Top Story with Tom Llamas - Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Episode Date: April 12, 2023

Louisville police body camera video captured tense encounter between police and gunman, Manhattan DA sues Rep. Jim Jordan to block GOP inquiry into Trump case, Florida healthcare workers charged after they allegedly livestreamed themselves abusing a dementia patient, the powerful new AI that could vastly improve early detection of lung cancer, and the corporate chains now getting in on the ghost kitchen boom.

Tonight, officers ambushed the new video released of that bank shooting in Louisville. Body cam footage shows officers under a hail of gunfire from an AR-15 as they arrived at that bank just minutes after the shooting began. Both officers shot, one managing to get up and take cover, continuing to fire at the suspect after his partner was hit. Plus, what were learning about the five victims, including one woman who was recruited to that bank just three weeks before. And the mayor of Louisville, who is a shooting survivor himself, joins Top Story tonight. He tells me the AR-15 used in the shooting, believe it or not, could now be auctioned off. Also, all eyes on President Biden. After telling our Al Roker, he plans to run for re-election,

the president announcing Chicago will host the 2024 Democratic National Convention. And hours later, Republicans revealing their National Convention will be held in Milwaukee, why both parties are putting their focus on the Midwest and what it could mean for the president. Plus, the district attorney of Manhattan suing Republicans. Alvin Bragg, who indicted former President Trump now filing a lawsuit against House committee chair Jim Jordan, while he's calling a congressional subpoena into the Trump case of, quote, brazen and an unconstitutional attack. Nursing home horror two workers accused of abusing a dementia patient and live streaming on social media. the charges they're now facing and how that facility is responding.

AI detecting cancer, the new artificial intelligence technology researchers say can predict if a patient will develop lung cancer, and they say it has a 94% success rate. So could this be the future of life-saving cancer treatment? And delivery deception, customers ordering online from trendy new restaurants, but it turns out the food is actually just coming from popular chain restaurants. So what's behind this and what happened when we put it to the test? Top story. It starts right now.

And good evening. We begin with the shocking new video coming out of Louisville tonight after a gunman opened fire inside of a bank killing five people. Body cam footage just released shows two officers arriving at the scene. One armed with only a handgun but met with a hail of gun fire against an AR-15. At one point, both officers hit one able to get up and run and take cover, the other who was just sworn into the department still fighting for his life. A bystander also capturing the shootout, police saying the 25-year-old suspect and employee of the bank bought the gun just days before the attack

and was set up to ambush responding officers after killing at least five people inside. We're also learning more about the victims who were parents, daughters, sons, and friends. one had just started a job at that bank. One of the victims, also a friend of the mayor of Louisville. That mayor will join Top Story tonight with more on the heroic actions of those brave officers and what he's up against as someone who's on the front lines of the gun debate.

But we want to start with Maggie Vespah, who's on the ground for us tonight. Echoes of gunfire as officers speed up to the scene. Tonight, a firsthand look at police say seven minutes of horror. playing out inside a Kentucky bank. Police body camera and cell phone video showing Louisville Metro officers view Monday morning as they race to confront a lone gunman, one taking gunfire as windows shatter, falling, then jumping right back up.

Minutes later, killing the shooter. I think he's down! What was it like to watch that body camera video? It really shakes the core. It shakes the core to know that life was being lost. The creators say Connor Sturgeon, seen here on surveillance cameras, was armed with an AR-15 rifle, which he bought legally from a local dealership six days before the massacre. Adding the 25-year-old was a current employee at Old National Bank and knew the colleagues he targeted.

Overnight officials confirming a fifth victim died, 57-year-old Deanna Eckert. Meanwhile, dispatch audio indicating the shooter may have tried to warn a friend before the attack. On the shooter, 25-year-old white male, Connor Sturgeon, 6'4, he's texted a friend, called a friend, left out of voicemail. He's going to kill everyone at the bank, stealing suicidal. We know he left a note. We know he texted or called at least one person to let them know he was suicidal and contemplating harm. Neighbors of Sturgeon's home, which investigators searched yesterday, shocked by the news. Can't say nothing really bad about the guy.

Very quiet, quiet, soft-spoken, high-bye. I just don't understand. Doctors also struggling. There's only so many times you can walk into a room and tell someone they're not coming home tomorrow. And it just breaks your heart. When you hear someone screaming mommy or daddy, it just becomes too hard. Tonight, three remain hospitalized, including Officer Nicholas Wilp, still in critical condition. The chief, adding Wilt, was on his fourth shift, less than two weeks out of the academy.

His twin brother just started. Also wounded with minor injuries, Officer Corey Galloway, who investigators say killed the shooter. I can't hear her voice anymore. I can't touch her. I can't tell her how much I love her. The details do nothing to numb Monessa Bard's pain. Her 45-year-old daughter, Juliana Farmer, among the day. amid a successful career in banking, she was just recruited back to Louisville and Old National Bank three weeks ago.

