building because he was not going to leave willingly or under his own free will. >> flanagan was raised here in the bay area. abc 7 news reporter laura anthony joins us with that part of the story. >> reporter: this crime happened 3,000 miles away but has touched many here in the bay area including vester flanagan's father and sister here and in oakland where flanagan grew up and still has connections. >> i can't believe it. i will never believe it. >> reporter: like so many he was shocked when he saw what happened to a virginia news crew on live tv and then heard the name of the suspect, vester flanagan. >> very polite, educated. i never seen this coming. i never seen it coming. >> reporter: according to parker flanagan grew up in this house in oakland. flanagan attended skyline high school where a schoolmate told us he was a popular outgoing

student named to homecoming court. senior class president when flanagan was a junior. >> unbelievable because he is such a happy person. he was our prom king. at the time everybody loved him. >> reporter: after graduating flanagan went on to san francisco state and then to kpix where he was an intern and part time writer. >> some law enforcement officers have concerns. >> reporter: he work as a reporter under the name of bryce williams in roanoke, virginia. >> he is a soft spoken person. gentle giant. >> tragedy. just sad. just sad. i saw the brief video clips of it and what happened is just

mind blowing. >> reporter: late today flanagan's family released a statement saying in part, quote, our thoughts are with the wbdj 7 news family. words cannot express the hurt that we feel for the victims. that came from the family here. live in valejo, laura anthony, abc 7 news. >> flanagan sent abc news a fax saying he was motivated by the shooting in the church in charleston, south carolina and what sent me over the top was my church shooting. flanagan called the virginia tech mass killer his boy and expresses admiration for columbine high school killers saying i have been a human powder keg for a while saying anger has been building steadily. >> they worked together every morning for a little over a year and colleagues say they both

came into work with smiles on their faces. parker's boyfriend tweeted they were very much in love and had just moved in together and had plans to get married. the couple recently celebrated an anniversary. >> when we had our six month anniversary she made this scrap book and put all of the pictures for the first six months. >> adam ward was engaged to a producer in the control room when those shots were fired. her colleagues were going to celebrate her new job before the two moved away. the last journalist to get killed in the united states was in oakland. editor and chief of the oakland post. he was ambushed while going to work in 2007. bailey was targeted because of his reporting on the financial dealings of a business. developing news involving the 49ers. the santa clara county grand

jury indicted a current and former 49er for separate sexual assaults. ray mcdonald indicted for allegedly raping an intoxicated woman following a party at his house. if convicted he faces eight years in prison. mcdonald has been charged with violating a domestic violence restraining order. the 49ers released him in december. brooks has been indicted for sexual battery against the same woman. the separate assault occurred on the same night. no comment yet from the 49ers. meantime a music teacher who volunteered part time at a summer camp that we have reported on many times has been arrested for distribution of child pornography. ethan lewis was booked today. investigators discovered a connection to a summer camp. the co-founder says lewis had been a volunteer counselor one

week during the summer for several years since 2001. notified parents of the involvement and letting them know about the safety measures including the fact that campers are closely supervised and must always be a minimum of two campers with a single staff member. a police investigator says the bullet that killed kate steinle on pier 14 ricochetted after first hitting the pier walk way this on the second day of a preliminary hearing. abc 7 news reporter vic lee joins us from the hall of justice with more. >> day and the preliminary hearing of francisco lopez sanchez. we learned the gun he is accused of firing was pointed not at kate steinle but at the ground when it went off. the charge is still murder but perhaps it was not premeditated. today police criminalest andy

smith displayed the gun used in the shooting, a .40 caliber pistol similar to this one. it had been recovered by divers off the bay. smith said one round had been fired from the seven cartridge magazine clip. under cross examination public defender matt gonzalez repeatedly asked if it was possible the gun could accidently discharge without sanchez pulling the trigger. the criminalest said no matter how the trigger was pulled that is the only way the gun could have been fired. yesterday the prosecution established through testimonies that francisco sanchez was at pier 14 when kate steinle was shot to death. cell phone images taken by tourists and displayed in court showed a man appeared to be sanchez sitting on the bench and walking off after the shooting. one other tourist later identified sanchez after he was arrested that evening.

