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CNN Sunday Morning
What Are the Odds? A Powerball Winning Streak; Parents Say Sex Ed in Maryland Is Too Graphic
Aired March 20, 2005 - 09:30 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.
TONY HARRIS, CNN CO-ANCHOR: And good morning once again, everyone. Welcome back to CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Tony Harris.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CO-ANCHOR: I'm Randi Kaye. Here's what's happening now in the news.
Terri Schiavo is in her third day without food. Congress is all set to vote on a bill, today, that could send her case to federal court. President Bush is leaving his Texas ranch, soon, so he can be in Washington to sign the bill if it passes.
The suspected killer of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford made a court appearance in Florida about a half hour ago. John Couey he has not yet been charged in the Lunsford case. Instead, he appeared before a judge on charges in connection with his status as a sex offender.
Colorado rescue crews had to use helicopter to reach victims after an explosion at a remote mountain lodge in Gunnison National Forest. At least 15 people were injured, some are still unaccounted for. Authorities say propane gas may have caused that blast.
HARRIS: And just about a half hour ago, a court appearance for the man accused of abducting and killing Jessica Lunsford, the Florida girl who vanished just about a month ago. Police say John Evander Couey has confessed to that crime. Formal charges were not presented at this hearing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE STEPHEN SPIVEY, CITRUS COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT: Good morning, sir. How are you this morning?
JOHN EVANDER COUEY, SUSPECTED KILLER: All right.
SPIVEY: Would you please state your full legal name for the record.
COUEY: John Evander Couey.
SPIVEY: All right. Mr. Couey, would you raise your right hand, sir? Do you solemnly swear that any testimony you give here today may be the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth, so help you god.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: All right. Mr. Couey, you have filed an affidavit of indigent status. Do you remember filling out that document?
COUEY: Probably. Yes sir, I do.
SPIVEY: All right. Do you want to -- Bailiff, do you want to take that over and have him to look at. I want you to look at the second page of that document, Mr. Couey, and let the court know if that's your signature or not.
COUEY: Yes, sir, it's mine.
SPIVEY: Yes, sir. And do you swear that all the responses that you made to those questions are true and correct?
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: OK. Mr. Couey, I'm going to find you indigent, and I will appoint the public defender to represent you in this matter.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: Mr. Couey, you understand you have the right to remain silent, and anything you say can and will be used against you in any future proceedings. Do you understand that right, sir?
COUEY: Yes. Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: And you also have a right to communicate with your counsel.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: You are -- you're here before the court, today, on two separate charges. One of which is violation of Florida statute 943.0435, which is failure to comply with the sex offender reporting requirements. There has been a capias issued in that matter, and the capias provides for no bond.
And the second charge that you're here on today, sir, involves a violation of probation, and the capias was issued on that matter, as well. There is a statutory bond amount on that capias of $905.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: And I will set the bond at the statutory amount on that charge. All right, sir, do you have any questions of the court this morning?
COUEY: No, sir.
SPIVEY: All right. Good luck to you.
COUEY: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Authorities say they could file the murder charge against Couey today or tomorrow. They're waiting to finalize details in their case.
KAYE: The second anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq was marked with protests across the U.S. and world. In San Francisco hundreds marched to city hall. Protesters called for American troops to leave Iraq.
In New York City a small group of about two dozen protesters laid down in the middle of Times Square to protest the war. Twenty- seven people were arrested, there. Hundreds more gathered at the United Nations for anti-war speeches.
And in North Carolina, an anti-war rally organized in part by veterans and military families drew people to a park near Fort Bragg, home to more than of 40,000 Soldiers.
Large-scale protests were also mounted in London, Tokyo, and Istanbul, Turkey.
More protests are on tap for today in both Boston and Philadelphia.
HARRIS: This weekend's anniversary of the start of the Iraqi war has been noted by some in Iraq, but it passed unnoticed by most U.S. troops. Those expressing opinions on the current situation called it a "mixed bag." Some of them talked with CNN's Aneesh Raman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two years on the rituals of war remain and for Captain Daniel Getchell, who was part of the initial wave, so do the memories of those first weeks.
CAPT. DANIEL GETCHELL, U.S. ARMY: And as I was coming in, I remember getting shot at, bullets whizzing by my head, an RPG went flying by.
RAMAN: He is now back on his second tour serving, progress made. Getchell was one of the first people to start recruiting Iraqi forces. And today, trains more than he can handle. A sign, he thinks, of things getting better. But at any given moment, a stark reminder emerges of things that haven't changed.
