The first two flu-related deaths of the season have been reported in San Diego County, health officials said Wednesday.

The residents were an 88-year-old woman, who died on Jan. 4, and an 85-year-old woman, who died on Jan. 6, according to a news release from the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency.

Both women had underlying medical conditions.

Despite a surge in influenza this season, these deaths actually occurred later than last year, when the first death was reported on Dec. 30.

Influenza caused the death of 70 San Diego residents last fall and winter – the highest number since county health officials began tracking the illness.

Still, health officials said influenza this winter is spreading and sickening San Diegans at a faster rate than last year’s flu season: there have been 263 confirmed cases to date, more than double last year’s number.

Nationwide, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has described this flu season as an “epidemic.”

A three-vehicle crash has halted rush-hour traffic on State Route 76 in Fallbrook, the California Highway Patrol says.

The collision sent one vehicle over the side of an embankment and rolled another onto its side just after 4 p.m. at Gird Road.

CHP issued a Sig Alert for the area, since all traffic was stopped. Westbound traffic is being diverted from SR-76 to Highway 395.

It's unclear if there were any injuries in this crash.

The Sig Alert is expected to stay in effect until at least 5:45 p.m.

A new year, a new favorite spot to dine? Take your pick. We found a plethora of restaurants that just opened that will be sure to make 2015 as tasty as ever. Check out our Yelp-inspired list of the top local restaurants that recently opened up shop.

Narvalo Ice Cream & Gelato, Vista

With an adorable narwhal on its website (under construction) and a charming nautical theme (not to mention the Sea Salt Carmel Gelato), we predict this new parlor will soon be the toast of the town. Initial reviews rave about the Pecan Praline, Almond Coffee and Rocky Road flavors and rumor has it you can top your dessert with extra treats, like limoncello truffles.

Treo3, Rancho Santa Fe

Chefs Nicholas Garcia and Justin Snyder have created French- and Mediterranean-inspired twists on fresh American cuisine with a menu featuring items, such as roasted garlic and brie fondue with brioche toast, bacon wrapped meatloaf with a fried egg and lavender crème brulee. Reports have come in saying the presentation is beautiful and that the service is pleasant to match.

Bottega Americano, East Village

With a couple of months under its belt and newbie kinks ironed out, Bottega Americano is a must-visit new edition to the neighborhood. You’ll be obsessed with the design and the menu has plenty to salivate over. Mussels with chorizo and calabrian chiles are a solid choice and you’ll love the scallop crudo with pickled mushroom, pear, radish, butternut squash and basil. Don’t get us started on the pasta dishes -- we could be here all day.

Bologna Gourmet, Carlsbad

This is an Italian café with breakfast munchies to power your day and a long list of Paninis that will elevate your lunch break. The menu boasts acai bowls, espresso, fresh soups and salads, plus the décor is clean-lined and modern. If your company is nearby, they’ll bring all the goodness into your office or cater you next event. Website still in the works but the menu is available online.

Inland Tavern, San Marcos

At this new eatery, you can get coastal cuisine inland -- board shorts encouraged. Formerly Penny Lane, the new concept is remodeled, revamped and remarkable. It just opened a couple days ago with a limited menu, but it will soon be in full swing. Be one of the first to check it out. You won’t be disappointed with the craft beer selection and wine list, plus you’ll find craft cocktails that will make you completely forget the coast.

Sushi N Galbi, National City

Sushi, soups and more, the Japanese and Korean cuisine is already getting rave reviews. Although no website yet exists, the palate- pleasing food has been posted to Yelp and the menu looks like a win. Your return to work after the holidays doesn’t have to be so rough with a lunch break here, It’s a cozy and chill atmosphere with reasonable prices. Tasty ramen and friendly service also make it a must-visit.

Trish Sanderson is the community manager and marketing director for Yelp North County San Diego. She leads the local community of Yelp reviewers both online and off.

A La Jolla man is calling for more police presence after he and a friend were robbed at gun point near a busy intersection last weekend.

A hooded gunman and his accomplice approached Rick Wildman and his female friend around 10 p.m. the Saturday after Christmas. They were walking up Ivanhoe Street together toward Torrey Pines after leaving a restaurant on Prospect Street.

