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Where Bode Went Wrong

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By the time Bode Miller reached the finish, the air of disappointment was palpable. Rather than the expected coronation and celebration, American fans stood silent in the grandstands, while his wife—professional beach volleyball player Morgan Beck—merely stared in disbelief. All Miller could do was crouch over his skis, shoulders and head slumped.

After winning two training runs, Miller couldn't live up to his favorite status in Sunday's men's Olympic downhill, finishing a disappointing eighth place, over half a second behind gold medalist Matthias Mayer of Austria. As Miller prophetically reminded the media all week, fast training times don't equal gold medals.

On paper, it was an ill-timed impact with a gate that ended Miller's chances of victory. After setting the fastest time on the track's technical upper section, the five-time Olympic vet looked poised to replicate the speed he'd showcased in training. If he had, he would have become the oldest ever Alpine gold medalist. Instead, Miller let his line run low in the course's mid-section, was forced to hurl himself through a panel gate and scrubbed precious momentum going into the critical lower section. 

Miller would later tell reporters he switched tactics on race day, believing a tighter, riskier line was required to win. 
 
"The visibility has changed a ton from the training run," Miller said. "The middle and bottom of the course slowed so much from the beginning of the race until I went that I thought you have to do something magical to win."
 
On closer inspection, however, Miller's problems started well before that glaring mistake. In stark contrast to the relaxed and effortless skiing we saw in training, the five-time Olympic medal winner seemed to be charging too hard out of the gate, jamming his edges instead of executing smooth turns and making small mistakes from start to finish. On the all important Lake Jump (which sends skiers on a 60 meter flight), Miller was so off balance that he became twisted mid-flight, looking more like a freestyle skier than a racer.
 
For the New Hampshire native, this race day flameout appeared to be a case of wanting the win too badly. Of course every skier who stands in the starting gate dreams of gold, but for Miller these Games are the last chance to a put a cherry on top of a storied career. And nothing would have given his Olympic career a more dramatic conclusion than gold in Alpine's marquee event, the downhill. 
 
After sitting out last season to recover from knee surgery, Miller came into these Games in arguably the best shape of his life, leaving little doubt that Sochi was his main objective. Unlike the aloof, almost petulant attitude he displayed in Torino, where he entered the Games as a legitimate threat in all five Alpine events, only to leave without a medal (claiming he had more fun partying than skiing), Miller came to Sochi in high spirits, laying down the gauntlet in training and stating that it was a "pleasure for me to ski on this track." 
 
Of course Miller didn't need to redeem himself in Sunday's downhill. He already did that four years ago in Vancouver, where he collected a gold, silver and bronze in three events, becoming America's most decorated male Alpine racer of all time. But Miller is a competitor with a legacy at stake, and he'll certainly want to leave his mark on these Sochi Games.
 
Fortunately, he'll have a chance to do just that in Thursday's combined, an event in which Miller is the defending Olympic champion. 

 

 


Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images

Suspects Beat Teen, Steal His Car

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Police were trying to find at least seven suspects responsible for a violent robbery Saturday night that sent one victim to the hospital.

A 17-year-old was waiting in his 1998 BMW to meet some friends at Ladera Park south of Sunset Cliffs just before 8 p.m.

As he sat in his car, five or six men and two women – all in their mid-20s – walked up to his car, got in and started ransacking everything inside, according to San Diego Police.

The victim tried to drive away and push the suspects out of his car, but they started beating him.

Stopping the car, the victim was pulled out, and the men began kicking him in the face and head.

Police said the suspects eventually fled with the victim’s car, but officers found it just 50 yards from the scene a short time later.

The teenager was taken to the hospital for moderate facial injuries. The incident is under investigation.



Photo Credit: NBC San Diego

Curling: The Cult Classic Returns

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It's back.

For the next week, more than 10 curling games a day will be jammed into the Olympic schedule, giving viewers ample time to figure out the ins and outs of this underdog event.

Still a relative newbie on the Olympic stage, the sport has only consistently appeared in the last four Winter Games. (It was played as a demonstration sport at the '88 and '92 Games and made a one-off appearance in the '24 Games.) Each year, however, the event attracts more and more attention as the outfits get wilder and the competition more intense.  

Here's what you need to know as Olympic curling gets underway:

WHAT IS IT?

