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New Developments in Sandy Hook Shooting; Obama and Biden to Speak on Gun Control; Banks in Cyprus Open Today; Massive Landslide in Washington State; Popular Female Criminals; Teens to be Tried as Adults for Murdering Infant

Aired March 28, 2013 - 11:00   ET

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

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ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, ANCHOR, "CNN NEWSROOM": Hello, everyone. I'm Ashleigh Banfield. Thanks very much for being with us.

The earth moves in Washington state, and homes are on the brink. One has already tumbled into the water below.

He can go home. He can leave the country. He's still charged with murder. But life just got a lot better for Oscar Pistorius.

Jodi Arias, on the other hand, doesn't have much to smile about. You know what she did. You see her in court. But I'm going to tell you some things you may not know about Jodi's life as the capital murder defendant and current jail prisoner.

We begin this hour, however, with a fuller and a grimmer picture of the deranged young gunman who killed his own mother, killed himself and also killed 26 children and staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School back in December.

This morning, authorities in Newtown, Connecticut, have been in the process of unsealing search warrants, thousands of pages, in fact, warrants for Adam Lanza's home and car, minus a few details that prosecutors will remain secret -- would like to keep secret.

What is revealed is a pathetic existence that revolved around two twin obsessions, guns and murder.

CNN's Susan Candiotti joins us now with what she's been finding. I know you've been pouring through the documents. What have you found out so far?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ashleigh, he had a virtual arsenal at his house in terms of how many weapons he had, a gun safe, inside the closet all kinds of additional weapons, knives, guns, samurai swords.

Let's see, 1,400 rounds at the very least, is how much we added up so far, and additionally, some more detail about how many rounds were fired that day.

According to the chief prosecutor, they counted up 154 rounds that were fired at Sandy Hook Elementary School when he killed those 20 children and six teachers.

We know, in addition to that, that they found six magazines that, of course, went with that assault-style weapon. Three of them, half of them, were empty, but the others still had rounds left in them, something like 10, 11, 13 rounds, numbers like that.

Also found, a holiday card with a check in it, and police document that this was authored, this card, by his mother, signed presumably, by his mother And it was for a check to purchase a gun called a C183.

Now, I'm talking to my gun experts who tell me this might be possibly be two guns, either a handgun or a 12-gauge shotgun.

BANFIELD: And this is the check that was signed by his own mother, presumably within a proximate amount of time since this happened right before the holidays.

What about the notion that there was a gun safe in his -- we'd known there was a gun safe in the house. But in his bedroom?

CANDIOTTI: That's right. It appears, yes, a gun safe in his bedroom. And in addition to that, it doesn't -- it talks about the various things that were found inside the safe, including spent casings, ammunition that was unspent, bags, duffel bagsful of ammunition, the samurai swords.

I don't know if that was exactly inside the safe. I've got to double- check the documents again.

BANFIELD: Susan ...

CANDIOTTI: But in addition -- yeah?

BANFIELD: I was just going to -- I'm sorry to interrupt, but "The New York Daily News," a local paper here in New York City, had a very disturbing report that police, you know, didn't really confirm, but couched a kind of a confirmation that they had originally found this massive spreadsheet, like a seven-foot long spreadsheet that you needed a special printer that had categorized all the mass killings around the world into like a point system.

Have you gotten anywhere into the document dump that we have today that's indicated more details about that?

CANDIOTTI: We haven't. We haven't.

Although there was one indication, it included all kinds of print clippings. It did refer to that. Memoirs, print clippings, and a newspaper article about a school shooting in Illinois, for example, a few years back.

So there is some indication of it, but nothing that specific that we have seen that we heard reported in "The New York Daily News" about this printout that required a special kind of printer because it was so big.

All kinds of shocking material, certainly, but no indication of motive again. Once again, we still don't know that, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: Right. OK.

And I know you have a lot of work still ahead of you. You and your producers have been pouring through this all morning and continue to do so.

Susan, thank you, and let us know if and when you come across other details. Susan Candiotti reporting for us in New York.

And in just a few minutes, President Obama and Vice President Biden are going to step into the East Room to talk about guns and violence and how to protect children.

This is coming on what the group calls -- the Mayors Against Illegal Guns, what they've called a national day to demand action.

