Boston was picked Thursday as the United States' best shot at hosting the Summer Olympics in 2024, edging out Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington for the honor. Now, another question looms: Why host?

Many experts, and cities, have begun to doubt whether it's worth it to host the Olympics as costs for recent Games have soared, to $40 billion for Beijing's 2008 Summer Games and $50 billion for Sochi's 2014 Winter Games.

"It's very difficult to make it pay off economically," said sports economist Andrew Zimbalist, author of "Circus Maximus: The Economic Gamble Behind Hosting the Olympics and the World Cup."

Such misgivings have fueled local opposition in Boston and in some of the U.S. cities that bid for 2024. They've also derailed bids by three European cities for the 2022 Winter Games, leaving just two cities — Almaty, Kazakhstan, and Beijing — vying for that honor.

The International Olympic Committee has tried to respond to that reticence by launching a series of reforms, dubbed Agenda 2020, aimed at keeping down costs, and the U.S. Olympic Committee in turn asked its four bidders to do just that.

But it's unclear what weight a lean, sub-$5 billion budget proposal may carry when the Olympics — even those, like Barcelona 1992, held up as success stories — are notorious for tending to go far over budget, and for often leaving in their wake expensive, languishing stadium behemoths later derided as white elephants.

Boston's bid backers, led by committee president Dan O'Connell, insist hosting the Games can be an economic boon if smartly managed. They say they expect to turn a profit, just as they also stress the city-wide morale boost and civic pride the Games can bring.

An expert also cautions against weighing whether to host based on dollars alone.

"It's totally worth it. You cannot put a price on dreams," said sportswriter and USC Annenberg journalism professor Alan Abrahamson. "That's what the Olympics are all about it."

But for Zimbalist, that morale boost isn't enough. “It doesn't last. It's ephemeral,” he said. And a chief opponent of Boston's 2024 bid put the risks of hoping for an Olympic legacy another way.

"We're the Athens of America, a beacon of democracy," Liam Kerr, an education advocate who co-chairs the group No Boston Olympics, said of his city. "But we want to be the Athens of America for what happened there 2,000 years ago — not what happened there 10 years ago."

What happened there 10 years ago was an Olympic Games that left behind now-abandoned stadia and has been blamed in part for Greece's economic crisis.

How It Can Work

Experts, Olympic bid backers and opponents agree that for hosting the Olympics to work, a city must keep in mind its own long-range goals, then ask whether hosting would help achieve them.

It's by asking that question that a city can avoid building expensive stadia that will fall into disuse after the closing ceremonies. That's also how a city can ensure any new infrastructure it gains will serve its long-range vision for itself, as Barcelona did in 1992, he added.

"The problem is when the Olympics precede the city plan,” Zimbalist said. “If the plan precedes the Olympics, then you've got a better plan.”

That plan must also be open and transparent and involve plenty of community outreach, said both the backers and opponents of Boston's 2024 bid, which has faced stiffer local opposition so far than the other cities'.

That will foster debate, Boston's bid panel chief O'Connell acknowledged, but he said he believed it will also strengthen a city's approach to its bid. “The more people learn about the Games,” he added, “the more comfortable they become with it, and the more excited."

Kerr, co-chair of his rival group disagreed, saying the public would rally against an Olympics bid, no matter how heavily its backers might market it.

Indeed, public opposition could pose a challenge to Boston's bid for 2024. There's skepticism from locals still smarting at the wild cost overruns of the decades-long "Big Dig," and at the notion of hundreds of thousands of people descending on the already congested city.

"People would much rather make other investments than the Olympics," Kerr said. "We don't think that will change, no matter how much they market it."

What Could Happen Next

There's still plenty of room for the field of competitors to shape up before the IOC meets in Lima, Peru, in summer 2017 to announce what city it's chosen to host in 2024.

Despite the dwindling prospects to host the 2022 Winter Games, strong European competition for the U.S. pick is expected, in particular from Rome and, if it bids, Paris.

By 2024, though, it will have been a generation since the U.S. hosted a Summer Games, and longer still since New York's bid to host the 2012 games and Chicago's to host in 2016 went down in humiliating defeat, with paltry numbers of IOC votes.

