Police were pursuing a GMC van on the 110 Freeway southbound out of the downtown LA area Sunday evening before taking a suspect into custody peacefully in the Watts area.

Gil Leyvas and Newschopper4 were over the van at approximately 6:30 p.m. as the vehicle had exited on Manchester Boulevard and traveled on surface streets.

Eventually, the driver stopped on East 104th Street near Grandee Avenue in the Watts area and parked his vehicle.

A group of people came out onto the street and appeared to be approaching the vehicle, while police had guns drawn. The group of people could be seen yelling at officers and recording the end of the pursuit on their phones.

A shirtless man eventually exited the vehicle from the passenger's side and gave up peacefully. While he was on the ground, the group of people on the street entered the line of fire dangerously and observed officers take the man into custody and clear the vehicle.

Officers initiated the stop because the driver was suspected of driving under the influence, according to Los Angeles Police Department Media Relations.

Dinner between friends or a recruitment meeting?

After a weeklong exchange of flattery and pleasantries through the media, LeBron James reportedly had dinner with New Orleans Pelicans superstar Anthony Davis after the Lakers 112-104 victory on Friday night at Staples Center.

Rumors of Davis joining the Lakers have been rampant since September, after the former Kentucky star signed with Klutch Sports Group, the same agent as James, and run by childhood friend Rich Paul. 

Some believe James secretly runs Klutch Sports Group behind the scenes, leading to speculation that the Lakers superstar could guide Davis to Los Angeles either via trade or in free agency in two years.

The Pelicans are off to a paltry start to the 2018-2019 campaign, currently sitting in 13^th place in the loaded Western Conference with a record of 15-19. That led many to believe that the Pelicans could be interested in trading Davis before the NBA Trade Deadline on February 7^th.

The Lakers front office is also hoping that the Pelicans become sellers in February, as they reportedly are holding on to their talented young core, in case Davis becomes available.

That report led to ESPN's Dave McMenamin to ask James about playing with Davis after a loss to the Nets in Brooklyn last Tuesday.

"That would be amazing," James said. "That would be amazing, like duh. That would be incredible."

James' comments led many NBA executives and head coaches to cry "tampering," but James doubled down on those comments after the Pelicans game saying he would like to play with a lot of NBA players, and stating, "They can't control me at all. And I play by the rules."

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Shortly after those comments, James reportedly exited Staples Center and met Davis for dinner in Los Angeles. 

That reported dinner between friends only threw fuel on the fire, leading fans to believe that Davis and James were meeting to discuss a coup d'état that would eventually land "The Brow" in Tinseltown. 

Now, James is known to have dinner after games with many opposing players. He famously went out to dinner with Dwyane Wade after his final game in L.A., and before the game in Brooklyn, dined with friend and current Houston Rocket forward Carmelo Anthony.

However, James dinner date with Davis is different. Unlike the soon-to-be retiring Wade, and the soon-to-be free agent Anthony, Davis is in control of his own destiny and could force a move to Los Angeles either now or in two years.

If Davis wants to play with LeBron he simply tells the Pelicans' front office he is not willing to commit to New Orleans long term, and demands a trade to the Lakers.

Los Angeles certainly has the pieces to entice New Orleans and make a trade happen. If for whatever reason the Pelicans don't want to trade him to the Lakers, Davis can simply tell opposing teams he will not sign long term with them either, lowering his trade value.

Recent history shows us that teams are more than willing to trade for a one-year rental in the hopes of signing that player long term. The Oklahoma City traded for Paul George in the final year of his contract and he re-signed with them. The Boston Celtics traded for Kyrie Irving with only two years remaining on his deal, and most recently, the Toronto Raptors traded for Kawhi Leonard, knowing he will be a free agent after the season.

In that scenario, or if New Orleans refuses to trade him and keep him, then Davis can decline his Designated Player Veteran Extension (worth about $28.7 million) for 2019, and become an unrestricted free agent in 2020 and sign with the Lakers then.

Davis recently purchased a home in Westlake Village for $7.5 million, and believes he can also build his global brand in Los Angeles. Fans might have to wait another season, but its very possible "The Brow" and LeBron could team up in L.A. in the not-to-distant future.

What a difference two weeks makes.

Rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 27 points and the Memphis Grizzlies grinded out a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, 107-99, on Sunday night at Staples Center.

On Dec. 8, the Lakers traveled to Memphis on the second night of back-to-back, and won by 23 points in a wire-to-wire blowout victory. Two weeks later, it was a completely different story on their home court as the Grizzlies pulled away late in sluggish and gritty game that was indicative of the Grizz style.

