breaking news this morning. freedom for the american mom jailed in mexico. her dramatic release, her emotional reunion with her family, and just moments ago, these words. >> i'm free! i shout, like, i'm free, i'm free! i was innocent, so i was very, very happy to be out. >> we talked to her this morning. person of interest. investigators now questioning a texas man possibly linked to those ricin-laced letters sent to the president and the new york mayor. what led these investigators to him? first on cnn, terror on tape. the two boston bombers just three days before they set off explosives, caught on video. what the video can tell investigators. >> chilling. and then, under the sea, and causing a stir. it is the documentary, fake documentary, about mermaids, yes, mermaids, that had viewers

hook, line, and sinker. so why did the united states government have to respond to this? it is an amazing story. good morning, everyone. i'm john berman. >> i'm christine romans. it is friday, may 31st. welcome to "starting point." and we do have a great deal of news this morning, but we want to get first to the breaking news. the arizona mother, finally free after a horrifying week in a mexican jail. a judge in nogales released yanira maldonado this morning. she was arrested last week after authorities claimed they found 12 pounds of marijuana under her bus seat. this mother of seven thanking god, thanking her family, and thanking her lawyers for her newfound freedom. rafael romo is live for us in kn nogal nogales, arizona, this morning. what's the latest? >> reporter: it's been a very difficult couple of weeks for yanira, maldonado. first, she lost her aunt, a woman who helped raise her in mexico. then she spent her first wedding

anniversary behind bars. but this morning she's a free woman and is back on american soil. it happened just before midnight, an american mother of seven jailed in mexico for more than a week, finally released. tearfully embracing her husband, and thanking her supporters. >> i want to say thanks first to god that i'm free now. he sent me good people my way and i'm very grateful that i'm free, for my family, my children and a special thanks to my lawyer, my counsel from nogales, the u.s., nogales, arizona, that they were there to help me. >> reporter: yanira maldonado and her family never wavered from claiming her innocence after mexican officials accused her of trying to smuggle 12 pounds on to a bus.

shortly after her release, yanira maldonado addressed the media, recounting the moment she learned she was going home. >> so i signed the paper and he said that i would be released. >> what was your reaction? >> i screamed. like, yes! >> reporter: maldonado, a u.s. citizen, born in mexico, was in her native country last week for a funeral with her husband, gary, and chose to ride a bus back to the u.s. the bus was stopped at a checkpoint. that's when troops claim they found the marijuana under her seat and eventually arrest ed maldonado. but last night a judge determined the prosecution had not provided enough evidence when he was shown surveillance video of the couple boarding the bus, carrying only a purse, two blankets, and two bottles of water. but maldonado has hope in her accusers. >> to be good, to repent, i don't want know. to work honest, you know, to

find a job and, a decent job, where they can make a living not putting innocent people through these nightmares. >> reporter: gary and yanira maldonado were planning to travel back home to goodyear, arizona, near phoenix, where they will be reunited with their seven children. >> we wish them the best as they get reunited. and just in the last hour, yanira maldonado and her husband, gary, joined us by phone. here's what the just-freed grandmother had to say us. >> yanira, let me just ask you right off the bat, how you doing? >> i'm doing fine. i'm here with my husband and my in-laws. >> when are you going to go home? you want to go home soon, i hope. you want to see your kids? when will you be leaving the country? >> yes, we are hopefully going

today to see the kids. >> so at this point in the interview, the call actually dropped out. we're going to try to get the maldonados back live in the 8:00 hour here on "starting point." >> all right, we're joined now from philadelphia by noted criminal defense attorney, danny savalos. so why was she released? that video evidence, pressure coming from her family, or the fact that this was an international impairment at some point? >> well, first, let's start with family. family, probably not. foreigners get arrested every day in mexico. americans and otherwise. and family petitions go really unnoticed and mexican government doesn't have to respond to them. u.s. government pressure, possibly. but ultimately, it's this video evidence. mexican criminal procedure is actually a little similar in

that they have a probable cause or a probable responsibility hearing. so the judge has to decide if there's probable responsibility to hold the case over for trial. in this case, that video evidence likely persuaded the judge, and that with which the sophistication with which this package was attached under the seat, pretty much established that it's highly, highly unlikely this woman was able to sneak it on board and then hook it under her seat. >> is she free and clear at this point? are there any other further legal hurdles she may face? >> just like in the united states, in a probable cause hearing, at the probable responsibility hearing, if the judge has released her and not on bail, but if he's kicked the case, in other words, thrown out the case, then she should be completely free and clear. whether her arrest record stays on the file is probably something she may not even care about. the most important thing is the criminal charges are likely gone forever. >> but there were drugs on this bus, or someone claiming there were drugs on this bus that

weren't hers. so what about repercussions for officials in mexico, whether this was part of a bribe or part of smuggling by the bus? >> i don't think we should be too optimistic. my family lived in mexico for 20 years. in my opinion, i don't believe there's going to be a high-level investigation. and the reality is, even when criminals are found not guilty, that doesn't always mean there's an investigation into the illegality of their detention. i'm hearing there was an individual who pled the scene when the bus was stopped. that may or may not be a person of interest, but i doubt the investigation is going to go much further than the seizure of contraband, the drugs that were found on this bus. >> danny cevalos, thanks for your expertise. >> something so fishy going on right there. wonder who is behind it all. we're also following new developments thrk this morning in the case of those threatening

letters believed to have containcontain ed poison. a break in the case has brought fbi investigators to a small town in texas and that's where we find ed lavendera this morning, live in new boston, texas. ed, what's going on there this morning? >> reporter: good morning, john. this is a small town, population about 4,500 people, tucked away in the northeast corner of this state. and this is the last place neighbors in this neighborhood would have thought the ricin investigation would have ended up. law enforcement officials are questioning a man at this new boston, texas, home, about threatening letters believed to have contained ricin, sent to president obama, new york city mayor michael bloomberg, and a gun control group. >> it kind of hits home a little bit more when it could be someone right down the street. >> reporter: the three suspicious letters were postmarked in shreveport, l louisiana. the ones addressed to the president and mayor bloomberg

never reached them. white house spokesman jay carney has emphasized this in the past, when other threatening letters were sent to the president. >> the mail sent here is screened and that these tests are undertaken at remote sites to mitigate the risk both to those recipients and to the general population. >> reporter: the fbi is now testing the letters sent to president obama. meanwhile, the new york city police department says that preliminary testing on the bloomberg letter came back positive for ricin, a potenti potentially deadly poison made from caster beans. the third letter was opened by its director. a police report says that that letter contained a whiti whitish/orange substance. the letters contained an ominous message. "you will have to kill me and my family before you get my guns, "it read. "anyone who wants to come to my house will be shot in the face. the right to bear arms is my constitutional, god-given right and i will exercise that right 'til the day i die. what's in this letter is nothing

