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Obama Promotes Clean Energy at MIT; NC Governor Delays Release of Life Termers; Do Germs Lurk in Water Fountains?; Fraud Besets First-Time Home Buyer Program; Restaurant Owner Feeds the Homeless; Insurance Company Repeals Cancellation Decision; Education Secretary Gives Harsh Lecture to Education Colleges

Aired October 23, 2009 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: All right clean energy, better for the environment, better for us, better for the entire community. You heard the president of the United States right there.

He actually took a tour there at MIT earlier today, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As you know, it's an institution's that's been developing cutting-edge clean-energy technology, from solar to battery to wind technology. The president touring, as you can see right there, with the president and the director of a number of these energy initiatives there at the university. The president once there, giving his "hooah" speech in front of professors and students and leaders when it comes to clean energy.

All right, we're stopping -- starting now, actually, at the top of the hour, pushing forward.

You've heard 40 is the new 30, right? Well, did you know that 35 is the new 80? But only if you're a prison inmate. Some lifers are staring at a future on the outside. Who did this math?

Plus, talcum powder plus generic Tylenol do not equal Tamiflu. Tami-fake, maybe. You might get it online for your H1N1 needs.

And a state that's letting domestic abusers get away with it. Protection orders not worth the paper they're printed on.

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live in New York. And you're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Prison inmates in North Carolina, rapists and killers among them, serving life in prison, now facing freedom. Thanks to a clunky old rule that rewards good behavior. The first day of the rest of their lives? In less than a week. Raleigh, we have a problem. The governor's saying, "Keep your jumpsuits on. These prisoners are not going anywhere."

Ken Smith from our affiliate WRAL has the outrage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEN SMITH, WRAL-TV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): No one disputes the 20 inmates' violent past that includes convictions for rape and, in some cases murder. Based on the 1970s law, the 20 inmates were set to go free next week. The law states a life sentence is 80 years. The court's decision was based on credits for good behavior and time served as that law defines.

CHRISSY PEARSON, GOVERNOR PERDUE'S SPOKESWOMAN: Back in the 1980s, we set the stage for these prisoners to be released prematurely.

SMITH: Chrissie Pearson is Governor Bev Perdue's spokeswoman. She says the governor's legal team found a technicality in the law in terms of how the credits were applied.

PEARSON: This cut many of these prisoners' sentences in half and led to the eventuality that they would be released next week after the Supreme Court decision.

SMITH: Pearson says the governor believes the Department of Corrections secretary at the time overstepped his authority. In keeping with the governor's position, state Attorney General Roy Cooper issued the following statement: "To ensure that sentences and release dates are properly calculated, no prisoners have to be released until further direction from the courts."

JOE CHESHIRE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It smacks completely and totally of nothing but politics.

SMITH: Defense attorney Joe Cheshire, who doesn't represent any of the inmates, believes the court has spoken. Cheshire says the governor, like everyone else, should abide by the law.

CHESHIRE: You can't, in a democracy, go back and change the laws to hurt your citizens because 20 years later you don't like the law.

SMITH: Pearson says, though, the governor believes the state has a case.

PEARSON: We have new arguments. Keep them behind bars until the courts can hear these arguments. She believes that's where they belong, and that's where they're going to stay.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Thanks again to Ken Smith of WRAL TV in Raleigh.

So, how does the governor trump the state's high court? Perdue is out of the country right now, but her spokesman tells us it's about resolving legal issues. Perdue arguing the 1983 rule on day-to-day credits isn't what the legislature intended. That the secretary of corrections didn't have the authority to apply retroactive credits, and that the rule doesn't apply -- does not apply to life sentences.

Oh, and some of the prisoners, by the way, set for release were on Death Row at one point. We'll keep following the story.

Speaking of Death Row, the Night Stalker's back from our nightmares. Richard Ramirez condemned for 13 murders that scared the devil out of California back in the 1980s. Might have even more blood on his hands. DNA tests are underway to link him to the 1984 rape and murder of a 9-year-old girl in San Francisco. Ramirez is still waiting on his date with the one he worships.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD RAMIREZ, CONDEMNED KILLER: I am beyond your experience. I am beyond good and evil. Legions of the night, the night proper, show no mercy. I will be avenged. Lucifer dwells within us all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, those were his words to the court 20 years ago. The cop who worked the 9-year-old girl's case back in 1984, never let it go.

