trial of murder, which was initially found guilty of, but amanda knox says she wants to clear her name, once and for all, and remove this last legal stain, which is still, as you said, pending, ana. >> claudio reporting for us in italy. thank you so much. that does it for us today. if you can believe it, today marks one year of "ana cabrera reports." it has been an honor reporting the news to you and having you join us. thank you so much. we'll see you back here tomorrow. same time, same place. don't forget, you can catch the show anytime around the clock on youtube and other platforms. for now, i'm ana cabrera, reporting from new york. jose diaz-balart picks up our coverage right now. and good morning. it is 11:00 a.m. eastern, 8:00 a.m. pacific. i'm jose diaz-balart. we begin this hour with the latest on the legal drama surrounding former president donald trump.

this morning, trump's former chief financial officer allen weisselberg was sentenced to five months in jail for perjury, for lying under oath before and during trump's new york civil fraud trial. the sentencing comes one day after a new york appeals court judge blocked trump's bid to stop his hush money trial, while he appeals the partial gag order put in place by the judge overseeing that case. jury selection in the hush money trial is scheduled to begin on monday. with us now to talk more about all of this, msnbc legal correspondent lisa rubin and charles coleman, former prosecutor in brooklyn, new york, now a civil rights attorney, also an msnbc legal analyst. so, lisa, you were inside the courtroom for the sentencing. what was that like? >> it was somber, jose, because, of course, this is the second time that allen weisselberg has pled guilty to a crime, associated with his service to the trump organization. however, it lasted only a matter of minutes.

allen weisselberg entering the courtroom this morning, dressed in a zip-up jacket and sweat pants. that's a sure indication as any that a defendant expects to go straight from their sentencing to jail and that's indeed what happened this morning. once the judge heard that both the district attorney and allen weisselberg's lawyers had no disagreement with the five-month sentence to which he had previously agreed, he was immediately handcuffed and escorted out a back door to the courtroom, where presumably he was put in a car and taken directly to rikers island where he previously served another five-month sentence, jose. >> what do you make of the new five-month sentence for weisselberg? >> i think it is a deal likely struck between d.a. bragg's office and mr. weisselberg for the simple fact that at some point you have to basically acknowledge that the jig is up. i think allen weisselberg decided this is what he was going to do, this is the plea deal he took. and then rather than sort of go through and continue to fight

it, he knew that jail -- they were ultimately going to settle on a number, a number, i would say, jose, is probably a reflection of his age, where he is in life, and the likelihood that he will pose future harm. so, five months to someone of that age is a very significant deal. and i think that's probably how they were able to arrive and agree upon that sentence. >> so, will, lisa, weisselberg have a role in trump's hush money case? >> no. he won't. although he certainly could have, jose. one of the things about the allegations in this upcoming trial is that there are two people who are said to have been in the room with trump or on the phone with trump where critical conversations were had or arrangements were made. they are michael cohen and allen weisselberg. now we know that one of those

two people is almost certain not to step foot in that courtroom and that's allen weisselberg. that is a victory for the d.a.'s office because although michael cohen will undergo what i expect will be a vigorous cross examination, there is no one else who can challenge his accounts of some of those critical conversations about the setup of the settlement payment to stormy daniels and what is really being charged here, which is the cover-up of those payments, which was orchestrated to ensure that he would win, he meaning former president trump, would win that election. that's the charge that the d.a. has made here. and now allen weisselberg won't be there to contest, but that's what michael cohen says happened. >> yeah, and charles, i mean, we have been seeing this, the former president is trying all sorts of last minute maneuvers to delay the start of this hush money trial. do these types of last minute efforts usually work? >> jose, they're usually not successful. this is not something you usually see as being common in terms of defendants trying to get out of going to trial. ultimately we know that when you

are facing a prosecutor's office, when the prosecution is ready, you have to be ready and it is time to go. i think the only sort of last ditch effort they have in this case that could prove viable and i'm watching it very closely over the next few days is this notion of a change of venue. donald trump, i think, from the very start, knew he did not want to try this case in the county of manhattan or in new york county. and i think that one of the reasons why we have seen a change of venue is because he believes that if he can't get a more favorable jury elsewhere, he can at least get the delay he wants to not start the trial as quickly as possible. so, that would be in my opinion the last probable outlet he might have, not to start jury selection next week, when it is expected to begin. and so over the next few days, everyone should be paying attention to when that decision comes down. >> now, lisa, meanwhile, turning to the classified documents case here in florida, the judge overseeing the case issued a ruling on special counsel jack smith's request to keep the names of government witnesses

