surae chin is live with full details on all the changes. hi surae. >> reporter: hello anita. you know the main toll plaza is always busy and in a few days, they'll be busy taking more of your money. >> money coming out of my pocket that i haven't had to so far. >> at the main toll plaza in virginia, you'll pay a quarter more. that's $1.50 a trip to pay for metro silver line and the dulles way gets a 30-cent hike. dining or shopping, get ready to pay a dime more an hour. >> federal systems, you know, encouraging more cars in this way. it doesn't make any sense. >> rebecca is one of thousands of d.c. federal workers who participates in the commuter tax benefit. in the new year, she can no longer set aside a maximum 230 untaxed dollars a month in transit. because it's been reduced to $125. but the parking gets a bump up to $240 encouraging more people on the road. >> to me, it's stupid. but then, i considered a source and congress and stupid are somewhat -- to me. >> cars do stay the same because it already went up to $4 in november. but the biggest changes come with trucks. thr

good morning, surae. >> good morning, mike.he only exceptions are emergencies and using your gps while driving. can you imagine not being able to use your bluetooth anymore or any other hand-free devices? that's exactly what the ntsb is recommending right now, banning all personal electronic devices. the ntsb says no e-mails, texts, updates and calls are worth a human life. and people are sounding off. >> we're concerned about the enforceability of the law if it were to become law. if the public will is not there, it won't be enforceable. >> i will tell you that 50 years ago, people said drunk driving couldn't be enforced. we had people who said seat belt laws couldn't be enforced. cops are smart people. i'm confident it can be enforced. >> while investigators point to this chain reaction pileup in missouri. this one was just awful. a 19-year-old lost his life sending 11 text messages in 11 minutes before slamming into a truck that caused two school buses to collide. he and another teen were killed. 38 people were injured. you

good morning, surae. >> good morning. detectives returned to headquarters about a couple of hours ago. they spent the night investigating back out at the scene. they want to return their -- once it is daylight, to get a full canvas of the area, to talk to witnesses, to find out exactly what happened in this police-involved shooting that did turn deadly. witnesses actually called 911 saying they saw this man and heard shots being fired at homes. and once police arrived, they spotted this man who was doing just that. they told the man to put down the gun. he refused. that's when police opened fire. this all happened before 7:00 last night in the 5300 block of clay terrace off division avenue northeast. well, we also talked with napoleon sullivan. he says he was a friend of the man for seven years and he believes that the police actions were a bit excessive. >> as far as i know, he was shot over maybe 15 times by the police. good guy. into sports. we play a lot of sports. we play video games together. the situation, this eve

surae chinn joins us now from the ellipse with a preview of tonight's lighting. surae? >> reporter: we're looking fantastic out here! i think -- is that kermit the frog on the stage right there? rehearsals are a bit winding down on the stage right now but there is kermit. what a treat. we're just five hours away from the big show! the military band and nickelodeon's pop sensation big time rush put in some extra minutes before show time. the spotlight is on the 26 foot colorado blue spruce, much smaller than last year's 42 footer that fell down in february's storm. the lights even draped to the ground but it will be the greenest tree to date on the ellipse. >> this year, we have 65 sets of l.e.d. lights on the tree, continuing that trend toward the most energy efficiency, multicolored, beautiful display lit up tonight. >> reporter: the pathway of peace with 56 smaller trees represent all 50 states and territories. the first family and kermit the frog -- >> i'm so happy to be a part of the tree lighting here in washington, d.c. >> reporter: will light the national tree. >

surae chinn is live outside the courthouse in greenbelt with a preview. surae? >> well, leslie johnson is a former county council member. she's a former judge who now faces 18 months in prison. federal prosecutors would like to see her do that time behind bars. she would prefer probation for her role in trying to cover up her husband's participation in a pay to play scheme. of course, it happened earlier this year. wiretaps showed her trying to stuff $80,000 in her bra. well, the judge -- judge messitte sent jack johnson to seven years in prison. he will be presiding over leslie johnson's sentencing. the judge did give leniency to jack johnson for cooperation. we'll see if he gives some sympathy to leslie johnson for her cooperation. he is pretty much by the book when it comes to guidelines of sentencing. but again, we'll see what happens around 9:30, 10:00 this morning in federal court in greenbelt. andrea? >> surae chinn reporting live with that update from greenbelt, maryland, this morning. mike? >> 6:35. we turn our attention once again to the shootings at v

surae chinn is live outside northwood high school where the stabbing took place. surae? >> andrea, you know this is unfortunately another example of how young people try to resolve their differences through violence. this all hand in the parking lot at northwood high school, the school right behind me on university boulevard west and gable street in silver spring. there was a basketball game going on at northwood high school. with the competing team which is four miles away at kennedy high school. but unfortunately, it is what was happening off the court that's getting all of the attention. there was some type of verbal argument that started inside the school then it ended up outside the parking lot of northwood high school where one of the girls was stabbed several times in this group. police seem to indicate all of the girls involved came from kennedy high school. the traveling team. but they won't say why they were fighting, what happened, what ended up causing the violence and who exactly was all involved. and their ages. that is something to work on later on this mo

