>> kristen welker at the white house. thanks. >>> it's being called one of the worst public school cheating scandals in memory. for years teachers allegedly altered answers on standardized tests to improve results in atlanta. now dozens of educators have been indicted, including a former superintendent. nbc's gabe gutierrez has more tonight. >> reporter: it's one of the largest cheating scandals ever in public education. former atlanta superintendent beverly hall and 34 other educators indicted friday on racketeering charges. investigators say they conspired to erase wrong answers on standardized tests, often for money. >> dr. hall had a contract that was set up to pay her bonuses when she achieved certain results. those results were caused by cheating. >> reporter: the district seemed to be performing well. earning hall half a million dollars in bonuses. she had been named national superintendent of the year in 2009, the same year, prosecutors say, widespread cheating took place. hall has repeatedly denied the allegation

kristen and eric? >> it is 4:38. >> it has been under construction but finally the new 49er stadium has an official address and long time fans will not have any problem remembering where it is. >> hackers targeting celebrities from hillary clinton to jay-z and what they are doing with personal information. first, the tech bytes. >> the administration is demand that china stop hack attacks on companies and government agencies in the united states, the first time the white house has singled out china. a top white house aide says beijing should agree to behave in cyber face. china denies wrongdoing. blackberry's new smartphone debuts next week on at&t and pre-orders have started and blackberry is betting the future on the launch of the z10 and later this year the q10. >> a new camera records every detail of your life automatically. it is small enough to wear and snap as picture every 30 seconds and costs less than $300 and will ship in a month. >> walnut creek, campbell and all the bay area, this is abc7

kristen, i want to start with you. president obama 36 minutes of talking after his meeting with the congressional leaders, including taking four questions, contrast to john boehner's 56 seconds of talking after that meeting. what's the tone in the room? the president struck me as pretty confident in where he stands. tell us what it was like. >> well, i think the president knows that he has the public on his side when it comes to this sequester battle. he has a built-in bully pullet and he's using it. that's why he answered so many questions today. what struck me, chris, he really sort of used familiar talking points. a lot of what we have heard him say when he has been out traveling, selling his message to the american people. an indication that probably not a whole lot actually was, actually got done behind the doors when the president sat down to meet with members of congress. you heard him talk about the fact that he's not going to give in on this issue of new tax revenues and then signaled his strategy moving forwa

kristen and katie? >> next, college students, they are all gearing up for spring break but there are uninvited guests in one state. >> hearing in washington that could have an nfl team searching for a new >> novato, oakland, and all the bay area, this is abc7 news. >> welcome back at 5:14. the head of venezuela develop's presidential guard says chavez died of a massive heart attack of the tens of thousands marched through the streets of the capital alongside the casket yesterday. he is lying in state until the funeral tomorrow. the general was with him when the 58-year-old leader died on tuesday. the general says the final words were "please don't let me die." bay area residents can express their sympathies over his death at the venezuelan consulate in san francisco. any are making a book available for the public to sign through tomorrow. in south florida sharks caused officials to close benches in palm beach. look at these photos taken on tuesday by a of frommer with the palm beech daly news. you can s

kristen and eric?> thank you, leyla. the environmental protection agency is expected to announce new fuel standards today that could raise the cost of gasoline. the "washington post" reports the new standards will force oil refiners to reduce the amount of silver in gas. refineries are critical saying cutting sulpher costs them $2 billion a year. the obama administration says the cost of gas will likely go up by a penny. automakers support the plan because california has already implemented similar sulpher requirements. >> ahead, the united states supreme court justice that now is a crime victim. >> first, thousands of soldiers march in north korea, the new march in north korea, the new threat coming withys of walking to give a breast cancer survivor a lifetime-- that's definitely a fair trade. whoo! you walk with friends, you meet new friends, and you keep those friendships. it was such a beautiful experience. (woman) ♪ and it's beautiful ♪ undeniable (woman) why walk 60 miles in the boldest breast ca

kristen, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. we have fast-moving developments here today. a man that led texas police on a high-speed chase and shoot-out is now being investigated as a possible suspect in the murder of tom clements here in colorado. as you said, the colorado head of the department of corrections was shot here at his front door on tuesday night. at the time a car was spotted idling in the area. today a car matching that description with colorado plates was involved in a routine traffic stop in texas about ten hours from here. authorities say that's when the driver shot at a deputy. then he led authorities on a high-speed chase before crashing into a big rig. they say he then got out of the car, continued shooting at authorities. he was hit. he's at a texas hospital and is considered brain dead. he hasn't yet been identified. he's described as a white male in his 30s, ballistics tests are being done now on those weapons. colorado authorities are also on their way to texas tonight, ian, to try to see if they can de

i just spoke to kristen cunnane's attorney. in his opinion the school district and the cal switch coach kristen cunnane. the key is a former teacher who used to work for the moraga school district. students told her and she complained to administrators that a popular teacher dan witters was abusing them. she said the district didn't respond to her complaints as that teacher says she now feels vindicated when cunnane came forward at least publicly last year. a lawsuit was filed in 2012 against the district. cunnane's attorney wants to get on the with the trial now. the question today was whether it should be dismissed. that's what the district wanted but the judge asked for more information. >> we think the hearing went very well. the judge is obviously giving it serious consideration. we are confident the case will go forward and the trial date will be set shortly. effectively the district is asking for a get out of jail free card. >> reporter: now, cunnane was in court today but did not speak with the media outside afterwards.