GETCHELL: Yeah.
RAMAN: A potential car bomb forces the convoy to move on.
GETCHELL: It's a bit frustrating, but at the same time, it seems like to me that the insurgents know, that our enemies know that long as Iraq progresses, that's a danger to them.
RAMAN (on camera): Two days on, today's Iraq is defined by complexity. Here in Tajji, there are still strongholds of pro-Saddam supporters, yet here on the road, new forces, Iraqi security forces, continue to be trained.
(voice-over): Balancing it all is, perhaps, the military's greatest challenge. Major Clarke Taylor first arrived as Baghdad fell, and now feels he must ensure that democracy rises.
MAJ. CLARKE TAYLOR, U.S. ARMY: I have no problem coming back this time. I have no problem coming back if I got to come back again, because if we don't finish this now, our children are going to have to do it 20 years from now.
RAMAN: Conflicts like these change people. The things they witness.
GETCHELL: I've seen, over here, probably, the best and the worst of just -- of humanity in general.
RAMAN: And the lessons learned from those they have lost.
TAYLOR: It's like we have -- we value the small things and we don't take things for granted. War's hard. It comes -- it's a cost we all know that we could possibly have to pay when we volunteer to serve our country.
RAMAN: Two years on, for these two men, there is no anniversary to observe, simply work to be done.
Aneesh Raman, CNN, Tajji, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Well, it's spring break for a lot of you, and while you might be heading to the beach, others are surfing the web. Coming up what's hot on the Internet, including intriguing news about those of you who play the lottery.
KAYE: But, speaking of spring break: Good morning, Daytona Beach. Look at those waves. Oh, those lucky people to be out there. The weather forecast coming up with Rob Marciano. CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: The new mantra of one Maryland school district: "Let's talk about sex," but some parents say teachers are saying too much. The Montgomery County sex controversy right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And welcome back, everyone, to CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Tony Harris. President Bush is heading back to the white House early so he can sign emergency legislation in the case of a brain- damaged Florida woman, both the House and Senate are working on bills that would move her case to federal court.
A court appearance within the last hour for the register the sex offender who police say confessed to abducting and killing 9-year- old Jessica Lunsford. Her body was found this weekend, more than three weeks after she was taken from her bedroom. John Evander Couey was returned this morning to the Citrus County Jail, where he is being held under suicide watch.
At least one death is blamed on a powerful earthquake that struck near Japan's westernmost island. The quake measured a preliminary magnitude of 7.0. It injured at least 250 people and destroyed dozens of homes.
And coming up new at 11:00 a.m. Eastern: It's a new weapon in the war against crime, a gone that only one person can fire. It would prevent a criminal from stealing a police officer's weapon and using it. The Smart Gun is coming on "CNN Live Sunday," 11:00 a.m. Eastern.
KAYE: And it is time now to take a look at the stories that are co getting the most attention on our website, cnn.com. Veronica de la Cruz joins us with all those details.
Good morning.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. And that's right, we are tracking the stories that are receiving the most clicks, and to find them, you can head to our main page. Click on the icon "Most Popular," that's on the right-hand side of your screen. You can also type in "cnn.com/mostpopular."
Now this story saw a lot of attention this morning. We've seen the movie "Jaws," right? Well, this real-life shark attack happened off the coast of Australia. A 20-foot shark tore this man in half while he was snorkeling with a group of tourists. The 26-year-old was a deckhand aboard a pleasure boat. He had taken the tourists out to snorkel, Randi, when he was attacked by the shark about 250 miles north of the capital, Perth. Police say the man was bitten in half, and his death was instantaneous. Yeah. Authorities are looking to kill the shark to safeguard the public, and they believe that it is a great white or a tiger shark.
Now from the coast of Australia to lottery counters all over the U.S., here's another hot story on the web right now: Have you given up on Powerball?
HARRIS: Heck no!
DE LA CRUZ: Well, despite the ridiculously long odds, and trust me, they are long, 1-in-120 million. People are winning at the highest rate since 1997. There have been six winners since January 1 and officials aren't saying if the streak continues, there could be a record 17 winners this fiscal year.
Now, do you guys play?
KAYE: Tony was supposed to buy the tickets, actually, this weekend.
DE LA CRUZ: Tony! Did he do it?
HARRIS: Yeah. Uh, yeah I did, but I'm keeping them all.
