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American Morning
Snow Day for Federal Workers; Saints Beat Colts; Targeting the Taliban; Impact of War on Homes; Authorities Negotiating Arrest of Michael Jackson's Doctor; Paparazzi Documentary
Aired February 08, 2010 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. It is 8:00 here in New York on this Monday, February 8th. Glad you're with us on this AMERICAN MORNING. I'm Kiran Chetry.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes, sitting in today for John Roberts.
Here are some of the big stories we're going to be telling you about in the next 15 minutes.
It was the big storm, now, it's the big dig. The weekend's "snowpocalypse" is what people are calling it. Power is out to thousands of people right now. A mess on the roads, rails, runways. The federal government is also taking a snow day this morning. And the rough weather, it's not over yet.
CHETRY: Also, it's smooth-sailing, though, for the New Orleans Saints -- Super Bowl champs. This is the first time in the team's 43- year history. They beat the favored Indianapolis Colts and set off a wild all-night party in New Orleans. In fact, when we checked in with Ed Lavandera at 7:00, people were still partying. We'll see what happens now.
HOLMES: It's New Orleans. It's just another Sunday night for them, right?
Also, a California teenager answering the call duty going from civilian to soldier, and we are watching the transformation. This morning, in our special series, "A Soldier's Story," we hear from his family about the impact military service is having on their son.
CHETRY: First, though, they are trying to get the lights on, get the cars moving, get air traffic rolling again after this weekend's blizzards that dropped more than two feet of snow from Virginia to New Jersey. The heavy snow forced the airports and Amtrak to scale-back service. And the federal government is also making the call to tell its employees not to come in today -- a snow day for the federal workers.
Rob Marciano is following the storm. It's headed our way this week, but our Reynolds Wolf, first, live in Alexandria, Virginia, where they were hit hard over the weekend. What's the latest, Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, the latest, we do have some good news, Kiran. The good news is that we did have hundreds of thousands of people without power, right now, tens of thousands without power at this time. And that is certainly some good news.
And if you've ever wondered why, in this region, why we have some power outages whenever you have snow or ice that moves through, CNN photojournalist Tony Umrani is going to show you why.
Tony, let's give them a shot down the street.
And as we do, America, you can see the street, but also, you see those beautiful trees out there. A lot of tree-lined streets in this part of the country, and whenever you have this kind of snow, the snow falls, it sticks to the trees, the trees get very heavy, the over- weighted trees then begin to snap and when they snap, they hit the power lines. And again, it's an accumulative affect. And that's what a lot of people are dealing with this morning, waking up without power.
But I will tell you here, we do have some power. They are fortunate in Alexandria.
Something else they're very fortunate with as we move over towards the intersection, you'll notice that roads are in pretty good shape. Some people are moving through here. But still, the state of Virginia, Maryland, all through D.C., they're telling you that if you don't have to get out on the area's streets, by all means, don't do so.
A lot of the city service is going to be closed today. Federal government is closed down. Now, in terms of the transportation, Metro, again, the underground activity that's going to be, the underground train, above ground, you can absolutely forget about that. But I will also tell you that in these spots here, although the city streets look great, back roads are still choked with ice and snow, and that's going to be the situation for some time to come.
And now, back to the power outages again. Now, although the power numbers, the number of people without power, has dropped significantly, and that's great news. The issue is many of those people are going to remain without power until we get into, say, possibly Thursday or even Friday.
And with additional snow fall, some places may see up to a foot to six inches. Again, that can cause a problem even more. So, we're looking at, possibly, a long-term issue that some people may be dealing with through the weekend and then maybe into early next week. But still, things are getting a little better here, hoping that they can recover before the next blast sweeps on into the region. Of course, Rob is going to have more for that for you guys coming up in mere moments.
Let's kick it back to you in the studio. CHETRY: Reynolds Wolf for us -- thank you.
HOLMES: And Reynolds just referred to that new blast that's coming.
Rob, is that an accurate way to describe it? Is it going to hit them hard once again? Certainly, hopefully, nothing like we just saw. But still, is it going to pack a pretty good punch?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is going to pack a very good punch. And it will affect a little bit more people and it will develop into a bit of wind maker. So, I wouldn't be surprised to see blizzard conditions once again for parts of the Delmarva and the Jersey Shore and maybe through Long Island as far as New York. The snow that's there now will stick around.
We are looking at temperatures that are well-below freezing right now and it will continue to be that way for much of the day today. We got more moisture heading in. From Chicago back to Memphis, the snow is arriving in those cities and heading off towards the north and east. I think six to 12 is a pretty good bet from D.C., getting up towards New York. So -- and that will arrive tomorrow afternoon.
Let's talk travel. Reagan still closed. They hope to reopen it later today. We are looking at delays right now in Atlanta. I mentioned that snow in Memphis, a ground stop there for the next few minutes. And anticipated delays will include New York City because of the wind today. But the snows do not arrive until later on tomorrow afternoon.