>> thank you, surae. surae chinn live in the satellite center this morning. >>> the gaithersburg businessman once held in the disappearance of his traveling companion is back in the united states this morning. gary giordano hopped a plane from aruba to miami yesterday. he then went to new york. giordano has been held since august in connection with the disappearance of robyn gardner of frederick, maryland. she's presumed dead. giordano says she drown while they were snorkeling. >>> if you need to turn in any overdue or damaged materials from any d.c. public library, monday is the day to come clean. the check it in campaign runs through february 5th. cardholders can return any overdue or damaged library materials without fines. for lost books, cardholders can speak with the library employee to have their account cleared. organizers believe many avoid going to the library just because of the materials they've either lost or damaged. >>> feeling a little guilty about that. >> now, you can shed the guilt. >>>

good morning, surae. >> good morning. this will be a somber day ahead and you know, it has continued throughout the weekend. we're expecting thousands of people. the funeral is set for 2:00 this afternoon at castle coliseum on the virginia tech campus. again, thousands and thousands are expected, a huge contingency of police officers from the commonwealth and across the country. any funeral with a fallen officer, you can expect that, again, this is a head of a vigil on campus. a wake yesterday for 39-year- old fallen virginia tech police officer deriek crouse. he was gunned down thursday in what appears to be an unprovoked attack. police say the shooter, 22- year-old part-time student ross ashley gunned down the officer while he made a routine traffic stop and ashley turned the gun on himself. crouse's wife told the roanoke times over the weekend that they exchanged text messages only an hour before the shooting hand and that their family is shattered. >> the only thing that would bring closure is to know why. >> i can't

good morning, surae. >> reporter: good morning, andrea. the whole point of being crash worthiness is to protect the people inside the car. what they call the box. and so the institute for highway safety conducted dozens and dozens of these crash worthy tests. and so they came up with honda being -- giving them the credit for the most improvements. that's mainly because of the rollover crash tests. they made a lot of improvements on the roof of their cars. i want to show you some other automakers that made the top list in 2012 by the institute. and they are toyota which includes lexus, scion, they received 15 awards. general motors, they received 14. volkswagen and audi, 13 of the models made the list. ford, lincoln, they had 12 and so did honda and acura. >> vehicles should be designed so the occupant compartment where the people sit stays intact even in serious crashes. packaging 101. if the box doesn't collapse, then the cargo that's inside is better protected. >> if you get in an accident, safety, you have to think about safety then. yo

surae, good morning. >> good morning to you. police are expected to release the identity of the victim involved in this shooting. according to 911 calls, witnesses say this man was high on pcp and firing his gun at homes. it happened around 7:00 last night. and here is some video from last night. a very active scene starting from 7:00 all the way until about 4:00 this morning. bullets started flying when police say the man refused to drop his weapon. again, just before 7:00 last night on clay terrace near division avenue and northeast. check out this video, the evidence markers show they found quite a lot of shell casings. cathy lanier, chief of police says as many as three to four police officers opened fire on the man with a gun who was acting erratic. >> they hear the gunshots, the subject with a gun. he's given commands to drop the weapon. he does not. officers at some point in trying to engage the suspect opened fire and the suspect was struck. the officers who engaged in fire with the suspect immediately went over to him a

>> surae chinn reporting. consumer shoppers must feel a sigh of relief having her in custody and also in montgomery county where they have their suspect in custody over the last week in wheaton. henry levi sanders was targeting older male shoppers who were busy putting their bags in their cars. they say sanders would approach his victims, force them into their cars with a sharp object and then drive them to atms to withdraw cash. all three attacks happened in the daytime. sanders now faces three counts of carjacking, kidnapping and robbery as well as first degree assault for the violent beating and stabbing of the most recent victim, a 77-year-old man. >> the army is now expanding its test area for ground water contamination near fort detrick, the frederick county board of commissioners has agreed to let the army drill wells and test groundwater on county-owned property near the bay. the army will conduct tests on 88 acres of land near montview lane and rosemont lane. that area is between the main part of fort

surae chinn is live to explain how this finally got done.ood morning, surae. >> good morning, mike. it took some last-minute convincing is what happened. a little help from republican senator mitch mcconnell and a little tweaking of the bill to protect small businesses. president obama is commending the compromise and urging congress, upon their return next month to keep working on an agreement to extend the tax cut and unemployment benefits for all of 2012 without drama or delay. there has been plenty of drama though in the days leading up to the agreement. but in the end, the g.o.p. gave in under enormous pressure. the measure which could pass today extends the tax breaks and long-term unemployment benefits through february 29th. >>> i don't think it is any time for celebration. our economy is struggling. we've got a lot of work ahead of us in the coming year. we were here fighting for the right things. may not have been politically the smartest thing in the world but i'm going to tell you what. i think our members waged a good fight. >> t

surae chinn is in our newsroom with more. good morning, surae. >> reporter: good morning to both of you. house speaker john boehner expected the bill to pass before christmas. it could happen as early as today. that means our paychecks will not shrink come january 1st. republican lawmakers caved under enormous pressure to pass the two-month extension on the payroll tax duty and unemployment benefit. the turning point came when the senate's top republican mitch mcconnell urged the g.o.p. to get on board with the bipartisan plan. some house republicans reluctantly agreed. >> sometimes it is hard to do the right thing. sometimes it is politically difficult to do the right thing. but you know, when everybody called for a one-year extension of the payroll tax deduction, when everybody wanted a full year of extended unemployment benefits, we were here fighting for the right things. >> well, the g.o.p. only agreed to this measure only after insisting on some tweaks to the bill, protecting small businesses and a promise from the sena

