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American Morning

Search Continues for Cub Scout Missing in Utah, Warehouse Fire in Detroit; KKK Murder Trial

Aired June 21, 2005 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The search continues for an 11-year- old Cub Scout missing in Utah. The boy's parents beg for help in looking for him. A live update on the search is just ahead.
After a 6-6 split, the judge in the KKK murder trial orders the jury back to deliberations. We're on a verdict watch, live at the Mississippi courthouse.

Check out this video. A five-alarm fire destroys a historic building in Detroit, burning all night long. Firefighters still there, and we are as well, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

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

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody.

Also ahead this morning, remember the pictures we showed you yesterday, Tom Cruise getting angry when that fake reporter squirted him in the eye with that fake microphone?

M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, there he is wiping it off.

M. O'BRIEN: It wasn't very funny, was it?

S. O'BRIEN: It wasn't funny at all, actually. And he is angry, and he's not the only celebrity who's angry these days.

M. O'BRIEN: We'll talk about paparazzi. And we're also going to talk about possible criminal charges against them. Are they working together to play a dangerous game of gotcha with the stars, even the ones that don't have squirt guns?

S. O'BRIEN: I mean, you see all the time and you hear about the celebrities eventually getting so angry they just go ahead and slug the photographer who's been camped out in their bushes or hiding in the garbage cans behind their house.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Well, when they bash into your car, I think you've got a reason to be upset, right? That happens to you all the time, right? They bash into your car...

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Right. I was just going to say, Lindsay Lohan.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

COSTELLO: Paparazzi supposedly purposely ran into the back of her car so that they could get shots of her.

S. O'BRIEN: That's got to be scary.

COSTELLO: It's really scary.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good morning. I have more news for you.

So, "Now in the News," an historic meeting this hour at the White House. President Bush is hosting Vietnam's prime minister. It's the first White House visit by a top Vietnamese leader since the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago. Topping the agenda, U.S. concerns over human rights violations and Vietnam's bid to join the World Trade Organization.

The international airport in Gaza could be back up and running this summer. The Yasser Arafat Airport was shut down five years ago. Officials say the reopening could be announced today as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, are holding talks in Jerusalem. They're discussing Israel's plans to withdraw from parts of Gaza.

The family of a missing Alabama teenager in Aruba say they wants answers, and they are taking legal action to get them. Relatives want investigators to share evidence that they've gathered in the three weeks since 18-year-old Natalee Holloway vanished. The announcement comes as a Texas company is heading to Aruba to help with the search. Four people are still being held in connection with the disappearance and no charges have been filed.

Lawyers for the family of slain rapper Notorious B.I.G. say they have evidence linking a former police officer to the shooting. Biggie Smalls, whose real name is Christopher Wallace, was gunned down in Los Angeles in 1997. Lawyers say previously sealed affidavits show a rival rap mogul conspired to kill Wallace as part of an East Coast- West Coast music war. Jury selection in the wrongful death trial set to start today.

And do remember, you can view more CNN reports online. Just visit CNN.com and click on to "Watch" to check out our free video from our most popular stories. And the most popular story finally changed.

S. O'BRIEN: What is it?

COSTELLO: It's now Saddam Hussein.

S. O'BRIEN: Oh, Doritos.

COSTELLO: Exactly. But not Froot Loops!

S. O'BRIEN: Unbelievable -- no.

COSTELLO: Weirder and weirder.

S. O'BRIEN: Carol, thank you very much.

Well, the sun is rising on another day of searching in the Utah mountains. Eleven-year-old Brennan Hawkins was last seen on Friday afternoon. He was at a popular scout camp, the Bear River Boy -- Boy Scout is what I'm trying to say -- Reservation in a rugged mountain area. It's just east of Salt Lake City.

