rearview mirror: a head-on collision. a man driving home at night sees this in his rear view mirror, a head-on collision. it's the next thing he does that made the difference between life and death. a toddler hit while walking with his grandfather in san jose. while we wait to find out how he's doing, the driver responsible is on the run. plus a use of force discussion that could shape the san francisco police department for years to come. with the new chief on top, what real changes will the city make to calm tensions and keep people safe. "today in the bay" starts right now. good wednesday morning. thank you very much for joining us. i'm sam brock. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. guess what? it's the first day of winter officially. >> yes, it started about two

hours ago. >> which naturally means it's the warmest day of the week. >> of course. but from this point on, the days slowly get longer. that's the bright news in the forecast. we are in for some warmer weather. it's not adds cold this morning as you head out. it's a few degrees above where we were yesterday. no forecast, and it's now about 42 degrees for the tri-valley, peninsula and the south bay. 47 for the east bay, still in the upper 30s for the north bay and all clear in san francisco. highs today reaching low 60s. yes, it will be the warmest day of the week. we're watching a storm moving in. i'll detail that. mike is tracking a car fire in the east bay. >> of course right now, 4:31, just off the castro valley y, what remains of the car fire is the remains of an earlier car. over on the shoulder, westbound 580 north of split with 238.

no major issues. it should be on the shoulder. there's still a crew on scene. there's a smooth drive despite that through oakland and approaching the bay bridge. coming up in the next report, i'll let you know that what i've forecast as far as the pattern by the bay bridge has been distant this week. breaking news this morning just developing. we have a crew on the scene where there's been gunfire exchanged. san jose police have surrounded stevens creek toyota as they search for a man who fired shots at two other men, right off stevens creek boulevard in the area of saratoga boulevard just past the mall. a manhunt under way after exchange of gunfire. kris sanchez will bring us a live report shortly. a dramatic rescue of one of two drivers of a fiery head-on crash. this video captured moments after the crash. it happened a little after midnight on peabody road east of

interstate 80 near travis air force base. a man driving ahead of the crash noticed it in his rear view mirror. he turned around, he was only able to wuhl one driver from the car. bob redell is heading to the scene and reaching out to the chp. also this morning, authorities in the south bay looking for the driver who struck and injured a toddler late last night in east san jose. this happened on row hampton avenue and vancouver court just two blocks from story road. the chp says a man and his grandson were walking when someone drove by and struck the boy. the car kept going. responding officer say the boy regained consciousness before being transported to the hospital. there's still no update this morning on the little boy's condition. one day after the city announces a new chief in san francisco, the police commission is expected to get together to discuss the current use of force

policy. "today in the bay's" pete suratos joining us from city hall with the details. we already know use of force is at the top of the priority list for the new chief. >> reporter: good morning. that's going to be the weekly police commission meeting that will take place behind me at city hall. for the incoming police chief, william scott, he has a tall task ahead of him when it comes to evaluat acing the use of for policy. this has been the centerpiece of discussion for the city for quite some time specifically following the deadly officer-involved shootings around the city, high profile ones involving mario woods and alex knee eight toe. the commission wapts to restrict officers from shooting into moving vehicles which the police union disagrees with. the incoming chief says he will join his experiences at a deputy chief with lapd when it comes to this issue. remember, the city of los

angeles decided to restrict this practice several years ago. >> what worked for me was a chief that made me believe that he was supportive of me getting the job done by giving me what i needed to get the job done. >> reporter: chief scott does not start until january. no word on the he will be in attendance at tonight's meeting. we no e the meeting is set to start at 5:30 pchl. live in san francisco, pete suratos for "today in the bay." >> thanks for the latest there, pete. 4:35. san francisco's public defender plans to unveil video of an arrest in july that some say went too far. cell phone video shows b.a.r.t. police officers detaining michael smith. critics called it excessive force. officers claim smith kicked one officer, bit another and spit at a third. the city's public defender will present body cam video today. an online petition calling

for a temporary halt to fire inspections. the petition requests unsolicited inspections of artists building. people claim eviction notices are appearing in several warehouses and underground spot. at last check the petition had more than 10,000 signatures. >> one of the area's most popular competitions could be on the horizon. the area could be hit with 20-foot waves. now, organizers of titans of mavericks put out their potential swell alert. that means the conditions could be good for the famous competition. they're not ready to say yes that the competition is reedy to o g. >> it's been going up and down, yes, warmer today, high waves kicking up along the coastline. that's ahead of the next storm system. we'll talk about when the rain arrives coming up in the next

microclimate forecast. >> talking about the traffic that just got lighter. unexpected heavy volume of traffic on the san mateo bridge. we'll track that across the bay as well as what's going on on the bay bridge coming up. a familiar story in the bay area that becomes more painful for homeowners over the holidays. hundreds of people in san jose are about to be evicted to make room for pricier units. "nbc bay area responds." we recovered over $400,000 for our viewers. if you want help, call us or visit nbcbayarea.com/responds.