sealed. how did she rule? >> she ruled for the special counsel, jose, and that was a very much anticipated ruling because had she ruled against the special counsel's office, and ordered a second time that nearly two dozen witness names be revealed, you can expect that the special counsel's office would have immediately appealed that ruling and potentially even asked for her removal from the case. however, in yesterday's decision, aileen cannon saying that the protection of witness identities was a very important variable in the leadup to trial. she did, however, side with trump on one other important thing. she said that witnesses' prior statements, the substance of those statements, can be unsealed, so long as details that would lead someone to identify those witnesses are themselves redacted. so, by april 22nd, we can expect to see things like those witnesses' statements to the fbi on paper, with lots of the identifying details taken out,

but we will get to see what those witnesses told the fbi and prosecutors about the allegations in the indictment. look for that on april 22nd. i know i am. >> lisa rubin, charles coleman, we all will be. thank you very much for being with us this morning. please make sure to join us for our special coverage on monday of trump's first criminal trial. ana cabrera and i will kick off our programming. andrea mitchell, chris jansing and katy tur picks things up in the afternoon. it all begins monday here at 10:00 a.m. on msnbc. turning now to the white house, president biden is having a bilateral meeting with japan's prime minister ahead of a joint press conference next hour. the two leaders are expected to announce a new historic upgrade to their security alliance to address the growing threat of china in the pacific. tomorrow, the prime minister will become just the second japanese leader ever to deliver an address to a u.s. joint meeting of congress. joining us now, nbc's gabe

gutierrez from the white house and richard haass from the council on foreign relations. gabe, what more do we know about this new security agreement? >> reporter: good morning. well, president biden calling the relationship between the u.s. and japan indispensable as he greeted the prime minister in that arrival ceremony. before i get to the security agreement, jose, breaking news as we were -- as the two leaders were heading to the oval office for that bilateral meeting. we're told that a reporter shouted out the question, mr. president, do you have a response to australia's request that you end julian assange's prosecution. and the president responded, quote, we're considering it. julian assange is an australian citizen and lawmakrs in that country have been asking for him to be sent to the australia and not to the u.s. we'll ask the white house for clarification on that. that just happened within the past few moments. with regards to the security agreement that you mentioned, jose, president biden and prime minister kishida, they're

expected to discuss those plans, to upgrade the u.s. military command structure in japan. japan hosts about 54,000 u.s. troops. and tokyo is also preparing a new joint headquarters that will oversee all of its military operations. the two countries will also establish a military industrial council to explore what kinds of defense weapons the u.s. and japan can produce together. so, jose, this all comes as the u.s. tries to shore up its allies in the indo-pacific region as it tries to deal with that rising threat from china and north korea. jose? let me -- i know you just explained it and said it, but if you could just repeat it, so the president was asked specifically about the united states' role in trying to get julian assange here to the united states. what can -- can you repeat that for us? >> that's right, jose. this is just breaking right now as the two leaders were heading to the oval office. we're expecting that news conference within the next hour or in the next hour, i should

say. the president was shouted a question, do you have a response to australia's request that you end julian assange's prosecution. the president responded, quote, we're considering it. and, again, jose, assange is an australian citizen, lawmakers in that country have been asking for him to return to australia instead of coming back to the u.s. we do not have clarification at this point regarding what the president meant by saying we're considering it. you'll remember, jose, this -- a lot of pomp and circumstance in this ceremony, it could be that perhaps either didn't hear the question correctly, that has happened before, we're asking the white house for any clarification on that point, jose. >> and let's go right to the white house. we have the president's comments right before his meeting with the prime minister of japan. >> when we were here last year, we said the role being played by the united states and japan is becoming even greater. and we -- i couldn't agree more with your assertion back then.