Swine flu is everywhere. Spreading almost as fast as we can report it. But the H1N1 vaccine is a bit harder to come by. That means a quick buck for fraudsters. Hotel machines, special shampoos, even bogus Tamiflu all on sale online. Some of the so-called Tamiflu, nothing but talcum powder and Tylenol.

OK, back to the outbreak. Just how bad is it? Check out all that red: 41 states reporting widespread cases to the CDC. And what about school kids? 102,000 kids in 16 states didn't have school yesterday. Compare that to Monday, when only 2,300 students had classes canceled.

And it's not nearly as good as a snow day, but today is swine flu day for almost 72,000 Michigan students in 194 schools. No word on any confirmed H1N1 cases. Just a lot of sick kids and a lot of caution.

In Ohio, a huge vaccine mistake. Some toddlers may have been accidentally been given the nasal spray. It's not approved for young kids and can have some pretty nasty side effects.

Then in New York state, saying forget it to mandatory vaccinations for nurses. There's not enough doses to go around. The nurses union didn't like being told, "Get the shot or get fired."

So, you wash your hands. You sneeze into your elbow. All to ward off flu germs, right? But what about the way that you quench your thirst? Should you reconsider your stops at the water fountain?

Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is drinking it all in.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's flu season, and the germs are out in full force. I bet you think you're so smart. You wash your hands at every opportunity. You spray down your computer keyboard to disinfect it, but I bet there's one thing you haven't thought about. I bet you haven't thought about this. (voice-over): That's right, the water fountain. They're everywhere: in parks, in schools. Could they be a hiding spot for germs?

(on camera): We were wondering just how many pairs of lips touch this spout every day. So, we brought along Bubbler-cam.

(voice-over): Within an hour, not one, not five, but 14 people came up and drank from this fountain or filled up a water bottle. That's about one person every four minutes. If any of them were sick, does that mean you could get sick, too?

According to research from microbiology Charles Gerba, better known as Dr. Germ, the chances are high. He says germs like H1N1 can linger on inanimate objects for hours: on fountain handles, doorknobs, keyboards, and, yes, water bubblers. He says they should be disinfected regularly to prevent disease, especially in schools.

In fact, over fears of H1N1, schools like this one in Kansas have actually shut down their water fountains. At least until the end of the flu season. But is that really necessary?

(on camera): Dr. Gerberding, we went to a gym, and we mounted a camera, and we watched people as they drank from a water fountain. So, take a look at this. Do water fountains worry you at all?

JULIE GERBERDING, FORMER CDC DIRECTOR: I'm not really worried about water fountains.

COHEN: So shutting down water fountains in school, you think might be kind of going overboard?

GERBERDING: Well, generally speaking, I don't think that's going to be very helpful or important in preventing flu. Just use common sense. Let the water run a couple seconds before you start drinking. Don't touch the spout with your mouth, and when you're done, if you touch the bar to turn it on our off, then clean your hands.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right, Elizabeth Cohen live in Atlanta. The most germy part of the water fountain isn't the spout.

COHEN: Right, that's what we're told. We're told, Kyra, that it's the handle. It's whatever you have to touch to make that spout work. Your hands have touched it. So have many before you. So as Dr. Gerberding, who used to be head of the CDC, said, if you're worried, wash your hands after touching those commonly-touched places.

PHILLIPS: OK. What about all the times we go refill our water bottles, you know, the water dispensers where you either put cups or your bottle? Are they problematic?

COHEN: You know, they might be a little bit problematic. Take a look at this video. What we're going to see is someone takes her cup and she puts it -- oh, I'm sorry, there isn't any video. But I'll explain it to you.

If you take a cup and you push it up against one of those sort of water dispensers, if someone has drunk from the cup and then does that, they may have contaminated it. So again, you might want to use your hands to activate it and then wash your hands afterwards.

PHILLIPS: All right, good advice. Thanks, Elizabeth.

COHEN: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: Should you get a vaccine? What kind? How about your kids? If you've got swine flu questions, and we know you do, send them to us at CNNnewsroom@CNN.com. We're going to have a doctor here in just about 20 minutes with answers, so ask away.

