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Officials ID Man Killed on Walk With Dog

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Officials have identified a San Diego man who was struck and killed by a car while walking his dog Friday night.

Stephen Todd Fisk, 49, and his dog died following the collision around 9 p.m. in the Scripps Ranch community.

According to the San Diego Police Department, Fisk and his dog were crossing Spring Canyon Road near Sunset Ridge Drive. Fisk was not using a marked crosswalk when a car traveling eastbound struck him, police said.

The driver stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators. The investigation is ongoing, but police do not believe drugs or alcohol contributed to the deadly crash.

In their search for witnesses, investigators said no one actually saw the collision, but rather witnessed more of the aftermath and called 911 to report the critically injured man in the street.



Photo Credit: NBC 7

Driver in Zombie Walk Crash Takes the Stand For Last Time

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The driver who plowed through a group of people during a 2014 Comic-Con "Zombie Walk" downtown said Monday he didn't believe a sign language interpreter taking his police report understood what he wanted to say when filing the report. 

Matthew Pocci is on trial for a felony reckless driving charge. The case hinges on whether he plowed through the group out of anger and frustration or was frightened and intended no malice. 

Pocci said the officer who took his police report at the time misunderstood some of the things he was trying to communicate. 

"I'm fluent; I use my body, I use my signs, I use my facial expressions for everything," Pocci said through an ALS interpreter. "And how he was trying to interpret what I was saying, I'm not really sure that he got everything correct."

Pocci said when he looked back over the police report, he was surprised. 

"When I saw the police report, I said, 'I never said that,'" Pocci testified. 

San Diego Police Officer Jeff Gross, the officer Pocci was referring to, testified that at the time of the accident he was ALS certified after he passed a test about a decade before the crash, but did not have required classes to keep his certification updated. 

At the scene, he spoke to Pocci, his girlfriend April and her sister briefly. They were moved to Downtown headquarters for a longer interview because Pocci feared the crowd would hurt them. 

Gross did not record the interview or take notes, but later used his memory to write a report. 

Gross said he thought Pocci signed the word "anger" but asked for clarification and spelled out "frustration" by signing. Pocci was "frustrated" because he couldn't communicate with the crowd the way he wanted to. 

Officer Paulette Sotuak also took the stand, right before Gross. She testified she dated Pocci in the 90s for about three months before she got pregnant. Their son is now 23 years old.

She testified Pocci gets angry easily and they both have strong minds and strong beliefs, which caused them to struggle -- it was one of several reasons why their relationship ended.

She said her anger with Pocci stemmed from him trying to manipulate and control situations.

On the stand, Pocci testified about his knowledge of traffic situations. He said that at a stoplight, pedestrians have the right of way, but at an intersection, both cars and pedestrians have the right of way as long as the traffic is controlled, based off his understanding. He did not believe it was illegal to honk if he feared for his safety.

Witnesses in the trial are being asked to figure out when Pocci's fear came into play and whether it was before or after he restarted his car engine and drove forward. 



Photo Credit: NBC 7

American Voters Angry, Dissatisfied Ahead of Election: Poll

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Americans are angry and dissatisfied with politics and the nation’s direction, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

Only 27 percent of Americans feel the country is headed in the right direction. Fifty-four percent of Americans are critical of the economy and the political system, NBC News reported.

The dissatisfaction carries over to both political parties and their 2016 candidates, NBC News reported.

The most unpopular political figures were Donald Trump and Jeb Bush, while the most popular were Ben Carson and Bernie Sanders. The poll showed Americans believe the economy is still the number one issue affecting the country.

Voters were split, 45 percent to 45 percent, over the party they want to control Congress after next year's elections.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Woman Guilty of 1st Degree Murder in Ex-Boyfriend's Death

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 A young woman accused of committing the "ultimate act of obsession" -- stalking, harassing and shooting her ex-boyfriend -- was convicted of first degree murder in his death, a jury decided. 

Vegas Bray, 24, was found guilty of first degree murder and a gun allegation for shooting to death her ex-boyfriend, Victor Saucedo, in his own apartment.

