News4 has previously reported that prosecutors are not filing any criminal charges against PetSmart employees, but an attorney for the pet owners argued that while the employees may not have been responsible for the deaths, the attorneys claim the Petsmart employees delayed getting one of the dogs care which could’ve lead to the dog’s death.

News4 recently received pages of notes from the investigation through the Freedom of Information Act and found a timeline of events on the day Andrew Noles’ dog, Clark, died.

The timeline shows a 10-hour window between the time PetSmart employees noticed something was wrong with Clark and when he was finally taken to the vet.

Noles’ Clark was in the care of the Alexandria PetSmart Pets Hotel on June 29, and he died later that day.

After Clark died, two employees with the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria conducted an investigation and interviewed some PetSmart employees and we obtained a copy of the notes and investigation summary.

According to the report one employee says she saw vomit in Clark’s kennel at 6:15 on June 29.

That employee told a colleague who checked and confirmed vomit and diarrhea in the kennel and then relayed that to a manager who then checked on Clark.

At 2:40 p.m., another employee noticed Clark appeared lethargic, had not eaten his food, and was panting heavily.

At 3 p.m. another employee was notified about Clark’s condition and then at 3:50 that employee found Clark non-responsive. Clark was transferred to the animal hospital where he later died.

Investigators sought the medical opinion of the state doctor who conducted the necropsy on Clark, which is basically an autopsy for animals.

The Animal Welfare League’s investigation report says in part, “Dr. Wiseman stated that in her opinion, Clark had developed his illness prior to his stay at the PetSmart boarding facility and likely would have become very sick regardless of if he were at home or in a boarding facility.”

“She did add that if care had been sought out sooner, it may have increased Clark’s chances of survival but only minimally.”

The summary went on to say, “I do find it concerning that so much time had passed from when the original concern was reported to when care was provided, but the current animal care codes do not stipulate how soon care must be provided.”

News4 reached out to PetSmart on Monday to ask about the response time but we have not heard back.

Last month, when PetSmart employees were cleared of any criminal wrongdoing, the company sent News4 a statement that said in part, “We take pride in our level of care and are pleased that the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria confirmed our findings that PetSmart did not have any wrongdoing in these matters.”

Noles sent the following statement to News4:

“I’ll never understand why PetSmart delayed providing the necessary medical care to Clarke. It’s heartbreaking to think that Clarke’s last hours were filled with suffering.

I’m even more heartbroken that PetSmart also neglected critical medical concerns with Blue and Nova. It doesn’t take a trained medical professional to recognize the urgency when a dog is coughing up blood, has blood in its stool, or when its eyes are hemorrhaging. Yet, none of these dogs received the care they desperately needed, and their pet parents weren’t even informed that their dogs were in distress.

Pet parents need to be very careful about where they board their pets. I didn’t realize these businesses weren’t regulated and so many bad things could happen. I hope laws will be passed to stop businesses like PetSmart from putting profits over quality care and that the Commonwealth Attorney will start prosecuting animal cruelty cases.”

The lawsuit accuses them of creating poor living conditions that “shocked even seasoned investigators,” while collecting housing voucher money.

One resident says he opened his oven drawer to find it full of mouse droppings and six baby mice.

“It’s a lot of stuff,” that resident, Jayshaun, Gill said. “It’s a lot more than mice. It’s a lot of flies; flies are a big problem, too.”

Gill and his daughter live at a rent-controlled apartment complex on W Street SE.

Their neighbor Mae Gupton says building management refuses to fix the issues.

“Me and my daughters are living with rats,” Gupton said. “This whole building is infected with rats. I even called the exterminator. The exterminator said, ‘Ma’am, you won’t be able to pay that bill.”

Gupton said the rats have been coming out from behind her stove, too, so she’s afraid to walk in that part of her kitchen.

“I’m terrified; my family, it’s like I’m … It got me and my daughters sick,” she said.

In addition, her dishwasher is broken, so every time she uses it, she has to use a plunger to drain the water that comes up out of the sink, she said.

On Monday, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced two lawsuits against the building’s owner, Ali “Sam” Razjooyan, and his business partners for allegedly creating poor conditions there, as well as at the Minnesota Commons Apartments in Northeast.

Residents there sent News4 a video of water pouring down inside. Video also shows black water in a sink and trash piled up outside.

“It’s bad,” said Minnesota Commons resident Christine Smith. “Nobody should be able to live in this condition.”

Schwalb said: “The properties at issue in these lawsuits are in deplorable condition, some of the worst conditions that we’ve seen in the District.”

He says the lawsuits are aimed at forcing Razjooyan to make repairs, pay damages to tenants and pay penalties for violating D.C. housing code.

“That certainly happens far too often in our city, where landlords prey upon those who are least able to have the economic flexibility to move to take care of problems,” Schwalb said.

News4 went to Razjooyan’s house for comment, but no one answered the door. We also tried calling several phone numbers associated with the building owner but didn’t hear back.

At the W Street apartments, resident Kianna Smith says there are still stains on the wall from an hours-long sewage leak.

“Feces coming down my wall,” she said.

She said management doesn’t pick up the phone when she calls.

“This is not fair to anyone,” she said. “I’m pretty sure they’re not living like this, so why should we live like this?”

The D.C. Department of Buildings says it issued seven stop work orders at Minnesota Commons this year. But the owner allegedly ignored them.

A decade later, they have never been found.

The children’s mother, Catherine Hoggle, was charged with killing them, but the charges were dropped because she was found not competent to stand trial.

News4 has followed the case since the start. We recently combed through years of archival footage and spoke with the children’s father and prosecutors about finding the children and holding their mother accountable.

‘I’ll die looking for them’

In fall 2014, it seemed like you couldn’t go anywhere without seeing Sarah’s and Jacob’s faces.

The mystery of what happened to them gripped the D.C. area. Where were they and why wouldn’t their mother tell investigators what she did with them?

The Hoggle children’s father, Troy Turner, has spent the past decade trying to find them.

“I feel like my kids will be searched for until they’re found, or I’ll die looking for them. It could turn into 30, 40 years, or however long I’m blessed to live,” he said.

A father realizes his children are gone

Hoggle and Turner lived together with their three kids in Montgomery County.

According to multiple law enforcement sources, Hoggle took Jacob and Sarah separately by car and returned each time without them.

Investigators say she has told various stories about where they went: She took them for pizza. She took them to a friend’s house. She dropped them off at day care.

“She was able to abduct them while I was at work,” Turner said. “When I went to work that day, she was never supposed to be alone with the kids. There was a family plan in place. A family member threw her the keys, allowed her to take my son. When she came back without him, nobody called me. And then, because of that, she was also able to get Sarah later.”

Turner, who worked nights, didn’t immediately realize the kids were gone.

He said Hoggle told him the children were at a new day care. Later in the day, Turner tried to get Hoggle to take him to the day care.

“Whenever I turned back around and said, ‘OK, what’s the address?’ She said, ‘I don’t know.’ I said, ‘What’s the phone number there so I can call them?’ She said, ‘I don’t know.’ I said, ‘Well, what street is it on?’ She said, ‘I don’t know.’ I said, ‘You mean to tell me you don’t know what it’s called, you don’t know where it is, you don’t know the address and you don’t have a phone number? And you dropped our kids off there?’” he said.

After hours of driving to different places, Turner decided they had to go to the police.

But Hoggle wanted to stop at Chick-fil-A in Germantown for a drink first, Turner said.

She went inside but Turner never saw her head back out. She was gone.

“I go look in the women’s bathroom. I look in the men’s bathroom, check all the stalls in both, probably look like a crazy person,” he recalled. “I come back out, don’t see her anywhere, look out the other door, don’t see her in the parking lot anywhere. So, then I go get in the car and just drive directly to the police station.”

Hoggle went missing for several days. Surveillance video showed her in a building. She had changed her appearance.

Eventually, she was found and taken into custody. But Sarah and Jacob were not with her.

Police had Turner try to get Hoggle to say where their children were.

“She was saying that the kids were fine. She had given them to someone to watch until she could execute her plan to, like, go live somewhere else, like the beach or something like that. I don’t remember exactly what that was. But, she had a plan. Supposedly they were going to watch them while she got things together,” he said.

Crime and Courts Sep 6

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Maryland Nov 30, 2022

Maryland Judge Drops Murder Charges Against Catherine Hoggle in Case of Missing Children

‘We’ve not given up hope on this case’

Detectives, the family and the community searched for the children, and Hoggle was held on abduction charges. The charges were upgraded to murder in 2017.

Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy called the case one of the most frustrating he has ever prosecuted.

“I was very hopeful that we would ultimately find out where they were. That has not turned out to be the case,” he said. “I think probably what surprises me more is the journey that we’ve traveled and not being able to get her to trial because I was, you know, I was virtually certain that ultimately she would be found competent and we would go to trial in this matter. So, that to me, that’s the real surprise.”

Hoggle was found not competent to stand trial. That led to the murder charges being dropped in 2022.

“If you cannot restore a person to competency within a specified period of time, in this instance it was five years, the charges against her must be dismissed,” McCarthy said. “So as we sit here today, she’s not charged with the crime, but she’s not free in the community. And the reason she’s not free in the community is the same: Doctors who said she was incompetent to stand trial said that she continues to be a danger to herself or others. And so she was civilly and involuntarily committed, because of her dangerousness. And she remains, to my knowledge, remains incarcerated in an institution for treatment for that reason.”

Hoggle could be charged with murder again one day, McCarthy said.

The defense could still raise the argument that Hoggle was not criminally responsible, entering an insanity plea.

“We’ve not given up hope on this case,” McCarthy said. “You know, not giving up hope that someday she will improve satisfactorily, that the state doctors who are evaluating her will find that she’s competent or think that she’s no longer a danger to anyone else and release her back into the community. And if she’s released back into the community, we’ll reinstitute the charges.”

‘I think that justice was done’

David Felsen represents Hoggle.

“There was no question that she was incompetent to stand trial. Every doctor – and these were the state doctors – found that she was incompetent to stand trial. They basically agreed in their diagnosis and prognosis. Even when the state asked for a second state doctor, that doctor agreed with the diagnosis of the prior doctors and the subsequent doctors. And I think, under the law, I think that justice was done.”

Felsen contends that the answers people are looking for simply don’t exist. News4 asked him if he believes there ever will be a time when Hoggle will be able to tell her family and authorities what happened to the children.

“No, I don’t,” Hoggle’s lawyer said. “As I said, what happened back in September of 2014, she was in the throes of paranoid schizophrenia with delusions. And to think that anything she might recall or say that she recalls would not be credible in terms of any investigation.”

Hoggle’s lawyer declined to comment on whether he believes that Hoggle killed her children.

“I personally don’t know what happened. I do know what the records say, but I have never seen any forensic evidence of anything relative to the children. I’ve never seen any video evidence relative to the children. I don’t know what happened and, unfortunately, I don’t know that we will ever know.”

Felsen said he doesn’t know if Hoggle will ever be competent to stand trial. He said Hoggle has been “vilified.”

“There’s no question that she’s been vilified. There also is no question that she is a loving and caring mother, that she cared about her children, that she was also in the throes of probably some of the most profound mental health issues that that one could think of and one could describe,” he said. “This case is a tragedy. As I said, this case is a tragedy on many levels, including for her.”

Still asking why, all these years later

Questions that have never been answered are if Hoggle killed her children, why? And why did she take them in the first place?

Turner said he believes Hoggle resented choices he made when he had her committed a year earlier.

“When I had her committed in 2013. I think that created some resentment. I think the family plan that was put in place afterwards, where she could not be alone with the children and things like that, I think that definitely caused some resentment,” he said. “And I think she probably – and this is just me guessing, obviously – but I think that she probably kind of felt like maybe, you know, it was almost like having a life, her life be like a prison in a way where she wasn’t allowed to just do what she wanted.”

McCarthy, the prosecutor, said he was unsure of Hoggle’s motive.

“I think that’s a question that only Catherine can answer,” he said.

Turner said he believes the system failed Sarah and Jacob.

Hoggle “has more rights and protections than my kids. In the state of Maryland, victims are just not protected. There’s no hope for us out there, you know, in terms of the system itself. The system isn’t designed to protect, you know, people from crime. The system there right now is designed to protect criminals. And I’m not talking about punishing people for being mentally ill; I’m talking about protecting victims and handling criminals appropriately with a justice system.”

Turner said he refuses to give up his life’s mission and purpose.

“If the police are correct, then they were put in a dumpster and incinerated. So that’s why we possibly will never find the bodies, in which case I’ll die looking for my children,” he said. “If they’re not, then, I mean, we have to find them, if they’re out there somewhere and whatever that entails, and bring them home.”

Go here for more stories in our NBC Washington Rewind series, which takes a look back at some of the biggest news in our region using unforgettable NBC4 footage from over the decades.

A team of dietitians at the hospital unloaded the week’s shipment of fresh food for patients with diabetes and pre-diabetes Thursday morning.

Then, they piled fresh green beans, apples, squash, carrots and other healthy foods into bags.

“Food is a huge part of the disease state,” said Sarah Roberts, a clinical dietitian for Children’s National. “It’s very important that families understand the importance of using these whole grains, these fruits and vegetables in their diet because when we’re looking at the disease state, we want to tackle it from all points.”

Pre-diabetes and diabetes patients with food insecurity at Children’s National receive three bags of food tailored to their medical needs as part of a food pharmacy program with the Capital Area Food Bank.

Roberts said they’ve seen an increase in patients reporting food insecurity in recent years. Patients’ guardians fill out screenings when they visit the hospital.

“That was another reason for starting the food pharmacy is not only the increase of food insecurity during the in the pandemic, but the increase of type 2 diabetes during the pandemic,” she said.

The proper foods can treat, prevent and, in some cases, reverse a diagnosis of diabetes, experts say.

“I’ve lost about 50-60 pounds just because I’ve been able to have good choices,” Children’s National patient Iman Bangura told News4 via a video call.

Bangura, who has type 2 diabetes, has been in the food pharmacy program for more than a year.

For her, the food pharmacy isn’t just her way out of a food desert, it’s helping change family history.

The food pharmacy served about 30 patients a month when the program began in 2021. Now, more than 200 families a month receive the fresh and healthy groceries.

Roberts said it’s been a vital tool in providing well-rounded care.

“If we’re in here doing these educations with these patients about fresh fruits and vegetables and they’re not able to purchase those things on their own and get those in the store, then it feels like we’re not fully meeting the needs of those patients,” she said.

After a disastrous performance in the first general election debate of this cycle in June, President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid, upending the campaign in its closing months and kicking off the rapid-fire process that allowed Harris to rise as Democrats’ nominee in his place.

