developing news out of antioch this morning where arson investigators are looking at three separate fires that started in about an hour, all of them just blocks apart. i'm christie smith. we'll have that story coming up. and a new morning this morning for students at a prestigious bay area university after a woman is groped in broad daylight. plus a new fight for the bay area man who says a priest attacked him as a young boy. right now we take you outside for a live look spanning over san jose in the early morning. kind of orange out there on this friday, september 14th. this is "today in the bay." hi, everybody, good morning. it is almost 4:31, bright and

early in the morning. i'm jon kelley. >> and i'm marla tellez. laura garcia-cannon is off today. let's check that orange-looking forecast with meteorologist christina lowerren. >> hey, good morning to you. we've got a good-looking weekend shaping up. fall arrives next saturday. 56 in oakland, 60s in concord and livermore headed towards the 90s again. some cities actually got very close, flirting with triple digits yesterday. we'll let you know if that is the case again today. we're also talking about rain in the forecast so lots to go over. first we want to take you through your drive on a friday. >> hey, folks, look at oakland just north of the coliseum. very calm, very light right now. we do have things planned today, a ball game, of course, and we also have a concert. so two activities at the coliseum. it's going to be very crowded in both directions approaching 66 toward the evening hours. construction a little further north on the southbound side from 980.

east shore freeway similar situation moves a couple of lanes just south of the richmond bridge but a smooth drive toward the bay bridge toll plaza. back to you. 4:32. new this morning, big worries about a potential fire bug in antioch after a series of late-night fires. firefighters say it appears someone set three fires in less than an hour including one that damaged a strip mall. christie smith is live in antioch with more on why these fires seem so suspicious. christie, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, marla. happy friday. you know, it certainly is odd that three fires, and they occurred in a matter of blocks, two of them at the exact same strip mall where we're at this morning. i'm going to step aside and you can see the blackened wall there behind me. there's also an area that looked like it had a dumpster. that area looked like it was burned as well. this is on sycamore drive. when police arrived at 10:40 last night they saw an orange

glow in the sky and thought the back of the strip mall was on fire. firefighters arrived and found big flames in the grass and trees nearby. it's not just one area, but two areas on the southeast and north side. one of them behind a 99 cent store. now, an hour earlier, less than a quarter of a mile away, just a few blocks from here at 18th and l, reports of a tree on fire. again, these are all so close that it really is unusual. i spoke with a dispatcher who tells me that it is under investigation and earlier they told us it is suspicious and certainly looks like arson. reporting live in antioch, christie smith, "today in the bay." internationally in the middle east, more protests expected today as the u.s. follows up on arrests made in the death of u.s. libyan ambassador christopher stevens and three others. they died during a protest over a low-budget film that many muslims see as an open insult to the prophet muhammed. we'll give you a live look at cairo where days of protest have

reportedly injured at least 200 people. protesters at times hurling stones, molotov cocktails, while the police there responded with tear gas. meantime in libya, state department workers who were stationed in benghazi have all been evacuated and moved to the capital city of tripoli. fbi evidence teams are now arriving in benghazi trying to help out this investigation. last night libya announcing four arrests in connection with the u.s. embassy deaths and they say they are still looking for more. secretary of state hillary clinton has now identified the two u.s. security guards who were among those killed. >> they were good and brave men. they were committed to the cause of building a brighter future for the people of libya. >> both of those men, former navy s.e.a.l.s, said to have ties to southern california. president obama vowing to bring those responsible to justice,

telling voters on the campaign trail yesterday that, quote, no act of terror will go unpuni unpunished. his opponent, mitt romney, now shifting his focus back to the economy after heavy backlash to his critical comments to the president's handling of the crisis in libya. back here in the bay area, a group is going to begin teaching vallejo residents how to launch a new police oversight group. the national cop watch organization is offering the training this weekend amid growing anger over the high number of officer-involved shootings in vallejo this year. the latest shooting last night but this time nobody was hit. vallejo police started a chase after a truck refused to pull over. that ended when the suspects crashed on the campus of oaks elementary school. after the crash one of the men made a threatening move towards one of the officers. that officer then fired, hitting the wall of the nearby school. both suspects surrendered and

