jodi hernandez spoke to a family that just lost their son in afghanistan. >> thank god.t's about time, really, i think. but thank god. maybe things can -- maybe things can happen and the world can get to a better place. >> reporter: that's the reaction of this specialist's family on news osama bin laden is dead. he's an army medic and was killed in afghanistan a month ago trying to help wounded comrades. though he was shot himself, he didn't give up. >> he was shot and helping others and then he was telling somebody what to do with the others that he couldn't get to. he was trying to save his own life by telling them what to do on himself. >> reporter: he would have been happy to know u.s. forces have finally killed the master mind behind 9/11, but would recognize there's more to be done. >> one more gone, more to go. it's not over with him gone. the next one pops up to the top. >> reporter: in la fayette, people took time to pay tribute to soldiers who gave their life on the war on terror. someone left a navy s.e.a.l. hat while others brought flags and flowers. >> i was

i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. >> what perseverance. thank you, jodi. >>> well, tonight local teachers are making bay area malls their classroom. the goal is to educate the public about the looming cuts. live in san jose with a unique type of lesson plan, george. >> reporter: yes, it is. i feel like i'm in a classroom with all these teachers around from the santa clara county right now, here at the food court, they're doing what they're calling a grade-in. a grade-in. they're actually sitting down, eating food, and grading papers, and take a look. they're sitting on at least a quarter of the food court here. they want to visually show how much work teachers do after school that the work doesn't stop after the last bell rings, the teachers are encouraging those in the public, at the mall, to come up to them and ask them what they're doing. they're hoping to let the public know about the state budget crisis and potential impact of what deep cuts would do to education. california has a $15.4 billion deficit. $4 billion of which could be sla

nbc's jodi hernandez is at oakland pd where the police aren't addressing the media just yet, jodi. >> reporter: jessica, police aren't talking on camera about this, but nbc bay area has learned that police got a tip from a very reliable source that the suspects were going into that neighborhood to do great bodily injury on somebody. neighbors describe what they saw as terrifying. >> i mean, it it just looked like the fourth of july, like somebody was just letting off, you know, firecrackers or something. >> reporter: ramisha dorsey describes the gun noofire that out just outside her oakland front door last night, causing her and her two small children to duck for cover. when the gunshots stopped, she saw two men wounded in her yard, and police everywhere. >> i'm still pretty much in shock about it happening at my house and being on my grass where my kid plays outside every day. >> reporter: oakland police, who declined to talk on camera, say it all started after getting a tip that a violent crime was going to take place on the block. when they confronted three men in a car, they say t

nbc bay area's jodi hernandez is live in hayward where police say that operation was unfolding. jodi? >> reporter: jessica, that one-stop shop as police are calling it was located right here inside this hayward apartment complex. police say a woman here was running a highly sophisticated operation right out of her home. and tonight police have shut it down. you're looking at all the makings of a massive counterfeit operation. the likes oakland police haven't seen before. >> she had the ability within her residence to make checks, credit cards, social security cards and california identification cards. so it's basically like a one-stop shop as far as identity theft is concerned. >> reporter: oakland police pulled the items from this apartment last week. their investigation began in january when they got a complaint from an oakland city worker that someone had fraudulently cashed her checks. >> through investigation i was able to get surveillance from different stores throughout the bay area. i was able to through search warrants identify this person. >> reporter: when police searc

jodi hernandez has been following the developments in the case all day and joins us from the east bay live. jodi? >> reporter: baby ramy is actually on her way home right now. we're told she has landed at the airport and should be home within the next hour and a half. you can see that ribbons, balloons and signs have been put up to welcome her back. her friends have gathered outside for the home coming. this family has been through quite an ordeal. while the baby has been found, her grandmother is behind bars facing kidnapping charges. >> as soon as she comes back, comes home, it's -- it's family time again. >> reporter: rudy gallego never felt more relieved. some 35 hours after discovering his baby girl had been snatched out of her bassinet, his own mother accused of taking the girl. >> it was a family member. you know, i'm not going to lie to you, it was my mom. came to my house and took my baby girl because she just wasn't mentally there anymore, i guess. >> reporter: police say erica gallego took a bus and cab to the bay area and took the baby as her parents slept. >> the grandmot

