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Al Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize; Pennsylvania Teen Suspected of Plotting High School Shooting

Aired October 12, 2007 - 15:00   ET

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

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: He blew the whistle on global warming. Now the whole world is listening. And Al Gore is sharing the Nobel Peace Prize for 2007.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And here's the big question, Betty. What about 2008?

NGUYEN: Yes.

LEMON: The former V.P. has said 1,000 times he's not running for president. Again today, he's avoiding the question entirely, and so did his former political adviser, campaign adviser, as well.

NGUYEN: Donna Brazile. We tried, though.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: We tried.

Hello, everyone.

Or you tried, I should say.

I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

NGUYEN: Yes, several times, in fact.

Hi, everybody. And I'm Betty Nguyen, in today for Kyra Phillips. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Let's get you straight to Fredricka Whitfield now, who is in the CNN NEWSROOM with details on a developing story out of Texas.

What do you have, Fred?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, more on law enforcement officers descending on a neighborhood in Arlington, Texas, after the discovery was made in nearby Fort Worth of three bodies found in a house, and apparently those three victims were all fatally wounded in gunshots.

And now apparently they're focusing on this residence in Arlington, Texas, to pursue what could be a suspect or at least a person of interest, and some of the reporting coming from an affiliate in the Dallas/Fort Worth area saying that allegedly a child who was covered in blood was dropped off at the Mayfield Road Baptist Church there in the Arlington area and that the child appeared to be uninjured, but somehow that then led them to this residence there to make this discovery of these three gunshot victims.

The information is very scattered, but we're trying to piece together the details coming from various sources, and that apparently an elementary school in the Arlington area has since been placed on lockdown. We don't know the details of this elementary school, Lynn Hale Elementary School.

And, of course, when we get information all of these things, we will be able bring it to you in some more coherent fashion -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes. There's a lot of details coming from many different sources, it appears, and a complicated story.

Thank you for that, Fred. We will be checking in.

LEMON: Well, a big victory for Al Gore and his global warming awareness campaign. The former V.P. is celebrating today as he and a panel of U.N. scientists share the Nobel Peace Prize.

CNN's Dan Simon joins us now from Palo Alto, California, where Gore spoke briefly just last hour.

He wouldn't answer our question about if he's going to run. Donna Brazile wouldn't answer it. Maybe Dan Simon could answer.

Can you?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I don't think so, Don.

He didn't take any questions whatsoever.

LEMON: Oh well.

SIMON: Yes.

Mr. Gore is still inside this building behind me. Earlier he had this news conference. He was joined by his wife, Tipper. He said he was deeply humbled by winning the Nobel Peace Prize. He said he was accepting it on behalf of everyone trying to make a difference on what he calls a planetary emergency. As we said, no questions whatsoever. Of course, everybody wants to know is there's any chance he might use this as a springboard to possibly run for president, any chance whatsoever?

He didn't take the bait. Here's what he had to say. He kept everything focused on the climate and global warming.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I will be doing everything I can to try to understand how to best use the honor and recognition of this award as a way of speeding up the change in awareness and the change in urgency. It truly is a planetary emergency, and we have to respond quickly. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: Of course, Mr. Gore shares this award with the U.N.'s top panel on climate control. Collectively, they will get $1.5 million for winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Mr. Gore says he is going to donate his proceeds to the Alliance for Climate Protection. He is the chairman of the board of that group. And that's where he is right now, having some meetings with some of the members of that nonprofit group -- Don.

LEMON: OK. So he's meeting now with members. But I also -- we carried it here live on CNN, Dan, where he said I'm going to go back to work on doing this and bringing more awareness to it.

Do you know where he goes next after this meeting? What is he going to do next?

SIMON: Well, you're right. He is going to have some meetings this afternoon. From here he's going to go to Current TV, which is his television venture which is located here in the Bay Area, also an online venture. He won an Emmy for his work with that group.

Mr. Gore has an apartment here in San Francisco. We're told he is going to spend the night here and then tomorrow at some point is go to Nashville, and then, of course, in December, don, that's when he accepts the big award, is going to go travel over to Norway to accept the Nobel Peace Prize with his wife, Tipper -- don.

