our scott macfarlane was there when he stepped out of court. scott?e tried make meth inside the national institute of standards and technology, headquarters in gaithersburg, montgomery county and admits today in court, it went all wrong. after he pleaded guilty, a can of soda in his hand, christopher bartley walked out of federal court in greenbelt. you are admitting making meth on the campus. why were you doing that? >> i would refer to you my lawyer. >> reporter: his lawyer in court today bartley admits trying to make meth in july inside building 236 of the highly secured nist gaithersburg campus. prosecutors revealed it all went sideways, it exploded. temperatures in the room reached 180 degrees and bartley was burned on his arms. when the fire department respond, bartly admits he tried to dump some of the evidence in the dumpster. his defense attorneys says bartly, the former agency police chief, was trying to an unapproved training exercise to show the simple blitz of making meth fromby fellow officers could learn. >> his role with the nist polic

scott macfarlane here now with more on this case which begs the question whether somebody dropped the ball. >> reporter: archie glass of the oklahoma city area has been in prison four times for threatening to assassinate presidents. he has been on probation, not allowed to travel outside oklahoma, but the news4 i-team has learned in recent weeks, archie glass didn't just travel, he traveled here and twice. this is the letter archie glass pleaded guilty of sending in 2008 -- court records said in 1996 that glass wanted to be like john hunkly. he was locked up for five years until recently at the el reno federal prison near his home in oklahoma. and those records say in may, while he was being held in a halfway house, he illegally bolted from there and from supervision and made a trip to d.c.,oo. those court records, the feds say they discovered he had done so after they found the returned bus ticket in his possession. when our cameras from a sister station in oklahoma city went there today, they found no answer but found a probation officer's business card in his door. some time this w

has ordered the technology to be install and used nationwide by the end of the year, but as scott macfarlane found, it now appears that vre and marc trains won't have positive train control another five years. scott? >> a series of new reports obtained in public records requests show marc and bre are nowhere close to having positive train control fully operational to better protect the thousands of local passengers any time soon there is progress on the locomotives themselves. 60 marc trains and 40 vre trains will have the necessary hardware, computers and wiring installed by december. but along the tracks, big delays. technology that must be installed by csx and other major rail companies is not yet fully installed. and federal officials said unlike many other regional railways nationwide, they have no estimate as to when they will be completed for vre and for marc. csx officials said they already spent about $1 billion trying to get this positive train control system up and running nationwide but late today they can told news4 it looks like the system won't be fully ready in maryland and v

. >>> this is scott macfarlane at the live desk, developing news a plane damaged as it approached the gate at dulles international airport. chopper4 is there right now. this is united airlines flight 127 enroute from dublin to dulles. kind of crashed into the jetway there outside gate d3 at dulles. engine is damaged. there are no injuries. as we watch these images, we have seen fire crews kind of separate from the plane and passengers starting to get off the plane and some of the luggage and belongings starting to be removed. no injuries, but this is an unusual scene at dulles international, plane hitting the jet watch and the plane is damaged. more to come as we get more details but for now, at the live deck, i'm scott macfarlane. >>> developing right now, d.c. mayor muriel bowser and police chief cathy lanier wrapped up a news conference about the recent crime in the city. the big take away, they are upping the reward for tips that lead to the seizure of illegal guns. people in the community can now get $2500 for that information. now, today's announcement comes after recent shootin

. >>> scott macfarlane here with another story you will see only on news4. a man in prison four times for threatening to assassinate u.s. presidents was stopped days ago outside the white house. and scott this man says he aspired to be the next john hinckley? >> he threatens to kill presidents bush, president obama, president clinton and hillary clinton, too. his name is archie glass and recently released from a federal prison oklahoma. this man, nevertheless managed to make his way sunday to just outside the white house grounds. archie monroe glass of the oklahoma city area has a long history of threatening to kill presidents. in 2008 he admit adler threatening to kill presidents george w. bush and whoever would win the november election writing -- in previous years, he threatened bill clint and hillary clinton too until 2013 he served time in this federal prison el reno oklahoma. coincidentally the same prison president obama visited in july. earlier this summer, glass was serving time at this halfway nous oklahoma city. and during his time there court reco

