Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Pizza Party Rampage; Airport Death; Is Chrysler Next?; Blackwater Protest; Minding Your Business
Aired October 08, 2007 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Runner down! Runner down!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Heat emergency.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they had enough fluids out here, it wouldn't have been any problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Near record temperatures across the Midwest and the East. And deadly chaos at the Chicago marathon. Did organizers have a plan to respond?
Plus, ball of fire. An i-Reporter catches the moment a tanker truck ignites. The pictures and the fallout on this AMERICAN MORNING.
Spectacular pictures to share with you this morning. Thanks very much for joining us as we kick off another brand new week. It's Monday, October the 8th Columbus Day. I'm John Roberts.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Kiran Chetry is off. I'm Brianna Keilar.
ROBERTS: Good to see you up from Washington.
KEILAR: Yes, good to be here. Thanks for having me.
ROBERTS: Always a pleasure to have you here.
We begin this morning with extreme weather. More record temperatures predicted for the eastern part of the country this week. Eighty-eight degree heat and sweltering humidity is being blamed on a marathon meltdown in Chicago. One competitor died, hundreds of others were treated for heat exhaustion. This morning, "Chicago Sun Times" identifies the man who died as Chad Scheiber. He's a 35 years old veteran police officer and father of three from Midland, Michigan. He collapsed while running ahead of his wife near the 17- mile mark and just could not be revived. Runners say the extreme heat turned the race into a war zone and today they are accusing organizers for failing to supply enough water and sports drinks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People were saying you need to walk, you need to walk.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was the hottest race I've ever run in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's been hot, but if they had enough fluids out here, it wouldn't have been any problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is probably one of the hottest marathons that I've seen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My understanding is that, from witnesses, that the runner was running and he fell down and was unresponsive and didn't have a pulse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's some ill will, but it was a tough decision, obviously. But given the circumstances and the weather conditions, I thought it was prudent for the safety and well-being of the individuals that were participating in this event.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And that was to cut the race short. The race director says a contingency plan was put in place last week to deal with potential heat problems. The race was cut short after about three hours as reports of struggling runners came in.
And another runner died near the Pentagon yesterday. He was closing into the finish of the Army Ten-Miler when he collapsed. The runner was a civilian. Not a member of the military. Temperatures were about 70 degrees when the race started. Organizers say there was plenty of water and first aid throughout the course.
Coming up to two minutes after the hour. Reynolds Wolf is in for Rob Marciano today. He's at the CNN weather desk in Atlanta tracking extreme weather.
And hot from the Midwest all the way to the East Coast again today, Reynolds.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KEILAR: Meanwhile, a community is reeling in grief this morning after a 20-year-old off duty police officer stormed a party and opened fire in Crandon, Wisconsin. Tyler Peterson is now accused of shooting seven people, killing six of them, before police hunted him down. CNN's Susan Roesgen is in Crandon right now.
Susan, what are you hearing this morning?
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Brianna, this is such a small town that the high school here behind me will not have classes today because nearly every student and staff member here knows the victims of this shooting.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN, (voice over): In this house, at a late night high school party, a young sheriff's deputy, barely out of high school himself, 20-year-old Tyler Peterson, shot and killed six people. Then he ran.
Dozens of fellow officers hunted for him. And after a few hours of searching, took him down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The subject was located by law enforcement officers. The subject is deceased and there's no longer a threat to the public.
ROESGEN: The police won't say what caused Deputy Peterson to become a killer. But friends of the victim say one of the dead was Peterson's ex-girlfriend. All the victims were current or former students at the high school where he was also a graduate.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the kind of scenario that I think every small town in the USA says, this could never happen here.
ROESGEN: Now, parents, like Jenny Staul (ph), are in shock.
JENNY STAUL, PARENT: I haven't seen her yet. So in the back of my mind I think maybe they made a mistake and my daughter's somewhere just hiding out, waiting for everything to be safe to come out.
ROESGEN: Jenny's daughter, 14-year-old Lindsey Staul (ph), was apparently Deputy Peterson's youngest victim.
STAUL: I just can't believe this. You know, she's only 14 -- she'll be 15 next month. She's just starting to live. And the sad thing is who killed her. You know, it's a cop.
ROESGEN: A shooting that has left a small town of just 2,000 people stunned.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: And there's going to be a news conference here at the high school at noon local time. Local law enforcement may be able to tell us more about the shooting and about how they eventually shot and killed Deputy Peterson.
Brianna.
KEILAR: So young. Such a terrible story there, Susan. Thanks for covering this for us.
Susan Roesgen live from Crandon, Wisconsin.
John.
