bruce johnson, 9news now. >> and 40 of the people under investigation left the city government. others have been placed on leave. >>> a new year, a new session, the same gridlock. house and senate negotiators met to work out the details on extending that payroll tax cut for millions of people. but they did not make any significant progress. the two sides have three weeks to reach an agreement before that benefit runs out. >>> the campaign trail takes the candidates to three states today. minnesota and colorado both hold their caucuses tonight at 7:00 p.m. local time. missouri holds a primary, but there are no delegates at stake there. that state delegates will be awarded march 17, which missouri holds its caucus. >> mitt romney and ron paul are going to be the only republicans. a federal judge removed newt gingrich's name from the case challenging the commonwealth ballot access law, which effectively kills the lawsuit. it had initially been filed by gingrich, rick perry, and john huntsman. >>> the new york city vendor credited with preventing a car bombing in times square is tur

but as bruce johnson tells us, legend helped to launch what's going on now.a campaign aimed at getting young people to use the arts and social media to get involved. ♪ [ music ] >> it was 40 years ago that d.c. native son, marvin gay, called the young masses to get involved on every social and political front. >> today at the kennedy center, john legend was repeating the call, singing marvin gay's, what's going on. still relevant today, with students from the city's duke eling ellington school for the arts. ♪ [ music ] >> much has changed since marvin gay performed the song in this building. and much remained the same. >> too much unemployment in america. there are too many homeless people on the streets. >> know the issues for youth today. many are living. >> i lost six of my friends, my senior year alone in my neighborhood. they were all murdered. >> we have to wear this. we have to sing this type of song. we have to be somebody who we don't want to be. i think society is also changing and teaching us to be individual. >> john legend hopes to inspire the st

so we figured that made it a perfect place to dispatch our own bruce johnson looking to the answers forome presidential trivia questions. >> the parade. >> reporter: the place to take in a presidents day parade. alexandria, virginia, founded back in 1749, presidents mug graces the $100,000 bill. >> there is no $100,000 bill. >> reporter: woodrow wilson. if you want to try presidential trivia, this is the place. who was the first president to play the saxophone on the arsenio hall show? >> got to be bill clinton. >> reporter: how many states are named after a u.s. president? >> there's washington state. >> reporter: the tallest president. >> abraham lincoln. >> reporter: thank you. too easy. the heaviest president was howard taft. who was the first president? >> george washington. >> reporter: who's the first after ban american president? >> obama -- first african american president? >> barack obama. >> reporter: how many of the u.s. presidents signed the declaration of independence? was it two, four, six or none? >> oh, my. >> we should know this. we're teachers of. >> reporter: the ans

bruce johnson reports with the democratic primary one month away. five candidates are hoping to unseat barry. >> marion barry can still draw a crowd. often people in need of help. >> i'm trying to get a job. i have kids. >> he held elected office for 31 years. 16 of them as mayor of d.c. a growing number of people say that's long enough. >> he had great responsibility. >> at 75, he's running for a third term and for the first time, a will the of people in position to know are asking the question, can marion barry really lose this time? >> people feel he is not moving us forward and we don't see him at any of the meetings. >> two of five candidates now hoping to unseat barry at the ward 8 d.c. council member. >> a number of people that are dissatisfied. his bouts with drugs and irs are legendary, but barry and his supporters weigh that against his service. >> whether it's seniors or jobs or businessman, and they just know i'm genuine. >> he had health issues, prostate cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure. but barry says he's in good health and plans

bruce johnson, 9news now. >> here's a brief time line of what has happened. before we began shooting our investigation, 9news now alerted the metropolitan police that this was selling to teenagers. that was back in early december of last year. mpd told us it brought the attention to the attention of abra that same week. we waited to confront the store owner. that's more than a month after letting the authorities know what we found at the town square market. 9news now repeatedly requested interviews. they have all been turned down. we'll be staying on top of this story and bring you the new developments as soon as they happen. anita. >>> only on 9, the 22-year-old convicted in the crash that killed three people wants to appeal his sentence. in his letter, he writes, quote, kids think this will never happen to them, so locking me up for all these years doesn't send a message. if there needs to be a message, 5 to 10 doesn't send a message? we have seen a lot of reaction on our facebook page. and we invite you to log on, read it, and join the conversation happeni

