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American Morning
Look at Man Accused of Being BTK Serial Killer; Prosecution and Defense Come Out Swinging in Michael Jackson Trial
Aired March 01, 2005 - 07:00 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.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Vodka, pornography, celebrity blackmail. The prosecution and defense come out swinging in the Michael Jackson trial.
A first look at the man accused of being the BTK serial killer since his arrest. Dennis Rader going before a judge today.
A CNN security watch, the possible link between the most wanted man in Iraq and Osama bin Laden. Are they plotting new attacks in the U.S.?
And big snow in the Northeast. Millions digging out and driving slowly on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: First day of March going to be a messy commute in the Northeast.
Good morning, everyone. The L.A. woman is back here in New York.
How you doing?
O'BRIEN: Doing great.
HEMMER: Excellent work out there.
O'BRIEN: Thank you.
HEMMER: And a little later, we'll show you the dress that Soledad had for the...
O'BRIEN: yes, that was a nice dress, huh?
HEMMER: Very, very nice.
O'BRIEN: I was squeezed into that puppy. That was a little tough.
HEMMER: Job well done.
O'BRIEN: Thank you. Thank you.
HEMMER: We're going to get back to California today. The prosecution in the Michael Jackson trial is expected to call the first witness this morning. Jeff Toobin is there watching opening statements yesterday, and he says one side did an especially poor job presenting its case. We'll talk to Jeff about that in a few moments.
O'BRIEN: Also this morning a story that broke late last night. Two people found dead at the home of a federal judge in Chicago. Police looking into a possible connection to a white supremacist group. Update on that as well.
HEMMER: All right, Jack Cafferty, what's on your mind this morning?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
Toying with the status quo in the Middle East as the seeds of democracy begin to threaten to sprout in various places. Is it leading to the dawn of a new era in that part of the world, or simply adding to the instability already there? We'll take a look at that later.
HEMMER: A heck of a topic to talk about too. Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: The headlines with Carol Costello across town. Carol, good morning.
COSTELLO: Good morning, everyone.
Word this morning from the Vatican that the pope has regained his speech. Just about 10 minutes ago, a top Vatican cardinal saying the pope has spoken with him this morning. The pope underwent a tracheotomy last week and was said to be improving. He waved from his hospital window in Rome on Sunday.
A CNN security watch now. The U.S. says it has no plans to raise the national terror threat level, despite new intelligence suggesting Osama bin Laden is planning another attack. U.S. officials confirming to CNN they have intercepted communications apparently between Osama bin Laden and Abu Musab Al Zarqawi. Officials say there is nothing specific about where or how an attack might be carried out. Much more from Jeanne Meserve in Washington coming up.
Stay tuned for CNN day and night more reliable news about your security.
Authorities in Florida say search dogs may be called in this morning to help look for a missing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford. Police say the full-scale search for the girl is over, and they're turning to child-abduction experts for help. Jessica was last seen Wednesday night when her grandmother put her to bed. These are new pictures, by the way, into CNN. These are of her bedroom. Authorities are not calling the case an abduction at this point, but her father says he does believe Jessica was taken.
And millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett reportedly making good progress on what he hopes will be a record-breaking flight. Fossett launched his single-engine global flyer from Kansas yesterday. He's expected to travel 23,000 miles before returning there on Thursday. If he makes it, Fossett will break eight records, including first solo, nonstop airplane flight around the world.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: Some shocking new details this morning in Michael Jackson's child-molestation trial. The judge released previously sealed documents, including the full grand jury indictment and transcripts of grand jury testimony.
Meanwhile, the prosecution will bring its first witness today, after Jackson's attorney finishes his opening statement.
Rusty Dornin has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The accusations on both sides were graphic and sometimes bizarre. District attorney Thomas Sneddon told the jury Michael Jackson lured young boys to his bedroom. Sneddon said, quote, "instead of milk and cookies, you could substitute wine, vodka and bourbon. Sneddon said flight attendants will testify Jackson gave children alcoholic drinks on trips taken on Jackson's private plane, including the accuser and his brother.
