Transcripts For WRC Today 20110604

and spring scorcher -- get ready for a record-breaking heat wave this weekend with triple digit temperatures on the weibringing an early and scorching taste of summer on june 4, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning. welcome to "today" on a saturday morning. i'm lester holt. >> i'm amy robach. sorry if you don't live here. it will be a beautiful day in the northeast. unfortunately, a lot of people will be baking in the heat. >> i spent a lot of time this week in georgia. they're getting triple digit temperatures this week. midwest, south, 90s, hundreds in some places. summer hasn't even started. past memorial day. we'll have the latest hot forecast coming up. >> headed to georgia today. not good for me, huh? also this morning, the economy across the board, the numbers are deeply troubling. stocks are down, unemployment is up. again, the housing market taking a hit, all raising new questions about the possibility of another recession. we'll have the latest on that coming up. also, he's the young boy who vanished from his oregon school. it's been a year now since horman disappeared. the boy's number will talk to us. she strongly believes the step mother is withholding exclusive information. we'll hear about it and talk to desiree young. >> switch gears. talk about the bounty hunter. on the case looking for a fugitive from justice. the opportunity to go on the hunt with him. when a suspect or defendant misses a court date, that's when he steps in and believe me, you don't want him looking for you. >> i think we gave it away. i think handcuffs is always a dead giveaway that you're in trouble. a lot to get to this morning. we begin with a federal indictment against john edwards, the former presidential candidate charged with six counts alleging he used campaign funds to conceal an extra-marital affair. lisa myers is in raleigh, north carolina with the latest. lisa, good morning. good morning, lester. as you might expect, this case is generating banner headlines here in north carolina. it's -- it's a sordid story of deception and betrayal but even if most of the facts of the indictment prove true, there already is controversy about whether all of this amounts to a federal crime. >> there it comes. >> with his daughter kate by his side, john edwards took responsibility for doing wrong, but not for breaking the law. >> i take full responsibility for having done wrong. and i will regret for the rest of my life the pain and the harm that i caused. but i did not break the law and i never ever thought i was breaking the law. >> at issue, almost $1 million provided by two wealthy donors, now 100-year-old heiress, rachel "bunny" mellon and fred barron. according to the government, the money was used to hide edwards' mistress, rielle hunter, and later, their child, while he ran for president. the six-count indictment alleges the payments constituted unlawful campaign contributions and accuses edwards for soliciting and covering them up, saying he knew if the affair became public, it would undermine his image as a family man and destroy his candidacy as proof the money was intended to help the campaign, prosecutors cite a note from mellon written after an uproar of edwards' $400 hair cut. all hair cuts, etc., that are necessary and important for his campaign, please send the bills to me. it is a way to help our friend without government restrictions. no one has ever been charged, either civilly or criminally with the claims that have been brought against senator edwards today. >> in a short court appearance, edwards' lawyer entered a not guilty plea. the former senator joked about the number of lawyers present, five for him and seven for the government. rielle hunter and her daughter, francis quinn now live in this house in charlotte two hours away from the edwards' estate. as he left the courthouse, i asked edwards what he told his young children. >> that i love him. >> he walked away without another word. sources close to the case tell nbc news that edwards and the government kachl close to a last-minute plea deal, but then negotiations broke down over terms of a prison sentence, lester. >> in either way, he's got trouble rehabilitating his image whether it's a plea deal or continuing on with the trial. what happens next? >> next week, the lawyers talk about the discovery process, which is a process by which the government must share all relevant evidence with the defendant. edwards is due back in court next month for his official plea. his lawyers have told him that fighting this case would probably take the next two years of his life, lester. >> lisa myers in raleigh for us, thank you. now here's amy. lester, tuf. for all of the talk about economic recovery, the new jobs report is giving all of us a lot to worry about. only 54,000 jobs were added to the payroll in may, and at the same time, unemployment rate jumped to 9.1%. steve liesman is the senior economic