short pursuit ensued and because the suspects reckless and erratic driving, our officer pulled off the pursuit. >> reporter: police say the suspects didn't slow down and crashed into this honda driven by an innocent passer by. that driver was killed and the devastation right at a fire station drew a horrified crowd. >> and i thought someone must have died. >> yeah. >> it was scary. >> what's your reaction to what you're seeing? >> right down the street from my house, i was really scared. >> reporter: police say after the malibu flipped over in the fire station parking lot, watkins was seriously injured. watts and collier fled on foot. watts was apprehended quickly but collier tried to escape through a field and local junk yard. officers with k9 units chased collier down, arrested him and took him away in handcuffs. >> who was driving? that's still is under investigation. obviously it's very important aspect of this investigation. >> reporter: police have not reached the identity of the victim.

at 6 we'll tell you what police have learned about the suspects. live in newark, robert honda, ktvu. dna evidence was introduced today in the trial against suspected serial killer joseph naso. a criminallologist testified today that semen found on the panty hose of murder victim roxanne rogash likely came from naso. other dna matched those of naso's wife indicating another link to the 1977 murder in marin county. the 78-year-old is acting as his own defense attorney. he is charged with killing four young women. the state of the state address this morning, governor brown laid out big plans and took more than a few swipes at his opponents. we brought it to you live on ktvu. kim pritchett is live in sacramento where the governor wasted no time taking his message on the road. >> reporter: governor brown said california is a state on the mend. many democrats, or democrats praised his speech as positive, as did some republicans.

but they also said those republicans, that his call for new taxes is unnecessary. governor brown started with a light jab at republicans, who accidentally released their response to his speech yesterday. >> now i'll let you in on another secret. my speech wasn't finished 24 hours ago. >> reporter: brown was quick to highlight the state's improving budget situation. >> last year we were looking at a structure tall deficit of 20 billion. it was a real mess. >> reporter: now down to 5 billion after lawmakers passed massive cuts, but republicans blocked putting new taxes on the ballot. >> we're left with unfinished business. closing the remaining gap. again, i propose cuts and temporary taxes. neither is popular, but both must be done. >> turns out this year he is running right around the legislature. and going right to the voters and holding a gun to their head and saying if you don't raise my taxes i'll cut education.

>> reporter: brown touched on green energy, jobs and the need to put more education decisions at the local level. he didn't dwell on more deep cuts to come, with a sense at the capital that the darkest budget days have passed. >> governor's speech reflects the fact that while we haven't turned the corner completely, we can certainly see around the bend, and we can see that straight away ahead. >> reporter: in an unusual move, right after the speech, governor brown went to southern california to talk more about his tax initiative. many see this speech today as the launch of his campaign, but in that speech today he did not talk about the consequences if those taxes should fail, if voters should not approve them. and many expected him to discuss that in today's state of the state speech. in sacramento, ken pritchett, ktvu channel 2 news. as ken mentioned, the governor pushed for his tax hike initiative to offset a huge projected budget deficit. it would increase the sales

tax, this proposal by a half cent and raise taxes on incomes of $250,000 a year or more. both taxes would expire after 5 years. we asked voters in the bay area what they think of that plan. >> i think they should raise the taxes on the wealthy. they make most of the money. and as far as the tax on the regular people, i mean everybody has to contribute. >> we can do without the sales tax, that's regress ive and hurts the people that have been hurt for the last 30 years. >> why should someone making billions of dollars a year or whatever the case may be, why should they be paying the same that i'm paying? >> i'm all about taxing the rich, because i'm poor. >> governor brown wants to put his tax hike initiative on the november ballot. in a speech today the governor also fired back at critics of california's high speed rail system. >> if you believe that california will continue to grow, as i do, and that millions more people will be living in our state, this is a wise investment. >> governor brown say ms. now

successful -- says many now successful projects in the bay area and around the world had to overcome doubt and criticism. coming up at 5:30, the tran sis systems we take for granted that he says almost didn't make it off the drawing board. keep in mind our coverage can of governor jerry brown's state of the state address continues on our website. hear the entire speech by clicking on the state of the state address tab. san francisco sheriff ross people me's wife says outside forces are working against him. why she thinks that and what else she is saying. david. >> reporter: frank the sheriff will enter a not guilty plea tomorrow. today new details about his legal strategy as his wife spoke out about the schedule. [ speaking in spanish ] >> in an interview with a

