those accused in a drive-by shooting that even hardened police veterans say is one of the most horrific accidents of violence they have seen in this city. tonight we are learning more about the teenager's long criminal history. good evening. i'm jim vance. >> i'm doreen gentzler. the criminal history has many people asking why the 14-year-old was out on the street. pat collins is at police head quarters in northwest d.c. with more on that. >> reporter: when people are arrested in the city of washington, oftentimes they are put in the custody of a trusted agency. but it appears sometimes that no one is watching what they do. and that can have dire consequences. police say that it was a teenager at the wheel and that south capitol street drive-by. and here are some disturbing numbers. the suspect is 14 years old. he began committing crimes when he was 9. he has been arrested ten times. including charges of robbery and assault on a police officer. six times the court ordered youth services to keep him in a secure place. six times he managed to get away. and now he's back in court. this time facing the crge of murder. the fourth suspect. after the mass shooting on south capitol street, a police chase. four suspects seen running on 7th and yuma streets southeast from the minivan used in that drive-by. three arrested. one still a large. sources say police believe that the fourth suspect in the south capitol street case might be yet another suspect in the murder of jordan howe. it was the morning of march 22nd that howe was killed in front of this apartment house on alabama avenue southeast. sources say that the murder of howe led to a retaliation shooting. and in retaliation important the retaliation, the south capitol street drive-by. one of the worst acts of violence in the history of washington crime. >> without question it was one of the most horrific scenes i have been on in my 20 years in the department. >> reporter: suspect supervision. one of the suspects in the jordan howe murder, carter. according to court records, at the time howe's murder, carter was facing stolen car and gun charges here at superior court. he was moved from a halfway house to a high intensity supervision program. in fact, on march 23rd, he was supposed to come downtown for orientation inhe high intensity surveillance program. but on that very same day, he was arrested in the murder of jordan howe. it is unclear as to who, if anyone, was watching carter on the day that jordan howe was murdered. doreen, back to you. >> all right. pat collins reporting. thank you, pat. some people that live in the neighborhood say the city is not doing enough to keep them safe. more on that in our next half hour. president obama is calling for patience. he says he hopes critics will give the new health ca reform law a chance to work before they pass judgment. he made that comment today during a speech in portland, maine. >> every single day since i signed the reform law, there has been another poll or headline that says nation still divided on health care reform. polls haven't changed yet. well, yeah. it just happened last week. >> the president plans to visit other cities through the end of the year. and nonan effort to build support for the new health care law. >> more than 35 miles to the gallon. that's a tough new fuel standard set today by president obama's administration. those rules will require new cars to meet that mark by the year 2016. steve handelsman is on capitol hill with details and reaction. hi, steve. >> reporter: thanks. out on the street. how beautiful is it this evening. so far, everybody is steering pretty much the same on this. the administration, car makers, dealers, drivers, i spoke to today. everybody saying that more than 35 miles a gallon sounds great. it is an average to be phased in over four years. by 2016 the fleet of new vehicles sold in this country from the smallest cars to pickup trucks and suvs has to average nearly 50% better gas mileage. from 25 miles per gallon now to 35.5 in six years. that would be save americans money and cut consumption of foreign oil. president obama's goal. >> 1.8 billion barrels of sxoyl like taking 58 million cars off the road for an entire year. >> reporter: new rules shoul spur the sales of electric cars like the chevy bowl. and the nissan lease. development of hybrids and the like. and environmentalists are happy. >> cleaner vehicles, more efficient vehicles, vehicles that use less oil and their cars that people want to drive. >> reporter: automakers say they can make enough high mileage cars and trucks but will americans, in fact, buy them? >> i think i would pay more for a car that has better -- gets better mileage. >> i would be willing to pay more to get better. >> almost a need. >> reporter: manufacturers are still worried. >> large volume in order to meet the tough new standards. >> reporter: but that's the law. 35.5 miles a gallon in 2016. plus lower tail piping issues