Wildman said the two sat down after checking their surroundings, but after a few minutes, a man in a dark hoodie came up and asked for help.

"He leaned over and said, 'Excuse me. Can you help me?'" Wildman said. "I looked at him and saw that he was holding a glock."

Wildman said he recognized the gun from his military training as a combat engineer and told the man he was going to stand up slowly and toss his wallet and iPhone to him.

"I was surprised how calm I felt," Wildman said. "I knew if I gave him what he wanted, I didn't feel there was going to be a problem."

By that time, a second assailant approached the two and pointed a gun to the middle of the woman's forehead before dragging her toward the street.

"Oh yeah, it was right in my face," said the female victim, who wanted to remain anonymous for fear of another attack. "It was a big gun...like gangsta-style, sideways, you know?"

Wildman said he didn't realize there was a second gunman or that his friend had been pulled away until he saw her curled up in the fetal position near the street.

The second guy wrestled the woman for her bag and the two men took off on foot.

Wildman said his friend lost her shoe in the scuffle, but he put it back on her foot and the two continued walking in the opposite direction of the gunmen. They ran into another couple who offered to call the police, but Wildman told them to "just keep walking" until they came to a high rise and another man called authorities.

A police chopper and three units were there within five minutes, he said.

Little did the suspects know, the armed robbery didn't come with much payout. Wildman said he had just gotten his hair cut earlier that day and the two had just left dinner, so there was less than $30 in his wallet.

But Wildman said La Jolla, which he called a "crime magnet," needs more officer coverage.

"There's really only one full-time officer here in La Jolla," Wildman said. "And, you know, we used to have a police substation at the recreation center and there was one across from the cove...so we never had this kind of problem."

Wildman said he thinks recent armed robberies were committed by the same suspects and those men think they can get more from residents in that area.

"Most normal people are very fearful," he said. "It's terrible to have to always be looking over your shoulder."

A previously-wanted man was arrested in Otay Mesa after a pursuit with San Diego Sheriff's deputies Wednesday night.

The Sheriff's Task Force was in pursuit with a suspect they had been looking for in connection with a domestic violence-related attempted homicide, according to deputies.

The chase ended in the 7300 block of Pogo Row where sheriff's deputies, San Diego Police Department and U.S. Marshals assisted in the apprehension.

The Domestic Violence Unit will take over the case.

No other details were available.

A missing woman San Diego police were looking for Wednesday night was found safe.

Obdulia Penaloza Rosales, 79,went missing from the 3800 block of 37th Street in San Diego. Police said she was in need of medication and her walker and may have mistakenly gotten onto a bus headed for Clairemont.

She was found safe on El Cajon Boulevard.

One of the two police officers shot by a gunman while responding to a robbery call in the Bronx earlier this week was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon, hours before the accused suspects in the case were arraigned in a Bronx court. 

Wearing a blue jumpsuit and a grin, 38-year-old Aliro Pellerano was escorted outside in a wheelchair to a bagpipe salute and a sea of applause from his colleagues in blue. He shook hands with dozens of uniformed officers as he was wheeled out of the hospital. Then he stood up and walked on his own to a waiting police van as his fellow officers cheered once more.

PBA union president Pat Lynch, who's been embroiled in a battle with City Hall, joined the cheering crowd outside the hospital.

"Only weeks after two officers were assassinated, you can imagine what went through everyone's mind," he said. "It's a difficult time. But it's a time when family comes together." 

Pellerano was shot in the abdomen and arm near East 184th Street and Tiebout Avenue in Fordham late Monday. The nine-year NYPD veteran with more than 500 arrests during his time on the force was at St. Barnabas Hospital for nearly three days before he was released around 2 p.m.

Officer Andrew Dossi, 30, was more seriously injured in the shooting; he was hit in the arm and lower back. The NYPD's chief surgeon said Wednesday that the eight-year NYPD veteran -- who has notched more than 125 arrests -- will need extensive physical therapy. It's not clear when or if he will be moved from the hospital to a rehabilitation center for treatment.

