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CNN Live At Daybreak

Parents Slayings; Holiday Fitness; Discipline Dilemma

Aired November 22, 2005 - 06:30   ET

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


(WEATHER REPORT)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: In Pennsylvania, new revelations to tell you about, about that accused killer and his 14-year-old girlfriend, whose parents he allegedly shot to death. Prosecutors now say the girl was not kidnapped after the shootings, and that the 18- year-old has made a confession.

Jason Carroll has all of the details for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two silver hearses carried the bodies of Michael and Cathryn Borden in a funeral procession on Saturday. Hundreds of people in this small religious community mourn their deaths and try to understand how this horrific double murder could have happened here.

TINA SHYVER-PLANK, FAMILY FRIEND OF BORDENS: We're all completely devastated. It's like it's just ripped down through the center of our hearts. But we are all like a family. They're a big Christian family, and we are pulling together.

CARROLL: Police are learning more about the suspected killer, 18-year-old David Ludwig. He's accused of going to the home of his 14-year-old girlfriend, Kara Borden, and shooting her parents after an argument over their relationship.

Police say he then took Borden with him as he tried to flee. But prosecutors say Borden told detectives she left of her own free will.

When we spoke to Borden's attorney, he would not comment on that. Her community is standing behind her.

DAVID SHEAFFER, FAMILY FRIEND OF BORDENS: She's a child of God, and we've forgiven her. We all make mistakes. And if it comes out that there was a situation there, then so be it. But we still love her, and we're going to pray for her and do whatever we can for her.

CARROLL: When Ludwig and Borden were found after the shooting, hundreds of miles away in Indiana, court documents released today say Ludwig was taken into custody, where he confessed to the murder of Michael and Cathryn Borden.

Another document says, Ludwig advised that the murder weapon, a Glock Model 27 semiautomatic pistol, was under the driver's front seat of his vehicle. In Ludwig's car, police also found a rifle, numerous rounds of ammunition, a black hood and a black stocking mask. Ludwig's attorney did not return our calls today.

Back at the teenager's house, police found a videotape in which they say Ludwig and a friend planned an armed forcible entry. Ludwig also discusses having an intimate relationship with Borden.

In a separate development, Warwick, Pennsylvania, Township police chaplain confirmed that, before his relationship with Borden, Ludwig had run off with a former girlfriend last spring, but that situation was resolved by his and the girl's families.

(on camera): Ludwig has not entered a plea to the two homicide charges against him. As for Borden, her attorney says she's devastated and what's she's going through would have sent an adult into a tailspin. But he also says she's being well cared for by relatives.

Jason Carroll, CNN, Lennox, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: The man accused of shooting shoppers at a Tacoma, Washington, mall may have had other intentions. Investigators say they found a formula for producing the deadly poison ricin and bomb- making diagrams in Dominick Maldonado's bedroom.

Maldonado entered a plea of not guilty during his first court appearance on Monday. He faces assault and kidnapping charges after allegedly shooting six people inside that shopping mall. He surrendered to police after a three-hour hostage standoff. He's being held on $2 million bond.

His picture was taken shortly after he surrendered. You can see him there in the tie. Police reports say Maldonado called them before the shootings. Court documents show when asked where he was calling from, he told the dispatcher to just follow the screams.

Tropical Storm Gamma did not affect the United States. But two Americans were the victims of the storm. Douglas Scratchley, Jr. (ph) and his wife, Christy (ph), of St. Petersburg, Florida, were killed in a plane crash on Belize on Friday. The couple was on their honeymoon and was aboard a private plane belonging to a jungle resort. The plane's pilot was also killed. Belize authorities say heavy winds and rains from Gamma contributed to the crash.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, sick and tired of her teenager's bad behavior, this mother made her daughter wear her punishment. We'll talk to both of them and see if things have changed in their household.

And, shoppers, stick around to hear how you can save yourself the hassle of hunting those bargains on foot.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: This is amazing. It's time for a little "Business Buzz."

Do you plan to spend this Friday shopping like millions of Americans? Carrie Lee says Google wants to help plan your shopping trip.

And this is pretty -- I just -- that is pretty amazing.

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: We're testing this out, as we speak, off-camera a little bit here. We're talking about Google's comparison shopping site, of course, Froogle. And they have a new feature added at midnight last night to let you find the stores selling the item you want in your area. Carol was just testing out this dancing Elmo doll.

COSTELLO: Dancing Elmo.

LEE: We even tested the Microsoft XBox 360, which just went on sale last night. And you can bet the item pops up in areas in the greater New York area.

