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Were There Warning Signs for Virginia Tech Killer?; Virginia Governor Meets with Wounded; Identification of Victims Continues; Bombs in Iraq Kill 400

Aired April 18, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CO-HOST: Hello, everyone, I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CO-HOST: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Kyra Phillips is on assignment in Iraq.

Profile of a troubled mind. What were the warning signs for the Virginia Tech killer, and were the red flags ignored?

LEMON: And more victims identified. What we're learning about the dead as the first funeral takes place for a beloved professor.

WHITFIELD: Then, when tragedy tests your beliefs. Some students will share their grief with the Reverend Franklin Graham today. He'll join us a bit later.

And right now, you're in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And new details today are coming in about Virginia Tech and that massacre and the gunman.

WHITFIELD: Police had investigated Cho Seung-Hui for campus stalking incidents in 2005. He was temporarily hospitalized for mental illness later on that year.

LEMON: And Fredricka, Cho brought a.22 caliber semiautomatic pistol, one of two guns used in that rampage, from an out of state dealer, but he had to pick it up from a Virginia pawnbroker, per state law.

WHITFIELD: And a funeral service this afternoon in New York City for Professor Liviu Librescu. The Holocaust survivor died trying to protect his students from the gunman.

Also, we're learning more of the other victims' names.

The gunman left a horrific legacy. Now we're learning more about his disturbing past and the weapons police say he used to commit the worst shooting massacre in modern U.S. history.

Let's go straight to the Virginia Tech campus and CNN's Brianna Keilar -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there, Fred. I'm standing here at Drill Field. This is really the heart of the Virginia Tech campus. And this is where members of the community and many students have come to pay tribute here at a makeshift memorial.

If you look up at the hill behind me, you can see people gathered around boards where they are signing messages. I looked at some of these messages. They are so touching.

One said -- one was to Reema Samaha, one of the victims. And it said, "I'm so glad I hugged you at our last practice." And it was talking about how she choreographed something for a belly dance that they were doing. So some messages to those individuals who were victims.

But also, just a lot of people expressing their support for the community here, including people from other universities.

And if you look over my shoulder here, this is a prayer service going on right now. We understand this was put together by Campus Ministries. And these people have been gathered here for about an hour, many of them praying. They're -- they're sitting around in rings, holding hands, and giving each other support and joining together in their faith, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And Brianna, earlier, there was a bomb scare. What are the details about that?

KEILAR: There was a bomb scare. And it really wasn't that far from me. It was actually here at Burress Hall, this hall behind the makeshift memorial where so many people have gathered.

And Virginia Tech police say there were reports that it was a bomb scare, but they say that's not actually what it was. They say that it was a threat on President Charles Steger and that police came here to his office to alert him, but in the end, it was unfounded.

But certainly, police were telling people to get away from the building. And some students told CNN, Fred, that it was like this was happening all over again. Obviously, people here are very much on edge.

WHITFIELD: And earlier we heard in a news conference a few more details about the shooter. What was learned?

KEILAR: Well, some very troubling new details that really paint Cho as a very mentally disturbed person.

We heard from Virginia Tech police that they had contact with him twice during the fall of 2005. That would have been last school year.

Late November, early December, that he was actually trying to contact or was contacting two female students. They didn't want to have anything to do with him. So they got police involved.

Police touched base with Cho to tell him this on both of these occasions. And during the second -- after the second incident when police contacted Cho right after an acquaintance of Cho told police that same day that they were fearful that Cho was suicidal.

Police got in touch with Cho again. They asked him to go to a counselor. He did go to a counselor. And a temporary detention order was obtained. He was actually taken to a mental health facility.

And, Fred, all of this happening at the same time that Cho became -- that he got -- that he came to the attention of police for another reason.

WHITFIELD: Those reasons other than the alleged harassment of other students?

KEILAR: This was actually -- the other reason because English department officials had gotten in touch with police. They were concerned over some of his writings. And I'm sure you had a chance to look at a couple of plays that Cho wrote in a playwriting class. That was sort of an example of the vein of some of the writing and very disturbing themes in there, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Indeed. And let's hear a little bit more about some of the disturbing string of events that have occurred involving Cho, this by the words of the police chief earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. WENDELL FLINCHUM, VIRGINIA TECH POLICE CHIEF: It was also in the fall of 2005 that the chair of the English department, Dr. Lucinda Roy, informally shared her concerns regarding Cho and his course writing assignments. No official report was filed.

