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Teen Imprisoned on Sex Charges Released; Court Rules in Favor of Detainee; Senate May Hold No Confidence Vote on Alberto Gonzales; NASA Astronauts Prepare for Space Walk to Work on Solar Arrays; Questions Arise About Handling of Guantanamo Prisoners

Aired June 11, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
B.J. BERNSTEIN, ATTORNEY FOR GENARLOW WILSON: We win!

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, he's out?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Well, you can't scream like that in the courtroom. Lucky for these two the judge faxed his ruling that Genarlow Wilson be freed.

T.J. HOLMES, CO-HOST: Yes, Wilson was sentenced to ten years in prison for one act of teen sex. Today's ruling says that's nine years too many.

Hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. Don Lemon on assignment.

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNSTEIN: We win!

SANCHEZ: Yes? He's out?

Read us what it says. Can you read it to us?

BERNSTEIN: A write of habeas corpus is granted. The sentence is void.

SANCHEZ: The sentence is void. That means he's cleared. That means he's cleared.

BERNSTEIN: Amen! An order of release! Order of release!

SANCHEZ: B.J., explain to us what this means.

BERNSTEIN: The order, he's released. He's released.

SANCHEZ: So the judge is saying...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: A long-awaited, hard-fought celebration for Genarlow Wilson's attorney and mother sentence. A judge here in Georgia rules the 21-year-old should be let out of prison, declaring that his punishment, ten years for consensual teenage sex, does not fit the crime. The judge voided the sentence and gave Wilson 12 months behind bars, which he's already served twice over.

No immediate response from prosecutors, who could appeal today's ruling.

Let's bring in CNN's Rick Sanchez.

Rick, you were right there with Wilson's mother and attorney when the judge's order came across the fax.

SANCHEZ: Unbelievable, Kyra. Just the anxiety, the emotion, the anticipation. We're sitting in the back waiting for these -- this ruling from this judge to come forward.

And B.J. Bernstein, Genarlow Wilson's attorney, says oh my goodness, it's about 13 or 15 pages. So we have to get to the final page to be able to find out exactly what it is that the judge is trying to say. So we start reading and reading.

But essentially the judge is just going over some of the previous motions that have been filed and some of the previous information. Finally, we get to page 11, where the judges essentially says the following: "Petitioner's previous sentence is declared void. Petitioner's writ of habeas corpus is granted." The most important words that these two women, to the right of me, have heard in a long time. They started jumping up and down and screaming.

And now I get a chance to talk to Juanessa Bennett. This is Genarlow's mother. Here's what she had to say just moments after they received this fax, this ruling from the judge. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BERNSTEIN: We win!

SANCHEZ: Yes? He's out?

BERNSTEIN: Yes!

SANCHEZ: Read us what it says. Can you read it to us?

BERNSTEIN: The writ of habeas corpus is granted. The sentence is void.

SANCHEZ: The sentence is void. That means he's cleared. That means he's cleared.

BERNSTEIN: An order of release! An order of release!

SANCHEZ: B.J. -- B.J., explain to us what this means. BERNSTEIN: Where -- the order. He's released. He's released.

SANCHEZ: So the judge is saying that he agrees on habeas corpus grounds that he should be released.

BERNSTEIN: He's released. He's released.

SANCHEZ: Because essentially he's being what, unconstitutionally?

BERNSTEIN: It's unconstitutional.

SANCHEZ: This is the order -- this is the order from Judge Thomas Wilson.

JUANESSA BENNETT, GENARLOW WILSON'S MOTHER: Thomas Wilson.

SANCHEZ: How do you feel as his mother? How long has -- how long has this been for you?

BENNETT: In January it was three years, 3 1/2 years.

SANCHEZ: There must be just incredible relief for you right now. Do you feel -- explain to us in the best words that you can why you feel what this judge has done is the right thing for your son.

BENNETT: Because it is the right thing.

SANCHEZ: Why?

BENNETT: Because he didn't deserve to have the sexual predator status on top of him.

SANCHEZ: Your son is not a sexual predator?

BENNETT: No.

SANCHEZ: Your son, you believe, did not deserve to go to prison for ten years?

BENNETT: No.

SANCHEZ: Why did this make him go through this?

BENNETT: I don't even know.

SANCHEZ: What do you say to Judge Thomas Wilson, who has made this decision?

BENNETT: He's got a lot of heart, and God bless him.

SANCHEZ: You're grateful?

BENNETT: I am.

SANCHEZ: What are you going to say to your son when you finally see him?

BENNETT: I don't even know right now.

BERNSTEIN: Let's go tell him.

SANCHEZ: How happy are you?

