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Pakistan Crackdown Extends to Former Prime Minister; O.J. Simpson Defense: No Robbery Took Place; Intoxication Contributed to Airport Death, Officials Say; American Student Suspected by Italian Police in British Roommate's Death

Aired November 09, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: The Pakistani crackdown hits Benazir Bhutto where she lives. Seven days into emergency rule the former prime minister learns a ban on opposition rallies means her rallies, too.
DON LEMON, CO-HOST: But just when the story begins to settle down, new things happen. Developments are breaking by the minute, and you'll see all of them all day long right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: A major rally planned today in Pakistan never happened. Opposition leader Benazir Bhutto's plan to lead that rally were dashed when police blockaded her home and prevented her from leaving.

But Bhutto managed to address her supporters by megaphone and once again demanded that President Pervez Musharraf cancel the state of emergency. That hasn't happened, but moments ago we learned a house arrest order against Bhutto has been lifted.

CNN's Zain Verjee is following events for us in Islamabad. She'll join us in about 10 minutes on the very latest on the situation with that.

In the meantime, the U.S., of course, is keeping a close eye on this turmoil. President Bush is in Crawford, Texas, and that's where we find our Suzanne Malveaux -- Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, we just heard from National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe, who essentially released a statement from the administration, bold language but very telling language.

He talked about the pressing concern that Pakistani authorities, that they return to their constitutional order and democratic norms. But of note, he did not mention Pervez Musharraf by name.

Also, there was a call, as well, he says that we continue the call for an early end to the state of emergency, and a release of those political prisoners. An early end, not an immediate end but an early end here.

What does this suggest to us? That perhaps after President Bush pushing Musharraf a couple of days ago in that phone call, getting the assurance that there will be elections, perhaps mid-February, that they are pulling back just a little bit to give the leader some space here, to see what develops.

Also of note here is one of the closest allies with the Bush administration, the former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, earlier as you mentioned, under house arrest. I addressed that issue with Johndroe: what is the status; are they pushing the government for her release, a lot of confusion. And here's how they responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON JOHNDROE, DEPUTY WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: You know, U.S. officials on the ground in Islamabad have been in touch with members of a variety of the political parties, including Ms. Bhutto, so we are urging all sides to engage in a dialogue to work through this peacefully and to get to free and fair elections, which is, obviously, in the best interests of the people of Pakistan.

MALVEAUX: Is there any consequence to Musharraf or his government if she is not released from house arrest or her supporters, as well?

JOHNDROE: You know, what I would say is that we want an early end to the state of emergency. We want them to get back on the path to democracy, which means having free and fair elections. And I think that's hopefully the path they're getting back on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So Don, really what you're hearing here is the administration is trying to figure this out as we are, what is happening on the ground. We heard several times from Johndroe, saying that it really depends from hour to hour, even minute by minute what the developments are here.

On the one hand, they are encouraged by some of the movements. And if this is true that Benazir Bhutto has been released, then that is encouraging news.

But they don't want to push too hard on this, and that is what we're seeing today. A little bit of pull-back here, because they want to make sure, ultimately, so far, that Musharraf stays in power -- Don.

LEMON: Suzanne Malveaux in Crawford, Texas. Thank you for that, Suzanne.

PHILLIPS: Now, let's take a live look at day two of O.J. Simpson's probable cause hearing which resumed just a couple of hours ago in Las Vegas. Prosecutors are trying to show ample evidence to try Simpson and two other defendants on armed robbery charges.

CNN's Dan Simon is our man on the scene.

Dan, where are we at this point of the hearing?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Kyra.

Actually been a pretty good morning for the defense. On the stand right now is a guy named Thomas Riccio. He's the sports memorabilia dealer who actually orchestrated this whole confrontation in the hotel room. He tape-recorded the event, sold it.

But he's actually doing the defense a favor right now, because he is saying that, in his mind, the items in question inside that hotel room had, in fact, been stolen. How did he know that? He says that Alfred Beardsley, one of the guy who was going to be selling those items, told him so.

Let's listen to that line of questioning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

THOMAS RICCIO, PROSECUTION WITNESS: He came right out and said it was stolen from O.J.'s trophy room. That was his exact words.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that's not only the heirlooms that Mr. Owens objected to, but it's also the footballs, the photographs, the negatives, basically the whole package.

