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Emergency in Minnesota; British Terror Investigation; North Korean Nuclear Shut Down; Japanese Typhoon

Aired July 14, 2007 - 14:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It came up through here. You see where the tire marks are, right here. She was yelling, dial 9-1-1. Dial 9-1-1.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Wow! Coming up next in the CNN NEWSROOM, a mother and her 4-month-old baby clutching to the hood of a speeding car. A frightening sight in a Minnesota neighborhood.

And look at this. Fierce winds as a typhoon rolls toward Japan, forcing thousands to evacuate their homes.

Plus, this afternoon, more charges today for suspects in the terror attacks in the UK. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM where the news unfolds live this Saturday, July 14th. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We begin with a story that is just in to CNN. A major announcement from the U.S. State Department. North Korea says it has shut down its nuclear reactor. At this hour a U.N. inspection team in North Korea is trying to confirm that claim. The U.S. and other western nations have been working for years to get the North Koreans to stop operations at the reactor, amid fears North Korea has been trying to develop nuclear weapons. Our senior correspondent at the U.N. Richard Roth joins us now by phone. This really is quite the milestone. Is everyone believing, Richard, that this is indeed the case, that they have shut down their reactor?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Your hesitancy there is well noted Fredricka, because it's a milestone of sorts in the timeline toward potential de-nuclearization of the Korean peninsula widely wished for by many. But we may be a long way from that point, especially when dealing with the mercurial unpredictable regime of the North Koreans. What's happened today, the State Department has announced that North Korea has said it has shut down its Pyongyang nuclear reactor. This is a step in a process that has been worked on for years with many governments, including the U.S. and China and South Korea trying to get North Korea to give up its weapons, using (INAUDIBLE) sticks occasionally. It was last year at this time, this very week, after July 4th, when North Korea had launched multiple missiles and that led the U.N. Security Council to start slapping North Korea with sanctions. Now it's part of a deal that has been worked out in this first part of this deal, oil has arrived for North Korea which badly needs energy. And under the arrangement worked out, North Korea pledged to disarm and the first step is disabling this nuclear reactor. International inspectors are going to be on site to verify all of this. There are more talks on July 18th to follow up. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll all be looking for that kind of confirmation coming from the U.S. State Department and other entities. Thanks so much, Richard Roth at the U.N.

Meantime, two weeks after failed terror attacks in London and Glasgow, set Britain and the west on edge. Two more suspects have been charged. One in Britain, the other in Australia. CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh joins us live from London. So, are these arrests Alphonso satisfactory or are there more expected?

ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there are more details coming as we speak, Fred. In the past couple of hours, in addition to what you just mentioned, some new developments for our viewers, that a British judge at this point this afternoon has granted police more time to question another suspect in connection in these failed car bomb attacks in London and at Glasgow International Airport. The suspect, we understand, was arrested in the hours following the two attacks, or say the three different locations for those attacks. Now we understand that police want more time. A judge has decided that they will get it until July 21st, they can hold the suspect. And then at that point may need to make a determination whether to charge the suspect or let him go. Again, this coming on a day where we had charges, as you mentioned, pressed against two doctors suspected of involvement here in London. Sabeel Ahmed was charged under Britain's Terrorism Act of 2000, in essence accusing him of having information that could have prevented a terrorist attack. And that comes just hours after authorities in Australia charged Dr. Mohammed Haneef with providing support to a terrorist organization. His wife in Australia says those charges are baseless. Fred?

WHITFIELD: And so what about the reaction Alphonso there in Great Britain, perhaps ordinary people. Do they feel like this offers some sort of comfort, makes anyone feel any more at ease following these attempts.

VAN MARSH: Well, we spent a lot of time both in Glasgow following that attack where a Jeep Cherokee was driven into the terminal at Glasgow International Airport, as well as talking to people here in London in the immediate aftermath of those two failed car bomb attacks. People here are very resilient, keeping their eyes and ears open as instructed by their leaders, to keep an eye out for anything that looks suspicious. What's interesting here, as this case develops, is what we're learning about the suspects. For example, Sabeel Ahmed who was charged today, happens to be a cousin of the suspect in Australia, Mohammed Haneef, according to our sources. And then something else that's interesting, Sabeel Ahmed, again charged today, may be the brother of another suspect who police allege was in that Jeep Cherokee that burst into flames. That suspect now in a hospital with critical burns over 90 percent of his body. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Alphonso Van Marsh, thank you so much from London.

