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CNN Live At Daybreak

Religion, Terri Schiavo; New Schiavo Appeal; Boy Scouts Pornography; Microsoft Grammar Unchecked

Aired March 30, 2005 - 06:29   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.


KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Stories "Now in the News."
An emergency petition in the Terri Schiavo case is before a federal appeals court this morning. Late last night, Schiavo's parents asked all 12 judges on the court to take a fresh look at the case. Michael Schiavo's attorney says the federal judges have already ruled in this case. A live report straight ahead.

New pictures in to CNN this morning of First Lady Laura Bush. She is on a five-hour tour of Afghanistan, where she is meeting with women training to be teachers. The first lady says the country's budding democracy can't develop if its women aren't educated.

A brilliant lawyer and a tough fighter. That's how friends and colleagues are remembering Johnnie Cochran, Jr. He is dead at the age of 67 from a brain tumor.

Taking the stand today in the Michael Jackson trial is the man who introduced the pop star to his accuser while the boy was battling cancer. The man owns a comedy club.

And look at this. Yes, you're going to look at these now. These are pictures of dozens and dozens of sharks in the ocean off Deerfield Beach in Florida. Officials have shut down the city's beaches after spotting those sharks. The beach patrol is out this morning to determine if they can reopen the beach or not.

To Chad in Atlanta.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Turning now again to our top story this morning, the Terri Schiavo case. New developments to tell you about this morning.

The brain-damaged woman's parents are trying to revive their effort to keep her alive. And they're turning to a federal court that has rejected them in the past.

For the latest, let's go now to CNN's Elizabeth Cohen, who is outside the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia.

Good morning to you, Elizabeth. What's the latest from there?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.

The latest here is that Bob and Mary Schindler, Terri Schiavo's parents, have filed a petition with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. And what the petition says is that the entire court, all 12 judges, should hear this case rather than just a three-judge panel.

Now, her parents have asked for this before, and they have been rejected. But this petition says that this time, the argument is different. They say that this time, the argument is that the court in the past has just looked at procedural issues and now needs to look at the evidence. They say this federal appeals court needs to look at the evidence, because, according to the parents, they say that the facts show that Terri Schiavo would want to be kept alive in the state that she's in.

Florida courts have found over the years that she would not want to be kept alive in the state that she's in on an artificial feeding tube -- Kelly.

WALLACE: And, Elizabeth, we have heard now, of course, from the Schindlers. What are we hearing from Michael Schiavo and his attorneys about this latest development?

COHEN: Right. As of yet, as we believe that George Felos, Michael Schiavo's attorney, has not yet filed anything with this court. In fact, apparently he just found out about this most recent petition late last night when CNN contacted him -- Kelly.

WALLACE: All right, Elizabeth, thanks for bringing us the latest outside the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia. Elizabeth, of course, more reports throughout the day on CNN.

We want to now go to Pinellas Park, Florida, to our Sean Callebs. This is on the scene of Terri Schiavo's hospice.

And, Sean, you were telling us about an arrest there just about 20 minutes ago.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It happened basically right as the sun began to peek up here. Behind me, there's a police officer that's really stationed right in the driveway leading up to the hospice. And this is something that has played out so many times.

An individual went up there with a cup of water and said, "I'm going through." The authorities said, "No, you're not." And then literally grabbed him, and at that point the water flew up in the air. The individual was handcuffed. He was taken off to a bus that is here full time parked over there, where they, in essence, begin to process all of those who have been arrested. And there have been dozens.

As of yesterday morning, 48 people had been arrested, some of them for resisting arrest, which this gentleman may indeed face after this.

It's the second morning in a row that dawn has started like this. Without question, passions are running high here. The increased police presence, really the same number of officers the past week or so, but a lot more focus on the line behind me, where these demonstrators are. There have been some taunts thrown by the protesters at authorities. Authorities say they are doing their best to keep things under control and trying to get those who try to go through the police line arrested and taken away as quickly as possible -- Kelly.

