jackie bensen reports. >> reporter: imagine the creepy feeling of knowing someone came up on your porch at 4:00 a.m. tried the door handle and walked away. that's what happened at a home on wheat ridge drive the night of may 23nd. the would be burglar who broke into a car in the destroy realized a security camera was mounted on the porridge. since the end of april that there have been a series of 18 break ins to homes in this neighborhood. some have occurred while residents were asleep inside. cars have been broken into or stolen. >> this is a spree of crimes of opportunity. many of these if not all could have been prevented had the homeowner or vehicle operator locked the car door, put the garage door down or locked the door to the homes. >> residents are on edge. >> we heard a car alarm go off and my husband was like go look out the windows. our cars were fine but we heard the alarm go off. >> reporter: police say with crime sprees like this is it not unusual for the suspects to live in or near the neighborhood that's been affected. and that could very well be the case here. reporting

in bladensburg, jackie bensen, news4. >>> delivery drivers are being targeted in virginia and a smart phone app is making it hard to identify the attackers. the app gives them phony addresses and they rob them when the driver arrives. they use spoofing which masks the true phone number. that makes it difficult to trace. deputies are looking at charging the criminals using the app with identity theft in addition to robbery. >>> the latest push in congress to give the district autonomy over the budget is dead. d.c. leaders asked a senate committee to pull the bill after amendments were added by rand paul. the amendments would allow city residents to carry concealed weapons and put a permanent ban on city funding for abortions. >>> at the university of virginia they decided to rehire the president who had been fired. students, faculty and alumni are happy about that but what's next? >> julie carey has our report. >> reporter: on uva's lawn this evening students gathered in a study group. but for the last 16 days it has been a battleground as supporters of teresa sullivan lobbied for the

jackie bensen is live in bethesda with more. jackie? >> reporter: we are at river road and little falls parkway and this is very, very similar to what you're seeing throughout montgomery county right now. we're told fully half of the traffic signals in the southern part of the county are dark right now. this scene is being repeated at hundreds of intersections in montgomery county. people trying to get something from the hardware store, the supermarket or into a nice air conditioned restaurant realize they can't get there as fast as they are used to doing. they get impatient and do stupid and dangerous things that make montgomery county police captain meredith dominick unleash her inner kirnd garten teakindergar teacher. >> we need to realize the neighbors are going through the same thing we are and kind of take a deep breath. relax, and we need to try and get through this together. >> reporter: tempers flared at gas stations. 42nd street northwest had the longest lines anyone has ever seen there. >> people would normally fill up at the

jackie bensen is in tacoma park with the latest. >> reporter: it was 4:40 p.m. broad daylight and that is when the suspect approached a man just walking down the street here. the scene showed the aftermath of a brief but bloody confrontation steps from an auto parts store. witnesses told tacoma park police that the suspect approached the victim and at knife point demanded the man's backpack. the victim received several deep cuts to his arms before the suspect fled with his backpack. >> at this point we don't think that they knew each other. that will come along with the investigation. but at this point it looks like a random armed robbery. >> reporter: the robber ran from the scene. officers searched nearby streets, wooded areas and dumpsters. >> it is usually cool out here. >> this is like, rare, because you know a lot of people stay to their self and it is real busy. a lot of stores and people coming back and forth. >> the victim was flown to a local hospital by helicopter and he is expected to survive his injuries. reporting live, jackie bensen, news4. >>> a

jackie bensen, news4. >>> with the help of hero daddy. >>> well, what's the truth about grilled foods and cancer? still ahead on news4 this week, we debunk the myths about your favorite summertime foods. and why one man who's heifer in a sip of alcohol in his life is hoping that red wine can hold the key to curing his alzheimer' >>> a $10 million grant is going to help connect some of our area's most popular locations. the department of transportation announced the funding of a four-mile extension of the riverwalk trail. in addition to lincoln dozens of local trails in d.c. and matterhand, the extension will also connect 16 waterfront communities, including nationals park, rfk stadium, and the national arboretum. >>> and if you are looking to hit the beach instead of the bike trail, we've got good news. two area beaches are among the cleanest in the nation. dewey beach in delaware and ocean city beach in maryland were among 12 destinations to earn a five-star rating from the national resources defense council. that means they follow guidelines and comply with health standards at least

