Top Story with Tom Llamas - Thursday, June 13, 2024
Episode Date: June 14, 2024Tonight'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. ...
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Tonight, state of emergency, historic rainfall in Florida triggering dangerous flash flooding. Relentless downpours submerging neighborhoods. Emergency crews rushing to evacuate people from their homes and cars. Nearly two feet of rainfall falling in just 48 hours in some spots. Drivers trapped in the floodwaters forced to abandon their vehicles, the record rain threat far from over as the stubborn tropical disturbance parks over the region. Also, tonight,
Not backing down. President Biden promising to stand with Ukraine at the G7 summit, the new security agreement and $50 billion loan to help build up Ukraine's military.
Will this aid give the country the boost it needs to push back on Russia's intensifying assault?
Fighting with fire, Israeli troops using medieval-style weapons launching fireballs at Lebanon to help in a fight against Hezbollah.
It comes as Hezbollah continues to fire rockets at northern Israel.
largest bombardment since October 7th. Could this open up another warfront? Meanwhile,
inside Gaza, disturbing images of malnourished children, the urgent warning from humanitarian groups.
Mexico jacuzzi death, an American couple on vacation, electrocuted while in a hot tub.
Harrowing video is onlookers scream and plead for help. The investigation tonight into the
tragedy in paradise. Highway horror, shocking video of a state trooper struck while
holding over another driver, a drunk driver slamming into a patrol car that ultimately hit her,
what we know about that trooper's condition. Plus, a spectacle at sea, researchers spotting
more than 160 whales during a flyover. The incredible images as seven different species
were spotted from above. And potential signs of extraterrestrial life? The new study suggesting
aliens, yes, aliens, could exist. We'll explain. Top story starts right now.
Good evening. I'm Ellison Barber in for Tom Yamis. Tonight, Southern Florida underwater,
a third straight day of historic rainfall leading to catastrophic flooding, and we're learning
at least two people were killed in a car crash due to wet roads. Governor Ronda Sanchez
declaring a state of emergency, draw dropping drone video, showing block after block completely
flooded out. The images coming out of these communities looking more.
like hurricane aftermath. In North Miami, emergency crews rushing to help people trapped in the
floodwaters, walls of water pushing into homes and inundating cars. And this is the point of view
for countless drivers, staring down roads that quickly turned into rivers, cars stalling out
and left abandoned. Wild video as three men use a canoe to transport themselves down what used
to be a street, one even holding out a fishing rod. With grounds already extremely saturated, less
than an inch of rain could send some neighborhoods to their breaking point. This rain event is
already shattering records. Some spots picking up nearly 20 inches of rain in just two days.
Hallandale and Hollywood picking up the most. Top of the list here. Tonight, millions remain under
a flood watch. Bill Cairns is standing by to time it out. But first, NBC's Marissa Para, starting
off our coverage. Neighborhoods in South Florida underwater. You need a ride? You sure?
to help stranded neighbors.
We have about six inches of water inside the house.
The aftermath of a deluge of record-breaking rain
slamming the sunshine state.
Now two deaths reported after a car lost control
on wet roads in Collier County.
This is how high the water was yesterday.
Exactly.
From Florida's west coast.
Because it's flooded everywhere.
To North Miami.
I got nowhere to go, so I'm like, I'm a loss for worry.
Miami Dade and four other counties
under a state of emergency.
as millions face flood risk across the state and we are working around the clock to protect
our residents and our businesses the storm system creating a swath of travel nightmares
hundreds of flights delayed or canceled overnight rising waters temporarily shutting down part of
i-95 street after street in south florida looks exactly like this one car stalled out in the middle
homes flooded leaving neighbors wondering what happens next abandoned vehicles littering roads and parking lots as
parts of southern Florida saw 10 to 20 inches of rainfall over two days, comparable to hurricane
totals. The ground now saturated and vulnerable. What are you going to do? What I'm going to
do? I haven't tried it. They stay here or go to the hotel. And even more rain in the forecast
for a waterlogged Florida. And Marissa Parra joins us now from North Miami. Marissa, I mean,
just looking behind you, it looks terrible. And it looks like you were in the middle of the river,
but I think that is a road. Tell us what you're seeing.
That is a road behind me, and you're about to see somebody try to drive down it, which we know, and we have said before, we do not recommend.
And I'm going to step out here.
If you can see through the fog of rain that is coming down, you can see that this is one of the many streets, as we showed in our piece just now, littered with abandoned cars.
And Ellison, we shot that and filmed what you saw in that story earlier this morning.
And that was before the rain started.
The rain is just picking up in the last few minutes.
And as we've talked about, normally seems like the one you see behind me.
This is normally, I'm standing in front of something like this after a hurricane.
This is simply just after two days of rain, but of course at historic levels.
Yeah, I mean, Marissa, remind our viewers why this region is so prone to flooding.
And that's a great question.
There's a couple of factors behind that.
You have, of course, underneath the foundation here, you have a very porous limestone foundation,
underneath the roads, every part of this.
But this is also a low-lying area.
It is completely flat here.
And then you have poor drainage systems
that already make this whole area in South Florida
very prone to flooding.