an investigator testified sanchez had confessed during his interrogation, the same thing he told abc 7 news during a jailhouse interview that weekend. a police inspector testified this afternoon that the bullet struck the pier walk way first some 15 feet away and then ricochetted striking steinle in the back. >> this appears to have been a death that resulted from the accidental discharge of a firearm. we believe the charging decision is proper and the defendant has been charged with murder for that reason. >> testimony resumes tomorrow, the third day of the preliminary hearing. vic lee, abc 7 news. a thief got away with a hayward police officer's gun and officer i.d. during a car break in in oakland. it happened when the unmarked car was parked near a starbucks. the thief took the officer's hand gun, four magazines and an ipad among other things in the

car. this past friday someone in richmond broke into an unmarked car and stole her gun and badge. two men posing as san francisco police robbed a man in the mission district early this morning at 19th and camp street. the men are believed to be between 18 and 26 years of age and got out of a newer boxy gla sedan. one of the thieves told the man he was a police officer. they got away with his wallet. the bravery of the u.s. coast guard made all the difference after a woman fell down a steep cliff. the dramatic rescue was all captured on video. matt keller has our story. >> reporter: a walk on the dangerous side in daly city, a 27-year-old man, a 54-year-old woman and two dogs walking after midnight on the treacherous trails just south of thornton state beach when they tumbled down.

the man rolled to the bottom. he was banged up but walked out and called for help. he was taken to the hospital. firefighters cabled to the woman trapped about 75 to 100 feet up. her two pit bulls were still around her but acted too aggressive for the rescuers liking so the call went out to the coast guard. the airman did an initial fly over to assess the situation. the windy conditions pushed the rescue attempt back by about an hour and a half. at about 6:45 they swooped in. sky 7 hd captured the action live on the morning news. the rescue swimmer was lowered to the woman. he put her in a swing connected to the harness. they both held on tight. she was checked out by medical services and taken home by daly city police. the woman, however, was concerned about her dogs. one appeared to be injured after the fall. the other was trapped on the

cliff. animal control eventually captured them both. a long dangerous morning comes to an end, no man, woman or pet left behind. >> it is always good to see a successful rescue. >> and that was matt keller reporting. a south bay woman said problems began after she got into the car. >> you are in a trapped car with somebody just going bezurk. >> hear a report four years in the making. the revelations about failed solar company and what it did to get half a billion dollars in taxpayer money. plus why star consist tuna may owe you $25. how your life may depend on this dog doing his job. also, why nasa crashed a plane on purpose. >> stay here with

we are back with breaking news. sky 7 hd live over the scene of a fire near reed avenue. the chp says it started with an explosion at a liquor store shortly before 4 p.m. flames spread to two other buildings. no word if there are injuries or if anyone was inside at the time of the fire and explosion. traffic in the surrounding area has been diverted as you can imagine as you look at the scene from sky 7 hd live. there is a problem in that area for anyone trying to move in and around that spot. breaking news continues on our website, abc7news.com and on twitter at abc 7 news bay area. what was supposed to be a quick ride in san francisco with uber turned out to be a terrifying experience for a south bay woman. the woman's terrifying ordeal.

>> reporter: experience that she says left her fearing for her life. she says she will never use the car sharing service again. for south bay resident an eye opening ride for all of the wrong reasons. >> it's a very traumatic thing to be trapped in a space with somebody you are feeling uncomfortable with. >> reporter: requested an uber to get to the caltrain station, a drive turned into a 22 minute trip on the 280 that at times felt like a roller coaster ride gone bad. >> bumper to bumper traffic. i asked why we were taking the freeway. he got very hostile. >> reporter: she says the rage went on with the driver saying -- >> if you don't like the way i drive get out of my car. what is wrong with you? and getting very aggressive. >> reporter: she got to her destination and shaken over the

