our scott broom is live in annapolis right now with all that happened there today. scott. >> yeah, this really was a big surprise and it came out as the governor was pretaping a radio program for a public affairs program in baltimore. his staff started walking it back, but it was clear from what we heard from him that he is thinking about a one cent hike in maryland sales tax rates. >> we also have to be strong enough to make the right investments. >> in an address to opening day of the maryland general assembly, governor martin o'malley previewed. two hours before he said this. while recording the mark steiner show for baltimore's weaa radio. >> operating budget is roughly half a million. all of which could be addressed and for the greater part in the future. >> buy one penny sales tax that would move us to the lowest. 23rd, 25th. >> raising taxes will kill jobs. >> it was immediate. >> the most important thing we need to do in this economy is create jobs. >> the sales tax went from 5 cents to 6 cents in 2007. and that was before the economy collapsed. the problem o

our scott broom was the first reporter on the scene. reporter: i'm scott broom in new carrollton where police have captured a home invader but they're looking for two more suspects after a violent break-in at a home here on carrollton parkware this morning. new carrollton police arrived -- parkway this morning. new carrollton police arrived here just as three suspects were fleeing on foot from the house at about 11:00 this morning. new carrollton and prince george's county police responded with a manhunt that included tracking dogs, a u.s. park police helicopter and with early reports an assault weapon might have been involved the nearby carrollton elementary school was put on lockdown. investigators later determined that no such weapon was used and the lockdown was lifted. >> three suspects forced entry into the home. we have two suspects outstanding we are still trying to find. reporter: police said two college students preparing to return to school after winter break were in the house when intruders broke in. they both suffered scrap

. >>> i'm scott broom at penn state university. where the grieving continues for joe paterno. and a period of mourning has been announced by university officials. >> i'm thinking this man loved the community. >> reporter: the parade of faithful continues their pilgrimage to the paterno statue outside beaver stadium today. two days of viewing for paterno, begin tomorrow at the university's center and a huge public service at the 1 7,000- seat brice jordan center thursday. >> meanwhile, legendary penn state broadcaster fran fisher, age 91, is among those calling on the same university administration that fired joe paterno for not doing enough to stop the child sex abuse scandal to follow his example during public mourning. >> i think they owe that to the community. and to the football letter men and to joe and sue. >>> scott broom, 9news now. >>> services. >>> tonight at 7:00. >>> president obama proposes a new idea to raise money if i roadways. first an early check on the forecast. >> reporter: good news bad news. tempers are going up. we are not going to see refreezing tonight

reporting live at state college, pennsylvania, scott broom, 9news now. >>> thank you very much, scott. the republican race for the presidency is now moving to florida where mitt romney is taking aim at newt gingrich. the former speaker pulled off a win in south carolina on saturday. and of course, romney wants to stop that from happening in florida. randall pinkston has more. >> reporter: mitt romney is fighting in florida to knock down newt gingrich after the former speaker pulled off a big win in south carolina. >> people should know if there is going to be an october surprise. in the case of the speaker, he's got some records which could represent an october surprise. we could see an october surprise today from newt gingrich. >> the former massachusetts governor once held a double digit lead in florida polls. now at least one shows gingrich leads the pack. he believes voters like what they're hearing from him. >> i have flaws. i have weaknesses, i've had a long career. the fact is what you see really is what you get and i'm prepared to stand toe to toe with barack obama and debate

scott broom is in state college tonight. scott, what do you have?eporter: here at beaver stadium at the paterno statue at this moment folks are holding vigil with lit candles all around the statue. folks here know that the diagnosis was cancer understanding that that's what he died from, but a lot of them thinking he also died of a broken heart. >> he shouldn't have gone out like this. reporter: there is grief here. >> it's just really sad. reporter: but there's anger and blame, too. >> the stress was just too much for him to handle. i think went out in a very unfair way. >> the best they could do to terminate him is via a phone call. that's just horrendous. i can't let it go. >> joe paterno is my role model since i was 5 years old. reporter: one student came with life size cutout of the iconic coach. there are candles, signs and flowers. >> it's a shame. reporter: his death rubs the emotions raw all over again. >> so yeah, the way things ended up for him, a little bit of anger, sadness, sorrow. it's a sad day in happy valley. >> don't pray for joe.

in washington, scott broom, 9news now. >> and we're going to continue to talk about issues that impact your privacy. tonight at 7:00, big changes to dpoog l's google privacy policy. >> that's a little daunting. still to come in this half hour, the wizards make a change at the top. we'll tell you more about flip saunders departure. dave. >> we are live at the verison center. the real story is basketball. flip saunders out, randy whitman in. i'll have a live report coming up in a few moments. >>> well, i don't have a jacket on. temperatures mild. here are the numbers that go in the books. 54 at national today. 43 was the low. the low was higher than the average high. record high is 73. record low 3 above. we'll come back and talk about some cooler air moving in tonight. talk about the northern lights and when the next time you're going to need your umbrella. >> and the major route through northern virginia shut down for hours this afternoon. the latest on that gas main leak along gleeb road. that's next on 9news now. [ male announcer ] this was how my day began. a little bird told me abo