. >>> and it's scott macfarlane at the live desk, breaking news now, another lifeline for former governor bob mcdonnell. u.s. supreme court chief justice john roberts just ordered on hold a ruling that bob mcdonele must report to prison. that ruling came a few days ago after the his latest appeal of his corruption conviction failed, but the supreme court says bob mcdonnell can stay free, at least until it considers more of his new appeal. let me back you through this again a year ago today, bob mcdonnell convicted of corruption, sentenced to two years in prison, appeal it twice, lost two times, now appealing to the u.s. supreme court, the chief justice says he can remain free until he gets more paperwork on that new appeal. at the live desk, i'm scott macfarlane. >> thank you. >>> the hunt is on for four armed robbers in montgomery county who led police on a wild high-speed chase today. those robbers held up the verizon store there on spartan road and olney at noon today, men seen taking off in a 2015 dodge charger. police chased them onto theism cc. chopper4 flew over the scene at kennel

>> scott macfarlane, breaking another story for us. thanks so much. pat? >>> well, it's back-to-school time and we are helping to send local children back with the things they need. here is a live look at the volunteers helping with our backpacks for kids campaign. they are manning our phone bank this afternoon, looking to take your calls at 202-885-4949. tell you how to make a donation so children all over the dmv can start the school year off with supplies they need to get back to work. 202-885-4949. make your donation now. this is the tenth year of our backpacks for kids campaign. joining me this afternoon, reverend elder j. dwayne johnson and reverend kathy alexander, both from the metropolitan community church of washington, d.c. i see you brought your own backpacks with you. reverend johnson, your church has been part of the campaign for a number of years now, five years now. what prompted you to get involved? >> we believe it is very important not to stay inside the walls and sit there and do church. we believe it is about reaching out into the comm

. >>> it's scott macfarlane at the live desk, a water main break in weeden causing trouble during the busy rush hour. live pictures from chopper4. we are told this water main break is at judson road near munson street just off randolph road. the break has shut down roads because of the high water. you can see the high water in that area. it is clear you want to avoid this area as long as you can. at the live desk, i'm scott macfarlane. >>> we are still following this afternoon's breaking news on former virginia governor bob mcdonnell. the u.s. supreme court granting his last-ditch plea to remain out of prison while he appeals his corruption conviction once again. this does free him from a previous lower court order that could have forced him to start serving that two-year sentence in the next couple of weeks. mcdonnell is convicted of doing favors for a vitamin supplement company ceo in exchange for gifts and lens. he will be free until the high court acts on his appeal and that could take several months. >>> after a violent weekend in the district, this agreement tonight about whethe

vacation, already back to work for when the doors will open up on monday morning, but a review by scott macfarlane reveals a growing problem for one local district -- many teachers are bolting for better pay miles away. >> reporter: many teachers have lined up the chairs. at tuscarora elementary, teachers staged strategy meetings this week before the students arrive. down the road, casey keanon is starting her sixth year in the district, but at her school there's a big change this year. about 100 colleagues have bolted for jobs elsewhere. and the kids she says will notice immediately. >> they come back after the summer and a whole new environment. and maybe their trusted teacher has left. >> reporter: in public records requests wh all local school districts we found local schools lose hundreds of teachers each year, taking different jobs in different places. over the past few years the turnover has been steady except this one in frederick county. in fact, frederick is hemorrhaging veteran teachers. more than 300 have left the district since 2012. >> when you start to lose those folks that's a lot

