>> santa clara, you'll be there. >> i will. >> we'll be in downtown los altos tomorrow. >> and alamo. on our broadcast tonight, bracing for word. ferguson, missouri, on standby this evening as we're told the grand jury decision could come at any time. hard sell. the president defending his sweeping immigration overhaul as opponents say they won't stand for it. flooding danger. the snow, as much as seven feet now, presenting a new threat as people struggle to dig out and temperatures rise. and four decades stolen from a pair of ohio men wrongly convicted of murder. after a long legal battle today they tasted freedom. "nightly news" begins now. from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. good evening. the decision of a grand jury could now come at any time. provisions are in place including many personnel in

ferguson, missouri tonight. a town now synonymous with the killing of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer. and synonymous with the violence that followed on those streets in the heat of the summer. ferguson, missouri is a community now known by name around the world for the worst possible reason. there have been public pleas to keep the lid on regardless of the outcome, but there is understandable tension. nbc's ron allen remains on the story for us and he starts us off from there tonight. ron, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. a decision whether to indict officer darren wilson in connection with michael brown's death could come as soon as today from that grand jury with an announcement expected any time after that. as police and residents here in st. louis and across the nation for that matter, prepare for what's going to be a very emotional moment. >> you're resisting? >> reporter: emotions raw at ground zero here. the doorstep of ferguson police

headquarters. dozens of demonstrators every night now, tense face-to-face standoffs with police in riot gear. after warning, officers clear the streets. >> there's no need for them to come and back us all the way up to the sidewalk and smash people off the sidewalk. >> reporter: with tensions gripping the st. louis region, many expecting no charges against officer darren wilson and a strong reaction here, and demonstrations planned beyond ferguson, in as many as 100 cities from boston to san diego. today's top law enforcement officer called for everyone to take a deep breath. >> the justice department encourages law enforcement officials in every jurisdiction to work with the communities that they serve to minimize needless confrontation. >> reporter: today business owners like this doctor pleaded with residents not to destroy their own community. will you be able to survive this? >> well, we'll move somewhere else if this continues. >> reporter: michael brown's father on television also calling for calm. >> i do not want my son's death

to be in vain. >> who do you serve! who do you protect! >> reporter: rasheem is on the streets every night. at 20 he's the youngest on a state commission tasked with helping ferguson solve its problems. many saying enough is enough. you made your point, let the justice system prevail. >> uh-huh. >> reporter: no? >> no. because that's the way we've been going and the justice system never prevails on the side of the community. we're tired of seeing the same old story of police brutality and justice not being served. >> reporter: hearing more unrest some schools have already announced they will close on monday and tuesday giving students the entire holiday weekend off. police and protesters here continue meetings over what they're calling so-called rules of engagement. and the fbi and federal agencies are also sending teams here on standby if needed to deal with specific threats. brian? >> ron allen starting us off from ferguson. ron, thank you as always. that is the scene outside while

inside this grand jury room, a very different scene is playing out. a deliberative process with very specific guidelines to consider. our senior legal correspondent, cynthia mcfadden, here with us in the studio to talk about it. and for those, cynthia, who think this is a slam dunk either way, clear cut, talk about the tough job these grand jurors have and what they must consider. >> well, of course they are not sequestered. they're living in the community that will be so deeply affected by this. their job is to objectively decide what the law and the facts tell us. and we know that michael brown wasn't armed of course. but the missouri law gives very wide latitude to police officers to defend themselves, which means if a police officer reasonably fears that his life is in danger, he's entitled to use deadly force. so that's one thing the jurors are going to have to consider. what is the evidence in relationship to that. the other is that missouri unlike many states a police officer can shoot a fleeing suspect in a felony under some

circumstances, another part of the law that must be considered. so there's a lot for this grand jury to decide in terms of the law and the facts and where they mesh. >> all right. cynthia mcfadden, it is a tough job. we'll have some of your reporting later on tonight in the broadcast as well. cynthia, thanks. as promised, as threatened, president obama signed an executive action today on the road in nevada. it has the power to change the lives of millions of undocumented immigrants. but the move bypasses congress. as a result, republicans are not happy about being left out of this process. we get our report tonight from nbc's kristen welker. >> i'm not giving up. i will never give up. [ cheers and applause ] i will never give up. >> reporter: a combative president obama chastising congressional republicans for inaction, rallied support for his sweeping immigration reform at dell sol high school in las vegas. >> even republicans who say that they don't want to pass this bill that was passed by these legislators, they're not serious

