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Campaign Hostage Drama; Sean Taylor Death: Four Arrests Made; Weather Closes Des Moines Airport; World AIDS Day; Mental Disorders: How Common and Where is Help?

Aired December 01, 2007 - 10:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He was someone that was not known to my campaign headquarters until he walked in the door today. Insofar as I'm aware, we had no contact with him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hillary Clinton talks about the man who held some of her New Hampshire staff hostage for hours. We have the latest on the troubled suspect. That's just minutes away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have more than one confession. I'll put it at that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Four men are in jail suspected in the killing of NFL superstar Sean Taylor. They went before a judge this morning. We'll get a live report.

NGUYEN: And are you planning to fly out west? You better check your flight right now because dozens are being canceled as a blizzard warning has many states in emergency mode.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not growing up seeing our friends die of HIV like they did in the '80s and '90s. So people don't really feel like they are being affected by it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And this is World AIDS Day. While much of the attention is on Africa, we're shining the spotlight on young Americans, many of whom don't think they are at risk.

Good morning to you all. It's Saturday, December 1st.

I'm T.J. Holmes.

Good morning to you, Betty. NGUYEN: Good morning, T.J.

And I'm Betty Nguyen, from the CNN Center here in Atlanta, where it is 10:00 a.m., 9:00 in Minneapolis, where a blizzard just might be brewing.

Hey, T.J., we're going to be checking in with you shortly, as well as throughout the show, there standing in front of that AIDS quilt. What a remarkable site. We'll be talking with you very shortly.

But in the meantime, let's start with Jim Acosta, who has been in Rochester, New Hampshire, since last night. He has the latest on the hostage situation at Hillary Clinton's state campaign headquarters.

Jim, bring us up to speed on how it all went down.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Betty.

Well, luckily, this all went down peacefully. We are standing outside of Hillary Clinton's campaign headquarters in Rochester, New Hampshire, where the office is dark. It's closed this morning. And that is just as well, because the campaign in Iowa today, the campaign is basically saying that they want to appear to not be politicizing this event.

They want to be careful that they don't do that. So today, for this campaign staff here in Rochester, it's a day to take a collective sigh of relief.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA (voice over): Wearing a fake bomb that was nothing more than road flares duct-taped to his chest, Leeland Eisenberg surrendered to police, ending a tense hostage crisis that brought the race for the White House to a standstill. For more than five hours, Eisenberg, a 46-year-old with a history of mental illness, was holed up inside this Hillary Clinton campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire, threatening to blow up a handful of staffers, a child and himself.

At one point during the crisis, Eisenberg called CNN complaining that he had been unable to speak treatment for his illness and added that he had gone to that campaign office to speak with the candidate directly. But police say involving the presidential hopeful was not an option.

CHIEF DAVID DUBOIS, ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE, POLICE: We decided not to introduce anyone from the campaign or the senator's office into the negotiation process.

ACOSTA: Eventually, the hostages were released. The fake bomb was destroyed by police. And late in the evening, Senator Clinton flew to New Hampshire for a brief visit with the then released hostages and their families. CLINTON: Good evening. We are immensely relieved that this has ended peacefully. To see the people who were directly held hostage and their families and to thank the New Hampshire professionals who made this day turn out as well as it did...

ACOSTA: Over at Eisenberg's mobile home community a few miles away, neighbors say they saw early warning signs of trouble ranging from alcohol abuse to loud arguments at the suspect's home.

GEORGE ISAACSON, NEIGHBOR: He would walk over to the filling station right up the street every day and always get either a 12-pack or something like that. This is every day.

ERIC CARLSON, NEIGHBOR: They hauled him away for domestic violence, yes. I don't know what happened. I was coming in from work and they were hauling him in the cruiser.

ACOSTA: On Eisenberg's front door, a note from his family saying they have no comment for now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: As for Leeland Eisenberg, he is behind bars in jail this morning. He has a court appearance scheduled for Monday at 1:00 here in Rochester. And as one neighbor put it yesterday, they see all of this as a desperate cry for help -- Betty.

