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Fallout in Philadelphia, Mississippi; Beth Holloway Meets Parents of One of Men Jailed in Her Daughter's Disappearance

Aired June 22, 2005 - 07:00   ET

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


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Miles O'Brien. The fallout in Philadelphia, Mississippi today. Ex-Klansman Edgar Ray Killen found guilty, but of manslaughter. He lashes out after the verdict. But will the frail 80-year-old be sent to prison at all? A live report ahead.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: In Aruba, Beth Holloway meets the parents of one of the men jailed in her daughter's disappearance. She tells us about that chance encounter, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

M. O'BRIEN: Good morning to you.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning, everybody.

What great news yesterday afternoon, to hear about that little boy being found in the woods finally after days and days of searching.

M. O'BRIEN: You know, it's not often that the newsroom comes to a complete standstill, and that's one of those moments. It was great.

S. O'BRIEN: And then everybody's smiling at the end of the news. It was such good news.

M. O'BRIEN: Exactly.

And that's just where we begin this morning. Of course after four days and four nights alone in the rugged woods of Utah's mountains, 11-year-old Brennan Hawkins is home safe at last, released from the hospital overnight. Brennan's parents described him as bashful, and they weren't kidding. Apparently when he saw some men on horseback, he was afraid to approach the strangers.

Ted Rowlands live in Park City, Utah, who was there as it all unfolded.

Ted, I don't know how you kept it together yesterday as the story unfolded, because it was really emotional, wasn't it?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It sure was, and people here are still basking in the afterglow of this wonderful ending to a story that could have gone many different directions. This morning, Brennan has been released from the hospital and is back home with family members.

When he was found, he said he was thirsty and he wanted to see his mother. He was reunited with his family. They spent the night with him in Salt Lake City. He was in amazingly good shape after spending four days alone in the rugged wilderness in the Utah Mountains. He was a bit dehydrated, but otherwise no worse for wear. Brennan was found by a searcher on an all-terrain vehicle in an area about five miles away from where he was last seen. The individual that found him said he saw Brennan standing there in his sweatshirt and shorts. That find brought to an end the nightmare for Brennan's parents, which had lasted for four horrible days.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JODY HAWKINS, BRENNAN HAWKINS' MOTHER: People say that the heavens are closed and God no longer answers prayers. We are here to unequivocally tell you the heavens are not closed, prayers are answered and children come home. We love you. We thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: An emotional day for Brennan's parents, and for all of the thousands of volunteers that took part in this search. People just amazed at not only the fact that he was found alive, but found in such good shape. We understand that Brennan's parents want to thank everybody, and they plan on making a statement at some point today, but this morning they're home with their son -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Ted, a lot of people curious, of course, about Brennan's story, because he went to a place over a steep ridge that seemed to be an unlikely path. Do we know much about why he went that way?

ROWLANDS: We don't know why he went that way. When asked by sheriff deputies, he didn't want to talk about it, didn't want to talk about the details. Obviously he was exhausted at the time. What we do know is that he had been told by his parents not to talk to strangers, and he took it literally. He said that he had seen some searchers on horseback in that area. It was also that area that was searched by ATV searchers early on in the search, but they considered this a remote area, and they didn't think this 11-year-old boy could get himself there. So it wasn't one of the areas concentrated on. Thankfully, they continued the search into the fourth day, and they found him.

M. O'BRIEN: I guess parents have to be careful how they give out that advice, don't they? There's certain exceptions to the rule.

All right, Ted Rowlands, thank you very much -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Turning now to Aruba, Natalee Holloway's mother is not saying much about her chance encounter with Joran Van Der Sloot's parents. He of course is the young man who is being held in her daughter's disappearance. Meanwhile, that Texas-based team that was recruited to help search for Holloway having some problems getting into Aruba.

Chris Lawrence is live for us in Palm Beach, Aruba this morning. ' Hey, Chris, good morning to you. Let's begin with the search team. What exactly are the problems with their getting into the country?

