The Navy has suspended its search for a pilot missing after two U.S. fighter jets collided and crashed into the west Pacific Ocean, NBC News reported Saturday.

One pilot was rescued soon after the F/A-18 Hornet crash Thursday night about 250 miles west of Wake Island, approximately 2,300 miles west of Honolulu.

After an extensive search, Navy officials announced an end to their rescue efforts Saturday after officials said there was no sign of the pilot or the jets in the water. The missing pilot has been presumed dead, the Navy said.

"This is an exceptionally difficult time for the friends and family of the missing pilot and the Navy community," said Rear Adm. Christopher Grady, Commander, Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group. "We are extremely grateful for the outpouring of support from the community. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by this tragedy."

The search for the missing pilot, whose name has not been released, involved the guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill, the guided-missile destroyer USS Gridley, the USS Sperett, the USS Dewey and two helicopter squadrons.

Both jets involved in the collision were assigned to Carrier Air Wing 17 and assigned to the San Diego-based Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group. The public affairs officer for Navy Regional SW said the jets involved in the crash are based out of Lemoore Naval Air Station near Fresno, California.

The aircraft have not been recovered.

Navy Cmdr. Jeannie Groeneveld, of San Diego, said she couldn't release details of the crash, but told NBC News an investigation is under way.

Navy officials said the jets had "launched from the flight deck and were in the process of proceeding to their initial stations when they apparently collided approximately seven miles from the ship."

The rescued pilot remained in fair condition Saturday in the medical department of the Carl Vinson, the Navy confirmed.

The Carl Vinson strike group team departed San Diego on Aug. 22 for a 9-month deployment.
 

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

A 23-year-old motorcyclist died Saturday after colliding with an agricultural truck in Oceanside, police said.

The deadly crash happened just after 7:30 a.m. on North River Road, west of Holly Lane, as both drivers were traveling westbound. Police said the agricultural truck was slowing to make a left turn into an agriculture field service road and the motorcyclist was behind the truck.

Just as the truck began to turn, the motorcyclist ran into the rear of the vehicle.

The motorcyclist was ejected from his bike on impact. He stopped breathing and died from his injuries shortly thereafter.

The driver of the truck stayed on scene and cooperated with police. The crash remains under investigation, but the Oceanside Police Department said it appears speed may have been a factor.

The name of the motorcyclist was not immediately released.
 

The sweltering heat in San Diego County will mean shorter schooldays for thousands of students.

On Monday, the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) will implement “minimum day schedules” at all schools that aren’t fully air conditioned. Click here for a list of affected schools

Each school has its own modified schedule. Parents can learn the hours by visiting their child’s school's website. They can also call the district’s new Quality Assurance Office at 619-725-7211.

The school bus schedule will be adjusted, and the PrimeTime after-school program will remain in place, according to a news release from SDUSD. The district is working with the YMCA to provide additional after-school services,

SDUSD schools with 100 percent AC will operate on normal schedules Monday. The district will announce by 12 p.m. Monday if minimum days will be in effect for Tuesday.

Other districts will also be sending students home early because of the heat. On Monday, all schools in the Coronado Unified School District will begin at their normal times, but release students at 12:30 p.m.

In the National School District, Ira Harbison, Las Palmas, Lincoln Acres and John Otis will dismiss students at 1 p.m. both Monday and Tuesday. Students at Central, El Toyon, Kimball and Olivewood will be released at 1:25 p.m. Palmer Way, Rancho de la Nación and the preschool center will operate as usual.

The heat impacted students over the weekend, including Saturday at a high school cross country meet at Kit Carson Park in Escondido. As runners pushed themselves to the limit with the sun beating down, their coaches took extra precautions to prevent fainting, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

"We have misting cooling fans, and we have a full body cold tub for body immersion in severe cases," said Robbie Bowers, Head Athletic Trainer at Rancho Bernardo High School.

"We turn our focus away from muscular-skeletal type injuries to the life-threatening situations which we wanted to be every bit prepared for," Bowers said.

