kai jackson explains that today the president stepped in again trying to squash the uproar. >> reporter: today a contrite president obama clarifies remarks he made after the arrest of harvard scholar henry lewis gates. >> to the extent that my choice of words didn't illuminate but rather contributed to more media frenzy, i think that was unfortunate. >> reporter: the president says he even spoke with sergeant james crowley, an officer with the cambridge police department. >> my impression of him was that he was an outstanding police officer, and a good man, and that was confirmed in the phone conversation. >> reporter: now cambridge law enforcement officers, even the baltimore fop, stand in support of officer james crowley. >> yesterday we were pleased to learn that after his own intensive investigation, the cambridge police department also expressed its support for sergeant crowley, clearing him of any wrong doing. >> before the facts are in, kai, i think people need to step back, you know, have a breather, and sort things out. >> reporter: earlier in the week the president said this a

i am kai jackson. we will have that story coming up. >>> once again, a no-go for the space shuttle endeavour. i am drew levinson at the kennedy space center. we will explain why. >>> and sharon gibala here canwall traffic control. still no delays but a -- here with wjz traffic control. still no delays but some debris in the roads. >>> go and buy your safe toy. our favorite gadget guy steve greenburg has some summer tips, some summer fun, some summer gifts that you have got to see to believe. could you handle a waterproof video camera? and what you are looking at right there is going to blow your mind. you stay tuned. get your wallets out by the way. the morning edition continues right after this. >>> good morning, maryland. now don scott, marty bass, breaking news with mary bubala, your first warning weather and wjz traffic control with sharon gibala. it's wjz, maryland's news station. hello, again, at the bottom of the hour, it clicks over 6:30. it continue to be one nice day start even traffic wise a

kai action jackson. the orioles, 15-20 on the road. that's the worst record in the american league, but they won today. we'll tell you about it as soon as we get ba >>> stan talking about the orioles record. still has big stars so the components are there. >> potential is the key word. today on this given sunday they prevent the white sox from sweeping them out of the windy city for the weekend. top 5th was crazy, full of wild pitches, bases loaded walks, hit batters, orioles runs, orioles on top 4-1 right there. greg zahn was three for four today. that's morris scoring. 5-1. jeremy guthrie brought his a-game today. he gave up two runs on three hits over eight. o's beat the chi sox 10-2, refusing to be swept. after the game, greg san and amber theoharis. >>> meantime, at that time british open, sorry, tape problems, so close, yet so close and far away for 59-year- old tom watt so. there he is missing his final putt in regulation. that would have made him the oldest player to win a major. then stewart cink sank two birdies to win by six

i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm sally thorner. here's what people are talking about today. >> michael jackson memorialized. a gold casket carries the king of pop to the staples center, where some of the fans of the biggest names in music pay tribute. the world says goodbye to michael jackson. our coverage begins with terry teri okita, reporting from los angeles. ♪ [ music ] >> reporter: michael jackson got a sendoff fit for the king of pop. jackson's brothers, wearing a single, sequined glove, helped wheel his golden-draped casket to the stage. there were tributes to the life of the pop star. ♪ [ music ] >> reporter: queen latifah spoke on behalf of all of jackson's fans. you believed in michael, and he believed in you. he made you believe in yourself. >> reporter: motown legend barry gordy brought the crowd to their feet. >> i think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived. [ applause ] >> reporter: the family held a private funeral at forest lawn cemetery. los angeles police shut down part of the freeway for the moto

now, complete coverage continues, with sally thorner, kai jackson, and tim williams. and sports with mark viviano. on wjz13, maryland's news station. ♪ ooh, yeah wiggle your day with jell-o sugar-free gelatin. ♪ ooh, yeah it's 10 tasty calories... loved by lips and hips alike. ♪ shake it, shake it, ooh, yeah ♪ jell-o. >>> devastating explosion at a chicago bio diesel plant injuries two people and sends debris flying. the explosion was ignited when chemicals were being mixed this morning. some buildings evacuated after a chemical cloud was seen. two workers were hurt. one in serious condition. a hazmat team remains on the site assessing the situation at this hour. >>> buy a truck, get a free ak 47. that's the offer made by a missouri car dealership. as a part of the sales promotion, those who buy a pickup truck at max motors get a voucher redeemable for the assault rifle. the dealership gave away vouchers for the price of a small handgun last year. >>> a rousing welcome for president obama at the meeting for the naacp. >> now i'm honored to give him the best sprue intr

