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Michael Vick Sentenced to 23 Months in Prison; Shootings Target Churches in Colorado; Mourners Remember Evel Knievel; Civil Rights Leader Pushes for Relief for Subprime Borrowers

Aired December 10, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, HOST: Michael Vick decided when his prison term would start. He now knows when it will end. A federal judge hands down the former quarterback's sentence for dog fighting, but that's not the end of his troubles. We're live in Richmond this hour.
Hello, everyone, I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. Don Lemon is off. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

An icy mess and getting worse from Amarillo to Ann Arbor. Super- slick highways, bridges are blamed for at least 11 deaths just in Oklahoma. More than a quarter-million homes and businesses there, including the Tulsa airport, don't even have power. More blackouts are reported in Missouri, Illinois and Kansas.

Chad Myers, you're going to have a busy day. I can already tell.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: We need those I-Reports, as well, too. This morning, we got some great stuff.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Yes, absolutely. And you get some of those videos of the trees coming down. Because all of a sudden the ice is going to fall. You thought you had the power line back up. The ice falls off the tree, and the tree snaps back up and knocks the power line off again. So there you go.

PHILLIPS: All right. CNN -- what is the address, CNN.com slash -- CNNNewsroom@CNN.com. Right? Is that how we get our?

MYERS: Yes. Or just CNN.com/IReport.

PHILLIPS: There we go. We have two. All right. Thanks, Chad.

MYERS: Sure.

PHILLIPS: Well, 23 months in prison for former pro football star Michael Vick. The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback was sentenced this morning in Virginia for his role in a dog fighting conspiracy.

CNN Sports' Larry Smith joins us now from the federal courthouse in Richmond with more.

Hey, Larry. LARRY SMITH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra, you know, it was so strange to see not a No. 7 red and black Atlanta Falcon jersey. Instead, Michael Vick showing up in a black and white jump suit with white Nikes no shackles. And surrounded -- backed, I should say, by about a dozen family and friends -- family members and friends and also backed by his two attorneys.

So Michael Vick learns his fate, as you mentioned, 23 months behind bars, three years probation and $5,000 fine, as well, he must pay for this conviction on a federal and a felony dog fighting charge.

Vick apologized to the court, to his family and his friends and said, "I made poor decisions and used poor judgment in my life. I'm willing to deal with the consequences, and I accept responsibility."

The judge, Henry Hudson, cited the thousands of phone calls as well as letters from former home-run champ Hank Aaron, among others, all on Vick's behalf, but said false statements that Vick made to prosecutors during this process and that failed testimony (ph) in September prohibited him from issuing a lighter sentence.

Now Vick's lead attorney, Billy Martin, had this to say after the sentence was handed down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILLY MARTIN, MICHAEL VICK'S ATTORNEY: Michael knows that he is going now to 18 months to 23 months because of his conduct. Michael does accept that. As you can imagine, Michael is not -- is very disappointed. He's saddened. But Michael will take advantage of this as a learning experience.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SMITH: Meanwhile, a statement was released by U.S. attorney Chuck Rosenberg, and he says, "This was an efficient, professional and thorough investigation that well-exposed a seamy side of our society. I trust Mr. Vick learned important lessons and that his admission of guilt will speed his rehabilitation."

As to the Atlanta Falcons, owner Arthur Blank did issue a statement, as well, that said, "This is another legal step for Michael Vick and that we wish him well."

By the way, the Falcons play tonight at home versus the New Orleans Saints. Let's go back to you.

PHILLIPS: Larry, a lot of people asking what's going to happen to his career? Is he going to get back on the field? Does he still have a future?

SMITH: Well, right now he remains under indefinite suspension by the NFL. And so when you consider that Billy Martin thinks that he knows a 23-month sentence, Vick must serve at least 80 percent of that sentence. So that's about 18 months. He could get released, at the earliest, in May of 2009. Could he return to the field in 2009? Well, a lot of things would have to happen. Keep in mind, as well, he still has two state charges that he'll face here in Virginia. That jury trial scheduled to begin in April. If it does go to trial, that is.

And so, again, Michael Vick, he's 27 years old. In 2009, he would be 29. We will see. It's too early to tell right now. Certainly we know he'll miss at least two NFL seasons.

PHILLIPS: Larry Smith, live in Virginia. Larry, thanks so much.