NGUYEN: No doubt. All right, Jim. Thank you for that.

Well, in other news, four young men facing a judge at a Ft. Myers, Florida, court today dealing with the death of football star Sean Taylor. The proceedings ended about 30 minutes ago.

And our John Zarrella is following the developments from Ft. Myers. He just left the courtroom.

Want to talk about what exactly happened today -- John.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, here at the justice center in Lee County, it's a terrible, terrible, tough day for the families, the relatives of these four individuals. Now, only three of them had their first appearance here today.

Jason Mitchell was processed too late, they said, for him to make an appearance today. His first appearance will likely be tomorrow. All of these four men will, at some point in the very near future now, be transported to Miami where they will again face a first appearance, of course, because the charges are Miami charges that they face.

And listen to this, Betty. A 17-year-old is one of them, as we know. Eric Rivera. These are the charges that he is faced with now as of this morning.

He's faced with felony first-degree murder. He's faced with burglary with a firearm. And he is faced with home invasion robbery while armed. Now, according to the affidavit and according to police, he confessed to driving to Miami to participate in an armed burglary. Now, his attorney, after this was all said and done today, said that he is not quite clear how that confession was obtained by police. He has not had an opportunity to talk to his client yet. He was going to go do that this afternoon.

But clearly he said this is just a very, very sad day for the 17- year-old, as well as the family of the 17-year-old. And before this, his client had only had one minor run-in with the law. Well, this, by no stretch of the imagination, is minor.

Now, the other two defendants, Venjah Hunte and Charles Wardlow, they appeared by videophone from the jail, and they also face the exact same charges at this point in time. They, too, will be transported also at some point in the very near future to Miami.

The juvenile, the 17-year-old, his transport time, his attorney said, maybe not before Monday. But again, very serious charges. First-degree murder -- Betty.

NGUYEN: No doubt. Especially we've got a football star who is no longer alive because of all of this.

All right, John. Thank you for that.

Let's take you to Aruba now. Two brothers rearrested in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, they will be released this afternoon. A judge yesterday denied prosecutors' requests to keep them in jail, saying the evidence wasn't strong enough. A third suspect does remain behind bars.

The Alabama teen, as you remember, vanished two years ago while on a graduation trip.

All right. We have some severe weather to tell you about today.

The Des Moines International Airport is closed. A United Airlines flight has gone off the runway because of ice.

Roy Criss, a public information officer, joins us by phone.

Give us just a look at the situation there on the ground. What caused you to shut this down? Are you facing blizzard-like conditions?

ROY CRISS, DES MOINES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT: It's not blizzard- like conditions, Betty, right now. It's just ice on the taxiways. Actually, the runways were OK, but the taxiways were iced over and the planes could not get to the runway.

NGUYEN: This is going to be a bit of a problem, especially there in Iowa, as you've got candidates wanting to come in today and do their campaign stumping. How long is the airport going to be closed?

CRISS: Well, the original estimate is four to six hours here locally, but, obviously, as the system takes over the whole Midwest, there's going to be a ripple effect that will back up. So we're probably going to be affected throughout the whole day.

NGUYEN: Really? OK. And then this United Airlines flight that pretty much kind of ran off the taxi because of ice, are there any injuries or any damage because of that?

CRISS: No injuries. All the folks have been shuttle-bused back to the terminal, being taken care of. And just waiting now for United to determine how they want to handle moving the plane.

NGUYEN: Now, did all this ice and the snowy conditions, did it happen very suddenly? Were you surprised by it? Is that why the airport wasn't prepared?

CRISS: No. We actually -- we had known it was coming for the last day or two. It's been forecast.

It's just that I think that probably when it hit, it hit a little bit quicker and a little bit earlier. Again, the airport did a really fine job in having the runways ready. It's just that it overtook portions of the taxiways leading to the runways much quicker than they anticipated.

NGUYEN: Yes. When that stuff comes down it can come down pretty fast.

So you're thinking this is going to back things up throughout most of the day. And you don't expect to be open until maybe later this evening?