Much more in about 30 minutes. T.J. and Kiran, back up to you.
HOLMES: All right. We'll see you in about 30 minutes. Thanks so much, Rob.
CHETRY: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger promising support for those affected by the mudslides. You know, the west coast is also getting hit really hard this past week with terrible, terrible mudslides. The governor actually toured some of the foothill communities, hit very hard, north of Los Angeles.
The L.A. county supervisor describing the area as, quote, "devastated war zones." Heavy rain triggered these mudslides, and dozens of homes were damaged, hundreds more people living in the area had to be evacuated.
HOLMES: We want to turn to New Orleans now. Mardi Gras, of course, is the biggest party there every year. But they have of even better celebration going on. I think it's still going on actually this morning. The saints celebrating their first ever Super Bowl victory, 31-17. They beat the Colts last night. The French Quarter erupted after the game. People poured onto the street, hollering "Who dat?" like they've never hollered it before.
Ed Lavandera, we talked to you a short time ago, 6:00 in the morning, people are still out there partying. Have they finally gone home?
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think the stumbling and staggering is about to come to an end here, at least this morning, as most of the people have quieted down. The bars have closed the doors. The cleanup here on Bourbon begins, but everyone you've talked to says this has been a party for the ages.
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(CHEERING)
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Euphoria and pandemonium erupt in New Orleans' French Quarter.
Even the city that likes to brag it perfected the art of partying has never seen a celebration like this.
(CHEERING)
LAVANDERA: This moment is a dream come true for Angie Koehlar, who grew up in New Orleans' French Quarter. And caught up in this moment, she told me, when she dies, she wants to be buried in this homemade jacket painted in honor of the Saints, which she wore when they won the Super Bowl.
(on camera): Angie, what does this mean to this city?
ANGIE KOEHLAR, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT: This is everything. This is the -- collectively, this is the happiest days of our lives, through the region, Louisiana, the gulf coast. Thank you, everybody, for your support. We are truly the happiest place on earth. Disneyworld has nothing on New Orleans.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The magnitude of the Saints' victory is not lost on the team's most popular player, quarterback Drew Brees.
DREW BREES, NEW ORLEANS SAINTS QUARTERBACK: What can I say? We played for so much more than just ourselves. We played for our city. We played for the entire gulf coast region. We played for all the entire "Who Dat Nation."
LAVANDERA: More than four years after Hurricane Katrina, the team of New Orleans coming back from the brink of death runs deep through the city.
(CROWD CHANTING)
LAVANDERA: Overshadowed by the Super Bowl was the election of a new mayor on Saturday, Mitch Landrieu, won a decisive victory with more than 60 percent of the vote, becoming the city's first white mayor since his father left office 32 years ago.
MITCH LANDRIEU, NEW ORLEANS MAYOR-ELECT: The only way to do that is for us to seek, to find, and to secure higher common ground, where we come together as one people, and do what is necessary to secure our future. MAYOR RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS: We are going to party like it's 1999.
LAVANDERA: Just days before the Super Bowl, we caught up with outgoing mayor, Ray Nagin, who could only imagine what a Super Bowl party would do to a city already celebrating a rowdy Mardi Gras season.
(on camera): Would you say a little prayer, a prayer for New Orleans?
NAGIN: Well, you're going to pray for us after. There's going to be a lot of people in detox, you know, AA, and what-have-you.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): New Orleans is back. And who knows when this party will end?
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: And you're looking at a live picture of a building here in downtown New Orleans. The "Who Dat," Saints fleur-de-lis flying proudly over the city here this morning, T.J. And the headlines in the New Orleans newspaper here this morning simply reads, "Amen," -- T.J.
HOLMES: You -- that is a good point. Prayers answered for a lot of people, and again, it wasn't just the Saints playing the Colts last night, it was the entire city of New Orleans playing against the Colts last night.
Ed, thanks so much for braving it out there. I know they party hard down there in the French Quarter.
CHETRY: Oh, yes.
Well, still ahead on the Most News in the Morning: the U.S. military is now gearing up for a major offensive in Afghanistan. We're going to tell you why they want the Taliban to know what they are planning.
Nine minutes after the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Eleven minutes past the hour right now. Time for a check on the stories new this morning.
Sarah Palin has a lot of people shaking their heads this morning because of this. Take a look.
After addressing the first national TEA party convention in Nashville on Saturday night, the former Alaska governor sat down to answer some questions. They were pretty screened questions. And she got caught using crude notes, I guess you could say. They were scribbled on her left hand.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARAH PALIN (R), FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: We got to start reining in the spending. We have to jumpstart these energy projects.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: All right. Well, there was a quick look at her peeking down on her hand, written the words: energy, tax cuts and lift Americans spirits. Palin also criticized President Obama in her remarks for using a teleprompter when he delivers his speeches.