Teenage sisters gunned down at church in what their pastor calls a senseless, random act. It's the latest tragic detail to come from twin shooting rampages yesterday in Colorado. Both claimed the lives of young people driven by faith.

CNN's Jim Acosta at the site of the second shooting, New Life Church in Colorado Springs.

Jim, what do we know?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, those two teens have been identified. They've been identified by police as Rachel and Stephanie Works, both in their late teens. Apparently, their father was also wounded during this shooting. He has been treated and released.

And so far at this point police are not saying whether or not these two shootings, these two deadly shootings yesterday, are actually linked.

They did search a home overnight in nearby Englewood. That's about 40 miles away from where I'm standing in front of the New Life Church. But at this point authorities are not saying what, if anything, they found at that residence.

Now, all of this started just after midnight Sunday. Police say a man wearing a skull cap and glasses shot and killed two employees at the Youth with a Mission residential building.

And then about 12 hours later, after the gunman escaped there, another unidentified gunman showed up here at the New Life Church here in Colorado Springs, opening fire, apparently wounding a number of people, but as we mentioned earlier, killing those two teenagers.

And all of this would have gotten much, much worse, pastors here at the church say, had it not been for one security guard who was there to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PASTOR BRADY BOYD, NEW LIFE CHURCH: She's highly trained. She's a volunteer member of our church who simply -- her role at the church was to provide security. And she did her job yesterday. She's a real hero. She -- when the shots were fired, she rushed toward the scene and encountered an attacker there in the hallway. He never got more than 50 feet inside our building. He could have caused -- there could have been a great loss of life yesterday. And she probably saved over 100 lives. I mean, he had enough ammunition and -- on him to cause a lot of damage. And she rushed toward the attacker, and took him down in the hallway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Now, this female security guard, who has not been identified by the church, was apparently part of a volunteer security detail that the church had put in place and had actually notified that there might be trouble that they should be on the lookout for any kind of trouble, based on the incident that happened earlier in Arvada.

And according to pastors here at the church, that female security guard was carrying her own firearm, and was luckily in the right place at the right time.

Now I will say about the investigation, there -- there are, you know, some authorities who are saying they still have to hold out the possibility that they're dealing with more than one gunman, because a handgun was used at that shooting in Arvada, whereas a high-powered rifle was used here at the New Life Church -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jim Acosta. We'll continue to follow the story with you. Appreciate it.

With the joint Justice Department-CIA inquiry on deck, White House lawyers are telling the president's spokespeople to keep mum on the destruction of CIA interrogation tapes. White House press secretary Dana Perino confirmed today that she won't be going into detail about the controversy from here on out.

CIA director Michael Hayden will have to talk specifics tomorrow when he appears before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Members of that committee have slammed the tape's destruction and criticized Hayden's stance that it was done to protect the identity of interrogators who questioned two al Qaeda suspects back in 2002.

Meantime, citing Attorney General Michael Mukasey's non-stance on waterboarding, Senator Joe Biden is calling for a special council to investigate. He says Mukasey's Justice Department shouldn't be at the helm of inquiry. Other members of Congress are raising questions, as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JANE HARMAN (D), CALIFORNIA: This is a first test of the new Attorney General Mukasey. One of the problems we have in this administration is they set their own rules. They provide their own legal opinions, and they investigate themselves. This is another self-policed action gone awry.

The executive branch has to follow the laws that Congress writes and has to let Congress do fair oversight. If we had been able to do that unimpeded in 2005, my bet is that those tapes would not have been destroyed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Congresswoman Harman says that she advised CIA officials several years ago that destroying any interrogation tapes would be a bad idea.

If he wasn't before, Al Gore must certainly be warming to the world stage. The former vice president is in the spotlight again today, accepting the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway. He and the U.N.'s top climate scientists are sharing the honor for drawing attention to the dangers of global warming.

Gore scolded the United States and China for dragging their feet on the issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AL GORE, HONORED WITH NOBEL PEACE PRIZE: The outcome will be decisively influenced by two nations that are now failing to do enough: the United States and China.

While India is also growing fast in importance, it should be absolutely clear that it is the two largest CO2 emitters, and most of all, my own country, that will need to make the boldest moves or stand accountable before history for their failure to act.