"I think this is the best shot the United States has had in a long, long time," Abrahamson said.

He cited the USOC's diligent work to repair relationships, and the fact that the Olympics' habit of geographical rotation would mean the Americas could be ripe to host again eight years after Rio 2016.

Still, he said, the U.S. needs a strong narrative to make its case.

“There has to be a constructive story for why the Olympics should come back,” he said. "The time is right. The landscape is right. What remains to be shown is: Why should the IOC come back to the United States?"

Not everyone is happy that Boston was selected as the United States' bid city for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Opponents of Boston's bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics say they'll keep fighting efforts to bring the Games to Boston and could even seek a ballot initiative.

Liam Kerr, co-chair of No Boston Olympics, says his group has a team in place he's confident could handle a ballot initiative, should that be the best tool. "Everything is on the table," he said.

Kerr also said he's confident public opposition will grow more vocal as residents get more specifics about the proposal to host in 2024.

"I think people will certainly coalesce against it, even more strongly than they already are," he said, adding that polling showed public opinion against hosting the 2024 Games.

No Boston Olympics co-chair Chris Dempsey says Boston is a great sports city already, but doesn't need the investments in stadiums to prove it.

"We think that the reason that Massachusetts is great is because we've always made investments in education and health care. We've invested in our people, rather than stadiums," he said.

Dempsey says his opposition won't be viewed as raining on the region's parade.

"We love Boston, we're from Boston," he said. "We just think this is really bad public policy. We don't think the people of Massachusetts support it." 

Stay with necn as this story develops. 

Two people were found dead inside an Oceanside mobile home Wednesday.

Officials told NBC 7 a 54-year-old woman and her ex-boyfriend were found dead inside the home on Horizon Lane. It appeared the two had been dead for no longer than 24 hours, officials said.

The owner's fiancé called Oceanside Police to request a welfare check. When officers made entry around 10 p.m., they found the bodies with signs of major trauma, police said.

Investigators say both victims were shot and a gun was found at the scene.

There were also no signs of forced entry, officials said.

The mobile home park is located south of State Route 78 and east of College Boulevard.

The ex-boyfriend had been living in the home as the owner’s roommate, police said.

The great mystery of the snake in a toilet has been solved.

The 5-foot boa constrictor that slithered from a toilet at a downtown San Diego PR firm belongs to a tenant who lives on the fourth floor, the property manager told NBC 7 on Thursday.

The owner came forward on Wednesday, saying the snake had been lost and he thought it had escaped from a window, as its enclosure is near the window.

He "feels really bad for the anguish" this has caused, the property manager said. The owner plans to move the snake to a friend's house.

Meanwhile, the snake is staying at the Gaines Street Animal Shelter.

No word yet on a reunion.

So why did the snake escape to the building's sewage system? Lt. Dan DeSousa with San Diego County Animal Services said it appeared the snake was about to shed skin and was likely seeking a water source.

"He found a toilet to soak in and obviously didn't come out of that toilet," DeSousa said. "Took a wrong turn, ended up downstairs."

Holly Wells, whose partner at Vertical Public Relations found the snake as she was plunging the toilet, said they have no hard feelings.

"I'm not upset. I think we can have a good chuckle over it, honestly," she said. "My partner, Stephanie, who's terrified of snakes, might think a little bit differently. But I think it's all fun and games."

The owner still hasn't come forward publicly. His snake has an attitude -- a reputation as a nipper, animal control workers said.

The story drew national interest and Animal Services is still getting phone calls from news outlets.

It's not difficult to figure out why, Wells said.

"Everyone is so intrigued by the story because it's everyone's nightmare come true."

A California bill aimed at increasing the public's trust of investigations of on-duty officers who fatally shoot suspects is being proposed by Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento.

AB-86 would create a law enforcement panel, likely within the state Attorney General's office, to study each case of a California police officer fatally shooting someone and write reviews or issue recommendations.

The proposed legislation comes on the heels of several high-profile, fatal officer-involved shootings nationally in Missouri, New York and Lodi.