HOLMES: Now, the U.S. troops, with the help of NATO and Afghan forces, are preparing for a large-scale assault on the Taliban. And Taliban knows they're coming. They're not exactly trying to keep this a secret. In fact, the military leaders want the Taliban to know they're on the way.
Atia Abawi has the history for us from Helmand Province.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ATIA ABAWI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As President Barack Obama's new troops begin trickling in as a part of the 30,000-force surge, the U.S. coalition and Afghan government are abnormally vocal about the next major battle. NATO and Afghan forces will be fighting side by side in major numbers.
Operation Moshtarak, a word meaning "together" in Dari is said to have already begun and is shaping phases ahead of a full-pledge assault. The target: Marjah, the last major Taliban stronghold in Helmand Province. Its fertile land is right for farming poppies and the absence of government keeps the drug trade alive and strong.
GEN. LARRY NICHOLSON, U.S. MARINES: Where else would we go? It's the only place left in the Marine and its reiterative operations that we're not in. So I think it's fairly inevitable and I think there's a certain strength in this customary culture from stopping -- from, you know, just kind of laying it out there and say, hey, we are coming, deal with it.
ABAWI: Nearly 100,000 people live in Marjah, and the operation is an example of General Stanley McChrystal's strategy to focus on population centers and separate the Taliban from the people and then try to gain their trust.
NICHOLSON: I really think of the preponderance of force going very strong and fast will reduce the opportunity for civilian casualties. Our guys are well-trained. And I think we demonstrated over the last 10 months, we get it.
ABAWI: The coalition says they are preparing for a bloody battle boosting its hospital staff. Most casualties are expected to be caused by the number one killer of coalition troops, improvised explosive devices. LT. CMDR. GREGG GELLMAN, U.S. NAVY: The way that they're planting them and burying them is pretty deep in the ground so they just blow straight up.
ABAWI: In Helmand alone, more than 80 percent of casualties among foreign troops are because of IEDs.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ABAWI: It's not expected to be an easy fight. And the major question that remains is: What if this doesn't work? Where does that leave the Afghans who already very weary of a government that they don't trust in a war that has gone on for more than eight years -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Atia Abawi for us in Helmand Province -- thank you so much, Atia.
CHETRY: Well, coming up next on the Most News in the Morning: one woman's terrifying story. She says that her Toyota went out of control, she ended plunging down a cliff. And she said the worst part is police didn't believe her, that there was something wrong with her car.
It's 15 minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Great song on the set this morning. Just for the crew, they love it.
Welcome back everybody to the Most News in the Morning. It's about 17 past the hour. Time for us to "Mind Your Business". I'm going to start off with yet another expected recall announcement from Toyota. This time, we are talking about more than 100,000 Prius Hybrids that were sold in Japan which will be recalled to fix faulty breaking systems. 2010 models sold in U.S. could be next. The problems are separate from the accelerator and mat issue that led to the global recall of millions of cars and trucks.
HOLMES: Yes, and a look now that flurry of activity in Toyota's Kentucky plant. There you see is on the production line where they are now installing new gas pedals for the Camry model. And also, the company says that the fix involved eliminating friction that caused the pedals to stick in the first place.
And of course, millions of Toyota owners have a question right now, and they are wondering whether or not it's safe to drive their cars. Well, listen to this California woman now who insists she already has the answer to that question.
CHETRY: Yes, Nicole Pozen is her name. She was seriously hurt last year when she lost control of her Toyota. She talked with Ted Farek and showed her that, she claims that no one believed her when she told them what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Right now I am doing less than ten miles an hour and I am riding the brakes. So, this is really the only way you can, because this is very easy to lose control on this road. You knew that?
NICOLE POZEN, ACCIDENT VICTIM: Oh yes.
FEYERICK (voice-over): Nicole Posen knows this road like the back of her hand. Her house used to be at the top of the mountain. A year ago on a rainy afternoon, as Posen slowly steered her 2007 Toyota Tundra around this hair-pin turn, she says, the unthinkable happened.
POZEN: As soon as I touched the accelerator, it just went over the curb, and there was nothing that I could do. I was so close to the curb to be able to do anything. I pressed the brakes. I did, I mean I did everything that I thought that I could, and I couldn't get my car to stop. I just remember seeing cactuses, and then that was it. And then I remember seeing the road.
FEYERICK (on camera): At that point, you were coming down that incline. What were you thinking to yourself?
POZEN: I am going to die. I was thinking, you know, am I going to survive this? What is going to happen? Am I going to -- am I going to die?
FEYERICK (voice-over): Pozen believes what happened to her is what is happened to many other drivers who say their Toyota vehicle accelerated without warning. Toyota says these incidents are rare, and generally do not occur suddenly.
FEYERICK (on camera): You are going in a vehicle that is pretty much out of control to sort of a dead stop?
