A New Haven man, whose first name happens to be Noel, has been arrested after climbing the holiday tree in New Haven this afternoon and yelling to the crowd below.

Police said Noel Delgado, 42, was yelling in English and Spanish. Some of what he said was gibberish, according to police, but he also said he cannot support his family. 

The city parks department cut electricity to the tree as Delgado was in it so that he would not get electrocuted, and the New Haven Police Department talked him down. 

Delgado refused medical treatment and is being charged with second-degree breach of peace.

See video of the incident here.
 

A woman faces charges for attempting to smuggle $1 million in cocaine from Mexico to the United States inside a car with her two children in tow.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents said the 32-year-old woman drove a white Nissan Versa to the Otay Mesa Port of Entry south of San Diego on Tuesday.

After agents ran the car through the port’s imaging system, they said they noticed something unusual about the car’s floorboard.

Under the plastic and carpeting, officers said they found 95 pounds of cocaine estimated to be worth more than $1 million.

The woman, a U.S. citizen, was arrested and her children are now in the custody of Child Protective Services.

The owner of a Sorrento Valley Motocross shop burglarized twice this year believes a missing Red Bull can is a clue to the suspects’ identities.

Two people in hoodies broke through the glass entryway of Wholesale MX on Pacific Heights Boulevard just after 4 a.m. Wednesday.

The entire burglary was captured on a store surveillance camera.

In less than a minute, they manage to steal a case of watches and sunglasses.

“It was kind of eerie watching people walk up and you know what they were going to do,” said owner Derrick Ryel. “To watch them in action it was eye opening to say the least.”
Ryel said it’s the second break-in at the Sorrento Valley business in six months.

He thinks the two burglars are repeat criminals because they stole the same merchandise and each time, before they left, they stole a Red Bull.

“They know they can get away with it. There aren't a lot of cops in this area from what the police tell me. And it’s something people could go a sell quickly,” Ryel said of the glasses and watches.

The first time around, the store didn't have a full surveillance system. He estimates the thieves got away with $10,000 in merchandise.

This time, with more cameras in the store, Ryel hopes police can catch the burglars before they strike again.

The men covered their heads and wore rubber gloves. Investigators though say they don't have a good description on the two burglars.
Ryel said he will consider using insurance to cover the $3-5,000 stolen in this incident.
 

Ben Nunery lost his wife Ali to cancer just two years after they got married. The Ohio man wanted to keep the memory of the day they became newlyweds and the home they shared alive, so he decided to re-create their wedding photos with his 3-year old daughter.

In the touching series, Olivia, wearing a pink dress, mimic’s her mom’s poses and, in one photo, curls her hair, just like her mom did on her wedding day. In another, she poses with her father in a doorway to mirror the photo Ben had once taken with her mother.

Nunery, 34, wrote on his blog that his story isn’t "about grief and loss and hurt." "Yes, I’ve gone through those emotions and still do, but that's not what I want people to see in these photos."

Nunery and his wife bought the Cincinnati house in 2009, a day before their wedding. Ali’s sister, Melanie Pace, a professional photographer, took photos of the couple on their wedding day in the empty house.

In 2011, the 31-year-old schoolteacher passed away from a rare form of lung cancer, leaving behind Ben and Olivia.

The home was empty again this year because the Nunerys were moving, so Pace was able to re-create the images of the father and daughter. Nunery, who's also a photographer, thought the photos would help them remember the joyous times they'd shared in the house.

"It immediately brought up memories of being there the first time," Nunery told Today.com. "They were really good memories I cherish and want to remember. In a lot of ways, it felt like Ali was there, and doing that with Olivia I felt a closeness with both of them."

Pace wrote on her blog that she felt her sister’s presence during the photo shoot.

"It's almost like she was nudging me along as I was shooting, telling me which places to go and what to use as props," she told Today.com "It was a very overwhelming feeling to have her so close even if she was not physically there."

Nunery said he hopes the photos would help others who have lost a loved one to heal and move on with their life.

"It doesn't mean that we forget our loved ones, but find ways to remember them and keep that memory going."
 

Two people were injured – including a man beaten with a wheelchair – in a dispute that turned violent at a motel in Chula Vista Wednesday morning, police confirmed.

Just after 6 a.m., Chula Vista police officers were called to a Motel 6 in the 700-block of E Street to investigate a disturbance involving three men inside a motel room – a father, his son and a friend.

