A man accused of severely beating an autistic patient appeared in court on Monday morning to begin trial.

Michael Garritson, 50,  and 27-year-old Matthew McDuffie were caring for 23-year-old Jamie Oakley. Jamie is a man with severe autism who can't verbally communicate, has to wear a diaper and tends to injure himself when he's distressed.

Garritson and McDuffie were allegedly caught on camera beating Oakley while his family was overseas. Kimberly Oakley said a camera she used to monitor her son captured evidence that Garritson and McDuffie abused Jamie.

Oakley's attorneys told jurors on Monday that Jamie was dependent on others to care for him round the clock. Oakley testified that her son has severe autism and childlike behavior.

She also said the family typically has five caretakers at a time to care of Jamie. She says their purpose is to treat her son with respect, protect and keep him safe. Oakley also claimed Garritson's two sons also cared for Jaime.

Garritson's attorney said Garritson has 30 years of experience in the nursing business, but Jamie was the first autistic patient he ever cared for. His attorney claimed Garritson did not abuse Jamie, and also said Oakley deleted some portions of the video, leaving gaps.

Investigators in the case said they captured more than 2,000 images of abuse.

Garritson has pleaded not guilty to seven felony charges of abuse and his bail is currently placed at $200,000.

Emergency 911 calls from the night two hikers called to report they "wandered off" an Orange County trail indicate the teens feared they may not "make it to the morning" as search teams were grounded because of weather conditions.

Audio: Excerpt From 911 Call

On the March 31 911 call, Nicolas Cendoya, 19 reported that he and 18-year-old and Kyndall Jack were lost in the Trabuco Canyon area of Cleveland National Forest in the Santa Ana Mountains. The disptacher can be heard asking whether they remembered passing several reference points and explaining that search crews were limited to a ground search during that night because of fog.

"We wandered off the trail," Cendoya said. "I don't even know if we're going to make it to the morning because we have no water."

Their cell phone died after the call, during which they can be heard calling for help. They told the dispatcher they could not hear search crews, who also were calling out to them.

The two, both inexperienced hikers, departed on what Jack told friends was an "adventure" -- a dayhike along popular Holy Jim Trail. During Sunday night's 911 call -- before the two were separated -- Cendoya told the dispatcher they were less than one mile from a trail. The dispatcher attempted to find out how far from the trailhead the two went off the trail.

"We went like a mile from my car," Cendoya said.

"You said you're at the top of a mountain?" the dispatcher asked.

"The very, very top," Cendoya answered.

Cendoya was found Wednesday night about 500 feet up a steep ridge off Trabuco Creek Road. Rescuers had to cut through brush to rescue him. He was released from the hospital Sunday.

Jack, rescued at mid-day Thursday, remained hospitalized Sunday. At an afternoon press conference outside the hospital, she said she felt lucky to be alive and thanked her rescuers.

She said she had no memory of the ordeal other than that she and Cendoya wanted to climb to the top of the canyon before nightfall.

"I thought I was in a big dream," she said. "We wanted to touch the clouds."

Both were severely dehydrated, disoriented and covered in scratches and bruises after a series of cold nights waiting for rescue.

Firefighters worked overnight to "get a handle" on a 170-acre wildfire that began on a hillside in the southern California community of Fillmore and burned two homes amid strong wind gusts.

The fire started before 5 p.m. and prompted a 400-firefighter response overnight that threatened about 100 homes and prompted evacuations. Containment was at 80 percent early Tuesday and the evacuation order was lifted.

Calm winds and temperatures in the 50s were reported early Tuesday in Fillmore.

"We've had a good night," said Capt. Mike Lindbery, of the Ventura County Fire Department. "It has given us a chance to get in there and get a handle on this thing."

"It burned with high intensity and a lot of energy. We had a few things work for us, and we were able to reduce the losses."

Part of what Lindbery described as "a very large house" was saved after firefighters entered the burning structure. He estimated that about 50 percent of the home burned.

"We had some firefighters get in there and make a very aggressive interior attack," said Lindberg.

"A couple years back we had some pretty bad fires, but nothing that came close to homes like this," said Fillmore Mayor Pro Tem Manuel Minjares. "This is pretty significant."
 

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A homeless man was taken into custody Monday afternoon when he was found with a BB gun near the route President Barack Obama's motorcade was taking, according to police in Connecticut.