How do you make sense of that? She just got back there. There is no sense to be had. I just feel like that man stole her from us. I don't understand his reasoning. I don't understand why she's gone. Maggie Vespa joins us now from Louisville, Kentucky. Maggie, it feels like every week we are hearing from the family members of these mass shooting victims. It is all so sad. I do want to talk about some of the news today, which was that video, and we know that officials are applauding the heroism of those two officers that we saw

that immediately ran inside, and they didn't stop even after the shooter was down. Right, exactly, Tommy. I mean, we saw the two officers who confronted the shooter, and we talked about that in the piece, but on top of that, police officials telling us today that, you know, sort of the last thing anyone needed here after all of the chaos was that local EMS agencies here yesterday were actually short-staffed. So they say a police lieutenant, a Louisville police lieutenant improvised, jumping in the front seat of an ambulance and driving that ambulance to the hospital, allowing EMS workers in the back

to keep caring for wounded patients. It is also incredible. You know, we are still monitoring a lot of the victims because they, They are literally fighting for their lives. And earlier today, we got the coroner's report where we understood just how violent and how horrific the shooting was. Yeah, and it's really poignant because, Tom, as you know, the police department, we should mention, edited out the most gruesome, the most graphic parts of the body camera video that we saw. They even blurred the bodies that were visible in that video. But in the corridor's report, it says every single person who was killed in this shooting had multiple gunshot wounds.

And then on top of that, the hospital official you saw at that press conference, the doctor said they used, he said, 170 units of blood treating the patients from this shooting. He said that is an extreme amount of blood and just shows the carnage they were dealing with in the wake of this America's latest mass shooting. Maggie Vesp, leading us off tonight here on Top Story for more on this horrific shooting. And the city of Louisville's response, we're joined now by Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg. Mayor, thank you so much for joining us. You know, your office and the city of Louisville releasing that body camp footage, if I can get your initial thoughts of what you saw when those heroes moved into take out the shooter. Well, first of all, I'm thankful for the bravery and the heroism that the officers showed. Officer Wilt and Officer Galloway, as you can see, they had to go elevate their position to approach the shooter.

They took gunfire. Officer Wilt was hit. And Officer Galloway continued. to protect and to ultimately deal with the situation. And I just really want to thank them and everyone on LMPD for their service yesterday and every day. So that certainly is one thought. And the other is just how heartbreaking this incident is when you see that, when you see the number of victims that there are five yesterday,

another individual killed by gun violence in Louisville. But individuals are killed by gun violence every day in our city or an other cities across the country, and it's simply too much. Mayor, you know, on that thought was... Yeah, on that point, though, I'm sorry to interrupt you. When you look at that body cam video, one of the things that stood out to me is that Officer Wilt, the officer who unfortunately took a bullet to the head, comes out with a handgun, and he's facing off against a shooter who has an AR-15.

What did that make you think when you saw that? Oh, it's infuriating. that if you care about our police officers, it's time for action. Here we have officers that are outgunned by assailants. It's time for action. And so we've got to do a lot. Here in Kentucky is what I'm going to be fighting for in the halls of Washington, anywhere at the federal or our state level,

to give us the local autonomy we in Louisville want to deal with our gun violence epidemic way, in the way that the people of Louisville want. Right now, we can't do that. Our Kentucky laws would make me a criminal if I sought to implement as mayor more initiatives to reduce the amount of gun violence to crack down on illegal guns.

I would be the criminal. That's insane. Mayor, it's time for serious action. Talk to us about something you brought up at one of your news conferences so our viewers can understand this. You were saying that by Kentucky law, The AR-15 used by the shooter to slaughter all those innocent people at the bank and to hurt and injure police officers is going to be auctioned off?

You are correct. It is that crazy, our current state law. Under Kentucky state law, guns that are confiscated are ultimately required to be turned over to the state who in turn auctions those guns off. and far too often they end up back on the streets. We have evidence that guns used to commit crimes end up back on the streets to commit more crimes. So yes, this AR rifle that was used to murder five people yesterday and shoot at officers will indeed one day be back on the streets of Kentucky or some other state if we don't take action.

Besides this mass shooting that just happened this week, you yourself have experienced gun violence firsthand. In February of 2022, a man stormed your campaign headquarters and fired a weapon point-blank at you. I have to ask you, since you are now on the front lines of this debate, whether you want it or not, and you're in a red state, what are your thoughts, right? People want to keep their guns. They want to protect themselves. But at the same time, police departments, mayor offices, politicians, everyday people are coming under assault. What's the right answer? What is the solution here? Well, I think most people want common sense reforms.

They want us to be able to crack down on illegal guns. They want us to, they don't want guns that have used to commit crimes to end up back on the streets again to commit more crimes. So that might just be a starting place. That might just be one small step forward, but we have to start somewhere. We have to start doing something. I've now, as you mentioned, I was a victim. of a workplace shooting. I'm fortunate.

I survived physically unharmed. I lost a very close friend yesterday and yesterday's shooting. Four other individuals also lost their lives. Individuals, whether it's a mass shooting or an individual suiting, there is simply far too much gun violence, and so we have got to do something. Mayor, I do want to ask you about that. Louisville, you are the mayor.