ROBERTS: Also new this morning, we're just getting details today about a helicopter crash, part of a convoy escorting the president of Pakistan. The helicopter went down in northern Kashmir this morning. Crowds mobbed the scene of the crash. The chopper one of three that was traveling in President Pervez Musharraf's convoy, but not the one that the president was riding in. Four people died in the crash. Officials say a technical problem is to blame.
Some top Iraqi politicians are giving up on reconciliation. A key U.S. goal for the Iraqi government. Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish leaders are telling "The Washington Post" that the anger and differences between the three groups cannot be settled through negotiations. Both the United States and Iraqis are saying that the government is paralyzed by its ethnic differences.
A Nobel prize in medicine awarded this morning to a teen that manipulated genes in mice. The process, known as gene targeting, has helped study diseases like cancer and diabetes. The Nobel Prizes for chemistry, physics, economic and literature and peace will be given out over the next week.
Well, Senator Barack Obama is talking religion in South Carolina. Obama stood before a Greenville church congregation yesterday and asked them to pray that he would be an instrument of God in the same way that their pastor is an instrument of God.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to keep on worshiping together, and we're going to keep on building together, and we're going to keep on praising together. I am confident that we can create a kingdom right here on earth. Thank you very much, everybody. God bless you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Obama was asked if he talks about religion more in South Carolina than in Iowa or New Hampshire. He said, he talks about religion when he's in church.
Republican Fred Thompson is getting ready for his first debate with the rest of the GOP presidential candidates. That's tomorrow in Dearborn, Michigan. Thompson got into the race late, you'll recall. He's running second in the national polls. Analysts are saying that this is an important opportunity to show that Thompson can run with the top of the pack.
Brianna.
KEILAR: Also new this morning, Michael Devlin, the former pizzeria manager, charged with kidnapping and sexually assaulting two boys is expected to plead guilty this morning. Devlin is charged with holding one of the boys, Shawn Hornbeck, for more than four years. In all, Devlin faces some 80 charges, several of which carry a life sentence.
Also this morning, a taxi cab jumps a curb in New York City, killing a helicopter pilot walking on the sidewalk. Sixty-year-old Paul Smith (ph) was the pilot for a local TV station in New York City. A young boy and a woman were also injured. They each suffered broken bones but will be OK.
And radio active no more. Don Imus may soon be returning to the air waves. Reports indicate Imus is close to reaching a deal with Citadel Broadcasting that could put him back on the air in December. The plan is for Citadel, which owns ABC Radio Networks, to put Imus in the morning drive slot on WABC radio in New York and try to syndicate the show nationwide. Also, Imus is said to be looking for a TV outlet to simulcast the program. Imus, as you know, was fired in April by CBS Radio and MSNBC following his racial remarks about the Rutger's women's basketball team.
John.
ROBERTS: Just about nine minutes after the hour and time to check in with our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents for other stories new this morning. Hundreds of people attended the funeral service for the woman who died in police custody at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. Alina Cho has got the latest on that now from our national update desk.
Good morning, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, good morning to you.
Carol Anne Gotbaum was remembered as a loving wife and mother, but also as a woman who fought and ultimately lost a battle with alcoholism. Hundreds, included elected officials, gathered at her funeral in New York yesterday. Her husband was among those who eulogized the 45-year-old mother of three. Noah Gotbaum said his wife was ashamed of her alcohol problems and added "if things had been just a little different, her life could have been saved."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her husband said, "if only one person in that airport had come over to help her, she'd be alive today." It's quite a comment about a busy airport that not a single person could come and give her some aid and comfort.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: That was a friend who attended the funeral. It was a week ago Friday that Gotbaum died in police custody at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. She was headed to alcohol rehab when she missed her flight to Tucson.
And by all accounts, Gotbaum went into a rage, was arrested, hand cuffed and shackled. Police say she may have accidentally strangled herself in a holding cell while trying to escape from the handcuffs. Her family says, considering her mental state, she should have never been left alone.
And this morning, the "Arizona Republican" newspaper out there is reporting that mental health experts say Gotbaum's hysterics may have been driven by alcohol withdrawal. In fact, doctors say she may have been in such a frantic state, John, that she was not completely aware of her actions.
ROBERTS: And as her attorney, Michael Manning, was suggesting last week, they believe that she might have also been drinking in that layover at the airport there and that somehow that may have contributed to her state of mind as well.
CHO: That's right.
ROBERTS: Alina Cho with the update for us this morning.
Alina, thanks.
Chrysler could be next for a nationwide auto strike. Stephanie Elam in for Ali Velshi this morning, who's at our business update desk.
Good morning to you, Stephanie.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
The deadline is Wednesday. That's the strike deadline that has been set by the United Auto Workers Union for its negotiations with Chrysler. They're looking to go ahead and get a new four-year contract so that they can also get to the side where GM is.
