right now on "america this morning," breaking news, a deadly shooting inside a hotel on the las vegas strip. what police are saying. also developing overnight, a lightning strike near the white house. four people left fighting for their lives. sinema says yes. the new agreement on capitol hill that could pave the way for the democrats' massive climate and tax bill also aimed at lowering prescription drug prices. why the final hold-out, senator kyrsten sinema, is holding on. conspiracy theorist alex jones ordered to pay $4 million for claiming the sandy hook school shooting was a hoax. but why that 4 million could be just the tip of the iceberg. scam alert. the new way fraudsters are targeting people who book travel online.

from living on the streets to playing college hoops, one homeless teen's amazing success story and who made it possible. and later, a foul night for beer at the ballpark. good friday morning, everyone. i'm andrew dymburt. >> i'm andrea fujii in for mona. we begin with breaking news. a deadly shooting inside a hotel on the vegas strip. >> at least one person was shot and killed inside the mirage. the shooting occurred inside a hotel room. two other people reportedly injured. video posted to social media shows security blocking the entrances during an apparent lockdown at the hotel. there was no immediate word on a possible motive. police remain on the scene. also overnight, police near minneapolis searching for a suspect after gunfire inside the mall of america forcing the mall to be locked down yesterday. police say shots were fired during a fight inside the nike

store. the chaos sent customers running. many of them hiding in stores. no injuries were reported. we turn to the wild weather impacting millions across the country including a dangerous storm hitting the washington area. overnight at least four people were hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after they were apparently struck by lightning near the white house. >> i saw at least four people lying on the ground and medics were giving them artificial respiration, literally jumping on their hearts. >> reporter: the victims, all in lafayette square standing near the andrew jackson statue when a storm rolled through. >> i walked to the left of the statue as you're looking towards the white house. >> reporter: members of the secret service and park police jumping into action. >> immediately began to render aid to the four victims, which is very critical in helping with survivability. >> reporter: one expert describes the lightning strike as a six-stroke flash meaning that six individual surges of electricity hit the same spot within half a second. the storms in d.c. not the only

severe weather. across the country in arizona this palm tree bursting into flames after being hit by lightning. heavy rain triggered flooding and collapsed the roof of this grocery store. these images show the damage inside. but the heat is the biggest weather story this morning, 70 million americans are under heat alerts. record temperatures near 100 are possible again in the northeast and it will be even hotter in the middle of the country from texas to north dakota. in the west the hot and dry conditions are fueling this wildfire near spokane, washington. at least ten homes have burned down, and the entire town of lynn, washington, was being evacuated. and in northern california, the state's largest wildfire burning near the oregon border is clearly visible from space. meanwhile, much of texas is seeing its hottest summer on record. fire crews in one area responded to 28 wildfires wednesday alone. now to a terrifying scene out of new mexico. a driver plowed into a parade route leaving several people injured including two police officers. the suv was going the wrong way

when it sped through the city of gallop where people had lined the streets to celebrate native american culture. the driver was arrested. no word on what triggered the incident. the other big story this morning, an agreement that could be a major win for president biden. a deal has been reached with arizona senator kyrsten sinema to pass the democrats' climate and tax bill. sinema was the final hold-out and she demanded changes. abc's em nguyen is here with the details. em, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, andrew. as president biden commends the breakthrough for the inflation reduction act, he stresses that it will not raise taxes on those making less than $400,000, a campaign promise he continues to repeat. this morning, a significant step forward for president joe biden's domestic agenda. democrats now planning to vote on a bill representing the largest investment in energy and climate programs in u.s. history. this budget legislation would only need 50 votes or all democrats to vote in favor. it comes after hold-out senator

kyrsten sinema broke her public silence thursday night offering support to her democratic caucus. the president calling it a critical step toward reducing inflation and the cost of living for america's families. the bill would help reduce prescription drug costs and health premiums, invest billions in fighting climate change, impose a new minimum tax on giant corporations and reduce the deficit by $300 billion. sinema says democrats had agreed to remove a key tax policy that targeted the wealthiest americans. sources also tell abc news the agreement that earned sinema's support will also include a new tax on the money that companies spend to purchase back their own stock. majority leader chuck schumer saying in a statement he believes he has the full support of his caucus. the final version of the reconciliation bill to be introduced on saturday will reflect this work and put us one step closer to enacting this