Both countries should stop using the other's behavior as an excuse for stalemate and instead develop an agenda for mutual survival in a shared global environment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And our Miles O'Brien is in Oslo, as well. He's going to have a live report and a sit-down interview with Al Gore just a little later in the hour.

Straight ahead, a freeze on foreclosures. Civil rights leaders want it, and they're rallying on Wall Street to try and get it.

Afraid you might be at risk for breast cancer? The answer might be in your genes.

And with the reception you got, you might think she's the one running for office. But Oprah's stumping for the other "O."

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The population of Butte, Montana, swelling today. Live pictures, rather, from our affiliate, KBZK; also, KXLF. A lot of people there honoring, both with pride and tremendous memories, with the fans of the late Evel Knievel. They're gathering to say good-bye to the hometown hero who died November 30 in Florida after years of poor health.

If you remember, in the 1970s, you probably saw Knievel defy death many times. And through all of the thrills and the spills, he taught us that, no matter what, you've got to get back on the bike.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVEL KNIEVEL, PROFESSIONAL DAREDEVIL: My name is Evel Knievel. I'm a professional daredevil.

My name is Evel Knievel.

My name is Evel Knievel.

My name is Evel Knievel.

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: More calls for mortgage reform and a freeze on foreclosures. Civil rights activist Jesse Jackson is leading the charge, and he's rallying Wall Street, which he blames for the crisis facing a lot of minority homeowners.

Ali Velshi, what's your thoughts on this?

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra.

They're -- they're down there right now, actually, and they're trying to influence Wall Street. They're trying to say to the banks directly, "We want you to not do what this mortgage freeze that we talked about last week," that the president announced. They're talking about restructuring the loans for people who are in trouble, completely. Going back to scratch and saying, "How do we do this?"

Let me show you what -- what it looks like. People, when you look at minority groups in this country, they have a higher chance of having a subprime or a high-interest loan than the population as a whole. African-Americans, 55 percent of the loans held by them are subprime. Latinos, 47 percent, whites 20 percent and the average of all races is 28 percent.

And that's the point they're trying to make, that there are a lot of people being affected by this. The announcement last week of the home loan freeze affects too few people. Jesse Jackson talking about 15 percent. We've heard numbers as low as 12 percent of all of those people with subprime loans.

So there's a sense that more needs to be done. And that's why they're out there.

PHILLIPS: But Ali, wasn't this supposed to help minorities in the first place? I mean, why would he be out there complaining if this was the ultimate goal?

VELSHI: Well, here's the thing. There were a lot of people who weren't getting access to loans at all before the subprime, you know, creative mortgages came into place. And in fact, what happened is a lot of people who were at the lower end of the credit-rating spectrum got into these exotic loans or subprime loans or things like that. So it gave people a greater percentage of homeownership, people who otherwise weren't owning homes.

And here's the problem. When you saw the announcement, the rate freeze that was announced last week, it affects -- it does not give help to those who are at the bottom end of the scale. It gives help to people who have a job, whose houses are worth more than their mortgages, and who only would default if the rates went up.

So there's some sense that there's still a big chunk of people who are not getting help.

Now, Kyra, as you know, there's another point of view, and that is that people got into bad contracts. Whether they did it on their own or they were advised badly, the fact is these were contracts, and is it anybody's job to bail them out?

So there's a lot of discussion going on right now, but that White House proposal is coming out getting attacked from both sides: people who think it's gone too far and people who think it's not enough.

PHILLIPS: Just a thought, because I remember in Los Angeles, and when these black-owned and operated banks were being built...

VELSHI: Right.

PHILLIPS: ... specifically to help African-American homeowners. Does this play a part at all or is that a complete separate issue?

VELSHI: No, I mean there's definitely -- there was definitely a push to understand and create methods for homeownership from groups that were not well-represented in the past. Groups who had different sorts of credit histories or sort of less than traditional ways of earning their income than what the banking system was used to.

So there are a lot of people who say that making -- creating different types of mortgages for different types of groups wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It did get people into more homeownership.

The issue is this, Kyra. We are not clear and probably won't be clear for another year as to why people got into some of these dangerous loans, why they thought the price of their home can't go down or the price of their -- that the price of the home can't go down or the price of their loan can't go up. It comes down to education and monitoring of whether people can stay in their homes.

So what we're trying to do at this point is find a way that more people can't -- don't get thrown out of their homes or aren't foreclosed upon, because that affects all of us. But yes, there have been some real benefits to issuing loans and making them available to people who in -- 15 years ago weren't qualifying for loans.

