hi everyone this is al jazeera america, i'm lisa fletcher. john siegenthaler is off. >> oh my god. >> washed away. >> the streets have maybe one or two houses left on them and the rest are slabs. >> homes and lives gone in texas and oklahoma. crews race to find the missing, but the threat is far from over. battleground iraq new setbacks and bitter debates over the u.s. strategy against isil, and that group takes aim at a iraqi

resource. agent orange did not discriminate between those who stood on boats on rivers and those who stood offshores. >> where they are still fighting decades after vietnam. plus promise or peril? why activists say taking humpback whales off of the endangered species list is a big mistake. ♪ first it was drought, now floods have some to texas and oklahoma. a line of storms dumped record-setting rainfalls across the region. and at least three people are dead. forecasters say more severe weather is doing.

heidi zhou castro is in dallas tonight. heidi? >> reporter: hey lisa here in dallas the rain has let up but the swollen rivers are rushing south towards hayes county. it is in that county where 12 people still remain missing. they had been sleeping in a house that was swept away by flood waters over the weekend with more to come. >> oh my god. >> reporter: terrifying moments for many this holiday weekend, as thunderstorms and tornados bore down on large sections of the great plane sections. >> hurry! >> reporter: south central texas wassers specially hard hit. with record rain causing catastrophic floods. >> you cannot candy coat it. they have more water coming down right now. >> reporter: south of austin,

the blanco river surged more than 40 feet. the rising flood waters took many residents by surprise. >> i had friends call me that live on the river and never had water in their house, and i called them at 10:00 and said i could be a big event, and at 1:00 she called me and said we're on the third floor, and the water is still coming. what do i do? and what do you tell them? >> it washes hundreds of homes clear off of their foundations. the governor surveyed the damage. >> if you have seen the area around the river with this huge mass of trees just mowed down like grass that was mowed down by a lawn mower you see how powerful the river flow has been. >> reporter: dozens of texas counties have been declared disaster areas. the governor told residents down river from san marcus today to

expect the worst. >> river banks over flowing all the way down from the gulf of mexico stay out of harm's way. save your life. >> reporter: lisa in hayes county the emergency continues tornado was spotted over the city of san marcus just this evening, and people have been told to stay inside their shelters and homes. all of this is worst for those 12 missing and for their loved ones because i means no more aerial search for those missing. >> joining me on the phone right now from one of the worst-hit areas is a spokesman for the city of san marcus texas. you and every one else in emergency services is caught between trying to manage this existing crisis of missing people and homes and more

flooding and how are you prioritizing all of that right now? >> right now, we're monitoring the weather situation of course. during the tornado spottings we were advising residents to shelter in place because of the tornado activity but at the same time we had heavy rainfall and multiple road closures so folks were seeing waters you know rise. thankfully the rain seems to have dissipated and runoff is clearing out, so many of those roads are open again, but for a while we were asking folks to shelter in place while they were seeing water rushing over the roads. >> trey heidi just reported that some of the aerial search and surveillance has had to stop i understand people are actually forming their own search parties along the river. i can't imagine what people are going through, but given the

forecast how dangerous of proposition is that? >> it is very dangerous. we don't want folks except for emergency response personnel to be in the areas that have been devastated. you have overturned trees, you have got, you know, houses that have been washed away. it's a really dangerous place right now. so we don't want anybody who doesn't have a badge and a patch in those areas. >> i understand temporary shelters are set up around the country, trey who is using them and are any getting close to capacity at this point? >> the activity center in san marcus has about 95 people in it the last i heard. that's about 30 or 45-minute old information i have got. >> okay. trey high at thanks for joining us tonight and best of luck as this thing moves forward.

