reported roadside heading to the tri-valley, i'll bring that coming up. >> definitely something to keep tabs on. it is march 16th, live look at the golden gate bridge, this is "today in the bay." from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." >> and a very good morning to you, thanks for joining us, i'm laura garcia cannon. >> and i'm sam brock. a teenage student in intensive care after a brutal attack at valley fair mall. >> it may have been part of a gang initiation. "today in the bay's" stephanie chuang live at valley fair mall, police still looking for the suspects, steph. >> reporter: good morning to you both, laura. what investigators know is it happened wednesday in a parking lot here at valley fair. possibly for the victim, wrong place, wrong time. random gang-motivated attack. as you look at the video, it's this 17-year-old christian, he

is in the intensive care unit in the hospital this morning after two men punched him in the head. his mother maria says two friends were with him and reported seeing a third man watching the beating nearby. which could indicate that this was part of some sort of gang initiation. maria recalls saw her son, she says the day of that attack. >> he was dancing to his favorite song. he ate something, and then hugged me and kissed me and said, i love you, mom. and i asked him where are you going? valley fair mall, and that's it now. and now he's on a breathing tube. >> reporter: on top of that, his parents say they're frustrated because five days later, police haven't reached out to them with an update. in a statement, the department said the case has been signed to our gang investigation unit and they will followup with the family. christian's mom says she was laid off the day before the attack and they have launched a crowd funding page. as of this morning, after a day, they have gotten more than a third of the $10,000 goal to pay

for the rising medical bills. the last update according to that page is that the 17-year-old had to be sedated again yesterday because his brain was swelling too much. if you want to help, you can go to go fund me and search, prayers for christian. live outside valley fair mall, stephanie chuang, "today in the bay." >> just tragic, thank you very much, steph. san jose police department is implementing those major changes we told you about. this week, there'll be more officers patrolling the street. that means taking officers from four units, including gang suppression and homicide unit. san jose police say the goal is to have enough staff to respond to all 911 calls. they also said there are no plans that the time to backfill the vacant unit positions. bizarre turn in decades old murder investigation involving real estate heir, robert durst. he is under arrest this morning in connection with a nearly 15-year-old murder in los angeles. >> "today in the bay's" kris sanchez is here with her. this is not the first time he'll

be facing the spotlight. >> reporter: he was acquitted of murdering a neighbor in texas. he admitted to killing him and dismembering his body. he also agreed to be part of an hbo series about his life during the taping of which producers say he muttered to himself while alone in the bathroom, what have i done? killed them all of course. here's that recording. >> what the hell did i do? killed them all, of course. >> reporter: his arrest at a new orleans hotel just before the finale of that hbo documentary went to air. he was wanted in the killing of a woman who was his best friend. just as she was to be questioned about the role in his wife's killing. though five agencies worked to bring durst into custody, he agreed to speak in that documentary himself, despite his lawyers warning him it was a very bad idea. >> they said, you can't help yourself. right now you're a free man,

100%. you say something inadvertently, and you'll find yourself charged in new york or charged in los angeles. >> they're going to need something substantial to hang their hat on. is the information and the testimony of inconsistent statements and some handwriting samples enough to convict a person? >> reporter: a documentary producer say that robert durst submission after discovering new evidence, they taped that after discovering new evidence. the 71-year-old was acquitted of his neighbor's murder in 2003. he is still suspected in his wife's disappearance of 2008, 198 it i should say, and the 2003 execution-style murder of his friend. his brother released a statement saying in part we are we leaved and grateful to anyone who assisted in the arrest of robert durst. we hope he will finally be accountable for all he has done. he will face a judge today in louisiana for extradition back to l.a. >> okay, maybe the very end of a long saga there.

we'll have to find out where that goes, thank you very much, kris. investigators say faulty wiring sparked a fire that almost hurt firefighters in the south bay. san jose fire crews were called to a home on rose creek drive before 9:00 on saturday night. the communication problem, firefighters didn't hear the roof was coming down. luckily everyone was able to get out safely, including two people who lived there. the firefighter was contained in less than an hour. we now know the name of the victim who died in a chain reaction crash in alameda county. investigators say 52-year-old hayward albright from stockton died at the scene of the 16-car crash after a pickup truck crashed into his on saturday. chp gave albright cpr, but he was pronounced dead on scene. 46-year-old woman who was riding in the car is in a hospital right now with major head injuries. the chp says the first car in that collision was going too fast and triggered the other crashes. argument that is truly for the birds may stop a proposed bridge design in its tracks.

