a top slog. the presidents from ukraine, the u.s. paris, and germany get together. the result of the nut rage case. and a chilly reception as barack obama asks wong to wage war on isis. hello and welcome to our viewers here in the united states and all around the world.

i'm rosemary church. thanks for joining us. we have a lot to cover this hour. in brussels crisis talks over greek debt achieved nothing except an agreement to talk some more. in minsk a deal is on the table for troubled ukraine. and in washington new intelligence suggests that isis captive kayla mueller had been given to an isis fighter before her death. let's start with the marathon talk on the crisis in eastern ukraine. russian media had reported the leaders of ukraine, russia germany, and france were ready to sign a document with more than ten points of agreement. then they reported ukrainian president poroshenko found certain russian conditions unacceptable. key issues are the withdrawal of heavy weapons, the establishment of a demilitarized zone and the future status of luhansk and

donetsk. the goal of reported three begin a cease-fire with -- was reportedly to begin a cease-fire within 48 hours. the talks come as fighting has intensify recently. nic robertson with the latest. we now learned that the president of ukraine is not happy with some of the conditions set out by russia. talk to us about what we know about that part of the story. >> reporter: any successful negotiation is going to be something that all sides can walk away from and feel they've got something from. they might have given something up, but it's given a level of trust and grammy. doesn't appear that's where we are in minsk at the moment. there's been a heavy don are deluge of information coming -- heavy deluge of information coming from mostly russian media indicating a deal of close to being done. there was 80% agreement that a document was going to be signed. there were ten suspense in. a cease-fire by sudden. the situation that we're in at

the moment stands like this -- talks continue. they don't involve the russian president, vladimir putin, at the moment. it's angela merkel the german chancellor french president hollande the ukrainian president poroshenko and the foreign ministers of those three countries all still talking. the indications are that whatever has been put on the table is not to the satisfaction of at least the ukrainians. i think at the moment until we hear from the ukrainian government until we hear from the german and french government we won't have a full public of precisely what has transpired here. suffice to say the marathon talks going on for 15 hours are still underway. so apparently the gaps that exist have not been bridged thus far, rosemary. >> and nic, you and i, we spoke last hour, talked about the

discussion points the with drug withdrawal of heavy weapons and the areas around luhansk and donetsk. which would likely represent the biggest challenge in the problems they're facing now as talks between 15 hours in? >> reporter: of those three suspense, it's likely -- points it's likely that the status and level of autonomy in the region of donetsk/luhansk, the separatists have been demanding. it's the type of autonomy that they want. it's going to be the hardest thing for the ukrainian government to agree. . the cease-fire lines will also be problematic. of course there was an agreement here in september last year between the same parties. the cease-fire lines that were agreed then have been breached. the separatists have taken more territory. is the ukrainian government asking for those lines to be rolled back to what was agreed in september? essentially, therefore,

penalizing the separatists and by default, as well russia who's widely viewed as supplying the separatists with ammunition and troops and have therefore, been very much a significant part behind the movement and -- of those formally agreed cease-fire lines. so that potentially sauls a stumbling -- also is a stumbling point as well as other issues. the bottom line -- i don't think we can refer to this too many times -- until we hear from all pears in this we don't know what the structure, the deal looks like. we don't know what the tough negotiating issue have been in detail. and again, we should also emphasize that in any negotiation, it's trust on all sides that's going to build agreement. that seems to be lacking at the moment here. rosemary? >> yeah. indeed. our nic robertson live from minsk bringing us the latest as

talks continue into the 15th hour. thanks for that. u.s. president barack obama says isis is now on the defensive. and to speed its demise he's formally asking congress to use military force. the president authorized air strikes against isis months ago under the same authorization used for the invasion of iraq. but his new request limits the mission to just three years. and it does not call for the deployment of u.s. combat troops to iraq or syria. mr. obama says he will send in troops when it's absolutely necessary for national security. congress will debate the request, and approval, take months. the president appears confident isis will be defeated. take a listen. >> our coalition is strong, our cause is just and our mission will succeed. long after the terrorists we face today are destroyed and forgotten, america will continue