The International Olympic Committee, Sochi organizers and the World Curling Federation call it a sport, while critics disagree. Whatever it is, it is played on a long sheet of textured ice with two giant bullseyes, or houses, on either end. Teams consisting of four players — a lead, second, vice skip and skip — launch heavy stones across the ice to the center of the opposite "house." Each team member gets two tries per period, or end, of which there are 10, to get as close to the bullseye as possible. The team that manages to do that wins points for that end. Losers get nothing.

BROOMS

As a player launches a stone, two teammates furiously rub brushes or brooms on the ice just inches in front of it, in an attempt to create friction and influence the stone's trajectory. The skip watches from the other end, shouting directions at the sweepers. As the stone approaches the target, the skip will also brush the ice, giving it one final steer before it stops. (When it's the skip's turn to launch, the vice skip takes his place.)

PANTS

There was nothing interesting about curling pants until the Norwegians came along. Back in Vancouver, they showed up to play red, white and blue (their flag's colors) bottoms so outrageous they inspired a Facebook page.

This year the team has brought more party pants to Sochi for the curling competition. Larry Jackson, the CEO of Loudmouth, the company behind the designs, told The Associated Press that this year's batch will be "considered even more loud" than any pants they've worn before.

The Norwegians' fashion sense doesn't appear to have influenced other teams, though. They continue to wear the standard uniform of no-slip shoes, dark pants and collared athletic tops.

TEAM PRIMER

Canada has been on the men's curling podium for every Olympic Games since 1998. This year, the country sends a strong team — which include three cousins and a longtime friend — to Sochi in the hopes of notching its third consecutive Olympic gold.

Norway and Switzerland are right behind them, with three men's medals in the last four Games. On the women's side, Sweden is a powerhouse, too. 

The U.S. men's team won bronze in 2006 and is looking to medal again, while Russia will make its Olympic debut. The Norwegians, for all the silliness of their pants, are expected to be serious competitors this year as well.

BEER

A popular curling tradition calls for the winning team to buy drinks for the losers at the end of the game. But according to team Canada's E.J. Harnden, who spoke with the Wall Street Journal, that tradition is fading fast as fitness creeps into what was once a smokers' sport. 

"It's gotten to the point where it's actually rare, when you're at a high-level event, for two teams to go for a drink afterwards," Harnden told the Journal. "The two teams will still sit down, but they'll be sipping a water or having a protein shake."

TEMPERS

Keep an eye on Niklas Edin, Sweden's skip, who earned the nickname "The John McEnroe of Curling" for his early career tendencies to go nuts during games. He recently told The Associated Press that his days of throwing things and screaming are over but that he has a "hot temper when it matters. So you might see some of that this week."

YELLING

Generally, there's lots of yelling in curling. The skip yells instructions to his or her teammates as they release the stone or scrub the ice.

As in any other game, there is often yelling after victories, and yelling after disappointments. What sets curling apart from other sports, however, is that its players wear live mics, adding another dimension to the entertainment. 

WHEN TO WATCH 

The action begins Monday with a dozen games in the first round of the event.

Watch every single one on NBCOlympics.com and look for highlights on NBC.



Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images

Hit and Run Kills 82-Year-Old

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An 81-year-old man was killed by a hit-and-run driver Sunday morning in San Ysidro as his son waited for him to cross the street.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office has identified the victim as Alonso Flores Pacheco.

San Diego police said Flores Pacheco was walking across E. San Ysidro Boulevard right before Olive Drive just before 6 a.m. when a vehicle struck and killed him.

Police described the vehicle as a rust-colored, four-door sedan with reports of front-end damage, dark tinted windows and oxidized paint on the roof. There is no description of the driver.

The vehicle was last seen driving westbound on E. San Ysidro Boulevard.

The ME said multiple witnesses called 911.

CHP issued a Sig Alert while the incident was being investigated. SDPD Detective Christopher Velovich said the victim had crossed in the middle of the street instead of using the crosswalk.

According to family members on the scene, Flores Pacheco lived in the trailer park right next to the area. They said he was on his way back from using the Bank of America ATM directly across the road, a walk he does everyday. 

They said the victim's son had just crossed and was waiting for his father when he watched a car hit and kill his dad. 

Still distraught, a family member told NBC 7, "It's the process of life. He's with Christ. It will happen to all of us someday. Christ will take us."

An autopsy is tentatively scheduled for Friday.

This is the third fatal hit and run in the past two weeks. 

