to put the recall on an upcoming ballot. last month the group called save alameda for everyone, safe, submitted those signatures to the county. they said they had more than the -- 123,000 signatures, well over the minimum needed, which is about 73,000 signatures. now, since the registrar has been checking those signatures to make sure they're valid voters. >> her campaign can expect all the things that they've been talking about to this point, that she's left the county unsafe, that she's been so worried about going after police and letting those folks accused of crimes walk away, that the county is not safe because of it.

that's going to be the claim. and judging from what happened in san francisco not that long ago, it may be the kind of thing that's sticking around here in the bay area. >> yeah. we saw chesa boudin across the bay get recalled, and now it might happen in alameda county. we spoke with pamela price's campaign lawyer. he plans to challenge the recall because he believes this whole thing is illegal. he plans to make his case at the same board of supervisors meeting where the results will be certified on april 30th. our other top story, the traffic mess, from the golden gate bridge to 880, and now tesla. gaza cease-fire protesters have been making their voices heard all across the bay area and across the united states on tax day. it's part of a nationwide effort to protest u.s. tax dollars going toward israel and the war in gaza. tonight a much smaller demonstration expected in fremont. we're told a group of about 40 protesters are headed to the tesla plant t there in fremont.

they started moving from the warm springs b.a.r.t. station to the tesla plant. you can see the police blockade and the police presence waiting for those protesters. we have a crew on-site. we'll update this story throughout thee evening. this followsth the major demonstrations this morning that shut down traffic, sparking hours of traffic nightmares. hopefully you weren't caught up in this. u protesters blocking traffic on three major arteries, the golden gate bridge and both sides of 880 in the east bay. people were stuck. people were frustrated, and people are still upset. in oakland, traffic was blocked on southbound 880 near 980 and northbound 880 at fifth avenue. so you have two locations along 880. officers had to deal with protesters chaining themselves to 55-gallon barrels filled with concrete and rebar. you see the barrels there. you see all those officers. they had to use jack hammers and other tools to pry them out and clear the road.

onad the golden gate bridge now anytime you see our landmark shut down, it becomes a national story, and it was. protesters drove onto the bridge during the morning commute, blocking traffic, and chaining themselves to each other and to the cars. dozens were arrested across all three protests. similar protests are happening across the country. but it seems the bay area got hit the hardest. >> it's showing something. if we can bring this to a halt, there might be a knockout effect, but i'm not sure if anybody's listening. >> you don't think anybody in the rest of the bay area is being affecteds by this in a safety way? >> as far as safety, no. economically, possibly, yes, and that's the hope. >> let's bring in nbc's sergio quintana who joins us from the golden gate bridge. sergio, you were there during these protests. what exactly were they saying, and what stood out to you? >> reporter: so the demonstrator that we talked with said that this directly coincides with tax day.

they say that they do not want american tax dollars to go to support israel. obviously these are supporters of the palestinians, and they do not like the direction that this continues to go. so that's the reason why they put this together. as you saw in the bay area, this was a coordinated event, it seems, because there were several that are happening at the same time. but also demonstrations were happening in otherst cities acrs the country. so they say that this was an effort to try to continue to get attention on this issue, this continuing conflict between israel and gaza. >> sergio, watching it all unfold here on nbc live, it seemed like a slow process, but i'm guessing it wasn't. what was the process to get these men and women off the bridge, the protesters? >> reporter: yeah. here at the golden gate bridge, it was about four hours, and you can imagine that one of the reasons why it took so long is kind of what you describe in the way that they chained themselves together as partha of this

demonstration. here at the golden gate bridge, the california highway patrol tells us that there were people who were chained together and then also literally chained to people sitting inside their cars. so the chp had to use some pretty u heavy-duty tools to sa apart those devices that they were using to chain themselves together and then separate the people, take them into custody, drive them off in a bus, and then literally tow -- we understand there were five cars that werere towed here from the golden gatero bridge and are no impounded because they were physically a part of the demonstration here. and over in the east bay, people chained themselves to drums full of concrete and rebar. so it took a long time to physically take those things apart and separate the demonstrators from those items. >> yeah, that seems to be the e playbook now with these protesters. final question for you. ultimately 35 protesters were

arrested. what do the charges include here? for what? >> reporter: so 26 people arrested here and then the rest of them over in the east bay, and they're going to be prosecuted by two different attorneys offices, over in alameda and in san francisco. they are facing an array of charges from vehicle code violations to conspiracy. and that conspiracy charge is because they believe that these people coordinated these events to try to pull them off. and then interestingly here on the golden gate bridge, they're also being charged with false imprisonment. we're told that's because the people who were trapped on the bridge, the bystanders who were trapped on the bridge, they couldn't go anywhere. that's the reason why that charge is being put in as well. >> fascinating. conspiracy and false imprisonment among the charges. sergio, thank you. so we know some of the charges, but will these protesters actually be punished? simple answer, it'sed going to up to the district attorneys in san francisco and alameda counties.

