San Diego police are investigating the death of a man who was struck by a car in the middle of a Mira Mesa street Wednesday.

Officers say they’ve arrested a man who was speeding along Sunny Meadow Street just before 7 a.m. and struck a man standing in the road.

The victim, described by officers as a 25-year-old man, was killed officers said.

A family member at the scene identified the victim as Efrain Romeo Arguenta. She said the driver knew Arguenta through his employer.

The driver of the 1993 Ford Ranger involved in the incident faces charges of felony DUI, officers said. He was identified as 26-year-old Matias Aguilar.

Aguilar has been booked at San Diego Central jail and faces three charges, including manslaughter and driving under the influence. His bail was set to $200,000.

Sunny Meadow Street is located northwest of Challenger Middle School, north of Mira Mesa Boulevard.

Check back for details on this developing story.

The Escondido City Council voted 5-0 Wednesday in support of an effort to protect the former site of the historic Escondido Country Club.

After 46 years in business, the golf course on Country Club Lane officially closed in April.

Since then, there’s been a battle between Rough LLC the company that purchased the property out of bankruptcy in 2012 and nearby homeowners who want to maintain their “golf course views.”

Development plans for the golf course call for 283 homes to be built with 60-foot wide streets.

Opponents of the development plan to hand over more than 9,000 verified signatures collected by volunteers to councilmembers requesting they give the area a green space designation.

Upset homeowners in the area say the four-month closure has severely damaged the once pristine property.

"I'm mortified, it’s disgusting,” complained homeowner Dee Dee Walsh. “The way it's been handled, it’s a disgrace.”

Escondido residents have qualified for the Citizens Property Rights initiative which protects 100 acres of established open space in the Escondido Country Club area.

The City Council voted in favor of the open space initiative during a packed meeting Wednesday night, meaning they could adopt the initiative immediately as a city ordinance or place the measure on the ballot for a public vote.

Several key players in this recall effort say communication is lacking. The questions is, is it inside baseball or the sign of a bigger problem that could derail the movement?

At one time, Elisa Brent and Michael Pallamary were partners standing side by side as co-founders of this recall effort.

Now, Brent has decided to step down as a co-chair of the recall campaign after what she describes as being "stonewalled.”

Stampp Corbin, another early key player, told NBC 7 there are serious concerns about communication.

Pallamary said he has been out of the loop this past week for personal reasons.

Mayor Under Fire: Key Players

Whether office politics or red flags - all involved say they're still united in focus. They want to remove Bob Filner from office.
 

The 35-year-old man who was piloting the boat in the Hudson River crash that killed a bride-to-be and her groom's best man appeared in court Wednesday to answer to charges of vehicular manslaughter and vehicular assault. 

Jojo John walked into the Orangetown Courthouse in Orangeburg, Rockland County, N.Y., Wednesday with a team of lawyers and several family members. He was wearing a neck brace.

John did not speak to reporters, but defense attorney David Nahrain said outside the courthouse his client wanted to extend his condolences to the victims. 

Authorities said there was probable cause that John was intoxicated when he was crashed the 21-foot Stingray into a construction barge near the Tappan Zee Bridge on July 26.

There were four other people on board the boat, including Lindsey Stewart, 30, and fiance Brian Bond, 36, who were set to be married Aug. 10. Bond's best man, 30-year-old Mark Lennon, was also on the boat, along with another friend.

Stewart and Lennon were thrown overboard in the boat crash and killed.

• Wedding Florist for Bride Killed in Boat Crash Now Prepares for Funeral

Their families have said that the passengers on the boat "had consumed very little alcohol and considered themselves sober," and pleaded for information from boaters familiar with the crash scene.

Stewart's and Lennon's families also said in the statement, "Compounding our agony is the rush, by some, to cast blame on or even malign the victims."

• Families of Boat Crash Bride, Best Man, Say Boaters Were Sober

The families asked Hudson River boaters to submit information about the barges in that area, suggesting they were not properly lit.

John's lawyer David Nahrain said he was also conducting an independent investigation and asked boaters and witnesses to contact him at tzbarge@gmail.com. 

The New York State Thruway Authority and the Coast Guard have said the barge lighting appeared to be functioning normally and met all regulations.