President Bush makes a plea for patience. Despite growing pressure in congress for a withdrawal plan, the president defended his Iraq policy in his weekly radio address. He says there are signs of progress and argued that there should be no troop reductions until the time is right.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

BUSH: We're starting to take the initiative away from al Qaeda and aiding the rise of an Iraqi government that can protect its people, deliver basic services and be an ally on the war against extremists and radicals. By doing this, we're creating the conditions that will allow our troops to begin coming home. When America starts drawing down our forces in Iraq, it will be because our military commanders say the conditions on the ground are right, not because pollsters say it would be good politics.

(END OF AUDIO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Meantime, Iraq's prime minister says U.S. troops can leave his country any time they want, but he says they need to leave behind some weapons and training. And at a news conference today, Al Maliki defended his government against critics who say it is too slow in making political reforms. He says that given Iraq's turmoil, the slow pace is natural.

Japan right now in the grip of a super typhoon storming through the island chain. Police say a small boy was swept into a fast-moving river and died. Dozens are hurt. Thousands evacuated. Winds as high as 90 miles an hour bluster along the east coast. And up to 40 inches of rain predicted in some areas. The storm is expected to brush by Tokyo tomorrow.

Our own Gary Tuchman is vacationing, at least he was vacationing in Japan. Now he's reporting for us. Joining us by phone from Kyoto and Gary what are you experiencing there? Are you starting to feel the winds and get some of this deluge?

VOICE OF GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka, and you're right, it's a very interesting vacation to say the least. But here in Kyoto right now the tropical storm force winds have hit the city. It's just after 3:00 in the morning here, the streets are very quiet and that's a good thing. Because the winds are picking up dramatically. The rains have been coming down for about 38 hours now to be exact. We have had minor flooding in this city.

But I will tell you one thing that is just totally amazing to me is that you see very little in the way of preparation whatsoever. There are still people out in the streets. Stores are still open. The 24-hour stores are still open. This storm, this typhoon is expected to pass to the south and the east of Kyoto. It's not expected to be a direct hit and it won't be nearly as powerful as it was when it hit Okinawa. It's expected to be about 80 miles per hour. Just a minimum hurricane. Nevertheless, because the mountains surround the city of Kyoto, 1.5 million population, seventh largest city in Japan, there is some concern. What's very important to note is the storm in the next 12 hours will pass some of the biggest cities in Japan, Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya and then Tokyo by tomorrow afternoon. We're talking about a city, metropolitan area with 30 million people. Compared to New York City metropolitan area of 18 million people. So obviously when you have a storm this size affecting that many people, everyone has to be very careful. We're right now in Kyoto, the winds are picking up dramatically. We're expecting the next couple of hours for the peak of Typhoon Man Yi to hit Kyoto, Japan.

WHITFIELD: Wow! So very densely populated. Good, you know, reason or many good reasons why this storm is not supposed to make ground zero kind of impact there. But talk to me too, about the historical significance of Kyoto and why it would be that much more damaging if that city were to be directly hit.

TUCHMAN: Well, that's a very important point. Kyoto is a magnificent city, main reason being it's one of the only cities in Japan -- they're probably two cities in Japan, Kyoto and nearby Nara, that were not destroyed during World War II. So you have temples and shrines here that are hundreds and hundreds of years old. You don't have that in any other place in Japan because so many cities were destroyed during World War II. So that's why there is a great deal of tension that they don't want to see a terrible storm come through here and destroy shrines that have been here for centuries.

