brass piping, leaving the toilets useless and amtrak with a big repair bill. [ train whistle ] >> reporter: amtrak has been the target of metal thieves before, but no one could tell us if they've ever heard of the culprits coming inside the train station to pull off a heist until now. >> this is the only one that they left. >> reporter: amtrak confirms someone made it into the men's bathroom this month at its station in jack london square, and pulled the chrome and brass flush valves to these urinals right out of the wall. >> in the last one they broke it. >> reporter: today plumbers were there to make repairs. >> sounds pretty dirty. >> yeah. >> reporter: no one from amtrak would talk on camera about it but the strange crime had some passengers scratching their heads. >> how do they have the time to do it, i guess if you come in the middle of the night. don't you hear them? >> it only takes a minute. >> you think that could have been done quickly? >> oh, yeah. less than five minutes. >> reporter: this is the kind of flush valve the suspects made off with. plumbers tell us recycles they

might only fetch a few dollars but to replace them could cost hundreds. local plumbers say they're continuing to see an increase of this kind of theft around the bay area and now this train station is adding surveillance cameras outside the restrooms, hoping to prevent another clean get away. and just last month, it was copper thieves raiding impart tracks, including one -- bart tracks including one stretch close to us in jack london square. this time amtrak police are investigating the incident. ache rasmus 10, ktvu. an incident passer by is dead and three east bay men e in custody after a police chase in newark today. as we reported on our 5:00 newscast, one chase took place on the streets, another on foot. robert honda is live in newark with the details on the crashes and the suspects involved. robert. >> reporter: julie, we are here where police and firefighters are cleaning up the crime scene, but say a messy investigation still lies ahead. newark police say the horrific

series of events started after officers responded to a reported home burglary around 10:00 this morning. that led to an innocent passer by driving this silver honda, being killed in a crash with the suspect's vehicle at the intersection of maury expafn cherry street -- avenue and cherry street. then the suspect's car flipped over in a fire station parking lot where police say one suspect, 20-year-old deshawn collier, ran away into an open field. hid in a local junk yard, before being tracked down and arrested by police. investigators say collier has an extensive criminal record. >> suspect collier at this time, we believe, from our information, is under a probationary restraint and hold for various crimes that deal with a violent past. >> reporter: police say they believe the other suspects have similar situations, 20-year-old rajan watkins injured in the crash has a long list of criminal actions and convictions and 20-year-old j

is abree watts is believed to be a parolee of various crimes. suspects crashed into the other vehicle police say even though officers called off the chase. >> the collision scene is approximately a mile and a half from where the officer discontinued and to where the collision occurred. >> the crash scene drew a horrified crowd. >> i said someone must have died. >> yeah. it >> it was scary. >> what's your reaction? >> right down the street from my house, i was really scared. >> reporter: right now both vehicles are in the process of being towed away. at this point police have not released the name of the victim or identified which suspect was actually behind the wheel. live in newark, robert honda, ktvu. d.n.a. evidence present in a s. san rafael court today may link suspected serial killer joseph naso to a 1977 murder near fairfax. a crennel i didn't know neurologist testified semen found on the panty hose likely came from naso.

other dna on pantyhose wrapped around her neck matched those of naso's wife indicating he may have brought them from home to the crime. the 78-year-old naso is charged with killing four young women. two in the bay area, two in yuba county. ktvu has learned san francisco sheriff ross mirkirimi will plead not guilty to charges of domestic violence. he is due in court tomorrow. both he and his wife deny there was any abuse. and today, eliana lopez gave an interview to a radio station in venezuela, her native country. she suggested outside forces were to blame for the charges. [ speaking in spanish ] >> there are many interests that won't forgive my husband for being progressive, and the son of an immigrant married to a latina. >> she has made it clear to me -- >> mirkirimi's attorney says the new sheriff may not be able to get a new trial in san francisco. a tax plan top the governor's agenda today. he also made a plea for a statewide project many call way

too expensive. some were surprised by just how compassioned he was. ken pritchett live in sacramento tonight and was inside the capital building during that speech. >> reporter: governor brown said california's budget situation is improving, but in terms of spending, the state must remain prudent many this time of uncertainty. yet he stood behind a very expensive project slated for our future. [ applause ] >> reporter: governor brown renewed his call for voter approved taxes in november to avoid deeper cuts to ed vision. >> as for the initiative, it's fair, it's temporary, and it's half of what people were paying in 2010. >> reporter: brown said california must continue to tighten its belt but he also championed high speed rail. >> critics of the high speed rail project abound. as they often do when something of this magnitude is proposed. >> reporter: and is there are many of those critics among lawmakers. >> i think one of the funniest things is he still wants to continue with the high speed rail spinning when it looks like it will be a $200 billion