. >> now coming up on news4 at 11:00, our scott macfarlane finds out what the district is doing about that problem and what happens to the kids when veteran teachers bolt for new jobs. >>> by now you have seen the damage, but this morning we are getting a look at the moment a gas explosion in washington state happened. the video straight ahead. >>> if it felt hot and sticky at your metro station, you are not imagining things. what news4's adam tuss uncovered about the chiller system at certain stations. >>> take a look at storm team 4 radar. be sure to download the nbc washington app because a line of storms are headed our way. we are under a flash flood watch. tom will tell us i >>> some pretty incredible video here. you can see the moment part of a washington state motel was destroyed by a gas explosion. this happened tuesday night at a motel 6 near seattle. firefighters say the fast actions of the manager there may have saved dozens of lives. she pulled the fire alarm after a gas line might be leaking. nobody was seriously hurt. >>> it is going to be hot, steamy and uncomfortable i

our own scott macfarlane finds the school district has a pit of a program. some teachers are getting poached by neighboring districts closer to d.c. with better pay. >> when you start to lose those folks that's a lot of valuable experience walking out the door. >> tonight at 11:00, find out what the district is doing about it and what happens to the kids when so many veteran teachers bolt for new jobs. >> yeah. >>> everybody getting into this mindset of heading back to school and we have been trying to help with that process by showing some of our throwback thursday pictures. our back-to-back photos. how about these? >> stud muffin. guess who this is? tom kierein. you are so -- i mean you're very handsome. but look at these pictures, my goodness. >> now, the one on the left is my first grade picture, right after i stopped crying. [ laughter ] and when sister agnes angela gave me the evil eye i lost it. the middle one, seventh grade and the other one looking off to the bright future in high school. so yes, throwback thursday. we're posting these on nbc washin

i'm scott macfarlane, news4 i-team. >>> now to a developing story, long-time subway pitchman, jared fogle, has agreed to plead guilty to paying for sex acts for minors and receiving child pentagon nothing graph. if i he could go to prison for more than a decade. here is nbc's chris pollone. >> hi, i'm jared the subway guy. >> reporter: he rose to fame more than 15 years ago on a weight loss success story and was quickly snapped up by the subway fast food chain to pitch its sandwiches. now, jared from subway, real name jared fogle, is facing more than five years in federal prison. >> today, jared fogle has been charged and has admitted to participating in a five-year criminal scheme to exploit children. >> reporter: federal prosecutors say in 2011, fogle learned the head of his charitable foundation, russell taylor, had sexually exploited a 14-year-old girl. they say instead of going to police, fogle accepted and viewed pornography involving that girl and then explicit photos of 11 more minors over the next four years. he is also accused of paying girls he knew to be underaged for sex when

news4's scott macfarlane was there when bartly walked out of court today. >> reporter: inside the courthouse, christopher bartley admitted to trying to make meth at the headquarters of nist in gaithersburg. outside, we asked why you thought nist was a good place to manufacture methamphetamine? >> sorry to keep you weight so long, but i'm not going to comment. >> reporter: his attorney says bartley was trying to conduct an unauthorized training experiment when he attempted to make meth inside building 236 at nist in july. >> his goal was to let people know how easy it is to manufacture meth am fete mean and the police officers should be aware of that. >> reporter: these images obtained by news4 show the inside of building 236 one day after the explosion, including a chemical cooled hood there. in court today, prosecutors said bartley's meth making went sideways fast. it exploded. the temperature in the building reached 180 degrees, a alarm sounded and windows were blown 20 to 30 feet. partly was burned on his arms and firefighters responded to help, bartly admits he hid evidence in a dumpster

