Nightly news begins right now. This is nbc nightly news with lester holt. Reporting tonight from oakland. Good evening. There are so many reasons why the tragedy that happened here in oakland friday night shouldnt have. From the illegal Living Spaces to a makeshift stairway, to the dangling electrical cords and stacks of flammable materials. Was a disaster waiting to happen. As we come on the air tonight, the number of bodies recovered as has reached 36. Authorities believe there will be more. The victims were here for a party in a warehouse known as the ghost ship. An Art Collective where the very things that made it avantgarde may have also made it a fiery death trap. Now tonight, the man who ran the place is talking to nbc news. Miguel almaguer is here to start our coverage. Miguel . Lester, good earlier today because the walls of the warehouse threatened to collapse on them. This is now a criminal investigation. Murder charges could be filed. Firefighters are trying to recover bodies and also possibly preserve evidence. This is where the heartbreak began. Buried underneath ash and rubble, bodies of at least 36 victims. Solemnly removed from the warehouse where they died. I cant explain who i am anymore. Reporter derek almena leased the warehouse. In his first sitdown interview, he tells us, his family was not there during the fire. Hes spoken to investigators and has not been charged. Do i take blame or responsibility for this . Like reporter his home, this warehouse, is where nearly a hundred gathered for a dance party when flames exploded. A building not permitted for residential use. With wife micah and their young children, almena says their art 5,000 a month rent. Almena says he made repairs to the electrical system without permits, after he says, the landlord refused. Weve done everything that we possibly could afford to do. Reporter known as the ghost ship, the building was cluttered with a maze of Wooden Furniture and art. Cited multiple times for blight. Those who live here, roughly 25 people, tell us the warehouse had two access points. There were two sets of stairs. One made of wooden palettes. The fire began on the first floor. Upstairs where the crowd listened to a deejay is where most of the victims were killed when the fire spread. It happened so fast. Reporter the blaze broke out next to carmen britos room. The victims were young, creative and enjoying life. Brito remembers the grief. And i wish i could give a reason im alive when so many other people arent, and i cant. I dont know. Reporter miguel almaguer, nbc news, oakland. Reporter this is Stephanie Gosk in oakland. As firefighters continue the grim search for remains, anger builds. How did this happen . Who was responsible . Documents obtained by nbc news, show nine complaints against the property since 1999, including two as recently as last month. Garbage piling up and an illegal interior building structure. Officials say they were looking into it. We had an inspector attempt to enter the building, and at that time, was not able to secure access to the building. Reporter the warehouse was not supposed to have residents, but it had dozens, including nicki kelber. I found a home there. Reporter nicki said there were rules. No candles, no smoking, and concerns about fire. If your ideal youre going to live in that warehouse. Reporter John Darmanin is a retired San Francisco fire captain. He says fire inspectors can get overwhelmed in a city like oakland, where real estate prices have led to unofficial living space popping up all over. In a place like oakland, thats a big job. Its a huge job. The single most important thing isnt the inspection itself. Its the followup. Reporter since the fire, the owner has not been seen in public. Records show she owns county. In a statement, the family says, we are also trying to figure out whats going on like everybody else. Were sorry to hear about the tragedy. Our condolences go out to family and friends. The couple who ran the property say theyre being unfairly blamed. A lot of people have turned their backs on us. Most expressly, the landlord. Reporter there are people all over this city, living in warehouses like this one. Their concern tonight is that moving forward, efforts to find themselves out on the streets. Lester . Stephanie gosk tonight, thank you. Lets turn now to the breaking news from charleston, where a judge has declared a mistrial in the case of officer michael slager. Seen on video, fatally shooting an unarmed motorist, walter scott, in the back. It was a shooting that gripped the nation and tonight the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict. Nbcs Gabe Gutierrez has details. The court therefore must declare a mistrial in this case. Jury deliberations, tonight a mistrial in the murder case against former North Charleston police officer, michael slager. Theres no unanimous verdict, then were back to square one, and thats where we are in this case. Reporter by this afternoon, their final note that the panel of 11 white people and one black man couldnt reach a unanimous decision. Being that we did not get a guilty verdict, its a little disappointing. But the good thing is, that we have two more reporter the dramatic cell phone video shocked the nation, walter scott, shot in the back multiple times in april of 2015. During the monthlong trial, slager told the court, he was in total fear for his life and shot scott in selfdefense. Slager said scott ran from a traffic stop and grabbed his stun gun during a struggle. I dont care how it looks. Its not over. Reporter scotts family, who had already won a 6. 