this morning, a commuter train hit a truck that was abandoned. no one was killed but 21 of the 58 people on the train were taken to the hospital. tonight, four of them, including the engineer are in critical condition. omar villafranca is at the scene. >> reporter: the explosion and flames lit up the sky after the metrolink train struck the truck just before dawn. ould see three of by daylight, you could see three of the five of the 7.5-ton rail cars toppled over like toys. the truck driver, a 54-year-old man from arizona, got stuck on the tracks and jumped out when he saw the train coming. he was found walking about two miles away from the crash. was the driver under the influence of anything, according to your officers? >> he appeared to be very unsettled, and so the extent or the cause of that is actually yet to be determined. >> reporter: officials here say today's crash would have been much worse if not for new rail cars designed and purchased after a 2008 metrolink commuter crash which killed 25 people. the new commuter rail cars are built to direct the impact away from riders when the collision hits. enhanced bumpers and coupler systems create a crumple zone where the energy is absorbed protecting the passengers and crew. keith millhouse helped implement the new safety features. >> these are the safest rail cars and the most technologically advanced in the united states. and i believe they probably prevented more significant injuries today. >> the driver faces one count of felony hit and run with injury. >> omar thanks very much. the man brought in to restore credibility today, the man brought in to restore credibility to the department of veterans affairs had some explaining of his own to do. secretary robert mcdonald corrected a misstatement that he made last month on this broadcast about his own military record after the statement was questioned by several retired officers. this comes, of course, at a time of controversy around prominent journalists who have been accused of inflating their war records. here's wyatt andrews. >> that was wrong, and i have no excuse. >> reporter: the secretary apologized for what was said during this encounter when he falsely told a homeless veteran in los angeles that he had served in the special forces. the comment was captured by cbs news last month for a segment on this broadcast. >> what unit? >> special forces. >> special forces. what years? i was in special forces. >> reporter: the fact that mcdonald was not in the special forces was first reported in the huffington post last night. the secretary explained that when he saw the veteran, he was attempting to find common ground but got it wrong. >> and so what i was trying to do is find a way to connect with that veteran, and as i said, i made a misstatement. i apologize for that. >> reporter: mcdonald, a west point graduate, was trained as an elite soldier. he was an 82nd airborne paratrooper who also completed army ranger training but he never formally joined the special forces. he says he's never claimed to be special forces before. last november, speaking to "60 minutes," mcdonald said this: >> i never served in combat. it wasn't my choice. i tried to be in combat. i was in the 82nd airborne division. i was an army ranger, but we all feel inadequate because there's always someone else who has done something more. >> reporter: today, the question of why mcdonald misspoke rocked the veteran community. the american legion, the nation's largest veterans group, expressed disappointment, but a lie is a lie, a statement said. national commander mark helm says to many veterans, mcdonald's false claim was upsetting. >> he would try even on a short notice like he did to say that word "special forces." >> reporter: but other veterans groups, along with the president, accepted the secretary's apology, saying the job he is doing is more important. mcdonald gets credit for several v.a. reforms including, scott, his outreach to homeless veterans. >> pelley: he is in the middle of a major reorganization of the v.a. wyatt andrews, in our washington news room, wyatt, thank you. there will be no federal civil rights prosecution of george zimmerman in the shooting death of trayvon martin. zimmerman, you'll recall, was acquitted of murder charges. today, the department of justice said it's dropping its case and michelle miller has more. >> reporter: the news was delivered to trayvon martin's parents by prosecutors from the department of justice. the family's attorney, benjamin crump, was in the room. how did the family take the news? >> they were heartbroken, even though they expected that it was going to happen. it was just hard, actually hearing it and knowing that the killer of your unarmed child was never going to be held criminally liable. >> reporter: on february 26, 2012, george zimmerman shot and killed the unarmed 17-year-old after an altercation. the teen was walking home from a convenience store to his father's home when zimmerman acting as a neighborhood watchman, confronted him. zimmerman said he acted in self- defense. in a statement, the justice department said there was insufficient evidence to prove zimmerman willfully caused bodily injury because of martin's race or that zimmerman committed those acts in open defiance of the law. it is one of the highest standards of intent imposed by law. our decision not to pursue federal charges does not condone the shooting and is based solely on the high legal standard. brad brown is vice president of miami-dade's branch of the n.a.a.c.p. in your mind, has there been justice in this case? >> i don't think there's been justice in this case at all. now, that doesn't mean that the legal system didn't work as it is designed to work, but it doesn't always bring justice. >> reporter: trayvon martin's parents haven't decided if they'll sue george zimmerman in civil court, but they say they will focus on his foundation to ensure his legacy remains alive. scott, he would have turned 20 years old this month. >> pelley: michelle miller reporting for us tonight. michelle, thanks. tonight, the south is bracing for another one-two punch-- freezing temperatures are expected overnight and snow tomorrow. 