killer on the loose for more than a week after he was released from prison accidentally. clayton sandell reports it was all because of an error in the paperwork. >> reporter: convicted killer benjuiel johnson didn't escape prison, he was let go. mistakenly released saturday by a louisiana state prison official who apparently never double-checked to see that johnson was supposed to be serving time for manslaughter. >> it was an oversight on the staff. but it's something that should have been caught. >> reporter: johnson was serving 35 years for shooting and killing cordies gales in 2010. >> how could he be out? >> he did use a weapon and kill someone, so, he is a high priority to get him. >> reporter: it's not clear how many inmates get released by mistake, but it happens. these two florida inmates serving life for murder faked a judge's signature in 2013 and were released. captured three weeks later. and another louisiana inmate facing murder charges was captured in california after a paperwork mitchup allowed him to

go free. and we are told that prison noishl made the mistakes feels terrible about it but it's not clear what her punishment will be. clayton sandell, abc news, denver. >> the number of close calls involving drones is soaring. more than 700 cases reported this year so far. more and more we're hearing about jets forced to make last second maneuvers to avoid a collision. so did he ever international airport is teaming up with the faa to launch a crackdown. it's aimed at all illegal drone users from potential terrorists to unwitting families thinking they're just playing with toys. >> to get rid of the grandparents with their grandkids out there operating just because they don't know the where they are the in proximity to the airport or populated areas. >> the faa law prohibits any recreational drone use within five miles of an errant. it's also illegal to fly them higher than 400 feet even though

many are capable of soaring higher than that. facebook working on video options. mobile users will soon be able to replace their profile photo with a brief looping video like that. another optioning will let users assign a temporary profile image to mark special occasions like throw back thursday or even their wedding. they're being tested with some users right now before a major rollout later. >> are you into this? >> i don't know. it could create some interesting video images. >> i just want my rotary phone to come back or the flip phone, the cell phone. i would prefer that even. it's also october 1st. so we don't want to get too carried away but want you to know national cook chocolate day is october 28th, four weeks from yesterday. >> chocolatemaker near chicago is getting ready for it in a rather expensive way. it's offering a four-pound

basketball sized truffle made with special chocolate and 24 karat gold dust. >> and it also comes with a bottle of dom perignon, two crystal glasses. it's being made at the all all chocolate kitchen and the price 3,000 bucks. >> can the mouse take care of that? >> i don't know if the mouse can. >> we can try. coming up, the secret meeting involving a county clerk from kentucky and the pope. their views on same-sex marriage. >> also ahead, why would a family haul their living room sofa out of the house and blow it up. there's quite a story behind this exosion. remembering a cult movie kaz craze that started 40 years ago. we're taking a time warp to the days of the rocky horror picture show" but first your throw back thursday forecast map. you're watching "world news now." 106 in phoenix today. whoo.

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perhaps nothing brings home just how bad california's long running drought is than this time lapse right here. it shows a water level at folsom lake about 25 miles northeast of sacramento. just from march to august. folsom lake is now just 18% full, the second lowest it's ever been for this time of year. >> that is a powerful image. it depicts what's going on there. >> incredible. there are many, many places all across california that look just like that, especially in southern california which has been hit hard. >> a very different weather problem in alaska. snow. >> too soon. >> anchorage. they got 2 to 3 inches of heavy snow mixed with rain leading to power outages for thousands. in fair banks, more than 300 miles north, there was a record 11 inches of snow, the most ever

for a day in september. you know, it's one of the biggest things as a florida girl i dread in life, snow in winter. >> well, it kind of maps. >> sometimes it feels like snow in winter here with the air conditioning. >> we're turning to the mother and father in texas dealing with the tragic loss of their child to cancer. >> something no parent should have to face. they're sharing their inspiring and unusual way of dealing with their grief. todd unger has their story. >> reporter: the household is it fills with photos of ethan, photos that captured his smile each bead representing a treatment or step along the journey that ended one year ago. >> i really learned from the best kid ever how to face adversity. >> reporter: but there is one thing you won't find in the hallmark home any longer. it's the very place ethan sat when we interviewed him in 2014 and it's the very place where ethan passed away not long

after. >> i struggled with looking at it every single day and it killed me and most people that came into my house didn't know where he died. when they would sit in the spot he died on, it felt like my heart was being ripped out over and over. >> reporter: so over the weekend, friends and family took that couch to a rural field, packed with seven pounds of teflon and then -- blew it up. >> it was a way to honor his memory but also therapeutic to us. it's been an important step in the grief. >> reporter: there isn't much left of the couch now. the hallmarks hope by posting the video online, other families dealing with grief can realize there is no one way or right way to handle it. >> as time goes on, those emotional ambushes are still there. and you don't know when they're going to happen. and how bad they're going to be, but you sort of try and cope with it as best you can. >> reporter: the family also debated moving all together from