venezuela radio station, eliana lopez told them about a new year's eve fight and bruises on her arm. that statement contradicts documents released yesterday in which her neighbor told police it was the second time lopez has been abused in 2011. madison and her husband declined to talk. mirk ream heads to court tomorrow to face charges over misdemeanor domestic entitle, endangering a child and threatening a witness. in the radio address lopez appears to blame outside sparses for the scandal. [ speaking in spanish ] >> reporter: mirkirimi's attorney bob wagner says the sheriff may not be able to get a fair trial in the city. >> gag order is a possibility in these kinds of situations. it's certainly something that is an issue to be considered. >> reporter: mirkirimi is under a protective order that keeps him away from his wife and two- year-old son.

it's set to expire friday. the district attorney's office indicated to us today it could press for an extension. wagner says mirkirimi's wife may come to his arraignment tomorrow to fight that. >> she has made it clear to me and i believe she'll make it clear to the court tomorrow she doesn't want a stay away order and wants her husband back with her and her son. >> reporter: and mayor ed lee's office indicated to us he may make a statement about the case after sheriff mirkirimi addresses the charges. live in san francisco, david stevenson. two bay area mayors received some tough economic news at a conference in the nation's capital today. but the numbers really came as no surprise. >> very, very slow. i think on the oakland side particularly, very hard hit by the real estate market collapse. >> reporter: 300 city leaders are attending the u.s. conference of mayors this week. today they heard a new report on job creation. it predicts the bay area will recover only 27% of the jobs lost during the recession, by

the end of this year. mayor ed lee says it's important to show congress how well bay area communities are using federal dollars so they don't get cut off. >> the most successful programs are ones that look at multiple sources of funding for the same goal, which is job creation, and making sure people are lifted out of poverty. >> the mayor's report also predicts the bay area will not return to pre-recession job levels for up to three years. last night, mayor lee hosted an event in washington for the america's cup which is expected to bring in $8 billion, and 8000 jobs to the bay area. tonight mayors quann and lee will attend a reception at the white house. thousands of oakland sigh employees are look at -- employees are looking at pink slips. the city issued 1500 layoff notices to full time employees and another 1000 to part time employees. officials expect about 200 people to actually lose their job, but the notices were handed out across city agencies, to give council

members broad flexibility in deciding where to make the cuts by the january 31st balanced budget deadline. the house of representatives voted this afternoon against raising the debt ceiling. the vote here was purely symbolic. last summer, congress voted to give president obama sole responsibility for raising the debt sealing to avoid a government shut down. many republican lawmakers say today's vote sends a symbolic message. >> we should not be raising our debt limit. we should not be settling future generations with debt. we should be turning to ways in which we can find real cuts in our budget and not doing this from the back of national security. >> the debt seal willing now be raised by 1.2 trillion dollars to match spending already approved by congress. new numbers show bay area home sales are inching upward, but prices are coming down. data quick reports that last month, home sales rose 4.4% compared to december of 2010. frirtz was the sixth -- it was the sixth consecutive month that bay area home sales increased from the year before. during the same period, the

median price of a home in the region fell 6.3%, to $351,500 better news on the european debt crisis. end bank earnings brought the stock market back to life. [ bell ] >> goldman sachs posted better than expected earnings and the international monetary fund announced plans to raise hundred of billions to help nations coping with the debt crisis. today's closing number. the dow jones rose 97 points, closing at 12,578. nasdaq rose more than 41 points closing at 2769. a head's up for niner fans. tickets for this sunday's playoff game are now officially sold out. fans began snapping up general admission tickets at 1 this afternoon. and by 4 p.m., they were all sold out. tickets for season ticket holders went on sale at 10 this morning. but even though the game is sold out, there are still plenty of people offering their tickets for sale online.