You have the benefit of being the mayor of a wonderful city in America. It's not a very large city, but it's a wonderful city with a lot of great history. And a lot of people know everyone in Louisville. And we've seen those connections with the governor, and even you yourself, you just mentioned your friends, close friends with one of the victims, Tommy Elliott. How is his family doing tonight? And how has that news affected you that you knew somebody so personally that had been affected in this shooting? Oh, it added an extra dimension. I mean, the second I knew that it was an active shooter situation when I got the alert and when I saw the address,

I know a lot of people who work in that building. So I'm fortunate that more friends and associates were not killed. But whether it's me grieving and mourning with Tommy and his family or the other four families, it is a tragic situation. I plan to, I'm leaving this interview right here. to go continue to pay my respects to Tommy's widow, Mary Ann, who is also a close friend of my wife, Rachel, and mine. And it's just heartbreaking for the Elliott family and all of the families that lost the loved one yesterday, and to everyone who loses loved ones far too often

in Louisville and in America to gun violence. Mayor, I am so sorry for your loss and for what you're dealing with in your city tonight. We appreciate your time, and we appreciate how you are making a point to go out there and to speak with reporters to get your message across. Thanks again for joining Top Story tonight. Thank you very much. All right, we want to turn to another major headline we've been following. U.S. officials scrambling

to control the damage after dozens of classified documents were leaked online. The leak revealing Ukrainian agents conducted drone strikes against targets in Russia and Belarus appearing to violate promises made to allies. NBC News, Chief Foreign Affairs correspondent, Andrew Mitchell, has the latest.

Tonight, those leaked documents causing tough conversations between Washington and U.S. allies. On Ukraine, a U.S. intelligence assessment that Ukraine's military will fall well short of retaking most of the territory its loss to Russia, according to a document obtained by the Washington Post. And a document seen by NBC News revealing Ukrainian agents launched drone attacks against targets in Russia and its ally Belarus, including just outside Moscow. Despite promising the U.S., it would not strike Russia. Secretary of State Blinken spoke with Ukraine's foreign minister today. Are you concerned about cross-border attacks?

Ukraine has to make decisions about how it can most effectively defend itself against Russian aggression. Another leaked document says Egypt's President L.C. recently ordered 40,000 rockets to be produced for Russia. According to the Washington Post, Egypt denies it. Since Camp David in 1978, Egypt has received. more than $50 billion in military aid and $30 billion in economic aid from the U.S. More than any other country in the Middle East except Israel. How could intelligence officials not know sooner about the leaks? Sir, why didn't you know about it before April 6th?

That means that they were up for at least many weeks, if not months, before U.S. intelligence knew that they were in the public domain. There were somewhere in the web and where exactly and who had. had access at that point. We don't know. NBC News, Chief Foreign Affairs correspondent, Andrea Mitchell joins us now. You know, Andrea, we saw there the DOD secretary saying they're going to turn over every stone to try to find this leak. But what are they doing to prevent future leaks?

Well, the Pentagon is now in damage control, Tom, limiting the number of people who can see such highly classified documents. But they still don't know how much more is out there. So it's really playing mock-a-mole. All right, Andrew Mitchell for us, Andrew, we really do appreciate it. We want to turn now to Capitol Hill and some major developments that have happened there in our nation's capital. I want to start and get right over to Garrett Hake, who's been leading our coverage on a big story that's happened. DA Alvin Bragg, apparently suing the Republicans. You'll remember he just indicted former President Trump.

Garrett, pick it up from there for us. Tom, Bragg's sued is asking for a federal judge to block a subpoena to one of his former prosecutors who's expected to otherwise have to testify as early as next week. the House Judiciary Committee and to prevent him from having to be subpoenaed himself potentially in the future. Bragg argues that House Republicans are basically way out of their lane here, that their efforts to interfere in his investigation is purely political. They don't have a legislative purpose. And by calling in anyone under subpoena who's even associated with these investigations, they'd be violating grand jury secrecy rules. So he's going before this judge,

who does happen to be a Trump appointee in a hearing that's scheduled for next week to argue that these has been thrown out and essentially kicked Jim Jordan and company back to square one. Now, Jordan posted a tweet late tonight, basically saying, you know, first they go after a president for no crimes, then they try to avoid congressional oversight. We'll find out in middle of next week where this lands, but that's not even the next sort of phase of this battle between the two men. Tom, next week, Jordan's holding a field hearing of the Judiciary Committee in New York City, wanting to focus on New York crime. The Judiciary Committee does in particular. care about local New York crime, but they're trying to kind of stick it to Bragg and argue

that his prosecution of Donald Trump is political. It's a back and forth here that has known no end in terms of legal letter writing, Tom. And now it's going to court with Bragg trying to protect the integrity of his criminal case. All right, Gary, just real quick, before you go, any other reaction out of Trump world? I know you mentioned what Representative Jordan had to say, but we know that DA Alvin Bragg was getting anonymous threats throughout the entire, you know, time he was trying to indict the former president. Yeah, Bragg's lawsuit even mentions that he got something like a thousand threats in the period after Trump said he thought he'd be arrested up until

arraignment week. Look, Mr. Trump has cloaked himself with the support of Republican House lawmakers, really since the jump, and that's not going to change now. Now, Congress is out this week, so there hasn't been kind of the same flood into the space that we sometimes see when there's a big development in a Trump investigative story. But I expect, next week with this House field hearing in New York City and now a hearing in the Southern District of New York. We will continue to see House Republicans in particular try to rally around Donald Trump and use this to boost his candidacy and their own. Garrett, we thank you for your reporting. As usual, we want to turn out of Florida's tough

new immigration legislation that soon could be the toughest law of its kind in the country. The bill, as written, would make it a felony to shelter, transport, and even higher undocumented immigrants and has prompted backlash from religious groups who say it goes too far. Here to help us break it down is Guad Vanegas, who joins us live tonight from our studios in Miami. So while the DeSantis administration is framing this legislation, right, in opposition to what they call the Biden open border policies, that's their terminology. What are the key takeaways and will it pass in the Florida legislature? Tom, there are so many pieces to this bill.