According to police, the father and friend got into an argument that escalated into a physical altercation. The friend allegedly assaulted the father with a wheelchair, striking him several times on the face and body with the blunt object.

The wheelchair belonged to the father, police said, who is missing a leg. He was not in it at the time.

After that, the father allegedly grabbed a box cutter and slashed the friend, possibly in self-defense.

Both men were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Their names were not released.

Officials remained at the motel, processing the room for evidence, following the incident.

Police said the friend was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon. At this time, the father is not facing any charges. It is unclear what the men were arguing when things turned physical.
 

A San Diego police detective shot and killed a dog in the backyard of a Mount Hope home Wednesday.

Officials were conducting a routine probation compliance check on 40th Street when they asked the resident to secure the dogs on the property.

The woman living in the home thought she had the dog restrained but when the officials entered the backyard, the animal got free.

The dog, described by officials as a pit bull, attacked the San Diego police detective and an FBI agent, officials said.

The agent tried to use a baton to end the attack and once the dog latched onto the agent’s hand, the detective fired two to three times, killing the dog.

The detective’s pants were torn in the attack.

Several signs were posted on the outside of the fence at the home warning passersby about dogs.

San Diego police officers said they will investigate to see if any laws were broken.
 

A cement mixer overturned on a San Diego highway pinning a man inside the cab.

The accident happened at 10:40 a.m. on westbound Interstate 8 just east of State Route 163.

San Diego Fire-Rescue crews brought in wedges of wood to try and lift the cab of the truck off the ground in an attempt to get to the victim.

After more than 30 minutes, firefighters were able to free the man trapped inside. He was wheeled away on a gurney with a bandaged left arm.

San Diego Fire-Rescue Battalion Chief Ben Castro said it was a complicated rescue that could have potentially endangered emergency workers.

"The way that it was positioned on the freeway kind of put, added another concern for us because we didn't wanna put our personnel in a position to where, as we started moving the cab there was a chance it could've tipped over on our personnel," Castro said.

A second man was riding in the cab but he was able to escape the accident without injury.

The California Highway Patrol said the collision happened when the truck and another vehicle collided entering the transition road. The other driver was not injured. 

CHP officers diverted traffic but the incident caused delays for westbound traffic along I-8 for several miles.

The mood was all party on Wednesday at a small San Jose gift shop tucked inside a suburban strip mall where a Vietnam-born owner sold a $648 million Mega Millions jackpot ticket. He stands to pocket a cool $1 million himself.

Customers, lottery officials, and hordes of reporters were camped out at Jenny's Gift and Kid's Wear on Tully Road, where owner Thuy Nguyen  took over the small store specializing in Buddha statues, silky Asian clothing, clocks and other knicknacks just four months ago.

Nguyen spoke to NBC Bay Area exclusively on Tuesday night when he first found out he sold one of the country's two winning Mega Millions tickets.

And, after a brief night's sleep spent with his wife hugging him until dawn, Nguyen spoke to a crowd of reporters on Wednesday morning where lottery officials hosted a celebration event, even though the person who won the real Mega Millions jackpot from his shop has yet to come forward. A Georgia woman won the other half of the pot, lottery officials announced Wednesday afternoon.

MORE: Winning $640M Mega Millions Ticket Purchased in San Jose

"I feel lucky," Nguyen said in bits of broken English in front of a bank of camera. "I don't know what I'm going to do with the money. I'm not thinking about it right now. I don't have it. I just want to be successful in the USA."

Lottery official John Reading handed Nguyen, who moved to the U.S. in 1993, a fake check for $1 million. Nguyen will get the real cash in January. In California, retailers get a 0.5 percent of the prize, up to $1 million.

Aside from the mystery San Jose ticket buyer, the other Mega Millions winner bought a ticket in Georgia from the Gateway Newsstand in Atlanta, where the retailer doesn't get any bonus. Instead, in Georgia, lottery retailers earn a flat 6 percent commission on all lottery sales. The Georgia winner was identified as Ira Curry from Stone Mountain, Ga., by lottery officials on Wednesday.

Curry chose to take $170 million in one lump sum. It's unclear if the San Jose winner will do that, or take $324 million over several years. And don't forget to subtract 25 percent in federal taxes. The California winner doesn't have to pay any taxes on the win.

The ticket's winning numbers are: 8, 14, 17, 20, 29; Megal Ball: 7.

The ticket was originally estimated to be worth $636 million, but lottery officials said more people bought a ticket than was originally estimated. Each has a year to claim the prize.

