>> surprised but not shocked. >> reporter: larry has been casting his line here for 20 years. >> it's a nice place to come out and go fishing. >> reporter: which is what the police say people were doing sunday night when they found the human remains. just after 8:00 p.m., someone called in to report a body found in the marshland. the coroner's office took custody of the body at 11:00 sunday night. the original call was for a body in a suitcase. the coroner's office confirms they performed an autopsy on a torso. a police department spokesperson would not confirm what the female torso was in, but did say it was in something. also that investigators do not know if the torso was dumped or floated from elsewhere in the bay. it's not clear how long it had been in the water or at this location. >> i'm sure somebody was down

here and knows more about it. >> reporter: detectives are asking anyone with information to contact them. in fremont, melanie woodrow, "abc7 news." deputies are trying to figure out who is apparently targeting animals after a horse and dog were killed after eating poisonous cookies. the human society posted a warning today on facebook. the cookies were laced with oleander, which is poise nos to many animals. investigators have a person of interest but not a suspect. the coast guard helicopter crew on a training mission ended up being in the right place at the right time to save a surfer in san francisco. the coast guard was nearby with a rescue swimmer ready to go. the surfer went to the hospital but is expected to be okay. the trailer of a travel truck tipped over onto two cars

today. you see the result from sky 7 hd. it happened at 1:30 this afternoon on 45th avenue. the truck's load shifted, causing the trailer to topple over on these two parked cars. a big rig tow truck uprighted the trailer and the gravel is being cleaned away. family and friends of an east bay man who died in custody rallied today in support of a new lawsuit. >> no justice, no peace! >> tha father of three mario martinez died in custody last july. attorney john byrd said martinez suffered from asthma, complicated by nasal polyps. >> the polyp condition that he had and the asthma he had was not a death warrant. there was no reason for him to

have died under the circumstances in which he did. >> the lawsuit has been filed against the county and prison health care provider. san jose mayor wants the officer who tweeted violent messages against black lives matter kicked off the force again. officer phillip white was fired but he got his job back after he appealed. now the mayor wants to try again. vic lee is live at san jose police headquarters with this new twist. >> reporter: dan, this controversy lives on. the naacp says it wants to challenge the ruling in court and today the major said he wants the city council to consider that, as well. but officer white's attorney told us that any challenge in court would be, in his words, absurd.

>> it does not help our department to have an officer who has clearly been engaged in this kind of communication coming back into the force. >> reporter: what the mayor is referring to are the violent tweets sent by officer white a year ago. he directed them against black lives matter supporters. example, threaten me and my family, and i will do my duty and kill you. #cops lives matter. if anyone feels they can't breathe, i'll be at the movies tonight, off duty, carrying my gun. after an investigation, the police chief fired white. but he was reinstated earlier this month, after appealing his dismissal through binding arbitration. the ruling said the firing was too severe, given white's unblemished 18-year record as a

cop and his community service. the mayor wants the city council to challenge the ruling. >> the chief needs to be able to have the latitude to make personnel decisions to respond in a way that sends a clear message to the community and to the force about the kinds of values that san jose pd stands for. >> reporter: the city attorney says overturning the arbitrator will be tough. >> there needs to be some egregious violation of law or the arbitrator did something long. >> reporter: the city council takes this up next week. vic lee, "abc7 news." san francisco has begun clearing out a massive homeless camp in the market area. the city wants them to come here instead. "abc7 news" was at pier 80 as the mayor toured a temporary

homeless shower. people living in tents are being given 72 hour notice to clear out. >> i think the conditions of the encampments are not to be tolerated. we'll give everybody an opportunity to come here on a voluntary basis. >> the homeless shower here is base for 150 people. oakland public schoolteachers are protesting the district's plan to adopt a new student application method. >> you can see the marchers down below. >> the district is looking to become a testing ground in california for the streamline system that would allow families to fill out a single application for their top choices for schools. >> opponents fear students would flock towards charter schools and decimate public education.

it is now nevada's turn to take center stage. gop voters are starting to caucus right now in fact. most experts predict a pitched battle for second place between ted cruz and marco rubio. cruz is campaigning down to the wire and is working his way up highway 395 with rallies before he visits a caucus location in sparks. rubio has moved on from nevada. he spent the day campaigning in the midwest, including this stop in indianapolis. minnesota is one of nine states holding primaries a week from now. laura anthony tweeted out this picture of a packed house in sparks, nevada. it is where laura is live tonight with more on the trump rally. laura? >> reporter: the turnout for tonight's caucuses here in nevada expected to far exceed

that of 2012, much driven by the excitement around one man, the same man who packed the house here in sparks. >> if you don't have a bag, go to the far left, please. >> reporter: it's like something you would see at a rock concert, people willing to shell out a few bucks just to show they were there. on a day he's expected to win big in nevada, donald trump plays to his strengths before thousands of screaming supporters in sparks. first order of business, making sure they get out tonight to caucus for him. >> you know, we're down to crunchtime, folks. we've got to do it. we've got to do it. like at 5:30 today, you know where you're going to be, right? >> reporter: and he showed little sign that he plans to let up on his competitor.

