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'Jena 6' Defendant; Crackdown in Myanmar; Do Childhood Vaccines Interfere With Brain Development?

Aired September 27, 2007 - 09:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody.

I'm Heidi Collins.

Watch events come into the NEWSROOM live on Thursday, September 27th. Yesterday I said it was December.

Here is what's on the rundown this morning.

Jena 6 defendant Mychal Bell is in court, juvenile court this time. That may lead to bail today.

HARRIS: An unidentified child sexually abused on video. New information today. An older girl on the same tape providing Nevada police with clues.

COLLINS: A chartered boat found empty. Now new claims the crew of the Joe Cool was killed by hijackers.

Mystery at sea, in the NEWSROOM.

Unfolding this morning, his case stays in juvenile court. Will Jena 6 defendant Mychal Bell stay behind bars or get out on bond?

Sean Callebs is on the phone with us this morning from Jena, Louisiana.

Sean, tell us a little bit more about what we're going to be seeing take place this morning?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, a very significant development last night.

The Reverend Al Sharpton meeting with Governor Blanco in Baton Rouge, and late in the evening, the governor and the Reverend Sharpton making an announcement that District Attorney Reed Walters is not going to appeal Mychal Bell's conviction in adult court, meaning the case is definitely now going to play out in juvenile court. And this is significant, because even though the appeals court vacated or threw out the conviction against Bell in adult court, the D.S. still had the opportunity to refile and go back through that court. But now he has chosen not to.

And this is what the Reverend Sharpton had so say about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REV. AL SHARPTON, NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK: If this goes into the juvenile courts, we are not going to interfere with the process once it is fairly where it should be. That is not our role. And I think that we respect the roles of law if the law is being applied properly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: Think back to the rally we saw here last week and so many people wearing shirts that said "Free the Jena 6". Well, it may now be more, let's find adequate or appropriate punishment for the Jena 6.

That is clearly what Sharpton is saying, that, if indeed, Bell and the other defendants end up going through juvenile court, he believes that is a very realistic way that all of this could play out. Of course, the Jena 6 charged with savagely beating a white student at Jena High School late last year, knocking Justin Barker unconscious. He actually needed hospital treatment, but, Heidi, of course he was released later that evening.

COLLINS: Yes, he was.

What about this, though? Reed Walters, of course the LaSalle Parish district attorney, talked about the Jena 6 case in a "New York Times" editorial yesterday. What's he saying about all of this, and is it any surprise that he's not going forward, at least in the adult courts?

CALLEBS: It's difficult to say if it's a surprise, because the D.A. has made it clear all along he is going to dig his heels in. He is going to pursue prosecution in this case.

But as you mentioned, he did have that op-ed article yesterday. And he talked about, if a reporter asked him if he had to do everything all over again, would he do anything differently? He said he didn't think of it at the time, but the answer is yes.

Quoting here, "I would have done a better job of explaining that the offenses of December 4, 2006, did not stem from a 'schoolyard fight' as it has been commonly described in the news media and by critics." Because he goes on to say a schoolyard fight conjures up two guys squaring off and rolling in the dirt and then split up.

COLLINS: Right.

CALLEBS: What he says is Justin Barker walked out and was simply coldcocked, knocked unconscious by Mychal Bell, and then all six of the Jena 6 apparently started kicking him. And that is the reason that D.A. Walters first pursued attempted murder charges against the six, saying that their feet could be a deadly weapon.

COLLINS: All right.

CNN's Sean Callebs for us this morning updating the situation and the court proceedings today with Mychal Bell out of Jena, Louisiana.

Sean, thank you.

HARRIS: And a disturbing story out of Nye County, Nevada. Authorities there asking for your help in identifying a little girl whose life may be in danger.

The girl is around 4 or 5 years old. A videotape shows a man performing sexual acts on her. Authorities do not know who the man is.

The tape also shows a second girl believed to be 10 to 12 years old. Authorities say the older girl was not a victim in the same way as the younger girl.

The older girl has been identified. Authorities say she is safe and well.