Now if you remember, General Motors did, on September 26th, come to an agreement with the UAW after nine days of talks and then a two-day strike. What we're waiting to see here is what will play out. What we have seen so far is that people on both sides, at Chrysler and at Ford, as it goes there, and at the union, were unhappy with some of the parts of the deal that was worked out between those two entities and now they're looking for a little differences here.
So this is a different thing than we normally see with the union. So we're going to be keeping our eyes to see whether or not we might have strike number two coming out of Detroit. So we'll be looking for that on Wednesday.
John.
ROBERTS: Wow, what a year for the United Auto Workers.
Stephanie Elam this morning, thanks. We'll check in with you a little bit later on.
Brianna.
KEILAR: Here's a bit of a wake up call. A spectacular demolition in downtown Baltimore.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CROWD: Three, two, one, fire!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Dozens of folks watched and cheered as Mercy Hospital's parking garage came down in a matter of seconds yesterday. It was knocked town make room for a new 18-floor patient tower. A project that is expected to cost $400 million.
A propane tanker explodes setting off a chain reaction of explosions in Tacoma, Washington. We've got more of that amazing video.
And a mother gets an unexpected visit from her son.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: David Allen Drew (ph). And, ma'am, before we pray, I want you to meet somebody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: A soldier's surprise caught on tape and a mother's prayer answered. That's next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Fifteen minutes now after the hour. And some of the best shots of the morning in our "Quick Hits."
Police are trying to figure out how this car flipped over and crashed into this house. It happened in Saugus, Massachusetts. The driver was pinned in the car. She was treated but released from the hospital. The woman inside the house, though, who was sleeping at the time, is in serious condition.
A massive fire destroys a school in east St. Louis. The fire burned for more than three hours before firefighters got it under control. No word yet on what ignited that fire.
And an emotional tribute to fallen firefighters. President Bush hugs Teresa Curtis (ph), whose boyfriend died while fighting a fire that happened in Denison, Texas. The ceremony at the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial at Emmitsburg, Maryland, honored 87 firefighters who died in the line of duty last year.
Brianna.
KEILAR: This morning in Iraq, the prime minister says Blackwater security guards committed deliberate murder and should be put on trial. Iraq's investigation of the shootout on September 16th in Baghdad raises the number of people killed to 17. The Iraqis dispute the private contractor's story that it was under attack. The U.S. is still investigating.
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters in southern California are trying to stop Blackwater from building a training camp near Potrero, 45 miles east of San Diego. AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(AUDIO GAP)
REP. BOB FILNER, (D) SAN DIEGO: Where what they are do is more public and more visible and more and more accountable to us.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Potrero is a rural committee of 800 people, about 50 miles east of San Diego.
Right now the area is just farmland, chicken coops and cattle. Blackwater would build a helicopter landing pad on one side of me, a firing range on the other.
Blackwater says the training ground is needed to service its west coast contracts and will only be used to train police, EMTs and other soldiers, not its own personnel.
BRIAN BONFIGLIO, BLACKWATER WEST: No independent contractors who work for Blackwater going to places like Iraq and Afghanistan will be trained at this facility.
LAWRENCE: Some residents have concerns about guns and noise. Others just don't like the company's reputation.
SUSAN ORLOFSKY, BLACKWATER PROTESTER: They've done havoc in Iraq. And if they come to this beautiful place, they will destroy it.
LUISA WILDEY, BLACKWATER SUPPORTER: Well there are two different things you're talking about, apples and oranges.
LAWRENCE: Luisa Wildey and other residents say what the company allegedly did in Iraq has no bearing on how its staff will adapt to southern California.
WILDEY: So as long as he's comply with what the (INAUDIBLE) are, it's OK with us.
LAWRENCE: Blackwater has promised to leave hundreds of acres undeveloped to preserve the environment and plans to give money to local schools. CROWD: Blackwater, know your fate.
LAWRENCE: But even that may not be enough to get a warm welcome here.
Chris Lawrence, CNN, Potrero, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: The town hasn't given final approval for building the camp. Protesters say they're organizing a recall vote for the town planners who are backing it.
ROBERTS: Here's an intense and emotional moment from the Iraq war. Prayers answered for a mom in Orlando, Florida. Her son, serving in Iraq with the Army National Guard, surprised her in church.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Army Sergeant David Allen Drew. And, ma'am, before we pray, I want to you meet somebody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Sergeant David Drew served 15 months in Iraq. He says he's going to stick close to his family now, including his three children. You just can't imagine what was going through her mind.
KEILAR: I know. I've seen a few of those now and you just see the shock and then the excitement and, of course, the tears. You almost -- you well up a little when you see that. It's great.
