Top Story with Tom Llamas - Monday, June 29, 2026

Episode Date: June 30, 2026

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 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tonight, extreme weather emergency, 160 million people bracing for a dangerous heat wave as deadly storms and wildfires spread. These powerful storms leaving a trail of destruction, deadly floods slamming the south, fast-moving wildfires burning out of control in the West, lighting up the night sky. Plus, Bill Cairns is tracking that life-threatening heat dome for so many of us this stifling holiday week. Also tonight, a major Supreme Court moment, expanding the president's power, how it's. could affect dozens of federal agencies, and why the justices will not overturn a civil sex abuse case against President Trump. Miraculous rescues from beneath the rubble, even five full days after deadly earthquakes slammed Venezuela.

American teams, look at this, pulling this baby out alive. We'll tell you why that government's response to the disaster, however, is now sparking anger for some. Rodeo horror, a bull rider, thrown and trample. We speak with a woman who jumped into action to help him. The inmate takeover at a North Carolina jail, dozens of inmates overpowering guards, taking at least two hostage, how it ended. Dramatic apartment explosion caught on camera.

First responders pushed back by the blast miraculously walking away. And the 12-year-old bitten by a shark while swimming in the Bahamas sharing his story, how his brother's quick thinking probably saved his life. Plus, the big media shake up close to home here. Comcast and NBC Universal splitting up what it means for. what you watch. Top story starts right now. Hi there. I'm Hallie Jackson in for Tom tonight. And as we come on the air, tens of millions of people who are under really a triple weather threat, a deadly mix of fires, intense storms, and stifling heat gripping the country from coast to coast. Winds up to

130 miles an hour are ripping across the Midwest. Look at the view from above from these drones here showing the damage in South Dakota. Those silos crushed. The whole roof lifted off of this barn. Out west, you have dozens of wildfires burning out of control there. This Utah neighborhood just covered. Look at that in embers. The Cottonwood Fire seen from above burning nearly 100,000 acres. It is not at all contained. And take a look at some of these live pictures coming in right now.

A brush fire sparking just outside of Sacramento up in California there. You can see the smoke wafting through the trees. This one's just popping up. We're keeping our eye on it. You have several more fires in Colorado where three first responders were killed. Crew members trying to get a handle on these flames when the fire overtook them. It comes as in Kentucky, we're seeing deadly flash floods wash away parts of that state. Look at this. Water up to the chest in some spots. Tanks and sheds floating downstream, this church

totally destroyed. People swimming through it all in some instances, it's, look at this. It's up to the armpits, basically, trying to salvage anything they can. All of it as a life-threatening heat wave is starting to descend, putting 160 million people at risk tonight. You see, Bill Cairns, he's standing by to track that. But we begin tonight with Shaquille Brewster, who leads us off. From brutal heat to powerful storms. It's raining hard now. Tonight, a dangerous mix of severe weather. Wind gusts up to 131 miles an hour, leaving devastating damage in South Dakota. While further west, crews battling massive

wildfires in Utah and Colorado, plumes of smoke seen from miles away. Look at that thick orange haze blanketing the sky. Here, the fire's glow, far into the distance. Crews scrambling to fight the fast-moving flames. In Utah, the nation's largest active wildfire exploding to some 93,000 acres. NBC's Dana Griffin is there. Those plumes of smoke are hot spot flares. Firefighters are working around the clock to put out as afternoon wind and heat fuel

the flames. Tanner Larson is a volunteer firefighter who just lost his own home. Just couldn't absorb it at the moment. I'm sure that, you know, when we go up there, especially today there will probably be a couple of tears shed. In Colorado, officials honoring three firefighters killed while battling the flames over the weekend. Meanwhile in Kentucky, flash floods killing at least four people and triggering dozens of rescues and evacuations. This man pulling a refrigerator from the basement of the flooded home, the water up to his chest.

All while dangerous heat stretches across more than half the country, 162 million people under heat alerts. Record-setting temperatures and humidity hitting folks from the Midwest to the East Coast, unrelenting heat marking a brutal start to the holiday week. Chuck is joining us now from Chicago and Chuck, part of what makes this so dangerous is that it's staying so warm even overnight. That's right, Hallie, and that's why officials are taking this so seriously. I just checked and the feels like temperature right now here in Chicago is 101 degrees. That's of course when you combine the temperature with the humidity that we're feeling.

That's not going to dip below 90 degrees until midnight. And even then, through the overnight hours, well after the sun is gone, it's only going to linger in the mid-80s. So that is what makes it so dangerous to those populations who don't have a home to go into, who don't have access to air conditioning. By the way, Hallie, you know that based in Kentucky, we saw that flooding that was in that piece. We know many of those folks are still without power. We just got an update that when it was at the peak of flooding, there were 1,500 calls to emergency officials and emergency operations. They did 68 rescues in the period of two and a half hours. That gives you a sense of the scope of the devastation that they're feeling there.

By the way, they're also dealing with the same heat that we're feeling here, Halley. Boy, this inundated those folks. Jack, thank you very much, Kilbruster in Chicago. Bill Cairns is Jack and all of it for us. And Bill, you and I have talked about this heat wave now for days, this heat dome. It is descending. Brutal doesn't even begin to describe it. Yeah, and a lot of people don't realize that the heat in our country kills more people every year than hurricanes and tornadoes combined.

