executes its first inmate after a week of maneuvers that could have led to eight executions. the strike that they claim wou reduce our military to ashes and isis claimed gunman ambushes paris police sending fear through a nation just days before a pivotal election. and a 39 day man hunt for a teacher and a teenage girl. bill o'reilly's $25 million payout but that's not all. and can you guess the number one reason for sleeplessness? "early today" starts right now.

>> good morning, everybody. a lot to get to today. breaking blue out of arkansas where the state carried out its first execution since 2005. the inmate was pronounced dead from lethal conviction. lee was convicted back in 1995 for the murder of his neighbor debra reese. the execution came after a vote to reject several appeals that would have halted husband deais. officials allowed to use a lethal injection drug cleared the way for the execution. the state originally set eight executions over an 11-day period. but three executions were cancelled because of court decisions and legal rulings. the reason for the rushed time line, the state says the executions need to be carried out before its supply of the lethal injection drug expires on april 30th. the u.s. military on high alert for a possible new nuclear

test by north korea. >> we are in very good shape. we're building our military rapidly, a lot of things have happened over the last short period of time. we're doing a lot of work. we're in very good position. we're going to see what happens. >> what more are you hearing about this really tense situation? >> reporter: well, this morning the south korean government said this country is on a heightened state of alert while u.s. officials tell nbc news that a sniffer plane along with drones and u2 spy planes have been deployed. that specialty sniffer plane, a wc 135 is able to detect evidence of a nuclear explosion in the atmosphere. the air force says this is a routine mission, that it was planned well in advance, and in fact, the first signs of a nuclear test in north korea will come from unusual seismic

activity not necessarily from an air test. never theless, the latest satellite photos from that nuclear site in north korea show volleyball games on sunday. crews taking part in these games at the surface. that could indicate according to analysts that all preparations are complete, and a sixth nuclear test is ready to go and crews are simply waiting on orders from pyongyang. speculation of course is rief here in south korea and an important date is coming up. next tuesday is the 85th anniversary of the people's army in north korea and the regime could use that date to schedule some sort of test. missile or other wise. >> certainly those images are perplexing. all eyes on that tuesday anniversary for sure. thank you. all right. right now investigators in paris, they're combing the city and nearly suburbs for clues

less than 24 hours after a gunman opened fire. one officer killed and wounded three others including a foreign tourist before being shot and killed by police himself. the paris prosecutor overseeing the crime scene says investigators found a pump action shotgun and knives in his car. according to the country's interior minister a gunman was in a car when he pulled up to policeman, opened fire and ran along the pavement aiming at others along the way. isis took responsible calling the fighter an islamic state fire. we now know he was a frenchman previously known to authorities. the sound of gun fire could be heard as tourists scrambled for cover in a nearby metro in what has become an all too frequent sight in france. just terrifying. in fact, since 2005 alone more than 230 people have been killed by terrorist plots there according to the washington

post. and while the country's president says he is determined to fight terror head on, the attack coming just days before citizens head to the polls to decide on their country's next leader. an important vote that could alter not just the trajectory of the nation but the entire european union. christopher, we've seen attacks like this one before back in february at the louver, but what makes so different and so dire? >> well, we saw an attack like this at the loouf, then at the airport where the guy tried to grab the gun of a woman police officer or soldier actually. this one looked like it was done by somebody who was trained and knew how to use high powered assault rifle and that's what he did. that raises the question of whether he had been to syria or some other battleground in the middle east, whether he had been trained, perhaps by the islamic state or another organization, and in -- that also speaks to why in terms of his killing

power he was so effective. he killed one policeman, injured two others. it seems to have been a very well planned hit as well because i think he knew tha police car probably would be stationed there. it was right in front of the turkish tourist office which is often been a possible terrorist trargt. so there's always police around there. >> how is this going to affect that election if at all and which candidates could feasibly benefit from this terror attack? >> the one who is are going to benefit the most would be the ones who have tried to build their campaign around a hard line against what one of the candidates calls islamic total tearianism. but that the one who really looks to profit from this is marine le pen on the very far right. basically runs an anti immigrant party, basically says that immigrants are the plague that

