A baby born to a Maryland mom is being hailed as a miracle because of his mom's rare heart condition, and the unlikely success of his birth.

New mom Shanelle Ragin was born with a single ventricle in her heart, a condition that would prevent it from ever properly pumping blood — but her congenital defect was fixed thanks to a life-saving operation called Fontan when she was just a day old.

Her own mother, Terri Ragin, recalled her fear for her daughter. "You're scared, very scared, and couldn't believe that they could do surgery on a little person," Terri Ragin said.

Though Fontan fixed Shanelle's heart, side effects remained. As a child, she had a tough time breathing just going up a flight of stairs — let alone trying to play with friends or participating in sports. She has to take medication for the rest of her life.

• MORE INFORMATION: Special Moms/Special Babies Program at MedStar Washington Hospital Center

Still, the special operation not only allowed her to live but also to eventually start a family of her own.

Two months ago, she delivered Carter Ragin — though doctors weren’t sure Shanelle and her baby would survive.

When she became unexpectedly pregnant, doctors were alarmed. They warned her that pregnancy could mean the risk of death.

"It's one thing for half a heart to function for one individual, but now she's growing a baby inside of her as well," said Dr. Anitha John, a congenital heart defect specialist at Children’s National Health System.

Ragin was at risk for developing heart failure, especially during labor, when stress on the heart is increased, John said.

But a team of doctors and nurses, including OB/GYN Melissa Freiss from MedStar Washington Hospital Center, believed Shanelle could survive delivery and give birth to a healthy baby.

"It was somewhat of a gamble on her part and on our part," Freiss said.

After almost nine months of intense monitoring and bed rest, Carter was born under the watchful supervision of almost a dozen doctors and nurses. He weighed just more than five pounds but was healthy and had a perfect little heart.

"I felt really proud of Shanelle,” Freiss said. “I think in a way, having a baby, a healthy beautiful baby like Carter, is an affirming part that you are a normal woman."

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) officials rescued an ailing man from a fishing boat about 30 miles off San Diego Tuesday after the man suffered a possible heart attack aboard the vessel.

According to USCG officials, a Coast Guard Sector San Diego MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew flew to the fishing boat and hoisted the 71-year-old man from the vessel after receiving a distress call around noon.

Officials said the victim began experiencing heart attack-like symptoms aboard the 56-foot boat and collapsed, suffering an injury. Crews successfully lifted the man from the boat and onto a Coast Guard helicopter.

By 3 p.m., the man was in San Diego receiving emergency medical care. His name was not released.
 

The 85th All-Star Game in Minneapolis was Derek Jeter’s time to shine. Apparently, once again, it was no place for Padres.

The Yankees shortstop continued his retirement tour by knocking out two hits to lead the American League to a 5-3 victory on Tuesday night.

Yet for the third straight year, no Padres player got into the game. There wasn't even a mention of Padres legend Tony Gwynn on the Fox broadcast, drawing the ire of sports writers around the country.

Closer Huston Street made his second trip to the Misdummer Classic but once again was not called upon to pitch in the game. Street also was selected in 2012.

Last year, shortstop Everth Cabrera was named to the team, but he didn’t appear in the game either.

Angels outfielder Mike Trout had a pair of extra-base hits, including an RBI triple to drive in Jeter in the first, to earn the MVP award.

Jeter got a standing ovation when he was taken out of the game in the fourth inning. He hugged each of his AL teammates before giving a curtain call to fans.

Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera added a two-run home run in the first to give the AL a 3-0 lead.

It didn't last, as the NL scored a pair of runs in the second on Phillies second baseman Chase Utley's RBI double, who then scored on a Jonathon Lucroy double.

Lucroy tied the game in the fourth with another double, scoring pinch-runner Dee Gordon of the Dodgers.

But Trout put the AL up for good in the fifth, driving in Oakland's Derek Norris with a double of Cardinals reliever Pat Neshek. Jose Altuve of the Astros added a sacrifice fly in the inning to complete the scoring.

Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer struck out two in a scoreless fifth to pick up the victory. Twins closer Glen Perkins picked up the save for the AL with a perfect ninth inning.

It was the second straight win for the American League, which will have home-field advantage in the World Series this year.

Padreds starter Tyson Ross was selected to the National League team, but wasn't available to pitch because he started Sunday's game against the Dodgers.

The last time a Padres player appeared in an All-Star Game was in 2011, when Heath Bell got one batter out at Chase Field in Arizona. The last Padres position player to appear was Adrian Gonzalez in 2010, when he went 0-for-2 as a reserve.