The group is releasing two new TV spots that, for the first time, feature parents of the victims of Sandy Hook. They pressed for comprehensive background checks for gun buyers, and then bans on assault rifles and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

The first of those is expected to pass Congress after the Easter break. The latter two are not.

Newtown families are expected to protest anti-gun control robo-calls that they say they've been getting from the NRA as well. That's supposed to happen later on today.

The president for his part is going to speak at 11:40 Eastern time this morning, somewhere around that time. And we're going to take you right away to his live address, just the minute he gets under way, right here on CNN.

Checking our other top stories now, former South African President Nelson Mandela is back in the hospital for treatment of recurring lung infections. It is the second time this month that the 94-year-old Mandela has been hospitalized.

Two -- U.S. B-2 stealth bombers flew over South Korea dropping inert dummy bombs as part of joint military exercises with the South. Those bombers flew all the way from Missouri to the Korean Peninsula.

The announcement comes one day after North Korea cut a key hotline with the South in protest of these exercises and some tough new U.N. sanctions.

Banks in Cyprus are open for the first time in nearly two weeks under very tight controls imposed to prevent a run on deposits in that country.

People have been lining outside of bank branches amid tight security, but there's no indication of a complete panic or a run on those banks.

This move comes after the government was forced to accept a tough $13 billion bailout by the European Union to avoid bankruptcy. The weather in March has been anything to brag about, but on Wall Street, that's where they're getting the record highs, and they're certainly celebrating them, too.

Our Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange today. It is the last day of the first quarter, and by all accounts it looks like a really stellar quarter, doesn't it?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it really does. And right now, we are really seeing a lot of green on the screen and the S&P 500 is helping that because the S&P 500 at this moment is making history, Ashleigh.

It broke through its all-time high of 1,565 for the first time since October 2007. It's trading at 1,567, so just as we talked about those Dow records, the S&P now is making its own records.

So this is really a great way to cap off quite the stunner of a first quarter. And that's adding to the positive momentum we've already seen this year.

Look at the returns. The Dow is up already 11 percent for the year. The NASDAQ is higher. And the S&P has climbed almost 10 percent this year.

During this quarter, as I said, it wasn't just the Dow hitting its highs. It's also the S&P 500. This is an amazing trend to watch.

Of course, everybody wants to know, is this trend going to continue? And I wish I had a crystal ball, but this is one of these kinds of markets that moves on economic news. It could turn on some bad news, but it's really been able to shrug off the bad stuff and keep moving forward, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: All right, Alison Kosik, thanks so much. Keep your eyes on the Big Board. Let us know if there's any big shocker on this very important day, the last day of the first quarter.

I want to take you now to Washington where the price of a view is not always worth it because, when you zoom out, look at these amazing pictures.

This is the waterfront town of Coupeville on Whidbey Island, dozens of homes teetering on the edge after a massive landside. The helicopter shot tells you the story.

Absolutely remarkable as whole yards are slipping away. One home has crumbled into Puget Sound.

The slide is about a quarter mile wide and a half mile deep. What caused it is not yet clear, but a team of geologists is investigating.

There are some evacuations, and you can bet most of those people we've been watching as they've been taking things out of their homes, moving furniture, moving what they can, because who knows how long it's going to take before they know for sure whether their homes are going to be safe.

We've been seeing Jodi Arias sitting in a courtroom for three months now. But do you know what she does what she's not inside the courtroom?

You might be surprised to find out about her daily routine, coming up next.

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BANFIELD: Other top stories, we're learning more about the man believed to have shot Colorado's prison chief, Tom Clements. Authorities say Evan Ebel was wearing an ankle bracelet tracking device when he left prison.

He was killed in a shootout in Texas two days after Clements was shot at his home.

Also, a Colorado woman is under arrest, accused of buying the gun that was used to kill that prison chief. Authorities say Stevie Marie Vigil gave the gun to Ebel.

In South Africa, a judge has eased some of the bail conditions on Olympic track star Oscar Pistorius. That athlete may now be able to travel abroad and doesn't have to report to a probation officer.

Don't forget, Pistorius is charged with the Valentine's Day murder of his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp.

As Americans sit captivated by a young woman in Phoenix who is accused of a sickening murder, it is perhaps fitting to note that this is not the first time a female, accused killer has captured the nation's attention.

In fact, women accused of murder date back for centuries. In fact -- I'm going to take you way back here -- a 32-year-old woman named Lizzie Borden became a national headline way back in 1892.

