, a search that clearly was not taken seriously enough. 57-year-old lynne spalding was last seen alive in her room on september 21 and found dead in the hospital stairwell 2.5 weeks later. the sheriff's department was in charge of the search for her during that period. newly released transcripts show some of what happened including spalding being described as black when she was white. in one phone call, a sheriff's deputy says, quote, the person was going to be discharged anyway and decided to take off and then her daughter made a stink about it. that's all that was. >> we're disgusted! >> reporter: a family spokesman. >> whoever was on the phone was not only taking it seriously but were actually joking about the request from lynne's daughter to search for her mother. >> reporter: a search was ordered on october 1 more than a week after spalding disappeared but only about half of the stairwells were checked. three days later on october 4, a hospital employee came across spalding's body in the stairwell. but it wasn't until october 8 that deputies found spalding for themselves. >> there

a new report sheds some light into the case of lynne spalding.t it next. ,,,, [ man ] i've been out there most of my life. you name it...i've hooked it. but there's one... one that's always eluded me. thought i had it in the blizzard of '93. ha! never even came close. sometimes, i actually think it's mocking me. [ engine revs ] what?! quattro!!!!! ♪ >>> there are new details about the death of a patient at san francisco general hospital. lynne spalding was found dead in a stairwell in october after 17 days [ inaudible ] >> bay area mom sucker punched from out of nowhere at a strip mall. >> flu season is in full swing. emergency rooms across the bay are full with people feeling sick. >> most people are getting sick from the swine flu, h1n1. your best bet, get a flu shot. >> i want it to end. like i'm done with winter. >> record-breaking cold temperatures are on the way out as the polar vortex comes to an end. >> four us air force members are dead after their pave hawk helicopter crashed in england. >> from across the bay to around the world, the s

it is about the memory of lynne spalding and making sure patient safety is top priority. mike mibach, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> 2 investigates dug up records surrounding the search. in the past month we found mistakes were made during the search for that woman including wrong descriptions and staffing issues. we've done a series of stories. if you'd like to see them, you can go to www.ktvu.com and click on 2 investigates. >>> we've been reporting on the early and very hard hitting flu season this year. now we're learning of more deaths and what that's prompting officials to do. >> also it was not just the elite surfers at mavericks today. our own robert honda hit the wave on a boat. we'll have a report coming up next. [ sports announcer ] here's another one, alyson dudek. hales corners, wisconsin. nice pass by alyson dudek. can she hang on to that spot? and she does! [ male announcer ] with the u-verse wireless receiver, your tv goes where you take it, allowing inspiration to follow. ♪ [ dad ] looks pretty good, right? [ girl ] yeah. [ male announcer ] add a u-verse wirele

this morning, the timeline is unfolding in the case of lynne spalding.e hospital with a series of errors now blamed for her death. >> reporter: the new information based on the sheriff's department response here at san francisco general. it shows a series of blunders. but the bottom line is, it looks like the search just was not taken seriously enough. 57-year-old lynne spalding died of dehydration and liver problems at a rarely used stairwell at sf general. she was being treated for an infection. she was delirious so the hospital put an alarm on the bed then assigned her a person to monitor her but she still got out. this is video from the day her body was found more than 2 weeks after she disappeared. the family's attorney has said they have gotten no good explanation as to how she got into the stairwell unnoticed. here's the time line. she was last seen alive on september 21. the sheriff's office in charge of security at the hospital did an initial search on october 1 but apparently missed the stairwell spalding was lying in. her body was not found un

lynne spalding was a 57-year- old white female. >>> it is 8:37.man accused of kidnapping a 7-year-old girl on friday night is due in court today. prosecutors are expected to file formal charges against 43- year-old david douglas. yesterday, ktvu news conducted a 15-minute jailhouse interview with the kidnapping suspect. douglas admitted kidnapping the child outside her home after following her family back from a walmart store. but he called the abduction a cry for help after his life swirled out of control. douglas says he even shared the same emotions with the little girl. >> we were both shaking. i mean, i was shaking in fright. she was shaking in fright. she looked at me and said i'm scared. i look the at her -- i looked at her and we kind of laugh/cried. >> did you hurt her? >> no. >> douglas insists he it not sexual assault the girl as police suspect. douglas said he spent the four hours after the abduction trying to calm her buying her food from mostly cloudy mostly from -- buying her food from mcdonald's. >>> a law that allows transgender s