CRISS: It looks like at least mid-afternoon. This was about 8:30 Central Time, four to six hours. We can do the math. That puts it in the middle of the afternoon at the very early.

NGUYEN: All right.

Roy Criss joining us by phone with the Des Moines International Airport there in Iowa, which is shut down at this hour. But as you heard him say, hopefully by this afternoon they can get that back up and running.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Take a look at this. Pictures a little bit earlier of the World AIDS Day concert under way right now in Johannesburg, South Africa. The day-long event started a few hours ago. This is the fifth year.

Peter Gabriel, Annie Lennox, the Goo Goo Dolls, Ludacris, those are just some of the artists performing today. And we'll be talking with some of them throughout the morning, so you'll want to stay here for that.

But in the meantime, my partner T.J. Holmes is at the site here in Atlanta where the AIDS memorial quilt is stored. And it's part of our coverage of World AIDS Day that you'll see only on CNN.

Boy, that quilt is huge, T.J. It really just is a sign of how enormous this epidemic is.

HOLMES: It's enormous. And can you believe it's been the 20- year anniversary now? This quilt has been around 20 years.

And again, I'm at a warehouse just outside of downtown Atlanta where the quilt is kept now. And take a look at this.

It's really hard to put it in perspective, but these panels, where it's kept, you see it here. All these panels like the one you see there with Marvin Feldman's name, that's actually the first panel ever made for someone who died of AIDS for this quilt. But all those panels now, we've got 47,000 of those. They are made into -- put into 12x12 blocks, and that's what you see here all stored in all of these shelves.

This quilt is enormous. And it's hard for people to really understand what this quilt is.

You are only looking at half of this quilt folded up right now in this warehouse. The rest of it is out on display at various locations around the country. But 47,000 panels just like that one you are seeing that says Marvin Feldman are sewn into those 12x12 blocks, and it makes up some 91,000 people who are honored in memoriam, who have died of AIDS.

And again, it's been around for 20 years now. And this is where it's stored. It's really hard to put in perspective. So large that the quilt may never, may never be viewed and displayed and put together in one place again.

The last time it happened was back in 1996, and the whole quilt laid out, took up the entire National Mall in Washington, D.C. And it has grown, of course, since then in 1996. So we may never find a location large enough to lay the quilt out again.

But, of course, World AIDS Day that we have today, this quilt such a big part of it, has been a big part for so many years now. And, of course, it's part of raising the awareness. It's also part of education, the education so many young people need to have, young people, 18, 19, 20-plus years old who have not known a world without AIDS.

So now, a big part of the message and a big part of what the AIDS quilt does is to get those young people interested and aware of this epidemic and what this -- a big part of what this quilt has been doing this weekend is traveling to college campuses. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES (voice over): Universally known as a symbol of both national and personal grief, the 54-ton quilt over the past 20 years has become part of the fabric that makes up America. JULIE RHOAD, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NAMES PROJECT: Being designated as an American treasure puts us in the league with very significant material culture collections and buildings and artifacts, and will stand as testimony to our value in telling America's history.

DR. JULIE GERBERDING, CDC DIRECTOR: How much love has gone into each one of these panels? And what it really means in terms of the human beings that have suffered from this disease and left behind so many families and loved ones.

HOLMES: That history began with the quilt's first panel for an AIDS victim from San Francisco in 1987. The AIDS memorial quilt now has about 47,000 memorial panels and represents the lives of more than 90,000 people who have died from the disease that afflicts millions worldwide.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kay Haring (ph), Brian P. (ph)...

HOLMES: Four hundred large sections of the quilt will be on display from coast to coast this month at churches, museums, and even the CNN Center. More than 100 displays are traveling to college campuses, where AIDS activists say greater awareness is needed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: George M...

NINA MARTINEZ, EMORY UNIVERSITY STUDENT: And I am here at Emory just because you all have such great researchers in HIV. And I'm actually HIV positive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, right now, we're not growing up seeing our friends die of HIV like they did in the '80s and '90s. So really, people don't feel like they are being affected by it, even though if you look at the statistics they are.

