derailed, causing commute headaches. concerned residents gather in neighborhoods all across the bay area to take a stand against crime. and san francisco seeks to put an end to plastic bags most everywhere. why some businesses are skeptical. >> it is tuesday, august 3. i'm heather holmes. this is bay area news at 7. we have breaking news to tell you about in the east bay tonight, where a freight train derailment has halted amtrak service between emeryville and jack london square in oakland. news chopper 2 is overhead where union pacific railroad freight train has derailed. about a mile west of the emeryville station. several cars jumped the tracks under the macarthur maze as you can see here from the live pictures, sending cargo

containers onto the rails. just a few minutes ago, the front section of that train pulled away. we have no word of possible injuries. amtrak says it's working to get passengers between the emeryville and oakland stations by bus, but riders should expect significant delays through this area. in another news tonight, amidst a festive back drop, hundreds of neighborhoods across the bay area are trying to send a message to criminals. the event is called national night out and in oakland, participation this year is said to be bigger than ever. ken wayne is live tonight in oakland with more. ken. >> reporter: heather, oakland city leaders just wrapped up their kickoff party at oakland city hall a short time ago. this is oakland's biggest ever night out. city leaders say last year, there were 419 night out block parties across oakland. this year there are 452. in all, more than 28,000 people signed up to participate in night out get togethers from the flat lands to the oakland

hills. the aim is to give people a chance to get to know their neighbors and reduce crime. despite oakland's well- documented reputation as a violent city, the police chief says crime rates have been going down in oakland over the last three years. >> the murder rate is down significantly. we are down pretty close to 18 to 20%, and crime in part 1 which is the most problematic crime level is down 18%. the first several months we were averaging 38% drops and 24% drops. now we're hovering about 20%. we're doing well right now. >> reporter: , still the layoffs of 80 police officers and possible layoffs of 120 more in coming months have many oakland residents worried. this is an election year and the three mayoral candidates we tacked with each say -- talked with each say they'll do their best to get the officers hired back and stop the pleading. the chief declined to say which candidate he'd like to see elected as mayor. he said simply he wants a mayor

who has a clear mission on fighting crime and gives him the tools to carry the mission out. live at oakland city call. ktvu. many national night out events are still under way at this hour. to view an extended list of bay area locations, go to ktvu.com and look in the right now section. a federal court ruling is expected tomorrow in the landmark trial over proposition 8 which bans same sex marriage here in california. the u.s. district court in san francisco made that announcement late that afternoon. judge vaughn walker heard arguments back in january over whether proposition 8 violates the constitutional rights of gays and lesbians. two same sex couples filed that lawsuit after voters approved the ballot measure in 2008. ktvu channel 2 news will have the court's decision as soon as it comes down. san francisco police say they are looking for a killer and a motive in the fatal stabbing of a man inside his home in the lower eight district. a coworker went to cheep on the

36-year-old phillip de martino at his house after de martino failed to show up at work. the coworker said he found de martino lying on the floor stapped multiple times in his chest. investigators say the stabbing may have happened during the weekend. police have not identified the killer. san francisco is taking initial steps to expand landmark legislation. it passed three years ago. that law prohibited big box retail stores from handing out plastic bags. now there are calls to broaden that band. our christian kaplan is live tonight in san francisco with details. christian. >> reporter: san francisco was the first city in the country to ban retail plastic bags like this one but there were exceptions to that ban. one san francisco supervisor is determined to change that. >> today, i am introducing an ordinance that bans plastic bags entirely in san francisco. >> supervisor ross mcramey says the new order fant nance would

act in concert with the existing plastic bag law. currently major retailers are limited to offering customers paper bags, compositable bags and reusable bags. small businesses are allowed to use plastic. the odd nance would limb -- ordinance would eliminate that exemption. >> this would be the strong northwest the united states. >> reporter: mackramey's ordinance is already picking up support from the mayor. >> what was an exception or exemption with the smaller retailers. people all the time are going i thought you banned plastic bags but this store is providing it in closes that remaining loophole. >> reporter: mcramey is also working on a companion ordinance which would require stores to charge customers 5 cents for paper bags. so far retailers aren't saying they are going to fight the changes but some would like to see help with the transition. >> perhaps if the government wants to us change the way we do business, they should give us a good monetary incentive. perhaps they could cut all our -- our business fees in half.