ROBERTS: Yes. I think, you know, every parent and/or child can relate to a father or a son or a daughter coming home and a mom . . .
KEILAR: Yes, but being gone that long, it's just amazing. Very cool.
Protection for British clergy tops our "Quick Hits" now. A church safety group in Britain says the stiff white collars worn by clergymen could make them targets and they should remove them while off duty. The group, National Church watch, says that clergy are often targeted by criminals who think they have money. A recent University of London study found seven in 10 clergy experienced some form of violence.
Police in Sweden are investigating an online assault on Swedish websites by computer hackers in Turkey. More than 5,000 sites have been targeted in just the past week. At least some of the sabotage appears linked to Muslim anger over a Swedish newspaper drawing that depicted the Prophet Mohammad's head on a dog's body.
And do airline workers know how to handle out of control passengers? Our very own Barbara Starr with a first-hand report on a terrifying ride.
Plus, Google taking fire. A former employee says he was told his opinions were too old to matter. The fallout and legal trouble ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty-three minutes after the hour. Welcome back to the most news in the morning.
Gas prices fell in the latest Lundberg survey. They dropped four cents in the last two weeks to a national average now of $2.75 a gallon for self-serve regular. Newark, New Jersey, had the lowest average price, $2.52 a gallon. And they'll pump it for you at that price as well because it's state law. Honolulu had the highest, $3.09 a gallon.
KEILAR: And Stephanie Elam in now for Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business."
ELAM: Good morning. Good to see you here, Brianna.
KEILAR: Well, thank you very much.
ELAM: So, you know, let's say you're 54 years old, you're working for one of the hottest Internet companies out there and then they tell you that your ideas are too old to matter. That's what happened to Brian Read (ph), a 54-year-old man who was a former professor at Stanford University. And he's suing the company. A trial judge has actually ruled that his ideas, that he was actually forced out and that they routinely, at Google, according to him, were giving smaller bonuses to older people and also just basically dismissing their ideas. He's saying that there's a real claim there. The court has agreed. And so now a jury will hear what Mr. Read has to say what happened to him at Google.
ROBERTS: What do we know about this guy's ideas? Were they any good?
ELAM: Well, that part we don't know. The other interesting thing is that Google has not said why he was fired. They're defending it. But at this point, Read says that he has evidence to show that the reasons why they're saying he was fired were untrue. So we'll be looking to see what else comes out of this because Google is kind of holding back on some information here.
ROBERTS: Oh, interesting. So more of this to come out in court?
ELAM: More of this will come out in court. Now that we know the Santa Clara County judge has ruled, hey, we can take this on, go ahead to a jury, see what happens there. So it's a big win, obviously, for Mr. Read.
ROBERTS: All right. Looking forward to it. You'll keep watching it for us?
ELAM: I promise.
ROBERTS: Either you or Ali. If we can ever find him.
ELAM: One of us. Well, both of us will.
ROBERTS: Where is he today, by the way?
ELAM: I don't know where is he. I'm happy to be here with you guys, though.
ROBERTS: It's always good to have you here, Stephanie.
ELAM: Thank you. Thank you very much.
ROBERTS: Always like seeing you.
KEILAR: Thank you, Stephanie.
ELAM: Thanks, Brianna.
ROBERTS: A look at a story coming up in our next half hour now that you just can't miss. A familiar face from CNN on the weekend update desk on "Saturday Night Live."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Taking entertainment jobs away from otherwise deserving Americans. Of course, I should expect no less from your Canadian boss, Lauren Michaels (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: More of this Lou Dobbs spoof. And, trust me, it's a good one. Stay with us here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Taking a look now at our shot of Midtown Manhattan. A beautiful weekend we had. Currently the temperature is 68 degrees. Obviously cloudy. Going up to a high today of 85, but expecting some thunderstorms.
It's Monday, October 8th, Columbus Day. Kiran Chetry is off. I'm Brianna Keilar.
ROBERTS: Welcome. Good to have you here in New York City with us today.
KEILAR: So good to be here. Thank you.
ROBERTS: Good morning to you, I'm John Roberts.
A Wisconsin town is grieving this morning over the deaths of six young people gunned down by an off duty police officer. Police say the accused gunmen, 20-year- old Tyler Peterson, stormed into a house early Sunday morning and opened fire. The six victims were having a homecoming weekend pizza and movie party. Three of them were students at the local high school, three had just graduated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My thoughts and prayers are with them and -- but everyone is thinking about them.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I hope no community has to go through what Crandon's going through right now. And I really hope that the people that have passed away are in a better place now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: A seventh shooting victim is in critical condition in the hospital. The suspect, Tyler Peterson, was killed several hours after the shooting by a police sniper.