Deputy District Attorney Harrison Kennedy accused Bray of committing the “ultimate act of obsession” when she allegedly entered Saucedo’s apartment and shot him nine times with hollow point bullets.

Kennedy said that Bray used a .38 revolver, and had to reload the gun to continue shooting Saucedo.

Bray was taken into the Sheriff’s Department for questioning immediately after the shooting on Tuesday, but was arrested shortly after.

At her arraignment, Bray appeared emotionless but confident in court as she pleaded not guilty in front of over a dozen of Saucedo’s friends and supporters. Many of those friends described Bray as a volatile ex-girlfriend who allegedly stalked Saucedo for months before his death.

Saucedo, 28, was recently out of the military and was working and going to school to support his 7-year-old son, who spoke during an emotional candlelight vigil.

His friends told NBC 7 that he had struggled with Bray since they broke up about a year ago. At one point, Saucedo even moved to a different apartment to try to avoid her.

“She wouldn’t leave him alone. They broke up. She couldn’t get over it,” said the victim's former fiancée Zulema Reyes in a previous article.

During the readiness hearing, Kennedy agreed that Bray was trying to rekindle her relationship with Saucedo.

According to the Sheriff’s Department, Saucedo reported vandalism to them multiple times. The calls were investigated, but no one was arrested and authorities did not identify a suspect.

Reyes recalled damage from eggs, paint, vinegar and jelly jars thrown at Saucedo's home. She blamed Bray for those incidents.

Saucedo’s best friend Jeremiah Messenger told friends that Saucedo didn't think officials took him seriously because he was a man complaining about a woman. Because there was no physical harm to him and no one else had witnessed it, there was nothing they could do, Messenger added.

According to several of Saucedo’s friends, Bray, pictured right, was employed at “Little Darlings” adult cabaret in Lemon Grove and was a former sailor in the Navy.

Court records show she had a traffic violation in 2008 and an arrest for grand theft in 2007 in which she pleaded no contest to petty theft. As a result, she paid a fine and attended shoplifting rehabilitation program.

In response to the allegations against Bray, her mother previously told NBC 7 that she was likely trying to defend herself, and that she would have never commit such an act unless the circumstances were dire.

She will be sentenced Jan. 8. 
 

Rain, Cooler Weather in SD's Forecast

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Northern and central California residents are getting rain in the winter storm of the season.

While the system will lose much of its steam before it arrives in Southern California later this evening, spotty showers are likely.

On Monday evening, a storm front will push through San Diego and bring winds along with a chance of scattered, light showers.

In the coast and valleys, a tenth to .20 of rain may arrive. In the mountains, isolated areas may see a half-inch of rain. There's another chance of rain between Tuesday afternoon and early Wednesday.

A cold front coming from the Pacific Northwest has already dropped some rain in the Sacramento region, according to the National Weather Service.

Some cities in the San Francisco Bay Area have already seen nearly an inch of rain.

Forecasters said the storm could dump up to 8 inches of snow at about 7,000 feet in the Sierra Nevada, and possibly up to 12 inches of snow along the highest mountain peaks.

After 10 a.m. Monday, a wind advisory will go into effect through Tuesday. Westerly wind gusts to 35 mph are possible. This could cause blowing debris, so drivers are urged to exercise caution, especially while traveling through mountain passes.

A small craft advisory has also been issued for our coastal waters, from 1 p.m. Monday until 6 p.m. Tuesday. The advisory covers the ocean from San Mateo Point to the Mexican border, extending out more than 30 miles. Gusty conditions and high waves will make for hazardous sea conditions.

"After 4 p.m., our chances of a shower start to increase, with the tail end of the storm system swinging through between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Mainly light, scattered showers are expected," said NBC 7's Meteorologist Jodi Kodesh.

While all areas will be gusty during this time frame, mountains will remain under a wind advisory through the overnight hours.

Temperatures will drop off 20 degrees for some inland areas over the next couple of days. And along with this cooler weather comes a chance for showers Monday night through Wednesday morning.