to cut global warming. companies that fall short will pay big fines. companies that can make and sell a lot of good high mileage vehicles will make big profits. at least that's the plan. live from the hill, steve handelsman, news4. doreen, back to you. >> thank you. returning to the weather where flood sing causing major problems for people living in northeast section of the country. veronica has more on this. >> that's right. areas of the northeast have gotten a chance to clear out from the big storm system, the nor'easter. dry conditions today. as you can see across the northeast view. let me take to you new england right now. boston, mass, where the floodwaters are still sea aing problems for residents. storms have stopped but the water continues to flow briskly throughout eastern massachusetts. rivers are cresting and they are expected to remain over flood stage for the next few days. nearly 3500 residents have applied for practical emergency flood assistance and to put it into perspective, in terms of that type of rain event, at least ten inches or more, that only happens around here. about once in a decade. for us, some summertime type warm lth start surging in. huge area of high pressure across the area. we will kick it off here with a gorgeous evening and go into tomorrowmorning. pretty nice. temperatures will be up a few degrees from where they were this morning. so your fast forecast got rain-free stretch to tell you about. just how long. and the easter weekend is going to feel a lot like memorial day weekend. details, doreen, coming up. >> that sounds great. thanks. >> can't wait to hear more. today is what's known as census day. and those people that haven't yet filled out their sent vus form and mailed it in could soon find census workers knocking at their doors. tracie potts has the story. >> reporter: you probably heard those hip new ads and should have the census form by now. the government countsch living in the u.s. through april 1st which means this new form will be one of the last -- newborns will be one of the last counted. local officials are making a big deal at rallies all over the country today and here is why. >> every missed resident has chance to lose $1300 in federal population based funds. >> reporter: it is all about the money. census determines how $400 billion are spent. who gets what for roads, schools, commuty programs, and because the housing crisis is dislocated so many people, the census bureau says that this time count everyone inour home whether they normally live there or not. but some latino ministers are telling their communities don't fill it out because the government may tell immigration agents where to find you. the man in charge says that's not true. >> i can say honestly if the president for some reason called me and asked me for your census form, i can say no. that's not possible under the law. that courts would uphold me. >> reporter: the president has already returned his. do make sure you have the right form because there are fake ones floating around askin for money, social surity numbers, your signature, and even bank information. >> people that called me, the have already filled out their form and sent it back. and they are sick. >> reporter: so far just over half of u.s. households returned their census. have you two more weeks to do so before uncle sam comes knocking on your door. tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >> so far virginia leads the area with 60% of census forms being returned already. maryland is second with 56%. d.c. is in third with 50% insofar. coming up tonight, u.s. naval warship off the coast today. sex abuse cases involving brees. >> auto make wers a big boost in sales last month. >> major construction project in virginia that may cause headaches for commute. the redskins planning to sxwin dine another quarterback prospect this weekend. vasquez picks up an impressive piece of hardware. capitals try to find their groove. live report from verizon as "news4 at 6:00" continues. for decades, the insurance lobby has called the shots... putting profits before people. but with gerry connolly's help... that's changing. with a law prohibiting insurance company denials... if you get sick or have a pre-existing condition. providing quality, affordable health care options... to individuals and small business owners. and closing the medicare prescription gap. congressman connolly, thank you. the democratic national committee is responsible... for the content of this advertising. u.s. naval warship did battle with a pirate ship off of the east coast of africa today. suspected somali pirates opened fire on the u.s.s. nicholas. it returned fire and sank it. it captured what they think was the mothership and five more pirates. expert says it is possible that the pyre rates saw the nicholas and thought it was worth some money but didn't really mo what i was in and it had so many guns. naval forces have been ramping up