mercury news reports bird enthusiasts are shooting down the winning design in palo alto. the pedestrian and bicycle bridge will replace the current highway 101 undercrossing at iowa doe by creek. the design's high arches will be a danger to birds at a nearby preserve. the architect calls them bird-friendly. the city council meets tonight and they make a final decision. san francisco park trash problem is creating a new unwanted crowd of rats. delores park is reportedly covered with nearly 15,000 cubic yards of garbage every year. partiers and their leftover food is the cause. that's plenty of reason for rats to start the feast. some people say it's an offputting issue. >> just take it back out, kids are playing out here. running around and picking up all kinds of stuff. it's not nice to go somewhere

where there's trash everywhere. >> the rodent problem has gotten worse since the renovation. meantime the city is putting up traps. >> sorry it if you're having your breakfast on that one. water district grapple with shortages of looming rate hikes, new outrage is growing over salaries for some top water executives. the bay area news group reports salaries for general managers at the four largest water districts are all more than double what governor brown is paid. some agencies, including san francisco public utility commissioners are now looking at rate hikes of more than 30%. report finds no bay area agencies are considering cutting or freezing salaries in the wake of looming rate hikes. >> water is a precious commodity, apparent lay lucrative business. let's check in with christina loren, you peaked our interest earlier, chance of rain throughout the week. >> yeah, we have this pattern. i can tell you, it's going to be one of the so close, yet so far away scenarios.

i'll show you that coming up. right now as per usual, right now. temperatures in the mid-50s, drizzle out there. that could interrupt your smooth drive to work this morning. and yeah, you do want to give yourself a little extra time, especially in the high elevations and right at the immediate coast. that's where we are seeing that drizzle. mild start to the day though, temperatures are comfortable out there, mostly in the mid-50s, we're going to see a mix of sun and clouds today, and about a three to five degree dropoff from where we ended up yesterday. then the real changes occurs this evening, mild and cloudy, few showers north of the golden gate bridge. future cast will show you that, i'll that have in my next report. overall, much cooler. close to 90 degrees in the south bay, san jose specifically over the weekend, 74 today. 69 degrees in san francisco, and 72 degrees in the north bay. little bit of shower activity yesterday, better chance by tonight. the future cast coming up, right now i want to check your drive, happy monday, mondays are easier with a little mike inouye in your life. >> thank you.

as long as i'm not blocking any roadways. exactly. as long as it doesn't block your map here. green all over the bay, easy. as you would expect, just a bit starting over here in the tri-valley, we'll talk about that in a second, but i want to zoom into this as well. northbound 680 coming out of milpitas and heading towards the road, that's on the board we are fremont, reports of separate, little patches of fire there on the hillside. grassy hillside, locals know that. as you pass the golf course. no lanes reported blocked, but milpitas fire is on scene. everything's well under control, and i don't see any slowing again north 680, just north of jackland and off-ramp where the bowling alley and mini golf is there. smooth drive out of the altamont and in towards livermore, that's just the beginning of the build heading over here. toward the dublin interchange, little color change here. indicator showing a little bit of slowing. heading closer tort bay bridge, nothing big. map showing you the east shore

freeway traveling down through the maize. we have a disabled vehicle that was reported right around the area, but sounds like everything's clear. i'm still tracking that. i'll mark it right now. now the bay bridge toll plaza, just for the cash lanes, couple of cars with not enough on our live camera and easy drive down the east shore freeway. and in the north bay, we're looking at san rafael southbound 101 right here. picking up a few more cards, no delays through the novato down through san rafael. back to you. >> thank you very much, mike. 5:10 right now, coming up, the white house making rules to cut down on fishing fraud. we'll explain, next. live look outside right now, a lot of drivers making their way to work here in the south bay. it is 5:10, trying to get your workweek started out right. we'll have much more news, traffic, and weather right after this break.

you're watching "today in the bay." welcome back, 5:13 on your monday morning. beautiful shot there of the bay bridge and the reflection out on the bay this morning. mild start to your monday. >> that's a beautiful, beautiful shot out there. 5:13 right now, the white house is preparing to cast a net over

the fishing industry and wade into the murky waters of massive fraud. problems include poaching and mislabeling of seafood. the global black market runs into the billions of dollars. the white house will gradually roll out a new plan to stop seafood crime and includes a new system to track every wild fish and crustacean. that information seafood imports will no longer be allowed. all right. this is a very important question. how much would you pay for a show about nothing? careful with your answer here. a classic nbc sitcom may be the next hit. >> for more on that and the rest of the news, landon dowdy, cnbc world headquarters, good morning. >> hey guys, happy monday to you. futures are pointing to a higher open today, stocks coming off a down week, but now falling for the third straight week. oil prices are in focus trending $44 a barrel on concerns about global storage capacity, but

also hopes an iran nuclear deal is close, which could boost exports. today on industrial production and housing, investors will also be watching the fed, which makes tuesday and wednesday -- meets tuesday and wednesday. dow fell to 17749. nasdaq losing 141. kia is recalling nearly 200,000 suvs because the gas pedal can bend or brake. it'll increase the risk of a crash. the recall affects certain soul and soul lek trig models from 2014 and '15. the new accidents or injuries -- no accidents or injuries have been reported. seinfeld is about to become the master of another domain, the internet. reports say sony is in talks with the re-runs of the hit nbc sitcom to an online video service such as amazon or hulu. it involved the rights for friends. more than $100 million or

