out of a job and wouldn't be able to provide for my family. >> reporter: wilson too is leaving. many fear more will follow suit. a memo issued by the city's department of retirement services estimates 186 san jose police officers will be eligible for retirement in the next two years. potentially cutting the police force to unprecedented and alarming lows. >> unfortunately it's not shocking. but it's very disturbing. and i think it's something that all residents of san jose should know about in terms of what's been happening and what continues to happen to our police department. >> reporter: but the deputy city manager says an audit showed the city was spending a ton of money on officers retiring on disability. he says the city's willing to work with the police officers association on a compromise. >> going even as far as saying we'd pay them the same rate of pay as a police officer even if the position is lesser-paying job.

>> reporter: -- a short time ago. we'll tell you what he has to say about all of this at 6:00. >> we look forward to it. a south bay city has come up with a new plan for halting a very big problem, copper theft which is now a multi-million dollar issue statewide. in gilroy, christmas tree park, the home of the gilroy garlic festival, is one of many parks damaged by thieves over the past two years. as marianne favro explains city leaders are ready to spend big to stop it from happening again. >> reporter: this is christmas hill park where the gilroy garlic festival is held every year. recently thieves stole copper wire from this box. that costs the city $145,000. now gilroy plans to hire security guards to prevent that from happening again. in november, baseball season here at christmas hill park in gilroy had to be put on hold for two weeks because there were no lights. after the park was hit by copper

thieves. those thieves didn't just target this park but several others as well. by the time the wires were replaced and repairs made, the city was stuck with a big bill. >> over the last two, two and a half years, we have suffered the loss of nearly $300,000 in copper wire theft. >> reporter: now the city is fighting back. the council approved shelling out $60,000 to hire several private security guards to patrol most of gilroy's 16 parks overnight. >> after the losses that they've had, i think $60,000 is well worth it compared to what they've already lost. they help prevent future losses of that type. >> reporter: with copper wiring going for about $3 a pound at scrap yards, copper wire thefts are up across the state. between 2005 and 2011, pg&e lost an estimated $5 million to copper theft. here in gilroy the new security guards won't just be keeping an eye on the wires here, they'll be on the lookout for vandals at

city parks. a gas leak shut down a neighborhood in san jose this afternoon. it happened around 11:15 near the intersection of tully and ruby avenue. within a half mile radius of that leak, all the streets were closed as well. five homes evacuated and others in the area were told to shelter in place. the leak was capped around 3:15 p.m. body fire crews and pg&e responded. the rupture turns out was caused by a construction company doing work in that area. tomorrow night marks one week since the rampage near uc santa barbara. tonight there are several key developments. they've learned santa barbara county sheriff's department didn't find out about elliot rogers' youtube video or his manifesto until an hour after the rampage ended. authorities say they discovered it after speaking with rogers' mother. a family spokesman said the parents tried to get help for their son, put him in therapy at

age 9. a family spokesperson said the parents are devastated. >> he had been living another life for a number of years. again, this is what i understand. his manifesto he started to write three years ago. and this was a different person than even i met. >> that was on the "today" show this morning. for the first time a response from the parents of elliot roger. "we are crying in pain for the victims and their families. the feeling of knowing that it was our son's actions that caused the tragedy can only be described as hell on earth. it is now our responsibility to do everything we can to help avoid this happening to any other family." from santa barbara to san jose, the south bay is getting ready to honor one of the young victims. leland high school is expecting more than 1,000 at tonight's candlelight vigil for george chen. among them his family, including his grandmother. he graduated from leland high

two years ago. he and two others were stabbed to december by their roommate elliot roger before the shootings began. the vigil will be tonight at 8:30 at the school's main quad. candles will be provided. a bay area survivor, nick passachuck, out of the hospital tonight. he was one of 13 injured last friday. roger rammed his bmw into him, breaking both his legs. he's a water polo player at oup in stockton. he was visiting a friend during the rampage. stay with us for continuing coverage of this story. both on-air and online at nbcbayarea.com. just in, the former ceo of microsoft may have won a bidding war to buy the l.a. clippers. according to the "l.a. times" steve balmer offered $2 billion for the team. that potential sale comes five days ahead of an nba hearing to oust the sterling family from its ownership after audio