As was the case for the June debate, there will be no audience present.

Pennsylvania is perhaps the nation’s premier swing state, and both candidates have spent significant time campaigning across Pennsylvania. Trump was holding a rally in Butler, in western Pennsylvania, in mid-July when he was nearly assassinated by a gunman perched on a nearby rooftop. Harris chose Philadelphia as the spot where she unveiled Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate in August.

In 2020, it was Pennsylvania’s electoral votes that put Biden over the top and propelled him into the White House, four years after Trump won the state. Biden’s victory came after more than three days of uncertainty as election officials sorted through a surge of mail-in votes that delayed the processing of some ballots, and the Trump campaign mounted several legal challenges.

An estimated 51.3 million people watched Biden and Trump in June. But that was before many people were truly tuned into the election, and the potential rematch of the 2020 campaign was drawing little enthusiasm.

Tuesday’s debate will almost certainly reach more people, whether or not it approaches the record debate audience of 84 million for the first face-off between Hillary Clinton and Trump in 2016.

Here’s a look at what to expect:

When is the 2024 presidential debate?

The presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump takes place at 8 p.m. CT/9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.

The planned debate comes nearly three weeks after the conclusion of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, in which Harris formally accepted the party’s nomination after a turbulent month kickstarted by Biden’s withdrawal.

How to watch the presidential debate

NBC News will broadcast the full debate live and offering extensive primetime coverage beginning at 8 p.m. ET. You can watch it here on the News4 streaming channel.

NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt and TODAY co-anchor Savannah Guthrie will anchor a pre-debate primetime special starting at 8 p.m. ET on NBC, followed by a live presentation of the ABC News-hosted debate at 9 p.m. ET. Holt and Guthrie will continue special coverage following the debate. 

Viewers can watch the debate live on NBC4 or on the News4 streaming channel, which is available 24/7 and free of charge across nearly every online video platform, including The Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus and the NBC News app on smartphones and smart TVs.

Will mics be on or off? Full list of debate rules

The parameters now in place for the Sept. 10 debate are essentially the same as they were for the June debate between Trump and President Joe Biden.

According to ABC News, the candidates will stand behind lecterns, will not make opening statements and will not be allowed to bring notes during the 90-minute debate. David Muir and Linsey Davis will moderate the event.

“Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion,” the network noted.

A Harris campaign official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss planning around the debate, said a candidate who repeatedly interrupts will receive a warning from a moderator, and both candidates’ microphones may be unmuted if there is significant crosstalk so the audience can understand what’s happening.

After a virtual coin flip held Tuesday and won by Trump, the GOP nominee opted to offer the final closing statement, while Harris chose the podium on the right side of viewers’ screens. There will be no audience, written notes or any topics or questions shared with campaigns or candidates in advance, the network said.

Here’s the full list of rules:

– The debate will be 90 minutes with two commercial breaks.

– The two seated moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis, will be the only people asking questions.

– A coin flip was held virtually on Tuesday, Sept. 3, to determine podium placement and order of closing statements; former President Donald Trump won the coin toss and chose to select the order of statements. The former president will offer the last closing statement, and Vice President Harris selected the right podium position on screen (stage left).

– Candidates will be introduced by the moderators.

– The candidates enter upon introduction from opposite sides of the stage; the incumbent party will be introduced first.

– No opening statements; closing statements will be two minutes per candidate.

– Candidates will stand behind podiums for the duration of the debate.

– Props or prewritten notes are not allowed onstage.

– No topics or questions will be shared in advance with campaigns or candidates.

– Candidates will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a bottle of water.

– Candidates will have two-minute answers to questions, two-minute rebuttals, and one extra minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses.

– Candidates’ microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to another candidate.

– Candidates will not be permitted to ask questions of each other.

– Campaign staff may not interact with candidates during commercial breaks.

– Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion.

– There will be no audience in the room.

Are other debates planned?

Though the September debate is currently the only debate currently planned between Harris and Trump, Harris’ campaign said that a potential October debate was contingent on Trump attending the Sept. 10 debate.

In addition to the planned Harris-Trump debate on Sept. 10, vice presidential candidates Tim Walz and JD Vance also agreed to a debate, scheduled to be hosted by CBS News on Oct. 1.

When is Election Day?

Voters will officially head to the polls just over a month later Tuesday, Nov. 5, for Election Day, though early voting starts significantly earlier in many states.

Decision 2024 Sep 4

Trump and Harris campaigns agree to rules for ABC debate

Ernest Joseph Dyson, 39, was working on a water main break near the intersection of New Hampshire Avenue and Rodney Road about 4:40 a.m. when the driver of a black 2011 Volkswagen CC hit him, police said.

He died at the scene of the crash.

“WSSC Water is devastated by this tragedy,” WSSC Water General Manager and CEO Kishia L. Powell said in a statement Monday. “Ernest was the embodiment of professionalism and public service. He was a dedicated and highly respected member of the Utility Services Department and a beloved member of Team H2O with nearly 18 years of service to WSSC Water customers.”

Ernie Dyson was killed doing his job — a public service — one that he was proud of. He cared about giving back to his community.

“Anyone that came in contact with Ernie just loved him,” said his cousin, Alfonso Dyson. “Loved his personality. He’d do anything for anyone. He would give of himself in a moment’s notice.”

He says there’s a void in the hearts of his family members. Ernie Dyson was the youngest of five children and a loving son. 

“One of the things with Ernie is that he never lost sight of his family,” his cousin said. “That was most important to him.”

“We don’t have our loved one anymore,” he said. “He’s gone. He’s gone. And the family has to suffer through this.”

Ernie’s impact was also felt by his friends and coworkers. In a statement, WSSC Water said, “We are all heartbroken and honestly still in shock as we process this senseless tragedy. Our deepest condolences are with Mr. Dyson’s family during this incredibly difficult time.”

In the midst of tragedy, Ernie Dyson’s family hopes others don’t have to face the senseless pain they now feel.

“There’s no reason why this person had to get behind the wheel,” his cousin said. “Especially in today’s time. There’s Uber, there’s Lyft, call a friend, call a family member. This should be a lesson to everyone.”

Montgomery County Police have not identified the driver who struck Ernie Dyson. The investigation is still ongoing.

Police are asking anyone who might have seen the crash to call 240-773-6620.

The family says funeral arrangements are in the works, and he’s expected to be laid to rest in Clinton.

Stay with News4 for updates to this developing story.

If you’re here, you likely know that Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will face off for the first time in a debate hosted by ABC News on Tuesday. NBC News will broadcast the full debate live and offer primetime coverage starting at 8 p.m.

If you want to watch with some fellow election nerds (and perhaps an on-theme drink), D.C. is the place to be.

In general, we recommend making reservations or at least showing up early to snag a seat.

Here are watch parties and specials for your debate night.

Presidential debate watch parties in the DC area

The Admiral
1 Dupont Circle, Washington, D.C.
Details

Tune into the debate on 15 TVs inside and on the patio. Quench your thirst with Blue Wave and Red State shots ($6.50), discounted draft refills ($5.75) or a burger, fries and beer special ($17.99).

All-Purpose takeout specials
Shaw, Riverfront and AP Pizza Shop in Bethesda
Details

Picking up pizza for a private watch party? Three All-Purpose locations will offer free focaccia breadsticks or garlic bread for any to-go order over $50. You must order online and use promo code VOTE.

Boundary Stone
116 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, D.C.
Reservations

This Bloomingdale pub will show the debate at full volume and serve a drink called Kamala’s Coconut Daiquiri, made with local Cotton & Reed rum.

Johnny Pistolas
2333 18th St NW, Washington, D.C.
Details

Watch the debate projected on a 12.5-foot screen while sampling $10 drink specials including the Filibuster Buzz, the Bipartisan Breeze and the Swing State Sangria.

Madhatter
1319 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington D.C.
Details

The Trump vs. Harris showdown will be shown on all TVs – with the sound on – at this Dupont bar and restaurant. Specials include $8 smash burgers, $5 Jello-O shots and Taco Tuesday deals.

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metrobar
640 Rhode Island Avenue Northeast Washington, D.C.
Details

The transit-themed bar’s debate watch party coincides with specials for Industry Night and the “Beetlejuice” sequel at the Metro-themed bar. You’ll find $9 specialty cocktails from 4-11 p.m.

Royal Sands Social Club
26 N Street SE, Washington, D.C.
Details

Dip into the pool-themed bar for Brat or Mar-a-Lago Punch shots ($6.50). Other specials include $6 Kona drafts, $10 frozen drinks, $2 off sushi rolls and a $10.50 slider trio.

Large groups are welcome to watch the debate on 25 TVs.

Shaw’s Tavern
520 Florida Ave. NW, Washington, D.C.
Details

Enjoy taco and margarita specials while the debate is shown on TVs on two floors and the covered patio. Doors open at 7 p.m. Grab a reservation for a table or show up early for a seat at the bar.

Solaire Social
8200 Dixon Avenue, Silver Spring, Maryland
Details

The new food hall in Silver Spring will offer an all-day happy hour to soothe any debate-related nerves. You’ll also find $20 beer pitchers or buckets, plus Tequila Tuesday specials.

Whitlow’s Debate Watch Bingo Party
901 U Street NW, Washington, D.C.
Details

Whitlow’s adds a twist to their debate watch party with a Bingo game built around campaign buzzwords. Winners could get prizes including Whitlow’s t-shirts and gift cards.

Head to the second floor of Whitlow’s to play and watch the debate on five TVs and a large screen.

Union Pub
201 Massachusetts Ave NE, Washington, D.C.
Details

For one of D.C.’s most politically-oriented bars steps from the U.S. Capitol, debate night is basically the Super Bowl.

Sip on coconut or orange drinks, join a drinking game and grab specials including $4 shots and discounted pitches and beer buckets.

Make reservations or get there early (very early) to beat the crowd.

Want to know what’s up for your weekend? Sign up for The Weekend Scene, our newsletter about events, experiences and adventures for you and for your family around the DMV.

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Alex Delgado, 20, of Silver Spring, and the 17-year-old, of New Carrollton, are accused of killing 18-year-old Anibal Suazo from Lothian, Maryland.

Police did not name the 17-year-old but said that the teen is being charged as an adult.

Police responded to the 4700 block of Kenilworth Avenue at 6 p.m. after a shooting was reported. Officers discovered Suazo suffering from a gunshot wound. He died on the scene.

The shooting also injured Delgado and a woman. They were taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. Police recovered two guns on the scene.

“Everybody ducked and started running away. Seconds later, we heard more gunshots,” one man said.

One witness said they heard some sound coming from the middle of the laundromat and saw two people fighting before a couple of gunshots went off. When people started running , the witness said there were “a lot more gunshots.”

Patrons took cover until police arrived.

The 17-year-old fled the scene in a car. He was arrested later by police after a pursuit with a Prince George’s County Guardian helicopter.

A preliminary investigation revealed Delgado and the teen suspect targeted Suazo at the laundromat, police said. According to police, both suspects knew Suazo. When they approached him, they started to physically assault him, police said.

During the fight, Delgado shot Suazo and the woman and then Suazo returned fire, police said.

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At the laundromat on Monday, a woman told News the 18-year-old shot and killed was her sister’s boyfriend. Her sister, who’s also 18, was shot four times in her feet and leg.

“She’s doing good. She’s stable. She’s in the hospital, waiting to get surgery,” she said.

Two clothes dryers were taped over and out of service on Monday. A woman showed bullet holes in a shirt she had inside a dryer with the gunfire began.

“Everybody started crying. It’s too difficult for me,” she said.

Despite the shooting, the laundromat opened on time at 6 a.m. Monday.

Some people retrieved belongings they left behind in the chaos; others had no idea there had been a murder.

Prince George’s County police are conducting an investigation into the motive for the assault and shooting. They said that it appeared to be an isolated incident and there was no threat to the public.

The laundromat owner said he had been in business for five years and never had any trouble. He described the shooting as an isolated, targeted incident and said he’s cooperating with investigators.

If anyone has information relevant to this investigation and would like to speak to a Homicide Unit detective, they are asked to please call 301-516-2512.

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

His family and friends gathered for a vigil Sunday in the hopes of making sure his murder is not forgotten.

The 23-year-old was driving in the 1800 block of Minnesota Avenue in Southeast D.C. Police say he was an innocent victim, apparently caught in crossfire while running errands for his mother.

The crime remains unsolved.

The family observed a year since Gant’s death by calling for justice for their loved one.

His mother, Toloria Gant, was unconsolable as strains of Brandon Gant’s favorite song played at his gravesite.

“A major incident like that and don’t nobody know nothing,” she said. “That’s crazy.”

The best lead police had was a picture of a suspect vehicle, but after a year, that evidence hasn’t led to an arrest.

“Somebody saw it, and I know they saw it,” his mother said.

She says her son wasn’t involved in the streets, that he was a selfless and hard-working young man who put others before himself. That’s what he was doing the day he was killed: Picking up allergy medication and gassing up his mother’s car.

“But I don’t know if he ever made it,” she said.

She does know the dangers that surrounded her son and other mothers’ sons, even those walking the right path, especially when that path takes them to the increasingly notorious Minnesota Avenue

“Even before Brandon, I’m like it’s too many accidents, too much crime down here,” she said. “You got so many speed cameras all over the city, you can catch a tag a mile away but you can’t catch a crime.”

The family released doves at the gravesite as symbols of hope and peace — peace from the violence that took Brandon Gant and the continuing hope that his killer is brought to justice.

“It don’t matter how long it’s going to take,” his mother said. “I want justice for my son, Brandon. He didn’t deserve this.”

Washington lost 37-20 in a contest that had far more lowlights than highlights. Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels looked great as a runner, gaining more than 80 yards on the ground and scoring twice, but could not get much going through the air.

On the first play of the second half, wide receiver Terry McLaurin streaked down the left sideline, two steps clear of his defender. A good throw likely results with a walk-in touchdown, however, Daniels sailed the ball just out of McLaurin’s reach.

Outside of Daniels’ scrambling ability, the Washington offense struggled. The pass game seemed centered far too much on passes at or near the line of scrimmage. Midway through the third quarter Commanders receivers only had three catches total, and none of them were named McLaurin.

Defensively, it was worse.

Second-year cornerback Emmanuel Forbes was repeatedly beaten in this game, and the secondary as a whole gave up consistent yardage. Basic tackling was a problem all afternoon. The pass rush wasn’t much better as Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield wasn’t sacked until the third quarter.

Mayfield finished the game with nearly 300 yards passing and an impressive four touchdowns while the Tampa offense piled up more than 100 rush yards.