jackie bensen, news4. >>> mechanical problems forced the d.c. police helicopter to make an emergency landing in northwest this evening. it landed in a field on military road across from st. john's college high school. the chopper took off after crews checked it out. the two people on board were not injured. >>> a judge found karen toles guilty in a reckless driving case that sparked public outrage. police say she almost caused an accident on the beltway in february. a dash cam recorded her speeding at 100 miles an hour while weaving through traffic. later police added a reckless driving charge and that was today's conviction. >> we're pleased with the outcome today. we felt the reckless driving wharge was warranted based on council member toles' actions and the court held her accountable. >> she was fined $400 and is on probation before judgment. if she keeps a clean record for a year the conviction will be taken off her record. >>> the interim president at the university of virginia wants to rebuild trust. carl zeithami defended his decision. h

jackie bensen reports hundreds are still out of their homes this morning. >> reporter: residents from the seven-story apartment building on riverdale road say it happened very fast and very unexpectedly as the storm's winds slammed into prince george's county, the roof blew off. >> i was in the house. all you heard was a big boom. the windows were shattering and the lights start flickering. from there you hear people screaming in the hallways. >> i was in the site with his house. ta all the chaos. >> reporter: this is at the park tanglewood apartments. this is part of the roof. this is why everyone had to come out of here tonight because the roof was literally sheared off a good section of the building. prince george's fire chief notes the damaging storm came exactly one week after vicious weather caused similar damage in the bladensburg area. >> in this case it's a multi-story, multi-family building, between thisble and the building next door which lost part of the roofing material. it wasn't lost the structure, didn't appear to. we have building inspectors en route. we have an evacu

news 4's jackie bensen has more on the summer's first storm. >> reporter: the storm blew through fast and furious. these images were taken in riverdale, maryland. torrential rains, lightning and hail. as the storm raced towards northeast washington, it gathered speed and power. a tree more than three feet in diameter crushed this home in the 3800 block of south dakota avenue. >> first the winds came up really strong, and all of a sudden it just started blowing, the rain started coming down. and it looked like a tornado, yes. and i was in my family room. and i heard this thing snap and it fell like, yeah, it was awful. it was awful. it just -- you went to the basement at that point. >> the tree tore right through the sturdy brick home. the heavy damage trapped a man, the sole occupant. numerous downed power lines meant large parts of northeast washington, particularly the woodbridge area, were plun nled into darkness. jackie bensen, news 4 today. >> the storm may be long over but people should be very careful when heading out today. traffic lights might be out tonight. traffic was back

jackie bensen, news4. >>> tonight investigates are offer a reward of up to $2,000 in the shooting of a 15-year-old boy. it happened last night. police say a group of people that the boy didn't know shot him in the head. someone nearby found him lying in a dpeeld. he's said to be in stable condition. investigators believe this may be part of an ongoing dispute. >>> the fate of jerry sandusky will be in the hands of the jury tomorrow. today -- he's accused of sexually abusing ten boys. brian moore has details from bellefonte, pennsylvania. >> reporter: the defense rested today without the former football coach taking the witness stand. though he did not testify, his interviews and letters presented during the trial made him a potent witness. >> am i sexually attracted to underage boys? >> yes. >> reporter: for the prosecution, still his attorney looked upbeat as he left the courthouse. >> reporter: are you hopeful? >> always hopeful. >> reporter: the defense struggled to blunt a prosecution case build an eight young accuser and mike mcqueacqueary. the defense tried to cast downed on mr

jackie bensen is there live with reaction from the council and the mayor. jackie? >> reporter: jim, the council is in full crisis mode right now. what happens if when kwame brown resigns a short time ago, news 4 spoke to d.c. mayor vincent gray. >> i'm stunned. i'm shocked. i'm disappointed. i'm saddened. you know, i was elected to the council at the same time that chairmanlected to the counts counsel served the entire time. this is not something i ever would have imagined could have occurred. >> i'm pulling the meeting together now. >> reporter: late in the amp d.c. member counce ims met without chairman brown present, at least at the beginning. >> chair pro t pechem. >> reporter: the first order, close the meeting to media. stationed outside the door as opposed to the usual staff member. after the meeting adjourned, council member filed out looking ats if they dreaded seeing the cameras. >> a courtesy to let the chair speak for himself. >> what's the mood? >> everybody's mood is quite somber. >> reporter: the mood here is grim. >> he would have a statement later