Now you see roads like this one behind me
already flooded.
We're looking at several feet in parts of the state.
This is several feet deep.
And now we're talking about more rain, Ellison.
This is creating, we just got an alert not that long ago,
warning people of what could be catastrophic
flash flooding. This is at a near zero tolerance when it comes to this ground saturated right now.
So potentially really dangerous situation for a lot of people here.
All right. Marissa Parra in North Miami, you and your team stay safe. Thank you. We appreciate your
reporting. And as Marissa mentioned, that rain continuing to soak southern Florida into this
weekend. So let's get right to NBC News meteorologist Bill Karens. Bill, talk to us about what you
are seeing. Is Florida going to see any relief anytime soon? One more hour to go in Miami and then that
thunderstorm is over with, then they have to wait until tomorrow afternoon. So if we can just get
through this next hour, I think things will start to dramatically improve as we head towards
the weekend. So we have about 7 million people under the flood watches, the maroon here.
These are flash flood warnings that's up for Miami to Fort Lauderdale. And you can see this rain.
It was really heavy when it was over Naples and Fort Myers earlier. And it's kind of weakened
as it's moved towards Miami. There's still a big batch of heavy rain down the Everglades heading
towards the Keys, but that should miss the Fort Lauderdale and Miami areas. So here's the
flash flood warnings until 8 o'clock. So we've got another hour to go on these. And let's take
a closer look at the radar. Let's zoom in here to the Miami area. And you can see, you know,
downtown Miami, it's pouring. We have only one or two lightning strikes with this. It's mostly just
probably a quick half inch to inch of rain. The water levels will rise. We will see some problems
in the next hour. Then after that, the water should begin to head out. And we only expect another
inch or two over the next couple days. And, you know, if you follow Florida in the summer,
that's more typical. So the water levels going up tonight and then they should go down.
Bill, I know you are also tracking dangerous heat, more dangerous heat that's on the horizon.
Talk to us about that. Who is expected to see those high temperatures?
This is going to be a big story going right through Father's Day weekend into all of next week with no end in sight.
So 108 in Phoenix. Of course, there's about an hour and a half outside of Phoenix.
We've had a brush fire that's been out of control and the high temperatures are really making it difficult for firefighters.
And then we're going to watch it spreading. So 91 in St. Louis on Saturday, 93, Oklahoma City, Topeka gets into it.
All of a sudden, Nashville's into the mid-90s, Mississippi's into the upper 90s, Tallahassee near about 100.
And then it all expands into the Ohio Valley, Cincinnati, 97 on Monday, Washington, D.C. 95 on Tuesday.
And Allison, I wouldn't be surprised if somewhere in New England hits 100 by the end of the next week.
All right, Bill Carins, thank you. We appreciate it.
Turning now to the other major headline we've been following.
Today, the Supreme Court striking down a bid by anti-abortion doctors to limit access
of the abortion pill, Mithopristone.
The decision comes as legislators on Capitol Hill battle it out over protections for in vitro
fertilization and other fertility treatments.
NBC's senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett has the details.
Tonight, the U.S. Supreme Court diving back into the battle over reproductive rights,
unanimously rejecting an effort to roll back access to.
to the most commonly used abortion pill in the country, a medication many doctors say they use
every day.
I was relieved because Mithopristone is such a commonly used and critical medication.
The fight over Miffipristone rose to a fever pitch more than a year ago when a group
of anti-abortion advocates and doctors filed suit, saying the FDA didn't do enough to evaluate
the drug's safety risks.
The Biden administration pointing out it was approved by the
FDA as safe and effective more than 20 years ago. The justice is today taking no position
on all that. Instead, finding the plaintiffs who don't prescribe or use Miffapristone don't have
the legal right or standing to sue. Justice Kavanaugh writing the plaintiffs want to make Miffa
Pristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain. But
the desire to make the drug less available for others does not establish standing. Lawyers for those
plaintiffs disappointed but not deterred.
We were hoping for a different ruling from the Supreme Court, and that means that we still
have work to do.
Had the High Court not stepped in, access to the pill would have been limited significantly.
A possibility brought into even sharper focus now that the justices have eliminated the
constitutional right to an abortion, and southern states have mostly banned the procedure,
prompting more women to turn to medication abortion they can receive in the mail.
If the court had restricted Miffipristone back to the early days of approval where you needed to go in person, that would have been a disaster.
This as Democrats try to leverage the current landscape ahead of the November election, forcing a vote today to protect in vitro fertilization.
Senator Tammy Duckworth had two children with the help of IVF.
My miscarriage more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.
Every woman deserves to be able to be caught, Mama, without being caught a criminal.
Just two Republicans voting in favor of the bill that would prohibit states from imposing
restrictions on IVF, after Alabama's highest court caused a nationwide uproar, concluding
frozen embryos have the same rights as children, causing IVF clinics to temporarily shut down
out of fear of lawsuits, many in the GOP saying they support IVF, but today saying a bill to
protect it is overkill.
state in the United States of America that prohibits a woman from growing her family through IVF.