kristen and eric? >> we will later a lot more from you, thank you. >> developing in us from san jose this morning where detectives are investigating a police officer's shooting a suspect, the third type it has happened in that city this month our abc7 news reporter katie marzullo is near where the suspect was wounded. >> this scene was only just cleared overnight and it will be a long and thorough investigation because, as you mentioned, it is the third officer-involved shooting in san jose just this month. take a look at this video over the scene about 4:30 yesterday afternoon. you can see a red car in the driveway. that is the car in question. it is reportedly a stolen car. when police came upon it yesterday afternoon they saw a woman was driving. there was also someone in the passenger seat. when police got this, the woman started moving that car and actually hit one of the officers >> the officer was in fear for safety and discharged his firearm striking the driver at least once. the passenger did

kristen and eric?ht california state university system is lifting a travel ban to mexico for 400,000 students in a letter to state leaders. the chancellor said that violence in mexico is down during the past year and he says that travel to mexico by the students still needs to being looked at on a case-by-case basis. before the ban went into affect hundreds of students and teachers traveled to mexico every year. >> lot of ladies like the upscale hip work out clothes but there is a revealing problem facing a popular yoga retailer in the bay area. >> just shear confusion. >> 10 years ago the united states invaded iraq. what americans are saying about the controversial war a >> santa clara, san francisco, east bay, and all the bay area, this is abc7 news. >> a beautiful picture this morning from mount tamalpais on san francisco. we will talk temperatures today. we are going to have more clouds we still have a mile flow from the southwest and that will keep us in the ballpark from yesterday in concord and

kristen? katie? >> researchers have scoffed -- discovered a new type of stem cell from adult breast tissues like embryonic stem cells they can trance form into different types of cells and can be trained to carry out healing work in the body such as heart cells or cartilage. scientists will work to discover the uses for therapy. >> life expectancy is getting shorter for women in nearly half of the counties in the united states. the university of wisconsin study looked at mortality rates the last five years and in 43 percent of the counties mostly in the south and west, life expectancy for women has dropped. disadvantaged white women saw the biggest change but researchers are not sure why. some experts say it could be tied to higher smoking rates, obesity, and less education. life expectancy for men is holding steady and in some places improving. >> coming up, getting rid of red light cameras, the bay area city where drivers may no longer is to worry about that in the sky. >> the city of hayward will

we get a late report from nbc's kristen dahlgren. >> reporter: witnesses say it sounded like thunder -- the ground breaking away, taking one home with it and leaving 33 others perched precariously on the cliff or isolated by the slide after wiping out the single road used for access. no one was hurt but one person had to be evacuated from the home knocked from its foundation. about a dozen others had to rush from their homes. >> this is all i have. it's paid for. >> reporter: the remote whidbey island is a popular vacation destination north of seattle with the slide zone difficult to reach rescue crews are accessing the area through property owned by microsoft ceo steve balmer whose house is, for now, not in immediate danger. reporter eric wilkinson is on scene for nbc affiliate king-5 >> we were down in the slide zone just two minutes ago. we are watching the hillside continue to crumble. every three to five minutes you would see another chunk of dirt just come tumbling down. >> reporter: one home is less than ten feet from the slide. officials call the ground incredibly unstable an

kristen and eric? >> it is 6:02. from contra costa county, a silver alert is issued for missing dan danville man who is, 180 pounds at 5' 7". he was last seen leaving his home yesterday. police soak with him on the phone and he was disoriented. a silver alert is issued from the bay area to son california. if you see it, call police. >> president obama has arriveed in israel three hours ago making the first visit to the country since taking office. air force one landed in tel aviv around 3:15 and the president was welcomed by several israel leaders including president peres and prime minister binyamin netanyahu. the white house says the president is looking to reassure israelis that the united states is committed to supporting their country in the face of any throats. katie marzullo will have more on what is next for the president on his middle east trip coming up in the next half hour. >> the city of santa clara is doing everything it can to lure super bowl 50 to the new 49ers stadium in 2016 includes

