The U.S. Department of Transportation is fining American Airlines $1.6 million for holding domestic flights on the tarmac for more than three hours without allowing passengers to deplane.

The penalty, announced Wednesday afternoon, matches one levied against Southwest Airlines last year as the highest amounts ever imposed by the DOT for violating the so-called "Tarmac Delay Rule."

“Our tarmac rule is meant to prevent passengers from being trapped in aircraft on the ground for hours on end,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

According to the rule, U.S. flights with 30 or more passengers have to let people deplane after they've sat on the tarmac for three hours. Airlines also have to provide food, water and working bathrooms during delays.

DOT referenced an incident at DFW International Airport where they said American Airlines didn't properly prepare for heavy snow and rain--resulting in long delays.

In March 2015, passengers on a 30-minute American Airlines flight to Oklahoma City waited more than nine hours. The airline apologized for the delay.

American Airlines provided a statement in response to the DOT announcement.

“We are pleased to have this matter resolved," the statement said. "It’s worth noting that a large portion of the settlement is related to a winter weather event that occurred nearly four years ago in Charlotte."

"Regardless, every situation is a learning opportunity and we remain committed to taking care of our customers,” the statement said.

Of the $1.6 million fine, about $602,000 will be credited back to the airline for compensation it has already paid passengers on affected flights. The DOT also agreed to waive $303,000 of the fine to reimburse the airline for better equipment to help avoid such problems in the future, the agency said in the release.

The San Diego City Council unanimously voted Tuesday in favor of a temporary ban on recreational marijuana businesses.

The temporary prohibition will allow city officials time to come up with policies regulating recreational marijuana in the city of San Diego.

In November, California voters approved state Proposition 64.

Under the law, Californians over 21 years of age can now use marijuana privately, and can have up to 28.5 grams of marijuana and up to 8 grams of concentrated marijuana, such as hash, in their possession, according to the Official Voter Information Guide for the proposition.

People who do not have a medical marijuana card may not be able to legally purchase weed from dispensaries until another part of Proposition 64 goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2018.

The state has until that date to set up a system for dispensaries to apply for licenses, which will allow them to legally sell marijuana for recreational use.

San Diego’s Planning Commission will meet Thursday to review proposed changes to zoning and land use regulations in anticipation of the new industry.

Under the proposal, there would be four so-called Marijuana Outlets per district within the City of San Diego. That would set the limit for the outlets at 36 within city limits.

But a local attorney who represents commercial cannabis businesses said several districts do not meet zoning restrictions so the number of outlets would actually be less than 36.

"Whether 24 medical marijuana dispensaries and outlets for recreational marijuana are sufficient, for the entire city of San Diego, I think will remain to be seen," said attorney Lance Rogers.

Businesses would need to apply for five-year permits to operate the outlets and must set up a security system and guard.

The businesses would operate seven days a week under the proposal but hours would be limited to 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

"I think there's a requirement for an armed security guard to be there almost 24-7, and this is extremely expensive and might not be necessary," Rogers said.

Scott Chipman leads San Diegans for Safe Neighborhoods, a group opposing the commercialization of Marijuana.

Chipman claims that there have been 600 complaints against pot dispensaries over the last three years but many of them were ignored.

"We've got more kids thinking marijuana is okay because the adults are okay with it," Chipman said. "So this is really a disaster for public health and safety."

As part of the proposed zoning rules, the city would prohibit growing marijuana unless in a secured outdoor greenhouse.

Read a fact sheet released by city officials here.

The City Council will meet in the future to vote on final approval.

It is still illegal to smoke weed while driving a car, in a public place, or in any location where smoking tobacco is not allowed.

Students and families from the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) gathered in Old Town for a rally Wednesday in support of communities whom the district believes may feel "vulnerable" after the presidential election.

SDUSD board members and the superintendent also attended the Celebration of Light event held at the Ballard Center on Congress Street.

According to the district, the event is a first of its kind, being held to show their commitment to diversity—including undocumented immigrants, gay, lesbian and transgender students and Muslim groups.

While most people NBC 7 spoke with were on board with the district's message, others claim the event was a publicity stunt and crossed the political line.

The district did spend money on marketing materials and also provided buses to bring people to and from the event.

"I think it's a little bit of column A and column B, so I think it's part a publicity thing, part is instilling fear, part is politics," one person told NBC 7. "I think we just need to come together as a community regardless of what our backgrounds are."

Some stated that the district essentially took sides regarding illegal immigration by hosting the rally.

"There's nothing negative about it, it's just a matter of people saying I don't necessarily agree with everything you're all about but if we can come together and be civil to one another, I think that's really important right now," another individual said.

SDUSD Board President Richard Barrera told NBC 7 the event was not political whatsoever.