WALLACE: Sean, talk a little bit about the protesters. Are you seeing the numbers go up as we get into what could be the final days in this case? And I understand most of the protesters really aren't from Florida, but from outside the state.

CALLEBS: Yes, true. That's very true. I don't know if we can say we've actually seen the number go up, because over the Easter weekend, authorities said at one point there were about 400 demonstrators out there. That was the most that they had seen. And that is really when they began focusing more of the police presence right on that line, where the demonstrators have been holding vigil both night and day.

And a lot of these people are coming in from outside the area. And it's really hard to say how comfortable that the Schindler family is with all of this out there. Certainly, they appreciate the support that they are getting, but they really don't like the taunts that they have seen in front of police officers, some goose-stepping, calling the authorities Nazis or fascists.

In fact, on Easter day, Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother, came out and told the crowd, it's Easter, go home, spend some time with your families, but please keep Terri in your thoughts and prayers -- Kelly.

WALLACE: All right, Sean, thanks for bringing us the latest there from Pinellas Park, Florida. Sean Callebs reporting. We appreciate it.

Now I want to turn to Bill Hemmer to tell us a little bit about what is coming up on this "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning, Bill. It is another busy news day indeed.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: It sure is. Kelly, how are you? Good morning to you as well.

Johnnie Cochran launching into fame with the O.J. Simpson trial, but clearly not the only case that he brought to prominence in this country. We'll talk to another lawyer this morning, part of the famous dream team. Barry Scheck (ph) sharing his memories of Cochran. So, too, will Jeff Toobin, knew him well, even wrote a book about the Simpson case. So that is one of our many topics today.

Also, our special tax series continues. We call it "Many Happy Returns." We hope that's the case. Today, how you do not know about deductions that can hurt you. Find out why you might be paying more than your fair share, and we'll get to that with Gerri Willis as that series continues.

Twenty-two minutes away, Kelly. See you at the top of the hour here. WALLACE: Exactly, Bill. And if I'm doing the math right, I think just about two weeks from Friday, April 15, right?

HEMMER: You're exactly right, yes. Get it done.

WALLACE: All right, thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Bye-bye.

WALLACE: We'll see you in about 20 minutes or so.

And turning now to another story. A former high-ranking official with the Boy Scouts of America is facing child pornography charges. Douglas Smith is scheduled to appear at a hearing in federal court this morning.

CNN's Ed Lavandera joins us now from Fort Worth, Texas, with some of the details of the case.

Ed, thanks for getting up early for us. We appreciate it. Give us a sense of how long was this individual under investigation?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know what? It doesn't sound like it was very long. Federal authorities out of Washington told us yesterday that it wasn't until late last year, just a couple of months ago, that German authorities, 61-year-old Douglas Smith, Jr.'s name had popped up in an investigation into a child pornography investigation over in Germany towards the end of last year. German authorities passed it to American authorities.

And it wasn't until late February when Douglas Smith had found out that the feds were actually looking into him, and that's why he retired from the Boy Scouts of America just a couple of days after that.

WALLACE: And I guess our understanding is, he's expected to be in court today and to plead guilty to charges of federal child pornography?

LAVANDERA: Yes, the U.S. attorney's office here in the Fort Worth area is saying that he's expected to plead guilty, although we did get a chance to speak with Smith's attorney yesterday, and he said that he wasn't prepared to say that. So, I don't know how much of that is just kind of legal maneuvering. But the U.S. attorneys say they expect him to plead guilty at 9:00 a.m. Central Time today.

WALLACE: What kind of evidence, Ed, are you hearing from your sources that they say they have against him?

LAVANDERA: Well, you know, everyone is being rather tight-lipped about exactly what they have. In the charge, it does say that they have proof that there are Internet photographs, sexually-explicit photographs involving minors that were on his home computer. There was also a computer taken from his office, although Smith's attorney is out there saying that none of the evidence taken in this case found from that computer. But they're being very tight-lipped outside of just, you know, what the description in the charges describes what kind of pictures they found.

