dan ashley has the details. >> you guys!tle kids learning to ski, sometimes the trickiest part is j riding the chair lift so alpine meadows ski area is trying out a new product call magnify 6. >> it's an extra element of safety for kids learning to ride chair lifts. >> it's built into a light-weight vest. >> over the child's jacket and the back it's a metal disk. >> the beginningers have electromagnetic seatbacks. the metal disk sticks to the magnets on the chair and the child captain fall off. at the end it interrupt a magnetic field, it releases and the child can get off the list. aiming at a slightly older child, a chip built into your ski pass. when you get on the chair lift, a scanner detects the card. it does all the tracking for you. >> it records how many vertical feet you ski or snow board and let's you know when you reach a mile zone. >> 7500 vertical feet today, total for the season. it posts your accomplishments. an app for i-pads and droids. megan and brad, they checked in about an hour and a half ago and brad j

dan ashley has more. >> as if they had been holding their breath for 30 years. (horns) >> the egyptian people filled the streets with cries of victory as the sands of time ran out for egyptian president hosni mubarak. >> egyptian president hosni mubarak has decided to step down as president of egypt and has decided that the higher council of the armed forces will lead the nation. >> chants of egypt is free resounded through the square, the center of this popular uprising. >> you gotta bring him back! our martyr's blocked. not going! that's a good day in egypt. >> across egypt people were literally dancing in the streets. >> power to the people! >> president obama praised the protestors for their peaceful methods. >> the moral force of non-violence. not terrorism, not mindless killing that sent the arc of history for justice. >> the google executive that used the first protests on facebook.com. his cousin called him from san francisco. >> everyone is celebrating. >> describe it. >> can you describe it? >> like -- >> i have to go, i have to go. >> okay, okay. take

dan ashley has more. >> late in the day, as you're taking your last run down the slope, these moderns is the snow grooming team at heavenly, one of lake tahoe's biggest ski resorts. it takes 16 snow cats running all night to keep the slopes in top condition. >> a lot of veteran operators here. 250 years combined experience on the crew. >> and this year they all want the same thing. >> yeah, everyone wants to run the beast. >> the beast is a brand new grooming machine, bigger and more efficient than ever before. in the world of snow cats, it's considered the sporty model. >> 500 horsepower designed on the inside, an italian company if you work for ferrari. >> the heavenly fleet includes two beasts. we rode along as they headed out to make their mark on the snow. >> you show up here at the blank canvas. people have been skiing it all day long. it's pretty beat up, especially those holiday weekends. >> as people ski and snow board, they naturally push the snow to the end of the runs and down the hill. the groomer's job is spread it evenly back to the center. the beast has a front blade

dan ashley has more. >> late in the day as you're taking your last run down the slope, these modern dayjust getting to work. this is the snow grooming team at heavenly, one of lake tahoe's biggest ski resorts. it takes 16 snow cats running all night to keep the slopes in top condition. >> a lot of veteran operators here, 250 years of combined experience on the crew. >> this year they want the same thing. >> everyone wants to run the beast. >> the beast is a brand new grooming machine, bigger and more efficient than ever before. in the world of snow cats, it's considered the sporty model. >> designed on the inside, an italian company, they do work for ferrari. >> the heavenly fleet includes two beasts. we rode along with keith and brian as they headed out to make their mark on the snow. >> you show up here, it's a blank canvas. people have been skiing it all day long. it's beat up. >> as people ski and snow board, they naturally push the snow to the edge of the runs and down the hill. the groomer's job is spread it evenly back in the center. the beast has a front blade 22 feet wide compa

i'm dan ashley. about face. california will not sell off a bunch of state owned buildings after all. governor jerry brown today stopped his predecessor's controversial budget balancing plan cold. capital correspondent nannette miranda explains why. >> reporter: governor jerry brown pulled the plug on a controversial plan to sell 24 state buildings and then lease them back for at least 20 years. the transaction started under governor schwarzenegger and included iconic offenses like the ronald reagan building in down townland the state supreme court building in san francisco. >> it didn't make much sense because it in effect is a gigantic loan with interest payments equal to over 10% every year. >> governor schwarzenegger pushed the sale last year because it could bring a one time cash inflation of $1.2 billion at a time when there seemingly were no other answers to get rid of the budget deficit. the nonpartisan legislative analysts found after 35 years the sale leaseback plan would cost california taxpayers $6 bi

