. >> i'm pat lawson muse. breaking news where the senate confirmed sonja sotomayor to the supreme court. sotomayor will be the nation's first hispanic supreme court justice. she will be sworn in saturday morning. a vigil is planned for tonight in pittsburgh in memory of the three women killed in tuesday night's shooting at a fitness club. elizabeth began none, heidi obermayer and jody billingsmeyer were killed by sodini. he then turned the gun on himself. tomorrow virginia kicks off its annual tax-free shopping weekend. customers don't have to pay that 5% tax on school supplies and scloeting. supplies that cost $20 or less and clothing and foot wr that cost $100 or less qualified. >> in the control room now, the united states is still trying to secure the release of three merican tourists being held in or feganll ially crossing the llrder. abin rnoreage riou tsts were i tstouse wer doranianut atiho authoritiesri edck them up near iraq's kurdish border. richard engel has that story. >> reporter: iran remained s

. >> i'm pat lawson muse. shriver died in a massachusetts hospital this morning surrounded by her family. she was part of one of the most famous families in the world. bt she was un tdifopehengci sal founding the special olympics. kimberly suiters has more on how eunice kennedy shriver is being remembered. >> reporter: >> no question in my mind. eunice kennedy shriver is as much a hero of every one of these athletes as she is of mine. >> reporter: at the olympics headquarters in washington, photographic tributes to the woman who believed there is no limit to the human spirit. >> what more can you be doing? that is a phrase i take to my heart every day and wake up and say what more can i be doing? you know, i take that in my personal life and work life and i hope that that phrase people will take and think of whenyhe t approach lifehe m whatwhore can you be doing? >> reporter: after her death his morning the shriv dsae said this. e o tha cnge the world c sto chang use and she did that and more. she fndedathe th

pat lawson muse joins us live from the tinley town cvs with more on how you can help. y, pat. >> reporter: hi, barbara. you know, the -- the school year comes so quickly. summer goes so quickly. already it is time for kids to get back to the books. as you know, in this tough economy there are a lot of kids that need books and supplies. so all day we have been here in the 4500 block of wisconsin avenue northwest. collecting backpacks for kids and backpacks filled with supplies, paper and pencils and glue, rulers, wet wipes, water, crackers. all the kids kids need to get them started on the new year. we do this at news4. we have done it the past four years and do it with the help of parters like g.e. capit. you supported this campaign for theast three years, this is the fourth year. you donated. >> correct. we donated for the past four years because we really believe that g.e. capital, in preparing the students and making sure they go back to school ready to learn sex treatmently important and we believe that giving back to the community through work is imperative and enc

. >> i'm eun yang in for pat lawson muse today. senator kennedy is comed to brain cancer late last night. yet, he didn't let his 15-month battle with the disease keep him from pursuing his passions and promises as a dedicated publicer is zblant after his diagnosis, kennedy championed the push for health care reform legislation. completed a memoir and became an instrumental onti pecfn ode election of president barack obama. that was only a small part of a long distinguished career that was at times controversial but ultimately respected and admired by supporters and opponents alike. >> surviving members of the kennedy family, dynasty, american politics, are seeing an outpouring of sympathy from around the world. colleagues plan to honor his colleague by working on cause most important to him. live coverage from michelle franzen. michelle? >> reporter: good evening. hyannis port, and the family's compound here, a place for senator kennedy loved to come and recharge. at age 77 he was the patriarch of a dynamic family dynasty that's ca

. >> i'm kimberly sirts in for pat lawson muse. parts of maryland are under a flash flood warning at this hour. >> veronica johnson has been tracking the rai all day for us and joins us now live from the storm center with the latest. veronica? >> that's ght. parts of the area be under a flash flood watch that goes into the night. silver spring, maryland, picking up over two ihes of rain. it had been a busy afternoon with a lot of neighborhoods already getting a good soaking here. and over an inch, mclean, virginia, where it was coming down in buckets there earlier. 75. cool side today. but the air really loaded up with a lot of moisture. here's a look at where that flood watch is. again, it is until late tonight and covers frederick county, maryland. loudoun county as well as fairfax county, d.c., prince george's county, and anne arundel county, howard, baltimore, up into northeastern maryland. right now there are flash flood warnings on maryland's eastern shore. so here is a look at the satellite and radar loop and where that weat

