One college graduate's tweet that recalls the chiling words his stepdad told him years ago has resulted in a viral wave of praise across social media. 

Daivon Reeder, 22, took to Twitter last week to tweet a photo of himself smiling in his cap and gown with an ode to his stepdad's previously negative comments. 

The tweet read: "My step dad told me it was pointless to go to orientation, I wasn't going to graduate.....4 years later he in jail & I'm well.... "

By Monday, the Detroit native's tweet garnered more than 602,000 likes and 148,000 retweets. 

"The last few days I've been thinking about all the trials and tribulations I've been going through," Reeder said before he graduated from Eastern Michigan University on Saturday. 

Reeder said his stepdad told him there was "no point" of going to college because he would not graduate. 

“Stuff happens to you. You can run left or right,” Reeder said. “I ran right in a positive way.”

Reeder told Jermont Terry, a reporter at NBC affiliate WDIV-TV, that he did not publish the tweet to bash his stepdad but rather to motivate others who may be faced with challenges. Reeder perservered through school even after losing his academic scholarship. 

Terry reports that Reeder will graduate with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and a minor in military science. 

San Diegans living in North County will have a new option when commuting to Los Angeles. 

Great Lakes Airlines has announced a new commercial service between Carlsbad's McClellan-Palomar Airport to Los Angeles International. 

The Wyoming-based airline will fly two to three direct flights a day between the cities.

The airlines estimates it will be ready to open operations in May 2017. 

The new flight offers San Diego travelers another alternative to San Diego International Airport.

McClellan-Palomar Airport contributes $108 million annually to the local economy, according to the County. 

In order to keep a baby healthy, they should receive 14 vaccines over their first 18 months, according to the County Health and Human Services Agency.

National Infant Immunization Week is underway from Apr. 22 to 29, and the County Health Agency wants parents to make sure their children are up-to-date with immunizations.

"Vaccines offer the best protection against disease," said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer, in a statement.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hopes to highlight the importance of protecting infants from vaccine-preventable diseases through this special week.

"Parents should make sure their children start their shots on time and stay on schedule. Immunizations prevent disease, disability and in the worst cases, death," said Wooten.

The CDC recommends infants get shots at birth, age 2, 4, 12, 15 and 18 months of age in order to prevent measles, meningitis, whooping cough and many other diseases.

Vaccination coverage of kindergarteners in San Diego County is near an all-time high, according to County surveys. There were 1,059 out of more than 46,000 local kindergartners missing some or all recommended vaccines, said County officials.

About 45,000 babies are born every year in San Diego County and need to be immunized on time to be healthy.

"No child, adolescent or adult should suffer from a vaccine-preventable disease," said Wooten. "Immunizations are the best thing parents can do to protect their children from serious disease."

But babies aren't the only ones who need to get their vaccines, said County officials. Parents, older siblings, grandparents and babysitters all need to get up to date.

Parts of State Route 67 and Interstate 8 will be closed overnight on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week as construction crews continue work on the Caltrans Interstate 8 Pavement Rehabilitation Project plan.

The closures will be at the southbound SR-67 connector to the west and eastbound I-8 interchange in the City of El Cajon, from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Only one connector will be closed at a time, according to Caltrans.

Detours will be placed at the SR-67 westbound to I-8, directing motorists to the Mollison Avenue off-ramp.

Detours will also be placed at the SR-67 to eastbound I-8 connector, directing motorists to the W. Main Street off-ramp.

Motorists are reminded to slow down or move over a lane when workers and flashing amber lights are present.

For timely route information on highway construction and incident closures, motorists are encouraged to follow Caltrans on Twitter.

A new park, described by designers as the largest city park in Mission Valley, will open following a public ceremony Saturday.

Civita Park is a 14.3-acre, multi-level park located north of Friars Road and east of Mission Center Road. It’s part of an open space design that will incorporate a network of trails for residents.

Among the highlights: a water feature, a plaza designed for farmers’ markets or car shows, a community garden and a dog park. There will also be a water fall that will be fed from runoff of the Civita development and parts of Serra Mesa, designers said.

The park that’s opening this weekend is on Civita Boulevard at Russell Parkway and is managed by Sudberry Properties, master developer of the 230-acre urban village of Civita.

A ribbon cutting ceremony is planned for 11 a.m. Residents can expect concerts, activities for children as well as circus performers. Festivities run from noon until 3 p.m.

Mark Radelow, vice president for Sudberry Properties, explained what will come in the future.