Police said Tuesday that Joseph Stravinskas, 27, was shooting at cans behind a house about half an hour before the presidential motorcade came by.

Obama was in Connecticut to deliver an  address at the University of Hartford that called on Congress to bring new gun control propoals to a vote. 

Police had originally said that a man had been standing at an intersection where President Obama's motorcade passed by and was arrested after pulling out the BB gun.

But on Tuesday, police clarified details of the incident, saying that Stravinskas had no connection to the motorcade.

Police from several departments were securing the motorcade route when a Simsbury detective heard a noise at 5:50 p.m. from the back of a home a few miles away from the university, and went to see if someone was hiding in the woods, police said.

The detective found Stravinskas with what appeared to be a rifle, aiming at cans propped as targets and ordered him to drop the weapon, police said.

When Stravinskas turned, he dropped his aim, and ultimately complied with police orders and was taken into custody.

Police seized the gun and determined it was a pellet rifle, police said.

Stravinskas told police he was homeless and his actions had nothing to do with the presidential motorcade.

Secret Service also spoke with Stravinskas and officials determined that his actions had nothing to do with the motorcade, which came by at 6:20 p.m. without incident.

Stravinskas was charged with breach of peace in the second degree, threatening in the second degree and interfering with an officer.

He was held on a $15,000 bond and is due in court on Tuesday. 

President Obama was in Connecticut Monday afternoon to meet with families who lost loved ones during the school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in December.

Thongsavath Sphabmixay, 44, appeared in court Monday afternoon.

He pleaded not guilty to all charges, including two counts of murder, one count of attempted premeditated murder and one count of arson. He is being held without bail.

Firefighters were called to a home on Featherhill Lane in Mira Mesa early Thursday morning. A renter was able to escape the burning home and told crews two women were still inside.

69-year-old Boakham Sphabmixay and her daughter, 48-year-old Pamela Sphabmixay, were taken to the UCSD burn center. Both women died from their injuries the next day.

We’re told Thongsavath also lived in the Mira Mesa home.

Emergency 911 calls from the night two hikers called to report they "wandered off" a Southern California trail indicate the teens feared they may not "make it to the morning" as search teams were grounded because of weather conditions.

Audio: Excerpt From 911 Call

On the 911 call from March 31, Nicolas Cendoya, 19 reported that he and 18-year-old Kyndall Jack were lost in the Trabuco Canyon area of Cleveland National Forest in the Santa Ana Mountains.

The disptacher can be heard asking whether they remembered passing several reference points and explaining that search crews were limited to a ground search during that night because of fog.

"We wandered off the trail," Cendoya said. "I don't even know if we're going to make it to the morning because we have no water."

Their cell phone died after the call, during which they can be heard calling for help. They told the dispatcher they could not hear search crews, who also were calling out to them.

The two, both inexperienced hikers, departed on what Jack told friends was an "adventure" — a day hike along popular Holy Jim Trail. During Sunday night's 911 call — before the two were separated — Cendoya told the dispatcher they were less than one mile from a trail. The dispatcher attempted to find out how far from the trailhead the two went off the trail.

"We went like a mile from my car," Cendoya said.

"You said you're at the top of a mountain?" the dispatcher asked.

"The very, very top," Cendoya answered.

Cendoya was found Wednesday night about 500 feet up a steep ridge off Trabuco Creek Road. Rescuers had to cut through brush to rescue him. He was released from the hospital Sunday.

Jack, rescued at mid-day Thursday, remained hospitalized Sunday. At an afternoon press conference outside the hospital, she said she felt lucky to be alive and thanked her rescuers.

She said she had no memory of the ordeal other than that she and Cendoya wanted to climb to the top of the canyon before nightfall.

"I thought I was in a big dream," she said. "We wanted to touch the clouds."

Both were severely dehydrated, disoriented and covered in scratches and bruises after a series of cold nights waiting for rescue.

Portions of San Diego highways will be named in honor of two local teens killed more than three years ago.

A portion of Interstate 15 at the Lake Hodges Bridge will be named in honor of Chelsea King and a portion of state Route 78 near the San Diego Zoo Safari Park will be named in honor of Amber Dubois.

The violent murders of both teens shook the San Diego community to its core.

Chelsea disappeared on February 25, 2010. The Poway High School cross-country athlete was last seen alive when she went for an after-school run that she would never finish near Rancho Bernardo Community Park.

Her body was discovered March 2, 2010 in the Lake Hodges area. Chelsea had been kidnapped, sexually assaulted and killed by John Gardner, who also confessed to killing 14-year-old Amber who went missing in February 2009.

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors and the California Legislature both unanimously approved to have the signs placed along the two highways.

Private donations were raised to create the memorial signage.

The King and Dubois families spoke Monday morning, thanking donors and lawmakers for the memorial.

A man has turned himself into police in connection with a fatal shooting outside a Carl's Jr. on Sweetwater Road in March, police confirmed.

National City resident Jesus Degalilea Pena, 43, was shot about 10 times at close range with a high-powered rifle, according to police. The gunman fled the scene in an orange and white pick-up truck.

When police arrived, the victim was lying on the ground in critical condition.

He was transported to UCSD Medical Center, but died a short time later.

National City Police Chief Manuel Rodriguez said officers are also looking for the brother of the man who turned himself into police yesterday. The second man is wanted for questioning as a person of interest in the homicide.

Rodriguez said the brothers' names are not being released at this time, and the man who turned himself in requested an attorney and has not been charged.

"We're still gathering evidence, and we're still actively pursuing the case," Rodriguez said. "There's no question about that."

The shooting happened at around 5:30 p.m., on Saturday, March 23 in the parking lot of the Carls' Jr.

Police believe the motive behind the killing may have been some type of dispute between neighbors, Rodriguez said.

"That's the picture we have, but it isn't real clear yet," Rodriguez said. "There's definitely some rivalry there. It seemed to be a personal thing. It wasn't random." 

Police believed the weapon used in the killing was a high-powered assault rifle. 

A man was stabbed several times in City Heights Monday night, according to police.

The incident happened around 11 p.m. at the 4000-block of 49th Street. Police sound a man in his 20s with multiple stab wounds in his torso.

He was taken to the hospital in serious condition.

Witnesses tried to hold the suspect down and fought him until police arrived. The suspect suffered a head injury.

Investigators said the suspect and victim have known each other for a few days, and the fight involved a woman.

The Louisville Cardinals entered the NCAA Tournament as the best team in the country and they're exiting it the same way.

Louisville came back from 12 points down in the first half and became NCAA men's basketball champions for the third time in school history in a thrilling 82-76 win over Michigan on Monday night in Atlanta.

"This team is one of the most together, toughest and hard-nosed teams," coach Rick Pitino said. "Being down never bothers us. They just come back."

The victory capped a memorable day for Pitino, who promised his team he would get a tattoo if they won the championship. Pitino found out earlier on Monday that he will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and then doubled down on the honor by becoming the first coach ever to win national titles at two different schools.

Louisville guard Michael Ware, whose right leg snapped in a freak injury during the regional final, cheered on Monday's game from the sidelines with his leg propped up on a chair. After the win, he took to the court on crutches to celebrate -- and cut a strand from the game's basketball net to mark the achievement.

"These are my brothers," Ware said. "They got the job done. I'm so proud of them."

The milestone win did not come easily. The Cardinals went down 12 points in the first half thanks to one of the more unexpected twists in any title game.

Michigan guard Trey Burke, who won every national player of the year award, left the game with two fouls and the Wolverines turned to little-used freshman Spike Albrecht for most of the first half. Albrecht, who averaged 1.8 points per game this season, hit all four threes he tried and scored 17 points to turn the game on its ear.

Luke Hancock turned it right back. Hancock hit four straight threes to close out the first half and Louisville trailed by just one point heading into the break. After the break, the game was a seesaw affair that ultimately turned thanks to Peyton Siva and the Cardinals' work on the boards.

Siva scored 14 of his 18 points after the break and was a relentless source of pressure for a defense that rattled the normally unflappable Wolverine offense. And the Cardinals had an 11-1 edge on the offensive glass, resulting in second chance point after second chance point.

None of those was bigger than a Chane Behanan putback with 1:52 to play to put the Cardinals up by eight points. Behanan took the ball back up through several Michigan defenders and put in the hoop to deflate one of Michigan's many attempts to grab control of the game.

You can find flaws with how the Wolverines played in the second half, especially some foul management in the final minute that coach John Beilein came about because he thought the team was already in the bonus when they were one foul short. But Burke was spectacular, scoring 17 points and making a block after running down Siva that was called a foul in the most egregious of the many questionable calls by an officiating crew that was not up to the championship stage.

