our thanks to byron pitts for the great story. coming up a royal point of view.harry opening up about his tour of duty in afghanistan. >> he writes about the horrors he saw and how it inspired him to help. you're watching "world news now." ♪ ♪ we could be heroes just for one day ♪ >> famous for his fun loving charm. prince harry has done quite a lot to bring joy to people's lives. especially the heroic war veterans he served with. >> he is revealing much more about his passion for giving an outlet to those soldiers injured in act. here's abc's lama hasan. >> reporter: prince harry opening up with a rare article in the london times, and the horrors of war and how comrades changed his life forever. in the article, harry says "loss of life is as tragic and devastating as it gets. but to see young lads wrapped in plastic missing limbs was something i never prepared myself for." >> prince harry was a proper soldier right on the front line. his experiences were really raw. he was, right up close to serious injury the he could have been injured and possibly killed himse

abc's chief national correspondent byron pitts now on the front lines in his hometown of baltimore. >reporter: it's been years now since hbo's "the wire" was on television. creating a reputation the city of baltimore is still trying to live down. so far, this year, relative good news -- the overall murder rate is down. but no one is celebrating. in part, because the number of young people dieing is up. so, what's a cash-strapped city to do? thus far, the public has not liked the answer. considered one of the most restrictive in the nation, baltimore has upgraded its curfew law. 14 to 16-year-olds by 10:00 weekdays. 11:00 p.m. on weekends. parents or guardians could face fines of up to loved hometown we in the months to come. not only to keep the kids off the street but put them on the road safer and productive lives. for "this week," byron pitts, abc news, baltimore. >> thanks, byron. >>> the roundtable is here now. espn's lz granderson, who is also a cnn contributor. sheryl atkinson. abc political analyst matthew dowd and cokie roberts. welcome to you all. matthew, the baltimore solu

here is abc's byron pitts. >> once the investigator gets there we take over. >> reporter: this is captainm richardson. >> it is too far today. >> reporter: they are investigators with the phoenix fire department's elite arson squad. the best of the best. and they have the numbers to prove it. the squad solved more cases in the arson unit than anywhere in the country. >> we can go into a structure and be able to start anywhere. to a lay person they just look at you like how do you know that? >> reporter: but did that success come at a price? >> i was going to prison for the rest of my life for a crime i didn't commit. >> reporter: tonight, two people who say they were falsely accused of arson, alleging incompetent actions. you were in jail for 16 months? >> it ruined my life and i'm still paying for it to this very day. >> reporter: but our story begins in 2009. abc news was given extraordinary access to this elite unit. so we could see for ourselves what made them the best in the nation. captain andes was proud to admit he had a secret weapon. >> this is a detection k-9. >> reporter: she

maybe i'll be okay. >> reporter: for "this week," byron pitts., kansas city. >> here now, mara kiesling and sabrina ruben-erderly, who has covered this issue extensively. thanks to both of you for being here. mara, you have been active on this issue for at least a dozen years. now, you say we've come to the point "time" magazine says we're at a tipping point. you have had progress in courts. laverne cox coming in and being nominated for an emmy award. what is your sense? have we reached a critical moment here now for this movement? >> i think absolutely. and we're winning policy change. faster than we ever thought we could. the culture is changing really, really fast. but still, the truth is, while that's happening and while that's all great and important, there are a million tragedies happening every day with people having judges take away their kids because they're trans. people being disrespected out on the street. people being murdered. we had one of the worst months of transgender murders this past june. all this summer has been a bad month

i'm byron pitts. hiring a hit man to make someone disappear. more than just a hollywood plot line.t's a crime that's more common than you might imagine. the people you're about to meet thought murder might be the best way out of their relationship problems. or at the very least an easy payday. one would-be killer allegedly wanted his own mother dead. here's abc's john donvan. >> started as a joke. and it got out of hand. and it's cost him everything. >> reporter: big sky country. land of open plains. but closed up inside this house, a family with a dark story. >> everything changed in a matter of a few hours. >> reporter: it begins on the outskirts of billings four years ago at this used car lot when an fbi agent stops by to deliver to owner dana campbell an unthinkable message. >> he asked to speak to me in private. he said, i hate to be the one to inform you of this but we've been notified that there has been a contract put out on your life. >> a contract out for your life? it just sounds -- it sounds insane. >> reporter: not as insane as what comes next. the fbi agent says he ha