POZEN: Yes. It just stopped. I mean, it just stopped.
FEYERICK: When the police came, what did you tell them?
POZEN: I told them -- I told them, they asked me what happened, and I told them the truck -- exactly what happened up there, and I told them the truck just kept going, and I said it just kept going, and that's what I kept saying.
FEYERICK: Did the police believe you?
POZEN: No, they thought that I was drunk or on drugs.
FEYERICK (voice-over): The police says Pozen was not drunk. Missing however is Pozen's account of her Toyota truck accelerating wildly.
FEYERICK (on camera): Why didn't they put it in?
POZEN: I have no idea. And I was surprised when I looked at -- well I was not really surprised but I was when it looked and it said opinion, and it said driver -- my opinion was the driver was just driving at unsafe speeds. Well, yes, of course I was down the cliff.
FEYERICK (voice-over): Asked to explain their report, police told us they try their best to record drivers' comments accurately. David Wright is part of the class action team that recently asked a judge to widen Toyota's recall to include all models involving sudden acceleration incidents, not just those models Toyota identified like Pozen's 2007 Tundra.
DAVID WRIGHT, PRODUCT LIABILITY ATTORNEY: When the police come to a scene and they cannot reproduce an event right there, too often it's easy to just say the vehicle was traveling at an unsafe speed with the implication being it was the driver's fault.
POZEN: Everybody told me I was crazy.
FEYERICK: Pozen who has two young sons, suffered serious injuries to her neck and back and is now on disability and considering legal action. When she heard about Toyota's recall of millions of vehicles, hers included, she felt vindicated.
POZEN: I am so angry at Toyota because they could have prevented so many things. And it would not have been that hard. I mean, how hard would it have been to look into a problem? They did not look into it at all. They wrote it off.
FEYERICK (on camera): Pozen says she feels a sense of outrage that so many people had to experience the same kind of fear she did. Deborah Feyerick, CNN, Monrovia, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Twenty minutes past the hour now, and coming up here on the Most News in the Morning, our series, A Soldier's Story continues and next we are going to look at the impact that military tour has on the family back home.
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CHETRY: Twenty-five minutes past the hour. Our top stories five minutes away. First, though, an "AM" original, something you will see only on American Morning. From the home front to the front line, we have been following one recruit's journey in our special series, A Soldier's Story.
And by we, we mean -- Carroll over here. This has been great. You have been with him from when he still had hair.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: When he still had hair.
CHETRY: And he still had a big piercing in his ear right and a goatee.
CARROLL: You remember.
CHETRY: My times have changed. Looks a lot different now. How did the family hold up to this thing now?
CARROLL: You know, it has been tough for them. It is a lot for them to deal with emotionally and there is a lot more to come, obviously. So far much of the focus on this series has been on Will McClain's impressions and experiences, and now we turn the camera to a different direction to get his parents' points of view, in terms of what is like to have a recruit in the family, for the first time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LORI MCLAIN, MOTHER: This is William's last letter, and it says hey mom and dad, how are things going at home? I hope well.
CARROLL (voice-over): Nearly every time Lori McLain reads a letter from her son, Will, or junior, as they call him here at home in Rosamon, California, it's hard for her not to become emotional.
LORI MCLAIN: I love you guys and I will talk to you when I can. Love junior. It doesn't take much. But I keep all of his letters.
CARROLL: The letters come from Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, where new recruit Will has been at boot camp for the past nine weeks. From the beginning we followed him through his training, chronicling his toughest challenges.
Get off the ground! Let's go. Are you seriously coughing and crap?
CARROLL (on camera): How would you explain to a parent who doesn't have a son or a daughter going through this, what it has been like for you so far?
WILL MCLAIN: You could not explain it if you don't have a son or a daughter.
LORI MCLAIN: It's because if you don't have one, you have no clue how you would treat it or what you would do.
CARROLL (voice-over): His parents say they have seen the impact military service is having on Will. There's the physical transformation. They saw it when Will was home on holiday leave. But, it's his letters, they say, where they see the most striking change in him?
LORI MCLAIN: William has never been a person to pour his emotions out. He has always held them in and been strong. Now, he doesn't so much as pour his emotions in, as he is wondering what the rest of us are all doing, and how we are getting along without him.
CARROLL: His two brothers feel the void as well.
JEFF MCLAIN, BROTHER: Some families say you miss him, you know. You are going through life, or work or something, and you forget the fact that he is gone, and you come home and want to relax, and it's like, let's go play something, and he is not here.
CARROLL: Will's father says his son is no longer the young 18- year-old who left home. He has had to grow up in a matter of weeks.
BILL MCLAIN: It's not just physical, it's mental. I mean you could see his mental -- he has never been farther than Rosamon, you know what I am saying. And now he is clear across the country with nobody there to bail him out, so he has to do it on his own.
CARROLL: And along with pride comes the concerns with every passing day as Will comes closer to learning whether his next step from boot camp will lead to war.