So, you type in the product you're looking for. Froogle gives you a map of the stores that carry the item, along with the price differences. So, really changing the way we holiday shop, I think.

COSTELLO: That is really -- I mean, I got, like, 35 -- of course, you can probably find Dancing Elmo anywhere. But it's amazing.

LEE: But, still, just to know where they are and what the prices are from the convenience of your home. It's really amazing. It gives you the option to avoid the crowds and buy it online, among other things. Google does get a commission for online referrals, well- deserved it seems.

And right now, Google is using inventory information from several hundred major retailers. It hopes stores, though, will create their own merchandise list using its other new service, Google Base.

Froogle hasn't been as popular as some other search engines. It is ranked fifth among comparison shopping sites in terms of visitors, this according to Nielsen, Doves Trail (ph), Shopzilla, shopping.com and Yahoo Shopping.

But if this service does as well as Google stock, then it's going to be very successful.

Can you believe the shares trade above $400 apiece?

COSTELLO: I just cannot. I'm just kicking myself that I didn't buy any of that stock, but...

LEE: All of those people who said, this is too expensive at $85 a share when it went public. And I admit I was one of them.

COSTELLO: Well...

LEE: Well, $409. That's where it closed last night.

COSTELLO: It's just unbelievable. Well...

LEE: But they're very innovative, and they keep on doing it. So...

COSTELLO: Yes. That Froogle site is cool. Froogle.com.

LEE: Very cool.

COSTELLO: Go and see for yourself.

A quick look at the futures.

LEE: Futures are looking a little bit weak this morning. But the Dow closed yesterday in positive territory on the year, and that is the first time that has happened since March. So, we are getting some year-end momentum.

COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Carrie.

LEE: My pleasure.

COSTELLO: The war of words over Iraq continues with the political -- with political potshots being thrown from both sides of the aisles.

Soledad O'Brien joins us now with a look at what's coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning, Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Carol, good morning to you, and welcome back.

And, yes, of course, it seems that that debate continues, maybe even more vocal than ever. We're talking about the debate over the timetable for troop withdrawal.

This morning, we're going to talk to a Democrat, who is calling for a gradual pullout of Iraq. That would be Senator Joe Biden. We'll chat with him. He actually was discussing his strategy, his plan. He'll give us some details this morning.

Also this morning, we continue our special series, "The Week of Giving." Today, we're taking a look at a really special school. It's quite an elite prep school right outside of Washington, D.C. They are offering to some of the victims of Hurricane Katrina free tuition.

Now, the tuition there runs $35,000 a year at this school. What they're going to do is allow some of the victims of Hurricane Katrina to attend school there while they have no place to go for a little while. We'll tell you their story this morning and much more on "AMERICAN MORNING" this morning. Carol, we start in just about 20 minutes or so.

COSTELLO: I'll be there. Thank you, Soledad.

Well, the holidays are here, and that means we all get a chance to catch up with family and friends. And, oh, yes, we get to eat -- a lot.

If you're trying to keep from packing on the pounds this season, we've got some help. Madeline Dolente is a fitness instructor and the co-author of "Wake Up, Shape Up."

Good morning, Madeline. Did I pronounce your last name correctly?

MADELINE DOLENTE, FITNERSS INSTRUCTOR: Yes, you did. Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank goodness. That's an early Thanksgiving Day gift for me.

OK, Madeline, so I know what you're going to tell us. You're going to tell us that we have to move after eating. But, frankly, who feels like that?

DOLENTE: Well, the more you move, the more you work out, the better you feel during the holidays. It's often easy to eat a big meal and then sit around and be higher throughout the rest of the day. But it's easy to incorporate fitness into your daily routine if you just put forth the effort.

COSTELLO: And you can do something simple, like walk, right?

DOLENTE: Walking is great, especially if you can walk with your family or friends, enjoy the fresh -- the fall foliage. And walking burns tons of calories. For...

COSTELLO: Well, how much walking do we need to burn a significant amount of calories?

DOLENTE: OK. Well, for someone who weighs, let's say, 150 pounds, just 20 minutes of walking would burn 100 calories. So, you can burn as little as 100 calories, or if you walk for an hour, 300 calories.

COSTELLO: Oh, that's pretty good. And, see, that's simple. The other thing, the other suggestion that you had is sign yourself for a race, because there are always - somebody is always like hosting a race at this time of year.

