Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Kevin Everett Goes Home; Vigilante Justice?; Bus Crash in South Carolina
Aired November 19, 2007 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Highway robbery. Gas prices jumped way up over last year's holiday drive. What's ahead for your fill-up?
You're tax dollar at work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Think layers.
ANNOUNCER: The new guide to speed you through airport security.
Plus, the show won't go on. Late-night talks break off leaving Broadway in the dark on this AMERICAN MORNING.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Thanks very much for joining us on this Monday, the 19th of November. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back from Vegas, by the way.
ROBERTS: Thanks. It's a great time there.
CHETRY: Big debates. Yes, a lot of excitement. I'm Kiran Chetry.
We start with breaking out of South Carolina and a bus crash -- a deadly bus crush overnight on I-26. It was about 20 miles west of Charleston. Police say it was a tour bus that went off the road in Dorchester County, hit several trees. The driver was killed and 30 passengers were hurt, one seriously. An employee with the bus company tells CNN this morning the passengers were a group of friends who were on their way to Miami to catch a holiday cruise.
Joining us now on the phone is trooper Bob Beres. He's a spokesman for the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Good morning and thanks for being with us this morning, Bob. Can you give us an update at this hour on the conditions and what's going on.
TROOPER BOB BERES, SPOKESMAN, S. C. HIGHWAY PATROL: Well, we just opened up the interstate roughly 30 minutes ago so it was closed to about four and a half hours. So I-26 is closing leaving Charleston (INAUDIBLE) openly in Charleston.
CHETRY: What's closed down for several hours after that crash happened? We have that 30 people were hurt but some of them were transported, we understand, in cars and also by ambulance. Was that just as a precaution?
BERES: Yes, one was flown out to the Medical University of South Carolina. Some were transported by private vehicle from family members that showed up at the scene and roughly 30 were transported by EMS.
CHETRY: I know it's too early to say exactly what caused the crash but what were the road conditions and what was the weather like at that hour in Charleston?
BERES: Well, the weather was clear. The roadway was clear. It's just a rural part of Dorchester County, like I said, about 25 miles from the city, so it's dark and the rural part.
CHETRY: So we have the bus driver was killed, one person had to be flown to a local hospital, serious hurt, and then about 30 others were transported. There were about 50 to 60 people on the bus at the time. Do we know any more about who the passengers were?
BERES: No, we don't. We're still doing some interviews and we're still on the early stages of the investigations because it only happened a couple hours ago. (INAUDIBLE).
CHETRY: All right -- Trooper Bob Beres, spokesman with the South Carolina Highway Patrol, thank you.
ROBERTS: Just in time for one of the busiest getaways weeks of the entire year, gasoline prices are making a run at a new all-time high. Snow and fog are blanketing parts of the country and the government is telling you how to pack your bags. We're all over the holiday madness this Monday morning.
Bonnie Schneider is keeping an eye on the Thanksgiving week forecast. Jeanne Meserve, live at Reagan National Airport this morning with the TSA's new tips on de-cluttering your bags.
But first, let's go Alina Cho on gas prices making a run for a new record.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's absolutely right, John. If you're one of the 31 million Americans who will drive to your destination for Thanksgiving, get ready to get out your wallet. The Lundberg Survey says the average price of a gallon of gas is now $3.09. That's close to the all-time high set back in May. It's 86 cents higher than last year and 13 cents higher than two weeks ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIM HOOVER, NOT CONCERNED OVER GAS PRICES: I guess I'm not too concerned about rising gas prices. I mean, I am very concerned about global warming and to the extent that higher prices make people change their behavior and drive less. I think that's a good thing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not that concerned, personally. I don't pay for gas money. It's mom's credit card, but you know, it's something that you got to think about every day. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Well, somebody's paying for it. The nation's cheapest and most expensive gas, by the way, are both out west. If you're looking to save a couple of pennies, head to Tucson, Arizona, where the average price is $2.91, and the city with the highest gas prices, that would San Francisco, where a gallon of gas is going to run you $3.48.
And if you think that's hard to take, consider this. It's going to get worse before it gets better. The people at Lundberg say, when it comes to gas prices, don't be surprised if the records are shattered in the coming weeks with the price of oil climbing towards $100 a barrel. Those who watch this closely, John, say we could easily see another dime at the pump. Not what consumers want to hear.
ROBERTS: No, certainly don't. It certainly helps that he had mom's credit cards. Takes a bit of the sting out of price at the pump.
CHO: That's right.
ROBERTS: Alina Cho for us this morning. Alina, thanks.
CHO: You bet.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: Now, let's go over to Kiran.
CHETRY: Thanks, John.
Well, the stars of stage and screen won't be working over Thanksgiving, and that's not necessarily a good thing. The talks to end the Broadway stagehand strike last night ended with no deal. Two dozen Broadway shows will remain shut down through the lucrative money-making Thanksgiving weekend.
Also talks between Hollywood producers and TV writers are off as well until next Monday. The cast of "Saturday Night Live" took their show on the road performing at a small theater in New York to benefit behind-the-scenes crew affected by the strike.