BENNETT: More than happy.

BERNSTEIN: Come on.

SANCHEZ: Congratulations.

BENNETT: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Congratulations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: It's interesting, but you look at the nuance of the law, and it's been difficult for the Georgia legislature. It's been difficult for other courts to try and somehow remedy this case, but maybe these words capture the spirit of what a judge is able to do and, in fact, has done in this case. I'll read to you.

This is what Judge Wilson writes in his ruling: "If this court" -- Kyra -- "or any court cannot recognize the injustice of what has occurred here, then our court system has lost sight of the goal our judicial system has always strived to accomplish." Powerful words. He goes on to say justice being served in a fair and equal manner.

Let's go to the two ladies now who are sitting there watching this happen. Mom, first to you, Juanessa Bennett. You've waited so long. I know I talked to you just as this happened. Has this had a chance to sink in yet?

BENNETT: Yes.

SANCHEZ: And what are your thoughts now?

BENNETT: Thank God.

BERNSTEIN: She wants her baby home.

SANCHEZ: When you finally are able to see him, which may happen today -- it may happen tomorrow, we still don't know -- and you're able to walk out of that prison with your son, who's been held there with hardened criminals, rapists, murders -- your son is not that -- what's it going to be like for you?

BENNETT: I mean, it's like a dream come true. It's definitely a dream come true.

SANCHEZ: What are you going to say to him?

BENNETT: Congratulations. Probably fuss over him a little bit. SANCHEZ: Yes, well, what he did wasn't smart, but it wasn't the act of hardened criminal.

BENNETT: Right.

SANCHEZ: And that's been the argument all along. And it seems now that a judge is saying that very same thing.

BENNETT: Everybody is.

SANCHEZ: Congratulations to you.

BENNETT: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: B.J. Bernstein, what a fight you've put up for this.

BERNSTEIN: It's been a long 28 months. And if you had told me to begin with it would take this long, I would have said no way.

SANCHEZ: Do you think this is it? Or do you expect to get some resistance from the attorney general?

BERNSTEIN: I just -- I really hope the attorney general please just does not appeal, that enough already. I think that the legislature -- it's what the judge wrote in the order. The legislature said that this was only supposed to be a misdemeanor with no sex offender treatment.

SANCHEZ: And it is for any other person who does this yesterday or tomorrow.

BERNSTEIN: Exactly, because of Genarlow Wilson. I mean, that's the thing.

SANCHEZ: And that's your argument.

BERNSTEIN: Exactly, exactly. And I just really ask -- you'll never see him again, you know. He's going to go to college. He's going to, you know -- he's a great student. He's a good kid. He made stupid mistakes, and I've got to tell you, on any Friday and Saturday night, their kids do these same things.

SANCHEZ: Let me get you on the record. Have you heard from the attorney general yet?

BERNSTEIN: I have not.

SANCHEZ: Do you expect to hear from him?

BERNSTEIN: I don't know. I'm just going to take it one step at a time. Right now we're trying to get him out of jail. I'm talking to the prison and trying to see when we can get him out.

SANCHEZ: What do you expect? What is usually the case in situations like this? The judge is essentially saying he should be free. BERNSTEIN: Well, there are procedures they have to go to. So hopefully sometime today, at the latest tomorrow. But I really...

SANCHEZ: Procedures? Whose procedures? The prison's procedures?

BERNSTEIN: Regular prison procedures. You have to, you know, have the order. Hopefully, they have a certified copy of the order. They've got to make sure there's no other holds on him. And...

SANCHEZ: So it could be today. It could be tomorrow.

BERNSTEIN: Hopefully today. That will make today extra special. I mean, not a celebration until I get him out.

SANCHEZ: Congratulations once again.

BERNSTEIN: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: You, too, Mom. Take care.

Well, there you have it, Kyra. Really hard to put into words what has -- what we have witnessed here today. It's really been a struggle for a lot of people, not just the people you see here in this room. But Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, former president Jimmy Carter, the editorial board of "the New York Times", conservative talk show hosts, liberal talk show hosts. The pressures really come from all directions. It appears today that it's paid off. We'll wait and see.

Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: Rick Sanchez, appreciate it.

HOLMES: He's a suspected terrorist, and he's labeled an enemy combatant. But he could soon be a free man.

An appeals aappPapppeals court says the Bush administration cannot hold Ali al-Marri indefinitely without charging him. The ruling applies to one man, but it's a blow to the administration's anti-terror strategies.

We're going to bring in now CNN homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve.

And Jeanne, please wrap this all up for us.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, T.J., as you say, this is a major setback for the Bush administration. A federal appeals court panel in Richmond, Virginia, ruled that a non-U.S. citizen held as an enemy combatant in the U.S. is entitled to a court hearing.