. >> i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm sally thorner. here's what people are talking about. >> new today, videos of michael jackson's scalp burns. >> reporter: well, kai, those burns he suffered required several surgeries and painful skin grafts. also marks the first time jackson started using painkillers. >> reporter: this shows the moment michael jackson's life changed. he was filming a pepsi commercial in 1984. in the first take, everything goes smoothly. but watch the sixth take. the pyrotechnics ignite while he's still at the top of the stairs. incredibly, he continues to dance for a full 10 seconds, each as flames burn away his hair and scalp. j. randy berely was in the audience that night. >> michael went down. and then people started saying, he's been burned, he's been burned. >> reporter: the severity of the burns are visible at the top of his head as he's being rushed off stage. it's believed the second and third-being burns on his scalp and face led to his addiction to painkillers. >> this was when he decided it was not only ok

i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm sally thorner. here's what people are talking about. >>> a chaotic scene. it's forced to evacuate after a suspect being chased by police runs right into the building. jessixica kartalija has more on what happened. >> reporter: hi, everybody at home. a very active scene here in baltimore. police on every corner, surrounding the school. that s.w.a.t. team, we're told, still inside the building at this point. police have been searching since that suspect ran into the school, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of children. >> reporter: as the s.w.a.t. team prepares to enter her daughter's school -- >> the doors should always be secured. i was always afraid of this. >> reporter: a frantic mother fears the worst. just before 10:00 this morning, police pulled a man aside for questioning on northwood lakewood street. >> at some point, the guy became spooked. and we later learned it might possibly be a warrant out for his arrest. at that time, the suspect got up and ran toward this school behind me. >> they

i'm sally thorner. >> i'm kai jackson. here's what people are talking about. >> updating the breaking news. just a short time ago, we learn more about the death of ravens quarterback steve mcnair. this comes as tennessee police release new information about his death. eyewitness news continue toss monitor this story. >> reporter: just a little more than an hour ago, police did confirm, they believe this is a murder-suicide. it is based on pretty overwhelming physical evidence and now a pretty strong motive. >> reporter: former ravens quarterback steve mccare, killed by his -- mcnair, killed by his girlfriend.

. >> i'm kai jackson. here's what people are talking about. >>> while michael jackson's doctors are under scrutiny today, big time. and possible charges are on the horizon. patty kaufman has the shocking report. >>> ever since michael jackson's death, there has been an undertorrent of criticism. >> i suspect there's foul play somewhere. >> reporter: now, tmz reports that police have concluded that dr. conrad murray, who was with him when he died, may have administered a powerful dose of propicol. vials were found inside his home. and police have already talked to the district attorney's office about possible homicide charges. murray's attorney says he's been cooperating with authorities. and he's not the only doctor under scrutiny. >> coroner's officials had to wade through the media. dr. arthur klein is the beverly hills dermatologist who treated michael jackson. >> dr. klein has cooperated with us extensively. >> he is cooperating now. the coroner was frustrated because he had asked arthur klein to ante

i'm sally thorner. >> i'm kai jackson.e's what people are talking about. >>> police say 83-year-old doris cook was in the

i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm sally thorner. here's what people are talking about. >> a flight into bwi landed unexpectedly, when a hole rips into the cabin ceiling. mike hellgren has the latest from the ntsb today. >> a real scare for passengers, but we're told they remain calm, as flight 69 made that emergency landing. right now, the ntsb, southwest and boeing, the plane's manufacturer, are all looking into what caused that hole. >> reporter: if you look closely at the top of this southwest plane, you can see the small hole that cause today to make an emergency landing at yeager airport in charleston, west virginia. the flight was on its way to baltimore, with 126 passengers and five crewmembers on board, when the hole developed in the fuselage. >> when the hole happened, it obviously depressurized the cabin. obviously what would happen is that the oxygen would come. when that happens, the captain has to take the plane to a safe altitude. and then we made the option to divert and get that airplane on the ground as quickly as p

kai jackson explains what happens. >> reporter: that's -- right, route 32 is dangerous. in howard county, this claimed the lives of a mother and her son. her 13-year-old son was a passenger when kim was trying to make a left turn from river road and was hit by the flatbed. >> my husband is a worship pastor at friendship church. >> reporter: that tragedy, other accidents and fears of accidents packed this room with residents. the state highway administration, howard county government and others are looking for ways to make it safer. at issue is a 3.2 mill stretch of road between route 99 and the carroll county line. wayne live say knows that well. >> i think it's dangerous. the county has grown. >> reporter: some residents say the traffic is so bad, you can't get on it during the morning. >> what needs to be done? what would help? >> they've made two lanes all the way up to 99. if they continued that north, that would help. >> reporter: among the ideas, the width of lanes, constructing bypass and turn lanes and installing signs, marking and lighting. >> if we don't come u

