A man armed with a knife killed one person and wounded at least three others at a train station near Munich early Tuesday, police said.
Witnesses told local media the suspect was shouting "Allahu akbar" — which means "God is great" in Arabic.
He was arrested shortly after the attack in Grafing, a suburb about 25 miles east of Munich's city center.
California's lower legislative chamber has passed a bill to require single-person public restrooms to be gender neutral.
The Assembly's 52-18 vote Monday came as North Carolina and the federal government sued each other over that state's law requiring transgender people to use the restroom matching the sex on their birth certificate.
The law also limits discrimination protections for LGBT people. The U.S. Justice Department said last week that North Carolina's law violates civil rights.
California Assemblyman Phil Ting of San Francisco aims to help transgender people, caregivers and parents with AB173
Republican Assemblyman James Gallagher of Plumas Lake says men's messy habits, including what he calls "pee seats," will inconvenience many more people than the bill would help. Gallagher says the bill applies too broadly.
Ting, a Democrat, says people should clean up after themselves.
A new park is now one step closer to being completed.
Ground broke on the McKinley Elementary School joint-use park Monday morning several years after San Diego Unified School District’s (SDUSD) $2.8-million Proposition Z, which this project is a part of, was approved in 2012.
The 1.34-acre park is located on the south side of McKinley Elementary School campus on Felton Street and will have natural grass turf, new trees, a baseball backstop, a concrete play area, a decomposed granite running path as well as security gates and fencing.
The project is expected to be completed this fall and SDUSD hopes projects like this will enhance neighborhood schools.
While the district is developing the park, the city of San Diego will be responsible for maintaining the park as part of their Play All Day initiative.
To learn more about Proposition Z, click here.
A woman's jet-setting lifestyle appears to have ended last month when she was charged in an identity theft investigation that found she used her good looks to prey on people through real estate and dating websites, Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies said.
Maria Christina Johnson, 43, was arrested April 28 at a well-known luxury hotel in Santa Barbara County, where she was staying under the name of one of her victims, officials said. She has pleaded not guilty, prosecutors said. Investigators accuse her of orchestrating prolific identity theft for years.
The Washington state native had "no legitimate source of income and lists her occupation as a dog trainer, yet appeared to live the high-dollar lifestyle of the café society entirely off stolen identities," according to a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department news release.
Johnson, who also goes by Maria Hendricks, Gia Hendricks, Maria Christina Gia, or Maria Hainka, has previously been convicted for fraud in cases dating back to 1997, officials said.
She was being held on $2 million bail. It was not immediately clear whether she had an attorney.
Investigators found that Johnson made use of her good looks on dating websites and home rental websites to meet her victims. She allegedly gained access to her victims' homes to steal identifying information, opening lines of credit without their permission and changing the victim's mailing address to take control of their identity.
"Once she gleaned information about the victim’s personal connections, she moved on to steal the identities of their relatives and friends," the news release said.
Johnson allegedly moved into high-end hotels, where she would charge thousands of dollars under her assumed identity. Detectives say she tried to buy a car during one stint at a hotel; she allegedly transferred a cell phone number to her own to complete a deal.
"No one was immune from being exploited," deputies said.
Deputies say she also targeted real estate brokers, to view luxurious homes — possibly to find new victims — and in one instance to steal the identity of the real estate broker.
She was arrested after a Southern California High Tech Task Force Identity Theft Detail investigation, which found she incurred losses of at least $100,000 at the Santa Barbara hotel where she was arrested. The task force is led by the LA County Sheriff's Department, working with the FBI, Homeland Security and other local agencies.
Johnson was arrested in 2011, accused of posing as the wealthy owner of a modeling agency and running up nearly $10,000 in charges on the stolen credit card of a man she met in a Hermosa Beach bar, according to the Torrance Daily Breeze.
A 91-year-old Allied Gardens resident has won her fight with the City of San Diego, at least temporarily.
The battle began when Marie Ostwald first called the City of San Diego, asking that they repair a local sidewalk near a beloved tree she planted with her husband 60 years ago.
"Hi Marie, How are you today?" said Mayor Kevin Faulconer as he walked up to Ostwald, who was sitting faithfully by the large tree. "We're going to keep this tree."
"I hope so," she said. "At least for a couple of years."
"We want you to have many more years," Faulconer said.
The conversation was a change from Friday, when City crews came out to inspect the area. They found the sidewalk did need repair -- but in order to do so, they would have to remove the tree. The tree's roots are cracking the adjacent sidewalk, and some of its roots need to be removed to make repairs.