historic legislation into law. and the final hurdle, democrats need to hear back from the senate parliamentarian who will decide whether this bill meets all the budget requirements to allow democrats to bypass the filibuster and pass the legislation along party lines, andrew. >> em, thank you. congresswoman liz cheney says former president trump should be prosecuted for the january 6th attack if the evidence is sufficient. during an interview on cnn, she questioned whether the u.s. can call itself a nation of laws if the justice department has the evidence and decides not to prosecute. meanwhile, cheney is getting a boost from her father as she faces an uphill battle. former vice president dick cheney unleashed on trump in a new campaign ad. >> he is a coward. a real man wouldn't lie to his supporters. he lost his election, and he lost big. i know it. he knows it, and deep down i think most republicans know it. >> liz cheney's primary

race is less than two weeks away. she's struggling in the polls trailing a candidate who has embraced trump's election lies. the biden administration has declared monkeypox a public health emergency. 7100 cases have now been reported 12 weeks after the initial case in the u.s. the emergency designation commits more resources but the lack of vaccine availability remains a major issue. the fda hopes a new method of administering the vaccine will allow up to five doses to be given per vial instead of just one. meanwhile, 1.7 million doses of an antiviral treatment are available, but only 14,000 doses are accessible to patients thanks in part to bureaucratic paperwork. >> and now i'm seeing an credity long wait time for patients trying to get access to appointments, websites shutting down due to too many people logging on, and i even visited vaccine sites and seen lines you couldn't even imagine around parks of people hopeful to get a shot. >> nine monkeypox deaths have been reported worldwide.

none in the u.s. but scientists are worried that could change if the virus spreads to more children or other vulnerable groups. now to the emotional moment as brittney griner's team gathered hours after the nba star was sentenced to years in a russian prison camp. her coach saying she is amazed by brittney griner's strength. abc's christine sloan has more. [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: last night brittney griner's phoenix mercury teammates and opposing players held 42 seconds of silence before their game to show support for the basketball star sentenced to nine years in a russian prison camp. >> we're inspired every day by bg's strength. >> reporter: 42, the number of griner's jersey. griner's coach emotional after the game. >> it was really tough to see bg today and hear her words, really emotional day for our whole team. >> reporter: in a russian

courtroom yesterday, griner took responsibility for illegally bringing vape cartridges with cannabis oil into russia in february, but she insisted it was not intentional. >> i made an honest mistake, and i hope that in your ruling that it doesn't end my life here. >> reporter: griner then choking up apologizing to her family and teammates. her attorney argued griner had no criminal intent. the judge still finding the 31-year-old guilty of drug smuggling. president biden calling the sentence unacceptable saying it's one more reminder of what the world already knew, russia is wrongfully detaining brittney. the white house refusing to say whether russia with the harsh sentence is using griner as a political pawn. >> wrongfully detained, need to come home. there is a deal on the table. let's make the deal. let's get them home. >> reporter: sources say the biden administration is urging russia to accept its proposal to bring griner and former marine paul whelan home in exchange for russian arms dealer viktor bout.

sources say talks between the u.s. and russia continue. meanwhile, griner's lawyers are vowing to appeal the sentence. andrew, andrea. >> thank you, christine. time now for a look at your friday weather. good morning. it's looking to be another stormy day across the northeast. whether you're in new york city, d.c., baltimore, all the way down to eastern kentucky where they're still cleaning up from the flooding, some drenching downpours are going to be likely for us. the heat will linger. before the storms arrive, boston down to d.c., philly, accuweather real feel temperatures of 100 degrees or more. stay cool out there, folks. this weekend we've got warm weather in the northwest and lots of storms across the united states. i'm accuweather meteorologist kevin coskren. coming up, just how bad the teacher shortage could be this fall. but first what's next for

conspiracy theorist alex jones after a jury ordered him to pay $4 million for claiming the sandy hook school massacre was a hoax. does he have the money to pay? and later, the insect that's back this summer. why authorities want you to squash it. i was injured in a car crash. i had no idea how much my case was worth. i called the barnes firm. when a truck hit my son, i had so many questions about his case. i called the barnes firm. it was the best call i could've made. your case is often worth more than insurance offers.

call the barnes firm to find out what your case could be worth. we will help get you the best result possible. ♪ the barnes firm, injury attorneys ♪ ♪ call one eight hundred, eight million ♪ wanna help kids get their homework done? ♪ the barnes firm, injury attorneys ♪ 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.

this morning, scientists want us to literally stomp out an unwelcome visitor. spotted lantern flies have been seen in new jersey as well as other parts of the country. the request from agricultural officials, step on them. spotted lantern flies feed on and kill 70 different types of vegetation and even trees. radio host alex jones has been ordered to pay millions of dollars for spreading lies about the school shooting in newtown, connecticut, in 2012, but for jones this could just be the beginning of his troubles.