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a heat advisory for areas west of the mountains until 7 p.m. Tuesday. Temperatures are expected to reach nearly 90 at the coast, the 90s just a few miles inland and the 100s further inland, according to NWS.

A pregnant Chicago State University student who was kidnapped and sexually assaulted, told her teen attacker she was pregnant, showing him her stomach, but was still forced to take off her clothes, prosecutors allege.

The teen, identified in court as Aaron Parks, 17, from the 600 block of East 100th Street, was charged with aggravated kidnapping, aggravated criminal sexual assault with a weapon, and armed robbery. He was charged as an adult and was ordered held without bail.

A 24-year-old criminal justice student was parked on the 9800 block of South Indiana Avenue and was trying to load something into her trunk when a man approached with a knife and ordered her into her car, the woman's father, Robert Perkins, told NBC Chicago. The attacker drove to an alley and sexually assaulted her before forcing her into the trunk of her car.

"She was in the trunk and she said the first thing that popped in her head was [me telling her about the] trunk release," Perkins explained. "And she looked up and saw the trunk release and that's how she was able to get out.'

The victim, who is four months pregnant, was eventually able to pop the latch to the trunk and a neighbor spotted her trying to get out of the trunk. The neighbor then called authorities, who were still searching for the attacker on Thursday morning.

"The trunk popped open and the young lady was screaming 'Help me," said witness George Simpson.

Perkins said his daughter was able to provide a good description of the attacker.

On Sunday, prosecutors offered graphic details surrounding the attack.

Officials allege the victim told her attacker she was pregnant, showing him her stomach before the assault, but was still forced to take off her clothes. The offender also stole $160 from her pants and forced her in the trunk of her car, prosecutors said.

"What kind of woman raised an animal like this?" said rape victims advocate Dawn Valenti.

Officials said in court the teen was on an electronic monitoring system for an aggravated kidnapping two months ago. He was also awaiting sentencing for a charge of aggravated armed robbery.

"She was tortured," said community activist Andrew Holmes. "In my view, electronic monitoring failed completely."

In a statement, a Chicago State University official said the administration was "saddened" by news of the attack and that their "collective hearts go out to the victim."

Thomas Wogan said the university has offered counseling and support services to the victim and her family and was working with campus and city police to help bring the attacker to justice.

An actress who had a part in the film "Django Unchained" claimed on Facebook that she was "humiliated" and forced into handcuffs by two Los Angeles Police Department officers for publicly showing affection to a companion in Studio City Thursday.

In the Facebook post, which had nearly 2,000 shares by Sunday, actress Daniele Watts says she was put into a police car after refusing to agree that she had done "something wrong by showing affection, fully clothed, in a public space."

"I allowed myself to be honest about my anger, frustration, and rage as tears flowed from my eyes," Watts wrote on Facebook. "The tears I cry for a country that calls itself 'the land of the free and the home of the brave' and yet detains people for claiming that very right."

Police said Sunday that they responded to a report of indecent exposure in the 11900 block of Ventura Boulevard when they came across Watts. LAPD's Sally Madera said a citizen reported seeing a couple engaged in a "sexual act" in a car.

"The citizen who called the police to complain told the 9-1-1 operator that a male and a female were involved in indecent exposure inside a silver Mercedes with the vehicle door open," police said in a statement.

A responding sergeant and officer questioned Watts and her companion, who matched the suspect description. Police determined no crime was committed and the couple was released after a brief detainment, officials said.

Watts told NBC News Sunday that she and her partner were kissing inside their car at the CBS lot when they were approached by a man in a suit who asked them to leave because "employees were distracted." The couple stopped after a few minutes and police arrived shortly after, Watts said.

When they asked for identification from Watts, she refused and walked away from the officers. Watts said that's when she was handcuffed and put into the police car.

"I burst into tears. I was afraid because of all the things happening in the country right now," Watts told NBC News.

Police said an internal investigation has been launched into the incident.