Both officers were described in "excellent" spirits. 

Pellerano's police sergeant, Angel Gonzalez, who was there when the officers were shot, was also among those cheering outside the hospital. 

"I'm happy that he was able to walk on his own two feet and go home the next day," he said. 

The two officers, who were in plain clothes and about to end their shifts, were part of a group of five cops responding to a call about a robbery at a deli on East 180th Street in the Bronx when they were shot outside a Chinese food restaurant not far from the robbery scene, Bratton said.

The suspects fled after the shooting, sparking a manhunt. The alleged gunman, Jason Polanco, was picked up in the Bronx Tuesday afternoon, hours after he was allegedly captured on a restaurant's surveillance video opening fire on the group of officers responding to the robbery call.

His alleged accomplice, Joshua Kemp, was struck in the bicep by a bullet Polanco allegedly fired through the window of the restaurant. The bullet went straight through Kemp, Bratton said, and hit one of the police officers. Polanco allegedly fired two more shots and one of the five officers responded, firing three shots back at the suspects. The suspects then fled and carjacked a vehicle.

Kemp was taken into custody after he went to a Manhattan hospital with a gunshot wound. The person who drove him to the hospital told police about the robbery and shooting, Bratton said.

They were arraigned Wednesday evening, Polanco on attempted murder, robbery, assault and weapons charges, and Kemp on robbery and burglary charges. They did not enter pleas. 

Polanco was remanded without bail and is scheduled to appear in court again on Jan. 12. Bail for Kemp has been set at $200,000, and he's also next scheduled to appear in court Jan. 12. 

Their attorneys -- Marvin Raskin for Kemp, and Joel Peyster for Polanco -- had no comment Wednesday.

Polanco, who has three prior convictions on weapons charges, faces charges of attempted murder of a police officer, carjacking and commercial robbery. Kemp, who is on parole for robbery and has 10 prior convictions, according to authorities, faces charges of commercial robbery.

The city's top cop also said authorities are looking into whether Polanco and Kemp may be connected to a pattern of commercial robbery in the Bronx and northern Manhattan. 

The officers were shot hours after the mayor and the police commissioner held a joint news conference to tout record low crime levels, with overall crime down 4 percent from last year. But shootings were up 13 percent, which NYPD officials admitted were "an area of concern."

Last month, NYPD officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos were shot and killed while sitting in a patrol car in Brooklyn, fueling tension between police and City Hall. Police unions have blamed de Blasio for permitting protests over police conduct that has, in turn, fostered an anti-NYPD atmosphere they believe contributed to the killings of the officers. The family of the gunman, Ismaaiyl Brinsley, said he was emotionally disturbed and that the shootings had nothing to do with police retaliation. 

The terror attack at a satirical Parisian magazine that left a dozen people dead underscores the dangers of being a political cartoonist, a nationally syndicated artist told NBC 7.

New York-based cartoonist Ted Rall said Wednesday’s shooting in France is personal, both because he shares the profession and because he knew one of the victims who worked at publication Charlie Hebdo. The controversial magazine is known for satirizing politicians and religious leaders.

The deadly act fulfilled the kinds of threats Rall has gotten regularly over his 30-year career.

"We get a lot of death threats,” said Rall. “We all do. Especially after 911, I used to get them all the time. You just know that you're in a country with a lot of guns, a lot of angry people and you're in the political opinion business. There's a risk involved always."

For employees of Charlie Hebdo, it’s a risk they were well aware of, having been the target of a firebomb in 2011. After that attack, Chief Editor Stephane Charbonnier defended and continued to publish the satirical cartoons, which often featured the Prophet Muhammad.

He died Wednesday as he sat in an editorial meeting, the Associated Press reports.

“The best political cartoonists are brave, and bravery means that you do what you want,” said Rall. “You call the shots, and you don't pull punches. That's not for everybody. It's not an easy job.”

Rall believes its hard work creating a good cartoon at the risk of alienating people, but if it is important enough, that risk is worth it.

