i second that motion. that's a lasting movie franchise for sure good night. see you at 6:00. if . good night. see you at 6:00. if good night. see you at 6:00. if on our broadcast tonight, found alive. a remarkable rescue after that awful kidnapping that was caught on camera. tonight, the unbelievable series of events that ended with a takedown. digging in. how's that cooperation going that everybody promised after the election results? tonight, we have a reality check. who killed bin laden? controversy erupts over what really happened that night in abbottabad as two members of seal team six who were on the mission, break a long-time code of silence. and behind the scenes with jerry seinfeld. the master of standup has now quickly mastered another medium, and at the age of 60, reveals something he has noticed in himself. "nightly news" begins now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this

is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. good evening. it was a terrible thing to watch, but the fact that a woman's abduction on the streets of philadelphia was captured on camera was a big reason why tonight she has been found and reunited with her family. and that is just the start of the science that went into this investigation. using video and satellites and police work across five states, and tonight her attacker is in custody and being described as a violent predator. nbc's rehema ellis starts us off from philadelphia tonight. >> reporter: it was a dramatic end to a three-day, five-state manhunt for the suspect who kidnapped 22-year-old carlesha gaither in philadelphia. >> i want to dance. i want to scream. >> reporter: a mother's relief after her daughter was found alive in a car in a mall parking lot in gessup, maryland. and the suspect, 37-year-old delvin barnes, arrested.

>> he's a vicious predator. he's off the streets and hopefully in jail for the rest of his life. >> reporter: authorities say the intense search was set off by a 911 call and chilling surveillance video of her violent abduction sunday night in philadelphia. >> a gentleman by the name of dwaine fletcher. everyone keeps on saying hero and stuff like that. he witnessed it. he watched. he called the police twice. >> reporter: a woman called police to report items found on her property in maryland, including a grocery store receipt, smashed glass, a zip tie and empty bag of potato chips. that receipt led police to the grocery store they say barnes was captured on video buying chips, using gaither's atm card. police located barnes's ford taurus using a gps tracker, installed by a virginia car salesman because of barnes' bad credit history. that's when police closed in, rescuing gaither and arresting barnes. barnes is also accused of

kidnap, rape, and attempted murder of a 16-year-old girl last month in virginia. appearing by video camera from a maryland jail today, barnes was ordered held without bail. >> this is hard for me to accept, the viciousness of it. not necessarily surprising. >> good job. [ applause ] >> reporter: tonight, gaither's family is just grateful to the detective who made them a promise. >> he told me, i'm bringing your daughter home, i'm bringing you daughter home. and he brought my baby home. >> reporter: police say carlesha gaither did not know her attacker. both her family here and authorities say, without surveillance video, this case may not have had the same ending. when asked if there may be other victims, police would only say the investigation is continuing. brian? >> rehema ellis in philadelphia starting us off tonight. rehema, thanks. overseas this evening, the united states has carried out a number of air strikes against a terrorist group in syria called khorasan. we're told the air strike took out one of the most dangerous individuals in it, which has

been described as an even bigger overall threat to the u.s. than isis. our report tonight from our pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski. >> reporter: with pinpoint accuracy, destroying this suv on a narrow roadway in northwest syria. everyone inside was killed, including the primary target. u.s. officials say he's david drugeon, a 24-year-old french national and master bomb-maker for the khorasan terrorist group in syria. on the first night of u.s. air strikes in syria last september, 47 cruise missiles fired off navy ships were aimed at khorasan targets. a terrorist group with ties to al qaeda, khorasan, was reportedly plotting to launch terrorist attacks inside the u.s. and across europe. as master bomb-maker, he was involved in developing bombs that would be undetectable. and that the khorasan group has already perfected and tested a bomb that could be concealed in