a short while ago, there were 5000 tickets for sale on stub hub, although some prices are pretty high. >> they're listing it saying hey, you know i'll sell this if i can get $10,000. i'll sell this if i can get 20,000. the reality is those people are actually going to go to the game. [ cheers and applause ] >> stub is hub tells ktvu news that high prices will probably drop by friday if the tickets don't sell by then. the game is set for kickoff at 3:30 on sunday. santa clara residents fighting the city's plans to build a 49ers stadium there turned in 11,000 signatures today to put a measure on the ballot to stop the project. the group santa clara plays fair delivered the signatures to the county clerk's office. they're concerned about the financial liability the city could face in building a new stadium. a spokes woman told us she isn't worried about 49er fever. >> one thing that 49er fever proved they don't need a new stadium. they needed a new coach. we have people coming up in

full 49er dress, saying they can have a stadium. just pay for it themselves. >> activists claim voters were unaware that the city could be on the hook for $850 million when they approved measure j and say voters should have another chance to take up the issue. penn state university tells our washington d.c. bureau it has turned over thousands and thousands of pages of documents to federal investigators. the u.s. department of education is looking into how the university publicly discloses crimes and threats on campus in the wake of the jerry sandusky scandal. they want to know if the school has violated the federal cleary act which is a law requiring thorough, regular reporting of criminal threats on campus security groups that monitor the u.s. education department say this could be the largest cleary act investigation ever. >> they're going to be looking at every crime reported to penn state going as far back as 1998, covering 13 years. no cleary act investigation before has ever covered that long a period or that many

crimes. so it will be the largest ever conducted. >> if violations are found, penn state could face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines, and the loss of federal aid. new developments, and this haunting new image of the wrecked cruise ship off italy's coast. why this wasn't the only time that ship came dangerously close to shore. back in just 10 minutes. rain moving into northern california. there will be rain for tomorrow's commute. your forecast back here in 10. dinner? candles? i wanted it to be special. oh, what's this? it's progresso's new loaded potato with bacon. mmm, it's good. honey, i love you and... oh my gosh, oh my gosh.. look at these big pieces of potato. yeah but honey, i love you and... is that what i think it is...it is... it's bacon. honey look.

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>> investigators are looking for the cause of a fire in walnut creek that destroyed a garage and four cars this morning. the fire broke out this morning. the family was sound asleep but the noise of the fire woke them up and fortunately all four of them and their dogs were able to get out of the house safely. firefighters also protected the home's living area so the family was not displaced.

we learn this afternoon that last friday was not the first time the cruise ship that wrecked off the italian coast came dangerously close to shore. and we also have a new haunting image to share with you, one that shows the disaster in a new light. >> reporter: a shipping industry newspaper reports last friday was most the first time the costa concordia came dangerously close to shore. this is video taken last august of that ship close to shore near celio island. a newspaper said satellite tracking data show on another date last year the vessel was about 250 yards off the island's coast, even closer than the ship was last week when it hit rocks and began to sink. and these are likely the last pictures we'll see of the under water search. today italian rescue workers stopped operations. this video is from yesterday when the bodies of five passengers all wearing life jackets were found in the wreckage. 11 people are confirmed dead. 21 are still missing.

tonight company francisco schettino is under house arrest but italian prosecutors want him back in jail. >> we would like to avoid the situation where schettino can escape from his possibilities. >> reporter: and this -- from his responsibilities. >> reporter: and this picture shows the disaster from high above. a satellite captured this image of the ship on its side as it sank. also out today, the british newspaper the guardian is reporting that captain schettino says he left the sinking ship by accident telling a judge as panicked passengers streamed onto the decks he tripped and ended up in one of the life boats. the first cruise ship victim to be officially identified was a 38-year-old entertainer working on that ship. officials say the body of00 garyian violinist was identified by his mother. a colleague says faher helped put life jackets on several trying children and had returned to his cabin for his

violin. he was last seen heading to a life boat wearing a life jacket. a south bay boater who was missing for almost 24 hours has been found alive and safe. rescue teams found the man in a marsh about three miles from the marine i can't. the 30-year-old man had gone out duck hunting about 8 a.m. yesterday in a motor boat. the family reported him missing last night. search teams heard him fire a gun several times to get their attention. they found him cold but alive at 4:30 this morning. two other hunters retrieved his boat which had been stuck in a low tide. >> they gave us the coordinates of where the boat was, and it was way off because the tide had risen and the boat floated almost to the mouth of the slew. pretty easy to find. >> officials say the missing hunter was very cold after spending the night in freezing temperatures but otherwise was in good shape. a scenic highway through yosemite that's normally closed much earlier in the season is finally shut down. tioga road is the park's main entry from the eastern side of