"We will stand up for our students and we'll use every resource and every strategy available to us to stand up for our students but the most important way we think we can stand up for our students is to tell our story," Barrera said.

In November, SDUSD pledged to keep school open and welcoming to all students and affirmed their commitment to diversity. 

Barrera had previously stated the Celebration of Light rally would be held to send a message to President-elect Donald Trump that the district believed in a right to education for every student.

The district partnered with approximately 20 outside organizations for the rally.

Chula Vista Police are looking for a man wanted in an October attack that left two women with serious head injuries.

"This could have easily been a homicide," Chula Vista Police Lt. Fritz Reber said.

Investigators released photos Wednesday showing a man they say armed himself with an aluminum bat and struck two women in their heads outside of a bar on E Street in Chula Vista.

Surveillance video captured a large fist fight in front of the On the Rocks Bar on Saturday, October 15, police said. The suspect, describe as 25 to 35 years old, can be seen beating the two victims, according to investigators.

"He walks up behind one of them. She's not even looking at him and with all his strength, cracks her in the head. He could have killed her," Lt. Reber said.

When the second woman tried to stop him, the suspect hit her in the face and head with a bat.

One woman underwent surgery for a cut to the back of her head. The second victim suffered a fractured skull, police said, and has had to undergo rehabilitation as part of her recovery.

"We've identified every suspect in every other crime that occurred. This suspect is the only person we have yet to identify," Lt. Reber said.

Officers say there are distinctive tattoos on the suspect’s neck and arm.

He could face violent felony charges, police said.

Anyone with information related to this crime please contact the Chula Vista Police Department Crimes of Violence Unit at (619) 409-5487 or the non-emergency line at (619) 691-5151.

No other information was immediately available.

Check back for updates on this breaking news story. 

The California Public Utilities Commission has ruled the plan to pay for the most expensive nuclear plant decommissioning in history is on hold.

The original deal to shutdown and cleanup the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station was approved two years ago. It had Southern California ratepayers paying $3.3 billion to close the plant and billions more in the future to handle the cleanup.

In a ruling announced Tuesday, the Commission is asking all those involved in the original deal to meet again to “consider and provide additional recommendations.”

According to the CPUC, in the two year since the agreement was implemented “ratepayers have received significant benefits (both credits and refunds) through a series of complex calculations.” Still, ratepayers “should not be further disadvantaged as a result of Edison’s bad acts.”

This comes after a series of revelations in court hearings, commission hearings and media reports detailing secret meetings that took place in Warsaw, Poland between Michael Peevey a CPUC regulator and a Southern California Edison company executive Stephen Pickett.

SCE and SDG&E own the San Onofre plant. Peevey was a top SCE executive before he became president of the CPUC. San Onofre was shutdown in 2013 because of excessive wear of the 3,000 steam tubes that were part of the Mitsubishi steam generator.

The secret meeting in Warsaw came three months before SCE announced it was shutting down the San Onofre plant. Notes from that secret meeting were later seized in a raid on Peevey’s residence. Two of the handwritten documents appear to show a game plan for who pays what in the unexpected shutdown.

According to a published media report on the meeting, SCE said Pickett, “took notes at Mr. Peevey’s direction.”

Click here to see the handwritten notes. 

The meeting in Warsaw happened before settlement discussions between SCE, SDG&E and consumer groups had begun. The revelations of the meeting gave the appearance the settlement deal was tilted in favor of the utilities, according to some consumer groups.

The CPUC fined SCE $16.74 million in penalties for “failing to disclose ex parte communications,” after the commission learned of and investigated the meeting between Peevey and Pickett. It said the company made “false and misleading statements under oath” which may have impacted the original agreement.

SCE argued then and now, the settlement was “reasonable, lawful and in the public interest.” According to the CPUC ruling, SDG&E “continues to assert that the Settlement remains reasonable in light of the record, consistent with the law and in the public interest.”

Click here to read the CPUC’s latest ruling that goes into detail about the factors and associated costs involved in the outage of the plant and its eventual shutdown.

Depending on who is making the claim, consumers either lost or gained benefits and millions of dollars from the original ruling.

According to the The Utility Reform Network, TURN, which signed off on the original agreement, “the adopted settlement should be set aside” because of the unreported communications between Peevey and Edison executives.

The Office of Ratepayer Advocates, ORA, the independent consumer watchdog within the CPUC, said “Edison’s failure to report ex parte contacts with Commission decision-makers adversely impacted the settlement discussions.” The group called it an “unfair advantage.”

Friends of the Earth, a global network of environmental activists, supports the position of SCE and SDG&E and said the settlement is in “the public interest.”