RICCIO: No. The negatives and the photos were from the storage sting, and -- and the more expensive stuff like the game-used footballs and -- and the plaque from J. Edgar Hoover was stuff he claimed he stole from the trophy room.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIMON: So what's the defense trying to do here? Well, they're trying to show that, in fact, this was no robbery because those items actually belonged to O.J. Simpson, at least that's what they're trying to point out.

The problem here is the gun issue and the fact that you have three people, three of O.J.'s accomplices, apparently prepared to testify that there were guns in that hotel room, and O.J. Simpson told them to bring those guns with them. That is a hurdle for the defense in this case -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So what do you think? When can we expect a decision by the judge, if and how this goes forward?

SIMON: Well, here we are in day two, and you're only -- well, you haven't even wrapped up the second witness. You have a total of eight witnesses who apparently are going to testify for the prosecution that this was supposed to a two-day hearing. Looks like this is going to carry on into next week.

So, when will we know, Kyra? You're talking about O.J. Simpson here. But I would say perhaps by the end of next week they'll get through all these eight witnesses.

PHILLIPS: I don't know about you, Dan. I'm just having flashbacks, flashbacks from a decade ago. It's a little nerve- wracking.

All right. We'll talk to you again.

SIMON: Yes, indeed.

PHILLIPS: OK. Thanks.

Stay with us for the latest, of course, from the courtroom. We'll also be talking live with attorney and legal professor Avery Friedman right here on the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: The results are in on the death of Carol Gotbaum. She's a New York woman who flew into a rage at the Phoenix Airport, was handcuffed and shackled, then died alone in a holding cell.

CNN's Alina Cho follows up for us from New York now, where the Gotbaums lived.

Hi, Alina.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And a quick primer, remember, for our viewers. Carol Gotbaum, Don, the woman who died in police custody back on September 28 at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, exactly six weeks ago today.

CNN about an hour ago obtained a summary of the autopsy and toxicology report from the medical examiner's office. The full report is forthcoming later this afternoon.

I'm quoting now: "Based on our investigation, the cause of death has been certified as asphyxia by hanging and the manner of death has been ruled accidental." Now, that supports the argument by police that Carol Gotbaum may have strangled herself while trying to free herself from her handcuffs.

Now, the report also cited contributing factors to her death as acute ethanol and prescription medication intoxication. This is something we expected. The translation, there were both prescription drugs and alcohol in Gotbaum's system, and that contributed to her death.

Now, some background here. Carol Gotbaum was on her way to alcohol rehab in Tucson when she missed her connecting flight in Phoenix. She eventually flew into a rage and was arrested by police. Who could forget that airport surveillance video? It showed Gotbaum really running around the concourse before she was eventually taken down or fell down on her own.

Police took her into custody for disorderly conduct. There's that video there. They put her into a holding cell alone.

Police have maintained they did not know about her situation. They did not know she was an alcoholic and that she was depressed and perhaps even suicidal.

Now, she was in that holding cell, according to police, for less than eight minutes. When they didn't hear her screaming any more, they went in to check on her, and she was unconscious. Police have maintained all along that it was an accident. As I just mentioned, the M.E. report seems to support that.

Family members, of course, have a different story, suggesting police mishandled the situation and treated her inhumanely. Now not long after the story broke, about a week later, we obtained some audio recordings of the phone calls husband Noah Gotbaum made to airport dispatchers as he was trying desperately to find out what was going on with his wife.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NOAH GOTBAUM, HUSBAND OF CAROL GOTBAUM: They are waiting for her down in Cottonwood at...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

GOTBAUM: ... at the rehab center down there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

GOTBAUM: She is suicidal. Obviously, she is -- she has been -- she is -- alcohol abusive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Uh-huh.

GOTBAUM: But she is also in deep depression and the police have to understand that they're not dealing with someone who's been just drinking on flight and...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.

GOTBAUM: ... acting rowdy. That's not what's going on here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I think somebody talked to the other dispatcher on that earlier and -- and we passed along that information.

GOTBAUM: Well, but again, I have not heard anything back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I don't know, you know, unfortunately...

GOTBAUM: It concerns me, Mike, that they have not called me, that they're just dealing with her, that she is all alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Uh-huh.

GOTBAUM: OK? Because she should not be.

(END VIDEOTAPE) CHO: Really chilling to hear that, especially when you consider this. Noah Gotbaum made at least three calls to airport dispatchers, but Don, as we all know by now, Carol Gotbaum was already dead by the first time -- the first call came in. In fact, she had already been dead for more than an hour.

LEMON: And Alina, what do we know from the police report, which was released last week?