kristen and eric? >> 5:18. >> i personally don't know anything about this but more women are choosing beer over wine as beverage of choice. >> and twitter is expecting a windfall from rising ad sales. >> incredible journey this camera took without any human help, how it finally ended up in the hands of its rightful owner. >> on "katie" drew barry more opens up about motherhood and [ dog barking ] ♪ [ female announcer ] life is full of little tests, but bounty basic can handle them. in this lab demo one select-a-size sheet of bounty basic is 50% stronger than one full sheet of the leading bargain brand. bring it. bounty basic. >> welcome back. twitter prospect for going public are looking brighter. the social media company ad revenue could hit $1 billion next year and $1.3 billion the year after mostly from mobile advertising, a steep jump given that two years ago twitter had virtually no ad revenue. they have not released a timetable for initial public offering. >> teens are feeling more optimistic abo

kristen? >> 5:20. anheuser busch is fighting back against claims they watered down the beer and some changes could be becoming to director facebook news feed. the business report is coming up. >> an important new study of adhd in children and how it can lead to other troubles later on in life. >> bay area tech company resets the passwords of millions of users after hackers break in. >> we are coming from the townhall in newtown, connecticut, with the hing just going. we saw light emerging from the how do you get your bounce? i use bounce outdoor fresh sheets because they're just that much fresher and they help keep static off in the cold so my clothes will never embarrass me. mommy, i dressed the snowman! how do you get your bounce? less static year-round. hi, i'm ensure clear... clear, huh? i'm not juice or fancy water. i've got nine grams of protein. that's three times more than me! [ female announcer ] ensure clear. nine grams protein. zero fat. in blueberry/pomegranate and peach. hi, i'm e

kristen and eric? >> looking ahead a few hours to traffic news, the devil slide tunnel on highway one opens tonight after the evening commute bypassing the landslide prone section of highway one. you can see the new tunnels from above, with drivers passing safely through the middle of the mountain and avoid the cliff hangar road which often closes for months at a time. ribbon cutting is scheduled for 11:00 this morning and abc7 news reporter amy hollyfield has more in 30 minutes. >> golden gate bridge crews are working to install 27' sign above the toll plaza this morning to let drivers know that soon paying with cash will no longer be an option. starting on wednesday, the bridge will in longer take cash and there will be no human toll takers. drives have to sign up for fast track, register a credit card account, or expect a bill after they cross. also starting on wednesday the toll plaza speed limit increases to 25 miles per hour up from the recommended five miles per hour now if place. the speed limi

kristen?we have traffic for sue this morning since she is off and we will look at those who are taking mass transit. no real delays. you can see all greens for muni, bart, and caltrain and that is good news. a live shot of the golden gate bridge which is less foggy but fog advisory going on here at the carquinez bridge. >> tonight you could have an uninterrupted dinner and a conversation your kids because it is national day of unplugging, starting at sunset, people are encouraged to turn off their cell phones and walk away from the tablet or computers for 24 hours. experts say important moments are passing us by as we bury our nose in technology. i have only tweeted two things this morning trying to unplug. >> breaking news from the north bay an overnight shooting under investigation in sonoma county. >> a hand was slot and killed overnight in the wine country and deputies say it started when a man kidnapped a woman from san rafael. >> we are tracking developses from in southern california, a

kristen? eric?> drive times right now show 101 is looking good and highway 238 to highway 980, it is 17 minutes and 238 to dixon landing, 20 minutes. friday lite. interstate 80 moving through berkeley, it is light for interstate 80 this time of morning. >> ladies, researchers have found a link between a woman's weight and the amount of housework she does. the report in the san francisco bay jabble suggests women are heavier because they are not doing as much housework these days. in 1965 women spent 26 hour as week cleaning. by 2010 that dropped to 13. the average woman has gained 22 pounds. i am sure there are no other factors involved. a third of all american adults are obese compared to 50 years ago and experiments say both sexes are expanding equally. >> a puppy sold from the tri-city animal shelter has been recovered. the puppy was stolen by a man and a teen and was listed for sale on craigslist. police set up a sting and caught the suspects who were then cited for theft. the animal was returne

kristen?efore you go we foe that one thing he will do the next few days is to move into the papal apartment but what else is on the agenda in the next few days? >> the big item is he wants to meet with pope benedict xvi so we are told that could happen in the next day or two and also the big inaugural mass is now scheduled for tuesday and saturday he will be meeting with the media and answering some questions. >> marci gonzalez, thank you so much. >> that was very important the selection of the pope. time to check in with mike for a look at the forecast. >> we all have bail on our -- baseball on our minds. >> down to spring training in arizona where it rained. it was cold. here? we have live doppler 7 hd putting the cloud cover out there and you can see the national weather services has issued a dense fog advisory for the coast from pacifica to monterey and this is for visibility less than quarter-mile visibility through 9:00. they issued one for the bay water, and the san francisco bay, but w

katie and kristen? >> for people who have had a stroke, the key to coverage could be as simple as taking a walk. researchers in toronto studied 41 stroke patients, the majority who had trouble walking. the patients walked and did strength training for five day as week for six months. they saw marked improvement in physical ability and also in concentration, planning, and organizing skills. >> new york city is one noisy place and now the mayor is trying to turn down your personnel noise. the mayor bloomberg is launching a $250 million campaign to warn teens they risk losing hearing from listening to music players with their earphones at levels above the 85 decibels that experts say can cause permanent hearing damage. this is new york's latest public health campaign following attacks on cigarettes and soda. >> and the bay area pays tribute to two fallen santa cruz police officers. at 5:00 a.m., the small but special ways the community is age them. >> the bay area company sets up to help the people respons