And Laura Jarrett joins us now in studio. So, Laura, when we're talking about the dispute over
the abortion pill, that's not the only issue the Supreme Court is going to deal with as it relates
to reproductive rights. They have a major case still left to come here, having to do with an
arguable conflict between federal law, which says you have to provide life-saving care, even if that
care requires an abortion and states like Idaho that have near total bans on abortion.
So how do you reconcile those two? That's what we're waiting to see the high court do later this
month expected. Laura Jarrett, thank you. Heading overseas now, President Biden at the G7
summit in Italy signing a major agreement with Ukraine, but much of the attention focused on what
the president said about his son, Hunter's felony gun conviction. Senior White House correspondent Gabe Gutierrez
is traveling with the president.
Tonight, President Biden on the world stage
for the first time addressing his son's felony conviction on camera.
I'm extremely proud of my son, Hunter.
He has overcome an addiction.
He is one of the brightest, most decent men I know.
A jury found Hunter Biden guilty on all counts
for lying about his drug use on a background check to buy a gun.
The president had previously said he would not pardon his son,
but tonight he went further, ruling out a commutation,
which would reduce or erase a potential prison sentence without expunging his record.
Mr. President, do you plan on commuting your son's sentence?
Today, here in Italy, the president also meeting with G7 leaders trying to send a strong message to Russia's President Putin,
signing a 10-year security agreement, committing the U.S. to help train and equip Ukraine's military.
And we have signed the strongest agreement within Ukraine and the U.S. since our U.S. since our U.
independence. The G7 leaders today also agreeing to use interests from Russian assets to lend Ukraine
$50 billion as the U.S. expands sanctions against banks and countries such as China that do
business with Russia, though sanctions have so far done little to stop Putin.
You cannot divide us, and we'll be with Ukraine until they prevail in this war.
President Zelensky says China's President Xi told him by phone that he wouldn't sell weapons
to Russia, though President Biden is skeptical. China is not supplying weapons.
but the ability to produce those weapons and the technology available to do it.
So it is, in fact, helping Russia.
President Biden also weighing in on the war in Gaza,
blaming Hamas for the failure of ceasefire talk so far,
and saying he's not confident a deal will happen soon.
Whether it had not, it comes to fruition, remains to be seen.
We're going to continue to push.
I don't have a final answer for you.
And Gabe Gutierrez joins us now from southern Italy.
Gabe, are there limitations to this agreement?
Yes, Alison, there are. It's not a treaty. It wasn't ratified by Congress. So if President
Biden is not reelected, it could be scrapped by a future administration. Alison?
Gabe Gutierrez in Italy. Thank you. As Gabe mentioned there, President Joe Biden and G7
leaders reaching that deal today to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan backed by frozen Russian
assets. According to U.S. officials, the deal signals a commitment to beating back
Russia's invasion. But as the never-ending assaults continue, the close, the
question remains, is it enough to help Ukraine win the war? For more on this deal and the current
state of the war in Ukraine, I'm joined now by Ukrainian journalist Maria Yulia Novska. Maria, it is
wonderful to see you. You and I have worked together in the past. We are friends, and it's a pleasure
to have you here with your expertise on this issue. Let's just start with where things stand right
now. Ukraine has at times seemed to fall out of the news in the U.S. for people who maybe haven't been
paying attention.
What is the latest from Ukraine as it relates to Russia's continued assault on the country?
Hi, Alison.
Thank you for having me.
Indeed, Ukraine hasn't been much on the news in the United States recently, which
is unfortunate because nothing has changed in Ukraine in the terms of war and war crimes and
genocidal actions that Russia are doing in Ukraine.
And you've witnessed this together with me on the ground when we were covering this, the atrocities
of Buccia, of Kiev region, of Harkiv region, the de-occupation of the occupation of the occupation
her son, everywhere where Ukrainian forces were able to get to those occupied territories
and free them.
We see the same pattern.
We see genocide, with murder, we see rape, we see deportation of civilians, deportation
of children.
And it's all the same.
Recently, Ukrainian civilians have been suffering so much because of the constant bombings.
Every day in Ukraine, there is an air alarm, and Russia is sending numerous bombs and drones
to destroy not only the regions.
that where the active combat actions are happening, but also regions that are far away from
their combat zones.
Recently, for example, in Kiev, there was a huge drone and missile attack, which thankfully
for the air defense system was repelled and no one got hurt.
But after that, the next day, the Ukrainian officials found the cluster munitions in Kiev region,
which is so far from the front lines.
So that just indicates that Russia deliberately tries to destroy.
not only Ukrainian cities, but Ukrainian civilians as well.
You know, when we're talking about this deal, signed by President Biden and those
other Western countries that would provide more money for military aid, as well as money
for humanitarian support and reconstruction of the country.
But President Zelensky has also warned of late that the country needs a lot more for proper
air cover to try and stop the attacks on power infrastructure.
