after johnny depp and other stars line up, calling for their acquittal, three men convicted of killing three little boys in a satanic cult ritual are set free. we have the inside story of the controversial decision to release the west memphis three. >>> got junk? with 700 bucks and a lot of pep, he built an empire out of stuff you want to get rid of. tonighgh how he's raking in millions. >>> and basketbrawl diplomacy. maybe america and china should just stop playing games. this melee is just the latest example of sports diplomacy gone bad with america's 1 billion frenemies. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden d bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," august 19th, 2011. > good friday evening, all. i'm bill weir. dna evidence and johnny depp. the three convicts you're about to meet had both on their side. and that proved to be enough to set them free from prison today. but 18 years ago, when they were rebel teens in their town, accused of a gruesome, satanic murder of three young boys, dna tests weren't available and there were

lady gaga, and johnny depp made it to the fashion originals group.nd they're very creative with their appearances, very to say. >> i say so. especially lady gaga. >> unique. >> yes. >> that is going to do it for us. world news is next. an

terminando el 28 de agosto en chicago... )) les cuento que nos quedaremos con las ganas de ver a johnny deppigena que acompaÑo al llanero solitario en sus peregrinacion es...el grupo disney decidio suspender la produccion de su version de "the lone ranger" por desacuerdos economicos entre el estudio y el director de la cinta...las grabaciones de esta pelicula estaban pautadas para comenzar en octubre de este aÑo en nuevo mexico... topvo --- no deje de enterarse de lo que hacemos en nuestra comunidad o de lo que estamos preparando en nuestros noticieros locales por medio de twitter y facebook... ---en facebook... telemundo san jose y en twitter ... t48 s j. cu --asi llegamos al final de nuestro programa. --no se pierda maÑana noticiero telemundo 48 a las 6 de la tarde con

in one corner will be opening of johnny depp's "the lone ranger."in the other corner will be brad pitt's geopolitical zombie thriller. >>> the 19-year-old sister of bristol palin's ex, levi, will be in "playboy." she did blast bristol, calling her the most evil person she's ever known. and she knocks sarah palin for involving and including her brother in the 2008 campaign, as john mccain's running mate. saying, quote, levi was a drop. once they didn't need him, he was out the door. >>> and say what you will about charlie sheen. at least she's being a good sport about his replacement on "two and a half men." sheen is just as curious to see the new version of the show next month. and he thinks ashton kutcher will do a good job. saying, quote, i think ashton's going to kill it. he has a change of heart. >> i think a lot of us are curio curious. if you're a man of the show, and i was. i want to see how they're going to do it. >>> the federal reserve announced it would keep interest rates near zero for the next two years at least. the question is, after

celebrities like actor johnny depp took up their kauds, as well as eddie vetter of pearl jam and natalie mane of the dixie chicks, who were in the courtroom friday when the three agreed to a legal maneuver that lets them maintain their innocence while acknowledging prosecutors have enough evidence to convict them. >> they would have to come with some concrete, physical evidence, and i they didn't have any. >> reporter: a local sprr defiant and stands by the original convictions. >> i have no reason to believe that there was anyone else involved in the homicide of these three children but the throw defendants who pled guilty today. >> reporter: outside the courthouse, the three were greeted by supporter, even to include some of the victims' families. >> there's no winners here. my son's still dead. >> reporter: the prosecutor said the state considers the case closed. but the west memphis three disagree. [ applause ] >> reporter: chris clackum, nbc news. >>> in other news, interim san francisco mayor ed lee is taking heat today. he missed last night's marlin forum. instead he hit a pub cra

in one corner will be the opening of johnny depp's "the lone ranger" and then brad pitt's geopolitical zombie thriller "world war z." elsewhere, mercedes johnson, the 19-year-old sister of bristol palin's ex levi johnston will appear in the next issue of "playboy." besides posing nude, she plasts bristol calling her the most evil person she's ever known. and she knocks sarah palin for including her brother in the 2008 campaign saying levi was a prop. and once they didn't need him, he was out the door. >>> finally, say what you will about charlie sheen. at least he is being a good sport about his replacement on "two and a half men." tmz reports sheen says he is just as curious as everyone else to see the new version of the show next month, and he thinks ashton kutcher will do well, saying, quote, i think ashton's going to kill it. >> have you noticed in the last few weeks sheen is doing everything right. do you think it's him or a pr person saying this is what you're saying, this is what you're doing? >> he likes to keep people surprised. it works. >> that's right. he's an angel now. >>