DE LA CRUZ: Yeah.
KAYE: Well, you have to pay for them.
HARRIS: Oh.
DE LA CRUZ: I did the research, and I just want you to know that you have better odds of being hit by lightning.
HARRIS: Sure.
DE LA CRUZ: It's one in five million, and then to win Powerball it's one in 120 million. But, somebody has to win.
KAYE: Great, see all the stuff you don't want always has better odds. That's great news.
HARRIS: Veronica, thanks.
DE LA CRUZ: Thank you.
KAYE: Your answers to this morning's e-mail questions coming up, "Who should decide the fate of Terri Schiavo?"
HARRIS: Plus bringing sex out of the bedroom and into the classroom?
KAYE: Well...
HARRIS: Well, there's sometimes I -- OK
KAYE: Just you wanted to think about it there for a second.
HARRIS: Sometimes forbidden subject makes its way into a Maryland school district, and some parents, shall we say, are less than pleased.
Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Tony. Um, if you're looking for an opinion, I'm not going to give it.
WKMG, our affiliate out in Daytona Beach providing us with this spring-like shot as spring beakers head to Florida. Sunshine on the way for much of the Sunshine state.
Complete forecast for the rest of the country coming up in about ten minutes. CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: All morning long we've been asking for your thoughts on our e-mail question: Does Congress belong in the Terri Schiavo debate? And you have -- boy, you have really responded to this question. Not that we ever had any doubt that you would, but you've really come through for us.
KAYE: And here's the first one, let's take a look at that. This is from Andrew: "It is appalling -- although not surprising -- that politicians would use the family's personal tragedy for political theatrics. The Florida legislators and governor openly passed a law they knew was unconstitutional. Now the feds appear ready to do the same. Everyone involved should be ashamed."
HARRIS: And listen to this: "Never, ever did I think I would agree with a conservative on any issue. I'm choking on this, but I found myself agreeing with Tom DeLay about Terri. I've followed this story for years and have yet to hear a logical, believable, or loving explanation from her husband, Michael. I have a living will, but -- as much as I trust and love my husband -- I will take a second look to ensure that neither he nor any court can kill me because it cannot distinguish between the right to die and euthanasia."
Cynthia, thank you. And thank you all for your e-mails, this morning, they've been wonderful on this topic, but, again, we knew they would.
KAYE: We want to say good morning now to Kelly Wallace who is standing by in Washington for "ON THE STORY," which starts in just about 10 minutes.
Good morning, Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, "ON THE STORY": Good morning Randi and good morning Tony.
We are "ON THE STORY" from here in Washington to the Battlefields of western Iraq as we mark two years since the start of the war.
We'll also have the latest on the legal and now political battle over whether Terri Schiavo lives or dies.
We're also "ON THE STORY" of the congressional hearing on steroids and baseball. Did the players strike out?
Plus, record oil prices, what does it all mean for your pocketbooks and your job?
A very busy hour ahead, all coming up, all "ON THE STORY."
Randi and Tony, we hope you are watching.
HARRIS: Absolutely.
KAYE: Oh always.
HARRIS: Don't miss it.
KAYE: Always do. All right, thanks, Kelly.
HARRIS: A final check of the nation's weather now with Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center.
Good morning, Rob.
MARCIANO: Morning Tony. Morning Randi.
We're looking at spring. It has arrived as of 7:34 this morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Rob, thank you. Have a good weekend.
MARCIANO: All right, you too.
KAYE: There's a new sex education curriculum in the schools of Montgomery County, Maryland, but some parents say their kids are getting too much information. CNN's Kathleen Koch has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, for our purposes today, we'll be using a cucumber for the demonstration.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A graphic demonstration of condemn use, and for the first time, discussion of sex variations, including homosexuality.
(APPLAUSE)
KAREN WARNER, PARENT: This type -- this type of sex -- sexual education should be taught by parents at home.
KOCH: Such controversial changes had passions running high on both sides, at a Saturday meeting, on Montgomery County, Maryland's new sex education curriculum.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Be sure not to tear the condom with your fingernail.
L'TANYA WILKERSON, PARENT: I'm shocked and appalled at what I've seen here today. I had no idea.
SCOTT DAVENPORT, PARENT: I'm thrilled this kind of video is going to be there, because I think it forces parents to then have conversations with their kids.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Abstinence is 100 percent effective.
