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Manhunt for Child Rape Suspect; Hamburger Recall; New Term For High Court; Gerri's Top Tips
Aired October 01, 2007 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: ID cards, the rights of terror suspects. The United States Supreme Court opens a new term today, the first Monday in October. You are in the NEWSROOM.
The terror of Virginia Tech still fresh. The University of Memphis acts quickly this morning, shutting down the campus and canceling classes after a student is shot and killed. Police are still looking for the suspect, but they don't have much to work with yet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGER PREWITT, MEMPHIS POLICE: We don't know who the suspects are and we don't have anybody that can -- right now that can pinpoint what happened. All we got right now is they heard a shot and then they saw the car drive away. Naturally people running because of a shot being fired and the victim ended up here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: We are hearing from our affiliates on the ground there that the victim is 21-year-old Taylor Bradford (ph). He's a university football play. Police say Bradford left his dorm last night, headed to his car, and that is when someone shot him. Police say Bradford managed to get in his car and drive away, but later crashed into a tree. Police are calling this a targeted killing, not a random crime.
And revelations this morning about an accused child rapist. Police say Chester Stiles videotaped a brutal attack on a three-year- old. The little girl, who is now seven, is safe. The manhunt for Stiles, though, is still on. Dan Simon is joining us now live from Las Vegas.
Dan, I know you had a chance to talk with the suspect's ex- girlfriends. It's pretty amazing that this guy is still out there.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, pretty incredible, Heidi.
You know, the woman we talked to says she's the reason why Chester Stiles came to know this little girl in the first place. She says that her two children shared an apartment with the little girl and the mother. And all of a sudden, all the family, they got together. Here's some of what she had to say. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SIMON, (voice over): CNN obtained this home video showing Chester Stiles in a far different light than what he's accused of.
CHESTER STILES: He's got two hands full of licorice and he's . . .
SIMON: Acting as a fun, caring guy to his girlfriend.
STILES: It's not even connected, dude.
SIMON: And her children at a Las Vegas park.
TINA ALLEN, SUSPECTS FORMER GIRLFRIEND: He can be very charming, beguiling.
SIMON: Tina Allen says she thought she knew Stiles better than anyone. She says she'd been in an on and off again relationship with him for 10 years. Allen says she was excited when the athletic 6'2" man first asked her out.
Describe how he was around your family.
ALLEN: He was good with my kids. Said he'd been in the Navy and, you know, I was looking for a strong guy to represent to my sons what I thought they needed to be.
SIMON: The relationship blossomed. Stiles moved in with her. So it would have been very normal for Allen to take Stiles over to her son and daughter's crowded apartment.
ALLEN: He cultivated being Mr. Trustworthy. You know, you can trust me with kids.
SIMON: Among those also living in the apartment, a family friend and her three-year-old girl. A girl detectives say seen in this home video allegedly molested by Stiles.
Is it Chester Stiles on that type?
ALLEN: It's Chester Stiles on that tape. It is him.
SIMON: How is this weighing on you knowing that you're the one who brought him to this apartment?
ALLEN: I'm disgusted. I'm ashamed. I'm embarrassed. I'm mortified. I regret every step I ever took. I feel bad for the baby.
SIMON: Looking back, Allen says she completely missed the warning signs. Stiles had a lengthy rap sheet, had been accused of committing lewd acts on a child. Stiles, she says, also had a violent streak. She says he once hit her, but she did not file a police report. And she says there were also some creepy comments about him wanting to have a daughter.
ALLEN: He would point out, oh, isn't she so cute. Look at her. She's so cute. I always wanted a little girl. I was so disappointed when my son was born.
SIMON: Now Allen blames herself for what police say happened to the little girl.
ALLEN: Why couldn't I have recognized something? You know, why are all these people going through this torture now? Because of me.
SIMON: A few months ago, Allen says she ended their relationship. She says it was just time to move on. Stiles is now a wanted man by police, but Allen says it won't be easy to catch him.
ALLEN: He will hide out in the mountains if that's what it takes. He'll hide out in a crowd. He'll find somebody who hasn't heard anything and stay there. He has skills. He knows how to hunt. He knows how to -- I mean hunt with a gun, a knife, a bow.
