thank you so much for letting us in your homes during these extraordinary times. the beat with ari melber starts right now. happy monday. happy monday, thanks, nicole. welcome to the beat. i am ari melber. the civil case against donald trump over defamation and battery, nicole was discussing that earlier. we have that later in the hour here on the beat. our top story tonight is a topic that could be the top national story on most nights by many metrics. america s gun epidemic and the ongoing threat and reality of a highly armed nation with easy access to some of the most dangerous guns in the world and a gun-related death toll that exceeds every other country per capita in the world. that can look like this. [gun shots] that was the harrowing scene at a recent little league baseball game in south carolina. you can imagine and feel how all the kids and parents felt and that is the kind of story that may not even make what we call national news, that you may not have
also tonight, cnn has learned that former president trump s lawyers are now in direct talks with the u.s. justice department about the january 6th criminal investigation. stand by for our exclusive new reporting as sources now reveal that trump s attorneys have warned him that indictments, criminal indictments are possible and wnba star brittney griner is sentenced to nine years in prison after being convicted by a russian court on drug charges. the u.s. is now reviewing for moscow to accept a proposed prisoner swap aimed at bringing griner home. welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i m wolf blitzer. you re in the situation room. this is cnn breaking news. let s get straight to the breaking news right now. a texas jury awarding more than $4 million to the parents of the sandy hook shooting victim suing alex jones over defamation and distress over his repeated lies about the tragedy. cnn correspondent drew griffin is working the stor
thank you so much for letting us in your homes during these extraordinary times. the beat with ari melber starts right now. happy monday. happy monday, thanks, nicole. welcome to the beat. i am ari melber. the civil case against donald trump over defamation and battery, nicole was discussing that earlier. we have that later in the hour here on the beat. our top story tonight is a topic that could be the top national story on most nights by many metrics. america s gun epidemic and the ongoing threat and reality of a highly armed nation with easy access to some of the most dangerous guns in the world and a gun-related death toll that exceeds every other country per capita in the world. that can look like this.