Speed is the leading cause of deadly car accidents on San Diego freeways, and now law enforcement is worried they’ll see more fatalities at the wheel due to a recent spike in illegal street racing.

According to the CHP, the stretch on Interstate 15 from Centre City Parkway in Escondido to Fallbrook has been a hot spot for illegal drag racing and officers are cracking down.

On any given day, officials say the somewhat flat, straight roadway makes it a tempting area for street racing – and CHP Officer Jim Bettencourt said racers are getting more daring by the day.

"They are pushing it to the limit. They want to see how fast their cars can go with whatever modifications they have and they're putting themselves and the public in danger," Bettencourt explained.

To curb the disturbing and potentially deadly trend of drivers who hit speeds far beyond the legal limit, the CHP is teaming up with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and San Diego Police Department to add more patrol cars.

"Their actions don't just affect them. When they go out there and they drive fast, unfortunately if they get into a crash and they kill themselves or kill somebody else, so many people are going to be affected," said Bettencourt.

The officer said law enforcement is not telling drivers they can’t soupe-up their vehicles, they’re just reminder drivers that those modifications need to be done the legal way.

And, if drivers choose not to listen, there will be consequences.

“We are going to be out there. We are aware of what's going on. And if you are going to play the game, you're going to pay the price," Bettencourt added.

CHP officials said they want to stop local street racing before more people get hurt or killed. Officials said that drivers who spot others street racing should immediately report it to 911.
 

Due to recent scandals plaguing the San Diego Police Department, an independent professional standards group will hold two open meetings this month to give San Diegans a chance to share their experiences with local police officers.

Amid allegations of sexual abuse and misconduct on the job within the SDPD, the U.S. Department of Justice contracted the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to perform an assessment of the department and to make recommendations for change and improvements.

As part of that assessment, PERF will hold two meetings in San Diego this month so community members can have an opportunity to share their stories of their personal experiences with the SDPD and offer their own suggestions on ways to better the department.

• Read: Timeline: SDPD Officers Accused of Sex Crimes

Organizers said those meetings will be held on July 22 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Tubman/Chavez Multicultural Center on Euclid Avenue and on July 23 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Sherman Heights Community Center on Island Avenue.

Residents with questions ahead of those meetings can call (619) 548-5464 for more information.

To brush up on all the trouble behind the badge the SDPD has endured this year, click here.
 

In the market for a new mattress?

Look no further than Bob Manoff’s storage unit business. Yes, a business out of a storage unit. In fact, Mattress Bob (yes, that’s his name) has a collection of 11 Mira Mesa storage units that double as showrooms.

Manoff stays busy thanks to word-of-mouth business or from an ad on Craigslist. Twice a week, he gets a shipment from a Los Angeles mattress maker. He’s got pillow tops, memory foam and organic cotton.

The incentive? Most of Manoff’s mattresses sell from between $100 and $700 depending on the size, so who cares that it isn’t your typical mattress showroom?

“At first, they walk down here and they think they’re going to get mugged maybe,” he said. “It’s no frills, but a very pleasant place to do business.”

It's a creative idea, but is it legal?

Yes, Mattress Bob tells us. His business is licensed with the state's Bureau of Home Furnishings, which regulates mattress stores.

As for working out of a storage unit -- or 11 -- he said he has had complaints over the years. The bottom line, though, he said is that he doesn't have the most top of the line mattresses, but he has comfortable mattresses.

Manoff thought the business would last a couple weeks. Now, it’s been open seven years. If you ask him, a storage unit is the perfect business setting, complete with a beach chair in the sun.

“Sometimes you just got to reinvent yourself and reinvent your business to make it work.”

And his customers (at least the folks we met) don't seem to mind the less-than aesthetically-pleasing setting.

"I drove up and I was wondering what the storage unit aspect of it was," said customer Helen Smoole. "But I'm willing to try something new. Why not to save money?

A campaign to put a measure that would turn California into six distinct states on the ballot has collected 1.3 million signatures, proponents said Tuesday — more than enough to put it on the 2016 ballot if they are all valid.

The news on the controversial idea came via media conference in Sacramento on Tuesday, and on the group's Twitter page. The signatures will need to be verified and certified by the secretary of state. Slightly more than 800,000 valid signatures are needed to place the measure on the ballot in two years.

