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Arizona Mom Freed from Mexican Jail; Tsarnaev Friend Killed by FBI; Bomb Suspects Seen on New Video; Rockers Sing for Boston Victims; Storm Chasers Show Wall Cloud; Outcry as Detroit Weighs Art Sale; Spelling Bee Champ; Wildfire Scorches California Hillsides; Documentary Stirs Anger; NAACP Leaders Applauds GOP Governor; Interview with Gov. Bob McDonnell

Aired May 31, 2013 - 13:00   ET

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


SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Free at last, this mom of seven is back in the U.S. after a week in a Mexican jail. And the emotional reunion with her family straight ahead.

Plus, new surveillance video showing the Tsarnaev brothers working out at a Boston gym, this is just three days before those blasts went off.

And battered by severe weather, some states just can't catch a break. Today, may even look worse with possibly intense tornadoes and baseball-size hail.

This is CNN NEWSROOM, and I'm Suzanne Malveaux. We start in Arizona. Of course, a mom free back in the U.S. today after more than a week in a Mexican jail. Yanira Maldonado walked out of jail, late last night this happened. And authorities arrested her last week, as you might recall, on charges of smuggling marijuana. Well, Maldonado tells reporters how she reacted when she learned that finally she was going to be let go.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YANIRA MALDONADO: I'm free. Out of jail. Like I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. I was innocent. So, I was very, very happy --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was your --

MALDONADO: -- to be out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- what was your life like in the jail? What did you do for all these days?

MALDONADO: Well, first I was very sad because it was I couldn't think that I was there because I was innocent. And I was told that I would be, you know, sent to another prison, a federal prison. And that really scared me. But it really got my faith and reading the scriptures. I found a book of Mormon and I was reading with some of the inmates.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So, what happens next for Maldonado? Casey Wian is in Goodyear, Arizona where she lives. And, Casey, the family all along said from the very beginning that she was innocent. I imagine that they're going to have a little party for her, yes?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They sure have a right to and a -- and a good reason to. We've spoken with two of Yanira Maldonado's daughters in the hours since she was released from that Mexican prison. As you can imagine, they're very, very happy. Though the family is trying to seems like avoid media cameras at this point. They are somewhere between Nogales, Arizona and Goodyear, Arizona, here at the family home. We expect them to arrive here sometime this afternoon. But clearly, this family stuck together, said all along that she was 100 percent innocent. They pulled together a network of family and friends to rally support for Yanira Maldonado. They got lawmakers involved, they got social media involved. It was really quite an impressive effort and they believe that helped get her released -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And, Casey, I know that there was security camera footage that turned out to be key evidence in the case. Tell us, first of all, what that showed. And is there anything left to be done before she is essentially is just free to go?

WIAN: A couple of things. That security camera footage was key according to her attorney. What it showed, and it's something that witnesses said and something that the family said all along, is surveillance video showing Yanira and her husband, Gary, boarding that bus with only a couple of blankets, a couple of bottles of water and a small purse in their -- in their hands between the two of them. There's no way they could be carrying that much marijuana, packages containing more than 12 pounds of marijuana, onto that bus. Very clear that it was placed there by someone else.

In terms of what happens next on the legal front, there is some sort of an appeal that is expected to happen on the part of Mexican authorities which is strange because the Mexican military had an opportunity to provide witnesses to bolster their case during the week. Those witnesses did not show up. So, we don't know if that appeal is sort of an automatic thing or if they're going to really pursue that in earnest. But in terms of in the United States, she is a free woman. She expects to be able to return to Mexico someday where she has family. That process though is still ongoing -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right, good for her. Thank you, Casey. Appreciate it.

The aftermath of the Boston marathon bombings now. The father of a man shot dead by the FBI, he's not buying the story about what happened, what he was told what happened. Ibragim Todashev, he knew the Tsarnaev brothers who are suspected of setting off the bombs in Boston. Well, Todashev was killed by an FBI agent who was asking him questions about his relationship with the brothers. Agents say that he had attacked them. Well, Todashev's father, he says that doesn't make any sense.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ABDULBAKI TODASHEV (translator): He didn't pose any threat to them, but even if he threatened them with his fists, couldn't they shoot his leg? My son couldn't attack them because he's not crazy. I don't know how they could shoot him like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: The father does say that he trusts the FBI's investigation. He is hopeful that the American justice system is going to hold somebody accountable for his son's death.

