Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Reaction In Dubai To Dead Ports Deal; Fugitive Father Added To American's Most Wanted List; Road To Recovery In New Orleans; Minding Your Business; Remembering The Fulton Courthouse Shooting

Aired March 10, 2006 - 07:30   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: You're watching AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning from New York City. We are following that poor - - it's just an awful story. It's such a gut-wrenching story.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Brutal.

M. O'BRIEN: This boy, waiting for a kidney, on dialysis. He's received a kidney from his mother, rejected it. The next best match, his father. His father happens to be in jail. They let him out of jail to do all this, goes to the testing, he goes on the lamb in Mexico.

S. O'BRIEN: With his girlfriend.

M. O'BRIEN: With the girlfriend, and is nowhere to be seen. Now there's a bounty. There's been some sightings. We're going to bring you up to date. We're going to check in with the mom.

S. O'BRIEN: Meanwhile the little boy waits and ...

M. O'BRIEN: He's waiting. No one knows how long he can wait. I mean, he's on dialysis and, you know, it's just hard to say.

S. O'BRIEN: That's such a sad story.

M. O'BRIEN: It's hard to say.

S. O'BRIEN: We're going to get to that in just a little bit.

First, though, let's get an update on some of the top stories making news. Carol's got that. She's in the newsroom.

Good morning again.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

Good morning to all of you.

The U.S. cranking up the heat on Iran. The U.N. Security Counsel is meeting behind closed doors today. They're trying to work out what to do about Iran's nuclear program. U.S. Ambassador John Bolton says if the council doesn't take tough action, the U.S. may try to rally its allies to sanction Iran.

A new development in the case of Imette St. Guillen. She's the graduate student tortured, raped and killed in New York last month. The only man described as a person of interest in her murder has been cleared in a separate rape investigation, that's according to a law enforcement official. Daryl Little John (ph) appeared in a police lineup on Thursday but was not identified by the victim. He remains in custody this morning.

Pop star Michael Jackson in trouble to the tune of nearly $170,000, which could mean Neverland may fast become never more. A California agency is fining him after discovering he apparently hasn't paid his workers at his fantasy ranch. He also allowed the ranch's workers' compensation coverage to lapse. The department of industrial relations issued a stop order on Neverland, telling workers they are not to show up until all of this is resolved.

Marion Barry, the ex mayor in Washington and now a member of the district council, says he has learned his lesson. He's made his final appearance before a final judge. He was sentenced to three years probation for failing to file tax returns for 2000. He owes nearly $250,000 in taxes.

And Barry Bonds, I think he may have gotten a preview of what's to come in this year's baseball season. Listen. Oh, you could hear it. Of course, the boos and some cheers for Barry Bonds. He made his first appearance in a spring training game last night.

He promptly struck out in his first at-bat, as you saw. Those boos, of course, come to the wake of a new book that alleges extensive steroid use by the slurring. And people are upset because he's not coming out and addressing any of those allegations, Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you very much. The plot continues to thicken there.

We're still hearing, meanwhile, reaction to the sinking of the ports management deal. An American general in charge of troops in the Middle East calling the United Arab Emirates an important ally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: I'm very dismayed by the emotional response that some people have put on the table here in the United States that really comes down to Arab and Muslim bashing that was totally unnecessary. I don't want to comment on the port issue, but I will say that the UAE is a good friend and we need to keep them that way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

M. O'BRIEN: So, what is the reaction in Dubai? For that we turn to CNN's Kevin Flower on the phone with a security watch for us -- Kevin.

KEVIN FLOWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, disappointment and bewilderment here in Dubai. Disappointment that what most considered a sound financial deal has been scuttled for political reasons and bewilderment at the criticism leveled a the UAE government by members of the American Congress and members of the American public.

Now, the government here considers itself a close ally both in the war on terror and economically with the United States. While CNN, at this point, has received no official reaction from the government, officials here prior had told us that the cancellation of the deal could result in negative impact on the billions of dollars the UAE invests in the United States every year, but that the ties between the two countries would remain strong regardless.