Venture capitalist Tim Draper and his supporters shave been working hard to take this idea straight to California voters because the plan would require a constitutional amendment.

• Venture Capitalist Wants CA Split Into 6 States

With California home to 38 million people and the nation's most populated state, Draper said the state has become ungovernable and can no longer meet the needs of its citizens.

Draper has invested $5 million into his efforts to get California split into six states. And while many people have signed on to the idea, most political experts think the chance of it actually becoming reality are unlikely. The latest Field Poll showed that 59 percent of those surveyed opposed the idea.

#SixCalifornias announces the turn-in of 1.3 million signatures. 2016 here we come! pic.twitter.com/kJWqi9L7ac

— Six Californias (@SixCalifornias) July 15, 2014

"I think it's crazy," Linda Parent of San Francisco said early Tuesday morning.

And speaking from Washington, D.C., U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange County) said she didn't like the idea either.

“I’ll be voting against that ballot iniative in California," she said. "One of the great things about having a state like ours, is it’s so diverse in people, different industries and economies. I think together we’re the sum of the parts is so more than breaking up the state.”

But John Lane, also of San Francisco, didn't completely write off the idea. "It's a complex issue but an interesting one."

NBC Bay Area political consultant Larry Gerston questions the many potential pitfalls of the plan. How would water be shared among the six new states? Would the state prisons be relocated? How would students who attend University of California schools pay tuition - would they pay out-of-state rates? And would Congress really approve a plan that gave the region 12 senators instead of the current two?

Still, Gerston added, the idea isn't dead on arrival either.

• California Wells Could Run Dry in One Year: UC Davis Study

"You wonder if it might pass because so many people are so fed up with government," he told NBC Bay Area in a previous interview. "And even if it only qualifies for the ballot, it still speaks volumes."

Here is how the proposal would divide the state:

• Northern, rural California would become the State of Jefferson
• Area from Wine Country and Sacramento to Lake Tahoe would become North California
• The State of Silicon Valley would run from San Francisco to Santa Clara County
• Much of the state's Central Valley would become Central California
• The Los Angeles County basin would be called West California
• The area from San Diego to the desert in the east would become South California

 NBC Universal's Jennifer Vasquez contributed to this report.

If camp is a summer rite of passage for kids, there is one camp in San Diego making sure it includes all kids.

For the thirteenth year, Camp I Can is going on at the Toby Wells YMCA. More than 100 kids per summer go through the one-week-long camps at two different sites in San Diego County.

Every one of those kids has something in common: they are all on the autism spectrum.

Susie Horton’s son, Troy, has been going to the camp for six summers. She says it’s a place where the kids don’t have to feel different.

“It’s kind of a sixth sense that they have,” she said. “They all kind of know that they’re similar and they can feel comfortable to be themselves.”

The advantage of the camp is all the staff members are specially trained to work with kids who have special needs. The camp also keeps a high ratio of staff to camper to make sure the kids get enough attention.

However, that’s also the disadvantage.

Keeping the camps smaller means there’s limited space. Amy Munera with the Autism Society of San Diego said there’s a wait list every year and kids can only go for one week, rather than the entire summer.

“We don’t have that availability with the funding we have in line,” she explained. “So, we’re constantly trying to raise more money.”

The Autism Society helps subsidize the camp to make it more affordable for families. Munera said parents only pay about $250 per week, which is far less than a typical summer day camp.

Munera said she does not know of any other programs like this.

In the meantime, the number of kids diagnosed with autism in the U.S. continues to grow.

According to the most recent numbers from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), one in every 68 kids is now somewhere on the spectrum for Autism. Those 2010 numbers are more than double the number of one in every 150 kids back in the year 2000.

Munera said it’s still not clear if there are more cases, or better diagnoses.

“Whatever is causing it, we want to make sure we have programs and things available to these children and to their families,” she said.

Horton said her son was on the wait list this year and she worried he would not get in. She said her son looks forward to Camp I Can all year.

“He comes home with a huge smile,” she said. “He feels like this is his family.”

For more information on how you can help Camp I Can, click here.

A longtime San Diego defense attorney intimidated a witness and tried to hide $100,000 in drug money for a client, the attorney admitted in court Tuesday.

James Warner – a defense attorney for alleged drug dealers and criminal defendants for more than 40 years – accepted the terms of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors.

Court records reveal Warner promised to invest the $100,000 in drug money overseas, and even pay the drug dealer 18 percent on the cash.

James Warner has defended alleged drug dealers and criminal defendants for more than 40 years.