meteorologist kevin corriveau is here now with more. kevin? >> reporter: we're talking about a double whammy tonight the severe weather and the flooding. take a look at what we have seen here. that line of thunderstorms pushing across texas. it's beginning to push a lot of weather warnings and tornado warnings across that particular region. of course where the flash food food -- flood warnings are the biggest threat right now. when we talk about flooding all together we're talking about texas, louisiana, arkansas now into mississippi and parts of tennessee. and that is going to continue at least for the next three days. this water really has to move downstream to lower elevations so that could take days or weeks across that particular area. now over the next 72 hours, we do think we're going to be seeing heavy rain here especially towards the northern

part of texas and oklahoma. another five to eight inches of rain expected in that area. if you look down in this area probably seeing some lighter rain that's going to give those areas a little bit of time to let that water start to recede. of course we're also looking at the threat of tornados this evening. so far across parts of texas, oklahoma arkansas the warnings and watches are still out at least through this evening. back to you. >> thanks. at least 13 people were killed in northern mexico this morning, as a twister left hundreds injured. the city is located directly across the border from dell rio, texas. officials expect the death toll to rise. now to iraq and what could be another major setback for the military. isil has set fire to the

country's largest oil refinery iraqi forces are on their way to the strategic city of beiji to try to recapture the facility. >> reporter: iraq's largest oil refinery in beiji turns in the distance. fighterers from islamic state of iraq and the levant have set fire to parts of it in a bid to top iraq's security forces advance. this video is said to show them burning machinery. iraqi security forces say the destruction is hindering their efforts to recapture the refinery. >> translator: we are about two kilometers radius from the refinery yet it is an open terrain. isil have booby trapped it. we're hoping our forces will overcome these obstacles. the enemy is desperate and

therefore is trying different methods to hold our advance. [ gunfire ] >> reporter: the facility has been hard fought over for the last six months with both isil and the iraqi security forces at different times claiming they have been in control. beiji oil refinery is a major source of income whoever is in control of it so it's unclear why isil would set fire to it. we have seen them use these tactics before particularly in ramadi. this fight be a direct push to keep the iraqi security forces out for good. the iraqi government is responding to tough criticism from u.s. defense secretary ash carter about how the iraqi military responded as isil captured ramadi. >> they just showed no will to fight. they were not outnumbered, in fact they vastly outnumbered the opposing force, and yet they

failed to fight. they withdrew from the sight, and that says to me and i think to most of us that we have an issue with the will of the iraqis to fight isil and defend themselves. >> iraqi prime minister told the bbc he was surprised hi abadi's comments and said iraqi forces will retake ramadi. >> i'm sure he was fed the wrong information. it makes my heart bleed because we lost ramadi but i can assure you we can bring it back soon. >> soon what are we talking about? months? >> no no. i'm talking about days now. >> reporter: today vice president joe biden called the prime minister to reassure him that the u.s. will support the iraqi forces.

when the iraqi forces withdrew they left behind a trove of military equipment. they are presumed to have fallen into the hands of isil fighters who now control ramadi. doug oliphant served during the bush and obama administration he joins us from washington, d.c. we heard ash carter say the issue is with the will of the iraqi people to defend themselves. the question is why? if this is true why would they have no will to fight? >> i think we need to back up a step. i mean i really respect secretary carter. i have been a fan of his for a long time. but he seems to be out of sync with the rest of the u.s.

government. >> but just because he is out of sync doesn't mean that he is wrong. >> he is wrong. he did not see a lack of will to fight in ramadi. we saw the iraqi army overwhelmed. they had a series of large car becomes that were the size of the ones that tim mcveigh used in oklahoma city. and there were ten of these used in rapid succession. the iraqi army lost hundreds of soldiers in those attacks. they didn't just lose the will to fight, they were beaten. being beaten is not the same thing as having no will to fight. >> but there are plenty of reports that say that isil was vastly outnumbered by the iraqi army. >> i don't think that's entirely correct. numbers aren't everything. you also had -- you had fifth columns. you had sleeper cells in the

rear of the soldiers. even if you are 50 guys and you have shooters in the rear of you, maybe you don't have the right numbers. but isil executed their plan extremely well during weather that had limited visibility so that air power couldn't be used effectively. that doesn't mean the iraqi army lacks the will to fight. >> the iraqi deputy prime minister said the opposite of the prime minister. he said he was surprised that they lacked the willingness to fight and pretty much acknowledged what ash carter said. it's not in the best interest of the united states to say we have spent billions and we have been training these guys since 2003 and they still conditioned hold their own. >> the deputy prime minister is an opposition figure. that's his job is to contradict the government and point out