KOCH: School officials point out much of the new sex ed video stresses abstinence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The best way is not to have sex at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Condoms and abstinence.
KOCH: They believe lessons plans on homosexuality will increase tolerance and decline bullying.
RUSSELL HENKE, HEALTH CURRICULUM COORDINATOR: Lack of information sometimes leads to fear, sometimes leads to hate and what we're trying to do is we're trying to clear that up for the kids in our schools, today.
KOCH: Health teacher, Alex Rubenstein, says it's an improvement over the previous curriculum in which homosexuality could only be discussed if a student brought it up, and then only briefly.
ALEX RUBENSTEIN, HEALTH EDUCATION TEACHER: We were basically allowed to answer it to a certain degree, but it was very overwhelming because I didn't know exactly what would be going over the Line. So, it was just very confusing.
KOCH: The county says parental response is running three to one in favor of the new curriculum to be tested in six schools this spring.
SUZANNE MAXEY, PRINCIPAL, SENACA VALLEY HIGH: The kids are already talking about these things. This is not introducing anything to them. What we're doing is we're setting the conversation in an atmosphere that's socially responsible.
KOCH: Michele Turner, whose six children have all attended county schools believes the curriculum has another goal.
MICHELLE TURNER, PARENT: To purposely teach these kids these things in the hopes that they will grow up to be adults who believe that there's nothing wrong with it. We can now do our own thing. It's no big deal.
KOCH: Christine Grewell believes it is opponents who have an agenda.
CHRISTINE GREWELL, PARENT: I think they are trying to, in a way, to use their religious views to influence the school curriculum, and I don't think that's proper.
KOCH (on camera): Montgomery County school officials so say that during this trial period any segment of the new curriculum that's found to be problematic could be changed or eliminated.
(voice-over): Finally, parents who dislike the changes can opt to have their children study other material, including an abstinence only curriculum.
Kathleen Koch, CNN, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Maryland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: That's it. That's all of our time for CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Thank you for joining us this morning and every morning. And how about this? Randi Kaye sitting in for Betty Nguyen.
Thank you very much.
KAYE: Great to be here. Thanks for having me.
HARRIS: It's been a very busy weekend.
KAYE: And "ON THE STORY" is on tap in just a few seconds here, so we'll go back to Washington where Kelly Wallace is standing by. Have a great Sunday.
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 20, 2005 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN CO-ANCHOR: And good morning once again, everyone. Welcome back to CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Tony Harris.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CO-ANCHOR: I'm Randi Kaye. Here's what's happening now in the news.
Terri Schiavo is in her third day without food. Congress is all set to vote on a bill, today, that could send her case to federal court. President Bush is leaving his Texas ranch, soon, so he can be in Washington to sign the bill if it passes.
The suspected killer of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford made a court appearance in Florida about a half hour ago. John Couey he has not yet been charged in the Lunsford case. Instead, he appeared before a judge on charges in connection with his status as a sex offender.
Colorado rescue crews had to use helicopter to reach victims after an explosion at a remote mountain lodge in Gunnison National Forest. At least 15 people were injured, some are still unaccounted for. Authorities say propane gas may have caused that blast.
HARRIS: And just about a half hour ago, a court appearance for the man accused of abducting and killing Jessica Lunsford, the Florida girl who vanished just about a month ago. Police say John Evander Couey has confessed to that crime. Formal charges were not presented at this hearing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE STEPHEN SPIVEY, CITRUS COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT: Good morning, sir. How are you this morning?
JOHN EVANDER COUEY, SUSPECTED KILLER: All right.
SPIVEY: Would you please state your full legal name for the record.
COUEY: John Evander Couey.
SPIVEY: All right. Mr. Couey, would you raise your right hand, sir? Do you solemnly swear that any testimony you give here today may be the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth, so help you god.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: All right. Mr. Couey, you have filed an affidavit of indigent status. Do you remember filling out that document?
COUEY: Probably. Yes sir, I do.
SPIVEY: All right. Do you want to -- Bailiff, do you want to take that over and have him to look at. I want you to look at the second page of that document, Mr. Couey, and let the court know if that's your signature or not.
COUEY: Yes, sir, it's mine.
SPIVEY: Yes, sir. And do you swear that all the responses that you made to those questions are true and correct?
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: OK. Mr. Couey, I'm going to find you indigent, and I will appoint the public defender to represent you in this matter.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: Mr. Couey, you understand you have the right to remain silent, and anything you say can and will be used against you in any future proceedings. Do you understand that right, sir?
