manslaughter for oakland's ghost ship fire. >> derrick al men a and his associate were taken into custody today. >> defendants al mena and harris knowingly created a fire trap with inadequate means of escape. they then filled that area with human beings and are now facing the consequences of their actions. >> iteam reporter dan noyes was tipped off to the arrest from neighbors who saw it happen in lake county. >> new at 6:00, we're joined from spheuperior court. >> dan andama. they had a hard time finding a place to settle. they came 140 miles from from the site of the ghost ship tragedy. 47-year-old derrick al min a fought returning to the county to face the manslaughter counts that could get him 39 years in prison in connection with the

ghost ship fire. >> an arrest warrant for you. >> he insisted on appearing in court late this afternoon to have the charges read. >> alameda county law enforcement should be here to pick you up within the time frame as stated. >> no attorney, no family members, no friends came to support him. people living in this quiet upper lake neighborhood tipped me to the arrest this morning, sending this photo of a sheriff's vehicle that accompanied the fbi and alameda county investigators. >> i just heard pounding on what i thought was the wall. i heard, open up, open up and just like shouting. >> they looked like they were ready for a fight, man. i mean they were armored up, tac' d out. >> they moved here and set up a normal routine. >> she takes the kids to school every morning. >> just a normal lifestyle? >> yes. >> but neighbors were concerned that he appeared to be gathering

more material in the side yard that could pose a fire hazard. >> after we realized who they were, we didn't want a lot of debris building up around the building or causing any kind of safety for us. >> you actually thought about that? >> yes. >> i knocked at the couple's home and the man identifying himself as a family friend answered. >> it's been hanging for over six months. it could hang for two years. >> he complained about the district attorney's decision to not prosecute the owner. >> i think there's a lot of culpability personally. i think -- i mean, even in the newspaper article, obviously they have evidence that the owners of the warehouse didn't repair things. >> he's being held on $1,080,000. he could be brought back in the next five days. dan noyes reporting from lake county. the firm representing al men a

said quote we believe this charges represent no less than a miscarriage of justice and we believe this will fail. friend of victims who died in the ghost ship fire are a step toward justice. >> melanie woodrow is in the newsroom with that part of the story. melanie? >> dan and ama. we caught up with a friend who we met the weekend of the fire. he says he's glad to hear about the charges and he believes more people should be held account anl. >> he lost four close friends in ghost ship warehouse fire. >> they're all love and inspiration. >> six months later, his memories of them are still fresh. >> it still hurts. still hurts a lot. >> while nothing can replace the 36 brilliant lives lost, he's glad that the d.a.'s office is charging derrick almena with 36 counts of involuntary

manslaughter. >> he deserves it. he knew the risks of what would happen. >> max harris is also facing charges. >> the number one rule of throwing an underground is just safety first. that's always safety first. >> it's a rule he says was not followed at the ghost ship warehouse. >> that was the worst example of, like, warehouse living for artists. really bad example. >> he believes the building's owner should also face charges. >> to have, what, 20 trailers parked in the basement. to have daisy chained electricity throughout the building. to have, all the electricity wires in one room, you know. mondo fire hazard. he had to know this. he had to know this. >> the d.a. would not comment on possible charges, including against the owner. melanie woodrow, abc 7 news. >> as the story develops, you can learn the latest as it happens by downloading the abc 7 news app and enabling push

alerts. our other top story, the sentencing of the man who killed sierra lamar. >> the 15-year-old disappeared walking to a bus stop in morgan hill in 2012. her body has never been found. >> leslie brinkley is live from the courthouse in san jose to explain why this isn't the end of the case. leslie? >> reporter: that's right. for the family of course they're still grieving the loss, the mom and dad the loss of their daughter. she would have been 20 years old. as you said, her body has never been found. as they put it, there is no joy in today's verdict. >> today a jury decided the fate of a child murderer. >> the santa clara county d.a. and lamar's family were stunned that the same jury that convicted torres of kidnapping and murdering seierra opted to spare his life. >> i saw in the courtroom, you were kind of shaking your head as they read the verdict. >> yeah.