are now facing charges of resisting arrest. a vigil will be held tonight for the milpitas convenience store clerk gunned down at work. dozens are expected to gather at the 7-eleven to pay their respects to mohammed reza. he was shot and killed saturday morning. surveillance photos show three hooded gunmen running into the store. seconds later the men shot reza, killing him on the spot. officers are still looking for those gunmen. this was milpitas' very first homicide of the year and it happened just two blocks away from the city's police station. from victim to victim's advocate. a bay area man who says he was molested by a priest is now turning his anger to action. william lynch made headlines when he attacked the man he says raped him when he was seven. he was unable to file charges against jerry lindner.

now he is trying to change the law so others can hold their abusers accountable years after the crime. >> if we can repeal the statute of limitations in this country and peep kel stand behind that, i think that would help a lot of people who have already been affected and absolutely help the children in the future. >> a san jose jury acquitted lynch on assault charges in july. he expects it will take millions of dollars to get voters to approve a ballot measure extending the statute of limitations. he's holding his first fund-raiser in los altos on sunday. stanford university issuing a few warning to students after a woman was groped on campus. the student told police she was walking near manzenita field when a man ran up and groped her. similar incidents happened late last month. police at this point have not said if they think this week's incident is related to the ones last month.

abused, neglected and left for dead. this morning a morgan hill pit bill is looking for a little love and a permanent home. champ can't see the toy he's chewing on because he's blind. emily recently found the dog tied to a fence at a san jose elementary school with a computer cable around his neck. the animal was in bad condition. vets were forced to remove his eyes and said it was clear he was a victim of abuse. >> they should definitely i feel be put away. it's a crime. it's total neglect. i think they should be treated just like you would if you neglected a child. >> several supporters including the san jose animal advocates have now started a facebook page. they're hoping this leads to a permanent home for champ. it is 4:38. a little good news on a follow-up. a woman left fighting for her life after being run down on a walnut creek sidewalk is now said to be improving this morning. doctors say sheng hahn is now

listed in fair condition. she was hurt very badly saturday when a speeding pickup truck slammed right into her and her family. her mother-in-law was killed in that incident. the truck's driver has not been charged. police continue to investigate this crash and they say they will submit the case to the district attorney sometime soon. 4:39. a south bay nursery ruined by a recent fire will place its remaining inventory on sale this morning. summer winds nursery is calling it a fire sale. the store in san jose will open at 9:00. the 10,000 square foot building burned down on august 29th. summer winds says 10% of this weekend's proceeds will be donated to the san jose firefighters burn foundation and the los bombers of northern california toy foundation. all for a good cause. >> very nice. 4:39 right now. let's get another check on the weather. christina loren is here to talk about friday and we are looking at the weekend.

>> good morning to you. i want to start with this live picture. san jose mostly cloudy conditions, same deal as yesterday, only we're dealing with more cloud cover so that's going to keep your temperatures down just a touch from yesterday's highs. i've taken most of your numbers down by two to three degrees. we'll see the same setup as yesterday. drizzle along the peninsula as that marine layer is being forced right to the surface. livermore hit 96 degrees yesterday. walnut creek 95 degrees today. i'm going 93 in livermore and we're starting out just about as mild as we were at this time yesterday. the only difference is that fog is going to linger just a little longer. we still have moderate air quality in the central and east bay but we're in the good range everywhere else. highs will be just a touch more comfortable in places like san jose, 80 degrees. 68 in san francisco. perfection in oakland, 77 degrees there today. now, your seven-day outlook really comes in clutch when it comes to you making those weekend plans outdoors. final full weekend of summer, we

want to help you make those plans. that's coming up in my next report. first let's check your drive. good morning, mike. >> good morning. let's take you out to antioch. christie is following the story about the number of suspicious fires over there. we also have overnight road work westbound and that is sticking around. they told us about this until 5:00, right around summersville. no major issues off the freeway. a smooth drive through pittsburg and bay point. a concert, def leppard. let's go over to the bay bridge, see how things are shaping up, no problems. and palo alto, 101 past university up to the construction zone in san mateo. >> we always knew mike inouye is a big hair band fan. if your weekend plans involve flying in or out of sfo, take time to check for flight delays.

