sliding. >> someone didn't hear. >> reporter: right behind him, the driver of this honda accord couldn't stop. her vehicle was totalled. she walked away unharmed. >> i tapped on the brakes and i realized, i'm going to hit this gu i stopped. i tried to stop and ended up hitting him. and then that truck up the got hit. it was really scary. >> eventually salt trucks started to roll but most of the collisions had already occurred. near the montgomery county line, there were a sires of crashes that had 270 closed. traffic backed up for miles. this suv was the first to go. but its driver walk away from a collision with a semi. >> the whole bridges iced up when i went over it, i lost control of the car. >> three more vehicles crashed behind it. one taking out a light pole. fortunately, no one here was seriously injured. >> even though a few people were hospitalized in some of the acdents, in all of them police tell us noerious injuries. reporting live from germantown, maryland. >>the temperature will start rising but we are in for a weather pattern later in the weekend being called unsettled. >> get ready. doug kammerer is live for us with the first forecast. >> i have to till, earlier this morning, i woke up and saw some of the flurries and i expected to seeome flurries out there. what we did see was some light snow that developed and when it came through, it came through with a wallop to the north and west. >> all right. apparently -- >> that's called satellite freeze. >> we'll go back in just a bit. meanwhile back to the news right now. go news4 at if i have:00, police are trying to figure out what happened to a prominent fashion descene heigner who gr up and w discovered dead in a hotel room. >> pat collins is live in arlington where the designer went to school. >> rorter: wendy, the suspicious death of sylvie cachey. word tonight that the autopsy is inconclusive. the police investigation continue on. >> we're all cousins and we're very close. it is a tragedy. my uncle's little girl. the light of his eye. he is devastated. >> reporter: in mclean at the hole of sylvie cachay, they're trying to deal with the sudden suspicious death of this famous designer. it happened in the city of new york. the incident, front page news there. miss cachay's body found in a bathtub in the exclusive soho house hotel. she was found half clothed in the water. there are reports she d bruises on her neck and bite marks on her hand. police questioning a former boyfriend. 24-year-old nicholas brooks. friends say she tried to break up with him a short time ago. back at the family home, her cousin, francois. >> we've been in shock the last day. now we're moving into anger and just furious at what happened. we're getting the bits and pieces we're getting right now. it's just sad. we don know much about this guy. he was not in her life for very long and shouldn't have been in there to begin with. and it is just a really, really sad and we're very angry about the whole thing right now. >> reporter: sylvie cachay. they say from the time she was a little girl, she had a passion for fashion. go at marymount university, she was a star student. these are models wearing clothes she created in her college years. >> sylvie did make a huge impact in the school. she was anoutstanding student. not only was her work outstanding. she had a vivacious personality will. >> reporter: she went on to new york to succeedin the fashion fast track world. she had her own swimsuit line and a resume that included work for mark jacobs, tommy hilfiger and victoria's secret. now nicholas brooks, the so-called boyfriend, questioned by police, is the son of joseph brooks. an oscar winner. he wrote that song, "you light up my life." now so far, no one has been charged in this case. the investigation is ongoing. back to you. >> a tragic story. thank you. we undstand they have a thawed out dugout and -- they have thawed out doug. tell us about the lovely weather. >> did you say that i had ozen? >> yeah. you had the satellite freeze. >> was i at least frozen in a good pose? >> never. they're never good. very bad. >> reporter: you are correct about. that it is a pretty nice night out here. the mperature, a little below average. definitely a cold night. the winds not blowing all that bad and any snow we saw earlier is now gone for just about all the area over the next few days, we'll be warming up. let's show you first off some temperatures out there. first we did see the snow a little earlier come through parts of the area. it did bring the light dusting and notice back to the west in the lt frame there, off toward garret county, that's a winter storm watch. that is for our next storm. temperatures into the 30s. high temperatures in the 30s. 38 degrees in washington, d.c. 35 in baltimore. 38 down toward quantico. look at fredericksburg. 