SIMON: Chester Stiles, a one-time father figure, now accused of a most heinous crime against a child.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIMON: Well, Tina Allen says she actually saw Chester Stiles about a week ago. Believe it or not, he actually went to her house. They had a friendly chat. This was before he was accused of actually molesting this little girl. So he wasn't acting nervous whatsoever. This is before this tape came out. Meanwhile, obviously Tina Allen hope that he's caught. As you can imagine how she feels a tremendous sense of guilt about what allegedly took place.
Heidi.
COLLINS: It really does amaze you, as we hear more and more, especially from her now, about this man, that he's still out there. I also know that the guy who first originally turned this tape over, Darren Tuck, he turned himself in over the weekend as well. They must be getting a lot of information about this guy.
SIMON: Well, such a strange story there. You know, this guy says he found this tape in the desert and he held on to it for five months. He didn't really give a clear explanation why he was hanging on to it. Authorities probed him and then they him go and then they realized, you know what, we need to bring this guy in again. We need to ask him some more questions. There was a manhunt for him and then he eventually just turned himself in over this weekend. Of course, authorities want to know if there's any sort of connection between Darren Tuck and Chester Stiles. At this point they have found no connection.
Heidi.
COLLINS: Wow. That's wild. All right, Dan Simon, thanks so much for that.
And just want to let our viewers know that we are going to be talking more about this. We're going to have a criminal profiler and a former FBI agent on to try and learn more about what type of person this Chester Stiles is.
Meanwhile, though, a major ground beef recall to tell you about. Nearly 22 million pounds of frozen meat pulled. Possible E. Coli illnesses in this eight states. CNN's Jim Acosta is working this story for us, joining us now live from New York inside a grocery story there.
Jim, give us an idea of just how big this recall is.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's a massive recall, Heidi, 22.5 million pounds, actually a little bit less than 22 million pounds. And many supermarkets did not start pulling this product from their shelves until over the weekend, but Topps, the maker of these products, may have known about this potential contamination for weeks.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA, (voice over): Samantha Safranek contracted E. Coli and was hospitalized after eating a Topps frozen patty bought at this Wal- Mart a month and a half ago.
SAMANTHA SAFRANEK, FORMER PATIENT: In the back of my mind, I had that question if I was going to making it.
ANNA SAFRANEK, SAMANTHA'S MOTHER: It just wasn't fair that, you know, the kid eats the hamburger and then ends up almost dying.
ACOSTA: After Samantha's mother contacted health officials in Florida, Wal-Mart pulled the patties on August 30th. But that was nearly a month before Topps issued its recall, then expanded it over the weekend, all the while supermarkets were still selling potentially tainted products. Samantha's family is now suing Wal-Mart.
SCOTT SCHLESINGER, SAFRANEK FAMILY ATTORNEY: If the food is not safe and the companies that are selling us, the consumers, the food, know it's not safe, they need to tell us.
ACOSTA: Federal and state food safety investigators are now trying to pinpoint the contamination source, saying it could be anywhere, from the slaughterhouse, to the Topps processing plant. The USDA has ordered Topps to suspend operations citing, "inadequate raw ground process controls." Public health advocates say the government needs more inspectors.
CAROL SMITH DEWAAL, CENTER FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: There have been six recalls since April of contaminated ground beef. This is the worst summer we've had in a number of years for these outbreaks and recalls.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: And, in fact, this supermarket that we're standing in right now actually had some of that ground beef, those frozen beef patties, that were effected by this recall. We informed the store manager who pulled the product off of his shelves. So the word is still getting out there that some of this product may still be in supermarkets across the country.
Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, boy, that's a little bit scary. Everybody takes a while before all these things go into effect.
All right, Jim, appreciate it.
Meanwhile, a family mourning a mother and wanting to know how she died in police custody. Police say Carol Ann Gotbaum was arrested on Friday at the Phoenix Airport. A U.S. Airway spokesman said Gotbaum was bumped from a flight for being late to the gate and then became really angry. Police handcuffed her and took her to a holding room. While she was there, they say she may have tried to get out of her handcuffs and accidentally strangled herself. Gotbaum's step mother- in-law is New York City Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum. She spoke to reporters yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BETSY GOTBAUM, CAROL ANNE'S STEPMOTHER-IN-LAW: Carol was a wonderful, wonderful person. She was a wonderful mother. She was sweet and kind and loving. At this moment we are awaiting the results of the investigation. We don't know any more than has been reported in the press. This is obviously very, very difficult for us. We are dealing with it as best we can. My number one focus is those children and my stepson.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: An autopsy is scheduled for today, but it could be up to 90 days before the results are released.