CNN's Ted Rowlands is live for us in Kamas, Utah, with the latest on this search -- Ted.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, with the sun coming up, the search efforts are beginning now in earnest for this fourth day since Brennan was last seen on Friday evening. Last night, according to the family, Brennan's parents got the first decent night's sleep that they've had since Brennan was missing. Yesterday they spent another excruciating day without their son.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROWLANDS (voice-over): Along with hundreds of volunteers, Toby and Jody Hawkins spent another day searching the Utah wilderness for their 11-year-old son Brennan. Described by his parents as shy, but experienced in the outdoors, Brennan hasn't been seen since Friday evening.

JODY HAWKINS, MOTHER: (INAUDIBLE). The days stretch on to eternity and always there's nightfall (ph). You learn to hate the moon and (INAUDIBLE).

ROWLANDS: Brennan Hawkins was last seen near a climbing wall at a Boy Scout camp high in the Uintas Mountains, about 80 miles east of Salt Lake City. Brennan is the second Scout in less than a year to vanish from this area.

Last August, 12-year-old Garrett Bardsley disappeared about 15 miles from where Brennan was last seen. Garrett has never been found. His family is now helping to look for Brennan.

KEVIN BARDSLEY, GARRETT BARDSLEY'S FATHER: When I got the call at 6:30 in the morning, we were on the road within a half-hour. We were gone. We were moving. And all of my friends were in place and moving the same way.

ROWLANDS: Authorities hope that Brennan Hawkins is lost, but they fear he may have gotten caught in the nearby Bear River or they believe he may have been kidnapped.

SHERIFF DAVID EDMUNDS, SUMMIT COUNTY, UTAH: There's always hope. And every day we have that renewed hope and that's why we get out in the woods and we do what we do.

ROWLANDS: The Hawkins, too, say they remain hopeful but very worried. When he was last seen, Brennan was wearing shorts, a sweatshirt and tennis shoes.

TOBY HAWKINS, FATHER: We actually have had reservations about doing an activity like this for fear of something like this happening. He doesn't like the cold. He's particularly temperamental about that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROWLANDS: It has been mild since Brennan was -- has been missing, although last night temperatures dipped into the 30s. Today one of the focuses, again, will be the Bear River here.

Authorities think there's a chance that Brennan may have gotten caught in the river. Also, there's a parallel criminal investigation, and that is being stepped up. The FBI has sent more agents out here to interview people that were around when Brennan was last seen -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Ted Rowlands for us this morning. Ted, thanks -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Firefighters in Detroit are now trying to find out what sparked a massive blaze in a warehouse on the city's north side. The four-story structure was home to a meat market, a furniture store and several other businesses, though about 60 percent of it was vacant. It's an old automobile factory.

The fire was visible for miles. About 150 firefighters were called in, two dozen taken to the hospital. Minor injuries only.

Michael Rosenfield from our affiliate WXYZ is at the scene.

Michael, what's the latest?

MICHAEL ROSENFIELD, REPORTER, WXYZ: Well, firefighters say this is going to be a very slow process. In fact, they still have debris under all that wreckage you see behind me that's still burning. So they're going to be out here all day today, perhaps into tomorrow.

This was a bustling marketplace for this neighborhood until 10:00 last night, when this fire started. There was a market here, a grocery store, a warehouse. Sold everything here from meat and food to furniture.

The other half of the complex was vacant. So the early speculation at this point is that this might have been started by a squatter, a homeless person, using the vacant area as a place to stay.

Really frightening video from last night when the fire started around 10:00 and burned last night and into the early morning hours. At some point, the flames so intense, shooting so high into the sky.

I know when I got here around 1:30 this morning, the walls were still tumbling down from the marketplace. You could hear it, you could feel it, you could see it. And miraculously, so few firefighters injured in all this. Nobody majorly. Just two or three taken to local hospitals for minor bumps and bruises as they really tripped over all the wreckage and all the bricks and debris you see out on the ground here.

Also an historic site. The first Studebakers were built at this marketplace back in the day. And right next door to this facility, firefighters did a great job saving the buildings next to it.