• Bride Killed in Boat Crash Mourned as Questions Over Barge Lighting Persist

Prosecutors asked the judge Wednesday for a one-month continuation to conduct a felony investigation. John is due back in court Sept. 25. 

Police are investigating a suspicious death that occurred in Oceanside Wednesday morning.

A man was found dead in the roadway at the 600-block of Arthur Avenue around 5:45 a.m.

Officials said the victim's body sustained trauma, but are not releasing details of the injuries. Police are at the scene investigating.

Anyone with information is asked to call Oceanside Police Department at 760-435-4732.

A British photographer with ties to the Washington area was killed Wednesday covering the protest camps in Cairo.

Mick Deane, 61, worked for Sky News for 15 years, first in Washington, D.C., before transferring to Jerusalem. His colleagues in D.C. said when they got an assignment that Deane was on, they could breathe a sigh of relief.

Deane suffered a single gunshot wound below his heart, but the circumstances leading to the shot are still unknown.

"I was with him in Cairo a few weeks ago, and he was talking about retirement was coming up," Sky News U.S. correspondent Dominic Waghorn told NBC Washington. "He couldn’t quite imagine that it was going to happened to him but he was aware that it was and he was looking ahead to more time with his family.

"He’s got two grown-up boys now who he’s been devoted to. He’s always said to the rest of us, 'Make sure you spend as much time as you can with your kids. As they grow up, don’t let it go by without you spending time with them, as you’re traveling the rest of it,'" Waghorn said. "He’s a devoted family man, and our hearts go out to his two boys and his wonderful wife."

Judging by some signs placed on the windows of a strip club in San Diego, embattled Mayor Bob Filner is not welcome at the adult entertainment business.

On Wednesday, signs featuring Filner’s face with a red slash across it were posted on the windows of the Body Shop strip club in the Midway District.

This latest public boycott against Filner comes on the heels of a similar display by San Diego Hooters restaurants.

Earlier this week San Diego Hooters locations placed signs in their restaurants saying Filner will not be served in their establishment. The signs appear in Rancho Bernardo, Oceanside, Gaslamp and Mission Valley restaurants.

In regards to that particular anti-Filner effort, Hooters tweeted: "Our Hooters Girls in San Diego have spoken. Not a corporate gig, but we support our girls. #StepIntoAwesome”

READ: Key Players in the Bob Filner Scandal

A pedestrian was struck by a car in National City Wednesday night, officials said.

The collision happened around 8:10 p.m. at East 18th Street and Highland Avenue. Following the incident, police officers were called to the scene for reports of a person down in the roadway.

By 8:30 p.m. medics had transported the victim to UCSD Medical Center. The extent of the victims injuries is unknown.

By 9 p.m., the driver of the vehicle involved in the collision was taken by police from the scene for questioning.

The incident is under investigation and further details were not immediately released.

An ICE agent who was reported missing, launching a major search in Hollywood on Wednesday night, was found safe, authorities said.

The agent was apparently "picked up by a fellow (ICE) employee after experiencing vehicle problems overnight on a local freeway," said Virginia Kice, spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The announcement came more than four hours after Los Angeles police and U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents began scouring Hollywood for the agent they believed to be missing, blocking traffic on the 101 (Hollywood) Freeway.

The agent was a member of the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations division, which is responsible for finding and arresting illegal immigrants, fugitives, convicted criminals and people who pose a threat to national security.

Agents with the ERO division also are charged with transporting those "removable aliens" and actually removing those ordered deported from the United States, according to the agency's website.

The large-scale search began about 6:30 p.m., Los Angeles police with the Rampart Division joined a Department of Homeland Security search, according to LAPD Officer Sara Faden. The search was in the area of Silverlake Boulevard and the 101 Freeway, she said.

Authorities closed one lane during the search along the shoulder and over the guardrail of the freeway.

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Many children are turning to social media sites that experts say can be dangerous.

There are lots of different websites kids spend time on beyond Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Experts are warning parents they need to protect their children by closely monitoring them. Ask.fm.com allows anonymous users from anywhere in the world to talk to people who have profiles there.

The San Diego Police Foundation has a program that educates kids and parents about the dangers of the cyber world. Officials said ask.fm has been linked to recent suicides in other countries, and that a number of San Diego schools have asked parents to keep their kids off it.

