The Post is reporting that an off-duty Metropolitan Police officer shot a man who was attempting to rob him at a gas station in Northeast early this morning. A police spokesperson told the paper the shooting took place at around 12:30 a.m. at 905 Brentwood Rd. NE, though it seems like the gas station in question actually has to be the Lowest Price Gas Station at 925 Brentwood Rd. NE, as no gas station appears......

Two men robbed the Maggie Moo's ice cream parlor on U Street at gunpoint yesterday -- and they did it at 12:15 p.m., right in the middle of the day. DCist's Lynne Venart snapped the photo above of some of the aftermath of the crime scene. According to WJLA, the armed suspects wore masks and physically attacked a 23-year-old employee of the store when she had trouble opening the safe. The gunmen only made......

Are you ready, D.C.?! That's right: it's the first snowfall of the season. We talked about it yesterday, and the outlook remains pretty much the same. Both Capital Weather and our local TV weatherpeople agree that we'll get about an inch of unusually fluffy snow, with most of it falling by early afternoon. City Starts Looking For More Theft: Watch out, D.C. government ne'er-do-wells: Dan Tangherlini is on your trail. NBC4 reports that the......

Good morning, Washington. Given that A Charlie Brown Christmas was on TV last night, this story seems especially rough. Apparently some folks stole $1500 worth of Christmas trees from the Boy Scouts that were selling them. Remember kids: leave your clearly marked tree receipt out for Santa if you want your presents delivered promptly and with a minimum of additional paperwork. Latest On Taylor Murder Investigation, Funeral: The Post reports on the few details......

Good morning, Washington. Glover Park's unlikely strip club row along Wisconsin Ave. saw a scary crime over the weekend, as police are still looking for a suspect after an employee at Good Guys was doused in gasoline and set on fire by an angry customer. The victim, a 26-year-old man, has third degree burns over 80 percent of his body and is currently listed as stable but critical. The assailant had been kicked out of......

The Associated Press is reporting that a dark cherry red Peterbilt tanker truck hauling gasoline was stolen at gunpoint this morning in Baltimore. ABC News follows up with word that police believe it to be a straight-up robbery and not connected to terrorism in any way, but that the Joint Terrorism Task Forces from Washington and Baltimore are assisting local Police in the investigation as a precaution. The suspect was last seen driving the truck......

Written by DCist Contributer Josh Kramer The Eagle – American University: >>AU students lamented losing their Hollywood Video this week, which is holding a giant closing sale and selling all of its movies. It's unclear what will become of the space, conveniently located next to the AU shuttle bus stop and the Tenleytown-AU Metro station. >>Sgt. Zachary Tellier, a 1998 AU graduate, was killed by enemy fire while fighting in Afghanistan on the 29th of......

Welcome back to work, you godless heathens who had yesterday off. While you were off frolicking in the sunshine with flowers in your hair and puppies at your feet, the rest of us were here, slaving away. OK fine, maybe we spent a little time playing with our new avatar feature (read more here). But we only did it in a totally serious manner, devoid of any fun or whimsy. Speaking of fun, this ridiculous......

Good morning, Washington. It's almost October, but in many ways it still seems like summer. For one thing, it'll be ninety degrees today. For another, there's news of Michael Vick's worsening legal situation. Yesterday Virginia indicted him and three others on dogfighting charges. Of course, we all knew that was coming sooner or later — less expected was word that a Canadian bank is suing Vick for defaulting on a $2.3 million loan. Potential......

By DCist Contributor Sarah Stonesifer The Eagle - American: >> At American University, officials decided that an official record will be kept along with possible judicial action after students receive their "second medical transport due to alcohol consumption." So remember kids, the first case of alcohol poisoning is free. >> There was an attempted robbery in an American University dorm last Saturday, but the suspect was quickly apprehended and identified. The Hoya - Georgetown: >>......

"Petraeus Says Objectives in Iraq Are Largely Being Met" [WaPo] "Slow Progress Being Made in Iraq, Petraeus Tells Congress" [NYTimes] "We are winning in Iraq, General Petraeus says" [London Times] "Petraeus says U.S. troop levels can be cut" [Reuters] >> A noose was reportedly found hanging in a tree near a building that houses several African American campus organizations at the University of Maryland. School officials are treating the incident as a possible hate......

In case you missed this great Post article from Clarence Williams and Elissa Silverman this morning, be sure and read the whole thing. It's the story of Simon Mahteme, owner of LeDroit Park Market, the center of a neighborhood struggling to improve itself in the face of continuing crime and violence. Mahteme's store has been broken into ten times since October, and after this last incident, he had a customer help him place the......

Few things are less reassuring about the state of crime and degree of safety we have in this town than police officers who can't be bothered to learn basic law. Blogger Amber at Prettier than Napoleon reports a story we sincerely hope is not true. Her friend, she says, was home when two men attempted to break into her house. Apparently her presence made them rethink their efforts, but they remained nearby in an alley......

Good morning, D.C. After Tuesday's false Friday, it feels pretty damn good finally to be heading into a real weekend. It's going to be hot, sunny and dry on Saturday and Sunday, so get out there and enjoy it. Police Shot Man Who Died: Two D.C. police officers shot a 23-year-old man near the intersection of 17th Street and Bladensburg Road NE this morning who may have been involved in a gun battle with another......

Ninety-six degress, Washington. That's what weather.com is predicting for today's high. That should put the heat index safely into the hundred range, and the city as a whole into the "justified complaining" range. And it's what made this photo from phillefan_99 catch our attention. It's hard to look at it and not think wistfully of summer days at Cameron Run, rubbing our backs raw on the waterslides and bobbing in the suspiciously salty wave......