officials expect delays the next three weekends while one of the airport's main runways is shut down for safely improvements. the temporary shutdown starts tonight and will last until monday morning at 8:00. from singing to swinging. one of the members of the grateful dead facing criminal charges. and also how uc davis is getting ready to put this infamous incident behind it.

hello, welcome back. a live look at hp pavilion, home of the san jose sharks. speaking of, you may be well aware that there very well could be an nhl lockout if a deal is not reached by 9:00 p.m. tomorrow night. of course we'll stay involved in that story and give you the latest. it is 4:45. online retailer amazon says it's seeing a big-time rush of california shoppers looking to get their orders in before tonight's tax deadline. starting tonight amazon must begin collecting sales tax from all buyers in california. that frangz 7.2% all the way up to 9.2%. up until now the e-tailer has not been charging or collecting that tax, it was just up to the

customers to declare the purchases and then pay the tax themselves. amazon says sales have spiked about 10% with people rushing to get their last-minute purchases in before the tax kick-in. well, the orders are already rolling in. starting at midnight apple began taking preorders for the new iphone 5. the highly anticipated phone was unveiled wednesday in san francisco. there are reports a mad rush of orders just after midnight briefly crashed apple's u.s. and german sites. also created some problems for at&t. the first phones will arrive in stores next friday and of course you can expect crowds. analysts are predicting apple will sell an estimated 48 million of the new phones by december. >> wow. 4:46 right now. it is official, the fed is launching a brand new program to help stimulate that economy. it appears wall street just loving it. but the question is, what does it mean for you and me and all those people out there looking for jobs. seema mody is live at cnbc world

headquarters and she has more. good morning, seema. >> reporter: very good morning to you. that's right, futures are higher after stocks got a big boost yesterday from the federal reserve. the fed launching another stimulus program buying billions of dollars of mortgages in an effort to drive down rates. the fed will keep the program running until it seize a sustained upturn in the market. we do get data this morning on retail sales, consumer prices, industrial production, consumer sentiment and business inventory, so i've got a busy morning ahead. in terms of how the markets ended yesterday, the dow did jump 206 points, its highest close since december of 2007. the nasdaq rising 41 to close at 3155, its highest level since november of 2000. now, the fed move is designed to drive down mortgage rates, easing borrowing costs for individuals and businesses. in the short term it could give a jolt to the stock market. that's what we saw last night.

it may also boost home sales and prices, increasing americans' net worth. lower rates may fuel the refinancing boom which we've seen over the past year, shaving money from your monthly payment may encourage you to reinvest that extra cash back into your home or put it back into the economy. however, economists say lower rates may not spur companies to hire more workers so we'll have to wait and see. back to you. >> thank you very much from cnbc. i've got to say it was pretty darn hot yesterday afternoon. i went for a run and chose to do so probably a little late in the day, around 4:30. and miss christina loren, it was warm. >> 96 degrees yesterday in livermore. 4:48 now. taking a live look at san jose this morning, temperatures are crisp this morning, 55 degrees. i wanted to show you san francisco because we do have quite a bit of cloud cover really starting to thicken up out there. all right, let's get right to it. temperatures are going to be on the mild side for the first part

of the day and then yet again, marla, you want to get that run in early so it's going to heat up quickly. we're in the 60s in concord and livermore, good morning to you down there. 52 in santa rosa to start on a friday morning. it always feels a little better new york city matter what the weather is like on a friday. high pressure still in control of our pattern for today. this depose for tomorrow as well. tomorrow in fact i'm bringing your temperatures closer to triple digits in places like livermore. if you're looking for cooler conditions, sunday is your day for a picnic in livermore if that's what you're looking to do. this is the last full weekend of summertime. wait until i show you that seven-day outlook. temperatures dropping off, cloud cover increasing. basically our sunny summer weather headed south as we head through next week. 80 degrees today for san jose, 75 in fremont and a comfortable 68 degrees, beautiful conditions prevail in the city boy the way. the next couple of days it stays hot and then we cool off.