5 million civil settlement from the only round one. Were firm, and we believe that at the end of the day officer slager is going to pay for what he did to walter scott. Reporter friday, a sign this was coming in an extremely rare move, a dissenting juror sent this letter to the judge. I still cannot, without a reasonable doubt, convict the defendant. Reporter in a followup note, the foreperson clearly seems frustrated. That juror needs to leave, hes having issues. A mistrial gives time. Theyve had a practice run. Theyve gotten a sense of what arguments might work, and they both come to the battlefield with that experience. Reporter slagers defense team declined to comment tonight, but local prosecutors say theyll retry this case and slager also faces a federal civil rights trial next year. Lester . Gabe gutierrez in charleston, thank you. Now to the fallout tonight from a bizarre standoff, thats left a washington, d. C. Neighborhood in fear. It started with a dangerous internet gunman to open fire at a d. C. Pizza shop. Swept up in a Conspiracy Theory pushed on social media, even by a member of president elect trumps inner circle. We get the latest from nbcs tom costello. Reporter under arrest in washington, 28yearold edgar wells, accused of firing an assault weapon inside the comet pingpong pizza restaurant. Welch told police he Campaign Child sex ring. Let me state unequivocally, these stories are completely entirely false. Reporter the pizzagate conspiracy began with a wikileaks and email stolen from Campaign John podesta about a fundraiser involving the restaurant. Users of the Anonymous Online message board, known for rogue political discussion, suggested without any proof whatever, that the word pizza was code for child sex restaurant. The Conspiracy Theory quickly spread to reddit and youtube, feeding fake online news stories, then jumping to facebook and twitter. Eventually reddit banned the thread. Both d. C. Police and federal agents say the story is false. The website also claims theres a secret tunnel running from the pizza restaurants, up the store to the politics and prose book store, to traffic in children. But the book store says, there is no tunnel. For weeks the book store and restaurant have received dozens of threats each day. We dont see this as a leftright thing, republican thing, this is really, truth versus fiction. Reporter discredited rumors about sex trafficking, even spread by general michael flynn, who last month retweeted a link, writing, must read. Flynns son, his chief of staff, had been pushing pizzagate on twitter. Neither man responded to our request for comment. Late today, anxious store owners met with d. C. Police commanders as a fake news story tom costello, nbc news, washington. To politics now, president elect donald trump has announced hes nominating onetime rival ben carson for secretary of housing and urban development. Meanwhile, nbc news has learned that the president elects controversial phone call with taiwan last week, was long in the works. We get more from nbcs kristen welker. Reporter new signs tonight president elect donald trump knew exactly what he was doing when decades of u. S. China protocol. While top officials publicly insist the call was merely congratulatory. This was a moment of courtesy. Reporter a high level source familiar with the issue tells nbc news, mr. Trump talked with top advisers about the possibility of establishing contact with taiwan for months. Those talks intensified after election day. John huntsman, a former ambassador to china, now being eyed as a possible secretary of state, says, its a smart. Businessman who has become president of the united states, and who understands real leverage and how to find real leverage in that relationship. Reporter for his part, mr. Trump has been unapologetic, tweeting, did china ask us if it was okay to devalue their currency . And as a candidate, he frequently took aim. We cant continue to allow china to rape our country. Reporter today china firing back. The staterun newspaper writing, creating troubles for the chinau. S. The u. S. Itself. China policy experts say, this is a shakeup. Trump is trying to change china policy, and it is a major reset. He is challenging the assumptions that are decades old. Reporter but others warn the move is risky. It doesnt make sense to me, that donald trump should want to start his presidency with a serious crisis with china. I dont see where that gets us. Reporter a sign the call with taiwan was likely no blunder. For donald trump, this is classic art of the deal. Put china onar things are going to be different now. Reporter tonight Trump Officials are disputing reports that trumps team was exploring potential business dealings with taiwan. Meanwhile, an interesting visitor here at trump tower today, former Vice President al gore meeting with the president elect to discuss climate change. Lester . Kristen welker, thank you. Extreme weather is pushing across the country tonight, a violent threat in the south has millions on nbcs Kevin Tibbles has more. Reporter a wintery whitewash, from the pacific to the plains, midwest and northeast. I love snow. Its just, i dont like shoveling it. Reporter dangerous conditions. Two deaths reported after a crash on a snowy michigan road. And temperatures are poised to plummet. Up to 30 degrees below average. As an arctic blast knocks thermometers down to the single digits. Trees, and flooding. We really were scared. Reporter near san antonio, texas, the saturated ground, contributing to a massive sink hole that took the life of a local sheriffs deputy. More Severe Weather on the way tonight. Damaging winds and isolated tornadoes, the biggest threat, the storms will spread east overnight, but were still looking at severe storms tomorrow morning. Reporter winters official start is still two weeks off, but for many, its Kevin Tibbles, nbc news, chicago. Still ahead, fighting insomnia, the new way people are using their computers to find a better nights sleep without ever seeing the inside of a doctors office. Also, how would you like to skip the grocery line . A big announcement from amazon that could wh only new alkaseltzer plus free of artificial dyesf. And preservatives liquid gels delivers