Now outside of officialdom, many here in the UAE, including the editorial departments of major newspapers, are saying the whole controversy is indicative of a wider anti-Arab sentiment in the United States and that the Bush administration has no one to blame but itself for the deal going south.

One major daily here writing, "since the days of 9/11, it has encouraged the American public to believe all things Middle Eastern are to be feared, and that the Republican Party is the only one capable of protecting the country against terrorist attacks from Arabs."

Now how all of this will affect UAE/U.S. relations in the short term remains to be seen. But what most observers here are saying is that this comes at a time when the United States can least afford to have its reputation damaged in the Arab world which (ph) it has done -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Kevin Flower on the video phone from Dubai, thank you.

Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: A fugitive father has been added to America's Most Wanted list. Time is running out as his son waits at home for the kidney his father promised to donate. As you first saw last night on "PAULA ZAHN NOW," National Correspondent Susan Candiotti has our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's no telling how long Destin Perkins can go on without a new kidney.

ANGELA HAMMOND, DESTIN'S MOTHER: This is Destin in Tennessee.

CANDIOTTI: His mother gave him one of hers, but Destin's body rejected it, putting the 16-year-old back at square one. His father was next in line to help.

BARBARA BARR, DESTIN'S GRANDMOTHER: I can't believe he took off and left us and left his son in the condition he's in. He needs him so badly.

CANDIOTTI: He is Destin's father, Byron, who was expected to be his son's second donor.

DR LARRY SHOEMAKER, KOSAIR CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL: His dad would have been the most likely to have a good match as one could hope for at this point.

CANDIOTTI: Destin's father, Byron Perkins, remains on the run. Last seen in a Mexican fishing village south of Puerto Vallarta. In January, authorities bought his tearful promise to donate a kidney and allowed Perkins out of jail for medical tests, even though he faced a 25-year sentence for a conviction on drug and gun charges. That's when Perkins bolted.

On Thursday, U.S. marshals added Perkins and his fugitive girlfriend, Lee Ann Howard, to its 15 most wanted list, offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to their capture. But how do you console a son abandoned by his father in such a public way? Destin's paternal grandmother admits it's humiliating.

What do you tell Destin about his father and what he did?

BARR: I want Destin to know that I'm very sorry for what his dad did to him. And that we will find him a kidney some way or somehow.

CANDIOTTI: Destin's doctor says the earliest he'd consider an operation is months from now, in part to allow for a dose of emotional healing. Though strangers have offered help, doctors will first turn to Destin's relatives if push comes to shove.

SHOEMAKER: Right now the family's gone through a lot of psychological strain and we're trying to get Destin back to a regular dialysis program.

CANDIOTTI: Destin's mom says boosting his self-image may take some time.

How is he doing now?

HAMMOND: He's really down. He was proud that his dad would step up and do that for him.

CANDIOTTI: What does he think of his dad now?

HAMMOND: He doesn't really talk about it.

CANDIOTTI: As for her runaway ex.

HAMMOND: I don't understand why he couldn't have done the transplant, you know, to help Destin. I just -- I don't understand. It's unbelievable.

CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, Russell Springs, Kentucky.

(END VIDEOTAPE) S. O'BRIEN: Oh, just a brutal story and a poor little boy. This story, as we mentioned, first aired on "PAULA ZAHN NOW," which, of course, airs week nights at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Anderson Cooper will follow up on this as well on his program tonight.

Anderson.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Soledad, do you remember the dad who got out of jail to give his son a life-saving kidney and then took it on the lamb instead? Do you think he's a low-life? Wait till you meet his girlfriend. See what you can do to catch them both. That's tonight on 360 at 10 p.m. Eastern -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: That was a tease for Anderson for his broadcast tonight. You know, it's such a brutal story. Absolutely heartbreaking when you see this little kid and his mom says he's down. That's probably the biggest understatement of all time. I mean, can you imagine?

