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Gadhafi Loyalist New Offensive; No-Fly Zone Rumors; East Coast Rapist Arrest; Football Season; Michigan High School Basketball Player Dies; Wisconsin Worker Protests Continue This Weekend; Legal Analysts Say Charlie Sheen Should Shut Up, His Lawyer Should Walk
Aired March 05, 2011 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Thanks, Randi.
Nineteen days and counting for the fight in Libya. It seems rebel fighters are gaing ground there, they've now catching the strategic town of Ras Lanuf, but forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi are striking back this weekend, both on the ground and from the air. The new offensive is underway in the town of Zawiya, about half an hour from Libya's capital.
Just look at this. It has chafed hands several times in recent days, right now, the rebels appear to be in control. First let's go to eastern Libya where our senior international correspondent, Ben Wedeman, is with rebel fighters.
Ben, we're hearing you're at a site where the rebels say a Libyan plane was shot down. What's the story?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR INTL CORRESPONDENT: We're about five miles southwest of Ras Lanuf and I'm among the debris a Sucoy (ph) 24, that's an old Russian jet that crashed here in the desert. Now the rebels say they shot it down with their anti-aircraft guns, but we really have no way of being certain about that. What we found were -- we found the bodies of the two pilots minus their heads, by the way, but this is really the first instance, Tom, where the anti-Gadhafi forces were able possibly, and I stress possibly, to shoot down one of the jets which have been really pounding the rebel forces as they've been trying to advance from the eastern part of the country in the direction of Tripoli -- Tom.
FOREMAN: Ben, when you talk about planes being shot down and the rebel forces being able to do such a thing, it does, from a distance, start looking more like a civil war; we're hearing a lot of that kind of talk. What are leaders on the opposition side telling their fighters about this?
WEDEMAN: Basically they're stressing that this is a fight not among Libyans, but between the people of Libya and Moammar Gadhafi, a man who's ruled this country rather radically for the last 41-1/2 years. What we're seeing is increasingly soldiers who were before fighting for Moammar Gadhafi are switching sides. And what we saw at Ras Lanuf was that many of those soldiers have defected and that seems to be increasing the pattern. To suggest that is civil war would suggest something along the lines of Lebanon where you have very distinct groups fighting one other, the Libyans will stress to you that they're one people, they don't have sectarian or ethnic divisions here, there are tribal divisions, but it doesn't appear to be in any sense a tribal conflict -- Tom.
FOREMAN: Let me ask you one last thing, Ben, before we come back to you later in the day, I hope. Certainly a week ago, two weeks ago there was a much, much greater sense of instant momentum that something was going to change. Do you still feel that on the ground, there? Do you still hear that? Or is there a sense of people are settling in for a longer haul, at this point?
WEDEMAN: No, what we've seen actually over the last four or five days is that the anti-Gadhafi forces are making progress, they're gaining ground, increasingly they're moving ahead, sometimes just a few miles, sometimes as many as 20 or 30 along the road to Tripoli. They retook the town of Brega after it was overrun by Libyan forces and now they've taken the town of Ras Lanuf, which is equally important, because of its large refinery and airport, here and they're pushing ahead.
So, it certainly does seem that a stalemate that many people were talking about, many people were expecting between an anti-Gadhafi east and a Gadhafi controlled west, may not be the case. But certainly the rebels are hoping that they have the momentum and they'll eventually be able to push all the way to the Libyan capital, Tripoli -- Tom.
FOREMAN: Thanks so much. Ben Wedeman, still doing some of the best reporting out of the entire region. We'll stay with him here on CNN. Stay with us, we'll keep you up on all the latest movements there, throughout the afternoon, and this weekend.
We've been talking to an eyewitness in Zawiya, this town just outside of Tripoli, where both sides have been fighting for control. CNN spoke to him just a short time ago. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The situation since this morning was heavy fighting starting at 6:00 in the morning, lasted until about 10:15 this morning, as well, and a lot of casualties from both sides. Gadhafi's troops came in to the city from east and west trying to capture the center of the city, which is the square where we keep our fallen comrades. They made a cemetery there, and right there there's about 14 of the fallen one day, in point cemetery, in the square.
The fight lasted until about 10:15. Gadhafi's troops had left because they encountered a lot of resistance. They left behind tanks and personnel carriers, a lot (INAUDIBLE) of all kinds. And the latest move that (INAUDIBLE) no electricity for the last two hours, or 2-1/2 hours. Of course Tripoli and I hear also Benghazi has no Internet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: All of the trouble over there is continuing to cause trouble here at home, something you really don't want to hear this weekend. Gas prices are still surging, and there's no sign of when it's going to end all that links to this chaos in Libya. Since yesterday, you're paying on average two cents more a gallon for regular unleaded and the national average is now $3.49. This time last year the average price for that same gallon of gas was $2.72.
