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American Morning
Kerry Veep-Stakes; Prosecution Bombshell in Scott Peterson Trial Fizzles
Aired June 30, 2004 - 07:30 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. 7:30 here in New York. It looks like a postcard outside today.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It does.
HEMMER: We're getting our spring time now, aren't we?
O'BRIEN: It's about time! Spring and all.
HEMMER: Thank you, Mother Nature.
Welcome back, everyone. Closer and closer now to that decision time for John Kerry, weighing his choice for a running mate. There's a new poll out showing who Americans think he should pick. The prosecution and cons of that choice, the people's choice, in a moment here.
O'BRIEN: Also this morning, testimony in the Scott Peterson trial that could give a boost to the prosecution about Scott Peterson and a hypothetical way to dispose of a body. Reporter Gloria Gomez is going to join us to talk about that.
HEMMER: Also this hour, Marlon Brando. Has he reached rock bottom? "90-Second Pop" takes a shot at that, talking about Brando reports that he's responsible for some of the greatest movie roles ever, we know that, but nearly destitute. Did we know that? We'll check it out in a moment here.
O'BRIEN: We've got a biographer is claiming that now. We'll see how much truth there is to that.
But first, Senator John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, kept his vice presidential selection process under wraps. But with the party convention approaching, the buzz is building.
Kelly Wallace joins us this morning with a little more on Kerry's short list.
Any word on who it is?
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, big mystery, Soledad. The only person who knows is John Kerry. But Democratic sources keep telling us they think two men who have been on that short list continue to be there: John Edwards and Dick Gephardt.
Meantime, there is no shortage of advice for the senator about just what he should do.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE (voice over): Everyone seems to have something to say about John Kerry's search for a running mate.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The most important thing is that he pick somebody that he believes with all his heart would be a great president if he dropped dead, got shot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: John, would you consider joining John Kerry on the ticket to run as vice president?
JON STEWART, COMEDIAN: That is an excellent question.
WALLACE: Comedian Jon Stewart on the short list? Only John Kerry knows, and he's not talking. So we can only read the tea leaves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John Kerry!
WALLACE: How Kerry seems to spend more time meeting with Dick Gephardt recently than with any other contender, and how John Edwards seems to be leading the pack in public auditioning.
SUSAN MILLIGAN, "THE BOSTON GLOBE": It's sort of like campaigning to be somebody's prom date. I mean, it doesn't really matter. You can get the whole senior class on your side, but you really just have to convince one person that you're the person that they should choose.
WALLACE: If Kerry's looking at the polls, give Edwards the nod. With 72 percent of Americans saying they would be enthusiastic or satisfied with an Edwards pick. Almost two-thirds feel that way about Gephardt.
Gephardt would help Kerry in the battleground state of Missouri but brings no razzle dazzle to the ticket, whereas Edwards has rock star appeal but could outshine the nominee.
But does the choice even matter? Only once in recent history, presidential historians say, did it make a major difference.
STEPHEN HESS, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN, BROOKINGS INSTITUTE: But John Kennedy picked Lyndon Johnson, he actually carried Texas because of it. But that's the exception. Usually it's not for winning a state as much as it is showing what sort of a person you are.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE: And there are many other names mentioned, ranging from Iowa's Governor Tom Vilsack to Senator Joe Biden of the Foreign Relations Committee. But again, John Kerry keeping this a tightly- held secret, Soledad. Part of the reason, he was one of the finalists in 2000, and he wasn't happy about his name being leaked out. O'BRIEN: Does he have to make his decision by the convention? I mean, does everyone essentially make that big announcement at the convention?
WALLACE: Well, years and years ago, it was done right at the convention, but obviously in the past several years it's been done a little bit before the convention to build up some excitement. The sense we're getting is that the two weeks after July 4 is open on the senator's schedule. So it's a question we keep asking.
O'BRIEN: So you're reading his schedule! You see it's open, and that's when (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
WALLACE: We keep saying that, exactly.
O'BRIEN: If you keep saying it maybe he'll do it.
WALLACE: Maybe.
O'BRIEN: All right, Kelly, thanks.
WALLACE: Sure.
HEMMER: Some incredible videotape now. A brazen bank robbery earlier this week in Washington, on Tuesday, in fact. A local news photographer from WTTG television hears of a crime in progress. He turns his camera on the bank, captures a hooded gunman checking out the scene from the getaway van, right there. Seconds later, two masked robbers flee the bank. You'll see it in a moment here.
And as they come out, carrying a load of loot, about $50,000 in fact, they speed away. Minutes later, this was eventually the scene, about a mile and a half down the road, the getaway van is found burning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I saw two men, one with a black bandanna, another one with some type of a hood device, running with rifles across the front of the bank. And as that happened, I called 911.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were going fast. I mean, real fast. If we had slid over about three more feet, he'd have ran right into us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Going back in time just a little bit here, you're watching the videotape as the two masked gunmen came out of that bank. We are told that they got about 50 grand in loot. Police believe the bank robbers had struck six times since January.