But that's just one of many different sites that allows people to connect, without knowing exactly who they're really connecting to, or how their personal information will be used.

One smartphone application called Snapchat, photos can be sent to someone and set to automatically destruct after they're received.

But the problem is, the person on the receiving end can save that picture to their own device before it disappears and then do whatever they want with it.

And on yet another website, called Instamap an anonymous user can put in a zip code and can see every public picture that's been posted online within that area.

"Many kids keep their pictures on public so at the police foundation we're concerned how in your neighborhood is putting in your zip code and looking at your kids photos.  That's kind of scary,” said Darlene Kanzler from the San Diego Police Foundation "Safety Net."

The San Diego Police Foundation provides free programs to teach parents and kids about internet safety. Officials said parents should have enough control of their kids' devices to know which sites they're using and who they're talking to.

They also said parents should also make sure privacy settings are being used for their kids' protection.

A prominent figure in the recall campaign launched to oust San Diego Mayor Bob Filner is Rancho Santa Fe businessman John Cox.

Special Section: Mayor Under Fire

Cox, 58, may be a relative new player in San Diego politics but he has a long background in politics in his hometown of Chicago including a run for U.S. president.

A self-described lawyer, accountant, businessman and reformer, Cox served as president of the Cook County Republican Party who unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Representative and U.S. Senate.

Five years ago, he was so disillusioned with the state of nation that he decided to throw his hat into the ring for the country's most powerful office.

He was the first Republican to formally seek the party's 2008 nomination for President of the United States.

With little voter support, Cox withdrew his candidacy and suspended his presidential campaign.

Soon after, he moved to Rancho Santa Fe and found himself getting involved in California politics as part of a reform effort to take power away from campaign funders.

He and a team of attorneys came up with an idea called the Neighborhood Legislature which he calls a potential change to the California Constitution.

The plan would take the current Assembly district and decrease the voter to lawmaker ratio. Each district would break down into 100 so-called "neighborhood districts" with roughly 5,000 voters each.

The theory is that state lawmakers would be more connected to their community and less responsive to special interests. The result would be 12,000 legislators.

The recall effort was too similar to his current project not to get involved Cox said. 

"Filner is a living breathing example of the dysfunction in our political system because he would not be in office were it not for the funders that put him in office so he could do their bidding," Cox said.

As a father of four girls, Cox was outraged with how the mayor allegedly treated women.

"He's a flawed individual, clearly, maybe mentally ill, I don’t know what problem is with him,” Cox said. “But what I do know is that he shouldn't be in a leadership position in a city as important as San Diego."

Now he's helping to finance the effort to recall embattled Mayor Bob Filner. He has contributed $5,000 and pledged $25,000. He also said he’s willing to go higher.

"Well, I spent a million dollars in presidential race,” Cox said. “I have extra resources that I can put to this."

Rancho Santa Fe resident and longtime San Diego businessman Fred Applegate has also donated time and effort according to Cox.

Elisa Brent and Michael Pallamary first surfaced as the faces behind the recall. Soon after, they joined Stampp Corbin as a united force to see Filner kicked out of office.

On Tuesday, Brent told NBC 7 she has since stepped down as co-chair.

A third employment complaint was filed against San Diego Mayor Bob Filner this week.

The complaint was filed Aug. 7 and is not a sexual harassment complaint, according to the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

Filner has been accused of sexually harassing multiple women and has been asked to resign by many people, including former allies. A recall effort against Filner is currently underway.

Timeline: Mayor Under Fire

Since the complaint is under investigation, no details were released.

Check back for updates on this story.

James Lee DiMaggio, the man accused of kidnapping San Diego teen Hannah Anderson and taking her into the Idaho wilderness, was shot “at least five times” by authorities, according to a report from NBC News.

NBC News has confirmed with the coroner in Boise, Idaho, that DiMaggio’s preliminary cause of death is listed as “multiple gunshot wounds.” He was shot at least five times in the head and chest, the coroner said.

A DiMaggio family friend told NBC News his body had been cremated.

DiMaggio was killed in by an FBI search team Saturday in the Idaho backcountry near Morehead Lake.