compared to what i've got planned for you." the the battle over gun control really behind these threats? >> well, that's how it seems. now, it could also be somebody on the other side, you know, trying to make their on the by, you know, blaming the people who believe in gun rights. >> reporter: this latest round of threats has many wondering if ricin is becoming the weapon of choice for intimidation. >> ricin is probably one of the worse ways to try to kill somebody. i don't see it as a real threat in the sense of the actual capability to kill, but rather to intimidate and attract publicity. >> reporter: so the investigation remains focused here on this house you see behind me. neighbors here tell us they saw fbi agents going in and out of the house repeatedly and at one point bringing out electronic equipment. john and christine? >> ed lavendera, that search taking us to new boston, texas, where we find you this morning. >> and also developing this morning, the persistent, dangerous threat of tornado slowly moving to the east. oklahoma up to the great lakes

bracing for severe storms today. one tornado tore through odin, arkansas, yesterday, ripping the roofs away. meteorologist indrid peterson is following the severe weather threats for us this morning. >> we keep talking about this. i still feel like this broken record. that powerful storm system that has moved through the midsection of the country, it wreaked havoc yesterday, spotting tornadoes, large lightning, and lots of hail. and on the east coast, people are enduring the first heat wave of the season. turnl tornadoes touching down in tulsa and cushing, oklahoma, on thursday night. >> this is our view of it. there's your wall cloud right there. look at that wall cloud, dude. that's coming straight at us. look at that mesocyclone. >> reporter: both just north of the city of moore that was pummeled by a devastating tornado last week. and over in arkansas, this tornado swirling into a waterspout over lake washta.

and floodwaters rising past the headlights of cars in kansas, leaving some stranded and others just looking for a place to keep dry. >> l.a. county fire responded very quickly. you can see the number of fire trucks out there. >> reporter: and then there's the heat. out west, firefighters battling a raging wildfire near santa clarita, california, that has scorched at least 400 acres of land. >> this firefight still very, very active and probably will be for some time. >> reporter: in the east, the first signs of summer in new york's central park. from the splashes to the scoops to the first slathers of sun block, the heat wave has officially arrived. >> i guess it wasn't the smartest idea to go get some ice cream. it's melted. >> reporter: melting ice cream, a welcome sight after the late-season memorial day snowstorm had places like vermont measuring snow in feet. upstate new york weathered the late flurries and broke

40-year-old record. >> it was freezing like three days ago. >> we've had all seasons in one week. >> yeah. >> here we go again today. here's the severe outrook for today, today stretching out from the great lakes all the way towards texas. pay attention to the pulse aye around oklahoma city, moore, and also including joplin. tough weather today. everyone rae needs to pay attention to that moore area. >> hate to see that red spot on the map. all week, this goes on and on and on. >> i windshield i could get rid of it. indra peterson, thanks so much. ahead on "starting point," first on cnn, the alleged boston bombers caught on tape just days before they committed the act of terror. what this new video can tell investigator. >> and live pictures of a plane that crashed into aing virginia home overnight. and plus, another plane crashed directly into the front door of this home. and in both cases, both cases, no one was killed. we'll tell you what happened. you're watching "starting point." [ female announcer ] pop in a whole new kind of clean with tide pods.

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first on cnn, a new development in the boston marathon bombings. we have obtained surveillance video that shows the tsarnaev brothers working out at a boston gym just three days before the bombs went off at the finish line. the bombing suspects worked out with a friend on april 12th. the manager says that tamerlan tsarnaev was so difficult that he wanted to ban him from the gym. cnn's deborah feyerick has been all over this video, really interesting. she joins us now with more. >> one of the reasons it is so interesting is also because this is the first video we actually see of the brothers together, prior to the bombing. we're seeing them separately, individually, but we're seeing them now together for the first time. investigators piecing together what was going on in the days leading up. at least now we know a piece of it. 72 hours before the bomb's detonated, almost to the minute, suspects tamerlan and dzhokhar tsarnaev worked out together at a gym this boston. security cameras at the y crew mixed martial arts center show

the brothers arriving with a friend. we spoke to the manager, who asked that we only use his first name, michael. he said tamerlan who you see in the hat looked differently. noticeably missing, tamerlan's fu full, bushy religious beard. the manager describes tamerlan as extremely opinionated and outspoken about his muslim religion and didn't ask tamerlan why he had shaved. now he wonders whether tamerlan's shaving the beard might have been part of a ritual purification prior to death. >> shaving the beard may be a way to blend in, not to attract scrutiny from security services in carrying out the boston attacks. >> reporter: tamerlan trained at y crew for several times a month for free, professional courtesy to the golden gloves boxer. dzhokhar rarely came, showing up

two or three times in three years. >> we've seen with western jihadists a real emphasis on physical training, physical fitness, wanting to be prepared for jihad. >> reporter: almost immediately, the manager who is offscreen to the right, asks the men to follow posted gym rules and take off their shoes. younger brother, dzhokhar, complies right away, tamerlan does not, arguing with instead. the manager e-mails the owner, asking him to ban tamerlan, calling him arrogant, selfish, never helping anyone else. the argument doesn't seem to phase tamerlan, who's the first one in the ring. his years of training are evident. watch how skillfully he handles the jump rope. dzhokhar has more difficulty and less stamina as he struggles to hold up the oversized shorts. the manager says the man in the middle was introduced as a friend. we've blurred his face. he was later questioned and released by the fbi.

tamerlan remains focused, barely missing a stride. it's here that the brothers interact. they seem relaxed. dzhokhar resting at times. tamerlan moving, moving, working out before two bombs exploded near the finish line of the boston marathon. >> fbi agents did see this tape. what they did in their rush is they took screen grabs, because this cape to their attention pretty early on in the investigation. one other note, the man who was killed in florida, the friend of tsarnaev's, inrahebragim todashe worked of out that gym years earlier. >> deborah feyerick, thanks so much. ahead on sta"starting poin, the mcdonald's diet. the ceo of the fast food chain says he lost 20 pounds and did it while still eating

mcdonald's every day. plus, we'll take you live to the arizona home of the mother just released from mexico. her family and friends now anxiously awaiting her return. you're watching "starting point."

listen, your story line, it makes for incredible tv drama. thing is, your drug use is too adult for the kids, so i'm going to have to block you.

oh, man. yeah. [inhales] well, have a good one. you're a nice lady.

welcome back to "starting point." new numbers show unemployment in europe hitting a record high. now 12.2%. here in the u.s., the unemployment rate is 7.5% and declining. in europe, it is rising. dow futures down about 75 points this morning. president obama will be surrounded by college students at the white house to warn they could soon be paying a lot more for student loans, very soon. interest rates on

government-backed loans are set to double july 1st, unless congress does something about it. that means those interest rates go up to 6.8%. that affects 7 million college students. the house recently passed a bill that would prevent that increase, but rates would be variable. president obama wants a fixed rate and says he'll veto that house plan. is it possible to lose weight while eating mcdonald's every day? the mcdonald's ceo, don thompson, says he has done it. >> i eat at mcdonald's every day. every single day. in the last year or so, i'm down about 20 or so pounds. i'm sharing my personal stuff now. you know, i didn't change eating at mcdonald's every day, i got my butt up and started working out again. >> no word on exactly what he's eating off the menu or what his workout is. >> i'm willing to try that. >> eat mcdonald's every day? you're the last person i think -- >> i love mcdonald's. ahead on starting point,

live pictures of yanira maldonado's home where she's expected to arrive after being freed a mexican jail. and planes are falling out of the sky. this is one of two planes that crashed into a home overnight and in both instances, everyone survived. you're watching "starting point." [ female announcer ] what if the next big thing, isn't a thing at all? it's lots of things. all waking up. ♪