500,000 an episode. >> definitely, great episodes there. >> we're going to join that party, thank you. that humor still going to that day. humor still going strong. >> but not the fashion. not so much. after record breaking winter, many americans are looking for refuge and just to get away this spring break. travel experts say if that's what you're planning, book now. >> others, be careful with your travel dates. it's cheaper to fly on mondays and thursdays than on the weekend. and this is something giants fans will like, think outside your box, the box is your destination. >> you can go and see some of their favorite major league baseball team at a fraction of the cost of the tickets for a regular season. great option if you're looking to get warm and have something fun to do as well. >> she's referencing spring training in arizona. savings experts recommend looking online to help bring down the cost of airline tickets and car rentals. look for deals wherever you can,

i suppose. >> by the way, mere two and a half weeks away from the baseball season. really the honorary start of spring as well. yeah, and yesterday, our very own san francisco giants shut out the diamondbacks. it was a great game. first game here on nbc bay area. we will keep you posted as to when we'll have more of that for you. we are so excited about opening day as well. 48 degrees in san martin, 53 in livermore, and you know what, it's starting to feel more like spring, they're out in spring training, we officially kick off the new season on friday. and today, at lunch time, we're actually going to hit your average highs for this time of year by noon today. then we'll blow past them as we get into the 4:00 hour. that's the warmest point of the day. temps will end up in the mid-70s, just about everywhere. 72 for the east bay, 73 for the south bay today. and a comfortable, i mean comfortable finish. here's the deal though, things will change throughout the second half of the afternoon

into your evening. we'll incorporate a few light showers up in the north bay. overcast, light showers to the north of the golden gate bridge, elsewhere, mix of sun and clouds for today. future cast tells us don't worry, we stopped the clock for you at 7:00 p.m., shower activity rolling through napa and sonoma county. forward in time, take you into tuesday, looking mostly sunny for tuesday, and then by wednesday, with that jet just to our north, we are going to see a few more light showers, especially during the afternoon hours between about 12:00 and 3:00. so, really kind of an interesting pattern, the heavy moisture is just to our north. so close, yet so far away, we really need that rain here in the bay area. and we are going to get a better chance as we head throughout your saturday, but let's focus on the next five days. let me walk you through the changes. 73 degrees for today in the south bay, 71, cooler day in store for you tomorrow, 73 by wednesday, thursday into friday, the clouds increase. we'll see a mostly cloudy start to the first day of spring, which is friday, then saturday,

that's when we're bulls eyeing or best shower chance. we'll talk about that in the next half hour. maybe you're living, mike's here to tell you what will slow you down. >> watch out, christina has her bullseye there. north bay, look at this map. look again, a smooth easy drive. down into the city. 1011, no delays, same thing for 37 over to vallejo. slight build here for the east shore freeway. not enough for slowing. more light that shows, they scan the cameras in the area. also talking about 68 w0b earlier issue has completely cleared from the roadway. there was a stall there, but no lanes blocked. now, we'll move to something more interesting. over here, build for the tri-valley, and over here, southbound 880 at davis coming out of san leandro reports of a crash blocking your slowing lane. sounds like there's still activity causing a slow down towards the area. that's the only slowdown in the area. that include the y and the merge

over towards the san mateo bridge. over here, there's that little build we talked about. the tri-valley, little slowing, mild there. west 580 continues that build through livermore. typical pattern over here. as we move to the south bay, smooth drive. the earlier fire activity, we're going to put like a little marker there. we have fire crews on the scene, little patches of smoking grass there, not a problem as far as flames or injuries or structures and damage. it's all clear from that area, just one fire truck remains on scene. smoother drive for the rest of the south bay. live look shows you 101 through palo alto, easy flow north towards san francisco. we'll end it here guys, here's palo alto, back to you. >> thank you very much. happening right now, los angeles police officer is wanted for questioning in the case of an unsolved deadly shooting. police say rodriguez died friday night following a fistfight. a friend shot video of him inside a nightclub before that shooting. police then recovered a car at the scene tied to a rookie lapd

officer named henry solis. he skipped work ever since the night of that shooting. friend of the victim, who did not want to be on camera says solis does not look familiar. >> i've been looking at his picture ever since they posted it up on facebook, i do not remember seeing him inside at all. >> right now, police are not calling solis a suspect, nearly a person of interest. 5:21. in the meantime, a los angeles police officer was arrested after a border patrol agent found someone hiding in the trunk of his car. it happened saturday night. the officer's name has not been released, but officials say he was assigned to the lapd's hollywood division. he could face possible human smuggling charges. it's unclear who was in the trunk. the police department is not commenting. an investigation right now is under way after a fire broke out on a bus filled with students in the east bay. the charter bus fire happened on saturday on southbound 680 in wal nut creek.