>> reporter: and supervisor mcramey says he is anticipating an even big i remember challenge down the road. >> we expect blow back from the plastics industry and the grosser industry. the very same people that try to oppose us four years ago. >> reporter: mcramey hopes the ban will be in place by next march. there are still a few exceptions such as the use of plastic on pre-wrapped food, wet items and dry cleaners and newspaper delivery. live in san francisco, ktvu. san francisco muni riders can expect a boost in service beginning september 4th. the transit agency said today it will restore 61% of the service cuts it made back in may. officials say local tax -- local sales tax revenues and regional transportation funds are making the service restoration possible, along with operational changes to increase the system's efficiency. a c transit bus passengers

had another rough commute as a labor dispute continued between management and drivers. about 150 bus drivers called in sick today. a number the union disputes. this move comes one day after a judge tossed out a contract that the agency imposed on its drivers. a.c. transit has one week to reinstate that old contract. meantime, passengers say they're bear the brunt of this dispute. >> people got to go to school. kids, and parents have to go to work. you know. it's pretty, pretty ridiculous. >> how was the service today? >> kind of bad. >> why? >> i don't know. just slow. >> reporter: a.c. transit says reinstate the old contract will cost the agency $300,000 a week, and could lead to service cuts. san jose voters are set to decide in november whether to tax medical marijuana dispense res. the city council today voted to put a measure on the november ballot that would create a 10%

tax on the gross receipts of cannabis clubs. if approved san jose would have the highest tax on medical marijuana in the state. dispensaries say the tokes is too high and puts an undue burden on patients. some opponents say the clubs shouldn't be in business at all. the california governor's race is on course to seat record when it comes to spending money. republican meg whitman spent almost $100 million through june 30th, according to campaign finance records just released. 91 million of that came out of whitman's own pocket. the records indicate democrat jerry brown has spent 450,000 through june 30th. despite the imbalance in spending, a recent ktvu field poll showed brown with a 3- point lead over whitman. oakland police are searching for a bank robber whether they say hit the same bank branch twice. the robberies happened today and back on june 29th at the wells fargo branch on mountain

boulevard in the montclaire district. a bank surveillance camera caught this picture of the robbery suspect. police say he is an african american man, 25 to 35 years old, about 5' 9 inches tall, weighing 180 pounds. there is a $5000 reward for information leading to his arrest. the el dorado county sheriff's office says an 11- year-old boy who collapsed and died during football practice had an undetected rare heart defect. the boy was participating last night in the first practice of the season in the sierra foothills town of garden valley when he lost consciousness. the boy is identified as andrew jacob lampiere. his grandfather says paramedics were unable to revive him. >> he walked up to his coach and told his coach he wasn't feeling good. he was playing football. and just a few seconds after that, he passed out, and they lost his heartbeat, and they brought him back, and then they lost it again. >> reporter: g the sheriff's

department says an autopsy found that thickening of the boy's heart muscle caused his death. doctors say the condition often goes undiagnosed, especially among children, because most show no symptoms. an arizona manufacturer of electronic cigarettes is settling a state justice department lawsuit involving marketing to minors. they make n joy brand electronic cigarettes. it has agreed to stop selling its products to minors and stop selling all flavored varieties. the company also agreed it would not make claims from that the veiner from the battery operated device is safer than cigarette smoke. dozens of fishing industry leaders from california to the east coast met with the nation's top fishery managers in d.c. to discuss troubles in the fishery law enforcement system. the national oceanic and atmosphericked a tradition or noaa is responsible for enforcing fishery laws. a recent government report accused that agency of

mismanagement, misspending and levying questionable finds. noaa has since implemented changes including ones intended to better track fines. the number of sea otters along the west coast appears to have declined for a second consecutive year. the u.s. geological survey estimates there are 2700 otters off the west coast, down 3.6% from last year. the scientists say many factors, including disease, predators and a shortage of food, may be to blame for the decrease. the otters are listed as threatened under the federal endangered species act. tons of knock-off merchandise sold as the real deal. in one of the bay area's most popular tourist destinations. coming up on bay area news at 7, what authorities are saying about this massive counterfeiting ring. >> and a grim financial out look puts flight schedules into upheaval for major airlines service the bay area and mexico. the fog a big player in your forecast the past few weeks and it continues that way for your .