lynne spalding was found dead in a stairwell in october after 17 days.earance. >>> punching people for fun is leading to random acts around the country. a woman in los gatos is the latest victim of the "knockout game." she had just dropped her daughter off at a dance studio when she was hit. the suspect ran away. >>> stay with us. traffic and weather coming right up. safeway presents real big deals of the week. or how to get great deals the easy way. you do enough flying around. that's why we give you real big club card deals. this week, honey nut cheerios are just $1.88. that's a sweet deal. brew up a great cup for less. starbucks is just $6.99. and lean cuisine entrees are just 2 dollars each. real big deals this week and every week. only at safeway. ingredients for life. >>> a couple of overturn accidents this morning, they are cleared. the lanes have reopened. eastbound 80 at 7th was the latest overturn crash. the delays are pretty bad though. it's northbound 101 particularly backed up. it looks like past the parkway. 280 jammed beyond alemany. out i

lynn spalding disappeared in september. her body was found more than two weeks later in a stairwell. the new plan includes more thorough searches and alarms in the stairwells. the changes were checked out by federal officials earlier this week. >> we have taken it very seriously and made many significant changes to assure her family, our patients today, our patients in the future, and the whole city we are safer now. those changes primarily have been around security and safety. >> a review of the case found numerous mistakes in communications from the start. it found problems with surveillance cameras and security alarms. there has been a dramatic spike in the number of flu deaths this season. they have almost doubled to a total of 95. state health officers say it's not too late to get vaccinated. just today, santa clara county confirmed it had two more flu related deaths. the state says only nine people had died from the flu. >> police in palo alto released a sketch of a suspect wanted in a home invasion robbery. investiga

lynn spalding's body was found three weeks later in a rarely used stairwell. security changes include, converting do you remember alarms. two deputy also be stationed every day of the week. there's also a new tracking system. changes begin next month. >>> the flu death toll is rising. a total of 31 reported deaths now in the bay area. today, health officials reported two more in santa clara county and one in alameda county. in california, nearly 100 people have died from the flu this season. that could climb because dozens of cases are still under investigation. the california department of public health says 20% of those who did die even got the flu shot and stressed it's still your best defense. >>> a south bay city councilman has a new proposal he believes will help crack down on crime. 300 police officers in san jose have retired or resigned over the last few years, forcing the department to close a burglary and vice unit. the councilman is proposing a half cent city sales tax increase, which would allow the department to go back to having 1400 officers on

the search comes on the heels of some changes made at san francisco general after patient lynn spalding left her bed in september and later found dead in a stairwell at the hospital. her body was found weeks after she disappeared. in that case, the hospital grounds were not completely searched. since then, new search protocols have been put in place. tonight, the protocols are being tested as police now are involved for the search of another missing patient. if we get new information, we'll bring it to you. reporting live in san francisco, jean elle, nbc bay area news. >> jean, thank you. >>> we are following more breaking news in san francisco. a shooting on turner terrace. you see the map here, between 101 and 280. two people have been shot. their conditions are unknown at this hour. the victims were taken to sf general in this car, which has you saw was riddled with bullet holes. police are still on the scene. >>> now to some developing weather. another round of much-needed rain moving into the bay area at this hour. we want to check in with chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. >> it's

the changes are in response to the death of lynn spalding, a patient who disappeared from her hospital room and was found dead in a rarely used stairwell weeks later. the new changes include improving door alarms and emergency stairwells. they now need to be deactivated with a key. two sheriffs deputies will now be on site at the hospital every day. there's also a new patient tracking system. several agencies have signed off on these changes. >>> cal osha has been called to investigate a construction next the twin peaks neighborhood. three workers seriously injured. the men were working on a home around 9:30 in the morning when the scaffolding attached to the house fell, causing them to hit the pavement 25 feet below. they were taken to the hospital. two are said to have potentially life-threatening injuries. the third is listed in serious condition. they were hired to do roofing work, however a building inspector tells us they didn't have the appropriate permits to be working on that house. >>> predictions of big waves along the san mateo county coastline lived up to the height. nearl