and there is some precedent here. if you remember last november, just a few months ago, protesters shutting down the bay bridge during the apec summit. 78 protesters were charged, but none will ultimately get jail time. they agreed to go through a diversion program as part of a plea deal. bottom line, they got five hours of community service. let's bring in paula canny, a longtime defense attorney who has d worked on many high-profi cases.pr taking the s for time to be with us. are you surprised by the bay bridge protesters? let's go backwards here. last year, that they got only a few hours of community service? >> no, i'm not. i mean brooke jenkins actually charged them with multiple misdemeanors, so that's actually a step up. when there was a bay bridge protest under george gascon, he only charged them with infraction. so, no, misdemeanor diversion is a way to address this when a person is charged with a

misdemeanor. but actually the d.a.'s chargig of misdemeanors was actually a big deal. the judges who offered the various defendants diversion, and she didn't objection. >> pretty interesting hearing ourng reporter talk about conspiracy, which we did get press releases about today's protest, and also false imprisonment. the chp listing eight different charges. will any of them stick? >> so how it works is just because somebody's arrested for a given crime, it doesn't mean that's what the district attorney is going to charge the person with. so, yes, they all got arrested for conspiracy, false imprisonment, unlawful assembly. but the thing that's super interesting to me is brooke jenkins is going to prosecute the people who were arrested on the golden gate bridge, and pamela price is going to prosecute the people on 880

because they're in alameda county. so it will be interesting to see what each of the two d.a.s offices does. but the other thing that's interesting is other states actually haveer crimes that mak it unlawful to protest by blocking traffic. california doesn't have that. the california unlawful assembly law was enacted in 1872, before there were cars, you know. i mean you weren't going to unlawfully assemble a bunch of horses, you know. so our laws haven't kept pace with what is happening in real time because it is super inconvenient and super -- very expensive. think of all the overtime that went to pay all of the officers. so this is super impactful. >> paula, you know this. we have a rich and deep culture here in the d bay area of allowg peaceful protests. that's part of our dna. but it gets so frustrating for people to seeru just in novembe those protesters got five hours of community service.

>> right. >> will the d.a.s understand that and perhaps come a little harsher this time around? >> it will be interesting. i would think that brooke jenkins, who's a law enforcement, you's know, that's her advocacy position. then, yes, i would think that it would because itt is super disruptive. a lot of people missed medical appointments. in the thing in november, somebody missed a medical appointment. somebody was injured. an organ transplant wasn't able to be transplanted because it died being stuck in this. so it is super impactful, and pamela price, who is going to be facing a recall, it will be interesting to see how they each do this, like how they view it politically because it is, in part, a political decision. >> people will be watching closely. paula canny, thank you for your time and your insight. have a good evening. thanks, raj. thank you so much. caught up on you some other headlines we're watching at this hour.

the scandal-plagued women's prison in dublin is being shut down. this comes after years of complaints about staff sexually abusing the female inmates. the federal bureau of prisons announcing the closure this morning. since 2021, it's been a mess. eight prison employees have been charged with sexualee abuse, including a former warden. two of those employees have been convicted. five others pled guilty. and dozens of lawsuits are pending. the women currently being housed in dublin will be transferred to other federal facilities. inmate advocates and abuse survivors say closing the prison actually feels like a punishment. >> we don't need to be transferred to another prison for being sexually abused. no. we need accountability. >> all these people who are survivors, they're being transferred to these prisons where they don't know anyone. some of these women have been incarcerated for decades at dublin, and they are going to be uprooted from their community

and family that they have established in the prison here at dublin. >> the board of prisons declined to tell us when those inmate transfers will take place. also tonight, troubling accusations against a san jose fire captain. he's beenn arrested and accused of attempted lewd acts with a 13-year-old girl. the firefighter is captain spencer parker. you see him here. this is video of his promotion ceremony three years ago. court documents accuse captain parker of sending illicit pictures with the intent to engage in sexual intercourse with the minor. this case is in sacramento county, but san jose police is conducting its own independent investigation. we also reached outen to the sa jose fire department. they referred our questions to the city manager. parker is no longer employed with the city of san jose. well, up next, we are ready for the recount. poll workers in the south bay preparing to retally the votes of the high-stakes congressional

race which ended in a tie. we'll take you and give you an inside look. plus -- >> the indiana fever select caitlin clark, university of iowa. >> of caitlin clark and stanfor cameron brink. whatat they're saying about the new boteams. the draft happening tonight. you're watching "nbc bay area apws tonight."."