a laptop computer. >> supposedly this individual had perfected a method in which he could sneak explosives on board an aircraft by soaking clothes in a liquid explosive. >> reporter: u.s. officials stress there's currently no evidence of a specific threat against the u.s. but warn if khorasan is left unchecked, it's only a matter of time. jim miklaszewski, nbc news, the pentagon. one more note tonight about overseas terrorism. this one is hard to believe. top officials at interpol have told the associated press that would-be jihadi fighters are traveling to the battle zone in syria and iraq by way of cruise ships to turkey. traveling by ship to try to avoid security checks at airports. interpol wants to expand no-fly lists to include cruise lines, banks and hotels. in washington tonight, it is safe to say the honeymoon is over. a day after both sides talked up compromise and cooperation, just two days after the election that

changed the balance of power in this country, the talk just today sounded like nothing at all had changed. our report tonight from our senior white house correspondent, chris jansing. >> reporter: from newly empowered republicans -- >> we're going to break through the gridlock, put bills on the floor of the senate. >> reporter: to the newly chasen -- chastened democrats. >> this blame game, people are tired of it. >> reporter: today was full of pledges to make washington work, but on core issues both sides dug in. republicans are angry the president pledged to bypass congress to do immigration reform. >> i literally am pleading with the president of the united states not to act. >> when you play with matches, you take the risk of burning yourself. >> reporter: and republican leaders doubled down on getting rid of the president's signature accomplishment, making a commitment to repeal obamacare. all ten newly elected republican senators ran on that. >> and once she sets her sights on obamacare, joni's going to unload. >> obamacare's a disaster, but the president won't admit it.

>> is the honeymoon over before it starts? >> no, i mean, look, i think we have -- republicans have deeply-held beliefs. we have deeply held beliefs. the president said yesterday to american people voters and nonvoters alike that he hears them. he understands washington is now -- not working the way they expect it to work. and he understands that he has a particular responsibility to make it so. >> reporter: the economy will be a focus when the two sides come face-to-face for the first time since election night tomorrow over lunch at the white house. the president and 14 invited congressional leaders. it could set the tone for the future. >> the president should have a piece of humble pie before he starts a meeting. and i hope the republicans will not pound their chest. >> reporter: both sides have skin in the game. the president, who doesn't want to squander his last two years in office, and republicans, who want to prove that after years of gridlock, congress can get

something done. tomorrow's meeting in what's called the old family dining room, has actually been in the works for a couple weeks now, to try to jump-start a broken system to get washington working again. so the question of can it, most people i ask here and on the hill say simply, i hope so. brian? >> chris jansing on the north lawn of the white house. chris, thanks. the mystery of which american special forces operator, which navy s.e.a.l. killed osama bin laden may be a mystery no more. a former navy s.e.a.l. has stepped forward to take the credit. but his story doesn't like e but his story doesn't exactly line up with one told by one of his colleagues. and the navy tonight is incensed that either man is talking at all, traditionally something special forces do not do. our report from nbc's cynthia mcfadden. >> reporter: s.e.a.l. team 6 has -- the elite navy unit that took down osama bin laden, has been glorified in films like "zero dark thirty."

but today three years later the team is embroiled in a war of its own with two former s.e.a.l.s. breaking their code of silence, each telling a different version of the historic event. >> i'm not telling secrets or breaking rules. but we're going to have a lot of fun. >> reporter: robert o'neill has been on the speaking circuit. >> you don't need a plan to execute, you just execute. >> reporter: this afternoon he identified himself on "the washington post" as the man who killed osama bin laden. another team member wrote a book in which he described it somewhat differently, with three commandos firing shots that hit bin laden. he asked us not to show his face. >> two different people telling two different stories for two different reasons. >> reporter: the men have divided a historically secretive s.e.a.l. community. some saying both are profiting off the backs of all the team members. last week the seals top commander wrote an open letter, saying, we do not abide willful or selfish disregard for our core values, in return for public notoriety and financial gain. and warned of legal consequences for those who place our teammates at risk.

