California continues to wrestle with water savings as the state enters its fourth year in drought-mode, and one statistic that often pops up is how much water agriculture consumes.

While alert systems and fines for water wasters are set up to shrink residential water use, agriculture makes up 80 percent of human water use in the state. And some California crops use guzzle more water -- much more -- each year than others do, according to a 2015 California Agricultural Water Use summary from the Pacific Institute.

While almonds have been dragged through the mud in recent news reports, they're not the biggest culprit in California. That dubious honor falls on alfalfa, according to the Pacific Insitute.

The livestock fodder and occasional salad topping -- it's a cousin of peas -- used the most water, the study's 2010 data say, drinking an estimated 1.7 trillion gallons that year.

Click through the slideshow at the top of this story to see how much water other major crops grown in the Golden State used. 

Complete drought coverage: Running Dry.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is warning drivers of a phone scam involving people posing as DMV employees in a ploy to obtain personal information.

According to the DMV, the scam involves unknown people calling Californians from a blocked phone number, pretending to be staffers offering to reschedule a DMV appointment. The individuals then ask drivers for personal information, such as a social security number, date of birth, home address and driver’s license number.

The DMV said driver should be aware that this is a scam, as the DMV does not call customers asking for personal information like this. The DMV said drivers should never provide those confidential details by phone or email to anyone claiming to be a DMV employee.

“Anyone who receives such a call should know it is a scam to steal your identity,” said California DMV Director Jean Shiomoto.

Californians are urged to report DMV scams like this by filing a complaint with the DMV Investigations Division fraud hotline at (866) 658-5758 or by e-mail to dlfraud@dmv.ca.gov. Drivers can also mail a record of complaint form and report such scams to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

For more information on guarding oneself against identity theft, visit the FTC website.
 

San Diego County is getting doused by scattered showers accompanying a chilly spring storm that is also dropping snow in the mountains.

“The best case scenario is happening,” NBC 7’s Meteorologist Jodi Kodesh said Friday. “Major rainfall is moving into the county.”

The low-pressure system moved south into the region late Thursday after bringing gusty winds to the San Joaquin Valley and deserts, and snow to the Sierra Nevada.

In our local mountains, the National Weather Service forecasted one to four inches of snow between the 5,000 and 5,500 foot level.

As of 8 a.m., an inch of snow was reported as low as Julian. Big Bear reported six inches of snow on the ground.

Mission Valley and La Jolla residents reported receiving some hail before 9 a.m.

While some areas may see no precipitation, others could experience heavy downpours.

A flood advisory has been issued for several communities including Chula Vista, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Temecula, El Cajon, Vista, San Clemente, Encinitas, National City, La Mesa, Lake Elsinore, Riverside and Poway.

Forecasters say the cold and unstable air mass might linger in the region into Saturday.

A wind advisory has been issed through Saturday morning for mountain passes and canyons across the county. 

A Mother’s Day event happening this weekend in San Diego will celebrate midwives and everything they do to bring new lives into the world.

On Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Midwives Coalition of Greater San Diego will host a free family-friendly festival to celebrate Mother’s Day and International Day of the Midwife at Waterfront Park on Pacific Highway.

The event will include talks by midwifery experts covering the topics such as safety of home births, water births and delayed cord clamping. The fest will also include a special pampering station for moms, baby-wearing demonstrations, diaper races and food trucks.

Kids can enjoy activities like face painting and a bounce house, too.

Organizers say moms who have delivered with midwives will be in attendance, as well as midwives themselves with a passion for the profession.

The Midwives Coalition of Greater San Diego seeks to educate the public about the many birth options throughout San Diego County.
 

Moms celebrating Mother’s Day this year will include a growing cohort: women who at age 40-plus found themselves changing their kid's diapers for the first time. 

“I’ve had my social life and I’ve gone to the festivals and I’ve traveled the world,” said Marcy Fein, who gave birth to her first child at 41. "...And now I love learning the songs to 'Thomas the Train' and getting on the floor and being with him because that’s what I’ve always wanted." 

Even as the overall birth rate in the United States remains at an all-time low, births among women in their late 30s and 40s are on the rise. The first birth rate among women ages 40 to 44 has increased steadily since the 1980s, more than doubling between 1990 and 2012, according to data analyzed by the National Center for Health Statistics. The rate of first-time motherhood among women 35 to 39 has also grown dramatically.