Extreme weather to tell you about this morning. One man dies while running the Chicago marathon in sweltering heat. Temperatures reached an unseasonably warm 88 degrees, which is way warm for a marathon.
Chat Scheiber, 35-year-old police officer from Michigan had run about 18 miles when he collapsed and died on the course. Hundreds of other runners were treated for heat-related ailments before organizers ended the race early.
Britain's Prince William is mourning the death of his friend and former platoon leader killed in Afghanistan. Major Alexis Roberts killed by a roadside bomb. The prince trained under him at Sandhurst, the elite military academy.
The inquest into the death of Princess Diana is headed to Paris, where she was killed. The coroner's jury will try to retrace the events that led to the death of Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed. The jury will also try to answer whether Diana and Fayed were set to announce their engagement the next day. Fayed's father believes that they were killed in a plot directed by Prince Philip, who didn't want Diana to marry a Muslim.
KEILAR: French police are looking for the vandals who went after a priceless Monet painting at the Museum d'Orsay in Paris. A surveillance camera captured vandals and an alarm scared them away but not before they punched a four-inch hole into the masterpiece, Le Pont d'Argenteuil. It happened during an all-night festival in Paris. French officials think the intruders were likely drunk.
One half of the American League championship is set. The Boston Red Sox await either their arch rivals, the Yankees, or the Cleveland Indians. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez hit back-to-back homers to power the Sox past the L.A. Angels. For their part, the Yankees held on against the Indians. Johnny Damon hit a three-run homer to give the Yankees the lead in the game. The Yankees still need to win two more games to the advance to the American League championships.
ROBERTS: The circumstances surrounding her death are still under investigation. Hundreds attended Carol Ann Gotbaum's funeral service in New York Sunday. Gotbaum died in police custody at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. She was arrested on a disorderly conduct charge. Surveillance video shows Gotbaum struggling with officers in the moments before she was placed in a holding cell by herself, where she later died.
Normally, our Barbara Starr reports on the goings on at the Pentagon. In this weekend, in the wake of the Gotbaum coverage, she witnessed something out of the ordinary on a flight from Denver to Reagan National Airport. Barbara is live at the Pentagon now to tell us more.
Barbara, what happened on that flight?
BARBARA STARR, CNN CHIEF PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, I was on a Frontier Airlines flight Friday night from Denver to Reagan's National and in the wake of the Gotbaum case what happened on our flight was distressing. It was quite an unusual case.
The elderly woman sitting next to me became very agitated, very emotional, very out of control. It became very clear she had some mental issues, and she didn't speak much English.
The situation really degenerated. She began crying, yelling. She began hitting herself very strongly, at this point. The crew tried to intervene. She could not be brought under control. It became very clear this, again, was a case of a woman with some severe mental issues. So an in-flight emergency was declared. We were going to be diverted to Chicago's Midway Airport.
At this point, according to airline procedures, two male passengers tried to put this elderly woman into physical restraints. I really can't tell everyone how distressing this is to see. The woman had no idea what was happening to her. She was hysterical. She could not be controlled.
What they finally decided is they asked me to move my seat so these men could sit on either side of her, not put her into these restraints, and land the aircraft safely.
But you know, it really brought up the Gotbaum case to many of the passengers I was flying with. We all commented on it. People were saying, look, she's mentally ill. Don't try and restrain her. She's an elderly woman. But still, of course, due to flight concerns, you have to be very careful. You can't have someone out of control on an airplane, John.
ROBERTS: So what is the proper procedure then, Barbara, for dealing with mentally ill passengers on these flights?
STARR: We checked with the airlines over the weekend and apparently there really is none. People are screened for being a threat. If they become a threat to themselves or to other passengers while in flight, they have to be restrained.
I must tell you, John, we spoke to Frontier Airlines and they said when they are confronted with mental ill people or the very elderly, who may not be in the best physical condition, they try very much not to have to put them into restraints, because, like the Gotbaum case, they know that can be a whole other issue. And they may suffer great physical damage if they try and restrain them. So it's a very tough, very distressing situation to watch -- John.
ROBERTS: I'm sure it's an extraordinarily rare event, but troubling to witness firsthand.
Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon, thanks.
STARR: Sure.
ROBERTS: Brianna?
KEILAR: An explosion out of foundry in Tacoma, Washington. This amazing video sent to us by an I-reporter. A propane tanker burst into flames, setting off a series of explosions. Officials don't know what cause the tanker to explode. The driver of the truck is in critical condition. An electrical substation was damaged in the blast, knocking out power to 13,000 homes. Almost all have their power back.
Of course, if you witness anything like this, we want to see it. We want to show it to our viewers. Send us your I-reports. Go to cnn.com/ireport. But remember, of course, safety first.