bruce johnson, 9 news now. >> chairman brown says the verbal assaults by council members do not violate the new ethics law as barry claims. >> wow. >>> tonight at 7:00 that new car smell sought after by many drivers and one a new study says could be hazardous to humans. we'll tell you about those toxic results at 7:00. >>> still ahead in this half hour after nearly seven years new orleans takes a big step forward in its recovery from hurricane katrina. >> still pretty nice outside, clear skies and really not that cold. i'd grab a light jacket heading out. 55 and 40 goes in the book for today. 40 was the low. our average low is 29, record 77, record low 6 below back in 1899. we'll come back and talk about one storm tomorrow and perhaps a winter storm over the weekend. >>> but first a student pilot doesn't make it far from the airport. we're going to tell you what happened up next. >>> a freight plane made an emergency landing that turned out to be a belly landing overnight in brisbane, australia. the small plane was on a test flight above the airport after undergoing maintenance. the whe

bruce johnson, 9 news now. >> cornelius was a part-time announcer when he started soul train. the show until 1993. after that he brought in guests to host it until he finally sold it. >>> some trees are starting to bloom and it's a lot earlier than it usually is for them. the flowers and trees with all those blossoms, well, you know, they come with allergies. local allergy specialists report patients are actually suffering their allergies at least a month sooner than usual. >> this week we've actually had patients call in to say i'm having symptoms. can i come in and start my medications or see you? >> the thing is that stuffy nose could just be a cold, could be allergies. sometimes it's hard to tell because it's still winter out there officially. one of the main differences with allergies is you'll have the itchy eye thing going which doesn't really happen when it's just a cold. >> speaking of cold, topper is back to tell us when the cold is going to show up again. >> it's going to be a gradual change, nothing crazy, but there's no arctic air. we talked about that. it's backi

i'm trying to get my own voters. >> reporter: bruce johnson, 9news now. >> the d.c. primary is april 3. the democratic nominees become heavy favorites for the general election because democratic voters far outnumber republican voters in the district grz do you take sleeping pills? well, they could kill you. according to a study published in the british medical journal. researchers tracked the health reports of 34,000 people over a decade. half of them took sleeping pills. the people who took drugs like am by yen -- ambien were dying in greater numbers than those who do not. whether you take several dozen pills a year or a few, the risk of death more than triples. for the heaviest users, the death risk was five times higher. cancer was more likely as well. researchers still aren't sure why but people who take these sleep aids long term may not be living a healthy lifestyle to begin with or may have an undiagnosed sleep apnea condition. >>> eating omega 3 fatty acids may protect against premature aging and memory troubles. research published in neurology is the first o

coming up bruce johnson's presidents day pop quiz. >>> but up next why complications during pregnancy may foreshadow heart problems for women later in life. >>> tonight a health alert aimed at women, those experiencing some scary complications when they're pregnant need to keep tabs on their heart health later in life. here's why. >> reporter: lauralee davidson delivered her son oliver earlier than expected. >> i was like high blood pressure, pry eclampsia toward the very end. -- preeclampsia toward the very end. >> reporter: the doctors were worried about how it could affect her health. so she had a c section. >> it was very scary because everything is out of your hands of. >> reporter: now a new study finds the complications developed during her pregnancy could be a predictor of cardiovascular disease down the line. >> if you've had a medical complication, specifically preeclampsia, which is high blood pressure in pregnancy, or diabetes, it may mean that you could develop problems later on in life. >> reporter: british researchers tracked 3,400 women with pregnancy complications and

we'll push them back to local museums. >> bruce johnson, 9news now. >> congress pledged $250 million for the museum, which will cover half the cost of building it and now museum staffers are reaching out where you can make smaller donations online. >>> english is the official language of the frederick county government. it requires official government action to be taken only in english. supporters say the measure will help deter illegal immigrants from moving to frederick t. deems the county as unfriendly. >>> he has been called the run away quarterback and we aren't talking about the football field. former redskin, jason campbell, trying to set the record straight after calling off his wedding just hours before the ceremony. >>> that's a tough one to explain. i'm meteorologist, topper shutt. another mild day. it's going to get warmer. let me show you temperatures. a light jacket will take care of you. 59 downtown. 64 in fredericksburg. and 63 in culpeper. we'll come back and talk about whether or not the april-like weather will bring april-like showers. >>> 9 wants you to know, sinc