off-duty officer helped evacuate 33 students and adults. the bus driver and six students had to be treated for smoke inhalation, but everybody is okay. 5:21, coming up, a russian landmark up in flames. what officials are saying this morning about investigation.

you're watching "today in the bay." welcome back, everyone.

taking a live look outside, clear skies over the south bay this morning. make you wait for a nice way to start your workweek, 5:24 right now. russian landmark up in flames. right now investigators are trying to figure out what sparked this fire at the bell tower at the iconic convent in moscow. the bell tower is undergoing some renovations, and the fire reportedly broke out on wood scaffolding surrounding that tower. nobody was hurt. the convent built in 1554. known for buildings and semitarians where the most celebrated figures are buried. president of the south island nation of vanuatu says his country must start over after a powerful cyclone destroyed much of the main island. you can see the damage here. cyclone pam tore through the area on saturday, packing winds of nearly 170 miles per hour. six people are confirmed dead, but officials say that number could jump significantly as crews pick through the rubble.

neighboring nations are sending relief efforts. hot temperatures over the weekend. >> yes. >> milder to start off your week right now one let's check in with christina. >> yeah, it was very warm out there, good morning, happy monday, everybody. i want to get you going on a good note this morning. and i can tell you, today will be comfortable, you probably don't have to use your ac if you did turn it on over the weekend. i know i'm guilty. 75 degrees in the tri-valley, 15 degrees cooler than where we ended up on saturday. 72 for the north bay. 74 degrees in the south bay, interesting pattern this weekend, a very slight chance for showers, it depends on what microclimate you live in. more on that in moments. happy monday, they can be tough, mike will make it easier. thank you, christina. and the others make it easier too. not a lot of incidents. oakland, real issue is southbound 880 at davis. fast lane, that's the one that's blocked chp says partially blocked by activity. meanwhile, heading down there to

travel past the coliseum, look back at your map and you show the rest of the approach from the north bay and east bay. no problems for the flow, back to you. >> thank you very much, mike. it is 5:26 right now, coming up, new evidence that may help police catch a killer. what we're learning now about the death of a ucsf dental student from the east bay. and just moments ago, russian president vladimir putin reappears after a ten-day absence. is it putting an end to questions about his health?

right now, the chp works the to clear a rollover accident involving a taxi cab and a busy bay area freeway. and determined to clear his name, ray mcdonald takes action against the woman accusing him of rape. good monday morning, i'm christina loren, cool we are filtered sunshine for today. we have a little bit of rain in the forecast for this week, we're going to give you a progress report, tell you how we're doing this season so far, might be impressed with the totals i have to show. and you'll be impressed with

a pretty good volume of traffic for 880 through fremont. we have a crash on the nimts, what folks will face out of oakland. what will you face as day breaks this morning? gorgeous look at the bay bridge, it's monday, march 16th, this is "today in the bay." from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." thanks for starting your week off with us, i'm sam brock. >> and i'm laura garcia cannon. one passenger is dead after a taxi plunged off a highway in fairfield. happened a little after 1:00 this morning where interstate 680 meets 80. chp says the taxi shot up the roadway and went from 70 feet down an embankment and landed on a road near the court in central way. the other passenger suffered serious injury. the driver was not hurt. the chp says the taxi was going from san jose towards sacramento. the crash is under investigation. milpitas teenager is still in intensive care this morning,

parents holding vigil by his side. he was brutally beaten by two men who attacked him outside of the valley fair mall. >> it may have been part of a gang initiation. stephanie chuang live at stan jose's valley -- san jose's valley fair mall with the latest. >> reporter: absolutely border patrolal attack -- brutal attack here. he was in the parking lot with two friends when two men confronted him and started to punch him in the head. and that sent the 17-year-old christian into intensive care at the hospital. his mother says those friends reported seeing a third man watching the beating nearby which could indicate this was part of some sort of gang initiation. christian's parents say they're frustrated and five days later, san jose's police have not talked about images captured on cameras nor reach out with any updates, period. >> it would be nice if somebody gave us a five minute call to say where they were. >> i want justice for my son. he's a good kid. he doesn't, he didn't deserve what he got.