guys, keer remark the top three hottest bodies belonging to men, david beckham, daniel craig, and johnny depp> why am i not surprised. all right. kelsey grammer not in the mix there, but he is looking to maybe change his profession, maybe politics? >> yeah, alec bold waldwin may looking over his shoulder. kelsey gram grammar has revealed that he might be jumping into the political ring. here's what he told the new york "post." he said i look at my political aspirations as that last piece of my life where i hope to do something good for people and pay back a little. grammer is a rare cooperative and he to conservative and he said they both require a narcicisstic personality and resilient ego. money helps, too. the paper calculates that grammer who will be playing a fictional mayor is worth about $30 million. he's current loi wife number four and we'll have to watch how his nasty custody battle with his ex plays out in public. in fact we caught up with camille at an event last night and we asked her how she's hammiham i handling all of this. >> just making sure that my kids know that their mom

the men known as the west memphis three have gained national attention like johnny depp wanting their release. dna evidence has failed to link the men to the crime and now they will be freed after some complicated legal maneuvering. we will take you live to arkansas and have more for you in the next hour. >>> also, be sure to watched "presumed guilty, murder in west memphis," tonight at 11:00 right here on cnn. >>> the top stories, we're watching the markets closely today and that means a lot of you are watching your investments, your life savings, and maybe even your job. in a couple of minutes, we will give you good tips on protecting your assets. back after this. it's not just good for business -- it's good for the entire community. at bank of america, we know the impact that local businesses have on communities, so we're helping them with advice from local business experts and extending $18 billion in credit last year. that's how we're helping set opportunity in motion. two of the most important are energy security and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest

then on nightline >> up next on nightline, after johnny depp and other stars called for their freedom, three men convicted of killing three boys in a satanic ritual are released. we will go inside the decision. how one man built an empire out of other people's's's's's's's'ss [ female announcer ] make after school even more fun with totino's pizza rolls. big pizza taste in a bite size roll that my kids can't resist. plus i get two box tops for their school. totino's pizza rolls. the pizza way to snack. and safeway's 10% back to schools program, now there are two ways to earn cash for your kids school. from august tenth through september thirteenth look for products marked with the yellow bus and earn even more by signing up for e-box tops at 2ways2earn.com. go! go! completing an atm deposit in record time... that's a step forward. go! go! with deposit friendly atms, you can make ultra fast, secure deposits with no slips or envelopes. take a step forward and chase what matters. >> closed captioning brought to >> closed captioning brought to >> libya is denying report muammar al-qaddafi

pirates of the caribbean, johnny depp and the leading man who made $27 million more than depp with $77 million, leo dicaprio. not too shabby. so a south florida man was baffled when small animals started up and disappear from his backyard. he probably should have asked that 11-foot python what happened. miami dade fire rescue received a call over the weekend after a farmer saw a giant snake slither under a trailner his backyard. turns out this giant snake, it took not one, but two crews ten minutes to pull this serpent out. much to the relief of the farmer and his family who had seen their goats, their chickens, and their cats disappear. let's move on, shall we? >> listen to this -- do not park illegally because this will happen. mr. mayor, i think that might have been a mercedes. they take their legal parking very seriously. ouch. it was a mercedes in lithuania. wolf, what a day. what a past few weeks with the debt ceiling. now everybody gets to go on vacation for a bit. >> the house already has rece recessed until september 7. the senate is about to recess until september 7. there's

last year top earner johnny depp placed second.$40 million, will smith with $36 million, tom hanks with $35 million, and bill kirns karins, where are you on the list? >> no females on the list. >> kind of upsetting. j. lo, $20 million for "american idol." >> she's at least close. >> where was brad pitt? >> he has a lot of kids to take care of. >> this is "first look" on ms c msnbc. "way too early" starts right now. >>> after months of battle, the house passes a bill with bipartisan support to overt a crisis over the debt ceiling. with the senate expected to do the same today with no time to spare on this august 2nd, the day that's been circled on the calendar for months. the question is, with the politics of the debate behind us for the moment, what do the cuts in the bill mean for the health of the united states economy? >>> the surprise star of the day, arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords who slipped in to washington to cast her first vote since she was shot through the head less than accept months aseven months ago. the que