It is difficult to get into all of them. But one of the things that's being talked about a lot is the fact that, Transporting, as you mentioned, an undocumented immigrant or having them in your home would be a felony. So think of family members or friends of undocumented individuals. Would that be breaking the law by having them in their car or allowing them to stay in their home? It's even a worse felony if the individual who's undocumented is a minor. That would be a second degree felony. And then, of course, there's a part where employers in Florida would have to check the legal status of their employees using an e-verifying system.

Imagine how difficult this would be for the agricultural industry, the service industry. And there's other parts of the law that are also very controversial, such as local authorities now being able to collaborate with federal authorities. So essentially, if a police officer, if a sheriff, an officer from the sheriff's department or any local authority that attains an individual, they would then be allowed to call immigration on those individuals. These are some of the points that would make this law very different and very different. strict for immigrants. Ron DeSantis says that this is being done to crack down on human smugglers, but it's also going to affect, as I mentioned, friends and family members of those that are undocumented. And then you ask, what are the chances of this being approved? Well, Tom, Rod DeSantis has a majority in the state legislature. In fact, there is so much support

for everything that he tries to push that this particular bill in the Senate, it was in the Senate Rules Committee, and it was approved by the members of that committee to then go to the Florida, and we expect it to be approved. Now, the members are already approved that in that committee, two, where Latina state senators that represent predominantly Latino areas with immigrants here in Florida. So that is the type of support that Ron DeSantis has from state legislators, Tom. So, Guad, you know, we saw a wave of migrants landing in Florida by boat early this year. We've covered this numerous times, especially what's happened down in South Florida. And South Florida does have a history of always sort of being a haven for people seeking to immigrate,

but also fleeing political persecution. What would happen to new arrivals? I mean, when would this law go into effect? Well, Tom, the law would go into effect when it gets approved in the state and then, of course, the governor would have to sign it. But this is what would happen. Essentially, anybody that arrives on a boat,

I guess there's two different types of situations. One is an individual that arrives illegally on a boat and makes his or her way into the state of Florida and finds help from any individuals without turning themselves into authorities, right? so somebody could get off a boat, and then someone would give them water, put them in the car, and take them over to some relatives. Those individuals helping them, by the way, would be breaking the law,

and they would be affected by these changes. But then, Tom, there's other groups of individuals that arrive on boats and then turn themselves into federal authorities. Those are individuals that have been processed by CVP, and they either get sent back to their countries of origin, a great number of them going back to Haiti and also Cuba, but others are released in the U.S., and it's very important to point out that under federal law,

The individuals that are being released in the U.S. are legally here because they are going through an asylum process, Tom. All right, Guad Venegas, very comprehensive report for us tonight explaining and breaking down this bill, Guad. We do appreciate it. Next time we turn to politics. President Biden has arrived in Northern Ireland to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. That ended violence in Northern Ireland. But he's also making headlines in the U.S. after saying he plans to run for re-election, and as both the Democratic and Republican parties announced where they will hold their national convention,

I want to bring in Democratic strategist and former Obama campaign advisor Tamika Isaac Devine and MSNBC political contributor and editor and CEO of the Dispatch and NBC News political analyst Steve Hayes. Thank you both for joining us. Tamika, I'm going to start with you. Chicago doesn't really have a great history with Democratic conventions. So talk to me about why it's going to happen in Chicago in 2024. Well, thank you so much, Tom, for having me.

And I'm excited about Chicago. I mean, I think Chicago is a place that people remember the excitement of the first election of Barack Obama in 2008. It's the home of Barack and Michelle Obama. And I think if you can energize a place thinking about where it started with Barack and Michelle, I think that's going to energize the Democratic Party. But Tamika, I'm sorry to interrupt you. You know, this President Obama is not running. It's President Joe Biden. He's running for re-election.

And I'm just curious because you have Illinois, Blue State. You have a very Democratic city. I'm just wondering what the, what's the play there in Chicago? Well, I think Chicago's electric. I mean, and yes, the obamas are not running, but Joe Biden is, and Joe Biden can energize this party and really get to reelection. So I think Chicago is an electric city. It's, of course, a Democratic city, great governor over there. So I think people are looking at getting us back to where we need to be.

Steve, I know it's very early, but let's talk about Milwaukee, obviously, a strategic play for, Republicans. Wisconsin's a big battleground state. They'll have a big convention there. Who knows? I'm just counting the days until they'll say there'll be a contested convention. You can bet that that's going to happen for sure that they're going to start talking about a contested convention. Who knows what will happen. But Republicans, Troy and I guess game strategy out there in the Midwest. Yeah, well, look, as a native of Milwaukee, we look at Chicago fondly as one of our nicest suburbs. So we're happy to spend time in, both Chicago and Milwaukee as we cover these conventions next summer.