Our Lola Ogunnaike is at our strike update desk following all of this for us.
Good morning. Were there high hopes for the talks with the Broadway stagehands overnight?
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, there were high hopes. Everyone went in hopeful. They even brought in a negotiator from Disney out in Los Angeles. He has a specialty in labor relations. They thought that maybe he could jumpstart talks and that they would all walk out this weekend with Broadway up, the lights back on. Unfortunately, that did not happen.
It could not come at a worse time, actually. Thanksgiving week is the most -- were second most profitable week of the year for Broadway. Last year, it did over $30 million in business, second only to the week between Christmas and New Year's. So again, this could not come at a worse time.
CHETRY: And when it comes to the writer's strike that, having ripple effects as well. I understand "Saturday Night Live" laying off a bunch more people because they're just not doing shows.
OGUNNAIKET: Yes. They're not working. According to "The New York Post" "Saturday Night Live" laid off a slew of workers. But the show did actually go on for "Saturday Night Live." They performed at a small theater in Manhattan. The entire crew put in a show. And one of the benefits that they didn't have to worry about television censors so the show was far racier than what you would normally saw on television.
CHETRY: I bet it was a blast. Too bad more people aren't able to see it because of the ongoing strike.
Lola, thanks so much. John?
ROBERTS: The motor city is the most dangerous city in America, again. It took the top spot in this year's list, leaping over St. Louis, last year's crime leader, which fell to number two. It was followed by Flint, Michigan, Oakland and Camden, New Jersey, which is just across the river from Philadelphia.
A private research group releases these rankings basing them on FBI statistics. But critics, including Detroit's police chief, denounced the report. The critics complain that the numbers are taken out of context. They also question the group's motives since the full report is only available if you buy it.
New this morning, a dramatic drop in violence in Iraq. U.S. commanders say attacks are down 55 percent since the beginning of the American try buildup there. But they warn the fight has not gone away. Iraqi police say insurgents killed three of their officers today in a car bomb are killed at least nine in Baghdad yesterday.
We'll check in with our Michael Ware in Baghdad in a few minutes to find out if this is a trend -- this decline in violence -- and if it is, whether the military can keep it going.
Pakistan's Supreme Court cleared legal challenges to government of President Pervez Musharraf this morning. The court is handpicked by the Pakistani leader.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon is planning to take on al Qaeda inside of Pakistan, a new and classified proposal revealed in today's "New York Times" says the military will send U.S. trainers and money to Pakistani tribes that are willing to fight al Qaeda and the Taliban. The new proposal is modeled after the successive similar tactic in Iraq's Anbar Province.
There is new urgency to put the plan in action because of the political turmoil in Pakistan and fear that Islamic militants will grow stronger. If this proposal is expected, it might expand the presence of American military trainers in Pakistan as well.
At a peace gesture from Israel's prime minister just announced this morning. Ehud Olmert will remove unauthorized settlements in the West Bank and stop the building of new settlements. He says he is living up to commitments in the road map for peace. Olmert also met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas today.
All this in preparation for peace talks hosted by the U.S. in Annapolis, Maryland next week -- Kiran?
CHETRY: Well, there's a candlelight vigil for a police officer's former and current wives. One is already dead. The other three disappeared three weeks -- the other, the fourth wife, disappeared three weeks ago and may have been murdered.
Now relatives of Stacy Peterson gathered on her porch last night and they were joined by Kathleen Savio, his third wife's family. She back died in 2004. Authorities just last week exhumed her body to try to figure out whether or not her death may have been a homicide staged to look like an accident.
AMERICAN MORNING legal analyst Sunny Hostin is watching this case. And it seems every week we're hearing from another either family member or past wife of Drew Peterson, the police officer, now considered a suspect in the disappearance of his fourth wife.
Over the weekend we heard from the family of his first wife, who said, "OK, he was controlling. He cheated on her but as for any type of physical or mental violence, that didn't happen."
What are these people crawling out of the woodwork and continuing to talk about Drew Peterson as a person? What type of potential impact does that have on him as a suspect?
SUNNY HOSTIN, AMERICAN MORNING LEGAL ANALYST: Well, you know, he is a suspect now and what we're seeing is we're seeing the profile of a murderer. Bottom line is most domestic violence or women that die are killed by people that they know, people that are very close to them, and you see that in domestic violence cases and you see this escalation.
And typically, when you're putting a case together, evidence of prior bad acts are not admissible. But, but, if you're saying -- the defendant is saying, "This is an accident, I never did this." Then all these people coming out of the woodwork, just like in the Phil Spector trial, can testify. And I think that is sort of what we're seeing and that's what it's shaping up to be.
CHETRY: The other interesting thing will be when are we going to get results of this official autopsy they're expecting in the next few days and how will that be a pivotal moment in this current case of his current wife missing?
HOSTIN: It's going to be extremely pivotal. We already know that Dr. Baden, the family hired him, he looked at this and he said this is certainly, certainly a homicide. If it is ruled that it wasn't an accident, that it wasn't a homicide, again, prior bad acts, typically not admissible, but now he's looking at not -- just one murder case, he's looking at two murder cases a defendant.