and what we see in our joint support for ukraine, in the face of russia's vicious assault, was -- is just outrageous. [ speaking in a global language ] >> we see it in our historic trilateral relationship with south korea. [ speaking in a global language ] >> we see it in our economic investments which has helped generate millions of jobs across both our nations. [ speaking in a global language ]

>> sincerely i want to thank you you, mr. prime minister, for your bold leadership across all these issues. [ speaking in a global language ] >> you personally have made all this possible. [ speaking in a global language ] >> and i would assert our alliance has never been stronger in our entire history. [ speaking in a global language ] >> so today i look forward to discussing how we can even deepen it more, including increasing defense, in technology, and cooperation across the board. [ speaking in a global language ] >> and we can also discuss how we can continue to enhance and ensure indo-pacific remains a free, open and prosperous region

of the world with us standing together. [ speaking in a global language ] >> thank you for being here, mr. prime minister. you heard me say this before, i'll say it again, you're a genuine leader, true partner, and a good friend. thank you for being here. [ speaking in a global language ] [ speaking in a global language ] >> joe, thank you so much for those very kind words of welcome. and i'm very grateful to be invited to the united states for this official visit.

[ speaking in a global language ] >> translator: we are sincerely grateful for the warm hospitality extended by you and dr. biden. [ speaking in a global language ] [ speaking in a global language ] >> translator: up until now, joe, you and i, we have had countless dialogues and we have nurtured a friendship and a trust along the way. japan and the united states are now at the forefront in maintaining and strengthening a free and open international

order, based on the rule of law. [ speaking in a global language ] >> translator: japan and the united states are also indispensable now to each other in driving sustainable and inclusive economic growth as well. [ speaking in a global language ] [ speaking in a global language ]

>> translator: through this official visit, i look forward to confirming the robust bond between our two nations and demonstrate at home and abroad how japan and the u.s. firmly bound together will build a future as global partners. [ speaking in a global language ] >> translator: so once again, thank you for your warm hospitality. >> thank you. >> thank you, everyone! >> and that wraps up this

meeting there, one of the many meetings that the president is going to have with the prime minister of japan today. gabe, i want to bring you back in. we wrap this -- we just saw, it just happened moments ago, right at the white house, what is on tap for the remainder of the day? >> reporter: well, jose, you just saw that bilateral meeting get under way there at the oval office. and then a little over an hour from now, we're expecting joint press conference in the rose garden with the japanese prime minister and president biden. there will be a state dinner, something reserved for the closest of u.s. allies and japanese prime minister has been invited tomorrow to address the joint meeting of congress. so, again, jose, this comes as the u.s. tries to shore up its alliances with those indo-pacific countries, especially japan, as it tries to deal with that rising threat from china, jose. >> and, gabe, turning to the

israeli-hamas war. president biden sat down for a new interview last week, where he addressed netanyahu's handling of the war. what did he have to say? >> well, jose, this really -- the relationship between prime minister netanyahu and president biden seems to have taken a harsher tone since the attack on the world central kitchen workers last week. this new interview, with univision, was apparently taped right -- taped last wednesday. and it just aired overnight, but it, once again, president biden taking issue with the way prime minister netanyahu is running this war. take a listen. >> i think what he's doing is a mistake. i don't agree with his -- i think it is outrageous that those three vehicles were hit by drones and taken out on a highway where it wasn't, like, it was along the shore, wasn't like there was a convoy moving or et cetera. so i -- what i'm calling for is for the israelis to just call

for a cease-fire, allow for the next six, eight weeks total access to all food and medicine going into the country. >> reporter: again, that interview airing overnight, new interview with president biden and, jose, what he mentioned there, calling for an immediate cease-fire, the white house repeatedly said it wants a cease-fire tied to the release of hostages. still five american hostages believed to be held by hamas in gaza and yesterday, the vice president met with some of those hostage families and that group saying that while it called the meeting productive, it does want results at this point, jose. >> gabe gutierrez at the white house, thank you so very much. richard, lots to kind of dissect with you. what is your read on the president's approach to the war and netanyahu, and did he say anything differently in this interview that was taped last week? >> what was different was not his criticism of the israelis.