Dr. Nancy Gaba, who heads the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, said at least half of her patients are having their first child after 35, a greater number than when she started practicing in 1997. In fact, D.C. has the highest birth rate among women 35 to 49 of all U.S. states, according to government data. 

While advancements in fertility treatments have enabled more women to conceive and give birth to healthy babies later in life, Gaba believes broader shifts in society are also a major factor in the trend.

“It used to be that women were expected to have their first baby like my mother did, at 21,” said Gaba, who had her own son just before she turned 35. “Often women are delaying childbearing because it is perfectly acceptable for them to pursue other interests first, like their career and their education.”

As a 30-something in the early 2000s, Fein was focused on her teaching job and love of travel. While she always felt she was “born to be a mom,” she hadn’t yet found a partner with whom she wanted to start a family.

“I wanted to find the right guy I wanted to have kids and all that, but I wasn’t going to do it just because,” she said. “If it wasn't meant to be, that's fine.”

In 2004, that changed. An older couple she had met on a cruise years prior suggested she get together with their son during a trip to Washington, D.C. After several years of friendship and dating long-distance, they tied the knot at age 40.

A fertility specialist she saw at age 38 told her she would likely be unable to conceive, a prognosis Fein said “squashed my dreams.” But soon after their wedding, the couple was elated to learn that they were expecting. At 41, she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, Riley.

Fein, now pregnant with twins at 43, said having a child later has allowed her to approach parenthood with a sense of calm and purpose. Added life experience, including watching her friends stumble through parenting in earlier years, didn’t hurt.

“You may be tired, but you’re wiser,” she said.

First-time mothers who are older are likely to be more highly educated and better off financially than their younger parenting peers, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The allure of hitting those benchmarks may have driven more women to hold off on starting a family, especially during the recession of the 2000s, experts say.

“People couldn’t afford to have children and they started realizing that the later they waited, the better off their children would be, in terms of their income,” said Elizabeth Gregory, a professor and author of “Ready: Why Women Are Embracing the New Later Motherhood.” 

Those benefits can be offset by other challenges and realities about becoming a first-time parent later in life. Playgroups and child classrooms, a typical source of support for new parents, may feature fewer people of a similar age and the window for having a second or third child is truncated. The needs of aging grandparents — and possibility that the child’s interactions with them will be limited — can create added stress.

“Not only can some grandparents not be helpful, but they themselves need help,” said Jocelyn Jane Cox, whose own mother was ill when she was pregnant with her first son at 39 and died on her son's first birthday.

Cox met her husband at 36 and married him at 37. They decided to try to start a family about a year later.

“I wasn't going to really freak out until it was 40,” said Cox, a figure skating coach and writer who chronicles her motherhood experience on her blog, The Home Tome. “I got in right under the wire in my mind.”

Even after becoming pregnant, the risks and potential complications that come with carrying a child at her age were top of mind. Fertility generally declines sharply after 35, as the potential for miscarriage, chromosomal abnormalities and issues with the mother’s health increase.

“We opted for all the tests and it was a real roller coaster,” Cox said. “I understand why they do it and I think it’s good, but it is very stressful because you’re concerned about what information you’re going to get back.”

Doctors say it’s important that women and their partners understand the realities of childbearing in later years so that they can make informed decisions and, ideally, a fertility plan for the future. Examples of successful later births among friends and in Hollywood, they say, have left some women with a false sense of the ease and feasibility of delaying childbirth.

“All they see is the beautiful Halle Berry with the beautiful baby at the end,” Gaba said, referring to the actress giving birth to a child at 47. “They don’t see all those other things that, just statistically speaking, may have come into play.”

For many, the wait and challenges faced by older mothers and fathers can elevate the parenting experience. Gregory said the mothers she has interviewed for her research approached parenthood with pleasure.

“They were consistent in that this was something they had chosen, something they had worked toward and they were very engaged in and very satisfied,” Gregory, director of the Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program at the University of Houston, the said. “Basically they were a group of happy people.”

Cox, who plans to spend Mother’s Day buying flowers for the yard of her Nyack, New York, home, echoed that sentiment. She said life experience, confidence and opportunity to raise a child with a cool, supportive and full partner have made her parenting journey all the sweeter.

“It gets to feel like it might not happen or you might have to go to great lengths to make it happen,” she said. “So I think there can be more of a sense of gratitude.”