terminando el 28 de agosto en chicago... )) les cuento que nos quedaremos con las ganas de ver a johnny deppa que acompaÑo al llanero solitario en sus peregrinacion es...el grupo disney decidio suspender la produccion de su version de "the lone ranger" por desacuerdos economicos entre el estudio y el director de la cinta...las grabaciones de esta pelicula estaban pautadas para comenzar en octubre de este aÑo en nuevo mexico... anchor gracias por acompanarnos , los dejo con el noticiero nacional de telemundo con jose diaz balart

adam sandler made the third most in hollywood at $40 million, not too shabby, johnny depp who was number one in 2009 came in second with $50 million and the winner, leonardo dicaprio, made 77 million thanks to "inception "and "shutter island." >> we are in the wrong business. 77 million. >> we're all a little envious. >> just a little. >>> when we come back this morning, america's top party schools. >> the mystery from the deep, a body found after decades beneath one of the nation's deepest lakes. >>> we also have more on our top story this morning, that remarkable return to congress by gabby giffords. i kept feeling this radiating ache everywhere. the pain was so frustrating. i found out that connected to our muscles are nerves that send messages through the body. my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia -- thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i learned lyryra can provide significant relief from fibromyalgia pain. and less pain means i can feel better and do more of what i love. [ female announcer ] lyr

johnny depp, $50 million. >>> a new incentive for cleaning up after your dog.how people can turn pet waste into gold. >>> vladimir putin says the u.s. is living beyond its means like a parasite son global economy. he says if the u.s. were to default on its debt, it would affect everyone. >>> this story will make you think differently about picking um behind your dog. in taiwan, anyone who picks up -- picks up dog waste, hands it over to the government will get a chance to win gold bars. the grand prize of the bars is worth about $2,000. it could go up with the rising price of gold. this particular city is hoping this contest will encourage people to pick up behind your dog. >>> it is 7:56. sal is encouraging us all to drive carefully. >> that's a good idea. 101, i think should be a pretty nice for you getting into the downtown area. so is the 280 extension. another home game tonight for the giants at at&t park. again, that's evening. let's take a look at interstate 880. traffic is moving well passing the coliseum. if you are driving down the  peninsula, we ha

. >> production on a major hollywood movie supposed to star johnny depp is shut down. >> chris bailish on the red carpet in los angeles with a look at what happened there. >> hollywood is buzzing about the halt in production on a major motion picture. the film version of "the lone ranger" set to begin filming in fall but budget issues put an tond production. the estimated budget of $250 million was reduced to $200 million. depp expected back on the big screen in october in "rum diary". in other news, film actress tara reid is a mrs. , tweeted of her marriage in greece, the ceremony held hours after she announced engagement. congrats to the newlywed, and sairy borilis shared her grief about the stage collapse, telling new york daily news that the weather changed in a matter of minutes and accident felt like a bad dream. she performed as on opening act just before the accident occurred. >> nornl singer has returned to the stage after a troubling year of ups and downs to find out who rocked the mic at do something awards visit otrc.com. >> up next, a man drove nearly 1500 miles across 16

. >>> coming up, johnny depp has been mauled to death by a bear. i'm sorry, i read that wrong. he bought a new house in malibu. how do i screw these up? what is new with tara reid? prepared to be under well med. >>> can studying smut help kick terrorist butt? according to the witherspoon institute. >> oh, look at you. >> i'm sure it is a great institute. she claims we should study porn to better understand them. when they are captured they often own a bunch of pornography. they jump to the obvious conclusion, quote, in seeking to understand terrorists, studying their ideas alone is not enough. we need to study and understand their minds. minds shaped by pornography. how was this story not our lead? let's discuss this in our lightning roooooouuund. lightning round. >> that means it is our lightning round. that's why we move quickly through things. except that moves slowly, which is a joke. does it make sense that pornography has some kind of impact accelerating terrorism? >> it teach -- teaches you to take a bomb and hide a bomb and take it and hide it and then blow it up in som