dan ashley reports. >> aural she wants is love. >> when it comes to pit bulls, most people love them or hate them. >> there are a dog that no one wants. >> reporter: the animal care coordinator at animal care services, pure bred pit bulls get homes fast. >> people that come in, they think about adopting a pit bull but they don't want a crossbreed. they want the real thing. they want something, does that dog have pit bull in it? >> if the answer is yes, then they don't want to i adopt it. they have been neglected and abused and probably not placed in a home safely but they get sweet pit bulls. so this the staff is trying to get the word out a that part hits pits can be good pets. >> i had a thing about pit bulls. >> that is until she met bob, part pit, part something else. >> you get that with the combination of the pit bull. >> bob is so mellow, he lies gently while the pet bunny jumped around. a rescue group called bad rap found him a home. savannah another pit mix knows it very well. >> people come in for retriever or lab or she has another breed in her. >> they are tested for safe

in assignment 7 dan ashley shows us an exclusive look inside this amazing system. >> this pipeline was for water along the peninsula. typically it carries water for more than a million people. the pipeline is seven stories below the surface and no one has been inside it to inspect it since the water was turned on more than four decades ago. until now. >> this went into service approximately 1967. it hasn't been inspected since. >> blake rossfuss is the lead quality insurance inspector on this three-mile stretch of pipeline running along highway 280 in san mateo county. >> we're inspecting water system infrastructure that rarely gets inspected but is so critical to the population that you rarely have the opportunity to get inside and check on 'em. >> this stretch of tunnel was carefully walked by engineers and water officials looking for anything that may affect the flow or quality of the water be sent through it. >> looking for signs of distress in the concrete lining that might be indicated by cracks. might be indicated by leaking water. >> this can be dangerous work. the communicatio

dan ashley has more. >> as if they had been holding their breath for 30 years. the egyptian people filled the streets with cries of victory as the sands of time ran out for egyptian president hosni mubarak. >> mubarak has decided to step down as president of egypt and has decided that the higher counselor of armed forces will lead the nation. >> chants say egypt is free. it resounded through the square, the center of this popular uprising. >> did not go in vain! >> across egypt, people were literally dancing in the streets. >> power to the people! >> president obama praised the protestors for their peaceful message. >> the moral force of nonviolence, not terrorism, not mindless killing. >>> the cooling executive who organized the first protest using facebook.com as millions of egyptians joined him in celebration. his cousin called him from san francisco. >> everyone is celebrating. >> can you describe it? >> celebrating. i have to go, i have to go. >> take care. best of luck. >> sure. >> so this is the boy that actually launched this. >> dan ashley, abc 7 news.

. >> i'm dan ashley. >> for all of us, thanks for joining us. >> have a great weekend. >>> tonight onorming the statehouse. protesters flood the capitol. lawmakers go into hiding. and the tea party on the way. is this the face of america's new budget wars? plus, dumb pluck. they're masters of gutter humor. critics say their movies go too far. but the fairly brothers have made a mint making movies for men. why are they coming out with a chick flick? and of mice and men. it's a great time to be a mouse. obesity, diabetes, every day, science is finding these crit r critters a cure. but what about the rest of us? it's tonight "sign of the times." >>> good evening. i'm cynthia mcfadden. we begin tonight with politics. the debate over state budget deficits has led to chaos in wisconsin. with protesters hanging over balconies in the statehouse and lawmakers calling awol. what's happening in wisconsin may be the start of a series of similar confrontations

. >> i'm dan ashley from. all of us here, thanks for watching. we'll see you again in half an hour. >> prepare for rain. next newscast is at 6:00. connect 24-7 at abc 7 news.com. >>> tonight on "world news," tough choices, the president announces his budget cuts. republicans react. we show you what these cuts would and would not do. >>> songs of hope. gabby giffords finding words and music. what singing says about the wound in her brain. >>> flash point iran, tens of thousands try to protest. riot police charge in with tear gas. >>> risks and recalls. hips, knees replaced with devices never tested on humans. dr. richard besser with a big warning tonight. >>> and vip. new york's annual celebrity scene. how does a hotel cater to 1,000 dogs?