Look, I mean, Milwaukee's a very pleasant place to be in the summer. I think if they were a contested convention, and people ended up having to be there for a long time, it would be good for Milwaukee, and it'd be good for the people who are there. I think Republicans have a difficult time here. If you look at the internal Republican primary dynamics, there's one obvious, naughty problem. Donald Trump has the support of, let's say, 25, 30% of the Republican base

thinks he can do no wrong, will vote for him no matter what, And it could be enough to get him the Republican nomination. But there's a much bigger group in the Republican primary who are not as active, who would like to have somebody else, not Donald Trump necessarily, or at least aren't as loyal to Donald Trump. Once, if Donald Trump wins the Republican nomination, there are Republicans who have left the party because of Donald Trump. There are independent voters who, by account of three to one, don't want to support Donald Trump. And I think you're likely to see Joe Biden, who should be a vulnerable incumbent, I think. have a relatively easy path to a re-election if Donald Trump is the Republican nominee. Tamika, on that point, who do Democrats want to run against?

Who would you like to see run against President Biden because you think it'll be the easiest path to victory? You know, right now, looking at President Biden's success rate and looking at the potential candidates to include former President Trump, I don't think that any of the candidates worry any Democrats. I think we're prepared for all of them. Well, let me give you a choice, Tamika, let me give you a choice. If you had to pick between President Trump, former President Trump, and say, Governor Ron DeSantis, who would you rather run against? You know, I would just say Ron DeSantis is dangerous for this country.

I mean, you look at the story you just had, and so I certainly wouldn't want him to have any bigger platform than he currently has. So not even about running. I think President Biden don't do great against either one of those, but I just wouldn't want Ron DeSantis to have any more publicity than he's getting down because he is dangerous and he has dangerous policy. Steve, I want to ask you, I'm going to ask our great director, Brett Holy, to put up that graphic again of the people who have declared and the people who may run for president on the Republican side. Steve, you just do the math here, right? And you have to expect Governor Ronda Sanchez is going to throw his name into the ring. You have to expect possibly former Vice President Mike Pence, Senator Tim Scott likely to run, maybe even Governor Chris Christie. I say these names because it is reminiscent. I talk a lot about 2016, but I kind of saw what happened there.

I was covering the campaign, and the Republican vote got fractured, and it just helped former President Trump. Where his poll numbers are right now, he looks to be in a strong position. Do you think one of those men, or maybe even former Governor Nikki Haley, has what it takes, which none of the other candidates in 2016 could do, and sort of supersede Donald Trump to break across that movement, sort of coalesce the other Republicans, people like the people you're talking about the never-Trumpers, other Republicans who are concerned about former President Trump, or will MAGA win out?

Yeah, I mean, I think the real challenge for any of those challenges of people picking on Donald Trump is whether they can win some portion of the Trump base, the MAGA base that is so loyal to Donald Trump, while at the same time appealing to the rest of the Republican Party and beyond the Republican Party if they were to get to a general election. I think it's really hard to see how that happens right now with Republicans sort of rallying around Donald Trump as he's in these continuing to be in these legal entanglements. says he continues to pick fights with the mainstream media, it's hard to see how those other candidates break through. But I think if one of those other candidates were to win the Republican nomination, if Donald Trump's legal problems pull him down, if he, you know, if there's some unforeseen challenge that he has that we aren't looking at right now, I think it would be a very competitive race between any of those other Republican candidates and Joe Biden. I think Joe Biden has a very mixed record. There's a lot that a Republican

could take him on in a general election campaign, but I think it's a huge hill to get there. Tamika, before we go, the current president's poll numbers aren't great. What does he run on? What is his message in the re-election campaign? I think his message has to be on what he currently has delivered and then exciting the young people to make sure that they stay engaged in the process and not just about what he will do, but showing what he has done and what that means to the everyday lives of people on the ground.

it mean for working class citizens, and I think that's going to be his winning message. Tamika Isaac Devine, Steve Hayes, it has been a pleasure tonight to have you guys on the show. Thanks again. Still ahead, the health care horror. Two elder care workers in Florida accused of abusing one of their dementia patients and live streaming it on Snapchat, the charges they're now facing. Plus, the massive fire at a recycling plant in New Jersey, flames ripping through warehouses. We'll have the latest on what may have started that blaze.

and Michael Jordan breaking another record with his shoes, you will not believe how much these sneakers sold for. Someone paid a lot of money for these sneakers. We'll tell you why. Stay with us. All right, we're back with some troubling allegations against two elder care workers in Florida. Law enforcement says the payer abused a dementia patient.

Worse yet, they're accused of live streaming at all for others to watch and laugh. NBC Stephen Romo has more, but we want to warn you. This video is disturbing. You're being on yourself. Yo! Tonight, alarming charges against two senior care workers in Florida.

Oh, for real. Stop my name. No! No! No! You're pain on yourself. You're watching what the sheriff's office says is two women live streaming,

their abuse of a dementia patient on Snapchat, and laughing about it. So embarrassing. I'm sorry, y'all, she's embarrassing. Let's go. It's locked her in the closet. Investigators providing an edited portion of that video blurring the victim. Put your pants on.

