Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Today

Homeland Arrest; Teacher Sex Arrest; Couric's Choice; Duke's Divisions; California Rain; Spring Cleaning Your Finances Tips

Aired April 05, 2006 - 10:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Officers arrested 55-year-old Brian Doyle Tuesday night. They say they caught him red-handed online with an undercover officer posing as a 14-year- old girl. Doyle allegedly began explicit sexual conversations with the Polk County, Florida, computer crimes detective in mid-March.
SHERIFF GRADY JUDD, POLK COUNTY, FLORIDA: The very first online conversation, Brian Doyle identified himself as the deputy press secretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. We thought that was probably a ruse.

KEILAR: But detectives says they quickly found out it wasn't. That Doyle sent a picture of himself wearing his DHS badge and gave the numbers to his office and work phone cell phone. Coincidentally, Doyle's arrest came the same day legislators heard graphic testimony about online predators from an abuse victim. Now 19 years old, Justin Berry, a former honor student and class president, told Congress Tuesday that at 13 he bought a web cam to meet other teenagers. Instead, Berry met child predators and ended up performing sex acts for money.

JUSTIN BERRY, CHILD PORNOGRAPHY VICTIM: They wanted me to take off my pants, remove my underwear and eventually masturbate on camera.

KEILAR: Overtime it, the online molestation turned physical, and that's exactly what police say Brian Doyle had in mind.

JUDD: This guy is a criminal. We hope to see him in the Florida state prison system for a very long time.

KEILAR: Authorities believe Brian Doyle may also have been talk with other kids online because sometimes he would refer to the 14- year-old decoy by a different name.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Well, for more on this story, we turn to our Homeland Security Correspondent Jeanne Meserve.

Jeanne, you have dealt with Doyle in his capacity as the agency's deputy press secretary. Shock and amazement today?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of -- yes, both. Both. A very nice guy. Very competent. My impression and the impression of other members of the press corps, I've also talked to people inside the Department of Homeland Security, everybody absolutely stunned by this development. A department official does say today that Doyle is likely to be placed on administrative leave today and the official statement from the department is that they take these allegations seriously and will fully cooperate with the investigation.

KAGAN: Innocent until proven guilty. But I understand there's also some security issues here that the officials say that while he was online his actual I.D. badge was visible.

MESERVE: Well, certainly in one of the photographs, my understanding is, in one of the photographs that he sent to the girl, he was wearing his Department of Homeland Security identification badge. I asked them questions this morning about evidence at the department, whether they'd be seizing his computer or other things. No answers on those questions just yet.

KAGAN: All right, Jeanne Meserve, live in Washington. Jeanne, thank you.

MESERVE: You bet.

KAGAN: This next story involves a charge of rape. The accused is a Delaware grade school teacher. Police say that Rachel Holt had sex with a 13-year-old student two dozen times in just one week and even let a second young boy watch. More on that from reporter David Henry from our CNN affiliate WPVI.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm disgusted. That's disgusting to me.

DAVID HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Police say Rachel Holt wined and dined her alleged victim and even let him drive her car. The affair came to light when his father called police yesterday alarmed by frequent phone calls from Holt to his son. The sex allegedly happened here at Holt's condo in North Wilmington last week. The boy spent several nights here after telling his father he was staying with a relative. And they had company.

LT. COL. SCOTT MCLAREN, NEW CASTLE COUNTY POLICE: On at least one occasion, Holt allowed the victim's 12-year-old friend to watch them have sex. She's also accused of providing alcohol to the two youths.

HENRY: A court document indicates that Holt confessed when she was confronted by police at her condo. She allegedly admitted to having sex with the boy 28 times last week. Holt is unmarried and lives alone. The school district says she's been a good teacher up until now. Holt has taught at five schools in the Wilmington area since 1997. Police say the investigation continues and there may be more victims. Parents are numb-struck by the news.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You want to protect your children the best way you can. And something like this, it's out of your hands. And it's very scary.

(END VIDEOTAPE) KAGAN: And that report was from David Henry from our CNN affiliate WPVI.

Well, on to television. She's calling it the worst kept secret in America and now it's out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATIE COURIC, "THE TODAY SHOW": I wanted to tell all of you out there who have watched the show for the past 15 years that after listening to my heart and my gut, two things that have served me pretty well in the past, I've decided I'll be leaving "Today" at the end of May.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Katie Couric is moving on to CBS. She is making history, too. Katie becomes the first solo female anchor of a network evening news cast.

Our A.J. Hammer is in New York City, which is all abuzz with the news because of the musical chairs that it's causing.

A.J.