this morning, the financial hit alex jones will take for claiming the sandy hook school shooting was a hoax is far from determined. >> members of the jury, have you reached a verdict? >> reporter: a jury in texas yesterday ordered jones to $4 million in compensatory damages to the parents of a boy killed in the 2012 shooting. today jurors will consider punitive damages, which typically bring a higher sum. a lawyer for the parents telling a newspaper overnight, this next punitive phase becomes the real name of the game, and one thing's for sure, mr. jones is not going to sleep easy tonight after that verdict. >> this is your perry mason moment. >> reporter: before the jury announced the initial $4 million in damages, jones claimed any penalty half of that would spell the end to infowars, his radio and internet platform. >> any compensation above $2 million will sink us and -- >> reporter: jones' company declared bankruptcy in the middle of the case. the judge admonished jones for

claiming he's broke and for telling the jury about the bankruptcy filing. >> you may not tell this jury that you are bankrupt. that is also not true. you must tell the truth while you testify. this is not your show. >> reporter: reports say infowars' revenue reached up to $70 million last year alone. to successfully declare bankruptcy jones will have to prove in court that he has no money left. jones responded to yesterday's verdict on his website by admitting he made a mistake and asked for more money from his followers. a shortage of teachers across the country this fall is being called catastrophic. some districts are being forced to reduce classes to four days per week. they're having trouble recruiting teachers due to low pay, disrespect from students and parents and post-pandemic burnout. coming up, more trouble for actor kevin spacey. also ahead, the new warning about a scam targeting people who book travel online.

need long-lasting freshness? try febreze unstopables touch fabric spray. it doesn't just eliminate odors... simply shake and spray to unlock the breakthrough power of touch-activated scent technology. that lasts, even hours later! that's because febreze touch stores scent in your fabrics so you get bursts of freshness with every touch. your whole world will come alive. welcome home to fresh with febreze touch. la, la, la, la, la your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire

announcer: type 2 diabetes? mdiscover the power of 3 in n. the ozempic® tri-zone. in my ozempic® tri-zone, i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. announcer: ozempic® provides powerful a1c reduction. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. and you may lose weight. adults lost up to 14 pounds. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop ozempic® and get medical help right

away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may include pancreatitis. gallbladder problems may occur. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. join the millions already taking ozempic®. ask your health care provider about the ozempic® tri-zone. announcer: you may pay as little as $25 for a 3-month prescription. back now with new images from the volcanic eruption in iceland. smoke and lava pouring out of this fissure about 20 miles from iceland's capital city, but unlike the eruption in 2010, this one so far is not affecting air travel. actor kevin spacey ordered to pay $31 million to settle a lawsuit over sexual misconduct. a los angeles judge ordered that payment for the production company behind the netflix drama

"house of cards." spacey was fired from the series after several staffers accused him of unwanted groping. we turn to a new warning about a scam targeting people who book travel. if the discount sounds too good to be true, it probably is. this morning, the better business bureau is warning about scams disguised as deep discounts or fake cancellation notifications on flights. >> scammers always do their best work when people want something really bad and they don't want to pay too much for it. >> reporter: carolyn is a teacher who went online searching for cheaper airfare. when several sites popped up, she clicked on the one that seemed to have a flight exactly what she was looking for. >> i booked it. a little while later i got a phone call saying this flight has been canceled. >> reporter: instead the provider offered an alternative but she grew suspicious and asked for a refund, which never came. >> they also tacked on a $200 fee for themselves that i did not know about. >> reporter: and while carolyn was able to get back some of her money by calling her credit card company, the better business bureau says it's received more

than 70 other reports of this scam with the fraudsters setting up bogus websites luring people with the promise of a good deal, then shortly after you book your flight, they send you a message saying the flight has been changed, canceled or 9 the fare has gone up and ask you to rebook. >> there is no flight, there is no ticket and unfortunately they have your information. >> reporter: scammers are targeting people who book real flights by falsely claiming a cancellation and trying to get you to pay more. using your credit card can help protect your money but coming up later on "good morning america," some other tips to protect yourself and how to spot these scams. well, coming up, the sausage controversy at cracker barrel. but first how one teenager went from living in a homeless shelter to becoming a college basketball player. there is nothing glamorous about migraines. since i was a teenager the pain has taken me away from my family and friends. but i finally found relief with nurtec odt it's the only medication that can treat my migraine right when it strikes and prevent my next attack.