jodi hernandez is on the scene.at his mother took the baby but possibly she night not have been in her right mind when she did it. but a happy ending to a very troech rouse story. >> let's bring in lawrence scott now. >>> good evening. one of the most demoralizing days in the tank for the sharks. you're hoping to catch vancouver a little overconfident. mostly we cannot see how they overcome adversity. a poor early record but a star rookie shined. and outstanding and long stretches. and the sharks wound up in second seed on the western con frebs side of the playoffs. still the overwhelming sadness permanent ating the arena. all starting with a terrible two minutes. easily the are worst two minutes in hockey. four men penalties in a row. down right deadly in all respects. again, all of these goals in the span of a minute and 55, playoff hockey doesn't usually look like a play in the gut. it will be a story that you can tell your grandkids. >> well, yesterday we were down, there's no doubt about it. i wouldn't expect u

nbc bay area's jodi hernandez joins us from pittsberg to show us what experts are doing to help prevent the spread of this infection. >> reporter: it can be deadly, but it is completely preventible. there's a big push underway to get everyone vaccinated. the county held one of its first whooping cough vaccination clinics inside this health center earlier this afternoon, but so far, not too many people seem to be heeding the warnings. those who have had a brush with whooping cough will be the first to tell you, you don't want to wait until it's too late. >> this is my baby. >> reporter: she says she'll never forget her son's close call with whooping cough. he caught the infection last year, leaving him gasping for air and sending her into a panic. >> it's very scary. very scary. my heart dropped because i didn't know what to do. regular medicine wasn't working for him, and having to rush your son to the emergency room because you don't know what's going on, it's very scary. >> it's called the whooping cough because often there's a lot of muk cows in her lungs, they often have the -- and

tips just aren't as good for the bumpy ride. >> that was jodi hernandez reporting. want to check in with mr. rob mayeda. it was a beautiful day outside today. >> it was. one thing you need to patch the pot holes, you need dry weather. looks like we'll see that for a while. today we started to warm up. it is still gusty outside. 69 degrees in oakland. northwest wind at 17. earlier gusts about 30 miles per hour. so kind of a windy start to your weekend. 73 around the shark tank. all eyes on the shark tank at noon tomorrow for the big game two. the sharks and red wings. northwest winds coming up at 18 miles per hour. san francisco, as seen from the san bruno mountain camera, bouncing around a bit. west wind at 26 miles per hour. right now, pretty strong sea breeze cooling things off. but come tomorrow, the winds back off and high pressure continues to strengthen, we should see temperatures even around san francisco soaring into the mid-70s. right now, still across the tri-valley toward pleasanton and livermore and concord. mid-70s. santa cruz, 78 degrees. tomorrow like

jodie hernandez has been following the story all day long and joins us live with the latest on the investigation. jodie, you were there when that baby was brought back home. >> it was really an emotional scene. that baby just incredibly adorable. the gallego family is finally getting some rest after a terrifying ordeal that had them fearing the worst for their baby girl. after 36 hours, she was returned to her family. meanwhile, her grandmother is behind bars tonight accused of kidnapping the baby and trying to pass her off as her own. >> as soon as she saw us, she was all smiles and giggles. >> reporter: after being snatched from her crib in the middle of the night, the 4-month-old is back in her mommy's arms again. >> just the happiest moment of my life. yesterday was the worst moment of my life. today the best. >> reporter: krista and rudy woke up yesterday morning to find little rame's basinet empty, setting off a massive search. turns out baby was with grandma. 58-year-old erica gallego snuck into her son and daughter-in-law's house and kidnapped the girl, taking her to southern california

jodi hernandez just got out of the courtroom. some bold comments by the prosecution today describing youssef bay as a self-proclaimed prince of oakland who terrorized the city. what else was said? >> reporter: that he walked around like he was the king of oakland who thought he was above the law. the prosecutor says there is no question that the killing of chauncey bailey was willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder. she says chauncey bailey was ambushed by men who waited to pounce on him and kill him. the prosecutor says youssef bay the iv, former head of your black muslim bakery is responsible for terrorizing the city of oakland for years. she says his reign of terror began with the vandalism of two oakland liquor stores back in 2005. she says he eventually ordered the killings of three men, including oakland post journalist chauncey bailey. the prosecutor says bay was angry at an article bailey was writing that was critical of the bakery. and she says she ordered him killed saying he wanted bailey silenced forever so he wo