32 degrees and those temperatures will continue to rise oh the next few days. as far as what we've been seeing and what we're going to see throughout the night, the temperature will be falling down. not quate as cold as they've been the next couple of nights. down to 32 degrees and by 11:00, we'll see temperature around 31 degrees. still below that freezing mark. a little earlier weid see that snow. we got some great pictures a little earlier as well. this was out from leesburg. a picture of allison's children enjoying the first snow of the season and even some snow men from another viewer that sent us some great pictures. thank you r those pictures and send them any me. you can always send them at weather@nbc.com. we'll show you the house and introduce you to the family here as well. >> it looks beautiful. we'll look forward to it. fairfax coun, a teacher there is behind bars accused of taking indecent liberties with a student. broon white of hey market was arrested there. he tght social studies. will police stay aeged incident took place in 2007 and 2008 and the student came forward with the accusations this past summer. she has since graduated. white is beeing held without bond. two students wer arrested for carrying a weapon to school. it happened at walt whitman high school in bethesda. police tell us they found two 14-year-old students with a stun gun. school securitynd a resource officer confiscated the weapon after anher student tipped them off. no o was hut. this afternoon a letter went out to parents notifying them of the incident. today a federal jury in utah convicted the man who is accused of kidnapping elizabeth smart more than eight years ago. brian david mitchell was found guilty of kidnapping unlawful transportation of a minor across state line for purpose of illegal sex. smart was just 14 when she was taken atknife point from her bedroom in june of 2002. shwas held captive for nine months by mitchell and he will testified during the trial that she was sexually assaulted almost daily. prosecutors credit smart's powerful and credible testimony for sealing this conviction. >> that young woman had the ility and the willingness to recall the graphic details of her 9-month captivity. and she did it with candor and clarity and a truthfulness that i think moved all of us and gave a very powerful a credible story. >> mitchell could face life in prison when he is sentenced in may. to president obama's. at a cut battle. former president bill clinton met with president obama at the white house today. just a few minutes ago, they went to the white house briefing room mr. clinton told reporters that overall, he thinks the deal is a good one. and that democrats will not get a better one. mr. clinton also said he thinks that pay roll tax cut and unemployment extension will be good for economic recover in the long run. meanwhile down pennsylvania avenue, there was a rally at the capitol today. protester urging congress not to go home untilmilitary's don't ask don't tell policy is repeal. an effort to end gays and lesbians to serve openly failed yesterday in the senate. there is a possibility that a stand-alone asure could move forward before the le duck session ends. some have promised to bring it up for another voteefore the lame duck session is out. a public works facility in northeast d.c. was formally named today for a veteran worker who was shot and killed there in october. it is a murder that is stl unsolved. tom sherwood joins us from our newsroom with more on this sty. the shooting is still under investigation by police. today the cities have come to remember and honor larry hchins. >> reporter: the city leaders and family member joined together on a cold friday afternoon to warmly remember and honor 51-year-old larry hutchins. >> tod is a day of remembrance and inspiration. we acclaimed the well lived life of lar hutchins that ended too soon. >> reporter: the public works lot was name for him in honor of his more than two dozen years of public service. >> larry hutchins simply showed up for work. something that he had done year after year, day after day, for some 24, 25 years. and his life ended on this lot. >> hutchins was killed in the early morning hours of october 13th when a gunman openedfire as employees gathered for work. police stay gunman was wearing a work jump suit that allowed him to fwlend with the workers. lice sy shooting is still under active investigation and no motive for the crime is eat known or yet made public by the police. >> we have to find this killer. we have to bring this killer to justice because the fact of the matter is, somebody who has done something like this couldo it again. >> reporter: in the wake of the shooting, some employees complained security was not sufficient and that some lighting and fencing needed to be improved. officials say secury has been stepped up at the shooting site and that other dpw work spaces. the city said it is naming an nual award to honor and recognize the veteran public work employees. back to you. >> tom sherwood, thank you. still ahead, an arrest in e