“The next phases of the park, which will open in 2018, will include two playgrounds, more fields, a bocce court, the “Mining Relic Terrace” with historic mining equipment and a Caterpillar D8 bulldozer, and three gardens,” he said in a news release.

Seven people were injured following a crash along northbound State Route 125 in Chula Vista, federal officials said Monday.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees called California Highway Patrol officers after a driver lost control and crashed into a ravine near Birch Road at midnight.

U.S. Border Patrol Public Affairs Officer for the San Diego Sector Tekae Michael said an agent tried to stop a Ford Expedition on Otay Mesa Road.

The driver, who refused to pull over for the BP agent, continued onto SR-125, Michael said.

Seven people were injured and taken to nearby hospitals, Michael said. All were Mexican nationals who were illegally in the country, he added.

Their injuries are considered to be non-life threatening.

Michael said the SUV was believed to be involved in illegal activity at the time the agent attempted to pull over the driver.

Border Patrol Agent Mark Endicott told NBC 7 the SUV was involved in human smuggling.

"There have been previous smuggling incidents taking place in the same area in the past, so it is an area known for smuggling activity," Endicott said.

He added that in most cases of human smuggling, the vehicle will pick up "human cargo" and then head north.

"Smugglers will cut the fence and it's just a straight shot from the primary fence to the secondary fence, maybe about 75 to 100-yard sprint," Endicott explained. "Then right there they assimilate. There's many places for them to hide and they'll just try to go to the nearest road to be picked up by a smuggling conveyance."

Endicott said the incident was another example of smugglers who had "utter disregard" for people and only cared for their own profits.

State Route 125, also known as the South Bay Expressway, connects I-905 and State Route 54.

No other information was available.

Please refresh this page for updates on this story. Details may change as more information becomes available.

A local report on crime in San Diego County found an increase in homicides, violent crimes against seniors and car burglaries, in the year of 2016 compared to 2015.

The SANDAG Criminal Justice Division released findings from the annual Crime Report Monday that showed the number of homicides, aggravated assaults and motor vehicle thefts went up.

On the other hand, the number of rapes, robberies, burglaries and larcenies went down, according to the annual crime report.

There were 17 more homicides in the region in 2016, which had a total of 101 homicide cases. That's compared to 84 cases in 2015. It's the third consecutive increase in homicides and the highest number reported since 2012.

Although robberies went down in 2016, the number of armed robberies involving the use of guns increased 30 percent, according to SANDAG.

"San Diego County remains a very safe place to live," said Director of Criminal Justice Research Dr. Cynthia Burke, in a statement.

"However, there are a couple areas of concern: homicides are up, so are robberies committed with a firearm, as well as violent crimes against seniors."

Violent crimes against seniors aged 60 and older went up 37 percent over the past five years, which the report indicates is not solely correlated to the increasing elderly population.

For the first time in eight years, there were more car thefts -- which had a total of 11,023 -- than burglaries, which had a total of 10,382.

Although general theft was down, the value of stolen property increased, due to the increase in vehicle thefts, according to SANDAG. There was roughly $468,080 worth of property stolen daily across the region of San Diego in 2016.

The violent crime rate per 1,000 residents was 3.33 and the property crime rate was 18.66 in 2016. These are the second lowest recorded rates since 1980, when SANDAG first began preparing annual regional crime reports.

A San Diego man accused of living a double life that led to the fatal stabbing of a wealthy Texas man listened as closing arguments were presented in court Monday. Prosecutors describe the crime as “a love affair gone wrong.”

David Enrique Meza, and his then-girlfriend, Taylor Marie Langston, were indicted in the December 2015 death of 52-year-old Jake Clyde Merendino.

Because Merendino was killed in Baja, California, the trial is in federal court.

U.S. District Court Judget Jeffrey Miller gave jurors strict guidelines for their deliberations Monday.

Prosecutors led off closing arguments, building a timeline of events in which the government alleges Meza and Langston intended to take advantage of Merendino and for Meza to eventually kill Merendino for gain.

Federal prosecutors allege Meza stabbed Merendino to death in the early hours of May 2 in Baja California.

Merendino’s body was found in a ravine near the highway that links Rosarito and Ensenada, according to the FBI. Meza and Langston were captured on video re-entering the U.S. soon after, according to investigators.

When questioned by investigators, Meza and Langston allegedly claimed they had been visiting with a friend named “Joe” in Tijuana at the time of Merendino’s murder. But Foster said phone records and Facebook posts contradicted that alibi, and “Joe” told investigators he had not seen the couple for a year and a half and they have never visited his home.

