abc seven news reporter lauren martinez has a closer look. thieves are targeting letter carriers for their mailbox keys. palo alto police and the u.s. postal service are investigating a strong armed robbery that happened at this apartment complex off middlefield road on thursday, police said. the carrier was approached by two men who demanded his postal keys. when they then asked for his wallet and cell phone, a fight ensued and then the suspects fled towards the parking garage. >> these incidents do turn really needlessly violent, so this is not something that carriers should have to be worried about. their job is already physically and mentally demanding, u.s. postal inspector matthew norfleet said. >> this is not the most recent incident. over the weekend, two arrests were made after mail carriers were robbed in belmont and palo alto. >> and in these cases, we're seeing the robbers are also traveling across the bay area using cars that were stolen in the sacramento area, according to the analysis by the abc7 data journalism team. >> in 202

i'm lauren martinez. now to the north bay, where a week of controversy at sonoma state university is culminating with commencement ceremonies today. it comes after the sudden retirement of president mike lee this week. the csu chancellor placed lee on leave after he made a deal with pro-palestinian protesters without proper approval. abc7 news reporter cornell bernard shows us the protests during graduation and has details on the fallout >> hundreds of sonoma state grads rocking their caps and gowns during commencement ceremonies after a dramatic week on campus involving former president mike lee. but alex can't think about that right now . >> today is about me. i'm glad to have my dad here to see me graduate, so that was more on my mind than the school. >> lee's retirement was announced friday by csu chancellor mildred garcia, a day after she put him on leave for insubordination because of an agreement lee made with pro-palestinian student protesters who had occupied an encampment. lee told them he would

. >> abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez spoke with one of the homeowners about a visitor who left its mark. >> surveillance cameras captured a mountain lion roaming through two milpitas neighborhoods. the first sighting was around 2 a.m. wednesday at friendly village mobile home park and so it jumped on that, yeah, nguyen showed us to her backyard, where the mountain lion jumped onto one of their sheds. you can still see it left swipes of paw prints on the sides. >> i was like, freaked out because i was like, that wasn't like it was in front of my, like, window. >> doris fee was sleeping in her room just feet away and never heard anything. >> that's crazy to me that like, some, like a cat so big was like walking through our neighborhood. >> two hours later, around 4:30 a.m, milpitas police said a resident's ring camera captured a mountain lion near fair meadow way that's less than three miles from where the first sighting was captured. >> sightings of mountain lions and residential areas, i would say are are rare. >> the department is deploying thermal imaging drones to s

lauren martinez abc seven news this geomagnetic storm might be really cool to look at, but there are potentially some less cool effects. >> it could disrupt some communications and technology like gps or appliances. >> i would say there's a good possibility, at least in some areas, that there may be some interruptions of cell phone service, tv transmission, uh- power outages, things like that. >> now, if you're worried about a possible power surge or something that could damage your devices, one suggestion is turn off the breaker rather than going around the house and plugging each and every device. all right, let's bring in abc seven news meteorologist sandyha patel. now for more on the northern lights and the first peek at your 24 hour accuweather forecast. sandy. >> yeah, larry, it will be so cool if you can see the northern lights. i want to show you a live picture though, from our emeryville camera and this is a place you don't want to be looking from, which is san francisco, the coastline. because the fog is in. here's a view from santa cruz, where it has been foggy off and on.

of female, trans and non-binary firefighters within its ranks and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinezxplains, they're already seeing a surge in interest in bending the knees a little bit. >> sitting into it. yeah, sitting into it a little bit more. >> you'll get more power that way. the san jose fire department says there's room for everyone to join the fire service this saturday. they're hosting their fifth annual women's plus boot camp, open to those who are gender nonconforming and trans community members. 75 spots were filled within five hours of registration. >> shows that we have a lot of interest, which is really amazing. one of the things that we love to say is that if you can see it, you can be it. >> jennifer haverty is a firefighter emt and joined the department four years ago. >> i didn't know any woman in the fire service before i started, and so it's just not something that we realize is an option. and so once we think about it, how do we get there? >> the boot camp includes a 90 minute circuit training workout, similar to what participants may find at a fire academy. af

i'm lauren martinez. the fire is now out, but the bridge closure, coupled with detours for tomorrow's bay to breakers, has created gridlock in some areas. tonight, the lower deck of the bay bridge had to be shut down as firefighters put out a fire burning right next to the tunnel. the fire started just before three this afternoon. firefighting boats sprayed water on the fire for about an hour. firefighters say high winds plus the steep hillside made the fire fight difficult. it was also bad timing for those leaving the giants game. chp shut down the eastbound lanes of the bridge to give firefighters more space to work. that triggered a backup that stretched for about five miles and spilled onto the streets of san francisco in some cases. now to the north bay, where a week of controversy at sonoma state university is culminating with commencement ceremonies today, it comes after the sudden retirement of president mike lee this week. the csu chancellor placed lee on leave after he made a deal with pro-pales

and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinez explains, the crimes are more dangerous than they mayeem. >> san mateo police are calling a recent string of incidents involving toy guns alarming. on sunday, police received three different 911 calls within three hours from community members reporting being shot at. >> one of the victims thought he was shot with a real gun, so obviously there's mental stress and everything that goes along with being shot with anything. >> police say the suspects used guns similar to this. they shoot out gel filled pellets up to 200ft per second. three people have been arrested, so they're being charged with assault with a deadly weapon, they did shoot the victims in the face. one of the victims almost got shot in the eye. the victims told san mateo police when they were walking, a white bmw sedan would drive near them and a passenger would shoot at them. >> it's really surprising because i've never seen anything like that. i've been here lots of times and it's always felt safe. >> the third incident that was reported on sunday was off monte diablo avenu

