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Lake Tahoe Wildfire; Iraq Policy Under Fire; The Jena Six; Not Ready In Iraq

Aired June 26, 2007 - 10:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: A Lake Tahoe wildfire. But flames could flare again.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: A prominent Republican breaks with the president on the Iraq War. Senator Richard Lugar questions the troop buildup. He calls for a course correction.

HARRIS: Hotel heiress Paris Hilton sprung from the pokey. Now she is ready to tell her story to Larry King, well, about her time in the big house.

It is Tuesday, June 26th. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Progress on the front lines, but the battle is far from over. Firefighters still hard at work right now just south of Lake Tahoe, California. A big wildfire has destroyed at least 240 buildings. It is about 40 percent contained. Full containment still days away. CNN's Kara Finnstrom is with us from Meyers, California.

And, Kara, boy, that mask, good to see that. What is visibility down to, next to nothing where you are?

KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the smoke is very dense out here. Actually, they issued a visibility warning yesterday and also a warning for people breathing out here that it could cause breathing problems, especially if you've got asthma or other breathing issues. So most of us out here today do have the masks and have been trying to wear them in between our live shots here.

But the good news for firefighters today is that the winds have died down. Now they see this actually as a precious 48-hour window during which they're going to try and gain an upper hand on this blaze that has been so destructive. The other good news is right now it's burning largely in an unpopulated area. They're hoping it will stay there. It is about 40 percent contained. But, as you mentioned, Tony, this could flare up again if the winds pick up. So they're going to really try and take advantage of these 48 hours where the winds should be died down today.

What you see behind me, though, just really paints a picture of what's happening out here. This is what's left not only of a house, but of an entire neighborhood here. Just things like the shell of a truck, you know, a metal garage door, a chimney. This is all that's left. This fire completely incinerated about 200 homes out here. And it's just devastating when you see the families and hear from them. They've lost not only the home, they've lost all of their belongings, their photo albums, all of their clothes and are really now just trying to put the pieces back together.

The good news out here, of course, is that there has been no injuries. And this community is really taking a lot from that. But they say this is still going to be a huge, emotional toll for them.

Tony.

HARRIS: Boy, CNN's Kara Finnstrom for us in Meyers, California.

Kara, thank you.

COLLINS: Paris Hilton, a free woman this morning and enjoying swankier digs at her family's estate. Check it out. Hilton looked thrilled as she walked out of a Los Angeles county jail just after midnight. There to greet her, about a zillion reporters, photographers. But she ran straight to her mom, who was also waiting for her. The hotel heiress spent three weeks in jail for violating her probation on a reckless driving conviction. She is on probation until March 2009. Hilton is giving her first post jail interview to CNN's Larry King. You can catch that tomorrow night at 9:00 Eastern.

HARRIS: In suburban Atlanta, new information is expected today on the suspicious deaths of pro wrestling star Chris Benoit and his family. Autopsies are expected to be performed today. Benoit was found dead in his home outside of Atlanta, along with his wife and seven-year-old son. Right now police say they're treating the deaths as a murder/suicide. Benoit was a popular wrestling champion. Most recently with the World Wrestling Entertainment Group. This video is from the WWE's tribute to Benoit. And wrestling fans may remember his wife, Nancy Benoit, as a one-time pro wrestling manager with the stage name "Woman."

COLLINS: On Capitol Hill, a call for a change in Iraq. Senator Richard Lugar, a prominent Republican, says President Bush needs to go to plan b. And he says that needs to happen soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD LUGAR, (D) INDIANA: In my judgment, the costs and risks of continuing down the current path outweigh the potential benefits that might be achieved. Persisting indefinitely with the surge strategy will delay policy adjustments that have a better chance of protecting our vital interests over the long term.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: CNN congressional correspondent Dana Bash joining us now live from Capitol Hill.

Dana, why are Lugar's comments so significant? Is it his prominence within the party?

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right. It is his prominence, Heidi. Richard Lugar is perhaps one of the most influential and prominent Republican voices on Capitol Hill when it comes to the issue of foreign policy. And until now he has been quite muted in his criticism of President Bush and his Iraq policy. And not only is he breaking ranks with the White House in this speech that he gave by saying that it's time for a course correction, that this so- called surge, more troops in Iraq, isn't working and it's actually time to reduce the troop levels in Iraq. What he's saying is, that should happen now.

