dr. petit was interviewed in 2010 by oprah winfrey. >> i think forgiving the essence of evil is not appropriate. >> reporter: but today the state supreme court ruled this state's death penalty no longer comports with contemporary standards of decency and no longer serves any legitimate penological purpose. tonight dr. petit releasing a statement critical of the ruling, saying it disregarded skistones of our governmental structure. even with the death penalty, connecticut had not actually executed anybody since 2005. while 30 other states have capital punishment, in recent years seven states have moved to ban it. >> ron claiborne leading us off tonight. ron, thank you. >>> we're going to turn to the other developing story at this hour, the race against time in china. tonight they are still franticly digging an urgent search for survivors after those powerful explosions felt miles away, the blinding white light and the boom. as we've been showing you in the last 24 hours, entire neighborhoods wen

dr. petit was the only survivor. dr. said if any crime deserved the death penalty this is it. >> we say this is really about justice. >> in 2012, connecticut's legislature passed a law, repealing the death penalty. but made sure that law would only fly future crimes so that two of the state's most notorious murderers would be still executed. however, they are now, on death penalty, violates the accusation without cruel and unusual punish punishment. connecticut governor malloi who openly signed the repeal quickly signed it into law. >> in 50 years the only people to be put to death in connecticut were two gentlemen who volunteered for it. >> as for dr. petit hours after the ruling he issued a statement saying the dissent being justices clearly state how the key stones of our structure. highly charged topic with profound emotional impact. >> this is a slum day in connecticut. we have to keep in our minds how difficult this is for victims and victims' families. >> libby casey, al jazeera. >> legal experts say the connecticu

after the sentencing in 2011 dr petit said if there was a crime that warranted the death penalty, this was it. >> we have been criticized over the years that this is vengeance and blood loss. this is about justice. >> in 2012 connecticut stds legislator passed a law repealing the death penalty. they made sure that that would apply to future crimes so two of the states notorious murders would be executed. today, hayes and nine others have been spared. thanks to a 4-3 ruling by the connecticut supreme court with the death penalty for these convicted violates the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. speaking for the majority. the state wrote that the death penalty does not serve a legitimate surface. the government openly supported the repeal, signing it into law. >> in 50 years, the only people to be put to death in connecticut were two gentlemen. as for dr petit, hours after, they issued a statement saying how the four members of the majority disregarded key stones. the death penalty is a highly charged topic with profound impact. >> this is a solid day in co

dr. petitot appropriate. >> reporter: but the state's supreme court ruled this state's death penalty no longer comports with contemporary standards of decency and no longer serves any legitimate penological purpose. dr. petit releasing a statement critical of the ruling, saying it "disregarded keystones of our governmental structure." even with the death penalty, connecticut had not actually executed anybody since 2005. and while 30 other states still have capital punishment, in recent years, 7 states, including connecticut, have moved to ban it. ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >>> relief overnight in the battle against a wind-driven wildfire in northern california. firefighters took advantage of cooler temperatures to clear brush and widen containment lines, but the fire still spreading and threatening about 50 homes. it's already burned 38 square miles of thick brush in lake and napa counties, and it's now 50% contained. >>> from extreme heat to rain. today, forecasters gave their stronges

petit was raped and strangled during a home invasion in 2007. her two daughters died from smoke inhalation after their house was set on fire. their father, dr. lliam petit, survived. >>> the connecticut supreme court ruled the state's death penalty is unconstitutional. that decision in a different case affects 11 inmates on death row. cbs news legal expert rickicalliman joins us at the table. good to see you. we all remember this story, because it was so heinous and bill petit said it was devastating to him, this decision. help us understand the court's reasoning here. >> we should remember this case came to the court not through the petit case, but came through a case brought by a man named edwardo santiago and back in 2012, april 25th, the legislature, the body elected by the people of connecticut, enacted a law that said, the death penalty is unconstitutional -- well, the death penalty should be abolished going forward. but anyone who was still on death row, there were 11 people, including the two killers who i looked at as monsters in the petit case. they were still on death row. and the legislature probably, because of those two people,

