good wednesday morning. coming up on "early today," a matter of days. seven more minutes of signals detected just last night as optimism grows that flight 370 will be found. overwhelming emotion, the judge abruptly adjourned because of oscar pistorius's raw emotion on the witness stand. he returns this morning. foreign crisis, political conditions in ukraine escalate as the secretary of state and john mccain butt heads. plus, guilty of murder with a five-inch stiletto heel. bill clinton calls edward snowden an imperfect messenger. and the lady huskies are perfect as uconn wins both big ones. it's wednesday, april 9th. "early today" starts right now.

good morning to you. i'm frances rivera. we are following breaking news overnight in that search for missing flight 370. two more pings detected under water. 33 days now after the malaysian airliner vanished. the australian official in charge of the search is optimistic the plane's wreckage will soon be found. >> i believe we are searching in the right area, but we need to visually identify aircraft wreckage before we can confirm with certainty that this is the final resting place of mh-370. >> let get right to nbc's ian williams live in perth, australia. ian, good morning. how cautious is this sense of optimism? >> reporter: good morning to you, frances. they do seem optimistic now that they are looking in the right area, but also cautiously saying there may be some way to go before they can physically locate the black boxes or any

plane wreckage which may be sitting on what they call a silty seabed some three miles below where they're searching. now, those two detections of sound yesterday which were consistent with what they've heard at the week end, they're pretty clear they are what they call manmade. but they do need more information. they need more detections to be able to better pinpoint precisely where on the seabed those sounds are coming from. now, that's crucial because they want to send down an underwater drone, as they call it, a submersible to go take a look down there. but that submarine works very slowly at walking pace. so it can only cover a very small area at a time. and right now what they've identified is sound somewhere within a 12-mile radius of the ship. so it's very important now that they try and narrow that down. but all the time, of course, the signals are getting weaker because the battery life is running out on the black boxes. and of course, they have yet to find any wreckage at all,

frances. >> still so crucial as the time passes by. i ian, thank you so much for being with us. in ukraine, re-ignited fears that the military prospect from russia is a real possibility. tensions flares tuesday across three cities. u.s. secretary of state john kerry says russia is determined to create chaos. nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, good morning. there's word the obama administration is facing some criticism of its own. >> reporter: well, john mccain says instead of a stick, we're carrying a twig when it comes to individual sanctions on russia. they don't seem to work. they don't seem to have discouraged russia from getting involved in ukraine's affairs. and now we have at least three cities in eastern ukraine where demonstrations have broken out. in one case, 60 people were held hostage because those pro-russian demonstrators want to vote just like in crimea, for independence to break away from ukraine and join russia. the u.s. think that russia is

secretly behind all of this, that they're whipping up this fervor in eastern ukraine. here on capitol hill, secretary of state john kerry said we're going to have to get tougher in dealing with russia, maybe sanctions that affect big parts of their economy as opposed to individuals. of course, there are economic ties there with our allies and others, and that's making the situation more complicated. >> we'll watch it closely. tracie potts reporting for us. dramatic new testimony just moments ago from oscar pistorius who is back on the witness stand for the third day. he described the scene in the bathroom just moments after shooting his former girlfriend, reeva steenkamp. >> i checked to see if she was breathing and she wasn't. and i put my arms underneath her shoulders and i pulled her weight onto me, and i sat there crying for -- for some time. >> this comes after an emotionally charged day in court yesterday. he recounted for the first time under oath how he fatally shot her.

