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Walter Scott Laid to Rest; Obama, Raul Castro Shake Hands from Panama; Second Arrest in Military Base Bomb Plot; Tornado Aftermath and Cleanup; Hillary Clinton to Announce Candidacy Tomorrow. 11-11:59a ET

Aired April 11, 2015 - 11:00   ET

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

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN HOST: We are so grateful for your company as always. We hope you go out there and make some great memories today.

[11:00:00] VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: There's much more ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM. We turn things over now to our colleague Fredricka Whitfield.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Good to see you guys.

BLACKWELL: Hey -- Fred.

PAUL: Hi -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much. I like the sunny yellow.

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(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: The sun's shines in the entire studio.

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WHITFIELD: All right. It is the 11:00 Eastern hour. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The NEWSROOM starts right now.

Family and friends are saying good-bye to Walter Scott today. The 50- year-old was shot and killed by North Charleston police officer Michael Slager one week ago today. Slager has now been charged with murder. We're also getting some new information about the person in the car with Scott before he was killed.

As you look at pictures outside the funeral services now, a dash-cam video the passenger could be seen on the police cruiser's dash cam as you see right there -- circled there to the right.

This is new video of the passenger in the striped shirt right here talking with another officer. State authorities say they have met with this person and he has been released without charges.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is in Summerville, South Carolina where the funeral service is about to get started -- Polo. But first what more can you tell us about the passenger and any information that person may have?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Fred, it's going to be key to the investigation as we try to hear more from this person who's really just being considered at this point the mystery passenger. Again, that's going to part of the very crucial part of the investigation not only for the defense but obviously for the case itself.

Meantime back out live here to what is Summerville, South Carolina. Just in the last few moments, very significant development here. Large procession just arrived here at the head of that several limousines we believe that was, obviously, transporting Mr. Scott's family. At this point we do know that this is happening ahead of that scheduled start time for this funeral ceremony that is still scheduled to begin here any moment now.

At this point we do understand that this facility will likely exceed its capacity. We've seen a very large crowd gather outside of ward ministries here in Summerville. I can tell you that the crowd I'm looking at here, Fred, far exceeds the 400 person limit that is expected here.

Now at the same time, we are being told that the ceremony could potentially last at least three hours. So this will be perhaps one of the longer ones we've seen here in recent days. Now as for the community itself here, it's -- what we're seeing is really several members of the community rallying behind the Scott family. We heard from several of their supporters who said they plan to really pull back or hold back on any protests or demonstrations. Today is really about being there for the Scott family, a day after those eight shots rang out -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. And Polo Sandoval, again, it looks like a lot of people who are there outside of that church and when, of course, the funeral service gets under way we will be able to bring more information on that and, of course, keep us updated on the investigation.

Meantime in California there is an investigation under way into the apparent police beating of a man after a chase on horseback. Officials say the suspect fled on a horse as deputies were trying to serve a search warrant. The chase ended with the suspect falling off the horse and then spreading his hands out above his head.

And then as you see in these images right here deputies using a taser and beating the suspect as a news helicopter filmed the whole incident. This is what the attorney for the man being arrested had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JIM TERRELL, ATTORNEY: Somebody should go to prison over this. What I saw on the television was thugs beating up my client. That's what I saw. And these questions about what was he doing. What did they do? This is far worse than Rodney King.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's bring in our panel -- a lot to talk about, civil rights attorney Avery Friedman is actually here in Atlanta with me, usually he's out of Cleveland, and we are lucky to have him right here in Atlanta. Good to see you.

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Nice to be here.

WHITFIELD: And CNN political commentator Van Jones joining us from Los Angeles. Good to see you as well.

So gentlemen, we have a lot to talk about. Let's talk first about the situation in California. Van, that's where you are in Los Angeles. What more is being said in circles there about the imagery this caught on a news helicopter showing a man who appears to be surrendering, but then being subjected to the tasering and the beating?

VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, you know, the first thing that comes up for everybody is Rodney King. But this is a very different situation in that you -- it's not just some guy with a little shaky camera off to the side. You have a news helicopter above clearly recording the entire thing and that seems to be no deterrent for these officers.

[11:05:00] Clearly, the guy thought, if I just lay down here, if I spread out 100 percent. I'm clearly not resisting maybe I will be in good shape. That didn't happen.

This news is just being absorbed here in California but I think you're going to see a real demand that these kinds of things now, we live in a different world where you have, you know, cell cameras, you have helicopters, you've got ATMs have little cameras on them. You're going to have a lot more , a little more video evidence of both wrong doing whether it's civilians or whether it's law enforcement.

