tired of prostitutes turning tricks. today the city of vallejo unveiled some new tactics. good evening i'm julie haener. >> and i'm frank somerville. today a task force weighs in

with its recommendations. >> reporter: controversial and some of these recommendations may not everyone be legal. for example using this big electronic billboard right here on i80 to show the blurred face of someone convicted of prostitution with a website where you can then go see the person's face is a way to embarrass the johns. >> i'm outside looking at a garden with a friend and a car slows down, a man is looking. thinks that we're prostitutes. it's everywhere. >> reporter: sex is for sale on many streets in vallejo. a city struggling to emerge. >> this is a kentucky street watch owl. >> reporter: residents have

taken it upon themselves to take action. >> that's really what we have to do there doesn't seem to be enough resources to handle what is going on. >> we're not going to sit by and let people come to the city and do whatever they want to. >> reporter: tonight recommended several possible solutions to the city council. including community patrols. more policing, cameras and high prostitute areas and a first in the state dear john campaign to shame john. >> you take their vehicle license plate number and you find out who the owner is, you send a letter to their home indicating that your vehicle was seen in a high prostitution area. just thought we would let you know. >> reporter: the mayor is asking the state attorney general to weigh in on the legality of both that dear john

letter and this billboard. julie haener, ktvu.com. police say a man's body was found in the backyard of a home in the 1600 block of blake street around 1:00 this afternoon. police are only saying the victim was a man who had been shot. several family members were at the home when police arrived. they are being interviewed this evening. so far no name of the victim. >> also in berkeley, a nine hour police stand off ends with an apparent suicide. the incident started around 7:30 last night when neighbors heard shots from inside a home. police evacuated a near by home and brought in a hostage negotiating team. for nine hour, the team tried to get the man to surrender. about 7:30 this morning, officers heard a gunshot. went inside and found a man dead. police have released a shocking police video. ktvu's amber lee is live in san jose with this newly released

evidence of the shooting at the mexicali club, amber. >> reporter: the mexicali club has been shut since the triple homicides took place here. now police are releasing video from these surveillance cameras in hopes of finding these two suspects. police are looking for this unidentified men chaising club owner sanchez around the club. >> it's an intense video to watch. it's not common to release videos of this type. but we believe the man on the video is armed and dangerous and it's important for him to be found. >> reporter: sanchez survived but we're told he's now in a wheelchair. what you don't see is a gun battle going on inside the club

at the same time. all three died. neighbors who asked us not to reveal their identities say they don't want the club to reopen. >> it was devastating. it's like i have kids. >> i am just against a place that attracts a crowd that's going to be doing that kind of deed. then coming over here and parking and leaving a dead body in the neighborhood where we live. >> reporter: police are now looking for the get away driver and the unidentified gunman. at least two of the dead men are from salinas. back here live, you can see the bullet holes from the gun battle. police say they released the surveillance video because they need the public's help in solving this crime. investigators say the homicides stem from a drug debt involving the club's owner. reporting live here in san jose, amber lee, channel 2 news. for another look at that surveillance video, you can go to our website ktvu .com.

look for the bay area news tab. and voters in alameda went to the poll, only one item was on the ballot. measure a would increase property taxes to improve schools. here's the latest return. with more than half the precincts reporting, measure a is ahead. measure a supporters went door to door today to get out the vote. if passed the measure will increase property taxes by 32- cents a square foot. it's believed it could raise $12 million a year. if the tax fails, school officials say they will have to close at least two schools. we will update these numbers later in the newscast and again tomorrow on the ktvu morning news. the mount diablo school board tonight is discussing possible cuts as it tries to trim $22 million from next year's budget.

under consideration the possibility of eliminating music programs, reducing library staff and increasing class size. final votes on those issues are expected next tuesday. however the vote is expected to be released next month. no word yet on any decision there. we're getting a better idea tonight of what federal prosecutors are planning for the upcoming perjury trial of barry bonds. that trial is expected to begin march 21st. prosecutors plan to call witnesses to testify about how bonds hat size and shoe size grew larger over time. they also plan to ask his former girlfriend to testify about bonds physical changes and anger problems which prosecutors say were caused by enhancement drugs. and there's been a quake in japan a little more than three hours ago. the epicenter is 200 miles

north of tokyo. buildings reportedly swayed. there are no immediate reports of damage or injuries. a tsunami of about 20-inches is forecast to hit japan's coast sometime tomorrow. officials say there is no danger of a tsunami along the western united states. newly released documents show that pg & e faced problems shortly before last september's explosion in san bruno. ktvu consumer editor tom vacar was allowed to go into a facility where the troubling chain of events may have begun. >> reporter: milpedas natural gas terminal is a major hub for gas pipelines coming in from the texas and canada. from here, natural gas sent throughout the peninsula. repair crews here in milpedas were replacing a back up power supply, during that repair