LEMON: Dan, you got the whole schedule down. We appreciate that. Dan Simon joining us from Palo Alto, California.

Thank you, sir. And we will see you here next week. You will be sitting in for me for a couple days.

SIMON: Glad to do it. Thank you.

LEMON: Yes. That will be exciting. OK, Dan Simon, thanks again.

Former President Clinton had this reaction to the Nobel announcement -- quote -- "Al Gore has been warning and educating us about the dangers of climate change for decades. He saw this coming before others in public life and never stopped pushing for action to save our planet, even in the face of public indifference and attacks from those determined to defend the indefensible."

Well, the last American to win the Nobel Peace Prize was former President Carter. The 2002 laureate had this reaction to this year's winners -- quote -- "For more than 20 years, Al Gore has tirelessly championed the fight to protect our planet's environment, providing leadership to one of the most pressing issues of our time. The IPCC's wealth of study and research has brought much needed scientific understanding to the threat of global warming."

NGUYEN: Well, a series of raids today in connection with the death of Anna Nicole Smith. Investigators served several warrants at several locations, including the homes and offices of two Los Angeles area doctors. The former "Playboy" centerfold died at a Florida hotel in February after a drug overdose. The death was ruled accidental, but California decided to launch its own probe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERRY BROWN (D), CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: The investigation started when I reviewed the fact that all these different dangerous and -- drugs and controlled substances were a part of the death of Anna Nicole Smith, and I learned that these were California doctors and California prescriptions.

So, based on that, I had the Department of Justice commence an investigation. And it's been going full bore since that time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: A source tells CNN that no arrests are imminent.

But we do want to let you know that we are following this other story as well. A news conference is expected in about eight minutes, at 3:15 Eastern, dealing with the Ohio school shooting.

Here's what we know at this point. The city school's chief drew up a security upgrade plan. That plan was obviously drawn up in wake of Wednesday's SuccessTech Academy shooting, which wounded two high school teachers and two students and the gunman indeed was killed in that incident, so the school CEO has created this self-imposed Friday deadline today to submit the plan to city hall. And he is going to be outlining some recommendations at a joint news conference with the mayor.

That again expected to take place at 3:15 p.m. Eastern. And when it does, of course we will be monitoring it for you.

LEMON: We certainly will.

And as you saw here live on CNN, a jury in Florida acquitted the guards and a nurse who were charged with causing a teenager's death at a state-run boot camp. A tape of what happened sparked interest in the case and prompted the Florida legislature to order all such camps shut down. It shows several guards hitting and kicking 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson ass the camp nurse looked on.

Well, Anderson died the next day. A former county coroner testified that Anderson died of a sickle cell trait, but a second autopsy concluded he had been suffocated. The all-white jury took 90 minutes to find the eight defendants not guilty of manslaughter.

NGUYEN: A Pennsylvania teenager described as highly intelligent, but emotionally troubled is charged with planning a Columbine-style attack. Today, his mother is also under arrest.

CNN's Allan Chernoff is at the courthouse in Norristown.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: After her sons's court mother, the mother of the 14-year-old boy, Michele Cossey, was charged herself with purchasing weapons for her son, not only the semiautomatic rifle, but also a handgun and a single-shot rifle. The district attorney said afterwards that this was a case of bad parenting that could have led to disaster.

BRUCE CASTOR, MONTGOMERY COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: There's a lot of things at play here. We have a child who's obviously emotionally disturbed, a social outcast, and no doubt the parents feel sorry for him and are indulging him. This is not the best parenting that I have ever seen, obviously, and she had to be held accountable.

CHERNOFF: Earlier, during her son's court proceeding, the mother was sobbing, and breathing very heavily in the front row of the courtroom. The judge decided that the county may continue to hold the boy, the 14-year-old boy. He will also be evaluated educationally and a psychological test will be administered as well.

