on our broadcast tonight, school shooting. there's been another deadly massacre on campus. another s.w.a.t. team fans out as the dead and wounded are taken out. we'll have the very latest. strip search. the supreme court says if you're arrested for anything, you're subject to a strip search before you get locked up. though even some on the court worry it's a serious invasion of privacy. > at risk. dangerous new numbers on skin cancer and why young women are paying the highest price. scare tactics. why some weather warnings are about to get more dire. and heads are rolling in washington tonight in the latest fleecing of america. "nightly news" begins now.

good evening. tonight, there's been another outburst of violence in the country. once again, a mass shooting that has taken place on a campus. this happened at a small private college in california when witnesses say a man stood up in class without warning and opened fire, and late in the day, the death toll started to soar. nbc's kristen dahlgren is in our los angeles news room with the latest from the scene. kristen, good evening. >> good evening. a total of ten were shot in oakland. police have now confirmed seven dead. as you can imagine, it was a tense scene for several hours today. police had to evacuate survivors while a s.w.a.t. team searched for the gunman. as emergency crews rushed victims out of the school, police ran in, guns drawn. witnesses describe the frightening moments after the shooter entered oikos university this morning and opened fire.

>> he shot one guy in the chest, shot another person, and started firing like crazy. >> art richards captured the panic in this cell phone video. >> you heard a couple more shots ring out from the building and i guess police fired back or something. we all got on the ground. there was a girl next to me, i had no idea she was shot, but she was shot. a piece of her arm was missing. >> unsure if the gunman was still inside, police worked to evacuate students who sprinted to safety. >> another lady came running from behind me. she said there's a shooting. someone next to me got shot in the chest. she was going kind of crazy. she said, i've been shot, too. she took off her jacket like a couple minutes, like five minutes later. she had a big bullet hole. >> police say they now have a suspect in custody, captured as a nearby grocery score. they will not discuss the possible motive, but the school's founder said he was a former student of the small school that offers studies in religion and nursing. students who were training to

tend to the wounded now dealing with the shocking injuries of their classmates. authorities have described the suspect as a male asian in her 40s. they have not released his name or the condition of the survivors. >> kristen dahlgren starting us off. thanks. in sanford, florida, fbi agents arrived today. went door to door, started questioning witnesses and examining evidence in investigation into whether neighborhood watch volunteer george zimmerman violated trayvon martin's civil rights. justice department's involvement on the case is on a parallel track with the state's criminal investigation, trying to determine whether the shooting of 17-year-old martin was racially motivated. imagine the following. you get arrested for a minor violation. taken to your local lockup, and even though there's no reason to suspect you're smuggling anything in, you're subjected to an invasive strip search. according to the u.s. supreme

court's ruling today, that's now acceptable across the land, and critics are howling it's an unacceptable violation of our privacy. our report tonight from justice correspondent pete williams. >> when new jersey state troopers pulled over albert florence for failing to pay a two-year-old fine, it turns out the records were wrong. he had already paid it, but he was arrested and taken to jail anyway. that's where he was subjected to a thorough and humiliating strip search. >> the guys next to you, you feel he's looking at you. >> taken to another jail a few days later before he was eventually released, it happened a second time. >> my sense of justice had gone out the window again because i'm being strip searched again. >> he sued claiming it's unconstitutional to strip search everyone taken to jail, even people held on minor offenses, like failing to wear a seat belt, making an illegal u-turn, or eating on the subway, but today, the supreme court said jailers must be free to check for hidden weapons and drugs on

all incoming prisoners even if they're held a short time, just as anthony kennedy wrote an opinion for a 5-4 court split along idealogical lines. he said local jails take in more than 13 million inmates a year, making it impossible to predict who might make trouble. kennedy said people picked up for the most minor offenses can turn out to be dangerous criminals, noting that oklahoma city bomber timothy mcveigh was originally arrested for driving without a license place on his car. but civil liberty groups say strip searching petty offenders who may spend only a few hours in jail is a serious invasion of privacy. >> i don't think that the average american would expect to be subjected to this type of search for committing such a minor crime as possibly not paying your parking tickets or not registering your dog properly. >> the courts said some jails take the trouble to set up separate cells for minor offenders. when that hanned, the court said, strip searching everyone might go too far. pete williams, nby news, at the

supreme court. we're following a still unfolding story out of washington tonight that will spark outrage among taxpayers and has already today cost several people their jobs. some are already labeling this a fleecing of america. the gsa, the general services administration, set up by president truman to make government work better, the washington post found out the gsa spent just under a million dollars of taxpayer money on a conference just outside las vegas featuring a kind of "are you sitting down" list of attractions, including a clown and a mind reader. the head of the gsa and some deputies are out as of today. the white house is angry, and tonight, our senior investigative correspondent, lisa myers, has a look at what else you paid for. >> as the commercials say, what happens in vegas stays in vegas. that is unless you work for the general services administration.