Whether you're surprising your mom with a bouquet of flowers or a special brunch this Mother's Day, celebrating the most important person in your life can get pricey.

This year, Mother's Day spending will top $21.2 billion, the highest amount projected in the 12-year history of the National Retail Federation's annual Mother's Day Spending Survey.

Americans will spend an average of $173 on mom this year, up nearly $10 from $162.94 last year, according to the survey. Most consumers will get a greeting card for their mom, spending more than $786 million, and those who take mom out to brunch or dinner, will splurge a total of $3.8 billion.

There are ways to save and still make your mom feel special. Take a look at 12 restaurants offering deals for Mother's Day: 

Beef ‘O’ Brady’s:
Mom’s eat free on Sunday with the purchase of another meal at equal or greater value.

Boston Market:
Moms get a free meal on Sunday with the purchase of another meal.

Brickhouse Tavern & Tap:
Offering one free brunch entrée for mom with the purchase of another from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Church’s Chicken:
Moms get a free 20-piece box of OREO Biscuit Bites with the purchase of a family meal on Mother’s Day Weekend.

Corner Bakery:
Corner Bakery is offering a coupon for a free 6-pack of bundts for mom with the purchase of a lunch or dinner until May 11. You can also tweet your favorite #momisms to @CornerBakery and they might send you something sweet.

Chuck E. Cheese’s:
Moms can use this coupon for a free individual thin and crispy pizza with a $29.99 purchase of a large, one topping pizza, four drinks, and 30 tokens.

Hooters:
Moms get a free meal (up to $10.99 value) with a drink purchase on Mother’s Day.

KFC:
KFC is offering a free red velvet cake with the purchase of a 10-piece meal or larger until May 25. This deal isn't limited to moms.

McCormick & Schmick’s:
The chain will be treating moms to complimentary chocolate-covered strawberries with brunch this Mother’s Day.

Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt:
The chain is offering moms a free 8-ounce cup of frozen yogurt this Sunday.

Shoney’s:
Mom gets a free slice of strawberry pie this Sunday with the purchase of one Mother’s Day buffet or adult entrée.

Spaghetti Warehouse:
A free strawberry lemonade and surprise gift for mom comes with the purchase of a meal.

TGI Friday’s:
The restaurant is selling half-priced bottles of wine for moms from May 5-10.

Tijuana Flats:
The Tex-Mex chain is giving moms free entrées on Mother’s Day.

A blind mother was able to "see" her unborn baby thanks to the advancement of 3D printing.

The Brazilian branch of Huggies, the diaper company, worked with an ad agency to film "Meeting Murilo", in which the expectant mom is given a 3D mold version of her sonogram photo, according to CNET.

Tatiana Guerra, 30, who lost her sight when she was 17, was five months pregnant with her second child during the time of the sonogram, NBC News reported.

In the video, Guerra begins the appointment by asking the doctor to describe her son, but then starts explaining what she thinks he looks like.

"Oh, I imagine him. Well, his nose like a little potato," the mom-to-be tells her doctor.

She has no idea the makers of the film were creating the 3D sculpture of her son while her doctor was performing the sonogram.

Guerra exclaims when she is given the 3D mold of her son, touching her baby's printed face and reading outloud the words, "I am your son," spelled out in braille.

The video has gone viral since it was published April 30. The ad has been viewed over 4 million times on YouTube as of Friday, according to NBC News.

Five former Northern Illinois University fraternity members avoided jail time Friday when they were sentenced in connection with a hazing case involving the death of a pledge in 2012.

Initially charged with class 4 felony hazing, the men -- Omar Salameh, James Harvey, Patrick Merrill, Alexander Jandick and Steven Libert -- accepted a deal and each pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of misdemeanor reckless conduct. They were each sentenced to 24 months of court supervision. They'll each also have to pay $1,000 in fines and perform 100 hours of community service.

Seventeen others charged in the case were sentenced to the same court supervision and community service but were ordered to pay lesser fines of $500 each.

Nineteen-year-old pledge David Bogenberger died at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house after reportedly consuming 26 vodka shots. Police reports said he and other pledges were pressured to drink by fraternity brothers and humiliated by sorority sisters brought in for a well-planned ritual called "Greek Parents Night."

An autopsy later done determined that David had suffered a fatal cardiac attack as a result of the excessive drinking. A toxicology report said his blood-alcohol content was 0.351 percent.