One is a facility where they store up to 10 million medical records for Henry Ford Medical Center, which is, of course, one of the largest hospitals in Detroit. They did a good job sparing that building.

Some of those files are current that they pull for active people, and others are just held for decades. They hold on to them for research.

And they also were able to spare another building down the road which is home to the first Model T. So definitely a historic site here in Detroit, especially for the auto industry.

But once again, firefighters will remain out here battling this and taking care of it for at least today and probably tomorrow.

Reporting live in Detroit, I'm Michael Rosenfield. I'll send it back to you guys.

M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Michael Rosenfield, with our affiliate WXYZ. And we thank them as well -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Forty-one years ago today, three civil rights workers were killed in murders that shocked the nation. This morning, a Mississippi jury is deliberating again in the trial against former Klansman Edgar Ray Killen, after saying it was yesterday they couldn't come to some kind of conclusion.

Well, Killen is accused of being the mastermind in the murders of James Chaney and Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman. Jim Prince is the editor of the local paper. It's called the "Neshoba Democrat." And he's in Philadelphia, Mississippi, this morning.

It's nice to see you, Jim. Thanks for talking with us this morning.

It's not officially, I know, a deadlocked jury. They've been sent back to work, but let's call it sort of a lack of progress. And it's split, it seems, 6-6.

Does that surprise you?

JIM PRINCE, EDITOR, "NESHOBA DEMOCRAT": No, not at all. Not at this time. That's not unusual in a case like this. So I think it's wrong to speculate and to be too concerned that they're going to end up this way. I don't believe that we should be concerned.

S. O'BRIEN: When the jurors said that they were having a problem, they were kind of split right down the middle, what was the judge's reaction it that?

PRINCE: Well, apparently, they had only been really deliberating about 45 minutes, although they'd been out a couple hours. They had a number of jury instructions to go through. So I would speculate they read through those, they're trying to understand those.

And there was -- the judge was just very stoic, as he's always been, very understanding of the jury. Very considerate, I think, of the jury, to let them retire. They've been in since 8:30 yesterday morning, and it was a very exhausting day. So I think he must have felt like a good night's rest, they could come back and begin deliberating this morning, which is what they'll do.

S. O'BRIEN: Give me a sense of the tone in the community. Is there a sense that, you know, especially that today is the 41st anniversary of the murders, is there a sense that people want a resolution, they want some closure, or is there a sense that, you know, why are we rehashing this, anyway, after 41 years?

PRINCE: Well, the trial is being shown locally live on the cable channels, and it's being replayed at night on Mississippi public broadcasting. So it's kind of like the World Series around here.

People are really glued to their televisions. They're really interested in this trial. It was the talk of the dinner table on Sunday around town.

I think there's a sense of justice. A majority of the people that want to see justice in this case.

You have that element that would say, why bring it up? They do exist, but I think the majority of the people in this town do want justice. And we'll never ultimately get rid of this thing. It's something we'll have to live with forever, but I think we've made a first good step, albeit 41 years late. We've at least begun the process of justice.

S. O'BRIEN: At the same time, there's some interesting information that surfaces in cases like these. For example, we heard from a former mayor who was taking the stand to be a character witness for Mr. Killen, and basically he had this exchange with the prosecutor where he said, you know, the Ku Klux Klan did some very good, positive things as well. It was sort of a strange exchange.

You were there. And what's the community's reaction to words like that?

PRINCE: Well, that was an ignorant statement. And it's unfortunate that it was said. I'm disappointed that the former mayor, and I would stress "former," said that. It's unfortunate that anyone would make that kind of statement, that the Klan was a good organization, or someone could be that ill-informed.

S. O'BRIEN: What do you think has been the strongest testimony in this case?

PRINCE: Pardon?

S. O'BRIEN: The strongest testimony in this case thus far, what do you think it's been?

PRINCE: Oh, probably Mike Hatcher (ph), the Meridian policeman, who pretty much said he did it. And in '67, when he testified in the civil rights trial, he said he was afraid to tell more.