WHITFIELD: All right Gary Tuchman, thanks so much for checking in with us. And hopefully you will get a chance to enjoy your vacation there once the storm passes.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Meantime, stormy days in presidential politics. Not a good week for Republican presidential candidate John McCain. Up next in the NEWSROOM, his vow to stay along with his campaign even though some are calling it a sinking ship.

Plus, new details about an accident that killed five people. Why police are focusing attention on text messaging.

And you're looking at a live picture, at least you're about to, a live picture from the funeral of one of the most beloved first ladies in recent memory. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: On the campaign trail, Republican presidential hopeful John McCain stomping today in New Hampshire while fighting to stay the course in his run for the White House. He is almost out of cash. His staff is leaving, and his poll numbers are sinking. But McCain is putting on a brave face. CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley reports from Concord, New Hampshire.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He is broke. His staff is skeletal. His poll numbers are sagging. But John McCain is standing.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We go to the town hall meetings. We fix our financial difficulties and we win.

CROWLEY: In New Hampshire, on his first campaign trip since the departure of top advisers McCain signaled his presidential bid will go back to the future, the template of 2000 when his maverick campaign stunned the political world and he beat George Bush in the New Hampshire primary. Even close friends wonder if anything can save this campaign, but McCain says he's hard pressed to think of anything that will stop him.

MCCAIN: Contracting a fatal disease.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anything short of that?

MCCAIN: Not that I know of.

CROWLEY: Even as he spoke, other top aides in the McCain campaign were preparing to leave. And the details of second quarter fund-raising and spending are about to be made public. McCain is down to his last quarter million, a campaign pitons. He hangs in with old jokes.

MCCAIN: You mean in the words of Chairman Maou it's always darkest before it's totally black.

CROWLEY: Of all the changes that have and will take place in camp McCain, the one thing that hasn't changed is the candidate. He is, in some sense, a man without a constituency. His positions on immigration and campaign finance reform infuriate conservatives who make up the core of the Republican primary vote. At the same time, independent, so vital to McCain's 2000 campaign, have left him in droves over his hawkish stance on the war in Iraq.

MCCAIN: Democratic candidates for president will argue for the course of cutting our losses and withdrawing from the threat in the vain hope it will not follow us here. I cannot join them in such wishful and very dangerous thinking.

CROWLEY: McCain, just back from a fourth of July trip to Iraq, went to New Hampshire to deliver a tough, no retreat speech, criticizing what he called defeatism. He asked voters to give the surge a chance, he asked them to give him one, too.

MCCAIN: I will stand where I stand today and trust you to give me a fair hearing. There's too much at stake in this election for any candidate to do less.

CROWLEY: John McCain will play the hand he dealt himself.

(On camera): McCain and those around him, still hope that voters, even if they disagree with the candidate on certain issues, will nonetheless stay with him. Because he is willing to stick with positions regardless of the political winds. Candy Crowley, CNN, Concord, New Hampshire.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So what would you ask the presidential candidates if you could? Well here's your chance. CNN is teaming up with Youtube for the next presidential debate. To submit your videotaped questions, just go to cnn.com/youtubedebates. It airs July 23rd only on your home for politics, CNN.

Funeral service in Austin, Texas this afternoon for former first lady, Lady Bird Johnson. Former presidents Clinton and Carter are attending along with all of the first ladies except for Betty Ford. Mrs. Johnson will be buried next to her husband at the LBJ Ranch tomorrow. Lady Bird Johnson died this week at the age of 94. She had been a widow for 34 years.

Still ahead in the NEWSROOM, it's a tourist's paradise and a drug runner's haven. We have an exclusive look at efforts to fight a new front in the war on drugs.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Wildfires threatening 40 to 50 homes in Washington State today. Experts counted at least 195 new fires across the west Friday. Dozens of them sparked by dry lightning. Interestingly, fire season, while above average this year, is well below the 2006 levels.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Well this week we saw many disturbing reports that al Qaeda is getting stronger worldwide. Well coming up next, a look at the numbers. Josh Levs is keeping track of all of it.

