water shows at sea world. t a courtroom drama is playing out in washington that could forever change the way we see water shows at sea world. the issue is whether human trainers should be allowed to swim with killer whales after the recent death of a trainer. abc s david wright has more. reporter: since the days of shamu, the bond between killer whales and their trainers have been the star attraction at sea world. dazzling families with acrobatic fetes and in 2010 they were feats, and banned from getting in the tank after a trainer was dragged to her death in florida. sea world asked the federal court to lift the ban. sea world argues having their trainers swim with whales is fundamental to its business. they argue banning it is like imposing speed limits at nascar races. making their case in court, eugene scalia, son of the supreme court justice. it is as if the federal government came in and told the nfl that close contact on the football field would have to end. report
the legal fortunes changed when the two men admitted they had lied under oath. ferguson, his family and supporters never wavered, claiming he was innocent. and last week, a missouri appeals court overturned the conviction. on tuesday, a decision by the state s attorney general to not retry or pursue further action set in motion ferguson s release. family and friends, attorneys willing to sacrifice so much. it s amazing to be here. reporter: ferguson said he thought he was being moved to another facility when he was told to pack up his bags. he didn t know he was a free man until he saw his lawyer holding up a sign that said it s over. john and diana? what a story. thank you. two americans kidnapped by pirates off the coast of nigeria have been released. the captain and engineer taken from the sea retriever, an offshore supply vessel, last month. the state department refused to provide details but it is common
later, they had dinner in new york. baldwin was married to his then-girlfriend and said that she was asking for acting advice. she claims they became intimate. are you a stalker? no, i m not. no, i am not. he maintained a relationship with me while he was with her and that s why he created the fear like fear. get away from genevieve, she s dangerous. reporter: in court baldwin vehemently denied there was ever a sexual relationship at which point she screamed, really? the judge threatened to throw her out of court. she shouted, he s lying to you. baldwin leaving court, clearly agitated. nick watt in los angeles. somebody is doing a lot of lying. oh, wow. very different take on what went down. there s not even one thing they agree on. a sexual relationship or none. or absolutely nothing, just one coffee meeting for questions about acting. apparently baldwin was really hard on her attorney, too. apparently he s a young guy and turning things around on him and s
trial. another case that so many people are talking about today. have you ever met a 29-year-old who has never sent a text, never posted a facebook update, never used a smartphone. there is one man, ryan ferguson, who hasn t been able to do any of that. why? he s been locked in prison for almost a decade. as of last night, he is free. well, he s free, period, and he can do all of these things. so ferguson, as you can see there, walked out of prison to a cheering crowd after a missouri appeals court overturned his 2005 murder conviction. he was only 19 years old when he was convicted of murdering a newspaper sports editor. during that trial, ferguson was implicated by two key witnesses, but last year, the same witnesses admitted they had lied. all the while, ferguson and his family maintained his innocence. he spoke to cnn earlier today about what his future holds.
hollywood s biggest stars against what he calls a stalker. alec baldwin said it was something out of a hitchcock movie the way the canadian actress pursued him. she is telling a different story. here s abc s nick watt. reporter: alec baldwin cried in a new york city courtroom as he described his living nightmare. baldwin claimed he was stalked by this woman a two-bit canadian actress. i will say it loud and clear that i m innocent since day one. reporter: baldwin claims she would bombard him with up to 30 text messages a night. here s one. say i do to me. he said she showed up at his hamptons home, that she bombarded him with salacious e-mails and here s a taster dished up in court. i want to feel you, taste you, and make one with you for eternity. i will nourish you with my energy, power, and magic. last year, she was arrested outside of baldwin s home.