we have seen a lot of that in recent weeks and months. what was different is this call for a cease-fire, whether it was six or eight weeks, that was not explicitly linked to hostages. all the previous negotiations, the united states has been a part of, the elements have been hostage release, political prisoner release, on the other side, aid going in and a cease-fire. this one emphasized simply aid going in and a cease-fire, so this was -- this was much more narrow. >> richard, you actually said there has to be sanction on israel to have an impact on netanyahu's decision-making. what exactly do you think is required? >> well, six months of persuasion and criticism haven't worked, as best i can tell for the most part. i would -- the israelis have continued to use force in a rather heavy-handed way. you've seen the numbers on the civilian casualties. they have continued to expand settlements and taken more land to build them in the future.

they have not let aid in at a sufficient scale. so i would say the united states ought to be doing several things, but conditioning the supply of arms, we'll give israel arms, with the understanding they cannot be used in certain ways that would cause large civilian casualties. i think any goods produced in the occupied territory, the west bank, that are exported to the united states ought to be labeled, not that they're made in israel, but made in the occupied territories. and i think the president ought to be articulating america's vision for the future politics of the middle east, rather than leave it to israel which doesn't have much in the way of a political strategy, we ought to put one on the table. >> today, the end of ramadan, also this is the week that we commemorate six months since the hamas terrorist attacks on israel, more than 1200 men, women and children were killed during that attack. i'm just wondering, how do you

see this ending when you have a country that was attacked. the most intense terrorist attack against the state of israel and the jewish people since the holocaust. i know that the state of israel came after, but it is just -- how do you see this ending? >> well, the short answer is i don't see it ending. look, i understand the horrific nature of october 7th. israel's right to self-defense. i think though israel has essentially lost course. it lost sight of what were achievable objectives and how it used force and hasn't introduced the political dimension. you can't defeat a group like hamas, simply militarily. you have to give people a political alternative. you got to say, if you reject violence, here is something that will achieve some of your goals. the israelis refuse to do that. it allows hamas to continue to say, you may not love us, but we're the only leaders in the

palestinian community who can get anything done. can't beat something with nothing. the israelis haven't put forth a political alternative. so, what i think is going to happen is you're looking at an open ended israeli occupation of gaza, and what worries me is not only sporadic or intermittent violence there, i also worry about growing violence in the other occupied areas in the west bank. part of me worries about an expanded conflict in the north against hezbollah. 60, 70,000 israelis can't live in their homes in the north. that's an untenable, unacceptable situation. i think all of this has the potential to weaken the u.s. israeli relationship and israel's standing in the world. so at the moment i don't see if you will that we're poised or perched for good things to come from where we are. bad situations can get worse. that's the history of the modern middle east and we may be in one of those moments. >> richard haass, thank you very

much for being with us. appreciate your time. up next, arizona's supreme court rules a near total abortion ban from 1864 is enforceable. we'll talk to one arizona woman who knows all too well what can happen when people don't have access to abortion care. plus, what president biden is now saying about potentially shutting down the southern border without congressional approval. and breaking news on wall street, stocks plummeted this morning after new inflation data came in higher than expected. the dow jones down about 450 points at this hour. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. . you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. try killing bugs the worry-free way. not the other way. zevo traps use light to attract and trap flying insects with no odor and no mess. they work continuously, so you don't have to. zevo. people-friendly.

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28 past the hour. we're following breaking news on the economy. inflation continues to remain stubbornly high. the government says the consumer price index, which measures the price of goods and services across the economy, rose 3.5% in march from a year earlier. that's above the economists' expectations of 3.4%. the markets not liking this news. the dow jones is down about 430 points at this hour. cnbc's dominic chu is with us this morning. dom, good morning. what does this report mean? >> so, jose, it basically means inflation is still a risk for the american economy and that policymakers at the federal reserve, they still got a pretty tough task ahead of them, with regard to how they conduct interest rate policy in the

coming months. so let's kind of dig into the inflation report as you just told us here. that cpi index came in hotter than expected and the bulk of that heat came because of two things in particular. it was shelter costs and energy costs. energy prices rose by 1.1% in march, after they climbed 2.3% in february. and then shelter costs went up about .4% for the month. bringing the year over year gain to 5.7%. now, that cpi measure is very tilted toward the effects of things like shelter costs, which make up roughly a third of the index's value. but there is a brighter spot here. it is that food cost where relatively tame across the economy. in total, americans saw just a .1% gain in food costs total between february and march. that's a 2.2% gain year over year. egg prices, up notably. butter prices fell sharply.

