weijia jiang has more on the repair project that begins in less than two hours. hi, weijia. >> hi, kai. and hi to everybody. the city says this is emergency work and the lanes have to be shut down tonight to protect the public. but they admit, this is going to be rough on drivers who should expect bottlenecks and gridlocks. >> reporter: the jfx is the main artery in and out of baltimore. but soon it will be very clogged. >> if not enough people divert on monday, they'll change their mind and do it on tuesday. >> reporter: transportation officials urged drivers to stay off i-83. at 7:00 p.m. friday, one lane in each direction will be shut down near 28th street, as crews fix crushed pipes underground. >> you need all the lanes you can get. so rush hour, it's going to be plain miserable. >> reporter: all week, downtown employers sent out messages to workers, don't be late. >> we just have to find a different route to work. >> reporter: so what's a driver to do? >> they should anticipate what i did 50 years ago, and drive through the city. >> reporter: that's what the

we're live at police headquarters, weijia jiang, wjz news. >> police also need help finding the other two named suspects. anyone with information should call the warrant apprehension task force. 410-837-6970. >>> the latest on carl snoden. denise is in the newsroom to tell us what the charging documents reveal. >> reporter: city police say they arrested snoden on drug charges while he was in a car with a registered sex offender. according to the charging, snoden was behind the wheel with a suspected felon in the passenger seat and suspected marijuana on the console. >> denise, thank you. snoden's arrest comes as he announces plans to sue leopold. >>> the man accused of murdering an unarmed florida taepb is out of jail. tonight the police chief that originally allowed zimmerman to go free is quitting. >> reporter: lee had been under pressure to quit after he set zimmerman free. last month, lee temporarily stepped aside. >> my leadership has become a distraction. >> reporter: but now lee says she's giving up the position. the neighborhood watch volunteer was released from jail late sund

we're live in baltimore, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> weijia, thank you. as a result of the investigation, a 12th secret service employee has been implicated in the scandal. >>> governor martin o'malley wants to call a special session over the budget battle. the democrat wants to repair the state budget, after lawmakers failed to pass a passage, that would have avoided nearly half a million in cuts. o'malley wants to meet only after the house and senate agree on a revenue plan, which included income tax increases. >>> a frederick man crashes into a home, then takes off from police. police say 20-year-old davonte williams slammed into a house in the florida block of carrollton drive this morning. he then fled the scene. police found him a short time later and arrested him for dui. no one inside the house was hurt. >>> many soldiers come back from war to find they don't have a job. tonight, andrea fujii explains, there's now a national and local movement for local employers to hire active military veterans. >> reporter: from hero to hired, the maryland natio

weijia jiang has more. weijia? >> reporter: it's atypical of a suspect to speak out this early in the process, especially the case as high profile as this one. he's apologizing for it. wjz was there when 20 year old aaron parsons turned himself into police. >> this was an error at worst and -- >> reporter: before he went to authorities, parsons went to a local tv station for an interview. he said he's sorry for what got him arrested. this is par sops parsons. parsons grabbed something from the victim who shoved his hand away. moments later, parsons hits the man. >> what he did was child abuse of -- >> it didn't stop. kicked him more and stripped him of all his clothes and by standers do nothing but laugh. >> in the onset, we had nothing to go on, seriously like a needle in a hay stack. wasn't until the video that we were able to get community intelligence. >> reporter: police are looking for at least three more suspects seen in these pictures. >> there are video tapes of them doing it. >> reporter: several people a

weijia jiang has more on how long it will last. >> reporter: dpafn. city transportation officials are not mincing any words. they say if you're going to use the jfx, you're going to be stuck in traffic. so now is the time to make some other plans am. >> reporter: when emergency road work on the jfx starts friday evening, drivers can expect to stop. >> it can be treacherous. >> that's supposed to be the expressway, getting out of here. now you're cutting it down. pretty much, it's a regular street. >> each lane of intersection 83 will be shut down near the 29th street bridge, as crews work underground to fix pipes. >> we know there's a void under there. and if left unchecked, it's going to be a sinkhole. we don't want that to happen. >> wow. that's a long time. >> reporter: enough time public transportation officials say to figure out how to use the light rail and metro. cars come every 8 to 10 minutes. >> you don't have to deal with traffic hassling. you don't have to deal with parking downtown. many of our properties have free parking. >> reporter: b