M. O'BRIEN: No, I can't. I can't.

S. O'BRIEN: Abandoned by your own father at the -- you know, what did Anderson say there? You think he's a slime ball?

M. O'BRIEN: Wait till you meet the girlfriend.

S. O'BRIEN: Wait until you meet the other one on the lamb.

M. O'BRIEN: Great.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, we'll look forward to that report tonight.

M. O'BRIEN: A nice group of characters.

Chad Myers in the Weather Center. He's a good character. He's a good guy and a good dad, we might add.

Good to have you with us.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: Andy Serwer's here.

Hello, Andy.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Hello you guys.

We're going to tell you about an American company with unlikely foothold in China.

Plus, disenchanted Sharper Image investors get out the long knives.

Stay tuned for that coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) M. O'BRIEN: Is he a financial savior or a profiteer. We're talking about Patrick Quinn, an investor who is snapping up big swaths of New Orleans real estate right now. Just don't call him a Crescent City Donald Trump though. CNN's Sean Callebs with our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the misery that followed Katrina, Patrick Quinn also found opportunity.

PATRICK QUINN, REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER: I want to do what I can to help it return.

CALLEBS: Born and raised here, Quinn began aggressively bidding on damaged property. At the same time, with his downtown office inaccessible and his own house in Metairie flooded, the developer had to get creative to keep his New Orleans hotel up and running.

QUINN: We knew it was going to be a while before we were going to get our organization back intact.

CALLEBS: So Quinn dropped $500,000 on this rock star bus. He was told it belonged to Brittany Spears, but has his doubts, and he set up a rolling office.

QUINN: Since the hurricane, I think we've bought five or six actual commercial buildings.

CALLEBS: He now owns 17 buildings in New Orleans, mostly boutique hotels, like the city's Aster Crown Plaza and the hotel, The Serc (ph). But he takes issue with "The New York Times" magazine article that says he wants to be the Donald Trump of New Orleans. Saying that reputation would hurt him here.

QUINN: It didn't say that. I never said that. I didn't say that.

CALLEBS: What did you think of that when you read it?

QUINN: I didn't like it. I didn't like it.

CALLEBS: Quinn doesn't want to be seen as what he calls a skally-wag, by which he means a local boy taking advantage of the misery of others. Quinn just wants to play a big role in a big recovery and he wants to get involved in rebuilding the suburbs. Business leaders say Quinn leading the way in the residential areas can only help.

J. STEPHEN PERRY, N.O. CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU: Right now, the lack of availability in housing is the primary thing that is holding back the private sector, driving the recovery even faster.

CALLEBS: Quinn really wants to renovate homes in Lakeview where he grew up serving as an altar boy.

QUINN: I think the people who lived here really enjoyed living here and I do think they're going to want to come back.

CALLEBS: He says he bought a couple of empty lots and had grand plans for buying and rebuilding in several devastated neighborhoods, but that changed.

QUINN: I just kind of put the whole residential program on hold.

CALLEBS: That's because a half a year after the storm, Quinn says the city and state haven't decided what areas must be torn down and where developers can rebuild. And as much as the local boy would like to lead the way, he can't do it alone.

QUINN: I felt like I was trying to help the city and help people.

CALLEBS: Sean Callebs, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: That's interesting, isn't it. You know, on one hand you think that area just needs to be bought up and rebuilt and helped and he's a local guy and wants to do it. And on the other hand you think, I can see people's concerns.

M. O'BRIEN: Darned if you do and darned if you don't.

SERWER: Someone's probably going to make money there, right?

S. O'BRIEN: Absolutely, they are.

M. O'BRIEN: Absolutely.

S. O'BRIEN: Somebody is.

SERWER: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Free enterprise will probably work better than the government.

