on this sunday night -- breaking news. mayhem in las vegas. a deadly ambush involving police officers. we'll have late details. harsh treatment. new details emerge about sergeant bowe bergdahl's captivity as the debate intensifies about the deal that freed him. what went wrong? the chain reaction accident that left actor tracy morgan and two others in critical condition and another man dead. child refugees. the crisis in the southwest. what to do with tens of thousands of children crossing into this country alone. and lemonade for sale. from one girl's dream, the movement that has raised tens of millions to fight childhood cancer.

>> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news with lester holt." good evening. we begin here tonight with a developing story out of las vegas. the apparent ambush shooting of two police officers. it is part of a violent chain of events that started at a local restaurant and ended inside a walmart with three others shot and killed, including the attackers. nbc's mike taibbi has been gathering details for us and joins us from our los angeles newsroom with the latest. mike? >> reporter: good evening, lester. while the investigation continues, the incident itself is over. a police spokesperson telling us there is no longer any danger to the public. police say it happened around 11:30 a.m. two las vegas metro police officers were sitting down to lunch at a pizza restaurant on the north side of town when two suspects, a man and a woman, walked in and shot them at point-blank range. a witness shouted this is the

start of the revolution, and then both suspects left the restaurant, crossed the street to a walmart store and shot and killed a civilian they confronted by the entrance. police say the two suspects then entered the store where they turned their guns on themselves in an apparent suicide pact. as the drama was unfolding, there was panic in the store said reporter elizabeth donatelli. >> one woman said she dropped to the floor when the shooter ran by her and texted her son "i love you." >> reporter: the store was evacuated, employees bussed to a secure location where according to one twitter posting they will be evaluated for stress. a walmart statement called the shootings a senseless act of violence, adding that the store will remain closed during what is still an active investigation. so on what the sheriff called a truly tragic day, five dead, both officers, both with young

families, dead tonight. >> mike taibbi, thank you. we're following an unfolding situation tonight in karachi, pakistan, where gunmen stormed a terminal at the airport in that city. at least five people were killed, although some reports put the death toll at many more. a major fire was also reported. the police and army commandos were fighting the attackers. all flight operations were canceled. a spokesperson for pakistan international airlines says two of its employees were dead as well as three from an airport security force. all passengers were said to be safe. eight days after his release in that controversial prisoner exchange with the taliban, we're learning much more about sergeant bowe bergdahl's condition and how he was treated during his years of captivity. nbc's kristen welker is at the white house with more on that. kristen? >> reporter: good evening. sergeant bergdahl is in good enough physical condition right now to return to the united states but they also say he is not ready emotionally or psychologically. and as he continues to recover, the debate over his release rages on here in washington.

recovering at a u.s. military hospital in germany, sergeant bowe bergdahl is describing harsh treatment at the hands of his captors. u.s. officials tell nbc's jim miklaszewski bergdahl tried to escape and when caught was confined to a small box-like space. he was clearly treated more harshly at sometimes but wouldn't say if that rose to the level of torture. officials also say he hasn't yet chosen to call his parents, despite the fact his doctors have said he can. meanwhile, back at his hometown hailey, idaho, some say they are stunned by the backlash against bergdahl, amidst allegations he may be a deserter for walking off his base, something defense officials are investigating. >> it's been very shocking, i think, how vicious the attacks have been. >> reporter: the fbi says it is investigating reports of death threats against the bergdahl family. >> we are aware of the threats to the bergdahl family, and we are working with our local law enforcement partners to

investigate. as always, we take these types of threats very seriously. >> reporter: in washington, there was more bipartisan anger that lawmakers weren't notified before the five taliban detainees were released from guantanamo. >> it's hard to be comfortable when you really haven't been briefed on the intricacies of carrying out this agreement. >> reporter: the republican chairman of the house op;bg intelligence committee says he believes at least three of the released taliban will ultimately return to the battlefield after they leave qatar in a year. >> we have made a serious, serious geopolitical mistake. we've empowered the taliban. >> reporter: secretary of state john kerry said the united states is prepared to track the men and act if necessary and dismissed the notion that the prisoner swap might put u.s. troops in afghanistan at increased risk. >> i just think that's a lot of baloney. >> reporter: secretary of defense chuck hagel will testify about bergdahl on capitol hill on wednesday, and senior administration officials head to the hill to brief all house members tomorrow night.