weijia jiang? >> it makes it easier to get with crimes. public safety is at stake. our concern about the court's ruling is that it's going to impede us from being able to put certain bad guys behind bars. >> reporter: the state's highest court police are no longer able to collect dna samples when they arrest suspects in violent crimes. doing that first became legal in 1999 as one of the signature initiatives. 16,000 samples led to 58 criminals found including 38 burglars and eight rapists, but collecting dna without a conviction first is unconstitutional, even though strip searching, blood sampling and fingerprinting are not. >> dna on the other hand, unlike fingerprints, reveal massive amounts of highly personal confidential information about you. >> reporter: the ruling stems from a case in which a man was arrested for assault. detectives took his dna and matched him to an unsolved rape case which violates protections against searches without a warrant. the attorney general disagrees and plans to fight the ruling. >> we're in the 21st century. we have the ability

weijia jiang has more on what caused the crash. weijia? >> reporter: kai, the victim's mother, who is behind the wheel, is sharing her story tonight, exclusively with wjz. she says she is still in shock, after losing her daughter, who is also her best friend. >> my soul is hurting. my baby girl is gone. my firstborn. i brought her in this world. and i watched my daughter die. [ crying ] >> reporter: despite being surrounded by friends and family, 39-year-old yomanda williams is inconsolable. her daughter, 22-year-old jordasha rollins died by her side, in a horrific crash. >> she looked like a crushed box. but it was three lives in there. >> reporter: rollins' 11-month- old baby was all also in the car. rollins was driving home after a quick trip for food when a vehicle smashed into them. investigators say officers were trying to pull that driver over when they lost him. >> he ran through an intersection. ran through a red light. >> reporter: williams has harsh words for police. she believes they were chasing the suspect, which is against d

wjz and weijia jiang are live outside the courthouse downtown. good afternoon. >> reporter: good afternoon, don, good afternoon to everybody. this trial was expected to end by today. but we are a long way from that as prosecutors have not in finished presenting their case, in part because of obstacles on the witness stand. during week 2 of the retrial against 20-year-old twins travers and trumaine johnson, accused of setting a pit bull on fire prosecutors have faced one challenge after another. one witness gave contradictory statements, another key witness refused to testify altogether. 25-year-old tyer a good man a goodman would not answer any questions the judge held her in contempt and sentenced her to severe six months in prison, prosecutors were shocked left to play a recording of her testimony from the first trial when she saw knee johnsons running away from the ally where she dog was found. it happened in may 2009, she was burned so badly she had to be euthanized, they were tried once before and it ended with a hung jury. advocates are afr

weijia jiang stays on this investigation. >> reporter: good afternoon. the victim's family tells wjz they believe this crash could have been prevented if not for police but a spokesperson for the department insists they are not to blame. a growing memorial marks the spot where jordasha rollins was killed. a vehicle fleeing from police smashed into her car. >> now i got to raise my granddaughter. what am i going to tell my granddaughter? where is he mother when she asks me where mommy? >> williams spoke exclusively to wjz outside johns hopkins hospital where she is recovering from injuries. williams was behind the wheel driving near north avenue and popular grove when police say she suspect, charles jeffries blew through the red light and hit the williams. williams believes it was a police chase gone wrong. >> and that is why i got to bury my daughter in a couple of days, because they not following their own rules. >> investigators say they tried to pull jefferies over because he was driving wrecklessly on hilton parkway but insists there was never a chas

weijia jiang has the latest. >> reporter: good afternoon. the lead prosecutor just finished up her closing argument after reminding jurors of every single piece of evidence they saw and heard in this trial and now the defense is presenting their closing arguments and one attorney said right away there will not be justice for that dog because she says the wrong people are on trial. >>> both prosecutors and defense attorneys rested their cases in the trial against 20- year-old twins travers and trumaine johnson. the brothers are accused of setting this pit bull on fire in may, 2009. the puppy, nick named phoenix was burned so badly she had to be euthanized. >> her tongue, her eyes, her pads are scorched off. unbelievable. >> the violence sparked widespread outrage across the country, then again when it ended with a deadlocked jury. during the next trial they faced challenges, a witness refused to testify. the judge found her in contempt of court, then gave her prison time. the defense tried to rattle the case even more, arguing the police offi