in bethesda, scott broome, 9news now. >>> 'tis the season to recycle old christmas trees. residents with trees less than eight feet tall can put them out on the curb in fairfax county over the next two weeks. other jurisdictions have similar programs. county officials want to remind you to make sure all of the ornaments and lights have been removed from the tree before you put it out. >>> coming up on 9news now, winter in new england. warm temperatures are making for a miserable season at the ski resort. howard has our forecast. >> it has been a tough go here in our local ski resorts. they're getting snow in the mountains. they're making snow. the cold is here. look at the temps as we go to break, people. it is cold! upper 20s to around 30 in springfield, college park, 32. that doesn't even factor in the winds. we'll break down the flurries, the snow showers. live doppler 9000 hd and the wind chills all coming up when 9news now at noon returns. >> it was cold this morning. >> this is one of the few cold days we've felt this entire winter. it has been an unbelievable decemb

. >> i'm scott broom in rockville where this little office condominium project is at the epicenter of an alleged human trafficking and prostitution sting. >> you see the customers drive up. >> small business operator says it became obvious to him massage wasn't all that was going on downstairs. at one business called, best massage. >> indeed it was obvious. you could tell by the traffic that people coming and going. >> all up and down rockville pike, police raided similar businesses with names like pink spa, tropical spa, ya ya spa and wa wa spa. they charged four operators, including these three with human trafficking. >> the owners are targeting certain type of women who perhaps don't have ties to community or need financial help. so these owners know what they're doing. they are very skilled in what type of women they hire. >> clients of legitimate businesses here are stunned at what's been going on under their noses. in rockville, scott broom, 9news now. >>> we have word that zach johnson can no longer practice law in the state of maryland. the court of appeals disbarred the forme

in state college, scott broom, 9news now. >> joe paterno spent more than half a century at penn state. starting person of the assistant coach in the 1950s before becoming head coach in 1966. >>> five american airline flight crew members are out of the hospital now, but they got hurt when their plane hit major turbulence. they were headed from brazil to miami on flight 19980. two hours in the plane hit major turbulence. people on board felt a huge drop and watch as unbuckled passengers and crew members smashed their heads on in and through the ceiling. >> the guy sitting next to me hit his ceiling, busting a hole in the ceiling on the roof of the plane. >> and this is one of the flight attendants seeming to get the worse injury, trapped under a food cart after hitting the ceiling and it fell down on top of her. the airport spokesperson said a total of six all flight crew members were hurt. all expected to be okay. folks across the south are cleaning up from a whole bunch of different turbulence weather, looking for people that might have been injured or trapped by the deadly storms ove

we sent scott broom to bethesda to get all the details. pretty bag or no, what are people telling you? >> well, i think if there's a model for how long this is going to play out, it's right across the border in washington, d.c. where they had a bag tax started in 2010. it did dramatically reduce the number of bags used and discarded. here in maryland, it looks like they are leading the way. momentum is building for bag taxes and other jurisdictions. >> bag tax goes beyond washington. rather than just food and liquor retailers, montgomery county imposed a bag tax on all retailers and paper bags, too. today i saw some people so mad they preferred to lug unbagged groceries to the car. >> it's all a hoax. >> ten bays, 50 cents. >> i had no choice. i had too much to carry on my own. >> enter the name of bags used. >> here at the safeway in bethesda, there were a lot of bag tax supporters. the store is giving away a free reusable bag for every $50 spent to help make customers make the transition. with the goal of reducing litter dramatically and

in annapolis, scott broom, 9news now. >> a grown up of community labor and education activists plan to meet today with state lawmakers in annapolis. the group is called, to save our state coalition. >> we have had a series of meetings during the interim with citizens from all across the state from the western maryland, eastern shore to southern maryland to find out about the impact of budget cuts. and what we found is a very sad story. whether you are talking about teachers who don't have enough supplies or state employee who's have long lines and social services. the economy has had a terrible impact. >> now the group says despite the slow economy, a lot of private companies are doing just fine, so plans to ask lawmakers to make sure private companies are paying their fair share of taxes that will in turn help fund people and fund the services for folks all across the state. >> state lawmakers in virginia also got down to business today and from transportation to education, the virginia general assembly is facing a slew of issues this session. >> i'm peggy fox in richmond where virgin

. >> i'm scott broom outside the federal courthouse in green belt, maryland, where the man who remains accused of the mother, daughter killer received a 100 year federal sentence for other crimes. >> 28-year-old jason scott responsible for nearly 60 violent home invasions, burglaries, and more in prince georges county between 2007 and 2009. >> he was a one man crime wave. he referred to him as not just a crime wave, but a tsunami of crime. >> how scott operated like a terrorist from a hollywood movie with no fear. surprising victims if their own homes. used his job to identify victims. >> there are lots of things that i just don't do. >> after this 100 year federal sentence, poised to take a second crack at scott. this time for the murders of delores, whose burned bodies were found in their car after a home invasion. just a few blocks from scott's home. scott broom, 9news now. >> and there was an arrest today next two recent attempted robberies in bethesda. montgomery county police say that could lead to closing more than 10 other cases in the county. investigators say the unidentified