Now, this boy, as he was leaving the courtroom looked at his mother, blew her a kiss and said, "I love you" very, very quietly. The district attorney is going to decide within a matter of days whether or not to charge the boy as an adult. Allegedly, he was plotting a Columbine-style attack at a local high school. The police found in his bedroom not only the semiautomatic rifle, but also 30 B.B. guns that looked like real weapons as well as some knives and seven hand grenades.

Allan Chernoff, CNN, Norristown, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right, Allan.

The 16th of September, it was a dark day for Blackwater. Employees of the private security firm were involved in a shooting in Baghdad that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead. The accounts of what happened differ wildly. And we're learning more today from an early Pentagon report.

Let's go straight to Baghdad now and CNN's Jim Clancy -- Jim.

JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All right.

This was basically, Don, a report that was filed by the first U.S. soldiers on the scene, an incident report, if you will. And it seems to support what the Iraqis have been saying now for weeks, and that is that when Blackwater guards opened fired, they had no provocation to do so.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY (voice-over): A U.S. military source tells CNN in Baghdad that an incident report was filed by the first U.S. troops to reach the scene in Nisoor Square that day. Troops who routinely patrol the area arrived about 20 minutes after the shooting subsided. According to the U.S. military source, what they wrote in their preliminary report included finding spent cartridges specifically made for U.S. weapons, like those used by the military or private contractors.

This video, obtained by "Newsweek" magazine, clearly shows what appear to be some of those casings lying on the ground. They did not find similar evidence that Iraqi police or insurgents had opened fire.

They also found that the position of vehicles in the square suggested that some Iraqis had turned their cars around and were trying to flee the area at the time they were engaged by gunfire. It largely corroborates diagrams and findings in an Iraqi report obtained by CNN.

The military source also told us that the report assessed the situation as an excessive use of force and that there was no evidence Blackwater's team had been fired upon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Public outrage over these shootings continues to grow. It will only be fueled by a Ramadan message on behalf of the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the head Shia cleric here in Iraq, who called on the Iraqi parliament -- didn't just call in it -- he demanded that they take action to hold the security guards, any private security guards, accountable in Iraqi deaths.

And he did it very dramatically. He said, there is nothing more cheap in Iraq today than Iraqi blood -- Don, back to you.

LEMON: CNN's Jim Clancy in Baghdad -- thank you for your report, Jim.

NGUYEN: Let's give you a live look, because we are waiting for a news conference to take place out of Cleveland, Ohio. In fact, this is some video from the shooting that took place there on Wednesday at SuccessTech Academy, where two high school teachers and two students were injured, the gunman killed, that gunman being a student at that school.

And today we are going to hear about the school CEO about a new security plan that is being drawn up. And as soon as that news conference takes place and the information provided, we will bring it straight to you.

You want to stay with CNN. You are in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Take a look at this video from Wednesday at SuccessTech Academy in Cleveland, Ohio, where a shooting there injured four people. The gunman, a student, was killed.

Well, today, in just a few minutes, we are going to learn about what is going to be done about security measures at the school. And as soon as that news conference takes place, we will bring it to you live right here on CNN. LEMON: And, right now, Betty, we're going to learn the details of a developing story from our Fredricka Whitfield, who is in the news room.

What do you have, Fred?

WHITFIELD: Well, Don, this a very sad and also convoluted story coming out of Texas, the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

You're looking at aerial pictures right now of what is turning out to be a standoff situation in Arlington, in a residential area, where it's believed that a suspect or a person of interest may be holed up in some way, possibly in a vehicle outside of one of these residences here.

Why they're focusing on this person of interest or potential suspect, because not far away, just a few miles away in Fort Worth, three bodies were found in a home, three people dead, what's believed to be an adult and two children in a home in Fort Worth, and then what also helped precipitate this entire situation and this investigation is that apparently a child -- we don't notice the age -- a child covered in blood was found at the Mayfield Baptist Church in Arlington.

So, to try and connect all the dots here, it's unclear whether this person of interest or suspect had something to do with the three bodies found in Fort Worth, and whether that person also had something to do with potentially dropping off this child or if there's any connection between this suspect and this child also covered in blood not far away from this standoff situation in Arlington.