murder of a d.c. teenager gunned down while she was walking down the street. plus, george karlin named the seven words you can never you thinker on tv. one northern virginia town didn't get the memo. that area has been named the most obscene in the country. >> reporter: i'm liz crenshaw. what happened to the national christmas tree after the holiday season? that's the question. some folks woke up to some surprise snow. it didn't lst for long but for many, this was the first snow in our area so far this season and the season as we know is very young. >> all right. let's head back to doug kammerer who is outside a lovely home in chantilly. >> hey, guys. >> you want to see a great holiday like the? >> sure. >> take a look at this house. this is amazing. i'm with the family right here and they have done this every ngle year and they say it just keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger. this is carmen and kim and i know you already told me but carmen does all of this almost all by himself. and this is like a labor of love for you. >> not all by himself? >> not quite. not quite. >> she said don't go that far. >> we do have renaissance do the roof. i get on ladders but not roofs. >> what is it for this that make you so happy? >> it is just the satisfaction of people coming by every single year and enjoying it and appreciating the work that is done to make it happen. >> so that's the great satisfaction. >> and this grows for you every single year. >> i feel like there's a challenge every year to add more. but i've been running out of power. an electrical circuit. i've been slowly transitioning over to l.e.d.s -- >> a little better freeze there. boy, that's beautiful. there's our sky right now. headlights are on, folks. it will be a cold nigh and we'll get the full foreca from doug in just a bit from chantilly. >> what's the difrence between an lcd tv and a plasma? what that to that national christmas tree after the hospital season? and what is the best way to ore coffee? do we put it in the freezer? we not? >> if it is a christmas roast -- >> let's ask liz. >> i'm not frozen. >> moving parts. our first question come from tony. he wants twloong is the difference between the plasma and the lcd screen? >> good question. we talk to consumer reports to distinguh. it says there is no clear winner between a plasma and an lcd tv for quality. there are reason to pick one over the other. plasma tvs are generally cheape than lcs and plasma has better contrasts which makes them better for skin tones. plasma tvs have an unlimited viewing angle which mean it doesn't loseuality when you aren't sitting in front of it. liquid crystal displays, are generally brighter and the screen are less reflective which means they can look betterin a bright room. lcd tvs are better for playing video game because the lcds n't have that burn in image proble that plasmas can have. they can happen to plasma tvs when a fixed image is on for a long period of time say, with a video game or something. if you're doing tt, stick th the lcd. so what happens with the national christmas tree when the holidays are over? >> we checked with the white house. it says until the 1970s, the tree was actually transported to d.c. every single year. however, now the national christmas tree is a 40-foot living colorado blue spruce so the tree is not replaced every year like say the christmas tree at rockefeller center in new york. the decorations are normally removed each year january 2 and lighting the national christmas tree had been a presidential traditionsince 1923. >> when you go down there in the summertime, you have to look for it. beuse it's out of context in the 103-degree humidity. the last comes from anna rose. she wants to know, where do you store your coffee bean? the frig? the freezer? >> we contact the national coffee association of the usa for your answer. it turns out an air tight jar is best since exposure to oxygen makes coffee beans go stale. that simple. but anything air tight. whether a jar or the same tightly wrapped contain per they came in will work. and storing coffee bean in the frig or in the freezers not going to help protect or preserve them. >> i didn't know that. >> just an air tight contner. it gives you more space in your freez freezer. >> if you have questions to ask liz, you can use this e-mail address to contact us from by story idea that you have. >> paernlly they've poured some hot coffee on the satellite cables. >> let's go back there. are you thawed yet agin? >> i am thawed out. the family wanted to know if they looked okay when they froze up. >> they did look good. >> all right. good, good. i wanted tknow. let's take a look and show you what's happening weatherwise. yes, it is a cold night. >> we'll show wat you we can expect partial clearing, we're seeing that. 30 to 35 degrees. overnight into tomorrow morning, those tempature down into the 20s again for mos locations so it will be another cold morning. 