JOSHUA LEVS: That's right. Hey there Fred. Yeah you know we hear often that al Qaeda is the enemy and now there's word that it's been growing. But how big is it? We will be taking a look at the actual size of al Qaeda. That's coming up in the CNN reality check. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Ok. Also coming up, eye-opening new information on a possible cause of an accident that killed five people. It's something many drivers do every day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Have you ever met a person whose mission in life seems more important than life itself? That describes our CNN hero this morning. A woman forced into prostitution at the age of 16, now devoted to saving other victims from the sex slave industry. Somaly Mam is this morning's CNN hero.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

In Cambodia prostitution is illegal. But right now you can see everywhere we have the prostitute. Because of the corruption. The brothel owners, they force them to have sex. They hit them. They receive a lot of violence. I remember when I was young I was sold into the brothel. I was forced to have sex and I was raped. When I need the people to help me... many of the people, nobody helped me. My name is Somaly Mam. My mission is to help the victims to take them out from the brothel. Many of them they have HIV/AIDS. Sometimes they cut themselves they try suicide. I just say to them you have your pain full. Everybody treats you so bad, why you treat yourself bad? It's not your fault.

My work is so dangerous. You face the police who are corrupted. You go in the courts, sometimes they are so corrupted. I have a lot of people trying to destroy me everywhere. They are trying, trying but I just want to say to them, no way. My organization we have counseling, we have (INAUDIBLE) sewing, and I give them (INAUDIBLE) them into the society.

I feel like I have a new life. I was so upset before. It seemed like everything was destroyed. Now I have a new life.

I just want to give them love for real. It's what I needed.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Somaly Mam. If you'd like to nominate someone as a CNN hero, you'll find all the information you need at cnn.com/heroes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Here's what's happening in the news right now. North Korea says it has shut down its Yongbyon nuclear reactor. Right now U.N. inspectors are headed to the reactor to confirm.

Two more doctors, one in Britain, one in Australia, are charged today in connection with those failed bombing attempts in London and Glasgow. British officials say the suspects are second cousins.

And former presidents, first ladies, and other dignitaries are among 2,000 guests gathering this hour at Riverbend Centre in Austin, Texas. Funeral services for former first lady Lady Bird Johnson get under way in about an hour from now.

Text messaging, it may have cost five teenagers their lives in a horrific crash in New York's Finger Lakes region. The friends, killed on impact. Their SUV plowed into a tractor trailer head on and burst into flames. Police say text messages were sent and received on the driver's phone seconds before the crash.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF PHIL POVERO, ONTARIO COUNTY, NEW YORK: This tragedy points out some basic traffic safety principles that apply to all of us in our everyday life. As we drive a motor vehicle we need to constantly remind ourselves that this is our main and only responsibility. That there are so many distractions that are available to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The young women graduated from a Rochester area high school just five days before the accident. The driver had a junior driver's license. Under New York law, she should not have been on the road late at night when that crash happened.

A video of Osama bin Laden surfacing today. He appears for 50 seconds on the 40-minute videotape. The tape was time-stamped a few days ago. But a CNN analysis indicates the bin Laden segment of the tape may have a pre-date of 9/11. The tape was intercepted by a counter-terrorism expert before it appeared on an Islamic Web site that carries al Qaeda statements.

Fresh anxiety this week over al Qaeda. A senior government official tells CNN that a new report concludes the terrorist group is at its strongest since the aftermath of 9/11. But what does that mean exactly? CNN's Josh Levs is joining us now with a "Reality Check."

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. That's what we're trying to look into. Because you hear a lot of these scary pronouncements a lot of the time. And you know that al Qaeda has been reported to, and in a lot of cases actually has carried out some attacks all over the world. And it can give you this sense that al Qaeda is this giant international organization. It can leave that impression.

Well, if you think al Qaeda might have tens of thousands of members, then you'll find out that the reality is very different.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEVS (voice-over): There are nearly daily bombings in Iraq, many of them blamed on al Qaeda. And there have been attacks in recent years in London, Morocco, Jordan, Kenya. So many bombings believed linked to al Qaeda it sometimes seems the group is a worldwide organization. How big is it really?

