Good morning, Washington. In a summer that’s seen its fair share of wild thunderstorms, last night’s stood out as especially impressive. Flash flooding like the kind captured by Flickr user flipperman75 stranded drivers and pedestrians briefly across the city. The Post reports that as of 5:30 a.m., about 4,300 customers in the metro area were without power, down from a high of more than 20,000 customers last night. Mudslides, downed power lines and trees were reported across the region.

First Sentence Handed Down in Tax Office Scandal: The first person who agreed to plead guilty in the Office of Tax and Revenue embezzlement scandal has also now become the first person to receive a sentence in the case. Ricardo Walters, Harriette Walters’s nephew, was ordered to serve 6 and 1/2 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering and possession of stolen property. The sentence is shorter than the maximum amount of jail time Walters could have been given, but prosecutors agreed that since he did not contest a number of issues in the sentencing process, a shorter sentence could be agreed upon.

Council to Consider Borrowing Cap: The Examiner reports that when they come back in the fall, the D.C. Council will consider legislation that would set a legal cap on the amount of bonds the District may issue for new projects. The bill, introduced by Chairman Vincent Gray, is largely a response to a letter from D.C. CFO Natwar Gandhi, who recommended earlier this month that the city adopt such a cap to reassure Wall Street that the city’s financial house is in order.

Briefly Noted: Pedestrian hit by Novak hurt more seriously than originally thought … Infant found dead at day care in Oxon Hill … Another Virginia inmate scheduled to be executed today.

This Day in DCist: One year ago, the Washington City Paper was sold to Creative Loafing, and the year before that, we wondered why so many people seem to have a fetish for Whole Foods.

Photo by flipperman75