But last September, his law office was crime scene when federal agents, armed with a search warrant, found $200,000 cash hidden in a suitcase. Most of the money was in vacuum sealed bag.

It was money prosecutors say was linked to drug dealers.

That's in addition to the cash Warner now admits he tried to hide for a client.

According to a search warrant, federal agents had overlooked that drug-related cash, when they searched the suspect's home.

When the client brought Warner the money, and explained how it had escaped the agent’s notice, Warner allegedly told the client could hide the money, by investing it in gambling company in Africa.

According to the warrant, Warner told his client that investment would generate 18 percent interest.

He also promised to return that drug-tainted money in a year.

In an interview outside court, after Warner entered his guilty plea, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri Walker Hobson took pains to remind the public that defense attorneys play an important role in the criminal justice system.

"I should really emphasize that this conviction today should not reflect negatively on the good work done by defense attorneys,” Walker Hobson told NBC 7.

As part of his guilty plea, Warner will pay more than $400,000 in fines, penalties and forfeitures and will avoid prison.

Instead, he faces three years probation, one year of house arrest and must complete 2,000 hours of community service.

But a judge could overrule that agreement, and send Warner to prison, when he is sentenced in October.

Warner indicated in court that he will resign from the State Bar Association. His law license is also subject to revocation, with this guilty plea.
 

California is running dry.

And state regulators are moving to crack down on people's outdoor water use.

On Tuesday evening, members of the California Water Resources Control Board voted in favor of a set of restrictions that haven’t been imposed statewide in more than two decades. The restrictions take effect on Aug. 1.

Violators could face fines of $500 a day – a prospect that’s rubbing some people the wrong way.

So is the idea that a neighbor might rat you out for an unnoticed irrigation leak – as has begun happening statewide since the proposals were introduced last week.

"There's better ways to do it,” says Imperial Beach resident Amber Schad. “ They used to give you pieces of paper that you could fill out if you see your neighbor doing what they're not supposed to be doing, being a waster. You go put it on your door and it says, I see you, this is a neighborly way to say, let's stop doing what you're doing."

But others predict statewide enforcement, likely on a “complaints basis”, will be more proactive than suggestive.”

"Nowadays, neighbors don't care about each other,” Santee Resident Georgiana Bellows told NBC 7 in an interview Monday. “So you're going to have a lot of snitchers. You're going to have a lot of 'Well, I'm doing the right thing -- look at them, they just left their water on. Their kids are playing in the water on the lawn. Oh, no, they're in the sprinklers."

Lawn irrigation would be limited to no more than two days a week, except in local districts with time-of-day regulations and other “offsets," as most do in San Diego County.

No runoff would be allowed, or pavement-spraying.

Car-washers will need a shut-off hose to spruce up their rides.

Local water officials say most local districts' policies should present no conflicts with the state's new rules, and that residents in San Diego County have considerably reduced water use over the past two decades.

"The girls and I wash the car and we have a hose with a gun to it, to turn on and off,” says Solana Beach resident Christy Day. “They're six and 10 and I'm constantly reminding them, 'We've got to be careful, we can't spray each other, we can't play out here … because we've got to save the water'."

To homeowners who fear their lawns going brown -- and threats to their pools coming next -- environmental experts say, don't despair.

"There are many ways to adjust the landscape; California-native plants that can really use water wisely and still make you proud of your home,” advises public policy consultant Carl Nettleton. “Pools also, there are great ways to save water. If I understand it correctly, if you put a pool cover on your pool, you cut out 95 percent of the evaporation."

Meantime, there have been calls for moratoriums on construction permits.

But building industry executives say their new projects account for less than 1 percent of the residential housing supply here – and that the homes are the most state-of-the art in water efficiency.

"If every existing home was built to the standard that new construction has today, you would save 300 billion gallons each year,” says Matthew Adams, vice president of San Diego’s Building Industry Assn. “So we have to get into retrofitting. And we have to get in with more education for people who are here. And not look at new construction as a way to get us out of this."
 

For many families with teenage drivers, a new car just isn't in the budget.

Eighty-three percent of parents surveyed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said they've purchased a used vehicle for their teen. And with car accidents the leading cause of death among teens, choosing the right vehicle is critical.

• MORE NEWS: Primate Skull, Dead Bats Intercepted as "Unique Threats" at Dulles Airport

For the first time, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has compiled a list of the safest used cars for teenage drivers.

