E-scooter safety concerns grow after DC official killed in crash | FOX 5 AT 4AM

Well, good morning. I'm Julie Donaldson. It is 4 a.m. Thank you for starting your morning with us right here on Fox 5 and streaming on Fox Local. Here's what's happening today. Press access to the White House is restored indefinitely. Why judge says groups like CNN, MSNBC, and Politico deserve full access. And parents are pushing back in Loudoun County as changes are made to how they choose which school their child will attend. And there is a chance to break a heat record in the D.C. region today. Just how hot it is supposed to get and when rain and cooler weather is set to return and welcome on in yes you heard that correct we're going to get some record temperatures today it might even feel as Taylor joins us here a little bit like summer dare i say okay but no humidity though it's going to be a little bit it will be yeah oh my goodness a full-on summer feel out there today uh of course if you're a summer fan today enjoy it because uh probably one of the last days that we'll get to near 90 degrees and one of the latest as well for the month of October. So sunny and hot today, certainly a little bit more humid. We'll be tracking the chance for maybe some storms late tonight, though. So most of the daytime is dry. Just try your best to stay hydrated. We could near 90 degrees today. More on when we'll cool down coming up in that seven day in a couple of minutes. Julie. Thank you very much. Well, we begin this morning with a Fox five news alert. A federal judge has extended an order blocking the Trump administration from banning CNN, MSNBC and Politico from the White House the U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly says that the outlets will likely win their case on the basis that their rights of free speech and due process were violated kelly also says without the protection the outlets would suffer irreparable harm he also rejected the administration's national security argument claiming it came after the fact dc police are investigating after two men were shot late last night in southeast Officers responded to the scene on Buena Vista Terrace around 1045. But both men were conscious and taken to the hospital. If you have any knowledge of the incident, you're asked to contact D.C. police. And we are hearing from the family of a top district official who was killed in an e-scooter crash last week. Talib Shakir, seen here on an appearance from Fox 5 Live earlier this year, worked in the mayor's office helping ex-offenders reenter society. He was killed after his e-scooter collided with another rider. A recent report from Consumer Product Safety Commission says that 80,000 Americans are hurt on e-scooters each year. In a statement, Shakira's family said in part, quote, The District of Columbia has lost a dedicated public servant, and the returning citizen community has lost an advocate who understood the importance of opportunity, growth, and human potential. Well, this afternoon, the Justice Department and the IRS will host a joint press conference announcing the first charges from the newly formed National Fraud Enforcement Division. Officials say we'll outline criminal charges stemming from a nationwide tax fraud enforcement surge spanning several states, including Maryland. The press briefing begins at 2.30 p.m. Loudoun County Public Schools taking action to end a decades-old policy with roots in racial discrimination. But there is still a lot of disagreement on how to implement the new school transfer rules. Fox 5's Melanie Alnwick is live in Ashburn to explain. Good morning, Mel. Hey, good morning, Julie. You know, Loudoun County was pretty unique in our area in allowing families a very wide range of reasons to send their kids to a school that was other than their assigned zone. Now this special permissions policy is becoming something far more restrictive. School officials say it was started in the 1970s and allowed white families to avoid integrating with black students. Today, some families say it helps them keep siblings and friends together or avoid who they consider to be substandard teachers. The board voted to end the open school transfer policy, but then wrestled with what exceptions would be allowed and how that process would work, especially for students already attending schools outside of their zone. I don't think this policy is perfect. I really do think we need to see how this starts to play out in the next year, two years, three years. If this had come out of committee and it wasn't fully baked like it wasn't a couple of meetings ago it should have gone back to committee and i realized that there were some issues but i had no clue that we were going to be coming back from last meeting to this one with more last minute amendments it does always come back to students and um trying to do what's right um so that we don't continue to perpetuate harm the stricter out-of-zone policy will allow transfers only in limited circumstances including overcrowding child care needs and certain family situations like students with disabilities the board approved an exemption allowing elementary students to attend the same out-of-zone school as their siblings in certain circumstances but once they move to a higher grade level they will have to revert back to their assigned zones unless they get another exemption now board members did say and admit that they're probably going to be just some tweaks and some changes and some fine-tuning needed as this policy begins to take place which is going to be the beginning of next school year julie all right thank you mel it's 405 let's check in with our weather and traffic here taking a look at the national harbors capital wheel all lit up on what is going to be a day that feels a bit like summer is that fair to say taylor yeah it certainly is we could near 90 degrees uh which is certainly late for this time of the season right uh so yeah we'll have the humidity coming back as well we actually broke a record at Dulles airport 84 degrees with the high there yesterday we're going to far exceed that today uh so just goes to show you how warm it was yesterday the average high for Reagan