Jacqui Jeras is joining us now with some more activity there in Florida. Some nasty stuff coming through, right?
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: A noose around the neck of a young child. Part of an elementary school lesson on lynching. The investigation ahead.
And the Supreme Court focusing on diversion issues this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PROF. DOUGLAS KMIEC, PEPPERDINE LAW SCHOOL: The cases it's taken so far look to me as if the liberals might, indeed, have the edge on the term coming forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: We'll take a look at the cases before the court. Let those hearings begin.
And don't leave home without it. Starting today you will need your passport for travel to visit the neighbors. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Heidi Collins.
Trying to secure Baghdad's dangerous neighborhoods.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One hundred twenty volunteers are active in this neighborhood providing some security during the day. But the night remains violent. The police seem unable or unwilling to do anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: A distant hope. The battle for peace on the streets.
And image problem for the U.S. Navy. Internet photos show a disturbing design flaw, and it won't be cheap to fix it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A noose around the neck of a young child. Others in chains. Troubling pictures from a university-run elementary school. It was called a lesson in racism and the history of lynching. Now Grambling State University is investigating what happened at Alma J. Brown Elementary. These are kindergarteners and first graders. Grambling's president is meeting with those involved today. He ordered the pictures removed from the Louisiana school's website.
Lethal injection, voter ID, the rights of suspected terrorists. It's all part of the agenda for the Supreme Court as it opens a new term this morning. CNN's Gary Nurenberg takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Chief Justice John Roberts was among the justice who attended the traditional church service that precedes a new court term, one of his few public appearances since the seizure hospitalized him over the summer. The new term may catch supporters of the conservative chief justice by surprise.
PROF. DOUGLAS KMIEC, PEPPERDINE LAW SCHOOL: The cases its taken so far look to me as if the liberals might indeed have the edge on the term coming forward.
NURENBERG: On the list, death penalty cases that examine whether lethal injection is constitutional and whether the president can order a stay to retry a non-citizen convicted of murder. The court is also expected to decide if the death penalty can apply in a case of child rape.
One case would again clarify the rights of suspected terrorists being held by the military at Guantanamo Bay. Another questions the constitutionality of a law requiring federal judges to impose harsher sentences on the users of crack cocaine than on those who are convicted of using as opposed to powder cocaine. The case has racial overtones because of higher crack use in minority communities.
The court is also expected to decide if Washington, D.C.'s city ban on firearms is constitutional.
THOMAS GOLDSTEIN, SUPREME COURT LEGAL ANALYST: This term is going to illustrate how the court is really three camps. Four on either side and Justice Kennedy in the middle. And there are a series of cases this term that will really tempt him to side with the left where he almost never did that in significant rulings last term.
NURENBERG: One-third of all cases last term were decided by a 5- 4 vote with Anthony Kennedy in the majority all two dozen times. The court has decided to hear whether a voter identification requirement in Indiana is constitutional, an election case in an election year that could have a big impact on the courts.
RALPH NEAS, PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY: The future of the American law could be determined for the next 30 or 40 years by the outcome of this election.
NURENBERG: As the court becomes the focus of political candidates in an election year, it has accepted important cases, but not inflammatory ones.
Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A taco truck named desire for migrant workers. It's called unwanted by others in suburban New Orleans. Conflict stirred up by cuisine.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Gerri Willis.
Planning a big trip overseas? I'll tell you what you need to know about the new passport rules. That's next in "Top Tips" in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Hey, lets check out the big board. Look at this. How about that? Up 102. Apparently they're telling me from the control room that we've already gone over 14,000 at least one time this morning. So we are watching that very closely. The Nasdaq also up 19 points. Kind of a surprise. Stuff that I was looking at here said that really didn't expect today to be a start with a bang, if you will. Said things were going to be kind of sluggish. So we will find out why and check in with Susan Lisovicz in just a few moments.
Meanwhile, changes for U.S. citizens flying to nearby nations. Our personal finance editor Gerri Willis is here now with the details. We put this off one time, but now today is the day, right?