we sent scott broom to liberty mountain in carroll county, pennsylvania, to see if people are planning to ski or golf this weekend. i do not feel sorry for you, scott. reporter: what a whacky week of weather. it was super cold early this week, so they were able to make all this snow here at liberty mountain resort and then today it pops up to 60 degrees. so yeah, call it the liberty biathalon. folks are out skiing today and planning to walk across the street and play golf. it was a dream come true for a lot of folks i talked to today. >> it's almost perfect. i can make money on both sides of the street today. >> i'm skiing in the morning and i have a 1:00 tee time this afternoon january 6, 2012. reporter: well, since we called it a biathlon. i tried to go up the hill, come down the hill and quickly jump out of the ski gear, run across the street to the golf course and play one hole and do it in less than 30 minutes and i got it done in 29. so yeah, it was a whacky day for january 6th, no doubt about it. they've got a lot of snow here despite the warm temperatures because of all the col

as scott broom reports, the tax sets the stage for a similar movement across the rest of the state of maryland. >> in montgomery county, some people couldn't bring themselves to pay the tax filling the car with unbagged groceries. >> i think it's all a hoax. something else to get our money. >> i sent a bag. >> i had no choice. i had too much to carry on my own. >> enter the number of bags used. >> it's the new bag tax in montgomery county. 5 cents per bag expected to raise a million per year to be spent on water pollution mitigation. with bags considered the bad boy of the litter world, plastic fluttering in trees and waterways, bag taxes are seen as a way to reduce the damage. washington's bag tax on food and liquor retailers reduced use from about 22 million a month to about 3 million a month, but montgomery ups the anti by taxing all retailers and paper bags, too. >> i'm from india. so i'm used to this. >> at the new safeway in bethesda, customers got a free reusable bag for every $50 in groceries they bought. and a will the of customers have gotten themselves in the habit. >> that

so we sent scott broom to check out the problem at firsthand. here is what he found. >> reporter: take a look at the skies right around dinner time and you can see what people here on this side are complaining about. >> will they migrate back around here. there they will fly over there. >> reporter: some residents have been taking cell phone video of this because it is just so hard to believe. >> and when they fly, it just gets pitch black. >> actually, it is like a scary movie. >> yes. and all of them are sick and tired because of what the birds leave behind. >> i love that and that is a great car wash. >> the birds are attracted by a group of tall trees moving in from the abundant areas here. and what is going on here is a well documented migration and the rooster behavior among the common species. and now as seen in the uncounted youtube videos, that they have gathered in massive flocks to migrate in the fall. typically they have moved through our region, except when it has been as mild as this winter has. and they speculate jim mccann who sp

as scott broom reports, they walked away with tears and disappointment. >> i'm going to have to go toy son's burial. >> reporter: his mother. >> he's not the first person and he's not going to be the last person to die. until they get it straight, you're going to see more family here. >> reporter: he died four years ago in in apartment complex after being jolted twice by a taser. the police officer was responding to a report of a fight. gray was tased a second time while he was laying face down on the ground because he did not respond to show his hands. it turned out, he was already unconscious. >> this is a tragedy. >> reporter: former corporal torres says the incident weighs heavily on him. experts testified he was following proper police procedure. >> tazers are a useful tool. they have saved many lives, much more than they've taken, if they've taken any at all. >> it's a very hard thing to do. >> reporter: the jury foreman said deliberations were emotional. >> you know, you can go back and say if this didn't happen, if this didn't happen, then this wouldn't have happened. you can

our scott broom breaks down the numbers. >> okay. they gave me the marker, the white board. so let's do the numbers. the income tax is not the only tax they're talking about in maryland. they're talking about a gas tax, a flush tax and an online shopping sales tax. how much is it going to cost you? under the governor's proposal on the income tax side he's talking about individuals at 100,000 in income, doubles at 150, by reducing the personal exemption, that is going to cost those families $191 a year. let's talk about the gas tax. there are proposals to hike that as high as an additional 15 cents per gallon. if you've got two cars in your family, 25 miles per gallon, we're talking about potentially as much as $144 in additional taxes if that passes. then there's a flush tax. this is a wastewater fee we pay too protect the environment. the governor is talking about doubling the current -- to protect the environment. the governor is talking about doubling the $2.50 fee which would cost an additional $30 a year. the governor thinks he might be able to raise $20 million a year

scott broom ventured out into the neighborhood as the manhunt unvoled. reporter: this drama started with a 911 call that came from inside the house while the home invasion was going on. police were dispatched while a desperate fight happened inside. new carrollton police arrived just as three suspects were fleeing on foot from the house on carrollton parkway at 11:00 this morning. one of them was run down and arrested in a foot chase, but two got away. new carrollton and prince george's county responded with a manhunt, tracking dogs, a helicopter and with early reports an assault weapon might have been involved the nearby carrollton elementary school was put on lockdown. investigators later determines no such weapon was used and the lockdown was lifted. as detectives converged on the house where it started to piece together what happened. >> we believe three suspects forced entry into the home, stole items from the house while residents were inside and fled the area. we have two suspects outstanding we are still trying to find. reporter: police said two