ordeal. we took her concerns to uber. they issued a refund and told abc 7 news that they suspended the driver and will be taking a closer look at what exactly happened. she hopes that someday uber will be more transparent with driver profiles allowing customers to see the star rating and how many rides the driver has completed. until then she hopes potential riders will use her experience as a wakeup call. >> needs to be someway, just think through it how you will get out of that situation because thinking about it on the fly while you are panicked in a car is very, very difficult. >> reporter: uber points out the driver has never received similar negative feedback from customers. abc 7 news. believe it or not, another dead whale turned up earlier this morning, this time in almeida. sky 7 hd was over the oakland

estuary. they say they have never seen a whale in the estuary before. some are worried that crews may not be able to get it out before it bloats. >> with the whipping tide coming in tonight it will attract other fish. >> reporter: the marine mammal center took samples of the whale to determine how it died. the coast guard will attempt to move the carcass tomorrow. today was exam day for special members of bay area police department. abc 7 news as police dogs were tested on their bomb sniffing capabilities. the dogs had to detect ten different kinds of explosives and then had to undergo testing before the team can be certified. >> some dogs are bitter as far as attention span. it is more about the curiosity in the dog and the drive for the dog to play the game of hide and seek. >> bomb sniffing dogs have to be certified every two years.

this training was done in anticipation of security measures for super bowl 50 here in the bay area next february. a four-year federal investigation into the loan debacle and said officials misrepresented facts and omitted information to get a loan guarantee. the solar company collapsed and became the focal point of criticism of president obama's stimulus package after the great recession. the company's failure likely will cost taxpayers more than $500 million. a settlement has been reached with starkist. >> michael finney is here on what the settlement means. >> a lot of families are going to profit from this. if you purchased cans between february 2009 and october 2014 you're eligible for

compensation. you can get $50 worth of tuna. the lawsuit accused of under filling each can by a few tenth of an ounce. that can really add up. to file your claim you can go to tunalawsuit.com. sephora wants to make things right with a lot of angry customers. you may recall sephora held a promotion offering big prizes to frequent customers. some were snapped up instantly. i received a ton of complaints here. many others organized a mass protest, a mass return in protest. now sephora says it will compensate everybody with a $50 coupon. no word whether that will make up for the big let down. if you have unused gift cards from the old radio shack i have good news. you will be able to redeem them. you might recall radio shack

went bankrupt earlier this year but $46 million worth of gift cards still have not been redeemed. the texas attorney general accused radio shack of selling the gift cards knowing it was going bankrupt. to settle that case radio shack agreed to pay back customers before any of the creditors. the court will appoint a company to take claims and issue refunds. you may remember i did a bunch of reports encouraging everybody to use your cards. this will be a first if they do this. >> thank you. students at san francisco's sacred heart prep got a special lesson from a giants star. catcher buster posey talked about proper nutrition and fielded questions from the team and wanted to know how high school life was for him. buster had a good time. >> i haven't experienced anything like this since my last year in high school. you forget the excitement with a

gym full of 14 to 18 year olds. >> one student got the fist pump and got one. giants catcher did have one bit of advice for the students, try hard at whatever you do. >> such a good sport. >> i love that. it sounds like it will change a little bit. >> you will see big changes. you will feel the difference. right now along the waterfront people are in short sleeves. you may be trading short sleeves for long sleeves. we have cooler weather on the way and maybe a little drizzle saturday morning. live doppler 7 hd showing passing clouds and here are some of those clouds from our santa cruz camera. a beautiful day. high in santa cruz 84 degrees. gentle breeze. 68 in san francisco. mid 70s in oakland. 80 in san jose. 89 in morgan hill. our highs in the low 60s at the coast to the upper 90s inland. definitely a warmer day and here

is another lovely view from our camera. 89 degrees in santa rosa. 85 in napa. the are 90s that you see around summer. 95 in livermore and another view from our emeryville camera. those high clouds are harmless as we take a look at the forecast. much cooler this weekend and there is a slight chance of drizzle or light shower for the north bay. here is what will bring us the changes for the time being it is hot conditions inland with the high pressure dominating. we will see triple digits inland. much cooler weather expected this weekend with the trough of low pressure coming down towards the pacific northwest. that is where most of the rain is going to be situated along with northwestern california and certainly is a welcome sight for the crews battling the wildfires. most of the energy to the north of us but it may squeeze out a little drizzle here in the bay area saturday morning. here is what you will notice.