the sierra. the park shut it down due to incoming storms. often this road is closed by december 1 because of snow. rangers say it's been so dry closing the road wasn't necessary. if the snow disappears quickly they may reopen the road. otherwise it will likely remain closed through may or june. here in the bay area never have we been more ready for rain. to chief meteorologist who will tell us when it's going to get there. >> gasia, i think people are looking forward to rain in the back yards. right now falling up in eureka. heavy at times. this rain slides south as we head into tomorrow. so the afternoon commute tomorrow looks to be a wet one. morning commute, maybe in the north bay but for the most part the showers and rain develop in the early afternoon and spread through the afternoon commute for thursday. right now, temperatures 50 in santa rosa, 51 in napa. it was downright cold last night. back into the 20s in the north and east bay valleys. frost or freeze warning for the santa clara valley. that's done because of these

clouds. the clouds come in off the pacific and begin to warm things up. that's what we've got. a lot of cloud cover moving in. it's been about increasing clouds all day today. and as we go into tonight, more clouds, and tomorrow's about mostly cloudy conditions in this weather system, which is going to slip south as we head through time. out into the pacific, it's a pretty aggressive line of moisture coming across the date line now. notice it's at a lower latitude. this is similar to what we saw last year, almost all winter. but the moisture out of the low latitudes making its way in our direction 3000 miles of pacific moisture headed our way. i don't see any giant storms here. right now, i do see about 3 different systems that are going to move through the bay area, starting tomorrow. so as we head into the mountains, you know there will be a winter storm warning at some point. right now a winter storm warning goes into effect 10 a.m. thursday through friday. could see easily two feet of snow in the mountains. snow levels are not that low. why not? because that line of moisture i

showed you, the low latitude stuff is warmer air. that's great, because that warm air, that moist air from the low latitude holds a ton of water so the water content of the snow goes 6000 feet, very powerful. it will be good news for the skiers, good news for the watersheds on the west slope of the sierra nevada. overnight lows will be warmer because of the cloud cover. rain develops tomorrow mid afternoon, early afternoon, through the afternoon commute, and then overnight. when i come back we're going to roll that computer model, give you the timing exactly, how much rain to expect and the five-day forecast which shows a couple of storms sitting off shore ready to come through. see you then. >> thank you, bill. more fallout over pg & e's management of its natural gas pipelines. the new punishment they could face also governor brown comes out swinging in support of high speed rails. how he tries to silence critics. and in just a couple hours william sonoma could have the answer it's seeking. will it be allowed to return to sonoma and build a store?

what's standing in the way, and the vote tonight that could change all that.

>> new developments concerning pg&e's management of its natural gas pipelines following the san bruno pipeline explosion. they could face millions in new fines after admitting yesterday it failed to identify 300 miles of similar pipelines in urban areas, more than double the miles of pipeline reported in june. in some cases those pipelines

were operated at higher pressure levels than allowed by federal regulators after that september 2010 explosion. governor jerry brown today came out swinging in defense of california's proposed high- speed rail system. in his state of the state address this morning, the governor said this isn't the first time critics have bashed what he called a bold plan. >> said of the suez canal totally impossible. the critics were wrong then, and they're wrong now. [ applause ] >> the governor said when he was first governor, 30 years ago, he signed legislation to study the concept of a bullet train. now he says he believes it is a wise investment for california, despite critics who say it is way too expensive. the governor said many projects we now take for granted came under fire and survived. >> the master plan for the interstate highway system in 19 39 was provided as new deal