our bruce johnson has been following this story.really, really loved her. >> that's right, lesli. they are hearing for the first time. they will be incredibly disappointed. some are hoping for a live broadcast. but this valentine's day, they were out singing her songs, keeping whitney houston in their thoughts. >> i get so emotional, baby. ♪ and i >> valentine's day along georgia avenue. nearly everyone had a whitney houston song to belt out. ♪ [ music ] >> the record store in maryland, whitney houston fans were making fresh cd's. >> it's a tragedy that she passed. >> i liked her voice, when she had a voice. >> reports say online sales of whitney houston songs could set new records. down to but one album left. >> right now, this is the only one that we have. her very first. >> the most decorated female. police confirmed she was under water in a bathtub in her hotel room at the beverly hilton hotel one day before the grammy's. local radio stations would be pushing whitney's love song. bell's flower shop in maryland today, business wa

. >> this is bruce johnson outside anacostia. on friday, a fire forced the evacuation of 900 students here. the building is under construction while students are attending classes. we'll have an update on this story coming up. >> and still ahead, join us as we celebrate j.c. hayward's remarkable 40 years here in washington, d.c. >>> and we've got new information tonight on last week's fire over in anacostia high. d.c. mayor tells 9news now the exact cause of that fire on the roof is still under investigation. but preliminary findings indicate it may have been started by sparks from a welding torch. remember, anacostia is undergoing major renovations. our bruce johnson is back from anacostia where students were back in classes today, but there is still some controversy. >> they are renovating most of the high schools and separating the kids from the construction. some parent who's are upset and they don't like the idea their kids are attending classes in the building undergoing major renovation. >> anacostia high last friday when

bruce johnson is joining me now. and, bruce, this is a big day and thanks for coming in. >> my pleasure. it's a big day not just for the station, it's a big day for the town, maryland, d.c., virginia. jc hayward, she's been here 40 years, howard. she was the first woman anchor in this town. you can imagine what that was like. she's one of the deans of all the journalists here. maybe now she'll stop calling me boy and cub reporter. i'm hoping for that. want to give you some history on jc hayward. take a look. >> we'll have more details coming up on eyewitness news at 6:00. president ford offered turkish leaders. it has been a history-making day in salt lake city. jc hayward four decades of reporting and anchoring in one shop is unheard of and it probably will never be repeated in our market, if anywhere else in the country. in those four decades, she's done it all, she's reported reported sports, arts, education, breaking news and she's talked to almost everyone. >> for me looking back on my, you know, brief career in

and the employment services director tells bruce johnson these people knew what they were doing. >> they have to certify to those benefits every week, so if you know that you are -- you know, that you're getting a pay check from the d.c. government every week, you have to certify that you don't have any other income. >> the city uncovered this scam during an internal review. >>> his name is ernest evans, but we all know him as the legend chubby checker. coming up he's going to join us and we're going to relive a piece of history. let's do the twist reporter: i'm howard bernstein out on the weather terrace. it's gorgeous out here. some snow in the forecast. check out the temperatures, already above average, upper 40s, even some low 50s out there. full forecast, talking about tomorrow's wintery weather when 9 news now returns. . >>> milton olive iii did a self- less act of courage in vietnam in 1965. private first class was ininfantriry reej men. he and the soldiers were going after the enemy in the jungle when a grenade was tossed in his path. his threw his body on top of that grenade, ta

hello, everybody, i'm bruce johnson. thanks for joining us. tmz is reporting tonight six time grammy winner whitney houston may have drowned in her hotel room bathtub. the entertainment website says houston was discovered by aides who pulled her out and tried to resuscitate her. beverly hills police say they found nothing to suggest criminal activity led to her deet. tmz says police -- death. tmz says police found several bottles of medication and we're hearing whitney houston's daughter was rush to the hospital today. >> reporter: whitney houston's only child bobbi kristina left a beverly hills hotel on a stretcher. the 18-year-old was taken by ambulance to the hospital for an undisclosed medical condition. only hours earlier her mother's body was taken from the same hotel to the morgue. houston who reigned as queen of pop in the '80s and '90s was found dead in the bathtub of her hotel room on saturday. she was there to attend clive davis' annual pregrammy bash, an event that launched her career decades earlier. the party went on as scheduled