You're never too young to be a first-time home buyer. But 4 years old? Come on. A popular tax break marred by fraud. And you won't believe who some of the culprits are.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: So, are you snatching up a home? You're not alone. Existing home sales last month at their highest level in two years. The National Association of Realtors says that home resales went up by 9.4 percent in September.

Much of the credit is going to the government's $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers. There's now talk of extending that credit, but there's a downside. Con artists are extending their hands, ripping off the government for millions of dollars. And you won't believe who the culprits are.

CNN congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Almost $4 million in first-time home buyer tax credits were dolled out to children. The youngest, a 4-year-old.

J. RUSSELL GEORGE, TREASURY DEPARTMENT: Most indications are that the parent is attempting to bypass the income limitations for seeking the credit by attributing the home purchase to a minor.

KEILAR: The IRS also OKd $20 million in tax breaks to people who filed their taxes using only a taxpayer I.D. number, which doesn't guarantee they are living and working legally in the United States.

And one of the most egregious examples of possible fraud?

GEORGE: That among those who apparently wrongly claimed the credit are a number of Internal Revenue Service employees.

KEILAR: Still, the National Association of Realtors estimates the first-time home buyer program has generated 355,000 home sales that wouldn't have happened without the tax credit. And Democratic and Republican lawmakers want to extend the $8,000 tax break, which expires December 1. They want to buoy the depressed housing market as it goes into its traditionally slow season by reaching Americans who will legitimately use the credit, like this Vina and Chris Gorres.

VINA GORRES, HOMEBUYER: It's been a very long process for us. It's been almost over a year that we've been looking for a house.

KEILAR: As they expand their family, they're eager to expand their living space and take advantage of the tax break.

CHRIS GORRES, HOMEBUYER: Definitely doesn't hurt. Definitely a nice bonus to have.

V. GORRES: Yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. Brianna, joins us now.

So, how did this happen? I mean, 4 years old getting tax breaks? You know, how are these applicants not better screened?

KEILAR: It's pretty unbelievable, but it became clear in this hearing yesterday, Kyra, what happened was, in an effort to really get this money out the door very quickly to first-time home buyers, applicants just weren't being screened as quickly as they should have been.

So then, in the spring, the IRS put in place some more stringent screening processes, and so they're still trying to figure out if that helped. But they did try to sort of rein things in here, and what they're asking now of Congress is that, if Congress decides to extend this tax break, that they go ahead and give the IRS even more authority so they can make sure that they have less of these problems.

PHILLIPS: So, what are the chances that Congress will extend this very popular tax break?

KEILAR: There's a lot of will on the part of Democrats and Republicans to extend this, both in the House and the Senate. There's a lot of proponents who say that, because the housing market played such a big role in the recession, that it's especially important to really bolster the housing market.

But there's a lot of details that need to be worked out. For instance, some are proposing that this shouldn't just be for first- time home buyers. It should be for all home buyers. And some people have disagreements over exactly how long you should extend this program for.

So, there's a lot of will for it. But these details really need to be worked out before you can talk in definite terms about this passing.

PHILLIPS: Brianna, thanks.

Call her the woman from Hope. An Arkansas restaurant owner takes local homeless folks to heart. Feeding souls and filling bellies.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Top stories now.

A Jordanian teenager accused of trying to blow up a Dallas skyscraper last month, he's due in court next hour. Nineteen-year-old Hosam Smadi faces one count of trying to use a weapon of mass destruction. He could face life behind bars if convicted.

It might be the biggest inferno in Puerto Rico's history, and now the FBI is involved. The flames sparked by an early morning blast at this oil refinery near San Juan. Some injuries are reported. The FBI is looking into graffiti found at that site which read "Boom Fire RIP."

Back here on the mainland, three Chicago teens charged in the beating death of honor student Derrion Albert face a judge today. A fourth teen had charges against him dropped.

Today's hearing comes on the heels of more teen violence in Chicago. Five students from Albert's high school are arrested for fighting, and in a separate incident, a 17-year-old was found shot to death yesterday on Chicago's South Side.

