Transcripts For KNTV NBC Bay Area News At 11AM 20240714

Almena taking the stand. It is kind of the most important part of our defense. If he does well, i think well be acquitted if he doesnt do well then maybe it will be otherwise. But were optimistic and ive talked with him over and over again. Reporter now al menno and the director harris is charged with 30 counts of Involuntary Manslaughter in the case of the deadly ghost ship warehouse fire in 2016. Prosecutors allege bone allege bone men are responsibility. But their Defense Attorneys are putting the blame on government officials. So were talking about police officers, firefighters and even Child Service workers who they claim toured the warehouse but never reported its dangerous conditions. Now his attorney expected him to take the stand this afternoon. Live in oakland, pete suratos, nbc bay area news. Thank you, pete. On edge now, many people in Southern California fearing more aftershocks from this weekends powerful earthquake. Even though it is now been a full four days since the shaking first started in the Southern California town of ridgecrest. There are a lot of restless people, perhaps now more than ever. A 7. 1 earthquake following what was already a strong and violent quake before that. As lester holt reports, a lot of families are too scared to go home. Reporter for those living at the epicenter of the a massive 7. 1 magnitude earthquake, a Seismic Shift in more ways than one. I dont know if any of us will feel safe here again. Reporter thousands of small aftershocks have hit Southern California since fridays quake. Which followed a 6. 4 foreshock the day before. Some families have started sleeping outside as a precaution. It is just to be safe. Reporter the quake felt as far away as l. A. , vegas, phoenix, even sacramento. It is very strong earthquake. Reporter playing out on live tv. Were experiencing very strong shaking. I think we need to get under e desk. Reporter damaging structures and starting fires and leaving a fi fissure and swimming pools shaking with the energy vibrating from below but thankfully no lives were lost and no major injuries reported. On the longterm well have more earthquakes and a long stronger shaking. Reporter in the small town of trona 50 homes sustained damage. The high desert communities have been struggling even before the quake. This may put me out of business. Reporter now some are looking to rebuild and hoping this wont prove to be a lasting setback. Many times that we can go through a 7. 1 earthquake and dont report a fatality or a major injury and not suffer structural damage that was significant, i want to say that is a blessing and a meiracle. Reporter lester holt, nbc bay area news. New at 11 00, gavin newsom is facing a test to convince the state legislature to ratify a multibillion dollarsute Wildfire Fund that will take 11 billion from california rate pays to help utility pay wildfire costs. Coming as pg e has filed for bankruptcy amid findings that the power lines sparked recently the deadly wierlds. It is unclear if the bill will be able to pass. Late last month nine legislatures sent the governor a letter criticizing the bill for failing to address wildfire prevention. The search is fon for the gunman who shot a man dead overnight in San Francisco mission district. It happened around midnight at 24th and capp street. Officers responded to a shot spotter alert to find a man shot several times. That man died at the scene. Right now we have not confirmed the victims identity nor whether please have an idea about a possible motive. Transitioning to weather as we look outside in San Francisco. Looking kind of gloomy but keeping things quite and cool at least in most parts of the bay area. They like more sunshine in San Francisco, but youll get it later in the week. We are starting out with a sunshine in the south bay and the inland areas reaping the benefits of all of the low clouds and fog and were seeing near the coastline. So cooler air but also the low clouds extending toward oakland as we see cooler air and even mist and drizzle at times as you get ready to head out for the lunch hour or go out for a run around san ramon, you dont get to do this in the middle of the day in the summer, high temperatur temperatures in the low 70s and clouds moving in by 5 00 or 56 as we keep our weather with oakland reaching 66. In concord expect a high of 78. Livermore and in san jose, were going to see highs in the mid70s but all of this will not last long. We will see some changes ahead as we go throughout the week. So ill have more on that and also how warm those temperatures get, that comes up in less than ten minutes. Looking forward to that. Well in world news, iran said that it will enrich uranium beyond the deal set. It is a deal that the u. S. Left months ago. That is right. And we, not iran, were the first to violate the terms of the deal and now iran will break another agreement, enriching uranium to just under 4 purity. Now to be clear, that is not anywhere near the level needed to make a bomb. Not even close. But it is got everybodys attention. Iran said it will hand over samples to the International Atomic energy agency, the iaea to prove its