vernon odom, channel 6 "action news." >> thank you. >>> philadelphia school officials want parents to know they have options when it comes to early childhood education. superintendant william hite, spoke and encouraged parents to use the website, parent.org for the programs available. >> the programs are linked to higher graduation rates and linked to higher and college and career readiness rates and lower dependance on social services and lower incidents of crime. >>> the city of philadelphia pulled out all of the stops today to honor our home town heroes, the taney dragons, the mid atlantic champions when down broad street to celebrate them and show they were loved. the team enjoyed it and relaxed and enjoyed some fun in the sun. lets go to eva pilgram who spent the day live along the parade route. >> earlier today the sidewalk outside of the kimmel center as fans watched. >> young and old and tall and short, all kinds of people came out to see theaney dragons as they made stops along the parade. >> there is a lot to see. >> there is so many grownups here it's hard to see. >> the fi

"action news" reporter vernon odom joins us live with the very latest. vernon? >> hello, rick.ll is quiet, unbelievably quiet and peaceful along the roosevelt boulevard, contrast after what erupted after midnight. a lucky police officer within inches of being killed. when the sun came up the victims, a man and wife, escort back home after horror, two thugs were waiting after midnight and forced their way in, triggering the alarm. when the cops arrived one answered the door saying he was was all right and didn't believe it. >> and he winked and said it was ok. >> and they took shots and the officer returned fire, killing the suspect. >> it was a greater job. the officer was very alert. like i said from the beginning he asked for identification. knew something was up when the female nodded to him. >> and the second at large this hour despite the k-9s tracking hip. the police were seen pulling away the vehicle they believe the two suspects drove and planned to use for the getaway. no innocents injured but several bullets twenty into the house next door, home to a woman and two chi

vernon odom live in germantown and allegeny in the tioga section of philadelphia where they are about to hold a vigil for keisha williams. vernon? >> jim, we expect that vigil for this time in the memory of keisha williams to begin sometime within the next few minutes. her death, in fact, was not a surprise. her friends and family told me on the day that she was hit at this corner that her chances to survive were slim at best. she was in a medical coma for weeks. this shrine at allegeny is bigger and grander than ever two weeks after the catastrophe living a fourth dead. keisha williams age 34, the mother of the three children who died the day of the crime, passed away late last night. sources say she was never told of her children's fate. >> her children were her life. she would tell me that all the time. the children are the first concern, no one else. >> thelma brown still nursing a broken leg hoped that her friend and neighbor would survive, but it was not to be. july 25th they were setting up to sell fruit at the corner to finance a community garden in the vacant lot when an s.u.

vernon odom, "channel 6 action news." >> thank you, vernon. "good morning america" will have the latest on crisis in iraq and military action. tune in tomorrow morning 8 a.m. following "action news". >> 3 people were injured tonight during a 5 car crash. medics consider called to the intersection of route 322 colonial drive in bethel 6:15. investigators tell us 4 cars and van collided. names and conditions of 3 people injured have not been released and this investigation is ongoing. >>> a man had to be pulled from delaware river near penns landing last night. sky6hd camera caught philadelphia police marine unit responding to scene 7:30 p.m.. they were able to find the man and bring him back to shore. we're told he was not injured but still no word tonight how he ended up in the water in the first place. >> in north philadelphia investigators say a 24-year-old man was shot in the face 4 times today in broad daylight. the gunfire interrupted 9:00 this morning, 2900 block of north park avenue. officials say he was shot in face, ears and thigh. th

vernon odom joins us live now with the detail. >> reporter: sara today's developments come after a two and a half year investigation that included multiple subpoenas of his computer files. son of the powerful congressman. >> i think this entire investigation is politically motivated and i'm looking forward to my day in court. shaq he has been indicted on charges of defrauding banks and the u.s. government of thousands of dollars, for two and a half years he has been on investigation by the fbi for allegedly making false statements for banks and the small business administration to make lesser payments for loans. failing to pay his taxes and stealing federal funds with a contract through the philadelphia school district. he says he committed no crimes. >> i am successful in my business but i earned every dollar legitimately and i don't think that this is a way an investigation is typically handled, they have spent millions of dollars working on this for two and a half years. >> he is due to be arraigned this afternoon, if convicted of all of these charges, he faces jail time and a fine

. >> vernon odom is live now with more on the investigation into the congressman. >> good evening, congress fattah's name does not appear in the court documents, concerning greg nailer but he say key part of fattah's inner circle another chaka fattah has been able to comment on a guilty plea for corruption charges by one of his long time aides and political strategists, it's gregory nailer, a master engineer and get out and vote operations, nailer admits to conspiring with a boss identified as elected official a to pay off a mountain of debts including a never reported $1 million donation the government says was channelled through non-profits and security firms, he helped to deliver $22,000 in campaign donations to his own consulting firm, money the court said he used to pay off the debts of the elected official's son. in the '07 campaign for mayor, the investigation of nailer began, he admitted to lying to officials about a campaign loan. nailer faces up to 13 years in prison. sources say he will cooperate and testify about the misuse of funds. >> fattah is now battling a 23-count indictme