Three U.S. Marshals flying a plane above the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness spotted a tent in the area Saturday believed to be a campsite occupied by DiMaggio and Hannah, the subject of an Amber Alert spanning six states.

They called in an FBI Hostage Rescue Team to move in on the campsite. The tactical team was dropped in from a distance to avoid alerting DiMaggio and hiked two hours in steep terrain to reach the pair.

Officials said they honed in on DiMaggio after he and Hannah had separated at a safe distance.

On Monday, San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore said agents reported DiMaggio was armed with a shoulder weapon and fired at least one shot. At that time, officials did not disclose how many times, exactly, DiMaggio had been shot.

DiMaggio was killed at the scene and Hannah was rescued by the FBI.

TIMELINE: The Search for Hannah Anderson

DiMaggio is suspected of killing Hannah’s mother, Christina Anderson, 44, and brother, Ethan Anderson, 8, before fleeing San Diego with Hannah.

The bodies of Christina and Ethan were found inside DiMaggio’s property in the community of Boulevard near San Diego on Aug. 4. The property was burned to the ground and the charred remains were found inside. Ethan’s body was so badly burned, officials were unable to immediately identify the boy, and initially feared that he too had been kidnapped by DiMaggio.

The frantic search for DiMaggio and Hannah ultimately led officials to the Idaho backcountry after a group of horseback riders reported seeing the pair near Morehead Lake on Aug. 7.

DiMaggio’s car was discovered in the area on Friday, covered in dense brush in an attempt to presumably conceal the vehicle.

One day later, in a search that included more than 200 federal, state and local law enforcement officials, the FBI search team found Hannah and DiMaggio just a few miles from where the pair was spotted by the horseback riders.

Sheriff Gore has since said Hannah was held against her will by DiMaggio, and was the victim of a “horrific” crime.

Hannah has returned home to San Diego where the teen took to social media to answer questions about her kidnapping and survival on the website ask.fm. Her profile page has since been taken down.

Newly-unsealed search warrants were released Wednesday in San Diego, offering new insight into the events leading to the kidnapping of teenager Hannah Anderson.

The search warrants include the first details surrounding the Aug. 4 fire at the property of kidnap and murder suspect James Lee DiMaggio in Boulevard.

The charred bodies of Lakeside resident Christina Anderson, 44, and her son, Ethan Anderson, 8, were discovered inside the log-cabin style home belonging to DiMaggio. The body of a dog was also found inside.

According to the documents, while DiMaggio’s home burned, firefighters noticed a glow and smoke coming from a nearby detached garage.

When officials searched the garage, they discovered Christina Anderson’s body covered by a green tarp, with her feet sticking out. There was a crowbar next to her head, which was bloodied.

TIMELINE: The Search for Hannah Anderson

Deputies later found the body of a dog inside the garage that also appeared to have been beaten to death. Initially, they did not find any other bodies.

Hours later, however, after learning that Hannah’s brother, Ethan, was missing, bomb-arson experts returned to the structure and found the charred remains of a small child.

The child’s body was so badly burnt that officials were not able to immediately positively identify the victim. A few days later, officials confirmed the body was, in fact, Ethan.

At the time of the warrant, investigators believed DiMaggio was the prime suspect behind the Boulevard fire, murders and kidnapping.

Detectives said DiMaggio -- who was a close, longtime friend of the Anderson family -- had “tortured and killed” Christina, Ethan and the family’s dog, but did not provide specifics.

The search warrant also reveals details about items found inside the Lakeside apartment where Christina, Ethan and Hannah Anderson lived.

The warrant offers a glimpse into the communication and relationship between Hannah and her alleged kidnapper, DiMaggio, before he fled San Diego with the teenager.

According to the documents, Hannah was last seen around 4 p.m. on Aug. 4 when someone picked her up from cheerleading practice.

Read some of the search warrants here

Around that same time, Hannah and DiMaggio both turned off their cell phones.

However, phone records show that Hannah and DiMaggio had called each other 13 times before the phones were turned off.

At first, detectives were “not sure” if DiMaggio had taken the teen against her will, telling a judge “someone” had picked up Hannah at cheerleading practice four hours before her mother was found dead in DiMaggio’s Boulevard home.