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez spoke with his family tonight about chris's legacy of joy. >> when you think of a mother's love, a haunted and creepy halloween display may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but it was for shelley jimenez and her son, chris. >> it was just magical. he he he his face just lit up every single time we came outside. >> chris was born premature and battled major health issues his entire life. >> he had cerebral palsy on his entire left side, and, his lungs were, damaged because he was on a ventilator for almost a year. >> when chris was 15, doctors told his parents, shelley and saul, he wouldn't live to 18. i just learned you just never, ever give up. >> and, i didn't. >> on friday, chris passed away at the age of 29 years old. >> he actually molded my husband and i into the people we are today. >> in 2019, we introduced you to the jimenez family. chris's vision was deteriorating, and at the time he became more housebound, so his mom wanted to bring joy to him. by transforming their front yard in san jose into an elaborate halloween display.

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez is hearing those calls new at 11. >> this is an urgent matterwe need you to deal with this now. not in a week, not in three weeks. >> a brand new paid parking program at downtown san bruno is frustrating. small business owners rebecca milano owns one love cafe, so the biggest issue right now is that people are being forced to pay for a full hour. >> so there is no incremental parking on the main streets. >> on april 1st, the city of san bruno rolled out their pay by plate kiosks on downtown streets and parts of el camino real. in some areas, it requires payment seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. i paid two hours for a 30 minute swim lesson. >> i feel like in san francisco, most of them, it's just like an up arrow down arrow. and you do like quarter of an hour increments. like something like that would be a lot easier. and seems pretty intuitive. >> on wednesday evening, milano hosted a community meeting inside her cafe to address concerns. city council members tom hamilton and marty medina attended. they heard about kiosks not working prope

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez has a closer look at the president's visit and the areas you should avoid. reporter air force one touched down on moffett field in mountain view thursday evening. >> president joe biden deplaned, along with advisers, secret service officers, traveling press and more minutes before the president landed, we spoke with melissa michaelson, professor of political science at menlo college. >> it's a cliche, but we are the nation's piggy back for these campaigns. there's a lot of people here with a lot of money and a lot of interest in who wins these elections. >> the last time the president was in the bay area was in february, when he attended two events in support of his reelection campaign campaign donations are a way of showing how well you're doing. >> it's almost like people are voting with their dollars. >> it is likely we will see other campaigning in the bay area in march, independent presidential candidate robert f kennedy jr announced his running mate in oakland. she's a silicon valley lawyer. >> if you're running a hot senate campaign in m

. >> tonight, abc seven news reporter lauren martinez has more on this. always touching reminder of sacrifice. this time from the crosses of lafayette. our hearts are aching for all those hearts breaking. >> every year, a group gathers at the base of lafayette hillside memorial to reflect and remember those who have died in military service. >> even if it's not exactly a cemetery, it's still a way of memorializing. >> since 2006, wooden crosses commemorating fallen soldiers have covered the steep hill. some are individualized, with photos or different symbols of faith. on monday afternoon, community members held a vigil that included a song for the losses. >> we tally at the end of every may, every memorial day, and brief remarks were given. >> if you want to honor a soldier to be an american worth fighting for, congressman mark desaulnier said he makes it a point to come every year. >> thank you so much. i'm always inspired by coming here. >> edward norman flew from upstate new york to read a poem written by his brother and fellow veteran, fred for when

live from our san jose bureau, lauren martinez, abc seven news. >> lauren, thank you so much. and the healing process for this farmworker community is far from over. but we are seeing change for the better. our abc seven news reporter, luz pena, put together an abc seven special after the shooting about the challenges farmworkers face with housing. it's called hidden crisis. tragedy in half moon bay. you can watch it on demand on abc seven news.com or wherever you stream abc seven news, bay area for new at 11. >> as california moves toward an all electric vehicle future. the state is exploring ways to make up for the gas tax revenue that will dry up. as a result, that money helps pay to maintain the state's roads. it's estimated at around 80% of the repairs are funded by the gas tax. and one thing that's being explored ready for this? taxing drivers by the mile instead of how much gas they use. the state is now looking for drivers to test out some of its alternative plans, with the enticement of a $400 gift card. california's ban on new gas powered vehicles goes into effect in

lauren martinez abc seven news. >> may day rallies and protests were held all throughout the bay area today. crowds not only called for workers rights, but also a cease fire in gaza and ending america's support of israel's response to the hamas attack. multiple messages heard today, in what organizers said was a show of unity by one of the largest rallies, took place in oakland. this crowd of a few hundred marched in a big loop through uptown and back around to frank ogawa plaza, where they gathered for speeches and a big rally in the shadows of city hall. >> well, let's move on. you saw it right here on abc seven. an exclusive interview with wnba star brittney griner about her time in a russian prison. among the topics the americans still held in russia and griner's work now with hostage focused nonprofits. >> you wrote that you were hoping to see someone else on that plane. you were hoping to see paul whelan. >> when i walked on and i didn't see him, i was like, okay, maybe i'm early, maybe, you know, maybe he's next, maybe they're going to bring him next and when they closed the do