>> i thought that there was a burglar gaining entrance into my home. the first thing that ran through my mind was that i needed to arm myself, that i needed to protect reeva and i and i need to do get my gun. >> pistorius said he retrieved his gun and headed to the bathroom without his prosthetic legs shouting at reeva, who he believed was in the bedroom to get on the floor. when he heard the noises in the bathroom, he opened fire. >> before i knew it, i had fired four shots at the door. my ears were ringing. i couldn't hear anything. so i kept on shouting for reeva to phone the police. >> when reeva didn't answer and he couldn't find her in the bedroom, pistorius says he realized what he had done. he said he put on his prosthetic legs and ran back to the bathroom. >> at that point, all i wanted to do was look inside. to see if it was reeva. i flung the door open, i threw

it open and i sat over reeva and i cried. i don't know how long i was there for. >> joining me now is former manhattan prosecutor faith jenkins. now filling in the time line, specifically when he put on his prosthetic leg. tell us why that's so significant. >> when prosecutors first charged this case, they charged him with premeditated murder. they did that based on the fact that they thought he went back to his bedroom, put on his legs, then went back to the bathroom and fired four shots, killing reeva. during that time frame, they said he formed the intent to commit murder at that time. so they charged him with premeditated murder. now we've heard testimony from an expert in the prosecutor's case, and now from oscar pistorius himself where he said,

i did not put on my legs until after the shots were fired. i went back to the bedroom there. now based on these evidence, i'm not sure there's any facts or evidence that supports a first-degree premeditated murder count. >> there's a lot of scrutiny when it comes to the screams. his screams, her screams. let's start with his. basically he's saying he's never screamed like that in his life before which kind of contradicts some of the testimony there saying that they heard a woman cry out. wouldn't they hear his if that were the case? >> right. we've heard testimony from four different neighbors. they've said they heard a woman screaming. and then four gunshots and then the screamed stopped. so he has to account for that. and how is he doing it? he's saying he was the one who was screaming. what's so interesting about his testimony yesterday and what i think will be challenged on cross-examination is he testified that when he went to the bathroom, before he ever fires a shot, he stopped. he stood there. he screamed at the would-be burglar. he screamed at reeva to call the police. but then you have to think about

it. we know there wasn't a burglar. we know there was reeva in the bathroom now. wouldn't she respond? wouldn't he know that it was her in the bathroom at that point? >> and especially you think about when he first woke up and got out of bed, wouldn't the natural reaction of anybody, is she right here next to me? where is she? >> prosecutors are going to hone in on that because yesterday he testified reeva was awake. all this time i thought that he said that she was asleep. so he went and got his gun, he went to check out the noise. now if she's awake, why wouldn't you turn to her and say, i thought i heard a noise. i'm going to check it out. not only does it have to match with the evidence, but it has to be believable. now he's largely gone unchallenged in his direct examination. but now his theory and all those facts and his version of events will be tested on cross-examination. >> may be a turning point at this point. thank you so much, faith jenkins, for your perspective, as always. for the first time and for the second time i should say in five years, president obama will be attending a memorial service

at fort hood. the president and first lady are headed to texas today to remember the victims of last week's shooting spree. he last visited the base in 2009 following the mass shooting that left 13 people dead. mr. obama is expected to make short remarksceremony. three people were killed in the shooting and another 16 others were injured. to now shift gears because spring is finally being felt all over the country. >> summer even in some cases. >> oh, we'll take that, too. nbc's bill karins has more on that. especially after some of the winter temperatures we've been feeling. >> now it finally is. thank you everyone in the west for finally sharing with the rest of the country. yesterday was a very warm day in the desert southwest. it was actually even hot in some cases. and we're going to watch that mild air moving across the country. no big rainstorms really for anyone over the next couple days. yesterday was the first 90-degree day of the season for phoenix at 94.

death valley, california, had their first 100-degree day yesterday. it was very warm in l.a. 88. same with you in vegas. notice how much cooler we were in seattle. cold front went through. it did give us a little cooler temperatures there. you can see some of the showers have now ended in the portland area and also by spokane. that's why we're calling it a dry forecast for today. definitely cool in the northwest. more clouds keeping temperatures down a little bit today in l.a., but still toasty in the desert southwes and we call it crickets in the weather business. there is very little bad weather to talk about. >> and you know what? that is good. >> fine. >> more of that on the way, right? we'll make those plans outside,

bill. thank you. bacon lovers beware. a potential shortage on the way. plus former president clinton's contrarian view of edward snowden. we'll have his comments next. how do you want to feel this spring? confident! optimistic! dazzling! fierce! radiant! spring is the time to make it happen with the new special k simple 5 plan. no counting, no keeping track. just make five smart choices every day. and lose up to 5 pounds in 2 weeks. fabulous! get started at specialk.com that's notthat's dirt r carpet, creeping in. send it running with resolve high traffic foam. its foam power removes three times more dirt than vacuuming alone. all while neutralizing pet odors. don't just vacuum clean . resolve clean.