It's just a fact that especially for people with chronic illness and, you know, if an elderly person's AC breaks and they can't replace it fast enough, it can be deadly, especially with these overnight temperatures. So that's why these heat waves are getting so, you know, many headlines. and this long duration one is going to make it even worse. So the heat dome is sitting over the south. And when it sits in this position, all of that humid air is allowed the pump from the Gulf of Mexico. It felt like 106 today in Minneapolis. People think in Minneapolis is like middle of the winter

or negative 20. It was 106. And so the worst of it is the Great Lakes, Midwest, into areas right around Nashville to Memphis. Eventually, by the time we get to Wednesday, and especially Thursday and Friday, that's when it gets to the East Coast. For tomorrow, where Shaq's located, it will feel like 106.

Memphis is going to be pretty bad tomorrow. You have a chance of getting up there about 110. And then towards the end of the week, as we get to the fourth, that's when the worst of it's in D.C. Even New York should feel like the mid-100s and the actual temperature. These are in the shade, too, Halley. So you have to remember, in the sun, it's that much worse. But, I mean, these are the conditions, Bill, that some of those first responders, some of those firefighters that we saw in the West are having to deal with as they are trying to navigate what we're seeing.

Talk us through that. Yeah, and people using fireworks. probably starting new fires too. So the Fourth of July forecast in the West is extremely dry. It's the dry season. It's not going to be especially hot, but just being so dry and windy is going to give it a chance for these fires to continue to spread. I want to show you this visible satellite imagery. So this is the Cottonwood Fire. This is the biggest one out there right now. And the Sydney Fire has been growing right along the border. But the new fire today that was getting all the attention is called the Aspen Acres Fire. The update this morning, this fire just started, just today, was 2,500 acres. I just saw an update that they now have. estimated at 26,000 acres. So that's an explosive fire growth. There's been 2,000 people evacuated

from two small towns, all of this smoke from this fire. And you can see it. The reason I do the black and white imagery is this isn't clouds, this huge plume that's right over the top of Pueblo. The air quality is horrific in Pueblo right now, and right over the top of I-25, and that smoke is now blowing all the way out into Kansas. So that's one of the fires to watch. We're hoping that the flames stay out of those towns. But when the wind's gusty like this, Halley, and it's this dry, the firefighters are almost helpless. It's just tough, Bill, and I'm glad you're into track it all. Appreciate you.

I know we'll be talking again in the days to come. Appreciate that. Here in Washington now, you saw the Supreme Court handing down some big decisions here. In one, expanding the power that President Trump has over various federal agencies, but in another showing that that power may be limited when it comes to the Federal Reserve. The justices also declined to hear the president's appeal of the verdict against him in E. Jean Carroll's civil sex abuse case. Let me bring in Laura Jared, who's following it all.

Let me take it in a couple of different buckets, Laura. Let's do bucket one, presidential power, because he has, according to the justices now, plenty when it comes to some federal agencies, not when it comes to the Fed necessarily. Not when it comes to the Fed, Halley. They really do see the Fed as different. They believe it should be insulated from political pressure, saying presidents essentially have too much incentive to try to put their thumb on the scale. There's short-term interest like interest rate, something we've seen President Trump

being very interested, very critical of the Fed. And so Chief Justice in this opinion is essentially saying the Fed needs to say insulated. It doesn't mean that the president can never fire someone on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, but they need to be able to do it for cause. And here, the president simply did not give Lisa Cook a chance to contest her termination. And so now it's going to work its way back through the lower courts where she's going to actually have a chance to play this out. But making it very clear, the Fed is different. The Fed is off limits, Halley.

There was also the justices. Basically, correct me if I'm wrong, Lord. They're not even touching. They didn't even touch the E. Gene Carroll thing, right? They don't want to come anywhere near this, Hall. I remember this was sort of a last-stitch effort on the part of the president. This is a case that dates back to 2023. It was a civil verdict for defamation for sexual abuse. Writer E. Jean Carroll had made those claims that dated back years ago, said she was assaulted in the department store of Burdorke Goodman. The president has denied this, maintained his innocence all along. He had one last shot at the Supreme Court,

and today they simply decided to turn it away. We're not even going to touch. which means he is going to have to pay up that $5 million to E. Jean Carroll, Halley. We are, as you know, we like to call it around here, Laura, on SCOTUS Watch. And it's coming to an end with one huge, one big, big, big case still up in the air. Walk us through birthright citizenship, because that's coming down, we think, in the next couple of days, probably. Tomorrow, Halley. Tomorrow is the final day of the term, which means we have no choice. The Spring Court can no longer procrastinate. They sometimes save the biggest for last. And this is sure the biggest. It's probably the most controversial piece of his case.

A controversial piece of his immigration crackdown, this effort to try to roll back birthright citizenship, something guaranteed to everybody under the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. He has tried to limit it for people whose parents are undocumented, but even if they're born here, if they have parents that are undocumented, the president wants to say, going forward, not for people in the past, but going forward, they should not be able to enjoy birthright citizenship. And the justices are going to have the final say on it. They seem skeptical at oral argument, but you never know what they're going to do, and we're going to find out tomorrow. Reading those sea leaves, but I guess we'll have the decision super soon. Laura Jarrett, let's talk again tomorrow. Consider yourself of Brookton Busy. Appreciate it. Thank you.

