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CNN Live Today

Super Tueday May be Edwards' Swan Song

Aired March 02, 2004 - 10:30   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.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's take a look at the states hosting elections today on this Super Tuesday. Ohio, New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Vermont are holding primaries as are California and Georgia. Minnesota holding caucuses. In all, 1,151 delegates are up for grabs.
Our political analyst Carlos Watson joins us. He has the map, he has the math, he has the analysis. He's got it all. Good morning, Carlos.

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Daryn, the only thing I don't have is California. You and I have switched places.

KAGAN: That's it. I'm in your home state, you're at my house.

Let's start with a little math here and talking John Kerry. No matter how you add up the math, he can't lock up the nomination today in terms of numbers of delegates. But in terms of symbolism and spirit, that possibility is definitely there.

WATSON: Possibility is very strong. He could walk away with 900 or 1,000 delegates, add that to the 750 or so that he has and he's very close ultimately to the 2,162 that he ultimately needs.

The other thing that will probably come out of Super Tuesday, assuming that he does very well, is he'll probably get a bounce of about 100 of what I call super delegates. I'm calling it the super delegate bounce, meaning that there will be a number of party officials who also get an extra vote who probably will fall his way who haven't fallen his way to date. Maybe some of them in the past were committed to people like Joe Lieberman and others who may now come his way in a very significant way.

KAGAN: Let's talk about the other John, John Edwards. He is pushing hard in Georgia and Ohio but even he had kind of a little nervous sound bite out there. Yesterday, if I don't pick up some delegates, can't be the nominee. He's doing a little bit of math of his own, isn't he?

WATSON: You know, he's in a tough situation. He has over 200 delegates. And even if he were to do well in some states that we've talked about there, he's still likely to end the day 1,000 delegates behind John Kerry which is a tough position to be in even though as he looks ahead to March 9, there are another 465 delegates available.

But again, it's not winner take all, meaning that if you were to win all four states on March 9, it's not as though he would get all 465. He might still only close the gap by 100 delegates or so. So he's in a tough place.

KAGAN: And finally, technically, this is still a four-man race. Al Sharpton and Kucinich are still in it. How long can they stick around?

WATSON: They can stay until the very end. Why not? It's a party. A Democratic Party. Or as Will Rogers says, I don't belong to an organized party, I belong to a Democratic Party.

Dennis Kucinich gets a chance to run in his home state. Remember Ohio is one of the ten states that's voting. So maybe he'll pick up some delegates in his home district. And as you saw him in the debate the last couple of days, he actually did fairly well in both debates.

And Al Sharpton is also running in his home state of New York. Hopes to pick up 30, 40, maybe as many as 50 delegates. So again, this could be a good day for both of them.

KAGAN: It is a party but at this party you have to pay to attend. Paying for popularity. Carlos, thank you for that.

WATSON: It's not like as the Oscars.

KAGAN: Well you got to pay there, too, but it's a different kind of payment. Thank you so much, Carlos Watson, in Atlanta.

WATSON: Good to see you.

KAGAN: Good to see you, too.

We want to go ahead and switch gears now and talk about a problem facing a lot kids in school. Being taunting, teased and even, as we've seen in some recent video, being beaten up by more than one bully.

Dramatic scenes like these are not unusual in many schools across the country. Could you child be suffering from a bully's verbal or physical attack? If so, there is a new campaign designed. It's called Stop Bully Now.

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona is launching that campaign. And he joins us live from Washington to tell us more about that. Doctor, good morning. Thanks for being with us.

DR. RICHARD CARMONA, SURGEON GENERAL: Good morning. Pleasure to be with you.

KAGAN: It is an admirable campaign, it is important problem. Not something I necessarily associate the surgeon general of the United States taking on.

CARMONA: Well, it is public health issue. The fact is is that part of my responsibility is to protect and advance the health of the nation which includes children and keeping children healthy and safe and in a nurturing environment, that they can learn, go to school safely is an important part of the surgeon general's job.

KAGAN: From the video we've seen in recent weeks, disturbing information. First of all, we saw that schoolbus incident taking place. In that incident the schoolbus driver didn't do anything, saying that that wasn't part of his or her job to be getting involved in the fight in the back of the bus.

Don't we have to have more responsible adults in charge with our kids?

CARMONA: I think what we have to do is raise the level of awareness in the country that this is in fact an issue. And the program that the Health Resources Services Administration through Dr. Duke putting forward the bullying program is one that attempts to do that.

