jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> thanks, jobina. you can track bay area traffic conditions any time using the abc 7 news app. we have live road conditions and customized alerts for traffic information where you live. >> san francisco supervisors will announce their plan to address vacant properties. supervisor aaron peskin is proposing a vacancy tax on residential and commercial properties. the goal is to encourage property owners to lease out their empty spaces and free up units kept off the market during our housing crisis. the details of the tax are still being worked out. >>> new this morning, emeryville police arrested a lyft driver accused of sexual battery. a woman called for help from a hotel near shell mound and powell street on thursday. she said her lyft driver attacked her during her ride thot hotel. police arrested the driver, a 22-year-old. lyft says the suspect had passed a background check. he is no longer allowe to drive for lyft. >>> a new class action lawsuit against ac transit accuses the agency of pregnancy disc

abc news reporter jobina fortson live. hi, jobina. >> good morning. we're learning brockovich is expected to lead a very powerful rally at state capital today. she'll be side by side somewhere victims of north fires and camp fire. this is going to be a big moment for a lot of these individuals. a group plans to highlight the impact a pg&e bankruptcy will have on thousands of people trying to rebuild their lives after devastating fires. seventeen of northern california's wildfires in the last two years have been blamed on pg&e. protesters will make a call out to governor newsom and state legislature to work with pg&e to make sure they pay their debts. they also want to keep the company out of bankruptcy protection. this will all happen in sacramento starting at noon. different analysts have crunched the numbers here. no matter which way you flip it, pg&e owes billions in claims. they say they do not have the money. for now reporting live in san jose, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> jobina, thank you. right now on abc7news.com, iteam dan noyes digging d

reporting live, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> thanks, jobina. the fate of an oakland middle school will be decided on monday. that's when the school board will vote whether to close the international academy at the end of the school year. the board meeting started late because of angry protesters. students and teachers are fighting to keep it open. >> it's a huge civil rights issue. because a lot of the schools targeted are in east oakland, in low-income communities. >> they're looking to close other schools to make up for the deficit. they're trying their best to give students a good education. >> we're on their side. it's a matter of how much we can do given the financial concerns that we have. >> student enrollment at oakland unified dropped significantly to 37,000 students over the past two decades frnlt. >>> the man accused of beating an 88-year-old woman in san francisco will be in court today for arraignment. officers arrested 18-year-old keonte gathron saturday after he committed another robbery. police say he went on a crime spree in th

jobina. >> good morning.bout 2 million people travel down crooked part of lombard street every year. that's according to the transportation authority and we are about to add to that number. here we are. we're going to head down now and give you guys an idea of what could happen here if people get their way. an electronic reservation system has been proposed. before accessing this portion of lombard street with your car, visitors have to go to a website, app or kiosk to pick a day and time to visit the street. it would be offered in 30 to 60-minute increments. the license plate number would be registered. say you have a rental car, tourists could sign up and update the license plate portion later. this would offer a similar to fastrak. cameras would read the plate, verify it and the payment would go through. if the plate isn't registered, gh ra.isoulu ridents and their guests and according to sf gate, the price would be $5 on weekdays and $10 on i in this area and there will be a public meeting held on wednesd

jobina fortson is in san jose with more. hi, jobina. >> reporter:rng.the d work for t of the project. everybody, we're still years away from b.a.r.t. being down here in san jose. crews will be working on boring into the ground on sidewalks, streets and parking spaces to survey the site and collect data. this will help with completing the design phase of the project. surveying could last up to search weeks. which means a disturbance to businesses in the area and traffic. but some people think it's worth it in trade for the eventual benefits that will come. >> getting here is a hassle for many people. having that infrastructure here is going to be a huge advantage for many people and getting downtown into the businesses here. >> reporter: major construction between third and market won't start until 2020 and the subway station is looking like it will be wrapped up by 2026. at dearden station, this will be the stopping line. that is one leg of four pieces here. reporting live in san jose, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> there w