Law enforcement says they got a tit from an employee at Market Street Memory Care Residences outside Orlando about the live stream from April 3rd. Deputies arrested two nursing assistants, 20-year-old Shaitiana Bishop, and 18-year-old. Jada Harris on counts including abuse and neglect of an elderly person and video voyeurism. I'm going to try and use restraint as I tell you about this case. And I say I'm going to try and use restraint because I'm disgusted. Sheriff Wayne Ivy at Brevard County sounding off about the two suspects. The perpetrators in this case are not only disgusting, but they're vile individuals who live streamed themselves abusing one of our elderly citizens who suffers from dementia. We were unable to reach Bishop or Harris for comment.

They're both out on bond, according to the Brevard County Public Defender's Office. The sheriff saying the facility acted appropriately. Contacted our agency, fired the two individuals, did everything right. Market Street Memory Care residents is also telling NBC News the behavior is abhorrent and will not be tolerated. Adding that the victim didn't suffer any injuries and they're providing support to the family of the victim. Incidents like this are rare, but Anne Sanseverro, board president of the Aging Life Care Association, says she believes what we find out about is just the tip of the iceberg. It's probably more common than we know because so many elders are ashamed of elder abuse. They feel humiliated. They want to hide it.

And there are warning signs to look out for to make sure your loved one is getting quality care. Is the clothing clean? Are they looking underfed? Are they poorly groomed? Is there an odor in the home, you know, where it might be that they're not getting changed often enough? These are kind of telltale signs that the care is subpar. Stephen, Stephen, it's so hard to watch that video. You feel for that patient, but you also feel for her family who were paying for those services. So what are some of the warning signs? I know we heard them there at the end. in your piece and if you are worried about your loved one if they're being mistreated what what can you do yeah it's hard not to be worried after watching something like that these people often so vulnerable in these homes that expert we talked to said the best thing you can do if you sense a problem to go straight to the administration and talk to them about it and be ready to escalate that as is necessary they also say that one good

thing you can do is just these surprise visits just show up unannounced and not your regular time to visit to see how things are really going on at that place they also say the Sheriff's Office said, if you're watching a live stream, if you're scrolling through social media and you see something like this, report it to police. Don't just be disturbed by it and move on. There could be a crime committed here. So make sure you let them know. Stephen Romo, we appreciate your reporting and your team on that one. Okay, when we come back, we've got a lot more left to go in the show. Stick around. Whole food checks out the grocery store chain announcing their San Francisco location is closing. What shopper say happened in the store, that company says that it forced it to close. Stay with us. All right, we are back now with Top Stories News Feed. We begin with a massive brush fire, reaching a New Jersey recycling plant, and you can imagine what happened. Chopper video shows the flames engulfing large piles of paper and moving towards warehouses, fire crews, racing to stop the fire from reaching the New Jersey turnpike ahead of rush hour. So far, no word on any injuries.

A newly opened Whole Foods in San Francisco, shutting its doors because of rampant crime. A spokesperson for the company says it's temporarily closing its flagship store in the mid-market neighborhood of San Francisco to ensure team member safety. Shoppers reporting they've seen frequent shoplifting and even drug use in the location's restrooms. The chain has not released any reopening plans. And a pair of Air Jordan 13s sold for more than $2 million. bucks. Sotheby's auctioned off Michael Jordan's iconic shoes from game two of the 1998 NBA finals to an anonymous bidder. The sale set a new world record for highest price paid for a pair of sneakers. Sotheby says these shoes are the last authenticated, complete pair of sneakers

worn by Jordan in any NBA finals game. Pretty cool. Okay, now to the latest in artificial intelligence. A team of researchers and engineers from Massachusetts are using it as a tool to detect cancer. NBC News Senior Medical Correspondent, Dr. John Torres, takes a closer look at how AI could save lives. John Roberts is lucky to be alive. No one ever thinks they're at risk for developing lung cancer. During a treatment for a kidney stone, doctors found a mass in his lung and were able to operate before the cancer spread. They would never have found it, and in all likelihood, I would not be here talking with you today. The CDC recommends people at high risk for the disease.

get screened with a low-dose CT scan. But even with regular screening, the most skilled radiologists can't spot everything. This looks normal to you. You don't see a cancer here. How often are we missing lung cancer diagnoses right now? Well, most people who get diagnosed with lung cancer unfortunately present with stage four metastatic disease

because it has spread someplace that is causing them a pain or a symptom and then they go to their doctor. So we're missing most cases of early-stage lung cancer when people don't have symptoms. The possibilities are limitless. Dr. Alicia Sequest is part of a team of doctors and engineers from Massachusetts General Hospital and MIT trying to revolutionize cancer detection.