reporter, good morning. >> good morning. >> obviously the numbers do not look good for the economy. but are we hearing analysts use the "r" word again? >> a little bit. lester, just before the show started, recession, are they? they are, actually. there's a bit of a concern. what happens is when the economic growth rate stalls or starts to come down 1.8%, which is where we are in the first quarter, any shock that comes along to hit the economy, that's when people worry about the recession. not given the current conditions but if something else were to happen, there's been a long list of bad knew. >> is the projection that it will take sometime before we see a recovery? we're on a recovery. now we're dipping back down. how long can we expect the bad news to last? >> pretty robust to date among the economists right now. but whether or not what we're seeing in the slowdown here is the result of temporary factors or more permanent factors. the temporary factors include the surge in the price of oil. you have the japanese tsunami created all of the disruptions in the global supply chain and you produced something like 400,000 fewer cars in the united states because of what's happening in japan. and a bunch of other things, the tornadoes, and everything like that. there's a sense that we have one, two months, maybe three months more of weak data before the economy comes back. on the oh hand, people are saying, look at the high deficits, look at the other things, we have a bigger problem in america. >> long-term unemployment. 6.2 million americans have been unemployed for 27 weeks or longer. what's affecting them in the compani companies have the money to hire people or they're not doing it. >> profit margins, how much they make per widget they create are outstanding as well. businesses lack the confidence in the future to hire. the trouble you get, the people unemployed for 27 weeks or longer, they start to lose skills. they start to become less and less employable. so the question becomes whether or not we have a huge issue that needs to be dealt with in the government sector, the private sector gets the people back to work that have been unemployed so long. >> the economy affects politics. we have an election coming up, you know, 2012. what does this mean for president obama? >> so i don't think it's a matter of genius to say that president obama cannot get re-elected with these kinds of numbers. if these numbers remaybe the way they are, if you have lackluster job growth, less than 100,000 over a series of several months, i think america would elect a 12-year-old at that point. we have to see the robust job growth that we saw, by the way. and i want to give a little caution here. we had several months of job growth, several thousand in a row. this is one month's worth of lackluster growth. i don't think it' time to say, you know what, game over when it comes to the job market right now. we may have a bounce back to the end of the summer. if we do have a bounce back, it will be a fair fight. if not, it will be easy for republicans with these kinds of employment numbers. >> steve lie liesman thank you much. thanks to the republicans that will try to replace him in 2012, the economy remains it most important issue for them and for the country. we're joined by john harwood, good to see you. >> good morning, lester. let's continue what amy and steve were discussing, the political impact of the economy and the job numbers and the president. he was picking up on what steve was saying. the president in the internet radio address talking about gas prices, japan, european financial crisis as outside forces that may be inhibiting job growth in this country. will that work? will that sell to the american people? >> it will sell to the american people, lester, if, in fact, we get aba an acceleration of growth in the end of the year. i talked to mark zandy, he cites in the debate that steve liesman referred to with those that believe it's temporary and we'll see an acceleration. if we don't, president obama has a big problem. the key element for an incumbent president seeking for re-election is not the absolute conditions but whether or not the people in the country believe we're headed in the right direction. if people think we're going backwards economically, that's a huge problem for an incumbent president. >> we were looking at pictures of the president talking to autoworkers yesterday. he didn't address these numbers, only mentioning there were economic head winds. is he going to have to defend his policies. will republicans come at him on all fours saying it's not japan or economic crisis in europe, i want's your policies, sflpt. >> -- mr. president. >> i was up in new hampshire with mitt romney who announced formally this week. he's sbirp he's entirely focussed on the economy saying the weakness right now is that the president has failed. the president's defense is we were shedding the jobs heavily when he