"The cops are on thin ice here," said NBC4 legal analyst Royal Oakes. "California does not have a law that lets the cops force you to identify yourself, so to the extent the cops hassling this actress tried to get her to give her name and she said no, she had a right to remain silent."

"She may have a basis for a civil rights action, an action saying that the police stepped over the line," Oakes added.

Gadi Schwartz contributed to this report.

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

A slew of heat advisories, excessive heat warnings and fire watches were in place Sunday as temperatures reached triple digits in the LA valleys and Inland Empire over the weekend.

Temperatures in the Santa Clarita, San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys reached the triple digits Sunday. Temperatures in Riverside, San Bernardino and Van Nuys remained in the 90s after sundown.

The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning for the LA and Ventura county valleys and Santa Monica Mountains that was expected to last until 7 p.m. Tuesday. A red-flag warning was also in effect through 9 p.m. Tuesday for the mountains of LA and Ventura counties. Other areas will have an elevated fire danger.

“The combination of heat and humidity will create a dangerous situation in which heat illnesses are possible,” according to a statement from the National Weather Service.

A heat advisory was issued in San Bernardino and Riverside counties as temperatures were expected to push past 100 degrees in mountain areas. Residents were advised to stay cool indoors and refrain from strenuous activity.

“Anyone overcome by heat should be moved to a cool and shaded location. Heat stroke is an emergency -- call 911,” NWS stated.

The scorching heat also brought with it concerns of fire potential in the Los Padres and Angeles national forests. Winds gusting up to 20 miles per hour were expected to be paired with low humidity and temperatures in the 90s to low 100s in lower mountain areas.

“Any fire ignition will have the potential for large plume dominated growth over the mountains,” according to NWS.

Google is getting set to hit the roads with its first ever self-driving car without a backup driver.

The new prototype will be tested on the grounds of Moffett Field.

Because it is federal land, Google cars can drive the network of streets on the 2,000 acre research facility without worrying about breaking any state laws.

NASA is teaming up with Google for its own research purposes.

NASA hopes what they learn from Google will help in the development of unmanned drones.

Testing on Google's new unmanned cars could begin at Moffett Field early next year.

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

The San Mateo County Sheriff's office is investigating a mountain lion sighting in Portola Valley Friday night.

Residents at 550 Cresta Vista Lane reported seeing a mountain lion in their backyard at about 11:15 p.m. Friday.  They reported it to the sheriff's office Saturday morning just after 8 a.m.

The sighting comes nearly one week after a 6-year-old boy was attacked by a mountain lion on a hiking trail in Cupertino. After an intense search, that animal was located and killed.

On Thursday night, there was another mountain lion sighting near San Carlos. And last month, another mountain lion was spotted in the Portola Valley area.

A spokeswoman for the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Department, Rebecca Rosenblatt, said the sheriff's office does respond to a number of mountain lion sightings throughout the year. It responds and tries to locate them and let neighbors know about them.

"I wouldn’t say it’s cause for concern," she said. "I would say we just always report these so people are aware there are sightings, and we can advise people good safety behavior. If you have a small child, don’t pick them up. If you see a mountain lion, don’t run away. Make noise."

Neighbors on Saturday said they were more aware since the boy was attacked last week, but they were not alarmed.

"It’s very residential area," neighbor Emere Tuncbilek said. "It’s a beautiful area, just kind of reminds me we share the same environment. We have to be careful."

Residents in the area are urged not to approach any mountain lion if they see one, especially one that is feeding or with offspring. Most mountain lions will try to avoid a confrontation, officers said.

Here are a few tips outlined by the sheriff's office to avoid an encounter with a mountain lion:

• Avoid hiking or jogging when mountain lions are most active--dawn, dusk, and at night.
• Keep a close watch on small children.
• Do not run if you encounter a mountain lion. Instead, face the animal, make noise, and try to look bigger by waving your arms. Throw rocks or other objects.
• Pick up small children.

The Navy has identified the pilot killed in a fighter jet crash as a man from Southern California.