WALLACE: And, Ed, talk to us a little bit about the role he played with the Boy Scouts and what the organization is saying about this development.

LAVANDERA: Well, it's been a long career at the Boy Scouts. He spent 39 years affiliated with the organization, although the most recent job he had was a job described as the national director of programs, which means he was involved in what the Boy Scouts described a much more high-level administrative position, organizing of events for the organization. And they also -- and they're quick to point out that he did not have any direct involvement with young people.

WALLACE: All right, Ed, we thank you so much. Ed Lavandera reporting from Fort Worth, Texas. And Ed will be on "AMERICAN MORNING" and throughout the day regarding this matter on CNN.

New details this morning in the investigation of those deadly shootings on a Minnesota Indian reservation. A tribal leader's son is under arrest, charged in connection with the rampage that left 10 people dead, including the teenage gunman. "The New York Times" quotes a source, saying Louis Jourdain planned the shooting with Jeff Weise.

Jourdain's father made this statement -- quote: "As many of you are aware, my son, Louis, has been charged in connection with the shootings that occurred here last week. My heart is heavy as a result of the tragic events that unfolded here at our nation. But it is with optimism that I state my son Louis' innocence."

The newspaper says Jourdain told investigators he never intended to go through with it, and didn't think Weise would either.

Still ahead here on this Wednesday edition of DAYBREAK, the magic is over for Disney and one of its best-known partners. The story of that split is next.

And later, Microsoft's grammar checker under the gun. We'll talk to the man who caught the problem.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back. Your news, money, weather and sports. It is about 46 minutes after the hour. And here is what is all new this morning.

A federal appeals court in Atlanta agrees to accept a motion by Terri Schiavo's parents. The attorney for Bob and Mary Schindler says they have an issue that has not been raised before. Michael Schiavo's attorney says the federal judges have already ruled on this case. Just about 20 minutes ago, the Vatican announced that Pope John Paul II is getting extra nutrition through a tube in his nose. A spokesman says the pontiff's recovery is progressing slowly. More than two hours ago, the pope appeared in his window this morning to bless visitors in St. Peter's Square.

In money, a long rumored split is official. Miramax founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein and the Walt Disney Studios will be parting ways as of September 30. Disney gets to keep the Miramax name. The Weinsteins will start a new company.

In culture, the Broadway revival of "Sweet Charity" is back just four days after an announcement that the production was closing. "The New York Times" says Christina Applegate, the show's injured star, persuaded producers not to throw in the towel.

And in sports, the Tennessee Lady Vols are in the Final Four for the fourth straight year. They beat Rutgers 59-49 last night and will play Michigan State in a semifinal game on Sunday.

To Chad at the weather center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: When DAYBREAK continues on this Wednesday, he blew the whistle on Microsoft's grammar checker, and now he joins us to talk about it. The story behind this grammar scandal up next. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Welcome back.

It's time now to check in with Carol Costello for a look at what is coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning, Carol. You and Bill will be very busy for the next few hours, I'm sure.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, we will. Of course, we're following that breaking news out of Rome, the Vatican saying Pope John Paul II is now getting nutrition from a feeding tube through his nose. A spokesman says it's meant to improve the pope's calorie intake while he recovers from throat surgery. Our man in Rome will join us live with the latest on that.

We're also keeping a close eye on that 11th-hour appeal by Terri Schiavo's parents. But even if Schiavo's feeding tube is reinserted, will it be too late to keep her alive? Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be in with all of the answers.

So, we'll see you in about 10 minutes -- Kelly.

WALLACE: OK, Carol, we look forward to that. Thanks so much.

And we have been talking about this all morning and asking for your thoughts. Sandeep Krishnamurthy is that University of Washington professor who says Microsoft's grammar check program makes some big- time mistakes.

Take a look at this. The professor says this sentence passed the test -- quote: "Microsoft, the company, should big improve Word grammar check."