PHILLIPS: Ali Velshi, thank you.

VELSHI: My pleasure.

PHILLIPS: Our coverage of the mortgage meltdown, of course, will continue from Wall Street, as well -- Steph.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The mortgage meltdown is not just a problem here on Wall Street. It's being felt around the world. So what does this mean before the Fed meeting tomorrow? We're going to take a look at that next.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ELAM: One-twenty-two Eastern Time. Here are three of the stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Despite apologies to the court and letters of support, a federal judge has sentenced NFL star Michael Vick to 23 months behind bars for his role in a dog-fighting ring. The judge says that Vick was a full partner in the operation.

We're learning heartbreaking new details about this victims of this weekend's twin shooting -- twin shootings, rather, in Colorado. Two of those killed were sisters, ages 18 and 16. Both shootings targeted religious institutions.

A coating of ice over everything in sight. Ice storm warnings are spanning a huge chunk of the country right now. The icy build-up is making roads dangerous and causing some major blackouts.

Another big bank is adding up its losses from the mortgage meltdown. Stephanie Elam from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with more from us -- or for us, rather.

Hey, Stephanie.

ELAM: Hi, Kyra.

Yes, this is another case of a bank taking the slam because of this crisis that we've seen here.

This time it's UBS. And they're saying that they are going to have $10 billion that they are writing down. This is on top of back in October, when they told us $4 billion -- nearly $4 billion -- would be written down, as well.

This is a Swiss bank that we're talking about here, but it's showing that their exposure is not done yet. They are going to get an emergency injection of funds from Singapore. Singapore will now own 9 percent of UBS after this is all said and done.

Now, if you're thinking, why do we care about a Swiss bank here in the U.S.? Well, as I was saying, it shows that the exposure to this overall meltdown is not done yet. And so that uncertainty makes investors nervous. And that's why we care, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, why are we still hearing about the losses? Haven't all the banks gone through the books by now?

ELAM: They have, but the problem here...

PHILLIPS: It doesn't matter.

ELAM: Right, exactly. Well, the problem here is that the mortgage market is very complex. And it's not as easy to just take a look at it and figure out how things are going to be.

Also the pricing of houses, those continue to fluctuate around the country. So that also plays into how things look here.

One thing I wanted to point out, though, "The Wall Street Journal" said eventually the losses could actually rival that of what we saw with the tech bust in the '90s or the Savings and Loan crisis of the '80s. Both things that obviously no one wants to see. However, we're nowhere near that right now.

The "Journal" also points out it could be years before any of that plays out here. Obviously, people would like to hear that it doesn't play out at all.

(STOCK REPORT)

ELAM: Now coming up in the next hour of the NEWSROOM, your holiday party, is it BYOB? Is your company bonus, your end-of-the- year bonus a little bit smaller than you would like it to be? Well, you're not alone, to quote Michael Jackson in a song there, because a lot of companies are doing that. We're going to take a look at that when I speak to you next, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Sounds good. Thanks, Stephanie.

ELAM: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: Defending the planet. A former vice president receives the Nobel Peace Prize.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORE: The earth has a fever, and the fever is rising.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Big honor for Al Gore and a message for the world. Miles O'Brien, live from Oslo, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Accepting the Nobel Peace Prize today in Norway, Al Gore says it's time to make peace with the planet. Gore is sharing the award with the U.N.'s top climate scientist. And our Miles O'Brien is in Oslo for the ceremony.

Hey, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, it's been quite a night here, actually, quite a day here in Oslo, Norway. I'm standing here on the corner. Right behind me is the Grand Hotel. And just about 15 or 20 minutes ago it was almost a scene like you'd seen in the Vatican.

Al Gore and Rajendra Pachauri, the two Nobel laureates, came out on the balcony and waved to the crowd there that had appeared before them with torches, there were about 1,000 people here with lit torches.

