this morning on "early today," burden is proof. the white house weighs releasing the death photos of al qaeda mastermind osama bin laden. mad rush, a daring water rescue in missouri as record flooding grips the midwest. and city bandit, raccoons go on a rampage through the chicago lake front. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry. welcome to our viewers across the nation. today, we begin with that final

photo. as we get more details about the military operation that killed osama bin laden, the obama administration is now facing a very tough question, whether or not to release the final images showing the terror leader's body. for more on that, we go to nbc's steve handelsman. >> reporter: cia director leon panetta gave lawmakers the briefing and they gave him advice about the death photos. >> it was important for the united states to release the picture of his body to confirm that he is dead. >> reporter: panetta agreed. >> we got bin laden and i think we have to reveal to the rest of the world that we were able to get him. >> reporter: but it's not the cia director's call. it's president obama's he doesn't want to rush out what the white house calls grewsome shots. >> there are sensitivities here in terms of the appropriateness of releasing photographs of

osama bin laden. >> reporter: more arguments against release. the dna match was reported perfect, better proof than a picture. and the streets in the muslim world are quiet. why incite trouble? in pakistan, the government insisted no authority knew this was bin laden's mansion and the white house signal no punishment. >> pakistan is a strong partner. >> reporter: and team obama is defensive about a key detail. bin laden was unarmed when he was shot. >> but there were many other people who were armed in the compound. it was a fire fight. >> reporter: bin laden could have put up his hands and surrendered, said an official, nbc news, washington. meanwhile, the pakistani government yesterday criticized the raid as an unauthorized unilateral action and warned the u.s. against launching similar attacks in the future.

>> flood waters continue to threaten the homes of people up and down the mississippi and ohio river valleys. the u.s. army corps of engineers says blasting a hole through one levee appears to have spared one illinois town, but several states downstream are still in danger. kirk gregory has our report. >> reporter: massive flooding continues across six states. in western tennessee, water as far as the eye and helicopter can see. the state's governor has requested $10 million in federal emergency funding. >> we are prepared to respond as quickly as possible. >> the mississippi river has already breached its banks. this is memphis where rising flood waters are threatening neighborhoods. on the other side of the mighty mississippi, large parts of eastern arkansas are under water, including dozens of highways and roads. experts are trying to minimize damage. the army corps of engineers blew

up this levee near cairo, illinois, sacrificing nearly 130,000 acres of land and 100 homes to save the community. concerns continue to rise downstream. still officials in mississippi warning residents this flood is going to be historic based on the predictions of the national weather service. >> and casinos in toonica aren't gambling with mother nature's destructive power. money is being taken away for safekeeping. many casino operators expect to be shut down with flooding for at least three weeks. kirk gregory, nbc news. now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. the dramatic rescue of a 93-year-old woman who made the mistake of trying to cross a flooded highway was recorded by a sheriff assisting from the shore. using a safety line and cable, two missouri national guardsmen battled raging water to pull the woman from her car and ultimately to safety. no injuries were reported.

chicago's lake front harbors have a new hangout for raccoons. the spike in population has been a problem since last summer, leading to the capture of approximately 120 of the scavengers. officials say classified -- and they've classified that situation as an infestation. they've cautioned residents not to leave trash around, a steady source of food for the animals. would be that trash. finally, america has its own polar bear survival story to tell. a female cub was rescued from an alaskan oil field. it was spotted weeks ago. with it's mother but may have been orphaned. zoo officials are caring for the cub and they hope to find it a new home soon. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. that is our new mascot. >> he can snuggle up with you and put him in your apartment.

>> let's talk about the flooding, lynn. we are not seeing heavy rain. we are going into a quiet weather pattern across the heartland. the mississippi and ohio river at flood stage. this isn't your typical flooding. this is a once in a life time flood event. this is going to take about a week to get down there into mississippi and louisiana. temperatures on the west coast, we are okay. cool in the northwest. appreciate this day in the pacific northwest. a high pressure ridge is built in the region. we should see a good deal of sunshine out there. this is about it. after this, it looks cloudy and gloomy into the weekend. 64 and party cloudy if not sunny today. this is one of the better days

for a while. everyone else is getting a is starting to warm up is the west. >> i hate always giving that seattle forecast like that. one little day. >> we know how they feel. oil prices fall. bp pays for its spills and a website for those who find breaking up is hard to do. early morning business headlines are straight ahead. and once again lindsey lohan may have found a way to stay out of jail. >> coming up the celtics show their age and the first no-hitter of the season. you are watching "early today."

good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. texas has carried out its first execution using a different sedative that is often used on animals. carrie kerr who was put to death for the sexual assault and strangling of a woman in 2001 maintained his innocence in his final words. england's daily mail claims the honeymoon may have been delay ed by the cuouple's safety rather than i wish to rush back to work. a palace spokesperson says the delay was a personal decision make weeks ago. the couple will honeymoon later this month. meanwhile, prince charles made a trip to washington, d.c. yesterday. he met with war veterans following a visit to the supreme

court earlier in the day. and in new york, a rare wooden sculpture by paul gogan sold for $11.3 million, a record for a sculpture by the french artist. the piece was last seen by the public in 1961. >> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,807 after gaining a fraction yesterday. the s&p shed 4 points. and the nasdaq lost 22. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei was closed for a holiday, but in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 318. a disappointing report from the world's largest drugmaker set a dismal tone on wall street yesterday. pfizer fell short of earnings estimates following the bell followed by weak results from clorox, beezer homes and sears. crude prices dipped more than 2 bucks a barrel.