Well, the company says it's impossible for a machine without artificial intelligence to catch all of these grammar mistakes, but that explanation isn't good enough for the professor. He's joining us this morning from Seattle.

Professor, thanks for being with us this morning. We appreciate it.

I'm happy to be here. Good morning.

WALLACE: So, Professor, let me first ask you, how did you happen to discover these problems with this Microsoft grammar check?

PROF. SANDEEP KRISHNAMURTHY, UNIV. OF WASHINGTON: Well, as you know, writing is such a big component in undergraduate and graduate education today. And one of my students turned in a term paper, and it was riddled with grammatical mistakes.

So, I referred her to a sentence that I commonly include in my syllabus that says, "Run a grammar check before you submit your paper." And she insisted that she had already done a grammar check before submitting her paper. And I was quite surprised.

So, I asked her to e-mail her paper to me, and I proceeded to run a grammar check. And much to my surprise, I found that the grammar check didn't really detect many errors. And what I concluded was the grammar check was really built for the average user or the below- average user, and it's really designed to detect and correct what you call typical mistakes.

So, if a person is really, you know, very new to English or the person is really, you know, completely not following the structure at all, grammar check doesn't do very well. So, ESL students, for example, English as a second language students, have a really tough time with this.

WALLACE: Let me jump in, Professor, because, you know, Microsoft has responded, and I want to put on our screen for our viewers to see a statement coming from Microsoft, saying -- quote: "Everyone agrees that grammar checking is an incredibly complex computing task. We've come a long way since Office 97 when grammar checker was introduced. But we have more work to do, and we welcome feedback, such as Professor Krishnamurthy's. Word's grammar checker is a tool. It cannot and does not replace teachers who do the hard work of helping students understand sentence structure and grammar. We build tools to help people write, but no computer is the equal of the human brain in terms of being able to recognize and apply the context underlying the words we use." What do you say to that, Professor? Because we've been getting a lot of e-mails this morning, and a lot of people say it's up to all of us to learn grammar. We can't rely on a Microsoft grammar checker for that.

KRISHNAMURTHY: Yes. I agree to some degree. I think definitely, you know, the fundamentals of writing, grammatical rules and the concepts of reviewing and editing something, working with professionals who can talk through some of the common mistakes that one makes. All of those things are very important. But, you know, Microsoft Word occupies such a powerful place in our country today, because it's on really the majority of desktops.

And so, what happens is, many students, they commonly run grammar check, and they assume that, you know, they have a certain minimum level of competence. So, what I have found is that the minimum level of competence is pretty low, and maybe that minimum level can be raised a little bit. And...

WALLACE: All right, Professor, I'm sorry. I want to jump in, though, because we're running tight on time. We have to leave it there. It's certainly an interesting, interesting topic you raise. Professor Sandeep Krishnamurthy of the University of Washington joining us this morning. We appreciate it.

This is DAYBREAK for a Wednesday morning. We'll be right back. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Chad, it's time for my favorite part of the show.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We're giving away another coffee mug. Giving one away to Ohio today.

Here are the questions from yesterday. How many calories are there in Burger King's new breakfast sandwich? Seven hundred and 30. And we named three ways to help you get more sleep. Name two of them. One was wake up and go to bed at the same time, no caffeine after 2:00, and keep the bedroom quiet. Don't work there and don't watch television.

The winner, Alice Pavey from Hilliard, Ohio. We're sending it off just a little west of Columbus today.

Now your questions for today. You have to answer them both. Alabama may reopen the investigation of the 1965 shooting of a civil rights protester. What is his name? And in what software package did Microsoft first introduce its grammar checker? Not speller checker. Grammar checker.

Submit your answers to CNN.com/daybreak. The questions will be there. Just type your name and address in.

WALLACE: A lot of attention in that Microsoft grammar checker today. MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: All right, Chad, you have a great day. We'll see you tomorrow.