Check out this map. In some of those states in red, the prices are now closing in on $4 a gallon, that mark already reached in some places.
Continuing fallout from what's happening in Libya and the Middle East. With the fighting escalating we're hearing more calls for a no-fly zone in Libya, but the U.S. is not exactly pushing for that at this moment.
Let's bring in our senior State Department producer, Elise Labott.
Let me ask you something, Elise, why the hesitation? We keep hearing this talk about a no-fly zone. Clearly if they're shooting down planes over there, the rebel forces, there's a lot to be said about air power. Why the hesitation?
ELISE LABOTT, CNN SR STATE DEPT PRODUCER: Well, a couple of things, Tom, first of all, basically we had a very sober assessment from Defense Secretary Gates this week saying let's be clear about what a no-fly zone is. A no-fly zone means military intervention, because by necessity, the U.S. and its partners that would act on this no-fly zone would have to take down the Libyan air defenses.
So, is the U.S. and its allies ready to go in? Not necessarily. They don't know if the situation on the ground is as bad that would necessitate that kind of thing. And also there's not really a lot of international support for that, Tom. We've seen at the United States Security Council not a lot of appetite where countries like Russia or China who would have to sign on any kind of authorization and also at NATO. So, I think the U.S. really wants to see over the coming days and months whether there is a worsening situation, which could build the kind of international support for a no-fly zone that it would need to undertake something like this.
FOREMAN: Elise, I've heard a lot of talk about how difficult this would be. When he with talk about difficulty, are we talking about the political difficulty you just mentioned? Or is there also a physical difficulty in a country of this size enforcing such a zone?
LABOTT: Well, I don't think necessarily the U.S. would have a physical difficulty if it were acting with NATO or, you know, obviously the U.S. has a significant amount of manpower, but the question is, is the U.S. ready to put troops in harm's way. If they have to take out the air defenses, so to speak, and Gadhafi were to shoot back, that's talking about military intervention and given the fact that the U.S. went into Iraq, there's a lot of international lingering mistrust of the U.S. in terms of any kind of international military intervention. In the Arab League, for instance there's been very much opposed to any military intervention, then you start to talk about that kind of political support and it's not necessarily right now the U.S. wants to see what happens over the coming weeks and months before they're ready to sign on to something like that. FOREMAN: Elise has been covering this around the clock for us, ever since it started there. You're getting tired by now but we'll keep counting on her, and you can too. Thanks, Elise.
In other news, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is upping the ante in his budget standoff with public workers. The Republican governor has sent out letters to union leaders warning them that 1,500 workers may get laid off next month if Democrats do not return to the state to vote on his budget bill. Fourteen Democrats are holed up in a hotel just over the state line to block the Senate from voting on the bill, which cuts workers' bargaining rights. A large crowd of union supporters are expected to converge on the capitol again today to rally against the bill. We will take you there live, coming up to see if there's any real movement to this standoff.
In Connecticut, an arrest, in the case of the so-called East Coast Rapist. The suspect is blamed for attacks on women in four states. CNN's Susan Candiotti has the latest now from New Haven -- Susan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: The suspect in this case, 39-year-old Aaron Thomas, is now in custody at the New Haven Police Department. But it took 13 years, authorities say, to get him there.
They say that everything came together in just the last week after they had put up a Web site and some electronic billboards with a composite sketch of the suspect that they were after. They had also received an anonymous tip and some other information that led to some DNA matches. They now say they can link Thomas to at least 12 rapes and possibly more over the course of 13 years across four states, including Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia, and Rhode Island. They caught up with Thomas yesterday as he was walking down a street near his home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT JULIE JOHNSON, NEW HAVEN POLICE DEPT: Recent information was developed in this case. DNA was collected and subsequently matched by the Connecticut State Forensic Sciences Lab, confirming that Thomas was the east coast rapist.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: So far authorities have charged Thomas with only three of the attacks: Two of them in Virginia, and one here in New Haven, where he is being held on a $1 million bond. He will appear in court on Monday, and at this point they're not releasing any mug shots of him because they say they don't want to taint any possible additional witnesses.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, New Haven, Connecticut.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOREMAN: Well, you can see it's a very busy weekend here, an online retail company is doing a busy booming business as well, focusing on the consumer. I'll tell you about that business when we come back, "Building up America."
And will we have football this fall? Some answers to that question or at least a couple stabs at them, in just a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: Well, the big buzz in sports this weekend is still swirling around. Imagine this, in late winter, the NFL, the question being, are we going to have a season or will the owners lock out the players? Ray D'Alessio of HLN SPORTS, joins us with the latest.
I said, Ray, when you walked in, I'm worried about this.
