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Calif. Wildfires Death Toll Rises

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Another body has been found in a burned-out home in Northern California, bringing the death toll from a wildfire that at 76,067 acres ranks among California's most destructive to four.

Sheriff's officials found the remains at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and believe they belong to 66-year-old Robert Taylor Fletcher, whose home was destroyed by the Valley Fire. He was last seen Sept. 16 but his family last heard from him on Sept. 10.

“Based on the location and evidence found at the Cobb location, the remains are presumed to be those of Robert Taylor Fletcher,” Cal Fire said in a statement.

Officials also said Wednesday that 61-year-old Robert Litchman of Lower Lake is still missing.

A friend, who notified authorities of Litchman's disappearance last Thursday, said he did not have transportation and did not leave his home when told to by law enforcement, Lt. Steve Brooks said. 

Sheriff's detectives went to Litchman's residence and found it had burned during the fire, Brooks said, adding that no human remains were found by detection dogs during a search of the man's property.

Sheriff Brian Martin said Tuesday that his office had received reports of 15 people missing since the fire started. All have been accounted for except Litchman. "We are hopeful these people are located and returned and reunited with their loved ones,'' he said.

The aggressive fire has claimed the lives of three other people. The body of 72-year-old Barbara McWilliams, who used a walker, was found in her burned-down home. The others who died in the Lake County fire are 69-year-old ex-newspaper reporter Leonard Neft and 65-year-old Bruce Beven Burns.

President Barack Obama declared a major disaster on Tuesday for the communities hit by the Valley Fire, which has destroyed at least 1,230 homes. His move releases federal money for recovery and cleanup for the families whose lost their homes.

Residents can apply for grants for home repairs and temporary housing as well as apply for low-cost loans for uninsured property.

Jim Comisky, who spoke on behalf of the South Lake County Fire Protection District at a news conference Wednesday, acknowledged that residents have suffered “horrendous losses.” Nearly 20,000 people were evacuated as the Valley Fire spread and its flames have rendered nearly 3,000 homeless.

He said that county, state and federal officials and representatives of Cal Fire, the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services and Federal Emergency Management Agency will be on hand for a “long time.”

“The relationships we’ve developed over the last four, five, six, seven, eight days are going to carry us through the next couple years in rebuilding our communities that have been lost and affected by the Valley Fire,” he said.

The devastating wildfire that started Sept. 12 stands at 82 percent contained with 118 square miles scorched. Thousands of people fled their homes at the peak of the fire but 4,000-plus firefighters battled the flames round the clock, according to Senator Mike McGuire.

"We are at ground zero of this deadly inferno," he said. "There were nine South County firefighters that lost their homes in the Valley Fire and stayed on the frontlines for the last several days."

Meanwhile, PG&E sent over 1,000 crew members who have replaced roughly 800 poles that were destroyed by the fire, McGuire said, adding that California residents have donated millions to survivors.

"It was devastating to see that it was an inferno of destruction," McGuire added. "If you talk to veterans of Cal Fire or local firefighters in this county, they’ll say they’ve never seen anything like it. The size and speed is unprecedented. In 12 hours, this fire grew to 40,000 acres."

Middletown residents are still returning to what's left of their houses and belongings. Emergency crews have set up places to shower and services for people that lost everything need to get by. The community of Anderson Springs will be able to return home Thursday but the town's water service has not resumed, Cal Fire said.

Nearby in Cobb Mountain, crews still have a lot to do to make the area safe for residents to return. It's one of the last places still closed off to the public.

Governor's Office of Emergency Services Director Mark Ghilarducci reminded Lake County residents whose homes were torched that there is "no silver bullet."

Authorities will use a "patchwork of capability," including hotels, rental properties, trailers and even revitalizing an old resort, to provide housing, he said.

According to administrator Matt Perry, Lake County has suffered a roughly $2.1 million loss in property taxes. That number may climb, officials said, as commercial, agricultural and recreational losses are tallied. 

"The truth is that we are seeing what we expected -- actually more than what we expected initially," Ghilarducci said.

California Gov. Jerry Brown requested disaster declarations for the Valley Fire in Lake County as well as another destructive wildfire in Calaveras and Amador counties, about 125 miles east of San Francisco. Federal officials are still working on the request for a disaster declaration for the communities hit by the so-called Butte Fire, said Kelly Huston, deputy director for the governor's Office of Emergency Services.

According to FEMA administrator Craig Fugate, that both fires are "[symptoms] of the underlying drought," which is in its fourth year and shows no signs of abating. He also stressed that people who live in fire-prone areas must take necessary precautions and respond to evacuation orders in a timely fashion.

"There was no indicator that morning when people got up that they would face the fire that came through their community," he said. "When it was time to act, many of them had little or no time to prepare. It's critical that people prepare, know what they’re going to do, but most importantly, do not hesitate when an evacuation order is given."

Fugate added: "We can always rebuild. We never get a second chance when it’s too late."

People who need assistance can call 1-800-621-3362, register online at www.disasterassistance.gov or by web-enabled mobile devices at m.fema.gov. Disaster assistance applicants, who have a speech disability or hearing loss and use TTY, should call 1-800-462-7585. Those who use 711 or Video Relay Service should call 1-800-621-3362.