I think you're going to have an expectation now from the public that when this sort of stuff happens there is a quick response from the authorities that people do get arrested or fired or disciplined and demoted quickly and that is a new development I think for law enforcement. Not just here in California but across the country.

WHITFIELD: And then to Van's point, Avery, we talk about quick response but the quick response only comes now as a result of things like this being caught on camera. In this case news helicopter, we're talking about the South Carolina case one week ago today, with Walter Scott who's now being laid to rest.

If not for the videotape of an innocent bystander and passerby we wouldn't be having this kind of dialog. What does this tell you about either the state of relations between police and the communities in which they serve or the state of this nation being very watchful and catching things on videotape revealing some very tough things to watch?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: : Well, you know, it really digs even deeper than that, Fredricka. It goes to the police academies that are now training officers. You have to assume if you're in law enforcement that there's a video watching. If it's not one set up by the government it's one involving citizens.

The whole approach essentially would be if you wouldn't do something like that in front of your mother, for example, don't do it in public because you're going to get caught. Frankly the Michael -- the Scott/Slager case is so important, I think it's a game changer on where law enforcement will be dealing with these kind of issues.

WHITFIELD: In what way? You mean in terms of from the very beginning in terms of training of police officers, looking at the character of a potential, you know, police officer recruit, or having a more watchful entity of officers once they are wearing the badge. I mean what do you mean by that in terms of game changers?

FRIEDMAN: I think what it means is that there's been an assumption if you go into law enforcement basically you got a free pass. If something is going to going to happen, no one is going to catch you. Right now given citizen video, given the nature of scrutiny through video, police officers better play it straight or else we're going to see these kind of events replicated time and time again.

WHITFIELD: And Van has there been an erosion maybe even of the nobility of a police officer, the feeling by many people in various communities, there is a lack of respect, there isn't a feeling of trust the police officers when you have videotaped imagery like this, it certainly doesn't help the cause?

JONES: Well, I think that unfortunately that may be happening. I think we may be going through a cultural re-set which in the end of the day may wind up being healthy. They just said -- listen, a police officer is not a saint or superhero. A police officer is a city employee doing a very, very tough job and you have a range, some are excellent, some are not, some are incredibly honest, some not.

The incentives right now are for police officers to actually be less than honest on a police report if they did something wrong. They don't want to get in trouble. They don't want to go to jail.

Let's start treating police officers as human beings who can make mistakes. The reason you're having such outrage right now is because this idea of a free pass you have on a blue uniform has I think been in the eyes of many people abuse.

I want to point out some cultural shifts. You saw "Time magazine" with the headline "Black Lives Matter". That was surprising to see a Time magazine adopting the slogan of some of the protests. You saw indigo go and go fund me refuse to put up a crowd sourcing for this officer even though the officer that killed Mike Brown I think got a million dollars online. So you're starting to see realignment now on line with mainstream media -- a re-set now culturally that not every police officer should be seen as a saint or superhero.

WHITFIELD: All right. Van Jones --

Avery Friedman, thanks so much and Avery I know you're going to be back with us because I certainly want to ask from your perspective how does a defense attorney and right now we know it to be Andy Savage, a prominent Charleston South Carolina attorney, represent a Michael Slager in a case like this high profile in a case in which a police officer just three days after people are to learn of it, is now facing murder charges and in jail.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

WHITFIELD: All right. Avery thanks so much. Van appreciate you from Los Angeles as well.

[11:09:51] All right. Still ahead: it was a simple handshake between President Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro. But the symbolism continues to resonate worldwide. We'll have a live report from Panama next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. This just in to CNN. We are learning a second suspect has been arrested in connection with a Kansas man's plot to bomb a U.S. army base. The Justice Department says Alexander Blair knew about John Booker's plan to detonate a car bomb at Fort Riley but didn't report it.

Meanwhile Booker who is 20 years old known as Mohammad Abdullah, Hasan known as Mohammad Abdullah Hassan is charged with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, attempting to damage property by means of an explosive and attempting to provide material support to ISIS. The FBI says it was Booker's Facebook post that first got their attention last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARRY GRISSOM, U.S. ATTORNEY: This particular defendant has been under investigation for some time by the FBI's joint terrorism task force. And it's alleged that since March of this year, he's been plotting to construct an explosive device for an attack on American soil. He repeatedly stated his desire to engage in violent jihad on behalf of the Islamic state of Iraq, otherwise known as ISIL.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN law enforcement analyst, Tom Fuentes is on the phone with us right now. All right. So Tom, this case had a very detailed federal surveillance. The Feds apparently have been watching Booker since his comments on Facebook last year when he called killing in jihad a, quote, adrenaline rush. And now you have the second arrest of a 28-year-old who apparently knew of his alleged plan. What does this tell you about the detail of this alleged plot?

