department. >> great pictures. feel-good story. thanks for joining us here at 5:00. nightly news is next. hope to see you back here at 6:00. on this tuesday night, jailed for cheating. we're in the courtroom as an angry judge throws the book at educators convicted of one of the biggest cheating scandals in american history. sentences up to 20 years. trapped in the sky. the video from on board as passengers hear an airport worker banging and screaming below them. stuck in the cargo hold. fighting breast cancer. rita wilson says getting a second opinion may have saved her life. the staggering number of patients who aren't getting second opinions, even though doctors strongly encourage it. salary surprise. our cameras are there when employees learn they're getting a huge raise, some doubling their salaries. how their boss is doing it. "nightly news" begins right now.

good evening, there's no harder lesson than the one taught today to eight atlanta educators by an angry judge. the judge threw the book at them, handing prison sentences for their roles in a massive cheating scandal at which standardized test scores at underperforming schools were inflated. our chief education correspondent, rehema ellis, shows us how it all played out. >> this thing was pervasive, it's like the sickest thing

that's ever happened to this town. >> the judge imposed harsh sentences on eight former atlanta public school educators, convicted of racketeering, conspiring to fix standardized test scores to improve results. >> there were thousands of children that were harmed in this thing, this is not a victimless crime. >> reporter: three disgraced educators were sentenced to 20 years, serving seven in prison, the rest on probation. the others were sentenced to five years, serving one to two of them behind bars. emotions ran high -- as the sentences came down. >> you sit down, i'm going to put you in jail. if you yell at me, point at me. >> reporter: it was painful for everyone, including the judge. >> i consider you a wonderful educator, and that's what makes it so sad. you were under so much pressure. >> reporter: yesterday, the judge heard from dozens of character witnesses pleading for leniency. >> have mercy on me, please.

>> reporter: i'm giving you some opportunity. the judge asked both sides to agree on a fair sentence that included admitting guilt. otherwise, he would determine punishment. >> i have a fair sentence in my mind and it's -- it involves going to jail. >> all rise. >> reporter: back in court today, only two decided to take the plea, which included home confinement or weekends behind bars. the judge admonished the rest. >> all i want from any of these people is just to take some responsibility. they refuse. they refuse. >> reporter: today's sentencing also included community service and thousands of dollars in fines. some criticize the severity. others say the cheating scandal short changed some of the city's most vulnerable children who are years behind in their education. >> quite a scene in that courtroom. we're learning a lot more about a midair emergency that

was just breaking as we came on the air last night. a baggage handler who became trapped in the cargo hold of a plane during flight. passengers hearing banging and screams from help coming from beneath them. imagine that. here's our national correspondent, miguel almaguer, on how this happened and the questions it's raised. >> reporter: alaska airlines flight 448 departing seattle was bound for los angeles. passengers and crew heard the desperate call coming from the cargo hold. [ knocking ] a steady knock for help. a panicked voice just beneath their feet. >> he was like, "help, help." what? >> reporter: climbing to some 5,000 feet, the sounds came from a pressurized and temperature-controlled space near the front of the plane where pets are often kept. the pilot declares an emergency landing. >> there's a person in there, so i'm going to come back around. >> reporter: airborne for 14 minutes, a contracted employee came off the 737 in good condition. >> a menzes aviation employee walked off the aircraft and told first responders that he was taking a nap in

the cargo hold of the aircraft. >> reporter: alaska says the unidentified employee has a security badge, passed a background check and a drug test after the incident. "our policies and procedures were knowingly violated by an experienced employee who hid in the hold of an aircraft to take a nap." aviation expert, jeff price. >> the irony in this situation is the gentleman who fell asleep is part of that ground crew who was supposed to ensure that there's no unauthorized personnel or items in the cargo hold and in and around the aircraft. >> reporter: it's happened before. six years ago, an airport employee fell asleep in the baggage compartment on a jet blue flight from new york to boston. tonight, the faa and alaska airlines are investigating. tonight airport employees tell us the official who fell asleep on the plane was working with a crew of three others