dr. william petit. >> relief overnight in the battle against a wind-driven wildfire in northern california, firefighters took advantage of the cooler temperatures. the fire still spreading. it's now 50% contained. >>> the current become the strongest ever. forecasters say there's a good chance the weather pattern will bring record heat and more strong storms with drenching rain and for bone-dry california that could mean floods, mudslides and mayhem. abc's rob marciano takes a look at what's in store. >> no one is sounding the alarm, strengthening and significant. likely to peak late fall. where california normally gets its rain. that will bring the storms into the southern california. the northeast could go either way during el nino. >> despite the expected record-breaking rain, there's no guarantee that el nino will end the grippaling draut. >>> tom brady was back on the field last night. despite his looming suspension and the fight over it. he threw four passes, completed one of them for ten yards and that was it. talks between attorneys for the nfl and the players union in a settlement

petit family. governor malloy called the ruling a solemn day for the state. >> we have to keep in our minds how difficult this is for victims and victim's families. >> dr. william petit who survived the home invasion that killed his wife and daughters in cheshire criticize the ruling. he said the death penalty is a highly charged topic with a profound impact on victims and their loved ones. >>> the american flag will rise over the u.s. embassy in havana, cuba. secretary of state john kerry will be on hand. he is the highest ranking official to visit since 1959 h. the cuban flag has been installed without ceremony in the lobby of the state department. >>> we continue to stay on top of breaking news. the minor quake shaking people in new jersey. people hearing a loud explosion. we have updates throughout the newscast. >> we have an encouraging update on fight against ebola in west africa. when the epidemic could be wiped out. >> join the millions who have already switched. we switched. and now, we're streaming netflix. who knew time warner cable's internet was so fast! mom switched. and now, we can watch our favorite shows together, on demand. i switched.

dr. william petit who testified in court. >> it is not clear to me that time heels all. >> reporter: in separate trials they were convicted and sentenced to death. he later in a jailhouse interview refusing to express remorse. now in a 4-3 ruling connecticut's high court has thrown out the jury's decision saying this state's death penalty no longer comports withstandards of decency reducing sentences of these killers to life in prison without the possibility of parole. >> we have to keep in our minds how difficult this is for victims and victims' families. >> they decided that these two men should get the death penalty and then to have it taken away makes me wonder why we spend all that time in the court system. >> reporter: in a statement dr. petis calling the death penalty a highly charged topic with profound emotional impact on victims and family members. >>> and we have breaking news just in to our news room. a tree limb fell and killed two young campers at a camp site in yosemite. we are getting word that it happened around 5:00 this morning at the upper pines campground in the yosemite val

dr. palmer into hiding, his vacation home vandalized. though he has said he believed the hunt was legal. a white house petition demanding dr. palmer's extradition has 230,000 signatures so far. delta and american airlines announcing they will no longer ship big game trophies. on twitter, the hashtag #boycottups growing to pressure the carrier, which has said it will continue to ship them, as long as the hunts are legal. the trial has been postponed until september. if convicted, bronkhorst could face up to 15 years behind bars. david, officials are intensifying their efforts to bring dr. palmer back into this country to face justice for killing cecil. david? >> thank you. >>> and new details in the case of the two missing florida boys. setting out on a fishing trip and vanishing nearly two weeks ago when their boat capsized. a possible new clue a private search team discovering two life jackets off the coast of georgia. now trying to determine if they belonged to the two boys. >>> and now, dash cam video of a driver and the sound of 12 bullets as he was shot dead. here's mara schiavocampo. >> reporter: tonight, never before

dr. petit sproek out about the death penalty.g. >> decided these two men should get the death penalty. to have it just taken away. it makes you wonder why we spend all that time in the court systems. >> joining me now on the phone is connecticut public defender thomas ullman. he represented steven hays, one of the two men convicted in the murders of the petit women. mr. ullman, thank you for your time. you fought for his innocence. lost the fight. what was your first reaction to hearing hays' life was spared? >> i was thrilled and relieved. we never contested his innocence. and guilt in the case. we really contested the death penalty and always our motive was to get a life sentence. millions of dollars later and years later, we finally have a decision from the connecticut supreme court. >> you say you're thrilled. and millions of dollars later. no consolation to the family. who we heard from jennifer petit's sister who said when you torture and rain them, their children, douse them with gasoline, burn them alive, is there not som

dr. william petit.ire. he says that he doesn't support the high court's ruling. >> i think forgiving the essence of evil is not appropriate. >> this is a solemn day in connecticut. >> reporter: governor malloy is also promising all the inmates who have been on death row will never have any chance of freedom. 31 states still allow the death penalty. >>> a historic day ahead in havana, cuba. secretary of state john kerry is expected to raise the stars and stripes over the restored u.s. embassy there. three marines who lowered the flag back in 1961 will beback back to raise it once again. kerry is not expected to meet with fidel or raul castro but will visit with dissidents at the u.s. ambassador's residence and he's also likely to see american tourists. hotels there are booked until spring. >> the race to 2016, there's talk of a possible shake-up on the democratic side. friends of al gore eyeing a spot for him in the race. a gore advisor tells abc news that friends and former aides are having a conversati