HOLMES: Those statistics, according to the Names Project, show that half of all new HIV cases in the United States involve people under the age of 25. Atlanta's Emory University is hosting the largest display of a section of the quilt on a college campus hoping it will serve as a powerful and important educational tool for students.

MARTINEZ: It's just part of just being a young person and believing nothing will ever happen to you. But I think when you walk around in that kind of state of denial, that's when it's mostly likely able to happen to you. I don't think we talk about denial as a risk factor for HIV.

HOLMES: But many college students have gotten the message and even make the HIV question a part of dating life.

TAHIRAH MUHAMMED, CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY STUDENT: I would ask him, one, if first they ever, you know, even had sex. You know, how many partners they had, if they've ever been tested, things like that.

HOLMES: The quilt on the quad (ph) campaign hopes to make AIDS a part of college education. (END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: So, Betty, it's really tough for some people to really realize how large this quilt is. It's not just one quilt that you just fold up and carry around. It's all of these 12x12 panels that have -- 12x12 blocks that have smaller panels dedicated to one person who has died -- who has died of AIDS. And they are kept here and stored here, shelves and rows and rows throughout this warehouse.

So we're going to be talking to the person who is head of this project, the Names Project that maintains this quilt, coming up in a little while. But certainly a lot more to come this morning to educate people a little more about this quilt -- Betty.

NGUYEN: And what a job on that person's hands to maintain all of those pieces of that enormous quilt that you showed us.

HOLMES: You wouldn't believe it.

NGUYEN: All right.

HOLMES: And just about eight people maintain this whole thing, Betty.

NGUYEN: Really? That's it?

HOLMES: Just about eight folks are working to do this. Yes, the staff keeps getting cut and they are tight on that money, but they are trying to maintain it the best they can.

NGUYEN: Well, you know, each one of those stands for a person's life. So it's important work that they do.

HOLMES: Yes.

NGUYEN: T.J., we'll be talking with you shortly. Thank you.

There is a lot going on this morning. Developments in that hostage crisis at the Hillary Clinton campaign office there.

And we want to tell you about this, the Sean Taylor case. Four suspects have had a hearing today, and we're going to update you on what happened during that hearing.

Also, the daredevil of all stunts. We are remembering Evel Knievel.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Forty-seven thousand panels on the AIDS memorial quilt memorializing some 91,000 people who have died of AIDS. The 20-year anniversary here we have this weekend on this World AIDS Day of this quilt.

And the person who has the job of managing all of this, Julie Rhoad, executive director of the Names Project. You certainly have a job on your hands, but you know it's important work because you said to me earlier, for some people this is considered almost a gravesite.

RHOAD: Absolutely. When you think about it, this panel of quilt is a memorial to an individual life. And the people who made that panel care about that loved one.

So it becomes very much perpetual care. They care very much how we get these quilts out on the road, how they are educating people, and what towns and communities they serve.

HOLMES: And this area I believe we're showing upstairs, people put a lot of time, effort, energy, love into making these panels. And you say some people get so nervous about it and don't know what to do. So you have this area here where people can come in and all the equipment they need, and everything they might need to make it right here.

RHOAD: Right. We try and make it as easy as possible for people to work through the process of creating a memento for a loved one. So we have people who come in to community and sew with people, paint with people. We provide fabric. We provide skilled help.

HOLMES: How difficult is it for you to maintain? You told me earlier you had a staff of so many back in the day. You're down to, I believe it's under 10 now...

RHOAD: That's right.

HOLMES: ... that's maintaining 47,000 panels. You have to ship these out. Give people an idea of just what you are up against trying to maintain this?

RHOAD: Well, it's a remarkable feat that these eight people carry on. It's really a group of dedicated individuals who fold, pack, ship, repair, sew, assemble. And on top of it all, communicate with the panel makers and make sure that they know where their panel is going, and try and help them through the process. They also work consistently with display hosts so that any display we have is curated to meet the audience needs.

HOLMES: Finally here, help us understand just how the pace these days of the panels that are coming in.