like i said, i'd be lying if i said i wasn't disappointed. the crime, i thought, deserved of the maximum sentence, not the minimum. >> 26-year-old torres will face life in prison with no possibility of parole for the march 2012 kidnapping of then 15-year-old sierra lamar as she walked to school in morgan hill. he was found guilty last month of the first degree murder along with taser attacks in the attempted kidnapping of three other women. sierra's disappearance drew hundreds of volunteers to search for her, but her body was never found. garcia torres' dna was found on her jeans and dna was detected in his car and on his gloves. torres's attorneys will be back to appeal in september. but the family hopes he has a change heart. >> in that cold hearted murderer's heart, i call on him today to tell us where sierra is

so we can bring her home. >> that's really something that would help us, you know, in this grieving to know what happened. >> the angst will be in our lives forever. nothing will ever take that away. >> sierra's mother says they're planning a memorial this summer to give them closure. i'm leslie brinkley, abc 7 news. a little less than a month ago, the same jury convicted torres on all counts. they've been in court since late january. this all came years after his arrest. it's been a little more than five years since sierra lamar disappeared. you can find the complete history on our website abc 7 news.com. you can expect delays on an east bay freeway to last a bit longer because of a brushfire. sky 7 flew near the scene. flames began to race up the hillside next to westbound highway 24 around 1:00 this afternoon. a car fire sparked a larger

wildfire. about 25 acres. you can see on this map where traffic is slow. the three westbound lanes are blocked as you approach the tunnel. apple made a lot of bis big announcements today at the worldwide developer's conference. it unveiled new hardware that consumers can use in their homes. janine did he la vega is live to show us what's new. >> reporter: dan, thousands of developers are here from 75 countries attending wwdc at the mchenry convention center in san jose. apple packed in a lot of announcements, including a new smart speaker. ♪ >> absolutely beautiful and we call it home pod. >> with pulsating music and slick video, apple showed off the latest invention for the masses. a new smart speaker.

like ipod reinvented music in our pockets, home pod is going to reinvent music in our homes. >> it's a voice activated speaker that uses siri. apple was late in introducing a speaker to consumers. there will be comparisons to google home and echo. but home pod is different. >> it's about focusing on music, putting apple music at the center and siri, interestingly, becomes a musicologist. >> let's stop it right there. >> that was a close one. >> apple wowed developers saying a demo of the virtual reality capabilities using mac's new high sierra. a new developer for augmented reality. >> any new platform called a.r. kit allowing developers to use augmented reality, add items and have them build their own world. >> innovation was all around. this 10-year-old developer has invented five apps and showed them to apple's ceo tim cook.

>> it was amazing. when i showed him my apps, he was really, like -- he was astonished. >> wwdc continues tomorrow with a special guest. michelle obama will have a fire side chat with developers. in san jose, janine dela vega, abc 7 news. should lyft and uber be considered a public nuisance? what the city of san francisco wants to do to get the courts involved. raindrops in june are coming our way. i'll have the accuweather forecast coming up. next, why this is the season for flower thieves. plus, an arrest made in the murder of a tourist in one of san francisco's safest neighborhoods. stay with us. [ birds chirping ] [ inhales, exhales ] [ announcer ] cigarettes are not just dangerous when they're smoked. [ rat squeaking ] they're dangerous long after. cigarette butts are toxic.

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we now know the identity of a man charged in the murder of an australian tourist visiting san francisco. matthew bate was murdered while returning to his hotel. we're live at the hall of justice where the suspect from southern california will answer to formal charges. cornell? >> reporter: in fact, ama, david maria will be in court tomorrow afternoon in the death of that australian tourist. sources in the d.a.'s office tell me that the victim died from a single punch. the murder of 33-year-old australian tourist matthew bate shocked many in the russian hill neighborhood. >> feel, very, very, very bad for the young man. >> san francisco police charged 34-year-old david mario from his peria, california, with murder. bate was visiting san francisco with three friends from australia. they were returning to their rooms at the da vinci villa