“I think there’s a growing appetite both at the national and local level to have a better and more transparent system regarding the investigation after these police shootings where there’s a fatality involved,” McCarty said.

A spokesman for McCarty said the assemblyman plans to meet with stake-holders to decide details, such as if the independent body would have subpoena power.

“It’s not about pressing criminal charges, subpoena powers and so forth,” McCarty said. “It’s about: There’s going to be a review of this by the authorities and the legal arm of the justice system, and should it be done by a local entity or someone with more independence such as a state-wide entity?”

Chula Vista Police Chief David Bejarano said police shootings are already subject to intense scrutiny.

“I can tell you and I think any chief will feel the same way: We take an oath of office as well as the District Attorney and we take that oath very seriously. Any shooting, involving an officer, is scrutinized more than any other,” Bejarano said. “We don’t want to leave any stone unturned, so it’s a very thorough investigation."

Attorney Eugene Iredale, who represents clients in police use-of-force cases, says more oversight is needed, even more than what AB-86 proposes.

“I think that it is a good first step, but not enough to do what needs to be done,” Iredale said.

Investigations of fatal officer-involved shootings throughout the county currently fall to the District Attorney.

District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis did not comment on this story today because she is still reviewing the bill, which was just introduced two days ago.

But in 2007, she released a 10-year study aimed at assuring the public that peace officers in San Diego County are performing their duties in a legally justified manner. That report detailed how the San Diego County District Attorney’s office investigated 200 officer-involved shooting cases with 201 suspects.

Total cases per year ranged from a low of 10 in 1996 to a high of 24 each in 1997 and 2002 for the county, according to the report.

Iredale believes that system is tainted, not just by close working relationships between officers and prosecutors, but also political contributions from law enforcement organizations that help elect the D.A.

“The entire system of political power in the law enforcement agencies relies on close coordination and administrative and political interdependence,” Iredale said.

At least two police chiefs in San Diego County disagree.

“In San Diego County, there is already in place a protocol for an administrative investigation and a criminal investigation,” said National City Police Chief Manuel Rodriguez. “Overall, it appears that this bill would only add to the stress officers must undergo while a shooting is being reviewed and investigated.”

Rodriguez pointed out that the Peace Officer Bill of Rights grants officers some protections not addressed in the bill.

Bejarano stressed how seriously investigators in the DA’s office take their responsibility.

“District attorneys would probably welcome not having that responsibility,” said Bejarano, who added that he wanted to study the details further but that the creation of one extra layer of oversight in the Attorney General’s office would likely be beneficial to law enforcement and the community.

“With the appropriate measures and checks in place, anything that restores and builds additional trust and faith in the criminal justice system might be beneficial to both parties, law enforcement and the community,” said Bejarano, who previously served as San Diego’s top cop.

Current San Diego Police Department Chief Shelley Zimmerman was not available to provide her thoughts on the topic today.

Officer-involved shootings happen more in the City of San Diego than more than 40 other mid-size cities in the country.

Those numbers are for 2012, 2013 and most of 2014 – and were compiled from local police departments. The figures include all officer-involved shootings, not just fatal ones.

The San Diego Police Officers Association did not have a comment on the proposed legislation.

El Cajon Police Department responded to a pedestrian hit by at least one car in El Cajon.

The accident happened just after 5:30 p.m. Thursday night on Avocado Street between Lindell Avenue and Renette Avenue. Someone called to report that a person had been hit by one car and run over by another, police said.

Officers on scene confirmed one person died as a result of the accident.

Witnesses said this is the third pedestrian-involved car accident in the past few years and urge a stop light be put in.

Authorities anticipate the road to be closed for two hours to conduct their investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

A San Diego-area pediatrician considers nine cases of measles linked to Disneyland to be very alarming.

Sharp Chula Vista pediatrician Dr. Ahmad Bailony is troubled over the new cases that popped up after the patients visited the popular theme park in December. Two of the patients are from San Diego, and both of whom had not been vaccinated for the disease, the California Department of Public Health says.