We're not expecting great rainfall totals over that period of time as the rain is expected to be scattered and light, but the cooler, breezy weather will be the biggest change.
 

'Death to America' Not Meant for Its People, Says Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei

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Those "Death to America" chants often shouted in Iran? They're not about what you might think, according to Iran's supreme leader, NBC News reported. 

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday that the slogan — a frequent feature of anti-American rallies in Iran — was aimed at the U.S. government and not its people.

"Your 'Death to America' slogan, and the cries by the Iranian nation, have strong logical support behind them," he told Iranian students in Tehran, according to The Associated Press. "Obviously by 'Death to America', we don't mean death to the American people. The American nation is just like the rest of the nations. It ... means death to U.S. policies and its arrogance."

Relations between the U.S. and Iran have improved somewhat under current President Hassan Rouhani and with the announcement of a nuclear deal this summer.



Photo Credit: File--AP

Spotting a Victim of San Diego's Human Trafficking Industry

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She’s looking down, avoiding eye contact and defers to an older man to see how to respond. He’s not dressed for the weather and not in possession of his own travel documents. She’s having trouble at home and finds herself alone at a trolley stop.

These are all red flags of a sex or labor trafficking situation that you can help identify and report, Chief Deputy District Attorney Summer Stephan said.

Sex trafficking in San Diego County is a $810 million industry largely run by local gangs, according to a recent report by the University of San Diego and Point Loma Nazarene University. The report details how as many as 11,700 girls, who are on average 15-16 years old, fall victim to the lifestyle every year.

According to local law enforcement officials, if you incorporate labor trafficking to these figures, the numbers would surely skyrocket, although a comprehensive local study on labor trafficking has yet to be published.

Sometimes trafficking is associated with chains and a locked room, but Stephan said it’s more out in the open than many may think. According to a 2012 SDSU study, labor trafficking is most prevalent in San Diego’s construction, restaurant and hospitality sectors.

“A good 71% of victims of labor trafficking come to this country on legal visas,” she said.

The problem is so rampant, the District Attorney’s office is working with the county’s hotel/motel industry to train employees how to identify and report trafficking activity. Several airlines are also training employees.

NBC 7 reached out to every airline at Lindbergh Field. The companies that responded to say they’ve implemented training to specifically combat trafficking include British Airways, Southwest, Alaska Airlines and American Airlines. Many of them partner with the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign.

“With labor, we’re looking for people who are not in control of their identification. They’re not in control of visas and their ID cards. Someone else is speaking for them, “ Stephan said.

She said many labor victims don’t know they’re victims. They’re told they owe debt and have to work to pay it off.

“If a trafficker says you have to pay a debt, in the U.S., that's peonage [debt slavery]. That’s illegal,” she clarified. “You can’t be forced to pay a debt through labor.”

According to the recent USD trafficking report, local gangs are seeing sex slavery as a bigger money maker than drugs. The study estimates pimps make nearly $600,000 a year.

Stephan said common areas for sex trafficking recruitment include malls, high schools, trolley and bus stops. Local experts said this is happening all throughout the county and pimps especially target at-risk children and runaways.

To spot a potential victim, Stephan said you should look to see “if she’s looking down and not making eye contact, and if there’s an older male with her and you say ‘Hello,’ and she doesn’t respond. Tattooing or branding. Anything with a money symbol."

Tiffany Mester was trafficked for two years in San Diego.

“Even when I got out of the lifestyle, I wasn’t fully ready to admit I was a victim until about a year later,” she said.

Mester and Stephan are working to convey, when it comes to trafficking in San Diego, perception is usually not reality. You don’t always see chains and shackles. Often, the chains are psychological.

If you see a potential trafficking situation and you believe it’s an emergency, don’t hesitate to call 911 or local security, according to Stephan. If you have more of a suspicion, you can call the Polaris Project at 1-888-373-7888 to reach experts. Law enforcement will be able to survey, and if warranted, take action. 

If you are a victim of trafficking, you can call that number or text LOST or INFO to the number 233733 or BeFree. You will reach a specialist who will assist you in planning your escape and/or connect you to services in the your area.