i'm eun yang in for pat lawson muse. >> i'm jim handly. a tense rnteafoon in our skies thisternafoon. fire jets a helicopters were ra d mbscthleis afternoon to p tn cr ly-fonno ze around z the strict. officials tell us that small plane was spotted southwest of bwi airport. controllers attempted to talk to the pilot but got no response. the plane was intercepted by coast guard helicopters and escorted to the montgomery county air park. that's in gaithersburg, maryland. u.s. secret service agents are interviewing that pilot. they tell us he is a student pilot who took off from the gaithersburg airport this afternoon. >>> a shock for shoppers and workers in a mall when a small plane landed in the parking lot. onboard, an instructor and student that walked away from the crash with slight injuries. the plane had just taken off from a nearby airport when the pail on the reported a rough running engine. he landed on a road leading to the mall parking lot away from buildings and cars. the plane struck several trees and lost a wheel before spinning

. >> i'm eun yang in for pat lawson muse. this afternoon massachusetts and the nation formally began mourning senator ted kennedy, the man known as the lion of the senate is on his way to boston to lie in repose and amid outpouring off motion. >> these are live pictures, tens of thousands, perhaps more, have lined the interstate. they will be there throughout the night to pay respects. the hearst carrying senator kennedy's body is now making its way to boston right now from hyannis port. steve handelsman has the latest on today's developments. >> reporter: senator kennedy began his final journey on the shoulders of the military honor guard. his casket carried from the family's legendary home at hyannis port. the whole kennedy clan gathered. joyfully and tearfully remembering the family patriarch. earlier there had been a private family mass. the procession would leave cape cod and make its way through massachusetts neighborhoods on its way to boston. along the way, throngs of people who think of ted kennedy as a hero like the

pat lawson muse joins us now live once again from the tenleytown cvs with more on how you can help. has that rain stopped there? >> it stopped. the traffic picked up again. we are here. we are collecting and there has been traffic all day long. people have been coming to donate backpack force kids. i have a couple of them here. she is donating now. this is elaine. you live in the neighborhood and work in the neighborhood and donate ad few moments ago yes. i'm getting to go now. i'm going inside. >> reporter: why is it important to you to do this? >> i think it is important for neighbors to help neighbors and my own son is grown. i think it is important for other kids the same chance he had. i'm happy to help out. >> reporter: we are happy to have you help out. you are? >> mabel. >> reporter: i saw you put money in the basket there. >> yes, i did. >> reporter: tell me why it was important for you to come down. >> because it is a great cause. good to see people out here that care and our children are our greatest resource. i appreciate what you all are doing. >> reporter: okay. have y

i'm pat lawson muse. >> i'm jim handly. the eagles' job comes just weeks after michael vick was released from federal pris. he served 18 months for his role in running a dogfighting ring. >> a news conference today, vick expressed remorse for his actions and he acknowledged that some people will never forgive him. kristen dahlgren has the story. >> just months after walking out of the federal prison, michael vick sat before the cameras as a philadelphia eagle. >> i made poor judgment. ions in my ad life, you know. and i had to reach a turning point. and prison finitely did it for me. >> reporter: the name convicted in a dogfighting role was apologetic. >> to this day i can't understand why i was involved in such pointless activity. >> reporter: while his new team and recent mentor, tony dungy, explained their decisions. >> feel like mike is going to help their football team and be a weapon for them. but they also stepped out to give a manning a second chance. >> vick! >> reporter: will fans be as forgiving? so far reactions

pat lawson muse has more. >> they did an ultrasound to find out what's going on. they could. find the fetus in the uterus. it wu a struggle for me. >> reporter: frustration, disappointment. familiar feelings for 33-year-old jennifer crist. a severe blood disorder left her unable to get pregnant. >> there's got to be something didn't we can do. i'm willing to do anything at this point. >> reporter: after several early-term miscarriages, they tried two cycles of in vitro fertililzation. both failed. her doctor suggested trying a different route. acupuncture. at first i was kind of, i'd say skeptical i guess or unsure, not knowing. >> reporter: chris came here to "pulling down the moon." it's a place where they use holistic therapy. using massage, ak you puncture and changing diet can help them achieve. the idea is to relax. >> there's a lot of studies that show that. there's stress in infer telt. we try to calm them by balancing their boes. >> reporter: she says acupuncture and poses that focus on the belly and pelvi region can also stimulate blood flow to that area. she believ