there was a sudden loss of electrical power. pg & e central room saw pressure gauges dropping to zero on three major pipelines apparently in error. though valves were open wide, pg & e says there was no massive spike in pressure. only a minor one a few pounds over usual operating pressure reported by many other gauges. >> you have 400 pounds of pressure coming in to the station. you're not going to get 600 coming out of it. these huge devices are no, ma'am compressors, what they are are filtering separating oil, water and debris in the pipelines from the natural gas. at one point a pg & e operator says we're screwed, we're screwed. >> i think he was referring to the fact that there was an increase in the system. pressure did not exceed its

maximum allowable pressure. >> reporter: the ntsb will report their latest report in about a month. >> we have released the deplete transcription of pg & e's phone logs on ktvu.com. dewpointing are running high in the bay area. we'll be back at 10:20 with tomorrow's forecast. too much junk mail? we'll tell you how one city is launching a program

new at 10:00, a warning for dog owners. in two occasions boxes of rat poison was found at a dog park. patti lee has been talking to people at the dog park and tells you what to watch out for. >> reporter: as you can see the green pellets are tiny and twice have been left out in the open for dogs to discover. scrolled in blue marker, an ominous text, all dogs must die. >> this is past the realm of

somebody dropping something. >> reporter: two boxes of decon dog pellets were discovered at the dog park in two separate instances in late february. >> the first time it was left in this area. in the actual run area. >> reporter: john pillgers says the city posted this sign today because investigators were unable to link fingerprints left on the boxes to a suspect. >> there's some sick people out there. someone that is looking to kill a dog. >> now that i know that it's happened. i have kept an eye on the dog. we have been here less since we heard the news. >> reporter: what used to be a place to let the dogs roam lose, has now become a watchful

place. >> is it something that looks like the rocks? i don't know. dogs put their nose in everything. >> reporter: they are asking folks to be aware and to report any suspicious behavior. reporting live in sunnyvale. more details now in rat poisoning on a dog. it may take two to seven days for the first symptoms to appear. treatments by a veterinarian includes inducing vomiting as well as medication. and officers responded to an alarm at 6:00 a.m. at the british motors. police tell us officers found repelling rope and bolt cutters but did not say exactly how the thief of thieves pulled off the

heist. guy fierri lives in the bay area and his lombourghini was the only car taken. the numbers keep rising, the san francisco public defenders office told ktvu today just hours ago in fact, that more cases were dismissed today that may be related to the police video scandal. today eight cases were dropped, five involved drug charges. two were for grand theft, another for burglary. the district attorney told us there may be even more to come. >> we anticipate that there will be many other cases that will be dismissed.

the number is still unclear. but we're going to try to get through the majority of those cases by tomorrow. >> reporter: this all started when the public defenders office released surveillance video that it says shows plain clothed police officer not following proper procedure and possibly breaking the law. san francisco major agreed to a $4.25 million settlement with office depot today. the city had sued the chain claiming it overcharged for office supplies. the settlement must still be approved by the district attorney's office. other unions complained they were being asked to make long term concessions and police were getting a sweetheart deal. but police officers argue they have been making concessions for years. san jose may be about to

make a major move to limit medical marijuana dispensaries in the city. right now there are more than 100 dispensaries operating in san jose. the obama administration announced today it will appeal a judge's ruling that declares the health care overhaul. the city of berkeley is sponsoring a new effort to reduce junk mail by keeping it out of your mailbox and out of landfills. as ktvu's jana katsuyama reports, berkeley is one of five cities that's allowing residents to opt out. >> reporter: today deidra

mercer stuffed box after box of not only mail but mailings. for some people the so called junk mail comes every day. >> geico always sends. >> i have sent some back. but we still get junk mail. >> reporter: today berkeley's major announced a new partnership named catalog choice in berkeley. >> it's just a small step that helps in the over all problem. >> reporter: chuck taylor says while citizens can opt out by contacting residents directly that can be time consuming. his organization has produced software that does it quickly. catalog choice charges cities $200,000 a year. taylor says its world it

because it helps city save money in paper. >> it sends more money to send a truck out to your house to pick up the garbage and dispose of it. >> reporter: catalog choice says they have a one year contract with the city of berkeley and they hope to expand it to cities nationwide. jana katsuyama, ktvu channel 2 news. an update now on a story we first brought you a year ago about an old mercury mine. the environment agency is considering adding the mine to a priority list. past mining operations have resulted in mercury and acid contamination. and outside right now we've got clouds over the news, the north bay and south bay. it's mild outside, it's pretty