Lt. Nathan Poloski, 26, is presumed dead after an extensive search of the Western Pacific Ocean, according to the U.S. Navy. Poloski is a native of Lake Arrowhead in San Bernardino County.

Two F/A-18 Hornets apparently collided on Sept. 12 about 250 miles west of Wake Island, approximately 2,300 miles west of Honolulu. The pilot of the other plane was rescued.

The Navy suspended the search for Poloski Saturday after covering 3,000 square miles of vast ocean, according to the Navy. The search included the San Diego-based Carl Vinson Strike Group, a P-8 Poseidon aircraft and satellite imagery.

Both jets involved in the crash belonged to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 94, Carrier Wing 17, based in Lemoore, California. They were assigned to USS Carl Vinson, which left San Diego last month for a nearly 10-month deployment.

Poloski’s commanding officer said the Naval Academy graduate “was an outstanding person, naval officer and aviator.”

"My personal thoughts and prayers are for his family, friends and shipmates as they endure this immeasurable loss," said Cmdr. Michael Langbehn, commanding officer of VFA 94, in a statement Sunday.

The Navy is investigating what caused the crash. Navy officials said the jets had "launched from the flight deck and were in the process of proceeding to their initial stations when they apparently collided approximately seven miles from the ship."

Two costumed characters were arrested in Times Square Saturday night after police say they got into a fist fight with another man. 

All three men were charged with misdemeanor assault, officials said. According to the New York Post, the altercation started after 41-year-old Jose Escalona-Martinez and 35-year-old Abdel Elkahezai, who were dressed as Batman and Spider-Man, allegedly confronted a man who was heckling them around 10:25 pm near 44th street and Broadway.

Saturday's arrests were the latest in series of arrests involving costumed characters in Times Square. Earlier this month, Woody, Minnie Mouse and the Statue of Liberty were all arrested in Times Square after they allegedly asked tourists to pay for pictures, the NYPD says. 

The people portraying the characters were all cuffed on aggressive solicitation charges after a run-in with a family of tourists Wednesday night.

The three characters posed for photos with a man, his wife and two children and allegedly demanded $5 in tips, police say. The family refused and told nearby officers, who made the arrests.

The arrests come amid calls to regulate the costumed characters in Times Square. One city lawmaker recently proposed licenses for the characters, and police have begun handing out fliers and posting signs in five languages telling visitors that tips are optional.

The crackdown followed a string of harrowing incidents in which some of the characters assaulted tourists, including children. Others harassed people and groped women. The face-offs peaked when a Spider-Man demanding money punched a police officer telling a woman she was not obliged to pay.

Last month, many of the buskers who don the costumes held a press conference where they argued they deserved a right to earn a living.

Two people were killed and at least 12 others were injured in weekend violence across Chicago, police said.

A 28-year-old man was killed after being shot in the 4100 block of West 16th Street in the Lawndale neighborhood just before 2 p.m. Sunday.

The man was shot in the chest after someone in a grey minivan opened fire at him. Police said the man was taken to Mount Sinai hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

Around 3 p.m. Saturday, a 17-year-old boy was fatally shot in the 3900 block of South Prairie Avenue. Few details were released surrounding the shooting but officials said the incident appears to be gang-related.

The teen was shot in the head and taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County in critical condition but was later pronounced dead.

On Sunday, a 29-year-old man walked into Mount Sinai Hospital with a gunshot wound to the left hand. He was listed in good condition and told police he was shot in the 1800 block of West 16th Street.

An 18-year-old boy was shot in the ankle in the 6900 block of South Eggleston Avenue just after 11:30 a.m., police said. The teen was taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County in good condition.

The teen told police he was walking on the street when a red car approached and someone inside the vehicle opened fire.

A 30-year-old man was shot around 2:15 a.m. in the 4100 block of West Adams Street. The victim told police a man exited a gangway and fired shots in his direction.

The victim was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital with wounds to the leg and foot. He was last listed in stable condition.

Also on Sunday, two people were shot on area expressways within two hours, according to authorities.