NBC 7 asked the California Attorney General’s office for comment in regards to the CPUC decision and the state investigation into Peevey. The agency was responsible for seizing the documents, including the Warsaw notes, when they raided the former regulator’s home in early 2015.

In an email, Kristin Ford, Deputy Communications Director for the Office, said, “I can't comment on ongoing investigations.”

When asked about the decision to redo the deal, Maureen Brown, a spokeswoman for SCE, said in an email, “Southern California Edison is disappointed in a ruling issued Tuesday by the assigned commissioner and an administrative law judge at the California Public Utilities Commission directing that SCE confer with other parties in the San Onofre nuclear plant proceeding regarding possible changes to the SONGS settlement that was unanimously approved by the CPUC in 2014. SCE continues to believe the settlement reflects an appropriate allocation of costs but will begin preparing to participate in the process spelled out in the ruling to schedule a meeting and confer with other parties by Jan. 31.”

SDG&E didn’t not immediately provide comment regarding Tuesday’s ruling.

SCE has until January 31, 2017 to set-up and hold a meeting for all involved.

There was a note at the end of CPUC’s ruling, warning all involved that “any and all ex parte communications with any decision maker or Commissioner advisors regarding all issues in this proceeding continue to be prohibited. Further, all communications with any Commissioner or Commissioner advisors regarding procedural matters also continue to be prohibited.”

A San Diego man treating wounded civilians in battle-torn Mosul, Iraq, has returned home for the holidays – with vivid, lasting memories of a job that is far from over.

Derek Coleman, 27, is a machinist from San Marcos in San Diego’s North County. Currently, he is one of two volunteer medics treating civilians and Iraqi soldiers on the frontlines of Mosul, along with his colleague, Pete Reed.

NBC 7 spoke to Coleman earlier this month over the phone, when he was still overseas. On Wednesday, NBC 7 went to Coleman’s home for an in-depth look at his work on the frontlines.

Coleman said he decided to head to Iraq more than a year ago, after he heard what was happening in Kurdistan. He knew he had to help, somehow, and now was the time.

“I was like, ‘Well, I don’t have a girlfriend. I don’t have dogs or kids. If not now, when?’ So I saw it as a unique opportunity in my life where I had the means to do it and I just booked a flight one day and did it,” he explained.

Coleman sold his truck, electronics and camping gear – basically anything that was worth anything – and used the money to make the move.

“I took a big gamble for sure,” he recalled.

Initially, he went to Iraq to be a foreign fighter but within the first few weeks of arriving, he realized there were few options for medical treatment for wounded civilians in Mosul and her felt he could make a bigger difference there by becoming a volunteer medic.

“Right now, I think there is this unique epidemic on the basis of how many civilians are being wounded on a daily basis and how little there is to help them,” Coleman explained. “It’s pretty staggering.”

“It’s a really, really big battle,” he added. “I think people don’t appreciate the size Mosul is. It’s a very large city and it has a million people still in the city, trapped.”

Along with Reed, Coleman has treated almost 600 patients during his time in Mosul, most of whom are children caught in the middle of the fight against ISIS. From about 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. each day, the medics treat between 40 and 50 patients.

He told NBC 7 the toughest part about his work is seeing how many children have been wounded or killed.

He described a typical day in Mosul: “Throughout the day, we just receive casualties. They come by ambulances, Humvees, on foot. Most [patients] are pretty severe trauma: gunshot wounds, explosions, fragmentation.”

Coleman said the smells, sights and sounds of the battlefield sometimes hit him after he’s finished treating patients for the day, once he has time to slow down and think about what he’s seen.

“I get emotional sometimes,” he said, adding that at times, those memories from Mosul will come to mind when he least expects it, when he’s back home safe in San Diego.

“Most of [the memories] are pretty negative – particularly the children I've treated,” said Coleman. “In the last day I was in Mosul, we had a few kids come in who were severely wounded and ended up dying. Picking up a little boy who had lost both his legs and carrying him and just having his blood all over me and wearing those clothes all day, I have vivid memories of that.”

Coleman said being so close to the battlefield has been scary, and he has experienced a few close calls of his own.

“I've been shot at a bunch of times. I've had a bunch of rockets land near us. Car bombs are by far the scariest,” he explained.

Witnessing the danger and death in Mosul firsthand, he said he now sees the world differently.

“I think going forward it's going to be hard having my day ruined now for something trivial now after I've lived through days that are life or death for some people,” said Coleman.

Although he’s currently home for the holidays, he plans to return to Mosul to continue his volunteer work as a medic. Coleman told NBC 7 he feels a sense of responsibility to help civilians there until the fight is over.

“I'm going to go back because the battle is not over yet,” he said.