We have to make sure that parents and teachers and all the stakeholders in safe children are aware that we have this problem that affects nearly six million children in the country. Maybe 30 percent of all children have been affected by it.

And once we can raise that level of awareness we can start dealing with the appropriate interventions.

KAGAN: And in terms of awareness, there was some other disturbing video that a lot of us saw for the first time over the last week, the Columbine killers in that eerie videotape that they made before they went the rampage at their own high school.

You look at that and you say, there were parents, there were teachers, there were professionals that missed some big clues about these disturbed young boys.

CARMONA: Clearly, there appears to have been some people that may have missed the problems that these young boys had. But as it relates to the issue of bullying, sometimes it's transparent, it happens and children are intimidated. They don't tell their parents, they don't tell their teachers.

Instead, they don't want to go to school. They don't learn in a class. They're afraid to go on a recess or grow to a bathroom. So it's important that we identify the problem, raise the awareness and make sure that all of us, all of us who are stakeholders in the health and wellness and safety of our children partake in this important endeavor.

KAGAN: And before we let you go, you're focusing a lot on kids. Later today, you'll be testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee. Childhood obesity will be the topic.

CARMONA: Yes, that's correct. It's a major problem in the United States. We have an epidemic. Nine million children are overweight or obese. A huge economic and disease burden to our society. And the good news is it's all preventable.

KAGAN: Dr. Richard Carmona, the U.S. surgeon general. Doctor, thank you for taking time with us today.

CARMONA: Thanks so much. Nice to be with you.

KAGAN: Today was the day that Kobe Bryant was to face his accuser in court for the first time since the alleged attack. We'll tell you why the judge had delayed her appearance.

And Martha Stewart's legal team delivers closing arguments today. What will the jury decide? We have "Celebrity Justice"'s Harvey Levin in the house to talk about what he can predict there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: There has been a significant development in the sexual assault case against NBA superstar Kobe Bryant. The judge in the case has delayed today's expected testimony from his 19-year-old accuser. Our national correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Eagle, Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): About 12 hours after he played in a basketball game in New Jersey, Kobe Bryant arrived in court in Colorado to begin a two-day pretrial hearing where he had expected to face his accuser in court for the first time.

The woman allegedly sexually assault at a Colorado hotel had been scheduled to testify Tuesday about defense allegations she had, quote, "multiple acts of sex in the days prior to being with Bryant and more sex within 15 hours afterwards."

But the judge has delayed the testimony until late there month saying he needs more time to decide what kind of questioning will be allowed.

CRAIG SILVERMAN, COLORADO ATTORNEY: The most damaging evidence against Kobe Bryant is this intrigue to the young lady's posterior forshet (ph). The prosecution is claiming Kobe Bryant caused that injury. Team Kobe is arguing no, that was caused by somebody else prior or aggravated by someone subsequent.

TUCHMAN: Judge Terry Ruckriegle will rule sometime following the woman's closed-door testimony if details of her sexual history are relevant.

CYNTHIA STONE, COLO. COALITION AGAINST SEXUAL ASSAULT: Just because a judge let's it be in the courtroom or makes it admissible in the courtroom, also does not mean it is true.

TUCHMAN: On Monday, Bryant's attorneys resumed his effort to get a secret police recording from with the Laker guard thrown out because he wasn't read his Miranda rights. Prosecutors say the procedure was unnecessary because Bryant wasn't arrested or in custody. Bryant's attorneys say he felt like he was in custody. The judge could issue that decision at any time.

(on camera): The alleged victim is from here in Eagle. But we've learned from court testimony she's temporarily moved out of state and that Kobe Bryant's attorneys are playing to fly her back home to testify.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Eagle, Colorado.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Let's get the latest on Kobe Bryant. Also the other legal high-profile cases. For that, we have Harvey Levin in the house here. Executive producer of "Celebrity Justice." Good to see you in person again.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Good to see you.

KAGAN: This Kobe Bryant case, this is some very sensitive territory here with the accuser potentially -- well I guess eventually will face Kobe Bryant in the courtroom.

LEVIN: She absolutely will. And you know a let of people say it's just out of bounds that you look at somebody's sexual past and try to inject it into a case to smear them.

This case, Daryn, is different because what they're try to show is that, No. 1, if she sustained injury, she had multiple sex partners and it could have happened somewhere else.