Locally, the U-T San Diego’s cartoonist Steve Breen reacted with the following statement:

"The killings in France need to be condemned in the strongest possible terms. My thoughts and prayers are with the families who senselessly lost their lives today. No one should ever be hurt or killed for saying, writing or drawing anything...Paris will likely have a chilling effect on the world of satire."

Rall, for his part, is concerned about copycats.

“When it's open season on political cartoonists, it's open season on me as a political cartoonist, and that's not good,” he said.

Rall told NBC 7 he got a new threat over Twitter Wednesday afternoon.

But millions of others took to social media for a different cause, showing demonstrations of unity with the phrase “Je Suis Charlie” (“I am Charlie”). In Paris’ Place de la Republique, thousands held signs and candles , chanting “Charlie! Liberty!”

French President Francois Hollande declared Thursday a national day of mourning. The country has raised its terrorism threat level to the highest grade.

A Hillcrest landlord was taken into custody Wednesday, accused of starting a fire on his tenant's front porch and then refusing arrest.

San Diego Police were called to the duplex near Herbert Street and Upas Street, west of Park Boulevard and north of Balboa Park, around 1:30 a.m.

Officials say the man started the fire and then fled back into his own home. Once inside the home, the landlord refused to come outside or allow officers in.

Police set up a perimeter and used a battering ram to enter the home. They say once they were inside, the man fought their efforts to take him into custody.

He faces charges of arson and being under the influence of a controlled substance.

The man’s tenants said there has been ongoing tension with the owner of the home recently and they are scheduled to appear in court this week.

The women leasing one of the duplex units claim the landlord broke on of their windows and was arrested as a result.

An early morning fire at an Oceanside hotel left two injured -- one with serious burns -- and led to evacuations, officials said.

The fire at the Dolphin Hotel Oceanside, on the 100 block of the South Coast Highway, started shortly before 5 a.m. Wednesday morning in a guest room on the top floor, guests and the hotel manager said.

Once firefighters reached the scene, they they cut a large hole in the roof to let smoke and heat escape the building and searched the second floor rooms to ensure nobody was left behind.

Fifteen adults were displaced as a result of the fire. The Oceanside Fire Department said one person was inside the room when the fire started and the manager helped him out. That person suffered burn injuries to his feet and hands and was transported to the UC San Diego Burn Center by Reach Air for treatment.

Another person named Chris worked with the hotel manager to get the man inside the burning room out. When Chris was inside on the second floor, he broke glass to access an emergency hose to help put out flames and cut up his elbow. He sprayed the flames with the hose until the flames were too strong and then jumped out of the second story window.

Officials said the cause of the fire is still unknown. The damage to the building is estimated at $100,000.

The Oceanside and Carlsbad Fire Departments are investigating.

A San Diego woman who was brutally beaten and sexually assaulted at her workplace Sunday wants everyone to know she is not a victim.

Milan Leone’s voice sounded strong Tuesday as she spoke with NBC 7 about what happened to her. It is NBC 7’s policy not to identify victims of sexual assault. But Leone, considered by one friend to be a “fighter,” wants to share her story to help others.

At 5 feet 4 inches and 110 pounds, Leone managed to fight off her attacker and grab for a phone in the middle of the violent beating. Officials say Leone could be heard on 911 pleading with her attacker.

The shop’s surveillance camera captured what happened, according to owner Matthew Shlemon. He said he watched the video and saw Leone grabbed from behind and punched at least 15 times.

“She fought. She fought tooth and nail and the decisions she made potentially saved her life,” Shlemon said.

As the attacker walked away to lock the shop door, Leone can be seen on the video grabbing the phone and dialing 911, her boss said.

Leone told NBC 7 she did not know Jason Stey, the man arrested in the attack.

She and Stey had a five-minute interaction once when Stey came in to purchase something at the smoke shop.

On Sunday, however, deputies say Stey left his job mid-shift at Dogtopia, walked across San Marcos Boulevard and into the smoke shop.

Investigators with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said Stey attacked Leone and in the process also punched a dog when it tried getting between them.

He was arrested at the scene of the attack and was booked into the Vista Detention Facility for numerous charges including rape by force/fear.