who noticed he was missing and tried to find him. but nine and a half hours into his shift, they figured he had gone home for the day. lester? >> miguel almaguer, thank you. in oklahoma tonight, a reserve deputy is free on bond after turning himself in for the deadly shooting of a fleeing unarmed suspect although he says he never meant to quill the man. kevin tibbles has more on that. >> reporter: today, 73-year-old bob bates, the part-time tulsa deputy sheriff, was formally charged with second degree manslaughter. >> i feel they're unwarranted and shouldn't have been brought. >> reporter: he was acting as backup when the suspect bolted. 44-year-old eric harris was selling an illegal gun. a scuffle ensued, picked up by police body cam. bates pulled what he says he thought was his taser, but instead fired his gun.

>> i shot him. i'm sorry. >> reporter: he later died, bates claims in the heat of the moment, he mistook his pistol for his taser. there are more than 100 reserve deputies with the tulsa sheriff's office. nationwide, that number is about 50,000. in many jurisdictions, reservists make financial contributions to the department. bates has contributed thousands. >> the point is, if you have enough money, you get to go play cop. >> reporter: the sheriff's office says bates had once been a police officer, and has had more than 400 hours of training as a reservist, logging 3,000 hours of service. >> he was not playing anything. he was there like the other officers, doing their job. that he's play acting? no, he was there to help. >> reporter: the reserve officer's association says some 200 volunteers have lost their lives in the line of duty. bob bates was named oklahoma deputy of the year in 2011. he has now been released on $25,000 bail. kevin tibbles, nbc news, tulsa. now to another

case we've been following, the friend who was in the car with walter scott minutes before a south carolina police officer fatally gunned scott down is speaking out. pierre fulton was identified monday as the man in scott's passenger seat. folton released a statement saying he doesn't know why scott ran off during a traffic stop. he says, "he didn't deserve to die." a developing story tonight in salt lake city where an incredibly powerful dust storm turned deadly, blinding drivers, they toppled several tractor-trailers on the highway. nbc's hallie jackson reports. >> reporter: this is what it looked like during a deadly dust storm that killed at least one person and hurt 25 others. zero visibility, with wind gusts up to 70 miles an hour, whipping up dust so thick, state police say a semitruck had to stop on the highway. that triggered a chain reaction, as many as

eight big rigs, about a dozen cars part of the pileup. >> the dust was completely blown over with dust. zero visibility. >> reporter: at least 16 people have been hospitalized with i-80 closed for nearly 100 miles in both directions, from the nevada border all the way to salt lake city now bracing for a blow. the airport shutting down temporarily as the dust storm works its way east. hallie jackson, nbc news, los angeles. we're witnessing another historic step in thawing relations between the u.s. and cuba. the white house announcing president obama will remove cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. senior white house correspondent chris jansing joins us tonight from the white house with more on this. chris? >> good evening, lester. another remnant of the cold war goes away this afternoon, cuba has been on that list

of state sponsors of terrorists since 1982. and today's decision to remove them gives substance to the weekend's historic handshake. it paves the way for the opening of embassies and could mine new significant economic opportunities for both countries. in his message to congress today, president obama said "cuba has not provided any support for international terrorism over the last six months, and has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future." now, the move does have vocal opponents including just announced presidential candidate marco rubio, who says it's a terrible decision. congress now has 45 days to review cuba's removal from the list, but it is unlikely to block it. lester? >> chris jansing tonight at the white house. thanks. on the campaign front, hillary clinton made her very first public appearance today since announcing she is running for president. it's been a low key kickoff compared to her last run, yet the media frenzy is in full effect all the same. andrea mitchell is on the trail for us. >> reporter: after two days of occasional sightings on the road to iowa, hillary

