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Officer Suspended for Pointing Rifle; Manhunt for "Brit" who Beheaded James Foley; U.S. Ebola Patient Goes Home Today; Ferguson Grand Jury Hears Evidence

Aired August 21, 2014 - 10:30   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Still to come: a protester is threatened in Ferguson.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My hands are up, bro. My hands are up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand back. Stand back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gun raised and pointed. Raised and pointed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Yes, you probably guessed it. This police officer was suspended, removed from duty. We'll talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Protests over Michael Brown's killing have been mostly peaceful in Ferguson for the last couple of nights but tensions do remain high. One incident took a dangerous turn when a police sergeant aimed his assault rifle at a protester. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lay your gun down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop pointing it. Put your (EXPLETIVE) gun down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Put that gun away.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's his name? I want it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Put that gun away.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: That's St. Louis County police officer has been relieved of duty and suspended indefinitely. Let's talk more about this incident and bring in CNN's George Howell. He's in Ferguson this morning. Hi, George.

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning. So yes, you talk to members of the community, many of the protesters out there -- they say there is a deep mistrust of police officers. Incidents like this clearly don't help the situation. This officer, who has been suspended and relieved of duty, suspended indefinitely after he was captured on camera saying what he said. We also had a CNN crew nearby who also confirmed what happened there.

We understand that this officer was basically in the crowd. Another officer, a St. Louis County police officer, also noticed it and basically took him out of the situation, removed him from the crowd. But you get the sense that people are concerned about the police department in this community. You'll remember that the Ferguson police department itself, three police officers are African-American. Many protesters say that's not right, given that the city population is predominantly African-American. So you get the sense that there is a real disappointment and outrage about the situation there.

I want you to take a listen to some of what we heard the other night. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My hands are up, bro. My hands are up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hands up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gun, raised and pointed. Raised and pointed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hands up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will (EXPLETIVE) kill you. Get back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're going to kill him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's your name sir?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your name's (EXPLETIVE). (EXPLETIVE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello officer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: So you'll remember also the first day this happened, we were on the ground the day of the looting, the day of the first outbreak of unrest. And we caught on camera ourselves an officer who was talking back to the crowd, referring to them as animals. So these things do happen. You also have to consider that these police officers have been working day end, day end, day end so sometimes nerves get edgy on both sides. These are two cases where we have clearly captured, you know, unprofessionalism happening within the police departments.

COSTELLO: But clearly, you know, that fellow police officer came in and he took care of the situation, clearly he's acted -- he acted responsibly and wisely.

HOWELL: The St. Louis police department. Absolutely -- removing him from the crowd and, you know, that's the thing, police officers want to make sure it's known to the public that, you know, the majority of people they say, you know, the majority of their colleagues are out to do their jobs and they want to go home at night and they're dealing with a threat.

Just the other night we understand there was a threat to kill a police officer. We heard Captain Ron Johnson saying that, you know, his wife was upset with him because he was out in that crowd without a bulletproof vest on, jacket on, so, you know, they're concerned out there, they're edgy, but the crowd is also edgy.

It looks like a police state in many ways. And people feel that the police are too heavy-handed with what are peaceful protests for the most part except for a few people in the crowd who cause problems.

Carol, also important to point out that police have been very strategic, going into the crowds, finding those troublemakers, removing them -- a more strategic approach than what we've seen the previous days where they would all line up together and move down the street clearing the crowd. It seems like they're changing their strategies.

COSTELLO: All right. George Howell reporting live from Ferguson, I'm back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: An international manhunt now under way for the group that beheaded American journalist James Foley. The man in this video, he speaks with a clear British accent. The group of jihadists he leads is simply known as "The Beatles". Now the fate of Steven Sotloff another American journalist hangs in the balance.

I want to bring in CNN's Atika Shubert right now. She's based in London. Let's talk about the search for this terrorist with the British accent.

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he's got a very distinct accent there. And actually we've spoken to a number of linguistic experts who say this is somebody who has clearly grown up in Britain from a young age, is very articulate and well educated just by the use of his words. They say possibly from the south of England, even the London area. Although clearly, you know, that -- there are a lot of areas may have that same type of accent. And this is what the government is now doing, scrutinizing that video, looking for any clues that might tell them who this man is and who else might be out there with him.

