good afternoon. happy new year. i'm dan ashley. >> i'm katie marzullo. larry beil and ama daetz are off. >> we still have eight hours to go but across the globe people are ringing in 2015 in a very big way. >> gorgeous. the french welcomed 2015 about an hour ago. an electric light show and fireworks lit up the arc d' triomph. >> live pictures now from london, live where hundreds of thousands have just rung in the new year or are about to. the bells of big ben are ringing

loudly as a big fireworks display over the river thames lights up the sky. you are looking live at london, england as they ring in 2015 in spectacular style. >> i love it. maybe i won't have to stay up until midnight. i feel like i have seen it now. i can get some rest. it will be unusually cold here in san francisco on this new year's eve tonight. a live look for you at the embarcadero, where hundreds of thousands of people are expected along the waterfront. so definitely bundle up if you are heading out. >> spencer christian is live outside with your fireworks forecast. happy new year spencer. >> happy new year to you. things are looking really great so far. clear skies all over the bay area but it will be pretty cold. let's take a look at current conditions with live doppler 7 hd. sunny skies a few high clouds around and notice the winds have dropped off significantly from those powerful gusts we had yesterday and last night. right now we don't see any gusty conditions at all. let's move along to a live view from mount tam looking down on the bay. these are current temperature readings. 57 in san francisco, oakland 56 55 san carlos, 54 apiece at

san jose morgan hill and half moon bay. beautiful view of the western sky from the east bay camera in emeryville. 62 right now 62 in santa rosa. upper 50s at napa novato concord, livermore. 50 in fairfield. here's our midnight -- event planner midnight forecast for new year's eve. our fireworks forecast is what i'm trying to say. it will be cold tonight clear skies, good viewing for the fireworks. at 10:00 p.m. in san francisco, pier 14 is where the fireworks display will occur. it will be 46 degrees. by midnight, down to 44 degrees. i would advise bundling up and i would advise not relying on your beverage of choice to keep you warm. we have freeze warnings i will show you a little bit later. >> my beverage of choice is hot chocolate tonight. >> there you go. >> thanks very much. >> sounds like a good choice to me. the cold snap has people around the bay area taking precautions. >> plants and pipes, of course, the biggest concern when the temperature drops this low. >> abc 7 news reporter laura

anthony is live in walnut creek with a look. >> reporter: well you would think people would avoid cold places like this on a day like this but as you can see, this rink is brimming with skaters. it has been all afternoon. in many other places here in contra costa county we found the cold weather is seen as more of a hazard. gardiner bert morningstar has his hands full this new year's eve going from one client's house to the next, spraying their citrus trees and other plants with a protective coating of pine oil just in time for the cold snap. >> it will penetrate the leaves and give you about five degrees difference during the morning frost. of course, it's always a good idea if you cut it even, put a sheet over it and take the sheet off the next morning. it's a nice evergreen but the frost will nip this pretty badly. >> reporter: the oil can also be used to protect gardenias, and

ferns, among other vulnerable species. when the temperatures plunge below freezing. across town normally open only during the day the trinity center is open as a warming shelter for overnight stays but there are only 12 spaces and they are already taken. that's why the trinity center is appealing to other facilities, including churches, to help provide space. >> it needs to be an easily accessible location but warm a floor, folks will sleep on the floor in sleeping bags. they don't need much. just a warm place to sleep. >> reporter: for those who must stay outside, county outreach workers are going out at night offering blankets, gift cards and information about available services in the cold weather. laura anthony, abc 7 news. >> sky 7 hd shows you some of the damage caused by the wind at the golf course in alameda. look at these trees. at least five of them fell near the three golf courses. they just came toppling down making a huge mess.

giant trees. that's just north of the international airport. another tree damaged vehicles parked along the perimeter of the golf complex. >> it was actually old farmland so nothing really happens out here. this is pretty exciting for this area. every high wind storm that we have, we lose a tree, at least one. the course is so old and these trees are just ready to go, they are so tall. >> despite the damage many golfers do what they often do. they just played on. four homes remain red-tagged or off limits in napa. this comes after part of a large redwoodlanded on one of them. another part of the same tree is in danger of falling on to the other three homes. residents have been displaced from their homes since the tree first fell yesterday afternoon. the red cross is helping them until they are able to get back inside the houses. thousands of people lost power because of the wind and pg & e crews are continuing tonight to work to fix power outages all over the bay area.

