ABC World News Tonight with David Muir Full Broadcast - March 15, 2024

tonight the judge's blistering decision about the da overseeing Georgia's election interference case against Donald Trump the Urgent search after deadly tornadoes touchdown in several States and the new development in the terrifying Subway shooting here in New York City first the major shakeup in Georgia's prosecution of Donald Trump and 14 codefendants judge Scott McAfee ruling fton County district attorney fonnie Willis can remain on the case but for her to stay special prosecutor Nathan Wade

must resign Trump accusing da Willis of misconduct over her romantic relationship with Wade judge McAfee harshly criticizing Willis for a tremendous lapse in judgment and news late today about Donald Trump's criminal case in Manhattan Aaron kerki with late details from Atlanta the deadly tornado outbreak at least three people killed dozens injured at least 14 confirmed tornadoes in seven states twin funnels touching down in Ohio an ef3 on the ground with winds to 136 mph Alex pet in the storm Zo

ne here in New York new video of the rush hour Subway shooting in Brookland what police are now saying about the man shot and wounded with his own gun why authorities are not charging the shooter and the search tonight for a woman police say was also involved Ariel RF standing by the new alert following that midair scare on a flight to New Zealand the plane suddenly diving injuring at least 50 people on board why Boeing is advising a Airlines after a report that a cockpit mishap may have trigger

ed the sudden drop the Israel Hamas war prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushing forward with plans to Target Hamas in Rafa a city in southern Gaza concerns about the fate of nearly 1 A5 million Palestinians who are there now here in the US a New Mexico state police officer shot and killed on the highway police releasing an image of the suspect now on the Run The Landmark settlement that could change the way Americans Buy and sell homes in America strong tonight the popular college dorm securit

y guard what students did for him and the family he hasn't seen in more than a decade from ABC News world headquarters in New York this is World News Tonight with David M good evening it's great to have you with us on this Friday night I'm Whit Johnson in for David and we begin with that major decision in the Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump the judge ruling district attorney fonnie Willis can stay on the case but only if her former romantic partner leaves the judge findin

g the Romantic relationship between Willis and the chief prosecutor she hired Nathan Wade showed a tremendous lack of judgment but he did not find a conflict of interest that harmed the defendant's case instead Judge Scott McAfee gave Willis a choice either she and her entire staff could step down or Wade alone could resign from the case late today Nathan Wade submitted his resignation saying it was in the interest of democracy and to move this case forward as quickly as possible and so tonight

Donald Trump's Georgia trial may still go forward but without a clear date as to when it might begin ABC's senior investigative correspondent Aaron kerki leads us off in Atlanta tonight how confident are you that the judge will find that there hasn't been a conflict of interest tonight at judge in Georgia giving Fulton County district attorney fonny Willis a Stark Choice she can keep leading the election interference case against Donald Trump only if her top prosecutor and former romantic partne

r steps down Trump and several of his co-defendants fought to remove Willis arguing she financially benefited by hiring Nathan Wade but today Judge Scott McAfee ruling the defendants failed to meet their burden of proving that the district attorney acquired an actual conflict of interest the judge adding Georgia law does not permit the finding of an actual Conflict for simply making bad choices even repeatedly it's a win for the da at a humiliating cost right okay the judge admonishing her for a

tremendous laps in judgment and criticizing her testimony as unprofessional you're confused you think I'm on trial these people are on trial for trying to steal an election in 2020 I'm not on trial no matter how hard you try to put me on trial he also rebuked Willis for a speech she gave in church suggesting Wade only came under attack because he's black I appointed three speci special counsel is is my right to do paid them all the same hourly rate they only attacked one judge McAfee said it wa

s legally improper for Willis to cast racial aspersions he also questioned her credibility on the witness stand and Wades too writing an odor of mendacity remains ultimately he determined the one-time romance created a significant appearance of impropriety so if Willis is to stay on the case her ex-boyfriend must go and hours later Nathan w was gone submitting his resignation saying he was doing it in the interest of democracy in dedication to the American public and to move this case forward as

quickly as possible Aaron kki joining us now from Fulton County Georgia and Aaron bottom line here this whole episode has caused this trial to be delayed even further and tonight there's also news in the New York criminal case against Trump the da here Whit wanted this case to begin in August but that may be impossible now she just lost her top prosecutor so she has to reset her team Trump's attorneys are considering whether to appeal today's ruling and the judge hasn't even considered a trial

date yet and yes in New York the judge there just delayed Trump's first criminal trial it was supposed to begin in 9 days now the judge says it won't begin for at least a few weeks mid April at the earliest wi the calendar increasingly crowded all right Aaron thank you and another political note here in the race for the White House former vice president Mike Pence saying he will not endorse the president he once served Pence saying he cannot in good conscience endorse Donald Trump slamming him f