about trying to deport 10, 11 million people. that's all rhetoric. >> reporter: the executive action could spare 5 million undocumented immigrants from deportation. >> i feel so excited. and i feel like it's too many years waiting for this opportunity for my kids. >> it means my family will stay together. >> now my parents are going to be able to help my brother go to college. >> reporter: a astrid silva, a college student and immigration activist has been fighting for this moment. last night president obama held her up as an example. >> are we a nation that kicks out a striving, hopeful immigrant like astrin? >> reporter: and today she joined him. >> this announcement will change so many lives including my own. >> reporter: but not everyone inside was satisfied. >> not everybody will qualify under this provision. >> reporter: and outside the high school, fierce opposition. >> he wants to give our taxpayer dollars and rights to illegals? why don't we focus on our own people?

>> and he's pandering to the hispanic community. hispanics should be very offended. >> reporter: house speaker john boehner vowed to reverse the president's actions. >> he's damaging the presidency itself. >> reporter: the president held firm and shot back. >> i don't have a vote in congress. pass a bill. you don't need me to call a vote to pass a bill. >> reporter: now, republicans who just won control of congress, are considering a range of options to reverse the president, but some republican leaders warn that going against the president could alienate hispanic voters, a crucial voting block who helped president obama win the white house twice. brian? >> kristen welker traveling with the president tonight in las vegas. kristen, thanks. in mexico city, a violent scene in the streets there. thousands of protesters clashing with police in the main square there overnight. officers brought tear gas, demonstrators brought molotov cocktails. anger has been building since september, when 43 college students were attacked by police accused of working for a drug

cartel. the students have not been seen alive since. in this country the big dig we've been chronicling after a day of clear skies in western new york. folks there are finally able to leave their homes and assess the situation after receiving over seven feet of snow in some places. the death toll stands at 13, and the problem now, of course, all that snow is about to mean a lot of water. nbc's rehema ellis is in hamburg, new york where a total of nearly 80 inches fell. rehema, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, brian. even for folks here this is a lot to handle. essentially a year's worth of snow in a week's time. emerging from their homes in hamburg for the first time in four days. residents began the enormous task of digging out from six -- seven feet of snow. >> i haven't worked out in a while, so it's been a pretty good workout. >> reporter: dozens of roofs like this have collapsed because of the heavy weight of several

feet of snow. officials now worry that many other buildings with flat roofs are at risk. homeowners aren't taking any chances and are clearing the roofs. were you feeling nervous about the potential for structural damage? >> yeah, we heard a little bit of creaking a couple days ago. >> reporter: and with rising temperatures, a new threat. >> the warming will bring melting. melting will bring water. water will bring floods. >> reporter: today, fire crews from new york city headed north to help. 1,600 trucks have hauled away 32,000 tons of snow. >> right near 20-a -- >> reporter: but the view from the clear clearly shows that's just the beginning. people struggling to get to work. carl was able to make it to work to fill prescriptions for customers in need. you're the only one open. >> exactly. well, i mean, three feet of snow in the parking lot has a lot to

do with it and obviously no one can get out. but we believe we need to be here when people need their medicine. >> reporter: snowmobiles picked up buffalo bills players so they could travel to detroit for monday's relocated game. and in neighborhoods across the city -- >> this is where buffalo's at its finest. everybody's here to help each other out. >> reporter: you didn't think twice about coming out to help. >> no, not at all. we do it all the time. >> reporter: the new york throughway has now reopened to essential vehicles only. travel bans remain on other roads. but tonight a real potential threat, and that is of flooding. they have started moving pumps and equipment into place to handle what they say is melting, significant melting, that could begin as early as this weekend. brian? >> rehema ellis in the thick of it in western new york tonight. all this leads us to meteorologist janice huff in the weather center. janice, what are we looking at as temperatures rise pretty quickly this weekend? >> exactly, brian. the flood watch for this area goes into effect sunday and lasts through wednesday of next