Perplexing coaching decisions and a bad outing from new kicker Cade York didn’t help either. York missed two field goal attempts and also put a kickoff out of bounds, resulting in a penalty. It’s safe to say York has serious job security questions.

Dan Quinn has zero job security questions, and this is just the first game of his Commanders tenure. Still, questions need to be asked about some of his decision-making.

After a Jayden Daniels rushing touchdown in the second half gave Washington a chance to cut the Bucs lead to a one-score game, Quinn inexplicably kicked an extra point instead of going for two.

The result? The Commanders trailed by nine, which means two scores to take the lead. If Washington failed on the two-point conversion attempt, then they’d be down 10, which would still mean two scores to take the lead.

Throughout the contest, Quinn seemed to err on the side of caution rather than aggression. Perhaps that was because his team was outmanned. Perhaps that’s his manner. Those questions will get answered over time.

What else will take time? Washington’s rebuild.

This was a bad team last year. They only won four games, had no Pro Bowlers and finished with the worst point differential in the NFL.

To expect immediate and overnight success from the new regime was optimistic at best and probably naive. The Commanders need players – good players – and new general manager Adam Peters made clear his intention is to build up the roster through the draft.

That will take years. Plural. But maybe things can look less ugly along the way.

This year’s theme is “No Judgement. Just Help.”

Monica Johnson, the director of the 988 & Behavioral Health Crisis Coordinating Office, said that the day was put in place because not many people know about the resource.

988 is the national three-digit number that anyone can call or text when they are experiencing any thoughts of suicide or having any behavioral stress, Johnson said.

“That could be concerns about substance abuse,” Johnson said. “It could be feelings of depression, sadness, loneliness, grief – it could be whatever is divine for that individual in a crisis.”

Johnson explained that there is a difference between someone calling 911 for help and calling 988 for help. While people might be used to calling 911 for all emergencies, 988 is specifically for mental health crises.

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“You’ll be connected to a trained crisis counselor that can help you or someone else that you may be calling on behalf of where you don’t need to involve local law enforcement,” Johnson said.

In 2023, there were 856,000 youth and 1.5 million adults who attempted suicide.

“Suicide is preventable,” Johnson said. “It is a public health concern.”

Johnson explained some of the signs that someone might be going through a mental health crisis. Some examples include not wanting to go to work, not being able to engage with others at social events or struggling to connect with friends and family.

For more information, visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website about getting help through 988.

It can affect anyone at any time. It doesn’t discriminate by age, race, gender or income. Yet many of us find that mental health and mental illness are tough topics to talk about. That’s why NBC4 is shining a light on the subject by providing education, information and hope. Read more Changing Minds coverage.

Republicans are also adding a hot-button immigration issue to the measure by requiring states to obtain proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when someone registers to vote. Inclusion of the citizenship requirement is a nonstarter in the Senate, complicating prospects for the spending bill’s passage.

Lawmakers are returning to Washington next week following a traditional August recess spent mostly in their home states and districts. They are not close to completing work on the dozen annual appropriations bills that will fund the agencies during the next fiscal year, so they’ll need to approve a stopgap measure to prevent a shutdown when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

“Today, House Republicans are taking a critically important step to keep the federal government funded and to secure our federal election process,” Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement. “Congress has a responsibility to do both, and we must ensure that only American citizens can decide American elections.”

But in a joint statement, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray said avoiding a shutdown requires bipartisanship, not a bill drawn up by one party.

“If Speaker Johnson drives House Republicans down this highly partisan path, the odds of a shutdown go way up, and Americans will know that the responsibility of a shutdown will be on the House Republicans’ hands,” Schumer and Murray said.

Johnson’s decision to add the proof of citizenship requirement to the spending measure comes after the House Freedom Caucus called for it in a position statement last month. The group of conservatives, banking on a win by Republican nominee Donald Trump, also urged that the measure fund the government into early next year so Republicans could get more of their priorities in legislation.

Some Republican leaders had wanted to pass the final spending bills by the end of this Congress so that the new president, whether it be Trump or Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, could focus more on getting staffed and pursuing their own top priorities rather than dealing with spending disagreements.

Republicans say requiring proof of citizenship would ensure American elections are only for American citizens, improving confidence in the nation’s federal election system. But opponents say the available evidence shows that noncitizen voting in federal elections is incredibly rare and such a requirement would disenfranchise millions of Americans who don’t have the necessary documents readily available when they get a chance to register.

What remains to be seen is what happens if the bill passes the House this week and the Senate declines to take it up or votes it down.

The bill would fund agencies at current levels until March 28, though there’s also money to help cover additional security costs associated with Inauguration Day and $10 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief fund.

In Virginia, several Loudoun County shelters are collaborating on a one-day adoption blowout. All fees will be waived, and there will be many different animals to choose from.

“We’ll definitely have all sizes, ages, breeds of cats and dogs, puppies and senior dogs as well, which are 8 years and older. They’re all wonderful animals looking for their forever homes,” a spokesperson from a shelter said.

CLEAR THE SHELTERS

Clear the Shelters Aug 22

Untraditional pets available for adoption at local shelters

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Pat's Prized Pets go for the gold

Clear the Shelters Aug 12

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Anthony Beninca knows first-hand how important it is to give these pets a second chance.

“I think it’s great to adopt because you are giving these guys here a chance at a better home. It cannot be overstated the amount of joy that a pet will bring you,” Beninca said.

The event, sponsored by the organizations Friends of Homeless Animals (FOHA), Middleburg Humane Foundation, Humane Society of Loudoun County, and Homeward Trails, will be held in Segra Field on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Click here for more information.

In addition, the Humane Rescue Alliance in Washington D.C., will hold another Clear the Shelters adoption event from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Click here for more information.

Clear The Shelters is NBCUniversal Local’s nationwide pet adoption and donation campaign that encourages people to adopt from their local shelters. Each year, more than 100,000 animals are adopted from shelters and rescues that participate in our initiative. 

Police said they discovered suspicious chemicals while searching a home in Herndon, Virginia.

Herndon police said they went to a home in the 200 block of Herndon Station Square to execute a search warrant about 11:30 a.m. Friday on behalf of a police department in Pennsylvania. The man who lives at the home, Steven Timothy Kyle, 44, was wanted by the Central Bucks Regional Police Department for criminal mischief, stalking and three counts of harassment.

While searching for items related to the stalking and harassment charges, Herndon police said they found chemicals and other evidence that alarmed them enough to call in the Fairfax County bomb squad and the ATF.

“Based on their training, they knew they had to call somebody else,” Herndon Police Chief Steve Pihonak said.

Kyle was taken into custody without incident.

Residents of about 20 nearby townhouses were evacuated, and police deemed it safe for them to return home Friday evening.

Pihonak said the chemicals found in the home were “safe.”

Police couldn’t comment on what the chemicals are or what they could be used for. However, the chemicals they found were not related to the charges in Pennsylvania, they said.

Kyle was the only resident in the home.

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Warren Curtis Grant, 15, died after the shooting at Joppatowne High School, the sheriff said at a media briefing.

A 16-year-old student whom police identified as the shooter fled shortly afterward but was caught minutes later nearby.

“He has yet to be charged, but will be charged, and at the time those charges are preferred as an adult, we will release the name of the suspect,” Gahler said.

Gahler also said that the sheriff’s office has had more than 10 incidents since 2022 “where the suspect was either the victim, witness or the suspect in an incident handled by the Harford County Sheriff’s Office,” adding that the investigation was in its early stages.

Shortly after the shooting, the sheriff’s office asked people to avoid the area, but emphasized that the confrontation was an “isolated incident, not an active shooter.” A parent-student reunification center was established at a nearby church. More than 100 personnel responded to the high school about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Baltimore, Gahler said.

The fight happened two days after a shooter whom authorities identified as a 14-year-old student killed four people at a high school outside Atlanta. Wednesday’s attack renewed debate about safe storage laws for guns and had parents wondering how to talk to their children about school shootings and trauma.

The women, who said they were roommates, told the court they heard screaming outside their apartment along Georgia Avenue NW the morning of Oct. 17, 2023 before finding 64-year-old Reggie Brown bloodied and beaten in an alleyway.

After hearing the screams, they said went out to the balcony of their apartment to investigate and saw a body lying in the alley.

One of the women said she was trained in first aid so, after calling 911, they went down to see if they could help.

“We heard screaming. … looked like they jumped him … We are right by him. He is not responding. … There is blood under his body and around his head,” one of the witnesses said in a second call to 911.

Brown’s siblings have attended the trial being held in D.C.’s juvenile court.

“Unfortunately, he passed and whatever she was able to do, it didn’t work out for him and he’s no longer with us, and it breaks my heart,” Brown’s sister Malda Brown said outside the courthouse. “What I want to say today – I thank God that those two young ladies who came forth who was able to call an ambulance to let them know there was somebody out there.”

Two girls, ages 13 and 14, who were charged with murder in the case were in court Friday. In all, five girls have been charged in connection to the beating. A man involved in the attack has still not been identified.

The attack was caught on surveillance video as well as cellphone video.

Earlier this year, a detective testified that video shows the girls walking away in a “celebratory” mood.

First, the man who would attack Brown “escorted” him across Georgia Avenue, Detective Harry Singleton previously testified. The man was wearing a blue coat.

According to what was caught on numerous cameras in the area, the man was the first person to assault Brown. He threw him against a wall and knocked him to the ground, the detective testified.

A prosecutor played several videos that showed a group of girls walking on Georgia Avenue. One girl asked the man if she could “fight him too.”

Videos show Brown managing to get up and try to get away.

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The girls kicked and stomped on Brown and then left in a “celebratory” mood, cellphone video from a girl who was not charged showed, the detective said.

When officers arrived at the 6200 block of Georgia Avenue, near Rittenhouse Street, Brown was dead.

There’s no indication that Brown knew the girls, the detective testified.

Singleton described a monthslong investigation, with detectives reviewing videos frame by frame to try to identify the attackers.

Brown was described as being physically handicapped, with missing fingers on each hand and ongoing ailments.

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In July, the D.C. Bar’s Board of Professional Responsibility alleged Kerkhoff Muyskens hid key video evidence and made false statements about video evidence at least 12 times to judges, defense attorneys and even internal investigators at the Department of Justice.

The D.C. Bar case could result in her losing her law license, but that could take years.

The D.C. ACLU’s Interim Legal Director Michael Perloff called the Kerkhoff Muyskens case “an egregious example of prosecutorial misconduct.”

On Jan. 20, 2017, hundreds of protesters took to D.C.’s streets to protest Trump’s inauguration. D.C. police mass arrested more than 200 people, and many were later indicted on felony rioting charges.

Alexei Wood, one of the arrested protesters who was acquitted at trial, said Kerkhoff Muyskens, “really had absolutely nothing [at trial]. And she just kept going and going and going and going.”

In court, not a single person was convicted, and dozens of cases were eventually dismissed.

In her denial filed Monday, Kerkhoff Muyskens, who is now an assistant U.S. attorney in Utah, acknowledged she was the prosecutor in the protest cases but denied any misconduct, paragraph by paragraph.

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While she waits for the D.C. case to proceed, federal court records in Utah show she’s withdrawn or been replaced by another attorney in dozens of cases that just weeks ago she was prosecuting.

The records don’t currently show a single case she’s actively working on in Utah. The bulk of the removals came days after the D.C. ethics case was filed and started the same day the I-Team reached out to the U.S. attorney in Utah. That office is not commenting except to confirm she’s an employee.

The News4 I-Team found Utah lawyers are paying attention. At least one asked for a delay in sentencing of their client to review the ethics charges against Kerkhoff Muyskens. A judge granted it.

Attorneys in Utah told the I-Team other delay requests may soon follow.

Kerkhoff Muyskens and an attorney linked to her have not returned the I-Team’s repeated requests for comment.

This story was reported by News4 Investigative Reporter Ted Oberg and News4 Investigative Producer Rick Yarborough, and shot by News4 Photojournalist Carlos Olazagasti

Usman Shahid, who was 18 at the time of the crash, was sentenced to two years for each of two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Once he is released, he’s set to be under post-release supervision for three years.

The victims were Oakton High School students Leeyan Hanjia Yan, who was 15, and Ada Gabriela Martinez Nolasco, who was 14.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said he hopes the sentence can bring some peace to their families.

“While there is nothing that can heal the broken hearts of Ada and Leeyan’s families, friends, and loved ones, I hope that this outcome can help our community finally begin to close what has been an incredibly painful chapter,” he said in a statement.

Shahid was found guilty in April and the jury recommended a four-year sentence.

He initially faced up to 10 years in prison for the deaths that devastated the Oakton High School community. In a sentencing argument, the prosecutor told jurors the victims’ families were not seeking the maximum punishment.

In court on Friday, the mother of one of the girls who was killed tearfully read a statement about her and her husband’s heartbreak. She said the sentence is too light.

“Even though two years have passed, every night as I lie in bed, tears stream down my face. I still dream of the horrific scenes, and when I wake up, the pain in my heart is unbearable,” she said.

“This jury’s verdict feels like a slap in the face. Two years per one life lost. How light is the value of a human life? Where is the dignity for my daughter and her friend?” she continued.

Shahid’s attorney asked for leniency and the driver himself apologized to the victims’ families.

“I made a very, very immature decision. I’m deeply sorry, and I’ve been deeply reflecting on my wrongful actions,” he said.

‘I think I killed three girls’

Prosecutors have said that just days after Shahid’s high school graduation, he was driving a BMW and accelerated to 81 mph in a 35 mph zone on Blake Lane just before noon on June 7, 2022.

It was near the end of the school year, and classes had ended early. Shahid saw that a traffic light was yellow, floored it and slammed into a Toyota 4Runner whose driver had been turning left, prosecutors said.

Police testified that the force of the crash sent Shahid’s BMW off the road and onto the sidewalk, where he hit three teen girls.

Shahid, who had three friends in the car and was driving on a learner’s permit, then plowed through a mailbox, utility box and power pole.

One passenger testified that in the moments after the crash, Shahid said, “I think I killed three girls.”

Two of the crash victims died of their injuries, and the third was seriously hurt.

A resident of the area described a heartbreaking scene after the crash, with a woman performing CPR on one victim. He said Shahid was worried about how his father would react to the crash.

15-year-old Leeyan Hanjia Yan was among the Oakton crash victims

Yan, who was killed in the crash, was her parents’ only child.

Yan’s mother described her as a bright social butterfly who brought her friends together and excelled in Bible school. She was funny, full of faith and looking forward to college.

