6 live double scan shows us that we are dry, which is nice. looks like there might be a little bit of a sprinkle developing over cape may county and maybe up the coast by surf city but that's about it. as we take a look outside we have a fair amount of clouds overhead with some breaks in the clouds. it's going to be some of those mornings where so

councilman jim kenny sent this letter to the u.s. attorney's office, asking them to look into the case. the councilman also asks if they would prosecute it as a hate crime. federal investigators, have been in contact with local authorities, but they say a decision to move forward has not been made. >> make sure this did not happen, or if it did happen the federal government should take the case. >> investigators questioned six people from the group seen here in the surround veins -- surveillance video. some people tell different version, the victims are the ones who instigated the fight. >> eagles star lesean mccoy speaking out about the controversy in the nfl. interview only seen on "eyewitness news", next. >> straight ahead, vacation nightmare playing out for tourists in mexico. we're hearing from couple from our area, left stranded. >> then, why is this restaurant rewarding patrons for bad reviews? we'll explain when we come back. katy? >> ukee, another real nice day for us. this pattern has really just hooked us up, overall, real

councilman jim kenny sent this letter to the u.s. attorney's office, asking them to look into the case and prosecute it as a hate crime. federal investigators reach out to local authorities, but they haven't decided if they'll move forward. >> we want to cover every base to make sure this did not happen, if it did happen, the federal government should take the case. >> detectives say they've questioned six persons of interest, in this case, seen in this surveillance video, some who say the victims are the ones who instigated the fight. so far no charges have been filed in connection with last week's attack. >>> happening right now, here in our area, all across the country, you are looking at live picture from apple store in center city philadelphia. long lines started very early this morning. now the crowds have less than an hour to wait. the new apple iphone six, and the iphone six plus, go on sale at 8:00 this morning. the new phones have more storage, better cameras, and faster processers. >> we're following some breaking news now

the mayor pledged to support advocate councilman jim kenny says it's going to save lives and futures. >> if you side track a kid based on this diamin any muss activity you're doing bad thing fort end tear city because that kid will most likely stay in poverty are wind up in jail. let them get through their youthful stuff and become good adults. >> thousands were arrested every year in philadelphia for pot possession. 84% young black men, young folks who didn't get jobs or apartments or a way out says the executive director of i day. the institute for development of african-american youth. >> we cannot have our young men banished from the main stream society and wonder why they're not doing well. >> as a law and order guy commission are in charles ramsey was not proponent of december criminalization but he is on board. >> right now, my focus is on making sure when this becomes law, that we can implement it as smoothly as possible. >> reporter: a lot of steps along the way in order to do that. this is going to officially become law next thursday and it will be going into effect coming u