Secondly, now they're alleging that she may have had sex 15 hours after the alleged sexual assault and the point being, how traumatized could she be? They're saying that's not just trying to smear somebody, it's relative evidence, they want in.

KAGAN: Yes, it's just an interesting time. And what it does eventually to rape shield laws and other potential rape victims out there.

The other question today is this tape that the police made one of the first times they talked to Kobe Bryant, they made it secretly.

LEVIN: They made it secretly, it was done in the hotel room. And the issue is whether Kobe Bryant felt like he had a right to walk out of there and say, leave me alone, good-bye.

If he did, if a reasonable person felt they could have walked out and it wasn't like an arrest, then what they did could be fair game. If he felt confined in any way without giving him his rights, reading him his Miranda rights, in that case it may well not be admissible. And that's going to be an issue for a judge to decide.

KAGAN: All right, let's head to the East Coast to Martha Stewart. This one about to go to the jury. Huge sigh of relief on Friday with the biggest charged dropped against Martha Stewart. But she's not out of the woods yet by any means.

LEVIN: It's like saying, wow, I'm only going to spend 20 years in prison. No, it's a big deal still. She's got a tough road here. She's got a witness who testified who was a star for the prosecution. Everyone in the courtroom thought Douglas Faneuil was a very, very good witness. And the prosecution, all they have to do is really prove lying. It's not a complicated concept.

And if they can do that, she could be in a heap of trouble. And I think her closing argument is going to be extremely important today.

KAGAN: Defense attorneys did try to punch holes in -- (UNINTELLIGIBLE) his reputation but in his testimony, talking about how he was a drug user, how he was star struck.

LEVIN: But you know what? What was so interesting about that, the way he answer it is was not just saying, no, I'm not. He said, well, you know, yes, I'm 27-years-old...

(CROSSTALK)

LEVIN: But, you know, he was so contrite and so honest about it that that's the way a good witness handles himself on the stand because then they're saying, well, you know, if he's going to talk about blemishes here, if he's talking about this other thing, I might tend to believe him more. He was a good witness.

KAGAN: Finally, Michael Jackson, what do you have new in that case?

LEVIN: Here's what's going on behind the scenes. The cops in that case are piecing together key players in the Jackson camp during the relevant time here last February and March. And by that, I'm talking about two guys who are now living in New Jersey, Vinny Amen and Frank Tyson who were kind of in control of this family during that period and other people.

What they're trying to show is not just alleged molestation, but they're trying to show, if you will, a campaign of terror. They're trying to show that Jackson's people were just dead set on keeping this family under wraps and even getting them out of the country just so none of these allegations would surface. That's their M.O. right now in this investigation.

KAGAN: When is the next time we'll see all of those people in court?

LEVIN: They are scheduled in court -- I'm having a little bit of brain fade here. But I think it's a couple of weeks.

KAGAN: Couple weeks. OK. You will be covering it for us. Harvey Levin, "Celebrity Justice," appreciate it. Always good to see you in person.

LEVIN: You were really good at the Oscars, by the way.

KAGAN: Thank you.

LEVIN: You were excellent.

KAGAN: Appreciate that from someone in Hollywood. Thank you so much.

Coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, remaking "Raiders of the Lost Arc" in someone's back yard. The guys behind the project, their seven-year odyssey toward becoming a cult phenomenon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Turning now to a bizarre story out of Philadelphia. Police are searching for a woman accused at kidnapping a baby and raising her as her own. The child was believed to have been killed in a house fire back in 1997 when she was just 10-days-old. Police believe the woman set the fire to cover her tracks and the kidnapping. The child's birth mother found her daughter January after seeing her at a birthday party and recognized the girl as her own.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUZ CUEVAS, CHILD'S BIOLOGICAL MOTHER: When she walked to me, I said to my sister, when my baby was, you know, 10 days, when she smiled, when she was a baby, she had a dimple. And the little -- the girl, you know, my daughter walk in front of me and she smiled and the dimple did it.

I said to my sister, look, she is my daughter! and just, you know, she's my daughter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: And, in fact, DNA results confirm the child was her Cuevas' daughter. They are working on reuniting the mother and daughter.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

KAGAN: Coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, a live report on the series of bombing in Iraq as many mark a Muslim holy day.