Authorities say the videotape was given to them by 26-year-old Darren Tuck (ph). Tuck (ph) told detectives he found the videotape in the desert more than five months ago. Investigators don't believe Tuck (ph) made the tape, but he has been charged with possessing child pornography.

And coming up next hour, we will take a closer look at this disturbing case with Jon Lieberman of "America's Most wanted". That's in the 10:00 a.m. Eastern hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Prosecutors planning to retry Phil Spector. His murder case ending in a mistrial. The jury unable to reach a verdict. A new hearing is now set for October 3rd.

The Grammy award-winning record producer is accused killing the movie actress Lana Clarkson in 2003. The defense claims she committed suicide.

Hopes dashed. A young blonde girl photographed in Morocco is not the missing British toddler Madeleine McCann. That's according to a journalist who tracked down the child in the picture.

A grainy photo taken recently by a tourist showing a child riding on the back of a woman. The child resembling the missing British girl. But a reporter with the British newspaper "The Evening Standard" traveled to Morocco to investigate and now says it is not Madeleine. The 4-year-old disappeared while on vacation with her family in Portugal in May.

HARRIS: Let's get a check of weather now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: How about this? An alert.

COLLINS: Yes.

HARRIS: Boy, we're talking about this all of the time, it seems, every week, an alert to parents of babies and toddlers. A recall was just announced for some 425,000 playpens.

The recall involves 12 models of Playard brand playpens manufactured by Kolcraft Enterprises. The recall follows the death of a 10-month-old child. The playpens include a changing table restraint strap.

Now, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says that strap is a strangulation hazard. Consumers are being asked to cut off the strap and contact the company for a repair kit.

The company's Web site is www.kolcraft.com. The phone number, 888-655-8484.

And happening this hour, reports of a bloody crackdown in Myanmar. The secretive Asian nation once known as Burma, reports of several people shot as soldiers fire on protesters.

Live now to CNN's Dan Rivers, monitoring the situation from neighboring Thailand.

Dan, good to see you. What is the very latest that you're hearing?

DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's been an awful bloody day in Yangon today with the troops firing on protesters, firing on monks. We're being told that tear gas is being used, that several people have been shot dead. It's difficult to pin down the numbers exactly of how many people have been killed, but certainly several people from what we've been hearing that have been shot dead.

We're also hearing that the monasteries have been raided, that monks have been arrested and taken away. There have been pictures on the Web sites that we've been monitoring of blood on the floor of some monasteries. And so a pretty awful day in Yangon.

HARRIS: And Dan, if you would, can you just take us back on the story a bit? Because for a lot of folks, this is just popping on their radar.

What precipitated all of this? And I understand there was a pretty steep hike in the price of energy that might have been at the root of this.

RIVERS: That's right. The regime actually imposed a massive price increase in fuel in Myanmar.

To fill you in on bit of the background, this country has been run by the army for about 45 years. A vicious military (INAUDIBLE) which has suppressed any form of democracy.

Then about a month ago, they were under a lot of economic pressure. They doubled the price of fuel. This led to increasing protests, vocal anger against the regime. And those protests have snowballed into a much broader challenge to the authority of this military government, and now there is open defiance on the streets. And finally, the army is cracking down in the most brutal and violent fashion.

HARRIS: And Dan, one final question. Who can stop it? I hear a lot of folks mentioning the name China.

RIVERS: Yes. Unfortunately, there's very little that most people think that the U.S. or Britain or the EU can do in terms of action. There are already sanctions in place.

Everyone is saying China is the key to all of this because China is the biggest trading partner. It buys a lot of natural gas from Myanmar. It supplies arms, technology, and is really its sort of big brother in the neighborhood. And it's China that has the political and economic clout to bring this regime in and to stop this violence.

HARRIS: Dan Rivers for us.

Dan, appreciate it. Thank you.

COLLINS: Well, he lives in Cuba. His younger daughter lives in the U.S. A court ruling today will span two countries and a world of pain.