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we thought they were going to be here this morning, Soledad. Now it looks like they won't be coming until Friday, the end of the week. The company's founder said, one, they had problems getting a charter flight to Aruba organized, and initially getting clearance to bring in those three search dogs that they wanted to use, but on the company's Web site, he does say that Aruba's prime minister has now given them the go-ahead. They'd like to bring in about 17 people with top-notch sonar equipment, search dogs, and experience with law-enforcement investigations.

Now, Natalee Holloway's mother told us just last night that even if this team does come, she has asked the people of Aruba to please keep searching. And she also got a lot of inspiration when she heard the good news about Brennan Hawkins, that Cub Scout who was missing for days in the mountains.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BETH HOLLOWAY TWITTY, NATALEE HOLLOWAY'S MOTHER: I think it gives me huge hope, and I think of, you know, that it just shows that probably what a massive effort in what we can do when we come together, and you know, I don't know a lot of the details of how his search was conducted, but I'm sure it was on a wide scale, and -- effort, and they found him, and that's just wonderful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAWRENCE: Yes, Holloway Twitty was also out in the neighborhoods passing out prayer cards yesterday as she does quite often, and she was in the neighborhood of Paul Van Der Sloot. He's the local judge who's been questioned twice by police. She ended up on the spur of the moment just going to the house to give them a prayer card. She was invited in, and she ended up speaking for an hour and a half with the judge and his wife, although she won't say exactly what they talked about -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Chris, four guys still being held by authorities. Are there any advances in the investigation as of today?

LAWRENCE: Well, the original three suspects, Paul Van Der Sloot's son and the two brothers who were initially arrested, they've all been moved to the only prison on the island. That fourth suspect, Steve Croes, still remains in a local jail.

S. O'BRIEN: Chris Lawrence for us this morning in Aruba.

Chris, thanks a lot for that update.

Ahead in just a few minutes, we're going talk with Natalee Holloway's mother, Beth Holloway Twitty. She'll talk about that investigation this morning as well -- Miles. M. O'BRIEN: The Bush administration urging the world to show support for the new Iraqi government. The U.S. and the European Union convening an 80-nation conference in Brussels, Belgium, talking about Iraq.

John King is covering the conference in Brussels.

John, you just had a tete-a-tete with the secretary of state. What did she tell you?

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, it's quite interesting the different perspectives on this side of the Atlantic and your side of the Atlantic. Condoleezza Rice here as you noted. Some 80 nations represented. Not a donor's conference, but essentially an effort for the new Iraqi government to lay out its needs and its the desires to the international community, and a chance for the new Iraqi government to make clear that it hopes to keep its commitment to have representation across the ethnic spectrum in Iraq in the new government and to have the new constitution ready by the end of the year.

Secretary Rice is here. As you well know, back in the United States, Democrats getting tougher and tougher in their criticism of the Bush administration Iraq policy. The House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi just yesterday calling the war a grotesque mistake that has not made Americans safer. A leader Democrat in the Senate, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, saying that the administration has been wildly overly optimistic in its assessment of the situation in Iraq. Senator Biden saying he is not confident the insurgency is anywhere near over. He says Mr. Bush has been overly optimistic about the political transition as well.

Secretary Rice sat down with us a few minutes ago, and she said as she attends the conference here, she very much wants to take issue with those critics back home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECY. OF STATE: I thought the Iraqi foreign minister said something very interesting. He said, I'm not here essentially to paint a rosy picture, but I am here to say that Iraq is going to succeed, and so you can be optimistic about the future, and still be realistic about the challenges that they have. They are engaged now in a political process that, day by day, more Iraqis are involved in, and where Iraqis see their future on the political side, not with the people who are getting off suicide bombs against innocent Iraqis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: At the beginning of this year, Rice's predecessor, then- Secretary of State Colin Powell, said he thought it would be possible to start bringing down U.S. troops levels in Iraq by the end of this year, but the insurgency of course has spiked up since the Iraqi elections. Secretary Rice, Miles, telling us, she can not predict at all whether there'll be able to begin bringing U.S. troops home. She said a lot more work to be done on the ground before that question can even be considered -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: John King in Brussels. Thanks -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Forty-one years to the day after the murders that helped galvanize the civil rights movement, former Klansmen Edgar Ray Killen was convicted on Tuesday of manslaughter in the deaths of three civil rights workers in Mississippi.