reporting live, jackie bensen, news4. >>> and four d.c. police officers already facing charges for their roles in a fight outside a nightclub last year. while they were obviously off-duty. police say two club-goers with fighting with multiple people. one man, walter blair lost his right eye. police have not said what chaurges these officers are facing. >>> a woman was hit and killed today between river dale and old ver street. the driver involved in the crash did stop and say on the scene. >>> one has been stealing money from the campaign account of atlarge d.c. councilman michael brown. he issued a statement saying he discovered the theft while personally reviewing his campaign finance reports. he said he immediately contacted authorities. d.c. police confirmed they were conducting an investigation. brown did not name the person, but he did say the person had been assisting with the campaigns for more than five years now. >>> former d.c. mayor anthony williams weighed in on all the ethics scandals that have rocked the d.c. council. he sai

reporting live from cheverly, jackie bensen, news 4, back to you. >>> despite the warnings about thisecord breaking heat, many folks are still braving the elements. >> boy, when you're out, you know you are out. pat collins is out on the national mall. how is it feeling out there? >> reporter: wendy, here i am, pat collins, your human weather station where here on the mall it is sweltering. this weekend this should be your very best buddy, mr. water. don't leave home without it. hot people show me your water. how hottest? >> real hot. >> you don't even want to see this. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: on the golf course, on city streets, down on the mall, on a scorching hot day like this, you have no better friend than -- ♪ water >> reporter: i say water yourks say? >> more. >> reporter: hey, kids, do we like water? >> yes! >> reporter: cold water? >> yes! >> reporter: on a day like today? >> yes! >> reporter: the magic fountain in columbia heights, it goes up, it goes down. where is it going to be next? at the folk life festival on the mall, free filtered water even if you don't have a bottle. hot

reporting from northeast washington, jackie bensen, news4. >>> take a look at this women in this picture. police say she helped scam an 87-year-old woman out of $15,000. the victim met this woman and a man at the white oaks shopping center and the man showed her a bag of cash and said he'd split it if they gave him $20,000. the victim gave him 15,000, left to get more and when she returned both were gone. >>> things are back to normal on metro after a rough commute for red line riders. a track switch problem caused problems in the middle of the evening rush. some trains turned around and others had delays of 30 minutes. >> constant rail and switch breakdowns. like to see updates in the infrastructure. >> crews reset and repaired the switch and they don't expect issues tomorrow morning. >>> out west, a wildfire burning out of control near colorado springs is being called the worst in the state's history. president obama plans to tour the daniel on friday as some major landmarks are being threatened and more families forced to evacuate. jinah kim has the latest. >> reporter: as towers of s

jackie bensen, news4. >>> today president obama praised the supreme court after it struck down key provisions of arizona's immigration law. but the ruling today kept one of the most controversial parts. that part requires offers to check the immigration status of anyone they arrest or stop and believe to be here illegally. but the high court warns it cannot be used to round up illegal immigrants or detain people too long. >> there are very strict limit a ations on how this can be implements and there are legal matters to be resolved. >> the surviving parts of the law will go back to arizona courts. >>> in our area tonight a group gathered to uc that about key issues facing immigrants in montgomery county. there is a lack of career growth opportunities and a need for education. the county human rights commission hosted the meeting. >>> president obama was in mitt romney's backyard campaigning in massachusetts speaking at boston's symphony hall. he thanked the red sox for trading kevin youkilis. that led to boos from the crowd. earlier he stopped in new hampshire and criticized romney for movin

reporting live in northeast washington, jackie bensen, news 4. >>> look at this huge tree that knocked over power lines before toppling a house in northeast. it happened on 16th and lawrence streets northeast. officials with cave in task force responded here. neighbors say four women live in the home but only two were there at the time. everyone did get out safely. we go live to a picture in bladensburg, maryland there is significant damage to an apartment complex. this complex is called kenilworth towers. we're told roofs have been blown off. there's bad damage to numerous garden apartments. bladensburg high school has been opened to use as a shelter for those impacted. joining us on the phone is assistant fire chief ron bridges with prince georges county fire an ems. chief, describe the wide-spread nature of the damage we are seeing right now. >> it is pretty extensive. at this time we have at least 15 multi-family structures, as well as one single-family structure with roof or structural damage to the building itself. unbelievable, sir. >> any injuries so far? and how precarious a t

