>> officials hope better training to recognize the sign of abuse will help crack down on offenders. jennifer franciotti has more details. >> city police are taking active steps in the way they take animal abuse cases. a task force is hoping to make a difference. this dog is recovering after she was attacked by a machete last week. there was another attack on easter sunday. this week, a pop it wasn't so lucky. he died after a beating on a golf course. >> they are asking for greater attention to these horrible cruelty cases. >> that is worthy task force comes in. they have been working with police to reduce animal abuse.

a training program for offic ers has been implemented. >> we think it is a priority that all departments have officers that know how to proceed. we will implement those recommendations. >> that is an important step. the first step is to get the public to recognize it and reported, to get the police to respond. >> the sheriff's office is being more proactive against animal cruelty. all deputies must now write reports on cases and the fans. a letter was written asking all law enforcement recruits in maryland go through animal cruelty training. the task force is holding a public hearing at june 16. if you have any ideas, you are

asked to come. jennifer franciotti, wbal-tv 11 news. >> real estate officials will check out land. a reservoir site near white marsh is leased by joe bartenfelder who is a candidate for county executive. the land was originally owned by his family. the city has failed to keep renewing the lease. >> how that could happen, that there could be so little attention to that. we're taking a look at that least right now and we will be have markethey will value pequot they rented the property last year and he has no problem paying more for the land. >> key cards will be used at

bellaire high school next year. edgewood high school will implement a similar program in the fall. teachers can use information to take attendance. recycling will soon be easier for residents of harford county. this will begin september 12. all recyclables can be placed in the same container. plastic bags will not be accepted. contact your local grocery store to recycle them. this should save more than $400,000 a year. >> the oil is a short in southern louisiana. more oil appears to be headed to florida. we have the latest from st. petersburg, florida. >> it will distort everything in this marsh.

>> the waiting game is over. the water carrying the thick toxic crude into the wetlands. it is also now floating to florida. a light oil sheen has made it into the loop currents. >> we expect most of it to denigrate before it comes close to threatening south florida. >> more oil continues to flow into the gulf. the company is completing plans to try a kill, injecting heavy mud and cement to plug the leak. >> let's all keep our fingers crossed. we're anxious to see it works. >> in many places, anxiety is

spreading, now knowing what the future could look like. we could soon get another look at the leak. more video is expected to be released this afternoon. a live feed could also be made available. >> a woman in detroit said the restaurant she works at says the restaurant has overstepped its boundaries when it comes to the appearance. her review left her dumbfounded. she must lose weight or lose her job. eight gym membership would be extended. she weighs 132 pounds. she continues to work at the restaurant. that brings us to our watercooler question of the day. do you agree with hooters' decision to order its employees to lose weight or risk being fired? e-mail your response to watercooler@wbaltv.com.

again, watercooler@wbaltv.com that. >> researchers find a, association with the drug viagra. >> a drink could help your health. >> in westminster, we have an accident we are tracking there. accident we are tracking there.

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turn to the experts during cool choices and get up to $1200 cash back on an infinity system by carrier. >> welcome back. good morning. you can see a little bit of fog in the distance. there is some fog and visibility may be down to less than half a

mile in some spots. it is not a widespread fog event. by the time you get to baltimore, it should disappear. -- dissipate. mostly sunny today. generally sunny today and much warmer than the last couple of days. we were in the 50's on monday and tuesday. we're shooting for a high temperature of 79 degrees. we will check the forecast for the weekend in just a few minutes. for now, back to the news desk. >> man who take viagra and other drugs like it might be at a greater risk for hearing loss. those who took the drug were twice as likely to report problems with their hearing. this is only an association and does not prove by aker causes

hearing loss. >> moderate drinkers may be healthier than those who completely abstain from alcohol. those who drink moderate amounts of alcohol tend to have less stress and a more active social life. the study found man had lower rates of cardiovascular disease and a lower body mass index. female moderate drinkers were found to have lower blood pressure and a slimmer waist. it is too early to say alcohol provides cardiovascular protection. >> moderation. do not drink until you drop. >> 52 degrees. the nation's president could not keep tabs on his library books. >> a theater in new york is

providing an extremely intimate

>> now traffic pulse 11 and insta-weather plus together. >> good morning. there are some problems as you head out on this thursday morning. there is a problem on route 27 in westminster. there is another accident in louisville at norman avenue. watch for delays in both spots -- there is another accident in lutherville. no problems to report on the j.f.x. one on the west side outer loop. here's a quick live look outside. 395 looks pretty good. let's give the a quick live look in the havre de grace the city. we're searching for an accident that is reporting on southbound 95. no sign of it here. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. let's check the latest on the buses and trains. >> good morning.

