we have not yet heard back for the i-team melanie woodrow abc 7 news in tonight's covid headlines theonger be required at middle and high school starting march 12 elementary. school students can remove them starting april 2nd in los angeles county masks are no longer mandated in public settings like grocery stores restaurants and bars in addition proof of vaccination or negative test results will no longer be needed to enter bars and most other businesses and apple says employees will be required to come into the office at least one day a week starting april 11th. in the east bay tomorrow oakland will honor journalist chauncey bailey by naming his street after him the city will hold a ceremony tomorrow at noon for daily at the corner of 14th and alice streets. that's where bailey was shot and killed in 2007 while working on a story a jury later convicted three men for carrying out his murder chauncey bailey way will run along 14th street between broadway and lakeside drive. sad news to report from the san francisco zoo maki. the ring-tailed lemur has died. you may remember this is the

we have not yet heard back for the i-team melanie woodrow abc 7 news in tonight's covid headlines the san francisco school district announced today masks will no longer be required at middle and high school starting march 12 elementary. school students can remove them starting april 2nd in los angeles county masks are no longer mandated in public settings like grocery stores restaurants and bars in addition proof of vaccination or negative test results will no longer be needed to enter bars and most other businesses and apple says employees will be required to come into the office at least one day a week starting april 11th. in the east bay tomorrow oakland will honor journalist chauncey bailey by naming his street after him the city will hold a ceremony tomorrow at noon for daily at the corner of 14th and alice streets. that's where bailey was shot and killed in 2007 while working on a story a jury later convicted three men for carrying out his murder chauncey bailey way will run along 14th street between broadway and lakeside drive. sad news to report from the san francisco zoo maki

melanie woodrow explains why. >> i do not feel safe. melanie: she says she adored her cap to.y families victimized by robert farmer. >> are cats -- our cat cat cat t brutally killed. melanie: evidence shows farmer tortured or killed 21 cats. he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 16 years. 13 years in custody followed by three years of supervision according to the santa clara county district attorney who explained that crimes such as these, a person only serves half te cusdy. heas be released released one month early on march 1 to enter a noncustodial program where he is being supervised by the sheriff's office with an ankle monitor. the district attorney says he will transition to the probation department supervision on april 10. >> i am hoping the monetary -- monitoring will be proficient to ensure nothing like this happens again. melanie: they are with the palo alto humane society. they say it is hard to know whether he has been rehabilitated. the deputy district attorney says the conditions of his release include counseling, substance abuse treatment, a stay away order of

we have not yet heard back for the i-team melanie woodrow abc 7 news. he went six some sad news to report from the san francisco zoo maki. the ring-tailed lemur has died. you may remember this is the same lemur that was stolen from his zoo enclosure back in october of 2020. maki was recovered 36 hours later in daly city healthy veterinarians. say maki was suffering from acute kidney disease that and old age are attributed to his death. he was 22 years old the average life expectancy for a ring-tailed lemur as just over 16 years old. a change of parts san francisco unified will now lift the masked mandate, but only for some students will explain 7 on your side's michael phineas answering your questions tonight until seven go to abc7news.com or our facebook page and use the hashtag askfinnie. we'll check in with michael in just a moment entresto is the number one heart failure brand prescribed by cardiologists and has helped over one million people. it was proven superior at helping people stay alive and out of the hospital. don't take entresto if pregnan

melanie woodrow with more on the roadblocks some are encountering. melanie: when kristen ortiz's father passed away from covid-19, she was struck by the tremendous loss. >> it left not only grief and sadness, but a hurricane in my body. melanie: like most covid debts, it was unexpected. >> we didn't have the $15,000 on hand to make sure he was taken care of in a dignified way. melanie: she applied for and received the maximumcod-19 fune, $9,000, but says the process wasn't without roadblocks, including getting forward by phone. calling a hotline is the only way to apply. the abc 7 data team analyzed cdc and fema data. billions and assistance have been given out to more than 3000 applicants since april 2021, but that's less than one third of all covid-19 debts in the united states. in california, 68% were approved. there are more than 86,000 deaths in california, meaning only 30% of eligible people were awarded funeral assistance. to raise awareness, matthew peralta, executive director for the california funeral directors association, says he is target

melanie woodrow explains why. >> i do not feel safe. >> marion martinez adored her adopted cat thumper,. martinez was one of many victimized around 2015 by robert farmer. evidence showed farmer tortured and killed at least 21 cats. >> he was found in his car and there was blood evidence in his car. >> farmer pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 16 years. 13 in custody followed by three years of mandatory supervision. in california for crimes such as these a person only serves half the time in custody. farmer was supposed to be released april 10 but was released one month early on march 1 to enter a noncustodial program supervised by the sheriff's office within ankle monitor. he will transition to probation department supervision april 10. >> i am hoping the monitoring will be sufficient to protect the community and a shirt nothing like this happens again. >> the palo alto humane society say it is hard to know whether farmer has been rehabilitated. >> we do not know. >> the district - attorney says his release includes counseling, substance abuse treatment, a stayaway order from the neig