now, where many americans are actually feeling more of a pinch is in car insurance rates, which continue to climb at a much faster pace than other goods and services. they climbed by 2.6% for the month, which means a very shocking 22% plus gain on a year over year basis. the bigger picture here will be what this means for the federal reserve's ability to change its interest rate policy. late last year, some will recall there was a budding expectation the fed could actually cut interest rates as many as 5 to 6 times this year. that got ratcheted down to just a couple of months ago, seeing maybe three rate cuts with the first starting in june. but today, jose, after this data, markets are now pricing in just two interest rate cuts for the year and that they won't start until september, so this has been a fairly jarring report for wall street, hence the reason why you're seeing the dow down 450 points. >> hey, dominic, why do these

22% year over year increase in the price of car insurance specifically? >> now, car insurance specifically is tied to a number of different variables. but many folks in the industry talk about the rising cost of the underlying automobiles overall. newer cares tend to cost more money. the replacement value of some of those cars continues to rise. you add into that some of the disaster or accident-type situations we have seen over the past couple of years, they let insurance companies now have to price in higher rates to accommodate the fact that there have been more accidents in certain parts of the country, more natural disasters that have led to claims and, of course, again, the rising cost of cars overall. now, we did see some volatility near term. some used vehicle prices are showing some signs of stabilizing right now. but overall the insurance costs are something that a lot of americans are paying close attention to because, jose, roughly some 90% of americans by

some estimates have some kind of a tie to a vehicle. >> dominic chu, thank you so very much. let's take a dip real quick into the dow jones and see how the stock market is doing at this hour, just as an update. look, it is down about 450. s&p 500 is down 52. and the nasdaq is down 163. dominic chu again, thank you very much. we're going to take a short break and be right back. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. 'r whatever gets served up. and i'm grateful. thanks. on your and i'm grateful thanks 'd rather work on saving for retirement. or college, since you like to get schooled. that's a pretty good burn, right? oh, yeah, man. take it from your inner child. what you really need in life is some freakin' torque. what? the dodge hornet r/t... the totally torqued-out crossover. ♪ that colonoscopy for getting screened ♪ ♪ is why i'm delaying ♪

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37 past the hour. this morning, growing fallout across the country after the arizona state supreme court issued a decision reinstating a near total abortion ban from the civil war era. the law bans almost all abortions with an exception to save the mother's life and anyone involved in performing the procedure could face up to five years in prison. just for context, the law was instated in 1864, before arizona became a state. population, below 9,000 people and women could not vote. joining us now, nbc's yamiche alcindor and morgan finkelstein. i understand the former president trump is just speaking, he's arriving in

atlanta. let's go to that. >> -- it is raging back -- it will be straightened out. it is all about states' rights. i'm sure the governor and everybody else are going to bring it back into reason and that will be -- >> what do you think about florida? >> florida's probably maybe going to change also. it is the will of the people. this is what i've been saying. it is a perfect system. for 52 years, people wanted to end roe v. wade to get it back to the states. we did that. it was an incredible thing. incredible achievement. we did that. and now the states have it and the states are putting out what they want. it is the will of the people. so, florida's probably going to change. arizona is going to definitely change. everybody wants that to happen. and you're getting the will of the people. it has been pretty amazing when you think -- >> new inflation numbers came out showing inflation going up more than what economists were

expecting. do you believe there is any chance inflation gets under control between now and november? >> biden lost control of inflation. it is raging back. the number today was very high, very bad. it is much higher because they exclude various categories. it is actually much higher than that. the number is out of control. biden has no idea what the hell he's doing. he's the worst president in the history of the country. i have some good news. where is brian? come here. he's a man i've known for a long time, he's running in georgia 3. it is going -- he's going to be a fantastic congressman. very simple name. don't -- you can do it either way, jack brian or brian jack. s a he's a great guy. he's been with me for seven years. he always wanted to run for congress. this is where he was born, where he grew up, he knows it well. he loves the people. he'll be fantastic. do you know who brian is? you do now.