. >> i'm kai jackson. here's what people are talking about. >>> new developments today in the controversy of an arrest of a harvard professor. massachusetts police say they are demanding an apology from president obama about the arrest of mr. gates. >> the law enforcement is making a show of force behind the white police officer who arrested a black scholar. >> we completely support sergeant crowley and the fine men and women in the cambridge police department. >> reporter: officers arrested professor henry gates at his home last week, after responding to a call last week. president obama amped up the debate, when he called the police department's actions stupid. supporters of sergeant james crowley want an apology. >> i think the president should make an apology to all law enforcement personnel who took offense to this. >> to the extent that my words added to more media frenzy, i think that was unfortunate. what i would like to do is make sure everybody steps back for a moment, recognizes that these are t

complete coverage continues now with kai jackson now, with kai jackson. at wjz.com. he has more footage of what he shot at his house, which is not far from my house. >> we do live close. i grabbed my camera and headed outside. first thing i noticed was hail and the mulch outside of the house. but i found this tree snapped inalph. and around the corner, the entire street was closed to the numerous downed trees. and you could could see where one each fell into a power line. the storm was so bad when it 50 hit, i actually ran to the basement, fearing that it could have been a tornado. fortunately, it was not. when the storm passed, after the storm passed, of course, went back outside and saw what the damage was. and everyone in the neighborhood is kind of assessing that right now. if you want to see more on the video diary that i shot, go to wjz.com. >> way to go, kai. nice video. nicely shot. >>> a lot of people are saying those who lived in the area did live through that. and there were scary moments. really damage out there. >>> we have severe storm damage. wind gust

i am kai jackson. i will have that story coming up. >>> and i am sharon gibala with wjz traffic control. area roadways, we are already looking at a few accidents and a few delays. we will talk about those straight ahead. send it over to marty. >>> a new season of "big brother." julie chen talks to don and we find out we are kind of doing a high school thing. we will have collection. okay. jules going to explain it all. i would like to live in that house minus the cameras. you stay tuned. the morning edition continues >>> good morning, maryland. don scott, marty bass, breaking news with mary bubala, your first warning weather and wjz traffic control with sharon gibala. it is wjz, maryland's news station. >> it is 6:30 in our string of nice july day starts continues to be followed by some more. another nice day apparently and traffic is more messed up. sharon will have details after marty's first warning weather. >> let's look at the forecast. an easy job this day. a ton of sun. 77 at lunch going for a h

i am kai jackson reporting. now back to you. >> thank you very much, kai.rick mason and mcnair were extremely close and the two played together for 11 seasons, 9 in tennessee and it here. >>> chicago police have arrested the people they say was behind the horrible scam inside a historic cemetery. three grave diggers and the owner unearthed hundreds of bodies and dumped them in a mass grave so they can resell the plots. >>> police in michigan continue to investigate the deaths of five young people killed when a train plowed into their vehicle. witnesses told police they watched as the car drove around the down warning gate and into the path of the oncoming train. the impact of the collision crushed the car and pushed it way down the tracks, the five dead in the car range in age from 14 to 21. >>> one and you are done. the maryland transit administration makes a major change to its cell phone policy. any mta driver or operator caught driving or texting while manning the controls will be fired. eyewitness news and mary bubala live on the story. good morning on

kai jackson reporting. back to you. >> nasa has yet to issue an official statement on what did take place. >>> turning to sports, the orioles continue to struggle as they continue to swing up and down the west coast. the team took to safeco field to take on the mariners last night and while the birds would struggle at the plate, the mariners didn't seem to share that problem. looks like a nice night at safeco field, but the birds lose 5-0. same two teams out there late our time tonight. there is the sunshine streaming in to safeco. would have been just -- getting closer to sunset out there their time. game starts here around 10:00, i believe. >> i think. >> and -- as i said before. what a shame they couldn't be playing baseball here. >> what a beautiful night it was. >> all righty. so now we have got -- ron joining us. good morning, ron. >> another lovely morning too. >> reporter: good morning. i heard that story about the meteor. >> yeah. >> mr. hankie. >> yes. >> if that meteor would have been named panky

mta police says there a video showing the teens being hit by a train, but as kai jackson reports, therere still a lot of unanswered questions. >> reporter: the afternoon of july 5 changed two baltimore county families forever. the bodies of kyle wankmiller and connor peterson were discovered. >> we discovered a videotape that was on the front end of our train. >> reporter: questions about how the friends died have been answered. the mta says surveillance video from a train show the teens were walking north on southbound tracks when they were hit from behind by a train. >> we found out that in fact the individuals were struck by one of our light rail trains as they were walking inside the tracks. >> reporter: the mta says their surveillance video has determined that the teenagers were walking north on southbound tracks. and probably weren't expecting a northbound train on those tracks. under normal circumstances, it probably would not have been. >> you have to understand there was a sequence of events that happened. initially we had a report of some debris being on the track. and because

