Well tell you how. And the most expensive dog search ever . One womans yearlong and very costly search for her best friend. Why would someone spent more than 30,000 to find a missing dog . Well ask her today, saturday, november 22nd, 2014. Announcer from nbc news, this is today with lester holt and erica hill, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. And welcome, everyone, to today on a saturday morning. Im qulerlester holt. Erica hill alongside chenille jones and dylan dreyer. Dylan, im glad youre back. And lester is, too. Whatd you think of that much snow . I got to step into the dylan dreyer life up in buffalo and i was whining how long, six hours after i was there . You did a lot of whining, a lot of complaining. How do you do this job . A lot of snow. Like ive never seen before. Crazy stuff. Anyway, we want to get to to our top story, where a grand jury decision in ferguson, missouri, could come down today. Ron allen remains on the story for us. Good morning. Reporter good morning, lester. There is tension everywhere here. You can see the main drag here in ferguson. Most of the businesses are boarded up in anticipation of a possible grand jury decision whether to indict officer Darren Wilson in the death of michael brown. Some schools have announced that they are going to be closed on monday and tuesday. The governors already declared a state of emergency. Overnight at ground zero here outside the Ferguson Police headquarters, more protests, small crowds clashing with police again, a lot of yelling and screaming, some pushing and shoving, some arrests. Now there are calls for calm from everyone around town and even president obama himself. This is a country that allows everybody to express their views, allows them to peacefully assemble, to protest actions that they think are unjust, but using any event as an excuse for violence is contrary to rule of law and contrary to who we are. Reporter overnight, there is word of the arrest of two men on weapons charges, and federal officials are investigating whether they were trying to acquire pipe bombs to bring here to ferguson. The concern goes far beyond ferguson with reports of demonstrations being organized in at least 100 cities around the country, everywhere from san diego to boston and a lot of cities in between. Now, here, one good sign, police and protesters are still talking, trying to work out socalled rules of engagement for how they will conduct themselves with any protests, discussing things like what weapons the police will carry, whether protesters will have sanctuary spaces. Theyre agreeing on some things and disagreeing on others, but get news, again, that they are talking. Theres been a lot of anticipation of a weekend decision or announcement of a grand jury decision because its felt that more students will be home from school, parents will be home from work, less people on the streets and perhaps a safer environment if there are protests. Back to you guys in new york. Lester, erica . We are all hoping for calm. Ron ferguson, thank you so much. Now to the growing list of women accusing bill cosby of Sexual Assault. He performed last night in front of a soldout crowd in florida and received a very warm welcome. We will speak exclusively to one woman who is now coming forward to accuse cosby of assault. First, though, we get the latest from nbcs Gabe Gutierrez. Gabe, good morning. Reporter erica, good morning. Cosby got two Standing Ovations here, one as he took the stage, another as he left the stage. The soldout crowd obviously sticking by him, despite the growing scandal. On stage, cosby launched into his routine. No mention of the Sexual Assault allegations. I think its all speculation right now. I dont know of any proof of anything. Reporter now more accusers are coming forward. Actress Angela Leslie told the New York Daily News that cosby sexually assaulted her comeback in 1992. Hes pretending as if it did not happen. It did happen. Reporter she is now one of at least eight women who have publicly accused cosby of inappropriate behavior. Cosby has never been charged with any crime. Friday night, his attorney said, these brandnew claims about alleged decadesold events are becoming increasingly ridicul s ridiculous, and it is completely illogical that so many people would have said nothing, done nothing and made no reports to Law Enforcement. But a former National Enquirer reporter says cosbys lawyer squashed her story. Robin mizrahi says in 2005, she investigated allegations made by beth barrier in the 80s. In exchange for not running the story, she says, the enquirer was allowed to interview cosby instead for what mizrahi calls a plouffe piece. I was frustrated and concerned for beth and other women who are silenced by someone who has more money than they have. Reporter the enquirer wont say why mizrahis story did not run. We dont comment on our reporting process and stories that we did not publish in the National Enquirer. Amazing. Reporter back in cosbys performance in florida hes well respected and innocent until proven guilty, right . Reporter an audience member yelled we love you, bill cosby. He held up one fist as the crowd cheered. Despite the warm reception here, six of cosbys appearances in other states have just been canceled, and cosby spoke to the local newspaper here, florida today, and hes quoted as saying, i know people are tired of me not saying anything, but a guy doesnt have to answer to innuendos. Erica . Gabe gutierrez for us this morning. Thank you. As we just saw in gabes piece, one of the women accusing cosby of Sexual Assault is joining us this morning. Good morning. Good morning, erica. The big question for a lot of people is why now . You say this happened in 1992. So, why are you coming forward . Im coming forward now, erica, because ive been watching the news and i see where cosby is not saying anything. So, to be silent does not mean that youre not guilty. Im coming forward to let everybody know that this happened to me, and i have no reason to lie whatsoever. It happened when i was in vegas in the Elvis Presley suite, and its something i totally wasnt expecting. I had