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American Morning

Martha Stewart Heads Home; Jackson Trial; Neighborhood Stunned

Aired March 04, 2005 - 09:00   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. First pictures of Martha Stewart just after midnight and her release from prison, boarding that private jet for home.
Key evidence in the Michael Jackson trial. An eyewitness account of what was passed between the singer and children.

And the newest member of the Bush administration. The president names a new EPA director on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.

HEMMER: Good morning, everybody. End of the week here. I'm Bill Hemmer.

Good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello, in for Soledad today.

HEMMER: The big story at this hour is Martha Stewart. Home now about seven hours. And we hear she'll be back in her office Monday morning. Her return home overnight went like clockwork, completely scripted and thought out.

And Jeff Toobin says it was all part of a careful plan. And we'll check in with Jeff in a moment here about what is next legally for Martha Stewart.

COSTELLO: No surprise there. It's Martha Stewart. She carefully plans everything.

Also coming up, the latest on the BTK killer investigation. Police have been going over the suspect Dennis Rader's home, and they believe they have made an interesting connection.

HEMMER: Back to Jack, too.

What's happening?

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: That solo flight around the world without refueling prompted the Friday "Question of the Day," which is, which world record would you like to see broken? AM@CNN.com is the e- mail address.

HEMMER: All right, Jack. Thanks for that. And back to the headlines. Here's Kelly Wallace with us in the studio.

News from the White House today.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: News from the White House that you saw here on AMERICAN MORNING just moments ago. President Bush naming Stephen Johnson as his choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency. That announcement taking place just 15 minutes ago, as we said, here.

Johnson is a 24-year veteran of that agency. He will oversee its 18,000 workers. Johnson is replacing former Utah Governor Mike Leavitt, who is currently heading up the Department of Health and Human Services.

Syria's president, Bashar Assad, is expected to announce a partial withdraw of his troops from Lebanon. According to reports, the announcement could come as early as tomorrow. This coming after there has been growing international pressure on Syria to withdraw from Lebanon.

In California now, pop star Michael Jackson set to be back in court less than three hours from now. He will look on as his accuser's sister testifies for a second day. The 18-year-old told the court that Jackson kept her family members at Neverland Ranch against their will. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him in that molestation case.

And two painters said to be doing well this morning after surviving a brush with death. The men were working 10 stories above ground in Los Angeles -- you see them there -- when their scaffolding gave way. They were left dangling for about 40 minutes before firefighters pulled them to safety through a window. Both men were wearing safety harnesses and neither was injured.

How scary is that?

HEMMER: It's a dangerous job to begin with, for crying out loud.

COSTELLO: I would have fainted. I would have. It would have been it.

WALLACE: It's probably maybe not your line of work, right?

COSTELLO: No, I don't think so.

WALLACE: Keep your day job, yes.

COSTELLO: Wow. Yes, I will. Thank you, Kelly.

After spending five months in a federal prison, Martha Stewart is back home in her suburban New York City estate right now. CNN's Deborah Feyerick is in West Virginia, and she was there just minutes after Stewart was released.

How did she look?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, she looked really healthy. She looked relaxed. She looked comfortable.

During the trial, which I covered, she always seemed very sort of gloomy. And, of course, it was a serious time in her life. But today, this morning, she looked joyful.

There was a bounce in her step, even the clothes she was wearing. Usually she wears matronly clothes. This morning, jeans, boots and a poncho, a shawl. She really just looked as if she was moving on to a new chapter in her life. And she looked and felt empowered.

COSTELLO: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought we were going to hear from someone right there. Sorry about that, Deborah.

I wanted to ask you, she has to -- she's under confinement still. She has to stay in her house a certain amount of time. But she is allowed away 48 hours per week. So how is she going to get everything done?

FEYERICK: She's -- 48 hours may not be such a bad thing. This is a woman who is used to working 60, 70, 80 hours a week.

The 48 hours, she is allowed to do certain things. That is, work on her television show. If she's going to go into the garden, it's not going to be for recreation. It's going to be so that television crews can film her planting.

And, you know, that's another interesting thing, Carol. When she first decided she was going to go into prison, she talked about she wanted to get it over with so that she could get back to her life's work. But in the statement she released this morning, at about the same time she was boarding the plane, there wasn't any talk about work.