reporter: i'm scott broom in middletown, maryland. who shot the puppy is what investigators want to know on this 52-acre farm dedicated to dog rescue? the 7-month-old golden retriever puppy's name was heidi. >> i'm sorry. i thought we would have to go through this. reporter: lynnette coffman is beside herself. coffman points up to one of her fields where heidi was found mysteriously shot to death wednesday afternoon apparently by a dress passer on this fenced in farm -- a trespass other this fenced in farm. >> someone is malicious. i no longer feel say. reporter: coffman and friends run a rescue operation for abused or unwanted golden retrievers like molly, the dog recovering from statement cord surgery. frederick county animal control is investigating with the sheriff's department and a reward fund has been launched by a pennsylvania-based retriever rescue organization. scott broom, 9 news now. >>> near fredericksburg hunters are getting the go ahead to shoot to kill coyotes. the freelance star is reporting king george county officia

gray's family alleges the deputy used excessive force and sought $145 million but as scott broom reports, they only walked away with tears and disappointment. >> when i have to go to my son's burial plot -- >> reporter: tanya is gray's mother. >> he's not the first person to die, lee be the last person to die from a taser. until they get it straight, you're going see more families here. >> jerrell gray died four years ago after being jolted twice by the taser, a former county deputy corporal rudy torres who was responding to a report of a fight. gray was tased a second time while he was lying face down on the ground because he did not respond to commands to show his hands. it turned out he was already unconscious. >> i think it has to be remembered this is a tragedy. >> reporter: former corporal torrez says the incident ways heavily on him. experts testify he was performinger to procedure. >> the jury foreman says deliberations were emotional. >> you can go back and say if this didn't happen, if this didn't happen, well then this wouldn't have happened. you can play the "what if" game al

in state college, scott broom, 9 news now. >> we'll have more from penn state later tonight in sports plus. >>> congresswoman gabrielle giffords says she's stepping down. in a video release today on youtube, giffords says she's giving up her seat in the house to devote more time to her recovery. the arizona democrat was shot and wounded last year in her home district. six people were killed, a total of 13 injured in that senseless attack by a lone gunman. >>> i have more work to do on my recovery. so i'll do what is best for arizona. i will step down this week. i'm getting better. every day, my spirit is high. i will return. >> her office says she plans to attend president obama's state of the union address on tuesday. tonight, the president said giffords is an inspiration and the very best of what public service should be. he said giffords and her husband, astronaut mark kelly, have taught us the true meaning of hope in the face of despair and determination in the face of incredible odds. >>> tonight, prince george's county police are investigating the shooting involving one of their

. >>> i'm scott broom in the port of baltimore. >> are we safe on these cruise ships? >> the industry keeps their trust in the wake of disaster. >>> four crew members are unaccounted for three days after the ship crashed into a reef off the tuscan coast and capsized. at least two americans are among the missing. six people are confirmed dead. the chairman and ceo of the cruise line says the captain made an unauthorized change of course. the ship caused the -- abandoning the ship and causing a ship wreck. >>> now the big question for you is, would you be willing to cruise now? >> scott broom tops a local passengers today as a 2700 passenger ship made its regular call on the port of baltimore today. >> royal caribbeans of the seas. >> it was fun. >> just back to baltimore today from nine days out to the bahamas and back. >> i have a blast. it was amazing. >> a great trip even though the buzz on board this ship included lots of chatter about the disaster. >> are we really safe on these cruise ships? >> it's reassuring. >> royal caribbean has a quarter of the world cruise

. >>> and i'm scott broom live at the state house in annapolis. when we come back, we'll talk about what is new with a gay marriage debate in maryland and the critical role african american churches in prince georges county are playing in this issue. stay tuned. >>> for the first time today, maryland governor martin o'malley testified in favor of same sex marriage. the question tonight, will it have any effect on the prince georges county lawmakers who were at the epicenter of this debate? sharply dividing maryland. scott broom is live at the state house tonight with reactions to the day's emotional events. scot, fill us in. >> it's really important to understand the history of this issue in maryland. you have to remember, last year, same sex marriage came up a couple votes short as powerful african american churches in prince georges county leaned hard on their delegates to go against the democratic leadership in maryland. >> marriage should be defined between what? >> one man and one woman. >> there you go. >> african american church leaders bac

in bethesda, scott broom, 9 news now. >> pepco responded today by reminding scott they're under a publicervice commission legal order to remove at least four years of overgrowth from the entire system. the budget for that this year alone is $7.5 million. >>> there is word tonight of a settlement in the phone hacking case involving rupert murdoch's now closed news of the world tabloid. the media company agreed to pay damages to 36 high profile victims. among them actor jude law. the company now faces about 60 hacking lawsuits. the victims claim the tabloid invaded their privacy by intercepting voicemail messages. some settlements involve hundreds of thousands of dollars. >>> there are some concerns that britain's best known river the thames could pose a security threat to the summer olympics. today scotland yard and the royal marines conducted training tests on the water to make sure they know how to work together on the 210-mile river. they want to make sure the river doesn't give problems or terrorists a foothold for attacks. >>> mark wahlberg is apologizing today about comments he made