lester? >> all right, kristen, thank you. the driver of a tractor-trailer truck involved in the deadly accident that also critically injured actor tracy morgan and two others was freed on bail today. we get the latest from nbc's ron allen. >> reporter: eyewitnesses say the crash was horrific. the luxury limo bus carrying comedian/actor tracy morgan and six others flipped on its side after being slammed by a tractor-trailer and crashing into two other vehicles. the limo driver said the truck hit without warning. >> it was unreal. i mean, i didn't know what happened. i mean i -- shattered glass and things like that. it all happened so fast. i was driving. i was facedown on the asphalt. >> reporter: it was like a movie in slow motion, a woman who rantic rescue effort told "people" magazine, you could see blood everywhere. kevin roper, 35, a truck driver for walmart did not see slow moving traffic ahead until it was too late.

>> that's an indication to me that he was either drowsy or asleep. and i think that that is epoe definitely going to be a key issue that the investigators are going to focus on. >> reporter: walmart's ceo saidy if its driver is to blame, the company will take full responsibility. late this afternoon, morgan's agent said he has been more responsive today, which is an incredibly encouraging sign, adding that morgan sustained a broken leg, femur, nose, and several broken ribs, and had surgery on his leg today. before the crash, morgan had just finished a stand-up gig at a delaware casino. comedian ardie fuqua posted these pictures on facebook before setting off with morgan home to new york. "road life is a good life," it said. fuqua also now in critical condition. killed in the crash, james mcnair, 63, a comic known as jimmy mack, a close friend of morgan's. >> good evening, and welcome to brian fellow's safari planet. i'm brian fellow!

>> reporter: morgan was a regular on "saturday night live" and then "30 rock." on social media, an outpouring of support. let's hope for a full and speedy recovery from 30 rock star alec baldwin, and #prayfortracymorgan. morgan is still in critical condition and his agent says he is expected to stay here at this hospital in new brunswick, new jersey for several more weeks. and as for the driver charged with causing a death and assault with his vehicle, he is expected in court on monday. lester? >> ron allen, thank you. in the southwest, a deepening crisis tonight involving thousands of children from central america who have been crossing into this country alone. they've been coming into texas, but this weekend hundreds of them have been transported to a federal facility on the border in arizona. here's nbc's mark potter. >> reporter: the unaccompanied children are being bussed to the u.s. border patrol station in nogales, arizona, after overflowing detention facilities in south texas. more than 700 children from the

central american countries of el salvador, honduras, and guatemala are housed together vq now in a converted warehouse where they are screened by authorities. with even more kids en route, federal officials are scrambling to provide enough portable toilets, cots, water, food and showers as the state supplies vaccines for children, some very young, who've been through a rough ordeal even after they were caught. >> children who have not taken a bath in nine days. they're still wearing the same clothes. >> reporter: since last october, more than 47,000 unaccompanied [ children, mostly from central 0y america, have been apprehended trying to enter the u.s. illegally. just this morning, this group from el salvador, ages 9 to 18, was picked up by texas police after crossing the rio grande in search of their parents already here. this girl saying of their journey, we all took care of each other. the little ones we would send up front. they are part of a surge in

central american immigration that began a few years ago, as many fled the violence, poverty, and drug gangs there. >> we perceive that the journey is frightening, traumatizing and probably will scar them for the rest of their lives. >> reporter: last week president obama declared a humanitarian crisis and ordered fema to care for the children. moving kids to arizona, though, further strained relations with governor jan brewer, who's still angry over federal authorities dropping off undocumented families at bus stations in tucson and phoenix recently. she blames the current surge on border security lapses. and here in nogales, central american consular officials say they believe the children are being treated well, given the circumstances, as u.s. officials try to get ahead of this borderç crisis that shows no sign of letting up. lester? >> all right, mark potter, thank you. severe weather surprised many people in colorado today. at least five tornadoes were reported. one person was injured when a tornado hit a country club in aurora.

