. >> and i'm kristen sze. thanks for joining us. in a tweet the president says dems have been complaining for months and months about director comey. now that he's been fired they pretend to be aggrieved. phony hip crits. >> they say what's wrong. >> abc7 news reporter laura anthony caught up with several lawmakers. she's live in walnut creek. laura? >> reporter: kristen, we talked with lawmakers in the bay area today. while there are 3,000 -- from the goings on in washington, the reaction to the comey firing, no less blunt. >> it really shows that the white house is in chaos and they're totally incompetent. >> reporter: oakland democrat barbara lee is among the chorus of bay area lawmakers upset about president trump's sudden firing of fbi director james comey. >> this white house is erratic, it's bizarre. the way he was fired was outrageous. he heard about it on the news. it's crass, it's wrong. >> reporter: lee admits she and other democrats were vocal critics of comey last october when he announced the fbi was reopening its prob

. >> and i'm kristen sze. now to our other top story. >> abc7 news reporter kate larson is live at the alameda county courthouse where a key witness took the stand for the first time. kate? >> reporter: kristen, that's right. jasmine, formerly known as -- did take a stand today for the first time to testify against one of the police officers brian bunton implicated in the sex scandal. she did seem nervousrvousrvousrs with her microphone. he said she was in a tough spot. >> very nervous, difficult situation she was in to get up there and testify and be cross-examined. so, i wasn't surprised by her demeanor or the substance of what she said. >> reporter: former oakland police officer brian bunton waiting outside the courtroom today where he listened to her describe the relationship, much of it archived on cell phone messages. he is charged with felony obstruction of justice and misdemeanor prostitution for carrying on a sexual relationship with her seen her and investigative reporter. he allegedly warned him abo

. >> and i'm kristen sze. thanks for joining us. now to our top story. we're learning new details this afternoon about the two people killed in yesterday's horrific rollover crash in alameda. they were both teenagers. >> abc7 news reporter laura anthony is live at james logan high school in union city where one of the victims was a student. laura, this is yet another devastating loss for the school. >> reporter: dan, just earlier this month you may remember another logan student died on her way home from the prom in a car accident with two more teens now lost yesterday, that brings the total to five in the new haven district who have lost their lives in recent months. >> i was very sad to hear about what had happened. >> reporter: linda thomsen arrived this morning to union city's school for independent study to hear the worst possible news. one of her students, 17-year-old brianna ore ing at the brianna ortega was killed in the horrific crash. she just saw brianna friday ands the teen was working toward getting her diploma. >> i feel blessed i had a cha

i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm eric thomas in for dan ashley. for sandhya patel, thank you for inviting us into your homes tonight. >> bye-bye. >>> tonight, breaking news -- president trump on the world stage, once calling nato obsolete. what he told leaders about paying their fair share. and the moment that went viral. the president appearing to push another leader out of the way, now seen all over the world. >>> also breaking -- president trump's son-in-law, jared kushner is now under fbi scrutiny in the russia investigation. >>> also breaking -- the closely watched race for congress. the candidate who allegedly throws a reporter to the ground. >> i'm sick and tired of you guys. >> tonight, that candidate has now been charged, and voters are at the polls right now. >>> severe weather at this hour. several tornadoes confirmed. thousands of flights delayed and cancelled just as we approach the memorial day weekend. the system moving up the east coast. >>> the high school under fire. the student who killed himself after administrators questioned

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. thanks for joining us. the president says this marks a new beginning for the fbi. late word from washington tonight that justice department officials agree former fbi director james comey mishandled the hillary clinton e-mail investigation. >> and we are learning more by the moment about what fuelled the president's decision. here's abc7 news reporter lana zach with the very latest. >> repor a stunning announcement effective immediately, fbi director james comey has been removed from office. president trump saying he was influenced in part by the recommendation of his attorney general jeff sessions. the firing coming just after the fbi issued a correction on comey's recent testimony about huma abadeen, clinton's aid in which she forwarded thousands of e-mails that had classified information. that wasn't quite true. none of those e-mails were marked classified at the time. just before the firing, abc asked the white house about the president's confidence in comey. >> does the president have confidence, full