that they are incompetent and his party should be in power. there are certainly problems with the iraqi army. they are not perfect. there are very real problems with lack of ammunition soldiers not being paid there's knots of things to be done but to say there is a fundamental unwillingness to fight is an unsult to those soldiers dying on the lines fighting isil and not running. >> okay. got to leave it here. a tunisian soldier opened fire today on fellow troops silling seven people before being shot today. al jazeera's correspondent reports from tunis. >> reporter: this is a city that was already on edge. a confusion outside of the military barracks in the moments after monday's shooting is adding to the tension. the military says that the

corporate stabbed to death one soldier, grabbed his weapon and opened fire. the man had no known connections to any armed groups. the military insists he must have killed for personal personal -- reasons. >> this solder had family problems. he had been transferred to a less sensitive unit why he was not allowed to carry weapons. >> reporter: his motives will be crucial. investigators will want to speak to his friends and families. the base is in the heart of the capitol. close to parliament and the bardo museum. this is where 22 people were killed in march, most of them tourists. the two men responsible for tunisians who had received weapon's training in libya. what happened will do nothing to reassure people already stunned

by the bardo museum attack. the army is supposed to be one of the most trusted institutions in the country. it's responsible for protecting tunisia's borders from the instability and violence in libya. people will want to know why and how a soldier was allowed to turn on his own comrades. former israeli prime minister is facing even more jail time. a judge in jerusalem handed down an eight month sentence. his lawyers say they will appeal. last year he received a six-year prison term in a separate bribery conviction. it caps dramatic downfall of the

man. as our correspondent report some voters in india say little has changed. >> reporter: a year ago, a new indian government came to power, promising to clean up the country's politics as well as its neighborhoods, but not much as changed in this community in the heart of new delhi. despite her optimism at the ballot box, she says life is just as hard as it was 12 months ago. >> translator: i don't know why i voted. what is the use. we have so poor. we have nothing. no one helps us. we have no one to turn to. >> reporter: well before his first day in office modi said tackling india's sanitation crisis would be his government's top priority. looking around this neighborhood it's easy to see why voters here are just as disenchanted with this

government as they were with the last but it's not just people in need of the basics who continue to struggle despite the promise of change. this man was excited when last year the government announced plans to turn india into a global manufacturing hub. that should have increased orders for this man who runs a import business. >> translator: there is a huge fight for even small margins. the system hasn't really had any upgrade. as of now we don't really see any progress. >> reporter: that's a common complaint about the party that won the biggest electoral mandate in may of last year and observers warn in india, euphoria dissipates quickly. >> in the first year and second year people start getting

unease, and after two years, i think if the government is unable to deliver something, then people start educating and then it's very difficult for the government to turn the tide. >> reporter: dissatisfaction is growing in communities like this one, while the government says it will make more than a year to make the changes people desperately needs. people living here say even the small ones are hard to see. coming up mass graves and cages found in malaysian jungle camps used by human traffickers. and navy veterans with health problems say it happened from exposure to agent orange. we'll tell you where the va is refusing to help them. m.

more that 6500 american solders have died in the wars in iraq and afghanistan. today the country remembers them, and honors the service and sacrifice of all of those who died serving in the u.s. military. president obama marked memorial day by laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier. >> on this day we honor the sacrifice of the thousands of american service members, men and women, who gave their lives since 9/11. most americans don't fully see,

don't fully understand the sacrifice made by the 1% who served in this all-volunteer armed forces. sacrifice that preserves the freedoms we too often take for granted. it's a debt we can never fully repay. but it is a debt we will never stop trying to fully repay. >> president obama said the remaining 10,000 troop still stationed in iraq on a training mission should be home by the end of 2016. a group of u.s. navy veterans is still fighting for medical benefits. they say they were exposed to agent orange. but the u.s. government is refusing to government the costs. john terrett has the story. >> reporter: this man has been fighting the department of veteran affairs for years. >> i wanted to be in nam.