took office. we're adding jobs for 15 quarters in a row. he's trying to regain the profitability of gm, chrysler, and ford. he intervened with gm and chrysler. he's got to hope, again, that people believe that whatever -- however difficult our situation is, and everybody knows we were in relate session when he took over, that it's getting better because of the things that he's done. and that's where the campaign is going to lie. >> job harwood, thanks very much. >> you bet. thomas roberts has got a check of more of today's headlines. good morning. we begin in nato where libya is stepping up attacks on the troops. british and french attack helicopters hit muammar gadhafi's forces in several locations including a key oil city. it's a major boost to libyan rebels to be ground, all of this comes a day after the house elected a resolution rebuking president obama for involving u.s. him tear forces in nato's operations without congressional approval. >> back here at home, the flooding on the missouri river had some homeownerse vak waiting in north dakota and south carolina. the river is a foot above flood stablg. the rivstage. as a result, the coast guard has restricted traffic. an end of school year outing turned tragic when an 11-year-old fell from a ferris wheel ride and died. rosemary conners is live in wildwood, new jersey with more on this. rosemary, good morning. good morning. while police continue to investigate exactly what happen, those who knew the victim are simply stunned. >> going to be a very difficult time. she was well liked, well loved, everybody knew her. >> hours after her death, friends posted this facebook picture of 1-year-old abia jones who police say fell nearly 100 feet from the moving ferris wheel on the pier at the wildwood board walk. >> all i seen was a bunch of blood in the pool underneath where the ferris wheel was and a bunch of towels covering her face. >> an administrator explained the chaperoned trip to the board walk was a yearly education extravaganza for 120 of their students and others from neighboring districts. >> one of the star students. >> after police and emergency crews secured and cleared the scene, state investigators arrived and inspected the ferris wheel. the ride passed the last inspection in march of this year. according to police, jones was the only one in her car. >> it might just be a freak accident. until i get some more information, i can't tell you more. >> the investigation thus far by the wildwood police department and department of community affairs and by our staff has not revealed any mechanical or operational issue with the ride. on a final note, the pier was closed last night out of respect for the girl's family. it will reopen later today. that's the latest this morning from wildwood, new jersey. i'm rosemary conners, now back to you. on a lighter note, imagine picking up a hitchhiker that is one of the most influential rock stars in the world. he and his girlfriend drove by bono who had his finger out in a sudden rainstorm. maybe his thumb out, i guess. picked him up. and to thank them, the superstar invited them to a vancouver concert where he went on stage and told the story. they got backstage passes and it was a beautiful day frp them. you like that, don't you? now let's send it back to lester, amy, and bill. can you imagine bono on the street and he's got a thumb out looking for a ride. >> i'm glad you clarified some and not finger. >> might not get picked up. >> no explanations of why bono didn't have a ride? interesting. thank you. bill karins is here with a bill karins here, he's got a check of the forecast. we're talking about some serious heat in a lot of the country. >> we can't catch a break, the great flood, the deadly tornadoes all spring, and now we're ending our spring with summer-like heat. and it's not just one day. it's last week and this weekend and lasting into next week. it has allowed a july/august-like weather pattern, easily around 100 today in jackson and memphis, and this is over an area that's had a horrible drought from texas through the deep south. it looks like the drought and the heat will be the big story as we head into summertime. as far as severe weather today, a slight risk of strong storms around ohio and the chicago valley, but very scattered. here's a look at the weather outside your with id. >> good morning. i'm tom kierein. a cool start this saturday morning around the region. many locations are just in the low 50s to low 60s in washington and near the bay. we'll have quite a bit of sunshine today, a gorgeous spring day. a few clouds this afternoon. temperatures climbing into the low 80s by midafternoon with low humidity in place. then tomorrow we might have a morning shower or perhaps a passing afternoon thundershower, a small chance of that. otherwise, partly sunny i it fo. that's your weekend forecast, amy? bill, thank you. overseas, the massive outbreak of e. coli continues to take a deadly toll. across europe, scores have died from a strain of bacteria never seen in humans before. it also has many people here at home concerned. nbc's michelle kazinski has more. the relentlessness of the outbreak continues to surprise doctors. 