CNN's Ed Lavandera with some reaction this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Angry and defiant, Edgar Ray Killen lashed out at news cameras, as he was escorted to jail by a swarm of guards.

Exactly 41 years after three civil rights workers were killed for trying to register black voters in Mississippi, the man known locally as Preacher Killen was convicted on three counts of manslaughter. He now faces up to 20 years in prison. His attorney says that would be a life sentence for a man his age, and argues that outside forces influenced the verdict.

MITCH MORAN, ATTORNEY FOR RAY KILLEN: The jury obviously just got back there and compromised. There were political pressure, media pressure. The pressures of a case like this. And this is the result of it.

LAVANDERA: The verdict also was seen as a compromise by a disappointed Rita Bender, the widow of Michael Schwerner, one of the three slain civil rights workers. She wonders how a jury could choose to convict on the less serious charge of manslaughter.

RITA BENDER, MICHAEL SCHWERNER'S WIDOW: ... acknowledge that these were murders, that they were committed with malice, indicates that there are still people, unfortunately, among you who choose to look aside, who choose to not see the truth.

LAVANDERA: It didn't take long to see the division that this civil rights era case still stirs in this town of 7,000 people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's about time, 41 years today. It's about time.

LAVANDERA: Others displayed their frustration. "Killen's not guilty, free the man," was written on a windshield of a car seen driving past the courthouse.

James Chaney's brother says the conflicting views show Mississippi is still struggling with its racially-charged past.

BEN CHANEY, JAMES CHANEY'S BROTHER: People in Mississippi can socialize at night, but when the sun comes up, we're separated. I think we need to think about how we can bring out -- how we bring some real racial conciliation here. But in order to do so, the truth, the entire truth about what happened to all those individuals who died in this state in the '60s, must be exposed.

LAVANDERA: There are many in this town who hope this trial is the final chapter of a story they'd like to finally put behind them.

Ed Lavandera, CNN, Philadelphia, Mississippi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: Edgar Ray Killen is behind bars this morning. His sentencing is scheduled for tomorrow -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Snowplows in June? Well, that's what it took to clear the streets of Colorado Springs yesterday. A slow-moving thunderstorm dropped a foot of hail. It also drenched the city with about an inch of rain as well. Streets were lakes. Dozens of drivers were trapped.

Now look at this guy. Apparently that's about a foot of hail there, and no injuries to report, but I think he's going to have to do some work on his car.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: We just learned this morning that that solar sail spacecraft -- did you hear about this thing?

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, not good news.

M. O'BRIEN: I'm bummed. We're going to do a thing out in the fountain explaining how it works.

S. O'BRIEN: Or doesn't work, as the case may be.

M. O'BRIEN: That's it. We can show them how it doesn't.

The Russian Space Agency is saying the booster rocket's engine failed about a minute and a half after liftoff on Tuesday. The Russian Defense Ministry is searching for debris. This would have been the first time a spacecraft had actually flown with a solar sail. Seems like it would be simple, right?

S. O'BRIEN: No, actually not to me. To you maybe.

M. O'BRIEN: It's rocket science, all right. Well, scientists say they may have detected signals from the spacecraft, but...

S. O'BRIEN: What did it cost?

M. O'BRIEN: It wasn't that much, and it was privately funded, which was kind of cool. The Planetary Society actually put this whole thing together, which makes it kind of fun. But anyway, it didn't cost you or I anything.