met cosby previously in new york. But this was my first time meeting him one on one. So you were 26 years old. You met him one on one. He flew you out there. Yes. You walk into this suite by yourself. I do. There are plenty of people who might watch this and say, what were you expecting . Youre alone with a man in a room, who flew you to las vegas. You know, i admired bill cosby. I watched his show for years. I watched other shows, spinoffs from bill cosby, and i admired him. He was an icon. So, i wasnt thinking of anything like that. I was just thinking, like, he was this american father figure. So, what was your purpose of the visit . Why had you flown out there . We were still talking about my acting skills, my opportunities. And actually, when i went into his suite, he wanted me to demonstrate my acting abilities and he asked me, act like i was intoxicated. So, i started to do it. And it wasnt just, like, a room. It was a huge suite. So, we werent directly in a bedroom. We were in a kitchen setting area. You said you acted like you were intoxicated. You were not intoxicated. I was not. He told me to act as if i was. So, as you heard, he gave a statement to a newspaper saying he doesnte to respond to innuendos, in his words. His attorneys have spoken out, and we should reiterate, as gabe said, hes not been charged with a crime. His attorney said overnight, it is completely illogical that so many people would have said nothing, done nothing and made no reports to Law Enforcement or asserted civil claims if they thought they had been assaulted over a span of so many years. Why wait . I had not been raped. He didnt physically hurt me. He took my hand and put it where it shouldnt have been, and he actually did try to get on top of me, but i was able to push him off. And he actually kind of fell on to the floor, and he asked me to leave his room because he pretended he got a phone call. I never heard a phone ring, but i think he was embarrassed that i was able to push him down, and thats why he dismissed me from his room. Do you want anything out of this coming forward . Are you looking for money . I just want him to acknowledge what he did, take responsibility, and to apologize to these women and let everybody move on with their lives. Lastly, im interested, whats your reaction to the standing ovation and to the fans that we saw in gabes piece . I think that people are not believing these stories, but they are true. Theyre absolutely true. I have no reason to lie. And ill take a Lie Detector Test any time on anything ive said. Angela, we appreciate you coming in this morning. Thank you. Thank you. Lester . Erica, thanks. Thousands of people in western new york state are trying to dig out from that massive snowstorm this morning. Today, residents are not only worried about the potential their roofs could collapse, theyre also bracing for potential flooding as warmer temperatures begin to melt all that heavy snow. Nbcs rehema ellis is outside of buffalo for us. Rehema, good morning. Reporter good morning, lester. As you say, this weeks epic storm dumped a record 70plus inches of snow throughout parts of this region. And even for people around here who are accustomed to sn people accustomed to snow, this is a lot to handle. People are finally emerging after a record storm of 7 feet of snow. The work ahead is enormous. I probably fielded between myself and my brother 350 calls in two days. Reporter the storm has passed, but danger remains this weekend. Dozens of roofs like this collapsed under the heavyweight of several feet of snow. Officials now worry other buildings with flat roofs are at risk. Homeowners are not taking chances and are clearing the roofs. Were you feeling nervous about the potential of structure damage . We heard a bit of creaking a couple days ago. Reporter and now with rising temperatures in the forecast, a new potential threat. The warming will bring melting. Melting will bring water. Water will bring floods. Reporter 1,600 trucks hauled away 32,000 tons of snow already. But the view from the air shows thats just the beginning. On one street, a team of neighbors is hard at work helping each other dig out. You have been helping a lot of your neighbors out. We came out. Today is the first day we were able to see each other. We are making sure everybody can get out okay. Reporter the next potential threat is flooding. Heavy equipment and pumps at the ready. Governor cuomo says the flooding could be significant as temperatures start to rise this weekend and melting begins. Lester. Rehema ellis, thank you. Dylan, what do you see in the forecast that residents can expect . If you took all that snow and melt it down, you have 4 to 6 inches of water. All of that has to go somewhere. What we will notice is additional rain will add to the water. It is not all going to melt instantly. It is a slow process. Light fluffy snow will absorb the moisture first and then we see flooding a few days down the road. We have an icy mix through ohio. I want to point out to you this is the warmer air that is moving in. Notice it is not completely snowing. Because of the fact we are going to see additional rain on top of the melting, we have flood watches if effect across northern new york. This will move into as well. We are looking at. 75 of rain. You see the temperatures above freezing. Overnight, we stay above freezing and into monday and into tuesday, we are looking for temperatures to stay above freezing. About. 