. >> reporter: 57-year-old lynne spalding was last seen alive in her sf general room on september 21.nd dead in a hospital stairwell almost 2.5 weeks later. the sheriff's department was in charge of the search for her during that period. newly released transcripts show some of what went wrong including spalding being described as black when she is white. in one phone call, a sheriff's deputy says, quote, the person was going to be discharged anyway and she decided to take off and then her daughter made a stink about it. that's all that was. >> we're disgusted. >> reporter: a family spokesman. >> whoever was on the phone, were not taking it seriously but were joking about the request from lynne's daughter to search for her mother. >> reporter: a search was ordered on october 1 more than a week after spalding disappeared but only about half of the stairwells were checked. three days later on october 4, a hospital employee came across spalding's body in the stairwell. but it wasn't until october 8th that deputies found spalding for themselves. >> there was poor communication in that ther

phone transcripts from the san francisco sheriff's department are released involving the case of lynn spaldingient at san francisco general hospital that went missing and found dead more than two weeks later in a hospital stairwell. sheriff deputy are in charge of hospital security. the sheriff admits mist wraks were made now, phone transcripts shed new light on the errors a deputy is heard saying quote, we did the missing persons report but didn't search the hospital at this point. our sargeant ordered a couple guys to start doing searches of the grounds and he let them make the decision where. nobody check that had stairwell, end quote the family has been critical of the handling of the case and hired an attorney. >> in the meantime california kept department of services admitting the agency failed in the mission to protect residents of a senior care facility shut down in october, revoking the license of valley springs manor after a number of violations. 14 left inside after the state ordered it's closure. the investigation revealed it was an error in judgment to allow valley springs to func

phone transcripts from the san francisco sheriff's department are released involving the case of lynn spalding. spalding was a patient at san francisco general hospital that went missing and found dead more than two weeks later in a hospital stairwell. sheriff deputy are in charge of hospital security. the sheriff admits mist wraks were made now, phone transcripts shed new light on the errors a deputy is heard saying quote, we did the missing persons report but didn't search the hospital at this point. our sargeant ordered a couple guys to start doing searches of the grounds and he let them make the decision where. nobody check that had stairwell, end quote the family has been critical of the handling of the case and hired an attorney. >> in the meantime california kept department of services admitting the agency failed in the mission to protect residents of a senior care facility shut down in october, revoking the license of valley springs manor after a number of violations. 14 left inside after the state ordered it's closure. the investigation revealed it was an error in judgment to allow va

lynn spalding was found dead in a hospital stairwell. 17 days after she was reported missing.hat tragedy led to a security overall of sf general. >>> there were a few drops of rain in the south bay overnight. there is a chance of snow in the sierra. take a look at what it was like driving on highway 50. this is yesterday afternoon. this is at one of the chain control stops. there could be as much as two feet of new snow at the higher elevations. skiers love it. snow borders love it. they've been trying to keep the slopes covered with man-made snow. sierra has only had 68 inches of snow. that compares to 480 inches in a normal year. despite all the new snow, the states snow pack is at at the lowest level since 1960 for this time of year. there is very little chance that melting snow this spring will help get rid of our drought. yesterday's snow survey shows california's snow pack is just 12% of average. >> 1977 is statewide the driest on record. we are quite a bit below that level. >> now the snow survey measures the amount of water that is in all of that snow. one area shows t