COSTELLO: This terror cell that he supposedly leads, we don't know, but supposedly, it's called "The Beatles". What do you know about them?

SHUBERT: Well, this is something that came out in "The Guardian" newspaper here and they say that they've spoken to a number of other people who have -- who were held by this group known as "The Beatles", and they're called "The Beatles" because they're a group of young British jihadis that are out there, and they were described as being one of the main jail keepers of foreign prisoners there and one of the main negotiators.

Now, we have not independently confirmed that, but there are hundreds of young men and even a few women that have gone to Syria to fight and this has become a huge problem for the government and they're trying to keep track of all these different people. But obviously when you get a horrible, brutal killing like this, apparently by a British man then it makes it all the more urgent to try and track these people down.

COSTELLO: All right. Atika Shubert reporting live from London. We're back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. Get ready for some amazing good news.

We have just learned that American ebola patient, Nancy Writebol, has been released from the hospital -- that's according to a source close to the family. She was actually released on Tuesday. And in just a few minutes Kent Brantly will also be released.

This is a live picture from Emory Hospital where Brantly is expected to actually answer some questions. As you recall he contracted the ebola virus while treating other patients in Liberia where he worked with the Christian aid organization, Samaritan's Purse. He and fellow American aid worker Nancy Writebol became the first known ebola victims to enter the United States. Both were given this experimental serum, this experimental treatment. The virus has killed 1,300 people in West Africa and can be fatal in 90 percent of the cases.

CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us now from Los Angeles. This is amazing.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know, it is quite remarkable. First of all given just how sick in particular it sounds like Dr. Brantly was at one point -- they thought he was going to die -- that we're having a day like this. Miss Writebol we also understand was very sick, you'll remember Carol the images of when she arrived a couple days after Dr. Brantly by that medical evacuation jet. She was on a gurney. She was not walking on her own at that point and now we hear that she's had a recovery and was able to leave the hospital.

Typically what happens in these situations, and I say typically, because again, Carol, this has never happened before in this country or in this part of the world, but typically what the protocol is, is they do a couple blood tests to make sure there is no evidence of the virus and they do these blood tests over a couple days. You do one and then you confirm it a couple of days later. And you also got to make sure the patient is feeling well. If the person -- if they meet those criteria, that's generally what allows them to be released from the hospital.

I will say obviously we're awaiting this press conference about Dr. Brantly. We're going to see him. We did not see Miss Writebol when she left the hospital. It's a little bit surprising I think given how much attention there has been on this, how much concern as well, scientifically, rationally, logically it makes sense she would not be of any concern or threat to the general public, but again, we've never gone through this before.

So I think it's really important for the hospitals and everyone involved to be very transparent about what's happening here so, you know, to quell people's concerns and fears.

COSTELLO: Oh, absolutely. That news conference by the way at Emory to take place at 11:00 a.m. Eastern time. Sanjay Gupta, thanks so much. I'm back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: For nearly two weeks protesters in the streets of Ferguson have been calling for justice after teenager Michael Brown was shot and killed by police. Just yesterday, a grand jury started going through some of the evidence in the case. And with so much for the jurors to potentially consider, it could take another two months until the process is complete. That means it might not be until mid-October until we know if this case will actually go to trial.

Let's dig deeper with CNN's Jean Casarez and criminal defense attorney Midwin Charles. Welcome to both of you.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN LEGAL CORRESPONDENT: Thank you.

COSTELLO: All right. So Jean, really? We won't find out until mid- October why?

CASAREZ: Well, they meet only once a week and this is the grand jury. It's a four-month term. They expire actually in September but they're going to extend them as a special grand jury. We'll see if maybe they do more than just one day a week. But there's a lot of evidence to present and I don't think they have a lot of results, yet. I don't think they have forensic results and anything of a laboratory nature that they would want to present. Remember the DA's office told me we're going to present everything we have.

