this is "nightline." tonight, breaking news -- one of the world's most wanted terrorists is dead. >> if you are a threat to our people, the united states will find you and take you out. >> al qaeda leader and osama bin laden successor . plus, justice delayed. >> the world has moved on. we're stuck in 2019. >> it's been three areas since tatyana jefferson was fatally shot by a police officer in her own home. now amid a string of convictions for other officers, her family

speaking out. >> it's as if, does a black woman not matter? >> how they're finding strength in tatyana's name. and social media sensation. >> i'm a singer song write e activist, scientist on the side. >> the breakout mtv star and first openly gay man on the cover of playboy. how he's learning to love himself.

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good evening. thank you for joining us. we begin tonight with an al qaeda leader and 9/11 mastermind dead, taken out by a cia drone. it was the first u.s. strike in afghanistan since american forces pulled out nearly a year ago. and the target this time was living in plain sight in an affluent area in the capital. here's abc chief global affairs correspondent, mar that raddatz. >> reporter: he has been hiding for more than 20 years. one of the world's most wanted terrorists has been killed. >> my fellow americans, on saturday at my direction, the united states successfully completed a air strike in kabul, afghanistan, that killed the leader of al qaeda. >> reporter: al zawahiri was

osama bin laden's number two. the assault on american soldiers in somalia in 1993 and on september 11, 2001, the plot that destroyed the world trade center left a gaping hole in the pentagon, and claimed nearly 3,000 lives. >> now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more. >> martha, it's been 20 years. four different presidents have been in the white house. finally he's dead. what do we know about the strike that killed him? >> reporter: it is really remarkable, byron. they saw that zawahiri had gone into kabul to reunite with his wife and children. he was in what they thought was a safe house there. that safe house, but he would go out on the balcony. the cia drone fired two hellfire missiles at zawahiri while he was standing on that balcony. his family was inside, and they

say, unharmed. but members of the taliban came around that neighborhood after the hellfire drones were fired and moved his family out of there. the u.s. says they were trying to cover up their involvement. >> martha, always grateful. thank you. >> you bet. we turn now to ft. worth, texas. it's been nearly three years since atatiana jefferson was killed by a police officer.pnow to make sure justice delayed is not justice denied. if home is where the heart is, it is in this home in ft. worth, texas, where ashley carr's heart was broken. >> the world has moved on, and we're stuck. we're stuck in 2019.

>> reporter: a wound time has not healed. >> this was atatiana's room. >> reporter: it was here her baby sister, 28-year-old atatiana jefferson was shot dead way a ft. worth police officer in her own home minding her own business, playing video games with her 8-year-old nephew. >> what's it like being here for you now? >> i usually don't come in. >> i come into the house. i don't come into this room. i haven't healed like that yet. >> reporter: we first spoke with her sister amber carr days after the funeral. her pain was palpable. >> in your home? your place where you go to get away from the world? it makes no sense. you can't put any sense to that. >> no justice, no peace! >> reporter: atatiana jefferson's name quickly became

a rallying cry. a flash point in the national conversation on policing and use of deadly force. but three years later, the trial for the police officer who shot her has yet to begin, delayed multiple times, leaving her sisters bitter but not broken. for them, justice delay second d down is justice denied. their case has not received the media attention or swift resolution for the likes of george floyd, daunte wright. >> this battle should not have been this long, especially when see others who get convictions that got killed after my sister. it's as if, does a black woman not matter? >> reporter: their nightmares began in the early hours of october 12, 2019 when atatiana's neighbor james smith called the

nonemergency lifeline noticing their front door was open. >> it's not normal for them to have both of the doors open. >> reporter: atatiana had been cooking hamburgers and left the doors open to clear out the smoke. at approximately 2:25 a.m. officers arrived on the scene. ft. worth police officer aaron dean walking past the door. amber's then 8-year-old son was a witness to what happened next. >> so, he said he was sitting up because they were playing video games, but when they heard something outside, she told him to lay down. >> reporter: dean went around the back of the house and approached the bedroom window. >> put your hands up, show me your hands. >> reporter: the officer shot through the window. even if she wanted to, atatiana jefferson had no time to respond to his demand. she was announced dead at the scene. officer aaron dean resigned two days later. he was indicted for murder within two months.