kai jackson explains how you can cash in. >> reporter: the u.s. economy has been struggling, and americans are feeling it. now there may be a silver lining or even a rainbow amidst the clouds of money woes. >> i think whatever they need to do to stimulate the economy, great. >> reporter: meet the government program called cash for clunkers. it gives drivers money to buy new vehicles and struggling dealerships theoretically will make sales. here is how it works. >> in the nutshell, a government initiative take the clunkers, gas guzzlers off the treat and replace them with ecofriendly vehicles with better gas mileage and also safer. >> reporter: government will give nut form of a rebate between $3500 or $4500 toward the purchase or lease of a new car. you have to buy it between july 1 and november 1. some are concerned like the mortgage crisis that buyers may default on loans. >> the federal government can give them that money and they can't able to make -- if they are able to make the car payment, that's okay. if you can't make the car payment, the

kai jackson has more on this. good afternoon. >> reporter: good afternoon, don. that service was held in nashville, but friends and teammates from baltimore traveled the distance to show their support. those who spoke focused not on how steve mcnair died but on how he touchdown the lives of others with his accomplishments and charity work. receiver derrick mason took to the podium to honor his friend and former teammate with a message of hope for mcnair's wife and children. >> michelle, trent, and tyler, the baltimore ravens oregon, the owner -- [ indiscernible ] send their love and prayers to you. >> reporter: steve mcnair was killed july 4 inside a nashville condo. investigators determined his 20- year-old girlfriend killed mcnair and then herself. don, back to you. >> thank you very much. police believe kazemi was having financial problems and suspected mcnair of having another girlfriend. there is another memorial planned for mcnair. it will take place tomorrow in mississippi where he was born. >>> there is no other way to say it, it is another beautiful day

kai jackson is outside m&t bank stadium where mcnair played for two seasons. >> reporter: that's right, an emotional ceremony in nashville, tennessee as family, relatives, and friends said good-bye to mcnair. much of that love came from right here in baltimore, where he finished his career. ♪ don't give up, stay in the fight ♪ >> reporter: shed tears and shared love of a man credit weed a fighting spirit and big heart. an amotional memorial service for former nfl quarterback steve mcnair in nashville, tennessee. >> michelle, hold on to god. be strong, be of good courage. steve was a beautiful person. >> reporter: many spoke about mcnair's off the fieldwork. he donated thousands to children in need. in one case, children's who didn't have christmas presents. >> within 30 minutes, gift cards from wal-mart and target just started flowing throughout our gym for those 70 kids. you should have saw those fourth quarter heroics come to life again, thanks to stee. >> reporter: ravens receiver derrick mason traveled to nashville to honor his friend who he played with in tennessee and baltimore.

kai jackson spoke with stranded travelers. >> that's right, those passengers have now gotten to their destination as bge crews have worked to repair that broken gas main. skyeye chopper 13 is high above the north point area in east baltimore near the county line. a large natural gas leak shuts down vehicle and train traffic. when the fire department arrived they heard hissing coming from a six-inch line, and the leaves you see are being blown around by the gas. >> we understand that crews were on the scene performing excavation work to repair a sidewalk when they accidentally struck a natural gas line. >> reporter: all passenger and freight rail service was stopped and a safety perimeter was established. the trains backed up, making for a railway traffic jam. once the trains were halted, because of the gas leak, that effect was felt immediately by passengers. here at baltimore's penn station. >> just with baltimore they told us the train was going to be stopping at penn indefinitely, and they didn't know for how long. >> reporter: eventually the trains were allowed to run but the dama

kai jackson explains neighbors can't feel safe until the shooter is locked up. >> reporter: that's right. while police are looking for the killers, customers and employees around here are looking for better security. the pain of the murder is still fresh inside buddy hill's liquors, his choir noticeably empty. baltimore county police are still looking for the killers. >> we are working with the baltimore county police department, and we believe they're working diligently around the clock trying to find out who they are. >> i don't like it, but somebody got killed, and it's sad because they don't have much security. >> he's kind of like my second father. >> reporter: amos is determined to make sure kang didn't die in vain. >> hopefully i can take this to the landlord and say, look this is what has happened, a man has lost his life. >> they're looking for more security here, and you know what, i think we need it. >> reporter: employees had a buddy hill liquors believe there are adequate cameras inside the storks but it's out here where they believe security really needs to be approved. >>