project will begin on the jones falls expressway possibly causing problems for drivers, wjz and weijia jiang are live along the jfx. good afternoon. >> reporter: good afternoon. city transportation officials are not mincing any words they say if you are going to take the jfx you are going to get stuck in traffic so now is the time to make some other plans. when emergency road work on the jfx starts friday evening drivers can expect to stop. >> even when the whole thing is open it can be treacherous. >> that is supposed to be expressway getting out of here now you cutting it down pretty much it is going to be a regular street now. >> at 7:00 p.m. one lane in each direction of interstate 83 will be shut down near the 29th street bridge as crews work underground to fix pipes. >> we know there is a void under there and if left unchecked that could be back a sinkhole and obviously we don't want that to happen. >> the city estimates construction will last for at least a month. >> wow. that is a long time. >> enough time public transportation officials say to figure out how to use the light rail an

weijia jiang has the students' message and what is at stake. weijia? >> many students here say they're already struggling to pay the bills and say a doomsday budget would make this nearly impossible. >> we're talking about $50 million budget cuts. >> reporter: these university of maryland students say lawmakers are failing them. >> they didn't do their jobs at all. okay? because if you're trying to balance the budgets on the backs of students who already don't have any money, you've got a problem. >> reporter: at a rally thursday, more than 100 people march on campus, urging the governor to call a special session to hash out a budget. a task the legislature did not accomplish by sine die. >> i'm sorry we didn't get the job done. and second, they need to, woto make -- to work to make sure we come back and get the job done. >> reporter: otherwise, this so- called doomsday budget will cut deeper into higher education funding. $38 million less for universities. nearly 20 million less for community schools. and grants to private schools will be slashed by $

weijia jiang has more on what they're trying to rebuild. weijia?the amount of debris left over is devastating. about a half million dollars worth. now the entire community is pulling together to clean up. >> reporter: it only took a few hours for a fire to demolish a carroll county landmark. >> the monitor was engulfed in flames. it was a big fire ball. as i walked closer and seen it, it was just gut-wrenching. >> reporter: because the century old barn, now reduced to rubble, was also a vital piece of the present. it helped donations for the westminster rescue mission for men. and a thrift store that raised money to operate the shelter. but the flames, which broke out around 9:45 friday, ripped through the building and caused the roof to collapse. >> it had fallen into the foundation. it was just continuing to burn. and at that point, there's really not a whole lot that we could do to salvage stuff. >> reporter: the barn not only helped the men at the mission. but the retch new collected went toward food boxes for families across carroll county, as

weijia jiang explains the state calls several witnesses today. weijia? >> yeah, mary. despite that dramatic setback, prosecutors are barreling forward with their case, and they're attempting to paint a picture of the case as bullies who may have tried to cover things up. >> on thursday, prosecutors called on several witnesses, in their case against the werdesheim brothers. 24-year-old elyia hue and brother afi are accused of beating another boy. one witness, said he watched the werdesheims follow him in the vehicle. telling him he didn't belong. the witness said he was scared. he was petrified. it looked like he didn't want to be there. >> the story corroborates what he told investigators. and he even told the judge he believes the charges should be dropped. >> community activists are explosly monitor -- closely monitoring the trial. >> i think the case is still very much in motion. and the generality public should know -- general public should know that righteousness will prevail in this case. >> he admitted he allowed him to edit an article. which included an exclusi

reporting live in north baltimore, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> have some patience. weijia, thanks. >>> for a link to maps with alternative routes as well as updates about the lane closures, log onto wjz.com. >> speaking of traffic. if you're waiting for someone to get home from work, let's check the roads with kristy breslin at wjz traffic control. >> hi, kai. hi, everyone. well, plenty of traffic there to talk about. on the north side inner loop, the delay up to 30 minutes there. that's from greenspring to harford road. west side inner loop, expect another 15 at least there, from frederick road to security boulevard. 70 westbound, bumper to bumper there, from 29 to marriottsville road. and northbound 95, still having problems in that direction. that's from eastern avenue past the beltway on that northeast corner. traveling southbound 95, we do have a disabled vehicle in the fort mchenry tunnel, left tube, blocking the right-hand lane. just take the right tube instead, you should be fine. and other accidents include oak wood road at mayflower circle. also liberty hei