i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm carolyn johnson. thank you for joining us. >> we uhpreciate your time as always. >> good night, everyone.

i'm dan ashley. >> he drives well. i'm carolyn johnson.a great night, [ male announcer ] eakfast for breakfast. breakfast for lunch. breakfast for dinner. with three new breakfast lovers dishes, who needs a break from breakfast? denny's. america's diner is always open. >>> tonight on "nightline," shock at sea. they expected a carefree vacation, but for this teen and her family, an expensive cruise turned into a nightmare at the hands of a ship employee. an industry insider says sex crimes at sea often go unreported. now, a teen speaks out for the first time. >>> mad dog? for four decades he has preached and preened on the world's stage. now, after one of his most bizarre appearances today, we ask, just how crazy is he? >>> and, imposter

i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm caroline johnson. can i eat heart healthy without giving up taste?a man can only try... and try...and try. i heard eating wle grain oats can help lower my cholesterol. it's gonna be tough...so tough. my wife and i want to lowe our cholesterol, but finding healthy food that tastes good is torturous. your father is suffering. [ male announc ] honey nut cheerios tastes great and can help lower cholesterol.

i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm carolyn job son. -- johnson.ng us. >> have a terrific weekend and enjoy the warm weather. >> good night, everyone. you can see

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>> i'm dan ashley. thanks for watching. hope to see you ag >>> tonight on "world news," a challenge from the president, get in the game. president obama telling big business to get off the piles of cash and start hiring. will it create jobs? >>> digging in. protesters in egypt begin week three in liberation square. a high-profile hero of the demonstration is set free. >>> abc news exclusive, former defense secretary donald rumsfeld, emotional, fiery. why introduce iraq after 9/11? >>> and from missing the words on the national anthem to the contest for the best ad. winners and losers at the super bowl not on the playing field. >>> good evening, and we welcome you to a new week. it was just a short walk across the street from the white house today, but for president obama it was something of a long, tricky journey two years in the making. for the first time since taking office, he spoke to the u.s. chamber of commerce, the powerhouse of american business and his political adversary. he delivered an urgent message to the comp

i'm dan ashley. >> and thanks for joining us. >> have a good night.gain at 9:00 and 11:00. >> good night, everyone. captioned by closed captioning services, inc. this is "jeopardy!" let's meet today's contestants-- a high school vice principal from san francisco, california... an actor from astoria, new york... and our returning champion, a web programmer from knoxville, tennessee... whose 2-day cash winnings total... and now here is the host of "jeopardy!"--

i'm dan ashley. a startling development in the east bay where a top narcotics agent is now under arrest, he is accused of dealing drugs. tonight, special agent norman welsh faces fellle any charges. leslie brinkley is live at the contra costa county jail with the latest on the story. >> reporter: norman welsh is a high ranking narcotics commander who faces more than 20 felony counts including con spear arecy as well as selling methamphetamines, selling marijuana and selling steroids. norman welch worked for 12 years for the state department of justice bureau of narcotics enforcement, the same agency that busted him. he was a special agent supervisor of the central contra costa narcotics enforcement team and worked out of this building near the pleasant hill police department. his arrest wednesday morning triggers many questions. >> narcotics prosecutions depend more than any other type of case on the credibility of the investigating officer. >> reporter: so many past drug convictions could be jeopard

i'm cheryl jenning autos and i'm dan ashley. thanks for watching. we appreciate your time.ope to see you again in half an hour. >>> tonight on "world news," blood on the streets in libya. >> i think there's a massacre in the making. that's all i can say. >> will the infamous strongman gadhafi be the next arab leader to go? how many will die first? >>> blizzard, the next winter storm hits hard, and another one is coming now. >>> super bowl suicide. will the sad death of a football star save lives and change the sport? why he wanted his brain saved for research. >>> boy wonder. how a 20-year-old rookie stunned nascar pulling off the biggest upset ever. so green he got lost on the victory lap.