. >> and i'm kristen sze. the sheriff's office says it's done it, solved one of the longest bay area murder mysteries. they arrested this man, sean gallon, a self-described survivalist from forestville. >> abc7 news reporter wayne freedman live at the sheriff's office in santa rosa. wayne? >> reporter: well, we appear to have a solution to a case that made national news at the time and why not? a young couple very much in love sleeping on the beach seemingly alone. all of a sudden they're murdered. no one knew why or where or how. today deputy sheriff here at sonoma county thinks they did get their man. along the river road in forestville today, yellow tape as sheriff's investigators search for clues in a murder mystery. this is the booking vote oel of 38-year-old shawn gallon. today sonoma county steve freitas linked him to the murder of jason allen and 22-year-old lyndsay cut shaul on fish head beach. >> he had information about the killings that no other person could have known and we have located evidence

abc7 news anchor kristen sze is here with the details. kristen? >> larry and alma, this is the market street railway mural on ongdi church and 15th owned streets just off market completed in 2003. it is a 180 degree birds eye view of market street. each vertical section showcases a different moment in history dating back to the 1920s. now, one slice shows a 1980s pride parade with sisters of perpetual indulgence and harvey milk signs. another slide shows an imagined future with a swapping center instead of a shopping center. and futuristic vehicles. the mural is the work of san francisco artist mona asking for help to repair the damage time has inflicted. >> so that we can refresh, not just the physical wall, but the memory of all these histories and all the people and things that have been going on in the city. >> our partners at hood line are first to report there are cracks caused by building settlement and water and paint has flaked off from the surface. the nonprofit shaping san francisco launched a fund-raiser this week to raise $12,000 that

good evening, i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm kristen sze. thanks for joining us. from interstate 880 to >> abc7 news reporter melanie woodrow is there live with what's happening now. melanie? >> reporter: well, this investigation and clean up is taking longer than usual because of the hazardous material spill and chp says it could be several more hours. this was one of two major back ups in the bay area today. negotiators spent at least two hours talking with the man who climbed the bay bridge today. chp says it was a bridge tow truck driver who noticed the man's truck initially broken down on the bridge. >> when he pulled in behind to render aid is when he noticed the driver of the tow truck climbed out and essentially jumped over the railing and then climbed up to center anchorage. >> reporter: bay bridge traffic was backed up frustrating drivers. the man initially refused to talk to negotiators. a team of s.f.p.d.eg

. >> kristen sze here, you probably didn't hit the like button for certain parts of this, kristen. >> certain parts. more on that in a bit. at 33 mark zuckerberg becomes the youngest commencement speaker at harvard and the second drop out, the first bill gates. his wife listened in the rain. zuckerberg delivered this message. if you create opportunities, you create purpose. not just for yourself, but for others. >> let's give everyone the freedom to pursue purpose, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because when more people can turn their dreams into something great, we are all better for it. >> >> well, zuckerberg's speech may have been well received, but not the captioning. he tweets one such error, this gibberish here. reward is my parents? what? that didn't make much sense. also this morning the harvard newspaper's website was hacked to troll zuckerberg with headlines such as mark zinkerberg does it again. he is pictured getting his honorary harvard degree. he said, mom, i always told you i'd come back and get my degree. he certainly did. larry and alma? >> thank you