>>> hello, i'm bruce johnson. thank you for joining us. two firefighters in the early 20s have begun the long road to recovery after being critically burned in the riverdale house fire on friday night. we spoke to the family members today at the washington hospital center. >> underneath it all, we are a big family. and although that some of us are strangers, we are all the same. >> reporter: parents of the three firefighters were the most severe injuries, that he recounted the heroing moments after getting the call every parent dreads. >> it took the longest ride in the world, you know, 4.5 hours from new york. and not knowing what to expect. >> reporter: even has severe -- kevin has severe burns over 4% of his body, facing nearly 8 months of medical treatment. he has respiratory system burns, breathing through a tube. >> and he is in some pain from the tubes and all. but other than that, he finished that early. >> reporter: the third firefighter, he has severe burns through his hands and bruised ribs. the fire investigators are still tryi

. >>> hello, i'm bruce johnson. the most significant winter storm of the season now headed this way and that storm track has shifted northward, closer to d.c. let's go outside right now to annie on the weather terrace. annie, does that mean we'll see some white stuff? >> yes, bruce. it looks like we'll see this happening. we declared sunday a severe weather alert day. let's talk about it. tonight your plans will be just fine. here's a look at the winter weather advisories and watches. basically southwest of town where you see the areas in yellow, that includes culpepper, orange, laray, shenandoah county, cullpepper county. this is a winter weather watch in effect starting tomorrow morning going through late tomorrow night. the impact will be tomorrow. tonight keep your plans. the snow track is trending a little farther north, closer to us. the bulls eye is along interstate 81 and interstate 64, really roanoke, virginia getting five to eight inches of snow. that is a bull's eye. no problems go to and from church earl

i'm bruce johnson. the light snow fell mostly north and west but falling dense tonight could make for slippery conditions on the roads across the region. strong winds also expected. we've got reports from maryland, virginia and the district. let's begin with anyon the weather desk. hi, annie. >> hi, brows. we saw snow around the beltway, not a lot. maybe a trace, some places getting up to half inch around the beltway. but right now the winds are picking up. here's a look at live doppler 9000 around the beltway. it's quiet but we do have some snowshowers to the south and east of us where you see the areas in blue. we're seeing snowshowers coming to an end. a slight chance we could see more snowshowers later tonight heading outside, definitely put on all the winter weather gear because temperatures are going to be very cold. how much snow do we get? maryland, two inches. clarksburg, about 7/10. reagan national getting a trace. warrenton, virginia getting just 1/10-inch of snow. our wind advisory is in eff

hello, i'm bruce johnson, thanks for joining us. about a half dozen people have been arrested in a daylong confrontation that started this morning when park police began clearing mcpherson square of camping materials. police say their aim is not to evict occupy protesters, but they are now enforcing a ban on camping. police in hazmat suits were also going through the square, part of a massive cleanup. ken begins our team coverage. reporter: hey, bruce. it's been a very busy day for everyone involved with occupy d.c. of course police showed up in riot gear before dawn to in essence clean this park out. take a look behind me. you can see the operations still taking place right now. those people you see in hazmat suits, they were brought here by the police earlier today. right now they're clearing out the tents, getting rid of hazardous materials that they found here as well as getting rid of anything that's considered bedding. of course park police in riot gear standing by the mcpherson square, they forced protesters out on the street