The prosecution’s evidence included text messages sent by Meza to Merendino professing his love for him. Messages were also shared in which Meza expressed his disdain for Merendino to his then-pregnant fiancée

Documentation was also shown to the jury suggesting Meza was the sole beneficiary of Merendino’s Baja condo worth nearly $300,000.

Langston entered a plea agreement in February. The San Diego-Union Tribune reports Langston pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Meza's attorney argued it would be difficult for Meza to drag Merendino's body since the victim was 6-foot, 4-inches tall and approximately 310 pounds.

The attorney also told jurors there is no DNA evidence linking Meza to the crime.

A man charged with breaking into two neighbors' homes in Rancho Penasquitos and threatening to stab some of the victims was sentenced in court Monday, confirmed the San Diego District Attorney's Office.

Jonathan Romero Miranda, age 34, was convicted of a residential burglary with a "hot prowl" allegation and received a sentence of four years in State Prison, according to the DA. 

He plead not guilty to two counts of hot prowl residential burglary, one count of attempted robbery in an inhabited dwelling, one count of criminal threats and one misdemeanor count of resisting a peace officer.

Miranda faced a maximum sentence of nine years for six felony counts and six months for the misdemeanor.

The first incident was reported on Del Diablo Lane in a neighborhood west of Interstate 15 on Mar. 14.

A mother and her daughter left their garage door open after they returned home and went upstairs. When they came downstairs, they saw the man climbing through a window on the first floor, said police.

They yelled at the man and returned upstairs to call 911. He left the home with a stolen laptop through the garage and closed the door behind him.

Then, he went through the broken garage window of another home, less than half a mile away near Penasquitos Drive and Del Diablo way, San Diego police said.

He allegedly threatened to stab the victims but left without money or stolen items, police said. The man was soon taken into custody after that.

One man is in custody after a fight between several people in Ocean Beach led to one man's stabbing. 

The altercation happened near Ebers and Voltaire Street, according to San Diego Police and San Diego Fire-Rescue.

There was a scuffle involving two men and a woman that ended in the man's stabbing at about 6:40 p.m., according to the SDPD Watch Commander. The man who was stabbed was seen running towards a nearby fire station.

Police found the woman connected to the fight in a pickup truck. An ABLE police helicopter hovered overhead, helping police search for the other suspects.

Ebers Street is shut down in both directions.

One person has been taken into custody. 

Check back on this breaking news story for updates.

Some parents say a new sex education curriculum in the San Diego Unified School District is too much, too soon. They are calling for the school board to suspend the curriculum until it is revised.

The new curriculum is called Rights, Respect, Responsibility, a sexual health curriculum for students in 6th and 8th grades and high school.

Rachel Miller, a resource teacher with the district’s Sex Health Education program told NBC 7, the change was made to comply with a new state law. The district began implementing the new curriculum in October, 2016.

“We have parents who feel there is too much information in the 6th grade. We have parents who feel it is fantastic and inclusive of all students in the district, and it’s available now,” said Miller.

Miller said the curriculum changes include a discussion of human trafficking and affirmative consent. It also includes affirmative recognition of all sexual orientations.

For example, she said, “We always discussed anal sex as a way of HIV and SDI (sexually transmitted infections). We always discussed puberty and reproductive anatomy. What's new in this curriculum is we need to affirmatively recognize all sexual orientations and explicitly use same sex couples when we give an example of couples.”

According to the petition the curriculum “far exceeds what the new law requires, undermines parents, has detailed, graphic descriptions of oral, anal, and vaginal sex and encourages behaviors including mutual masturbation to children as young as 11 and 12.”

“We use medically accurate language," Miller said. "We use academic language. We do not provide a how to, nor do we provide images of those activities.”

Miller added that parents can always opt out of the instruction, but the district has to comply with the law.

Parents leading the petition drive did not want to comment. They say they will comment Tuesday when they present the petition to the school board.

One parent did put the petition on the app NextDoor.

The responses were varied.

“This seems to be European approach which has proven very successful at reducing teen pregnancy and STDs,” wrote one person.

Another response read, “Parents need to be respected when dealing with their own children. There is less and less opportunity to opt out these days because the introduction of transgenderism is finding its way into every corner of the curriculum.”

FBI and local law enforcement officials are searching for two unknown suspects wanted for violently robbing three different gas stations in San Diego County. 

The robberies are three separate cases, San Diego police and San Diego County Sheriff's deputies, but investigators are looking at other countywide cases to see if others are related. 

The first robbery happened on April 6 at approximately 9:25 p.m. when an adult man walked into the Market at the Ranch gas station and liquor store at 10299 Scripps Trail. 