looking very good on the light rail, metro, subway this morning. on the blackrock, we have a 20- minute delay at valley. there are a few diversions at prices down because of construction. 91 bus diverting at liberty. the 21 bus diverting at madison and central. now back to tony pann. >> the weather is pretty quiet on this thursday morning. there is a touch of fog outside. the summer season is almost upon us. sandra shaw has decided he to do some boating. >> we are talking power boats. there are a lot of events coming up. there is a shakedown cruise. they get ready to hit the water.

how fast do these go? but it is how long you go fast. most of these boats cruised over 60 miles per hour. we have fish boats and we're open to pretty much everybody. >> you have more than 200 members. >> the shakedown cruise is our first event of the year. it is a social event and hopefully people cannot shake down their boat after the winter and have a good time with everybody he >> it sounds great. you also have a beat leukemia fundraiser, marc willis. >> this is our 13th year with leukemia. this is open to all boaters, anybody but sale boaters. we do a poker run. we go to 7 stops.

we have a great time with that. >> when is it? " june 25-27. >> you have plenty of time to get ready. we have a power boat here. we will talk more about the events in just a little bit. it feels more like summer later today. it is beautiful out here this morning. it is nice on the river. it will be near 80 this afternoon plenty of sun. i cannot wait to get on the boat this morning. >> memorial day is just around the corner, the unofficial start of summer. >> i cannot wait. bring it on. correct thinking, sandra. -- thank you, sandra.

it will be a sunny day. 52 in westminster. satellite imagery is picking up the cloud cover. a disturbance in the upper level coming out of pennsylvania. you might see some cloud cover to start the day and maybe a little bit of fog. we are watching a storm system producing severe weather across arkansas and back into oklahoma law. it will weaken by the time it gets to our neighborhood. high pressure will settle in over the mid-atlantic. it will bump into that area of high pressure and we can. it will give us a slight chance for thunderstorms over the weekend. the weather will be very nice between now and then. mostly sunny today. highs in the upper 70's to

around 80. overnight tonight, mostly clear and comfortable. temperatures back into the 50's. the area of high pressure moves off the coast. surface winds turned to the south. middle 80's on friday. the storm system comes out of the planes. it will weaken but we could see a shower or thunderstorm on both saturday and sunday. sunny and warm with pay high near 82. scattered thunderstorms this high temperatures in the mid 70's. high temperatures by next tuesday and wednesday will be in the upper 80's. turning the corner into more summer-like set up. >> many of us forget to return a book to elaborate at some time.

george washington racked up heavy penalties. >> a ceremonial gesture long overdue. >> now returned this book to you for safekeeping. estate of george washington returned this book, one of two books the president's check that over 100 years ago. >> it is a dead ringer for the book that once been checked out. >> the books were locked and dated october 5. both titles of the books were entered. just six months earlier, washington had taken the oath of

president. historians say washington had a reputation for honesty and like the forgot he had borrowed the books. >> it must have been the pressures of the presidency that caused him to forget. >> the toll in library fines, $300,000. a lot of money. the tab will not have to be paid. >> i absolves george washington from any and all overdue library fines. cute.at was s there is one theater in times square that is focused on entertaining one audience member at a time. >> hello? i am going to show you some magic. ♪

>> there is only one performer. the designer came up with the idea that people like to spend time in intimate spaces. the idea is receiving mixed reviews. >> it looks too small to me. >> it is enchanting. i would go back in again in a flash. >> the performances last up to a 10 minutes and they are free. i am too claustrophobic. >> it is clever and you unique. >> we will have one of your answers to our water cooler question of the day. >> here is a look at last night's winning maryland lottery numbers. good luck.

>> time to get to some of your answers for our water cooler question of the day. >> this morning we asked -- do you agree with hooters' decision to order its employees to lose weight or risk being fired?

>> keep e-mail link those responses to watercooler@wbaltv.com. we will read more in the next hour. >> your thursday night of last will go on hiatus after tonight. season finales will air tonight. matt damon approached the cast at an awards show and they jumped at the opportunity to have him on. he will play a possible love interest for tina fey. >> i met that died. he is not that great. a great pilot would not have hit the birds that is what i do every day.

>> there are rumors he could return next season when the show moves to a 8:30 time slot. for more, log onto wbaltv.com. nexts a look ahead to hour. >> a man is indicted in an alleged hate crime attack. >> a new way of learning. >> maryland is making a significant change to its benefits package. find out why not everyone is happy about it. >> the weather is nice and quiet on this thursday morning. we will show you the seven-day forecast in just a few minutes. >> we have several accidents to report.

>> went law-enforcement shows up at your door, they will be taking a closer look at your pets. >> does congress have the appetite to pass reform? >> more bad news from mexico. it could spread even wider. >> are weak in for some warmer days? please say so. we continue. [captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> live, local, late-breaking, this is wbal-tv 11 news today in hd. >> good thursday morning. i am mindy basara. >> and i am stan stovall. thank you for joining us. >> tony pann will answer that question. >> what question? >> dreier and warmer. >> i would never make fun of you, not on the air, anyway. >> i am getting