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good wednesday morning. it is 4:40. we have clear skies and not as cold temperatures on this first official day of winter. in santa clara we'll be into the lower 60s today. a lot of sunshine, even warmer than average. it does get cooler. we have rain in the forecast. more on that coming up in about five minutes. we're looking at your drive times. the bay bridge moves smoothly through the bay. south bay moves well, but we have an incident to avoid as well throughout the south bay. new details and perhaps some new hope for hundreds of low income residents at a palo alto mobile home park facing closure.

according to the "mercury news," the santa clara county housing authority noted unanimously to buy the park from the owners. the owners voted to close the site about four years ago. we should find out what it will sell for. in the meantime for tennis apartment complex, this is hardly a pleasanton holiday season. 216 renters at a property called the reserves has received eviction notices. owners want to turn the rent controlled units into luxury apartments. tenants say the owners have been providing notice via registered mail that means standing in line at the post office to receive notice that they don't want. up next, the ultimate secret santa. what if a billionaire got your name. we'll show you what was in the box of a lucky lady after she finds out bill gates is her secret santa. >> taking a live look outside.

would you believe there's actually a warmup coming today? it is officially the first day of winter. so much more ahead on take. stick around.

delivered. pizza to be but wouldn't making it yourself be a lot more fun? it's baking season. warm up with pillsbury. that sound. like nails on a chalkboard. but listen to this: (family talking) that's a different kind of sound. the sound of the weekend. it's baking season. warm up with pillsbury.

welcome back everyone. good wednesday morning. halfway through the week. now the start of winter. >> how about we start picking momentum up during the week. monday and tuesday can be tough. wednesday, we're sliding

through. >> that makes it a holiday week. that makes it so much better that we're getting closer to the weekend, closer to seeing family as well. a live look outside now, san francisco, a clear start. not as cold as you will welcome in winter with warmer temperatures today. right now it is 46 degrees. it's still cool out there. we have a breezy wind. it will top out at 57 degrees today in the city. in the north bay, we are looking at still some very poor air quality. another spare-the-air alert is in effect. no wood burning today. the air quality will be moderate in the east bay, peninsula and south bay. it's now 47 degrees in oakland, 45 in palo alto. in concord, 43 degrees. still upper 30s for napa and santa rosa. we shouldn't see as much frost as we had recently. up to 63 as the highs for livermore. santa rosa, 64 at half moon bay. it will feel nicer. a couple of storm systems in the

works as we look at the bigger picture across the country. not as much in a deep freeze. snow coming down around minneapolis. we have a storm system rolling up from southern california, and that will be moving off farther off to the east over towards arizona and new mexico. for us we'll be watching the storm system coming from the north. that will be here, arriving with rain on friday. when it gets here, it looks like the winds could be gusty and there will be a little bit of a rain break on saturday before another round moves in late on sunday night as, of course, many people are trying to get to a destination in time for the holidays. rainfall totals may reach close to an inch, maybe even 1.25 for some of the spots where the rain is the heaviest. if you're planning on traveling anywhere across the region, it will be hazardous. >> one of the major areas in the

south bay where it might affect you getting your morning coffee, talk about the commute right now. the freeways move very well. we want to uk that about this area around san jose, santa cla clara. near stephens cream toyota, sounds like a lot of police activity going on there. as we said, kris sanchez is going to head out. it is out there right now. give us the update live from the scene as soon as she gathers the rest of the details. this is west of 280. this area has a starbucks. a lot of activity. you may have to avoid a few blocks around that scene. the rest of the south bay, the freeways move very well. we expect that light commute as we've seen all week over towards the bay bridge. look at that. the bay bridge, the metering lights may turn off as we saw on monday. we'll track the pattern. back to you. thank you very much. something we all dread. it doesn't take long for this holiday nightmare to develop. this is a christmas tree safety

demonstration put on by san francisco firefighters. they say a tree that's not properly watered and cared for can turn the inside of a home into a death trap. at least 250 house fires each year are caused by christmas trees. well, you probably never had a secret santa quite like this. one lucky person on read it, bill gates got her name. >> he's known for generosity. for that and the rest of the news before the bell we turn to landon dowdy live at cnbc world headquarters. good morning. >> sam and laura, good morning to you both. if at first you do not succeed, try, try again. that's exactly what the dow will attempt to do to hit the psychological 20,000 mark today. the dow closing at a record high. that is the 17th time it happened since the election. you'll look for economic data today on the housing market. the dow rising 91 points to 19,974, nasdaq up 23 to 5,483.