The suspect, armed with a black and silver colored handgun, walked into the gas station and demanded the clerk open the register. 

The clerk struggled, police said. When the suspect became impatient, he fired a shot into a cigarette display case on the wall. The suspect then struck the clerk in the eye with the gun as he struggled to open the register.

When the suspect asked the clerk to open the safe, and the clerk told him he did not have the key, the suspect fired another round off, then struck the clerk in the eye and kicked him.

He then walked out and possibly stepped into a smaller, silver-colored SUV and fled the area. The suspect is described as 5 feet 7 inches to 6 feet tall, 165 pounds, with a mustache. He was last seen wearing blue jeans, a black-colored sweatshirt and gray gloves. 

The clerk suffered minor injuries. 

The second case happened two week later on April 19 at approximately 2:55 a.m. when an adult man entered a Spring Valley 7-Eleven located at 9365 Jamacha Boulevard. 

The man, armed with a handgun, chambered a round as he walked up to the clerk, police say. 

He demanded money from the clerk, then struck him in the face with his handgun. 

Authorities said the man kept demanding money and struck him a three more times with a handgun before he fired a round into the ceiling.

The suspect was last seen wearing a red and black hooded sweater with a white design on the upper back and black pants.

The third robbery happened just a few days later on Thursday at approximately 9 p.m. when two unknown men walked into Apollo Market at 2327 Reo Drive in San Diego. 

Suspect one, armed with a black and silver-colored handgun, chambered a round and threatened both clerks with the gun as he demanded they open the cash register. 

One of the clerks, fearing for his life, ran to the back of the store. 

The second suspect then walked into the sore. 

The first suspect walked behind the counter to try and open the register, but could not get it open. Again, he pointed a gun at the clerk and both suspects demanded money. 

The clerk did not comply, and eventually, both suspects left the store without any money. 

The first suspect was described as a man in his 20s with a medium to stalky build. He was last seen wearing a dark blue hooded jacket with the hood drawn tight around his face. He was wearing a red rag or bandanna on his face with black pants and black shoes. 

The second suspect was described as about 5 feet 6 inches tall with a thin build, wearing a black hooded jacket with the hood drawn tight around his face. He was wearing blue jeans with rips in them and black over white tennis shoes. 

Anyone with information on the identity or location of the suspect is asked to call the SDPD’s Robbery Unit at (619) 531-2299 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477. Crime Stoppers is offering up to a $1,000 reward to anyone with information that leads to an arrest in this case. Anonymous email and text messages can be sent via this site.

One person was killed in a crash Monday night in Kearny Mesa, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) confirmed.

The crash occurred around 8:06 p.m. on State Route 52 West near Convoy Street. All lanes were shutdown for at least an hour. 

According to CHP, a cruiser style motorcycle rear-ended a Honda Civic at more than 70-miles per hour. 

The driver of the Honda, who didn't identify himself, said he heard two loud booms before he was pushed onto the shoulder of the freeway. 

The impact of the collision sent two people on the motorcycle flying off.

Seconds later, investigators said a Hyundai ran over the motorcycle that burst into flames.

The man riding the bike died on the scene. The female passenger was taken to the hospital.

CHP says it doesn't appear anyone was driving under the influence and no citations were issued. 

All lanes of SR-52 were reopened. 

Please refresh this page for updates on this story. Details may change as more information becomes available.

An Amber Alert was issued Monday evening for a 1-year-old girl who was allegedly abducted by her father in Rancho Cucamonga.

Lexi Segura, 1, was last seen Monday around 5:40 p.m. in Rancho Cucamonga. Her father, 38-year-old Daniel Segura, is considered "armed and dangerous," according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. 

After an argument with the child's mother over the child, Daniel Segura abducted Lexi, according to Jodi Miller, spokeswoman of the sheriff's department. He had apparently threatened to kill himself and his daughter if he had to go back to prison, Miller said.

The child is described as a female Hispanic with brown hair and brown eyes. She is about 3 feet tall and weighs 35 pounds. 

She was last seen wearing a baby blue shirt with gold writing, jeans and pink shoes. 

Daniel Segura is described as a 38-year-old male Hispanic. He has brown hair and brown eyes. Segura is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 170 pounds. 

He was last seen wearing a dark T-shirt, dark baseball cap and jeans. He has numerous tattoos on his arms and neck. 

The suspect's vehicle is described as a red 2012 Mitsubishi Galant with California license plate 6WEE209. 

Anyone with information was asked to contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department at 866-346-7632. 

