the fate of convicted cop killer eric frein, next. ♪ >> "action news," delaware valley's leading news program with jim gardner. ♪ >> it was a grief-filled journey from christiana hospital to the delaware m.e.'s office in wilmington. for nine miles the body of a delaware state trooper was

accompanied by motorcycle officers and a whole lot of other officers. within the last 90 minutes we learned his name, 32-year-old cpl. stephen ballard was gunned down at a wawas in bear, delaware. a suspect has been taken into custody and another has been barricaded inside his house most of the day. it's wednesday night and the big story is the execution style shooting of a delaware state trooper. since this afternoon the alleged gunman has been barricaded inside his home. an army of police has been outside of the house in the brick mill farm development. late tonight lawmen have blown the door off the house but have yet to go in. they are being careful because the suspect has been shooting at

police at various times during the day. this all began when the officer approached a suspicious vehicle. one of the men got out and started shooting hitting corporal ballard three times. he was rushed to christiana hospital where he was pronounced dead. let's go to middle town where annie mccormick has been talking to neighbors of the suspect. what are they saying tonight? >> police have this portion of brick mill road shut down. they are not allowing neighbors back inside or those locked down to leave. this is a video from a short time ago when the state trooper addressed residents waiting in a nearby parking lot telling them there is a shelter at the odessa fire company where they can stay.

authorities detonated an explosive to breach the front door but they have not entered the home and they are trying to work with the suspect to get them to surrender. >> i'm worried about the boys. they are so little. she's good at protecting them. >> the family separated from their two young boys and nanny as the standoff for a suspect f killing a delaware state trooper goes on. the suspect inside alone and armed fired at police after they surrounded his home following the fatal shooting. neighbors heard dozens of shots. >> three cop cars, lights on floored it past us. five minutes later my mom called saying there were shots going off in the neighborhood.

>> some locked down by police told it's too dangerous to leave. one woman's 13-year-old daughter home alone. >> she was very scared. >> the schools were put on lockdown. this woman was on a field trip with her niece. >> brick mill did a good job not letting the kids know what was going on, but they let the parents know what happened. >> residents ar residents near y they never expected something like this to happen here. >> this is a surprise to all of us. they are -- my neighbors. no problems whatever. >> police do say they believe the suspect does live there with a relative. this time they have not released that suspect's name.

reporting live in midtown delaware, annie mccormick, "action news wphl-17. >> back to you. >> everyone is living a police officer's worst nightmare, the death of one of their own. christie? >> the officer stephen ballard was assigned to troupe ii in delaware. flags are lowered to half-mast. it's a sad day for the officers and residents they serve. >> a caravan slowly pulled away from christiana hospital. residents stood silently, their hands over their hearts. veteran storm veteran gave a

solute to a i fallen officer. he has a family. he's not coming home. >> powerful images from chopper 6 show people pulling over on the side of the road to pay their respects. >> this is a sad day for our state and the delaware state police family. >> the slain trooper graduated from the delaware police academy in 2009, an eight year veteran on the force. he was recently married about was part of the local organization of black law enforcement. >> he has a contagious personality. he's engaging and committed to helping people. it's a shame. he was such after good person. >> we also learned that ballard graduated from state university where he went back to mentor

college students. this is a sad day for his family and the officers that worked alongside him. christie ileto, channel6 "action news." >> we urge you to stay with "action news" for continuing coverage with this story. any new developments starting at 4:30 in the morning and online at "6abc".com. >> we have breaking news out of milford in pike county. within the last hour, a jury sentenced eric frein to death for killing a state trooper. vernon odum has the details. >> jim, good evening. a jury of eight women, four men from chester county deliberated four hours tonight before returning their verdict. it's the death penalty for eric frein, the 33-year-old that

killed trooper dic dickson and wounded alex douglass. the same jury convicted frein last week. his defense team asked for mercy and a sentence in prison without parole. the state police got what they wanted, death row for frein. >> tonight, we are pleased for the hard work and commitment to justice of the 12 men and women of this jury that deliberated diligently and brought justice in this particular case. >> not only was there a mountain of evidence, the d.a. and his assistant did a fantastic job of prosecuting the case. they were well armed and well organized. they are both good lawyers. they did a fabulous job for