"We're excited," Reading said. "This is the second largest prize in U.S. history. It's big news here for us in California."

For now, Nguyen is left to field reporter questions and guess who bought the winning ticket. He says he sold "a lot." And whoever it is, Nguyen is sure he'll know the person. "My customer (sic) are my friends," he said.

MORE: 2 Winners for $636M Mega Millions Jackpot

He's not sure how he'll spend the money, but Nguyen believes his good fortune is a result of his faith and karma.

"I go to church every week," he said. "I believe I'm doing good then good comes. God give it to me. I'm happy with my life. I feel good. I'm a lucky person."

Lottery officials urged the ticket winner to immediately sign the back of the winning ticket in ink and claim the prize at the nearest California Lottery District Office. The one closest to where the San Jose ticket was sold is the East Bay District Office at 2489 Industrial Parkway West in Hayward or (510) 670-4630. There is also an office in South San Francisco at 820 Dubuque Avenue  or (650) 875-2200.

Police are searching for two men, one of whom was armed with a folding chair, in an attack caught on video at the Venice Beach boardwalk.

James Karhu shot the video Friday from his apartment, located above the street, as neighbors called 911. The video shows two men punching and kicking the victim on a sidewalk.

"My heart was beating out of my chest," said Karhu.

After one of the attackers ran away, the second man continued to strike the man with a folding chair. The beating continued for about two minutes as the attacker yelled at the man, who tried to cover his head to protect himself as he rolled on the ground.

"All I heard was the main guy in white saying, 'Get out of here, get out of Venice Beach. You don't belong in Venice Beach,'" said Karhu. "I was hoping with my filming we'd be able to catch this guy."

Caught on Video: Top Surveillance Videos of 2013

The victim's injuries are non-life threatening, according to Los Angeles police. Both men left the location before police arrived.

Call the Pacific Community Police Station at 310-482-6334 to provide information about the attack.

A lawyer says an agreement has been reached to pay $5.8 million to the families of eight people killed and 12 injured in a California desert off-road race crash.

Attorney Katherine Harvey-Lee said Wednesday an agreement was reached in mediation with federal government lawyers.

Harvey-Lee says the agreement still must be approved by the Department of Justice and signed off by a judge. She says she represents three injured spectators and the father of one of those killed.

Under the agreement, she says the Bureau of Land Management would pay $4.825 million and race organizers and promoters would pay their $1 million insurance policy limit.

A message was left for the BLLM seeking comment.

The deadly racing crash occurred in August 2010 in the Mojave Desert when a modified Ford Ranger truck crashed through spectators at the California 200 desert race. The truck hurled over a jump and struck a group of fans, pinning some underneath the vehicle, while sending others flying into a cloud of dust.

Of the eight spectators killed, four victims were from San Diego: Michael Dickinson, 34, of Spring Valley; Escondido resident Brian Wolfin, 27; Escondido resident Anthony Sanchez; 23; and Escondido resident Aaron Farkas, 25.

Several more spectators were injured in the horrific crash.

The crowd, which included children, was standing within 10 feet of the track with no guardrails separating them from the speeding vehicles, an investigation revealed.

In the wake of the deadly accident, California’s U.S. senators pressed the Bureau of Land Management to provide data on off-road racing on public lands, including safety violations in past races.

In November 2010, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management determined that its staff had failed to follow established procedures for permitting and monitoring the off-road race in the Mojave Desert.

An internal review found BLM Staff in Barstow, Calif., did not hold a pre-race consultation with race promoters. Additionally, a ranger assigned to patrol the area did not monitor the event, the investigation revealed.

NBC 7 San Diego/ Associated Press

A Marina Del Rey man was arrested on federal charges of embezzling $370,000 from the Girl Scouts, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Channing Smack, 51, a senior property manager of the Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles, was arrested Tuesday without incident.

Caught on Camera: Top Surveillance Videos of 2013

Smack is named in a criminal complaint charging him with money laundering, a federal offense that carries a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison, the United States Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

Read: Driver in Fiery Crash Had Alcohol Level Twice Legal Limit: Coroner

Smack was arrested after being interviewed by FBI agents about the alleged embezzlement and one day after he withdrew $64,500 from accounts believed to contain proceeds of the scheme, officials said.

According to the affidavit in support of the complaint, Smack was responsible for managing the Girl Scouts' 22 properties in the Los Angeles area.

Over the past year and a half, Smack approved invoices for services purportedly provided by a firm called ZB Land Maintenance & Engineering, which is registered under the name of Smack’s dead brother.