weijia jiang reports. the jury is hearing conflicting testimony. >> reporter: the trial was expected to end by today. but we are a long way from that as prosecutors have not even finished presenting their case. in part because of obstacles on the witness stand. >> reporter: during week 2 of the retrial against 20-year-old twins, travers and tremain johnson, accused of setting a pit bull on fire. prosecutors have faced one challenge after another. one witness faced contradictory statements. 25-year-old tiera goodman would not answer any questions on the stand. the judge held her in criminal content. then sentenced her to serve six months in prison. prosecutors were shocked. left to plan audio recordings. when she said she saw the johnsons running away where the dog was found. it happened in may 2009. phoenix was burned so badly, she had to be euthanized. the brothers were tried once before in the case, but it ended with a hung jury. animal welfare advocates are afraid that could happen again. now, they are

i'm weijia jiang, with the latest coming up. >>> a cloudy wednesday night. will the skies clear out for the weekend? don't miss the updated first warning weather forecast with bob. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, >>> light rain and 51 degrees in central maryland. right now, the complete first warning forecast is coming up. >>> a baltimore mother demands information about the car crash that killed her daughter. the family believes a police chase led to the accident. but police insist it's not true. wjz is live at the hospital. weijia jiang stays on the story with more on the possible charges in the case. >> reporter: here at the hospital, the victim's mother and her baby, who were both injured in the crash, are in the process of checking out. so the family says now they're focused on making sure whoever is responsible is punished. >> reporter: family members of 22-year-old jor dare -- jor dasha rollins are demanding answers from police. [ crying ] >> reporter: rollins' mother, yolanda williams, believes the police chase triggered the car crash that killed her daughter

weijia jiang has been following this case. she has more on the obstacles on the witness stand. >> reporter: there's no dna or forensic evidence in this case. so testimony is critical. some of it has been contradistrictor -- contradictory. now one witness may be turning to what may be a star witness in this case. a city police camera. >> reporter: prosecutors are relying heavily on surveillance video that shows two men leading a young pit bull into an alley. the dog, nicknamed phoenix, was eventually set on fire there. burned so badly, she had to be euthanized. on thursday, a baltimore police sergeant identified the men seen on the tape as 21-year-old twins, travers and tremain johnson. both are on trial for torturing the puppy and face felony animal cruelty charges. the sergeant testified, two pairs of jeans, sneakers, backpack recovered from the home marched what he saw in the video. he also told jurors, an eyewitness pointed to both brothers during a photo array and said, i saw this individual running from where the dog was

as weijia jiang explains, supporters are following to rebuild. >> good morning, everyone. the amount of debris is devastating. nearly a half-million dollars worth. now the entire community is pulling together to rebuild. >> reporter: and only took a few hours for a fire to demolish a carroll county landmark. >> it was a big fireball. as i watched closer and saw it, it was gut wrenching. >> this century-old barn reduced to rubble was a vital piece of the present. it helped donations for the westminster rescue mission for men and a thrift store that raise money to operate the shelter. but the flames which broke out around 9:45 saturday ripped through the building and caused the roof to collapse. >> it had fallen in the foundation and continue to burn. at that point, there's not a whole lot we could do. >> the bar not only help and the men at the mission but the revenue collected went toward food boxes for families across carroll county as well as vouchers for clothing and furniture. >> i got my walker, i've got my teens from here. it's a shame. >> we have a long list of peop

weijia jiang has more on the decision in this landmark animal abuse case. weijia? >> reporter: jess, this was returned very quickly. it only took the jury about an hour to reach that verdict. we talked to one man who said they had no doubt someone set that dog on fire. but they say the state did not show enough proof that it was the defendants. >> reporter: 20-year-old twins travers and tremain johnson, visibly relieved, after a jury finds them not guilty of setting a pit bull puppy on fire. their mother speaks out for the first time ever. >> i'm feeling very proud. very, very proud. i need my boys -- knew my boys didn't have nothing to do with that. i'm very, very happy. >> reporter: the brothers were tried once before in this case. that ended in a hung jury in 2011. a single holdout could not be convinced to convict. almost the complete opposite this time. it only took jurors an hour to convict the johnsons. >> it is what it is. you have to go by what you see. not by what someone says. >> reporter: the state's case may have fallen apart when a star witness refuse