MYERS: You, too.

WALLACE: From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello. Have a terrific day. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

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 30, 2005 - 06:29   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Stories "Now in the News."
An emergency petition in the Terri Schiavo case is before a federal appeals court this morning. Late last night, Schiavo's parents asked all 12 judges on the court to take a fresh look at the case. Michael Schiavo's attorney says the federal judges have already ruled in this case. A live report straight ahead.

New pictures in to CNN this morning of First Lady Laura Bush. She is on a five-hour tour of Afghanistan, where she is meeting with women training to be teachers. The first lady says the country's budding democracy can't develop if its women aren't educated.

A brilliant lawyer and a tough fighter. That's how friends and colleagues are remembering Johnnie Cochran, Jr. He is dead at the age of 67 from a brain tumor.

Taking the stand today in the Michael Jackson trial is the man who introduced the pop star to his accuser while the boy was battling cancer. The man owns a comedy club.

And look at this. Yes, you're going to look at these now. These are pictures of dozens and dozens of sharks in the ocean off Deerfield Beach in Florida. Officials have shut down the city's beaches after spotting those sharks. The beach patrol is out this morning to determine if they can reopen the beach or not.

To Chad in Atlanta.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Turning now again to our top story this morning, the Terri Schiavo case. New developments to tell you about this morning.

The brain-damaged woman's parents are trying to revive their effort to keep her alive. And they're turning to a federal court that has rejected them in the past.

For the latest, let's go now to CNN's Elizabeth Cohen, who is outside the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia.

Good morning to you, Elizabeth. What's the latest from there?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.

The latest here is that Bob and Mary Schindler, Terri Schiavo's parents, have filed a petition with the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. And what the petition says is that the entire court, all 12 judges, should hear this case rather than just a three-judge panel.

Now, her parents have asked for this before, and they have been rejected. But this petition says that this time, the argument is different. They say that this time, the argument is that the court in the past has just looked at procedural issues and now needs to look at the evidence. They say this federal appeals court needs to look at the evidence, because, according to the parents, they say that the facts show that Terri Schiavo would want to be kept alive in the state that she's in.

Florida courts have found over the years that she would not want to be kept alive in the state that she's in on an artificial feeding tube -- Kelly.

WALLACE: And, Elizabeth, we have heard now, of course, from the Schindlers. What are we hearing from Michael Schiavo and his attorneys about this latest development?

COHEN: Right. As of yet, as we believe that George Felos, Michael Schiavo's attorney, has not yet filed anything with this court. In fact, apparently he just found out about this most recent petition late last night when CNN contacted him -- Kelly.

WALLACE: All right, Elizabeth, thanks for bringing us the latest outside the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia. Elizabeth, of course, more reports throughout the day on CNN.

We want to now go to Pinellas Park, Florida, to our Sean Callebs. This is on the scene of Terri Schiavo's hospice.

And, Sean, you were telling us about an arrest there just about 20 minutes ago.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It happened basically right as the sun began to peek up here. Behind me, there's a police officer that's really stationed right in the driveway leading up to the hospice. And this is something that has played out so many times.

An individual went up there with a cup of water and said, "I'm going through." The authorities said, "No, you're not." And then literally grabbed him, and at that point the water flew up in the air. The individual was handcuffed. He was taken off to a bus that is here full time parked over there, where they, in essence, begin to process all of those who have been arrested. And there have been dozens.

As of yesterday morning, 48 people had been arrested, some of them for resisting arrest, which this gentleman may indeed face after this.

It's the second morning in a row that dawn has started like this. Without question, passions are running high here. The increased police presence, really the same number of officers the past week or so, but a lot more focus on the line behind me, where these demonstrators are. There have been some taunts thrown by the protesters at authorities. Authorities say they are doing their best to keep things under control and trying to get those who try to go through the police line arrested and taken away as quickly as possible -- Kelly.