Now until now most Republicans at the behest of the White House has said, we're not going to actual call for any kind of assessment, much less this, until September. That's what the White House has asked for, a little bit of time. But what Lugar said in this very lengthy floor speech last night, Heidi, is that waiting until September for the president is a mistake because he says that politics is simply going to interrupt this and it will actually hurt the president and his policy because the 2008 political calendar, the presidential campaign, is simply going to take over.

COLLINS: Is it giving you any sense, Dana, that the indications are not good for what we may be hearing in this massive report that we've been talking about for a long time now that will come out in September?

BASH: Well, you know, it's unclear what's going to happen with that report, Heidi. As you know, some of the top military commanders and even the White House have been appearing to kick the can down the road a little bit more, saying well maybe September we're not going to really know whether this strategy is working. And so it is interesting to hear Senator Lugar say, we're not going to wait for that or any even delay. He says that he believes that this strategy, from his judgment, is simply not working now and that is why he wants the president -- he's trying to push the president to change course and to start taking troops out of Iraq. He says that he wants troops to go elsewhere in the Middle East.

But in terms of the impact, I can tell you that we are definitely going to listen for Republicans to see whether or not this is going to give them political cover. Why? Because so far we certainly have heard Republicans come out and say that they are not sure about the president's strategy, they're against the strategy. They've been mostly moderates or mavericks. But this could give cover to other wavering Republicans.

And right now, Heidi, you see the Democratic majority leader, Harry Reid. He is on the floor as we speak. We're told that he was going to come out this morning and praise Senator Lugar. So it's not just Republicans. This also gives an opening for Democrats to say, wait a minute, you know, you, any Republicans, you the White House, you criticize us for saying that we thing the president's strategy is off the rails. Well, here is a red state Republican with a lot of influence and a lot of stature like Dick Lugar saying the same thing.

COLLINS: Reid and Lugar on the same team at this point, very interesting indeed. All right. CNN congressional correspondent Dana Bash this morning.

Dana, thank you.

BASH: Thank you.

HARRIS: Still on Capitol Hill, and it happens next hour, a make or break vote on immigration reform. The White House is pushing for the measure, but facing stiff opposition from fellow Republicans. Supporters need 60 Senate votes this morning to keep the bill alive. So far the measure has failed to stir strong public support. According to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll conducted a few days ago, only 30 percent of Americans favor the Senate immigration bill. Nearly half oppose it. Nineteen percent of those polled say they simply don't know enough to have an opinion.

COLLINS: A dam on the verge of collapse. A major highway shut down. Homes and businesses under water. Torrential rains are causing all sorts of problems in England and Wales. The situation extremely serious in south Yorkshire, about 170 miles north of London. Wow. At least three storm related deaths are reported there. In the town of Sheffield, this month has been the rainiest since record keeping started 125 years ago.

HARRIS: A police officer pepper sprays a suspect, then watch what happens. Officer down and it is caught on tape.

COLLINS: Also, U.S. commanders in Iraq with a frank assessment of Iraqi troops. When will they be ready to defend themselves and their country?

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Roesgen in Jena, Louisiana.

Was it a school fight or attempted murder? The case that has divided this town, coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And a summer heat wave stalks southern Europe. Dozens of deaths reported. The story ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Welcome back, everyone. I'm Heidi Collins. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

A community in mourning and fear. Three teens take their own lives on three successive weekend. Suicide pact or coincidence? The story for you coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Dramatic, new dash cam video released by police in New Hampshire. It shows a traffic stop last month ending in an officer's death. You can see Corporal Bruce McKay here using pepper spray on the driver. But as he turns his back, the driver Liko Kenny, fires seven shots killing McKay. And then this. A passing motorist saw the attack. He grabbed the officer's gun and killed Kenny. No charges were filed.