3-6 inches from texas to georgia and the carolinas. a driver was killed today in north carolina when an s.u.v. slid off an icy highway and into a tree. we have more tonight on a story that we broke last night about americans receiving medications that they didn't order, racking up millions of dollars in bills to their insurance companies. one of the companies we mentioned is downing labs, a compounding pharmacy that makes custom drugs. well, tonight, jim axelrod tells us about an f.d.a. inspection of downing, part of a national investigation after tainted drugs from a different pharmacy called n.e.c.c., killed more than 60 people. >> reporter: the f.d.a.'s inspection of downing labs in july found sterility failures in 19 lots of drug products. ashley downing is the co-owner of downing labs. they asked you to recall your sterile products. >> that's correct. >> reporter: and you decided what? >> no. >> reporter: why? >> because we are compliant with every state guideline. we actually have a sterile compounding license with the state. and we've met all of their guidelines and with no problems. >> reporter: did any part of you think, given the n.e.c.c. story, why don't we be safe here, and let's avoid even the appearance of a problem and recall all of our sterile product? >> we were confident in what we were shipping out. >> reporter: the downings may have been confident that no tainted drugs made it to patients, but the f.d.a. was not. in september, the agency issued this press release warning consumers not to use downing labs' sterile products as they may pose serious risk to patients. >> pelley: you know, jim, it raises the question why didn't the f.d.a. force downing to recall those products? >> reporter: well, because oversight of the compounding pharmacies falls primarily to the states. the f.d.a. told us compliance with their requests is actually voluntary, and that under current law, the f.d.a. cannot require a company to recall drug products. however, the agency also told us, scott, they are actively investigating downing labs. >> pelley: did other compounding pharmacies that received that request recall their drugs? >> reporter: well, since that n.e.c.c. tragedy, more than 50 compounders have voluntarily recalled products. the only pharmacy to refuse a formal f.d.a. request, downing labs. >> pelley: fascinating, jim, thanks very much. we got word today that the islamic terrorist group known as isis has kidnapped at least 70 christians in northern syria. their fate is not known, but an isis affiliate beheaded another group of christians earlier this month. in the u.s.-led war against isis, there were 16 air strikes in syria overnight, mostly against vehicles in fighting position of isis which now occupies about a third of syria and iraq. there were five strikes in iraq, some around al-assad, once a major u.s. air base. the military says all american and allied aircraft returned safely. testimony wrapped up today at the "american sniper" murder trial. former marine eddie ray routh has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity in the shooting death of two men, including former navy seal chris kyle, portrayed by bradley cooper in the blockbuster movie. manuel bojorquez is covering the trial in stephenville, texas. manuel. >> reporter: scott, the issue before jurors is not whether eddie routh killed two men. it's whether he knew what he did was wrong, and this afternoon in closing arguments, prosecutors say he did. they reminded jurors of a dash- cam video which shows routh leading police on a high-speed chase after the killings two years ago. prosecutors say he fled because he knew he'd committed murder. his behavior sparked by a morning of drinking and smoking marijuana. but routh's attorneys say the veteran was battling p.t.s.d. and schizophrenia. they argue he was having a delusion when he thought kyle and his friend, chad littlefield, wanted to kill him at a shooting range and should be found not guilty by reason of insanity. scott, the judge has asked jurors to begin their initial deliberations tonight. >> pelley: manuel, thanks very much. today, in the biggest showdown yet with the new republican-led congress, president obama vetoed a bill to clear the keystone xl oil pipeline between canada and texas. the president said he's still considering the environmental impact. the republicans do not appear to have the votes to over-ride the veto, only the third in mr. obama's presidency. now, have a look at this. police video shows a natural gas explosion today. man. it leveled a home in stafford township, new jersey. 15 people were hurt, two critically. some of the injured were gas company workers trying to locate the source of a leak. six years after a deadly crash are tired pilots still putting the public in danger? we'll have that story when the "cbs evening news" continues. protect you from cancer? what if one push up could prevent heart disease? 