Stephan said 60% of cases are solved because a community member reported something.
 

San Diego Earns Another Meeting With NFL

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 The City and County of San Diego will have another chance to pitch their stadium idea directly to the NFL. 

On November 11 in New York, The Los Angeles, Stadium and Finance Committees will hear presentations from San Diego, St. Louis and Oakland.

This is the first time Oakland will be addressing the league directly with a stadium idea. The city was not asked to make a presentation at an owners meeting in August because it had not made enough progress on a stadium plan.

San Diego and St. Louis have already discussed their proposed stadium projects with the NFL. There will be no votes or other decisions finalized at the committee meeting.

This is likely a good sign for all three communities hoping to keep their NFL franchise. This decision comes on the heels of public hearings held a week ago in all three cities so it appears each community presented itself well enough for the league to want to hear more.

The plan the San Diego reps will be presenting is for the Mayor's Mission Valley site, not the recently proposed Downtown site.


Deer Photobombs Infant's Photo Shoot

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A scene fit for Disney is one way to describe a photo taken by a Louisiana photographer showing a sleeping infant and an approaching doe.

Megan Rion, the owner of Imagine That Photography, a business that specializes in photographs of newborns and children, captured a serene moment on Oct. 20, between Maggie, a photogenic deer from Louisiana's Sam Houston Jones State Park in Moss Bluff, and a sleeping infant. Rion said that while she was prepping for the Connor Rogers 1-month birthday photo shoot, the deer came from behind them.

"My assistant grabbed an ornamental piece of corn to turn her more facing the camera," Rion said.

The photo is featured on Imagine That Photography's Facebook page and had nearly 2,500 likes and 1,934 shares as of Tuesday afternoon.

The deer has previously appeared in seven of Rion's photo shoots and has its own album on Rion's page. Rion said the doe will let you feed her by hand and pet her head and behind the ears before disappearing back into the woods. She will stay for up to 15 minutes, Rion said.

Sometimes other deer will come with her, but none will get as close as Maggie does, she said.

Rion said that Tiffany Gill Rogers, Connor's mom, was in awe of how calm the deer was as she approached them.

Maggie, was dropped off in the park when she was younger, Damion Saizan, a worker at the state park said. The doe was already weaned when it appeared.

"We have no idea who dropped it off," Saizan said. "It must have been bottle fed by people when it was a baby."

Saizan said visitors at the park often take pictures with the deer and post the photos on social media. Maggie can easily be spooked he said, but there is no concern over her interaction with humans.

"She's just another deer at the park. She just so happens to be friendlier than others," he said.

Rion said she can spot Maggie because of a notch in her ear. She plans to return to the park for shoots and hopes that the doe will continue to appear for photos. 



Photo Credit: Imagine That Photography by Megan Rion
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Pentagon: Russia Has New Syrian Base

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Pentagon spokesperson Capt. Jeff Davis denied Russian media reports that the U.S. and Russia conducted a joint training exercise over Syria today, saying that they did do a communications test but there was no exercise, NBC News reported.

Davis said that at roughly noon Qatar time one U.S. fighter aircraft conducted a three-minute planned communications test with one Russian fighter aircraft in the skies of south central Syria —as part of the provisions of a flight safety memorandum of understanding agreed to by both nations.

"The test was conducted. This test was a prudent measure solely to ensure that, in the event coalition aircraft encounter a Russian aircraft during operations in Syria, one of the established and agreed upon modes of communication in the agreement functioned," Davis said in a statement.



Photo Credit: File--AP

'Chiraq' Trailer Released

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The first glimpse into Spike Lee's film "Chiraq" was revealed to the public Tuesday as the official trailer was released.

Punctuated by the sound of gunshots, the trailer confirms the film's focus on gun violence in Chicago. It opens with a narrator saying, "Homicides in Chicago, Illinois, have surpassed the death toll of American Special Forces in Iraq," followed by the proclamation, "Welcome to Chiraq." 