DOLENTE: Well, on Thanksgiving, a lot of the races which are popular are called the Turkey Trots. Every Thanksgiving, I do a Turkey Trot, which is a 10K in Bethesda, Maryland. And it's great, because usually that morning I'm not in the mood to wake up. But once I do it, I feel great.

COSTELLO: And the good thing is, is that you run so early in the morning that means you probably can eat more at dinner.

DOLENTE: Oh, most definitely.

COSTELLO: Excellent. OK. You're usually out of town on Thanksgiving. Many of us are anyway. And a good idea would be to find a health club, because you can always get in, right?

DOLENTE: Well, a great resource that I found is healthclubfinder.com. It's healthclubfinder.com. And what that does, you can log on to that Web site and put in your zip code and find a health club 5, 10, 20 miles within the area that you're staying. And it's often fun to go to a new health club and try out new classes. I love cycling and boxing classes. So, if you log on to the Web site, you can actually -- most clubs will offer you a free pass.

COSTELLO: Excellent advice. And we'll try to follow it, Madeline, but I don't know. Sometimes it's more fun just to eat and watch football games the rest of the afternoon.

DOLENTE: Right. But while you're watching football, during the breaks why not get up and do a set of pushups? You can go on your knees, on your toes or roll over and do a set of crunches.

COSTELLO: I love that, but my family would probably really do something violent to me if I suggested that. Madeline Dolente, we will try, we promise. And thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning. We appreciate it.

DOLENTE: Thank you.

COSTELLO: So, we just told you about exercising to stay slim during the holidays. Tomorrow we tackle holiday eats. Lisa Drayer from "Women's Health" magazine will join us with some easy ways to trim the fat and calories from your feast.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 6:44 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

A manhunt is under way in Mississippi for three escaped inmates. One of them faces capital murder charges. The four escaped from the Pike County jail on Sunday. One is back in police custody.

A French woman was arrested after she attempted to open the door of a commercial jet in flight. Authorities say the woman apparently wanted to smoke a cigarette. The plane was 39,000 feet above Australia's north Queensland when the incident took place.

In money news, General Motors is making massive job cuts in order to try and revive its bottom line. As many as 30,000 workers will lose their jobs beginning next year. Twelve GM plants will either cease or scale back in operations.

In culture, how about some Santa Baby or Blue Christmas Blend? You can now get your caffeine fix courtesy of the King. Elvis Enterprises is brewing a new line of coffees. Silent Night is the decaf. That's what it's called.

In sports, the door to baseball's Hall of Fame will be forever closed to Pete Rose. His name will not be on the baseball writer's ballot in his final year of eligibility. Rose is baseball's all-time hits leader. No forgiveness there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Parents dread the day they have to discipline their children. So, what do you have to do to get your teenager's attention? One mother's choice created a whole lot of controversy. We will talk to her after and her daughter next.

But first, it's time to say happy birthday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Welcome back. It's 6:51 Eastern. Here is what will be making news today.

NASA will deliver a status report on its efforts to eliminate the shedding of insulating foam from the shuttle's external tank during liftoff. Scientists thought they had fixed it after the Columbia disaster. But two and a half years later, foam flew off again during Discovery's liftoff.

A strike by rail workers in France is the latest problem for a government just getting over three weeks of urban riots. Commuters drove to work today, causing major traffic jams, or they crowded into the few trains that were running.

And it's judgment day for the White House turkey. But tradition dictates a presidential pardon for the gobbler. And this year there is another twist. Instead of heading to a farm, the turkey and his backup -- yes, he has a backup turkey. They're both going to Disneyland. They'll be grand marshals for Disney's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. And then, Jacqui, they'll make their permanent home at Disneyland in the petting zoo.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Lucky for them. Don't they have weather names, too, by the way, Carol?

COSTELLO: The turkey's name? I don't know.

JERAS: Blizzard. I think Blizzard. And is it Snowball? Yes.

COSTELLO: Blizzard and Snowball. Oh.

JERAS: I kind of like that.

COSTELLO: That warms my heart.

JERAS: It does. Hey, I'm about to warm your heart with a coffee mug and the big winner this morning, Carol. COSTELLO: Perfect!

JERAS: Our favorite part of the day! Here we go. Here are the answers to Monday's coffee quiz for those of you keeping track. Find out if you got it right.

What's the airline provision that protects bumped passengers? The rule is -- or the answer is Rule 240. And what political party did Ariel Sharon help create in 1973? The answer, the Likud Party.

The winner, Christopher Nelson from Baltimore, Maryland. Congratulations, Christopher.