WALLACE: Sean, talk a little bit about the protesters. Are you seeing the numbers go up as we get into what could be the final days in this case? And I understand most of the protesters really aren't from Florida, but from outside the state.

CALLEBS: Yes, true. That's very true. I don't know if we can say we've actually seen the number go up, because over the Easter weekend, authorities said at one point there were about 400 demonstrators out there. That was the most that they had seen. And that is really when they began focusing more of the police presence right on that line, where the demonstrators have been holding vigil both night and day.

And a lot of these people are coming in from outside the area. And it's really hard to say how comfortable that the Schindler family is with all of this out there. Certainly, they appreciate the support that they are getting, but they really don't like the taunts that they have seen in front of police officers, some goose-stepping, calling the authorities Nazis or fascists.

In fact, on Easter day, Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother, came out and told the crowd, it's Easter, go home, spend some time with your families, but please keep Terri in your thoughts and prayers -- Kelly.

WALLACE: All right, Sean, thanks for bringing us the latest there from Pinellas Park, Florida. Sean Callebs reporting. We appreciate it.

Now I want to turn to Bill Hemmer to tell us a little bit about what is coming up on this "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning, Bill. It is another busy news day indeed.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: It sure is. Kelly, how are you? Good morning to you as well.

Johnnie Cochran launching into fame with the O.J. Simpson trial, but clearly not the only case that he brought to prominence in this country. We'll talk to another lawyer this morning, part of the famous dream team. Barry Scheck (ph) sharing his memories of Cochran. So, too, will Jeff Toobin, knew him well, even wrote a book about the Simpson case. So that is one of our many topics today.

Also, our special tax series continues. We call it "Many Happy Returns." We hope that's the case. Today, how you do not know about deductions that can hurt you. Find out why you might be paying more than your fair share, and we'll get to that with Gerri Willis as that series continues.

Twenty-two minutes away, Kelly. See you at the top of the hour here. WALLACE: Exactly, Bill. And if I'm doing the math right, I think just about two weeks from Friday, April 15, right?

HEMMER: You're exactly right, yes. Get it done.

WALLACE: All right, thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: Bye-bye.

WALLACE: We'll see you in about 20 minutes or so.

And turning now to another story. A former high-ranking official with the Boy Scouts of America is facing child pornography charges. Douglas Smith is scheduled to appear at a hearing in federal court this morning.

CNN's Ed Lavandera joins us now from Fort Worth, Texas, with some of the details of the case.

Ed, thanks for getting up early for us. We appreciate it. Give us a sense of how long was this individual under investigation?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know what? It doesn't sound like it was very long. Federal authorities out of Washington told us yesterday that it wasn't until late last year, just a couple of months ago, that German authorities, 61-year-old Douglas Smith, Jr.'s name had popped up in an investigation into a child pornography investigation over in Germany towards the end of last year. German authorities passed it to American authorities.

And it wasn't until late February when Douglas Smith had found out that the feds were actually looking into him, and that's why he retired from the Boy Scouts of America just a couple of days after that.

WALLACE: And I guess our understanding is, he's expected to be in court today and to plead guilty to charges of federal child pornography?

LAVANDERA: Yes, the U.S. attorney's office here in the Fort Worth area is saying that he's expected to plead guilty, although we did get a chance to speak with Smith's attorney yesterday, and he said that he wasn't prepared to say that. So, I don't know how much of that is just kind of legal maneuvering. But the U.S. attorneys say they expect him to plead guilty at 9:00 a.m. Central Time today.

WALLACE: What kind of evidence, Ed, are you hearing from your sources that they say they have against him?

LAVANDERA: Well, you know, everyone is being rather tight-lipped about exactly what they have. In the charge, it does say that they have proof that there are Internet photographs, sexually-explicit photographs involving minors that were on his home computer. There was also a computer taken from his office, although Smith's attorney is out there saying that none of the evidence taken in this case found from that computer. But they're being very tight-lipped outside of just, you know, what the description in the charges describes what kind of pictures they found.

