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Washington Landslide Still Moving; EPA Pushing For Cleaner Gas; GOP Representative Explains Remarks; Ford Owners Seek Class Action Suit; Prosecutors Blast Holmes' Plea Offer; Mandela Making "Steady Progress"; Shroud Of Turin To Be Shown On TV; Religious Leaders: Stop Drones Now; 7,000 Dental Patients Warned Of HIV

Aired March 29, 2013 - 10:00   ET

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

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FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, happening right now, the earth drops from under their feet, a massive landslide forcing people out of their homes.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a lot of anxiety about what's going to happen, will I be able to move back home?

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WHITFIELD: And the ground is still moving. Are more homes in danger?

Plus, thousands of dental patients possibly exposed to HIV and hepatitis and told to get tested.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I will tell you that when the Health Department investigators and we left, we were just physically kind of sick. I mean, that's how bad -- I've seen a lot of bad stuff over the years.

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WHITFIELD: The dental office now closed, the doctor facing several investigations.

And he's credited for the rise of the career in Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen and many others. Music legend, Clyde Davis, joining us live. CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

Good morning again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Carol Costello. The ground is still moving on Whidbey Island in Washington State and at least one more house is at risk of falling. The slide has already destroyed at least one home.

Experts are calling this a one in 100 or 200-year event. They say some of the dirt may be 11,000 years old and it would take 40,000 dump trucks to remove all of that earth.

Kyung Lah is near the landslide. Good morning again, Kyung. Are people given any reasons to be optimistic?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're crossing their fingers and they're waiting for this unknown period about of time before they're being allowed to actually know to those at risk homes and say whether or not they will be able to live there.

In the meantime, it is a waiting game. So what the county is doing for some of the residents who can't get to their homes is to make it a little easier to walk there. You see this big dirt pile over here.

This is gravel that will be laid over a hiking trail so that those residents can go to those homes that have been cut off because of this huge landslide.

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LAH (voice-over): The view is breathtaking until you look closer. The earth is still tumbling down hundreds of feet. The grass of this backyard dangling on the edge above an impromptu cliff side that took out one house and cut off 17 others. Daniel Garcia lives -- or lived here. His house tagged yellow means it's possible it could go tumbling.

DANIEL GARCIA, RESIDENT: Kind seems like the best interest to go.

LAH (on camera): So you want to get out of here?

GARCIA: I wouldn't -- I'd rather not, but the situation kind of dictates.

LAH (voice-over): This sort of large landslide in Washington State is a one in 100 or 200-year event says geologist Terry Swanson.

TERRY SWANSON, GEOLOGIST: Just beyond the cliff here. So the entire road, this whole section here, about 600 feet to 800 feet of it has been completely rotated.

LAH: Swanson said scientists knew this was coming, but couldn't predict exactly when.

SWANSON: When you get lots of water, the water pressure can push the sand grains apart, and then there's no cohesion and the stuff moves.

LAH (on camera): And is this an example of man versus nature? Have we built on stuff we just didn't understand?

SWANSON: Yes, absolutely. Back in the 1930s and '40s when they were plotting this in 1950s, even the 1960s, people weren't thinking about this.

LAH (voice-over): Resident Karen McCoy certainly wasn't when she moved in a few months ago.

KAREN MCCOY, RESIDENT: I thought of it as like a huge, big huge wave crashing against the cement wall and it was just really strong.

LAH: It cut off the main road to her house. She finally climbed through a dirt trail at night to get her cat.

MCCOY: She's a little freaked out right now. It's OK. There's just a lot of anxiety about what's going to happen. Will I be able to move back home?

LAH: Daniel Garcia isn't anxious. He's made his choice. The man who moved in to this house for the view is now leaving because he has too much of one.

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LAH: So the big question, will anymore homes be lost. Well, according to the geologists, there is one house that's really at risk, that's considered the red house, the one that they're not letting anyone into.

There are four houses like Mr. Garcia's house that are yellow, people can step in, but they have to leave fairly quickly. And when we were standing in the backyard of one of those yellow houses, I asked the geologist, so would you live here? And Fredricka, he was saying maybe for a short period of time, but nothing long term.