• MORE NEWS: Maryland Woman Charged With Leaving Kids in Hot Car

"A teenager's first car is more than just a financial decision," says IIHS President Adrian Lund. "These lists of recommended used vehicles can help consumers factor in safety, in addition to affordability."

Below is the IIHS' list of the best, affordable vehicles for teen drivers:

Police have arrested management of a Wethersfield, Connecticut hotel who are accused of promoting prostitution and giving room rate discounts to prostitutes and pimps to keep business at steady at the local Comfort Inn.

In August 2013, a prostitute who was staying at the Comfort Inn on the Silas Deane Highway told police "the owner and managers of the hotel were involved in organized prostitution, having numerous prostitutes staying there and working, from which [the owner and managers] were profiting," police said.

Five people have been arrested, including Jaimin Malaviya, 29, who is identified as the hotel's general manager, and Nathaniel Reeves, 44, a former manager.

• 8 Bodies Found Without Documentation Inside Funeral Home

Malaviya faces charges of promoting prostitution and racketeering. Reeves was charged with promoting prostitution.

In court documents, officers said the two led the group and would advertise girls on Web sites, then set up rooms for clients at the motel.

In recorded conversations, Reeves allegedly said, "I never should have gotten involved in prostitution. ... But well, I can't talk about it on the phone."

• Man Arrested After Stabbing Watermelon, Police Say

During an interview with police, Reeves told officers that Malaviya brought him into the prostitution business.

Police also arrested Josue Arroyo, 40, who is charged with promoting prostitution and racketeering, Marggie Laboy, 36, who was charged with prostitution, and Jessica Leanne Lyons, 24, who was also charged with prostitution.

According to court documents, Lyons told police she worked out of the hotel a few weeks at a time over the past two years and that "all of the employees at the Comfort Inn know what's going on there as far as prostitution goes."

She went on to say that cleaning staff even asked her to "throw some money their way in terms of tips," police said.

Police said Malaviya would rent rooms to prostitutes and pimps at a heavily discounted rate.

Court documents show that Reeves indicated to police that "Malaviya's motivation for allowing and advancing prostitution by giving discounted rates to known prostitutes and pimps was to keep steady money coming in to the hotel," and that the only reason Malaviya didn't make more was because Reeves began hiding the money he was making.

The owner of Comfort Inn, Vid Matta, released a statement through a public relations representative.

Matta lives in Massachusetts and immediately fired the general manager when he learned of the illegal activity, notified police and cooperated fully with the investigation, according to the statement.

He then reportedly hired a new general manager and enforced strict hotel check-in guidelines. 

"The hotel now requires all guests to produce a legal identification. There has been no illegal activity at the hotel since the prior general manger was fired and if any illegal activity should be noticed the hotel employees will report the same immediately to police," the statement says.

Descanso residents say they feel like guinea pigs after a San Diego judge approved the unconditional release of a man who no longer meets the classification of a sexually violent predator.

Marked by a school bus bench, Garwood Road is a street with about a dozen families who are now worried about safety and property values.

Convicted molester David Chambless, 53, lives in a home on Garwood Road but up until now, he was monitored by law enforcement and by employees of a court-appointed firm.

On Tuesday, San Diego Judge David Gill approved Chambless' unconditional release after evidence was presented from three doctors that Chambless no longer meets the criteria of a sexually violent predator.

Louise Laff lives in the home she built with her husband. It’s the home where she raised three boys.

"My boys just ran through these hills. The family on the corner has seven kids, that's why we live here so you could not have to have fences and gates and go play, and it can’t happen anymore," Laff said.

Chambliss is one of just five men listed on the county's sexually violent predator page. He's one of two who have completed the program, his attorney told the judge.

Convicted of molesting a 7 and 9 year old girl nearly 20 years ago, he served his time in prison and hospitals and according to three separate mental health experts is now rehabilitated.

Because prosecutors could not provide evidence to the contrary, Judge Gill granted his unconditional release

"Mr. Chambless has undergone close to six years of supervision," his attorney Michael Ruiz said. "Mr. Chambless has been put to the test numerous times and each time he has shown us that he's capable of being a responsible citizen.

"At this point in his life, it's time for Mr. Chambless to be a free man." 

Laff and her neighbors feel like guinea pigs. She believes in the justice system. She just can't believe a man now free to move to whichever community he chooses chose the home across the street.

She and her neighbors hope he continues to stay to himself.