warm. tomorrow hazy sunshine. your tomorrow is going to be marked by warmer temperatures. we'll see highs possibly in the upper 60s and low 70s. overnight it's not going to be that chilly. we're going to be warmer tomorrow. the story will be the valley fog and the north and east bay valley. it'll be patchy, it'll be gone early. temperatures tomorrow afternoon 60s and low 70s. but valley fog to start with. when i come back at 10:45, i'll have the latest computer model loaded up and ready to go. and it does show rain coming up here on thursday. we'll see you back here with the five day as well. in san francisco a hate ashbury recycling program may be forced to close. the lease is up for the recycle center in golden gate park. but the center says the lease

doesn't expire until june. the recreation and parks department wants a community garden at the site. it's fat tuesday and the celebrations are in full swing tonight. what police in san jose are doing differently this year as they try

take a look at this,

thousands of sardines in the marina. the dead fish are going to be turned into fertilizer. robert handa tells us why scientists are searching for huge containers that have fallen off of ships. >> reporter: today we got a look at the rov remotely operated vehicle named ricketts that will give scientists a look at a very overlooked problem. this is a container filled with car tires since the shipping mishap in 2004. about 10,000 containers fall of ships every year but the shipping industry isn't required to report the incidents and unless there is obvious environmental damage, it doesn't get much news coverage. >> we don't see these floating

around, yet we're littering the seabed with these containers. >> reporter: scientists from the national marine sanctuary will use the rv to shoot videos and photos around the containers in monterey bay. >> is it degrading? what kind of changes do we see around the biology around that container. is it having any impact at all on the seabed community. >> reporter: scientists say they hope the information gathered from this rov can be used to help convince the shipping industry to take more preventative steps to keep containers on board where they belong. robert handa, ktvu channel 2 news. in libya, rebels who are fighting to oust gadhafi have stalled in their fight. forces loyal to the colonel have been close to tripoli in

the last two days. also the hospital is overwhelmed with the dead and wounded. libya's colonel showed up today in a hotel. it was never clear if he would talk or to whom. mr.gadhafi did grant interviews to french and swiss reporters. desmond tutu and nelson mandela, the thousands of archival documents will include letters and diaries of the two men. the hope is that all of the material will be available online sometime in the future. it's mardi gras night in downtown san jose, but there

are less police on

it's been a ruckus night in new orleans for those who celebrated this evening. some people tried to stretch out that celebration for a little bit longer. mardi gras celebrations are also on in the bay. with less officers on hand, people hope things do not get out of hand. >> reporter: the combination of fat tuesday and a sharks game has brought thousands of people

to downtown san jose tonight. these cones are stacked here just in case police have to start blocking off streets. there have been no problems so far but still, the mardi gras partying is definitely underway. >> this is fun. >> happy mardi gras. >> reporter: what draws you to downtown in is. >> the people and of course the alcohol. >> reporter: 200 police officers stand ready tonight to enforce the peace. but because of budget problems, that's 40 less than last year. >> i think police response is slow because of how things going. >> reporter: but tactics are different this year. they won't let crowds build up on the sidewalks and police will divert traffic on the streets if it gets too congested. >> the way we're going to try to do it is figure out where to

divert the cars and pedestrians. >> reporter: mardi gras last year had 26 arrests but half were misdemeanors. recent years have not seen the violence and vandalism in previous years. >> we've been really lucky we haven't had to worry about whether we're a priority to them or not. >> reporter: there is no one payor mardi gras event tonight but more than 20 fullton restaurants are having new orleans themed celebrations so troubles could occur later tonight. we'll be on hand and watching. live in san jose, lloyd lacuesta, ktvu channel 2 news. and in san francisco this evening, musicians got the good times rolling at the fillmore plaza center. this is the second year

fillmore has put together a mardi gras celebration. governor jerry brown's thursday deadline for a budget deal is rapidly approaching and so far there is no deal. the governor needs two republican votes in both the state senate and the assembly in order to hold a special election in june to extend certain taxes. brown says he needs an agreement by tuesday. california is facing a $26 million deficit. san francisco nummi operators have filed suit to stop proposition g. the union is not trying to stop the part that would eliminate the guarantee that makes nummi operators the second best paid in the country. they say what's unfair is the section that says an arbitrator must consider the impact on an impasse. the 2010 census shows

growth despite a decline in 5% in the white population and the african american population was off near 1%. >> reporter: the numbers are out and they show population has grown 10% since 2000. a gain of 3.4 million people. san jose the third largest city in california saw 5.7% increase. san francisco the fourth largest city had an increase of 3.7%. a growth in population can mean several things. where a county will spend its money on transportation. >> there will likely be a shift in the two districts that represent the southern part of the northern contra costa county and southern contra costa county. >> reporter: cocoa county had a