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": It is causing a bit of musical chairs. CBS, of course, has yet to announce who is going to be replace -- or taking over -- NBC, rather, has yet to announce who's going to be taking over on that "Today" show couch. A cushy job that, as you said, Katie Couric's been wake up for pre-dawn for the last 15 years.

No announcement from CBS. They could announce -- or, rather, no announcement yet from NCC. But CBS is expected to announce this officially at some point. We don't know exactly when. Maybe they're letting it be Katie's NBC day. Of course, they will probably be coming out with an official announcement that she will, in fact, be joining in as the anchor of the "CBS Evening News."

The interesting thing about the announcement this morning, Daryn, was, in her announcement to her audience, she never actually said what she was doing. Only with a little poking and prodding from Matt Lauer did we actually finally hear what she was going to do. And at that point, Katie just said, oh, I'm going to work on the "CBS Evening News" and I'm going to work on "60 Minutes." But we do know that she'll be taking over as the first ever solo anchor of an evening news cast and probably joining up with the "CBS Evening News" in September.

KAGAN: Yes, I don't think when she meant she was joining the "CBS Evening News" and "60 Minutes" that she was going to be getting the coffee.

HAMMER: Yes, I don't think that's going to be the case at all.

KAGAN: No. HAMMER: We do know for sure that she is going to be the anchor of the program. But she really made the announcement this morning about the fact that she is leaving NBC after all this time and went with her gut and her head, which have served her we well in the past and she really wanted to pay tribute to the people she worked there with at NBC for so long. And, of course, to the audience that has kept her as the number one morning co-anchor for the last 10 years.

KAGAN: Well, and for -- she also makes history today by this being her 15th anniversary, is that right? And so she is now the longest running continuous anchor on "The Today Show." So the woman is making history.

HAMMER: That is true. That is true. And, as a matter of fact, this morning they set the whole thing up at 7:30 Eastern Time by coming out of commercials and Matt Lauer saying, this date is significant because it is the 15th anniversary of Katie Couric at "The Today Show" and they played a clip of her and Bryant Gumbel on her very first morning as the co-anchor of "The Today Show" 15 years ago. Coming out of that he turned to her and said, so you got anything else for us this morning? And then, of course, she was very emotional and, really, it was quite gracious the way she handled it, I thought, and the ways that the folks at NBC are handling it as well.

KAGAN: I also liked her reaction, how she said, that old tape was about 172 hair styles ago. And for those of us that change styles on the air, we can appreciate that sometimes it's not easy to go through a case of the growing out. But we wish her well and, A.J., we'll look forward to hearing more details of what CBC has in store for Katie Couric.

A.J. Hammer in New York City.

HAMMER: All right, Daryn, we'll be letting you know everything that's going on with this.

KAGAN: A.J., thank you.

Well, some call it a case of privilege and prejudice. A college, a divided community, awaiting DNA tests for members of Duke's lacrosse team. At the center of the case, an African-American dancer and the white athletes accused of raping her. CNN's Jason Carroll has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): There is anger and hurt at North Carolina Central University where students held a vigil for one of their fellow students who they believe was a victim of rape and a hate crime.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We should come here today to represent against domestic violence.

CARROLL: The demonstrations continue here, too, at Duke University. Students from both schools protesting in support of a young black woman, an NCCU student and an exotic dance, who says three Duke lacrosse players, all white, raped her and shouted racial slurs after hiring her and her friend to work at a party for the team. The woman's father, who didn't want to be identified, or talk specifics about his daughter's case, says he's grateful to many.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just thank everybody at the school for the support.

CARROLL: He spoke briefly about his daughter's condition.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's hanging in there and she's doing OK.

CARROLL: She's hanging in there and doing OK.

The DNA test results are not in and no one has been charged. But already the allegations have had a major impact on Durham by raising longstanding suspicions here about racism and the belief that there are two separate worlds operating here side-by-side. The predominantly white privileged world of Duke University and the black economically depressed area surrounding it.

Students at NCCU say the case shows how people from both worlds are treated differently.

DENNIS SCOTT, NCCU STUDENT: If it was a flip-flop role, I'd say one of our athletic teams had did something to someone on, you know, their team, I think the results and turnout would have been completely different.

DAVIDA SACKEY, NCCU STUDENT: I think they'll be punished, but not as severely as it would be if they were black.

CARROLL: The debate has even divided Duke administrators, pitting one of the school's English professors against the university's provost.

PROFESSOR HOUSTON BAKER JR., DUKE UNIVERSITY: There is a culture of white elite violent, drunken privilege. I don't think this is unknown at Yale. I don't think this is unknown at Cornell. I don't think it's unknown at Duke University.