a report out today found a gsa training conference in october 2010 at this ritzy resort in vegas which has its own casino and spa costs a staggering $823,000 taxpayer dollars or almost $2,750 per person for a four-day conference. >> that included $3,200 for a mind reader, more than $6,300 for commemorative coins, and $75,000 for a team building exercise to construct a bicycle. >> you put it also in the context of how the economy was doing, and it's just boggling the mind to think that anybody thought this was an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars. >> the report specifically criticized excessive, wasteful, and sometimes impermissible costs, including $44 per person breakfasts and a $95 per person reception and dinner. what makes it worse is the gsa is the agency that is supposed to make the government more efficient. it builds the buildings, buys

the supplies with the goal of cutting costs. today, the head of the agency, martha johnson, resigned, saying gsa had made a significant misstep and taxpayer dollars were squandered. johnson's two deputies were forced out. the white house moved quickly to try to contain any political damage, saying in a statement that president obama was outraged by a gross misuse of taxpayer dollars and decisive action had been taken. the white house said it directed all agencies to review conference spending last year. that was almost a year after this conference was held. this kind of news is not helpful to a president already under fire for excessive spending. brian? >> lisa myers in our washington newsroom. lisa, thanks. to presidential politics on the eve of tomorrow's three gop primaries. there's news tonight about women voters and the fallout for the presidential candidates from the bitter fights we have been seeing lately over women's rights.

tonight, a former candidate who now happens to be secretary of state is speaking out on the issue. our report from nbc's andrea mitchell. >> one, two, three, four. >> we won't take it anymore. >> it started in the republican campaign and quickly flared into a national debate over contraception and women's rights. now it's produced a huge gender advantage for president obama. leading likely opponent mitt romney by 18 points among women. in a new usa today/gallup poll of battleground states. across party lines, american women are fired up, including hillary clinton who is used to being the sole women in a man's world. >> i think we need to call people out when they go over the line. they're entitled to their opinion, but no one is entitled to engage in that kind of, you know, verbal assault. >> did rush limbaugh go too far this time? >> i thought the response was very encouraging.

the response from the public, the response in particular from women cutting across all kinds of categories. >> she says she's out of politics, but she's the most popular woman in america, according to gallup, for the tenth year in a row. meryl streep recently delivered what sounded like a nominating speech for clinton. >> if you want a real world leader and you're really, really lucky, this is what you get. >> there is a growing expectation that you will run for president. >> well, andrea, that is -- >> why not? >> it's flattering, but you know, i'm not at all planning to do that. and i'll do some writing and some speaking and i'm sure i'll be continuing to advocate on these issues. >> bill clinton told luke russert, she might miss the action. >> she thinks she'll probably never run for office again, but i have been there. i know what happens when you go through this decompression. >> as for the next campaign, neither clinton is closing any doors.

andrea mitchell, nbc news, washington. >> and another former candidate is set to weigh in on the campaign season and much more. sarah palin appears exclusively tomorrow morning on "today" on this nbc station. overseas, a big win for democracy in myanmar. the nobel peace prize laureate aung san suu kyi, once imprisoned by the regime for more than a decade, taking her victory lap with throngs of supporters after what is said to be a landslide for her party, winning almost all of the seats up for grabs in yesterday's parliamentary elections. back in the country, what has already been a dangerous and destructive tornado season has spawned this. the national weather service has been studying last year's extreme tornadoes and is now testing a new warning system in the midwest's tornado alley. our report from nbc's john yang.

>> sometimes there's little warning, but in the annual struggle with nature that is tornado season, the national weather service hopes blunt words of warning will get people to take cover before something like this is right on top of them. starting today, they're testing the new system in parts of kansas, missouri, and illinois. >> we want to make sure that the language we use is strong enough to motivate people to understand they need to take immediate action to protect themselves. >> for example, the warning before a tornado killed 161 people in joplin, missouri, last may said the safest place to be during a tornado is in a basement. under the new system, it may say tornado may be unsurvivable if shelter is not sought below ground level. >> it's giving us more tools and hopefully more of a way to get people to act when they really need to act. >> more sophisticated radar allows earlier and more accurate warnings, even detecting tornadoes on the ground before eyewitnesses spot them. >> oh, boy.

>> we have a debris ball. >> in regions where severe weather is common, meteorologists say warning fatigue could set in. >> i was laying in bed and i heard the siren go off, but i didn't think anything about it because it had been going off all day. >> linda never sought shelter but still survived last year's tornado that killed 26 in her tiny alabama town. >> there is somewhat of a cry wolf syndrome out there because three out of four times, they are false alarms. >> hoping that new stark language will make sure the most critical alarms are heard loud and clear. john yang, nbc news, chicago. >> and a quick word here about the month of march. we have learned that 7,500 individual daily temperature records were set during last month alone. and 80 big u.s. cities set new monthly high temperatures, some of them also had record low rainfall. still ahead for us here tonight, the big bad numbers just out on skin cancer. and identifying the new

high-risk group. and later, america then and now. secret for decades. tonight, we have incredible new proof of how much we have all changed.