So, it's a very horrible situation, given that there are already three people dead in this investigation. And we're still trying to find out a little bit more detail about what police are learning on the ground.

But now you see the vehicle, which is believed to be a location where this suspect or person of interest may be holed up. When we get any more information, we will be able to bring that to you.

LEMON: All right, thank you very much for that, Fred.

And, again, we're waiting for -- awaiting a press conference in Ohio regarding that school shooting. As soon as that happens, we will bring it to you here in the CNN NEWSROOM -- Betty.

NGUYEN: But, right now, Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy is recovering from surgery to clear a blocked artery in his neck. Kennedy's office says it all went fine and he should be up and running again soon.

In fact, the senator's doctors are conducting a conference call right now. And our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, joins us with the latest on this.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's first talk about what a blocked carotid artery is.

A lot of people, of course, are familiar with what happens when you have a blocked artery, when the artery goes to your heart. Well, this is an artery that goes to your brain.

The carotid artery is in the neck. They're on both sides of the neck. And we're told that the senator had a blocked carotid artery. It's there in red. And then he had a procedure to unblock it. The procedure was done at Mass General Hospital in Boston.

And we're told that -- usually with this procedure that it is done in the hospital. The person spends the night, usually done under general anesthesia, and doctors usually do one of two things. Either they go in and they scrape all that plaque and fat and cholesterol out and sew you up, and they just get rid of it surgically.

Or sometimes what they do is they go in with a balloon and a stent, and the balloon gets rid -- sort of pushes all of that fat away and then a stent is put in there to keep it in place.

Now, you have to do this, because if this artery truly gets really blocked up, that's when people have a stroke. So, you do this to prevent a stroke.

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: ... brain, very important.

COHEN: Right. Absolutely.

NGUYEN: Well, here's the question, though. How did they find it?

COHEN: Well, we're told by a source close to the senator -- CNN is told -- that it was determined because the senator has a bad back, and he gets regular care for a bad back and a bad neck as the result of an automobile accident in 1964. And his doctor said I want you to get updates on your -- some imaging done on your back and neck. And he went and had an MRI done in Massachusetts, and the MRI showed indeed that he had this blocked artery.

NGUYEN: So, this is very important because it could have prevented a really massive problem.

COHEN: Oh, absolutely. He is indeed a very lucky man. To catch this sort of as an incidental finding, as doctors say, sort of as a fluke, really, that they caught it, is a tremendous thing for him, because, really the first sign that you have a blocked artery is that you have a mini-stroke or for some people the first sign is that you have an actual stroke.

So, for example, someone might feel numbness in an arm, in a leg, or might have some visual problems, some problems seeing, or some problems speaking. They just can't get the words out, and some people just kind of ignore those symptoms, because they're fleeting.

NGUYEN: Right.

COHEN: And, in fact, what it is a mini-stroke. And it's a sign that you need to have that surgery to unblock the artery.

NGUYEN: It's a good thing they found it.

COHEN: So, it's terrific, terrific.

NGUYEN: All right, Elizabeth, thank you. We appreciate it.

COHEN: Thanks.

NGUYEN: Don.

LEMON: Well, you saw it all play out here in the CNN NEWSROOM on Wednesday, folks running out of a school, parents coming to the school concerned about their kids after a shooting there that left the gunman dead and two teachers and two students injured as well.

Asa Coon, that 14-year-old boy, opening fire on fellow students and also teachers in that school. The live pictures you're looking at now, a press conference about to get under way in Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, those pictures, live pictures, courtesy of our affiliation WOIO. We certainly thank WOIO for these pictures and for all of their help on this story.

In talking about Asa Coon, that 14-year-old, trying to figure out a teenage shooter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL MCGRATH, CLEVELAND POLICE CHIEF: We know that he did have some disciplinary problems at the school and outside of the school, and, other than that, not a whole lot. He wasn't one of these kids that were high on the list as far as a troublemaker goes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The Cleveland school shooter, did authorities miss signs of trouble ahead? Well, that is ahead right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Of course, that safe school sign that you see right there at the bottom of your screen prominent. They're going to talk about some changes today when it comes to securing schools in the Cleveland, Ohio, area.