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7 grams of protein the new fiber one caramel nut protein bar. it's not for colds. it's not for pain. it's just for sleep. because sleep is a beautiful thing™. ♪ zzzquil™. the non-habit forming sleep-aid from the makers of nyquil®. welcome back to "starting point." i'm john berman. >> and i'm christine romans. >> we have breaking news. the arizona mother jailed in mexico and accused of smuggling drugs is a free woman this morning. overnight, a mexican judge released yanira maldonado. police claimed they had found 12 pounds of pot underneath her bus seat last week. maldonado walked out of her cell less than six hours ago, thanking god, thanking her family, thanking her attorneys. casey wian is live from

goodyear, arizona, right now, where maldonado lives. what's the latest, casey? >> reporter: the latest is that family members of yanira maldonado are obviously very, very excited. i spoke with her daughter, who was distraught during the week that her mother spent in that mexican jail. she, of course, looking very much forward to the arrival later today of her mother, yanira maldonado. here is what she had to say, just after she was released from prison and crossed over the border from nogales, mexico, to nogales, arizona. >> i'm free! like, i'm free, i'm free! i'm free. i was innocent, so i was very, very happy to be out. >> reporter: it was apparent to the family, all along, they were adamant that she was innocent in this case. and as testimony was unveiled throughout the week in a mexican court, it was very clear that prosecutors had no case.

first of all, the mexican military officials who arrested yanira maldonado did not show up to testify as scheduled yesterday. and then video emerged of her and her husband, gary, boarding that bus, where the marijuana was found. they were carrying nothing other than a couple of blankets, bottles of water, and a small purse. very, very happy for the maldonado family here in goodyear, arizona. >> we heard her say that she found out last night at about 9:00 that she was going to be released and when she got the news, she screamed she was so happy. what can you tell us about her arrival? >> reporter: we know they plan to speak to the media later this afternoon. we expect that they will arrive at the home, here. before that, we don't have an exact arrival time. it's about a 2 1/2, to 3-hour drive from nogales to goodyear. my sense is they're probably getting a little bit of

well-deserved rest in nogales right now before they start that trip back home. >> well-deserved, that's an understatement. casey wian in goodyear, arizona. we'll hear from you again this morning. thanks, casey. now to a developing story out of syria, where a woman from michigan is the latest victim of that country's bloody civil war. syrian tv reporting a 33-year-old female from flint, michigan, has been killed by government forces in syria. they claim she and two other westerners died fighting for the opposition. nick paton walsh tracking these developments for us. he joins us live from beirut, lebanon, this morning. good morning, what can you tell us, nic. >> we know very little apart from that what state tv in syria is willing to tell us. they show her passport, the passport of what appears to be british man alongside that. the gulf they were ambushed in

the northern city, hotly contested. we know the identity of the woman, butwe we're not releasin that until it's 100% confirmed that it's the woman shown in the pictures. but this part of the assad regime's contention that foreigners are assisting them. >> translator: arabs have forgotten the real enemy is israel and engaged themselves in fights amongst themselves. we remind arab nations that our enemy remains in the same place. >> reporter: so, of course, clearly, they're making the case, president assad, that israel has somehow involved in this syrian civil war. that's been his justification for allowing hezbollah, the big militant group here in lebanon to join on his side in the fighting. the bad news is for many in this region, they see the syrian civil war as purely many civil rebels against a mostly shia

regime. >> nick paton walsh, live for us this morning in beirut. new questions over the fallout of a man shot dead by the fbi. abdulbaki todashev is waiting for a visa so he can come to the u.s. and bring his son's body back to chechnya. he says he doesn't understand why ibragim todashev had to die. he said he was unarmed and surrounded by four or five agents when he was shot seven times. >> translator: he didn't pose any threat to them, but even if he threatened them with his fists, couldn't he shoot his leg? my son couldn't attack them, because he's not crazy. i don't know how they could shoot him like that. >> the father also claims his son was not close with the boston bombing suspect, tamerlan tsarnaev, only knowing him through training at the same gym. but the u.s. says both were involved in a previously unsolved triple murder. former secretary of state hillary clinton may be losing some of her luster. a just-released quinnipiac university poll shows she's still pretty popular with a 52%

approval rating, but that is down sharply from february, when she had an all-time high of 61%. the poll also shows that if clinton were to throw her hat into the presidential ring in 2016, she leads potential republican challenger rand paul and former florida governor, jeb bush. an asteroid nearly two miles wide will pass by planet earth today. at its closest point, the asteroid will be 2.6 million miles away from planet earth. indra peterson will join us to tell us what we can expect. that is, as berman says, a close shave. >> not as close as what we thought back in february, but this guy is huge. you just mentioned, two miles long, two miles wide, basically. if that hit the earth, it would be absolutely catastrophic. it would take us out. the dinosaurs, it was only five times bigger of an asteroid than this. but it is for a far enough away, we're talking 3.6 million miles

away. and which can out how fast this guy is moving, 23,666 miles per hour. put that in perspective, that's 15 times faster than a bullet. now, yes, it's big, but so far out there, very tough to see. it's still a hundred times lighter than the lightest star out there. you'll still need a telescope. viewing, 4:59 today, but the best place to see it, even with a telescope, is going to be in africa. but there's some cool stuff about this guy. remember the last time that meteor in february, or asteroid in february, was in our satellite's orbit. so a lot closer than the moon. this is 15 times the farther than the moon, which is a good thing, considering how big it is, but it has its own little moon surrounding this. that's what's so fascinating about this. but we were tracking this really close call, and then a completely different meteor actually struck russia. that's what's so crazy. space is so huge, there's so many things out there, we can't track anything.