CHO: Well, it was 270 pages. It took a long time to pour through it. But there are two salient points here, Don.

First, a flight attendant on Gotbaum's first flight from New York to Phoenix said that Gotbaum had ordered a meal and a bloody Mary on the flight. That is consistent with the M.E. report that's out today.

Also the second point: when husband Noah Gotbaum ultimately heard the news of his wife's death, his response was quote, "They killed her, they killed her," referring, of course, to Phoenix police.

Now, the Gotbaum family, we should mention, is conducting its own investigation. An independent pathologist hired by the family has just gotten access to Carol Gotbaum's key organs.

So ultimately, there could be another version, another story of how she died. And that could either strengthen or weaken the family's argument as they try to decide whether to sue the Phoenix Police Department -- Don.

LEMON: Alina, thank you.

CHO: You bet.

PHILLIPS: A former top associate of Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, fraud and making false statements.

Bernard Kerik was New York's police commissioner back when Giuliani was mayor. In 2004 Giuliani endorsed Kerik's failed bid to be U.S. homeland security chief.

A grand jury indictment includes allegations that Kerik lied to federal officials during that period.

(BEGIN VIDEO CIP)

MICHAEL GARCIA, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY: Time and again Kerik was asked specific questions about his financial dealings, and time and again he lied: lied about things like his receipt of the illegal apartment renovations, his receipt of a loan financed by an Israeli businessman who did business with the federal government, and his employment of the off-the-books nanny.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: If convicted, Kerik could face up to 142 years in prison and almost $5 million in penalties. Giuliani has called his support for Kerik's homeland security, well, that bid he called it a mistake.

LEMON: More protests in Pakistan. Police prevent a major rally, but a dramatic showdown keeps the crisis brewing. Zain Verjee has a live report straight ahead.

PHILLIPS: An American student studying overseas now forced to get fluent in Italian justice. Her roommate murdered and now a mystery that spans from Rome to London to Seattle.

LEMON: How do you keep your health insurance? Well, don't get sick. One insurer reportedly paid out bonuses for kicking sick patients to the curb.

PHILLIPS: Plus, it's cool, it's handy, it's hip. But is it toxic? You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: One-fifteen Eastern Time right now. Here are some of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Day two of O.J. Simpson's preliminary hearing. One witness characterized the confrontation between Simpson and some sports memorabilia dealers as a military-style invasion.

An Arizona medical examiner says Carol Gotbaum accidentally strangled herself. Gotbaum died in police custody at the Phoenix Airport after being arrested for disorderly conduct.

And the man who shot Alabama Governor George Wallace in 1972 has been released from prison. Arthur Bremer served 35 years of a 53-year sentence for trying to assassinate Wallace, then a presidential candidate. Wallace was paralyzed below his waist for the rest of his life.

LEMON: And Kyra, now back to Pakistan and a standoff between police and a key opposition leader, just not the one many had expected. Benazir Bhutto's planned rally fizzled today when government forces arrested many of her supporters and blockaded her home.

CNN's Zain Verjee is standing by in Islamabad.

Zain, you have some breaking news for us.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Don.

According to police sources here in Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto's house arrest order has been lifted. That happened about 30 minutes ago.

Now, the information minister was on TV. People can stream it through the Internet, because they can't watch it on the air. And he said that they only did it for today, because they didn't want her to go to this rally in the military garrison town called Rawalpindi that she wanted to go to.

The other thing, too, is that it was also a security issue, because there was an assassination attempt on her before, and they didn't want a situation like that to unfold again.

And there's also a lot of U.S. pressure on this. So, the government lifted this. And it's not surprising -- Don.

LEMON: So is she going to get the masses out on the road? That's -- that's the word. Is that going to happen?

VERJEE: Well, that's the question, Don, that everyone is asking. And she has not gone all out to do that. She's not on television telling everyone around the country to rise up.

What she's kind of doing is playing a double game here. On the one hand she's saying, "Yes, do it," because she's really the only person that can mobilize people on the streets. That's her trump card.

But on the other hand, she's leaving the door open for negotiations with General Musharraf. So it remains to be seen what will actually happen. There's also a lot of U.S. pressure for her not to destabilize the country that way.

But if she makes a deal with Musharraf, it's politically damaging to her and her own party's perception of her -- Don.

LEMON: Zain Verjee in Islamabad. Zain, thank you for your report.

PHILLIPS: A college student from Seattle is held in a grisly murder case in Italy. Her name is Amanda Knox, and her Italian boyfriend is being held, too, along with a Congolese bar owner.