CARROLL (on camera): As we draw closer to the end of his training, we draw closer to word of his deployment.
BILL MCLAIN: You have to do what you have to do. They will send him wherever. He will survive it.
CARROLL: That is still worry some to you, though?
BILL MCLAIN: Nobody wants their child to go into war. But it's something that we are fighting for.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: You can certainly understand why they are worried. Will should get his orders for deployment in just a few weeks. He still has some specialized training to complete. Tomorrow, we take a look at that training and get Will's feelings about deployment as it draws closer and closer. You can also follow this online at CNN American Morning -- whatever the website is.
CHETRY: cnn.com/amfix. Don't let details get in the way.
CARROLL: That's it! That's it. That's it.
CHETRY: You are hilarious.
I am the new guy, I can do that.
CARROLL: I just got it in my ear, and they are like come on, Jay.
CHETRY: How is he holding up though, because I know, he had it rough a little bit in the beginning?
CARROLL: You know, he really did, and he thought for a while that he was not sure if he was going to be able to make it through, especially the physical training which has been very difficult for him. But, you know, it's day in and day out, he has learned to rely on the other guys who are out there with him, and that's another lesson that he has learned. What is really weighing on him now is where he is going to end up.
CHETRY: Scary choices for sure. All right, Jason Carroll, thanks so much.
Right now we're crossing the half-hour. That means it's time for our top stories.
Power crews across the mid-Atlantic are scrambling to get the lights back on for tens of thousands of people after this weekend's storm dumped more two feet of snow.
In Washington the federal government announced it will not be open for business today. Airports in the area are back up and running. They have limited service though, and you can expect certainly a backlog as people try to make up for flights cancelled over the weekend.
It's not much better on the west coast. It's mud and not snow people are cleaning up after a weekend of devastating rains there. In Los Angeles, people will have been allowed back to their homes. At least three dozen houses were damaged and several were declared uninhabitable after the mudslides. Another storm is expected tomorrow.
And actor Charlie Sheen is expected to appear at a Colorado courtroom today. He's facing charges in connection with an alleged Christmas Day incident involving his wife. She filed and was granted a restraining order against Sheen, but the couple reportedly says they want to, quote, "try to work it out." T.J.?
HOLMES: All right, Kiran. Well, seven months now after Michael Jackson's death, the doctor, Conrad Murray, who was with Michael when he died, is expected to be charged today. The likely charge, involuntary manslaughter.
The L.A. County coroner ruled Jackson died from a lethal combination of drugs, and his death was in fact a homicide. Dr. Murray has said he gave nothing to Jackson that could have killed him. Really? We will break that down now with criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor Paul Callan.
Before we get into some of those details, what is the hold up? We keep waiting for charges, and then it doesn't come, so what is the hold up, first of all?
PAUL CALLAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: This is a bizarre situation in California case. In New York or elsewhere in the country, somebody gets charged with manslaughter, the cops go out, pick him up, throw the handcuffs on and produce him in front of a judge.
In California it's a different situation. What is going on here is Murray wanted to go to the police precinct and turn himself in, and then they would set station house bail there, and he would walk out the door, no handcuffs, and have to come back an appear in front of a judge.
HOLMES: He did not want the picture. CALLAN: Yes, he didn't want the picture, and I think the prosecutor does not want to go that route because he's afraid it would look like special privileges for Murray. So that's why there are having this big dispute about how the surrender occurs.
HOLMES: And it sounds like there's a consensus out there, more than likely it's going to be involuntary manslaughter. Why that charge and why not second-degree murder?
CALLAN: A lot of people are going to have questions about this. Involuntary manslaughter is basically an accident murder. It's negligence that causes death. And here they are saying he is a doctor and he should have known better. He prescribed this dangerous drug propofol, didn't properly monitor Jackson. That's sort of an accidental death that rises to the level of criminal conduct.
Reckless murder or murder in the second degree is much harder to prove. It's sort of like if you were to fire a gun in a crowded football stadium and kill somebody. Maybe you did not intent to kill somebody, but anybody would know that would happen. It's a much higher standard and more difficult to prove.
HOLMES: So that second degree, would the prosecutors have to show that he was trying to harm Michael Jackson in some way?
CALLAN: They wouldn't have to show that. But they would have to show that a reasonable person would know that death would be a possibility. And here they are saying, well, he did not intend to kill Michael Jackson. He should not have prescribed the drug in these circumstances, but it really doesn't rise to the level of second degree murder.
HOLMES: Will that be key there, certainly for the defense as well. He's admitting these drugs. You cannot deny the stuff Michael Jackson had in his system. This doctor gave him those drugs, and this doctor is saying it should not have killed him. Will that be the crux of the entire case?