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. former nursing university student goh pleaded no contest today to seven murder charges and three attempted murder charges. >> that plea was set up by decision last week that goh was mentally competent to stand trial. now he's expected to spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole. >> abc7 news reporter lyanne melendez is outside the university in oakland with details tonight. lyanne? >> reporter: well, you know, as we mentioned, this shooting occurred back in 2012. the question is why did it take so long to try him. well, you have to understand that for years he was found to be mentally incompetent. two weeks ago, a judge changed that. this was 2012 video of one goh shortly after the mass shooting at oikos university. at the time he was found mentally incompetent to stand trial. but after years of being treated for schizophrenia in a mental hospital in santa rosa, a judge found he was able to understand his actions and the legal process. >> it is expected t

i'm dan ashley. >> and i'm kristen sze. we begin with the trial of the man accused of killing morgan hill teenager sierra lamar. >> finally a jury is deciding the fate of torres. deliberations are underway at the santa clara county courthouse. >> that's where abc7 news reporter david louie joins us live. david? >> reporter: kristen and dan, the jury has been deliberating here at the hall of justice all afternoon and they just decided they're going to reconvene tomorrow morning for more deliberations. now, antolin garcia torres has been accused of kidnapping and killing sierra lamar and then disposing of her body in such a way that it has never been found. with their work done, the deputy district attorneys left the courthouse as did the defense team, leaving it up to the jury of six women and six men to decide the fate of 26-year-old antolin garcia torres. the father of sierra lamar, the teenager garcia torres is accused of murdering broke his silence after the 13-week trial. >> it's been a long trial, but it's just a blink

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> i'm larry beil in for dan ashley. the boy had just finished celebrating his birthday. it happened last weekend in the city's fruitvale district. abc7 news reporter laura anthony is outside children's hospital. how is he doing now? >> reporter: this boy is in stable condition here at children's hospital. while police are trying to find the shooter, or the suspects in this case, the community is reaching out trying to help the boy and his family. he's a little boy, was just walking down the street with his family and his puppy on his birthday. and now he is in children's hospital with gunshot wounds. >> it's always disheartening to see crimes against children and the youth in our community because it impacts the trajectory of their future and ours. >> reporter: it happened sunday night just before 11:00 p.m. in the area of fruitvale in east 27th street in oakland. he was walking with his older brother and parents on the way to a local store. it is unclear what prompted the shooting, or even where the shots came from. bu

abc7 news anchor kristen sze here with the very latest. kristen? >> larry and alma, do you know john? a democrat running for the georgia congressional seat vacated by a trump cabinet appointee. he is the subject of an ad airing in the suburb. >> georgia, we want to say thank you. >> we already have nancy pelosi for our congresswoman. now you're going to give us ossoff as our congressman. >> they have poured big bucks seen as a referendum against president trump. ossoff is running for his first political office and nearly won enough votes in a republican district to avoid a runoff. trump compares, he tweeted many times about ossoff. now the ad paid for a super pack linked it to house minority leader nancy pelosi. >> pelosi and ossoff will weaken the military. isis, they're overrated. >> pelosi and san francisco, high taxes and so forth, and frankly even diversity, which is a subtle dig and something that will appear -- appeal to people who are actually not interested in diversity and that is going to be true of some of the folks in that district. >>

larry beil in for dan ashley. >> and i'm kristen sze. the sheriff's office says it's done it, solved one of the longest bay area murder mysteries. they arrested this man, sean gallon, a self-described survivalist from forestville. >> abc7 news reporter wayne freedman live at the sheriff's office in santa rosa. wayne? >> reporter: well, we appear to have a solution to a case that made national news at the time and why not? a young couple very much in love sleeping on the beach seemingly alone. all of a sudden they're murdered. no one knew why or where or how. today deputy sheriff here at sonoma county thinks they did get their man. along the river road in forestville today,

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. thanks for joining us. those car fires have been all over the county really, most just in driveways until today when a fire jumped to someone's house. >> abc7 news reporter kate larson is live in plez ants hills tonight with a new development. kate? >> reporter: kristen, dan, the fire marshal just told us that they believe the six fires in recent weeks are not only all related but that they were all intentionally set and they are actually connecting them to at least ten fires, not just the past few weeks, but recent months. and at this point they would really like to catch whoever is responsible before more damage is done. >> these fires have mostly been occurring during the overnight hours so people are home, people are asleep. one of the fires in brentwood this morning had two young children who were immediately above the fire area. so, at this point we want to make sure that we can try and catch the person who is doing this so that we can get them off and hopefully prevent further fires.