200 new cases of e. coli infection and two days in germany. 18 deaths. more than 1800 sick in a dozen countries. >> what's unusual in this situation is the percentage of people who have severe complications is higher than we expect. >> now we know four people in the u.s. have it. three of them, two women and a man, are hospitalized after the pack tier ye bacteria's toxins attacked their kidneys. it had been in or near hamburg in may. two u.s. service members in germany are also believed to have it. could this spread to the united states? officials say highly unlikely. scientists think it onchnarigin in raw vegetables in europe, so now every shipment imported to the u.s. from germany and spain as a precaution is being tested before it's released and 42% of all produce imports come from those countries. the cdc says the mutant strain is toxic and the incubation period unusually long, up to 12 days. they think it might not be so new. that it or something very similar may have caused an outbreak only two years ago in the republic of georgia. in hamburg, this was one of the first victims, in the hospital in isolation for weeks. >> the stomach ache that was so strong and it was -- and later i got stomach and headaches. very strong ones -- i never -- that never happened to me before. >> she said the sickness made her so out it, she was unable to count backwards. those who are still stricken after eating what is best for them are being treated by die y'all cisse and the u.s. antibodies. it's the best doctors they can do against a germ they haven't had to battle before. >> that's militia m kozinski reporting. shifting the gear down to the french open for tennis fans. doesn't get better than the weekend for the mens and womens finals. mary carillo, good morning. >> good morning. bonjour, lester, how are you doing? >> a chinese player has made it to the finals. she's no newcomer to the game, is she? >> she's not. she's been playing well. she's had great success in the last half of a year. she got to the final of the australian open earlier in the year losing in three sets to kim christers. she's made her way to the french open unplayed. it's a huge upset that li na has made hr way through here. she's beaten great players and maria sharapova in the semis who a lot of us thought might be able to win her first french open. this will be a huge deal if li na is the first to win a major. >> she's competing against a 31-year-old. in my age, they're kids. but in the world of tennis, they're veterans. the average age if you go back -- it used to be like 17. >> in women's tennis. exactly right. in 1990 here, the average age of the semifinals was 17.5. these two showing we can get it done. vhiavone is old school. she comes to the net. she's incredibly emotional. very, very passionate. she won this last year. never won a big tournament. she won this last year, the first italian woman to win a singles title. they only stopped celebrating last year's win on tuesday. if she does it again, if she's able to defend that title, the place will go nuts. it's a terrific match. they're both so smart, they're fit, clever on clay. and they have huge personalities. >> it will be a treadmill viewing a bit later on. but let's talk about sunday's men's finals. no surprise here. nadal versus federer. nadal was on fire, especially as the match went on. >> nadal played very, very well in the last couple of rounds. he hasn't been playing his best ball coming in to the french. he was in danger of losing his number one ranking to novak djokovic. he came close to defeating andy murray in straight settles. andy murray has become a good clay court player. nadal had no surprise getting to the final, really. the big surprise is who he plays next. roger federer hasn't been in a major final in a year and a half. he was playing the hottest guy of the year. novak djokovic came into this match having beaten federer every time they played this year. he was unbeaten for about six months coming in to this. djokovic looking for his first ever french open title. if he had beaten federer yesterday, he would be the number one player in the world overtaking nadal. federer and nadal in a dream final. federer going for the 17th tomorrow. nadal going for the french open. that eefls going to be unbelievable. watch that too on your treadmill. >> a lot of exercise for me this weekend. you have the best seat in the house. good to talk to you. >> you too. >> watch the women's french open finals starting at 9:00 a.m. here on nbc. join me on the treadmill for that. deal or no deal, the secret to selling your home in a tough housing market. but first, this is "today" on nbc.le'lin still to come on "today," day ten of the casey anthony