“I recall the moments she was laughing loudly with her friends on the phone and then I … scolded her to be quiet. We never knew it was her last moment,” her mother said in a victim impact statement.

Her mother struggled to describe the pain of losing her daughter.

“Any word could not describe that sorrow. The tortured agony took a color away from our vision. All objects in the world looked white and black,” she said.

‘You hurt me forever, along with so many in this courtroom’

At a hearing this spring, the parents of the girls who died described their incredible loss, and the surviving victim, now 17, offered equally heartbreaking testimony. She lost her cousin and her best friend. 

“I hold so much love for them,  an indescribable love,” she said through tears and sobs.

The survivor was hospitalized with serious injuries when her mother gave her the news that the other girls had died. 

“I will never forget the cries I let out that night,” she told jurors. “It felt like someone had punched me and I repeatedly told her, “No, no, no!’ We were supposed to graduate together. We were supposed to  live our lives together.”

The survivor later turned and spoke directly to Shahid, telling him: “You, Usman Shahid, went 81 miles per hour. You did not hit the brakes. You chose to be irresponsible. You took two lives. You hurt me forever along with so many in this courtroom.”

“Because of you, we will remain in unending pain for  the rest of our lives,” she told him.

The testimony from the surviving victim and her family was so emotional that Shahid’s mother collapsed and had to be taken to a hospital.

Shahid took the witness stand.

“I beg for your forgiveness, your mercy, and hopefully you see me as a good person and not such an evil or bad person at all,” he said.

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Defense tried to shift blame to another driver after teens were killed in Oakton crash

Shahid’s defense attorney argued that Shahid was an inexperienced driver and tried to shift blame to the driver of the Toyota 4Runner. That driver testified that he was stationary and trying to make a left turn when Shahid’s car crashed into his with incredible force.

In court, the SUV driver tearfully described what happened.

“I was waiting for the tail end of the group coming through … I felt, like, a slam. It was a train-like collision I’ve never experienced before … My initial thought was it was a bad movie … I was in shock,” he testified.

The defense also faulted a detective, accusing her of tunnel vision with her investigation, and asked why she did not record an interview with the SUV driver.

A nationally known crash expert testified in support of the prosecution and said the BMW’s sophisticated data recorder showed that Shahid accelerated form 60 to 81 mph and never hit the brakes.

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In closing arguments, prosecutor Jenna Sands told the jury only one person was responsible for the crash: Shahid.

Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

White, who represents Ward 8, is accused of agreeing to accept $156,000 in exchange for using his position to pressure employees of the D.C. Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement and the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS) to extend several contracts, prosecutors said.

He’s chair of a D.C. Council committee that oversees several agencies, including DYRS.

White received $35,000 in four cash payments in the alleged scheme, court documents filed on Thursday say.

His lawyer declined on Friday to comment on the latest development.

White has not commented on the case or entered a plea since federal authorities arrested him in the Navy Yard area on Aug. 18. On Instagram, posted a brief video thanking people who have continued to support him.

Following White’s arrest, the D.C. government launched a wide-ranging review of violence interruption work.

Read the full indictment here:

Here’s what federal prosecutors say Trayon White did

Federal prosecutors say White agreed starting in June to accept $156,000 in bribes in exchange for using his position to pressure government employees to extend violence intervention contracts worth $5.2 million.

He’s accused of accepting envelopes full of cash as he was caught on a hidden camera. Here’s how the FBI broke down the payments:

• June 26: $15,000 cash received
• July 17: $5,000 cash received
• July 25: $10,000 cash received
• Aug. 9: $5,000 cash received

Images included in court documents show what prosecutors say is White receiving envelopes stuffed with cash.

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An FBI informant who operated businesses that contracted with the D.C. government agreed to cooperate with authorities as part of an agreement to plead guilty to bribery and bank fraud charges. Several conversations between White and the informant were recorded in a parked car wired for video and audio, including outside White’s home, prosecutors say.

At one meeting, White and the informant discussed contracts the informant had with ONSE. The informant asked White if the contracts would be renewed and said he had $15,000 cash.

Initially, White asked, “What you need me to do, man? I don’t, I don’t wanna feel like you gotta gimme something to get something. We better than that.”

Then he tucked the envelope with the cash into his jacket pocket, prosecutors say.

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Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

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The board gave unanimous approval on Thursday to the Prologis warehouse planned for Livingston Road.

The group Fort Washington Forward has held demonstrations against the project, which they said will bring truck traffic to an area that’s already congested.

“No warehouse on Livingston Road” and “A warehouse? We deserve better!” protest signs carried by residents said.

Fort Washington Forward joined neighbors and community organizations in speaking against the plan at a virtual meeting Thursday.

“Allowing large and/or 18-wheeler trucks into this environment is a reckless decision,” one resident said.

“This neighborhood should be a priority for relief, not more harmful development that erodes our health, quality of life and wealth,” Staci Hartwell of the Prince George’s County NAACP said.

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Critics said a new, 140,00-square-foot warehouse would add to traffic on nearby Route 210, which has been called the Highway of Death because of the number of traffic deaths there.

Representatives for Prologis called the company a good corporate citizen. The land on which the warehouse will build was a vehicle salvage yard for years. Representatives said the company has done extensive cleanup work, including removing contaminated soil.

“Prologis was attracted to this specific site because it was zoned industrial and it’s located in a major transportation corridor,” a representative said during Thursday’s meeting.

Opponents said the plan does not fit the long-term vision for the community, which includes plans to add traffic-calming measures and become more friendly to pedestrians and cyclists.

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Board members expressed some reservations about the project but said the developer had met requirements and planned to improve the property.

Members of Fort Washington Forward told News4 they will keep fighting the project.

Troy Turner pleaded for help finding Sarah and Jacob in a video released by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

“As a dad, I want to have hope. And as a father, obviously, I love my kids and I want to hope that in some way, they’re still there,” Turner said. “We’re gonna keep fighting.”

In hopes of getting answers, the NCMEC released age-progressed images of what the Hoggle siblings may look like today. The hope is that the images may spark a memory, or inspire someone to come forward with information.

Sarah would be 13, and Jacob would be 12 years old.

“There’s tremendous frustration that we have gone 10 years and not had, sort of, a conclusion to this,” John McCarthy, the State’s Attorney for Montgomery County, said.

Murder charges against children’s mother were dropped

Sarah and Jacob were last seen on Labor Day weekend 2014, in the care of their mother, Catherine Hoggle, the NCMEC said.

Catherine Hoggle was later arrested and charged with murder. Despite extensive searches, Sarah and Jacob have never been found. According to the NCMEC, Hoggle continues to say her children are “safe.”

The last major update in the case came two years ago when a judge dropped charges against Catherine Hoggle.

Montgomery County courts repeatedly deemed Hoggle not mentally competent to stand trial, and Maryland law mandated the charges be dropped after five years. Police said she refused to cooperate, and prosecutors accused her of faking the extent of her mental illness.

A judge ordered Hoggle to be involuntarily committed to a psychiatric institution civilly after it was determined that she remained a danger to herself and others. Hoggle, who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia before the children went missing, has been held in a maximum-security psychiatric hospital since her arrest.

The State’s Attorney’s office continues to monitor Catherine Hoggle’s condition and would charge her again if they can, McCarthy said.

“If her mental health status improves to the point that she can be removed from the hospital because she’s no longer a danger to herself and others in the community, we’ll reindict this case,” he said.

In a release from the NCMEC, Turner, the father, said it’s time to move the focus onto finding his son and daughter.

“For the past 10 years the focus has been on her and whether she was competent to stand trial,” Turner said.  “I want the focus to be put back on finding my children. It is definitely time to have some movement in the case. If someone knows anything, if anyone saw anything, it’s time to come forward. It’s past time.”

Anyone with information can contact the NCMEC at 1-800-843-5688 or Montgomery County Police at 301-279-8000.

NBC Washington is looking back at the Hoggle case. Stay tuned for updates.

Jurors deliberated for less than three hours before convicting the 20-year NYPD veteran, Thomas Webster, of all six counts in his indictment.

Webster was the first Jan. 6 defendant to be tried on an assault charge and the first to present a jury with a self-defense argument. His conviction proved to be a bellwether for the dozens of trials that followed.

Finding a viable trial defense hasn’t been easy for rioters who stormed the Capitol. Of the nearly 100 riot defendants who have elected to a trial by jury, none has been fully acquitted.

Many have said they were swept up in the moment. Some have tried to shift the blame for their actions to former President Donald Trump and his lies about a stolen election. Others have claimed they were trying to protect themselves from overzealous police officers.

In Webster’s case, prosecutors repeatedly showed frame-by-frame footage of him assaulting a Metropolitan Police Department officer with a metal flagpole, tackling him to the ground and trying to rip off his gas mask.

Webster testified he was trying to protect himself from a “rogue cop” who punched him in the face. A juror who spoke to reporters after the May 2022 verdict said the videos refuted Webster’s self-defense claims.

“I guess we were all surprised that he would even make that defense argument,” the juror said. “There was no dissension among us at all. We unanimously agreed that there was no self-defense argument here at all.”

Before U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta sentenced him to 10 years in prison, Webster apologized to the officer. He said he wished he had never come to Washington, where he says he “became swept up in politics and former President Trump’s rhetoric.”

“I wish the events of that horrible day had never happened. People would still be alive, people would not have gotten hurt, and families would not have been thrown apart. Perhaps our country would not be as divided as it is today,” Webster said.

The team announced Thursday that Johnson has joined the investor group led by owner Michele Kang.

“I’m excited to join the Washington Spirit’s investor group at such a pivotal time in the club’s history,” Johnson said in a statement. “Partnering with a visionary like Michele Kang and her team to advance the growth of the Washington Spirit and the NWSL is an incredible opportunity. I’m excited to join the team and play my part to help elevate this organization.”

Johnson, whose given name is Earvin, most recently became part of the ownership group that bought the NFL’s Washington Commanders last year and also has shares in Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers, WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks and Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles FC.

“From the basketball court to the boardroom, Earvin knows how to win, and we are delighted to count on his expertise as part of our fantastic investor group,” said Kang, who has owned the team since 2022. ”His commitment not only reflects the strength of our club, players, fans and brand, but also sends a powerful message about the growth and impact of women’s sports globally. Together, we look forward to taking the Washington Spirit to new heights and inspiring the next generation of young women and girls worldwide.”

Washington Commanders Oct 6, 2023

Part-owner Magic Johnson rips Commanders after loss to Bears

Washington Commanders Sep 6, 2023

Magic Johnson meets with Washington Commanders players for the first time

Washington DC Jul 21, 2023

‘I invest to win': New Commanders owner Magic Johnson wants to give back to community

Johnson will be introduced at a school event Friday and is expected to be at the Spirit’s next home game Saturday at Audi Field against Portland Thorns FC.

In on-field news, the team said U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning midfielder Croix Bethune is out for the season with a knee injury. The Spirit said Bethune, who threw out the first pitch at the Nationals game on Aug. 28, tore the meniscus in one of her knees away from training.

The Washington Post reported Bethune was injured from throwing out the first pitch.

Reggie Brown, 64, was taking a walk on Georgia Avenue in October when a group of five girls allegedly attacked him unprovoked, prosecutors said in opening statements.

One of those girls took cellphone video of the attack in which the group appeared to be in a celebratory mood afterward, according to prosecutors.

Brown faced health issues for much of his life, weighing just 110 pounds and missing six fingers due to lupus. He also was battling cancer and liked to take long walks at night, according to his family.

On Oct. 17, a still unidentified man attacked Brown, as seen on surveillance video.

Five girls, ages 12 to 15, joined the attack, prosecutors say. Surveillance video showed them stomping Brown’s head into the pavement and whipping him with his own belt.

He died shortly afterward.

In court Thursday, the defense for one of the girls argued she was not involved in the attack and wasn’t even there. Her defense said the case was based on “unreliable, untrustworthy evidence and grainy video” because police were “under serious pressure to solve this case.”

The defense for the other girl argued, “Not every death is a murder or homicide,” and said the evidence does not show an intent to kill or seriously injure.

Brown’s sister said it’s been heartbreaking to hear what her brother went through.

“We’re here because we want to ensure that justice be done and that this doesn’t happen to any other family,” Malda Brown said.

“Everybody up in D.C., upper Northwest, knew my little brother, and he was just a good soul,” she said. “And for something like this to happen to him is just hurting the whole neighborhood up in D.C.”

She wishes the two girls could have been tried as adults and feels D.C. needs tougher laws when it comes to juvenile crime.

Metropolitan Police Department (DC Police / MPD) Apr 1

Girls left in ‘celebratory' mood after deadly DC beating, detective testifies

Gun violence Mar 29

Girls, 12 and 13, accused of beating 64-year-old man to death along DC's Georgia Avenue

“These young people are committing crimes knowingly that if you commit crimes while you are a juvenile, that nothing is gonna happen,” she said. “That is the word on the street that they say, Oh, we can commit crimes because nothing is gonna happen to us.”

A third girl in the case pleaded guilty to assault last month. The other two girls are scheduled to go on trial in November.

If any of the four girls being tried are convicted, they will remain in the custody of D.C.’s Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services until they turn 21.

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D.C.’s prison closed decades ago, so once its inmates are sentenced, they are sent to federal prisons all over the country. Both inmates and experts told the News4 I-Team they often feel targeted.

According to Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) data analyzed by the I-Team, at least six D.C. inmates serving in federal prison have been killed in the past four years. This does not include the dozens whose deaths have been ruled natural or “other.” Some of their families are still wondering what happened to them.

Derek’shea Hawkins is now among them. She said her husband, Camara Jones, was a dutiful father but also a complicated man who went in and out of prison. A parole violation put him back behind bars — this time thousands of miles away. Hawkins told the I-Team her husband felt targeted.

Hawkins said he told her, “For some reason they just automatically don’t like people from D.C.”

The distance made it almost impossible for her to see him in person. She said she couldn’t afford to travel thousands of miles with their children, so their communication was limited to letters and very few phone calls where the news was not always good.

Hawkins said Jones expressed concern for his safety and told her he had been injured but didn’t say by whom. He described having a broken collarbone and fractured ribs, according to Hawkins.

Then the news became unbearable

“I missed him prior to this and, now that I know he’s… now it’s a different feeling because I know he’s not coming home,” Hawkins said.

On March 22, Jones’ body was discovered in the Special Housing Unit, a form of isolation for prisoners also known as the SHU, at USP Victorville in California. His death was ruled a homicide.

“The coroner’s office called me and told me that they had his body,” Hawkins said. 

