in turn, samuel ellis gets three additional charges dropped. the vi week-long and emotional trial. i can tell you a very tight knit group of people knew about the plea deal. no reporters were present when ellis pled to two counts of vehicular manslaughter. most will remember the terrible crash from last june along a windy two-lane road in north pa toe mack. 18-year-old merck and calvin lee died in wreckage. today police revealed ellis' car dipped in a culvert and went airborne traveling 110 feet. the vehicle frame ripped apart by two trees and flew through the air. i landed on its hood and slid to a stop in a rational driveway. prosecutors went on to state and i quote -- "mr. ellis was driving the vehicle at a bare bones minimum of 65 miles per hour." this on a road with a posted speed limit of 35. >> this is a tro difficult case. is a tragedy. we will ask for jail time. we believe he should be held accountable. kevin: to that point a judge could sentence samuel ellis to up to 20 years in prison. both sides the defense and prosecution say that will most likely be in the range of thr

they will expose new information in samuel ellis' sentencing that is set for june 3. we are live in rockville. i'm kevin lewis, abc7 news. kimberly: on the heels of massive inspections on metro, drivers for the district circulated buses are sounding an alarm of safety. sam ford is live on a circulator bus. we trust your bus is a safe one, sam. i hope so. we are at nailor road and good hope road in southeast washington. for sure it is a concern. the public and the d.c. council learn this week that the city commissioned an audit on the safety of the circulator buses. this audit here. they found that the circulator bus flunked. you see the circulator buses mainly in and around downtown. the city commission audit from last august showed the buses so poorly maintained and the counsel hearing today. the committee chairman called them -- >> dirty and dangerous buses. >> members learn that the city kept the report secret from the union and the council until this week. >> i'm happy for you to get it. i'm appalled from my end of it that we didn't get it. sam: the audit shows th

samuel ellis stood before a judge, as you mentioned. he took responsibility for the th also graduated from wootton high school behind us. he pled guilty to two charges of manslaughter with a motor vehicle. but as prosecutors put it, this wasn't a win for anybody. these are the images many in montgomery county won't forget, the results of drinking, speeding, and driving. police say 19-year-old samuel ellis was drunk on the night of june 25th after he and his friends left a party in north potomac. he lost control of his car wounding one passenger and killing calvin li and friend alexander murk. nearly ten months later, murk and ellis' family were in court when he took a plea bargain pleading guilty to two counts of manslaughter by a motor vehicle. >> this is very serious to us and there were no favors given or any kind of plea bargain, if you will, for this. it was a plea to the straight -- the top line charges. >> reporter: prosecutors say ellis was remorseful as he answered the judge's questions about thel driving drunk. a decision that

kevin: by pleading guilty to two counts of vehicular manslaughter, samuel ellis faces 20 years in prison. that being said, both parties expect the sentence between three months and eight years. more to come at 5:00. we're live in rockville, i'm kevin lewis, abc7 news. jonathan: that is a wide range. thank you. now turn to the weather because the weekend, we were looking at this on monday. >> i know! if you have been outside, it's windy and cold. now t snowshowers. chief meteorologist doug hill has the forecast. a bleak outlook. doug: not a pretty picture, especially for tomorrow. we'll tell you what to expect. clouds increase tonight. temperatures start to fall off as well. as we get through the early morning hours we will feel the effect of the cold front that is advancing in our direction. we wake up to temperatures in the 30's with the skies becoming mostly cloudy. tonight there is a freeze warning in effect north northwest of the metro area. the entire region is under a freeze watch for tomorrow night into sunday morning. very much expect a large part of this area to be upgraded to a

. >> reporter: this morning 19-year-old samuel ellis took a plea deal telling a judge that he's guilty on two counts of vehicular manslaughter after he was driving drunk last summer and killed two of his friends. ellis and his family were in court today along with the family of 18-year-old alexander murk. murk and calvin li were in the backseat of ellis' car along with another friend who was up front. montgomery county police say on the evening of june 25th, 2015, the teens left a in north potomac. just before midkn kninight elli control of his car and went airborne before landing roof down in a nearby yard. murk and li died instantly. he faces up to 20 years in prison. coming up at 5:00, we'll tell you how prosecutors described ellis' demeanor in court today and why they offered a plea bargain in the first place. megagan fitzgerald, news4. >>> i'm tracee wilkins in fairmont heights. in less than an hour this business and 11 others are going to have to cease and desist adult entertainment activities per court order. prince george's county has gone after these clubs after a year-long ba

investigators say 19-year-old samuel ellis was drunk when he and three other friends left a party in north potomac in june. ellis was driving when he lost control. calvin li and alexander murk died on scene. in court today, ellis took responsibility for that night accepting a plea bargain and pleading guilty to two counts of manslaughter with a motor vehicle. >> this is very serious to us, and there were no favors given or any kind of plea bargain, if you will, for this. it was a plea to the straight -- the top line charges. >> reporter: serious charges which carry up to two decades in prison. >> there was a sense of remorse in the courtroom. >> reporter: while prosecutors believe ellis regrets his actions, parents say it's a lesson for them to speak with their child a that could have been avoided. >> i tell my daughter don't do like that. it's your responsibility to be safe and keep others safe. >> reporter: now, ellis will be sentenced on june 3rd, and while he does face a maximum of 20 years in prison, prosecutors say they've not yet decided what they will be asking the judge for,