let's go to "news4's" megan mcgrath who's live in baltimore with more. megan, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, eun. the mood here is very calm. if you look behind me, you can see there are lots of people out and about this morning making their way to work. we're seeing delivery drivers coming and making those early morning deliveries. nothing out of the ordinary. this is central and north of pennsylvania avenue. this is where much of the looting and unrest happened back in april following the death of freddie gray. while there is disappointment, the jury -- >> megan mcgrath is live in baltimore. we'll try to get back to megan where more protests could happen today as the officers charging in the death of freddie gray goes on trial. >>> here are four things to know about this effort. depending on how a closed door meeting between the judge and the attorneys goes today, we could learn that today. if it happened we'll alert you. caesar goodson goes on trial. that begins january 6th. sauvgs chose to try officer porter first hoping to use him as

megan mcgrath is there live with a preview of tonight's main event. >> hey, megan. >> you can see the tree over my shoulder here. it is all decorated this year. it is covered in stars. actually, in a few hours, that stage is going to be covered in stars. the big show getting underway at 5:00. reese witherspoon is hosting this year. it promises to be quite a show. ♪ >> a little more practice before the big show. ♪ >> reporter: as the musicians played, work crews wiped yesterday's rain off the chairs. everything is ready to go. >> three, two, one! >> reporter: as always, the first family and their guests will flip the switch illuminating the 30-foot colorado blue spruce. this year, the tree is covered in 100 stars, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the nagle park service. security will be tight as always. this year, the park service is asking people to carry their belongings in clear, zip lock bags. that should speed up the screening process. >> if you need to bring something with you, put it in a clear plastic bag, a 1 gallon zip lock is perfect. >> reporter: they are in the middl

m megan mcgrath at old town. thanks, megan. >>> don't forget ridet after midnight aren't going to cost you a thing. they're open until 3:00 tomorrow morning. for more on what to know for the holiday like the impact on parking and transportation, check out the nbc washington app. >>> all right. 6:07 right now is your time. look outside this morning. a lovely shot. the roads still a little wet in some spots but the rain and fog is gone for now. chuck bell is back at 6:11 with a look at your travel forecast. if your new year's eve plans involve heading out of town. >> people post a lot of things on facebook, but driving drunk, the man police say did just that and how they were eventually able to track him down. >>> and a district staple getting ready to close its doors. who's saying good-bye >>> how about a case of oversharing. a drunk driver got himself arrested. dustin rittgers posted himself online in the act. one of his friends saw it on facebook and called police. they used the video to identify his suv and foun

"news4's" megan mcgrath is live on the scene with more information. megan, what's going on?> reporter: well, eun, the good news is if you use main street through fairfax city, all of the lanes are open. if you look behind me, all of the police cars here earlier this morning just left. it happen within the last 20 minutes or so. the vehicle that slammed into the side of the t-mobile,ite gowan. take a look at the situation we had just an hour ago. we had traffic impact. there was a right-hand lane that was closed as police investigating this accident here. not exactly sure what happened but for some reason the driver left the roadway as it went around. it appears that curve, that right-hand turn lane as it kurning around the t-mobile it left the roadway and hit the foundation. a lot of damage to the car. the person in that vehicle was injured but doesn't look like there's much damage to the building itself. now, there was a similar -- a very similar accident that happened in this location just two years ago. take a look. that accident actually turned out to be fatal, but a sim

megan mcgrath is live down there on the ellipse with the latest on the celebrations. >> reporter: hey, good morning. well, we have a little bit more sun here, if you take a look over my shoulder. we can actually see the tree and as you just mentioned, it us all decorated and ready to go. we're waiting for the first family and their guests to flip that switch tonight. this, of course s a big holiday tradition in washington. it gets under way at 5:00 tonight and thousands of people are going to be down here on the ellipse. keep in mind there is security. you're going have to pass through a security check point on 17th street and you need a ticket to get into this area. but always a wonderful event. dress appropriately. it's chilly. back to you guys. >> thank you, megan. >>> here are four things to know before you head out the door. street closures before the tree lighting starts at 2:00. we've posted aull list of closures on the nbc 4 washington app. >>> the council will vote on the state government plan on how money raised by a potential toll on i-66 would be spent. >>>