off east africa in a bid to cut off a growing pirate threat there. price wars and zero percent financing put americans in a car buying mood last month. new reports out today show sales for some major automaks shot up from the same time last year michelle franzen has more. >> have a seat. >> reporter: sales important u.s. ought oat makers surged in march. overall up nearly a third from a year ago. toyota brake troubles, aggressive incentives helped drive consumers to show rooms. and price wars between general motors andoyota paid off. g.m.'s core brand, buick, cadillac, chevy, gmc, saw nearly a 38% increase in sales. toyota sales jumped 35%. the company is speeding to rebuild trust and confidence following a massive recall for gas, pedal and brake problems and rolled out strong incentives to win customers. >> consumers are very smart, savvy. listen, circumstances are such. here is my maim and number. i want a toyota and willome in and buy it. when they announced the program, come on in. that's exactly what happened. >> reporter: ford sales increased nearly 35%. but the company did not compete in the incentives war. instead ford decreed the boost to strong demand for fusion and taurus brands. >> ford continues to be red hot. ford accrued a goodwill momentum by not going bruptd and american consumer or brand that normally would have taken billions of decades to build up. >> reporter: all positive signals that the struggling auto industry bogged down a year ago by flat-line sales and bankruptcy problems may be on the road to recovery. >> we seeing right now, i believe, is we are seeing a turn in the auto industry, that's sustainable. >> reporter: u.s. automakers heading in the right direction. and enjoying the ride. michelle franzen, nbc news, new york. >> chrysler was the one dim spot in the new numbers. their u.s. sales fell about 8% last month. positive day on wall street today. the dow is up 70 points. nasdaq up four points. s&p 500 also up eight points. lth lick cardinals are defending pope been diktd bene. today a leading vatican official lashed out at media coverage of the sex abuse scandal still unfolding in europe. ann thompson reports. >> reporter: night has fallen in rome and holy thursday ceremonies are over. and once again pope benedict xvi celebrated mass but did mott address the clergy sex abuse scandal. he did wash the feet as part of the re-enactment. he spoke of christ's priestly duties but did not address what has people here in europe so angry. and that is the increasing revelations about priests who abuse children. while the pope isn't talking, the vatican officials are. cardinal william lavata who heads the office of clergy abuse, he accuses "the times" of being unfair in its reporting of pope benedict xvi. he says that the pope is actually owed a debt of gratitude because he's the one who has helped place procedures within the church to help the church deal wit these cases of sexual abuse. that's the latest from rome. i'm ann thompson, now back to you. >> it is a case that involves a decision not to defrock a priest accused of molesting boys in wisconsin. in the article posted on the vatican's website lavata said the priest was already dying by the time the diocese began the process and "the new york times" first reported details of that decision last week. cardinal lavata accused "the times" of wrongly using the case to find fault in pope benedict's handling of the abuse case. the crowds gathered for a special prayer at jerusalem's famous wall. the event includes a special blessing that takes place only three times a year. the security in east jerusalem has been especially tight over the last few weeks. israel has ignored demands by the u.s. to stop building in an area that's been claimed by the palestinians. coming up on "news4 at 6:00," panda pregnancy watch again at the nation school. brand new video out of a volcano. one that's erupting in iceland. >> another check on the forecast. veronica is next çóçóçóçñçñçó active volcano in southern iceland getting larger and the images are getting more impressive. new crater opened late yesterday producing even more fountains of red hot lava. look at that. geologists say it poses no threat to local residents. but they are concerned it could trigger another eruption at a larger mountain nearby. the volcano has been dormant for 200 years before it started erupting. two weeks ago. wow. that's getting bigger and more spectacular each day. >> that's just an incredible sight. veronica, you ought to be glad we have nothing like that around here. it is impressive. >> it is very impressi. somebody is getting awfully good shots of that. meanwhile, around here, it was so nice i think it was dangerously nice. i'm driving to work and going along and going along. enjoying the weather. then i got into a weather trance. i almost forgot where i was going. 