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Lead Pistorius Detective Off the Case; TSA Apologizes to 3- Year-Old Girl; Wal-Mart Customers Spending Less; Winning Gold in a Wheelchair; Women Egg on Fight Between Kids

Aired February 21, 2013 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks so much for joining us. I'm in for Brooke Baldwin. The news starts right now.

Gunfire and a dramatic crash shut down part of the famous Las Vegas Strip today. Three people were killed and three more injured in what looked like a scene from a movie. It all started before dawn with a drive-by shooting not far from some of the most famous casinos, Caesar's Palace, Bally's, and the Bellagio.

Someone in a black Range Rover opened fire on a Maserati, killing the driver, but the Maserati kept going. It sailed through the intersection and slammed into five cars including a taxi which burst into flames. The cab's driver and passenger were killed. The SUV got away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SGT. JOHN SHEAHAN, LAS VEGAS METRO POLICE: The vehicle description is newer model Range Rover Sport. It's black in color. It has very large black rims on it and some sort of a dealer plate. Not a Nevada dealer plate, but from a car dealer lot dealer plate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, police don't know how that shooting got started.

Meantime, a bizarre twist in the case of Oscar Pistorius, the Olympian charged with the Valentine's Day murder of his girlfriend. The officer who was leading the investigation has been replaced. Detective Hilton Botha taken off the case. Why? Well, he's facing his own charges of attempted murder. Botha caused a stir when he admitted that he could not rule out Pistorius' versions of events based on the evidence. Pistorius says he shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in the bathroom of his home when he mistook her for an intruder. But the prosecution says the layout of the bathroom and the bedroom conflicts with his story. Pistorius is spending another night behind bars as his bail hearing enters a fourth day now. Listen to what Steenkamp's half brother told CNN about the hearing today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADAM STEENKAMP, REEVA STEENKAMP'S HALF-BROTHER (voice-over): I don't have any absolutely terrible vengeful feelings. You know, I'm not wishing bad things on anyone else. But if I were to detach myself from the situation, which I suppose I can't do, under the circumstances, I would think it would be rather strange if someone who quite clearly did something like this were to get bail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, joining us now from Portland, Oregon, is criminal defense attorney Anne Bremner.

Anne, you know, Pistorius' lawyer says the state's murder case has collapsed. Tell us about the chief investigating officer's own murder changes and how this really could impact the overall case.

ANNE BREMNER, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, I don't know if it's collapsed, but it's definitely taken a real hit. It's a bombshell. I mean this lead detective, who was responsible for the whole investigation of the scene, was on the stand testifying on behalf of the request for bail by the prosecution, is now charged or arrested for seven counts of attempted murder. It's not like manslaughter or anything else. This is attempted murder. And it could be basically this. The message -- you know, if you shoot the messenger, attack the messenger, then the message is disbelieved. And that's why the lawyer for Pistorius is saying, this is a real collapse, because it under -- basically undermines the prosecution's case, at least in his view.

WHITFIELD: And one of the lead attorneys for Pistorius did something else, which some attorneys think is premature, potentially, that he has this very detailed affidavit --

BREMNER: Yes.

WHITFIELD: By Pistorius written, of course, by the attorneys, and revealed publicly. In your view, is this very clever, very smart, getting ahead of the investigation, or what's being publicized about the investigation, or is this potentially very incriminating?

BREMNER: It's too much, too soon. It's potentially very incriminating. I mean, there's other investigators that can testify besides the lead detective. And what we're hearing already is, even though they said there's no contradictions in the accounts, he testified to contradictions in Oscar Pistorius' account, including the angle of the bullets, you know, including the length of -- distance he had to go, the fact that there were screams during the shooting from the victim and the fact that he kept shooting during that. And there was an argument for an hour before supposedly the shooting. So, these are all things that Oscar denied. So when you come out too soon like this, it can really hurt you if the forensic evidence doesn't bear out what you say. It's like witnesses can and do lie, but evidence never lies.

WHITFIELD: And the legal system, very different there in South Africa, as is played out here.

BREMNER: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Apparently South Africa doesn't even use juries.

BREMNER: Right. WHITFIELD: So if there is a trial, a murder trial, for Pistorius, what would it look like?

BREMNER: Well, it's going to be a bench trial. It's going to be a judge with a couple of magistrates that advise the judge. There's no jury. There's no death penalty in South Africa. But, you know, the other thing is, when you look at this lead detective charged with murder, remember the Amanda Knox case, and I worked on that, the lead detective was charged with abuse of office and was convicted and sentenced during the Amanda Knox trials and appeals. I don't know if that's going to kind of be a parallel play in this case, but it well could be. But it will not be the O.J. Simpson trial because it won't have the type of circus atmosphere that we'll see here with a jury. But I think it's a crime of the century, you know, really du jour down there in South Africa and it's going to be played out --

WHITFIELD: Really worldwide.