HARRIS: Piracy on the high seas or a tall tale to cover up a crime? A charter boat passenger tells his story about what happened to the crew.

COLLINS: Bill O'Reilly's controversial comments about dining in Harlem. What are they saying at Sylvia's?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think is shows his ignorance and his bigotry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This, to me, I don't really feel like he is being rude or -- I don't take offense to it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His intent may not have been racist but it reads as racist. It felt racist to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: CNN's Rick Sanchez follows the fallout.

HARRIS: And do childhood vaccines interfere with brain development? Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us live with new findings.

You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Welcome back, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The D.A. decides not to retry him as an adult. New developments involving the jena 6 defendant.

Live breaking news, unfolding developments. See for yourself in the CNN newsroom.

A new study adding to the debate over a vaccine preservative. It's called Thimerosal. Does it affect neurological development in children? A lot of people wanting to know.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta is in Washington for us this morning.

Sanjay, what does the new study tell us? Is there a definitive answer here?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there appears to be some definitive answers, and some of it's reassuring with regards to several different neurological problems. But not autism, which is the question that a lot of people have. Autism wasn't specifically looked at in this study. And those results are expected out in about a year or so.

But they tried to figure out whether Thimerosal, which is this mercury preservative that used to be found in a lot of childhood vaccines, was related to about 42 neurological disorders, and the answer seemed to come back no. About a thousand children were studied over a period of time looking at specifically at mercury levels, looking specifically for some of these things -- speech, language skill problems, motor coordination, intelligence problems. And besides one interesting finding, all of these seem to be negative.

They did seem to find that boys who had higher levels of mercury were more likely to have problems with tic disorders, where they might have motor problems or some sort of speech disorder with a tic type thing. But besides that, it seemed to be pretty reassuring.

COLLINS: Well, that's good. But isn't Thimerosal an ingredient that used to be in vaccines? I mean, can kids still be exposed to it now?

GUPTA: Well, it used to be. And it was taken out right around in 2001 in most childhood vaccines.

There's about 14 different vaccines that children might receive, and Thimerosal is not found in those anymore. It is found in some of the flu shots, though, still.

Now, you may remember, Heidi, you and I talked about the fact that the flu nasal mist is actually approved now for children under the age of 2 as well. That doesn't have Thimerosal in it. So they have options as far as not getting the mercury preservative if the parents don't want them to have it.

COLLINS: What about negative effects though of actually taking this particular preservative, Thimerosal, out of the vaccines?

GUPTA: Well, you know, it's an interesting question, because, you know, Thimerosal was around since the 1930s. And the whole idea was that these vaccines could be exposed to bacterial infections. So you needed some sort of good preservative to give it a longer shelf life, and Thimerosal, you know, a derivative of mercury, seemed to be a pretty good option at that time.

It hasn't been in there for some time and there doesn't seem to be any uptick in terms of infecting these vaccines at all. There's other options now that they have in terms of keeping those vaccines safe.

So really haven't seen the negative effects. Obviously, there's a huge psychological effect. A lot of people believe that Thimerosal is linked to several different things, and the fact that it was taken out was sort of an indictment of those vaccines. And that's something that obviously circulates. A lot of people talk about that still today.

COLLINS: Yes, but as you mentioned, you know, this study really didn't look at autism. And there has been, you know, a lot of discussion about whether or not it's possible that children who end up with autism may have gotten it from some type of vaccine.

Are there going to be more studies that will directly focus on whether or not that might be the case?

GUPTA: Yes, there are going to be more studies. In fact, the same group is planning another study and the results specifically looking at Thimerosal and autism. That study should be out in about a year or so.

A lot of people believe exactly what you're saying, that it either caused autism or sort of triggered autism, or something like that. And I have to tell you that, you know, after talking to some of the researchers, looking at the data, I'm not sure that the study that's coming out in a year will definitively answer this for a lot of people out there who are going to believe this no matter what. But, you know, at least it's going to be more data, actually, pointing in one direction or another.