their client in pennsylvania. >> jim, our viewers should keep in mind no death row inmate has been executed in the commonwealth of pennsylvania since 1999. the frein defense team says they'll exercise their right to automatically appeal to the state supreme court. live in milford, pike county, i'm vernon odum, channel6 "action news." >> thank you, vernon. it's been a long time coming. first a decision to locate in philadelphia. then the construction along the ben franklin parkway in front of the art museum. ready or not, it happens tomorrow, the nfl draft, a huge sports spectacle and kicks off tomorrow night on espn. "action news" reporter dann cuellar is live at the scene tonight. is everything at the ready for the big show? >> jim, guess what? they are still working tonight

and they'll be working around the clock as we go to the final countdown of the opening of the nfl draft. the excitement is building, as you are about to see. with the spotlight on the city of philadelphia an army of workers are out in force putting the finishing touchin touches oe display on the parkway. fencing around the secure area and fans all over the place. these folks are from corpse cors christie, texas. >> we are here on vacation. we are here and ready for tomorrow. >>i'm wearing my cowboy gear. >> be careful with that. >> that's what i have been told. with so many people expected, only so many will be able to sit

in the seating. >> we have t. v.s if they can't sit in the theater. >> there is the hall of fame museum with the ring of excellence along with the superbowl rings on display. at the nfl shop, the mannequin featuring all 32 of the nfl team, a popular spot for selfies. >> it's a nice evening. >> already tonight people were trying to get a sneak peek. >> they have it so blocked off, you can't see anything. we were hoping to get a couple of glimpses. >> it's probably nothing like it will be tomorrow. >> all in all, football fans are excited about the draft coming to philadelphia. >> it will be huge. >> there you go. >> and it's been a massive undertaking to bring this huge event to life here in center

city. tonight, jim, as you say, it's all systems go. i'm dann cuellar, channel6 "action news." >> jim? >> thank you, dan. "6abc".com/nfl draft the online home for coverage. you can look at activities and get a list of restricted items if you are planning to visit the parkway. >> coming up, are restraining orders doing enough to protect victims from alleged abusers? after several high-profile deaths of women slain by men that were supposed to stay away. >> the tax plan, what it means for your wallet. cecily? >> the next three days, temperatures in the 80s. i'm also tracking thunderstorms. i'll run it all down for you in the seven-day forecast. >> ducis rogers has more from

the nfl draft set on the parkway when "action news" continues. ♪ ♪

>> the trump administration has unveiled the outlines of its tax cut plan. the signature feature of the plan is a reduction in corporate tax rates from 35 to 15% for

individual tax filers it would reduce the number of brackets 7-3 with the highest 39.6 to 35%. wealthier americans would benefit from the elimination of the estate tax and the elimination of sur tax on investment income. the trump plan would double the standard deduction. right now there is no plan to pay for tax cuts and analysts say they would add 3 to $7 trillion to the deficit over ten years. >> it was quite a scene at the white house as all 100 senators arrived at the capital filing into the eisenhower executive building for a briefing on the situation in north korea. it seemed to be an attempt to cool the situation.

they'll apply pressure on north korea to lower its nuclear program. last september a woman was killed by the father of her son. investigative reporter windy saltzman has more. >> this, a piece of paper did little to protect o'shea from the man accused of killing her. she's not alone. we hear from families that say restraining orders fail today protect their loved ones. >> this is the 911 call after tara was found murdered in her home. >> she was afraid he was going to kill her, and he did. >> o'shea had a restraining order against him but friends say it wasn't enough. >> don't wait for the courts. they are not going to help you.

>> o'shea's gruesome death sent chills down the spines of katy right. >> they told the story of their daughter and sister of carol ely stabbed to death in the drive way june 3, 2015. >> she slept with a pipe in her bed and a knife. she felt if he came up, she might have a chance. >> in her journal she wrote about the abuse she suffered at the hands of her boyfriend michael idle. >> the family says the courts refused to give her a permanent restraining order against idle even though he spent time in prison for kidnapping an ex-girlfriend. >> my sister should be here if she had the protection she deserved to have, she would be here. >> they are fighting for the passage of a law to protect the

victims called "lisa's law." it's easier in new jersey to get a restraining order. >> tara is behind the legislation after her friend was killed by her ex-fiance. lisa's ex-was released from jail after violating a restraining order. the next day the woman was found beaten to death in the back of her car. >> lisa's law would alert police and the victim if the perpetrator came within the vicinity of the victim or their home. >> the law sponsored by troy singleton has been passed twice by the new jersey legislature but stalled twice in the hands

of governor chris christie. >> there should be a law. >> in a statement governor chris christie said he vetoed the law in 2015 because he didn't believe there was adequate technology and resources and pocketed it again in 2016 saying the technology was limited and not reliable enough. lisa's law is making its way through a third time. i'm wendy saltzman, "action news." >> we'll follow this story and progress of that proposed legislation. >> we have hundreds of thousands of people going down to the parkway over the next few days. what kind of weather will they have? >> they should bring shorts and sunscreen and water. we are dry out there. temperatures, really not falling much. 62 in philadelphia down from the