"news4' "news4's" megan mcgrath is live. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, aaron. this is an annual tradition here. 39 years. that's how long this event has been takes place. if you take a look behind me here, you see all is rather quiet and daschle at the moment, but in essentially hours that is all going to change. take a look at some video from last year's event. we're expecting another star-studded event this year. now, reese witherspoon, she is going to be hosting this year. musical acts include fallout boys, crosby, stills and nash. andrew day and trombone shorty, just to name a few. and all of it gets under way at 5:00 tonight. this is a ticketed development, so if you don't have a ticket, unfortunately, you're not going to be able to get one today. all of those tickets have been distributed. all those folks need to keep in mind you're going have to pass through security. you'll want to enter through 17th street. you'll be going through magnetometers and your bags will be checked as well. also it's a little blustery. i'll tell you, i'm wearing half a can of

"news4's" megan mcgrath has new information about the officer hit. megan? >> reporter: well, eun, traffic stops are one of the most dangerous things that a police officer does. the officer is outside of their cruiser, they're on the side of the road, traffic is passing them by, often at speed. last night the worst-case scenario played out in rockville. a montgomery county police officer was hit while making a traffic stop. hit by a small suv and seriously injured. the officer pulled over the suv on 395 when he was hit. the drive over the suv did stay on the scene and was taken into custody. police are looking at the possibility that that driver was under the influence of alcohol. now, the officer who was struck has been on the force for less than five years and had just temporarily been assigned to the holiday alcohol task force. no updates on his condition yet this morning burke he was taken to the hospital last night with serious injuries. back to you in the studio. >> thank you, megan. >>> 5:18 and testimony picks fun ar second day in the freddie gray tr

. >> i'm megan mcgrath live in silver spring where a body was found late last night along the northwest branch trail. now the discovery was made just a little bit after 11:00 last night. the body was found in a creek alongside that trail. now this is the section of the trail near the inner loop of the beltway. no word on how the person died, whether there's foul play involved or not. we still are awaiting word on that from police. we also don't know whether the person who was found is a man or a woman. an autopsy is going to be performed later. now police are asking anyone with information to please call investigators. this, again, happened last night a little after 11:00. police could use some help in trying to piece together exactly what happened. back to you in the studio. >>> and right now more breaking news on the roads here. inner loop between rockville pike and connecticut avenue, just got off the phone with the police, that has cleared to the side of the roads. we won't have to worry about that too much longer. crash virginia side of the key bridge, that one is hanging around. 6

"news4's" megan mcgrath with more on that. megan?reporter: well, aaron, it's the holiday season. police want to make sure that nobody gets behind the wheel after they've had too much to drink. behind me here you can see the memorial to officer noah liotta. it serves as a painful reminder of just how dangerous drunk driving can be. but there are options. later today to be my designated driver program kicks off. here's how it works. first of all you can download your app. they can drive your car back home so you don't have to wait the next day to go back and get your car. you'll have been taken home in your very own vehicle. the koflt for the driver is anywhere from 14 to $19.50 an hour depending on where you live. there's also a $25 fee for a pickup. if you want it, 25 bucks there. liquor stores, they're going to be giving away $23 gift cards to offset the price of the drivers. this program gets under way today and it's going to be going through new year's day. back to you. >>> in california investigators are working to find out what

back to you in the studio. >> megan mcgrath, thank you so much.russell taylor is expected to plead guilty to charges alleging he used hidden cameras to produce pornography of 12 children. prosecutors are seeking a 35-year sentence. his attorneys are asking for a sentence between 15 and 23 years. fogle was sentenced last month to more than 15 years in prison. >>> kill the babies, that's what planned parenthood does. >> attorneys are questions whether man is competent to stand trial. yesterday lewis dear referred to himself as warriors for babes. he's accused of killing two citizens and a police officer at planned parenthood in colorado springs. he said he is guilty but he will not go to trial. >>> the screen actors guild is under fire this morning. it's accused of a lack of diversity in its nominations ahead of the s.a.g. awards next month. you take a look here. all the leading male actors that were nominated for the motion picture category are white. all the leading female actors are also all white. now, a few black actors were nominated for their