The ex-wife of a man at the center of a hostile confrontation involving a San Diego County Sheriff's (SDSO) Deputy in Vista said he is mentally ill.

Casey Clason, 30, was arrested Sunday, but not before biting one of the deputies. 

Clason's ex-wife Adriana told NBC 7 Monday, it's clear from the surveillance video inside a convenience store in Vista, that Clason was not in his right state of mind.

“He's mentally ill. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia five years ago," she said.

Adriana also told NBC 7 Clason suffers from PTSD after serving in the military.

The video shows Clason pouring a bottle of soda over his head, walking through the door, then being confronted by deputies outside a short time later.

Adriana said have been an issue for Casey in the past, but she did not know if they played in this incident. She questioned the amount of force used to get him under control.

“It's pretty brutal. I don't know if it required that many policemen for a soda spill," she said.

A video taken during a confrontation with deputies appeared to show Clason kicking at them. The deputies used pepper spray and a taser, but nothing worked to get Clason to cooperate, SDSO said.

At one point, Clason grabbed one of the deputies and bit him in the leg, making him fall to the ground.

SDSO said more back-up was then called in.

Still, Adriana told NBC 7, deputies have dealt with Clason several times before and they know his story.

“Maybe this will shed some light on veterans that all they need is help," she added. 

Clason will be in court for his arraignment Tuesday.

Deputies with the Sheriff's Department told NBC 7, with every use of force incident,  they will be reviewing it internally to make sure it falls within the policy. 

San Diegans, like many voters in the U.S. have mixed feelings about paying for President Donald Trump's controversial border wall--something he told supporters that Mexico would pay for during his campaign last year.

On Monday, President Trump backed down from demanding a down payment for his border wall, just ahead of a critical deadline and a potential partial government shutdown.

NBC 7 spoke to Congressman Scott Peters (D-52nd District) who called the wall a "waste of money."

"I think the border wall is a bad idea," Peters said. "It's bad for San Diego. It's not the most cost effective way to secure our border."

Peters said he believes the threat of a government shutdown falls on the Republicans.

"Let's fight this wall battle separately if they want to raise it as a policy issue," he added. "Let's not link it to keeping the government open, that's their choice. It's a bad choice."

Candis Givens, a San Diego resident, spoke along similar lines to Peters.

"It's going to cost so much money, I don't get it," Givens said. "Keep our budget at a minimal. Stop being in debt."

But not all were opposed to building a wall between the U.S.-Mexico border--the prototype of which will be built in San Diego.

"I know it is going to cost a lot of money, but on the other side it will save a lot of money long term so it's worth it," said El Cajon resident Paige Ensley.

The San Diego Padres are on the road this week. The Friars started their four game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field Monday night. Jhoulys Chacin was on the bump for San Diego dueling it out against Diamondbacks righty Zack Grienke.

It wasn’t a great night for Chacin. The right handed pitcher gave up seven runs and eight hits over six innings. He took a major blow in the fifth when Chris Owings crushed a homerun 426 feet into center field with the bases loaded. His first career grand slam gave the Diamondbacks a strong 6-0 lead.

Arizona’s ace had a much better night. Grienke, who took a loss against Chacin and the Padres a week before this meeting, seemed to thrive on his home field. Grienke struck out 11 Padres batters and only allowed one run through six innings. By the time he left the mound, the Diamondbacks had a 7-1 lead.

That was just the break the Padres needed. In the seventh inning the Friars trailed 7-2 when first baseman Wil Myers gave his team a boost! His three run homer scored Erik Aybar and Manny Margot to cut the deficit within two runs.

Catcher Austin Hedges has been on a roll lately, and that continued tonight when his team needed it the most. In the eighth inning Hedges blasted his sixth home run in eight games and the Padres were almost all caught up 7-6.

In the final inning Wil Myers got a visit from his former teammate, closer Fernando Rodney. Unfortunately for Myers, Rodney still had a few more arrows to throw. The righty sent Myers back to the dugout, and one out later the Diamondbacks sealed game one of the series with a 7-6 victory over the Padres.

The four game set continues Tuesday night. First pitch for game two is at 6:40 p.m. PST at Chase Field.

Crews were responding to a report of a car fire on the State Route 94 in the Encanto area of San Diego Monday night.

According to the San Diego Police Department (SDPD), the fire was reported around 10:34 p.m. on the eastbound SR-94 off-ramp at Federal Boulevard near 60th Street.

At this point, there is no word on any injuries.

No other information was available.

Please refresh this page for updates on this story. Details may change as more information becomes available.