hotel after celebrating the warriors win around 2:00 friday morning. but police say bate got into an argument. as he walked away, his family believes he was sucker-punched. he hit the ground and died a short time later. his family released this statement. we want to remember matt as someone who lived to the fullest. he had a lot of friends who will miss him dearly. >> police searched the hotel and detained several suspects. >> at least four hispanic men were thrown on the ground in front of our room. >> one of the men was arrested matthew bate was an analytic chemist who had been in california. he played cricket where the local cricket club will hold a memorial on tuesday. he was taken far too soon and will be sadly missed by all. our heartfelt sympathy and love to the whole family. speculation is swirling in australia that bate may have died from a so-called coward punch. >> they used to call it a king punch, now it's a coward punch.

it's something that they're trying to stamp out. >> it's such an issue in australia, there are education campaigns to stop it. police won't say how the fight which killed matthew bate began. in san francisco, cornell barnard, abc 7 news. the uc board of regents said the president's office tried to interfere with an audit in an effort to bring transparency. that found president janet napolitano's office stashed a secret $175 million fund and took part in misleading budget practices and extravagant spending. the investigation will be led by a former california supreme court justice. a final report expected in july. immigration activists on behalf of undocumented young adults in california. abc 7 news was in front much city hall where they asked the governor and legislature to

make -- they're asking the state to stop turning them away on their 19th birthday. the money would come from california's tobacco tax reportedly costing as much as $230 million a year. >> the way we wanted to do this is like to have health care which will cost less on taxpayers and will be more sustainable in the long run instead of using emergency services all the time. >> the group hopes to get almost $90 million in this budget cycle while others have pressed to use tobacco tax money to increase payments to doctors and dentists who treat medi--cal patients. it's proving to be a thorny issue for residents. vandals are cutting up valuable plants possibly for profit. abc 7 news anchor kristen sze is here with the story. >> i want to show you a picture from the willow glenn neighbors facebook page. one bush had 18 branches hacked off and all the cuttings taken away. that's not the only one. a tarp covers part of another

camilla i can't that was vandalized this past week yenld. a woman came home to find half of the prized foliage gone. >> they were the crocuses stolen from one person's yard, camillas being hit and there's quite a value for this. >> neighbors believe money is the motive. this is wedding and graduation season and floral arrangements are in high demand. some suspect there are shady florists or desperate brides and grooms hoping to save a few bucks. some say if it's true, it's despicable. >> moral lirks it's not right for anybody to go into people yard and destroy the garden and stuff like that. >> in case you're wondering, one bundle of branches goes for $6 wholesale. san jose police say if you notice any unusual plant or flower cutting activity in your neighborhood, call them. dan and ama. >> kristen, thanks so much. time to check on our

weather. you can see some of the marine layer there. >> spencer is tracking it for us. >> there's a bit of hazy fog coming in. we might get rainfall, well showers. our chances are zero for the next few days. tuesday and wednesday. but thursday, a 70% chance of light rain or showers here in the bay area tapering off to -- i should say dropping off to zero for the remainder of the week. after that, it will be typical june weather again. here's a look at live doppler 7. we have sunny skies as i mentioned. just a little hazy hit of fog developing along the coast. as we can see looking northward, it's currently 61 degrees at -- 71 at san jose. gilroy at 79 and 57 at half moon bay. check out this view from the east bay hills camera. nice and bright there. it is 79 degrees in santa rosa and napa. novato, 77. mid-80s at fairfield and concord.