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all the goodness of milk, all the deliciousness of hershey's syrup. welcome back. murder by stiletto. anna trujillo faces life in prison after a houston jury found her guilty of killing her boyfriend with a blue high heel. dubbed the stiletto murder, prosecutors allege she hit dr. anderson in the head 25 times with her 5 1/2-inch heels. trujillo claims self-defense. speaking at the u.s. naval academy, former president clinton shared his thoughts on the government's use of technology and nsa leaker edward snowden. >> mr. snowden has been sort of an imperfect messenger from my point of view. for what we need to be talking about here. but the snowden case has raised all these questions about

whether we can use technology to protect the national security without destroying the liberty which includes the right to privacy of basically innocent bystanders. >> mr. clinton went on to say it would be foolish not to use available technology to protect the country, but it must be done in a way that keeps privacy intact. and if you're frying up some bacon this morning, this is for you. a virus that has killed millions of baby pigs has spread to 27 states and could cause a nationwide bacon shortage. the virus doesn't affect humans, it may very well affect your next blt. time now to get down to business this morning. the national highway transportation safety administration is fining general motors $7,000 a day for failing to respond to over one-third of its requests for information about faulty ignition switches. the fines will continue to mount until gm responds fully. and an internet virus called the heart blood bug is putting secure and encrypted sites at

great risk. sites used by banks and credit cards are vulnerable to being hacked and having private information stolen. just ahead, uconn's perfect season as the huskies dominate college basketball. plus, hank aaron honored and the rest of your sports highlights next. hi. i just finished an energy audit of this building and started my own dog walking business. what did you do to deserve that thin mints flavor coffee-mate? it's only one of the most delicious girl scout cookie flavors ever. i changed the printer ink. really? it's actually tricky. you're lucky i like your tie. enjoy our caramel and coconut girl scout cookies flavor. now available in powder. nestle. good food, good life. and unlike other fibers, you'll aonly know you're taking fiber by the way good digestive health makes you look& and feel.

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will perform her song "what is love" from the rio 2 sound track. that's later on "today." time for sports. and uconn will need a much bigger trophy case, dominance on the boards and a 16-0 run helped snap notre dame's winning streak in the first ncaa final battle of the unbeatens. the lady huskies finished a perfect season 40-0 while netting their ninth national title. that gave coach geno auriemma and the women of uconn one more title than pat summitt of tennessee. this is the second time since 2004 that uconn's men and women have won national championships in the same year. just incredible. here's the pitch by downing. swinging. here's the drive into left center field. that ball is going to be out of here! >> hank aaron is still the home run king to many, and his hometown atlanta braves pulled out all the stops to honor aaron on the 40th anniversary of his

715th homer. batman made an appearance at san francisco's opening day game. the giants called on 5-year-old scott miles to toss out the first pitch. he's still living that moment. and the grudge against michael vick's dogfighting past continues. 9,000 people have signed a petition seeking to ban him center training camp at portland university. there's been no comment from vick, the jets or the university president. finally, jimmy fallon pokes fun at a fox news anchor who was reporting on the uconn men's championship team. did you see it? take a listen. >> this really made me laugh. fox news tried to cover the ncaa championship. the anchor got the story a little mixed up. see if you can see what she does here. >> the uconn huskies are the 2014 naacp national champs.

>> oh, you feel for them when you see those letters and they get jumbled up. you've got to feel sorry for her. i feel bad. still ahead, the legendary mickey rooney's estate that was almost broke. plus, julia louis-dreyfus's naked truth about going from elaine to "veep" next. ♪ ♪ ♪ abe! get in! punch it! [ male announcer ] let quicken loans help you save your money with a mortgage that's engineered to amaze. thanks, "g." because you can't beat zero heartburn. woo hoo!