boondoggle. >> reporter: the senator will introduce legislation to give voters a chance to kill high speed rail. the governor said critics of similar major products have been wrong. >> the master plan for the interstate highway system in 1939 was de rided as new deal gitter bug economics. [ laughter ] >> there's been some restructuring in the governing of high speed rail authority just last week. i think with proper leadership, we can get it done. >> reporter: the mention of high speed rail was one example of the optimistic tone of the speech, suggesting california's budget problems may soon pass. >> we're on the move, on the mend. let's get it done. >> reporter: now cuts were mentioned in today's state of the state speech, but not in depth. and whether or not voters approve new taxes, billions of dollars of cuts this year are expected. but one leading democratic said that the budget problem this year is manageable. in sacramento, ken pritchett, ktvu channel 2 news.

the governor outlined a list of priorities for the year. the governor wants to stimulate jobs, build renewable energy, reduce pollution, and greenhouse gasses. and launch the high speed rail system. he is seeking agreement on a plan to fix the delta, improve schools, reform pensions, and make sure prison realignment is working. while protecting public safety and reduce the number of prisoners who reoffend. and ktvu.com has complete coverage of the state of the state address. watch the governor's speech in its entirety. just click on the link at the top of our home page. governor jerry brown can now begin collecting signatures to place his tax initiative on the november ballot. state attorney general harris issued the petition language just minutes before the governors speech today. it would increase the state's sales tax by a half cent and raise the income tax for people who make 250,000 or more a year. the tax increases would be temporary, and expire after five years. oakland handed out thousands of pink slips today as it preparing for layoffs. if the city is trying to cut

costs to make up for the loss of redevelopment money and to comply with a 10 day notice before layoffs can take police. 1500 notices to full timers and 1000 notices were issued to part timers today. only 200 people will actually get laid off. police and firefighters are exempt, due to a clause in their contracts. detectives from arizona have issued search warrants on google to help them find out who's threatening to kill a local sheriff. the maricopa county sheriff's department says it sent a team to the south bay today in order to get the internet giant to cooperate with their investigation. detectives want to identify the person be hind a website that celebrates cop killings. and they want google to provide the ip address from which that online threat originated. two proposed anti-piracy measures drew more than 100 internet workers to san francisco's civic center today. >> the capital market for start ups. >> hollywood says the stop

online piracy act in the house and a similar measure in the senate are needed to stop intellectual property theft. silicon valley is concerned about online freedom. >> if i'm constantly worried about liability, you know, being sued by a content holder, i am not going to let as much speak and content on my website. >> president obama says he supports anti-piracy measures, but believes the current legislation goes too far. members of occupy wall street west are clarifying the details of their so-called day of action, which is set for later on this week. >> we are not having hostile take over, but we are standing in solidarity with all of the community organizations that are supporting us. and also, helping to lead beautiful actions on friday, january 20th. >> at a news conference this morning, the group laid out meeting times and places for all of the different demonstrations which include marchs, a food bank set up inside a bank, and even flash

mobs. the day-long protest was set to coincide with the two year anniversary of the supreme court's citizens united decision. that decision allowed corporations the same rights as individuals when it comes to political contributions. friday's day of protest is just one reason the san francisco police department will be at the ready this weekend. there are also two anti- abortion rallies planned for saturday, and huge crowds are expected in the city on sunday when the 49ers play the new york giants. the department says it will have enough officers on hand. >> what we typically do would be not allow any discretionary time off, so all the officers that would normally be scheduled to work will be working and then arrange scheduling so there is an overlap of officers to cover. >> with rain in the forecast the department said traffic could be sluggish downtown on friday. it advises people to avoid the area if you can. a big change in the supply of natural gas and it's going to affect your pg&e bill.

what you'll be paying, still ahead. tracker 2 picking up rain, it's headed our way. your commute is going to be wet tomorrow. i'll be back in 10 minutes with the specifics. [ beep ] [ man ] you have one new message. [ mom ] hi scooter. this is mommy. the progresso chicken noodle you made is so good. the vegetables are cut nice and thick... you were always good at cutting your vegetables. and it's got tender white-meat chicken... the way i always made it for you. oh, one more thing honey... those pj's you like, the ones with the feet, i bought you five new pairs. love you. did you see the hockey game last night? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