reporting from fairfax, jackie bensen, news 4. >>> a 2-year-old boy was found wandering by himself tonight less than a mile from fedex field. police found him near garrett and morgan boulevard in landover. investigators say he had food in his hands but there weren't any adults nearby. officers took him to the hospital. they say he's okay. a parent did arrive to pick him up, and that person is now being questioned. >>> a cell phone camera krarmcas smoke and flames shooting from the window of a building at 14th and p streets northwest this evening. that fire broke out around 8:30. closed 14th street for some time. there was a business on the first level of that building. and living spaces on the top two floors. there were no injuries reported and no word yet on what caused this. >>> up in new york city three men were found shot to death in a car near columbia university this evening. police say the then were in their 20s or 30s, not believed to be students there. they believe the shooting happened in the car. they say because there were no bullet holes or broken glass. columbia university se

. >> reporter: i'm jackie bensen in bethesda. lights out. a four-way stop. so stop already. i'll have that story coming up. >>> trees down over here. power lines down over there. traffic signals, out up there. but you haven't seen anything yet. i'm pat collins, more storm stories from fairfax coming up. news 4.

we are going to take jackie bensen is on the phone in landover, maryland. what are the conditions around you right now? >> reporter: hello, my friend the conditions are pretty bad and worse about 20, 25 minutes ago. this was unbelievable. what happened was we are sitting outside prince george's county police headquarters. the winds come up, trees are going sideways. dust and bits of paper is moving like i have never seen it. i have covered hurricanes in florida. all of a sudden every light you could see anywhere, including the lights in the police headquarters building just went out. every traffic light, every street light every light in every house just boom they were gone. as result of the storms that are coming through here we have a report of a collapse of a gas station roof on annapolis road in bladensburg. public safety, fire department is busy now. there is a report of a house on fire possibly struck by lightning. there are metro stations the southern avenue metro station is without power or was as of about 15 minutes ago. the sky is covered with lig

news4's jackie bensen has the story. >> from the top of his appreciate head to the tips of his tiny toesrichard marvin johnson is limp sill perfect. he rests peacefully next to his mother after arriving in a great big hurry this afternoon. >> mar vest johnson, who has two older daughters says things began happening fast, squary fast. >> both hess father and i were very, very shocked at how fast he came. >> reporter: her hundred andre called 911. >> yes, they're 36. >> reporter: the call came into veteran 911 call taker brian fobs who now proudly wears this stork pin. >> he said, i seed head. i said, you do? the program talks you through birth. and i was trying to calm the father down. >> reporter: he dispatched an ambulance to the judgesen temple hills home. paramedics and firefights from station 29 listened to the dispatcher on their way. >> en route they told us the baby had already been delivered. >> yes, i was. i was very happy to see him. at that point, i don't think i could have made it to the car. >> babe richard has become something of a celebrity here. everything wants to hear o

i'm jackie bensen, because to you. >>> one person is in custody tonight. it happened after 11:00 this morning in the 2400 block of skyland place. a man was shot and then went to the barbershop where he worked around the corner to get help. someone inside called 911 for help. the victim is expected to recover. no word yet on -- >>> a standoff ended withen a arrest. it began around 5:00 this morning. police say the suspects barricaded himself inside the building. they shut down nearby roads including minnesota avenue, disrupting the morning rush hour. the suspect was wanted in connection to a deadly shooting hours earlier. at this point police have not identified the victim or the suspect. >>> and some breaking news right now. a house subcommittee has just voted to send a resolution to the full householding attorney general eric holder in contempt of progress. they say he has not produced documents they demanded into the gun-running sting operation. democrats say republicans are playing politics. >>> the case against jerry sandusky will be in the hands of a