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez went to a public forum tonight where people got to weigh in on their priorities, efforts to address community safety are underway in mountain view on thursday, mountain view police and members of the public safety advisory board hosted the first of three forums. >> my hope is they feel better connected to the police department. >> officers answered questions and addressed crime trends. we're suffering from a rise in property crime. >> we're seeing a lot of package thefts and catalytic converter thefts, a lot of auto break ins, auto burglaries when it comes to safety and maintaining local services, the city is hoping to hear from residents they sent out mailers and put an online form where residents can rank. >> what are their key priorities. >> we want to make sure that that the things that we invest in are the things that the community most values. >> on tuesday, the city posted we must make difficult choices about investing in local services soon, but as we plan for our future, we want to hear from you. >> it felt like i my voice wi

here's abc seven news reporter lauren martinez. >> i was born and raised not too far from here. i'm 70 years old, so i'm old. i'm disabled. >> jackie adams lives in his car with his dog, zeus. >> this is my, my best friend, companion. everything >> adams has been unhoused for the past three years. >> most today, i go out and i recycle aluminum cans or whatever to make money so we can eat. >> adams was born and raised in fremont. he parks in city parking lots overnight, where he says he leaves no trace behind. >> no mess, no complaints, no cops at irvington park, a row of rvs and cars are parked inside a neighborhood. >> sheila said they started popping up six months ago. >> the city just, i think, moved or shifted the problem from one place to another. it's been bouncing around. >> mahoney lives across the street. she said the noise and the fumes of the generators have had a big impact on her family's quality of life. >> i am like a prisoner inside my own home. i cannot open the windows of my rooms because of the toxic fumes from the generators that are running in the rvs. it is

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez got an update for you tonight. >> the japanese friendship garden in san jose is lush and serene, but the koi ponds are empty long before alex hirata was a park ranger, she remembers coming to the garden with her mom growing up. >> i remember when these ponds were absolutely full, the city's park department says the ponds have been dry since a flood of 2017, when the pump houses were damaged, and since then the cost for repairs has been slow. when things happen, we get to see those effects for a while after recovery takes time. >> one year ago, park officials discovered 50 koi were stolen from their private holding tanks . harada tells us there's no further information on their whereabouts to date. in 1965, 300 koi were gifted to san jose from the city of okayama, japan. >> so it's actually such a privilege to continue to be part of the history of these parks in such a personal way. well, not every pond is empty. >> one out of the three is still full of koi fish that are descendants from the ones that were gifted back in the 1960s, probably a

. >> and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinez explains, there would still be some limits to how it's viewed on the federal level. a momentous plan is in the works that would change federal rules on marijuana. >> the department of justice is recommending reclassifying marijuana from a schedule one drug that encompasses heroin and ecstasy to a schedule three drug, which includes testosterone and tylenol with codeine. the change would mean marijuana could be lawfully prescribed as medication. this is the most significant move in cannabis. >> this and really drug policy, since the inception of cannabis prohibition and the war on drugs. >> sarah gersten is the executive director of last prisoner project, a national nonprofit organization that works on cannabis criminal justice reform. >> we have people literally serving life sentences for selling $20 worth of cannabis, gersten said. >> even though the vast majority of states have legalized marijuana, generating billions in tax revenue, an estimated 30,000 individuals are still incarcerated on cannabis charges. some lawmakers are work

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez spoke to the city's mayor tonight, who wants an investigation. >> a fire that broke out at sims metal on the redwood city port sent plumes of smoke that reached parts of santa clara county. manuel michelle took these videos. he works at a water recycling plant next door. michelle said workers were advised to put on respirators because of all the smoke. >> this has probably been the biggest fire i've seen. we had to stop for maybe an hour or so while it got contained. >> sims metal is a recycling facility that shreds things like cars, refrigerators, washers and more. the fire broke out just before three wednesday afternoon . redwood city fire said crews put out the fire by six, mayor jeff guy said this is not the first big fire at this facility. i'm disappointed that it happened again, especially since it happened the first time when i was serving as mayor. in 2013, two fires broke out at the recycling plant, prompting public officials to issue more than a dozen safety measures in order to prevent future fires. mayor guy said after wednesday's fi