gitter bug economics. in 1966, then mayor johnson of berkeley called bart a billion dollar potential fiasco. >> governor brown told lawmakers today that president obama strongly supports the project, and has provided the majority of funds for the first phase. although it's important to point out that that is just a fraction of the nearly 100 billion that is needed for the entire project. the governor also sent a revised business plan, should be finished within weeks, and that construction could start by the end of the year. >> despite angry protests and calls to save the brick, the golden gate bridge district this morning tore up a commemorative walkway that many thought was supposed to be permanent. heavy equipment began the demolition so that a pathway to a visitors center can comply with the americans with disabilities act. people paid between 32 and $75 a brick back in 1987, and the bricks were inscribed with the names of loved one those

commemorate the 50th anniversary of the bridge. we showed you how when word got out earlier this week the district was going to destroy the bricks, some people tried to pry up their bricks on their own but bridge authorities threatened to arrest them. the sonoma city counsel sill expected to take up a measure that could prevent the return of a store that bears the town's name. chuck williams opened his first williams sonoma kitchen goods store in 1956 but moved to san francisco two years later. now the company wants to open a store again on that same site. first the council must consider changing an order that put a hold on chain stores in the historic district. a war lands on the steps of the civic center in san francisco. what these protesters are asking for. >> and the wife of vice president joe biden came to the bay area today. where she went to listen and learn. ;

>> some of the biggest names on the internet flexed their muscles today. they're trying to stop two piece of legislation currently pending in congress. wikipedia and a number of other sites went dark for 24 hours. google also blacked out its logo. they're protesting two bills, one in the house one in the senate, aimed at cracking down on copy right infringement and online piers see of music, movies, and tv shows. but the internet giants say the bills will also ham per thefully flow of information -- free flow of information on the internet. >> if something like this passes, it creates a dynamic of power that cuts to the fabric of the internet. we just don't know the consequences of saying you have to block sites. >> the senate bill is due to come to the floor next week. the obama administration has taken a middle ground here, saying it wants to protect

intellectual property rights, but without harming internet freedom. >> and that internet protest also drew hundreds of people to the streets of san francisco today. we're live in a city where a bay area entertainer known around the world weighed in on this very issue. rob. >> reporter: gasia we're in a cafe on valencia street. like many people here we brought our laptop. now this is what happens when you click on wikipedia, the english version is blacked out. many giants of the enter net are protesting today by shutting down, including the web browser mozilla. google is showing solidarity by running a black band across its logo. but the protest wasn't only online. more than 100 computer industry workers rallied at civic center plaza this afternoon. protesters are opposed to a pair of federal internet anti- piers see bills before congress. they say the bill is called the stop online privacy act sopa and pipa will bring censor ship

to the internet. >> if i am constantly worried about being sued, i'm not going to let as much speed and content on my websites. >> reporter: the bills are favored by the movie and music industries looking to crack down on international piracies, the bill's sponsors say it's necessary. >> the problem of online piracy today is huge. immense. it amounts to $100 billion a year. >> reporter: internet companies say they wouldn't be able to handle the cost of protecting themselves against possible violations. among those opposing the bill is entertainer and entrepreneur m.c. hammer. >> we don't want people who spend their days legislating, to try and control creativity. >> reporter: laptop users here at the coffee shop say it's been a rough day on the internet. >> craigslist was a pain. they have a disclaimer on their page which made it hard to look for a job. hard to go on that site. >> reporter: wikipedia's expected to come back online at 9:00 our time. reporting live in san francisco, rob roth, ktvu.

turning to the race for the white house. current front runner mitt romney avoided any talk about his taxes while campaigning in south carolina today. and he wouldn't take questions from the media. yesterday you'll remember he said his tax rate was about 15%, far less than most americans. instead today romney focused on attacking president obama. >> these are the tough times. and this president is out of ideas, he's running out of excuses, and in 2012, he's out of town. we're going to get rid of him. >> the governor massachusetts governor is currently in the lead in the south carolina primary which happens this coming saturday. he is facing tough competition from some other republicans. one of them is newt gingrich. he is gaining ground in the south carolina primary race and is rallying his supporters to try and beat front runner mitt romney. >> if with your help this saturday, and i believe we're very close, and i think if you help us and you call your friends, and you go to facebook and you e-mail, you know, there's enough energy in this room. you can help make sure we carry

this state. if we carry saturday, i think i will become the nominee this fall. >> a new cnn poll finds the former house speaker with 23% of the vote compared to 33% for romney. a poll on january 5 had romney at 37%, and gingrich at 18%. former pennsylvania senator rick santorum is hoping for a big come back in south carolina. after a poor finish in new hampshire last weekend. >> this is a race where the people are going to speak and they are there's going to be a big surprise in south carolina on saturday. >> he hosted a faith, family and freedom town howl. he challenged his rivals and criticized romney and gingrich saying they supported wall street bailouts when conservatives were rushing for the door. the v.a. hospital in palo alto opened its doors to the wife of vice president joe biden. it was dr. jill biden's first visit to the campus and she came to both listen and learn. >> everybody knows you. [ laughter ]

