A father with his baby in the backseat was arrested Monday after a high-speed chase ended in a crash.

A California Highway Patrol officer spotted two cars preparing to race on northbound Interstate 15 near Market Street.

The CHP officer followed the white Honda Civic traveling at speeds of 100 miles per hour, officials said.

The officer tried to stop the driver but he kept driving until he exited on University Avenue and crashed into another driver at an estimated 60 miles an hour.

The impact flipped over the other driver's car. A 30-year-old woman and her two dogs were not harmed, officials said.

The 6-month-old baby's mother arrived to the crash scene and was visibly upset. The infant was not injured, officials said.

CHP investigators handcuffed the father after they say they found an open container and marijuana in his vehicle.

Ted Cruz responded to a young heckler who yelled out "you suck" during a campaign event in Indiana by telling the child that such an outburst would land him a spanking in the Cruz household.

The heckler, described by an NBC reporter as a boy who appeared to be 10 years old, interrupted Cruz as he was speaking in La Porte on Sunday.

"Apparently there is a young man who is having some problems," Cruz said.

The person could then be heard yelling, "You suck!"

"Thank you son. You know I appreciate you sharing your views," Cruz responded. "You know, one of the things that hopefully someone has told you is that children should actually speak with respect."

The audience roared its approval as Cruz, a father of two, continued to riff on his parenting views.

"Imagine what a different world it would be if someone had told Donald Trump that years ago," he said. "You know, in my household, when a child behaved that way, they’d get a spanking."

Cruz faces a key vote in Tuesday's key Indiana primary against front-runner Trump, who has a 15-point lead in the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist poll.

Sheriff's investigators say a man randomly stabbed while walking home alone in Fallbrook in January was a hate crime, and three men now behind bars attacked him because of the color of his skin. 

Hugh Pettigrew, 33, died on Feb. 9 after succumbing to stabbing wounds suffered on Jan. 22, San Diego County Sheriff's investigators said. 

Kevin Garcia, Tyler Dean and Ryan Valdez were charged with murder, criminal gang acitivity and hate crime Monday, San Diego Sheriff's deputies (SDSO) announced Monday. Garcia and Dean were in custody on unrelated charges and were rebooked. Valdez was arrested and booked into the Vista Detention Facility.

“You had three individuals that are known documented gang members that are out on the street late at night they see this individual walking down the street late at night again, based on part of their motive, would have been the race of Mr. Pettigrew and decided to attack him," said SDSO Lt. Kenneth Nelson.

The arrests come after months of uncertainty for family members and friends, who pleaded for answer's in their loved one's death. 

Sheriff's investigators say the 33-year-old man was walking home along the 400 block of Ammunition Road in Fallbrook on Jan. 22 when he was stabbed multiple times. Investigators say the wounded man was able to stumble to his nearby home where he collapsed.

SDSO detectives were investigating the death for months. Part of that investigation, they said, was surveillance video from nearby businesses that shows three men--believed to be in their late teens or early twenties--wanted in connection with Pettigrew's murder.

Nelson said he believes the three people seen on the surveillance tape are, in fact, the people they arrested. He said there was a myriad of evidence, including witness statements and forensic evidence, and it took a while to put all the pieces together.

In the surveillance video, the men are seen exiting a red, 1997 Honda Civic, driven by a woman who parked in an Albertson's parking lot.

Homicide detectives say the trio of men headed to the side of the grocery store toward the area where Pettigrew was stabbed around 10:45 p.m. Pettigrew died from his injuries nearly three weeks after the attack.

Family members and friends previously told NBC 7 the death was a tragedy, but they were thankful they knew him. 

“He got me through a lot of stuff in life,” Sherry Weevie said of her friend through her tears. "Weevie still remembers the dance moves Pettigrew taught her to do whenever she was feeling bad.

“He looked out for everybody and made sure everybody was okay,” friend Sonya Menard recalled. “That's why it kind of hurt, I felt like nobody was there for him in his time of need."

Two brothers accused of torturing and killing a homeless man found in a riverbed were arraigned in court Monday, pleading not guilty to murder, torture and kidnapping charges. 

George Lowery, 50, was beaten with "fists and feet" in an assault that homicide investigators describe as "a very horrific event." He was hospitalized with head injuries and died five days later.

Brothers Preston Mostrong, 19, and Austin Mostrong, 20, are accused in the killing, facing criminal charges including robbery, kidnapping, torture and murder. They pleaded not guilty through their attorney Monday and denied all charges.

At the time of the arraignment, both suspects were out on probation, one for theft and the other for misdemeanor assault. 