On Tuesday, deputies said Stey attempted suicide in his cell. He was rushed to Tri-City Medical Center and then Scripps La Jolla Trauma Center, officials said.

On Wednesday morning, deputies confirmed Stey died at 10:10 p.m. Tuesday. There has been an investigation launched into his death.

Court records show Stey had been arrested at least five times before, and the District Attorney's office says Stey served a prison term in 2011 for assault with a deadly weapon and carrying a concealed dirk/dagger.

People throughout the county are coming together to support a young woman, Sheriff’s officials said.

Shlemon created a gofundme site to support Leone, whom he calls “a friend” and “like a baby sister.”

“She doesn’t want to feel like she’s a victim. She wants to feel like she conquered this,” said Schlemon.

A 15-year-old student has been arrested for a post on social media that threatened Carlsbad High School, police said.

The Instagram threat prompted a precautionary lockdown at Carlsbad High School Monday and closed the school for two days.

The Carlsbad Police Department said they arrested a 15-year-old female student from the school for the threat.

Carlsbad Police Department Leuitenant Pete Pascual said at the school Wednesday morning that the minor was arrested Tuesday at her home with the 422 penal code on suspicion of a criminal threat.

“The message really is, and really the takeaway of all of this, is that when anyone – whether youre a jeuvanile or an adult – you commit crimes that threaten the public safety and in this particular case the safety of children on campus, law enforcement and the community and the school district take it safely – and the children are our top priority, in protecting their safety,” Pascual said.

Rick Grove, a school superintendent that acts as the district spokesperson, said the incident was a cautionary tale for parents and students alike.

“We live in an era of rapidly evolving technology and students now have great power at their disposal with technology and I would hope parents would take this opportunity to talk to their kids about the magnitude of their actions,” Grove said. “A momentary lapse of judgment can have consequences – this incident alone, not only did 2600 students lose a day and a half of their instruction, but the significant county state and local resources dedicated to bringing the issue to swift resolution are a waste of taxpayers’ dollars.”

They said outside groups such as Internet Crimes Against Children helped the department track the post to its creator. The department said the FBI and the School District also helped.

Police said the investigation found no indication that the student had any intentions or means to follow through with the threat.

The school district will continue an investigation separate from the police investigation, Grove said. The actions taken by the suspect are an expellable offense, Grove said, and the girl will have an opportunity to make a statement before school officials before they make their decision.

When Stephanie Lacsa saw water mysteriously rising in her public relations office's toilet Tuesday, she chalked it up to the old pipes in their 1800s-era building. She never expected her plunger to pull up a flickering tongue and diamond-shaped head.

“I thought my eyes were deceiving me,” Lacsa said. “But as soon I saw the flicker of its tongue, I definitely knew that it was in fact a large snake heading straight towards me.”

Lacsa, who is terrified of the slippery reptiles, ran screaming as a 5-foot-6-inch boa constrictor slithered from the toilet onto the bathroom floor.

She taped the door shut and called her Vertical PR co-founder, Holly Wells, who was skeptical.

“She said, ‘It’s the size of my forearm,’” Wells told NBC 7, “and I was like, ‘No, it’s the probably the size of a pencil.’”

But when Wells joined Lacsa at their downtown office and cracked open the door, she saw the evidence for herself – an ophidiophobes’ worst nightmare.

“Business was done after that. It took an hour and a half for animal control to get out,” said Wells. “We were stuck in our office with our feet up on the desk.”

Even the county animal services officer was shocked. She told the women she had never seen anything like this in her career, calling it “the stuff of urban legends.”

The officer believed the Colombian rainbow boa may have been stuck in the pipes for a few days, for it was underweight and in the process of shedding its skin.

After the sneaky reptile was taken to the Gaines Street animal care facility for examination, Wells and Lacsa were left with the biggest mystery: where did the snake come from?

“I don’t think they’re natural to the Gaslamp area,” Wells joked. There are residential tenants in their Old San Diego City Hall building, but none have reported a missing snake.

Animal Services Deputy Director Dan DeSousa said he was uncertain if a snake could survive in a sewage system for long.