He's been moving people on the dance floor for years. But what he really wants to do these days, move them to give back. Rapper Chris "Ludacris" Bridges on the mike this hour at the National Press Club, talking about the importance of charity and community service. He popped by CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" with a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS "LUDACRIS" BRIDGES, RAPPER: No matter how much power or influence that you have, no matter what level, I feel like everybody can do something. You know, I feel like I'm leading by example right now, and I just feel like you can give back in any way. Some people don't have the money to necessarily give back, but sometimes you can dedicate your time. There's so many different things that you can do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So more now on what Ludacris is doing and how you can help: check out his group's Web site, LudacrisFoundation.org.

Chicken soup for the soul is fine. Fried chicken, greens, cornbread, now you're talking. The big-hearted folks at an Arkansas soul food joint are serving hope for the homeless on the house. More now from Mary Marsh of our affiliate KFSM.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARY MARSH, KFSM-TV CORRESPONDENT: One local restaurant is changing the face of homelessness in Fayetteville, one plate of soul food at a time. (voice-over): Momma Dean's Soul Food is giving away a plate of food for every one they sell. We asked why, and Momma Dean says it goes back to what she learned from her own family.

Her great grandmother was a slave in Hope, Arkansas, who cooked for the owner of the plantation. As one of 12 children, Momma Dean says growing up in Hope wasn't fancy, but there was plenty of love and simple, hot soul food. And because neighbors shared, nobody went hungry.

But when Momma Dean moved to Fayetteville, she says she was shocked to find homeless people living without enough to eat. According to one food pantry down the street from Momma Dean's, homelessness is a growing problem in Northwest Arkansas. Life Source International says they're seeing 40 to 50 percent more requests for help this year than last.

So Momma Dean is meeting that need one person, and one plate, at a time. This is her restaurant, where she welcomes anyone with an empty belly, whether they can afford to pay or not.

MOMMA DEAN, MOMMA DEAN'S SOUL FOOD KITCHEN: Obviously, you ain't got to get a job just to get something to eat. I got love for people, and I don't want nobody to be hungry.

MARSH: Momma Dean says this isn't just a promotional event. From now on, every time she sells a plate of food, she's going to give one away to somebody who's homeless.

In Fayetteville, I'm Mary Marsh, 5 News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: and with the economy so bad and the need so big, Momma Dean employees are starting up a nonprofit to help make ends meet now. More info at Facebook.com/MamaDeans.

Well, are you sick of swine flu confusion? We've got the cure. A doc is here with all the answers. We'll be picking through our in- box in just a few minutes, so get your questions to us at CNNnewroom@CNN.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: So, just how widespread is swine flu? Wrap your head around this: One in five American kids probably caught the bug in the first 11 days of the month -- one in five. That's according to the CDC, which says about 7 percent of adults also reported symptoms in early October.

So, what does that look like on a map? A whole lot of red, that's for sure. Forty-one states reporting widespread cases.

You've been e-mailing and tweeting us lots of questions about H1N1. Dr. Irvin Redlener is here to answer them. He's president and co-founder of the Children's Health Fund and professor of public health at Columbia University.

Now, I was reading that introduction about those stats. You were kind of shaking your head. Are we off a little bit maybe on the numbers? One in five, is that right?

DR. IRWIN REDLENER, PUBLIC HEALTH PROFESSOR, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: Well, you know, that's what the CDC has just said as of yesterday.

PHILLIPS: OK.

REDLENER: Those numbers are really hard to get, though, with an extreme degree of accuracy. So it's roughly that, maybe a little more, maybe a little less. But the fact is, we have an awful lot of children who have gotten the H1N1 already.

PHILLIPS: Why has this been so confusing for doctors and administrators, for us? Because our viewers are saying, OK, you say take the vaccine, don't take the vaccine. You say a lot of people are dying, nobody's dying. You say it's the swine flu, it's not the swine flu. Why is it so confusing?

REDLENER: Well, there are so many elements in this that are just absolutely uncertain. The virus may change, and it does change. The availability of vaccine and the supply and distribution of it is a variable that no one could have predicted. It wasn't going to come down as fast as we thought it was going to come down. So, we have a changing virus, changing rates of spread, changing understandings of how lethal it is and so forth.