S. O'BRIEN: I now, but still a big loss on all fronts.

Still to come this morning, our special series on kids and sports, "Surviving the Game." Today we've got some advice on how to avoid pushing the kids who've got big talent too hard.

M. O'BRIEN: Also, why would a posh shop in Paris reportedly turn away Oprah Winfrey? She's got a lot of dough in her billfold, you know. "90-Second Pop" weighs in on the alleged snub.

S. O'BRIEN: They will never do that again.

More also this morning on that missing Cub Scout.

Miles, can you finish this for me?

M. O'BRIEN: You want me to press on, I'll press on.

S. O'BRIEN: Please do.

M. O'BRIEN: We'll have details on his rescue. We'll talk to the sheriff and others as AMERICAN MORNING rolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

With a wave, 11-year-old Brennan Hawkins showed he was alive and well when we arrived in a Salt Lake City hospital. He seemed a little grumpy, but he's entitled. Overnight the doctors let him go home. That's good news. Brennan was found Tuesday after four days on his own in the mountains.

Brennan's uncle, Bob Hawkins, and Summit County Sheriff Dave Edmunds live now in Park City, Utah.

Very nice to see you, gentlemen, under these circumstances this morning.

Bob, let's begin with you. What do we know about Brennan's story?

BOB HAWKINS, BRENNAN'S UNCLE: I met with Toby, and Jody and Brennan last evening in the hospital, just walked in, said hi to Brennan. He said, hi, Uncle Bob. They were just kind of being very casual about what they were doing. They were talking, laughing and joking. Within a very short time, you could tell he was tired. He fell asleep, and just resting and that was it. Mom and dad were tired. And they were just reflecting on the amount of people and all the resources that were used to help make this happen, and they were just so thankful for everything that was done.

M. O'BRIEN: So you're not going to press him for the story just yet, and we can't blame you for taking it easy on him at this point. I'm sure you're curious why he would have gone over the ridge in a direction that searchers thought that was unlikely.

HAWKINS: Yes, absolutely. Everybody's kind of -- he's home. What elation. Now everybody's kind of had time to sit back and think and now they're trying to -- now find out the facts of what happened. They're really not pressing. They know that's going to have to happen. They're letting him just get some rest, relaxation, and I know, in the next day or so, they're probably going to be talking to him, and other people like Sheriff Edmunds; his people are going to be talking to him, and they're going to find out what happened.

M. O'BRIEN: I have no doubt he'll be able to tell his story in full detail once he rebounds.

Sheriff, did you ever think -- I know through the course of all of the interviews you've done with us, your optimism had to have been fading. The fact that we're having this conversation with this tone this morning must be gratifying, and really when you consider all the people that came out and volunteered to help, it's really a testament to people's ability to try to pitch in and help.

SHERIFF DAVE EDMUNDS, SUMMIT COUNTY, UTAH: Absolutely. That's what we have out here in Utah. When these types of things happen, you know, people come out of the woodwork. We had thousands of individuals that came out and you know, on father's day, when they could have been at home with their own families, they were out here searching in the woods, and just tremendous, I mean, the outpouring. And it's typical. It's very typical of what happens here in the state of Utah.

M. O'BRIEN: In this report this morning, I want to ask Bob about this, too, but that Brennan, you know, bashful boy, was told not to talk to strangers. He might have actually seen somebody on a horse at some point along this timeframe -- maybe you can clarify that for us -- but was afraid to approach them. Is that unusual?

EDMUNDS: You know, with kids of that age, it's not necessarily unusual, particularly when they're a little bit delirious, as he certainly was. It's one of our biggest fears and it's one of the reasons we like to get mom and dad there and get them the bullhorn early and so they have a familiar voice to listen to. A lot of times, they're so scared and so traumatized by the fact that they're lost, when they see individuals that they don't know, it is a light frightening to them.