"The problem is these days, we unfortunately have a lot of parents that are refusing to vaccinate based on their own beliefs, and that's creating a problem for the larger population," said Bailony.

2014 saw 600 confirmed cases of measles – a record amount for a virus we eliminated back in 2000, according to Bailony. The virus is a preventable epidemic, he said. Children can receive the measles, mumps and rubella combination vaccine or the measles, mumps, rubella and varicella combination vaccine.

“Certainly in San Diego it's above 90 percent,” Bailony said of the number of people vaccinated against the virus. “But for measles, to prevent sustained contagious cases from one generation to the next, you have to have really over 95 to 98 percent of the population immunized in order to really protect the public, and we're not there."

The nine cases of measles at Disneyland are very alarming, he said. Many who chose not to vaccinate their kids believe shots cause things like autism, but that premise has been scientifically disproved, Bailony told NBC 7. 

Now, county and state health officials are hoping to stop the disease's spread before it continues. The infected San Diego siblings visited the Parkway Plaza Mall in El Cajon on Dec. 29, possibly contaminating others, the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency warns.

Shoppers may have been exposed to measles if they were at the mall between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., especially around the GameStop, Sunglass Hut and mall carousel. If someone contracts it, they should know within 21 days, experiencing early symptoms like a cough, runny nose and red eyes. Anyone with measles is considered contagious if they have a distinctive red rash.

For the first time in a generation, California voters are poised to fill an open U.S. Senate seat.

Speculation was rampant in San Diego and coast-to-coast Thursday after fourth-term incumbent Democrat Barbara Boxer announced she’s retiring in 2016, leaving a rare national post in the most populous state in the country, which carries a lot of political weight.

There’s doesn’t figure to be anywhere near the 135 candidates in Gov. Gray Davis' recall election of 2003.

But the Golden State could still have a full and familiar slate of wannabe senators.

And pundits say, don't rule out Hollywood headliners or Silicon Valley high-tech billionaires.

"I have to make sure this Senate seat stays progressive -- that is so critical,” Boxer said in a personally produced video released via YouTube. “And I want to help our Democratic candidate for president make history. But you know what? I want to come home."

Boxer will have been in office for 24 years by the time she comes home from the Capitol, opening the door for the prospect of a Republican finally taking that California U.S. Senate seat.

GOP party bosses have fond hopes of Condoleeza Rice being interested or La Jollan Mitt Romney, but they might well be content with the likes of Neel Kashkari, last year's gubernatorial runner-up.

Or former state party chair Ron Nehring of Poway, last year's runner-up for lieutenant governor.

Or Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin, runner-up for state controller.

Or San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, whose name is on some lips.

Will they create enough buzz in the atmosphere of a blue state voter stronghold?

"It's only going to be big if they have the funding, and that means they have to prove they have a chance,” said Voice of San Diego Editor in Chief Scott Lewis. “And that's going to be a hard thing. So it is probably more of an interesting discussion among Democrats right now."

That discussion starts with Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom and State Attorney General Kamala Harris, both long mentioned as prospective candidates for governor in 2018.

Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is also rumored to be in the mix – along with prominent show business types and high-tech, venture capitalists.

"We don't want some billionaire from Silicon Valley; we don't want some Hollywood elite,” said Tony Krvaric, chair of the Republican Party of San Diego County. “We want somebody who can understand what regular Californians are going through. Small business. Job creation. Taxation. Regulation. People are struggling in California, as they are all across the country."

There's conjecture that Michelle Obama will bid for the Senate seat -- a page out of Hillary Clinton's playbook in New York -- because the first family is supposedly leaving the White House for California.

In an interview Thursday, Lewis dismissed that scenario: “Democrats in this state have been preparing for this (open seat) and thinking about it for a long time, and I think the idea that they would let a kind of carpetbagger come in and take care of that for them is probably not a very realistic assumption.”

Ditto for Krvaric: “I think Americans are ready for something fresh, both on the national side and here locally. It seems for decades we were re-treading or recycling. Recycling's good, but we don't have to recycle all the politicians. So let's get something fresh out there."

There is the possibility that two Democrats could make the runoff under the state's top-two "jungle primary" system; a much more remote chance for two Republicans.