PHILLIPS: So, it's got to be a changing vaccine, too, then, right?

REDLENER: This is a world of unending uncertainty for doctors as well as for the public, and it's a problem, but we're all going to have to just roll with it and roll in this together, but hard to figure out sometimes.

PHILLIPS: All right, let's get straight to the questions. We have a lot of them, do you mind?

REDLENER: No. Let them come.

PHILLIPS: We'll go right -- OK. This one's coming from Bridget: "I'm a mom of a 2-year-old healthy little girl with no underlying health issues. I'm very nervous about having her get the H1N1 vaccine as we don't know about any of the long-term risks or problems. I feel like there was a rush to vaccinate without proper testing time, and I feel faced with a very difficult decision. Ninety percent of my friends are not getting the vaccine for their children. Please advise."

REDLENER: Well, all of the Redlener grandchildren are getting the vaccine as soon as it comes out. And I think it's really -- people need to understand that it's a very safe vaccine. It's exactly the same as the seasonal vaccines that we've been getting, except it has a different strain in it. There's nothing remarkable about it. In fact, if we knew about H1N1 early enough, we would have just put it in the regular seasonal vaccine mix. So, people should really not be concerned about it. There's very little side effects. It's been tested. It's the same kind of vaccine process that we've used before, and those kinds of anxieties should be allayed. We're just not worried. And if we were, I can assure you that my grandkids wouldn't be getting it.

PHILLIPS: No, your grandkids wouldn't for sure.

All right, Bonnie said, "Can you only get H1N1 once or can you get it more than once?"

REDLENER: It's presumed that if you have it once, like any other virus, you're going to build up immunity to it. It's like getting a vaccine. So, if you've had it, and it was confirmed, you probably don't need an H1N1 shot.

PHILLIPS: OK. Simple. Michelle said, "I'm 38, in OK health condition, have gotten the flu once. Do I still get the shot since I've already had it? What about my 73-year-old mother and 9-year-old son? Should they get it because I've had it?"

REDLENER: OK, so let's sort of take them one at a time. So, first of all, the 38-year-old mom, she should -- if she's had flu that's been confirmed as flu, as influenza or H1N1, then she doesn't need to get the vaccine again. Grandma who is 99 probably should get it, even though...

PHILLIPS: She's 73.

REDLENER: She's 73, OK.

PHILLIPS: Seventy-three.

REDLENER: Oh, 73. So, 73...

PHILLIPS: Yes, so, Mom's 38. Grandma's 73. Does that change your answer?

REDLENER: No. She should still get the shot.

PHILLIPS: OK.

REDLENER: She should get both the seasonal and the H1N1 when it's available.

PHILLIPS: Then we've got a 9-year-old son.

REDLENER: Nine-year-old son absolutely should get it. He's right in the risk group that seems to be consistent with, you know, the children 6 months to 24 years, so he certainly should get it.

PHILLIPS: Got it. All right, Michael wants to know, "If the vaccine is safe, then why are hospital workers fighting getting it? Do they know something that we don't?" REDLENER: Not that they've told me. I think...

PHILLIPS: And you would know.

REDLENER: You know, I'm just saying that, you know, unfortunately I don't think it was -- I don't think it's rational for doctors not to get the vaccine. They have to be taking care of sick people. We want the health workers to be healthy themselves.

As far as I'm concerned, they all should be getting both the seasonal flu vaccine, every one of them, 100 percent, as well as the H1N1. It's really not all that responsible for a health care worker dealing with patients and a lot of the public not to be getting that vaccine. I wish they would.

PHILLIPS: Well, we reported on a nurse, I think it was about a week ago, who was diagnosed with H1N1, marathon runner, triathlete...

REDLENER: Correct.

PHILLIPS: Died.

REDLENER: Yes, yes.

PHILLIPS: So, health workers definitely...

REDLENER: Absolutely. It's irresponsible and not really all that rational for any health worker to refuse getting a vaccine.

PHILLIPS: Got it. All right, Laurie: "Vaccinations are being offered at my child's school. What does the doctor recommend if your child already has the flu but it was not confirmed as H1N1? Is there any point, or harm, in receiving a vaccination if my 12-year-old is still exhibiting symptoms? Fever is down, but he is still achy and coughing."