S. O'BRIEN: Takes money to make money.

SERWER: We've seen that, especially in New Orleans recently, right?

M. O'BRIEN: Yes. You're "Minding Our Business" coming up this morning.

SERWER: I am, Soledad.

Want to tell you about a couple of familiar retailers. First of all, let's start off with Timberland, which, of course, makes shoes and apparel. This is kind of a slice of business story. They're opening up 70 stores in China over the next five years. And this sort of speaks to the rise of the middle class in China because their stuff is not cheap. And 1.3 billion -- billion, do you see that, Miles, 1.3 billion people live in China. M. O'BRIEN: That's 2.6 billion feet.

SERWER: Yes, and you did the math for me, thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: I did that on the fly.

S. O'BRIEN: You?

M. O'BRIEN: That's a lot of Timberland.

SERWER: Twenty percent of the world's population.

S. O'BRIEN: You are so smart.

SERWER: And the middle class there is expected, you know, to continue to be a driving force in the economy. Interesting, of course, that Timberland makes a lot of its shoes and apparel there, so they're kind of going back into the market where they make stuff. Boots that cost about $150 here will cost over $200 there. Prices higher there.

S. O'BRIEN: I was just about to ask you how high they were.

M. O'BRIEN: Wait a minute.

SERWER: Higher because of taxes. They'd have to pay the Chinese government so much in taxes.

S. O'BRIEN: But -- so they're making them there in China.

SERWER: They'll make them there and they'll charging more.

M. O'BRIEN: For pennies, for pennies, right, in these really sweat shops essentially, right?

SERWER: I don't know if we could say penny -- I would not say sweat shops. I have no idea. We don't know.

M. O'BRIEN: Well, you know what I'm saying ...

S. O'BRIEN: That's a whole investigation.

M. O'BRIEN: It's inexpensive labor ...

SERWER: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Excuse the pejorative, and yet they end up charging their own people $200.

SERWER: But the profit margin, presumably, would be the same because they're paying the Chinese government so much in taxes.

M. O'BRIEN: I see.

S. O'BRIEN: I get it.

SERWER: That's the reason why. But you'd think the prices in China would be lower.

S. O'BRIEN: That's what I would have guessed. I thought you were going to say, get them for $80.

SERWER: Right. Not at all.

OK, we want to move on to another retailer, that being Sharper Image, which used to be hot, hot, hot, now it's not, not, not. You knew that was coming.

S. O'BRIEN: I can help you, man (ph).

SERWER: Thank you. To be perfectly blunt, the results at Sharper Image have been dull lately. OK. Now the company had a winner with the Ionic Breeze, you may remember, but then "Consumer Reporters" did an article which said it didn't really do anything. And since then the stock has gone from 40 to 12. Sales have been down. And now an investor group is looking to throw out the entire board.

And this is what's been going on lately. You see more and more activist investors attacking the boards, attacking management and trying to just, you know, take over these companies.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, is it a board issue or is it a product issue?

SERWER: Or a CEO issue.

S. O'BRIEN: Or a CEO issue.

SERWER: How about that? The CEO's probably getting paid good money, right?

M. O'BRIEN: Probably.

S. O'BRIEN: I'm going to go out on a limb and say I bet he is or she is.

SERWER: Or she is, yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Kind of a duller image either way, would you say?

SERWER: To be perfectly blunt.

M. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.

SERWER: In his sweet spot.

S. O'BRIEN: I'm trapped in between the two of you.

SERWER: Sorry.

M. O'BRIEN: And, by the way, I know nothing about -- Timberland, I'm sure that they're above board in every way, shape and form. I meant to say that ...

SERWER: And I don't know if the Sharper Image CEO is getting paid buckets of money either. Or she.

M. O'BRIEN: He may not be duller. So really we don't really know what we're talking about in some respects. Sorry about that.

Still to come -- I'm speaking for me, not you.