weijia jiang is following this story. and how it's being compared to the trayvon martin case. weijia? >> reporter: vic nboth cases -- in both cases, many people believe the attacks were racially motivated. in fact, they said that the outrage is so widespread, they'd rather have a judge make a ruling instead of a jury. >> reporter: a trial is expected to begin wednesday, in the case against brothers 24- year-old eli yahoo. and 21-year-old afi werdesheim, accused of beating a 41-year- old in 2010. it upon in the baltimore park heights community. questions immediately surfaced over whether the violence was racially-motivated. >> i think we represent every young person in the city, who experiences these types of atrocities taking place every day. >> reporter: the werdesheims are jewish. eli is part of an orthodox jewish group. the victim is african american. police charging documents say one of the brothers told the teen, quote, you don't belong around here. end quote. >> this isn't a hate crime. this isn't anything more than a disputed fact, between two people over a relatively mi

weijia jiang, closely following the story and how it is being compared to the trayvon martin case. weijia? >> reporter: in both cases, there is serious questions about whether the attacks were motivated by race. in fact, the defense attorney says people are so outraged by both that it's going to impact what happens in court. >> reporter: a trial is expected to begin wednesday in the case against brothers, 24- year-old eli yahoo and 21-year- oldafi werdesheim, accused of beating a 15-year-old in 2010. they attacked the baltimore park heights community. questions immediately surfaced into whether the violence was racially motivated. >> i think we represent every young person in the city, who has these types of atrocities taking place every day. >> reporter: the werdesheims are jewish. they were part of an orthodox jewish watch group. the victim is african american. charges documents say he told the teen, you don't belong here, end quote. >> this isn't a hate crime. this isn't anything more than a disputed fact between two people over a relatively minor misdemeanor charge. >> reporter:

reporting live in doubt baltimore -- downtown baltimore, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> weijia, thank you. the brothers remain unheld on unrelated charges. >>> cruel crime, an elderly woman struck and left to die on a busy baltimore county road. jessica kartalija is in the newsroom with details. >> reporter: they were provided with critical information to crack that case. 22-year-old david french jr. is now in custody. police say he struck and killed beverly moore as she crossed a road in parkville. the driver kept going, turning onto joppa road. after a tip led them to a vehicle suspected in that accident, police were able to gather enough evidence and charge french. >> thank you, jessica. french is being held on $500,000 bail. >>> budget battle. hundreds of millions of dollars for education and crime fighting at stake. wjz is live downtown. political reporter pat warren, with the latest on the budget mess and what is being done to fix it. pat? >> reporter: that's right. until now, the state has been able to avoid deep cuts to public safety and health care. but now, cuts are c

weijia jiang has more on the woman who died and how it happened. weijia? >> denise, the victim's mother who is behind the wheel is sharing her story tonight, exclusively with wjz. we saw her at the hospital. and she says she is still in shock over what happened. >> my soul is hurting. my baby girl is gone. my firstborn. i brought her in the world. and i watched my daughter die. [ crying ] >> reporter: despite being surrounded by friends and family, 39-year-old damanda williams is inconsolable. her daughter, 22-year-old jor dasha rollins died by her side, just after midnight in a horrific crash. >> it looked like a crushed box. but it was three lives in there. [ [ crying ] >> reporter: rollins' 11-month- old baby was also in the car. rollins was driving home after a quick trip for food and diapers when a vehicle smashed into them. investigators say officers were trying to pull that driver over when they lost him. >> he ran through an intersection. ran through a red light. >> reporter: williams has harsh words for police. she believes they were chasing the s

weijia jiang has the latest from the courtroom. weijia? >> reporter: no dna or forensic evidence in this case. that testimony is critical. now, prosecutors are focusing on what may be the star witness in this case. police cameras. >> reporter: prosecutors are relying heavily our is vaifal-- surveillance video that shows two men leading to a pit bull. the dog, nicknamed phoenix, was eventually set on fire there. burned so badly, she had to be euthanized. thursday, a baltimore city police sergeant, a man identified on the tape as 20- year-old twins, travers and tremain johnson. both are on trial and face animal cruelty charges. the sergeant testified that sneakers, backpack and jeans one recovered from the scene matched what he saw in the video. he also talked about a photo investigation. and said i saw this individual running from where the dog was burnt to death. earlier this week, the judge held that woman,ive 25 -- woman, 25-year-old tiera goodman in contempt for refusing to testify. her refusal to talk shocked prosecutors. she was a sta