Chambless will still have to register as a sex offender with the Sheriff's Department for the rest of his life and will have to update his place of residence every 90 days.

As for the families on this street - they say the days of kids walking to the bus stop alone are over.

It started out as a picture perfect family vacation for a Los Angeles-based radio personality: Madrid, Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, Tel Aviv and the beaches.

• Download: Download the app

But suddenly, escaping a war zone became part of the itinerary for KIIS-FM's Ellen K, her son Calvin and husband Roy Laughlin. They arrived in Jerusalem the day after a funeral for a Palestinian teen who was killed in a revenge attack for the murder of three Israeli teenagers.

"I really thought we weren't going to make it out," she said. "It was so frightening."

• Sandra Bullock Came Face-to-Face With Alleged Stalker

"I am seeing really a ghost town with rocks all over the streets, graffiti, trash cans and dumpsters on fire, smoke everywhere," she recalled. "(I was) thinking, 'Oh, no. This is really bad.'"

But she wouldn't know just how bad until a show at Tower of David that night.

"The air raid siren starts to go and frantic ushers are screaming at us to get out, get out, get out. Get into the bomb shelter," she said.

Ellen grabbed her son.

• Accused Prostitute in Google Exec's Overdose Death Due in Court

"I was telling him to run, let's hurry," she said. "I put myself over him and I said, 'You know we are going to be OK.'"

Their goal was to get out alive.

"While we were at the Tel Aviv airport begging for this flight, trying to work it out, there were probably three runs to the bomb shelter while we were waiting to get on the plane," Ellen K recalled. "The military is there running it. Until we were 10,000 feet in the air, we did not feel safe."

The family was able to return safely to their Hollywood Hills home.

• Images: Real Names of Celebrities

Ellen K is back at work as the longtime morning partner to Ryan Seacrest on KIIS-FM. But she pauses to reflect on the embattled land they left behind.

"The Palestinians we met, the Israelis we met - beautiful, wonderful, warm, loving people. On both sides, apologetic, (saying) 'Please come back, we're so sorry. You know this isn't your war, this is about us,'" she said.

The chairman of the Prince William County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors is hoping to put enough pressure on the county's executive to find out how many undocumented immigrant children are living in the county and what kind of financial impact they could have.

Board Supervisor Chairman Corey Stewart said some undocumented children who showed up at the U.S. border have been transferred to Prince William County, and are possibly being housed at "Youth for Tomorrow," a home for troubled teens in Bristow, as well as other locations. 

"The facility told us they entered into a federal contract and that they were going to be housing these children," Stewart said. "They wouldn't say much more than that."

• ALSO SEE: Kids Crossing the Border: What to Know About the Immigration Crisis

The county board agreed Tuesday to urge executive Melissa Peacor to find out where these children are living, how many there are and if the county has any authority in the situation. 

He's convinced the children will be a major strain to the community. 

“They should be sent back home," Stewart said. "And the reason they should be sent back home is to send the message that if you make that journey to the United States, you’re just going to be sent back home."

Some county residents agree with Stewart, though others do not.

"They are as human as you or I and they probably have the right to live anywhere and especially in this country, the United States of America," Nancy Vancoverden said. 

• MORE NEWS: Accused Prostitute in Google Exec's Overdose Death Due in Court

Federal facilities, many of them in Texas, have been swamped by more than 50,000 unaccompanied children who have poured across the border since October, according to NBC News.

"We have a process for people to come to this country, and it's not swimming across it and introducing yourself to federal agents," Prince William County resident David Baker said.  

News4 tried contacting the "Youth for Tomorrow" facility, but they did not respond to our calls.
Health and Human Services tell us they do not identify shelters for unaccompanied immigrant minors for security reasons.

Police in Jersey City are being warned after an internal department memo obtained by NBC 4 New York says a gang there is recruiting gang members across New Jersey to kill cops after a rookie police officer was slain responding to a call of an armed robbery over the weekend.  

Melvin Santiago was killed early Sunday while responding to an armed robbery call at a 24-7 Walgreens. Police say Lawrence Campbell ambushed the 23-year-old outside of the store. Police returned fire, killing Campbell.

According to the memo, "information from a reliable source" within the gang indicates the gang is asking for help from members in Camden and Newark in shooting another police officer. 

The gang is targeting officers working with a Department of Transportation traffic unit, the memo says. The advisory warns gang members will "attack and shoot Jersey City EMTs because they know police officers will respond immediately to their backup."