recordings involving disgraced team owner donald sterling. the tentative deal needs approval from sterling as well as the 29 other nba owners. injured giants fan bryan stow is taking on the l.a. dodgers in civil court claiming team security failed to protect him and prevent the beating that left him with permanent brain damage. stowe was in court during jury selection but didn't attend today's opening statements. his suit claims he and his friends were talk abounted beca they were giants fans and there was no usher in his section. his attorney also claims two security guards assigned to the parking lot where stowe was attacked were absent. the dodgers maintain the team had its largest security force ever for opening day. stowe's two attackers were sentenced to prison earlier this year. keeping an eye on crime in the east bay, a new proposal to install surveillance cameras goes before the fremont city council next month. that proposal would place cameras and license plate readers at dozens of

intersections including one by the stevenson boulevard exit onto north bound 880. officers say the cam cameras were help prevent crime and catch suspects. last october privacy concerns prompted city leaders to reject another camera plan. california could soon have the highest minimum wage in the country. a bill approved by the state senate today would set minimum wage at 13 bucks an hour by the year 2017. tipped workers would also make $13 an hour. after 2017, minimum wage would rise each year to keep pace with inflation. california's minimum wage is already set to jump to $9 an hour this july. the bill now heads to the assembly. new details on the growing claim that some of san francisco's neediest citizens are being pushed out of their homes by their landlords. these evictions using a legal maneuver the ellis act could mean problems for renters in all bay area cities. mark matthews joins us in the city to explain the problem and the new proposal to stop it.

>> reporter: we've seen the protests and the anger directed at tech company employees over long-term san francisco residents being evicted out of their houses as prices go up. some of the big tech companies like twitter and zynga have gotten behind the mayor of san francisco and san francisco's state senators to come up with an idea that would have stopped many of those evictions. the bill came up for vote yesterday. and was shot down. >> i'm a senior on disability. >> reporter: 65-year-old patricia is being evicted from the flat she's lived in for 28 years. >> my income is a little over $900 a month. >> reporter: she splits rent with three roommates are she doesn't drive, can't afford anything else in the neighborhood. >> my doctors are here. my support groups are here. my friends. and, i mean, this is -- san francisco's been my home since 1970. >> reporter: the company that owns the building is evicting her because they want to get out

of the rental business and sell the property. under a law passed in sacramento, the ellis act, landlords have that right. but tenant rights activists say it has opened a loophole for speculators. >> well, it's a almost hole you can drive thousands of units through. that's what's happened. >> reporter: speculators buy a building, dump the tenants, then sell the property as condos. and the displaced are moving out of san francisco. >> they end up settling in alameda, in san mateo, in santa clara. >> reporter: anywhere where the rents are more affordable and thereby increasing the demand on rental housing in those other communities. mark leno's bill would have prevented serial evictions but it lost by three votes. san francisco's apartment association one of the real estate groups that opposed the bill. >> we believe that there should be no protection on an owner's ability to sell their building. >> reporter: the vote went down, leno's bill defeated. but within the past hour, a key

opponent, senator jerry hill of san mateo, changed his vote. mark leno has been on the senate floor for the past hour offering up amendments. within the last 30 minutes there was a new vote and the bill passed 21-13. we still don't know the details of exactly what happened on the senate floor. we are gathering them for you now. we will have an update coming up at 6:00. reporting from city hall, mark matthews, nbc bay area news. coming up, slapped with a fine. the tv commercial that got southwest airlines in trouble with the feds. law enforcement on a special mission. the honored guest that attracted a lot of attention in the south bay. it's really exciting. but it's also really scary at times. >> and she knows, how do you spell success? this bay area teen's got the answer. the word that sent her to the national spelling bee finals coming up. good afternoon.

i'm jeff ranieri. we're tracking a cooling system getting closer to the coastline. we'll let you know how much this fog and a bit of drizzle will mean and those temperatures for the weekend coming up. google on the cutting edge of technology. in one way it's stuck in the past. >> if you're interested in having more women in your business you need to change. >> why other ce os and universities are calling out the company over who it hires. first, mike honda stubbornly refused all debates. now honda's slinging mud, launching false attacks. isn't it time to put the old politics aside? the chronicle endorses ro khanna, saying he "offers an upgrade in congress for silicon valley." and the mercury news says, "ro khanna is ready for the congress of tomorrow... ...while honda is a politician of the past." for our future: ro khanna.

khanna: i'm ro khanna and i approve this message.