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on what this historic shift could look like. >> boy scouts of america is changing its name to scouting america, saying it reflects their mission of inclusion. >> we want everybody to be feeling welcomed here, and this is why we need the name change. it's just a necessity. it had to happen. >> the silicon valley, monterey bay council consists of around 8000 scouts. a third are girls 5 to 21 years old. diane betts first joined bsa as a summer camp counselor and now she's the program director. she is inspired by the amount of growth and confidence scouts gain in the programs, enjoying going on a campout, learning how to cook their food over a grill, failing sometimes. betts said the rebrand reflects what the organization has been doing over recent years of opening doors for more people to join. >> i feel like we are always trying to be better in society, in scouting, in life, everyone's trying to grow and this is just our we planted seeds back five years ago, welcoming girls in. we've planted other seeds further back where we made

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on the proud lowrider parade, returning for the first time in over a decade and the change of plan from local law enforcement. >> we're taking over this whole corner from the 680 bridge to king and story. >> after months of planning, final preparations are underway for cinco de mayo festivities in san jose. >> it's going to be a mix of lowriders and different community groups, david polanco, president of the organization united lowrider council of san jose, said. >> this year, the cinco de mayo community parade is making a return on sunday. polanco said it's all thanks to a collective effort. >> i would think we had $0, so it was something, you know, how do we do this? what's the vision? and we figured now it's we just wanted it to be uh- done by the community, for the community, more than 300 lowriders will be cruising from king and alum rock and end at story in king, where 90 different vendors will be set up at emma park. the sharks, you know, they're doing a collaborative effort with the local artists, abraham ortega on a sh

and that's not all the abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more from tonight's events. hoping to be a boost for the downtown scene. >> a new kind of scene is brewing. this is the first year off the grid, a popular food truck market that started in san francisco 14 years ago is now in san jose. they're partnering with gordon biersch, his weekly night market. >> i love it, i feel comfortable i can bring her out. it's every type of food we could try beers and music. it's like pretty nice. every thursday they'll have live music from san jose, jazz and rotating food trucks. i'm a foodie, so i just love food. so yeah, and i like i like it that the trucks are a little locally owned business usually. so i can come support them in downtown. >> the summer block party series returned to. each month through october, a block party will be held to highlight local music vendors, arts and small businesses. >> we just want people to feel welcome. >> at consett barbershop, they brought the chairs outside for exposure. >> we have talent like him that needs platforms and events like this

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has the surprising story. >> a fire that destroyed home depot in san jose revealed dangerous public safety conditions. on monday, the santa clara district attorney's office announced the hardware giant will pay $1.3 million for fire code violations at several locations. this payment comes after investigue auditors looked into the arson that happened at the blossom hill location in april of 2022. philip hurst took this cell phone video. >> crazy. so much fire and smoke . and by the time i walked back up, you know, you couldn't even see the ceiling anymore because it was so covered with smoke. >> rick garcia said he was shopping in the back of the store. >> i don't hear anything in my like, like for a split second, even though i saw the flames, i'm like, am i imagining that? no, there's an actual fire. >> according to the da's office, the store's automatic sprinkler system was disabled and high piles of pallets blocked. responding firefighters from gaining easy access. and it wasn't just this location. 13 other home depot stores across

. >> and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinez explains, there would still be some limits to how's viewed on the federal level. a momentous plan is in the works that would change federal rules on marijuana. >> the department of justice is recommending reclassifying marijuana from a schedule one drug that encompasses heroin and ecstasy to a schedule three drug, which includes testosterone and tylenol with codeine. the change would mean marijuana could be lawfully prescribed as medication. this is the most significant move in cannabis. >> this and really drug policy, since the inception of cannabis prohibition and the war on drugs. >> sarah gersten is the executive director of last prisoner project, a national nonprofit organization that works on cannabis criminal justice reform. >> we have people literally serving life sentences for selling $20 worth of cannabis, gersten said. >> even though the vast majority of states have legalized marijuana, generating billions in tax revenue, an estimated 30,000 individuals are still incarcerated on cannabis charges. some lawmakers are working

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez got an update for you tonight. >> the japanese friendshiparden in san jose is lush and serene, but the koi ponds are empty long before alex hirata was a park ranger, she remembers coming to the garden with her mom growing up. >> i remember when these ponds were absolutely full, the city's park department says the ponds have been dry since a flood of 2017, when the pump houses were damaged, and since then the cost for repairs has been slow. when things happen, we get to see those effects for a while after recovery takes time. >> one year ago, park officials discovered 50 koi were stolen from their private holding tanks . harada tells us there's no further information on their whereabouts to date. in 1965, 300 koi were gifted to san jose from the city of okayama, japan. >> so it's actually such a privilege to continue to be part of the history of these parks in such a personal way. well, not every pond is empty. >> one out of the three is still full of koi fish that are descendants from the ones that were gifted back in the 1960s, probably abo

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on the lasting impact for those who live inside>> as flames tore through the roof of this temple, for people living in a unit above the garage managed to get out safely, fire officials say the incident off foss avenue was reported around 545 monday evening, and it quickly grew to a three alarm fire. >> we need to make sure that things are completely out. the last thing we want is to get a rekindle, so we're going to take our time, put things together in an orderly fashion, get a salvage and overhaul plan, make sure that the fire is completely cold. >> the temple is located on a corner tucked inside of a neighborhood, making it somewhat difficult for first responders to access. >> the major challenge was the fact that this is a large dead end, and so we've actually had to get two elevated master streams in order to what we call surround and drown. we went to a defensive posture. >> members from the buddhist temple are still grappling with the amount of damage the fire caused. one man told me he was one of the four residents inside w