>> reporter: now in a statement, san jose police said the kats has been assigned to our gang investigation unit and they will followup with the family. meantime the family has launched a go-fund me page to help pay for the surgery and other medical costs. you can search for prayers for christian if you want to help. and after one day, by the way, 30 people donated more than 3600 of the $10,000 goal. this is especially critical now that christian's mom says she was laid off the day before the attack. live in san jose this morning, stephanie chuang, "today in the bay." >> the whole situation just heart breaking, thank you very much. >> very much so. it is 5:32 right now. new building resumes instead of resumes. that san jose's mayor plans for the teens in the south bay. sam liccardo pushing to get troubled teens out of gangs and into summer jobs. microsoft made a financial commitment to the $1 million program. target and lowe's pledged to hire hundreds of teens. the program will focus on those living in gang impacted areas.

>> we know that if we have a teen whose got nothing to do in the summer time, we have trouble on our hands. we need to ensure that we can keep kids involved in school and sports or in jobs. >> the city program is expected to go through the summer. funding for a fall program is also being proposed. 5:33 right now, ucsf students will be gathering in horne of a student found dead in her east bay home. all of this while investigators still hunt for the killer. this 37-year-old woman was shot to death in her apartment. the student's body was discovered last monday. some of her belongings were found dumped in a richmond neighborhood. a homeowner there described the odd find. >> right back in and two shopping bags and says, i found this in your trash, and this is high end purse in here. and he said there's id in it. and i said, well bring it in, we'll have to find out if it's stolen, we can return it.

>> the woman called police once she found the bloody clothes. ucsf vigil starts at 5:00 tonight. three men of charged with kidnapping and sexual assaulting a woman will be in court this meerng. they're accused of kidnapping her in september and holder her captive for three months. she told officers during that time, the men repeatedly beat, threatened, and raped her. 5:34 right now. napa police released the names of the officers involved in the deadly police shooting. they were serving a search warrant at a home in east avenue. the suspect identified at james hemenez took off on a motorcycle. after a short chase, he fell off and reached for a gun. it's still under investigation. murder, money, and a possible confession. a decades old murder investigation into real estate heir robert durst took a new twist this weekend. >> it did. police arrested durst over the

weekend shortly before the final episode aired of an hbo documentary on durst. "today in the bay's" kris sanchez joining us with the bizarre details. >> reporter: good morning, robert dursts is suspected in his wife's disappearance, best friend's execution, and was freed in his neighbor's killings and dismemberment, although he admitted he did it. he was willing to be part of an hbo series about his life. still, nobody expected that he would make an admission that would lead to his undoing. here's a bit of that recording. >> what the hell did i do? killed them all, of course. >> producers say that during the taping of the series, he muttered to himself while alone in the bathroom, mic still on, what have i done, killed them all, of course. the arrest happened just before the finale of that hbo documentary series. he was wanted in the killing of a woman who was his best friend just as she was to be questioned

about durst's role in his wife's disappearance. although five agencies worked to bring him in custody for the allegations, he still agreed to speak in the documentary, despite his lawyers warning him it was a very bad idea. >> they said, you can't help yourself. right now you're a free man 100%. you say something inadvertently, and you'll find yourself charged in new york or charged in los angeles. >> they're going to need something substantial to hang their hat on. is the information and the testimony of inconsistent statements and some handwriting samples enough to convict a person? >> documentary producers they durst's submission after, he made that admission after they discovered new evidence, including those handwriting samples. the 71-year-old was acquitted in his neighbor's murder in 2003. again, his wife disappeared in 1982 and in 2000, his best friend was murdered,

execution-style. his own brother released a statement that reads in part, we are relieved and also grate to feel everyone who assisted in the arrest of robert durst. we hope he will finally be accountable for all he has done. robert durst will face a judge today for extradition from l.a., back to louisiana. it's 5:37, happening today, another chance to speak up and be heard on the controversial issue in san francisco. there will be a public forum tonight regarding san francisco archbishop's proposal for schools in the arch diocese. he wants to change teacher contracts and school handbooks to include clauses. people protested the move because they do not approve of his language against home sexuality and contraception. state water regulators are not strict enough with enforcing penalties during the drought. people had to cut back water usage by 20% or face a fine of up to $500. for those who broke the rules, rarely punished.