COLLINS: A town divided. A trial begins in Jena, Louisiana, today for one of six African-American teens accused of beating a white school mate. CNN's Susan Roesgen reports on a fight carried far beyond school grounds.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ask if you all please get off the campus.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Reporters are not welcome these days at Jena High School where racial tension has led to charges of attempted murder. Back in September, black students sat under this tree in the school courtyard, where traditionally only white students sit. The next day, three white students hung nooses from the tree and were suspended. What the nooses meant divided the town.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think a couple boys made a mistake, you know, but I, you know, I think it's all being blown out of proportion.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was very offended because that's a racial slur against us.

ROESGEN: From there, things got worse. In November, someone set fire to the school, destroying one of its main buildings. Though police don't know if there's a connection to the nooses. Then in December, a school fight. A white student, Justin Barker, was knocked unconscious and kicked as he lay on the ground. Six black teenagers were accused of beating him.

This is a copy of the school handbook here at Jena High School. It says the punishment for a school fight is three days' suspension.

But in this case, five of the six black teenagers are charged with attempted murder. And they face the possibility of spending the rest of their lives in prison. Carwyn Jones, Bryant Purvis, Robert Bailey Jr., Theodore Shaw, and a student who hasn't been identified because he's only 16, are all charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder. A sixth student, Mychal Bell, had his charge reduced to aggravated battery. But they all say they're innocent. And one of them told us he didn't even see what happened.

ROBERT BAILEY, ACCUSED: No, like, when a fight break out, all the kids just run to see a fight. That's just how it was. And everybody was in one part. You really couldn't see nothing. So when I'm running to see what's going on, I got down there, the fight was over. The coaches and students were breaking up the fight.

ROESGEN: The students' parents say whatever happened, the only reason their sons were arrested is because they are black.

TINA JONES, PARENT: I had never seen nothing like this before in my life, you know. It just -- it's mind blowing. You know, it's heartbreaking, you know?

ROESGEN: Two of the students have been locked up in jail since December because their parents can't afford the $90,000 bail.

THEODORE MCCOY, PARENT: No previous record of anything and he's been taking it pretty hard at times because we visit every Sunday. Sometimes he's OK. The next minute he's taking it very hard.

ROESGEN: The parents believe their sons just can't get a fair trial. When they're the minority in a town that's 85 percent white. Even some white residents agree.

KRISTY BOYETTE, RESIDENT: These are kids. They are kids. You're just going to ruin these kids' life.

ROESGEN: District Attorney Reed Walters (ph) released a statement after the incident saying he had "never charged anyone based on who they are." But he also addressed the six black students directly saying, "you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. I will see to it you never again menace the students at any school in this parish."

Since the arrests last December, Jena has seen protests denouncing the criminal charges against the six black students as racially motivated. But there is another side to this story that's gone unreported.

KELLI BARKER, VICTIM'S MOTHER: He was getting kicked and stomped.

ROESGEN: Why?

BARKER: I don't know. You tell me.

ROESGEN: For the first time, the parents of Justin Barker, the victim, agreed to be interviewed exclusively by CNN.

BARKER: Several lacerations on both sides. Both the ears was kind of really damaged. And both the eyes. His right eye was the worst. It had blood clots in it.

ROESGEN: Kelly and David Barker say Justin has no idea why he was attacked. But his injuries have cost $12,000 in medical bills and his parents do believe it was a case of attempted murder.

BARKER: I wish to goodness it wouldn't have happened. I mean, they had parents and me and David are parents to Justin and I hate it for them parents. I mean, I can only imagine. But I also have to think about my child and my family.

ROESGEN: Now the trial for one of the Jena six is underway in a town where fear and suspicion on both sides have made Jena an uncomfortable place to call home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Susan Roesgen joining us now live.

Susan, why did the D.A. reduce the charges against one of the students?

ROESGEN: Well, you know, Heidi, we really don't know because the D.A. has repeatedly refused to talk to us. But I did talk to Marcus Jones, the father of Mychal Bell. He's the student who now has the reduced charge and whos trial is set to begin today. The father told me that he believes the D.A. expected his son to plead guilty to that charge. But it's still a felony, Heidi. It still carries a serious prison term. And Mychal Bell refuses to plead guilty to anything.