And I'm hoping that this case will illustrate to all the kids out there, if they do become lost or separated, that people are going to come looking for them, number one, and number two, when they do come looking for them, remember that the searchers are there to help. And you know, it's going to be interesting to talk to Brennan and see exactly what the case was, but we're going to let him rest for a little while and then get the full story.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, big exception to the stranger rule, right, Bob? I assume there are some lessons learned here, right?

HAWKINS: Absolutely. They were talking about stranger danger and they have a family password that Brennan knows, and none of that was happening for him, and so he was, he thought he was doing what he needed to do to protect himself in the situation. There's a learning curve, certainly, that others can learn how to best teach their children what to do in this kind of situation.

M. O'BRIEN: And Bob, a final thought on going through this emotional rollercoaster. What's it been like for you and your family? HAWKINS: There's highs and lows throughout the week. We all had faith in -- we all felt comfort that Brennan was out there, he was alive, that he would be found. But as you focus in on that aspect of what you're doing, there are a lot of distractions that take your emotions up and down and left and right and bounce you around, so we're just elated with everything that's going on, and that Brennan is back.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. We're glad it bounced where it did in the end. Bob Hawkins -- Uncle Bob Hawkins and Sheriff David Edmunds, thanks very much for your time and congratulations -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: In Aruba, they are holding out hope. Beth Holloway meets with the parents of one of the suspects being held -- the parents of one of the suspects, rather, being held in her daughter's disappearance. We've got more on that story just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: Check out this videotape. It comes from Sweden. Helicopter flying, helicopter landing. Ooh, ooh, no, not so good. Went down Tuesday 60 miles northwest of Stockholm, clipping trees and a light post. Everybody OK, including the guest of honor on this helicopter, a guy celebrating his 100th birthday. It was a birthday gift. His son, grandson, great grandson, all on there. Hey, great granddad, let's take you on a little ride in the helicopter. Everyone's OK. By the way, he did get a helicopter ride, ultimately. Happened to be Medivac, but still the chopper ride.

S. O'BRIEN: Sort of a surprise, but still a chopper ride for great granddad. Well, that's a good ending to that story.

M. O'BRIEN: Well, the nation's No. 2 automaker is announcing more job cuts. Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business." Some bad news out of there.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" COLUMNIST: Yes, we have a couple job- related stories this morning, Soledad. You know, we've been talking a lot about the problems that G.M. has been facing over the past weeks and months. But what about Ford? This company has problems, too. In fact, over the past 12 months, sales have slumped every single month over the past year, and now, the company's taking action.

Yesterday, announcing job cuts in the management ranks, slashing 1,700 white collar jobs. That's 5 percent of its management workforce. And also eliminating all management bonuses. It's nice to see everyone sharing in the pain there, I guess. Shares are down significantly, about 3.5 percent. After hours, getting back to that $10 mark.

Meanwhile, moving from Dearborn, Michigan, to Jacksonville, Florida, where Winn-Dixie, the bankrupt supermarket chain is headquartered. They, too, are looking to pare costs, eliminating 22,000 jobs.

S. O'BRIEN: Wow!

SERWER: That's about a third of their workforce. And closing 300 stores. That's also about a third of its outlets. Eliminating all stores in Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina. And if you want to hear more about this job picture -- maybe you don't -- you can go to money.com, where we have all kinds of tips for and strategies for those people out of work.

S. O'BRIEN: You've been just talking about Winn-Dixie struggling for a while, actually.

SERWER: Yes, they've been fighting against Wal-Mart and also Publix down there, another very strong supermarket chain. So it's tough going.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that is. All right. Andy, thanks.

M. O'BRIEN: It's a tough business.

SERWER: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Tough business. Low margins, right?

SERWER: That's it.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. More to come on AMERICAN MORNING.

Ahead on "90 Second Pop," friends say the queen of all media is hopping mad. Find out why Oprah Winfrey was reportedly turned away from a Paris boutique.

Plus, music fans, dial up a hit. Why a ring tone is the hottest song across the pond. That's later on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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