And some video, this is -- that we have not actually seen before. This has emerged today. This is of the two brothers who police say planned, carried out the terror attack at the Boston marathon. This is surveillance video and it was recorded just three days before the bombings. The two brothers, you see them, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev working out at the Boston gym. Shows them interacting with folks there. And interesting. It is interesting to investigators today. Deborah Feyerick, she's got that detail.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Seventy-two hours before the bombs detonated, almost to the minute, suspects Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev worked out together at a gym in Boston. Security cameras at the Y Crew Mixed Martial Arts Center show the brothers arriving with a friend just before 2:45 Friday afternoon. We spoke to the manager who asked we only use his first name, Michael. He says Tamerlan, who you see in the hat, looked different. Noticeably missing? Tamerlan's full bushy religious beard which he had had for about two years. The manager describes Tamerlan as extremely opinionated and outspoken about his Muslim religion and says he didn't ask Tamerlan why he'd shaved because he didn't want to engage in what was likely to be a long heated debate.

UNIDENTIED MALE: Shaving the beard may be a way to blend in, not to attract scrutiny from security services in carrying out the Boston attacks.

FEYERICK: Tamerlan trained at Y Crew several times a month for free, a professional courtesy to the nationally ranked golden gloves boxer. Dzhokhar rarely came, showing up just two or three times in roughly two years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've seen, with western militants want-to-be jihadist, a real emphasis on physical training, physical fitness, wanting to be prepared for jihad.

FEYERICK: Almost immediately, the manager who is off screen to the right asks the men to follow posted gym rules and take off their shoes. Younger brother Dzhokhar complies right away. Tamerlan does not arguing instead, not giving any ground. The manager later e-mails the owner asking him to ban Tamerlan, calling him arrogant, selfish, never helping anyone else. The argument doesn't seem to faze Tamerlan, who's the first one in the ring. His years of training are evident. Watch how skillfully he handles the jump rope. Dzhokhar has more difficulty, less stamina as he struggles to hold up the oversized shorts. The manager says the man in the middle was introduced as a friend. We've blurred his face. He was later questioned and released by the FBI. Tamerlan remains focused, barely missing or breaking stride. It's right here that the brothers interact. They seem relaxed. Dzhokhar resting at times. Tamerlan moving, moving, working out 72 hours before two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston marathon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Deb joins us from New York. And so, Deb, tell us about the people who are running that gym. What do they have to say about the two brothers? And are police interested in talking to them?

FEYERICK: Well, as a matter of fact, the owners of the Y. Crew gym and the manager there, they are indeed cooperating with the FBI. They showed them the surveillance tape, investigators basically took some screen grabs which are like photos. But, you know, one of the managers said this whole thing is surreal, like something out of a movie that someone he knew, who he spoke to just three days before the Boston attacks was there casually working out at the gym. But make no mistake, the manager did not like Tamerlan Tsarnaev. He found him arrogant. He found him opinionated. You know, they would get into what he called verbal sparring over various issues like religion where he says Tamerlan always had to be right, always had to be right without any room for anybody else.

So, it was kind of an interesting dynamic. But even just to see them knowing that, you know, if, as alleged, they're the ones who did this, there they are just working out at a gym while the bombs technically probably would have been ready.

MALVEAUX: All right. Deb, thank you. Appreciate it.

Star-studded bands, solo artists rocking Boston last night. This was in the Boston strong concert to benefit the victims of the bombing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He got joo-joo eyeball. He one holy roller. He got hair down --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Pretty hot. Aerosmith, New Kids on the Block and Jimmy Buffet and others playing for free at this sold-out show. Boston native James Taylor there as well. He spoke to our own Brooke Baldwin about his contribution.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES TAYLOR, SINGER: Yes, and a lot -- you know, a lot of my songs were written to make me feel better sort of as a -- and sometimes that resonates with other people, too, you know. So, you write a piece of music or a song that -- who -- that sort of has the purpose of seeing you through a tough time or putting something out there that you feel internal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Concert expected to raise more than $1.5 million. That is for the Boston One Fund. Good for them.

For much of the Midwest, the week ending just as it began, stormy skies, threat of tornadoes. The risk greatest today in Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas. Oklahoma got hit by tornadoes yesterday. Here's a storm chaser. This is in the town of Cushing who actually spotted a cloud formation that looked rather ominous. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at that mezzo cyclone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't, bro. I'm going to pull over. I can't --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right there. Right there where that little road goes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. I don't want to go too far.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, you're OK. Just get two tires in it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Wow. That wall cloud went onto form a tornado. Tornadoes also touched down in Arkansas creating a lot of damage there. Also, golf ball-sized hail, fierce winds, at least nine people injured.