CARROLL: Professor Houston Baker Jr. says the should have had a tougher response to the lacrosse team. He wrote an open letter to administrators saying there could "be no confidence in an administration that believes suspending a lacrosse season and removing pictures of Duke lacrosse players from a web page is a dutifully moral response." The provost shot back with his own letter saying, "I cannot tell you how disappointed, saddened and appalled I was to receive this letter from you." He called Baker's letter an "act of prejudgment."

Joe Cheshire, an attorney representing one of the players, say the men have been vilified, mainly by the district attorney, who he says is playing to people's fears.

JOSEPH CHESHIRE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The prosecutor has gone so far past his ethical duty. And in -- as I said before, in pandering to the racial aspects of the community, the class aspects of the community, the gender aspects of the community.

CARROLL: Cheshire says there may have been drinking violations that night at the lacrosse house but nothing else.

CHESHIRE: It wasn't racially motivated. It wasn't a rape. It wasn't a gang rape. It wasn't a rape. It was no sexual assault.

CARROLL: And Cheshire says despite what critics say, the team should not be penalized for remaining silent. A mother of one of the lacrosse players, who did not want her name used, says some of them do want to talk but had been advised not to by their lawyers. She says, "we're proud to be associated with these boys and this team. I can't wait for all this to be over. It's a horribly painful time for the players."

And for many of the students at Duke, who are experiencing increased tension between themselves and the surrounding community. Police had to increase patrols after a threat of a drive-by shooting at the lacrosse home. Duke students of different races say they debate the issue pretty much the same way they traditionally socialize on campus -- separately.

Is there a lot of interaction between people of different ethnicities at this school? Do you see that? Or are people kind of -- you're shaking your head. What -- no?

ASHLEY ARTIS, DUKE UNIVERSITY STUDENT: No. You see some cases of integrated groups of friends. But, for the most part, the campus and the students are very self-segregated.

CHARLES DEL DOTTO, DUKE UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I think it will be a long time before the racial tensions within the university and between the university and the surrounding Durham community will be in any way really significantly eased.

CARROLL: For now, that may be one of the few points people of all walks of life here can agree on.

Jason Carroll, CNN, Durham, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: A heated exchange over a capitol controversy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CYNTHIA MCKINNEY: Well let me say that this is has become much ado about a hairdo.

(END VIDEO CLIP): Coming up, the congresswoman and the Capitol Police. Neither one is backing down.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAGAN: In the golden state, another gloomy day. Rain and more rain and more rain in northern California. And now there's a new threat as levees give way. Flood waters breached the 30-foot section of levee along a creek in Merced, sending up to a foot and a half of water into a mobile home park. No injuries are reported. For the latest on the bad weather in California, we're going to check in with Dave Marquis. He's with our affiliate KXTV in Calaveras County.

Dave Marquis, it's been about, what, 50 years since we worked together in Phoenix?

DAVE MARQUIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Let's not even talk about that.

KAGAN: OK. That's a different story.

Good to see you, even if you're looking a little soggy today.

MARQUIS: It is great to see you as well.

And, boy, we are truly in the middle of a race against time and nature here, Daryn, in the little gold rush community in the southern Calaveras County area. This is the community, actually, of Valley Springs, the La Contenta (ph) subdivision. And you can see this earthen dam that is the problem just behind us here. Is so soggy from rain that has been falling steadily here in California and water that has been pouring through this spillway. It was much higher yesterday and through the night, eroding away.

You can see where the erosion has happened on the far side, the ride side of the dam from where we are. And something truly remarkable has been going on in the last half hour. This group of engineers, these are guys from the Army Corps and from the State Department of Water Resources in California, have kind of taken things into their own hands, have been diverting the course of the water to keep the erosion on the right side from getting any worse. It looks like they have largely succeeded.

The worst case scenario they are so concerned about here this morning is that this might collapse sending water cascading down this valley to another even larger pond which might, they think, catastrophically cause that dam to fail, sending water into the community below. So they are racing truly against time and nature.

They have crews that are due out here shortly. They're going to beginning putting plastic coating across both of these earthen dams and they are also going to put sandbags in place hoping to stop the erosion and the saturation. But it is going to be very difficult with more rain, Daryn, in the forecast over the next few days.

KAGAN: So, Dave, ultimately downstream, what kind of community is down there that they're concerned about?

MARQUIS: Well, this is actually a golf course community. A lot of very expensive homes. Going down into the community then of Valley Springs below. About 100 homeowners have been evacuated out of that area because of concerns that if there were a catastrophic failure there could be loss of life. And so as some of these homes would certainly be swept away and there were a catastrophic failure. And in the meantime, they just don't want to take any chances. They have no idea, the Office of Emergency Services with the county telling me a little while ago, no idea when any of these folks will be able to go back into their homes here in this community.