National political observers already are predicting the campaign will wind up being the costliest Senate race in history, with spending from all sources soaring well into nine figures.

While responding to a noise complaint, San Diego Sheriff’s deputies found an alcohol-ridden party full of minors at the home of a San Diego attorney Friday night.

Officers said they immediately noticed several intoxicated teens and were greeted at the front door of attorney Jeffery Lake’s Poway residence with “the stench of alcohol radiating from the home.”

In a release sent to NBC 7, Lake admitted to hosting a party for his 18-year-old daughter Olivia and some 200 of her friends. The Playboy Mansion-themed party began with an invitation encouraging guys to wear Hugh Hefner-inspired attire and the girls come dressed in bunny ears and cotton tails, he said.

Olivia’s mother, Jacki Lake, is a former PTSA president for Poway High School and was part of the Every 15 Minutes committee – a national program encouraging kids to make good choices about the use of alcohol.

Just weeks before the ordeal that landed her husband in jail, Jacki posted a colorful birthday message to her daughter’s Twitter account.

But it was Jeff Lake who went to jail for Olivia’s birthday.

Shortly after deputies showed up at his home, Lake was cuffed while the officers searched his house. Inside they found two teenage males passed out, surrounded by vomit and urine, according to authorities.

Lake claims he was not read his Miranda Rights or shown a warrant, but the sheriff’s department said the Social Host Ordinance does not require one.

Sheriff’s department spokesperson Jan Caldwell said they make hundreds of arrests throughout the year due to the ordinance and that before the ordinance existed, deputies were unable to enter private property to check the welfare and ages of those people who might be consuming alcohol.

“We have a responsibility to go in that house and make sure everyone is alright,” she said. “And sometimes they aren’t.”

Lake, who was eventually taken into custody and spent the night in jail before posting $200 bail, said charges have not yet been filed, but quoted the ordinance in a statement. He denies any involvement in providing alcohol to his daughter and her friends and said he feels his rights were violated and his name defamed.

“Despite my family’s intentions to provide my daughter a fun and safe 18th birthday party in the privacy of our own home, and in defiance of my efforts to provide a drug and alcohol free environment…it appears that uninvited troublemakers on a public street created a scenario which has resulted in exactly the opposite; leaving my family to deal with the consequences of their actions,” the statement reads.

Caldwell, however, said it is the adult’s responsibility to be just that: an adult.

“Be responsible. Be the adult. Be the responsible party here,” she said. “Be the responsible adult and don’t allow drinking in your home.”

Neighbors who spoke to NBC 7 after the incident said they heard a helicopter had been called out to search for a handcuffed teen that had run from police, and that Lake would be responsible for the cost. However, Lake said he knows nothing of helicopter charges and the sheriff’s office was unable to confirm whether ASTREA had been called out that night.

Caldwell said helicopters are routinely called out to help officers on the ground in ensuring no one has drunkenly wandered from a party, passed out and may need help.

At this point, Lake and his family are not speaking on the case, and Caldwell said the misdemeanor case is being handled by the City Attorney and could make no comment on the case specifically.

A Poway woman set on fire by her boyfriend will stay in a medically induced coma for at least two months to escape the unbearable pain of her recovery, her father told NBC 7 on Thursday.

“But whether or not she will remember being set on fire, they won't know. All of us are hoping she won't remember that,” said Ron Fuller.

On Dec. 27, his daughter Lynn Fuller tried breaking up with Vidal Webb, her boyfriend of 25 years, Ron said. At about 5 the next morning, Webb poured flammable liquid over Lynn as she slept in a Poway home and lit her on fire.

Four others in the house heard Lynn’s screams and ran to her aid, pulling her into the shower and dousing her with water.

Since then, the 43-year-old woman has been at the UCSD Medical Center’s burn unit with burns on 75 percent of her body. Ron and his wife are staying at their home in Virginia because doctors say now not would not be a good time to see her.

“I'm not angry -- so angry -- as I am shocked because neither my wife nor I knew this fellow (Webb) had those kinds of tendencies,” said Ron. “When we were around him, he was always a nice person, ‘Yes sir, yes ma’am.’”