And Aristide may be gone from Haiti but the chaos is far from over. What does that mean for the Marines on the front line? The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY gets started right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired March 2, 2004 - 10:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's take a look at the states hosting elections today on this Super Tuesday. Ohio, New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Vermont are holding primaries as are California and Georgia. Minnesota holding caucuses. In all, 1,151 delegates are up for grabs.
Our political analyst Carlos Watson joins us. He has the map, he has the math, he has the analysis. He's got it all. Good morning, Carlos.

CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Daryn, the only thing I don't have is California. You and I have switched places.

KAGAN: That's it. I'm in your home state, you're at my house.

Let's start with a little math here and talking John Kerry. No matter how you add up the math, he can't lock up the nomination today in terms of numbers of delegates. But in terms of symbolism and spirit, that possibility is definitely there.

WATSON: Possibility is very strong. He could walk away with 900 or 1,000 delegates, add that to the 750 or so that he has and he's very close ultimately to the 2,162 that he ultimately needs.

The other thing that will probably come out of Super Tuesday, assuming that he does very well, is he'll probably get a bounce of about 100 of what I call super delegates. I'm calling it the super delegate bounce, meaning that there will be a number of party officials who also get an extra vote who probably will fall his way who haven't fallen his way to date. Maybe some of them in the past were committed to people like Joe Lieberman and others who may now come his way in a very significant way.

KAGAN: Let's talk about the other John, John Edwards. He is pushing hard in Georgia and Ohio but even he had kind of a little nervous sound bite out there. Yesterday, if I don't pick up some delegates, can't be the nominee. He's doing a little bit of math of his own, isn't he?

WATSON: You know, he's in a tough situation. He has over 200 delegates. And even if he were to do well in some states that we've talked about there, he's still likely to end the day 1,000 delegates behind John Kerry which is a tough position to be in even though as he looks ahead to March 9, there are another 465 delegates available.

But again, it's not winner take all, meaning that if you were to win all four states on March 9, it's not as though he would get all 465. He might still only close the gap by 100 delegates or so. So he's in a tough place.

KAGAN: And finally, technically, this is still a four-man race. Al Sharpton and Kucinich are still in it. How long can they stick around?

WATSON: They can stay until the very end. Why not? It's a party. A Democratic Party. Or as Will Rogers says, I don't belong to an organized party, I belong to a Democratic Party.

Dennis Kucinich gets a chance to run in his home state. Remember Ohio is one of the ten states that's voting. So maybe he'll pick up some delegates in his home district. And as you saw him in the debate the last couple of days, he actually did fairly well in both debates.

And Al Sharpton is also running in his home state of New York. Hopes to pick up 30, 40, maybe as many as 50 delegates. So again, this could be a good day for both of them.

KAGAN: It is a party but at this party you have to pay to attend. Paying for popularity. Carlos, thank you for that.

WATSON: It's not like as the Oscars.

KAGAN: Well you got to pay there, too, but it's a different kind of payment. Thank you so much, Carlos Watson, in Atlanta.

WATSON: Good to see you.

KAGAN: Good to see you, too.

We want to go ahead and switch gears now and talk about a problem facing a lot kids in school. Being taunting, teased and even, as we've seen in some recent video, being beaten up by more than one bully.

Dramatic scenes like these are not unusual in many schools across the country. Could you child be suffering from a bully's verbal or physical attack? If so, there is a new campaign designed. It's called Stop Bully Now.

U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona is launching that campaign. And he joins us live from Washington to tell us more about that. Doctor, good morning. Thanks for being with us.

DR. RICHARD CARMONA, SURGEON GENERAL: Good morning. Pleasure to be with you.

KAGAN: It is an admirable campaign, it is important problem. Not something I necessarily associate the surgeon general of the United States taking on.

CARMONA: Well, it is public health issue. The fact is is that part of my responsibility is to protect and advance the health of the nation which includes children and keeping children healthy and safe and in a nurturing environment, that they can learn, go to school safely is an important part of the surgeon general's job.

KAGAN: From the video we've seen in recent weeks, disturbing information. First of all, we saw that schoolbus incident taking place. In that incident the schoolbus driver didn't do anything, saying that that wasn't part of his or her job to be getting involved in the fight in the back of the bus.

Don't we have to have more responsible adults in charge with our kids?

CARMONA: I think what we have to do is raise the level of awareness in the country that this is in fact an issue. And the program that the Health Resources Services Administration through Dr. Duke putting forward the bullying program is one that attempts to do that.