The film is set to be released on Dec. 4 in select theaters, according to an Instagram post from Lee on Friday.

During the filming and the days leading up to the film's release, Lee offered few details about the plot or nature of the film. A May report from Screen Daily, however, claimed "Chiraq" would be a reimagined production of the ancient Greek comedy "Lysistrata," a story in women withhold sexual privileges to try to stop the Peloponnesian War. Clips in the "Chiraq" trailer appear to confirm this report. 

The movie was filmed in Chicago over the summer with many Chicagoans standing in as extras. It features several stars, including Nick Cannon, Wesley Snipes, Jennifer Hudson, Teyonah Parris, Samuel L. Jackson and John Cusack, who appears to be a priest and activist, according to a shot in the trailer.

"Chiraq" is a slang term some use to compare America's third largest city to a war zone because of its violent crime. Its use as the name of the film was criticized heavily by some politicians, including Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who said it denigrates residents of Englewood and surrounding areas, where much of the movie was filmed.

Lee tried to quell the onslaught of criticism in May by telling Chicagoans to "see it first" before they offer negative comments.

"A lot of things have been said about this film, by people who know nothing about the film" Lee said in a past news conference. "A lot of people have opinions about the so-called title of the film. Again, they know nothing about the film." 

The film, released by Amazon Studios, is the first-ever Amazon Original Movie. The company said the movie could be Lee's "greatest, and definitely his boldest, film yet." 



Photo Credit: Getty Images
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Bus Hits, Kills 70-Year-Old in NYC

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Disturbing surveillance video shows an MTA bus hit and kill a 70-year-old woman as she tried to cross a Brooklyn street Tuesday, then drive away.

The video obtained by NBC 4 New York shows the woman in a green sweatshirt standing on the side of the road at Fulton and Sackman streets in the Ocean Hill section of Brooklyn, waiting for cars to go by.

As she starts to use her walker to move across the street, the bus, which is not in service, pulls into the intersection from across the street and moves to make a left turn in her direction.

The bus plows into her just as she crosses the double yellow line, sending both the woman and her walker flying. The bus stops briefly, the video shows, then pulls around the victim and drives off down the street.

"He stopped and then started going on so I don't know if he was nervous or he didn't realize," said Eli Fulton, who owns a lumber shop in the area.

The woman, identified by sources and neighbors as Carol Bell, was pronounced dead at the scene. A crumpled, broken walker sat in the roadway as authorities cordoned off the area with police tape.

The MTA said the bus was returning to the East New York depot after finishing a B15 run at the time of the crash. The MTA said the bus driver, who the agency identified as Paul Roper, has been suspended without pay pending the outcome of the investigation.

Roper was charged Tuesday with leaving the scene of an accident, a felony, failure to yield and other traffic offenses. He said nothing as he was led from the police precinct. It wasn't immediately clear if he had an attorney.

Roper's mother and brother said he has been driving for at least 15 years. They said they didn't believe he saw the victim, and declined to comment further. 

Friend Raymond Jemmett told NBC 4 New York said Roper would never take off after knowing he'd hit someone. 

"I don't know how this tragedy happened," he said. "I heard him say he didn't see it. And I believe him, I don't think he seen the person."

Those who knew the victim, including Jennifer Gonzalez, described her as a "very sweet lady." Gonzalez said the woman lived at a women's shelter a block and a half from where she was killed.

Friend Tracy Harvey added: "She was a sweetheart. A sweetheart." 



Photo Credit: NBC 4 New York

Northwest E. Coli Cases From Chipotle Jump to 37

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The number of confirmed and presumed E. coli cases across Oregon and Washington state has jumped to 37 from 22 — with the majority linked to Chipotle restaurants, health officials said Tuesday.

Chipotle said eight restaurants are involved in this outbreak in Washington and in metro Portland, NBC News reported, although the company over the weekend closed 43 of its locations across both states as a precaution. They all remained shuttered Tuesday, and the number of people affected by the bacterial illness could rise as people show symptoms following an incubation period that could stretch as long as 10 days, health officials said.