She talked about people. She called the women of Alderson "extraordinary," and she promised she would never forget the friends she had made there. She also talked about the family, those who had nurtured her during this difficult period, and the joy that she had of looking forward to the embraces of her friends, her family, and also her colleagues.

The mention of her colleagues, the only reference to work related -- to anything work related. It's likely that she is going to begin work possibly as soon as Monday morning. She does want to get back, start the process.

She's got a lot going. She's surrounded herself with some very talented people, people who are really going to reinvent and re-create Martha Stewart in a way in which she will most likely be much stronger than she's been.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm going to make one prediction. You know, she's going to have this reality TV show. I bet they will show her communicating with the women she met in prison. FEYERICK: That is a very strong possibility, an excellent prediction. Because one of the statements that she released while she was inside talked about how unfair the prison system was to women. And she really called on Americans to do something to advocate prison reform.

So it will be interesting to see how they use that as part of her image, which clearly, as you saw, was very carefully constructed. Even that sort of 40-foot walk to the stairs up into her private jet, that, too, that car parked exactly where it was told to park -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Deborah Feyerick live in West Virginia this morning. Thank you.

HEMMER: Now to the legal side. It's not over yet for Martha Stewart. Jeffrey Toobin back with us this morning following the latest on Martha Stewart.

Good morning to you.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Howdy.

HEMMER: The appeal process continues. What's the status of that, Jeff?

TOOBIN: It hasn't been argued yet. But it is almost a moot point at this --at this point because she's serving her prison sentence, she is serving her house arrest. Her house arrest certainly will be over by the time the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals decides the case.

The one remaining thing left to be decided is, will she remain in her status as a convicted felon? And that is significant, because that has implications in the civil suits against her, because that can be used as a fact, that she has been found guilty. But also, she can't be an officer of a publicly-held company if she is a convicted felon. So if she wants to go back into management at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, it's important that she win her case on appeal.

HEMMER: So if you have this label of convicted felon, how does that affect her image? And image is everything for her.

TOOBIN: You know, at this point, I don't think it matters much, because everybody knows she had her trial, everybody knows she was convicted. You know, whether a year from now her conviction is overturned, you know, by that point we'll know whether her reality show is a success, we'll know whether her syndicated show, the homemaking show, is successful. I think the legal side of her saga is really, by and large, over.

HEMMER: Do you believe it's critical -- or significant perhaps is the better word -- as to why she went to this particular estate in Westchester County?

TOOBIN: Very much so. You know, people who follow Martha for years know that her home in Westport was sort of the center of the empire, Turkey Hill Road, everybody knows the address. That's where I interviewed her, but that is not where she's serving house arrest.

And I remember talking to her about having bought this estate in Bedford in 2000 -- I think it was 2000 for $16 million. It was kind of a wreck. It's enormous.

It's 150 acres, but the houses were in great disrepair. She has made renovating that property the great cause of her next -- of her life. That's where she's going for house arrest. That's where she's going to put her energy.

HEMMER: A beautiful place.

TOOBIN: It's -- as house arrests go, it's a pretty nice house.

HEMMER: I'm with you there. Thank you, Jeff. Have a good weekend.

Also, later tonight a special edition of "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" comes your way featuring Martha's makeover. Paula Zahn hosts that show at 8:00 tonight, 5:00 on the West Coast here on CNN -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Michael Jackson's accuser's sister returns to the stand later today. She testified yesterday that her brother seemed to withdraw from the family following a TV documentary on the pop star. CNN's Miguel Marquez joins us live from Santa Maria, California, to tell us more.

Good morning.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Yes, the witness did a lot of stuff for the prosecution that they wanted, corroborated a lot of information. They are slowly building their case step by step.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ (voice-over): Michael Jackson, interested and frustrated after a day of testimony by the teenage sister of his accuser. She told a packed courtroom that she saw Jackson and her brother drinking one time at his Neverland Ranch.

ANNE BREMNER, LEGAL ANALYST: Right now, you know, there's evidence in this case that he supplied alcohol to minors, to the complainant. But there has to be a tie.

MARQUEZ: The tie prosecutors want to make, Jackson serving alcohol to the alleged victim and the subsequent molestations of the then-13-year-old cancer patient. Jackson has denied all allegations.