Let's take it to Venezuela now where there have been a number of developments here. The situation is so serious after those double deadly earthquakes there. But even as hope for some begins to fade, we are still seeing even five full days later, miraculous rescues. Here's Camilla Bernal. Tonight from beneath the rubble, the miracles. You can hear this baby's cries as it's. freed by American rescue teams, rushing off the pile for medical attention. And amazingly, moments later, from that same collapsed building, the baby's mother, is also

pulled out alive, greeted by cheers from her neighbors. Rescues still happening five days after those deadly back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela. This man was trapped for 106 hours. But there's also growing anger with the Venezuelan government. saying officials have not moved fast enough to find those trapped. And to help survivors in La Guaira, people who lost everything are picking through piles of donated clothes. Anna Vanessa Herrero is there. Hundreds behind me are sleeping on tents. They tell me that the government has not informed them what the next steps could be. In Los Angeles, Kelly Montano tells us her parents are still missing. They don't believe it. No.

I don't believe it. She heard from them minutes before the earthquake hit. They were packing their car to leave the apartment. My hope was that they were leaving from the parking. But today's Monday and they doesn't appear any of them. Now she's organized an aid donation site at her restaurant. Back in Venezuela, the hours are growing desperate to find more survivors. Telemundo Julio Vacero is there.

This was a 13-floor apartment building. Right now, they're not trying to find any people alive. They are just trying to find dead bodies. And tonight, the UN estimates the death toll could hit as high as 10,000 people. Camilla is joining us now. The death toll, I mean, the number of people killed here, Camilla, it's just staggering. It's staggering to think about the marathon that is ahead for the people in Venezuela. And it's, it's striking and startling to hear, like from Julio, for example, just the work that these

rescuers now have to do. Yeah, Hallie, it's so heartbreaking. The current death toll right now is more than 1,700 people. And among them three Americans, there are tens of thousands of people that are still unaccounted for. And that includes 12 Americans that are currently missing. Right now, the U.S. is also sending more than $300 million for that very much needed disaster relief. The Venezuelan government, on the other hand, says that they're evaluating damaged buildings, that they're building encampments for those that are displaced. But like you heard from many of the Venezuelans, they don't feel like they're doing enough,

like the Venezuelan government is doing enough. They are still really holding on to that hope and expecting miracles today. But the reality is that, yes, five days in, that clock is ticking, and it's likely going to be getting a lot harder for those people who are still hoping and praying to find their loved ones tally. Camila Bernal, thank you very much for those updates. I appreciate that. Let's get to the latest now on peace talks between the U.S. and Iran,

with Iranian officials now saying they have no plans to be in Dohaf for negotiations tomorrow, even after President Trump said Iran had requested a meeting there. Let me bring in Kierre Simmons, who's live for us from the region following this from the area. Kier, give us a reality check. This kind of feels like Schrodinger's talks, if you will. Do they exist? Do they not exist? What is happening? Are they happening? Oh, yeah, they exist, Halley. I think there will be talks tomorrow. The question really is, what kinds of talks. Certainly the White House has said that President Trump's envoy, Steve Wittkoff and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, are on their way to Doha. Will they perhaps be in

one room with the Iranians in another room? They are able to talk through the mediators, through the Qataris, for example, through the Pakistanis, that those things are familiar and that can be the way it plays out. I suspect the Iranians will be there. We've seen a lot of muscle flexing. by the Iranians is almost part of the negotiations. The fact that the Iranians fired on a ship last Thursday which caused this crisis, that ship travelling through the Strait of Hormuz outside of Iranian waters.

I mean, that was part of that muscle flexing. Effectively, what the Iranians are trying to do is to impose their version of what the deal with the Trump administration, the memorandum of understanding, says. The US, on the other hand, sees it differently. I mean, it's like this, Halley. Effectively, that memorandum of understanding is vague.

That was good because it allowed a deal to happen, but it's bad because it allows both sides to try to say that their version of that deal is what is right. So, for example, the Iranians are saying that they have sovereignty over the Strait of Ramos, that they should dictate the terms in which it is opened. By the way, they're talking similarly on other files. So say, for example, with Lebanon here in Israel, They're saying that the Israelis should withdraw from Lebanon, even though there's a separate

deal between the Lebanese and the Israelis, which has infuriated the Iranians. So there are questions there. Of course, there were questions over the negotiations around Iran's nuclear program. And it goes on and on. I mean, these are going to be long talks. They're going to be detailed talks. They're going to be difficult talks, Hali. And I mean, there are going to be talks in which the Iranians are going to make these threats

and say they're not coming. And I suspect we will see more conflict, too. The big question is, will the deadline have to be extended? Will they come to a deal? Kier Simmons, I hope you're, I know you're staying there. I hope to see you back tomorrow night for the update on how that all goes. Thanks, pal. Appreciate you. Back here at home now, the latest in what has been a string of scares in the sky so far this summer,

including close calls with drones and planes. That's what happened with a jet blue flight landing in New York. Our Aaron McLaughlin explains. Tonight, the FBI is investigating. We collided with a drone back there in the turn. The pilot reported a drone struck a JetBlue flight on final approach to New York's JFK airport. You said you collided? Yep, it hit us right above the cockpit.