COLLINS: Yes, it's interesting hearing from the parents of the victim as well. But I do wonder what happened to the white students who then hung the nooses from the tree in the school court yard.

ROESGEN: Well, you know, that's what the black parents find especially galling, Heidi, is that they did get that in school suspension. But anyone who hangs a noose in this day and age in a threatening way like that could have been charged with a federal hate crime. So here the black students were charged with attempted murder for what they say was simply a school fight, while the white students who hung the nooses got nothing more than an in school suspension. It's really divided this town.

Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, I bet. All right. Great piece. Thanks so much, Susan Roesgen, live this morning from Jena, Louisiana.

HARRIS: Going home can break your heart. Lake Tahoe residents return to find their belongings in ashes. The wildfire still menacing other homes. An update ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Checking the big board once again today. Things are in the positive territory. This is good. So far so good anyway. Let's see. Dow Jones resting at 13,365. And we're going to be talking a little bit later with Susan Lisovicz who is back in the area. And the Fourth of July travel, refineries, boy, more information on the gas and certainly the iPhone as well. People getting kind of excited about it. The Nasdaq, I understand, is also up. We'll bring you all your business stories in just a little while.

HARRIS: Civilians accidentally killed. The U.S. military now admitting to the mistake which happened during an attack along the Pakistan/Afghanistan border. A military spokesman says about nine Pakistani civilians were killed in the U.S. attack on Saturday. The spokesman says troops were battling more than 50 suspected insurgents when a hotel in Pakistan was accidentally hit. The military stresses that no U.S. crossed into Pakistan during the firefight.

COLLINS: A warning from Iraq. U.S. commanders say Iraqi troops are not yet ready to stand on their own. More now from CNN's senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It was just a year ago Diyala was turned over to some of Iraq's best army brigades, only to have the province become an al Qaeda stronghold.

BRIG. GEN. DANA PITTARD, CMDR., IRAQ ASSISTANCE GROUP: Clearly the 5th Iraqi army division wasn't ready for many reasons.

MCINTYRE: Brigadier General Dana Pittard is leaving Iraq after a stint in charge of training Iraqi forces. His pointed warning, while improving, they are not ready yet, especially in Diyala Province.

PITTARD: Do not draw down too quickly when we think there is a glimmer of success.

MCINTYRE: That theme was echoed over the weekend by front line commanders who, while heaping praise on Iraqi forces that are fighting, say they are still too green and far too few in number.

MAJ. GEN. RICK LYNCH, U.S. ARMY: But there's not enough of them. There's not enough of them.

MCINTYRE: Major General Rick Lynch commands troops south of Baghdad. And his counterpart to the north, Brigadier General Mick Bednarek, over the weekend told the Associated Press Iraqi troops are not quite up to the job yet. But in his latest briefing with reporters, that Bednarek insisted he thinks Iraqis will come through in the end.

BRIG GEN MICK BEDNAREK, U.S. ARMY: The Iraqi army soldiers are good. They're holding firm. They're in the fight. They're doing what they're told. They're following their leaders.

MCINTYRE: General Pittard says Diyala's capital of Baquba, where he once commanded a brigade, offers a sober lesson on what happens if the U.S. is too anxious to leave.

PITTARD: I nearly shed a tear when I saw Baquba today. That the markets aren't up. The projects that we had spent so much time on together with the Iraqi government are now, in many places, in shambles.

MCINTYRE: Everyone is now looking to next spring as the time when U.S. troops may be able to leave some areas to the Iraqis. But what these commanders seem to be saying is that even that may be too optimistic.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Red, white and bruised. A nasty battle over immigration reform comes to a head this morning on Capitol Hill. And the president is right in the middle of it.

COLLINS: And no more orange jumpsuits for her. Paris Hilton catwalks out of jail. Next stop for the hotel heiress, the Larry King interview. More on that in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And coming up on the bottom of the hour. Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris. COLLINS: And I'm Heidi Collins.

Among our top stories this morning, one vote, two critical tests. The first this morning in the Senate. You see some live shots now coming in from Washington, D.C. Supporters of an immigration reform bill need 60 votes to keep it alive. The second test presented to President Bush. He's lobbying hard for the measure, but faces stiff opposition from fellow Republicans.