"news4's" megan mcgrath where d.c. police will make an announce mnlts in just a couple of hours. good morning. >> repoer: good morning. where relisha rudd. there's going be a press conference here at the fifth district headquarters at 8:30 this morning and we're going learn the location of this. she was last seen march 3'd 20r 3rd, 2014. her family had allow heard to spend time with tatum. police searched kenilworth park several times look for her in that park. he hung out there a lot and bought a shovel and lime during that time. police have never been able to figure out where relisha's's body is. so this has been an open investigation. apparently investigators have new information that's prompting them to conduct this new round of searches, and we will be, of course, at this 8:30 press conference and we'll bring you the latest as soon as it happens. >> thank you. also this morning montgomery county police investigating a stabbing turned into a homicide. one man was stabbed to death. a second man assaulted and taken to the hospital. montgomery county police are looking for a per

"news4's" megan mcgrath where she just received an update on the condition. meg snn. >> just a few hours ago i got on the phone with a police spokesperson. i have new information here. the plivg who was struck and injured, he has very serious injuries but he has survived surgery and continues to be treated here at the hospital. this all began to unfold around 9:45 last night. the montgomery county police officer had pulled over a car on rockville pike near ed mondayson drive and was outside a police cruiser when hit by a passing suv. the driver of the suv did stay on the scene and was taken into custody. however, police are looking into the possibility that that driver was under the influence of alcohol when he hit -- or when that driver hit the officer. the officer was struck, has been on the montgomery county ploos force for less than five years and had just temporarily been assigned to the holiday traffic task force and was out performing tasks associated with that holiday task force. the driver again who struck him may have been under the influence of alc

"news4's" megan mcgrath is on the scene right now. megan, what can you tell us? >> reporter: well, david, you can see behind me exactly what happened. we have an suv that appears to have been traveling in fairfax city. for whatever reason the driver left the roadway and actually crashed into the side of this t-mobile store. kind of hit the foundation there. i would told the person in the suv was injured. no update on the condition at this point. they're still awaiting word on that, but the investigation continues here. so we do have a traffic impact at this point. this was main street here, it appears, where they left the roadway, so the far right lane is closed with the police activity. i don't have an exact estimate on incapacitately how long it will take to reopen the lane but i'm told it will be a while today. just to give you a better idea of exactly where we are, this is main street right where it meets fairfax boulevard. there's a strip mall with this t-mobile. right now the volume is light. it's still very early in the morning so we're not seeing any traf

. >>> i'm megan mcgrath along the northwest branch trail in silver spring where late last night a body was found. an investigator early this morning said they had to go quite a distance down the trail. you can get an idea of what the area is like. heavily wooded, at times very secluded. at the bottom there's a creek. police say the body was found in the creek just after 11:00 last night. it's unclear how the person died, whether foul play is suspected or not. they don't know if the person is -- they're not saying if the person is a man or a woman. people who use this trail were surprised to hear that a body had been found. they say they normally feel safe using it. >> yeah. i'm really surprised. you know, it's a trail where everybody uses it in the neighborhood. and we never have any kind of issues. >> police are awaiting the results of an autopsy. they're also looking for witnesses or anyone who has information about what happened here. if you do, you're asked to call montgomery county police. in silver spring, megan mcgrath, news 4. >>> well, we've got some mighty foggy weather throu

. >> reporter: and i'm megan mcgrath. a festive celebration for a new year's celebration. it's really quite beautiful. first night festivities, they get under way in just a matter of hours. this is an alcohol-free event with music, art, dance, and other performances for the entire family. tickets are $30 for adults, and kids 12 and under, they get in for free. events begin at 9:00 a.m. with some workouts, some fitness programs that people can participate in. kids' events get under way at 2:00. there are hundreds of performances throughout the course of the day and on up through midnight. venues are on around old town alexandria. you can see i have owe from last year's event. they'll be hosting various performances. they're within walking distance of each other and you don't need to drive around at all. at midnight, that's the big fireworks display. that's going to happen at the foot of king street right along the potomac river. absolutely beautiful. megan mcgrath, "news4." >> it is a nice scene. >>> a woman, police say, purposely ran over people in las vegas. what was in h

news 4's megan mcgrath there news 4's megan mcgrath there live with w who coined the term "side bread?" because there's nothing "side" about this bread. it may look like the moon. but it's the star of the show. unleash the power of dough. give it a pop. that sound. like nails on a chalkboard. but listen to this: (family talking) that's a different kind of sound. the sound of the weekend. unleash the power of dough. give it a pop. >>> we're tracking a developing story. police have the body. >> live. what have you learned. >> reporter: they're on the scene. they're making the discovery. at around 11:10. no word on how he died and whether or not they suspect foul play. certainly police are trying to piece together what happened. this is an ongoing investigation. anyone with information about what happened or the identity of this person you are asked to call investigators with montgomery county police. back to you all in the studio. >>> today is a storm team 4 weather alert day as you may find yourself stepping outside to some heavy fog. we're seeing a number of potential trouble spots on