These course assignments were for creative -- a creative writing course, and the students were encouraged to be imaginative and artistic. The writings did not express any threatening intentions or allude to any criminal activity. No criminal violation had taken place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: We're getting lots of answers but at the same time, a lot of other questions, too. Brianna Keilar, thank you so much from the Virginia Tech campus.

LEMON: And from the shooter, now to the victims. Two days after the tragedy, five more victims' names have been released.

Matt Gwaltney was a second year grad student from Chester, Virginia. He was studying civil and environmental engineering but loved to squeeze in some basketball and softball in his free time.

Freshman Rachael Hill was an only child, interested in biology. She was a high school volleyball star and an accomplished piano player. Friends and school officials say she was deeply religious.

Jarrett Lane was a senior about to graduate. The civil engineering major was a high school valedictorian and a four-sport athlete back in Narrows, Virginia. He turned 22 last month.

Henry Lee's family immigrated from China when he was in elementary school. Unable to speak English when he arrived here, Henry became a citizen in 1999. He was a freshman studying computer engineering.

Michael Pohle of Flemington, New Jersey, liked to play lacrosse. He was majoring in biological sciences and worked as a bartender in a town to earn some extra money.

Walid Shaalan, a civil engineering graduate student from Egypt.

WHITFIELD: Liviu Librescu, well, he spent the last few minutes of his life barricading a classroom door, enabling students to jump out a window to safety. As a child, the 76-year-old professor survived the Holocaust. And he will be buried in Israel.

His funeral is scheduled to start in just about an hour from now in Brooklyn, New York. Our Allan Chernoff is standing by, and we'll have a report on how Liviu Librescu is being remembered in our next hour.

LEMON: Well, some of the wounded students are expected to be released from the hospital soon. And today they got a visit from Virginia Governor Tim Kaine.

CNN's John Zarrella joins us now from the hospital with more on that -- John.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, that's exactly right. The governor came here this morning. He spent about 30 to 45 minutes meeting with the families of the shooting victims and with all eight of the victims here. There are four men -- four young men and four young women here.

And when he came out, the governor talked about just how amazed he was at the spirit that they exhibited.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. TIM KAINE (D), VIRGINIA: The students are generally doing pretty well. Most are sitting up in bed smiling. And a couple of them had walked for the first time today.

Their parents and family have come -- these are students from Virginia, but also from -- you know, a number from Pennsylvania and Maryland who are here. Families have come a long way. But they're just very, very thankful that their children are alive and are recovering.

You know, some interesting stories: a young lady who really anxious to get out, because she's the maid of honor in her sister's wedding on Saturday. A young man who was prominently featured in some of the early coverage in photos of a young guy who was shot in the femoral artery, knew enough from being an Eagle Scout to put his finger in the artery and then tie it off with electrical tape. And doctors say that probably saved his life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZARRELLA: Now none of the eight are expected to be released today or probably not tomorrow either. Five are in the intensive care unit. Three of them are in the orthopedic unit. But all eight of them are listed in stable condition.

There is also one other patient over at the sister hospital to this one, and that patient is also listed in stable condition. And, Don, they're improving day-by-day, which is very, very good news -- Don.

LEMON: Yes. And you know what? And we wish them well, John.

But a lot of folks are -- of course, have questions about this. Why did it happen? How could this happen? I know the governor was there today, and I understood that he spoke about a review board. What did he have to say about that?

ZARRELLA: That's exactly right. The governor said that there was a little bit of misinformation that was coming out, that he was the impetus behind this review board.

But he said, actually, Virginia Tech officials, the president of Virginia Tech, came to him and they discussed it.

And they said, "We're one step ahead of you, Governor. We want to go ahead and get in place this independent review board that will look at, among other things, but in particularly, that gap between the first two shootings at West A.J. and that two-hour gap until the next shootings at Norris Hall. And what happened, what transpired, what the authorities were doing, what the campus police were doing, what the local police here were doing and how that response was all handled."