And we mentioned they torched the getaway vans. All of those vans apparently had been stolen. That's what police say anyway.
Total, over the half dozen heists, the gunmen have apparently taken more than $350,000, and it's caused a lot of concern in the area. The police chief down there in D.C. said they are vicious. And here they come out of that bank into the getaway car, fully loaded, as we see, with the one shot being fired into the air. Incredible videotape from D.C.
O'BRIEN: Wow! That's unusual to capture. Wow!
Testimony resumes today in Scott Peterson's double murder trial. In court yesterday, a prosecution bombshell, some people say. It was kind of diffused by the defense.
After testifying that Peterson once talked about disposing of a body, in much the same way that Laci's remains were found, a police detective admitted under cross-examination that story came from an unreliable source. But was there any boom whatsoever for the prosecution?
Gloria Gomez is a reporter for KOVR TV in Sacramento. She's covering the trial.
Good morning. Nice to see you, Gloria. Thanks, as always, for joining us.
GLORIA GOMEZ, KOVR TV REPORTER: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to it. The testimony was from a detective, and it involved a story about Scott Peterson talking about how he would have disposed of a body. Some call it a bombshell, as in good for the defense, bad for the prosecution. Other people say actually in the end not bad for the prosecution. Where do you weigh in on this?
GOMEZ: Well, actually, what happened yesterday is, Detective Al Brocchini described a tip where someone claimed to be Scott Peterson's college friend, and in that tip he said that the two were talking about how to dispose of a body. They would wrap it up in duct tape, throw weights around its head and arms, and then throw it in bay where the fish eventually would eat up at the body.
And, of course, Detective Brocchini also brought up the point that this was an unconfirmed tip; that, in fact, it was not a credible tip. This came out under redirect. It wasn't under cross- examination. So, he made it clear right off the bat that this was an unsubstantiated tip. Yet, the jury got to hear it, Soledad. So, obviously powerful.
O'BRIEN: Yes. So, what was the jury's reaction? You say it was powerful. How did they react, even when told it's not substantiated and not necessarily reliable?
GOMEZ: Well, actually when it came out, everybody was sitting up in their seats, a lot of us taking notes and looked to see what the jury was doing. They were attentive, leaning forward, listening to what the detective was saying; also taking a lot of notes during that time. And there was a stir in the courtroom. Everybody was, like, did you just hear that? It was unbelievable to hear the stir in the courtroom at the time this was being described. O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about the prosecution. What has been the demeanor of the prosecutor, Rick Distaso. He obviously has a lot of ground to recover over the last five days of testimony from Detective Brocchini. It's been a tough time for the prosecution.
GOMEZ: It has been a tough time, and he doesn't have the flare that Mark Geragos has. He doesn't have the enthusiasm, yet he had that yesterday. He was very confident when he came into the courtroom. He was in control. He had a lot of dynamic to his voice. He looked like he was just in charge yesterday.
And almost giving it right back to the defense when they brought up something he wanted to show on the full screen, they objected to it immediately. And he says, no, if you got to do that the other day, I get to do that today. So, very much in control, a passion in his voice that we hadn't seen before.
O'BRIEN: A little change of strategy.
Let's talk about some pictures that most people haven't seen before. I want to first show you -- I'll tell you what we're seeing, and then you tell me what the significance is. This is a shot of a phone book. What's that about?
GOMEZ: Well, when detectives actually searched Scott Peterson's home the day Laci Peterson disappeared they noticed that the phone book was open and flipped to a page listing all of the lawyers in town. So obviously, prosecutors are contending that maybe Scott Peterson was already looking for some sort of legal help, even before police arrived, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Then we have heard about this, the photo of a blue mop, rags on the washer. This all involves really what the housekeeper has been saying?
GOMEZ: Right. But prosecutors contend that when the police entered the home, they noticed there was a bucket with a wet ring around it and the two mops, and, of course, those dirty rags on the washer, suggesting that Scott Peterson did a little cleanup before police arrived.
O'BRIEN: Gloria Gomez, again, you know, it seems like we end every time we chat by saying the curves and the twists and turns in the case. But you know what? We've got a long way to go, and I'm sure there will be many more.
GOMEZ: More to come.
O'BRIEN: Thanks, Gloria, as always, appreciate it.
GOMEZ: OK.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: Let's get a break here. Next on AMERICAN MORNING, if you're feeling lucky, now might be the time to buy a lotto ticket. We'll tell you why.
O'BRIEN: I'm feeling lucky. I want a lotto ticket.