jackie bensen joins us by phone from river dale with more on the story. >> reporter: hello, doreen, this happened fast and it was just horrifying. it was so hot out this afternoon, we understand four children, ages 4 to 10 were playing in one of those plastic baby pools you can buy at any discount store in the front yard of their home. they're playing in the water. all of a sudden a toyota four runner swerves to avoid a car that was stopped in front of it. the toyota glances off that car and loses control, goes right into the yard and into the baby pool where the children were playing. we're told the youngest child, who's a very small 4-year-old, was actually pinned again the side of the baby pool which are flexible, actually folded office where the tire hilt the pool. that child and three other children in the pool were taken to local hospitals. they are listed in stable to good condition right now. no life-threatening injuries, thank goodness a child in the suv was injured as well as two adults. they were also taken to the hospital. so a total of seven people taken to the hospital. we

reporting live from the wilson building, jackie bensen, news 4. >>> kwame brown, second d.c. council member facing charges. harry thomas jr. resigned amp pleading guilty for money used that was intended for a youth group. >>> and investigating mayor gray's 2010 campaign twoond aides charged for alleged campaign misconduct in connection with that probe. stape with news 4 for developments on kwame brown throughout this hour and online at nbcwashington.com. >>> police say they know who killed a man outside the southern avenue metro station but still don't know what made the gunman pull the trigger. officers arrested 32-year-old norman bonds of temple hill now charnged with first-degree murder in the death of howard debtor, shot around 9:30 in temple hills. it's unclear if the menu each other. officers are still looking for a motive. >>> police say a 3-year-old girl was sexually assaulted as a day-care center in prince william county. today's the suspect's mother, the owner of the day care, talked to pat collins about what happened. [ crying ] >> i am so sorry. i wouldn't hurt no

as jackie bensen reports hundreds are out of their homes this morning. >> reporter: residents in the seven-story apartmentble on rivdale road say it happened very fast and very unexpectedly as the storms winds slammed into prince george's county, the roof blew off. >> all i heard -- i was in a house. all you heard was a big boom. the windowed started shattering. then the next thing you know the lights started flickering. you could hear people screaming in the hallways. >> all the noise going on, the chaos. >> reporter: this is what is the situation here at the park tanglewood apartments. you can look here see in the parking lot, this is part of the roof. this is why everyone had to come out of here tonight when these wind came through because the roof was literally sheared off a good section of the building. the fire chief notes the damaging storm came exactly one week after vicious weather caused similar damage in the bladensburg area. >> in this case, a multifamilible so ovmultifamily building and the building next door lost its roofing material. we have building inspectors en rout

. >> jackie bensen, news 4. >> with a crime spree like this the burglars often live in or near the affectedeighborhood. montgomery county police were able to solve a rape case from 2003 with the help of dna. dna evidence linked david martinez to the rape and kidnapping of a silver spring woman nine years ago. the 23-year-old victim gotten out of her car when the man attacked her, threw her in his car and dropped her off at montgomery-knolls elementary school. the dna match was made when she was arrested for soliciting a prostitute in texas. >>> wal-mart broke ground on a controversial new super center in virginia. this after preservationists took them to court to battle them building near the battlefield. it's expected to create about 300 jobs. it's set to open next june. >>> a maryland work group will meet again tomorrow to hammer out details of a possible bill to expand gambling in the state. we already learned only some terms of the legislation. table games would be legalized. they would also get to keep a greater percentage of profits if it's built in prince george county. if the work g

and jackie bensen reports on how you can help. >> reporter: they can tell how you feel without even beingble to talk. it's good to have a cat friend. at the fairfax county animal shelter, there are a lot of cats that need a friend in a major way. the shelter is full to overflowing, and 100 cats are being fostered in private homes. the sign at the front desk is sobering. >> it's hard to the people in the kpaoucommunity coming in, a this time of year is when it happens. >> older cats carry the tag of senior superstar, and they are mellow, restful, and peaceful creatures. many have been given up because of the economy. >> many people's reasons for surrendering their cat is because they are moving, and sometimes they move into a place that doesn't allow cats and sometimes they are moving in with a family member or friend and there's not a space for the cat to go as well. >> the shelter has a special room where special adopters can spend one-on-one time with the cat that could become part of the family. >> now, this dear little one is way too young to be adopted, and the shelter has a lot of t