There was no Twitter, there was no Facebook, no cable TV, not even national radio that could help to spread this news like wildfire from coast to coast.

But you know what? It did spread like wildfire, and the papers were splashed with the grisly details almost daily.

I want to bring in Vinnie Politan, who's the host of "In Session" and "HLN After Dark" and also Ryan Smith, who's with us as well from HLN.

Vinnie, the Lizzie Borden case, many people may not know it, but they might recognize is from the children's limerick.

"Lizzie Borden took an ax, and gave her mother 40 whacks, or father 40 whacks. And when she realized what she'd done, she gave her father 41." Mother, 41? I don't remember the order. I just remember that it was massive.

Can you remind me of the details of that case?

VINNIE POLITAN, HOST, HLN'S "IN SESSION": Yeah, I just want to let the folks at home know I did not cover that trial, OK?

BANFIELD: Thank you, Vinnie. I appreciate it.

POLITAN: But this was she's accused of killing her mother and father. There was this big-time

BANFIELD: Stepfather.

POLITAN: Stepfather, right?

BANFIELD: yes.

POLITAN: But there was this big-time trial, they were well to-do people. There were some other suspects. But she seemed to be suspect number one. They tried her and found her not guilty. She was set free. No one else was ever tried for the murder. When you think about it, a young woman, 32 years old, such a brutal-type murder with an ax.

BANFIELD: What happening to the camera, Vinnie -- there he is, coming back.

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POLITAN: The bottom line, as you said, this thing just spread across the country. Everybody was fascinated by it. And it's because who the criminal defendant is. You don't expect a 32-year-old woman to butcher two human beings with an ax.

BANFIELD: No.

POLITAN: And you can see what's happening with the Jodi Arias case. There are a lot of similarities, although the victims in the two cases, much different.

BANFIELD: And I was just wondered (ph) because I was trying to do the limerick in my head. I want to let people know it was her father she was accused of killing and her stepmother. And she was acquitted. And yet she became so notorious nonetheless. I think a lot of people may not even know she was acquitted because of the notoriety of the case. Ryan, there was another woman by the name of Darlie Routier, who just within the last 20 years, in fact, I think only about 15-17 years ago or so, was living in this lovely mansion near Dallas, Texas and was accused of killing her own two children. Tried, in fact, in a death penalty case for the killing of one of those children. And this made a lot of headlines as well.

RYAN SMITH, HOST, HLN'S "EVENING EXPRESS": Right. This was a case, where you had a couple that seemed to have a perfect life, they had this thriving business. They moved into this mansion, had kids, and then after her attempted a third child, she gets postpartum depression. From there, things spiral downward. The finances struggle. Then the thought is that she killed her child one night.

There are a lot of similarities between this and the Jodi Arias case. First thing is, prosecutors accused her of staging the scene. The second thing is, she said an intruder came in and killed her son. Sound familiar from the Jodi Arias case? Not only that, afterward, a couple days later there was a party, she's smiling and laughing. Jodi Arias in her case she's --

BANFIELD: Is this the party -- are you talking about the birthday party that she and, I believe her husband Darin (ph), held on the graves of those two babies?

SMITH: Yes.

BANFIELD: And I think it was in days or weeks, it was extremely proximate to the death of those children. I think we have the video of it, let's play the video where she's actually spraying Silly String all over the graves of the children. There are balloons and smiling.

We don't have the video. Heavens to Murgatroyd. I'm so sorry, honestly, that video was the reason that so many people were transfixed by the case. In fact, it was one of the linchpins in the case. I do apologize that we don't have that. But aren't those the kinds of things that draw people into a case where it might have gone unnoticed nationally?

SMITH: I think it is, it's these element that don't seem right to people and that seem so extreme. For example, a party on the gravesite just days after he died. That's remarkable to think about. When you think about her case, she is on death row. I think this is an interesting similarity to the Jodi Arias case. Because you know, death is so different. That's what we say about it. So extreme when you sentence somebody to the death penalty, that you almost need this cruel and callous behavior. And that may be something that Jodi is facing based on something she did (ph).