Ultimately, however, detectives told a judge they believed Hannah was in “grave danger and being held against her will by DiMaggio.”

Throughout his time on the run from law enforcement, the warrant reveals that DiMaggio had been in constant communication with friends and family members, including his sister, Lora Robinson.

The documents reveal that, at one point, detectives believed Robinson was “possibly aiding” DiMaggio because she called her brother an “unusually large” number of times.

To aid in the investigation, the warrants reveal that detectives took six computers, at least two cameras, a camcorder and a photo album from the Anderson family’s apartment in Lakeside.

Investigators hoped those items would help them understand why Hannah had disappeared and possibly lead them to the teen and DiMaggio.

Hannah was the subject of an Amber Alert spanning six states.

DiMaggio, her suspected abductor, drove with Hannah from San Diego to Idaho backcountry near Cascade and Morehead Lake last week.

The pair was spotted by a group of horseback riders in the wilderness on Aug. 7, who then alerted officials. More than 200 federal, state and local law enforcement officials then descended on the rural Idaho backcountry in search of Hannah and DiMaggio.

On Saturday, an FBI search team found DiMaggio and Hannah in the rugged terrain, just a few miles from where they were spotted by the horseback riders.

Hannah was rescued by agents. DiMaggio was shot at least five times and killed at the scene.

Since the teen’s rescue, San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore has said that Hannah was the victim of a “horrific” crime, and was taken against her will by DiMaggio.

As for warrants released Wednesday, it’s important to note that the documents do not reveal the full story. When they submitted the warrants, detectives could only tell the judge what they knew or suspected at the time.

The investigation into the case is ongoing.

See all of the SEARCH WARRANTS linked to this case here:

• Boulevard property/Lakeside apartment search warrant
• Cell phone search warrant
• Facebook search warrant
• Email search warrant
• Apple search warrant
• Yahoo search warrant
• AT&T search warrant

A $1 billion project to create an "urban village" of shops, restaurants and new apartments in one of Los Angeles’ most violence-prone areas – Jordan Downs in Watts – got final approval from the city Wednesday.

The unanimous approval allows the city to now apply for a $30 million federal grant to fund the project, which Councilman Joe Buscaino called a "win-win" for the community.

"We haven't seen a billion-dollar investment in Watts, ever," Buscaino said. "Once this project is in place, you're going to have that opportunity of sit-down restaurants, commercial retail here in the heart of Watts."

Developer The Michaels Organization of New Jersey plans to build 1,400 new apartments, shops and restaurants to transform the dilapidated housing project. But some residents fear they'll be displaced, despite being told they wouldn't as long as they're in good standing with the housing authority.

"I grew up with these people," said Minister Mac Shorty, of the Watts Neighborhood Council. "I love them to death – hate to see them leave and go."

"All of our neighbors back to back right here. We all talk to each other," Paola Gomez said.

Buscaino assured residents Thursday that those in good standing would not be displaced.

"Our message is absolutely not, not under my watch," he said. "It's a one for one housing development - 700 units, 700 families."

Other units may be sold at market rate to attract other residents and retailers, according to city officials.

The city and the developer now have to apply for federal grants in order to move forward. If all goes as planned, construction could begin next fall, according to city officials.

Meantime, residents hope what they enjoy most about their current community, doesn't go away with what's to come.

"Like many community we have our violence, but it's known for togetherness," Shorty said.

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Kidnapping victim Hannah Anderson, 16, attended a fundraiser Thursday for her family near San Diego where her father said she was "doing good day by day."

The fundraiser at a Boll Weevil restaurant in Lakeside is meant to help the Anderson family as they come to grips with Hannah’s kidnapping. Her father, Brett Anderson, spoke briefly to the media there and thanked the community for all of the support.

"Thank you all for coming. This is a small community that we're a part of, and the community came together and put on this great fundraiser for Hannah and her future and healing," said Brett. "This is how Lakeside rolls."

Hannah Anderson did not address the media.

The restaurant, located at 9741 Winter Gardens Blvd., just off of Hwy. 67, is donating 20 percent of its proceeds from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. to the Anderson family, and is also holding a raffle from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m.

Brett said he has been in touch with the horseback riders that spotted Hannah and her suspected kidnapper James DiMaggio in the Idaho backcountry on Aug. 7, ultimately leading law enforcement officials to the pair.