Between August 2012 and October 2013, allegedly at Smack’s direction, Girls Scouts issued 23 checks to ZB that totaled $368,278.

The evidence uncovered by the FBI shows that most of the checks to ZB were then deposited into one of two bank accounts opened under the names of the company and Smack’s dead brother.

According to the affidavit, bank surveillance photographs show an individual who looks like Smack either depositing or withdrawing funds into or from these bank accounts.

In a statement, Carol Dedrich, a spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles, said that when officials discovered monetary irregularities, they contacted authorities and terminated Smack.

"We are shocked and disappointed by this news and are cooperating completely with the Federal Bureau of Investigation," the statement read. "The Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles has very high standards and expectations of our employees and our volunteers. We understand clearly that we all serve as role models for our girls and we take that responsibility very seriously."

A man was sentenced to three life terms, plus 18 years in state prison Wednesday for the 1996 shooting death of a shopkeeper at a market in San Diego’s Skyline area.

Charzel Shears, 36, will spend the rest of his life in prison for the shooting death of Sleiman “Pops” Hallak and the attempted murder of two others at the Moonlight Market, San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis confirmed.

In April 1996, when Shears was just 19 years old, he ran into the Moonlight Market wearing a ski mask, armed with a gun.

Hallak, who owned the shop, was inside the market with two other men. Shears demanded money and then fatally shot Hallak three times.

He also shot at the two other men in the shop, a cigar salesman and an employee, but they were not injured in the robbery.

More than 17 years after Hallak’s killing, Shears was convicted by a jury in November of one count of murder with the special circumstance of robbery, two counts of premeditated attempted murder and of using a gun in the commission of the offenses, Dumanis said.

Hallak was a popular and beloved business owner in San Diego and Dumanis said Wednesday’s sentencing brings some closure to the victim’s family in this long case.

“Nothing can bring back the life of Sleiman “Pops” Hallak, but today’s prison sentence is a measure of justice for the victim’s family and the defendant is being held accountable for his crimes,” she said.

Jail booking records indicate Shears has been housed at the George Bailey Detention Facility since August 2012 on the murder and attempted murder charges.
 

One of the four current Sweetwater trustees accused of corruption has accepted a plea deal and will be stepping down from the board.

Trustee Arlie Ricasa has admitted to one misdemeanor count for accepting gifts and not reporting them on state-mandated forms.

Ricasa was facing 27 felony and misdemeanor charges, including the felony charge of conspiracy to commit a crime.

The misdemeanor count of filing a false instrument relates to mostly a paperwork issue of not putting all gifts on state-mandated form 700's, which typically results in a minor fine from the FPPC.

More than a dozen educators and school officials have been charged in a major "pay-to-play" public corruption case that began more than a year ago.

In a statement Wednesday, the Sweetwater School Board announced Ricasa would resign effective Dec. 19. A provisional appointment will be  made to fill her seat. Read Full Statement

Ricasa also has a six-figure job as a director at Southwestern College. It remains unclear if she will continue her work there.

The investigation was launched after a company not paying bribes says it was fired from a job on school grounds in order to hand over the contract to The Seville Group.

Henry Amigable, a Seville Group executive, was charged with offering thousands of dollars on dinners, gifts and tickets to the school board members in exchange for their support.

The former treasurer for the city of Carlsbad has been arrested, accused of stealing money from a non-profit, according to Carlsbad Police.

On Wednesday, 53-year-old James Comstock was arrested for grand theft and misappropriation of funds. He was booked into jail on $120,000 bond, according to officials.

Comstock was the volunteer treasurer of ArtSplash, a non-profit that puts on an annual arts festival in Carlsbad.

Comstock was elected as city treasurer in Nov. 2010, according to Carlsbad Patch, and resigned last January. Police say the charges do not involve his job with the city.

The arrest is the result of a nearly year-long investigation. According to police, another ArtSplah board member noticed problems with the financial records and alerted the city. Because the city donates to ArtSplash, city officials were allowed access to the documents.

In February, police served a search warrant and search Comstock’s Bank of America accounts from Jan. 2009 to Jan. 2013, officials said. The District Attorney joined the investigation in October.

At this point, there is no word how much Comstock is accused of stealing or what kind of punishment he could face.

Comstock became the treasurer of ArtSplash in 2003.
 

Less than a week after a judge ordered the removal of the large cross erected atop public land in San Diego, a veterans group has filed an appeal.