COUEY: Yes. Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: And you also have a right to communicate with your counsel.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: You are -- you're here before the court, today, on two separate charges. One of which is violation of Florida statute 943.0435, which is failure to comply with the sex offender reporting requirements. There has been a capias issued in that matter, and the capias provides for no bond.
And the second charge that you're here on today, sir, involves a violation of probation, and the capias was issued on that matter, as well. There is a statutory bond amount on that capias of $905.
COUEY: Yes, sir.
SPIVEY: And I will set the bond at the statutory amount on that charge. All right, sir, do you have any questions of the court this morning?
COUEY: No, sir.
SPIVEY: All right. Good luck to you.
COUEY: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Authorities say they could file the murder charge against Couey today or tomorrow. They're waiting to finalize details in their case.
KAYE: The second anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq was marked with protests across the U.S. and world. In San Francisco hundreds marched to city hall. Protesters called for American troops to leave Iraq.
In New York City a small group of about two dozen protesters laid down in the middle of Times Square to protest the war. Twenty- seven people were arrested, there. Hundreds more gathered at the United Nations for anti-war speeches.
And in North Carolina, an anti-war rally organized in part by veterans and military families drew people to a park near Fort Bragg, home to more than of 40,000 Soldiers.
Large-scale protests were also mounted in London, Tokyo, and Istanbul, Turkey.
More protests are on tap for today in both Boston and Philadelphia.
HARRIS: This weekend's anniversary of the start of the Iraqi war has been noted by some in Iraq, but it passed unnoticed by most U.S. troops. Those expressing opinions on the current situation called it a "mixed bag." Some of them talked with CNN's Aneesh Raman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two years on the rituals of war remain and for Captain Daniel Getchell, who was part of the initial wave, so do the memories of those first weeks.
CAPT. DANIEL GETCHELL, U.S. ARMY: And as I was coming in, I remember getting shot at, bullets whizzing by my head, an RPG went flying by.
RAMAN: He is now back on his second tour serving, progress made. Getchell was one of the first people to start recruiting Iraqi forces. And today, trains more than he can handle. A sign, he thinks, of things getting better. But at any given moment, a stark reminder emerges of things that haven't changed.
GETCHELL: Yeah.
RAMAN: A potential car bomb forces the convoy to move on.
GETCHELL: It's a bit frustrating, but at the same time, it seems like to me that the insurgents know, that our enemies know that long as Iraq progresses, that's a danger to them.
RAMAN (on camera): Two days on, today's Iraq is defined by complexity. Here in Tajji, there are still strongholds of pro-Saddam supporters, yet here on the road, new forces, Iraqi security forces, continue to be trained.
(voice-over): Balancing it all is, perhaps, the military's greatest challenge. Major Clarke Taylor first arrived as Baghdad fell, and now feels he must ensure that democracy rises.
MAJ. CLARKE TAYLOR, U.S. ARMY: I have no problem coming back this time. I have no problem coming back if I got to come back again, because if we don't finish this now, our children are going to have to do it 20 years from now.
RAMAN: Conflicts like these change people. The things they witness.
GETCHELL: I've seen, over here, probably, the best and the worst of just -- of humanity in general.
RAMAN: And the lessons learned from those they have lost.
TAYLOR: It's like we have -- we value the small things and we don't take things for granted. War's hard. It comes -- it's a cost we all know that we could possibly have to pay when we volunteer to serve our country.
RAMAN: Two years on, for these two men, there is no anniversary to observe, simply work to be done.
Aneesh Raman, CNN, Tajji, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Well, it's spring break for a lot of you, and while you might be heading to the beach, others are surfing the web. Coming up what's hot on the Internet, including intriguing news about those of you who play the lottery.
KAYE: But, speaking of spring break: Good morning, Daytona Beach. Look at those waves. Oh, those lucky people to be out there. The weather forecast coming up with Rob Marciano. CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: The new mantra of one Maryland school district: "Let's talk about sex," but some parents say teachers are saying too much. The Montgomery County sex controversy right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And welcome back, everyone, to CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm Tony Harris. President Bush is heading back to the white House early so he can sign emergency legislation in the case of a brain- damaged Florida woman, both the House and Senate are working on bills that would move her case to federal court.