This is something that we see Russia do really almost annually at this point.
since this war has begun, especially in the winter months, trying to, in some ways,
make people so uncomfortable or make it so dangerous to just go to sleep that civilians will
be frustrated and say, okay, we're done with this war, right? And that's a military doctrine
that we know Russia has, that was made public well before this war. Do Ukrainian officials
believe that this latest deal is actually going to be enough to change what's happening
on the ground? Well, first of all, good luck to Russia trying to make Ukrainian people.
people surrender. Ukrainian people are fighting for their existence and not just for their
sovereignty and territorial integrity, because this war for Ukrainians is an existential war.
If Ukraine loses this war, Ukraine as a country and Ukrainians as a nation cease to exist.
So the situation with the electricity right now and the power is very, very bad.
So every day my friends in Ukraine experience the power outages, what that means for Ukrainian
civilians is that you cannot, you cannot even charge your phone for hours and hours when
this power outages come.
And Ukrainian authorities estimate that during winter months, if nothing changes, if this infrastructure
systems will not be repaired, there can be power outages for almost 20 hours every day.
So that means no water, no heat, no electricity, and that is a very dire humanitarian situation.
And this agreement between Ukraine and the United States, the key focus is really on the military
and defense capacities.
But what is very concerning for the Ukrainians right now is that most of the help that is arranged
through that agreement will have to be backed up by the finance and financial agreements
with Congress.
And we have seen the delay that Congress had for the six months, which came at a great cost
for Ukrainians.
And the more the delay was, the more death was occupying Ukraine.
You mentioned that delay. That is something that President Biden apologized to Ukrainian President
Vladimir Zelensky for he did that face-to-face. Do you think their relationship is strong right
now? Does it appear to be strong? Or is there still, I don't know if lack of trust is the right
word, but is there some hesitancy amongst people like President Zelensky and his cabinet to
fully trust the United States for support when they did experience such a significant delay in aid?
Well, Ukrainians are now very familiar with the politics in the United States, and they
understand how things work.
First of all, I would like to mention that in this agreement, Ukraine has stated that it's
very grateful for all the help that the United States have already provided and will be able
to provide in the future.
And Ukrainians are really grateful for all the help, because we know that without the
help of the United States, Ukraine could not stand for so long.
But in terms of the future and in terms of how this relationship go, it is really true that
Ukrainians need way more, and Ukrainians need help to win and not just help to be able to stand much longer.
So Ukraine needs long-range weapons.
Ukraine needs to – the United States have to lift the ban to shoot for Ukrainians in the Russian territory for the long-range missiles.
Because most of the air bases where Russian planes, military planes that carry those bombs, they are deep in Russia.
And if Ukraine does not destroy them, then it's more burden for the Ukrainian air defense system.
And if we're talking about the relationship between Biden and Zelensky, we know that the relationship is good, is solid.
We have seen this during this recent G7 meeting.
The president seemed to be very cheerful and grateful and friendly towards one another.
But we also understand that the election process in the United States is influencing how much Ukraine is in the focus right now.
So Ukraine will accept anything it can get from states.
Yeah.
All right, Maria Yulayanovska.
Thank you so much for your time and your insights and your reporting.
We really appreciate you, and it's so good to see you, my friend.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Staying overseas now in the growing conflict on Israel's northern border with Lebanon,
a series of airstrikes reigniting fears of a full-on war with Hezbollah.
Some Israeli troops even employing a type of catapult and sending flame, flaming projectiles over the border.
NBC's international correspondent Matt Bradley has this report from the region.
Northern Israel is burning.
As the lukewarm war between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel's military has grown hotter and hotter.
New video verified by NBC News shows soldiers shooting fire into Lebanon using a trebushet
and bow and arrow, they say, to clear shrubbery across the border.
This latest cross-border escalation began Tuesday when an Israeli airstrike killed a senior
Hezbollah commander.
Hezbollah responded with fury.
On our job, after the state of Abolab,
we'll see them from our own our lives of our chattah and baza.
On Wednesday and Thursday, the group fired hundreds of missiles and drones in northern
Israel thought to be the biggest barrage yet.
Both sides risking the kind of escalation that could set off a region-wide war.
Lebanon and Hezbollah, under the guidance of Iran,
both bear full responsibility to the deterioration of the security situation,
in the north.
While both Hamas and Hezbollah are backed by Iran, Hezbollah is far more powerful than
even Hamas.
I spent weeks in Lebanon since the crisis began in October when the fighting was just
heating up.
Another day, another funeral for Hezbollah.
The group is hemorrhaging men.
This war hasn't even begun.
Hezbollah's second in command told me in April the group is prepared to fight if Israel
escalates or if Israel increases its assault on the Gaza Strip.
How bad do things have to get in the Gaza Strip before Hezbollah throws itself into the war?
You'd ask me, if I can't take, as Hezbo-Lah, a war,
a warzaa, and a shamil, to the Kyan al-Israeli.
Our decision to not to take a war-wa-said Gaza.
But even with Hezbollah's military pressure to the north, the humanitarian situation in Gaza is getting worse.
The World Health Organization warned yesterday that many civilians in Gaza face catastrophic
hunger and famine-like conditions.
And children are bearing the brunt.
The organization said 8,000 of them have been diagnosed with acute malnutrition.
And babies born during this war have known nothing but suffering and starvation.