WILLIS: No, there's no going back. Look, if you're a U.S. citizen flying into the country from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda, you will need a passport. The rule was in effect, as you said, earlier this year, but the demand for passports was so overwhelming the government issued a reprieve. Now if you're under 16 and traveling with a parent or guardian, you will need to prove that you've at least applied for a passport. The only way to get out of this, if you're driving across borders or taking a cruise, you won't need passports. Not yet. That's coming next year.
Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. So what should people do if they're planning on traveling to these places relatively soon?
WILLIS: Well, if you're traveling this winter, you'll want to get your application in now. But if you're traveling earlier, say Thanksgiving, you'll want to expedite the process. A good rule of thumb is this. If you're traveling in less than two months, you'll want an expedited passport that you'll have in about three weeks. Of course, you'll pay for the convenience. An expedited passport costs about $60 more than the regular price.
Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, I tried to do this once before, but I need it the very next day. It didn't work out real well for me. So where do you go if you do need a passport? What's the best chance?
WILLIS: First step, go to the State Department's website at travel.state.gov. Type in your zip code and you'll be given a list of places to get your passport. And if you're really in a pinch, you may be able to get your passport in a couple of hours, to a few days. Believe it or not, you can do that still. For that, check out government passport agencies in your area. Go to travel.state.gov and type in "passport agencies." Just keep in mind that getting an appointment can be difficult. The one thing you don't want to do is use an expedited passport service from the web. You could end up dealing with a con artist and nobody wants to do that.
Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, I know. Definitely not.
So what do you do, though, if you've already applied for a passport and you just don't know if it's going to get to you on time?
WILLIS: Well, you can check the status of your passport online. Go to the State Department's website and click on status check. Unfortunately, it can take seven to 10 days to get the tracking information. That's from the department themselves. So they're not quick. But eventually you can get the info.
And if you have any more questions, send it to us at toptips@cnn.com. We love hearing from you. And we answer your questions right here every Friday.
COLLINS: All right. CNN's personal finance editor Gerri Willis. Gerri, thank you.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
COLLINS: From the freezer to the frying pan to the ER? Hamburger patties under recall this morning. They could make you very sick.
And a Memphis campus lockdown this morning. A gunman still on the loose.
Civilian and military deaths in Iraq. A new report to tell you about. We'll have details on that coming your way after a break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Heidi Collins. Tony Harris has the day off.
Want to let you know a little bit more about what we are covering this morning. This story here out of the University of Memphis where a student was fatally shot. Classes are canceled today as police continue to hunt for a suspect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGERS PREWITT, MEMPHIS POLICE: Don't know who the suspects are and we don't have anybody that can -- right now that can pinpoint what happened. All we got right now is they heard a shot, and then they saw the car drive away. Naturally, people running because of shots being fired. And the victim ended up here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: And we are hearing from our television affiliates on the ground there the victim is 21-year-old Taylor Bradford. He's a university football player. Police say Bradford left the dorms last night and headed to his car and that's when someone shot him. Police say Bradford did manage to get in his car and drive away, but crashed into a tree.
Also in the headlines this morning, you may want to check your freezer. There's a frozen hamburger recall and it is expanding now, too. Nearly 22 million pounds of meat patties are involved. E. Coli contamination the concern. Investigators are looking at potential illnesses in eight states. The frozen patties were all distributed by Topps meat company, but sold under several different brand names. All of them have a sell by date or best if used by date of September 25th, 2007, to September 25th, 2008. You can find a complete list of the recalled products at CNN.com. Topps says this is the first recall in 65 years of doing business.
New revelations this morning about an accused child rapist. Police say Chester Stiles videotaped a brutal attack on a 3-year-old. The little girl, who is now 7, is safe, but the manhunt for Stiles is still on. And now, his former girlfriend is talking. She tells our Dan Simon she thought she knew Chester Stiles better than anybody.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TINA ALLEN, SUSPECT'S FORMER GIRLFRIEND: He can be very charming, beguiling. Said he had been in the Navy, and I was looking for a strong guy to represent to my sons what I thought they needed to be.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Meanwhile, this man, Darren Tuck, has turned himself in to police in Niah County, Nevada. Tuck is the man who gave police the videotape of the sexual assault in the first place. Prosecutors are expected to file felony charges against him today in Las Vegas.