from tyson's corner mall, megan mcgrath. >> black friday, cyber monday, super saturday. i can't keep track of all these. we know a lot of you will be hitting the stores this weekend and we have the perfect tool to help you manage all those stops. >> we've listed the holiday hours for the region's most popular stores and malls from now until christmas and just head to nbcwashington.com and search shopping hours. >>> that's right. if you'll be out there definitely, definitely bring a coat, hat, gloves and the whole kit and caboodle. let's find out what we can expect expect this weekend. >> those are things we've not needed so far and here we are closs to christmas and it's been warm. and now definitely the coldest we've seen in december and the wind is the factor and winds out of the northwest at 14 miles per hour and that puts our windchill in the mid-30s. a very cold night and these are the actual temperatures down to 37 already. mart insburg and 44 in fredericksburg and you know we're in for a cold friday night and it will be out as chris was talking about. no umbrellas

megan mcgrath is going there to let us know what's going on. >>> our other top story, the weather. it's a weather alert day here on news 4. this is why. we're seeing fog. we'll let you know how this is impacting your day. >>> new details about a deadly crash in prince gorges county. the driver involved in the head-on crash last week was drinking. maryland state police says james calero crossed the line. he crashed into a morgan state university student who just came home from the holidays. news 4 says calero had been charged with dui before and he was represented by maryland delegate, joseph valerio. he's been criticized for blocking attempts to strengthen drunk driving laws in maryland. >>> today top transportation experts will update what's happening to make airbags safer in your cars. you'll remember the massive recalls earlier in the year for airbags made by takata. they can go off without the driver getting in a crash. this morning the national highway traffic safety administration will update the media. >>> e. coli outbreak at costco has ended. we first told you about the out

"news4's" megan mcgrath has more. megan, what's happened today? >> reporter: well, aaron, it's the holiday season. that means a lot of office parties and entertaining. the officers want to make sure those who have been drinking don't get behind the wheel. i'm standing here. it's a reminder of just how dangerous a drunk driver can be. here's how it works. take a look here. you can use the bemydd app. a professional driver will come to the location, drive you in your car back to your house or wherever you're headed. rather than calling for a taxi, you don't have to go back. it's anywhere from $14 to $19.50 depending where you live. a $25 service for car pickup if you want someone to come and pick up your car. liquor stores across montgomery county are going to be handing out free $20 gift cards which will help defray the cost of the driver. they just want to make sure that nobody gets behind the wheel this holiday season and takes the risk because you can see the memorial behind me here, it can have deadly consequences. this program gets under way t

we want to get to "news4's" megan mcgrath who's live in baltimore with more. megan, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning. while there is disappointment the jurors were not able to reach a verdict, all is quiet as you can see. quiet and calm. we're really not seeing any heightened police presence. since we've been here, i've seen a couple of police cruisers drive through the area. nothing out of the ordinary. last night there were peaceful protests. take a look at the video. they marched to city hall and the neighborhood. there was no trouble. police kept their distance. there were two arrests earlier in the day that. was really it. no arrests that we're aware of last night. freddie gray died after suffering a severe neck injury. officer william porter was the first of six officers to go on trial, but jurors deadlocked and the judge declared a mistrial. protests are possible. later on today we'll be keeping an eye on things. community activists will say there will not be a repeat of the arrest and shooting we saw following the funeral of freddie gr gray

. >> reporter: i'm megan mcgrath live in baltimore where things were peaceful following a mistrial in the case against a police officer being tried in the death of freddie gray. additional protests are possible as the prosecution, the defense and the judge figure out what to do next. >> peaceful protests gave way to quiet streets overnight. at north and pennsylvania avenue where much of the looting and unrest happened back in april, all appeared normal, no heightened police presence. while many are disappointed the jury couldn't reach a verdict, there is relief the demonstrations were peaceful. >> burning down where you live won't make sense. you have to be patient. >> freddie gray died after suffering a severe neck injury while in the custody of baltimore police. william porter was the first officer to stand trial. the jury could not reach a verdict and the judge declared a mistrial. prosecutors, the defense and the journaling will hold a series of closed door meetings to talk about scheduling a new trial. the university of maryland law professor says the first case will help shape a