Airport is 71 for this time of October and we're going to be nearly uh 15 to 20 degrees above that for the rest of today let's check in with current conditions at area airports we're currently in the 60s for most of you so we're off to a mild start temperatures are checking in in the 60s to some 70s popping up as well. So again, certainly off to more of a summer-like feel out there this morning. Here's a live look at radar. Not a whole lot to talk about for at least right now. That cold front far northwest of here will eventually increase the chance for showers and storms, but not until after sunset this evening. Enjoy the sunshine today and the big-time warm-up as we near the upper 80s by the afternoon. Julie? I feel like I need to go for a swim. Don't let the pools were open, right? All right, let's get to your drive times, the D.C. majors. Nothing major to report. I-295 between the Beltway and 11th Street Bridge, six minutes, five minutes. If you're on D.C., 295 between Kiln North Avenue and 11th Street Bridge, heading south, and then nine minutes between Kiln North Avenue and the 3rd Street Tunnel on Route 50. Well, the Naresh Bhat murder trial continues in Manassas this morning. Bhat is accused of killing his wife, Mamta Khafle, two years ago. Now, yesterday, a police detective testified as body camera video was played in court detective Claudia Ventura says she found several things concerning in the bot home including a large number of cleaning supplies and says that bot told her about his wife's disappearance just didn't add up i'm just trying to understand okay because when we took the report of her missing she was in essentially her blue scrubs she works thursday friday saturday right so she wouldn't have worked wednesday the last time you saw her so but you the last time you saw her was wednesday yes okay what about thursday morning no i don't i didn't see her on thursday morning usually we don't so why do you believe she was wearing the blue scrubs wednesday countered that argument saying that during each police visit to his home bot welcomed detectives in. Our Stephanie Ramirez will have in-depth coverage of every day of this trial on air and over on fox5dc.com. Well the heads of the University of Maryland and Howard University condemning a racist graphic posted by the UMD club tennis team. UMD president Daryl Pine says the team is suspended indefinitely pending an administrative investigation. Howard's club team shared the graphic which was sent to other club in the tennis clubs ahead of the tournament in College Park. We have blurred part of it, which depicted white supremacist imagery. The UMD club tennis team forfeited their matches because of the post. University police are investigating the incident. In Prince George's County, detectives are searching for the suspect who stole a dog from a car outside of a Royal Farms station. Now, it happened on Off Road last Thursday. Witnesses tell us that the French bulldog named Brain was taken while the owner parked at the station and went inside. The two-year-old dog has a protruding left eardrum from a prior medical condition. I honestly can't believe that. Like, that's petty, first of all, and it's, like, inhumane, you know? They're probably going to sell it. That's what I'm thinking, but it's messed up. Now, according to Direct Line Pet Insurance, French Bulldogs, they are frequently stolen because they have a resale value of thousands of dollars, and they are in high demand. Call Prince George's County Police if you have any information about Brain. Let's get him back to his owners, that poor guy. Well, today, Maryland Governor Wes Moore will push new legislation to lower prescription drug prices. The bill would tie Maryland drug costs to maximum fair prices established by the federal Medicare program. Moore's office says that it passed. If it is passed, it would save Marylanders hundreds of millions of dollars a year. We will learn more about the legislation in a news conference that will be coming up at 2 p.m. And tonight, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation will present recommended pedestrian improvements. This includes sidewalks, bike paths and transit stops and crossing on Route 29 between I-495 and Trips Run at Falls Church city border. Residents can attend the meeting at Timberlane Elementary School beginning at 7 p.m. Community members will have a chance to offer feedback after the meeting. Well, Fairfax County is limiting where new data centers can be built with new zoning rules. The changes they restrict new projects to one part of the county with extra approval required before construction. Now county staff cited concerns about power grid strain and environmental impacts. Three existing or proposed projects are not affected by the changes. A promising new report card for the Chesapeake Bay. The water system received a C plus from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Annual Report Card. Now this is the bay's highest health score in 40 years since tracking first began. Scientists say this is proof long-term restoration efforts are working. Overall, it's been a huge success story for the Chesapeake Bay. The places that we're really concerned about and we need to focus on is pollution running off of cities and towns and farms. But there have been really good investments made in working with farmers on agricultural programs to address that pollution as well, working in cities and towns on stopping stormwater pollution. The report card also tracks the health of the Potomac River. Scientists say next year's report will tell us how big of an impact this year's sewage spill had on the Potomac. Well, while D.C. may get record heat today, one state is already dealing with the S-word, the part of America that is already seeing snow. And Jerry Seinfeld faces pushed back this morning after his stand-up set was interrupted. The controversial comments he made against those protesters. And Taylor, what do you got for us? All right, but we could see record heat again today and it's going to be a hot stretch of weather. I'll let you know when we get a break and also the rain returning to the forecast coming up after the break.