Coleman said the medical supplies he and Reed are using to treat the wounded in Mosul come from donations. He said they ran out of pediatric medical supplies very early on. Currently, they are in the process of raising funds through this GoFundMe page and Facebook to purchase more supplies. As of Wednesday, the online donation drive had raised $7,300 for Coleman and Reed to continue their work.

Coleman said he has missed his family, friends and the food in Southern California. He said it still feels strange to be back in the United States.

“The first few days were strange because it didn't seem real. The streets I would go down, or off ramps I'm driving down on the freeway – they were like dreams. They didn't seem real to me," Coleman said.

For now, he is enjoying the calm and safety of home.

“It took a few days to realize, yeah I'm actually here. I'm not in Iraq anymore. I'm not hearing constant gunfire or explosions. I've been watching some of the videos I've taken there and thinking, ‘It's nice to not be in a situation where a Humvee is driving up, loaded with wounded people, or children. It's a nice, relaxing calm day.’”

Coleman is currently being filmed by a crew from Delirio Films that is working on a documentary about westerners volunteering in the fight against ISIS, directed by Sebastiano Tomada.

Facebook is letting its users flag news stories as fake or a hoax and working with fact checkers to vet them, the social media giant announced Thursday, in its first efforts to address fake news since the United States election.

Some news articles that were widely shared on the platform in the run-up to Election Day were obviously and demonstrably false, like the Pope and Denzel Washington endorsing Donald Trump for president — they did not. It's causing widespread confusion, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center, and the propagation of a baseless conspiracy theory is being blamed for gunman walking into a Washington, D.C., pizzeria shop and shooting a rifle.

Facebook executives have indicated since the election that they were reviewing what changes to make, if any, to combat fake news, though none have said they believe the false news shared on the platform changed the outcome of the election. Those changes were announced at 1 p.m. ET Thursday.

News that's identified as fake by the fact checking organizations, which must sign on to Poynter’s International Fact Checking Code of Principles, will be marked as "disputed" and have an explainer accompanying that content, Facebook said. Facebook's algorithm may also have those stories appear lower in users' feeds. Recode reported that ABC News, Politifact, FactCheck and Snopes are the partner news organizations.

Facebook is also trying to reduce the financial incentive for creating and posting fake articles, and is testing a way to see if reading an article leads fewer people to share it indicates the story is misleading and should be ranked lower.

"We believe in giving people a voice and that we cannot become arbiters of truth ourselves, so we’re approaching this problem carefully," News Feed Vice President Adam Mosseri said in a statement. "We've focused our efforts on the worst of the worst, on the clear hoaxes spread by spammers for their own gain, and on engaging both our community and third party organizations."

A Pew survey released Thursday found that 64 percent of U.S. adults say fabricated news stories are causing confusion about basic facts in current events, while only 10 percent said they believed it was causing not much or no confusion.

Seventy-one percent of the 1,002 people surveyed between Dec. 1 and 4 said they see fake news online often or sometimes.

Fake news became a massive point of contention in the final days of the election and afterward, with Hillary Clinton calling fake news a "danger that must be addressed" quickly in a speech on Capitol Hill last week.

The fake news seemed to target Clinton more than Trump, according to analyses of the content, including one by Buzzfeed that found top false articles generated more engagement than top election stories posted by 19 major news outlets, like NBC News, The New York Times and others. Only three of the top 20 performing false stories didn't target Clinton or support Trump, it found.

Producing fake news became a cottage industry in one part of Macedonia, where NBC News spoke to a teenager who said he's earned $60,000 in six months off of baseless, incendiary posts that mainly targeted followers of Donald Trump, because "Nothing can beat Trump's supporters when it comes to social media engagement," he said.

Those stories appear to have had real-world effects. Edgar Maddison Welch took an AR-15 rifle and handgun into the popular Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in D.C. in early December, to investigate the a rumored child sex abuse ring purportedly run by a Clinton aide, police said. The store's owner had already been receiving death threats, as the hoax became popular on Reddit and other online forums, before spinning off into fake news stories.

Welch discharged his rifle, but no one was hurt, police said. He later told a New York Times reporter that his "intel on this wasn't 100 percent."

CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said he doesn't think fake news swayed the election, and Mosseri told The New York Times Thursday he doesn't believe the feed directly caused people to vote for a particular candidate: "the magnitude of fake news across Facebook is one fraction of a percent of the content across the network."

Americans are split on whether fake news should be limited by social media, according to a McClatchy-Marist poll of just over 1,000 adults out Thursday. Fifty-three percent said it should be up to users to determine what information is true, while 41 percent said Facebook and Twitter should be responsible for preventing false information from spreading. 

A higher portion of those surveyed by Pew — 71 percent — said social networking sites and search engines bear a great deal or some responsibility for preventing their spread.