Court records show Webb, 41, had legal problems related to drinking and reportedly a record of assaults in another state. Ron told NBC 7 Webb’s moving business had gone bad and he started drinking.

After the fire, deputies tracked Webb to a home in City Heights, where he prompted a nine-hour standoff. He was eventually arrested and taken to jail. The next day, Webb jumped from the second floor of jail cells and died.

“When you have drinking problems, mental problems and you don't have someone who know how to take care of those problems, this is what happens,” Ron said.

But he said it is God’s place to judge Webb, not his. The father, who is desperately concerned about his daughter’s health, said he hates Webb’s deeds, not the man himself.

However, he is not quite ready to forgive Webb.

“Not only did he damage Lynn, but my other daughter and granddaughter and my oldest daughter’s two friends. This thing has traumatized them. [They] saw what happened up close, having a hard time dealing, need counseling too,” Ron said.

His message to anyone who thinks about doing something similar: go get counseling. He said his message for all is to pray for his daughter, for those traumatized by this event and for Webb’s family.

Ron admitted one ray of light that has shined on his family is those who have given money to the Lynn Fuller and Family Recovery Fund.

“We just can't say enough about all those people who are helping and supporting,” said Ron. “We want to thank each and every one from the bottom of our hearts. We are thankful.”

The fund goes to pay off Lynn’s medical bills, and there will certainly be plenty of those in her future. Ron said Lynn’s vital signs are good. She had operations Monday and Tuesday to remove burned skin to reduce the risk of infection. She also has a risk of bleeding, so she required seven pints of blood on Monday.

A $5,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person that wrapped a rubber band around a poodle’s muzzle, animal rights advocates announced Thursday.

The San Diego Animal Advocates is offering the money for a conviction that could result in a hefty $20,000 fine and up to three years in prison.

“Animal abuse cannot be tolerated by a civil society, whether that abuse is the result of wanton cruelty or of ignorant disregard for the animal’s well-being,” Jane Cartmill, President of San Diego Animal Advocates, in a press release.

The mutilated pup was found after a Southern California resident in the 2900 block of Ocean View Boulevard came across the it running loose in a nearby park, according to a news release from the San Diego County Department of Animal Services.

The resident reported the discovery to the Department of Animal Services. An animal control officer responded and found the female white poodle and saw the dog had multiple rubber bands wrapped around its muzzle.

The poodle was treated at the department’s animal care facility; veterinary staff removed the rubber bands, which had been on the dog so long that the bands had cut all the way down to the bone, animal services officials said.

Dawn Danielson, director of animal services, said in a news release the act may have been intended to quiet the dog from barking, “however, their actions have caused this poor dog to suffer horrendous pain for a very long time.”

Animal services officials said they’ve launched an animal abuse investigation and need the public’s help tracking down the person responsible.

Anyone with information on the incident should contact the county Department of Animal Services at (619) 767-2740. They can also anonymously call CrimeStoppers at (888) 580-8477.

A Serra Mesa woman accused of killing her mother and dumping her body cried quietly as her trial began Thursday.

Mehria Mansury, 79, was last seen alive by other family members on Sept. 23, 2013.

Her daughter has admitted to disposing of her mother’s body in a remote area of Ramona but denies killing her.

Ghazal Mansury initially told relatives her mother went on a walk and never returned.

Then she told investigators that she found her mother dead when she returned to the home the two shared on Amulet Street.

“She talked about putting her 100 pound mother in the trunk,” said Deputy District Attorney Paul Greenwood. “She talked about driving her out somewhere and droppping her dead mother off.”

Jurors were also told Ghazal was not concerned about her missing mother, even as other family members were extremely worried.

Investigators do not have a cause of death because of the body’s exposure to the elements and wild animals, prosecutors said.

In a pretrial hearing, the prosecution alleged online searches were conducted on Ghazal’s computer searching for terms like “homicide” and “how to clean blood stains.”

After family members reported Mehria missing, there was an extensive search that lasted nine days and involved dozens of law enforcement officers from multiple agencies.