22 to 27 degrees but light wind, not going to be all that bad on your saturday morning and we will warm up tomorrow. into the low to middle 40s in many locations. that's good news. i think we'll sigh mostly cloudy skies with increasing clouds through the afternoon but it will be feeling a little bit better as temperature will be at or just a little below average. on sun, here come the rain and could be a lot of it. maybe a half inch of rain with a high of 50 degrees. and then falling temperatures and we get cold on nday and tuesday. and not just cold but very windy as well. we could see windchills during the day in the teen throughout that time perd. and we stay cold right through the middle portions of next week as well. a little bit of a cold forecast. do i freeze again? >> that's a good one. that's a good one! all righ >> that's a live shot. not just live trucks freezing. these below freezing temperature are also wreaking havoc on water main all across our region. now some company say it ll be really bad for business. the moment you feel run down or achy nip flu-like symptoms in the bud, with oscillococcinum. t oscillo and feel like yourself again. oscillococcinum, nip it in the bud. the new speed cameras have been in a flashing frenzy. in less than a month, 8,000 drivers have been caught speeding. the prize is a $40 ticket. that camera near the university apparently flashes the most. the for you speed camera is scheduled to be install next week route 1 so ease up. two dogs in prince william county are back on dryland after being rescued buy firefighters. the dog were chasg geese at a park in woodbridge yesterday when they got stranded on a frozen pond. firefighters used annflatable raft to reach the dogs. they brought them back to shore one at a time. both dogs were turned over to animal control ficers for medical exam but they're said to be doing okay. coming up, a break in the case of a murdered teenager. police say his murder could be tied to a web of other crime in d.c. it's the most wonderful time of the year for skiers. the sudden snowfall made for some slick roads. several objections i-270 folk areeing asked to dress so carefully. police in new york are investigating the death of a fashion designer from northern virginia. sylvie cachay was discovered dead in a hotel room. police are questioning her boyfriend. 26-year-old nicholas brooks. he is the son of academy award winning sonriter joseph brooks. a jury has returned a guilty verdict in the elizabeth smart kidnapping case. brian david mitchell found guilty of taking smart from her home eight years ago. he health her capti for nine months. and e testified during the trial that she was sexually assaulted. almost daily. >> there is an arrest tonight in the execution style murder of a 16-year-old boy. it happened last month in the petworth neighborhood of northwest washington. jackby bensen has deeth. . >> reporter: it raises some questions as to whether enough was done to protect the teener. police believe 16-year-old prince seen here in an old photo provided by his family was walking down the street with at least two other men the evening he was killed. it happened on november 30 sz about 4:30 p.m. in the 800 block. witnesses y one of the men pulled a gun and shot the teenager twice in the head. after week of investigation, police have made an arrest. >> earlier today, members ofhe regional task force executed an arrest warrant and arrested raymond roseboro. a 20-year-old male. he was arrested without incident in regard to the murder. >> reporter: it raised community outrage. it was learned that he was arrested for a nonfatal shooting, had been placed in a juvenile group home less than a mile away from his old neighborhood. the question now, was the murder a case of retaltion for suspected snitching about another ime? the high profile murder of a catholic university student. we'll tell you more coming up at 6:00. back to you. >> all right. we'll see you then. jackie bensen. today snow may have been a tease thing to come for the winter season. but you're in the mood for more of it, just head for the slopes. skiing and snow boarding season officially kicked off this morning here at liberty mountain ski resort in pennsylvania. the resort opened the hills for business at 9:00 a.m. ski liberty said they've been making the snow for the past week and now have abt 60% of their hills open. good for them. ski liberty is a little far for you to go, a number of sk resorts in our region are now open for business. in harris sonburg, virginia, got things kicked off. winter green near charlottesville also opened. snowshoe in west virginia opened and in western maryland, it is open for business. so hit them. >> yes, it is. let's see what the weather will be like. will we be skiing ouide our doors this week? >> i don't think so. if you are a skier and you're looking to gothisweek, it is looking get after the week they just had. it the mountains will get potentially a lot of snow next week. the ski resorts looking pretty good. the rest of us, we're just on the cold side. let's show you what's happening right now. the current temperatures into the 30s. at least the upper 30s now. 38 degrees. the current temperatur out there once again around the area overnight. will be down into the low to mid 20s across the region with a low of abt 27 in the city. 26 in frederick and 25 down toward the warrenton area. fredericksburg, the low temperature of around 3 degrees. tomorrow morning, or tomorrow afternoon, we'll be warming into the 40s in. locations. that's good news. 46 in e district. 