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Pope Washes Prisoner's Feet; Teens Indicted in Baby Killing Case; Obesity on the Kids Menu; Russell Simmons Gets Political; Camera Found After 6 Years
Aired March 28, 2013 - 13:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Getting new pictures in, taking a look at the aerials from WIFF. This is actually a fire department that is on fire. A fire house. These are firefighters actually having to put out the fire of their own fire station. This is out of Lawrence County, South Carolina. It is upstate fire department building and we are being told that traffic is being diverted in the area. Of course, because they are trying to tend to this there but you can see the water hoses as they try to deal with this. The fire was reported around noon. This is the fire department in Lawrence County. Dispatchers there are actually describing it as a large fire and we are now told that there are multiple departments that are actually assisting in putting that fire out. It is not just the staff from the fire house but many others now involved. We don't know how the fire actually started. We don't know if there are injuries because of this fire but certainly they are tending to this as quickly as possible. Those who are staff inside of that fire department in Lawrence County as well as neighboring fire departments that are now involved in trying to get that extinguished as quickly as possible.
The Jodi Arias trial back on track after a delay for a day. The judge canceled court yesterday. Sources are telling our sister network, HLN, that the reason was arias' health apparently suffering from a migraine headache. Today, well, we're seeing a domestic-violence expert scheduled to testify. You know the trial. We've been following it. Arias shot her boyfriend in the face, stabbed him multiple times, slashed his throat. She is charged with murder but she says she acted in self-defense.
The pope putting a new spin to an old tradition not only celebrating Holy Thursday Mass at a youth detention center but washing the feet of some of the prisoners. It is a symbolic ritual based on the belief that Jesus washed the feet of his disciples before the Last Supper.
Ben Wedeman joining us outside of that detention center.
Ben, just explain the significance of this.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, normally, Suzanne, the pope would go to a church in Rome or in the Vatican City and wash the feet of 12 retired priests. In this case, he is inside a prison right behind me on the outskirts of Rome where he will be washing the feet of 12 prisoners, but of those 12 prisoners, two of them will be women, we understand from Italian prison authorities. They say one of them will be an Italian Catholic woman. The other, a Serbian Muslim prisoner. Because most of the prisoners here are, in fact, not Italian.
Now, after the mass is finished -- it's almost done right now -- we understand, he will meet in the separate gym within the prison one by one with the prisoners and he will give them a chocolate Easter egg, the Italian ones are quite large, as well as a special Italian Easter cake. This is really a break from tradition. As I said, the pope would normally do this to retired priests.
As we've seen, day after day Pope Francis, he's only been pope two weeks and one day, is showing that he's going to be his own kind of pope -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: All right. Ben Wedeman, thank you very much. Appreciate it.
A South African judge has lifted bail restrictions on the former Olympian Oscar Pistorius. Back in February he was charged with murder for killing his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. The story is still awaiting trial but he is now allowed to travel outside of South Africa if invited to compete overseas. Until it happens, his lawyer is going to hold on to his passport. Pistorius is also now allowed to drink alcohol and return to his home where he shot his former girlfriend.
New details now in the tragic, tragic killing of the baby in Georgia, shot in the head while his mother was walking him in a stroller. Two teenagers accused in the shooting have been indicted by a grand jury. Some of the family members now are also in big trouble.
Victor Blackwell is joining us from Brunswick, Georgia.
I know the police just updated you on the case. What have we learned?
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Three big headlines, Suzanne. First, that the bullet that was used to kill little Antonio, they say they have retrieved that and they're now trying to match that to the alleged murder weapon and possibly then on to the suspect. Also, the police chief says that this is being potentially investigated as a gang-related shooting. He is exploring the possibility that it was a gang initiation or a gang related crime. Also, he said, that overnight, more search warrants were issued and more evidence was collected in a crime that's already led to five arrests.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL (voice-over): 17-year-old Demarqueis Elkins and 15-year-old Dominic Lange (ph), both now charged as adults in the shooting death of 13-month-old Antonio Santiago one week ago. Each faces five felony counts 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?
MATT DOERING, CHIEF, GLYNN COUNTY POLICE: We believe that the location and the victim were both random.
BLACKWELL: The county police chief's department is investigating this as a botched robbery.
Elkins' attorney does not buy it.
KEVIN GOUGH, ELKIN'S ATTORNEY: It seems odd 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 Elkins, and their mother, Kareema (ph) 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, that's not possible. Elkins and Lange (ph) are both under 18. If convicted of the new charges these boys could spend the rest of their lives in prison.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: As part of the indictment, Demarqueis Elkins was also charged with attempted armed robbery. The police say this gun that they believe was used to kill little Antonio was also used in an attempt to rob a man a few days before. They're also exploring the possibility that the gun was used in other crimes -- Suzanne?
MALVEAUX: All right. Victor, thank you. Appreciate the update.
Coming up some restaurants billing their food as healthy for your kids then serving up a big calorie bomb. That's right. We'll tell you which are the worst and give you other options.