i wanted to go. and i did. >> reporter: he was an electrician on a kind of floating repair shop called the uss prairie. he is known today as a blue water vet. but 20 years ago, paul says he got sick. >> the doctor did blood work and came in the room and he goes how long have you been a diabetic? and i go i didn't know i was. >> reporter: with no family history, paul blames the diabetes and the prostate cancer a crippling burning sensation in his hands and feet on agent orange. agent orange is a defoliant the u.s. government used to better see the enemy. but paul says veterans affairs won't help him pay for treatment for his illnesses, firstly because it has no record of the usa prairie ever being in

vietnam. >> ships keep deck logs of what happened. and 43 years ago nothing was entered in the deck logs. >> reporter: and even if it was there, paul was a sailor at sea rather than a soldier with boots on the ground. the va points out that agent orange wasn't spayed at sea. >> we would pull in the salt water and desal vannize it. and when it is desalvanized it becomes thousands of times more concentrated than that on the ground. we were exposed. they do know it because from 1991 until 2002 the blue water navy veterans did receive from

the va benefits for disability in their illnesses from agent orange. >> reporter: but in 2002 the va changed its rules and excluded blue water veterans for claiming for illnesses that may be directly corrected to agent orange. >> agent gorge did not discriminate between those who stood on boats on rivers and those who stood on boats offshores. >> in a statement the va tells al jazeera america: >> my goal is simply to right this wrong as quickly as possible. >> reporter: former u.s. navy advisor, says these blue water

vets have been left behind but the head of the va has the power to act immediately. >> with the stroke of a pen today, he could say those veterans who served on ships are eligible for medical benefits. >> reporter: as he heads to work, the bumper sticker on his car says all you need to know. he is very proud of his service in vietnam, and now he just wants his government to step up to the plate in the same way that he did over 40 years ago. >> we served our country and we are sick from a chemical that was used during the war. and we need to be taken care of. >> reporter: john terrett, al jazeera, manchester connecticut. up next anger and unrest still brewing in cleveland after a police officer is acquitted of manslaughter. i'll talk to a political leader there about what is next for the city. and the humpback whale, why

some types could be removed from the endangered species list and why some conservationists mean it will spell disaster.

hi, everyone this is al jazeera america. i'm lisa fletcher. john siegenthaler is off. use of force, a police officer acquitted. a community demands answers. more protests and anger in cleveland. malaysia's mass graves. >> we have discovered 159, which we believe to be graves. >> evidence officials say of on epidemic of human smuggling. endangered or not? a new debate over the future of humpback whales hitting activists against big oil. plus hit maker -- ♪ >> he wrote some of the biggest songs of the 1970s, one on one

with country rock icon. there were more protests today in cleveland over the acquittal of police officer michael brelo on manslaughter charges. on saturday a jury cleared brelo in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black couple after a high-speed chase in 2012. dozens of protesters today were arraigned on misdemeanor charges. >> i think using terms like a lotters and thugs is unjust. >> i feel like this will send a message to other people and show that that it's a good cause and whatever cause it is to come together we can do it. >> meanwhile the city of cleveland has reached an agreement with the justice

department over excessive use of force. t.j. dow is a councilman and will be joining us a little later in the program to tell us how the city is moving forward. an iranian american journalist held in iran for ten months will begin his trial tomorrow. they had hoped for a public transparent trial, but that will not be the case. he was arrested last night on espionage charges. i spoke with his brother at length, who said that the charges are completely trumped up and his brother should not be used as a negotiating chip. police in malaysia have found mass graves along the board we are thailand. officials say they believe they contain the bodies of migrants

from camps run by human traffickers. >> reporter: police suspect people were held captive here by traffickers who were trying to extort ransom money from their passengers. the camps are now abandoned, but police think they have found mass graves nearby. >> we have discovered 139, which we believe to be graves. we don't know what are underneath. we also discovered one highly decomposed body and we will also bring that down. we will conduct postmortem on those remains which we found to get to the cause of death. >> reporter: around 28 abandoned camps were found along a 50-meter stretch of the border. many are thought to have come