BANFIELD: Speaking of cruel and callous behavior, if it's one of those things that you have to struggle with in a case because the defendant looks so meek or pretty, or incapable of committing horrible, horrible crimes, there's it's antithesis of that, Eileen Wuornos case. There was a movie made about her. "Monster." She was so, she just seemed to personify evil in the courtroom during her death penalty triel. Let me play a quick clip who anybody who might not remember who Eileen Wuornos is. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was raped. I hope you get raped (ph). Scumbags. Why don't you get a haircut (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: Okay. That's not exactly the sound I was looking for. There was some pretty -- I don't know -- she was extremely verbally abusive. People in the courtroom.

POLITAN: Non-remorseful.

BANFIELD: Oh, it was just unbelievable.

POLITAN: And a female serial killer is what really set her apart. I mean it's rare that you see that, but that's another aspect obviously was her personality what she presented in court. But also the fact that this was a female serial killer that caught everyone's attention.

BANFIELD: A lot of times when they walk out the door, you just Eileen Wuornos walk out of. The cameras are not allowed to follow them. The courtrooms are majestic lovely for the most part in many parts of the country but what's behind those doors, a whole other kettle of fish. Gentlemen, stay put, if you will. When we come back, after the break you're going to find out a little bit more about what goes on on the other side of that door, and what goes on as they're jailed, awaiting trial. Sometimes believe it or not, for decades. Back in a moment.

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BANFIELD: I have an update for you now on a very troubling murder case that's being investigated in Georgia. You likely have heard about this. Two teenagers indicted for killing a baby in a stroller, allegedly shooting that baby in the face. They are both to be tried as an adults. The older suspect's relatives now have also been charged in connection with the case. Tampering with evidence. Our Victor Blackwell has details.

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VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: 17-year-old De'marquise Elkins and 15-year-old Dominique Lang now both now charged as adults in the shooting death of 13-month-old Antonio Santiago one week ago. Each faces five felony accounts, including felony murder and cruelty to children. Elkins faces an additional charge of malice murder for allegedly firing the shot at the baby's face.

SHERRY WEST, MOTHER OF VICTIM: I found an outfit that my baby was wearing before he was killed. And I can't seem to let it go.

BLACKWELL: Something else little Antonio's mother can't let go, a question. Why?

CHIEF MATT DOERING, GLYNN COUNTY POLICE: We believe that the location and the victim were both random.

BLACKWELL: Glynn County Police Chief Matt Doering's department is investigating this as a botched robbery. Elkins' attorney does not buy it.

KEVIN GOUGH, ATTORNEY FOR DE'MARQUISE ELKINS: It seems odd that two individuals whoever they are, so desperate to rob someone, who wouldn't have appeared to have any money and going to the trouble of shooting two people would then leave the object of their attention at the crime scene.

BLACKWELL: Not left at the crime scene, the murder weapon. According to the indictment, Elkins' sister Sabrina Alkins and their mother Karimah Elkins ditched the .22-caliber revolver in this marsh miles away from the crime scene. Tests will determine if a gun pulled from the marsh this week was the gun used to kill little Antonio.

WEST: I had to watch my baby die, and I want him to die. A life for a life.

BLACKWELL: That's West's wish shared with CNN's Piers Morgan. But under Georgia law, not possible. Elkins and Lang are both under 18. If convicted of the new charges, these boys could spend the rest of their lives in prison.

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BANFIELD: And the Supreme Court, too, says we do not execute anyone under the age of 18. Victor is joining me live from Brunswick, Georgia. Victor, what more do we know about the teenagers, maybe their backgrounds and certainly the older teenager's familY who are now implicated in all of this. How did they factor in?

BLACKWELL: Well, we know as soon as they got this indictment, we saw a new name. We had heard of course of the boys, Dominique Lang and De'Marquise Elkins, we heard Elkin's mother and his aunt. But his sister's name was added there. Sabrina Elkins. She's accused of working with the mother as we hears, to toss the alleged weapon into the water. We know that the mother was a convicted felon so she was charged with possession. And we also know related to this gun that was possibly used in this crime, that it was possibly used in an armed robbery several days before this child was shot, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: All right, Victor Blackwell live for us. Thank you for that.

I want to take you to the White House now, live pictures coming to us from the East Room in the White House, where we're expecting in just a few minutes, the president to take to that lectern, President Obama and Vice President Biden will be coming in to speak to not only that group assembled, but the nation as well about gun violence in this country. He and other Americans marking this day by urging Congress to make, quote, "common sense measures to protect children from gun violence," unquote. We're going to bring you this live just as soon as it gets under way. Quick break. Back after this.

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