making news in america this morning -- >> a winter mess. that monster storm is on the move, dumping even more snow on weary midwest earners. it could be decision day for oscar pistorius. a judge may rule whether to grant bail for the accused murderer or send him to prison until the trial begins. also this morning, consumers who have been hit hard by gas prices, your bill at the grocery store could be going down. and how president obama enlisted the help of a very animated young man to kick off the white house easter egg roll.

and good morning. travel could prove a challenge for millions in the nation's heartland, now in the grips of that winter storm. >> further south, a tornado spun off by that very same system hit a town in east texas, leaving at least one person dead and dozens of homes damaged. abc's tahman bradley is joining us this morning and has the latest. >> reporter: good morning, rob and diana. the midsection of the nation is taking a pounding. about 60 million people were caught in the blinding snow ha has times has been accompanied by thunder and lightning. it's a real monster. and it's dangerous. this morning, the heartland is buried in snow. the blizzard marched towards chicago. the great lakes and northern midwest are bracing for almost a foot of snow. the monster storm has socked the heartland. parts of kansas and missouri were socked by thundersnow. instead of pouring rain, it was pouring snow. and conditions made driving

treacherous. >> it's a mess out here. >> reporter: from kansas to missouri, highways were shut down. >> just got out of control. lost control due to the weather conditions. and it's scary. yes, it is. >> reporter: across the midwest, crews are working to clear abandoned vehicles. even mighty postal trucks had a hard time. >> the last one coming here got stuck six times before it finally got here. we've got extraordinary measures. >> reporter: the heavy snow made visibility difficult at a number of airports, including this one in omaha, nebraska. at yesterday's peak, snow fell up to three inches per hour in some places. look at this time lapse. watch how quickly snow in arkansas adds up. some in the midwest welcome the conditions. drought-plagued farmers call the snow a blessing. >> this will get our spring crops growing. >> reporter: the storm is expected to weaken today. but forecasters say it will redevelop off the east coast, bringing heavy rain and even

more snow. rob and diana? >> tahman bradley in washington for us this morning. thank you, tahman. >> thanks for reporting from indoors, tahman. appreciate that. >> the best place to be. >> hey, we're indoors. >> i know. can't talk. well, the storm system is impacting millions of people. meteorologist jim dickey continues our coverage now. good morning, jim. >> good morning rob and diana. we're seeing heavy snow through the early-morning hours. from i-80 from omaha to chicago. especially three to six inches in these areas. the morning commute will be difficult. this while icy conditions are spreading towards 81. watch out western virginia. roanoke, blacksburg, going to be snow on those roadways. flash flooding going to be a big issue with strong thunderstorms in the florida panhandle. rob and diana, back to you. olympian oscar pistorius sobbed in court again today on

the final day of his bail hearing. the judge could decide whether the track star will await the trial for the murder of his girlfriend on bail or in jail. the lead detective has been removed from the case after it was revealed he is facing seven counts of attempted murder himself. and from central america, questions about whether the world's most wanted and most powerful drug lord has been killed. the intrigue stems from a reported shoot-out near mexico's border with guatemala. officials are looking if joaquin guzman was among those killed in the gun battle. the u.s., the u.n. and syria's main opposition group are condemning a deadly car bombing in the syrian capital. 50 people were killed when that bomb exploded in damascus. this comes among growing pressure on syrian president assad to negotiate with rebel groups. president obama is sitting down at the white house today with japan's new leader, prime

minister shinzo abay arrived in washington last night, to discuss economic ties and security concerns, including the latest threats from north korea. he is also looking to reinforce the u.s./japan alliance. he is the fifth japanese prime minister during president obama's time in office. police in las vegas are searching for suspects after deadly violence on the famed vegas strip. three people were killed during a gun battle between two luxury cars and a fiery crash that followed. authorities say at least one person in a range rover shot at a maserati that then ran a red light and crashed into a taxi. the taxi burst into flames and the driver and the passenger both died. the driver of the maserati was also killed. and there was courtroom drama as drew peterson was sentenced to 38 years for killing an ex-wife. the former chicago cop shouted out his innocence and proclaiming, quote, i did not

kill kathleen. but her sister shot back. the prosecutor says peterson's outburst shows him as the true psychopath he is. on to phoenix, accused killer jodi arias returned to the stand after a heated first day of cross-examination. a prosecutor grilled arias about what he called her memory issues, implaying it was selective. arias has said she does not remember stabbing boyfriend travis alexander in 2008. things got so intense in the courtroom, the judge had to warn arias and the prosecutor to stop talking over each other. attorneys from the justice department and the five states most impacted by the bp gulf oil spill are getting set to face off against the oil giant come monday. it's a civil suit that could result in bp being penalized up to $21 billion, depending on estimates of how much oil spilled into the gulf during that disaster almost three years ago. an 11th hour settlement is still considered a possibility.