Actually a rather beautiful scene here in this town that is really decked out for Christmas. They were on the way to a formal dinner, and sort of that will be the cap of a day which certainly these two gentlemen will long remember. They went to Oslo City Hall several hours ago, 1:00 local time, walked in to receive the Nobel peace prize jointly for their work, alerting the word about the ills of climate change. Not long after they received the awards and gave what they call lectures or acceptance speeches, if you will, they sat down with our own Jonathan Mann for an exclusive interview. John Mann asked Al Gore about a persistent question, you've seen it on the internet, about his use of fossil fuels, what his carbon footprint is at his rather substantial home in Nashville, Tennessee. Listen to what the former vice president said.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AL GORE, 2007 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE LAUREATE: We walk the walk and not just talk the talk. In fact, we have the term is gold certified leads. It's among the highest ratings you can possibly get for having an environmentally friendly home. We have 33 solar panels on the roof. We have geothermal heating and cooling under the driveway. We changed all of the light bulbs and the windows and all the rest, and I'm very proud of what we have done there. But I want to say, also we've been carbon neutral for many years. But --

JONATHON MANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The $1200 a month number is out there.

GORE: There was a global warming denier group that put out misleading information.

MANN: The Associated Press not that kind of organization.

GORE: They reported what that group said. And look, when you try to make a case like this, you are going to have -- you're going to have people try to attack the messenger in order to get at the message. They have not been able to succeed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Gore says while he may be green and you may be green, you might have changed light bulbs, all of that is not enough. His point today all throughout day is that nations need to get together, and insist on regulations, capping the amount of carbon emissions. What's going on now in Bali where the world's leaders have gathered to try to draft a new treaty on that is an important thing to follow, and as the former vice president said, it is the view there that the U.S. is blocking efforts to put caps on these emissions of carbon fuels or fossil fuels that cause the greenhouse effect. So, while the world was listening today, it will be interesting to see what action might follow, Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Miles O'Brien, pretty awesome assignment live from Oslo, Germany. Appreciate you sharing that with us.

We have to move on. We've got the governor of Missouri on the phone with us right now. We've been talking about these ice storms, these power outages, a state of emergency has been declared in Missouri. I understand that Matt Blunt, the governor is in the car touring the damage, has been able to call in for us. Governor, tell us what you're seeing and what you're observing.

GOV. MATT BLUNT, MISSOURI: Yeah, I appreciate the opportunity. I was in Webb City, Missouri earlier where they had significant amount of ice damage, and then in Lamar, Missouri, which is the birthplace of Harry Truman and they had a significant amount of ice damage. The entire community of Lamar is without power. I'm mobilizing 70 members of the Missouri national guard to go to Lamar and Barton county to assist with power needs, particularly for rural areas, for the farming operations, and also to do basic health and welfare checks to check on Missourians to let them know there are shelters being established around the area and across the state, really, that can provide assistance.

PHILLIPS: When do you think you'll be able to have the power back up, governor?

BLUNT: It could be in the city of Lamar itself it could be the end of the week. There's a tremendous amount of damage. Every yard is covered with limbs that have broken off because of the weight of the ice. And Barton County it could be longer which is why the generators are so important just for water distribution and wells, and that sort of thing. So, it really is a very substantial challenge.

We had a tremendous ice storm and in Missouri 11 months ago. And some of this damage is again to that damage we had in that original storm.

PHILLIPS: Governor, you got a lot to work on today. We appreciate you calling in. We'll be monitoring what's happening there in Missouri. Governor Matt Blunt, thanks so much.

BLUNT: Thank you. PHILLIPS: We have another reporter working the site of Oklahoma where we're told 400,000 people are suffering the effects there. A reporter from KOCO, Dariel Snipes (ph), we have more from that area.

DARIEL SNIPES (ph), KOCO: We got here it was raining, then it stopped, it was sunny, now it's raining again. Many homeowners say that's causing a lot of the tree limbs to fall is the rain. The limbs can't handle the ice and the rain. Last night where you parked your car may not have been a good idea. That car down there, it's under tree limbs. It doesn't look like there's damage but here this PT cruiser there is a tarp over it. It was parked on the street and a tree hit it and broke out the front driver's side window. It was parked around here. You can see just about these tree limbs, look how thick the ice is on this limb. It's really thick and it looks like a fossil almost. The ice is so engaging around it. This is where this PT cruiser was parked.

The homeowner who has this PT cruiser is lucky that nothing hit his house because he says that he trimmed the trees around his house, if you look, he trimmed the trees so that something like this would not happen to him. Look at the trees and how heavy the branches are and how droopy they look. We've been hearing the branches break since we've been here. It's interesting because you got to look around to see where the branches are breaking to make sure you're not under a tree. It's been drippy around here this afternoon in Midwest City.