I have a hafidah, the mothered in the war, because there's a food, the food, and the
And Alison, American diplomats are still struggling to ink a deal between Hamas and Israel
that could bring a measure of peace and free those remaining hostages being held in the Gaza Strip.
Now, bringing peace to the Gaza Strip could also go a long way toward averting a full-on war
between Hezbollah and Israel on the northern border that risks enveloping the entire region.
Ellison.
Matt Bradley, in Jerusalem.
Thank you.
Still ahead tonight, the deadly hot tub incident at a Mexican resort.
Two American tourists electrocuted in a jacuzzi.
The gut-wrenching video as people scream for help and top story spoke to one man who witnessed it all.
Plus, the bombshell DOJ report exposing the Phoenix Police Department.
The findings pointing to years of excessive force and targeting minorities.
And a serious car crash involving Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman,
why police say Fetterman is responsible for the police.
The Collision. Stay with us.
We're back now with a tragic story out of Mexico.
Two American tourists electrocuted in a resort hot tub.
The husband pronounced dead and his wife taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The terrifying moments captured on cell phone video.
Our Valerie Castro has this story at a warning.
Some of the images are disturbing.
A hidden vacation danger in Mexico.
A Texas couple electrocuted in a jacuzzi as horrified resort guests looked on.
I heard the screams.
Stephen Kaminsky staying at the property next door in Porto Paniasco later learning what the commotion was about.
Authorities calling it an electrical failure.
Just horrific.
Because I watched the raw footage of somebody actually filming them doing CPR on demand.
And I remember those screens.
I did not sleep that night, to be honest with you.
That's such a shame.
You come on vacation and you lose your life.
That is a shame.
The Attorney General's Office for the State of Sonora,
where the private condo resort, the Sonoran Sea, is located,
now investigating the death of 42-year-old Jorge Guienne.
His wife, 35-year-old Lizette Zambrano,
hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
The State Prosecutor's Office telling our El Paso affiliate,
yet possible faulty wiring is being examined as the cause.
NBC News reached out to the resort but did not hear back.
People got electrocuted in a hot tub next door and all the authorities are there.
Kaminsky says his own resort briefly shut down access to its hot tub.
I'll never get in a hot tub down here again personally.
The couple's family and friends putting together a go-fund meet to bring Guillen's body home to El Paso
and help with Zambrano's hospital expenses, describing Guillen as having a heart of gold
and was always there for family and friends.
The love the couple shared was one for the ages.
And Valerie Castro joins us now.
Still so many questions about how this could happen,
but I do want to talk more about the victims here, this couple.
What more have you learned about them?
Well, Ellison, as we mentioned, they were from El Paso, Texas,
and our affiliate there has since learned that Guillen,
the man who was killed, he was a student at Western Technical College.
Ellison, he was supposed to graduate tomorrow Friday of this week.
his wife, who is still in the hospital, most recently worked as an elementary school teacher in the area.
Our thoughts are with their family and friends. Valerie Castro, thank you for that.
Now to new details in a car crash involving Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman.
Authorities say he was driving at a high rate of speed Sunday morning when he rear-ended another vehicle on the highway.
Fetterman only sustaining minor injuries, but police say he was at fault in the collision.
Chief investigative reporter Rick Earle from our Pittsburgh affiliate, WPXI, has the latest.
It happened here on Interstate 70 westbound just before the 68 split, not far from the Pennsylvania border.
A witness tells police Federman's vehicle passed her at a high rate of speed well over the posted limit.
Seconds later, the witness saw Federman's SUV slam into the rear of a car.
11 investigators traveled two and a half hour southeast of Pittsburgh, and we found Federman's crushed SUV at a garage in Hancock, Maryland.
The front end twisted and mangled metal.
shield shattered. Front airbags deployed. The tires bent out from the frame. The father of the garage owner described a violent collision based on the damage. He hit that car so hard to come clear up on top of the SUV. I mean, that shows that man hit that woman a heck of a lick.
Federman and his wife and the driver of the other vehicle, a 62-year-old woman from Pennsylvania, were all taken to nearby war memorial hospital with possible or suspected minor injuries. After being released from the hospital and making it home to Braddock,
Fetterman holding a bag of frozen food that he used to ice a sore shoulder and a bottle of Tylenol posted a video with his wife.
It was the worst anniversary.
Yeah, and not great for your wedding anniversary, but we're both great.
And thank you for all of you that you care.
Police say the crash happened just before 8 a.m.
And the road was dry and in good condition.
According to the police report, Fetterman was not tested for alcohol or substance use.
All three were wearing seatbelts.
It's just crushed completely.
Yeah.
Oh, my gosh. Yeah. What, um, thank God the woman seemed all right, but you don't know to a day later some of them accidents.
The 54-year-old Federman has had some well-documented health issues. Two years ago during the campaign, he suffered a stroke.
And last year, he went to the hospital after becoming lightheaded during a Democratic retreat.
Police say Federman was at fault in the crash. The speed limit is 70, but police haven't said how fast he was going.
The police report indicates it's unknown if Federman was distracted at the time.
No citations have been issued as of yet. But Maryland state police say it's an ongoing investigation.