i'm byron pitts. we begin with the altercation between two race car drivers, an occasion that left one dead. sat on the track pointing. tony stewart came by, his car struck ward. he did not survive. what happened between these two men in the heat of competition. we begin with abc's linzie janis she is outside the trace track tonight. >> reporter: this is the very basic track where that horrific accident unfolded. nascar great gary stewart is known for competing with drivers much younger than himself. but tonight police can't to know exactly what events led to the death of 20-year-old kevin ward, jr. tragedy at this upstate new york racetrack. three-time nascar champion tony stewart hits and kills driver kevin ward, jr. this video posted on youtube shows ward getting out of his car apparently trying to confront stewart. the video has since been taken down. during the race, ward's car spins out hitting the wall and ward gets out of the car and angrily walks on to the track. as stewart's car passes, it a

. >> reporter: byron pitts, abc news, new york. >>> great message for >> good morning, we're on a developingthis monday august 11, tension have eruption outside of saint louis following a candle light vigil for an an armed teen shot by a police officer displrvetle. >>> tone stewart hit and killed kevin ward junior, now the investigation against. >> good morning, it is

i'm byron pitts. we begin with america's new mission in iraq. one that president obama warned today would be, quote, a long-term project. and just tonight, the pentagon announcing four new air strikes. earlier today we saw these images of the first u.s. air strikes on terror targets in northern iraq. the gunner's eye view of missiles taking out militants and weapons below. meanwhile parachuting from u.s. cargo planes, huge bundles of food and water. for humanitarian aid for refugees stranded on a mountain top. today the refugees are on the move again. looking to escape the violence. we have team coverage. we begin with abc white house correspondent, jonathan karl, traveling with the president. jon? >> reporter: good evening. the president arrived in martha's vineyard this afternoon. he already played a round of golf but also spoken to the leaders of germany, france, and britain. the attention focused thousands of miles away on the military operation in iraq. as 500-pound bombs dropped from fighter jets and missiles fired from predator drones, pu

here's byron pitts. >> you've got the wrong gir&. >> reporter: one of the stars of the netflix's hitow, orange is the new black. laverne cox. >> so many transgender folks see themselves. >> reporter: coxrj role one of a growing number reflective of the transjernd community coming of age in mainstream america. on broadway, neil patrick harris winning a tony for his performance as headwig and thq angry inch. online, face book users able to choose between 56 options for gender identities. in fashion, barney's department store featu)ing an ad campaign with transgender models. all a far cry from cox's childhood as a young boy in alabama. >> i was bullied. and internalized a lot of shame about who i was as a child. >> bullied because? >> bullied because of my gender expression. bullied because i didn't act the way some one assigned male at birth was supposed to act. there was a cultural environment where transgender people are told we're a mistake. >> reporter: there are estimated 1 million transgender men and women in america. maep teenagers like isaac barnett and 17-year-old michael galv

here's abc's byron pitts with that story. >> i've never actually been back to twin falls, idaho. time is now. it's right here. just haunts me. >> reporter: for lonnie, b.a.s.e. jumping isn't just one of the world's most dangerous sports. friends call it his drug of choice. >> lonnie has the type of personality where he wants to be the best. >> b.a.s.e. jumping for me gave me a release. everything is just so pure for that split second. when you step off into nothing. >> reporter: ten years ago his drug betrayed him. and nearly took his life. july 19, 2004. >> the 19th was an absolutely perfect day. >> good. >> reporter: it was loni's 1,100 jump. >> i knew i messed up. i can see i am getting low. i pulled my pilot chute a split second too soon. i was hanging upside down by my right leg. that point hitting the water. i could see the sun light coming down through the water. i couldn't move anything. >> reporter: loni suffered a spinal cord injury, paralyzed from the chest down. >> heartbreaking to see someone you love reduced to half a person. >> i absolutely hated my chair. the chai