There's no way to know for sure because Osama bin Laden's terror network is decentralized. But the non-partisan Council on Foreign Relations says estimates range from just several hundred to several thousand members.

CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen has found similar figures in his research. He estimates the number of al Qaeda members who have sworn allegiance to Osama bin Laden in the low hundreds and those in affiliated groups, like al Qaeda in Iraq at several thousand.

More have gone through training camps, as many as 20,000 before the September 11th attacks, according to the 9/11 Commission. But many are not selected to join al Qaeda.

GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Al Qaeda is public enemy number one in America.

LEVS: Critics say the Bush administration is often too vague in describing al Qaeda. The 9/11 Commission complained of an amorphous picture of the enemy that lowers expectations of government effectiveness. The administration has used some figures to dramatic effect.

For example, in 2004, CIA officials said that of about two dozen at the top of al Qaeda at the time of the 9/11 attacks, three quarters had been captured or killed, an estimate the president expressed this way.

BUSH: Of course we're going to find Osama bin Laden. We've already got 75 percent of his people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(AUDIO GAP)

LEVS: ... also has connections to numerous other terrorist groups. So in that sense it is part of a larger terrorist network and involves many people in places like Indonesia and the number of al Qaeda affiliated groups out there has almost certainly grown under the Iraq War.

WHITFIELD: And so if you break it down to numbers, if al Qaeda itself doesn't have a huge membership, I guess the fact that it has this brand name, if you will, there are other terrorist organizations who might want to be associated with because it's a powerful take- notice kind of label?

LEVS: Isn't that such a sad statement of our time? And it is so true. That that -- that al Qaeda is a brand among terrorists in the world. Al Qaeda did not create a concept of Islamist fundamentalist terrorists. But al Qaeda pulled off what a lot of authorities called spectacular attacks.

And within that world, that community became a brand, absolutely. So what you do find is al Qaeda inspiring a lot of groups out there. Let me give you a huge example, Madrid, remember the train bombings? A lot of people think that was al Qaeda. Well, authorities there have looked into it and there have been major trials. And you know what, they have not said al Qaeda did this.

What they said was Islamic militants inspired by al Qaeda did this. And you're seeing more of that throughout the world. So in a way, while the number for al Qaeda, you're right, may be surprisingly small compared to expectations, the number of copycaters (ph) out there seems to be growing. So that makes al Qaeda more of a phenomenon.

WHITFIELD: Interesting point. So inspired by doesn't necessarily mean instructed by.

LEVS: Right. There might be no links at all, but they're inspired by what al Qaeda did.

WHITFIELD: Right. All right. Josh Levs, thanks so much for looking into it.

Well, it has happened in Mexico. Newspaper offices showered by bullets. Now are American journalists targets? Sources tell several Texas newspapers hit squads plan to kill U.S. journalist who write about Mexico's notorious drug cartels.

One San Antonio newspaper reporter has gone into hiding now. Mexico, second only to Iraq, in the number of journalist deaths.

The United States facing a growing drug infusion from the Caribbean. Justice correspondent Kelli Arena on patrol with the DEA in Puerto Rico.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cat and mouse on the high seas. U.S. drug agents in boats trying to stop a surging wave of South American cocaine from reaching U.S. shores. But the mice have the advantage.

JUAN BERRIOS, DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION: Now they got smart, you know? They say hey, why am I going to just send one ship or one vessel with 500 keys when I can send five?

ARENA: From these waters, it's only 70 miles from Hispaniola, the new transit point for drugs heading to the United States.

BERRIOS: That's a lot of water to cover. And today is daylight. But at night, you won't see them. So if we catch one, then the other four get in.

ARENA: If drugs make it to the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, officials says there are few barriers to keep them from the continental United States. So Puerto Rico, which agents refer to as the third U.S. border, is being bombarded. Smugglers use everything from container ships to small fishing boats like this one, stopped just a few days ago, filled with 130 kilos of cocaine.

(on camera): And so this is...

BERRIOS: As we -- as we lift that up...

ARENA: Ah!

BERRIOS: There we find...

ARENA: Surprise, right?