The toll-free telephone numbers will operate from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week until further notice. Applicants should be prepared to provide basic information about themselves and their insurance coverage.

NBC Bay Area's Gillian Edevane contributed to this report.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Escondido High School on Lockdown

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Escondido High School was on lockdown briefly Wednesday, police confirmed.

Officers said a 17-year-old called 911 around 1 p.m.

The teenager was stabbed in the arm, police said.

The high school was temporarily placed on lockdown as precaution.

No further information was immediately available.



Photo Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Girl Delivers Shirt to Pope

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A 5-year-old Los Angeles girl delivered a T-shirt with a message to Pope Francis Wednesday as his motorcade traveled in a parade from the White House to a midday prayer in Washington, D.C.

Sofie Cruz was part of group from La Senora Reina de Los Angeles Church at Placita Olvera in Los Angeles that traveled to Washington, D.C. for Pope Francis' first U.S. visit. Sofie, wearing a brightly colored dressed, was scooped up by security personnel who carried her to Pope Francis as his vehicle passed on the street.

She received a kiss and blessing.

In an interview with NBC4 before the trip, Sofie said she wanted Pope Francis to speak personally to President Barack Obama about legalizing all immigrants. Her parents are immigrants from Oaxaca, Mexico, Sofie said.

She didn't get a chance to say anything to the Pope, but told Telemundo that she was happy to meet him and give him the yellow shirt. The shirt included the message, "Papa Rescate DAPA" -- Pope Rescue DAPA, which stands for deferred action for parents of Americans.

The program would extend deportation protections to parents of U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have been in the country for some years, but is on hold after 26 states sued to block it. The Obama administration has repeatedly directed immigration agents to focus resources on serious criminal immigrants, people who pose a national security or public safety threat and those caught crossing the border illegally.

Sofie's father told Telemundo that she also delivered a letter to Pope Francis about the immigration issue. Sofie and her father will appear at a rally and news conference Wednesday evening at the Capitol. Rep. Julia Brownley invited Sophie to listen to the pope's address to Congress on Thursday.

The papal parade was along the Ellipse and a portion of the National Mall. Nearly 18,000 people were expected to line the route to St. Matthew's Cathedral, where Pope Francis was expected to deliver a midday prayer with 300 U.S. bishops.



Photo Credit: NBC
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Petco Park Plans 'Basketball Festival'

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San Diego’s downtown ballpark will trade its field for a court later this year as it hosts the first college basketball game in the venue’s history, plus a week-long festival fronted by a local NBA legend.

The San Diego Padres and NBA Hall of Famer Bill Walton, a proud La Mesa native, announced plans Tuesday to host the “Bill Walton Basketball Festival” at Petco Park – an event featuring youth clinics led by Walton, charity games, community league games and high school basketball games.

The festival will begin Nov. 30, culminating on Dec. 5 at 2 p.m. with the main event: a game between the San Diego State University (SDSU) Aztecs and the University of San Diego (USD) Toreros – the first college basketball game in Petco Park history, announced earlier this year.

Tickets to the big game went on sale for the first time Wednesday. They can be purchased online.

Now, if you’re having a hard time visualizing a basketball game at the ballpark, here’s the game plan on the set-up: Reps say the local college teams will compete on a special outdoor basketball court that will be situated length-wise between third base and home plate. Bleacher seating will be laid out on the field erected around the open sides of the court.

The seats will accommodate nearly 3,300 spectators, supplementing the existing options in the Petco Park seating areas. Capacity for the winter basketball event is set at nearly 20,000.

The Bill Walton Basketball Festival will utilize the outdoor basketball court built on the ballpark’s infield to the max that week.

At a media briefing Tuesday, Walton told reporters the project makes perfect sense.

“This week-long festival of life is basically the second biggest no-brainer in the history of the world. We have all these things coming together and the chance to do something for our community,” he said.

For him personally, the fest combines everything Walton loves all in one place.

“I love San Diego. I love Petco Park. I love the Padres. And, I love basketball,” he said, grinning ear-to-ear.

Padres president and CEO Mike Dee says using the basketball court in more ways than one was always part of the master plan.

“Even before plans for the college basketball game were finalized, we envisioned the court setup being utilized for more than just one day. This is going to be a week full of unique opportunities for groups throughout our community,” Dee explained.

“I'm excited and proud that we will be celebrating so much more than basketball. We are also most fortunate to have the SDSU vs. USD game to spectacularly highlight and anchor all of the things that we live for, believe in and celebrate daily in our beloved San Diego and Petco Park,” Walton added.

The full schedule of events for the Bill Walton Basketball Festival will be announced at a later time. For now, additional information, including a seating map for the game, can be seen here.



Photo Credit: NBC 7 San Diego

Refrigerator, Mattress Removed From Baby Doe's Home

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A refrigerator and a mattress were among the items police removed from Rachelle Bond's home Wednesday as they investigated the murder of her daughter, Bella Bond, a police source said.

"I just saw four detectives carry the refrigerator out and put it on the gray truck," echoed local maintenance man Melvin Smith. "They had to tie it down. They had gloves on."