According to that poll, only 15 percent of people are not confident in their ability to spot fabricated news. But many have difficulty differentiating fake news from real, according to a recent Stanford study of students across the country. 

The City of San Diego has partnered with a navigation app in an effort to better inform San Diegans of current traffic conditions.

City officials announced their project with the app, Waze, Wednesday and its "Connected Citizens Program."

The app collects anonymous, real-time traffic information from users, referred to as “Wazers," and uses that information to alert other drivers of delays or accidents on the roadways. It's designed to save commuters time and help get them to their destination with as minimal traffic as possible.

This way, drivers can have better control over their commute -- and which areas to avoid -- and help others decide on their route, too. As Waze puts it, the common goal of Wazers is to work together "to outsmart traffic."

The partnership will include a two-way data exchange: both the city and Waze will share data with one another in an effort to provide residents with better navigation information.

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer said he's looking forward to the City of San Diego parterning on this project with Waze.

“Our city is constantly looking for ways to use data and technology to improve the quality of life for all San Diegans,” Faulconer said. “This partnership will give residents and our City the ability to share data that will make traveling on San Diego roads safer and easier.”

Other city leaders, including San Diego Councilman Mark Kersey, also said they're thrilled for the data-sharing project.

Kersey said the partnership aligns with the council's efforts “to be more technology-driven while also helping residents navigate around traffic congestion.”  

Waze Connected Citizens Program Manager Paige Fitzgerald said San Diego already has a “robust network” of users sharing navigation tips through the app.

According to the company, more than 235,000 San Diegoans are already activly using the app to contribute road assistance monthly.   

"The city can use the anonymous insights collected from Waze to further promote safer roads and make educated decisions about roadwork and other operations, helping the overall community save time and travel more efficiently," she said in a press release.

Click here to download the free Waze app for iOS or Android. 

A wanted theft suspect had a replica firearm, knives and suspected stolen items inside his car when he nearly crashed into a San Diego County Sheriff's Department (SDSO) car, deputies said. 

The suspect, later identified as Steven Michael Johnson, was first spotted on Wednesday morning at approximately 7:14 a.m. in an older model Chevrolet 1500 truck sprayed matte black in the Viejas Casino Parking structure, deputies said. 

Deputies from the Alpine Substation matched the car with the description of a vehicle associated with a recent mail theft that took place in an unincorporated area of Lakeside on Dec. 9. 

When deputies attempted to contact the suspect, he raced away at a high rate of speed, nearly hitting several parked cars, according to deputies. 

He drove through the parking structure and at one point, nearly struck an oncoming car - an on-duty Sheriff's Detective in the structure on an unrelated investigation. 

Johnson's car stalled, deputies said, and officials asked him to exit his vehicle. However, he refused to comply. 

As Johnson fidgeted with the ignition to try to start the car again, a deputy broke the passenger window with his baton in an attempt to detain the man. 

The suspect started to comply with deputy's orders and got out of the car, deputies said. He was detained on scene. 

When deputies were able to search Johnson and the car, they found several items believed to be stolen, including a woman's purse, electronic items, clothing and an IRS check valued at over $59,000. 

Deputies also found several knives and a replica firearm. 

Deputies were able to link Johnson to thefts in Rancho San Diego, Alpine and Lakeside, as well as a car theft in La Jolla. Several theft victims have since been located, and officials will continue searching for additional victims as the investigation continues. 

Johnson was arrested for two counts of identity theft, one count of possession of stolen property and one count of resisting arrest. 

Bunker Hill, Indiana has been left without a police department after the town marshal and four reserve deputies resigned over complaints about mismanagement and unethical requests from the town council, NBC News reported.

Town Marshal Michael Thomison, in his resignation letter, accused the town board of engaging in illegal, immoral and unethical actions, including requests to conduct criminal background checks on other board members and retaliation against deputies who pulled over council members or their spouses.

In addition, deputies were rankled by a lack of adequate supplies and skimpy funding for the force, which has volunteer members who do not receive benefits. Thomison was the only paid full-time member.

In a statement Wednesday night, officials disputed the deputies' assertions that something nefarious was being done by the government, and chalked it up to "disagreements" in policy making.

A man was arrested Wednesday in connection to a shooting that happened in October, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department (SDSO).

Jesus Perez, 26, allegedly fired a handgun several times during a fight and shot a man.

The incident took place after a party in the 800 block of Broadview Street in Stpring Valley. 

SDSO says the victim was taken to a hospital and did survive.

Perez was arrested Wednesday in the 2600 block of Via De la Valle in Del Mar and booked into county jail.

According to SDSO, they are still searching for additional witnesses to the shooting.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (888)580-8477. 

Crime Stoppers is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

A “Secret Santa” paid the Toys R Us layaway tab of about 60 families in San Diego on Wednesday night.