melanie woodrow explains why. melanie: she adored her adoptive cat. of many families victimized around 2015. liz: >> >> our cats were -- >> our cats were brutally killed. melanie: he killed 21 cats. >> he was found in his car and there was blood evidence in his car. valley: he pled guilty and was sentenced in -- to 16 years. the district attorney that for crimes like these they only serve half of their time in custody. he was supposed to be released on april 10 but was released one month early, on march earth -- marched first -- march 1. he will transition to probation department supervision on april 10. >> i am hoping the monitoring will be sufficient to protect the community and ensure nothing like this happens again. melanie: they are with the palo alto humane society. they say it is hard to know whether he has been rehabilitated. >> we don't know. melanie: he is in counseling, substance abuse and a stayaway order from that neighborhood and he cannot have our live with animals for 10 years. >> this is one of the most horrific and disturbing cases i

our i-team reporter melanie woodrow has been covering this story since 2016. melanie: three years later than originally promised at the start of construction, the sft eight will finally celebrate the acceleration of bus rapid transit this friday, writing on their website, we appreciate your patience as we revitalize this corridor. the project has plagued businesses like audio symphony for years. it now operates by appointment only. >> we figured you construct in a pandemic, there's no sense of trying to do business as usual. >> -- melanie: san francisco supervisor rafael middleton -- >> certainly the way this went down was far more problematic than it should have been. they did not deserve this. this was awful and devastating. felony: according to the sf mta, the project created separate transit lanes so buses did not get caught up in traffic and passengers could board more easily. it also included extended utility maintenance like the replacement of sewer pipes and water mains. that's where some of the problems began. the director of streets division admitted

melanie woodrow has more on why police say a canine was used to search for shoplifting suspect and thet's handler received. >> the police body camera video is so graphic at times that we cannot fully show it. on february 10, to be 20, talmika bates admits she shoplifting. bates and two others stole approximately $10,000 worth of perfume. >> i was just a regular person like everyone else trying to make away and it escalated. >> she was in a getaway car that rammed a police cruiser according to the police report and seed in this video. the suspects later ditch the car. police apprehended one suspect hiding in a garbage can. she called the others who explained where they were hiding. >> in a bush and they keep looking at us and pointing over here. >> the brentwood police department canine, marco, and his handler found her. >> i just feel something attacking me like paws on my back. then i feel rips from the scalp here, here, here and teeth grinding. i thought i was going to die. >> terrified, bates called her mother. in a statement, the brentwood police officers association says police do

melanie woodrow has more on the roadblocks some are encountering. >> when christen -- when kristin's father passed away from covid-19, she was struck by the tremendous loss to it left >> in me not only deep grief and sadness but what felt like a hurricane in my body. >> like most covid deaths, it was unexpected. >> we did not have the $15,000 on hand to just make sure that he was taking care of in a dignified way. >> she applied for and receive the maximum fema covid-19 funeral assistance. $9,000. but says the process was not without road blogs including getting through by phone, calling a dedicated hotline is the only way to apply. the abc 7 data team analyzed fema and cdc data as of march 15. more than $2 billion in assistance has been given out to more than 300,000 applicants since the agency began accepting applications and april 2021 but that is less than one third of all covid-19 deaths in the unit states. in california, of the 38,086 people who applied, about 68% were approved. for more than 86,000 covid deaths in california meaning only 30% of eligible people were awarded fun

inactive since april 2021 and is currently in the process of being retired due to age but the it melanie woodrow abc 7 news if you'd like to see a story investigate it contact the abc 7 news i-team go to abc7news.com slash item or call one eight eight forty. i team just ahead the latest on the war in ukraine growing damage there and the companies ending their relationship with russia by some are taking longer than others plus gas prices are skyrocketing, but the pain isn't just at the pump where it's go when it comes to cybersecurity, the biggest threats don't always strike the biggest targets. so help safeguard your small business with comcast business securityedge™. it's advanced security that continuously scans for threats and helps protect every connected device. on the largest, fastest, reliable network with speeds up to 10 gigs to the most small businesses. so you can be ready for what's next. get started with internet and voice for $64.99 a month. and ask how to add securityedge™. or, ask how to get up to an $800 prepaid card. hi, my name is cherrie. i'm 76 and i live on the oregon coast.