with one earring we'll know where she is shopping. >> i got to find somebody. >> lester holt joins us neck. >> bye-bye. adults killed, elementary school students badly wounded and shock waves in san bernardino. struck by another horrific act of violence. dragged off a plane, outrage as a passenger is forcibly removed by police for forcing to give up his seat on an overbooked flight. united airlines under fire. governor scandal, facing impeachment, alabama's governor resigns brought down by secret messages with his mistress mistakenly sent to his wife. free college, new york becomes the first state to offer a public university education at no cost to middle class families. will other states follow? and welcome to the neighborhood. an important lesson in friendship as julia joins the gang on "sesame street." "nightly news" begins

right now. good evening to our viewers in the west. a horrifying act of violence played out inside a california elementary school classroom today when a teacher and 8-year-old student were fatally shot. the killer then took his own life, but not before two children were also shot. it happened in san bernardino, a city that still bears the emotional scars of a deadly terror attack 16 months ago. police are calling today's shooting the result of a domestic dispute. >> reporter: gunfire, an elementary school classroom. sparking chaos in the city of san bernardino. >> we have two down here. making our way down the classroom to the

north. >> reporter: parents rushing to the school only knowing a gunman had gone inside, two adults dead and two students had been badly injured, one later died. outside frantic mothers and fathers trying to reach their children. >> i just want to see them and just hug them. it's all i want to do. >> reporter: police in the middle of a mass evacuation. 600 students quickly taken to safety at a nearby university before reuniting with their families. children still shaken. >> all of the kids started running out and the teacher started lining up at the gates. >> reporter: police now say the shooting appears to have been a murder suicide revealing a chilling detail, the gunman had checked in as a visitor with the front office before heading to the classroom. >> there is no indication the gun was visible upon his arrival at the school. it wasn't until he came into the classroom he presented the firearm. >> reporter: the gunman, 53-year-old cedric anderson was married to the teacher. police are investigating what led to the shooting.

the students were not believed to be targets, but innocent bystanders. the mayor speaking of resilience. >> we will rise to help our parents, our teachers to regroup and to once again gain confidence in our community. >> reporter: a community suffering another tragedy. deadly violence in san bernardino is the highest it's been in 15 years. and the city is still reeling from the terror attack a little over a year ago. the terror attack left 14 dead. now another active shooting in a class room where children are supposed to be safe. and the shooter has been identified as cedric anderson, the estranged husband of this teacher and tragically, we just learned one of the students who was injured in that classroom has died.

lester, back to you. caught on camera by several passengers that sparked a firestorm of outrage. it happened when police were called to forcibly remove a passenger, physically dragging him from the plane, when he refused to surrender his assigned seat so the airline could use his seat and three others to reposition some of its crew members. tonight, the department of transportation launched an investigation and we get the latest from nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: the video is startling. three airport police officers dragging an unidentified 69-year-old man from his seat and down the ale after he refused to leave voluntarily. >> my god. what are you doing? >> reporter: video posted on twitter shows the man, his face bloodied after hitting an armrest. >> oh my god! look what you did to him! oh my god! >> reporter: witnesses say the crew asked four passengers to leave voluntarily for up to $800 so four crew members could travel to louisville. when no one agreed,

the airline randomly selected four passengers. the unidentified man refused. >> he says, no i'm a doctor, i have to be -- i have to be in louisville to see patients tomorrow morning. i can't get off the plane. >> reporter: then after being dragged from the plane, he suddenly returned appearing distraught. >> i have to go home. i have to go home. >> reporter: finally, he was taken away on a stretcher. >> it didn't seem right how united went about pulling someone off the plane who already paid for a ticket and was already on the plane ready to go. >> reporter: the united airlines ceo took to twitter saying i apologize for having to re-accommodate these customers. he promised an investigation and is reaching out to this passenger to talk directly and resolve the situation. but passenger rights advocates point out, even after you buy a ticket, the airline can legally bump you without your consent. though they must offer compensation. >> a public relations disaster but not just a public relations

disaster, this is an example of how not to treat a passenger that you already boarded. >> reporter: late today chicago airport police suspended one of the officers involved. last year roughly 40,000 people were involuntarily bumped from flights for which they had tickets. the faa requires passengers to be compensated up to $1350. lester? >> thank you. now to the fallout on the u.s. strikes on syria, and how it will impact secretary of state rex tillerson's first trip to russia starting tomorrow. kristen welker has more. >> reporter: tonight, tensions escalating between the united states and russia, two senior military officials tell nbc news while it's not clear the russians were involved in the syrian chemical weapons attack, they are assessing and at a minimum acknowledge the russians didn't stop the syrians. this, as russia and iran ramp up their rhetoric condemning

the u.s. air strikes and arguing the military action will only energize the terrorists. all setting the stage for a high stakes meeting between secretary of state rex tillerson and his russian counterpart in moscow on wednesday. >> secretary tillerson's message to russia in the end will be this is not obama's administration. >> reporter: tillerson speaking out during his diplomatic trip in italy. >> we rededicate ourselves to holding to account any and all who commit crimes against the innocent anywhere in the world. >> reporter: tonight, press secretary sean spicer making it clear military forces still on the table when it comes to syria. >> if you gas a baby, if you put a barrel bomb in to innocent people, i think you can -- you will see a response from this president. >> reporter: but syria has been using barrel bombs for years, and tonight, spicer clarified he's not signaling a new policy. the white house also trying to smooth over mixed messages with secretary tillerson saying the top priority is defeating isis.