CNN's Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci joins us here in Atlanta with the very latest on this case.

It's a bit bizarre.

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is bizarre. I mean, again, as you said, this woman was found in her bedroom with a slit -- with her throat slit. And the Italian investigators believe that Amanda and her boyfriend and this man are responsible for her death.

They also believe that more than one person was involved in the murder. That perhaps one person was holding her from the back and then the killer actually performed -- the killer cut her throat.

And also, they believe that perhaps a fourth man or fourth person, I should say, is involved in all this. So they're still investigating. So far, the three suspects are in custody, and they won't be going anywhere...

PHILLIPS: In the near future.

VINCI: ... in the near future. There is still an investigation ongoing.

PHILLIPS: What makes this so intriguing? These three, their friendship, what kind of evidence is there? I mean, why is there so much interest right now in this?

VINCI: Well, the reason why Amanda and her boyfriend are suspects is because what they've been telling the police is simply inconsistent. They've been basically contradicting each other.

First of all, Amanda said she was not in the house at the time of the murder. Then she said, "No, I was there. As a matter of fact, I could hear the scream coming from her bedroom." And instead of intervening she said she was covering her ears. That doesn't make sense, does it?

Her boyfriend, they found footprints in the -- in the room that seem to match her -- his sneakers, and they also found a knife that seemed to match the type of wound on the British student.

So all that obviously leads investigators towards calling them suspects. They are accusing the Congolese bartender, the bar owner. That's why he comes into play. Because they're saying, "It's not us; it's him."

PHILLIPS: Everybody is pointing the finger.

VINCI: Everybody is pointing the finger. And he has -- apparently, he has good alibis. He has good alibis, apparently. They don't really have one.

PHILLIPS: You know, it's interesting, whether it's here in the United States, or overseas MySpace always seems to somehow come into these stories. And tell us about her MySpace page.

VINCI: It does. And as a matter of fact, I mean, the Italian media and the British media was very aggressive on a story like this and has been basically portraying an unflattering portrayal of Amanda Knox.

She did have a blog entry in MySpace -- in MyFace, I should say, and where she was nicknamed or had nicknamed herself as the Foxy Knoxy. She definitely was a partygoer. At least that's what the profile they investigators have been able to establish. Whether, you know, a partygoer turns into a murderer, there's a lot of evidence that needs to be -- you know, that needs to be sifted through before that can happen.

But the Italian press has been quite open in reporting leaks from the Italian police. And the British press has been extremely, extremely aggressive, so much in fact, that the Italian prosecutors in Perugia, which is this town where all this is happening, are investigating these leaks, because they're saying, "Look there. You're perhaps portraying in a wrong way a woman that perhaps was just a student and liked to go to parties."

PHILLIPS: All right. We're going to follow it. You got the tabloid London press. Then you have this not-so-factual sometimes Italian press.

VINCI: Indeed.

PHILLIPS: And then you have these twisted stories.

VINCI: Indeed. And you have a dead person, of course, in all this.

PHILLIPS: Right.

VINCI: And the parents who want to know what happened. The father of this British student is a journalist, by the way, in Britain.

PHILLIPS: Oh, boy.

VINCI: And o he's obviously seeing this...

PHILLIPS: Doing his own investigation.

VINCI: Doing his own investigation. So it is a story that needs to be answered.

The incredible thing about this, it happened a week ago, by the way. It is quite difficult to figure out how come, if this evidence is so -- you know, so apparent against them...

PHILLIPS: Now it's coming to light.

VINCI: ... why has not -- you know, why they have not been charged yet. They're being held in prison. They could be held in prison up to a year, according to Italian law, while the prosecutors are building their case.

PHILLIPS: Continue to follow it. Alessio Vinci, thanks so much.

Well, a Navy psychologist serving in Iraq moved the world with her famous list: her list of things that were good and not good about serving in that country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Watching the black helicopter with the big Red Cross on the side landing at our pad.

Telling a room full of stunned Marines in blood-soaked uniforms that their comrade that they had just tried to save had died of his wounds.

Washing blood off the boots of one of our young nurses while she told me about the one who bled out in the trauma bay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now Dr. Heidi Kraft (ph) has written a wrenching book about the brutal impact of war on bodies as well as the psyches of servicemen and women. She'll be taking your questions when she joins us live right here in the CNN NEWSROOM next hour. So e-mail us your questions about war trauma, posttraumatic stress, anything you want to talk about, to CNNNewsroom@CNN.com.