jobina fortson live in the newsroom with more.a. >> seven counts by the special counsel, including one count of witness tampering, one count of obstruction of justice and others. stone has been under scrutiny by the special counsel for months. but he has maintained his innocence. all of this deals with what he knew about wikileaks and the damaging information about hillary clinton and what he was telling the trump campaign. they claim stone misled investigators. he told george stephanopoulos he was curious about wikileaks, but he did not cooperate with the group. >> like any political reporter, i was interested in knowing what exactly they had. but there was no response to that. >> you never spoke to julian assange, never spoke about any of that to president trump. >> that's absolutely right. >> he was arrested in ft. lauderdale this morning following the indictment. he's scheduled to make a court appearance later today. jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> it is now 4:29. time to gan update on weather ad traffic with mike. >> the offs

reporting from the embarcadero, jobina fortson, "abc 7 news." >> looks like it will be great, jobina. thank you. >>> spokes people for different emergencncies stopped by "abc 7 news" this morning to get the word out that they are working together to ensure a fun and safe new year's eve. san francisco police say they will have a heavy presence, bot whether it be police officers in plain clothes, we are going to be in and around those crowds, making sure that nothing goes badly. >> the department of emergency management has set up a dedicated text alert line for new year's eve. by texting nyesf to 888-777, you'll be enrolled to receive any critical safety information relating to new year's eve in san francisco. of course, if you see something, say something. >>> security will be tight as people pack into new york city's times square to ring in 2019 tonight. for the first time, the nypd plan to use drones to monitor the crowd, but it is raining so they cancelled the plans. ousas of nypdeye on the crowd ay do every year. >>> tonight can include a certain amount of trepidation in places wh

for now reporting in oakland, jobina fortson, "abc 7 news." >> all right. jobina, thank you. hopefully they can find out who is responsible. >>> taking a live look from our "abc 7 news" roof top camera, last night we could see fireworks from this viewpoint. now there are clear skies but it is cold. "abc 7 news" weather anchor spencer christian joins us with a look at tonight's forecast. we are talking less wind though, spencer, which is a little reprieve. >> that's true. we won't have a windchill factor but we will have a chill factor, no wind. here is a look at live doppler 7. we have clear skies mainly right now, so temperatures are dropping. you can see that the wind is really calm just about everywhere, the strongest winds we see right now, about five mils per hour in san francisco, mountain view, livermore, 7 miles per hour in fairfield. the wind is not a factor but temperatures will be dropping later tonight. right now temperatures mainly in the 40s and then we get to 10:00 p.m. and on to midnight and we will see temperatures drop into the upper 30s in many inland locat

jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> thanks, jobina.he state of the union showdown between president trump and house speaker nancy pelosi appears to be over. >> president trump tweeted he's officially postponing the address until the government shutdown ends. that ends a week-long stalemate. in his tweets, he said i will do this when the shutdown is over. i'm not looking for an alternative venue for the state of the union address. because there's no venue that can compete with the chamber. i look forward to giving a great state of the union address in the future. the president is backing down after house speaker pelosi told him he wouldn't be allowed to deliver the address in the house. pelosi has said the address shouldn't be delivered while the government remains closed and hundreds of thousands of workers go without pay shex. speaki -- paychecks. they're on the verge of missing another pay chaek tomorrow. people in the bay area are coming forward to help. >> a gas station owner is offering free gas. he owns ava letter owe gas station

live in davis, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >> appreciate that. thank you. meantime, that death is two weeks after newman corporal that was lined down after pulling over a suspected drunk driver the day ar christmas. >> natalie corona is the first california peace officer to die in the line of duty in the new year. police officer deaths are on the rise, according to the national law enforcement officers memorial fund. 144 officers died in the line of duty in 2018, a 12% increase from 2017. a third of those the result of a firearm. >>> new at 6, the santa rosa diocese released the name of priests and deek ons church leaders say committed sexual abuse against children or accused of doing so. at least 23 of those are deceased. as for the rest, none are serving in public ministry. the current bishop says about 100 children believed to have been victimized since the diocese was founded in 1962. the i-team investigated several priests named today. dan noyes reports, in 1995, misconduct led to a prison sentence. he is named in the list. so is peter keegan who dan f