And he said, of course, we all have the benefit of hindsight, looking back. But they want to get down to the nuts and bolts and see how all that was handled and answer some of the questions that he hoped would bring a little bit of peace and closure, particularly to the families who lost their loved ones on Monday -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, and John, with the magnitude of what happened here, I'm sure that everyone will be pushing them for some answers. Thank you so much for your report.

WHITFIELD: At the medical examiners, they have been trying to confirm the identities of the last of the shooting victims. CNN's Deborah Feyerick joins us like with more.

And Deborah, explain why it has been so complicated?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it has been complicated, and it has been taking so -- a lot longer than some of the families want it to take. They have not yet been able to see their children or their loved ones. But the medical examiner is really trying to be as thorough as possible in all of this. They don't want to make a mistake and misidentify someone.

We are told by someone in the office that they were given the name of a person. It turns out, though, that that name had no connection to anybody at the morgue.

Now, so far two bodies have been released. The names of five people have been officially announced. But, however, the medical examiner has been making so much project -- progress that they do believe that a lot more names are going to come out, perhaps as early as today.

They are using fingerprints. They are using dental records. But the families have not been able to get in and visually identify those members who were killed.

The families really here at an inn on campus, and they are frustrated because they want some information. They're so close, and yet because they haven't been able to see these poor victims, they just feel that the loose ends have very much not been tied up.

Now, as far as the reason it's taking so long -- well, a couple of reasons. First of all, they don't want to make a mistake. But also this is part of the criminal investigation, so the medical examiner has to determine exactly how they died. And they want to make sure that they collect what evidence needs to be collected, specifically, bullets.

Back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Lots of complications. Thanks so much, Deborah Feyerick.

LEMON: Bombs and death are the sad facts of daily life in Baghdad these days. But today's violence is particularly disturbing. Several bombs, six in all, detonated in and around the city. The number of dead and wounded soaring past 400.

CNN's Arwa Damon joins us live in Baghdad.

Arwa, hard to believe, 400.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, that's right. And what we have been seeing since these attacks began to take place is this ever increasing death toll. Right now, over 170 Iraqis have been killed in violence in the capital alone.

The deadliest of those attacks coming at a marketplace, the Sadriya marketplace. In that attack alone, a single bomb, one explosion, killed over 120 Iraqis. So you can just imagine the magnitude of this explosion, the violence that these Iraqis have to deal with on this day.

Now this is a marketplace that is fairly sprawling in the heart of the capital, predominantly Shia. It is crisscrossing alleyways and streets where you can find just about anything from electronics to produce to clothing.

And at the time of the attack, which was at about 4 p.m. local time, it was fairly crowded. And it was, in fact, just recovering from another equally devastating attack that took place back there in early February when a truck bomb exploded in the marketplace and killed over 130 Iraqis.

And just outside of Sadr City, a car bomb exploded at an Iraqi army checkpoint. And this was one of the checkpoints that was set up as part of the current Baghdad security plan, meant to search vehicles entering and exiting Sadr City.

And Sadr City is the sprawling Shia slum in the northeastern part of the capital, home to some two million Iraqis.

And now both these locations where the more devastating attacks took place today are known strongholds of the Mehdi militia, and that is the militia that is loyal to radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, which had largely agreed to lay down its weapons, to give the new Baghdad security plan a chance. But many Iraqis right now are saying what kind of security plan is this -- Don.

LEMON: All right. CNN's Arwa Damon in Baghdad. Thank you so much for that.

WHITFIELD: Murderous impulses, some of us can have them. But police say Cho Seung-Hui acted on his. Straight ahead in the NEWSROOM, a college psychologist has more on diagnosing truly dangerous minds.

LEMON: And will the Virginia Tech killings bring stricter restrictions on firearms? Well, don't bet on it. Up next in the NEWSROOM, the gun debate and American politics.

WHITFIELD: And the Supreme Court hands down an historic ruling, and conservatives claim a long-awaited victory. We'll analyze the case straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It is about 15 minutes after the hour. Here's a look at some of the other stories we're working on this hour in the CNN NEWSROOM.

There has been a wave of insurgent bombing today in Baghdad. At least 170 people have been killed and 230 hurt.