43 in annapolis and down toward warrenton, around 45 degrees. we will see warmer temperature but also a lot of cloud cover. and they will increase ahead of our next storm system which will be coming in tomrow night into the day on sunday. back out here live, guys. and once again, just an amazing house. i want to show you this. we'll talk with carmen coming up a littleater. take a look at this. 're going to talk to them about that coming up. if you would like me to do the weather live, send us some pictures of your yard. you can accepted them right here weather@nbcwashington.com. guys? >> santa just resting up there. frigid temperatures for people around the area as water pipes began to burst. it is back on but did it cause a trickle down effect. >> a cold week. it seem like with every degree we lose, there's a water main that goes along with it. >> we got in here about 6:00 this morning. and there was no water. >> reporter: this morng on bethesda avenue, a major water main break left a numb of businesses without water. >> it is kind of scary. it is nothing you can control so you do the best you can. >> we keep water but it is out of ourcontrol. >> it also left their customers with fewer options. they've all experienced these conditions. so many are happening so quickly that the spokesmen say they're struggling to keep up. >> these jobs are added to the crew's list. they move from job to job to job. they're working very hard all day long in less than ideal conditions. getting a little bit of rest moving to the next job. it is an important job and it is all because of our long term infrastructure issues. >> he said that here in bethesda, they have the oldest pipes in the area. well, that was definitely thought by the folks here. workers filled a shopping cart with gallons of water to try to make it through t today and no water. it was a major inconvenience for the folks where they make tea. >> we had to go run out and get n gallons of water. and i work for honor tea. we need water to do our job. >> a standard break takes four to six hour to repair. when you add on top of that the number of breaks, you're talking about a little longer time. >> reporter: wssc saidhis month they've had more than 180 water main breaks they've had to deal with. more than 30 yesterday and a few dozen today. it is tale them some time to get from one place to the next. they're asking folks, if you see a water main break in your area, contact wssc. you can logon to their website or give their number a call. i'm tracee wilkins, news4. >> water for several of the businesses wasestored around noon today. roads reoped a little after that. >> when we come back, word of elizabeth edwards' death has sparked new conversation now aboutbreastcancer and why so many women avoid potentially life saving mammograms. it is a mistake edwardsaid she also made. ustom agents at dulles. they get a surprise in some luggage that arrived from abroad. forty years ago, he wasn't worried about retiment. he'd yet to hear of mutual fds, iras, or annuities. back then, he had something more important to do. he wasn't foced on his future bufortunately, somebody else was. at usaa we provide retirement solutions for our military, veterans and their families. from investments... toife insurance... to health care options. learn more with our free usaa retirement guide. call 877-242-usaa. the discovery that custom agents tops them all. >> and no match for mother nature. we begin with cusm agents at dulles airport here. the they say they made one of the strangest discoveries ever when they opened one passenger's suitcase. take a look themselves say they found the luggagetuffed with animal parts last week. inside was a hedgehog, elephant tails, chicken feathers, chameleons and it was all covered in solid sheets. the passenger told the authorities the animal parts were used for spiritual reasons. he was given a warning an sent on his way. >> talk about a weird request. there's a movement urging women to grow unibrows. a feminist movement called it the month of the brow and asked women to forego the twzers and the waxing. it is after last month en men were asked to grow mustaches for breast cancer. they say women should be inspired to donate to whatever cause they want. you should be inspired to do that with normal eyebrows anyway. >> we