[ male announcer ] get ready for some deli-style delic-ious-ity: the subway big hot pastrami melt. dive into piled-high pastrami, spicy mustard, pickles and melt-a-licious cheese. treat your taste buds to a fresh toasted subway big hot pastrami melt. subway. eat fresh. >> crews began a controversial project the morning at the golden gate bridge. they tore up the walkway made of commemorative bricks. in 1987 people paid up to $75 to put the names of loved ones on those bricks to commemorate the bridge's 50th anniversary. the bridge says it has to replace the walkway because it doesn't comply with the americans with disabilities act. police handed out flyers in san francisco's bay view district in the hopes of finding new leads in a fatal beating. next tuesday will be two years since 83-year-old juan chen was

attacked by a group of teens as he left the muni stop near third street and oakdale avenue. chen died two months after the attack. police say they have nothing on the case, and they're urging anyone with any information to come forward. >> we do everything we can to keep the information anonymous. we do everything we can to protect the individuals coming forward with information. >> it's also important to mention here that there is still a $100,000 reward in this case. the alameda county d.a. charged a 14-year-old boy from oakland today with a sexual assault of two women. the boy turned himself in yesterday morning and was charged as a juvenile but prosecutors are petitioning to have him transferred to adult court. the judge wants to see the result of a behavioral study before he makes a decision. police say the boy robbed and assaulted two women. his family tells ktvu he did not attack the women. pg&e is admitting more problems with management of its natural gas pipelines. the utility admitted yesterday

it failed to identify 300 miles of pipes running in urban areas that are similar to the one that caused the san bruno explosion. the new report found twice as many urban pipes as were first reported last june. some of those newly identified lines were run at high pressure in violation of federal regulations set after that san bruno disaster. a remarkable series of events have come together for consumers who dread opening up their winter pg&e bills. new at 6, tom bacar joins us from lafayette with the good news on natural gas. tom. >> reporter: there has been a steep drop in the price of natural gas that runs under all barrier streets to your house. sangria patent worries every time she turns up the thermostat. >> i think about when i get my bill how high it's going to be, and also if that's going to affect if i can pay my other bills on time as well. >> reporter: as a spike to keep your winter bills from spiking

out of control, in summer when prices are low pg&e buys and stores 25% of winter gas supplies in underground wells. they make no profit on the price of natural gas, but what it pays for it does affect you. last summer, pg&e essentially overpaid on this hedge. it couldn't know prices would collapse due to oversupply. but winter prices are so low right now the gas it buys on the open market wiped out that problem and then some. >> our prices this january are actually ry slightly lower than they were in january, 2011. and i think going forward, we'll see prices come down even a little bit more. >> that actually is really good. it makes me a lot happier now, and not so concerned with when i turn up the dial. >> the gas prices we're seeing now are lower, adjusted for inflation than we saw during the real cheap gas times of the 1990s. this is really historically cheap natural gas. >> reporter: school of business economists say part of the oversupply comes from a controversial source. >> a big part of that is this

new technology, hydraulic fracking that brought gas from places we didn't expect. >> reporter: kit cause environmental damage ranging from contaminated water to minor earthquakes. >> i'd be willing to pay higher gas prices if we didn't have to use fracking. >> reporter: the price is 30% less than it was five years ago. reporting live consumer editor tom vacar, channel 2 news. shares of zinga slipped 6% today after getting a neutral rating from analysts. the san francisco based online gaming company went public in mid december but a report released today is questioning the growth prospects for zynga. that sent the stock down 57 cents to 8.65 a share. one analyst says zyng a's cancellation rate is so high it would have to release several new hit games every quarter just to maintain its user base. ebay has reported a sharp gain in 4th quarter earnings thanks mostly to its sale of

skype. the san jose based company says growth in its core -- also reported growth in its core and pay pal businesses. shares rose by 1% in after hours trading following that report. it appears bargain hunters are lifting home sales in california as prices continue to go down. new data out today shows that december home sales reached nearly 38,000. up more than 4% from the same period in 2010. the median price for new and existing homes and condos was 246,000. that is down 3% compared to a year earlier. storm tracker picking out the showers headed our way. we have been waiting for rain and we'll get it. it shows up tomorrow afternoon. main impact for all of us will be the afternoon commute. i think the showers will be slow in arriving at redwood city in san jose and fremont. showers in the north bay first. they'll do what they always do. work their way south and by

late afternoon, afternoon commute, early evening, it's raining in san jose. then everybody's got showers. we'll get to that. two storms through thursday and friday. heavy rain on friday. strong winds as well as we head into the weekend, more scattered showers, and then more rain next week. it was cold last night, a freeze warning was in effect for the santa clara valley. freeze warning not an issue tonight as those clouds thicken up. instead of 19 degrees in santa rosa, heck, you're 20 degrees warmer than you were, 18 degrees warmer than a couple mornings ago because of the cloud cover. the forecast for rain total going into the next 24 hours. the north bay hills up towards jenner 2 inches of rain. an inch in the north bay. an inch in the mountains and a quarter" the south bay san jose and fremont. is that a lot of rain? no. but it's a start and there's more behind it. going out in the pacific we have them lined up. they're mid latitude storms. snow levels will be up around 6000 feet. there will be snow but the water content will be high.