PHILLIPS: I want to thank KOCO for that report.

All of this ice looks like a wintry post card. I-reporter Beatrix Taylor says that it's downright freezing in Columbus, Kansas and to top it off the lights have been out since yesterday. The trees in these pictures have now split in half because of the icy cold. Send us your I-reports. It helps us cover the reports so much better, cnn.com/ireport.

She wowed them on the campaign trail. Did she win votes? Oprah Winfrey wields her powers of persuasion for Barack Obama.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Michael Vick sentenced to 23 months in federal prison, more than prosecutors recommended for his admitted role in a dog fighting conspiracy. It could have been worse. Joining me is Stanford, Connecticut criminal defense attorney Mickey Sherman what do you think? Are you -- is this about right? Did you expect more? Less? What's the judge saying?

MICKEY SHERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I think he got hammered. The guidelines which are basically the suggested parameters of where the sentence should be, it's not mandatory but kind of an unwritten law at this point that the judges are supposed to follow these guidelines that it could be as low as 18, as much as 24. The idea is who gets the 18, who gets the low part. People with no criminal records, people who have good people behind them. So you would think that he would have gotten at least in the middle but not on top of the high side. So, I think he was treated very harshly. PHILLIPS: Wow. You say he got hammered. Why? Is it because of who he is? What he was doing? Is the judge trying to set an example?

SHERMAN: It's a little of all three. Bottom line, when you do harm to animals people get absolutely insane. Whether you're a judge or a garbage man. People do not like to see cruelty to animals, cruelty to dogs. The problem is it's not just that he did it once or kicked a dog or something. He planned to do this. He financed the operation. It was on his property. And worst of all, he had a hands on accountant. By all accounts, he helped torture and destroy and murder these dogs. I think he couldn't get the blood off his hands. Not that he should have known better. We're not just saying he is an evil person. The fact he had hands on involvement, he didn't delegate it to somebody else, I think the judge took it very seriously.

PHILLIPS: A lot of people wondering about his career. His attorney had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILLY MARTIN, MICHAEL VICK'S ATTORNEY: I'm willing to say that when Michael gets a second chance, either in society or in the NFL, he will take advantage of it. For now he's closed this chapter of his life and he's prepared to start another one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Let's read between the lines. What's he saying? He's not sure.

SHERMAN: He's appealing to the public. We like to give people second chances. And Billy is quite aware of that. The other thing, the people he's talking to are the state prosecutors. This is one of these rare cases where someone's prosecuted by the federal government and at the same time by the state government which they are allowed to do. It's dual sovereignty. Usually doesn't happen unless it's a civil rights situation or where you have such an evil person or perceived evil person that they skate by and the federal government take as shot. Here he got hammered. I don't know why the state people are piling on. I think that's what Billy is looking to. Hey, enough is enough. He's taking his punishment. He even went into jail before he had to. He's trying to do everything right.

PHILLIPS: He's got a lot of money on the line, all he knows is football. This has been his entire life. So of course that's how his attorney is going to advise him. Right? What is your gut, I mean, will football fans accept this guy on the field again after knowing what he did?

SHERMAN: I personally think he will. As I say, we like to give people second chances. He will always be haunt bid animal rights activists. That's a problem for the franchise whether it be Atlanta or someplace else. You will get people whether it's two weeks from now or 12 years from now demonstrating outside of any stadium he's working at because they will be angry at him for being so cruel to dogs. By the same token this is his first offense. He made a name for himself, been a model character up until now. A lot of kids looked up to him. That was one of the problems, he let people down.

PHILLIPS: Better buy a few rescue shelters. He should have put tens of thousands into charities like that. Mickey Sherman, thanks.

Is crack cocaine worse than powder? In the laws of the federal law, it's long been a lot worse but that's changing now. The Supreme Court ruled today that judges may hand down shorter prison terms than federal guidelines call for crimes involving crack. The commission cut the disparity sentencing and tomorrow that panel votes whether to make the change retroactive. Civil rights activists claimed that crack sentences unfairly hit minority defendants.

Barack Obama suggested that Oprah Winfrey run for vice president. You can weigh in by taking a vote on our website. We're talking Oprah paloosa next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Star power on the campaign trail. Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey steps out of her comfort zone to stump for Barack Obama. Their appearance in Columbia, South Carolina drew a huge crowd. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Whether you saw it as Oprah loosa or Obama mania it was contagious.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Obama time.