Last hour, Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff joined us in the NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: It creates a temporary worker program so that as we enforce the border, we can offer employers a legal way to satisfy their labor needs, which they have up until now been satisfying using illegal workers. And finally it does address the 12 million undocumented workers by giving them a path that requires them to pay a penalty, acknowledge their wrongdoing, get on probation, but then allows them, if they satisfy all those requirements, to continue to work in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: So far, the measure has failed to stir strong support among the public, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll conducted a few days ago. Only 30 percent of Americans favor the Senate immigration bill. Nearly half oppose it. Nineteen percent of those polled say they simply do not know enough to have an opinion.

HARRIS: All the memories are gone. Sad words from a California man. He's lost everything. A big wildfire just south of Lake Tahoe. He and his wife and their two young children now homeless. While the situation is still very dangerous, firefighters are making some progress. The blaze is about 40 percent contained. Full containment expected by Sunday. As it stands right now, the fire has forced about 2,400 acres and destroyed at least 240 homes and other buildings. About 1,000 people have had to evacuate.

COLLINS: A dam on the verge of collapse. A major highway shut down. Homes and businesses under water. Torrential rains are causing all sorts of problems in England and Wales. The situation especially serious in the city of Sheffield.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAMON GREEN, ITV NEWS REPORTER: The incredible sight of an RAF rescue in the heart of Sheffield. A helicopter designed to save shipwrecked survivors, plucking stranded office workers from a city center rooftop. Rescue crews were scrambled after heavy rained burst the banks of the River Dawn (ph), quickly flooding the Brightside (ph) Lane area of the city. Workers on an industrial estate find themselves cut off on all sides by several feet of water.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're right next to the river here. And one of my colleagues said, look, if we're going to get out of here, we better get a move on, because Brightside Lake was becoming impassable. So by the time we've sort of sorted ourselves out, it was flooded and there were cars floating down Brightside Lane, and we're not sure what our situation is, whether they're going to airlift us or we're going to spend the night here.

GREEN: The dramatic airlift was prompted by reports that floodwaters had caused one building to collapse, and all 15 people were taken to safety, with 25 more escaping from cars caught up in the flood.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As soon as I got out of the car, I couldn't stand up. I was just freezing. All the water just took me. I went underwater.

GREEN: Hundreds of residents were evacuated to other parts of Sheffield before they could become stranded by the rising waters, but after a day of heavy rainfall and flood warnings, the questions will remain, why the overflowing of this major river seemed to take everyone by surprise.

Damon Green, ITV News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And parts of southern Europe in the grips of a killer heatwave. More than two dozen deaths reported in the last week or so. Four of them just yesterday in Greece and Cyprus. Almost 30 other people died from the heat last week in Romania, Albania and Serbia. The temperature in one city in southern Italy reached 113 degrees Monday.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: And new information is expected today on the suspicious deaths of pro wrestling star Chris Benoit and his family. Authorities are expected to be -- or autopsies are expected to be performed today. Benoit was found dead in his home outside Atlanta, along with his wife and 7-year-old son. Right now police say they're treating the deaths as a murder/suicide.

Benoit was a popular wrestling champion, most recently with World Wrestling Entertainment. This video is from the WWE's tribute to Benoit, and wrestling fans may remember his wife, Nancy Benoit, as a one-time pro wrestling manager with the stage name "Woman."

COLLINS: Three teenagers, three suicides, three successive weekends, and one Northern Ireland town is left in shock and fear.

CNN's Diana Magnay reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Empty streets on Friday night in the Northern Ireland town of Tandragee. Parents too scared to let their kids out of sight. A palpable sense of dread, here that the tragedy that struck the first three weekends in June may be about to happen again.

According to all who knew them, Wayne Browne, James Topley, and Lee Walker, were all happy, normal 15-year-olds, and yet in three successive weekends, these boys, one-by-one took their own lives. Two of them using the same lamp post to hang themselves.

(on camera): All three boys were pupils at the Craigavon Senior High School, just behind me. They knew each other, they took the same school bus together in the mornings. And two of them are believed to have attended the funeral of Wayne Browne before they, too, took their own lives.