so, no, this isn't supposed to hit us today, by that doesn't mean that there's something else out there somewhere. >> i have never heard someone so excited by an asteroid before. there are like 10,000 separate facts there, each more interesting than the last. indra peterson is an expert at not just what happens inside our atmosphere, but beyond as well. >> it means i'm out there, right. >> please change the name under her name to say space cadet. and makes us all feel very insignificant. doesn't it make you feel insignificant when you're talking about meteors and asteroids. >> i have that feeling every day. >> indra, thank you. oprah winfrey offering college advice at graduates at hartford. she received an honorary doctorate of law at the university. she told graduating students, there's no such thing as failure. >> the challenge of life, i have found, is to build a resume that doesn't simply tell a story

about what you want to be, but it's a story about who you want to be. when you inevitably stumble and find yourself stuck in a hole, that is the story that will get you out. >> oprah also told the crowd to keep in mind one goal. everyone should strive to be the most highest, truthful expression of yourself as a human being. you want to max out your humanity. >> good advice. and now your morning dose of news about mythical creatures. animal planet's "mermaids: the new evidence," it had 3.6 million viewers, making it the highest rated program in the channel's 17-year history. so this show was so convincing that many viewers were left scratching their heads and wondering if mermaids are actually real. >> what is that? >> oh, my god! >> what is that! >> reporter: so what is that creature on top of a rock, supposedly captured on film by

tourists? >> that is not a seal, man! >> oh, my god! oh, my god! >> many watching animal planet's "mermaids: the new evidence," saw it as proof that mermaids do exist. the show presented as a documentary, details close encounters with the mythical sea creatures. >> dr. paul robertson, welcome. >> reporter: it even featured guests, purporting to be scientists from the national oceanic and atmospheric administration or noaa. but it was all in the name of entertainment. and it turns out dr. robertson is not really a scientist. so many viewers were fooled, noaa, a federal agency, felt compelled to issue a statement. it said, neither noaa nor its scientists are involved with anything related to this topic. no one from noaa was involved in making the fictional show and the person identified as a noaa scientist was an actor. if you watched the show closely

enough, animal planet did include this disclaimer during the closing credits, "certain events in this film are fictional." disappoints viewers took to twitter after discovering the show was fictional. animal planet, you are dead to me. you got me on your little mermaid hoax. "what was the freaking point?" one said. fascination with merpeople is not new. films like "splash" and "the little mermaid" as hoped people's minds to the possibility of people under the sea. that's what the show's creator wanted. he said the show is based on real-life phenomenon. rooting our story with facts encouraged a sense of intellectual possibility. >> what is that? >> oh, my god! >> what is that? >> what -- >> it looks like a see lion. >> what could it be? >> this is the second time that

people were duped. this was actually a sequel to the wildly successful "mermaid: the body found," which aired last year on animal planet. my favorite part of this, besides the use of the word "merpeople" is that the government had to actually issue a denial that it wasn't study. i wish they had to say, we had to cut back on our merpeople investigation because of the sequester. >> i wonder how many people were actually believe they were watching a true documentary. ahead on "starting point" -- ♪ you can play the game >> the very notable boston natives who returned to their beloved city to help the victims of the marathon bombings. awesome concert. you're watching "starting point."

good friday morning. welcome back to "starting point." the miami heat are one win from heading back to the nba finals. lebron james outscored the pacers all by himself. >> meanwhile, joe carter has more on this morning's bleacher report. great to see you this morning,

jeff. >> good to see you again too, guys. lebron james, we talk a lot about him, but he had one heck of a game last night. and i'll tell you, it seems like he might have saved the series for the miami heat with his play in the third quarter. he potentially lifted them into a position where they'll be back in the championship in a matter of days. and this series has been described as an extremely physical one. you see it there, when chris anderson and tyler hansbrough get into it. in the third quarter, when the heat came out of the half, they were down by four. lebron james gave him a pep talk, and he was inspired by himself, because he outscored the pacers by himself in the third quarter alone, 16 to 13. miami broke it occupy from there. they won the game by 11 points and now they lead the series three games to two. game six, a very important one for both teams, obviously, is saturday night in indiana. this video you're seeing is not from a window washer, but it's from a helmet cam worn by lsu football coach les miles.

they call him the mad hatter for many reasons, but here's he's repelling down the side of a 24-story building in downtown, baton rouge, and he did it for the over the edge for adoption charity, 300 plus feet of fun. right after the first pitch at the kansas city royals game, boyfriend travis surprised his girlfriend by dropping down on one need. travis said he thought it was a good time to thank the person who saved his life. see, just before valentine's day this year, guys, she gave him one of her kidneys. travis was born with only 25% of a functional kidney. she wanted to be a perfect match. they'd on been dating for ten months when she decided to donate her kidney to him. the reason why she wanted to propose to her at the game, is because that's where they shared their first date together. nice story. >> there is so much awesome about that story. >> that story is very sweet. nothing else i take away from friday, it's going to be that story. >> joe carter, thank you very much, have a nice weekend.

up next, a who's who of boston natives returning to their city. they love to rock out and raise money for victims of the boston marathon bombings. we'll show you the highlights. you're watching "starting point." [ male announcer ] it's intuitive and customizable, just like a tablet. so easy to use, it won a best of ces award from cnet. and it comes inside this beautifully crafted carrying case. introducing the all-new 2014 chevrolet impala with the available mylink system. ♪ [ beeps ] ingeniously connecting you to your life and the road. that's american ingenuity to find new roads. 100% greek. 100% mmm... wow, that is mmm... it's so mmm you might not believe it's a hundred calories. yoplait greek 100. it is so good.

they were boston strong in words and music. a benefit concert featuring aerosmith, james taylor, raising money for the victims of the marathon attack. brooke baldwin was there. ♪ i love that dirty water boston, you're my town ♪

>> a quintessential boston song, normally reserved for fenway, foxborough and the td garden, thursday night a whole new level of victory taking center stage. ten star-studded bands and artists with ties to boston, sharing the stage and helping raise money for boston's one fund. aerosmith, new kids on the block, jimmy buffet and james taylor. >> we'll sing sweet baby james. it's got that line. >> after the bombs went off on boylston street, boston-born james taylor got a call from an old pal to help. taylor didn't hesitate. he knows his music helps heal. >> i don't know. a lot of my song s songs were w

to make people feel better. and sometimes that resonates with other people too. so you -- you write a piece of music or a song that -- that -- that sort of has the purpose of seeing you through a tough time or putting something out there that you feel internally. >> reporter: and in 15,000 fans, boston strong. >> celebrating the city and the pride of the city and hopefully making something good out of a bad event. here to celebrate. >> we want to be part of it. i wouldn't not be here. >> "dirty water" ending the whole show with "dirty water." a special boston song. >> i forgot about it. but it seems like the perfect song to play. >> jimmy buffet, a alabama native who fell in love with new

england decades ago when he was playing opening act. he met with bombing survivor jeff bauman backstage. what's your message for boston? >> i called an old friend, and he is a guitar player and talking about it was interesting to see exactly very much revered in the city with a -- a kind of a -- an image of a les paul electric guitar. maybe they should keep that in paul's hand. they did a poster, but wouldn't be nice if paul had one. and then james said -- somebody said what do you think it should be? >> and don't mess with boston. this city is something wicked special. brooke baldwin, cnn. boston.