A court appearance within the last hour for the register the sex offender who police say confessed to abducting and killing 9-year- old Jessica Lunsford. Her body was found this weekend, more than three weeks after she was taken from her bedroom. John Evander Couey was returned this morning to the Citrus County Jail, where he is being held under suicide watch.
At least one death is blamed on a powerful earthquake that struck near Japan's westernmost island. The quake measured a preliminary magnitude of 7.0. It injured at least 250 people and destroyed dozens of homes.
And coming up new at 11:00 a.m. Eastern: It's a new weapon in the war against crime, a gone that only one person can fire. It would prevent a criminal from stealing a police officer's weapon and using it. The Smart Gun is coming on "CNN Live Sunday," 11:00 a.m. Eastern.
KAYE: And it is time now to take a look at the stories that are co getting the most attention on our website, cnn.com. Veronica de la Cruz joins us with all those details.
Good morning.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. And that's right, we are tracking the stories that are receiving the most clicks, and to find them, you can head to our main page. Click on the icon "Most Popular," that's on the right-hand side of your screen. You can also type in "cnn.com/mostpopular."
Now this story saw a lot of attention this morning. We've seen the movie "Jaws," right? Well, this real-life shark attack happened off the coast of Australia. A 20-foot shark tore this man in half while he was snorkeling with a group of tourists. The 26-year-old was a deckhand aboard a pleasure boat. He had taken the tourists out to snorkel, Randi, when he was attacked by the shark about 250 miles north of the capital, Perth. Police say the man was bitten in half, and his death was instantaneous. Yeah. Authorities are looking to kill the shark to safeguard the public, and they believe that it is a great white or a tiger shark.
Now from the coast of Australia to lottery counters all over the U.S., here's another hot story on the web right now: Have you given up on Powerball?
HARRIS: Heck no!
DE LA CRUZ: Well, despite the ridiculously long odds, and trust me, they are long, 1-in-120 million. People are winning at the highest rate since 1997. There have been six winners since January 1 and officials aren't saying if the streak continues, there could be a record 17 winners this fiscal year.
Now, do you guys play?
KAYE: Tony was supposed to buy the tickets, actually, this weekend.
DE LA CRUZ: Tony! Did he do it?
HARRIS: Yeah. Uh, yeah I did, but I'm keeping them all.
DE LA CRUZ: Yeah.
KAYE: Well, you have to pay for them.
HARRIS: Oh.
DE LA CRUZ: I did the research, and I just want you to know that you have better odds of being hit by lightning.
HARRIS: Sure.
DE LA CRUZ: It's one in five million, and then to win Powerball it's one in 120 million. But, somebody has to win.
KAYE: Great, see all the stuff you don't want always has better odds. That's great news.
HARRIS: Veronica, thanks.
DE LA CRUZ: Thank you.
KAYE: Your answers to this morning's e-mail questions coming up, "Who should decide the fate of Terri Schiavo?"
HARRIS: Plus bringing sex out of the bedroom and into the classroom?
KAYE: Well...
HARRIS: Well, there's sometimes I -- OK
KAYE: Just you wanted to think about it there for a second.
HARRIS: Sometimes forbidden subject makes its way into a Maryland school district, and some parents, shall we say, are less than pleased.
Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Tony. Um, if you're looking for an opinion, I'm not going to give it.
WKMG, our affiliate out in Daytona Beach providing us with this spring-like shot as spring beakers head to Florida. Sunshine on the way for much of the Sunshine state.
Complete forecast for the rest of the country coming up in about ten minutes. CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: All morning long we've been asking for your thoughts on our e-mail question: Does Congress belong in the Terri Schiavo debate? And you have -- boy, you have really responded to this question. Not that we ever had any doubt that you would, but you've really come through for us.
KAYE: And here's the first one, let's take a look at that. This is from Andrew: "It is appalling -- although not surprising -- that politicians would use the family's personal tragedy for political theatrics. The Florida legislators and governor openly passed a law they knew was unconstitutional. Now the feds appear ready to do the same. Everyone involved should be ashamed."
HARRIS: And listen to this: "Never, ever did I think I would agree with a conservative on any issue. I'm choking on this, but I found myself agreeing with Tom DeLay about Terri. I've followed this story for years and have yet to hear a logical, believable, or loving explanation from her husband, Michael. I have a living will, but -- as much as I trust and love my husband -- I will take a second look to ensure that neither he nor any court can kill me because it cannot distinguish between the right to die and euthanasia."
Cynthia, thank you. And thank you all for your e-mails, this morning, they've been wonderful on this topic, but, again, we knew they would.