82 at livermore. here's our view from the roof at abc 7 looking out over the bay. these are our forecast features. coastal fog expanding tonight. mostly sunny and mild next two days. but there's that chance of showers on thursday as it turns cooler by the way and it will get cooler at the very end of the week. overnight, look for fog expa expanding locally across the bay and inland. many inland locations will be clear overnight. low temperatures generally in the low to mid-50s. a few locations may see lows dropping into the 40s. places like santa rosa, santa cruz and morgan hill. fog back to the coastline and away from the coast in spots. it will be mild to warm once again, but not quite so warm as today. places in the upper 80s, around the bay, look for 70s. on the coast, up to 60. let's talk about that rain. approaching system ranks 1 on the storm impact scale. it will come in an thursday. bring us light showers mainly in the north bay and rainfall totals will be generally rather

light. forecast animation shows that by 11:00 thursday morning we'll see rather widespread light showers. again, mainly in the north bay. later in the day, the showers dip southward a bit to the golden gate. perhaps down into a little bit of san francisco and away and the showers will taper off and end thursday night. here's the accuweather seven-day forecast. mostly sunny skies with a few clouds the next two days. mild but there will be gradual cooling leading up to the arrival of the clouds and the temperatures drop further on thursday and friday, we expect the coolest day of the forecast period with high temperatures reaching only up to 70 around the bay and inland. there we'll see gradual warming through the weekend. by next monday, back to what we consider typical june weather. >> thanks, spencer. some of the best new views of the bay area had to wait. the small problem that keptd the new gondola grounded

the warriors left the bay area today hoping to return with the nba finals trophy. kevin durant, who has nothing short of super in games 1 and 2, incredible last night. was one of the first dubs to board the plane for ohio at oakland international airport. abc 7 news was in san francisco

as well as the cavaliers left the hotel. a handful of spectators stood by to watch the team board the bus and head off to the airport. espn and abc's game coverage starts wednesday at 5:30 right here on abc 7 and right before that, join abc 7 sports director larry beil and mike shumann for the dubs on 7 pregame show. larry will be in the studio and shu will be live in cleveland. tipoff is at 6:00. you can watch all the finals games only here on abc 7. the grand opening of the gondola and restaurant at the oakland zoo for days. the zoo says it's working with the city to resolve an issue with the water pressure system at the landing cafe. the only way to get there is by gondola ride. abc 7 news got this sneak peek last friday. the gondola and restaurant were set to make their big public debut today. the zoo says the plans are now on hold. the city is scheduled to inspect and test the water pressure on

thursday, which is the earliest the gondola could reopen. tomorrow, voters in santa rosa will cast ballots and there are just two measures to decide. measure c would create rent corolla loug landlords to raise rent by no more than 3% a year. it will protect renters. opponents say moist of the housing isn't -- most of the housing isn't covered by the measure. measure d, a tax on cannabis businesses. growers, manufacturers, dispensers. >> demanding answers from the top ride sharing companies, uber and lyft. find out what was requested in subpoenas the city attorney filed today. plus -- we're proposing reduced wait times, increased route efficiency and far fewer delays. >> the president says he's taking air travel into the future. next, see how it will change what we're currently used to. this is reality. i mean, we call it virtual reality, but this is the patient's own anatomy.

>> it's a virtual look at your real body. tonight see how stanford doctors are using it to

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and we're back with a live look at san francisco international airport. that's the air traffic control tower rising in the middle there. that's what president trump has his eye on changing. today the president announced plans to privatize air traffic control at airports across america. >> what does that mean for travelers specifically? kate larsen has more. >> reporter: today, president trump proposing to take the job of air traffic corolla way from the faa and hand it over to a private business. >> americans can look forward to cheaper, faster and safer travel. >> the president argues that moving it to a nonprofit corporation will quickly modernize the system. >> at a time when every passenger has gps technology in their pockets, our air traffic control system still runs on radar and ground-based radio syste systems. >> a privatized system, you'll be paying through the nose.

>> pilot and -- john nants believes the plan is a corporate money grab. >> it's to throw an awful lot of money at the private sector. what we would end up doing is paying twice what we need to pay and get no more efficiency than if we continued with the present system. >> i think it's a monumentally bad idea and very risky idea. >> the airport will take a back seat to large airports and commercial airlines. >> they've all but said general aviation and rural communities are not going to be the priority. so a lot of people in america ought to be concerned about that. especially ones that rely on smaller airports. >> the faa is no longer funding the system as it should be. >> a member of the pilot's union supports privatization. >> for the airlines, it will save them money. for the passengers, it's better. they'll get point to point faster. and the system would be safer.

