it could lead to loe visibility, so a flash flood warm. and of course right here in d.c. >> the severe weather threat tonight, but look what's right behind the system. the cold air, and yes some snow back toward the west. i'll show you what it means for this roller coaster right is just getting started. >> cell phone video captured a tornado in the town of adairsville. it destroyed several homes and businesses. >> check out what they did. it destroyed billing, knocked down trees. storm team 4 has you covered as always. and stay ahead of the storm, downlocal the weather app. search "nbc washington in the app. story or in google play. there's a new twist in the trial of that former culpepper police officer. today jersey were asked to testify about alleged misconduct during deliberations. reporter david culver explains how it unfolded today in court. >> reporter: an unexpected shake-up. suddenly it was the jurors being questioned, the judge and attorneys wanting to know how two additionnaries and one they sauers may have influenced the verdict. the defense they're receiving, they've already filed motion for a mistrial. daniel harmon wright walking back into jail today, a little more composed, a very different harmon wright from 24 hours earlier. that's when a jury convicted him of voluntary manslaughter. perhaps now harmon wright is more hopeful. there's a chance he could get a new trial. inside the courtroom, drama focused on the jurors after tuesday's deliberations, a clerk found two dictionaries and a th thesaurus. bail lives escorted each juror inside individually. they were kept apart. one by one they were called in for questions. some admitted having looked up the definition of malice. after they were out of the courtroom -- special prosecutor told -- so the question is, how did those three books get into the jury room? well, one of the jurors testified she brought them in. i asked the bailiff, he said it was okay. the judge said you thought the bailiff had authority over the judge? judge susan whitlock will determine how the case will proceed friday morning at 9:00. in culpepper, i'm david culver, news4. there are new details in the accident that shut down the beltway. officials say the fire truck was making a u-turn when it was hit from behind by a tractor-trailer. several people injured. eventually it was the tractor-trailer, the fire truck and an suv all involved in this. this happened on the interloop. the johns hansen highway. jackie intensen joins us live. >> reporter: wendy, this had a profound impact on the beltway for most of the day. just moments ago, this was cleared and reopened. you can see down there, where those orange barrels are. that was the scene of a day-long investigation. the change reaction. a fire engine had responded to a minor accident on the bell waist about 2:40 a.m. investigators say it left the scene, as the fire engine was making a uturn in the cut-through labeled emergency vehicles only. it was struck from behind by a tractor trailer. a jean was also involved. all occupants were injured, including four firefighters. three were treated and released from a local hospital. one had extremely serious injuries, and was flown to a hospital in baltimore for care. >> we are not confirming that he's lost his arm. we understand his injury is critical. >> john alter is chief of the west lanham hil dlanam. >> the gentlemen that were on the fire truck today, all four are from the community. you know, they were sleeping here at night and ready to go to their job in the morning. >> prince george's county police were very careful in how they phrase the the preliminary results, using the termed favored to describe the driver whose actions are not believed to have contributed. >> preliminarily we believe the tractor-trailer was the favored driver. >> coming up at 6:00, more on the investigation, more on how the community is coming together to support the injured firefighter. jackie bensen, notify. a brazen burglary in northwest d.c., a man robs a woman while she's napping upstairs, but she has no idea until after officers already had him in handcuffs. news4's pat collins is live with the story just off rhode island avenue. pat? >> reporter: jim, this is a story about city living. daylight burglaries and sleeping with the flu. it has a happy ending. we begin with yesterday afternoon, a car spots a man, he has a backpack, and music at instrument case. something didn't seem right. so the cop decides to give it a second look. the cop discovers two lapton, an iphone, a wallet and credit cards, and a saxophone. so the cops goes through the pictures on the iphone, and sees a picture of this house about a block away. crime scene. when police get to the house, they find a 24-year-old woman. she was asleep, it turns out she slept through the whole thing. she had she had the flu and didn't here the guy rummaging through the house. hear now from people on the street. this woman says it's possible. you were aseep once in your house. >> uh-huh. >> reporter: the alarm went off. >> i didn't hear it. >> reporter: the