weather channel meteorologist kim cunningham is tracking all this for us. kim? >> reporter: and lester, i think the surprise was actually that it happened before lunch.ó@3 c1 i mean, there was a forecast for isolated tornadoes for that area, but it came a little bit earlier than forecast, the first one happening right before lunch and a couple of hours after that. now the good news for that area, there is no more threat of severe weather. we do have tornado watch still in effect, though, for eastern colorado. denver pretty much in clear at this time. all the storms now heading towards it looks like kansas into nebraska, possibly seeing some stronger ones coming into northwestern kansas in the next couple of hours. but denver proper, a few showers, a few storms, but overall the severe weather should diminish here. now, we're expecting more storms later on tonight for western parts of kansas and also into nebraska. tomorrow we're clear. so everything looks good in colorado for tomorrow. back to you. >> kim cunningham from the weather channel, thanks. this was a highly unusual day at the vatican where pope francis prayed for peace with none other than the israeli and palestinian presidents.

nbc's anne thompson is in rome tonight with that story for us. anne? >> reporter: lester, this prayer service was rich in symbolism that pope francis hopes will re-ignite the peace process. it began with a warm embrace between israeli president shimon peres and mahmoud abbas, the president of the palestinian authority. then with the pope and the leader of the orthodox christian church bartholomew, they went to a carefully choreographed service in the garden where they heard prayers from the jewish, muslim and christian faiths. each leader spoke, the pope saying peace calls for more courage than war. peres told the group even when peace seems distant, we must choose to bring it closer. and abbas parade for safety and stability in the region. then they all exchanged a sign of peace. this was broadcast live all around the world because the pope hopes it is these pictures that will push the people of the holy land to ask their leaders to end this conflict. lester? >> anne thompson in rome for us tonight, thank you. when "nbc nightly news"

continues on this sunday, inside the courtroom of a tough-talking judge whose hard-nosed approach often keeps people out of prison. and later, tom brokaw's one-on-one with one american's return to normandy for the first time in 70 years.

around the country, drug courts have become a popular alternative for dealing with nonviolent drug offenders, offering them the help they need and a second chance. it is not, however, a get out of jail free card, especially for those who come before one detroit area judge, whose passion and temperament has left some defendants shaking in their boots, and earned her a nickname that says it all. >> you don't get a social life. >> i know.

>> reporter: she's the iron-fisted judge known as scary mary. >> i'm not allowing it. that's it. >> reporter: do you remember the first time you heard the term "scary mary"? >> it actually was something i had heard from a prisoner who $k had said to my secretary, "oh, you work for scary mary." >> reporter: as a circuit court judge in suburban detroit, mary chrzanowski keeps everyone on their toes. >> you're going to leave this courtroom now and get on it now. >> reporter: did you want to be known as a tough judge?tq'él >> yes. i take the law seriously. i take my job seriously. and i wanted to be respected as being serious. >> you're always going to have an addiction to drugs. >> reporter: but judge scary mary's real passion is drug court, a volunteer job that occasionally shows her compassionate side. >> but you're doing this without using, which is great. >> reporter: but more often has her doling out tough love like a drill sergeant. >> don't appease me, because i don't appease real easy. >> i want them all to think that somebody cared enough to finally

slap them upside the head and say wake up. >> reporter: this innovative program gives nonviolent drug offenders a final chance to stay out of jail. addicts must pass frequent drug tests, undergo intensive counseling, and face judge mary for periodic progress reports. >> cory -- >> reporter: 23-year-old addict cory critchley was charged with drug possession, but he caught a break. cory was offered drug court instead of prison. >> it was a daily thing. i woke up and that was the first thought in my head, how am i going to get high today. >> reporter: now he'll have to stay clean for himself, drug court and judge mary. >> i'm not your mother. i am not your friend. i am your judge. >> i really am so sorry. you don't want to hear sorry, but i am sorry. >> the whole concept of a drug court is a favor to help you, to teach you humility, to teach you respect. >> reporter: statistics show that drug court graduates have 9 40% better chance of staying clean than addicts who go the traditional prison-probation route.

and since she has been presiding over drug court, judge mary hopes she is motivation enough for them to stay clean. >> i started to recognize how important treatment is for some people. i don't want to put people in jail. i want to try to help them through their problems. >> you can watch much more of judge mary's story tonight on "dateline" at 7:00/6:00 eastern time. when we come back, tom brokaw and a d-day hero from normandy.

in france today, a spectacular end of the commemorations marking the 70th anniversary of d-day as almost 900 paratroopers reenacted the aerial part of the operation in normandy. they were from the u.s. and countries throughout europe. as we've been reminded throughout this past week, the sheer magnitude of the task that faced the allies is still difficult to comprehend. tom brokaw caught up with one d-day veteran small in stature but full of courage, though he would be the last one to say so.