Family members of the victim and those of the defendants were present for the emotionally-charged hearing.

At one point, family members of the defendants sobbed in court.  

Defense attorneys asked the judge to prevent the public from seeing their clients in court.

Prosecutor George Modlin fought the request, arguing the brothers made statements that placed them at the scene. The judge said there was no need to tilize the defendants. 

"This was a brutal, heinous, just cold-hearted case, and as the evidence comes out, I’d say the murder charges and the torture charges are very much warranted in this case," said Modlin.

Family members of the homeless man were in court as well Monday. His wife appeared distraught as the arraignment unfolded. 

The victim's family and other witnesses said the motive was in relatiation for Lowery's involvement in trying to stop the boys from bullying homeless people. No motive was given in court, but the prosecutor says both defendants admitted to taking part in the beating and attack.

Modlin said Preston was arrested at the scene. 

In a post on an online fund raising site, Lowery's family described him as someone who didn't have much but still managed to help others.

"If someone was in need he would do what he could to help, no matter how hard the task. If he came across good fortune, he shared it," they wrote.

Penny Lowery found her husband of 25 years unconscious at 5:19 p.m. on April 24 in the riverbed just west of Chubb Lane and N. Magnolia Avenue. She found him brutally beaten, hogtied, and face down near water, under a piece of plywood, according to his wife. The couple lived there as part of a homeless encampment.

Lowery was "brutally beaten, bloody, tied up, face down and unconscious. Covered up to die," according to the family's post.

Five days after the beating, San Diego County Sheriff's Deputies arrested brothers Austin Mostrong, 20 and Preston Mostrong, 19, in connection with the crime.

"We don’t believe this is a random act," said Lt. Kenneth Nelson, SD County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Detail. "We believe he was targeted."

Physical evidence at the scene and witness statements led investigators to the brothers, Nelson said.

On April 20, there was an altercation between Austin and another resident of the river bottom, deputies said. Investigators say Lowery did not fight with Austin but may have had some involvement in that incident.

The brothers were held on $3 million bail. 

Anyone with information about this incident can call the Homicide Detail at (858) 974-2321/after hours at (858) 565-5200.

Student Success Programs, a local charter school, has acquired a La Mesa retail property for approximately $2.1 million, with plans to set up school operations, according to brokerage firm Lee & Associates. 

The seller of the 5,470-square-foot building, part of Navajo Shopping Center at 8776 Lake Murray Blvd., was the Sunita Kumar Trust of Saratoga, Calif., represented by Lee & Associates’ Bo Havlik. The buyer was represented by Russ Merrill of the Merrill Group.

According to CoStar Group, the building was constructed on 0.5 acres in 1964 and renovated in 2000.

The former team physician for the San Diego Chargers could have his license revoked or suspended by the Medical Board of California.

As part of a stipulated settlement with the California Medical Board in April 2014, David Chao, M.D. had his license revoked but that revocation was stayed for five years while he was placed on probation.

Now, a medical board hearing has been scheduled to consider allegations against Chao including gross negligence.

According to the board's accusations, Chao continued to prescribe Ambien, to former Charger Junior Seau and did not closely monitor him for ongoing signs of depression.

Seau, one of the NFL's best and fiercest players for nearly two decades, had a degenerative brain disease when he committed suicide in May 2012.

"For Dr. Chao to have believed Seau was suicidally depressed before his death is as preposterous as any insinuation that Chao is responsible for the suicide," Chao's attorney Robert Frank said publicly Monday.

According to the Medical Board accusation, Dr. Chao wrote Seau a prescription for Ambien three days after the former football player was in a car accident, where his vehicle veered off a cliff in Carlsbad.

In an interview with a medical board investigator Dr. Chao said he visited Seau in the hospital after the accident and asked him what happened. According to the accusation, Dr. Chao told the investigator Seau "denied it was a suicide attempt and insisted that he (Seau) had fallen asleep while driving."

NBC 7 requested an interview with Frank and Chao but we were referred to the statement posted on the Mighty 1090 website.

"Dr. Chao legally prescribed to Seau smaller than usual quantities of Ambien (a sleep aid) commonly provided by physicians to people with chronic insomnia. The quantity of each script was for no more than a one month supply, with no refills," according to the statement.

"There has never been a concern of overdosing on Ambien and Seau had only trace levels of the medication in his system at the time of his death, which is what would be expected after properly using the medication for a night’s sleep."

He went on to say the medical examiner did not consider or link the use of Ambien to Seau's 2012 suicide.

In early 2013, it was determined that the linebacker suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE.

