him up early. >> if he's joking, it isn't funny. >> reporter: again, we want to clarify so far none of the threats across the country have been deemed credible. but certainly they have been disruptive, as i mentioned. now, we learned late today another local school district, the oakland unified school district, has also received threats. they say they will also increase patrols at schools tomorrow. police are also urging parents to talk to your children. they say nobody should be engaging with the folks that are posting these threats online. they say that could just encourage the poster, and also put themselves at risk. reporting live in fairfield, i'm jodi hernandez, nbc bay area news. in the south bay, a courtroom shocker. san jose man told the judge he's guilty of assaulting and killing cats he found around his neighborhood. this is the man caught on surveillance camera chasing a cat. people who lost their pets say a guilty plea is not enough.

nbc bay area's rick boon is live outside the hall of justice in san jose with what they want. rick. >> reporter: hey, janelle. what they want, they want this guy to spend the rest of his life in jail. this shocker today comes almost exactly a year to the date that robert farmer was picked up, arrested for all these crimes. in court today, he admitted to everything. he says even though he admits he did it, they're not letting him off the hook. 25-year-old robert farmer and his attorneys made a last-minute decision in court just before new evidence was set to be added in the cases against him. farmer admitted to 21 counts of felony animal cruelty in which he assaulted and murdered more than 20 cats. >> we never found the body. >> reporter: her 17-year-old cat, go, go, was one of farmer's first victims. surveillance video captured farmer in the act as he chased and picked up the cat from the

neighborhood. >> just took our sense of safety. because he took it from us. >> reporter: the 25-year-old was finally found and arrested in october, 2015 as he slept in his car. police found a cat's body in the vehicle and several cat collars. a year later, only four of the animal bodies have been recovered. and those victims' families tonight are now going out to facebook to reach that judge, because as of right now, farmer could face up to 16 years in prison. but they wanted to be a whole lot more. they're asking folks to go to their facebook page, save our cat z, c-a-t-z. rick boone, nbc bay area news. the loma fire continues to burn near los gatos, but today more help on the way. santa clara county supervisors have approved emergency funds to help the rebuilding process. here's what it means. by declaring a local emergency,

it allows both the county and the homeowners to apply for additional state and federal help. and from the fire lines now, all evacuations have been lifted. it's now 92% contained. crews hope to have it fully surrounded by this saturday. we're also tracking a developing story on the east coast and caribbean. hurricane matthew ripping through haiti today, killing at least nine people. this force of nature is far from over. heavy downpours damaged hundreds of homes in haiti. nearly 18,000 people have been evacuated. flooding and mudslides are also a concern in nearby cuba. this violent storm might also hit the united states. the governor in south carolina has already declared a state of emergency there, and is planning for more than 1 million people to be evacuated from the coast. there's also a hurricane watch for southern florida. a lot happening here. let's bring in our chief meteorologist, jeff ranieri, who has covered many hurricanes. jeff, what are the key factors

here? >> the flooding rains damaging winds, because it's so widespread. currently winds of 140-mile-an-hour. and, again, for folks in florida, this is where it is coming all too close to a potential landfall. right now we have it possibly parallel to west palm beach by thursday at 2:00 p.m., winds of 130 miles per hour. also parallel to jacksonville and daytona beach by friday at 2:00 p.m. as a category 3 storm system. and remember, a slight shift in this off towards the west, and we could be talking about that catastrophic florida landfall. so there will be some evacuations going into place. this possibly then moving up to north carolina by saturday for landfall. winds of 100 miles per hour. maybe even holding together by sunday up here towards long island as a category 1 storm. i'll have details back here at home and a possible pattern change and rain for us. that's in about 15 minutes. >> okay, jeff. see you shortly. this is also a concern if you're flying to or from the

east coast this weekend. you can track hurricane matthew right there on our home page. the wind speed and category changes as it moves through the atlantic. that's at nbcbayarea.com. now to some election news. we are less than an hour away from the one and only vice presidential debate. a live look inside the auditorium at long wood university in virginia where the candidates face off. republican vp nominee, mike pence, the governor of indiana, arrived at the campus a couple hours ago. for democrat tim kaine, this is a homecoming for the senator from virginia. both men say they are ready. >> it's not about knowing more facts. it really is more about the tone. >> hillary clinton's record on foreign affairs alone could take up the whole 90 minutes. >> tonight's debate an opportunity for both men to introduce themselves to americans, energize their parties, and potentially sway the pool of undecided voters. no vice presidential debate in modern times has made a measurable difference in a presidential race, but this is

no ordinary race. you can watch the vice presidential debate live, right here on nbc bay area. it starts at 6:00 right after "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. raj? >> janelle, thank you. cold, hard numbers. the city audit presented today further exposes the police shortage in san jose. there is now a push to sell voters on a new plan to help the embattled sjpd. nbc bay area's robert handa joins us. what's the plan? >> reporter: well, you know, it's probably not going to surprise too many people that the police department has a staffing problem. but the actual numbers do drive home the severity of the situation, but will it be enough to sway voters? >> -- >> reporter: the san jose police department's crisis was put into numbers today. a new analysis by city auditor sharon erickson shows since the benefits cuts for measure b in 2012, the police force has lost almost 500 officers, and the department's overtime has tripled with each cop averaging