especially ted cruz. >> he's like a little baby. soft, weak, little baby by comparison. but for lying, he's the best i've ever seen. >> reporter: for these people at least in this room, the hits can just keep on coming. >> i think donald trump is majestic, he's beautiful. he's going to make america great. >> reporter: darrell drove up from san francisco this morning. >> i've been a democrat my whole life, but i'm an independent democrat and i'm sick of being told what to do. there's no choices anymore. >> reporter: trump plans to hold his nevada victory celebration tonight in las vegas. laura anthony, "abc7 news." much more to get to this tuesday evening. coming up from oakland to fremont, two fires damage four homes. one easily could have been prevented. questions linger after a court ruling. 10 million california students and the release of their personal information. can parents really stop it? plus, above and beyond. the recognition for two officers

who made a crucial decision. and how the price at the pump may be going

fremont, palo alto, north bay and all the bay area, this is "abc7 news." a large fire gutted a buddhist temple and two homes. up to a thousand candles were burning when the fire broke out. nearly a dozen people were inside and managed to get out. neighbors next door to the temple heard that sound of cracking windows as the flames jumped to their homes. temple owners say they will rebuild. now to the dramatic rescue in a house fire in fremont. the fire was small, but the response was certainly not. matt keller has this story.

>> reporter: a garage fire doesn't usually require a rescue, but firefighters came across an unusual situation. this house on hughes place was filling up with smoke and the homeowner could not get out of his bed. in fact, 54-year-old allen hadn't been out of his bed in four years. >> a large patient, 600 pounds plus, it took two crews to get him out and they abandoned firefighting to get him out. so we put him in a large tarp to get him out. that size is difficult for us. it took six firefighters to pull him out. >> would there have been any way you could have walked out? >> no. >> reporter: so the firefighters saved your life? >> basically, yes. >> reporter: they rescued allen and got to work on the fire in the garage. allen, his fiance and their dog were not hurt. firefighters say no one should stay here at the home until they are certain it's safe and the utilities are turned back on.

matt keller, "abc7 news." gaming company zynga is putting its san francisco headquarters up for sale. they no longer need as much space after cutting the work space from 3500 to the current level of 2300 employees. zynga acquired the building for $228 million. analysts say it's probably worth much more given the boom in san francisco real estate. gas taxes are about to go down in california. the state board of equalization voted today to lower the excise tax by two cents a gallon. the excise tax money helps pay for highways, roads and other transportation projects. starting next month, electricity bills for average customers will rise $2.29 a

month, bringing the average bill to nearly $150 a month. that's not all. today, the utility filed papers with the security and exchange commission, detailing the need for additional revenue. a big showdown is developing over the release of 10 million student records. it's creating a flurry of traffic to down load a form that some think is a way to opt out but it isn't really. as david louie explains, the group is seeking the data while others are fighting. >> there are ten different databases. >> reporter: linda and sherry have one thing in common, a child identified with special needs. california concerned parents wants access to every student's record. special needs or not. so discover flaws. that's an estimated 10 million records dating back to 2008.

>> i can't believe that a judge would let our personal information about our children, millions of them, and every child now has a social security number, is being released. >> reporter: the group seeking the data has worked with the court to protect personal information. >> this special master is cyber security expert in electronic discovery. he is going to ensure the data is protected. >> reporter: strong reaction has surfaced after the court and state office websites posted a form to register a complaint. the document available on line has been referred to as an opt out form. but it is an objection form to let the judge know in the case that you object to having your student's information released. the form must be mailed in by april 1. san jose unified spends $45 million per year on special

education. >> because this has nothing to do with us as a school district, we can just follow state law. >> reporter: in san jose, david louie, "abc7 news." emergency personnel were honored today for going above and beyond their expected duties. "abc7 news" was there as five first responders were given a hero award by the san francisco rotary cloud. >> we knew something was wrong when we knocked on the door and she said she was coming but founded faint. it never took her more than a minute or two to get to the door. >> the officers had to break in to help her. the woman could have been stranded there for days if they hadn't checked in on her, something they did regularly. >> thank goodness for that. a group of 5-year-old students received a special science lesson today.

you can see they were pretty excited about it. meteorologist sandhya patel was the featured speaker at career day in santa clara. yes, they had lots of questions about the weather and no one better to answer them than our sandhya patel. >> sandhya, with you picked out a successor? >> i have. one person said, i want to be a weather lady. they were so adorable. they already knew what they wanted to be, doctors, teachers, and they were just so adorable and so smart. they said it feels like spring. it definitely feels that way. we have a lot of clouds right now. as you look at the temperatures, temperatures well above average by a good 7 to 13 degrees today. we didn't have any records.