to stand free and tall and strong. >> this would be the first war vote in congress in 13 years. new details are emerging about the latest american killed in isis captivity. while kayla mueller's family and friends mourn her death, officials are talking about what she may have gone through in her long months of captivity. pamela brown has the details. >> reporter: intelligencings is 26-year-old kayla mueller was given to a male isis fighter possibly as a bride after she was kidnapped in syria in 2013 according to u.s. government officials. official they have are also indications muellervert converted to islam. >> the hostages are under severe duress and threatened with death and so forth. for them to say that we're going to convert to the religion of our hostage takers suggests that maybe they can curry favor that way. >> reporter: cnn has learned

that pictures sent privately to mueller's family from isis helped confirm her death. according to a u.s. official pictures included mueller wearing muslim garb and a public of her wrapped in a burial shroud. a stark contrast from the brutal beheadings of other male hostages. former fbi hostage negotiator chris voss says it's clear isis treated mueller differently. >> because she was a remarkably decent human being and because she was a woman that it wouldn't be surprising for them to treat her with more respect than n life and in death. if they covered her and wrapped her properly those are respectful actions. >> reporter: how she died remains a mystery. but the u.s. military says there is no evidence backing up the isis claim that mueller was killed in a jordanian air strike. arizona congressman paul gosar says there were several foiled rescue attempts to save her. in one tampa, a man claimed to be mueller's husband from her hometown of prescott, arizona, and demanded her release at a syrian terrorist camp but was turned away after mueller denied being anyone's wife.

>> she said she wasn't -- she wasn't married, and she didn't lie to her captors that she wasn't married. it foiled the plan. >> reporter: and we learned from a family spokesperson that the man who posed as kayla's husband at this terrorist training camp was actually her boyfriend who she was kidnapped with in aleppo. apparently he was released after that and risked his life to go back and try rescue her. pamela brown, cnn, washington. and isis claims the widow of paris supermarket gunman amedy coulibaly has indeed fled to the militant's territory. that's what a french language magazine from isis is saying. an article entitled "may allah curse france" says hue at boumeddiene reported no -- highayat boumeddiene reported crossing into turkey along the time of the attack last month.

cbs announced the death of one of its own on wednesday. >> we have some sad news tonight from within our cbs news family. our "60 minutes" colleague, bob simon, was killed this evening. it was a car accident in new york city. >> bob simon earned countless awards for his work on "60 minutes" and earned 26 emmys. he was a passager in a town car when it collided with another vehicle at a red light and hit a traffic divider. police are still investigating the accident. simon leaves behind his wife and daughter who is a producer for " "60 minutes. " he was 73 years old. coming up next on cnn -- after the triple murder of three young muslims in a quiet college town investigators are looking into whether this was a hate

crime or pure rage over a parking spot. we now have a verdict in the nut rage trial. we will get a live update from outside the courtroom next.

♪ those are prayers from the

koran translating to those killed are rejoicing in allah's grace and bounty. thousands came to a vigil for the three muslims shot the to death earlier this week. a 46-year-old man is facing three charges of murder in the case. investigators say they think an argument over a parking space led to the deadly violence. so far, they're not ruling out the possibility that the killings could have been a hate crime. jason carroll has more from chapel hill. i heard about eight shots go off in an apartment. >> reporter: a frantic 911 call. shots fired at an apartment complex near the university of north carolina's chapel hill campus. >> about three girls or -- more than one girl screaming, and then there was nothing. >> reporter: the victims, all muslims, 23-year-old deah barakat, his wife of a little more than a month, yusor abu-salha, and her sister

19-year-old threerazan abu-salha, all shot execution style, a bullet to the head. later that night, this man, 46-year-old craig hicks turned himself in to police who soon charged him with throw counsel of first-degree murder. -- three counts of first-degree murder. the suspect's attorney said it was all over a parking spot. >> it has nothing to do with anything but the mundane issue of this man being frustrated day in and day out of not being able to park where he wanted to park. >> the father of the murdered woman calleded it a hate crime. >> i feel i have no doubt this he would not have acted this way if they were not clearly muslims. >> reporter: a family spokes did woman called for an investigation. >> we ask that the authorities investigate these senseless and heinous murders as a hate crime. >> reporter: hicks who claims he's an atheist reportedly said