our scott broom joins us now live. scott? >> reporter: the outpouring of grief continues here today. so does that bitter ernesto toward the university's board of regents. the challenge right now is how to put that bitterness aside during this period of mourning, which has just been announced. >> i'm thinking this man loved the community. >> reporter: the parade of faithful continues their pilgrimage to the paterno statute outside beaver stadium today. >> i'm still crying. >> reporter: meanwhile, some students wore white to memorialize paterno whose face remains on the jumbotrons overlooking 100,000 empty seats in the stadium. this after a candlelight vigil that drew thousands last night. now plans are made. two days of viewings for paterno. and a huge public service at the 17,000 seat rice jordan center thursday. >> let's, for this moment, think of the positive. >> reporter: meanwhile broadcaster fran fisher age 91, is among those now calling on the same university administration that fired joe paterno for not doing enough to

we sent our scott broom to check out the story firsthand. joining us live now, scott? >> reporter: well, we're going to show you the pictures in just a moment that she took on her cell phone. but we are live right now in waldorf. i'll let my partner look up in the sky. and try to catch a glimpse of some of the thousands of blackbirds that are hanging around the neighborhood today. now, they have 700 of them out on the tops of the trees right there, right now. this is the kind of scenery that a lot of neighborhoods around here have had it with. >> and that will be migrated from back here. >> and they will fly over there. >> some of them have been taking cell phone video of this because, you know, it is just so hard to believe. >> it just gets dark. pitch black. >> actually, it's like a scary movie. >> yeah, because of the weather. >> all of them are sick and tired of what the birds will leave behind. >> i would love to get rid of them. >> the birds are attracted by a group of tall trees to move in for the night and the aban -- abundant look. it is a well documented migr

in laurel, scott broom, 9news now. >>> talk about a cold and windy day out there. topper, this arctic blast of falling temperatures will stick around for a bit. what do you say? >> hard to believe this time yesterday, we were in the upper 50s. let's start with the wind gust. the good news, winds will die down tonight and the wind advisory has been canceled. the bad news is, the winds are going to drive a pretty good windchill. we're looking at winds 23 miles at national, 18-mile per hour wind gusts in gaithersburg and so we are looking at not 50- mile an hour winds, but strong enough to produce windchill. if you're going outside, look at the wind gust in oakland. if you're going outside, you need to dress for the windchill. so it feels like it's 28 in leesburg. 21 in frederick. teens up in hagerstown. look at oakland, it's only 12 degrees. 6 below with the wind. so, here's the deal. tonight partly cloudy, breezy and cold. winds will die down somewhat. 2 to 3 blanket night. winds out of the west 10 to 15. we will come back. i will fix my hair and let you know if the

reporting live, scott broom, 9news now. >> scott, thank you. a trial date is now set for a man accused of killing his estranged wife and his stepson. curtis lopez is charged with murdering jane and 11-year-old william mcquain of germantown in october. his trial is scheduled to begin july 10. jane mcquain was found beaten and stabbed to death in her apartment. her son's body was later found in woods in clarksburg, maryland. >>> its nose was up, the tail was down. >> 30 years ago in the mist of a snowstorm and an early rush hour, air florida flight 90 slammed into the 14th street bridge. 74 people on the tampa bound plane died that day as well as four people on that bridge. the images that stay with us from that day are from the five people plucked from the icy potomac. a bystander jumped in the water. bruce leshan is here and he says the legacy of this crash is a dramatic increase in airline safety. >> derek, you know, nearly 80 people died in this air florida crash. but the disaster forced safety changes that have likely saved countless more li

scott broom, 9news now. >>> funeral arrangements have not been announced for joe paterno. his family has asked donations be made to the special olympics of pennsylvania or to the annual two-day dance marathon raising money for children's cancer charities. mike? >>> the latest contest in the republican presidential nomination is a week away. the florida primary we're talking about. the first poll taken after newt gingrich's win in the south carolina primary shows him in the lead. 34% of likely voters support gingrich in florida. 26% supporting mitt romney. this is the first poll in florida in six weeks, showing gingrich in the lead. 13% goes to ron paul. >>> newt gingrich is trying to draw more distinctions between himself and mitt romney. he's not afraid to go on the offensive as he did yesterday here on channel 9 on "face the nation." >> governor romney may be running for ceo. i'm running for president. president of the united states has to understand the government of the united states. barack obama clearly didn't and candidly, i doubt if govern romney would. in terms of

in the newsroom scott broom, 9 news now. >> scott scott scotty, thanks for that breakdown. >>> we got a 9 news now update. police released a statement regarding the search for an abandoned baby that died left on a doorstep. police still need your help and encourage you to come forward with any information about this case. the baby died early monday at the hospital not long after a neighbor discovered that little body on a doorstep in northeast. the baby was covered just with a towel and the temperature at the time was about 28 degrees. >>> 55-year-old james jimmy garvin pleaded guilty to a single felony this morning in d.c. federal court in connection with that embezzlement scheme involving harry thomas, jr. the prosecution says garvin helped thomas embezzle more than $300,000 that should have gone to youth programs. garvin faces up to three years in prison. they have yet to face the sentencing day. is he free on his own recognizance. garvin is a general manager at the lincoln golf course in northwest d.c. we'll have much more at 6:00. >>> meantime today dozens of people protested the