. >> abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez spoke with one of the homeowners about a visitor left its mark. >> surveillance cameras captured a mountain lion roaming through two milpitas neighborhoods. the first sighting was around 2 a.m. wednesday at friendly village mobile home park and so it jumped on that, yeah, nguyen showed us to her backyard, where the mountain lion jumped onto one of their sheds. you can still see it left swipes of paw prints on the sides. >> i was like, freaked out because i was like, that wasn't like it was in front of my, like, window. >> doris fee was sleeping in her room just feet away and never heard anything. >> that's crazy to me that like, some, like a cat so big was like walking through our neighborhood. >> two hours later, around 4:30 a.m, milpitas police said a resident's ring camera captured a mountain lion near fair meadow way that's less than three miles from where the first sighting was captured. >> sightings of mountain lions and residential areas, i would say are are rare. >> the department is deploying thermal imaging drones to searc

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez with a look at what's happening. >> thieves are targeting letter carriers for their mailbox keys. palo alto police and the u.s. postal service are investigating a strong armed robbery that happened at this apartment complex off middlefield road on thursday, police said. the carrier was approached by two men who demanded his postal keys. when they then asked for his wallet and cell phone, a fight ensued and then the suspects fled towards the parking garage. >> these incidents do turn really needlessly violent, so this is not something that carriers should have to be worried about. their job is already physically and mentally demanding. >> u.s. postal inspector matthew norfleet said. this is not the most recent incident. over the weekend, two arrests were made after mail carriers were robbed in belmont and palo alto. >> and in these cases, we're seeing the robbers are also traveling across the bay area using cars that were stolen in the sacramento area, according to the analysis by the abc7 data journalism team. >> in 2023, there were 145 postal robb

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez went to a public forum tonight where people got to weigh in on their priorities, efforts to address community safety are underway in mountain view on thursday, mountain view police and members of the public safety advisory board hosted the first of three forums. >> my hope is they feel better connected to the police department. >> officers answered questions and addressed crime trends. we're suffering from a rise in property crime. >> we're seeing a lot of package thefts and catalytic converter thefts, a lot of auto break ins, auto burglaries when it comes to safety and maintaining local services, the city is hoping to hear from residents they sent out mailers and put an online form where residents can rank. >> what are their key priorities. >> we want to make sure that that the things that we invest in are the things that the community most values. >> on tuesday, the city posted we must make difficult choices about investing in local services soon, but as we plan for our future, we want to hear from you. >> it felt like i my voice wi

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez is hearing those calls new at 11. >> this is an urgent mattereed you to deal with this now. not in a week, not in three weeks. >> a brand new paid parking program at downtown san bruno is frustrating. small business owners rebecca milano owns one love cafe, so the biggest issue right now is that people are being forced to pay for a full hour. >> so there is no incremental parking on the main streets. >> on april 1st, the city of san bruno rolled out their pay by plate kiosks on downtown streets and parts of el camino real. in some areas, it requires payment seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. i paid two hours for a 30 minute swim lesson. >> i feel like in san francisco, most of them, it's just like an up arrow down arrow. and you do like quarter of an hour increments. like something like that would be a lot easier. and seems pretty intuitive. >> on wednesday evening, milano hosted a community meeting inside her cafe to address concerns. city council members tom hamilton and marty medina attended. they heard about kiosks not working properly

here's abc seven news reporter lauren martinez. >> i was born and raised not too far from here.ars old, so i'm old. i'm disabled. >> jackie adams lives in his car with his dog, zeus. >> this is my, my best friend, companion. everything >> adams has been unhoused for the past three years. >> most today, i go out and i recycle aluminum cans or whatever to make money so we can eat. >> adams was born and raised in fremont. he parks in city parking lots overnight, where he says he leaves no trace behind. >> no mess, no complaints, no cops at irvington park, a row of rvs and cars are parked inside a neighborhood. >> sheila said they started popping up six months ago. >> the city just, i think, moved or shifted the problem from one place to another. it's been bouncing around. >> mahoney lives across the street. she said the noise and the fumes of the generators have had a big impact on her family's quality of life. >> i am like a prisoner inside my own home. i cannot open the windows of my rooms because of the toxic fumes from the generators that are running in the rvs. it is extremely

and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinez explains, the crimes are more dangerous than they mayeem. >> san mateo police are calling a recent string of incidents involving toy guns alarming. on sunday, police received three different 911 calls within three hours from community members reporting being shot at. >> one of the victims thought he was shot with a real gun, so obviously there's mental stress and everything that goes along with being shot with anything. >> police say the suspects used guns similar to this. they shoot out gel filled pellets up to 200ft per second. three people have been arrested, so they're being charged with assault with a deadly weapon, they did shoot the victims in the face. one of the victims almost got shot in the eye. the victims told san mateo police when they were walking, a white bmw sedan would drive near them and a passenger would shoot at them. >> it's really surprising because i've never seen anything like that. i've been here lots of times and it's always felt safe. >> the third incident that was reported on sunday was off monte diablo avenu