Here in the U.S., the Supreme Court has upheld a federal ban on a type of late-term abortion. The 5-4 decision marks the first time the court has heard a major abortion case in six years. CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin explains the significance of the decision a little bit later on in the NEWSROOM.

And in Tennessee, the minister's wife accused of killing her husband testified today that she doesn't remember picking up a shotgun or pointing it at him. She also said she did not pull the trigger, but she heard a boom when the gun was fired. We'll listen to some of Winkler's testimony a little bit later on in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: Now back to the Virginia Tech massacre. His roommates, his classmates, his teachers, all of them knew gunman Cho Seung-Hui. They knew he was troubled. None of them imagined he could be able of committing a massacre. But one roommate told CNN about a history of disturbing behavior.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDY, FORMER ROOMMATE OF SHOOTER: One of our friends, he started bothering her, and another was down the hall.

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And what happened in those cases?

ANDY: The one down the hall, I got the girl's screen name and kind of told her. I IM'd her and told her this guy, you know, he's messing around with you. Here's his name. And you should try to ignore him and just stay away from him.

And then the other time, the cops responded again, and Seung came upset about that. And he had told me that he might as well kill himself. And so I told the cops that, and they took him away to the counseling center for a night or two.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, so how do you know if a troubled student will become a danger to others? We're joined now by Gregory Eells. He is a director of Cornell University student counseling.

Clearly, clearly, a troubled young man here.

GREGORY EELLS, DIRECTOR, CORNELL UNIVERSITY COUNSELING: Yes.

LEMON: The question is, Gregory, how do you know? Because I always say this. There's a fine line, really, between brilliant and sort of odd or loony, as people say. So how do you really know?

EELLS: Well, I mean, I think the quick answer is you don't really know. One of the hardest parts about this whole situation is you can't predict human behavior. I mean, you look at the research in forensic psychology, it's just not possible.

What you can do is you can reduce the risk. These things are not preventable, but you can do things to reduce the risk.

I mean, one of the things that you can do is do your best to try to connect students like this to the counseling service, trying to find ways to get them connected.

But even that's not a guarantee. We know that by connecting someone to a mental health professional, it does reduce the risk of things like suicide. Violent instances like this are so rare we don't really have good data on that. But I think if you do connect...

LEMON: And you...

EELLS: Go ahead.

LEMON: And you said that there are signs. There are signs like you become isolated.

EELLS: True.

LEMON: You become depressed. You cut yourself off from other people. And clearly, he was doing all of that.

I guess, the question now is if there -- if someone is watching this and they may have a roommate or know a person like this, what do you then do in that situation? Because clearly they're an adult. And unless a crime is committed, how much can you really do?

EELLS: Well, I think one of the things you can do as a roommate, as a student, as a faculty member or a staff member, you can take these things very seriously. You can take the time to talk to this person that you're concerned about. Share your concerns, talk to them about ways that they can connect and get help.

Some of the things we try to do at Cornell is we try to talk to faculty and staff about the resources at our counseling service, ways to get connected. We also have psychologists that are available to respond to these situations out in the community that don't see -- that don't see clients in traditional therapy but respond to concerned students, faculty, advising staff. It's called a community consultation and intervention program.

So I think some of those kind of ways of figuring out ways to lower barriers to seeking care and seeking help, are steps in the right direction. But none of them are 100 percent effective in terms of prevention.

LEMON: Let's talk about Cho Seung-Hui's record here or past. According to his roommates, he exhibited -- exhibited this behavior, and then he apparently, according to them, stalked this young lady.

And then he went to a mental facility -- not sure if he checked himself in -- back in 2005. In fact, at a press conference just a couple of hours ago, Virginia Tech police talked about that. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLINCHUM: It was also in the fall of 2005 that the chair of the English department, Dr. Lucinda Roy, informally shared her concerns regarding Cho and his course writing assignments. No official report was filed.

These course assignments were for creative -- a creative writing course, and the students were encouraged to be imaginative and artistic. The writings do not express any threatening intentions or allude to any criminal activity. No criminal violation had taken place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK, so no criminal violation, they say, had taken place. And just because someone -- I see we're having a problem with your signal there so -- hopefully, you won't drop out.