WHITFIELD: My goodness, so you and that geologist were standing on the edge there. Did the ground feel soft? I mean, was there any reason except for looking down below any reason for you to, you know, think or feel uneasy about the fact that that ground could give at any point?

LAH: Well, you know, you get that sort of sick feeling in your stomach when you're looking down at a cliff, yes, definitely had that. The ground didn't feel particularly soft. He said where we were standing was probably OK, but he wouldn't get too much closer to the edge.

The key is to see whether or not there is any shearing, any breakage in that ground and he didn't see any. But, you know, again, they just have to wait a little bit longer, see what's going to happen to that earth.

WHITFIELD: I'm sure that's what they thought when they built those houses there, too. All right, Kyung Lah, thanks so much. Be careful out there.

All right, the EPA today expected to announce it's proposing new rules for cleaner gas. Supporters say it will cut smog by a third and prevent more 2,000 pollution related deaths per year. But oil refiners warn the proposal could boost prices as much as 10 cents a gallon.

I'm joined now from the White House Dan Lothian. So Dan, what would these new rules mean?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, the EPA will be looking to cut the amount of sulphur allowed in gasoline. This would be similar to what you have in the environmentally sensitive state of California. And what this would mean for refiners is that they would have to have some upgrades getting new equipment or new technologies. I talked to an administration official who told me that of the 111 refineries out there, only 16 would have to have upgrades.

And so they would have to get this new technology. The big question, though, for consumers out there is what all of this will mean for them and there are some estimates as you pointed out that this could add another 6 cents to 10 cents on to a gallon of gasoline.

But an administration official is telling me that an EPA analysis and also some independent analysis, as well, show that that would be closer to 1 cent a gallon, but nonetheless, it would impact the price of gallon over the long haul.

WHITFIELD: And how soon could this become law?

LOTHIAN: We're talking about long term here. There is a period of public comment, which would last roughly a year or so. And then officials saying that this would be implemented beginning in 2017 so sort of a slow implementation. And then it would be about a decade for the full implementation to take place. So we're talking long term here before you will see any real impact of this beginning in 2017 -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dan Lothian at the White House. Thanks so much.

Gere is another political story generating a whole lot of buzz this morning. A congressman who has represented Alaska for four years now is trying to blunt the anger of his use of a word that's widely viewed as an ethnic slur.

Listen to Republican Don Young in a radio interview earlier this week.

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REPRESENTATIVE DON YOUNG (R), ALASKA: I used to -- my father had a ranch. We used to hire 50 to 60 wetbacks to pick tomatoes. You know, it takes two people to pick the same tomatoes now.

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WHITFIELD: So Young stopped short of issuing an apology for his choice of words. He said he meant no disrespect and said the term was even used by the government in the 1950s when he was growing up on his family farming California.

The non-apology will not sit well with some Republican leaders who say the party needs to more effectively reach out to minority voters. So listen to what rising GOP star Bobby Jindal said just two months ago.

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GOVERNOR BOBBY JINDAL (R), LOUISIANA: We've got to stop being stupid party and I'm serious. It's time for a new Republican Party that talks like adults. It's time for us to articulate our plans and visions for America in real terms. It's no secret we had a number of Republicans that damaged the brand this year with defensive and bizarre comments. I'm here to say we've had enough of that.

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WHITFIELD: And that was before Young's comments. So Jindal raised some eyebrows at that moment when he made the remarks at a gathering of Republican National Committee members.

So a group of Ford owners have a big concern. They say their cars can randomly speed up and now they're suing Ford to fix it. The lawsuit reportedly involves owners in 14 states. They want a judge to give them class action status. Zain Asher is in New York with more on this lawsuit -- Zain.

ZAIN ASHER, CNN PERSONAL/BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. Yes, cars randomly speeding up on their own, pretty scary stuff, but about 20 consumers banded together for this class action lawsuit. It involves Ford vehicles made between 2002 and 2010 specifically the Ford Lincoln and Mercury brands.

Here's what the complaint says. It says that the electronic throttle control system in these cars can basically take control of the accelerator making it so that drivers cannot stop their vehicles. Now these cars apparently just speed up on their own, as you mentioned, pretty dangerous stuff.

Here's what people are saying. They're saying Ford, number one, knew about this defect and hidden it from customers. They are also saying that Ford put profit ahead of customer safety.