COSTELLO: Really? Because the prosecutor can sort limit the number of witnesses who testify in front of the grand jury, right? MIDWIN CHARLES, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The prosecutor can do that

but remember, as Jean just said, it's not just witnesses. It's also forensic evidence, which takes time for them to come up with. But I read a recent interview with Bob McCulloch where he said that not only are they going to be reviewing the evidence that his office has put together, but they also may be looking at the evidence that the federal government has put together as well. I think that's one of the reasons why this is going to take so long.

COSTELLO: So it could be longer than October then? It could take longer.

CASAREZ: You never know. You never know. And you know, one question to me was, all of a sudden witnesses are going to start with their subpoenas walking through the courthouse door, so will the crowd converge to the courthouse to see who's testifying because this is a secret proceeding. We're not supposed to know who is testifying before the jury but with all the high-profile cases I've covered at this point you've got the cameras right down there at the courthouse.

And once again I always say the big question is the officer going to walk through the door.

CHARLES: And this is one of the reasons why grand jury proceedings are secret. The Supreme Court has said that they want to protect the identity of witnesses and sort of encourage people to come forward even though they are reluctant. As you know there are some witnesses who have been speaking with media but yet don't want their identity known. They've sort of obscured their face or their voice or what have you. So grand jury proceedings are secret for a variety of reasons.

COSTELLO: But I have heard, though, that the police officer probably will testify in front of the grand jury which would be unusual, right -- Jean?

CASAREZ: Well, it's interesting. I mean you really have to think about that. Does it help him? Does it hurt him? It doesn't happen every day, no, I don't think so. And also witness intimidation as they're walking through the courthouse doors with their subpoena -- that could affect testimony.

COSTELLO: And I would think that if the officer does testify they would have to take special precautions, right, to protect him?

CHARLES: They would. But I'm sure that they have done this before. I'm sure that the prosecutor's office have had cases that are high profile or where the person who was being investigated or looked at for criminal wrongdoing is someone who isn't popular with the community. So I'm sure they have mechanisms in place to protect him.

CASAREZ: Let me tell you about courthouses. There are secret entrance ways, there are secret hallways.

CHARLES: That's right.

CASAREZ: There are undercover parking locations.

CHARLES: That's right.

CASAREZ: So I question whether maybe any of the witnesses or at least the officer would even be seen by the public.

COSTELLO: Ok. So if I were the officer and I'm glad I'm not at this point but if I were him, I would actually want to tell my story before the grand jury, but lawyers often don't want their clients doing that. Why?

CHARLES: Well, first of all, in a grand jury proceeding, the defense doesn't necessarily participate. It really is a one-sided procedure. It's something that prosecutors put on; they decide what evidence goes through. But to answer your question, defense attorneys never want their clients to speak because as you know, it can be held against you. But in this sort of setting with a grand jury proceeding, he doesn't necessarily have to testify.

COSTELLO: So he -- see, I've heard differing stories because I heard he definitely will.

CHARLES: He may.

CASAREZ: I don't think anybody knows.

CHARLES: Yes.

COSTELLO: Probably true.

CASAREZ: It's going to be a game day decision. He's going to decide whether he wants to or not. But without him testifying, the evidence is going to be definitely for the prosecution. They are the only ones in the room. But on the other hand he can't have an attorney in the grand jury room so he's got to testify without any aid or assistance.

CHARLES: Right.

COSTELLO: So while all of this is going on there's so much controversy surrounding the prosecuting attorney.

CHARLES: There is.

COSTELLO: What if at some point the governor decides I have to pull you off the case, what happens then?

CHARLES: You know, I -- I can't imagine the governor doing that at least at this point because they're just getting started. The prosecutor has been involved in gathering all the information and doing all of that work. There's a great likelihood here that if the governor steps in and pulls him off the case they may have to start all over. You're going to have to get someone --

CASAREZ: That's what D.A. said yesterday. He said tell me now, get me off. CHARLES: If you're going to do it, do it now. There seems to be this sort of reluctance on the part of the governor to kind of just make that decision. If you're going to make that decision, do it now so that justice is not impeded. It must be swift.

COSTELLO: Thanks to both of you. I appreciate it. I hope you come back again.

Thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.

"@THIS HOUR WITH BERMAN AND MICHAELA" starts now.