>> reporter: ernie corvese has been here before and once had always been more than enough. so you've never been back? >> no. this is the first time. >> reporter: until today. navy seaman first class ernie corvese was a long way from his home on rhode island on june 6, 1944. his job ashore was to blow up the obstacles in the path of the invading americans. >> i tell you the truth, i was scared. >> once his landing craft approached shore, there was a brutal crossfire, relentless shelling. nothing went according to plan. >> my helmet got full of water and i sank to the bottom. i had 50 pounds of explosives on my back, a rifle, a canteen, ammunition. that weighed me all down. someone pulled me back up.981 >> reporter: you don't know who that was? >> i don't know who that was. >> reporter: a scene of unimaginable carnage surrounded him. he was the only one of his eight-man crew to survive a direct hit. you still see their faces? >> oh, yeah.

>> reporter: every day? >> practically every day. >> reporter: corvese was pinned down on the sand, the dead all around him. then he heard a voice. >> this officer got up and he yelled there are two kind of people on this beach, those that are dead and those that will be dead. his wife of 62 years, doris, watched him struggle with nightmares. lj] >> he would just yell and scream and try to get out of bed. and i don't know who he was going after. >> reporter: after turning down invitations to return to normandy, keeping his stories locked inside, corvese slowly began to share them with his family and those who will listen. so when you resisted coming back, do you think it would just be too hard emotionally for you? >> yes, yes. it is now. q-;": >> reporter: and it still is?

>> yes. >> reporter: but you had a good life. >> the best. >> reporter: before leaving the beach, one last task. where he left so much behind, some sand and some stones to remember omaha. up next, a young girl's dream to help others. how it came true beyond anything she could have imagined.

today marked the end of an annual effort to promote a great cause started a decade ago by a little girl named alex with a big dream. she wanted to cure childhood cancer. and her fundraising effort that began with a single lemonade stand has grown to thousands of them. here's nbc's rehema ellis. ijeuiu$e sound of summer. >> come get your lemonade! >> reporter: and a rallying cry for those fighting to end childhood cancer. it all started with alexandra scott, the little girl who bravely battled cancer and questioned why there was no cure for kids like her. at the age of 4, she set up a lemonade stand so she could give the money to her children's hospital.

in 2004, alex and her family appeared on the "today" show, challenging the country to help her raise a million dollars for cancer research. >> if enough people help with donations, then i think we can do it. >> reporter: two months later, alex learned that the foundation not only reached her million dollar goal, it surpassed it. she died shortly after age 8. this weekend marks ten years since alex's lemonade challenge, and next week her former first grade classmates will be graduating from high school. >> she was somebody who was always really positive and upbeat. >> and i always really admired her because she was so mature and so wise. >> reporter: her story also cm& inspired other kids living with cancer. katelyn cress was diagnosed with lymphoma last year. >> i'm going to be having my own alex's lemonade stand. and all of the money is going to support of pediatrics.

>> reporter: today alex foundation is going strong, raising more than $80 million helping fund hundreds of research projects. alex's parents, liz and jay scott, said alex would be proud of all they have accomplished. >> this is an incredible day for us as a family. and i'm just amazed. i'm just amazed. so thank you. >> reporter: this is alex's legacy, and it will live on, one small cup at a time. rehema ellis, nbc news. >> that's "nbc nightly news" for this sunday. brian williams will be here tomorrow. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. i'll see you shortly for tonight's "dateline." in the meantime, for all of us here at nbc news, good night.

what precipitated this event, we do not know. my officers were simply having lunch when the shooting started. >> five people are dead in las vegas following a shooting at a busy shopping complex. good evening. investigators say the rampage started when an armed man and woman kamed into a pizza restaurant and shot two police officers. they have been identified as allyn beck and igor solido. after that shooting the man and woman took their ammunition