Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, April 21, 2025

Episode Date: April 22, 2025

Tonight's Top Story has the latest breaking news, political headlines, news from overseas and the best NBC News reporting from across the country and around the world.

Tonight, the world remembers Pope Francis as the church looks for a way forward after his monumental reign. Grief and gratitude across the globe and here in the U.S. after Pope Francis dies at age 88. We have new details on his funeral plans and the secretive gathering to replace him. Who could be his successor? Plus, the young American boy who sang for the Pope, how it changed his life forever. Airplane engine on fire. The Delta plane making an emergency landing in Orlando. Passengers rushing to evacuate down slides, we hear from those on board.

Stock market meltdown. Another brutal day on Wall Street as President Trump ramps up his war of words with the Fed chair and why China just returned this American-made plane. New group chat accusations. Pete Hegseth under fire amid new reporting that he shared sensitive military information on a text chain with his white. and brother. Cabinet Secretary robbed. Christy Noem, head of Homeland Security, had her purse swiped at a Washington restaurant. Thousands of dollars in cash taken, was she targeted?

Shannon Sharp accusations, a woman suing him, claiming sexual assault, the Hall of Famer and Blockbuster podcaster firing back. The text messages his lawyers have just released what they reveal about the relationship. And Highway Inferno, the semi-truck explosion on a busy Indiana Highway, How the driver escaped unharmed. Plus, breaking news late today, Harvard University announcing it's suing the White House over billions in funding. Top story starts right now. Good evening. I'm Ellison Barber in for Tom Yamis.

Tonight tributes pouring in over the loss of Pope Francis, who led the church for over a decade. And right now, Cardinals from around the world are getting ready to make. make their way to Vatican City to discuss who will be his successor. Taking a live look at a mass service being held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at a church where Pope Francis discovered his vocation. Mourners continuing to pay their respects at this late hour. The Pope passing just hours after his surprise appearance on Easter Sunday, and just weeks after his lengthy hospitalization for double pneumonia.

Pope Francis chose the path of priesthood in his early 20s, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, under the name Jorge Miseries. Mario Bergolio. He would become the first Jesuit and Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church. In February 2001, Pope John Paul II made him a cardinal. Just over a decade later, in March 2013, Pope Francis was elected pontiff and installed days later. His name paying homage to St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of the environment, animals, and birds. Pope Francis changed the culture of the Catholic Church, unnerving traditionalists as he pushed for inclusivity, immigrant rights, and was outspoken on climate change. At this hour, Catholics around the globe

in mourning over the death of the beloved Pope, from the Vatican to Gaza to Mexico City and beyond. His formal funeral rights have already begun, and by Wednesday morning, the public viewing will begin at St. Peter's Basilica, with his funeral slated to take place in the next four to six days. Hundreds of thousands are expected to pay their respects. The big question tonight, When could we see the white smoke streaming out of the chimney at the Sistine Chapel, the silent signal that a new Pope has been chosen? NBC's Molly Hunter is in Rome with more on how the intense conclave is set to unfold. Shrouted in secrecy, the conclave begins 15 to 20 days following the death of a pontiff. Over the next two weeks, the 135 Cardinals under the age of 80, eligible to vote for the next Pope, will descend on Vatican City.

Pope Francis named 108 of the electors shaping the global church in his image, 20 from countries that had never had a cardinal before. This is a conclave where Pope Francis named 80 percent of the Cardinals who will elect a successor, but they don't really know each other. And so name recognition will carry a lot in the days ahead. In this centuries-old tradition, the Cardinals are sealed inside the Sistine Chapel, beneath the watchful gaze of Michelangelo's frescoes shut off. from the outside world.

After day one, four rounds of secret ballots every day until one name receives a two-thirds majority. The list of likely contenders spans the globe, from Asia to Africa to the Holy Land to Europe and Canada. Will the next Pope share Francis' global outlook, or will it be a more conservative voice? The Cardinals really face two choices in this election. Do they want to continue on the path of reform that France? initiated of opening the church up to the modern world, or do they want a course correction,

to elect a pope that's perhaps more focused on doctrine and discipline? Those are really the two choices. As the voting continues, the Cardinals burn the ballots, producing black smoke or eventually white smoke to announce a new pope. And Molly Hunter joins us now from the Vatican. Molly, you have been in Rome all day. What are you seeing and hearing? from those paying their respects to Pope Francis. Alison, you can see it's after midnight here, and there are still people out here. It has been flooded with people all day,

and we actually met some Americans, Martin and Carol Atful, Ellison, they're from Detroit. They were here for Easter services yesterday, and they got to see Pope Francis, and they said this morning, when the bells started ringing out, they ran here. They said pilgrims were crying.