"I have talked directly with the horsemen, and that went very well, and gave them our thanks and our love and gratitude. It was a wonderful thing. It was a chance encounter, but it did save my daughter’s life," he said.

Brett said Hannah was attending the fundraiser at the restaurant along with her family members and friends and was "happy to be there."

"Other than that, Hannah sends her love. She’s doing good day by day. We’ll just keep moving forward from here," Brett continued.

He said the money raised at the event would help cover expenses for Hannah's future.

"We're just looking for her future and to get her settled," he said. "We have a lot of expenses in front of us. Like I said, I'm not a rich man by any means. We’ll probably end up donating some of the money if there's extra to exploited children."

After his brief statement, Brett went back inside the restaurant.

Hannah went missing for nearly a week and was rescued on Saturday in Idaho backcountry with the suspect in the case, DiMaggio, 40.

TIMELINE: The Search for Hannah Anderson

DiMaggio, who was killed during Hannah’s rescue, is also a suspect in the deaths of Hannah’s mother, Christina Anderson, 44, and 8-year-old brother, Ethan Anderson, whose charred remains were found on a burned out property in Boulevard on August 4, according to investigators.

Hannah’s kidnapping and subsequent rescue hit close to home for  the woman behind Thursday's fundraiser, Boll Weevil Manager, Brigitte Pinkham.

Pinkham's daughter, also 16, attends the same school as Hannah, El Captan High School, where the two are acquaintances.

“I can’t imagine the pain the family is going through,” Pinkham said. “With Hannah going missing and the deaths of Christina and Ethan, my heart just goes out to them. I just wanted to do something to help.”

A major traffic collision has created quite an inconvenience for people traveling in the North County.

A semi-truck trailer went over a guard rail on State Route 78 just after 4:20 a.m. Friday and Caltrans had to close a section of the road for hours.

When the truck turned the corner, the trailer overturned and went over the guard rail spilling 30,000 pounds of scrap metal.

Crews closed SR-78 for miles between Weekend Villa in Ramona and Bandy Canyon Road.

First, a tow truck lifted the trailer upright using wires. Then, crews had a major cleanup effort.

When the trailer tipped over it littered recyclable metal into the embankment.

Crews used cranes, and in some cases, their bare hands to pick everything up.

Once Caltrans repairs the guardrail, the road will reopen to traffic.

No one was injured in the collision.
 

Mayor Bloomberg suggested Friday that New York City public housing residents should be fingerprinted as a way to fight crime in the system's 334 buildings.

Bloomberg, speaking on his weekly radio show, said NYCHA residents make up 5 percent of the city's population while 20 percent of New York City crimes are committed in public housing.

"The people that live there, most of them, want more police protection... If you have strangers walking in the halls of your apartment building, don’t you want somebody to stop and say, ‘Who are you? Why’re you here?’"

"What we really should have is fingerprinting to get in," he went on. "And of course ... there’s an allegation that some of these apartments aren’t occupied by the people who originally have the lease."

Bloomberg and the show host were talking about a judge who ruled this week that the NYPD's stop-and-frisk tactic is unconstitutional and assigned a monitor to oversee the development and implementation of reforms.

The same judge, Shira Scheindlin, is said to be ready to take up a case about police stops in public housing.

Several Democratic mayoral candidates blasted the mayor for the suggestion to fingerprint residents.

"Disrespectful. Disgraceful. No other words apply," former Comptroller Bill Thompson said in a statement. "Just like stop and frisk, this is another direct act of treating minorities like criminals."

Bill de Blasio, the city's public advocate, called it "outrageous and insulting."

"Once again, Mayor Bloomberg has resorted to presuming innocent people are guilty simply because they happen to live in certain areas, and in doing so he is stigmatizing entire communities."

Most companies try to stay out of divisive political issues, but Groupon makes no bones about it where it stands on marriage equality -- they're all in.

The Chicago-based company released an employee-produced video Friday showcasing their support of marriage equality in Illinois.

Groupon offers employment benefits to same-sex partners.

The company also plans to bus employees to a marriage equality march and rally in the Illinois capital Springfield on Oct. 22, designed to help secure passage of the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act.