good morning, surae. >> good morning. you are absolutely right, andrea. the first thing we do when we get behind the wheel for some of us is grab our cell phone. it is better yet to just leave it alone. but can you imagine not being able to use your bluetooth? well, the ntsb is now targeting that. this is the most comprehensive recommendation on bans that we've seen so far and this means all personal electronic devices. the only exception they say are for emergencies and your gps. >> that does apply to bluetooth, hand-held, hands free. it is both the visual and the cognitive distractions and the manual distractions we're concerned about. >> reporter: by the way, this that you're looking at is a powerful psa that has been running around the country. through networks, showing people and their tragedy. a lot of these folks have either lost somebody or been involved in an accident because of text messaging. there is already a ban on texting in maryland, virginia, and d.c. but there is not a ban for the majority of us driving when it comes to your hands- free

surae? >> reporter: it is mrs. johnson's term. the same judge will be presiding that sentenced her husband, jack johnson to seven years in prison. lesli johnson faces 12 to 18 months, a lot shorter time for her role in the pay to play scheme. she is charged with conspiring for witness and evidence tampering so she does face a year and a half in jail for her episode as the fbi came knocking. >> er you hear them banging? >> tear it up. >> it is the fbi, jack. >> i know. that's what i'm telling you. >> you want me to put it down the toilet? >> yes. >> you want me to flush it? >> yeah, flush that. >> reporter: and then she stuffed $80,000 in cash in her bra and underwear as she was instructed to do by her husband. the wiretaps clearly show she was aware of what was going on. her husband's misdeeds and taking kickbacks. the judge is known to be fair but tough on sentencing. we'll see what he will do today. he told jack johnson earlier this week on tuesday he was involved in pure cronyism and that political corruption, that he will pay

>> surae chinn live in our satellite center this morning. >>> d.c. police tell 9news a standoff in northwest washington is over this morning. but they haven't exactly told us what and how it began. it did begin yesterday when u.s. park police tried to pull over a car that ended in a crash. two people in the car ran into a home along gallatin street northwest near north capitol street. they barricaded themselves inside the home and held police at bay for nearly 12 hours. two park police officers were hurt in their crash. their injuries are minor. >>> vdot has new overhead signs that go online. they won't make your commute any better but at least you'll know how long you're going to be stuck in traffic. seven signs went live this morning at 5:00 a.m. three of them northbound 95 south of the beltway. two are on southbound 395 and then two more are on southbound 95. there are similar signs, you've seen them along i-66 and i-95 in maryland. >>> after five months in captivity, a virginia teenager is back with his family this morning. 14-year-old kevin lunn

. >> surae chinn is live at national airport with more on the holiday travel. pretty empty the last time we talked to you. how is it now? >> it is getting busy. you might see a lull here and there. you look far down the road here. you can see through the terminal, some people going through. it is getting busy as we get into the 6:00 hour. but 92 million americans will be traveling during the holiday season through the next week or two. and 2.2 of which will be washingtonians. that's about 40% of the d.c. metro population. for those of us sticking around town, that might be a positive. fewer cars on the road for sure. but if you are taking a flight, here are some dos and don'ts, some good reminds here. you can take the aerosols, gels, liquids, as long as they're under 3.4 ounces. with the exception of breast milk and formula and medical liquids, you can take care of it but you just have to know that tsa will most likely inspect it. wrapped presents are also ok but know if they go through the machines, if tsa agents want a closer look, they'll unwrap the gifts an

good morning, surae. >> good morning. well, three occupy d.c. protesters will be removed going on this hunger strike calling for d.c. voting rights. they're asking congress and the president to give full representation in the district of columbia and full control of its budget. well, yesterday, it was all about ending corporate greed and increasing the job situation. well, hundreds of protestors also marched down all across d.c. and on k street. they marched into capital tax on constitution avenue. then they went to a lobbying firm, president clinton's former chief of staff. they then made their biggest stance on k street. they made the human chain. 62 people were arrested. >> let them do what they do. >> until we have a system where everybody gets a seat at the table and their bellies are full and their children are ed quited and their homes are secure, i will keep risking myself for justice. >> reporter: well, that's a united methodist church pastor who is from chicago. that's her sixth arrest from yesterday. well, back here at mcpherson squar

good morning, surae. >> reporter: good morning to both of you. yes, there are two major investigations going on in the aftermath of this frightening incident. one being the general manager has ordered an inspection of all of it's,000 series as you've been mentioning, that's about 20% of its fleet. that will be happening starting today. the second is the complaint from passengers that they weren't told about what was going on initially when this whole thing happened. about 30 minutes went by before anyone told them something happened. now, if you look at this video, i believe you can see what fell off of the moving train that was leaving l'enfant plaza yesterday morning. it is part of its brake system. people on the train say they saw smoke and fire. they heard explosions. this youtube video shows what it was like inside the crowded trains and passengers complaining they were stranded underground for so many minutes. several crawled out of the dark tunnel. most were led by firefighters out to safety when they finally came out, relieved they were j