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>> oakland airport put its first full body scanner into operation today at terminal 1. oakland joins san jose and san francisco airports in using the advanced imaging technology units. the transportation security administration says screeners view the x-ray images in a separate area to ensure passenger privacy. the agency also says the pictures are deleted after screening. airport officials say tsa will install four more screeners at oakland's terminal 2 next month. the f.b.i. is telling san francisco-biased wikipedia to remove an image of the f.b.i. seal from its web page about the agency. the f.b.i. has sent them a letter warn the seal is being used without

authorize ration. but wikipedi a's lawyer says he is ready to fight. he says laws concerning the use of the f.b.i. seal are meant to keep people from making phoney badges, not to prevent nonprofits from displaying it. federal investigators announced they busted a huge counterfeitting ring operating in the heart of san francisco's most popular tourist destination. they say some store owners at fisherman's would have been schemed to sell knock off merchandise for10 of millions. david has the details. >> reporter: with the golden gate bridge as a back drop, immigrations and custom enforcement officials this morning offered up a fashion show of fake goods. these are there ate fisherman's wharf stores. watches, channel purses. guy fend expism pradi. just a sampling of the 70 brands and 270,000 counterfeit items that were shipped in from china and would have been worth $100 million if they were the

real deal. >> counterfeitting badly undermines the united states economy. it robs americans of jobs. it stifles innovation. and it promotes crime. >> reporter: the investigation began in december, 2007, when inspectors at the port of oakland interpreted what they call a -- enter septembered what they call a suspicious shipping container bound for a fisherman's wharf store. that led to a two year undercover operation in which agents raided eight different wharf store and arrested 10 store owners and clerks. this store is next to one of the alleged counterfeit outlets. he said it hurt the walk in business. >> a lot of times they ask me if the mids is the real thing. if it's real canon, real sony. i have to prove myself. >> reporter: federal officials say 11 people, including two illegal immigrants, have been indicted on multiple counts of conspiracy, smuggling, and trafficking of counterfeit goods. permanents on those charges range as -- penalties range as high as 20 years in prison. in san francisco, david stevenson.

most auto makers today reported an increase in u.s. sales prompting speculation that the auto industry may be undergoing a gradual recovery. every major auto maker except for ford and daimler said july sales were up compared to the previous month when there was a slow down. chrysler and general motors reported a slight rise in sales. foreign-based companies including nissan, vox waggen and toyota saw the largest monthly sales increases. toyota's gaines came as the company offered promotions to lure customers after recalling 9 and a half million vehicles. ford reported flat sales while daimler said sales were down 5%. wall street's recent run up stalled today due in part to disappointing earnings at proctor & gamble and dow chemical. along with slower consumer spending. mexicana airlines is spending or rerouting some flights between mexico and the bay area after filing for bankruptcy.

the airline has suspended its fly fright to oakland. flights from oakland, san jose and san francisco are being routed through mexico city. mexicana says it was forced to file for bankruptcy after failing to reach a labor agreement width' pilots and flight attendants. police say a connecticut man about to lose his job went on a shooting rampage today, killing eight people before taking his own life. the teamster's union identified the gunman as omar thornton. a driver for a beer and wine distributor in manchester, connecticut. police say thornton was going to a meeting with management at the beer warehouse at 7 this morning when he opened fire. 8 people were killed and two others were wounded before thornton then killed himself. his union said thornton had been caught on video stealing beer. a recent solar flare-up could cause some rather heavenly sights. and scientists say that increased activity is only the beginning. as jim vargas reports, the

phenomenon could cause all kinds of problems during the comes months. >> reporter: this animation depicts a solar mass ejection where tons of solar plasma are blasted into space. the first was due to reach earth tonight. it's nuclear and dangerous. much of it is deflected by the earth's magnetic shield. the closer to the poles someone is the brighter the shows. they're called the northern and southern lights >> if you live in the north of the united states you might be able to see the northern lights from areas you might not normally see them from. it's possible you might be able to see the northern lights from parts of california. >> reporter: astronomers at the space and science center were showing the people the sun today using heavy gauge filters. the dark spot on the sun is where sunday's ejection took place. it's about the size of earth. some scientists say when the solar activity intensifies in late 20 12s and 2013, the effects on earth could be big. it's called the solar maximum. >> a much stronger ejection or