police? >> they were the ones who woke me up. i mean, it's possible. >> reporter: this woman says no way. you think you could sleep through somebody coming in? >> no, i'm a very light sleeper. everybody else in my house, i don't think so, but i am. >> reporter: think about this guy and what he had to do. he either had to scale this fence or scale over this fence to get to an area behind those rowhouses, but it doesn't stop here. once he got behind the homes, he had to go over another fence. this wooden fence, pry open the door of the target house so he could get inside and steal the things he wanted to steal. why this house? nobody knows for sure, but it appears the metal bars weren't closed too tight. coming up at 6:00, we'll talk to the woman who slept through that burglary. live in northwest, pat collins, news4. a waiting game is what they're calling the hostage ordeal. right now a man has a 6 why would bow in an underground butcher. police say he stopped the boy's school bus, shot the driver then kidnapped the child. sources tell nbc news the suspect had been scheduled to be in court today for a neighborhood dispute. one neighbor described him as a ticking timebomb. a chicago teenager who participated in the second inauguration is dead tonight after being shot just block from her home. her name is hadia pendleton. police say she was taken shelter from the rain with friends in a park. and a man shattered shooting at the group. she was shot in the back. she later dieded of her injuries. she was a major ette can the band. no arrests have been made. it is that kind of gun violence that's motivating lawmakers. it was an emotional day on capitol hill, because retired congress democrat woman gabrielle givers returned today, urging her colleagues to be courageous to stop gun violence. >> too many children are dying. too many children. we must do something. >> law-abiding gun owners will not accept blame for the acts of violent or deranged criminals, nor do we believe the government should dictate what we can lawfully own and use to protect our families. >> giffords' husband, retear astronaut mark kelly, also testified urging congress to strengthen the laws. there was also talk of guns in school security today in richmond. the virginia house of dole gas approved a bill to let private schools hire armed security guards. it's barred under the current law. kate corey spoke out again the idea saying they don't have enough training. >> mr. speaker, we cannot approve sending such poorly trained armed guards into our private schools and daycare centers. we are inviting disaster. >> we are talking about private schools on private property. it could be left up to them to decide what they need for their security and not micromanage from here. the virginia house approved that measure by a 72-25 vote. it's now headed to the senate. under this bill, child daycare centers would be able to hire armed guards. we're following more big stories at this hour. drivers breaking the law in the district, and our transportation reporter found it's happening over and over again. find out why it's also putting cyclists in danger. plus defense jobs on the line. we'll show you how it's going to impact one local community in a big way. our storm team 4 coverage continues tonight, as we bring in more new video of damage sweeping across the south. doug has more next. 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[ malcrrkkhshziiiizzlllee. to this symphony of flavor: beautiful. shhhhshshshshhshshhhhhsshhhshs. gorgeous! here comes the crescendo. kkerrrrbbuuuuuucraaackkk. just...incredible. pillsbury toaster strudel. if beethoven made breakfast. it's a form atthe governors in every state go through every year, but to some observers, there was something different about his state of the state address. >> as chris gordon records, some critics say he's already looking ahead to 2016. >> governor martin o'malley smiling and shaking hands as he strides to the podium. >> a great governor of this state. it brings the chamber to its feet. >> there is more that unites us than divided us. this year one of those things is the mighty, mighty baltimore ravens. reps here noticed o'malley used the teleprompter for the first time using a state of the state address. they wonder if he was addressing a local or national audience? >> this governor was giving a presidential speech. i don't know there's much in the lines to be drawn in regard for that. he's running for president of the united states and clear he's trying to get to the left end of the political spectrum with these remarks today. >> i ask you to ban the sale of military assault weapons in maryland. >> reporter: this summer he addressed the national convention with a primetime -- >> we are americans. we must act like americans. we must move forward, not back. >> reporter: this afternoon, a spokeswoman for governor martin o'malley told me he has given no thought to running for president. he is focused on his current job, serving the people of maryland. chris godden, news4. all right. it's here. the rain is knocking on the