RAYMONE BAIN, JACKSON SPOKESWOMAN: It's very difficult when, you know, you're hearing things about yourself and you want to stand up and say, oh, that's not true, or oh no, that's wrong.

MARQUEZ: The accuser's sister said Jackson told the family not to watch the controversial Martin Bashir documentary, "Living With Michael Jackson." Prosecutors contend that was one of 28 separate acts of conspiracy which they say Jackson orchestrated.

BREMNER: And where she did was what -- you know, corroboration, corroboration, corroboration.

MARQUEZ: The 18-year-old college freshman testified that while on a private plane from Miami to Los Angeles, she saw Jackson and her brother passing a Diet Coke can, sipping from it, and whispering, but saw no alcohol. She also said that on more than one occasion, Jackson was alone with her brother in a bedroom behind closed doors.

But was she believable?

BREMNER: Overall, I think credible, very matter of fact, very responsive, very respectful.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ: So what the prosecution seems to have done yesterday and will continue today is to lay that foundation so that when her mother, her brother, the accuser, and her other brother, the younger brother, get up to testify, all those stories are corroborated in their stories against the king of pop.

Back to you.

COSTELLO: Miguel Marquez live from Santa Maria, California, this morning.

HEMMER: Eleven minutes past the hour. Back to Chad Myers with another check of the weather and what's coming up this weekend.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: We're watching a live picture in Westchester County, outside of New York City, about an hour's drive from the city. And there is Martha Stewart at the fence. Not quite sure who he is with. She was with her daughter Alexis when she climbed on board that plane about 12:30, 1:00 in the morning last night in West Virginia.

The horses are there, the dogs there. The snow is still on the ground. We were wondering earlier today when she would make her first public appearance, and here it is at 9:13 Eastern Time.

COSTELLO: And so she must know that helicopter is hovering over her property.

HEMMER: Yes. And we have seen some live pictures, too, outside the home. And it is a beautiful estate, too. Well over about 150 acres.

And as Jeff Toobin was pointing out, this is a home that costs about $16 million about five years ago, in need of a lot of repairs. And that's what Martha Stewart's best at, is she not?

COSTELLO: Yes, I think she's going to be working on that in her time away from prison now. It's just amazing to see that she certainly is not hiding from the public.

I mean, they set it up at the airport in West Virginia so you could watch her board the plane. All that was missing there was the red carpet. And now look at her in this beautiful setting, perfect for Martha Stewart Living, don't you think?

HEMMER: Feeding the horses on a Friday morning. Martha Stewart in Bedford, New York.

COSTELLO: Let's talk about a bizarre scene out West. Chimpanzees break out of their cage and they go on a violent rampage. That's straight ahead.

HEMMER: Also, new advice from doctors. Take two of these and e- mail me in the morning. Online consultation is a new trend, but is it risky? We'll check into that today.

COSTELLO: And they just might be the happiest employees in all of America. We'll tell you about the incredible gift they got from their boss. That, too, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Watching this picture during the commercial break here. Martha Stewart outside of her estate in Bedford, New York. We thought it was interesting. She came out to feed the horses this morning in the snow and the sunshine.

COSTELLO: And she has one of her beloved dogs with her, her Chow dog. We don't know who she's walking with. But, you know, it must be -- it must feel good just to be outside after being cooped up for so long inside.

HEMMER: Martha Stewart's back home. And her life begins anew.

Going to get to this story out of California. What a gruesome story, too.

From California, this man in critical condition today after a pair of chimps attacked him at an animal sanctuary. He was visiting another chimpanzee at the time when two male chimps and two female chimps escaped from their cage.

The man is 62. He suffered extensive injures to his face and body and limbs. And it is gruesome.

Doctors say the chimps chewed off most of his face and his foot and other body parts. He'll need extensive surgery to try and reattach his nose. The animals were shot and killed during the attack by a man who lives there. And Commander Hal Chealander says the shooting may have saved the victim's life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COMMANDER HAL CHEALANDER, KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPT.: If not for the reaction of an individual who was living at the residence of this sanctuary, things could have been quite different. The individual responded heroically and dispatched both animals while they were attacking the victim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Two older female chimps that I mentioned also escaped. They ran and hid. They were later recovered and without incident. Wow -- Carol.