pat lawson muse explains. >> reporter: at the castle stadium in northwest, the name of the game was soccer. the players? homeless men from around the country, who have come to washington to kick off the street soccer usa cup. >> 16 teams from across the country, including washington, d.c. to participate in a competition to, for a chance to win the family trophy. >> reporter: a nationwide effort that uses soccer to help eradicate poverty and homelessness. 116 players from 16 stipes will compete to raise funds and awareness. >> raising money for homelessness. a lot of big-city mayors have taken on the challenge. we've done it here in d.c. this is another way of raising awareness and raising dollars. >> reporter: mayor fenty helped kick off the first game between reigning champ minneapolis and e d.c. team. 37, playing forward, his second year playing for d.c. >> i drug and alcohol program and i've got an email from national coalition for homeless and i joined the team. >> reporter: luis alvarez plays defense, he's 29 rand says playing for the team takes the focus off of homelessness. >> it ta

i'm pat lawson muse.the note book, a stunning fall from grace. alexandria's police chief has stepped down. david baker announced his res ig neigh and retirement following his arrest last weekend in arlington after a car crash. police say baker's blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit and he failed four field sobriety tests. depu deputy earls cook is now the acting chief. at first he said he was not going to step down and then he did an about-face. was there really any other way for this story to turn out? >> when i heard the make talk about it after his retirement, the mayor indicated that this was the right thing so that the city could move on and the police department could move on with the business of saving t se citizens. so as a political choice, he had no choice. what kind of leadership could he exhibit over his h own rank and file with a drunk driving charge over his head, in addition to running into someone else's vehicle. >> he sent a guy to the hospital too. let's not lose sight of that.

. >> pat lawson muse, news 4. >>> for many of us, summer also means hitting the gym and get bag in shape isn't your thing, maybe zuma is. it's a dance-inspired workout video that promises to burn fat without making it feel too much like work. but does it really do that? liz crenshaw checked it out. >> introducing zumba fitness. it's a fast, fun, sexy dance-inspired workout that makes losing weight fun. >> you want to lose weight and sculpt a leaner, sexier body, ditch the workout and start working out to zumba. that's what the infomercial says. zumba uses dance moves to work your body from top to bottom. its secret is burning calories at a rate up to 1,000 per hour and that's got the rhee yay or the all worked up. >> let's zumba! >> so, we sent the zumba dvd program and its infomercial to naomi's house. she says she loves latin music and dance and thought the program looked like a fun way to work out. the zumba program with its dvds and toning sticks costs $79.80 plus $12.95 shipping. however, for that price, it's going to work like magic on all our problem areas. >> but! >> does it real

for now, he's pat lawson muse. >> good morning. this is "reporter's notebook." i'm pat lawson muse. on the notebook this morning, metro. it has been a rough summer for the metro system. deadly accident, bus and train operators suspended or reprimanded for operating their vehicles while distracted. a 21-year-old metro veteran killed on the job. now there is a push to get rid of general manager john catoe. a petition circulating on facebook and on local blogs is calling for catoe's termination. question to you all this morning is how serious is this effort, and is john catoe becoming a scapegoat for all of the problems that metro is experiencing? >> the answer could be yes and yes. he is, obviously -- he's the obvious scapegoat because all of this has happened. he's the head of the metro operation and we've had all these problems, deadly, serious problems. is question is, how has his watch been? has he failed? there's a debate about that. on the other hand, he inherited the system that had these problems in them before he got there, and tight budgets, less oversight, it all came up in

pat lawson muse joins us live now from the tenleytown cvs with more on how you can help. hi, pat. >> reporter: hi. good morning. summer comes and goes so quickly, doesn't it? already it's time for the kids to get back to the books and back to the business of learning. we're here this morning to help get them started by collecting backpacks for kids, backpacks like these. they are stuffed backpacks. backpacks stuffed with all of the necessary tools. they've got paper and pencils and we've even got some extras like antibacterial wipes and water and crackers. all of these for needy kids who need just a little extra to get them started on their school year. here's how you can help this year. by going to participating cvs store, buying a backpack. only $12.99. you buy the backpack, you donate the backpack there at the store. you can find a list of participating stores on our website, nbcwashington.com. you can also go to the website to make y your donation ouonlin cr arit l tl he donations wilyl bu ckbapaorcks fba kids. and we're going to be here all day long until 6:00 this ev