He claimed he did not lie, but he said he really didn't tell everything, because he was fearful that he would be killed. So I thought that was pretty compelling.

He was repentant. He said he was sorry he ever joined the Klan. He talked about how violent the Klan was, that it was a terrible organization. And he was remorseful, and I thought that probably would have been effective with the jury.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, it's in the jury's hands now. Jim Prince, the editor of the "Neshoba Democrat." Thanks. Appreciate it -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Excuse me. Didn't mean to interrupt. It's the first official day of summer -- I apologize.

Chad Myers is at the -- I'm just so excited about summer, Chad.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: Still to come, 16 illegal immigrants gain access to a nuclear weapons plant. We'll find out how it happened on CNN's "Security Watch."

S. O'BRIEN: We're also going to meet two U.S. soldiers who stood guard on Saddam Hussein. They'll tell us about the surprising relationship that they formed with the former dictator.

M. O'BRIEN: And a lot of computer users love the freedom of wireless Web surfing, but that freedom carries a hidden security risk. We'll whip you into a state of panic in a little bit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: In today's "Security Watch," some disturbing details about a security lapse at one of the most secure nuclear weapons sites in the country. The Y-12 plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, played a key role in the Manhattan Project, processing the uranium for the first atomic bomb.

Today, the facility dismantles weapon components and stores nuclear material. According to a federal report, 16 illegal immigrants used fake green cards to get jobs last year as construction workers inside the plant. So what does this say about the safety of our nation's nuclear plants?

Steven Wyatt is the spokesman for the National Nuclear Security Administration. He joins us now.

Mr. Wyatt, good to have you with us.

STEVEN WYATT, NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION: Good morning.

M. O'BRIEN: You're not calling this a security breach. Why not?

WYATT: Well, I would consider it to be a security concern. The fact of the matter is, no classified information was compromised as a result of this situation. We took prompt action, resolved it, and we have new controls in place.

M. O'BRIEN: How did you become aware of it? This happened about a year ago. And what precisely was done once you found out about it?

WYATT: Last summer, we realized we had a problem with some uncleared workers at a construction site. We looked into it and found that some workers had falsely claimed to be U.S. citizens.

When that occurred, we turned the matter over to the Department of Energy inspector general, and there was a wider investigation. And with that, there was found to be a small number of workers that were also not to be U.S. workers -- U.S. citizens.

So after that we changed our rules. We took aggressive steps to require the use of birth certificates and passports for all uncleared visitors and workers on to the site.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. The workers, of course, had the chance to see some documents, as we understand in this report. But they weren't in a part of the lab or the facility that was where the most classified information would be. Is that accurate to say?

WYATT: That is correct. There were documents that were categorized as official use only. They were located in a trailer. We don't believe the workers had access to those documents. These documents are not considered classified information, anyway.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. Is there any reason to believe they were there other than to do a job as construction workers?

WYATT: Well, it's really hard to speculate, but I guess it would appear to be that they were there to work. Their job was to do steel and concrete-related work, and that's why they were there.

M. O'BRIEN: You're not saying what nationality they are. Why not?

WYATT: Well, for one thing, we just don't know. And I just don't think it would be appropriate for me to touch on that.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. Well, give us some assurance there. Had things been changed? Will this not happen again? And if so, why would it happen again?

WYATT: Again, our contractor, BWXTY-12 (ph), put into place very aggressive controls on all uncleared visitors and workers. Today, anyone who goes to the Y-12 site that does not have a Q clearance, or other kind of security clearance, must prove their citizenship.

M. O'BRIEN: A little bit embarrassing?

WYATT: It's a little bit, but we're pleased to the fact that we addressed the problem. Also, too, we recently had an assessment, and we found that our program is in good shape.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. Steven Wyatt with the National Nuclear Security Administration. Thank you very much for being with us. We appreciate it.