The man in question, Ali al-Marri, is a citizen of Qatar, accused of being a sleeper agent for al Qaeda. He was arrested in 2001 and has been held in solitary confinement since 2003 at a military brig in South Carolina. In its ruling the appeals court panel said the government cannot subject al-Marri to indefinite military detention, for in the United States the military cannot seize and imprison civilians, let alone imprison them indefinitely.

It went on to say, "We recognize the understandable instincts of those who wish to treat domestic terrorists as combatants in the global war on terror. However, this does not permit the government to transform a civilian into an enemy combatant subject to indefinite military detention."

The ruling was 2-1. In his dissent, Judge Henry Hudson argued that, although al-Marri was not personally engaged in armed conflict with U.S. forces, he is the type of stealth warrior used by al Qaeda to perpetuate terrorist acts against the United States -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. We hear from the court there. We're hearing from the Justice Department yet?

MESERVE: No reaction from the Justice Department at this point in time.

The Bush administration has argued that it has the power to detain suspects in military custody, on U.S. soil, as part of the president's commander in chief authority.

The Justice Department can appeal. And by the way, the ruling does not mean that al-Marri can go free -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Jeanne Meserve with the update on this big story for us. Jeanne, thank you so much.

`MESERVE: You bet.

PHILLIPS: He's fielded questions. He's fought criticism. And now Alberto Gonzales faces a test of whether the sentence -- the Senate, rather, has confidence in him.

Democrats are pushing a no-confidence resolution against the embattled attorney general, and the White House says it's a waste of time.

But the Democrats stay it's time to put themselves and Republicans on record. We are waiting for a vote in just a matter of hours.

Our Brianna Keilar is in Washington, following it all -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Kyra, this is not the actual no-confidence vote. It's a vote to proceed with the motion to vote. This is basically a test vote to see how senators are lining up on this issue. Some parliamentary procedure there to confuse you. But the Senate would have to get 60 votes today before they have the actual no confidence vote.

New York Democrat Chuck Schumer is the one sponsoring this bill. He held a press conference this weekend. He accused President Bush of putting his friendship with Gonzales above the rule of law. And he also called the Justice Department the new FEMA.

Now, some Republicans, of course, do want to see Gonzales go, but that doesn't mean they'll be lining up along with Democrats. This is expected to be a partisan vote. Several Republican senators and aides tell CNN they feel this resolution by Schumer is politically motivated and they aren't going to play along, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So we're not hearing Republicans really come out in support of Gonzales, are we?

KEILAR: No, that's right. Don't expect them, obviously, to side with Democrats. But don't expect them to fully side with President Bush. Republicans are calling this resolution a waste of valuable time, pretty much saying what's the point if it's going to be nonbinding. But unlike President Bush, they aren't coming out with that support for Gonzales, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Brianna Keilar, thank you.

HOLMES: We do want to head back to our Rick Sanchez, just getting, of course, joyous reaction of that Genarlow Wilson case. The young man is going to be getting -- getting out of jail, according to a judge.

But, Rick, are you there? We've got some developing news over there. Might put a damper on some of the celebration today, sounds like.

SANCHEZ: Yes, we were just talking to B.J. Bernstein just a moment ago, and she was telling us she was waiting to hear from the attorney general's office. Moments ago, she informed us that she has gotten now some kind of written memo from the attorney general's office.

B.J. Bernstein is about to read it for the media. Here we go.

BERNSTEIN: The attorney general of the state of Georgia has just filed a notice of appeal of this opinion. That puts a stop to what's been happening, the joyous news this morning.

It is extremely, extremely disturbing that the attorney general would take this action now. I don't know what the message he's trying to send. I don't know who he's representing.

I would have hoped, and I have pled over and over the to please show the wisdom to realize that this is not the type of case that should be appealed, that this young man is not an adult sexual predator.

In essence, the attorney general is saying keep Genarlow Wilson in prison for ten years. And keep him on the sex offender registry, when it's just a misdemeanor.

SANCHEZ: On what grounds, B.J.? What is he saying? BERNSTEIN: It just says notice of appeal. That's it. Just that he's appealing. The grounds will come later. But the truth is this is wrong. This is just nothing right about this. There is nothing right about this.

I don't know who's pulling the strings here. I don't understand why smarter heads can't prevail, why people consistently have said keep this kid a convicted felon, ruin his life on the sex offender registry. And now the games are continuing.

SANCHEZ: David McDade is the prosecutor who originally filed this case. He, in your words, has been relentless all throughout your appeals. Have you had contact with him? Do you know if he has had contact with the attorney general's office?