>> that we can navigate a political outcome in which the syrian people in fact will determine bashar al assad's fate and his legitimacy. >> reporter: a stark contrast to u.n. ambassador nikki haley. >> in no way do we see peace in that area, with assad as head of the government. >> [ indiscernible question ] >> yes, sure. but i think that -- i think you can defeat isis with him in power. >> reporter: meanwhile, tonight spicer is calling tensions between chief strategists steve bannon and the president's son-in-law jared kushner overblown, insisting the president welcomes diverse viewpoints. lester? >> kristen welker at the white house, thanks. the supreme court once again has a full bench now that neil gorsuch filled in for anthony scalia's death 14 months ago. he took the oath in a private ceremony administered by chef justice john roberts

and in a historic first, gorsuch was sworn in by the man he once clerked for, justice anthony kennedy at a white house ceremony. now to the rapidly unfolding state of things in alabama. the state's governor resigned shortly after being booked in jail. he was facing impeachment amid an ever deepening scandal that broke wide open. when he meant to send secret messages to his mistress. we get late details from nbc's kerry sanders. >> reporter: tonight, embattled governor robert bentley stepping down and booked on charges tied to his alleged coverup of a romantic relationship with top political aid rebecca mason, nearly half his age. >> i have let you and our people down, and i'm sorry for that. >> reporter: all this just hours after impeachment hearings began at the heart of it, steamy audio recordings from the governor to his mistress, collected by his now ex-wife.

>> when i stand behind you and i, and i put my arms around you and i put my hands on your -- >> his loyalty shifted from the state of alabama to himself. >> reporter: the fast-moving developments follow the release last friday of a state investigative report that included private e-mails and text exchanges. you handsome wonderful, delicious funny sweet man, texts mason. you are wonderful my sweet love the governor responds. the governor maintains while his words were inappropriate, he says he did not have a physical relationship with mason. the report also alleges bentley encouraged an atmosphere of intimidation to protect his reputation, the chief of staff of the governor's ex-wife found her car vandalized after she helped mr. bently collect evidence against her husband. >> the only reason the recordings were ever made is so that mrs. bentley could confirm in her mind the affair was actually happening. >> reporter: tonight,

disgraced former governor robert bentley has already pled guilty to those two misdemeanor charges. the judge accepted the pleas and suspended his jail sentences. lester? >> kerry sanders, thank you. in wisconsin, communities remain on edge after authorities hunt for a fugitive described as armed and dangerous who has been on the run for nearly a week. he stole an arsenal of weapons. and may be planning a horrific attack. security is on high alert at schools, churches and more in that area. >> reporter: tonight the manhunt for joseph jakubowski is intensifying. additional federal resources have arrived in janesville, wisconsin hoping to stop what they believe is a planned attack. it's been six days since police say jakubowski robbed a gun store taking 16 firearms, body armor and a helmet. his burned out car was found a short time later. this shows jakubowski mailing a 161-page rambling anti-government

manifesto to president trump. >> revolution. it's time for change. >> everyone is on heightened alert and anything out of place, they are calling us. >> reporter: police in janesville are following up on more than 400 leads, frustrated they have been unable to find the heavily armed fugitive. >> is there a concern that when you do find him, you know, he has all these weapons that he's going to come at you guns blazing and try to go suicide by cop? >> most definitely. that is my number one concern. >> reporter: the few schools in the area not on spring break were on partial lockdown today, playgrounds empty. kids kept indoors. >> it's sad our world has changed so much that, you know, kindergarteners, children have to worry about such things. >> reporter: security has also been beefed up at churches and government offices. authorities say jakubowski did not name a specific target, leaving police stretched thin. >> on here it says i love police officers. >> reporter: and a

community grateful for their efforts. there have been possible sightings reported up to 60 miles away here in wisconsin but none confirmed. tonight police here admit jakubowski could be anywhere and should be considered armed and dangerous. lester? >> blake mccoy, thank you. wells fargo is forcing two former top executives to pay back $75 million in pay after the bank admitted last year that employees opened as many as 2 million accounts in customers names without their knowledge. an internal report blames management for pressuring employees to make unrealistic sales goals. still ahead tonight, how does this sound, going to college for free? the first state in the nation to offer four-year tuition at zero cost to students. what your family would need to qualify. also, critics say it's something that shames kids during lunch time, now some schools are plain doing away with it. stay with us.