We have to make sure that parents and teachers and all the stakeholders in safe children are aware that we have this problem that affects nearly six million children in the country. Maybe 30 percent of all children have been affected by it.

And once we can raise that level of awareness we can start dealing with the appropriate interventions.

KAGAN: And in terms of awareness, there was some other disturbing video that a lot of us saw for the first time over the last week, the Columbine killers in that eerie videotape that they made before they went the rampage at their own high school.

You look at that and you say, there were parents, there were teachers, there were professionals that missed some big clues about these disturbed young boys.

CARMONA: Clearly, there appears to have been some people that may have missed the problems that these young boys had. But as it relates to the issue of bullying, sometimes it's transparent, it happens and children are intimidated. They don't tell their parents, they don't tell their teachers.

Instead, they don't want to go to school. They don't learn in a class. They're afraid to go on a recess or grow to a bathroom. So it's important that we identify the problem, raise the awareness and make sure that all of us, all of us who are stakeholders in the health and wellness and safety of our children partake in this important endeavor.

KAGAN: And before we let you go, you're focusing a lot on kids. Later today, you'll be testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee. Childhood obesity will be the topic.

CARMONA: Yes, that's correct. It's a major problem in the United States. We have an epidemic. Nine million children are overweight or obese. A huge economic and disease burden to our society. And the good news is it's all preventable.

KAGAN: Dr. Richard Carmona, the U.S. surgeon general. Doctor, thank you for taking time with us today.

CARMONA: Thanks so much. Nice to be with you.

KAGAN: Today was the day that Kobe Bryant was to face his accuser in court for the first time since the alleged attack. We'll tell you why the judge had delayed her appearance.

And Martha Stewart's legal team delivers closing arguments today. What will the jury decide? We have "Celebrity Justice"'s Harvey Levin in the house to talk about what he can predict there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: There has been a significant development in the sexual assault case against NBA superstar Kobe Bryant. The judge in the case has delayed today's expected testimony from his 19-year-old accuser. Our national correspondent Gary Tuchman is in Eagle, Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): About 12 hours after he played in a basketball game in New Jersey, Kobe Bryant arrived in court in Colorado to begin a two-day pretrial hearing where he had expected to face his accuser in court for the first time.

The woman allegedly sexually assault at a Colorado hotel had been scheduled to testify Tuesday about defense allegations she had, quote, "multiple acts of sex in the days prior to being with Bryant and more sex within 15 hours afterwards."

But the judge has delayed the testimony until late there month saying he needs more time to decide what kind of questioning will be allowed.

CRAIG SILVERMAN, COLORADO ATTORNEY: The most damaging evidence against Kobe Bryant is this intrigue to the young lady's posterior forshet (ph). The prosecution is claiming Kobe Bryant caused that injury. Team Kobe is arguing no, that was caused by somebody else prior or aggravated by someone subsequent.

TUCHMAN: Judge Terry Ruckriegle will rule sometime following the woman's closed-door testimony if details of her sexual history are relevant.

CYNTHIA STONE, COLO. COALITION AGAINST SEXUAL ASSAULT: Just because a judge let's it be in the courtroom or makes it admissible in the courtroom, also does not mean it is true.

TUCHMAN: On Monday, Bryant's attorneys resumed his effort to get a secret police recording from with the Laker guard thrown out because he wasn't read his Miranda rights. Prosecutors say the procedure was unnecessary because Bryant wasn't arrested or in custody. Bryant's attorneys say he felt like he was in custody. The judge could issue that decision at any time.

(on camera): The alleged victim is from here in Eagle. But we've learned from court testimony she's temporarily moved out of state and that Kobe Bryant's attorneys are playing to fly her back home to testify.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Eagle, Colorado.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Let's get the latest on Kobe Bryant. Also the other legal high-profile cases. For that, we have Harvey Levin in the house here. Executive producer of "Celebrity Justice." Good to see you in person again.

HARVEY LEVIN, "CELEBRITY JUSTICE": Good to see you.

KAGAN: This Kobe Bryant case, this is some very sensitive territory here with the accuser potentially -- well I guess eventually will face Kobe Bryant in the courtroom.

LEVIN: She absolutely will. And you know a let of people say it's just out of bounds that you look at somebody's sexual past and try to inject it into a case to smear them.

This case, Daryn, is different because what they're try to show is that, No. 1, if she sustained injury, she had multiple sex partners and it could have happened somewhere else.