On Oct. 2, 2013, investigators discovered the body of a woman face-down underneath a tree near the Barona Indian Reservation.

The next day San Diego Police arrested Ghazal on suspicion of her mother’s murder.
Ghazal has a prior criminal record involving burglary and theft.
Ghazal Mansury has pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder. She faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted.

The Oceanside City Council moved one step closer to banning large-scale commercial retail sale of dogs and cats – more commonly known as “puppy mills” – after they approved a proposal last night.

The ordinance, which will face final approval at the end of the month, would prohibit the commercial dog breeding operation where profit trumps the well-being of dogs.Animal rights activists have been lobbying for bans across the state and say the sites are inhumane to many animals.

The city council previously held two public hearings on the issue, one in 2013 and one in 2014. The public opposition during those two meetings was “substantial.” If passed, animals sold in retail stores will have to be obtained from an animal shelter, a humane society, an animal rescue organization or a non-commercial breeder.

Puppy mills differ from dog breeders in that the puppy mills do not put a priority on producing the healthiest puppies possible, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said. The breeding that occurs at mills often results in dogs with unchecked hereditary defects.

Oceanside joins more than 15 California cities with a similar ban in place, including the City of San Diego, Chula Vista and Los Angeles. San Diego passed their ordinance in July 2013.

The proposal from Wednesday night’s meeting said that several Federal lawsuits involving similar laws are pending across the country as a result of similar laws passed.

There is no word on what the punishment will be for people who violate the ban.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department Facebook page will be staying offline, for now.

A lawsuit was filed against the department in October by gun-parts dealer Dimitrios Karras over the removal of comments he made on a post. The page was also deleted and a judge was left to determine whether the man's First Amendment rights were violated.

While the lawsuit has not come to a close, a judge did determine Wednesday that taking the page down voluntarily - and keeping it down - is the department's right.

The page was yanked after comments from Karras questioned Sheriff Bill Gore about a controversial 1992 FBI standoff in Idaho that left an unarmed woman carrying a baby dead.

Sheriff's spokesperson Jan Caldwell said in November when the page was initially pulled from the web "to avoid the time, expense and hassel necessary to enforce the department's policies regarding user comments," the page was removed rather than monitored. She said the department will use "other means of social media" such as Twitter and their website.

Because the lawsuit is still ongoing, she could make no comment on the matter now.

In November, Karras told NBC 7 he thinks the whole point is to "do the right thing" and to "stop censoring comments based on the contents therein." He said if the department wants to have a Facebook page, disable comments entirely, not "discriminate based on what they're saying."

"Don't do it. It's wrong," he said.

The department, however, argued that the comments violated their posting guidelines, which are to stay on topic and maintain respect. Karras' comments about the 20-year-old FBI case were made on a post about school bus safety.

Karras filed the case in federal court demanding the page be put back up and the comments restored. That case is ongoing.

A tour bus on an agricultural sightseeing trip crashed Thursday near the Arizona-Mexico border, injuring more than 20 people.

Yuma County Sheriff's Office spokesman Alfonso Zavala said the bus had been on a dirt road and flipped onto its side while attempting a turn on an embankment. Yuma Rural Metro and Yuma Fire Department crews rushed to the scene of the crash on S Avenue 6 ½ E and at County 3rd Street.

It was carrying 52 people, including 23 who were hurt.

Two were flown to Phoenix-area hospitals from the crash site, Zavala said. However, none of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening.

The other 21 people hurt were taken to a hospital in Yuma, a border town about 150 miles east of San Diego. Most of them suffered minor injuries, Yuma Regional Medical Center spokeswoman Jenn Lotz said.

Those patients ranged from 27 to 82 years old, she said. No other details about the injured were immediately available.

The sheriff's department is investigating the morning crash. It's too early to say what caused it, Zavala said, but it appears the bus's back tires went into soft, sandy soil on the embankment.

Passengers on the tour bus were taking a tour of the agricultural areas of Yuma at the time of the crash, officials said.

The bus had been on a dirt field-access road and was trying to reach another road alongside a canal.