Admittedly, Tuesday morning's dramatic bank robbery was a tough act to follow. A weapon, a luxury car, a high-speed chase across state lines, evidence flung into the Potomac, a climactic crash and an arrest by an ironically low-speed bike cop: it pretty much had it all. Still, this is lame by any standards. NBC4 reports that a man tried to rob a Bank of America in Bailey's Crossroads via pneumatic tube. He sent his robbery......

Good morning, Washington. With the holiday behind us and temperatures closing in on 90, it now feels solidly like summer, huh? Well, we're glad to have the warm weather. What we're not as glad about is the spike in crime that usually accompanies it. After yesterday's relentlessly depressing conversation about race, gentrification and crime, we're kind of wishing for snow simply to stave off the bitter comment threads that a few bored hooligans can spawn.......

You might want to watch your back if you live on Capitol Hill, as the last five days have seen 23 robberies in the MPD’s 1st District. Compared with five robberies two weekends ago, residents of the terrorized area are feeling a little on edge about wandering around a neighborhood that is generally pretty safe. MPD-1 and Hill East listservs have been abuzz since Saturday with news of the daring robberies, many of which occurred......

Good day, Washington. Are you getting tired of this gorgeous weather yet? Yeah, us neither. As you work out the kinks in your upcoming Memorial Day Weekend plans, we wish you good luck and delight in describing the rest of this week and weekend ahead as forecast to be sunny and hot enough to give you that sunburn you've been hoping for. We're also putting together a few ideas for last-minute day trips for those......

Good morning, Washington. It's hard to believe that Queen Elizabeth's visit is already over — to be honest, we found it a bit disappointing. Sure, it was fun to have President Bush embarrass himself in front of her. And yes, we were as fascinated as anyone to read about precisely what she ate at Monday's state dinner. Still, we can't help feeling like this royal visit was less hilarious than it could have been.......

Good morning, Washington. Today is the day of the Voting Rights March. If you can, gather at Freedom Plaza at 2:30 p.m. to march to the capitol with your friends from DCist and other Washingtonians. Or, just meet us for the rally planned at 4 p.m. at the Capitol Reflecting Pool. Either way, we hope you make it out for at least one hour to show your support for District voting rights. Don't let this......

Remember the days of the Cold War, when Soviet and American diplomats would slyly meet in D.C. restaurants to share some moo shu in between bringing the world to the edge of nuclear annihilation? It seems the days of Spy vs. Spy aren't as far in the past as we'd like to think. As you've no doubt heard, on March 1 Paul Joyal, an expert on Russian intelligence, was shot outside his Adelphi, Maryland home,......

Well, did the last 24 hours of weather forecasts and warnings succeed in scaring you into a bunker to pray for your immortal souls? Even before a single flake of death appeared, many suburban schools scrapped the day in fear of Snowpocalypse: Episode Three. Various forecasters predict 1-3 inches for the District and even more in areas West. As for DCist, we'll fan out through the city to bring you complete coverage, which, like the......

Looking out our windows this morning was a disappointment, to say the least, but don't say we didn't try to warn you. Whatever "wintry mix" that did rain down on the metro area last night has left little trace of itself in the city proper, except slick roads. Freezing rain and ice in the suburbs has, however, prompted some late starts at schools in Fairfax, Howard, and Montgomery county. Not to mention the excitement that......

Last night, Northeast D.C. saw a robbery, a high-speed chase, gun shots directed at police, an injured cyclist, and a barricade situation, all rolled into one. Police cars, flashing lights and emergency vehicles woke up many residents late last night around a normally quiet stretch of Capitol Hill. NBC 4 notes that investigators have said the incident "started around 9:30 p.m. after three suspects robbed a man at gunpoint at 41st and Benning Road Northeast......

>> Do college students like having fun? Well, DO THEY!? Sounds like a job for Laura Sessions Stepp! Pull-quote highlight: "[Professor Frederic D.] Homer and graduate assistant Rodney Wambeam wanted to know what students meant when they said they were in college to have fun. They wanted to know why students rarely included classwork in that definition. What they heard surprised them." That means if Stepp, herself, was surprised, it could potentially bring the total......

> > Totally uninformed theory: Wonderland robbery actually masterminded by the mild-mannered members of Norfolk & Western? Just putting it out there... > > Xmas In Washington play to feature Marion Shepilov Barry playing a heroic angel who sings "Stormy Weather" (WTFx10?!?) and comes to the rescue of Katrina evacuees separated from their children. Gloria Hightower says Barry's star turn comes from a desire to make the character "realistic"--which can only mean the following......

It seems that some nefarious characters fell down the rabbit hole last Friday night. The City Desk reports that the Wonderland Ballroom--Columbia Heights’ enclave of kitsch, quirkdom, and delicious foot-long hotdogs--fell victim to an armed robbery by three masked men. Yesterday, as Wonderland filled up with the tragically hip for weekly trivia night, bar co-owner Matthew McGovern sat down and gave us the scoop: when the perps entered the bar around 9 p.m., it was......

And a good Friday to you, Washington. It's just about the weekend, a great time to continue that celebrating or mourning that you've had going on for the last few days, depending on what side of the political aisle you're on. Today will be a sunny day, with highs around 70. The temperature is slated to hit the same mark on Saturday, only it will be a partly cloudy day. Sunday will see highs in......

If you've ever browsed Craigslist housing ads, you've invariably seen those bizarro room share ads - random, extremely cheap prices ($261/mo), strange symbols in the text (۞), questionable grammar and capitalization, and generic email addresses (usually the name of a European country followed by some numbers). The ads all sound about the same, the houses (or whatever they are) always seem to be in Silver Spring or upper 16th Street, and they offer a free......