>> my family, we really shouldn't be at this point dealing with an assassination. >> why do you call it that? >> because that is exactly what it is. >> reporter: last time we spoke, you could sense the anger in your spirit. today i sense sadness. >> yeah, it's more sadness than anger, being angry. caused so much stress to my heart, so it's more sadness than anger, for sure. but i'm still angry, very angry. very, very angry. >> reporter: amber's health declined in the year since atatiana's death. as for her son, atatiana's now 11-year-old nephew zion, who witnessed the shooting, she says he's still in therapy. >> he's in a lot of pain. he blame himself for a long time. in the back of his head, he probably still blames himself. >> reporter: dean remains on

bond, awaiting trial. >> how's it been knowing he's been out all this time? >> devastating. i'm angry about that. ! his trial date has been pushed back at least four times. >> no comment. >> they blamed it on covid at first. everything opened back up in 2021. from there it's just been delay, delay, delay. >> reporter: dean's trial was initially set to begin on november 16, 2021, but changes about the courts and several motions filed by dean's legal team, including concerns with scheduling conflicts, the lead defense lawyer's health, and the location of the trial pushed the trial to late this year. then before it was it to begin, dean requested the judge presiding over the case be recused, insisting he was rude to the counsel for dean. an appeals judge granted the defense. >> it was a devastating blow for the family. >> reporter: lee merritt

represented the family since the beginning. >> to have that stripped away from them again, it really undermines confidence in the entire system. >> reporter: professor jennifer lawrence says while dean's case has seen a higher than usual amount of delays, it's not uncommon for a defense team to pull out all the stops, especially in cases involving law enforcement. >> defense attorneys have an ethical obligation to vindicate their clients' interest in the case, which often is going to be some version of seeing that the charges are disposed of that allows the defendant to go home at the end of the day and not face a prison sentence. >> we try to put our lives together, start trying to get routines and structure like a life is supposed to happen, but this trial won't go nowhere. it's like a cloud that is hanging over us, so how can we

keep moving? how can we start the healing? >> hi, my name is atatiana jefferson and i'm doing lab exercise 5. >> reporter: atatiana graduated college in 2014, was set to attend medical school. her dream, find a cure for diabetes. she may have been the baby of the family, but she was also the bac backbone. >> she was our youngest sister, but she was our voice. if somebody messed with us, she was, where they at? i'll handle that. >> i've never had to fight a ballotle when i was younger. >> reporter: is that right? baby sis took care of it. >> and she did it effortlessly. >> reporter: now it's her sisters' turn. here at texas christian university, ashley and amber have created a summer camp for children 5 to 14. >> i want to first welcome everybody to summer camp. >> reporter: focused not just on the s.t.e.m.s but on s.t.e.a.m.

education. science, technology, engineering and math work a healthy dose of the arts. >> if your sister were here, she'd be very pleased. because this speaks to her inner geek for you. >> hello, you get it. >> yes. we want to breathe tay into these kids. >> reporter: so they can continue the journey she was having. >> exactly. >> reporter: for the first tis smiling. >> because that's what brings us joy. all that pain we had, we poured into our nonprofit. we have to have some type of outlet we know our cyster is proud of. >> and i know for certain if she was here she would be really, really hype. >> reporter: still, there have been setbacks. ashley lost her listening time job in the education field as court dates were postponed. vacation and sick days exhausted. keeping a loved one's legacy

often comes at a high cost. >> i'm not going to stop my fight for my sister. it's a stepping out on faith type of thing. >> this family has already been delayed justice and denied justice, but it's going to happen eventually. >> reporter: eventually these sisters have learned, is a word, not a date. for them it's mostly just a desire. the new judge has promised a new date by the end of the year. but in this house where hearts were broken, promises mean very little. they want a trial, accountability. what do you want to outcome to be? >> i want a historical conviction. >> like none other. >> where it makes sense that you shouldn't play with other people's lives. >> reporter: you two are incredibly strong. where does that strength come from? >> we can't fold. we would love to just be able to crawl up under the rock, but -- >> but we can't quit. >> we can't quit. that's not atatiana. >> a family's resilience.