Sneddon says a Jackson aide told the boy's mother her life was in danger if she turned her back on Michael Jackson. Sneddon told jurors Jackson conspired with four employees to try and stop the family from talking about the alleged molestation, even offering the boy a $75,000 watch. The defense then launched an all-out attack on the boy and his mother, claiming they were money hungry, and accused the family of using the boy's illness to trap other celebrities into giving them money.
MICHAEL CORDOZA, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTY.: If you believe half of what the defense is putting out about the mother of the victim, I don't know how a jury's going to believe this case beyond a reasonable doubt.
DORNIN: And when Jackson left court, he flashed his fans a sign that all is well.
Rusty Dornin, CNN, Santa Maria, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin joins us from Santa Maria, California.
Hey, Jeff. Good morning to you.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, ma'am.
O'BRIEN: You were in the courtroom. Give me a sense of how you thought the prosecution did off the bat.
TOOBIN: Lousy. I thought it was a terrible opening by Tom Sneddon. It was disorganized, it was rambling, it was almost incoherent at times. The prosecution obviously is betting that the alleged victim and his brother will be compelling, believable witnesses, because it sound like that's about all they've got.
O'BRIEN: At the same time, as we just heard in Rusty's piece, the details are pretty icky, don't you think to some degree, even if the prosecution doesn't carry the ball well, some of the details could really overwhelm that?
TOOBIN: I think it is true. I mean, look, the accusations in this case are horrible, and fundamentally, that is one on one. This boy, who interestingly was named throughout the court proceedings, his full name used, he will testify that Michael Jackson did these terrible things, gave him liquor, but there are not many -- there are no eyewitnesses to the sexual misconduct, and the eyewitnesses to the liquor accusations are shaky at best from what I could tell.
O'BRIEN: OK, how about the defense. How do you think they did right off the bat?
TOOBIN: It was one of the best opening statements I have ever heard in a courtroom anywhere. Tom Mesereau was fascinating, and brilliant and extremely persuasive, that this family has gone from lawsuit to lawsuit, escalating their accusations at all times, to begin with requests for money, and when that fails, accusations of sexual misconduct. It took place in a lawsuit against JC Penney. It took place in the divorce litigation, and now they claim in this case against Michael Jackson. The Jay Leno accusation was absolutely fascinating. Jay Leno apparently received a phone call from the accuser in this case. He heard the mother guiding him in the background. He said, I got a weird feeling from these people, I cut off the phone call right away. I thought they were in it for money. It was a riveting moment to start Tom Mesereau's opening statement.
O'BRIEN: Martin Bashir is going to be the first witness on the stand. Give me a sense of the role he'll play, and also the role that chronology will play in all of this.
TOOBIN: Very important, because the theory of the prosecution is that the Martin Bashir documentary, which was broadcast on February 6, 2003, set off this panic in the Jackson camp. The media descended. Law enforcement investigators descended, and that's when the conspiracy to cover this up began.
But the defense pointed out something I had not noticed, the accusations of sexual misconduct here take place after this documentary went on the air. That at the very moment that Michael Jackson is accused of misconduct with children, that is the moment he chooses to begin his sexual relationship with the boy. It's very strange chronology, which I think the prosecution will have a difficult time explaining how that happened.
O'BRIEN: Certainly be interesting to hear from Martin Bashir later today.
Jeff Toobin, as always, thanks a lot. Appreciate it -- Bill.
TOOBIN: OK, Soledad. See you.
HEMMER: Ten minutes past the hour.
Dennis Rader is the man suspected in the BTK serial killings. And today, Dennis Rader will be questioned by a judge in Wichita. He'll also hear the charges against him related to 10 murders that span over three decades.
In Wichita this morning, here's Bob Franken live there. Good morning, Bob.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
It's going to be a perfunctory first hearing. This is the path on the legal course. What he's going to do, probably from his jail cell via video hookup, is to appear before Cedric County Court Judge Greg Waller. There will be a permanent bond set. At the moment, it stands at $10 million. As the police chief says, pointedly, that's $1 million for each victim.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN (voice-over): Even as Dennis Rader prepares for his first court appearance today, a routine start in what officials say will be his legal reckoning, police maintain an investigation that is only intensified since the arrest of Rader. They continue to fend off the media frenzy that naturally accompanies such a bizarre, brutal case of serial murder. The result, officials claim, is inaccurate reporting that could sabotage their case.