. >>> jobina fortson is live in san francisco with more on this proposal. jobina? >> reporter: good morning. yes, neighbors out here are very frustrated with the congestion and everything else that the touristy area brings from issues of car break-ins as well. we're about to take a trip down the street to explain the situation and what they are hoping for. which is an electronic reservation system. that's been proposed here. it will operate like fastrak before accessing this portion of lombard street with your car. visitors would have to go to a website, app or kiosk to pick a day and time to visit. it would be offered in 30 to 60 minute increments. the license plate number would be registered. if you have a rental car, you could sign up and update the license plate portion later. cameras would read your plate, verify it and process the payment. if the plate isn't registered, the driver would be charged a higher rate. this would exclude residents and their guests of course. according to sf gate. it would be $5 on weekdays and $10 on the weekend. 2 million people tr

reporting in berkeley, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> there's more trouble for pg&e this morning. butte county is suing the company over the camp fire. the county claims it's barred from a pg&e -- it started from a line that sparked the flames. the company was aware of the risks the line posed. flames destroyed more than 18,000 structures, most homes and 86 people died. pg&e says the cause of the camp fire hasn't been determined. the company filed for bankruptcy on monday due to wildfire lawsuits. >>> let's talk about what to expect out of the storm. we'll jump right in to what's going on outside. you can see, yeah, it is wet on the embarcadero. it's also wet as we look at the western span of the bay bridge. poor is the easiest way to say it. it will be dangerous in the evening hours when the ponding on the roadway develops. mass transit, caution, wet and windy. it will be choppy and breezy, gale force winds in fact. up to 52 miles per hour blowing southeast to northwest. you know what that does? puts the dumbarton, the san mateo, the bay bridge and the richmond an raphael ridge p

jobina fortson live in san jose this morning. jobina? >> reporter: good morning. construction is scheduled to last seven weeks. some people will feel the traffic woes and issues. the bta says this is all important to the design phase of the project here. the expansion will cost more than $5 billion. crews will be boring into the ground on sidewalks, streets and parking spaces to survey the sites and collect data. the subway station itself should be done around 2026. with the benefits being so far away, we've gotten mixed reviews from residents here. >>> it's going to affect a lot of residents here in san jose. especially when they get off work. it's going to cause -- it's going to be con jesd. there are a lot of residents not happy about this. >> i often visit family in the east bay area. that's a terrible commute. b.a.r.t. is an affordable and quick way to get around. i'm excited for a san jose line. >> reporter: major construction scheduled to start in 2020. reporting live in san jose this morning. jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> on the peninsula, police are rep

abc 7 news reporter jobina fortson is live with more. jobina? >> reporter: good morning.ell, commuters are so ready for this. with traffic wait times expected to get worse, this couldn't have come at a better time. check out the bridge. you can look at that. if you see on the right-hand side here, that is where the $25 million bike and pedestrian lane will go on the upper deck traveling westbound. this is what it's supposed to look like when it's finished. traffic officials want to remove the barriers and put a third lane of traffic there during commute hours. a third lane was added last year going eastbound. commuters appeared ecstatic about that. the original plan was to conduct a four-year pilot project for the bike and pedestrian lane going westbound. officials in marin are hoping to bring that four-year down to six months. they say the increase in congestion is to blame for that. the transportation authority board of commissioners will be talking about the westbound lane tonight at their meeting at 7:00. for now, reporting live, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> thanks

jobina? >> reporter: good morning. is it a shock they're we're at the bottom of the list? probably not. but what may be is that we didn't come in dead last. wallet hub ranks us 47th overall in this report. i'm going to show you all the roadways here. so far so good out here. that may be the reason why we earned our spot above washington, alaska and hawaii. the island came in at number 5 50. researchers compared all 50 states across what they called 30 key indicators of a positive commute. some of those factors include rush hour traffic, congestion, road quality and gas prices. california came in at 40 for highest auto maintenance cost, 42 for rush hour traffic congestion. 47 for highest car theft and 49 for the highest average gas prices. now, what is kind of interesting about this report, oregon came in at number 1. interesting, because it's surrounded by all the states that were at the bottom of this list. reporting live in san jose, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >> i used to live in oregon and the roads weren't all that. >>> it is day 33 of the federal government shutdown