In terms of dollar amount, we're not sure of the exact amount these people want, but in terms of compensation, they certainly want to be compensated for the loss of value on the defected cars. They also want Ford to fix the problem as well.

The cars now have brake override systems in place so that if the brake and accelerator are pressed at the same time, the car technically should stop. But those were not put in place until 2010 -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And Zain, Ford's response?

ASHER: We've reached out to Ford this morning. So far we haven't heard back yet, but Ford has been quoted as saying that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has investigated these accelerations over the years and they concluded that in most cases, any unintended increased speed is actually the driver's fault.

And that only in rare occasions are mechanical issues to blame. I also want to mention, Fred, that it has been a pretty bad week for Ford. It was also in the spotlight earlier this week when some Ford India ads were leaked showing three women tied and gagged in the back of a car. Ford said it did approved those ads so pretty bad week for Ford -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Very bad. All right, thanks so much, Zain Asher. Appreciate it.

Coming up, a priest, rabbi and reverends coming together for Easter and protesting America's drone warfare. Why they say the Obama administration needs to stop playing God.

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WHITFIELD: All right, checking our top stories right now. Colorado prosecutors are blasting the offer of a guilty plea for theatre shooting suspect James Holmes. Prosecutors say, in court document, the offer lacks any good faith and it was just a ploy for publicity. That offer of a guilty plea would have taken the death penalty off the table for Holmes.

Former South African president, Nelson Mandela is making steady progress while recovering from a lung infection that's according to South Africa's president who adds Mandela is in good spirits. Mandela has been in the hospital since Wednesday.

The piece of linen that some believe was Jesus' burial cloth will be broadcast Saturday on Italian TV. It will be the first time in 40 years the shroud of Turin has appeared on the air. The "Guardian" newspaper reports Pope Benedict approved the 90-minute broadcast in one of his final acts.

Easter is this Sunday and a group of religious leaders isn't concerned with eggs and Easter bunnies. They're worried about drones. A group of rabbis, reverends, and priests made this video, a message to President Obama to stop drone warfare.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Humanity is a very, very large and beautiful notion of the oneness of the human race. When we do this assassination by remote control, we are completely objectifying the person on the other end. There is no room for humanity at all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are no more than a caricature on a video screen.

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WHITFIELD: Joining us from Charlottesville, Virginia is Reverend Paul Zahl. He is a retired Episcopal priest and is part of this movement. Good to see you, Reverend.

REVEREND PAUL ZAHL, RETIRED EPISCOPAL PRIEST: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: So what is the basis of this protest? Where does this come from and why?

ZAHL: Well, I've been going up and down the United States for the last three years trying to bring the moral or spiritual dimension into the conversation about drones. And finally, brave new films gave me and others a chance to really speak out our opposition on faith grounds to what this is all about. Now, today is Good Friday and it's a day on which millions of Americans will be thinking about someone long ago who said those who live by the sword will parish by the sword. Now, our opposition to drones is just about two things.

First, we believe that remote control targeted assassinations is completely counter to the teachings of Christ. And it's also never been a policy that an American government has been part of -- I sometimes don't recognize my own country that it would prosecute remote controlled assassination.

And the second humane point that we're trying to make is that when you kill someone through a remote controlled drone on a screen, thousands of miles away, you completely objectify or dehumanize this person.

And we believe that even our sworn enemy remains a child of God. And to execute, to try, to judge, and to kill a person without even the chance of surrender is completely contrary to the great humane ideas.

WHITFIELD: Is this a statement on modern warfare as a whole? Because drones aren't the only I guess type of military apparatus where remote controls are used.

ZAHL: Yes, we see all these technologies that digitize and turn warfare and combat, which is a grievous thing into a kind of technique, a video game as one of my colleagues as said it, we see these as running completely contrary to the I/thou character of any real engagement.

And they to us are a kind of total attack and re few tags of the fact that all human beings deserve a chance and deserve -- stand in need of being regarded as brothers and sisters.

Martin Luther King once said, he said our enemy, our brother he said, our brother and sister whom we regard as an enemy. And that's the kind of idea about humans and love that we're attempting at Good Friday and Easter to bring into the conversation.