RAY D'ALESSIO, HLN SPORT: You're worried. I'm not.
FOREMAN: Why?
D'ALESSIO: You know, I'm not worried, Tom, because they're talking. There's dialogue there, you know, the deadline for the collective bargaining agreement was supposed to expire admit night Thursday night, they extended it 24 hours. Obviously things went well enough yesterday that they thought they could extend it another seven days, now the expiration, now it expires 11:59 next Friday night. So, obviously they're talking, there's dialogue there. There's still a lot to be ironed out. I mean, there's still all the stuff, you know, how do we split up $9 billion in revenue, obviously the owners, the want a little bit more of that money, $1 billion more.
FOREMAN: What do you think the key things are that they have to keep grappling with, here? You can't just sit in the room and say, we need to solve it.
D'ALESSIO: No, again, they have to find common ground. You know, and the bottom line is how do, you know, how is it fair for both sides? Obviously, you know, the owners are saying that they need, you know, they need a bigger piece of the pot to keep competive to pay the mortgages on these stadiums. You know, ticket sales aren't what they used to be, people aren't buying the merchandise like they used to be, so they're losing a bit of money. They're not poor by any means but they are losing a bit of money and the players on the other hand are saying, OK, you also want us to extended season by two games, but if we get less money is that fair? So they have to find common ground here. And it's a long way off until the season begins. I really honestly, I don't see them canceling an entire season. It's too big of a business, it's too popular right now, and fans are not forgiving. Fans -- it will -- if an entire season is canceled, it will take a while for the fans to come back, it really will.
FOREMAN: Do you think the salary cap thing is the No. 1 issue?
D'ALESSIO: No. You know, the players agree there has to be some type of rookie salary cap. The salaries are just getting exorbitant. No sure, when you've got guys like Sam Bradford coming out of college, you know, getting a $50 million signing bonus, that helps the veteran players, but there has to be some type of salary cap. The other thing the players are say, we're willing to put a cap on this, but is that money that you're saving going in your pockets or are we going to get some of that as well? Retirement benefits for players, you know, are we going to get a piece of that, as well.
FOREMAN: Well yeah, as you point out, a lot of these guys are, they're seasoned, their lifetime career average is three years.
D'ALESSIO: The average career, three, four years. The average NFL salary, yeah, there's people like Tom Brady making $18 million a year, but you got to remember, the average NFL salary, only about $700,000 a year.
FOREMAN: You know, people don't think about this. If your average income is $700,000 a year and you only work three years, in many cases you're not going to make much more than a lot of regular workers will make in a lifetime.
D'ALESSIO: No, and obviously the players do not want a lockout because once that collective bargaining agreement expires, their benefits are gone. There's no, you know, no benefits whatsoever. Obviously if there's a lockout, if there's no season, they only get paid for 17 games. They don't get paid in the off season. They get paid for 17 games. If there's no season, they don't get paid.
FOREMAN: Let's talk about something else, which has captivated everybody this weekend, in really a terrible way. What about this Michigan high school player? Shoots the winning goal, then passes away on the court. Talk about this.
D'ALESSIO: It's heart breaking, Tom. It really is -- 16-year-old Wes Leonard. You got to remember, Fennville, Michigan, there's only about 1,500 people in Fennville, Michigan. They rally around their basketball. Thursday night, half the town was at this game.
FOREMAN: That's him right there.
D'ALESSIO: Right. Wes Leonard. He hits the game-winning shot, what turned out to be the game-winning shot in overtime to complete a perfect 20-0 season. He's a hero. He's not only a star basketball player, he's the quarterback for the high school team. Moments later when they're celebrating, he collapses on the court. They try to revive him, rush him to the hospital, he later dies at the hospital.
So the town is in shock. The medical examiner came out and said the young man died from cardiac arrest caused by dilated cardiomyopathy, which, I guess, is somewhat of an enlargement of the heart, I believe.
FOREMAN: Yeah. Yeah.
D'ALESSIO: Nobody knew he had this condition. Nobody knew he had this condition.
FOREMAN: Yeah, I'd like to know more about that. Because, I also believe, if I'm not mistaken a lot of lifetime athletes have some of that in part because of what they've done. D'ALESSIO: Right. They say a lot of...
FOREMAN: But, very unusual, a young person like that, for him to be that way.
D'ALESSIO: And now it brings into question, are we screening these high school kids well enough to see if they have these medical conditions before they take the field...
FOREMAN: That's a tough question, a difficult one. Ray, always good to have you in here, and let's keep our fingers crossed about the NFL talks.
D'ALESSIO: Positive. Cautiously optimistic. You got to be cautiously optimistic.
FOREMAN: Hey, what kind of shoes are you wearing? Good shoes? You like your shoes?
D'ALESSIO: These are old, man. I need to get some new ones.