♪ >> wicked special indeed. brooke is watching from boston logan's airport with a crowd of people. hi, brooke. thanks for watching. boston strong. >> she got the best, best assignment of the day. >> i know, i hate her. the arizona grandmother released overnight from a mexican jail. yanira maldonado, telling cnn how it feels to be free. are we'll go to nogales, arizona, at the top of the hour. >> and the winner, at the top of the spelling world. how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed much is the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪

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our "starting point." breaking news overnight. an american mother held in a mexican jail on drug smuggling charges, released, just hours ago. >> i'm free! . i am free, i'm free. i'm free. i was innocent, so i was very, very happy. to be out. >> such a wonderful sight. the moment she was reunited with her husband, what may have convinced the judge to let her go. first on cnn. brand new video showing the

boston bombing suspects working out in the gym, just three days before they allegedly unleashed terror on the marathon. why it may show warning signs of the horror to come. plus, what's going on here? planes falling out of the sky. not one, but two instances of small planes crashing into homes. get this. everyone survives. dramatic footage ahead. and is justin bieber's bad behavior fwgone too far? the cops want to talk to him after he sped through the neighborhood. why won't he go in? i'm christine romans. >> i'm john berman. welcome to "starting point." breaking news. the arizona mother accused of smuggling drugs is finally free from a mexican jail. a judge in nogales released yanira mall donaldo after last week it was claimed that 12 pounds of marijuana were found

underneath her bus seat. we are live from nogales, what's the latest? >> reporter: john it has been both an emotional and joyful morning for yanira maldonado. only 24 hours ago, she was facing the prospect of subpoenaing years in prison. instead this morning, she is getting ready to be reunited with her three children and four stepchildren. it happened just before midnight an american mother of seven jailed in mexico for more than a week, finally leased. tearfully embracing her husband, thanking her supporters. >> i want to thank first god that i'm free now. and he sent good people my way, and i'm very grateful that i'm free. for my family, my children, and special thanks to my lawyer, my

counsel from nogales, arizona. >> yanira and her family never waivered from claiming her innocence, after mexican officials accused her of trying to smuggle 12 pounds of marijuana on a bus. yanira recounted the moment she learned she was going home. >> i signed the paper and he said i had been released. >> what was your reaction? >> i screamed? yes. >> reporter: maldonadmaldonado, citizen born in mexico was in her native country for a funeral with her husband gary and chose to ride a bus back to the u.s. the bus was stopped at a checkpoint, and troops clammed they found marijuana under her seat and arrested mall dodonado.

the judge was shown surveillance video of the couple boarding a bus, carrying only a purse, two blankets and two bolttles of water. she has hope in her accusers. >> to be good, to repent, to work honest, you know, to find a job and -- a decent job where they can make a living not putting innocent people through these nightmares. >> reporter: it has been a very difficult two weeks for yanira maldonado. first, her aunt died in mexico, and she had to attend her funeral, then she had to spend her first wedding anniversary last saturday behind bars, but this morning, back on american soil and very glad to be with her family. >> rafael, so bizarre she was arrested and taken in in the

first place. the question, what set her free? the surveillance video from the bus that ultimately cleared her? >> reporter: definitely that video. and when i spoke to her attorney a couple days ago, he said we have more than enough evidence to prove that yanira maldonado is completely innocent. and this video was very important it showed both yanira maldonado and her husband gary boarding the bus with only two small blankets, two bottles of water, and her purse. there was no way that they were going to get on a bus, unnoticed with more than 12 pounds of marijuana and that's ultimately what might have swayed the judge to make -- to issue this ruling in her favor, john. >> it just wasn't there. wasn't possible looking at those pictures. then, what are the consequences going to be for the people who detained her?

>>. >> reporter: it is unknown at this point. but the three soldier who's arrested the couple last wednesday did not testify this past wednesday, and they simply didn't show up for court and that's the moment when the prosecution's case started crumbling. not knowing whether they are still assigned to the same checkpoint. but there will be many questions asked about what exactly happened in this case, john. >> rafael romo reporting in nogales, arizona, thank you for the report. fbi investigators are swarming a house in new boston, texas. questioning a person of interest in connection with threatening letters believed to contain poison that were sent to president obama, new york mayor michael bloomberg and the gun control lobbying office in washington. the feds were reportedly contacted by the man's wife. and we are following new developments live in new boston.

>> this is a small town, population about 4,500 people. tucked away in the northeast corner of texas. and fbi investigators have spent the better part, well into yesterday as well at this house yo see behind me. neighbors saw teams of fbi agents going in and out of house, bringing out electronic equipment. we've seen fbi agents staked out here at the house throughout the night. they have not -- fbi officials have not released anything officially publicly about what exactly is going on, it seems like the focus of the ricin investigation is turned on to this neighborhood here in the town of new boston, texas. this is all stemming from the ricin letters sent to three places, including mayor mike bloomberg's office in new york city as well as president obama's office. ith important to point out, these letter were detected in an offsite facility, and they never got to mayor bloomberg or

president obama. included in the note, ominous messages sent and included in those letters that talked about gun right and that sort of thing, and a lot of people asking here this morning, christine and john, whether this ricin letter incident has anything to do with the gun control debate. christine, john. >> such an interesting story. thank you, ed. also, the persistent and dangerous threat of tornadoes moving slowly to the east. oklahoma up to the great lakes, bracing for severe storms today. one tornado tore through odon, arkansas, yesterday, ripping off roofs. inra petersons is showing us how much of the country this covers. >> unbelievable. usually at this hour. this is usually when we get a break. you can see the instability we have although this hour. lightning, strong showers pushing through st. louis. here is the severe outlook today. slight risk moving all the way from the great lakes down again through the panhandle of texas. notice where the bull's-eye is,

one more type. talking norman oklahoma, even through joplin, that threat for isolated tornadoes, not to mention, of course, the large hail, pounding winds and heavy rain. other story continues to be the huge heat wave over the northeast. look at these, 22 degrees above normal in boston today. 13 degrees above normal even in dc, but there is good news this is what i want to show you. it's too hot out there. and notice as we go through the air. sixty 60s on the way, but it will take a couple days to get there. transfer will be hot in boston this weekend, berman. >> i know. cnn obtained video of the tsavraev brothers working out together, only days before the attack. first on cnn here. security cameras at the this mixed martial arts center in boston show the tsavraev brothers on friday, april 12th with a friend.

tamerlan, seen wearing that hat, looked different. apparently shaved off his beard he before. before they even get started with the workout. tamerlan seen getting into a fight. an argument with the manager about taking his shoes off, which is apparently a policy at the gym. and then the brothers begin their workout. tamerlan's years of training as a golden glove boxer is apparent in the video very nimble, more so than his brother. >> and first time we've seen them together except for the still photos of them walking down boilston street, the moments just before the bombings. and juliette kayykayem with us e boston. what do you take from this? >> brothers are very calm.

sort of consistent with how casual they are. odd. the behavior leading up to the attack. didn't try to hide. weren't staying away from people and afterward with the four days we had in boston with their -- you know, the fact that they had no exit strategy. but you see tamerlan. he's -- you know, we know now from his biography, he was a bully. very belligerent. that martial arts is consistent with that. and the fight he leading into the gym seems to be part of the narrative. >> so interesting. you talk about the manager of the gym saying, you know, he didn't want to ask him about the beard being gone, didn't want to get into a long, drawn out conversation that could be contentious. and the argument about taking his shoes off. it almost seems as though this is a guy walking around with a big chip on his shoulder.