REDLENER: I would probably not give a vaccine to somebody who's got flu symptoms like that. And if you've had flu already, but it's not confirmed whether it was H1N1 or any kind of flu specifically, then that's really -- you should take that up with your doctor.

You know, some doctors will say go ahead and get vaccinated because we don't know what you had, really. And others might say, you know, let's hold off because you probably had. So, that's really a judgment call for the doc and the patient.

PHILLIPS: Got it. We've got a lot more. Can we bring you back next week?

REDLENER: I'm here all week.

PHILLIPS: I'm serious. I'm going to track you down.

REDLNER: Sure.

PHILLIPS: This was great. Dr. Irwin Redlener at Columbia University, really appreciate it. We'll bring you back next week.

REDLENER: My pleasure, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, thanks, Doc.

Well, he's severely disabled, but he stood up to his insurance company. His message? I am not a dog. Do you remember this story? We brought it to you. And now he's getting heard loud and clear.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Top stories now. The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan giving NATO defense ministers his ground-level view of the war. General Stanley McChrystal briefing the ministers today in Slovakia. Meantime, President Obama weighing his request for tens of thousands more troops.

The U.S. makes an official move to have director Roman Polanski extradited from Switzerland. The formal request presented to the Swiss by the U.S. Embassy. Polanski was arrested in Switzerland last month. The charges stem from a 1977 sex case in L.A. involving a then-13-year-old girl.

You'd think it was the good old days again in the housing market. Existing home sales up a whopping 9.4 percent last month. Experts say there's a big reason for it, the first-time home buyers tax credit.

Something unexpected may show up in the Senate's final health care bill, a modified public option. Sources telling CNN now that's what Majority Leader Harry Reid is leaning toward. They say the bill might also include a provision for states to opt out of that public option.

Right now, senators are still negotiate can the final version. The House version could also include a public option, but not the opt- out part. Under the public option, the government would sell health insurance, competing with private companies to try to bring down the costs.

It's a story that outraged us and a whole lot of you. A disabled Florida man getting the shaft from his insurance company, his coverage about to be canceled. And it could have been a life-or-death matter. Now, after we brought it out into the open, an about-face by the insurance company. About time.

CNN's Jim Acosta has the update.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Earlier this week, we introduced you to Ian Pearl, a disabled man with muscular dystrophy who was just weeks away from losing his health insurance. One day after our story aired on CNN, that insurance company, Guardian, announced it is reversing its decision.

In a statement to CNN, Guardian's president, Dennis Manning, said, quote, "Insurance companies are comprised of human beings, and sometimes we make mistakes. This was one of them, but we also learn from those mistakes and we seek to correct them. This is the right action to take because it is consistent with our values as individuals and as a company."

Guardian also apologized to Ian for an internal company e-mail that referred to the Pearl family's high-cost insurance policy as a, quote, "dog" that the company could get rid of. As for the Pearl family, Ian's mother told me over the phone that she was speechless.

Then she went on to say, "I am very encouraged that Guardian is releasing this statement and is acknowledging its misconduct." Guardian's reversal means Ian can now keep his insurance policy, which pays for his in-home nursing care, care that he credits with saving his life.

And we can also report in the state of New York, state lawmakers right now are drafting legislation they call Ian's law, which they hope will prevent insurance companies from discriminating against high-cost insurance policies in the future.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Las Vegas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: You better come to school, this time on time. No, I'm not talking to the kids. I'm talking to the parents. Pick up your children or pay up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: C, D, F, are those letters popping up way too much on your kids' report cards? Well, maybe their teachers need to learn a hard lesson, and Arne Duncan aims to give it to them.

CNN's Kate Bolduan reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The country's education chief delivering a harsh lecture to not students, but the colleges preparing the nation's teachers.

ARNE DUNCAN, U.S. SECRETARY OF EDUCATION: By almost any standard, many, if not most, the nation's 1,450 schools, colleges and departments of education are doing a mediocre job of preparing teachers for the realities of the 21st-century classroom.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some of it's in the book, some of it isn't.

BOLDUAN: Secretary Arne Duncan described the programs that train more than half the nation's teachers as cash cows, most of which he says aren't delivering first-rate instructors.