Check back for updates on this developing story. On Feb. 3, Escondido resident Benjamin Ramirez was killed by a box truck that slowed but didn't stop, CHP said.

Just three days before that, Old Globe prop master Seamus O'Bryan was killed while riding his motorcycle in North Park.

Check back for updates on this developing story.

Best of the Sochi Olympics: Day 3

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The third day of the Winter Olympics in Sochi kicked off on the snow and ice. Click to see the best photos from the competition.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Matt Dunham

Actor Chris Kattan Arrested for DUI

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Actor and former "Saturday Night Live" cast member Chris Kattan was booked on suspicion of DUI after a crash early Monday on a SoCal freeway, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The comedian was involved in a crash on the 101 Freeway with a road crew work truck, authorities said. No major injuries were reported after the 2 a.m. crash on the westbound side of the freeway in the Van Nuys area.

The CHP received a 911 call regarding a driver swerving "all over the roadway" at slow speeds before the crash, according to a CHP crash report.

Video showed Kattan's 2011 Mercedes Benz sedan with significant front-end damage being loaded onto a flatbed after it collided with the work crew's truck, which also was damaged in the crash. Orange cones, sign boards and flashing warning arrows marked the location where the Caltrans crew was working on a guardrail on the right shoulder of the freeway.

Kattan crossed the cone pattern and slammed into the back of the work truck, crash investigators said.

Kattan failed a field sobriety test, according to the CHP. Los Angeles County inmate records indicate Kattan was released from jail after posting bond Monday morning.

A message posted Monday afternoon on Kattan’s Twitter account read, “I just got back from a 15hr flight after touring out of the country. I was exhausted. The Police were so kind. I'm lucky nobody was hurt.”

Several westbound lanes were closed near Balboa Boulevard during the crash cleanup.

Kattan, 43, became a cast member on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" in 1996 and remained a regular on the show until 2003. 

A call to Kattan's agent wasn't immediately returned to the Associated Press.




 



Photo Credit: California Highway Patrol

Super in Sochi: Mancuso Nets Medal

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Judging by Julia Mancuso's exuberant finish line celebrations, you would have thought the American Alpine skier had won gold in Monday's super combined instead of bronze.

Beaming and breathlessly cheering, laughing and hugging competitors (and even confessing her run didn't feel that good), the 29-year-old seemed stunned to be on the Olympic podium after struggling all season with lackluster results.

The medal, Mancuso's fourth (she took gold in Torino and a pair of silvers in Vancouver), makes her the first American Alpine skier to medal in three consecutive Olympics, and once again proves she can deliver the goods when it counts.

Despite the superlative streak, however, her recent results — or lack thereof — didn't exactly portend big things for these Games. Then again, Mancuso — a skier who spends most of her summer in Hawaii instead of on snow — has never been one to stick to the script.

On day three of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, the Lake Tahoe, Calif., resident stormed to a first run lead in the downhill portion of the race, blitzing the treacherous Rosa Khutor course with a stunning performance down its steep slopes.

But it was her ability to hold on in the second leg that secured her a medal.

With a bevy of slalom specialists nipping at her heels, Mancuso — who hadn't competed in the discipline all season — had her work cut out for her going into run number two. Considering the heavy competition, a medal of any color would be an accomplishment.

Skiing last among the favorites (racers start in reverse order based on their finishing position in the downhill portion), Mancuso watched as the course deteriorated under warmer, snow-softening conditions, tripping up skier after skier.

When fellow speed specialist Lara Gut of Switzerland (the second fastest woman in the downhill) failed to complete the second leg, Mancuso's fate seemed all but sealed: this would be a day for the slalom skiers. Three of them — Germany's Maria Hoefl-Riesch, Austria's Nicole Hosp and Slovenia's Tina Maze — stood on the provisional podium below, their eyes nervously trained on Mancuso in the start house.

Mancuso looked even more nervous standing in the starting gate. With Bode Miller's failure to live up to his favorite status in Sunday's downhill and teammate Lindsey Vonn's absence from these games, all pressure stood squarely on Mancuso's petite shoulders.

But just as she's done time and time again when the stakes are raised, Mancuso didn't let nerves or a lack of practice stand in the way of her skiing. Using the soft snow conditions to her advantage (the Nevada native grew up skiing in Squaw Valley, where spring-like conditions are the norm), she found her rhythm early in the twisty course, carrying speed from top to bottom with nary a bobble. She hit the finish line with the 13th best slalom leg, giving her an aggregate time that was good enough for bronze.