week. and that's five counties between buffalo and the pennsylvania border. you mentioned how much snow has fallen, up to seven feet of snow on the ground since monday when it began. and it ended today. that's the water equivalent of about six inches of water. all of that is going to start melting as the temperatures rise this weekend. now, first the snow bank will actually absorb some of the melting. but then they're expecting about a half inch of rain coming in with a front, and that will increase the melting as well. and then by monday morning the temperatures will be in the 50s, maybe close to 60 by the afternoon which will exacerbate the melting. and all of this will continue into the middle of the week before any of the rivers or streams will crest. so once it starts the melting, it's going to take a long time before the waters recede, brian. back to you. >> that's a 30-degree change, that is going to mean a lot of water. thank you, janice. four more women have come forward with allegations against comedian bill cosby in the last 24 hours.

that makes 13 women so far who have publicly accused cosby of sexual assault or misconduct. his attorney just last night strongly disputed the stories that are coming out while cosby himself performed in the bahamas. he is scheduled to take the stage tonight in melbourne, florida, but at least three venues today canceled future appearances. still ahead for us this evening, finally free. after four decades in prison for a crime they didn't commit, their conviction based on a child's testimony that was made up. an unbelievable story of freedom and forgiveness. also, the team that's engineering a brilliant championship run. 17 valedictorians among them and the quarterback happens to be studying to be an actual rocket scientist.

tonight, two men in cleveland, ohio, are walking free for the first time since 1975, a nearly 40-year nightmare. locked away based solely on the testimony of a child who now admits, as an adult, it was all a lie. we get our report on this tonight from our senior legal correspondent, cynthia mcfadden. >> life is filled with small victories, and this say big one. >> reporter: today, the moment ricky jackson waited 39 years for. [ cheers and applause ] >> it was like emotional roller coaster. the english language doesn't fit what i'm feeling right now. >> reporter: freed from prison, his sentence vacated. jackson was one of three neighborhood kids convicted of a

gruesome 1975 murder in cleveland and sent to death row. with no physical evidence, prosecutors based their case on the testimony of one 12-year-old boy who recently came forward and said he lied. i felt extreme pressure from detectives to describe a crime i never saw. >> in '75 he was a 12-year-old kid. and he was manipulated and coerced by the police. and they used him. it took a lot of courage to do what he did in that courtroom. >> reporter: also freed today jackson's co-defendant, wiley bridgeman, whose brother was patrolled in 2003 and fought to help his friend and brother. >> what you're reading is the happiness of being released. the bitterness is over with. i'm at the end of that road. >> reporter: their first stop, lunch with the attorneys who fought so hard for their release. many of them not even born when the men were convicted. >> ricky jackson is one of the strongest men i know. i can't even imagine what it was

like to be in prison for 39 years for a crime you didn't commit. >> reporter: they return to a different world. when they went to prison gerald ford was president and it was the first year of "saturday night live." we asked ricky jackson this afternoon what he missed most. >> i spent my 20s, my 30s, my 40s, and nearly all of my 50s in prison, you know. and time is just something that you can't get back. so i'm not going to really cry about it. but i have plans for my life, you know? >> reporter: now he has to put his life back together. ohio is one of 30 states that does compensate the wrongfully convicted, up to $40,000 for each year. but it's an arduous process to get it and many don't get a dime. today, no talk of that. just celebration. >> raise our glasses for freedom. >> freedom! >> reporter: cynthia mcfadden, nbc news, new york. we are back in a moment with an extraordinary moment on camera. another one. a short walk means so much for a hero and u.s. marine.