or pursuing an agenda that is at odds with the conservative agenda Pence adding he would never vote for Joe Biden and dismissing both the idea of backing a third-party candidate and himself running as a third-party candidate now to the desperate search after a deadly tornado outbreak more than a dozen across seven states one of those tornadoes ripping through iberg Ohio and this stunning damage from Lake View Ohio and Logan County at least an ef3 with Winds of more than 136 milph and a twister s

triking Randolph Indiana in the middle of the night ABC's Alex Bret in the storm Zone tonight oh no tonight A desperate search for survivors after that deadly nighttime tornado outbreak 14 confirmed tornadoes cutting a path of Destruction across seven states at least three people killed dozens injured those three deaths all in Logan County Ohio where an ef3 tornado with winds of at least 136 mph tore neighborhoods apart here in this Lake Community you really get a sense of just how powerful this

storm was it didn't just snap trees over here it also completely flipped this pontoon boat this part should be all right to treat bla Schmidt showing us what's left of his Lake View home Schmidt riding out tornado in his bathtub tonight thankful his wife and two sons weren't home it's just unreal it's unreal but you still have your family yeah my family's everything important to me still here the tornado's fury on full display look at the sighting here it's wrapped around this power line like a

luminum foil there's two terrifying new video showing twin funnels touching down near Hancock County Ohio more than 100 homes damaged or destroyed across Indiana and in Southern Arkansas more than half a foot of rain sparking life-threatening flash flooding back in Ohio volunteers and First Responders now helping the recovery effort authorities say rebuilding here will take time I've been here pretty much my whole life I never seen anything just devastating Whit and they do have a lot of work to

do here tonight you can see the water behind me is just littered with debris The Silver Lining though that severe weather system is now officially out of the region wait at least some encouraging news there Alex pet for us tonight thank you next here New York's Governor holding an urgent Transit safety meeting after that rush hour Subway shooting in Brooklyn no charges will be filed against a rider who shot an aggressor in the head after taking his gun the district attorney citing quote evidenc

e of self-defense and new images tonight of the incident that sent terrified commuters running and ducking for cover here's ABC's Ariel RF tonight dramatic cell phone video of the Mayhem just before that terrifying shooting in the New York City subway a man seen here entering a Brooklyn subway station evading the fair then on the train threatening to fight a male passenger unprovoked there's Babies on here the confrontation oils over police Now searching for this woman who in the video appears t

o stab the aggressor twice in the back he eventually pulls a firearm out during that dispute and ultimately he's disarmed and shot with his own gun sources familiar with the investigation telling ABC News the as salent was shot four times twice in the face once in his neck and once in his chest by the man he initially confronted let me out panicked passengers running for their lives I don't think I was going to make it back home police swarming the seen within seconds quickly taking the shooter

into custody tonight the man who instigated all of this in critical condition just days ago New York Governor Kathy hokel ordered the National Guard to patrol subway stations across the city NYPD presence in the subway bolstered to levels not seen in decades but still Subway crime up 133% so far this year Transit Bureau took six crimes including the shooting six out of millions and millions of people that boarded this uh our subway system yesterday and wa authorities say that that 32-year-old wh

o opened fire will not face charges citing evidence of self-defense police say they have seized 17 guns from the New York City subway system so far this year Whit all right Ariel RF thank you now to that new alert from Boeing advising Airlines to inspect switches on pilot seats after a report of what might have caused a jet sudden dive earlier this week you'll remember at least 50 people were injured some hitting the roof when a flight to New Zealand dropped unexpectedly in calm weather ABC's Tr

evor alt now on how that pilot seat switch might have triggered that midair scare tonight a new alert from Boeing urging Airlines to take action at the next maintenance opportunity inspecting the switches on all cockpit seats on its 787 Dreamliner jets the bulletin coming just days after this latam Airlines flight from Australia to New Zealand took a terrifying dive turbulence headphones flying The Wall Street Journal now reporting a possible call saying a flight attendant hit a switch on the pi

lot seat while serving a meal causing a motorized feature to push the pilot into the controls and push down the plane's nose the dive sending passengers and crew flying out of their seats hard enough to crack the panels overhead at least 50 people were injured the other guy cut his arm pretty bad another guy hit his head through the plastic uh ceiling tiles they broke so you can see all the wires in the plane above people screaming and shrieking and in pain and in Fright the journal reporting Bo

eing told Airlines in an overnight memo to look for loose covers on the switches and how to turn off power to the pilot seat motor if needed and Whit Boeing says this service bulletin about the seat switches was originally issued back in 2017 but they wanted to remind Airlines as a precautionary measure meantime the NTSB is now helping with the invest ation into that latam Airlines incident Whit Trevor Al thank you overseas now and major developments in the Israel Hamas War Israel's war cabinet