"Twenty-two young men pledging to be David's brothers for life ridiculed, tormented, poisoned and killed him," Bogenberger's mother, Ruth Bogenberger, said in her victim impact statement.

The case has brought national attention to excessive drinking and hazing at fraternity and sororities on college campuses.

The NYPD is working with the French Embassy to find a 21-year-old tourist who went missing in the city while he was on vacation with his family, authorities said Friday.

Arthur Astie had been in the city for about a week with his parents and sister before he went missing May 4 in the Bronx, police said. Authorities say the man, whose nickname is Ubu, was trying to catch a train to Harlem, where his family was staying, but hopped on the wrong train and got lost in the Bronx.

He was last seen heading back underground to try to get on the right train, authorities say.

Astie has no known friends in New York and speaks very poor English, police said. He's described as being about 5 feet 9 inches tall with blue eyes and a slim build.

Police released a photo of the man (above). Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call the NYPD. 

A man is in custody in connection with the death of a teen whose charred body was found behind a shopping center in Sweetwater, Florida, in October 2014, and police say the suspect had known the victim for several years before she died.

On Thursday, Sweetwater police arrested 66-year-old Armando Botell, of Miami. He's charged with second degree murder with a deadly weapon.  according to an arrest report.

Investigators revealed that Botell had an "intimate" relationship with Romina Fernandez, 17, and had been selling drugs, including Xanax, to the girl since she was 15-years-old. Botell also had nude photos of Fernandez on his phone, according to the report.

When crews arrived to extinguish the fire, they found the body of a woman burned beyond recognition. Through dental records, medical examiners later identified the victim as Fernandez of Sweetwater. The teen had been reported missing earlier that same day.

An autopsy ruled the cause of death to be a homicide.

The report further reveals that Botell developed a "stalking" relationship with the victim, to the point that police say Botell was "obsessed" with the victim.

"He was stalking her, he actually paid another witness that came forward... he paid to follow her, to watch her so obviously that shows the obsession that he had with this young lady," said Lt. John Jenkins of the Miami-Dade Police Department.

Botell also reportedly confessed to a witness that he was physically abusive toward Fernandez.

According to the report, phone records reveal that Botell and Fernandez met at her Sweetwater home in the early morning hours the day before her death.

Investigators say both Fernandez and Botell's cell phones were pinging from the same tower near Fernandez's house until 5 p.m. on the day she died. At 5 p.m., Fernandez's phone was turned off.

Botell's phone also turned off just shortly after 5 p.m., then came back on approximately three hours after Fernandez's body was discovered.

Surveillance footage from the shopping plaza showed Botell's silver Mercedes SUV dumping Fernandez's body and igniting it on fire. That same vehicle was also seen parked outside Botell's home.

Botell provided two separate statements to investigators in February and May of 2015. His account of the events of the night and his relationship with Fernandez were contradicted by cellular tower records and witness testimony.

Following his arrest Thursday, Botell was transported to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
He has a prior conviction for murder in 1980 where he served 15 years in prison.

Botell made an appearance in court Friday afternoon where he was ordered held without bond. It is not known of Botell has hired an attorney.

Two U.S. military veterans and their beloved service dogs will stop into San Diego Friday as part of a 6,000-mile journey across America to help military families experiencing financial hardship.

Marine vet Dan Spangler of North Carolina and Army Ranger veteran Joe Trainor, Jr. of Chicago were both injured during tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively.

The two vets say their post-deployment recoveries have had much to do with the emotional support of their service dogs, Spangler’s pooch, Spanky, and Trainor’s dog, C.T. The vets and their pets have become inseparable over the years.

After connecting with Spanky, Spangler launched A Dog’s Dream: Dreamer’s Foundation, a non-profit focused on helping animals in need. Now, the non-profit has started a new program dubbed “Operation: Keep Your Spanky,” which aims to provide assistance to veterans to help them keep and care for their animal companions during times of financial hardship.

The veterans believe many vets wounded by war rely on pets for comfort, support and companionship. For both of them, their dogs have been lifesavers.

Spangler, Trainor and their dogs decided to raise awareness for the vets and pets program by walking across the U.S. They started their trek on April 26 in Camp Lejeune, N.C., and on Friday, they will arrive at the gates of Camp Pendleton, marking the first half of their cross-country endeavor. The pair will trek back to North Carolina for the second half, dropping into cities like Las Vegas, St. Louis and Nashville on their way back, just to name a few pit stops.