As we know, a school shooting there on Wednesday left four people injured. And then the gunman, a 14-year-old man, a 14-year-old boy, turned the gun on himself, left him dead.

Did they miss anything? What happened? And how could they spot the signs for another potential incident like this? Well, the mayor and then the CEO of the school district there, they're going to talk about all of that. As soon as this press conference gets under way live in Cleveland, Ohio, we will bring it to you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

LEMON: Well, the shock of what happened in one of their schools on Wednesday forced the school district in Cleveland, Ohio, to have a self-imposed deadline to give recommendations to the mayor and the city about how they're going to improve security in their schools and possibly look out for potential young people, as we look at these -- pardon me. We're looking at the press conference now -- how they...

NGUYEN: I believe that's the mayor coming in right there.

LEMON: Yes, that is the mayor, and then the superintendent of -- the CEO of schools as well.

They're going to try to figure out how to look for troubled students, is what I was trying to say before the mayor and the CEO of the schools walked in. The mayor there in front, Frank Jackson, he's the guy with the beard. The other guy to his right, the African- American gentleman, is the CEO of the school system there, Eugene Sanders.

FRANK JACKSON, MAYOR OF CLEVELAND, OHIO: Hi. Good afternoon.

LEMON: Let's listen in.

JACKSON: I want to thank everyone for coming. Also, I want to thank the clergy. I appreciate your being here and appreciate your support.

As you know, we are all concerned about the safety and the well- being of our children, along with Dr. Sanders. And both of our administrations are committed to ensuring that Cleveland schools are safe and that there is an environment conducive to learning there.

As you know, about 50 hours ago, a young child, a 14-year-old child, shot and injured two teachers and two students and then killed himself. I want to -- before I go on, I want to say to the families of the victims and the victims how sorry we are and give them our condolences -- and, really, to the family of the child who wound up shooting himself, how we also feel for them.

And also on Wednesday, our police department responded quickly and professionally. And they responded in a way that they have been trained, particularly in school violence issues. Also on Wednesday, the teachers, the students and administrators of the high school responded quickly and professionally, again, as they have been trained.

Now, both efforts -- both efforts resulted in minimizing injuries that could have occurred. Now, I want to emphasize to you -- and I don't want you to take this point lightly or minimize it -- that their efforts helped to minimize what happened there -- and that because we could be today facing something much worse.

However, I know that you're here for the immediacy of the moment, and that is how can we and Dr. Sanders can present a plan that says our children -- to our children, our parents, teachers, administrators and the general public, so that they know our schools are safe and that there is an environment that is conducive to learning.

I've asked Dr. Sanders to give me their plan -- their plan on safety. And he will be presenting that to you in a moment. I've also instructed the director of public safety and our police chief to work with Dr. Sanders to give him whatever resources he needs to be successful.

Now, I also want to remind you that this is not new for us, meaning that for the last 20 months there's been a strong relationship and collaboration between our police department, the school district and other local law enforcements to ensure children are sure to and from school and in school. So this is not new and (AUDIO GAP) police chief to add whatever additional resources we need to ensure that he is successful.

Again, I have full faith and confidence in Dr. Sanders, in his ability to ensure that our children will be safe and that the environment in our schools will be one that is conducive to learning.

Now, but before I close and turn it over to Dr. Sanders, I have one other thing I want to say to you, that what I guarantee you -- this I guarantee you that somewhere in this country today there's a similar incident that's going to happen in somebody's school, somebody's home or on somebody's street.

I don't care if it's an urban center, a suburban center or a rural area, it's going to happen, I guarantee you, today. And that we, as a society, are measured by -- and we have the responsibility of nurturing and protecting those who are the most vulnerable among us. And on Wednesday, we, as a society, failed, not just Cleveland -- because I imagine every day some of know that a similar incident has happened somewhere in this country. And when it happens, we as a society have failed.