and vernon odom checking out the upgrades at the landmark. >> it is a landmark until old city. the firehouse after the renovation and makeover, back in operation after a 12-monthly break. >> and we are happy to be back. the members of the community are happy we are back. >> and the firehouse was the scene of a major fire. there was extensive damage, fortunately no injuries. after major improvements made at a cost of nearly a half million, the commissioner showed off the upgreats including the state of the art exhaust system. up and open after business after a nearly one-year shutdown. the fire commissioner says during that period there was never a significant higher risk left for the old school community. >> where we located to is just a little over a mile away. so it was a mile further for them to be fine, but there were companies closer than that. >> the day we were looking at the unit the firehouse was on fire and we watched it from the unit that we ended up buying. we are very glad to see it reopened. we watched the reconstruction and are glad they are back. >> the neighbor

vernon odom was there and has more on what it means for the case moving forward in a live record tonight at 5:00. >>> families and friends gathered to remember three children killed after a carjacking and crash. john rawlins is live and it is another tough day for the family and community as well. >> yes, it was alicia. when you have a funeral for three children, two brothers and a sister ages 7, 9 and 15, it is going to be an awful day after a string of awful days. three caskets, three victims. killed by an out of control s.u.v. driver by a carjacking. their mother who was with a them at the time remains hospital li ized. among those paying respects at the church is the mayor, the d.a. and other elected officials. some here knew the family well. many others though strangers, but they were touched by the awful incident. >> this could have been my children, so i try to be there to support the family, to show love, to show comfort and to let them know that they are not alone. >> as being a christian it is my duty to pay respects to the family. it was just so sad, so sad because they were s

vernon odom talked to the only person to survive that awful accident and he is live in tioga with thery. hi, vernon. >> hi, brian. as this make-shift shrine at germantown and alley -- allegeny is refreshed and grow, it has taken a fourth innocent life, all snuffed out by evil. changing the dressing on the severe injury sustained in the injury two weeks ago. she was praying that keisha williams the mother of the three children killed pat the corner would survive her injuries from that awful day. she got the word last night the mother had passed away at temple university. >> i expected her when she woke up from the coma, opened her i'ves i expected her to come home. i said we have to find some way to take care of her. >> the d.a. charged the alleged carjackers jonathan rosa and cornelius crawford with a fourth count of murder and related offenses. already charged if the deaths of the three children. the stolen s.u.v. jumped the car at high speed and hit the victims selling truth on the corner. and still shaken and grieving in the wake of her near-death experience. >> i don't know, god h

vernon odom will have more in a live report coming up tonight at 5:00. >>> an alleged burglar is in the hop after being shot while committing the crime in delaware. police say it's the homeowner that shot him when he was caught red handed. chad pradelli is live in stanton where it all happened early this morning. >> reporter: i guess the message is burglar beware, watch where you lay your head. a man broke into this home behind me, the homeowner found him and that burglar got shot the female homeowner and her adult son shown here with investigators made the discovery at 6:00 a.m., the man was sleeping in the upstairs bathroom of their house in west point pike. >> the male suspect woke up and there was a physical confrontation between the female homeowner and her son and the subject. >> police say that the woman pulled out a gun and shot the man in the lower body. he fled on food and it spawned a search by land and air and they found him a short time yesterday. >> all better for her, someone is going to break in my house, i would want to do the same thing. protect yourself, do what you a

vernon odom is live with more on the big announcement. >> reporter: it's always a very complicated story this time of year. but there is still loose ends to be tied up in the days ahead before the opening of philadelphia public schools next month. >> as usual when the governor comes to town, there were protests outside of his philadelphia office for funding for schools. he is advancing the school district $265 million that will allow schools to open on time in september. this is not new funding but early dispersement of funds that philadelphia would get through the year. >> while it helps to open the doors on time, revenue from a cigarette tax will provide funding that will last all year long. >> they are calling on the republican controlled general assembly to go to harrisburg and approve a cigarette tax that will generate more than $80 million for the schools. superintendant william hite says it's not enough. and he and the governor want the cigarette money pronto. >> we are are thrilled with the advancements and thrilled with the certification, it does not resolve the $81 million budg

vernon odom, channel 6 "action news." >> okay vernon thank you. >>> meanwhile, sources have identify aid woman that may have been strangled while jogging in northeast philadelphia. a cemetery worker found a body believed to be 46-year-old connie mcclain murray in pennypack park and the discovery has shaken the commune and wendy saltzman will have a live report coming up at 6:00. >>> now to breaking news from times square, new york city, two double decker tour buses collided injuring 13 people, three of them seriously. at 47th street and 7th avenue next to the ticket discount broadway tickets booth. can you get the latest online at 6abc.com. two americans who contracted the ebola virus while working with sick patients in liberia, are reportedly on the mend tonight. they are back in the united states and marcy gonzales is at the hospital. >> she got here four hours ago and her health is improving even if it didn't quite look like it when she first arrived. nancy writebol being wheeled in on a stretcher. much different than kent brantly walking into the hospital from this plane. >> for