>> yeah. that's exactly right. consistent with what we're finding out about tamerlan. he was the more aggressive brother obviously the ring leader and everyone who encountered him found him -- from his wife to associates to people at the gym, you know, he was a violent guy. and whether there is any clues in the fact that he shaved or his behavior beforehand, that's being investigated right now. but when we look at the sort of individual terrorist attacks, brothers who sort of, you know, planned this attack, they seem to be very, very casual about it. and that i think is the most sort of scary thing about the investigation going on right now. >> just watching these pictures, so sort of creepy. so nonchalant. the bomb made, the plan set, the date chosen and he's just relaxed and loose. you know, the manager also told cnn, the employees of this center gave fbi agents the name

offed of todashev. knowing what we know now. do you think federal authorities should have been watching them more closely maybe? >> it's hard to tell at this stage, what is coming out. obviously todashev had not been at the gym a couple of years. that information only came out after the bombings. what we know from the younger brother's interviews, what's leaked so far, they chose the boston marathon. remember, we learned this about a month ago, a few days before the boston marathon. they had their sights on july 4th. not only casual in these pictures, they have just sort of decided at this simultaneous moment that they would do this attack on monday, thought they were going to do the july 4th events, but bombs made quicker, all of those pieces are being linked and obviously, whatever information we can get out of

the younger brother, it is important to set up what we knew at the time. the gym manager knew that the older brother as we have been saying, a guy you did not want to approach or mess with for a variety of reasons. >> all right, juliette kayyem. nice so to see you this morning. >> thank you. incredible video from the past two hours. two planes have crashed directly into homes. look at that. the amazing thing here? everyone survived. what's going on here? first, justin bieber accused of speeding through his neighborhood. then his car is pulled over for missing a front license plate. and now, hey, the biebs is refusing to speak with police. why won't he talk? and what's he doing? you're watching "starting point." #%tia[

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welcome back to "starting point."

two small planes crashing into homes. more incredible, no one killed. and the planes lodged into homes on two separate coasts. in virginia this morning, a small two-passenger plane nose dived straight into the three-story apartment building. wjla says three people hospitalized with minor injuries. the two on board and one person in the apartment building at the time of the crash. and another plane, crashed into the front door. >> the pilot safe, escaped without injuries. >> we jumped the fence, and the

guys who just flown into the house were getting out of the plane. >> it happened when they were approaching a nearby airfield. ntsb is trying to determine what caused that crash. in florida last year, a small plane plunged through the roof of a publix grocery store, injuring three shoppers two people on board. no fatalities, frantic eyewitnesss inundated 911 with calls. >> oh, my god. what is going on at the publix. >> oh, my god, an airplane went into the publix. >> in 2012, another small plane crashed on a residential street in long island, new york, less than a mile after takeoff. police scanner audio captured the frenzied moments. >> we have a downed plane. unsure -- -- there is a man inside burning. >> one passenger survived, but

the pilot and a second passenger died in that crash. and on lookers in washington are wondering how anyone could have walked away from the wreckage. >> the plane is heavily damaged. hard to survive a crash in a small plane like that. >> everyone incredibly lucky in today's events and most of the time when these happen, when these events happen, just shortly after takeoff or just before landing, at the beginning or ending of a flight. sometimes happens near to airports because of that factor, but very, very glad to say that today, injuries, no fatalities. >> you look at the pictures, amazing everyone survived. >> 17 minutes after the hour. what is trending this morning. another shakeup at "american idol." mariah carey and nikki minaj confirm neither around for a second season. and randy jackson exited, leaving just keith urban.

mariah and ccarey and nikki min feuding on and off the set all season. record low audience for the season finale in may. no word yet on replacements. the french kiss may be france's most popular export. but never an official word for it until now. do not start laughing, berman. or ion't get this. the one word verdict galoch ench rnr which translates to kiss with tongues in the le petit robert french tickdictionary. >> every picture that you would show, it is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of french kiss. >> i'm not going to talk about french kissing with you. a lot of conversation about french kissing this morning. ahead on "starting point," the department of transportation weighing on lifting its --

something about self-driving cars, lifting a ban on self-driving cars? they appear to be safe, but it could be a while before you get a chance to ride one. ♪ 'cause you make me feel so right ♪ ♪ even if it's so wrong ♪ i wanna scream out loud ♪ boy, but i just bite my tongue ♪ ♪ this one's for the girls messin' with boys ♪ ♪ like he's the melody and she's background noise ♪ [ volume decreases ] thanks, mom! have fun! you too. ♪ ♪

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[pop!] stop paying for rate suckers! try snapshot free at progressive.com. welcome back to "starting point." futures take hit this morning. down 70 point, unemployment in europe a record high. 12.2% in the euro zone. in the u.s., unemployment 7.5%. so obviously some concerns, things keep worsening in europe, not good overall. s & p 500 set to enhigher for the seventh straight month. the government taken a look at several driving cars and putting out a list of proposed rules and regulations, the

national traffic safety administration wants to recommend the technology and it recommends that states have a separate license for self-driving cars. goi google has an early prototype. the companies have been working a long time on drivesless vehicles in agriculture, doing some amacing things, would you have a driverless car. the government wants to have rules and regulations. who do you license? that's the question. >> a car having its own license. a fake i.d. also. go to a bar. >> thank you, michael. the motor city out of money. in fact, detroit so broke, that the governor of michigan had appoint an emergency manager to oversee the finances. with the debt there approaching $16 billion, just about everything could be on the auction block. poppy harlow reports. >> reporter: matisse, renoir, deego rivera's iconic detroit

industry. treasurers at the detroit institute of art. >> a monet. >> it could be sol to pay dod t detroit's debt. more than $5 billion in debt, the emergency city manager asked for an appraisal of the pieces. >> they let us know the collection is not off the table. >> reporter: what makes detroit unique, the city owns all of the art here, making vulnerable for sale. in most cities, a nonprofit owns the art. in a statement, orr insists there is no plan on the table to sell any asset of the city, but says it is possible that the city's creditors could demand that the city use its assets to settle its debts if detroit files for bankruptcy. >> he has to look at what assets detroit has, what they are worth and whether they should be sold? >> would it be irresponsible for him not to do this?

