Lane. At first, they said the space was needed for safety stops and maintenance, something levine says is nonsense. Right now, the third lane is used as a storage close set essentially. Theres equipment in the third lane. Theres a hardened barricade and commuters are stuck in the other two lanes watching that equipment collect dust. Reporter the state legislature agreed and passed a bill that not only green lights the lane, but also cuts through a year of the usual red tape. But caltrans says they will still need two years to get the job done. Still have environmental rules we have to follow. We have other protocols we have to follow. Reporter levine reacted with a second bill that would order caltrans to reopen the lane by the end of the month. Then go for the longterm fix. They need to make sure that the lines are striped correctly that signs are put up to be sure drivers are commuting at a safe speed. This is more than a paint job. A lot of dirt has to be removed to move the retaining wall further into the hillside. Reporter is it rules or work keeping it from happening . A little bit of both. Reporter its interesting to note that as these bills make their way through the legislature and land on the governors desk, its steering a special legislative session to try to figure out how to solve San Francisco, the bay areas and indeed the entire states gridlock on the roads. Whats going to happen remains to be seen. The governors not saying whether he is going to sign the bill or if he might if we can cut a year off and get it rolling. In marin county, phil matier, kpix 5. A spike in the number of people dying on bay area freeways. We just got some new stats in from the chp. Take a look at this. New at 6 00, kpix 5s cate caugiran with a look at whats going on. Reporter chp says traffic deaths across the state are up 3 to 5 . Here in the bay area they are up 20 . Chp says the problem is despite warnings and high ticket costs still more drivers are forgetting the rules of the road. We are talking people who arent wearing seatbelts, are speeding and one of the big problems is still ticketing and driving something many of us see on a daytoday basis, texting and driving. If you are texting while driving, have you ever noticed that you have drifted out of your lane . Have you ever noticed that theres a lot of space in front of you or all of a sudden you came close to hitting the car in front of you . Most people said yeah, i have had that happen. You were lucky and didnt have an accident. Reporter chp officers will be in full force this Labor Day Weekend ready to catch drivers not obeying the rules of the road. And officers want me to tell you, dont expect a verbal warning. They will be writing more tickets to really drill in the message to pay attention. 27 people in the state died from traffic accidents three of those in the bay area last Labor Day Weekend and nearly half of the 27 were not wearing seatbelts. Live at the bay bridge toll plaza, cate caugiran, kpix 5. Tonight new information about the bizarre kidnapping case in vallejo last month. Denise huskins and her boyfriend both said she was kidnapped and Vallejo Police didnt believe them. But then the feds said she was. Matthew muller was arrested and charged with the kidnapping. Kpix 5s Juliette Goodrich did an exclusive jailhouse interview with muller a couple of months ago and now turns out that interview is a big part of the case. Juliette . Reporter well, veronica, muller was in court today in pleasanton for a preliminary hearing. And it turns out that our jailhouse interview could be a key piece of evidence for the prosecution. When 38yearold Matthew Muller was booked into jail, he lost his right to privacy. Inmates are warned all jailhouse visits and interviews will be recorded unless they are speaking with their lawyer or a priest. My july report did not include his off the record comments from our interview. No cameras are allowed inside the jail during an interview. I couldnt even bring in pen or paper. So i jotted down these notes after the oneonone interview. My first impression, he is extremely intelligent and wasnt shy to talk. He also laid down some ground rules that certain things would be off the record and for background only. But now, everything on the record and off the record we talked about is revealed in the fbis newly released affidavit citing my name and the interview at the santa rita jail in dublin. Specifically, when i asked muller if he acted alone when he kidnapped Denise Huskins from a vallejo home or if there were others involved in the kidnapping. Muller told me, there was no gang, it was just him. Mullers attorney showed up today in court to ask the judge to throw out evidence seized from muller including drones and objects made to look like a laser sighted handgun. I also asked him specifically about the fbis evidence from my 30minute jailhouse interview. I i i cant talk about it. I havent seen it. I havent heard it. I heard they filed something in federal court. Well take a look at it tomorrow. Reporter but Denise Huskins attorney Douglas Rappaport told me today the most damning piece of evidence against muller now is the fbis reported jailhouse interview. Now, muller was in court today for a dublin breakin where he reportedly left his cell phone and thats when he was arrested after that breakin. The vallejo kidnapping that Denise Huskins kidnapping will be handled by the feds and that will take place in sacramento. But veronica, that jailhouse interview could be used as evidence in both cases. What about reaction here . Have you spoken to Denise Huskins . What does she have to say about all this . Reporter well, denise hired Douglas Rappaport as a criminal defense attorney when she was first