thank you for joining natasha z >> and i'm kristen sze. it happened at a location near several schools. eric is live at the scene with the latest. >> reporter: we don't know if the deceased is a mem trhose sc although we have been told it is a high school student. the very latest information you spoke intersection close willed at grand avenue and railroad. we just saw the train itself being moved about ten minutes after theh. it looks like some traffic is being allowed through on grant avenue right now. you see itinisov m t igs grant man where we are. 8:00 this morj. ariels and that's when the report came in that the train had struck a person, a high scol intersectioe and railroad. traffic was immediately blocked off. alameda county fireed divrrermi the person, the pedestrian was dead here at the scene. and traffic s,wa union pacific railroad police began their investigation. alameda county. let's show you from the ground. now, a shorteim t told a union pacific was workin to delink some of the cars so they could move this mile-long train o

. >> abc7 news anchor kristen sze is in the newsroom with that part of the story. kristen. >> we were doing that research, he cut his teeth in san francisco. he worked as a litigator here. fresh out of law school until 1976, muller's career took him to u.s. attorney offices including the san francisco office where he became chief of the criminal division. and then he again left the bay area in 1982, but came back in 1998 as the u.s. attorney for the northern district of california. and he held that position until 2001 when, as you mentioned, president george w. bush named him fbi director. muller gained fame leading the agency through the aftermath of the september 11th terror attacks. finally retiring in 2013. and after that muller was again back in the bay area working with stan ford university on issues of online networks and international security. most recently he oversaw the distribution of the settlement money from the volkswagen emissions cheating scandal that, of course, was a case out of the federal court based here in san francisco. he was to be in charg

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. thanks for joining us. the president says this marks a new beginning for the fbi. late word from washington tonight that justice department officials agree former fbi director james comey mishandled the hillary clinton e-mail investigation. >> and we are learning more by the moment about what fuelled the president's decision. here's abc7 news reporter lana zach with the very latest. >> repor a stunning announcement effective immediately, fbi director james comey has been removed from office. president trump saying he was influenced in part by the recommendation of his attorney general jeff sessions. the firing coming just after the fbi issued a correction on comey's recent testimony about huma abadeen, clinton's aid in which she forwarded thousands of e-mails that had classified information. that wasn't quite true. none of those e-mails were marked classified at the time. just before the firing, abc asked the

abc7 news anchor kristen sze here now with the details. kristen? >> larry and alma, do you have a thousand dollars i can borrow? if you have it, you can put down a deposit on these shingles that look like traditional roof tiles but derive energy from the sun using solar cells hidden beneath a glass surface. this is tesla video when elon musk on the desperate wives set. he also posted this video on instagram. take a look. you can see hail canon balls destroying traditional roof tiles, but doing little damage to the tesla solar tile. >> looked better than normal roof, generated electricity, lasts longer, have better insulation, and actually have a cost and cut that is less than a normal roof plus the cost of electricity. >> i now want to show you the calculator on tesla's website. so, say you have a home in san jose. let's put in 2000 square feet. right there. and let's say you have two stories in your home. so, your solar roof savings, i want to highlight that for you, is $54,000. darn thing. so, you save about $30,000 or $20,000 over the course of

good evening, i'm eric thomas in for dan ashley. >> and i'm kristen sze. thanks for joining us. this accident happened just short of the city's general aviation airport. now we'll show you a map. the crash was at solano way and marsh drive near buchanan field. >> abc7 news reporter leslie brinkley is live at the scene with the latest. leslie? >> reporter: quite the scene. we have busy highway 4 behind us. we have a major intersection and a plane crashing in the middle of it, you see it back there right on the corner at 2:45 this afternoon. that's when this small single engine glass star plane went down. let's take a look at a view from sky 7 of the wreckage. the plane was taking off from buchanan field when the pilot reported a mechanical problem. the plane turned around to come back, but missed the runway just a few hundred feet away really from the air field. the plane crashed into a stop light at this intersection sheering off one of the wings. witnesses at an adjacent car dealership told abc7 news they saw no smoke from the plane as it came down. it did not catch fire. the p