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MALVEAUX: Now fast-food not exactly healthy for your kids but even some restaurants with the so-called healthy meals have their fair share of kiddie calorie bombs on the menu.
We were talking to Elizabeth Cohen about this staggering report.
Calorie bombs, right? Did you make that up or was this a report, a calorie bomb?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: OK. Calorie bomb is an interesting term. I'll tell you the Center for Science and the Public Interest, the folks who wrote the report, really dropped a bomb on the restaurant industry. They really were very critical of them. They looked at 50 restaurant chains and found that 91 percent of them the kids' meals did not live up to the nutritional standards for kids that are established by the National Restaurant Association.
Let's look at three of the biggest offenders according to this group. The first one here is from Chile's -- pizza, fries, chocolate milk, 1120 calories. That is more than twice as many calories as most kids are supposed to get. Here is another one from Dairy Queen -- chicken fingers, of course, fried, barbecue sauce, french fries and ice cream bar, sort of a Slurpee kind of drink, 1,027 calories. This one here, this is from Applebee's -- grilled cheese, fries, chocolate milk, 1210 calories. These are a lot of calories for a kid and the kid might look at it and think, oh, I'm supposed to eat the whole thing. They're getting a lot of calories for days there.
MALVEAUX: Are there any good options? What do you do?
COHEN: I did sort of put one restaurant in a different category and that's Subway. Subway has done a great job they said with healthy kids' meals. Let's look at one. A Subway kids roast beef sub, 1 percent milk, apple slices, 395 calories. That is definitely within the range of what kids are supposed to get.
MALVEAUX: That is much more reasonable. If you're in a pinch, what should you do?
COHEN: If you're in a pinch, what you want to do is choose a healthy side. That is so important. You don't have to get french fries. You can get apples. Also skip the soda or the chocolate milk. Just get water. Also check out healthy adult options because sometimes you can take a chicken breast and cut it up and give that to a kid. If you go to CNN com/empowered patient, you'll see an article by my colleague, Matt Sloan, who has all sorts of other options.
I also want to tell you, Suzanne, we reached out to these restaurants and Applebee's and Chile's said, look, we have other options. You don't have to get the ones that are here. We'll custom make them for you. You don't have to get these.
I want to also read you something from the National Restaurant Association. The National restaurant association says, "Restaurants nationwide are providing innovative, healthful children's options to their young guests."
MALVEAUX: Thank you. Eating healthy. Got to do that and keep it up.
Coming up, Russell Simmons, other celebrities writing a letter to the president. What that is all about, up next.
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MALVEAUX: A music and media mogul, hip-hop pioneer, cofounder of Def Jam record label, Russell Simmons also outspoken on major social issues including the debate over same-sex marriage. I had a chance to talk to him a moment ago.
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MALVEAUX: Let's start with your comments on same-sex marriage. You said, and I quote here, "I hope that the Supreme Court stands on the right side of history by acknowledging marriage equality for all." Tell us why this is an important issue for you.
RUSSELL SIMMONS, HIP-HOP MOGUL: Well, I think the freedom you take for granted for yourself you should extend to everyone else. That's just the way that we've all -- we should know giving part of what we want to receive as critical part of our own happiness and freedom. If we want to be able to get married we should extend that right to others. Whatever rights we think people should have, we should fight for them. We think we should have, we should fight for them for others.
MALVEAUX: That is an evolution really in the hip-hop community.
SIMMONS: I don't know. I mean, this is not a hip hop issue. The hip-hop community is a lot more tolerant than I would say the rest of society has been on this issue for a long time. But I don't think it's a hip-hop issue. It's a national issue that is one that needs to be addressed by everyone. They were very, very supportive in public. They have been that way about gay members of the hip-hop community and been respectful of them for many years the hip-hop community has.
MALVEAUX: Russell, I understand you are also involved in somewhat of a breaking-news issue where you were sending a letter to the president regarding the war on drugs. Tell us about that.
SIMMONS: Yes.
MALVEAUX: Tell us about that.
SIMMONS: Well, Dr. Watkins and myself coauthored a letter and it was about the details, you know, a road map to end the war on drugs, which, you know, blacks are 10 times more likely to go to jail for the same offense as their white counterparts. Further, they are 10 times more likely to be arrested for the same drug use. Whites and blacks, of course, use drugs at the same rate. For me, it is a very important issue. Billions of dollars, many billions of dollars, the taxpayers spend to incarcerate diseased individuals, educate them in criminal behavior, then dump them back in the communities without hope. That has destroyed the fabric of many communities in this country and it is terrible on economics and the prison industrial system pays $10 million to make that happen. We have to stop that.
MALVEAUX: We have to leave it there.
Russell Simmons, thank you so much.
SIMMONS: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: Appreciate it.
SIMMONS: A pleasure.
MALVEAUX: For a look at Russell Simmons behind the scenes, visit CNN.com.