. >> good evening, i'm andrea mccarren in for bruce johnson. we begin with the just released 911 tape from a house fire in prince georges county 24 hours ago. that fire in river dale sent seven firefighters to the hospital. they were battling the blaze when gusting winds swept through the house. neighbors who called 911 mentioned those high winds. >> and the neighbor across the street, the houses next door is burning fast. the wind is blowing hard. >> as armando trull reports, two of the volunteer firefighters suffered critical burns. >> every one of us know that every time we go out the door could be the last time. we also know we are here to serve the citizens. >> this house fire in river dale heights sent seven public servants to washington hospital center last night. after a fire ball nourished by strong winds tore through the home. >> and what firefighters described as a blow torch coming out the front door, the same front door that our firefighters entered. >> nearly 70 firefighters tried to extinguish the blaze. >> 57th avenue. >> two vo

>>> hello, i'm bruce johnson. thanks for joining us. two firefighters in their early 20s have begun the long road to recovery after being critically burned in a fire friday night. very hot, very dark. that's how a third injured firefighter describes conditions inside the house. falled by extremely high winds, a fair on 57th avenue sent seven firefighters to the hospital. tonight as matt jablow tells us we hear for the first time from several of those firefighters who battled the blaze. >> reporter: lieutenant mike has fought dozens of fires and dealt with all kinds of situations during his nine years as a volunteer firefighter, the last two with the riverdale firefighter. >> went to a report of a house fire. >> reporter: but what happened two nights ago in riverdale hates was an entirely new and extremely painful experience for the 24-year-old firefighter. you see, lieutenant naples was one of seven firefighters from three departments who were injured when a wind-swept fire tore through a vacant house. lieutenant naples suffered serious

the source tells our own bruce johnson that the d.c. council member filed that staff for wednesday. it was earlier this week that 130 current and former city government workers were collecting the jobless benefits, the benefits while they still had jobs. and the scam cost the city at least $840,000 over the three- year period. >>> today, the attorney generals from all over the country announced a $26 billion settlement with the big banks to help out homeowners on the verge of being foreclosed upon. we asked scott broom to explain how the money might get to you. >> reporter: the settlement provides a first for people that have been foreclosed upon. maybe they have a dispute with the deal. the banks might offer as much as a $2,000 compensation to those who have already lost their homes. more importantly, folks who are under water here in this home and that is common. perhaps they will owe over there are be 00,000 on a house that is now only worth about $250,000. well in this settlement, the banks are being encouraged to forgive some of the principle. in this case let's say they knock

i'm bruce johnson. was anny megsal tribute during tonight's broadcast to the six-time grammy winner whose sudden death stunned the entertainment world just yesterday. [ music ] >> whitney houston sold 170 million albums and songs, and this is jennifer hudson performing one of her biggest hits. while jennifer hudson was very good at this, there is some criticism tonight that perhaps it just wasn't enough. joining me on the set is sonny from wpgcf m and i've got to ask both of you, sonny, you first, because you had thought that whitney houston was sold short. >> absolutely. jennifer hudson did an amazing job, but we expected more. we wanted mariah carey, we wanted beyonce, christina aguilera. we wanted these great voices to come out and do what they do best, to pay tribute to the voice, and it just didn't happen. >> tommy, would you agree with that? >> yes, totally. i thought the entire show would have found a way to tie whitney in. for the actual tribute, we wanted some more whitney. >> we felt robbed. >

bruce johnson, 9 news now. >> lisa mallory was named director of doe last spring and she says the internal investigation is part of her effort to get rid of waste, fraud and abuse in the department. >>> nearly two years since the uva lacrosse murder, today lawyers struggle to seat an impartial jury on day one of the trial. george huguely, v, of chevy chase appeared in the courtroom the first time today to answer charges of allegedly murdering yeardley love of cockeysville. bruce leshan is in charlottesville. how did he look today, bruce? >> reporter: kind of nervous, intense, kind of stared out into the audience apparently at his family. they're kind of clustered right behind him. he entered in a loud clear voice not guilty to the charge of first degree murder and to the five other counts against him. after nearly two years in jail george huguely is drawn, thin in a blazer about two sizes too large, his eyes dark around the courtroom. on the uva lacrosse field he carried 209 pounds on his 6' 2 frame. he is nowhere near that now. both his family and the family of victim yeardley love are cr