Do you want to win a mug? You can. You just have to answer these questions.

Who is the new German chancellor? And what town elected an 18- year-old mayor?

You can submit your answers online. The address is CNN.com/daybreak. You can find out tomorrow if you're a lucky winner, like our friend, Christopher.

COSTELLO: Those are such easy questions.

JERAS: Yes, they kind of are today.

COSTELLO: I guess it's the holiday season.

JERAS: Well, we'll have a lot of response. Yes, we're very giving.

COSTELLO: We are, aren't we?

JERAS: A lot of winners, hopefully.

COSTELLO: I hope so. Thank you, Jacqui.

When we come back, more headlines and a look at your travel forecast. This is DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A question: How far would you go to teach your teenager a lesson? Oklahoma mom Tasha Henderson says she was desperate to get her daughter, Koritha (ph), to shape up in school. So, she made Koritha (ph) stand on a street corner with this sign. You can see it shortly.

The sign reads: "I don't do my homework, and I act up in school. So, my parents are preparing me for my future. Will work for food."

Not everybody thought it was such a great idea. But Tasha said it worked.

She and her daughter -- actually, Tasha is with us this morning. Good morning.

TASHA HENDERSON, MOTHER: Good morning.

COSTELLO: How did you decide -- I mean, what made you come up with this idea?

HENDERSON: My kids, all of them, including Koritha (ph), were criticizing a panhandler on the side of the road. And I just expressed to Koritha (ph) that that's where she was going to be if she didn't get her act together. And then, it just came to me. And I told her, in fact, if you don't get it together, that's exactly where you're going to be. And I was joking with her. I said, you're going to be sitting right -- you're going to be standing right next to that man right there. Y'all are going to be standing side by side.

COSTELLO: Now, tell us how frustrated you had become with Koritha (ph).

HENDERSON: Well, my frustration actually came because she's actually always been a very well-mannered, good girl. I've never really had any problems with her. I mean, we've had struggles with grades and stuff. But it's never been because of her attitude and everything.

But the last straw was when she started getting an attitude with one of her teachers at school, smarting off. And my theory -- because my mother was a teacher. I grew up, you know, around teachers. And I never wanted to be one of those parents that would tell their teachers, oh, no, not my daughter, she didn't do that. Well, I know how kids can be when they're not around mom and dad.

So, it was, like, OK, now, it's one thing to struggle with your schoolwork, but when you have a person that's already educated, trying to help you get educated, but yet you're going to smart off with her, no, that's not going to happen.

COSTELLO: OK. So, you're standing on this busy intersection, and people are reading the sign. One motorist actually called police...

HENDERSON: Yes.

COSTELLO: ... with a report of psychological abuse. And a police officer shows up.

HENDERSON: Right. Well, he said he got a call for psychological abuse, and he was going to have to, you know, give me a ticket, write me a citation. I said, OK. But you do have to forgive me, because I did not know. I never read in any book or a pamphlet or anything that this was against the law. So, you'll have to forgive me.

He had to go back to his car and ask his supervisor, well, can I get -- they couldn't get me on that. So, he said, well, we have to write you up for child endangerment. Well, child endangerment, I'm right here with my child. What do you mean? So, he couldn't write me up on that. He went back to his supervisor. And then he came back to me. He said, well, I have to give you a traffic violation simply because people passing by reading the sign, they'll get, you know, distracted.

COSTELLO: Yes.

HENDERSON: And it could cause an accident.

COSTELLO: Well, OK.

HENDERSON: Well, I said...

COSTELLO: Before I have to let you go, because I'm running really short on time...

HENDERSON: OK.

COSTELLO: ... because "AMERICAN MORNING" has to start at the top of the hour, how is your daughter, Koritha (ph), doing after this? Is she doing better in school?

HENDERSON: A lot better. A wonderful attitude. She's been pleasant, turning in all of her assignments, going to class on time. Yes.

COSTELLO: So, you would do it again?

HENDERSON: Yes, I would, if I had to. It would be my last resort, as it was this time. However, I would do it again.

COSTELLO: Tasha Henderson, thanks so much for joining us this morning.

HENDERSON: Thank you.

COSTELLO: We appreciate it.

HENDERSON: Thanks.

COSTELLO: Jacqui, I know you have to give a travel forecast. So quickly now. Oh, we don't have time. I apologize. But Tasha Henderson was very interesting, don't you think?

There are going to be a lot of delays in the Northeast, I know that. From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello along with Jacqui Jeras. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

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