i'm dan ashley. we are just starting to get the brunt of it right now. spencer is following the storm for us. he will start us off. >> okay dan. until just last few minithe storm is confined to the north bay but pushing down into san francisco. as you can see on live doppler 7 hd but most intense activity still is in the north bay. now inand around san francisco we received over/100ths inch of rain but getting heavy. you see how much heavy it is as you move north up into marin count county. and other parts of the north bay. in fact up around santa rosa so far inch and a half of rainfall and some locations near the russian river three inches of rains as you can see an extensive area of heavy rainfalling up in that part of sonoma county. so still coming down rather heavily and will continue to do so late into the night and during the overnight hours. wind advisory in effect until 1:00 a.m. wind out of the south east tlaiv to 45 miles per hour. gust to 50 and further complicating things we have a high suvb advisory from 7:00 o'clock tomorrow morning until 2:

good evening i'm dan ashley. president obama stressed that the transition should include a broad spectrum of voices as well as opposition parties. the quarter million protestors cheered daned and erupted in joy when the president emerged saying he will not run for reelection in september. here's a reporter in egypt. >> tonight the square erupted in anger. people finally heard from the man they have risen up against. appearing on state television president mubarak address the protestors directly tell them their demands are legitimate and that he will stand down. but not just yet. instead he pledged to spend his next few months in office restoring law and order. reforming the constitution. and the election law. not good enough says this defiant crowd in cairo. this moment was a week in the making. week of steadily mounting pressure. from people in the streets and leaders around the world. president obama dispatched a former ambassador tow egypt to deliver a message directly to mubarak suggesting he not seek reelect

i'm dan ashley. san jose family is hoping that you can help find the driver that may have peri perilizeed their daughter. 18-year-old erica luna was cross ago street early yesterday morning. driver hit her and dragged her hundreds of feet. abc 7 live in san jose with the latest on the search. cecelia. >> the driver just took off down this street here fontain and now police have very few leads about what happened out here yesterday morning. family members say the skid marks that stretch for hundreds of feet show just how far erica was dragged. walking in the neighborhood with her boyfriend around 2:30 sunday morning crossing fontain road. some members say the boyfriend saw the speeding car and tried to get the driver to slow down. the car struck erica and never stopped. 18-year-old girl is now in critical condition. san jose police say so far no one has come forward with the detailed description of the car or the driver with few ladies to go on, erica family spent the afternoon knocking on doors handi

i'm dan ashley. week of snow rain and cold and it is still not over. this latest system dumped another layer of snow on bay area mountain tops. this is what it looked like on mount tam in marin. like that? this was the scene this morning near mount knot. this is lisa is in saratoga live tonight in the south bay where it is soggy and awfully cold i know. >>reporter: it really is. we are her at saratoga gap where it is raining all day long. really quite miserable out her here. but still even at this hour people are coming by loo looking for snow and they are leaving disappointed. but very different story over in marin county as you mention. steady snow fall top mount tam today. light dust at 2:00 o'clock this afternoon but by 5:00 o'clock snows was coming down at a steady pace and several inches accumulated. people made the trek to check it out. here at the intersection of highway 9 and 35 mean time snow loves played with what came down early this morning still cold enough so the snow hasn't melted. a lot of parent brought the can identifies to play with

good evening i'm dan ashley. after shocks continue to rock christ church where the earthquake hit. measured 6.3. mayor there has declared a state of emergency and ordered evacuation of the city center. lillian is in the newsroom with the latest on this. lillian. >>reporter: the earthquake struck during lunch hour in new zealand. city of christ church was bustling when the earth shook. quake hit just before 1:00 p.m. local time. population of christ church is 350,000 people. new zealand second largests city. airport was forced to shut down and caiingt church hospital had to be evacuated. power and telephone lines were knocked out and pipes burst. today's quake is actually an after shock from the 7.1 earthquake that struck the region in september. that however resulted in minimal injuries as it was centered 35 miles from christ church as opposed to today's tumble that was centered right beneath the city. >> it was a large earthquake that occurred right beneath the populated city and it was shallow. the depth was 3 to 5 miles. magnitude 6.3 more than enough to give a good shake. and t