State police would only officially confirm they executed a new search warrant at the home of the 2-year-old long known as "Baby Doe" on Maxwell Street in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood.

Smith described the refrigerator as "white, about 22 cubic inches, kind of large." He said he felt "sad" that the child's body was allegedly stored in it.

Prosecutors allege that Bella was punched to death in her bedroom by her mother's 40-year-old boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, who had said he would go in to calm down the young girl. Bond told police Bella was fussy and did not want to go to bed.

According to prosecutors, Bond said McCarthy "was a demon anyway," and that "it was her time to die."

Bella's lifeless body, prosecutors say, was put in a plastic bag and stuffed in a refrigerator, where it was left until McCarthy put it in a duffel bag and dumped it into Boston Harbor.

Her body was found on the shore of Deer Island in June.

McCarthy is charged with the murder. He was denied bail Monday. Bond, charged as an accessory after the fact, was held on $1 million cash bail.

The arrests were made after the child was identified on Friday.

Neighbor Anthony Lovell says he only saw Bella outside playing once with McCarthy nearby, and says he became upset when a ball rolled in his direction.

"She had a stick in the grass and she was playing and the ball rolled over to him, and he kind of yelled at her, and that's all I can say about that," Lovell said.



Photo Credit: necn

Dog Falls Off Cliff, Rescued

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A search-and-rescue volunteer rubbed beef jerky on himself to lure a dog that fell 200 feet down an Altadena cliff to get the pooch to come close enough to be rescued late Tuesday.

The pup, a 2-year-old named Angel, amazingly only had scratches on his nose after the tumble.

Francine Banzali said, the dog's owner, said she was walking along a trail with Angel when she suddenly realized he was gone.

She spotted him trapped in a ravine hundreds of feet below her.

"I could hear him crying," she said.

Search-and-rescue crews worked to bring Angel to safety. Rescue crews rubbed beef jerky on themselves to lure Angel out to safety.

A rescuer rappelled down a hill to fit Angel with a harness and lift him to safety.

NBC4 was there the moment when Angel was reunited with Banzali.

"I'm so relieved," Banzali said. "Angel’s got to stay on a leash now."



Photo Credit: KNBC-TV

Shopper Stabbed Outside Grocery Store

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A man was stabbed Wednesday in the parking lot of an El Cajon grocery store.

EL Cajon Police were called to the Food 4 Less on Broadway east of State Route 67.

Witnesses told officers a customer was stabbed in the parking lot just as the store was closing at 1 a.m.

Police officers told NBC 7 the man was taken to a nearby hospital but would not release information on his condition.

The manager of the Food 4 Less told NBC 7 the scene was very brutal. Employees blocked off the location of the attack using shopping carts and safety cones.

The victim told officers one male and one female attacked him. Officers say it’s believed the suspects left the scene in a white vehicle.

No further information was given.
 



Photo Credit: NBC 7

Transformer Explosion Delays Trolley

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A transformer exploded overnight, causing a power outage and delaying trolley service in one San Diego neighborhood, according to transit officials.

The transformer burst in the Logan Heights community around midnight near Evans and Commercial.

A power line above broke and landed on top of the trolley’s power cable, officials said.

Metropolitan Transit System officials say the power line never touched a trolley car.

Passengers aboard one trolley on the line had to wait inside until power was shut off. A bus was brought in to get them to their destination. No one was injured, officials said.

Trolley riders could not use the Orange Line between Euclid and Imperial but MTS provided transportation via bus.

Power was restored by 10 a.m. Trolley service was back up by 10:45 p.m.


Papal Visit Day 3: Francis Addresses Congress

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Pope Francis will make more history Thursday, when he becomes the first pope to address the United States Congress. Here's what's on tap for the pope's last day in Washington, D.C.:

U.S. Capitol, 9:15 a.m.

Expect a 30-minute speech in English when Francis speaks to a joint meeting of Congress Thursday morning, then an appearance from the Speaker's Balcony, where he'll wave to an expected crowd of 30,000 people.

First, though, Francis will meet with Speaker of the House, Rep. John Boehner, who's reportedly been trying to get a sitting pope to come to Congress every year since he was elected, more than 20 years ago.

What kind of reception will the pontiff get before America's lawmakers? At least one Congressman is boycotting the event over the pope's views on climate change.

St. Patrick in the City, 11:15 a.m.

After that grand moment, Francis will travel to St. Patrick in the City, the oldest Catholic parish in Washington D.C.. There he'll speak to clients of Catholic Charities, a group mission-driven to help the poor, including over 120,000 people in the Archdiocese of Washington.

Following a blessing of the chapel, Francis heads to a lunch where he'll mingle among 200 homeless people waiting to be fed. Keep an eye out for his blessing of a statue of "Homeless Jesus."

Want to Watch the Events?

This will be a big day for those of you who like to gather to watch history. Many people will gather on the National Mall to watch the speech to Congress on Jumbotrons; others will gather at the NBC4 viewing event in DuPont Circle (more on that event here).

We will cover all the day's biggest events live with livestreams on our website and in our app. Click here for full coverage of the papal visit.

Departs D.C. for NY, 4 p.m.