the review stems from the death of 57-year-old lynn spalding in a locked stairwell 17 days after she went missing from her hospital room. a bracelet tracking system for parents considered at risk of going awol, hospital officials say that government monitoring will continue. >> but for this investigation it is now concluded. we are no longer deficient and our plan of correction has shown that we are safer and that we have a plan to become safer still. >> new regulations are also in place for the sheriff's department which is responsible for security at san francisco general. >>> police in morgan hill are asking for help in locating a teenage girl who they say ran away from home and has been missing now for more than 24 hours. 13-year-old casey collin was last seen early yesterday morning. she was leaving her home near sorell way after an argument with her mother. she is described as 13 years old, 5'2" tall, 125 pounds with braces. anyone with any information about her whereabouts is asked to contact police in morgan hill. >>> state officials say that california has added more than 13

the review stems from the death of 57-year-old lynn spalding in a locked stairwell 17 days after she went missing from her hospital room. a bracelet tracking system for parents considered at risk of going awol, hospital officials say that government monitoring will continue. >> but for this investigation it is now concluded. we are no longer deficient and our plan of correction has shown that we are safer and that we have a plan to become safer still. >> new regulations are also in place for the sheriff's department which is responsible for security at san francisco general. >>> police in morgan hill are asking for help in locating a teenage girl who they say ran away from home and has been missing now for more than 24 hours. 13-year-old casey collin was last seen early yesterday morning. she was leaving her home near sorell way after an argument with her mother. she is described as 13 years old, 5'2" tall, 125 pounds with braces. anyone with any information about her whereabouts is asked to contact police in morgan hill. >>> state officials say that california has added more than 13

the changes are in response to lynn spalding. hospital staff couldn't find her when she disappeared from her hospital room. her body was found three weeks later in a rarely used stairwell. the changes converting door alarms at emergency stairwells. they need to be deactivated with a key. two deputies will be stationed on site every day of the week. there is also new patient tracking system. these changes begin next month. >> it appears hollywood's next idea could come from an employee. sony acquired the film rights to the book "lean in." it was written by cheryl san burg and looks why few women reach the top of the business world like she has and what can be changeed to do it. tony was the studio behind the social network. the film about mark zuckerberg, that movie won three oscars in 2010. >>> still to come, camera concerns, the critical evidence investigators were expecting but apaparently don't have. >>> i'm scott budman. look when the value of your stock portfolio fell, the most popular e-mail service went down, too. >> i'm t

in september lynn spalding disappeared from her room, but her body wasn't discovered until two and a half weeks later in a locked stairwell. hospital stairwell doors are now equipped with alarms and sheriff's deputies who provide security at the hospital must search the stare as well as every day. >> oakland police are looking to crack down on the number of car thefts in the city and today mayor jean quan will host the club giveaway. along with the interim police chief. they will giveaway 200 steering wheel locks to residents in the clinton park neighborhood where car thefts are among the highest. the clubs will be handed out on 6th avenue between nine and eleven this morning. >>> many fans of big-wave surfing are already looking to next year's mavericks invitational off half moon bay. meanwhile, one world-class surfer has taken only a $12,000 prize for winning the contest yesterday. we have more from half moon bay on the competition and the celebration. >> let's take a look at a perfect ten by grant twiggy baker. >> grant baker glided into the top spot at this year's mavericks invit

. >>> 57-year-old patient lynn spalding was found dead in a hospital stairwell 17 days after she was reported missing. that tragedy led to a security overhaul at sf general. >>> your time is 5:10. police in san bruno warning about a rash of home burglaries. the most recent one happened in broad daylight yesterday afternoon. this follows several similar home burglaries around the city in the past two weeks including four in a six hour period. police are telling everybody to make sure you lock your doors, lock your windows, and immediately report anything that you see is suspicious. >>> a thief targeting a vta station in san jose. what he got away with and how police need your help to track him down. >> many bay area toyota lots are full but you won't be driving off in these cars any time soon. the safety concern that forced toyota to stop selling their most popular cars. >> we're looking at a decent drive on this friday so far as we look at highway 4, you can see it looks good coming up to concord. we'll take a look at the other frays in the east bay. >> skies are clearing out pretty