eyewitness news is live in the newsroom and kai jackson explains. >> reporter: cash for clunkers is designed to help drivers and car dealerships but some say there are still kinks to work out of the plan. the u.s. economy has been struggling, and americans are feeling it. now there may bea silver lining or even a rainbow amidst the clouds of money woes. >> i think whatever they need to do to sometime you arthritis economy, great. >> reporter: meet the government program called cash for clunkers. it gives drivers money to buy new vehicles and struggling dealerships, theoretically, would make sales. >> in a nutshell, it's a government initiative where they want to take the gas guzzlers off the street and replace them with eco-friendly vehicles that give better gas mileage and share. >> reporter: the government will give you a rebate from $3500 to $4500. you have to buy from july 1st to november 1st. some are concerned, like the mortgage crietsz that buyers may default on loans. >> the fed giving that money, not able to make the car payments, it's okay, but if you cannot deal with the car payme

kai jackson spoke with one man who says he caught it on his camera. >> reporter: that's right, the baltimore county man says it was a meteor that flew across the sky and only time will tell if he is right. mike hankie owns a software company in baltimore. that's his profession. but astronomy is his passion. >> very addictive. ask my wife about that. the vastness of it, just the infinity and something that could you spend a lifetime studying and never even scratch the surface on it. >> reporter: yet last night this self-described amateur astronomer hit the mother lode. >> and i heard a big noise outside, a boom, then my house shook a little bit, which was strange, but with 4th of july and everything, i just chocked it up as fireworks. >> reporter: after the boom, he went outside to check his camera connected to his high- powered tell he scope and realized it captured this image of what hankie believes is a meteor. >> this morning i got a text message about a meteor that had flown other baltimore. i looked at the picture again and was like, oh my this is the meteor. >> reporter: adding of lid

. >> i'm kai jackson. ititard to breathe. but now that i'm breathing better with advair... i can enjoy the zoo with my grandkids. (announcer) for people with copd including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, great news. advair helps significantly improve lung function. while nothing can reverse copd, advair is different from most other medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator working together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair

i'm kai jackson. adam may is off. here's what people are talking about tonight. >>> a very busy night. we have several breaking stories but let's begin in anne arundel county where police remain on the scene of a serious accident. the location is still meadows drive and jacobs road. that's where police had pulled over a vehicle, and before the traffic was finished, the driver pulled back into traffic, causing the crash. five adults and four children were hurt. three adults were taken to shock trauma with serious and critical injuries. the children suffered nonlife- threatening injuries. that's what we know at this time. >>> city homicide detectives are on the scene in east baltimore where two people were shot a short time ago. one adult male has died. and on south kerry street a firefighter is injured, battling flames and smoke. firefighters rescued two men inside a three-story brick row house that caught fire. >> they found two victims inside. one male victim who was unconscious, nonresponsive, in respiratory arrest.

kai jackson just spoke with police. >> reporter: that's right, denise. let's give you a frame of reference. we are right across the street from the goddard space flight center at graney belt road in prince george's county. we want to underscore, prince george's county police were not involved in this shooting. that needs to be said. nevertheless, there was a police-involved shooting in prince george's county. it claimed several victims including a 12-year-old girl. shots are fired around 7:00 thursday night at the gates of cipriano apartments. police say it began with an argument inside the apartment of an off-duty police officer with ft. myers in northern virginia. >> during the argument, the off- duty officer left the apartment in an attempt to call for assistance. at that point, the roommate was able to locate the officer's off-duty weapon and subsequently ran out into the parking lot and began randomly firing the we haven't. >> reporter: police say an off- duty u.s. capitol police officer just happened to be driving through the complex, saw the commo

tonight kai jackson explains what investigators think went wrong.>> reporter: well, vic, the video solves the mystery of how the young men were killed, but the question of why they were on the tracks remains unclear. the afternoon of july 5th changed two baltimore county families forever. the bodies of kyle wankmiller and connor peter son, both 17, were found near the lutherville light rail station. >> it's a tragic, tragic thing. >> we've discovered a videotape equipped on the front end of our train. >> now questions about how the friends died have been answered. surveillance video from a train shows the teens walking north on southbound tracks when they were hit from behind by a train. >> we found out that, in fact, the individuals were struck by one of our light rail trains as they were walking inside the tracks. >> reporter: the mta says their surveillance video has determined that the teenagers were walking north on southbound tracks and probably weren't expecting a northbound trains on those tracks. under normal circumstances, it probably woul