Also ahead this morning, "Spider-Man 2." It swings into movie theaters. Our "90-Second Pop" panel is going to tell us whether Spidey packs as big a punch the second time around. Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER BREAK)
HEMMER: Back to Jack, the "Question of the Day." Looking at us today, aren't we?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. A little introspection here on AMERICAN MORNING. When Nicholas Berg was beheaded last month by the terrorists, the "Los Angeles Times" reports his name was the second most popular search request on Google, right after "American Idol." A little scary. According to CBSNews.com, any stories that contain graphic violence cause an astronomical spike in viewing online. All of this putting the traditional news media, that would be us, in a bit of a quandary.
With an obvious appetite for violence, as displayed by those Internet statistics, the question we're asking this morning is: How much coverage should traditional media give to terrorist kidnappings and beheadings?
Marie in Alcott City, Maryland writes: "If TV stations and the Internet did not show those atrocities, the killings would stop. No audience, no need to kill. The terrorists do this for shock value."
Jeremy in Tennessee writes: "The media should be allowed to cover every aspect of the terrorist kidnappings and beheadings. People need to be educated on what's happening."
Tony in Roscoe, Illinois writes: "Tell us what you know. It's not your job to protect us from the truth, nor is it your job to sensationalize the story and play into the hands of the terrorists by broadcasting horrific videos of the victims."
And Ann in Audubon, New Jersey writes this: "Not everyone who Googled Nick Berg was looking for gruesome reports. I was looking to find the text of his father's statement. It was one of the most moving things I have ever heard. His anti-war statements were strong and heartfelt. Having access to the horrors of war is not a bad thing. Everyone should be able to know what horrors war possess."
HEMMER: I don't know why they do it.
CAFFERTY: AM@CNN.com. Yes, interesting topic, I think, this morning.
O'BRIEN: Yes, it is.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
In a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING, breaking news overnight about the status of Saddam Hussein. The latest on that after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: It's about 12 minutes now before the hour. Back to Drew Griffin at the CNN center looking at the headlines this morning.
Drew, good morning to you.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Bill.
Iraqi authorities getting legal custody of Saddam Hussein and 11 other high-profile members of his former regime. Saddam and the others are no longer prisoners of war, but will physically remain under coalition custody; that is, until sufficient Iraqi security is in place. Charges expected tomorrow.
Secretary of State Colin Powell is getting a firsthand look at more than a million refugees displaced in the Darfur region of the Sudan. Secretary Powell arriving there, urging the government to take action and stressing that time is of the essence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The international community believes that unless we see more movement soon in all of these areas, it may be necessary for the international community to begin considering other actions to include Security Council action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN: Powell is also expected to meet in Sudan with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan has described the situation as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
Turning to U.S. politics, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry rejecting calls to release his 1988 divorce records while he is campaigning. Senator Kerry calling his divorce from his first wife, Julia Thorne -- quote -- "ancient history," saying they have remained friends. Kerry who married in 1995. His current wife is Theresa Heinz Kerry.
And folks looking to strike it rich will get another chance. None of the tickets sold for yesterday's Mega Millions $220 million drawing matched all five lotto numbers and that Megaball. That means at least $280 million will be up for grabs in the next drawing set for this Friday. Mega Millions is played in 11 states, including Georgia and New York, which means, Soledad, you and I could have a very nice July Fourth weekend.
O'BRIEN: I know. Can I tell you? Wouldn't that be great? What a nice way to head into the weekend, $280 million richer. It sounds good, doesn't it? Thanks, Drew. Appreciate it. Still ahead this morning, once one of Hollywood's biggest names, Marlon Brando reportedly has hit the skids. ""90-Second Pop" is coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: I know this is a popular song, but I never loved this song from Janet Jackson, I've got to tell you. I know, I'm sorry. Not to start off by dissing Janet, because, you know, I love her.
SARAH BERNARD, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Poor Janet.
O'BRIEN: But it's Wednesday. It's time for -- me, too, I'm sorry.
ANDY BOROWITZ, HUMORIST: As I know.
O'BRIEN: "90-Second Pop" time for a visit from our pop culture mavens this morning. B.J. Sigesmund is staff editor for "US Weekly" magazine, also Sarah Bernard, contributing editor for "New York" magazine, and humorist Andy Borowitz, the man responsible for BorowitzReport.com, no "the" please!
BOROWITZ: I know.
BERNARD: Come on.
O'BRIEN: I've gotten that right three times in a row, which means I should win some sort of award or something. All right, let's get right to it.
Janet Jackson, there was lots of concern because she had this performance on BET.
BERNARD: That's right.
O'BRIEN: And it was live, which meant...
BERNARD: No tape delay, so hopefully no wardrobe malfunction.
O'BRIEN: And she was (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BERNARD: That's right.
O'BRIEN: Did she?
BERNARD: She was a very, very good girl. But Rick James was a very bad boy.
O'BRIEN: What happened?
BERNARD: He thankfully did not have a wardrobe malfunction, but he used some language that you're not supposed to use on live TV. So, he...
