>> major developments in the richmond high school gang rape case. a judge expected to decide which defendants will go to trial. we will have that coming up. >> we continue our look into at a pointed tap water. what is in the water and who is in most danger when drinking it. >> good morning. it is 4:30. let's start with rob and the east bay forecast. >> a quiet start on the east

bay. an active start with thundershowers waking up the fish, but some will spill towards the coast. from fremont southbound, seeing a lot. the same story around the east bay. with the showers going from south to north. the north bay is dry and we will see the moisture offshore heading into the afternoon. an increasing chance of rain. east bay temperatures mostly upper 50s around places like pleasanton and san ramon. low 50s around fairfield. we will talk about this round of pretty heavy rain and gusty winds in the seven-day forecast. scott? >> let's move over to mike. >> i have to take you out. slick roads rob is talking about that let up, but wet roads and alamo got reports of a semi truck versus a deer. this is not good for the deer and no reports on whether it's

in lanes or not. a semi might be on the shoulder. if you are heading off of the interchange, i will get an update when they arrive on scene. over here we wanted to call your attention to the major intersection. the big issue is a skateboarder. that's not a wise decision e especially it's cold. hope you are wearing a jacket and a helmet. highway 4 is really the major factor. westbound at around the 64 out of antioch. the start up right about 5:30 even though it's a light flow of traffic. >> we should learn today whether seven defendants accused in a brutal gang rape will go to trial. christie smith live with what is ahead in the final leg of the preliminary hearing. good morning, christie. >> you had to judge who is making the decision which will

go to trial. he has two major concerns looking forward. one of them is whether there is sufficient evidence to bring a 16-year-old to trial. he has concerns about evidence surrounding a 23-year-old richmond man. a judge did indicate the 20-year-old is a ringleader to all this would go to trial. the judge said after watching a tape that in his opinion was more of an interrogation when he invoked his rights to remain silent, the interview continued. he basically will consider anything said in that interview. attorneys are expected to present oral arguments. the attack happened in october of 2 thousand 9. a 16-year-old girl police said was raped, beaten and robbed by a group of men as spectators watched outside of a homecoming dance. one defendant is facing twik years in prison and the others

could see up to life in prison if convicted. live in mar tip ez, christie smith, today in the east bay. a search is on for the man who held up a walker at gunpoint on the iron horse trail in pleasant hill around 6:00. the mugger approached his victim near the intersection of bancroft and hookston roads taking his cell phone and cash and running north on the trail. one person is dead and another on the run after a shooting in oakland. a police chase ended in a house at 13th and 33rd after a car crashed into it. police say all four people ran to or detained. one was shot by police. a hand gun was found nearby. this was one of several recent officer-involved shootings. >> this was something that happens a lot. a young man killed by the

police. we want to find out what can be change and how stuff like this can change. >> the chase began when they spotted the car they believe was involved in a different shooting on friday. >> oakland city leaders will take a step in the quest to build a baseball stadium for the a's. they will look into funding and environmental study for the stadium along the waterfront. it's the victory gorgelin site. this site was chosen after major league baseball preferred it. the council meeting is at 5:30. an update to a story with the city of san jose reacting to reports that the drinking water has a dangerous level of chromium 6. water delivered by the municipal system meets all drinking water standards set by the epa and california department of health. you can feel confident the water is save

to drink. that is in response to a study from the environment working group that tested 35 cities for chromium 6 and found san jose had the fifth highest level of the chemical. chromium six is said to have a high probability of causing cancer. it was featured in the movie, erin brockvich. bottled water could have chromium six too. the best way to protect yourself is install a reverse osz moesz water filter. california doesn't have a specific limit for chromium 6. >> if you air smoker and you are the only one, you are pretty much right. one out of 10 in san mateo actually smokes. at that rate both counties tie for sixth lowest in the state according to a health study. only 13% of californians smoke

compared to 21% nationwide. the golden state has the second lowest smoking rate in the country behind utah. california's high speed rail line is getting longer much the board in charge agreed to nearly double the length of the first segment to alleviate concern that is the initial route wouldn't reach major population centers in the valley. the federal government reallocated more than $1 billion in rail funding to california and 11 other states after ohio and wisconsin decided not to proceed with their rail projects. the extra funds will go to construction of 123 miles of rail way. north of fresno to bakersfield. a recreation center needs your help to fight crime. the lincoln square rec center needs about $20,000 for a new security camera system. the city will not pay for it and they are asking for your help.

it should reduce purse snatchings, fights and other crimes. every day about 2,000 people use the center for everything from dancing to basketball games. >> an extra holiday helping for families in need. the bay area rescue mission will distribute food bags to everyone who needs them from 8:00 this morning until 1:00 this morning. the rescue commission on mcdonald avenue. they will serve christmas dinner to folks through friday under the at the present time there. you can get an autograph of the raiders players while helping east bay kids in need. the raiders fall back and the linebacker will sign autographs in exchange for new unwrapped toys at the toys for tots drive at 6:00 tonight. . >> 4:38, folks.