Around 3 a.m., a driver was shot on the city’s South Side while traveling on the Dan Ryan Expressway between 76th and 79th streets, according to Illinois State Police.

The driver exited his vehicle at the 79th Street exit and called 911, officials said. Another person inside the vehicle then drove away in the car.

The victim, whose age was not immediately known, was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center for treatment.

About two hours earlier, a man was shot on the outbound Kennedy Expressway on the city’s West Side.

The man, whose age was not immediately known, was traveling in a red Ford Mustang northbound near Fullerton when a car pulled alongside and someone opened fire, state police said.

The victim was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center with several gunshot wounds. His condition was not immediately known.

On Saturday, a man was wounded in a police-involved shooting after he allegedly hit a squad car with his vehicle and attempted to flee.

Police said the incident took place in the 2300 block of West Lake around 10:15 p.m.

The officer was transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital where his injuries were believed to be non-life threatening.

The offender was shot multiple times and was taken to an area hospital.

Just before 8 p.m., a 17-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man were wounded in a shooting in the 1700 block of North Kimball. Both suffered gunshot wounds to their legs and were taken in stable in condition Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center. The two told police they were standing outside when they “heard shots and felt pain.”

Around 12:40 p.m., a 39-year-old man was shot during an attempted robbery in the 5600 block of South Prairie Avenue. The man was getting out of his car when another man walked up and announced a robbery, according to Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Janel Sedevic. The victim was shot in the stomach and the man fled the scene. It was not immediately clear if he stole anything from the victim, police said.

The victim was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in stable condition.

Around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, two people were shot while inside a building in the 1800 block of West 87th Street.

Police said a shooter fired from outside the building and two victims suffered graze wounds.

A 23-year-old woman suffered a graze wound to the leg while a 42-year-old man was grazed in the head by a bullet. The woman refused treatment at the scene and the man walked into Advocate Christ Medical Center where he was listed in good condition.

On Friday night, a 27-year-old man was shot on the city’s West Side.

The man was standing on the 1700 block of North Mason Avenue with a group of friends when a man walked up and opened fire.

The victim was shot in the arm and leg and was taken to West Suburban Medical Center in good condition.

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

Mourners gathered with heavy hearts and teary eyes at a vigil Sunday to remember three infants found dead in a squalid home in Blackstone, Massachusetts last week.

"Those babies," said Blackstone resident Dorothy Harvey. "Just discarded like nothing. They were human beings, too."

"I can't even imagine," said Bob Wolford, a father. "It's unfathomable."

Crews cleaning the house found more cat and dog remains on Sunday.

As investigators search for answers in the disturbing case, the community searches for peace.

"Thank God for that neighbor who told her side of the story," said Emily Colton.

That intervention possibly saved the lives of four other children found living inside the home.

"It's so hard as a mom that this tragedy could happen and that we didn't know," said Harvey.

Members of the community lit candles and released lanterns to the sky at the vigil, holding their own children a little tighter, thinking of those who never had a chance and praying for those who now have a second one.

It was a simple message about a photo found in the ashes.

• Social Media Connects Man With Photo Lost on 9/11

Every year on #911 I post this photo hoping 2 return 2 owner. Found at #groundzero #WTC in 2001. Pls RT pic.twitter.com/mZ9LdQqE7x

— E. Stringer Keefe (@ProfKeefe) September 12, 2014

Elizabeth Stringer Keefe posted this message on social media every 9/11, hoping to find the people in the photo. But each year, nothing happened.

"I thought, 'Why not? I'm going to do it one more time everywhere.' And I saw it getting retweeted," said Keefe.

And soon, the professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, realized this time was different.

"I think a half an hour later, I knew it was going to happen," she said. "It was so exciting. I start to tear up when I think about it. It started to go viral, so I stayed up all night and just watched."

More than 6,000 tweets later, one message from Fred Mahe changed everything.

"He sent me a very cryptic message," said Keefe. "It just said, 'I know the people in the message, give me a call.'"

So she did.