Here's also what we're working on for this hour. Detroit is now broke. We are talking about $15 billion in the hole. So, how is the city going to pay the bills? One thought, selling off its art collection. That's right. Van Gogh and Monet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Selling your artwork should not be one way to fix it. It's like selling your kid. There are other assets that we can leverage and get this money that we need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And how a dumpling helped a 13 year old win the spelling bee. We're going to talk to the champion live this hour. Plus, some viewers of animal planet channel, they are outraged. They say they were duped. We'll tell you what's got them so fired up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Hundreds of firefighters battling a wildfire that is burning near a power plant. This is just north of Los Angeles. This is what they're up against here. Flames tearing through the hillsides. So far, 1,400 acres have been scorched. And the weather not helping at all. It is hot, dry and windy. Officials have ordered one community to evacuate after the fire got dangerously close. Now right now the flames are only 15 percent contained.

And President Obama, he was in the White House Rose Garden, that happened this morning. He was there meeting with a group of students. The president now is trying to turn up the pressure on Republicans over student loans. Interest rates on those loans are scheduled to double on July 1st. But the president said a Republican plan to fix the rate change was, quote, "not smart."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Americans now owe more on our student loans than we do on our credit cards. And those payments can last for years, even decades, which means the young people are putting off buying their first car, or their first house. The things that grow our economy and create new jobs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: The president said he wants low interest rates locked in for next year and new safeguards for lower income families.

Well, check this out. The Animal Planet Channel logged its highest rated program ever with what was billed as a documentary on mermaids. That's right. The show was so convincing that many viewers were left scratching their heads wondering if mermaids are real. The problem is the documentary wasn't really a documentary. Now viewers are angry.

John Berman looks at what happened with mermaids.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god, what is that?

JOHN BERMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): So what is that creature on top of a rock supposedly captured on film by tourists?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is not a (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god.

BERMAN: Many watching Animal Planet's "Mermaids: The New Evidence" saw it as proof that mermaids do exist. The show presented as a documentary details close encounters with the mythical sea creatures.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dr. Paul Robertson, welcome.

BERMAN: It even featured guests purporting to be scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA. But it was all in the name of entertainment. And it turns out Dr. Robertson is not really a scientist. So many viewers were fooled. NOAA, a federal agency, felt compelled to issue a statement.

It said, "Neither NOAA nor its scientists are involved with anything related to this topic. No one from NOAA was involved in making the fictional show. And the person identified as a NOAA scientist was an actor." If you watch the show closely enough, Animal Planet did include this disclaimer during the closing credits. "Certain events in this film are fictional." Disappointed viewers took to Twitter after discovering the show was fictional.

"Animal Planet, you are dead to me. You got me on your little mermaid hoax. What was the freaking point?" One said.

Fascination with mer-people is not new. A wave of films like "Splash" and "The Little Mermaid" has opened people's imagination to the possibility of life under the sea.

That's apparently what the filmmaker, Charlie Foley, wanted. He told CNN that the show is based on real scientific and evolutionary theory and real-life phenomena, rooting our story with facts encouraged a sense of intellectual possibility.

John Berman, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Looks pretty real.

Some felons in Virginia may soon be eligible to vote. We're talking about at least 100,000 people. Up next, we're going to talk to the Republican who is behind this, Governor Bob McDonnell, up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: With all the partisanship and politics these days, it's pretty rare that you have a Republican governor and the president of the NAACP that would find common ground. But that is the case, the very case in Virginia.

Civil rights group is applauding Virginia's governor for pushing to automatically restore voting rights to nonviolent felons. NAACP president, Ben Jealous, Governor Bob McDonnell joining us.

And good to see you both. You guys know you're in a split screen, you're together.

Ben, you had joked earlier the Republicans that you've worked with, you do great things together, they don't dare sit beside you. You're side-by-side.

(LAUGHTER)

Governor, tell us, why so public? Why this was important to you?

GOV. BOB MCDONNELL (R), VIRGINIA: Well, first of all, I was standing by Ben two days ago. So I'd be honored to do that. We've worked together on this. It's important. Voting and being able to own and bear a firearm, these are constitutional rights and they only should be deprived during these periods of punishments.