news anchor kristen sze here with that story. >> a rally was held to promote balloon safety. assemblyman from hayward introduced a bill to ban the release of mylar balloons in california. why? just take a look at this video. >> that's the best one. >> that blows the fuse, causing an outage to an area. >> reporter: nylar balloons caught on power lines cost nearly 1900 outages in california in 2015. and last year they sparked wild fires that cost the state more than $3 million to put out. assemblyman could try to ban their sales last year to no avail. his new bill wants to make it illegal for anyone to release them anywhere, not just at civic events as the law now states. >> it's litter. it's potential to go out into the ocean. it dissolves fish and other organisms can eat it. >> so, if you choose my lar balloons for your celebration, consider these safety tips. you want to keep balloons tethered at all times, and attach to a weight. that is how they have to be sold these days anyway. puncture and deflate balloons before disposing of them. if a balloon is tangled in power lines

good evening, i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. they just updated us on the search for the baby and his father. >> jonathan bloom is live in san francisco with the very latest. jonathan? >> reporter: well, just minutes ago the san francisco district attorney's office wrapped up a press conference about that amber alert that was issued in the search for a one-year-old boy they believe was abdulcted y his own father. it was displayed on signs all over the bay area because the father and son at this point could be anywhere. the process started just after 5:30 last night when the child's mother came to the tara bell police station to report that the father 30-year-old jason lamb had not shown up to drop off their baby son makai at the time he was supposed to. they captured an image of a father and son at a business in menlo park. they didn't specify how long that image was taken. the two have joint custody. after learning new information, the d.a.'s office got involved. reports from the california highway patrol indicated lamb might ha

i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm jessica castro. the city of oakland will shell out nearly a million dollars to the 19-year-old woman who refers to herself as a former sex worker. jasmine abuslin says she was sexually assaulted by several police officers. her attorney, john burris, will hold a news conference two hours from now to discuss the settlement. she was at the center of a sex scandal that rocked the city's police department. >> i as a taxpayer am paying their salaries. especially when it comes to public safety to protect my children, my daughters and my neighbors' daughters and for them to commit those actions are absolutely irresponsible. >> oakland city council members discussed the issue until earl this morning, eventually voting 7-1 for the big payout. claims against several other bay area law enforcement agencies are pending. passengers arrived in san francisco after the frightening flight last night that had to be diverted because of a fire on board. authorities say it was caused by a laptop battery. "abc 7 news" repo

i'm kristen sze. >> i'm reggie aqui. police got the call something was wrong late last night when officers got to cork place, they found a man with a shotgun and say it went downhill from there. "abc 7 news" reporter amy hollyfield has been talking to police and neighbors. >> reporter: hi, reggie. police are still here. 11 hours after the shooting happened, this cul-de-sac is still blocked off. police and sheriff's deputies will be looking into whether officers were justified in killing this man. as police gather evidence this morning on cork place in south san francisco, one resident on the street said she couldn't imagine having a man standing in front of her home holding a sotgun. >> it's scary. that is really scary. >> reporter: but that is exactly what police say happened. they got the call just before midnight about a disturbance involving a man with a gun. when they arrived, they say he was standing in the middle of the street. >> the officers game multiple commands for that subject to disarm himself with that sho