Frank said, " At the time, no physician could have known Seau was suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) because there wasn’t anyway to diagnose it in the living."

NBC 7 Investigates first reported that the medical board filed a complaint against Chao based on complaints from three patients.

One allegedly suffered neurological problems and further complications after having surgery according to the complaint.

The Medical Board issued a public reprimand against Chao in May 2013 after it determined that he was "dishonest" when he failed to reveal a misdemeanor DUI Conviction on applications to work as a medical evaluator for workers' compensation cases.

In June 2013, Chao decided to step down from his role as team doctor for the San Diego Chargers based on health reasons.

Nearly all of Detroit's schools were closed Tuesday as hundreds of teachers called out sick for a second day over concerns that many may not get paid amid a funding crisis, NBC News reported. 

Dozens of teachers gathered outside district headquarters with signs with messages like "No pay no work" and "DPS better have my money" and "This is teacher abuse."

The city was also dealing with a second crisis — this one related to the solvency of the city's water system. The city's Department of Water and Sewerage was preparing to start shutting off water to thousands of commercial and residential customers who have defaulted on their payments.

Fifteen years after Washington intern Chandra Levy was killed and her body dumped in the woods, the pain is still fresh.

"He's got tremendous anger. I have tremendous sadness," said Levy's mother, Susan, who joined her husband for an interview with NBC's "Today" show. "The anger and sadness is really the same."

Levy, 24, a California native, disappeared May 1, 2001 while interning for the federal government in Washington, D.C. Her body was found a year later in a densely wooded area of Rock Creek Park.

The case captivated the nation amid allegations of an affair between Levy and her hometown congressman, Gary Condit. Even her father speculated about the relationship and Condit's possible involvement in the case.

"Girls have their own minds, especially if they're seduced by someone who is older and wiser," Robert Levy said in an interview at the time.

Condit was quickly ruled out, but his career suffered a fatal blow. The congressman sought re-election but lost his seat in 2002.

Attention later turned to Ingmar Guandique, an immigrant from El Salvador who, according to his one-time cellmate, confessed while in prison to killing Chandra Levy. Guandique was serving 10 years for attacking two other women in Rock Creek Park.

He was charged with Chandra Levy's murder in 2009 and convicted in 2010 in a case based largely on circumstantial evidence. Although sentenced to 60 years in prison, questions about the validity of his cellmate's claims earned Guandique a retrial, set to begin this October.

"As far as I can see, it's just some defense attorneys trying to make themselves a name and make more money," Robert Levy told the "Today" show. "You know, he's guilty."

Regardless of what happens when the case goes back to court, Chandra Levy's parents will continue to grieve.

"No matter what, we don't get our daughter back," Susan Levy said.

A Virginia man who spent a decade in prison after pleading guilty to a New York City slaying over 50 years ago was cleared of the crime Monday.

At the request of a prosecutor, a judge vacated the conviction of 81-year-old Paul Gatling for the 1963 shooting death of Lawrence Rothbort. In doing so, the judge apologized and Gatling hugged his crying ex-wife and a friend.

"There's a lot of water gone under the bridge, but the bridge is still standing," Gatling said after the court proceeding.

The prosecutor asked that the conviction be vacated after Gatling, a retired landscaper, asked the prosecutor's Conviction Review Unit to look into his case.

"Paul Gatling repeatedly proclaimed his innocence even as he faced the death penalty back in the 60s," Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson said. "He was pressured to plead guilty and, sadly, did not receive a fair trial."

Gatling, who walked with a cane as he entered the court, said he came from a civic-minded family and "this has stopped me from voting on every level."

Rothbort was shot in his Brooklyn home. His wife told police that a man with a shotgun had entered the apartment and demanded money, shooting her husband when he refused. She provided a description, but no suspect was found.

Thompson said Gatling, 29 at the time, was questioned after another man said he saw him in the area. That man was a witness in other cases and was known to have committed perjury, Thompson said, adding that other circumstances also led to Gatling not receiving a fair trial.

Rothbort's wife, nine-months pregnant at the time of the trial, said Gatling was the man who had killed her husband, despite not being able to identify him in a line up previously. No physical evidence tied him to the crime. Defense attorneys were never given some police reports, including a description of the suspect as several years younger than Gatling.

Gatling's attorney and family pressed him to plead guilty to second-degree murder, afraid that he would otherwise face the death penalty if convicted. He agreed, and was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison in October 1964. His sentence was commuted by then-Gov. Nelson Rockefeller at the behest of the Legal Aid Society and he was released in January 1974.