on facebook "when it comes to insults, your religion started this. not me. if your religion kept its big mouth shut so would i." cnn cannot independently confirm the authenticity of the post or his facebook page. hicks' wife expressed shock and her deepest sympathy at the killings but said whatever happened it was not a hate crime. >> one of the things i know about him is everyone is equal. doesn't matter -- doesn't matter what you look like or who you are or what you believe. >> reporter: barakat of a second-year dental student. his wife of about to begin studies at the same unc school of dentistry. her sister of also a student at nearby nc state in raleigh. and barakat was also raising money. >> i need your help -- >> reporter: to provide dental care to syrian refugees in turkey. his website has raised more than $100,000. most of that donated after supporter learned of his death. jason carroll, cnn, chapel hill

north carolina. and you can read more about all three of the victim at cnn.com. and the website you're seeing is part of a charity deah barakat set up to help provide dental services to syrian refugees. youcaring.com has now raised nearly $190,000. we now have a verdict in the infamous nut rage trial. a south korean court found former korean air vice president heather cho guilty of breaking aviation law all over a serving of macadamia nuts. cnn correspondent paula hancocks is outside the courtroom in seoul with more. paula, talk to us about what transpired and how long she is likely to go to prison. >> reporter: rosemary, prosecutors had asked if three

years the judges said they were sentencing her to one year in prison. we know they found her guilty of violating aviation rules and safety. they found her guilty of changing the flight path. they said she was guilty of aviation safety jeopardyization because she told the crew to let the plane go back to gate. the judge said even though it only moved 17 meters before going back, that's still deviating from the flight path. that still put security in jeopardy. they also said that she was traveling as a passenger, not in an official capacity. actually had no right to override the crew members and to give any orders. but they said that she did show some remorse during the trial. they said that she had written a number of letters to the judges to show how sorry she was. she did say something, as well after the verdict. saying that she didn't know how

she will find forgive not. now according to those inside the court, she did wipe her eyes and her nose with a tissue during the verdict. it wasn't clear if she was crying. they said that her head of down at all times. sheep of looking at the -- she was looking at the floor. it was difficult to gauge her reaction. we do hear from her lawyer as he came out, as well a few minutes ago. he said that heather cho hasn't decided yet whether or not she will appeal. it will be interesting to see what the public reaction is to the verdict. fact that she will serve prison time. we have seen in the past that many executives of some of these very large family-run businesses the likes of hyundai motor, samsung, and heather cho's father the head of korean air, in the past have been found guilty of crime. but they've had suspended sentences and eventually had presidential pardons. so the fact she has been sentenced to one year the expectation is that this -- this could satisfy some of the public

who are becoming more resentful of these powerful family-run conglomerates conglomerates. rosemary? >> paula hancocks, many thanks to you for bringing us up to date on the situation there. we do. to check some other news stories now. taiwanese airline transasia has grounded ten piles for failing an oral flight test. the airline says the pilots will undergo retraining before they are allowed to fly again. the testing of recommended for pilots of the atr turbo-props, the type of plane involved in this month's deadly crash in taipei. the pilots of the plane struggled with engine problems before it went down. tiger woods says he won't play on the pga tour until his golf game improves. the former world number one has had back issues and struggled badly in his first tour events this year. woods says his time away from the tour will allow him to work

on his game and spend time with those who are important to him. the holders of three powerball sticks are about -- tickets are about to be rich. really really rich. they'll be splitting a more than $560 million jackpot in the u.s. lottery game. and there are the winning numbers drawn just a few hours ago -- 25-11-54-13-39 and the powerball is 19. the winning tickets were sold in texas, north carolina, and puerto rico. congratulations to the winners. americans spend a lot of money on lottery sticks. it's a huge amount and you can find out how much on our website at cnnmoney.com. the clock is ticking on greece's mounting debt deadline. if they can't reach an agreement with the eurozone partners the radical government could turn to

china and even russia for help. we'll take a look at that. also an emotional day in court as the widow in the so-called "american sniper" trial is called to testify. this as the defense drops a bombshell that may help the defendant's case.

welcome back. greek and eurozone leader will continue talks monday after they failed to reach a deal over greece's enormous debt burden.