i'm pat lawson muse. >> i'm jim handly. a look at the top stories we are following for you at this hour. government officials are calling on u.s. businesses to help manage swine flu this fall. new guidelines issued today encourage companies to get vaccines to vulnerable workers and allow liberal time for sick leave and telecommuting. employees are all encouraged to stay home if they have any symptoms. >>> on the eve of presidential elections in afghanistan, voting equipment is being delivered into the country's rural areas. some of it being delivered by donkey. the elections tipped president karzai against his foreign minister and the race is expected to be a close one. >>> some of the new credit card rules take effect tomorrow. rules meant to give credit card users more information and stop policies many consider abusive. the new rules give consumers more notice when changes are being made to their accounts. and tools to say no to higher rates and fees. >>> there are new and growing concerns about the federal cash for clun

i'm pat lawson muse. the bin is filling up and donations are coming in for backpacks for kids.profits that serve underprivileged children. we need you to go to a cvs store. you pay and donate the backpack there. a young woman just dropped off a whole truck load. you are with the national community center of help centers. tell me what you brought. >> we have over 50 backs. over 200 reams of paper. over 100 pens and pencils and raincoats and umbrellas because we know kids don't have that. we have hand sanitizer. a bit of everhing. >> you did all of that because you're committed tthe campaign. >> exactly. this was an internal project with my colleagues and i and we're so proud of what we were able to do. >> thank you. it is generosity like that that will help us meet our goal. this is nbc 4's fourth annual backpack campaign. we'll be here all day in the e avenu northwt. n goneli andis ndat deon donate with awi. you'll also fi a list of the participating cvs stores online. go online. help us. 12.99. you set the school year for some underprivileged child here in the washington area.

. >> i'm pat lawson muse. here are some of the stories making news at the bottom of the hour now.e man convicted in the 188 bombing of pan am flight 103 is a free man today. scottish authorities have released abdel basset ali al megrahi on compassionate grounds. he has terminal prostate cancer. wheept back to libya to die. family members of the flight victims are outraged. the obama administration is denouncing al meg had a rahi's . >>> most of the violence took place in southern afghanistan. the more peaceful north and west millions of people lined up to cast their ballots. plame nary results are expected saturday. >>> a wild house party is being investigated by authorities in anne arundel county. turns out that the organizers did not own the house. they borrowed the house without asking. and they left aoo big mess behi. the house is vacant and it is up for sale. news4's chris gordon. more on this wild story coming up on "news4 at 5:00." >>> thank you, pat. president obama says the public option should still be part of the health care reform package. the president clarified his p

pat lawson muse joins us life from the tenleytown cvs with more on how you can help. hi, pat. >> reporter: there has been a tremendous outpouring of support to collect and provide backpacks for kids. for 12 hours today, people have come here to thetent tenleytown to donate backpacks and gone to cvs stores around the washington region and gone online to make donations and if you look behind me here, you can see some of the results. these are the backpacks that we collected here in the 4500 block of wisconsin avenue northwest. of course, news4 could not do this every year without partners and without our co-sponsor which is cvs. tim is with cvs. tim, how are we doing so far? >> just fantastic. i'm overwhelmed by the outpouring from the community and our business partners. we have collected over 600 backpacks here today and over 1300 in total between here and our other stores. thank you to everybody in the community. it has been terrific. >> we are not done. >> we are not done. our goal is 4,000. you can still come to the stores that have the backpacks for the rest of the

. >> i'm pat lawson muse. some tricks of the trade to keep your food fresh. the governor's mansion gets a green upgrade. virginia gets ready for a tax-free weekend. >>> first our top story, did police in prince william county use excessive force when they used a stun gun to subdue a man at a baptism party? >> the chief of police says a stun gun was lawfully used during a christening party. chief charlie dean called up to clr accous of knack racies in the media. >> reporter: the chief says an investigation revealed there was no language barrier. one of the three officers who made the arrest is bilingual. the woman tasered is not pregnant as has been reported elsewhere. the use was justified because the man resisted arrest. prince william county police chief charlie dean called this ws connerence to c tdaupte his department's internal investigation into thetation of two people at this house in manassas, virginia, the night of ju 26th. the chief says police reived a complaint about loud music. subjects drinking and detonating fireworks. >> the basis of the arres