BREMNER: Worldwide, exactly, as it is right now.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

BREMNER: For just a bail hearing.

WHITFIELD: Yes. OK. So now -- now with this bail hearing, which continues, if no bond or if bond, how do you read either scenario?

BREMNER: Well, it's such a different standard on bail versus no bail versus conviction or an acquittal. But the fact is, if he's bound over right now, then that doesn't bode well for him in the trial because it's a judicial determination, just like the trial is going to be. And just because there may be sympathy for him right now, just because there may be some bombshells against the prosecution, that plays differently, of course, with a jury than it does with a judge. And, you know, that's why we all demand juries in the United States in criminal cases because there's a far greater chance of acquittal, as we've seen in some high profile cases, Casey Anthony, O.J. Simpson, et cetera, with juries.

WHITFIELD: All right, Anne Bremner, thanks so much. Good to see you.

BREMNER: My pleasure. Nice to see you. Thanks.

WHITFIELD: All right, there is a whole lot of danger in the heartland today on the roads. Take a look. This is Interstate 25 in Kansas City, Missouri. This was shot late this morning, actually, by CNN's Ted Rowlands and crew. Their flight to Chicago was canceled, so they tried to make it by car. And you see right here, very slow going, very treacherous. And the airport in St. Louis, take a look right there. As of this afternoon, flights in and out are few and far between.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RHONDA HAMM-NIEBRUEGGE, DIR., LAMBERT ST. LOUIS INTL. AIRPORT: We have 79 departures cancelled and we have 82 arrivals canceled. Most of those are after 1:30, 2:00 this afternoon. So most of the morning operation has been fine and has operated. But as the airlines are looking at the forecast, they're starting to cancel the evening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And now take a look at this storm. About 20 states affected one way or another. Snow to the north, ice in the middle, heavy rain and potentially violent storms to the south. And parts of Kansas are seeing a foot or more of snow with more on the way. And, by the way, this was shot this morning.

And on the storm's back end, here's a rare sight. Snow-covered cacti. That's what that is in the distance there. This is the Ritz Carlton Dove Mountain Resort north of Tuscan. There's a golf course somewhere in there and it's supposed to host the PGA's World Golf Championship. Play was postponed yesterday. They expect to tee it up sometime today. Really? We'll see about that.

All right, now a quick look at some of the other top stories. Roll it.

All right, in Los Angeles, tourists staying at the Cecil Hotel knew something was wrong when the water coming out of the faucets was black at times. Now, horrifying new details. It turns out they had bathed, brushed their teeth and drank water from a tank that had a young woman's body in it. The water is now being tested for health risks. Police are investigating how the body of 21-year-old Elisa Lam ended up in the tank in the first place. She was last seen on hotel surveillance, as you see right here, on January 31st, behaving as if someone might be after her or looking like she's hiding.

And five people were killed when a corporate jet crashed last night while landing a small airport near Augusta, Georgia. The plane overshot the runway and crashed in a wooded area. The pilot and one passenger survived and were rushed to the hospital. The plane was on a flight from Nashville, Tennessee. The crash started a brush fire, in fact, that knocked out power for thousands of people living nearby.

And a quick check now on the markets. The Dow Jones industrial average, 13,840, down 87 points. We'll check in with Alison Kosik in 10 minutes or so for a closer look at the markets.

All right, meantime, a child in a wheelchair is left in tears at the airport. Her parents tape the incident as TSA agents prepare to do a security pat-down of the little girl. It raises a question, what are your rights as a parent and the rights of people in wheelchairs at the airport? We'll have that straight ahead.

And, if one lawmaker has his way, you won't be able to post anonymously on the Internet. It's one of our hot topics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. Army has revoked a promotion for Paula Broadwell, the former mistress of General David Petraeus. Broadwell is a major in the Army Reserve and had been approved last August for promotion to lieutenant colonel. Since the Petraeus scandal broke, Broadwell has been under investigation for having classified information in her home without permission. The TSA is apologizing to a three-year-old girl in a wheelchair. Lucy Forck has spina bifida. She and her family were on their way to Disney World when security agents said they needed to do a pat-down and swab the girl's wheelchair.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUCY FORCK: I really don't want (INAUDIBLE). I don't want --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: As you can see there, Lucy sobbed and said that she no longer wanted to go to Disney World. Her outraged mother shot this video with her cell phone. A security worker objected, saying it's illegal to videotape TSA procedures. Apparently that's not true. Here's the TSA apology saying, quote, "TSA regret inaccurate guidance was provided to this family during screening and offers its apology. We are committed to maintaining the security of the traveling public and strive to treat all passengers with dignity and respect. While no pat-down was performed, we will address specific concerns with our workforce," end quote, from the TSA.

So, Rene Marsh joining us live now from Washington.