We don't know what the study is going to show yet, but I think it's going to be more definitive than some of the existing studies already out there.

COLLINS: Yes. Well, that will be good. I can only imagine, you know, people looking at this and saying, well, my child was perfectly healthy, I took him in for the vaccine, and now they're not.

GUPTA: Well, it's so complicated. And you and I both have children. And, you know, I thought about it a lot as my older daughter was getting her shots.

I mean, I think a lot of people do think about this. But the overwhelming evidence to date, at least the scientific evidence, suggests that there does not appear to be a link between Thimerosal and autism.

COLLINS: All right. Well, we will continue to look at that, of course.

All right. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much.

GUPTA: Thank you.

HARRIS: Was he making a point or being insensitive? Bill O'Reilly's comments about African-Americans.

CNN's Rick Sanchez talks to diners at Sylvia's in Harlem.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, here's what he says, after coming and eating here. This is Mr. O'Reilly.

He says, "I couldn't get over the fact that there was no difference between Sylvia's restaurant and any restaurant in New York City. I mean, it was exactly the same, even though it was run by blacks." And then he goes on to say, "There wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, 'M-Fer,' you know, I want more iced tea.'"

What do you make of that comment?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it shows his ignorance and his bigotry.

SANCHEZ: Is it possible that African-Americans are overly sensitive on issues like this?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His comments come off as racist to me, because he's assuming that he's going to find, in an African-American restaurant, what's in his mind has been there for 20 or 30 years ago, which is not today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You would think the man is visiting from Mars.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People take things out of context, and, you know, make a big story out of something, when he was really trying to say that this is a great place. It is a great place.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His intent may not have been racist, but it reads as racist. It felt racist to me. But I think it's just an example of a lack of understanding about black culture.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This -- to me, I don't really feel like he's being rude, or -- I don't take offense to it. But, then again, I'm coming from a conservative household and everything, too.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of times, people have preconceived ideas about what's going on, but when they come and find out, everything is everything.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Checking up on security contractors in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY: My concern is whether there has been sufficient accountability and oversight in the region over the activities of these security companies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Holding private contractors accountable.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: New twist in a mystery at sea. A charter boat passenger recounting what happened to the missing crew. But authorities skeptical.

CNN's Susan Candiotti reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): One of two people who likely know what really happened to the crew of four who vanished is blaming pirates. Nineteen-year-old passenger Guillermo Zarabozo told investigators hijackers shot and killed the captain and his wife and then executed two other crew members for refusing to dump the bodies overboard. In an FBI affidavit, Zarabozo says he did what he was told and got rid of the bodies.

LT. COMMANDER CHRIS O'NEIL, U.S. COAST GUARD: Does piracy occur on the high seas? Sure. Does it occur with any frequency in the waters near the United States? No.

CANDIOTTI: The affidavit offers no explanation for how Zarabozo and his 34-year-old traveling companion, Kirby Archer, were able to escape with their luggage in a raft. The FBI found Zarabozo's I.D. on the boat, yet, agents say, Zarabozo denied being on the boat. They also found a handcuff key and possible blood on the stern.

Archer is wanted in Arkansas for allegedly stealing $92,000 from a Wal-Mart where he worked. Archer is being held as a fugitive and Zarabozo has been charged with lying to agents.

The missing captain's family is convinced both men are in the thick of it, and asks them this...

JON BRANAM, MISSING CAPTAIN'S COUSIN: What did you do with my family? You know, where are they? What happened? Or why did you do this?

CANDIOTTI: The Pentagon says Archer used to be an Army MP. In divorce papers, Archer says he was once AWOL. The same document includes allegations from his ex-wife that Archer once gave her a black eye. MICHELLE ROWE, ARCHER'S EX-WIFE: When we were together, I know him to be a violent man. He was physically, verbally, emotionally abusive towards me. So I do think of him as a violent man, and he is capable of anything.

CANDIOTTI: The Coast Guard may soon end its search for the missing crew. A bond hearing for the two men is scheduled for Friday.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Two provisions of the Patriot Act ruled unconstitutional. A federal judge says they violate the Fourth Amendment.