door. >> what's going on? >> some areas have already seen the heavy rain. most of the region not seeing it just yet, but to the north and west of washington, you are seeing heavy rain. you can see the roads are wet along route 29 at maryland 198. there is an -- right past the washington monument, you can see the darker clouds. right now showing where that rain is once again to the north and to the west. starting to form a bit of a line back towards the west. this line has not moved a whole lot. because of that, i think we could see some flooding potential there. we talked about the 270, the intercounty connect orr. most of the rain is moving to the north of montgomery county. up towards frederick county, you're starting to see that heavier ryan. right here -- that's a -- this is going to move right across the potomac up through 28. also around leesburg, just to the west, another area could produce some locally heavy downpours and heavy rains. we've seen very heavy rain. out along route 50. give yourself some extra time. i think we'll run into at least some flooding problems and wind problems. moving right through roanoke. and the purposing. that's a severe thunderstorm watch. our area not under that watch just yet. but i expect that watch to be issued at any moment. we're going to watch this for you throughout the evening, but this line looks like -- the wind advisories, that is for everybody until 6:00 a.m. these are just winds we're already seeing. if you live in this green area right along 270, and then back along -- that's the best chance for flash flooding. winds gusting to 25 miles an hour, we'll continue to see the warmer temperatures. 70 in fredericksburg. 57 in gaithersburg. now, as far as what we're going to see the next couple days, here is where the change comes through. the storms move through quickly. here comes the colder air, 52 to start the day, down to 43 by late in the afternoon. then on friday, maybe some flurries or snow showers early friday morning, a high of 37 on your friday, 38 on saturday, sunday a good chance for some shower activity, that would be snow shower activity with a high of 43, so we go from 72 today to a windchill of 32 by this time tomorrow afternoon. don't leave for work tomorrow without the jacket. >> whiplash kind of weather. >> a little bit, yeah. >> thank you, doug. big changes of coming to the branch avenue corridor. what's in store for a major route. ready for this? your family pet could be a killer. why a new study sparked a war of words, wendy. >> no. oh, dear. and dan hellie, speaking of war, live in new orleans about the story of a woodbridge native riding a rolle we're just four days away from the super bowl. >> dan hellie has a super bowl story of redemption. dan? >> yeah, wendy, this is one of the great comeback stories of this year's super bowl. woodbridge native ahmad brooks has gone from the number one ranked high school player and to the nfl scrap heap, and now he's back on top. it's been a long winding road full of legal potholes and tragedy. in high school, no one was better. he was the national defensive player of the years, he then went to the university of virginia, but was kicked off the team for drug use. a two-year stint with the bengals included an assault charge, ending with brooks getting waived. four years later, brooks' story is one of redeposition. he's blossomed into a key member of the 49ers defense with a fat new $45 minute oncrest andries advisories of experience. >> it definitely makes me appreciate t i thought i knew all the answers, but i didn't. i just tend to mold myself as an individual, and just try to grow as much as possible, not continue to do the things that brought me down, but do thing to build me up and make me a better person. >> reporter: terry brooks played in two super bowls during hi seven seasons with the redskins, giving him instant credibility with ahmed. >> he's given me a lot of pointers. growing up, playing little league football, i used to play running back. so my father, he worked at the car double shifts on saturdays, he was always working, so my mom was just tape-record the games, and when my dad would get off works, i would watch the films, and bragged to him about the plays i made, scoring five touchdowns, stuff like that. >> in 2010, ahmed's world was rocked, when he found his father dead after a heart attack. it's a day that still resonates clearly and has changed ahmed's life forever. >> that was an awakening for you. >> man, damage, man, i don't know, man. i don't know. >> reporter: emotional time for you? >> yeah. yeah. >> do you have a favorite memory from when he played. >> reporter: safe to say this game will be dedicated to him? >> yes. yes. >> terry brooks just 55 years old when he died while riding his exercise bike from a heart atta attack. this was a life-eightering experience for ahmed. it truly did, according to him, helped him resurrect his career by becoming more focused. he found religion, just dedicated to his craft. >> we'll see you again at 6:00. our storm coverage continues at this hour. we're monitoring