>> if classified information is accidentally released to the world, seals can get killed. innocent people can get killed. other american military people can get killed. that's what this is all about. >> reporter: as for o'neill and bissonnette, they do agree on one thing, they say they have the right to speak out. but you signed a nondisclosure agreement to not talk about any missions, right? >> yes. yeah. >> reporter: bissonnette now admits he should have had his book cleared by superiors. he says he got bad legal advice and is now suing his former lawyer. he's under criminal investigation by the department of justice for potentially leaking classified secrets, which he denies doing. >> is it scary? sure. the unknown's always scary. >> reporter: bissonnette and o'neil are two of two dozen americans on the osama bin laden mission. a former seal team leader who knows both of them told nbc he was bitterly disappointed in

them. what they've done is dishonorable, he said. all of this has just been done for personal gain. brian? >> this is all new territory, as you noted. cynthia mcfadden, thank you as always. in the sports world, the hearing that will determine if and when nfl running back ray rice can play again has come to a close now. rice is appealing his ban imposed upon him by commissioner roger goodell. both rice and goodell testified as did rice's wife. goodell suspended rice in september after a tape of a football star beating the woman who is now his wife in an elevator became public. no decision on the appeal is expected before the end of the week. still ahead in our broadcast tonight, the new ratings just released for the child seats that save lives on the road. what experts say you can't tell by just looking at them in the store. and later, the business of being jerry. tonight, seinfeld is 60. and something he says is surprising about what he's learned about himself.

we are back tonight with a story about safety in our cars involving our little ones. most states now require booster seats for that age when kids are too old for baby seats yet too young for just seat belts. the market is flooded with different products, but not all of them are equal. luckily there are new ratings out tonight to help consumers. our report this evening from nbc's kate snow. >> reporter: the booster seat is for that awkward in-between stage for kids too big for child car seats but not quite big enough to wear adult size seat belts. how come you think they invented booster seats?

>> so they would be higher so the seat belt will fit them right. >> reporter: just look at the difference between an unrestrained child dummy in a crash test and one sitting in a booster seat. kids in boosters are 45% less likely to be injured than kids wearing an adult seat belt alone. and new tests by the insurance institute for highway safety found a lot of options for parents. among 41 new models, 27 got the top rating. that's more than in any other year. and the best news, you don't have to spend a fortune. >> you absolutely can't tell by price or the looks whether you're getting a safe booster. we have boosters on our best fit list that range from $25 all the way up to a few hundred dollars. >> reporter: three new seats are not recommended, these two because seat belts might ride up on the child's face. though the batman seat looks cool. >> the problem is it puts the lap belt too far on the thigh. >> reporter: the government recommends boosters for kids 4 to 8 until they weigh 40 pounds

and 4'9" tall. i get the feeling you'll be interprets -- pretty glad when you don't have to be in a booster seat anymore. definitely? >> that's pretty obvious. >> reporter: like it or not, the booster seat is an essential rite of passage. kate snow, nbc news, new york. >> the manufacturers of the three booster seats on that not-recommended list say their seats meet or exceed all federal safety standards. you can find the complete list of booster seat ratings on our web tonight, nbc news.com. another break. we're back in a moment with the music superstar who just made history.

the president today awarded the medal of honor, many years after it was earned by a first lieutenant in the civil war long since gone. his descendants accepted for him today.

when he died at the age of 22, alonso cushing of wisconsin had over 100 men and six cannons in his command. he helped repel 13,000 soldiers at picket's charge at gettysburg in the war. a wisconsin woman fighting for years for his recognition, the president said it's never too late to do the right thing. in present day, the last active duty draftee from the vietnam era has retired. chief warrant officer ralph rigby was drafted into the army in 1972 and stayed there for 42 years until this week. his commanding officer says he's been a bargain for the american people and for the army. here-here. after four decades of barracks, ralph rigby plans to settle in fayetteville. miranda lambert now the most-decorated female artist in the history of the cma awards. when luke bryan took the top honor last night, entertainment of the year, lambert and blake shelton both

won for best vocalist honors. for lambert that means five in a row. that beats the record set by reba mcentire. and martina mcbride. when we come back, beyond the stage with jerry seinfeld.