When City officials came out Friday to examine the tree, they learned the tree had been placed on a list because of its continuing deterioration, making it a candidate for replacement.
The cracked sidewalk is a hazard and violated ADA regulations, Bill Harris with the City of San Diego Department of Public Works said.
Though the city does everything in its power to preserve trees, Harris said, in this case, the tree is a safety hazard. The tree had become too large for the site, Harris said.
"At the urging of Councilmember Sherman, a City arborist went out again today to inspect the tree and confirmed that it is no longer viable and must be removed," Harris said on Friday.
The tree was scheduled to be removed Monday. However, on Monday, Faulconer announced the City would pause plans to remove the tree in its entirety.
"It's important," he added. "Little things mean a lot. I wanted you to hear that from me directly."
A second arborist will come out and review the tree's stability to determine if there is any risk of the tree falling, he said on NextDoor, a social media site. When he visited the location, he said he there were more than one way to do things and wanted to find a way for the tree to stay.
She said if her husband was here, he would say, 'Thank you very much.'
With Donald Trump the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, speculation is brewing over who will join him on the ticket.
The billionaire has indicated he will pick a political veteran.
"I'm a business person," Trump told CNBC on May 5. "And I've got that covered. But [in] the political world — although I've been in politics all my life in a different sense on the other side — I think having somebody that can get legislation though, and help me with that, would be good."
Trump said there is "probably a 40 percent chance" he would choose one of his former rivals as his vice presidential running mate.
NBC News collected some of the remarks that potential vice presidential picks have made about the likelihood that Trump could select them to share his ticket.
A National City resident and registered sex offender has been arrested for downloading dozens of child pornography on a library computer, somehow circumventing a filter for websites like that, National City Police Department (NCPD) officers said.
Library personnel called police when they learned a man, identified as Julio Martinez, was downloading child pornography at one of the library computers, police said. A monitoring system alerted the security guard on shift that someone was viewing porn, said NCPD Lt. Alex Hernandez.
Martinez somehow got around a filter blocking such websites at the library, Hernandez said.
"They do (have a filtering system)," Hernandez said. "And that's one of the thing we're looking at right now."
Officers arrested Martinez, 37, for possession of child pornography on Saturday. He was in possession of more than 100 movies, police said, and had storage devices like thumb drives and a hard drive with him. Police are investigating to determine whether he had child pornography on those devices.
Martinez admitted to trading the movies with other people, police said.
Police seized the library computer as evidence.
Martinez has been booked into jail on numerous sex crimes charges, including possession of child porn, prior conviction of possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography and failing to register as a sex offender.
Detectives from NCPD's Sex Crimes unit responded and will assist in the investigation.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed more than 1 percent higher Tuesday, for its best day since March 11, CNBC reported.
It was helped by weakness in the yen against the dollar and gains in oil prices.
"It's a little bit hard to tell (why stocks are up). Whatever behind it is more subtle. People are being more comfortable it's not going to roll over and go into another corrective mode," said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank.
All three major averages closed about 1.25 percent higher in high volume trade, with the Dow up about 222 points. Goldman Sachs and IBM contributed the most to gains, while Pfizer and Wal-Mart were the only decliners.
A San Jose police officer who set off a nationwide firestorm with a series of tweets appearing to target the Black Lives Matter movement is apologizing publicly for the first time.
Officer Philip White was fired last October but quietly reinstated after a closed independent arbitration hearing in February. City leaders are expected to decide Tuesday whether to appeal that decision.
White has kept a low profile since returning to the force and did not openly address the controversy until an exclusive interview Monday with NBC Bay Area. He also released a public apology in the form of a letter.
White said his comments were actually in response to threats he had received.
The tweets — which some believe took aim at a movement launched after a string of deadly police shootings — sparked outrage around the country.
"Threaten me or my family and I will use my God-given and law-appointed right and duty to kill you #COPSLIVESMATTER," one tweet read.
Another said: "By the way if anyone feels they can't breathe or their lives matter I'll be at the movies tonight...off duty..carrying my gun."
In an interview at his home Monday, White said he wants the public to hear what he has to say — including that he's sorry.
"There are people out there that think I'm a monster, that I have racial tendencies, that I'm a racist and I'm not," White said, adding that he did not offer an explanation before because of the confidential arbitration process and out of concern for his family's safety.
He said the tweets, perceived by many as targeting Black Lives Matter supporters, were actually in response to viable threats he received after posting negative comments about anti-police protests.