In Hancock, Maryland, Rick Earle, Channel 11 News. Our thanks to Rick Earle. And we did just get this
statement from Senator Federman. He said, quote, this was an unfortunate accident on Sunday.
And I'm relieved and grateful that there were no serious injuries. I've been driving for almost
40 years. And I've gotten in a small handful of tickets. When I sped, I was held accountable.
I need to do better and do it slower, and I will.
When we come back, another shocking crash, this one involving a Virginia State Trooper.
The terrifying video as a trooper is struck while pulling over another driver, how she is doing,
and the driver now facing charges.
Back now with Top Stories news feed, starting with shocking new video showing the moment of Virginia State Trooper is
struck by a drunk driver. A warning, this video is hard to watch, but she is okay. You see
that trooper, attending to a stalled driver along a highway when a Jeep strikes that officer's
patrol car, causing it to hit the officer. She is recovering from her injuries. The driver of the
Jeep was later arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. And a new report
from the DOJ blasting Phoenix police for violating residents' constitutional rights. The three-year probe
finding officers used excessive force against people with disabilities, regularly discriminated
against minorities and those experiencing homelessness. It also found that the department retaliated
against people who criticized the police. Although Phoenix PD says they have made several changes
to address policing since the investigation began, the city says they will meet to address next
steps. And more than 160 whales spotted off the coast of Massachusetts, the national oceanic
and atmospheric administration posting the incredible images to their social media account.
So far, seven different species of whales have been spotted near Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard.
Five of them are considered vulnerable to endangerment or endangered, making these sightings
even more rare.
Turning now to power and politics, where former President Trump made his first return
to Capitol Hill since the January 6th attack.
The likely GOP nominee meeting with prominent members of the Republican Party, including
some potential picks for vice president. NBC's Capitol Hill correspondent Ali Vitale has the details.
It was a great meeting. Tonight, former President Trump back on Capitol Hill for the first time
since the January 6th attack by his supporters. We agree just about on everything and if there isn't,
we work it out. A congressional pep rally of sorts for the likely GOP nominee speaking to lawmakers
behind closed doors. There's tremendous unity in the Republican Party. We want to see
borders. We want to see strong military. We want to see just success for our country. And we don't
have success right now. Among the signs of Mr. Trump's success rallying his party, the attendance
of top Senate Republican Mitch McConnell, who hasn't spoken to the former president in four years.
He's sharply criticized Mr. Trump, calling him practically and morally responsible for what
happened on January 6th, but has since endorsed him. How is it seeing the former president?
We had a good meeting.
Also there, potential Trump VP pick, Senator Marco Rubio.
What did I say that even Mahonal was in the room with men?
Yeah, we're Republicans.
I mean, today we want to win elections.
All the awkwardness is going.
I mean, we're in politics.
Ultimately, we work against all the time we don't agree with on something.
Alison, not every Republican was there today.
Three GOP senators skipped the meeting with Trump, citing scheduling conflicts.
Back to you.
Allie Vitale on Capitol Hill, thank you.
Thank you. Now, to an NBC news investigation into West Virginia's foster care system.
The number of children in the system has ballooned nearly 60 percent in the last 10 years.
The state now facing a class action lawsuit accusing it of failing to protect the more than 6,000 children in its care.
NBC's Stephanie Gossk speaks to one woman who spent years in the system. Here's her report.
With a steady job, apartment, and boyfriend, 20-year-old Naomi Bennett is one of the lucky ones.
But that doesn't mean it's easy.
I have a lot of nightmares, night terrors or something.
Are you battling depression right now?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Naomi entered the West Virginia foster care system when she was roughly 12 years old.
For the next four years, she was shuttled between more than a dozen different facilities.
It was definitely draining.
Each place I went, I would stop talking to people because it hurt to get close to the staff or the kids.
the kids.
Because Naomi felt unsupported in the system, she says, she acted out, destroying property
and running away, a few times ending up in juvenile detention.
The first time I met Naomi, it was her birthday and she was in shackles.
I'll never forget that.
I'll never forget that.
Shackles?
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Hello.
Lane Deal is Naomi's state-appointed attorney.
She's represented dozens of foster care children.
There have been instances where the department has not been able to find a placement for a child,
and they have been reported to have to place the child in a hotel.
West Virginia's foster care system is maxed out, largely because of the state's intractable opioid epidemic.
It has the nation's highest rate of children in foster care, but not enough foster care families or caseworkers.
The foster care system is really on a cliff.
Mike Folio worked as Assistant General Counsel for the State's Department of Health and Human Resources.
He's now a government watchdog.
You may have a CPS worker handling 100 or so cases.
It's humanly impossible for anyone to handle that many cases.
According to a class action lawsuit filed in federal court by a nonprofit and folios organization,
children in West Virginia have been abused and neglected, put in inadequate and dangerous
placements.
Like Naomi, who ended up in out-of-state facilities, including Foundations for Living in Mansfield, Ohio.
They had cameras there, but in the staircase, they didn't.
So sometimes if it's just a kid and a staff, sometimes if the staff didn't like them, then they would just start hitting them.
Like, they would fight.