DUNCAN: Teaching has never been more difficult. It has never been more important. And the desperate need for more student success has never been more urgent. Are we adequately preparing future teachers to win in this critical battle?

BOLDUAN: Well, in Washington, American University's dean of teaching says, yes, they are.

SARAH IRVINE BELSON, DEAN, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY: So, when we throw everybody into one big bucket -- this is what schools of education do -- it's as much as saying, you know, here's what every engineering program is like, and here's what every university is like. But if you look closely at those teacher ed programs and what they're doing, then you can actually find that there are great pockets of excellence.

BOLDUAN: At the same time, Dean Sarah Belson agrees with one change Duncan is calling for, more firsthand training.

BELSON: We try to spend as much time as we possibly can with these teachers in real classrooms and getting real experiences with students of every type.

BOLDUAN (on camera): You think that's the key, hands on?

BELSON: Absolutely. And any teacher will tell you that.

BOLDUAN (voice-over): And senior Jenna Ward says she knows she's about to take on a tough job.

JENNA WARD, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY STUDENT: It's a challenge to be able to teach to the whole class but also be able to teach to every student within that class. But I think I'm definitely ready to do it.

BOLDUAN (on camera): Secretary Duncan also talked about the need for hard numbers -- test scores, grades, attendance, to name a few -- to better track student progress and train teachers how to use it to improve instruction. Why is this all critical now? Well, for one, Duncan warns of a massive exodus of baby boomers from the teaching profession in the next decade.

Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: A grade school in Portland, Oregon taking lessons from libraries and credit card companies and giving lessons to tardy parents. Yes, it's charging late fees to parents who don't pick their kids up on time. When school's out, there's a ten-minute grace period, and then five bucks for every ten minutes they're late.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANNAH EVANS, PARENT: That's harsh. I think there's something different that they could do other than charge you money.

ANDREA HAWK, PARENT: If I knew that that was the case, I would definitely have to make sure that I had arrangements for them.

MATT SHELBY, PORTLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT SPOKESMAN: It's about a tool that the school can use to really keep kids from staying at school over and over and over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Now we need to find out where that money's going. The school says that parents with legitimate reasons for being late won't have to fork over the cash.

Let's say you're worried that your spouse or significant other will hurt you or worse. Well, there's a decent chance the law won't have your back in one state. We're pushing forward for answers next hour.

Plus a runner who's cleared more hurdles than any course could throw at her -- 26.2 miles worth of reasons why she's a total hero.

All right, this story reminds me of a classic scene from the movie "Christmas Story."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, fudge!

Only I didn't say fudge. I said the word, the big one, the queen mother of dirty words. The F-dash-dash-dash word.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did you say?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: I love that scene. So, how's that soap taste, Ralphie?

Well, no soap bars near Kansas City, folks. Jail bars, maybe. Yes, thanks to some road rage. One guy F-bombed another guy back to the Stone Age. Now he's facing 30 days in the clink. Oh, fudge.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE SHAHROKI, THE F-BOMBER: I can't imagine to the F-bomb warrants 30 days, but I don't know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If somebody doesn't stop him, then he'll continue to do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, the cops ticketed him for disorderly conduct. Remember that next time you're tempted to unload a few F-bombs in public.

Well, fighting the drug war in America's backyard. The killing field known as Juarez, Mexico, we're going to take you on the ride of your life on the dangerous streets ruled by ruthless drug cartels.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: All right, this just coming into CNN right now. This is out of Sellersville, Pennsylvania. Apparently, an explosive device is under investigation right now. Just have a little bit of information. The Philadelphia ATF is confirming to us that the ATF local and state police are investigating what's being described as a possible explosive device. It's actually located behind a car dealership, near but not inside a home.

This representative from the ATF would not describe the size of that device. It's not yet been determined whether it's a functional device. So right now, a possible explosive device being checked into in Sellersville, Pennsylvania, behind a car dealership. The FAA, just to take precaution, has closed down about a four-square-mile radius around that home 5,000 feet up. So, we're not able to get any got aerials right now. But we're working the story for you out of Pennsylvania. We'll bring you more as we get it.