WYATT: Thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: Stay with CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

A picture's worth 1,000 words. And for the paparazzi, the right one could also be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. But are some photographers committing felonies to get that right shot? That is next.

But first, this question: what is the origin of the word paparazzi? Is it, A, a type of camera, B, the name of an Italian tabloid, or, C, a character in a film? The answer after the break.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Before the break we asked you this: what's the origin of the word paparazzi? The answer is C. Paparazzi is the plural of paparazzo, and it comes from a name of a character in Fellini's "La Dolce Vita." In the movie, Paparazzo was a photographer who would go to great lengths to try to take pictures of American movie stars.

Well, paparazzi are known for their aggressive, in-your-face and often rude behaviors. And in most cases, it is legally protected by the First Amendment. But now Los Angeles Police are exploring a novel approach to cracking down on some of the riskiest photo ambushes.

Brooke Anderson has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We've seen it in the movies. And in real life. Paparazzi blamed for dangerous, sometimes fatal, accidents.

The latest involved teen star Lindsay Lohan, who was recently in a car accident with a photographer as he chased her for a picture.

LINDSAY LOHAN, ACTRESS: I feel good that it happened to me when I wasn't with my family. I can now make a stand, and I can say something for any other actors who might have their kids in the car. ANDERSON: Lohan won't be standing alone. Actress Reese Witherspoon, who recently claimed paparazzi falsely imprisoned her in her car at a Los Angeles gym, has also filed a report.

These two incidents have raised a red flag with Los Angeles police, who believe that paparazzi may be conspiring to put celebrities into stressful situations in order to photograph their reactions.

LT. PAUL VERNON, LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPT.: For the most part, the free lance photographers and the entertainment photographers out there follow the law. On occasion, these -- some will cross the line, partly, I suppose, because of the amount of money that's available out there.

ANDERSON: And the self-proclaimed king of the paparazzi, E.L. Woody, says the money is good.

E. L. WOODY, CELEBRITY PHOTOGRAPHER: All the way to $150,000 or more for a good picture.

VERNON: With that much money that's being paid for a single picture, there's a lot of money that could easily be spread around to a number of people if they worked together to try to get that picture.

ANDERSON: Complaints of harassment or rude behavior by paparazzi and the red carpet media are nothing new. Tom Cruise was just squirted with water at the London premiere of "War of the Worlds" by a prankster TV reporter, while this ex-wife, Nicole Kidman, recently berated a photographer at the "Bewitched" premier.

But conspiracy is a felony.

VERNON: Some of the people not directly involved in taking the pictures or getting the money shots could actually be drawn in criminally.

ANDERSON: So, photo agencies, vendors and tabloid magazines could be incriminated as well. "US Weekly" recently announced they would no longer buy photos acquired in a risky matter.

WOODY: As far as I'm concerned, that's fine with me. We gather ours legally, above board, on the streets, celebrities in public places only. We're the most efficient advertising tool for celebrities in the world.

We get to a thousand magazines instantly. Overnight you could be a star. You can make someone a totally recognizable person in one night.

ANDERSON: They may need each other, but that doesn't mean they have to like each other.

Brooke Anderson, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE) S. O'BRIEN: That's the best point. So true.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes. You know, it's one thing when they're on a, you know, red carpet, in a public place. The stuff that bothers me is when they get those long telephoto lenses, they're in their back yard sunbathing or whatever. That doesn't seem fair.

S. O'BRIEN: You know, and I remember Maria Shriver talking about how she was being chased once and she had the kids in the car, and, you know, she was trying to speed to get away from them, and how scary it was. She thought, you know, she could die in a fiery car crash with her children because someone wanted a picture. That's pretty awful.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Too excessive at times.

Anyway, still to come in the program, batter up and play ball. We continue our series, "Surviving the Game," about kids in sports. Today, why many young athletes are begging for a little time-out.

Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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