It's been a whirlwind few days in the nation's capital, but it's time for the pope to head to the City That Never Sleeps to greet even more eager crowds.

Among his biggest events there: A speech at the United Nations, a visit to a small East Harlem school and Mass at Madison Square Garden. But they'll all pale in comparison to this weekend's massive World Meeting of the Families in Philadelphia.

Washington, D.C., Forecast

Sunshine with a few clouds, and warm with highs around 80 degrees, according to Storm Team 4.

If You're in Town

Check out these tips on how to get around. Still have questions? Here's what you can and can't do during Francis' visit to D.C.

In Case You Missed It



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Health Care Limited for Lifeguard Who Broke Back

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San Diego lifeguard Gareth “Chappy” Chapman broke his back and neck last month rescuing someone at Windansea Beach.

He was hit by a large wave that knocked him into the ground on Aug. 15.

In total, he’ll be out of work six weeks, but will only be receiving $250 in the state’s workman’s compensation program, which leaves him struggling to pay the bills.

It’s part of a problem that the city’s lifeguards are trying to change: to receive the same health coverage as other city workers.

The city covered Chapman’s $100,000 in medical bills, but the lifeguard is still struggling to make ends meet.

“Lifeguarding is a job that we get a lot of injuries,” Chapman said. “Unfortunately we don’t have the same protection as the police or the fire department.”

Sgt. Ed Harris, a spokesman for the Lifeguard Association, a union formed five years ago, wants lifeguards to get presumptive coverage and the same benefits given to other city employees.

“We need guards that will jump into any situation at any time and not worry about if they’re going to be injured or killed,” Harris said. “We don’t have that right now.”

Lifeguards statewide are pushing to get presumptive coverage, which would protect them from health problems or injuries long-term.

Currently, the state’s lifeguards receive presumptive coverage just for skin cancer. City officials say they are in good-faith talks with union representatives on expanding that presumptive coverage.

McDonald's Employee Act of Kindness

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A photo of a Chicago McDonald’s employee helping a disabled customer cut his food has gone viral on social media and now the employee is being recognized by the fast food chain.

The image, which was first posted to Facebook last week, has been shared more than 250,000 times on Facebook and received more than 700,000 views on other social media platforms.

The woman who took the photo, Destiny Carreno, posted that she was waiting in line to order when an elderly handicapped man “wheeled himself over to the cashier” and asked for help.

“Neither of us knew what help he needed, and the cashier suggested a few things before he figured out the gentleman needed help cutting and eating his meal,” the Facebook post read. “To be honest, I thought the cashier wasn't going to help, especially during rush hour in downtown Chicago, but to my shock, he shut down his register and disappeared from view.”

Carreno said the cashier put on gloves, came out from the kitchen and began cutting the man’s meal.

 
 

“At that point, the tears started to gather in my eyes,” she wrote. “My heart was so appreciative for what he did. I couldn't contain my emotions in the crowded restaurant.”

The owner of the McDonald’s where the photo was taken, Rod Lubeznik, said in a statement the company is very proud of the employee, who they identified as Kenny. He added the restaurant chain is “overwhelmed by the positive response [Kenny] has received for his compassion and kindness.”

“It’s a true testament to who Kenny is, and a reminder to us all that one seemingly small act of kindness can touch the hearts of so many,” the statement read.

Lubeznik said the restaurant planned to recognize Kenny during a rewards presentation Wednesday.
 


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Vista Pub Seeks Help Identifying Men Who Burglarized Them

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 A popular Vista gastropub is looking for the public’s help in identifying two men who they say spent nearly two hours burglarizing them Wednesday morning.

Manager and Operator Roger Browning of Flying Pig Pub & Kitchen said two men, caught on a new surveillance system, reportedly broke into their pub in the early hours of the day.

“Being violated like that, it’s just…We trust this community, we’re a part of this community, we never thought something like this would happen,” said Browning.

Browning said the men, one of whom put on an apron to blend in, stole expensive equipment and vintage antiques, including chemicals like dish washing liquid and the dishwasher’s neon green handmade bike.

When he saw the bike was gone, Browning said he knew something had happened.

“Immediately, I knew something was wrong, that something was awry, that we had been burglarized,” he said.

When he and his team went through the footage, he said they saw two men spend two hours going through the pub’s possessions in the back room.

“To watch the footage, it’s just…My advice to everyone would be, lock your stuff up, it’s just unfortunate you can’t trust anyone these days,” Browning said.

Browning said the men took anything they thought would have some type of value.

“For a small business to lose that kind of inventory, it’s tough,” he said. Some of the items they lost were vintage silver plates, vintage ashtrays and items they had obtained over time. 

Since they posted on their Facebook page Wednesday afternoon, Browning said, the support the pub has received from the community has been wonderful.

“It’s just overwhelming, the amount of support,” he said. “And it just kept pouring in and pouring in and pouring in.”



Photo Credit: Flying Pig Pub and Kitchen

Harvard Lets Students Rent Picasso Prints

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Harvard University students will be given the chance to rent valuable original prints from artists like Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Andy Warhol.

The Student Print Rental Program run by the Harvard Art Museums will allow students in university housing to pay $50 to rent an original print, the registrar at the museum, Jessica Diedalis, said. 

