♪ we begin with new information in a bay area murder spree. >> a mystery that includes bomb-making materials and five deaths from hercules to richmond to vallejo. the suspect was found shot to death in richmond. he was shot to death by the chp tuesday night after a high-speed chase. the body of his girlfriend was found in his car. police were after him for the murder a hercules man. his son is still missing. the decomposing bodies of two other women why found at a

vallejo home. terry mcsweeney with more on this complicated story. >> the hope for the man missing since saturday is fading with every passing moment. our first look at one of the murder victims and learning new and disturbing information about the surviving suspect. and that would be 72-year-old charles rittenhouse, lives in vallejo at a home where the deceased suspect valdamro also lived on and off. vallejo police tell us that during the search of rittenoust house's home where the bodies were found tuesday night, depleting uranium and if you have enough it can be used to make dirty bombs which can contaminate wide areas with radiation. arraignment expected tomorrow. another man police want to find, the son of this man, 35-year-old frederick salas is the man missing. you're looking at a picture of 73-year-old rick salas. his body was found saturday at a

home in hercules that valdamro also frequented and lived at from time to time. the son is still missing. >> they're continuing to follow leads as they develop speaking with family members and friends to possibly find out where he may be. but there is continued growing concern that his life may be in danger. >> as for a motive, police think they may have one. valdamro's love affair with 46-year-old cindy tran might be the root of it all. he thought she was having an fair with one of the salas family members. that would explain his activities there. and a high-speed chase ended tuesday night, officers shooting him and killing him with the strangled body of cindy tran. she wanted to reunite with the father of her three children. valdamro did not let that happen. the focus now turns to the sole surviving suspect who can

possibly tell officers more about what the bomb-making activity was going on at that house and exactly what led to the killings of the two women in vallejo. they don't seem to have the same kind of connection that valdamro as the other woman who was killed. live in hercules, terry mcsweeney abc 7 news. >> terry, thanks very much. a six-year-old salinas boy is in serious condition after an accidental shooting. officers responded to an apartment complex yesterday and found the boy suffering from a gunshot wound to the stomach. police say the child found the gun underneath his parents' bed. his 12-year-old brother tried to take away the weapon but it went off hitting the young boy. the boys were the only ones home at the time of the shooting. the parents could face charges for improper storage of a firearm. residents in the east bay felt a minor shake this morning. the 3.3 magnitude quake hit san pablo around 9:30 this morning. there are no reports of injuries

and damage. bart trains did briefly shut do you know to check for damage but everything is back on schedule. a public hearing is happening right now in san francisco on pg&e's controversial smart meters. an independent report on the meters was released in the last hour. the california public utilities commission hired an outside consultant to evaluate those meters after mounting complaints by consumers. many customers said their utility bills shot way up after smart meters were installed. the new report concluded the smart meters are working accurately but the report also identifies gaps in pg&e's customer service and handling of complaints. the investigators have been testing the meters the past five months and now say most of the billing complaints can be attributed to weather conditions which lead to higher energy usage and billing. many speaking at today's hearing are also speaking out about potential dangerous health effects of the meters. pg&e disputed those claims.

7 on your side's michael finney will have more on abc 7 news at 5:00 and 6:00. >> economic news. it appears hewlett-packard won the bidding contest for three par. today rival computer company dell walked away from the competition. dell conceded short lit after palo alto-based h. p. boosted its latest offer to more than $2 billion. the merger is for an h. p. strategy to grow more profitable lines of business outside the personal computer market (chanting) >> san francisco hotel workers demonstrated against the hyatt chain of hotels this morning. this was in san francisco. the hotel workers union said hyatt is trying to force contract concessions on them while the hospitality industry rebounds. the labor department says the number of people filing first-time unemployment claims

fell slightly last week but still remains well above the level that signalled a healthy economy. this is the second straight week that new jobless claims were lower. tomorrow the labor department will release its complete august employment report. federal reserve chairman ben bernanke testified that regulators must be ready to shut down the largest banking institutions if they threaten to bring down the nation's financial estimate. bernanke told the congressional commission investigating the 2008 economic meltdown that bailing out failing banks or investment firms is no longer a viable solution. he says the meltdown was triggered in part by investment and banking schemes that are too complex for regulators to understand. >> our bank regulatory system was decide for a financial system and that's where it came from. all these non-bank activities grew, we the country was not sufficiently proactive in establishing a regulatory framework to encompass all those aspects. >> the financial crisis