the biggest disagreement is over whether greece should request a bailout extension which expire at the end of this month. prime minister tsipras is resisting the idea and blames the bailout for his country's economic woes. meanwhile, thousands of anti-austerity government supporters rallied in athens. they agree with mr. tsipras saying that half a decade of austerity has condemned the country to a downward spiral. >> i'm here for the people to reclaim our lost dignity and self-evident rights. >> in europe there's no room for the people to choose their way, then there is a problem for europe not for greece. >> as greece prepares for another showdown with its european creditors, the country says it has other friends it can lean on mainly russia and

china. it's a bid to avert a financial crisis rather than giving in to europe's austerity demands. cnn has more from london. nina the new prime minister of greece certainly has plenty of supporters back home but is struggling to get other e.u. leaders behind him. what's likely to come out of the upcoming meeting on monday? and what's the likely response to these references to china and russia possibly being supporters? >> reporter: let's tackle the questions separately. first of all we're likely to hear from alexis tsipras later today because we do have the heads of state and government meeting in brussels. what they were supposed to be doing is discussing a framework that the finance ministers had already discussed yesterday. but despite six hours worth of negotiations it seems as though the heads of the euro group, the meeting of eurozone finance ministers, couldn't see eye to eye about w greece. so much so that when it comes to

their next emergency meeting which is taking place on monday there was supposed to be the self-imposed deadline to solve this greek problem, they haven't even agreed exactly what they're going to be talking about in that meeting. so these people like mr. tsipras facing some awkward questions later today. and the discussions that are going to be taking place, leaders are likely to move toward issues like ukraine and russia instead of specifically greece because there's isn't too much yet to talk about. mine you this does of course put russia front and center because greece has said it could look elsewhere for money. as europe's leaders grapple with solving the unrest in ukraine, a crisis within the bloc's own borders could make russia more relevant than ever. as greece threatens to turn to moscow for money if brussels won't yield. >> translator: what we want is a deal. but if there is no deal and if we see that germany remains rigid and wants to blow apart europe then we have the obligation to go to plan b.

plan b is to get federal funding another source. could be the united states at best, it would be russia, it could be china or other countries. >> reporter: a weary country with a radical government looking east not west to refinish its 240 billion euros worth of debts. how likely a deal really be -- how likely could a deal really be? russia is one of greece's biggest trading partners according to the imf with over $370 billion work of foreign reserves it also had plenty to offer. but with a collapse in the ruble and a falling oil price, the kremlin may already have enough financial woes of its own. >> the russians made similar friendly noises for the icelanders at the time of their crisis a few years ago and the psipriats. i not the russians have enough troubles of their own to deal with. >> reporter: one thing's for certain -- russia is keen to cultivate an ally at the heart of europe. at a time when the e.u. is

mulling more sanctions for the country's elite. when greek prime minister tsipras won the election vladimir putin was quick to say that he was confident the two countries, work together. a point echoed by both nations' foreign ministers. >> translator: if there are any requests by the greek government they will be looked into as our finance minister has said. >> reporter: in a further boost to relations between moscow and athens 2016 is set to become the year of greece and russia and the year of russia in greece. still, if e.u. leaders don't soften their stance soon that could turn out to be true in more ways than one. >> there is another issue that i want to talk to you about. we're seeing imf managing director christine lagarde on the screen there. we understand she has just announced a package, an aid package for ukraine, $17 opinion 5 billion. talk about that. >> reporter: yeah, this is a

whole different order of magnitude from the $ 0.5 million that the united states -- $ 0.5 million that the united states put on the table the other week but it shows it is part of the show of financial support from the west trying to help ukraine prop up its ailing economy which is of course suffering from the strike that's going on in the east of the country and, of course it's curtailed relations with places like russia. this is a country that's seen its currency literally collapse its economy collapse over the last two years. and they need money badly. this $17.5 billion was rather widely expected at the summit. also as they point out ten minutes ago or so in the press conference lagarde said it is part of a much bigger program that include around $40 billion that will help to go to prop up ukraine's economy, all part of this push of fining a peaceful even if it is monetary solution diplomatic solution to the crisis that's going on in ukraine without the need to have to send weapons over to the

ukrainians to fight the pro-russian rebels as the united states has been gating for some time now. >> all right. keeping an eye on the situation there. that $17.5 billion aid package to ukraine just announced by the imf head there, christine lagarde. of course also nina keeping an eye on what's happening with greece as it goes through its various problems which we will keep an eye on going forward. next an emotional day in court as chris kyle's widow is called to testify in the so-called "american sniper" trial. a look at what the jury heard that is coming up. when it comes to medicare, everyone talks about what happens when you turn sixty-five. but, really, it's what you do before that counts. see, medicare doesn't cover everything. only about eighty percent of part b medical costs. the rest is on you. [ male announcer ] consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans it could