CHETRY: So they would be tried separately?
HOSTIN: They will definitely be tried separately.
CHETRY: All right. So as all this was going on with the search of Stacy Peterson still missing, now we're going into the third week.
HOSTIN: Still missing.
CHETRY: He could possibly be charged in his third wife's murder. What are your thoughts on whether or not that's likely?
HOSTIN: I think it's extremely likely. You know, there was a coroner's jury initially. That jury said this was an accidental homicide. Now we've got the body that was exhumed and we have one expert, the Dr. Baden, saying this was a homicide.
If we have another coroner saying this is a homicide, we know that the grand jury is going to be impaneled and we're certainly going to see likely a murder indictment in that case, and if we find a body, and even if we don't find a body, likely to see another indictment for his fourth wife.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks. Stick around. We're going to talking about a couple other big legal issues in the next hour. Thank you.
HOSTIN: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Coming up now to 12 minutes after the hour, is the tide turning in the battle for Iraq? Fewer troops are dying with more there to help. Is it a sign of real progress? We'll go to Michael Ware in Baghdad for the answer next on AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: Today's weather update, brought to you by...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. Some of the shots you got to see right now in our "Quick Hits."
This one was sent by I-Reporter Ben Burger(ph). The Texas chipper floating no more. The World War II ship sunk off the coast of Texas Saturday. Officials plan to use the 7,000-ton vessels as an artificial reef and diving destination.
The ship was used as a floating classroom for students at Texas A&M University from the 1960s all the way up until 1994.
An attempt to set a new domino world record falls a little bit short in The Netherlands. Those look like jelly beans, don't they? Oh, they were for a second there, now they're domino. More than 85 domino builders from 12 European countries worked around the clock for eight weeks to try to break that record. Organizers say more than 3,670,000 dominos fell during that two-hour show. Pretty creative as well. The world record, though, was set last year when more than four million dominos were knocked down.
Hundreds of people in Spain held a demonstration in Madrid over the weekend, after a 16-year-old was stabbed to death in the city by a neo-Nazi. Protesters threw objects at riot police. Officers responded by hitting the demonstrators. Several protester and one police officer were hurt.
ROBERTS: To Iraq now, and we've been reporting this morning, violence appears to be on the decrease in Iraq. According to U.S. officials in the Baghdad, since the troop -- the so-called troop surge over the summer, the violence is down 55 percent.
Our Michael Ware joins us now live from Baghdad with more perspective on this. And Michael, the critical question is, here, is this a trend?
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, it's definitely a trend, John. I mean, we've been seeing this decrease in violence and attacks and deaths and casualties amongst U.S. forces, Iraqi forces and civilians going on for some months now. This needs to be heralded. I mean, this is terrific news.
The deaths and attacks overall are decreasing. I mean, just civilian deaths alone here in the capital from sectarian murders and al Qaeda attacks and militia violence, civilian deaths down 75 percent since June. I mean, that's fabulous, but there's a number of things to bear in mind. I mean, last week, there was still 575 attacks, overall, and the American military is celebrating last Friday when there were only 33 attacks, the lowest level on a day in three and a half years.
Now imagine if there were still 33 attacks in Israel or America or even Pakistan. It shows there is still a war going on. The generals warn that these are trends, they're good, but let's not take too much of this. Nonetheless, this is good old news. We've heard this before, for a month they've been saying the levels are down, so pre-Samara bombing, January 2006 levels.
But the news is worth repeating to the world because, I mean, tonight, there has been phenomenal change in Iraq -- John?
ROBERTS: So, Michael, if this is a trend, can the military keep it up and could it potentially lead to the political process -- the progress that we have so far not seen in Iraq?
WARE: Well, this is where we come to the crux of the whole war, John. I mean, the question is, will this last? Now, as I said, the admirals and the generals are very careful to warn that these are just early signs. They're good. They pose well, but we cannot say for sure. Let's just see how it develops. They're cautiously optimistic and so they should be. Nonetheless, privately they do admit that things could easily revert back. You hear them publicly talk about we have a window of time to maximize this, because they know that this might not last forever.
But the bigger thing is, strategically, what does this mean? If there's no reconciliation, then it's going to account for nothing, and right now at the political level, there is no movement. It's all at the grassroots. Can the bottom -- can there be people power to force the politicians to actually make the most of this violence decrease or it's all wasted -- John?
ROBERTS: All right. Our Michael Ware for us in Baghdad this morning. Michael, always good to hear your perspective on things, thanks -- Kiran?
CHETRY: Well, for flyers frustrated by airport security, there are some tips at packing right. The TSA offering some suggestions on how to pack smarter, but is it going to help you get through security faster? Look at the lines and, of course, one of the busiest times of year to travel. We're going to talk about that coming up.