BERNSTEIN: I have no idea right now. I haven't seen -- I haven't seen who or what is behind it.

I just know this, that this is a very, very sad day for our citizens, because the attorney general is the chief law enforcement officer of the state. It doesn't mean -- you know, in this day and age, we learned from the Duke rape case you just -- to automatically affirm the acts of your prosecutors mechanically isn't what we want from our attorney general.

What we want is you can be tough on crime. You can do the right thing by doing justice. It's what Thomas Wilson, the judge, said in this case about doing justice, not just mechanically going through the motions to support the district attorneys.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Whose call is it to let him out of jail?

SANCHEZ: There you have it. Essentially the attorney general of the state of Georgia is disagreeing with the ruling we heard here moments ago from Judge Wilson. And it appears that the fight will continue in the case of Genarlow Wilson.

Back to you guys.

HOLMES: All right. Some -- some tough news. And the highs and lows of emotion today for, I know, the attorney there and, of course, the family.

Rick, thank you so much. We'll be getting back to you.

PHILLIPS: And straight ahead, a walk in space. Astronauts begin their work outside the shuttle Atlantis next hour. Our Miles O'Brien explains the mission.

HOLMES: Also, U.S. forces take a huge hit under an Iraqi bridge. We're live from Baghdad while commanders are working on building bridges of a different kind.

PHILLIPS: Plus, parents of autistic children get a long-awaited day in court. How significant is their case?

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Two hundred and twenty miles above earth, two Atlantis astronauts are gearing up for a big workday. Next hour, they're due to begin installing a 35,000-pound segment on the International Space Station.

Back on the ground, NASA is deciding whether a peeled back piece of thermal blanket on the shuttle needs to be repaired. That may mean another space walk.

HOLMES: And CNN's space correspondent, Miles O'Brien, is keeping busy by keeping track of the astronauts' busy day.

Good afternoon to you, sir.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, T.J. Let's go live to space, shall we?

Take a look at one of the astronauts as they -- he's getting ready. As a matter of fact, they just switched shots. You're looking at the Destiny Laboratory right there. And I believe that is the station commander, Theodore Yuchitkin (ph), right there, floating around. As they get ready for this six-and-a-half hour space walk.

There you see inside the air lock, briefly, what's going on there. Somebody's playing around the switcher there in Houston.

In any case, astronauts Jim Riley and Daniel Levas will head right into this direction. This is -- you're looking at $366 million of your hard-earned tax money right there, the S3S4 truss. In it are some solar arrays, all collapsed up right now, that will unfurl to the length of more than 200 feet tip to tip.

Take a look at some pictures from earlier. Wait a minute. There's a live shot there. Take a look. That's taped shot. OK. That's Jim Riley as he was getting ready to go to space in his suit. He's -- spent the night in an air lock breathing pure oxygen to purge the nitrogen out of their system. Divers are familiar with all this, so they don't get the bends. Same idea out there.

Let me show you what's been going on outside in anticipation of this space walk. A lot of work with the robot arms. Both the shuttle and the space station. To move this truss segment, 36 thousand pounds of it, into place.

Levas (ph) and Riley will spend their time essentially removing all the shipping constraints, all the packing material, and attaching a bunch of electrical wires.

But there's one other thing they have to do. There is another solar array that will be in the way of this one. And they are going to have to spend some time retracting it.

Now last time, last year, when they tried to retract the similar solar ray, what happened was it got bunched up like a bad Venetian blind or trying to fold up a map you couldn't handle. And it caused the space walkers a lot of aggravation as they tried to get out there to try to get that thing to fold into place just right.

They managed to devise a special tool, wrapped it in insulating tape and managed to feed through the wire through all those little grommets there causing all the problem. Eventually they got it stowed.

But the space walker you see there, Bob Kurbean's (ph) glove. Take a look at what happened to it in the midst of all of this. It was torn, ever so slightly. There's a still picture of it. And you see the tear right there. That's a pretty scary thing. You don't want to have your space suit, your -- space walking suit leaking.

So they will be extra careful as they bring this in, and they will be watching it as it retracts. Not doing it without the astronauts nearby.

Now, the other issue that they're contending with is up here on the left-hand side in this bump right beside the tail, there's a tear in the blanket there. Got to remember, that that's a cool part of the shuttle as it come in. This is the hot side. That's the cool side.

Take a look at the tear. We'll tell you a little bit about that. It's about six inches by four inches. That's the six-inch side. And that's -- here we go. Let me get that right. There's six inches. That's four inches there.