At issue, using secret wiretaps and searches to gather criminal evidence rather than intelligence. The judge says that's a violation of the right against unreasonable searches and seizures.

The Justice Department is reviewing the ruling. The case stem from a lawsuit by an Oregon attorney wrongly accused in the Madrid train bombings.

COLLINS: He lives in Cuba. His young daughter lives in the U.S. A court ruling today will span two countries and a world of pain.

HARRIS: A mother and her piglets taking up residence in a lady's front yard. What?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my god! There's a bull coming down on our lawn! My lawn is a total disaster.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: The country hogs become what's for dinner? No, I'm sorry, no, what a mess.

The story coming up.

I'm sorry.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Good morning, everybody.

9:30 on a Thursday morning.

Nice to see you.

I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. The only Jena 6 defendant still behind bars could be released from jail this morning. The district attorney has decided not to appeal a decision sending Mychal Bell's case to juvenile court. That could pave the way for him to be freed on bond. Bell and five other students are accused of beating a white classmate. A week ago, more than 15,000 protesters marched in Jena, Louisiana on behalf of Bell and the other defendants. They accused local officials of prosecuting blacks more harshly than whites. Authorities deny that race was an issue in the case.

COLLINS: We want to get to this story this morning now, coming to us out of Chicago.

According to the Associated Press, we are understanding that authorities in a suburb of Chicago have found a body in a forest preserve. It's not very far from where this missing woman in Chicago's car was actually found abandoned.

We want to emphasize here that it is not clear whether or not this body is that of Nailah Franklin. She has been missing since September 19th. And you just saw the pictures of her. Authorities have not been able to identify the body yet.

But that being said, they have found a body in a forest preserve, apparently not far from where her car was abandoned.

You may remember this story. She's 28-years-old. Her family has offered a reward of $10,000 for information that could lead to her whereabouts. She was a pharmaceutical sales representative. She is a pharmaceutical sales representative, pardon me, that was reported missing after she didn't show up to a pretty important meeting at work.

So once again this morning, we are now reporting that authorities in Calumet City, to be exact, have found a body in Wentworth Woods Forest Preserve. Again, not very far from where Miss. Franklin's car was found abandoned.

We'll follow that story for you.

HARRIS: A key ruling expected this morning in an international custody case reminiscent of Elian Gonzalez. A father in Cuba foster, parents in the United States and a child in the middle of this legal tug of war.

CNN's Susan Candiotti sets the stage.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's hard not to draw comparisons to Elian Gonzales, when one of the main players in this latest custody battle is the man seen here tossing a baseball to then 6-year-old Elian.

Former Miami sports agent Joe Cubas and his wife are foster parents to a little Cuban girl who, at the request of a judge, the media has agreed not to identify. Unlike Elian, the girl's Cuban father didn't object when his daughter moved with her mother and 13- year-old half brother to Miami in 2005.

But soon after arriving, the mother attempted suicide and the State of Florida judged her unfit to be a parent. The mother lost custody of both children. Ever since, the girl's father, a farmer in Cuba, has been fighting to take his daughter home and won a visa, just as Elian's father did, to wage his battle in battle in person.

"I am her father and adore my daughter very much," says Rafael Izquierdo. He adds: "I'm a father who has proven his love for his daughter. Of course, I believe children belong with their parents."

While foster parents to the girl, Cubas and his wife already have adopted the girl's half-brother. They argue the children should not be split.

JOE CUBAS, FOSTER PARENT: I don't believe this a matter of where their better life could be provided. A more important issue is these two children have been together their entire lives.

CANDIOTTI: Cubas won fame for helping Cuban baseball players to defect, including Major League pitchers Orlando and Livan Hernandez.

The little girl's father says politics and fame aren't the issue, blood lines are.

(on camera): Anonymous American donors are paying for the father's trip here. By the way, the mother says she thinks the children ought to return to Cuba and she says she wants to go home, too, because she is disenchanted with life here. The trial could take a few weeks.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

HARRIS: And very quickly, a live picture now of the courtroom where the hearing is just about to get underway.