Fewer people being killed in Iraq. That word from the Pentagon this morning. The military says at least 63 U.S. soldiers died in Iraq last month. That is the lowest monthly toll in more than a year.
Civilian deaths are said to be down as well. Officials report civilian deaths nationwide were down more than 50 percent in September from august. The lowest of the year. Military officials say the decline is due to a number of factors, including this year's U.S. troop buildup.
Securing Baghdad, U.S. commanders say they're making progress, but mistrust and anger are hard to overcome. Here now is CNN's Alessio Vinci.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a key part of America's strategy for a more peaceful Baghdad. A checkpoint manned by Iraqi police, most of them Shiites and newly recruited Sunni volunteers from the Sadia (ph) neighborhood in the southern outskirts of the capital.
For months these two groups fought pitched battles in an area that was once ethnically mixed. Despite sharing this checkpoint there is little interaction between the two sides. Some are even too afraid to show their faces.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See that guy with the mask over there? Tell him to get the mask off.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can see the progress we're having over the last year.
VINCI: U.S. Commanders say any hope of bringing both sides together start with efforts like this.
GEORGE GLAZE, U.S. ARMY LT. COL.: We have been working with the national police, the national police being predominantly Shia. Now standing up locals from the community predominantly Sunni. Bringing those forces together, bringing that security together is going to provide stability for the locals to be able to get an economy back up and going.
VINCI: 120 volunteers are active in this neighborhood providing some security during the day, but the night remains as violent. The police seem unable or unwilling to do anything.
It's a disappointment to this U.S. commander walking on the rubble of the recently blown up minaret of a mosque just around the corner from the checkpoint.
The Iraqi general in charge of security in this area vented his frustration at one of his policemen. How the people see you so their trust can increase, he yelled. The volunteers should be over there with the national police so the trust can increase and the citizens can trust you.
Trust is not something these former residents of Sadia have. They fled the violence of their neighborhood early this year and will not even think about returning yet. Some 200 of them recently demonstrated in front of the office of Baghdad's governor. Mothers holding pictures of lost loved ones, a son or a husband kidnapped or killed by the militias. They blame Iraqi security forces for failing to do their job.
Their work is not serious, says this former Sadia resident, especially the police and the guards in the streets. For them, peace on the streets of Baghdad seems a distant hope.
Alessio Vinci, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A diplomatic push in Myanmar. A UN envoy is there now hoping to meet with the leader of the country's military government, and we're told pro-Democracy demonstrators have been arrested by the military over the past several days. It's reported at least ten people have been killed, but we cannot independently confirm that. The UN envoy has already met separately with some lower government leaders and pro-Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
A massive volcanic eruption off the coast of Yemen. Of the eight people originally missing, two have been rescued this morning. Two more were found dead. The search goes on. The volcano erupted on a small island spewing fire and ash. Canadian Navy spokesman Ken Allan described the chaos this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN ALLAN, CANDIAN NAVY SPOKESMAN (voice-over): It's still erupting, there is still lava pouring off the island. Even during the day you can see the spews of lava coming off of it spouting out. One side of the island, the northern side, seems to be completely devastated. The rear side, it's a small island with a bit of a mountain in the middle, if you will, and the southern side seems to be okay, but the northern side is just nothing but red molten lava.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COLLINS: Except for a Navy base, the island was not inhabited. NATO ships promising to stay in the area and find the missing people.
A private security firm in the public eye. Blackwater under scrutiny after a deadly incident in Iraq. The owner, ready to answer questions in Washington.
A survivial story. A couple of compelling chapters -- that's for sure. Plane crashes into a tree. Two men aboard dangle for hours.
SUSAN LISOVICZ: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange where inthe first hour of trading, the Dow hit 14,000. Will it be another volatile three-month stretch. We'll talk about it next. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Investigating Blackwater. Congress looking at the owner of the private security firm operating in Iraq. CNN's Suzanne Simons takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUZANNE SIMONS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The owner of Blackwater USA doesn't often find himself in the spotlight. Eric Prince, a former Navy Seal, will be answering tough questions Tuesday before the House Oversight Committee.