So if someone is -- is doing this -- and just because you write dark poems or you have dark writings doesn't necessarily mean that you're a student who will necessarily go on a rampage?

EELLS: Exactly. I mean, it's the research concept of a false positive. I mean, these things -- clearly, when something like this happens, you can always find a profile. There is a profile.

But there are many, many, many false positives where people who have these similar kinds of social isolation, sometimes odd behavior, sometimes dark writings don't go on to do something like this. So it's not particularly predictive. Now...

LEMON: Is there -- are your hands -- are your hands tied, pretty much? Because these children, even though they're in school, they're 21. They're adults. There are privacy issues.

EELLS: Exactly.

LEMON: You as a university counselor, are your hands tied when it comes to dealing with people who may do things like this?

EELLS: I wouldn't say our hands are tied. I would say that we have to operate within the parameters of mental health law.

And one of the things that we do and our counselors do every day is assess level of risk. I mean, as a mental health professional, you have to ask questions about suicidal ideation and intent, self-injury, an kinds of threats of violence against other people, ask about social isolation.

But most of the time you get a sense of a secure plan. And you can't do anything unless there's imminent risk that's somewhat foreseeable to take away someone's civil rights.

I mean, you can have them hospitalized if you, as a mental health professional, feel that that risk is there. But other than that, I mean, a lot of the things that have been said about this young man are applicable to hundreds of thousands of college students, in terms of dark writings or violent writings, and even problematic behavior, even sometimes stalking behavior. That's more common than you would like to believe.

LEMON: Yes. It's really a tough issue. I wish there was one single thing that you could point to that would fix all of it. But unfortunately, can't.

Thank you so much, Gregory Eells.

EELLS: Exactly.

LEMON: Director of Cornell University student counseling. Thank you.

EELLS: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: So Don, here's a question. Will the Virginia Tech killings bring more harsh restrictions on firearms? Don't bet on it. Up next in the NEWSROOM, the gun debate and American politics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

The right to bear arms, it was a loaded topic even before Monday's massacre at Virginia Tech. Even now, it's too hot for some politicians to handle. Our Bill Schneider will join us on that.

You are in the NEWSROOM.

Some people call it CrackBerry because of how addictive the device is. But millions of people were not able to get their fix today.

Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange. Tell us more about the BlackBerry breakdown. Are you hooked?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think I've broken free of the habit. But my hands are shaking. I have to check.

In any case, Fred, BlackBerry service, as many of us know firsthand, was knocked out last night. Research in Motion, the company that makes the e-mail device, says the interruption affected users throughout North America, and other reports indicate outages all over the world, including Hong Kong and London.

E-mail delivery was delayed or intermittent. Some people got bundles of backup e-mails. And others had no access at all. Phone service, however, on the handset, not affected.

The outage is raising questions about whether the company's network can support strong subscriber growth. In just the last quarter, Research in Motion added more than one million new BlackBerry customers, and there are eight million BlackBerry users worldwide, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Boy, a whole lot of folks who are hooked.

LISOVICZ: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Alright, Susan, thanks so much.

LISOVICZ: You're welcome. WHITFIELD: Alright, going to focus attention on a big Supreme Court decision now. A critical abortion case -- the United States Supreme Court hands down in a historic ruling a short time ago, conservatives claiming a long awaited victory. We will analyze that case, later on in the NEWSROOM.

But, first, will the Virginia Tech killings bring more harsh restrictions on firearms? Some say no. Up next in the NEWSROOM, the gun debate and American politics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: A meeting today for pro-gun control mayors was planned long before the shooting but it was certainly timely. Led by New York mayor Michael Bloomburg and Boston's Tom Menino. The Mayors Against Illegal Guns group met in Jersey City. They met there to announce a new TV ad calling for an appeal of the controversial amendment. The measure restricts cities and police from assessing ATF trace data on guns used in crimes. Now separately on the floor of the house, an impassioned plea for a change in gun law from Virginia Congressman Jim Moran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM MORAN, (D) VIRGINIA: The proliferation of handguns, the kinds of guns that were used in these tragic incidents. That has to be brought under control. And it is we, the people's representatives, who have to stand up and do something about this. So that it doesn't have to occur again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So will this tragedy actually spark any changes in gun control laws? Let's see what our Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider has to say about this. Bill, it's certainly timely. You have to say that. Will it gain political traction?