>> privatizing air traffic control has been proposed before and congressman huffman says there's opposition to the plan on both sides of the aisle. at sfo, kate larsen, abc 7 news. president trump there not invo invoke. the executive privilege to block -- the testimony from a man he fired, former fbi director james comey. the white house says they hope to speed up the senate's investigation into what led to his dismissal. it will be his first public statement since his abrupt firing last month. >> the white house would look really bad if they're trying to silence comey. they cannot appear to be afraid of him. i wasn't terribly surprised. then again, the white house is unpredictable as you know. >> abc 7 news and abc news will provide live coverage on

thursday morning. it's expected to start at 7:00 a.m. our time. >> san francisco wants uber and lyft to be more transparent. the city attorney's office issued subpoenas demanding that the ride share companies hand over data on their business practices. lee yanne melendez tells us wha the city is looking for. >> while ride share is a part of city living, some find them a nuisance. >> i feel there's too many on the road. >> my biggest complaint with the double parking and the in the bike lanes. >> today the city attorney is demanding that both lyft and uber provide data on driver practices and answer questions on discrimination, disability access and public safety. in a statement that office made clear the city attorney aims to ensure that the two companies estimated 45,000 vehicles in san francisco comply with local and state laws. supervisor jane kim welcomed the investigation. >> we don't know if the drivers

are following the law and picking up individuals with disabilities and they're providing cars that are a.d.a. compliant. we expect these of any company. >> kim is proposing an additional per-ride fee to pay for public transit infrastructure and road improvement. uber was happy to work with the city. lyft was reviewing the subpoena and said we have a track record of working with policy makers who regulate us. the city attorney is also concerned about those drivers who commute from sacramento and fresno and even los angeles to provide service here. these fatigued drivers are not only a threat to themselves but to san francisco pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers. the city attorney is requesting four years of records, including miles and hours logged by drivers. in san francisco, lyanne melendez, abc 7 news. >> jurors heard from witnesses for the first time today in a sexual assault trial of show

business legend bill cosby. he walked into court with one of his cosby show co-stars by his side. keshia knight pulliam played the comic's youngest tv daughter. the trial claims he drugged someone and abused her. cosby's defense team tried to cast doubt on another woman that cosby assaulted her in the 1990s. >> we have new details about the gunman who killed five people and himself at an orlando business this morning. 45-year-old john newman walked into a company and went looking for his victims. the business makes awnings for recreational vehicles. he had been fired from there in april. the sister of a survivor described the chaos. >> she was in the bathroom. she heard a bang. when she come out, she saw one person on the floor. and then she was hysterically crying. >> newman was an army veteran. he had been arrested before for dui, property damage and

possessing stolen property. british authorities released the names of two of the three men shot dead. 27-year-old can you remember a.m. butt was a citizen born in pakistan. the 30-year-old claimed libyan and moroccan nationality. they hit pedestrians with a van on london bridge and then stabbed people in nearby borough market. seven people were killed and 12 people were arrested follow the attack. all have been released without charge. this is the third attack in the uk in three months. governor brown is in china this this week strengthening california's close climate ties with the nation. today the governor signed an agreement with the golden state's sister state, joan sue province. clean energy and technology is the focus of this trip. brown wants to reaffirm the commitment of global sub national governments like california to reduce greenhouse emissions. meantime, the governor's office announced the newly

formed climate alliance added ten new members. the alliance was formed by brown and the governors of new york and washington. members of the coalition are committed to the paris climate agreement and taking aggressive action on climate change. delaware, virginia and rhode island are a few of the states that have now joined. we're taking a live look outside at blue skies and this view from mt. tam. temperatures are going to drop steadily this week. the forecast in ten minutes. gives away two gift cards but before anyone can use them, but before anyone can use them, the money is ♪ ♪ award winning interface. award winning design. award winning engine. the volvo xc90. the most awarded luxury suv of the century. visit your volvo dealer to take advantage