When it got into animal services care, DeSousa said it got “nippy” and bit its handler. It's a good thing Lacsa spotted it before sitting down. 

If no owner comes forward by Friday, the boa will go to a local reptile group.

"The snake scared the living daylights out of us, but we truly hope he gets the care he needs and can be placed in a good home,” said Wells.

“And I also hope that the new owners of that home know to keep their toilet seat lids down."

A San Diego mother says for the second year, she’s had to fight the Covered California system to get health insurance for her daughter, who was badly injured early last year.

Until Wednesday afternoon, 23-year-old Nikki Sanaty did not have insurance for 2015 – coverage she desperately needs.

A crash last January left her with severe brain trauma, and at one point, doctors told her mother Solmaz Modeer that Sanaty would be brain dead for the rest of her life.

“My memory is slow, but it’s building on itself,” said Sanaty. Modeer calls it a miracle.

Her improvement, the mother said, is largely due to the coverage she’s received from Blue Shield through Covered California.

But the insurance was hard-fought, both in 2014 and this year. Modeer said at the start of 2015, Nikki was kicked off her plan and mistakenly placed on MediCal. Covered California has acknowledged that some applicants were wrongly diverted to MediCal coverage.

When Modeer tried to fix the problem, she was forced to spend days on the phone once again, trying to clear up a lack of communication between the health exchange and Blue Shield. She was given the runaround, she said.

"Covered California did their job, did their work and signed us up effective Jan. 1, but then Covered California somehow cannot get this information to Blue Shield, so Blue Shield knows we have this coverage but they cannot take the payment from me,” said Modeer.

For someone who needs continuous therapy and brain treatment programs like Sanaty, a few days without coverage is a big deal.

In this past week, Sanaty had to cancel oral surgery scheduled to fix the teeth she broke while biting down on the intubation tube in the ICU.

"I understand that we will correct our system as mistakes happen,” said Modeer. “We happen to have those mistakes happen to us, but we're having the same mistakes repeated from last year. This is exactly the same mistake, the same problem, so what have we learned from last year?"

Sanaty's health care cost around $3 million last year and could cost a million this year.

When NBC 7 inquired about the Sanaty's problem Wednesday, Covered California fixed the problem immediately.

Officials with the exchange admitted the process is complicated and occasionally there are bottlenecks, but they say they're getting better.

Sewage-contaminated waters flowing from the Tijuana River have shut down the Imperial Beach shoreline, including Camp Surf.

The season's rainfall has been pushing contaminated runoff from the river to the Tijuana Estuary and is still flowing, according to the County of San Diego Department of Environmental Health.

Officials already closed off the northern part of Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge shore, but on Wednesday, workers saw ocean currents pushing potentially contaminated water farther north to Imperial Beach.

They have posted warning signs, telling people not to go into the water until tests deem it safe. It's unclear when that may be.

A woman returned from a shower Wednesday night to find a man hiding under her bed, San Diego Police say.

When the victim saw the intruder, he ran from the house into another next door. 

The woman called police at 9 p.m. to report the incident in the 1000 block of Elwood Avenue in Emerald Hills.

She pointed officers in the man's direction, and they quickly took him into custody.

As it turns out, the situation was a misunderstanding, the SDPD says.

The man had gone to the property's back house, where his friend used to live. Thinking his friend was still there, he knocked on the door but was spooked when a dog started chasing him.

He told police he ran inside the house and hid under the bed. The woman who lives there came back from showering at the main house, and the man called out his friend's name as she walked in.

Understandably scared, she called police.

The SDPD says it is likely the man won't be charged in this mistaken address incident.

Editorial cartoonists and illustrators around the world responded to the deadly terror attack on a satirical magazine in Paris by sharing their own cartoons on social media.

The powerful drawings pay tribute to colleagues who were among the 12 people killed Wednesday during a massacre in the offices of Paris-based Charlie Hebdo, a publication that mocked all religions and faiths.

Among those killed was Charlie Hebdo's chief editor since 2009, cartoonist Stephane Charbonnier, who was on an al-Qaida hit list, according to a 2013 report in Slate. Three other cartoonists -- Stéphane Charbonnier, Georges Wolinski, Jean Cabut and Bernard Verlhac -- were also killed. 