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: I wouldn't count on it. A lot of anger right now. But in recent years, the gun control issue has been an issue that politicians seem to prefer to stay away from. The last significant gun control measures to pass Congress were back in 1993. The Brady Bill in 1994 which was the assault weapons ban. And then what happened?

Democrats lost control of Congress for the entire next 12 years. Democrats then began to shy away from the issue. Al Gore didn't talk about it too much in the 2000 campaign. John Kerry went hunting and proclaimed his support for the second amendment that the National Rifle Association nevertheless ran an ad accusing Kerry, like Gore, of running away from his record.

LEMON: This is an issue, clearly, no matter what side you're on, very opinionated here. It's often a fiery debate. Other politicians, as you know, have tried to push this in the past. So why has it not gotten anywhere? The power of the gun lobby or public opinion or a combination? SCHNIEDER: Well, public opinion has been supportive of gun control. In fact, until this year, a majority of Americans persistently supported stricter gun laws. But take a look at the yellow line, the Gallup Poll, the number that supports stricter gun laws has gradually been going down since 1990. This year it reached the low point of 49 percent, just shy of a majority. That appears to be connected to the blue line you see there which is the violent crime rate. As the violent crime rate in the country has gone down since 1994, support for the stricter gun laws has also declined.

Although it's still a very large of Americans, just about half of Americans want gun laws to be made stricter.

LEMON: You know, when you see that graphic there and shows that violent crime is down, Bill, and you can see what just happened in Virginia, you sort of scratch your head a little bit. Really, I go back to the first question, you don't think all of this, no traction with the gun control debate?

SCHNEIDER: Well, I think it's unlikely. Because politicians know one thing, even if most Americans, even most of their constituents favor new gun laws, they're not likely to vote the issue once their anger subsides after an incident like this. The gun lobby always votes the issue. So they know, if the gun lobby is going to vote against them, if they support the new gun law and supporters of gun control. It's not the main issue that determines their vote, then they're likely to lose votes if they support a new gun law even if most voters support it. In public opinion, on an issue like this, it's not just numbers that matter, it's also intensity. Intensity has usually been on the side of gun owners.

LEMON: Bill, this is a serious subject. I always learn something from you when I have you on. Thank you so much.

SCHNIEDER: Sure.

WHITFIELD: Gunman Cho Seung-Hui will forever be known for his horrific actions. But before Monday's rampage, it was his words and demeanor that drew attention. "American Morning's" John Roberts talked with the English Department Head, Lucinda Roy, who tutored Cho one-on-one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUCINDA ROY, VA TECH PROFESSOR: I really felt very strongly that he was suicidal. That he was so depressed. He had a negativity about him that it was really like talking to a hole sometimes, as though the person wasn't really there. And there was such an absence in the room when he entered that everything emptied out and just seemed very dark. And so there were times when I thought he could probably do harm to himself because he was so depressed. Of course, we never imagined necessarily these kinds of things. The irony for me is I just come back from Sierra Leone not long ago and I'd gone there to see if my students from there had survived. I found some had not and some had. And I came back here to a safe space to what the students were safe. JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: What you thought was a safe space. I read your op-ed in the "New York Times" today. You said when you heard 20 dead and you said the reporter must have been completely wrong.

ROY: I think everyone felt that. You see a campus that is reeling in many ways from the horror of this. But there's a strength here.

ROBERTS: Did anyone drop a ball with Cho Seung-Hui? Should there have been more intervention earlier on? Could this have been prevented?

ROY: I don't know if it could have been prevented. Nobody will ever know that. I know I'll think about myself and wonder, could I have done more and I'm sure that everyone on this campus is thinking about that right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Professor Roy arranged to teach Cho one-on-one after one of his professors demanded he be removed from her class.