And obviously this blanket is peeling away. So there are some concerns. First of all, how much heat would get in there as it is? Could it peel away even more when they return to earth? And as a result, will they have the astronauts go up and try to tuck that blanket back in somehow? And secure it. We're going to hear more about that later today as the day goes on.

Let me just take you back, though. They're not too concerned about this. Let's go back 26 years ago to the first space shuttle mission. In those days they didn't have those blankets, and after they arrived in space, they looked back at those same little bumps. They call them orbital maneuvering system, pods. And look what they saw. They saw 16 tiles that were missing on both sides of those same areas. And, of course, that particular mission came back to a happy landing. It is proof right there that at least in that case, the heat of re-entry wasn't in any way catastrophic -- T.J.

HOLMES: So they're not worried about it just yet. And they have plenty of time right now to try to fix it?

O'BRIEN: Yes. And, you know, I would not be surprised if they said, you know, let's try to tuck this thing in and glue it down somehow or secure it in some way so as it comes in, it doesn't get worse.

HOLMES: OK. All right. Well, Miles, we appreciate your walking us through that. As always, we've got a lot of work to do up there. Maybe repair some work as well. We'll be seeing you again. Thanks so much, Miles.

O'BRIEN: See you then.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, arming Sunni fighters in Iraq, sound strategy or risky maneuver? We'll ask retired a U.S. general to weigh in. Straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: He's a suspected terrorist, and he's labeled an enemy combatant, but he could soon be a free man.

Just a short time ago, an appeals court ruled the Bush administration cannot hold Ali al-Marri indefinitely without charging him. The ruling applies to one Arab immigrant, but it's a blow to the administration's anti-terror strategies.

Let's bring in our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin.

And Jeffrey, I think that what's going through everybody's mind is will every enemy combatant, whether it be at Gitmo or in Charleston where this man was being held, all of a sudden be let go because of this ruling?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely not. They will not be let go.

However, the administration's legal policy on the war on terror has been a wall-to-wall disaster, and this is yet another disaster. Kyra, what they have tried to do is create a separate legal system for these accused terrorists.

We have a criminal justice system, United States district courts. We have a system of court-martials. We have a system of treating prisoners of war. What the Bush administration did was try to create a separate category for the people in Guantanamo and the handful of people like al-Marri who were in the United States but charged as enemy combatants.

Time after time, the courts have said that no good, try again. Go back and do it right. And each time the administration has failed, and now they've failed again.

PHILLIPS: All right. So because of what we're seeing happen here with this case, is it possible that this separate legal system the Bush administration was trying to establish could just completely go away or be abolished? And each one of these enemy combatants all of a sudden will have to go through a regular type of trial, like you and I would go through? And then charges would have to be filed and you would have to have a jury? And is that possible?

TOOBIN: That's increasingly possible. This weekend you had Colin Powell who is hardly a dangerous radical, saying shut down Guantanamo. Try all these people or let them go. I think you're going to see more and more sentiment to that effect. Apparently, Secretary of Defense Gates, Secretary of State Rice have expressed similar sentiment.

The idea of a separate legal system is simply losing stamina. And there is the -- the increasing possibility that these people will either be charged or let go.

Certainly, when you're talking about the worst of the worst, people like Khalid Sheik Mohammad, who's now in Guantanamo, the alleged mastermind of 9/11, he's not going to be let go. But he may have to be charged in the regular legal system or in a court-martial or in some existing legal system, not this hybrid that the administration has set out.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: You mentioned like -- Sheik Mohammed. You can see -- all right, where the evidence lies there, what the charges would be. That's pretty obvious when you're thinking about 9/11. But all these other enemy combatants, how do you go about pressing charges against them? You have to have evidence. You have to have investigative work. I mean, where do you even begin?

TOOBIN: Some people think, you know, you should have evidence if you are going to keep somebody in jail. That's -- that's the idea. I mean, even in these hybrid systems, the enemy combatant system, they were going to have to present some evidence. And that's the -- that's what they're going to have to do. The difficulty...

PHILLIPS: But Jeffrey, you and I well know and we have all covered stories on this, that a lot of these guys have been thrown in there because of word of mouth. They have been associated to this person or that person and someone has given them intel here and there. And because of all these special laws that have been created they are in there. It is possible that none of these guys could be - or a lot of these guys could not be charged.

TOOBIN: Well, I don't think the -- certainly not -- none of will be charged. Certainly some of them will be charged. But a lot of these people, the administration has already cleared. They just can't find a country that will take them back. That's where the logistical problems here are so great. Suppose you are going to release some of these people. Where are they going to go? That's an issue that has to be addressed.