today the government is expected to report a jump in u.s. supplies. metro pcs was one of the day's few bright spots. the phone carrier rose 10% after ringing up a record number of subscribers last quarter. general motors climbed 2% thanks in part to higher gas prices which are now driving sales of fuel efficient photos. for home loans, it should buy a mortgage company it bought back in 2007. in a suit filed yesterday, the u.s. demanded deutsche pay back hundreds of millions of dollars in defaulted loans. bp has agreed to pay $25 million in civil fines stemming from two alaskan oil spills back in 2006. the largest per barrel find for any oil company in a spill-related case. portugal is the latest european country to agree to an international bailout, reportedly for about $115 billion. keep an eye on comcast today. the parent company of this

network weighed in with better than expected earnings after the bell. after hours, cbs doubled its shareholder dividend thanks to a healthy first quarter report. finally, ever wish you could pay someone else to end a relationship for you? well, one website is offering to do the dirty work four for as little as 10 bucks. well, the nba's top rookie, yet overtime stanley cup contest and the american league's world pitcher in april throws a no-hitter in may. plus, lebron james and the heat try to spin past the celtics. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. >> and after a spring filled with tornados and record flooding, a nice tranquil weather pattern. what do you know. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, if any team knows how to win the nba playoffs it's the boston celtics. but they're going to need to call on all that experience and more after falling behind two games to none in their matchup with the miami heat. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. in game two between the heat and the celts, miami's big three looked young and energetic while

boston's big three just looked old. case in point, dwyane wade, one-on-one with kevin garnett, blew right by him for the bucket and the foul. the heat were up by five at the half. rajon rondo off the spin cycle. heat won, 100-91 to take a 2-0 lead in the series. thunder flew to a 111-102 win. the different in oklahoma's bench outscored memphis by 19 and game three is saturday. kevin griffin will be named high flyer today. to the nhl, the lightning on the verge of knocking off another cop seat. caps scored a pair of goals just 23 seconds apart in the third. steven stamkos, top shelf. that was nice. bounced off ryan malone's foot and in. tampa won it, 4-3. they can close it out tomorrow.

vancouver on the power play. michael samuelsson threw the puck on net. ryan kessler there to knock it in. kanucks take a 3-2 win. the first no-hitter of the season. a chopper to third. dana valencia made the stop and through foul territory. a gold glove top play kept the no-hitter intact. matt tolbert there for the final out. francisco liriano had plenty of help from his teammates for the first no-hitter of the year. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. which reality tv star

ditched a baseball came after being given the honor of throwing out the first pitch? your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, so much tragedy has come out of the storms and flooding ravaging the south, but we have one story for you with a happy ending. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. a little taste of summer today look at these temperatures

today. los angeles is getting warmer too. if you are getting ready for the water, some of that warmth makes the temperatures cooler in the northwest. the next storm system moves in. we are going to keep it warm in the desert southwest. if you are are watwatching us i, california. the gateway science museum. >> thank you so much. >> bill, thanks so much. now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. according to one report, as punishment for stealing a necklace, lindsay lohan may be given a bracelet. tmz reports lohan will plead no contest to misdemeanor theft. in return, the judge will not increase her 120-dayprobation violation sentence. the website goes on to say it's possible, given routine

procedure by the l.a. county sheriff's department that has a nonviolent misdemeanor offender, lohan may be allowed to serve her sentence at home, providing she wears an electronic monitoring device. most anyone that gets honored by being able to throw out a major league first pitch would normally stick around to enjoy the game, right? well, not celebrity chef gordon ramsey, who tossed out the opener for the l.a. dodgers monday night. he apparently immediately left the stadium for the nba's laker playoff game, taking up a front row seat with pal david beckham, who celebrated his 36th birthday. i probably would have done that, too, along with other courtside friends like will ferrell, eddie murphy and jack nicholson. >> these are the decisions

celebrities must make. >> he at least could have kept the dodger's cap on. >> oh well. this comes to us from wvla pbc 33 in baton rouge, louisiana. a group of scouts received a homecoming celebration some feared would never happen. a two-day search and rescue mission netted the results everyone was hoping for when six scouts and two troop leaders returned to their families. anxiety spread when the troops didn't return from a three-day camping trip. but one scout reassured everyone they survived by living the boy scout motto, be prepared. be prepared. lesson learned. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

here is a competition you could raise your glass to. ahead of the famous run for the roses at the kentucky derby, the run for the roset was held in louisville yesterday. waiters and waitresses raced through the obstacles. while carrying cups of ott wine on serving trays. competitors can't spill any of their drinks either. here is an update on a story we brought you last week. a man in cuba set a record for rolling the world's longest cigar. his latest stogie measures a

whopping 268 feet long and gains 200 pounds of tobacco. he's been working on the cigar since april 25th and this marks his fifth time breaking the record. well, one man in china turned a boring chore into a performance art of sorts. his job at a clothing store become monotonous by adding in a dance routine to his daily routine of ironing. the craft nicknamed fanssy iron ing could also be called dangerous. his moves including juggling a 400 degree iron, which is why we should say do not try this at home. we should also say do not wear stone washed jeans, which went out of style a long time ago. >> we should go back to the roset story. you said you can't spill it, you didn't say anything about consuming it. >> well, you get tired, a little thirsty. time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. resuming classes today,

tuscaloosa city schools. alabama students will be returning today after last week's deadly tornados. over 300 people were killed last week, most of them in alabama. prince charles' tour takes him to the white house. and today will mark the shooting of kent state university. on this day in 1970, ohio national guardsmen opened fire during a protest. four students were killed. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. "today" takes you inside osama bin laden's sprawling compound as new details emerge about his death. and music superstar shaniya twain is live in studio talking about her comeback from personal ruin. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of

the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com