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hello, and welcome to our viewers in the united states and across the world. i'm rosemary church. talks in the crisis in eastern ukraine have been going on for some 15 hours. there is no firm agreement yet. leaders of ukraine, france and germany are still meeting in belarus. russian president vladimir putin is not involved in the talks at this point. there no word on what the sticking suspense may be. u.s. president barack obama has formally asked congress for the authorization of military force against isis. the request is for a three-year mission and does not call for the deployment of u.s. combat troops to iraq or syria. former korean air vice president heather cho has been found guilty of breaking aviation law. she flew into what's been dubbed a nut rage on a flight when she complained that macadamia nuts had been served incorrectly. she's been sentenced to one year

in prison. the defense delivered a bombshell on the first day of the so-called "american sniper" murder trial. they cited chris kyle's only words in the form of a text that may help defendant eddie ray routh's case. routh, you will recall is, accused of killing kyle as well as his friend at a gun range in 2013. more from cnn's martin savidge. drop. >> reporter: like the blockbuster movie about his life the trial over how sniper chris kyle died is also packing them in. the line to get into the smalltown court room in texas began forming before the sun came up. >> how does the defendant plead -- >> reporter: there is no debate over this -- 27-year-old former marine and iraq veteran eddie routh killed kyle and his best friend, chad littlelittlefield, at

a gun range in 2013. the legal debate is over why. >> at this time i will allow the state to present opening statements. >> reporter: in opening statements district attorney nash said routh knew what he was doing when he shout both men multiple times in the back and head. he used two different guns. even taking the time to reload before fleeing in kyle's pickup truck. the same truck routh of driving after he was arrested during a police chase. >> did he intentionally cause the deaths of these two men? did he know what he was doing was wrong? those are the two issues we're going to ask you to decide. >> reporter: the defense argues routh is innocent by reason of insanity. they blame it on post traumatic stress as a result of his service for his country overseas. >> at the time of this tragedy, that ready routh was insane.

not only of he suffering from a severe menial disease or defect not only did he not know his conduct was wrong, he thought he had to take their lives. >> reporter: then the defense delivered a bombshell. chris kyle's own words -- in the form of a text kyle said littlefield -- kyle sent littlefield. in the time they were in the front seat of the truck with routh seated behind them on the hour and a half drive to the gun range that deadly day. >> he takes him -- techs himxassch -- he texts him, this dude is straight up nuts. straight up nuts. and chad littlefield texted him, watch my six. >> reporter: military speak for watch my back. a short time later both would be dead. the messages they shared could

be a key assist to the defense of the man who killed them. the first witness was tea kyle chris kyle's widow. under trial rules we can broadcast the video of her testimony but no sound. even without words, it was emotional as the mother of two choked up and wiped her eyes as the courtroom was shown pictures of her husband. chris kyle is known as a hero who as a sniper watch over his troops in iraq and as a civilian reached tout those who like himself struggle with the aftermath of war. a life so remarkable it would become a hollywood hit. "american sniper" has broken box office records. >> i just want to get the bad guys. if i can't see them i can't shoot them. >> reporter: and continues to play at this cenemark six, three miles from where a jury must decide if kyle's killer is a killer or victim. in massachusetts, the judge

in the aaron hernandez murder trial dismissed a juror for what were described as personal reasons. it's the second time in two weeks a panelist has been removed from the trial. hernandez, a former player with the new england patriots football team is charged with killing odon lloyd in 2013. his trial resumes on friday. reports say canada's prime minister has reached out to egypt's president to obtain the release of muhammad fahmy. the jailed canadian is one of three al jazeera journalists arrested in december, 2013. they denied charges against them of supporting gyp's banned muslim -- egypt's banned muslim brotherhood. fahmy of originally sentenced to seven years in prison. the conviction was thrown out and a retrial is set to start soon for him and co-accused mohammed. peter greste was allowed to return home to australia. the captain of the "costa

concordia concordia" is headed to prison. his attorney had plenty to say. and he's taken sharp aim at nearly everyone. a look back at some of jon stewart's favorite targets. everyone loves the way dark clothes make them feel... and no one wants that feeling to fade. that's why there's woolite darks. without harsh ingredients, it keeps darks vibrant for over 30 washes. so your love for dark clothes doesn't have to fade. for the love of darks. woolite darks.