violating the termsin terngsally in hopes, perhaps, of getting the other signatories to the deal to pressure the u. S. To return to that original deal. Secretary of state mike pompeo made it clear this morning, that is not going to happen. Saying iran risks further isolation and sanctions and pompeo announced a new Human Rights Commission to guide the state department and set u. S. Foreign policy, like the freedom from torture or free speech. Now critics point out the white house has spoken highly of many World Leaders who dont agree with that, who dont follow any of those human rights. President trump is often praised strong men, some directly connected to the murder of their own citizens. Chris. Thank you, scott. To decision 2020 and the president ial race and what could be the first candidate to drop out. New reports say bay area congressman Eric Swalwell may withdraw after struggling to get traction in a crowded democratic primary field and he also faces a primary challenger for his congressional seat. Hes expected to make the announcement official later today. But another candidate may fill that void. Billionaire tom steyer is considering a run. The billionaire environmentalist has poured millions into an effort to impeach President Trump. This comes as a new poll shows that in a headtohead matchup with top democrats, President Trump loses or is a virtual tie. Former Vice President joe bidens lead is also narrowing. One of the south bay swankiest streets is going on a diet. If you drive or walk or shop along north santa cruz avenue in downtown los gatos, youre about to see big changes. Bob redell has been there talking to people on the street. What are people saying . Reporter marcus, mixed reviews. Theyre concerned about how this new configuration behind me could affect traffic on the other side streets here in the downtown los gatos area. Starting this morning the town of los gatos is behind me converted a part of north santa cruz avenue into a oneway road. You could see the signs there indicating they are not supposed to go that way any more. And this is in the southbound direction, you could see on the map on your tv screen and the southbound direction between bachmann and elm street one way for north santa cruz avenue. About a three to four block stretch lined with shops and restaurants. The town doesnt expect the new configuration will cut through traffic but will encourage vehicles from highway 9 to enter downtown into a way better for the overall traffic flow and later in week the town will install five parklets along the stretch, parking spots on the street that will have been converted for outside sitting and dining to hopefully give this main drag a more european sense of place and ideally give the shops and restaurants a boost in business. The better question is what is it like to be sitting at a cafe table right next to street traffic . It is rolling right past. What are your thoughts . The jury is out. I like that but i still worry about the traffic. Los gatos might be happy because it will bring more parking. Reporter the socalled road diet along north santa cruz avenue is experimental and will last for months. San jose is seeing success with a similar road diet along lincoln in that neighborhood of the city willow glen neighborhood. Live here in los gatos. Bob redell, nbc bay area news. Hopefully it will work out for everybody involved. Clean up your commute, next here on nbc bay area, the numbers showing b. A. R. T. Is making progress when it comes to picking up dangerous trash. And fallout for a billionaire financier and the case against Jeffrey Epstein. And at wimbledon, the top player defeated ending her magical run. Theres no such thing as a born winner. So start driving and dont stop. Because no one takes off at the finish line. And the only way to get that trophy, is to take it. Net generation. Official youth tennis of the usta. Billionaire and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is back behind bar pleading not guilty to new federal charges involving what sources say include dozens of victims. Epstein allegedly paid girls as young as 14 for massages and sex acts. It is also alleged that he paid those same girls to recruit their friends. Nbcs Stephanie Gosk is following the story. Reporter Billionaire Hedge Fund manager Jeffrey Epstein first aed of Sexual Assault against minors a decade ago is back in custody this morning and charged with federal sex crimes for the first time. The counts will include sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors for sex. According to a Law Enforcement official, the 66yearold financier who counts among his powerful friends, President Trump and former president clinton and Prince Andrew was arrested saturday after he flew in from paris. Authorities also raided his manhattan home, new charges come on the heels of reexamination of the case by the miamiherald, inviting High School Girls to his palm beach mansion. The young girls that were 13, 14 and 15, thought they were going there to get paid to give him a massage and instead what he did was he he pressed them further and further each time to have sexual and intimate relations. Reporter several of the teen gir girls spoke to