Lawmakers are turning their attention the man at the helm of the company entrusted with more than $1 billion dollars in U.S. government contracts.
The committee, led by Representative Henry Waxman, is expected to ask about a September 16th shooting involving Blackwater contractors who were accompanying State Department personnel in Baghdad. Iraq's Interior Ministry contends Blackwater guards opened fire indiscriminately in a crowded Baghdad intersection, killing more than 20 civilians. The company has said its men were responding to hostile fire.
In light of the incident, the Iraqi government is calling for an end to contractor immunity from prosecution under Iraqi law. The U.S. government relies on private contractors to provide security for diplomats moving around in the country. A joint U.S.-Iraqi commission on the incident is expected to meet for the first time this week in Baghdad.
Prince is also expected to be pressed on details about the incident that thrust the dangers facing private contractors into the headlines more than three years ago, an insurgent attack in Fallujah, in which four Blackwater contractors were shot, burned, and bodies dragged through the streets; two of them hanged from a bridge as a group of spectators cheered.
The questions now focus on whether Blackwater properly prepared the men for the mission under the terms of their contract. The men's families are suing Backwater over the incident.
Suzanne Simons, CNN, Atlanta.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
COLLINS: If you love pumpkins and have already baked the world's largest pumpkin pie, what do you do next? Maybe this -- a pumpkin boat race. I mean, duh. That's what some growers in Ohio did. In fact half a dozen races jumped inside their hollowed out pumpkin boats. I don't even see a pumpkin really. Oh, there maybe. Maybe it's underground -- under the water, I mean. Each weighed several money pounds, but that didn't keep them from floating. A boat motor -- there you go, see, the boat motor. That's what helps. Helped them cross the finish line, in fact.
I'm sorry. Do you see a pumpkin? There it is way down the bottom.
All right, image problem now for the U.S. Navy. Internet photos show a disturbing design flaw, and it's not going to be cheap to fix.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: The Navy has a bit of an image problem on the Internet, and it'll take a lot of taxpayer money to fix things.
CNN's Chris Lawrence explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These Navy barracks have been standing in San Diego for 40 years. But aerial videos revealed a startling image, the symbol of Nazi Germany.
MAURICE CAZUDO (ph), CONCERNED ABOUT SYMBOL: I don't know how anyone could take a look at that shape and say it's only four L-shaped building.
LAWRENCE: Maurice Cazudo (ph) saw a swastika and so did the people who complained to the Anti-Defamation League.
The Navy agreed to camouflage the barracks, saying it, quote, "has received approval to spend up to $600,000 for the best cost effective solution to modify the building."
CAZUDO (ph): We asked the Navy to try to do it at the least possible cost. In my naivete -- I'm no engineer -- I thought some paint on the sidewalk might break up the shape. The Navy tried that. It didn't work.
LAWRENCE: The head of a California watch dog group says the military shouldn't spend taxpayer money on what it calls a manufacturing issue and asks, "If someone saw a random crop formation in that shape, would they demand the former change it?"
The thing is you can't see it from the ground. They look like any other military buildings -- brown, blocky, boring.
(on camera): And since there's no commercial landing pattern that flies directly over the base, you're not going to see it from the air either.
(voice-over): The Navy is authorized well over $500,000 to essentially change a Google Earth image that may not be updated for years.
DOUG SOUSMAN (ph), ARCHITECT: $600,000 seems like a lot of money just for camouflage.
LAWRENCE: Architect Doug Sousman says, if the Navy is going to spend that much, he suggests planting a garden to absorb pollution and turning the rooftop into a sustainable energy product.
SOUSMAN: It would be unfortunate if that much money was sent for the equivalent of a comb-over.
LAWRENCE: Bottom line, the swastika shape will disappear and the Navy may end up putting a positive spin on a negative symbol.
Chris Lawrence, CNN, San Diego.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Rescuers challenges. Take a look at this. First, the crew had to find the downed plane, and then they had to decide how to get the occupants down.
The plane crashed into a tree just short of the runway at the Franklin, Virginia Airport. But because it was in a swampy and very foresty area, if you will, the plane was hard to locate and harder to reach. The pilot and passenger spent more than six hours suspended in a tree. Climbers went up separate trees and secured the plane with ropes before getting the two men off. They suffered only minor injuries after all that.