LEMON: When the star witnesses are a rogue gallery, what impressions do they make on the judge? We'll cross-examine a legal expert on the O.J. Simpson case and its cast of colorful characters.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Oh, boy. For the third straight session, the Dow Industrials are posting triple-digit losses as stocks continue their rough ride.

Stephanie Elam is at the New York Stock Exchange to tell us why the buyers are basically just sitting on the sidelines.

Is that correct, Stephanie?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's what's going on here. People are freaked out right now, and they're looking at all the things that are playing into this. I mean, you look at oil prices. That's affecting gasoline. People are thinking about the winter. So a lot of things are making it uncomfortable.

And yet again we are looking at another ugly sell-off today. Late in the day yesterday we saw a bit of a rally, and that raised hopes that the worst was over. But once again, fallout from the mortgage crisis is hurting sentiment.

Wachovia says it will write-down more than a billion dollars in losses connected to the mortgage meltdown. This comes after the fourth largest bank reported a 10 percent drop in third quarter income last month, taking a $1.3 billion write-down at that time.

Here's the thing, though. Wachovia is not considered to have heavy exposure to the mortgage market, so this may have caught some analysts off-guard.

Wachovia shares, in case you're wondering, they're actually on the down side by just under 1 percent, Don. So feeling just a small bit of pressure here today.

LEMON: I imagine if it's down what, the third straight session in a row, so it's not just the financial companies. I'm sure there are other sectors that are getting hurt, as well.

ELAM: Yes. One of the big ones that's also getting beaten up here is tech stocks. Again having a rough time today. The tech-heavy NASDAQ is seeing a bigger sell-off than the other major averages on a lackluster outlook from cell phone chip maker Qualcomm.

And guess what else is hurting? Get this. Get ready for this one. High-end art is also getting a little bit of a beating here, as well, Don. Sotheby's stock -- the ticker symbol there, BID, B-I-D -- is down 8 percent after falling 28 percent yesterday. It seems a Van Gogh painting, considered the highlight of this year's art offerings, failed to get its minimum price -- $28 million that would be -- and therefore failed to sell. The painting, called "The Field," was hanging over Van Gogh's bed when he died.

Analysts actually went ahead and downgraded Sotheby's stock, citing weakening in the art market. So I guess -- no pun intended -- but it's not a pretty picture there at all.

(STOCK REPORT)

ELAM: But if there is a little bit of good news -- I've always got to find something -- Merck. The company is feeling no pain after a major settlement of Vioxx lawsuits. I'll have the details on what it means for Merck in the next hour of the NEWSROOM, Don and Kyra.

Until then back to you.

LEMON: Also some good news: there's only 2 1/2 hours left in the trading day. That's probably...

ELAM: That's true. Except for, you know, that last hour can get a little wacky.

LEMON: Oh, man.

ELAM: We can see things, you know, come back or they could go further down. So we might have to just wait until 5 p.m.

LEMON: I liked the first part. See them come back.

ELAM: OK.

LEMON: OK. Thank you, Steph. We'll see you.

ELAM: Sure. Sounds good.

PHILLIPS: Police in Pakistan blocked one big rally, but protests continue. CNN's I-Reporters are there. We're going to show you the dramatic images.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Pakistani Police Department kept Benazir Bhutto from leaving her home today, a show of force that short circuited her plan to lead an anti-government rally. Making Bhutto a virtual prisoner couldn't keep protesters off the street. Isha Sesay is working our Pakistan update desk. She has dramatic images from I- reporters, coming in on the net and through the cell phones as well.

ISHA SESAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra. We want to show you the dramatic events as they played out in Rawalpindi. Security officials work to keep the protesters off the streets. Rawalpindi was supposed to be the scene of massive protests after Benazir Bhutto called the people to get on the streets and protest against this declaration of a state of emergency. She was effectively under house arrest as you said and the authorities warned people that if they got on the street they would be dealt with harshly.

Let's show you some of the frantic scenes as they played out on the streets earlier on today. Look at this video. Thousands of security officials on the streets of Rawalpindi. There is a crush down hard on any protesters who defied the ban on public gathers.

We also want to share images sent by an I-reporter. The images were taken as this protest was supposed to have been taking place. And if you look at your screen, the right-hand corner, you can just see the security officials there, if you look closely, as they set out the barricade in preparations for anyone who might look to defy that ban on public gatherings. Our I-reporter told us this. There is no law here. It feels like a jungle. This is what martial law is. People are angry at their liberty being taken, there is no way to vent this anger. There is no justice, just police everywhere.