This year, a wide variety of modern and contemporary pieces are available, including Warhol's "Fifth New York Film Festival-Lincoln Center" print and Picasso's "Goat's Skull on the Table."



Photo Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Women Accuse Bikram Yoga Founder of Sex Assault; He Denies Claims

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 Women -- including one from San Diego -- are stepping forward with allegations of sexual assault and emotional abuse against one of the world's most famous Yoga teachers, Bikram Choudhury, the founder of Bikram Yoga.

Former Vista resident, Sarah Baughn is one of those women. She said Choudhury and his "hot yoga" method cured her back pain and depression.

"I was completely in awe of this man,” Baughn said. “I was really, really devoted to him as my teacher, my guru."

Hundreds of Bikram "hot yoga" studios are located around the world. The rooms are kept at 105 degrees and very humid. On his website, Choudhury proudly calls his classrooms "torture chambers."

In 2005, Baughn dropped out of college and borrowed money from her parents to enroll in Bikram's teacher training program, taught by the guru himself. She said the training has hardly started, when Choudhury singled her out, telling her, they had met in a past life, that he had feelings for her and wanted a quote "relationship."

Baughn said she always discouraged Choudhury's advances, and reminded him that he had a wife and she had a boyfriend. But Baughn claims Choudhury would not stop his sexual pursuit, and would insist she brush his hair and massage him. “I was shocked, and I was sick,” she said of his unwanted advances. Baughn says Choudhury more than once touched her in a sexual way and even climbed on her, she said.

"It was disgusting,” Baughn said. “I just tried to talk my way out of it."

Torn between her love for Bikram Yoga and her repulsion of Choudhury, Baughn said she stayed in the Bikram Yoga program. She tried to protect herself by never being in the same room alone, with "the master." But, she said it happened anyway, in 2008 in Choudhury’s hotel room in Mexico. Baughn was attending a Bikram teacher training program in Acapulco. She recalled falling asleep in that room with other students, who were watching movies with their guru. In the middle of the night, she said the others left and Choudhury locked the door.

"And when the door clicked, he was on top of me at the door,” Baughn said. “He wouldn't let me leave...He just kept saying, 'I'm going to have you this time.' And he wouldn't respond to anything I was saying."

According to a legal complaint Baughn filed in 2013 in Los Angeles Superior Court, Choudhury "attacked her, pinned her against the door, and sexually assaulted her by kissing her neck, chest and face, and grinding his penis against her leg."

“He made it very clear that he was going to have sex with me,” Baughn said.

She said she forced open the hotel room door and escaped, but the alleged abuse didn't stop there. According to Baughn, Choudhury began insulting her in front of other students, and promised to ruin her blossoming new career as a Bikram Yoga teacher and competitor.

"He told me that if I did not have sex with him, I would not have a chance of winning that competition," Baughn said.

Baughn is one of six alleged victims women represented by attorney Mary Shea, in lawsuits filed against Choudhury and Bikram’s Yoga College of India. They accuse the defendants of sexual battery, gender violence, false imprisonment and other wrongdoing. “It's about the conduct of this person towards six very vulnerable, very vulnerable and innocent women,” Shea told NBC 7 Investigates.

Look below to view the complaints filed by the women and responses from Choudhury and his attorney.

Dana McClellan is another one of the alleged victims, and she’s speaking publicly for the first time about her experience with Choudhury.

"You know, he told me that I was going to be like Mother Theresa, and I was going to influence the world if I only followed him,” McClellan said. But she claims the yoga guru raped her during a teacher training program in San Diego in 2010. McClellan claims Choudhury flattered and touched her and schemed to get her alone.

In her legal complaint, McClellan alleges Choudhury pulled down her pants and forced himself on top of her. She said she begged him to stop and tried to fight him off.

"He didn't take 'no' for an answer," she said.

A spokeswoman for Choudhury declined NBC 7 Investigates’ request for an interview and has not responded to written questions. But in a document filed in response to McClellan’s civil complaint, Choudhury’s lawyer denied all of the allegations. That legal response also specifically claims that McClellan consented to Choudhury’s alleged acts.

In the Baughn case, Choudhury's lawyers have not directly denied the allegations but are aggressively challenging the legal reasoning in the complaint.

But both lawsuits have so far survived those legal challenges. And the two women told NBC 7 Investigates, they’ll keep fighting for justice. "I've realized what a sick person, to take his position of power and switch it around on women, young women and force them to have sex with him,” McClellan said. “Rape. It's rape. That's what it is."

Baughn and McClelland said Choudhury ruined their lives, smothered their self-confidence and trust and left them with deep emotional scars.

"Bikram took away my passion,” McClellan said. “He took away my love for yoga, which is really sad. He destroyed it."

And they said, poisoned their love and devotion to an ancient art of healing.

"That was something I was going to do forever and I had to step away,” Baughn said. “It's a really big bummer that somebody can do this to me and then I have to give up the thing that I love and was really getting good at."



Photo Credit: NBC7
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Enberg Announces 2016 Will Be Final Season

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Legendary broadcaster Dick Enberg announced Wednesday that the 2016 baseball season will be his last as the primary play-by-play announcer of the Padres.