CHIEF NORMAN WILLIAMS, WICHITA POLICE DEPT.: One of the things that I'm going to be doing as chief of this organization, is I'm going to contact the D.A.'s office, and I'm going to be asking the D.A. what legal recourses do we have in regards to information that is inaccurate and inappropriately being disseminated in the community.
FRANKEN: Particularly upsetting to the chief was an Associated Press report, quoted by other news organizations, including CNN, that claim police now linked Rader with three murders more than the 10 they've specified in their charges. That report, he insisted, was false.
WILLIAMS: At this present time, Dennis Rader has been connected with only 10, only 10 homicides that have spanned 31 years.
FRANKEN: While the legal system grinds into gear, in a community terrorized by the so-called BTK killer over 30 years, many can't get over how close they and their loved ones had come.
GARY VAN DUSEN, SUSPECT'S NEIGHBOR: He was in my daughter's house with just my daughter by herself. He was doing a check on her dog. And he actually went back there and was in the house by himself with her, and we just wonder what could have happened.
(END VIDEOTAPE) FRANKEN: And now officials who say that after decades they know who the BTK killer is, now the people who lived with him for so many years are wondering why -- Bill.
HEMMER: Bob Franken in Wichita. Thanks, Bob.
O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, the "New You Revolution," it enters the stretch run. The Reverend Leigh Ann Raynor wanted to lose some weight, wanted to exercise, learn how to cook. But how is she handling what could be her worst habit? Remember that? Smoking.
HEMMER: Also, the East Coast getting a harsh reminder that winter is not over yet. We'll take a look at who is getting the worst of it this morning. And the grisly scene inside a federal judge's home. Is she being targeted by white supremacists? That's ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Right about 7:15, back here in New York City. It was not the prettiest snowfall we've seen this year. In fact, it's a downright mess for a lot of folks up and down the East Coast. And some people right now are experiencing their third snowfall in only eight days.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: Now to Chicago, where a federal judge returned home last night to a grisly scene. According to local media reports, Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow arrived home from work, found the bodies of her husband and her mother. Judge Lefkow had been the target of death threats by a white supremacist who was convicted of plotting to have her killed.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim live at the scene in Chicago with the latest for us.
Hey, Keith, good morning.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
And because two bodies were found in a federal judge's home, police have blocked off an entire street. You can see yellow tape behind me on the crime scene this morning.
Authorities say the judge returned to her home last night, found two dead bodies. The police have not identified the victims, but Chicago's lead newspapers have, saying that the victims are the judge's mother and her husband, and the question is what connection, if any, do these murders have to white supremacists and to an imprisoned white supremacist prisoner, Matt Hale.
The judge is U.S. district Judge Joan Lefkow. In 2002, she presided over a trademark infringement case against Matt Hale, head of a white supremacist group called the World Church of the Creator, an organization sued by another religious group for taking its name. In 2003, Judge Lefkow held Hale in contempt and imposed sanctions of $200,000 against him. A month later, Hale was arrested and was convicted for soliciting Judge Lefkow's murder. She was obviously not murdered, but for trying to arrange that, Hale is now behind bars and awaiting sentencing in April.
On top of all of this, "The Chicago Tribune" is reporting that federal agents got a bulletin about another white supremacist group called the Aryan Brotherhood, that said it was trying to harm law enforcement and their families, and that law enforcement agents were trying to protect this judge as early as last night.
Now what connection there is between these white supremacist groups has not been clearly established. But what the papers are reporting this morning is that the dead are these two names, Judge Lefkow's husband, Michael Lefkow, 64 years old, and her mother, Donna Grace Humphrey, age 90.
Back to you.
O'BRIEN: Keith Oppenheim for us. What a terrible story. Thanks for that update.
It's a defense that might be a little bit hard to swallow, a once powerful CEO accused of fraud says he's not guilty, because he doesn't know anything about money.
Andy is "Minding Your Business," up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone.