They said huge crowds of people, some tourists who were just curious. But, Alison, I asked them what it felt like to be here, to be around all these people. And they said it was unbelievably moving just to be so close to other people while they prayed. Alison. Molly Hunter at the Vatican. Thank you. I want to bring in Kathleen Cummings. She is a professor of American and religious studies at the University of Notre Dame and Bishop Robert Barron of Minnesota. He was appointed by Pope Francis and plans to attend the conclave in the coming weeks. Thank you both so much for joining us here on Top Story.

Bishop Barron, let me start with you because you knew Pope Francis personally. to us about your relationship with him and what his legacy, the good and the bad, means for the Catholic Church. Well, I knew him because of three synods I was part of, synod on young people, and then the synodon on synodality, which had two sessions. So three octobers in Rome, I spent that whole month. And the Pope was there practically every day. We had a chance to talk on a number of occasions. I always found him to be a very warm, very generous person. We usually spoke in Spanish, and he almost always had a little joke. or something, and he knew the work I was doing

in evangelization and appreciated that. So I, you know, have a personal sense of loss at the death of the pope. Every Catholic feels, you know, we've lost our spiritual father, but I felt a greater kinship. You know, his legacy, I think he was a great pope of mercy. Miserie Cordia, mercy was his favorite word, I think. And if John Paul called us to heroic sanctity,

Francis was a great pope for all of us who fall short of that and required the divine mercy. And he saw the church as a field hospital, which I think is a beautiful image. It means there are a lot of walking wounded around, and we need to be, you know, cared for. And that's the face of Christ that he presented very much to the world from the beginning. Well, let's talk about the process of mourning, because Kathleen, I understand in Catholic tradition, there is a period of time, a set amount of time, right, where a burial needs to take place. Walk us through the next steps here.

The next steps are that we'll be preparing for a papal funeral, and this is an interesting time because it's been 20 years since we've had both a papal funeral and a conclave. We had a conclave without a funeral in 2013, and then a papal funeral when Pope Benedict died without a conclave. So this is back to standard practice. The funeral will take place in the next four to six days, probably. The church has entered a period of morning, a nine-day period of morning. Cardinals are coming to Rome, where they will participate in the funeral, and then in general

congregations, which are meetings of all the Cardinals that take place before the conclave starts. This is a chance for Cardinals to think about what is needed at this moment, what they need in a leader, what we need in a leader for the church. And those are very important meetings that will take place before the conclave actually begins. And Bishop, I understand you will be attending the conclave. Walk us through your thought process at this juncture, as your girl. grieving the loss of Pope Francis, but also trying to prepare for a pretty important responsibility. Where is your mental space at right now? How do you prepare for something like that?

I'm, of course, preparing not to be in the conclave, but simply to be an observer of it. And at the Synod last October, there were about 50 Cardinals present there, so I came to know a number of them. I think one thing about this conclave, it'll be a bit more open-ended because of the way Pope Francis chose Cardinals from all over the world. for many seas that never had a cardinal before. I remember meeting the Cardinal of Mongolia, which has, I think, all the 5,000 Catholics. And I can testify that a lot of these cardinals don't know each other all that well.

So I think a dynamic, the professor mentioned, the general congregations, and they're going to have to get to know each other, I think, during that time. What's the church looking for? I think to continue the great teaching of the Second Vatican Council, which is the new evangelization.

We have to declare Christ, risen from the dead in a way that's compelling to the contemporary world. That was the agenda of Vatican II, the agenda of Paul the 6th, John Paul the 2nd, Benedict the 16th, and Pope Francis. I heard him say with my own ears that his encyclical Evangelical Gaudium on the joy of the gospel, he said, that's the key to my pontificate. So I think that's what they're going to be interested in, finding someone who can declare Christ risen from the dead in a way that's compelling to the modern world.

Above all the politics, I think that's what we're looking for. And we heard Molly Hunter, Kathleen, talk about the fact that there is that age requirement to be able to actually vote. But give us a sense of some of the other qualifications that are necessary in order to be selected as the next pope. And in terms of frontrunners right now, given there are some American cardinals expected to attend varying degrees, all of the activities that will be playing out at the Vatican, is there a chance we could see the first pope from the United States?

Well, there's always a chance. I think the qualities that they'll be looking for are a person who can handle the complexities of the church in this moment, the complexities of the world at this moment, international experience. I think someone who knows Rome well, who knows how to get things done perhaps, but also has a sense of, is an outsider of sorts, a sense who knows. can see what needs to be changed. So someone who's that perfect combination

in the way Francis was. He was an outsider in the sense he was from the first pope from South America, but he also understood how Rome worked and he had led a complex archdiocese for many years. So he had a sense of what the challenges that the church was facing. I think, yes, it's always

possible that there will be an American pope. But of course, the United States is not where the church is growing. The church has become increasingly global. Pope Francis was a global pope for a global church. And so I think someone who has a sense of the world beyond the United States, that's not to exclude anyone from the United States, but a sense to understand where the church is growing, and that is in the global south. All right. Kathleen Cummings, Bishop Robert Barron of

Minnesota. Thank you both. We appreciate your time and insights. Thanks. God bless you. Thank you. Another big story we're following an engine fire on a Delta Airlines plane. The frantic scene unfolding shortly before the flight was set to take off from Orlando, forcing nearly 300 passengers and crew members to quickly evacuate. Here's NBC's Tom Costello. At Orlando International, fire on the ramp. We're calling the fire truck right now to see that. Thank you very much.