clinton finally arrived for her first public event, it set off a stampede of photographers and reporters. >> how does it feel to be back in iowa? >> it feels great. >> reporter: she stopped at a coffee shop for chai tea where kristen walker found her. >> how do you win this time, what's your strategy? >> i'm having a great time, can't look forward any more than i am. thank you. >> she comes out the back door and gets in a van and takes off. pretty disappointing. >> reporter: for the first time today, clinton started laying out why she is running. at a community college where high school students can take college classes. >> i get dual credit, i'll get high school english credit and college credit. >> you will have 48 college credits when you graduate from high school? >> yeah. >> reporter: these days, clinton is sounding more than a populous than the new york senator who used to represent wall street. >> there's something wrong when hedge funds managers pay lower tax rates than nurses or

the truckers that i saw on i-80 as i was driving here over the last two days. >> mrs. clinton, what did you learn today? what did you take away from all of this? >> so much good information. so much great exchange about what works, what can work, not just here in iowa, but i think across the country. >> reporter: and while her aides have been corralling donors all week, clinton proposed a constitutional amendment to limit campaign spending. >> you're going to raise a ton of money. >> she's never won. she's a tough fighter. she's never one to unilaterally disarm. >> reporter: aides say they will give detailed proposals in the coming weeks. it's clear they would like this campaign to be all about the economy. lester? >> andrea, thank you. tonight marks exactly one year since boko haram militants kidnapped nearly 30 schoolgirls in nigeria. that campaign has faded even though the vast majority of those girls have not been seen again. our report tonight

from nbc's stephanie gosk. >> reporter: in nigeria today, students carried the names of the 219 kidnapped schoolgirls still missing. a year after boko haram militants seized them from their boarding school at gunpoint. grace is one of the lucky few who escaped. the 18-year-old, who did not want to be on camera, says she ran from her captors, hiding in a nearby village. she's in oregon now at a private school on scholarship. last year, reaction to the kidnappings was quick and global. the "bring back our girls" campaign went viral, spearheaded by some big names. but millions of tweets then have become just thousands now, while boko haram continues to attack, kidnap and kill. >> i just spoke to someone whose town had been raided by boko haram. they rounded up all the young men and

executed 27 of them. >> reporter: nigerian forces stopped them. they have been undergoing intense training. last may, we joined cameroon on the nigerian border. in december, boko haram attacked this same unit. seven of these soldiers were killed. on the anniversary of the kidnappings, campaigners are hoping to raise awareness again. nigeria's president vowed to continue the fight against boko haram, but he couldn't promise the missing schoolgirls would ever be found. stephanie gosk, nbc news, new york. there is a lot more news still ahead tonight. the announcement from actress rita wilson revealing she has breast cancer, found after getting a second opinion, something so many patients aren't doing. also, our cameras are rolling as a ceo tells his employees they're getting huge pay raises. some of them getting double the salary. it's quite a moment, wait until you hear how he's doing it.

we are back with the announcement from actress rita wilson revealing she was diagnosed with breast cancer. and last week she underwent a double-mastectomy. the cancer was found after she got a second opinion, something doctors strongly recommend and a lot of people don't do. here's nbc's anne thompson. >> reporter: rita wilson is an actor, a singer. ♪ i've been crying ♪ >> reporter: a wife to tom hanks and now a breast cancer survivor. telling "people" magazine today, she expects to make a full recovery after a

double-mastectomy. "because i caught this early, have excellent doctors and because i got a second opinion." that opinion may have saved her life. for years, wilson was monitored for conditions that put her at a higher risk for breast cancer. two recent biopsies showed no cancer. but a friend who had breast cancer urged wilson to get a second opinion on the pathology. "my gut told me that was the thing to do," says wilson. this time the diagnosis was cancer confirmed by yet another doctor. "you have nothing to lose if both opinions match up for the good. and everything to gain if something that was missed is found, which does happen." a university of michigan study showed more than half of patients who sought a second opinion from a group of cancer specialists had their treatment plans changed. when you get that diagnosis of breast cancer, do you have to move so fast, you don't have time for a second opinion? >> no. you have time, you have several weeks, in fact, to plan the most appropriate course of therapy.

there's no immediate need to have treatment that day, that week. >> reporter: though insurance covers second opinions, a 2010 gallup poll found 70% of americans were confident in their doctor's advice, they didn't feel the need to get a second opinion or do their own research. rita wilson trusted her instincts and tonight, is thankful she did. anne thompson, nbc news, new york. we're back in a moment with a famous mountain lion found under a family's house in an urban jungle. and the race to track him around town.