Still to come on the program, the government says the bird flu could reach the U.S. in a matter of months, but how likely is that? We'll talk to an expert on bird migration.

Plus, we're going to catch up with Ashley Smith. You remember her? It's been a year now since she was held hostage after that Atlanta courthouse shooting event. She reflects on her 26 hours of terror next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: It's been a year since a shooting spree in Atlanta left four people dead. A city-wide manhunt ended when the suspect, Brian Nichols, released his hostage, Ashley Smith. Remember this, the single mother became an unlikely hero. CNN's Kyra Phillips has an update now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): For the first time, Ashley Smith returns to her apartment since moving out one year ago.

Is it strange being back?

ASHLEY SMITH, HOSTAGE SURVIVOR: Yes, it's very strange being here.

PHILLIPS: What were you thinking when you pulled up?

SMITH: How nervous I was going to be going in here and just how kind of weird it feels.

PHILLIPS: How do you feel right now?

SMITH: OK. I'm a little short of breath.

PHILLIPS: So take me through that day.

SMITH: When I turned around and saw him right there, the door was already opened and he just followed me in and shut and locked the door.

PHILLIPS: He had the gun right on your head?

SMITH: Yes. Yes. Right at my face.

PHILLIPS: So what happened at that point?

SMITH: Well, he came in and closed the door and locked the door. I can just remember right here, just saying please don't hurt me. I have a little girl who doesn't have a dad.

PHILLIPS: It's been two weeks since Ashley last saw her daughter, but she planned to see her later that morning.

SMITH: He just had the gun pointed right at me and I began to scream immediately with a gun pointed at my face.

PHILLIPS: Thinking she may never see her daughter again, she tries to reason with Nichols.

SMITH: And I said, you don't understand, I haven't seen her in two weeks. Her daddy's dead. Imagine what she's going to feel like when I don't show up? She's going to think that I didn't want to see her.

PHILLIPS: Brian Nichols asked for something to help him relax.

SMITH: He asked me if I had any marijuana. And I was like, what? No. But immediately I said, I had some ice and I thought, oh, my gosh, you know, what did I just do? I can't do that. But it was too late, I had already offered it to him.

PHILLIPS: Why did you have it?

SMITH: Because I was addicted at that time to it.

PHILLIPS: Did you feel a need to do it with him?

SMITH: No way. I knew that that was my last chance. I had been more of a prisoner to that drug for the past few years than I was to Brian Nichols that night in this apartment, really. And it took control of my life. It even made me give custody away of my daughter, the person that I loved most in the world.

PHILLIPS: For the first time in her life, Ashley Smith says she has the strength to refuse crystal meth.

SMITH: I just felt the presence, like a presence of God, come into the house and like everything was going to be OK. And that's when I went and grabbed my "Purpose Driven Life" and asked him if I could read. I went and grabbed it and went and sat on the bed.

PHILLIPS: "Purpose Driven Life" is Rick Warren's best-selling devotional book. Ashley reads a paragraph out loud.

SMITH: What you are is God's gift to you. What you do with yourself is your gift to God. God deserves your best. He shaped you for a purpose. And he expects you to make the most of what you have been given. He doesn't want you to worry about or covet abilities you don't have.

PHILLIPS: Nichols asks her to read it again. It seems to register and he begins to open up.

SMITH: He said he felt like there was a demon inside him and that there was a spiritual warfare going on inside of him. (END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: You can see much more in a special CNN Presents "26 Hours of Terror." That on Saturday at 7 p.m. Eastern and Pacific Time as well.

A look at our top stories are ahead this morning.

That controversial U.S. ports deal dead.

And the government says bird flu could hit the U.S. within months.

We're going to meet a Kenyan family that's struggling to survive a drought of biblical proportions.

And that so-called missing text message girl, well she's been found in New York.

Plus, a bizarre attack on two pregnant women in their car. All of it's caught on tape.

Those stories are ahead this morning on AMERICAN MORNING. We're back in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com