Our Susan Candiotti is monitoring the situation.

And we will get an update from Susan shortly right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Reports of soldiers firing into a huge crowd of protesters in Myanmar, the secretive Asian country once known as Burma. Japan confirms one of its citizens was among those shot and killed. This comes as tens of thousands of people took to the streets for a tenth straight day of marches, reportedly defying orders from the ruling military to disperse or face extreme action. At least 10 people were reportedly shot. But CNN has not confirmed those numbers.

Buddhist monks had been leading these anti-government demonstrations. We're told the military overnight launched raids on monasteries and have contained the monks in their temples. HARRIS: Private security personnel working in Iraq -- are they operating legally?

The defense secretary wants to know. And it's not just Blackwater that is under scrutiny.

Here's CNN's Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Determined to head off any Blackwater type incident under his watch, the defense secretary dispatches his own team of investigators to Iraq.

ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: My concern is whether there has been sufficient accountability and oversight in the region over the activities of these security companies. And that's the main thing that our team is looking into out there.

TODD: The Blackwater contractors involved in this month's shooting in Baghdad are under the State Department's authority. The military has more than 7,000 of its own private security contractors there, many of them guarding important U.S. and Iraqi government sites.

Pentagon officials say Gates was not satisfied with recent answers he's gotten about how they operate. But the Pentagon doesn't want its contractors lumped in with others.

GEOFFREY MORRELL, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: But this notion that there are these -- that people are running around lawlessly in Iraq with guns and under our authority is just not an accurate portrayal.

TODD: One of Gates' deputies, meanwhile, has sent a memo to commanders in Iraq, making sure they know their responsibilities for holding contractors accountable. But the fallout from the Blackwater incident remains intense. The Iraqi interior ministry claims the contractors shot and killed as many as 20 civilians. An industry source says the company was responding to a hostile attack.

State Department officials are now fending off reports that the Pentagon has pressed them to assert more control over Blackwater.

TOM CASEY, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: We're in this together. This not a Department of State problem. It's not a Department of Defense problem. It's a U.S. government problem.

TODD: A problem that may be around a while. One Pentagon contractor who has worked in Iraq says of Blackwater and other private security contractors, Iraqis hate them. They run roughshod. They're abusive. They're undermining what we're trying to accomplish with the Iraqis.

(on camera): Contacted by CNN, a Blackwater official said among those who know about the situation in Iraq, more people remain supportive of their operations there than critical. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COLLINS: Let's take a moment now to check in with Rob Marciano, who is watching things sort of near Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, all those fine, fine states.

HARRIS: The map work. The map...

COLLINS: Rob, what's happening?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: We want to thank you about this now -- a recall alert. More than 500,000 toys made in China.

The problem?

Again it's the lead paint. The list is long, but some of the toys include Toby and Me Jewelry Sets. You can see a photo of that there. Floor Puppet Theaters sold at specialty stores and gift shops. And more Thomas & Friends wooden railway toys.

HARRIS: Oh, boy.

COLLINS: Those are sold nationwide.

For a complete list, though, of all of these recalled toys, you can go to the Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site. That's cpsc.gov.

HARRIS: An infant dies after treatment with an unapproved drug. Twenty years later, her mother can't believe unapproved drugs are still on the market.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUE GIBSON WHITE, DAUGHTER DIED: I did not realize there were still drugs out there that weren't being monitored or approved. I don't even -- I still, to this day, do not understand how they get out there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: We're talking about drugs not approved by the FDA, but sold at your pharmacy.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Want to get you a little bit more information on this story that's just in to CNN we have been following, the story of a missing woman in Chicago. Fredricka Whitfield is in THE NEWSROOM now to give us a little bit more information about a body that's been found -- Fred, we reported before that there's been no I.D. on that body yet?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Right. The body was located not far from the place where Nailah Franklin's vehicle was also located. No connection being made in terms of the body found and this young lady. But she has been missing for sometime. Her friends and family have held vigils for her. The last they had heard from her, she had sent a text message saying she was getting together with someone and the next thing you know she was a missing person.