reporter jobina fortson is live in san jose with more. jobina? >> reporter: good morning.hat's happening today is not to be confused with the major construction slated to start in 2020. this minor construction is all in preparation for the eventual buildout which will eventually become a 16-mile stretch through silicon valley, including milpitas, san jose and santa clara. it will cost more than $5 billion. the work starting today is slated to last seven weeks and will disrupt the neighborhood. many people we talked with think it will be worth it in the long run. crews will be boring into the ground on sidewalks, streets and parking spaces to survey the sites and collect data. this will help with completing the design phase of project. >> there are communication systems and sewer lines and all kinds of things below the ground that we want to make ourselves aware of before we start the larger construction. >> reporter: the new subway stations will be opened by 2026. reporting live in san jose, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> developing news in san francisco, the man who brut

. >> "abc 7 news" reporter jobina fortson joins us live.xactly what police worry about, jobina. >> reporter: yes. we did a story about this last night, talking about this risk, and yet here we are. we showed people this earlier and i want to bring it back to give some others some perspective here. this is a bullet that was shot into the air and came down on the ground in oakland near the coliseum. investigators at this point do not know the type of bullet that was used in this case, but something like this is in that six-year-old girl's head right now. neighbors along thermal street in east oakland had a perfect view of san francisco on new year's eve. roxanne perez says she could hear children enjoying the evening at a family's party across the street. >> you could hear the kids yelling, five, four, three, two. >> and just at the start of 2019. >> boom, boom,

. >> jobina forton posted on her twitter page. >> tense police standoffs is over in the north bay where the suspect refused to surrender. police say he tried to burn down a convenience store. abc7 news reporter cornell barnard is live with this story. >> reporter: lots of people in novato breathing a sigh of relief. after the suspect gave himself up. his plan to burn down a mini mart was not successful. surrendering to police. police followed him to this circle k where he argued with assistant manager. >> i said you have to prepay gas. he go outside and take a gas can and came inside the store and he is pouring gas all over inside the store. >> reporter: watch as he walks through the aisle. he leaves the store but returns with a piece of paper and a liner. he lights the paper on fire and tosses it onto the gas soaked floor. >> reporter: what did you do. >> i was so scared. i didn't want to go close to him. >> reporter: luckily there was no fire. the gas did not ignite. the suspect took off but police followed him. >> they formed some trust and were able to talk about what is going on wi

jobina is live with more. >> reporter: these flowers are sitting here tonight to remember 17-year-old mohammed akhem,akhe, wrote they're saddened and disturbed by this. 17-year-old, varsity football player at carlmont high was shot and killed outside belmont central elementary school monday night. murder investigation found its way to quiet neighborhood in ple pleasanton. >> police vehicle, soldiers in front, s.w.a.t. vehicle, soldiers surrounding, weapons pointed at house. >> used a loud speaker to call the three suspects or whoever out, neighbors. >> reporter: source confirmed this home was searched in connection to the death. sky7 had a clear picture of the search. neighbors tell us family living in the home is relatively new to the community and moved here from belmont. patel says police have come by before. >> sometimes cops come to the house. >> reporter: didn't appear to find what they were looking for. stunned neighbors. belmont rattled too. football coach says he was good kid. >> pivotal piece to helping us win a league championship. >> reporter: belmont police don't think th

jobina fortson, abc7 news. >>> a federal judge berated pg&e today, accusing the company of putting profits ahead of safety. said pg&e made excuses to avoid turning off electricity in times of high fire danger. overseeing case because of pipeline explosion in san bruno. utility was in court, tried to get a response from interim ceo after today's hearing. >> reporter: anything to the consumers worried about wildfires the coming season? mr. simon, the judge is clearly worried about it. >> in court pg&e explained it was not able to complete tree trimmings near electrical lines because of lack of qualified tree professionals. hearing comes one day after pg&e filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. look for the story on abc7news.com, scroll down and find a form where you can submit a question directly to us. >>> runaway on the runway, a small plane in central valley crashed without a pilot. >>> silicon valley power player says he fasts 22 hours a day, talking about intermittent fasting and what it means for productivity, next. >>> yes, we have our challenges. i see them every day. >> sharing