BOROWITZ: In fairness to him, he spent the weekend with Dick Cheney, so I think it may have rubbed off on him.
BERNARD: Oh, the foul mouth, it rubbed off.
BOROWITZ: A little bit.
BERNARD: Well, not only did Janet not do any revealing, she was wearing a giant amount of clothes. She had, like, these giant pants on and a tunic that went all the way down.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "US WEEKLY": I don't know, but there was so much talk about Janet yesterday, this big -- you know, her big performance on that show. Then this morning in the papers and on the Internet, there's nothing. No one's talking about it barely an iota.
BERNARD: Because that's what it shows you.
O'BRIEN: Once you've gotten naked, you've got to get naked again or nobody...
BERNARD: Yes, no wardrobe malfunction, no one talk about you. That's the problem.
SIGESMUND: She'll learn.
O'BRIEN: But, you know, if you hire Rick James to come and do your show, you know what you're getting, right? I mean, come on.
BERNARD: You know what you're getting. He was very unhappy when someone didn't know who he was, and that's what started it.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that is...
BOROWITZ: My criticism of the show is that it wasn't long enough. I just thought...
BERNARD: Yes!
SIGESMUND: Oh, my God, it was three and a half hours!
BOROWITZ: You know, it didn't really get...
BERNARD: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Oh sarcasm, always funny.
All right, let's talk about Marlon Brando. A biographer says that -- I mean, this is a serious story. That he is destitute. That he has hit the skids. What do know about this biographer? I mean, is there a chance that this is actually right on?
BOROWITZ: Well, we don't really know. I mean, I think we have to wait to see what the facts are. They're saying that he's $20 million in debt. My sources say that he blew a lot of money in the market -- actually Boston Market is what I'm hearing. But no, no, no.
SIGESMUND: Oh! BOROWITZ: That's actually not true. But I don't know. You know, it's sort of hard to even imagine $20 million in debt, because I remember when he did the movie, "Superman," he got paid $4 million for one minute of acting. So, if I'm doing the math right, all he has to do is work five minutes to make that all back. He'll be fine.
BERNARD: And then he'll be fine.
BOROWITZ: He'll be fine.
(CROSSTALK)
O'BRIEN: "The Score" was his last movie.
BERNARD: That's right. That was probably the last one.
O'BRIEN: And he made a ton of money for that for a brief appearance, too.
BOROWITZ: Right.
BERNARD: And how did he spend it? It was mostly defending his son, right?
BOROWITZ: A lot of legal bills, that's right.
BERNARD: You know, it's always the kids.
SIGESMUND: A lot of lawsuits and a lot of kids. He has...
O'BRIEN: Well, his son killed somebody?
SIGESMUND: Yes, his son killed his sister's boyfriend.
O'BRIEN: Yes, that's going to cost you a lot of money.
SIGESMUND: There was...
BERNARD: That's going to cost you, yes. It's always the kids. see? They squander it away.
SIGESMUND: Yes. But he hasn't been able to work for a long time. Remember, they wanted him in "Scary Movie 2," and they were offering $2 million for a cameo in that. He couldn't do it, because he was too ill.
BOROWITZ: It said online that he's doing this animated movie now. He's doing an old woman's voice in a movie called "Big Bug Man." So that's...
O'BRIEN: Yes.
BERNARD: Animated movies are perfect!
O'BRIEN: And you're kidding.
BERNARD: That's true.
(CROSSTALK)
BOROWITZ: "Big Bug Man" (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
O'BRIEN: Well, hopefully they'll pay him 20 million and he'll be in the clear. It will all work out for Marlon.
"Spider-Man 2," we don't have a ton of time, but it's the big release. You know, sequels generally, I think, as a rule, are so much worse than the original, not worth seeing. How about this one?
SIGESMUND: Not this one. This one totally delivers. I saw it last week. The thrills are just as big, but it has a big heart as well. You know, he's filled with angst about his love for M.J., which actually costs him his superpowers in this film. And it has a lot of wit as well. You know, there is one scene where he washes his Spider- Man costume in the washing machine and it turns all his whites to pink.
It was a lot of fun, and I am expecting that this movie will do better than the first one and break more records. One estimate said it could make $200 million over the six days.
O'BRIEN: Wow!
SIGESMUND: Remember, it has a six-day weekend now, because it opens today.
BOROWITZ: Couldn't they just give 20 of that to Marlon?
O'BRIEN: We're going to work that out off-air. We're going to move all of that money around and make everything OK in the end. You guys, as always thank you so much. Nice to see you. Appreciate it.
Bill -- back to you.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad, next hour here on AMERICAN MORNING, if you're used to seeing those grainy bank robber surveillance tapes, get a load of this. In plain view, broad daylight, a stunning scene. All of that caught on tape. We'll check it out, top of the hour, after this.