and criminal charges are being brought in a case of deadly food poisoning. four former peanut company employees have been charged with scheming to manufacture and ship salmonella-tainted peanuts that ultimately killed nine people. the justice department says it serves as a warning to other food manufacturers not to put profits ahead of safety. this year's flu shot is not doing a good job of protecting those who need it know. in seniors, the vaccine is 9% effective. overall for all age groups, the effectiveness is 56%. it's not clear why the vaccine is not working well in older americans. but the cdc says some protection is better than none. a disturbing story from right here in new york. this video shows two, young girls, 6 and 7 years old, fighting in a park. new york police are searching for the 17-year-old sister of one of those young ladies. they say the older girl was the one eggs those youngsters on. because of that, she could face

some charges. the whole thing apparently started because of a dispute over candy. a landlord in ohio has pleaded not guilty to spanking one of his tenets. he is accused of hitting the 29-year-old man with a belt on his bare buttocks because of unpaid rent. the alleged victim said, if you're going to act like a child, i'm going to treat you like one. the tenet told police he submitted to that spanking because he was scared. okay. >> not sure what to do with that one. >> a lot of questions i've got. moving on. okay. moms and dads -- get it together. moms and dads will be able to relate to this one. a 10-year-old massachusetts boy called 911 because he didn't want to go to bed. he hung up before he was able to talk to anyone. but the dispatcher called back. a police officer was sent to the home to explain when it's appropriate and when it's not appropriate to call for help. >> maybe he should have been spanked.

but not the other guy. that's just me, that e. still to come, consumers are struggling with higher prices and smaller paychecks. but there may be light at the end of the tunnel. what obvious hazard to jumping out of a plane. how rescuers managed to get three paratroopers out of a tree. 

all right. welcome back, everybody. merchants say we're putting the brakes on our spending. walmart is the latest retailer forecasting lower sales. the giant retailer blames the increase in the payroll tax that

took effect in january. but they're worried that the big hike in gas prices is also leaving us with less to spend these days. gas this morning averages $3.78 a gallon, up almost half a buck in the last month. the outlook for good prices is pretty good. the agriculture department says there's no reason to expect another dry year. there should be higher crop yields. and lower prices for crops means more for meat and dairy warmers. prices at your supermarket will go up just a little. young adults are aggressively cutting down on their debt load. those in their mid-30s and younger lowered by a third in a three-year period. the debt by older adults declined only 8%. and three-fourths of households headed by millenials had any debt at all. the auto industry is bouncing back. all three are hiring workers and

expanding production. the latest, ford, which is moving production of a small engine out of spain and into a plant near cleveland. that will mean 450 new jobs. with the academy awards this sunday, movie theaters are expecting a slow weekend. "snitch" is one of two new films opening today. and it's only likely to take in a mediocre $12 million. and while the action film is getting decent reviews, hollywood expects many fans to simply stay home and watch the oscars right here on abc. >> we'll watch most of them until we have to come into work. that's right. >> but we'll be watching. >> that's right. still ahead, a precarious position. a snowball triggers a chain of events that leads a teen hanging on for dear life. and later, jimmy kimmel gets schooled by a 2-year-old. the adorable beatdown, coming up. ♪

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conditions should clear in kansas for the morning commute. but it could get messy around raleigh, north carolina. some freezing rain expected there. also, snow could make driving dangerous in the windy city and in des moines. >> and with all those canceled flights, air travel may be a problem. delays are possible in chicago, minneapolis, detroit, atlanta, charlotte and new orleans. well, no traces of a dangerous bacteria has been detected in the water supply of a los angeles hotel, where a body was found inside of its water tank. but health officials are still trying to determine if the water is safe to drink. the remains of 21-year-old canadian tourist elisa lam were pulled from that tank this week. people who live near the area were not as shocked as the hotel guests. >> it's not exactly a safe neighborhood. and to go out at night, you kind of have to know the neighborhood, really watch your back. i think it's unfortunate. she probably didn't know what

kind of neighborhood she was in. >> the coroner still hasn't determined how lam died. hotel guests had been drinking and bathing in that water for week, by the way. >> ooh, man. here at home, something you don't see every day. three army paratroopers had to be rescued from the trees yesterday after jumping out of a plane during a training exercise. high winds during the exercise blew the troopers offcourse. all three were unhurt, if possibly maybe just a little embarrassed. republican lawmakers in arkansas have approved a measure that could come one of the stiffest abortion restrictions in the entire country. the bill calls for a ban on abortions at 20 weeks into pregnancy, allowing exceptions for rape, incest or to save the mother's life. the governor, a democrat, has not said whether or not he would sign it. and a california school district may be forced to scrap its yoga program aimed at helping kids keep fit. one family is suing the

encinitas school district. they claim yoga is hinduism. but the school insists it's a physical education program. we told you about the big golf tournament that was postponed by the air snowfall there. when they finally got it going yesterday, it didn't go well for the top two players. first, rory mcilroy lost his head-to-head match. then, tiger woods, yep, did the same. they were eliminated from the tournament. it's the first time in 11 years that the top two players lost in the very first round. >> better luck next time. time, now, for some of your other sports headlines. and here with the latest is espn. >> good morning, i'm cassidy hubbarth with your "sportscenter" update. the east-leading heat looking for a season-high nine-straight wins. taking on the bulls. second quarter. lebron james gets the tough lay-in to fall. heat up ten.