The right side engine on a fully loaded Delta Airlines flight, spewing flames, just moments after pushing back from the gate. There's obviously people on that plane. As pilots quickly shut off fuel to the engine, passengers evacuated the jumbo jet down emergency slides. The process slowed with passengers only able to evacuate. from the left side of the plane. Please take your time going down the stairs.

On board the Orlando to Atlanta flight, Channing Wells and her nine-year-old son, returning home after a Disney cruise. So you had everyone in the back of the plane in a panic trying to rush to the front, and then all of a sudden you start smelling the smoke and different things like that, and then everyone was panicking.

Firefighters quickly doused the flames as passengers gathered on the ramp. Delta says the highly unusual fire happened in the engine's tailpipe. In my many years of flying, tailpipe fires are very rare. I was trained for it, but in all my years, I never had a tailpipe fire. The latest in a string of high-profile aviation incidents this year that have flyers on edge. And Tom Costello joins us now. Tom, I understand there was another emergency landing today in Orlando.

Yeah, another flight just a few hours later. It was leaving Orlando, also going to Atlanta. It got over Jacksonville. Suddenly they had a cabin pressure issue, the pilots declared an emergency, and then returned back to Orlando, landed safely. Thankfully, no injuries. Again, Delta Airlines says in both cases, they've accommodated the passengers and apologized. But it does underscore the heightened sense of concern among aviation flyers these days, everyday passengers about the string of incidents we've seen. Tom Costello, thank you. It was another massive stock slide on Wall Street today, as President

ramped up his attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average falling nearly 1,000 points. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ also down around 2.5%. NBC's senior business correspondent Christine Romans joins us now on set with the latest. Christine investors today reacting to President Trump's truth social post where he targeted Powell over the weekend. He wrote this in part, quote, with these costs trending so nicely downward, just what I predicted they would do. There can almost be no inflation, but there can be a slowing of the economy unless Mr. Too Late, a major loser lowers interest rates now. Why did that post rattle the market so much?

That from the president of the United States to the independent chair of the Federal Reserve, it rattled investors who see the United States as becoming a destabilizer, not a stabilizer. And the Fed traditionally is designed to be independent of pressure from an elected government. When you look at other instances around the world from South America, and Central America to Turkey and other countries. When you have a central bank that bends to the whims of a president or the demands of a president tends to have higher inflation, more erratic economies. It's just not seen as a stable, solid, good bet. And that's what investors are saying today. So this weekend on NBC's Meet the Press when our colleague Kristen Welker asked Louisiana

Republican Senator John Kennedy about this back and forth. The senator said in part, I don't think the president, any president, has the right to remove the Fed chair. How does this play out? And the Fed chief himself has been asked this and has said there is no, there's no room in the statute, the congressional statute that designed the Fed to be independent of politics and the executive branch. He has said that there is no room to remove him, but the White House has suggested that it is studying its options on this front, and that is sending chills through international investors. You look at the kind of selling we've seen on Wall Street, especially today. It was a stock market, selling in the bond market, and

selling in the dollar. Those three things together, it's called the Sell America Trade. That is not the place you want to be as an investor, and that's because of behavior and the trade policies of the president. And on top of all of this happening, there are still tariffs at play here. Neither the U.S. nor China backing down. In fact, we can show images of this. A Boeing jet, China ordered from the American company, that it returned over the weekend. Where do things stand there? And that was really a message being sent by China that we will fight back. Look, there are no. no trade deals that have been inked. There doesn't seem to be progress. You've got a Treasury

Department and a Commerce Department that are having to maybe negotiate dozens, if not hundreds of train deals at the same time, with little progress in sight. That's another reason why the market was battled today. Senior business correspondent Christine Romans. Thank you. Defense Secretary Pete Heggseth is fighting back today amid new reporting that he shared sensitive military information on another group chat. This text chain included his wife and brother. It comes nearly a month after the secretary faced similar backlash for sending detailed war plans to some of the administration's top-ranking officials, including inadvertently a journalist. NBC's Kelly O'Donnell reports from the White House. Defiant and dug in tonight.