teacher layoffs. and a 60 billion dollar budget deficit. that's what john perez faced when he became speaker of the california assembly. so he partnered with governor brown to pass three balanced budgets, on time. for the first time in thirty years. today, the deficits are gone and we've invested an additional 2 billion dollars in education. now john perez is running for controller, to keep fighting for balanced budgets. democrat john perez for controller. san francisco police say this man was driving drunk when he hit and pinned a man under his car at a gas station. that happened at 3:30 this morning at the chevron station on 24th and geary in the outer richmond district. firefighters used a jack to rescue the man trapped under the car. he did suffer a serious head injury but he is expected to

survive. it was quite a sight. on every freeway overpass from san jose to los gatos they were there honoring american heroes. >> an emotional tribute for world war ii prisoners of war. in a story you'll see only on nbc bay area, damian trujillo roll along on the rolling thank you to these warriors. >> thank you for your service. >> thank you, sir. >> reporter: greeted at the san jose hyatt by the flag they helped defend. a tribute befitting their heroics. >> i ended up in the slave labor in the philippines -- or in japan. >> i got many slaps alongside the head, open-handed mostly. i got many knots on my head. >> reporter: these men were all prisoners in what most call "the war," known by history as world war ii. randall edwards and oscar

leonard were imprisoned by the japanese for wearing the uniform of the united states. >> water. that is all we had. >> to eat? >> i don't remember any food. but i won't say we didn't have any, but i don't remember any. >> reporter: the world war ii vets are in town for the annual convention of descent desend dents group. the american heroes were treated like royalty. they hopped aboard special buss and were escorted throughout the south bay by the rolling thunder motorcycle club and by san jose's finest. >> it's such an honor to do this. i can't imagine why somebody wouldn't want to do this. >> reporter: cars on the highway cleared the lanes for them. and during the trip, each man was given another moving tribute. on every overpass from san jose to los gatos, firefighters from several agencies stood at attention, saluting those who survived the worst of times.

arriving in los gatos, a welcome and a thank you. many of them spent days without food. this meal at c.b. hanagan's is on the house, a thank you for members of the greatest generation. >> very nice. the flight to india is long, getting a travel visa might be even longer. the anger and confusion continues tonight at the indian consulate in san francisco. some families took turns waiting in line for days. this woman all smiles. she was relieved. visas aren't normally processed at the consulate. they're making an exception after computer problems delayed the company which is hired to do the job. it also has lines of applicants at its bush street building. there's a big difference in people's reactions depending on whether they were successful in getting visas. >> they've all been cordial, friendly. situations are difficult and

everybody's trying to do something different but they're really trying to accommodate it. >> it's so much hassle for every single person who comes here. and they don't understand. >> it is a process right now. the consulate staff for the indian consulate is working late tonight to handle the backlog. busted for bogus discounts. southwest airlines faces $300,000 in fines. according to the department of transportation, the airline advertised $59 flights from los angeles to chicago, as well as from new york to atlanta, back in october. however, the transportation department says southwest didn't make any seats available at that price. the government says the ads were deceptive. according to southwest, it did honor the $59 fare for customers who asked about it. ready for this? the cupertino teen who made the cut. >> she is one of top 12 finalists in the national spelling bee. here she is in action. >> g-l-a-u-c-e-s-c-e-n-t.

>> correct. >> correct? i knew that. who doesn't know how to spell that. excellent, actually. for the record, it means a powdery coating giving a frosted appearance, such as on a plum. the student from cupertino said she knew that obscure word. >> i knew all the words i got so far in the oral round. i was pretty happy about it. >> very low key. no pressure. >> we are hiring for news writers at nbc. more pressure tonight. she's fine under pressure. the finals are televised, national tv on espn, we'll hear more from her at 6:00. let's turn things over to jeff ranieri. he's going to spell meteorologist for us. >> i am? ha. i was prepared to spell "sunny."

as we head for the san francisco bay, windy now, winds out of the southwest at airplane miles per hour. the other thing is this white layer here, that's that low-level moisture, a sign of the fog beginning to build in. onshore flow returns and fog back in the forecast at the coastline as early as tonight. a look across the rest of the sky camera networks and plenty of blue sky across san jose. this is one of the best shots right now at 5:19. our interactive monitor, you can see 80 across the santa clara valley. we do want to alert you of some larger changes in the forecast the next two days. we're going to find here, this trough of low pressure is not as strong as it originally looked earlier this week. it will bring us some cooling. but temperatures aren't expected to drop as much for saturday and sunday. you'll get a preview on that scrolling seven-day forecast

bottom of your screen. the trough of low pressure moves closer. not only fog building back at the coastline, temperatures drops. it looks like right now we're dealing with about a 75% chance of some coastal drizzle coming back into the mix, primarily as we head into early friday morning and also for saturday. the fogcast, you can see tomorrow morning the biggest change again is not only cloud cover across the northern coastline all the way down to santa cruz, but areas of low clouds computers are picking up on in the north bay, east way, santa clara valley. throughout the bay we'll see that fog line hold steady right at the immediate coastline. so yes, there's still a lot of sunshine in that forecast for the interior valley, santa rosa to napa to livermore to san jose. if you're heading to the coastline, expect fog. as we head throughout saturday morning it's going to be another cloudy day as you wake up. maybe on the early side on saturday at 6:00 a.m. kind of an excuse to just sleep in, grab an extra cup of coffee, maybe read the paper a little bit longer.