from myanmar and bangladesh. more than 3,600 migrants from those countries have travelled to nia-malika henderson -- knee -- indonesia, thailand and malaysia. if they don't go by sea, many try escaping over land borders, the jungle is known to be used by both smugglers and traffickers. earlier this month, similar camps and more graves were found on the thai side of the border. >> the only thing that is surprising about this is the malaysian government didn't find these camps earlier. we have known there has been these camps on both sides of the border. now malaysia really has to investigate what was happening there, whether there was official complicity involved in the running of these camps, and

investigate and prosecute everybody who was involved. >> reporter: human rights watch also says there needs to be international pressure put on the myanmar government to stop the persecution of the rohingya people until the rohingya feel safe enough to say in myanmar, it is feared many more will parrish in trafficking camps or at sea. simon is the executive director of the advocacy group, u.s. campaign for burma. thanks for being here. >> good evening. >> good evening. >> 139 suspected graves in more than two dozen human trafficking camps. officials say there are signs of cruelty and torture, what is happening as people are being moved from bangladesh and myanmar primarily, into malaysia. >> i think what needs to be understand is the rohingya are

refugees and they are fleeing a campaign of ethnic cleansing by the burmese government. >> right, and approximately 120,000 have left in the last three years, and obviously they are trying to seek safe sanctuary, and the people they are paying to get them there are presumably turning on them in these jungle camps? what is happening? >> that's right. i think what is happening and what we have seen here in malaysia underscores the desperation that the rohingya feel in burma, having been denied citizenship, and been pushed out of their jobs and communities. these are desperate people who are escaping a campaign of ethnic cleansing. >> we know human traffickers are moving a lot of these people through a network of hidden jungle camps, that some of these camps hold 300 people. we have heard reports about

small wooden pens. how are people being held and once they get into this situation, what are their chances of getting out? >> certainly the conditions are very brutal and, you know, we're very concerned about that. and we're also very concerned about the rohingya who is currently stranded at sea and facing the fact that indonesia, thailand malaysia have been reluctant to let them in. >> and it seems like everybody is dealing with this with crisis mentality, and it is a crisis situation, but what is the front-end approach for the u.s. government and others in terms of dealing with the myanmar government to cut this off at the pass? >> well what the -- what the burmese government needs to do is -- is restore citizenship to the re-- rohingya that they

revoked for people who have been there for generations. we're seeing pattern by the burmese regime and we're calling on the government and calling on other governments to put pressure on them to stop this ethnic cleansing. >> what are you asking for? >> whatever it takes to get the burmese government to step back from this program of -- of ethnic cleansing, and, you know, one of the ways the u.s. government could do is, you know add burmese regime officials to the u.s. sanctions list. >> all right simon thanks for being with us tonight. u.s. government sharp shooters have started killing off thousands of birds in the pacific northwest. it's part of a planned reduction of the cormoranth population.

they want the flocks reduced from about 14,000 to 5600 by 2018. after four decades on the endangered species list, the humpback whale a making a comeback. the federal government is now looking to remove several types from the endangered species list. jake ward reports. >> reporter: there's something about humpback whales that human humans just can't get enough of. their haunting song their acrobatics their sheer size. captain nancy black grew up near san francisco. >> turn to the right a little bit and see if it pops up again. >> reporter: she opened her own whale-watching outfit 25 years ago. >> when i first started way back then there was thought to be

only about 400 off of california and now there's there -- close to 3,000. >> reporter: hunted almost to the point of extinction in the 1960s, they wound up on the endangered species list and now they are back. in a big way. >> they were on their way to extinction due to commercial whaling. and once that factor was removed he started to almost immediately see recoveries of the populations. and what we have been seening is the populations have doubled almost every decade. and there has been four decades since then. >> reporter: there are now an estimated 91,320 humpbacks in the world up from as little as 20,000 worldwide 20 years ago. now the united states is looking to sup divide the groups in 14