Enberg has been calling games for the Padres since the beginning of the 2010 season. He also worked decades with the peacock network covering various sports from baseball and golf to college basketball and football.

While working on The NFL on NBC, Enberg called 8 Super Bowls.

Enberg received the National Baseball Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award this summer.

He also has received the Rozelle Award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Gowdy Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Enberg began his full-time sportscasting career in Los Angeles working for KTLA television covering UCLA Bruins basketball and later LA Rams and California Angels games over the radio.

After every Angels victory, he would wrap up his broadcast with, "And the halo shines tonight."

60 years after starting his career, Enberg is still one of the deans in sports broadcasting and well-respected throughout the industry.

The latest example of that was on the Fox Sports San Diego broadcast where co-workers complimented Enberg on his announcement on the air before Wednesday’s Padres-Giants game.
 



Photo Credit: Getty Images

One Person Killed in Hit-And-Run

Officer Shot in Neck Injured by Another Officer: SDPD

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A San Diego police officer injured in a deadly officer-involved shooting was hit by another officer's bullet and not by the suspect, San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman said. 

 Officer Heather Seddon, a five year veteran assigned to the Northern Division, suffered a bullet wound to the neck and shoulder on Sunday, May 17. 

After an extensive investigation, San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman said the bullet lodged into Seddon's shoulder came from an officer that was involved in a gunfire exchange with suspect Dennis Richard Fiel, 34, of San Diego, wanted in connection with firing a gun at buildings in Kearny Mesa. 

"The results of the lengthy and thorough investigation revealed the round that struck officer Seddon was fired by a San Diego Police Officer that was actively engaged in an exchange of gunfire with Fiel," Zimmerman said in a statement.

Zimmerman said the investigation also revealed the bullet may have struck another object or person prior to striking the officer. "However, this could not be forensically proven or disproven as a result of our extensive investigation," she said.

The incident started as a high speed pursuit early that Sunday morning, when a gray late model Jeep heading southbound on State Route 163 did not yield to lights and sirens while driving approximately 90 miles per hour, Lt. Mike Hastings said in May.

Officers lost sight of the suspect's car on State Route 163 at the Mesa College Exit. When additional officers assisted, officials found the suspect's car near the 7700 block of Mesa College Drive.

The license plate linked the car to one that had been used in several shootings throughout the City of San Diego over the last several weeks, Hastings said.

The incident turned into a foot pursuit when officers saw a man walking a short distance from where they found the car and officers approached him. The man being chased showed a gun and began firing at officers near Highway 163 at Health Center Drive, Hastings said.

Two officers "fired several rounds" at the suspect, Hastings said, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Two body cameras were on during the incident and footage "captured the entire incident," Acting Captain Mike Hastings said in May. Seddon's camera and Hodge's camera were both on during the incident. The footage will now go to the District Attorney's Office for the investigation.

Two additional officers responded to the scene. Officer Joshua Hodge, a four-year veteran assigned to the Northern Division, and officer Mario Larrea, a five-year veteran assigned to the Eastern Division, both responded. 

Discovered Car May Be Responsible for Bicyclist Hit-And-Run: PD

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 Police say they have picked up a car they believe may be the suspect vehicle involved in a hit-and-run that left a San Diego P.E. teacher crumpled on the ground with a nearly severed foot. 

Carol Lord, a P.E. teacher at Alice Birney Elementary School, was riding her bike at Clairemont Drive and Galveston Street on Thursday, Sept. 17 when a sedan swerved into the bike lane to pass another car, striking Lord, according to her husband Steve. The collision left Carol with a compound fracture and dislocated ankle. 

 Police said Wednesday the damage the discovered car sustained is consistent with evidence from the crash, which includes a missing mirror. They said the car responsible for the hit-and-run was a dark metallic blue 2005 to 2009 Buick LaCrosse and likely had damage to the front bumper, hood and fender. 

Police said they have reached out to the car’s owner. The owner has obtained an attorney and police expect to hear back from that attorney Thursday. The manager of Caliber Collision in Pacific Beach, where the car was found, told NBC 7 the owner said he had hit a pole.

“[The detective] said with 100% confidence that they have matched the mirror left at the scene to the car at a collision scene,” said Steve Lord, the victim’s husband.

Carol Lord is recovering well just days after the accident that nearly severed her foot. She is able to move her toes, but says the road to recovery will be a long one both physically and emotionally.

“It’s when my mind has no other stimulus so I keep replaying things over and over in my mind,” she said.

Both Steve and Carol simply want authorities to find the person responsible so he or she can be held accountable.

“I don’t even want a sorry. I just want them to say yeah I did this. Having that person out on the road and not taking responsibility meaning he can do it again,” Carol said.

A surgeon at Scripps La Jolla Hospital was able to essentially reattach her nearly severed foot to her ankle.

Now comes the recovery, which Steve expects won’t be pretty. Sitting isn’t exactly Carol’s thing.

“This is going to be hard on her,” he said. “She’s not a good patient in that regard, and nobody should have to go through this. Nobody.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Traffic Division Detective Heidi Hawley at (858) 495-7811. 