"I actually received a telephone threat at one of my workplaces, saying that this person would come up and kill me and my family," White explained.
He said the person threatened to attack him when his family went out in public, which is why he tweeted about carrying a gun "at the movies" but never said which theater he had planned to attend.
A police investigation confirmed the threats.
Even though his tweets were actually aimed at the people who threatened him — not Black Lives Matter supporters — White said he still considers himself in the wrong.
"I never wanted to make excuses for my actions; they were inappropriate. There's no doubt about that," he said. "And if I could take it back, I would. The only thing I can do is apologize for them."
When asked what he thought when he saw the words he had written, White said: "Made me sick and made my family sick."
White's wife, Maryanne, a Filipino-American, is stunned by the accusations of racism because their family is multi-racial.
"We just said, 'They don't know.' I mean, our family members consist of African American, Mexican, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Vietnamese," she said.
White said he apologized immediately to the police chief, the department and community leaders. He also submitted a letter of apology to the city manager, which he said shows he has "been remorseful from the start."
Before the Twitter controversy, White had an untarnished record with the police department and had received numerous accolades throughout his 19-year career.
Police officials have acknowledged White had no prior disciplinary problems and had high marks for his work in various roles, including starting a program in schools to steer children away from gangs.
When asked about the criticism he has received, White acknowledged "that hurts, especially with my 19-year career [and] my track record."
White said he hopes to resume his role of working in the community where he established numerous partnerships.
"I want to set a precedent here," White said. "I want people to know that it's OK to 'own up' to what you do. Own up for a mistake."
It's still unclear how White's public apologies will resonate with city officials and community leaders. But they are certain to make their feelings known more on Tuesday as White's words and actions, past and present, are scrutinized.
A new poll says more than 40 percent of America's baby boomers stayed with their employer for more than 20 years. But it's unlikely that their children or grandchildren will experience the same job tenure.
The survey of more than 1,000 Americans 50 and older by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that 41 percent of those employed workers have spent two decades with the same company, including 18 percent who've stayed at least 30 years.
But it's a trend more common among the older baby boomers than younger ones, and traditional pensions appear to be one of the driving factors.
Among those who have had at least 20 years with a single employer, the survey found that about half are excited about retirement, but a third are anxious about their post-work lives.
David McQuinn, 61, is retiring Tuesday after 30 years with MiTek, a construction and engineering firm in suburban St. Louis. He says there were times he thought about leaving but he liked his co-workers and his senior position and also owned stock in the company.
"I started working young and I've been a man in a hurry my whole life," he says, "and now I'm in a hurry to not be in a hurry."
His experience exemplifies a trait among boomers: more attachment to the company than the younger generations. But even among older Americans there's a gap in employment tenure: Half of those aged 65 and up but only a third of those age 50 to 64 have stayed with the same employer for at least two decades.
The shift may be less about differences in attitude than changes in jobs -- and benefits.
About two-thirds of those who stayed with one employer for 20 or more years had a pension, according to the survey, compared with only a third of those who had never stayed that long with one employer.
Those defined benefit pension plans are slowly disappearing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that only 18 percent of private workers were covered by these plans in 2011, down from 35 percent in the early 1990s. More common now are plans like 401(k)s, which are more portable from one employer to another.
The agency has reported that a larger proportion of older workers than younger workers had more tenure on the job. For example it said, in January 2014, the average tenure with the current employer was 7.9 years for people 45 to 54, compared to 10.4 years for those 55 to 64.
"Think of all the choices people have today. I mean, who ever heard of a social-media analyst five years ago?" says Joe Coughlin, the director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AgeLab.
Coughlin says higher churn in the labor market also means companies will have to work harder to hire and retain the workers they need, and this creates leverage.
"Millennials think this way instinctively," he said. "They've seen their parents laid off by these large corporations, so there is less trust."
Christina Guerrero worked in the mid-1980s as a housekeeper at Austin's Brackenridge Hospital before applying for and getting a job as a clinical assistant.
She kept that job for 17 years, before moving to a neighboring children's hospital. Lifting children into hospital beds, she recalls, was easier on her back then moving adults.
"I thought about looking for other jobs, but almost any hospital these days would require me to go back to school to finish my GED, so that was a big reason for staying put," says Guerrero, now 61.
According to the AP-NORC survey, younger baby boomers were much more likely to have gone back to school in the past five years: 30 percent of those age 50-64, compared to 19 percent of those 65 and older.