The magazine's office was destroyed by a firebomb in 2011 after it had proposed inviting the Prophet Muhammad to be a guest editor. Charbonnier, who went by the pen name Charb, continued to defend the publication's rights despite the threats.

"I don't blame Muslims for not laughing at our drawings," he told Reuters in 2012. "I live under French law. I don't live under Quranic law."

New York-based cartoonist Ted Rall told NBC the shooting was personal to him because he shares the profession and because he knew one of the victims who worked at the magazine.

He said he's received death threats during his 30-year career, especially after the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

“The best political cartoonists are brave, and bravery means that you do what you want,” said Rall. “You call the shots, and you don't pull punches. That's not for everybody. It's not an easy job.”

On Thursday, which was declared a national day of mourning in France, the Charlie Hebdo website displayed the black "I am Charlie" sign in several languages.

Thursday's edition of France's Figaro newspaper read "Freedom Assassinated" and Liberation went with "We Are All Charlie."

Take a look at cartoonists' images below:

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating how a piece of an aircraft ended up in a Lewisville, Teas, backyard.

The piece crashed into a backyard early Wednesday morning, and the impact was loud enough to wake up some neighbors.

“I came rushing outside and I saw this big piece of metal lying in the grass here,” said homeowner Naresh Boga.

“I heard this loud, hard noise like something fell,” said next-door neighbor Stephanie Sewell. “It was pretty abrupt because you don’t hear something like that around here.”

The large piece of metal had some writing on it, including “fuel control drain.”

“I Googled it up and figured out it was something from a plane,” said Boga.

The FAA confirmed to NBC 5 the metal object did come from a large jet.

"The plane could have come from either [Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport] or [Dallas Love Field]. Flights to and from both pass over Lewisville every hour. It did come from a large jet,” said FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford.

“The screws and bolts were still in it. It was crazy,” recalled Newell.

The Boga family moved into the Castle Hills neighborhood just six months ago, and takes it in stride.

“What are the odds of that happening in a house where you moved six months ago? Fairly slim,” said Boga.

The FAA doesn’t have any statistics on how often something like this happens. The agency said about 45,000 flights crisscross the country every day, and said it might happen a few times a year.

Less than two years ago, Aaron Hernandez was one of the most exciting players to watch in the NFL, a talented tight end who had signed a $40 million contract extension with the New England Patriots. The once rising star grew up in Bristol, Connecticut, the son of a locally acclaimed high school tailback, and starred at the University of Florida before being drafted into the NFL.

But his fall was fast. On June 28, 2013, Hernandez was arrested in the killing of his friend, Odin Llyod, a semipro football player. Later that day, the Patriots released him. Within a year, a Massachusetts grand jury had also charged him in a double homicide from 2012 in Boston, and authorities in Florida announced they wanted to talk to him about two earlier unsolved shootings.

Hernandez, 25, has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

With his trial set to begin on Friday in the first of the killings, here are five things to know about the former All-American and the grisly crimes he is accused of committing.

Hernandez is accused of killing three men after nightclub disputes

Odin Lloyd, a semipro football player, was found shot multiple times in an industrial park in North Attleborough, Massachusetts, less than a mile from Hernandez’s home. Lloyd, 27, was dating a sister of Hernandez’s fiancee and had been out with Hernandez two nights earlier at the Rumor nightclub in Boston. Prosecutors say that following a fight that night, sparked by one of Lloyd’s cousins, an incensed Hernandez decided to kill him.

After Hernandez became a suspect in Lloyd’s killing, authorities got an anonymous tip that he had been involved in the deaths of two men a year earlier. Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado died in a drive-by shooting in Boston after leaving the Cure Lounge. Authorities say one of the men had accidentally bumped into Hernandez inside the club, spilling his drink.

Were there other Hernandez shooting victims?

Alexander Bradley, who authorities say was with him the night of the double homicide, accuses Hernandez of shooting him in the eye during another fight at a Florida strip club. Bradley has brought a civil suit against Hernandez. Hernandez, in legal papers, has invoked his right not to incriminate himself under the Fifth Amendment.