>> reporter: today the vice president's wife met three men wounded at war. one shot in the chest, one hit by an i.e.d. >> right next to me. >> reporter: another fractured his skull. their scars are visible, their stories never seem to fade and dr. jill biden says she knows their physical and emotional recovery is a journey in itself. >> i also want to say thank you to the doctors and the nurses, because really, i know what a group effort it all is, and they're the ones who carry you through, right, and make the difference in your lives. >> reporter: dr. biden's visit here to the campus in palo alto comes with a purpose. not just to hear the stories of injured veterans, but also to learn more about poly trauma. >> so few people even remember we're at war. >> reporter: carey childress is with the palo alto healthcare system. >> we came up with poly trauma, because it was so rare that any of these men and women came back with just one thing.

it was multiple. >> reporter: amputations, traumatic brain injuries, loss of sight and posttraumatic stress disorder. childress says it takes just one i.e.d. to cause all four injuries, and so today, at what is one of five poly trauma centers in america, these soldiers, who were unable to speak directly to the media, opened their hearts to the vice president's wife. who will soon report back to the nation's capitol. >> i'm really hoping that when she returns to washington, she can go back with the feeling that first and foremost, these men and women are receiving the best care possible. >> reporter: in palo alto, ktvu channel 2 news. >> alameda county district attorney today charged a 14- year-old oakland boy in connection with at least two sexual assaults. as ktvu reported yesterday, the boy is in custody at juvenile hall after his family brought him in. police say he robbed and assaulted women at random on the street. he'll be in court tomorrow afternoon charged as a juvenile. prosecutors are petitioning to have the case transferred to an

adult court. a judge will make that decision after a behavioral study. tonight a cable television show will put new attention on the case of hasani campbell. he was five years old when he disappeared two and a half years ago. his foster father said he left hasani in a parked car in oakland's rock ridge district. the father says he came back minutes later and the boy was gone. the police investigation focused on the foster parent but officers say there is no evidence. the show called find our missing airs tonight on the cable channel tv 1. it's a slow year for the flu. the two factors combining to make this a good season. also, it is a startling number. the thousands of sexual assaults that are reported in the armed forces, and how that number isn't even close to the real number of assaults that are believed to be happening. apple, apple, you're no good! >> an angry protest at the apple store. what these protesters say is happening at apple plants overseas.

>> apple, apple, you're no good. treat the workers like you should! >> the group raging grannies and labor activists all protested outside the apple store in palo alto today, denouncing apple's use of chinese contractors to make parts for its products. the chinese company fox con has come under attack for low pay, long hours, and deplorable

working conditions that have caused some of their chinese workers to commit suicide. the pentagon announced plans today to crack down on six wall assault -- sexual assaults in the armed forces. last year more than 3200 were reported, far below the 19,000 believed to occur every year. the biggest change will involve civilians. >> i have directed the department to expand our support to assault victims, to include military spouses and adult military dependents. >> service members who report a sex is wall assault will also be allow -- sexual assault will also be allowed to transfer to another unit while their case is investigated. control of basic functions of california prisons may soon be back in the hands of prisons instead of the courts for the first time in years. a federal judge said this week he is preparing to end court oversight of inmate medical care.