COSTELLO: More than three decades after the murders began, police say they found the BTK killer. Fifty-nine-year-old Dennis Rader charged now with 10 counts of murder. Wichita, Kansas, residents are shocked at Rader's arrest. And neighbors say they never imagined BTK may have lived just down the block.

With more, here's CNN's Bob Franken.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): James Reno lives just down the street from Dennis Rader's house. Like many of his neighbors who consider Rader overbearing and anti-social, he frankly doesn't like him. But he never expected this.

JAMES RENO, NEIGHBOR: I'm glad they caught the man who was doing it all. I mean, I guess he's a bigger monster than what I thought he was.

FRANKEN: Police have been going over every inch of Rader's property and the whole neighborhood area, trying to build their homicide case, their 10 homicide cases.

(on camera): This is a community park, which investigators would note would provide easy access to the houses on the block, including this one, which belonged to Marine Hedge until 1985, when she was killed here. One of the 10 murder charges against Dennis Raid, who lived just five houses down.

(voice-over): Although the court proceedings have just begun, it is hard to find anyone here who doesn't believe Rader is guilty. His pastor, Reverend Michael Clark, spent 45 minutes with him in his jail cell on Wednesday, but would give no details about their conversation. Rader was president of his church council, where he enjoyed wide popularity in the congregation.

BOB SMYSER, CHURCH MEMBER: It changes everything. It changes everybody. It changes your belief system in the people you're -- you know, I mean, it can't help but do that.

FRANKEN: And it's going to change Independence Avenue, where Joshua Williams lives, down the street from Rader's house.

JOSHUA WILLIAMS, NEIGHBOR: People are going to be coming by and wanting to steal artifacts from the street to put them on eBay. When is the tourism going to quit? This block will never -- I don't think will ever calm down for a while. FRANKEN: A while before the entire area can close the book on the BTK case.

Bob Franken, CNN, Park City, Kansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Rader, who was arrested a week ago, is being held on $10 million bail.

HEMMER: We mentioned this, Martha Stewart's out of prison. Her first appearance seems carefully planned for the cameras. We saw this a few moments ago. But can they change what most of America already thinks about her? We'll look at that in a moment as we continue after this on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Just reading some e-mails.

CAFFERTY: You ought to see some of the stuff she gets on this computer.

HEMMER: Ooh, better not.

COSTELLO: We can't even talk about it on the air.

CAFFERTY: Nobody writes to me like that. That's -- all right.

23,000 miles, 67 hours, and Steve Fossett's in the record books. The adventurer became the first guy to circumnavigate the globe solo without stopping to refuel, prompting what Carol suggests is a lame "Question of the Day." And I'm inclined to maybe agree with Carol -- what world record would you like to break?

Nevertheless, it's a three-hour show. We have to fill it up.

Theresa in New York writes: "Any record that involves just my" -- this is nice -- "Any record that involves just my husband and I in an isolated cabin in front of a fireplace. Or anything having to do with peace and quiet."

Mike in New Mexico, "Jack, I think the only record worth breaking is having the most birthdays."

Mike in Florida writes: "I would like to see the United States get the world record for ending war, getting our troops home and minding our own borders and business."

And Barbara writes from Michigan, "I watched this morning's program with bated breath to see if you read this note. I believe bated breath means holding one's breath in anticipation, as in breathing was abated while one waits for whatever the big event is."

Talking about Wall Street waiting with bated breath for the jobs report. Sewer asked me, "What does it means?" I said, "I don't know." About a hundred of you have helped us out with that.

COSTELLO: But shouldn't it be abated breath?

CAFFERTY: Well, I think it was shortened. I think abated was the original version. And I think it just -- in time it got shortened to bated breath, instead of waiting with abated breath. I think.

COSTELLO: Yes, who knows.

CAFFERTY: And who cares?

Do we have any stories about Martha? Let's get back to Martha, because...

COSTELLO: I think we do.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack. There's more on AMERICAN MORNING after this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER (voice-over): Ahead on "90-second Pop," it's Martha Stewart version 2.0, new image, new look. Who knew prison could do a body good?

Plus...

HALLE BERRY, ACTRESS: This project is important to me for two really big reasons. One, Oprah Winfrey.