district and may best be known as a whistle blower in a sexual abuse case involving cal swim coach, kristen konane. they told her that a popular science tepor, dan witers, was abusing them. last year, she said she felt vindicated when she came forward. >> my husband came running in when he heard me screaming out. i knew it, i knew it, i knew it. why didn't somebody do something? >> reporter: buchanon said up to 25 years, the district didn't fire her but suggested she take a leave. she released a statement saying in part, i can't believe how

kristen and eric? >> it is 555:10. >> michael jackson's doctor heads back to cork and what he wants from a lo >> benicia, san ramon, san mateo and all the bay area this is abc7 news. >> welcome back on this monday morning at 5:13. it is spring break for san francisco schools. muni will not be offering free bus rides to school. they began offering free bus rides to low-and-middle income students march 1. the 16-month pilot program is funded by $1.6 million in regional grant money. extra buses are add along the busy school routes to accommodate the kids except during spring break. late night bart rides face delays because of work going on inside the tube. crews will continue work on tuesday to make the tube safer in an earthquake. can you expect delays every tuesday, wednesday, and thursday for the next 14 months. one direction of the tube will close during work hours and so trains have to single track phone san francisco and the east bay. >> put down your phone while driving. starting next month thousan

but back to the dinner last night, kristen. i want to play some of the reaction of gop senators as they left that dinner with the president. >> i thought it was a positive, constructive, candid conversation about our debt and our deficit and how we have got to come together in a bipartisan way the address it. it's what the american people expect and deserve and what we focused on. >> i think it was very good for the president to have that dinner. and i think he needs to do a whole lot more of that because relationships matter and building trust and confidence and knowing you're not going to get gamed is a way you get something done for the american people. >> these are very difficult issues but i do think there's real fatigue and just going from crisis to crisis so i think we're -- i think tonight was a good first step. >> speaker boehner says it's a hopeful sign. what's the next step you're hearing, kristen, is likely for the president and the members of the gop here? >> reporter: well, look. i think you are going to see a who

the washington post chris and kristen welker both join us now. kristen at the white house.l, to you is washington changing. one change might be take a look at what john mccain had to say about rand paul, fellow republicans filibuster against john brennan? >> we've done i think a disservice to a lot of americans by making them believe that somehow they are in danger from their government. they are not. so republican on republican friendly fire or not so friendly fire. is this a direct result of the dinner or just long-standing differences that we know exist between mccain and rand paul sfwloosh i think that the latter, andrea. in the wake of this almost 13-hour odyssey, i think a lot of republicans around washington were popping champagne bottles and saying we had a moment here. i think when you see john mccain and lindsey graham basically affirming the obama administration's position on drones, what it tells me is there's very little question in my mind that what happened yesterday was a very -- which he has been as open as anyone. i'm less convinced this was a great thing

kristen? >> thanks, mike, ohio attorney general says the conviction of two high school football players in the rain of a 16-year-old girl will not end the investigation. two teenagers are headed to juvenile jail for at least a year after a judge found them guilty yesterday of raping a girl after an alcohol-fueled party last summer and even posting some pictures on social media. the case has divided the town of since. now, the state attorney general says a grant jury will look into weather other teens, coaches or parents broke the law by not speaking up. >> from greece, a 20-year old greek soccer player is banned for life from representing his country in international tournaments after making this nazi salute to fans. it happened on saturday during a game in athens. we the soccer federation says the salute by the player is an insult to all victims of nazi germany. the soccer player says he had no idea what the salute meant and no feels terrible and he added that he is not a fascist or nazi symp

kristen and eric? >> a bay area business is try dog cash in on the possible labor day weekend run that could take place on the new bay bridge. the chronicle reports that women's running retailer is now offering a 14-week training course for the possible rain with a cost of $150 and the training course includes weekly training sessions, lessons and injury prevention and running gear. they admit there may not be a race. the discussions over the opening of the bridge are still taking place. we are counting the days until the new bridge opens. you can see we are 174 days away >> ahead, the simple steps can you take to make sure that the h.d. picture or your tv pops out. >> what yahoo c.e.o. is now insisting on before hiring any [ female announcer ] there's a great way to make just about anything delicious. simply add jif chocolate flavored hazelnut spread. whatever you put it on... reaches a whole new level of deliciousness. choosy moms choose jif. days of walking reaches a whole new level of deliciousness