. >> abc7 news anchor kristen sze is in the newsroom with that part of the story. kristen. >> we were doing that research, he cut his teeth in san francisco. he worked as a litigator here. fresh out of law school until 1976, muller's career took him to u.s. attorney offices including the san francisco office where he became chief of the criminal division. and then he again left the bay area in 1982, but came back in 1998 as the u.s. attorney for the northern district of california. and he held that position until 2001 when, as you mentioned, president george w. bush named him fbi director. muller gained fame leading the agency through the aftermath of the september 11th terror attacks. finally retiring in 2013. and after that muller was again back in the bay area working with stan ford university on issues of online networks

. >> i'm kristen sze. involving children as young as ten years old. we're learning there's another person out of state who is also arrested in connection with dr. james koh hut. "abc 7 news" reporter matt keller is live at superior core. >> reporter: a lot of big changes today. originally dr. james koh hut was charged with three child molestation charges when he was arrested on sunday. today the da's office filed an additional seven charges. that makes it ten felony charges against this brain surgeon as he sits here in jail with no bail. >> dr. james kohut look out of sorts for his first appearance in a santa cruz county courtroom this morning. the brain surgeon was known for his work in the operating room at dominican hospital and sutter maternity and surgery center. according to the district attorney's office he was hiding a dark and disturbing secret. today prosecutors reveal they filed 10 separate child molestation charges against him, involving three different victims. >> it involves multiple children on different dates. of the ten charges, six o

i'm kristen sze. >> i'm eric >>> tonight, breaking news as we come on the air. the abc news exclusive. president trump's sons called to the fbi. learning from authorities that foreign hackers tried to break into the trump organization. >>> also developing tonight, president trump's son-in-law jared kushner, a top adviser in the west wing. now, his meetings with the russians under fbi scrutiny. >>> blistering words from hillary clinton. what she said today about impeachment that immediately made headlines. >>> severe storms hitting tonight and tomorrow. several major travel cities in the bull's eye. rob marciano standing by. >>> the serial killer, and the woman found in a container on his property. tonight, how many victims, and how long will he be put behind bars? >>> and, lost at sea. the american newlyweds. the wife now missing. the husband found in a raft. the fbi called in on the case. >>> and the new offer late today from ariana grande to all of those people who were at that concert. >>> good evening. it's great to have you with us on a friday night. we beg

i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley for sandhya patel and michael >>> tonight, we have breaking news as we come on the air. >>> tonight, we have breaking news as we come on the air. reports of a man, a foreign national, trying to break into a cockpit on a flight that left from los angeles. reports he had a suspicious item. our team is standing by tonight. >>> also breaking, as president trump departs for his first foreign trip, investigations looking at a staffer inside the white house. also, what we' the president's conversation with the russians after firing james comey. the president saying i faced great pressure about russia. that's taken off. >>> also, a car barrelling into a crowd in times square. police calling it a deliberate act.

. >> and i'm kristen sze. they will not say whether the man police killed was threatening his officers. >> that man did stab another man inside near fifth and market streets apparently again as i said over a sandwich. >> after that at least one officer fired his weapon. the suspect died at the scene. abc7 news reporter lyanne melendez is is live on market street with the story tonight. lyanne? >> reporter: well, we're hearing that the person stabbed may have been an employee of that subway's restaurant. now market street has since reopened. this happened at 11:30 this morning and it's taken police here in san francisco nearly five hours to do their investigation. this is the victim police say was being stabbed by another man seen here being interviewed by police. just minutes before, 2 foot patrol officers walking past the subway restaurant saw what was happening and tried to stop it. >> they observed with a filipino male. >> reporter: they say the two men had been arguing over a sandwich. the man who was stab