murder trial. who will take the stand? live at the courthouse. without a trace, one year since kyron horman disappeared. where is he? we'll speak to his mom. but first, these messages. good morning. it's 7:26 on this saturday, june 4th. i'm aaron gilchrist. a quick heads up for you, that the eastbound lanes of the suitland parkway are closed right now at naylor road because of a shooting investigation. police say at least one person was shot. no word on the victim's condition or identity right now. we'll have more on this story for you in about 35 minutes on "news 4 today." also in our headlines, a d.c. police officer in jail this morning, accused of killing the mother of his baby over child support. investigators in prince george's county say vice officer richmond phillips beat 20-year-old wynetta wright to death. wright's daughter, who would have turned 1 year old next week, was found dead in wright's suv. medical examiners say the child suffered from heat exposure. phillips is charged with one count of first-degree murder and is being held in jail without bond. rescuers in montgomery county turning to the triadelphia reservoir this morning, searching for a missing swimmer. 20-year-old bruce hanson was swimming with three -- yanson, that is, was swimming with three others yesterday when he went under. as this search continues, the triadelphia and big branch recreation areas will be closed to the public today. the washington suburban sanitary commission maintains this waterway and does not allow swimming there. right now, thousands of people converging on the national mall for the susan k. komen race for the cure. the event raises money for breast cancer research. participants are running and walking a 5k or one-mile route. so far, race for the cure donations have reached more than $2 million for the good morning. i'm tom kierein. it is sunny and chilly on this saturday morning. many locations are only near 50 degrees in the rural areas, so low 60s in washington and right near the bay. and later today, we'll climb into the low 80s by midafternoon, just a few clouds around, low humidity, a light wind. and then tomorrow, we'll have more clouds around in the morning, might have a morning sprinkle or perhaps a passing afternoon shower, maybe a little bit of thunder. just a small chance of that. otherwise, partly sunny into the mid-80s. and then, mostly sunny monday. as we get into next week, though. the heat's on the. we'll be near 90 on tuesday, wednesday, and thursday with more humidity around. could get storms by the end of the week on friday afternoon. and that's the way it looks. aaron? >> all right. thank you, tom. more local news in 25 minutes. back to new york and the "today" we are back on this saturday morning. june 4, 2011. we don't mean to rub it in for you folks down south. but who could ask for a nicer day here in new york city. we have a great crowd out on the plaza enjoying the early summer, late spring weather. we're going to head outside and say hi in just a bit. studio 1-a, i'm amy robach along with lester holt. coming up, the murder trial everybody is talking about. we're talking about casey anthony. >> getting more explosive by the day. they'll hear more testimony against the accused killer. on friday, jurors were riveted as they watched jailhouse tapes of her mother begging casey to tell her what happened to caylee. it's an emotional scene. talk about what's going to happen today in a live report from the courthouse. we have tips on how to sell your home. of course times are tough. the question many analysts are asking now is housing in a double dip recession. what does that mean, exactly? and how will that affect the selling of your home? coming up, barbara cork ran will join us with the answers and the information you need to know before you put your home on the market. on the hunt with a real life bounty hunter. not a police officer but he has a badge and in the look for people who may or may not be guilty of a crime but wanted in court. i'll went on the ride with the bounty hunter. we begin with kyron horman. it's been one year since the 7-year-old vanished in oregon. we'll talk to desiree young. but first, more on kyron's disappearance. >> the police searches. the pleas for help. >> we were all coming to get you to bring you home. >> and the prayers for the safe return. it's been a heart rending year in the search for the 7-year-old. it was the most unlikely of settings, an elementary school in oregon. terry horman said she watched her son walk to a second grade classroom. he was never seen alive again. the smiling 7-year-old was standing next to his science project. an hour after that photo was taken, he vanished. but where did he go? the case became headline news across the country as authorities sought clues, questions surrounded the step mother and her story. terry horman is not a suspect or a person of interest but her ex-husband kane horman says he knows what happened. >> i