afflicts this country and france should close its borders. she's calling to close its borders right now and arrest anybody suspected of having jihadist sympathies, either deport them, take away their french nationality if they're dual nationals or throw them in jail. it's the kind of approach that's appealing to the people who are scared. it's a very populist approach. >> certainly an election to watch. thank you. all right. the missing tennessee teenager who disappeared more than a month ago has been found. her teacher and alleged kidnapper set to be arraigned later today. they were found at a remote cabin 39 days after they both vanished. a tip leading authorities to come to the car. the pair disappeared from columbia, tennessee back on

march 13th. they were spotted two days later at an oklahoma city walmart with dyed hair and after 1,500 tips, one finally led police 2,500 miles away to cecilville. thomas's father relieved to know that his daughter is finally coming home. >> we're going to have to figure out what kind of state of mind she's in, of course, and probably get her some help. it may be a long road but at least we've got her back now. >> the teacher has been charged with aggravated kidnapping and sexual contact with a minor. a car became wedged under a truck. it was all captured on cell phone video. the truck driver didn't appear to notice the car and dragged it along for four long miles. the car driver waving his arms as you can see desperately trying to get the truck driver's attention. other cars on the road were able to flag the truck down and get it to stop, pull over. luckily the stuck driver was not injured but pretty terrifying stuff if you were in that car.

turning now to severe weather for over 12 million americans. bonnie snider standing by for us tracking those storms. >> right now we have severe weather happening in texas and in oklahoma with ping-pong size hail, half dollar size hail, torrential downpours and frequent lightning strikes. this is the beginning of a very active day that we're anticipating. with 12 million people at risk we're watching for that hail to persist and even strong storms as far east as little rock. high temperatures getting warmer across much of the southwest. notice in phoenix, 95 heating up in the desert southwest with highs in the 90s. they're going to go up from there straight for the weekend. so overall we're definitely looking at a warm pattern

developing and the southwest also facing allergies. high pollen to deal with for today. >> and definitely feeling those allergies. that is for sure. thank you. >> all right. you've got to love a good father son moment. former president bush remains in the hospital but yesterday former president george p. buw posted this post on instagram. bush spokesman says there is no change to report on his condition. all right. just ahead, a new medical study and the connection between diet soda and dementia. plus, what did president trump talk to kid rock the nugent andand sarah palin about and a group of nuns looking to empower through marijuana. back in two. the smoother the skin, you are in it.

so find a venus smooth that contours to curves, flexes for comfort, and has a disposable made for you. skin smoothing venus razors. venus the bathroom. when things go wrong here, you remember. quilted northern is designed to work so well, you can forget your bathroom trips. but sir froggy can never forget. "i used to be a prince. but no princess would kiss me now."

"i used to be a prince. it delivers a whole mouth clean with a less intense taste. zero alcohol™. so it has the bad breath germ-killing power of this... [rock music] with the lighter feel... of this. [classical music] for a whole mouth clean with a less intense taste... ahhh. try listerine® zero alcohol™. also try listerine® pocketpaks for fresh breath on the go. ♪ everybody plays the fool sometime there's no exception to the rule listen baby ♪

♪ it may be factual may be cool ♪ >> that will be in your head all day and it should be. cuba gooding sr. was found dead in his car in los angeles on thursday. the l.a. coroner's office is trying to determine a cause. the lapd has ruled out foul play. cuba gooding sr. is the father of "jerry maguire" actor cuba gooding jr. cuba gooding sr. dead at the age of 72. leading news this morning. fallout from the firing of bill o'reilly after accusations of sexual harassment. he'll leave fox with a $25 million check according to sources with knowledge of his contract. the severance amounts to a year's salary of the four-year deal he had just signed. a deal that let fox terminate him if he was in a controversy that harmed the network. his firing comes less than a year after ailes was also ousted for sexual harassment. together, o'reilly and ailes