KAYE: We want to say good morning now to Kelly Wallace who is standing by in Washington for "ON THE STORY," which starts in just about 10 minutes.
Good morning, Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, "ON THE STORY": Good morning Randi and good morning Tony.
We are "ON THE STORY" from here in Washington to the Battlefields of western Iraq as we mark two years since the start of the war.
We'll also have the latest on the legal and now political battle over whether Terri Schiavo lives or dies.
We're also "ON THE STORY" of the congressional hearing on steroids and baseball. Did the players strike out?
Plus, record oil prices, what does it all mean for your pocketbooks and your job?
A very busy hour ahead, all coming up, all "ON THE STORY."
Randi and Tony, we hope you are watching.
HARRIS: Absolutely.
KAYE: Oh always.
HARRIS: Don't miss it.
KAYE: Always do. All right, thanks, Kelly.
HARRIS: A final check of the nation's weather now with Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center.
Good morning, Rob.
MARCIANO: Morning Tony. Morning Randi.
We're looking at spring. It has arrived as of 7:34 this morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Rob, thank you. Have a good weekend.
MARCIANO: All right, you too.
KAYE: There's a new sex education curriculum in the schools of Montgomery County, Maryland, but some parents say their kids are getting too much information. CNN's Kathleen Koch has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, for our purposes today, we'll be using a cucumber for the demonstration.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A graphic demonstration of condemn use, and for the first time, discussion of sex variations, including homosexuality.
(APPLAUSE)
KAREN WARNER, PARENT: This type -- this type of sex -- sexual education should be taught by parents at home.
KOCH: Such controversial changes had passions running high on both sides, at a Saturday meeting, on Montgomery County, Maryland's new sex education curriculum.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Be sure not to tear the condom with your fingernail.
L'TANYA WILKERSON, PARENT: I'm shocked and appalled at what I've seen here today. I had no idea.
SCOTT DAVENPORT, PARENT: I'm thrilled this kind of video is going to be there, because I think it forces parents to then have conversations with their kids.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Abstinence is 100 percent effective.
KOCH: School officials point out much of the new sex ed video stresses abstinence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The best way is not to have sex at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Condoms and abstinence.
KOCH: They believe lessons plans on homosexuality will increase tolerance and decline bullying.
RUSSELL HENKE, HEALTH CURRICULUM COORDINATOR: Lack of information sometimes leads to fear, sometimes leads to hate and what we're trying to do is we're trying to clear that up for the kids in our schools, today.
KOCH: Health teacher, Alex Rubenstein, says it's an improvement over the previous curriculum in which homosexuality could only be discussed if a student brought it up, and then only briefly.
ALEX RUBENSTEIN, HEALTH EDUCATION TEACHER: We were basically allowed to answer it to a certain degree, but it was very overwhelming because I didn't know exactly what would be going over the Line. So, it was just very confusing.
KOCH: The county says parental response is running three to one in favor of the new curriculum to be tested in six schools this spring.
SUZANNE MAXEY, PRINCIPAL, SENACA VALLEY HIGH: The kids are already talking about these things. This is not introducing anything to them. What we're doing is we're setting the conversation in an atmosphere that's socially responsible.
KOCH: Michele Turner, whose six children have all attended county schools believes the curriculum has another goal.
MICHELLE TURNER, PARENT: To purposely teach these kids these things in the hopes that they will grow up to be adults who believe that there's nothing wrong with it. We can now do our own thing. It's no big deal.
KOCH: Christine Grewell believes it is opponents who have an agenda.
CHRISTINE GREWELL, PARENT: I think they are trying to, in a way, to use their religious views to influence the school curriculum, and I don't think that's proper.
KOCH (on camera): Montgomery County school officials so say that during this trial period any segment of the new curriculum that's found to be problematic could be changed or eliminated.
(voice-over): Finally, parents who dislike the changes can opt to have their children study other material, including an abstinence only curriculum.
Kathleen Koch, CNN, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Maryland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: That's it. That's all of our time for CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Thank you for joining us this morning and every morning. And how about this? Randi Kaye sitting in for Betty Nguyen.
Thank you very much.
KAYE: Great to be here. Thanks for having me.
HARRIS: It's been a very busy weekend.
KAYE: And "ON THE STORY" is on tap in just a few seconds here, so we'll go back to Washington where Kelly Wallace is standing by. Have a great Sunday.
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