And what happened on Wednesday is really a symptom of a greater illness. And I also want to say that, you know, next week at this time, you all are going to be gone. And -- but we'll still be here and the problem will be persistent. And we will continue to work on it, as we have in the past. And we will work in a way that's of collaboration and we will be successful in our mission to service the people that we serve.

So I'm going to turn this over to Dr. Sanders so he can give you some of the details of his plan. I want to remind you, however, that it is a plan -- a plan that we will be implementing. And as he implements it, there will be some things that work and some things that won't. And when we find out what doesn't work, we will adjust accordingly. And those things that do work, we will build on that.

And he has my full faith and confidence and he has the resources of the city to help him do what he needs to do to ensure safety in an environment conducive to learning.

So, Dr. Sanders?

EUGENE SANDERS, CLEVELAND METROPOLITAN SCHOOL DISTRICT CEO: Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor Jackson, Chairman Hurd and the members of the board of education.

To our community partners who are here with us this afternoon, we thank you for attending our press conference today. We also would like to thank people far and wide for their support, their words of condolences and the many expressions of kindness that we have received from throughout the -- throughout the nation.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge my staff and those who have been working around the clock since Wednesday to provide the kind of service to our primary responsibility, which are, of course, the children of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.

Before I get into the body of my conversation today, I really want to speak directly to the students at SuccessTech. There's been a lot of conversations going on in our community about those students being somehow responsible for the actions that took place. I want them to know, first of all, that their CEO loves them, that your teachers, your administrators, our mayor, the board of education and the people of this community love you, as well. And we're going to do everything in our power to ensure that you're safe and secure in everything we do.

Allow me to restate again that safety and security is one of our top -- is our top priority for our student body, for our faculty, for our administration and for all of those who engage with us on an ongoing basis. As the mayor has indicated, we have established a series of policies and procedures that speaks directly to safety and security. You can find those that are clearly exhibited in our five year strategic plan located on our Web site.

On Wednesday of this week, our students and teachers did exactly as they were instructed to do under a code blue. Teachers and administrators put their lives at stake for our children and for that I am grateful. Our mayor is grateful and our community is grateful.

Our mobile response team followed the training and worked in concert with other law enforcement partners within established procedures under some very difficult circumstances. Students were helping students, teachers were helping students and everyone did what I think is an admirable job.

As the mayor said, we're not alone in this circumstance. There are societal factors that impact everything we do every day. But I am personally grateful to those who exhibited tremendous personal human relations leadership this past week and we're thankful for what you have done. We want our students, our teachers, our parents or administrators, to feel comfortable and safe in our schools. Anything less than that means that our children will lose out on a valuable educational opportunity.

Let me take a couple of moments this afternoon and lay out what we think are the two broad strokes that are necessary for us to move forward. One of those broad strokes is what we're calling simply human relations -- the ability to communicate, the ability to have relationships, the ability to engage with our students and our professionals in a way that builds on a sense of trust and comfort by working together.

In the hours and days that followed the SuccessTech Academy incident this last week, our school district has communicated via phone, through our automated data systems for speed and efficiency, to leave a message at the homes of every single child in our district, to communicate where they can identify support services and counseling services for our students. We have met with the SuccessTech Academy principal and teachers to provide special support services for them.

We've offered our employee assistance plan to all of our students and yesterday we provided professional development for all of our principals regarding safety and security procedures, fire drills and other kinds of initiatives to address safety and security in all of our schools. We believe that it's important to establish relationships with our students that allows them to move forward in a successful way. Let me speak specifically in terms of human relations what our strategies are and will be for SuccessTech.

First of all, on Monday of this coming week, we will hold an open house from 6:00 p.m. Until 8:00 p.m. To give the parents and the guardians an opportunity tour the school, review our new security procedures and talk directly to district administrators and faculty and staff. We will maintain communications with support staff at our schools and those victims that were a part of this tragedy this week. We also plan to deploy additional district and community counseling services and social workers, psychologists and other professionals for SuccessTech Academy students, their parents and staff members.

On a district-wide basis, we intend to assess the additional support needs of all CMSD schools, to provide all staff with a list of available agencies and services to help support our students, parents and staff members and coordinate the deployment of external agencies to ensure all buildings are properly supported. Our goal is to deploy additional district counselors, social workers and psychologists to support the services to buildings needing support.