RHOAD: Well, the pace in many respects has slowed because of the advent of new drug combinations and combination therapies. There are certain communities who have access to drugs who are living longer. And that's great news.

This quilt, however, is a mirror. And it mirrors out all of our struggles in society and our accomplishments with this disease. We are very low in representation for the communities that are at the epicenter of the pandemic.

HOLMES: And we're going to get into that a little more a little later this morning. But certainly, I don't know how you do it. It's amazing. Eight people to stand in this room and to think, eight people do what is done with this and to send it out to hundreds of places year in, year out.

And right now, a big weekend like this, eight people making this happen. Unbelievable work you are doing here.

Julie Rhoad, executive director of the Names Project, thank you so much for allowing us in and allowing us here, and for spending time with us this morning.

RHOAD: Thank you.

HOLMES: All right. Thank you so much.

Well, Betty, it really is amazing work. It is important work, as they know here. But it's a job, certainly.

NGUYEN: It truly is. And like she said, it's a memorial. So it matters.

All right, T.J. Thank you. We'll be checking in with you very shortly.

In the meantime though, Iowa is the place to be this weekend if you are a politician. You can believe it. The first big-time contest for presidential candidates is just over a month away. And we are talking about the Iowa caucus.

Des Moines International Airport, though, is closed. So how are those candidates going to get there? Well, not only that airport, but many other airports are experiencing delays.

We're keeping you informed on this huge winter storm. All of it coming right up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Just look at the conditions there in Des Moines, Iowa. We've been telling you all morning about some wicked weather developing across the country. Well, now we're starting to see the effects.

In fact, the airport in Des Moines, Iowa, is shut down right now because of ice on the taxiways. An airport spokesman says one plane skidded off the taxiway, but no one was hurt. He says it will probably be by mid-afternoon before the airport reopens.

So you'll want to keep it tuned to CNN for updates on this extreme weather.

Well, let's turn to politics now. A lot of presidential contenders are spending the weekend in Iowa, despite the weather. A new poll shows Iowans have not picked a favorite just yet, and that has the candidates zeroing in on the Hawkeye State.

CNN's Jessica Yellin join us from Des Moines this morning.

The caucus is what, about a month away? Where do these candidates stand?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Betty, the race here could not be tighter on both sides of the aisle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

YELLIN (voice over): Whether they are firing up donors in New York City...

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: People ask me sometimes, why run now? Why wait?

YELLIN: ... or speaking to party activists in suburban Virginia...

REP. DENNIS KUCINICH (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: ... working men and women.

YELLIN: ... these days, the presidential candidates are always also talking to Iowa's caucus-goers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exercising is hard. Caucusing is easy.

YELLIN: With the caucuses just over a month away, the campaigns are in overdrive, working to get as many Iowans out as possible. This will be the first state in the nation to choose nominees, and to the winner goes not just delegates but also momentum. That can lead to more campaign contributions because donors like to back a winner. And that could drive victories in the next early states.

The latest polls show Obama, Clinton and Edwards in a dead heat here. And Republicans Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee are running neck and neck.

Time is running short before voters are distracted with more seasonal pursuits. So the campaigns are pulling out all the stops.

The Obama campaign is sending in Oprah, and Clinton is countering with her popular partner. They beefed up staff here, even training Iowans on how to caucus, looking for anything that will give them an edge and make them the first winner on January 3rd.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

YELLIN: There are two Democratic forums happening in this state today. One will be right here in this auditorium. But expect candidates from both sides of the aisle to be crisscrossing Iowa nonstop between now and January 3rd -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Well, Jessica, that's if they can get there today. I understand Hillary Clinton is having a bit of a tough time trying to get to Iowa today. YELLIN: Well, she's in New Hampshire, as you know, this morning. And I know folks here at this forum are trying to make arrangements for her to appear here via remote. But as you say, the airport is closed. So it could be difficult for her to land until it reopens.

You say and we understand that might be later this afternoon -- Betty.

Trying to get to Iowa today.

NGUYEN: Yes, that's what we heard from one of the airport officials there at the Des Moines International Airport. So we'll see how that plays out.