Plus, McDonald's, famous for Big Mac and Chicken McNugget, well, now the company is pushing McMocha. McDonald's big push into premium coffee a head on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, if ever there was a week for flyer frustration, this is it. Millions of passengers will be flying this holiday weekend. And the TSA wants to make sure that everyone knows the rules, the TSA now out with a video showing flyers how to get through security as quickly as possible and they're trying to have some fun with it, too. Instead of synchronized swimming, synchronized shoes and your tax dollars at work.
Our security correspondent Jeanne Meserve is live at Reagan National Airport. So they want to you simplifly, F-L-Y. But is this push to get people to sort of streamline their carry-ons really going to make a difference?
JEANNE MESERVE, HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, they certainly hope so. It is a catchy little phrase: simplifly. Part of their push to let the public know that they can make a difference in those long security lines that they're likely to face if they're traveling this week.
They are posting this public service announcement on their Web site and others that give travelers tips including how to pack your carry-on bag.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Think layers. One layer of clothes. One layer of electronics. That way it's easier for us to determine what's on your bag. (END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: TSA is also reminding people about that rule on liquids. You can only take three ounces of a liquid on board. It has to be placed in a one-quart plastic bag and the bag has to be taken out of your carry-on, put in the security bin. The rules haven't changed at all, Kiran. They're just afraid they haven't been in the news much and people might have forgotten all about them. Back to you.
CHETRY: And how bad are they expected to get in terms of how many people are going to be flying this Thanksgiving holiday?
MESERVE: Pretty bad. The Air Transport Association is anticipating a 4 percent increase in air travel over this holiday season, and they're making some recommendations, too, that people should, for instance, use a computer check-on capabilities that they have at home. Do that before you get to the airport but still leave a lot of time when you get here.
I've already seen people running around like chicken this is morning. It's only 6:20. Back to you.
CHETRY: Yes, and that's just a sign of things to come if it's already happening that early.
Jeanne, thank you.
We want to know, by the way, your stories of flier frustration. Send your I-Report pictures, if you have any, some video, some e-mails to us. The e-mail address is AM@CNN.com. We'll be sharing the best ones with you all week long.
Of course, John and I both took pictures of ourselves waiting in line at takeoff at La Guardia and e-mailed them to one another. It could be an I-Report.
ROBERTS: Well, I tell you, what I should have taken a picture of was the lineup at security at the Las Vegas McCarran Airport on Friday morning.
CHETRY: Legendary.
ROBERTS: Oh, my god.
CHETRY: It is.
ROBERTS: I've never -- it was go-haul(ph) long at the very least. It's just incredible.
CHETRY: Yes, you just wonder, you walk in and you go, "I'm not making my flight." I might as well forget it.
ROBERTS: I had a lovely lady who walked me all the way to the front, so...
CHETRY: How about that.
ROBERTS: Otherwise, I wouldn't have made the flight.
CHETRY: You got lucky.
ROBERTS: I did.
Get ready for McMochas. McDonald's is going to continue going after the Starbucks crowd. The company plans to offer lattes, mochas, cappuccinos and espressos, with a choice of different flavorings and milk, at a cost of about 50 cents less than what it cost at Starbucks, according to industry analysts.
But some of the owners of the individual McDonald's franchises are resisting the move. Why, you say? Because the new equipment would set them back about $100,000.
High-speed internet could start to slow down. A new study says that as more people use the Web for video and interactive services, internet providers will become overwhelmed. The study concludes that service providers need to make a major investment in new high-capacity lines.
CHETRY: Well, state workers in New Jersey will be back at work the day after Thanksgiving. Governor John Corzine changed the decades-old policy giving them a four-day weekend no. Well, it's no longer going to be a paid holiday for state workers.
Corzine's office said it's received 5,000 complaints about the change, some calling even him the Thanksgiving grinch. But New Jersey joins 18 other states that already open for business on black Friday, one of the biggest shopping days of the year. Louisiana, by comparison, is forcing state workers -- forcing, I love the use of the word -- to take the four-day weekend.
OK, twist my arm. I'll take the four-day weekend, which brings us to today's "Quick Vote" question. Should it be business as usual the day after Thanksgiving? Cast your vote, CNN.com/AM. We'll have the first tally of votes later in the hour.
ROBERTS: Well, Christmas was almost canceled this year because Santa got stuck not on a chimney but on a billboard. It a "Hot Shot" that you got to check out this morning.
It happened outside of Houston during a Christmas tree lighting. Santa was making a grand entrance from above when his whiskers got stuck in his rappelling equipment. Somebody threw him a pair of scissors. He tried to cut the offending whiskers out -- look at that -- even had to take the gear off there. All of the kids just...
CHETRY: That's not the real Santa.
ROBERTS: ...stared up in shock and what happened to Santa?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DUCHESS HOWARD, WITNESS: All the kids were upset because his hair came off, and his beard was off, and his hat came off.
MICHAEL GOSSELIN, CONROE, TX FIRE DEPT: We've had some things but I don't think we've rescued Santa so I think maybe we'll get some extra for Christmas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Firefighters did finally get them -- the fellow down, of course. Kids, see, he's really only one of Santa's helpers, not the real Santa Claus. This guy's a rock climber by trade. Looks like he needs a lesson or two.