Now, for those of you looking for the "Backstory" segment that we do every Friday, don't worry, it's on tap for next hour. Michael Holmes busy hosting "IDesk" as you can see right there. But rest assured, Michael has a special behind-the-scenes look at some logistical nightmares that are facing American troops as they move out of Iraq.

Meanwhile, back on the home front, the feds say that they have culminated a 44-month investigation with the largest crackdown ever on one of Mexico's dangerous drug cartels, La Familia, or The Family. Some of its alleged mules shown on surveillance video right here. Operation Coronado arrested more than 300 people in 19 states in the past two days. Millions of dollars in drug profits seized, not to mention weapons and plenty of contraband.

La Familia is literally the tip of Mexico's narco-iceberg. And nowhere is the U.S.-Mexican drug war before -- more obvious, actually, than Juarez, Mexico. That city has recorded more than 1,800 deaths this year already.

CNN's Karl Penhaul took one extremely dangerous tour of the border town last April. And we warn you that some of what you're going to see is pretty disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN VIDEO CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The police radio crackles. Shots are being fired downtown. A city cop asks these transvestite prostitutes if they heard. Six shots, they say, a few blocks away.

It's midnight in Juarez, Mexico's most dangerous city. The gunmen seem to have faded away, so the patrol heads up into gang land, the hillside slums that ring Juarez.

"We're arresting gang members before they get together, because then there will be killings," he says.

Police say there are a thousand gangs in the city. They go by names like the Skulls, the Sharks, the Aztecs and the Artist Assassins. They peddle cocaine, crack and heroin and fight gun battles for turf.

The gangs, too, have become a recruiting ground for narco- traffickers looking to hire hitmen.

CAPT. RUBEN PINEDO, JUAREZ MUNICIPAL POLICE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

PENHAUL: "Organized crime recruits from these gangs. There's evidence they come and choose the most dangerous members," the captain says. Captain Penedo and his men on the anti-gang patrol know the labyrinth of alleyways by heart.

They pull suspected gang members out of vehicles, even sniffing their fingers to see if they've been using drugs.

"A lot of them don't have any ID, and they look like gangbangers," he says.

For the last year, Juarez's best-selling newspaper has been filled with gory photos of drug war hits as the Sinaloa cartel battles for the Juarez mob's trafficking routes. Bodies hanging from a bridge. Other victims stuffed into cooking pots. Another murdered and his face covered with a pig mask. Police say many of the victims have been young gang members recruited as cartel foot soldiers.

We head back into a Juarez neighborhood, this time without the police, to try and discover why young men have been lured by the drug mobs. This small gang calls itself Below 13. None of its members seem to know why. The few who say they work earn less than $50 a week in assembly plants.

The cartel wars now raging offers a chance of quick money.

"ROBERTO", GANG MEMBER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

PENHAUL: "Some of the gang members here have joined organized crime groups, and some are in prison because they were busted for selling drugs," this young man tells me.

He knows working for the cartels can mean a short life expectancy. "Of course it's easy money because you can earn serious cash, but it's dangerous too. Like they say, it's easy money until they kill you," he says.

Sixteen hundred people died in drug cartel killings last year in Juarez, but in this neighborhood there's little sense the war will end.

"Thank God we're alive. We're going to show all the hitmen that Juarez is number one," he boasts. Fighting talk that bodes of more untimely deaths.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, Juarez, Mexico.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: We're going to drill down big-time on the drug cartels, especially La Familia. CNN International senior Latin American affairs editor Rafael Romo joins us. That's next hour, only on CNN.

Quick sweep of the headlines now. It's looking like the public option could make it into the final Senate health care bill, a modified version at least. Majority Leader Harry Reid reportedly leaning that way. Two Democratic sources tell CNN the bill would let states opt out of a government health care plan.

U.S. troops not leaving Afghanistan. That's the word from Defense Secretary Robert Gates. He and the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Stanley McChrystal, are in Slovakia for a NATO meeting. President Obama is weighing McChrystal's request for tens of thousands more troops.

And in Pakistan, a wave of bombings today has left at least seven people dead, about 24 hurt. That's the word from police there. One of the bloodiest attacks was near a military facility outside Islamabad. Five civilians are among the dead.