have every reason to believe she knows something about the disappearance. >> reporter: in the weeks and months that he went missing, kane sought a divorce, and accused him of hiring a hitman to murder him. coming up, police continue to look for kyron waiting for one big tip to solve the year-long mystery. joining us is kyron's mom desiree young. good morning to you, desiree. >> good morning. >> i know this has had to have been an incredibly difficult year on this one-year anniversary. how are you holding up? >> you know, i try to focus on moment by moment. some days i can do it day-by-day. but sometimes it's minute-by-minute. but there's the difficult times and the thoughts of kyron not being here creep in and make me a little sad. other than that, i try to focus on kyron and all of the good things that -- good memories that we have and keep those in my heart. >> and as you focus on kyron, you've put up billboards in your area. and you're sending a personal message to kyron in that billboard. they say, i promise i will find you, i will never stop. are you hoping that this one-year anniversary will bring more attention, focus more attention on your son and law enforcement's efforts to find him? >> yes. i believe that continued coverage and pressure and attention on the case and kyron will help us bring him home faster. so, yeah. i want answers and i want it solved right now. >> i know that the billboards were strategically placed, a couple of them near where kyron's step mother terry now live. she was one of the last people to see him. are you trying to send a message to her as well, desiree? >> yes, definitely. i want her to know that i'll be here every single day and i won't stop. >> has terry said anything to you. has she responded at all to these billboards? have you heard anything? >> no, she has still kept quiet and won't talk, won't clear herself. >> do you think authorities have done enough to get to the bottom of what may have happened to your son? >> yes. i think that they are still working hard every day to make sure that the case is solid so that when we do arrest her, it's not going to be one of those things where we realize that we did it too soon, you know? it's definitely what they call a marathon. >> desiree, i'm sure you've gone over that day, june 4, 2010 over and over and over again in your head, do you have any thoughts about what may have happened to your son on that day as you try to piece together what you know? >> well, i do have thoughts. what we know about terry now and things that she's done in her life. and the way that she felt about kyron is atrocious and awful. she definitely put a lot of things in writing which is good for kyron and the case. but we definitely are clear on how she felt. >> and speaking to that, do you believe your little boy is still alive? >> i hope he is. i want him to come home. i just know that the way terry felt is horrible. i don't know anybody who has ever felt that way about a child. >> desiree young, thank you. we hope you get answers soon. and in the meantime, our thoughts are with you. >> thank you. let's head now to bill karins for a check of the weather. bill? well, thanks, well, thanks,. good morning, everyone. all our friends on the west coast, we've been talking about the heat in the east coast, it's actually okay this weekend. but the west coast is where all the problem weather is. take a look at this storm. this is very strange for this time of year. this is something you'd see in the middle of winter, not june. a very rare, heavy rain event for san francisco is under way, and wet weather will remain on this california coast through much of the weekend. record highs in the south, as we mentioned at the top of the show and also severe storms likely through the ohio valley. but there is some great weather. the northern plains and the northeast, congratulations, should be a very enjoyable weekend. that's a quick look at your national forecast. now here's a quick look at the weather outside your window. >> good morning. i'm tom kierein. on this saturday morning, we've got bright sun, great weather for the race for the cure. temperatures in washington right now in the low 60s to mid-60s and right near the bay, but elsewhere, near the low to mid-50s. many locations will have lots of sun today. we'll have low humidity in place with a light wind. might have a morning shower or an afternoon thundershower tomorrow. otherwise, partly sunny, heatin 91 around lexington and louisville. if you ever want your hour-by-hour forecast, get it at weather..com. i like your side. hey, rhode island, rise and shine, i'm 9. what's your name? >> mia. >> if you listen, everybody in rhode island is singing happy birthday. thank you. closing the deal. what you need to know to sell your home in a tough market. mermaids are coming to a theater near you. 