HEMMER: ... Halle Berry teaming up with the queen of all media. But is the project worth the buzz? That's later on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired March 4, 2005 - 09:00   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. First pictures of Martha Stewart just after midnight and her release from prison, boarding that private jet for home.
Key evidence in the Michael Jackson trial. An eyewitness account of what was passed between the singer and children.

And the newest member of the Bush administration. The president names a new EPA director on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.

HEMMER: Good morning, everybody. End of the week here. I'm Bill Hemmer.

Good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello, in for Soledad today.

HEMMER: The big story at this hour is Martha Stewart. Home now about seven hours. And we hear she'll be back in her office Monday morning. Her return home overnight went like clockwork, completely scripted and thought out.

And Jeff Toobin says it was all part of a careful plan. And we'll check in with Jeff in a moment here about what is next legally for Martha Stewart.

COSTELLO: No surprise there. It's Martha Stewart. She carefully plans everything.

Also coming up, the latest on the BTK killer investigation. Police have been going over the suspect Dennis Rader's home, and they believe they have made an interesting connection.

HEMMER: Back to Jack, too.

What's happening?

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: That solo flight around the world without refueling prompted the Friday "Question of the Day," which is, which world record would you like to see broken? AM@CNN.com is the e- mail address.

HEMMER: All right, Jack. Thanks for that. And back to the headlines. Here's Kelly Wallace with us in the studio.

News from the White House today.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: News from the White House that you saw here on AMERICAN MORNING just moments ago. President Bush naming Stephen Johnson as his choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency. That announcement taking place just 15 minutes ago, as we said, here.

Johnson is a 24-year veteran of that agency. He will oversee its 18,000 workers. Johnson is replacing former Utah Governor Mike Leavitt, who is currently heading up the Department of Health and Human Services.

Syria's president, Bashar Assad, is expected to announce a partial withdraw of his troops from Lebanon. According to reports, the announcement could come as early as tomorrow. This coming after there has been growing international pressure on Syria to withdraw from Lebanon.

In California now, pop star Michael Jackson set to be back in court less than three hours from now. He will look on as his accuser's sister testifies for a second day. The 18-year-old told the court that Jackson kept her family members at Neverland Ranch against their will. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him in that molestation case.

And two painters said to be doing well this morning after surviving a brush with death. The men were working 10 stories above ground in Los Angeles -- you see them there -- when their scaffolding gave way. They were left dangling for about 40 minutes before firefighters pulled them to safety through a window. Both men were wearing safety harnesses and neither was injured.

How scary is that?

HEMMER: It's a dangerous job to begin with, for crying out loud.

COSTELLO: I would have fainted. I would have. It would have been it.

WALLACE: It's probably maybe not your line of work, right?

COSTELLO: No, I don't think so.

WALLACE: Keep your day job, yes.

COSTELLO: Wow. Yes, I will. Thank you, Kelly.

After spending five months in a federal prison, Martha Stewart is back home in her suburban New York City estate right now. CNN's Deborah Feyerick is in West Virginia, and she was there just minutes after Stewart was released.

How did she look?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, she looked really healthy. She looked relaxed. She looked comfortable.

During the trial, which I covered, she always seemed very sort of gloomy. And, of course, it was a serious time in her life. But today, this morning, she looked joyful.

There was a bounce in her step, even the clothes she was wearing. Usually she wears matronly clothes. This morning, jeans, boots and a poncho, a shawl. She really just looked as if she was moving on to a new chapter in her life. And she looked and felt empowered.

COSTELLO: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought we were going to hear from someone right there. Sorry about that, Deborah.

I wanted to ask you, she has to -- she's under confinement still. She has to stay in her house a certain amount of time. But she is allowed away 48 hours per week. So how is she going to get everything done?

FEYERICK: She's -- 48 hours may not be such a bad thing. This is a woman who is used to working 60, 70, 80 hours a week.

The 48 hours, she is allowed to do certain things. That is, work on her television show. If she's going to go into the garden, it's not going to be for recreation. It's going to be so that television crews can film her planting.

And, you know, that's another interesting thing, Carol. When she first decided she was going to go into prison, she talked about she wanted to get it over with so that she could get back to her life's work. But in the statement she released this morning, at about the same time she was boarding the plane, there wasn't any talk about work.