(voice-over): Lee Walker's father, Tony, led the precession at his son's funeral, last Monday. He spoke of the horror of finding his boy, who'd hanged himself at home from his bunk bed.

TONY WALKER, LEE'S FATHER: I held my son for three hours before (INAUDIBLE), the undertaker come to take him away. I still didn't want to let go. I didn't cry. I bawled. The tears running down my face. And I didn't want to let him go. And when the undertaker come, I says, Len, "You take good care of him."

MAGNAY: Hardly a moment goes by without a fresh visitor to Lee's grave. Pain etched on the faces of everyone I meet.

ARLENE HANRATTY, LOCAL RESIDENT: It's unbelievable, it has to stop. It has to stop. You know, it's not just me, I'm sure everybody's nerves is completely wrecked worrying about their child, who's you know, which (ph) one is next. It's just absolutely terrible.

MAGNAY: That is the real fear among residents, here. Are there more suicides to come? Most were reluctant to talk about the rumors going around. I spoke to one young mother who chose not to show her face.

She said there are rumors of a list, somewhere on the Internet, with names of who would be next.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's about 13 names on it and I heard that a few people I know was on it and I confirmed with them and said they weren't on it at all, it was just rumors, but there's talk of this list...

MAGNAY (on camera): And what else is said about this list?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just, that it's like a pact thing and there's dates and stuff of when each and every person has to do it by.

MAGNAY (voice-over): The boys left no notes. Their families may never know why they chose to end their lives this way. This weekend passed without incident, but there will be many tense weekends to come before people here can finally lay their fears to rest and allow themselves to grieve.

Diana Magnay, CNN, Tandragee, Northern Ireland. (END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

HARRIS: Well, she's out. Paris Hilton is a free woman. And who was watching when she got out of jail just after midnight? Well, just a few of the news media's finest. She headed straight to her mom, who took her away to more lavish digs. Nice strut. That's her walk, though, isn't it? That's her thing.

Our Brooke Anderson joins us from outside the Linwood Detention Facility outside Los Angeles.

Brooke, tell us more about that scene last night.

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it was quite a scene. It was total chaos, Tony. Paris Hilton walked out of the jail, the front entrance of this Linwood Correctional Facility shortly after midnight local time. And basically did a sashay down this walkway in front of the jail. It seemed more like a red carpet situation. The only thing separating the media from that walkway, it wasn't about a rope, though. It was yellow police tape.

I was a little bit surprised that Paris wasn't more subdued, wasn't a little more humble. She was grinning from ear to ear, had a spring in her step. Clearly, you know, had changed clothes, had fixed her hair, put on some makeup. High-fiving the media, high-fiving fans.

I was astounded that these fans -- I was talking to them -- they, you know, dragged themselves out of a sleep slumber to be here to personally witness Paris' exit from jail.

But as I say, I was a little bit surprised that she wasn't more subdued, because she has been very vocal about the fact that she feels she's a changed woman from this experience, and she feels she is more spiritual. As she was practically skipping this way, that turned into a near jog, Tony, when she saw her mom. They embraced, and then her parents whisked her away in that black SUV. And photographers raced after the car to get the photos. So it was an incredible scene. It was unbelievable.

HARRIS: So we've got to see the walk again, because that is just her walk, isn't it? Anywhere you see Paris, there's that walk. She's working it, flipping it, turning it. There it is.

ANDERSON: It looks like a catwalk, looks like she's on a catwalk.

HARRIS: It really is. So what about the probation, Brooke, how long will that last?

ANDERSON: Well, she will be on probation until March 2009, but she can reduce that time by 12 months if she chooses to complete community service or if she decides to record a public service announcement, which I think she will probably choose to do, one or both, who knows? But the Hilton family has hired a crisis manager. Some say too little too late, but they clearly are working hard to put a certain face, to put a certain image out there going forward. You know, she'll be under the white hot glare of this spotlight. If she can walk the walk after she talks the talk, people will be watching. We've seen that.

HARRIS: And she's on Larry King, right? That's tomorrow night at 9:00 Eastern Time, right here on CNN.