I have spoken to the president, and we are going to continue fighting on the same page all the way. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth facing a new allegation of improperly sharing sensitive military operational details before a strike in Yemen. That group chat included his wife, brother, and personal lawyer, according to two sources, who say Hegeseth sent the information using his personal phone and the signal app. Hegseth and family at today's White House Easter egg role, where the secretary attacked media reports

but did not address the substance of the allegation. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees, and then they try to slash and burn people. and ruin their reputations. Not going to work with me because we're changing the Defense Department. Four former top Pentagon advisors are speaking out about HegSeth's leadership

more broadly. Incredibly disappointed is how three senior aides described their firing last week and say they have not been told what exactly we were investigated for. Meanwhile, former Pentagon spokesman John Elliott, who left voluntarily, writes the president should remove Hegsef,

citing total chaos and disarray under Heggsett's leadership. But today, the president says he stands by him. Don't worry about confidence. We have so much confidence. The highest recruiting members almost ever. That's confidence. Kelly O'Donnell joins us now from the North Lawn of the White House. Kelly, we are also now learning that Harvard University is suing the Trump administration. Do we have any additional details on that? Well, this is a big development, and it follows the administration, putting

great pressure on Harvard and other elite institutions and making claims that they have not done enough to fight anti-Semitism on camera. Harvard, the wealthiest of the universities and certainly very prestigious, it has a very large endowment, is suing under First Amendment and other reasons for the federal government wanting to take away funding, saying that the Trump administration is trying to use the issue of anti-Semitism, which they say they are willing to work with, them on making changes on campus and have been doing so, but that they want to reach into areas that go beyond federal control for things like determining the kinds of classes they offer, the kinds of programs they offer, and the cuts could affect lots of health issues

because Harvard's funding is often used in science and medical research. Kelly O'Donnell, on that breaking news, thank you. Still ahead tonight, Shannon Sharp fighting back. the Hall of Fame football player facing accusations of sexual assault, but now his legal team releasing text messages they believe prove his innocence. Plus high-profile robbery. DHS secretary Christy Knoem robbed thousands of dollars in cash stolen, but the Secret Service is revealing about the theft.

And the semi-truck inferno that shut down a major highway, the driver escaping unharmed. We're back now with the sexual assault allegations against NFL Hall of Famer turned broadcaster Shannon Sharp. A new lawsuit, an unnamed woman claims the Hall of Famer violently assaulted her during a, quote, rocky, consensual relationship. Sharp's lawyer says text messages between the two tell a different story. NBC's Jesse Kirsch has this one. Hello, welcome to another episode of Club Shayshay. This is the Shannon Sharp regularly seen by millions of fans.

Four seed, mustard seed, poppy seed. Lakers in five. But tonight, an unnamed woman is accusing the sports legend turned media titan of using his celebrity to manipulate, control, subjugate, and violate women. In a civil lawsuit filed in Nevada on Sunday, lawyers for plaintiff Jane Doe detail what they describe as a rocky consensual relationship that lasted nearly two years. They allege last fall, Sharp, who is more than 30 years older than Jane Doe, violently sexually assaulted and anally raped plaintiff two different times in Las Vegas, Nevada, blatantly ignoring her request for him to stop. He did it again in January during an incident in which plaintiff

cried and begged repeatedly for him to stop. The lawsuit also accuses Sharp of secretly recording their sexual encounters without her consent. Shannon Sharp, root to run. Sharp is an NFL legend, a three-time Super Bowl winner and Hall of Famer, who then turned a broadcasting career into a wildly popular podcasting empire. We've got to go places that no one else has been. I sat down with Sharp to talk about his success in January, just days after one of the alleged rapes occurred, according to the new lawsuit. In order to grow, you have to be able to expand. After the lawsuits filing, Sharp was back on the air on ESPN this morning. LeBron's going to have to be efficient. Austeree's going to

have to be efficient. This is not the first time Sharp has been caught up in controversy. In September, he admitted to accidentally live streaming a sexual encounter. My phone wasn't hacked. It wasn't a prank. It was me being a healthy, active male. Jane Doe's attorneys say that incident humiliated her, adding he had repeatedly assured her they were in an exclusive relationship, albeit unhealthy and abusive. This was a lie that not only hurt her emotionally, it made her fear for her sexual health and the risk of sexually transmitted. disease according to the lawsuit. Tonight, Sharpe's attorney says the former football star

categorically denies all allegations of coercion or misconduct, especially the gross lie of rape. Sharp's attorney also accusing Jane Doe of trying to shake down Sharp. His attorney also releasing a series of graphic text messages, he says, were sent by the plaintiff, which Sharpe's attorney says proved this was a consensual adult relationship that included role-playing, sexual language, and fantasy scenarios explicitly requested. by Jane Doe. Jesse Kirsch joins us now from our Bureau in Miami. Jesse, what are the lawyers for Jane Doe seeking with this lawsuit?

Yes, so, Alison, this woman's legal team is asking for more than $50 million in damages. And this comes as Shannon Sharp is reportedly on the verge of potentially signing a new podcasting deal, which could be worth roughly double that amount. Alison. Jesse Kirsch, thank you. When we return, the cabinet secretary robbed in a Washington restaurant, thousands of dollars stolen. Now the Secret Service search for the thieves.