And when I spoke to our producer who is on the ground in Pakistan, he wanted us to stress to our viewers up until a couple hours ago police were still clashing with activists in Rawalpindi. We're working hard here at international desk to keep the story covered for you every angle of it. Everyone here on the phones, working those lines hard to bring all of the information. You see that we've got our monitors up, to get the video in as soon as developments happen, as soon as anything happens, we'll bring it right to you from international desk. Back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Isha. Thanks so much. We'll keep tracking with you.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Prosecutors in Las Vegas are spending one more day trying to prove they have got the goods on O.J. Simpson and two co-defendants but they have to make their case with some less than stellar star witnesses. Avery Friedman is a well known civil rights litigator and law professor at Case Western Reserve University. He joins us again with his thoughts on this. We said less than savory sort of. Do you agree with that?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Absolutely, Don. We've got some people here who really kind of fall below the line. The prosecutors have to go with what they have and right now we're hearing testimony from Tom Riccio who is a purported friend of O.J., but basically is testifying for the prosecution because he's been given immunity.

LEMON: So listen. In court today, you talked about Tom Riccio. He said this about what happened at the hotel following all of this, about not having the gun -- why don't we listen, then we can talk about it.

THOMAS RICCIO, SPORTS MEMORABILIA DEALER: People starting to surround the hotel. I went out there and clarified. O.J. didn't break into the room, he did not have a gun with him. Someone asked me did anyone have a gun, I said yes, somebody did, I don't know who they are but O.J. was trying to get his stuff back.

LEMON: OK. Just trying to get his stuff back. How effective will this be because again, as we said, some of these characters are really not stellar?

FREIDMAN: Well, some are better than others. What's coming out, Don, is -- will be the testimony of the two gunmen who accompanied O.J. into the room. Tom Riccio was not part of the planning before the entry into the room. Whether or not tom knew about guns as far as we can tell he's saying under oath for whatever that's worth I knew nothing about it. But there were a total -- the total universe of people in the room were seven. Six are saying there's a gun, O.J. is saying I never knew there was a gun. So, at this point all we've seen is Bruce Fromong setting the background. Now we heard Tom Riccio who is still going on, we're on redirect. He still has more testimony to go.

LEMON: OK. So we talked about Fromong yesterday and sort of debriefed you on that. How do you think the first day of the hearing, did it help or did it hurt O.J. Simpson because probably about halfway through the second day of this, the first day, did it help, also I guess the testimony in the first half of this day, help or hurt him?

FRIEDMAN: First day was all about the prosecutors, laid the foundation, set the whole thing up. Tom Riccio has not been a hostile witness to O.J. Simpson but he's giving the prosecutors the primary elements of robbery, of kidnapping, of assault with a deadly weapon and coercion. They don't need everything from this guy, they just need some of it because remember, he's leading up to the two gunmen coming up today.

LEMON: Ah, and that's going to be key.

FRIEDMAN: You bet.

LEMON: Leading to the two gunmen. Talk to me about that real quick.

FRIEDMAN: We've got two guys. We've got Charles Cashmore, we've got Walter Alexander who brought the gun. Alexander is a golfing pal of O.J. and so, what Alexander's going to say, again, he's entered a plea, trying to fight going to jail, is I brought the gun, O.J. knew it, he agreed, we were going to do a private sting. That's going to be enough to send it on to trial.

LEMON: He describes himself as a golfing buddy of O.J. Simpson. Talk to us because this was after yesterday, after we talked about this. This recording that they played yesterday.

FRIEDMAN: Yeah. Talk about slimy. Riccio said he never trusted O.J. so he was recording, in fact, you know how many hours, and Don of, of recording this guy's got?

LEMON: No, how much?

FRIEDMAN: 16 hours. This guy didn't trust O.J. as far as he could throw him. The important part of the tape are the six minutes which occurred in room 1203 when this thing came down. That's what everybody heard yesterday. LEMON: Is this room 1203 as it was going down, this is a recording, right? But 16 hours so it had to be some before and some after. Can this be entered if this goes to trial? This recording?

FRIEDMAN: You know what, Don. A lot of it is irrelevant. The plan was at least as far as Riccio is concerned, put the thing together, try to market it to people like you and other media networks, then try to make money on the so-called private stake.

LEMON: Got it. Avery Friedman, appreciate it. We'll see you a little bit later on.