So, again, no connection being made to the vehicle that was hers located in the same location where now a body has been found. We continue to reach out to a number of sources there to find out exactly where the investigation goes from here. But her family has been waiting and wondering for sometime now, hoping that there will be a positive resolution to the fact that she's been missing now for many days, almost a week now -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, boy, I sure hope so for them, as well.

Fred, thanks so much for that.

Also, missing British toddler -- a photograph in Morocco. A journalist goes looking for the answer. We'll tell you what she found.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Your doctor writes a prescription, your pharmacy fills it and you probably never consider whether the FDA has approved the drug. Maybe you should.

CNN's Gary Tuchman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jacque White kept a diary during the 28 days of her infant daughter's life.

JACQUE GIBSON WHITE, DAUGHTER DIED: "Her kidney reads normal and the cultures came back negative. That is what is so puzzling. I can't bear to write about the nightmarish events of that last 12 hours. Rachel Ann was born on a Wednesday and died on Tuesday, the first day of spring."

TUCHMAN: Jacque didn't find out why her daughter died until 13 years later. That's when she was told by a lawyer that the hospital had given E-Ferol, an unapproved drug that the FDA later recalled after 37 more infants died.

WHITE: "We will never forget our last moments with her. She was so peaceful and beautiful."

TUCHMAN: The FDA says 2 percent of all prescription drugs sold in the U.S. are for drugs that it has never approved -- 65 million prescriptions a year.

(on camera): Did you know the drugs you were manufacturing, did you know they did not have FDA approval when you manufactured them?

MUHAMMAD MALIK, SYNTHO/INTERMAX PHARMACEUTICALS: I did know that it did not require that due process of FDA approval. That, I knew.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Yet, Malik says he still sold his unapproved pills to pharmacies and major drugstores, like Kmart, Rite- Aid, CVS.

MALIK: Pretty much all the big companies, they will have it, because I had a very good distribution system.

TUCHMAN: Walking through his factory, Malik tells us it's too expensive and too bureaucratic for small companies like his to go through clinical trials to get approval. And he's just fine with that.

(on camera): I mean, can you understand how some people, when they find out, consumers, that their drugs aren't approved, they're pretty shocked about it?

MALIK: As a layman, I believe it still becomes the FDA's responsibility to let the consumers know that an unapproved product doesn't mean it is a bad product.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Yet, Malik says he still sold his unapproved generic pills to pharmacies and major drugstores. The FDA went to court to stop Malik from selling these drugs, dropping its lawsuit after he voluntarily recalled the drugs.

MALIK: I could have fought back with that, but that was not worthy.

TUCHMAN: So how could Malik have sold unapproved drugs at all?

How could he get doctors to prescribe them and drugstores to stock them?

(on camera): In your opinion, did the FDA know you were manufacturing these drugs?

MALIK: Absolutely. Absolutely.

TUCHMAN: Unapproved drugs?

MALIK: Unapproved drugs, absolutely.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): It turns out it's the FDA itself that makes it possible for Malik and others to sell unapproved drugs. And it still does -- by giving them this little 10-digit number called the NDC number, for national drug code.

The FDA provides this number to any company that says it has a new drug. And here's the catch -- it provides the number to track them before the drugs are approved. DEBORAH AUTOR, FDA DIRECTOR OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE: An NDC number is not necessarily -- in fact, is not evidence that a drug is approved. We have granted NDC numbers to drugs regardless of whether they're approved.

TUCHMAN: And yet it's that number that lets pharmacies order those drugs, whether they have received FDA approval or not.

Some congressmen are steamed about it.

REP. EDWARD MARKEY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: There is a regulatory black hole that makes it possible for the pharmaceutical companies to be able to get the drugs to the stores that sell them without the FDA being able to monitor it.