You require any assistance you just continue to the runway? Permitants. We don't need any assistance. We're just going to go ahead and land. It happened at 7.15 this morning. Flight 948 from Las Vegas was about 3,000 feet in the air. JetBlue tells NBC News the flight landed without incident. And a post-flight inspection found no damage.

minutes later, according to air traffic control audio, another JetBlue flight reported seeing a drone flying quite close. JetBlue 2769 just observed a drone passed to our right, slightly below us. As they scrambled to figure out whether it was safe to land the plane. And last Friday, another drone sighting as a United Flight arrived in nearby Newark. We almost hit a drone right there. Many times these are false positives. In other words, it's a bird strike. or some other balloon or object like that. And if it was a drone, well, that's very serious. Aaron is joining us now from New York. So what are the next steps in the investigation, Aaron?

Because obviously this is something that they're going to want to look at. And they've got to figure out how to get a handle on this. Yeah, well, first and foremost, they need to determine if it was, in fact, a drone involved in that sort of strike earlier today, Hally, speaking to that expert. And he raised doubts about that.

He said that the fact that the ever The FAA reported no damage to the cockpit as a result of that drone strike. He said if a drone had actually hit that cockpit, there would have at least been a mark. No mark of a collision was reported, according to the FAA. Also was pointing to the altitude in which this happened. The fact that it happened at about 3,000 feet in the air, that is very high for a drone, not so high for a bird. So that'll be step one in this investigation.

Hallie. Aaron McLaughlin, thank you very much. Much more to get to here on the show tonight, including the disgraced former lawyer, Alec Murdoch in shackles, back in court after his double murder convictions were overturned. We've got the fiery moments inside that hearing. Plus, the terrifying rodeo rampage, a rider tossed and trampled by a bull. We'll show you that scene and how he managed to make it out. And the jailhouse takeover inmates capturing a couple guards, sparking an hours-long standoff. How it all ended ahead on top story. Now with our first look at Alec Murdoch in years, the former South Carolina attorney accused of killing his wife and son back in court in shackles, prompting some fiery moments from his attorney. And tonight, we're learning the date for his retrial. Aaron Gilchrist is there.

Alec Murdoch back in a South Carolina courtroom today for the first time in more than two years. I see we have a full house. Good morning. With a new judge diving head first into his second murder trial. Murdoch in an orange prison jumpsuit and shackled. His lawyer having him stand to make a point about biasing potential jurors before trial. Chained around the way. Changed around the way. Chained with a hand.

Chained on the feet. I mean, this guy is not a serial killer. Not, you know, Ted Bundy. The state says it's a routine security measure. It is a security risk. And what was to be a routine status conference quickly became contentious. We don't know what we don't know. And I'm giving an example.

Murdoch's lawyers arguing there may be evidence available that wasn't a lot of shared with them during the first trial in 2023. State prosecutors pushing back. I know that my obligation is to provide that information to the defense. And if I'm aware of it, then it's been provided. And we have done that. They've had it since well before the original trial, and we will continue to do that. Guilty? A jury convicted Murdoch, a once prominent and powerful attorney of killing his wife Maggie and son Paul back in 2021. South Carolina's Supreme Court overturned that conviction last month, citing interference by former court. court clerk Becky Hill, who the court said placed her fingers on the scales of justice with comments she made to jurors.

The new judge setting April 5th as the start date for the new trial. The judge also delaying a decision on a request for a new analysis of unidentified male DNA found under Maggie's fingernail. As the defense signals someone other than Alec could have been at the crime scene. Aaron is joining us now from South Carolina. The defense, Aaron, is also pushing to have this case heard in a different jurisdiction, right? Yeah, you're absolutely right. The defense has filed a motion that the judge did talk about a little bit today. Their insistence is that they have concerns about being able to seat a jury and getting a fair

trial for their client because this case, the first trial, got so much attention. This story has gotten so much attention, really not just here in South Carolina and in that particular jurisdiction, that judicial district, as it's called here in South Carolina, but really all around the country, you noted the, you saw in the piece that we talked about. about the fact that the attorneys were worried that seeing Alec Murdoch in these pretrial hearings wearing that prison jumpsuit would also be something that would create a bias for any particular jury. And so they've asked the judge to move to a different jurisdiction here in South Carolina, hoping that they can see the jury that they will see as being more impartial in making its judgment about this case.

Hallie, it's worth noting that the judge told the defense team that talked to the prosecution. If you guys can come up with an agreement on where to hold the trial, then that's something that she would really consider going forward before that trial date of April 5th of next year, Haley. Erin Gilchrist, a lot to watch. Thank you for being there for us. Appreciate it. Let's take you to a different courthouse. This one in New York, where the accused CEO killer Luigi Mangione was late to a hearing after getting stuck in an elevator, according to a court official familiar with what happened, who says Mangione stayed in handcuffs as engineers worked to free him. He arrived at the courtroom about 30 minutes. after proceedings were set to begin. In those proceedings, a judge delayed the start of Mangione's federal trial to January 5th. He has pleaded not guilty. Turning now to the terrifying video from a rodeo in the Bronx within the past 48 hours, witnesses watching a bull throw its rider to the ground and then stomp on him. Tonight we're hearing from the off-duty medic who rushed into help with a warning here. Some of this video is disturbing. Here's Morgan Chesky.