treat and prevent all in one. don't take if allergic to nurtec. most common side effects, in less than 3%, were nausea, indigestion/stomach pain. with quick dissolving nurtec i can get back to normal fast and prevent my next attack. treat & prevent - all in one. is dad posting a farewell to his favorite college freshman? nope, he's switching his choice cash back category to gas. the road to college can be emotional. but also... rewarding. [ding] with the bank of america customized cash rewards card, you just can't stop getting rewarded. [sfx: stomach gurgling] it's nothing... sounds like something. ♪ when you have nausea, heartburn, indigestion, ♪ ♪ upset stomach, diarrhea. ♪ pepto bismol coats and soothes for fast relief... when you need it most. ready to shine from the inside out? say “yes” to nature's bounty advanced gummies and jelly beans. the number one brand for hair, skin and nails. with two times more biotin to bring out more of your inner beauty. get more with nature's bounty.

these targeted ads are getting really creepy. it's almost like skittles is listening in on our conversation. game the rainbow, taste the rainbow. open. it's a beautiful word. neighborhoods "open". businesses "open". fields "open". who doesn't love "open"? offices. homes. stages. possibilities. your world. open. and you can help keep it that way. ♪♪

♪ and it's time to check "the pulse." we begin with hoop dreams coming true for a talented teenager in los angeles. >> 18-year-old jeremiah armstead and his family are homeless, but he'll soon be moving from a shelter to a dorm room with the help of several organizations. jeremiah was accepted to fisk university in nashville where he is joining the basketball team, a dream come true. >> my mom, she texted me. she called me early in the morning, look at your email. you got accepted into fisk. it was a thrill. i was jumping up and down. >> a higher power moves mountains to help my son get to nashville, tennessee. >> donations are pouring this to help jeremiah. he already got a scholarship and his high school coach got him some new basketball shoes. all right, next customers are voicing outrage at cracker barrel all because of a change in the breakfast menu. >> the restaurant chain is now offering a plant-based sausage and some people online have blasted the meat alternative as woke.

some even saying they've lost all respect for cracker barrel. >> yeah, but others point out regular sausage is still available. next the shocking discovery on live tv. >> it comes from our station in chicago. while doing the weather meteorologist greg dutra discovered his new toy. >> right now kind hung up just a little bit. i moved the map. i can do that? no way. >> did you just -- >> i got to try it. hold on. can you believe that? just touch it. you can go anywhere you want. >> that's so cool. >> i didn't know. can i zoom? oh, man. it's a great day. >> mind blown. anchor terrell brown was very excited too. >> we need to get one of those. >> for sure. finally, a bad bounce at the ballpark. >> seattle was taking on detroit and a guy in the front row lets a foul ball bounce and it takes out his beer. it was a direct hit. the tigers though later gave him a new beer and new ball which he gave to a boy sitting nearby.

>> everybody wins. >> top headlines next. (johnny cash) ♪ i've traveled every road in this here land! ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ crossed the desert's bare, man. ♪ ♪ i've breathed the mountain air, man. ♪ ♪ of travel i've had my share, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪ ♪ i've been to: pittsburgh, parkersburg, ♪ ♪ gravelbourg, colorado, ♪ ♪ ellensburg, cedar city, dodge city, what a pity. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere, man. ♪ ♪ i've been everywhere. ♪ girls trip. ♪ it's the most wonderful time of the year ♪ get fast relief of your worst allergy symptoms. including nasal congestion. with powerful claritin-d. so you can breathe better. feel the clarity and make today the most wonderful time of the year. claritin - d.

♪♪ age before beauty? why not both? visibly diminish wrinkled skin in just two days. new crepe corrector lotion only from gold bond. champion your skin. do you struggle with occasional nerve aches in your hands or feet? only from gold bond. try nervivenerve relief from the world's #1 selling nerve care company. nervive contains alpha lipoic acid to relieve occasional nerve aches, weakness and discomfort. try nervivenerve relief. from prom dresses to workouts and new adventures you hope the more you give the less they'll miss. but even if your teen was vaccinated against meningitis in the past they may be missing vaccination for meningitis b. although uncommon, up to 1 in 5 survivors of meningitis will have long term consequences. now as you're thinking about all the vaccines your teen might need make sure you ask your doctor

if your teen is missing meningitis b vaccination.

announcer: building a better bay area. moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc 7 news.

reggie: clash at a closed oakland school. parker elementary, the side of a protest for months. the heated exchange between demonstrators and the district. >> monkeypox outbreak. the federal government declaring a national health emergency. comes as one bay area city continues to wait for thousands more vaccine doses. reggie: ready for outside lands. the music festival making its return. you need to know for that event. >> taking a live look outside. what will the weather be like? drew is here with details on the forecast. good morning, everybody. reggie: it is always putting much the same exact weather for outside. drew: especially august. it is chilly, so have those layers with you. live doppler seven this morning showing you along with satellite a fair amount of high clouds overhead. you can see a lot of showers in

the nt