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez has a closer look at the president's visit and the areas youhould avoid. reporter air force one touched down on moffett field in mountain view thursday evening. >> president joe biden deplaned, along with advisers, secret service officers, traveling press and more minutes before the president landed, we spoke with melissa michaelson, professor of political science at menlo college. >> it's a cliche, but we are the nation's piggy back for these campaigns. there's a lot of people here with a lot of money and a lot of interest in who wins these elections. >> the last time the president was in the bay area was in february, when he attended two events in support of his reelection campaign campaign donations are a way of showing how well you're doing. >> it's almost like people are voting with their dollars. >> it is likely we will see other campaigning in the bay area in march, independent presidential candidate robert f kennedy jr announced his running mate in oakland. she's a silicon valley lawyer. >> if you're running a hot senate campaign in mon

of female, trans and non-binary firefighters within its ranks and as abc seven news reporter lauren martinezlains, they're already seeing a surge in interest in bending the knees a little bit. >> sitting into it. yeah, sitting into it a little bit more. >> you'll get more power that way. the san jose fire department says there's room for everyone to join the fire service this saturday. they're hosting their fifth annual women's plus boot camp, open to those who are gender nonconforming and trans community members. 75 spots were filled within five hours of registration. >> shows that we have a lot of interest, which is really amazing. one of the things that we love to say is that if you can see it, you can be it. >> jennifer haverty is a firefighter emt and joined the department four years ago. >> i didn't know any woman in the fire service before i started, and so it's just not something that we realize is an option. and so once we think about it, how do we get there? >> the boot camp includes a 90 minute circuit training workout, similar to what participants may find at a fire academy. afte

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez spoke with his family tonight about chris's legacy of joy. >>mother's love, a haunted and creepy halloween display may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but it was for shelley jimenez and her son, chris. >> it was just magical. he he he his face just lit up every single time we came outside. >> chris was born premature and battled major health issues his entire life. >> he had cerebral palsy on his entire left side, and, his lungs were, damaged because he was on a ventilator for almost a year. >> when chris was 15, doctors told his parents, shelley and saul, he wouldn't live to 18. i just learned you just never, ever give up. >> and, i didn't. >> on friday, chris passed away at the age of 29 years old. >> he actually molded my husband and i into the people we are today. >> in 2019, we introduced you to the jimenez family. chris's vision was deteriorating, and at the time he became more housebound, so his mom wanted to bring joy to him. by transforming their front yard in san jose into an elaborate halloween display. i asked if that trad

and that's not all the abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more from tonight's eventsping to be a boost for the downtown scene. >> a new kind of scene is brewing. this is the first year off the grid, a popular food truck market that started in san francisco 14 years ago is now in san jose. they're partnering with gordon biersch, his weekly night market. >> i love it, i feel comfortable i can bring her out. it's every type of food we could try beers and music. it's like pretty nice. every thursday they'll have live music from san jose, jazz and rotating food trucks. i'm a foodie, so i just love food. so yeah, and i like i like it that the trucks are a little locally owned business usually. so i can come support them in downtown. >> the summer block party series returned to. each month through october, a block party will be held to highlight local music vendors, arts and small businesses. >> we just want people to feel welcome. >> at consett barbershop, they brought the chairs outside for exposure. >> we have talent like him that needs platforms and events like this to s

. >> tonight, abc seven news reporter lauren martinez has more on this. always touching reminder of sacrifice. this time from the crosses of lafayette. our hearts are aching for all those hearts breaking. >> every year, a group gathers at the base of lafayette hillside memorial to reflect and remember those who have died in military service. >> even if it's not exactly a cemetery, it's still a way of memorializing. >> since 2006, wooden crosses commemorating fallen soldiers have covered the steep hill. some are individualized, with photos or different symbols of faith. on monday afternoon, community members held a vigil that included a song for the losses. >> we tally at the end of every may, every memorial day, and brief remarks were given. >> if you want to honor a soldier to be an american worth fighting for, congressman mark desaulnier said he makes it a point to come every year. >> thank you so much. i'm always inspired by coming here. >> edward norman flew from upstate new york to read a poem written by his brother and fellow veteran, fred for when

lauren martinez abc seven news. >> may day rallies and protests were held all throughout the bay area crowds not only called for workers rights, but also a cease fire in gaza and ending america's support of israel's response to the hamas attack. multiple messages heard today, in what organizers said was a show of unity by one of the largest rallies, took place in oakland. this crowd of a few hundred marched in a big loop through uptown and back around to frank ogawa plaza, where they gathered for speeches and a big rally in the shadows of city hall. >> well, let's move on. you saw it right here on abc seven. an exclusive interview with wnba star brittney griner about her time in a russian prison. among the topics the americans still held in russia and griner's work now with hostage focused nonprofits. >> you wrote that you were hoping to see someone else on that plane. you were hoping to see paul whelan. >> when i walked on and i didn't see him, i was like, okay, maybe i'm early, maybe, you know, maybe he's next, maybe they're going to bring him next and when they closed the door i wa