there's going to be a meeting tomorrow to vote on whether or not to extend or to broaden those penalties. it's 5:37 right now, looking forward to a monday morning workweek, hopefully the weather will cooperate and make for sunny skies for us one christina. >> yeah, a mix of sun and clouds today. good morning, sam and laura. i wanted to start with what you can expect. weather story of the day, cooler with filtered sunshine coming in. temperatures are starting out in the mid to upper 50s, it's mild out there in san francisco to kick off the new day, 58 degrees there. mid-60s by lunchtime, rounding out the day in the mid-70s. in the tri-valley, 75 degrees for you, 72 in the north bay, and 73 degrees in the south bay. there is a slight chance for showers north of the golden gate bridge this evening. everything clears out just in time for your st. patrick's day festivities. and we like to tell you what's going on across the bay area, st. patrick's tuesday, there is a block party in san francisco, that's going to be front street between south and california and temperatures out there will be nice and mild. but here's the deal, as we get

closer to the kickoff of spring, temperatures are actually going to drop off, so that early taste of spring we had over the weekend, now a thing of the past. we'll take you through the next seven days, remember were seven day forecast is always scrolling right here at the bottom of your screen. we know you want that information, like traffic, here's mike. we'll give it to you right here. we have a slow down back up, metering lights likely turned on in the last couple of seconds. chp in the next few. there's the backup, map shows you no problems, no surprises for the east shore freeway or the interchange. we have slowing though southbound out of oakland, still have the fast lane affected by this crash activity at the center divide. there's the slowing right there. meanwhile the caster valley moving smoothly, over here to the north bay, no problems. light volume of traffic for san jose, back to you. major upgrade be on the way for tesla's model s? . >> intriguing story there.

plus determined to clear his name, ray mcdonald takes action against the woman accusing him of rape. and the man in custody now admitting he fired the shots at two police officers in ferguson, missouri. we're back with 15 minutes of nonstop news, traffic, and weather after the break.

you're watching "today in the bay." all right. as you're starting off your workweek here on this monday, live look from emeryville at the bay bridge, nice conditions to start your week. the obama administration is dropping its plan the number of u.s. force in afghanistan to 5500. while no final decision has been made, the administration plans to slow withdraw plans. also discussions about keeping a steady number of counterterrorism troops throughout the year. president obama has had to send troops back to iraq to help security forces there fight isis. 5:42, talks over iran's nuclear program resumed this morning in switzerland. the lawmakers back home in washington, they're anxious to

get involved. >> tracy potts joins us live from capitol hill, could that letter that republicans recently sent directly to iran be impacting negotiations? >> reporter: well, that's the concern. and that's why over the weekend the white house sent a letter to the senate foreign relations committee, essentially saying, please back off until we're done with these negotiations, and the chair of that committee shot right back, no way. we want to get involved before the negotiations are over. because they think it's a bad deal. sunday meeting between secretary of state john kerry and iran's foreign minister was postponed until today. they're discussing whether to lift united nations sanctions, opening financial markets and oil shipments in exchange for iran's cur,ing its nuclear program. >> my hope is that will be possible. >> reporter: but the letter 47 republicans sent to iran could impact this week's negotiations. >> the letter signed by the 47 senators weakened the

president's negotiating ability. that was wrong. >> reporter: senator tom cotton wrote that letter and defended it. >> he is negotiating a deal that is going to put iran on the path to a bomb. >> reporter: lawmakers want more sanctions, not less, and they want final approval of any deal president obama signs off on. >> he clearly doesn't want congress involved in it. at all. and we're worried about it. >> reporter: u.n. sanctions could be relaxed, but u.s. sanctions would still stand. and this isn't going to go on forever, there are deadlines. the end of this month is when they're supposed to have a framework or outline for a deal, june 30th is the deadline to actually get it done, sam and laura. >> time is ticking there, tracy pots from washington, thank you. 5:44, congress looking ahead as the nation is about to hit the debt ceiling. the temporary suspension of the debt ceiling law expired overnight. treasury department says starting today, it'll begin taking extraordinary measures to keep the government from defaulting on its debt.

but it hasn't said what those measures will be. officials say their plans should be effective until at least october. all right. were you wondering where you went. russian president vladimir putin reappeared in public after a ten-day absence. that meeting though where he came about is a little bit more than a hour ago took place with kurg stan's president in st. petersburg. putin said that politics would be boring without some gossip. there is still no explanation though for his ten-day absence. the man arrested for shooting two police officers in ferguson, missouri, said he pulled the trigger, but did not mean to hurt any officers. >> for more on the story, jay gray joining us live in ferguson with the latest, good morning. >> reporter: hey there, good morning sam, laura, police say it was tips from the public that led them to jeffrey williamson to the area and admitted to pulling the trigger, but says, that was part of an altercation and not aimed at the police

officers as the protest was ending overnight last wednesday into thursday morning. but he says he was in a dispute with some people, pulled the trigger, fired shots, and they inadvertently hit two police officers. one through the shoulder, one in the cheek, both at home and recovering. expected to make a full recovery. the fight, the fact that perhaps he wasn't targeting police in that investigation continues. he still faces the possibility of life in prison, his first time in court could come here later today. that's the latest live in ferguson, i'm jay gray, sam, laura, back to you. >> thank you. we should learn the names of the four army national guard members who died in a military helicopter crash last week. the louisiana national guard is expected to hold a news conference later this morning. the four soldiers were aboard a black hawk helicopter that crashed into the gulf of mexico last week during a nighttime routine training exercise. seven marines also died in that