But what I've said is, once a felon, a nonviolent felon is finished with their probation, their parole, their incarceration and they paid their debt to society, meaning their restitution, their fines and costs and have no pending felony charges, then we should restore their rights right away.

And that's what I've decided to do, Suzanne, because we're a nation of second chances. People make mistakes, but we want to get them back into society fully re-integrated. We're people of faith that believe in restoration and redemption. And, you know, the more people we get back out in society, 95 percent of prisoners, are going to get released, the more of them that will be productive citizens, the better society will be.

And that's why we've done it. And it will be an automatic restoration process taking the subjectivity and the whims of the governor out of it. And I appreciate Ben and the NAACP and many other civil rights groups helping us to get this done.

MALVEAUX: Ben, tell us how this came about and what does this actually mean for the community? The voting community? The population now?

BEN JEALOUS, NAACP PRESIDENT: You know, there has been a building movement in this state for decades. And when I sat down with Bob a few years ago, we realized that on this issue of redemption we had common ground and that we could move forward on this issue.

Now what happened when he signed this is that we are now moving. It will just be a matter of days, maybe two months tops, before 100,000 to 200,000 Virginians who hereto forth had a lifetime ban on their voting will be able to vote.

We are a country that believes in second chances. And we're a country that believes that voting is a right, not a privilege, but a right. And in this state for 112 years there has been a lifetime ban on people voting if they ever committed a felony. And it was put in place for the most horrible of reasons. You know, a delegate, delegate glass at the convention in 1901 when this was put into the state's constitution that said because of this plan the darky will be eliminated as a factor in our state' politics in less than five years.

And so what the governor made it quite frankly make it easier for people to heal themselves, for communities for hear -- you know, to heal and for the state to heal. And that's very important.

MALVEAUX: It's interesting, Ben, that you have that reference. It's a very, you know, offensive reference when you use that quote, when you say darky, obviously that's applying to African-Americans.

Governor, I want to ask you because there will be skeptics who will say, well, perhaps you are bringing this forward to give rights to African-Americans for Republicans to gain more support for your party. There is certainly a movement for broadening out the base, if you will. How do you respond to that?

MCDONNELL: Well, listen, there are actually I think more white convicted felons than African-Americans. So this is a justice issue, Suzanne. It affects people of all ages, races and social classes. And to me, as Ben said, it's a matter of justice. And it's smart government. If you get people released from prison and we have a very active prison re-entry system, we're now restoring civil rights, I've restored more than any governor in history, our recidivism rights down to 23 percent, that means less calls to prisons, that means less new victims.

Sp it's really smart. You know, our "Declaration of Independence has" this really important principle that the government gets its just powers from the consent of the governed. And if you're going to be able to give consent, you've got to be able to vote. And I think this is such an important fundamental right. When you're done with your debt to society, you ought to get reintegrated and be able to vote. That's why I've done it. I've been working source for a couple of years.

MALVEAUX: All right. And to both of you before we go real quickly here, you know, Washington sometimes you look at it as a hot mess. People are not able to talk to each other much less work together. Any advice here?

JEALOUS: Yes --

MALVEAUX: Is there an opening year where you can -- you know, words of wisdom for those guys who are just not able to work together?

JEALOUS: You know, one of the reasons that this happened was that the governor said, look, I will meet with the NAACP every single quarter. And so our folks there have met with him again and again and again and each time finding common ground and ways to move forward.

Now it's not important that we agree on all things. But it is important that when -- where we can agree on big things that we identify that quickly and we move them forward. That's what people in this country yearn for. And that's why this is so important. And we also say that, you know, there's a lot of Republicans who have said we won't do this because we think it will give us more Democrats. As more people white than black tend to go that way.

MALVEAUX: Right.

JEALOUS: And then we've had frankly Democrats who said well, we don't want to do this because we don't want to appear to be soft on crime. And so what Bob did is just simply courageous and it's the right thing.

MALVEAUX: All right. We've got to leave it there. It's a nice refreshing story here that we have really two -- sometimes two opposite sides working in cohesion together. Thank you so much, Governor, as well as Ben. Appreciate it very much.

MCDONNELL: Thanks, Suzanne.

JEALOUS: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: Have a good weekend. MCDONNELL: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: An umbrella tip filled with the poison ricin. Sounds like a movie. Well, it was actually a weapon that was used in a Cold War assassination. We've got details up ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)