It's the wild ride turning a New York rodeo into a medical emergency. This video capturing the moment a 25-year-old was thrown off a bucking bull before being pummeled into the dirt. The massive animals stomping on, then dragging the man before others tried to intervene. The rodeo Tierra Caliente is a traveling event, specializing in the Mexican style of cowboy competitions. Sunday, it came to the Bronx, where off-duty EMT Melanie Ayala was in the crowd. I heard the announcer telling everybody that this was a lot. very serious and they needed to stop recording and instead use their phones to call the ambulance. When no medical staff immediately came to help, Ayala says she climbed into the arena and rushed

to that man's side. Because she didn't have her protective gear, she says she used her hands to slow the bleeding from where the bull gored the man just seconds earlier. She says she was stunned and described organizers as appearing unprepared for what can happen at any rodeo. I was confused and frustrated all in once, but then I realized that there's no medical professional here, that that means that I'm a medical professional here, and I kind of just ran. NBC News reached out to the rodeo Tierra Caliente in both English and Spanish, but is not heard back. Despite the accident, the event continued with music and dancing. The FDNY says EMS transported the rider to a nearby hospital, where authorities say he's in stable condition.

A ride meant to last mere seconds, now behind a potentially long recovery. Oh, Morgan is with us now. So glad that that rider is okay and is in the hospital and getting the health that that rider needs. I think watching that, you know, people who go to rodeos, you sort of always have your heart in your throat a little bit as you're watching some of these events. Yeah, Hallie, you do. And having grown up to rodeos, I took a look at a recent study and the numbers were incredibly telling here. For every one head injury that happens to a professional football player, that equates to about 250 head injuries in the sport of roadies. And not only that, this study was able to concentrate the power of a single kick from a bowl 30 times more powerful than if you were to take a straight punch from an Olympic boxer.

All that to say so glad this 25-year-old rider is on the road to recovery tonight. Yeah, no kidding. Morgan Chesky, thank you. When we come back, this sweeping crap down on illegal sports betting. Two more former NBA players indicted what they're accused of doing on the court for profit. Plus, the dramatic rescue captured on camera crews working together to save a woman from a sinking car. Where do you see it? Next. Back now with the horrifying scene at a popular resort beach in Mexico after a man was attacked and killed by a crocodile. Our Liz Kreutz spoke with the couple who tried to save him. Tonight, new video shows a massive crocodile at the beach near a popular resort in Puerto Bajarta shortly after officials say a 28-year-old man was attacked and killed by one over the weekend.

Jamie Yetter and Chris Burry were vacationing at the Marriott-Porto Vyarta. when they witnessed the horrifying attack. It was a really, really big crock, and he never let go of the man. He just kept taking him under, rolling him. And every time we saw him surface, it was deeper and deeper every time. The couple says they had no idea that beach near their hotel is known for crocodiles. In 2021, a California woman was also attacked while staying on the property. Did anyone warn you when you checked in at this hotel?

There were crocodiles in that water? No. No one said a word about it. Did the hotel close down the beach after this attack? No. Even the next morning, hours later, there's little children playing in the water. Marriott tells NBC News the hotel has appropriate signage as well as night patrolling and red flags to indicate caution in the area and all were and are properly in place. Jamie and Chris say the only warning they saw about crocodiles was this one sign they took a picture of at the entrance to the beach. There's only one small little white sign with several marine animals on it.

This isn't appropriate. The terrifying incident comes as officials in Florida, say a 30-year-old woman died after she was attacked by an alligator while swimming in a river outside Orlando. She was bitten on both of her arms. Liz is joining us now. And Liz, officials in Florida are issuing a warning now because of these attacks, right? Yeah, Holly, that's right. That's because this is the third alligator attack in Central Florida over the last week, the second over the past 24 hours. And we're also now getting reports of potentially another alligator attack today of a.

boy who was fishing and had his hand reportedly bit by an alligator. We hope he's okay. But officials are saying to be, of course, very vigilant right now in Florida and in those waters. They say this is mating season for alligators, so they can be particularly prevalent in the water there, Halley. Liz Croyd, thank you for that warning and for that story. Appreciate it. To a difficult update now from legendary former NFL running back Chris Johnson, the pro bowler who broke records playing for the Tennessee Titans, sharing he's been diagnosed with ALS. talking about it with Michael Strahan over on GMA, using a speech device that lets him spell words with his eyes,

words that are then spoken out loud in his own voice, using recordings that were done shortly after his diagnosis. Steve Patterson is joining us for more on this. Talk to us about what Johnson shared, how he was diagnosed, how quickly this progressed. He wants to be sort of shining a spotlight on this now. He does. Sad stuff here, Halley. This is something that as far as we know progressed like wildfire. Keep in mind that at the time of his diagnosis, which was just a year ago. Chris Johnson was still like the body of an American superhero. He was working out every day. He was running.

He was picking up his kids like it was nothing. And again, this was literally just a year or so ago. And then he started to feel sort of this weakness in his right hand. At first it was little things like his grip strength was off. He felt a little weaker overall. So he goes to with the doctor, with his wife, to get it checked out. And it's this shocking diagnosis to him. It's ALS, something with no cure.

And Johnson says he first noticed something that was usually, you know, very little hope, very, very little hope in the way of a prognosis, of course. The thing that he says is so cruel is that he's still in there, right? His thoughts, his hopes, his dreams, his love for his family. But these are also the things that are keeping him going and that he wants to fight. I want you to hear his resolve and why he's fighting. Listen to this. People sometimes look at the physical disability and assume you're not still the same person inside. I still think the same. I still dream. I still love my family. My body just doesn't cooperate.