KAGAN: Soggy times indeed. Dave Marquis with our affiliate KXTV.

Dave, great to see you.

MARQUIS: Likewise.

KAGAN: Good to see you.

Let's check in with Chad Myers. Chad is watching the situation in California.

Chad, Dave and I worked together. He was at the NBC affiliate in Phoenix. I was at what was the ABC affiliate. He was one of the good guys across town.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: We know where the water's going. Do you know where your tax dollars are going? How about projects like the Water-free Urinal Conservation? Yep. Next hour, members of Congress will see their pork security, pork with a k, slipping away. That's when a group called Citizens Against Government Waste releases its annual Congressional Pig Book. The little pink book makes politicians squirm as it lists pork barrel spending in the federal budget. Up 31 percent from last year by the way. There are way too many to list. But here are some of the highlights. And there will be more throughout the next two hours of LIVE TODAY.

Well, I guess we will have those coming up. But, meanwhile, if you're trying to trim some pork from your own savings situation, Gerri Willis is here with a little spring cleaning.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn, I want a copy of that book. That sounds awesome.

KAGAN: I know. Or depressing, depending.

WILLIS: Yes, right.

Well, you know, if you're cleaning up the cobwebs in your closet this weekend, you might think about cleaning up the cobwebs in our wallet. CNN LIVE TODAY continues with "Five Tips" on cleaning up your finances this spring.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's check out the latest numbers on Wall Street, which has been open almost an hour. The Dow is up a bit. Up 14 points. The Nasdaq also heading in the positive direction. It is up about 6 points.

Get out the broom, it is time for spring cleaning. And we're not just talking about your closet. You need to dust off those finances, too. Here now is our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis with today's "Top Five Tips."

Gerri, good morning.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn, good to see you.

You know, you've really got to curb your inner pack rat. It's so common for people to keep all kinds of documents because they don't really know what they can afford to throw away. Here's your list.

Tip one, credit card statements, they can go after a year. You can get rid of them then. Pay stub, 401(k) statements, when you get a new one, you can toss the old one. Tax returns, because the IRS can come back to you in later years, you need to keep them for seven years. And, of course, you never throw away the birth certificate. Think about buying a cross-cut shredder. That's the best kind. It cost about $50. And let me tell you, if somebody goes through your garbage, they'll never be able to tell what the papers were before they were cut up.

KAGAN: Most people have four or five IRAs?

WILLIS: Unbelievable. It's pretty typical for people to have two to three in one household. Maybe four or five. You know, you want to consolidate those because the problem becomes, you have four separate statements, four quarterly reports, you want to put them in one diversified fund because you may be able to negotiate fees lower if you put them all together.

KAGAN: What about different savings accounts?

WILLIS: I think that's another big problem, too. People have savings, multiple savings in one town. If you've moved around a lot, you may have savings in other cities you've lived in. If you consolidate those accounts, you can get discounts on loan rates or even avoid bank fees. One good idea now, Daryn, put your cash into CDs. Interest rates on CDs have had five-year highs recently. And listen to this. You can get into a one-year CD now for an average of 4.5 percent. That is incredible compared to where we've been over the last few years.

KAGAN: What about credit cards?

WILLIS: Well, you know, more than two credit cards is trouble. You definitely don't want to have six, which is the average. One good idea here, don't close down credit card accounts that are older than five years because it will affect your credit rating.

KAGAN: Really?

WILLIS: Yes, it's negative. Brings down your credit score. You don't want to go there. But try not to the have six cards floating around because, look, you forget to pay, you incur fees, you make your credit rating look worst. So it really makes sense to consolidate.

KAGAN: Why would they care if you closed down an old account if you're not using it?

WILLIS: Well, in the crazy world of credit rating, it matters whether there is a continuing history of your credit. So if you make your credit history look shorter than it actually is, it's bad for you, because you look like you've been around for fewer years. Crazy. I know, it's crazy, but that's the way it works.

KAGAN: Time to do -- also a look at what your life looks like. Might need a little tune-up. A financial tune-up.

WILLIS: Exactly. You know, when you have big life change, maybe you have a baby, maybe someone in your family dies, maybe you move, you've got to update all of your financial paperwork, update your insurance, check your IRA beneficiary. You might want to get a living will. So, you know, as you progress in life, your money life changes too. You've got to make the changes.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Gerri Willis. Gerri, thank you.

WILLIS: You're welcome.

KAGAN: And speaking of babies, it's a once in a lifetime event. Four tiny reasons to celebrate. We're going to tell you about these bundles of joy, why they're special, just ahead.

(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