"abc 7 news" reporter jobina fortson was also there.he tells us it was not about the tragedy but about celebrating the life lived. >> reporter: an echo of bag pipes filled the cold air throughout modesto saturday morning, marking the start of the day no one mere wanted to come. >> to the family, i want you to know i am sorry and that that ta always be here. >> reporter: newman police chief randy richardson's words to the family of corporal ronil singh, the 33-year-old was killed the morning after christmas hours after this photo was taken with his five-month-old son and wife. the suspect was charged with murder wednesday. >> fresno chp -- >> corporal singh's brother opened his eulogy thanking law enforcement and went on to tell stories about his brother. >> he used to watch "cops," watch videos and he always wanted to become law enforcement in america. >> reporter: corporal singh was an immigrant from fiji, living his american dream. >> hnot how did he die but how did he live. not what did he gain, but what did he give. >> reporter: he

jobina is live. >> reporter: good morning. brockovich along with several victims will be highlighting the impact a pg&e bankruptcy could have on the thousands of people that are working to rebuild their lives right now following these devastating fires. the fire victims and brockovich will be at the capital today. they plan to call on the state legislator and governor newsom to work with pg&e to keep them out of bankruptcy protection. pg&e has been blamed for 17 of northern california's devastating wildfires over the last two years. the group heading to the capital today, claims that pg&e is allowed to file bankruptcy. thousands of families and businesses will be stuck at the back of the line waiting for the compensation they need. pg&e claims it doesn't have the money to potentially pay billions of dollars in liabilities. this rally is scheduled to happen at 12:00 today in sacramento. for now reporting live in south l.a., jobina fortson. >> dan looking into this. he spoke with a local attorney and lawmaker. you can find it on

jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >> they look pretty content. >> good tenants. >> the apartment was one ofics this morning on our new hour-long midday live which you can catch emp day weekdays. >> reggie aqui and jessica castro debated the issue. >> there was an heiress who left millions of dollars to her cat, and they got their entire estate, and she was set up to live the purr-fect kitty life forever and ever. we talked about that. they had servants, a full loft. what is fair? it doesn't seem fair in a time like this. >> nothing is fair in life. so that's the first thing. . that is true. >> i think it's a cute story. it's funny. but when you have people actually living in their cars, this does seem like a little bit of a slap in the face. >> it highlights the haves and the have-nots. >> this is their money. they probably -- they asked for this space. it was their family friend's who is providing this room for these cats. there was some sort of agreement. everyone felt happy about it. so as i said earlier to reggie in the newsroom, i wonder, you know, how this got out. how the cat got out

reporting live, jobina fordson, "abc7 news." p. thank you.kshowiveght tou tcw itn ourbse,he wind persist unti fireworks time? >> spencer christian joins us with the latest. >> yes, dan and kristen, the wind will persist, and if you're going to be along the embarcadero, i strongly recommend bundling up today. wind gusts 20 to 30 miles per hour in places like san francisco, napa, fairfield, hayward. livermore and san jose. and the wind is going to continue to be relatively strong, especially in the higher elevations. a wind advisory in effect until 10:00 tomorrow morning. winds could gust up to 70 miles per hour. downed trees and powerlines a possibility. and late night, we'll have a windchill, something we don't often talk about here in the bay area, because temperatures near freezing in some inland locations and the wind so strong it will feel even colder. a full look at the forecast later. >> thank you very much, spencer. >>> breaking news, the highway patrol is confirming that there's been a report that a car was firing at other

. >> jobina fortson joins us with a look at the >> reporter: things are just getting started here at. more than a thousand people were expected tonight. by looking around i can already tell you that the crowd surpassed that number. take a look around here, you can see people gathering candles, filling the outskirts of the park to honor officer corona and her family. several members of the davis police department are here. we learned the vigil was organized by a community member. many spent time hanging blue ribbons, gathering candles around the park for the event. the mood is somber. the officer and her family and davis pd are top of mind, not overshadowed from news out of the sheriff's office today. as you mentioned, they identified the shooter as kevin