>> absolutely. >> reporter: the possibility of selling off beloved masterpieces sparking heated debate. >> what would the sale of this mean? >> it would be a tragic irony. the first u.s. museum to acquire a van gogh in 1922, and 90 years later, we sell it. >> how in the hell are you going to sell a renoir or van gogh or jacob lawrence painting to pay your bills? it's like selling your kids. >> reporter: what hower do you have? >> the power of the courts. we'll do everything we can to defend the integrity of the collection. >> the collection is estimated worth billions of dollars. it's one of the best collections in the country. you cannot overestimate the strength of the collection. people in three michigan county voted to increase their own taxes to support the museum when the city no longer could.

but if detroit goes bankrupt, nothing will save these masterpieces from the auction block. >> you look at greece, selling islands it shows how dangerous butting problems have become. ahead, justin bieber won't talk to police after he is accused of driving recklessly. is his recent behavior a threat? . i love my contractor, and i am so thankful to angie's list for bringing us together. angie's list -- reviews you can trust. and one wedding, 2 kids, 43 bottles of olay total effects and many birthdays later, still looks amazing. thanks to the trusted performance of olay.

good friday morning. welcome back to "starting point." i'm christine romans. >> i'm john berman. breaking news. the arizona mother accused of drug smuggling in mexico is finally free. yan yanira maldonado, released overnight. rafael romo, live from nogales, arizona this morning. what is the latest? >>. >> reporter: john, a very emoeshlg and joyful morning for yanira mall done onthl

yanira moldonaro. she gets arrested for drug smuggling on a bus on the way back from her aunt's funeral. she spends her first wedding anniversary in jail. she didn't know if she would have to spend years in jail for a crime she says she didn't commit. last night shortly before midnight, she gets news from the judge that the evidence that the prosecutor's office presented is not enough to charge her with drug trafficking and finally she is let go. this morning, she is back on american soil and we understand that at this time, she is going to -- she is getting close to being reunited with her seven children in the town of good year, near phoenix, arizona, john. >> look forward to that moment, john. great news she's back on american soil with what she's been through. rafael roma, thank you so much. first on cnn, a new development in the boston marathon bombings, cnn obtained video of the boston bombing suspects grabbing a workout at a local gym just 72 hours before explosions went off.

security cameras at this mixed martial arts center in boston shows the tsavraev brothers arriving with a friend before 2:45 p.m. on friday, april 12th before they get started, tamerlan tsavraev gets in an argument with the manager about taking otherwise his shoes, a policy at the gym. and then the brothers begin their workout. tamerlan tsavraev here seen skipping rope. remember, the bomb is finished, they have already picked their date. he has had just shaved off his beard. 23 years in prison for attempting to set off what he thought was a bomb outside wrigley field. he was arrested in 2010 in an fbi sting. he pleaded guilty charges to trying to set off explosives. new developments in the case of the hatchet wielding

hitchhi hitchhiker. he has been extradited to face murder charges. he is accused of killing a lawyer in the victim's home. the two had met in times square and the suspect became an internet sensation, a celebrity for a colorful interview he gave earlier this year, after hitting an assault suspect with a hatchet. former owner of a monkey famously photographs in an ikea store wearing a fashionable jacket is in court, fighting to get the monkey back. yasmin might have a good case. the animal sanctuary where darwin is living is no longer seeking charges. >> it may not be amanda bynes territory, but justin bieber making headlines for offstage

antics. >> reporter: justin bieber, popstar turned party king or rebellious teen? the 19-year-old's clean cut image seeing another stain after spotted club hopping around new york city wednesday night. raising more questions about his recent off stage antics. >> do you think that justin bieber is on this path of a slow destruction? or just a meltdown? >> i think some of the things he has done recently have crossed over from acting out to -- >> meltdown status? >> maybe meltdown status. >> vanessa grigoriadas spent time with bieber, writing his story for "rolling stone" magazine. the l.a. sheriff's department is all but begging bieber to speak with deputies, sent to investigate reports of reckless driving. >> talk to us, tell us what you believe occurred. >> reporter: this week, bieber's

neighbors accused singer of barrelling through the gated calabasas neighborhood at breakneck speed. >> two witnesses said they saw justin bieber driving recklessly in his white ferrari. some estimated maybe freeway rates of speed, and this is in a 25-mile-per-hour zone. >> reporter: this isn't the first time that the singer was seen recklessly. a neighbor who confronted him in march, accuses him of spitting on him and making threats in response. that case your honor review. last summer, bieber got a speeding ticket why trying to outrun the paparazzi. he called 911 when photographers are trying to get away. >> they are the ones driving reckless and i'm trying to not have them be on my tail. >> if that weren't enough car trouble for the biebs, wednesday an l.a. county sheriff's deputy pulled over his ferrari for not

having a front license plate. bieber wasn't driving, his friend li'l twist reportedly was. the second time li'l twist pulled over in bieber's car. as for the legions of young, impressionable fans, they don't seem to care what he is up to offstage as long as he keeps performing on stage. >> representatives for justin bieber have not responded to requests for comment. if justin bieber would like to call in -- >> our phone is waiting. and we are joined from l.a. to help break down what's going on with justin bieber. we have seen this parade of news stories here. one thing after another after another. weird, weird stuff. at what point do you get worried about something like in? >> i think there are a lot of people worried. and it breaks down into two camps to be honest with you.

one camp ringing the alarm bell. if he continues on the road, he will be the next amanda bynes, the next lindsay lohan, he'll be going to rehab, out of control. on the other side, people saying, look, he's 19 years old, you get a ferrari not to drive 25 miles an hour, he's driving fast and that's what a teenager would do. but at the same time, there is a pattern and that is what people are very concerned about, a pattern of misbehavior and, frankly, hostility, particularly with law enforcement and a lot of people close to him. that has people very, very troubled. >> one of the issues, he may not be a threat just to himself, but others driving around the community in the ferrari, calabasas, and you have neighbors, some of whom are famous in their own right, getting upset here. a tweet from eric dickerson, a famous nfl former running back. he tweets, i live in calabasas too, and justin bieber needs to slow his ass down.

we can say that on tv, because he really did tweet that. there are people here at risk. >> yeah, no certainly that is the case. you have to keep in mind with justin bieber, only back in 2008, he was discovered on youtube this kid from stratford, ontario. an unknown. i didn't even interview him until 2009 in hollywood. and this meteoric rise, made $55 million last year alone. expected to make more than that this year. on this wild, fast ride, and i think that in a lot of ways, unfortunately, the pattern would you expect and we have seen in the past with a lot of teen popstars who have trouble dealing with fame and that certainly is happening, you have to look at what's next for him. he has the american leg of this tour he's been on and he's got a lot of work in front of him over the next few months. i would recommend after this, maybe take a break, step back,

take a deep breath, because it does seem that the pressure is getting him. >> no question, the people around him, the storyline has changed. self-made justin bieber, and now selfish justin bieber and that is something his camp and the grownups around him trying to help this young man grow up with fame and a lot of money, that's what they have to put the brakes on -- the pedal to the metal. >> too much. ken baker, thank you for joining us. never be the last person in the know. the founders of a website newsletter that let's you skimm ahead. this 13-year-old ends his speg bee career. we'll meet arvind mahankali, live. you're watching "starting point." she got a parking ticket... ♪