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MALVEAUX: One of those stories you have to see it to believe it. We've all lost something from time to time. The worst is when you're traveling, right? One woman lost her camera while diving in Hawaii. Guess what? Pictures wound up on the Internet six years later.
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LINDSEY SCALLAN, LOST CAMERA: I don't know why this happened, but it's pretty amazing.
BERNARD WATSON, REPORTER, WGCL: Lindsey lives what most would consider a normal life, but now --
(on camera): You're like a worldwide celebrity now.
SCALLAN: Yes, went from normal boring to now you're in my living room.
WATSON (voice-over): She's famous because of the cannon camera she lost six years ago while scuba diving in Hawaii.
SCALLAN: Took a lot of pictures, night dive, the night dive was when I lost my camera.
WATSON: Lindsey was hurt.
SCALLAN: I was pretty upset about it, but, you know, what are you going to do?
WATSON: She chalked it up to life and went on with hers, forgetting about the camera until 24 hours ago.
SCALLAN: I get this random message on Facebook from a guy I went to high school with. "Hey, Lindsey, my wife found this article and we think it's you, we think they found your camera, check it out."
WATSON: Turns out, the camera washed ashore in, of all places, Taiwan.
An employee of China Airlines found the camera, found the pictures on the memory card impact, got in touch with them, because they could tell it was Hawaii, to get it back to the mystery blond woman, as they called it.
WATSON: Check out the pictures that were recovered from that camera. An Hawaiian TV station put its story online, which is how Lindsey's former classmate found out about it.
SCALLAN: Social media at its best.
WATSON: But the story doesn't stop there.
SCALLAN: China Airlines has offered me -- to pay for me to go out there and my room and board, and food and everything, just all expenses paid trip to come out there and get my camera back and meet the guy that found it. Yes, it's been a wild ride.
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MALVEAUX: That is a sweet deal. That is pretty amazing there. Bernard Watson, reporting from our affiliate, WGCL.
This high school basketball star, already one of the hottest faces of college hoops. How it is this Duke recruit is staying grounded, despite his slam dunk into fame?
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MALVEAUX: Now for March Madness. This is a name you're not going to see on the court this year, but you might want to take a look at next season. Jabari Parker, he's a high school basketball player from Chicago's south side. He is destined for college powerhouse, Duke.
Ted Rowlands explains how this teen is already considered a superstar.
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TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From Chicago's notorious south side, 17-year-old Jabari Parker is one of the best high school basketball players in the country.
(SHOUTING)
ROWLANDS: And one of the nicest young men you'll ever meet.
JABARI PARKER, HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL PLAYER: As long as I keep working and just keep on having a good, humble attitude, I think that will take me a long way.
ROWLANDS: That attitude is what makes people so excited about Jabari Parker's future, including his coach at Simeon High School, Robert Smith, who also coached NBA star Derrick Rose.
ROBERT SMITH, BASKETBALL COACH, SIMEON HIGH SCHOOL: I love, he's a caring kid, not about Jabari, this is about Simeon and everybody else.
ROWLANDS: Jabari has gotten a lot of attention, he made the cover of "Sports Illustrated" last May, and when he announced he was going to Duke, it was covered live on television.
PARKER: Duke University.
(APPLAUSE)
ROWLANDS: The south side of Chicago is dangerous and has been for years. In January of this year, a 17-year-old boy was shot and killed after attending one of Simeon's games. Nearly 30 years ago, another Simeon all-star, Ben Wilson, was shot and killed while walking down the street with his girlfriend. His number, 25, still hangs on the wall at school.
PARKER: Sometimes I've been uncomfortable, but it's never been a moment of time where I've been totally unsafe, because I have so many people on my back and that helps me get out of, you know, scuffles.
ROWLANDS: This season, Jabari led Simeon to a fourth straight high school basketball title and also excelled in class, earning a 3.7 grade-point average.
SONNY PARKER, JABARI'S FATHER: We are truly blessed to have him.
ROWLANDS: Growing up, he was the youngest of four children where school and the family's Mormon faith came before basketball. He may play in the NBA someday, but his family expects him to graduate from Duke.
LOLA PARKER, JABARI'S MOTHER: That degree will be more precious than any millions he'll make.
ROWLANDS: Jabari's dad, Sonny, played six seasons for the golden state warriors. When he retired, he returned to Chicago to start a youth foundation helping at-risk kids.
PARKER: I know there are a lot of kids on the south side that lack a two-parent home. I'm fortunate to have my dad beside me. What he does in the community helps me want to be like him when I grow up.
ROWLANDS: A lot of people are looking forward to Jabari growing up to see what he can do, not just on the court, but off.
(SHOUTING)
ROWLANDS: Ted Rowlands, CNN, Chicago.
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MALVEAUX: Good for him, we wish him all the best.
You can watch the March Madness action on our sister network, TBS.
That's it for me. CNN NEWSROOM continues, up next.