commission is issuing its final report in december. >> the face-to-face peace talks in washington between palestinian leaders are going so well they're agreeing to a second round. former senator george mitchell says the next session will take place in the middle east in two weeks and then every two weeks thereafter. john hendron reports. today president obama takes his first shot at the prize that has eluded his predecessors, middle east peace. >> if we do not make the attempt, then failure is guaranteed. >> in the firsth[u talks since gaza war of 2008 brought negotiations to a screeching halt, israeli prime minister and mahmoud ahmadinejad meet face-to-face to talk peace. >> you each have taken an important step towards freeing your people from the shackles of a history we cannot change. >> the goal, a settlement that ends israel's 43 year occupation

of the palestinian year territory within the year creating an independent palestinian state at peace with israel. >> together we can lead our people to a historic future that can put an end to claims and to conflict. >> vowed to resolve all outstanding conflicts, a goal that eluded presidents for decades, most recently george w. bush. >> it was later on in the presidency. that's the distinction with president obama. >> the distinction that gives obama two more years possibly to meet his goal. >> historic obstacles remain, including israeli settlements and violence in the west bank. >> developing news now. coast guard crews are converging

on an oil rig that exploded and caught fire today in the gulf of mexico and they say there's a mile long oil sheen spreading from the site. it's at louisiana west of the site where b.p.'s rig exploded in april. one person was hurt. moments ago louisiana's governor announced they just received word it is in fact an active platform but the company says it has been shut down. b.p.'s deep water horizon rig was in about 5,000 feet of water when it exploded and sank killing 11 workers and triggering a leak of about 2006 million gallons of oil. >> police officers in san carlos may be wearing different uniforms after today. >> plus from the campaign trails to the jury box, the trial that could put meg whitman's gubernatorial campaign on hold. >> and breaking the glass cececececececececececececececece

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>> closed captioning brought to you by mancini sleepwor in the santa cruz mountains all lanes on highway 17 near the summit reopened a short time ago after a beer truck accident caused a huge mess. witnesses say the tractor trailer hit an embankment after 6:00e(lx this morning. the southbound lanes were closed several hours as officials cleaned up the highway. there are roughly 15 minute delays but no one was injured. >> the san carlos city council

will vote on a proposal to outsource the police department to the sheriff's office. the proposal guarantees that all hired by the sheriff's department with most officers having an equal rank at the county level. they would receive a 5 to 10% pay raise. if approved the proposal will head to the county board of supervisors. >> republican and gubernatorial candidate meg whitman will find out today if she has to take a months off the campaign trail. wittman who is to report to the courthouse for possible jury duty. she'll hear the case of a 44-year-old man accused of molesting three boys including a nine-year-old he was trying to adopt. the trial is expected to take a month. >> a new analysis suggests that more young women are out-earning their male counterparts. according to the research firm reach advisers, the salaries for women 22 and 30 are 8% higher

than those of men in their peer group. young women in sacramento are doing even better. the survey says education is the key to women's success, especially among minorities. >> african american women and hispanic women are twice as likely than their male peers to graduate from college and that's what's driving such a big difference. >> women that earn the most are single and childless. the reason highly educated women tend to marry and have children later in life. >> lisa argen is in for mike this morning. >> 89 in san jose. fog lurking offshore. will it come in time to cool us off? i'll let now coming up. >> lisa, thanks. also coming up. >> a blessed harvest for us all. >> a century-old ceremony honors the vintner. >> plus vineless get a special

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♪ a hurricane warning was issued this morning for part of

the massachusetts coast, including nantucket as hurricane earl bears down on the eastern seaboard. the category 4 storm is headed to the coast to north carolina with winds topping 140 mph. thousands have left. the people who stay may have to tough it out for three days without help. >> if drifts slightly to the left it will bring the hurricane across the outer banks and the sounds of north carolina. >> the national guard is deploying troops and president obama has declared a state of emergency. >> so earl picked up steam a little overnight and lost a little this morning. >> just a little. not a direct hit on north carolina but the rainman already moving to the outer banks. winds moving into north carolina. i'll talk about where else it's going to affect in a moment. outside this is why we had a spare the air day. look at that dirty air. what higher pressure does when