hello, i'm bruce johnson. u.s. park police still in control of the square tonight although half a dozen protesters are hovering nearby inside the square. earlier today, police in riot gear moved on to the campsite and clashed with protesters. six people were arrested. police say it was not a massive eviction but ken molestina is standing by live with an explanation for what it was all about. >> reporter: bruce, it's amazing to see how quiet mcpherson square has become tonight, quite frankly from anything we saw and since the movement began several months ago. the u.s. park police continue to have a portion of the park locked down. there are only a few protesters over there today. the showdown that took place is something folks have been anticipating for quite sometime. some were pushed out by force and others tried provoking officers by screaming and yelling profanities. one officer had to be taken to the hospital after he was hit with a brick thrown by a protester. in the end it was clear who won the battle. >> th

i'm bruce johnson. we're watching a storm that's changed its track once again, diminishing the chances of any snow. let's go over to anny hong in the weather center. what's the latest? >> it's turning out to be not a whole lot. the only advisories and watches we have are far southwest of town, into greene county. we had a watch earlier into culpeper, orange county. all those have been cancelled. here's the reason why. the storm track is tracking farther south of d.c., pretty much missing us in a way. we may see a little bit of snow. the coastal storm is coming through on sunday, but it is trending back south. it's turning out to be a minor snow event as of now. we could still get light, wet snow, maybe up to an inch around d.c. better chances will be south of town. the bull's-eye will be around raonoke, virginia. a little change here could mean a big difference when it comes to having a little or a lot of snow. we'll talk more about the snow and a milder trend coming up. back to you, bruce. >> anny, tha

. ♪ what's going on >> reporter: bruce johnson, 9news now. >> good morning. >>> thank you for watching at 5:00 a.m. i'm andrea roane. >>> i'm mike hydeck. sure was nice to hear marvin gaye at the beginning. isn't it gorgeous. >> john legend is good but no marvin gaye. >>> here's monika sam samtani. good morning, howard, my friend. >> what's going on? >> other things are going on here. it's so cold in alaska and europe. serious. we're talking temps in alaska 50, 60, 70 below but none of that is headed our way as we're enjoying the incredible warmth. yesterday record setting 66 at dulles. we'll northbound that neighborhood -- we'll be in that neighborhood once again. here's a look at our day planner. we have some showers around this morning. you'll need the umbrellas or rain jacket or you'll get wet over the next few hours.

i'm bruce johnson. >> don't get out the sleds just yet.'ve been waiting for, but there is some snow in the area. we have one school delay tonight. culpeper county public schools will be closed for two hours delay tomorrow. anny hong is tracking the storm. what can people expect tomorrow. >> if you have tomorrow off, you may want to sleep in, because i think the major reason for that delay in culpeper county is because of a chance for some slick roads to be out there early in the morning. now, we do have snow falling here. look first at our winter weather advisory in effect south of town around fredericksburg. this is until 1:00 monday morning. here's a look at live doppler 9000. you can see a little light snow earlier this evening, but now most of it still to the south of us. fredericksburg, leonard town. a lot of this snow is actually in some areas really wet and heavy snow. also seeing some rain as well where you see the green. we did see snow also in parts of the fredericksburg area earlier today, falling since this afternoon. we'll tal

bruce johnson has been working the story from the beginning and bruce, the nonprofit that was used to funnel these funds said thomas was the subject of a d.c. hearing today. >> they don't provide the services directly, but they get the money. it's called the children and youth investment trust fund. a lot of good, got a lot of big money, but what everybody is talking about is all the money that harry thomas junior stole. it's threatening the future of this program at this point. >> former d.c. councilman, harry thomas jr. could be sentenced to four years in prison for using his position to steal roughly $300,000 from the children's and youth investment trust fund. >> do you swear under penalty of law. >> today the administrators of the trust were summoned before a d.c. committee to explain why the nonprofit should be allowed to continue. >> is the program in trouble? >> i don't think there's any risk of the substance of the program being discontinued. >> the trust is a public private partnership in the district that works to improve outcomes for children. >> ellen london, a long time