Pope Elevates Junipero Serra to Sainthood

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Pope Francis canonized the first saint in North America -- Junipero Serra -- on Wednesday afternoon at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., before a crowd of thousands.

Francis celebrated Mass before a large group on a lawn from an altar that had been erected at the east portico of the shrine for this historic occasion.

At the Mass, the Rev. Ken Lavarone from San Diego, who was instrumental in pushing for Serra's canonization, presented the story of the 18th-century priest, detailing his missionary work in California and Mexico and laying the rationale for elevating him to sainthood.

Serra and Francis both come from the Franciscan order with Francis the first Franciscan pope.

The gathered crowd cheered and clapped when Serra was officially named a saint. 

"Today we remember one of those witnesses who testified to the joy of the Gospel in these lands, Father Junípero Serra," Francis said, in Spanish, according to the official translation of his homily.  "He was the embodiment of 'a Church which goes forth', a Church which sets out to bring everywhere the reconciling tenderness of God. Junípero Serra left his native land and its way of life. He was excited about blazing trails, going forth to meet many people, learning and valuing their particular customs and ways of life. He learned how to bring to birth and nurture God’s life in the faces of everyone he met; he made them his brothers and sisters. Junípero sought to defend the dignity of the native community, to protect it from those who had mistreated and abused it. Mistreatment and wrongs which today still trouble us, especially because of the hurt which they cause in the lives of many people."

Read the full text of Pope Francis' Homily from the Canonization Mass 

The canonization ceremony was not without controversy.

To Francis, Serra was one of the United States’ founding fathers, a missionary who brought the Gospel to the New World.

But to Valentin Lopez, the chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band of the Costanoan/Ohlone Indians, Serra was the architect of a brutal mission system that enslaved and terrorized Lopez’s ancestors in California.  

“We’re disappointed but we’re not surprised,” said Lopez, who plans to cut his hair as a sign of mourning. “The church has ignored indigenous people for over 500 years.”

This summer, Francis issued a broad apology for the church's treatment of indigenous populations. 

And Johyn Reyno, a Lakota Indian who lives in Kansas City, Missouri, and who attended the Mass, defended Serra's canonization.

"We've let too much of the secular society bring us to a place where we are no longer spiritual brothers and sisters," he said. "I think really honestly to have somebody give over their entire life, go to another continent and decide that they're going to live a ministry as a missionary, you're not giving over just a little bit. That's not a 40-hour job. And some people get focused on negative things rather than knowing that colonialism and Christianity aren't the same thing."

The Mass drew dignitaries among them Vice President Joe Biden and presidential candidate Jeb Bush. At least two Supreme Court justices were in attendance, Chief Justice John Roberts and Sonia Sotomayor.

"Today feels amazing," said John Liston, executive director of Serra International, a international organization founded in 1935 that promotes priesthood and religious life within the Roman Catholic Church. "It’s the first canonization to take place on North American soil and it’s the patron of our organization. He was the spiritual father of western California and we’re very proud to bear his name."

Earlier Wednesday, on Francis' first full day of his six-day visit to the United States, he was welcomed to the White House by President and Michelle Obama. While there, Francis said that climate change was a problem “which can no longer be left to a future generation.”

American Catholics are committed to a “truly tolerant and inclusive” society in which individual rights must be protected, he said.

He greeted crowds in downtown Washington, D.C., riding in the popemobile along a parade route around the National Mall, and afterward held a prayer service at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle with about 300 American bishops.

Emily Click, the assistant dean for ministry studies and field education at Harvard Divinity School, was in the crowd on the White House lawn. One of the highlights for her was the spirit of the crowd, she said.

"I could just feel the degree to which people really looked to him as a hopeful presence," Click said. "There were little children who were severely disabled and there were elderly people. You saw people who probably don't stand very often getting out of their chairs and standing, I think out of respect."

Francis was greeted at the basilica by about 3,600 American seminarians and men and women novices. Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl and Monsignor Walter R. Rossi, the basilica's rector, accompanied Francis to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel for private prayer.

Francis celebrated the Mass on the steps of the east side of the basilica before about 25,000. The Mass and homily were be in Spanish.

Waiting for him before the Mass, 30-year-old Dari Herrera, a family case manager from Gaithersville, Maryland, at a not-profit social services agency, said she liked Francis’ naturalness and determination to forgo the symbols of privilege.

“He does things the other popes didn’t do,” she said. “He’s so natural and so — he didn’t even want to go in the limousine yesterday."

As a Latino, who is speaking out for the poor and for immigrants, he sends a message especially at a time of divisive debates over immigration, she said.

“For us as Latinos, we feel that he has represented us,” she said. “It doesn’t matter where we are from. We are human beings and we should help each other.”

Twenty-one-year Nallely Arriaga of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, said she especially liked the steps Francis has taken to welcome Catholics back to the church, giving priests the authority for a year to forgive women who had had abortions, for example.

“I think that would open a lot of doors for women who have actually aborted to not feel guilty and to get into church and feel closer to God,” she said.

Francis has praised Serra’s willingness to leave his native Spain for hardships in the New World, asking in a homily in May, “I wonder if today we are able to respond with the same generosity and courage to the call of God.”