>> more than 800 people in san jose are waiting for the power to return. abc 7 news reporter elissa harrington looks at the cleanup there. >> the tree come down with the wires, with the flames and the whole nine yards. >> reporter: arshia ali says preschoolers were inside the building yesterday when the gusty winds took down a tree outside which toppled a power pole and started a small fire. >> we do fire drills and safety drills all the time so you tell the kids stay safe stay with the teachers and listen and follow instructions. >> reporter: today, power is still out. she posted signs at the school letting parents know it's closed. many neighbors spent the night in the cold, like patricia martinez. >> a big house and it gets very cold. i started putting candles on. i didn't know what else to do because i don't have another type of heater to turn on. >> reporter: her power came back on early this morning. she made coffee for one of the workers who spent the night directing traffic in the

blistering cold. >> i saw one of the workers standing out there freezing so i opened my window and asked her do you want a cup of coffee. she said yes. >> reporter: crews have been working nonstop. the biggest problem they are seeing toppled trees falling on power lines. durell, who already lost power twice since yesterday, considered canceling his new year's eve plans. >> well, we were going to have a party tonight and then we said oh, the party's off. >> reporter: his power is back on now and so is the party. but he is not confident he will ring in 2015 with electricity. >> we are hoping that the power stays on today. but we can just hope. >> reporter: this project is going to take awhile because pg & e has to replace eight power poles and they expect to have power back on at that preschool by tomorrow morning. they also have out additional crews at work also on standby in case the winds today cause more problems. elissa harrington, abc 7 news. look at this wild scene at

the rose bowl in pasadena this afternoon. four people are hurt after strong winds picked up a tent and tossed it around into the air. look at this thing. the national weather service says these winds are more than 60 miles an hour. people ran frantically as the tent landed on some cars. a couple other tents got tossed around as well. a video shows one of the larger tents going nupup in the air from another angle. someone else posted the chaos from farther away on instagram. glad to say as bad as it was, no injuries are serious. >> scary to watch. high winds are believed responsible for the deaths of two men overnight on santa catalina island. officials say a harbor patrol officer was killed after being pinned between a boat and a rock around 11:00 last night. then another man's body was found floating in the water nearby just off green pleasure pier. it's unclear if the two deaths are related. winds topping more than 40 miles an hour hit the island kicking up the water and beaching

several boats. the blustery storm dropped snow in lower elevations across southern california stranding dozens of motorists on mountain highways. firefighters rescued more than 140 people whose vehicles got stuck in about a foot of snow along highway 138 in san bernardino county. another 50 people had to be rescued near mount baldy. it's already 2015 in most of the world and millions rang in the new year in spectacular fashion. ♪ >> dazzling fireworks lit up the sky in sydney harbor in australia before a crowd of more than a million people. the celebration went off without a hitch despite terrorism concerns. >> five four three, two, one! happy new year! >> happy new year! >> so fun to watch.

a colorful celebration outside in beijing. the chinese government moved the event to olympic park to highlight its bid for the 2022 winter olympics. >> and in taiwan, fireworks exploded from the landmark skyscraper taipei 101 before a crowd of hundreds of thousands of people. that is pretty impressive. >> very. people protesting against police brutality will be along the embarcadero tonight. >> police have increased the number of patrols to keep it as safe as possible. >> abc 7 news reporter lyanne melendez is live along the embarcadero with the story. >> reporter: police say they always have a number of officers or extra officers out here on a night like tonight. now, they have many threats against several police departments around the nation over the internet, atlanta new

york, cleveland san jose and san francisco all know about these threats. sfpd says their officers have been told, warned, to be aware of their surroundings. demonstrators have made it a habit to protest on major holidays to bring attention to what they say is widespread police brutality. >> our new year's resolution is to increase and extend these powerful beautiful demonstrations which this country has not seen in decades. >> reporter: today a few of them met in front of san francisco's hall of justice to announce they would be out tonight on market street along the embarcadero. >> we want those people to realize that this is a movement and we are going to continue to fight and they need to join us. >> reporter: but in the past, some of these protesters have not been welcomed like the night after thanksgiving when families and demonstrators collided at union square. tonight, police say they will help facilitate the