Trainor is losing his eyesight as a result of a traumatic injury sustained during his service. For him, this trek may be his last chance to see the country he fought for.

To learn more about Operation: Keep Your Spanky and donate to the veterans’ cause, click here.
 

Coronado police are warning residents to keep their windows locked after surveillance video showed a burglary suspect trying to break into a home.

The man successfully sneaked into two homes early Friday morning while residents slept, investigators say.

He was spotted on surveillance video casing a home in the 200 block of E Avenue at about 5:30 a.m., checking windows and using a cellphone flashlight to peek inside. Finding an unlocked window, the suspect got in and grabbed cash, a laptop, a tablet and sunglasses.

He then walked right out the front door, leaving it wide open.

Police say the man immediately went around the corner, to the 900 block of Second Street. He broke into a home there through an unlocked patio door and stole cellphones and cash.

The residents woke up to find their possessions shuffled around, so they called police.

During the investigation, officers say they were able to get the suspect’s fingerprints off a glass window, so they are running them through their database to see if they can find his identity.

The suspect is described as a man between 20 and 30 years old with facial hair, standing about 5-foot-8-inches and weighing 160 pounds. In the surveillance footage, he is wearing a beanie sweatshirt, sweatpants and sports shoes.

If you know anything about this suspect, call 619-522-7350.

Coronado police says if you would like an officer to come to your home for a free security check, call the Crime Prevention Unit at 619-522-7370.

A 17-year-old high school student who had body armor and wrote of killing others was arrested Friday on suspicion of threatening El Camino High School, according to Oceanside police.

The Ocean Shores High School student was brought to administrators for writing a note, under a false name, that threatened a teacher, investigators say.

When they performed a safety check on him, officials found an empty handgun holster in his pants.

They also discovered his journal. Police say in it, he had written about killing people in a school shooting at El Camino High, where he had gone to school before attending Ocean Shores High.

At that point, the 17-year-old was taken into custody. When detectives served a search warrant to his house, they went through his bedroom and found body armor, replica guns and handwritten notes threatening violence toward people at school, according to police.

They say in his writings were references to the Sandy Hook school shooting.

"I don't know what his plans were, but you have to assume that for the safety of everyone else, expect the worst," said Lt. George Darrah. "My reaction is you have to keep the school safe." 

Police with canines were seen searching the Ocean Shore campus Friday night, looking for evidence.

NBC 7 has reached out to both schools but has not heard back.

As San Diego strives to conserve water, city officials have started patrolling the streets, writing up water wasters.

The city of San Diego must cut down water usage by 16 percent this year, according to goals set by the State Water Resources Control Board. Facing continued drought, the board laid out targets for each water district to meet Gov. Jerry Brown’s 25 percent conservation mandate across the state.

But the local data shows for the first three months of this year, San Diegans used more water, not less.

So on Friday came another wakeup call. The city’s Public Utilities Department now has four new field representatives, bringing their total force up to 17 people.

If they see someone breaking city water regulations, the representatives can give out violation notices that could end in citations or fines.

“We need to be really serious,” said Luis Generoso, the Water Resources Manager for the San Diego Public Utilities Department.

He said this month, field representatives have checked 450 complaints, up from 370 last month.

Luis arranged for NBC 7 to meet up with James, one of the field representatives who checks on the complaints and looks for violations.

“We go out every day but especially in the rain because people still water in the rain,” James said.

He told us he checked on a complaint Friday morning about a broken sprinkler, and while doing so, he found houses with their sprinklers on as rain poured down.

James handed out advisory letters and returned later that day to see if they had complied.

“So far so good,” he said. “It looks like our letter has done its job, and we are now part of the solution.”

But representatives will no longer hand out the nicer advisory letters. Residents will just get a notice of violation and then a fine.

How many people left on their sprinklers? Generoso said as of 2 p.m. Friday, there were eight complaints about people irrigating during the rain.

As a reminder, you are not supposed to water for 48 hours after the rain.
 

A Ride the Ducks boat full of passengers hit and killed a woman — who witnesses say was distracted by an iPad — as she crossed the street with her husband in Philadelphia's Chinatown neighborhood Friday afternoon.

The accident occurred at 11th and Arch around 5:20 p.m. and passengers — including young children — were forced to remain in the vehicle for nearly an hour after police covered the 68-year-old woman's body with a bright yellow tarp. She died of massive head injuries.