weijia jiang has more on what the teen said and what the judge told him. weijia? >> reporter: denise, this is a huge blow for the prosecutor who put the victim on the stand. because he thought the teenager was going to share a harrowing story about how he was beaten. but the victim brazenly refused. >> reporter: in a stunning outburst on the witness stand, 16-year-old cory osbee got out of his chair and said, quote, i don't want to testify. iptz all the charges-- i want all of the charges to be dropped, end quote. osbee, who cried almost the entire time he was on the stand, was expected to be the star witness in the state's case, against brothers 24-year- old eliayahu, and 21-year-old avi werdesheim. they're accused of beating then- 15-year-old osbee in 2010. many believed the alleged attack was racially motivated and have even compared it to what happened to trevon martin in florida. >> he was singled out because he was a black dude walking in a jewish community. >> reporter: documents from the investigation reveal osbee said the brothers pushed him to the ground

i'm weijia jiang in baltimore, with what you need to know, coming up next. >>> i'm alex demetrick.oming up, small enough to hold in your hand. but they're costing maryland millions of dollars. see why, as eyewitness news continues. >>> and these dry conditions continue. any relief on the horizon. don't miss the updated first warning forecast. [ female announcer ] with xfinity, you can always expect more. like more on demand shows and movies than ever. and more ways to discover them too. plus more speed from america's fastest internet provider. so you can run more devices at the same time. ♪ feel a firework [ female announcer ] and best of all, it keeps getting better. no wonder more people choose xfinity over any other provider. ♪ love can be so mystical ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] at southwest airlines, we're always looking for new ways to make you happy. and we know what really makes you happy are new places to fly. now you can fly southwest airlines' new nonstop service from bwi airport to atlanta. book all of our destinations only at southwest.com. ♪ >>> and you use the jfx to come

weijia jiang has more on what the teen is saying and what the judge is telling him. >> reporter: in anning outburst on the witness stand, 16-year-old corey ausby got out of his chair and said quote, i don't want to testify, i want all of the charges to be dropped, he cried almost the entire time he was on the stand, was expected to be the star witness in the state's case against brothers 24-year- old eli and 21-year-old avi werdesheim accused of a beating a 15-year-old ausby in 2010 during a call for an orthodox jewish watch group and many believe the attack was racially motivated and even compared it to what happened to trayvon martin in florida. >> he was singled out because he is a black youth walking in a jewish community. >> documents from the investigation reveal ausby said the brothers pushed him to the ground and pinned him down and beat him with a walkie-talkie. but on wednesday, ausby refused to answer questions from the prosecutor and had his head in his lap. at one point ausby's grandfather was thrown out of court because he was making signals to ausby to speak up. >> it i

we're live at police headquarters, weijia jiang. >> thank you very much weijia. police also need help finding the other two named suspects. anyone with information is asked to call the warrant aprehe thinks task force. >>> a spring nor'easter slams maryland and several other states. bernadette woods and bob turk are tracking that storm. >> reporter: winter fell on western maryland a frozen surprise for the middle of spring. it may have been rain down below but not up here. >> nice up here on top. >> reporter: on top of kaiser's ridge. >> it's been like this all morning, wet, cold and wind blowing. the snow meant a lot of equipment that had been put up at the end of the winter had to be put up and hit the road. >> we're getting ready for our spring inspection. so i brought the keys in last night around 10:00. >> reporter: crews did make it out to keep the roads clean. but for those who are not in a hurry, waiting it out was the better option. some weren't equipped for the stay on top of the hill. >> i was expecting to wear shorts, i had shorts on the other day. >>