subgroups. humpbacks in the western north pacific and central america will be downgraded to threatened. california's whales and nine other subgroups would become just another mammal in the eyes of the law. >> reporter: the population seems to suggest they are doing pretty well the problem is when they come off of the endangered species list they will have even less protection. this is a humpback caught in a commercial fishing net. if humpbacks are delisted as endangered species that will still be protected in the u.s. by the marine mammal conservation act. but some worry it's not enough. >> the esa will offer protection

against any current and future projects such as oil and gas exploration or seismic drilling under the act they are apply for permit to harm or harass a certain number of whales. >> reporter: state officials have petitioned to take the humpback off of the endangered species act. >> our goal was to get it off of the list. >> reporter: so is this somebody the science or protecting economic interests? in alaska delisting the humpback would make things easier on the state's largest economic industries the oil and maritime industries. >> it's supposed to be a strictly biological analysis not really considering the economics, and -- but it -- but

there are economic concerns that bring the humpback population into focus. >> reporter: for captain black the endangered species act has given her a nearly lifelong relationship with individual whales. >> some of them we know you know by name because i have seen them over 20 years, so i hope to keep doing it for a lot longer, and i hope to help with the research and conservation and make sure they do stay a healthy population here. >> reporter: the act has by all accounts saved humpback whales. now we'll see whether it has done enough to let them survive on their own. >> j.d. has written some of the biggest rock and roll songs ever. he has been called the architect

of the southern california sound. >> i started playing violin in the fourth grade. i was still playing football. so i had to defend my violin and my honor, because i had to get to football practice. and playing in texas and carrying a violin it's a tough row aho. >> how does a kid from detroit come the architect of the southern california sound? >> i have no idea. because none of us are from there, except jackson brown. we were all sort of scattered -- and jackson lived there. he was local, but none of the rest of us were. >> do you know when you have got a hit song?

>> occasionally. three times i was pretty sure. a couple of times i have been wrong. >> which song? >> "best of my love." ♪ i know you were trying to give me the best of my love ♪ >> i was pretty sure that was a hit. "new kid in town" was a hit. you are only lonely absolutely sure. ♪ you're only lonely ♪ >> we actually halfway through that album before i reported that song, and they said don't you have anything up tempo? and i said not much, you know me. but i have this one song i wrote in colorado years ago, but it isn't finished. it didn't have a last part.

but i knew it was catchy and i played it. and he said see, sing the first verse again. so i did. and yeah i was pretty sure that was in the pocket. ♪ it's going to be a heart ache tonight, a heart ache tonight i know ♪ >> "heart ache tonight," you knew it. >> it felt like it. it just felt like it. and it came out the same time as "you're only lonely," so they were hits at the same time. it was a very good christmas. >> tell me about how you actually structure your writing? does it take a long period of time? >> yes. >> does it come overnight? >> let me stop you there, yes, it does. but you would also be right to state comes overnight. >> both. >> sometimes an idea will be so clear and easily realized that it is not a lot of work to finish it. but there is a critical point of

time company the ideology and when you get to the devil's laptop or even pick up a yellow legal tablet and a pencil things are still in flux and you go okay, freeze that. at least get that part on paper. and before you start spinning off into something else take one phrase of that and remember it. write that one thing down. ♪ you can run, run, run ♪ ♪ and never get it right ♪ >> what was it like to have the incredible success as -- as a song writer? >> it was strange, because i didn't -- i think i did everything i could sub consciously to keep that away from me to keep from feeling like, oh boy, i have got it made now. i know how to do this.

because in reality, if you love music, you are a student to the day you die. i hear tony bennett say he still feels like a student. >> did you want to be out front more? >> not a lot more. the good thing about being a writer is to get good tables but not so well-known to be bothered while you are eating. >> pleasure to meet you. and we look forward to more music. j.d. thank you. >> great pleasure. >> his new album, "tenderness" is available online. up next more on the situation in cleveland. and what memorial day means to the men and women in the u.s. armed forces. ♪