In the stairwell where there were no cameras.
Yeah.
An NBC News investigation obtained records of incidents provided by foundations for living to the state of Ohio, revealing reports of multiple cases of abuse and neglect, five assaults by non-staff, and seven cases of inappropriate seclusion or restraint.
of children that were substantiated by the facility or the government.
West Virginia no longer sends foster children to this facility, and its CEO says that while
she can't comment on individual patients, they are committed to providing high-quality care.
But West Virginia still has to rely on other out-of-state institutions.
And when the foster care system is maxed out, who suffers as a result of it?
The children and the families.
Everybody, really.
Governor Jim Justice has acknowledged there are challenges.
There are still tons of work to do.
Tons and tons and tons of work to do.
There have been some leadership changes, and the agency has been reorganized.
But Folio says it's not enough.
Do you have a system in chaos and kids who live in trauma?
I don't have this utopian view that we can wave a magic wand and fix it.
It's going to take decades to do it.
But you can't keep kicking the can down the road.
The state says folio is a disgruntled former employee, denies the allegations in the class action lawsuit, and has sought to get it dismissed.
But Naomi says she's left to pick up the pieces.
My hope is for myself to never give up, to pursue my dreams, and don't let my anxiety hold me back.
Who do you hope is listening to you right now?
Anyone that can do anything about it?
Anyone.
Anyhow.
And Stephanie Gosk joins us now in studio.
Stephanie, this is such important reporting. Talk to us a little more about this class action
lawsuit and what the goal is there. Yeah, sure. So the plaintiffs of this lawsuit, they want
judicial oversight of the foster care system in West Virginia. They say that the state, because
they've done such a bad job, no longer has the right to do that. Now, the state is fighting it.
Normally, a class action lawsuit like this would get settled out of court, but this is headed
to federal court probably in November. They have not been able to agree on a settlement
because it has been so contentious.
Stephanie Gossk, thank you so much.
We appreciate it.
Coming up next, El Salvador's crackdown on gang,
striking images showing 2,000 suspected gang members
transferred into a mega prison.
The move, part of the president's effort
to curb gang violence,
but watchdog's warning,
it's coming at the expense of their human rights.
We'll break down what's happening there.
Next.
Now to talk about,
Top Story's Global Watch, starting with the massive protests in Argentina over President Javier
Mele's economic reforms.
Video shows riot police firing water cannons and tear gas at protesters in Buenos Aires after they set
a car on fire and threw objects at officers.
The chaos breaking out as Argentina's Senate narrowly approved the president's reforms, which
include cutting pensions.
At least 11 people were hurt, including five lawmakers.
In southern Chile, heavy rains bringing dangerous flooding and landslux.
video capturing the moment one house fell from the top of a hillside as the ground gave way,
other homes submerged in water, authorities ordering people in multiple southern regions
to take precaution or evacuate as heavy rain and winds continue.
Authorities say more than 1,200 homes have been damaged so far.
And an alarming new UN report says a record 120 million people worldwide forcibly displaced in
23. That's an uptick of nearly 9 million people since just last year. The UN's refugee agency
says the annual increases are fueled by multiple conflicts and wars, including what's happening
in Sudan and in Gaza. However, Syria remains the largest displacement crisis worldwide,
with nearly 14 million people forced to flee their homes. Turning now to the America's,
El Salvador's president showing no signs of slowing down his crackdown on gangs as he begins
his second term in office. The government releasing clips and photos of a massive operation
that put thousands of suspected criminals behind bars in the country's mega prison. NBC News
correspondent Guadvenegas has more.
A second term for Nayi Bukele to double down on his controversial crusade against gang violence
in El Salvador. Just days after being sworn in for a second time, Bukele releasing images
of the massive transfer of more than 2,000.
suspected gang members into one of Latin America's largest prisons.
Prisoners inside the mega prison named the Terrorism Confinement Center,
wearing only a pair of white shorts as they move barefoot.
The government saying they will pay for their crimes committed in isolation
and without the possibility of family visitation.
It was long overdue for El Salvador to have a security policy
that was effective in countering the gangs,
but by doing so, you must not ask.
ask people to choose between their human rights and security.
The inmates coming from three detention centers where overcrowding has been an issue.
This facility built to hold 40,000 prisoners in large cells,
offering no comfort or programs to prepare prisoners for life after their sentences.
Bukele's iron fist rule, bolstering his popularity across a nation that was once considered
among the most dangers in the world.
Earlier this week, authorities setting fire to $67 million worth of cocaine that was seized
in May.
And just hours ago, the country's Minister of Public Safety sharing photos of arrested alleged
gang members still being hunted down by police, moves like these instilling a sense of safety
among the general public.
However, however, people go to the schools
without their parents,
come in secure,
with the security
that are going to
go to their houses
and not going to be
sequestered by the bandillers.
However, human rights groups say
civil liberties have been violated
as a consequence,
including thousands
that have been unjustly
detained without due process.
The people that we see
in these photos,
we see them, you know,
tattooed and everything,
but we're also talking
about innocent
lives that, you know, have been imprisoned without any reason.
Their families are really struggling and suffering.