we bring in that cloud cover and the first official day of fall is next saturday. 4:50, back to you guys. it is unlike any dear john letter you've heard before and it's part of a prostitution crackdown in oakland that's getting a big show of support today. tonight hundreds of people are expected to gather on 17th avenue at international boulevard to launch the dear john letter campaign. it's aimed at customers of the sex trade. here's how it works. neighbors write down the license numbers of cars seen parking in that area and then turn that in to police. oakland police then send letters to the owners of the car saying their vehicles were spotted in this area known for prostitution. the letters don't accuse the drivers of the crime but do emphasize the city's strict laws on prostitution. well, today we could learn exactly how much the uc school system will be paying the 21 students and alumni hit with all that pepper spray by uc davis police during an occupy protest. that group suing the university

after thein dent was caught on tape during a protest last year on november 18th. that video triggered nationwide outrage. the officer involved, he was fired and in the closing meeting yesterday, uc regents agreeing to a proposed settlement. it must now be approved by a federal judge before this information can be made public. well, a real deadhead could be on his way to jail this morning. mickey hart is being accused of assaulting a man after a concert in kentucky. the incident happened last week while hart was in town performing at a harvest festival. now, harrisburg police department says after the show a man filed an assault report alleging hart assaulted him. a warrant has now been issued for hart's arrest. the time is 4:51. still ahead, the hollywood blockbuster that could mean some big-time headaches this weekend for pet stores. also, an uninvited guest taking a dip. hey, he's warm. the story behind this bear's

visit to a california home. >> i wonder if it was livermore because that was 96. we're looking at a stall 101, no slowing but i'll show you a better look at the south bay coming up.

4:54. it appears some 25,000 teachers at one of the nation's largest school districts will walk the picket lines for at least one more day. negotiations between the chicago

teachers union and the district are said to be progressing nicely, but so far there is no agreement. the school board says it has handed the union its latest proposal and is waiting for a response. teachers went on strike monday. more than 350,000 students have been affected. while this is a big-time honor the president and first lady welcoming some of the world's top athletes to the white house this morning. the president is honoring the 2012 u.s. olympic and paralympic athletes in a ceremony on the south lawn. mrs. obama attended several events and visited with all those athletes over at the london games. the annual celebration normally includes an olympic-sized photo session, a speech by the president and then the ceremonial tour of the white house. >> quite frankly, she's an athlete herself. >> she absolutely is. i've seen her do pushups and she can actually beat up ellen in that conversation. i'm guessing it's friday light on the roads right now. >> first of all, in the background of that shot, dana

vollmer who was at a heart walk, i'm doing that same heart walk a year later. she's in d.c. you guys are wearing red and we're all supporting that. now we're going to take you out to the roadways where overall it is pretty light. i want to show you oakland. top of your screen some slowing just past high street. the chp still waiting to get to the scene of the accident of the sounds like a car is on its side blocking a couple of lanes just in the last few minutes at 29th. we'll wait for more detail as they arrive but it sounds like there's an ambulance heading to the scene as well. look at the maps and we'll end with this shot of the slowing around the area heading up toward downtown north of the coliseum. prepare for that and we'll send it back to you. pet experts are warning pet stores to expect a run on certain types of fish this weekend, and you can blame it on a movie re-released today. okay, when the movie "finding nemo" debuted it created huge demand for real nemos.

now the release of 3-d has people flocking to stores again. many are planning to dole out information about exotic fish this weekend at theaters nationwide. >> that means parents better get ready to take care of their kids' fish. chances are you wouldn't be overly stunned to find a fish in your backyard pool, but how about this, a black bear. take a look at this video from granada hills near los angeles. residents have been complaining about a bear in the neighborhood for weeks. police finally found their respect right there, taking a nice little dip in the pool. got to get a toe in first. they found him flying over in a helicopter. apparently the young black bear had been going from home to home taking dips in various pools and doing it because he could to beat the heat. >> the michael phelps of bears. >> he looks talented. >> stay with us, it's 4:57. much more ahead.