the miamiherald accusing epstein of giving them money for massages which escalated into molestation. It ended with sexual abuse and intercourse and then a pat on the back. Youve done a very good job. Here is 200. Reporter in 2008 epstein pleaded guilty in florida to state charges of soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution. In exchange for avoiding more serious federal charges. He served just 13 months in jail. The plea deal widely criticized as too lenient worked out by epsteins attorneys and agreed to by former miami u. S. Attorney alexander acosta, who is now President Trumps labor secretary. Acosta did not respond to a request for comment but has previously defended the deal saying it is the best possible based on the evidence at time. Stephanie gosk reporting. Those charges do not mean this investigation is over. The fbi only just searched his house on saturday. And there could be more victims uncovered or victims who come forward themselves. So far epsteins lawyer has declined to comment. Today in Southern California, a major ruling is expected in representative Duncan Hunter trial. The san diego lawmaker and his wife were indicted on charges that they used more than 250,000 in Campaign Funds for personal expenses. He is asking for a change in venue for the trial which is set to start in september. Hunters team wants the charges dismissed outright. Margaret hunter, his wife, pleaded guilty last month and agreed to testify against her husband. Well the state legislature is honoring Fallen Davis Police officer Natalie Corona. A stretch of interstate 5 will be called officer Natalie Corona memorial highway and it passes through her home town of arbuckle. She was killed in january. Her killer ambushed her while responding to a threevehicle crash in downtown davis. Corona was helping drivers involved in the crash and that is when the gunman rode up to the scene on a bicycle and opened fire on the officer. And happening today, a man accused of killing two men in san mateo are due back in court. Malik desoak will appear before a judge this afternoon for an arraignment. Police say that he killed a taxi driver and a towing company employee. Both on skyline boulevard. This happened last month. He allegedly killed a taxi driver abdul nashir after a ride to skyline boulevard and the next day police say he called specialty towing for help and stabbed employee john picky. Now police have not yet explained the motive. New at 11 00, the number of needles at b. A. R. T. Downtown San Francisco station is suddenly on the decline. This comes amid an epidemic steeped into the Transit System with heroin users caught on video shooting up at the station. As the chronicle reports, in may nearly 600 needles were picked up at the civic center and powell station compared to more than 4,000 used needles picked up last july. The b. A. R. T. Staff members believe the decline is because of the closure of the infamous civil center haulway and ramped up Police Patrol and kiosks installed downtown. Some of San Franciscos most notable fla notable neighborhoods are dealing with a high Retail Vacancy and not because of high rent. In north beach and chinatown and haze valley to preserve the neighborhoods and to level the Playing Field for smaller businesses but critic says it time to change the zoning ordinance. The chronicle reports that more than one in five store front are shuttered despite of a booming economy. And a lawmaker is taking action to try to help the state meet the Greenhouse Gas reduction goals. Today Assembly Member phil king will introduce a new proposal to change the states Rebate Program for filter cars to allow state regulators to increase a typical consumer rebate for an electric car to up to 7,500 and also provide a stable pot for funding for those payments. [ bell ] in full swing now and all of the markets are in the red at this point. The dow falling more than 100 points. Apple leading a tech slide as cnbc reports. Cory coco gauffs run has come to an end. She lost to sam owna halep. She beat Venus Williams in the first round. Since then coco is an instant sensation across the nation. So good for her. Oh, yeah. Shes great. 15 years old. Cant wait to see the next tournament. I wasnt even playing at this age. I was eating. Back to back champions, the womens team wins a fourth world cup and the second in a row. And you might have been one of the millions that watched on sunday when they defeated the netherlands 20 and now there is a push that goes beyond the field. Crowds standing, chanting equal pay as the women hoisted the world cup trophy. The womens team is suing the u. S. Soccer federation for gender discrimination. Captain Megan Rapinoe has been pushing for change ever since the team started playing. I think that the federation is in a unique position to, you know, kind of ride this wave of good fortune and get on board and hopefully set things right for the future. A ticker tape parade is scheduled for new york city on wednesday morning. Well nbc bay area vianey celebrating on facebook, simply writing champions and follow her on twitter and instagram. And that is a couple of exclamation parks but the weather is out and break from the heat but