 >> good evening i'm dan ashley. president obama is in the bay area tonight. he traveled across the country to have dinner with the titan of technology here. among others the head of facebook, apple and other kill. lily live at woodside where the dinner meeting is under way at john dohr home. >> the president motorcade is about to leave which means the dinner lasted about 2 and half hours. about a dozen people were invited to tonight's exclusive gathering. >> 45 minutes later the president motorcade arrived at the woodside home of venture capitalist dohr for dinner and discussion with silicon valley biggest names, apple ceo steve jobs, google ceo schmid and facebook founder and oracle and chambers. stanford professor lives behind the stage and pleased to see the president in his neighborhood. >> good thing for the president to get out into the community that he sevens. and a lot of people in woodside with a lot of influence and the direction of our country and that's a good thing to interact. >>reporter: white house

in this morning's assignment 7 report, dan ashley shows us an exclusive look inside this amazing system60s to meet the growing demand for water along the peninsula. it carries water for more than a million people. the pipeline is seven stories below the surface and no one has been inside it to inspect it since the water was turned on more than four decades ago. until now. >> this is the service from 1967 and hasn't been inspected since. >> blake is the lead quality insurance inspector on this three mile stretch of pipeline returning along highway 280 in san mateo county. >> we're inspecting water system infrastructure that rarely gets inspected but is so critical to the population that you rarely have the opportunity to get inside and check on 'em. >> this tunnel was carefully walked by engineers and water officials looking for anything that may affect the flow or quality of the water sent through it. >> signs of distress in the concrete lining that might be indicated by cracks. might be indicated by leaking water. >> this can be dangerous work. the communication is by radio (horn) >> a

dan ashley says it's an exclusive look inside this amazing system. >> this pipeline was built in thee 60s to meet the growing demand for water along the peninsula. typically it carries water for more a of than a million people. it's seven stories below the surface and no one has been inside it to inspect it since the water was turned on more than four decades ago until now. >> this hasn't been inspected since 1967. >> the lead insurance inspector in san mateo county. >> we are the infrastructure that rarely gets inspected that is so critical to the population that you rarely have the opportunity to unwater the tunnel to check on them. >> this stretch was carefully walked by engineers and water officials looking for anything that may affect the flow or quality of the water being sent through it. >> we are looking for stress in the concrete lining that might be indicated by cracks. it might be indicated by leaky water. >> this can be dangerous work the communication is by radio letting everyone outside that everybody inside is okay. it has unseen dangers. the air is constantly monitore

dan ashley talked with the staff members to explain how they turned a 90 pound snake into a peacefulient. >> these unlikely roommates have been together for more than two years now. this was date they met. as they moved into their new home an exhibit tank at california academy of sciences. first, the 12 and a half foot of annaconda made a survey. the iguana did the same and then the iguana decided distance would improve their relationship. so far it's working. >> anacondas only have mamalian prey so it doesn't recognize the iguana as a food item. >> they decided they needed a medical exam. it was a real challenge she is a constricter and likes to wrap around things. the examine lasted only a few seconds and the snake was put out healthy and strong. so strong she wrapped herself around one of biologists arms. >> that was then. now, two years later it's time for another checkup but this time the staff is hoping it will be easier. during the last few months aquatic biologist had been annaconda touched by tongs. so when it comes to the grab she is pretty calm. red anaconda is strong enou

dan ashley has more. >> late in the day as you shall taking the last run down the slopes these modern mountain men are just getting to work. this is the snow grooming team at heavenly one of lake tahoe's ski resorts. it takes 16 snow cats running all night. >> we have a lot of veteran operators here. >> this year they all want the same thing. >>> yeah everyone wants to run the beast? >> it's a brand-new grooming machine bigger and more efficient than ever before. >> 500 horsepower designed by an italian company. >> the fleet includes two beasts. we rolled along with keith and brian as they headed out to make their mark on the snow. >> people are skiing all day long especially after the holiday weekends. >> as people ski and snowboard they push the snow to the edge of the run and down the hill. so the groomer's job is to spread it evenly back to the center. the beast has a front blade 22 feet wide compared to 17 feet on older models. it pushes the snow in the place and tiller on the back creates the smooth surface. >> the snow caps go up and down the slope again and again until it's pe