That was all it took for the vivacious Mancuso (she owns a lingerie line named Kiss My Tiara, after all) to hoot and holler, freshen up with some makeup and break out the American flag for the cameras. Her unabashed reaction made for a feel good, light-hearted moment, especially in comparison to winner Hoefl-Riesch, who merely looked relieved.

Mancuso's bronze puts the American Alpine team on the boards with its first medal of these Games. And with the women's downhill on the docket for Wednesday, an on-form Mancuso has a good chance of adding to that haul, not to mention her own Olympic legend.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Quinn Breaks Out of Another Door

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Team USA bobsledder Johnny Quinn, recently famous for breaking through a jammed bathroom door in the Olympic Village Saturday, had to break out of yet another one Monday morning - an elevator door.

We're not kidding.

Quinn and bobsled teammate Nick Cunningham were in an elevator in Sochi when the elevator stopped and the door refused to open. It had to be pried open.

Cunningham was the first to tweet the bizarrely coincidental imprisonment, writing, "Of course I'm with @JohnnyQuinnUSA when the elevator door breaks and we get stuck! Good thing I'm with him!"

The tweet was accompanied by a photo of Quinn trying to pry the door open.

Not long after they freed themselves, Quinn tweeted out, "No one is going to believe this but we just got stuck in an elevator."

In response to people's disbelief and the question of whether or not he was kidding, Cunningham tweeted another photo of Quinn struggling with the door, writing: "Not at all!"

 

Quinn's bathroom breakout Saturday earned him quite a few fans, including the actor William Shatner. Shatner tweeted Quinn Sunday, saying, "You've certainly made your mark. As I told Mr. Cunningham, take a piece of the door to tell your kids."

On Monday morning, not long before Quinn tore open yet another door, Shatner gave him these instructions: "No more shenanigans until you win a medal ;) Bill."

No word yet if Shatner approved of the most recent "shananigans."

 

UPDATE: Shatner tweets reaction to the most recent door debacle:

 

 

 



Photo Credit: Nick Cunningham

Second 1-2 Finish for Canada Skiers

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Call Canada the masters of moguls.

For the second time in the Sochi Games, Canadian skiers finished first and second in a freestyle moguls competition, cementing their position atop the sport.

Canadian skier Alex Bilodeau won his second straight Olympic gold medal in the men’s event in Sochi on Monday, soundly defeating his closest rival and teammate, Mikael Kingsbury, who won the silver.

Russian Alexandr Smyshlyaev won bronze, with American Patrick Deneen, a former world champion who is ranked third in the world, finishing sixth.

The one-two finish for Bilodeau and Kingsbury came two days after Canadian sisters Justine and Chloe Dufour-Lapointe did the same in the women’s moguls final.

Skiing on slushy snow, Bilodeau scored a 26.31 in his final run, marked by a 1080-degree jump. Kingsbury, the reigning world champion, stumbled while landing one of his jumps, and ended up with a 24.71.

The two Canadian men have been leapfrogging each other in the world cup circuit for years.

Bilodeau, 26, has won the last three events, but Kingsbury, 21, is the reigning world champion. This is Kingsbury’s first Olympics.

Their rivalry is one of the sport’s most intense, pitting two teammates who are friendly but not friends.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Food Truck Restrictions Considered

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You could be seeing fewer food trucks around San Diego if city council passes new regulations.

On Wednesday, council’s Smart Growth and Land Use Committee will consider the restrictions.

These could include limiting service hours, requiring permits and even banning food truck from some areas.

Food truck owners aren’t happy about the possibility of new restrictions, including Alex Gould. Gould and his wife own the food truck Stuffed.

“We are also a business, just as much as any restaurant, brick and mortar restaurant in the city,” Gould said.

Gould plans to voice his opinion at Wednesday’s meeting. He says he hopes a compromise can we reached. If not, he and his wife could be forced to move to a different city.

“I think it's reasonable that we should not be allowed to park in front of a restaurant, but maybe 100 feet away instead of 500 feet away,” he said.

Megan Nares, a waitress as Zia’s Bistro, worries food trucks could take away some of the charm of Little Italy.

“It won't feel like that if you have all these food trucks here all the time,” Nares said.

“Down here, there's enough restaurants to go around to where we don't need food trucks,” she added.

Wednesday’s meeting starts at 2 p.m. and is open to the public.
 