as many as 300 my grants are feared dead after trying to across the mediterranean sea. the italian coast guard rescued more than 110 from three diggies

and brought them to the island -- dinghies and brought them to the island. passengers say there was also a fourth dinghy which is still missing. many of those who died suffered hypothermia. survivors say they left sudden without food or water. rough seas have complicated rescue efforts. we have seen three large snowstorms in the northeastern u.s. in as many weeks. now nasa has released some incredible before and after images from above. meteorologist pedram javaheri joins us now from the international weather center with the details. looking forward to seeing these shots. >> absolutely. the first image taken 35,000 kilometer above the earth's surface. the 1st of january first day of 2013. this of the per -- of 2015. this of the perspective. notice the snow accumulations.

clouds scattered about. cloud offshore. very much quiet. fast forward in 17 days later, january 17th plenty of snow across northern portions of new england. very little had fallen at this point across areas of new york city. we fast forward a couple weeks later into the first few days of last -- last day of january to first day of february. tremendous snowfall scattered about. anywhere from boston toward new york city. take you through yesterday's date and you see how much snow encompassing the region. these are clouds offshore. snow depth pretty impressive when you see the bright white reflectivity there from the satellite images again taken from above. this is where we stan. yes, more snow expected in the coming days. here's what's on the ground. about b two feet or 60 centimeters on the ground eastern new england. 24 or so inches up to about two feet there around parts of new york state. we have one storm system cruising by tonight into friday morning. this one remains offshore at this point. it will really minimize the snow impact over areas of new england and around the northeastern united states. look at the second storm that

comes in saturday through sunday major concern here. blizzard-like conditions. the potential is there because this storm seems to be a lot closer to land. if that verifies one of the models puts boston right in this pink zone and follow it up that is 12 inch of snowfall through the weekend or 30 more centimeters on top of what they've seen. that's one model. the secondary model does much the same. brings the pink back into the picture there. again, 12 inches possible. get up toward the massachusetts coastline there, and you're talking possibly two more feet of snowfall in the forecast. and the air temperature will be brutal. frigid temperatures come in friday. talking sub-zero fahrenheit. even colder weather pulls in come sunday night into monday. here is the perspective -- when atlanta gets down to the 20s fahrenheit you know it's a big deal. then you work to the north. boston minus two. new york city around four degrees. it is going to be a very very cold week. and that snow -- not only is it not going to melt but it might freeze and become solid in

nature. it's problematic for a lot of people there. >> unbelievable. horrible looking temperatures there. many thanks for keeping on top of that. pressure it. all right. we want to cover this stori. the captain of the "costa concordia" told a panel of judges he died too, the day his cruise ship crashed. fran francesco schettino was sentenced to 16 years in prison for abandoning ship. 32 people were killed when the cruise ship crashed into rocks off the island in 2012. after the verdict, schettino's lawyer said his client has been the victim of a media persecution and did nothing wrong. >> translator: we are not talking about a criminal. we are speaking of someone accused of criminal negligence. the shipwreck was only an accident and, therefore, should be perceived as such by the

public. >> the judges in the case say the captain waited too long to sound the alarm, but he claims more lives would have been lost if he had created panic further from shore. one of the survivors spoke out after the trial. she says nothing will ease the pain of those families who lost loved ones. >> the verdict for me is different the way you can feel it. for me it's sick month-- it's six months for each death, person. for me the family of the dead people, it's not six months or 17 years for them, it's forever. >> in addition to serving time in prison the captain cannot command another ship for at least five years. along with help from the cruise company, he must pay each

survivor 30,000 euros or 3 $34,000. he'll also have to help pay millions of euros to local governments for any environmental harm the wreck caused. i'm joined now by john arthur eaves a lawyer who represents some of the "costa concordia" passengers. thank you for talking with us. as you join us on the line too, i should tell our viewers. talk about the reaction from the passengers that you represent. what did they think about the verdict and the sentence here? we know that the prosecutors were asked for 26 years, and in the end the captain got 16. what did they think about the outcome? >> you know they believe it's inadequate. there were 32 deaths as you know. and they were expecting at least 32 years the captain will serve.

they're a little grateful that at least one of the actors has been held somewhat responsible. but really disturbed the fact that they believe the real culprits the systems, the carnival systems and costa company have escaped the real responsibility for this accident since they are the ones that actually set up the failures that captain schettino of just at the wrong place at the wrong time, that this could have happened on any of the ships. >> now, talk. [ all talking at once ] about -- this was a tragic outcome, of course. what more will the passengers like to see happen in the aftermath of this? or does this offer closure to them of sorts? >> you know i think the only real thing that will give them peace is to give them some sort of assurance that this won't happen again. and nothing about this trial, nothing about what has happened will do that right now.