450 hours of overtime a year. despite that, some shifts still see vacatiik sees. >> you don't see your family, you don't know when you're coming home. it fatigues your body in a job that really can't take that sort of risk of not being at the top of your game. >> the city auditor agrees officer fatigue is a concern, saying a clear limit on weekly hours needs to be set, and the proper use of sick time needs to be enforced. chief andy garcia and the mayor used the numbers to push for measure f, an alternative compromise reform bill that would negative some retirement and health care cuts approved under measure b. >> the measure in november makes us more competitive. that's to make the police department more competitive. that's not me opining. that's fact. >> reporter: now, critics of measure f have said that it takes away too many of the cuts approved by voters in measure b. but now with hard numbers in front of them, it will be up to

voters to decide if it's true, numbers don't lie. live in san jose, robert handa, nbc bay area news. another new turn in the sex abuse scandal involving several police departments and agencies. two more officers entered a plea. an attorney for daniel black entered a not guilty plea today. black is accused of five misdemeanors, including prostitution and giving alcohol to a teenager. black is the latest officer charged in the sexual exploitation. this investigation involving teenager jasmine a. this afternoon, you're looking there, well-known attorney michael rains who asked for a continuance on behalf of another officer, retired oakland police isn't, leroy johnson. rains says he believes some charges will be dropped but admits we should expect more from the police. >> the fact that these officers had any sexual contact at all

with her certainly means that they fell below the very high standards society holds them to, and rightfully so. >> in total, seven officers from various agencies are expected to be charged in connection with this case. it is the heaviest building on the west coast, and it's been sinking. now building leaders are taking steps to make sure it doesn't happen again. the million millennial yum tower has been sinking since 2009. it's dropped 16 inches so far, also tilting a couple inches. homeowners who paid millions of dollars for the condos in the tower are worried about losing their investment. and today an advisory committee met to talk about how to improve future building codes. >> what we're talking about today is expanding that process to include a technical review for projects where it's warranted. >> the advisory committee will continue its works on new building requirements next week. tonight the investigative

unit talks to experts who are designing an election system that is hacker-proof. but it might not come soon enough. senior investigative reporter steven stock joins us with what the team found. >> janelle, last month we showed just how vulnerable some of these voting systems in use are right now. experts say one way to make sure those systems can't be hacked is to make sure the computer code that runs them is open to the public, available for all to inspect. right now almost every voting system used in america, including machines used here in california, were developed after that hanging chad debacle in florida during the 2000 presidential election. the fbi and president obama say those systems are now vulnerable to hackers. we found technology available here in silicon valley that could fix those vulnerabilities. >> i will not rest until we see the systems deployed nationally. because all the votes have to

count. so we're not resting. we're watchdogging every moment. >> reporter: and, in fact, san francisco and los angeles counties are already committed to building these new systems. the trouble is, as you mentioned, janelle, they won't be ready until the next presidential election. find out how this technology will work and what officials are doing in the meantime to keep this year's election secure tonight at 11:00. see you then. >> okay, some important info. thanks, steven. if you have a tip for our investigative unit, call 888-996-tips. also send us an e-mail to the unit at nbcbayarea.com. and six people are arrested in connection to violent home invasions that have happened throughout the bay area. i'm elyce kirchner. ahead, why those suspects may also be linked to that shooting in arain dalast week. the giants practicing at citifield. could madison bumgarner do it

again? the winner take all wild card game is tomorrow night. hear about it coming up. a big break in a string of

violent robberiein the ea bay. pole a big break in a string of violent robberies in the east bay. police arrested six people in