nbc's kristen walker. thank you, kristen. >>> joining us, mark ginsburg.nd dana milbank, political columnist for the "washington post." ambassador, if i can start with you, senators lindsey graham and john mccain say if the chemical weapons reports prove true, the president's red line has been crossed. and graham tell s "foreign policy's" josh rogen, we need to come up with a plan to secure these weapon sites either in conjunction with our partners or, if nothing else, by ourselves. what's your reaction to today's developments? >> well, if these reports are corroborated, martin, clearly the situation in syria, which you know you and i have talked about for at least two years, it indicates that, and as we all know, these weapons are not under lock and key. i had revealed in a piece that, indeed, they had been put under control of the besiege and elements of the iranians, revolutionary guards for safekeeping. given the fact hezbollah and any number of terrorist organizations are lurking around one corner or the next of any syrian city, who knows what's going

kristen and katie? >> thank you. the controversy around nascar and why some are upset about an upcoming sponsor. >> another big blizzard is headed east with some areas getting a huge snowy blast. >> but, first, forbes has the new ranking of billionaires and the c.e.o. of heinz talks. >> the dow jones industrial average opened this morning at 14,128, just 37 points from the all-time record set back in october of 2007. heinz got a big golden parachute for the c.e.o. who gets more than $200 million if he is fired or pushed out. part of it is a severance package. >> and the richest billionaire is in mexico with a net worth of $73 billion and microsoft's bill gate is next, at $67 billion. >> starbucks has their first new permanent beverage in 12 years, permanent beverage in 12 years, with hazelnut [ woman ] don't forget the yard work! okay. [ male announcer ] with citibank's popmoney, dan can easily send money by email right from his citibank account. nice job ben. [ male announcer ] next up, the gutters. ci

. >> reporter: kristen came here with her two mothers. >> we grew up in a relatively small town. everyone loved them and have a place to be. >> reporter: because they are in a straight marriage, the defense of marriage act will solidify the ties to kristen much more challenging. >> she doesn't have the same right because both of her parents are treated the same, she's not going to get the same benefits. if one of us -- being able to file jointed for the state. i can't file jointly with the federal government. however i didn't get the benefits for my daughter for school. >> reporter: the law prevents gay couples from receiving federal benefits such as tax break and federal health insurance. >> it breaks my heart. >> reporter: they all want the law overturned. >> we're expected to do the same. >> i have no problem paying my fair share or raise my family. i shouldn't be treated any differently. >> reporter: at usf law professor julie knight said the law could be sent back. lot of technical issues this case as well. that could be the basis for the court to avoid the tough questions.

kristen and eric? >> next, turning your own cells into cancer fighters with a breakthrough for people with a deadly form of leukemia. >> fremont, palo alto, north bay, and all bay area, this is use. >> good thursday morning. now to what could be a major breakthrough, a leukemia treatment is showing promising results. a patient's immune cells were altered to fight a deadly form of leukemia. one patient is cancer free after eight days of treatment. abc7 news' chief medical editor explains this. >> it is incredible, using your own immune system to fight cancer. look at this. they had five patients with untreatable cancer. they used a virus to inject gene material into the patients' white cells to turn them into cancer fighters and they destroyed the cancer cells. >> the doctor says the patients went into remission and spoke to researchers behind the study and will have more on "good morning america" at 7:00. >> sacramento will consider privacy protection for e-mail, a state senator has introduce add bill

kristen and katie? >> 5:02. a big step this morning in the bay area bid to bring the super bowl to santa clara. the major players are gathering at the new stadium in just a few hours. amy hollyfield is there live. what will happen, amy? >> any sour grapes there were about having the stadium move to santa clara will be set aside today. we will see three mayors coming together, the mayors of santa clara, san jose, and san francisco, promoting the idea of having a super bowl right here in this new same. they are promising a dynamic super bowl where you do not have to worry about electricity. they promise you will thought see a power outage like the super bowl in new orleans. the new stadium will have two new electrical substations and solar panels to provide extra energy. the new stadium is about 30 percent complete. it is set to open next year. it will cost about $1.2 billion to build. it is a finalist to host the 2016 super bowl. it is now between santa clara and south florida. this is the first super bowl here i

kristen and katie? >> next a push in sacramento to give you the power to free your cell phone. >> he took the bay area by storm and now at the center of a mystery: >> los altos,ant i don't petaluma, and all the bay area, this is abc7 news. , this morning a new report shows 20,000 illegal immigrants headed to college are applying for financial aid for the first time under the dream act. the new law allows students to get help regardless of their immigration status. our media partner, the "san jose mercury news" reports the california student aid commission expects to award $19.5 million in grants to the newly eligible dream act students. san jose state has already given campus grants and waivers to 83 students. east bay has awarded 40. and cupertino college has raised fees for 139 students. >> another member the bush family is showing new interest in the white house. former florida governor jeb bush is sending new signals he could be interested in a presidential run in 2016. the younger brother of former