BERRIOS: There we find all the cocaine in kilos, in small packages...

ARENA: OK.

BERRIOS: ... similar to the one that you see in this picture here.

ARENA (voice-over): The surge in drugs going through Hispaniola signals a strategic shift in the drug war. While a vast majority of Colombian cocaine still travels through Central America, Mexico and then to the United States, officials say 10 percent of the cocaine headed to the U.S. now flows through Hispaniola.

JEROME M. HARRIS, DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY: It's like trying to find a needle in a haystack, as these small single-engine aircraft transit hundreds of miles to a location that we have no idea where they're going.

ARENA: And officials admit the percent of drugs getting into Puerto Rico is remarkably high.

HARRIS: We thought maybe about 20 percent of the actual drugs coming into...

ARENA (on camera): That still leaves 80 percent getting in?

HARRIS: Yes.

ARENA (voice-over): That's despite the feds using all they've got: patrol votes, Black Hawk helicopters, high tech planes, sophisticated radar, even jet skis. But it's not enough. One big factor, help the DEA used to get from other agencies like the Coast Guard is now often diverted elsewhere.

HARRIS: You know, we've lost a tremendous amount of resources as a result of the war, OK? So we have to work a lot smaller and smarter.

ARENA: The war in Iraq is eclipsing the war on drugs, just as the battle of Hispaniola is heating up.

BERRIOS: It's a lot of them against a few of us.

ARENA: Kelli Arena on Yauco, Puerto Rico.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And here's a story that probably won't surprise you at all. Remember the guy who got on an airplane with tuberculosis? Well, some of his fellow passengers are now suing him. But can they win? Our legal eagles weigh in on that next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL AUGE, WITNESS: It came up through here. And you see where the tire marks are? Right here. She was yelling, dial 9-1-1, dial 9-1-1.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Pretty frightening sight in this Minnesota neighborhood. A mother and her 4-month-old baby riding on the hood of a speeding car. You don't want to miss this one. That's straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: This story just in. A settlement involving accusations of sexual abuse. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles will settle its clergy abuse cases for at least $600 million, according to the Associated Press. Five hundred sex abuse cases were heading to trial scheduled for this month. The settlement comes after more than four years of negotiation. All this information, according to the Associated Press. The AP is also reporting that a formal announcement of this settlement is expected officially on Monday. TB or not TB? That is the question. Eight people on one of Andrew Speaker's much-publicized flight are now suing him, saying he may have exposed them to the disease of tuberculosis. Our legal guys will weigh in on this. But let's start with the Phil Spector case. There is never a dull moment in the trial of the music producer charged with murdering an actress. Our legal experts have the latest. Avery Friedman is a civil rights attorney and law professor.

Good to see you.

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTY. & LAW PROFESSOR: Yes, we missed you.

WHITFIELD: I missed you guys, too. And Richard Herman is a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor. Good to see you as well.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTY. & LAW PROFESSOR: We missed you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: I missed you too. Call Peaches & Herb, "Reunited" again, after so long.

(LAUGHTER)

FRIEDMAN: You got it, you got it.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, let's begin with the Phil Spector case. Always bizarre. It gets weirder by the moment. And now we're talking about one of his former counsels who has asked to testify. She does. Now what kind of arm-twisting took place here, Richard, possibly, to get her to testify when isn't there the whole client confidentially code that keeps an attorney usually from talking?

HERMAN: Fred, you are absolutely a lawyer. We know that. You've proven that to us. Actually, the judge made a direction and she has to testify despite that attorney/client privilege. But he said he'll wait to see what the appellate court says on that before he holds her in contempt.

The appellate division in California rejected it, would not take the case. So she was compelled to testify. She came in, she testified about Dr. Henry Lee picking up some sort of item from the floor there. Larger than a fingernail. But that testimony and the ruling of the judge with respect to that is going to preclude Henry Lee from testifying at trial.

WHITFIELD: Oh really? So no chance, Avery, that he would be asked to testify?