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time out of her hollywood schedule to play the part of bridesmaid at her brother's wedding. while the oscar winner graces the cover of martha stewart's "real wedding" she hardly takes the spotlight away from her new sister-in-law. look how beautiful they all are. e. julia louis-dreyfus unveiled the cover of "rolling stone" on twitter plus a little bit more. the comedienne blames her constitution tattoo on a, quote, drunken stupor. they can do anything they want. after 73 years, comic book icon "archie" -- >> why? >> -- is set to kick the bucket in an upcoming issue. the creators say the redhead will be fatally shot saving a friend. we'll never know if betty or veronica is his true love. mickey rooney left his estate to mark rooney. the iconic actor said he lost most of his fortune due to mismanagement by another one of his stepsons. and scarlett johansson has

opened up about her divorce from ryan reynolds. she better understands what she wants from a relationship and goes on to say that's not a reflection on reynolds but more so where she was in her life. but you know what? all is good. she's off. she's pregnant. he's with blake lively. >> scarlett johansson has turned the corner. for a while, everyone was a little over her. now, pregnant, getting married. >> it's all good. it's all good. >> i was always a fan, by the w way. i was always on the bandwagon. >> me, too. they're both much happier now. all right, bill. i'm frances rivera, and this is "early today," we hope it's just your first stop of the day here on nbc. .

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leading the news in "the telegraph," exploding e-cigarette sets barmaid's dress on fire in england. the device was charging when it blew up and shot a fireball toward the 18-year-old barmaid. fortunately she and a nearby patron were not hurt. and in "usa today," prince george delights in most-watched play date ever. so cute on day three of their trip to new zealand. william and kate met with first-time parents and their babies, all of them born within a week or two of prince george's birthday last july. what a cool play date that is. stories making news this morning right now, 15 planes and 14 ships are searching for missing flight 370. this after news overnight that the ship detected two more underwater pings possibly from the missing plane's black boxes.

the australian official in charge of the search says he is optimistic they will find the aircraft or what's left of it. flight 370 disappeared 33 days ago with 239 people on board. and the ultimate warrior has died. the iconic superstar began his wwe career in 1987. his real name was james helwig. he was inducted into the wwe hall of fame just days ago. a cause of death is not given. he's survived by his wife and two daughters. he was 54 years old. nebraska teens make a splash while posing for pictures. the seniors figured that a nice small bridge would be the perfect place to snap a few photos before the prom, but you know what's going to happen. >> yeah. >> they were wrong. after one great shot, look, the bridge collapsed under the weight into the shallow river before. so their clothes were ruined, hair all messed up. >> as long as they didn't get hurt. >> they were all fine, but they were able to still make it to the prom, dirty clothes and all. now time for a look ahead and a look back.

the navy warship that rescued a family in the pacific ocean on saturday is expected to arrive in san diego. the family was stranded nearly 1,000 miles off the coast of mexico when their sailboat broke down and their baby daughter became seriously ill. and on this day in 2003, baghdad fell to u.s. forces as reported by nbc "nightly news." >> this was the symbolic image of the day, an act unthinkable until now. iraqi citizens banging and chipping away at a huge saddam statue in the heart of the city. with some help from an american military vehicle, the heavy bronze statue came tumbling down. its head dragged on a rope through the streets of the capital. and on this day we sing happy birthday to "kristen stewart who turns 24. rudy huxtable is 35 years old. and happy birthday to "playboy" mogul hugh hefner.

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well good wednesday morning to you. it is 4:30 and look who it is. >> i came back. they opened the door to me. thank you. a lot to get to this morning. how are you this morning? >> i'm pretty happy about that big giant win good morning to you. we are looking good to you. to kick off the day where you can actually see we have are really thick fog. visibility up there down to about a mile. as we het head throughout the morning