i'm pat lawson muse. >> a man that beat a bethesda woman to death and robbed her will spend the rest of his life behind bars. jose garcia perlero was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole today. he was convicted of first-degree murder in the death of mary havenstein. he w convicted of robbing three other montgomery county women. life without parole is the maximum sentence allowed under law. >>> just a day after the federal reserve gave smal it is recession may be easing, there's evidence today that it will be a bumpy recovery. retail sales dipped in wrul while home foreclosures climbed to their highest level. >>> and it is a battle of the beltways. tonight the redskins take on the ravens up in baltimore in their first prey season game. lit give fans a first loo at what washington players have to offer this year. game time is 7:30. we will have live team coverage at the top of the hour. game here on news4. >>> in the battle over health care reform, that provision for end of life counseling that fuel rumors of so-called death panels is now being dropped. >> it i

i'm pat lawson muse. >>> i'm jim handly. a look at some of the top stories we are following for you this hour. >> in jurnlg a husband and wife their dumfries home. police say it appears it may be a murder/suicide. there is word the couple were facing foreclosure and were due to be evicted today. >>> the housing mark set showing signs of recovery this evening. existing home sales rose more than 7% in july. largest monthly increase in a decade. experts credit the government incentive program that's meant to attract first-time home buyers. still some economists question how long the rebound will last and as another government incentive program that cash for clunkers comes to an end. >>> preliminary resul of the presidential election in afghanistan may not be available until tuesday. afghan officials say it is too early for anyone to declare victory but both of the leading candidates say they are ahead in the count. if neither candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff. >>> well, with the kids heading back

. >> i'm pat lawson muse. here are some of the top stories at this hour. anger over health care reform continues to disrupt town halls across the country. maryland senator ben cardin drew both cheers and jeers at a forum in hagerstown today as he talked about what he wants to see in a government-backed system. other law makers and partisans continue to accuse each other of distorting what's actually in the legislation. >>> with the economy on the mend the federal reserve held a key lending rate at a record low near zero. again, pledged to keep it there for an extended period. the decision helped the dow today to triple digits. >>> transportation secretary ray lahood wants to know whether a weekend flaying ordeal violated any laws. >>> a continental express flight from houston to minneapolis was diverted because of bad weather. but passengers weren't allowed off that plane for hours. >> the airline has apologized and offer reed refunds but passengers rights advocates say that's not enough. here's brian mooar. >> reporter: dozens of passengers stranded overn

. >> i'm pat lawson muse.coming up in this half hour, get ready for some traffic headaches around the busy verizon center it is a city cleans up a well-known arch way. would major credit card companies are offering some relief for their customers. and lindsay has lunch with former washington coach joe gibbs. >>> first this afternoon our top story. more trouble for metro. following an investigation into how a train was allowed to leave the yard with too many cars. >> the last two months have been a nightmare for metro with one tragedy right after the next. pat collins is live outside of the metro center station in northwest to tell bus the latest. pat? >> reporter: metro trouble. it seems every week something bad happens to metro. at the silver spring home of michael nash, someoneeft a card of cdolence in the front door. 63-year-old michael nash, a track repairman, for metro killed bay piece of equipment while he was working on the orange line sunday. mr. nash worked for metro 21 years and he lived in the silve

pat lawson muse is here with a preview. >> hi, keith. coming up this afternoon at 4:00, "d" is for deficiency when it comes to vitamins. new information finds children aren't getting enough vitamin d these days. and get healthy for life today why it's happening and how parents can remedy the vitamin d deficiency problem. >>> then at 5:00 this afternoon, what your dentist may not be telling you about your dental insurance. for those stories and all the day's news, join us for news 4 beginning at 4:00. keith, barbara. >> okay. thank you, pat. >> thank you, pat. >>> let's check on the weather now. out the door forecast. >> a break from our usual summertime high humidity today. temperatures now in the low 80s. it's 82 in washington. and we will have lots of sunshine for the remainder of the day. should be a clear and mild evening coming up. and for the afternoon, lower humidity with a light breeze. highs reaching the mid and upper 80s to near 90 by the next two or three hours. then this evening we'll have that nearly full moon rising and a c