2024 in review: Our top 12 most viewed stories for the year
The armed robbery and shooting of a 49er rookie in broad daylight, a ban on restaurant surcharges and the FBI raid on then Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao's residence were just some of the biggest news stories of the past year. Here are CBS News Bay Area's dozen most viewed stories of 2024.
Ricky Pearsall shooting
San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot during a daytime robbery attempt a block from San Francisco's Union Square on Aug. 31, with a 17-year-old suspect from Tracy taken into custody the same day. The teen suspect is facing attempted murder and other charges in connection with the crime. The shooting spurred another round of debate about safety on the streets of San Francisco as Pearsall made a remarkably quick recovery. The receiver was back making his regular season debut 50 days after being shot and scoring the first touchdown of his career a month later.
California restaurant surcharge ban
A California law aimed at banning hidden "junk fees" was aimed at additional charges commonly associated with ticket sales and hotel stays raised concerns among restaurant owners last year when it was revealed it could also eliminate the service fees some establishments add to customer bills. However, after months of confusion and concern, California lawmakers green lit Senate Bill 1524 just hours before the state's "junk fee" ban went into effect on July 1st, clarifying that restaurant surcharges -- as long as they're clearly presented -- would not be considered "junk fees." A similar federal "junk fee" ban was announced earlier this month.
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao's home raided
On June 20th, FBI agents conducted an early-morning raid on the home of Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, one of several federal raids on other properties in the city. While Thao would deny any wrongdoing and repeatedly claim her innocence, the embattled mayor was already facing heavy criticism over issues with violent crime, a major budget shortfall and a recall effort that would prove successful last November.
Paul Pelosi attacker David DePape sentenced on federal charges
The man convicted of attempting to kidnap then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacking her husband with a hammer in October of 2022 was sentenced to 30 years in prison in May. David DePape had been convicted in a federal court of attempting to kidnap a federal official and assaulting an immediate family member of a federal official with intent to retaliate against the official for performance of their duties in November of last year.
DePape was subsequently found guilty of the five counts he faced in his state trial in June, including aggravated kidnapping resulting in bodily harm or death, false imprisonment of an elder or dependent adult, threatening family of public officials, first degree residential burglary and preventing or dissuading a witness by force or threat. In late October, he was sentenced to life in prison for the state charges.
Scotts Valley tornado
The most recent event on CBS News Bay Area's top stories list, the tornado that touched down in the small mountain town just north of Santa Cruz came just hours after San Franciscans were were shocked into consciousness by the city's first-ever tornado warning as a powerful storm system pounded the region on the second weekend of December. While the National Weather Service classified the event as a weak EF1 tornado, it was still strong enough to flip cars and knock over powerlines, injuring several people. The tornado left Scotts Valley residents in shock and made national news.
Partial solar eclipse in Bay Area
Even though the San Francisco Bay Area was well outside the path of totality during the May solar eclipse that sent parts of the nation into a frenzy, local residents still got to see a partial solar eclipse with the help of clear skies. Only those in the 115-mile wide path of totality across areas of Mexico, Canada and U.S. states from Texas to Maine got to experience a rare total solar eclipse, but the excitement over the celestial event still had thousands in the Bay Area gathering to view the eclipse with special glasses and other devices.
I-80 standoff in Fairfield
Back in early May, Interstate 80 in Fairfield was shut down in both directions for about three hours during a police standoff with a freeway shooting suspect that tragically ended when the suspect shot himself. The driver of a silver Toyota sedan led police on a multi-county pursuit from the North Bay to the East Bay after randomly firing on a vehicle on U.S. Highway 101 in Windsor. The suspect vehicle was stopped by a strip of spikes just east of the I-80 interchange with Highway 12. A standoff involving the Fairfield Police Department's SWAT team ensued. CHP initially said the suspect had died from the self-inflicted gunshot wound, but later confirmed that he had been resuscitated and was in critical condition in a local hospital. The suspect -- identified as 40-year-old Mario Territo of Rohnert Park -- died days later.
Vallejo police criticized over Netflix "American Nightmare" doc
In January, the Vallejo Police Department's social media pages got bombarded with negative comments from all over the country after the release the Netflix documentary "American Nightmare," a limited series that outlined the bungled so-called "Gone Girl" kidnapping case involving a couple on Mare Island who were targeted by a kidnapper and rapist. The department was sued over their handling of the case in 2016, but declined to comment on the documentary series.
Oakland police warn of "alarming trend" in smash-and-grab vehicle robberies
Oakland police in March issued a warning to local residents after statistics showed an increase in smash-and-grab robberies where suspects specifically targeted parked cars with drivers still inside their vehicles. At the time the warning was sent out, the Oakland Police Department was seeing a 32% increase in robberies.
Former chief of staff for Mayor Sheng Thao claims pay-to-play schemes
In the days after the FBI raid on Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao's home in June, her former chief of staff Renia Webb talked to CBS News Bay Area about pay-to-play allegations against the mayor's administration that she had been making as far back as February of last year. She accused Thao's boyfriend Andre Jones of being the mastermind and running pay-to-play schemes during Thao's campaign for mayor and after she won, but investigations by Oakland's ethics commission went nowhere after Webb was unable to produce physical evidence. Earlier this month, Webb announced her plans to run for mayor to replace her now recalled boss.
Deadly West Portal crash kills family of four
In March, San Francisco was shocked by a deadly crash in the West Portal neighborhood where an elderly driver -- later identified as 78-year-old Mary Fong Lau -- plowed into a family of four on an outing to the San Francisco Zoo to celebrate the parents' wedding anniversary. The family was waiting for Muni at the bus stop at Ulloa Street and Lenox Way when the May 16th accident happened. The father and toddler son died that day, with the the mother succumbing to her injuries the following day and the surviving infant, a baby boy, also dying in the hospital. Lau is facing four charges of felony vehicular manslaughter.
Oakland Hills fire
On Oct. 18th, a fast-moving vegetation fire broke out Friday afternoon in the hills of Oakland, burning two homes before firefighters were able to stop forward progress. The blaze broke out during dangerous Red Flag conditions, with over 80 firefighters responding along with Cal Fire air support and ground units. The wind-whipped fire advanced to a fifth alarm before forward progress was stopped with 13 acres burned. The fire burned close to the area of the catastrophic 1991 Oakland Hills firestorm that broke out almost exactly 33 years earlier. On that day, a smoldering grass fire that was not completely extinguished reignited and burned out of control in the Oakland and Berkeley hills for days, killing 25 people, injuring 150 others, and destroying more than 3,000 homes.