kai jackson explains why the group feels the need to send out a warning. >> reporter: denise, the antiabortion group defend life says it is putting law enforcement on notice that it plans to protest. the group says it is also going to sue. the maryland state police, the harford county sheriff's office and others for violating members constitutional rights last year. they called it it the face the truth tour. members of defend life, a group of anti-abortion protesters, took their fight to harford county in 2008. >> the participants conducted their protest lawfully, carefully, and respectfully. >> reporter: that fight ended with 16 adults and two juveniles arrested. members say they were arrested because the public was offended by graphic posters of aborted babies. now they announce they're suing the officials for violating their constitutional rights. >> they denied them permission to call their parents until after midnight and did not release any of them until the following day. >> reporter: in a news release dated august 1st, 2008, police say members of the group were arrested not for display

. >> and i'm kai jackson, denise is off. >> a number of homes are damaged and trees are down. and eyewitness news is live with the coverage and tim williams and push burn have more. >>> we're -- bernadette woods and tim williams have more. >>> the worse damage is around thinks burg and we've had wind damage in frederick and montgomery and howard county. near to lass city highway, there's a free down -- free down and wind gusts up to 74 miles per hour in frederick county. here's the thunderstorms as they made their way through the state. we had severe weather through here and we had warnings in affect. they were in affect when the dodge was created in carroll county. we don't have warnings with this batch of thunderstorms, but we have thunderstorms through salisbury and that's out to the west and the western shores. all of this is moving east and the beaches could get another round or two. things aren't that bad and for the updates on the watches and warnings, her's tim. >>> we'll continue to monitor the warnings through the afternoon. and these are the watches and affects unti

. >>> hello i'm kay jackson. >> i'm sally thorner. >>> it is as dangerous as being drunk, using a cell phone behind the wheel. now is shocking claims that a government agency withheld research on the dangers. that information may have been able to save lives. >> what are you doing? >> reporter: driving and talking on the phone can increase an accident by 3 or 4 times and the administration has known it for years. even hands free driving can be dangerous. >> that risk is equal to drunk driving. >> reporter: some problems go back to 2002. two groups say the government kept the information private and misled the public and said that driving hands free is safe. >> the fact they can withhold data and research on public safety is a disaster. >> reporter: the center for auto safety and public as advocacy group wanted the information released. they claimed there were political reasons for withholding the research. back then many states were starting to create the distracted driver laws. some in congress warned not to lobby over the issue or risk billions in funding. they point to the administr

. >> and i'm vic carter, in for kai jackson. here's what we continue to talk about. >> baltimore city councilwoman helen holton and businessman john patterakis have been indicted on criminal charges. pat warren joins us with the very late evaluate. >> this stems from the indictment of ron lipscomb. >> reporter: council wment helen holton is charged with two counts of violating campaign finance laws. charges before were dismissed and she told wjz that she was relieved. >> all of this is not over yet. there is still a window of time for the state prosecutor's office to appeal. >> reporter: now, it's come back to life. developer ron lipscomb is the mayor's ex-boyfriend,

. >> i'm kai jackson. >>> updating the breaking news we first told you about at 4:00, an apparent drowning. captain mike hellgren perry -- mike perry joins us with the details. >> reporter: firefighters received a call in the 8700 block of -- in the dundalk area of baltimore county. a man jumped off a pier into the water, then

as kai jackson explains, now president obama explains he could have used a better choice of words when speaking about the incident. >> reporter: today, a contrite president obama clarifies remarks he made after the arrest of harvard scholar henry louis gates. >> to the extent that my choice of words didn't illuminate. but rather contributed to more media frenzy. i think that was unfortunate. >> reporter: the president even spoke with sergeant james crowley. >> my impression of him was that he was an outstanding police officer. and a good man. and that was confirmed in the phone conversation. >> reporter: now, cambridge law enforcement officers, even the baltimore s.o.p., stand in support of officer james crowley. >> yesterday, we were pleased to learn that after its own intensive investigation, the cambridge police department also expressed its support for sergeant crowley, clearing him of any wrongdoing. >> before the facts are in, kai, i think people need to step back, you know, have a breather, and you know, sort things out. >> reporter: earlier in the week, the president said this