connection with the attacks and in the past few hours, we learned they may be tied to even more crimes, including a shooting in orinda. elyce kirchner is live where the district attorney has filed charges. elyce. >> reporter: it's been a week since two armed men pistol-whipped his father and shot his mother twice at close range. >> within five feet. >> reporter: his parents were standing in the driveway of their orinda home. >> people that will do something like that don't belong on the streets. >> reporter: authorities say the suspects may be linked to several other armed robberies that took place recently throughout contra costa county. in each case, the victims were robbed at gunpoint in their own driveways at night. >> it does seem very, very suspicious that they happen the same way. >> reporter: now the contra costa county da's office confirmed six suspects have been arrested in connection to home invasions, possibly to this one in fremont and others in danville and livermore. it's still unclear whether they are responsible for the attack

on spalding's parents as well. >> that obviously would make the whole neighborhood and our whole family feel more safe. >> reporter: for now, mike is focusing on his mom, the orinda school board member still in the hospital trying to recover. >> she got shot in the arm, bone shattered and has a bullet caught in her chest area. >> reporter: and late this afternoon, the orinda police chief sent out a community alert, saying he is working with the district attorney's office here to link the arrest of the d.a. of the six suspects to the shooting in orinda last week. the police chief says he'll be releasing some type of press release in the coming days, and i am told the district attorney should be filing charges with those six suspects soon. reporting live in martinez tonight, elyce kirchner, nbc bay area news. >> thanks, elyce. a sandwich shop is open, even though a car plowed right through its front window today. take a look at lee's sandwiches

on story road. fortunately, no one was hurt. no word yet on what caused the driver to crash into the store. okay. we've got an exciting 24 hours in the bay area. tonight the oakland debut of kevin durant. plenty of people heading to the oracle right now. the warriors hosting the clippers in a preseason game. tomorrow night it's the baseball playoffs. the giants in the big apple to face the new york mets. that's where we're going right now. nbc bay area traveling with the giants, joins from us new york city queens, to be act. and colin, what are we going to see tomorrow night? >> reporter: hopefully a really good baseball game and great pitching match. this isn't quite the empire state building, but it's about as close as it gets here in fleshing, ten floors up on the rooftop of the bar ask restaurant where the owner tells us he's a family friend of our janelle wang. i don't know. pure coincidence that we're here then? yes and no. here's what is a coincidence.

the giants and the mets. identical, 87-75 record. and that's why they will meet tomorrow night in the wild card game, right there, as you see, at citifield. the winner heading to chicago. >> you know, it's not a series. so that's really all there is to know about it. you've got to go up there and you've got to have your stuff that day. you've got to have your command, you've got to be on, and i mean, that's it. you have to. >> reporter: giants fans remember this stat. madison bumgarner, lifetime career record of 4 and 0 against the mets at citifield. we like that statisticsic. we'll be back. is this true, janelle, todd? family friend? he told us he is. >> yes, it is true. it just clicked. his wife and i grew up together. in the bay area. we're very good friends growing

up. and now they live in new york. >> cool. >> but i didn't know they opened that bar. so congrats. >> colin needs free drinks and dinner tonight. of. >> okay, i'll make a call, colin. that's great. >> that's really cool. colin out in new york city at your friend's bar. >> i know. i didn't know that. congrats to them. that's fabulous. going to be a lot of people at that bar tonight and a lot of people watching the game from home tomorrow in the bay area. >> pretty good weather as we head throughout the next 48 hours. that's the good news. started to clear out from the rainfall and cloud cover over the past 48 hours. so we'll go ahead and show you our microclimate forecast and doppler radar. and you can see, dry weather from santa rosa towards san jose. nothing in the way of cloud cover, especially across the south bay, at least at the current moment. that is giving us some of the bluest skies we have seen in weeks. cleared out the poor air quality and also that storm helped to move out this smoke that had been moving in from the loma fire. so currently in san jose, 71

degrees right now. humidity, air not too dry currently relative humidity at 42%. temperatures dropping into the 60s as we head throughout the next couple of hours. tomorrow morning's forecast does start, mostly clear, only a little bit of patchy fog in san francisco and 51. a cooler 49 for the east bay, and right throughout the south bay, we'll begin at 51 degrees. through tomorrow's forecast, even more sunshine. temperatures going up 2 to 5 degrees as you'll see in our microclimate forecast. for the south bay, that puts us still below average and looking good at 75 degrees. for the peninsula, 62 at half moon bay, and we have 68 expected in san mateo. for san francisco, anywhere from 66 in the marina to 68 expected in the mission. for the north bay, east bay and also for the tri valley, we'll get close to the 80s, but not quite there. you'll see across the north bay santa rosa, one of our warmest at 79 degrees, and napa coming in at 77. and right here across the tri valley, we'll go anywhere from 76 in danville to 74 in