"When he answered the phone, he said his name, and I said, 'This is Elizabeth Stringer Keefe,'" she said. "He paused for a minute and said, 'You are awesome.'"

A friend of  Keefe found the photo at ground zero, just a few weeks after 9/11. Keefe made it her mission to find out the story behind it.

"I said, 'Are you in that photo?' And he said, 'That is my photo,'" said Keefe. "It was unbelievable, I immediately started crying."

Mahe worked in Tower Two. He had just come off the subway when the building was hit. The photo, taken at his friend's wedding, was tacked to his desk on the 77th floor.

Mahe now lives in Colorado, and all six people in the photo are alive and well.

"On 9/11, like you, I saw the worst of humanity. The absolute worst. But on 9/12, I saw the best," said Mahe. "And the photo mystery was solved on 9/12."

"Finding Fred, and being able to return this particular photo to him, is unbelievable," said Keefe.

Keefe and Mahe will meet for the first time Monday in New York.

Dozens of vehicles were either destroyed or damaged when a fierce blaze scorched about two acres of a Fontana pallet yard Sunday night.

Firefighters responded to the fire in the 13800 block of Slover Avenue just before 10 p.m., according to Capt. John Lansing of the San Bernardino County Fire Department.

About two acres of the five-acre yard was burning when firefighters arrived. More than 60 fire personnel worked to extinguish the blaze.

Lansing said 10 vehicles were lost and 31 semi-trucks were damaged in the fire. Total damage was estimated at about $1 million.

Firefighters saved about $5 million in surrounding properties, Lansing said.

No injuries were reported in the fire and its cause was under investigation.

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

An Oceanside woman accused of drowning her own toddler is getting support from an unlikely place – the nanny who helped raise the child.

Lecia Outlaw cared for Elijah Rivas, the 22-month-old boy who died Sept. 10 in his grandmother's home on Woodpark Way.

The child's mother, Veronica Rivas, admitted to drowning the child, according to Oceanside police. Despite the allegation, Outlaw said she will not turn her back on her friend.

On Sunday, more than 30 people showed up in fellowship outside the Rivas home to remember Elijah as a sweet child with character and a lot of heart.

By most accounts an ugly custody battle between Veronica and the baby's father led up to this tragic moment. Still, why Elijah was killed is a mystery that may always haunt those who knew him.

“Nobody would have ever believed that innocence of that nature would be taken away,” said Larry Outlaw, Lecia's husband.

On Monday, Rivas is scheduled to appear in Vista courtroom to be charged in the case.

Lecia Outlaw was the last person to speak with her before Rivas was arrested and charged with the murder.

She visited her Elijah's mother in the hospital Thursday where she said it was obvious that the reality of the situation was setting in.

“She realized she had lost her child and she was in a lot of pain that he was gone,” Lecia said.

Outlaw and her neighbors say the courts may judge Veronica but they're committed to standing by the entire Rivas family.

For those who knew the young family, Sunday’s balloon release was a brief moment to remember the child who they say is in a better place.

“This was his home going celebration. We had this to celebrate him going home to be with the Lord,” Lecia said.
 

The Trump Plaza in Atlantic City will shutter its doors early Tuesday morning, the latest casino to fail as this once high-flying resort city faces fierce competition from gambling elsewhere.

When the doors close at 5:59 a.m., about 8,000 jobs will have been lost this year, a quarter of the casino workforce, according to figures filed by the city's casinos. Hundreds of former employees have been filing for unemployment benefits, health care, heat assistance and food stamps. More may be lining up for help soon. Trump Entertainment Resorts is in bankruptcy and is threatening to close the Trump Taj Mahal Casino in November if it does not get concessions on labor costs.

With Atlantic City’s gambling revenue plummeting from $5.2 billion in 2006 to $2.86 billion last year, according to the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, the suffering shore resort is scrambling to reinvent itself. Only eight of its 12 casinos will remain and competition in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, Delaware and elsewhere continues to grow. Officials are searching for ways the city can appeal anew to visitors and stop hemorrhaging jobs and revenue.