FOREMAN: Well, you need to call Zappos. That's what you can do. It's an online retail company, they're doing booming business by focusing on people like Ray who need new shoes. I visited Zappos as part of our "Building up America" series. We're going out on the road again this week, but I want you to take a look at this, because they discovered a secret to success.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): Twenty-four/seven, two by two, Zappos.com is moving shoes. More than $1 billion annually in Internet sales fueled by a wide selection, free shipping and money back guarantees.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you for calling Zappos.com.
FOREMAN: Not bad for a company started a dozen years ago with a radical concept. Success is about service.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, no problem.
FOREMAN: Not selling. CEO Tony Hsieh.
TONY HSIEH, ZAPPOS.COM: And for us, culture isn't just important, it's actually the No. 1 priority of the company.
FOREMAN: The culture is raucous, infection and everywhere. Employees decorate as they choose, enjoying and unbelievable array of company services, including free lunch, ice cream, massages. We asked our guide, Ray Andre, about the business environment.
RAY ANDRE, ZAPPOS.COM: This is a business meeting.
FOREMAN (on camera): This is a business meeting? There's a lot of giggling going on in there.
ANDRE: There is.
(voice-over): Getting in is not easy. Zappos takes months to screen applicants and even in training, new hires are offered $4,000 to quit, just to weed out those who might not really want to be here.
ANDRE: So we figure we could train most people to do their jobs, but we can't train somebody to fit into our culture.
FOREMAN (on camera): What is your key philosophy about running this business?
HSIEH: Internally, we have a saying that we're a service company that just happens to sell shoes.
FOREMAN: You realize nobody in America who sees this is going to want to go to work tomorrow.
(voice-over): So they can laugh at comments like that, because everyone here seems eager to come to work every day, building up this runaway success.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
And you can catch all of our reports out of Nevada in a "Building up America" special today at 3:30 p.m. Eastern. Don't miss it, as we head off toward Memphis and Arkansas and Oklahoma this week, as well. But first, take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICKEY ROONEY, ACTOR: When that happens, you feel scared, disappointed, yes, and angry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: A legendary actor admits he is a victim of elder abuse. It made headlines this week and our legal guys tackle the options he and others have. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: Testimonies and confessions, the trial of self-help guru James Ray, the accused kidnappers of Jaycee Dugard tell all, tears and anger for Casey Anthony and Mickey Rooney opens up about elder abuse, his own. Our legal guys are ready.
Civil rights attorney and law professor Avery Friedman is in Cleveland and Richard Herman, a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor is in Las Vegas.
Richard, let me start with you and the James Ray case, he's founder of this retreat in Arizona, on trial after three people died during a sweat lodge ritual back in 2009. Prosecutors saying that these people were psychologically pressured to stay in this lodge as the temperature soared, they dehydrated and put them in danger. Is that going to fly? RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTY: That is going to fly, Tom, I mean, the fact he's a self-help guru means, my interpretation, he's preying on people that are not as strong as maybe the average people walking around or people that want to better themselves somehow, some way. So they basically fall under this Svengali atmosphere with this guy. They go into the sweat lodge, believing him, and believing it will be a near death experience, they can withstand the heat, don't worry if they can't breathe, just stay in there, and stay in there, everything's going to be OK.
Well, everything's not OK, three deaths, 12-1/2 years per death, it's not murder, but it's going to be -- I just don't think that this guy can withstand this type of case.
FOREMAN: Avery, sounds like Richard makes a pretty good case, there. What about the defense? I understand they're going to basically say this was an accident, not a crime.
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTY: Yeah, I actually felt very strongly, feeling the same way, but the more you get into this, Tom, the more you see that the defense team, arguing, look, it wasn't psychological pressure, it was free will. These individuals put down $10,000 each to go through the process, hundreds have gone through it successfully. Unfortunately three died. And that's exactly the defense, that this is not a crime, it's clearly an accident. And so that's where this is going to be. We have the first week of testimony in a trial that's going to last four months and even in the early stage some of these prosecution witnesses have not been that strong, so we've got a long way to go, but I'm not sure that all will be convicted in this case.
FOREMAN: Avery, let's look at the Dugard kidnapping, right now. Phillip and Nancy Garrido, the people involved in a -- accused of taking this young woman, Jaycee Dugard, 1991, holding her captive for 18 years, now coming out, this report this week about some kind of confession, here. Tell me your initial reaction when you hear that, Avery.
FRIEDMAN: Well, it's a little bizarre, only because one of the lawyers has gone public saying that both Phillip and Nancy Garrido have confessed to law enforcement, and the prosecution and the other defense lawyers are not confirming it. Basically what they're saying is there are hundreds of years that are expected to be ordered by the judge, but the lawyer that's gone public is saying that the wife, Nancy Garrido, had something called Stockholm syndrome, meaning she followed the orders of her husband. Hey, bottom line, the only Stockholm syndrome is Julian Assange, these days. That's not going to work.