surae chinn is live at mcpherson square and surae, the protestors are taking on issue with this hungertrike. good morning. >> good morning, mike. yes, the plan is for three of these protestors to launch this hunger strike, refusing any food and drink, only water until d.c. getsity full voting rights and full control of its budget. well, yesterday, it was a different cause where our d.c. and occupy d.c. protestors joined together and marched through the streets of the district and they were calling then for the end to corporate greed and for the creation of new jobs. but yes, they went through the streets of d.c. they went to capital tax partners on constitution avenue. then they went to john's lobbying firm where about a dozen people were arrested earlier in the day but it was on k street where most of the biggest things happened. 62 people were arrested in the cold and rain. >> they're exercising their rights as u.s. citizens. let them do what they do. >> until we have a system where everybody gets a seat at the table and their bellies are full and their children are educate and their

surae is live outside l'enfant plaza. we'll have more as that story develops. >>> what should you do if you need to evacuate a metro train in a tunnel? according to metro's web site, look out the windows, find the side of the tunnel with the lights on in it. that's the side that has an emergency walkway. open the center doors with the emergency release handle, get on to a walkway and listen and follow the train operators instructions. if you need them, there are emergency call boxes every 800 feet. they're marked with a blue light. you probably walk by them every day and don't notice them. take note on where they are. some tunnels have emergency access to the streets so look out for that. >> a 2-year-old girl is doing well after she was found home alone in a maryland apartment. police arrested her father for leaving her alone. the girl was found inside the apartment along walker mill road in capitol heights, maryland, prince george's county police checked on her after the girl's mother called them from the hospital. she w

surae chinn joins us from the u.s. district court in greenbelt where johnson will learn his fate later today. surae? >> prosecutors are calling for the maximum sentence for the former county exec. jack johnson faces 14 years in prison. >> what do you want me to do with this money? they're banging. >> put it in your panties and walk out of the house. >> i mean all of this cash, jack. i got the one -- >> put it in your panties. >> oh, my god, ok. >> stuff it in your panties. >> lesli and jack johnson on fbi wiretaps trying to hide $80,000 in cash. today's sentencing may close one of the most embarrassing chapters in prince george's county but this case is far from over. it does not end with johnson. johnson accepted up to a million dollars in bribes for a pay to play scheme during his eight years in office. in a recent memorandum by prosecutors, johnson went to great length to secure his financial status. once he left office and left his legacy with his wife to continue the work on county council. sentencing begins at 9:

rain there, surae. good morning. >> good morning. it really started coming down here in silver spring. but last night, yes, it was supposed to be a fun game, a fun night watching a basketball game from two rial teams, two high schools, two rival teams but it ended with one girl in the hospital with several stab wounds. she's expected to survive. she's part of a group that came from kennedy high school. that's about four miles from northwood high school where we're standing off university boulevard west and gable street in silver spring. and it all started with a verbal argument inside the school. it started around 9:00 and spilled out into the parking lot during the basketball game. around it turned violent where several of the people in the group stabbed one of the girls. she was taken to suburban hospital and police are indicating that everyone involved were part of the same high school, kennedy high school, the traveling school that is four miles away from here. but again, police are having a lot of

>> thank you, surae chinn. we appreciate it checking out the numbers on the safest cars in america this year. the man accused of opening fire at the white house -- >> last month, has another court hearing tomorrow. i'll take it, mike. a judge heard testimony yesterday as he tried to determine whether oscar ramiro ortega hernandez is mentally fit to stand trial. ortega is charged with attempting to assassinate the president by firing an assault rifle at the white house november 11th. president obama was out of town at the time. >>> an update now on the woman police say has been issued -- has been using places of worship as a personal piggy bank. over the last few weeks, a woman has been stealing from churches in northern virginia. and now, they believe she's also responsible for robbing churches across the river in maryland as well. parishioners at ten churches from bethesda to leesburg have been robbed of their wallets, checkbooks and keys, all during services. police are looking at surveillance videotapes, hop

surae chinn is live on capitol hill with the developments. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, there's nothing like home for the holidays to inspire these lawmakers to get this deal done to avoid a government shutdown. >> congress should not and cannot go on vacation before they have made sure that working families aren't seeing their taxes go up by $1,000 and those who are out there looking for work don't see their unemployment insurance expire. >> no more show boats. i think it's just time to legislate and i think america needs to see us earning our paychecks. >> reporter: well, both sides seem to be toning down their rhetoric. two major bills are in the works. there's been a compromise on that massive $1 trillion spending bill that will fund the government through next october. the second major issue of course, that needs a lot of work still is extending that payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits. the house is expected to vote -- [ no audio ] >> we had some technical problems, lost our signal. >>> republican presidential ca