The woman and her husband were visiting the city from Texas, police said.

Ride the Ducks takes riders from the streets of Philadelphia into the water on sightseeing tours. The duck boat had a green light, according to police. Accident investigators plan to get a clearer picture of what happened from surveillance video and interviews with those nearby when the collision happened.

"She was looking at her iPad while crossing the street," said one woman who witnessed the incident, but asked not to be identified. "She got clipped by the duck boat originally and instead of stepping back, she held out her hand as if to say stop."

Joseph Kist, another witness, said the woman had her back to the vehicle when she was hit.

"She didn't know what was coming by," he said.

Ride the Ducks is the same company which operated a boat that stalled in the Delaware River and was run down by a barge in 2010, sending two Hungarian students to their deaths.

The organization and tugboat company, K-Sea Transportation, agreed to pay $15 million dollars in 2012 to the families of those victims as part of a settlement. A $2 million fund was set up for the 18 surviving passengers.

Dramatic video released just days before the trial showed the duck boat being run over by the barge. The video revealed the deckhand on the Duck boat was texting shortly before the accident. Government investigators also determined Matthew Devlin, the pilot of the tug which was guiding the barge through the river, was also on his phone and distracted by a family member's illness.

Devlin pleaded guilty to misconduct of a ship operator causing death and was sentenced to a year in prison plus three years probation.

Attorney Bob Mongeluzzi, who represented victims and their families in the fatal Delaware River crash, said Friday the duck boat's design may make driving on land challenging.

"The design of the duck boat itself makes it extremely difficult to operate on land because it is cumbersome and the visibility for the operator is hampered because he has a large bow of the boat extended in front of him," he said.

In a statement about Friday's incident, Ride the Ducks offered thoughts and prayers to the victim's family and said they were cooperating with authorities.

"We will provide counseling for those affected by the accident and offer support wherever possible," the statement read in part.

A second man is raising concerns about a deadly police shooting in the Midway District, calling it “unprovoked” after he says he saw video of the incident.

In an exclusive NBC 7 interview Friday, the man said the video he watched shows the fatal April 30 encounter from two angles, when San Diego Police Officer Neal Browder shot Fridoon Zalbeg Rawshannehad, 42, to death outside an adult bookstore.

Browder failed to turn on his body camera to record the shooting.

“When you take somebody's life, that should come as a result of a guttural fear for your own or someone else's safety, and not on a whim like it appears in this video,” said the man who did not want to be identified for fear of retribution.

The footage shows Rawshannehad walking casually down an alley outside the Highlight Bookstore, the man said.

Next, he saw Browder, responding to a report of a man threatening people with a knife, pull into the alley from Hancock Street without flashing lights or sirens.

The officer is seen opening his car door and walking in front of it. At 15 to 20 feet away, Rawshannehad began walking in the officer's direction.

Browder then raises his weapon and opens fire, killing Rawshannehad.

“You can definitively see that when the weapon is raised, you notice a noticeable decrease in his cadence,” the man said. “He slows down like dramatically. When the pistol is actually pointed at him in a straight line with his torso, at that moment two things happen: the guy pauses even more dramatically and the officer fires."

He said the incident lasted about 10 seconds. The video had no audio, so the man does not know what words were exchanged.

Investigators previously said Browder gave the suspect verbal commands, and when he "continued to advance," he was shot.

Police told NBC 7 no knife was found on Rawshannehad -- just a knife sheath -- but the officer reported seeing something shiny in his hand.

The man who saw the video said in the video, he could see Rawshannehad holding a shiny object. Investigators have not revealed what the object was or if it is considered a weapon.

Because police have no body camera footage of the incident, SDPD Chief Shelley Zimmerman announced a change to the department’s body camera policy. Instead of turning on their cameras when they encounter possible suspects, officers must now turn them on when they get the radio call.

The SDPD has denied requests to release surveillance footage of the shooting.

“It shows something that needs to be debated,” said the man who watched the recording. “A lot of people who see the video -- that will see this as a justifiable killing. There will be people who are disgusted by it.”

The SDPD did not comment on Friday’s interview, but the homicide lieutenant said all evidence will be turned over to the District Attorney’s office for review. An internal affairs investigation will look into why Browder did not turn on his body camera.

Browder has been placed on administrative leave while the investigation is completed.
 