kai jackson has more on this story. >> reporter: pentagon health officials want to ban tobacco use by troops and stop them from being sold. they found that 37% of soldiers used tobacco, a habit that cost the pentagon nearly $850 million a year. the report also found that soldiers used tobacco as a stress reliever. one in three servicemen and women used tobacco. the study recommends a phase-in band ban on tobacco over a period of up to 20 years. >> the hospital -- report also recommends that the pentagon require all newly enlisted officers to be tobacco free. >>> it's nearly impossible to top this july weather we're having. eyewitness news has weather and traffic together. bob is here now with the updated numbers. >> even though the dew point was up. there's a little moisture out there. but compared to what we can expect in july, still only 78 degrees. east winds at 5. only got to 82 this afternoon. barometer is falling. out to the west, though, showers and thundershower activities developing. and some of these will probably be in our region, late tomorrow evening. late tomorrow night,

i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm sally thorner. here's what people are talking about now. >>> here's a live look rowdz right now, with clouds and rain, falling into the baltimore area. let's go right to bob turk in the first warning weather center, who is tracking live doppler radar. >>> downtown, you see the sun is out. stoic a look at radar. these are very isolated. showers, you're seeing heavy downpours. they really diminished in the last hour as you can see. downtown, got some sunshine, south and west of us, a few more showers. right

i'm denise koch. >> and i'm kai jackson, in for vic carter.ere's what peerm are talking -- people are talking about tonight. >> we want to update the breaking news. a horrific accident in anne arundel county, as a car is split in half. captain mike perry has more now. >> reporter: lives i was looking for -- i was looking for a word to describe this, and i guess "horrific "would be a good word. this is anne arundel county, about 45

kai jackson is in the news room with details. >> reporter: it happened last night shortly after 8:00 p.m. when a 16-year-old was attacked by four suspects. the girl got off the light rail in brooklyn park. she says the four women beat the victim and took her purse. the teen ran and found police to tell them what happened. officers canvassed that area around the light rail stop but were not able to find the suspects. >>> if you were in that area last night and think you have any information on this crime call metro crime stoppers at 1-866-7 lockup. >>> making the grade. elementary and middle school students in maryland continue to improve their scores to standardized tests. eyewitness news is live in east baltimore. adam may with more on the just released results. >> reporter: improving test scores especially in baltimore city are getting the attention of the obama administration even choking up the governor:u.s. secretary of education aaron duncan visits baltimore, celebrating improving test scores in the city. >> what we need in the country is more proof points that we can point to

. >> and i'm kai jackson. in for vic carter. here's what people are talking about tonight. >>> we want to update the breaking news we were first to tell you about. a woman struck by a light rail train in baltimore. eyewitness news is live at the mount washington station. kelly mcpherson has more on what happened. >> reporter: it happened right here in a train in the same direction of the one behind me. that's the one that hit the woman here. we managed to speak with a few witnesses who tell us they heard the train sound the horn to tell the woman to move.

i'm kai jackson. >>> i'm denise koch.for watching eyewitness news on wjz 13, maryland's news station. much more ahead on the cbs evening news with katie couric, including president and causes a meltdown in ice sales. 45 years later, a beatle is back on the stage where it all began. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone. they've been talking about it for decades. president obama says he wants it done now, as in this summer. universal health care. as he put it today, it time for us to buck up and there are a lot of bucks at stake.

. >> i'm kai jackson. here's what people are talking about. >>> severe thunderstorms.t-line winds cause damage. here's a look. of the damage in eldersburg, carroll county. where trees toppled onto cars. eyewitness news live with extensive first warning weather coverage. mike schuh, is live in carroll county, with more there. but first, we go to alex demetrick, live in reisterstown. the area that seems to be the hardest hit. >> reporter: what started out as a quick thunderstorm, quickly intensified, into blinding hor horizontal rain and violent winds. >>> thick trees were snapped close to the ground. or cracked like wish bones, further up. and what broke up was carried away on rooftops. or backyard swimming pools as wind and rain from a thunderstorm roared through

. >> i'm kai jackson, in for vic carter.at everybody is talking about tonight. >>> no one will be spared. all city agencies will be prepared for 5%. eyewitness news is live at city hall. mike hellgren has reaction from city and state leaders.

. >>> now complete coverage continues with sally thorner, kai jackson, first warning weather with boburk and meteorologist bernadette woods, ♪ ooh, yeah wiggle your day with jell-o sugar-free gelatin. ♪ ooh, yeah it's 10 tasty calories... loved by lips and hips alike. ♪ shake it, shake it, ooh, yeah ♪ jell-o. >>> the search is on for a serial killer in south carolina. the presence of the killer is causing fear and concerns throughout one small community. susan robert reports for wjz. police have few concludes about what -- clues about what led to the murders. >> reporter: resident of gaffney, south carolina are staying inside with the doors locked. >> they are scared to death. everybody you talk to is packing heat. >> reporter: mr. clinton is out on his motorcycle looking for a serial killer. >> this is awful when you start killing older people and children, it's awful. >> reporter: 100 state and local investigators are trying to find this man. police say physical evidence links the killer to five shooting deaths this past week in this rural community. >> every day that we can work it