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your financial needs deserve, this is your time. this is your private bank. ♪ always look on the bright side of life ♪ hopefully by about this time everyone is whistling in unison and it's appropriate. a study has revealed that monty python's always look at the bright side of the life is the most played song at funerals in the uk. as you know the british have always been leaders in the field of humor, funerals should be no exception. the study canvassed 30,000 funerals. the second place song was "the lord is my shepherd." the bad news for britain, a study out also this week showing the difference between rich and poor in the uk is eight teeth. they set to show the link between socio-economic status and dental care and britain's

poor have eight fewer teeth on average by the age of 70 than their wealthy counterparts. stunning images making the rounds on the web this week come courtesy of a storm chaser from nebraska. and someone ought to use this as an album cover. they're called mammatus clouds. each cotton ball can be a mile in diameter. while they're most beautiful photographed at sunset and while rare, the westerners know they can also be a harbinger of very bad weather to come. we're getting a look tonight at some happy images, unlike those we've ever seen out of afghanistan. the country's very first amusement park has opened in the capital of kabul. the face of smiling children on teacups and other rides just as you'd see here in the states at any six flags. but because it is where it is, all the fun here takes place within blast walls placed there by the u.s. military. in a perfect world u.s. marine corps captain derek herrera would have made a brisk walk across the tarmac at camp

pendleton in california today where he was awarded the bronze star for heroic service in combat in iraq and afghanistan. but our world isn't perfect. he is paralyzed from a sniper's bullet in battle. he still walked across thanks to a new robotic device that is simply revolutionary and just approved by the fda. captain herrera is among the most impressive people you will ever meet. he wanted to leave the corps the way he joined the corps, standing up. while he'll always be a marine, he retired today after eight years of service. he is working on his masters degree. when we come back, a math equation m.i.t. has never seen before now. nine wins plus zero losses equals a perfect season.

the weekend is upon us, and for a great many of us sometimes too great excess in our house, that means football. playing on the road this weekend is a college more famous for nobel prize winners than future nfl hall of famers. but if you're an opposing team, you did not want to face them on the field this season. we get our report tonight from nbc's ron mott. >> reporter: as football powers

go, the m.i.t. engineers are exactly who we think they are, smart as a whip, maybe even a bit nerdy. but they're also very good, at football? really? really good. >> it's not hard to motivate them. they're very intelligent, very motivated, very passionate about what they're trying to accomplish in every facet of their lives. >> reporter: in a game of numbers, consider theirs. 17 high school valedictorians, s.a.t. aces, that's 800 times three for you whizzes. and this season a perfect 9-0. as for majors and off the field interests? well, quarterback peter williams is studying to be a rocket scientist, literally. his backup, spencer kim, has already played carnegie hall. brain, not brawn, rule here. m.i.t.'s home to 81 nobel prize winners since 1944, conference

football championships, one. as you might imagine, the football team has to fight for attention. >> and i know that my high school probably had better attendance than they have for their games. >> we generally are pretty busy doing like research and stuff like that. >> reporter: so off to battle they go to saturday's playoff game in maine. >> i call them renaissance men. >> reporter: and win or lose the real score's already settled. they've mastered yet another universe. ron mott, nbc news, cambridge, massachusetts. >> as i recall, our high school football team s.a.t. scores were just slightly lower than those. that's our broadcast for a friday night and for this week. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we, of course, hope to see you right back here on monday night. in the meantime have a good weekend. goodnight.

there are actions that i have the legal authority to take that will help make our immigration system more fair and more just. and this morning i began to take some of those actions. >> right now at 6:00, defending his decision. president obama heads west to explain his decision about going it alone when it comes to immigration reform. good evening and thanks for joining us. i'm jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai. he took his message on the road. is america on board? an impassioned and defiant

president told a crowd in las vegas he can't wait for congress. . s are strategizing while millions of families are asking if they're eligible for citizenship. we have team coverage of the president's history-making move. we begin with damian trujillo on the road with president obama in las vegas. this felt like a presidential sales pitch. >> reporter: you know what, it was a raucous crowd here to receive the president here at the del sol high school in las vegas. at times they interrupted the president with chants of "yes, we can." the president told the crowd it was time to get people out of the shadows. >> -- which is why i'm proud to introduce our champion and our president, president barack obama! >> reporter: the president was introduced by a woman who has become the face of the immigration reform movement. astrid silva. >> my dad, he has a deportation order. my brother is a united states citizen so accordi