dr. william petit whose wife and daughters were murdered in at home invasion criticized the ruling written statement saying the death penalty and its application is a highly charged topic with profound emotional impact articulately on the victims and their loved ones. conn one has to execute a prisoner in 2005 and before that the previous execution was in 1960. because of this ruling the most severe punishment a criminal in that state can get his life in prison without parole and the court ruling cannot be appealed. back to you. greg: no states in this area allow the death penalty. a couple people went to the hospital in brooklyn and tried to take a picture of a woman and her baby. it was very suspicious actually. theresa: the maternity ward medical center last sunday afternoon in sunset park brooklyn, once inside they went to a patient's room to take a photo with the baby blues, the hospital. white minivan. if you have information call crime stoppers at 800-577-tips. theresa: the ears disease major problem in the city, worst outbreak in 40 years, cooling towers the source of the bacteria.

in 2007, steven hays and joshua broke into the home of the petit family. dr.ttitte was beaten and bound. he was the only familiar member to survive. jennifer and daughters were murdered. in a statement dr. pettitte spoke out against the court reversal saying the court disregarded key stones of our governmental structure to reach the decision it handed down. jennif jennifer's sister is on the phone. with a welcome to you and we spoke during the break. i want to reiterate what i said to you then because it is impossible to imagine what your family has gone through. what was your reaction to the court's ruling? >> i was shocked to know what had been decided in a court of law by a judge and a jury and one of the most heinous crimes imaginable that a sentence given of the death penalty could be taken away and completely turned around and by really the vote of what came down to was one person in a 4-3 vote of seven people. >> shocking to be certain. how does it make you feel? are you angry? you feel you can't do anything about this? >> i do feel like our hands are t

dr. william petit nearly beaten to death by a baseball bat and his wife killed and his girls doused with death fire and steven hayes so full of remorse he chose to die. and now, let's welcome in a juror in the trial of steven hayes, and let's go to her, and paula, what was your reaction when you heard a that the two men would not receive the death penalty? >> well, i expected that. because there was talk of that happening while we were in trial. and it made me more certain that death was the proper sentence, because he was the harshest penalty that we could give him and eventually if the state overturned it, he would still have the most intensive kind of incarcerati incarceration. >> hem to us understand what it was about this case that was so emotional for you that made you decide that death was the answer here some. paula? >> yes. >> i am sorry. i am wonder iing if you can hel us to understand what it was in this trial that made you decide that death was the only answer. >> well, after i looked at all of the evidence and all of the facts that it was really no other choice, and i had to

dr. palmer into hiding, his vacation home vandalized. though he has said he believed the hunt was legal, a white house petition demanding dr.es so far. delta and american airlines announcing they will no longer ship big game trophies. on twitter, #boycottups growing to pressure the international carrier, which has said it will continue to ship them as long as the hunts are legal. the trial has been postponed until september. if convicted, bronkhorst could face up to 15 years behind bars. officials are intensifying their efforts to bring dr. palmer back into this country to face justice for killing cecil. ryan smith, abc news, victoria falls, zimbabwe. >>> in medical news, a potentially life-saving benefit linked to birth control pills. a large, new study found the pill dramatically reduces a woman's risk of endometrial cancer. it's credited with preventing 200,000 cases of the disease in the last decade. researchers say the longer a woman uses oral contraceptives, the greater the benefit, reducing her risk by 25% every five years. >>> all right, spicy foods, yes? >> ooh, i love it, teej. you know i love it. >> you're going

. >> reporter: as of this morning 2,000 people have signed a petition to have dr. palmer extradited. since the treaty was signed 15 years ago, no one has been extradited there to face criminal charges. >> david beg nauchld thank you, david. >>> why rally a crowd when you can just buy one. >> announcer: this weather seg aspirin. learn about the risk of a heart convenient at iapro.com. >>> coming up in your medical news, "morning rounds." 90% of americans get too much sodium in their diet and that's not good. >>> dr. holly phillips and how aromas determine how much you eat for dessert. you're watching "cbs this morning: saturday." heart health's important... ...so you may... take an omega-3 supplement... ...but it's the ingredients inside that really matter for heart health. new bayer pro ultra omega-3 has two times the concentration of epa and dha as the leading omega-3 supplement. new bayer pro ultra omega-3. i thought activia was for big digestive issues. until i realized our body handles a lot. 1,100 meals a year... 730 rushed snacks... add 300 stressful decision