The Mt. Soledad cross has been part of the city’s landscape for 59 years and has been incorporated into a memorial for U.S. military veterans.

On Thursday, a federal judge declared that the cross violates the Establishment Clause of the Constitution and unlawfully endorses one religion over others.

The Mt. Soledad Memorial Association (MSMA) filed notice Wednesday appealing that decision.

The legal fight over the Mt. Soledad cross began in 1989 when atheist Philip Paulson sued the city of San Diego. Paulson, a Vietnam War veteran, contended that the cross excludes veterans who aren't Christian.

A Jewish war veterans group has also been a plaintiff in the case along with the American Civil Liberties Union.

The cross is part of the oldest memorial to Korean War veterans in the U.S. If the cross is removed from this memorial, the MSMA argues that other war memorials could soon be ordered to do the same.

The veterans group feels the issue should be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

However, justices declined to hear the case last year, sending it back to federal court in San Diego, where Thursday’s order was issued.

The family of an Oakland 8th grader declared "brain dead" following a tonsillectomy held a prayer vigil for the teen on Wednesday, one day after two tests showed no signs of life.

Hundreds of family, friends and other supporters attended the service at Paradise Baptist Church in Oakland for 13-year-old Jahi McMath, who had her tonsils removed on Dec. 9 and was declared brain dead three days later.

After the emotional prayer service, Jahi's mother, Latasha "Naila" Winkfield, urged supporters to keep praying for a miracle.

"Please don't give up on my baby because she will wake up," Winkfield said. "I don't have any doubt she will wake up. Doctors don't know. God has the final say."

Jahi is on a ventalator at Children's Hospital Oakland.

Her family has been holding court outside Children's Hospital for the last several days, taking to the media to make their battle public to keep Jahi on life support. Her heart is still beating, though two EEG tests on Tuesday showed no signs of life, according to her family. They say she seemed fine after her initial surgery, but ended up coughing up blood about 30 minutes later and suffered a cardiac arrest. She has not been conscious since.

Jahi's uncle, Omari Sealey, called attorney Chris Dolan earlier this week, who sent a "cease and desist" letter to Children's Hospital, telling the top staff that they had an "irreconcilable conflict of interest" in determining whether Jahi should be taken off life support. On Tuesday, hospital officials agreed, at least temporarily, to heed the family's request. Dolan told NBC Bay Area that "there is no established time table now," but that doctors will monitor her condition and "reassess and reevaluate in several days."

MORE: "Urgent" Request to Keep 8th Grader Jahi McMath on Life Support After Tonsillectomy

Dolan also said the hospital is refusing to hand over medical records to the family.

In response, Consumer Watchdog on Wednesday called on the California Attorney General Kamala Harris, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley and California Medical Board President Sharon Levine to take over the investigation into the case.

In a statement, the hospital said, "As a matter of policy, we do not release the entire medical record while the patient is in the hospital, since it is a document in continuous use. All families have the right to review the record while the patient is in the hospital, and have access to the entire record after the hospitalization has ended."

Furthermore, the hospital said it is prevented from commenting by federal laws that restrict doctors from speaking about their patients' medical history without consent. Dr. David Durand, chief of pediatrics, stated in an email that " unfortunately, we have not been authorized by the family to share information with the public about this matter.  Consequently, we are not able to correct misperceptions created about this sad situation."

Jahi had the tonsillectomy to help her with sleep apnea, the family has said, but has never disclosed more.

MORE: Brain Dead Oakland Teen's Family Seeking Mayor's Help

Jahi's family is hoping the prayers will help. Despite a "brain dead" diagnosis, the 8th grader's heart continues to beat. And that gives Jahi's God-fearing family something to hang onto.

"I can't wait to go back to the hospital and tell Jahi how many people prayed for her," Winkfield said. "And they believe she will get up."

NBC Bay Area's Cheryl Hurd contributed to this report.

A decision to indict Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell by this week on felony charges has been delayed, according to a report from the Washington Post.

The report states U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Dana Boente, told the governor and his wife, Maureen, that he planned to "ask a jury to return an indictment no later than this past Monday."

The couple would have been charged for promoting Jonnie Williams' Star Scientific Inc. in exchange for gifts and loans to the McDonnell family, totaling more than $150,000.

The Post reports McDonnell's lawyers argued McDonnell did nothing wrong, and questioned the "credibility of a key witness." The lawyers also wanted to delay the indictment for the governor to complete his four-year term to "allow for a smooth transition of power to Gov.-elect Terry McAuliffe (D)."