Next week, we have canceled all school day professional development activities to ensure that every teacher is able to be in his or her own regular classroom so they can interact with students throughout (AUDIO GAP).

LEMON: All right. That was the CEO of the Cleveland school district there talking about some of the changes they'll make and needed there in the school district following that shooting on Wednesday. We're going to continue to monitor that. If any more news comes out, we'll bring it to you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We have to move on now. NGUYEN: Yes, we do.

In fact, Fredricka Whitfield has been working on a developing story throughout the afternoon. What do you have now, Fred?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, this situation in Texas we continue to monitor, where police have surrounded a location in Arlington, Texas. They believe they have cornered a suspect, someone who may be responsible for the deaths of three people in nearby Fort Worth -- a woman, a 13-year-old little girl and 10-year-old little boy all found dead in a Fort Worth residence.

And then, according to some reporting from our affiliate WFAA there in Dallas, that not far away in Arlington, at a church, that a man covered in blood, according to eyewitness accounts, dropped off an infant at the Mayfield Road Baptist Church and that this man allegedly told the person at the church that he had killed some people and was on his way to kill more. And so now these chilling details coming out just a few hours after the discovery was made at this home in Fort Worth.

And now, the pictures that you're seeing is the area where law enforcement officials have descended upon a residence community there in Arlington, where they believe they may have a suspect -- a person of interest, possibly even this person that is being described as an estranged husband -- being linked to that family -- or at least those three members of the family found dead in nearby Fort Worth -- Betty.

NGUYEN: All right, Fred.

Of course, we'll continue to follow this story as there are developments in it.

And right now, though, we're going to take a quick break. There's so much more to come right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: We're still following that standoff out of Arlington, Texas. You're looking at pictures coming from the scene there.

Let's take you by phone to Ed Lavandera, who joins us live -- Ed, what do you know in regards to this situation?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi.

Well, we just have confirmed from a spokesperson for the Fort Worth Police Department who's at the scene of -- the murder scene right now -- and this separate from where the stand-off is happening. But a spokesperson out there tells us that they have one adult, a female, a 13-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy who are apparent murder victims here this afternoon.

The standoff is with what police at this point believe is the estranged husband of this -- of the female murder victim. And they were able to get wind of what was going on because apparently, according to this place spokesman, this gentleman showed up at a church with a 3-year-old child who was covered in blood, but wasn't injured, and then had made some comments to some people at this church -- they didn't have the name of the church -- that he had committed this terrible crime.

He was then found later by Arlington police, which is essentially a city just right next door to Fort Worth, to kind of give people a sense of where they are. So these are two neighboring communities.

And then Fort Worth police had pulled this person over in a traffic -- for a traffic violation. And at this point, according to Fort Worth police, we are being told that he is -- this gentleman is sitting in his car and threatening to commit suicide, and that's clearly why we're in a standoff situation right now.

NGUYEN: And so let's get back to that 3-year-old just briefly. Is that one of his children? We understand that the female adult, it seems, would be the mother of the 13-year-old and 10-year-old who were killed. What about the 3-year-old?

LAVANDERA: Well, they're still working on this. But right now, the way Fort Worth police have described it to me, they believe that the 3-year-old is from a previous marriage. So the three children involved here don't appear to be all from the same marriage. And so that is one of the things that they're trying to work through now, exactly what the family situation -- the family dynamic is in this particular case. But the gentleman -- what I was told is that the 3- year-old is from a previous marriage of this woman.

NGUYEN: Nonetheless, just what a horrifying story there. And the standoff that continues at this hour. Of course, we'll be checking in with you as well, Ed, as you work your sources on this.

We appreciate it.

LAVANDERA: Thank you.

LEMON: All right, now it's time for Life After Work. Sure, climbing the corporate ladder can be difficult. However, for one former investment banker, it's nothing compared to her new challenge.

CNN's Ali Velshi has the story in today's Life After Work series.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a sunny day in San Francisco and Alison Levine is heading to the beach -- but not to work on her tan.