those changes come following the death of lynne spalding. her body was found in a hospital stairwell in october more than two weeks after she disappeared. the hospital says it had federal officials check out the improvements this week. they include daily searches updated policies on tracking patients and alarms on stairwells. >> we have taken it very seriously and made many significant changes to assure her family, our patients today, our patients in the future, and the whole city that we are safer now. those changes primarily have been around security and safety. >> a review of spalding's disappearance found numerous communication breakdowns as well as a lapse in searches of the hospital. >>> state health officials report a dramatic spike in the number of flu deaths this season. we have been talking about this. they have almost doubled to a total of 95 this year. health officers say it's not too late to get vaccinated. santa clara county reported today two more flu deaths. this time last year the state says only 9 people died from the flu.

in september lynn spalding disappeared from her room, but her body wasn't discovered until two and a half weeks later in a locked stairwell. hospital stairwell doors are now equipped with alarms and sheriff's deputies who provide security at the hospital must search the stairwells every day. >> oakland police are looking to crack down on the number of car thefts in the city and today mayor jean quan will host the club giveaway. along with the interim police chief. they will give away 200 steering wheel locks to residents in the clinton park neighborhood where car thefts are among the highest. the clubs will be handed out on 6th avenue between east twelfth and east 14th streets between nine and eleven this morning. >>> many fans of big-wave surfing are already looking to next year's mavericks invitational off half moon bay. meanwhile, one world-class surfer has taken only a $12,000 prize for winning the contest yesterday. we have more from half moon bay on the competition and the celebration. >> let's take a look at a perfect ten by grant twiggy baker. >> grant baker glided into the t

in september lynn spalding disappeared from her room but her body wasn't discovered until two and a half weeks later in a locked stairwell. hospital stairwell doors are now equipped with alarms and sheriff's deputies who provide security at the hospital must search the stare as well as every day. >> oakland police are looking to crack down on the number of car thefts in the city and today mayor jean quan will host the club giveaway. they will giveaway 200 steering wheel location to residents in the clinton park neighborhood where car thefts are among the highest. they will be handed out on 6th avenue between nine and eleven this morning. >>> many fans of big we've surfing are already look to go next year's mavericks international. and one surfer taking over a $12,000 prize for winning the contest yesterday. we have more from half moon bay tonight competition and the celebration. >> let's take a look at a perfect ten by grant twig guy baker. >> he glided into the top spot at the invitation until. this is his second win. he won back in 2006. he said this win took a lot of training. >> but

lynn spalding disappeared on september 21 and her body was found more than two weeks later in a stairwell the hospital. now the hospitals new safety plan includes more thorough searches and alarms in those stairwells. the changes were checked out by federal officials this week. >>> happening today, free flu shots by the solano county public health department. you can get the vaccine at the kroc center health fair. that starts at 11 this morning. now today and tomorrow are the final two days of restaurant week in oakland being participating restaurants offer fixed price menus of 20, 30 and $40. we have reviews of the top eating spots, just go to kpix.com and click on eye on the bay. >>> well new video showing the drag race police say got justin bieber in trouble and why some cops on his case face punishment. >>> buyer beware, a cable offer does not live up to its promotion, until consumer watch got on the case, coming up next. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, one peninsula mother f >>> raising a teenager can be challenging, especially if that teen is in crisis. >> one peninsula mother found a way to h

changes at san francisco general hospital, after a patient died in a locked stairwell. 57-year-old lynn spaldingt missing from her room. the centers for medicare and medicaid services signed off on the hospital's new safety plan after interviewing staff and reviewing security. the reforms include daily security checks of all emergency stairwells, a bracelet tracking system for any patients who are at risk of wandering off, and if a stairwell alarm rings, nurses will now be required to make sure all patients are accounted for. hospital officials also say government monitoring will continue. >> but for this investigation, it is now concluded. we are no longer deficient, and our plan of correction has shown that we are safer and that we have a plan to become safer still. >> new regulations are also in place for the sheriff's department, which is responsible for security at the hospital. >>> well, the state senate is holding hearings on claims that cal trans pressured engineers to keep quiet about construction problems on the new span of the bay bridge. let's take you outside for a live look at that