As good as Michigan was, though, Louisville was simply better. They took some big shots from Michigan and walked through them like the experienced tournament team that they are.

Siva, Hancock (who was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player), Behanan and Gorgui Dieng all had huge moments in the second half while the younger Michigan team wilted under the pressure of the situation. The Cardinals, who rallied from 12 down against Witchita State as well, proved their mettle on Monday night and made it clear how deserving they are of the title as the best team in college basketball.

All in all, it makes for a day that Rick Pitino won't soon forget.

Josh Alper is also a writer for Pro Football Talk. You can follow him on Twitter.

A man was arrested after climbing down a 90-foot crane in Barrio Logan Tuesday morning.

The incident happened around 6 a.m. at 2135 Belt St. when authorities noticed a man atop a large crane. The man began climbing down and was arrested at the scene.

It is unclear why the man was atop the piece of equipment. No injuries have been reported.

We've entered the second week of the 2013 baseball season, and as of Monday night, only two teams have yet to play a game a home: the Angels and the Padres.

They both finally get to perform in front of their home fans on Tuesday.

At 1-5, the Padres are in two things; last place, and dire need of a win against their long time rivals. They (and the entire fan base) are REALLY hoping some time at PETCO Park will save the season, which is something we would have liked to avoid talking about in April.

On Monday PETCO went through its final preparations for Opening Day 2013. Regardless of record, the first game of the year is a sold-out party, so the field has to look amazing.

Major League Baseball has every team paint a special "Opening Week" logo along the baselines. It's nice and colorful and adds a nice aesthetic for the fans.

But it's not very popular with Padres Head Groundskeeper Luke Yoder. Even though it's a water-based paint, and washes off fairly easily, it can mess with the science of grass growing.

"Less chlorophyll going on in the blue paint when it covers up the green," says Yoder. "It does reduce photosynthesis and eventually it will check out."

While the paint looks nice for a while, it's Yoder's job to keep the field looking good all the time. He's alright with the temporary intrusion of his photosynthesis.

"Painting for Opening Day is a couple of coats, so it shouldn't hurt anything," says Luke. "We keep the white SD behind home plate and white's a much more friendly color than dark blue or red or something. It's no problem. It's all a part of Opening Day festivities."

First pitch is 3:40 against the Dodgers.

The Blue Angels' wings have been pinned to the ground this year due to budget concerns.

NBC News has learned all of the performances of the U.S. Navy’s elite flight demo squad for the rest of the year have been cancelled because of the mandatory budget cuts known as sequestration.

The Blue Angels will continue to train in Pensacola, Fla.

Cancelling the shows is expected to save the Navy $20 million, though of course the military - and civilian vendors - lose out on revenue from food and other sales to attendees.

Organizers of the Andrews Air Show, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland's Prince George's County, said last year that it would be held every other year due to budget concerns. The next show is scheduled for 2014.

In San Francisco, an event on Fleet Week in October will go on despite losing the Blue Angels, which has been its biggest draw, NBC Bay Area reported. 

Other air shows across the country have been cancelled, and the military no longer will perform flyovers at baseball games or many other major events.

The Air Force's Thunderbirds entire 2013 season also was cancelled in March. And the Air Force said they would not show off planes at trade shows, flyovers and open houses.

Former President Bill Clinton sent out his first tweet over the weekend with a little help from Stephen Colbert.

The talk show host helped Clinton set up his Twitter account on Monday's "Colbert Report" after he revealed that the former president has never sent a tweet.

Colbert set up the handle @PrezBillyJeff, since @PresidentClinton was already taken, and helped Clinton type his first tweet:

Just spent amazing time with Colbert!Is he sane? He is cool! #cgiu

— Billy Jeff Clinton (@PrezBillyJeff) April 6, 2013

Colbert also helped the ex-president set up his account profile, which reads "I am President William Jefferson Billy Jeff Rodham Clinton. Stephen Colbert is my BFF."

Monday's show was a special broadcast of the annual Clinton Global Initiative University meeting that was held over the weekend. The two talked mostly about Clinton's political career, but when they discussed social media, the ex-president admitted that he was a little insecure about Twitter.

"What if you tweet and nobody tweets back?" Clinton asked. "There is nothing worse than a friendless tweeter, right?"