"We offer our deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by this situation" Chipotle co-CEO Steve Ells said in a statement Tuesday.



Photo Credit: AP

New Restaurant to Open in Hillcrest

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San Diego’s hip Hillcrest neighborhood will welcome a new restaurant this season: an eatery opening at the site of a highly-anticipated, new development project.

TRUST Restaurant will make its grand debut at the end of November at the “Mr. Robinson” building at 3752 Park Blvd. and Robinson Avenue – the site of a seven-story development that also includes 29 residential units, office suites and commercial spaces.

The eatery is spearheaded by Executive Chef Brad Wise and General Manager Steven Schwob, both alums of Eat. Drink. Sleep., the brand behind San Diego favorites like JRDN at Tower23, DRAFT and Cannonball.

According to media relations representatives for TRUST, the restaurant’s menu will boast seasonal, shareable plates prepared with local ingredients, as well as locally-produced craft beer and wines from artisan producers around the world.

One of the dishes, pictured left, combines roasted peppers with sweet garlic, wild mushrooms, cured olives, herbs and shaved grana Padano for a fresh, tasty treat.

San Diego Eater reports that TRUST will take up residency in a 2,687-square-foot space at the Mr. Robinson development that includes a 1,300-square-foot patio.
 



Photo Credit: TRUST Restaurant
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Jury Deliberates in 'Zombie Walk' Trial

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Juror deliberations resumed Tuesday in the trial of a deaf driver who plowed through a group of people in the streets of downtown San Diego during a 2014 Comic-Con “Zombie Walk” event, seriously injuring one woman.

The fate of Matthew Pocci, on trial for felony reckless driving, will be decided shortly. The case hinges on whether Pocci drove through the group of Zombie Walk participants out of anger and frustration, or whether he was frightened and intended no malice.

On Monday, Pocci took the stand for the final time, recounting his side of the story. He testified that he didn’t believe a sign language interpreter helping with his police report on the day of the accident understood what he wanted to say when filing the documents.

"I'm fluent; I use my body, I use my signs, I use my facial expressions for everything," Pocci said through an ALS interpreter. "And how he was trying to interpret what I was saying, I'm not really sure that he got everything correct."

Pocci said when he looked back over the police report, he was surprised.

"When I saw the police report, I said, 'I never said that,'" Pocci testified.

San Diego Police Officer Jeff Gross, the officer Pocci was referring to, testified that at the time of the accident he was ALS certified after he passed a test about a decade before the crash, but did not have required classes to keep his certification updated.

At the scene, he spoke to Pocci, his girlfriend April and her sister briefly. They were moved to Downtown headquarters for a longer interview because Pocci feared the crowd would hurt them.

Gross did not record the interview or take notes, but later used his memory to write a report.

Gross said he thought Pocci signed the word "anger" but asked for clarification and spelled out "frustration" by signing. Pocci was "frustrated" because he couldn't communicate with the crowd the way he wanted to.

Over the course of Pocci’s trial, witnesses from both sides have testified, including Cynthia Campbell, the woman badly injured in the crash. Campbell was photographing the Zombie Walk event when she was hit by Pocci’s vehicle and was caught underneath the car.

During Campbell’s testimony, Pocci wiped tears from his eyes as the victim recounted the terrifying ordeal.

Prosecutors argue Pocci was angry and impatient when he ran into Campbell and others at the event, but the defense argues Pocci was frightened by the group dressed in zombie costumes and he panicked when he accelerated through the crowd.
 


Slain Boy's Mom Pleads for Info

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The mother of a 9-year-old boy who was fatally shot in Chicago this week gave an emotional plea Tuesday asking for someone to come forward and help find her son's killer.

"Please come forward and find whoever did this to my baby," Karla Lee said as tears rolled down her face. "Oh my god I love my son. I'm going to miss him."

The 9-year-old boy was fatally shot in an alley in Chicago while still in his school uniform late Monday afternoon, and sources say the young boy may have been targeted.

Fourth-grader Tyshawn Lee was in a Gresham neighborhood alleyway near his grandmother’s home around 4:15 p.m. when he was shot multiple times in the head and back, police said.