MALVEAUX: The talk show diva and billionaire business woman Oprah Winfrey throwing her star power behind him.

OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: That moment is now.

MALVEAUX: It was the largest crowd ever for Barack Obama. 29,000 in this South Carolina stadium. The pull.

TERRI BRANDON, ATTENDED RALLY: I came for Oprah hoping to hear something from Obama.

MALVEAUX: That's fine with the Obama campaign. Oprah fans, Terry and Jamie, were like many of the audience Obama's aides say, first timers, voters who had never been to an Obama event nor voted in a primary who came out of curiosity. Beverly and James drove two hours to attend and heard what they needed from Oprah to go for Obama.

JAMES MURPHY ATTENDED RALLY: She said now is the time.

MALVEAUX: These are the voters Obama and his closest rival, Senator Hillary Clinton, are fighting over. In Iowa, the greatest competition is over white women over 50. In South Carolina, it's young African-American women like Tonya Thompson, a registered democrat who came undecided and left undecided.

TONYA THOMPSON, ATTENDED RALLY: I think I know Hillary a little more. You know. She's been around for a long time, so you know, I know more about her and what she stands for. So with Barack he is a new fresh face.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Oprah joked she wasn't giving away free TVs or refrigerators like on her show but he was giving free advice. That was to take a listen to Barack Obama, that's exactly what many people did this weekend but some said they are not yet ready to commit to voting for him just quite yet. Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Columbia, South Carolina.

PHILLIPS: Iowa supporter presidential hopeful Barack Obama suggested that Oprah Winfrey run for president. You can weigh in by taking the quick vote on our website, CNN.com.

If you have comments we want to know what you think. Should Oprah Winfrey carry her interests in politic to the next level and run for political office? E-mail us. Tell us why or why not.

This programming note to tell you about. CNN will have live coverage of the republican debate.

Surprising medical news about breast cancer. Have researchers found the trigger? We'll tell you.

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PHILLIPS: News about breast cancer. Researchers know how a certain mutated gene increases the risk. Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to explain more for us.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is so important not just for women who have this mutated gene but for all women because it tells you something about how breast cancer works. Doctors have known for more than a decade that there's a gene out there that increase as woman's chance of getting breast cancer. What they have done just now is they have actually gotten the chance or gotten the ability I should say, to go in there and look at that gene and see exactly how it disables the body's ability to fight off cancer. Now that they know that and have seen what this gene does to derail the body's cancer fighting system, they can hopefully go in and make drugs that will put it all back together.

PHILLIPS: So should women get tested?

COHEN: This is a very, very touchy subject. Because you can go and get tested to see if you have this terrible gene. However, and there is an ad here and a lot people have seen this. When you -- it shows all of these women saying I got tested. You should think about getting tested. It's very powerful. But, what women need to remember is that the vast majority of women who get breast cancer it has nothing to do with this gene. They got it for some other reason. So this test is not going to be useful for huge numbers of women. So there is concern that some people will go get the test and think it's more meaningful than it is. PHILLIPS: If they do the BRCA1 test if it's positive, does that mean they get cancer?

COHEN: It doesn't. If you get the test and it's positive it is not a death sentence. It does not definitely mean that you're going to get cancer. Again, that's why genetic testing is tricky. You have to go to your doctor or go to a genetic counselor and say here is my family history. Should I get the testing and what will the results mean and not mean.

PHILLIPS: All right. Thanks Elizabeth.

Well if you take Prilosec or Nexium for heart burn, don't worry about your heart. The FDA says it does not increase the risk for health problems. The FDA reviewed a number of studies on the drugs and reasons to yank them off the market but determined they are safe.

Lanes for a kid. Don't hit the emergency button. This is what you get. Foam. Gone wild in Philadelphia.

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(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: We're checking out what you're all clicking onto at CNN.com. The top three videos, twin sisters separated as babies. Reunited at 35. The identical strangers have written a book now and talk about their experiences with CNN. A couple of celebrity weddings the focus of our Hollywood minute. Scott Baio and former backstreet boy each tying the knot over the weekend. Judges can think for themselves in sentencing.

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. Don Lemon is off. You're live in the "CNN

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