CALLAN: That's going to be a big part of the defense. But I think a bigger part of the defense will be this -- Conrad Murray will say this drug propofol, while normally it's only in operating rooms, is now sometimes used in doctor's offices, sometimes nurses anesthetists administer the drug.
So he will say I'm a trained medical doctor. I was monitoring him. I had the right to administer this drug, and I am allowed to prescribe it. He will mount a very, very strong medical defense to say that he acted properly.
HOLMES: How will they counter that argument? He is a doctor, after all.
CALLAN: He is a doctor, and this case will have implications nationwide. Think about it -- any doctor who prescribes a medication in a home setting now may have to worry that if something goes wrong he gets arrested and charged with murder. This is a pretty rare situation that you have a criminal prosecution of a doctor. Usually it's a medical malpractice lawsuit for money damages. He also can lose his medical license. So the stakes are very, very high here, and it's going to be a tough case on both sides, I think.
HOLMES: So the implications go much farther than just what happened to Michael Jackson, like you said there.
Is there a case that can be made -- I guess two options for the prosecution. Can they try to go after him for treating Michael Jackson in that involuntary manslaughter and saying he should have known better? And can he also get in trouble for how he reacted after Michael Jackson -- he saw Michael Jackson was in trouble and waited as long as he did to maybe call authorities?
CALLAN: Yes, I think you're right into what a good prosecution theory would be here. One, propofol is a highly dangerous drug and should only be administered in an operating room. Two, he should have been by Michael Jackson's side at all times when that drip was going on. Apparently he left the room, according to reports.
And three, he allowed Michael Jackson to languish, didn't call 911 soon enough. So we have a number of theories of medical negligence, reckless conduct by this doctor that could support an involuntary manslaughter charge.
HOLMES: What would the charge be, just quickly here, if they decide to go after him just for how he reacted, how he didn't call authorities until some 90 minutes later?
CALLAN: If he is not charged with actually killing him, that's a lesser charge. It may not arise to criminal conduct. It's medical malpractice at that point.
HOLMES: Two to four years for involuntary manslaughter?
CALLAN: Yes.
HOLMES: All right, criminal defense attorney Paul Callan, always good to have you.
CALLAN: Nice to see you, T.J.
HOLMES: Kiran?
Still ahead, we will talk about Michael, Brooke, Mick. Brooke Anderson introduces us to the original Hollywood paparazzi. It's 36 minutes past the hour. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It's 39 minutes past the hour. Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
It's time for an "AM" original, something you'll see only on AMERICAN MORNING. The Paparazzi are known for taking candid and oftentimes unwanted photos of celebrities and politicians. But our entertainment correspondent Brooke Anderson has a story of a pioneering paparazzo and what calls a new breed of photographers.
ANDERSON: Kiran, T.J.., he calls himself a photo journalists specializing in celebrities, but Ron Galella is also known as the original paparazzo. And now the lens has been turned on him for the new documentary, "Smash his Camera."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RON GALELLA, CELEBRITY PHOTOGRAPHER: This one was taken at the Kennedy benefit in New York.
ANDERSON: Ron Galella may be the ultimate paparazzo. Back in the day, he snapped every major celebrity.
GALELLA: This is Bridget Bardot in France. I waited in the water, next door. Steve McQueen.
ANDERSON: He pioneered the candid shot, captures when stars were least expecting it.
GALELLA: You have you to hide to get the off guard picture. By asking permission, you're going to get the pose picture, which I don't want.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton had a yacht. I photographed them, and they never spotted me, never.
ANDERSON: Galella is the subject of the new documentary "Smash his Camera" which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. He has taken over a million pictures. Gallery Maher in Park City, Utah, put some of them on display.
ANDERSON (on camera): Look at the Michael Jackson photos.
GALELLA: He came out of the pool, and his sister helped dry him, Janet.
ANDERSON: This is one of your favorites?
GALELLA: Definitely.
ANDERSON (voice-over): His most prized possession is taken of Jackie Onassis taken in 1971. He spotted her on a New York City street and then followed in a cab. When the driver blew his horn, Jackie turned.
GALELLA: It's my Mona Lisa, because she has the Mona Lisa smile.
ANDERSON: Galella's celebrity encounters sometimes ended badly. He accused Marlon Brando of socking him in the jaw.
GALELLA: He knocked out five teeth.
ANDERSON: The next time he saw Brando, Galella came prepared. GALELLA: With a helmet.
ANDERSON: At the age of 79, Galella still works occasionally, colliding with a new breed of paparazzi. He says they play by different rules.
GALELLA: I think they go too far. Nowadays it's all gang banging and they are out for money.
ANDERSON: Galella says when it came to shooting celebs, he followed another creed.
GALELLA: Shoot fast, get their surprised expressions, and if they say no more, I say, yes, and I leave.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: The title of the film comes from what he had with Jackie Onassis after which she told her security detail, "Smash his camera." That didn't happen, and Galella still proudly carries his camera to capture the next spontaneous celebrity moment. Kiran, T.J.?