"He was supposed to play ball. That's all he do, all he liked to do is play ball and play video games," Karla Lee said. "He didn't hurt nobody. I don't know why this happened."

Dawn Valenti, a crisis responder who assists families in the aftermath of a homicide, called the shooting "another hard blow for our city."

"We just ask that the city stand up, get rid of the code of silence," she said. 

The shooting came less than two hours before a young model was shot blocks away, just weeks after she was crowned the winner of a renowned modeling contest. 

Last week, President Barack Obama addressed the gun violence afflicting his hometown and urged cooperation between police officers and communities.

"I live on the South Side of Chicago, so my house is pretty close to some places where shootings take place," Obama said. "Because that's real, we have to get on top of it before it becomes an accelerating trend."

In September, the city saw one of its most violent months in years, with two consecutive weekends of more than 50 people shot. In a single day, on Sept. 2, nine people were killed and at least 12 others were wounded in shootings across the city, making it the deadliest day in the city in over a decade.

"Please put the guns down, please," Karla Lee pleaded. "They're taking too many young lives, please. I'm only 26, this is my only baby, my only baby and now he's gone."

Chief of Detectives Constantine "Dean" Andrews said at a Monday night press conference they don’t know if Lee was hit by stray bullets or if he was targeted, but they do know a group of people had previously been in the alley where his body was found when an argument broke out and someone started shooting. After the murder the group fled the scene. 

Sources said authorities are working on two theories surrounding the boy’s killing.

One theory is that the young boy was walking through the alley when he became caught in the middle of an argument. A second theory is the boy was the intended target in the shooting.

“Somebody executed a baby,” Father Michael Pfleger from Saint Sabina Church said during a press conference Tuesday afternoon.

Pfleger revealed Tuesday afternoon that a reward for information leading to an arrest in the case had climbed to $20,000.

Lee was a student at Scott Joplin School, where his teachers say he was a "delight" to have in class. He liked to play sports and video games.

"Whoever it is just please turn yourself in because you have hurt a family," Stephanie Lee, the boy's cousin, said. "You have hurt a family deeply. You have destroyed a family."

Anyone who may have information about the incident is being asked to call (312) 747-8271.
 



Photo Credit: NBC 5 Chicago

USPS to Dedicate Stamp to Coast Guard

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The United States Postal Service (USPS) will bestow an honor on the U.S. Coast Guard at a special ceremony in San Diego this week, dedicating a Forever Stamp to the branch of the Armed Forces.

The stamp dedication is set to take place Thursday at 10 a.m. at the Coast Guard Hangar in downtown San Diego. The stamp – which depicts the Coast Guard’s cutter Eagle, a three-masted sailing ship known as “America’s Tall Ship,” and a MH-65 Dolphin rescue helicopter – honors the role of the U.S. Coast Guard in protecting the security of our nation.

The ceremony will be attended by USPS San Diego District Manager James Olson, San Diego Postmaster Lisa Baldwin and representative from the Coast Guard.

According to U.S. Coast Guard officials, on an average day, branch personnel help more than 300 people in distress and investigate more than a dozen maritime accidents, among other daily duties. In San Diego, local Coast Guard crews are often called upon to help rescue passengers from boats or ships in need of medical evacuations at sea.

Today, the Coast Guard is made up of more than 49,000 active-duty men and women.
 



Photo Credit: United States Postal Service

Ex-Taco Bell Exec Charged in Attack on Uber Driver

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A former Taco Bell executive was charged with assault and battery Tuesday in an attack on an Uber driver in Southern California that was caught on camera, prosecutors said.

Newport Beach resident Benjamin Allen Golden, 32, faces four misdemeanor counts, including battery on a public transit employee with injury, assault on a public transportation property, assault and battery, according to the Orange County District Attorney's office.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of a year in jail and a $10,000 fine, prosecutors said.

The Costa Mesa Police Department said Golden had been arrested on charges including public intoxication, but prosecutors declined to pursue that charge.