. >> i'm kristen sze. thanks for joining us. the deputy has been identified as 50-year-old sroeuy khin. he worked for alameda county for the past ten years. >> the crash happened along 580 along the altamont pass. he was driving home from the santa rita jail in dublin. that's where abc7 news reporter laura anthony is reporting live for us. >> reporter: he was one of the first hires ten years ago. a hard working employee who had just finished a long overtime shift here at the jail this morning. he got off work, got in his car, and headed home toward stockton. >> it's not fun seeing your employee draped with an american flag. >> reporter: twice in less than three months, alameda county sheriff greg aherne has had to announce the death of one of his own. in this case a man he hired ten years ago, deputy sroeuy khin. >> it's heart wrenching. besides all of the events and incidents that our deputy sheriffs have to deal with at work, they have to deal with a tragic loss of one of their brothers. >> reporter: it happened as the morning

i'm kristen sze. >> i'm eric >>> tonight, breaking news as we come on the air. the abc news exclusive. president trump's sons called to the fbi. learning from authorities that foreign hackers tried to break into the trump organization. >>> also developing tonight, president trump's son-in-law jared kushner, a top adviser in the west wing. now, his meetings with the russians under fbi scrutiny. >>> blistering words from hillary clinton. what she said today about impeachment that immediately made headlines. >>> severe storms hitting tonight and tomorrow. several major travel cities in the bull's eye. rob marciano standing by. >>> the serial killer, and the woman found in a container on his property. tonight, how many victims, and how long will he be put behind bars? >>> and, lost at sea. the american newlyweds. the wife now missing.

i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. store sandhya patel, michael finney, and everyone here, we hope to he -- see you a >> download the abc7 news app to download the news any time at >>> tonight, president trump in his own words. why he fired fbi director james comey. the president calling him a showboat, a grandstander. also tonight, the president says he asked james comey if he was being investigated by the fbi. is that a conflict of interest? and the acting head of the fbi tonight disagreeing with the white house in front of the american people. >>> also, breaking developments right now. a 35-hour police standoff, a bystander killed in the crossfire, trying to crawl away. what we have just learned from the screen. >>> the mother's day storm moving in. a possible nor'easter now. already bringing damaging winds tonight. >>> the abc news investigation tonight. cars igniting. this one, in a parking lot. others setting homes on fire. brian ross standing by. >>> and the sheriff's department warning swimmers below,

i'm kristen sze. >> and i'm dan ashley. we appreciate your time. we'll see you at 6:00. >> we leave you with this beautiful shot looking at the bay. enjoy. >>> tonight -- breaking news as we come on the air. the department of justice, just moments ago, revealing they will appoint a special counsel. former fbi director robert mueller will now serve as special counsel overseeing the fbi investigation into russian meddling in the 2016 election, and any possible collusion with associates of the trump campaign. the department saying it's in the public interest, and it comes as many republicans now join democrats in demanding that james comey testify before the american people about the notes he took during his meetings with the president. >>> also breaking, millions now bracing for severe storms at this hour. after a deadly tornado outbreak already. entire neighborhoods wiped out. new watches across several states tonight. >>> and the disturbing video now emerging. new questions over who was behind these beatings not far from the whi

i'm kristen sze. >> for sandhya >>> tonight, breaking developments. the fallout now after the firing of fbi director james comey. tonight, how comey learned himself -- seeing it on tv. president trump asked today, why did you fire comey? you'll hear his answer. and why now? the white house now saying comey mishandled the e-mail investigation into hillary clinton, that comey overstepped his role in his scathing review of clinton. but many on capitol hill asking -- is the white house really concerned about clinton? or is this about russia? >>> also tonight. vladimir putin, and his reaction. and the news that james comey had just asked for more money for the fbi investigation into russian meddling. >>> also tonight, the officer on trial. she opened fire on the driver of this suv who at one point had his hands in the air. what we learned today. >>> and the alleged school plot. police flooding the school. a boy pulled from the classroom. his arsenal -- knives, gasoline, and a hit list -- right in his bag. >>> good evening on this wednesday night. and we be