His exoneration marks the 20th time in two years that the prosecutor's Conviction Review Unit has helped clear defendants found guilty in Brooklyn of crimes they did not commit, according to The New York Times, which first reported the story.

Attorneys for former San Francisco 49er Dana Stubblefield fired back Tuesday against allegations that the NFL star raped a disabled woman, calling the charges "absolutely ridiculous" and saying Stubblefield's accuser was motivated by money.

Stubblefield, 45, joined his legal team at his church, Jubilee Christian Center, for a news conference in San Jose the day after charges were filed. He faces five felony counts of rape, oral copulation and false imprisonment in connection with the April 9, 2015 encounter, which unfolded at his then-home in Morgan Hill. Two of the charges allege he engaged in activity with a victim incapable of giving consent.

The alleged victim had visited the property to interview for a babysitting job.  Prosecutors have called the woman developmentally disabled, but Stubblefield's attorneys insisted she is of sound mind.

"I am completely innocent," Stubblefield said, surrounded by a bank of attorneys, adding that he would take no questions. "I am not a perfect man but the allegations against that come a year after a consensual encounter with another woman are totally false."

The retired defensive tackle said the allegations are especially hurtful because he has focused much of his charity work on the Special Olympics.

"That was one of his primary charities," said defense attorney Gary Winuk, "and he spent countless hours with people with special needs. That's why this is so deeply offensive."

Winuk said Stubblefield and his defense team had gathered Tuesday to "firmly refute the charges" and question why it took so long — 13 months — for police and prosecutors to charge the case.

Prosecutors have said the woman, who was 31 at the time, interviewed with Stubblefield for 20 minutes that day, but left, the police report said. He allegedly texted her shortly afterward, saying he wanted to pay her for her time that day, the report said.

When she returned, that's when prosecutors allege he raped her and forced her to "orally copulate him," the report stated. He then gave her $80 and let her go. She went immediately to the Morgan Hill Police Department after the encounter to report that she had been raped.

Winuk took aim at the alleged victim, calling into question her criminal past. He said the woman had been convicted of assault and resisting arrest from an unknown location in 2013 and had also been charged in connection with a hit-and-run.

He also said she filed two unknown civil lawsuits and pleaded guilty to an unknown assault charge. Winuk claimed the woman asked Stubblefield for money — texting him 22 times — after they had what he described as consensual sex. Attorneys claimed she was asking him for money.

"This is nothing but a money grab, and an attempt to get money and take advantage of his celebrity status," Winuk said, adding that prosecutors sought "to sensationalize this case" and "arrest someone of notoriety."

Colsaria Henderson, program director of Next Door Solutions to Domestic Violence, disagreed.

"The assault is the assault, and it has nothing to do with how many texts or calls happen before or after," she said.

Henderson stressed that the victim's alleged texts are irrelevant. 

"It doesn’t matter," she said. "It doesn’t negate that an assault happened. We need to focus on what happened between them in that room."

Winuk argued that the woman in question has enough mental capacity to plead guilty, apply for a job and have sexual relations, saying the DA's claim that she is developmentally disabled is "absolute nonsense."

Why the two would have had sex immediately after a job interview was not explained. "The purpose of this news conference was not to flesh out everything that happened," Winuk said. "That's what a jury trial is for."

Deputy District Attorney Tim McInerny, however, stood firm.

"We will present evidence in a court of law, after which we expect Mr. Stubblefield will be held accountable for his crimes," he said in an email Tuesday.

Aside from the rape charges, Winuk questioned why Morgan Hill police would have arrested Stubblefield outside his childrens' school. He said the former player had been cooperative and would have turned himself in.

Stubblefield also provided the district attorney's office results from an independent lie detector test that clearly showed the encounter was consensual, according to Winuk.

But prosecutors, who were not at the news conference, said on Monday there was enough evidence to charge Stubblefield with rape after a prolonged investigation.

"This was a crime of violence against a vulnerable victim," McInerny said in a statement Monday. "She was looking for a job and she was unconscionably assaulted."

Stubblefield posted $250,000 bail Monday night and was released. He is scheduled to be arraigned on June 3 at the South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill.

The football player has encountered legal trouble in the past.

In 2010, a federal judge sentenced the former 49ers star to 90 days in jail for stealing his former girlfriend's mail. Also that year, Stubblefield admitted to submitting a change of address form so his former girlfriend's mail, including her unemployment checks, would be delivered to his residence.

Stubblefield was placed on probation in 2009 after pleading guilty to lying to investigators about his steroid use during his days on the field.