FOREMAN: Richard, what do you think? I've heard of this thing raised before, this idea of you're under the control of somebody else. How often does that work?
HERMAN: It's not going to fly, Tom. They already tried a mental defect offense. All the reports came back, these two are ready to stand trial. He's at 440-years to life, she's at 241 to life. It's an attempt by him to fall on the sword and let her see the light of day again. That's all it is. These are horrible crimes. 18 years, rape, kidnapping, just horrible. I don't thif the judge is going to show them any sympathy.
FOREMAN: All right, let's move quickly here, Avery, with the case of Casey Anthony. Essentially, the question here in the death of her 2- year-old daughter is, to some degree, did the family act as agents of the police in soliciting information from her around her attorney. What do you think when you look at this. The family did talk to her, talked to her about evidence, talked to her about ideas.
FRIEDMAN: Right. This was a big leak on the evidence front in that case because this trial's coming up in early May, Tom. And what happened was there's now been a debate. Did that which Casey told mom and dad, did it occur while he was in custody? If so, it should be barred or not. And so mom and dad took the stand in a suppression hearing and we're not sure what the judge is going to do, but we think there's a good shot that that evidence will be barred. I don't think it's going to matter, I think they're probably going to be able to convict her. I think the evidence, Tom, is overwhelming.
FOREMAN: No I want to jump to you, Richard, on the last one. I'm going to I'll turn away from Dugard right now, because I did want to get in a word about Mickey Rooney, this week, talking elder abuse, saying we need a law in this country. He's 90 years old, said that he has a restrain order now against his stepson. He says there should be a law against elder abuse. Do we need a law against elder abuse or do we have enough laws, we just need to enforce them for our elders?
HERMAN: No, we probably do. In this day and age with people living longer, life spans going on into -- well into the 90s and to 100s and these people are being taken advantage of by family members, by other people supposedly who they trust. A division is being set up with the Department of Justice. This is either going to be criminal or quasi criminal in nature. I think it's a good thing. It will stop abuses and protect the elder people in our society.
FOREMAN: Any last comment on that, Avery?
FRIEDMAN: Yeah, real quick. Herb Kohl, who's the senior senator from Wisconsin, with all the chaos we're hearing up there, they have one great senator, he's the sponsor, and I'm hoping Congress will enact this very important legislation.
FOREMAN: All right, Avery and Richard, sit tight, we'll come back to you later in the show and get through more of the celebrity news out there this week, the legal issues they've got. Boy a lot of them. It's unbelievable.
Speaking of Wisconsin, a big budget protest in Wisconsin today is expected to draw a diverse crowd. We will explain what we mean in a live report right after the break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: Let's catch up on our top stories now. Police in Connecticut have arrested a man they believe may be the so- called East Coast rapist. The suspect is in custody. He's been identified as Aaron Thomas. Police say he will face at least a dozen rape charges.
Night is falling right now across Libya after another day of intense fighting there. CNN's Ben Wedeman reports rebels have shot down a plane near the town of Razlanuf (ph) in eastern Libya. Rebels are in control there. That town of Zawiyah, nearby, is also in their hands. It's changed hands a number of times, so we don't know how long that will stand. Here is how one eyewitness described the fighting there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of casualties from both sides. Gadhafi's troops came in to the city from east and west trying to capture the center of the city, which is the square where we keep our fallen comrades.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: NFL owners and players have agreed to keep talking trying to avoid a lockout. The new deadline to reach a bargaining agreement, March 11th. Owners want a bigger share of the profits from what is a $9 billion business. And want to extend the season to 18 games. Players say they'll file an anti-trust suit if the owners lock them out and shut down the season.
Crowds of people are expected to surround Wisconsin's capitol building for another day of heated protest over the governor's budget bill. The measure would dramatically cut public workers' union rights and benefits. We all know that by, now, I think. Jessica Gomez is there and she joins us live.
Jessica, exactly what are they protesting today and what else is there to say about all this?
JESSICA GOMEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, first the latest, Governor Scott Walker made good on his threat to send out layoff notices to several state unions late yesterday. This, as you mentioned, these protesters are here protesting the budget repair bill for the third weekend in a row; the crowds here, not nearly as big as the last two weekends.
The governor sent those layoff notices to the unions representing up to 1500 employees, but with that issued another deadline. He says if the budget repair bill is passed within the next two weeks, those lay off notices will be rescinded.