She talked about people. She called the women of Alderson "extraordinary," and she promised she would never forget the friends she had made there. She also talked about the family, those who had nurtured her during this difficult period, and the joy that she had of looking forward to the embraces of her friends, her family, and also her colleagues.

The mention of her colleagues, the only reference to work related -- to anything work related. It's likely that she is going to begin work possibly as soon as Monday morning. She does want to get back, start the process.

She's got a lot going. She's surrounded herself with some very talented people, people who are really going to reinvent and re-create Martha Stewart in a way in which she will most likely be much stronger than she's been.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm going to make one prediction. You know, she's going to have this reality TV show. I bet they will show her communicating with the women she met in prison. FEYERICK: That is a very strong possibility, an excellent prediction. Because one of the statements that she released while she was inside talked about how unfair the prison system was to women. And she really called on Americans to do something to advocate prison reform.

So it will be interesting to see how they use that as part of her image, which clearly, as you saw, was very carefully constructed. Even that sort of 40-foot walk to the stairs up into her private jet, that, too, that car parked exactly where it was told to park -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Deborah Feyerick live in West Virginia this morning. Thank you.

HEMMER: Now to the legal side. It's not over yet for Martha Stewart. Jeffrey Toobin back with us this morning following the latest on Martha Stewart.

Good morning to you.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: Howdy.

HEMMER: The appeal process continues. What's the status of that, Jeff?

TOOBIN: It hasn't been argued yet. But it is almost a moot point at this --at this point because she's serving her prison sentence, she is serving her house arrest. Her house arrest certainly will be over by the time the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals decides the case.

The one remaining thing left to be decided is, will she remain in her status as a convicted felon? And that is significant, because that has implications in the civil suits against her, because that can be used as a fact, that she has been found guilty. But also, she can't be an officer of a publicly-held company if she is a convicted felon. So if she wants to go back into management at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, it's important that she win her case on appeal.

HEMMER: So if you have this label of convicted felon, how does that affect her image? And image is everything for her.

TOOBIN: You know, at this point, I don't think it matters much, because everybody knows she had her trial, everybody knows she was convicted. You know, whether a year from now her conviction is overturned, you know, by that point we'll know whether her reality show is a success, we'll know whether her syndicated show, the homemaking show, is successful. I think the legal side of her saga is really, by and large, over.

HEMMER: Do you believe it's critical -- or significant perhaps is the better word -- as to why she went to this particular estate in Westchester County?

TOOBIN: Very much so. You know, people who follow Martha for years know that her home in Westport was sort of the center of the empire, Turkey Hill Road, everybody knows the address. That's where I interviewed her, but that is not where she's serving house arrest.

And I remember talking to her about having bought this estate in Bedford in 2000 -- I think it was 2000 for $16 million. It was kind of a wreck. It's enormous.

It's 150 acres, but the houses were in great disrepair. She has made renovating that property the great cause of her next -- of her life. That's where she's going for house arrest. That's where she's going to put her energy.

HEMMER: A beautiful place.

TOOBIN: It's -- as house arrests go, it's a pretty nice house.

HEMMER: I'm with you there. Thank you, Jeff. Have a good weekend.

Also, later tonight a special edition of "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" comes your way featuring Martha's makeover. Paula Zahn hosts that show at 8:00 tonight, 5:00 on the West Coast here on CNN -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Michael Jackson's accuser's sister returns to the stand later today. She testified yesterday that her brother seemed to withdraw from the family following a TV documentary on the pop star. CNN's Miguel Marquez joins us live from Santa Maria, California, to tell us more.

Good morning.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Yes, the witness did a lot of stuff for the prosecution that they wanted, corroborated a lot of information. They are slowly building their case step by step.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ (voice-over): Michael Jackson, interested and frustrated after a day of testimony by the teenage sister of his accuser. She told a packed courtroom that she saw Jackson and her brother drinking one time at his Neverland Ranch.

ANNE BREMNER, LEGAL ANALYST: Right now, you know, there's evidence in this case that he supplied alcohol to minors, to the complainant. But there has to be a tie.

MARQUEZ: The tie prosecutors want to make, Jackson serving alcohol to the alleged victim and the subsequent molestations of the then-13-year-old cancer patient. Jackson has denied all allegations.