LeanIn.org, Getty Launch New Photos

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Getty Images and LeanIn.org, the nonprofit organization founded by Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg, have teamed up to create a new collection of 2,500 stock images depicting women.

The current library of images on Getty portraying women includes several stereotypes, critics say, such as a power-suited pregnant businesswomen holding files and smiling broadly, a work-from-home mother doing her best to attend to both her computer and her child, and a woman wearing kitten heels and holding a briefcase while taking her son to school.

Such images, according to Sandberg, are hurtful to women because they propagate certain generalizations about women in the workplace that she urges people to avoid.

“You can’t be what you can’t see,” Sandberg said in a press release, “ In an age where media are all around us, it is critical that images provide examples that both women and men can emulate.”

In an effort to change society’s perception of women, LeanIn has worked with Getty to curate a collection of images showing women in different professional positions. According to The New York Times, which first reported the partnership Monday, the images show women working as soldiers, bakers, hunters and surgeons, among other careers, while wearing modern clothing and working in modern settings.

The change could have a widespread impact on the depiction of women in media thanks to a big appetite for these kinds of images; the three-most searched terms in Getty are “women,” “business” and “family," the Times reported.

Jonathan Klein, co-founder and CEO of Getty Images stressed the significance of the search trends.

“Imagery is the universal language through which the world communicates,” he said in a press release. “The Lean In collection has the power to lead the visual conversation and effect real change.”

Sandberg launched her nonprofit after publishing “Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead.” The book, praised by some for promoting strong female leadership, also came under fire for putting pressure on individual women to break the glass ceiling, rather than on society and companies. The partnership with Getty could allow Sandberg to reach a wider base of women and dispel criticisms of her message’s relevance only to women in corporate environments.

Ten percent of the revenue from the joint collection will go to Sandberg’s LeanIn.org and another portion of the proceeds will go towards Getty Images photography grants for images that showcase female empowerment.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Aztecs Still Fifth in AP Poll

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San Diego State’s record-setting season continued with a 15-point win over Nevada. That’s 20 straight wins – tying a program best. It’s also 10 straight wins to start the Mountain West season – best conference start in school history.

Yet the Aztecs (21-1) can’t seem to get past No. 5. They are ranked fifth in the latest AP and USA Today coaches polls for the third straight week. The team’s highest ranking came in 2010-11, when they won 20 straight games to start the season and hit No. 4 in the rankings.

That team finished 34-3 and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.

“Sometimes you've got to get lucky, and we've been lucky a few times,” head coach Steve Fisher said of this year’s win streak. “Good teams are in position to win games. The curious part for me is what the nation would think if we lost a game. Would we move down one or two spots like some of the blue-bloods do, or would we free-fall seven spots? I hope we don't experience that, but we probably will and we'll see if that happens."

The Aztecs will get two more chances to impress the pollsters this week with a road game at Wyoming on Tuesday and a home contest against Air Force on Saturday. Wyoming is 5-5 in the conference but has lost three of its last four. Air Force sits near the bottom of the standings a 3-8 and has lost six straight.

SDSU’s next big test probably won’t come until next weekend, when the Aztecs head to Albuquerque to play New Mexico (18-4, 9-1). The Lobos are probably the only other team able to challenge for a conference regular-season title.

"Our main goal is to win the conference,” Fisher said. “We're barely ahead of New Mexico and we want to win the next one. … Our kids have done a really good job of enjoying the moment and getting ready for the next one. So I feel confident that we'll be fine.”

The win streak is no surprise to senior guard Xavier Thames, who led the Aztecs with 17 points in Saturday’s win over Nevada.

“From the first man to the last man, we've all been working very hard on our game and working hard on our defensive and offensive schemes,” he said. “We kind of expected to be in this roll."



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Ron Fowler: Padres Will Be 'Better'

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At Padres FanFest on Saturday, NBC 7’s Derek Togerson went 1-on-1 with Padres Executive Chairman Ron Fowler to talk about the 2014 season, the fan experience at Petco Park and if the recent spike in team payroll is an anomaly or a sign of things to come. Check out his candid responses.

Kids Prefer Coffee, Energy Drinks

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 Kids aren’t drinking as much soda as they did a decade ago, but that doesn’t mean they are consuming less caffeine.

Energy drink and coffee consumption are on the rise for children and adolescents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Researchers looked at minors from 1999 to 2010 and found that 73 percent of children under 18 consumed caffeine on any given day.