"I think we were flying around a little bit more and were more disruptive on the defensive end," said Lakers guard Josh Hart who had 11 points in the contest. "We didn't really have that too much today."

Marc Gasol had 17 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists. Mike Conley contributed 17 points, Gary Temple had 14, and JaMychal Green and Wayne Seldon each had 12.

"They beat us at home pretty bad so you have a chip on your shoulder because of that," said Jackson Jr. "Plus, we have been losing a lot of games lately, so we wanted to come out with a fire under us. When you're playing against LeBron James in his crib, you want to try and go off and go as hard as you can because at any moment they can go on a crazy run."

LeBron James led the Lakers with a team-high 22 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists. James is the only player in the NBA this season to average 27, seven and seven.

"Defensively we were pretty good through three quarters," said James of the game as a whole. "But we had some turnovers in the fourth quarter and had too many defensive miscues."

In his second game back from an ankle injury, Brandon Ingram had 20, and Ivica Zubac had a season-high 19 points. Kyle Kuzma finished with just 11, and failed to score over 20 points for just the second time this month. 

"I was playing off LeBron and my teammates," said Zubac of his season-high in points. "I was setting the screens and LeBron was getting deep into the paint, and my guy had to help, so he would just serve the ball to me, and I just had to finish it."

Each team had six players score in double-figures.

The back-and-forth battle featured 25 different lead changes, and no team led by more than six points until just over two minutes in the fourth quarter when Memphis extended the lead on a three-point barrage.

With the Grizzlies leading 93-91 with 3:42 remaining, Mike Conley made back-to-back three-pointers, and Temple and Jackson Jr. each hit one as well to put the game out of reach for the Lake Show.

"We made a couple costly defensive mistakes down the stretch," said Hart. "They got hot and made some big shots down the stretch."

The victory snapped a five-game losing streak for the Grizzlies.

"It felt good to kind of get that monkey off our back," said Grizzlies head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. "The urgency that our guys played with--they wanted to win this game. They put forth the effort and did all the little things necessary to get it done."

Pneumonia

After playing with flu-like symptoms in Charlotte last Saturday, McGee was hospitalized with pneumonia and missed the next three games before returning to the court for pregame warmups on Sunday. He did not play in the game. 

Michael Beasley's Mother

Lakers forward Michael Beasley posted a picture of his mother on Instagram, after it was announced that she had lost her battle with cancer. Beasley has missed 13 games this season, tending to his mother in Washington D.C. 

"I just wanted to send our love, our thoughts and our prayers to Michael Beasley and his family," said Lakers head coach Luke Walton. "They’re going through a tough time. But we’re thinking of you, we miss you and we love you."

Notes and Next

The Lakers were without two centers as big men JaVale McGee (pneumonia) and Tyson Chandler (back spasms) both were unable to play in the game. 

The Lakers will head into their highly anticipated Christmas Day matchup with the world champion Golden State Warriors, a team that is on a two-game winning streak. 

Highlights

Two men were shot, one of them fatally, in San Dimas Sunday, and investigators were working to figure out what caused the deadly shooting.

Family members and relatives of the man killed were visibly emotional, finding support in each other as they gathered in front of police tape separating them from the body of their loved one, shot to death.

"We're from the area," Solomon Moreno, uncle of the victim, said. "We have relatives, family members, friends in the neighborhood. What he was doing, I don't know."

The family of the victim said the fatally shot man was 33-year-old Michael Moreno.

"I never known him as a violent person," Solomon Moreno said about his nephew. "He's an easygoing person."

Sheriff's deputies say they responded just before 6:30 p.m. Sunday evening and found two men shot on Acacia Street, south of Bonita Avenue.

"I heard four gunshots," Brittany Lovio, who was driving by, said.

One person, identified as Michael Moreno by the family, died at the scene. Another man was taken to the hospital with at least one gunshot wound. Detectives say both victims were found outside a pickup truck.

"Life is so fragile," Solomon Moreno solemnly said. "It can be taken like that, you know what I mean? You never know."

Throughout the night, detectives plan to comb the street for evident and witnesses and any surveillance to help them figure out what happened.

No suspect description was immediately available.

At first glance, it may look like any other scene you'd see at the mall around Christmas time: Kids sit on Santa's lap; elves help guide them along; parents snap pictures.

This is no ordinary event, however.

This is part of an extraordinary program for extraordinary kids whose parents made an extraordinary sacrifice.

The scene is taking place in a terminal at LAX as part of Snowball Express, a program that offers special experiences to children who have had parents die in military service. Snowball Express is sending these children and their surviving parents on a five-day, all-expense paid trip to Disney World.

"They're giving this opportunity to kids who felt like they lost everything," said Camilla Gutierrez, whose stepfather died in military service.

The children meet as strangers, but they learn they're connected by the extreme test of losing a parent.

Actor Gary Sinise, known for playing a disabled veteran in "Forrest Gump," began supporting Snowball Express more than a decade ago. He was so impressed with the program that he made it part of his personal charitable foundation.

"We want to give them as much joy, love and light as possible," he said.

When Sinise spoke with NBC4, Snowball Express was sending more than 1,000 kids from all over the country to Orlando.

He is quick to give credit for the program's success to volunteers, many of whom are connected with the children through their own military experiences.

John Baca received a Medal of Honor for saving his colleagues from a grenade. He said he loves participating in Snowball Express.

"It's one of the most beautiful events in my life," he said.

The program meant so much to Chelsea Briggs when she was younger, she has now become a volunteer.

"After Snowball Express came into my life, we learned we can have fun again and enjoy the holidays, so I'm very grateful," she said.

The excitement builds as boarding begins. Faces light up. Smiles flash across the faces of children who have known so much pain. Snowball Express serves as a means of offering a measure of gratitude for the sacrifice they and their parents have made.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command is tracking Santa Claus as he makes his Christmas Eve journey across the globe.

 Click here to watch Santa's progress. 

The NORAD Santa Tracker, which went live just after midnight on Christmas Eve, uses satellite systems, high-powered radars and jet fighters, to follow Saint Nick as he makes his Yuletide journey around the world.

Just after 8 a.m. ET, Santa was seen delivering gifts across Papua New Guinea. Before that, Mr. Clause had been spotted headed toward New Zealand around 6 a.m. ET. 

Historically, he visits the South Pacific first before heading to New Zealand and Australia. He then treks to Asia, across to Africa and on to Western Europe, Canada, the United States, Mexico and Central and South America.

“Keep in mind, Santa’s route can be affected by weather, so it’s really unpredictable,” NORAD writes. “NORAD coordinates with Santa’s Elf Launch Staff to confirm his launch time, but from that point on, Santa calls the shots. We just track him!”

In addition to watching Santa's progress on the tracker, which went live just after midnight on Christmas Eve, users can find out Santa's current location by dialing 1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) or by emailing noradtrackssanta@outlook.com.

Now in its 63rd year, the Santa tracker became a Christmas Eve tradition after a mistaken phone call to the Continental Air Defense Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1955. CONAD, as it was known, had the serious job of monitoring a far-flung radar network for any sign of a nuclear attack on the United States.

When Col. Harry Shoup picked up the phone that day, he found himself talking not to a military general, but to a child who wanted to speak to Santa Claus. A Colorado Springs newspaper had run an ad inviting kids to call Santa but mistakenly listed the hotline number.

Shoup figured out what had happened and played along. The tradition has since mushroomed into an elaborate operation that attracts tens of thousands of calls every year.

For the 1,500 civilian and military volunteers who will answer the phones for kids calling 1-877-HI-NORAD, it infuses the holiday with childlike wonder.

"They're all really sweet, small voices," said Madison Hill, a volunteer who helped answer the phones in two previous years.

"I had a little girl tell me good night instead of goodbye," she said. "It's really sweet."

The North American Aerospace Defense Command — a joint U.S.-Canadian operation based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that protects the skies over both countries — has taken over the Santa tracker since the tradition started. The military command center embraced and expanded the Santa-tracking mission and has been rewarded with a bounty of goodwill and good publicity.

Last year, NORAD Tracks Santa drew 126,000 phone calls, 18 million website hits, 1.8 million followers on Facebook and 179,000 more on Twitter.

Santa and his sleigh will have a hard time staying under the radar thanks to the site, which is accessible in English, French, Spanish, German, Italian Japanese, Portuguese, and Chinese.

Santa Anita Park's Opening Day: The day after Christmas, 'round Arcadia way? Manes'll be flying, flutes of bubbly shall be raised, and the historic racetrack where Seabiscuit and other equine icons have run will throw wide the gate, all to launch another season of spectacular pony power. As is tradition, Opening Day arrives with some special events, like the Craft Beer & Cider Festival. The general package? It's $32. The tradition clips and clops on Wednesday, Dec. 26.

Las Posadas: The annual nine-night tradition draws to a moving close on Monday, Dec. 24, when Mary, Joseph, and a large procession stroll through Olvera Street, all to find an inn. Beautifully vocalized songs of old, the glow of night, a piñata, and more signs of the season lend meaning to the event. It's all free to see, but be sure to arrive well ahead of the 6:30 p.m. start time to enjoy it all. Bonus? Free champurrado, mmm.

Christmas Lights: If your season seems less sparkly without a toodle outside to find some festive sights, best find some, pronto. Christmas Tree Lane in Altadena is one of the most historic displays and free to see, while the Magic of Lights in Fontana will glitter at the Auto Club Speedway and LA Zoo Lights will shine at the Griffith Park animal park. And shimmering in DTLA, through Dec. 25? It's the brand-new light installations at Grand Park (entry is free). Just check your chosen lights before you go to make sure they're open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Night.

Snow Days at Kidspace Children's Museum: Finding the frosty stuff in Southern California? You can head up your nearest mountain, for some tubing or snowball-making fun, or you can invite your favorite snowpeople to visit this Pasadena-based place for five days of "winter activities," beginning on Wednesday, Dec. 26. Educational info is woven through, too, about snow and water and such. One note? The museum is near the Rose Bowl, where, yes, a lot is happening, so plan your visit accordingly.

Special Wednesday Events: So you're a fan of the traditional Boxing Day, as often observed around the UK? Chez Melange will be marking the celebration on Dec. 26, with Pimm's Cup cocktails, Fish and Chips, and other beverages and foodstuffs that summon the spirit of the day (it all begins at 5 p.m.). And while the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on the Miracle Mile typically closes each Wednesday, it'll be open on Dec. 26, all to welcome people with some time over the holidays (and a love of art).

The largest Mega Millions jackpot ever offered on Christmas Day will be on tap for Tuesday night's drawing.

With no winners in Friday's drawing, the jackpot climbed to an estimated $321 million. The jackpot refers to the annuity option, in which payments are made over 29 years. Most winners opt for the cash option, which would be $193.7 million.

Lottery officials said since the game began in 2002, drawings have landed on Dec. 25 just four times, the last time being in 2015. And while a Christmas Day drawing has not yet produced a jackpot winner, seven Mega Millions jackpots have been won in the drawings held days before and after Christmas, including the third largest jackpot in the history of the game – $648 million – on December 17, 2013.

The chance of matching all six numbers and winning the top prize is 1 in 302.5 million.

Mega Millions is played in 44 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The next drawing will be held Tuesday, Dec. 25, at 11 p.m. ET.

The last jackpot was won on Oct. 23, when a single ticket in South Carolina matched all six numbers. That winner has not yet come forward. 

The holidays are correctly described as a bit chaotic, and even cacophonous, and that time of year where everything seems to be happening at once, a phenomenon that's both merry and harried in often equal measure.

But consider how often we stand totally still at this celebratory time of year.

We're called upon to sit and pose in numerous photos — "everyone hold their breath" — and we have a way of freezing if someone catches us at the fridge, at midnight, as we eat the last of the peppermint fudge.

And, yes, we even freeze on the stairs, if we think we hear Santa shimmying down the chimney.

Where to freeze, though, and truly go for a statue-like likeness, over the first weekend of January? All to possibly be selected to participate in one of our state's most famous summertime events?

The answer: Laguna Beach Festival of Arts, where the annual tryouts for Pageant of the Masters will take place on Jan. 4, 5, and 6, 2019.

Indeed, this is the audition for the historic "tableaux vivant" production, where volunteer performers pose "inside" reconstructed masterpieces, from paintings to sculptures.

The 2019 dates, if you're selected? July 7 through the final day in August, so, yes, you'll need to be available to be in Laguna Beach, on stage, during that period.

What can you expect at the tryouts, which will take place in the evenings on Jan. 4 and 5 and on the afternoon of Jan. 6?

"Prospective volunteers will be measured and photographed" during the auditions. Also? You'll get an early peek at the "artwork to be presented" during the 2019 run.

The theme is "The Time Machine," so, you bet, there will be nifty steampunk elements vibing through several of the chosen pieces.

True, many of the volunteer performers hail from Orange County, but, yes, there are those dedicated Pageant people who live in Los Angeles and even San Diego.

Has this long been on your bucket list? Would you love to play a part in a painting? And be associated with the world-famous Pageant of the Masters for a summer?

Get your tryout deets now, pose-holders, and see how long you can freeze, with emotion and drama, while not smiling or laughing. (Yes, breathing and blinking are a-ok.)

Actor Kevin Spacey faces a criminal charge for allegedly sexually assaulting the son of a former Boston TV news anchor at a Nantucket bar in July 2016, authorities confirm. 

Former WCVB-TV news anchor Heather Unruh has previously alleged that her teenage son was sexually assaulted by Spacey inside Nantucket's Club Car Restaurant in the summer of 2016.

"The victim - my son - was a starstruck, straight 18-year-old young man who had no idea that the famous actor was an alleged sexual predator or that he was about to become his next victim," Unruh said in November 2017. 

"I want to make it clear - this was a criminal act," Unruh said. "It harmed him, and it cannot be undone."

A public show-cause hearing was held in the case on Dec. 20 where a criminal complaint was issued against Kevin S. Fowler, also known as Kevin Spacey. The Boston Globe was the first report that a criminal complaint had been filed.

"The complainant has shown a tremendous amount of courage in coming forward," Mitchell Garabedian, attorney for the accuser, said in a public statement in response to the filed complaint. "Let the facts be presented, the relevant law applied and a just and fair verdict rendered."

Spacey is due to be arraigned on an indecent assault and battery charge at Nantucket District Court on Jan. 7. It's unclear if he has an attorney in Massachusetts.

Minutes after news of the charge went public -- and for the first time in over a year -- Spacey tweeted a link to a YouTube video monologue of himself as Frank Underwood, the fictional character he once played in the series, "House of Cards." 

Spacey was removed from the cast amid other allegations of innappropiate behavior by the actor.  

"If I didn't pay the price for the things we both know I did do, I'm certainly not going to pay the price for the things I didn't do," Spacey says in the monologue. 

It's unclear if the social media posts have any connection to the latest charge. 

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is having quite a year in Hollywood.

The 85-year-old was the subject of a documentary earlier this year called "RBG" and now a new film from Focus Features, "On the Basis of Sex" tells the story of the early days of her career and family life.

Felicity Jones plays Ginsburg and says she was very involved in the process, making sure the script was accurate when it came to the law and with how it portrayed her husband, Martin.

Ruth Ginsburg's nephew Daniel Stiepleman wrote the screenplay and sent several drafts to Ginsburg for her approval.

"On the Basis of Sex" takes place over a decade of Ginsburg's life when she was balancing law school, marriage, motherhood and the desire to change the world. History buffs will enjoy the references to the civil rights movements happening during the time and how Ginsburg was at the forefront of it all.

Though she didn't get the publicity for her efforts in the way many activists and celebrities at the time did, she is certainly making up for it now.

The film shows Ginsburg working behind the scenes, in the classroom and the courtroom, to change the laws because as she said, "Protests are important but changing the culture means nothing if the law doesn’t change." This is a fictionalized re-telling of her life story, but the law and references to the law are historically accurate because Ginsburg insisted on it.

"On the Basis of Sex" is also a love story. Ginsburg was married to her husband Marty for 56 years before his passing in 2010. Armie Hammer plays Marty with the unwavering support and love that the real Martin Ginsburg had for his wife.

"He was an incredible ally just by being a support system or buttress for his wife," Hammer said. "He and Ruth had an amazingly supportive relationship."

"We really wanted to honor her, as the woman who changed the country for the better," director Mimi Leder said at the New York premiere.

"On the Basis of Sex" opens nationwide on December 25th. It stars Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux and was directed by Mimi Leder.

The main articles of clothing that see a lot of use 'round Southern California?

No doubt about it, we do dig our t-shirts and shorts and sandals and sundresses, and if we don't exactly don them all year long, golly, do we ever try.

But cooler months do have a way circling back around, requiring us to locate the odd jacket or sweater.

Still, breaking out a heavier coat? Or mittens? Those are wearables best suited to a day spent in a mountain town.

Beneath the mountains, though, in Pasadena, is a place where there shall be snow, and mitten-wearing opportunities, for five late-December days. The frosty-fun location? It's Kidspace Children's Museum, which will once again throw its annual Snow Days celebration.

Yes, actual, cold-to-the-touch snow will be brought to the Rose Bowl-close museum, all for tots and their grown-ups to enjoy.

Will you build a snowman? Perhaps try to fashion a few perfectly orb-like snowballs? Or just enjoy the wintry hubbub of this holiday time tradition?

It's up to you, of course, but do note that there'll also be an "interactive storytime" that details a bit of the science behind snow, and live music each day at 1 o'clock.

Want to decorate cookies? That'll be happening, for a $3 fee.

Your museum admission gets you into nearly all of the Snow Days activities, but here's something to keep in mind (though certainly not freeze up over): The dates are Dec. 26 through Dec. 30, 2018.

Easy to remember, but remember also that there'll be plenty of hubbub surrounding the Tournament of Roses in the area, so do plan your Kidspace arrival accordingly.

And, yes: Remember your mittens, too, for the rare chance to wear them in a non-mountain SoCal setting.

Though the official count is in the hundreds, it's been estimated that well over a thousand people in San Francisco go to sleep in their vehicles every night, parked on city streets.

The most visible of these people are the ones now at the center of a fiery debate: the residents of an estimated 313 RVs, many of them decades old and barely functioning, that bounce from block to block, dodging parking restrictions, and sometimes leaving a trail of garbage and angry neighbors in their wake.

"Those are not proper homes. They do not belong in residential neighborhoods," District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen said at a tense community meeting.

But much like the angry renters and homeowners in Ronen's district, the RV dwellers say they're just trying to live a drama-free life in what's become the most expensive city in the world. We visited three of them to learn what their daily existence is like.

1. Joey Martinez

It started out as a dream that Joey Martinez now admits was horribly misguided.

"I came up with the bright idea to purchase an RV," Martinez said. "The rent was getting expensive, and … I was just planning on seeing the world, seeing the country and just driving around."

Joey Martinez gutted this water-damaged RV and did much of the new woodwork himself. Though it's now a suitable shelter, it still lacks plumbing for water and propane.

Martinez thought he was getting a bargain, but he got more than he bargained for: A tall, modern-looking motorhome that turned out to be riddled with water damage and mold. As he tore into it, trying to make it habitable, he discovered another problem: without a catalytic converter or oxygen sensor, the engine couldn't pass a California smog test, which is required to register a vehicle.

"Literally, I'm stuck," he said. "I can't go anywhere because I have no plates and I have no registration."

By agreement with city officials, Martinez now parks his half-working RV on a corner that was once a garbage dumping ground, and helps keep the area clean. He said he misses the simple things in life.

"The luxury of the sound of a toilet flushing is just — if you don't have that, or power — you have to look for your own power and water source — it's so stressful," he said. "Every day is a survival situation."

2. Rudolph Fisher

Mayor London Breed often talks about growing up in San Francisco's housing projects, but she rarely talks about her downstairs neighbor, Rudolph Fisher, who says he lived below her at the corner of Turk and Laguna years ago.

Fisher, now 65 years old, said he lost his housing after a conviction for receiving stolen property made him ineligible for housing assistance. Private landlords weren't eager to rent to him either, and he's been homeless in one form or another since 2002.

Rudolph Fisher lives in this 1978 Chevy RV, where he occasionally gets visits from family and friends. The vehicle runs and has valid license plates, and Fisher says he'd happily sell it if he had someplace else to go.

"I sleep at family's sometimes, I slept on the bus once or twice, I slept in cars, slept in trucks," he said.

Now, Fisher lives in a 40-year-old Chevy Itasca RV parked on a mostly-industrial block in the Bayview District where street sweepers and parking enforcement won't bother him.

"It's a daily ritual," he said. "I have to supply it with water, I have to supply it with gas, oil, and then I have to do the food."

Fisher, who suffers from COPD and diabetes, said that like the RV itself, life on the streets is getting old.

"I'm done with living like this," he said. "This is not a good way to live. There's no room. I'd like to come back to Earth and get a nice little apartment, a studio apartment."

3. Couper Orona

In early 2018, when San Francisco began cracking down on tent encampments, Couper Orona knew she had to find a different kind of shelter. Homelessness was a new and unexpected turn of events for her, after she became disabled and then went through a messy divorce.

"I lived in Diamond Heights," she said. "Drove an Audi. Had a good life, you know. And just overnight, like that, everything's gone."

Couper Orona bought this aging RV from a friend after city officials swept the tent encampment where she had been living. With shelter from the rain, a tiny kitchen and a private bathroom, she said it feels like a castle.

Orona said she bought an RV from a friend who couldn't take care of it anymore, and now parks it with a group of other inhabited vehicles at the edge of a parking lot in the Mission District. Most days, she's just grateful to have a (sometimes leaky) roof over her head, and a place she can cook and use the bathroom, she said.

"It's huge, this is like a castle to me," she said. "I appreciate every bit that I have, and I don't take it for granted anymore."

As a single woman living on the street, Orona said she learned to make friends with those who would watch her back. Now, she said, crime is no longer her primary worry: she's far more concerned about new city enforcement efforts.

"This almost got towed one day," she said. "I could care less if there's a guy down the street with a gun … I'm more scared of them breaking into my house and taking my RV and putting my cat at the pound."

The Struggle for a Solution

Though vehicle dwellers have quietly subsisted in San Francisco for many years, tightening parking restrictions have forced them into denser and more visible clusters on the few streets where they're still allowed to park. District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safaí said these clusters are what have aroused the ire of neighbors.

When the Board of Supervisors adjourned for the winter holidays, there were two competing efforts to curb complaints over RV living in the city. The first, backed by Safaí, Mayor Breed and District 5 Supervisor Vallie Brown, would explore locations for an "RV triage center" where those living on wheels could come to store their vehicles while getting registered for housing assistance. In some cases, the city would offer to "buy back" RVs from their owners for cash.

Brown said the likelihood of finding suitable housing will depend a lot on who's asking: Families with children, veterans and seniors would be among the first to get help, while young and healthy individuals might wind up on the city's lengthy shelter wait list.

Safaí said as part of that plan, the supervisors would seek tighter citywide restrictions on the parking of oversized vehicles in residential neighborhoods. RV dwellers who register before a certain date will be eligible for a degree of leniency and assistance, while those who come into the city after that date would be subject to fines and towing, he said.

The second proposal comes from District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen, who said she'd initially planned to get on board with Brown and Safaí, but became impatient under pressure from her constituents. The fiery meeting at which she spoke packed a gymnasium full of angry renters and homeowners in the hilly, mostly-residential Portola neighborhood, where RVs can roam free of street sweeping and permit parking restrictions.

Ronen said she would start by banning tall vehicles from parking overnight in the Portola neighborhood, then introduce legislation setting a 6-month deadline for the city to open a triage or navigation center for RVs. Included in her plan would be the option for a "safe parking" program, allowing RV residents to continue living in their vehicles in a designated spot, away from neighborhoods, with garbage and bathroom facilities on site.

Advocates from the Coalition on Homelessness say they studied a safe parking program in San Diego, and found it could be a good fit for San Francisco, if used as a temporary step on the way to stable housing.

"A lot of what is needed is time," said Kelley Cutler, a human rights organizer for the Coalition. "Time to actually get into housing — because it's not going to be quick."

Cutler said the Coalition found RV dwellers in San Diego were able to get into more permanent housing within 4 to 6 months of enrolling in the city's safe parking program. A program like it in San Francisco would also eliminate another threat: the worry of having RVs towed away and impounded by the city after they accumulate too many parking tickets.

On December 18, the Coalition filed a lawsuit against the city aiming to stop authorities from impounding vehicles with unpaid tickets when those vehicles serve as the owner's only home or shelter.

In a statement, the City Attorney's spokesperson, John Cote, responded, "We're sympathetic to those who are homeless, including those who have nowhere to sleep other than in their cars."

Cote added that the SFMTA recently reduced towing fees for low-income people, and has long offered the option to perform community service in lieu of payment for those who can't afford their parking tickets.

"The bottom line is there is a way to take care of a parking ticket even if you can't pay for it. Letting parking tickets just pile up is not an acceptable choice," Cote's statement said.

In spite of the constant cat-and-mouse game with parking authorities, the San Francisco RV dwellers we spoke to said an offer of housing from the city wouldn't necessarily be a done deal.

In many cases, the first permanent housing option offered to homeless individuals is an SRO: a Single Room Occupancy hotel. Orona and Fisher both said they'd rather continue living in their vehicles than accept the restrictions that come along with SRO living.

"Why would I get rid of this to go into an SRO where I can't have visitors, I can't cook on the stove, I don't have my own bathroom?" Orona said. Looking around the cluttered living room of her RV, she added, "I mean, it's not much, but this is mine."

A 6-year-old girl caught in gang crossfire and shot in the back received an early Christmas Monday when LA's Police Protective League brought gifts as part of their Blue Christmas program.

Santa Claus was wearing black and blue Monday, as 6-year-old Emily Ramirez was showered with gifts by the Los Angeles Police Department after being shot in the back in October.

Her family says she still experiences pain, but she was all smiles on Christmas Eve, sharing gifts with her siblings.

It's all part of the LA Police Protective League's second annual Blue Christmas to help families in need and that have been through serious trauma. Operation Blue Christmas started with the New York Police Department and migrated from New York to Los Angeles. The Police Protective League told NBC4 that they brought gifts to 30 families on Christmas Eve.

"The past year for hard for us and then this is a little bit of I just thank God and everything to be alive with my daughter," Brenda Ramirez, Emily's mother, says.

"To see the smile on her face, the joy, she kind of lit up the whole environment and the whole area around here she's so appreciative," LAPD Officer Joseph Marrone said. "It's a beautiful thing to see."

Emily reflected the generosity back to her siblings and cousins, with everyone walking away receiving gifts in hands and hearts.

"Its good to see her happiness," Sgt. Jerretta Sandoz of the LA Police Protective League said. "We just wanted to make her smile."

No arrests have been made in Emily's shooting.

A large group of people wearing masks allegedly robbed the Apple Store in Cerritos on Christmas Eve, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Cerritos station.

Los Cerritos Center mall security called LASD to report a large group of masked people robbed the Apple Store and stole Iphones at about 7 p.m. on Monday, according to the LASD.

You may be dressed up for a holiday celebration. 

You may be wearing your sparkliest shoelaces, and your fanciest hair bow, and you could have a sweater that lights up, all to spell out spirit-raising messages of cheer.

But are you wearing a ruff? A crown? A full suit of armor, one that clanks as you stroll by the Christmas tree on the way to the punch bowl?

If not, be not blue, for the time is nearly nigh for you to do so.

Why? Because we're just over three months out, plus a handful of days, from the opening of that joust-big, queen-amazing, jester-lively lark known as the Original Renaissance Faire.

The multi-weekend ye olde festival opens on Saturday, April 6, and it will trot, like a majestic pony, right through to Sunday, May 19, each and every weekend.

How, though, to find an early deal on admission, without having to spend too many doubloons?

You can do so, right now, during Ren Faire's annual Holidazzle Sale, which shaves several dollar bills off the standard entry price. Over seven dollars, in fact, which is nothing to shake a turkey leg at: The standard adult entry is $29.95, while the Holidazzle Sale price is $22.50.

How long do you have to purchase your faire-fun admission to this ever-popular blast-from-the-(long-ago)-past party?

Through Sunday, Jan. 6, 2019, huzzah.

So wear your candy cane sweater, and stay festively fancy, but keep in mind that you'll soon be in your Elizabethan gown or your suit of armor, in the springtime, at the Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area, in Irwindale.

All lanes were closed on a major route from Southern California to Las Vegas early Christmas Day after a pileup in the Cajon Pass.

The northbound 15 Freeway was closed in the Hesperia area due to a crash involving at least 15 vehicles on the icy road. The crash was reported at about 6:30 a.m., just south of Oak Hill Road.

Ten people were injured, but details regarding their conditions were not immediately available.

Drivers described a chaotic scene on the freeway about 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles.

"As soon as I hit the top of the hill, it was ice, black ice," Brian Bolik told the Victor Valley News Group. "I crashed and everyone else around me was crashing too. A car behind us went over the embankment and rolled."

Traffic was being diverted to Highway 138.

The road reopened at about 11 a.m.

Pasadena is a city so redolent with rosy charms that it easily charms at any time of the year.

But come the final week of December? The flowers are fragrant, the floats are ready to roll, and the sound on the breeze is as brassy as can be.

Thank the talented marching bands of the Rose Parade for this final feather in the city's cap, but there are more feathers to admire beyond the bands' much-anticipated appearances at the New Year's Day event.

Take, for instance, Bandfest Presented by Remo, which may be enjoyed, nay, thrilled to, in the days ahead of the parade.

It's a celebration that's solely built around the sounds of the Tournament of Roses, and it will once again deliver the percussive beats and trumpet-y tunes to Pasadena City College ahead of New Year's Day.

Specifically, Bandfest will march on Saturday, Dec. 29 and Sunday, Dec. 30 at PCC, and, as is tradition, there are three programs to choose from, with one scheduled for Saturday and two on Sunday.

A ticket is $15, and you can find your admission via Sharp Seating Company. If there are still tickets left on the day of the event, they'll be sold at the venue beginning a half hour before go time.

And those times, as well as the other details you need to know about this truly treasured Tournament of Roses to-do? Line up, bang your drum, toot your horn, and find out all of the brassy facts now.

A child was one of four people hospitalized Tuesday morning in a crash on a Koreatown street.

The 3-year-old child and two women in their 30s were in serious condition following the crash in the 3900 block of Wilshire Boulevard. A man in his 30s was in critical condition. 

The driver of a Jeep Cherokee was turning onto Wilshire Boulevard when the SUV collided with a BMW. The BMW then slammed into a traffic light pole. 

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