accused of making all of this up so i spoke with doug today and told me that she wants to stay completely out of the limelight and stay extremely private. She may have to testify and thats about all she will do. Thank you, Juliette Goodrich. Tonight the question, what exactly happened last week inside the Santa Clara County jail . Thats what investigators want to know after an inmate died in custody. Kpix 5s len ramirez has new information on this. Len . Reporter suspicions are being raised about this in custody death that happened here at the Santa Clara County main jail last week. Specifically, people want to know what happened. There was a reported confrontation between this man brought in here on petty crimes and correctional deputies. Court documents identify the jail inmate who died in custody as Michael James tyree, a 31 yearold white man whose address is listed as transient. He was arrested for petty theft but has a history of drug arrests and mental illness. The Sheriffs Department which runs the jail says officers found him dead in his cell last thursday. Sheriffs Office Correctional deputy was doing a welfare check came across the inmate that was unresponsive. He called for other deputies to assist him. Medical aid was rendered. Fire and paramedics were called. And they pronounced our inmate deceased at the scene at the jail. Reporter the mercury news says he was involved in a use of force incident with Correctional Officers over taking his medication hours before he was found dead. The Sheriffs Office, now overseeing a criminal death investigation, refused to comment on the reports but a spokesman confirmed that three Correctional Officers are on administrative leave. Its always a criminal case any in custody death. The information has been slow coming out and thats creating tension and destruct. Reporter groups are calling on the sheriff to turn over the investigation to another agency or an Oversight Committee to ensure transparency. It helps the public and the agency because it takes away some of the suspicion of maybe they are withholding information trying to get the stories right or theres a coverup. A sure you that our sheriffs i assure you that our Sheriffs Office has the integrity to do a full and complete investigation. Reporter information has been slow or nonexistent in this case. We called the coroner this afternoon to try to get any information on this case and ware told that the autopsy report has been placed on were told that the autopsy report has been placed on hold by the sheriffs investigators. Len ramirez, kpix 5. Some new details about a Sexual Assault investigation involving a San Francisco police officer. Court papers released identify that officer as jason lie. Investigators say lie first met the woman while on patrol. Later, she claims an evening of drinking led to lie forcing himself on her. He is now on desk duty. A fellow officer could be in trouble for interfering with that investigation. Theres a new wildfire in lake county this evening. Its being called the elk fire. Its burned about 40 acres near the community of upper lake. Right now no structures are threatened and no evacuations have been ordered. The big graton resort casino in Sonoma County is getting bigger. Its been nearly 2 years since it first opened. Back then we heard critics in the area say the casino would bring nothing but problems. Since the casino is going to expand we asked our Mike Sugerman to look into whether or not theres more crime or traffic in the area and mike what did you find out . Reporter well, veronica, the quick answer is, well, yeah, there is more crime and, yeah, theres more traffic. But the longer answer is not so obvious why. [ music ] reporter Graton Casino opened almost two years ago. Its done okay. How much money are you making here . Were doing very well. Reporter estimates are the casino brought in more than 300 million the first year and probably the same or more in the second. And heres how it is spending some of the money. We are happy to say that today were beginning the second phase of our casino resort the second phase being the hotel resort portion of the casino. Reporter this parking lot will become a 200room, 175 million resort including Convention Center and banquet facility. Some of the 1,000 construction workers will be put to work starting tomorrow. The gaming industry is doing well these days. Theres a resurgence but everybody is upping their game and thats what you will see here in terms of a better quality product. Reporter could a market downturn hurt gambling . It could. Its all a gamble. There are those who hope it taps out. More gamblers, more crime. More people gambling, more problems. Reporter opponents predicted at opening this place would increase traffic and crime. The traffic is a little bit more congested not very much. The crime is definitely up. Reporter but officer rick bates who is also with the police union here will tell you, that has more do with the lack of cops. 30 have left the force in recent years. The casino has been a good neighbor. They brought a lot money to the county and the city. Our Staffing Levels are at an alltime low. Reporter the city is slow to hire more cops he says even with the extra 19 million a year the casino brings in. City officials did not return our calls. Well, if there will be more traffic there might be some pretty nice cars here. The hotel the rooms, 500 square feet to suites 2500 square feet in rohnert park, Mike Sugerman, kpix 5. Theres a lot of places here in San Francisco bigger than a lot of places here in San Francisco. Big, big hotel. Coming up, police track down the final suspect in a brutal murder. He is the only suspect who survived. And why police say it was so difficult