Here is what you need to know in the August 5, 2026, Streamline newsletter:
- A surprise guilty plea from the woman accused of fatally stabbing her wife, Cal Fire Capt. Rebecca Marodi, in their Ramona home last year.
- In a late-night vote, National City leaders decided to delay a controversial tax proposal, a move welcomed by some business owners.
- We’re following through on San Diego’s crackdown on overnight parking in Mission Beach after hundreds of complaints from nearby residents and businesses.
THE STREAMLINE
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TOP STORY
A woman who fatally stabbed her wife, a veteran state firefighter, at their Ramona home pleaded guilty Tuesday to second-degree murder.
Yolanda Marodi, 54, admitted Tuesday to killing her spouse of two years, Cal Fire Capt. Rebecca "Becky" Marodi, at the couple's Rancho Villa Road home on the night of Feb. 17, 2025.
Marodi is slated to be sentenced next month to 36 years to life in state prison for the slaying. Her guilty plea includes admissions to having a serious prior felony conviction, which pertains to a voluntary manslaughter conviction for fatally stabbing her husband in San Bernardino County more than 20 years ago.
According to an arrest-warrant declaration filed by a detective with the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, Rebecca Marodi sought to leave the marriage shortly before she was killed.
The day after the slaying, Yolanda Marodi sent someone a text message stating, "Becky came home and told me she was leaving me, she met someone else, all the messages were lies. We had a big fight and I hurt her ... I'm sorry," the declaration states.
Testimony from a preliminary hearing held earlier this year indicated the victim sustained 23 stab wounds to her neck, chest and abdomen.
Rebecca Marodi, who had worked for the state firefighting agency for more than 30 years, died at the scene.
The victim's mother, Lorena Marodi, who lived at the home with her daughter and daughter-in-law, testified that on the day of the killing, Yolanda Marodi spoke to her about her marriage, something Lorena said had "never" happened before.
During that conversation, Yolanda said, "She and Becky had some things to work out, but there wouldn't be any fighting" when Rebecca returned home.
Lorena went out with friends that evening. At the end of the night, as she was dropping her friends off, she drove past her home and noticed Yolanda's car was gone, she testified.
When she returned home, she found a trail of blood leading inside the house, found her daughter's motionless body, and called 911.
Sheriff's deputy Angela Peratis, who was one of the first deputies to respond to the home, said she and her partner found the victim face down in a hallway.
The deputies attempted life-saving measures until firefighters arrived and took over, at which point Peratis testified that she overheard one of the firefighters say, "Is that Becky?"
The warrant declaration states that footage from a Ring camera captured images of Rebecca Marodi fleeing their home as her wife chased her.
The video footage was not played in court, but sheriff's Homicide Det. Jessica Ricca testified that in her review of the video, the victim can be heard calling out for her mother, to which Yolanda Marodi responds, "She's not here."
The two go out of frame for some time, and when they appear again, Rebecca Marodi appeared to be "covered in blood," Ricca testified.
At one point, the bloodied victim was "yelling out, `Yolanda! Please ... I don't want to die,"' the warrant declaration states. Yolanda Marodi, who appeared to be holding a knife and seemingly had blood on her arms, responded, "You should have thought about that before," according to the document.
The victim repeatedly asked her wife to call 911 before the pair re- entered the home, the declaration states.
About 10 minutes later, the camera recorded video of Yolanda Marodi loading items into a Chevrolet Equinox and then driving off, the declaration states.
Yolanda Marodi crossed the U.S.-Mexico border about an hour after the killing. Mexican authorities arrested her just over a month later near a hotel in the Ferrocarril neighborhood of Mexicali, according to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office.
Story by City News Service
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BREAKING OVERNIGHT
National City leaders on Tuesday night voted against placing a controversial new business tax proposal on the November ballot. The measure would have asked voters whether businesses should be taxed based on total revenue rather than just profits.
WATCH — South Bay Reporter Dani Miskell has more details on why the proposal was put on hold:
CONSUMER
San Diegans are doing everything they can to beat the heat, but soaring electric bills may be the price they pay.
Some homeowners, however, are harnessing the power of the sun to save thousands each year.
WATCH — Reporter Ryan Hill breaks down the solar savings you could be missing out on:
WE FOLLOW THROUGH
In 2025, the parking lot at Ski Beach was filled with RVs, many of them serving as homes for unhoused San Diegans.
While some described the lot as a community, some nearby business owners said the crowded conditions discouraged customers from visiting.
In May 2025, the H Barracks lot opened, and San Diego police began cracking down on overnight RV parking in the Mission Bay area following numerous complaints.
WATCH — Reporter Adam Campos follows through on how the enforcement efforts are affecting the area:
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