jodi hernandez has a copy of the latest video. it seems like a bottomless well. where does sfpd go from here? >> reporter: that's a very good question. the public defender's office says that the newest video helps prove that there are serious problems with the way the san francisco police department handles cases. the department's new chief says he is not going to rush to judgment but is determined to get to the bottom of the allegations. >> we have an extremely disturbing video. >> the dissfrikt attorney says this video of a december 2010 arrest and search shows serious police misconduct. the video captures a by stander being violently detained and an officer with an illegal search and seizure of suspect's property. >> for the first time we're getting to match police reports against what these cameras capture and what we're finding is that there is a very serious problem. >> the police report states officers saw him with baggies of drugs in his hand inside of the hotel but in the video, santana appears to have his hands in the pockets. the report says that he th

in oakland i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. the families of 15 fallen officers attended that service. >>> a suspected serial killer charged with murdering four california women was back in court today. his request to represent him is yet to be approved by the judge. 77-year-old joseph naso appeared in court today where he told the judge that hiring an attorney would exhaust his resources. reno police arrested him after finding an enormous amount of evidence in his home tieing him to these murders from the 1970s and 1990s. two victims were from the bay area. investigators are reviewing cold cases to see if there's similarities with those cases. >>> a couple from mountainview could get a $1400 refund from pg&e for a faulty smart meter. it was installed in november of 2009. the following month their bill tripled. immediately they blamed their new smart meter. after months of complaints and replace smart meters this case might finally be resolved. what was the problem? the couple found that their smart meter triggered a motion dete

reporting live in hayward, i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. >>> in contra costa county, a natural gas pipeline tested twice by pg&e isn't showing any sign of weakness. service will be returned to the pipeline after pressure testing didn't reveal any fall si welds or leaks. a pg&e spokesperson says there weren't any drops in pressure wh crews flushed the pipe with 450,000 gallons of water. the pressure dates back to 1999. >>> for the first time ever, a gallup poll shows a majority of americans support legalizing gay marriage. here's a look at the numbers. 53% support same-sex marriage. 9% jump compared to last year. 45% of americans say gay couples shouldn't marry. 69% of democrats support same-sex marriage. while less than a third of republicans surveyed support it. >>> a south bay school district is feeling energized tonight because they're using solar energy to help combat severe budget cuts. in fact, the new project could save dozens of teachers' jobs. marianne favro joins us to tell us about the new project. >> reporter: this overhang is not a luxury to keep students' cars coo

reporting live in martinez, i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. >> okay, jodi. thank you. >>> we move on to san jose now. a stabbing, a carjacking, and vandalism. anger in san jose today as the city's traditional cinco de mayo celebration once again turned rowdy and violent. some of those who caused the damage are now behind bars. but the problem may not be over. we bring you nbc bay area's kimberly tere, who joins us from downtown san jose. and kimberly, the focus is now on tonight as business owners and police get ready for what might be another whiled scene? >> reporter: it's a double-edged sword, raj. merchants want the crowds because they want the business. what they don't want is this, that is, the crime that might come along with it. some cinco de mayo partiers got out of hand last night, and police are preparing for round two, with the cinco de mayo party expected to keep going on here for days. merchants are cleaning up the mess left behind by rowdy cinco de mayo partiers while bracing themselves for what may come as the celebration continues through th

reporting live in oakland, i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. >> thank you, jodi. so many years later, it's still sensitive. well, today's decision is drawing some criticism. pg&e will lower its rates for high-use customers and raise its rates for lower use customers. the california public utilities commission is giving pg&e the green light to this new rate structure. the rate cut is 15% off the top tier customers. the puc says this is the rate format most of the country uses. critics contend pg&e is punishing customers who conserve and use less power. >>> multiple tornadoes hit northern california this weekend. tonight, farmers there are saying the damage to the crops could reach into the tens of millions of dollars. >> it's hard to imagine this is right, so close to us. brian hickey from our nbc station in sacramento has more on the storm's damage. >> we've got a funnel! >> reporter: this is just one of several tornados that touched down in butte county wednesday evening. today, residents are cleaning up the mess left behind. >> there used to be a three-car, four