Two other men, Corey Smith and Justin Glass, were wounded in Florida in 2007 after a dispute in a nightclub with University of Florida football players. The men were also shot while their car was stopped at a red light nearby. After Hernandez was arrested for the Massachusetts murder, the Florida state attorney, Bill Cervone, said investigators were interested in talking to Hernandez, who was a tight end for the Florida Gators at the time. According to a 2007 Gainesville police report, Hernandez was in the area, but when police tried to interview him he asked for a lawyer. The case remains unsolved.

The judge in the Fall River case, Susan Garsh, has ruled that there can be no references to the murders in Boston, which prosecutors have suggested might have contributed to Hernandez's motive for killing Lloyd, nor to the shooing of Bradley.

Football notables could be on witness list

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and the team’s owner, Robert Kraft, could be called to testify in the trial, according to court documents. In an interview after Hernandez’s arrest, Belichick said he was disappointed and hurt.

“Having someone in your organization that’s involved in a murder investigation is a terrible thing,” he said.

Kraft released a letter in which Hernandez wrote about his alleged use of marijuana while at the University of Florida and agreed to take biweekly drug tests if he were drafted.

Of the charges, Kraft said, “If this stuff is true, then I’ve been duped and our whole organization has been duped.”

Other potential witnesses: Former Florida teammates Brandon Spikes, who is a former Patriot and now plays for the Buffalo Bills, and Mike Pouncey, a center for the Miami Dolphins. Hernandez’s fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins could also be called.

No football gear in the courtroom

Those planning to attend the trial must leave their football jerseys at home. The judge has specifically banned clothing and buttons that display logos of the New England Patriots or other NFL teams or any football-related insignia. Anyone in football gear will be barred from entering the Fall River Justice Center.

Hernandez wore Number 81.

But jurors will be able to see Hernandez's trophies when they visit his home. The judge ruled that prosecutors will not be able to cover a trophy case. One of Hernandez's lawyers, James Sultan, had argued that the house should be shown the way it appeared at the time of Lloyd's death.

Clues in the tattoos?

Hernandez’s upper body is covered in tattoos, including the face of a lion on his right bicep with the words, “It’s about the fight in you;” 1989, the year of his birth, on the fingers of his left hand; and a phrase his father likes, “If it is to be it is up to me,” on his left forearm. An Associated Press article in June said that prosecutors were interested in Hernandez’s right forearm but would not specify which tattoos. 

Two adventurous climbers are no longer just trying to make history by being the first to scale part of Yosemite's El Capitan with only their hands and feet. They're also now climbing the granite monolith at night.

Kevin Jorgeson, 30, of Santa Rosa, California, and Tommy Caldwell, 36, of Estes Park, Colorado, have been climbing the half-mile section of "El Cap," one of the most difficult routes in the world, since Dec. 27.

But they're now hitting the rock face at night, since there's "unseasonably warm weather" in Yosemite, climber and photographer Tom Evans wrote on his ElCap Reports blog. "The men have been forced to climb at night, so the rock will be cold enough for their specialized climbing shoes to get maximum traction."

Video that Evans shot, edited by Ted Distel, shows Jorgenson and Caldwell in precarious situations, climbing mostly with just their bare hands and feet, headlamps attached to their helmets. While it was snowing Sunday, Evans blogged that by Tuesday the weather was becoming "way too warm on the Cap."

Thursday was the pair's Day 13 of climbing the Dawn Wall, as the section of El Capitan is known. It looms 3,000 feet above the Yosemite Valley floor.

Evans noted that Caldwell is "really on a roll now" and has passed the major technical difficulties of the climb. Jorgenson is "nursing finger injuries," but can "get past the hardest parts" if he rests, Evans said.

Many people have climbed the granite face. But the pair would be the first to climb the section using only ropes only as a safeguard against a fall.

"If they can pull this off," Evans said in an interview this week, "it will be the hardest rock climb ever done and set a standard so high that it will most likely not be done again for decades."

The two aren't expected to finish for at least a few more days.