it will be back. It will be back through the week. So make sure you leave the airconditioning off. You enjoy and take this break from the warm weather. And this is the reason why. It is cool and it is cloudy, misting and drizzling in San Francisco. We havent seen much sunshine here. Even folks driving around the city have to turn on the windshield wipers. Meantime it is all clear in walnut creek as you head out for lunch and it is still feeling nice. Our temperature trend goes from rt upper 60s to mid70s for the middle of the day. And then by 4 00, 5 00, reaching our High Temperature Holding Steady there and then starting to cool down once again. Check out the sevenday forecast at the bottom of the screen. Yeah, look at friday and saturday. It is not looking good. Especially if you want to head out to the parks and enjoy extra time outside. In san jose were just seeing a few clouds drifting by and at noontime, at 74 degrees. At 3 00 were at 72. And then starting to cool down right around 5 00. And our breezy winds rally starting to pick up but it will be a comfortable day. With our south bay High Temperatures up to 79 in morgan hill and in los gatos reaching 77. In concord today, 67. And danville sees a high of 77. Fremont up to 71 degrees. Also 71 in redwood city where daly city up to 61 degrees. It will be cool and windy in San Francisco. Only a little bit of clearing going into the middle of the day. While the north bay enjoys sunshine, napa reaching 74 and santa rosa up to 78. So we may all be getting outside a little bit more today and you just have to keep in mind that if you are allergic to tree or gas pollen it is registering moderate on the pollen count but other things are low or absent which is good news. As we go through the rest of the week, well see this storm system move across the pacific northwest, still giving you an onshore wind flow. We wont see anything more than some breezy winds out of this. The High Pressure will be building across the desert southwest. And that will shift our winds, causing them to blow off shore and for us that brings in some hotter temperatures. So we go from the mid70s and that on shore ocean breeze to off shore winds and hotter temperatures. We see all of this happening over a matter of days. And by friday were up to 88 degrees. It will still be a warm weekend ahead. Reaching into the mid80s. But well come down from the peak of the heat which happens this friday, kris and marcus. Looking at that fulltime. Well going viral, next on nbc bay area, the pop star taking a new online trend to a whole different class into and Stevie Wonder dealing with health issues. The upcoming procedure that is forcing him to take a break from taking the stage. But first happening now, Flash Flood Warning in effect in the washington, d. C. Area today. And that includes parts of maryland and virginia. A lot of cars are stranded with water, with people inside being rescued. Reagan National Airport was hit with three inches in rain in just one hour. Well be back. You might take something for your heart. Or joints. But do you take something for your brain. With an ingredient originally discovered in jellyfish, prevagen has been shown in Clinical Trials to improve shortterm memory. Prevagen. Healthier brain. Better life. A major announcement from Stevie Wonder. He tells fans on saturday night, he told them that he plans to have a kidney transplant in september. He made the announcement at a concert in london. Im going to have a kidney transplant. In september of this year. [ cheering and applause ] i have a donor. Its all good. It is good that he feels positive about it. The singer is making the announcement to avoid rumors spreading about his health. We wish him wfl. We do. Hes a treasure. Yeah. So follow up now, your news feed might be filled with people opening up bottles. This is a funny one. Pop scar mariah carey is taking the trend to a different octave, take a listen. I can do that. Cant hear you any more. So that trend started within a fighter challenge to the spinoff the top of the bottle with only their feet and it went viral when ufc champion max holloway did it and charges john mayer and now singers and actors are doing and mariah carey hits the note there might be some strickery involved. You know that im a fan of the cooler weather. So this is my weather. I love this. It starts out nice and then starts to heat up. But it is july and we have to take the heat with the cooler weather. But we just cherish that cooler weather. Yes, we do. Thanks for being with us this midday. Our next newscast coming up at 5 00. Well see you back here tomorrow morning starting at 4 30. Right now on california live surfs up in dana point and kim is riding the waves. Today were at the Monarch Beach Resort and were learning all about their brandnew paddle boards with the window to the ocean. And if youre over 50 and looking for love, weve got the app designed just for you. Then it is a fashion fiesta in studio. One of the real housewives of Beverly Hills is revealing her brandnew summer line. Plus malou takes us to a place that will tickle your toes with watermelon. It is a refreshing experience that tastes so good. And ambers avocado overload. Im