some people are angry, but others are happy about what president obama is doing. >> jeff patterson live in ybor city. thanks jeff. >>> here is breaking news to tell you about now. part of denver international airport has been evacuated due to a security threat. part of the west side in the main terminal. the east side of the terminal is still open and flights are continuing as normal. more information from this breaking news as soon as we get some new information. >>> heightened security around the world. on the weather front, things sure are nice. >> i don't know if the sky gets much bluer than it is today. when you start in march with the warm march sunshine, you know you will have a nice day. low 70s , bright sunshine. doesn't get much better. 73-degree is the current temperature. you can see out in polk county. bright sunshine like everywhere else. a bit of an easterly breeze. that will tell us with our changes coming the next couple of days. adding moisture back into the atmosphere. the plantation in crystal river, 67 degrees. a little cool here. and, the western part of citrus cou

jeff patterson, newschannel8. >>> a bill that protects members of the clergy who refuses to marry same sex couple is headed to the governor's desk. it provides protection for pastors from being sued for refusing same sex couples. >>> a bill with new rules for it also says the sale and donation of fetal remains from abortions is prohibited. the bill is headed to the state senate. >>> flying to cuba could be a little easier. several airlines are bidding to fly to havana. several could depart from tampa. >> reporter: georgiani chavez is making her first trip to cuba. like most americans, she chartered her flight, but that could soon change. several airlines hope to offer commercial flights to the island soon. several u.s. carriers applied to the u.s. department of transportation for u.s. cuba flight rights. u.s. and jet blue would have several flights a day out of tampa international if approved. cuba, only a few carriers from chosen airports will get to fly to havana, the mecca destination. >> it will be a competitive environment for winning the flights. there are only 20 slots allowed f

so interesting to see how this jeff patterson, thank you. hectic. it has been a rerelatively quiet spring break, but it is spring break time. we have not had a lot of disturbabances on pinellas county beaches. >> coming up next, we will show stays that way. >> also ahead, a wild video by viral. are nonot amused. >> looks fun though. we had a high temperature at tap pa international airport of 82 degrees. we had 40s in the forecast. i'll have your temperatures an the details about tomorrow's >> welcome back. believe it or not, we are approaching the peak of spring break. pinellas beaches have avoided marked years past. marked years past. and newschannel8's mark douglas joins us live in clearwater. . something is working out there mark. what is it? >> reporter: well, it's not the sun today, josh. pretty foggy out here in clearwater beach. but police say their proactive strategy is paying off here. clearwater beach is ground zero for the pinellas spring break. but it is also a no alcohol zone. officers are making sure it stays that way for better crowd

dark grainy video, that's it. >> jeff patterson says we are expecting hundreds of pages of documements to be released in this case. we expect the documents will contain depositions from bubba revealing. we will certainly pass along that information to you. >>> and brace yourselves, a loud weekend is in store at the macdill air force base. the thunder birds and the para commandos are set to perform. now the big question is, will the weather cooperate? for that answer, let's go to chief meteorologist steve jerve with your air forecast forecastst. >> reporter: we definitely have some challenges especially for saturday with the clouds and showers. maybe a thunderstorm mixed in. all day long, but that chance of showers does exist. take a look at the forecast for saturday. tempmperatures are fairly warmment the possibility of a passing shower generally. the air force and the patrollers are aware they can dealal with some type of weather out there for your knowledge. might be a good idea to bring along an umbrella or a slicker in case it decided to rain. sunday looks better. breezier and cool

jeff patterson is demanding answers tonight about what is being done about the long lines and he joins us live from the irs office in tampa. this is really frustrating to say the least. one woman told me they just need to fix this. >> reporter: yeah, good evening rod. you have seen the line here, the office is closed now. the line is gone. but it is more than likely the line will be back here tomorrow and people will be standing around for hours without getting help. at the irs office in tampa, people are angry. >> it is my third office today. >> reporter: lee denise jaquez said she had to show up with a photo id to prove who she is. there. i am from orlando. >> reporter: the long lines today, we called the irs to ask what is going on. >> as you know, we have been reporting about long lines at the irs office in tampa. can you tell me what is being done about that now? >> first of all, you know, we causes. >> reporter: we are not the only ones asking for answers. u.s. senator bill nelson wrote the commissioner of the irs asking him to respond appropriately to the long lines at the tampa