“I asked her, you know, about the autopsy and, like, what happened,” she said. “And she said, well, it doesn’t say anything. The only thing that it says is that he was found standing in the shower. And I inquired, like, how was somebody deceased standing in the shower?”

Prisoners can be removed from general population and placed in the SHU for various reasons, including if they’re part of an investigation, for discipline or for protection at their request. Hawkins said she doesn’t know why Jones was there.

According to BOP records obtained by the I-Team, correctional officers tried to resuscitate Jones after he was found leaning against the shower. A roommate also in the cell was restrained and removed but not named in the report.

Five months before Jones’ death, Robert Jeter — another D.C. inmate serving time at Victorville — died after being found unresponsive inside the SHU.

Initially ruled undetermined, the BOP now list his death as a homicide caused by blunt force trauma.

That update in his cause and manner of death was confirmation for his mother, Christina Jeter. She told the I-Team last spring that doctors who tried to revive her son at a California hospital told her he was severely injured. Christina recalled them saying, “So severely that his brain had swollen and hemorrhaged and that he was beaten so severely that his liver was split.”

Jeter said USP Victorville would not confirm those injuries to her. And they were not mentioned in the prison’s incident report on his death obtained by the I-Team. Those records do, however, confirm that Jeter was also found in the SHU and in the shower, just like Jones.

“So many D.C. prisoners have a level of insecurity and instability that other state prisoners don’t have,” said Brenda V. Smith, professor of law at the American University Washington College of Law.

Smith has studied and advocated for improved conditions for D.C. prisoners since the city’s Lorton Reformatory closed in the early 2000s. She is critical of the city sending its prisoners to federal prisons around the country.

“They’re going to a place where nobody knows them,” Smith said. “Nobody has heard about them and all they’ve heard is about, you know, this D.C. population that’s coming to them that is entitled, who is violent.”

Smith said that makes D.C. prisoners who are in federal prisons more vulnerable because most of their families are not able to routinely check on their well-being due to the distance.

“We cannot send people all over the U.S. and have them moved around like checkerboards and be able to keep up with them,” said Smith.

Nailah Seabron of the D.C. Corrections Information Council (CIC) – the city agency that bridges the gap between D.C.’s inmates, the federal prisons and the city’s legislators – said they visit up to five or more prisons a year, checking on conditions and talking with D.C.’s incarcerated.

“We are here to give them a voice,” said Seabron.

CIC makes recommendations based on what they find to the BOP and D.C. officials.

In a CIC Inspection Report of Victorville from 2016, numerous D.C. inmates said the prison was unsafe and dangerous with high rates of gang-related violence. More than half the inmates interviewed reported being assaulted and expressed fear for their safety or lives. D.C. inmates also complained they were sent to the SHU more than others and were called troublemakers.

The I-Team asked the BOP about those complaints.

“The Federal Bureau of Prisons takes seriously our duty to protect the individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintain the safety of correctional employees and the community,” a spokesperson said. “We make every effort to ensure the physical safety and health of the individuals confined to our facilities through a controlled environment that is secure and humane.”

As for what happens to those CIC recommendations, Seabron said, “I would hope that they’re reading (the reports) and taking in the information … Change comes from legislation, and until there’s specific legislation enacted, we just keep churning out reports.”

The I-Team reached out to the office of D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto, chair of the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee. A Pinto spokesperson responded in a statement that said, “The homicides in the federal Bureau of Prisons facilities are extremely troubling. When D.C. residents are incarcerated in the federal system far away from the District, this makes oversight of their custody, rehabilitation and successful reentry much more difficult and less just. I will continue to work with Congress and our federal partners on oversight to ensure the safety of District residents and will keep fighting for more local control over our jail and prison system, agreements to have residents serving time in federal BOP facilities to do so closer to home, and local control over our parole system. I am grateful to the work of the CIC to continue their important visits and oversight work over the federal Bureau of Prisons and the D.C. Department of Corrections.”

CIC does not have the power to enforce its recommendations, and it’s only notified of an inmate’s death in federal custody when the BOP issues a press release.

The I-Team asked how the CIC can properly do its oversight work and data collection without being notified of all D.C. inmate homicides and other deaths.

“I think that that’s where the families come into play,” Seabron said. “If they contact us and they let us know what happened, then we can contact the powers that be at the BOP and inquire within. That’s just the flow of information at this time.”

In another CIC inspection report at Victorville from 2022, there were fewer complaints about violence among inmates, but a quarter of the D.C. inmates there were housed in the SHU at that time.

The San Bernardino (California) Sheriff’s Department told the I-Team the FBI is investigating the homicides of Jones and Jeter. Hawkins said the FBI confirmed to her it’s investigating.

The BOP said that due to privacy, safety and security reasons, it couldn’t comment on the condition or any potential investigations involving inmates when asked about the deaths of Jeter and Jones.

Meanwhile, Hawkins and her children wait and hope to one day understand what happened.

“You know, you want to have answers, like, why he was there in the first place, why was he that far … let alone why he’s not coming home at all,” she said. 

Reported by Tracee Wilkins, produced by Rick Yarborough, shot by Jeff Piper and Carlos Olazagasti, and edited by Jeff Piper.

The Virginia Department of Elections on Wednesday accepted the necessary documents for Earle-Sears to run for governor next year, WRIC was first to report.

Earle-Sears is the first Republican to officially enter the race for the party’s nomination in 2025. She recently said she was exploring a run.

The current governor, Republican Glenn Youngkin, cannot run for reelection because Virginia is the only state that doesn’t allow governors to run for consecutive terms.

U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger is the only Democrat currently seeking her party’s nomination to run for governor.

Earle-Sears was part of a Republican sweep of top offices in 2021 that also saw Youngkin and Attorney Gen. Jason Miyares get elected.

A Marine veteran who immigrated to the United States from Jamaica as a child, Earle-Sears defeated Democrat Hala Ayala to become only the second woman in Virginia’s long history to serve in a statewide office. Attorney Gen. Mary Sue Terry, who was elected in 1985, was the first.

A staunch conservative who speaks frequently about her Christian faith, Earle-Sears has made history as a woman in politics before.

She got her start in elected office in 2001 when she stunned both parties by defeating a 10-term Democrat in an overwhelmingly blue district to become the first Black Republican woman elected to the House of Delegates.

She served just one term before deciding not to seek reelection. She also unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott in a race The Associated Press described at the time as “a campaign of raw invective.”

Earle-Sears went on to serve on the State Board of Education and more recently as the national chair of an organization dedicated to reelecting former President Donald Trump. She has also led a men’s prison ministry, served as director of a women’s homeless shelter, and run a plumbing and electrical supply company.

Naresh Bhatt appeared in court on Thursday, and a judge agreed to the defense’s motion to waive a grand jury, paving the way for a trial within months.

Mamta Kafle Bhatt has not been seen for over a month. The 28-year-old originally from Nepal moved to the U.S. for an arranged marriage in 2021. She recently missed her baby girl’s first birthday, and her family members rushed to the U.S. to take care of the child.

Her husband was arrested at the couple’s home last month on a single charge of concealing a body. But in the criminal complaint, police accused him of killing Mamta Kafle Bhatt. Prosecutors have laid out chilling allegations, including that pooling blood was found in the primary bedroom and bathroom of the couple’s home.

Naresh Bhatt’s defense gets speedy trial

Judge Carroll Weimer granted Naresh Bhatt’s defense team their request to skip the grand jury process in favor of a speedy trial. The rare legal maneuver means prosecutors will have five months from the next hearing, which is scheduled for Sept. 16, to bring the case to trial.

Prosecutors had argued against a speedy trial, saying it would be challenging to be ready that quickly.

“I have no doubt that the Commonwealth is putting together a very strong case,” Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s coworker Holly Wirth said outside the courthouse Thursday. “Mr. Bhatt thinks he’s smart, but I can guarantee you the weight of justice is leaning hard on him and we are going to see this come to fruition.”

Wirth was among dozens of friends and community members who came to the hearing. Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s mother and brother were also in court for the first time since they arrived from Nepal.

“They absolutley feel the love of the community and appreciate everyting the community is doing,” Wirth said.

The defense is expected to ask for funds for expert testimony at the Sept. 16 hearing.

Manassas Park police do new search

As Thursday’s hearing ended, Manassas Park officers and the Prince William County police search and rescue team were searching several areas for evidence, including the Blooms Crossing Community, the area surrounding Manassas Christian School, Camp Carondelet and part of Blooms Park.

It’s still unknown if searchers found anything relating to the case.

“Hoping that they’re getting closer to leads or something so we can just have closure and she can be laid to rest the right way,” Manassas Park resident Patty Winske said.

Investigators with the Manassas Park and Prince William County police departments searched a different park on Friday.

Timeline of Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s disappearance

Mamta Kafle Bhatt, a nurse, was reported missing after failing to show up for her shifts at work. Friends said that was highly unusual since she was caring for her baby and often active on social media.

Investigators have conducted multiple searches at the Bhatt home. Search warrants have revealed details about what investigators believe were Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s last days.

A detective wrote that on July 29 – the last day friends heard from Mamta Kafle Bhatt – there were numerous calls with her husband. After that, all calls went to voicemail.

Naresh Bhatt told police his wife destroyed her phone before July 31 — the day he told police that he last saw her.

But on Aug. 1, her phone was pinging in the Aldie area of Northern Virginia. Naresh Bhatt told police he was at a cafe there.

Police say they have video showing Naresh Bhatt at a Walmart purchasing cleaning supplies. He also went to a Walmart in Prince William County and purchased a set of knives. Two of those knives are now missing, prosecutors said.

Police conducted a welfare check on Aug. 2, and Naresh Bhatt reported his wife missing on Aug. 5, police said.

Bhatt was arrested on Aug. 22, one day after investigators were seen in the Bhatt family home.

Passports for Bhatt and his daughter were in full view when police entered the home for a search. Prosecutors said there’s evidence that Naresh Bhatt was in the process of packing up his home and selling his car.

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Videos of a little red and black robot rolling down a sidewalk on four wheels have circulated on social media recently, and many wondered if the robot is another way for D.C. to give drivers speeding or parking tickets.

The D.C. Department of Transportation told News4 Wednesday the robot is not for issuing tickets.

“Right now, it is helping us to update and maintain our sign inventory,” DDOT Innovation Branch Manager Stephanie Dock said.

There are more than 200,000 traffic signs across the city, Dock said, which requires a lot of maintenance.

“Stuff is constantly changing on our streets. And we need a way to keep that information updated and current,” she said.

Dock said having human beings take inventory of the traffic signs proved to be difficult in the past, “And so we’re exploring how much automation and robotics can help us in that problem.”

DDOT currently has one robot, called a Kiwibot, as part of a pilot program.

When the agency sends it out, a DDOT employee can watch the video the robot captures and decide whether or not to send a crew to the area to make any sign repairs.

Dock said if something goes wrong with the robot, there’s always DDOT employees close enough that can “come and help it.”

Rael Enteen was fired, a Commanders source told News4’s JP Finlay a day after the team suspended him.

It does not appear Enteen was aware he was being recorded.

The Commanders released a statement Wednesday reading: “The language used in the video runs counter to our values at the Commanders organization. We have suspended the employee pending an internal investigation and will reserve further comment at this time.”

An outlet named O’Keefe Media Group published the video.

James O’Keefe is the CEO and creator. He was the founder of Project Veritas, which was a conservative activist group known for its use of undercover stings and other deceptive tactics in an effort to discredit mainstream media organizations and progressive groups.

O’Keefe responded to a request for comment in a video posted on Tuesday. 

“I’m not discrediting him. I’m actually, um, crediting him, showing him saying things in his, um, own words. It’s his words and I’m publishing his words that, um, came out of his mouth and it’s on video,” he said. 

It feels like fall, y’all! Time to plan an apple-picking day trip in Maryland or Virginia.

The Red Line shutdown is over just in time to Metro to the Bethesda Row Arts Festival, Adams Morgan Day or the D.C. State Fair (Yes, the District has a state fair! It’s near Metro Center station).

Here are four things to know for your weekend:

• Weekend Weather: Sunday is looking like the best day of the weekend thanks to Saturday showers. Here’s the forecast.
• Football is back, baby! It’s Commanders vs. Buccaneers at home this Sunday.
• Say hi to Telemundo 44 and meet some of your favorite reporters and anchors at the Festival Salvadoreñisimo this Sunday.
• Adoption centers around the DMV are waiving fees for Clear The Shelters!

Weekend highlights

Free pick
Bethesda Row Arts Festival
Sat. and Sun., near Elm Street and Woodmont Avenue
🔗 Details

There is real competition to get a spot at the Bethesda Row Arts Festival, conveniently located in Bethesda Row. Artists from all over the East Coast and dozens of local creators were selected for the largest juried art fair in the D.C. area. Last year, Ruth Becker welcomed us into her studio to show off her creative treasures.

Jewelry, oils, watercolors, ceramics, fiber, sculpture and many more styles will be on display – you might need both days to check it all out. Hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Free pick
One Lacrosse Gathering Celebration
Sat., National Mall, free
🔗 Details

The inaugural One Lacrosse Gathering Celebration shows America’s oldest team sport like you’ve never seen it before.

The game is rooted in Native American tradition and dates back to the year 1100.

The President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition looks to make lacrosse accessible to anyone at the National Mall’s JFK Fields. Look for representation from tribal communities and pick-up games for newbies and more experienced players. Howard University’s women’s team will be on hand, too.

Fun fact: Lacrosse will be played in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

• The Future Scene: The JFK Fields along the Tidal Basin are also the site for the upcoming National Mall of Pickleball later this month.

Free pick
DC State Fair
Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Franklin Park in downtown D.C.
🔗 Details

County fair season isn’t over yet. The last weekend of the Maryland State Fair might top your list for agricultural adventures, but don’t sleep on D.C.

The D.C. State Fair won’t be awarding sheep ribbons, but go to celebrate the food, products, culture, performance and civic orgs that make D.C. proud.

Highlights are sure to be Jump DC’s jump rope performance and the National Hand Dance Association taking center stage.

• Coming soon: The Great Frederick Fair is set for Sept. 13-21.

Free pick
Adams Morgan Day
Sun., noon to 8 p.m., Marie Reed school and Kalorama Park
🔗 Details

For the 46th year, AdMo invites everyone into its streets for music, dance, food and some brews.

Of note, the legendary Blackbyrds will make a rare appearance, headlining the Marie Reed school field at 7 p.m. after a day of international adventure at the Dance Plaza.

Stroll 18th Street NW, check out the local shops and make some new friends. Also enjoy programming from the D.C. library, American University, photo exhibits, kids’ sports clinics and a day of melodies at Kalorama Park.