Brooke, good to see you. Thanks.

ANDERSON: Thanks.

COLLINS: She lost her legs in combat, and now she fears losing something worse.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am worried. I am worried and, you know, we're planning for him not making it home.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Do you plan for that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're planning for him being killed.

GUPTA: Disabled vet's husband goes to war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: You may remember the story of Tammy Duckworth. The Iraq War veteran lost both legs in combat, then lost a close congressional race last fall. Now she fears losing something else, her husband. The story is part of a CNN documentary investigating veterans' health care.

Here's our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The farewell parade playing out in small towns across America. Young men and women marching off to war.

In Delvin, Illinois, Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth watches the troops go by. She lost both legs in Iraq and now worries she may lose something even more precious: her husband, Bryan Bowlsbey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're moving out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're moving out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're moving out.

GUPTA: Today he's the one heading to the danger zone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're coming right by us.

GUPTA: In November 2004 Tammy's tour in Iraq came to a tragic end.

TAMMY DUCKWORTH, DISABLED IRAQ WAR VETERAN: I just hear the tap, tap, tap, and I remember a big orange fireball in my face.

GUPTA: Her helicopter had been hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.

DUCKWORTH: I don't remember my physical feelings, other than absolute frustration that the pedals of the aircraft were not responding to me pushing on them.

GUPTA (on camera): The pedals weren't responding. Why? You know now.

DUCKWORTH: Yes. I didn't have any legs.

GUPTA (voice-over): But tragedy brought a new sense of purpose.

DUCKWORTH: My name is Tammy Duckworth, and I'm here today to fight for my country.

GUPTA: She ran for Congress.

DUCKWORTH: The policy-makers have failed us. We should focus our military resources on pursuing the terrorists who attacked our country and on capturing Osama bin Laden. Instead, President Bush and his top advisors decided to invade Iraq.

GUPTA: She fell less than 5,000 votes short of a win, her husband Bryan by her side. And she conceded the tight election.

DUCKWORTH: It's OK. We put up a tough fight, folks.

GUPTA: On this day a loss is more personal.

DUCKWORTH: I'm going to miss you.

BRYAN BOWLSBEY, TAMMY DUCKWORTH'S HUSBAND: I'll going to miss you, too, babe.

GUPTA (on camera): You just had this thing happen, this awful thing happen to you over there. You must worry that something like this might happen to him.

DUCKWORTH: I am worried. I am worried and, you know, we're planning for him not making it home.

GUPTA: You planned for that? DUCKWORTH: We're planning for him being killed. He's going to be doing one of the most dangerous things you can do, which is running convoys.

GUPTA: You're planning for your husband to be killed?

DUCKWORTH: Yes, and then that's the worst case. And then we'll pray that he doesn't get hurt and he gets to come home.

GUPTA (voice-over): Brian is torn between caring for his disabled wife at home and serving his country overseas. The weight of his emotion clear. When we asked him if he ever considered staying back with Tammy.

BOWLSBEY: I won't say that it never crossed my mind, but I just -- I can't. It's just not -- I mean, there would be -- no. That's just not -- not what we do, so -- when I look left and right at the -- at everybody else in the battalion formation with me, they're all needed here.

GUPTA: Bryan has fought 19 years in the Army National Guard but has never deployed until now.

BOWLSBEY: It was unexpected that it would happen this year is the only -- the only wildcard in the whole thing. Kind of makes you -- OK, I thought I had an extra year to get the house ready.

GUPTA: He spent the last few months preparing their home so Tammy can be more self-sufficient.

BOWLSBEY: But on this day, Bryan must leave his wife behind.

DUCKWORTH: I'm just going to miss him. I'm just going to miss, you know, my best friend. But he's under orders to come home. I'm the household commander at this point, and he's under orders to come home. So he'd be disobeying a direct order, and I do outrank him by a few months, so...

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Man, what a story.

Breaking ranks and backing off support of President Bush's Iraq policy. A prominent Republican calls for change.

COLLINS: Also pro wrestling star Chris Benoit, his wife and son all dead. Police looking for clues and wait for autopsy results. A live update from the scene, ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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