dwyane wade misses the dunk. and the rebound goes all the way to half-court. seconds later, lebron finds wade, who gets it to go, right before the buzzer. heat up ten at the half. third quarter, it was all lebron, hitting the deep jumper there. and knocked it down off the three. and hitting joakim noah with a jab step. late fourth quarter, wade blowsl to go. as the heat win it, 86-67. 14 to the left coast, the spurs visiting the clippers. and tony parker went off in this game. here he is, crossing over blake griffin and getting the jumper to go. spurs up 12. later, parker showing off his speed. gets the contested layup to fall. second quarter, parker blows past chris paul and hits a shot over jamal crawford. and in the third quarter, parker draws the defense down low and finds tim duncan for the

wide-open "j." spurs up 18. and next possession, parker blows past chris paul. and it's a shot over blake griffin. and parker moves forward again on the back door cut. parker had 31 points in this game, as the spurs hand the clippers their worst loss of the season, winning by 26. that's your "sportscenter" update. i'm cassidy hubbarth, have a great morning. >> thank you, cassidy. before this next story you'll say that the teen involved is reportedly okay. that's the caveat. there he is, though, hanging from a ski lift in new mexico. >> it's believed he slipped out of a chair after throwing a snowball. he fell 45 feet, and suffered a concussion, a skull fracture and several internal injuries. but now, he's home. and as we said, he will be fine. >> be safe on the lift. coming up next in "the pulse," a very hot, new magazine cover featuring two of the most beautiful women in the entire world. >> i love it. also coming up, he calls himself kid president. find out what happened when the

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it is time, now, to check "the pulse." these are the stories you'll be talking about all day long. how the white house is getting a special message out to the little ones across the country. >> president obama teamed up with adorable youtube star, kid president, to spread the word about the upcoming annual easter egg roll. >> kid president, looks like you got my message. >> yes, mr. president. i got your message. this is historic. i'm in. and you should, too. >> thanks for your help. >> yes, sir, anything to help. the easter egg roll at the white house. be there. >> love this kid. >> oh, my. >> kid president is played by

robby novak. his pep talk youtube video has more than 10 million hits. >> what a sweetie. two ladies never shying away from the camera have steamed up on a shoot for the trending "v" magazine. that's rihanna and kate moss looking cosey. >> the pair qualifies for that. the ladies met when kate moss asked rihanna to snap a picture with her daughter. and jimmy kimmel puts his basketball skills to the test. and look who got the better of him. >> that was 2-year-old titus ashby. a video of him hitting baskets went viral. and that's what prompted kimmel to challenge him. >> titus and his dad took on that challenge. and titus womped him in last night's free throw challenge. good going, titus. >> kid has a future, man.

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updating our top stories. in south africa, an emotional oscar pistorius is waiting to hear if i'll be granted bail ahead of his murder trial for the death of his girlfriend. there's an intense multistate manhunt for suspects for deadly violence on the las vegas strip. one person was shot to death and two others died when they're car burst into flames. and parts of kansas begins the big digout today, after more than a foot of snow. at least two deaths are blamed on that storm. looking at today's weather. heavy rain in the pacific northwest. heavy rain in southern california. the northeast, meanwhile, is dry. and florida temperatures are warmer than usual. and finally from us this morning, a group of college students in san francisco will be paying very close attention to the oscars this sunday. >> that's because they got an opportunity of a lifetime, a

chance to help out with a film that's now up for several oscars, including best picture. more from caroline tiler of our san francisco station. >> the whole uniform, depends on everything fitting just right. >> reporter: before "beasts of the southern wild" made it to the big screen, a small group of students worked on it for months. >> you work on the shots. you don't know how big they're going to be. you're working on them because you love what you do. >> reporter: what he did was help create visual effects for the fantasy drama, set in the louisiana bayou. he painstakingly enhanced the look and feel of a levee explosion. >> there's added debris to make it a little more intense. >> reporter: the movie was made on a shoestring budget, under $2 million. so, the financially-challenged director approached the academy of arts university. student volunteers did most of the post-production visual

effects, including a key scene. of stampeding pig-like pictures. the instructor said her students brought heart to the project. >> "beasts of the southern wild" had a great story. i felt like what we were doing was integrated into that story and helped tell the story in our own, little way. >> reporter: they were in constant contact with the director and joined him and the young star during a preview at skywalker ranch. >> it lickers in you. and it's like, i can't believe i worked on that. and i was part of this huge film. and i was part of what made it up there, my colleagues and i. >> reporter: they have the credits to prove it, on the screen and in the class. and a resume as amazing as the movie. in san francisco, caroline tiler, abc news 7 news. >> love hearing the back stories of the movies. particularly that little girl. that's what's making news in america this morning. >> stay with