Doggy swims

Pools are embracing the dog days of summer.

D.C. dogs are invited to four city pools this Saturday for the annual Doggie Day Swim. It’s free, but show up with your dog’s original D.C. Health-issued license and tag.

In Virginia, you can sign up your pooch to swim with other dogs at Water Mine Family Swimming Hole in Reston on Saturday. It costs $10 per dog, and all proceeds help the Fairfax County Animal Shelter.

• Speaking of supporting local animals, our annual Clear the Shelters campaign is wrapping up. Many local shelters are offering free adoptions through Sept. 10. Enter your zip code here to find one near you.

Concerts this weekend

Waxahatchee, 7 p.m. Friday, Wolf Trap, $49+

Katie Crutchfield’s increasingly folk/country-leaning alt-rock gets support from Snail Mail, the indie rock project of Ellicott City’s Lindsey Jordan. Details.

The Descendents/Circle Jerks/Buzzcocks, 6:30 p.m. Friday, Fillmore Silver Spring, $59

Incredible classic punk triple bill with the original pop-punks (Descendents), seminal hardcore band (Circle Jerks) and what’s left of one of the original British punk bands (Buzzcocks). Tickets.

Oceanator, 10 p.m. Friday, Comet Ping Pong, $19.78

Singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Elise Okusami comes to town a week after the release of her third LP. “Everything Is Love and Death” is as powerful, driving and hooky as anything she’s released before. Details.

Clutch, 7 p.m. Saturday, The Anthem, $45-$75

Two of the heaviest hard rock bands of the past few decades — including our boys from Seneca Valley High School (Clutch) — have joined for a co-headlining fall tour. Details.

Things to do in D.C.

Sunset Cinema at The Wharf: “King Richard”: Thurs., 7 p.m., The Wharf’s Transit Pier, free

Don’t Tell Comedy “secret shows”: Fri. and Sat., various venues, $25

One Lacrosse Gathering Celebration: Sat., National Mall, free

D.C. State Fair: Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Franklin Park in downtown D.C., free entry

DC Bike Ride: Sat., begins on Constitution Avenue, various prices (registration closes Thursday)

Doggie Day Swim DC: Sat., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., free but current D.C. dog license required

• Four pools participating: Langdon Park Pool in Northeast, Ridge Road Pool in Southeast and Francis and Upshut pools in Northwest

Jazz in The Parks: Lenny Robinson & Exploration with Special Guest Marshall Keys with opener Music with Mr. Rob: Sat., The Parks at Walter Reed, free

Women in Sports ’24 with US Open Women’s Finals on the big screen and golf simulator: Sat., noon to 8 p.m., The Wharf, free

Washington Spirit vs. Portland Thorns: Sat., 12:30 p.m., Audi Field

Boot ‘N Scoot At Hi Lawn: Sat. and Sun., Hi Lawn at Union Market, $10-$15

Adams Morgan Day: Sun., noon to 8 p.m., Marie Reed school and Kalorama Park, free

Injera Festival: Sun., 2-9 p.m., The Bullpen in Southeast, $15+

Washington Mystics vs. Minnesota Lynx: Sun., 3 p.m., Entertainment and Sports Arena

Things to do in Maryland

Bethesda Row Arts Festival: Sat. and Sun., near Elm Street and Woodmont Avenue, free entry

Mount Rainier Day Festival: Sat., 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Mount Rainier Nature Center, free

Silver Spring Jazz Festival: Sat., 3-10 p.m., Veterans Plaza, free (no ticket required)

Festival Salvadoreñisimo: Sun., 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Gaithersburg, $50+

Takoma Park Folk Festival: Sun., 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Takoma Park Middle School, free

Commanders vs. Buccaneers: Sun., 4:25 p.m., Northwest Stadium in Landover

Maryland State Fair: Aug. 29-Sept. 2 and Sept. 5-8, Lutherville-Timonium, $11-$16

Maryland Renaissance Festival: Through Oct. 20, Annapolis, Maryland, $26+ for adult tickets through Sept. 8

Things to do in Virginia

Dog Daze canine swim: Sat., 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.,  The Water Mine in Reston, $10 per dog

Rosslyn Jazz Fest: Sat., 1-7 p.m., Gateway Park on Langston Blvd, free

US Asian Fest: Sat., 2-9 p.m., One Loudoun, $15-$100

Fall Plant and Garden Sale: Sat., 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Mount Vernon overflow parking lot, free entry

The Future Scene

•  The Washington Mystics play the Indiana Fever (you know, Caitlin Clark’s team!) at Capital One Arena next Thursday, Sept. 19.
• Theater Week will bring discounts on shows in the D.C. area from Sept. 26 to Oct. 13. Tickets go on sale Monday!
• Night of the Living Zoo is coming back from the dead! Tickets cost $65 for nonmembers and are on sale now.
• Ever wanted to tour the White House while it’s decked out for Christmas? You can book tours up to 90 days in advance, so it’s a good time to think about contacting your representative for a holiday season tour!

Want to know what’s up for your weekend? Sign up for The Weekend Scene, our newsletter about events, experiences and adventures for you and for your family around the DMV.

Tyrell Lamonte Bailey turned himself in to police at the 7th District Police Station at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, a police spokesperson said. He was charged with carrying a pistol without a license.

D.C. Investigator Wayne David died last Wednesday after the gun he was trying to retrieve from a storm drain went off. He was 52 and served as an officer for 25 years.

Metropolitan Police Department (DC Police / MPD) Aug 28

DC officer dies after gun he retrieved from storm drain goes off

Metropolitan Police Department (DC Police / MPD) Aug 29

‘That type of impact': Fallen DC officer Wayne David remembered fondly

Officers with MPD’s Robbery Suppression Unit were canvassing Quarles Street NE when they saw a man get out of a suspicious car. Officers tried to make contact with him, but he ran to I-295 and stashed the gun in a storm drain, police said. He fled onto the back of a passing motorcycle.

D.C. police have not said whether Bailey will face additional charges.

“I want to thank the members of the Metropolitan Police Department and express my appreciation for the community for their tips and information that led to identifying and the arrest of this individual,” MPD Chief Pamela A. Smith said in a statement about the arrest.

“Our focus is on honoring the memory and legacy of Investigator Wayne David and giving him an exceptional sendoff during his funeral services next week,” the police chief said. “Our department continues to heal, and we’ll continue to support the family as they grieve and heal.”

Bailey was sought by local and federal authorities and a $60,000 reward was available in the case.

‘I do think he is liable for the death’

Bailey appeared in federal court on Thursday wearing a T-shirt that said “Rule 1: F— what they think.”

Court documents reveal new details on the moments before and after David was fatally shot.

Bailey ran out of his shoes after he saw officers and bolted, the documents say. Officers said he was holding his hand like he had a gun in his waistband. Images show him jumping over a wall and onto I-295. That’s where police say he threw a handgun into a drain on the shoulder of the southbound lanes.

Bailey, who had years of experience in gun recovery, was working to remove the gun from the drain when it fired and a bullet struck him.

Court records show Bailey served a multiyear prison sentence for a 2017 crime involving a gun and is therefore prohibited from possessing one.

The charges against him include possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number and unlawfully discarding a gun. They do not include murder.

Ward 2 D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto told News4 she believes Bailey should be held accountable for David’s death.

“I do think he is liable for the death that resulted in his weapon, that was thrown carelessly, and that’s exactly what happens when firearms are thrown carelessly,” she said.

Court documents show the motorcyclist who gave Bailey a ride from the crime scene immediately called police when made aware of what had happened. The motorcyclist said Bailey was a stranger and had yelled that he had been robbed and people were trying to kill him. As Bailey hopped onto the bike, the motorcyclist saw that the passenger wasn’t wearing shoes.

Police say the motorcyclist, who dropped Bailey off in Bladensburg, Maryland, had no idea he was linked to the deadly shooting of David until being told by a relative who had seen the news.

News4 sends breaking news stories by email. Go here to sign up to get breaking news alerts in your inbox.

Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

The Spirit said Wednesday that Bethune, who was part of the U.S. Olympic team that won the gold medal in Paris last month, suffered a torn meniscus “away from training” and won’t play again in 2024 while she rehabs the injury.

The 23-year-old Bethune did not travel with the team for last Sunday’s 1-1 draw at San Diego.

“She had a problem making the first pitch in the baseball game,” Spirit coach Jonatan Giráldez said after the match. “She is not going to be available this season. It is part of life. You have to keep going.”

Bethune, the third overall pick in the NWSL draft, has five goals and 10 assists in 17 games.

She was honored alongside Spirit teammates and fellow Olympians Trinity Rodman, Casey Krueger and Hal Hershfelt before the Nationals hosted the New York Yankees on Aug. 28. She appeared to grimace slightly while walking off the mound after making the pitch.

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Montgomery County police say the same 12-year-old boy broke into five Montgomery County dealerships in August. News4 reported that police said they couldn’t charge him because he’s too young, due to a juvenile justice law.

The boy broke into a Porsche dealership in Bethesda on Monday, police said. Workers say he walked around inside before Montgomery County police arrested him.

“That young individual is in need of some supervision, and I think that it’s critical that he gets that,” said Assistant Chief David McBain.

Investigators say the 12-year-old has broken into six high-end dealerships, including BMW, Jaguar, Audi and Porsche. In some break-ins, he managed to steal cars.

“That is a D.C. resident, and we are actually actively working with the D.C. government,” McBain said.

Police say they weren’t able to take the 12-year-old into custody because of his age and a Maryland juvenile justice reform law passed in 2022. The legislation says children under 13 can’t be charged with property crimes.

“The system we are stuck in now has allowed these repeated occasions to occur,” Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy said.

Maryland state legislators passed a revised juvenile justice bill earlier this year that’s set to go into effect Nov. 1. The bill broadens consequences for 10 to 12-year-olds who commit crimes. It also expands probation, creates diversion programs and details when state’s attorneys can review certain juvenile cases.

Montgomery County Aug 30

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McCarthy said he believes the legislation was a great first step but that additional legislation is needed for young offenders who don’t live in Maryland.

“A juvenile offender who does not live in Maryland who has hit many of our car dealerships here shows you some of the shortcomings that exist in the solutions that were crafted last year by the legislature and it’s not, you know — sometimes these fixes are more complex than that,” McCarthy said.

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The suspect, 25-year-old Arturo Elmore-Adon, is already in custody for alleged crimes against a minor. Now, he’s charged with several more felonies.

“Holding a really disturbing and sick man accountable for his actions that targeted little, little children,” Fairfax County Chief of Police Kevin Davis said.

The investigation started at a Safeway in Reston Aug. 10, where, police say, he touched a 7-year-old girl’s buttocks. According to a police search warrant, Elmore-Adon walked toward the victim and knelt directly behind her. A black object appearing to be a cellphone was placed under the victim’s legs. Police believe Elmore-Adon then filmed the victim.

Detectives executed search warrants on his Reston home and his cellphone.

“What our detectives discovered inside Elmore-Adon’s phone was nothing short of disturbing and disgusting,” Maj. Dan Spital said.

Police say they discovered more than 400 pictures and videos of child sexual abuse material downloaded from the internet. They also found several videos allegedly taken by Elmore-Adon in which he filmed up the shorts of young girls, police say.

He’s charged with unlawfully filming two girls, ages 7 and 8, at Fox Mill Elementary School in 2023. There are several charges from Churchill Road Elementary School in 2023, including one incident in which Elmore-Adon is accused of having an 8-year-old girl look for something while he filmed up her shorts and pulled down the victim’s shirt.

Elmore-Aaron worked as a contractor for Fairfax County Public Schools during the 2022-23 school year, helping with afterschool programming.

“The background check on this individual was done in 2022, and our human resources department reviewed and cleared the candidate at that time,” Superintendent Michelle Reid said.

Fairfax County Public Schools says Elmore-Adon worked afterschool programming at six other elementary schools, and police are urging parents to take a look his picture and let them know if they believe their children may also be victims.

Reid said the suspect worked for Overtime Athletics, which is a vendor of Baroody Camps that Fairfax County and several other school districts have used and still use in various capacities.

Reid said they are working with the families of the victims and giving them every resource available.

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It does not appear Rael Enteen was aware he was being recorded.

The Commanders released a statement reading: “The language used in the video runs counter to our values at the Commanders organization. We have suspended the employee pending an internal investigation and will reserve further comment at this time.”

An outlet named O’Keefe Media Group published the video.

James O’Keefe is the CEO and creator. He was the founder of Project Veritas, which was a conservative activist group known for its use of undercover stings and other deceptive tactics in an effort to discredit mainstream media organizations and progressive groups.

O’Keefe responded to a request for comment in a video posted on Tuesday. 

“I’m not discrediting him. I’m actually, um, crediting him, showing him saying things in his, um, own words. It’s his words and I’m publishing his words that, um, came out of his mouth and it’s on video,” he said. 

The Food and Drug Administration released new standards in March of 2023 in an effort to help more women detect breast cancer sooner. The FDA gave providers until Sept. 9, 2024 to comply with the new rule for them to include a note on mammogram reports noting if their patients have dense breasts.

“It’s really an opportunity to put the power back into the hands of the patients and letting them know what type of density they have,” Molly Guthrie, with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, told News4.

About half of women over the age of 40 in the U.S. have dense breast tissue, which can make cancers more difficult to spot on a mammogram, the FDA said. Dense breasts have also been identified as a risk factor for developing breast cancer.

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D.C. resident Cheryl Shaw beat breast cancer in 2008, but said she never imagined it would come back 11 years later.

“As a mom, as a grandma, I want to be around for them,” Shaw said. “You know, I have a lot more to do in life. I’m not done.”

When her cancer came back, doctors didn’t discover it until it was already in stage 3, even though she’d had a mammogram just months before.

It wasn’t detected because Shaw has dense breasts with a lot of tissue. But she said doctors hadn’t warned her about her breast density.

“If we don’t know what’s going on with our bodies, if we don’t know what the cause is or we don’t know what to look for, we don’t know what questions to ask,” she said.

Those with dense breasts may need to get MRIs or ultrasounds, depending on other risk factors.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, breast density can change over time.

Women are more likely to have dense breasts if they’re younger, have a lower body weight, and are pregnant or breastfeeding.

Shaw is now in remission. She works at the Smith Center for Healing and the Arts on U Street, helping give back to cancer patients and spreading awareness on the importance of screenings.

“Some people see cancer as something they don’t want to know about, and that if they find out about it, they’re no longer gonna be here. But the reality is, there’s so many survivors and I’m one of them,” she said.