Diedra Smith’s family, one of the families whose bill was paid, was incredibly grateful because, she said, they wouldn’t have been able to afford it otherwise.

In total, the secret Santa covered $7,500 in layaways at the store in Morena, $400 of which was the Smith family’s tab. From Hot Wheels to Power Rangers, the toys ran the gamut.

The random act of kindness ensured this mother of four could give her family a merry Christmas.

“It’s hard when you have multiple kids and a big family. To have somebody just give like that without expecting anything in return, I’m so thankful,” she said.

Smith said she never wants her children to forget where these gifts came from.

“I’m going to put ‘from an angel on everything that those people purchased from Toys R Us because that’s how I feel,” she said.

While the families didn’t know the identity of the Secret Santa, NBC 7 learned it was the company Real Estate Worldwide. The company has been paying off layaways at the Toys R Us for the past several years.

Homicide investigators are looking for the public's help in finding the person or persons responsible for the death of a 66-year-old man near the San Diego Zoo. 

SDPD Lieutenant Mike Holden said investigators do not have any potential suspect or person(s) of interest in the death of Gregory Huser. 

Huser, 66, was found dead Monday on the edge of an embankment along Park Boulevard. The road runs along the perimeter of Balboa Park and leads to the parking area of the San Diego Zoo. 

Someone called 911 at approximately 2 a.m. to report finding Huser's body in a grassy area.

He had suffered major head trauma, according to Holden.

Huser was a transient who was killed where he was found, according to SDPD officials. 

Authorities are looking for the public's help in determining what happened. Anyone with information is asked to call San Diego Police or Crime Stoppers. 

No other information was immediately available.

The San Diego Chargers are mourning the loss of team hall of famer Chuck Allen. He was 77 years old.

The linebacker played for the Bolts from 1961 to 1969 and was part of the 1963 AFL Championship team. Allen was inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame in 1984.

Chargers Owner and Chairman Dean Spanos shared his condolences in a statement saying, “On behalf of the Spanos family and the entire Chargers organization, we’d like to express our deepest sympathies to the Allen family. Allen’s quiet disposition hid a great competitor whose talents and leadership on the field helped the Chargers become the AFL Champions in 1963 and cemented his place in the Chargers Hall of Fame.”

Allen’s NFL career also included time with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles. He then went on to serve as assistant general manager for the Seattle Seahawks for more than a decade.

A gas station clerk helped police arrest a man accused of leading law enforcement officers on a pursuit across La Mesa, while driving under the influence.

The incident began at approximately 5:30 a.m. Thursday when a San Diego Police Officer tried to pull over a 24-year-old man identified as Danny Morales, who was reportedly driving above the speed limit on Friars Road.

Morales continued traveling and entered Interstate 8 heading eastbound, police said. When he got close to the College Avenue exit, Morales lost control of his vehicle, crashed into a guardrail and spun around several times.

He lost a tire but kept driving, eventually turning on Lake Murray Boulevard.

A gas station clerk, Wayne Mariano, at the Shell gas station on Lake Murray Boulevard just north of the I-8, watched as the suspected DUI driver screeched into the gas station with flashing lights and police sirens blaring behind him.

The clerk immediately took action, when he saw the damaged vehicle headed straight for a gas pump. He pushed the car to a stop and trapped the driver inside.

“He started trying to get out of the car so I kicked his door shut,” the clerk Mariano told NBC 7. “I kicked his door shut and I held it for about 10 seconds while the cops got here cause I didn't want him to jump in another car.”

“I gotta protect my customers," he said.

Morales was arrested on DUI, hit-and-run charges and felony police evasion. According to an SDPD officer, the suspect was already on probation for a previous DUI offense.

Emergency responders were called to the scene but upon arriving they determined nobody was injured. Police then arrested Morales, who was booked into San Diego Central Jail just before 8 a.m.

Police said Morales lives in the area near the gas station. His court arraignment is set for Monday.

No other information was immediately available.

Check back for updates on this breaking news story. 

In Oceanside, the man arrested in connection with a homicide was not formally charged as expected Wednesday and family members of the victim are demanding justice.

Ade Perdue, 22, was found not breathing Sunday morning on Horne Street. The area where his body was found has been replaced with a memorial, filled with candles, flowers and messages.

Detectives didn't find any visible trauma to Perdue's body but later ruled it a homicide and made an arrest.

Pablo Mendoza was slated to be arraigned Wednesday on criminal charges in connection with Perdue’s death. However, the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office decided prosecutors were not able to meet the 72-hour deadline to file charges.

So, Mendoza was expected to be released from custody Wednesday night.

Perdue’s friends and family who appeared at the Vista Courthouse to see the suspect face a judge were disappointed and angry.