FRIEDMAN: OK, Don.

PHILLIPS: Fredricka Whitfield is working on the developing story, a five-alarm fire, West New York, New Jersey.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. There is a fire there. We don't know much about the building or whether folks are in danger. It's a pretty aggressive fire under way in West New York, New Jersey. You're looking at the towercam shot from across the Hudson. When we get more information about what this fire's about and who it might be endangering, it is pretty close to the roadway there, probably the turnpike right there. But doesn't seem to be affecting traffic as of yet. When we get any more information we'll bring it to you.

PHILLIPS: All right. Thanks, Fred.

A would-be political assassin returned to the outside world after 35 years behind bars. Arthur Bremer is the man who shot Alabama Governor George Wallace in 1972. Bremer ended Wallace's presidential campaign and nearly ended his life. Wallace survived but was in a wheelchair until his death nine years ago. Bremer is 57 now, good behavior and working in prison helped him get out 18 years early. Bremer isn't going to be totally free. He isn't allowed next to candidates or elected officials. He'll also be monitored electronically and may not leave Maryland without permission.

LEMON: Are toxic chemicals coming from those popular Apple iPhones? It's a warning you might not want to miss.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The iPhone isn't exactly the apple of Greenpeace's eye. The environmental group says the gadgets have toxic chemicals in them and now the consumer watchdogs could be unleased. CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with details. Did you bring your own? Or did you borrow?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is my friend's iPhone. I borrowed one. Mine's at home.

PHILLIPS: You don't always have it.

COHEN: I don't. I try to work. There. I got a thing in for myself there.

The concern, you think the iPhones they look so innocent. What could be a health problem with an iPhone? The concern is actually not the iPhone itself but these head phones. These ear pods. The concern is they have chemicals that are going to hurt your ears. That's not the issue. The concern is if a child got a hold of this and started suck on these as children like to do, that that could be a problem. Or that the chemicals could leech, if you threw one of these away, they stopped working and you threw them away, the chemicals could leech out of landfills and into the water system. So, those are the concerns. This chemical is on a banned chemical list for the state of California on their list of concerns.

PHILLIPS: Do we know why we need this chemical?

COHEN: It makes it bendy. See how bendy this is. So it's a useful chemical but that is the concern there. Again, the issue is not so much with the person wearing it but if it was used in the wrong way.

PHILLIPS: So, if you're nervous about it, then what can you do?

COHEN: It's a simple answer. What you do is if you're concerned about these chemicals and concerned that this is a real issue, what you want to do is you want to go to the store and say hey, can I have some PVC-free ear phones. That's the term you want to use, PVC-free ear phones. It's the PVCs that folks are concerned about.

PHILLIPS: If you get those they're not going to be bendable?

COHEN: They will be in a different way. But not from the same chemical.

PHILLIPS: It's all about sales. It's marketing. What's Apple saying?

COHEN: Apple says they will at some point soon be getting rid of the PVCs in their ear phones but the ones today will have them. But that they plan on getting rid of them.

PHILLIPS: OK. We'll follow up. Thanks, Elizabeth.

LEMON: All right. Former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik has been in the hot seat lately. He pleaded not guilty in a federal court today on corruption charges stemming from his stint as New York City police commissioner. He spoke out moments ago right after a court proceeding. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNARD KERIK, FORMER NYC POLICE COMMISSIONER: Good afternoon. I'm not going to talk about the case itself. I just want to say that I'm disappointed that the government has brought forward this case. It's an extremely difficult time for me and my family. My life has been marked by challenge. Whether it was growing up being a cop, Riker's Island, the New York City Police Department are the worst challenge until this time, my challenges during and after 9/11. This is a battle I'm going to fight and I'll let my attorney talk about the case itself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Again, that was former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik. Here is what happened. A federal grand jury in Westchester County, that's in New York, indicted Kerik on conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and lying to the Internal Revenue Service. Kerik was commissioner under then mayor Rudy Giuliani and now who is now 2008 republican candidate for president. He is speaking out. He is pleading not guilty in federal court today. That was moments ago. He made those statements. Details to come as we get them here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Two cousins turn into super heroes when a little boy is pinned between life and death. You'll see it here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Time to check what's clicking at CNN.com. 1999 Colorado murder conviction is being re-examined amid charges of possible misconduct by police and prosecutors. More than 100 Osmond's take to "The Oprah Winfrey Show" after the death of family patriarch George Osmond. The show airs today. And Heather Mills McCartney, she parts ways with her legal counsel in her divorce battle with former Beatles Sir Paul McCartney. That plus all the days news at your fingertips on CNN.com.