The reduction in the $18.9 billion program for fiscal years 2025 to 2030 will result in some deferred projects, such as sidewalk repair and intersection improvements, officials said. It also will delay the transition to the electrification of the state’s bus fleet.

“Despite significant budgetary challenges, the Maryland Department of Transportation continues to prioritize the safety of all who use our transportation system and make investments in projects that will help grow our economy,” Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld said in a news release.

For example, the state will proceed with plans for the Frederick Douglass Tunnel to replace the 1.4-mile (2.3-kilometer) Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel that connects Baltimore’s Penn station to MARC’s West Baltimore Station. The state will also continue plans for the Howard Street Tunnel to create vertical clearance improvements along CSX’s Rail Corridor to allow double-stack trains to travel between Baltimore and Philadelphia.

The proposal also won’t affect plans to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed under the impact of a massive container ship that lost power and crashed into one of its supporting columns.

The state also is proceeding with the project development process for the Baltimore Red Line and Southern Maryland Rapid Transit, the department said.

Revenue forecasts for several state transportation funding sources, including the gas tax, vehicle titling tax, transit fares and vehicle registration, were revised downward to reflect results from this past fiscal year, the department said.

That, combined with existing funding commitments such as operating expenses, support for local governments through increased highway user revenues and Purple Line payments, left the department with fewer state dollars than anticipated to match federal funding for highway and transit projects. The Purple Line is a 16-mile (26-kilometer) light rail line in the suburbs of the nation’s capital that connects New Carrollton in Prince George’s County to Bethesda in Montgomery County.

The reduced ability to fully leverage federal funds is a driving factor behind the $1.3 billion in reductions and will result in certain projects being deferred because of fiscal constraints, the department said. The end of federal pandemic relief, inflation and supply chain disruptions have also had an impact.

Some of the deferrals include system preservation needs, transitioning the Maryland Transit Administration’s bus fleet to zero emission vehicles and pausing the design of major highway expansion projects at logical milestones, the department said in a news release.

The release of the draft program launches the department’s public engagement process. That includes a meeting in every Maryland county and the city of Baltimore to receive input from local officials and the public. This year’s tour is scheduled to take place between September and October with local jurisdictions hosting the meetings.

After the tour, the transportation department will finalize the draft plan and submit a final plan to the legislature in January.

Last year, the department cut the six-year plan by $3.3 billion. Those reductions were eased when Gov. Wes Moore allocated $150 million of the state’s rainy day fund to help offset the cuts. The legislature also responded by approving vehicle registration increases.

National Gallery Nights begin Thursday, Sept. 12 with the theme A Night in Paris. The East Building will transform into a Parisian escape with can-can dancers and a DJ spinning French tunes at an outdoor bar. Visitors can explore the “Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment” exhibit with paintings by Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir and more. Join the lottery here.

Tickets will be given away through a lottery system. The lottery will open 10 days before each event, and winners will be notified via email the Friday before the event.

The lottery for A Night In Paris is set to close at noon Thursday. Limited walk-up tickets will also be available on the day of the event.

There will also be activities on the 4th Street Plaza that don’t require tickets.

National Gallery Nights is set to celebrate Día de los Muertos in October and D.C. culture in November.

National Gallery Nights dates

• Sept. 12, A Night in Paris (Ticket lottery open from Monday, Sept. 2 to Thurs., Sept. 5)
• Oct. 10: Día de los Muertos Celebration (Ticket lottery open from Monday, Sept. 30 to Thursday, Oct. 3)
• Nov. 14: To the District, with Love (Ticket lottery open from Monday, Nov. 4 to Thursday, Nov. 7)

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They were originally supposed to close on Labor Day.

Leat Corinne Unger, Cousin of Omer Shem Tov

“The locations that will remain open were selected to be most equitable to residents with one pool on both sides of the city and all DPR spray parks,” said Department of Parks and Recreation Director Thennie Freeman. 

Hearst Pool and Oxon Run Pool will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. six days a week until Sept. 22. Hearst Pool is closed Thursdays and Oxon Run Pool is closed Mondays. 

These spray parks will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. until Sept. 22:

• 14th and Girard Street 
• Benning Stoddert Recreation Center
• Chevy Chase Recreation Center 
• Columbia Heights Community Center 
• Columbia Heights Civic Plaza
• Eastern Market Metro Park 
• Edgewood Recreation Center 
• Fort Davis Community Center
• Fort Stevens Recreation Center 
• Friendship Recreation Center 
• Guy Mason Recreation Center 
• Hardy Recreation Center
• Harrison Recreation CenterHillcrest Recreation Center
• Joseph H. Cole Recreation Center 
• Kennedy Recreation Center 
• King Greenleaf Recreation Center
• Lafayette-Pointer Recreation Center  
• Macomb Recreation Center 
• Marvin Gaye at Division Avenue
• Marvin Gaye Recreation Center 
• Palisades Community Center 
• Park at LeDroit 
• Petworth Recreation Center 
• Potomac Ave Triangle Park
• Reservoir Park Recreation Center 
• Riggs-LaSalle Recreation Center 
• Stead Park Recreation Center 
• Takoma Playground 
• Watkins Recreation Center
• Westminster Playground

Information for specific outdoor pool and spray park locations can be found at the Department of Parks and Recreation website. 

Christian Whalen was at a bonfire party in a wooded area off Spotswood Furnace Road when another teenager shot him. A sheriff’s deputy drove him from the scene to a rescue station, from where he was taken to a hospital, where he died from his injuries.

Whalen’s girlfriend, Lacy Milling, said she warned him against going to the party and became worried when he didn’t return her text messages. Then she saw frightening posts on social media.

“Then I go on Snapchat and I see people posting on their story ‘pray for Christian,’” she said. “Just, it was everywhere.”

Soon she got a message from Whalen’s father confirming her fears. 

“I see a notification from his dad saying, ‘Christian died,’” she said. “Literally, those two words.” 

She was not surprised to learn investigators believe he was trying to stop trouble. 

“He does not like arguing at all,” she said. “He hates it so much.”

Lacy said she lost the love of her life. She had been in a serious relationship with Whalen for almost a year. Her father said Whalen lived with their family for several months.

“He’s the most, like, kindest person,” Lacy said. “He would help anybody, like, even it came down to his worst enemy.”

Kenneth Watson, 18, is charged with homicide, accused of firing the fatal gunshot.

“He took what I wanted the most, which was almost a family to grow up with,” Lacy said. “I almost had what I wanted, but he took it from me.” 

The sheriff’s office wants to hear from anyone with information about the shooting.

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But thanks to a new bus service, it’s about to get easier.

News4 spotted a Fairfax Connector bus training for the new service on the streets of Bethesda on Tuesday, just weeks before the 798 bus line will start running between the two locations.

Fairfax County says the service, which is the first express route of its kind, has been a focus of the transportation department.

“We’re really about trying to get connectivity and mobility throughout the county and throughout the region,” said Gregg Steverson, acting director of the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.

The bus service along the Beltway will be an alternative to a very long train trip on Metro, which requires going into D.C., switching Metro lines, and then heading back out of the District on the other side.

Still, some riders may find the 798 bus line a hard sell, as the bus will need to compete with traffic on the Beltway and the Legion Bridge.

“It takes forever to drive out to Tysons, so I’d rather take the train,” said Edward, one of those riders.

And it’s a long way to go if you don’t have a good reason.

“I have no need to go to Tysons,” said Steve Clark, another bus rider.

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But there are plans to eventually have some buses between Tysons and Bethesda running in dedicated bus lanes or express lanes, speeding up the trip.

And other riders, like Abudnegu, are on board. He says he rides between the two locations all the time.

“I would love to do that,” he said of riding the new bus line. “I think it’s going to be very efficient. So that would be great. I would love to get that.”

The new route is also expected to serve the National Institutes of Health and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

The buses will start by running every 20 minutes during the morning and afternoon rush, for $4.80 one way. Service is expected to begin on Sept. 16.

You can learn more about the route here.

Tyrell Lamonte Bailey is sought by local and federal authorities. He’s 27, 5-foot-6, about 180 pounds and has tattoos that cover both arms, D.C. police said Tuesday.

Bailey is wanted on a D.C. Superior Court arrest warrant for unlawful possession of a firearm. Police shared photos of who they said is Bailey.

D.C. Investigator Wayne David died last Wednesday after a gun he was trying to retrieve from a storm drain went off. He was 52 and served as an officer for 25 years.

Officers with MPD’s Robbery Suppression Unit were canvassing Quarles Street NE when they saw a man get out of a suspicious car. Officers tried to make contact with him but he ran to I-295 and stashed the gun. He fled onto the back of a passing motorcycle.

D.C. police did not say on Tuesday whether Bailey will face additional charges.

Metropolitan Police Department (DC Police / MPD) Aug 28

DC officer dies after gun he retrieved from storm drain goes off

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The reward for information in the case was increased to $60,000. It’s made up of:

• $20,000 from the Metropolitan Police Department
• $20,000 from the FBI’s Washington Field Office
• $10,000 from the the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ Washington Field Division
• $10,000 from the U.S. Marshals Service

Anyone with potentially relevant information is asked to contact D.C. police by phone or text. Information can be submitted anonymously.

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Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

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Many D.C. drivers who have gotten these tickets are upset.

Transportation officials acknowledge that, for years, blocking these lanes went unenforced — but they say blocked bus lanes leads to huge delays for public transportation, and that’s why they’ve started cracking down.

The District has 13 miles of priority bus lanes and about 3,000 bus zones. The problem, according to transportation officials, is that vehicles routinely block the lanes, forcing buses to either stop or change lanes to drive around them.

“If you’ve got people that are parked in the bus lane, it’s forcing the buses to drive around it,” Sharon Kershbaum, acting director of the D.C. Department of Transportation (DDOT), said. “And they often need to wait, and things back up. So the efficiency gets lost.”

Improving safety is also a factor, Kershbaum said.

“Because if there is a car that’s parked in front of a bus stop and the bus needs to let the passengers disembark in the travel lane, they’re often weaving in between cars, parked cars or cars that are driving. And it’s very difficult to see that,” she said. “So there’s a safety component and an efficiency component.”

Last November, the District began ramping up enforcement by installing cameras on Metrobuses and issuing the $100 fines. Drivers who receive tickets also receive a video clip showing their car in the bus lane.

But it’s left many drivers feeling like this man, who said the enforcement is confusing.

“You know, I don’t know who is creating this, but I think it’s unfair to drivers, period,” driver Stanley Lightfoot said.

Kershbaum understands people are upset about getting these fines, acknowledging that, for years, rules against blocking the bus lanes just weren’t enforced.

“I just want to be clear that the prohibition of driving or parking, or even just pulling over and standing in the interim, those are all things that have never been allowed,” she said. “The challenge has always been with enforcement. So before we had cameras in the buses, you weren’t supposed to do it. We all know that people kind of ignored it because the likelihood of a police officer or a traffic enforcement person to be walking through at that moment was pretty low. So people just ignored it.”

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While you’re not allowed to park, stop or even drive in the bus lanes, there are exceptions: You are allowed in the bus lanes if you’re turning right at an intersection or into a driveway, and not all priority lanes are enforced 24/7.

As for the drivers racking up the most tickets:

• almost 52,000 tickets went to Maryland drivers
• nearly 42,000 were issued to D.C. drivers
• more than 38,000 went to Virginia drivers

The District plans to add another 10 miles of priority bus lanes next year, and Metro is adding another 70 cameras to its buses this year.

This new enforcement didn’t happen overnight. News4 has been reporting since 2019 about D.C.’s designation of priority bus lanes, and warnings were issued for four months before drivers started getting fines.

DDOT officials do think the new enforcement is working. When they first started issuing fines, they were averaging about 20,000 tickets a month. That has now dropped to about 13,000 a month.

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However, those numbers likely will increase as Metro adds more cameras and the District designates more priority bus lanes.

While it’s too early for data on repeat offenders, when it comes to the stationary photo enforcement that’s been in place for years, DDOT says 70% of people who get those tickets only get one.

Varsity football coach Ray Butler died Monday, the head of school said in a letter Tuesday, on the first day of school.

Butler became head coach last year after working on the security team and then as a member of the football coaching staff. His “sudden departure leaves a void,” Christian G. Sullivan’s letter said.

“Ray made a profound impact on the lives of students. He was a constant source of support, offering words of encouragement and wisdom both on and off the field. His legacy at Bullis will be remembered not only for the victories he led but for the countless lives he touched with his kindness, patience, and steadfast dedication,” the letter said.

Kevin Anderson, a Bullis parent who Butler recruited to be assistant coach, spoke on how he remembers Butler.

“He just loved the kids,” Anderson said. “From the kid that potentially could go pro to the kid that’s just trying to gain a credit. He loved all the kids the same.”

Butler was the reinvigoration of Bullis Bulldogs Football, first as an assistant coach, becoming head coach in 2023.

“When we give tours for potential recruits, we talk about being a student athlete,” Anderson said. “That’s the one thing that I respect about Ray. We always talk about student first, athlete second.”

Butler came to Bullis as a member of the security team, and his protectiveness was legendary.

Bullis Parent Avi Benaim, whose sons played for Coach Butler, has started an effort to help the coach’s family pay his medical and funeral expenses.

Benaim says he will never forget Butler’s words to him as he grieved his wife’s death from cancer.

“I remember him one day kind of pulling me aside and saying, Don’t worry about your boys. I got them, and that meant the world to me,” he said.

Butler and the Bullis Football program attracted students who went on to play Division I football, and even in the NFL.

Damani Neal was recruited to play for Duke University. He’s now Defensive Backs Coach at Shaw University, bringing Butler’s teachings with him.

“Being in the position that I’m in now, kind of giving back and pouring into the lives of young men, I think a lot of the good things that I do, and a lot of you know, the things that I try to do for these young men,” Neal said. “And the way that I pour into them is a immediate reflection of what he did for not just me, but everybody over over the years.”

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Butler suffered a brain aneurysm last week and was hospitalized, News4 has learned.

School officials did not immediately respond to an inquiry, and funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.

Stay with News4 for more details on this developing story.

At least nine of those guns have now been found at crime scene and or with people wanted on warrants for violent offenses, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb said. Many of the others are still unaccounted for.

“Our city is being flooded with illegal weapons,” he said. “All three of these stores ignored the red flags.”

Washington, D.C., has struggled with gun violence in recent years. The nation’s capital saw its highest number of homicides in more than three decades last year, and more than 90% of those were carried out with firearms, the suit states.

“Many of us watch the news and we wonder where all these guns are coming from,” said Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown. “Now we have part of the answer.”