What does this mean? It means that there is more negotiation time with those 14 Democratic senators who are still in Illinois, avoiding a vote on the bill. There seems to be a little bit of movement the last couple of days from both sides, the governor signaling yesterday that he is willing to compromise on some of the language in the bill, but at this point there's really no deal. FOREMAN: Jessica, do you have any sense that even without a deal that there are active talks going on right now? Or is this all just taking place in front of the cameras there with protesters and press conferences and all of that?
GOMEZ: From our understanding there are lots of phone calls, a flurry of phone calls going on between the governor's office and those 14 state Democratic senators, as well as the GOP. So I think there's a lot of behind the scenes conversations going on and that probably will continue this weekend.
FOREMAN: I guess we'll see how it turns out. Jessica Gomez, good for being there. Hope you stay warm, try walking around.
More legal troubles for Charlie Sheen and it has to do with his children. Our legal guys are getting ready to tackle that and other celebrity cases in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: Our legal guys are back, in just a moment we'll turn to the celebrity cases, Civil rights attorney Avery Friedman and criminal defense attorney Richard Herman.
But before we turn back to celebrities, Richard, you made a really interesting point about the Casey Anthony case and this notion about whether the things that she said when the police were around her will be admitted in court. Why would they not be?
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right, Tom. That's what was argued. When they came to her house, what the police did was handcuff her and put her in the back of a caged patrol car. It was at that time, she was not under arrest, but she was clearly in a custodial situation. They did not give her Miranda warnings, they should have, and it was during that time that she disclosed about Zanny, the nanny, and there was a nanny involved. They argued to the judge that that must be suppressed because it came in a custodial situation where she felt she was under arrest and they did not give her Miranda warnings.
(CROSS TALK)
Tom, I think the defense is going to win that.
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: That's what mom and dad said this week, that's exactly right.
(CROSS TALK) FRIEDMAN: So that could be a huge turning point for the case.
HERMAN: A terrible blow to the prosecution.
FOREMAN: All right. It is an important point. I'm glad you brought that up, Richard. And Avery chiming in on that.
Let's look at the celebrity situation right now. Oh, my gosh, Charlie Sheen in the fight over his kids. Singer Christina Aguilera taken into custody on suspicion of relation with drunk driving, and a fashion designer sacked for alleged anti-Semitic comments.
Avery, turn to this bit about Charlie Sheen. I just roll my eyes over this. This is just out of control right now. Tell me about this business with his kids right now.
FRIEDMAN: Well, this is real easy, Tom. There was an order where he had to relinquish the twins, after the weekend and then he decides he's not going to do it. And he decides that based on we saw his interview with Piers Morgan and others. He's just going to do what he wants to do. So now he violates a court order. On top of that, the ex-wife asserts that threatened to cut her head off, and on top of that.
FOREMAN: And he denies that. He strongly denies that. He said I didn't do that.
FRIEDMAN: Of course he denies it. And, of course, he promises in a settlement agreement, in the divorce, that he's not going to say anything disparaging about the ex, which of course, he does. So he is piling up legal issue after legal issue. I don't know who's representing him that has control to basically tell the client, Tom, keep quiet. And he's doing the opposite.
FOREMAN: Richard, let me ask you about that. If you're an attorney and you have a client tangled up in something like this where there just seems to be no end to it, what on earth do you say to them?
HERMAN: I'm quitting. Get another lawyer. That's easy.
(LAUGHTER)
FRIEDMAN: Good.
Except that he makes -- he has too much money so the lawyer is getting paid a ton of dough on this case. Look, this man is like a car accident when you're driving. Everybody turns to look and watch. Everybody can't keep their eyes off him. It's just every day it's something new. It's incredible. He is not winning. Carlos Estevez is not winning, Tom. Drunk, drugs, violence, losing his contract to the studio, is he not winning. Now he lost his kids. He threatened to cut his wife's head off, and send it to her mother in a box. He's violating restraining orders. He's not acting in the best interest of the kids.
HERMAN: That's right.
FRIEDMAN: And Carlos, man to man, they are not goddesses. OK? Please. Come on, buddy. They're not goddesses.
HERMAN: That's for sure.
FOREMAN: Avery, let me ask you one thing very quickly here. Is there ever a time at times like this, I don't know how you guys do this business, are there ever times like this when lawyers talk to each other behind the back, and say we've got to get these clients of ours off the headlines because this is a mess.
FRIEDMAN: I've got to tell you, those conversations happen every day, Tom. Any good lawyer who sees a client that's out of control, gives a client a choice. Either you're going to continue doing what you're doing or you're going to pay attention and I'll stick with you. Richard's right. I think these lawyers are used to getting big bucks.
FOREMAN: Richard, let's turn to Christina Aguilera. Taken in for public intoxication. She was a passenger in a car her boyfriend was driving, now charged with a misdemeanor. Is this a standard thing? She's just riding along in the car.