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>> in the last month, it's dipped again. a lot of people didn't expect that to happen. particularly in the major cities. it's interesting to note that 20% of all of the towns in america have come off of the bottom and prices are already rising. >> there's another report, though, suggesting that foreclosures might be slowing down. a light at the end of the tunnel. but would that take a long time to affect the prices? >> it affects it market-by-market. but a third of people are underwater on their homes. not out of the woods on that. we've seen a little bit of improvement on the rate of foreclosures. >> there's houses selling. let's talk about how to make that happen. there's the pricing issue. the markets first started falling off. sellers were in denial. are they getting it now? >> they're getting it, but still, the most important qualification in selling your home is to price it right. if you don't have your home priced wb ed within 5% of its v people don't even come and see. you have to realize you put your home in a disadvantage if you price it along with the houses with prices better than yours and they can't compete. >> list firm. good idea or bad idea? >> terrible. everybody wants a good deal. the worst move you can make, you won't get any offers. >> and when you get an offer, is it best to take the first offer? people get panicky and they want to grab it. >> your instinct would say if you get an offer immediately, you'll get a better one around the corner. four out of five first offers wind up being the best. you better slow down and think it over. >> when someone low balls you. >> it's an insult, a personal insult and think i've got a wise guy on my hands. he has an aggressive guy trying to bang through your door. >> counter him? >> they'll come on if you'll give them something to chew on. >> on-line is huge right now. hotels, whatever i'm doing. i want to go on-line. how important are the photos? >> the photos are everything. people shop with their eyes and then read the details. if you don't have eight to ten great professionally shot photos on a sunny day that makes the house look great, people pass you by. >> this is an area you noel. finding a real estate agent. sometimes it's family members. sometimes it's a recommendation of a friend. what should you know when you're seeking out an agent. >> you want to hire somebody you'll be comfortable firing if you don't like the job that's done. family members and close friends are usually not a smart idea. what you should do, excuse me, also, is you should invite the three most competitive firms in your home to compete for your listing and to get the proper price from the agents, you should clearly say to them, where would you price my home to sell it within 30 days. because, remember, agents want to please you. they very often will give you too high of a price in an attempt to do that. >> i was going to say, sometimes they tell you what you want to hear. they're best. >> they don't want to be bad guys. >> how do i, as a person who's going to hire them, avoid falling in the trap. >> usually the person who gives you the lowest price is the truthful agent. that's the person you should go with. typically homeowners pick the guy who has the highest price. >> thank you for coming on. thank you very much. the flash, why mermaids may be all the rage this summer. talk about that in a few messages. i've had asthma for 11 years... ...but my symptoms kept coming back... ...kept coming back. then i found out advair helps prevent symptoms from happening in the first place. advair is for asthma that's not well controlled on a long-term asthma medicine, such as an inhaled corticosteroid. advair will not replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. advair contains salmeterol which increases the risk of death from asthma problems and may increase the risk of hospitalization in children and adolescents. advair is not for people whose asthma is well controlled with a long-term asthma control medicine like an inhaled corticosteroid. once your asthma is well controlled your doctor will decide if you can stop advair without loss of control and prescribe a different asthma control medicine, such as an inhaled corticosteroid. do not take advair more than prescribed. see your doctor if your asthma does not improve or gets worse. is advair right for you? 