So, Rene, what does the girl's father have to say about all this?

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, as you can imagine, this father is pretty upset about what he says the TSA put his 3-year- old daughter through. You mentioned they were on their way to Disney. It was actually their first family vacation. But he says that because of the TSA, the vacation got off to quite an awful start.

Now, this 3-year-old's mom did catch part of the incident on camera. You saw a little bit of that. And we know that this child, she's wheelchair-bound. So she was not able to walk through the detectors herself.

Now, her dad, Nathan, says that TSA agents at St. Louis' Lambert Airport took away her stuffed animal and they pulled the child aside, saying that the child needed to be patted down.

Now, the family didn't know the rules at the time about pat-downs, but this father said he just felt it was unreasonable. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATHAN FORCK, FATHER: If it's to the point where it's acceptable to pat-down 3-year-old girls in a wheelchair, just so everybody feels a little bit better, I don't know that that's -- I don't personally believe that that's worth it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And so how should, you know, Rene, you know, wheelchair- bound people expect to be treated when they go through airport security checkpoints? Is that very unusual what took place or is that, you know, common place?

MARSH: Yes, you know, we had that same question. We checked with the TSA today and here's what they tell us. If you are an adult and you are in a wheelchair, it is quite possible that you will have to endure a pat-down if you're unable to walk through the detector on your own. But when it comes to children, the TSA did tell us that no child under the age of 12 should be patted down in general. They say they have a lot of other options for parents and a pat-down for children 12 and under really is a last resort. Again, this family didn't know all of the rules, but they said their gut feeling told them, this is not right and it turns out they are right. The child wasn't supposed to get that pat-down because she's only three. And, of course, you saw there the TSA issuing an apology.

WHITFIELD: All right, Rene Marsh, thanks so much for bringing that to us. Appreciate it.

All right, when it comes to the economy, does Wal-Mart know something the rest of us don't? The link between Wal-Mart sales and your wallet, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The world's largest retailer is sharing its sales projections for the coming weeks. Wal-Mart says it expects sales in its American stores to be right where they were one year ago. And it has a whole lot of people wondering what's going on with Wal-Mart's customers. Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange.

So, Alison, you know, Wal-Mart is considered an economic bell weather. So what does this say about the state of the U.S. economy overall?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is interesting because, you know, Wal-Mart is the world's biggest retailer and we do look at Wal-Mart as a barometer and then we look at what its earnings report look like. Its most recent one. And some of the comments in there show that the discount shopper did pull back, was a little cautious from the beginning of this year.

And not so surprising. It really makes sense because higher gas prices, for one. Gas prices have been high for 35 days in a row. That cuts into how much consumers are willing to spend, let's say, at Wal- Mart.

Also, you've got, since the beginning of the year, the end of the payroll tax holiday. And, sure, that affects everybody, but it especially hurts the typical Wal-Mart shopper.

And then, of course, finally, the delay in tax refund checks going out because Congress was trying to decide which tax cuts, you know, to keep, which would go. That delay kept that disposable income from going out to places like Wal-Mart. So, yes, all of that hitting those lower income shoppers harder. That took income out of their pockets. Income that would have otherwise gone to Wal-Mart.

Fredricka. WHITFIELD: All right, got that.

And then, meantime, how is the stock market reacting?

KOSIK: Looking overall -- well, Wal-Mart, actually, is up more than 2 percent. So the overall market, different story. The Dow down 89 points. You know, it just seems like yesterday we were talking about that elusive record for the Dow. You know, it doesn't look like we're going to be hitting that today or any time soon.

A couple things in the works here. The sell-off actually started yesterday when the Federal Reserve indicated in its minutes from last month that it may be looking to pull back its stimulus. That really has propped up the market. Also, a weak manufacturing report weighing on stocks today, as well as unemployment claims from last week. They are up.

So, one piece of good news, though. There was a rise in home re-sales, but obviously not enough to keep stocks in the green today.

Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Got a little encouragement, though. We'll take that. Thanks so much, Alison Kosik.

KOSIK: Sure.

WHITFIELD: David Weir, you know the name, he's a world record holder and six time gold medal winner. Well, in this week's "Human Factor," Dr. Sanjay Gupta introduces us to this remarkable British athlete who exemplifies courage and determination while competing in a wheelchair.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two Olympics, six gold medals, Beijing, London, a handful of world records, world championship titles in six London marathon wins. David Weir is one of the top Paralympian athletes in the world, competing in long distance races. He's also confined to a wheelchair. All of it pure upper body strength.

DAVID WEIR, 6-TIME PARALYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: So I can feel my legs, but they can't move. Well, it's called spinal cord transection, which is -- it was damage to the nerves in my spine and the doctors don't know how or when or why. So it was a disability from birth really.

GUPTA: He was just a young boy when he decided not to let his disability keep him from his dreams from being an athlete.

