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CNN Live Today

Discussion of High-Profile Legal Cases

Aired July 12, 2002 - 14:12   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The Taliban-American case is just one of several high-profile stories involving the law this week.

Joining us now from New York for a closer look, once again, CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

Hi, Jeffrey.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Hi, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Let's talk about first Robert Young Pelton. Should he be forced to testify, do you think, in the John Walker Lindh case?

TOOBIN: Well, you know, I hate to be accused of schilling (ph) for the home team, but CNN really did present a very impressive brief in this case, where the lawyer said, look, our war correspondents are in danger. We all know about Daniel Pearl. Daniel Pearl was killed because the people in Pakistan thought he was some sort of representative of the U.S. government. He was also killed because they thought he was Jewish.

And if you treat Pelton as if he some sort of government investigator instead of someone representing CNN, you will be telling people overseas that yes, journalist are effectively part of our government, and that's very dangerous. I think that's a very powerful point.

However, you know, John Walker Lindh's life on the line here, and his lawyers are saying, look, we need to find out what happened here under what conditions interrogated. Pelton is the one who knows that. That's the decision in front of the judge.

PHILLIPS: And you were thinking there was an incredibly weak argument here, right? You were talking a lot about the Miranda warnings.

TOOBIN: Right, whether Pelton testified is sort of a separate issue from the claim that's being made here. Everybody knows that when the government interrogates someone, they have to get their Miranda warnings -- you have the right to remain silent, et cetera, what the defense in the John Walker Lindh case is arguing is that this interrogation by a journalist was effectively the same thing as an interrogation by the government, so Lindh should have been warned before he spoke to Pelton that he had the right to remain silent. There has never been a case, as far as I'm aware, where an interview with the journalist has been treated as if it were an interview with the government, and I don't think they have any chance of suppressing this tape, which so many people have seen already.

PHILLIPS: All right, another question for you, switching gears, going to Los Angeles, Mitchell Crooks, the man who shot the amateur video of Donovan Jackson. The publicity surrounding his arrest, and we've been running the video of him being taken in and screaming and this and that. Do you think will hurt the L.A. district attorney's case in police brutality cases?

TOOBIN: Well, it's hard to know, because this case has so much farther to go. It is odd. And you know, in a city where the relationship between black citizens and white cops have been so fraught that here a week after this really terrible incident the only person in jail is guy who took the video. I think people will remember that.

But the DA's office now has the tape, and they can start interviewing the people who were present, and you see there were four cops there. There were other customers at the gas station. All these people will have to be talked to. And we'll see whether this is case made against Officer Morse.

PHILLIPS: What do you think about the way the DA's office is handling this? I mean, I'm looking, well, not only this arrest, but the whole radio talk show incident, where Mitchell Crooks is on the radio, someone from the DA's office called. Mitchell Crooks hangs up. I mean, it doesn't seem very professional.

TOOBIN: Yes, Mitchell Crooks certainly seems like an eccentric person with a checkered background, but there did seem to be a bit of macho posturing going on by the DA's office, you know, dragging him in to get the tape, instead of asking for the tape. They didn't need to have a grand jury subpoena if he was just willing to hand over the tape. You know, you have to do it right now on our timetable, we are going to lock you up. We are going to call you on the radio. It's the first time I ever heard of law enforcement working through a talk radio host.

It seems to me there was kind of a macho attitude that really didn't redown (ph) too much to the benefit of the DA. It will probably pass, but it wasn't there finest hour, I don't think.

PHILLIPS: Our legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin. Thanks again, Jeffrey.

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