reporting in modesto, jobina fortson, "abc 7 news." >> his widow was presented with the american flagwas draped over his casket in a grave side ceremony. newman police chief randy richardson fought back tears as he gave her the colors. the corporal's remains were laid to rest in a community outside of modesto. there is only one authorized fund set up for the family of corporal singh. it is through the stanislaus sworn deputies association. if you would like to donate we have a link to it at our website, abc7news.com. >>> we're learning new details about what led up to a deadly officer shooting in santa clara. the gunman was firing into traffic and at people in a rotten robbie gas station before officers responded. "abc 7 news" reporter katie utehs has the story. >> reporter: police say the whole thing started here at this rotten robbie location in cupertino. you see behind me the boarded-up kiosk. they say an employee set it on fire and took off to santa clara where he started shooting. witness arnold sanchez recorded this cellphone video. around 5:45 in the morning, santa clara polic

jobina fortson has the details. >> reporter: the wheelchair and back brakes gave it away because the mayor's high spirits weren't really what you would expect from someone who had been hit by an suv. >> i feel very fortunate to be walking because of the incredible care i had here. >> reporter: the mayor was released wednesday. he was hit at salt lake brave and mabury road while out on a new year's day bike ride. >> neighbors magnanimous live livecame out to help me. >> reporter: he has a fractured vertebrae and sternum. the avid cyclist is an for safety. bike lanes have been popping up all over the city. he plans to get back on the horse, but it will take time. >> i think it will be a few weeks before you see me on a bike again. >>> doctors at benioff hospital saying leaving the bullet in the head of a young girl might be safer than removing it. a stray bullet hit the girl during a new year's eve party. while the doctor is not treating the girl and can't comment specifically in her case, he said he has treated hundreds of others including children. >>> we don't actually go remove the

reporting in modesto, jobina fortson, "abc 7 news." >> there is only one authorized fund set up for theily of corporal singh. it is through the stanislaus sworn deputies association. if you would like to donate we have a link to it at our website, abc7news.com. >>> we're learning new details about what led up to a deadly officer shooting in santa clara. the gunman was firing into traffic and at people in a rotten robbie gas station before officers responded. they say it's amazing no one else was hurt. "abc 7 news" reporter katie utehs has the story. >> reporter: police say the whole thing started here at this rotten robbie location in cupertino. you see behind me the boarded-up kiosk. they say an employee set it on fire and took off to santa clara where he started shooting. witness arnold sanchez recorded this cellphone video. around 5:45 in the morning, santa clara police responded to the rotten robbie gastation at lafayette street and aldo avenue. you can see the shattered windows and bullet holes. >> the subject is still shooting inside the store. he has a shotgun in one hand and a h

for now reporting live in dublin, jobina fortson, abc 7 news. >>> in washington democrats made an offer to republicans today to prevent another government shutdown. lawmakers left the first meeting of a bipartisan negotiating committee with no agreement but outlined opening proposals as negotiations begin. democrats presented a long list of border security-related initiatives they are willing to fund. there is no money for a border wall, however. but at least one democrat on the committee says he may be open to new fencing along the border. lawmakers have until february 15th to reach an agreement before government funding will once again expire. >>> tonight we're hearing from the honduran mother who was reunited with her 1-year-old daughter at sfo last night, a month after the little girl was separated from the family at the border. abc 7 news reporter luz pena joins us live now with more on their harrowing ordeal. luz. >> reporter: thank you. that's right. it's been less than 24 hours since sinnedy flores held her 1-year-old daughter after two months of being separated from her. she ex

abc 7 news reporter jobina fortson has that story from campbell. >> this is what it looks like when communitiese together. >> so do you guys understand how to remove -- >> one of reverend king's multiple legacies has been to become civically engaged in your community, regardless of your age or resources. everybody can do something. >> that gel was achieved monday. a park beautification was their way of honoring dr. martin luther king. their day of service was to inspire creative solutions to social problems and bring neighborhoods closer to dr. king's dream of a beloved community. what are you going to do with your tool? >> get weeds. >> the whole concept of the day may have been a lot for calvin to grasp, but he knows he is here to help. across town, another group of volunteers planted 32 trees in san jose. >> it's amazing to be able to provide education about environmental stewardship and planting trees and how it benefits the community. >> a benefit that will be felt long after this holiday is over. officials with the city of campbell here wanted to make sure that everyone knows that they do