And if you've got a "Hot Shot," send it into us. The address is AMHOTSHOTS@CNN.com. Be sure the include your name, where you're from, a little bit about the picture or video. And one more this, please make sure that the image is yours and not someone else's.
CHETRY: That's why rock climbers usually don't have long white snowy beards, you know, flapping in the breeze. Well, they're -- it's a hazard to the job.
ROBERTS: Just got caught there in the rope and all that.
Look at the story coming up now in our next half hour that you can't miss. Six high school cheerleaders suspended for a couple of days.
CHETRY: Yes, it was something -- it was a racy move on their part that was not approved. Well, there's a sneak peek. We're going to have more and we've got them in hot water when AMERICAN MORNING comes back.
ANNOUNCER: "Minding Your Business" brought to you by...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: How about that. Stuck in the snow already. There's a look right now. Where is this coming from again?
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Byrum, New Jersey.
CHETRY: Byrum, New Jersey. So in north and west of us, we did get some flakes this morning right here, right in the city, it just wasn't enough to stick. But, boy, winter wonderland, can I say that?
ROBERTS: Yes, it's a little early, but --
CHETRY: And it's not so wonderful if you're the one trying to get your pickup truck through it. But, hey, this snow is here. It's definitely the season. And welcome back. It's Monday, November 19th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
ROBERTS: Pictures tell the story. Good morning to you. I'm John Roberts.
New this morning. There will be a parade and picket signs on Broadway this Thanksgiving. The stagehands have broken off talks with producers forcing them to cancel shows through next Sunday. It could mean millions of dollars in losses for all kinds of businesses that depend on tourists who come to New York City to watch the floats and then see a show.
Buffalo Bills tight end, Kevin Everett, is at home this morning after being released from a Houston hospital earlier this week. Everett suffered a severe spinal cord injury during a game earlier this season. But just 10 weeks later, Everett is moving his arms and legs and can briefly hold himself up on a walker. A taped message from Everett was played on the scoreboard prior to the Bill's game against the New England Patriots.
Firefighters in southern California are on standby this morning, and the U.S. military is moving four C-130 firefighting planes into position. Crews are preparing for strong, dry Santa Ana winds that could stoke another round of devastating wildfires in the region later on this week. It was just last month that wildfires killed 10 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes.
Thirty-two minutes after the hour. Rob Marciano is off today. Bonnie Schneider at the CNN weather center, tracking the snow this morning. Wow, pretty amazing to wake up to that today.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, I'm sure, and we still have some reports of snow falling in and around Central Park. I want to start off with California. You mentioned the preps for the Santa Ana event. It looks like this will occur on Wednesday, not at all as intense as what we experienced in October. But possibly, those winds will get a little more intense as we go towards the weekend. I'll talk more about that coming up.
Let's go to the snow now, and four to six inches of snow fell in parts of New Jersey last night. We'll show you some pictures from Byrum, New Jersey. And you could see, this is tough to drive in. The first snow of the season always is, and we're actually going to see more snow in this part of the country today.
This is important to note if you're traveling anywhere along I-95 or 84. In and around this region, we still have snow falling currently and it will continue in forecast. Lots of rain though in southern New Jersey and in around Philadelphia, where the temperature is around 40 degrees. A little colder, certainly up towards Connecticut and back out towards Scranton, where the snow continues to fall.
So the winds are a threat. These storm advisories will go through about 10:00 a.m. this morning, but look for, in terms of more snow about an inch or two in the early hours. Of course, right during the morning rush so that will be a concern. For those of you that are traveling today, one of the unique features we can do here on CNN is show you what we're expecting at the airport before it happens.
So delays are expected in areas around Washington D.C. but not in Philadelphia today. And as we look westward, Chicago looks good for flying. We don't have any delays in the forecast right now. So does Atlanta. As we head out to the west, there is a storm system coming into the pacific northwest that may slow you down into areas like Seattle and in Portland. Possibly some fog delays early in San Francisco. The rest of the west looks pretty good for flying, and a lot of folks will be doing that this week -- John.
ROBERTS: All right. Bonnie, thanks very much. We'll see you soon -- Kiran.
CHETRY: German police said they stopped two teenagers who were planning a school shooting. But one of the students committed suicide after police confronted him about his webpage, which glorified the Columbine shooting massacre.
Police confiscated two crossbows, two air guns, and a list of intended victims from the boys. The other boy is in police custody. Earlier this month in Finland, a school shooter killed eight people before killing himself. That student, it turns out, had shot it online about Columbine as well with the boy in the U.S. who had been planning a similar shooting.
Well, something billed as a non-lethal weapon and then killed another man. Police in Maryland say 20-year-old Gerald Gray fell to the ground unconscious after a deputy used a taser to break up a fight. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
The deputy has been placed on administrative leave with pay. This comes a little more than a month after a man who was tasered by police at a Canadian airport died.