jeff patterson joining us live st. petersburg. jeff, hogan is a wrestling figure, always acts larger than life. how is he in the courtroom? >> reporter: yeah, good evening, keith, actually rather soft spoken today, black suit, black bandanna, silver cross, courthouse today the release of the sex tape ruined his life. >> i was aware of a security camera inside the house. >> reporter: heather clem is the ex-wife of radio personality, bubba the love sponge and the woman seen in a dark and grainy security camera sex tape with hulk hogan. jurors saw her in a recorded deposition. they say terry balea, hulk hogan in person. >> the character is larger than life. it's the all american character. >> reporter: hogan told the jury about his relationship with bubba the love sponge. >> i believed in my heart he was my best friend. >> reporter: he went onto tell the jury about his failing marriage with linda balea and how bubba and heather started talking about how heather wanted to have sex with him. hogan claims bubba approved of the sex. >> i

jeff patterson, news channel 8. >>> the boys and girls club of tampa bay received a record vinic and his wife announced they are donating $2.5 million to the organization. that money will now help renovate the rec center at winston park. the current facility includes tennis and basketball courts, but you know with vinic's hand in the mix a roller hockey rink will be included. >> just because we are in florida, because just because we are in tampa bay, florida, doesn't mean hockey isn't a great sport. we want everybody to experience it and enjoy it. >> this is the largest individual gift in the 90 year hist riv boys and girls club in tampa bay. it will be renamed. >>> chief meteorologist steve jerve joins us now. i am amazed you made it into work that the throngs of happy people didn't keep you from coming in. >> mean, man, especially yesterday. yesterday was just exceptional. >> today is a little bit warmer. we saw temperatures close to 80. i think 80s will be with us the rest of the week. if you get a chance to go out this evening in jupiter after 7 p.m., as soon as it turns 7 -- it

jeff patterson, newschannel8. >>> tonight, we are getting an takedown. coming up, we will show you more of this video shot by body cams on pasco deputies and why they say the man they arrested posesed a big risk to the >> pasco deputies see a man high on drugs leading them on a chase and it was caught on body cameras. tonight, jamel lanee showstous scary momements. >> reporter: christopher conti had no regard for human life as he sped through the streets of new port richey. >> there could have been a family coming home from practice, from picking up the kids at the day care and this individual would have absolutely destroyed them. >> reporter: it started around 6:30 when fhp tried to pull him over. deputies joined in as conti kept running. this deputy tries to stop him but gets hammered by his truck. deputies finally swarm the truck when stop sticks take out his tire and they wrestle him >> you have a person drugged out of his mind driving a 5,000- pound vehicle. that is like somebody running through a mall with a gun waving it. >> reporter: conti is fac

jeff patterson, news channel 8. >>> chief meteorologist steve jerve joins us now but check this out. look over there. that's the sunset from eagle 8 hd, photo journalist paul lamison shot that about 45 minutes ago. that's what it looks like out in the wild at night when we are in here working. >> did you see the shots that we took earlier from siesta key? the daytime is as nice as the nighttime. makes you want to go, doesn't it? >> stay focused. stay with me here. >> take like at our evening forecast if you're lucky enough to be outside, temperatures pleasant. 69 degrees this evening. a few clouds still on the warm side, maybe some high clouds but a lot of these should dissipate. few clouds in the forecast for tomorrow because a cold front is headed our way, not a big impact front but it may add some clouds and bring a slight chance of a few showers as they roll through the area. 73 degrees tomorrow afternoon, the front will pass and then the winds will shift more northerly and help to draw in slightly cooler air. we will feel that especially as we get into thursday morning. right no

jeff patterson live for us tonight. thanks, jeff. >>> 72 degrees, some high sun city center but overall a beautiful day. we have been talking about the warm temps in some of the inland areas and 70s have been fairly common but we have also seen low 80s in some of the inland areas, southwest winds now at 5 miles per hour. basically variable and light. a little bit of movement here with the tree but again at the lake club it looks very nice. astronaut scott kelly is coming home after a year in space at 8:05 p.m. the spacecraft undocking, it will deorbit at 10:32 and land in kazakhstan at 11:25 p.m. for the last year, spectacular photos, tweets sent from space just absolutely incredible, the aurora borealis, that's manhattan with central park right there. that was his last year in space and he's coming home today. kind of studying him, almost like a human guinea pig for a potential mars mission down the road. 69 degrees, a few clouds, still warm and again we are talking about mostly high clouds here for us. tomorrow mornin