The former WorldCom CEO, Bernie Ebbers, playing dumb in his fraud trial. The question is whether or not this strategy will work. Here to explain, Andy Serwer, first check "Minding Your Business." How did he do?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: I thought he did pretty well, actually. You know, this is a big roll of the dice, and guess what he said -- he said, I didn't know anything, Scott Sullivan did it all, and I thought it went over pretty well. Of course this is the ultimate he said/she said, and only the jury really knows. He said he wasn't advised by Scott Sullivan at all. In his folksy style, he described how he was a milkman, how he didn't do well in school, he was a gym teacher. And he said that Sullivan never told me he made an entry that wasn't right as far as accounting goes. And if he had, we wouldn't be here.
And my favorite, he said, I know what I don't know. In other words, he knows that he doesn't know about accounting. And he just sort of laughed.
There was a little cross-examination late in the day, and that will go on today. But I don't think prosecutors scored many points. And ultimately, it's going to come down to the word of one man versus another in the largest fraud in the history of the country. So fascinating case.
HEMMER: Very interesting development.
SERWER: Fascinating case.
HEMMER: Thank you, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
O'BRIEN: Jack's looking at the Middle East. Good morning.
CAFFERTY: Good morning.
Seminal events taking place in the Middle East. What will be the result of what's going on there? An assassination in Lebanon triggering massive demonstrations that bring down the long standing Syrian-backed government. Elections are everywhere, from Iraq and Afghanistan to Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian territories. This past weekend, Egypt's President Mubarak announced that he will allow his nation's first ever multiparty elections. The democratic dominoes are in place, but the process continues to be tested. Friday's bombing in Tel Aviv, yesterday's bombing in Iraq, that killed 125 people, demonstrate that fierce fundamentalist opposition continues.
Here's the question this morning, is the Middle East moving toward democracy or instability? Am@CNN.com.
HEMMER: A little bit of both, huh, for a time.
O'BRIEN: Not necessarily mutually exclusive, you know, both could happen at once.
SERWER: And the situation in Lebanon is fascinating. I mean that is really amazing.
HEMMER: Watching the marchers yesterday. A lot of what happened in the Ukraine, shades of 1989 almost.
CAFFERTY: Interesting time.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
HEMMER: In a moment here, get you back to Rome. A big development in the past hour regarding the condition of the pope. That news again just about 60 minutes ago. Live to Rome, we'll tell you what we know in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(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 1, 2005 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Vodka, pornography, celebrity blackmail. The prosecution and defense come out swinging in the Michael Jackson trial.
A first look at the man accused of being the BTK serial killer since his arrest. Dennis Rader going before a judge today.
A CNN security watch, the possible link between the most wanted man in Iraq and Osama bin Laden. Are they plotting new attacks in the U.S.?
And big snow in the Northeast. Millions digging out and driving slowly on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: First day of March going to be a messy commute in the Northeast.
Good morning, everyone. The L.A. woman is back here in New York.
How you doing?
O'BRIEN: Doing great.
HEMMER: Excellent work out there.
O'BRIEN: Thank you.
HEMMER: And a little later, we'll show you the dress that Soledad had for the...
O'BRIEN: yes, that was a nice dress, huh?
HEMMER: Very, very nice.
O'BRIEN: I was squeezed into that puppy. That was a little tough.
HEMMER: Job well done.
O'BRIEN: Thank you. Thank you.
HEMMER: We're going to get back to California today. The prosecution in the Michael Jackson trial is expected to call the first witness this morning. Jeff Toobin is there watching opening statements yesterday, and he says one side did an especially poor job presenting its case. We'll talk to Jeff about that in a few moments.
O'BRIEN: Also this morning a story that broke late last night. Two people found dead at the home of a federal judge in Chicago. Police looking into a possible connection to a white supremacist group. Update on that as well.
HEMMER: All right, Jack Cafferty, what's on your mind this morning?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
Toying with the status quo in the Middle East as the seeds of democracy begin to threaten to sprout in various places. Is it leading to the dawn of a new era in that part of the world, or simply adding to the instability already there? We'll take a look at that later.
HEMMER: A heck of a topic to talk about too. Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: The headlines with Carol Costello across town. Carol, good morning.
COSTELLO: Good morning, everyone.
Word this morning from the Vatican that the pope has regained his speech. Just about 10 minutes ago, a top Vatican cardinal saying the pope has spoken with him this morning. The pope underwent a tracheotomy last week and was said to be improving. He waved from his hospital window in Rome on Sunday.