FRIEDMAN: Dr. Lee is gone. But you know what, when it gets right down to it, Fredricka, remember two words, Mr. de Souza will be the individual that will result in the likely conviction. So all the games-playing and all of these bizarre characters, Adriano de Souza will be the -- is the chauffeur who was quoted under oath as saying Phil came out, he had a gun in his hand, he said, I think I just killed somebody.

WHITFIELD: Something was wrong, right.

FRIEDMAN: So we're really done. All these defense witnesses, which just started up, by the way, are of very, very little value. We've got a long way to go. Probably about two more weeks. But that's what the jury is thinking right now. That's where the prosecution is zeroing in.

WHITFIELD: So maybe everything else that has preceded this is of very little value. But say, for instance, there was something to make of this item that maybe Henry Lee did or didn't find, and say it was, you know, a fingernail. Why was there such a fight to try and get this testimony in court? What would that have helped I guess establish if it were indeed a fingernail, Richard?

HERMAN: Well, Fred, it looked like the defense was hiding evidence. It looked like the defense found evidence that was incriminating to Spector and withheld it and didn't turn it over to the prosecution. And that -- if a jury ever believed that, that would be devastating to the defense case. So that's why there was such a big war over this.

FRIEDMAN: And Henry is out. Henry Lee is out.

(CROSSTALK)

HERMAN: There are so many other scientific experts that are going to testify as to the blood splatter patterns and gunpowder residue. So the defense is clearly relying on the science to win this case. But, Avery -- you know, you're so right, Avery. That chauffeur who came and gave that riveting testimony, that is devastating to the defense case.

WHITFIELD: Wow. All right. And that was interesting too because apparently there are no grudges because this attorney, Sara Caplan, she apparently even saw Spector afterwards and said she wishes him well.

All right. Let's talk about the TB case, because that has definitely got a lot of people's attention.

FRIEDMAN: For sure.

WHITFIELD: And so, Avery, you know, you have to wonder, does this mean -- does this even set precedence that perhaps if anyone were exposed to someone who has a communicable disease or virus that they can say, wait a minute, this person knowingly put me at harm and so now I'm going to file a lawsuit?

FRIEDMAN: Well, we really don't know because it's Canadian law. But here's where the bottom line is. I love when a lawyer says, we're looking to set precedent. Now here's what that means in shirtsleeve English, Fredricka. It means, I don't probably have the law on my side. My facts are awful. I'm probably going to lose this case so I'm going to call it precedent-setting. And that's where the case is. WHITFIELD: All right. Richard, where do you see this going?

HERMAN: Fred, for about $210, anybody can sue anybody in the United States and in Canada apparently. You know, they're going to have to prove damages. I don't think they can prove damages here unless they have psychiatric bills and therapy bills and they're going through years and months and months. And whether they even get the disease, which none of them have contracted it as a result of this contact, I think it's a joke.

WHITFIELD: Yes, this is like a precautionary suit. No one actually has it or has tested positive.

FRIEDMAN: That's the best you can say about it, I think.

HERMAN: Not happening, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, we're glad to have you guys back. And I'm glad to be back with you.

HERMAN: You look great and we miss you so much.

WHITFIELD: Oh, thanks so much. And hopefully we'll be together again next weekend with other good legal stuff to talk about.

HERMAN: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: All right. You all have a great weekend.

HERMAN: You too.

FRIEDMAN: Take care.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, this -- oh, coming up. A newborn taken on a pretty wild ride, not in a car but on top of one. Here now is report Boyd Huppert with Minneapolis affiliate KARE.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOYD HUPPERT, KARE REPORTER (voice-over): Tuesday night police say Blythe Jarrett was on the hood trying to keep her former boyfriend from taking the car. Dangerous in itself, but her 4-month-old baby girl was on the hood with her as the former boyfriend carried both on a wild one-and-a-half mile ride, both Rarity Abdullah and Jarrett were charged with endangering a child.

AUGE: Somewhere along the line, and you see where the tire marks are right here.

HUPPERT: Michael Auge caught sight of the Honda just after it left Upper Apton Road (ph) and struck his neighbor's tree. Mother and baby still on the hood.