“It is very emotional. A little hard to take but, you know, we'll figure it out from here,” said Perdue’s sister-in-law Ilene Perdue.

The DA's office has just 72 hours from the time of an arrest to file charges. In this case they ran out of time.

Perdue’s death will remain under investigation.

“It’s ruled a homicide for a reason," Ilene Perdue said. "So someone has to pay and it’s in God's hands we just trust in His justice.”

“There's a reason for today. Maybe it’s better, maybe it gets it stronger, we just don't know,” she said.

Ade was remembered as a hard-working young man who brought light into a room.

He graduated from Oceanside High School and went on to work at Master’s Kitchen and Cocktail. The restaurant said Ade was a "beautiful soul" who would be misseed.

“He didn’t deserve to go out this way,” Ade's father Richard Perdue said.

Family and friends will celebrate Ade’s life on Sunday. They have also launched an online fundraising page to help with funeral expenses.

A Southwest High School employee is on leave after police say she threw a house party and provided alcohol to students.

Some students reported the October party to school administrators, who called San Diego Police Department.

The police found evidence that Rosa Sanchez, the principal’s administrative assistant threw the party, SDPD confirmed. Sanchez eventually admitted to hosting the party.

Sanchez was placed on administrative leave for six months until June 2017.

Students told NBC 7 the party was large and many students knew about it.

“I heard about the party and that it was really fun, but the fact that a teacher was giving alcohol to students, I don’t think that’s right,” said student Isaac Ramos.

Parents told NBC 7 they were concerned.

“I heard there have been some parties going on,” said Victor Viera, a Southwest High parent, who added he had not heard alcohol was being served at the parties.

“It’s not right,” he said.

The Sweetwater Union High School District refused to confirm whether Sanchez will continue collecting her pay during her 6-month leave of absence.

She will be allowed to return to work at the district following her leave, according to district documents.

San Diego police say they forwarded a case to the District Attorney's Office seeking charges. A District Attorney's Office spokeswoman said the case is under review.

Craig Sager, the longtime NBA sideline reporter famous for his flashy suits and probing questions, has died after a battle with cancer, Turner Sports announced Thursday. He was 65.

"Craig Sager was a beloved member of the Turner family for more than three decades and he has been a true inspiration to all of us," Turner President David Levy said in a statement. "There will never be another Craig Sager. His incredible talent, tireless work ethic and commitment to his craft took him all over the world covering sports."

Levy's statement did not say when or where Sager died.

Sager, who worked basketball games for TNT for nearly a quarter-century, revealed in March 2016 that his leukemia was no longer in remission. He said doctors told him the typical prognosis was three to six months to live, but "I am receiving the best treatment in the world and I remain fully confident I will win this battle."

As news of his death spread, testimonials of sympathy across the sports community began pouring in on social media.

Sager first announced in April 2014 that he had been diagnosed with leukemia, and he missed the playoffs and much of the following season as he underwent two bone marrow transplants.

His battle with cancer brought out the soft side of Gregg Popovich, the prickly San Antonio Spurs coach with whom he had many memorable exchanges during in-game interviews.

Sager sported suits in every color of the rainbow and plenty of shades not found in nature, from teal to fuchsia to magenta. He would match plaid blazers with paisley ties or striped shirts — all in bold hues.

Kevin Garnett once told him to burn an entire outfit. In a 2016 interview with HBO's "Real Sports," Sager recalled how Popovich reproached him for trying to stand out. Sager explained to him: "Coach, you don't understand. If I'm not wearing bright colors and if I don't feel lively, it's not me."

Sometimes lost in the glare of his wardrobe was Sager's relentless nature as a reporter. Every time Popovich would give a terse non-answer, an unfazed Sager would pepper him with another question.

During the 2016 NBA All-Star Weekend, Popovich described Sager as "an iconic figure in the NBA."

"He does a great job," the coach added. "His sense of humor is obvious. We have a lot of fun going back and forth with that."

Sager's persistence was on display at the start of his career, when the 22-year-old found himself in the middle of one of the most famous moments in sports history. Making $95 a week in 1974 as the news director at WSPB — a Braves-affiliated AM radio station in Sarasota, Florida — Sager risked getting fired by deciding to hop a flight to Atlanta for a game with Hank Aaron a home run away from breaking Babe Ruth's career record.

With a last-minute credential, Sager was stuck in the third-base photographers' well. As the historic homer sailed out of the park, Sager, without thinking, sprinted onto the field and wound up chasing Aaron down the third-base line. When Aaron's teammates mobbed him at home plate, Sager can be seen in his trench coat in the middle of the scrum.

The next day, Sager caught a 5 a.m. flight to Sarasota to be back in time for his morning drive responsibilities, and his tapes from the game wound up in Cooperstown.