PHILLIPS: There was no time to waste. A child was pinned under a 4,000-pound van. It was a situation that turned two ordinary guys in Phoenix into Supermen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: By the time the ambulance pulled away, and the van was once again resting on its tires, a couple of unlikely heroes had slipped into the background.

GUY: I thought I was going to have to pull out a dead child. I'm like no, god.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Meet Guy, 20 years old. And his cousin Davey, 18.

DAVEY: They were like help, help us. Help us. We helped them.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: By help, Davey means help lift a two-ton van off a child, pinned to the ground.

GUY: I was like all right. On three, one, two, three. On three we pushed it up.

TIFFANY ETHERIDGE, PULLED CHILD TO SAFETY: It was the most amazing act of kindness I've seen. UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Tiffany Etheridge was no slouch herself. After the guys lifted the van she pulled the boy out to safety. News Hawk 5 got there in time to see an EMT carry that boy to an ambulance. Kicking. But alive.

ETHERIDGE: I have a boy the same age. Fourth grade, 9-year-old little boy. And so it's very upsetting. Someone ran a red light to save two seconds and hit a van full of kids.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: There were four other kids in the van when it flipped over. The doors were jammed shut so the heroes had to break the windows and pull the kids to safety.

LEMON: More protests in Pakistan. Police prevent a major rally. A showdown keeps the crisis brewing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The writers strike may be serious business. If Robin Williams is out there how serious can it be? Jeanne Moos found out.

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An inflatable pig hogged the sidewalk in front of Time Warner as striking writers danced to the favorite chant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Management can't write that show.

MOOS: Those writing about the strike gravitated to the star who is showed up to support the writers like Roseanne Barr, talking about the strike all except this guy. Robin Williams carried on with Richard Belzer's dog. Then reflected back on.

ROBIN WILLIAMS, ACTOR: Thomas Jefferson went out for the constitutional writers strike.

MOOS: He turned his stream of consciousness to the picket signs.

WILLIAMS: Where's the punctuation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See the cartoons where the signs are blank because they are on strike.

WILLIAMS: Why's that? Why is there no writing?

MOOS: Life is imitating art on the picket lines. We aren't even writing slogans. Most performers acknowledge who puts words in their mouths. Stephen Colbert presenting at the glamour awards.

STEPHEN COLBERT, TV SHOW HOST: I'm honored to be here tonight to honor all these honorable honorees. I'm sorry, my writers are on strike. My stuff is usually better.

MOOS: In his final show before the strike, Conan O'Brien presented an instructional video about what is and isn't scripted. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm actually a really huge fan of yours.

CONAN O'BRIEN, TALK SHOW HOST: Don't even have an I.D. form.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Written.

MOOS: One of David Letterman's writers expressed mocked concern about missing good comedy material.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't want to be on strike when David Hasselhoff eats something off the floor again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a mess.

MOOS: This comedian took advantage to rant against the writers on You Tube. Writers are going on strike, writers are going on strike. I thought they have been on strike for the last 20 years. You got to be kidding me.

You decide. Andrew Smith is a writer on "The View." Has is show been worse without you?

ANDREW SMITH, WRITER: They're tongue tied.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That piece we did in New York.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wait. Wait. No. No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's squibberish. It comes out of their mouth.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What?

MOOS: Send for rewrite. Jeanne moos, New York.

LEMON: Leave it to Jeanne. Dr. Phil getting real with the dog. Bounty Hunter Duane Dog Chapman. Celebrity to get caught using a racial slur. During a taped phone conversation with his son. That's when it happened. Chapman used the n-word in referring to his son's African American girlfriend. He has apologized and says he was referring to the woman's character, not her race.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. PHIL MCGRAW, TALK SHOW HOST: He just needs to say that was wrong. I'm going to require more of myself and I am going opt be an open book. I'm going to be transparent about this and if you want to chase me down and try to shove a mike in my face or try to sneak up with a mike, you're going to find it boring because I'm not going to do it. He's got to admit he's wrong.

LARRY KING, CNN ANCHOR: So you're saying in a sense he can turn it around and make life better.

MCGRAW: Well I think he can use this circumstance as an event in his life. There are a lot of people that admire him. There are a lot of people that are fans of him. He came from nothing. He did create something. A lot of people look up to him for that. Use that platform to give a good message, give a solid message and move on.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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