Meet Sybil, an artificial intelligence program, the name inspired by the oracles of ancient Greece. We developed Sybil, an algorithm that is able to tell who might be at risk for lung cancer one, three, five years down the road. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer. cancer death in the U.S., killing more than 127,000 a year. The mass gen MIT study, using three sets of independent scans, found that Sibyl could accurately

predict whether a person will develop lung cancer in the next year, up to 94% of the time. There's immense amount of data in a CAT scan, and we're only scratching the surface when we just look at it with our eyes. Usually a radiologist is looking for nodules or a mass, but Sibyl has the power to look so closely at a CT scan that it can identify patterns of data associated with cancer even before a tumor appears. So this is AI in action. What do we see here? AI circled this area in red and said this area has a dangerous pattern. It looks like cancer might come up. Two years later, there's a cancer right in that same spot where the AI predicted

it would be. That's not to say AI will replace radiologists. But the research team in Massachusetts believes Sybil's assistance is the future of the field. Is AI going to save lives? Yes, it will save lives because it will enable us to do more, see more, and manage better than we did without AI. Clinical trials for Sybil are ongoing. FDA approval likely years away. And while doctors are still studying the technology, Don Roberts, who is now cancer-free, believes technology like Sybil could help him live longer. You need every weapon you can possibly get to combat cancer.

and AI could be a powerful one. Absolutely. NBC News Senior Medical Correspondent, Dr. John Torres, joins us now. Dr. John, you know, we've done so much reporting on AI here on Top Story, so we're sort of fascinated by all the new technology. Can you explain more in detail how exactly this AI can detect that type of cancer? And, Tom, that's a great question, because it kind of gets into the, for lack of a better word, the magic behind AI.

But when a radiologist, when our doctors looking at a CAT scan, they're looking at a two-tlene. dimensional picture. So they're looking at colors and shapes. And they look for those colors and shapes to see if they see anything unusual. It might be a tumor, a nodule, some type of mass that has them concerned. And so they're doing it after the fact once it gets to a certain size. What artificial intelligence does is it takes all the cumulative data it has from the millions of CAT scans that's looked at, both normal and abnormal. And it's gone down to the ones and the zeros. And it has said in these ones and zeros, if it looks like those ones and zeros are kind of risky, showing a risk pattern. It might not show anything else, but it might show future tumors.

They highlight it saying, this is a risky MRI or CAT scan, even though it looks completely normal. So it's getting down to that nitty-gritty data that we as humans can't get to to assess risk and let us know if that risk is there. We need to look further. So the AI is called Sybil, and in the report that you showed us, the patient had lung cancer, can civil work to detect other types of cancer? And that is the hope behind this. Right now they're researching it on a few different things, lung cancer being the main one because it is such a big killer. And they are looking at it saying, okay, if it can do this, especially on that level of telling us there's a risk, we need to follow this person.

And they may or may not develop it, but at least it's highlighting a flag of we need to keep an eye on this, then they think it should be able to do the same thing for other cancers as well. But of course, these are baby steps, making sure we get it right in this case and then progress it to other cancers and eventually other people. parts of our medical life as well to make sure that we stay as healthy as possible using this fantastic tool. Dr. John Torres for us tonight. Dr. John, we thank you for that. Time now for Top Story's Global Watch. We begin in Russia where a volcano has erupted. Footage shows the volcano spewing out clouds of ash, smothering villages in drifts of volcanic debris, and triggering an aviation warning around Russia's eastern peninsula. Lava flows from the volcano, melted snow, and prompted a warning of mud flows along a nearby highway.

No word yet, though, on any injuries. Italy's Coast Guard carrying out operations to rescue 1,200 migrants lost at sea. Yesterday, we told you about one of the boats carrying 400 migrants that was last seen in the waters near Malta. Italy carried out an operation to assist the boat, supported by two merchant ships. On Monday, Italy's Coast Guard carried out another operation to help a fishing boat get this loaded with 800 migrants located 120 miles south of Sicily. This comes as a surge of migrants crossing the Mexico.

Mediterranean from North Africa. We turn now to Cuba, where banks will now be accepting cash deposits in U.S. dollars after the previously instated ban was lifted on Monday. The ban had prohibited Cubans from depositing U.S. dollars into their accounts for almost two years due to, quote, continuing difficulties caused by the ongoing U.S. embargo. That, of course, coming from Cuba. According to the Cuban government, the central bank of Cuba cites the gradual increase of tourism as one of the reasons for the resolution, not mentioning the current economic crisis

the worst in decades. Cubans are facing shortages of food, medicine, and gas. All right, coming up, mystery meals. Do you use apps to deliver and get some tasty food? Well, do you know exactly where that food's coming from? Like, have you ever looked up the restaurant? Does it even exist? We'll explain the proliferation of ghost kitchens, and we even put one restaurant to the test. Stay Welcome back. Sometimes you're just so hungry. You want something to eat and you want it right now. But do you know where you're ordering from? Especially if you've never been or even heard of the restaurant. Since the pandemic and the boom of delivery services, ghost kitchens have taken off. Existing restaurants like a Denny's or an Outback, opening up virtual options, often with different names, different menus, but it's all the same kitchen. So how do you know what you're ordering is legit. NBC's Valerie Castro has more on how delivery apps are now cracking down. Last month, Ryan Benson had a late-night craving and picked up a delivery app to place an order. I thought maybe this was like some kind of like artisan grilled cheese place. I was like,