A CNN security watch now. The U.S. says it has no plans to raise the national terror threat level, despite new intelligence suggesting Osama bin Laden is planning another attack. U.S. officials confirming to CNN they have intercepted communications apparently between Osama bin Laden and Abu Musab Al Zarqawi. Officials say there is nothing specific about where or how an attack might be carried out. Much more from Jeanne Meserve in Washington coming up.
Stay tuned for CNN day and night more reliable news about your security.
Authorities in Florida say search dogs may be called in this morning to help look for a missing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford. Police say the full-scale search for the girl is over, and they're turning to child-abduction experts for help. Jessica was last seen Wednesday night when her grandmother put her to bed. These are new pictures, by the way, into CNN. These are of her bedroom. Authorities are not calling the case an abduction at this point, but her father says he does believe Jessica was taken.
And millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett reportedly making good progress on what he hopes will be a record-breaking flight. Fossett launched his single-engine global flyer from Kansas yesterday. He's expected to travel 23,000 miles before returning there on Thursday. If he makes it, Fossett will break eight records, including first solo, nonstop airplane flight around the world.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: Some shocking new details this morning in Michael Jackson's child-molestation trial. The judge released previously sealed documents, including the full grand jury indictment and transcripts of grand jury testimony.
Meanwhile, the prosecution will bring its first witness today, after Jackson's attorney finishes his opening statement.
Rusty Dornin has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The accusations on both sides were graphic and sometimes bizarre. District attorney Thomas Sneddon told the jury Michael Jackson lured young boys to his bedroom. Sneddon said, quote, "instead of milk and cookies, you could substitute wine, vodka and bourbon. Sneddon said flight attendants will testify Jackson gave children alcoholic drinks on trips taken on Jackson's private plane, including the accuser and his brother.
Sneddon says a Jackson aide told the boy's mother her life was in danger if she turned her back on Michael Jackson. Sneddon told jurors Jackson conspired with four employees to try and stop the family from talking about the alleged molestation, even offering the boy a $75,000 watch. The defense then launched an all-out attack on the boy and his mother, claiming they were money hungry, and accused the family of using the boy's illness to trap other celebrities into giving them money.
MICHAEL CORDOZA, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTY.: If you believe half of what the defense is putting out about the mother of the victim, I don't know how a jury's going to believe this case beyond a reasonable doubt.
DORNIN: And when Jackson left court, he flashed his fans a sign that all is well.
Rusty Dornin, CNN, Santa Maria, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin joins us from Santa Maria, California.
Hey, Jeff. Good morning to you.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, ma'am.
O'BRIEN: You were in the courtroom. Give me a sense of how you thought the prosecution did off the bat.
TOOBIN: Lousy. I thought it was a terrible opening by Tom Sneddon. It was disorganized, it was rambling, it was almost incoherent at times. The prosecution obviously is betting that the alleged victim and his brother will be compelling, believable witnesses, because it sound like that's about all they've got.
O'BRIEN: At the same time, as we just heard in Rusty's piece, the details are pretty icky, don't you think to some degree, even if the prosecution doesn't carry the ball well, some of the details could really overwhelm that?
TOOBIN: I think it is true. I mean, look, the accusations in this case are horrible, and fundamentally, that is one on one. This boy, who interestingly was named throughout the court proceedings, his full name used, he will testify that Michael Jackson did these terrible things, gave him liquor, but there are not many -- there are no eyewitnesses to the sexual misconduct, and the eyewitnesses to the liquor accusations are shaky at best from what I could tell.
O'BRIEN: OK, how about the defense. How do you think they did right off the bat?
TOOBIN: It was one of the best opening statements I have ever heard in a courtroom anywhere. Tom Mesereau was fascinating, and brilliant and extremely persuasive, that this family has gone from lawsuit to lawsuit, escalating their accusations at all times, to begin with requests for money, and when that fails, accusations of sexual misconduct. It took place in a lawsuit against JC Penney. It took place in the divorce litigation, and now they claim in this case against Michael Jackson. The Jay Leno accusation was absolutely fascinating. Jay Leno apparently received a phone call from the accuser in this case. He heard the mother guiding him in the background. He said, I got a weird feeling from these people, I cut off the phone call right away. I thought they were in it for money. It was a riveting moment to start Tom Mesereau's opening statement.