LEMON: A critical abortion case -- the United States Supreme Court hands down an historic ruling that happened just a short time ago. Conservatives claiming a long-awaited victory. We'll analyze the case straight ahead right here on inn the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. Supreme Court today handed a major victory to abortion rights opponents. By a 5-4 vote, the court upheld a 2003 federal law that bans the procedure critics call partial-birth abortion. For more on what could be a landmark decision, let's bring in our senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin out of New York.

Good to see you.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: What could be read into the upholding of this law?

WHITFIELD: So what could be read into the upholding of this law?

TOOBIN: This is really a hugely significant decision, Fredricka. This is the first time that the Supreme Court has ever considered a law that bans a particular kind of procedure, particular kind of abortion, in all 50 states, and approved the ban. Almost the same law came before the justices in 2000 when Justice O'Connor was on the court and the justices said this is unconstitutional. It violates a woman's right to choose. Alito is in, O'Connor is out, same issue, 5- 4, upholding the ban on abortion. It just shows George Bush's appointments to the Supreme Court have moved the court in a more conservative direction, and that's what the president wanted.

WHITFIELD: And the only female on the court right now said this clearly chips away at Row v. Wade. Ruth Bader Ginsburg saying this, quote -- "This ruling cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away a right declared again and again by this court and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives." How is it that this is being interpreted at potentially chipping away at Roe v. Wade?

TOOBIN: The reason she wrote that is that Justice Kennedy's opinion very much invites the states to restrict abortion in other ways, perhaps restrict abortion earlier in a pregnancy, restrict more different kinds of procedures. Justice Kennedy's opinion gave the impression that the court was going to let the states experiment with narrowing the right to abortion. And it also very much suggests that the 2008 presidential election is really going be about whether Roe v. Wade is still the law of the land, because there are four justices who support it, four justices who clearly oppose it. Justice Kennedy is in the middle. But if any of those abortion rights supporters on the court leave, like Justice John Paul Stevens, who's 87 years old, it looks like Roe v. Wade is really going to disappear.

WHITFIELD: So it really is a matter of one of those justices, like Justice Stevens, to leave that would potentially erode away the power of Roe v. Wade, not necessarily any other state laws that could potentially be enacted?

TOOBIN: Well, I think it's both. I mean, certainly the state laws will be able to cut back on when abortions are available. But in terms of banning abortion altogether, that would really take a shift in the membership of the court.

But look, that could really happen. I mean, you're talking about justices who've been there a long time. They're older. President Bush very openly is opposed to Roe v. Wade. Most of the Republican candidates who are running are opposed to Roe v. Wade. If they get an appointment to the court, it seems clear to me that that decision will be gone. That's why we have presidential elections.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jeffrey Toobin, thanks for the reminder. Appreciate it.

TOOBIN: Okay, see you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Don.

LEMON: In her own defense, Mary Winkler charged with killing her minister husband has been on the witness stand since this morning. Looking down much of the time, she described Matthew Winkler as smart and talented, but someone who grew increasingly angry, even violent over the years. She testified she would do whatever he said to try to keep the peace, even viewing pornography with him on his computer. The morning of March 22nd of last year, she says they awoke to their 1-year-old crying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARY WINKLER, ACCUSED OF KILLING HUSBAND: Walked in the room, and then I got up and went after him.

QUESTION: When you say went after him, what do you mean went after him?

WINKLER: I followed after him.

QUESTION: Did you catch up with him?

WINKLER: Yes, sir.

QUESTION: Where was he?

WINKLER: In Brianna's room.

QUESTION: What was he doing?

WINKLER: Suffocating her.

QUESTION: You mean pinching her nose?

WINKLER: Yes, sir.

QUESTION: What did you do?

WINKLER: I said, can I please have her?

QUESTION: Did you get her?

WINKLER: Yes, he just threw his arms up and walked out, and walked away from the crib.

QUESTION: Do you remember ever having a gun, holding a gun?

WINKLER: Yes, sir.

QUESTION: Do you remember ever pointing a gun?

WINKLER: No, sir.

QUESTION: Do you remember ever pointing a gun?

WINKLER: No, sir.

QUESTION: Do you remember ever pulling a trigger?

WINKLER: No, sir.

QUESTION: How do we know that, Mary?

WINKLER: I'm telling you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, the prosecutor has painted a far different picture of the victim, one of a good father and husband. That prosecutor is getting set to cross-examine Mary Winkler.