ROBERTS: 35 minutes after the hour. In your "Quick Hits," a federal grand jury in Utah charged two men with unlawfully attempting to export parts for American-built fighter jets like these. They're accused of planning to export wiring harnesses and cable assemblies for the F-14 Tomcat, which the U.S. Navy retired in 2006. The only other country to fly the F-14 -- Iran.
Iran welcomes President Bush's call for high-level talks between the two countries but refuses to suspend its nuclear program as a condition for the talks. The U.S. and other Western nations have voiced concern over Iran's uranium enrichment program saying it's aimed at producing nuclear weapons. Tehran rejects that claim.
Controversy at Oral Roberts University. The Christian college is caught in a lawsuit by former professors. And the president and his wife are accused of spending thousands of dollars of the school's money on themselves.
And one of the Duke Lacrosse players, falsely accused of rape, is back on the playing field. And he saw a familiar face on the sidelines this weekend. That showdown is ahead on "AMERICAN MORNING."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Welcome back to the most news in the morning. "Quick Hits" now, dogs put on their Sunday best and headed to church yesterday. It was the annual Blessing of the Pets.
And several cars got tangled up during yesterday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race. About 11 cars in all got caught in this one, a really big wreck. My driver, Jeff Gordon, avoided the mess and passed Jimmie Johnson on the last lap to win the race.
Check out this awesome picture from an I-reporter in Columbus, Nebraska. He said the storm, at the time, wasn't even that bad. The lightning didn't do any damage because it touched down in the middle of a field.
Let's get to Reynolds Wolf in for Rob Marciano. He is in the CNN Weather Center, tracking weather in the extreme heat.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: A Rusty Wallace Fan? You said you were a Rusty Wallace fan?
KEILAR: No, I am a big Jeff Gordon fan.
WOLF: A Jeff Gordon fan. OK, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon. If you're not a NASCAR fan, very different people, so it's not a good mistake to make.
Yesterday we had some unusual weather in parts of the nation, like Chicago for example. Take a look at the temperature. I'm going to step out of the way so you can see it. 87 degrees was the high. Beating the record high of 86 set on that day back in 1947. Columbus, Ohio, had a record high of 91, Cincinnati, Dayton, Ohio, Green Bay also setting a record.
The reason why this happened is quite simple. We had a big ridge of high pressure in the eastern third of the country which allowed a lot of warm air to come in from the Gulf of Mexico. A lot of sunshine that caused things to percolate.
Out to the west, seeing something entirely different, a big trough, a lot of cold air building in through the Rockies and Central Plains. And right where you have the dividing line, but frontal boundary, you'll have scattered showers and storms. The warm conditions we'll be experiencing today through parts of the Midwest and eastern seaboard is not going to last. Give a couple of days and you'll see more activity.
The scattered showers we have right now on I-35 in Minneapolis, the upper peninsula of Michigan. As we head a little bit farther to the south and parts of Des Moines, to Kansas City some rain drops for you. Wet commute along parts of I-70 and I-35. And farther to the south in Wichita and Oklahoma City, not a lot of rainfall for you just yet, but if you happen to be in Oklahoma City and you look back towards the west, you'll see some flashes of lightning. All that rain is going to be headed right for you.
That is the latest we have on our forecast. Let's send it back to you, John, in New York.
ROBERTS: Rusty Wallace indeed. Reynolds, thanks very much.
WOLF: Rusty Wallace.
ROBERTS: A cloud of suspicion is hanging over Oral Roberts University. New allegations the school's president and his family are living the high life at the university's expense.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD ROBERTS, PRESIDENT, ORAL ROBERTS UNIVERSITY: We live in a litigious society. Anyone can get mad and file a lawsuit against another person, whether they have a legitimate case or not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Oral Roberts University president, Richard Roberts, denies a slew of scandalous allegations. Three former professors filed a lawsuit against Roberts and the school. They claimed they were fired for reporting the school's alleged involvement in the mayor's race in Tulsa. They also claimed that Richard Roberts and his wife, Lindsey, used school money to model their home 11 times in 14 years, that they used the university jet to send their daughter on a senior trip to the Bahamas at a cost of almost $30,000, and that they awarded nonacademic scholarships to their kids' friends.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN SWAILS, ORU PROFESSOR: We took it to our superiors and found out it was taken all the way up to the administrative chain, and even though -- and we discovered later that nothing was being done to make it right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And there's more. The suit also alleges Mrs. Roberts spent over $39,000 on clothing, and that she frequently ran up more than $800 monthly cell phone bills, and sent hundreds of text messages in the middle of the night to under-aged males.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CELEB TRUJILLO, FORMER ORU STUDENT: My friends here and the students here deserve to know the truth from the administration and from the Roberts family where the tuition money goes and what it's spent on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The university's executive board is conducting a, quote, "full and thorough investigation."