He played 11 seasons in the NFL, including the first five with the 49ers. Stubblefield later returned to the 49ers in 2001 and '02 before finishing his career with the Oakland Raiders.

Stubblefield, a first-round pick of the 49ers' in 1993, recorded 10.5 sacks and was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. He was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year, with a career-high 15 sacks in 1997, and signed a lucrative contract with Washington in 1998.

He also served as assistant coach at San Jose's Valley Christian High School.

CSN Bay Area's Matt Maiocco and NBC Bay Area's Steve Ellison, Raj Mathai, Cheryl Hurd and Kristofer Noceda contributed to this report.

Surveillance video shows a man shining a flashlight through the glass front door of Couture Hair Bar & Spa in Carmel Mountain Ranch just after 3 a.m. last Friday.

Seconds later the intruder disappears from view and returns with a crowbar smashing through the glass. He then heads straight for the cash register behind the reception counter and takes the drawer with him, dragging cables and items behind him as he leaves.

“He puts his shirt over his mouth area, but you can see very visual characteristics” said Amy Bailey, the salon’s owner.

Bailey gave the video to NBC 7 San Diego in hopes that someone will recognize the man.

The burglar’s overweight build and hair style, balding on top and shoulder length on the bottom, give him a few distinguishing characteristics.

"I’m sitting there watching the video feeling so violated. How can some human do that to somebody else?" said Bailey.

She nicknamed the intruder the “slob robber” based on his appearance and the mess he created in about 20 seconds.

Bailey believes the criminal is experienced based on how quickly he gets in and out.

If there’s one thing that makes her feel better about the ordeal, it’s that the man got away with a cash register drawer full of small coins.

She emptied the drawer of cash the night before.

If you have any information, you are asked to contact police.

The main street that runs through Coronado Island was partly shut down Tuesday morning while police officers investigated a suspicious, 5-gallon bucket left unattended at a bus stop, city officials said.

Police activity began around 10 a.m. at Orange Avenue and Seventh Street, the City of Coronado confirmed. One northbound lane in the 600 block of Orange Avenue was blocked off to traffic while police investigated a large gallon left behind near a bench at a bus stop.

The gallon had a lid on it.

Officers with the Coronado Police Department were called to investigate the bucket for possible hazardous material. As a precaution, bomb squad officials and HazMat crews were called out to the scene as well.

Orange cones were placed in the area and officers cordoned off a portion of the street near the device with yellow police tape.

About an hour later, the City of Coronado said Orange Avenue was shut down in both directions due to the heavy police activity. Motorists were advised to avoid the area.

Just after 11:15 a.m., the City of Coronado said Orange Avenue had been re-opened in both directions, as the area was deemed safe.

Officials said the bucket turned out to be empty.

No further details were immediately released. No injuries were reported.

California Highway Patrol officers are searching Oceanside for a driver who tried to escape capture in a pursuit along southbound Interstate 5.

The suspect vehicle crashed just north of the Coaster station, between Harbor Drfive and the rest area, according to CHP officials.

They say the driver jumped out of the car.

CHP officers are searching the area of Camp Pendleton for any sign of the suspect.

No other information was immediately available.

Check back for updates on this breaking news story. 

A high school student riding a bicycle he had gotten just hours earlier was hurt Monday night when he crashed his new bike into a car in Oceanside, officials confirmed.

The Oceanside Police Department (OPD) said accident happened around 9:40 p.m. near an apartment complex at 210 Rancho Del Oro. The 17-year-old was riding fast down a steep hill when he collided with a driver who was in the process of parking, OPD Lt. Matt Cole said.

The teen suffered unspecified but non-life threatening injuries in the crash. As a precaution – and due to his age – police said the teen was airlifted from the scene to Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla.

The victim’s brother-in-law, Victor Perez, told NBC 7 the teenager had gotten the brand-new bike earlier in the day and was riding it around near his home.

Perez, who lives just two miles away from the site of the crash, said he and his wife got a phone call about the accident and rushed over.

He said an officer told him the teen was riding down a hill and tried to make a sharp right just as a truck was trying to park in the area. The teen was riding so fast, he couldn’t avoid ramming into the vehicle.

Perez said he went through the back windshield of the truck and suffered a head injury. As of Tuesday morning, the teen’s condition was unknown.

Perez said the victim is a senior who’s about to graduate from a nearby high school.

“He’s a good kid. He goes to school, listens to his parents, he goes to church a lot. Nice, young kid,” he explained. “We’re hoping for the best – praying. Hopefully he gets better and comes home.”