the conditions, and we'll have the latest update. plus reinventing the blackberry. how the new folks shape up in this evolving world. making sure cars and cyclists are getting along and sharinged road. severe weather is pounding parts of the south right now, and now it's all heading our way. >> this is cell phone video capturing a like tennessee, kentucky. these storms destroyed homes, knocked down trees, left thousands without power. >> there are also at least two deaths reported this evening. doug has a look at our area. >> all stemming from this system. we have brand-new video. look at this video, simply amazing what you're looking at. here you can see that clearly defined funnel as the tornado touching down. this tornado moved through that region, and then it looks like it may have toughed down two to three other times. do we have a tornado threat here? yes, we do. is it a high threat? no, it is not. that's not going to be or scenario. our scenario will be that of strong winds and straight-line winds, gusting over 50, maybe 60 miles an hour. louding county, northwest portion. places have seen upwards of an inch to an inch and a half of rain. we already have some reports. so give yourself some extra time. it will be one bumpy right. tonight it's going to be the rain, the storms. it's going to be the wind. tomorrow the winds will stick around. you know we will keep you ahead of the game here. well, we avoided the first cal cliffs. >> but budget cuts are already complaining to the pentagon. >> reporter: the fiscal cliff has been moved back to march. the department of defense is likely to take a hit. they could see $55 billion in cuts over the next 10 to 11 years. hire in garrisonville they get a lot of business. >> he gets 2300 b.a.x, but only wanded to spend 19. >> others are usually the places they scale back first. >> i have a come -- >> here at the salon, they have not seen any fiscal fear factors yet among the customers. the owner is not biting her nails in anticipation of the worst. >> i hope nothing bad happens. >> the big defense contractors can -- but not so for the small businesses. certainly more optimistic than most we encountered. >> people have been anticipating this and not spending money. on the other hand, i feel quite confidence about the future. >> reporter: as for those who have seen fiscal fear, there's hope there too. >> just pray for the best. a cold case murder and two rapes in prince george's county all solved. a man already behind bars will now spend of rest of his life there. the prince george's county state's attorney's office hess dna linked thomas lee posey to the murder of margaret perkins. perkins was strangled out on a draw. posey pled guilty to that murder. he was already serving time for a rain and armed robbery in 1992. >> police say the cammers say -- they've been rewarted -- but the -- they have to contact a county investigator to claim their money. the they say at least they are dish opening unsolicited e-mails. it's part of an effort to make room for cyclists. >> reporter: cars making u-turns mid block. over the last couple years, 11 crashes have 1r06d cars making u-turns through the bike lane. as news4 first reported, the city cracked down on this by ticketing drivers. >> today officers out along pennsylvania avenue again handing out flyers, reminding drivers not to make the u-turn. even as the flyers were being handed out, the u-turn continued. >> how does that make you feel? >> it's dangerous. we all have to share the road. we talked to some people here who say these lanes shouldn't even better here. >> you had to stay to the right when i was a kid. >> you don't like the bike lane? >> nope. >> reporter: shane farthing with the bicyclist association says the number of bicycles continues to grow. cars and cyclists need to continue to share the road. >> as it happens we are getting more folks on bikes, motorists are having to learn to adjust with more bikes out there. >> yes, i saw some signs that you can't you can't do that, and now you can't turn across them to turn left. >> reporter: but there are clearly others that still aren't getting the message. one d.c. neighborhood could be undergoing a major transformation. where the work is already under way. plus is your cat a killer? the evidence that has there are over 200 varieties of gourmet coffee that have earned the "keurig brewed" seal of approval. the keurig brewed seal is our commitment that the coffee inside will deliver a delicious cup of coffee every time. keurig brewed -- look for the only mark of genuine keurig quality. last year we saw one of the most endearing miles you can imagine. >> we want you to see that smile again. we'll reintroduce us into victor. >> hi. it's so nice to meet you. she told me instead of a high-five, victors like to touch fingers to say hello and good luck. with that he was on his way to his favorite things. his expression shows how happy he is when he knows he's about to go for a swim. that smile is almost ear to ear. everyone who knows him says this is just the happiest time of his day. victor