A Memphis campus is on lockdown this morning. A gunman is still on the loose.
And a suspected child rapist on the loose as well. Prosecutors say he calls himself a survivalist and always carries a knife. A criminal profiler talks about tracking this man.
Concerns over E. coli contamination. A massive meat recall. We'll tell you what to avoid.
Plus, a taco truck named Desire for migrant workers. It's called unwanted by others in suburban New Orleans. Conflict stirred up by cuisine.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A warning today for parents of young children. Concerns about cold medicine and kids. Our Elizabeth Cohen is going to be joining us a little bit later with the very latest on this.
Meanwhile, you already know to catch us weekday mornings from 9:00 a.m. until noon Eastern. Thanks for being here for that. But did you know you can take us with you anywhere you go on your iPod? pretty cool. CNN NEWSROOM podcast is available 24/7. We usually try to pull up some stories and write some interesting things on there that you wouldn't normally see during our broadcast from 9:00 until noon. So download those to your iPod, and you can pick it up everyday, like we said, 24/7.
This week's CNN is Uncovering America focusing on the Hispanic experience. In New Orleans, Latino laborers are helping rebuild after Katrina. But businessmen who follow them may not be welcome.
Here now is CNN's Susan Roesgen.
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SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If this were Mexico City or Los Angeles or New York, a street corner taco truck would be no big deal. But when this one parked in front of an abandoned gas station after Hurricane Katrina, it signaled the start of something some people in suburban New Orleans didn't want.
LOUIS CONGEMI, JEFFERSON PARISH COUNCILMAN: They don't want to see a truck, whether it is a -- a taco truck, whether it's a pizza truck, or whatever kind of truck.
ROESGEN: Taco trucks were not common in this area until after the storm. The food followed the workers. Tens of thousands of Latino laborers who came to do the dirty work of rebuilding flooded neighborhoods. But, while the workers are still here, some property owners say they're being told it's time for the taco trucks to go.
RAY PEACOCK, PROPERTY OWNER: They'd like to see a Neiman Marcus here or something, but it isn't. And then perhaps one of these days we may have a Neiman Marcus, but not today.
ROESGEN: Ray Peacock rents his abandoned lot to truck owner David Montez Daoka (ph). Montez says he serves authentic Mexican food to hungry workers who like the familiar taste and language of home.
ROESGEN (on camera): (speaking foreign language) Do you work construction?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (speaking foreign language) Yes. See all this is for work.
ROESGEN: (speaking foreign language) What kind?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (speaking foreign language) Drywall sheetrock...
ROESGEN (on camera): The parker lot taco stop is a popular place, and not just for Latinos pulling sheetrock out of flooded houses. Montez says about 1/3 of his business is local. But the Jefferson Perish Counsel is telling Montez he has to leave. An ordinance passed in July says the trucks must keep moving, not staying in any one place for more than 30 minutes or have permanent restrooms and utilities, plus be properly zoned. Requirements most taco trucks just don't meet. And even some of the locals say that's not fair.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When they needed these people that they were here for us. Now that we've all back in our houses and whatever, the parish has strictly forgotten and say now leave. I don't think it's right.
ROESGEN: Critics say the new law is a not-so-subtle way of nudging the Latino workers to move along, too. But Jefferson Perish councilmen, Louis Congemi, says nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, he asked us to meet him here at the Hispanic Resource Center he founded two years before Hurricane Katrina.
CONGEMI: We actually want them to do better in our perish. We encourage them. We want nemto open a business. We want them to get out of these trucks and open permanent buildings. It's not just -- it's not trying to run them out, we want them to stay.
ROESGEN: David Montinez (ph) wants to stay. He'd like to save enough money to open his own Mexican restaurant down the street. And with any luck, he thinks his customers will stay, too.
Susan Roesgen, CNN, New Orleans.
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COLLINS: You're with CNN. You're informed. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
Developments keep coming into the CNN NEWSROOM on Monday, the first day of October.
Here's what on the rundown -- Nevada police trying to find a man accused of the videotaped rape of a child. His former girlfriend speaking out this morning.
A frozen hamburger patty recall growing larger. The meat may be contaminated with E. coli.
And the FDA warning parents about cough and cold medicines for young children. Dangerous drugs, in the NEWSROOM.
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