• Real-Life Saul Goodman? Lawyer Tried to Hide Drug Money

Mayor Steven Fulop said such threats frequently crop up after police shootings and are rarely credible.

"Every urban area, every police department knows that after every single police shooting, threats come in," Fulop said. "Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the time they're not credible, but we always take them seriously."

Police sent a notice about the potential threat to officers. One of them posted it to his Facebook page. Fulop said that officer would be disciplined for possibly violating department protocols.

Santiago was one of the first officers at the scene after the report of the armed robbery at the Walgreens came in Sunday by Campbell, who allegedly told someone inside the store to watch the news later because he was "going to be famous." 

Campbell didn't try to rob the store, but assaulted its armed security guard and snatched his gun, officials have said. He then waited for officers to arrive and shot Santiago with what police believe was the guard's weapon. 

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Other officers returned fire, killing him. 

Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop has said Campbell, who had prior drug arrests and was released from jail in January, was one of three suspects wanted by police for a prior homicide. Another man being sought in that case, 23-year-old city resident Daniel Wilson, was captured Sunday night, officials said.

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It wasn't clear if Campbell was a member of a gang.

Since Sunday, tensions have risen over a sidewalk memorial set up for Campbell in the crime-plagued neighborhood where he lived. Fulop ordered the memorial taken down Tuesday.

The mayor met Wednesday evening with 50 church leaders to talk about the recent clashes with police and growing community unrest. Outside the building, armed SWAT team members stationed themselves next to the small crowd gathered there. Some neighbors were upset that the public wasn't allowed to take part in the meeting.

"It's just crazy, they have clergy up there that's not even from this community," said Henry Todd.

But Fulop said the clergy offered constructive input.

"Those people are not people coming here just to make noise and stir the pot," he said. "They're there looking for solutions."

Fulop said Santiago will be promoted to the rank of detective and receive the department's Medal of Honor. The promotion and ceremony will happen at his wake Thursday. His funeral is scheduled for Friday.

Gov. Christie ordered flags be flown at half-staff Wednesday in his honor.

The San Diego City Council voted Tuesday to unanimously approve a plan for more funding for the Horton Plaza Park.

First announced almost four years ago, the proposed expansion of historic Horton Plaza Park on the 300 block of Broadway, east of 3rd Avenue has stalled.

The project was supposed to cost $8 million but because of delays and higher construction costs, the price tag has increased to $18 million.

City Council President Todd Gloria says the state should pay because it got rid of redevelopment.

He says this was an enforceable contract between the city and the redevelopment agency so the state's on the hook for the additional costs.

Before Tuesday's vote, he talked about why this project is so important.

"We have a lot of small businesses around that proposed park that are suffering because of the lack of construction, the lack of completion of that project," Gloria said.

If the state Department of Finance approves the additional costs, the project could be done in a year, Gloria said.

It's been a year and a half since a couple of major retail and restaurant buildings were demolished to make way for what city officials said in 2010 would be a showcase.

In a best-case scenario, officials say the park could still open in November of next year.

A man who told police he was looking for pop singer Katy Perry and had a gift for her was arrested on Tuesday night for breaking into the Kennedy compound in Massachusetts, police said.

Ted Kennedy Jr., the son of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy and a candidate for State Senate in Connecticut, called the Barnstable Police Department saying he believed that an intruder might be in his residence on Irving Avenue in Hyannis Port, police told NBC.

Kennedy Jr., who at the time was at his home in Connecticut, had called the home in Cape Cod to check on his teenage son. But a man who identified himself as James Lacroix answered the call, according to police.

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Lacroix, 53, told officers who found him in the home's kitchen that he was looking for Katy Perry, police said. According to a news release from police, he also said he was at the home to see John F. Kennedy.

Police said they believed he had been at the property for three hours before they received a call. NBC affiliate WHDH reported that Lacrouix is a disabled veteran.

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It was not clear why Lacroix believed Perry would be at the residence.

Lacroix was arrested for breaking and entering and was due to be arraigned in court on Wednesday morning. It was unclear if Lacroix has a lawyer.

Kennedy, a healthcare lawyer, has lived in Branford, Connecticut for two decades.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office says the bodies of six adult females removed from a Fort Worth funeral home have been identified. Two fetal remains, possibly a boy and a girl, have not yet been identified.

Officials said all of the remains, except one, showed advanced stages of decomposition at the Johnson Family Mortuary.