And the politician stabbed in her home in Texas, fighting for her life, the accused attacker, her own grandson. We're back now with breaking news. Those parts of New Orleans underwater as dangerous flash floods overwhelm the Big Easy. Up to six inches falling in the past few hours, a park in Algiers along the riverfront, reporting almost 10 inches of rain. We've seen cars trapped in the rising floodwaters and water entering homes.

Flood warnings now in effect. For more on these changing conditions, let's bring in NBC News meteorologist Bill Karens. Bill, what's the latest? Ellis and New Orleans is like nowhere else in our country. I mean, the entire city's below sea level. They depend on levees and canals and pumps in these heavy rain situations, and they could not keep up. And that's why the pictures that you're seeing, I mean, it's widespread throughout all of the city. The system is meant to handle one inch per rain in an hour.

In some areas, they reported four to six inches in two hours. And so this is what happens when you get that heavy rain. They can't keep up. The levees, all the pumps. You know, they were still working. They didn't fail. But they just, the situation continues to be pretty dire throughout many of the highly populated population centers, including the lower 9th ward, which is one of those areas that saw about six inches of rain. If that name sounds familiar, that when Hurricane Katrina hit, that's where the most horrendous flooding was there.

I'm happy to report that the rain is now tapering off, that the water levels are beginning to lower. The pumps are now catching back up. And so the worst of the damage has been done. But this was the radar over the three hours. bright red over you, it's pouring. And it did that just right over the top of New Orleans. Our Doppler estimates do have in this area here east of New Orleans, which is where the lower ninth ward is, upwards of three to six inches in this huge area. Ellison, we have probably about another half hour to hour, and then all of the water levels should be returning back to where the

water should be. And then people can resume getting back to the regular lives. But a lot of people have been trapped at work, trapped at school. It's been very difficult late this afternoon, early this evening. All right. Bill Cairns, thank you. We appreciate it. Tonight in Top Story's news feed, the man who killed 23 people in El Paso Walmart pleading guilty to Capitol murder today. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Local prosecutors choosing to decline the death penalty. The gunman has said he was targeting Hispanic shoppers during the August 2019 shooting. He is also facing 90 consecutive life terms after pleading guilty to hate crimes and weapons charges.

And an update to a story we first told you about here at Top Story. A body found in Lake Mead in Nevada has been identified as horse veterinarian Sean Fraynor of Las Vegas. A National Park Service spokesman says the body was recovered on Friday. Fraynor was the subject of an investigation by county deputies for animal cruelty. A warning this next video is disturbing. It appears to show Fraynor kicking a horse in the head. He acknowledged his behavior and apologized. The 56-year-old family says they last spoke to him on April 6th.

And more than seven people were arrested in connection to incidents at Philadelphia's Temple University this weekend. The university's vice president for public safety saying three students were hurt on Saturday night by a group of juveniles. On Sunday, three more assaults were reported. One involved as student. The university says they are investigating. And a massive semi-truck fire closing down part of Interstate 65 in Northwest Indiana today. You can see the truck just engulfed in flames. Indiana state police saying they believe the fire was caused by mechanical failure to the brakes.

It was hauling cans of spray paint, which is considered hazardous material. No one, including the driver, was injured. We want to return now to our coverage of Pope Francis. His death deeply personal for so many Catholics here in the U.S. who felt a connection to the first Pope to come from the Americas. His visit here in 2015, a highlight of a papacy that at times, polarized members of the church. NBC's Aaron McLaughlin has this one. Tonight, among the nation's faithful, heartache and tears. It was just a shocker. It really was.

Pope Francis, the first pope from the Americas, reformed the face of the Catholic Church in the United States, making it more inclusive. He was certainly a pope of the people. Through key appointments, including Nelson Perez, the son of Cuban immigrants, as the Archbishop of Philadelphia. He spoke about the dignity of the human person. His leadership at times polarizing for the 67 million strong American Catholic community. I'm not one of his biggest fans, but yeah, no, because he's not the most conservative, but I still, you know, he's still my pope. Conservative Catholics accused him of diluting church doctrine, pointing in part to the move away from Latin Mass. But Francis also disappointed America's progressives, who hoped he'd go farther on issues like San Francisco.

same-sex marriage and women in church leadership. And while he took significant steps to resolve the clergy sex abuse crisis, survivors argue it wasn't enough. Still, his 2015 trip to the U.S. a unifying moment, including this stop in Harlem, New York. They just started cheering as if a rock star had just exited from a car, and he went directly to the children. Joanne Walsh was the principal of Our Lady Queen of Angels School. So what he did was he looked at them, just in a very grandfatherly way, cupped his ear, and gave them the clue that they weren't loud enough, and then the volume increased.

Mr. Speaker, the Pope of the Holy See. That same trip, he became the first pontiff to address a joint session of Congress. He called for compassion for immigrants, spoke out against the death penalty, and advocated for more environmental protections. The trip wasn't just about policy, it was personal, like this last-minute performance in Philadelphia. They told me five minutes before that I was going to go out there and sing, and I just went out there and sang. For Bobby Hill, it was life-changing. Being a young black person from Philadelphia, my life would be drastically different if I didn't have that moment with the Pope and all of his grandeur and greatness. Bobby says he'll never forget that handshake that moment.