WALLACE: And, Ed, talk to us a little bit about the role he played with the Boy Scouts and what the organization is saying about this development.

LAVANDERA: Well, it's been a long career at the Boy Scouts. He spent 39 years affiliated with the organization, although the most recent job he had was a job described as the national director of programs, which means he was involved in what the Boy Scouts described a much more high-level administrative position, organizing of events for the organization. And they also -- and they're quick to point out that he did not have any direct involvement with young people.

WALLACE: All right, Ed, we thank you so much. Ed Lavandera reporting from Fort Worth, Texas. And Ed will be on "AMERICAN MORNING" and throughout the day regarding this matter on CNN.

New details this morning in the investigation of those deadly shootings on a Minnesota Indian reservation. A tribal leader's son is under arrest, charged in connection with the rampage that left 10 people dead, including the teenage gunman. "The New York Times" quotes a source, saying Louis Jourdain planned the shooting with Jeff Weise.

Jourdain's father made this statement -- quote: "As many of you are aware, my son, Louis, has been charged in connection with the shootings that occurred here last week. My heart is heavy as a result of the tragic events that unfolded here at our nation. But it is with optimism that I state my son Louis' innocence."

The newspaper says Jourdain told investigators he never intended to go through with it, and didn't think Weise would either.

Still ahead here on this Wednesday edition of DAYBREAK, the magic is over for Disney and one of its best-known partners. The story of that split is next.

And later, Microsoft's grammar checker under the gun. We'll talk to the man who caught the problem.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back. Your news, money, weather and sports. It is about 46 minutes after the hour. And here is what is all new this morning.

A federal appeals court in Atlanta agrees to accept a motion by Terri Schiavo's parents. The attorney for Bob and Mary Schindler says they have an issue that has not been raised before. Michael Schiavo's attorney says the federal judges have already ruled on this case. Just about 20 minutes ago, the Vatican announced that Pope John Paul II is getting extra nutrition through a tube in his nose. A spokesman says the pontiff's recovery is progressing slowly. More than two hours ago, the pope appeared in his window this morning to bless visitors in St. Peter's Square.

In money, a long rumored split is official. Miramax founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein and the Walt Disney Studios will be parting ways as of September 30. Disney gets to keep the Miramax name. The Weinsteins will start a new company.

In culture, the Broadway revival of "Sweet Charity" is back just four days after an announcement that the production was closing. "The New York Times" says Christina Applegate, the show's injured star, persuaded producers not to throw in the towel.

And in sports, the Tennessee Lady Vols are in the Final Four for the fourth straight year. They beat Rutgers 59-49 last night and will play Michigan State in a semifinal game on Sunday.

To Chad at the weather center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: When DAYBREAK continues on this Wednesday, he blew the whistle on Microsoft's grammar checker, and now he joins us to talk about it. The story behind this grammar scandal up next. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Welcome back.

It's time now to check in with Carol Costello for a look at what is coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning, Carol. You and Bill will be very busy for the next few hours, I'm sure.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, we will. Of course, we're following that breaking news out of Rome, the Vatican saying Pope John Paul II is now getting nutrition from a feeding tube through his nose. A spokesman says it's meant to improve the pope's calorie intake while he recovers from throat surgery. Our man in Rome will join us live with the latest on that.

We're also keeping a close eye on that 11th-hour appeal by Terri Schiavo's parents. But even if Schiavo's feeding tube is reinserted, will it be too late to keep her alive? Dr. Sanjay Gupta will be in with all of the answers.

So, we'll see you in about 10 minutes -- Kelly.

WALLACE: OK, Carol, we look forward to that. Thanks so much.

And we have been talking about this all morning and asking for your thoughts. Sandeep Krishnamurthy is that University of Washington professor who says Microsoft's grammar check program makes some big- time mistakes.

Take a look at this. The professor says this sentence passed the test -- quote: "Microsoft, the company, should big improve Word grammar check."