alamo with the semi versus the deer. all activity is out of the lanes. that deer might have scampered off. it sounds dramatic, but there is nothing sfrarz the traffic impact. the maze with no problems approaching the bay bridge. there is puddling, but nothing of great concern. roadways are an issue. we talk about the gusty winds for the upper deck into san francisco. that will impact you from time to time. the camera holding steady wet roads and gusty winds and this morning's commute, you have factors to concentrate on the roadways. >> let's go to rob and the weather. >> not bad in terms of rain right now, but by the evening we could see changes. winter coat weather. 40s to near 50 right now. mike pointed out the winds at 16

into oakland. it is breezy. take a look at the radar and a lot of lightning showing up. you can see how active it is. that will be our way for this evening. a few hit and miss showers. the same off to the west of san francisco and the north bay. the bay area right now in the sly slot between the super soaker across southern california and the next storm system that will bear down towards the evening the highs in the 50s and a chance of thundershowers especially along the coast and the coastal mountains. hit and miss showers for today. tonight into wednesday morning we will see the next round of widespread rain. we are expectth the break for thursday and friday, but christmas day plan on rain to kick oust weekend. you may be noig a change of scenery. this is our temporary home while the new state-of-the-art set is

assembled a few feet away. we will be in these digs for a couple of weeks. coming up, would you believe that cat fur is putting guys behind bars. how it's done and how east bay pets are changing forensics. sometimes pays to wait and slashing prices days before christmas. you are looking at a live picture of the bay bridge. we will be back in a moment. how's it going in there, hon? um, almost ready. [ car alarm blaring ]

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who needs santa with $145 million. that is the jackpot for the mega millions draw. the pot got fatter after nobody matched all six numbers in friday night's drawing. california is one of 42 states in this game. players pick five numbers from one to 56 plus mega numbers. they will be drawn at 8:00 tonight. >> per let's check in with mike. if you stop at the bay bridge toll, do that early. >> it gets crowded. the sheen on the roadway and the parking lot, we see a few puddles. keep that in mind off of the off-ramps. we will take you to the maps and

looking just fine. the east shore freeway, 18 minutes from the carquinas bridge through richmond and berkeley and emeryville. westbound 580 with 13 minutes out of the pass. out of the area, eastbound starting today and tomorrow. folks might head to the sierra. bring the chains. there is a lot of snow up there. >> i have my mother-in-law coming in from the south and understand there was snow over the grapevine and everything. i expect her sometime today. >> the snow level is a little bit high with the rain that is falling across southern california and around tehachapi. they are seeing a lot of weather on the 101. a thundershower on the coast and the rain increasing tomorrow, but into thursday and friday for our own plans not looking bad. here's the shower activity

across the north coast. in terms of rain, the focus is right there in southern california. we will have to wait longer before the rain sweeps back in later. the rainfall totals from tonight and tomorrow, probably another inch or two across the mountains and an inch or less across the main area. the main event tonight into tomorrow. mid 50s with maybe rumbles of thunder along the coast. 56 in concord and the rain filling in as we head through this evening. expecting the break for thursday and friday and here comes more rain and breezy conditions on christmas day, saturday. take a look at this. this is snowy white video from highway 80 in truckee. skiers will have plenty of snow as you mentioned. several feet fell and we see the conditions in blue canyon. >> these guys came up from

citrus heights and their inner tube was overinflated. >> too much air in there? >> traffic was light, but steady. >> they're pretty icy and a lot of snow. >> the draw of several feet of fresh powder is too great. this bunch of students came from the bay area. >> straight out of berkeley. >> where are you going? >> tahoe city for a couple day vacation. >> the chp and cal trans is bracing for a major crowd, asking for travelers to be prepared as snow levels rise and fall. chain controls keep moving and driving conditions change. most people say the skiing conditions are so good right now they are staying for as long as they can. >> i came up for the day and left my girlfriend and had so much fun that i'm going to pick her up and bring her back. caltrans and the chp are keeping the roads clear of snow

and accidents. they only expect traffic to get heavier as the week continues. in the sierra, nbc bay area news. >> the fcc is expected to pass new net neutrality news. for more on that, let's go to nicole at cnbc world headquarters. >> good morning to you, scott. futures drifted higher possiblily adding more fuel to good old santa's sleigh and the year end rally. stocks closed mixed with no real news, but they closed at a two-year high. asian stocks rose on relief of the korea crisis. our time of course. no economic data today, but we are watching capitol hill on a $250 billion bill to keep the government running through early march. the fcc is also expected. we are watching that as well. they adopt new rules on internet