AUGE: She was yelling, dial 9-1-1, dial 9-1-1.

HUPPERT: Jarrett was yelling, the car was stopped and a bystander was pleading with her, get off the car, you know.

HUPPERT (on camera): But she's not moving?

AUGE: No, she's not moving, she's staying on.

HUPPERT (on camera): Then the driver took off.

AMBER PNEWSKI, WITNESS: They did a U-turn because he pulled up on the grass across the street and came back in front of my house, probably going about 55 miles per hour.

HUPPERT: That's when Amber Pnewski noticed the baby.

PNEWSKI: She had her hands held onto the windshield and the baby was laying underneath her chest.

SUSAN GAERTNER, RAMSEY COUNTY ATTORNEY: He was speeding. He ran a red light. He did some U-turns.

HUPPERT: Police finally ended the spat on Old Hudson Road (ph), placing Jarrett's uninjured baby in protective custody, meaning Blythe Jarrett kept her car but lost her baby.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Wow. That's a sad story. All right. Well, police say all this happened just about five hours after the mother got out of jail. She had been arrested for DWI.

Coming up next, she said no to her would-be blackmailers. Risque pictures of Miss New Jersey. That's coming up next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

WHITFIELD: A tale of beauty and blackmail. Jeannie Moos with the latest scandal to rock the pageant world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNIE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Uh-oh. Another beauty queen photo scandal.

(on camera): Exhibit A.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a girl having fun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These doesn't look good, at all.

MOOS (voice-over): But this pageant scandal had a twist.

AMY POLUMBO, MISS NEW JERSEY 2007: I'm presently the victim of blackmail and possible extortion.

MOOS: Someone sent private photos of Miss New Jersey to pageant officials and to Miss New Jersey, herself, Amy Polumbo, saying she should surrender her crown or the photos would be made public.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not a big deal. And only in America would we make such a scandal out of such nonsense.

MOOS: Miss New Jersey had originally posted the nonsense on her private Facebook page. Next thing you know, she's on "The Today Show" calling the blackmailer's bluff by tearfully going public with the pictures.

POLUMBO: I feel sick to my stomach. I really do.

MOOS: She described the photos as silly college fun.

(on camera): Her friends were kidding her that she's flat. So she's playing with these pumpkins.

MOOS (voice-over): Then there was the leggy one, taken in a limo with her friends.

(on camera): For all we know, though, she's just sort of falling back.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know about Jersey girls.

MOOS: What's that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know about Jersey girls.

MOOS: This is actually the worst. That's her boyfriend.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This one here, because it's actually, you know, something is in the mouth. That is probably where I would draw the line.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't need anymore Nicole Richies or Paris Hiltons. We need people that are going to be respectable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anyway, I don't think the crown should be taken away from somebody for things this foolish.

MOOS: Do you have pictures like this at home?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's personal.

(LAUGHTER)

MOOS (voice-over): Not too personal for this woman, who says she has pictures of what she calls her twins.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, I have got to introduce America to the twins.

MOOS: Twin peaks aside, in order to compete for the Miss America title, Amy Polumbo needed to keep her Miss New Jersey crown. And the pageant board had to decide, based on these photos. Not these photos, these were published by The New York Daily News, but they got the wrong girl. The one they circled was a friend of Miss New Jersey's. Hours after "The Today Show" first broadcast the real pictures, New Jersey pageant officials made their ruling.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Amy Polumbo should continue her reign as Miss New Jersey.

MOOS: Miss New Jersey apologized for the trouble the photos had caused. As for the ruling...

POLUMBO: It was absolutely relieving. I feel like I've been crowned again.

MOOS: And just so you don't miss anything about Miss New Jersey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it's that bad.

MOOS: Better put on your glasses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's not good.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So much more ahead in the NEWSROOM. Coming up at 4:00 Eastern, how about some wine with that robbery. We'll have a bizarre story about an armed robber who changed his mind after his victims offered him a glass of wine.

But first, "CNN's SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT," "Danger: Poisoned Food," right after this.

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