lady gaga and johnny depp made it to the fashion originals group. >>> 6:53. 36 million bounds of ground being recalled over salmonella concerns. some of it is in the bay area refrigerator. >> and we have more on what you need to check for in the freezer. >> the meat made its way to northern california. one report of an illness and one death in sacramento. the meat was processed at the cargill arkansas plant. the investigators found a link between cargill product and the illness. 36 million pounds is being pulled. one of the biggest recall in u.s. history. here is what you need to look for. turkey was sold under a number of brands including safeway. cargill honeysuckle white. fit and active. riverside and growinger. sold at safeway, winco, kroger, food for less and food company store. it includes the code: "est. p-963." you can find it on the label. the federal government says you can safely eat contaminated turkey if you cook it thoroughly. they recommend ten minutes. get it to 160 degrees. if you have question or concerns just throw it away. you want to be safe rather than sorry. the o

memphis three, have all found supporters from all over the world, including celebrities like actor johnny deppe it is for someone on death row to be set free? >> mm-hmm. there are so many things about this case and about my life in general that are against the odds, that things like that don't even make me blink anymore. >> and that support has led to hundreds of thousands of dollars for dna testing of a hair found at the crime scene. and that has led to some startling revelations. >> the dna evidence proves that there were no sexual assaults, the forensics proves that as well. the material that does exist all three defendants are eliminated. they couldn't have produced it. and on the other hand, there is evidence consistent with a relative or a family member of one of the victims. and it's a hair in one of the ligatures which ties up one of the boys. and that's consistent with terri hobbs who is the stepfather of stevie branch, one of the victims. >> but the hair was found on stevie's friend, michael moore. while the dna is consistent with terry hobbs, it is far from conclusive. we've reached

actor johnny depp pled their case and hosted benefits to raise moneyor their defense and in 2007 newonerates the three. thursday they were transferred to a county jail, a craig head county judge issued a gag order prohibiting anyone from talking about the case publicly. sources including one victim's father say the men will go tree. this is a bittersweet development for anyone covering the case for a while. >> they've been convicted of killing the kids, are they just going to walk out of jail? >> there is a gag order and no one has violated it but what we have heard, what could happen today they could enter something unusual called alfred pleas and the three men will say look we are innocent but in order to get out of jail we will plead guilty, and so if everything goes to plan the three will be freed today and that makes a very big deal for damien echols who will be 38 years of age in december, he has spent more than half of his life on death row. >> they have to plead guilty for murder. what does this do as far as a life out of court, can they sue? >> no, and this is a good deal fo

johnny depp and other celebrities coming out maintaining that these boys, at the time they were teenagersa lot of people will say, and they had a lot of support saying they were innocent. >> there was no dna evidence in the cates. >> correct. because this was in the early 1990s. this was before "law and order." we didn't have that ability at that time. they have tested it now and they say there is absolutely no dna evidence liking them to these three cub scouts and no evidence whatsoever. that they were really just kind of the information just pointed towards them. but the information that they do have now there has been some allegations that one of the stepfathers of one of the cub scouts that his dna was found at the scene. so, you know, was this a case where there were three innocent boys who were railroaded. one of them had a very low i.q. and he confessed. there's a lot of information. they pent 17 to 20 years in jail. there were multiple hearings. went up to the supreme court. there were appeals. this case was going on. >> the victims families have they spoengen out? >> obviously so

the tv special caught the attention of several celebrities including johnny depp, eddie vedder and natalie maines of the dixie chicks. all would lobby for their release. >> i am also here to show my support for the west memphis 3. >> reporter: in 2007, new evidence cast even more doubt on their guilt. modern dna testing revealed that none of the dna at the crime scene matched the three men. in the end, ththwest memphis three may never actually see their names cleared. the only way thehewalked free yesterday was to plead guilty as part of a plea agreement. >> how do you plead today? >> i am pleading guilty. >> reporter: relying on time served for their relelse. >> at least it's bringing closure to some areas and some aspects. >> the prosecutors said as far as the state is concerned the case is over. but said he would consider compelling new information if it surfaces. the west memphis three said they will continue to fight to get their names cleared. and, dan, now they can do it from the outside. >> let's bring into this case with "gma" legal analyst dan abrams. dan, good morning. >> mornin