don't have to do that for a good cause. nx look at this. mother nature versus mother nature in canada. these ducklings are marching in line when a strong wind blows em apart. the kids are scattered. mom rallies the troops. thduck troop has attracted more than 4 million hits on youtube. don't mess with mom. >>fter the break, not exactly the distinction they were looking for. coming up in sports we turn the clock back for a skunz rewind. when redskins lost a half a future hall of famer for injury and not that ♪golden morning amily's smilin♪ ♪gonna be a special day anncr: for the perfect start to the perfectay, i always choose land o'lakes all-natural eggs. from hens fed a rich, whole-grain diet with no added antibiotics or hormones. ♪pure and simple always naral♪ ♪our best eggs say land o'lakes♪ land o'lakes all-natural eggs. where simple goodness begins. this house is generating some heat behind doug there. how cold is it? >> reporter: the actual temperature at the neighbor's house is about 3 degrees. i was taking my jacket off a little earlier. there's some heat coming off these lights. this is e family right here. we'll talk to them cong up at 6:00. i showedou the runway for santa claus. we'll talk about that. that's something that you used to do right here. you ed to be way up here flying next to santa claus. let's show you the rain. carmen said what about the win i've had a lot of problems with nd. sorry, it will get really windy early next week. the futurecast showing you the rain. making its way in. no rain out tre. we'll start out with some clear skies. watch what happens as the day goes on. clouds come in. here comes the rain down to the south. maybe around fredericksbg by late tomorrow night and by sunday morning. that's when i expect the rain to make its way into the region. and some of it could be of the frozen variety well to thewest. i'm not expecting too much of it. we are going to see some rain. sfrs the four-day forecast is concern, we'll see those temperaturesising near 50 degrees on sun. thenhey will fall like a rock with highs only in the upper 20s to lower 30s as we move into next week. and there is that wind. we could get 40 to 50-mile-an-hour winds. we'll be back at 6:00 with a little more. >> thank you, doug. for the second year in a row, a northern virginia community has been labeled the most obscene place in america. >> a magazine ranks cities and it bases on it their internet searches. and from that, ashburn, virginia, is this year's most obscene. derrick ward joins us on what some ashburn residents think of their w notoriety. recover i don't think they think a lot of it. the next time you're here you might want to cover your ears. that is if you subscribe to the website that talks about people lookinup dirty words on the web. the suburban ideal, home to corporations, commerce and according to the website, business insider.com, more potty mouths than about anywhere else. they look at google search trends for the seven dirty words made fams, or at least more infamous by george carlin. it seem more people from ashburn looked those words up more tha anyone else in the country. >> that's obscene. >> reporter: indeed, folks we talked to that it is not the kind of thing they think of or want others to think ofwhen they hear ashburn. >> i don't know why they would puck ashburn. it is a nice place to live. great schools, great families. >> i don't think that's correct. >> that's a shame. my daughter doesn't even know those words. >> most of those people who are looking up those words must have been doing some scholarly research. we only found a couple folks who would admit to using any one of the seven. >> reporter: then there was the guy from manassas. don't worry. no part of that name made the list. he subscribes to the edict, when in ashburn, do as the ashburners do. when did he? >> too recently. >> reporter: but folkare somewhat surprised to know that such a list even exists and that ashburn actlly beat out places like newark, pittsburgh and l.a. for this dubious distinction. businessinsider.com haseen looking at this data for the past couple years. this is actually the third year. and previously cities that have topped the list including louisville, kentucky, and herndon, virginia. >> so it's hit close to home. >> i want to point out that most of the redskins live in ashburn. i don't know if that means anything. >> they're putting them over the top. >> a practe field. i guess it is forgivable. dating back to the late '80, the only notable thing about the buccaneers were their uniforms. creamsicle orange. 