weijia jiang with the latest developments from the courtroom today. weijia? >> reporter: prosecutors are barreling forward with their case, despite that dramatic setback. and they're attempting to paint the defendants as bullies, who may have cry -- tried to cover a few things up. >> reporter: on thursday, prosecutors called on several witnesses in their case against the werdesheim brothers. 24-year-old eliayahu. and 21-year-old avi, are accused of beating a then 15- year-old cory osbee, in 2010. during an orthodox neighborhood watch group. one witness said he watched the werdesheims follow osbee in their vehicle, telling the teen on foot, he didn't belong in the neighborhood. the witness says osbee was scared. he was petrified. it looked like he wanted to disappear and not be there. >> reporter: the story corroborates what osbee told police during their interview, although he would not testify and told police he believes the charms should be dropped. >> community activist are closely monitoring the trial: >> i think the case is very much in motion. and the g

for now, we're live in baltimore, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> as weijia mentioned, we will continue to follow this story. >> reporter: after months of investigation, baltimore county police make an arrest in the fatal hit-and-run. >> 68-year-old beverly moore was crossing the street when she was struck and killed in february. 25-year-old david french jr. is being held on $500,000 bail. police say moore was crossing seven courts road january 22nd. a car stopped to allow her to cross, when a vehicle, drink by french, according to police, passed a stopped vehicle. witnesses said french did not stop. >> french turned himself in to police yesterday afternoon. >> a woman who used bleach as a weapon inside baltimore county wal-mart pleads guilty today. a judge sentenced teresa jefferson to a five-year probation. last october, she poured the chemical on a woman's head. the fumes sent 19 shoppers to the hospital. jefferson is also banned for five years from the store. >>> asleep on the job. and it's much more dangerous than it sounds. jessica kartalija is in the newsroom now with mo

reporting live in baltimore, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> all right. thank you, weijia. several cities across the country have formed task forces of their own, modeled after baltimore. >>> budget mess for maryland. millions of dollars on the chopping block. today, they catch up with governor martin o'malley, who says he is not ready to call a special session yet. political reporter pat warren has more on what they're saying. >> reporter: well, the strategy the governor is outlying is to outline monday night. when lawmakers ran into a dead end. >> reporter: governor o'malley breaks the ice. >> if we had the consense us, i'd be glad to call a special session this afternoon. >> reporter: but the first job is getting the house and senate in order. >> well, what we have to do first is call one another and see if we have the consensus to resolve what many thought should have been resolved before midnight on the final day of the session. >> reporter: it's the first indication of a plan to bring lawmakers back to annapolis, after they passed a budget with nothing but cuts. cuts

weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> it's going to be a mess. but we'll be watching it. to see a map and a full list of alternate routes, log onto wjz.com. >>> in custody. baltimore city police arrest a man in connection with the death of a 13-year-old girl. martinez armstrong is charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon. detectives say his rifle was used to kill 13-year-old monae turnage. he is a relative of one of the people who tried to shoot her. then tried to hide her body in an alley. >>> shock and outrage. after two hours of deliberation, a jury finds a man not guilty of hit-and-run. wjz is live at the courthouse. mike hellgren with the reason for the verdict and reaction to it. >> vic, raw emotion was certainly on display here. even the jurors said they had a tough time emotionally with this. but they said their hearts went out to the victims' families. they felt the evidence wasn't there. and they reached their decision quickly. >> courtney angeles, and emerald smith, were thrown across martin luther king jr. boulevard, and left to die on the pavement

. >>> i'm weijia jiang with who else police are looking for, next. >>> and out of jail, the man accusedkilling trayvon martin is released on bail. why he might be allowed to leave florida. >> check for these and more breaking news. >> wjz eyewitness news starts right now. >>> hi i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm mary bubala. an update on that breaking news, an accident shuts down part of the expressway. we know they're doing repair

i'm weijia jiang at the courthouse, with why this case is being closely compared to trayvon martin. >eneral assembly may be back in may. i'm pat warren, coming up on eyewitness news, how much would that cost you? and by how much, we mean how much money in increased taxes? >> check in for more on these stories and all the day's breaking news. >> eyewitness news at 5:00 starts now. >>> social services stabbing a baby inside a government building. >> how did it happen? and the surprising person in custody. >> hi, everybody. i'm mary bubala. >> i'm kai jackson. here's what people are talking about. >> baltimore police say a mother stabs her 8-month-old daughter, with a kitchen knife, right in front of a social worker. now, detectives are trying to figure out why. wjz is live at johns hopkins children's center, where the child is recovering. >> well, mary, she is here, recovering from stab wounds to her neck and to her head. and the motor described as in -