as jeff patterson shows us, a ticket to get isn't easy. >> in just a few days mario and his father will be in the stadium to watch president obama throw out the first pitch in a baseball game between the tampa bay rays and the cuban national team. >> it's going to be historic in its own right. >> getting tickets for the game is very difficult for some. >> i've had this scheduled for several weeks. >> steve has been taking tour groups to cuba for more than 20 years. on my last trip to havana we spoke about the fact that the rays and the president would soon be becoming. >> how difficult has it been to get tickets? >> so far impossible. the rays said they have no tickets at all. scrambling to get tickets but so jeff patterson, news channel 8. >>> coming up, president obama how many here and in the island are hoping his trip marks the start of change. >>> when president obama arrives in cuba today it will be the two countries normalize relations. anticipating the possibilities this new era will bring there. [ music ] >> dimae has arrived and liveing her dream. >> when you're a jazz singer

jeff patterson, news channel 8. >> the hero corps receives funding from the national association to protect children. but the internships for the heroes are not funded at this time. >>> sunny, warm weather will welcome spring breakers to clearwater beach. several colleges and universities are starting spring break right now. and a few students are enjoying time away and hitting clearwater beach. beach parking is limited but there's an alternative, the clearwater ferry. >>> the city is subsidizing the for $2 each way you can get to clearwater beach and not worry about finding a parking spot. >> they plan to have extra officers on duty to keep an eye on the spring break crowd. >>> if you've had the urge to slip and slide down a city street, you're in luck. an event that brings a giant water slide to different cities is coming to tampa. on may 14th. north boulevard will transform into a giant water slide. the party starts at 9 a.m. and you can find a slide show of previous events and wfla.com. >>> and check out the news channel 8 boat show. the event started today at the florida state fairgrou

jeff patterson is telling us how it will happen. good timing. >> reporter: incredible timing. mario nunez's father was last in cuba 1945. this month mario and his 87- >> my dad is 87 years young. i like to say he's strong like bull. >> reporter: mario nunez is a tampa native and has a facebook page call tampa native and his father was born in ebor city. >> we are descendents that came from havana and through key west and now in ebor city and helped to develop the cigar industry. >> mario's father was in cuba when he was 17 and mario decided it was time for his father to return. >> it is going to be emotional trip. >> reporter: they will be there to witness history. >> the fact that we are going to be in the stadium partaking in the baseball game that will be historic in its own right, and then to have our president throwing out the first pitch, i don't know. what could be better than that. >> what could be better? if they could extend the trip a few days. the rolling stones will put on >> three more days. three more days you could be there with the rolling stones. >> don't thi

jeff patterson, newschannel8. >>> the jury may begin deciding the hulk hogan sex tape trial as soon as tomorrow. hogan whose legal name is terry bollea is suing the wewebsite for posting a sex tape with him with the ex-wife of bubba the love sponge. closing arguments are expected tomorrow. >>> it is a move in were in the city of tampa voted to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana. chip osowski is live at police headquarters. tpb is behind this? >> reporter: yeah, it basically gives officers here a little bit more latitude if they catch someone with 20 grams of marijuana or less. they can issue a civil citation. but make no mistake. some offenders will still be going to jail. >> marijuana is not a harmless drug. >> reporter: the intent of the ordinance is to help young people who make what they are calling a mistake. >> we have an opportunity to do what is right and what is good. >> reporter: in the past, you were charged with a misdemeanor less. potentially faced jajail timeme or lost your license and certainly a date with the judge. today's city council meeting, pot is a disservic

news channel 8's jeff patterson joins us live. people seem fascinated with this trial based on the social media response, jeff. >> reporter: yes, yes, they do, jen. today's testimony can best be tmi.

jeff patterson is telling us how it will happen. good timing. >> reporter: incredible timing. mario nunez's father was last in cuba 1945. this month mario and his 87-

news channel 8's jeff patterson joins us live. people seem fascinated with this trial based on the social media response, jeff. >> reporter: yes, yes, they do, jen. today's testimony can best be tmi. and nsfw. not safe for work. >> in a recorded deposition, former gawker editor a.j. delorio told the court about getting an anonymous dvd showing hulk hogan having sex with an unknown woman. he told the court he found it amusing, but also newsworthy. >> i was thinking that if we can show some of the sex that was taking place, it would give a little more excitement to the stuff that was already in the public record. >> reporter: also on the stand today hulk hogan's attorney, who first talked about trying to find out who leaked the tape. >> if there was a sex tape out there, i felt i should try to find it and essentially put a bullet in it. >> reporter: but numerous websites were putting up still hogan with the ex-wife of bubba the love sponge. >> tmz was among the first to show still images of the tape, but they never published it. the