HOLMES: Coming up, we have an "AM Original" coming up for you, and "AM Original Kiran Chetry Rant" about what was clearly the best Super Bowl ad last night, why she has a problem with it.
(LAUGHTER)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: This song never gets old.
HOLMES: It doesn't. How old is it actually though?
CHETRY: I don't know, that and "I Got You Babe" I could to listen to it everyday with Sonny and Cher.
HOLMES: Ok, yes, it took me a second; ring a bell there.
We're back for The Most News in the Morning.
We are talking about the Super Bowl all this morning. The game, great, everybody is celebrating New Orleans, but we are celebrating the commercials here as well.
We have one and the first one we're going to show you, it's pretty popular it featured Betty White playing a little football. Check it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mike, what is your deal, man?
BETTY WHITE, ACTRESS: Oh come on, you have been riding me all day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like you're playing like Betty White out there?
WHITE: That's not what your girlfriend says.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here, have a Snickers. Better?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Better.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That hurt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're not you when you're hungry. Snickers satisfies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: That was the Abe Vigoda too by the way.
HOLMES: Great commercial; that was actually the number one rated commercial on "USA Today's" ad meter.
CHETRY: Now, here's the one...
HOLMES: However, the next one -- please do take it away...
CHETRY: ... that had everybody of you are talking and had us talking behind the scenes as well. Is the E-Trade talking babies; this one scored big again with adults.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sorry about last night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just don't understand why you did not call?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, well I was on E-Trade you know diversifying my portfolio, taking control like a wolf.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's that, that's volatility in the market, taken care of, wolf style.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And that milkaholic Lindsay wasn't over?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lindsay?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Milk-a-what?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Feel the diversified portfolio.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: How can you not like that commercial?
CHETRY: Well, I'm not going to picket on the streets about it, I'm just saying... HOLMES: Just take the kids...
CHETRY: ...the cutest thing about babies...
HOLMES: Yes.
CHETRY: ...is their innocence and their baby like innocence and he's talking there like all these girlfriends and he's on E-Bay...
HOLMES: That's the beauty of it on each...
CHETRY: He's a baby.
HOLMES: ...that's the beauty of it. Because they are innocent and Rob we'll bring you in on this. They are innocent little babies who are kind of doing some more adult-themed things. Just like the sweet Betty White, hearing her say that was -- it was funny.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: That's what makes it funny; the innocence of it. The milkaholic comment -- I mean E-Trade is not a good alibi. I mean, I think, we all learned something from that...
HOLMES: Yes.
MARCIANO: ...from that particular ad right there, use it to trade stocks, but don't use it to hide your milkaholic girlfriends...
CHETRY: See you got...
MARCIANO: ...that's for sure.
CHETRY: ...you guys are training the kids early to do this.
HOLMES: We're not training the kids -- oh -- ok go ahead, Rob.
MARCIANO: That right, six to 12 inches of snow is expected in Chicago -- it's just comedy, my friends. It's 48 degrees and eight inches in -- well, South of Kansas City is what we're expecting. A number of watches this morning is out because we've got a big storm system. It's a complex one and it's kind of get its act together and consolidate its path from Chicago to the Ohio (ph) valley into the greater I-95 corridor.
Snow up to 12 inches; heavy rain down across the south and windy and cold behind this system and up to 12 inches in places like Chicago. We've already got quick pulse of three just from Memphis, Tennessee so it's cold all the way down to the south. And by the way, this cold pattern, I don't see it stopping for the next ten days at least.
All right, this storm gets through the D.C. Philly and New York area tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow night, six to 12 areas possible, so more scenes like this.
I love this video. Let's not forget, that everybody got -- that had three feet of snow -- yes, they acted like kids and they had fun it happened on the weekend, and why not? Battle lines drawn for one of the biggest snow ball fights ever in the D.C. area; it doesn't look like anybody got hurt.
So -- you know, maybe, if we get the snow I think you're going to get in New York and may be enough, tomorrow night, T.J. and Kiran, for you two to have your own personal little milkaholic snow ball fight maybe Wednesday morning...
HOLMES: Yes.
MARCIANO: ...and then we can -- you can take your frustrations out on T.J., then.
HOLMES: Clearly there's tension between us...
CHETRY: No, there is not. I will bring the Snickers in case either one of us gets tired.
MARCIANO: I'll referee.
HOLMES: Ok. Thanks, Rob.
CHETRY: Rob, thank you.
MARCIANO: You bet.
CHETRY: Well, right now, we're going to check in with Brooke Baldwin in the "CNN NEWSROOM" for a look at what's coming up in the next hour. Hey Brooke.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning.
Yes, enough of the snow.
Let's talk about a place that's kind of hot right now, Brazil. And there is a little party that happens there, each and every February; you might have heard it, Carnival.