Right now there isn't a cure, but we're seeing more research, more clinical trials and more promising ideas than ever before. Seeing how hard these doctors and researchers are working gives me hope. As long as they're fighting for people with ALS, I'm going to keep fighting too. And of course, Johnson wants to speak out. He says he's doing it, not only to raise away. in funding for ALS research, but to let people know that he is still the same person, that star, record-breaking, running back, and of course, a father and a husband. Hallie. Just 40 years old, Steve? Do I have that right? Yeah, just 40 years old.

Diagnosed, of course, again, just last year and was the picture of health until just a year later, Halley. Steve Patterson, thank you for bringing us that story. Appreciate it. So top stories news feed now, starting in San Francisco, where the Catholic Archdiocese has agreed to pay nearly $400 million. to settle hundreds of lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse. The Archbishop and plaintiff's attorneys announced the deal today,

saying it includes reforms to improve transparency and child safety. The Archbishop says the agreement provides fair compensation to survivors, all of it, coming nearly three years after that Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy. In Washington State, video capturing a huge explosion at an apartment building. I want you to watch this one. Tacoma firefighters say it happened overnight, last night, I guess. They were looking at an issue with an electrical transformer that sent smoke into some buildings. Our local NBC affiliate reports, everyone there had already been evacuated.

Incredibly, even though some of those fire crews, as you saw, were sort of pushed back by the explosion. None of them were hurt. North Carolina officials say two jail guards are now safe after being taken hostage by some inmates. They say it happened overnight when a bunch of those inmates overpowered staff and basically took control of the jail. They initially captured three guards. One of those guards escaped. That led to a standoff that lasted a few. few hours. Eventually, negotiators say they managed to get a handle on the situation. They moved about 80 inmates out of the jail along with those two guards. And a few weeks ago, businessmen and TV

personality Kevin O'Leary was on this broadcast to talk about his controversial data center project in Utah. Tom asked him about the backlash from locals. O'Leary said without evidence that some of the criticism was coming from groups back by the Chinese. As Tom shared on the broadcast at the time, the one group O'Leary named told NBC News they were not proxies for the Chinese. Now O'Leary has issued a statement naming several other people and groups saying he has no evidence that they are funded by China or the Chinese Communist Party. And a tense rescue mission in Virginia. Watch this first responders working together to save a driver who crashed into a pond. Look at the car. You saw it at the top of your screen there sinking into the water. These officers, they make like a human chain. They grab hands. They all go in. I mean, God, that water's up to their chest, basically.

They end up pulling her to the shore safely. She was hurt, but fortunately is expected to be okay. So some big news making waves in the world of sports and beyond, business, legal, etc. After federal prosecutors have indicted two former NBA players as part of this sweeping crackdown on illegal sports gambling. Malik Beasley is accused of manipulating his play for the Milwaukee Bucks to help other betters make money and chip away at the millions of dollars he apparently raked in in gambling losses or at least racked him up. His former teammate Ed Davis also charged in that indictment, accusing of helping to set up those six. schemes. Let me bring in Tom Winter, who's here to talk about it. What's interesting here, Tom, is this is directly related, right, these indictments, the allegations we should say, to the play on the court, right, the play during games. Right. We're not talking about some of the

things that we've seen previously, which are illegal poker games or things like that. This is definitely tied to the play on the court. And it's something that we saw in Major League Baseball. It's something that we've seen previously charged in other cases, including in college basketball, where they have all these prop bets now, Hallie. And so it would be like how many, live reports did Tom Winter do today? And if I knew what I was going to do or knew that I was going to say, oh, maybe I'll call out sick around three o'clock and cut those appearances short, if you were to pass that information along to somebody, they could potentially use that in betting markets to be able to make a whole heck of a lot of money. And that's what's alleged here,

that effectively Beasley would either underperform or overperform whatever the bets had been set as far as his specific performance, not his team's performance, his specific performance in games. He was allegedly bribed to get that information and to perform in that way. And then a number of other individuals who were charged in this scheme were able to make a lot of money placing those bets, which were then, as a result of this, made illegal. That's at least what the federal grand jury came up with. And on top of that, we just got word from federal prosecutors and some of the other defendants in the NBA cases could be co-conspirators in this case, including Damon Jones. So we're going to have to continue to watch exactly where this case goes from here.

But this is something that authorities have definitely got their eyes on for sure. Any word from their attorneys, Tom, at this point or not yet? Yeah, Halley, we've reached out to some of the principals charged this investigation, including Beasley and Davis, have not heard anything back. The NBA has provided a statement this evening saying that they are in the process of reviewing this indictment. They pointed out that this alleged activity occurred back in 2024. They say that this. that they take this seriously, that they're focused on the integrity of the game, but there is certainly now a growing sense that the NBA definitely has a problem beyond one or two isolated incidents, and this is something that has definitely cropped up in their sport,

how widespread it is, and if anybody is coordinating or orchestrating it, is something obviously we're going to be watching closely, Allie. No kidding. Tom Winter, thank you very much, as always, for your reporting. Appreciate it. When we come back, the 12-year-old boy attacked by a shark in the Bahamas, shares publicly the details about this horrifying incident. He says his big brother helped save his life. Plus, an update here at NBC News. Comcasts planned into part ways with NBC Universal.