demonstrations as long as they are peaceful and don't interrupt the celebrations. police are also aware of the threats made against police officers around the nation. officers have been warned and told to remain vigilant. restaurants along the embarcadero say they aren't concerned about the protests. >> no concerns for us. it gets jam-packed down here regardless, so we just try to give the people that are here a great night. >> reporter: police are reminding party goers that tonight's celebration along the waterfront is an alcohol-free event. >> we are asking people not to bring alcohol. if they do they need to be asked to pour it out dispose of it and possibly be cited. >> reporter: police have also added patrols in the marina district and in the south of market area. lyanne melendez, abc 7 news. still ahead on abc 7 news at 4:00, fire guts a well-known san francisco sausage factory. investigators already have a line on how it started. also, the end of the line for a popular chinese food

restaurant, closing after nearly 50 years in business. and new at 4:30 authorities on alert nationwide on new year's eve. it's not just a terror threat they are preparing for. 7 on your side's michael finney is taking your questions on twitter and facebook. he will answer them here live a little later. contact him at facebook.com/michaelfinneyabc7 and on twitter@m finney. >> a live look at the san francisco skyway for all of these people in their cars, it's the final commute of 2014. cars coming at you are trying to get on the bay bridge, little bit slow.

female announcer: when you see this truck, it means another neighbor is going to sleep better tonight. because they went to sleep train's ticket to tempur-pedic event. choose from a huge selection of tempur-pedic models including the new tempur-choice, with head-to-toe customization. plus, get 36 months interest-free financing, two free pillows and free same-day delivery. are you next? make sleep train your ticket to tempur-pedic. ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪

you are looking at cell phone video of a fire at a sausage factory in san francisco. a neighbor of evergood fine foods shot these images as flames shot from the roof of the building in the bayview district. firefighters quickly doused the flames but there was extensive damage to the kitchen area, where the sausages are smoked. >> one of the ducts evidently caught fire and it ignited and the top of the roof above where the smokehouse area is went up just like that. >> all the workers escaped the building. no one was hurt. evergood is a family run business that has been making sausages in san francisco since 1932. the owners say they will wait until friday to take a closer look at the damage and determine how their business will be affected. the countdown to midnight is also the countdown until a san francisco institution closes its doors.

the empress of china restaurant which opened in 1966 closes its doors for good tonight. the chinatown restaurant is a favorite among locals and celebrities, famous for intricate atwork and rooftop views. the restaurant's problems began when the building's owner put it up for sale and did not offer the empress a long-term lease. >> the traditions are changing. we should keep this place open. this is a san francisco landmark. >> very sad. because it's like an icon of san francisco. to lose this is true memory. >> the building is being marketed to high tech companies and being priced at $25 million. that has chinatown residents worried about the gentrification of their neighborhood. the surf contest will be harder to watch next time. there are reports there will not be a day of festival on the beach. the festival was canceled for liability reasons. several area bars and restaurants will offer live coverage of the event.

the surf contest window opens tomorrow and runs through march 31st. got to wait for the waves. >> the surfers are unbelievable. crazy. if you thought only kids enjoyed the first snowfall take a look at how these otters reacted. >> it was nonstop fun rolling on the ice for these three river otters at the aquarium by the bay at pier 39. >> the aquarium puts about 70 pounds of snow in the otter encloseure a few times a year. they love frollicking. >> luckily, their thick skin keeps them from getting cold. >> we needed thick skin. >> it would be nice. >> it is chilly out there again today but not quite as windy. >> spencer christian with today's accuweather forecast. >> it's a cool clear crisp, non-gusty new year's eve. this is how we like it. let's take a look at live doppler 7 hd. sunny skies except for a few thin high clouds across the bay area right now. temperatures are going to drop tonight. it will be very cold tonight. another freeze warning in effect

from midnight to 9:00 a.m. for all the bay area except the coastline and the bay shoreline including san francisco, by the way. early morning lows will drop into the mid 20s in some inland locations. freeze damage to sensitive plants is a possibility. stress on outdoor pets and livestock also a possibility. we have a frost advisory in effect from midnight to 9:00 a.m. early morning lows in the low to mid 30s along the shoreline. damage to sensitive plants is also a possibility. on we go to overnight lows. look for temperatures dropping down to 29 degrees in santa rosa. napa, 30. livermore, 31. fairfield and morgan hill, low to mid 30s in many locations right around the bay. here's the live view of the golden gate bridge right now. traffic flowing nicely right now. forecast features are these. freeze warnings for new year's. sunny days will continue into the weekend and we will see a milder pattern beginning on sunday. here's our pacific satellite view. you can see high pressure the dominant feature centered to our north. the circulation around that area