While there are no proven health risks related to caffeine, NBC4’s chief medical editor and correspondent Dr. Bruce Hensel said it can make kids jittery and interfere with their schooling, especially if they have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Hensel recommends that kids shouldn’t drink any caffeine.

If a child is already a mass consumer of caffeine, Hensel recommends cutting the amount in half for two weeks, then cutting the amount in half again for a month in order to reduce cravings.

Shooting Victim Walked into Chula Vista Hospital

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Chula Vista police officers are investigating a shooting reported by several residents early Monday.

Residents called 911 to report the sound of gunshots around 5:18 a.m. on East Orange Avenue east of Hilltop Drive and west of Interstate 805.

Approximately 10 minutes later, a man walked into the emergency room at Scripps Hospital with a gunshot wound to the shoulder.

He told hospital staff members that he had been dropped off in the parking lot.

While officers went to the hospital to interview the victim, other officer found evidence at the scene of the shooting.

The woman who dropped off the victim returned to the hospital and was interviewed by investigators, officials said.

The man’s wound is considered non-life threatening, police said.
 



Photo Credit: NBC 7 News

Plea in Boy's Shooting Death

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A San Diego man accepted the terms of a plea deal in the case of a child who was fatally wounded while playing with a gun in the man's garage.

Todd Francis pleaded guilty to child endangerment charges Monday in the death of fourth-grader Eric Klyaz.

The 10-year-old boy died after sustaining a gunshot wound to the chest inside Francis’ garage on June 4.

The boy had been playing with Francis’ 9-year-old daughter in the family’s garage in Miramar Ranch North when the children discovered a firearm.

In a pretrial hearing, an investigator described his interview with Francis' daughter. She told police the children found the gun sitting on a sofa in the garage and both were holding the gun before it fired.

San Diego police said they found two firearms in the home including a Sig-Sauer 9 mm handgun and a Remington 970 shotgun. Officials said only one firearm was secured.

Francis was originally charged with involuntary manslaughter, child endangerment and criminal storage of a firearm.

Francis faces up to four years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for April 8.

Check back for updates on this developing story.

"Dumb Starbucks" Owner Comes Clean

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Could the whole "Dumb Starbucks" thing just be an elaborate publicity grab? The man behind the Los Angeles sensation that is "Dumb Starbucks" revealed himself on Monday as the star of a Comedy Central show who insists he is committed to his bizarre parody business model.

Nathan Fielder, star of "Nathan For You," stepped out as the CEO of the coffee shop and addressed camera crews and curious Angelenos Monday afternoon outside his uber-popular storefront dubbed "Dumb Starbucks."

But the limelight might be fading for the parody shop now that the LA County Department of Health Services has slapped the store with a notice of closure for operating without a valid public health permit.

The store popped up seemingly out of nowhere in a Los Feliz strip center Feb. 7 in the storefront that once housed the now-defunct Gastronomico.

#DumbStarbucks was the top trending hashtag on Twitter in Los Angeles. The pop-up coffee shop took social media by storm as hundreds of Angelenos tweeted about their fascination with the "dumb" business, including some who waited in line for hours just to get a peek.

"As long as we're making fun of Starbucks, we're allowed to use their corporate identity," Fielder told the crowd.

Fielder's show, "Nathan For You," is a docu-reality comedy show in which Fielder uses his background in business to offer up new, non-traditional business strategies. 

Despite the revelation of the Dumb Starbucks owner's comedy background, Fielder would not say whether the store was part of his show.

The show's slogan, "Real People. Real Business. Results Not Guaranteed" is in line with Dumb Starbucks' online fact sheet that maintains the store is, in fact, a real business.

But Fielder has been known to stage elaborate hoaxes, including a YouTube video showing a pig rescuing a baby goat -- which was actually staged with animal trainers and crew members. The video had more than 8 million views as of Monday.

The logo adorning the Dumb Starbucks storefront and coffee cups is that of the actual Starbucks, but with the word "dumb." The same protocol applies to the entire menu, down to the "dumb" tall, grande and venti sizes.

The imitation coffee chain, aware of its mind-boggling business model, claims its existence at 1802 Hillhurst Avenue is allowed thanks to "parody law" in a Frequently Asked Questions list posted via Twitter.

"By adding the word 'dumb,' we are technically 'making fun of Starbucks, which allows us to use their trademarks under a law known as 'fair use.'"