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so it's not unusual for me at least, to be at a dinner table feeling stumped by the conversation happening around you. >> theskimm.com is a daily

newsletter that helps cover the biggest news and buzziest stories in brief. all of the things you need to get through the weekend. cocktail party 101. >> good morning. >> what are the biggest stories? big supreme court ruling. what you need to know about? >> supreme court is about to get you ahead for june. the court has a lot of major decisions to make and these are decisions you will hear about again. they will impact you, your children, think about this textbook story about the legendary supreme court justices growing up. these are cases that our our children will read about one day. >> the primary voting right act, legislation in the country is up for debate. the -- your genes, the way they are patented, yes. >> up for debate as well and

whether universities can make admissions decisions based on race in part. >> we'll be fwlued to the supremes. also cover sports news. >> we do. so no matter you are going to be this weekend, sports will be talked about. especially basketball, especially because of last night. king james really ruled the court. miami heat beat the pacers last night. 3-2, everyone watching saturday to -- >> even if they don't like basketball. >> you don't like basketball, you must figure out what to say. >> exactly. they want to see if they can lock it up. go hang with the spurs for the finals. >> off the court, there are some other basketball news involving dennis rodman. we call him our understudy secretary of state as he would probably like to be called. as we all know and can remember, he took quite the trip to north korea to visit his best friend,

kim jong-un. not the first choice to go. >> really? >> michael jordan, his former rival in the bulls. >> i'm a bulls fan, so this is really -- i totally get why you would pick michael jordan first. >> michael jordan, the first choice. don't know why he would turn down a free trip to north korea. >> maybe on a golf course. >> i'm playing golf today, sorry. >> and dennis rodman may want to roll back the pr strategy. not number one. >> interesting. let's talk about james lipton the pimp. >> are you okay? >> not at all. >> favorite story of the week. this is definitely a talker. james lipton was a pimp in paris in the '5 00s. and not just any pimp.

he ran a whole bordello. >> industrious. >> paris was different then. he was a hustler. tough times after the war, and we get it, but an opportunity presented itself and, you know, there was a glitch in his resume. we didn't know what he did in the early '50s. we now know. >> thank goodness. >> and he's 86 and looks great. >> other fun fact. he's 86. >> through out the 86 bomb and then the pimp bomb. >> makes everything better. >> have a great weekend. >> thank you. you too. >> up to speed now, berman? >> i feel like there are words that should never be said together, like james lipton and sex. >> we didn't say that. we said james lipton and pimp. >> it's part of it. something much more pg coming up. can you spell knaidel?

>> k-n-a-i-d-e-l. knaidel. >> for all the marbles, the word to beat. and arvind mahankali nailed it. he joins us live. the new national spelling bee champ. you are watching "starting point." stereoscopic vision... distronic plus braking... lane keeping and steering assist... eleven enhanced systems in all. ♪ twelve, counting your adrenaline system. the 2014 e-class. the most intelligent, exhilarating mercedes-benz ever made. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services.

knaidel. >> may i have the word's origin please. >> it's german. yid ish in origin.

>> knaidel, k-n-a-i-d-e-l. >> the crowd was cav elling. arvind mahankali wins it all. yid ish for dumpling. one of the last 281 spellers left standing. winning the 86th annual national scripps spelling bee. >> arvind mahankali joins us. how do you feel this morning? >> well, this morning i still haven't really fully understood what has happened. or happened last night. >> you spelled a word correctly that's really hard and beat hundreds of others to win the spelling bee. congratulations. >> thank you. >> you say you don't understand. i don't understand nearly 95% of the words they ask you about. we have something in common. what i love about your story,

the redemption here. you finished third the last two years. this was your last chance. and you nailed it. how much pressure did you feel going into the finals last night? >> well, actually i -- i didn't feel any pressure. because i didn't think about any of that when i was going to the finals. >> what were you thinking about? tell me about your training for the big day. >> well, actually, before the finals, i had a good time, relaxed, enjoyed with the other finalists, and during the finals, i was just calm. and then when i got my word, i focused on spelling that word correctly and making it to the next round. >> when they said knaidel to you, what was the first thing that went through your mind?

>> after billy said knaidel, i thought i have this word nailed. and i basically thought i got this. >> that's awesome. >> i studies that word sometime this year, so i remembered it. >> tell me about studying the words. do you sit down at night. dedicate like a pianist, three or four hours a night to learning new material, learn new dictionaries? how do you learn the new words? >> i try to study as much as i can. my dad collects words from the dictionary and my mom quizzes me on the words. >> no more national spelling bee

to compete in, what will you replace that with? >> next year i'll try to go somewhere in the math olympiads and physics olympiads. >> really setting the bar there low. ar individual mahankali, we're in awe. we don't know how you do it. thrilled for you. >> very good work. all of it paying off. we can't wait to see you do next. thank you for coming by. the vast majority of injuries are caused by us. cnn hero doing her part to fix that damage. playing mother nature to thousands of animals born to be wild. meet mona wrecker. >> in this fast-paced world, we do forget that we are animals, and part of the natural world. this is a beautiful female bald eagle. humans, we are wild life's worst enemy in many, many ways. she had been clipped by a small jet. we don't want her to live in a

cage. we want to get her back out in the wild. i'm mona rutger, i rescue, rehabilitate, and release injured while life back into their natural habitat. i think we can get her fixed up, get her back out there. >> when i started the center, i thought i would get 25, 30 animals per year. once people found out, the phone never stopped ringing this cooper's hawk is ready to go. it's all consuming, but i'm doing something i love. >> one, two, three, be free! >> with an injured animal, everyone says let nature take its course, but 90% of these animals' injuries are human related. that's not nature. it's us. we need to become more responsible caretakers to the earth. each animal has a role to play in the food chain. if just one link breaks, the whole chain falls apart. >> this is a big day for little baby ducks.

>> we successfully released thousands of animals back to the wild. it's the same thrill every single time. whoa! >> we're counting on the children to do a better job than we have in the past. where do wild animals really belong? >> in the wild. >> i desperately want them to feel the excitement that i find in nature. we can make a difference. >> wow, that's great. and kids, the kids are the future. i love she's teaching them. >> i don't know what was cuter, the animals or faces on the kids. "starting point" back in a moment.

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[growl] we used to live with a bear. we'd always have to go everywhere with it. get in the front. we drive. it was so embarrasing that we just wanted to say, well, go away. shoo bear. but we can't really tell bears what to do. moooooommmmmm!!! then one day, it was just gone. mom! [announcer] you are how you sleep. tempur-pedic. ok, well, remember last week when you hit vinny in the head with a shovel? [chuckling] i do not recall that. of course not. well, it was too graphic for the kids, so i'm going to have to block you. you know, i got to make this up to you. this is vinny's watch.

"cnn newsroom" with carol costello begins right now. happening now in the "newsroom." >> i'm very grateful i'm free. >> tearful thanks from the arizona mom locked in a mexican jail for more than a week on a trumped-up drug smuggling charge. also, for the first time, video of what tamerlan tsavraev and his little brother dzhokhar were doing 72 hours before the bombing. they were working out. >> there is your wall cloud. coming straight at us. >> tornadoes, flooding, fires, and now come the heat. a