“It’s really a repositioning of the city itself,” said Mark Giannantonio, the president of Resorts Casino Hotel, which turned itself around after adding a Jimmy Buffet Margaritaville entertainment complex. “It’s more right-sized for the market in gaming and it’s an opportunity for us to continue to go after this non-gaming element, which in turn helps gaming.”

Officials are hoping a mix of convention space, entertainment venues, shops, a college campus, plus the casinos will transform the city from a gambling hub into a resort with a variety of attractions. Atlantic City’s non-gambling revenue is growing but at half the rate its gambling revenue is dropping.

LURING CONVENTIONS, CORPORATE MEETINGS

One place to look as a model: Sin City. The Las Vegas Strip managed to curb its reliance on casinos. A little more than one third of its revenue comes from gambling, compared to 72 percent in Atlantic City. But experts caution the change will not be easy.

For example, there is already a glut of convention space across the country, said Heywood Sanders, a professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the author of “Convention Center Follies.”

Demand in 2013 was only slightly above where it was in 2000, he said. Meanwhile, the amount of exhibit hall space has increased by 37 percent. Major convention cities across the country have seen their business remain flat or fall. At the biggest convention center in the country, McCormick Place in Chicago, business dropped from 1.55 million attendees in 2003 to 868,000 last year.

“What we see in major events around the country is that fewer people are going,” Sanders said. “And that’s partly because employers are less willing to send lots of people out of town to a convention and trade show for an extended period.”

The president of the Atlantic City Alliance, Elizabeth Cartmell, said that the city would compete not only for conventions but also for smaller meetings of 50 to 500 people, where the glut of space is not as severe. Only 2 percent of smaller meetings originating in the Northeast comes to Atlantic City compared to 15 percent that goes to Las Vegas, she said.

MIAMI AS A MODEL

The alliance, funded with a $30 million a year assessment on the casinos, is promoting the city as a year-round seaside resort through beachside concerts, wine tastings, fishing tournaments and pro volleyball competitions. Lady Gaga and Lady Antebellum performed this summer, a series of long-distance triathlons added Atlantic City as one of its locations and the Miss America contest has returned from Las Vegas.

An 86,000-square foot Bass Pro Shop is under construction and is expected to bring almost 300 full- and part-time jobs.

The alliance is looking at Miami as a model, Cartmell said. Atlantic City offers an exciting nightlife but also the chance to relax on the beach and visit a spa, she said.

“We’re an interesting mix of a little bit of urban grit and variety, but at the same time we’re beachfront,” she said. “We call it the thrill and the chill.”

Giannantonio, the Resorts Casino Hotel president, has said that five years ago his property would have been the first casino to close. That changed with a new owner, Morris Bailey, a partnership with the Mohican Sun casinos and the new Margaritaville restaurant and LandShark Bar & Grill, Atlantic City’s first beach restaurant.

“You’re sitting right on the beach, feet from the ocean, thinking you could be anywhere in the country,” he said.

To bring people back into the city, Mayor Donald Guardian has proposed giving away land and tax breaks to new homeowners who build within two years and commit to staying for 10. The five years of tax abatements would begin at 100 percent and decrease 20 percent each year after.

Even during the boon years, much of the riches from gambling did not find their way past the glittering lights of the resorts. Twenty-five percent of the city’s population of 39,500 lives below the poverty, according to Census figures. The figure is even higher for those under 18: 37 percent.

The city ranks second in New Jersey for violent crimes trailing only Camden, FBI data from 2012 shows. Family income is about $30,000. The unemployment rate stands at 13 percent.

A NEED FOR NEW HOMEOWNERS

Michael Busler, a professor of finance at Stockton College, said the mayor’s plan was not enough. He said the city would have to offer a bigger incentive and he suggested 10 years of tax breaks as Philadelphia has done.

The value of Atlantic City’s real estate has shrunk from $20 billion when the casinos were thriving to about $8 billion, Busler said. At the same time, property taxes have gone up 22 percent last year and 29 percent this year. The city’s $260 million budget has to be cut to between $175 million and $180 million, he said.