. >> eric and kristen? >> more now on breaking news from the delta. fire crews were on the scene of an early morning house fire that spread. it is happening on the island, and at least three structures have burned on taylor road. they got the call at 2:30 a.m. with power lines promising pg&e turning off the electricity. we have a crew headed that way and we will take you there live when the crew is on the scene. >> from contra costa county, a silver alert has been issued for a missing elderly man from danville, 83 years old, 5' 7" and 180 pounds safety seen leave his home yesterday and police spoke to him on the cell phone and he was disoriented. a silver alert is issued for the man from the bay area to southern california. if you see him, call the police. >> the city of santa clara is putting the its money where its mouth is to lure super bowl 50 to the new 49ers' stadium, approving a package of incentives to satisfy the nfl. our reporter is live in santa clara to explain. >> one of the biggest incentives is the beautiful brand new stadium that is go

kristen?> 5:31, right new we go live to breaking news we have been will forking. >> stubborn fire burning in allah made, and our news reporter is live on the scene and joins us with the latest on how the firefighters are doing. >> as you can see as i step out of the way in downtown allah made, this is still smoke and fire in the roof so about 30 alameda firefighters are trying to put out the fire and make sure it is not hiding and make sure that the smoke stops coming from the roof. we will get you to the video of the fire that broke out, and they think in the third story of this three-story building here on park and san jose, above a business, it appears the fire broke out early this morning and no injuries, no word on the cause yet, but residents in the building and neighboring buildings were awoken in the middle of the night with firefighters breaking down the doors and saying "get out i it appears the fire was worse at first and they got it under control quickly. i want to bring in lori wh

kristen and kira klapper? >> more news from florida, authorities in orlando evacuated 500 students from a dorm on the university of central florida campus. police found explosives while investigating the death of a man from a self inflicted gunshot wound. this is new video just in to the abc7 news room. we know that classes have been canceled through 9:00 a.m. our time with counselors available to the student. the explosives were found while investigating a potential suicide. that was next to a body. they found an assault weapon in that dorm. counselors are available to students today. unknown whether the dead man was a student. we will bring you more details on the breaking story as more are available. >> right now, this morning, bart riders will be able to bring bicycles on board at the height of rush how. our news reporter, amy hollyfield, is live with more on the test program. amy? >> move over, bart riders and make real for the bicycles. at least if this week. bart wants do try it out, the largest test so

>> information is still coming in, kristen, but at this hour they have arrested 12 people.y went out looking for some of the most violent offenders in oakland, and these are people wanted for felony, some even for murder. police took this ak-47 out of an oakland home during an early morning raid involving 14 law enforcement agencies including u.s. marshals. >> it is one of the largest sweeps we have done with the help of our federal partners. it is probably the first time that i can recall where we have actually served multiple warrants simultaneously at different locations spokesmanning throughout the buy area. >> oakland police have been sugar landing the round up for six months with suspects waking up to grenades outside their home and a phone call and police announcing on a loudspeaker that the home was surrounded. many of their neighbors also heard the noise. >> it is a lost racket so usually in the morning. >> woman lives down the street from a targeted home on 96th avenue, check out her reaction when we showed her a picture of the assault weapon confiscated. >> it is

kpix5's kristen ayers tells us that investigators pulled out all the stops to get their man. >> police knew their suspect by name. ammar harris' pictures ross billboards in vegas. one week after a deadly shooting and fiery crash on the las vegas strip, they got their man. a team of las vegas police officers and federal agents arrested 26-year-old harris, here at this north hollywood apartment complex. >> there were tips that proved to be beneficial. we use those. >> neighbor, caitlin, was surprised to see fbi agents and officers enter her building. >> i thought that they were just shooting a student film or something. >> she left las vegas shortly after killing kenny cherry. investigators say harris fired from his suv, shooting into cherry's car. barreled through an intersection, hitting a taxi and causing a chain reaction crash. two people in the taxi were also killed. >> i can't imagine anything more serious than firing a weapon from a moving vehicle into another moving vehicle on a corner such as las vegas boulevard. >> harrison was charged with three counts of murder. but authoriti

>> good morning, kristen, here it is, right behind me, today, i am standing in front of it. tomorrow, you will be driving in it. >> beyond being thrilled. such a victory. >> the people will now have this protected tunnel to drive through instead of unpredictable highway one. this stretch known as devil slide would be closed often because of landslides. >> it will be a release to actually know that road is open. you do not have to worry about it or worry that your businesses will sufficient, you don't have to worry you cannot get your kids to school. it will be fantastic. >> caltran says digging the twin tunnels was the biggest challenge the agency has forced. they had environmental issues to work around and it had been a while since they had done this. >> the last tunnel was in 1964 and these are longer tunnels 4,400' long. >> residents played a key role. some said there were times they had doubts this day would arrive but they knew in their hearts they had to keep fighting. >> the resources here are unparalleled throughout the world. they are just irreplaceable. we knew we