5.9% increase. and the ethnic and racial make up of the state has also changed. latinos grew by 28%. the asian population represents 13% of the state's total population it's up 31.5%. these numbers are also needed when planning accounting future. >> it helps us understand better where we need to make investments for public infrastructure. >> reporter: although contra costa had the largest increase in population, here in lafayette, they had the smallest increase. >> and the census results are available on ktvu.com you will find the link at the top of the politics tab on the front page.

>> first lady michelle obama marked international women's day by honoring women who have made great sacrifices to fight oppression. >> these women have accepted these risks. they have worked for change, and time and again these women have discovered a very simple truth. that courage can actually be contagious. >> reporter: the first laically and secretary of state hillary clinton gave out awards. the first lady also said more progress is needed to achieve true equality. in san francisco, men and women marked international women's day with a march for mother's around the world. >> we are with you. >> the march was not only in support of women and mothers but was a peace rally as well. some carries signs denouncing american attacks that have killed mothers and children. international women's day is 100 years old today.

it began as a way to promote the right to an education, to have a job, to vote, and to have equality. new at 10:00, a school custodian arrested in sexual molestation charges. and here is the latest computer model, it does show some rain coming on thursday. and

the of a woman in the developing world better than another woman in any part of the world -- the struggle to be equal and to be allowed to realize your potential. at care, we found that, when women are empowered, it's one of the fastest ways to help the world move forward. if you'll just reach out and lend a hand, you won't believe what you can start. visit... developing news now, a statewide amber alert was cancelled within just the half hour. the sheriff department has just confirmed if for us that a kidnapped eight month baby boy

and his teenage mother have been found and are safe. mosqueda and caracoza were found. the sheriff's department has not released details on how or where the three were locate. it is a sad ending for the search of a 23-year-old student that went missing in madrid. he on what would have been her tenth birthday. sandra cantu is being remembered by people in tracy. dozens of people gathered to

celebrate her life and there were balloons and cake. today cantu's relatives say they want something positive to come out of the loss of her life. the da's report released today says the officers had reason to fear for their safety when they fired at 37-year-old derrick jones on november 8. the report says jones reached for his waistband and that the officers believed he was reaching for his week. an fbi the investigation is on going. new at 10:00, a institute custodian has been arrested on

molestation charges. police took john johnson ii. police say he molested two girls 18 years ago. they say johnson molested them over several years when they were just six and eight year old. -- the city had not previously seen such an attack and it could signal such an offensive. the taliban says the killings were in revenge of some of their top official killings. last week the army killed seven women who were marching for peace. the soldiers are loyal to the former president who has refused to give up power everyone after being declared the loser of the election. in poland a 16th century monastery of an order of st.

francis of asisi was badly damaged by a fire. an important painting and some artifacts were saved and no one was injured. sky high prices at the pump. the station where you can save as much as 70-cents a gallon and why it's not for every car. and why it's not for every car. also patchy fog toni bree: sis, help me create my oasis. marcy: ok, romantic garden? bree: oh, is there a castle nearby? marcy: no, but there's a charming farmhouse. bree: right next to my posh castle! i'm sensing a theme here. well, i am the queen, dear sister.

the fire department says it has the fire under control. a ktvu crew is already on the scene and we'll let you know more if we learn any other details. an update now on today's special election in the city of

alameda. we just received the latest numbers into the ktvu newsroom and it appears the measure will pass. measure a would increase property taxes to support schools. with 28 of 28 needed measure a has passed. measure a is the only item on the ballot. with gas prices topping $4 a gallon at many stations we found the station -- one station in the bay area today that is selling gas for about 70-cents less. but as ktvu health and science editor reports, it's not for everyone. >> reporter: if you drive you know. >> it's hard for me to afford it. >> reporter: some blame the bureaucracy. >> they are not allowing other things to be used yet so we're suffering with high prices.