nbc bay area's jodi hernandez has been in court all day and joins us live in oakland with reaction. i understand there were some tense moments in court, too. >> reporter: jessica, the prosecutor didn't hold back today. she says that they walked around oakland like he was the king, taking a team of security forces with him wherever he went. she said people were willing to kill for him on his orders and they did. >> it's been a long, long trial. it's, like, opened up a can of worms all over again. >> reporter: but chauncey bailey's family hopes they'll soon be able to move on. in closing arguments today, the prosecutor told jurors the journalist's killing was willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder. she says the former head of the black muslim bakery ordered the killing to silence bailey forever because he was writing an article critical of the financially strapped bakery. >> if the people who are writing articles can't really speak about the truth, then, you know, we have nothing. we all want to be able to tell the truth and shoot from the hip and be able to tell the truth about

jodi hernandez from hayward. how long was this lady getting away with this? a good question, raj. neighbors say they had no idea what was happening here right under their noses. a woman who lives in this apartment complex is behind bars tonight accused of running what could be one of the biggest identity theft operations in bay area history. >> all boxed up, they were here for four and a half hours taking stuff out in boxes. >> reporter: john watched in shock as police raided his neighbor's hayward apartment last week. he said he knew her and her boyfriend had a lot of electronics for their home business, but had no idea what kind of equipment or operation it allegedly was. >> you don't find labs like this making this amount of material to be falsified anywhere in the bay area. >> reporter: you're looking at all the makings of a massive counterfeit operation, the likes oakland police haven't seen before. >> she had the ability within her residence to make checks, credit cards, social security cards, and california identification cards. so it's basically like

nbc bay area's jodi hernandez in san bruno where the emotional ground breaking took place. boy, what significance for one family to start. >> reporter: very emotional. i'll tell you, this family has been through so much. this is the lot where their house of 37 years used to stand. now the husband who lived here barely escaped with his life. i'm going show you something. he managed to get his car and drive away but it was so hot out here, his tires melted a track right down the street. now this family is finally on the path to come home. >> it was our home. i mean, you know, it's no big, fancy house, but this home. >> reporter: nancy hansel says she has a hard time believing the tragedy that wiped out her neighborhood and her home. her san bruno house was one of 38 homes destroyed when a bg&e pipeline exploded last september. >> just wanted to get back home. >> reporter: and soon, she'll be able to. >> it's a start. >> reporter: they became the first family to break ground on a new home today, dignitaries, neighbors and firefighters helped them mark the occasion. >> this is

jody hernandez is at the oakland police department on what happened and why police aren't saying much. >> reporter: jessica, oakland police aren't talking on camera but the family of one of the suspects last night is and they want answers. >> they didn't have to kill him. they didn't have to kill him. they didn't have to kill him. >> reporter: a distraught mother believes police went too far when they say they shot and killed her 30-year-old son, fletcher antwan jackson during a police pursuit in oakland last night. >> i want to know everything, the reason why, how did this happen, please, please. please, please, please. please, god. >> reporter: oakland police declined to talk about it on camera, but in a written release they said it all started when they got a tip a violent crime was about to go down on the block. when they confronted three suspects in a car, they say two emerged with guns. police shot and killed two of the men during the confrontations that followed. >> i mean it just looked like the fourth of july, like somebody was just letting off, you know, fire crackers or som

jodi hernandez reports on the kidnapping case. >> reporter: the family is back together this morning after 36 hours, the baby returned to her home yesterday afternoon. meanwhile, her grandmother is behind bars, accused of kidnapping the baby, then trying to pass her off as her own. >> as soon as she saw us, she was smiles and giggles like her normal self. >> reporter: she is back in her mommy's arms. >> undescribable. the happiest moment of my life. yesterday was the worst moment of my life and today is the best moment of my life. >> reporter: they woke up to find the baby's bassinet empty. the baby was with grandma. the 58-year-old snuck into her son and daughter-in-law's house and kidnapped the girl as the baby slept, taking the baby to southern california by bus and taxi. >> it amazing me it could be so premeditated and someone could think they could get away with it. >> reporter: the story gets stranger. the grandmother's roommate said she was pretending to be pregnant for months, throwing herself a baby shower. >> apparently, there was a band and everything. people brought gifts