Secondly, now they're alleging that she may have had sex 15 hours after the alleged sexual assault and the point being, how traumatized could she be? They're saying that's not just trying to smear somebody, it's relative evidence, they want in.

KAGAN: Yes, it's just an interesting time. And what it does eventually to rape shield laws and other potential rape victims out there.

The other question today is this tape that the police made one of the first times they talked to Kobe Bryant, they made it secretly.

LEVIN: They made it secretly, it was done in the hotel room. And the issue is whether Kobe Bryant felt like he had a right to walk out of there and say, leave me alone, good-bye.

If he did, if a reasonable person felt they could have walked out and it wasn't like an arrest, then what they did could be fair game. If he felt confined in any way without giving him his rights, reading him his Miranda rights, in that case it may well not be admissible. And that's going to be an issue for a judge to decide.

KAGAN: All right, let's head to the East Coast to Martha Stewart. This one about to go to the jury. Huge sigh of relief on Friday with the biggest charged dropped against Martha Stewart. But she's not out of the woods yet by any means.

LEVIN: It's like saying, wow, I'm only going to spend 20 years in prison. No, it's a big deal still. She's got a tough road here. She's got a witness who testified who was a star for the prosecution. Everyone in the courtroom thought Douglas Faneuil was a very, very good witness. And the prosecution, all they have to do is really prove lying. It's not a complicated concept.

And if they can do that, she could be in a heap of trouble. And I think her closing argument is going to be extremely important today.

KAGAN: Defense attorneys did try to punch holes in -- (UNINTELLIGIBLE) his reputation but in his testimony, talking about how he was a drug user, how he was star struck.

LEVIN: But you know what? What was so interesting about that, the way he answer it is was not just saying, no, I'm not. He said, well, you know, yes, I'm 27-years-old...

(CROSSTALK)

LEVIN: But, you know, he was so contrite and so honest about it that that's the way a good witness handles himself on the stand because then they're saying, well, you know, if he's going to talk about blemishes here, if he's talking about this other thing, I might tend to believe him more. He was a good witness.

KAGAN: Finally, Michael Jackson, what do you have new in that case?

LEVIN: Here's what's going on behind the scenes. The cops in that case are piecing together key players in the Jackson camp during the relevant time here last February and March. And by that, I'm talking about two guys who are now living in New Jersey, Vinny Amen and Frank Tyson who were kind of in control of this family during that period and other people.

What they're trying to show is not just alleged molestation, but they're trying to show, if you will, a campaign of terror. They're trying to show that Jackson's people were just dead set on keeping this family under wraps and even getting them out of the country just so none of these allegations would surface. That's their M.O. right now in this investigation.

KAGAN: When is the next time we'll see all of those people in court?

LEVIN: They are scheduled in court -- I'm having a little bit of brain fade here. But I think it's a couple of weeks.

KAGAN: Couple weeks. OK. You will be covering it for us. Harvey Levin, "Celebrity Justice," appreciate it. Always good to see you in person.

LEVIN: You were really good at the Oscars, by the way.

KAGAN: Thank you.

LEVIN: You were excellent.

KAGAN: Appreciate that from someone in Hollywood. Thank you so much.

Coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, remaking "Raiders of the Lost Arc" in someone's back yard. The guys behind the project, their seven-year odyssey toward becoming a cult phenomenon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Turning now to a bizarre story out of Philadelphia. Police are searching for a woman accused at kidnapping a baby and raising her as her own. The child was believed to have been killed in a house fire back in 1997 when she was just 10-days-old. Police believe the woman set the fire to cover her tracks and the kidnapping. The child's birth mother found her daughter January after seeing her at a birthday party and recognized the girl as her own.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUZ CUEVAS, CHILD'S BIOLOGICAL MOTHER: When she walked to me, I said to my sister, when my baby was, you know, 10 days, when she smiled, when she was a baby, she had a dimple. And the little -- the girl, you know, my daughter walk in front of me and she smiled and the dimple did it.

I said to my sister, look, she is my daughter! and just, you know, she's my daughter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: And, in fact, DNA results confirm the child was her Cuevas' daughter. They are working on reuniting the mother and daughter.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

KAGAN: Coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, a live report on the series of bombing in Iraq as many mark a Muslim holy day.

And Aristide may be gone from Haiti but the chaos is far from over. What does that mean for the Marines on the front line? The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY gets started right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com