fault lines america's war workers only on al jazeera america

more now on the aftermath of the acquittal of cleveland police officer michael brelo. on saturday a judge cleared brelo in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black couple after a high-speed chase in 2012. councilman dow, were you surprised by the verdict? >> i was and i wasn't. one respect i did not understand and know why they did not charge all of the officers in the case. with 137 shots going into one car with two individuals in it i knew they were going to have an issue with causation. i saw that they were going to have an issue with causation. the felonious assault charge i

thought they would have a better shot with that but the judge ruled against it. there was a caucasian individual i talked about, and he said you know what that cap -- i mean that judge is not going to convict that cop. that's exactly what he told me. so i was and i wasn't .. i thought they would at least get the felonious assault charge. >> why do you think he thought that he wasn't going to be convicted this person who you said was white and influential. why do you think he said that to? >> one he looked at the judge himself and this was his own personal opinion. but also it's just the climate around the united states of america. it seems like there is always a shift towards believing a police officer over a regular citizen.

now this is a new phenomenon that is happening across the united states of america, or technology has shined a light on something that has been happening over time. with all of the cameras and things of that nature we have a situation where the spotlight is always on even with the rice case here in cleveland, we got word that the police officer stated to the young man put your hands up three times and he did not listen. that's before that they knew that there was a videotape which clearly showed that that was not the case. so i think with technology shining the light on some of these incidents, that's where the public outcry comes in and it kind of balances out some as well. but in situations they still seem to defer to the police officer's word. >> counselman there is going to be a federal review of this acquittal, what do you hope or expect to come out of it? >> well if there are any laws

that can take a closer look at this, i would well them come. since the federal government has been in cleveland, they have been like a breath of fresh air. i welcomed them from day one, because in the past the federal government has always been a champion for civil rights. so i welcomed them. i had a community meeting in my ward invited them out, and the community at once they said look, nothing is going to happen with this meeting. we're going to come talk and nothing is going to happen. but when i was able to tell them that the federal government was going to be in the meeting and to listen to them and all of this information would go in the consent degree that the city of cleveland and the federal government were in negotiates to -- it made them feel a little bit better that their complaints would not fall on deaf ears. >> the governor said he was very

proud of the way people handled themselves. what kind of reaction are you getting from them? and do you have any fears this will turn into a ferguson or a baltimore? >> i never thought it would turn into a ferguson or a baltimore, for the simple fact that i have been looking on facebook and black cleveland was not talking about rioting. everybody else was, but black cleveland was not. and if you look at some of the other cities like ferguson, we have been there. we know what devastation it brings to a community. i am in the 7th ward and we had rioted in the 60s, and we're still trying to recover from that. >> all right. councilman thing you so much for being with us tonight. now to tonight's fist person report. it comes from captain james

smith of the united states marine corps. he talked about what memorial day means to him. >> all of the marines here are stationed in north carolina where the [ inaudible ] is stationed. we embarked upon the uss san antonio, which is designed specifically to carry marines. as soon as we pulled in and got moored up there were events we had to go to and marines tackled the task. and they have been definitely enjoying themselves. this is my first fleet week and this opportunity came and i was pretty excited. so wearing the uniform is -- it's an honor, so the opportunity to wear it on liberty and be out and about on the streets of new york and see a little kid's eyes light up and people thank you, which is pretty humbling. you know, because -- because we're just -- we're just doing

our part the same way as anybody else. so that's a pretty a pretty moving moment. so memorial day is kind of a special day in the marine corps, and special day in america, but also i think for -- it's a time to remember everybody who's spent their time and particularly paid the ultimate sacrifice. veteran's day in november is a big day, but memorial day when you take the time to think about those who sacrifice, it's -- it's pretty daunting. last year we were in afghanistan, and we took some time as -- as a unit -- you know we -- we just came together, and my co read a poem about -- about the sacrifices and he just take some time to think about guys. everybody knows somebody who -- who's paid that ultimate

sacrifice or come home with the wounds of combat and you are fortunate if you don't, and i'm fortunate to have known those guys. so memorial day is a pretty special time.

four years ago, a new country was born. after decades of civil war with the north of sudan, it was meant to be a dream come true. but today, south sudan has disintegrated into chaos. the new president and vice president have gone to war with each other.