What about people who were subjected to what the administration delicately calls enhanced interrogation techniques, things like water boarding, how do you deal with that in the context of a legal system that ordinarily doesn't allow that kind of treatment of prisoners? That's something that is going to have to be struggled with. But it increasingly seems like the position of the current administration, which after all is only a year and a half from fading into history, a new administration, Democrat or Republican, may have a different approach and if it is up to people like Colin Powell, they are going to just go back to the old system of criminal law, court-martial, and that's it.

PHILLIPS: Jeffrey Toobin. We tried to make it simple, a very complex subject. Appreciate it. Thanks, Jeffrey.

TOOBIN: See you Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Hello everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

TJ HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: And I'm TJ Holmes sitting in today for Don Lemon. Thousands of families have their eyes on a Washington courtroom. They are watching the first test case in a persistent and painful debate.

PHILLIPS: Did common vaccinations cause their children to develop autism? We are going to bring you the latest here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

HOLMES: We will have more on that story coming up in just a moment. But first, gas prices. They are up nearly a dollar this year, but there may be some signs of relief. And Susan Lisovicz, so happy when you can bring us encouraging stories of relief. Tell us about some cheaper gas possibly on the way. Hello.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello TJ. It is like a cool breeze coming in the midst of a prolonged heat wave. This is relief. Gas prices shifting into reverse, not going to get too excited about it, not yet. We are not talking about a huge drop. In this case, it is seven cents. Prices sit at $3.11 per gallon for self-serve regular on average. They were as high as $3.18 when the May 18th Lundberg survey came out. The highest price in Chicago where folks are digging deep, the price there, $3.61 per gallon. Lowest price is $2.87 in Jackson, Mississippi. And there in Hotlanta TJ it is averaging out at.$3.02 a gallon , so sort of right in the middle.

HOLMES: I'm get being $2.95, $2.98 so I guess I'm doing all right. So seven cents, sure, not huge but still, that's a big deal to folks, anything. We will take it. Is this an actual trend? Is it going to keep happening or just a fluke?

LISOVICZ: Probably not. It is probably not a trend. That's why we appreciate that momentary relief from the cool breeze so to speak, so modest relief coming from a boost in foreign imports. The prices here are rising. It enticed producers from around the world to ship. But of course, one of the other reasons for the run -up problems at U.S. refineries. Those problems have not gone away. And then there's demand. This is supply demand business obviously. We're at the peak of summer driving season. I should say we are certainly well long into the summer driving season. Demand is still high. The price of gas up nearly a buck as you mentioned TJ since the beginning of the year. What's also up a dollar today, more than a dollar, today's oil prices. Gas is of course made from oil. So that's something to watch as well.

Stocks in the meantime, they are higher, too but not dramatically. We are starting to see a bit of a rally. That's good news given the three days of sharp declines we saw last week. No major economic reports or corporate news this session. Two big reports on inflation due out later this week and they could be a catalyst. Let's take a look at the big board there. The Dow is up 41 points. The Nasdaq is up 8 1/2, each about a third of a percent. Coming up, Blockbuster had an in-store model for renting movies. Then Netflix started movies by mail. In the next hour of NEWSROOM, I will tell you about Apple's idea about movie rentals. TJ and Kyra, I will throw it back to you on the small screen.

HOLMES: All right and thank you so much Susan. We will see you again soon.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, arming Sunni fighters in Iraq, sound strategy or risky maneuver? We're going to ask a retired U.S. general to weigh in straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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HOLMES: Massive piles of debris crashing down on U.S. soldiers. Location, south of Baghdad. The cause, a suicide bomber. We're going to head now to CNN's Hala Gorani. She's in the Iraqi capital for us. Hello to you Hala.

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello TJ. There was another suicide truck bomb today targeting another bridge this one north of Baghdad. Not clear if there were any casualties. This bridge is usually guarded by troops from the republic of Georgia. The one you mentioned happened south of Baghdad in (INAUDIBLE) . It is called the al Asarin (ph) bridge. A suicide bomber targeted either the patrol or the bridge itself. Now it took military engineers, bulldozers and heavy equipment to rescue those who survived and also tried to clear the area. I was flying over that area there with Major General Rick Lynch, who's the commanding general of the third infantry division and we had a good view of that bridge. The road is still closed. About a third of it is completely pancake down and collapsed. So as many attacks -- two attacks in as many days there, suicide truck bombings targeting some pretty crucial bridges and overpasses across Iraq. TJ.

HOLMES: And Hala, we know -- you told us about your -- just went over that. You certainly have been busy just came back from inbed. Tell us about that.