welcome back to "nbc bay

area news tonight." it's time for the recount in a high-stakes congressional race. this was the one that ended in a tie. today in this warehouse in san jose, election workers started the process of sorting through about 150,000 ballots that were cast during our super tuesday primary. this was back in march. this is district 16, covering santa clara and parts of san mateo counties. evan low and joe simitian both ended up with 30,249 votes each. they tied. if the recount changes the vote total, the winner will advance to the novembe ection to face off against the top vote getter, sam liccardo, who you just saw there. if there's still a tie aft t recount, both low and simitian will advance to november along with liccardo. so we would have three candidates. joining us now is nbc's robert handa. robert, you were there today at that recount location. what's the process here? take us behind the scenes. >> reporter: well, basically earlier i described it as controlled chaos because that's

kind of what it seemed like. people were running around. there's about 30 different workers all hired for this recount going around and people don't realize that all the ballots are basically just put into boxes later. so what happens is you mentioned 150,000 ballots that they have to go through. they have to go through these boxes and find the ones that come from the precincts that are from the 16th congressional district. once they get all of those assembled by district, by precinct, i mean, from the district, then once those are completed, then they get sent to the people who are running the machines for the tabulation. >> this looks like you're cleaning out a garage, something i don't like doing. how long is this recount going to take? >> i think they're expecting about five days because, again, it is less ballots than it would be in the general election. they're only the ballots that are coming from the precincts in the 16th congressional district. so they expect it to be fairly quick, and you have to remember

that this process is a lot like after the polls close. the machines do all the tabulating, and so it's a lot different than when there's a hand count. in fact, it was interesting to me that a lot of people were saying because it's so similar, many of the workers there were quite confident that there will be a tie again. >> wouldn't that be amazing if there's another tie? final question. the people who requested the recount have to pay for it. what's the payment status right now? two people, i believe. >> well, yeah. you know, anybody who has been watching our newscast knows that has been sort of a drama all on its own. california is not one of the states that triggers a recount just because an election is close although any citizen can request a recount as long as they pay for it. so we had a couple of citizens that did it, and one of the people ended up staying in the process. the other person dropped out. so he's paying about $16,000 a day. he put down the first deposit for the first day of ballot

counting, and he's expected to pay that amount every day for as long as it takes to count them. he can stop anytime he wants, but then when he stops and it's not completed, it all goes away, and then they just stick with the original result. >> plenty of drama in front of the scenes and behind the scenes. robert handa, thank you. we'll check in with you as this continues. let's move on now. over the weekend, you might have seen her. she was on "saturday night live," and tonight more of a spotlight for the wnba draft. >> with the first pick in the 2024 wnba draft, the indiana fever select caitlin clark, university of iowa. >> we've seen her a lot. she did great on "snl," by the way, and tonight looking good there. congratulations. the top overall pick, caitlin clark out of iowa, going to the indiana wnba franchise. >> i got a little anxious there before the pick. but i think more than anything,

just grateful and lucky to have my family here, my friends over there, coaches up here. so i think just enjoying the moment. >> with the second pick in the 2024 wnba draft, the los angeles sparks select cameron brink, stanford university. >> how cool is that? we've seen cameron brink for the last several years here in the bay area. the former stanford star is the number two overall pick. she'll be playing down in l.a. by the way, her godbrother is steph curry. steph's mom was sitting at the table at the draft with her. she says this was definitely a moment she's been waiting for and will never forget. >> it's just such a nerve-racking environment, but we worked so hard for this, and i just have to shout out all my girls. i'm so proud of all of us. what a great job we've done. i'm so proud of all of us and just so happy to be associated with them in the league. >> very cool.

keep in mind, san francisco's wnba team will be playing at chase center, debuts not this season but next season. tonight's draft was in new york. instead of the red carpet, the basketball stars got to walk on the orange carpet in the pre-show. pretty cool to see. let's take you outside now. a live look at the bay bridge. it's gorgeous tonight. jeff is going to join us with our warm forecast. stay with us. it's time to get away and cache in, at cache creek casino resort, to rock and to roll. to go all out or... go all in. with four stars and rising stars, northern california's premier casino resort is the perfect place...

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this just in. this is new video from the protest at the tesla plant in fremont. you see a few dozen people there just arriving at that tesla headquarters in fremont. this is part of the nationwide day of protest, calling for an end to taxpayers' money for the war in gaza. we have crews on-site. we will have more on this continuing story coming up on our 11:00 news. for now, let's end with jeff ranieri with some really great weather, jeff. >> we are going to be into a really nice trend here after this weekend where those temperatures were in the 50s. already starting to warm up. even a few low 70s today. let me show you where we're headed. really what i'm tracking beginning tomorrow is this area of high pressure from the south. that's going to keep the storm track off to the north. so we'll stay dry, and we'll also get in on some warmer weather. temperatures beginning in the 40s but on the cool side. look at this. by the afternoon, 70s return.

76 in napa. 77 in concord, livermore, and morgan hill. 74 in palo alto. there will be a system offshore by wednesday afternoon. it will get close by saturday, just offshore. but everything right now shows dry weather as we roll through this weekend forecast. look at those temperatures. we're going to be in the 70s this saturday and sunday and sunny skies. back-to-back sunshine. we haven't seen much of that this year on a weekend. >> that's going to do it for us at 7:00. for everyone here at nbc bay area, including our photojournalist josh keppel, thanks for joining us. we hope you enjoy your evening. we'll see you back at 11:00.

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tonight on access hollywood. >> a fatal gun shot done with your recklessness. i'm sentencing you to 18 months incarceration. >> raw emotion as hannah gutierrez reid gets the