a live audio broadcast in your news feed, the new option in the live video plug-in allows publishers to publish content directly. for now facebook is testing the feature with a few partners including harper collins and the bbc. hundred lucky person on read it got a special secret santa, bill gates. she says she was flabbergasted when she got a package from the microsoft co-founder, including a special edition xbox, dvds and a framed picture of her photo shopped with gates. read it has had an annual exchange since 2009 and gates have been involved pour the past couple years. thank you very much, landon. appreciate that. a one-time livermore lab researcher is going to serve 18 months in prison for receiving false reports to receive federal funding. darian kenyon pleaded guilty in

june. he received millions over four years to develop quantum computer units. he didn't do the work. he submitted fraudulent documents and dat the to justify the funding. he'll also have to pay back more than $3 million. a modest stow man pled guilty to a napa valley wine theft. he pled guilty to transported dozens of bottles of fine wine from the french laundry. two other businesses were also targeted. the stolen wine was worth nearly $900,000. prosecutors say he and another suspect arranged to ship some of it to north carolina where it was later discovered. the other suspect has not yet entered a plea. happening today, north carolina lawmakers are going to vote to repeal a state law that many across the country have called discriminatory. hb 2 requires transgender people to use restrooms that correspond

with the gender on their birth certificate. that measure ignited a nationwide backlash that included cancellation of scheduled sporting and entertainment events. >> it has cost us hundreds of millions of dollars and it has put lgbt north carolinians at direct risk for violence every day since it was passed. many of the criticisms regarding this law, not just about transgender ice of bathrooms but also about the fact that it permits discrimination against the lgbq community. 4:51. who should discipline kids at school? police officers or educators? the white house is responding after our reports about kids ending up with criminal records. we investigate the plan for bay area schools. happening right now as kari was mentioning, she is tracking

the next storm set to hit the area just before the holiday weekend. you can take her forecast with you with our free nbc bay area app. a peninsula mom and golden state warriors dance cam star strut their stuff again, this time on the oracle arena floor with the club's dance team. see the video on our facebook page. we're back in just two minutes.

good wednesday morning to you. if you're just waking up, waiting for the sun's arrival on the first day of winter, a storm is at work. better get those errands run today. our on going investigation into the misuse of public school officers has prompted policy changes at more than 30 schools. no u the obama

administration is pushing for the same changes nationwide before president-elect trump moves into the white house next month. investigative reporter bigad shaban has more. >> good morning. the obama administration in one of its final acts of power is trying to teach a lesson to the country's more than 95,000 public schools. in letters the department of education and the department of justice urged educators to stop overrelying on school police officers saying unnecessary arrests and improper involvement in row teen school discipline matters can have a negative impact on students. 47 school districts in the bay area regularly have officers on campus, but we discovered more than 40% failed to define the duties of those officers. we contacted each one and learned 15 school districts still don't plan on changing their policies despite the new recommendations for washington. president-elect trump recently announced betsy devos as his

pick for secretary of education. she wouldn't comment on our story but is known for supporting more local control for schools. guys, back to you. >> thank you very much. if you have a tip for our investigative unit, give us a call, 1-888-996-tips or send us an e-mail to theunit@nbcbayarea.com. contra costa county leaders have reportedly agreed to require drugmakers to provide drop-off centers for expired or unwanted prescriptions. the "east bay times" reports that supervisors yesterday went ahead and approved the ordinance. drugmakers will have to foot the cost for them, too. three drop-off sites in each of the five county districts. alameda county was the first in the country to approve an ordinance like that four years ago. it's meant in part to protect creeks and bays from runoff contamination and illegal dumping. a little warmup in the works today. will we notice it, kari? >> i think you will notice it. you don't have to scrape the

frost off the windshield. a lot of sunshine with highs in the 60s. watching the next storm system coming up in the microclimate forecast. >> this shot of 101 shows the headlights, an easy drive northbound 101 at 680. we have a lot of police active in the south bay. we'll cover that as well as what else is going on for your freeways. a man jumps into action after seeing that, a fiery head-on collision in his rear view mirror. the quick thinking that could have saved a driver's life. plus-- chaotic, tense scene

>> reporter: a police standoff and a search for a suspect inside a car dealership on stevens creek. we'll tell you what it means for the public and what the suspect did to get him in trouble. plus a chaotic tense scene unraveling overnight. we hear firsthand from a bystander who managed to zwrum into that, a car on fire and save someone's life. developing news out of berlin this morning. the hunt continues for a suspected terrorist who rammed through a crowd killing a dozen people. the twist in the search as the u.s. beeves up security here at home. "today in the bay" starts right now. a very good now wednesday morning to you. thanks so much for joining us. i'm laura garcia-cannon. >> i'm sam brock. as we just get closer and closer to the holidays here, a few more days to go. our hearts swell. also the waves doing a little

swelling. >> ahead of the storm system moving in for the weekend. we'll be watching a risk of rip currents. temperatures will be warmer, reaching into the mid 60s in spots. right now as you head out, it's 42 in concord, 43 in livermore. morgan hill and santa rosa still in the upper 30s. it will be a nice day as we officially welcome in winter. i'll talk about that storm system coming in as we head over to mike. a lighter commute this week. >> definitely, been welcoming you in since after thanksgiving. really hitting light this week. smooth flow of traffic for your freeways. let me talk about, first of all, the bay bridge. light activity approaching the toll plaza. tuesday the heavy traffic day. metering lights turned off just before 3:00. the freeways are just fine. you have a bunch of activity on a major surface street. breaking news we're covering in the south bay. san jose police surrounding stephens creek