Jessica, we thank you.

Jessica Yellin, part of the best political team on television.

And here's a reminder for you. You can watch the CNN Republican YouTube debate tonight. You asked the questions. See how the candidates answered. It's right here on CNN at 8:00 Eastern.

Hugo Chavez blasting CNN. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUGO CHAVEZ, VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translator): And those of you at CNN, listen. CNN, listen carefully.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Yes, we're listening. And let me tell you what he's saying. He is gearing up for his country's election tomorrow and he has a bit of a message for CNN. We'll show you all about that.

But first, though, four men arrested and at least one confession in the death of NFL player Sean Taylor. We have new developments in the last hour. We're going to get you up to speed on all of it.

But first, we've all been there. You know, you're standing in line at the airport watching helplessly as a TSA agent confiscates one of your carry-on items. Remember that? It happens a lot. Well, this week's "On the Go" shows you a new system that may just help you hang on to your belongings.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARK ORWOLL, SR. CONSULTING EDITOR, "TRAVEL & LEISURE": Travelers passing through airport security screenings in the United States are forced to surrender more than six million banned items each year to TSA agents. Most liquids and gels over three ounces have to be left behind. Scissors with blades over four inches long, tools over seven inches long.

It doesn't matter if it's an expensive cologne or a priceless antique pocketknife, these and other such items are apt to wind up with the thousands of other items confiscated every day. If you have a large banned item, like ski poles or a baseball bat, you can return to the front counter and check it in.

For smaller items, there's another alternative mail-back kiosks. More than three dozen major U.S. airports now have self-service mail facilities that for a fee of less than $10 allow you to send home those possessions you might otherwise have had to forfeit.

Checkpoint Mailers and Return Key Systems are two of the major companies that operate mail-back kiosks. Some airports have similar services operated by local independent companies.

As an alternative, many airport gift shops sell mailer kits complete with padded envelopes and stamps. Better yet, avoid the aggravation in the first place. Check the TSA Web site for a list of prohibited carry-on items.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Going before a judge, three of the four men arrested in the death of football star Sean Taylor are charged with murder. All four suspects were arrested yesterday in Ft. Myers. They went before a judge this morning in Ft. Myers. Now, the fourth suspect was arrested too late to make a court appearance today. Police say the motive in the killings appears to have been robbery.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT PARKER, MIAMI-DADE POLICE DIRECTOR: They were certainly not looking to go there and kill anyone. They were expecting a residence that was not occupied. So murder or shooting someone was not their initial motive. Their initial motive, though I can't deny that they knew the fact that Jason Taylor lived there, their obvious motive was to go there and steal the contents of the house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Taylor was shot and later died after a break-in at his Miami home earlier this week.

Well, freedom is just hours away for two brothers in Aruba. The two were rearrested in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, but a judge has denied a prosecutor's request to keep them in jail, saying the evidence is not strong enough. A third suspect remained behind bars. The Alabama teen, as you'll recall, vanished two years ago while on a graduation trip.

Same track, same time, big trouble. Look at this. We're going to show you two trains on the same track at the same time in Chicago.

And see what happened? The Amtrak train rammed into the freight train and wound up on top of it.

Dozens of people were hurt in yesterday's collision. Five of them, in fact, were seriously injured. Investigators hope to learn what happened from the train's event recorder. That's a device similar to flight recorders on airplanes.

Well, today is World AIDS Day. And we're looking at this epidemic both globally and locally. Around the nation here in the U.S., there are many suffering from AIDS.

And T.J. Holmes joins us today. He is on a site here in Atlanta where the AIDS quilt, what, some 47,000 pieces of this quilt, symbolize a person who has either died or is suffering from AIDS.

T.J., it's quite a sight to see.

HOLMES: It is amazing to see. And to get an idea of just how massive this AIDS quilt is, this is a panel, if you will. The one panel that you can submit.

This is a 3x6 panel, roughly, as it's described to me, the size of a human grave, if you will. And can you imagine the challenge of family members and friends? They're really trying to sum up a person's life, someone they lost to AIDS, in a 3x6 panel. But that's the challenge and that's what so many of them do.