. >>> i'm scott broom, we talked about the general assembly. when we come back at 6:00, it will be my turn here in maryland where governor martin o'malley surprised everyone on opening day by floating the idea of a penny hike in the sales tax to go along with even more talk about a hike in gas taxes and waste water taxes. when i come back at 6:00, we'll have an explanation and reaction. >> and caught on tape tonight, a dramatic high speed chase down in texas. the camera inside the police cruiser sees it all happen. officers chasing this car after occupants stole 300 pounds worth of a big face and threw it in the trunk. the suspect thought their best chance would be to go on foot. they slammed on the brakes in the middle of the highway and ran across the highway. sadly for them, the police were faster on foot than they thought. we can jump out of our cars, too. okay, let's be real. >> okay, now there was a most unusual scene today during the pope's weekly general audience at the vatican. >> a zoo in rome gave pope benedict xvi a young crocodile.

scott broom is live with more on the tax and how people are reacting to it all. scotty. >> of course we do have a template for how this bag tax runs. it's across the line in washington, d.c., but not to be out done, montgomery county has expanded its bag tax and as you reported, a lot of people are watching because there is momentum to make this tax statewide. >> some people could not bring themselves to pay the new 5- cent per bag tax filling the car with unbagged groceries. >> i think it's a hoax. something else to get our money. >> i had no choice. i had too much to carry on my own. >> enter the number of bags used. >> it's the new bag tax. 5 cents per bag, expecting a million to be raised. with bags considered the bad boy of the litter world, plastic fluttering in trees and waterways, bag taxes are seen as a way to reduce the damage. washington's bag tax on food and liquor taxes reduced use from 22 million a month to about 3 million a month. but montgomery ups the anti by taxing all retailers and paper bags, too. >> i'm from india. we are carrying these in in

in rockville, scott broom, 9news now. >> police say they were tipped off to all of this by a dramatic increase in internet advertising for accupressure and massage in the rockville area. >>> we have an update on efforts to remove a body from deep in a well in fort washington, maryland. prince georges county police say there's a 99% chance they won't be able to get it out today. engineers need to assess the stability of the well. the remains were found on old 4 road yesterday afternoon behind a vacant house. >> this will be an extremely long, drawn out process. to give you an idea of how long it's going to take, simply to get a piece of construction equipment that we need at the scene. we have to go through a process to allow it to be on the road. so that gives you a sense of how long this is going to take. >> the well is 20 feet deep and authorities are concerned it could collapse on recovery crews. >>> u.s. park police is putting the occupy d.c. demonstrators on notice. people living in mcpherson square and freedom plaza need to leave by monday or risk arrest. fliers went up today. t

scott broom joins us live from baltimore with the reaction. >> the man who died was 20- year-old jerel gray of frederick. his family sued frederick county for $145 million. today they got nothing. >> we will have to go to my son's burial spot he is not the first person to die. he's not going to be the last person to die from a taser. you want to see more families here. >> he died four years ago in this frederick apartment complex after being jolted twice by the taser. a former deputy corporal who was responding to the report of a fight. gray was tased a second time while he was lying face down on the ground. because he did not respond to commands to show his hands. it turned out, he was already unconscious. >> have to be remembered is this a tragedy. >> torres says the incident weighs heavily on him. experts testify he was following proper police procedure. >> tasers are a useful tool. they have saved many lives, much more than they have taken, if they have taken any at all. >> it was a hard thing to do. >> jury foreman says deliberations were emotional. >> you can say if this didn't h

as scott broom reports, investigators need all the help they can get in solving this shocking attack. reporter: the 7-month-old golden retriefer puppy's name was heidi. >> i'm sorry, we thought we would have to go through. this. reporter: and lynnette coffman is beside herself. >> i just don't understand any of this. >> right to there is where we found her. reporter: coffman points out to one of her fileds where heidi was found miss -- fields where might did i was found mysteriously shot to death -- heidi was found misteachesly shot to death on the farm. >> someone -- mysteriously shot to death on the farm. >> valerie came back over last night. we took the dogs out and i was petrified someone would take a shot at us. reporter: the 57-acre farm near middletown is called golden acres where coffman and friends run a rescue operation for abused and unwanted golden retrievers, like molly recovering from spinal cord surgery. >> there's dogs, cats, a rescued goat and donkey. this is their home and nobody is safe. reporter: frederick county animal control is investigating along with the sheri

but as scott broom reports, things aren't going so smoothly in chevy chase west. >> welcome to chevy chase west in bethesda. >> we lose power constantly. >> it is a neighborhood where trees routinely take well power lines. pepco started removing some of the county-owned trees here this week. this one clearly diseased but abruptly quit before the job was done. when some residents objected. outraging neighbor billy bao. >> it is probably controversial to the psycho environmentalist but to us people who lose power, it is a great idea. >> are you an environmental wacko? >> not the last time i checked. >> he objected when pepco tried to take down this county-owned tree in front of his house without warning or discussion. brawn called it totalitarian tactics. >> i think pepco got so much political heat. they decided that they would rather take heat for doing too much rather than doing too little. >> now, i mean hopefully he'll lose power and we won't. he'll see what it is like. >> it is a fine line to walk. >> there are lots of points of view here. >> i would rather go without power myself