storm number 1 thursday, storm number 2 friday. storm number 3 somewhere sunday night into monday. here's how it breaks down. rain developing on the afternoon commute tomorrow. heading into the afternoon hours, scattered showers, afternoon commute's a mess. friday we have heavy rain again friday night. looks like the main rain band will be focused on the afternoon commute. and then we'll get strong winds with the friday event. the computer model sees it like this. thursday at 8 a.m. tomorrow morning. not raining at your house yet. is it raining yet? there you are. thursday afternoon, the afternoon commute, scattered showers, just a quarter of an inch in the south bay, an inch in the north bay. a break friday morning. there is your friday afternoon commute and then boom right there. a lot of folks heading to the mountains. you'll get a winter storm warning up there. snow levels will be running high because they are mid latitude storms and you can see in the west slope we'll be dealing with snow levels around 6000 feet easily. by the time all is said and done, four feet of snow around lake tahoe. higher elevations. friday's forecast is like this.

looks like january. >> sure does. >> finally. yeah. >> yeah. so it's going to be wet. we'll stay tuned and at 10:00 i'll update the models and the timing. the sunday niner game looks like a wet field with scattered showers possible but right now not a big big rain on the game. coming up on bay area news at 7. it might be the hottest ticket in years. seats for sunday is's nfc championship game at candlestick briefly went on sale today. find out how slim your chances were of getting one if you don't own season tickets. >> and the pressure r5679s up for g.o -- ratchets up for g.o.p. presidential contenders not named no, ma'am me. he -- nod name mitt romney. he meant well but didn't quite come out right. the gaff the vice president made today while trying to cheer on the niners. plus the mayers of san francisco and new york put more

than just food on the line. the creative wager thea made for sunday's show -- they made for sunday's show down.

>> san francisco's mayor, ed lee and new york mayor michael bloomberg have agreed to a tornadoly wager -- a friendly wager on this sunday's game. if the 49ers win, bloomberg

will rename 49th street in manhattan 49ers street, although the bet doesn't specify for how long. if the giants win, lee has egregioused to aattorney a cable -- has agreed to adorn a cable car in giants colors. joe biden was in san francisco today to raise money for the president's reelection campaign. but a gaff drew some cheers from the crowd. the vice president said quote the giants are on their way to the super bowl. of course the san francisco giants play baseball, and the football giants well they're the team from new york, who the niners are playing on sunday. the vice president quickly backtracked, saying he's used to talking about the san francisco giants' success. >> uh-huh. good for those backtracks. mark's here now, we'll forward track and talk about this sunday's game. >> there's actually some real news, and 49er fans' ears might perk up to hear ely manning, the great quarterback of the giants suffering from flu-like symptoms today and missed most of the practice. giants describing it as a stomach bug and hope it's of

the 24 hour variety. other quarterback meantime, alex smith feeling just fine, thank you, but he's thinking about the giants, not last week's great performance. and the comparisons with his counterpart manning. both were number one picks, but that's where the comparisons do end. >> i've never seen any. other than the fact that obviously we're both -- we're first picks, playing for the giants, obviously that's a lot of pressure. and your older brother's arguably maybe the greatest quarterback ever, and a lot of expectations on you, and then you go to a big city like new york. so i don't -- i didn't have to face those things. >> meantime, we switch down under to the austrailian open. that tennis tournament, one of the biggies continues. good craftsman they say never blames his tools. tell that to marcos bagdatis. he's venting his anger on his equipment after falling down a couple sets against the 21st seeded player during a match at

the open. the cipriot who was the runner up in 2006 destroying the react he had been using, then moved on to the rackets in his back. the rackets that were in bags, not to use anything. and by the way as you might figure, he lost the match, too. warriors in new jersey, full highlights tonight at 10. that's the sporting line for right now. >> wow. >> a little anger management right there. >> all kids do not watch that video. >> thanks, mark. and thank you for trusting ktvu channel 2. stay was on ktvu.com and mobile ktvu where you can track the weather 24 hours a day. >> good night.

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