it presses down on the atmosphere. particulates get compressed and trapped at the surface. very little wind, very little mixing and that is why we are baking today with poor air quality in our east bay valleys and also in the south bay. but a wind shift is beginning to occur along the coast. not soon enough though to cool you off anywhere outside the bay, just the immediate beaches. 79 san francisco, 82 oakland, 86 livermore and fairfield. so at this time yesterday, this is where we were in san francisco but we're 8 degrees warmer in oakland. 10 degrees warmer in san jose so this big dome of high pressure is not moving out of here yet but by later on today the winds kicking up out of the west and that will provide slightly cooler air today at the coast. another hot day inland and a cooling trend into part of the weekend but not all of the holiday weekend. i'll show you that on my seven-day outlook. so spare the air day today. i showed you why. look at the poor air quality in

the east bay and santa clara valley for one more day. we talked about earl. still a lot of activity in the pacific where fiona will be brushing bermuda later on. gascon not affecting anyone but earl now just downgraded to a hurricane 3 but still very, very dangerous. it has a very broad wind field, 60 to 90 mph wind field that will hit the outer banks of north carolina with very, very strong winds. a storm surge over 3 feet. the good news is it's starting to make a turn. it's going to be a quick-mover but by this time tomorrow it will be hitting cape cod, southern new england with some very strong winds as well. we'll have to watch that for you. still looking at high pressure. a strong area of high pressure. not ready to give up yet. and here's the fog just offshore. and it will begin to move in later on today. shallow though, only a couple hundred feet. 95 campbell, 90 sunnyvale.

redwood city, comfortable 70s ins sunset district. 81 downtown so just about the same. 94 sonoma, 68 bodega bay. 90 union city and out over the hills we're topping out around the century mark once again. fog late today. just very subtle changes today. overall bigger changes sunday but monday temperatures bump up a little bit and still cooler into the middle of next week. >> lisa, thanks. >> more news as eric said. san francisco muni operators are trying to block plans to restore service previously eliminated. the board voted to revoke half the cuts starting this weekend but the transport workers union claims muni did not properly meet with drivers about scheduling changes, including some with late night buses and trains. the union has asked the state board to impose an injunction that would stop muni from restoring service this weekend. >> a rabbi and a presbyterian

minister came together to bless the first grapes plucked from the vines in the east bay wine region. the livermore valley wine country is home to nearly 50 wineries. the area's annual blessing of the grapes took place this morning in livermore. >> for thousands of years, wine has played a central role in how men and women have understood the abundance of god's blessings in their lives no matter how skillfully we may practice our craft, at some point we must put our faith in the source of the grapes, the source of the weather, the source of the earth. >> the cool summer weather has pushed back the start of the harvest by about two to three weeks. growers expect to pick up 16,000 tons@ áh of wine grapes over t next two months. >> all right. it's your last chance to catch two

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today on oprah at 4:00, extreme makeovers for men. at 5:00, "7 on your side" seas michael finney at that public meeting we told you about where the safety and accuracy of smart meters is being debated. he'll tell us how pg&e will proceed with smart meters from this point on. and do you think your kitchens is squeaky clean. you might be surprised how many would fail a health inspection. those stories at 5:00. >> two popular shows end their run in the bay area this labor day weekend. >> arts and ents at the same time reporter don sanchez has what's hot. >> the 8th edition of the sausalito art festival is here. fine food and entertainment including jefferson starship. three days in sausalito.

>> cal shakes at the bold new production of macbeth at shakespeare theaters amphitheater ♪ >> theater works presents a saga of love under the tuscan sun. the light in the piazza, the center for the performing arts. the wine festival is a mardi gras type celebration. monday marin city's 13th annual blues and soul party features great music with performing stars of marin. they change young people's lives. ♪ >> peter pan is flying away. last chance to see it at the big tent on embarcadero park across from the ferry building. ♪ >> and the last weekend for the unforgettable wicked, a spectacular show in the or

orpheum theater. >> tuesday and wednesday the raz room, don sanchez, abc 7 news. >> lisa giving us a final check on the weather. >> looks like we're going to squeeze out one really hot day although we have fog lurking offshore. just a couple hundred feet stacked up, not enough to cool us down. a late-day sea breeze in the city so we see maybe low 80s downtown but the range continues to go up inland near 100 degrees but tomorrow 5 to 7 degrees of cooling. that's the trend through the early part of the weekend and a little bump up in temperatures for the holiday monday. >> low 80s downtown, just doesn't sound right. >> i know. oprah: santa claus. get out! mr. caveman. oprah: "project runway's" tim gunn strikes again. then, carson kressley hits the gunn strikes again. then, carson kressley hits the road in our "makeover my man"

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