to track him down. Their college suddenly closed leaving these students scrambling but now they could get a break from the state. Plus, a trend out in the bay. More swimmers are out now enjoying warmer water. Even our own joe vazquez took a dip. Dip. Just how reporter just when it looked like the trail was going cold, authorities just arrested the thirds and final suspect in a gruesome san jose murder. Kpix 5s devin fehely with more on how the manhunt ended. Devin. Reporter it is a cold, hard fact that when you kill rather than capture a suspect, you lose the ability to learn what they might know about the case. The victims family and friends have begun to fear that that might let a killer go free. Justice would be the third guy getting captured and facing the consequences of what they did. Reporter just as people thought the case was cold it was heating up. Late this afternoon, police announced that they had arrested the third and final remaining suspect 42yearold duane aguero. I dont believe somebody should be able to get away with murder. Christopher wrenn was a good man. He didnt deserve it. Reporter security cameras captured the moments before the murder as three armed men into the office building. The victim is seen with his hands up with a sign of surrender. He deserves to have the people caught and punished. Reporter the search for the third suspect stretched out over several weeks in part because he wore a mask helping to conceal his identity and also police his two alleged partners in crime were killed Matthew Castillo and Richard Jaquez ending their lives and any chance of questioning them about the case. The victims friends are hopeful that the capture of a third suspect respect will bring the answers and justice that so far have proven elusive. Theres a tragedy on all parts. I was hoping that they are going to catch the third guy and that he would do time. Reporter the victims friends say last week they had a Small Funeral Service for him here in san jose. Now, at the time, there had been no arrest and his friends say they worried that the victim would not truly be able to rest in peace until there was. In san jose, devin feastly, kpix 5. A blow to oaklands effort to build a new stadium for the raiders. The trib says they rejected the latest financing plan for the coliseum city plan in april. The tribune says in a letter to the developer, the team said it has to control all stadium revenues. The developer, floyd kephart, has been pitching using bonds funded by future stadium revenues to pay for the project. Corinthian College Students could get a tax brea this year to allow them to avoid paying income tax on the debt for students who were unable to complete their studies at the collapsed forprofit university. Corinthian college is providing 480 million in loan forgiveness nationwide. The measure heads to the assembly for approval. So there have been some unusual sightings in San Francisco bay lately. Lot of swimmers. As for the reason behind the sudden surge, kpix 5s joe vazquez shows us the answer is on the thermometer. All right, joe. Reporter hey, veronica. If you know anything about me, i dont like cold. In fact, im wearing this jacket here. Theres a beautiful sunset here at aquatic park. But you know what . I got in this water a little while ago and its very comfortable. Very warm. And thats been noticed by these swimmers lately. This is the warmest year since i have been swimming 16, 15 years every week in the bay. Reporter Taylor Stanley swims in the San Francisco bay year round but with warm temperatures he has more company. A lot of more people. Especially we have been visited by many swimmers from other states, too. Reporter according to the National Oceanic and atmospheric administration, water temperatures in San Francisco bay are hovering at about 66 degrees. The average temperature for this time of year is 61 degrees. So San Francisco temperatures are about 5 degrees above average. It feels great to be throughout swimming in the water. Its 66 degrees. And its absolutely gorgeous. Reporter in alameda the average temperature is 70. 7. About 4 degrees more than normal. Richmond is 68. 2 about 3 degrees more than normal and redwood city is 72. 5, about 1. 5 degrees warmer than normal. How warm is it . Well, this weekend they are having an alcatraz swim and for the First Time Ever they are advising swimmers to be careful if you wear a wet suit. You might just overheat. The warmup coincides with a warmup of oceans worldwide but its unclear whats causing it. One person said its not el nino. Its also not clear whether its a longterm trend. One thing is crystal clear. More people are enjoying a fitness regimen that includes fresh air and gorgeous scenery. Great to see more people getting outdoors to exercise and at the same time to swim. Reporter good support swimmers. Scientists are still studying why this is happening. Paul deanno joins us now. Paul, they call it the blob. Theres this big thing sitting off the coast out there. And its causing some of this to happen. Yeah. They call it the blob because its this huge pool of warmer thannormal ocean water which extends all the way up to alaska down to los angeles and including the bay area. And its giving us temperatures running five to seven degrees warmer than average. Im here to tell you that its breezy like always in San Francisco in the summertime but the breeze doesnt have the bite because of the ocean water being warmer than the air above it and mother natures version of airconditioning is not as strong as it typically is and we have seen warmerthan average weather especially at night in San Francisco all summer long. Talk about our high temperatures today. Now, that breeze did push in and it did cool us do