. >> surae chinn is live on capitol hill to tell us what's in the latest deal. >> reporter: it doesn't matter if hanukkah or christmas is just around the corner, president obama says uh-huh congress, there's still unfinished business, take a listen. >> congress should not and cannot go on vacation before they have made sure that working families aren't seeing their taxes go up by $1,000 and those who are out there looking for work don't see their unemployment insurance expire. >> no more show boats, i think it's just time to legislate and i think america needs to see us earning our paychecks. >> reporter: both sides seem to be toning down their rhetoric. two major bills ron the table right now. there's been a compromise on the massive $1 trillion spending bill that would fund the government no next october. the -- to next october. the second major issue though is extending the payroll tax cuts and unemployment benefits. the senate is expected to vote later on tonight or tomorrow. back to the payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits extension. they're working on a plan b. and not over

surae chinn joins us live from capitol hill with more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning and it could mean that you could have a shrinking paycheck that you're going to see your paycheck must smaller and that's what we're facing right now. try about $1,000 for an average family a year. not good news as we are heading into the holidays or we're smack in the middle of it but that's what we're facing at this point. well, last night's proposals would have kept this tax break going for millions of americans but they were rejected. both sides want to keep it going but they just can't agree on how to do that. democrats want to raise taxes on the wealthy while republicans propose freezing federal salaries and cutting 200,000 government jobs. >> america's middle class has been hurting for a long time. there are the people who are struggling and they're the ones who need help. >> this is the kind of balanced plan americans are looking for. it's focused on helping middle class americans without asking them to fund benefits for the wealthiest a

surae chinn joins us live with more on the mood this morning. how is it going? >> reporter: right now no clashes, no loud noises. you can see everyone mainly asleep and that makeshift shelter has been torn down since last night. things have been peaceful up into this point until they started building the shelter and police really clashed as you can see in this video. things really got out of hand. there was no permit. protesters were told to tear down the shelter within the hour. they refused. park police moved in on horseback. 15 people were initially arrested for crossing a police line. then another round of people were arrested. police had to bring in a cherry pick tore pluck them off the roof. one man relieved himself as hundreds of people watched. >> he exposed his genitals as he was urinating in the direction of the officers underneath him. >> reporter: one person who was arrested. the one person has been charged with urinating in public and indecent exposure and we'll see what happens today. there is planned protesting as well. we'll see if things are cal

our surae chinn has more. >> reporter: students, faculty and staff are gathering on camp us to honor the life of 39- year-old virginia tech police officer deriek crouse. his family is trying to come to grips with the unspeakable tragedy. >> i was like it can't be him. because you know, if you make it through iraq, you can make it through anything. >> a large legion of law enforcement are expected to attend from across the country. police say the shooter, 22- year-old part-time radford student ashley gunned down the officer who was making a routine traffic stop. >> do not leave this room until you're told. >> the university went on lockdown until officers learned the shooter turned the gun on himself. the hokey nation reminded once again of tragedy, remembering the terror of the 2007 massacre that took 33 lives, including the gunman. but they also know how quickly the campus comes together in times like these. >> i'm proud i live in a community where everyone comes out and they support each other. >> the shooter's family has offered condolences to the crouse family. the officer's wido

surae chinn has more. >> i'm very happy with toyota. i've been driving them for many years. >> reporter: he couldn't be happier. it's one of 115 models that have been awarded the safest cars in protecting people by the insurance institute for highway safety. >> i've been very, very happy. one of the best cars. >> reporter: the institute conducted dozens f crash tests to come up with a top 2012 safety picks. one of the biggest reasons why so many cars have made the new list is because their roofs are stronger, just like this honda crv. car makers are redesigning them to better withstand roll over crashes. >> that is fantastic. >> reporter: for the first time, best selling toyota camry and honda accord are among the winners. >> vehicles should be designed so the occupant compartment where the people sit stays intact even in serious crashes. the packaging 101, if the box doesn't collapse, then the cargo that's inside is better protected. >> if you get in an accident, you have to think about safety then so you might as well think about it w

our surae chinn has more from the encampment scene? northwest washington. >>> the usual peaceful atmosphere from the park disrupted as shouts and arrests were made. 31 people arrested. some of them hung onto the roof and refused to come down. police plucked them off with a cherry picker. the police say the last remaining protester expose and relieved himself while clinging onto the beam. >> he exposed his genitals as he was urinating in the direction of the officers. >> reporter: because this is a leaderless movement people do things when they are upset and feel like their civil liberties are being violated. >> reporter: is that an excuse? >> i wouldn't say an excuse, but it is a reality. >> reporter: the national parks service has since torn down the wooden shelter. >> we are really interested in us having a warm police to stay. >> it is sad that it got confiscated. they had told us before they could build structures that were modular and could be moved. >> reporter: both park police and the national park service say the inspector dee

surae chinn, 9news now. >> congress has another important job that affects local workers. it involves metro transit benefits. without action, federal workers' benefits could go from $230 a month to $125 a month. metro says congress must act by wednesday. that's the deadline for employers to make changes to their workers' benefits. if there's no action, it would take at least a month before any new changes could be made. >>> still to come when the news continues, see how the d. c. metro area uso is making holiday wishes come true. for more than a thousand youngsters whose parents protect our freedom. >>> public and presidential -- republican and presidential hopefuls try to stop newt. i'm susan mcginnis in washington. the latest coming up. >>> d. c. mayor vincent gray wants to federal government to pick up the tab for the city's costs related to the occupy protests. the two encampments on mcfearson square and freedom plaza have cost the city more than $1.5 million since october. the district is routinely reimburses for costs incurred by protests, marchs and rallies. >>> rep