>> reporter: hope at this fueling station. >> i'm saving every day i come to the station five to $6 a day. >> reporter: for flex fuel, 70s cents cheaper. >> new technologies that our country just had not seen. >> reporter: this is bio diesel it's made from vegetable oil, waste greece, even animal fat. it has the faint smell of castor oil. >> vehicle manufacturers have not chosen to warrant more than 5% content of bio diesel in their engines. >> reporter: car makers fear new government standards may help. ethanol fuels require special cars. 56 new models qualify. bio fuels can be grown, refined and distributed where you live. >> because if you can develop

it locally then you don't have to ship it which costs fuel. >> reporter: federal officials today asked banks and investors to get behind bio fuels it could some say help save the nation. john fowler, ktvu news. and ktvu.com has the tools to find the lowest gas prices in your neighborhood. just look for the economy watch tab on our front page. concerns about oil waned today. the nasdaq picked up 20. banks are doing well enough now to raise their dividends. it appears district supervisor weaner says the district will not pursue setting up shop at the old tower record shop. he says people in the area should not dispair, he is reaching out to other supermarks to see if they might

be interested. a man who was accused of hiring someone to kill his financial mentor. no one has been arrested or charged with his murder. billings wife says she believes robins was the gunman. police say they recognized 40-year-old steven roetter's truck parked outside a club last night. when they stopped him, he was under the influence of alcohol. roetter has two previous dui convictions. there's a little bit of cloud cover outside right now.

let's go to live storm tracker 2. there'll be some filtered sunshine in the next couple of days. here is how it goes tonight. patchy fog in the morning. partly cloudy and warmer for your wednesday. numbers can reach the 70s. here is what we're watching for thursday. we've been talking about the computer model and in a couple of minutes i'm going to show you that model. here we go for tomorrow, right we talked about the fog in the morning. it's around, it won't be this big, in other words it'll be patchy and it'll burn off quickly tomorrow. you know most of the places where it shows up. late in the day, and by tomorrow night we see this system start to move in. the chances of shower is basically thursday afternoon. this is a weak system. most of its energy going to the north. look at the flow out in the pacific. everything is riding to the north. it's starting to look like a spring weather channel with the

way the jet stream is set up. here is the computer model. tomorrow at 2:00 we have partly cloudy skies and hazy sunshine. depends how much cloud cover you have, that's how warm you're going to be. if you get some breaks like santa rosa you could see 70 degrees for a daytime high. now the computer model starts to pick up rain as we head into thursday morning. pretty significant rain. that looks dry to me. it's going to be a thursday afternoon event. looks like it's going to sit right in that 3:00 to 4:00 hour. it's a weak system. accumulations .1 of an inch up here. should be enough to just wet the roadways a little bit right before the afternoon commute. then it's out of here. there'll be a little bit of snow in the mountains. so really it's just a short, not a big deal event. look for it thursday afternoon

around 2:00, 3:00, 4:00. forecast highs tomorrow on the warmest day of the week, 69 tomorrow in antioch. 69 out there in the livermore valley. we'll get low 70s out in san jose. an the five day forecast looks like thursday, p.m. chances of shower. friday looks nice. sunday looks like we're going to get a nice shot of showers in here. saturday, best day on the weekend. sunday most of the day is going to be nice. but sunday night looks like a pretty good night for showers. honda is the latest auto maker with spider problems. honda issued a warning about the yellow spiders. mazda is recalling 65,000 mazda six sedans because of the same problem. movies are making their way to facebook.

today warner brothers studio started testing away to play movies on the website. the preview is offering fans batman the dark knight. the movie plays through a facebook application

mark is here now with sports, how about the sharks the hottest team in the nhl right now. >> looking good, if you watched this game. i don't really feel that you have to be a hockey expert to see it. pure speed, sharks use it to snatch another one of those close ones. this time in over time against the predators. we have a scoreless game that is until ryan crow handles the business in tight. however after one it's 1-1. sharks working the power play situation and thanks to logan couture, justice brock puts the sharks up front. 2-1. however 2-2 after regulation. and here it is, patti online.

game ender 3-2 with 1:36 left in overtime. switching sports, when lebron james is around, that was a circle it day on the calendar, it still is. because that's a game you better win. they have the baron, former warrior. wright coming up with the turn over here. 18 of them by the cavs tonight. and baron davis these days looking pretty good. he had 19 and assisting to christian ayenga up top to the cavs got a 13 point deficit. warriors outside shooting, monte a career high. 24 for him, 23 for curry and the warriors win it by 10 out

in the road. and one of those nervewracking accidents, remember all those 1- 0 games, same deal today but in the cactus league. and laroche trying to make the team as a back up infielder. once a top prospect. that's his third homer of the spring. making a bid to make the team. will venable shot deep got himself an rbi double. that's it for the padres. trevor cahill strong 4 innings. under the category of let the little things go. mcgahey upset that ramon celebrated he felt a little too much. and no punches thrown, more or

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