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in a world awash in social media stars, bretman rock has manage to stand out. what sets this young influencer apart? kayna whitworth went to hawaii to find out. >> where's the camera at? [ bleep ] ♪ well, i'm bretman rock, i'm a singer song writer, athlete,

actist, scientist on the side. the star of chris' day, yeah. coconut water connoisseur. the new mtv star. i'm also the owner of 15 chicken. >> reporter: 15 chickens? >> yeah, i don't know how that happened. i had four. >> reporter: even if you don't know the name, you've seen the face. his flair for fashion, care free attitude, and outlandish humor. >> tara, you're a musician, girl. >> reporter: has made him a social media sensation in high demand. >> get in, loser, we're getting you a pair of crocks. let's go. >> reporter: this is so go gorgeous. the first openly gay man to grace the cover of playboy. >> i didn't want people to forget i was a boy. >> reporter: to make it makes it for impactful. he just wrapped his second

season of "following bretman rock," offering his combined 43 million followers a peek into his surprisingly low key life, not living in los angeles but at his home in hawaii this season, mental health became a focus on his mtv show, his family by his side. >> what are you guys hoping to accomplish out of therapy? >> we don't talk much about our feelings. i just want to hear what my sister has to say. >> reporter: his parents separating at a young age. bretman for the first time on camera confronts the guilt he felt over feeling he was at fault. >> i blame myself a lot for my sister not having a dad, by mom not having a husband. >> that's not true. your dad caused this. you're 24 years old. and you're essentially the breadwinner for your entire

family. >> i feel like i put on that pressure on me at a very young age because of everything that went down when my mom and dad was divorcing. so i'm bread winner by guilt. >> reporter: hmm. >> not my choice. >> i just want you guys to know you are breaking a lot of generational patterns. >> reporter:. >> i feel like asians normally ne. scared of showing signs of so seeing a their therapist i was like, girl, i'm not weak. i could do this myself. but very quickly i realized that it is not a sign of weakness at all. >> reporter: bretman faced the pitfalls of fame when fans flooded his father's funeral in 2019. >> at the time i couldn't believe it. i didn't know my dad's line was so long to see him. it didn't register in my brain until people had their phones out being like, condolences.

and then they'd ask me for a picture. >> reporter: yet you also, i imagine, think of him every day as your getting dressed. >> mm-hmm. >> reporter: because he was a bit of a fashion inspiration for you. >> he really was. he's the reason i have such long hair now. like, he had long, long hair growing up. >> reporter: what about his love life? are you going to be a husband? >> i love that question. i will be a dad. >> reporter: with marriage on the back burner, bretman is laser focused on a new endeavor. >> i feel like a lot of really famous people write things, so i been, you know -- let's just say i been journaling extra in my book lately. >> reporter: that's quite a teaser. >> just know i'm working on something. whyy >> our thanks to kayna. the season finale of mtv's "following bretman rock" dropped today.

you can steam the entire season on youtube. up next, remembering two trailblazers on the court and on the screen. as someone living with type 2 diabetes, i want to keep it real and talk about some risks. with type 2 diabetes you have up to 4 times greater risk of stroke, heart attack, or death. even at your a1c goal, you're still at risk ...which if ignored could bring you here... ...may put you in one of those... ...or even worse. too much? that's the point. get real about your risks and do something about it. talk to your health care provider about ways to lower your risk of stroke, heart attack, or death. learn more at getrealaboutdiabetes.com listen, i'm done settling. because this is my secret. i put it on once, no more touch ups! secret had ph balancing minerals; and it helps eliminate odor, instead of just masking it. so pull it in close. secret works.

non-gaming tribes have been left in the dust. wealthy tribes with big casinos make billions, while small tribes struggle in poverty. prop 27 is a game changer. 27 taxes and regulates online sports betting to fund

permanent solution to homelessness. while helping every tribe in california. so who's attacking prop 27? wealthy casino tribes who want all the money for themselves support small tribes, address homelessness. vote yes on 27. wanna help kids get their homework done? well, an internet connection's a good start. but kids also need computers. and sometimes the hardest thing about homework is finding a place to do it. so why not hook community centers up with wifi? for kids like us,

and all the amazing things we're gonna learn. through project up, comcast is committing $1 billion dollars so millions more students can continue to get the tools they need to build a future of unlimited possibilities. and finally tonight, remembering two giants, two trailblazers, basketball legend bill russell and revered actress nichelle nichols. russell won 11 nba titles, 5 mvp awards in 13 seasons with the boston celtics. >> russell steals the ball! >> a staunch advocate for social equality and justice, he became the first black coach in major

u.s. sports. >> i think i had to do with a lot of the respect. >> in our century we've learned not to fear words. >> nichols broke barriers in 1966, she was one of the few faces of color in all of tv. >> this is your nasa. >> reporter: outpushing the government to train -- he was 38 years old. bill russell was 88. they indeed lived long and prospered. that's "nightline" for this