we're back now with a big announcement in new york capturing the attention of families across the country. the empire state is the first state to offer free four-year tuition to the state's public universities for low and middle income families. it opens doors for students who otherwise couldn't afford it but will other states follow new york's lead? here is nbc news correspondent jo ling kent. >> reporter: for melissa olivar, going

to college is a dream she thought was out of reach. >> it's very important because it could open a lot of doors, especially for me coming from a low income family. >> reporter: it is within her grasp thanks to a program in new york state. students from families making less than $100,000 a year will get free college tuition at state universities this fall. the income requirement rises to $110,000 the following year and $125,000 the year after with tuition at state four-year colleges costing about $6500 a year, that adds up to $26,000, not including room and board. >> college is what high school was 50 years ago. and 50 years ago we had the sense as a society to say, free public high school. >> reporter: the olivar family is one of the 80% of new york families with college-aged children expected to be eligible for free tuition. to qualify, students must enroll full time

and average 30 credits a year, maintain the gpa required to graduate and live and work in state after college the same number of years they received tuition assistance. free two-year college is offered in tennessee, oregon, minnesota and california. >> today's announcement in new york could really inspire other states to tackle the problem of college affordability. >> reporter: this fall she heads to the city university of new york to major in chemistry and become a doctor. >> i will be able, you know, to go to college without having a big burden on my shoulder. >> reporter: the financial freedom to fulfill her big dreams. joe lean kent, nbc news, new york. we're back in a moment with a big decision from the government on whether to allow us to use something on planes that most of us can't live without here on the ground.

the chairman of the fcc said today a plan set in motion that could have allowed passengers to eventually make cell phone calls on planes, well, it's not happening.

he says the airline pilots didn't want it, flight attendants didn't want it and a whole lot of passengers didn't want to get stuck sitting next to a chatty seat mate yakking for the duration of the flight. in new mexico, a new law being called the first of its kind aimed at putting an end to what critics call lunch shaming when schools single out children whose parents are late or drink went in paying for their meals. now other states are looking to follow suit. miguel almaguer has details. >> reporter: the new law means every child in new mexico will be served breakfast and lunch, even if their parents have not paid. first of its kind legislation outlawing lunchtime shaming, where children are denied food or singled out for overdue bills. >> they are angry or hurt or crying or -- because they have an unpaid lunch bill and it's your fault. >> reporter: with among the highest poverty rates in the nation, new mexico is not the only state children are embarrassed. in alabama and arizona

kids were stamped at school with i need lunch money. some children have been forced to wear wrist bands while cafeteria workers in pittsburgh and omaha quit jobs over no money, no meal policies. >> school meal debt happens in every district in the country and it's just a humiliation that gets us nowhere. and in, fact, it's detrimental to a child's education, especially if they haven't been able to eat. >> reporter: the so-called lunch bill directs schools to work more closely with parents to pay debts. in some cases, children were forced to mop cafeteria floors or clean tables in front of friends before they could eat. >> reporter: california and texas are working on similar legislation, a new hunger to end lunchtime shaming for those with no appetite to single out those. miguel almaguer. nbc news, albuquerque, new mexico. when we come back here tonight, "sesame

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finally tonight, there is someone new in the neighborhood on "sesame street." her name is julia and he's making muppet history on the beloved children's program.

jacob rascon has more. in our inspiring america report. >> reporter: after nearly a half century, "sesame street" has a new kid on the block. >> who is this? >> oh, this is our friend, julia. >> reporter: like millions of americans, julia has autism. >> what is autism? >> well, for julia, it means that she might not answer you right away. >> reporter: the orange and red hair preschooler started as a character in "sesame street" books and digital series in 2015. >> sometimes you felt kind of alone like you were the only one with autism. >> reporter: jody in seattle finally had a character with whom her daughter charlotte could relate. >> to me, it was just like seeing my daughter come to life on a screen as a muppet. >> reporter: after on overwhelming response, from families like theirs, "sesame street" brought julia to life. with help from stacy

gordon whose son is also autistic. >> i hope julia brings positivity and love and acceptance around autism. >> reporter: at first big bird struggles to understand julia. >> i don't think julia likes me very much. >> reporter: she doesn't talk much or make a lot of eye contact. but she loves to draw and sing and play. >> she does things just a little differently in a julia sort of way. >> reporter: in the end, big bird understands his friends are all different and all fun. a lesson "sesame street" hopes children everywhere will appreciate, too. ♪ we can all be friends ♪ >> reporter: jacob rascon, nbc news. and that's going to do it for us on this monday night. i'm lester holt for all of us at nbc news, thank you for watching and good night. the le a a

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