Well, the company says it's impossible for a machine without artificial intelligence to catch all of these grammar mistakes, but that explanation isn't good enough for the professor. He's joining us this morning from Seattle.

Professor, thanks for being with us this morning. We appreciate it.

I'm happy to be here. Good morning.

WALLACE: So, Professor, let me first ask you, how did you happen to discover these problems with this Microsoft grammar check?

PROF. SANDEEP KRISHNAMURTHY, UNIV. OF WASHINGTON: Well, as you know, writing is such a big component in undergraduate and graduate education today. And one of my students turned in a term paper, and it was riddled with grammatical mistakes.

So, I referred her to a sentence that I commonly include in my syllabus that says, "Run a grammar check before you submit your paper." And she insisted that she had already done a grammar check before submitting her paper. And I was quite surprised.

So, I asked her to e-mail her paper to me, and I proceeded to run a grammar check. And much to my surprise, I found that the grammar check didn't really detect many errors. And what I concluded was the grammar check was really built for the average user or the below- average user, and it's really designed to detect and correct what you call typical mistakes.

So, if a person is really, you know, very new to English or the person is really, you know, completely not following the structure at all, grammar check doesn't do very well. So, ESL students, for example, English as a second language students, have a really tough time with this.

WALLACE: Let me jump in, Professor, because, you know, Microsoft has responded, and I want to put on our screen for our viewers to see a statement coming from Microsoft, saying -- quote: "Everyone agrees that grammar checking is an incredibly complex computing task. We've come a long way since Office 97 when grammar checker was introduced. But we have more work to do, and we welcome feedback, such as Professor Krishnamurthy's. Word's grammar checker is a tool. It cannot and does not replace teachers who do the hard work of helping students understand sentence structure and grammar. We build tools to help people write, but no computer is the equal of the human brain in terms of being able to recognize and apply the context underlying the words we use." What do you say to that, Professor? Because we've been getting a lot of e-mails this morning, and a lot of people say it's up to all of us to learn grammar. We can't rely on a Microsoft grammar checker for that.

KRISHNAMURTHY: Yes. I agree to some degree. I think definitely, you know, the fundamentals of writing, grammatical rules and the concepts of reviewing and editing something, working with professionals who can talk through some of the common mistakes that one makes. All of those things are very important. But, you know, Microsoft Word occupies such a powerful place in our country today, because it's on really the majority of desktops.

And so, what happens is, many students, they commonly run grammar check, and they assume that, you know, they have a certain minimum level of competence. So, what I have found is that the minimum level of competence is pretty low, and maybe that minimum level can be raised a little bit. And...

WALLACE: All right, Professor, I'm sorry. I want to jump in, though, because we're running tight on time. We have to leave it there. It's certainly an interesting, interesting topic you raise. Professor Sandeep Krishnamurthy of the University of Washington joining us this morning. We appreciate it.

This is DAYBREAK for a Wednesday morning. We'll be right back. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Chad, it's time for my favorite part of the show.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We're giving away another coffee mug. Giving one away to Ohio today.

Here are the questions from yesterday. How many calories are there in Burger King's new breakfast sandwich? Seven hundred and 30. And we named three ways to help you get more sleep. Name two of them. One was wake up and go to bed at the same time, no caffeine after 2:00, and keep the bedroom quiet. Don't work there and don't watch television.

The winner, Alice Pavey from Hilliard, Ohio. We're sending it off just a little west of Columbus today.

Now your questions for today. You have to answer them both. Alabama may reopen the investigation of the 1965 shooting of a civil rights protester. What is his name? And in what software package did Microsoft first introduce its grammar checker? Not speller checker. Grammar checker.

Submit your answers to CNN.com/daybreak. The questions will be there. Just type your name and address in.

WALLACE: A lot of attention in that Microsoft grammar checker today. MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: All right, Chad, you have a great day. We'll see you tomorrow.

MYERS: You, too.

WALLACE: From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello. Have a terrific day. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

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