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[ seagulls squawking ] . sports from abc 7 news. >> now on to cleveland for game 3 of the nba finals wednesday night. the warriors left the bay yar a today having won the first two games by double digits at oracle arena. before we make plans for a victory parade, keep in mind the cavaliers trail two last season and came back to win in seven.

still, kyrie irving knows that was then and this is now. >> as much as a comparison wants to be drawn from last year, this is a totally different team. there is no it's a different series. going back home. got to stay the course. >> tend to get more comfortable in your own bed and your own things. it doesn't change for me. i'm the same way on the road or at home. i still have like this mentality when it comes to playing ball. we look forward to it. our fans are looking forward to it. we know that. we got to give them something to cheer for. >> yesterday's game featured the return of head coach steve kerr. he was back on the bench after missing the last 11 games because of a back injury. while pleased with the victory, kerr was not happy about the team's 20 turnovers, eight committed by steph curry. >> out of the turnovers, at least half why just plays of insanity. we've got to bring sanity back

to our game. >> you said you weren't going to come back unless you could go the duration. >> i'm going to go home right now. that's it. see you later. >> you know it's all good. the biggest thing is i'm glad steve is feeling better. he's done a fantastic job. he's done a fantastic job the entire year. i'm happy we got the win. >> substitute teacher of the year here. >> yeah, he did a great job. after losing two out of three to the lowly phillies, the giants open a four-game series in milwaukee today. it's been a long season for giants fans and early on, there was not much to cheer about. with two on in the first, perez hits a high fly ball. the runner tags up at third and the rookie uncorks a horrendous throw that sails high and way off the target. in fact, the ball winds up getting wedged underneath the netting. that allows another runner to score and give milwaukee a 2-0 lead. the giants got on the board in the fourth. joe panik singles to right.

bobbles the ball. buster posey scores easily from second. san francisco then tied the contest in the fifth. solo home run. his fourth of the season. now in the top of the eighth, the giants are tied 2-2. jeff samardzija is still pitching for san francisco. the seahawks have decided to take a pass on former 49ers quarterback colin kaepernick. kaepernick met with the seahawks two weeks ago and drew praise from head coach pete carroll. they signed austin davis as a backup to russell wilson. so kap remains a free agent in search of a job. the 49ers signed elvis dumervil to a two-year deal. the five-time pro bowler spent the last four seasons with baltimore. we can say elvis is in the building in santa clara right now. >> thank you, rick. join us tonight at 9:00 on cable channel 13. buried in gravel and it's all caught on surveillance tape.

how the driver got out. that's at 9:00. then, coming up on abc 7 news at 11:00, one of the world's largest star wars collections in the bay area as thieves make off with items worth tens of thousands of dhars. here's the lineup. at 8:00, the bachelorette followed by still star crossed at 10:00 and stay with us for abc 7 news at 11:00. at 11:35, jimmy kimmel live. tonight's guests are gwyneth paltrow and sean combs. i lose track what he goes by. >> sean diddy i think. >> breaking news on twitter at abc 7 news bay area. >> i'm dan ashley. time. >> i'm ama daetz. thanks for joining us. >> have a nice night. see you at 9:00 and 11:00.

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this is "jeopardy!" today's contestants are an e.r. social worker from fort myers, florida... an owner of a drug and dna testing laboratory from dallas, texas... and our returning champion, an attorney from new york, new york... whose 3-day cash winnings total... and now here is the host of "jeopardy!" -- alex trebek! thank you, johnny. thank you, ladies and gentlemen. well, as you just heard, our young champion, joe nguyen, has been on a roll lately. three big wins.

buzz and chantelle, welcome. pick up the signaling devices. here we go into the jeopardy! round, which today features these six categories, starting off with... you'll love it. think of the yoda. joe, start. classical music at the ballpark for $200, please. [ organ playing "symphony no. 40" ] listen. joe. -who is mozart? -yes. $400, classical music. [ organ playing "la primavera" from "the four seasons" ] joe. -who is vivaldi? -yes. $600, classical. [ organ playing baroque concerto ]