crash. u.s. authorities are confident they can get a criminal case against a hacker who stole data from jpmorgan chase last summer. they got phone numbers and addresses for 83 million consumers and small businesses. the new york times reports officials believe several suspects are gettable, meaning they're in countries with extradition treaty with the united states. the apple watch hits stores next month, but not everyone has it on their must-buy list. reuters poll shows 69% of people are not interested in the device. more than half say smart watches are a passing fad. those who don't own an iphone would consider getting one in order to buy the apple watch. which needs an iphone to fully work. >> all right. uninterested now, but we'll see a few months from now. days away from a major upgrade for tesla's entire model s fleet. elon musk hinted on twitter about a software update could end the quote range anxiety.

that's in reference to the range of miles that the car can travel. right now the electric cars get just over 200 miles per charge. but that would change, could change on thursday. when musk plans to make his announcement. >> all right. you're going to need a convertible by the end of the week? cloudy start to the day. much cooler and cloudier than over the weekend. all week long in fact, we're dealing with the overcast conditions. you know what, we have a fair chance for rin starting today. 5:48 is the time, thank you for waking up this morning. temps mostly in the mid-50s. by lunchtime, we'll jump into the mid-60s and finish off the day in the low to mid-70s. all across the bay area. except for san francisco, but you're getting so close to 70 degrees at 69 for today. i want to talk about those showers and this pattern that we have for you this week. jet stream just to our north, and for us, that means that we are going to see a little bit of activity, all it needs to do is drop to the south by about 100 miles, and if it does, we're looking good for showers all the way down the peninsula as we get

into this evening. we stopped that clock monday at 4:00 p.m., good chance for showers. even in palo alto, but areas to the south probably not going to see much. that'll be the pattern for today. it'll boost back up to the north as we head throughout your tuesday. then wednesday, we get a better chance and saturday looks to be the day. we're expecting the heaviest shower activity. i'll talk about that coming up in adjust minute. right now up to date with your rainfall season averages. actually, doing okay. we are at 75% of average for this year or better. all across the board, look at mountain view, 105% of average for the year, we're at 96% of average in san jose, and san francisco, 81%. you can really see this reflected by the green hillside here in the bay area. it was brown for the past three years at this time of year, and now they're nice and green just in time for st. patrick's day. 70 degrees for the st. patrick's day festivities. about 70 degrees on tuesday in san francisco. and then as we head throughout the remainder of the week, temperatures staying nice and

comfortable with a mix of sun and clouds by the first day of spring which is your friday. 72 degrees. beautiful conditions for the first day of spring, right here in the south bay. then those changes come in by saturday, better chance for showers, i'll have all the details on that for you coming up in my next report. right now look at your drive about this time, motorist starting to hit the highway. let's see what mike's tracking, good morning. good morning, also motorist hitting the brakes. bay bridge toll plaza, metering lights, the lights are on and quickly filling in the plaza. the other issue for the east bay. oakland, southbound 880, away from the coliseum. there's the haganburger off-ramp, right there. just north, or just to the left side of our shot. southbound jams up past 98 down to davis. let's put them into context. there's the bay bridge and the typical backup there, but here, southbound 80, heading down towards san leandro. the rest of the east bay and north bay look typical on the

maps. the freeway which jams up around the coliseum slowing then at about i8, really slowed down towards marina boulevard after the crash at davis. there's one lane blocked by crash activity through this area, and that's been going on for about half hour, 40 minutes almost, and now we're really seeing the slow down as the build starts to the east bay. cast your valley wide, coming up and northbound, that's all right. the unexpected slowing again southbound out of oakland and in towards san leandro. west 58 # 0, no big suprises will there. that's the tri-valley and going on schedule there for folks through livermore. over here, the south bay, smooth drive, northbound 101 just shows a build through san jose. that's the only incident, only issue for the south bay. we'll show you that silicon valley shot, northbound 101 past 680. there's that build we typically see. things will let up in 20 minutes and kicking again at about 6:30, that's a typical pattern, back to you. >> thank you very much, mike.