Most went for additional training because their employer required it or they wanted to learn something new or fun. Only 17 percent said they received training to start a new career.
Joe Abraham, 65, says he's sure he "dodged a few bullets along the way" during his 36-year career as an attorney at Ford Motor Co.
Now retired, he says the raises and benefits he got from Ford were not worth giving up for something else. Plus, he just liked his colleagues.
Ralphs Grocery Company is looking to fill 400 positions in Southern California supermarkets – including some jobs in San Diego County.
The company plans to host hiring events throughout all of its SoCal locations Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Job seekers can visit their neighborhood Ralphs supermarket for a job interview that day. Prior to the hiring event, candidates can apply for open positions on the Ralphs website.
As of Tuesday, the Ralphs website listed nearly a dozen open jobs in San Diego-area Ralphs markets, including stores on Del Mar Heights Road, Mission Boulevard, Sports Arena Boulevard and Carmel Mountain Road.
Kendra Doyel, vice president of Corporate Affairs for Ralphs Grocery Company, said the available positions are part-time and include roles in every department – “including front end, deli, meat, bakery and grocery.”
Ralphs was founded in 1873 and currently employs more than 20,000 associates across 204 supermarkets in San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.
A proposal to ban the retail sale of dogs and cats from commercial breeders was adopted unanimously on Tuesday in Carlsbad.
The Carlsbad City Council adopted the measure, which had been approved last week by the council. The ban will take effect in 30 days.
It includes any commercial breeders, such as pet stores, that sell dogs and cats, but does not encompass the sale or adoption of dogs and cats from non-commercial breeders.
Carlsbad officials said there is currently one pet store selling dogs and cats that has six months to comply with the new ban.
City councilors considered a similar ban in 2013, but it did not pass at the time. The City of Oceanside recently passed a similar ban.
A new release from Carlsbad city officials said the city council also “directed city staff to pursue legislation at the state and federal level to ensure the responsible and humane breeding and care of dogs and cats.”
A mother wanted to surprise her college-aged daughter after she traveled to her school to help her move out for the summer, so she snapped a selfie in what she thought was her daughter's bed.
But when Deeana Pilling, who flew from New York City to Utah last week for the surprise, texted her daughter the photo, she realized she had a mistake.
"Look where I am! Where are you?" Deeana texted daughter McKenna Pilling, a Utah State University student, after she sent her the selfie.
"Where's that?? I'm in my dorm. Please tell me you're not in someone else's dorm," McKenna texted back.
Her mom then replied: "I am in the wrong dorm omg."
The dorm and the bed, it turns out, belonged to a friend of McKenna's who lives in the same building, Select/All reported.
“She came to surprise me from New York City to help clean out my dorm and apparently walked in the wrong dorm,” McKenna Pilling told Buzzfeed News. “No one was in there so she laid down for five minutes in the wrong bed and decided to send me a picture as a surprise.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified Deanna Pilling's daughter as McKeena Pilling.
In a moment seven decades in the making, President Barack Obama this month will become the first sitting American president to visit Hiroshima, where the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb during World War II, decimating a city and exploding the world into the Atomic Age.
Obama will visit the site with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a previously scheduled trip to Japan, the White House announced Tuesday.
The president intends to "highlight his continued commitment to pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
Obama will not apologize for the bombing, the White House made clear. And Abe said none was expected nor necessary, suggesting the visit itself would send a powerful message.
"The prime minister of the world's only nation to have suffered atomic attacks, and the leader of the world's only nation to have used the atomic weapons at war will together pay respects for the victims," Abe told reporters late Tuesday. "I believe that would be a way to respond to the victims of the atomic bombings and the survivors who are still in pain."
The president's visit has been widely anticipated since U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's trip to the Hiroshima memorial in April. Kerry toured the peace museum with other foreign ministers of the Group of Seven industrialized nations and participated in an annual memorial service just steps from the site's ground zero.
Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui praised Obama's plan to visit as a "bold decision based on conscience and rationality," adding that he hopes Obama will have a chance to hear the survivors' stories. He also expressed hope the visit would be "a historic first step toward an international effort toward abolishing nuclear weapons, which is a wish of all mankind."
The U.S. attack on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, in the final days of World War II, killed 140,000 people. While it scarred a generation of Japanese, many Americans believe the bombing, along with another Aug. 9 on the city of Nagasaki, hastened the end of the war. Japan announced it would surrender on Aug. 15.
Diverging views about an act that forever changed war have made a visit from a sitting U.S. president a delicate and arguably politically risky move. Former President Jimmy Carter did visit, in 1984, three years after he left office.