RAYMONE BAIN, JACKSON SPOKESWOMAN: It's very difficult when, you know, you're hearing things about yourself and you want to stand up and say, oh, that's not true, or oh no, that's wrong.

MARQUEZ: The accuser's sister said Jackson told the family not to watch the controversial Martin Bashir documentary, "Living With Michael Jackson." Prosecutors contend that was one of 28 separate acts of conspiracy which they say Jackson orchestrated.

BREMNER: And where she did was what -- you know, corroboration, corroboration, corroboration.

MARQUEZ: The 18-year-old college freshman testified that while on a private plane from Miami to Los Angeles, she saw Jackson and her brother passing a Diet Coke can, sipping from it, and whispering, but saw no alcohol. She also said that on more than one occasion, Jackson was alone with her brother in a bedroom behind closed doors.

But was she believable?

BREMNER: Overall, I think credible, very matter of fact, very responsive, very respectful.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUEZ: So what the prosecution seems to have done yesterday and will continue today is to lay that foundation so that when her mother, her brother, the accuser, and her other brother, the younger brother, get up to testify, all those stories are corroborated in their stories against the king of pop.

Back to you.

COSTELLO: Miguel Marquez live from Santa Maria, California, this morning.

HEMMER: Eleven minutes past the hour. Back to Chad Myers with another check of the weather and what's coming up this weekend.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: We're watching a live picture in Westchester County, outside of New York City, about an hour's drive from the city. And there is Martha Stewart at the fence. Not quite sure who he is with. She was with her daughter Alexis when she climbed on board that plane about 12:30, 1:00 in the morning last night in West Virginia.

The horses are there, the dogs there. The snow is still on the ground. We were wondering earlier today when she would make her first public appearance, and here it is at 9:13 Eastern Time.

COSTELLO: And so she must know that helicopter is hovering over her property.

HEMMER: Yes. And we have seen some live pictures, too, outside the home. And it is a beautiful estate, too. Well over about 150 acres.

And as Jeff Toobin was pointing out, this is a home that costs about $16 million about five years ago, in need of a lot of repairs. And that's what Martha Stewart's best at, is she not?

COSTELLO: Yes, I think she's going to be working on that in her time away from prison now. It's just amazing to see that she certainly is not hiding from the public.

I mean, they set it up at the airport in West Virginia so you could watch her board the plane. All that was missing there was the red carpet. And now look at her in this beautiful setting, perfect for Martha Stewart Living, don't you think?

HEMMER: Feeding the horses on a Friday morning. Martha Stewart in Bedford, New York.

COSTELLO: Let's talk about a bizarre scene out West. Chimpanzees break out of their cage and they go on a violent rampage. That's straight ahead.

HEMMER: Also, new advice from doctors. Take two of these and e- mail me in the morning. Online consultation is a new trend, but is it risky? We'll check into that today.

COSTELLO: And they just might be the happiest employees in all of America. We'll tell you about the incredible gift they got from their boss. That, too, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Watching this picture during the commercial break here. Martha Stewart outside of her estate in Bedford, New York. We thought it was interesting. She came out to feed the horses this morning in the snow and the sunshine.

COSTELLO: And she has one of her beloved dogs with her, her Chow dog. We don't know who she's walking with. But, you know, it must be -- it must feel good just to be outside after being cooped up for so long inside.

HEMMER: Martha Stewart's back home. And her life begins anew.

Going to get to this story out of California. What a gruesome story, too.

From California, this man in critical condition today after a pair of chimps attacked him at an animal sanctuary. He was visiting another chimpanzee at the time when two male chimps and two female chimps escaped from their cage.

The man is 62. He suffered extensive injures to his face and body and limbs. And it is gruesome.

Doctors say the chimps chewed off most of his face and his foot and other body parts. He'll need extensive surgery to try and reattach his nose. The animals were shot and killed during the attack by a man who lives there. And Commander Hal Chealander says the shooting may have saved the victim's life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COMMANDER HAL CHEALANDER, KERN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPT.: If not for the reaction of an individual who was living at the residence of this sanctuary, things could have been quite different. The individual responded heroically and dispatched both animals while they were attacking the victim.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Two older female chimps that I mentioned also escaped. They ran and hid. They were later recovered and without incident. Wow -- Carol.