Roselly Rolon got her daughter, Alexis, an Apple iPhone 5C for peace of mind in case of an emergency. But the Northeast Philadelphia mother never expected the smartphone to be the source of trouble.

On Friday morning, however, the family claims just that happened. As the 12-year-old walked to school, she said the popular smartphone caught fire in the pocket of her pants.

"All I saw was smoke coming out and then it was my phone. So I threw it on the ground — my butt was, like, burning," the girl recalled.

Alexis heard a cracking sound coming from the phone before it caught fire, but she didn't realize anything was wrong until the smoke began to rise, she said.

"I took it out ... and I threw it on the ground and started stomping out the fire," she said.

The white phone's case was left disfigured, the metal charred and rippled. The device burned through the back pocket of Alexis' jeans and left the girl with second-degree burns, doctors at Nazareth Hospital determined.

"We depend on these phones. And the same phone that I'm depending on is gonna burn my daughter," Roselly Rolon, the girl's mother, said angrily. "Thank God it wasn't her face."

The girl said the phone had been problem-free before Friday's fire and that she charged it normally Thursday night.

Apple told NBC10 they can't comment because the Rolons haven't contacted them directly about the incident. The family says their attorney is reaching out to the tech giant.

This isn't the first time an iPhone owner claimed their phone combusted. A middle schooler in Maine suffered 2nd degree burns in January 2014 after she said her iPhone 5C caught fire in her pocket. An Arizona man also suffered similar burns after he said an iPhone 6 went up in flames in his pocket last October.

Despite the pain inflicted by the device, Alexis isn't shying away from the smartphone. "I like the iPhone, but I don't want that one anymore. I want a different one," she said.

A woman allegedly stole a pickup truck with three children inside before dropping them off at a restaurant and leading police on a high-speed chase over 80 miles across Los Angeles County, police said.

The chase began after 9 p.m. when the woman stole the truck from an Auto Zone in Apple Valley. The children were inside, officials said. The woman dropped them off at Tom's restaurant in Victorville.

"They were just scared," said Crystal Gonzalez, who works at the restaurant and called police to help them. "They were crying. They were asking where their dad was."

The kids told Gonzalez that their dad told them to stay in the car while he went into a Home Depot for five minutes. That's when the woman jumped into the truck and took off with them inside, saying she knew their father and it was going to be OK.

Gonzalez said the children — two boys and a girl, about 5 and 6 years old — could only describe the suspect as wearing a hoodie. After dropping them off, the suspect led police on a chase for more than an hour, weaving in and out of traffic over several freeways at speeds up to 100 mph.

The chase ended on a residential street at 10:17 p.m. as the pickup truck was driven towards two Whittier Police Department vehicles and came to a stop.

It was not immediately clear if the suspect had a defense attorney.

A popular eatery in downtown San Diego’s East Village neighborhood will host a series of cooking classes this month teaching culinary basics with a gourmet twist.

Jsix Restaurant at 616 J St. is offering a line-up of “Chew” cooking classes led by Executive Chef Christian Graves.

The classes will be held each Tuesday in May. On May 12, attendees will learn the basics of cures, cultures and canning. On May 19, Graves will teach the basics of preparing pickles three ways. On May 26, the Chew class will tackle the perfect preparation for preserves.

Each class begins at 6 p.m. and will be held in the Jsix lounge. The classes cost $40 per person which includes instruction from the chef, a meal and two drinks from the bar.

In June, Jsix’s Graves will partner with chefs from other well-known San Diego eateries for another culinary series called Kitchen Collaborations. The chefs will create unique menus centered on different themes.

For instance, the June 1 collaboration will have Graves pairing up with Matt Gordon of Urban Solace to whip up lobster-themed dishes. On June 8, Graves will partner with Hanis Cavin of Carnitas’ Snack Shack with herbs as their cooking theme.

On June 15, Graves will collaborate with Pete Balistreri of Tender Greens on a “curded” theme. On June 22, Norbert Moniz of Tiger! Tiger! will join Graves for this theme: “surf & turf Midwest meets West Coast.” Finally on June 29, Graves will pair up with Lhasa Landry of Heart and Trotter to put a spin on local meat dishes.

Kitchen Collaborations are every Monday in June at 6 p.m. and cost $40 per person, which includes four courses. Reservations are required.

Jsix held both the Chew classes and Kitchen Collaborations in February and March, and had much success with the projects. Thus, Graves chose to bring them back with a new, mouthwatering lineup.