O'BRIEN: Martin Bashir is going to be the first witness on the stand. Give me a sense of the role he'll play, and also the role that chronology will play in all of this.
TOOBIN: Very important, because the theory of the prosecution is that the Martin Bashir documentary, which was broadcast on February 6, 2003, set off this panic in the Jackson camp. The media descended. Law enforcement investigators descended, and that's when the conspiracy to cover this up began.
But the defense pointed out something I had not noticed, the accusations of sexual misconduct here take place after this documentary went on the air. That at the very moment that Michael Jackson is accused of misconduct with children, that is the moment he chooses to begin his sexual relationship with the boy. It's very strange chronology, which I think the prosecution will have a difficult time explaining how that happened.
O'BRIEN: Certainly be interesting to hear from Martin Bashir later today.
Jeff Toobin, as always, thanks a lot. Appreciate it -- Bill.
TOOBIN: OK, Soledad. See you.
HEMMER: Ten minutes past the hour.
Dennis Rader is the man suspected in the BTK serial killings. And today, Dennis Rader will be questioned by a judge in Wichita. He'll also hear the charges against him related to 10 murders that span over three decades.
In Wichita this morning, here's Bob Franken live there. Good morning, Bob.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
It's going to be a perfunctory first hearing. This is the path on the legal course. What he's going to do, probably from his jail cell via video hookup, is to appear before Cedric County Court Judge Greg Waller. There will be a permanent bond set. At the moment, it stands at $10 million. As the police chief says, pointedly, that's $1 million for each victim.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN (voice-over): Even as Dennis Rader prepares for his first court appearance today, a routine start in what officials say will be his legal reckoning, police maintain an investigation that is only intensified since the arrest of Rader. They continue to fend off the media frenzy that naturally accompanies such a bizarre, brutal case of serial murder. The result, officials claim, is inaccurate reporting that could sabotage their case.
CHIEF NORMAN WILLIAMS, WICHITA POLICE DEPT.: One of the things that I'm going to be doing as chief of this organization, is I'm going to contact the D.A.'s office, and I'm going to be asking the D.A. what legal recourses do we have in regards to information that is inaccurate and inappropriately being disseminated in the community.
FRANKEN: Particularly upsetting to the chief was an Associated Press report, quoted by other news organizations, including CNN, that claim police now linked Rader with three murders more than the 10 they've specified in their charges. That report, he insisted, was false.
WILLIAMS: At this present time, Dennis Rader has been connected with only 10, only 10 homicides that have spanned 31 years.
FRANKEN: While the legal system grinds into gear, in a community terrorized by the so-called BTK killer over 30 years, many can't get over how close they and their loved ones had come.
GARY VAN DUSEN, SUSPECT'S NEIGHBOR: He was in my daughter's house with just my daughter by herself. He was doing a check on her dog. And he actually went back there and was in the house by himself with her, and we just wonder what could have happened.
(END VIDEOTAPE) FRANKEN: And now officials who say that after decades they know who the BTK killer is, now the people who lived with him for so many years are wondering why -- Bill.
HEMMER: Bob Franken in Wichita. Thanks, Bob.
O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, the "New You Revolution," it enters the stretch run. The Reverend Leigh Ann Raynor wanted to lose some weight, wanted to exercise, learn how to cook. But how is she handling what could be her worst habit? Remember that? Smoking.
HEMMER: Also, the East Coast getting a harsh reminder that winter is not over yet. We'll take a look at who is getting the worst of it this morning. And the grisly scene inside a federal judge's home. Is she being targeted by white supremacists? That's ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Right about 7:15, back here in New York City. It was not the prettiest snowfall we've seen this year. In fact, it's a downright mess for a lot of folks up and down the East Coast. And some people right now are experiencing their third snowfall in only eight days.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: Now to Chicago, where a federal judge returned home last night to a grisly scene. According to local media reports, Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow arrived home from work, found the bodies of her husband and her mother. Judge Lefkow had been the target of death threats by a white supremacist who was convicted of plotting to have her killed.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim live at the scene in Chicago with the latest for us.