GORANI: It was interesting because we visited a patrol base in the so-called triangle of death. This is really the Sunni heartland in Iraq where the insurgency is very virulent and where for American troops, it is very, very difficult and dangerous to operate. Now, this patrol base is part of this overall surge, what the military officials call surge but troop increase strategy. In other words, increase the number of boots on the ground and spread them out a bit thinner. Put them in smaller outposts so they mingle within the local population and hope that the Iraqi security forces would be able to ally themselves to this U.S. military force in these very dangerous and fragile and volatile places so that the country ends up being pacified. Now this is a strategy that's only now according to many of the military officials we spoke to, going to start producing effects if it is indeed successful. The problem is finding these Iraqi security forces to cooperate with. This is what I asked Major General Lynch about the strategy.

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GORANI: We were here earlier. There is no Iraqi security force presence here. So how do you solve that problem?

MAJ. GEN. RICK LYNCH, U.S. ARMY: That is indeed the problem. The troop to task (ph) is the problem. So an area we are in right now, which in contend is indeed an enemy sanctuary here. That's why we are out here, to take this land and this area away from the enemy. We need to have a persistent presence. That persistent presence can't be coalition forces. It has to be Iraqi security forces.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: So there you have it. Commanding general there at the third infantry division. Well, just as an anecdotal story there regarding this patrol base, it was attacked last week by up to 40 insurgents and the men who occupied that house about 25 of them took eight -- suffered eight wounded soldiers. Back to you.

HOLMES: All right Hala Gorani for us in the Iraqi capital. Thank you so much.

PHILLIPS: You heard the saying the enemy of my enemy is my friend. U.S. commanders are putting it into action in Iraq. They are encouraging even arming Sunni insurgents who decided to take on al Qaeda. Even though some of those groups have fought American troops in the past, it's still happening. So do the benefits outweigh the obvious risks? Let's bring in our military analyst retired Brigadier General David Grange and General, you and I talked about this when I was in Baghdad and you were here and vice versa, about this strategy. General David Petraeus talking about Anbar province, how it was successful there. They gave power to the tribal sheiks. Tribal sheiks turned away from killing U.S. troops and started killing al Qaeda. No where was this idea four-plus years ago when this invasion first happened?

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, (RET), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: It may not have been that the conditions -- may not have been optimum to push some of stuff or they may just have missed the mark. This is a regular warfare. It is not black and white. It is very gray. And these type of collaborations, these alliances for convenience are actually very savvy and probably the way to go.

PHILLIPS: Major General Rick Lynch you heard Hala Gorani there mentioned that he has come out recently and talked about this in addition to Ovierno (ph) and Petraeus. Here is what he said today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LYNCH: There are tribal sheiks out there that say hey, just allow me to be the local security force. I don't care what you call me. You can call me a police - a provisional police unit. You can call me a security unit. You can call me whatever you want. Just give me the right training and equipment and I will secure my area. That's the direction we are moving out there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: That's the direction they are moving. It is obviously working. It worked in Anbar province. They want to continue to have this domino effect. But still General, how do you trust tribal sheiks whose were killing U.S. troops to all of a sudden take this about-face and start killing off al Qaeda? How do you trust them? What clicked?

GRANGE: Well, it is not 100 percent truth. You trust them to a certain degree. You -- if you -- if you arm them, you arm them with only certain weaponry. You had the serial numbers that you can trace these weapons. You don't give them weapons that like, for instance, surface-to-air missiles like we experienced if you recall in Afghanistan which later on caused us some problems. I'm sure in this case they are careful of what they provide. They are going to get weapons from somewhere whether we give it to them or not. And us giving them those weapons kind of makes the seal. It may be the deal maker. But anyway, you don't trust them 100 percent.

PHILLIPS: Does it contribute to an even bigger civil war if the U.S. starts arming Sunnis in addition to what they already have?

GRANGE: Well, it may, but again, it's weapon rich environment, not only in Iraq. You can get weapons around the world today so easy. That probably doesn't matter. If they are going to fight, they are going to get the weapons from somewhere.

PHILLIPS: Does it concern you at all that the same men that were killing U.S. troops will be armed by U.S. troops to start killing al Qaeda?

GRANGE: Well, it does to some degree. You know, we can't kill everybody. We can't kill everybody and every insurgent group in Iraq. So we're going to make some deals for convenience for our benefit and they may be short-lived. We may have to go back after some of those same groups later. But for right now I think that it is a window of opportunity that we have to take advantage of, exploit it for our benefit or this will never end for the United States of America.

PHILLIPS: Bottom line. Finally something is working, almost five years later. General David Petraeus (sic), thanks for your time.