access with net neutrality. broadband providers wouldn't block websites. they wouldn't be allowed to play favorites by dividing the content delivery mechanisms into slow and fast lanes, but it lets them charge more for video or social networking services. if you are waiting until the seventh hour to find that gift, you may be out of luck. some of the hottest gifts like the amazon kindle and fleece-lined shirts from ll bean are apparently sold out. the national retail federation said this is not the year to be playing chicken with the stores. getting burned with way too much inventory, a lot of chain stores are getting more conservative when ordering the holiday merchandise. i hope when your mom comes in, she had already gone to the lrk

l bean store to get your fleece-lined shirt. >> it's warmer here than it is here. >> everybody needs a fleece-lined shirt. >> the chevy volt goes on sale oeds, but the geek from berkeley has one. patrick yang is the first bay area resident to own the new model. the 25-year-old fell in love with it when he saw it as a concept car three years ago. his you tube video won him a place at the front of line. the car can be charged with a normal wall outlet and gets between 20 and 50 miles on the battery alone. it has a gas generator for a longer drive. while he will save monogas, the car cost him more than $40,000. best buy changing deals in the final shopping days before christmas. it is doing away with restocking

fees and free mobile hot spots. they are offering if you buy an ipad. the 15% used to apply to computers and ipads and digital cameras and navigation systems. 10% applies to mobile homes. those go away. customers can choose from hot spot devices from at&t, sprint, and verizon saving about $130 when they buy an ipad. monthly changes still apply. >> uncle sam knows where you are, who you are and what you are earning. the census is done, at least the first part of it. the numbers come out in a few hours in washington. the sift in population could mean another shift in power in capitol hill. tracie potts has a preview. >> 120 million forms, 600,000 workers knocking on 50 million doors across america.

the 2010 census is done and when the numbers come out this morning, expect to see changes in washington. >> texas really is going to be the big winner. it's expected to gain three seats in the house of representatives. >> georgia, florida, north carolina, nevada, arizona, and utah may gain seats. new york, new jersey, pennsylvania and ohio are expected to lose. the official count of america every 10 years determines how $4 trillion in education, transportation and other projects are funded. >> we will begin to use the data soon and those federal programs for directing money to make sure that the funds flow where the people are. does the census go too far? these days uncle sam wants to know your race, income, whether you are buying or renting and how many kids live at home. too nezy, some say. >> we are doing marketing

research for wal-mart and microsoft. they should do their own. >> it's government research and it came in about $1.5 billion under budget. in washington, tracie potts total in the east bay. >> marla is in the newsroom with a preview. >> good morning to you at home. the spider man musical is the most expensive in history and getting a reputation for being the most dangerous. what put one actor in the hospital this morning. >> this woman said she is the victim of assault. what's happening to her now. these stories and traffic and weather coming up on today in the bay. we will see you in a few. the next story sounds like a case out of csi and it's very real. garvin thomas said it involves a murder, a suspect, and a new type of science pioneered here in northern california.

>> like so many advances in the fight against crime, the one we are about to show you begins with an actual crime n. march of 2004, steven nolte was murdered. among the evidence collected at the scene, cat hair stuck to his pockets. now unlike human hair, there was little a scientist could do with cat hair other than to say that's what it was. that is until the detectives in missouri placed a call to scientists in california. >> that's when the lab got kicked into action. >> leslie was with the school of veterinary medicine. for years it has been collecting dna profiles of cats for research purposes. >> we have cats from all over the united states and all over the world. >> worry that call from kansas city, they realized the dita base could hold a key to a powerful application.

>> there is a lot of potential evidence that hasn't been used in the past because there is not the science behind it. >> using the science, missouri prosecutors were able to rule out the hair belonging to any cat other than one living with henry polk. the leading suspect in the murder. the first time ever such evidence had been used in a gorgelin of law. polk was convicted and sent to prison for life. >> it's interesting, but frankly it's about to get more interesting because it's one thing to match a cat hair to a cat if you actually have the cat. what if you don't? what if all you have is a cat hair or other forensic evidence, but not the cat? the scientists at davis are working on technology that enable them with just that evidence to provide investigators with a picture of what the cat looks like. >> we genetically type that and tell you whether it's all white, a black and white cat, siamese

cat. we will be able to tell you the contributor on that crime scene evidence. what does the cat look like? >> when you consider there cats in 1/3 of american homes, you see what a powerful tool this can be. turning cat hair into something investigators can't wait to get their hands on. in davis, today in the east bay. coming up, we will tell you what's happening with the rates that are supposed to bring millions of dollars into the bay area economy. a man accused of killing a well-known activist. he is expected in gorgelin. a lot of people will be taking to the skies. what the men and women charged with keeping you safe in th air are doing to keep security tight. marly will be right here. [ female announcer ] what will you gain when you lose?™

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it is december 21st, tuesday, this is today in the bay. >> good morning.