Roberts addressed the lawsuit this past week in chapel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
R. ROBERTS: It is about intimidation, blackmail and extortion. Make no mistake about it, this suit is about money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The professors have since amended their lawsuit to add claims of libel, slander and defamation. No word on how much money they are seeking in damages.
Brianna?
KEILAR: Reade Seligmann, one of the three former Duke Lacrosse players accused of sexual assault, is back on the field. He recently transferred to Brown University. And on Sunday, he was reunited with former Duke Coach Mike Pressler before a scrimmage game. Pressler was coaching the opponent, Bryant University. Both player and coach are putting the Duke ordeal behind them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
READE SELIGMANN, FORMER DUKE LACROSSE PLAYER: He coaches the kids, the teachers, everybody's been great helping me transition back into the flow of things and they made it a lot easier.
MIKE PRESSLER, FORMER DUKE COACH: It was great to see Reade playing again. It's been a long time since he had a chance to play the sport that he loves and certainly he's very good at. To see number 45 running around out there was a thrill for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Pressler was fired from Duke and now in his second season at Bryant University, as the Lacrosse coach.
ROBERTS: Coming up to 45 minutes after the hour. A quick check of the top stories of the morning for you now. Chicago marathon organizers under fire after a runner drops dead in the heat and hundreds are forced to quit. Thousands more never got to finish the race when they closed the course.
Schools are closed this morning in Crandon, Wisconsin. Police say a 20-year-old off-duty officer is accused of opening fire at a party. Six young people were killed. Another critically wounded. The officer, Tyler Peterson, was later killed by police.
Guilty pleas expected from Michael Devlin, the former pizzeria manager charged with kidnapping and sexually assaulting two boys. Devlin is charged with holding one of the boys, Shawn Hornbeck, for more than four years.
Iraq is stepping up its criticism of Blackwater. Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki says Blackwater guards committed deliberate murder and should be put on trial. Iraq's investigation of the shootout on September 16th in Baghdad raises the number of people killed now to 17. Blackwater says its workers were fired upon first.
And talks pick up again between Chrysler and the United Autoworkers. The union is adding pressure by threatening to strike possibly as soon as tomorrow -- Brianna?
KEILAR: Flying too close to Camp David tops your "Quick Hits" now. CBS News is reporting that planes flew into restricted air space over the presidential retreat 11 times yesterday. The Secret Service is investigating but, so far, says the violations appear to be inadvertent.
Arlington National Cemetery is expanding for the first time since the 1960s. It's making room for the growing number of dying World War II veterans, as well as those from Iraq and Afghanistan.
"Saturday Night Live" takes on Lou Dobbs and they do a pretty good job, too. If you missed it Saturday night, we have it for you, head on "AMERICAN MORNING."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Damage from that California landslide that we told about last week tops your "Quick Hits" now. Last week's landslide did about $48 million in damage, $26 million for broken sewers and water mains, about another $22 million of damage to private property.
A typhoon kills five people in Taiwan. The heavy rains caused the evacuation of 1.4 million people on mainland China. A separate storm killed 55 people in Vietnam.
And 2007 has been a relatively moderate hurricane season, but when it picks up, perhaps next year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, has got a new tool in its arsenal, an unmanned drone which can fly directly into the eye of the storm. It should help researchers learn more about what fuels hurricanes.
KEILAR: Some top stories on today's political ticker. Senator Hillary Clinton is campaigning in Iowa again today. While the latest "Des Moines Register" poll has her pulling ahead of John Edwards and Barack Obama, Clinton is at 29 percent, Edwards at 23, Obama at 22. Clinton is the clear front-runner nationally but actually trailed in Iowa, where the first votes are held.
And Senator Barack Obama campaigns in New Hampshire today and South Carolina Sunday. Obama delivered a strong religious message to a church congregation, asking them to pray for him to become an instrument of God.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is saying Congress is less than 20 votes short of overriding a veto on the children's health program. She's trying to get 14 Republicans to vote with her against the president. The Senate already has enough votes to override the veto.
Senator Larry Craig is up for a spot in Idaho's Hall of Fame. The Hall made the selection well before Craig got caught in a men's room sex sting. State officials are saying it might be more appropriate to delay Craig's induction for a few years.
For all of the latest news, updated throughout the day, head to our website, cnn.com/ticker -- John?