I'll try it. But Benson soon learned his order from the meltdown was not the small artisanal restaurant he thought it was. The meltdown turned out to be a virtual restaurant. I feel like I've been catfished by Denny's. They put on like a fake profile where they were the meltdown and it was really just some chef in a denny's like making my food it's all owned by the corporate diner chain that online menu only available through the apps a denny spokesperson says the company prioritized transparency pointing out the connection is disclosed on the meltdown's website ghost kitchens and virtual restaurants became a way for small businesses like food trucks to expand their reach but some say it's gotten out of control i think a lot of it um with with anything

in business. I feel like it totally got oversaturated for a minute there. Kyle Hollenbach with BLT Kitchens in Arizona says his ghost kitchens provide the space for a business to test out a menu without the cost of investing in a full-blown restaurant, becoming a virtual presence instead. And they're able to roll out a concept or several concepts. Usually most of them are doing multiple concepts. So for example, one person or two people might be cooking five different restaurants on the Uber Eats and Doordash kind of platforms. Since 2021, the number of virtual restaurants listed on Uber Eats has quadrupled in the U.S. and Canada. In Nashville, 31% of restaurant listings were for virtual restaurants, according to a recent

analysis of Uber Eats listings. Consumers are choosing platforms before they choose restaurants. And so if you don't exist in all the relevant places where consumers are searching, you might as well not exist. But with seeming. no limits as to how many rebrands or personas a virtual restaurant can take on. It's the customer who can feel duped. In a way, it makes it harder to know where is this food coming from. Do I trust who it's actually coming from? Are they being honest about everything else? In this world, you can simply shut that listing down and start a new one, and no one would be the vice. Delivery companies like Uber Eats and DoorDash are cracking down. Uber Eats guidelines say a virtual restaurant menu must

be differentiated from its associated brick and mortar menu with at least five distinct main dishes that cannot be found on your brick and mortar menu. DoorDash saying, quote, virtual restaurants are labeled and customers can access details about the physical location of the kitchen. Experts worry it's the small businesses missing out on the growing delivery culture. I worry about these independent businesses who are getting left behind with this trend, but don't even understand why. While customers are left to wonder if the convenience of delivery is worth the mystery. Because when you go in, at least you have the chance of watching them make the food.

And you're like, I know exactly who prepared my food. All right, Valerie Castro joins us now in studio. Valerie, it smells wonderful in here. I would almost say it smells delicious. I do want to ask you, how do you know what you're ordering, right? How do you know it's not just some guy barbecuing on his balcony? How do you know it's a legit restaurant? So for one of these virtual restaurants to apply to be on the apps,

they do have to show a restaurant license or a permit just like a brick and mortar store or even a food truck. But it really is up to the consumer to do some investigating and find out where the food is coming from. We used one of the apps to order from a place called Tender Shack here in Manhattan. But if you look up the address of Tender Shack,

it's actually the Outback Steakhouse. So we ordered chicken tenders. That's what's in the bag. Okay. But as you can see, it says Outback Steakhouse. So Tender Shack is one of these virtual restaurants. If you go on the website, it says it's owned by Blumen Brands,

which is the parent company of the Outback. And it does say on the website, website that they are not a real restaurant. Okay, so at least they give consumers a heads-up. Is there a plus side to this? Are Ghost Kitchens creating jobs? So Ghost Kitchens themselves are actually expanding, and the owner that we talk to in our pieces, they are opening more locations in Arizona and even more locations across the country, so there clearly is a demand for these ghost kitchens.

Okay, and then after this commercial break, or during the commercial break, we'll have some Tender Shack, and we'll try those delicious ticket tenders. In the meantime, stay right there, because when we do come back, we have an incredible story about a skateboarding park unlike any other. A major figure in skateboarding teaming up with the Navajo Nation. You're going to love this story. Stay with us. Finally tonight, if you're a skateboarder, it can be really hard to find a place to skate. Now, imagine if you live on a Native American reservation.

Well, famous skater Tony Hawk wanted to help out the Navajo Nation, and our Steve Patterson was there to explain it all. The Navajo Nation is breathtaking. 27,000 square miles of quiet beauty. But for kids growing up here, maybe too quiet. That's why so many are attracted to this sound. Navajo Nation loves to skate. Just check out their president doing an alley.

Friends to come out, you skate, you challenge one another, and you keep each other accountable. But the reservation itself has been a skateboarding desert. Kids had to find a ride dozens of miles away just to get their wheels running. 12-year-old Cheyenne has been doing it for years. I just like doing it because it's fun. It teaches me to be more active. These remote communities need more opportunities to have outdoor recreations.

Something skaters could call their own became a community's cause. And with assistance from an organization called the Skate Park Project and its famous founder, Tony Hawk. Thank you for bringing change in this community. The Deney Skate Garden was set in concrete. How important is this to have an outlet, especially for kids, and in a community that's been less surf traditionally? I think it's hugely important, especially in a community like this. When kids find skateboarding, I think they find something that speaks to them in a deeper way and something that can teach them a lot of life lessons about overcoming their goals, about overcoming challenges.

Now, somewhere like that exists right here. I'm really excited for them so that they can be here, they can be a part of the community. A place of pride, a culture of tradition, now embracing the Great Sanctuary of Skate. Steve Patterson, NBC News, Navajo Nation. The Great Sanctuary of Skate. We thank Steve for that story, and we thank you for watching Top Story tonight. I'm Tom Yamis in New York. Stay right there.

More news on the way.