WEIR: I was into sport very early at school. It was my best subject, P.E. I wasn't very good at anything else. So I knew that I had to get the sport right if I wanted to succeed in life. And I was very lucky and I was talented at an early age and wheelchair racing took over my life.

GUPTA: He began training in earnest at age eight. Joining Team Great Britain by age 11. And started winning medals at the age of 25.

WEIR: I found a lot, really, in a short space of time.

GUPTA: And he's also starting to give back, helping to train the Paralympic athletes of tomorrow.

WEIR: I just encourage them, really. Give them advice and tactics and the way to push and the way to sit in their racing chair, because I've got a lot of knowledge over the years.

GUPTA: Weir says for anyone dealing with any disability, whether they're headed for the Olympics or just want to stay fit, exercise is the best medicine.

WEIR: It makes you forget for a few hours of what's happened and stuff like that. So if it's wheelchair racing, basketball, swimming, anything, just to get out and do something because I think it's just the way of life when your -- you have to savor it. And another process of healing, I think.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And be sure to watch "Sanjay Gupta MD" on Saturday, 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time and Sunday 7:30 a.m. Eastern.

All right, two young girls forced to fight on camera. The shocking video has now gone viral and now police want to track down the people responsible. We'll show you the video after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: In a few hours, a star-studded memorial service for Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss will begin. Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will be among the Laker greats speaking at the service. Buss owned the Lakers for more than three decades and won 10 championships. The team honored Buss last night with an emotional tribute and a decisive win over the Boston Celtics. Buss died Monday. He was 80 years old.

Kids no more than five years old egged on to fight by teens, maybe even adults. It's caught on cell phone video. New York Police are now trying to track down several women. They are heard on the video cheering on a fight between two little girls. We have the video, but I must warn you, it may be difficult to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Slap her!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just slap her!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE). (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, it's unclear whether it's a babysitter or a teen sibling or adult saying "slap her."

I want to bring in our Deb Feyerick.

Deb, you know, this is like the outrage of the day. You know, bad supervision or something. And it's worst here. So how close are we to finding out who -- who those voices are?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and that's exactly what's being investigated. But this is nothing short of a kiddie smack down. A fight club, if you will. The question is whether it rises to the level of child abuse or child endangerment. And that's really what detectives from the NYPD's Special Victims Unit are investigating. They're trying to figure out exactly what was going on and who was involved based not on a complaint, but a recording that was posted online. Was it a babysitter? Was it an older sibling? Maybe a parent who's manipulating and instigating these two little girls who are likely no more than five, six or seven. The child in the black jacket thinks that this is a play fight.

WHITFIELD: Awe.

FEYERICK: Yes, exactly. I mean it really breaks your heart. Look at that. You can see her grabbing. And just listen to the sound for just a quick second.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Slap her! Slap her (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: I mean you can clearly see, you know, the two little girls square off --

WHITFIELD: Yes, this is terrible.

FEYERICK: Each of them very defiant. But then one of the adults or teens says, you know, you were play fighting before. You're not play fighting now. And that's when the whole tone change and the child in white is repeatedly told to slap the other girl. She grabs her hair. And now you see that little girl in black and she is clearly in pain, visibly shocked and crying that her friend is doing this to her. At one point she grabs her backpack, which indicates that this may have taken place either before or after school. She's still crying. And then stunningly she says, I'm not going to jail. I'm not going to jail.

WHITFIELD: Oh. That's heartbreaking.

FEYERICK: So, again, Manhattan Special Victims Unit, yes, is investigating to see whether maybe this -- you know, these were teenagers and they've got to figure out exactly where it took place. So, again --

WHITFIELD: So are we saying these -- this video was posted anonymously and they're trying to find out who posted this or was this a passerby or is it believed that one of those voices, one of the women who was egging on the kids actually videotaped this and posted it?

FEYERICK: Yes, and it wasn't -- Fredricka, it wasn't even just one person who was videotaping it. You can clearly see two people who were videotaping this. So, yes, they just don't know. But there weren't any formal complaints. Look, if it was a teenager, maybe it was some sort of a prank, you know, they thought -- they were being funny.

But clearly you're manipulating these two children, you're instigating this fight. It is potential abuse. You know, the little girl in black just won't fight back. It seems that she's having a hard time processing that this is really going on, but it is manipulation and it is potential abuse.

WHITFIELD: It's terrible. It is upsetting to even watch it. All right, Deb Feyerick, thanks so much.

All right, up next, our daily hot topics debate including a new ad supporting same-sex marriage. The ad features several prominent Republicans. Now one of those Republicans wants out of the ad. Find out why.

Plus, coming out, one lawmaker looks to end web anonymity by requiring commenters to reveal their full identities and the NFL makes way for women in a different way. Our panelists will be revealed next.

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