the powerful cold symptom relief you need without the unnecessary additives you dont. Store manager clean up, aisle 4. Were back now with new developments for the treatment of insomnia. Up to half of adults expensive and timeconsuming. But a promising solution for many can now be found online in the comfort of your own home. Nbcs Kristen Dahlgren has those details. Reporter for as long as she can remember, Claire Wolf Smith had trouble falling asleep. I tried warm baths. I tried warm milk. I tried antihistamines. Reporter the answer, it turns out, was right at her fingertips. An Online Program many now available. Users keep a daily sleep diary. Like a doctor might, the software uses that information to make custom suggestions. Claire started by pushing back her bedtime to 1 00 a. M. To reflect how much she was actually sleeping. Then she changed her behavior. I never, never take my phone in bed. I never take a tablet in bed. I never take a book in bed. And if she doesnt fall asleep in 15 bed trying to fall asleep. Reporter a study published in the journal of the American Medical Association found it works. Researchers reported 70 of the Customized Program users saw improvement, versus 27 who used generic sleep tips. We have good interventions, we just need to make them available and accessible. Reporter lead researcher dr. Lee ritter brand helped develop shuti and has a financial stake in costs 135 for 16 weeks. Money well spent for Claire Wolf Smith, now sleeping two more hours per night. A big difference. Just ask her husband. So im less irritable . Yeah. Oh, great. Among other things, yes. [ laughter ] reporter a new tool that is putting insomnia to bed. Kristen dahlgren, nbc news, new york. Were back in a moment with why protesters are still battling the elements, even after claiming victory over a i love my shop, but my back pain was making it hard to sleep and open up on time. Then i found aleve pm. The only one to combine a sleep aid plus the 12 hour pain relieving strength of aleve. Now im back. Aleve pm for a better am. Why pause a spontaneous moment . Cialis for daily use treats ed and the urinary symptoms of bph. Tell your doctor about your medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. Do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, or adempas . For pulmonary hypertension, to avoid longterm injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. If you have a sudden decrease or loss of hearing or vision, or an allergic reaction, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. Ask your doctor about cialis. You dont let anything keep you thats why you drink ensure. Sidelined. With 9 grams of protein and 26 vitamins and minerals. For the strength and energy to get back to doing. What you love. Ensure. Always be you. Survive alzheimers disease is out there. And the Alzheimers Association is going to make it happen by funding scientific breakthroughs, advancing public policy, and providing local support to those living with the disease and their caregivers. But we wont get there without you. A major announcement today from amazon that could eliminate a big headache for Grocery Shoppers the checkout line. The company unveiled amazon go. A brick and mortar store where customers scan a phone app, select items they want and simply walk out. Its all automatically charged to your amazon account. For now, theres only one store for amazon employees in seattle, but reports say the company pl t eventually. In north dakota, protests continue over a controversial pipeline even after the federal government denied a permit to build on a native american reservation yesterday. Demonstrators fear when president elect trump gets into office, he might reverse the decision. Nbcs Tammy Leitner has the latest. Reporter a new show of unity, just hours after celebrating that the Dakota Access pipeline was denied a permit to Missouri River and along the Standing Rock suh sioux reservation, the harsh reality set in. We have a new administration coming in, anything done now could be undone in a month. Reporter thousands marched in blizzard conditions today as the Company Building the pipeline responded defiantly. Saying it is fully committed to ensuring this vital project is brought to completion without any additional rerouting. President elect trumps team today reiterated their in the Company Building the pipeline. His spokesperson tells nbc news, he has sold those shares. Despite the politics at play, people are still arriving to support the cause. Were not going anywhere. No ones going anywhere. Reporter Tammy Leitner, nbc news, cannon ball, north dakota. When we come back, an extraordinary journey with pearl harbors oldest living pacific life. Helping generations of families achieve longterm Financial Security for over 145 years. Fifty years ago, humpback whales were nearly extinct. They rebounded because a decision was made to protect them. Making the right decisions today for your longterm financial future can protect you and your family, and preserve your legacy. And Life Insurance solutions from pacific life can help you plan for your future. With advil, youll ask what bad knee . What throbbing head . Advil makes pain a distant memory nothing works faster stronger or longer what pain . Advil. Its the Phillips Lady anyone ever have occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas or bloating . She does. With three types of good bacteria. 400 likes . Wow phillips. Be good to your gut. For adults with advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer previously treated with platinumbased chemotherapy, including those with an abnormal alk or egfr gene whove tried an fdaapproved targeted therapy, this is big. A chance to live longer with Opdivo Nivolumab . Opdivo demonstrated longer life immunotherapy for these patients. Opdivo significantly increased the chance of living longer versus chemotherapy. Opdivo works with your immune