high of 64. allentown, 64. millville 61. cape may 55. satellite and radar showing pesky low pressure that meandered through the region finally pulling out. we have thin clouds and a lot of moisture at a low level. likely in the morning we have patchy fog around, morning rush hours, 57, 7:00. 8:00, 59. sunshine, finally. i almost forgot what it looks like. temperatures rebound nicely, 81, mostly sunny. we have a weak front pulling through. sunshine is back with a high of 83. future tracker timing showers and thunderstorms, 1:00 friday morning a batch moving through. a few could linger into friday

morning, 8:00. then sunshine is back. we have another system saturday afternoon. that could bring a few afternoon showers. it won't be a perfect forecast, but if you are ready for summertime, you get a preview the next three days. the exclusive forecast, 81 and sunshine, 83 friday, saturday, 85. sunday, we cool off to 82 before briefly spiking back to the low 80s monday with showers and thunderstorms and a cold front. after this, we have beautiful spring weather. tuesday, sunny, nice, 73. wednesday, partly sunny with a high of 72. all in all, a nice looking seven-day forecast. >> a survivor of the holocaust shared her story on the 72nd anniversary of her liberation from the ravens brook concentration camp.

she read one of her works of poetry. she was forced into a ghetto in poland in 1942, and then to auschwitz where she was separated from her parents and siblings. she never saw them again. dozens of young people completing their g.e.d. held a prom in center city philadelphia. they are taking part in program w.o.w., giving students that dropped out of high school, a second chance at an education. ♪ ♪ (vo) love.

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>> some young wordsmiths will have a chance to tell their stories. the national youth foundation launched its book scholar competition. linebacker hicks and rob covington were on hand to lend their support tonight. eagle safety malcolm jenksens was in center city to launch his new clothing store. it will specialize in custom designed men suits. sharrie williams was there to check out the merchandise. ithe store is set to open in june. let's go to draft central on the parkway. ducis rogers, we know the biggest names in football are mi to philadelphia. what about local kids? they'll feel emotion going into

the draft as well. >> it will be a dream come true when they hear their name called on the stage. the finishing touches are still being put on the stage. the draft is a three day event but there are other things. several players visited shriner's hospital. korey clemmon from glassboro, new jersey, they can't wait for this day to come. >> i'm anxious to see where i'll be at. i have been a calm, cool, collected guy. i rarely get nervous, so i'm not nervous, but the waiting to see where i go, that's exciting. >> it will be a memorable day for everybody. i want to share with my high school, middle school, elementary school, i did my

growing up here. why not give back to those that helped me get here. >> as for the eagle, they have eight picks, the highest tomorrow at 14 over all. do they go running back, receiver or quarterback? experts say the focus should be around building around carson wentz. >> they have carson wentz because cleveland giftwrapped an early christmas present to say we don't want him. you can have him. that move alone is why you can build around the wate quarterba. >> it's a weak offensive line group. protecting the quarterback is the most important thing this team can do going forward. >> after the break, we turn our attention to the phillies.

tomorrow on "action news" morning, athletes across the country are in university city for the start of the penn relay. >> i help you through the closures of the nfl draft. wake up to what's happening tomorrow morning on "action news."

>> ducis rogers back with you from akin's oval, site of tomorrow's nfl draft. now to the phillies, their game with the marlins was rained out last night. they enter on a four game win streak. third inning, in a hole, not anymore. franco with a grand! second of the season, three for four on the night. to the eighth inning, michael saunders. a two run monster blast.

phillies win 7-4, five victories in a row. jeremy hellickson on the mound. >> nfl draft day one tomorrow night. jim, back to you. >> thank you, ducis. finally tonight, philadelphia magazine kicked off its celebration of the the draft. >> they held a meeting and greeting. "jimmy kimmel live" next followed by "nightline." news at 4:30. for cecily tynan, ducis rogers and the entire "action news" team, i'm jim gardner. goodnight. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ guardian ♪ guardian ♪ guardian of the galaxy volum♪ >> dicky: from hollywood, it's "jimmy kimmel live"! tonight, the cast of "guardians of the galaxy volume 2," chris pratt, zoe saldana, dave bautista, michael rooker and kurt russell. plus music from bleachers. and now, just relax -- here's jimmy kimmel! [ cheers and applause ] ♪