dr. palmer's office and one of his homes. petitionsng for his extradition have collected hundreds of thousands of signatures. the doctor is certainly not the first sport hunter to kill a lion in africa. zimbabwe does allow lions to be hunted. at issue is the way cecil was killed. i want to dig deeper with jack hanna, host of "jack hanna's wild countdown." also danny issavalos. jack, when you heard what happened, what went through your mind? >> when i heard it, i didn't believe it. when i was born in 1947, there were over 450,000 lions. when my daughters were born, there were 150,000. today, there are less than 30,000. >> when an animal like cecil is killed, it doesn't happen in a vacuum. it has repercussions, ripple effects tlouts the rest of the pride, doesn't it? >> yes, i understand it's a brother of cecil is now taking care of those cubs. mideast monitoring them and watching over them, which as you might know, in our country, the mountain lion, for example, if it's around when the babies are even born, it's consumed in 30 seconds.

you've got this white house petition that 200,000 people have signed calling for dr.tradited to zimbabwe and face trial there. >> hopefully there will be some long-term change. senator menendez produced a bill along with three other original co-sponsors that would suspend the imports of lion trophies and other animals while they're being reviewed for petition to list them for protections under the u.s. endangered species act. and that's a pretty good move. i was one of the original authors of the petitions to list lions as endangered and we submitted that technical petition back in 2011. four years have passed and the government is still reviewing that petition. in the interim a lions every year have been killed for sport. with a bill like this they could stop that during that period whether they're deciding whether or not to give them more protections. >> danny, when you also look at the extradition hearing here you have human rights violations in zimbabwe you have a government run by you know, robert mugabe and there are going to be concerns among u.s. officials abo

dr. walter palmer. a white house petition supporting palmer's extradition, now, has 230,000 signatures and counting. but palmer is still in hiding. vigilantes taking matters into their own hands, vandalizing his florida vacation home. and this morning, animal rights activists are also taking aim at the companies that facilitate big game trophy hunting by shipping home the horns and the heads. >> if these guys cannot bring the trophy home they won't kill the animal in the first place. >> reporter: the #boycottups is gaining ground on twitter. it was said the company will still allow big game trophies saying, there are many items shipped in international commerce that may spark controversy. as for that professional hunter theo bronkhorst this was just a preliminary hearing this morning, the whole thing over in minutes. the case has now been continued until the end of september but the bigger question, tough, will walter palmer have to go back to face the music? unlikely, that's the answer that we're hearing. the u.s. does have an extradition treaty with zimbabwe but robert mugabe's government is not e

huge petitions signed by more than 200,000 people to have dr. palmer extradited.t the safety of the cubs that cecil left behind. dave joins me now on the phone, animal planet's large predator expert. why is it believed by so many that jericho, who is very close, but not blood brother, if you will of cecil, is protecting cecil's cubs? why would that happen? >> typically a younger age, when a young male gets kicked out of a pride they go on what they call a nomadic phase. and on that phase cecil and jericho met up and formed what we call a coalition. the reason they do that is they can hunt better and protect themselves better. and when it comes the right time and the right size they're able to take over a pride together. so that's why jericho -- jericho formed an alliance with cecil. they're not quite sure whose cubs are whose. in general, a lot of male lions will protect all the cubs in a pride. >> so knowing what you know now about jericho's close relationship with cecil, do you believe the cubs will indeed survive if they have jericho overseeing them? >> the cub

dr. bears in front of his office. there's a petitionn the whitehouse web site that has reached well over 100,000 signatures meaning the president is going to have to respond. i think if people responded to human life in the same we they respond to the lion we would not be in the fix we're in in this country. now you talked about some of the back lash. we'll talk further about the comparison between the two. some of the back lash is calling for walter palmer to be extradited. send him over knowing he faces harsh punishment if he goes. there should he be sent and is that part of the whole social media outrage. >> well, look there's two sdim sgim bad wayians that helped him. and so it's a serious, serious charge. there i think ft. people who helped him have been arrested and have been jailed and have to pay bail frankly i think he should face that type of justice and answer for himself. >> you mentioned comparison so #black lives matter movement and #cecil the lion movement universeially people are upset across racial lines why do you thin