we mentioned this just before the break, new numbers are out on skin cancer in the country, and the headline here is this. the stunning rise in melanoma among young women in the united states. our chief medical editor, dr. nancy snyderman has the report. >> today's study looked at new cases of melanoma diagnosed in young patients over a 40-year period, and its authors say the results are alarming. the rate of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, was eight times higher among women 18 to 39 than it was in 1970. among men, four times higher. >> some people would consider melanoma, especially in young women, almost an epidemic. >> while the mayo clinic study

didn't look at the reason, researchers point to one big culprit, indoor tanning which was introduced to the u.s. market in the late '70s. one recent study showed using tanning bez increases the risk for melanoma by 74%. >> i did not know what to say. >> jody duke said her pale coloring meant she couldn't get a tan in the sun, so as a teenager, she started going to tanning salons. >> it started off as once a week and then maybe twice a week and then eventually, it got to every day that i was tanning. >> and she believes she paid a price for it. at 19, she was diagnosed with malignant melanoma and underwent surgery and extensive follow-up treatments. the indoor tanning association contends there's no consensus on the relationship between melanoma and uv exposure, that studies are skewed by a disproportionate population of fair-skinned people, and they don't consider the importance of advanced sunscreens. this doctor at the university of colorado has been using uv photography to check for skin damage.

not only in y heertaavkes nn li jody but also in children who have never used tanning beds. he co-authored a study showing visible signs of sun damage in kids as young as 12 and 13. jody duke says she won't take chances with her family. >> i have two little girls, and they are as pale as i am. so we are in sunscreen every day, whether it's rain or shine. hats and long sleeves. and we're very careful. >> there is no such thing as a good tan. all tans are damaging. experts say the things to watch out for, if you have more than 50 moles on your body, any blistering sun burns put you at risk, and anyone who has used a tanning bed more than 50 times, all of the things add up. while fair-skinned people are most susceptible, even people with darker complexions are at risk, too, and when darker skinned people get skin cancer, their outcomes are not as good. >> the numbers and the demographic make it so scary today.

nancy, as always, thank you. we'll take another break here. when we come back, what the experts are saying tonight about the nation's airlines that may come as a complete shock to the flying public. he

whoever's holding the three winning tickets in the record mega millions jackpot is keeping a low profile for rich people. we know the tickets were sold in kansas, illinois, and maryland, but tonight, no one has yet come forward to claim the winnings, which by the way, have gotten even bigger -- now $656 million. meaning each winner will receive $218 million before taxes. the folks who track airline quality tell us u.s. airlines are performing at their highest rate in 22 years, though your own experience may vary. the researchers are from purdue and wichita state. they say the discount carriers, airtran, hawaiian, and jetblue

led the industry in all of the basic major categories. hawaiian has the best on-time rate, probably because they're all anxious to get to hawaii. some other notes, american eagle lost the most bags, and southwest had the fewest customer complaints. since the morning of 9/11, the empire state building has once again been the tallest building here in the new york skyline, just as it was from 1931 to 1972 when the trade center was built. that's about to change again. the new so-called freedom tower going up at ground zero in lower manhattan is now six feet from overtaking empire, if you don't include the antenna. that will happen four to six weeks from now. when it's topped out in 2014, it will be more than 300 feet taller than the great old landmark skyscraper, antenna and all. up next, a treasure trove of american secrets just revealed today.

finally tonight, for those of us who are interested in who we are or how far our nation has come and how much we have changed in a very short time, the federal government today

released a gold mine. they released the 1940 census, including what people told the census takers in their interviews about their lives, their pay, their living arrangements, and it shows that we have changed so much in this relatively short period of time. in 1940, we had survived a depression and fought a world war. and we had no way of knowing quite yet it would someday be called the first world war. in 1940, it was still possible to see civil war veteran marching in your local memorial day parade, and that year, americans were told the census was mandatory. >> 120,000 census takers are radiating across america. >> the marketing slogan of the day was you cannot know your country unless your country knows you. >> it's like going into a time capsule and traveling to an america that has since then disappeared.

there were a lot fewer people who had houses, a lot more farmers, a lot less education. it was a very different country. >> what we now know is the america of 1940 was still small. we have more than doubled since then. we were overwhelmingly white, still very rural, with very few college graduates. an astounding number of americans didn't have phones, indoor bathrooms or running water. >> you can see in the numbers the rise of the sunbelt. 1940, the big states were places like pennsylvania and ohio. now it's texas, california, florida. >> another development, we now have the web, and because the government has decided that so much time has passed that it shouldn't be confidential anymore, it's all there from 1940. if you or someone you know took part in that census, you can search for it. that includes verla morris. she turns 100 this year. she took part in the 1940 census

and can't wait to read her own details from back then. >> i don't care what people know about me because it's an open book anyway. >> hat's off to verla. it's all there for the research. that's our broadcast for this monday night as we start off a new week. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we, of course, hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. cell phone video captures the horror of a gunman's rampage. a tiny east bay university turned into a crime scene. >> she took off her jacket like a couple of minutes, five minutes later, she had a bullet hole in her arm. >> tonight seven people are dead and three injured. >> she said that he hasn't all there. something wasn't right from day one. >> tonight the investigative unit uncovers new information on the suspect and