Something that transcends all of our little religious sects that just has to do with being a good human and being a humanitarian. And I feel like there's definitely something that a lesson that the Pope, you know, should leave us all with is just to be good humans and to be good to one another. And Aaron McLaughlin joins us now from New York City just outside of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Erin, in terms of American elected and church officials, do we know who will be headed to Rome to attend Pope Francis's funeral? We're getting some idea, Alison. Today we heard from President Trump post on truth social that

both he and the First Lady will attend the funeral, writing, quote, we look forward to being there. We also know that Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, also plans to fly following a mass that will be said here at St. Patrick's Cathedral in honor of Pope Francis tomorrow afternoon. From there, he'll fly to the Vatican not only for the funeral, but also to participate in the conclave. He is one of 10 American cardinals charged with selecting the next Pope. Ellison. Erin McLaughlin, thank you. There are new questions tonight about a high-profile robbery in Washington, D.C. Christy Noam, Secretary of Homeland Security, had heard designer handbag stolen when she was at a Washington restaurant last night, with roughly $3,000

of cash inside that bag. NBC's Jemise Alcindor asked Noam about it earlier today at the White House Easter Egg Hunt. Here's some of that exchange. Yeah, it's not reaching. Do you know the signature isn't any leaves on it or anything? For more on this, I want to bring in NBC's Ryan Riley. about what we know at this hour? What exactly was stolen? And at this point, does Secret Service have any leads on a potential suspect? Yeah, we haven't heard anything about leads. But this happened at this Capitol Burger location. And apparently a man who was wearing an N95 mask came in, sort of sat near the

secretary, used his foot to slide that bag over and then put it under a jacket before exiting the restaurant. And of course, the big question about that is how that managed to happen when you have this detail, the Secret Service detail, that follows the Secretary. around. Apparently, those individuals were seated near the bar a little bit further away from the secretary here. And the report has been that she was out with her family here. So apparently it might have been a moment of distraction. She said that she thought maybe it was a, you know, someone brushing up against her knee a family member. But that bag was apparently slid over and taken. And that raises a lot of questions about that security detail, Alison.

Yeah, certainly a lot of questions there. Since taking on the role of DHS Secretary, Nome has also been in the spotlight a lot from visiting the mega prison in El Salvador while reportedly wearing a $50,000 Rolex watch to riding in ATV with Customs and Border Patrol agents at the U.S. Mexico border to then participating in fire drills with the U.S. Coast Guard. There have been a lot of photo ops, right? Do authorities think that public-facing approach to her job could have potentially made her more of a target here? I don't think anything has been ruled out here, but they are also exploring the possibility that this was someone who was not aware of this individual's status, of her status, right? Because this isn't an area that's right around the convention center.

It's kind of a touristy area. And especially if you have a large family out with a designer handbag and, you know, a lot of distractions going on. That seems like potentially a prime target for someone to have their bags swipe for them. You know, it happens occasionally here. I'm sure it's happened to friends of mine who've had, you know, their bags sort of taken before. So I think that that's something that, you know, could be a possibility here that this was just random and wasn't necessarily targeted at her precisely. Ryan Riley, thank you. Today in New York, Nadine Menendez, the wife of former Senator Bapanendez, convicted of teaming up

with her husband to accept bribes of cash, gold bars, and a luxury car from three New Jersey men looking for help with their business dealings or legal troubles. For more on the decision by the jury, we're joined by NBC News legal analyst Danny Savalos. Danny, the jury returned a verdict. guilty on all counts. Walk us through the evidence against Nadine Menendez here. How strong of a case was this? These cases are hard to defend. I've had to defend them. And they're usually particularly strong because there's a cooperating witness. And that's what you had here. The government went to someone who, they believe, was involved, and he turned on these individuals. The other factor here

that really hurt the Menendez's was the flashiness of the case, the gold bars. That's the kind of evidence DOJ loves because it just looks so corrupt, even if you have a good explanation. And at their core, bribery and extortion cases, the defense usually revolves around something like, well, I happen to need a new car. And this nice guy gave it to me. And then my nice husband happened to help him out. But that wasn't a quid pro quo. Those are just two independent gifts. The problem with that theory, every defense attorney has had their client, try to explain that to him. And then you have to explain to the client. The problem with that theory, is that no jury is going to believe it.

They're just not going to believe that these businessmen happen to want to give free cars to the defendant, and then the senator totally independently made some official decision that he believed was in the best interest of his constituency that just happened to be terrific for these individuals who had given them gifts. These cases are really tough to win.