HERMAN: You know, Tom, they pulled him over and they gave him a breathalyzer at .09. Now .08 is the cutoff so he's barely intoxicated. He's probably going to fight that case. But she's a passenger in the car and she's wrecked. She can't hardly even stand up. She can't talk, she's plastered. So the police under those circumstances just took her in and let her sleep it off. Then they let her go in the morning. She was not charged, she's not going to be charged, but obviously she's a very troubled person these days. Someone's got to help her. She's screaming for help.
FOREMAN: Let me ask you about that, Avery. This is an interesting question here. If you're in a car and you are drunk out of your mind, but you are a passenger, aren't you effectively in a private place saying I'm a private citizen doing what I want? It's no one else's business?
FRIEDMAN: Exactly the point. There is no crime being a drunk passenger. And the fact is the police did the right thing, they threw her in the tank, she was there from 2:00 to 7:00 in the morning. Let her free. There's some news reports she posted bond, that seems unclear. If so, it's a minor misdemeanor, but it is true. She needs help. There are problems going on. She's coming off a very bad divorce. And it is a sign that it's time to get help, because right now if she doesn't, the legal issues are going to start piling up.
FOREMAN: Now we're going to go overseas to the story of John Galliano, the flamboyant designer, big guy over there, big, big name in fashion. Accused of making anti-Semitic and racist insults to a couple in a Paris bar. He denies the accusations. Nonetheless, Christian Dior sacks him. He's out on the street in this whole thing. What do you make of this whole thing, Richard?
HERMAN: We've been talking about protected speech the last few weeks, Tom. I know you've been watching us. And clearly over in Paris there, racial insults are not protected speech. He's being prosecuted for them. He's facing six months in prison and fines upwards of $30,000 for this. And a lot of it's caught on video. This guy's a complete dirt bag loser. And it's about time someone flushed him down the toilet. Terrible.
FRIEDMAN: Oh, gee.
FOREMAN: Avery, they do have different -- Avery, they do have different standards and laws over there. FRIEDMAN: Look, let me see. Can I elevate this a little bit? Look, look, Western Europe and all the history that goes with that, it's France, it's not America. We saw this week the Supreme Court upheld essentially putrid sickening speech, but it is protected. That's the Western European approach to criminal justice.
FOREMAN: The case you're talking about is the West --
FRIEDMAN: Whether or not it is unfair is not the issue.
FOREMAN: You're talking about the Westboro Baptist case, right?
FRIEDMAN: Yes, exactly.
FOREMAN: The protests at the military funerals.
FRIEDMAN: Exactly, right.
FOREMAN: Richard, do you think that if the same thing happened in this country that there would have been any kind of charges come out-- we talk a lot more in this country about things like hate speech, and fomenting violence. Do you think there'd be anything?
HERMAN: No, look. Like you said, if these families can visit this Westboro Baptist Church, look at those signs and listen to them rant and rave, and you can't get justice that way, you can't sue them for any kind of defamation, or any type of intentional infliction of emotional stress, no, Tom. This guy would not be charged, or prosecuted, or you probably couldn't even sue him in the United States for that.
FOREMAN: It's always good to talk to you. Civil rights attorney Avery Friedman and criminal defense attorney Richard Herman, nice to have you here this weekend. Hope you enjoy the rest of it, and watch out for celebrities. You're out there in Las Vegas, Richard, you never know, might run into some.
Next time you head to COSTCO for a case of soup or mega pack of tissue, you might find something totally unexpected. Wedding dresses.
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FOREMAN: Let's head across country to see what our affiliates are reporting out there. First stop, Seattle. The COSTCO discount wholesaler is adding something brand new to go along with buying everything from soup to nuts in bulk. Wedding dresses, yes, look at this. You heard right. Designer Kirstie Kelly will sell her line at COSTCO stores. The prices range from $699 to about $1400.
In Yonkers, New York, put yourself in this situation. Firefighters, whew, look at this. Firefighters had to rescue two workmen dangling high above the street when their scaffolding collapsed. They were working on the 13th or 14th floor when someone below heard them screaming. Firefighters a few floors above used ropes to reach the men. No one knows what caused the scaffolding to give way, which means it will be kind of hard to go back to work on Monday. Last stop, Findlay, Ohio. People there are preparing for the threat of more flooding. These high school students and teachers filled sandbags to protect against a local river from spilling over its banks for the second time in a week. And, of course, rain is in the forecast out there. That's no fun.
Reynolds Wolf joins us. I have some relatives who live in Findlay, they had big flooding there a few years ago.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Indeed, they did. This year has been just insane. A very wet winter, we are expecting more rain today, across the Ohio Valley and parts of the southeast the flooding potential is going to be there. That's not the only story. The second half of the story is the possibility of tornadoes.