some of the problems were that the -- they didn't speak english because they didn't want to pay him enough. the faulty doors didn't have serviced like the carnival "triumph." the real problem and real thing that they want to see is reforms occur, legal reforms that just like the united states congress is pursuing right now, considering, they want to see those happen in europe and other things to increase the value of life, bring it up to the standards similar to the airlines', to make sure this never happens again. >> so i do want to ask you, aside from compensation for clients, what else are you hoping to achieve by getting involved in this case? >> you know the main thing with this case is right now the law is still left over from the "titanic" age. that was the last major changes in the law. so we saw an opportunity here to

really satisfy the desire of these people to change the law to save lives in the future and i think that's what has to happen for any peace to come of this. if we don't do that then we have lost an opportunity in the future. >> john arthur eaves, thank you very much for talking with us. we do appreciate it. all right. we're going to take a short break. we'll be back in a moment.

something was clearly missing from wednesday's broadcast of nbc's nightly news. brian williams' name was eliminated from the introductory graphics on the first edition of the newscast since williams' six-month suspension was announced on tuesday. substitute anchor lester holt had this to say -- >> brian is a member of our family but so are you, our viewers. we will work every night to be worthy of your trust. >> many in the industry are wondering if williams will ever return to the anchor chair. according to sources close williams he is determined to earn back public trust. jon stewart's announcement he would be leaving "the daily show" took many by surprise. now that the shock beginning to wear off, jeanne moos is coming to grips with what it all means. >> reporter: watch 16 years fly by in six second --

>> ixnay -- making you laugh. variety of ministries. change out of my work slacks. >> reporter: jon stewart started out slightly stiff -- and ended up lucy goosy. who needs a joke when you've got that signature stare? he welcomed foreign presidents -- >> this is an american dell goes. it's -- delicacy. it's calmed a twinkie. >> reporter: and bashed american presidents. for instance after the disputed 2000 election -- >> i was not elected to serve one party -- >> you were not elected. >> reporter: now he's elected to quit while he's ahead, praising his staff. >> i love them and respect them so much -- >> we love you, jon! >> reporter: tweeted one fan, "the i regrote inform you that we are -- regret to inform you that we are unable is on accept your resignation. sincerely, literally everyone." maybe not those he chose to imitate. >> with all due respect i don't think that's a credible statement -- >> with all due respect.

>> reporter: did you say respect? >> the right thing to do. >> wet. you carry your house around on your back. >> reporter: mostly he gave sometimes he got. >> have you ever listened to your program? pull it out of your butt. >> reporter: after being the put of stewart's jokes, arby's reactioned this way -- jon, feel free reach out to us at careers@arbys s.com. donald trump felt stewart's wrath for eating pizza with utensils. >> are you eating it with a fork? a [ bleep ] fork? >> reporter: after the tirade, we need -- >> your moment of zen. ♪ >> reporter: you don't know what's really scare? when you're home watching "the daily show" and realize you're the one about to be skewered. give to me, jon -- >> covering their coverage of the malaysian plane story. >> reporter: the public fascination with the the plaid shirts michelle always seemed to

be wear -- mitchell always seemed to be wearing. it even started its own twitter account. who's going to keep an eye on us when you're gone jon? or teach us the proper way to eat pizza? >> watch and learn, for god's sakes. >> reporter: jeanne moos, cnn, new york. >> what are we going to do without him? we'll be watching what he does next. i'm rosemary church. thanks for your company. "early start" is coming up for viewers in the united states. for viewers elsewhere, stay tuned for "cnn newsroom." have a great day. [ male announcer ] eligible for medicare? that's a good thing, but it doesn't cover everything.

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breaking this morning, hope for a deal. european leaders meeting overnight to try to secure peace in ukraine while they may be closed to an agreement. also president obama asking congress to authorize the use of force against isis. his request launching a heated debate with republicans and democrats. and breaking overnight, a giant in the news industry. bob simon has died. he has been a journalist for 50 years. he died tragically in a car accident wednesday night. we will look back at his extraordinary career. good morning. welcome to "early