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[ male announcer ] get the venture card from capital one, money magazine's best rewards card if you aim to rack up airline miles. what's in your wallet? so, you're a democrat right? mermaids are sirens of the sea whose beauty and mystique has been a part of folk lor for centuries. popping up from amusement parks to starring on the big screen, they seem to be more popular than ever. at wikiwatchy, spring state park in florida, mermaids enchant audiences with performances of their show. >> cool and interesting. >> special. >> every little girl wants to be a mermaid at least once. >> for more than 60 years there, the sirens' call has been irresistible. >> the mythical essence of it. they're mysterious creatures, all children, even adults, have a feeling of wanting to be a part of that. >> the gulf coast attraction is a throwback to another era. >> i came here when i was 10 years old in 1966. i brought my aunt last year and now i'm bringing my grand daughter. >> but this summer, mermaids are making a big splash on screen in a blockbuster movie. >> mermaid watchers. >> they're luring viewers into theater else. good news at the park for mermaids like farrah muller. >> with "pirates of the caribbean" coming out, a lot of mermaids in that. it's going to blow up. it's going to get very busy. >> in pop culture trend, mermaid mania has replacing the pirate craze. there are new books for mermaids and plans for the first mermaid convention to be held this summer. on-line retailers of mermaid gear like aqua tails are reporting heavy increase in business. >> it's becoming so popular we're shipping tales all over the world. >> in the past, movies like "the little mermaid" and "splash" tapped into the mythical creatures' wide spread appeal. >> the mermaids. >> but the big role in "the pirates caribbean" could create a new wave of fans. just in time for summer. i'm amazed they can swim like that. all right. just ahead, in the director's chair with rob reiner and the inside story of some of his most memorable films. but first, this is "today" on nbc. this is like an iceberg volcano. it's like lightning in a snowball. it's like frozen hot chocolate. ah! ah! you got it! yeah, i was just reading what was on the cup. try our new dunkin' donuts frozen hot chocolate. it's like frozen hot chocolate. america runs on dunkin'. still to come on "today," john edwards on the indictment that could land the former presidential candidate in prison. >> casey anthony, the prosecution's case could be wrapped up by next week. will the accused killer take the stand? we're going to find out. but first, these messages. ♪ jif to go goes here, goes there ♪ ♪ jif to go goes anywhere ♪ jif to go goes here, goes there ♪ ♪ jif to go goes everywhere ♪ goes here, goes there ♪ jif to go, wherever you go or maybe 8? my me time...is when everybody's takin' shots at me. [ male announcer ] discover you time anytime. mccafé your day with a mcdonald's frappé. smooth and icy caramel or mocha blended just for you and topped with a decadent drizzle. so let's plant some perennials that'll turn up every year. trees and shrubs to give us depth. and fill it out with flowers placed in just the perfect place. let's start at the place with the best plants, people, and prices. what do you say we plant a weekend, water it, and watch a summer spring up? more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. we're lowering the cost of keeping the pests away, with ortho home defense max now just $5.88. meet pnc virtual wallet. it comes with a calendar that shows you all your finances at once. it lets you know when your money's going out. and when it's coming in. it even tells you when you're running low. we call that danger days. it's built to help you see your money in a whole new light. experience everything virtual wallet has to offer at pncvirtualwallet.com. pnc bank. for the achiever in you. ♪ now you can brew over ice for delicious iced coffee or tea. hot or cold, keurig is the way to brew everyone's favorite cup in under a minute. choose. brew. enjoy. keurig. a young woman found murdered, her daughter not even a year old, also found dead nearby. this morning, outrage that the man accused of killing the mother isn't facing more charges. good morning, everyone. welcome to news 4 "today." i'm aaron gilchrist. kimberly suiters is off this morning. it is saturday, june 4th. we begin with some breaking news we're following out of hillcrest heights in prince george's county. right now eastbound lanes of suitland parkway are closed at naylor road. this as police investigate a shooting there. we're told at least one person was shot. there is no word on his condition at this point. we'll have more on this story as it becomes available. this morning. before we go any further, though, wie do want to check on the forecast. meteorologist tom kierein in for chuck bell this morning. kind of cool out there. >> it is, but great weather for race for the cure. we've got light winds, low humidity, and it is a cool start to this saturday morning. all around the region, many locations in the 50s still. across much of virginia and maryland, closer to washington and the nearby suburbs, it's near 60. and near the chesapeake bay, temperatures are generally in the low to mid-60s. but look at southern maryland, they're getting a breeze off the bay there. the bay water temperatures are around 70 degrees. and we've got quite a bit of sunshine pouring down out of a blue sky. a few wispy high clouds and contrails stream over the region. ocean city

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