ALISON LEVINE, FOUNDER, DAREDEVIL STRATEGIES: I am down here at Ocean Beach training for a six to eight week expedition to Antarctica that I leave for at the end of November. And what I'm going to be doing is crossing the continent, from the Ronne Ice Shelf to the South Pole. So it's about 550 miles of Antarctic ice and it's the coldest, windiest place on earth. VELSHI: But Levine isn't a stranger to harsh environments. This former Wall Street investment banker has trekked to the North Pole and climbed the highest peaks in the world, including Mount Everest. Still, her biggest challenges have been overcoming her own body's limitations -- a serious congenital heart condition and an extreme sensitivity to cold.

LEVINE: I had one surgical procedure when I was 17 and another one when I was 30. And 18 months later, to celebrate my new state of good health, I wanted to go do something that I wouldn't have been able to do before.

VELSHI: Levine discovered this love of climbing during a vacation in Mount Kilimanjaro and found she was hooked. It wasn't long before she left her desk job for good and took up climbing and lecturing as a new way of life -- one says she can live by for many years to come.

LEVINE: The only way I was going to be able to go do the things I enjoy doing was to be an entrepreneur and start my own business. And I have two or three months that I can go out and do the things that really get me excited about waking up every day.

VELSHI: Ali Velshi, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: I think it's Wolf time -- Wolf Blitzer time.

NGUYEN: Yes, it sure is. He -- actually, he's standing by live in "THE SITUATION ROOM" to tell us what is coming up at the top of the hour.

Hey there, Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, guys. Thanks very much.

Coming up, an eye-popping amount of cash will be spent to get your vote this election cycle. How much? Get this -- an estimated $3 billion, nearly $1 billion alone on the presidential race. Is money at the root of all things political right now?

Also, their campaigns say it's the first time it's happened in U.S. history -- a presidential campaign event hosted by both a Republican presidential candidate and Democratic presidential candidate. Candidates and Senators Sam Brownback and Joe Biden are riding low in most of the polls. You're going to find out why they today are teaming up for your attention.

And Senator Ted Kennedy is recovering after surgery. We're going to tell you what it's for, how he's doing.

All that and a lot more coming up right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- back to you.

NGUYEN: All right, we'll be watching.

Thank you, Wolf.

LEMON: Yes, that'll be fun.

The closing bell and a wrap of all the action on Wall Street straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: The closing bell is about to ring on Wall Street.

LEMON: Susan Lisovicz standing by with a final look at the trading day.

Hi, Susan. Happy Friday.

NGUYEN: Hi, yes.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Happy Friday.

A very happy Friday for Al Gore -- the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. You know, maybe a lot of folks don't know that not only with that prize, there's prestige, of course, but there's also a lot of money -- $1 million. Al Gore says he's going to give it to the Alliance for Climate Change. That is a non-profit group that he founded. And they could use it because they are embarking on one of the biggest public service campaigns in Madison Avenue history -- basically not only do -- it's telling all of us that we have a role in reducing our energy usage.

And, interestingly enough -- I don't know if we have the ad -- Tommy Lee Jones, Al Gore's old college roommate at Harvard, voices over one of the ads.

LEMON: Wow!

Hey, Susan, who's screaming behind you?

LISOVICZ: It's a bunch of traders...

NGUYEN: Somebody's happy.

LISOVICZ: It's a bunch of traders. I think they're eager to get out. Yes, there's the...

LEMON: That was the ad, yes.

LISOVICZ: Yes, there's the ad. It shows a bunch of black balloons, I guess, as a metaphor for greenhouse gases.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

LISOVICZ: Have a great weekend, Betty and Don.

NGUYEN: All right, thank you. LEMON: Yes.

NGUYEN: You do the same.

LEMON: And you see the pink ribbon. I think it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so that's what they're doing.

LISOVICZ: That's also right.

Thank you.

LEMON: Yes.

All right. Have a great weekend, Susan.

LISOVICZ: OK.

LEMON: Now it's time for Wolf Blitzer and "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- hi, Wolf.

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