were paid $65 million to leave. the women who accused them? $33 million. both have denied any wrong doing. in seattle, three police officers were shot. they were responding to an armed robbery. police exchanged gun fire with the suspects. one was found dead by responding officers. officials have not determined a cause of death. another suspect, a 17-year-old female was captured right after the incident. a third suspect was arrested hours later. one of the wounded officers is in serious but stable condition. the other two were treated at a hospital and released. diet soda lovers, you have to listen up to this next story. that no-calorie drink could raise your risk of dementia and stroke. sorry to deliver that bad news. new research finds that people that drink as little as one diet soda per day had three times the risk for stroke and dementia. that's compared to people who drink diet soda less than once a week. researchers did not find the same correlation with regular soda. it's still unclear why artificially sweetened drinks may be harmful. the best alternative to soda is

plain old water. high times for pot smokers across the country. they celebrated the unofficial holiday, 4/20. rallies were held in multiple cities, like denver and san francisco. on capitol hill, a so-called joint session where activists handed out joints to congressional aides. they ended up in arrests. check this out. weed nuns are trying to empower women with marijuana products. they don't belong to the catholic church. they say their holy trinity is the marijuana plant. their goal to promote the legalization of marijuana at the federal level. we all got to believe in something, right? >> just ahead a troubling recall for some tesla models and what do selfies have in common? you don't want to miss this.

"that place where coke tastes so good." yeah, right now. i'll wait. ♪ got it? it's crazy right? when's the last time anyone on the internet agreed on anything? that was a rhetorical question. the answer is never. ♪ wiback like it could used to? neutrogena hydro boost water gel. with hyaluronic acid it plumps skin cells with intense hydration and locks it in. for supple, hydrated skin. hydro boost. from neutrogena

we can'twhy?y here! terrible toilet paper! i'll never get clean! way ahead of you. (avo) charmin ultra strong. it cleans better. it's four times stronger and you can use less. enjoy the go with charmin.

some quick hits for you today. tesla recalling 50,000 sedans because the parking brakes may get stuck and stop the vehicles from moving. the recall involves vehicles built last year. there are no reports to injuries or accidents. >> anded to marks the one year anniversary of the music icon prince. kicking off a four days of celebration of his life and his

career. and if you've been tossing and turning at night maybe it's because you have money on your mind. a new survey from credit cards.com finds 65% of americans are losing sleep worrying about their finances. the most common concern was the cost of health care and insurance, anxiety over retirement savings came in a close second. educational expenses and student loans weighed heavily on me len yals and surprisingly only 22% lie awake over credit card bills. just ahead, grading president trump's first 100 days. that's next. see me. see me. don't stare at me. see me. see me. see me to know that psoriasis is just something that i have. i'm not contagious. see me to know that... ...i won't stop until i find what works. discover cosentyx, a different kind of medicine for moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. proven to help the majority of people find clear or almost clear skin. 8 out of 10 people saw 75% skin clearance at 3 months.

while the majority saw 90% clearance. do not use if you are allergic to cosentyx. before starting, you should be tested for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur... ...tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms... ...such as fever, sweats, chills, muscle aches or cough. or if you have received a vaccine or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease, tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. see me. see me. see me. on my way. find clear skin... and a clearer path forward. for a different kind of medicine, ask your dermatologist about cosentyx. neutrogena® hydro boost hydrating tint. wake up skin. the first water gel foundation with hyaluronic acid it plumps, quenches... delivers a natural, flawless look. this is what makeup's been missing. neutrogena® creamy, crunchy, chocolatey, hershey's. packed with cookies or almond pieces.

hershey's has the taste you love in every bite. we can'twhy?y here! terrible toilet paper! i'll never get clean! way ahead of you. (avo) charmin ultra strong. it cleans better. it's four times stronger and you can use less. enjoy the go with charmin. trythe unique formula withched nourishing almond oil... ...leaves skin smoother. moisturized for 24 hours. nivea essentially enriched. for noticeably smoother skin. right. in. your. stomach! watch this!... >>yikes, that ice cream was messing with you, wasn't it? try lactaid, it's real ice cream,

without that annoying lactose. lactaid. it's the milk that doesn't mess with you. to politics now where the president is tweeting up a storm this morning posting quote to matter how much i accomplish during the ridiculous standard of the first 100 days and it has been a lot including sc media will kill. mr. trump's comments come as we hear of a gathering held at the white house complete with kid rock, ted nugent and sarah palin. in this image palin posted on social media the three are hanging out in the official hillary clinton first lady portrait. the administration just a week shy of hitting its 100 day mark and now some are handing out report cards. >> i think generally with regards to at least foreign affairs up to this point he probably gets a b. with regards to domestic affairs the failure of the affordable