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez with a look at what's happening. >> thieves are targeting letterriers for their mailbox keys. palo alto police and the u.s. postal service are investigating a strong armed robbery that happened at this apartment complex off middlefield road on thursday, police said. the carrier was approached by two men who demanded his postal keys. when they then asked for his wallet and cell phone, a fight ensued and then the suspects fled towards the parking garage. >> these incidents do turn really needlessly violent, so this is not something that carriers should have to be worried about. their job is already physically and mentally demanding. >> u.s. postal inspector matthew norfleet said. this is not the most recent incident. over the weekend, two arrests were made after mail carriers were robbed in belmont and palo alto. >> and in these cases, we're seeing the robbers are also traveling across the bay area using cars that were stolen in the sacramento area, according to the analysis by the abc7 data journalism team. >> in 2023, there were 145 postal robberie

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez spoke to the city's mayor tonight, who wants an investigatione that broke out at sims metal on the redwood city port sent plumes of smoke that reached parts of santa clara county. manuel michelle took these videos. he works at a water recycling plant next door. michelle said workers were advised to put on respirators because of all the smoke. >> this has probably been the biggest fire i've seen. we had to stop for maybe an hour or so while it got contained. >> sims metal is a recycling facility that shreds things like cars, refrigerators, washers and more. the fire broke out just before three wednesday afternoon . redwood city fire said crews put out the fire by six, mayor jeff guy said this is not the first big fire at this facility. i'm disappointed that it happened again, especially since it happened the first time when i was serving as mayor. in 2013, two fires broke out at the recycling plant, prompting public officials to issue more than a dozen safety measures in order to prevent future fires. mayor guy said after wednesday's fire. city o

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez with why a beach in pacifica is likely one of the most polluted, not just in the bay area, but the country. >> new data is revealing questionable water quality at some of california's beaches. surfrider foundation just released their 2023 clean water report. high levels of bacteria were found at three beaches in california linda mar in pacifica was one of them. sean sewell says he swims here often. >> i guess just a little surprising because the water always looks very clean and always just like, yeah, it always feels super nice. >> surf riders, blue water task force sampled from over 500 sites throughout the us. >> i think number one, it's, you know, being informed, laura diaz with surfrider foundation says the report is to build awareness that stormwater and old sewage pipes contribute to water quality at the beach. pet waste. you know, if you don't, you know, scoop your poop when you take your dog out, then that gets washed down into the water and all all this stuff, you know, pollution ends up in the creek and eventually flows down to the beac

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on what this historic shift could look likescouts of america is changing its name to scouting america, saying it reflects their mission of inclusion. >> we want everybody to be feeling welcomed here, and this is why we need the name change. it's just a necessity. it had to happen. >> the silicon valley, monterey bay council consists of around 8000 scouts. a third are girls 5 to 21 years old. diane betts first joined bsa as a summer camp counselor and now she's the program director. she is inspired by the amount of growth and confidence scouts gain in the programs, enjoying going on a campout, learning how to cook their food over a grill, failing sometimes. betts said the rebrand reflects what the organization has been doing over recent years of opening doors for more people to join. >> i feel like we are always trying to be better in society, in scouting, in life, everyone's trying to grow and this is just our we planted seeds back five years ago, welcoming girls in. we've planted other seeds further back where we made improvem

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on the proud lowrider parade, returning for the first time in over a decade and the change of plan from local law enforcement. >> we're taking over this whole corner from the 680 bridge to king and story. >> after months of planning, final preparations are underway for cinco de mayo festivities in san jose. >> it's going to be a mix of lowriders and different community groups, david polanco, president of the organization united lowrider council of san jose, said. >> this year, the cinco de mayo community parade is making a return on sunday. polanco said it's all thanks to a collective effort. >> i would think we had $0, so it was something, you know, how do we do this? what's the vision? and we figured now it's we just wanted it to be uh- done by the community, for the community, more than 300 lowriders will be cruising from king and alum rock and end at story in king, where 90 different vendors will be set up at emma park. the sharks, you know, they're doing a collaborative effort with the local artists, abraham ortega on a sh

lauren martinez abc seven news this geomagnetic storm might be really cool to look at, but there areotentially some less cool effects. >> it could disrupt some communications and technology like gps or appliances. >> i would say there's a good possibility, at least in some areas, that there may be some interruptions of cell phone service, tv transmission, uh- power outages, things like that. >> now, if you're worried about a possible power surge or something that could damage your devices, one suggestion is turn off the breaker rather than going around the house and plugging each and every device. all right, let's bring in abc seven news meteorologist sandyha patel. now for more on the northern lights and the first peek at your 24 hour accuweather forecast. sandy. >> yeah, larry, it will be so cool if you can see the northern lights. i want to show you a live picture though, from our emeryville camera and this is a place you don't want to be looking from, which is san francisco, the coastline. because the fog is in. here's a view from santa cruz, where it has been foggy off and on. s