solar flare could cause things like a blackout, radio communications could go down. it could disrupt some satellites. it could actually cause some biological damage to astronauts. >> reporter: but not at they se these days. >> what did you think of what you saw? >> it was kind of cool? >> kind of cool. do you believe that little spec you saw was the size of the earth? >> not really. >> you don't believe it? >> very small. >> reporter: scientists aren't exactly sure what is going to happen in the next few years but some are predicting the most intense solar maximum in more than half a century and that could cause real problems on earth. in oakland, jim vargas, channel 2 news. apparently, this time the rumors are really, really true. legendary quarterback brett farve will reportedly hang up his cletes after 19 nfl seasons. this is according to minnesota vikings sources. who tell the associated press that farve plans to retire rather than return for the 2010 season.

farve, so far, has not made an official announcement one way or the other. and neither has the team. at 40 years old, farve had one of his best seasons ever last year. with the vikings. i say stay tuned on that one. next on the news at 7, are you looking for work and have a sense of how manier? one of the nation's leading circuses puts out a call for clowns. and will the bay area's cooling trend conned? chief meteorologist 7 is brough to you by citibank. citi never sleeps. [ man i was deciding what to do with my citi thankyou points when it happened [ glass breaks ...again. ♪ [ child run! [ man first it was the mailbox. then my squirrel. and now, this. so i used my points to make a donation to get the park down the street built. when it finally opened, i also used my points for... car repair. [ male announcer use your citi thankyou points for almost anything, even local charities. what's your story? citi can help you write it.

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>> south san jose, the lake will likely remain clough close at least until mid august due to an unhealthy algae bloom. the lake was closed to swimmers on july 23 when the algae first appeared. today they announced bacteria levels in the lake remain too high to allow people back into the water. the lake shore and the rest of the park will remain open to the public. i don't know if you want to even get in the water now. it's so cold. >> it has been. >> it's warmer in san jose than here in oakland. >> still. chilly fog in the morning hours and fog again tomorrow morning. and the next couple mornings. that keeps temperatures cooler than you'd expect in the santa clara valley. outside, the temperature profile, the winds are doing this. a westerly wind pushing the cool marine air. sea surface temperatures rupper 50s, so we're seeing cooler air

infiltrate the valleys. the air is stopping about there, isn't it. not really into the big valley. temperatures are working their way into the 90s easily. that's how it's going to be. the heat is in the valley. 91 today in anti yoke and liver moore, and the mild cooler weather is in the bay proper. the fog you had this morning will be there again tomorrow. how quickly it burned off this morning it will burn off less quickly tomorrow. a cooler day tomorrow. if you had fog until 9, you'll have it until 9:30, 10 tomorrow. something like that. the forecast highs very similar to today except a degree or two cooler. the forecast model shows temperatures, actually the model, and makes the 90s into reds. that's where the heat is. there is the daytime high. you still see that temperature footprint, that cool, moist air. you know, firefighters love this. air qualify management loves this. it's a great pattern if you are trying to save energy on your air conditioning. it really cools the bay valley,

especially adjacent the bay. morning fog will be in san mateo tomorrow. 54 degrees when you wake up. 62 degrees at lunchtime. that's kind of cool. san mateo, 70 degrees at 3:00. beautiful the city of san mateo. old city. been around a long time. forecast highs, 85 in clear lake, 72 in kenfield. your forecast highs in the east bay where i'd expect 90s, mid 80s. we saw a couple of 90s today, but not tomorrow. temperatures coming down. more fog, slower burn-off. mild temperatures. 81 in gilroy, 84 in morgan hill. 62 in daly city and downtown san francisco, 62 degrees. the five-day forecast, mild and cool. see you at 10. >> thanks, bill. 14 people who want to run away with the circus. they got a chance to try out this morning in san francisco. ringling brothers and barnum & bailey's clown college held auditions for clown hopefuls. applicants had to make faces, demonstrate athletic skills, and of course, makes the judges

laugh. san francisco is one of three try-outs in the u.s. this year. circus officials say six of those who tried out today were silly enough to make the cut as clowns. good luck to them. >>this's our report. tmz is next on tv 36. see you at 10.

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