is a foster child. at 12 years old, he has spent his whole life so far in temporary care until a permanent family can be found. >> what a smile. wow. >> reporter: that smile never leaves his face. >> he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, also severe intellectual disability, on functioning at a lower level. he needs support with his activities of daily living. >> reporter: those who know victor say he's very communicative, and he needs a family that will appreciate that. >> we're looking for a family that has experience with mentally fragile children. >> reporter: any family considering adopting visibilitio. >> he qualifies for rare and expensive case management, and he'll be eligible for that basically for hi entire life. and for to be victor's family, all you really need as much as he does. barbara harrison, news4 for wednesday's child. if you have room in your heart and your heart for victor, or another child waiting, please call our special adoption hotline. and you can search wednesday's child. we have more storm team 4 coverage tonight. doug has new details about a flash flood warning. yeah, we've got that flash flood warns, where we've been talking about that very heavy rain. this is where the heaviest rain has been, we could see one to two more, so most of loudoun county, including league burg, included in that fleas flood warning, right along 66. if you live in this area. watch out, nen drive through flooded roadways. . i aol continue to watch this whole system as it continues to move. but we're still in for one heck of a ride. there's a lot of buzz about the new blackberry. does it have enough to win back old customers? >> these pictures and maps represent a brand-new beginning that has long since been forgotten. coming u a plan is in the work to transform some areas around the metro -- >> the branch avenue corridor is part of the plan. tracee wilkins has more. >> reporter: the southern end of metro's green line runs through certainly communities that are in transition. >> i remember the area when i first moved here. it was sort of that community return southern avenue, naylor road and others are scattered strip malls, with more than their fair share of crimes. with four metro station here, planning officials say it's the land of opportunity. >> plenty of available land. >> so plan they're coloneling big box stores, even a brand-new suitland high school. southern avenue, in the meantime aylor road, suitland and -- >> there's an odd adage, which is retail follows rooftops. >> the matter listen national partner and plans commission held a meeting last night. >> i was actually shocked to see they had put so much thought into developing the corridors. >> they started with ink chaing the bourchdries. hopefully inviting the workers to do more than come to work and then leave. >> i found like it's the only building fenced off from the entire community. >> people are coming to catch the subway and union downdown. that's basically it. >> residents and business owners say they are optimistic about what real development can mean for them and the county as a whole. >> we need a good spark and get developers here. >> reporter: the parol proposal this summer with go before the council and planning board for final approval. i'm tracee wilkins, news4. county leaders are holding another meeting at the carmel midtown square in suitland. it starts in about 15 minutes and goes until 8:30. construction is officially under way. take a look. they have the new -- it will be anchored by a new urban format walmart and other retail space on the ground floor. on the upper floors, 345 apartments. the mix of residential and retail space will you a short walk. officials call it a major transform's of the neighborhood. >> but it is nice to really build your own communities of the that's what's happening here. there is a great spirit of partnership and cooperation like elf never seen before. >> the district already spent $8 million revamping the intersection to handle more traffic in the region. the square is expected to open early 2015. we're already getting word of on flash flood warnings. >> they actually go into effect now, lasting through 9 oomt 15, including most of louding county. rap hannic county, the rest of us under a flash flood watch. that warning has been issued. we have already seen areas of that region that have seen some flooding on the roadways, especially around leesburg. right along 50, out route 7, starting to see problems there, and then right over the border, in through portions of frederick county, also seeing some reports of flooding. if you're out and about tonight, once again please give yourself a lot of extra time. if you run into a flooded roadway, turn around, count drown. now, we do have a line of storms that are developing. over the last couple hours, it has started to strengthen. i expect a watch to be issued by the national weather service in and around northern portions of virginia, probably through portions of southern maryland, as the whole line continues to progress off toward the east. what to expect tonight -- storm chances most likely until about 11:00, even after some heavy rain. some severe storms, yes. heavy rain? of course, and winds gusting upwards of 0 miles an hour with that storm. here's the next part. you see the thunder and wind out ahead of it. there goes the frontal boundary. temperatures tomorrow will be falling. the temperatures by this time tomorrow will feel about 40 degrees cooler than what they felt during the day today, and then on top of that, the area of low pressure friday morning could get some snow showers early on friday morning. we'll watch that one for you, too. this evening tomorrow, temperatures starten around 52, but dropping down to 43. very windy tomorrow. 