Perez said these are trying times for his family and an example of how, in his words, “you never know what could happen.”

The incident is under investigation. No one else was injured in the crash.

San Diego State University (SDSU) has found a restaurant to set up shop in its new mixed-use complex – a shopping, dining and living space taking shape ahead of its debut next year.

The university announced Tuesday that an eatery called Eureka! has signed on as the first restaurant tenant of SDSU’s mixed-use development project, South Campus Plaza, set to open in spring 2017.

According to SDSU, Eureka! will take over a 4,000-square-foot space on the north end of South Campus Plaza. The eatery will include an outdoor dining area overlooking some green space.

Eureka! specializes in American comfort cuisine with a tasty twist, including Angus chuck burgers like the Jalapeno Egg Burger topped with a fried egg and chipotle sauce. The eatery also serves unique appetizers including a version of the college crowd-approved Mac N’ Cheese, topped with three-cheese sauce, bacon and Frito corn chips. Salads, sandwiches, desserts, craft beers and other spirits round out the menu.

The SDSU location with be the second Eureka! in San Diego. The chain runs another Eureka! in University Towne Center and more than a dozen other locations throughout California, plus two in Texas and another in Washington state.

Justin Nedelman, Co-CEO of Eureka! Restaurant Group, said the SDSU restaurant will be a gathering space for students, faculty, alumni and College Area residents.

Nedelman said the eatery plans to host weekly special events including live music and brunch.

“We intend to become anchored to SDSU for all of their events and activate our enormous almost 3,000-square-foot patio adjacent to the park area as a central gathering spot for everyone off and on campus in the area,” Nedelman said in a press release Tuesday.

According to SDSU, South Campus Plaza – formerly known as Plaza Linda Verde – is a new, $143 million, mixed-use student housing and retail project on the college campus slated to be completed this year. Construction began in November 2014.

The development is located south of the SDSU Transit Center, between Hardy Avenue and Montezuma Road.

SDSU says South Campus Plaza will include housing for more than 600 students. The retail space also on site is designed to serve both the campus and surrounding neighborhoods, the university says, “creating a pedestrian-friendly destination for shopping, dining and living.”

Another major tenant moving into the plaza is Trader Joe’s. The grocery chain announced plans to open a store in South Campus Plaza last September, expected to debut in early 2017.

The development will include a mix of other retailers and restaurants, which have yet to be announced. The university says negotiations with those tenants are ongoing but, in the end, the retail portion of South Campus Plaza will encompass more than 34,000 gross square feet.

Customers will be able to park in a structure on site that will include 300 parking spots, according to the university. For more details about South Campus Plaza, click here.

Many Mias and Noahs were born in the San Diego region last year, making those names the most popular baby names locally, according to health officials.

The San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA) released its list of the most popular baby names in our county for 2015 and, according to the stats, 276 Mias and 239 Noahs made their way into the world last year.

The HHSA records all births and deaths in the region and officials say more than 45,000 babies were born in San Diego County in 2015.

Using those records, the HHSA says the top 10 names for baby girls in San Diego are, in order:

• Mia (276 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Emma (272 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Isabella (262 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Olivia (260 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Sophia (255 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Sofia (200 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Emily (168 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Ava (165 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Victoria (156 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Charlotte (140 born in San Diego in 2015)

The most popular names in San Diego for baby boys are, in order:

• Noah (239 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Liam (234 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Daniel (217 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Ethan (216 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Jacob (212 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Alexander (211 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Oliver (179 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Sebastian (173 born in San Diego in 2015)
• Benjamin (172 born in San Diego in 2015)
• David (169 born in San Diego in 2015)

The numbers show some of the top baby names in the region were just a few babies apart.

San Diego’s top baby names for 2015 fall in line with a list of top baby names across the U.S. released by BabyCenter in December 2015. That list was compiled from data provided by 340,000 parents who shared their baby’s name with the BabyCenter website last year.

BabyCenter’s data pulled these names, in order, as the top 10 for baby girls: Sophia; Emma; Olivia; Ava; Mia; Isabella; Zoe; Lily; Emily; Madison.

For boy names, via BabyCenter’s data, these ones ranked in the top 10: Jackson; Aiden; Liam; Lucas; Noah; Mason; Ethan; Caden; Logan; Jacob.

Typically, an official government list of top baby names for the prior year is released around Mother’s Day by the Social Security Administration.

Deputies arrested a man who was allegedly found with methamphetamine and a 24-inch python in his backpack on Monday, authorities said.