♪ that unforgettable opening line from that legendary voice, percy sledge has died. he was best known for his debut single and number one hit in 1966 and a favorite ever since.

before hitting it big, sledge worked the cotton fields in his alabama hometown and later worked as a hospital orderly. he said "when a man loves a woman" was inspired by a girlfriend who left him. he died of cancer at home in baton rouge, survived by his wife and 12 children. he was 74 years old. in cape canaveral today, space-x launched a ship with supplies for the international space station. this is what happened in january, the last time space-x tried to land its unmanned rocket on a drone ship. today's attempt was a bit closer but no cigar. quite the unwanted houseguest in los angeles, when a mountain lion made a temporary den in a crawl space under a home. they tried everything from tickling it with a stick. it appears the big cat left on its own. he's tagged so we know he's the same cat made famous by that "national geographic" photo.

when we come back, why these workers are so happy. some of them just doubled their salaries overnight.

hopefully, your boss is watching our final story tonight. while the average ceo

in this country makes almost 300 times as much as the average worker, one boss just changed the lives of his employees with fat raises right out of his own pocket. our joe fryer was there when they got the good news. >> reporter: the business plan at gravity payments has never been conventional. >> you need anything from me? >> reporter: ceo dan price started the company which processes credit card payments in 2004 when he was 19. if someone asked you how old you were, what did you say? >> i told them i'm 12 and they would laugh and they thought it was funny, and it kind of like avoided the question. >> reporter: his success is nothing to laugh at. in january, price graced the cover of "entrepreneur" magazine, but something has been bothering him. >> it's a big struggle for the middle class, i think part of that is, things are getting more expensive and the wage growth isn't keeping up. >> reporter: price's lowest-paid workers earn shy of $40,000 a year. >> it is tough because

seattle is a very expensive city, especially with the rate it's been growing. >> reporter: price decided to merge his money with his mouth. >> we're going to have a minimum $70,000 pay rate for everyone who works here. >> reporter: no one saw it coming, long shock turned into gratitude. about 70 employees will get big raises. some will double their salaries. >> i can move out of my mom's house. >> with this news today, we're going to be able to start a family months before we initially thought we could. >> reporter: and single mother alyssa o'neil can now buy a house. >> it just means stability, confidence. it's life changing. >> reporter: to help pay for it, price is dropping his salary from about 1 million to 70,000. >> i would like to have this spark a conversation, and basically have people start to think about a different way of doing business. >> reporter: the income gap might feel bigger than the grand canyon, but inside one company, it just got a lot smaller. >> thank you.

>> reporter: joe fryer, nbc news, seattle. >> now, that is a good day at the office. that's going to do it for us on this tuesday night. i'm le right now at 6:00 protesters on the street and on the move. blocking traffic and in some instances highways to get their message across. good evening everyone. i'm jessica aguirre. i'm raj mathai. a new wave of protesters across the nation and across the bay area. their message. black lives matter. these are live pictures from the chopper over the mission district in san jose. you see below, relatively small group. blocking streets and vandalizing a san francisco police station.

they also marched into city hall and stormed into the supervisor's chambers. it was a noisy demonstration. nbc bay area's mark matthews is there at city hall. this wasn't about police brutality. this was also about money. >> that's right, raj. the protests that began at city hall was about income inequality and housing. there were two rallies for black lives matters. one at 24th and mission and marched to city hall and it was pretty clear from the beginning that they intended to join up and disrupt what they called business as usual. organizers from the service employees union suggested a takeover of city hall. >> is it all about the rich and nothing about the poor? nothing about the poor working class? well, we are here to say that city hall is our building. >> sheriffs deputies told me