It took 65 years for a U.S. ambassador to attend the annual memorial service. In the U.S., officials remain wary that a presidential visit could be perceived as an apology for an act believed to have saved American lives.
Sunao Tsuboi, 91, a survivor of the bombing and head of a survivors' group in the western Japanese city, praised Obama for his decision.
"The day has finally come," Tsuboi told Japan's NHK national television."
"We are not asking for an apology," Tsuboi said. "All we want is to see him lay flowers at the peace park and lower his head in silence. This would be a first step toward abolishing nuclear weapons."
Kevin Martin, president of Peace Action, a U.S.-based group, said Obama should use the visit to announce specific steps to "bring the world closer to being free of nuclear weapons," such as reducing the number of nuclear warheads in reserve.
"Obama will look insincere if his words espouse ridding the world of nuclear weapons while at the same time his administration continues its plan to spend a trillion dollars over 30 years to upgrade nuclear weapons," Martin said in a statement.
Early in his presidency, Obama said he would be honored to make the trip, and the White House has said it often considered a visit on previous trips to Asia. It has not explained why a visit there has never come together.
Asked last week whether the president believes an apology is warranted, Earnest was direct: "No, he does not."
In a statement posted as the visit was announced, a senior White House official added that the president does not intend to wade into past debates.
"He will not revisit the decision to use the atomic bomb at the end of World War II. Instead, he will offer a forward-looking vision focused on our shared future," deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said. "The United States will be eternally proud of our civilian leaders and the men and women of our armed forces who served in World War II for their sacrifice at a time of maximum peril to our country and our world. Their cause was just, and we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude."
Obama will be in Japan to attend the Group of 7 economic summit, part of a weeklong Asia tour that will also include a stop in Vietnam.
A painting found in a New Jersey basement last year turned out to be a long-lost Rembrandt painting, according to the auction house that sold it.
The painting, later determined to be "An Allegory of The Sense of Smell" created by the artist in 1625, was found in a home in Bloomfield after the couple that owned the home died, according to Nye & Company, which sold the painting.
The couple’s children didn’t want the painting, so they called Nye & Company to put it to auction.
The auction house said it didn’t know the painting was a Rembrandt because it was so old and dusty that the artist’s signature was obscured.
Thinking it was a 19th century copy, appraisers valued the painting to be worth between $500 and $800, according to reports at the time.
But an art dealer knew better after bidding opened at $250 and ended up buying the painting for $870,000 before having it restored.
The painting has since been sold to American art collector Thomas Kaplan and is being put on display at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.
"We are truly thrilled that the first museum to exhibit Rembrandt’s earliest known signed work, An Allegory of The Sense of Smell and its companions is the Getty," said Kaplan.
The painting is part of a set of five works depicting the five senses. Three of the other paintings in the set are at other museums, and the fifth -- which depicts the sense of taste -- is still missing, according to the Getty Museum.
The San Diego Zoo is now 100 years old and city leaders plan to celebrate the centennial with a special proclamation ahead of a community festival.
On Wednesday, Mayor Kevin Faulconer will present a proclamation from the City of San Diego to San Diego Zoo Global officials, marking the landmark’s milestone birthday.
The ceremony is happening at 10 a.m. at Plaza de Panama in Balboa Park and will also be attended by Chairman of the Board of San Diego Zoo Global Robert B. Horsman, San Diego Zoo Global President/CEO Douglas G. Myers and San Diego Zoo Global Ambassador Rick Schwartz.
The city’s proclamation comes just days before the Centennial Community Event – the zoo’s big celebration set for 6 p.m. Saturday at Spreckels Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park.
According to organizers, the family-friendly party will include crafts, hands-on activities for the kids, live music, dancing and animal presentations by zookeepers. A live orchestra – including Tony and Grammy Award winner Heather Headly – is set to perform at Spreckels Organ Pavilion at 8 p.m.
During the event, several Balboa Park museums will offer free admission, including the San Diego Museum of Art and the Museum of Photographic Arts.
Attendees can also enjoy food that evening from a long lineup of gourmet food trucks including Seoul Man (Korean cuisine), Salt + Lime (Mexican food) and Totally Tasty (burgers), to name a few.
Organizers say the San Diego Zoo is not open that evening and all centennial events will take place at Balboa Park. Attendees can RSVP to the big bash ahead of time on the zoo’s centennial website.