we sent bruce johnson there to get answers to hair what hear what they have to say. >>> right now, a reconstruction team is trying to determine how a worker was killed in a freak accident. police tell 9news now, a contractor was somehow pinned by his own work truck. it happened late this afternoon in the 5300 block of alba morrow street. if you are headed that way, you may want to steer clear of that location. >>> still ahead on 9news now. rick santorum's campaign surges after sweeping all three of yesterday's republican presidential contests. we'll have the latest from the campaign trail. >>> i'm kristin fisher at reagan national. how would you like to go through airport security without having to pull out your laptop? it's about to become possible thanks to a new program that is coming to reagan, dulles, and bwi. find out if you're eligible coming up. [ male announcer ] this was how my day began. a little bird told me about a band... ♪ an old man shared some fish stories... ♪ oooh, my turn. ♪ she was in paris, but we talked for hours... everyone else buzzed about the band. there's

however, we all do know about whitney houston's drug use and bruce johnson, you have been talking to who know about it. >> you'll hear that intro again. they say the same fate is for them. >> music icon, whitney houston was honored at the grammy's last night. fans are calling radio stations and sending record sales through the roof again. >> here at the corner of panover place, otherwise known as the strip. they are also remembering whitney houston today. it's not the 170 million albums and songs that she sold. it's not the fortune. out here, it's the pain. it's her drug addiction that they are relating to. >> she got called up young and when she did it for so long, there was no quitting. >> the voice belongs to a crack addict who knows the side of whitney houston that most of us can only imagine. >> you can't quit, because that's part of her life. she couldn't function without it. >> that's his niece. she tried years to get him and other relatives off the drugs. >> how many times a day do you have to hit the pipe? >> every day all day. >> all day? >> all day long, whenever i get a b

. >> councilman barry told our bruce johnson the two have had a contentious relationship since the debate on same-sex marriage in 2008. >>> coming up on 6:36, jessica doyle is watching your money and your gas tank. >> 70 bucks to feel up my minivan yesterday. if your business relies on gasoline to get the job done, it's going to have an impact. >> just whether we were starting to see the economy gain momentum, consumers are getting clocked by things like a $70 fillup at the tank. that spike in gas prices is about a month two early. the reason why? tensions with iran are raising the threat of disruptions in global supplies and that's pushing up energy prices. it has consumer confidence dropping all of a sudden. higher oil and gas prices affect virtually every aspect of the u.s. economy. consumers cut back on their discretionary spending. manufacturers face lower profit margins and "the wall street journal" reports a long-term increase in oil and gas prices. that could drive up inflation and drive down hiring. >>> you know those annoying automatic phone messages that always seem to ring dur

we need to invite some science fair winners to the white house as well. [ applause ] >> this is bruce johnson how would you like to have some 15,000, 18,000, $20,000 to your annual income? some d.c. government workers are doing just that illegally. >>> and up next, some ideas to snatch up for your sweety before next tuesday's valentine's day. hands that feel soft and silky smooth! ooh...she's got the look. what's her secret? the gloves? dawn? i don't believe it. [ male announcer ] it's a dishwashing sensation... dawn hand renewal with olay beauty. it contains revitalizing proteins to help smooth skin on hands -- improving their look and feel in just five uses. [ sponge ] soft, smooth... fabulous! you're quite the trendsetter. [ male announcer ] dawn does more... [ sponge ] so it's not a chore. >>> in another week, couples will express their love for each other. and retailers expect they will spend a lot on their sweeties. stores are stocked with deals they hope you'll snatch up. >> love isn't cheap, at least not this valentine's day. americans are expected to shell out more than $17 million t

bruce johnson has the details. >> are you serious? stealing unemployment checks?er: an internal review by the d.c. employment services office has found that 130 current or former city employees have been ripping off the system. >> where are they? what agencies do they work for? >> they're in a variety of agencies. we're still going through the list. there are