in silver spring, i'm surae chinn, 9news now. >>> we have breaking news from new york. a county district attorney is declining to prosecute sex abuse allegations against former syracuse assistant basketball coach bernie fine. inez ferry is in upstate new york with more details. >> reporter: former syracuse university assistant coach bernie fine will not face state child molestation charges. >> bobby davis and mike lange would be charged to be credible but for the obvious problem of the statute of limitations, their allegations would have resulted in the arrest of bernie fine at least for the misdemeanor charge of sexual abuse in the third degree. >> reporter: three men accuse fine of sexually molesting them in the 1980s when they were teenagers. two were former ball boys. sthird 23-year-old zack tom celli. they're still looking into tom celli's allegations since they fall within the statute of limitations. fine denies all of the charges but on an audiotape that recently became public, his wife acknowledged her husband's alleged sexual abuse when speaking to one of his a

. >> i'm surae chin in manassas where voters are scratching their heads over a loyalty oath pledge. >> i completely disagree with it. i think it's an outrageous thought. >> republican party of virginia wants voters to sign a loyalty oath pledge, meaning if you vote republican in the march primary in virginia, you promise to vote the same way in november. >> how would you enforce something like that, other than someone's conscious. so again, you're talking about a slippery slope because marking ballots and that gets really dicey. >> i don't think we should be putting people into a position where their conscious says one thing and their actions may be going the other way. >> delegate robert marshall is going against his own republican leadership. opposing such a measure. >> i don't think this is a benefit to the republican party or to virginiaens in general. >> anything that will make you adhere to a choice without knowing the details and having time to research it, it would have a negative impact on what this country was founded on. >> in manassas, surae chin, 9news now. >> governor ma

surae chinn reports the protestor's cause is about more freedom for district residents. >> reporter: the routine doughnuts and tea will not be part of the ritual. >> prepare mentally. >> reporter: and two other froesers who believe they can starve their way to d.c. voting rights. >> reporter: why a hunger strike? >> it has been 200 years of disenfrance icement for d.c. and something has to change. >> a hunger strike is not the tactic many of the protesters would use but they support them nonetheless. >> our general feeling is that if that's what you need to do, you need to do it. we support you and going ahead and taking that action. >> you're in violation of d.c. code. >> reporter: actions yesterday led to the largest scale arrest. more than 60 arrested on k street. protesting against corporate greed and the lack of jobs. >> it was kind of -- we were cold and wet and freezing but it was worth it for what we got arrested for. >> a different day, a different cause for the three on a hunger strike. >> i'm a little nervous. longest i've gone without eating is about a day. >> there are s

in arlington, surae chinn, 9news now. >> to find out just how much you could write off for the items you donate and for a complete list of the top charities ranked by the charity navigators, go to our website, wusa9.com. >>> all right, i'm already proud of the cold weather. it'll be warm again. >> all right. >> yes, warm for a little bit. after that, we'll get ready for some real cold weather. yeah. we have a couple of, well, scattered showers that are showing up here on doppler radar tonight where we saw the flurries earlier, thanks to, well, the area of the lower pressure over the great lakes. moving a little closer for you into the mid-atlantic along the outer fringes of that. basically it will be on interstate 81. seeing the light activity around just between hagerstown, winchester, into the highlands here. so basically, you know, charlestown, winchester, you're getting very light, well, precipitation. and the light rain. also, there could be flurries mixed in with it because it is still a cool air mass in -- a cold air mass in place. you can see that the showers, they will be co

they don't care nothing about us. >> reporter: in northeast, surae chinn, 9news now. >>> police have just identified the man as michael esp. >> fairfax county police have released the identity of the county's ninth homicide victim of the year. they say 34-year-old colvin morris died from gunshot wounds to the head. police found him yesterday on cameron drive in reston. medics rushed the man to the hospital where he later died. investigators have three men in custody. >>> both congress and the white house want to find a way to extend the payroll tax cuts. it is set to expire at the end of the month. the house is close to voting on a republican version of the bill. but tara mergener reports that measure is likely to hit a dead end in the senate. >> reporter: the house is headed toward a vote today on extending the payroll tax cuts. the measure will also extend unemployment benefits but not as much as democrats want. and it is clear the battle is far from over. >> it is and does represent a middle ground and we ask the president to join us in finally putting himself behind this bill to

surae chinn reports. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: al-qaeda leader confirms in an audiotape they have 71-year-old warren weinstein from rockville, maryland. they tell cbs news that three hostage takers went to the gate of the american compound in pakistan offering food to weinstein's security. the guards opened up the gate when five more hostage takers stormed in an unguarded entrance and came from behind with ak-47s. they used the driver to trick the rockville man into opening the door to his top floor residence. back in weinstein's rockville neighborhood, people are stunned at what happened to the 70-year-old who was trying to improve the country's economy. >> anytime someone who like goes anywhere with good intentions so -- ends up in a compromising situation. it's a little unfortunate. >> reporter: neighbors say mrs. weinstein hasn't been home for awhile but there's a single yellow ribbon tied around a tree in their front yard. that a neighbor put here. >> it's gut-wrenching. i mean i can't imagine if it was you know, my -- my husband or son or you know captured -- the p