approving a plan to go after Hamas militants in Rafa and Southern Gaza including they say evacuating 1.4 million displaced Palestinians who have taken Refuge there and it comes as the first shipment of desperately needed Aid has arrived in Gaza by sea ABC's Matt Gutman in Israel tonight tonight Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing plans for that controversial offensive into the southern Gaza City of Rafa to hunt for Hamas the IDF says it would move 1.4 million Palestinians to hu

manitarian Islands in central Gaza they will provide them temporary housing food water fill hospitals but us officials say they've seen no plan we have to see a clear and implementable plan not only to get uh civilians out of Harm's Way but also to make sure that once out of Harm's Way they're appropriately cared for am made a growing Rift with Netanyahu President Biden today praising Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's blistering rebuke of the Israeli leader I think he uh expressed a serious

concern shared not only by him but by many Americans today the first Maritime shipment of Aid arriving off the coast of Gaza but distribution of the aid remains a challenge the hunger is killing said this man I'm still going to go to Rafa so I can eat and feed my children but Rafa may not be a refuge for much longer with Hamas has presented a new ceasefire proposal that would see about 40 Israeli hostages released in exchange for up to a th000 Palestinians from Israeli prisons Netanyahu has cal

led that unrealistic still he is sending a delegation to Doha for negotiations with Matt Gutman our thanks to you tonight and across Russia the polls are open in three-day election there that's expected to extend Vladimir Putin's rule Putin said to have cast his ballot today online all but certain to win another six-year term several cases of vandalism reported this woman repeatedly throwing a Molotov cocktail at a voting site in St Petersburg organizers are calling for peaceful protests at poll

ing sites at noon on Sunday now to that Landmark legal settlement that could bring about seismic changes in the US housing market the biggest changes in decades a powerful Realtors group agreeing to eliminate rules for paying broker fees let's bring in ABC's Elizabeth schy and Elizabeth this could change the way Americans buy and sell their homes that's right with this $418 million settlement could slash the price that Americans pay when they're buying or selling their homes typically real estat

e brokers automatically charge about 6% Commission on the price of a home sale now under these new changes agreed to by the National Association of Realtors those commission fees will be negotiated lower or eliminated altogether so for a $400,000 home that could theoretically save the seller as much as $24,000 in fees it could also Force more Brokers to leave the industry if this settlement is approved as expected by a federal judge the changes will take effect mid July with some significant cha

nges there Elizabeth thank you when we come back a New Mexico state trooper shot and killed on the highway the man hunt now for a suspect on the run and the fast moving fire an actress's home up in Flames her message to the firefighters Tonight Tonight a Manhunt is underway for the killer of a New Mexico State Police Officer authorities say officer Justin hair was shot and killed while checking on a vehicle stopped on the shoulder of I40 near the Texas state line the suspect allegedly stealing t

he police cruiser then crashing it police searching for him in both States releasing images of the suspect saying he's considered armed and dangerous when we come back the fast moving fire destroying the home of a popular actress to the index tonight a massive fire ripped through the Los Angeles home of actress Cara delvine fire breaking out overnight Flames quickly spreading through the house the roof collapsing nearly 100 firefighters responding at least two people injured deline known for her

roles in Paper Towns and Suicide Squad was in London at the time she thanked firefighters quote from the bottom of my heart for showing up to help out still ahead the college dorm security guard the students and the family he hasn't seen in more than a decade ABC World News Tonight with David mure sponsored by Claritin knocks out allergy symptoms from over 200 Alles without knocking you [Music] out finally tonight the popular college dorm security guard a family reunion long overdue and the stu

dents helping to make it happen America strong tonight in Providence Rhode Island an incredible Act of generosity you're watching Providence college students coming down the steps of their dorm Raymond Hall on a mission they're about to surprise their beloved security guard James who they call Unk short for Uncle because they all say he's like family James right there in the middle this photo from Halloween the students know their security guard has not been able to visit his family in Nigeria i

n more than a decade and just listen to what they did everyone here can testify to how good you are and you told us a while ago that you wanted to see your family in Nigeria that you haven't seen a long time yeah so we came together we started to go fund me for you part of the family so our gift to you is a trip to Nigeria so James overwhelmed his Tri Nigeria now paid for love you James the students cheering their security guard tonight sophomore Daniel Singh who delivered the news on why they d

id it just the honesty and compassion that he really brings to any group any conversation and any environment freshman Brandon reer on what James means to all of that he's a beacon of light in our community he's just the most kind of soul that anybody would ever meet and it just goes to show the smallest acts of kindness can have the most long lasting effects on those who need it tonight their security guard James and his family grateful thank you thank you from the botom of my heart thank you g

uys what a gift in a family reunion so well deserved thanks so much for watching tonight I'm Whit Johnson in New York I'll see you on GMA in the morning and right back here tomorrow night good night thank you for making World News Tonight with David mure America's most watched newscast