But he may not have to worry about that. As of Tuesday afternoon, @PrezBillyJeff has over 55,000 followers and his first tweet was retweeted over 3,500 times.

An endangered Asian elephant traveling with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus was injured Tuesday morning in a drive-by shooting in northern Mississippi, according to local news reports.

The elephant was outside BancorpSouth Arena, where the circus will be performing later this week, when it was struck in the shoulder by a bullet, the Clarion Ledger reported.

"Leads are pretty slim," Tulepo, Miss. Police Captain Rusty Haynes told the Ledger. "We're dealing with a victim that can't talk."

The police department told the paper that it is investigating and has been in touch with state and federal wildlife authorities.

Meanwhile, the elephant was treated by circus staff and a local veterinarian, who were able to calm the giant animal. The arena's marketing director Kevan Kirpatrick told the Ledger that within 20 minutes, the elephant was walking around eating carrots.

The shooting, he said, was a big first.

"We have had the circus once a year since 1995," Kirkpatrick said. "Absolutely this is the first elephant shooting we had."

Haynes, the police captain, told the Ledger that the crime will be pursued as a federal offense since the elephant is an endangered breed, and the federal government may provide reward money for information that could lead to the shooter.

Ringling Bros. told the paper that it would issue a statement.

A man threatened people inside a bank with a disposable razor on Tuesday morning, according to officials.

Police said around 10:30 a.m. a disgruntled man was swinging a razor blade at customers inside the U.S. Bank at 1420 Kettner Blvd. downtown.

The man then ran away when authorities got to the scene, but was unable to get away. Police then arrested him near the train tracks.

No injuries were reported.

Police arrested four people Tuesday morning after their car hit a retaining wall in Palm City.

The incident happened around 8:30 a.m. in the 2400 block of Barbour Drive.

San Diego police were called out by Border Patrol to assist in apprehending a suspected undocumented immigrant smuggler.

When police arrived the suspects, were seen running through residential back yards.

All four occupants were eventually taken into custody in various locations around the area.

It's April, and while the weather's already starting to heat up around San Diego, our SoundDiego LIVE bash on April 25 at Bar Pink will make springtime even hotter.

In case you haven't heard, the event will feature the Paragraphs and North Beach, plus a VIP happy hour hosted by Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey. That's plenty to keep music lovers busy, but all you regulars know no SoundDiego LIVE event is complete without our Garage 2 Glory competition.

VOTE NOW: Pick your favorite band for Garage 2 Glory

For the uninitiated, Garage 2 Glory pits two bands against each other in an online battle to the death. SoundDiego fans -- that'd be you -- vote for the band they like best, and the winner gets to play our SoundDiego LIVE event. This month, the competing bands are Static Bloom and Ed Ghost Tucker.

Both acts were selected by 91x DJ extraordinaire Robin Roth, who will also host the event. When picking the Garage 2 Glory contenders, Roth decided to something a little different this time around.

"I decided to pick two bands I had never seen perform live," Roth said. "I was chatting with Neal from LoudNoisesSD about up-and coming-San Diego bands. Static Bloom and Ed Ghost Tucker came up in the conversation."

For Static Bloom, Roth was drawn to the diversity of their sound.

"The thing I noticed about Static Boom is that they aren't really genre specific," Roth said. "Each song I listened to sounded a bit different than the rest. Sure, the indie/alternative vibe was there, but it was hard to pinpoint a particular type of music. They cite some of their influences as Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Muse, the Beatles, Beck, Incubus and the Killers. That's a great list of heavy hitters."

As for Ed Ghost Tucker, the aspect that grabbed Roth was found in the vocals.

"I was attracted to the sound of Ed Ghost Tucker right away, as the three-part harmonies and eclectic instrumentation really caught my ear," Roth said. "Plus, I love Michaela's voice. I guess you could classify them as a folk-jazz band, but they are so much more."

"This will be a great contest," Roth added. "I can't wait to see who wins!"

Both bands would make a great addition to our April 25 event, but there can be only one winner. To vote for your favorite Garage 2 Glory band, click here. The winner will be decided April 23 at noon.

Regardless of which band wins the competition, the April 25 SoundDiego LIVE at Bar Pink will be something you're sure to love, so don't miss it. You can RSVP for the party here.

SoundDiego associate editor Chris Maroulakos is also the managing editor of the San Diego music blog Owl and Bear.