thank you, surae live on capitol hill this morning.uch more on this at the top of the hour on the early show as well at 7:00 a.m. >>> now to the wilson building. the d.c. council today will approve a sweeping ethics reform bill. it passed unanimously in a preliminary vote two weeks ago. this bill will create an ethics board with the power to punish ethics rules violators. >>> one of the businessman caught up in the jack johnson corruption case will be sentenced later today. emrick admitted to buying untaxed alcohol from prince george's county police officers. he then sold the booze at his tick tock liquor stores in the county. he faces up to 20 years in prison. court documents show he tried to bribe johnson to pass cletion favoring -- pass legislation favoring liquor store owners. he's already pleaded guilty to those charges. >>> vre riders get ready to pay more. the vre wants to make a 3% hike in fares. it would take effect in july. vre has not raised fares since 2009. >>> d.c. council will take up a proposal to make significant chang

surae chin is live with more on that bad news. surae. >> reporter: that's right, derek. in just a few days come january 1, it means to load up on your easy pass. it means to keep more change in your pocket. and overall, it means it's going to cost you more to get to work. >> higher federal systems, encouraging more cars. it doesn't make any sense. >> rebecca is one of hundreds of thousands of d.c. federal workers who participated in the benefit, but she knows come january 1, setting aside a maximum 230 untaxed dollars a month will be reduced to transit. the parking gets a bump up to 240, which only encourages more people to drive. >> actually don't have the option to drive in. >> to me, it's stupid. but then, i just considered a source in congress. >> metro says they'll take a hit, too. a 3% drop in ridership or 20,000 passengers a day and 16 million in lost revenue a year. >> i'm already trying to figure out, should i drive or not? >> dining or shopping in north bethesda? get ready to pay a dime more an hour. and parking convenience stickers go up from $95 to $113. at t

i'm surae chinn. i'll break it down for you coming up. >>> caught on tape. the christmas display that has been a holiday staple for years. for the past 15 years that is. and now, their home surveillance system captured the surveillance for them as they ripped apart their yard, and crashed that on out there and used a baseball bat. >>> more and more cars are protecting drivers, saving lives and accidents. in fact, the record numbers of the suvs, the hybrids, small and mid-size cars have all gone true the -- through the crash tests and on the 2012 hot safety picks by the detroit institute for safety. surae chinn has the story. >> i have been driving there for many years. >> reporter: he could be happier with this hybrid prius. it's one of 115 models that have been awarded the safest cars protecting people by the insurance institute for highway safety. >> and i have been very happy. one of the best cars. >> reporter: the institute conducted dozens of crash tests to come up with a top 2012 safety picks. one of the biggest reasons why so many cars have made the n

surae chinn is live on the hill. it passed by bipartisan support. >> reporter: it did over the weekend but now the options are few because the senate has gone home for the holidays. they did vote over the weekend and it had no problem dealing with the two-month extension, a bipartisanship measure and they thought the same would happen with the house. but that is just not happening. all indications is that the house will vote it down later on today unfortunately. they met behind closed doors to talk about the measure that would have extended this for 160 million americans and avoid having a thousand dollar tax increase for the upcoming year. house speaker john boehner seemed on board until he discussed it with fellow republicans. >> our members do not want to just punt and do a two-month short-term fix where we have to come back and do this again. >> what we've seen now is stalling action on the -- [ inaudible ] >> reporter: the house is expected to vote on it later today, but again it's expected to be voted down. thi

surae chinn is live with more. >> yes the military tribunal will continue at fort mead for private first class bradley manning. the trial or the hearing went through the weekend and there was damaging testimony on the witness stand. an army analyst investigator is the first time in the last few days we are hearing the link between man and go wikileaks. the witness described how manning used his position, pre tended to be listening to lady gaga but instead was stealing secrets. he faces 22 charges. the prosecutor paints manning as a calculated trader, accused of downloading hundreds of thousands of pages of classified documents from the state and defense department and handle them over to wikileaks, who posted them online. you are seeing supporters of manning garnered lots of attention internationally and we expect there will be a small group protesting again. we'll have much more coming up in the next half hour. back to you. >>> prince georges county police officer shot and killed a man during a confrontation. rodney edwards pulled a gun on the officer. police responded to a call saturda

surae chinn joins us. good morning sue rae. >> the white house all along has said these leaks have posed a threat and caused strain. the defense agrees. the hearing went through the weekend and there was damaging testimony yesterday when an army investigator said there was a link between wikileaks and manning. the witness described how manning used his position and pretended to be listening to lady gaga but instead was downloading secret information. he faces 22 charges accused of downloading hundreds of thousands of pages of classified documents from the state and defense department and his handing them over to wikileaks. it is founder is fighting extradition on sexual assault charges it sweden. and also his attorneys are asking for two seats in the courtroom. in manning's case. we haven't heard exactly if they have grand those two seats but the case has definitely garnered international attention. we expect more protests will continue as well this morning. >>> of course the proceedings will go on and we