vernon odom is live now. the number that stood out to me was the sides of the fine, if he is found getty, over $13 million. >> that is a big number, chaka fattah jr. is free on bail and he walked out of federal courthouse moments ago and says he is an innocent man here being prosecuted by federal prosecutors with political motives. >> chaka fattah surrendered this morning to face charges including bank fraud, bank and tax fraud and using business loans to pay off personal expenses including $30,000 in gambling debts. the indictment is the result of a to and a half year investigation into the congressman's 32-year-old son. >> he spent it on personal expenditures and credit cards and cars and that time of thing. >> i think this entire investigation is politically motivated. i am looking forward to my day in court. this start a process to get resolution in this matter, i haven't done anything wrong. >> prosecutors say he stole thousands of dollars from federal funds from the philadelphia school district and jack

on the schuylkill expressway, vernon odom, "channel 6 action news."" >> from our delaware newsroom nownew laws to protect app malls are taking effect in the first state. some four legged friends joined marc-andre fleuryle or jack markle rather as he signed bills. one is department of social health and services in more over sight over app mall services and animals rescued from fighting will have a better chance of adoption and animal cruelty investigators will be required to go through approved training program. >> hurricane forecasters say the rest of this season will be quieter than normal. we already had hurricane arthur and the climb matt tologist expect nine more named storms. i was talking about this in may this summer expecting el nino to develop. what this is shears off the top of tropical storms and creates cooler than average summer for us. that's exactly what is happening. we have a new named tropical storm. i'll talk about that in a few moments. >> first let's talk about current weather locally and stormtracker 6 live showing dry conditions out there. sky6 taking a look at t

live from the federal courthouse in center city, vernon odom channel 6 "action news." >> thank you. >>> the funerals for three children held today. saying good-bye to terrence moore, thomas reed, and keiearra williams. the children were hit while selling fruit for a church fundraiser. two men behind bars for charges relating to their death. more on "action news at 6:00." >>> a man accused of killing a millville police officer in a crash last year pled guilty today. timothy sidell pled guilty. and he was charged with vehicular homicide after he slammed into the car last july. reeves died and another officer injured. and face as maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars. >>> the federal trial began in center city this morning for a collegeville man charged with child pornography. the investigation into kraft after inappropriate online contact with a boy. and if convicted of a charges facing a minimum of 15 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life. >>> at this hour city leaders and police with a call to action to fight crime in a neighborhood where a murder happened over the weekend

tonight at 6:00 "action news" reporter vernon odom has more on why they say the finding does not guarantee that schools will start on time. >> turning to the forecast now, we have spotty showers now as a cold front is moving through. a nice stretch of weather ahead looking live at sky 6 hd, it's cooler out there for august, meteorologist, melissa magee is at the "action news" big board with a first look at the forecast tonight. >> good news, we have improving conditions as we go through the rest of the afternoon and evening hours, satellite 6 along with action radar showing the frontal boundary moving on through and not a whole lot of precipitation associated with us, it's starting to move on shore and all that is left is cloud cover in south jersey and delaware, this continues to push to the east for the rest of afternoon and for the rest of tonight. as you look at the temperatures however, across the mid-atlantic region, notice what is going on here in binghamton and buffalo 75, as you move down the 95 corridor, temperatures in the upper 70s to the middle 80s in washington, d.c., the coo

vernon odom tells us what went into the massive restoration process. >>> the f.d.a.as a warning tonight for parents considering getting contact lens for their kids. why they are not the best option for all children would have sight issues. that story in "healthcheck," and more coming your way including the holiday forecast and traffic as well. >> see you shortly. >>> "action news" back wit >>> all right, arguably the most important thing of this day is the accuweather forecast. >> i know, and it is looking kind of good out there. let's go to meteorologist adam joseph at the big board. >> a lot of pressure on my shoulders this weekend. a beautiful summer with low humidity, decent amount of sunshine. that's going to change over the upcoming weekend, but right now only in the upper 70s areawide. in fact we are now in the lower 70s at the shore. in the last hour dropped 2 degrees in beach haven. it has taken time but it kicked in, seaside heights coming in also at 74 degrees. if you are having company come over this weekend and you have got to mow the lawn this evening,

they are considering philadelphia and four other cities to host the convention, vernon odom will have more in a live report coming up tonight at 5:00. people in south jersey are cleaning up and making repairs today after the overnight storms caused serious damage. cumberland county was hit particularly hard and some people had to leave their homes in millville because of high water. eva pilgram is live. >> reporter: alicia take a look at what the water did here, basically carved out the area of the house pushing the basement walls into the home here it looks more like a sinkhole than what should be a basement. tonight it's just about making things safe, making sure these already damaged homes don't collapse even more. huge gaping holes are now where basements once were. i saw this wall and the wall started to come. john came to unplug his gas grill because of all the rain but never expected this, his basement collapsed because of rushing rain water down the street. >> we had water almost on the porch, it was to the second step, it was gushing through the back and it was a lot of rain,