COSTELLO: More than three decades after the murders began, police say they found the BTK killer. Fifty-nine-year-old Dennis Rader charged now with 10 counts of murder. Wichita, Kansas, residents are shocked at Rader's arrest. And neighbors say they never imagined BTK may have lived just down the block.

With more, here's CNN's Bob Franken.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): James Reno lives just down the street from Dennis Rader's house. Like many of his neighbors who consider Rader overbearing and anti-social, he frankly doesn't like him. But he never expected this.

JAMES RENO, NEIGHBOR: I'm glad they caught the man who was doing it all. I mean, I guess he's a bigger monster than what I thought he was.

FRANKEN: Police have been going over every inch of Rader's property and the whole neighborhood area, trying to build their homicide case, their 10 homicide cases.

(on camera): This is a community park, which investigators would note would provide easy access to the houses on the block, including this one, which belonged to Marine Hedge until 1985, when she was killed here. One of the 10 murder charges against Dennis Raid, who lived just five houses down.

(voice-over): Although the court proceedings have just begun, it is hard to find anyone here who doesn't believe Rader is guilty. His pastor, Reverend Michael Clark, spent 45 minutes with him in his jail cell on Wednesday, but would give no details about their conversation. Rader was president of his church council, where he enjoyed wide popularity in the congregation.

BOB SMYSER, CHURCH MEMBER: It changes everything. It changes everybody. It changes your belief system in the people you're -- you know, I mean, it can't help but do that.

FRANKEN: And it's going to change Independence Avenue, where Joshua Williams lives, down the street from Rader's house.

JOSHUA WILLIAMS, NEIGHBOR: People are going to be coming by and wanting to steal artifacts from the street to put them on eBay. When is the tourism going to quit? This block will never -- I don't think will ever calm down for a while. FRANKEN: A while before the entire area can close the book on the BTK case.

Bob Franken, CNN, Park City, Kansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Rader, who was arrested a week ago, is being held on $10 million bail.

HEMMER: We mentioned this, Martha Stewart's out of prison. Her first appearance seems carefully planned for the cameras. We saw this a few moments ago. But can they change what most of America already thinks about her? We'll look at that in a moment as we continue after this on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Just reading some e-mails.

CAFFERTY: You ought to see some of the stuff she gets on this computer.

HEMMER: Ooh, better not.

COSTELLO: We can't even talk about it on the air.

CAFFERTY: Nobody writes to me like that. That's -- all right.

23,000 miles, 67 hours, and Steve Fossett's in the record books. The adventurer became the first guy to circumnavigate the globe solo without stopping to refuel, prompting what Carol suggests is a lame "Question of the Day." And I'm inclined to maybe agree with Carol -- what world record would you like to break?

Nevertheless, it's a three-hour show. We have to fill it up.

Theresa in New York writes: "Any record that involves just my" -- this is nice -- "Any record that involves just my husband and I in an isolated cabin in front of a fireplace. Or anything having to do with peace and quiet."

Mike in New Mexico, "Jack, I think the only record worth breaking is having the most birthdays."

Mike in Florida writes: "I would like to see the United States get the world record for ending war, getting our troops home and minding our own borders and business."

And Barbara writes from Michigan, "I watched this morning's program with bated breath to see if you read this note. I believe bated breath means holding one's breath in anticipation, as in breathing was abated while one waits for whatever the big event is."

Talking about Wall Street waiting with bated breath for the jobs report. Sewer asked me, "What does it means?" I said, "I don't know." About a hundred of you have helped us out with that.

COSTELLO: But shouldn't it be abated breath?

CAFFERTY: Well, I think it was shortened. I think abated was the original version. And I think it just -- in time it got shortened to bated breath, instead of waiting with abated breath. I think.

COSTELLO: Yes, who knows.

CAFFERTY: And who cares?

Do we have any stories about Martha? Let's get back to Martha, because...

COSTELLO: I think we do.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack. There's more on AMERICAN MORNING after this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER (voice-over): Ahead on "90-second Pop," it's Martha Stewart version 2.0, new image, new look. Who knew prison could do a body good?

Plus...

HALLE BERRY, ACTRESS: This project is important to me for two really big reasons. One, Oprah Winfrey.

HEMMER: ... Halle Berry teaming up with the queen of all media. But is the project worth the buzz? That's later on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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