And when you think of carnival, what do you think of? You think of the music, the samba, the sequins and oh, yes, the scantily-clad ladies.
But there is even a story right now in Brazil that is raising some eyebrows centering around that 7-year-old you just saw. She has been chosen to lead the drum court. They call it "The Queen of the Drum Court" for one of these samba schools. And there is this family court judge who is now intervening and saying, "Hang on a second, she is 7 years old, wearing makeup and a mini skirt. She is too young.
But the father is saying otherwise, saying, "Hey my little girl is a natural."
So coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM, we're going to be taking a closer look at the story. We have Rafael Romo filing this report out of Rio de Janeiro and we're asking you, what do you think, guys? Samba? HOLMES: She's just don't want to diss (ph)...
BALDWIN: How about that?
HOLMES: ...you know, the child with that kind of provocative dancing is not what we are used to seeing...
BALDWIN: She's 7 years old...
HOLMES: Well, we need to hear the story. If the dad is ok, we'll hear from him then -- Brooke thank you.
BALDWIN: Yes.
CHETRY: Thanks Brooke.
It's 50 minutes after the hour. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
New this morning: Toyota is expected to add 2010 Priuses to its list of recalled vehicles this week because of problems with the braking system; accelerator and mat troubles causing a global recall for about 8 million cars for Toyota.
Still no word on Obama on the change of venue for the 9/11 trial; there's been outrage over the decision to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed as well as co-conspirators at the New York Federal courthouse just blocks from Ground Zero. The president is considering those objections from the city's mayor and police commissioner.
Ten American missionaries facing kidnapping charges in Haiti are scheduled to appear before a magistrate and face some questioning today. The missionaries are charged with trying to illegally remove 33 children from Haiti without the proper documents -- T.J.
HOLMES: Kiran, when that big earthquake hit Haiti last month, the Navy scrambled to get the USS Comfort ready to sail and help out. Seven days later the floating hospital arrived off the shores of Port- au-Prince, fully stocked and staffed to treat victims. But as our Barbara Starr now reports, no one could properly prepare for disaster of these proportions.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: The quake struck just before 5:00 p.m. on January 12th. Two and a half hours later Haiti's ambassador was on CNN begging for medical help.
RAYMOND ALCIDE JOSEPH, HAITIAN AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: When we had four hurricanes in 2008, the Southern Command dispatched the USS Comfort to Haitian waters. It's a hospital ship. I hope that that happens again. STARR: The next morning, January 13th, the Navy began getting its hospital ship Comfort ready. The top U.S. Military commander did not even have approved orders.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hospital ship Comfort, do we expect that to get under way?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is a consideration right now.
STARR: Orders would come within hours. In Haiti, all eyes were on the horizon, waiting for the big white ship with the Red Cross, but its arrival was days away.
Why? The Navy's top doctor told us they got under way as fast as possible.
ADM. ADAM ROBINSON, NAVY SURGEON GENERAL: We recognize that the Haitian people were going to need really massive medical and logistical support.
STARR: the first challenge, in Baltimore the ship is undergoing maintenance. It doesn't even have running water.
ROBINSON: The second phase is to make sure that the medical treatment facility onboard is actually staffed and ready to go.
STARR: Three days after the quake, January 15th, small field hospitals are being set up; they are quickly overwhelmed.
The next day, four days after the quake, the Comfort sets sail with 515 Navy medical personnel on board.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Medical help is now anchored off the coast of Haiti. It's the U.S. Navy Ship Comfort.
STARR: One week after the quake, the thousand-bed Comfort is off Haiti is receiving its first patients. Other warships nearby also take injured people onboard.
Twelve days after the earthquake, less than a week into its time in Haiti and the Comfort was at capacity. The Navy needed even more medical personnel. Admiral Robinson says the lesson and Comfort and Haiti is not just getting to a disaster fast, but getting there with the right supplies, the right specialists and staying until the job is done.
ROBINSON: I always know that the concern that you see at the beginning is not the concern that may be there when the lights have gone off, and everybody has gone home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: So T.J., you know, there has been this talk, did it take too long for U.S. aid to get to Haiti. When you step through it, day by day, you can see why it takes so long. But Navy officials say these hospital ships even though they take several days to get there have the one key advantage. They remain offshore and they don't use up the critical supplies in a totally devastated country like Haiti. But they are already looking at what they learned from this and how they might do it better next time -- T.J.
HOLMES: You're absolutely right about that time. It takes time to scramble all of those people from all over the country to fly in and to get on that ship in the first place, but no doubt it can help out in a major way there.
Barbara Starr, thank you. Good to see you as always.
It's 3 minutes until the top of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. That is our traveling music. That's it for us. We're not done here at CNN, though.
CHETRY: No, absolutely. We will see you guys back here Monday -- I mean, Tuesday -- but meantime the news continues with Brooke Baldwin in the "CNN NEWSROOM" -- hi Brooke.