73 degrees in redwood city. santa rosa, 67. 71 in san francisco. and up to 78 degrees in santa cruz. so if you like this kind of weather, you're in luck. but one thing you need to watch out for is dangerous surf along the coast. breakers up to 20 feet. watch out for the potential of sneaker waves. live hd right now, clouds, that could change later on in the week. a beautiful view from our mt. tam cam, looking towards ocean beach. it's a westerly flow, so the swell also be large. 67 in san francisco and san jose right now. mid 60s around oakland. half moon bay, 59 degrees. a mix of sun and clouds, 67 in santa rosa, 64 in napa. and a live look from our east

bay hills camera. you're going to have a gorgeous sunset tonight. i would love to see it and hopefully feature one or two on the air. cooling begins on friday with a chance of showers. here is a look at the temperature trend for san jose. the nux couple of days, in the 70s, and the cooling begins by the weekend, dropping you down into the 60s. friday, you notice the cloud cover and there a chance of a sprinkle in the north bay. another possibility and this is on sunday in the afternoon and evening once again. a slight chance, i know it's not very exciting, but at least there are a couple of opportunities foreseeing possibly some drops. tomorrow morning when you get going, 40s, 50s, a couple of high clouds except for

fairfield, down to 39 degrees. for the afternoon, 71 in san a fel, 74 oakland. 72 napa. accuweather seven-day forecast. we hold on to the mild to warm pattern on thursday. a chance of a few sprinkles on friday and then a slight chance on sunday. notice it's cooler and we bring back a little bit of a warmup next week. i think i picked out somebody who will take my job some day. >> we only have to wait 25, 30 years. >> that's right. you stay right where you are. >> thanks. and the best cars of the year, you'll want to know about that. michael finney has the answers, next. the state of emergency at this hour. multiple tornadoes and a major storm from the south and right up the coast. new surveillance of the alleged uber gunman. and the dancing

c this is video from the chinese filmmaker. but it only works on that company's phone. google showed off a machine that turns those into portraits. >> really cool. they are the best of the best in the auto industry. >> michael finney has partnered up with consumer reports for this year's top picks for cars. >> this is a very huge day for the auto industry. this year's top cars list was released today. they represent the best of the vehicles recently tested in ten categories. this year, there's a surprise.

the kia is a consumer reports 2016 top pick mid-size suv. for years, toyota has won this category. but this has overtaken it. >> it has a powerful engine, it does great in crash tests, very reliable. and the great things you get inside of it, and it feels luxurious, like you spent a lot more than you did. >> reporter: toyota did earn two spots on the list. the camry and the toyota sienna in minivans. >> a vehicle needs to drive beautifully, a strong record of reliability and makes owners happies and needs to be safe. >> reporter: subaru also nabbed two spots. >> we like subarus because they're practical, fuel efficient, and for such small cars on the outside, they feel large on the inside. >> reporter: only two americans made the list this year. the chevy impala and the ford

f-150. >> ford took a big gamble by switching its f-150 from steel to aluminum construction. it has better acceleration, and faired well in the crash test. >> reporter: and finally -- >> the miata is impractical. the trunk is tiny. but you take it out on a sunny day, it's more fun than cars twice its price. >> reporter: two other cars rounded out the top ten, but they cost more than $50,000 compared to the kia that is around $38,000. >> thank you, michael. chris rock puts out a few tweets.

hi this is conor.usic ) sorry i missed you. i'm either away from my desk or on another call. please leave a message and i'll get back to you just as soon as i'm available. thank you for patience at this busy time. join princess cruises for stargazing with discovery at sea. book now for savings up to $1,000 per stateroom plus up to $600 free onboard spending money. call your travel consultant or visit princess.com. princess cruises. come back new.

if you suffer from migraines, a new treatment can freeze the pain away. >> that's tonight on "abc7 news" at 11:00. be sure to tune in for that. and at 6:00, we'll go live to you can see how demonstrators are showing their support for apple. and why a poster meant to celebrate black history month has sparked cries of racism and a walkout at a local high school. plus -- ♪ >> the pixar picture up for an oscar and the man who directed it. it's all coming up at 6:00. comedian chris rock has the oscar rumors swirling after a

pair of instagram posts. >> in one picture, he's dressed in a space suit, standing with a bewildered expression on his face. >> in another pick, he's posing next to kristen wig and j.j. abrams. >> was he trying to mimic matt damon in "the martian?" >> could be. >> you can see how chris rock has redefined himself over the years. it's all on our special oscar section at abc7news.com. >> of course, we will have live coverage beginning sunday at 2:00 p.m. great day. >> "world news tonight" is up next. i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. for all of us here, we'll see you again in half an hour.

breaking news as we come on the air tonight. the state of emergency at this hour. multiple tornadoes reported already. the devastating damage. we're on the scene. about to power right up the east coast. 45 million in the path. also breaking, the new surveillance images of the alleged uber gunman. where he was in the hours before the rampage. the race for the white house, and tonight, the showdown in nevada. donald trump lashing out at ted cruz. and what trump said when asked why he's not taking on marco rubio. breaking news on the zika outbreak, right here in the u.s. tonight. authorities now confirming more than a dozen new cases of the disease sexually transmitted. late details coming in now. and the reporter on the field, the "dancing with the stars" favorite, tonight, suing a major hotel. did they allow an alleged stalker to gethe