HOLMES: Getting their day in court. Families of autistic children tried to make the case that routine vaccines caused their children's disorder. Up next in the NEWSROOM, more on the hearing and the controversy.

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HOLMES: Thousands of American families live with the heartbreak of autism and for years, many have alleged that routine vaccinations damaged their children's abilities to socialize and communicate. They are getting their day court. Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us now with details of a hearing happening in Washington. Are they going to get their say and get their day in court?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Actually nearly 5,000 families are getting their day in court. It is a huge group that's suing the Secretary of Health and Human Services or the Federal government. These families, you can see some of them arriving here for the beginning of this trial, say that routine vaccinations, the kind that all of our kids get, caused their child to become autistic. Study after study has shown that this is not true. So it is really - they're pitting scientists here against families. The patients say that autism does indeed -- wasn't there. The child's autism was indeed caused by shots and they say that the government is in cahoots with pharmaceutical companies and that the government is hiding documents from them that they say will show that the vaccines caused autism.

HOLMES: The people out there that are considered some of the best and the brightest, the leaders in the medical field doing these studies say no, there is no link. So if we have that evidence, what is the real argument? What can they show to say this is our case and this is why we think the vaccines...?

COHEN: Right. The families have a very tough argument in front of them. It is not going to be easy. Basically their argument is that it is the (INAUDIBLE) in these vaccines, (INAUDIBLE) is a preservative that is no longer used in childhood vaccines, that's it's the (INAUDIBLE) that caused it and they also argue that in combination with this particular vaccine, you are seeing here against measles, mumps and rubella, that those two combined to cause autism as well. Yes, they have quite a job in front of them, that there have been so many reports that deny any existence. Then again, these families say that the government and the pharmaceutical companies are in basically in cahoots and trying to hide evidence.

HOLMES: So is this the only real avenue for the parent is to go after the Federal government?

COHEN: Vaccines are very odd excuse me. Vaccines are very odd. They are not like other medicines. The vaccine program was set up so that if a parent thinks that their child was harmed by a vaccine, there is a $2.5 billion fund they can try to get a piece of and they go through this special tribunal with the U.S. Federal government. That's not the way that usually it works when you think that a medicine has harmed you. They can also go after the pharmaceutical companies in various ways but this is where the big money is. This is the way the Federal government set it up. They say go for this money in the $2.5 billion fund.

HOLMES: Painful time (INAUDIBLE) and everybody is looking for the answers. What in the world is causing this? Elizabeth Cohen, thank you so much.

PHILLIPS: Sacred ground for more than a thousand years. Now Manchester cathedral has become the virtual setting for an ultraviolet video game. The Church of England cries sacrilege and takes aim at Sony entertainment. (INAUDIBLE) in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: Too much rain for some, too little for others. Will it ever even out? Jacqui Jeras.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Eventually some day, maybe not today, though guys unfortunately. We got too much rain going on across the nation's midsection not enough in the southwest and the southeast. The rain has been extremely heavy in the last 24 hours. In fact in Waco, Missouri, about halfway between Joplin and Pittsburgh here, they recorded 12.98 inches in the last 24 hours. Yeah, that's a little too much. The good news is that the rain has finally made its way down to the south. The bad news is we might get some more rain in here as we head into tomorrow. Flash flood warnings are posted all across the area and anticipating this to be a problem probably for the next couple of days at some rivers of the rivers now gone out of their banks so use a lot of caution if you're traveling across this part of the country.

Now in the southeast, where we want it, we are finally getting it at least a little bit of it. Showers and thunderstorms are starting to pop up here in south Georgia, also into the Carolinas. A severe thunderstorm watch has just been issued in the last 15 minutes. That includes you from Charlotte, to Columbia into Charleston and Savannah. It does not quite get us here in Atlanta but we could see showers and thunderstorms especially on the east side of town. Charlotte seeing some very heavy rain and check out this thunderstorm towards Lancaster. You've got a severe thunderstorm warning on this one. You're probably going to see a lot of hail and also possibly some damaging winds to go along with it. Forecast tomorrow, very similar to what we are seeing today with more severe storms to the southeast. We may also see things pop in late today and late tomorrow in the upper Midwest. Unfortunately, a little more wet weather coming to the nation's midsection. Back to you guys.

PHILLIPS: All right Jacqui, thanks.

HOLMES: A judge says Genarlow Wilson doesn't belong in prison, not anymore anyway. But the state attorney general fights to keep him there. Next in the NEWSROOM, the latest on a case of teen sex and a tough law that no longer exists.

PHIL BLACK (ph), CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Phil Black in the United Kingdom where the Anglican Church has gone to war with Sony over a violent video game. I'll have more in just a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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