46 to the low temperature today. we got up to 74 degrees this afternoon. the average high is 61. average low is 42 degrees. at least 10 to 15 degrees above average, our highs across the area. dew point temperature 40 degrees with relative humidity at 41%. winds out of the south at 10 miles per hour. but there have been cool spots today right near the water that have been running in the 60s. so down south we have 83. raleigh, north carolina, look at all of this warm air. up into detroit, michigan, chicago, illinois, and 81 degrees currently. it is 84 in omaha. so a lot of warmth still due to heading to the east, folks. under high pressure, though. we have fantastic clear conditions. and we are going to have rain-free conditions. probably the next seven days. a while before we see any rain around the area. so a nice dry stretch. clear skies into new york and around main sxhan clear skies down south through georgia. and alabama and mississippi. but already some high clouds coming into areas of the midwest. and the ohio valley. there's clouds associated with the next weather system move thing way. here is one of the cool spots at tillman island. 62 degrees. high temperature today. 61 right mao. again, winds that have been off the water. bay breeze. meanwhile, the locations well west. and inland and hit the low 80s today. up to 83 degrees, front royal, virginia. right now at 79 degrees. air is pretty dry in the west. national weather service as well as the division of forestry, virginia, urging folks with the low humidity and high temperatures to hold off on any open burning. once that -- watch that if you are heading west camping over the easter break. 77 degrees right now in and around the neighborhoods of leesburg, virginia. gore just conditions with a light wind. there is that big surge of warmth. eastern half of the nation. and the blue stuff, chilly stuff. out west. 41, salt lake city. 48 degrees right now in denver, colorado and 44 in boise, idaho. that chill associated with big trough and this next low pressure system can see showers just a few showers across the northern plains. the southern plains may be looking at storms and possibility of severe weather for arkansas and louisiana tomorrow. but here again, w have about 48 hours of at least cloud-free conditions. we could pick up a few high clouds on saturday. and as that weather system that's just talked about out west as it makes its way eastward, will start falling apart there. i doubt that any showers make it across the mountains but could have just a few high clouds around here late saturday. 79, 80 here tomorrow. look at north carolina. raleigh, could get close to 90 degrees there. so here is your forecast then. quite pleasant here for the evening. temperatures will be dropping from the upper 60s to about 60 degrees by midnight. light winds for our area. same thing tomorrow morning. wind light out of the south. sun is upt 6:51. 40 to 45 degrees. seasonable nice start. and it will feel more like may around here with highs getting into the low 80s across the area. and our easter weekend more like memorialay weekend. sunshine and dry conditions through monday on your four-day forecast. even as we go into the mid portion of next week, tuesday, wednesday, right now still sunshine and we could have pew passing showers coming our way on thursday. so a nice stretch. if you didn't get anything outdoors done today you wanted to, you have days to do it. back to you. >> lots of yard work ahead, i predict. >> that's it. >> you and me both. >> thanks, veronica. coming up on our broadcast, people living in the southeast d.c. neighborhood where four people were killed this week have questions for city officials. >> officials at the pentagon today talked about changes that have been de in the wake of an attack on police officers there. >> commuters in virginia are being told to get ready for longer commutes because of construction projects. and yet another panda pregnancy watch at the zoo. coming up in sports, wizards finally catch a break. new redskins running back larry johnson talks to the media. vasquez picked up postseason hardware. "news4 at 6:00" continues. if we don't know how big our community is, how do we know how big our hospitals need to be? the census helps us know exactly what we need, so everyone can get their fair share of funding. we can't move forward until you mail it back. 2010 census. i'm nervous about her going away, but i know that she wants to be able to do things on her own. (sunny) the bayer meter helps me become morindependent. (announcer) only bayer's contour meter has programmable personal high low settings. (sunny) the hi/lo settings gives you a good idea of where your blood sugars' at and what you need to do to control it. the bayer meter will give me peace of mind. i want you to be happy. don't cry. my name is sunny and independence is my simple win. (announcer) the contour meter, only from bayer. we are back with our top story for this half hour. paulout from tuesday's drive-by shooting in southeast d.c. nine peop