In Washington, the supply of weapons is often fueled by people who buy guns for others who can’t legally possess them, Schwalb said. About 95% of guns recovered in Washington, D.C., which has strict gun laws, originally come from nearby Maryland or Virginia, Schwalb said. While some of those are stolen weapons, more come from illegal straw sales, according to data about firearm trafficking investigations from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

The suit seeks unspecified damages and court action to halt any future straw purchases.

The lawsuit is the first to be filed jointly and comes as cities and states around the country file civil suits against gun shops, including in New Jersey, Minnesota, Chicago and Philadelphia. Kansas City also settled a suit last year against a gun dealer accused of ignoring evidence that guns were being sold illegally.

Licensed firearm dealers do work with ATF to identify possible straw purchases, said Larry Keane, senior vice president at the National Shooting Sports Foundation, an industry group. Still, he said that warning signs may not always be obvious at busy stores, where a buyer might encounter different employees on different days.

“The focus should be on the actions of the criminal, not trying to scapegoat retailers who do their best every day to try to prevent straw purchasing,” he said, pointing to a 2016 Justice Department survey of people in prison that found a relatively small number had gotten firearms from a retail source.

The new suit, filed with the gun safety group Everytown Law, accuses the Maryland-based stores of failing to respond to warning signs, including bulk purchasing and repetitive purchases.

The three stores sold a total of nearly three dozen similar weapons to Demetrius Minor over a seven-month period in 2021, the suit said. Nearly all were trafficked to others, including people who aren’t legally allowed to buy firearms, the suit alleges. One gun, for example, was found in a D.C. hotel room along with an illegal large-capacity magazine and another was found at the home of a stabbing suspect, the suit says.

Minor pleaded guilty to one count of dealing in firearms without a license last year in a plea deal with prosecutors and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. An attorney who represented Minor could not immediately be reached for comment.

One store, Atlantic Guns, Inc., said it has “never and will never knowingly sell to someone who we have reason to believe is committing a straw purchase.” Another, United Gun Shop, declined immediate comment, and the third, Engage Armament LLC, did not immediately respond.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and court action to halt any future straw purchases.

Charles F. Koehler Jr. was arrested on suspicion of public intoxication after someone saw him walking down the Leesburg Bypass near South King Street about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, the Leesburg Police Department said.

Koehler was sworn in to the Loudoun County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on Aug. 23, according to the Loudoun Times–Mirror.

Officers took Koehler to jail, and he was released later on his own recognizance, police said.

News4 has reached out to a spokesperson for the Loudoun County judicial system for comment, and is awaiting a response.

Stay with News4 for updates to this story.

Justin Robinson, of Southeast, was killed. He was 26.

Robinson worked as a violence interrupter with the D.C. Office of the Attorney General and the Cure the Streets program, the office said.

Protesters blocked traffic outside the Seventh District police station a day after the killing.

The Metropolitan Police Department says officers were called to the McDonald’s in the 2500 block of Marion Barry Avenue SE, in the Skyland area, at about 5:30 a.m. Officers saw that a driver had hit the side of the fast-food restaurant, causing minor damage, police said.

A witness told News4 that at least two drivers were unconscious in the drive-thru and holding up the line. He said he knocked on their windows to try to wake them, to no avail. He said he left the parking lot but continued to watch from nearby and record on his cellphone as police converged on the area.

Police say Robinson was unresponsive and officers could see a gun in his lap. Officers called for backup, Robinson started moving and he grabbed his gun, Chief of Police Pamela Smith said Sunday morning.

“He had his weapon in his hand, he was told to drop the weapon, our officers extended their firearm, and the suspect grabbed his weapon at that time,” Smith said.

A written statement from police released Monday said, “As the officers approached the suspect with their service weapons drawn, the suspect grabbed one of the officer’s service weapons.”

Two officers opened fire, hitting Robinson.

“Oh! Oh! Shots! Shots! Oh! Oh!” the witness can be heard shouting on cellphone video.

DC Fire and EMS immediately began treating Robinson, but he died.

Police shared a photo of what they say was Robinson’s handgun.

The officers who opened fire were placed on administrative leave, per MPD policy. Body-worn camera footage will be released in line with D.C. law.

The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with potentially relevant information is asked to contact police.

Robinson pleaded guilty to a charge of assault with intent to kill in 2018 and was sentenced to five years in prison, according to court records. He was released in January 2022.

“I’m very, very saddened by the death of Mr. Robinson,” Attorney General Brian Schwalb said. “As I said, I want to let the facts play out, the investigation determine what actually happened. But here’s the reality: A lot of people doing this work of violence interruption work in our city, they have been convicted of crimes in the past. They have done their time, they have done their penance and now they are looking for ways to make their city better.”

Schwalb said Cure the Streets is driving down crime in the city.

“We look geographically at where historic crime has occurred before the Cure the Streets sites came into play,” he said. “We look at it over time, chronologically, and we can measure the number of shootings, the number of fatalities. We also measure the number of mediations and agreements and community events that are being created in those communities, because it’s not just disrupting the cycle of violence. It’s then building relationships.”

Metropolitan Police Department (DC Police / MPD) Sep 1

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In her remarks on Sunday, the police chief pointed to the hazards that officers encounter.

“This is just another reminder of the daily dangers that our officers face protecting the residents and visitors across the District of Columbia,” she said.

The police shooting occurred four days after Investigator Wayne David was fatally shot as he tried to retrieve a gun that a suspect was seen stashing in a storm drain.

Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.

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During former President Donald Trump ‘s administration, her office under the U.S. Department of Agriculture was told it would be moving. About 75 people were going to be relocated to Kansas City, Missouri, Dodson said, but less than 40 actually moved. A rushed process that failed to consider the need to find homes, jobs for spouses and schools for children prompted some retirements, she said, and some took other federal jobs, hurting the agency in the end.

Now, with Trump proposing the relocation of up to 100,000 federal jobs from Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia under his Agenda 47 plan, concerns about being abruptly moved are again troubling federal workers. The Republican’s proposals stir anxiety in the midst of an unusually competitive U.S. Senate race in heavily Democratic Maryland that could determine control of the Senate, with even the Republican candidate calling the plans “crazy.” The proposals also could hinder Trump’s chances to win Virginia, a state he lost in 2016 and 2020, where a U.S. Senate seat widely seen as safely Democratic is also on the ballot.

“It’s causing a lot of anxiety, a lot of discomfort within the workforce, as you are faced with these strong, negative, anti-federal worker stances and this uncertainty of what might happen to your job, your home and your livelihood,” said Dodson, who is acting vice president of American Federation of Government Employees local 3403, which represents the USDA’s Economic Research Service.

And concerns don’t end there. Federal workers also are worried about “Project 2025,” a proposed overhaul of the federal government crafted by longtime Trump allies that would eliminate thousands of jobs and remove civil service protections for some federal workers. The former president has repeatedly distanced himself from the proposal this summer.

But the plan still worries Michael Knowles. He said it calls for making the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ D.C. presence “skeletal, and agency employees with operational or security roles should be rotated out to offices throughout the United States.”

Knowles, who is president of AFGE local 1924, said most of his members took an oath to uphold the Constitution and faithfully administer the laws of the United States. He said the members, who all work in the National Capital Region, are committed to the mission of government service.

“And they would do what they need to do to carry out that mission,” Knowles said. “But I think the employees would look dimly on arbitrary or capricious decisions that didn’t seem to make any business or operational sense.”

Trump’s campaign did not return requests for comment.

The District of Columbia has the largest number of federal civilian employees, with about 160,700 jobs, according to the Congressional Research Service. Maryland and Virginia are in the top four jurisdictions, with about 138,940 in Maryland and 140,400 in Virginia. California has about 142,040.

The proposals to move a large number of federal workers infuriate local leaders in the suburbs of Washington in both Maryland and Virginia. In Maryland, a heavily blue state where Trump is deeply unpopular, it’s viewed by many as retaliation by the former president, who received only 32% of the vote there in 2020.

Trump made headlines while he was in office when he denigrated Baltimore, Maryland’s largest city, as a “disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”

Angela Alsobrooks, the chief executive of Prince George’s County who is the Democratic nominee in the Maryland U.S. Senate race, described Trump’s positions on the federal workforce “as yet another reason that we absolutely must put Donald Trump in the rearview mirror.”

“Former President Trump is a ruthless leader, retaliatory in all his ways, and what he talks about in terms of really harming federal workers is evil,” Alsobrooks said after returning from the Democratic National Convention last month.

Former Gov. Larry Hogan, her Republican opponent, condemned the relocation proposals as “crazy.” He said they “would be devastating to the region, the state of Maryland and bad for the federal government.”

“It’s like, you know, Trump trying to turn the federal government into one of his failed casinos, where he thinks he can do whatever he wants,” Hogan, who has long been one of the GOP’s fiercest Trump critics, said in an interview. “I think it would undermine our entire democracy.”

Businesses that provide services to the thousands of federal workers fear the ripple-effect threat of the proposed changes. At Census Auto Repair & Sales, for example, across the street from the U.S. Census Bureau’s headquarters in Suitland, Maryland, service manager Tay Gibson says his shop would feel the impact directly.

“I would hate to see the federal workers leave,” Gibson said. “That would be business leaving as well, and that would affect small businesses like myself.”

Libby Garvey, chair of the Arlington County Board in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, emphasized the potential hit on the local economy.

“If a large proportion of (tax payers) suddenly lose their jobs (or have to) move away, that takes a terrible, major hit to our local budget, which impacts our ability to pave the roads, make sure the water is clean, provide public safety, fire, police, emergency personnel and provide good schools,” Garvey said.

Karen Hult, a political science professor at Virginia Tech, said the move could harm Trump’s chances in Virginia.

“Federal workers around Northern Virginia, and in the D.C. metro area generally, are, in fact, a bit of a voting bloc,” Hult said “The other thing, of course, are all the contractors — the beltway bandits. They make a big difference, too.”

But Hult also said the idea of relocating federal workers could resonate with Virginians outside of the northern part of the state, who may feel a distrust of the D.C. bureaucracy.

Filipe Campante, a Bloomberg Distinguished professor at Johns Hopkins University who focuses on political economy and urban and regional issues, noted that there’s a reason why capital cities exist, with the presence of federal employees nearby. Physical presence, he said, is necessary for face-to-face interactions that are important to maintaining accountability.

While Trump and his supporters see the relocation as a positive in terms of moving the “deep state” away from the seat of government, Campante said it also has a downside.

“I think it is a positive factor for accountability that you have civil servants also operating as a check on political appointees, and this would be weakened by moving these people away from where the center of the government is, so I think from that perspective it would reduce accountability,” Campante said. “Obviously, then, it depends on whether you think this accountability is good or not.”

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Witte reported from Annapolis and Suitland, Maryland.

In 2017, as a senator, she returned to her alma mater to deliver the commencement address.

In July, when she received word that she would likely be the Democratic presidential nominee, she was wearing her Howard sweatshirt in the vice president’s residence.

Howard, one of the nation’s best-known historically Black colleges, has been central to Harris’ origin story, and now, as she seeks to become the first woman elected president, the university is having a capstone moment.

The school has produced luminaries like Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, whose legacy inspired Harris to attend Howard, and author Toni Morrison, among others. Some at the university see Harris’ elevation as vice president as another validation of one of the school’s core missions of service.

“There’s clearly a direct relationship between Howard and its relationship to democracy and the democracy that we envision, one that is practiced in a way that includes all of us,” said Melanie Carter, the founding director of the Howard University Center for HBCU Research, Leadership and Policy.

If Harris won the White House, she would be the first woman elected president and the first graduate of a historically Black college to hold that office. With many HBCUs, like a number of liberal arts colleges, struggling financially, her ascent has bathed Howard in a positive light.

“It empowers students to reach farther than what they thought was possible,” said Nikkya Taliaferro, a senior at Howard University from Honolulu who said the 2024 presidential election will be her first time voting. “Even if she doesn’t win, she’s already made such a big impact and I know for all of us, that alone, is unforgettable.”

To Stefanie Brown James, a Howard alumna and co-founder of The Collective PAC, which is working to increase Black political representation, said that for Howard, the rise of Harris underscores “all the pieces fitting together. At this moment, she is the personification of the leadership, the excellence, the global responsibility to service, that Howard represents.”

In her 2017 commencement address, Harris said Howard taught her to reject false choices and steered her to public service. In her memoir, she wrote that Howard taught that there is an expectation that students and graduates would “use our talents to take on roles of leadership and have an impact on other people, on our country and maybe even on the world.”

In an Instagram post where she looked back on her time at Howard, she wrote, “Along the way, Howard taught me that while you will often find that you’re the only one in the room who looks like you, or who has had the experiences you’ve had, you must remember: you are never alone.”

Earlier this year, she wrote in a Facebook post that the investment in HBCUs is an investment “in the strength of our nation for years to come,” when she welcomed Howard’s men’s basketball team to the White House as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions. HBCUs have historically struggled to generate investment, despite recent influxes in funding and donations, causing them to flounder financially.

Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., a Howard Law graduate, said Howard’s “each one, teach one camaraderie” shaped how many alums in politics tackle the job. “It allowed us to root for each other in ways that I would not have gotten at another institution,” Lee said. “Those guidelines of being a social engineer, not being on the sidelines, and creating public policy, that’s rooted in the experiences of the most marginalized people. That is a Howard trait.”

The Howard network is also providing some financial and organizational support to Harris’ campaign. The Collective PAC utilized its HU Bison PAC, which held a virtual call for graduates with more than 4,000 attendees and raised over $150,000, according to James. The Bison PAC plans another call on Wednesday.

On campus, a group called Herd for Harris is campaigning to support her. Other student-led organizations are mobilizing students to register to vote and be engaged around presidential debates and policies that could most affect them.

“It was instantaneous and that’s just Howard,” James said. “Something’s happening, we need to respond to it, so we get to work. It’s simply a Howard thing.”

Even though Harris enjoys broad support on campus, there are students who are challenging Harris over policy, notably the war in Gaza.

“What we expect of Kamala Harris in this election is really derived from the morals that Howard instilled in us, that we are an oppressed people, and that we also need to advocate for oppressed people abroad,” said Courtney McClain, a student senator at Howard who met Harris in 2020. She said she plans to support Harris, while holding her accountable.

With the November election drawing near, Harris has been on extensive campaign travel and prepping for her first debate against Republican Donald Trump — including a mock session at Howard — on Sept. 10. Still, she made time to speak to crowd of Howard’s largest incoming first-year class in front of Cramton Auditorium.

Using a bullhorn, she told them that she was proud of them and urged that they enjoy this moment.

“You might be running for the president of the United States,” she said to roaring cheers.

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