i'm weijia jiang, with how she changed baltimore forever next. >>> coming up, we'll have more on the big names, attending the big unveiling. >>> check in for more on these stories and all the day's breaking news. eyewitness news at 5:00 starts now. >>> out of hiding. george zimmerman appears in court to face a murder charge. >> reporter: the nation watches as his lawyer plans his defense. >> hi. i'm kai jackson. and i'm denise koch, in for mary bubala. here's what people are talking approximate. >> all eyes are on florida. as george zimmerman enters a not guilty plea, he is charged with murdering a teenager. >> reporter: george zimmerman appeared before a judge in sanford, florida, for less than five minu

i'm weijia jiang, with the urgent message they have for the governor, next in a live report. >>> theseing that is going to suffer if maryland doesn't see some rain pretty soon. i'm monique griego. we'll have the latest on these coming up. >> check in for these stories and all the day's breaking news. >> eyewitness news at 5:00 starts now. >>> cold case cracked. police find the body of a maryland mother, who vanished more than 20 years ago. >> where she was hidden. and who is now facing murder charges. >> hi. i'm kai jackson. >> and i'm mary bubala. here's what people are talking about. a howard county woman, missing since 1991, is found buried just feet away from her home. and tonight, her husband is under arrest. wjz is live at howard county police headquart

weijia jiang is there. she explains what happened. >> reporter: hi, kai. and to everybody. this is a huge blow to the prosecutor, who put the victim on the stand because he thought the teenager was going to share a harrowing story about how he was beaten. but the victim brazenly refused. >> reporter: in a stunning outburst on the witness stand, 16-year-old cory got out of his chair and said, quote, i don't want to testify. i want all the charges to be dropped. end quote. osbee, who cried almost the entire time he was on the stand, was expected to be the star witness in the case. against brothers 24-year-old eliayahu, and 21-year-old afi werdesheim. they are accused of beating 15- year-old in the head. during the call for war vashim. many compared it to what happened to trayvon martin in florida. >> he was singled out because he was black and walking in a jewish community. >> reporter: documents from the investigation revealed osbee said the brothers pushed him to the ground, pinned him down and beat him with a walkie-talkie. but on wednesday, osbee refused to answer questio

at the university of maryland, college park, weijia jiang, wjz eyewitness news. >> the doomsday budget also includes more than $200 million in cuts from maryland's public school system, for grades k through 12. >>> 160 years in prison. that is the possible sentence for a baltimore pastor, convicted of child sex abuse. 61-year-old leon jones is found guilty of abusing the 51-year- old -- 15-year-old girl from april 2000 to march 2002. prosecutors say the child's mother also participated in the abuse. the victim is now 27. >>> a raid on a west baltimore home, turns up more than the drugs police were expecting. they also broke up a dog- fighting ring. and tonight, wjz digs deeper with dog fighting with surprising results. wjz is live from police headquarters. and mike schuh has more. >> reporter: we've learned these dogs are a lot like thoroughbreds. their records are soft. these dogs to keep them in safe. oftentimes, teenagers are sent out to steal family pets for just a couple of bucks. >> reporter: angel brown doesn't know what to expect. >> it's sad. they shouldn't be taking people's

weijia jiang is there with how phoenix's legacy lives on. >> reporter: advocates say phoenix's death was a critical turning point in the city. and it's because of her, other animals have more protection than ever before. >> reporter: phoenix, the pit bull puppy, was not the first dog to be fatally abused in baltimore am but she's the first one many remember. >> phoenix did not die in vain. i do believe she was a catalyst for change in baltimore in many ways. >> reporter: despite a second failure to convict travers and tremain johnson in the case, animal welfare advocates claim victory. >> justice denied does not mean good does not come with something. >> reporter: baltimore became the first city in the country to form an anti-animal abuse task force, which has since grown into a commission, made up of eight agencies. >> our relationship with the police department has definitely expanded now. there's a lot more communication. the state's attorney's office is involved in prosecuting cases. so everybody is working together. >> reporter: before the city met phoenix, there was no tracking