the microclimate forecast throughout friday, we'll have plenty of sunshine here tomorrow. notice temperatures down 4 to 6 degrees from what we experienced today. san jose 76. a bit warmer in saratoga, 77. for the peninsula, 68 in san mateo. 75 in palo alto. san francisco not only low 60s for the embarcadero, but check it out for the marina. 58 degrees. the napa valley, dropping to 77. still comfortable. and we take you to sausalito, 65. the ferry from san francisco to sausalito, you'll need that jacket. the tri-valley, likely some of the warmest temperatures in pleasanton with 78. so for the weekend, it looks like saturday will see temperatures on the cooler side. then by sunday, we've got 82 in the south bay. for the north bay it will warm to 85. so raj and jess, looking for something to do this week? "sunset" magazine celebration weekend in menlo park, temperatures look awesome saturday and sunday.

i think i might head there this weekend. >> i went a couple of years ago, it is phenomenal, a fun place to go. kids 11 and under free too i think. >> pick me up, we'll go together. just ahead, no longer on the run. the public place this man visited and how he ended up in handcuffs. better check your pantry. a health warning about several products made here in the bay area.

ford is recalling more than 1 million cars here in north america. the company says 208 to 2011ed for escapes and mercury mariners could have problems with power steering. some of the 2011 to 2013 explorers could have similar issues. ford says six people have been

hurt and there have been five crashes because of this problem. ford is notifying its customers. a statewide salmonella warning for three food products made in the bay area. naveda naturals chia powder, omega blend powder mix, and william sonoma mega smoothie mixer infected with salmonella. at least one person has been hospitalized. health officials say the chia powder may be the source of the illnesses. an alert security officer helped nab a wanted man at a high school graduation. the officer recognized andrew mcbride sitting in the crowd at pal toe alto high school. we don't know why he was there and who he was visiting. at the end of the ceremony police moved in to make that arrest. mcbride took off returning. police ended up catching him. mcbride had warrants for robbery, grand theft, burglary, resisting arrest, and violating probation. climbing, running, lifting

all in a day's work for a s.w.a.t. team. this time no lives are in danger. 39 california cities and counties are competing in the s.w.a.t. fitness challenge in san leandro. all proceeds go to san leandro's george mark house, a hospice which provides care for seriously ill children. the big prize of course is the bragging rights. >> that is a big prize. tuesday, san francisco. wednesday, san jose. where was the hidden cache today? the answer is next.

first, mike honda stubbornly refused all debates. now honda's slinging mud, launching false attacks. isn't it time to put the old politics aside? the chronicle endorses ro khanna, saying he "offers an upgrade in congress for silicon valley." and the mercury news says, "ro khanna is ready for the congress of tomorrow... ...while honda is a politician of the past." for our future: ro khanna. khanna: i'm ro khanna and i approve this message.

we'll be back in half an hour. coming up at 6:00, an unlikely pairing in san francisco. why snoop dogg and joe montana are teaming up to fight violence. the generous self-proclaimed millionaire has taken a show on the road. tuesday in san francisco, yesterday in san jose, today l.a. the hidden cache somewhere under the smog in the southland. the clue sent via twitter, one man found 250 bucks last night. >> he upped the money. >> another clue was tweeted about four hours ago indicating the next drop would happen around 7:00. about 90 minutes from now. somewhere down south in l.a. the hidden cache give-away, thousands of dollars thus far in the bay area in the last few days. now it's somewhere in los angeles. >> giving more money in los angeles, cost of living is more here, should have been the other way around. >> crunching the numbers. >> i'm just saying. >> thanks for joining us here at

5:00, "nightly news" is next. on our broadcast tonight, paper trail, tonight the fallout from our interview with edward snowden. did he alert his superiors to his concerns before pulling off the largest intelligence theft in american history? tonight the nsa has come out with a document. can he survive the drum beat now deafening over 100 members of congress, calling for the man in charge of the va to resign. high anxiety, 103 stories over chicago, thrill seekers out on a ledge and then suddenly the sound of cracks beneath their feet. and the graduates, tonight is the night, time for our solute to the class of 2014. "nightly news" begins now. >> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly