A Southern California contractor profiled in an NBC 4 I-Team investigation could face the loss of his license and possible criminal charges.

The Contractors State License Board confirms it has interviewed Lanny Dugar, owner of Finest Home Remodeling Inc. and his attorney and concluded that law(s) may have been broken in work left unfinished on the home of Jim and Kim Howard of La Verne.

The Howards' contracted Dugar's company in the summer of 2014 to build a home addition for Kim Howard's ailing parents. The price of the contract was $172,250 and to date, the Howards have produced checks showing they've paid Dugar $135,000.

The last check written to Dugar, was on Oct. 9, 2014; on Oct. 11, Jim Howard says he received a text message from Dugar that read, "off job," and continued to say Dugar's attorney would be contacting the Howards. Asked why he thought Dugar had walked off the job when there is still lots of work to be finished, Howard tells NBC 4's I-Team, "that's a great question, I wish I could answer that."

The Howards say they did question some of Dugar's spending, asking for an itemized budget and payment schedule when items they'd paid for, such as windows and a patio, never materialized. They also filed a complaint with the CSLB after work stopped at their home. An investigator who inspected the unfinished addition concluded in his report that the work done thus far, "does not meet accepted trade standards for goods and workmanlike construction."

The investigator estimated that the cost to correct the work at $173,874, which is more than the original contract.

Dugar and his attorney were asked to address the report's findings before the CSLB and the agency tells the NBC 4 I-Team, that after interviewing Dugar they do believe there are three probable violations that could carry administrative or criminal penalties.

The three alleged violations are spelled out on the CSLB website under Dugar's contractor's license number. They include:

• Departure from trade standards, plans or specs.
• Abandonment without legal excuse of any construction project,
• Exceeding the contract amount.

CSLB officials say they will be forwarding the alleged violations to California Attorney General Kamala Harris' office for administrative review.

In California, the Attorney General's office handles administrative penalties and could suspend or revoke Dugar's contractor's license. If it's determined that the charges warrant criminal charges, the case would be forwarded to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office for prosecution.

Dugar's attorney did not return a message seeking comment.

Dugar's attorney has insisted that his client had not walked off the job. He was "locked out" of the job by the Howards in a money dispute, the attorney previously told NBC4.

Dugar's attorney also maintained that his client dealt with the Howards appropriately but would not comment further because of the ongoing investigation.

Jim Howard says he will continue to push for a criminal charge in this case, believing that if prosecution leads to a conviction that will end any chance of someone else suffering as his family has, "unless this becomes a criminal matter I don't think the company (Dugar's) Finest Home's (Remodeling) cares," said Howard.

If you have a tip on this story — or anything else — the I-Team wants to hear from you. Give us a call at 818-520-TIPS or email nbc4iteam@nbcuni.

Danielle Lei has business acumen that exceeds her peers.

On Sunday, the 14-year-old Girl Scout set up cookie sales in front of San Francisco pot dispensary The Green Cross for the second year in a row. Lei told SFGate.com that she sold 208 boxes in two hours, and plans to return to The Green Cross to sell more cookies on Valentine's Day.

There has been no opposition to Lei's creative sales strategies from The Girl Scouts of Northern California. Dana Allen, the organization's marketing and communications director, told Mashable in 2014 that "the mom decided this was a place she was comfortable with her daughter being at."

"We're not telling people where they can and can't go if it's a legitimate business," Allen said.

But neither the organization nor the general public at large may know that "Girl Scout Cookies" is also the name for a hybrid marijuana strain that is popular in the Bay Area's urban community.

It's probably best to stick to Thin Mints and Samoas when ordering from Lei, who will return to The Green Cross from 12-2 p.m. on Feb. 14.

A Marin County school district is taking a stand against students opting out of immunizations.

Board members for the Reed Union School District in Tiburon on Tuesday voted 4-1 to send letters supporting legislation to abolish the personal belief exemption to county health officials and state lawmakers.

School officials said 100 parents in the district have used the personal belief exemption to avoid giving their kids immunizations.

The move was prompted by the parents of a first grader with leukemia who wants to ban students who haven’t been vaccinated for measles.

Carl and Jodi Krawitt want a repeal of the state law which allows parents to opt out of vaccinations because of their personal beliefs. Their 7-year-old son, Rhett, can’t be vaccinated. His system isn’t strong enough. For five years he’s been battling leukemia and his oncologist says cancer patients can’t risk getting infected with preventable diseases.

“Not only would they be at a higher risk for a more severe form of illness from measles, for example, but it would also likely delay their therapy,” said Dr. Robert Goldsby, Rhett's oncologist.

“We’re hoping there’s some either some person or organization, maybe a politician, who sees this and says, you know what, this is something that we can do something about,” Jodi Krawitt said last month.

Since that interview, state lawmakers have introduced legislation to repeal the personal-belief exemption that allows parents to opt out of vaccinations.

Carl Krawitt says State Senator Richard Pan, a pediatrician from Sacramento, has introduced a bill to repeal the exemption.

The Krawitt family’s campaign and the publicity over the state’s measles outbreak is already having an impact on vaccination rates. Several months ago, Carl Krawitt said, the number of unvaccinated students at Reed Union schools was 6 percent. The school board on Tuesday night heard that rate has dropped down to almost 1.5 percent, Krawitt said.

A man with what appeared to be cuts on his body and injuries to his head was found dead on a road in El Monte early Wednesday.

His body was discovered at Rosemead Boulevard and San Gabriel Boulevard at around 12:29 a.m, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said. Passing drivers stopped when they saw him on the road and informed the police.

The cause of death is unknown, despite the fact he had lacerations on his body. Investigators are trying to determine if this was a homicide or death by hit-and-run.

It had initially been reported the victim had stab wounds, but detectives now say the information they have is inconclusive at this time.  The victim also appeared to have head injuries. A cyclist who pedalled by the crime scene told NBC 4 the man had blood on his chest.

Streets have been closed from Gallatin Road  and Rosemead Boulevard to Rosemead Boulevard and San Gabriel Boulevard.

A 3-foot pet corn snake was reunited with its owners eight months after it went missing from the family's Brooklyn brownstone, authorities said.

The snake, Flame, escaped its home on Fifth Street between Sixth and Seventh avenues in Park Slope in June, the 78th precinct tweeted.

The reptile showed up Friday at a neighbor's house and the terrified woman called 911, police said.

DNAInfo reports the neighbor, Minerva Fernandez, is so fearful of snakes she can't even watch them on TV. The website said Fernandez hid in her apartment, waiting for police to arrive, as another neighbor kept the snake pinned in a corner of her staircase with a mop handle.

Police arrived and captured the snake, then kept it at the precinct station house until the family could be reunited with it Saturday.

A snake expert told DNAInfo the reptile probably survived on mice and other small rodents during its eight-month jaunt around Park Slope, and set up someplace warm in the winter months, possibly by a radiator.

A teen who was fatally shot in a Newark street last month made a video about stopping violence in New Jersey’s largest city in the months before his death, NJ.com reports.

Kyzeir Baker, 16, was shot along with an 18-year-old man on Spruce Street on Jan. 22 and died a few days later at University Hospital, the news site reports.

No arrests have been made in the shooting.

Baker’s death comes a little more than six months after he was interviewed in an anti-violence video posted on YouTube by the Newark HUBB mentoring program. Baker shot the video during a “Youth Television Film, And Press” class over the summer and talked about how teens should “avoid the streets.”

"It's sad. It's like every night somebody dies,” Baker said in the video. “It's sad to see how all of these young teenagers are dying so fast, every day."

In the video, Baker can be seen talking about gangs in Newark, and he recounts a story of a friend who was stabbed to death while trying to rob someone. He told the interviewer about advice his grandfather gave him to stay out of trouble.

"He told me, ‘Don’t get in the gangs, don't get into nothing,’” Baker recalled in the video. “He said, ‘Be you, go out there be a lawyer, doctor, basketball player, whatever you want to be, but avoid the streets.’”

The class’s teacher, Dash Living, told NJ.com that Baker was among 60 children in the class and was one of just a few willing to talk about violence and gangs on camera.

“He was always participating in the discussion,” Living said. “He had courage.”

Baker’s aunt told NJ.com that the 16-year-old was raised mostly by his grandmother after his father abandoned him and his mother got addicted to drugs. She said he was a Shabazz High School student and was on the honor roll in middle school.

The National Transportation Safety Board sent Metro three urgent recommendations Wednesday regarding the ventilation of tunnels in response to the fatal smoke incident Jan. 12 in Washington, D.C.

In a letter to interim General Manager Jack Requa, NTSB said Metro should assess its ventilation system, write a procedure for tunnel ventilation and establish ongoing ventilation training for control center staff and emergency responders.

"Procedures for ventilation of smoke in emergencies can be critical, but they vary across systems, and in some systems are inadequate — as we have found in the present WMATA investigation,” acting NTSB Chairman Christopher Hart said in a news release. “Although the investigation is ongoing, WMATA should immediately address these issues to prevent any chance of a recurrence, and other systems should be audited for similar problems.”

Ventilation fans can operate in supply mode — pulling fresh air in to the tunnels and stations — or exhaust mode — pulling air out of the tunnels and stations.

At the L'Enfant Plaza station Jan. 12, the station and vent shaft fans were in exhaust mode, drawing smoke toward two stopped trains, according to the NTSB.

Also, two of four fans in a vent shaft tripped a circuit and were not operational.

The train stuck in the tunnel drew smoke inside because its ventilation was not turned off, according to the NTSB.

Metro has already decided to allow train operators to turn off ventilation without first getting permission from the control center.

The investigation also found Metro does not have means to determine the exact location of a source of smoke, and its ventilation procedure Jan. 12 was inconsistent with best practices.

"We welcome the NTSB recommendations issued today and have begun to address these at Metro," Metro responded. "Following the January 12 incident, we conducted systemwide inspections and tests of all tunnel fan shafts and found them to be in good working condition. We also completed familiarization training for all 39 Controllers in our rail control center and we are reviewing additional protocols and training associated with tunnel fan use that are responsive to the NTSB recommendations issued today. We continue to give our full cooperation to the ongoing NTSB investigation."

Metro said it checks all fans monthly and there is a standard protocol for checking ventilation fans.

Hart, Requa and Metro Chairman Mort Downey briefed the Council of Governments about the investigation Wednesday.

Rep. Gerry Connolly said it is "stunning" that Metro would need NTSB to remind it that should have a ventilation system in working order.

Montgomery County Council member Roger Berliner said COG needs Metro to be at its very best, putting COG in a position to argue in favor of Metro.

Metro leaders raced out of the meeting when it ended.

Requa said that to his knowledge all fans in the system are working now.

The NTSB also sent letters to the Federal Transit Administration and the American Public Transportation Association calling for a nationwide assessment of subway ventilation.

Business owners were on high alert in the Simi Valley area after three salons were targeted by a smash-and-grab burglar during the early morning hours Wednesday.

Starting shortly after midnight, the windows and door of a salon in the 1700 block of Los Angeles Avenue were smashed out triggering an alarm. Officials from the Simi Valley Police Department arrived to find the cash register dismantled in disarray on the floor.

Surveillance video captured a man in a light colored baggy shirt and dark colored pants in the building for less than 40 seconds from the time the windows and door were broken, Sgt. Jeff Dominick from the Simi Valley PD said.

Cash was not at the location during the attempted theft and the burglar may have moved on to another location, according to officials.

A man with the same description from the salon targeted around midnight was captured on a second surveillance video in the 5900 block of Los Angeles Avenue where two other salons were burglarized in a similar fashion within hours of the first location.

"What he has against nail salons, massage parlors, I'm not sure," Dominick said.

Only one of the salons from second location had cash on site. Around $1,000 was taken from the register of that business, Dominick said.

Detectives will take over the investigation and review both videos as well as any evidence left at the sites.

Officials are asking anyone with information to contact the Simi Valley PD at 805-583-6950.

A small twin-engine plane crashed, killing four people aboard, near the intersection of Krome Avenue and SW 144th Street in Southwest Miami-Dade County Wednesday afternoon.

The Beechcraft 1900 had taken off from the Miami Executive Airport earlier Wednesday and was headed for Providenciales International Airport in the Turks and Caicos Islands when it crashed around 2:30 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said.

"Fire crews that were responding noticed a huge black column of smoke in the distance, as soon as they got here it was apparent that it was an airplane, the downed power lines, the damage was consistent to a plane crash, completely engulfed in flames," Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Lt. Arnold Piedrahita said.

The plane was trying to turn back to Miami Executive after one of the engines may have failed, according to Greg Chin of the Miami-Dade Aviation Department.

A friend of the family told NBC 6 that the pilot of the flight was Captain Raul Chirivella, 52. Also on the plane was copilot Roberto Cavaniel along with Juan Carlos Betancourt. All three were from Venezuela. The family friend told NBC 6 the group was in the United States looking for plane parts to take back to Venezuela. Three of the victims worked for a company called Pan Americano.

“The only thing I know that he come to pick up some parts for the airplane in Venezuela, but I don’t know if they make some job here,” said Macario Chirinos, a friend of Chirivella for 30 years. “It was shocking. I mean we didn’t expect that at all. We spoke with him five minutes before he took off.”

A fourth person was on the flight, but has not been identified.

Some 500 gallons of fuel were on board the aircraft, fire officials said. According to Piedrahita, it took so much foam to put out the fire, a foam truck from the nearby airport was brought to the scene.

"Once the fire was extinguished, firefighters investigated the area and unfortunately, sadly, no survivors were found," he said. "It's a small contained area, in the dirt, no structures were affected, no homes, no animals or other bystanders or people on the ground were injured."

The crash initially knocked out power to 537 homes, according to Florida Power and Light. FPL said power was restored to all but four homes within an hour. FPL said one pole was knocked down and another was compromised due to the crash.

Miami-Dade Fire, Miami-Dade Police, and other agencies responded to the scene. The National Transportation Safety Board will be leading the investigation.

As a result of the crash, Krome Avenue between Southwest 136th Street and Southwest 168th Street will be closed until Thursday morning.

When you think “service dog,” you might picture a seeing-eye dog guiding its visually impaired partner down a busy sidewalk. But as an increasing number of children are diagnosed with autism in the United States, a new kind of service dog is reaching high-demand.

“These dogs are socialized at such a young age and they’re picked very specifically for just this job,” said Laura Sylvester who started the nonprofit GoodDogAutism.org in an effort to help match autism service dogs with kids.

Laura and her husband Rick built the organization after seeing the miraculous change a dog made in their own son’s life. “He used to walk through restaurants withdrawn, head down, and now he holds Orbit’s leash and walks very proudly,” said Sylvester.

Unfortunately no ordinary pound puppy will do. Good Dog uses only Labrador and Golden Retrievers, and just a few puppies per litter, if any, will pass a detailed personality test prequalifying them for consideration.

The puppies are then put through a 24-month training program where they learn specific tasks to mediate disabilities of kids with autism. The dogs are taught to redirect and focus kids who often make a scene in public.

“We’ve seen kids sleep through the night who’ve never slept in their own bed before. We’ve seen kids be excited to go to school when they used to run from the bus,” said Sylvester.

New studies have shown the dogs actually lower the stress hormones in the children by laying across their lap providing a deep calming pressure.

Today there are far more families wanting an autism service dog than there are available dogs. The high cost associated with training, coupled with the dropout rate, means each available dog is valued at $26,000.

Good Dog pays half while the families fundraise the rest. Good Dog places roughly 10 autism service dogs a year, but with increased awareness and public support, would like to see the number grow closer to 50.

Two brothers in their 70s who went missing while hiking in the mountains east of Los Angeles have been found with no serious injuries.

The brothers did not return after their hike in the Mount Baldy area Tuesday. One of the men from Chino Hills walked out of the forest on his own, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

One of the brothers, Kilpyung Auh, 73, was found Wednesday afternoon. His 70-year-old brother, Hunpyung Auh, walked down Wednesday morning.

The hikers were reported missing about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday after they did not return home that afternoon, the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said. They began their hike about 5 a.m.

The Tuesday evening search included ground teams on the north slope of Mount Baldy and a sheriff's department helicopter, however their car was located. Crews located the hiker's vehicle near a trailhead on San Antonio Falls Road.

It is unknown whether the hikers were prepared for the wilderness or how experienced they are at hiking. Temperatures in the area were in the 50s with light winds. 

Boston's regional transit chief Dr. Beverly Scott is stepping down, effective April 11, amid criticism of how her agency handled delays, suspensions and massive snowfall.

On Tuesday, Scott defended her decision to suspend the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's rail service for more than 24 hours as crews struggled to clear the tracks. This decision was highly criticized as thousands of commuters scrambled to make alternative travel plans.

On her way out of her office Wednesday, Scott, surrounded by staff, said very little in the way of explaining the bombshell announcement.

"Were you forced out?" a reporter asked.

"I never give up on anything," she replied.

The surprising announcement came hours after the State Board of Transportation gave her a full vote of confidence, at a meeting in which she spoke.

When asked Tuesday why he had not yet huddled directly with Scott, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said he had no direct control over the MBTA and was dealing with the agency through Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollack, who has a seat on its board of directors.

Dr. Scott sent a letter Wednesday to the MassDot Board of Directors.

"Over the next sixty days, I will work with you, and the Board, to effect a smooth transition. During this period, I will place priority attention on working with our team to: return 'T' services to normalcy," said Scott.

Gov. Baker's office issued a statement following Scott's resignation that read, in part, "The Governor and Lt. Governor were surprised to learn of Dr. Scott's resignation this afternoon. They thank her for her contribution to the Commonwealth and are grateful for her offer of assistance as the MBTA transitions to a new General Manager."

"I thank Dr. Beverly Scott for her deep commitment to our public transportation system and to the people of Boston and the Commonwealth," said Mayor Marty Walsh in a statement. "She has shown leadership and courage during the challenges we are facing, and I wish her the best of luck in the future. I look forward to working with the Governor to improve our public transportation system to better serve our residents who rely on it everyday."

Rail service partially resumed Wednesday morning after being shut down for more than 24 hours as crews cleared snow and ice that had built up on the tracks from recent storms. 

"During these past two years-plus, it has been an absolute pleasure and honor to serve with and lead this dedicated team of transit professional and public servants," said Scott.

As the long commute home began Wednesday with limited MBTA service continuing, some MBTA riders were surprised to hear of the resignation.

"Really, the lady that was on yesterday?" said John Dovoses of East Weymouth. "It's not really her fault. I mean, you've got to deal with what you've got."

The recent performance of the MBTA has also raised questions about whether the aging system can be modernized enough to handle the Olympic Games -- should they take place in Boston in 2024. 

"We are running an extremely aged system that is getting a pounding every single day," said Scott earlier this week.

Wednesday, commuters had mixed views on whether Scott's decision to step down would actually help the T improve service.

"I can see why she did that," said Alisa Raymond of Randolph, who had a two-hour commute Wednesday morning. "I watched her YouTube video the other day, and I feel like the management could be a lot better than what it is right now."

"I feel bad for her, I don't know, I don't think she necessarily caused this," said Kristen Braithwaite of Weymouth, who had a three-hour morning commute. "I think we need more money into the system, I don't really see how things get better otherwise."

Throughout the day, the buses couldn’t come fast enough to shuttle commuters on the T’s Red Line route between Braintree and JFK stations Wednesday – just one of several areas experiencing service interruptions after the MBTA resumed limited rail service after a 30 hour shut down.

"Forty-five minutes we've been waiting," said Leanne Hindy of South Weymouth. "It's taking a while."

"Oh my God, this is ridiculous," said Cedric King of Quincy. "The wait alone just for the buses is tiring, we're cold."

"I am stunned by the resignation of Dr. Scott. Be clear, this Board has had no discussions at any time about her tenure as General Manager. We hoped and expected that she would fulfill her three year contract, which ends in December of this year. I want to thank Dr. Scott for her skillful and committed leadership over the last 26 months, and wish her the very best as she moves on to her next challenge. In the coming weeks, I will appoint a sub-committee of the Board to direct a nationwide search for her replacement," said John Jenkins, Chairman of the MassDot Board of Directors. 

Scott was appointed in 2012 after managing transit systems in Atlanta, Sacramento and Rhode Island and holding leadership positions in others including the Metropolitan Transit Authority in New York.

"For me, the special 'X Factor' at the 'T' will always be its people," said Scott.

Scott did not give a specific reason for her departure.

A high-speed police chase came to a dramatic end Wednesday in North Dallas when the driver rear-ended a family's minivan and was promptly tackled, dragged into the street and beaten by a woman and a man whose vehicle he rear-ended.

Dallas police identified the suspect as 40-year-old Artrai Alexander and said he allegedly stole a Dodge Challenger from a convenience store in the 3000 block of Grand Avenue, near Fair Park.

The victim of the carjacking called 911 and provided a detailed description of the vehicle, which was relayed to officers' radios across Dallas.

Dallas police chased the stolen vehicle along residential streets, parking lots and Interstate 635 until the driver tried to split between two cars at a stoplight but instead rammed into them at Walnut Hill Lane and Abrams Road.

Jessica Liesmann, who was driving the minivan the suspect hit, and her boyfriend Charles Cook got out of their van, quickly approached the suspect's vehicle and fought him to the ground before police officers arrived and arrested him.

"I saw him come behind me and hit me. I turned around and asked my son, 'Are you okay?' and he was like 'Yeah' — so I jumped out the car and was like, 'What the hell is wrong with you? You’re in a school zone. What are you thinking?' He didn’t say anything," Liesmann said.

Liesmann's son T.J., 13, was also in the van and was taken by ambulance from the scene as a precaution. He was released from the hospital just before 6 p.m.

"My mom, she did put him in his place, and I'm glad that he's in jail 'cause, to be honest, when I was in the car, I thought I died," T.J. said.

"I was just angry. I just lost my 4-year-old child on the second day of school, and to think of something else happening to one of my kids," said Liesmann, "I just can’t imagine. I’m just grateful, first of all, that he’s OK, and second of all, that that guy is in jail."

A handgun was recovered from the stolen Challenger, police said.

"If he had a gun, I just thank God that he didn't pull it out, 'cause I could've easily been shot and she could've easily been shot," Liesmann's boyfriend Cook said.

Dallas police said Alexander will be charged with aggravated robbery and evading arrest. 

Thankful that the citizens who held the #chase suspect weren't injured by him. Would never advise you do that. #Adrenaline and #Anger

— Maj. Max Geron (@MaxDPD) February 11, 2015

A house painter suspected of

shooting and wounding

a San Diego television sportscaster was in a dispute with the victim over work done on the reporter's home, police said.

Authorities say Mike Montana, 54, fired multiple shots through the rear window of Kyle Kraska's silver Mercedes on Tuesday outside Kraska's house in the city's quiet, predominantly residential Scripps Ranch area.

San Diego police Lt. Scott Wahl said the dispute involved the painting of the KFMB-TV anchor's house, but he didn't offer specifics.

The CBS affiliate said Wednesday that Kraska's injuries were serious but his prognosis is good. He was recovering at a hospital.

Montana surrendered to authorities after a SWAT standoff at his home in suburban El Cajon and was booked into San Diego County jail early Wednesday. He is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday on a charge of attempted murder.

Montana identified himself as the self-employed owner of Superior Painting Corp. in a filing for personal bankruptcy protection in January 2014. He listed assets of $11,030, liabilities of $38,878 and monthly income of $2,012.

Superior Painting's California business license was suspended in October 2013 for an unpaid balance of $1,951, said Tami Grimes, a spokeswoman for the state Franchise Tax Board.

Jail records do not list an attorney for Montana, who didn't immediately respond to an email sent through jail system.

Kraska is the sports director at KFMB, where he has worked since 1999. He has been a fixture in San Diego homes as the station's evening sports anchor since 2003 and hosts the San Diego Chargers postgame show.

The Boston native previously worked for television stations in Los Angeles; Sarasota, Florida; Tampa, Florida; El Paso, Texas; and Albany, New York, according to a KFMB biography. He began his career as weekend sports anchor in Watertown, New York, during his senior year at Syracuse University.

San Diego police say the attack is unrelated to any other crimes and described it as "targeted."

"(The suspect) was looking for him," Wahl said. "He wasn't looking for someone else. This was not random."

The shooting comes less than two months after a TV meteorologist in Texas was shot outside the station where he works.

Authorities said KCEN-TV meteorologist Patrick Crawford was in his car the morning of Dec. 17 when a gunman approached, yelled at him and shot him three times.

Crawford returned to the air four weeks later. Authorities are still looking for that gunman.

A string of pet thefts in recent weeks in the Hollywood Hills and Mount Olympus neighborhoods has residents keeping an extra watchful eye on their furry friends.

Jacqueline Bucci's 9-year-old Imperial Shih Tzu Charlie was the first of three dogs to disappear in the area.

"He's my partner in crime," Bucci said. "Everyday, I just try to do something to keep looking for him, so it just doesn't go away."

Bucci last saw Charlie the morning of Jan. 23 in front of her home in the Hollywood Hills near Runyon Canyon.

"I turned for one minute to go inside and grab my cat who had run outside," she said. "When I came back he was gone."

Bucci spent the rest of the day looking for Charlie. After several hours, a construction worker who was working on a home nearby told her he had seen a woman in a black Toyota Prius scoop up a small dog matching Charlie's description from the road.

A similar story surrounded the disappearance of Elliott and Diane Wang's dog Bear Bear. Their 8-year-old miniature poodle escaped from the Banks' home on Jan. 29. A neighbor saw a woman described in her 50s with shoulder-length hair, driving a white Toyota Camry or Corolla allegedly pick up Bear Bear and drive off with the pooch.

In the latest nabbing, surveillance video recorded a person snatching Jack Russell terrier Junebug on Feb. 10. The thief was seen hiding in the bushes before grabbing Junebug when her owner ran inside the home for a minute, leaving the pooch outside.

But Junebug was reunited with her owner on Wednesday. Details about how Junebug was returned to her family were not immediately clear.

Bucci set up a Facebook page for her missing four-legged friend, hoping to help spread the word about Charlie's disappearance and bring him home.

Volunteer Helen Trimble, who describes herself as deeply invested in reuniting pet owners with their lost pets, has also posted similar information on the missing dogs on a Facebook page she moderates called "Lost and Found Paws in Los Angeles Metro Area."

Bucci said she is thankful for all the work Trimble has done to help reunite her with Charlie.

Until the dogs are brought home, the neighborhoods where they lived will remain blanketed with colorful lost dog posters and their information will continue to be posted on social media, Trimble said.

Anyone with information regarding the missing pooches may contact Trimble via her Facebook page.

A man who was shot by police after a high-speed car chase during which he allegedly held a woman at gunpoint and stole her car is facing carjacking and other charges, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Aaron Lorta was charged Wednesday in connection with carjacking, attempted carjacking and fleeing a pursuing police officer's vehicle while driving recklessly and was in custody recovering from several gunshot wounds, according to a release from the LA District Attorney's Office.

The chase began Monday when Lorta allegedly carjacked a woman after crashing another stolen car during a 45-minute rush-hour chase that began in Boyle Heights, police said.

Lorta, 29, pointed a gun at the woman before driving away in her car, prosecutors said.

"He just came up to me and pointed a gun at me ... and told me to get out of my car, and he just took off with it," Elizabeth Yarahuan said. "I was just scared he was going to hurt me."

The chase wound through downtown LA, went as far north as Lynwood, then ended in Montebello with the suspect running in lanes of the Pomona (60) Freeway.

The driver sometimes headed the wrong way through traffic and smashed into several cars. The chase ended on a street in Montebello when that car got stuck in heavy traffic.

Prosecutors say officers shot Lorta after he unsuccessfully tried to steal two other cars.

Police recovered a large semi-automatic pistol at the scene. If convicted, Lorta faces up to 27 years, 10 months in state prison, officials said.

He has a long criminal history that includes convictions for domestic battery, carrying a concealed dirk or dagger, grand theft, assault with a deadly weapon, attempted grand theft auto, theft and unlawful taking or driving of a car, and attempted robbery, according to Los Angeles County Superior Court records.

Lorta is a known gang member with history in the East LA area, police said.

It wasn't immediately known whether Lorta has a lawyer.

Tonight’s winning Powerball ticket is worth $500 million.

The half-billion dollar jackpot, the third-highest Powerball jackpot in U.S. history, was upped from $485 million ahead of Wednesday's drawing due to the high volume of ticket sales.

While winning the money may not buy happiness, such a large cushion of cash can grant you access to some of the world's most luxurious experiences and items. Here's a look at some of the things you could splurge on if your ticket's numbers are called when the winning combination is announced at 11 p.m. eastern.

100 Lamborghini Veneno Roadsters, with extra money left over to tip valet.

27 private helicopters like the ones used by Christian Grey in "Fifty Shades of Grey." Each Eurocopter brand chopper piloted by the fictional multi-multi billionaire at the center of the story costs about $3,950,000.

76,923 wedding dresses from Vera Wang. The top designer's creations set brides back at least $5,000 per gown.

71,429 wells to serve a communities in Africa through Water Wells for Africa, which estimates that each well, which serves 2,000 people, costs $7,000 on average. 

4,000 private island lots like the ones offered on Fiji's Mavuva Island. Each lot on the remote island starts at $125,000 each.

If you didn't want to spend it all at once, you could use some of your earnings for these luxury experiences and goods recommend by VIP concierge services for the rich and famous.

• Attend the highly anticipated potential fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao in May for $25,000, with floor seats, private travel, red carpet access, penthouse accommodations. The Black Door Experience package comes with VIP access to all of Las Vegas, including a private celebrity chef dinner, company Founder and President Rachel McIntyre.
 
• $72 million gets you a flight with the Russian space team to the International Space Station, where you can go outside the space station and space walk like you're George Clooney in the movie "Gravity." No one has yet taken The Bluefish concierge service up on the offer, CEO and Founder Steve Sims said.
 
• For $900,000, be the star of your own James Bond film for the weekend. You can create a plot line and have hired actors play the villains and kidnap you. Let your imagination run wild as  your moves are choreographed and filmed with actors, spanning locations like the Bahamas, Monte Carlo and Russia, Sims said.
 
• In the mood for Italian? For $500,000, The Bluefish will send you to Florence to eat dinner for six at the feet of Michelangelo’s David for three nights, with special access to a non-public gallery and residence in the personal home of a world famous designer in Tuscany.
 
• Dive down to see the Titanic with scientists. There won’t be any Wi-Fi, but for $60,000, you’ll get to eat with crews from Russia and France as they measure how the pressure and lack of light affect the Titanic’s preservation. The trip, coordinated by Bluefish, will last two hours, and you’ll see a lot of wildlife and ocean life that you’ve never seen before.
 
• $50,000 gets you and your friend VIP access to the Victoria Secret Fashion Show, with backstage passes, a trip to the after party accompanied by two models and accommodations for one night, said Sims. 
 
• It won't even set you back seven figures to sit in the millionaire seats at Churchill Downs. For $400,000, a family of four can snag Millionaire's Row seats at the Kentucky Derby and private airfare to and from the race, courtesy of Goviva. You'll even have money left over to bet.

Margaret Wendt thought living in L.A.'s historic Hancock Park district would be a dream. Instead, more often than not, she's waking up to a smelly nightmare in her carefully landscaped backyard.

Wendt says every few days, city-owned trees are puncturing her underground pipes, sending the noxious contents bubbling onto her patio and garden.

NBC4 asked whether she meant raw sewage.

"I’m not trying to be funny, but it looks like the Jolly Green Giant went to the bathroom out here," Wendt said.

Wendt’s handyman, Cesar Delgado, told NBC4 that roots from the enormous trees planted on the parkway in front of her Larchmont Boulevard home have found an oasis in her cracked, old underground sewer pipes.

NBC4 asked Delgado if the roots are looking for water, if they’re going into those pipes to get the water, and if they’re also getting fertilized by all that sewage. 

"That’s why they’re healthy," Delgado said.

Delgado ran a special camera 13 feet down into the sewer line, showing NBC4 the tree roots that repeatedly poke through the pipes and clog the passage of toilet paper and other materials.

"We just cut them two weeks ago and they grow back again, you can see," explained Delgado.

Wendt has been battling the root problem for more than a year, spending a small fortune to fix the pipe damage, and clean up the mess caused by the raw sewage.

"In the last year and a half, (I’ve spent) $37,000 dollars," she said.

Wendt has made repeated calls to the city, asking for the tree to be removed, but she’s gotten nowhere.

"The people in the city don’t care," she said. "The supervisor said 'Sorry, your problem.'"

NBC4 took Wendt’s complaints to acting Superintendent for the L.A. Department of Street Services Ron Lorenzen.

"The property owner is responsible for the sewer lateral," Lorenzen said.

When asked if the city removed any trees based on this kind of problem, Lorzensen said: "Not to my knowledge. To my knowledge this is the property owners’ responsibility."

As for whether the city is liable for any damages caused by public tree roots, the I-Team reached out to the L.A. City Attorney’s office for answers.

Spokesman Rob Wilcox said before any damages are paid, it must be proven that the tree was planted by the city, not by a developer or a previous homeowner.

Wilcox also said an investigation would be conducted to determine if the roots are to blame for broken pipes; if the pipes are leaky, the water may actually be attracting the roots, in which case, Wilcox explained, the city might not be culpable.

In the meantime, Margaret Wendt is afraid to use her bathroom, because with every shower or flush of a toilet, she may unwittingly trigger a brand-new sewage spill.

"I can’t even really live like a human being," she said. "I basically just have somewhere to sleep."

If you have a problem with a public tree, you can contact the city by dialing 311.