Golden was not in custody as of Tuesday afternoon; he could not be reached for comment. Prosecutors planned to request Golden be held on $20,000 bail at his arraignment Nov. 17.

Video captured on the Uber car's dashboard camera shows a passenger identified as Golden striking the driver in the head and pulling his hair.

"He was grabbing my head and was trying to smash it against the window," said the driver, Edward Caban.

Caban then sprayed the passenger in the face with Mace.

Caban said the incident began when he went to pick up an "incredibly intoxicated" man near Baja Sharkeez on the Balboa Peninsula.

Taco Bell on Monday said it had fired Golden, who served as the chain's mobile experience and innovation lead, according to an online bio discovered by CNBC.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



Photo Credit: Costa Mesa Police Department/Edward Caban

Pilot Genomics Research Program Aims to Cure Diseases

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 A new genomics research program in San Diego will use blood donation centers and donors to study our DNA and come closer to curing diseases.

The San Diego Blood Bank (SDBB) announced the community-driven program Tuesday for collecting genome research. The study comes after President Barack Obama announced the Precision Medicine Initiative in his State of the Union address earlier this year, an initiative meant to find new ways to cure diseases.

“It's really about not only saving lives today with a blood donation, but with an extra tube of blood potentially saving millions of lives if new diseases are discovered or new drugs discovered,” said David Wellis, the CEO of the San Diego Blood Bank.

The program will give blood donors a detailed blueprint of their DNA by sequencing their genes. DNA sequencing provides people with a detailed picture of how their genes are arranged and gives people a wealth of genetic information. The process is not new to scientists, but the access they will have to a variety of diverse genomes will be in a unique way.

The SDBB will partner with Illumina, Private Access, Genetic Alliance and researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine and Harvard Medical School, as well as local healthcare providers and academic research institutions, over the years. 

Blood donors that want to have a larger impact on their community's health will be able to play a larger role in that process. 

“It’s tapping into our infrastructure and part of our community that hasn’t been tapped into this way before for our nation’s future health,” said Wellis.

He told NBC7 this new model program will be a catalyst for improving genomics research. The infrastructure for such a program already exists at blood centers, so it came down to a matter of cost.

The pilot program will develop a model for population-scale research. By looking at DNA over a 10-year span of time, researchers will be able to analyze a diverse set of genomes that can ultimately lead to insight into the causes of diseases like cancer and diabetes -- with the hopes of finding a cure faster. At the same time, blood donors participating will bypass a normally costly procedure and learn about their individual and family health for free.

“It truly is the only diagnostic test you do once and it's good for the rest of your life, and so as new discoveries are made, you can go back to your blueprint, your DNA sequence, and see if you have some predisposition to disease or see if a drug might work better for you,” Wellis said.

The study will take center stage at the Chargers Blood Drive XXXVII on Nov. 24, when up to 100 pre-selected, consented pilot study participants will donate an extra tube of blood. Their blood will then be sequenced for the study and the information stored on a controlled informatics platform.

“In many science research projects and clinical trials, the true diversity of the community is not reflecte,” Wellis said. “However, if you look at our ethnicity and diversity of our blood donor populations it mirrors perfectly the community.

If the program is successful in San Diego, it may become a model for other programs across the nation.

For more information, visit the Blood Bank's website or call (800) 4-My-SDBB (469-7322).



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Scattered Showers Possible in San Diego

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Rain greeted San Diegans Tuesday morning as a cold front brought windy, scattered showers across Southern California.

Cool air over warmer waters will create pop-up showers off the coast with little pockets of rain possible.

The county could see thunderstorm activity after 10 a.m. through the evening, according to NBC 7 Meteorologist Jodi Kodesh.

“Some of you might get mist today others might get a thunderstorm," Kodesh said. “That’s the nature of this storm system."

The southern part of San Diego County could see the most rain, she said.

Winds will subside after 9 a.m.

Kodesh suggests grabbing a jacket and an umbrella before leaving the house this morning. 

Download the free NBC 7 mobile app to stay updated on the weather.

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