the rhetoric is very sort of emotional as kristen said. it's not as political why this would be a good vote. the reality is, for some folks, mark pryor in arkansas or max baucus in montana or kay hagen in north carolina, folks, democrats who are up in 2014. it's not clear that this would be a good political vote. you had congressman beccerra, what he said was great. suck it up, be courageous, do the right thing. that's the argument i think you're going to hear from democrats and from gun control advocates. between now and when we get a vote in the senate. which is put the politics aside and vote on what you think is right. easier said than done and easier for people who are in a safe district, don't have to worry about the re-election, put the politics aside, this vote could wind up hurting politically. >> and speaking of hurting and not hurting politically. ashley judd decides republicaning against mitch mcconnell in kentucky. how relieved is mitch mcconnell, chris cillizza? i'm going to ask you about that. >> sure. >> you broke that stor

kristen ayers shows us they sent a powerful message. >> rodriguez's family has been living in the u.sthey let their visas lapse, they were deported in december and now an unlikely group, a group of children is fighting for their return. first, they stormed the steps of berkeley unified school district. then, the gaggle of fourth graders took to the city council chambers. mounting a campaign to bring this boy, a classmate caught in a deportation nightmare, back from mexico. >> my home is in berkeley. >> he has been living legally with his family since he was 18 years old. he barely speaks spanish, but he and his mother talked to us via skype from mexico where they have been stuck since an expired visa prevented the family to cross the border. >> we want to eat to live better. >> they know they broke the law by not renewing their visa, but classmates from jefferson elementary and their parents. >> people say no, we start fighting. >> are fighting for humanitarian parole. allow the family to return to berkeley. the only home rodrigo have ever known. and tonight, they brought it to the co

. >> i am kristen sze. the cause of the fatal crash is under investigation.re remembering 14-year-old marcus johnson, one of two people killed at the marysville raceway park. his own 17-year-old cousin, chase johnson, was the driver whose car went out of control. cornell, people are familiar with the young driver? >> yes, absolutely. kauai a racing legacy here in northern california. in fact, we are here at the petaluma speedway where the johnson family spent many weekend racing their winged sprint cars. the family now is in mourning over a terrible weekend racing tragedy. the johnson family's muffler shot is a growing memorial to the 14-year-old marcus johnson. he was one of two people killed on saturday by an out of the control race car at a speed p way north of sacramento. the was war driven by husband own cousin who attended petaluma high school. the two were as close as brothers and an investigation into the crash is now underway but the boy's grandfather says that the steering wheel on the car may have come loose. >> it clipped. we have not analyzed the

kristen, hello. >> reporter: lester, good evening. here is the headline.d paul of kentucky won with 25% of the vote, edging out senator marco rubio of florida who garnered 23%. then it was rick santorum in third place with 8%. followed by new jersey governor chris christie, who wasn't invited, he received 7%. former vice presidential candidate paul ryan got 6%. all potential leaders in a party

. >> good morning, everyone, i am katie marzullo, here for kristen sze. the bay area is poised to get something it hasn't had very much of in 2013: rain. you are looking at pictures of the conditions outside right now. on the left is our camera in emeryville with clouds moving in to san francisco and on the rise you can see the cloudy and windy conditions atop mount tamalpais above marin county. our meteorologist, mike nicco, is tracking the storm with live doppler 7 hd. >> thank you very much. winter storms are a big deal but this is a big deal because we have not had significant rain and a record-setting year for the least amount of rain if most of our bay area neighborhoods. live doppler 7 hd shows it is quiet here to the north and the west. there are a few radar returns showing up but it is the radar hitting the clouds because it is far enough away it is the precipitation moving to the ground. individual storms moving from southwest to northeast and the higher lines are slowly sinking to the south. here is why we need the rain. the reason season runs

kpix5's kristen ayers on how it all works. >> reporter: that's right, it was fascinating to learn about how exactly this beautiful display is arranged. an hour into its debut, it is already a source of san francisco pride. it is 1.8 miles wide and 500 feet high and it is the largest led structure in the world and tonight, it came to life. tonight, the bay bridge sparkled. >> it's gorgeous. >> illuminated, 25,000led lights wrapped around cable on the bay bridge. >> it's great that the city puts this on, brings positive vibe to the city. >> this is the culmination of 2 1/2 careers of planning, politicking, and for artist, leo, passion. >> a light has a very universal quality. almost anyone can see it and have response to it. >> it took electricians months from october to january to install every last light and after that, weeks of comprehensive testing. the result, an $8 million piece of public art funded by private donations. the abstract ever changing light installation is meant to capture the very heartbeat of the bay bridge and its surroundings. designed the sequences you see, they ar

for more, we're going to go to nbc's kristen welker who is at the white house.just talking about president obama's event today, the naturalization ceremony a few minutes ago. what is next for him as he tries on this fupush for immigration reform? >> reporter: i think you're going to hear the president continue to make the argument that he made today that he wants to see congress come up with an immigration reform plan by the end of the month so it can be debated next month and then voted on as soon as possible. of course, organizing for action, the president's re-tooled campaign, will also be working on this on the sidelines to put pressure on congress. the president's comments sort of highlight and echo the timeline that senator chuck schumer mapped out this weekend. he is, of course, on that bipartisan gang of eight which is working on immigration reform. he said they are close to getting a plan, a bill unveiled. they hope to get something done by the end of the month. i can tell you, karen, though, in talking to my sources, one of the big sticking points is w