San Diego Zoo Global – the non-profit that operates the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research – was founded on Oct. 2, 1916, by Harry M. Wegeforth.
The award-winning, 100-acre San Diego Zoo sits on Balboa Park north of downtown San Diego and is home to more than 3,500 rare and endangered animals spanning more than 650 species and subspecies. The zoo is renowned for its panda habitat. It also houses more than 700,000 exotic plants.
According to the zoo’s website, San Diego Zoo Global is the largest zoological membership association in the world, with more than 250,000 adult member households and 130,000 child memberships.
Two women have been approved to join the infantry, a U.S. Marine spokesperson confirmed to NBC 7 San Diego.
One will become a rifleman with another will become a machine gunner, Pentagon spokesperson Capt. Philip Kulczewski said in a written statement.
The addition of the new Marines in their combat roles will take time, including "counseling, reviewing physical readiness, completing resident Professional Military Education, individual performance, competiveness in MOS and ultimately needs of the Marine Corps," he said.
Also, a female leadership cadre must be in place at least three months before the two infantry Marines arrive, Kulczewski said.
A training team will visit USMC installations in May to discuss integrating women into the infantry units.
When the recruitment of women for combat jobs was first endorsed by Defense Secretary Ash Carter, the Marine Corps estimates 200 women a year will move into ground combat jobs.
And U.S. Special Operations Command said it anticipates a "small number" of volunteers for its commando jobs.
The Navy said it is already collecting submission packages from prospective SEAL candidates and could see women in entry-level enlisted and officer training in September and October.
The top Army and Marine Corps generals have said they feel it will take up to three years to fully integrate women into all combat jobs.
Officials in each branch of the military have insisted they will not lower standards for the combat posts or bow to pressure or quotas to get more women into the grueling frontline jobs.
No women have made it through the Marine infantry officer course so far.
Former presidential candidate Ted Cruz declined Tuesday to say whether he would support presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump and suggested he might even re-enter the race if he saw a "viable path to victory," NBC News reported.
Supporter Glenn Beck asked in an interview if Cruz would consider jumping back in the mix if he won Tuesday's contest in Nebraska.
Cruz responded that he assumed that "would not happen."
"The reason we suspended the race last week was that with Indiana's loss I didn't see a viable path to victory," Cruz said. "If that changes, we will certainly respond accordingly."
When asked if he could support Trump, Cruz said voters should not rush to make a decision.
A display of 184 orange safety cones in San Diego Tuesday symbolized the lives of highway workers killed in traffic accidents on the job over the last nine decades.
Caltrans and California Highway Patrol (CHP) officials held the 26th annual Highway Workers Memorial Day ceremony in honor of the 184 Caltrans highway workers who have died on duty since 1921.
Each orange cone – displayed in front of the Caltrans District Office on Taylor Street near Old Town – featured the name of a Caltrans worker, along with the year they died.
Nineteen of the 184 cones signified Caltrans employees who lost their lives while working on highways in San Diego and Imperial counties, including longtime bridge engineer Oscar Vargas.
Vargas – a 29-year veteran of Caltrans – died on July 14, 2015, when he lost control of his work truck and crashed into an embankment on Interstate 8. At the time of his death, Vargas had most recently worked as a transportation civil engineer who worked in bridge construction.
"It's hard to drive around San Diego County without finding a bridge with Oscar's fingerprints on it," Caltrans District 11 Director Laurie Berman said at the memorial.
"Each of the cones represent a life cut short while serving the people of California," she added.
The tribute was attended by various Caltrans leaders including Berman, Director of Maintenance and Operations Steve Takigawa, Deputy District Director of Construction and Land Surveys Amer Bata, District Division Chief of Maintenance Everett Townsend and CHP Chief Jim Abele. Bagpipes were played at the beginning of the ceremony as attendees paid their respects.
Speakers stressed the importance of safe driving at all times, as motorists' actions on our roadways can have direct impact on the lives of highway workers every day.
A motorcyclist died in a crash on Tuesday afternoon north of Warner Springs, California Highway Patrol officers said.
The crash happened just after 12:30 p.m. Tuesday when a 59-year-old man riding a motorcycle on State Route 79 north of Chihuahua Valley Road.
The motorcyclist failed to negotiate a curve in the road and slid into the oncoming lane. The driver of an oncoming Ford E350 motorhome tried to brake, but still struck the motorcyclist, officers said.
The motorcyclist was ejected from the bike and died at the scene.
Alcohol or drugs do not appear to be a factor in the crash. The investigation is continuing.