And this is the big weather maker. Take a look at this thing. If we were going to measure the storm system, it is amazing. This thing stretches from parts of New England clear down to the Gulf Coast, nearly 2,000 miles. Unbelievable storm system. This thing is just pulling its way to the east. As it does so it's bringing in heavy rainfall, but also the potential for tornadoes, too.
We're going to show you Crowley, Louisiana, right along the I-10 corridor. Earlier there was a report of a tornado, not confirmed visually, but there were reports of a tornado. There have now been three minor injuries and also some structural damage to some homes. We're going to follow this story a little more and see if this possibly could have been a tornado. It certainly is likely for many places along the Gulf Coast, namely Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana. This area you see here, shaded by the national -- rather the Storm Prediction Center out of Norman, Oklahoma. This is in effect until 4:00.
I would not be surprised to see this expand in parts of Florida, certainly likely, especially by the late afternoon and into the evening hours.
We mentioned the issues we have in terms of flooding. Take a look at this map. Everywhere you happen to see green, either the lime color or even the I guess it's like a hunter green, that's where you have your flooding potential. When you have the rain that's going to be forming over the same area that's been inundated by the heavy precipitation, you have the possibility of flash flooding.
Especially when that moisture makes its way up into the Appalachians. We have this process that we refer to as aerographic (ph) lift. Which is basically like getting a damp cloth and squeezing the moisture out, that is certainly an issue today that we're going to see in places like West Virginia by the afternoon.
Now, it's going to be this storm system that is pulling its way to the east, as that one eventually moves out toward the end of the weekend and out into the Atlantic, we'll watch another one forming out to the west, which today is only going to give us a chance of rainfall for parts of the West Coast. When you have get into the high elevation of the Sierra Nevada and back into parts of the Cascades it is a snow maker. And it is the winter season, snow season. It seems it's never going to end. Great for skiers, but if you're driving, not so much fun, Tom.
FOREMAN: It would be nice for winter to end at some point.
WOLF: It would be lovely. Absolutely.
FOREMAN: We'll see. Maybe by June.
This elite runner was assaulted while out running one day, and that assault inspired him and changed his focus in a really significant way. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will bring us his story. That's coming up next. You don't want to miss it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: The big Atlanta Marathon is coming up in just a few weeks here. A lot of us are training for it. I was thinking about this, because each week we look at ordinary people who are accomplishing big or extraordinary things. For a long time being a successful long distance runner was the primary goal for Toby Tanser. But as CNN's Doctor Sanjay Gupta explains, one particular run in Africa really changed his focus.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Toby Tanser was an elite runner, talented enough to keep up with the best in the world, the Kenyans.
TOBY TANSER, FOUNDER, SHOES FOR AFRICA: I ran 15 minutes for the 5k, which is, I think it was like 4.28 or 4.30. And I did a half marathon at 449 paces or something.
GUPTA: But while running one day in Africa, this happened.
TANSER: Two guys came walking towards me, and he pulled out a machete, and went down on my head. The other one had a home made baseball bat and he swung like this and it smashed against my skull. They robbed my shoes, my watch, and, sun glasses and they were just stealing my other shoe when I woke up.
GUPTA: He almost died. But it was chance for Toby to find is calling.
TANSER: Who's going to be number one?
CHILDREN, IN UNISON: Me!
TANSER: Yeah.
I believe very much in fate and I think it happened to me for a purpose.
GUPTA: They wanted to kill you for your shoes and now you've taken that whole experience and said, you know what? If they want shoes, we'll give them shoes.
TANSER: Two years ago we took 7,000 pairs to that island where I was robbed.
GUPTA: His organization is called Shoes For Africa and as you might guess, he donates running shoes to those living in Africa. What he found is even one pair makes a difference.
TANSER: This boy took the shoes, started training, five years later he won the world championships.
GUPTA: Wow. That gives me goose bumps.
TANSER: So, now.
GUPTA (voice over): And in case you're curious, yes, Toby is back to running.
TANSER: I thought, like what's something that someone's never done before. And that is to come from absolute sea level to the top of the world's highest freestanding mountain, and as fast as possible.
GUPTA: But his main focus is giving everyone a chance to run.
TANSER: If you're coming in and you are buying a pair of sneakers, why don't you put the other pair into a box and send them over.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOREMAN: What a great story. Runners are good people. Check your pantry, a famous brand of peanut butter has launched a recall. We'll tell you about it in a moment
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOREMAN: We have one last quick item, if you're about to make lunch, listen up. Another food recall. Unilever has announced a limited recall of Skippy reduced fat peanut butter, because it may be contaminated with Salmonella. So far, no illnesses are reported, but you can check this web site: peanutbutter.com. Peanutbutter.com for a list of products being pulled off the shelves. I'll be back in an hour; I hope you will be here.
But "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.