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has more on the lasting impact for those who live inside. >> as flames tore through the roof of this temple, for people living in a unit above the garage managed to get out safely, fire officials say the incident off foss avenue was reported around 545 monday evening, and it quickly grew to a three alarm fire. >> we need to make sure that things are completely out. the last thing we want is to get a rekindle, so we're going to take our time, put things together in an orderly fashion, get a salvage and overhaul plan, make sure that the fire is completely cold. >> the temple is located on a corner tucked inside of a neighborhood, making it somewhat difficult for first responders to access. >> the major challenge was the fact that this is a large dead end, and so we've actually had to get two elevated master streams in order to what we call surround and drown. we went to a defensive posture. >> members from the buddhist temple are still grappling with the amount of damage the fire caused. one man told me he was one of the four residents inside

abc seven news reporter lauren martinez with why a beach in pacifica is likely one of the most pollutednot just in the bay area, but the country. >> new data is revealing questionable water quality at some of california's beaches. surfrider foundation just released their 2023 clean water report. high levels of bacteria were found at three beaches in california linda mar in pacifica was one of them. sean sewell says he swims here often. >> i guess just a little surprising because the water always looks very clean and always just like, yeah, it always feels super nice. >> surf riders, blue water task force sampled from over 500 sites throughout the us. >> i think number one, it's, you know, being informed, laura diaz with surfrider foundation says the report is to build awareness that stormwater and old sewage pipes contribute to water quality at the beach. pet waste. you know, if you don't, you know, scoop your poop when you take your dog out, then that gets washed down into the water and all all this stuff, you know, pollution ends up in the creek and eventually flows down to the beach

live from our san jose bureau, lauren martinez, abc seven news. >> lauren, thank you so much.nd the healing process for this farmworker community is far from over. but we are seeing change for the better. our abc seven news reporter, luz pena, put together an abc seven special after the shooting about the challenges farmworkers face with housing. it's called hidden crisis. tragedy in half moon bay. you can watch it on demand on abc seven news.com or wherever you stream abc seven news, bay area for new at 11. >> as california moves toward an all electric vehicle future. the state is exploring ways to make up for the gas tax revenue that will dry up. as a result, that money helps pay to maintain the state's roads. it's estimated at around 80% of the repairs are funded by the gas tax. and one thing that's being explored ready for this? taxing drivers by the mile instead of how much gas they use. the state is now looking for drivers to test out some of its alternative plans, with the enticement of a $400 gift card. california's ban on new gas powered vehicles goes into effect in 2

abc seven news south bay reporter lauren martinez has the surprising story. >> a fire that destroyedn san jose revealed dangerous public safety conditions. on monday, the santa clara district attorney's office announced the hardware giant will pay $1.3 million for fire code violations at several locations. this payment comes after investigue auditors looked into the arson that happened at the blossom hill location in april of 2022. philip hurst took this cell phone video. >> crazy. so much fire and smoke . and by the time i walked back up, you know, you couldn't even see the ceiling anymore because it was so covered with smoke. >> rick garcia said he was shopping in the back of the store. >> i don't hear anything in my like, like for a split second, even though i saw the flames, i'm like, am i imagining that? no, there's an actual fire. >> according to the da's office, the store's automatic sprinkler system was disabled and high piles of pallets blocked. responding firefighters from gaining easy access. and it wasn't just this location. 13 other home depot stores across santa clara c

lauren martinez abc seven news. >> so exciting for the people who got a chance to see it in that way. we've seen some gorgeous images of those northern lights and lisa, we were talking earlier. sometimes with the eclipses and now northern lights here in the bay area, we don't always get a chance to see them because of our fog, which we're known for. >> so true. i know maybe if i got up an hour earlier, but that wasn't going to happen because the fog did roll in and that really obscured the viewing along the coast parts of san francisco. but early on, yeah, some definitely some good pictures. and inland we're looking at them now. and boy, they are certainly magnificent. as we look at the visible picture, you can see all the fog up and down the california coast from the bay area, all the way down to los angeles. we get in closer and, you know it has been with us for the past several days. our heat peaked on wednesday and thursday can, depending on where you were. it was 77 on thursday, half moon bay. it was 87 yesterday. redwood city and san francisco has been dropping since about thurs

lauren martinez, abc seven news. >> lauren, thank you so much for that update. that fire still smoldering yet? >> it was burning for quite some time. so we want to check in now with meteorologist sandhya patel to see what kind of impact that smoke might be having there. sandhya. yeah. >> julian and omar, let's take a look at the visible satellite picture. >> the last couple of hours as that fire has been burning right here in the port of redwood city. it has been picked up by the satellite picture. the wind direction is actually transporting that smoke has been transporting that smoke down the peninsula and into the parts of the south bay official reporting agency, which is air now, is showing good to moderate air quality. but purple air is actually showing deteriorating air quality across parts of the south bay and the peninsula. so best advice from the bay area air district is to stay inside with doors and windows closed. if you smell or see smoke. >> julian good advice. thank you so much sandhya. former oakland police chief laurent armstrong is ready to turn