scott broom ventured out into the neighborhood as the manhunt unfolded. reporter: this drama started with 911 call that came from inside the house while the home invasion was going on. police were matched while a desperate fight was happening -- matched while a desperate fight was happening inside. new carrollton police arrived just as three suspects were fleeing on foot from the house. one was run down and arrested in a foot chase, but two got away. new carrollton and prince george's county police responded with a manhunt that included tracking dogs, a u.s. park police helicopter and with early reports that an assault weapon might have been involved, the nearby carrollton elementary school was put on lockdown. investigators later determined that no such weapon was used and the lockdown was lifted. as detectives converged on the house where it all started to piece together what happened. >> we believe three suspects forced entry into the home, stole items from the house while residents were inside and fled the area. we have two suspects outstanding we are

we got scott broom involved to see if b.k.an deliver. >> reporter: it is the burger king on shady grove road in gaithersburg, up with of ten b.k.s in the d.c. area designated to test drive fast food delivery for the entire company. >> just call up the number. they can deliver for you. >> the real challenge is getting it there, having it fresh and especially the fries. >> double whopper combo with no cheese. >> which brings us to lunchtime at walnut hill auto care exactly a mile away. >> i'm getting a double whopper meal. >> 9news treats for this test. >> that's assistant manager joe king. >> this is the order confirmation e-mail that they sent. i felt like i was talking to someone in a call center and just taking orders. he had no idea where gaithersburg, maryland was or how you spell it. >> 42, yes, 42 minutes later, the food arrives. to a skeptical crew. will it be good after all of this time? >> oh, yeah, look. >> reporter: first thing everyone notices is the packaging, it is designing to keep the burger, bun and condiments

scott broom, 9 news now. >> you've shown us why it's so important, scott. thank you. >>> today the maryland board of public works decided to demolish the president's residence at the university of maryland. the residence was built in 1956, hasn't been renovated in decades and it doesn't meet current safety codes. plans are in the 2, to build another residence right next to the current -- 2, to build another residence right next to the current site -- works to build another residence right next to the current site. >>> ann maria johnson's mother said after her 1st grade daughter somehow got access to a peanut product at her chesterfield county elementary school and died. she's questioning if the school could have done more to save her daughter's life and if access to the peanuts could have been prevented. >> i've heard two different stories. one was that it was unsupervised and a kid gave it to her and the other was that someone made her eat it. she has an allergy action plan at the school if she breaks out in hives, if she comes into contact with something

in baltimore, scott broom, 9news now. >>> president obama traveled to iowa today launching his push for his economic agenda, echoing some of the messages he layed out in last night's state of the union address. >> we aren't going to go back to an economy weakened by outsourcing and bad debt and phoney financial problems. that's not how america was built. we're not going to go back to that. >> the president is following up his state of the union speech with a three-day campaign road trip. he is set to visit five key states it bring his ideas to the voters. meantime, republicans fighting to take back the white house. the president is out of touch at campaign stops in florida. the gop presidential front runners took aim at the proposals he laid out for the nation last night. >> this is the president who talks about deregulation, even as he regulates. who talks about lowering taxes as he raises them. >> he had a clever political promise that we aught to make sure everyone who earns $1 million to pay 30% in taxes. it is perfectly classic left wing. >> the florida primary is next tuesday. mit

our scott broom looks at what's next for one of the schools next in line for repairs. reporter: weller road elementary school in montgomery county is next on the list for renovations here and boy, does it need it, but a fight is on to make sure the money doesn't run out for more schools that need help. the good news is weller road elementary is about to get a $25.5 million facelift and get rid of those trailers. the bad news is there are at least 17 more schools in montgomery county that need the same kind of work in the next six years and there's not enough money to do it. montgomery county just asked the state for 184 million. the state's offering just 24. to demonstrate that the investment is worth it, school officials cut the ribbon today on montgomery county's three latest renovations. this is garrett park elementary school. kids will get a gym here for the very first time in an energy efficient building that even has a green roof to save money in the long run. parents are excited. >> it's like a high school with two levels. so the kids are impressed with their lo

that's where scott broom is standing by to tell us more. >> as the name implies, this guy commits his crime all wrapped up in bandages and in the case of the hit on this cvs on christmas eve, he was after drugs, not money. >> the bandaged bandit comes off looking like a mum mummy. face completely wrapped in bandages wearing a sling and gloves, but this appearance at the montgomery county village, where he threatened pharmacists he had a gun. and he wanted drugs. >> he was looking for prescription medication. he received an undisclosed amount of oxycontin. >> i think that's very scary and crazy. >> i think that is shocking and very clever and scary. >> police say the bandaged bandit is a white man in his 20s who could be as tall as '63 and weighing up 6'3". >> the bandaged bandit hasn't been seen since, even worse for this cvs store, this store has been hit twice by a man carrying a shotgun. he is also on the loose. in those cases, that suspect was after money, not drugs. live in montgomery village, 9news now. >> that store has had some tough luck, scott. thanks. >>> tension continues