other changes could follow. the court's forced a revamping of prison policies after various lawsuits. the disputes included the care of mentally ill inmates and housing for juvenile offenders. flu season is off to a slow start but we're not out of the woods yet. the c.d.c. says the number of flu cases across our country is relatively low so far this season but that the number is expected to increase as we move towards february. researchers say this year's strains don't appear particularly tongue and are well -- strong and are well matched with the vaccines. the experts say it's not to late to get one. your emotional response to a traumatic event is weaker if you don't go to asleep. researchers studied more than 100 volunteers between the ages of 18 and 30 and found people who went to sleep after seeing a disturbing mange were just as up -- image were just as upset as they originally were, when they saw it again. people who stayed awake had less of a reaction the second time around. study authors note it's common to be sleep deprived after a

traumatic event. they say the results make sense from an evolutionary standpoint as it would have helped ancestors survive bothered by jet noise? wait till you hear about new nasa technology that will make this a lot quieter. the clouds are thickening up, but boy it's going to get wet. especially for the commute tomorrow. details coming up.

>> the space shuttle that made the program's final flight last july is closer to having a

permanent home. ground was broken at kennedy space center for a $100 million museum dedicated to atlantis. it's scheduled to open in the summer of 2013. other exhibits will be built near washington, d.c. and los angeles for the shuttles endeavor and discovery. in the governor's state of the state address he emphasized bay area innovation. and john fowler is live at s.f.l. with some ideas that are poised for reality. jontels us they can save both -- john tells us they can save both money and is your ears. >> reporter: the u.s. burns far and away the most jet fuel in the world. and airliners are polluting and noisy. but today, we investigated fuel saving technology right here in the bay area. those big jet engines of today burn a lot of fuel. they're loud. next generation engines are already designed. and promise -- >> all three goals of reduced fuel burn, reduced noise, and reduced emissions. all the engine technology would

be worthless if you can't get it on the airplane and achieve the benefit. >> reporter: at a nasa wind tunnel, steve smith headed a team creating this proof of concept wing and engine. a more efficient, quieter engine must be bigger. the problem is fitting it to a super efficient wing. its advanced shape promises a 20% fuel savings. you may see the real thing on airliners in less than 10 years. >> we're really trying to pioneer the future of aviation. we always have to get more efficient. >> reporter: experts say every flight wastes fuel, up to 1000 pounds or more. because controllers make jets level off, or fly di versions. we saw this nasa aims computer program today that allows controllers to become super human. >> with this technology, we can deliver the airplanes to within an accuracy of about plus or minus 10 seconds, which is far better than any human being can do today. >> reporter: the program requires no new aircraft equipment, and could be up and running in two years.

now, engineers took pains today to emphasize that all these innovations were made possible by funds from the american recovery and reininvestment act. reporting live, john fowler, ktvu. the 11th season of american idol kicks off tonight with auditions from a new round of talented young singers. ♪ he's gone by >> judges randy jackson, jennifer lopez and steven tyler will be weaving through what they believe is an impressive field of candidates. tonight american idol hopefuls will be singing their hearts out in savannah, georgia. >> i think you will find what's special about a lot of these kids this year is we had such a variety last year that we've never had. we have even more of a variety this year. >> the two-hour season premier begins at 8:00 tonight right here on ktvu channel 2. the competition also continues tomorrow night and again on sunday. there are new concerns about flooding. after a winter storm that dumped up to a foot of snow in the pacific northwest.

the storm caused school closures, traffic backup and almost 500 collisions in the western part of the state. there are also dozens of flight cancellations out of seattle. the forecast is calling for warmer temperatures in some areas tomorrow, which could cause a fast snow melt and flooding. a lot of things happening here with the bay area weather. now to chief meteorologist bill martin. >> weather systems headed this way. rain in the pacific northwest. you see up in your radar here scattered showers falling. and they will work their way south going through time. this is the first storm of 2012. we have been dry for a good portion of january. and as we head into the 19th we'll start to see rain develop. that's tomorrow afternoon. by friday afternoon, more heavy rain, and wind and as we go into sunday night, showers develop. most likely, after the 49ers game. we could see a few scattered showers on the scam. most activity -- on the game. most activity looks like it will be after the game. rainfall for the next 24 hours, that's through friday morning. over an inch and a half in the