we have a special look here tonight at jerry seinfeld, the man whose self-titled tv show ruled these air waves for many years. but this is also about the business of jerry seinfeld, both his core business and his newest venture, his web series starting its new season, even though there's no real season on the web. he is a man who takes comedy and its manufacturing process very seriously. on a recent wednesday night at the end of the night, the crowd at the gotham comedy club in new york had no idea what was about to happen. the leading observational standup comic of his time had just parked his car and was heading into the club. >> make some noise. get excited for jerry seinfeld, everybody. >> reporter: it's the only way to try out new material on a live audience. then the good stuff goes on the road with him, as we did to san jose.

here he's the headliner, and he does a couple of these every week. and here we get to see him work. in his dressing room with sinatra on the stereo, and then standing up to practice his standup before he goes out. not one for big introductions, he prefers running in from the wings. [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: and now the most restless man in comedy has started down yet another path. what seinfeld did for the sitcom, the junior mint and puffy shirt, he's now doing for web videos. it's a series that combines his three loves -- comedians, in cars, getting coffee. >> your life has been one unbroken boulevard of green lights, hasn't it? >> reporter: it's basically jerry interviewing his friends and the people he admires. fantastically funny people in great cars that he matches to the guest and rents for the day. we were there the day he interviewed jimmy fallon for whom he had chosen a '56 corvette. it was tricked out with cameras. then once they were on the road

jerry spotted the same model car, which triggered an outburst in that seinfeld voice. >> oh my god! how does this happen? what are the odds of that? >> i love this. >> reporter: the show is about the conversation and the adventure of getting coffee while being funny because jerry is fascinated by people who are funny. >> i wanted to see if i could capture it and show people, look at this group of people. aren't they unusual? and isn't it unusual how all these different people who do this thing are kind of the same? they're the only kind of people that i feel completely relaxed around. >> reporter: and back to the comedy club, jerry actually does that, shows up to do standup at clubs all over new york all the time. what are you still doing in louie's comedy club at midnight on a wednesday. people outside the comedy business will never understand that about you.

is that correct? >> it's correct. and i wish i had a good answer for you, but i know that that's the healthiest thing i can do. >> reporter: is that your batting cage? >> yeah. and this gets to a larger life perspective. if you're more interested in what you have achieved or what your financial position enables you to do, then that thing that got those things, you're screwed. in my opinion you're screwed. >> reporter: and that's the thing about jerry seinfeld, at age 60 he's still figuring out who he is. for example, in recent years as he's learned more about autism spectrum disorders, he sees it himself. >> i think on a very drawn out scale, i think i'm on the spectrum. >> reporter: why? what are the markers if i were sitting here analyzing you? >> you're never paying attention to the right things. basic social engagement is

really a struggle. i'm very literal. when people talk to me and they use expression, sometimes i don't know what they're saying. but i don't see it as dysfunctional. i think of it as an alternate mindset. >> we're doing it right! we're doing it right! >> this is going to be great. >> reporter: for now, jerry seinfeld is a web producer. and in his own way tries to produce everything. >> are you going to try and put music to this like i do? >> reporter: you know, really that's my business. now you're meddling. ♪ imagine him trying to tell us how to make television. our thanks to jerry seinfeld. and that is our broadcast on a thursday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we, of course, hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. goodnight.

nbc bay area news starts now. >> right now at 6:00, drug allegations spanning the globe rooted right here in the bay area. an engineer facing charges he ran a drug empire out of his san francisco home. good evening and thanks for joins us. i'm jessica aguirre. >> and i'm raj mathai. this is new at 6:00. the global drug ring from a san francisco home. the feds say he gave up his high-tech job and worked on the wrong side of the law, reviving a well-known underground drug operation. 26-year-old blake benthall is

facing charges that could put him in jail for decades. mark matthews is at federal courty benthall appeared this afternoon. mark? >> reporter: raj, he appeared to be just another young well to do software engineer living in the mission district. but the fbi says blake benthall was running a huge underground drug market from a dark site on the internet known as the silk road. the house on florida street is nice, but nothing that stands out until yesterday when it was raided by the fbi. >> probably 20, maybe more than that fbi agents and handfuls of them had bulletproof vests on. >> reporter: betsy seelander says they closed out the entire block. >> they brought out a guy. >> reporter: the guy they brought is 26-year-old blake benthall, a former software engineer at spacex. according to the 30-page compla