johnny depp was second with $50 million. adam sandler was third with $40 million. that is america's money. i'm tanya rivero. >>> speaking of big money, twitter landed the big evening venture capital -- biggest venture capital deal. they are getting $800 million in funding from a russian company called dst global and previous investors to put the value at $8 billion. twitter says it plans to use the money to aggressively innovate, hire more people and invest in international expansion. >> there is a bay area connection to china's effort to technology standard. mercury news reports that chip maker signed a deal with china mobile, the largest carrier with 500 million subscribers. they will provide smart phone semi-conductors based on the technology standard advocated by china. an analyst said it could move $200 million this year alone. marine mammal center is putting out a plea for your help to find two sea lions whose neck were entangled with strands of plastic. the first of two sea lions spotted three weeks ago with a wire wrapped around its neck on pier 39. both se

doubts about the trio for years prompting johnny depp to take up their cause. free for the first time in 18 years this was the scene today. the men met with reporters after their release. >> this was not justice. >> we can still try to clear our name. >> there's no winners here. my son's still dead. >> the local prosecutor, however, is defiant and stands by the original conviction. now, as part of today's unique plea deal, the trio had to admit their guilt but can still claim their innocence. >>> the stage collapse at the indiana state fair claimed a sixth victim tonight. a 22-year-old woman died today from injuries suffered when a strong wind gust sent the stage tumbling into a crowd. an indiana law firm began filing lawsuits on behalf of people injured in the collapse. close to 50 people were hurt. the accident happened saturday while the crowd was waiting for the country band, sugarland, to perform. >>> new tonight at 6:00 a maren county doctor can help hero to his title. dr. schuman tam rushed to the aid of a passenger who was suffering from shock after eat

lady gaga and johnny depp made it to fashion original group. >>> president obama celebrates his 50thday. that is the big 5-0. yes. people from across the u.s. and leaders from around the world sent him birthday wishes. the president is back in washington after visiting chicago for two fundraisers. he received birthday greetings from about 2,000 of his political friends in the windy city last night. only six u.s. presidents turned 50 while in office, the last was bill clinton. mr. obama says he has got an little grayer since becoming president but says he feels pretty good. >> i think you have to count three years for every year you are president. that's how much it ages you. >> i thought it was seven. >> yeah, maybe. sounds more like it. 5:26. still ahead at 5:30, starving cancer. the new stanford medical breakthrough that could some day end the need for chemotherapy. >>> i'm terry mcsweeney live at the marine mammal center in the mar rin headlands with a story of milestone of a release. it's such a milestone one of the sea lions being released is named "milestone." i tell you about

from the spochlt johnny depp made $50 million. coming up, how to improve your finances in just one week. "american morning" back after the break. what if we turned trash into surfboards? whatever your what if is, the new sprint biz 360 has custom solutions to make it happen, including mobile payment processing, instant hot spots, and 4g devices like the motorola photon. so let's all keep asking the big what ifs. sprint business specialists can help you find the answers. sprint. america's favorite 4g network. trouble hearing on the phone? visit sprintrelay.com. like new splenda® essentials™ no calorie sweeteners. this bowl of strawberries is loaded with vitamin c. and now, b vitamins to boot. coffee doesn't have fiber. unless you want it to. new splenda® essentials™ are the first and only line of sweeteners with a small boost of fiber, or antioxidants, or b vitamins in every packet. mmm. same great taste with an added "way to go, me" feeling. new splenda® essentials™. get more out of what you put in. setting that goal to become a p

years, several celebrities who believed in their innocence fought for their release, among them johnny depp, winona ryder, eddie vetter of pearl jam and dixie chicks. vetter and others were there. it became a cause celeb because of the hbo documentary called paradise lost. the award winning filmmakers will be joining me live in about 20 minutes. don't miss that conversation. they had to quickly change the end of their third and final documentary. we'll talk about that in a little bit. sfliefrnl >>> also straight ahead, take a look at this video. in case there was a doubt, what you're seeing there is a woman riding in the back of a pickup truck hanging on to a baby stroller. are you with me here? inside the stroller, a real live baby. the woman's excuse? >> it's not like they give you a handbook or anything on what's neglect and what's not neglect. >> coming up next, more of this police dashcam video plus frantic 911 calls from dumbfounded drivers. also mounting political pressure against moammar gadhafi. but the libyan leader is not going down without a fight. as nature intended. [ female a