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Aired June 30, 2004 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. 7:30 here in New York. It looks like a postcard outside today.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: It does.
HEMMER: We're getting our spring time now, aren't we?
O'BRIEN: It's about time! Spring and all.
HEMMER: Thank you, Mother Nature.
Welcome back, everyone. Closer and closer now to that decision time for John Kerry, weighing his choice for a running mate. There's a new poll out showing who Americans think he should pick. The prosecution and cons of that choice, the people's choice, in a moment here.
O'BRIEN: Also this morning, testimony in the Scott Peterson trial that could give a boost to the prosecution about Scott Peterson and a hypothetical way to dispose of a body. Reporter Gloria Gomez is going to join us to talk about that.
HEMMER: Also this hour, Marlon Brando. Has he reached rock bottom? "90-Second Pop" takes a shot at that, talking about Brando reports that he's responsible for some of the greatest movie roles ever, we know that, but nearly destitute. Did we know that? We'll check it out in a moment here.
O'BRIEN: We've got a biographer is claiming that now. We'll see how much truth there is to that.
But first, Senator John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, kept his vice presidential selection process under wraps. But with the party convention approaching, the buzz is building.
Kelly Wallace joins us this morning with a little more on Kerry's short list.
Any word on who it is?
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, big mystery, Soledad. The only person who knows is John Kerry. But Democratic sources keep telling us they think two men who have been on that short list continue to be there: John Edwards and Dick Gephardt.
Meantime, there is no shortage of advice for the senator about just what he should do.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE (voice over): Everyone seems to have something to say about John Kerry's search for a running mate.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The most important thing is that he pick somebody that he believes with all his heart would be a great president if he dropped dead, got shot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: John, would you consider joining John Kerry on the ticket to run as vice president?
JON STEWART, COMEDIAN: That is an excellent question.
WALLACE: Comedian Jon Stewart on the short list? Only John Kerry knows, and he's not talking. So we can only read the tea leaves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John Kerry!
WALLACE: How Kerry seems to spend more time meeting with Dick Gephardt recently than with any other contender, and how John Edwards seems to be leading the pack in public auditioning.
SUSAN MILLIGAN, "THE BOSTON GLOBE": It's sort of like campaigning to be somebody's prom date. I mean, it doesn't really matter. You can get the whole senior class on your side, but you really just have to convince one person that you're the person that they should choose.
WALLACE: If Kerry's looking at the polls, give Edwards the nod. With 72 percent of Americans saying they would be enthusiastic or satisfied with an Edwards pick. Almost two-thirds feel that way about Gephardt.
Gephardt would help Kerry in the battleground state of Missouri but brings no razzle dazzle to the ticket, whereas Edwards has rock star appeal but could outshine the nominee.
But does the choice even matter? Only once in recent history, presidential historians say, did it make a major difference.
STEPHEN HESS, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN, BROOKINGS INSTITUTE: But John Kennedy picked Lyndon Johnson, he actually carried Texas because of it. But that's the exception. Usually it's not for winning a state as much as it is showing what sort of a person you are.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE: And there are many other names mentioned, ranging from Iowa's Governor Tom Vilsack to Senator Joe Biden of the Foreign Relations Committee. But again, John Kerry keeping this a tightly- held secret, Soledad. Part of the reason, he was one of the finalists in 2000, and he wasn't happy about his name being leaked out. O'BRIEN: Does he have to make his decision by the convention? I mean, does everyone essentially make that big announcement at the convention?
WALLACE: Well, years and years ago, it was done right at the convention, but obviously in the past several years it's been done a little bit before the convention to build up some excitement. The sense we're getting is that the two weeks after July 4 is open on the senator's schedule. So it's a question we keep asking.
O'BRIEN: So you're reading his schedule! You see it's open, and that's when (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
WALLACE: We keep saying that, exactly.
O'BRIEN: If you keep saying it maybe he'll do it.
WALLACE: Maybe.
O'BRIEN: All right, Kelly, thanks.
WALLACE: Sure.
HEMMER: Some incredible videotape now. A brazen bank robbery earlier this week in Washington, on Tuesday, in fact. A local news photographer from WTTG television hears of a crime in progress. He turns his camera on the bank, captures a hooded gunman checking out the scene from the getaway van, right there. Seconds later, two masked robbers flee the bank. You'll see it in a moment here.
And as they come out, carrying a load of loot, about $50,000 in fact, they speed away. Minutes later, this was eventually the scene, about a mile and a half down the road, the getaway van is found burning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I saw two men, one with a black bandanna, another one with some type of a hood device, running with rifles across the front of the bank. And as that happened, I called 911.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were going fast. I mean, real fast. If we had slid over about three more feet, he'd have ran right into us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Going back in time just a little bit here, you're watching the videotape as the two masked gunmen came out of that bank. We are told that they got about 50 grand in loot. Police believe the bank robbers had struck six times since January.