Well, big question this morning. Did a Texas man have the right to shoot and kill two people who were trying to rob his neighbor's home? That question is actually going to be going to a grand jury. Is 61-year-old Joe Horn a trigger-happy vigilante or a neighbor helping neighbor? Here's a bit of the 911 call.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE HORN: Hurry up man. Catch these guys, will ya? Cause I ain't gonna let 'em go. I'm gonna be honest with ya. I'm not gonna let 'em go. I'm not gonna let them get away with this.
911: Mr. Horn?
HORN: Yes.
911: I want you to listen to me carefully, OK?
HORN: Yes.
911: I've got officers coming out there. I don't want you to go outside that house.
HORN: You hear the shotgun clicking and I'm going.
911: Don't go outside. HORN: Move, you're dead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Let's turn to our legal analyst Sunny Hostin. The circumstances of this case is Joe Horn, this 61-year-old man who was trying to stop a break-in at his neighbor's house. He ended up shooting the two and they died.
SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL ANALYST: Now, we have law enforcement officers for a reason. People should not take the law into their own hands. What's really horrifying about this is, it's one thing if someone breaks into your home and is using deadly force against you, a burglar with a gun.
You have the right in most circumstances to protect yourself and use deadly force. This is someone that wasn't even on his property. These are two people on a neighbor's property and he goes out, guns-a- blazing. Everyone should be very, very concerned about this. I would not be surprised if we didn't see a murder indictment.
CHETRY: We have to see what happens. I mean, on its face, it looks really bad for him.
HOSTIN: It does.
CHETRY: There's a lot of wiggle room for the defense attorneys, whether or not his neighbor was home at the time, whether he perceived a threat. And then also in Texas, they do allow you to use deadly force to protect your property. It seems though, it has to be at night.
HOSTIN: At night.
CHETRY: And then there's questions whether or not those two stepped onto his property and if that makes a difference.
HOSTIN: And the thing is, it wasn't at night. Texas does have this sort of Castle Law that says you may protect your property at night from people coming into the property. But again, this was his neighbor's property by all account, and you cannot take the law into your own hands. If the viewers take anything away from this topic, it should be that.
CHETRY: You know, we're moving on to another story. Boston is having a big problem lately when it comes to teen violence. In fact, they have six Boston teenagers shot and killed in the past year, and they also have 51 wounded by gun violence and 89 charged with gun crimes.
They're trying to do some creative things. One of the things that Boston police are proposing, and I'd like to get your thoughts on the legality here, is that if parents give permission, police can search their teenagers' rooms without getting a warrant. Will this hold up? HOSTIN: Kiran, I'm very concerned about this, as a parent, as a citizen. The fourth amendment protects people in their homes, in their effects, in their things from unreasonable searches and seizures. So the police can't go into your home without a search warrant.
And what this is trying to do is sort of circumvent that and asking parents to allow police officers to do the parents' job by going into the home and searching their teenager's rooms.
CHETRY: But it's not a 13-year-old's home. They don't own the home, and they're not supposed to own a gun. So if the parents say you can come in and look at my house to see if my kid has something in the room, isn't that allowed?
HOSTIN: It's allowed if the parent says you can come in because it is the parents' home, and the child does live there. Children do have rights as well. Everyone has a fourth amendment right against unreasonable searches and seizures. You see that in schools. Not all schools allow someone just to go into a child's locker.
CHETRY: Yes.
HOSTIN: I think parents need to do the right thing. Make sure their kids don't have guns. Make sure that they're monitoring, you know, their children's use of the Internet, their children's, you know, bedrooms. But I don't think that parents should allow police officers into their home without a search warrant to do what a parent should be doing.
CHETRY: The other one interesting thing before we go is that I think they can't be charged. So they would be free from prosecution, it would be just to remove the possibly dangerous weapon.
HOSTIN: Well, that's what we're hearing but the parents could be charged.
CHETRY: Sunny, thank you so much. We'll check in with you in the next hour as well -- John.
ROBERTS: Coming up to 21 minutes to the top of the hour now. Breaking news this morning. A deadly bus crash overnight on I-26, 20 miles west of Charleston, South Carolina. Police say a holiday tour bus went off the road in Dorchester County and hit several trees. There's a picture of the bus there in that forest.
The driver was killed, 30 passengers were injured. Let's go live to Brad Franko. He's with our affiliate WCBD in Dorchester County, South Carolina.
Brad, any more clear idea today on how this accident happened? My understanding is that there were only 45 miles away from their departure, headed down to Miami.
BRAD FRANKO, AFFILIATE REPORTER, DORCHESTER COUNTY, S.C.: Yes. Right now, there is no idea exactly what happened. The weather was suspect. There was a light drizzle at the time. But you're talking about an area of I-26 that is heavily wooded on either side. And at that time of day, I think right now with the highway patrol is investigating is whether or not the driver fell asleep or if something that is a wooded area, a deer could have very easily run out in front of him. But right now, they're not going to speculate on anything. The investigation is ongoing.
ROBERTS: The latest word that we had on the number of injured, Brad, was 30. Any idea if that number has changed? How many were transported to the hospital?