coastal hills. towards generaller. -- jenner. an inch in santa rosa. half inch in the bay and in the mountains an inch. is that a lot of rain? no. but it's rain. and more is behind this. going through time here, look out in the pacific we have them lined up. low latitude or mid latitude storms. those storms, storm number 1 thursday. storm number 2 friday. and there's one around the corner here that you can't see that rolls in as we head into sunday night and into monday. so the forecast storm number 1 gets here, rain develops in the north bay. i think most of us will notice the rain on the afternoon commute. it might be slow getting into the fremont area in san jose but by tomorrow evening, rain for pretty much everybody. storm number 2, heavy rain friday night. and now lingers through friday night into saturday morning, with some strong winds. i think friday night storms will have the strongest winds. there's another one behind that. a nice series of storms. the computer model lays it out like this. thursday you get into the

morning hours. tomorrow maybe a few sprinkles, right? waiting on the rain. lunchtime, hey bill, where's the rain? still up here and then here, and your rain is showing up about time for the afternoon commute and watch this. boom the front slides through and we get wet. the forecast then huge as you know. it's going to be definitely a wet field. right now it looks like there is going to be a chance of shower with fairly gusty southwest winds. a wet field, looks like there will be a few light showers, but not a deluge right now. the gusty winds, a southwest wind or even a south southerly wind off the bay could create problems at candlestick. you know how it sits, the distance coming from san jose is a southerly flow. the winds get moving pretty strong. the five-day forecast looks like it should look in january. >> no kidding. >> back in business. we'll watch these storms closely and get the timing dialed in directly for the friday storm down the road. >> maybe even more rain next week. >> i think we're in a nice little pattern that could last

for a while. residents along the san joaquin delta are concerned their water ways could soon be clogged with an invasive weed. the state spent millions of dollars last year trying to eliminate the plant. shallow water ways near bethel island and discovery bay are mostly clear but the state is expected to cut back on the' rad occasion program this year. boaters and swimmers worry the plant will grow back quickly. customs agents made a gruesome discovery at san francisco international airport. we'll tell you what they found. plus a little dog in the east bay named toto is coming out of quite an ordeal. the mysteries surrounding his severe injuries and how you can help.

>> take a look at this stunning discovery by u.s. customs agents at the san francisco airport this week. they found a half dozen of these deer skulls inside a bag of fruit peels. they were in a mysterious air shipment from southeast asia, bound for minnesota. investigators say the skulls were from mouse deer but they have no idea why someone would try to send them to the united states. tonight a little dog who went through a huge ordeal is on the mend. but what happened to this pup is still a real mystery. >> toto came to us and had significant skin disease, as well as dental disease. the remaining -- >> toto is a 12-year-old yorkshire terrier. a year ago he disappeared from

his fenced yard in hayward. then a few months ago, he turned up in a crate on his owner's doorstep with a number of different injuries. he had infections, he had also lost an eye and some teeth. >> at first i didn't recognize him but it broke my heart to see a dog in that condition. then to realize that it was my dog. who had gone missing. it was really difficult. >> she says she thinks t-oto was stolen and she's trying to get authorities to investigate the dog's disappearance. toto has undergone a number of surgeries since his return but veterinarians at the san francisco spca say toto has a remarkable spirit and he is recovering from his ordeal. the spca is also trying to raise funds to help pay for toto's medical care. for information on how you can help go to ktvu.com. coming up in just 90 seconds. >> hundreds of dollars down the drain. the latest thing targeted by metal thieves in oakland and the bold move they made to get away with it.

>> and the governor says things are looking up for california. what he is urging, while also backing one of the most expensive projects in state history.

>> a story you will see only on 2. easy money lured metal thieves to this public bath ryu

room at an amtrak -- bathroom at an amtrak station in the bay area. the expensive fix and new safety measures as a result. one man is dead tonight. the innocent victim of a police chase through newark streets. why police say officers had already pulled back when the crash killed the bystander. good evening. i'm julie haener. >> and i'm frank sommerville. you might call ate new low for metal -- it a new low for metal thieves. we stumbled on it when a ktvu photographer walked into a bathroom at the amtrak station and was surprised to find thieves had made off with several pieces of the toilet. eric rasmussen live in oakland where he found repair men already at work today. eric. >> reporter: frank, you kind of have to wonder if these thieves might have been posing as travelers, somehow they walked into this train station, made it inside the men's bathroom that you see there. th