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>> no. >> reporter: no? >> absolutely not.>> >> reporter: why not? >> because that's just union talk and that's just conversational union talk. >> reporter: steve alterman is president of the cargo airline association which represents companies like u.p.s., fedex and d.h.l. he argues the fatigue cited in the crash wasn't because of scheduling. he said it's up to pilots to get enough rest in their off time. >> fatigue is an issue. i never said it wasn't an issue. what i've said is that the current rules are adequate to manage that fatigue. >> reporter: cbs news has obtained documents showing that the decision to exclude cargo pilots from the new rest rules came from a white house budget agency which held meetings including one with the cargo airline association. the cargo carriers warned the rule would cost 7,000 jobs and nearly $14 billion. >> we do not want our pilots to fly fatigued. that's unsafe. >> reporter: but you've also said that rest rules are not good for business, essentially right? >> no, i've never said that. >> reporter: could lose 7,000 jobs, $14 billion in economic activity. these are documents that were submitted. >> no, what we-- no -- >> reporter: that's not true? >> no. what we said is we were asked what the cost would be. >> you can't really find anybody except industry, the companies that want to put profit before safety, that are saying this makes any sense. >> what would happen if a cargo plane, you know, went into an office building? >> reporter: six years after losing his daughter, scott maurer remains an advocate for rest rules for all pilots. >> my wife and i, we lost our daughter. that's not going to change. how many more lives have to be lost before you do the right thing? >> reporter: representatives of the white house budget agency that made the decision to exclude cargo pilots would not go on camera, but in a statement told us that the decision was part of an inter-agency process. that statement did not go into detail about who was involved in that process. scott, u.p.s.' pilots' union is suing the f.a.a. to change the rules. >> pelley: eye-opening story. jeff pegues, thank you very much. a banker showed up at work with what looked like a bomb strapped to his body. we'll have that story next. be the one with the crazy laugh. and keep being their favorite playmate. with tena's unique super absorbent micro beads that lock in moisture and odor... tena lets you be you. janet? 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and run through pushups like there's no tomorrow. her secret? >> i'm old. if i can do it, get with it. it's not that hard. i'm the new senior, and i got it going on. >> reporter: she earned first- place awards in her division at the world natural power lifting federation's championships. she took home gold in the dead lift, power curl, and bench press and was named the 2014 lifter of the year. she rarely gives up any edge. >> ready, set, go! >> reporter: maybe to her fan club of five-year-olds at the "y," but anyone half her age-- >> i need help! >> reporter: can forget about it. >> push, push, push! >> reporter: holding back isn't in willie's vocabulary. >> push, push, push. >> reporter: neither is quitting, which is why she's such a motivating presence here. >> excellent! >> reporter: encouraging workout buddy jim marren to cross off sky diving from his bucket list by going with him. >> i wish you could bottle it. she is the most inspiring person i know. >> what goes around comes around. and it makes us all better people to be on the planet. >> reporter: for willie murphy age isn't a number. >> nine. >> reporter: it's an attitude. i >> 10. >> reporter: michelle miller cbs news, rochester, new york. can you help me up now? >> sure. >> pelley: and that's the "cbs evening news" for tonight. for all of us at cbs news all around the world, good night. your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. six months after a powerful earthquake rocked napa and much of the bay area, causing this destruction, we are now seeing signs of progress. buildings are repaired and businesses are back open. but for some, there is still a long way to go. good evening, i'm veronica de la cruz. >> i'm ken bastida. in the six months since the quake hit, there's been constant work to repair the damage. new at 6:00, kpix 5's ann notarangelo live in napa with a look at the progress. ann? >> reporter: and one of the symbols of the napa quake is the iconic superior court building. if you look at it you can see that it still is in need of extensive repairs. but city leaders tell me that the city as a whole is about 90% back up and running. >> trying to be patient. that's the most difficult thing just trying to be patient and let everything work it out. >> reporter: bill lost everything when his mobile home and three others burned after a gas main broke in the quake. it's been an exhausting six months. >> a lot of water under bridge. we changed addresses about three, four times and, um, and we're about to change it again. >> reporter: next we they hope to make the final move home to a place where everything is new. his neighbor howard fared much better and hopes to move in next month. >> certainly not moved so quickly. it would be, um, a little upset at how slow it is but i also understand. >> reporter: an indication of progress, inspections were signed off today and everyone we spoke to was positive. although it's the mayor who is the most passionate. >> what i did find out was just how re