former san francisco 49er ray mcdonald subpoena reportedly planning to file suit this morning against the woman claiming he sexual assaulted her. cited a pattern of quote poor decision making. that was a short time after a woman accused mcdonald of sexual assault at his house. mcdonald is yet to be charged. but his attorney tells the mercury news, as long as that case remains in limbo, his client cannot find work in the nfl. a statement from his lawyer to the merc calls the accusations false and malicious. part of it reads, quote, despite the passage of three months, and in the face of video footage, from mr. mcdonald's security system showing his accuser having clearly consensual sexual relations with him in his hot tub. the da's office has not acted that the time. the da's office is not commenting. in the meantime, bruce miller is in the center of a domestic violence investigation. police say miller got into a fight with his fiancee at river mark plaza in santa clara. happened earlier this month. reportedly threw her to the

ground and smashed her cell phone. the district attorney's office has yet to file any charges. as of now, the 49ers say they have no plans to cut or. punish miller. any college basketball fans in the house? let the madness again. the big dance tipping off tomorrow, but all six local division one teams are on the outside looking in, unfortunately. san stanford did not get an invite to the tournament. instead the team settled for a number two seed in the nit. the cardinals will host uc davis tomorrow night at maples pavilion. tipoff there, 8:00 p.m. meantime, st. mary's also heading to the nit, they'll host vanderbilt wednesday at 6:00. strange twist to the invitation in the college basketball invitational. no board why the school turned down the offer, but the bears will miss the post season for the first time since 2007. >> go gales. scary, yet stunning accident in florida.

look at this. wow, larry dixon's car just flying through the air. he was driving 280 miles an hour. the car split in half before it eventually just crashed there into that wall. amazingly, he was not hurt. >> unbelievable. 5:54 right now, san francisco's ageing chimps are getting lots of love from an anonymous donor. someone contributed $1 million to the san francisco zoo to build a home for the apes. the zoo wants to improve the great ape's area for the three most senior members. it is a solid jump start to the drive to raise $10 million. if you'd like to find out how to donate, $1 million or less, go to nbcbayarea.com and search for chimps. >> very generous. let's check the forecast, starting off our workweek, the last week of winter as well. >> yeah, last few days of winter. we kick offspring on friday, and then, we have a pretty big pattern change ahead. it looks like as we get into the following week. let's start with what we're

expecting monday, 73 degrees in the south bay. 69 degrees in san francisco, temperatures stay nice and mild all the way through that kickoff of spring on friday. and then like i told you, we have a chance for showers on saturday. if dwrour trying to make the weekend plans outdoors, sunday will be the day to do so. you can see from the future cast, little bit of activity working our way. and that's the good news. we need that rain desperately, and our rainy season months are coming quickly to a close. we'll tell you how much we're expecting, where you live, take a deeper dive and show you how much rain is expected from the system, first, let's check your drive, here's mike inouye. deeper traffic right here, southbound 880, this is all the way south to matt davis street where there's a crash block the fast lane. marine is where things clear up again. this is unexpected because it's what you call counter-commute at this time of the morning. there's the wider look. contest, northbound 880 off the caster valley y, typical build at toll plaza as well as the

upper east shore freeway. tri-valley slowing, built for the interchange. same thing from the southbound to northbound 101, kbak to you. >> thank you very much. michelle obama is stopping by ellen today. >> the drivie ining move behind let's get moving campaign. ♪ >> got a little routine there. the first lady challenged ellen to the #dance, as part of the sixth anniversary of let's move. mrs. obama is asking everyone to quote, give me five ways there ahead of a meeting about life. that's a long one. you can watch the entire show down right here on nbc bay area. ellen is at 4:00 this afternoon. right before our 5:00 newscast. >> it's almost like they competitor graphed that or something. >> just a little. >> get your heart bumping. infamous real estate mogul arrested on murder charges.

the latest on the case against robert durst. plus, its been three years since sierra lamar vanished. how her family and friends are marking the somber day. we'll take a quick peek outside right now, earlfully san jose this morning. 5:57, skyline dotted with lights as folks getting ready to start off the workweek. what's the weather and commute like for you? we'll check on both fronts right after this break.

right now at 6:00, taxi slides off a busy bay area freeway, killing a passenger. and a brutal attack is raising new concerns about the safety surrounding a popular south bay mall. and three years later, still no sign of sierra lamar, what her family is doing now keep hope alive. good monday morning, i'm christina loren, brand new forecast, cooler conditions, a

few showers in the works, we will take you through final weeks of winter. little bit of one lane  blocked. look at this big backup from the coliseum heading south, counter-commute, we'll give you the update from chp coming up. sayonara to winter, live look outside right now, downtown san jose, it is monday, march 16th, you're watching "today in the bay". from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." and a very good monday morning to you, thanks for joining us, i'm laura garcia cannon. >> and i'm sam brock. passenger is dead after a taxi plunged off a highway in fairfield. this happened a little bit after 1:00 this morning where interstate 680 meets 80. the taxi shot off the roadway and went down some 70 feet down an embankment before landing on frontage road. another passenger was seriously hurt, but the driver is fine. the cause of the crash is