reporting live in concord, i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. that hurts. >> wow, that is steep! okay, thanks, jodi. >>> still ahead at 6:00, it's a map without batterieses, without a computer. yes, believe it or not, the project that may be among the first of its kind in the u.s. that aims to bring a bay area community together. how it's helping them find their way. >>> i'm scott budman. it's no longer a hit record, now it's a hit download. coming up, the music and tech summit and how you can benefit. >>> also, you be the judge. is it elitist or simply practical? the controversial new plan for the uc system that could make uc berkeley's tuition even more expensive. >>> and good evening, i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. a great start to the week. we did have some 70s but already starting to cool off with plenty of 50s right along the coastline. we'll talkfor bo raifor ai tomorrow and we're even tracking a few showers that. and your seven-day forecast coming up. to well. >>> well, they have already raised tuitions, cut classes, had layoffs a

jodi hernandez has been covering this. this makes officer number three from three different police agencies. >> reporter: that's right, jessica. the san ramon police chief confirms that a san ramon police officer has been arrested in connection to that law enforcement scandal involving a well-known private eye. chief scott holder announced a short time ago that 48-year-old lewis lombardi and a former member of the narcotics task force was arrested this morning on charges of accessory for aiding and abetting, conspiracy, grand theft, possession of stolen property, and possession of an illegal assault rifle. now, sources say police became suspicious of lombardi after he appeared in an nbc bay area story in march posing as a cheating boyfriend, which turned out to be an alleged publicity stunt for the mommy pi firm. lombardi worked very closely with butler. butler was arrested in february along with narcotics team commander norman welsh on charges of stealing drug out of law enforcement evidence lockers and selling them back

reporting live in san leandro, jodi hernandez. >>> a frightening sight at this mcdonald's, surveillance video showed two bloodied men staggering into the restaurant following a freeway shooting. police say the shooting happened on highway 780 tside vallejo last night. 19-year-old and passenger 20-year-old were driving near the glen cove parkway offramp when a light blue pickup pulled alongside and the driver opened fire. investigators say it was no random attack. >> this isn't a situation where there's just some random person shooting at cars. we believe this was a targeted incident. >> one was shot in the bicep and wrist. he was losing consciousness. his passenger helped drive him four miles to the mcdonald's. he is being treated for major injuries and police are on the hunt for the shooter. >>> every school district is facing problems of chronic absenteeism but oakland is taking a very close hard look at it. oakland studied why students were missing school. the district wants to know whether it's illness for closure or just trying to get a ride for school. chronic absenteeism is defin

jodi hernandez confirmed a short while ago another law enforcement officer is under arrest in connection with chris butler's pi and drug scheme out of contra costa county. you're looking at a live picture of the san ramon police department where a news conference will be held in just a few moments. the officer involved in today's latest arrest is officer louis lombardi from the san ramon police department. he is now the third law enforcement officer arrested in this case, one from danville, prior to that, and, of course, the c-net commander also. we'll have more for you tonight at 6:00. >>> access denied. the pictures osama bin laden's dead body will not be revealed, that announcement from the obama administration that announcement was made today. mr. obama said it was national security, citing the graphic images could create dangerous backlash for the united states. also in closed door briefings today lawmakers learned more about the raid that killed bin laden. the al qaeda leader reportedly had cash and phone numbers sewn into his clothing, signals he was ready to flee. leon panetta sa

jodi hernandez has a copy of that statement.e've been hearing about this for a long time. >> reporter: that's right and today, we got a good look at what christopher butler has to say about it. he describes what happened in his own words. he talks about the alleged brother run and he says his former friend and officer was the one behind it. >> sorry, i can't at this time. >> reporter: private eye christopher butler may not be talking to the media, but he's got plenty so say so investigators. in this statement, he comes clean and dirty duis, drug dealing and running the brothel. >> it really existed. it was an operation for six to nine months and the proceeds went to mr. welsh. he had the expertise in running a brothel. >> reporter: he says it operated out of this pleasant hill store front and was the idea of former commander, norman welsh. he says it opened for business in july of 2009 after the woman hired to run it placed an ad in the adult section on craigslist. >> it's an area of expertise of welsh because he was charged wit