home this morning and our own bruce johnson has local reaction to cornelius' death and the contribution that soul train made to music, fashion and, of course, the dance. ♪ dancing dancing dancing she's a dancing machine ♪ >> the show was must see tv on saturdays, soul train with show creator and host don cornelius. >> to the music of earth, wind and fire and mighty mighty. >> it started out way before cable and way before mtv and b.e.t. as a place to showcase r and b talent, dance and fashion. >> i used to be in front of my tv with my bowl of cereal watching the soul train live. >> loved to see the soul people dance and their clothes. >> the idea came from american band stand which which aired from philadelphia. cornelius only had $400 his program was going to be syndicated out of chicago. radio stations throughout the d.c. area immediately went into a soul train theme upon hearing of don cornelius' death. >> when i first heard about it, i was stunned, shocked and then immediately i started thinking about all the memory. >> find out about the latest music, the latest dance steps, latest

90 current workers are now on administrative leave and employment services director tells our bruce johnson these people knew what they were doing. >> they have to certify to those benefits every week. so if you know that you are -- that you're getting a paycheck from the d.c. government every week, you have to certify that you don't have any other income. >> the city uncovered this scam during an internal interview. >>> doesn't look like d.c. united will be leaving the district any time soon. the team president tells "the washington post" he expects to reach a deal on a new lease to keep the team at rfk stadium. it's the only place united has ever called home. the team hopes to have a deal in place soon. it explored locations for a new place in maryland but that has not worked out. >>> at 6:13, a story that's worth interrupting your morning routine so you can pay attention for a few minutes. >> you'll hear from a local man who shouldn't even be alive. >> for some people they don't get this lucky. they don't get this second chance like i got. they don't get to wake up after a drunken car ac

. >> reporter: this is bruce johnson in southeast washington. it started out as a mere discussion over the united medical center in southeast. it turned into a heighted exchange and now -- heated exchange and now some discipline may be coming up. >>> don't forget. we're always on www.wusa9.com. stay with us. we'll be right back. >>> caught on tape, a crime of opportunity at an airport checkpoint. a woman grabs her valuables after putting them through the screener in ft. lauderdale, but she leaves a rolex watch behind in the tray. check it out. surveillance video shows the guy behind her grabs his laptop and then says yeah, let me just grab this watch, too. by the time the woman realized what happened, well, that watch and that fellow with the sticky fingers was gone on the way to charlotte, north carolina. >> there is no mistake. watch the video. he picks it up. he has two opportunities. he looks around. he palms the rolex and then walks by two deputy sheriffs and had he the opportunity to turn it in. this is -- and he had the opportunity to tur

although sims did tell our bruce johnson last week the agency has unsuccessfully attempted underage stings in the wake of our reports. council member jim graham told us that's not a surprise because the store is now on alert. if that's the case, it didn't stop montgomery county police from busting two more underagers crossing the d.c. line with booze from town square market just last weekend. so we continue up until this afternoon to ask abra for more details. we know they tried and failed to do their underage sting, but aren't 36 violations written by montgomery county police in december enough evidence for immediate action? if not, why not? at our last contact the agency continues to say due process prohibits them from explaining more. >> it certainly doesn't keep us from keeping the spotlight on them until they do. >> andrea mccarren and now a whole team are on it. >> absolutely. thank you, scott and andrea. >>> well, of course, liquor stores aren't the only ones at fault here. andrea's reports have shown in some cases parents are seeming less angry with their kids when they're caught d

i'm talking about founding members brian will some, mike love, al jardine, along with bruce johnson andks who have been with the band for almost 50 years. this is the very first time in almost 20 years that all these guys are going to be sharing the stage together. they'll be performing with some current grammy nominees, foster the people, maroon 5, but it does not stop with this. the grammy appearance is kicking off a whole new start for the beach boys, kyra. they're kicking off a 50 city tour in april. they plan on releasing a new studio album this year. break out your beach balls and your hawaiian print shirts. the beach boys are back. >> i'd be breaking out my old eight track is what i would be breaking out, a.j. thanks so much. >> you don't have an eight track, kyra. >> oh, yes, i did. >>> it's a frightening cliff hanger on "american idol." a.j. will be back with us next hour on that story and other "showbiz tonight" headlines. >>> and looking at health for her this morning. 40 billion bucks is on the table to help reduce the number of pre-term births and early elective deliveries