Yes, the Supreme Court has reeled it in and made it a little tougher to prove these cases, but on the whole, they're still really tough. So her attorney, one of her attorneys said today, this isn't over. Her husband, former Senator Bob Menendez, has said he is supposed to begin serving an 11-year sentence, but he has said he intends to appeal his conviction. Based on what we know about the evidence for both former Senator Bob Menendez and his wife, do either of them really have a case to appeal? One of the things we defense attorneys always do after a bad beat is we walk out on the courthouse steps and we say, we shall appeal. But the reality is appeal is not a brand new friend. look at the evidence. You have to show that usually the court, the district court, abused its discretion, did something really wrong. So the mere promise of appeal may sound great for defendants who have just been convicted, but in reality, the odds are very slim,

and they're exceedingly slim in federal court. The vast majority of appeals, the conviction gets affirmed. And Nadine is set to be sentenced on June 12th. Do we expect her to have a sentence comparable to what her husband has been sentenced to? Yes, because federal law, actually requires that similar defendants be sentenced similarly, and you can't get more similar than Nadine Medendez and her husband. But be warned, the sentencing guidelines for her husband were around 30 years. Why were they so high? Because the dollar amounts. Anytime you have dollar amounts like this, it boosts the sentencing guidelines into the stratosphere. But the Supreme Court has said for decades now that the sentencing guidelines are no longer mandatory. So there's this

Kind of Byzantine process where the judge has to calculate the guidelines, has to announce what they are. But in case these white-collar type cases where no one was shot, no one was hurt, you can expect they're going to go below guidelines. And that's what they did with the senator. 30-year guidelines, the judge went way below with 11 years. And I would expect Nadine's going to get about the same. All right. Danny Savalos, thank you. Tonight's top story, Global Watch. We begin in Brazil with a woman arrested for allegedly poised.

poisoning Easter egg candy that killed a seven-year-old boy. Local media in Brazil is reporting that the child's mother and sister are in the hospital with symptoms of poisoning. Police say they are investigating claims the suspect sent the chocolate eggs to her ex-partner's new girlfriend. They say they came with a note that read, with love, happy Easter. Police say the suspect was arrested on an interstate bus with two wigs, chocolate remains, and medicines. It's not clear what charges she is facing. At least seven people, including a nine-year-old boy, are dead after drowning in Australia over the weekend. Two more people remain missing.

Strong swells in New South Wales swept people off the rocks into the ocean, causing the majority of the deaths. That is according to the nonprofit surf life saving. Their CEO says it carried out more than 150 rescues since Good Friday. And the northern hemisphere is in store for a dazzling display. And the skies tonight with the return of the annual Lyrid Meteor Shower. These are images of the meteor shower from previous years. It's active between April 16th and 25th, but it's expected to peak before. for dawn early tomorrow morning. NASA is recommending you put eyes to the sky between 3 and 4 a.m.

Local time, if you want to try and catch a glimpse. The shower usually occurs in spring and is caused by debris from the comet Thatcher. We're back in a moment with a horrific attack on a beloved politician. The local leader in Texas now fighting for her life after being stabbed in her own home, what we know about the alleged assailant. Plus, a farm fight. Why are farmers not allowed to fix their own equipment. The repairs cost so much it could put some of them out of business. Back now with the shocking stabbing in Texas, a local leader stabbed in her home, along with her husband who was killed. Police have now identified the couple's grandson as the suspect. NBC's Kathy Park has this report. Tonight, a Texas community in shock after a brutal

stabbing, a prominent local leader seriously wounded and her husband dead. Police see the attacker was her own grandson, now charged with murder and aggravated assault. It's two victims with three stab wounds between them. Police say early Monday morning they found Denton County Commissioner Bobby J. Mitchell and her husband Fred with the parent stab wounds from a serrated kitchen knife after responding to a report of an assault in progress. The first officer that arrived located a suspect vehicle outside the residence and could hear screaming coming from inside the residence. We have a community beautification event. Mitchell, who was elected as the first black mayor of

Louisville, Texas in 1993 was Russia, the hospital and is now in stable condition according to police. Her husband was pronounced dead as a result of his injuries. The community of Louisville is hurting, but we know we will be stronger and we will come together to be strong for the family. Police say their grandson, 23-year-old Mitchell Blake Rinecker, was still on scene when police arrived. He was immediately cooperative with officers and surrendered without any incident and was taken into custody. It was not immediately clear of Rinecker as being represented by an attorney. Police are still investigating and have not identified a motive. I think the shock and awe is well beyond the immediate family and into the family of this city, this county, and in some cases, this state.