20 years ago those bucs knocked the hall of famer out of the game that had the skin on the ropes. lindsay czarniak has this week's redski rewind. >> october 22nd, 1989. outlasting the buccaneers. the the worst start they could imagine. second possession and ralph's punt is blocked b tampa bay's ricky reynolds. the buccaneer recovers and it gets behind the cavalry. coasting 33 yards. the bucs lead after the first quarter. go the skins' defense, manly in more ways than one. second quarter. bucs are 25 from their own 8. look out, 51y he is the at a verde. here come the entire front line. dexter manley drives down f the safety. part of a monstrous effort on the day, holding the bucs to a total of just one yard rushing. >> it is an attitude. a frame of mind. you have to believe what you can do. and i think all the guys up front believe in each other and believe in themselves. you have to go out and play like that. >> the attitude eventually carried over to the offense. just before halftime, a rolling mark rypien threads the needle to gary clark. the skins lead byive at the break. second half. the defender use as step and he makes him pay. skins are all smiles leading 22-7 midway through the third quarter. that happy feeling was quickly replaced by a sick one. a vinny pass. his first major injury ending his season and invigorating the bucs. >> you can never afford to lose a player of darrell's caliber. he plays that tough slot position for us on the wide receiver and he adds a lot of speed out there. and there's a lot of thing we can do defensively that when you take him out of lineup, it limits whether he can take those chances or not. >> reporter: he takes those chances. two 45 yards in passing in the last 16 minutes. three touchdowns, includg this one. over a.j. hnson. the time runs out on the bucs. the skins escape with a 32-28 win. >> they got me. i'm just going to concentrate on these. we got the win and that's what counts. i don't care how much touchdowns. we won and i have to work harder on the stuff that i did today. >> think the defensive line, the game balls, charles dexter, tracy, they all we after it. >> so the tampa bay buccaneers have a little different uniform these days. and they are much better. they're not -- >> they wear that on throwback games every now and then they become very popular. now this retro is kind of cool. >> this is not cream-sicle. >> i have a couple different shades of pink. depending on what you're wearing, you know. i'm giving away my secret now. let's hope everybody forgets that by 6:00. >> all righty. still ahead on news4 at 5:00 -- >> an easy step to detect breast cancer early on. so why are so many women skipping those yearly mammograms. doctors say it is in news foyour health wrg this we go's passing of elizabeth edwards, women are thinking about the last time they had a mammogram. >> she admitted she skipped the test and millions of others are doing the sail thing even if they're insured. >> reporter: nearly 70% of women say they'll get a mammogram every year. yet a new review of over 1 million health insurance claims finds that for many, there's no proof they had a single one over a four-year period. >> we thought we would find a much higher compliance. >> reporter: they found just over half the women in the age group most at risk, betweenhe age of 50 and 64, were screened once a year. the numbers were lower for older and younger women. >> 40% of the women did not follow the guidelines to have a mammogram. >> reporter: many women simply don't know when they should get a mammogram. new guidelineslast year suggested women start screening at age 50 instead of 40. and the test should be done every two years instead of annually. however some groups like the american canr society still suggest yearly mammograms. they admit it's confusing and say women should talk to their doctor about when they should be screened. also unclear are the reasons why women are skipping the test. the study did not address this point directly but researcher have a few ideas. >> the reasons could include cost, confusion about what to do, and access. >> reporter: what the research does show is mammograms can save lives and should be part of a woman' routine care. erica edwards, nbc news. >> now all the women in the study had health insurance. >> experts say it is important for women to get the mammograms even if they do have to pay for th themselves. that's it for news4 at 5:00. news4 at 6:00 starts right now. president obama he said list ad high powere ally today. justice for elizabeth smart. a jury reach a verdict against the man charged with kidnapping and raping her eight years ago. and the first little bit of snow in the area caused all kinds of problems on the roadways today. but we begin with a fashion design with ties to northern virginia foundead in a hotel room in new york city. good evening. i'm jim betts. >> and i'm doreen gentzler. a disturbing story with a lot of unanswered questions. the 33-year-old woman from mclean was found dead in a fancy new york city hotel. her he can boyfriend had been questioned but not charged. pat collins joins us from outside marymount university in arlington where the victim went to school. >> reporter: the suspicio death of sylvie cacy. tonight police have obtained a warrant to get swabs and evidence from the fingernail