FRANKO: Twenty-nine people were taken by ambulance to six area hospitals. One person did have to be flown via Magic Air to the Medical University of South Carolina. No word on that person's condition, but the Dorchester County EMS director, Doug Warren, told us that all the people that were taken by ambulance were stable at the time of transport and all things being told, they were very lucky.
ROBERTS: All right. Do we know anything at this point as well, Brad, about who the bus operator was, their safety record, or is that information that is yet to come out?
FRANKO: Five-star charter is the bus company, and the owner of the bus company did show up here on the scene. And he said they have a spotless record in 30 years that he has owned this company. So right now, that is something that I'm sure will be delved into a lot deeper by the highway patrol.
ROBERTS: It sure will. Brad Franko for us this morning of our affiliate WCBD in Dorchester County, South Carolina. Thanks very much, Brad -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, just about a week after his mother died, Kanye West caught in a very public breakdown. It happened at a show in Paris. It was his first concert since his mother's tragic death. He was trying to introduce a tribute to her, a song that he wrote called "Hey Mama" but broke down instead.
Kanye's mother, Donda West, died after having cosmetic surgery. Her funeral is tomorrow in Oklahoma City. Kanye is expected to be there for it.
ROBERTS: A peace gesture from Israel tops your "Quick Hits" now. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promises to get rid of unauthorized settlements in the West Bank and stop building any new ones. That announcement coming just before a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The U.S. is planning Mideast peace talks in Annapolis, Maryland, this week.
Quick work saved 27 gold miners in Australia today. The miners were trapped by a collapse in a shaft early this morning. One of the men used his cell phone to call for help, and four hours later, a crane was hauling them up through an air shaft.
Ugly accusations between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It's all in the wake of a controversial claim by a popular conservative columnist. We're looking at all the political hot topics coming up next.
And a pair of idols with the big win at the American Music Awards, and they weren't the only big winners. Who took home the most hardware? That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Forty-five minutes after the hour. Welcome back to the most news in the morning here on CNN.
"Quick Hits" now. The American Music Awards were dominated by American idols last night. Chris Daughtry's band took home three awards, including favorite breakthrough artist. He was the finalist in the fifth season of "American Idol" in 2006.
And the fourth season's winner, Carrie Underwood, walked away with honors for favorite female artist and favorite album both in the country category. She also won a special fan award determined by text messages.
Justin Timberlake wasn't upstaged. He was named favorite pop rock artist while his future sex love sounds won the award for soul R&B album. He accepted from Australia during his world tour -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, major endorsement topping the day's political ticker. Sources tell CNN that Tom Kean will back John McCain for president. Tom Kean headed the 9/11 Commission and is the former Republican Governor of New Jersey.
A race to the checkered flag for Republican Rudy Giuliani. He used NASCAR's championship race yesterday in Florida to make a point about the need for the U.S. to stop depending on foreign oil. He was campaigning among undecided voters and a Republican governor who was not decided if or who he will endorse in the primary. Jimmie Johnson clinched the championship, by the way, his second in a row.
And Democrat John Edwards's wife, Elizabeth, says there are reasons to pick a candidate other than just breaking the glass ceiling. And there was never a mention of Hillary Clinton by name. Senator Clinton has said putting her in the White House would shatter the highest glass ceiling.
And Senator John Kerry takes up a challenge. Texas oil man, T Boone Pickens, is offering $1 million to anyone who can prove the Swift Boat Veterans For Truth were wrong. Pickens bankrolled the campaign that damaged Kerry's military record during the 2004 presidential campaign. Kerry himself says he can prove Swift Boat Veterans For Truth lied.
ROBERTS: Well, the politics don't stop there. Ugly accusations between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, and Karl Rove saying Hillary could be beaten. For those political hot topics, let's go to John Dickerson, CNN analyst and chief political correspondent for slate.com. He joins us live from Washington this morning. Good to see you again, John. Let's talk first of all about this column that appeared over the weekend from Bob Novak saying that the Hillary Clinton campaign had some potentially damaging "scandalous information on Barack Obama" was a blind item, didn't say what it was.
Barack Obama went after Hillary's campaign for not denouncing it instantaneously. Where is all this going? Do we know what any of this information is? Could it be damaging? Who's in the cross-hairs here?
JOHN DICKERSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, we don't know really much about the information. I mean, to put it in perspective, it's not just a rumor. It's a rumor about a rumor that the Clinton administration isn't pedaling so it gets murky very quickly. I think what it is, though, is it is a sign.
There was a period on Saturday where within about two hours, you had four statements from both campaigns. The back and forth very fast, very hot and heavy and all brought to the surface here by the fact that you mentioned that Barack Obama went out and talked about this himself. He said he wasn't going to get swift boated, which just gives you a sense that neither side is giving the other side an inch.
ROBERTS: Yes, after he came out and denounced this idea of being swift boated saying he wasn't going to stand for it, Howard Wolfson, Hillary Clinton's communications director came out and said, "Voters should be concerned about the readiness of any Democrat inexperienced enough to fall for this."