The FAQ goes on to explain, "Although we are a fully functioning coffee shop, for legal reasons, Dumb Starbucks needs to be categorized as a work of parody art ... But that's for our lawyers to worry about. All you need to do is enjoy our delicious coffee!"

Confused yet curious consumers took to Twitter as they lined up outside the coffee shop in question on Saturday and Sunday.

"Are your dumb coffees still free today?" @LukeOneil47 asked.

"That does it, I'm opening a parody coffee shop called 'Not Dumb Starbucks," @Abobrow said.

"'It may be fake but the work is real' (overheard from the dumb Starbucks baristas),'" @TheBrockyRoad tweeted with a picture of an employee complete with a green apron and black hat with the logos for - you guessed it - Dumb Starbucks.

Fielder explains in a YouTube video how he was able to market "Dumb Starbucks," and describes the stunt as "a real business I plan to get rich from." Watch below:

Fire Engulfs East County Tow Yard

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Firefighters have put out a dramatic fire that raged in East County on Monday morning.

The two-alarm fire, at an auto recycling and tow yard on old Highway 80 in Flinn Springs east of Lakeside, could be seen for miles, especially the heavy black smoke.

“Oh, I imagine 60 to 80 foot in the air at least with black smoke just rolling to beat the band," Tim Parker, who lives across the street from the yard.

The fire location was almost exactly the same scene as a similar fire a year ago.

Fire fighters from Lakeside, Santee, and Alpine all responded and took about 45 minutes to put out. But that was just the start, as crews had to clean up what was leftover from the cars in the yard.

"There's always a concern because being an auto yard doesn't always neessarily mean just autos," said Jim kirkpatrick of the Lakeside Fire Department. "It's whatever was in the trunks of the vehicles, the back seats of the vehicles."

No injuries are reported and there’s no word on what caused the fire. Firefighters say there does not immediately appear to be anything suspicious.



Photo Credit: NBC 7 San Diego

Man Gets 50 Years for Child Porn

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A former nurse’s assistant in San Diego was sentenced to 50 years in prison Monday for sexual exploitation of a child and child pornography.

Hector Manuel Carreon, 46, was found in bed with his underwear pulled down to his ankles with a family member under the age of ten by Homeland Security Investigations in June 2012, according to U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.

The agents who were executing a search warrant at Carreon’s home also found more than 500 pictures and 900 videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including three videos of Carreon sexually molesting two family members who appeared to be drugged.

Carreon was convicted of exploitation of a child, attempted sexual exploitation of a child and receipt and possession of child pornography in July 2013.

At his sentencing Monday, a district judge said it was “apparent” Carreon had drugged the minors.

In addition to 50 years in prison, the judge also ordered Carreon have a lifetime of supervised release and mandatory sex offender registration.



Photo Credit: NBC10.com

FBI Joins Virginia Murder Case

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With so many tips coming in about the death of a well-known music teacher, the FBI is stepping in to help Alexandria police "vet each and every tip," police announced Monday.

Detectives and officers returned to 59-year-old Ruthanne Lodato's neighborhood Monday to pass out fliers featuring a sketch of the man believed to be responsible for killing her and injuring another woman.

Police also spent the day taking additional evidence from the home, including a large door wrapped in black paper and crime tape.

The shooter knocked on Lodato's door in the 2400 block of Ridge Road Drive just after 11:30 a.m. Feb. 6 and opened fire. Lodato and her mother's caregiver were shot.

Lodato was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later pronounced dead. The surviving woman was shot in the arm and hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.

Lodato's mother was also inside the home during the shooting, but was not injured.

The suspect is described as an older, balding man with gray hair and a beard. Police say he was wearing tan outerwear at the time of the shooting, possibly a jacket or a work coat.

Right now, police say there's no evidence linking Lodato's death to two other unsolved murders in Alexandria, despite their similarities.

Last November, 69-year-old Ronald Kirby was fatally shot inside his home, less than a mile from the house where Lodato was killed, and in 2003, real estate agent and wife of Sheriff Jim Dunning, Nancy Dunning was gunned down inside her Del Ray home.

No arrests have been made in either case.

Over the weekend, police pulled a man from a D.C. theatre after a few people in the audience at the National Academy of Sciences told security that the man looked like the suspect in the police sketch. But after speaking with the man, authorities determined that he was not connected to the case.
 
If you have any information that can help police, you're asked to call police at 703-746-6864.

 

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