And what you see here is a larger block of the AIDS quilt. And what happens is a panelist submitted a 3x6 by a family member or a friend for one person, and then they are sewn together, eight of them, in this 12x12 piece. And then these 12x12 pieces are then folded up and can be sent out on display to places around the country, and sometimes put together and on display at several places.

So this is just kind of how it works.

Now, part of the display that has been going on this weekend with the AIDS quilt has been going to college campuses around the country. And one campus that it did go to is Emory University, where kids are being educated, students are being educated about AIDS and awareness.

And the gentleman I have here with me, Daniel Sperling, has been a part of bringing the AIDS quilt to Emory University for the past three years.

We appreciate you being here with us.

What's going on with young people on campus these days? Some stuff you told me yesterday which was just so striking to hear that, you know what? They don't fear it like they should or maybe like a lot of people used to.

DANIEL SPERLING, EMORY STUDENT: Well, that's the issue, that the age range between 18 and 25, we haven't been growing up seeing people live with HIV or dying -- the main thing is dying from HIV, because with the new (INAUDIBLE), everybody is living longer lives, so they're not dying around us.

So the college-age students don't really feel that it's affecting them on a personal level. So that's why we tried to bring it to Emory University. And we brought over 800 panels yesterday to the university, to the quad, to make students really understand that this is still affecting our society.

HOLMES: Does this -- what is the reaction you see from students who they -- when they walk around and they take this in, and maybe they see AIDS as a face and a name to where they haven't really seen it before?

SPERLING: Well, that's the effect, is that once they are forced to see it, they kind of understand that there is -- people are really dying from this disease and it's not going away. And we found that people feel really -- get really emotional when they do see it because they've never really seen -- most people don't have a friend that's living with HIV, don't know somebody that's died from HIV. So when they see these panels they understand that, wow, this really is affecting our people every day.

HOLMES: Do people talk about -- or kids talk about it? Unless there's an AIDS quilt or something brought to their awareness, do what you find, your students, your classmates, don't get to this point, and this is essentially what we're talking about, is that sex can kill you?

SPERLING: Well, that's kind of the issue, is that they don't see that and they're not talking about it on a daily basis. So that's why we try to bring it once a year to the Emory campus so they are forced to see it on that day. And then hopefully it will spark conversation in the months to come and years to come and people will understand that it is affecting you every single day with your decisions.

HOLMES: And why have you decided to take this cause up? You've done it the past three years.

SPERLING: I've been here for three years now. I saw it three years ago on -- at the AIDS walk in Atlanta, and it just had a huge effect on me. I have friends that are living with HIV now. And to understand that one day I know those friends will be just a panel on this quilt is really hard for me. So I really want to make sure that people understand that and understand that we can prevent it and we can try to stop people from being infected on a daily basis.

HOLMES: Well, Daniel Sperling, young folks like yourself, need more of you out there. And a good thing you are doing out there at Emory. A good event you put on yesterday. And we appreciate you being here with us this morning.

SPERLING: Thank you very much. I appreciate it.

HOLMES: All right.

Well, Betty, I'm going to hand it back over to you for now, but still much more to come here from this warehouse where the AIDS quilt -- and again, we're only looking at half of it. The other half is out on display this World AIDS Day. But half of it in here.

We've got a lot more coming up from right here. NGUYEN: Oh, absolutely. And that's just here in the United States. To give you a big picture, there are some 33.2 million people worldwide with HIV. That includes some 2.5 million children.

So a lot of people out there know someone. If they're not affected, they at least know someone who is. And it's something that we need to talk about more often. And that's why we're doing it today.

Thank you, T.J. We'll be checking in with you shortly.

HOLMES: All right, Betty.

NGUYEN: In the meantime, though, sex offenders in a family- friendly environment. Find out what one organization did to protect dozens of children.

And imagine this: a town where turning 50 is a medical miracle? Yes, it's happening right now and it's part of our World AIDS Day coverage.