And we mentioned they torched the getaway vans. All of those vans apparently had been stolen. That's what police say anyway.
Total, over the half dozen heists, the gunmen have apparently taken more than $350,000, and it's caused a lot of concern in the area. The police chief down there in D.C. said they are vicious. And here they come out of that bank into the getaway car, fully loaded, as we see, with the one shot being fired into the air. Incredible videotape from D.C.
O'BRIEN: Wow! That's unusual to capture. Wow!
Testimony resumes today in Scott Peterson's double murder trial. In court yesterday, a prosecution bombshell, some people say. It was kind of diffused by the defense.
After testifying that Peterson once talked about disposing of a body, in much the same way that Laci's remains were found, a police detective admitted under cross-examination that story came from an unreliable source. But was there any boom whatsoever for the prosecution?
Gloria Gomez is a reporter for KOVR TV in Sacramento. She's covering the trial.
Good morning. Nice to see you, Gloria. Thanks, as always, for joining us.
GLORIA GOMEZ, KOVR TV REPORTER: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to it. The testimony was from a detective, and it involved a story about Scott Peterson talking about how he would have disposed of a body. Some call it a bombshell, as in good for the defense, bad for the prosecution. Other people say actually in the end not bad for the prosecution. Where do you weigh in on this?
GOMEZ: Well, actually, what happened yesterday is, Detective Al Brocchini described a tip where someone claimed to be Scott Peterson's college friend, and in that tip he said that the two were talking about how to dispose of a body. They would wrap it up in duct tape, throw weights around its head and arms, and then throw it in bay where the fish eventually would eat up at the body.
And, of course, Detective Brocchini also brought up the point that this was an unconfirmed tip; that, in fact, it was not a credible tip. This came out under redirect. It wasn't under cross- examination. So, he made it clear right off the bat that this was an unsubstantiated tip. Yet, the jury got to hear it, Soledad. So, obviously powerful.
O'BRIEN: Yes. So, what was the jury's reaction? You say it was powerful. How did they react, even when told it's not substantiated and not necessarily reliable?
GOMEZ: Well, actually when it came out, everybody was sitting up in their seats, a lot of us taking notes and looked to see what the jury was doing. They were attentive, leaning forward, listening to what the detective was saying; also taking a lot of notes during that time. And there was a stir in the courtroom. Everybody was, like, did you just hear that? It was unbelievable to hear the stir in the courtroom at the time this was being described. O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about the prosecution. What has been the demeanor of the prosecutor, Rick Distaso. He obviously has a lot of ground to recover over the last five days of testimony from Detective Brocchini. It's been a tough time for the prosecution.
GOMEZ: It has been a tough time, and he doesn't have the flare that Mark Geragos has. He doesn't have the enthusiasm, yet he had that yesterday. He was very confident when he came into the courtroom. He was in control. He had a lot of dynamic to his voice. He looked like he was just in charge yesterday.
And almost giving it right back to the defense when they brought up something he wanted to show on the full screen, they objected to it immediately. And he says, no, if you got to do that the other day, I get to do that today. So, very much in control, a passion in his voice that we hadn't seen before.
O'BRIEN: A little change of strategy.
Let's talk about some pictures that most people haven't seen before. I want to first show you -- I'll tell you what we're seeing, and then you tell me what the significance is. This is a shot of a phone book. What's that about?
GOMEZ: Well, when detectives actually searched Scott Peterson's home the day Laci Peterson disappeared they noticed that the phone book was open and flipped to a page listing all of the lawyers in town. So obviously, prosecutors are contending that maybe Scott Peterson was already looking for some sort of legal help, even before police arrived, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Then we have heard about this, the photo of a blue mop, rags on the washer. This all involves really what the housekeeper has been saying?
GOMEZ: Right. But prosecutors contend that when the police entered the home, they noticed there was a bucket with a wet ring around it and the two mops, and, of course, those dirty rags on the washer, suggesting that Scott Peterson did a little cleanup before police arrived.
O'BRIEN: Gloria Gomez, again, you know, it seems like we end every time we chat by saying the curves and the twists and turns in the case. But you know what? We've got a long way to go, and I'm sure there will be many more.
GOMEZ: More to come.
O'BRIEN: Thanks, Gloria, as always, appreciate it.
GOMEZ: OK.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: Let's get a break here. Next on AMERICAN MORNING, if you're feeling lucky, now might be the time to buy a lotto ticket. We'll tell you why.
O'BRIEN: I'm feeling lucky. I want a lotto ticket.
Also ahead this morning, "Spider-Man 2." It swings into movie theaters. Our "90-Second Pop" panel is going to tell us whether Spidey packs as big a punch the second time around. Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.