of high pressure bringing us a cold dry flow of air down from the great basin. that ridge of high pressure is forming a blocking pattern keeping the jet stream flowing well to our north. any rain that's moving generally in our direction will hold up for at least another week. let's talk about calendar year rainfall here in san francisco. we end the year on a rainy note. not that it's going to rain today but we had a lot of rain this year compared to last year. almost 25 inches for the calendar year compared to just over 5 1/2 inches last year. you can see that we are above the average for the calendar year. so that's good news for the drought situation. on we go to tomorrow. new year's day following a very, very cold early new year's morning. afternoon will be sunny and cool with highs mainly in the low to mid 50s. we will see 55 to 56 degrees in many locations around the bay and inland and low to mid 50s on the coast. here's a look at our seven-day forecast, taking us into the first week of the new year. don't forget, we will see

freezing and frosty conditions the next two mornings, but we will have sunny afternoons and mainly sunny afternoons all the way through the forecast period. milder pattern develops over the weekend with high temperatures moving into the low to mid 60s by sunday. we will see mid 60s monday through wednesday with increasingly cloudy skies on wednesday. no indication yet that rain will fall that early. looks like a dry pattern through next wednesday but at least with the increase in clouds, we have the hope for some rain to arrive soon. dan and katie? >> thanks, spencer. we appreciate it. here's how to get around. public transit is the way to go if you are headed out for new year's eve. cal train is offering free rides as well as muni buses which will run until 5:00 a.m. you will need to pay for b.a.r.t. but trains will be extended until 3:00 a.m. and tipsy toe will be offering complimentary rides for up to seven miles. you do not have to be a aaa member to call and we have a number on our website, abc7news.com. if you choose ride share companies, be warned about surge

pricing. uber expects the highest fares between 12:30 and 2:30 a.m. where an average ride could be more than $100. we have all this information on our website abc7news.com. also on our website, if you are still looking for something to do on new year's eve, maybe you want to make last minute plans, check out abc7news.com. we have a list of fireworks shows and other events as well as information on how to get those celebrations safely and back home again. up next the perfect photo shoot for a bride and her bridesmaids. what happens after this is catching a local of attention. then new after 4:30, the story behind former cal quarterback aaron rodgers' good luck c

new year's revelers in hong kong's victoria harbor watched a

large digital display to count down the seconds to 2015. the celebration continued with a fireworks display and the symphony of lights which takes place every night to symbolize the city's remarkable growth. happy new year! >> a rocking celebration in the philippines. many liken to america's fourth of july. filipinos go big with noise to ring in the new year. the tradition calls for loud fireworks, firecrackers and banging on pots and pans to scare away evil spirits. >> looks loud. a jilted memphis bride-to-be chased her blues away by splashing and trashing her wedding gown. >> 23-year-old shelby's fiance dumped her five days before their november 1st wedding. instead of sobbing on the day of her defunct wedding she scheduled a trash the dress photo shoot with her friends, family and lots of paint. >> good idea. they all made a mess of her

dress, mending her broken heart in the process. these non-wedding photos have gone viral empowering others across the globe. a satisfied shelby says when life throws you a mess, make an even bigger mess. >> good for her. just ahead on abc 7 news at 4:00, arson investigators look into two separate fires that burned three cars in san jose. they may have a suspect in mind. also, the conditions today that stopped search and recovery efforts in indonesia where the airasia plane went down. and the good will third annual donate-a-thon is under way. they are getting pretty nice things thanks

ring ring!... progresso! it's ok that your soup tastes like my homemade. it's our slow simmered vegetables and tender white meat chicken. apology accepted. i'm watching you soup people. make it progresso or make it yourself you say avocado old el paso says... zesty chicken and avocado tacos in our stand 'n stuff tortillas . (record scratch) you say stand n' stuff tortillas old el paso says... start somewhere fresh

me san jose police may have solved a string of car arsons. >> they have arrested a man who could be connected. the cars have set off fire in both campbell and san jose along caspian sea drive and willow street. >> abc 7 news reporter chris winn is live in san jose with the story. >> reporter: the most recent fire happened last night right here on willow street alongside the popular creek trail. you know, although san jose police have placed a man under arrest, neighbors here remain on edge. >> i don't even know what's going through my mind.

it was like in a split second i knew something bad was going on. >> reporter: sean baron was cooking dinner when his brother rushed in screaming for help. >> it was burning pretty good. we splashed water on it. once we were done with that, i turned around there's another car on fire. that one was totally engulfed in flames. luckily we had a fire extinguisher. >> reporter: two vehicles up in flames just a few feet away from each other. sean's grandmother, who didn't want her face to be shown was also at home. she couldn't believe what happened. >> i thought oh, my gosh if they hadn't reacted as quickly as they did maybe we could have had a larger fire here because it was just two cars that were on fire pretty close to buildings. >> reporter: not long after, another vehicle fire broke out on willow street. san jose police identified detained and arrested a man overnight for direct contact with that fire. the suspect is also being questioned about seven other vehicle fires in san jose and campbell in the past week. this picture shows the damage done to a van in front of a business complex on south bascomb avenue on monday.

with a break in the case, neighbors hope the string of fires will finally stop. >> we just reacted. we wanted to get it out before it got any worse. >> reporter: counting their blessings as the year comes to an end. >> we felt bad because why would anybody do that? it's somebody else's property. but at the same time you're thinking it's a car, you can replace it. but i was glad they were okay. >> reporter: chris winn, abc 7 news. let's go overseas now. rough water has stopped the search and recovery efforts in indonesia, where the airasia plane crashed. forecasters believe conditions will only get worse from today. so far at least seven bodies have been recovered from the java sea. and radar data suggests the flight made an unbelievably steep climb before it crashed possibly pushing it beyond the jet liner's limits. abc 7 news reporter lana has the story. >> reporter: they carried the recovered bodies of passengers from airasia flight 8501.

the families still in shock. my son was so excited for his first overseas trip, this mother says, he bought a new belt new clothes. she recalls that his face was shining. in this photo a relative remembers a family of four that were lost. their children just two of the 17 youngsters on board. the process of identifying the victims is slow. recovery teams are fighting strong currents and tall waves. >> we have bodies that need to be recovered on the surface of the ocean but they have been pushed around for days now. what we really need to do is find the wreckage of the aircraft that's on the bottom of the ocean with the black boxes in it. they are really balancing two priorities here. >> reporter: as the search teams continue to work around the clock, they are driven by a mission. to bring closure to the families and to find the black boxes and the answers they hold. here in the u.s. many holiday travelers are wondering at the safety of their own aircraft. however, industry experts agree these new modern planes are

safer than ever before. abc news, new york. the federal trial of boston marathon bombing suspect will stay in massachusetts. a judge denied requests by his attorney to move the trial and delay its start. jury selection is scheduled to begin monday. defense lawyers claim it will be impossible to find an impartial jury in massachusetts given the pretrial publicity. tsarnaev is facing the death penalty if convicted. his brother was killed in the police manhunt after the bombing. in shanghai, china's newspaper is reporting that 35 people have been killed in a stampede during the city's new year celebrations. another 42 people were injured. the report says the stampede happened at the city's

riverfront area which can be jammed with spectators for major events. as many here in the united states are preparing to celebrate the new year, police across the country are gearing up for anti-police protests. >> we have more from los angeles. >> reporter: an estimated one million people are expected in times square for the new year's celebration. new york's finest were on high alert. >> there is obviously a heightened sense of security during this detail. as we turn the police officers out, we remind them that they have to look out for each other and work together and make sure we all stay safe. >> reporter: activist groups in major cities like l.a. chicago new york and others organizing a series of new year's eve anti-police demonstrations. in st. louis, at least five protesters arrested after storming the doors of police headquarters, handing officers a notice of eviction. in boston, the mayor asking protesters to be mindful of the city's first night celebration an event that draws scores of families and small children.

>> hopefully they do it in a respectful manner to allow people the opportunity to enjoy first night. >> reporter: along with thousands of police monitoring times square, the department's joint operations center has another 100 people monitoring the cameras around the festivities. abc news, los angeles. let's go to where there's a lot of fun happening in new york city. center of the universe, right? a live look at times square, packed right now. more than a million people are expected to usher in the new year in new york city. people are braving the cold for a view of that 12000 pound waterford crystal iconic ball drop which happens at midnight in new york. now, abc 7 is inviting you to ring in the new year with us. coverage begins tonight with prime time rockin' eve with ryan seacrest at 8:00. then after abc 7 news at 11:00 see more new year's eve festivities at 11:30.

the united states arab emirates put on a spectacular fireworks display to welcome the new year. dubai wanted to break the world record for the largest l.e.d. illuminated facade using its iconic khalifa tower. no word yet if it did. fireworks also lit up the night sky above moscow as the clock struck midnight outside the cathedral. people stood out in 20 degree weather to ring in the new year there. 20 degrees. wow. >> they are all gorgeous and cold. coming up on abc 7 news at 4:00 a new baby is drawing a large crowd at a california zoo but he's not used to the public yet. i'm michael finney. today's 7 on your side q & a is just ahead. i'm still taking your questions on twitter and facebook. you can contact me at facebook.com/michaelfinneyabc7 and on twitter, @mfinney. i will answer your questions

live a little later. i'm spencer christian. from the east bay hills camera a clear late new year's eve afternoon. good viewing for fireworks but it's going to be cold. the forecast in just a moment. outside once again, to walnut creek and 680 moving along nicely in both directions. no problems there. we'll be right back. bulldog: the red tags mean save up to 40% on clearance mattresses. get up to 48 months interest-free financing on tempur-pedic. pup: i found a red tag! [laughter] bulldog: mattress discounters' year end clearance sale ends soon!

a new arrival is drawing big

crowds at the san diego zoo. this is a five day old baby gorilla making his public debut yesterday hanging out with his mom, 34-year-old jessica. he has been bringing the yet to be named male she has, to a heated glassed-in viewing area where visitors can see her cradle the youngster. >> mom has been doing really great. she comes right up to the glass. she's holding her baby. she pats the baby all the time. nursing, if you're lucky you will see nursing. the other troop members have been very curious. they come over and inspect the baby but pretty much stays with mom at this point. >> that's a great picture. >> she's a good mom. of course, she has five other offspring. but this is her first with a male named paul don who is now a four-time father. paul and jessica. the gorillas are in danger in the wild so zoo keepers say every gorilla birth is important. here's something not to try at home. watch this. a german break dancer strapped fireworks to his ankles and set off a wild routine spinning and

flipping sending sparks off the streets of frankfurt. spectacular way to ring in the new year on a frigid night. we will enjoy the fireworks from the sky standing on our two feet and leave the stunts to the professionals. don't try that at home. >> he makes it look kind of easy. >> not a big margin for error there. let's go back to the roof and check in with spencer christian, find out our fireworks forecast. >> it will be cold but clear. >> exactly right. clear, great viewing for the fireworks but it will get colder, especially after midnight. temperatures are going to plummet. right now live doppler 7 hd shows clear skies across the bay area. it will remain that way. here's an outlook for new year's day across the 48 contiguous states. sunny in the west, low 40s, highs in seattle and portland tomorrow, cold in the interior northwest, only in the 20s in denver salt lake city great falls. snowing over the great lakes and parts of new england. little bit rainy and stormy in parts of the lower mississippi valley. across the state of california tomorrow sunny skies, high temperatures mainly in the 50s in most locations except cooler over yosemite and tahoe.

a high of 33 in tahoe, 46 will be the high in yosemite. here in the bay area after a frosty and frigid early morning start, high temperatures will drop -- low temperatures will drop into the upper 20s in some inland locations. we will see afternoon high temperatures in the low to mid 50s. it will turn out to be a very pleasant but rather cool new year's day. looks like sunny skies all the way through the first weekend of the new year, as a matter of fact. dan and katie? >> thanks very much. still ahead on abc 7 news at 4:00 a snoozy burglar, if you will, caught. but this picture isn't the biggest surprise after the crime. plus, fear the beard in the cheese nation. even former cal quarterback aaron rodgers is getting in on it. i'm 7 on your side's michael finney. we have heard a lot about people paying off a layaway for those who are less fortunate. it happened over the holidays. what happened to all that money? the answer next in my q & a session.

♪ ♪

female announcer: when you see this truck, it means another neighbor is going to sleep better tonight. because they went to sleep train's ticket to tempur-pedic event. choose from a huge selection of tempur-pedic models including the new tempur-choice, with head-to-toe customization. plus, get 36 months interest-free financing, two free pillows and free same-day delivery. are you next? make sleep train your ticket to tempur-pedic. ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪

the apparent suicide of a transgender teenager in ohio is sparking outrage and a lot of sadness. the 17-year-old, leilah elkhorn was killed after being hit by a semi truck. in a blog post she detailed her difficulties growing up trans gender and blasted her parents lack of support. she wrote the only way i will rest in peace if some day transgender people aren't treated the way i was, they are treated like humans with valid feelings and human rights. my death needs to mean something. the suicide left friends heartbroken and the local transgender community offering

support for others. >> regardless of how bleak it is and how bleak it looks there is always always a brightness at the end of that long long dark tunnel. >> i really wish that i could have been there for him. more often i wish i could have been -- i feel like a pretty bad friend. >> chris davis says leilah whose given name was josh, did receive support from friends and classmates. her mother refused to comment on the claims made in the blog post. two companies known for selling health and beauty products are accused of fraud right here in california. the fresno district attorney's office accuses johnson & johnson of neutragena of altering packaging to make customers think they were getting more of a product than they really were. the d.a. hired environmentalists to look at ways to reduce waste and found both companies had countless bogus boxes and plastic containers. the two companies have two years

to repackage their products. 7 on your side's michael finney is here answering questions sent to him by facebook, twitter and e-mail. first up, dale asks when a sweepstakes sends you a free mystery gift that you didn't order, are you obligated to pay shipping and handling? >> it's not really a free gift if they say you got to give me some money. no. you do not have to do that. the law is very clear that if you receive something by the u.s. postal service, then you are just to accept it as a gift. there's nothing more you need to do. the law's a little bit hazy when you get to ups fed ex or any of the other services. here's the way you should handle it. when they call you or contact you or you can even send them a letter if you wish and you tell them how they want you to pay postage and handling, that you have a postage and handling fee and the postage will be whatever the postal service charges but the handling fee will be $500 or $600. >> i love that idea. >> you don't have any obligation. none.

>> excellent. another question i secret santa'ed $500 for the payment of random layaways at kmart. now i'm wondering where the money went. >> what a nice person you are. thanks so much for doing that. we did a couple stories on that here at abc 7. as far as we know none of that money has been ripped off. it's all been used properly. there is one charity i forget their name, that does just that. they give away $50,000 this year. they are accounting for all of it. i have no doubt kmart is doing the same thing. who got the money, now that they are reserving because all this is being done anonymously. you are not going to know specifically who got the money. so far i don't think there's any reason to doubt that the money got where you wanted it to go. >> great questions today. martha asks another good question. i made an airline reservation via phone. they didn't tell me this ticket was not refundable or transferrable. i can't go. i tried to change the ticket to my son's name but was told i can't. what can i do? >> nothing.

really, i don't see anything happening here. airlines have had this policy for more than 20 years. if you could make the case and it will be tough to do but if you can make the case nobody told you that and it wasn't on the e-mail receipt they sent you or paper ticket if you got it through the mail if you can make that case, you can get your money back. i think it will be impossible to make that case since every single airline that i'm aware of except for southwest has that policy. >> same policy. that's frustrating. thanks, michael. it is not too often that a person can laugh about having his home burglarized but that's the case for a houston texas man. kevin connolly woke up yesterday morning and found someone had broken into his home. he walked through his house to check things out and that's when he was surprised to find the suspected burglar sound asleep on his guest room bed. >> i came around the corner, he was passed out sleeping right there. so passed out i tried to verbally wake him up, nothing. not very bright. probably about the dumbest criminal i have ever come across.

>> but there's more. connolly says the thief had run through closets, snatched his ski clothes, ipad laptop and guitar, even his dog's ashes. he called police and they arrested the suspect. that's when he was surprised again, the suspected thief is his neighbor. he lives two blocks away. it gets dumber. cops found some of connolly's stuff on the guy's front porch. he had apparently made several trips before dozing off. >> note to self next time i break into a home, take a nap first. it once worked for the giants. fans of another professional sports team are using the slogan fear the beard. a store in milwaukee is selling tee shirts with the slogan printed on it along with the caption tug for luck. customers are doing just that. the store owner got the idea after seeing green bay packers players like former cal quarterback aaron rodgers pull on jeremy wilcox's beard. he works for the team on game days. >> seems to work. they have won all their home games. so i don't know if it's a lucky

beard but i figure if it works, it works. >> the shirts go for $19 and appear to be selling pretty well. they may not help the packers win but they are helping the store owners pad his profits, at least for a little bit. up next an all day give-a-thon making a difference in one bay area city. >> unique items being auctioned off. i'm cheryl jennings in the abc 7 newsroom. new at 5:00 san jose police make an unprecedented move. the new mandate for every patrol starting tonight. and why a decades-old tribute to the civil rights era is coming to the end of the line.

abc 7 and espn are your home for college football's biggest games. tomorrow you will see the buffalo wild wings citrus bowl here on abc 7 at 10:00 a.m. or on the watch abc app. then the college football playoff semifinals, the rose bowl is at 2:00 p.m. and the sugar bowl at 5:30. you can see both of those games on espn and the watch espn app. it all leads up to the first ever national championship game monday, january 12th at 5:30 again on espn and the watch espn app. many people ended the year on a high note by donating to a charity that provides jobs for people looking for a second chance in life. good will in san francisco held

a donate-a-thon. abc 7 news reporter amy hollyfield has the story. >> reporter: you put cheerleaders in front of san francisco's goodwill headquarters and you get results. >> we brought toys and business clothes for a lady my size and books. >> reporter: the goodwill accepts donations every day but the third annual donate-a-thon event complete with entertainment and free movie tickets really seems to motivate people to load up the car and give on this last day of the year. >> about a week ago i saw it's like a party and there will be people there and it will be really well organized so i thought i will just wait because i have today off. it was our best day of the year. people are so generous and they really are looking to start their new year off with their generosity as their driver and they give their things, their treasures that they want to part with to make room for more things. >> reporter: people are giving nice things. we spotted a pair of ferragamo shoes and a nice red leather

purse. >> we had one particular donator come back in his convertible and drop off a lot of winter clothes. suits as well for professional wear. >> reporter: and then there's the willie brown rack. the former mayor donated some of his designer blazers and jackets to the cause. they will be auctioned off online. in the past his collection has brought in $10,000. >> as a rule anything he doesn't wear for a year he donates to us. he's encouraging his friends to do the same. >> reporter: last year, the goodwill was able to create 640 jobs because of all the generous donations donations. this year they think they will be able to provide 700. amy hollyfield, abc 7 news. thank you so much for joining us for abc 7 news at 4:00. i'm katie marzullo. abc 7 news at 5:00 begins right now with dan ashley and cheryl jennings. we take these threats very very seriously. >> a chilling threat to kill cops on new year's eve hassan

jose police doing something they have never done before. san francisco, people are celebrating new year's eve joined by anti-police protesters. and fallen trees. families forced from their homes. the headaches and heartaches and surprisingly, even the happiness some are finding amid all the destruction. i'm abc 7 meteorologist drew tuma. it's going to be a cold end to 2014. the details with the accuweather forecast. the end of the year brings the beginning of new threats to police. tonight, as the bay area prepares to welcome 2015 bay area officers are getting ready to confront a new menace. good evening. thanks for joining us. i'm cheryl jennings. >> i'm dan ashley. san jose police officers are on high alert tonight reacting to death threats that appeared on social media. police are patrolling in pairs for 24 hours to keep themselves safe while serving the public.

abc 7 news reporter david louie is live at san jose police headquarters. this is certainly unnerving. >> reporter: it certainly is. two officer patrols are unprecedented in the history of san jose police, which gives you an indication how seriously they are taking these threats. fresh on their minds are the murders of two new york city police officers. as you can see here at police headquarters, the flags here are still at half-staff in their memory. officers began patrolling in pairs on the day shift this morning. the doubling up continues until tomorrow morning. it's the reaction to pointed threats and hash passiontags posted on social media including kill a pig night and new year's eve massacre. there were replies on social media just as sharp denouncing the call for violence. >> we did receive information that some of these threats did involve new year's eve 2014 specifically. >> reporter: san jose police spokesman albert morales says it's difficult to validate the threats but there is a risk in not taking them seriously. three nights ago, two los

angeles police officers encountered gunfire in what may have been an ambush in an area of known gang activity. >> we take these threats very very seriously. we want to again ensure that the safety of our officers is of utmost importance and in light of these recent threats, we want our officers to be safe. >> reporter: sam lacardo becomes san jose mayor tomorrow. he agrees with the plan. he's even doing a police ride-along tonight. >> i have confidence that i will be riding along with some of the best officers in the country. i have been involved in many many ride-alongs since the time i was a criminal prosecutor so i'm certainly comfortable but i know these officers are folks who go out there every day and risk their lives for us and i'm very grateful for that. >> reporter: having officers paired up will mean fewer patrol cars working on one of the busiest nights of the year. however, having two officers responding to high risk calls will mean they won't have to wait for backup as they would when patrolling alone. >> law enforcement is a difficult job and it's only getting more