i'm kristen sze. >> now we're going to turn to local news of the day. a rash of suspicious car fires in east bay. neighbors, of course, are concerned while police are on the hunt for a possible fire bug. >> the latest car fires just this morning. one in walnut creek, the other nearby in lafayette. there was another one monday in martinez, all dangerously close to homes. "abc 7 news" reporter amy hollyfield is live at the walnut creek scene with the latest. how extensive was the damage there? >> reporter: hi, kristen. here is what is left of the honda here in walnut creek. this was on fire at 12:30 this morning. firefighters kept it from spreading to the home but their work wasn't finish. just 15 minutes later a call came in that another car, not too far away from here, was also on fire. the owners of this suburban were asleep inside their law fay et home on pauld ray street when they heard and smelled something suspicious. >> my wife woke up and heard kind of a pop and then we had a strange smell and then the car took off that a way from around the corn

abc7 news anchor kristen sze is here with the details. kristen. >> alma and larry, more on cal train's money troubles in a moment. let's start with your choices. these are the four designs cal train wants you to vote on. number one looks most like the current design with the red on top. number too you is light and airy. number three is dark and grayer, number four has a red nose but is otherwise white. one of these designs will be chosen for the new electric fleet to replace the current diesel trains. this is cal train's video. the agency says the new system will incondaleeza rice capacity, improve train performance and offer a quieter ride. >> by converting cal train from a diesel-based service into an electrified system, we'll be reducing regional traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions. >> but the project has hit a bump. transportation secretary elaine chao is holding up a $647 million federal grant. electric trif kalgs supporters point out california's republican congressional delegation is opposed to election trif indication

kristen sze, abc7 news. >> that's good news. the network revealed its upcoming schedule for 2017 and 2018. lineup included familiar faces. reason ann is returning. abc has been completing with netflix for the installment of the show. it will include all the original starz, rose ann bar, john goodman, and sara gilbert. >> up next, the burger joint that just took the crown away from in-n-out. >> the latest interactive teaching tool. stay with us. this is me when i feel controlled by frequent, unpredictable abdominal pain or discomfort and diarrhea. i tried lifestyle changes and over-the-counter treatments, but my symptoms keep coming back. it turns out i have irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, or ibs-d. a condition that's really frustrating. that's why i talked to my doctor about viberzi... ...a different way to treat ibs-d. viberzi is a prescription medication you take every day that helps proactively manage both abdominal pain and diarrhea at the same time. so i can stay ahead of my symptoms. viberzi can cause new or worsen

abc7's kristen sze is here now with leaders in our bay area's asian-pacific american community. >> thank you, cheryl. let's welcome today's guests. margaret abe-koga is a member of the san francisco regional water quality control board and district director for assembly member evan low. welcome. asha jadeja is highly respected as a venture capitalist, angel investor in more than a hundred silicon valley startups, closely affiliated with stanford university, and an active philanthropist. chris punongbayan is executive director of asian americans advancing justice, asian law caucus. thank you all for being here. now, this is meant to be a stimulating conversation, so feel free to jump in with your thoughts and ideas like you would with friends, because we are all friends here. all right? welcome. you know, cheryl cited the growing asian-american population in the u.s. this has historical basis, of course, in a very important piece of federal law that passed 50 years ago. so, chris, let's begin with you. how did the immigration and nationality act open the door for immigrants, specifically

abc7 news anchor kristen sze. he won a lot of praise for the mix up at the end. >> he certainly did, larry and alma. you can argue whether "la la land" should have won best picture. there is no mistake he kept his cool. >> there's a mistake. moonlight, you guys won best picture. but the good news is we got to see some extra speeches. we have some great movies. i knew i would screw this show up. i really did. [ laughter ] >> today kimmel announced his return as host next year with his trademark humor. if you think we screwed up the ending this year, wait until you see what we have planned for the 90th anniversary show. the academy tweeted, no one can throw a party 90 years in the making like jimmy kimmel and many fans agree. lynn b. tweets with all the other news going on, this is the best news. you're the best. price waterhouse coopers accountants who handed out the envelopes won't be back, but the 90th oscars will be here on abc7 on march 4 next year. larry and alma? >> all right, thank you, kristen. the abc tele