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HEMMER: Back to Jack, the "Question of the Day." Looking at us today, aren't we?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. A little introspection here on AMERICAN MORNING. When Nicholas Berg was beheaded last month by the terrorists, the "Los Angeles Times" reports his name was the second most popular search request on Google, right after "American Idol." A little scary. According to CBSNews.com, any stories that contain graphic violence cause an astronomical spike in viewing online. All of this putting the traditional news media, that would be us, in a bit of a quandary.
With an obvious appetite for violence, as displayed by those Internet statistics, the question we're asking this morning is: How much coverage should traditional media give to terrorist kidnappings and beheadings?
Marie in Alcott City, Maryland writes: "If TV stations and the Internet did not show those atrocities, the killings would stop. No audience, no need to kill. The terrorists do this for shock value."
Jeremy in Tennessee writes: "The media should be allowed to cover every aspect of the terrorist kidnappings and beheadings. People need to be educated on what's happening."
Tony in Roscoe, Illinois writes: "Tell us what you know. It's not your job to protect us from the truth, nor is it your job to sensationalize the story and play into the hands of the terrorists by broadcasting horrific videos of the victims."
And Ann in Audubon, New Jersey writes this: "Not everyone who Googled Nick Berg was looking for gruesome reports. I was looking to find the text of his father's statement. It was one of the most moving things I have ever heard. His anti-war statements were strong and heartfelt. Having access to the horrors of war is not a bad thing. Everyone should be able to know what horrors war possess."
HEMMER: I don't know why they do it.
CAFFERTY: AM@CNN.com. Yes, interesting topic, I think, this morning.
O'BRIEN: Yes, it is.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
In a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING, breaking news overnight about the status of Saddam Hussein. The latest on that after the break.
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HEMMER: It's about 12 minutes now before the hour. Back to Drew Griffin at the CNN center looking at the headlines this morning.
Drew, good morning to you.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Bill.
Iraqi authorities getting legal custody of Saddam Hussein and 11 other high-profile members of his former regime. Saddam and the others are no longer prisoners of war, but will physically remain under coalition custody; that is, until sufficient Iraqi security is in place. Charges expected tomorrow.
Secretary of State Colin Powell is getting a firsthand look at more than a million refugees displaced in the Darfur region of the Sudan. Secretary Powell arriving there, urging the government to take action and stressing that time is of the essence.
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COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The international community believes that unless we see more movement soon in all of these areas, it may be necessary for the international community to begin considering other actions to include Security Council action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN: Powell is also expected to meet in Sudan with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan has described the situation as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
Turning to U.S. politics, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry rejecting calls to release his 1988 divorce records while he is campaigning. Senator Kerry calling his divorce from his first wife, Julia Thorne -- quote -- "ancient history," saying they have remained friends. Kerry who married in 1995. His current wife is Theresa Heinz Kerry.
And folks looking to strike it rich will get another chance. None of the tickets sold for yesterday's Mega Millions $220 million drawing matched all five lotto numbers and that Megaball. That means at least $280 million will be up for grabs in the next drawing set for this Friday. Mega Millions is played in 11 states, including Georgia and New York, which means, Soledad, you and I could have a very nice July Fourth weekend.
O'BRIEN: I know. Can I tell you? Wouldn't that be great? What a nice way to head into the weekend, $280 million richer. It sounds good, doesn't it? Thanks, Drew. Appreciate it. Still ahead this morning, once one of Hollywood's biggest names, Marlon Brando reportedly has hit the skids. ""90-Second Pop" is coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.
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O'BRIEN: I know this is a popular song, but I never loved this song from Janet Jackson, I've got to tell you. I know, I'm sorry. Not to start off by dissing Janet, because, you know, I love her.
SARAH BERNARD, "NEW YORK" MAGAZINE: Poor Janet.
O'BRIEN: But it's Wednesday. It's time for -- me, too, I'm sorry.
ANDY BOROWITZ, HUMORIST: As I know.
O'BRIEN: "90-Second Pop" time for a visit from our pop culture mavens this morning. B.J. Sigesmund is staff editor for "US Weekly" magazine, also Sarah Bernard, contributing editor for "New York" magazine, and humorist Andy Borowitz, the man responsible for BorowitzReport.com, no "the" please!
BOROWITZ: I know.
BERNARD: Come on.
O'BRIEN: I've gotten that right three times in a row, which means I should win some sort of award or something. All right, let's get right to it.
Janet Jackson, there was lots of concern because she had this performance on BET.
BERNARD: That's right.
O'BRIEN: And it was live, which meant...
BERNARD: No tape delay, so hopefully no wardrobe malfunction.
O'BRIEN: And she was (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BERNARD: That's right.
O'BRIEN: Did she?
BERNARD: She was a very, very good girl. But Rick James was a very bad boy.
O'BRIEN: What happened?
BERNARD: He thankfully did not have a wardrobe malfunction, but he used some language that you're not supposed to use on live TV. So, he...