The pope said that Serra defended Native Americans against abuses by colonizers and that his writings showed respect for indigenous people and their ways.

Teresa Berger, a professor of Catholic theology at Yale University’s Divinity School said that a number of factors could have drawn Francis’ attention to Serra, among them Francis’ knowledge of the missionary work in the Americas and his devotion to St. Francis.

“There are some things that one can praise in Junipero Serra,” she said. “And those are the things that I think Pope Francis has in his mind. And there are also things that are deeply troubling. And that of course is what particularly Native American communities have in mind because they still suffer the consequences of that.”

Francis has been accused of hypocrisy for planning to canonize Serra after apologizing in June during a tour of South America for the “grave sins of colonialism,” a charge leveled by some Native Americans.

Berger disagreed.

“No, they are just seeing different parts of a complicated legacy,” she said.

Harvard Divinity School Professor Francis X. Clooney said that any choice for sainthood would likely be criticized.

“Rarely, in modern times, do you find historical figures about whom there would not be some controversy,” he said. “Even recently with Pope John Paul II — many people were delighted that he was made a saint, but many people had problems with his papacy and questions about it and wished he hadn’t been made a saint.”

Lopez and other Native American leaders said that ceremony would signal that the Roman Catholic Church still treated Native Americans as pagans and savages. Little has changed since official papal documents or bulls of the 15th century considered indigenous people to be pagans, savages and heathens, he said.

In defending the beating of Native Americans, Serra wrote in 1780: "That spiritual fathers should punish their sons, the Indians, with blows appears to be as old as the conquest of the Americas; so general in fact that the saints do not seem to be any exception to the rule."

Lopez wrote this month in a letter to Francis that Indians were never told that once baptized they were be confined involuntarily at the missions and forced to labor for clergy and soldiers. They were captured violently, enslaved, tortured and raped; their unhealthy diet and squalid living quarters resulted in the deaths of an estimated 150,000 California Indians at the missions.

“How the Catholic Church and you, Holy Father, can consider Serra’s actions to be holy, sacred or saintly is incomprehensible to our Tribe,” he wrote.

The first saint to be canonized in the United States, Miguel Jose Serra was born in 1713 on the island of Majorca off the coast of Spain. He was influenced at an early age by St. Francis, and when he decided to enter the priesthood choose the name Junipero after one of St. Francis' companions.

Serra set sail from Majorca in 1749 and after almost two months at sea, he and other missionaries arrived in Puerto Rico. He traveled on to Veracruz, Mexico, walked 250 miles to Mexico City and eventually made his way to San Diego.

He founded nine missions in California before dying in Carmel in 1784. He is buried under the sanctuary floor of the mission church, Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo.

In California, many streets, highways, trails, schools and monuments bear his name. His statue is one of two representing California in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall along with one of former president and California Gov. Ronald Reagan. Its presence has come under debate as well. Some Californians want to replace him with astronaut Sally Ride, a proposal postponed until after the pope's visit.

Clooney said that the process to sainthood was typically a long one with multiple stages. A religious figure is usually identified by a local church, and when support grows, messages begin to be relayed to the Vatican.

“You don’t go from nothing to being a saint,” Clooney said. “What it’s supposed to be is that the pope and his advisors in Rome are recognizing a groundswell of the local church.”

Because the path to sainthood is complicated, Clooney said that the decision to canonize Serra probably preceded Francis’s papacy.

“The pope didn’t decide ‘Oh I have a trip coming up to the United States – who can we canonize while I’m there?’” said Clooney. “He probably was not the instigator of this in the first place, but allowed the process to be completed.”

But Berger said she thought it was Francis’ decision to move forward with the canonization during this trip. Serra was made “blessed” — the stage before sainthood — in 1988 by Pope John Paul II, and could have remained at that stage indefinitely.

The Vatican has recognized only one miracle performed by Serra, another controversial decision: A nun in St. Louis was cured of lupus after praying to him.



Photo Credit: NBC Washington

Birthday Boys Help Padres Past Giants

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Jedd Gyorko will never forget his 28th birthday.

The Padres infielder collected four singles against the Giants – with the 4th coming in the bottom of the 9th for his 1st career walk-off hit.

Gyorko’s game-winning gapper plated Matt Kemp – who turned 31 on Wednesday and shares Gyroko’s birthdate.

The Giants tied the game at 4 when Craig Kimbrel allowed an unearned run in the top of the 9th. Buster Posey reached on an error by Kemp and later scored on a wild pitch by Kimbrel.

Andrew Cashner pitched six strong innings and only allowed 2 hits and 2 runs against the Giants. His only real mistake was a 1-2 pitch to Brandon Crawford in the 1st inning that the shortstop deposited in right field for a 2-run single.

Cashner continues to be the victim of poor run support. The Padres have scored the 4th-fewest runs for him in the National League.

Rookie outfielder Travis Jankowski atoned for a poor at-bat earlier in the game when he failed to lay a bunt down. In the 8th, he redeemed himself by smacking a 2-run double down the left field line to give San Diego a 4-3 advantage.

The rubber match between the two squads is Wednesday at 7:10.

San Diego’s Ian Kennedy opposes 2014 World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner on the hill.



Photo Credit: Getty Images
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