Atlantic City was first developed as an oceanside resort in the 19th century. When gambling was legalized in 1976, the casinos turned away from the beachfront. Their design was meant to keep people inside – and gambling.

“Now we can’t do that anymore,” Busler said. “Now we’re going to emphasize we have a beautiful beach.”

Atlantic City has to find ways to rebuild that will help the city itself grow, said Bryant Simon, a professor of history at Temple University and the author of “Boardwalk of Dreams: Atlantic City and the Fate of Urban America.”

Even while the casinos thrived, the city withered and for years lacked even a supermarket.

“Let’s not do that again,” he said. “Let’s have fresh produce. Let’s have year-round jobs.”

The city could try high-speed rail service to Philadelphia, so residents could work there, he said. It could open a satellite campus of the nearby Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and have a core of students studying casinos and urban redevelopment. Or it could add to the city’s medical complex. The city needs to make sure it is creating decent paying jobs, not just low wage, tourism jobs, he said.

“We shouldn’t be stunned that a city has to reinvent itself,” he said. “Cities are always places of creative destruction and renewal and resorts probably in particular because they cater to people’s desires and their desires change.”

Copyright Associated Press / NBC 7 San Diego

Urban Outfitters is once again at the center of controversy, this time for selling a Kent State sweatshirt that appeared to be splattered in blood.

The $129 shirt, sold as part of the Philadelphia-based retailer's vintage sweatshirt line, was so popular it quickly sold out -- but it also was decried as offensive because of the tragic killing of four students by the National Guard on Kent State's campus in 1970. 

The university, located about 40 miles south of Cleveland, took “great offense” to the shirt:

“May 4, 1970, was a watershed moment for the country and especially the Kent State family,” read a statement posted to the university’s website. “We lost four students that day while nine others were wounded and countless others were changed forever.

“We take great offense to a company using our pain for their publicity and profit. This item is beyond poor taste and trivializes a loss of life that still hurts the Kent State community today.”

Urban Outfitters has yet to return phone calls or emails from NBC10.

The company did, however, tweet that it “sincerely apologizes for any offense our Vintage Kent State Sweatshirt may have caused.”

“It was never our intention to allude to the tragic events that took place at Kent State in 1970 and we are extremely saddened that this item was perceived as such,” said a company statement posted online.

“The one-of-a-kind item was purchased as part of our sun-faded vintage collection. There is no blood on this shirt nor has this item been altered in any way. The red stains are discoloration from the original shade of the shirt and the holes are from natural wear and fray," it continued. "Again, we deeply regret that this item was perceived negatively and we have removed it immediately from our website to avoid further upset.”

The retailer dropped a photo of the “bloody” sweatshirt but did leave up the “sold out” page on its website.

Other vintage sweatshirts — including ones with “Penn State,” “University of Texas” and “Cathedral College” printed on them — were also listed as sold out on the Urban Outfitters site. None of those shirts appeared to be bloody, and the photos of each remained on the site.

This isn't the first time that Urban Outfitters has found itself facing public backlash over one of its items. Last holiday season they pulled a pair of socks seen as religiously insensitive.

They've also gotten heat for a pro-booze shirt sold to the 18 to 24 crowd, a "Jewish Star" shirt that drew comparisons to the Holocaust and about a dozen other designs laid out by The Week.

A small tribute stuck on the back of the helmet of San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers garnered a lot of attention and some questions about whether Rivers will face a fine.

Rivers stuck the number 61 on the back of his helmet for Sunday's game against the Seahawks as a tribute to his longtime center Nick Hardwick.

He talked about it with the media after the game and appeared to have tears in his eyes when discussing Hardwick's move to the Reserve-Injured List.

“It was a tough week,” Rivers said

“Losing your center who’s been the center for 10 years, this was a nice ending to a tough week.”

So, could the heartfelt gesture result in a fine from the NFL? It is possible.

There is a rule banning personal messages on team uniforms, as USA Today points out.

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