our scott broom went through a lot of specifics in our 5 p.m. hour. his full report is on www.wusa9.com. >>> on capitol hill house republicans pushed through a symbolic vote against an increase in the nation's debt limit. they supported a resolution rejecting president obama's request to raise the legal cap on borrowing by $1.2 trillion, but today's vote will no way block the rise involving authorities. >>> police are trying to find two women targeting the elderly and using children as the bait. now one of their victims is speaking out and hopes it will lead to an arrest. surae chinn has more. >> i just hope they get call reporter: her life was threatened and she's scared but is speaking out because she doesn't want anyone else to go through what happened to her last week. the ole lower woman was approached by a woman -- elderly woman was approached by a woman and three small children. the suspect woman said she needed help cashing a check. >> obviously the children were used to gain the victim's confidence. reporter: a second woman led the children a

they don't know our god. [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: at the state house in annapolis, scott broomews now. >> and maryland first lady katie o'malley apologized over the weekend for calling opponents of gay marriage cowards. >>> an ironic and heart-breaking murder mystery. friends and family of lenny harris say he spent his life trying to head off violence and tonight police are looking for whoever killed him. he disappeared from an alexandria rec center last september. within hours cameras captured somebody trying to use his bank card. but it was not until late last week that a unanimous caller said they would find his body in the bottom of a well in washington. >> this guy's life is gone. his daughter don't have a father no more. his wife doesn't have a husband anymore. it's just bad. it's real bad. >> police spent nearly three days excavating his body from 23 feet down to the bottom of the well. finally they got his remains out on saturday night. officers are still unsure if harris had been targeted or if he was just a victim of random violence. >>> halt service. >> just days aft

scott broom saw it in action. the delivery fee, $2, and the tip, well that would be up to you. do we really need fast food home delivery? does it show how lazy we have become or is it meeting our need? not to mention the fact that fries are always good. mcginty's mail bag is mailbag@wusa9.com. top, we have been and keep talking about this weather roller coaster, it doesn't stop. >> good news is, it doesn't get cold for very long. it is constantly changing. upper 50s today and be lucky to make 40 tomorrow. and looking at colder air by the end of the week. let's start with our live weather cam brought to you by michael and son. it's a very nice evening. the only, i guess, downside to tonight is the wind. but it's warm. it's a warm wind. 58. the winds are going to be gusty. this cold front won't go through until after midnight. pressure falling at 29.74 inches of mercury. temperatures have not budged. 57 in great falls. reston 57. to the east, we're looking at 58 in beltsville. this is 59 in college park. and 57 over toward andrews. so temperatures, you know, almost 20 degrees abo

. >> reporter: at the statehouse in annapolis, scott broom, 9news now. >> the first lady katie o'malley had to apologize over the weekend for calling opponents of gay marriage cowards. >>> today is primary day for florida's republican voters. most polls show mitt romney with a solid double digit lead over newt gingrich. at a rally in jacksonville monday, gingrich claimed he was closing that gap. florida offers the first big jackpot of the primary season with the winner taking all 50 of the state's delegates. >>> 44 members of congress plan to rework the keystone pipeline proposal. president obama rejected the 1700 mile long extension earlier this month. it would have carried oil from canada to the gulf of mexico. supporters believe the plan will help the u.s. gain energy independence. opponents are concerned about the potential environmental effects. the president said he rejected a plan after congress gave him a two-month deadline to make a decision. he said the administration just needed more time. >>> washington, d.c. may be the best in fiscal shape of any major city in the whole cou

. >> that sentence was just handed down and scott broom joins us live. he has more on the jason scott case. scott. >> you're about to hear from one of the victims that a prosecutor just spoke to us. 100 years from what the judge called a tsunami of crime. this is the first chapter in the courthouse drama, because prosecutors are lined up next to prosecute him for the mother, daughter murders that paralyzed him. prosecutors said 20-year-old jason scott was single handedly responsible for 88% of the reported crime in one largo neighborhood alone. between 2007 and 2009. his nearly 60 violent home invasions, burglaries, carjackings, and a sex assault spread all the way to mitchellville and beyond before he was caught in a federal stolen gun sting in 2009. >> he was a one man crime wave. referred to him not just as a crime wave, but a tsunami of crime. >> i don't accept deliveries. especially ups. i don't go out at night if i can help it. there are lots of things that i just don't do. there are a lot of things that i enjoy doing. >> today, survivors of scott's

scott part broom takes the test drive.. own.aithersburg, one of 10 bk's in the dc area designated to test drive fast food delivery for the entire company. just call up the number and theyy can eliver it for you. the real challenge is getting it thhre, having ittfresh especially the fries. double whopper combo with no cheese. which brings us to lunchtime at walnut hill auto care exactly a mile a way.i'm petting a double-whopper meal. nine news treats for this est. right, burg.that's assistant manager joe king.this is the prder confirmation email that they sent. sound like i waa talking to someone that was in a call center taking orders because he had no idea where was or how to spell it.42 yes food aarives tt a skepticaa crew. will it be good after all this time?(nats)the first thing everyone noticcs is the &ppackaging. it's designed to keep the burger, bun and it'' time tt eat. this turns out to be a big hit. mmm that's good.and the fries.very good, they are good.(reporter: did, it did the friee are ot and crunchy. everything ta