WHITFIELD: Strong soldiers, unshakeable faith. Reverend Franklin Graham offers both to a grieving community. He joins us live from the Virginia Tech campus, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Before Monday's massacre, some Virginia Tech classmates referred to Cho Seung-Hui as question mark -- Sara Stevens spoke with CNN's Kiran Chetry today on "AMERICAN MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA STEVENS, CLASSMATE OF GUNMAN: I had classes with him for three years, and I've never heard him speak, I've never heard what his voice sounds like. So when I say never heard him speak, I literally have never heard him speak.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: You say he referred to himself as "question mark?" What does that mean?

STEVENS: I mean, he was known throughout the English Department among students and even I hear past that, as "question mark." It was just on a roll sheet one day, he wrote down as his name, "question mark." And that's sort of where it began from. And you know, we're a small close knit department, so stuff like that, you know, becomes pretty infamous and well known.

CHETRY: So you say that when you had to read some of his plays, it was the most disturbing writings you had ever seen?

STEVENS: Well, yes, from a fellow classmate, absolutely. I mean, there were -- they were graphic and vulgar and the language was just so violent that it was worrying because, you know, I have -- we had no indication as to what his personality or mental state was like before this. He was quiet and perhaps troubled, but until now, I had no idea -- or until then I had no idea what it was like.

CHETRY: So what was done, Sara?

STEVENS: I mean, I -- we discussed the plays in class and clearly a lot of us were concerned or troubled. But up to this point, I know several students had talked to their teachers about it. I know it wasn't -- it didn't go unnoticed to say the least.

CHETRY: And is that why eventually the unusual move was made to have him be tutored by the chairman of the department?

STEVENS: I mean, possibly, sure. I know there was tons of outreach. I have been so honored to be part of a department that did so much for one of its students. I mean, I don't want people to think that this was something that nobody saw.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Sara Stevens says people should not allow Monday's killing spree to define Virginia Tech.

LEMON: Healing the emotional wounds from Monday's massacre. And for the students and faculty at Virginia Tech it is likely going to be a very long journey.

CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta files this report.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can feel that I can move on with my life now. And I don't want to be afraid to go back to class.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Classes are canceled at Virginia Tech for the rest of the week, but many students are still on campus, looking for support. Some of them talked to Red Cross psychologists who are standing by.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that there's tremendous value in being a presence that's willing to listen to their story. If they can understand that feeling this trauma over a period of weeks is a normal part of the recovery process.

GUPTA: Psychologists say the worst thing the students can do is avoid their pain. By facing the issue sooner rather than later, they're more likely to heal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Grief, or shock, or trauma has many faces. It can be sad, it can be giddy. It can be solemn or it can be kind of spaced out. And it's very important for us to tell the students that there's not one right way to grieve.

GUPTA (on camera): This is the candlelight vigil. It is so powerful and everyone tells us it's so important as well to share the pain and lean on each other. It's the first step in a very long healing process.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They need to be together. They need to come together. Probably mostly with one another because they have all been through this together.

GUPTA (voice-over): The emotional wounds will remain. But unified behind a common goal, the university will heal -- together.

STUDENTS (yelling): Let's go! Hokies! Let's go! Hokies!

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Blacksburg, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: You couldn't help it yesterday get a little emotional at the convocation when they were -- when everyone started chanting that fight song, you know.

WHITFIELD: Go hokies.

LEMON: Yes, it was a very emotional moment. And they're going to need some emotional healing as well as spiritual healing, right.

WHITFIELD: They are, and in fact, there are so many different ways, as we saw in Dr. Sanjay Gupta's piece, different ways of exhibiting the kind of emotional assistance and grieving that everyone is going through. It also means there are lots of different ways of approaching it. And that's why we've got a few different folks coming up in the next couple of hours. Their perspectives, one including Evangelist Franklin Graham to help convey what his definition is of healing and how he's trying to reach out to students directly there on the Virginia Tech campus.

LEMON: 3:00 p.m. hour, Eastern, Deepak Chopra as well. And we look forward to that. CNN NEWSROOM continues right after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield. He survived the Holocaust only to give his life to save his students.

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