there's another brian. [ inaudible ] >> i think that case has been totally discredited. it was a money-making scheme on behalf of her and her lover, mr. and mrs. wade. >> that's former president trump on his arrival in atlanta, and the first issue that he talked about was the -- his reaction to this ruling in arizona. and i want to bring back yamiche and morgan. thanking you both for standing by while we heard what the former president had to say about that. so, yamiche, if you would, what happens next in the ruling in arizona? >> yeah, well, this was really a bombshell decision yesterday. the court did stay the decision on this near total ban of

abortion to 14 days, so currently abortions are legal still in arizona up until 15 weeks of pregnancy. but there is still no exception for rape or incest. last year the democrat governor katie hobbs issued an executive order granting the attorney general to stop any prosecution. here's what the state attorney general told "morning joe" this morning. take a listen. >> i have said that i will not prosecute any woman, doctor, pharmacist, nurse, or individual who helps a woman to seek an abortion or reproductive access. i also said and we're going to -- we're looking at everything we can right now from a legal standpoint to prevent this decision from going into effect. >> but there still could possibly be a legal challenge to that. you hear the attorney general saying that she doesn't want to

prosecute anybody for violating abortion laws, but now that the state supreme court has ruled, there could be a legal challenge to that stance. we also should note, of course, that while president trump is saying that this is all part of the will of the people, polls show that the majority of americans, they want to see abortion access in some form and would be not in favor of what happened in arizona. also, there has been a coalition of reproductive rights organizations in arizona. they say that they have gathered enough signatures to put this on the ballot. it would be a constitutional amendment that would allow abortion up to viability, which is usually around 14 weeks. it is still unclear whether or not that's going to make it on a ballot, but that could expand abortion access if it succeeds. we expect activists on both sides to galvanize voters in the swing state of arizona, so very important to point out that while former president trump is talking about this idea of americans being behind his view of abortion, which now he's saying should be left up to states' rights, we have seen over and over again when you put the issue of abortion rights on

the ballot, in a number of states including in ruby red states like kansas, and other states like kentucky, advocates of abortion access, they won each and every time. so we're going to have to continue to see what happens in arizona, but i wanted to really put context to what former president trump was saying there, he's saying one thing, but really americans in polls and at the ballot box are saying something different, jose. >> yamiche, i think it is important you did that and i appreciate it. thank you for being with us. i want to just -- morgan, if i could, to kind of refocus on the issue, you joined the governor's amicus brief after you had a personal experience with abortion. how did that experience impact your view on abortion rights? >> thank you for having me, jose. it is great to be here. i joined the governor's amicus brief because i heard about the supreme court case. and the appeal. and i knew i needed to do

something. i experienced what happens when you need abortion care and you can't access it. i had a twin pregnancy that had some complications, where, you know it was very much a wanted pregnancy, we were looking at wallpaper for the nurseries, we had names chosen, and we got some really bad news about a critical heart defect in our male twin. and fortunately we had a doctor who had the courage to, you know, reach out and help us. she was unable to find the procedure that we needed, a selective reduction in arizona, and that's because they chipped away at our rights for years now. this was technically legal at the time. but it wasn't available. and so we ended up having to go to california. we were very privileged to even

be able to do so. and a week later and $9,000 later we had, you know, to say good-bye to our male twin. and what happens with this selective reduction is you continue to carry both fetuses through the remainder of the pregnancy, so, i carried the rest of the pregnancy and delivered both the male and the female twin and i am here today, i think, because of abortion care that we were able to access. >> i mean, you mentioned $9,000, all out of pocket for you and your family. >> yes. mm-hmm. it was -- >> at the time, from arizona, you were told maybe d.c., maybe new york. really there was very little -- there were very little places that could do this. >> yeah. and i think that that's because

if a doctor is going to risk, you know, being put behind bars, they're less likely to advise this type of medical procedure, and it is very much healthcare. they're less likely to practice -- practice in a state like arizona. and so we're not just in a desert, we're in an abortion desert. and we have been, you know, prior to yesterday. it has been a while. >> so, morgan, how do you see your role and what are you planning to do now? >> i'm willing to do whatever it takes to sort of put a story to this so that people can identify with legislation and i am willing to do that wherever it is helpful with the governor's office, you know. i've tried to be as helpful as possible. i know it has been on her agenda

since she took office. and i am, you know, just willing to go out on a limb however i can to make sure that women don't have to experience what we went through. it was just unnecessary. >> morgan, thank you for being with us. really appreciate your time. i appreciate you being with us. >> thank you for having me. we're going to take a short break and be right back. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. into the things that keep our food fresher, our families safer, and our planet cleaner. to help us get there, america's plastic makers are investing billions of dollars to create innovative products and new recycling technologies for sustainable change. because when you push for smarter solutions, big things can happen. (♪♪) is this normal? yeah.