There's definitely some bad blood brewing here between these two sides. People had talked about, wouldn't this be a dream ticket, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama as her running mate. I don't know that that could happen now.
DICKERSON: It is. There's bad blood because if you look at the polls in Iowa, it's neck and neck between Obama, Clinton, and Edwards. And with the worry for the Clinton campaign, of course, is that this makes them look underhanded dastardly, and there's a weakness, of course, in that for a politician, and so they wanted to hit back hard and they did so going back to sort of their standard talking point, which is that Obama lacks experience.
ROBERTS: Now, in addition this weekend, Karl Rove has written his first column as a contributing opinion writer to "Newsweek" magazine. The title of this was "Hillary Can Be Beaten in the 2008 Election." It was a message to the Republican candidates, the ones who would like to be the nominee as to what they need to do in the campaign going forward. This would all occur after the primaries have decided who the potential nominee is.
He said "One of the most important thing is to be authentic." He said "The American people want their president to be authentic. And against a Democrat who calculates almost everything, including her accent and laugh, being seen as someone who says what he believes in a direct way will help." Presuming that Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic nominee, the suggestions that he had went beyond that. Is that something that could be effective against Hillary in the general election?
DICKERSON: Well, sure. It's a kind of a curious column. Karl Rove has a lot of smarts whether you like him or not, and his suggestions "be authentic" is not exactly blistering news that you would give to or advice that you'll give to a candidate.
What's interesting about that column was the mischief making. All of the digs that Hillary Clinton, and repeating although he said it was tasteless. The very tasteless characterization of Hillary Clinton by a person who asked John McCain a question last week.
So, yes. The advice to be authentic, to talk about the future, that's sort of what you learn, the advice you learn to give candidates in, you know, political spin 101. But his role as a mischief maker was, you know, came back in that ad, in that piece.
ROBERTS: And clear that we're going to hear a lot more from him as well. John Dickerson for us this morning from Washington. John, good to see you. We'll talk to you a little bit later on in the show.
DICKERSON: Thanks, John.
ROBERTS: And you can find out all the days political news around the clock at CNN.com/ticker -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Six high school cheerleaders in trouble for a racy routine and the way it ended. We're going to show you why ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Six minutes now to the top of the hour. If you're just joining us, here's a look at what's making head line this morning.
Thanksgiving travelers may have to tighten their belts this week because of high gas prices. $3.09 is the average price for a gallon of self-serve regular. According to Triple A, that is up 86 cents from this time a year ago. Usually prices peak in the summer but come down by this time of year.
Thirty-five tons of relief supplies from the U.S. will soon be on their way to Bangladesh. This is the death toll continues to climb following a devastating cyclone that slammed that country. More than 3,100 people have been killed and that number is expected to go up. Rescue crew say thousands are also trapped in remote villages without food and water.
Pakistan's Supreme Court cleared legal challenges to the government of President Pervez Musharraf this morning, and the country's foreign ministry says nothing new came out of high level talks with the U.S. State Department.
Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte traveled to Pakistan to urge President Musharraf to end emergency rule. A foreign ministry spokesman said Negroponte brought new proposals and Musharraf received no assurances in return. Musharraf says he will only lift emergency rule if the security situation improves.
Marathon talks between Broadway producers and stagehands broke out late last night, which means 27 Broadway shows will remain closed through the lucrative Thanksgiving weekend. As of now, no further talks are scheduled.
The New England Patriots are still perfect. The Patriots didn't miss a step after a week off, demolishing the Buffalo Bills 56-10 last night. But it wasn't all bad news for the Bills. Encouraging news on injured tight end Kevin Everett. We'll have that coming up for you at the top of the hour. Right now, let's go over to Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, trouble with the housing market could leak into the driveway. Some major auto industry insiders this week offered some grim forecasts on U.S. car sales, saying that 2008 could be the worst year since 1993.
And later this morning, we're going to get the report on the housing sector, the National Association of Home Builders is releasing their November forecast. Economists expect the index to hold to its October level after eight straight months of declines.
Six high school cheerleaders from school outside of Sacramento were suspended for two days for showing a little bit too much team spirit, at least the school thought so. It was going fine until the end of the routine when there you go, the rippin' high school squad flipped up their skirts. They had the mascot's name spelled on their rear ends.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE CHEERLEADER: Two day suspension, which shocked, I think, all of us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE CHEERLEADER: Because I thought, we're just going to get one day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE CHEERLEADER: I don't think the punishment fits the crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: The girls said they got the dance approved but, whoops, did not get the ending approved. One of them seemed like she knew she was going to get in trouble. She said, "Yes, I thought we'd be suspended for a day but not two."
ROBERTS: They knew there's going to be some controversy going into it. No. I've got to be careful with that stuff.
They survived the Cabbage Patch kid craze, to Tickle me Elmos, the great playstation of '06, but will parents be able to weather the Hannah Montana storm? Some crazy things that they're willing to do to get their kids a seat at the show and how much they're willing to pay. You won't believe it. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