Agriculture tours are quite common in Yuma, known as the "lettuce capital of the world." The bus crash occurred as the group was viewing a field of cabbage and celery crops, Zavala said.

The bus is operated by Phoenix-based Tour West America. A woman who answered the phone at the company's Yuma tour office said officials were still trying to gather information.

According to its website, Tour West America provides charter service and tours via motorcoach in metropolitan Phoenix, Yuma and surrounding lower Colorado River cities. Trips include farm, rodeo and railway museum outings.

The company also offers vacation and cruise packages. Tour West America originated in Yuma in 1986.
 

A critically endangered white rhino who has been receiving care from zookeepers was reunited with her companion Thursday.

Nola, a 40-year-old northern white rhino, was in medical observation for 11 days at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, but she was able to rejoin her pals in her 65-acre habitat Thursday, zoo officials said.

Chuck, Nola's 45-year-old male companion, was there to greet her, while the white Cape buffalo and ostrich who share space with the two looked on.

"Nola is feeling much better so we were able to reintroduce her to her companion, Chuck, and allow her back into her large field habitat where she can roam and get plenty of exercise," said lead zookeeper Jane Kennedy at San Diego Zoo Safari Park.

Nola is considered elderly and is one of only five northern white rhinos left in the world. She's the only one of her kind at the Safari Park. She was placed under the care of a veterinarian at the end of December when her appetite seemed to diminish and her activity became low, keepers said. She also had a thick nasal discharge which led keepers to believe she had a sinus infection, but they said she has responded well to antibiotics.

"The reintroduction of Nola and Chuck went as expected; they briefly squabbled to establish dominance, but quickly settled down and seem to be enjoying each other's company," Kennedy said. "We will continue to monitor Nola, and in the event of extremely cold weather, heavy rain or medical issues, we will move her back into the boma where she can stay warm and we can administer extra care."

The San Diego Zoo Safari Park said the last five of Nola's species are all of advanced age and none have reproduced. The poaching of the northern white rhino's horns is the cause of the species' critically low numbers.

A federal jury found a convicted child molester guilty Thursday of possessing child pornography, which he tried to hide in a hard drive folder labeled “One Million Recipes,” according to U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.

Norman Paul Felts, a 70-year-old U.S. citizen living in Ensenada, Mexico, faces up to 20 years in prison because he has multiple prior sex offenses.

The investigation into Felts began when a tip came into the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The agency worked with the Office of the Assistant Attaché in Tijuana to find a boy who worked with Felts on his boat in Mexico.

According to Duffy, Felts said at trial that he had taken sexually explicit photos of the boy, knowing he was underage.

As Felts tried to cross into the U.S. from Mexico on May 28, 2013, he was stopped and taken into custody by San Diego-based special agents with Homeland Security Investigations.

In his possession, they found a loose hard drive that contained several images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, Duffy says. The pictures, which had been compiled between Jan. 2010 and May 2013, were found in a folder called “One Million Recipes.”

Felts’ prior convictions date back as far as 1972. That year, he was convicted of oral copulation, and five years later, he was found guilty of child molestation.

His most recent conviction was procurement of a minor under 16 for a lewd act in 1999.

At his March 27 sentencing, Felts could get a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to 20 years in prison, a lifetime of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
 

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An Ocean Beach woman awoke to find a stranger in her home, what police consider the most recent incident in a string of burglaries in the area.

Shortly before 2:30 a.m. Friday, police said a man broke into an apartment through an unlocked door on Spray Street. That door was unlocked because those residents were waiting for a friend to come home.

Police said once the suspect was inside, he started taking laptops, cell phones and other electronics. He then tried to pull a blanket off a woman sleeping on the couch. She woke up and screamed and then the suspect ran away.

Police said the suspect could be linked to other similar robberies in the area and are reminding people to keep their doors and windows lock to prevent incidents like this happening in the future.

"I've been here 35 years. I know about beach living," said Rich Rochman. "We be telling everybody for years, lock it up. Because whatever you leave on the beach, will disappear. if you don't lock it up on the beach it will disappear."

The suspect is described as a 20 to 30-year-old balding man with a thin build.