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52 past the hour. we are following breaking news. six former mississippi law enforcement officers who call themself the goon squad were sentenced between 15 to 45 years in prison by the state for their torture of two black men in january 2023. the officers pleaded guilty to handcuffing them, shocking them, beating and sexually assaulting them. one of the officers shot one victim in the mouth, nearly killing him. now to a story we have been following closely. the rise in sexual abuse against migrants traveling to the united states. in a new investigation, "the new york times" spent months speaking with migrants who were being victimized and brutalized in unthinkable numbers. they report, aid groups say that in the past six months, they

have documented an extraordinary spike in attacks with patterns and frequencies rarely seen outside of war zones. the assaults often involve cases in which dozens of women are violated in a single event. joining us now is the bureau chief for "the new york times." she documented the grim reality. i'm pleased to have the opportunity to speak with you, to say how important the work is that you are doing. you share among others the story of one venezuelan family who traveled with their 8-year-old daughter. tell us about them. >> yeah. thanks so much for having me on the show. i should say that my colleague and i have spent many months, since 2021, reporting on

migration. in the last trip we saw something we had never seen before, which is really an exceptionally high level of violence committed against migrants who are traveling through the jungle. in particular, this violence appears to be systematic and organized and has these exceptionally cruel characteristics that many organizations told us they are not used to seeing, except in cases of armed conflict. one of the families that we feature -- >> i'm sorry. continue. >> one of the families that we feature in the story is a family from venezuela. they were living -- they traveled and were living in columbia. had decided to leave. when they were just about to get to the end of the jungle, they were surrounded by a group of

half a dozen men. this is according to the mother and father, who we interviewed. the mother was sexually assaulted. the 8-year-old was told to strip naked along with the other women in the group and was searched for money. this was -- this is one story that's emblematic of something we heard over and over and over again. we mention in the story that actually in a period of four days, we met 70 people who told us they had been the victims of armed robbery in the jungle. 14 of whom were women who said that they had experienced some level of sexual violence. that goes from forcible touching to rape. >> the videos that you shot, you are struck by the amount of people going through there. men, women and children who are

crossing daily. as you report in your piece, more than 520,000 people crossed. are people aware of the dangers? why are they willing to continue doing this? >> absolutely. i think it's worth noting that this year the number of people who crossed the jungle is expected to rise. the people are aware of the dangers of the journey. they have seen the images online. they have seen the pictures. they understand that robbery, that sexual assault are risks. what i think people don't understand is just how common that has become. this is really something new that we are seeing in the last six months or so. often, these attacks are so violent and people are taken by such surprise that there's no chance to take a video of this. the videos that are circulating online don't show the most horrible parts of the journey.

>> i'm struck by that -- those parents, how they said -- the mother said, we can handle it. but they took our little girl's innocence away. that innocence being taken away happens over and over and over again. i'm just wondering -- we will talk about this in the future. but where is the responsibility of panama? where is the responsibility of columbia? where is the responsibility of mexico, who in many ways condones what happens by not acting? i can't thank you enough for the extraordinary work that you are doing and your photographer. thank you for being with us this morning. i appreciate your time. >> thank you. that wraps up the hour for me. i'm jose diaz-balart. thank you for the privilege of your time. andrea mitchell picks up with more news after a quick break.

right now on "andrea mitchell reports," the arizona supreme court's abortion decision upholding a 160-year-old near total ban on abortion rocking the state and putting republican candidates on the spot in a key swing state. the president today. >> did arizona go too far? >> they did. it will be straightened out. it's all about states' rights. arizona is going to change. everybody wants that to happen. you are getting the will