WHITFIELD: Reverend Paul Zahl, thanks so much for your time.

Still ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM, a dentist's office described as a menace to public health, rusty equipment, sickening discoveries, and now an HIV warning to thousands of patients.

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WHITFIELD: All right, do you have a dental appointment coming up? Well, you might turn off by it once you hear this story. Health officials in the Tulsa, Oklahoma say as many as 7,000 dental patients may have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis in this dental office.

The officials also say conditions were so bad, investigators were physically sickened by what they found and that may not be the worst of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SUSAN ROGERS, OKLAHOMA BOARD OF DENTISTRY: The thing that was most upsetting to us because we take a very dim view of this from our board's perspective is he was allowing unauthorized unlicensed personnel to do IV sedation. And that is completely unacceptable and illegal in Oklahoma.

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WHITFIELD: CNN's Ed Lavandera is in Tulsa with the very latest. So Ed, what are health officials doing today?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Health officials are trying to get in touch with those 7,000 patients urging them to get the testing done. This is coming after investigators here over the last couple weeks have been shocked to discover what they found inside this dental practice you see behind me.

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LAVANDERA (voice-over): Tulsa health officials say the sanitation conditions inside this building where Dr. Scott Harrington works as an oral surgeon were horrifying.

ROGERS: I will tell you that when the health department investigators, when we left, we were just physically kind of sick. I mean that's just how bad -- and I've seen a lot of bad stuff over the years.

LAVANDERA: Those health officials say that as many as 7,000 patients in the last six years might have been exposed to HIV, as well as Hepatitis-B and C. Health officials say Dr. Harrington treated a higher population of patients with those illnesses.

But when investigators started inspecting the dental tools and equipment in the office, in the last two weeks, what they discovered was disturbing, and extremely unsanitary.

ROGERS: The instruments that came out of the autoclave were horrible. I wouldn't let my nephews play with them out in the dirt. I mean, they were horrible. They had rust on them.

LAVANDERA: So far health officials believe at least one patient was infected with Hepatitis-C from treatments in this office. The news has sparked a nerve-wracking sense of unease. Patients are receiving letters urging them to get tested.

DR. KRISTY BRADLEY, OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH: The magnitude of these infractions in clinical practices, and the unknown length of time that the practices may have occurred have prompted public health to begin systematic notification of Dr. Harrington's patients.

And recommend testing for HIV, Hepatitis-C and Hepatitis-C viruses, as many persons who may be infected with these blood-borne viruses may be infected for years without experiencing any signs of illness.

LAVANDERA: State health officials say Dr. Harrington voluntarily stopped practicing after the investigation of health and safety law violations started a few weeks ago. Harrington is 64 years old, a veteran oral surgeon, who started practicing more than 35 years ago.

But it's not clear if the closure is permanent or temporary. We haven't been able to reach Dr. Harrington yet, and this is the message callers to his office hear now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have reached the office of Dr. Scott Harrington. The office is currently closed.

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LAVANDERA: Criminal charges have not been filed against Dr. Harrington yet. Although health officials here in Oklahoma say they are in touch with the district attorney's office and prosecutors here in Tulsa.

And it's not just Dr. Harrington that faces these legal troubles as well, but the two assistants that worked with him inside this practice could also face legal trouble as well -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: My goodness, so it could be quite widespread. So what about, you know, Dr. Harrington's, I guess, career of the past? I mean, have there been any complaints about him much earlier before this?

LAVANDERA: According to the Dentistry Board here in Oklahoma, he has a clean record. No complaints on his record as we mentioned there in the piece. He has been practicing for more than 35 years. But nothing on that record that would suggest the kinds of things that investigators say they have found inside his practice here.

WHITFIELD: Extraordinary. All right, thanks so much. Ed Lavandera, appreciate it in Tulsa.

Another shocker, this in the case of a 13-month-old killed in his stroller. A new arrest is made and you won't believe who is facing charges now.

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WHITFIELD: Hello again, everyone. Good morning. I'm Frederica Whitfield in for Carol Costello. Checking our top stories, at least one more home is at risk of falling into a landslide on Whidbey Island in Washington State. A landslide has already damaged one home and cut off access to 17 others. Experts say the slide is a one in 100 or 200-year event --