care act, a lot of the inability to try to get things done within the congress, some of his dpektive orders that have run into barriers with the courts i think he probably is getting a d. so at this point i'd say probably a c is what this administration is entitled to. >> not a great grade there but there's word that the white house could score a last minute victory with talk of the health care reform deal in the works. for more we're joined by tracie potts. tell me more about what you know about this health care deal and also a looming government shutdown may be in our midst. >> and that was really the first priority when lawmakers come back on monday and then president trump throws in this wrench that he thinks they can also get health care done in this very busy week when they're trying to prevent a government shutdown. we'll see if that happens. the president with a pretty aggressive schedule suggesting that this law could pass both houses this week or shortly after, but there is no vote scheduled according to at least

three congressional aides who spoke to cnbc and lawmakers coming back focused on trying to keep the government running. now, there have been some changes made since the last time when conservatives blocked this, but some of them are saying they don't like the idea of an artificial deadline being rushed to deal with health care while they've got this big money crisis looming this week. >> a little bit more than a week left before we hit that 100 day mark so we'll wait and see what happens. nbc tray cie potts for us. why some are worshipping the first daughter and calling her a quote, goddess.

does your makeup remover every kiss-proof,ff? cry-proof, stay-proof look? neutrogena® makeup remover does. it erases 99% of your most stubborn makeup with one towelette. need any more proof than that? neutrogena.

temperatures are heating up in the southwest this weekend. highs pretty close to 100 if we don't break it in phoenix this weekend. also warm in los angeles. that will be hot weather for coachell as well. temperatures in the triple digits. it will stay that way through sunday. a little cooler and stormy in the northwest with rain ahead for seattle and possibly some thunderstorms. really looking at a wide variety this weekend for weather. >> those poor coachella attendees having to with stand hot weather while listening to awesome music. >> aaron hernandez' brain will be released. his death had been released a suicide when a lawyer accused mass officials of illegally with

holding his brain. the family is donating his brain to boston university's cte center. it will determine whether hernandez actually had the disease. lawmakers are calling out attorney general jeff sessions after he said the hawaiian federal judge who blocked the immigration order is quote sitting on an island in the pacific. he tweeted that his comments were ig norntd and that they were dangerous and the state's other senator pointed out that sessions voted to confirm the judge and asked sessions to quote, have some respect. all right. a story that i talked about earlier, tried to tease for you guys. thousands in china are signing up for a new online fan club to worship ivanka trump. the group has boosted the first daughter's fame and fandom around the country and as hundreds of copy cat companies seeking to cash in on her brand, p public fell in love when she shared this video of her children performing chinese poetry and songs for the chinese

president's visit with donald trump. so one little boy is following in his father's footsteps by becoming a barber. he's just four years old. he's already working at his father's barbershop giving hair cuts to customers of all ages. he says when he grows up he'd like to take on the family business. he's got some pretty big talent. people come in requesting the boy for their hair cuts and he's cutting other little boys' hair. i love it. one of the cincinnati zoo's soothing qualities of a nice shower. the hippo wandered into the shower. she sat under the stream tilting her head back for a drink or two. she even plopped down for a quick nap. i've got to say, that has been me in the shower. >> that probably feels great.

it's nice and warm, you're feeling good. thank for ♪ lysol max cover kills 99.9% of bacteria, even on soft surfaces.

one more way you've got what it takes to protect. good to be at the end of the work week. friday morning. doesn't it feel good to be at the end of the work week? let me answer that question by saying, yes, it does. a live look at the bay bridge and the san francisco skyline. the rain is gone. spring temperatures are going to take us right into the weekend, and we're really looking forward to it. thank you for joining us on this friday. i'm sam brock. >> i'm kris sanchez, in for laura garcia-cannon. we want to lack at the forecast. >> are you ready for summer? >> and some football or no? >> just summer. we're going to have that today. temperatures are going to jump up for some spots at least ten degrees across parts of the bay area. it will feel very nice out there after this cool start. we're at 47 degrees now in the