Hey, Keith, good morning.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
And because two bodies were found in a federal judge's home, police have blocked off an entire street. You can see yellow tape behind me on the crime scene this morning.
Authorities say the judge returned to her home last night, found two dead bodies. The police have not identified the victims, but Chicago's lead newspapers have, saying that the victims are the judge's mother and her husband, and the question is what connection, if any, do these murders have to white supremacists and to an imprisoned white supremacist prisoner, Matt Hale.
The judge is U.S. district Judge Joan Lefkow. In 2002, she presided over a trademark infringement case against Matt Hale, head of a white supremacist group called the World Church of the Creator, an organization sued by another religious group for taking its name. In 2003, Judge Lefkow held Hale in contempt and imposed sanctions of $200,000 against him. A month later, Hale was arrested and was convicted for soliciting Judge Lefkow's murder. She was obviously not murdered, but for trying to arrange that, Hale is now behind bars and awaiting sentencing in April.
On top of all of this, "The Chicago Tribune" is reporting that federal agents got a bulletin about another white supremacist group called the Aryan Brotherhood, that said it was trying to harm law enforcement and their families, and that law enforcement agents were trying to protect this judge as early as last night.
Now what connection there is between these white supremacist groups has not been clearly established. But what the papers are reporting this morning is that the dead are these two names, Judge Lefkow's husband, Michael Lefkow, 64 years old, and her mother, Donna Grace Humphrey, age 90.
Back to you.
O'BRIEN: Keith Oppenheim for us. What a terrible story. Thanks for that update.
It's a defense that might be a little bit hard to swallow, a once powerful CEO accused of fraud says he's not guilty, because he doesn't know anything about money.
Andy is "Minding Your Business," up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone.
The former WorldCom CEO, Bernie Ebbers, playing dumb in his fraud trial. The question is whether or not this strategy will work. Here to explain, Andy Serwer, first check "Minding Your Business." How did he do?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: I thought he did pretty well, actually. You know, this is a big roll of the dice, and guess what he said -- he said, I didn't know anything, Scott Sullivan did it all, and I thought it went over pretty well. Of course this is the ultimate he said/she said, and only the jury really knows. He said he wasn't advised by Scott Sullivan at all. In his folksy style, he described how he was a milkman, how he didn't do well in school, he was a gym teacher. And he said that Sullivan never told me he made an entry that wasn't right as far as accounting goes. And if he had, we wouldn't be here.
And my favorite, he said, I know what I don't know. In other words, he knows that he doesn't know about accounting. And he just sort of laughed.
There was a little cross-examination late in the day, and that will go on today. But I don't think prosecutors scored many points. And ultimately, it's going to come down to the word of one man versus another in the largest fraud in the history of the country. So fascinating case.
HEMMER: Very interesting development.
SERWER: Fascinating case.
HEMMER: Thank you, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
O'BRIEN: Jack's looking at the Middle East. Good morning.
CAFFERTY: Good morning.
Seminal events taking place in the Middle East. What will be the result of what's going on there? An assassination in Lebanon triggering massive demonstrations that bring down the long standing Syrian-backed government. Elections are everywhere, from Iraq and Afghanistan to Saudi Arabia and the Palestinian territories. This past weekend, Egypt's President Mubarak announced that he will allow his nation's first ever multiparty elections. The democratic dominoes are in place, but the process continues to be tested. Friday's bombing in Tel Aviv, yesterday's bombing in Iraq, that killed 125 people, demonstrate that fierce fundamentalist opposition continues.
Here's the question this morning, is the Middle East moving toward democracy or instability? Am@CNN.com.
HEMMER: A little bit of both, huh, for a time.
O'BRIEN: Not necessarily mutually exclusive, you know, both could happen at once.
SERWER: And the situation in Lebanon is fascinating. I mean that is really amazing.
HEMMER: Watching the marchers yesterday. A lot of what happened in the Ukraine, shades of 1989 almost.
CAFFERTY: Interesting time.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
HEMMER: In a moment here, get you back to Rome. A big development in the past hour regarding the condition of the pope. That news again just about 60 minutes ago. Live to Rome, we'll tell you what we know in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
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