their midlothian home but with so many neighbors still showing their support, they realized the right thing wasn't to leave but rather to remove a daily reminder of the day they'd rather just forget. todd unger, channel 8 news. >> definitely an unusual way to deal with the death of a child. but you never know. it's not an experience any of us want to go through. so just an unusual way and interesting. >> they say over 15,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year in the u.s. king hussein of jordan once said when she was being treated in the u.s. seeing the children with cancer gave him so much hope and support and made everything so much better seeing how strong they were. definitely a tough thing to see. >> that kid fought for four years. we'll be right back. "world news now" continues

millions watched pope francis during his trip to america and thousands of the faithful hoping to just catch a glimpse of him. >> now that he's returned to the vatican, we've learned about a controversial figure that francis met with in secret. abc's paula faris with the abc exclusive. >> reporter: so many questions about what happened behind those doors in washington. that secret meeting with controversial kentucky clerk kim davis. >> it was really very humbling to even think that he would want to, you know, meet me or know

me. >> reporter: davis, such a divisive figure. an elected official who went to jail after refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, when the supreme court made marriage a right nationwide. >> under whose authority are you not issuing licenses? >> under god's authority. >> reporter: davis herself married four times. i recently asked her if her right to religious freedom trumps another person's legal right to wed. >> for me, it's a heaven or hell issue. i feel if i issue a license -- >> reporter: you feel you would go to hell? >> i would be participating in that act. >> reporter: but francis has reached out to gays and lesbians more than any other pope. "if someone is gay and he searches for the lord and has good will, who am i to judge?" he said. still, davis, who is not catholic, says the pope told her to stay strong. >> i put my hand out and he reached and he grabbed it and i hugged him and he hugged me. and he said, "thank you for your courage."

on the plane back to rome, abc's terry moran asked the pope whether he supports government officials who say they can not follow some laws because of their religious beliefs. >> do you support those kinds of claims of religious liberty? >> reporter: without mentioning davis, the pope defending conscientious objectors, saying, "it is a human right. and if a government official is a human person, he has that right." from the vatican spokesman this one-line statement. "i do not deny that the meeting took place, but i will not comment on it further." kim davis's legal team says they were approached by the vatican well before he arrived in the u.s. but they were instructed to keep this meeting under wraps because her legal team says the pope didn't want it to diminish his trip. paula faris, abc news, new york. >> very interesting. we'reoing to move on. coming up, throwback thursday and the cult classic film.

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♪ >> that's right. we're doing the time warp again. it's throwback thursday. we're celebrating the 40th anniversary of the rocky horror picture show". after critics panned the film, it caught on with audiences through midnight showings. we found this report by abc's bob brown from 1978 as the film developed a cult following. >> reporter: horror movies used to require nothing less than a full moon as a catalyst to turn the common into the supernatural. for the rocky horror show, just standing under the marquee seems to bring out the unusual in people. after three years on the so-called midnight movie circuit the film has recruited a legion

of hard-core fans who dress and talk and act like the characters in the movie. >> brad, please, let's get out of here. >> reporter: the show is about a clean cut young couple that stum willingables into the world of a transvestite from another galaxy. ♪ >> by the end of the movie, the couple is in incapable of adjusting back to norm malt. a message ta seems to appeal to mostly young audiences at a time of life that is unconventional in or out of costume. many have seen the movie so often, they know it song by song, line by line, re-creating in the aisles of the theater the dialogue on the screen. >> tim curry who plays the transvestite has become a cult figure to fans who paid $8.50 a person for this rocky horror convention. >> i think if it has a message at all it's don't dream it, be it, one of the songs in the

movie. you know, get on with your fantasies. >> reporter: fans seem to enjoy the reactions they get both from those who appreciate the film and those who don't. and behind some of the costumes, there is a latent perspective. >> is this what the world is coming to? >> not really. but it's what the grand theater in brooklyn is coming to. >> reporter: bob brown, abc news, new york. >> well -- >> do you know mick jagger wanted to play franken further? he was turned down for the part. >> i didn't know that. there are still midnight showings. >> my goodness. what has happened here? apparently during the -- >> i guess this is all part of it. >> this is part of it. they used to throw things during the movie. >> i feel as if something is going to hit us. >> it could be. >> susan sarandon covers her head with a newspaper and people bring newspapers. to the midnight showings. >> i'm

this morning on "world news now," hurricane joaquin gaining strength hour by hour. >> the latest storm path and the areas already flooded on high alert. the state of emergency already in effect, and new details from accuweather. secret service scandal, agents accused of retaliating against a congressman who is investigating the secret service. the details emerging overnight. >> was hillary clinton's personal account hacked by the russians? new revel layings about spam and the e-mails kept secret. >> later a health alert to parents. should your kids be turning to high protein diets to get fit in the advice you need to hear on this thursday, october 1st. from abc news, this is "world news now." >> goo