The building's landlord had evicted the funeral home business' owners, and when workers checked on the building Tuesday morning, they found the unattended bodies, police said. The landlord contacted police, who then began investigating possible felony abuse of corpses.

While there have been no arrests or charges in the case, co-owner Dondre Johnson was booked Wednesday into the Tarrant County Jail on a contempt of court charge for allegedly failing to pay child support.

• 8 Bodies Found Without Documentation Inside Fort Worth Funeral Home

There is much frustration for one family after learning their relative, Victoria Vasquez, was left decomposing inside the Johnson Family Mortuary for possibly more than a month.

“Apparently, she wasn't refrigerated. She hasn't been cremated and the funeral was so unprofessional, so out of whack,” said granddaughter Elizabeth Vasquez. “I would wish this experience on my worst enemy.”

Vasquez and her family want answers and their $2,000 back.

One of the funeral home's owners met with the Vasquez family Wednesday to apologize.

“Yes, we may have dropped the ball,” Johnson Family Mortuary owner Rachel Johnson told them. “But we have not neglected members of your family. We have not neglected anybody at Johnson Family Mortuary.”

• READ: Tarrant County ME Report on Johnson Family Mortuary Cases

The landlord of the building let NBC 5's Johnny Archer inside Johnson Family Mortuary on Wednesday morning. Archer said the first thing he noticed was a foul odor that was so bracing, he and his photojournalist had to wear masks.

One of the landlord's employees told NBC 5 an infant's body was found in a plastic container, and several bodies were on stretchers or in caskets, none of them refrigerated.

State regulations require refrigeration for bodies kept longer than 24 hours. Police said the facility did not have any refrigerated rooms, but the building did have working electricity.

• Intruder at Kennedy Compound Was Searching for Katy Perry: Police

The Johnson Family Mortuary was started by twin brother Derrick and Dondre Johnson.

Dondre Johnson maintains he did nothing wrong. "Business as usual, until our landlord came today and said he wanted to put us out," he said on Tuesday.

But the landlord tells NBC 5 the Johnson Family Mortuary only paid rent once since March and that he initiated an eviction on July 1.

Court records show Dondre and Derrick Johnson lost a lawsuit filed in 2010 for not paying $159,730 in rent at another funeral home in south Fort Worth.

In addition, NBC 5 has learned that the funeral home has outstanding complaints with the state's regulator and its license is on a "do not renew" status.

Among the reasons is the fact that the mortuary does not have a funeral director on staff. Smith said the former licensed funeral director left a month ago, and the funeral home should not have been doing business for the past month.

NBC 5 has learned the funeral home has seven total complaints against them from the Texas Funeral Service Commission.

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Kyle Smith, the staff attorney for the Texas Funeral Commission, said neither brother is licensed as a funeral director or embalmer and that Johnson Family Mortuary's license is set to expire July 31.

The Johnson Family Mortuary license is held by Rachel Johnson, Dondre Johnson's wife, according to the Texas Funeral Commission.

The Texas Funeral Commission said the twins could not get a license because the one for their prior business, D&D Mortuary Service, was revoked and canceled in September 2010 for monies owed to the Texas Funeral Commission and the state attorney general.

The commission says it cannot prevent Rachel Johnson from obtaining a license, since she does not owe monies to the commission and has no criminal background.

Police say the investigation is continuing.

NBC 5’s Don Peritz Jr. contributed to this report.

Just days after a multi-national online poker agreement was reached among several California tribes, a San Diego County tribe has announced it will launch a pay online poker site for California adults.

The Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel is running PrivateTable from its reservation located in North County.

Once they register on the site, California residents over the age of 18 will be able to play a variety of poker games.

The website offered free poker games at first with the pay portion of the site expected to go live soon after.

Under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), federal law states that tribes can operate class II games legally on their property, including poker.

But whether state officials see the new business venture that way is up for debate.

There are two bills pending in the state legislature to address the issue.

Santa Ysabel Commission Chair David Vialpando told NBC 7 research suggests interactive on-line gambling is regulated the same way and provides the same benefit - revenue for the tribe.

“Tribes have the exclusive regulatory authority with regard to the conduct of class two games and poker is a class two game,” said Vialpando. “No different than the regulatory structure and rules that we've abided by and have been in place in brick and mortar casinos since 1999 in California.

The Santa Ysabel tribe used to operate a brick and mortar casino, but told NBC 7 Tuesday that they closed it to operate a more profitable venture to help people in the tribe.

As for security, Vialpando said online gaming would be easier to monitor than gaming in a casino.