good morning, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm cheryl jennings. that fire injured firefighters and displaced nearly two dozen people. amy hollyfield is at the scene. amy, what are investigators saying about a cause? >> reporter: they say it could have been a malicious act. they questioned someone who heard from someone that they saw something. firefighters say it's not a strong lead, but they are following up on it. it is still early. whatever caused this fire, it did millions of dollars of damage. the fire spread quickly and was aggressive, traveling to three biddle before firefighters could get here. people sleeping woke up and felt a mixture of fear and shock. >> oh, my gosh! wow. you know what, it was so big it was going -- i could see it billowing over to my window, you know. and it was just, wow, humongous. >> reporter: the fire caused significant damage to three buildings. water from the firefighters' hoses flooded the first floor of two other buildings. firefighters determined that the fire started in between two buildings on mckinnon stre

kristen how seriously is the white house taking these threats?to the perspective that we don't know much about the new leader there of north korea, kim jong-un. >> right, it's a great point, thomas. and that is one reason why the white house is taking this very seriously, at the same time trying to reassure its allies in the region that the united states is prepared to protect them if necessary. we got a statement from caitlin hayden overnight. it says we've seen reports of a new and unconstructive statement from north korea. we take these threats seriously and remain in close contact with our south korean allies. but, we would also note that north korea has a long history of bell coast rhetoric and threats, and today's announcement follows that familiar pattern. so again u.s. officials really trying to reassure its allies in the region. but thomas, part of why this is so disconcerting for the white house, this follows a series of provocations by north korea, including a number of missile tests, a rocket launch last december, and north korea just

that's the kind of man he was. >> reporter: kristen dahlgren, nbc new, los angeles. >>> as we mentionedt the very top of the broadcast tonight the health news this evening is this. the number of children with autism in this country may be a lot higher than previously thought according to new research from the cdc. tonight our chief science correspondent robert bazell has a look at what's behind these new numbers. >> reporter: the latest numbers show that autism diagnoses have grown to the point where parents report that fully 1 in 50 school age children has autism. aiden myers was diagnosed two years ago. >> i think it's scary. i think that we obviously need to figure out what is going on. >> reporter: hello, aiden. how do you do? no one doubts aiden myers's diagnosis. he is clearly not terribly disabled. he was late starting to speak and he's working to overcome learning disabilities at the reed academy in new jersey. >> awesome job. >> reporter: the latest numbers from a telephone survey with the federal government showed the highest increases occurring in mild cases like aiden's alon

kristen and eric? >> foreclosed and then a dangerous eyesore, a plan to punish landlords of abandoned homes. >> you can enjoy the giants' game along with other diehard >> saab -- santa clara, east bay, and all the bay area, this is abc7 news. >> good wednesday morning at 4:42 a.m. a live look from the rooftop camera and the ferry building. we will tell you where the fog is and look at traffic and weather. >> more news. in mountain view residents concerned about cancer causing vapors seeping into a neighborhood. residents yesterday across highway 101 received a mailer from the environmental protection agency warning of the possibility of the vapor. people living near the intel building knew a toxic plume had contaminateed their ground water with a vapor that can cause cancer and birth defects. the epa has been monitoring the contamination since the 1980's but in november they found high levels of tce west of the border on google property. >> you could be exposeed and that is a concern if you live in the

kristen? >> thank you, sue. hundreds of women will gather for an annual networking women's conference at the san ramon marriott hotel starting this morning. marlo thomas is the key. ♪ -- is the key note speaker and dan ashley, our anchor, will be the first to. see -- be the first man ever to emcee the event. you can get health information and important screening. >> that is wonderful. what a great man, too, to let that happen. >> going to a giants game or another event at at&t park will now cost you more. you may want to grab some extra change. >> abc7 news goes one-on-one with actor harrison ford and why he was in >> good monday morning at 4:53. at golden gate bridge, traffic is moving fine but mike says you don't have to worry about the rain today. when do you need to start thinking about it? we will check in a moment. sue hall has the traffic coming up. >> parking meter fees are going up around at&t park in san francisco with meter hours extended until 10:00 p.m. monday through saturday around the ballpark at

nbc's kristen dahlgren in colorado springs.risten, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. the suspect in yesterday's shootout in texas has now died from his injuries. we do now know his name as well as those alleged connections to a white supremacist group. tonight a search warrant obtained by nbc news seems to indicate growing evidence of links to two murders here in colorado. [ sirens ] it was a dramatic high speed chase and gun fight, captured on a cell phone. [ gunshots ] a driver firing wildly at texas deputies, striking one before a fiery crash and shootout. the wreckage was a black