TUCHMAN: Jacque White, the mother of Rachel Ann, says she can't believe this problem hasn't been fixed more than 20 years after her daughter died.

WHITE: I did not realize there were still drugs out there that weren't being monitored or approved. I don't even -- I still, to this day, do not understand how they get out there.

TUCHMAN: Now, finally, the FDA says it's cracking down, issuing more warnings and even pulling drugs off the market. And now it's also considering changing the way it issues those 10-digit NDC numbers.

AUTOR: It's possible that we will only give NDC numbers to approved drugs.

TUCHMAN: But Congressman Ed Markey says the FDA should do more than that -- and do it faster. For starters, he says, the FDA needs to come clean with a complete list of unapproved drugs.

MARKEY: In a modern era, in an Internet era, it makes no sense that a list cannot be put together in order to determine whether or not a drug has been approved by the FDA.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Do you have a list of the 2 percent of drugs that aren't approved?

AUTOR: There's no one list of the 2 percent. We have a number of sources that we use to generate our understanding of the unapproved drugs that are out there.

TUCHMAN: Do you know what all the unapproved drugs are?

AUTOR: We pretty much know.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But, for now, the FDA won't release a complete list of unapproved drugs, like these that Malik sold. It won't say how many people have been killed or hurt by unapproved drugs. It won't even say which unapproved drugs or how many of them have killed or injured people.

Why? Partly because it doesn't want to stigmatize drugs that have a good track record.

But what about all those unapproved drugs that may be dangerous or deadly?

For now, with the FDA still holding out, there is simply no way to know.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Newport News, Virginia

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Authorities in Nevada are looking for your help in identifying a little girl in danger. We're going to be talking with the "America's Most Wanted" correspondent working on the case, after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A frightening scenario for Americans...

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Could a large scale simultaneous cyber attack knock out power to a huge part of the country for months?

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COLLINS: Stick around for answer that may cause you to wonder.

HARRIS: Exercise may be good for you, but not if you don't do it correctly. Using the wrong technique while exercising can cause injuries in your 30s, 40s and 50s.

Here's CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Calling 49-year-old Nyetta Nichols competitive is probably an understatement.

NYETTA NICHOLS, TENNIS PLAYER: I get so intense. But I love -- I love the sport. I love it. I love it.

GUPTA: Her ground strokes, well, they're improving. But her joints are suffering from something called overuse injuries.

DR. NICHOLAS DINUBILE, AUTHOR, "FRAMEWORK": They're the ones that build up overtime from running, jumping, overhead activity like a tennis serve, repetitive activity over time that the body cannot adapt or adjust to, the body begins to break down.

GUPTA: The result? Small tears called micro damage in the joints. Those tears cause inflammation like tendonitis or bursitis, even stress fractures.

In your 30s, overuse may not be a factor -- yet. But improper technique is a recipe for problems.

NICHOLS: The little things that I do wrong, and then all of a sudden, you just move and that knee says no, not like that.

GUPTA: Leave that technique uncorrected and that micro damage builds, spelling worse injuries in the 40s and 50s.

NICHOLAS: Like those gray hairs and wrinkles, our collagen, which is the building blocks of our tendons and ligaments and so on, they're not quite as elastic as they used to be, and you get thee micro tears. The circulation isn't as good and these parts become vulnerable.

GUPTA: For minor pain, over-the-counter pain medications may work. But if the pain is persistent or lasts more than a day, don't ignore it. Go see your doctor.

NICHOLAS: Number one, they can get worse or they can turn into a bigger problem that needs surgery. And number two, you're not going to perform as well and you're not be comfortable and enjoy the activities.

GUPTA: So how do you avoid overuse injuries in the first place?

Well, spend more time warming up before you play. Ice down afterwards. And if your technique isn't great, get a coach.

NICHOLAS: Don't wait until it gets to be a bigger problem because many of these do.

GUPTA: Nichols has joint problems. Still, she's determined to keep playing.

NICHOLS: I want to play until I just can't do it anymore.

GUPTA: Addressing those overuse injuries is the first step.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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