So could somebody else swoop in and buy the company? We're going to break it all down. Next. To a big media shakeup now, one that hits pretty close to home, Comcasts, saying it will split from NBC Universal, meaning both of these will become two separate publicly traded companies. One is going to focus on Comcast's broadband operations, the cable, the wireless services. The other is going to include kind of the content, universal theme parks, studios, peacock, Sky, NBC. Comcast is, of course, the parent company of what you're watching right now, NBC News Now.

Brian Chung is here to help break it down. Okay, so Brian, I think the biggest question people have, if you like the stuff that you watch on Comcast, what does this mean for you and when? Yeah, it's likely not going to mean much, and that's because if you get your wireless services or you have a cable top box from Comcast, you're still going to get it from Comcast. And wherever you get NBC or when you get NBC News Now, it's still going to be coming from NBC and NBC News Now. So it doesn't mean that much directly for the consumer, but it is part of this massive musical chairs that we've seen play out in the media landscape where a number of companies have divested, sold off, bought, purchased other companies. And now Comcast is doing the same with NBC Universal, as you mentioned, which is our parent company.

Again, they do expect that this is going to take about a year. and Mike Kavanaugh, who's currently the co-CEO of Comcast, will become the CEO of NBC Universal once that's done. They do say that this is tax-free, and even once that's done, Comcast will still have roughly about 20% of a stake in NBC Universal. Okay, so let's say, even as low impact to consumers, quote-unquote, as we see it right now.

But let's talk about if you're interested in like the buying and the selling and the business and the media mowling of it all. You know, one of the things that has come up again and again is does this mean now today that NBC Universal specifically is in a position to maybe acquire or be acquired. And what about the Netflix of it all? That's been something that's out there. Yeah, we'll get to the Netflix in a bit,

but of course, that is the big looming question, one, that NBC Universal and Comcast leadership addressed in a call with investors earlier this morning. They said outright no when asked about the, or thinking about the proposition of selling either Comcast or NBC Universal or engaging in any big deals. But you do have to remember that there's been a lot of moves in media.

when you consider, for example, Warner Brothers Discovery, selling to Paramount, Paramount, then selling and merging with Skydance. And Netflix was a big part of that particular story as well. As you recall, Netflix did try to buy some assets of Warner Brothers Discovery that ultimately fell through. Paramount became the winner of that. Could Netflix try it now that NBC Universal is going to become a separate company to get in there as well? You do have to remember, they didn't try to buy everything from Warner Brothers Discovery. They only wanted the HBO and some of the movie assets. Would that be the case for NBC Universal, where they only want the universal assets? That's going to be something that I, in addition to analysts and certainly those inside of this

building will be watching very closely. A lot of intrigue, a lot to watch. Brian Chong, thank you. To top stories, Global Watch now, starting in northern Germany, where six people are dead after a gunman opened fire today at a youth welfare facility. Police say the victim is we're all employees or affiliates in some way of the center, and that the suspected shooter has been arrested. Investigators are still trying to figure out why this happened, any kind of motive, but officials think the shooting may have stemmed from a custody dispute. And scientists stumbling upon a rare dinosaur fossil. They say this is the first piece of dino bone ever discovered on Antarctica. It was originally found back in 1985, but it's been like tucked away kind of in this random drawer till a researcher says he spotted it, ran some tests, and confirmed, yes, it was the discovery. Still no word yet on what kind of dinosaur it belongs to.

And a major fashion statement from Naomi Osaka. Have you seen her showing up to Wimbledon in style, sporting all white, modeled after this traditional Japanese kimono. That's the outfit there. Osaka says her inspiration came from a character in Kill Bill, you know, the Tarantino movie. She eventually ditched the look, of course, before her first round match. But it might have brought her some good luck. She won in straight sets. Also tonight, remember we told you about a brutal shark attack in the Bahamas not long ago? A 12-year-old boy bitten during what was supposed to be a dream fan. family vacation, surviving thanks to quick thinking by his older brother. Now the two for the first time are sharing their story. Here's Ryan Chandler. Tonight, a big brother's daring rescue, 60 miles offshore. I just hear this ear piercing scream and the clearest of blue water turned to the murkest of red.

Jack Roll and his little brother Parker were swimming with their family in a secluded part of the Bahamas when a shark attacked, tearing into 12-year-old Parker's leg in the open ocean. I just looked down and I could see my bone, and it just felt like a knife stab over and over, and then that knife was twisted. Miles from shore, they had no hospital and no cell service. I haven't ever seen a wound that deep in my life. That was the major wound. the shark bit completely from behind. It went, it was about this or here, this side and this side. But Jack leapt into action using a swimsuit as a makeshift tourniquet as they race to shore.

We're on an island with nobody around us. So it's either we help him or nobody can really help him. The shark's teeth leaving deep gashes in Parker's leg and foot. But the quick thinking kept Parker stable for the agonizing ride back to safety. It's just very horrible. from the most beautiful scenery in the world. Doctors later warned his bleeding could have turned fatal, taking a thousand stitches to sew up.