. >>> i'm megan mcgrath live along rockville pike. last night a montgomery county police officer was critically injured when he was hit by a car during a routine traffic stop. if you look behind me here, you can see the spray painted marks left behind by the accident reconstruction team. these marks telling the story of what happened. we have four orange marks here. these are the wheels of the police cruiser. just little ways up ahead, we have four white marks. this was the car that was pulled over in the traffic stop. then we have a third color. you can see this yellow curved line. this is where the police officer was struck. he was outside of his cruiser when he was hit by a small passing suv. police say the driver of that suv may have been drinking. let's look at the video from last night. this happened around 9:45 on rockville pike in front of the edmonston crossing shopping center. the officer was seriously injured. he is in critical condition and being watched closely at an area hospital. he has been with the montgomery county p

. >> i'm megan mcgrath, life in southeast where you are going to hear the popping of champagne bottles. all you are hearing is the giggling of happy children. more and more celebrations are popping up like this one at the yards. >> happy new year. >> happy new year. >> a day of fun to ring in the new year beginning at the yards along the southeast waterfront. >> we think it is a great time. i this i nk it is an opportunit spend time with the family during the day thankful that the weather is nice. >> train rides, costumed entertainers and a huge, inflatable slide. all a part of the family friendly festival. >> it was really big. i was scared walking up. it was fun going down. >> it was awesome. >> that's a long climb to get up there. what was that like? >> it sure is. >> what was that like? >> scary. >> and in old town, the emphasis is on the arts with more than 100 performances held in venues scattered around town and music for those that want to get out and dance. tickets for first night alexandria are $30 for adults. kids 12 and under are free. the day long event wraps up with firew

megan mcgrath is live with some shoppers that have chosen to snatch up the late bargains. tell me you've been shopping on your break at some point. >> i have, but i'm embarrassed to say i mainly shopped for myself. not the greatest mother and wife, i must admit. there are a lot of people out shopping. only seven days left. everybody wants a bargain. at break and mortar stores like macy's, you can see plenty of markdowns offered. they have coupons. another resource is your cell phone. there's lots of retailers that offer text alerts. just sign up for them. i did that at joanne's, i get a text alert, click on it, and it sends me a coupon, extra 25% off. plenty of deals out there. this is expected to be a busy weekend. they call it super saturday. forget the sleigh bells. this weekend it's the cash registers that will jingle. tomorrow is the last saturday before christmas, often called super saturday. >> some sweaters. >> reporter: retailers are offering discounts to lure in the shoppers. some sales have already begun. >> great deals. got lots of stuff, came back today and go

news 4's megan mcgrath has more on what happens next and how baltimore is responding. >> reporter: spirited, but peaceful protests gave way to quiet streets overnight. at north and pennsylvania avenue where much of the looting and unrest happened back in april, all appeared normal. no heightened police presence. >>> while many are disappointed that the jury could sht reach a verdict there is relief that the demonstrations are peaceful. >> burning down where you live at and all of the rest of the stuff for nothing doesn't make sense. you have to be patient. >> reporter: freddie gray died after suffering a severe neck injury while in the custody of baltimore police. william porter was the first officer to stand trial, but the jury could not reach a verdict and the judge declared a mistrial. prosecutors, the defense and the judge will now hold a series of closed-door meeting to talk about scheduling a new trial. university of maryland law professor doug culvert says the first case will help shape any future case. >> the prosecution presented very strong evidence against officer porter and it a

megan mcgrath was there with the alternative to the late-night tradition. >> happy new year!> a day of fun to ring in the new year on the southeast waterfront. >> we think it's a great time. it's an opportunity for us to spend time with the family during the day. thankful that the weather is nice. >> reporter: train rides, costumed entertainers and a huge, inflatable slide. all a part of the family, friendly festival. it was really big, scary walking up. it was fun going down. >> it was awesome. >> that's a long climb to get up there what was that like? >> it sure is -- >> scary. ♪ >> and in old town, the emphasis is on the arts with more than 100 performances levelled in venues scattered around town. there's something for everyone including face painting for the kiddos and music for those who want to get out and dance. tickets for first night alexandria are $30 for adults and kids 12 and under are free and the day-long event wraps up with fireworks at the foot of king street. now there's no charge to see the fireworks in alexandria, however, organizers remind people that put