During his career, Sager would work as a reporter on the Olympics, Major League Baseball playoffs, NFL and NCAA Tournament, among other sports. But he was indelibly connected to the NBA.

"Craig was as vital to the NBA as the players and coaches," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "A true original and an essential voice on Turner Sports' NBA coverage for 26 seasons, Craig chronicled some of the most memorable moments in league history and was a ubiquitous presence with his splashy suits and equally colorful personality. Craig earned widespread respect for his insightful reporting and inspired so many most recently with his courage."

His popularity around the sport was evident as he went through his cancer treatments.

Sager got to cover his first NBA Finals in 2016 through an unusual arrangement between TNT and ESPN, which invited him to join its coverage. He marked the occasion by wearing a blazer with a royal blue floral print. In an interview with LeBron James after Game 6, the Cavaliers star turned the tables to giddily ask Sager a question: "How in the hell do you go 30-plus years without getting a Finals game?"

Bulls star Dwyane Wade also sold paisley ties during the 2016 playoffs to raise money to combat blood cancers.

Earlier that season, Sager called the support he received from Silver, coaches, players and fans "humbling."

"It's been very uplifting, very therapeutic," he said.

And Sager loved everything about his job.

"I try to get there three hours before the game, talk with the ushers and the security guards, the coaches and the fans," Sager said in 2015.

A native of Batavia, Illinois, Sager attended Northwestern, where walked onto the football and basketball teams and served as the school's "Willie the Wildcat" mascot for three years.

He worked at several TV and radio stations in Florida after college before spending two years in Kansas City. Sager joined CNN in 1981 after handling the network's first live remote report during the 1980 baseball playoffs.

Sager was in Dallas for a game in April 2014 when he felt ill and sought treatment from Mavericks team physician Dr. Tarek O. Souryal, who had previously performed Sager's knee surgery. With a dangerously low hemoglobin count, Sager had six blood transfusions over a 24-hour period before returning to Atlanta.

In the days before her death, an Alpine toddler suffered multiple injuries to her head, a broken arm and a second- degree burn to the bottom of her foot, prosecutors said in court Thursday.

The final days of Leah Brown-Meza’s life were described by Deputy District Attorney Chantel de Mauregne.

Her mother and her mother's boyfriend sat in blue jail uniforms as they listened to the evidence presented against them.

Lillie Brown, 21, a member of the Viejas tribe, faces three counts of willful cruelty to a child with great bodily injury and/or death. Her boyfriend, Wiliey Kevin Foster, 26, of Alpine, faces charges of murder and assault on a child with force likely to produce great bodily harm or death. He was ordered held on $2 million bail.

Leah Brown-Meza died of blunt force trauma, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office. The 18-month-old was found unresponsive at an Alpine home just after noon on December 6.

San Diego County Sheriff's Deputies told NBC 7 that Lillie Brown reported waking up to find her daughter responsive and called for help.

The prosecutor described a different scenario in court.

Over the course of four and a half days, Brown-Meza suffered at least three different injuries, the prosecutor argued.

In addition to head injuries and a second-degree burn on the bottom of her foot, the toddler's upper arm was broken, the prosecutor told the judge.

“She would barely move it,” de Mauregne said. “They knew something was wrong.”

Also, the toddler refused to eat or drink in the days leading up to her death, the prosecutor alleged. Investigators estimate the toddler was with her mother from Friday to the day she died.

The child's biological father, a member of the Jamul Indian Village, shared joint custody with Brown. Leah was the great-granddaughter of the man who led the tribe over three decades and helped establish it as a band in the Kumeyeey Nation.

Both defendants entered not guilty pleas to the charges. Foster openly cried as the prosecutor described Leah's condition. He was ordered held on a $2 million bail.

Brown, who appeared in court for the first time Thursday, showed no emotion until Judge Daniel Goldstein set her bail. When Goldstein increased the requested bail from $200,000 to $300,000, Brown turned her eyes up to the ceiling.

Someone shouting out obscenities at the beginning of the hearing was removed. Goldstein warned the gallery that no outbursts would be tolerated.

The toddler was living in a mobile home parked outside a home on Hunter Lane in Alpine. The home belongs to Foster's parents.

Another infant lived in the home, prosecutors said. Foster's biological five-month-old was examined by Child Protective Services and appeared unharmed.

Von Helms was retained by Foster's family. Attorney Kenneth Elliott has been retained to represent Lillie Brown.

Leah's paternal great-grandfather, Kenneth Meza, is currently the Vice Chair for the Jamul Indian Village, one of 13 bands of the Kumeyaay Nation. He served as Chair of the tribe for more than 30 years and was instrumental in getting the band recognized by the federal government.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Homicide Detail at (858)974-2321.