dr. palmer remains in hiding four weeks after killing cecil the lion. it sparked outrage around the world. more than 170,000 people even signed a petition urging the white house to get involved. palmer could face criminal charges in zimbabwe including poaching. cecil was a favorite of locals and tourists from around the world. >> know that something is powerful and symbolic and cecil could die so treacherously and tragically, it shows what a slippery slope we are when protecting the african species of wildlife. >> palmer has said i deeply regret the pursuit of an activity i love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion. >>> a wrestling icon has died. fans are mourning the loss of rowdy rod i piper. his agent says the wrestler died peacefully in his sleep last night. roderick tombs was his real name. the 61-year-old was known for trademark kilts and trash talk. he wrestled against the likes of hulk hogan. he went on to become a television and movie actor as well. he leaves behind his wife and four children. he was 61 years old. >>> also new at 11:00, a summertime survival story. a haddon field teenager is

dr. palmer into hiding his vacation home vandalized. though he has said he believed the hunt was legal, a white house petition demanding his extradition hasdelta and american airlines announcing they will no longer ship big game trophies. on twitter the #boycott ups growing to pressure the international carrier which has said it will continue to ship them as long as the hunts are legal. the trial postponed till september. if convicted bronkhorst could face up to 15 years behind bars. officials intensifying their efforts to bring palmer back into this country to face yuts for killing cecil. ryan smith, abc news victoria falls dim zimbabwe. >>> a potentially life serving benefit linked to birth control pills. a study found the pill reduces a woman's risk of end doe meetritorial cancer. researchers say the longer a woman uses oral or contraceptives, the greater the benefit reducing her risk by 25% every five years. >>> spicy foods. yes? >> i love it. >> you're going to live longer than i am. every time you dig in you're doing yourself a favor. we're told according to a new study it says eating those foods twice a week reduces the risk of dea

dr. walter palmer went into hiding after there was international outrage. it is on going. i shouldn't say that in response to his killing. he has already started extradition proceedings against him. white house petitionnatures. >> look at this staredown. are they going to laugh at what they are yelling at each other? is it all real? those two fighters are going to battle in tonight's ufc 190 pay purview in brazil. both fighters undefeated. according to espn rousey is promising to give a challenge to the most devastating loss she has ever seen. >> should ronda rousey at some point fight a man at some point? the reaction has just poured in. >> i had the same reaction a couple of these people did, about the image of that could be very negative. >> here is the thing. she is 11-0 professionally an olympic olympic medalist in the 2008 olympics. it isn't whether she will beat her tonight but how quickly. 96 seconds the last couple of fights. she has dominated so much people are wondering should she be fighting a man? that's how good she is to find enough competition. here is what you guys had to say. what are we really saying by having her fight a male? social implications beg to ask is it okay in a ufc are

dr. palmer out of minnesota, the dentist that is wanted in zimbabwe for killing cecil the lion look there's been a white house petition to extradite him. does it look david, like the united states will extradite him to stand trial in zimbabwe? >> reporter: well look never say never, poppy, but in this case experts say it's probably unlikely that the u.s. will hand over dr. palmer to zimbabwe for a couple reasons. one is the nature of this alleged offense. it is of course serious, the fact that it is a poaching offense, could get ten years in zimbabwe but, you know, it's not really in the realm of the kind of issues that would get someone sent out of their home country to a foreign country to face trial. there's also the issue of zimbabwe proper. the justice system there has been accused of rights abuses in the prisons. there are more than 80 people and institutions under sanctions list in zimbabwe. so there is a bit of politics here i think in terms of accusing this second american. whether it turns out to be that this person was acting illegally or not, you know they are scoring political points in zimbabwe by pointi

dr. palmer themselves. if he turns up after hiding, he could face extradition. and there's a white house petitionunter is here with us, thank you for being here with us. first for extradition, we have to start with charges here. >> yeah, that's correct. i mean, i think what we have is a great deal of public outcry and outrage. hopefully that will not out distance proper procedure and due process. because, as you know, there is an extradition treaty between zimbabwe and the united states. however, any extradition treaty is an agreement between two countries that outlines the procedures and the rules and the required documents that must be supplied in the first and foremost that has to happen in a prerequisite. the arrest charges and charging documents have to be issued. so this is a bit of alice in wonderland. you know the old story there, punishment first and then the trial. here we have a call for extradition but yet there's no charging documents or an arrest warrant. so something is very unusual here. >> do you expect that is a formality here with charges coming? >> well, i couldn't characteriz