pleasanton. we do have some hotter changes coming our way, and i really see things starkly changing by friday's forecast. that's when we'll see temperatures go up anywhere from 10 to 20 degrees. we have this hotter area of high pressure building offshore, combining in with that the drier northeasterly offshore winds that will help to lower the humidity and increase the fire threat and certainly bring us some upper 80s, maybe even a few low 90s for the interior valleys. i know there is a lot of interest on when this pattern begins to move out. and we could get some rainfall. so what i want to show you next, take it with a little bit of a grain of salt here. it's not certainly set in stone yet. but for the past couple of days, we have been noticing a pattern change, october the 15th through the 20th. that could -- could bring us in maybe three different systems. so, of course, we'll be updating you on this in the next couple of weeks ahead. that would be great news to get our rainfall season going. as you get a look at the extended forecast, no rain over

the next seven days. just great weather as we head into fleet weekend with the air shows happening saturday and sunday. saturday looks best with 74 degrees. and for the inland valleys, we will go from 77 as an average tomorrow up to 89 degrees by saturday. and the good news about the heat, it's not going to get uncomfortably hot, just another little quick blast of some warm air. >> nice warmth for the big week. still ahead at 5:00, a secret search. who reportedly asked yahoo! to look through all of its users' e-mails and what yahoo! designed to get that done. ==rail==

the search is on rht nofor an 11-year-old boy... whoent msing afteleaving john f kennedy middl happening on the home page, an 11-year-old boy went missing

after leaving school at 1:00 p.m. he was wearing a maroon sweater and blue jeans. we have tweeted his photo. and on our home painfge, southw airlines having a sale with round-trip flights from 129 to $149. we'll be back with more news. am an iraq veteran. lowering drug prices. dollars to defeat it. don't be fooled. join "vote vets" in voting yes on prop 61. prop 64 makes marijuana legal in california for adults 21 and over. and here's what else it does: bans marijuana use in public. permits sales only at licensed marijuana businesses, not at grocery or convenience stores. and prop 64 generates a billion in new tax revenue for california to fund after-school programs and job training and placement initiatives. learn more at yeson64.org

vote yes on 64. learn more at yeson64.org they're bringing crime, when mexthey're rapists.ople... are you going to have a massive deportation force? you're going to have a deportation force. we're rounding 'em up in a very humane way, in a very nice way. we're going to build a wall. that's not america. we're all californians. i'm tom steyer. it's time to speak out. please, register. and vote. vote. nextgen california action committee is responsible for the content of this advertising. a former san francisco camp counselor says he's not guilty of molesting children.

evan blanchard is facing several charges of child molestation and lewd acts. this all happened while he was a camp counselor at the embarcadero ymca. most crimes happened when he was on field trips with the alleged victims. it's a controversial topic in the soilicon valley. yahoo! accused of scanning e-mail accounts on behalf of the u.s. government. that's according to a new report out today by reuters. it's not known what exactly intelligence officials were looking for, only that they wanted yahoo! to search for a set of characters. yahoo! did not confirm or deny this report, but said it didn't break any laws. the news comes less than two weeks after yahoo! says it had a security breach involving at least 500 million customers. okay. still to come, an update on the one and only vice presidential debate. that's next. ==raj/live== another live loonow the college town of "farmville,

another live look -- the stagei, virginiath another live look now at the stage. in fact, the stage is set.

the audience is in its place. this is farmville, virginia, the one and only vice presidential debate. republican mike pence and democrat tim kaine will square off at longwood university. this debate starts in 30 minutes. the pair will be seated. both camps tell us the candidates have been prepping for this for weeks. now you can watch the debate live, right here on nbc bay area at 6:00. lester holt continues our coverage in a few minutes at 5:30 with "nbc nightly news." the rumors from true. google unveiled its first new smartphone at the giant unveiling today in san francisco. google introduced the pixel smartphone. also an internet connected two-way speaker called home. and a virtual reality headset. a centerpiece feature for each device is a virtual assistant, google's focus on artificial intelligence. pixel phones start at $649. preorders for the phone began today. >> interesting. >> very nice to see.

that's going to do it for us right now at 5:00. as a reminder, lester holt joins us now. breaking news tonight, large-scale emergency evacuations. plans to urge over a million people to flee the south carolina coast as a deadly monster hurricane barrels towards the eastern seaboard. critical clash. the vp candidates face off as trump's poll numbers slide. can a big moment tonight turn the tide? spying on your e-mails. a stunning report that yahoo! secretly searched hundreds of millions of accounts snooping on its own customers for the government. getting out alive. residents escape before a dramatic neighborhood blast. the warning signs that every family should know. and life-saving cancer test. hollywood star ben stiller goes public with his private health battle. how his cancer was caught, the test he says saved his life and it could save yours.