livermore a temperature trend for the week ahead well above normal but look at the weekend. we drop below average only 82 degrees on sunday for livermore and then the numbers will recover. turn your attention to the tropics if you have travel plans to hawaii. tropical storm expected to actually intensify to a category 2 as it approaches the hawaiien islands. in the atlantic we are keeping an eye on another storm. this is not very organized but expected to produce heavy rain as it passes through the leeward islands. watches and warnings are up and then it could pose a threat to southern florida as it heads towards maepd morning. tomorrow morning a few patches of fog at the coast. most areas mid 50s to low 60s. tomorrow afternoon a beautiful day. warmer in some places. 92 in the south bay and 91

sunnyvale. red wood city on the peninsula. 76 in half moon bay. a great day to hit the beach. downtown san francisco 80 degrees. warmer than today. mid 90s for santa rosa. 92 san rafael. east bay 85 in oakland. 90 in free mont. it is going to be hot inland tomorrow. antioch livermore 98 degrees. accuweather seven day forecast not as hot on friday. it is definitely a dramatic drop in temperatures for the weekend with 60s coast. 80s inland. we will keep you close to that next week but we are watching for the slight possibility of a light shower saturday morning in the north bay what one computer model is hinting out. probably just drizzle. >> thank you. stuck in traffic, how your commute just reached a new milestone. also your brain on pot. there is a connection between size and smoking. lucky local kids get to see

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we are back with breaking news. sky 7 hd live over the scene of a fire at a shopping center near reed avenue. the chp says it started with an explosion at a liquor store shortly before 4:00. flames spread to two other buildings. driving on the approach to the bay bridge there is a reason for that. the san francisco oakland area ranks third in time wasted on a commute, tied 78 hours per year. san jose with 67 hours lost annually. bay area drivers lose as much as $1,600 in time and fuel annually. two new studies highlighting

marijuana use and the human brain. the first study seems to show the brains tend to be smaller to start with than those who choose not to use. the second study shows marijuana appears to change the brain structure of young men. the study is published in the [female announcer] if the most challenging part of your day is the staying awake part, sleep train has your ticket to a better night's sleep. because when brands compete, you save during mattress price wars. save up to $400 on beautyrest and posturepedic. get interest-free financing until 2018 on tempur-pedic. plus, helpful advice from the sleep experts. don't miss mattress price wars at sleep train. ♪ sleep train ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪

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a manifesto to murder. the abc 7 news i team examines the local man accused of the virginia news crew murdered. what san francisco's mayor plans to do with the homeless when super bowl 50 comes to town. and the fluke mistake that snow balled and nearly ruined the couple's mexico vacation. the lesson coming up on abc 7 news at 6:00.

a fascinating glimpse from the surface of mars. beamed back several images last week including this one of a terrorist crater. >> this has ice 130 feet thick. >> nasa deliberately crashed a small plane in the name of research. >> that test was intended to challenge durability of the emergency locater transmitters installed on all commercial and private planes. >> the goal was to design more durable transmitters. thanks for joining us. world news tonight is coming up next. >> for all of us here we appreciate your time and hope to see you again coming up at 6:00. >> thank you for joining us. have a good evening.

tonight, deadly shooting targeted on tv. a young reporter and her cameraman gunned down. the shooter, a former co-worker, stalked them from behind, opened fire on live tv and taped it all himself. the gunman's motive? revenge, race. we have the 23-page document he sent after the shooting. team coverage tonight. showdown. donald trump's heated exchange. kicking out a top journalist grilling him about his immigration plan. on the stand, the former student accused of raping a girl at an elite prep school makes his case. did he convince the jury. and ignition dangers. ten big auto makers face a major lawsuit. the new device used by millions of americans, why some say it may be putting lives at risk.