got to keep them mint condition. >> reporter: surae chinn. 9news now. >>> at least four people by the way were arrested out at lake forest ball in gaithersburg, three for disorderly conduct and one for assaulting a police officer and one other note. twitter was all abuzz this morning with a rumor that an 18-year-old was killed in dc. police have no information about any murders over these sneakers. >>> police rushing into a law school after a fight breaks out. this video shortly after the brawl on wednesday night. it happened at connections school for the arts. up in baltimore. the school was playing core doza high from right here in northwest dc. both players and fans are out on the court trying to pick up the pieces. no injuries or arrests there. a spokesperson from dc public schools says they are reviewing the situation to figure out exactly what went wrong, and they will discipline anybody who was involved. >> we have got an update now on the stabbing death of a woman outside the old post office building. police have caught the man who committed the crime. they say the suspect is

. >> surae has a preview of today's proceedings. >> reporter: good morning. how far he's fallen from county prosecutor and county exec to convict and prosecutors are asking and calling for the maximum sentence of 14 years in prison. >> they're banging. what do you want me to do? >> put it in your panties and walk out of the house. >> no, i mean all of this cash, jack. i got the one -- >> put it in your panties. >> oh, my god, ok. >> stuff it in your panties. >> lesli and jack johnson on fbi wiretap trying to hide $80,000 in cash. today's sentencing could potentially finally close one of the most embarrassing chapters in prince george's county. the case is far from over. it doesn't end just with johnson. but johnson, 62 years old, accepted up to a million dollars in bribes in a pay to play scheme. and sentencing is expected at 9:30 this morning. in a recent memorandum by the way, johnson went to great lengths to secure his financial status after he left office from 2002 to 2010. so, that's all in a court document. that most likely will be again displayed in co

surae chinn is live at national airport with more. do you see the crowd starting to gather already? >> yeah, it is getting busy here at reagan national. that's because 2.2 million washingtonians will be heading out of town. they'll either be taking the planes, trains or their cars and here are some dos and don'ts if you're taking a flight today or for the next 12 days for the holiday weekend. now, a good reminder, 3.4 ounces of liquid, gels or aerosols are ok. those are all ok. 3.4 is the limit with the exception of breast milk and formula and medical liquids, you can take more than 3.4 ounces but is is subject to inspections by tsa members. also, wrapped presents. you can wrap those presents but know if they go through the metal-detectors, go through the machines, tsa wants a closer look, they can unwrap the presents. snow globes are prohibited. they're not allowed so definitely don't wrap those because they'll definitely not be allowed to be taken on the plane. and also, holiday foods. a good reminder. your homemade apple pie, that is actually ok. but other food items that you mig

that's how much the average family would lose if a payroll tax rate is not extended. 9news now's suraehinn is live on capitol hill this morning. >> reporter: that's right. it's not what you want to hear this morning. right congress? another impasse there on capitol hill. but that's exactly what we're facing and again, that could mean smaller paychecks and you said it -- try by $1,000 for the average american family. you know, these proposals would have kept the tax breaks going for millions and millions of americans but the senate rejected it last night. both sides though at least want to keep it -- the tax breaks going but they just don't know how to do it. democrats want to raise taxes on the wealthy while republicans propose freezing federal salaries and cutting 200,000 government jobs. >> america's middle class has been hurting for a long time. they are the people who are struggling and they're the ones who need help. not the multimillionaires. >> this is the kind of balanced plan americans are looking for. focused on helping middle class americans without asking them to fund benef

>>> surae chinn, thank you. let's breakdown what you were justify talking about. again don't let your gift card become a statistic and go unused. according to the national retail federation, $41 billion worth have not been redeemed since 2005. when people do use their gift cards, they often spend more than the value of the card itself. mike? >> reporter: new at 6:00. tonight the search is over if a man suspected of killing two people and kidnapping a two-year-old boy over the weekend. richmond police, the fbi and a s.w.a.t. team arrested 27-year-old jamaal mall clemens about an hour and a half ago. police believe he shot and then stole an suv to escape. they don't think clemens knew a two-year-old, cade den bernstein, was inside that vehicle. >> he knew those individuals there. it wasn't a random act. >> neither bowman or clap were related. he was reunited with his family in time for christmas. tonight clemens is facing a variety of charges. however police are not saying at this point why he is not facing murder charges. >>> police george's county police are askin

surae is here and has been looking into this. loyalty oath? really? >> this has become interesting. people are talking about this. when it comes to voters and lawmakers within the republican party, they are asking this, how can you impose a promise when there is no front runner, no clear front runner. no nominee, no republican nominee, and you are basically cornering people's conscious. >> why would you tell people you are going to vote for a ghost at this point? >> robert marshall of manassas is going against his own republican leadership in virginia on this issue. >> to tell people you have to, right now, decide on march 6 that whoever is nominated in june in florida will be your candidate. >> seeing the debates, to lock into a choice without seeing how it transgresses takes the freedom of an educated choice away from the voter. >> for independent voters and mother of three, she may stay away from the virginia primary because of the loyalty oath. >> it would dissuade me from voting in primaries to make sure i'm making an educated decision. an educated vote is better than a hasty v