ROBERTS: "Saturday Night Live" has been making fun of people for 30 years. This weekend it was Lou Dobbs' turn. After a joke about the Canadian dollar being equal in value to the U.S. dollar, the fake Lou Dobbs came in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm afraid I'm pretty angry about what's going on here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's going on here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The time the job of hosting "Saturday Night Live" was largely the province of American citizens, like Tom Hanks and Johnny Mosley. But not anymore. Some are taking American money by the fistful at the box office, Seth Rogan (ph), the shaggy-haired marijuana enthusiast and Canadian national, is at it again, taking entertainment jobs away from otherwise deserving Americans. Of course, I should expect no less from your Canadian boss, Lauren Michaels, who's been muling his buddies over the border for years now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: He does such a great job at that, doesn't he?
KEILAR: He does because he doesn't look like Lou Dobbs but got the lieu lean, kind of the Lou facial gestures here.
ROBERTS: He didn't look exactly like Al Gore either but... KEILAR: Exactly, he hit it on the head.
ROBERTS: He's terrific. Great fun this morning.
Wedding bells top your "Quick Hits" now. Former "Baywatch" babe Pamela Anderson married Paris Hilton's ex, Rick Solomon, this weekend in Las Vegas. The ceremony took place during a 90-minute break between magic shows that Anderson is performing in. Anderson was previously married to rockers Tommy Lee and Kid Rock. Solomon is best known for producing and co-starring in Paris Hilton's sex tape.
Pam had one of her own, too, I think. Didn't she?
KEILAR: I think so.
ROBERTS: "The Game Plan" remains number one at the box office. Disney's family football story took in more than $16 million in its second weekend. "The Heartbreak Kid," starring Ben Still, debuted in second place with $14 million. "The Kingdom: Resident Evil" "Extinction," The Seeker" and "The Dark is Rising" round out the top five.
U.S. companies have been choosing to go to India for technology to save money, but that decision has suddenly gotten more expensive. We'll have details ahead.
Plus, lots of taser incidents making headlines recently. How safe are the controversial stun guns and exactly when you should they be used?
We'll have that for you when "AMERICAN MORNING" returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: Don Imus may soon be returning to the air waves. Imus is said to be close to a deal with Citadel Broadcasting, which means he could be back on the air by December. Imus, as you know, was fired in April by CBS Radio and MSNBC, following his racial remarks about the Rutgers's women's basketball team.
So we want to know what you think. Should Don Imus get a second chance? Cast your vote at cnn.com/am. Right now, 67 percent say yes, he should, 33 percent no, he should not be given a second chance.
ROBERTS: It shows just what an interesting topic this is because we haven't promoted people to go to the website for that quick vote and already they're on there looking at it. So please go to cnn.com/am and cast your quick vote, should Imus be back on the air waves.
Stephanie Elam in for Ali Velshi this morning.
So let me see if I've got this straight, outsourcing the outsourcing?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN FINANCIAL ANALYST: That's basically what it comes down to at this point, John and Brianna. We're looking at India, which is looking to outsource some of the business that's coming in from the U.S. Why? You remember how we saw the dollar is falling here? You may think that's a bad thing for travel, but it's bad for business and having its effects across the globe.
People who work in India make about one-eighth as much as their American counterparts here. That's why American business moves over to India to do business there. It's not as cheap. That's leading some Indian software's companies, for one, to go ahead and try to cut costs and look for a price hike.
Here's the fun twist about it. What are they planning on doing it? A lot of it, they're outsourcing their outsourcing to China. They're putting more emphasis there. They're also building up in Europe, where the currency has been a little bit more stable. And here's the other funny thing. They're hiring more American workers and outsourcing some of the workers. But it's cheaper to find talent here in America.
ROBERTS: So when you call up and try to change your flight, are you going to talk to Mumbai or are you going to be talking to Shanghai?
ELAM: India is still thriving. Don't think they're still not making a lot of money there. So don't expect a huge change any time soon.
KEILAR: Is this expected to be a long trend?
ELAM: It could be because the economy is strengthening in India, which means the rupee is stronger, and that means it's, therefore, an issue as long as our dollar is not as strong.
ROBERTS: It's amazing. It's going to go around the world. Stephanie, thanks.
A story coming up in the next half hour you can't miss. Just how safe is the taser gun really?
KEILAR: We've heard so many stories about people being tasered, something a lot of interest to people. The weapons carrying a risk of long-term harm, perhaps even death if not used properly. We'll take a look.
ROBERTS: Of course, the new phrase in the American vernacular, "Don't tase me, bro." The next hour of "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.
Heat crisis.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Runner down.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROBERTS: Questions for the Chicago marathon this morning. One runner dead, hundreds forced to drop out, thousands not allowed to finish. How were organizers so unprepared?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they had little booths out here, there wouldn't have been any problem. (END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Facing the music.
It's now worth 99 cents, but imagine paying more than $9,000 per song.
An "AMERICAN MORNING" exclusive, what's on this accused pirate's play list? Live, with the first person convicted of illegal downloading.
Plus, tasers in the news.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