37 on your friday, 38 on saturday, 43 on sunday, with a good chance of at least some snow showers on sunday. we'll watch tuesday as well. that one could be bigger, just some light snow, but still we'll be watching it for you right here. so we go from very warm to winter once again, don't tomorrow to leave with those coats. thank you, doug. time now to check out what stories are trending online today. >> the smartphone market is about to have any excision 'tis. two new blackberry models were introduced today earlier in northern. cnbc's technology reporter jon fortt has the any devices that are going to try to take a bigger bite out of the smartphone market. i thought blackberry was going the way of the dinosaurs, huh? >> reporter: so did a lot of people, wendy, but they are back, and they needed to come back, ever since the infone came out. then a couple years ago, it just got even worse for them now they have done that, the z-10 and q-10. that win is coming out in april. >> the keepboard, that's what you want, but we understand it will be faster, too, jon? >> it's got a better many things. the camera is better, the browsen, if you remember, the blackberries. it's really slow. this one is a lot faster, unin the class with iphone and android, though it seems to be slower than those two, with the under i was kind of racing, but it's in the same category, so they are bringing themselves up to par. >> do you think it can really compete? then you've got the droid technology, i mean, blackberry, is there enough room for three of these? if you look at the opc market with the windows, and the mac could sort of barely hang in there, there really wasn't a number three. now you have to wonder if there is room for number three. microsoft is trying to be there with windows phone, blackberry is trying to be there. we'll have to see if they can get back in the game. >> how long do they have to wait for this? >> well, it's going to be $199, the same price as the entry level iphone 5. it won't rift in the u.s. under mesh. >> jon fortt, thank you so much. from cbs, the technology reporter. >> glad to do it. my hometown. thank you. the u.s. government is taking on cat lovers. scientists say that cats are killing billions of birds and other animals each year. so house cats are mostly getting a pass, but it's the strays and the feral cats blamed for most of the death tolls. the study shows mousse of the birds are native species such as robins and finches. the beauty queen who stole the show may get a chance for an encore during the super bowl. catherine webb is the reigning miss alabama. she became a celebrity, you'll remember when brent muss burger couldn't top raving about her looks during the title game broadcast. webb is being employed by "inside edition" as a super bowl correspondent. >> imagine what it's like being the woman sitting in front of her that was on the camera as well. severe weather marched through the south, and tonight we're getting a new look at all of the damage left behind. this is the same storm system hitting our region this evening. >> just machines ago pat collins spoke to the woman who slept through a burglar ransacking her the severe weather headed our way has already made a big mess in parts of the south. >> at least two people are dead. >> reporter: amateur video gives a terrifies glimpse. just one of many towns under the gun today. whole swaths of georgia and tennessee spent the day until siege, already battered by high winds as the storm made its deadly march. outside of nashville, residents heard a deafening roar. in the midst we heard boom. >> reporter: east of memphis, buildings flattened, the cones scattered far and wide. for some, there wasn't many more to do than wait out the storm and pray. >> i'm alive, you know. it could have been a lot worse. >> reporter: it could have been worse in western kentucky. as far north as indiana, they're tallying up the tot and beginning the recovery. brian moore, nbc news. 6. right not at 6:00, we're tracking strong storms moving into the area at this hour, along with really high ones. good even, i'm jim vance u and i'm doreen gentzler. we're concerned about the potential for flooding. we start with doug kammerer. >> we are already seen that flooding in through louding county and northern portions, that area under a f

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