BOROWITZ: In fairness to him, he spent the weekend with Dick Cheney, so I think it may have rubbed off on him.
BERNARD: Oh, the foul mouth, it rubbed off.
BOROWITZ: A little bit.
BERNARD: Well, not only did Janet not do any revealing, she was wearing a giant amount of clothes. She had, like, these giant pants on and a tunic that went all the way down.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "US WEEKLY": I don't know, but there was so much talk about Janet yesterday, this big -- you know, her big performance on that show. Then this morning in the papers and on the Internet, there's nothing. No one's talking about it barely an iota.
BERNARD: Because that's what it shows you.
O'BRIEN: Once you've gotten naked, you've got to get naked again or nobody...
BERNARD: Yes, no wardrobe malfunction, no one talk about you. That's the problem.
SIGESMUND: She'll learn.
O'BRIEN: But, you know, if you hire Rick James to come and do your show, you know what you're getting, right? I mean, come on.
BERNARD: You know what you're getting. He was very unhappy when someone didn't know who he was, and that's what started it.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that is...
BOROWITZ: My criticism of the show is that it wasn't long enough. I just thought...
BERNARD: Yes!
SIGESMUND: Oh, my God, it was three and a half hours!
BOROWITZ: You know, it didn't really get...
BERNARD: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Oh sarcasm, always funny.
All right, let's talk about Marlon Brando. A biographer says that -- I mean, this is a serious story. That he is destitute. That he has hit the skids. What do know about this biographer? I mean, is there a chance that this is actually right on?
BOROWITZ: Well, we don't really know. I mean, I think we have to wait to see what the facts are. They're saying that he's $20 million in debt. My sources say that he blew a lot of money in the market -- actually Boston Market is what I'm hearing. But no, no, no.
SIGESMUND: Oh! BOROWITZ: That's actually not true. But I don't know. You know, it's sort of hard to even imagine $20 million in debt, because I remember when he did the movie, "Superman," he got paid $4 million for one minute of acting. So, if I'm doing the math right, all he has to do is work five minutes to make that all back. He'll be fine.
BERNARD: And then he'll be fine.
BOROWITZ: He'll be fine.
(CROSSTALK)
O'BRIEN: "The Score" was his last movie.
BERNARD: That's right. That was probably the last one.
O'BRIEN: And he made a ton of money for that for a brief appearance, too.
BOROWITZ: Right.
BERNARD: And how did he spend it? It was mostly defending his son, right?
BOROWITZ: A lot of legal bills, that's right.
BERNARD: You know, it's always the kids.
SIGESMUND: A lot of lawsuits and a lot of kids. He has...
O'BRIEN: Well, his son killed somebody?
SIGESMUND: Yes, his son killed his sister's boyfriend.
O'BRIEN: Yes, that's going to cost you a lot of money.
SIGESMUND: There was...
BERNARD: That's going to cost you, yes. It's always the kids. see? They squander it away.
SIGESMUND: Yes. But he hasn't been able to work for a long time. Remember, they wanted him in "Scary Movie 2," and they were offering $2 million for a cameo in that. He couldn't do it, because he was too ill.
BOROWITZ: It said online that he's doing this animated movie now. He's doing an old woman's voice in a movie called "Big Bug Man." So that's...
O'BRIEN: Yes.
BERNARD: Animated movies are perfect!
O'BRIEN: And you're kidding.
BERNARD: That's true.
(CROSSTALK)
BOROWITZ: "Big Bug Man" (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
O'BRIEN: Well, hopefully they'll pay him 20 million and he'll be in the clear. It will all work out for Marlon.
"Spider-Man 2," we don't have a ton of time, but it's the big release. You know, sequels generally, I think, as a rule, are so much worse than the original, not worth seeing. How about this one?
SIGESMUND: Not this one. This one totally delivers. I saw it last week. The thrills are just as big, but it has a big heart as well. You know, he's filled with angst about his love for M.J., which actually costs him his superpowers in this film. And it has a lot of wit as well. You know, there is one scene where he washes his Spider- Man costume in the washing machine and it turns all his whites to pink.
It was a lot of fun, and I am expecting that this movie will do better than the first one and break more records. One estimate said it could make $200 million over the six days.
O'BRIEN: Wow!
SIGESMUND: Remember, it has a six-day weekend now, because it opens today.
BOROWITZ: Couldn't they just give 20 of that to Marlon?
O'BRIEN: We're going to work that out off-air. We're going to move all of that money around and make everything OK in the end. You guys, as always thank you so much. Nice to see you. Appreciate it.
Bill -- back to you.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad, next hour here on AMERICAN MORNING, if you're used to seeing those grainy bank robber surveillance tapes, get a load of this. In plain view, broad daylight, a stunning scene. All of that caught on tape. We'll check it out, top of the hour, after this.
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