as jeff patterson shows us, today the jury heard frorom "bubba the love sponge's" ex-wife about heher open sex life. >> showed a videotape of myself and mr. bollea. >> reporter: soft spoken and wearing a modest white shirt, heather clem testified by videotaped deposition in the hulk hogan sex tape trial. the radio personality's ex-wife claims she didn't know she was camera having sex with terry bollea, who is better known to the world as hulk hogan, but later admitted bubba recorded her having sex with otother men. stilill, she maintains she didn't know she and bollea were being recorded and bollea also didn't know about the recording. >> i immediately asked for it to stop. >> reporter: the trial is expected to wrap up late thursday. the jury may begin their deliberations then. jeff pattersonon, news channel 8. >>> ifif you thought virtual reality was virtually here, you will have to wait a little bit longer. that story coming up. >>> also ahead, apple's battle in court has other companies cranking up their encryption. find out which app will allow you to make voice calls that no >>>

jeff patterson, newschannel8. >>> the $55 million verdict in the erin andrews peephole trial is sparking a lot of conversation. in particular, about hotel room safety. newschannel8's jamel lanee spoke to bay area hotel guests about the type of security measures they hope to see in the wake of the case. >> reporter: linda is in tampa on business from new york. her constant traveling keeps her in a hotel. >> as a preferred member, a lot of the hotels, i kind of leverage that to make sure i'm in a secure part of the hotel >> reporter: for her, the erin andrews trial was an eye opener it. >> it makes you think of the possibility of what can happen. >> reporter: not only does she consider her safety, but the safety of her lieutenants who she is responsible for booking rooms for. guest satisfaction is a top priority. >> we have to now retrain our employees employees to know this is the one time it is okay to say no to a guest. >> reporter: jamel lanee, newschannel8. >>> florida lawmakers are working to protect people from thieves using skimmers. a bill headed to governor rick scott's desk incr

jeff patterson joins us live with this astonishing story. the making. bring us up to speed. >> reporter: good evening josh. this sounds like a movie script. since it is la and oj simpson,

jeff patterson joins us live in tampa this afternoon. sounds like a lot of folks are going to this historical game. >> reporter: yes, good evening jenn. a lot of people who want to get in won't be able to. a lot of people love baseball. they love history. but this is proving to be a hard ticket to come by. >> it will be an emotional trip. >> repororter: in a few days, mario nunez and his father will be on the trip of a lifetime. they will be in the stadium to watch president obama throw out the first pitch in a baseball game between the tampa bay rays and the cuban national team. >> the fact that we will be in the stadium partaking in the baseball game that will be historic in its own right. and then, to have our president throwing out the first pitch, i don't know. what could be better than that? tickets for the game is proving >> yeah. i have had this scheduled for several weeks. >> reporter: steve rupert has been taking tour groups to cuba more than 20 years. on my last trip to havana, rupert and i spoke about the fact the rays and th

jeff patterson joins us live with this astonishing story. the making. bring us up to speed. >> reporter: good evening josh. this sounds like a movie script. since it is la and oj simpson, the big question, was this knife used in the murder of nicole brown simpson and ronald goldman? who can forget the slow chase and the trial of the century? oj simpson accused of killing his beautiful wife nicole brown simpson and a friend. simpson was found not guilty. but wait, now a retired la police officer has come forward with an incredible story. saying a construction worker gave him a knife he claimed was simpson's estate. >> we need to vet that. >> reporter: lapd held a news conference confirming they are looking at the knife. >> the investigators will continue to look at this. that item has been recovered by robbery homicide investigators. it is being treated as we would all evidence. >> reporter: but can they do former fbi special agent todd foster is now an attorney in tampa. >> if they find anything, can they do anything? >> it depends on what is on the kni

jeff patterson, sounds like a wild day of testimony in court. >> reporter: no question. the central question here is the right to privacy. and he maintains there is a difference between himself and the character hulk hogan. >> how are you feeling today terry? >> i need a cup of coffee. >> reporter: he went back to the witness stand talking about the impact the release of a sex >> i still felt like i was turning on my side over this thing. it changed me. >> reporter: gawker attorneys played an interview of hogan on the howard stern radio program and repeatedly asked bollea why he didn't stop stern from asking about the sex tape. >> i was on an entertainment show and i had to be an entertainer so i kept going. >> reporter: he revealed there were many offers for that tape. >> we had calls from vivid entertainment who does all these pornographic films and said there is an open checkbook. >> reporter: gawker attorneys pointed out that as hulk hogan, he talked about the sex tape in numerous interviews. bollea pointed out as the character hulk hogan, he often gives up his priva