Steven Vanbuskirk, 40, was arrested near the Veteran's Hospital in Loma Linda, according to a news release from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

Deputies received a report around 9:45 a.m. regarding a man possibly breaking into cars at the hospital and responded to the scene. The deputies located a man matching the description of the suspected burglar, according to the news release.

Vanbuskirk was seen walking westbound on train tracks near the hospital. Deputies made contact with Vanbuskirk as he tried to get rid of a backpack, according to the news release.

Deputies allegedly found about 4.3 grams of methamphetamine, needles, burglary tools and a 24-inch ball phython snake, according to the news release.

Vanbuskirk was on "felony formal probation with search times" at the time of the arrest, according to the news release.

Vanbuskirk was booked into the Central Detention Center.

It was unclear if Vanbuskirk had an attorney.

Twenty-five dogs found living in what officials call deplorable conditions at a Torrance home are now living at the Carson/Gardena Animal Care Center - but that has posed a big problem because of overcrowding at the shelter.

The dogs, many of them young terrier mixes, were discovered at the home after their owner had to be rushed to the hospital for a medical issue.

Lisa Ferranti of the Carson Rescue Team said some dogs don't seem to be adapting well to their pens. Some sit in their corners and shake, and others don't eat or simply won't leave their beds.

"They're so scared," Ferranti said. "Most aren't socialized. This is a scary place."

The dogs were brought in with a few cats, and their arrival poses a big problem for the shelter, which is already overcrowded by at least 45 animals.

The influx of animals continues by the hour - the shelter gets up to 30 new animals every day. A new batch of Chihuahua puppies found in a cardboard box was dumped at the shelter Monday afternoon. One matted stray was found wandering the streets in the morning.

"Spring and summer are a busy time of year," said Lt. Javier Gutierrez of the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control. "A lot of animals are breeding and we get more animals surrendered. It does bring a burden to our shelter."

It's the bigger, older and sick dogs that are most at risk, because when there are no more empty kennels, shelter officials are left with a tough decision to make.

"They will start euthanizing for space if they feel they have nowhere else for animals to go," Ferranti said.

The shelter is putting out a call for people to come in and adopt or temporarily foster the animals in order to spare their lives.

The hoarding dogs are not yet available. There's a temporary hold on them while animal control officers investigate whether to charge their owner with animal cruelty. That could take up to a month or even more, likely meaning overcrowding at the shelter will only get worse.

Anyone wishing to help can put their name on a list to foster or adopt one of the dogs when they do become available, or adopt another animal that is already available to help make room.

For information on the Carson/Gardena Animal Care Center, including contact information and hours of operation, click here.

For the Saving Carson Shelter Dogs Facebook page, click here.

The Washington, D.C. Metro often used trains filled with passengers to look for sources of smoke or fire, according to a revelation at a federal safety hearing Tuesday on a 2015 incident that killed an Alexandria woman.

It's a claim that Metro is now disputing — but earlier Tuesday, Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld said the practice is no longer in place.

Wiedefeld said he didn't know whether such an action was performed Jan. 12, 2015, the day that 61-year-old Carol Glover died and scores of others were sickened when smoke filled a Metro tunnel and trains near L'Enfant Plaza.

Wiedefeld said trains with passengers aboard are no longer sent to check out smoke or fire, but an empty train may be sent. Wiedefeld, who took over Metro in November, said he didn't know when the practice had changed.

Later, Metro disputed the finding from the National Transportation Safety Board. But the NTSB said it was a common practice at Metro — an action the agency called "reprehensible."

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"[The] investigation found that it was common practice to use trains with passengers to investigate reports of fire or smoke instead of stopping all trains and using a qualified person to follow up on a report," the NTSB said during Tuesday's hearing.

A Metro source said the Rail Operations Control Center (ROCC) tells the train operator to perform a "track inspection," usually with passengers on board. With that process, if the train happens to come across a fire, or other hazard in the tunnel, it's too late to perform a reverse.

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On Jan. 12, 2015, an electrical malfunction caused a Metro tunnel to fill with thick, black smoke and stranded many riders, including Glover, when their Yellow Line train stopped in the tunnel.

Glover died of acute respiratory failure due to smoke exposure.

During Tuesday's hearing, the NTSB also released the probable cause of the deadly incident: "a prolonged short circuit that consumed power system components resulting from the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's (WMATA) ineffective inspection and maintenance practices." The hearing comes with a familiar line from the NTSB: that safety is not a big enough priority at Metro.

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The NTSB said Tuesday that whatever could have gone wrong that afternoon did go wrong.