. >>> at the live deck i'm scott macfarlane. another lifeline for governor bob mcdonnell. the u.s. supreme court ruled the former governor can remain free from federal prison indefinitely as it considers whether to take his final appeal of his 2014 corruption conviction. the supreme court has not guaranteed it will hear his appeal but ruled today a few minutes ago he can remain free from prison while they consider it how long will that be? could be months. the supreme court of the united states is not supposed to reconvene formally at the high court until october. it could take some time after that as well. at the live desk, i'm scott mcfarlaacfarlane. >>> extreme recklessness, now a loudoun county judge describes a deadly stunt that killed a 17-year-old kid. his friend pleaded guilty in a case of car suffering. news's david culver is live outside the house in leesburg. what are you hearing? >> reporter: defendant 19 years old signed that guilty plea in court today admitting to driving recklessly in august of last year. i want to show where you this happened, it was in a shopping c

. >> if there is a hell, i hope he >>> scott macfarlane at the live desk, we have learned a person hasn shot just across the street from the archdiocese of washington. the map was found in a park on eastern avenue in northeast at about 3:30 arrange hour ago. it appears he may have been found in this car, you see it there on the back of your screen. police say the man is conscious and breathing and at this point, doesn't appear to be any connection to the archdiocese, but there is also no description of a gunman. we will keep watching it and bring you updates soon. for now, back to you. >>> and i'm relentless, and i'm not going to stop until something happens, but a i don't want to see another alison tragedy like this again. >> that is the solemn promise from alison parker's father today a day after the ambush. >> and he shared details about his daughter and how this devastating loss unfolded for him. >> i talked to alison every single day. every day. she would always call after her -- you know, after the -- the -- the builts, the packages that she did and she would always, you know, sa

. >>> scott macfarlane at the live desk, developing news, former virginia governor bob mcdonnell is running life lines, running out of legal options to stay in prison a short while ago, the u.s. solicitor general, the obama administration's top official at the supreme court told the supreme court it's unwarranted to let mcdonnell stay free as he makes minutesal, his final appeal of his corruption conviction, facing two years in prison and now, maybe just days away from getting a final decision on the supreme court as to when he should report. back to you. >>> there is a new safety concern for people who ride metro buses. we have learned about a vulnerability. it allows anyone to disable a bus. news4's darcy spencer is getting answers from metro tonight. darcy? >> reporter: well, wendy, this is not a new issue but it has been happening a couple of times recently and the union that represents bus drivers says this needs to be addressed and riders we spoke to today agree. on the side of metro buses, there is a panel with an emergency battery shutoff switch inside. it is an important safety fea

>>> scott macfarlane with breaking news at the live deck. we learned a stunt pilot has died after crashing while practicing for an air snow upstate new york. you will see the plane, it is broken apart. the new york air show, set to take place this weekend in new windsor, about two hours north of new york city. state police say the pilot was the only one on board. the propeller-driven stunt plane simply went down. an aviation blogger tells our sister station in new york the plane appeared slam into the ground while trying to come out of a dive. the pilot's name has not been released. an official with the air show says the show will go on as scheduled this weekend. back to you. >> thank you, scott. >>> it's been quite a week at the zoo. we now know the gender of the surviving panda cub and its paternity. zookeepers say it's thriving. news4's megan mcgrath was there for the big announcement. [ drumroll ] >> the panda cub is male. and his father is tian tian. >> reporter: the mystery is over, tian tian, mei xiang's long-time mate is the father o

but a review by scott macfarlane reveals a growing problem for one local district. teachers are leaving by the dozens this summer, looking for better pay, miles away. >> reporter: some of the elementary schoolteachers have lined up the chairs. and the papers in folders. at tuscarora elementary in frederick, teachers staged strategy meetings before the kids arrived. down the road, liberty elementary third grade teacher is starting her 16th year, but there's a big change this year. about 100 colleagues have bolted for jobs elsewhere. and the kids she says will notice immediately. >> they come back after summer and just a whole new environment. and maybe their trusted teacher normally that would be there has left. >> reporter: in public records request in all school districts, local districts lose hundreds of teachers each year. but over the past few years the turnover has been relatively steady in all local districts, except this one. in frederick county. in fact, frederick has been hemorrhaging veteran teachers. more than 300 have left the district since 2012. >> whe