our first guest tonight is kai chase, she was michael jackson's personal chef and in his home the day he died. we'll talk to kai in just a moment. but first let's go to cnn's randi kaye with breaking news on dr. conrad murray and what investigators were looking for when they executed search warrants yesterday. randi, what happened? >> reporter: larry, as you know, there were two search warrants executed in las vegas, one is dr. conrad murray's home and the other in his clinic. those were filed today. so now the information on what they were looking for and what they found has been made public. i can tell you according to the warrants, detectives were looking for evidence demonstrating crimes of excessive prescribing and prescribing to an addict. also, manslaughter. evidence of manslaughter. now the addict that they seem to be referring to in this case is michael jackson. but here's the key detail of the search warrant. it says that they were looking for any information related to propofol or diprivan, very powerful sedative that authorities, as you know, believe killed michael jackson

kai chase. the personal develop to michael jackson and his family. n the day he died. kai, good morning and thanks for being here. >> good morning, al. >> you lef in march for three weeks. you came back, and when you returned, what did you notice different about michael jackson's appearance? >> well, i left in may. >> i'm sorry. >> i left in may and came back in june, and i noticed that he, you know, appeared to be not as vibrant as heas when i was there. >> and did you attribute that to anything in particular? >> well, you know, i just -- i figured he wasn't eating or getting the nourishment that i had been giving to him. and it just seemed to me that he was -- was very like just not with it, you know, kind of slowing down. >> we heard all this were the drugs and the prescriptions and you look at the rehearsal video and you watch this and think, how could a guy do this and perform this way, even in just rehearsal, and have been doing all these other things? do you think about that? >> oh, of course. you know, you know, he's a fabulous entertainer. yo

kai chase was michael jackson's personal chef, and was in the kitchen of the pop star's rented home on the morning that he died and she's with us exclusively. kai, good morning to up. >> good morning, meredith. >> i'd love to start with this custody agreement. katherine jackson will maintain custody of the children. you got to know them very well in the time that you were at their home. you've actually seen them since their dad's death. do you think this is the right decision for these two kids? >> i believe so. oh, definitely. i got a chance to see the children a couple weeks ago, and just being in the home with the grandmother katherine was a beautiful experience. they had cousins and, you know, they're having a great time. they were wonderful, they're happy and i think it's a great decision. >> and that's their grandma. >> yes, that's their grandmother. >> the birth mom of prince michael and paris, debbie rowe, has asked for, and will get, children, so that they can get to know her. did they ever bring up her name in the time that you were with them? >> you know, we never discussed

investigators looking into michael jackson's death have honed in on drugs that were given to the king of pop to fight his insomnia. >> thank you, kai. it could be several more weeks before toxicology reports reveal michael jackson's death. >>> a police-involved shooting at carroll county. a taneytown police officer shot a man who was allegedly trying to run down the officer, along with the woman he was helping. it happened last night, around 10:30. the man who was shot, was flown to shock trauma. police don't know a motive, but say the man and woman know each other. most of the murders and shootings in baltimore are committed with illegal guns. now, eye nationality study shows much more -- national study shows much more can be done to prevent it. suzanne collins reports, it has to do with watching over gun stores. >> reporter: a 5-year-old girl was critically wounded when a teenager shot an illegal gun. neighbors marched, fed up with gun crimes. >> everywhere you go, it's drugs, gun fights, the thugs. what can we do about it? >> reporter: they say getting tough on the sale of guns could significantly reduce illegal weapons. the the

asked to get prescriptions for michael jackson under his name, and he wasn't willing to do it. >> unbelievable. unbelievable. and if this pattern continued, anita kay, and michael jackson is the one who's spearheading all of this, going around, traveling to other states, finding other doctors, getting other people to use their names for the prescriptions, perhaps that's good news if you're one of michael jackson's doctors. in the criminal investigation. because it seems like michael jackson is the one who's in charge of all of this. >> well, maybe not, vinny. because here's the problem. the security guards or anyone that's working for michael jackson going into a doctor and getting prescriptions for michael jackson, what they're doing is a crime. you can't go get a prescription for someone else saying, i need this, and now i'm going to give it to this person. and the doctors, depending on what unfolds, the doctors may have known, oh, mr. security guard is coming in but, wink-wink, i know this is really for michael jackson but i can't keep writing all these prescriptions for him. then the doctors are going to be in trouble. there is going to be some