If Metro had followed the proper procedures to stop all trains at the first report of smoke, the NTSB said, the train never would have gotten stuck in the tunnel. Instead, 15 minutes elapsed from time that Metro initially reported smoke until the time a call for emergency assistance was made. As time went on, power failed.

The NTSB said Tuesday the problems that led to the deadly incident were caused by senior management's failure to proactively deal with "foreseeable safety risks," as well as the "inadequate oversight" of the Tri-State Oversight Committee and the Federal Transit Administration.

The NTSB said a strong oversight group is needed to force Metro to make safety its top priority. NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart said Metro focuses on safety after an incident, but then takes its eye off the ball.

Hart has confidence in the new leadership at Metro, he said Tuesday.

During the hours-long hearing, the NTSB issued a list of 43 findings that it says led to the the deadly L'Enfant Plaza incident — including improperly secured and covered power cables, water problems, poor training and lack of procedures and proper maintenance.

The NTSB said both the tunnel fans during the L'Enfant incident were in "pull" mode, therefore drawing smoke toward the station and over the train.

The NTSB also found fault with the distance between smoke detectors during the L'Enfant incident: 2,000 feet, or more than half a football field. Metro needs more smoke detectors, the NTSB said.

Glover's family has filed a $50 million lawsuit against Metro, accusing the transit agency of negligence.

Patrick Reagan, an attorney representing Glover's family, said in everything he's studied about the accident, Metro simply wasn't taking care of its system.

"That's absolutely at the top of the list to see just what preventive maintenance they've been doing," Reagan said. "Apparently from what we've been told by our experts, they were just ignoring it. They weren't doing any preventative maintenance."

"Carol was the heart of that whole entire family," Reagan said. "She was a mother, a daughter, a grandmother and a sibling."

The lawsuit in federal court was unable to move forward until a cause of the incident was determined, which the NTSB released during Tuesday's hearing.

This is the 13th NTSB investigation of a safety incident on Metro and the ninth since 2004.

In the latest in a string of incendiary and often conspiratorial comments, Donald Trump on Tuesday linked Ted Cruz’s father to President John F. Kennedy’s assassin.

Trump, on the day Indiana went to the polls, repeated assertions made by the National Enquirer that the Cuban-born Raphael Cruz was pictured with Lee Harvey Oswald handing out pro-Cuba pamphlets in New Orleans in 1963.

"I mean, what was he doing — what was he doing with Lee Harvey Oswald shortly before the death? Before the shooting?" Trump asked in an interview with Fox News. "It’s horrible."

Cruz’s campaign called the article “garbage.”

From Muslims celebrating en masse after the World Trade Center fell to disparaging the qualifications of his rivals for the presidency, here are some of Trump’s most provocative statements.

"Thousands of people were cheering"
Trump claimed to have seen thousands of Muslims rejoicing in Jersey City when the Twin Towers fell during the 2001 terrorist attacks.

"Hey, I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down," he said at a rally in Alabama in November. "And I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down."

"So something’s going on," he said. "We’ve got to find out what it is."

There were no verified reports of mass jubilation on Sept. 11 — though NJ.com found some residents and a police officer who said they saw small groups of people celebrating.

Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop tweeted that Trump’s statement was "absurd."

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Cruz’s Canadian birth

Before the Iowa caucuses, Trump speculated that Cruz was not eligible to run for president because he was born in Calgary, Canada, and had held both American and Canadian citizenship.

According to the Constitution, the president must be a "natural born citizen" though it does not specify what that term means.

The Texas Republican is a U.S. citizen because his mother is one — and some scholars say the Constitutional issue is not settled.

In February, angry over ads, Trump threatened to sue Cruz.

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And what about Rubio?
In another tweet in February, Trump raised questions about whether Marco Rubio could run for the White House. But the Florida senator, who has since dropped out of the race, was born in Miami, though to parents who had immigrated from Cuba.

Trump claimed simply to have retweeted an argument that neither Rubio nor Cruz were eligible.

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"I've never looked at it, George," Trump told George Stephanopoulos, on ABC’s "This Week." "I honestly have never looked at it. As somebody said, he's not. And I retweeted it. I have 14 million people between Twitter and Facebook and Instagram, and I retweet things and we start dialogue and it's very interesting."

Born in Kenya?
Trump’s birther claims began with President Barack Obama in 2012, when the New York businessman repeatedly questioned whether Obama was indeed born in the United States. At one of his campaign events, he allowed a false claim that Obama is Muslim to go unchallenged.

Pigs blood
Another discredited story that Trump repeats: Gen. John Pershing shot Muslim extremists in the Philippines with bullets dipped in pigs' blood. 

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