But tonight the family is grateful as Parker recovers, praising the instincts of his big brother for saving his life. Ryan is joining us now. Just so many details in that story that are almost, you know, you're just sort of gassed to hear them, Ryan. What else do we know about how Parker's doing? It's an incredible story, Halley. Unfortunately, doctors say he is expected.

to make a full recovery. He does need a little help walking right now due to the injuries that he got to his leg and his foot. But after two to three weeks, he'll get those thousand stitches taken out, and doctors say he should be just fine. Now, I mean, the brothers were saying the doctors stressed just how much worse this could have been, if not for those incredible big brother instincts on behalf of Jack there, Halley. No kidding. Ryan Chandler, thank you very much for bringing us that. When we come back, it is shaping up to be maybe the wedding of the year, certainly the most speculated about wedding of the year. Taylor Swift, we think, just days away from getting married to Travis Kelsey, what we're learning about the guest list and what people have to do before

showing up. Plus, our series, The Great Americans. Tonight, we hear from a sixth-generation flagmaker about what it means to stitch the stars and stripes. Stay with us. Back now with what may be the most speculated about wedding of the year, and that is, of course, the one between Taylor Swift and Travis Kelsey. Where are they going to get married? When? it going to be? Who is going to be invited? Well, guess what? We've got some new details now from our team digging into it all with some inside information from somebody who says they're invited. Here's Chloe Malas. Hey, Taylor.

Just days away from Taylor Swift's possible wedding, and it feels like the whole world is ready for it. Are you ready for it? Now more details are emerging about the singer's highly anticipated idu's to football star Travis Kelsey, a source with knowledge of the matter who is a mom. Among the invited guests telling NBC News that 1100 people are expected to attend wedding festivities this Friday at New York's iconic Madison Square Garden. Adding that the invites arrived electronically and required guests to sign NDAs. NBC News has reached out to Swift, Kelsey, and MSG for comment, but is not heard back. The source also saying multiple performances are expected from various artists, including Stevie Nix. NBC News has reached out to Nix for comment.

But not everyone is convinced. Is she getting married to MSG? There's no way. As questions still swirl around the big day. OK, Chloe's with us now from New York. We have to say it responsibly. This could be a big head fake still, right? Like she, again, she's the queen of the Easter egg

and everything else. So like big, still grain assault, even with this new reporting. Hally, for all we know, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelsey could already be married, right? And maybe this is just one big reception, and they're going to be like, hey, we're not actually doing the I-dos. We already did that weeks ago. And maybe there was a whole photo shoot. We're going to see pictures from some tiny little ceremony of Taylor Swift, Travis Kelsey, her family, and her cats, right? Like, who knows?

But what we do know from this source, who is going, there's something happening Friday night at MSG. some sort of event and do we know anything else about who is among these guests here? I know I'm sure you and I would have been if we'd known to it, but like, you know, other other notables. Okay. So safe to say that you were going to see some NFL stars, Kansas City Chiefs, teammates of Travis Kelsey. I've made a list of also Taylor Swift's besties. Gigi Hed, Sabrina Carpenter, Gracie Abrams, Zoe Kravitz, Jack Antonoff, the Hame sisters. These are people who could be invited. We don't know anything about it.

That might be invited. I think the big question on a lot of people's minds right now, Halley, after the big year that she had, Blake Lively, is Blake Lively going to be there? They were once besties and all the Blake Lively Justin Baldoni drama. Many people are wondering, will she be one of the 1100 that are invited? Are they still friends? That's what I'm wondering. By, you know what?

By this time next week, maybe we'll know the answers. Chloe Malas, thank you very much. Appreciate you. Thanks for digging in on this one. And also this week, in the lead-up to the 250th birthday of America, we will end our broadcast every night with our series, Great Americans, where we speak with those who have achieved so much about their life and this country. Tonight, Tom talks with a sixth-generation flagmaker whose family history is woven deeply into American history. Our Great American tonight, Carter Beard.

Stitch by Stitch. These long rolls of fabric are cut. and stamped into something more. I get to make the symbol of our country that is so important to so many people. I'm really proud that I'm doing this. American flags from Annan Flagmakers created on factory floors like this, then woven into iconic moments of American culture, draping athletes in Olympic glory. Beautiful, just beautiful.

Even planting on the surface of the moon. We were the supplier of flags to NASA during the Apollo program. For sixth generation, six-generation, CEO Carter Beard. This is actually Lewis Anna Ames. He was my great-grandfather. His family history. This is a shot from the Civil War.

Is American history. I think the flag that went up on Mount Surabachi, Iwo Jima, was raised by the Marines. It's probably the most emotional flag. And I break up even thinking about it. In times of trouble, people turn to the flag. It's a comforting thing to them. It represents all that's great about America. You know, it represents our strengths and our weaknesses.

times of crisis like in 9-11, it's emotional to think that the first thing those rescue workers sought to do was go grab an American flag and raise it on that rubble. It's a powerful symbol. Making that symbol right here in the USA takes a lot of hard work. I feel very patriotic. And much of the process has stayed the same for generations. We still make American flags very similar the way we made them in 1950 or 1930s. It's still a manual process. It's still a manual process. and it's a highly trained skill. Ida Mauda has been working at Annan's subsidiary Flag Zone for 20 years. I enjoy working here.

I enjoy making the American flag. She now trains new employees, many of them, first-generation Americans. He makes me proud that I'm making the American flag just because they gave me an opportunity to be part of being an American. These flags threaded together by the same ideals that connect us all. So I think that's what America represents, that opportunity, that you can become anything that you're willing to work for. Thanks so much for watching Top Story. I'm Hallie Jackson in Washington. Stay right there. We've got more news on the way.