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NGUYEN: It's 45 minutes past the hour on this Saturday morning. Let's get you some "Quick Hits" right now.

Predators need not apply. A Michigan YMCA adopts a new policy to keep sex offenders out. The Y approved the policy after a check turned up 20 sex offenders on its membership rolls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DWAYNE SEWARD, YMCA, MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN: I, for one, as a parent, I'm very happy that my children don't have to worry about sex offenders being around the Y.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The YMCA says there will be an appeals process because of questions about the accuracy of the sex offender registry.

Well, listen to this. Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, on a rant, railing on all of us here at CNN. It happened during a rally yesterday.

Chavez urged supporters to approve constitutional changes that would do away with term limits and keep him in power indefinitely. He also threatened to expel CNN journalists and sue the network. Chavez accuses CNN of exaggerating the strength of the opposition and the constitutional changes.

We'll see how that works out for him.

Well, death of a daredevil. Evel Knievel's motorcycle stunts made him a pop culture icon. His most famous stunt was probably his attempt to jump Idaho's Snake River Canyon in 1974. Evel Knievel broke more than 40 bones during his career. Is that all? He had several major health problems over the last few years.

Man, he has been involved in so many stunts.

Evel Knievel dead today at the age of only 69.

Well, the dramatic hostage crisis at Clinton's campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire, has pushed mental health into the spotlight. Our Josh Levs at the .com/DESK is looking into it for us.

And it really, truly is a big problem.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, yes. It's very widespread.

I mean, clearly, what we saw yesterday was an extreme case. And we're going to emphasize that. But what we want to do is use this as a springboard right now to give you a sense of how broad this problem can actually be.

The National Institutes of Health says mental disorders in general are very common. Worldwide, about one in four in the United States adults has some kind of diagnosable mental disorder. About 25 percent.

Usually that's depression. But six percent -- so that's one out of every 17 adults that you might meet -- has at least one mental disorder that's ranked as serious. And that is a lot of people.

So, where's the best state to get help? Well, there's a Web site that ranks -- the MentalhealthAmerica.net has a list of all 50 states and D.C. It says the best place to get help, believe this or not, it's South Dakota.

NGUYEN: Really?

LEVS: And the worst, Utah.

So we looked up New Hampshire on the list yesterday -- 20. That's where it's listed.

And one more interesting Web site we found is RealMentalHealth.com, and that's a social networking site. It's like Facebook or MySpace, but it's for people with mental health issues.

NGUYEN: Talk about the problems, yes.

LEVS: So they can get on there, talk about their problems, get some support from each other, get ideas. And they are able to open up in a relatively confidential way there.

NGUYEN: Well, that's interesting.

All right, Josh. Thanks for that update.

LEVS: Yes. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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HOLMES: We, of course, have been focusing on AIDS in America this morning. But certainly we must mention the devastation the disease brings to Africa.

Millions of children are orphaned. The story now of one older brother who not only cares for his siblings, but everybody in his community. And he is a CNN Hero.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETER KITHENE, CNN HERO: I see the way people are leaving and the poverty that is around, and lack of knowledge. Communities, families are broken. It's just so devastating.

My dreams for this area is very efficient health care that treats the people.

My name is Peter. I set up a clinic here in (INAUDIBLE), Kenya.

After my parents died, the expectation of the people and what they encouraged me to do was to drop out of school and do fishing on the lake and support my siblings. I felt that I wanted to do something here even after coming to the U.S. Then it just became part of my responsibility.

I want to create a completely different kind of environment that delivers a lot of good. The whole idea was to treat people and uplift the social status of people.

When we first started this clinic, this kind of medications were not available.

My path that led me to where I am right now is unbelievable. Touching people's lives like that and knowing that people are getting treated makes me really happy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: So who are CNN Heroes? If Peter becomes a finalist, he says he would expand the health clinic to start an HIV testing center with special emphasis on pregnant women.

Well, you've chosen the heroes, and this coming Thursday they will be announced. Anderson Cooper hosts the hero "All-Star Tribute." That's December 6th at 9:00 Eastern, 6:00 Pacific.

Well, the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

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