Last September at the United Nations,
Buchele is standing behind his actions,
saying the decisions he took were correct
and that if he listened to critics,
El Salvador would go back to being the murder capital of the world.
Guadvenegas, NBC News.
When we come back, a headline that caught our eye from outer space.
A group of researchers say they've identified several stars that could be surrounded by some
kind of alien megastructures.
A physics and astronomy expert joins top story next to break down what this study means
and if it could really suggest there is life beyond Earth.
Back now with an exciting new study that could point to a potential alien life
in outer space. So a group of researchers say they've identified at least seven stars
that might be surrounded by super advanced alien megastructures known as Dyson spheres. Yes, I said
alien structures and I know what you're thinking, but just stay with me here because the basic
idea was this. Superior intelligent life might build big structures around their home stars
or planets as a way to harness or reuse that energy. A 1960s physicist who came up with this idea,
Freeman Dyson argued that if these structures existed, there'd be so much energy that human
scientists on Earth could probably spot it because it would emit a lot of infrared radiation.
So in this new study, researchers say they found seven sources glowing in the infrared.
Those are their words, but couldn't find an obvious explanation for why these sources are
glowing so much, which could mean they're Dyson spheres or something else entirely.
And what I'm saying is, what? Space is so crazy. I wish I understood it better.
so let's talk to a scientist to help wrap our heads around this.
I'm joined now by Professor Janelle Levin.
She is an astrophysicist and author of the book Black Hole Survival Guide,
as well as the Clare Toe Professor of Physics and Astronomy
at Bernard College of Columbia University.
Professor, first of all, thank you so much for being here.
Thanks for having me.
I tried to explain it a little bit.
That was my very dirty version.
I was going to be like, yeah, but I'm an English major who just had Google.
You have a Ph.D. in physics from MIT.
So how do you explain?
Dyson spheres.
I think there was an excellent explanation.
If you look at where we are relative to the sun, we're very far away.
We're the third planet in.
And imagine the light that we try to collect, let's say, with solar panels on people's homes
or on any roofs to collect that energy.
Imagine if you got really close and you caught everything the sun was emitting.
It's just a tremendous amount of power.
And so Freeman Dyson was thinking about this.
Actually, he was originally inspired by sci-fi, written by Olaf Stapleton, like decades
earlier. And his idea wasn't so much a solid sphere. It was really like satellites in orbit,
a network of things that would be orbiting and would essentially what we would now say have solar
panels and are collecting that energy. So what do you make of this study, just generally speaking,
I guess. Do you think it's possible that these are the elusive Dyson sphere? So I think it's very
unlikely, but I'm open. We have to be open as scientist. If we think we know the answer before
we go and observe, then we're already defeated. I think it's a terrible.
But it's extremely exciting and interesting to think about.
And it's fun to think about what's probably going to happen is we're going to look
at this infrared signature that you mentioned and we're going to find out that there's
a natural cause.
So a lot of things emit heat in the infrared.
You know, infrared goggles allow us to see human bodies and the heat of human bodies.
And it's not that dissimilar that when we look in the infrared, we see things emitting
heat.
So the idea was if we had this very technologically advanced civilization, like thousands of years,
beyond where we are right now. And they could build such a thing and it was collecting all this
energy. It would collect also some heat and would have to cool off and we would see that in the
infrared. But there are other natural possibilities that could explain. What do you think
those possibly could be? Well, it could be a very young star that still has some material around it
in kind of a disk. And that's how planets form. Planets coalesce out of these early disks.
And those can emit in the infrared. It could be that there's actually an entire galaxy.
in the distance behind the star,
and we're seeing that galaxy,
and we can't disambiguate those.
Or it could be planetary collisions.
I mean, there are natural explanations.
But I think it's worth noting,
we're looking just a thousand light years around us.
That sounds far, but it's actually really close.
That's our backyard.
The entire Milky Way galaxy is 100,000 light years across,
and there are probably more planets
in the Milky Way galaxy, then there are stars.
So we're talking of hundreds of billions,
and maybe trillions of planets out there.
And I think we're in an era
where we think the emergence of life
is possibly inevitable elsewhere,
that we're not the only example.
Now, whether or not they've survived
with thousands of years of industrial advancement
to build a Dyson's here is a different story.
Yeah.
Do you think there is a scenario
where a Dyson sphere might actually exist,
or do you think this is really just the stuff
of sci-fi?
fantasy? I think it's feasible, unlikely. If you look at where we are since the
Industrial Revolution, it's only a couple hundred years, we're in a precarious
position. We have climate change. We have struggles with nuclear power or nuclear
weapons that could be destructive. It's unclear that any species that makes it
that advanced could survive far enough into their own future to be able to build a
Dyson sphere. But there are optimists out there who say we'll find a way.
Yeah, right. The universe is a pretty big place, right? And it'd be a shame if it was just
seems like a lot of waste of space. All right, Professor, thank you so much for being here.
Thank you so much for having me. And thank you at home for watching Top Story.
And I'll listen, Barbara, in for Tom Yamis in New York. Stay right there. More News Now is on the
way.
Thank you.