The tragedy pulling the community together as they wait for their beloved commissioner to be released from the hospital. In a statement, Mitchell's family saying in part, our wonderful mother, Bobby J. Mitchell, is expected to recover from the tragic events. In today's world, we see way too many public servants getting out there and not serving the public, but serving themselves. Bobby is the absolute opposite of that. And we hope that she and the family can move through this and that we can continue to have her service for many years to come. Kathy Park joins us now. Kathy, do we know anything more about this grandson? Yeah, Alison, well, this is still an active investigation. And right now, police aren't sharing details on what led up to the deadly attack.

they did say that it's believed the grandson was actually living with a couple. And as you heard in our report, Bobby Mitchell wasn't just a local official. She is a pillar of the community governor Abbott actually just released a statement saying that he's praying for Bobby's recovery and among her many titles. She actually held a state commission role. A public vigil is scheduled for tonight. Alison. Kathy Park. Thank you. For years, farmers across the country have faced hurdles when it comes to repairing their own equipment. Large manufacturers, restrict their access to critical software leading to costly delays and loss of crop. Now, some farmers are taking legal action. NBC's Adrian Broad Us has more.

On a farm scattered across two Missouri counties. I've been farming my entire life. Jared Wilson is harvesting corn and soybeans. Particularly for soybeans, I mean, we're always fighting to get the crop out before bad weather sets in. But these days, the fits. generation farmers battling more than weather. His biggest challenge, the right to repair his own farming equipment when it breaks. This is a problem that is affecting every class of electronic device, from your washing machine to your car to me with my combines and tractors. Wilson is

among hundreds of farmers across the country named in class action lawsuits against John Deere. They're accusing the company of blocking farmers and everyday mechanics from fixing equipment without going through John Deere dealers. Would you say time means money? Time absolutely means money in this business. And so while waiting on them, I had soybeans, pods that were splitting open and my product was falling on the ground, right? I can't recover that.

I'm coming up, Jared. Climb into the combine, and you'll find the crux of the controversy. Farmers say this screen controls nearly everything inside. When there's an issue, a code flashes. But according to the lawsuit, only deer authorized techniques. can access the software and tools needed to diagnose and repair. Farmers and independent mechanics are locked out. Even if I identify what the problem is here and I replace it,

I still don't have the technology to plug in to the diagnostic port on this machine and put the software on that it needs to complete the repair. And Wilson says the weight to get a John Deere technician can take weeks and he eats the cost. How much money have you lost waiting on John Deere? I personally have lost. I personally have lost, I would say, several hundred thousand dollars. Deere has rejected the claims made in those lawsuits, but the court denied their attempt to dismiss the case. And in January, the Federal Trade Commission sued John Deere over what it called a use of, quote, unlawful business practices that have driven up repair costs for farmers, while also depriving them of the ability to make timely repairs.

Lena Kahn is the former FTC chair who helped file the suit. I would have sometimes farmers, you know, close to tears recalling the time when they lost a whole harvest because they weren't able to fix their own tractor. Khan says if companies control who can repair equipment, industries from automotive to health care could pay the price. Illegal restrictions on people's ability to repair their own product is affecting people across the board. In a statement responding to the FTC case, which is still pending, John Deere said it does have a quote, longstanding commitment. to customer self-repair and that the complaint is, quote, based on flagrant misrepresentations of the facts. The company told NBC News, it does plan to improve the repair software. It offers to customers in an annual subscription by this fall. But the farmers and farmer advocates we spoke to

have doubts. They've promised to make the tools available, but haven't done it. Willie Cade, grandson of a former John Deere engineer, is pushing for states to implement laws protecting farmers repair rights. So far, Colorado is the only state to pass one. Eighteen states have introduced similar agricultural laws this year. How close do you think you are to the finish line? Five years away before farmers actually will be able to fix their own equipment. Wilson, who wrote tractors before he could spell his name, says that weight may cost him more than a season's harvest. He fears it could end his family's 100-year farming legacy. I have the first roots of my labor deteriorating out in the field. The frustration of that, I'd rather give up my

farm than have someone dictate those terms to me. Adrian Broadus, NBC News. When we return, one of the major legacies of Pope Francis, how he inspired the next generation. And finally, tonight, we're taking a look at Pope Francis's legacy. The 88-year-old pontiff is being remembered as an advocate for children everywhere. Our Tomiose, Thomas takes us through some of his impactful moments that he shared with children all around the globe. Pope Francis was a natural, and his smile contagious, championing the needs of children for more than a decade. The hugs, kisses and blessings from across Europe, the Americas, Africa, and beyond. He captured the world's heart again and again.

Like this tender moment when a hearing-impaired boy climbed on stage. The Pope telling his mother when she came to get her son, if he wants to play, leave him be. Or at a baptismal mass at the Sistine Chapel, reassuring parents. Let the children cry. The Pope wanted every child to know that they mattered, the sick and the vulnerable.

opening his arms wide to a young girl with Downs Syndrome in Washington, D.C., and visiting Ukrainian child refugees at a hospital in Rome. The plain-spoken pontiff offering youth a sense of belonging. He urged young people to, quote, make a mess, meaning he wanted them to shake things up in their parishes and make their voices heard. Pope Francis's humility. humility and sincerity, help define his legacy, lifting children's spirits everywhere. Tom Yamas, NBC News.

And thank you so much for watching Top Story. I'm Alison Barber in New York for Tom Yamis. Stay right there. More news is on the way. Thank you.