25 to. 75 of rain in the area. The heavy rain will move into the southeast. That is where we will see 3 inches of flooding. If that was moving up to buffalo, then we would see bigger problems. We have to watch out for the snow melt and drains and the streams and creeks where we will see the flooding. Dylan, thanks. The costly operations in the middle east will be learned by the end of the year. We have nbcs correspondent Kristen Welker in las vegas traveling with the president. Reporter lester, according to an official that u. S. Forces could be involved in offensive operations in afghanistan into next year. That is after combat operations were supposed to end. You will recall the u. S. Military was supposed to take a big step back at the start of the new year. Only training and advising afghan forces. This move suggests that u. S. Forces will remain in offensive positions. The operations could include targeting the taliban and other networks. The second official downplayed the news and it wont carry out official patrols. We will no longer target solely because they are members of the taliban. To the extent that taliban members directly threaten the united states. However, we will take appropriate measures to keep americans safe. Now the New York Times broke this news and they are reporting the decision comes because of the increase of militants in iraq and also because theres a new president of afghanistan who welcomes this move. Lester. Kristen, before i let you go, the president announced the immigration policy on thursday and executive action and talk of poisoning the well with congress. What is the fallout now a couple days later . Reporter lester, i can tell you republicans who just won control of congress are infuriated that president obama is taking action on Immigration Reform unilaterally and without them. Some republicans so angry that they want to shutdown the government again. Republican leaders are warning that it could anger the public and back fire. I have been speaking to aides on capitol hill who say the scenario is you will see republicans take some type of legislative action to try to reverse the president and try to sue president obama. There are concerns about 2016. Hispanics are a key voting blog. They helped president obama win the white house twice. Republicans dont want to alienate hispanics. For his part, president obama showing no signs of backing down. He was in las vegas on friday selling the executive action and officials tell me he will continue to cross the country to try to get the public on board with this move, but he will spend the weekend in the Las Vegas Area playing golf. Kristen welker, you are on the darkened of the strip there in vegas. Reporter thats for sure. Sheinelle is going through the other headlines, including a scary scene for passengers on the tarmac in atlanta. This morning, the ntsb is in atlanta discovering how an American Airlines jet was clipped. The jet was taxiing to the gate. No injuries were reported. The u. S. Embassy in mexico is warning americans to avoid the resort town of acapulco because of the violence in the area. The elevated alert comes one month after the state department asked americans to stay within tourist areas. Demonstrators protesting the disappearance of 43 college execut students have blocked highways. A manhunt under way in cleveland, ohio after a deadly rampage. A pregnant woman and three others in a home were killed in a wave of gunfire. A 10yearold girl wounded, but expected to survive. A new report suggests there may have been missed opportunities to treat the troubled gunman in the deadly Sandy Hook School shooting. The report released friday suggested adam lanzas parents and teachers chose not to medically treat him. The report notes that it cannot draw a direct line to what triggered the attack. 20 children and 6 teachers were killed in december of 2012 before lanza turned the gun on himself. He also killed his mother in the rampage. A miracle in San Francisco. A window washer fell 11 stories from the roof of a building and survived. The window washer screamed during the death defying accident on friday before hitting a car and bouncing on the asphalt. Last week, two window washers in new york were rescued. We have more coming up in the next hour on the story. And finally, what a journey for one missing kitten. Spice disappeared in new mexico on halloween. Look at this. She turned up in maine. That is some 2,300 miles from home. The kitten found inside a duffel bag in a thrift store. A micro chip traced the cat to its owner. No one knows how she made it across the country. She is a maine kohn. I dont know what the deal is here. With that one maybe she can get some tips from the kitten. I have no idea. Lost in the whiteout conditions in buffalo and just got lost. Im over this. Dylan is back with the check of the countrys forecast. Everywhere else we are talking about a warm up. Rain in texas where today we could see a slight risk of stronger storms. Isolated tornadoes are possible, but more of the gusty winds and cloudtoground lightning. Keep that in mind. You can see the rain extending up to the great lakes region. A morning mix through michigan and up into western new york. It indicates where the warmer air is moving in. We have a bigger storm in the pacific northwest. Some areas in the mountains could end up good morning. A lot of that activity is spotty and light this morning. It will progress to the south. Well see in the south bay and peninsula and east bay. Napa, petaluma to santa rosa getting hammered. This activity will become more widespread. Well see wind. Temperatures only back into the mid 60s. Afternoon clearing from San Francisco, points north. And thats your latest forecast. Dylan, thanks. Two men who spent nearly 40 years behind bars are waking up free men. They were incarcerated for a crime they did not commit. Here is nbcs cynthia mcfadden. Life is filled with small victories. Reporter the moment Randy Jackson waited 39 years for. It was like an emotional roller coaster. Even language doesnt fit what im feeling. Reporter freed from prison. Sentence vacated. Jackson was one of three neighborhood kids convicted of a 1975 murder in cleveland and sent to death row. Prosecutors based this case on the testimony of one 12yearold boy who recently came forward and said he lied. I felt extreme pressure from detectives to describe a crime i never saw. In 75, he was a 12yearold kid. He was manipulated by the police and they used him and took a lot of courage to do what he did. Reporter also freed on friday jacksons codefendent, willy bridgeman. He fought to help his friend and brother. To be released and the business is over with. Im at the end of that road. Reporter their first stop . Lunch with the attorneys who fought hard for their release. Many of them no