[11:15:01] TOM FUENTES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, it tells you how much the intent was there on his part to actually conduct this attack. And actually it wasn't the FBI that monitored the Facebook account -- a private citizen called the FBI and said that they had seen these postings and were disturbed and notified the FBI to look into it and the investigation started a year ago in March 2014.

So the FBI went and interviewed him and, you know, said are you serious? Because these cases are actually nuisance -- the FBI has hundreds of these cases where people are putting out the postings and they don't know if they're just bragging or not. They actually go check them out. And so here he knew the FBI was looking at him and still decided he was going to go forward and telling people he was going to join the army so that he could do an attack and kill high- ranking officers once inside the army.

WHITFIELD: So, you know, apparently before the arrest, he, Booker, allegedly met with this federal agent, obviously he didn't know it was a federal agent, but if investigators have been looking at him for at least a year, is it odd or is this fairly, you know, normal in your view that an arrest would come one year later? Why was there not enough perhaps is the question a year ago if they already -- if flags were already raised about his potential involvement?

FUENTES: Because they ended up getting two informants in to dealing with him in this case and they wanted to make sure that they wouldn't have a defense to say I was just kidding, I didn't mean it. They don't help the person do the plot. They afford him the opportunity to do what he's already said he wants to do which is, conduct the attack. He was scheduled to actually enter the army this month in April, but when the army learned and the FBI notified the army of what this was about they terminated his entry a month ago.

So once that happened he decided that's it, I'm going to assemble a bomb and put it in the trunk of my car and be a suicide bomber and crash the gate and blow it up.

The other subject that's been arrested in connection with it knew that that's what he wanted to do, helped him rent a garage space where he could store the explosive that he was going to acquire and provided significant help to him. It was more than just he knew about it and didn't inform the authorities. He knew about it and was helping him go forward with this even though he wasn't going to be a bomber himself.

WHITFIELD: So this 20-year-old John Booker arrested; a second arrest of 28-year-old Alexander Blair. In your view might there be others?

FUENTES: Not that that I know of. I think this had gone pretty far and I'm not aware or they would have probably already been arrested. I think there was enough time here for the FBI to be certain that these were the two and only the two involved in this and to go ahead and make the arrest and terminate the case.

Don't forget when the arrest is made, he believes he's got the bomb in the car and is on his way to go detonate.

WHITFIELD: All right. Tom Fuentes thanks so much for being with us. Appreciate it. And we'll be right back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:21:55] WHITFIELD: All right. We move now to a historic turn in U.S./CUBA relations. President Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro shaking hands several times at a summit in Panama. Today the two leaders may sit down face to face and that would mark the first high- level talks between these two countries since 1959 when Vice President Richard Nixon met with then Prime Minister Fidel Castro. Peter Kornbluh is in Panama City. He is the author of "Back Channel to Cuba". So Peter on -- the phone with me on the phone with me now, what is the impact if these two leaders, indeed, meet face to face, break bread so to speak and talk?

PETER KORNBLUH, AUTHOR: Right. I have an image of them strolling in the gardens and smoking a (inaudible) together that Raul Castro has brought as a peace offering to the United States. But as I understand it they may be meeting right now as we're speaking. This would be the first actual substantive meeting between these two presidents. They've already made history by being in a conference room together. And, of course, there was a meeting between foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez and secretary of state John Kerry on Thursday night.

You just have a succession of events here in panama of changing the course of U.S./Cuban relations, putting the perpetual hostility of the past in the past and opening the door to, as Obama himself has said, a new era, a new beginning in U.S./Cuban relations.

WHITFIELD: So then what would they be talking about? Because this isn't the first time we've seen them in each other's company. Recall during the Nelson Mandela funeral, they actually shook hands then and that was quite seismic. But give us an idea if you could, what would their dialog be? how much would they be talking about the future or the plans, the vision that the two of them see for a better U.S./Cuba working relationship?

KORNBLUH: I can tell you that they are talking about the specifics of actually normalizing first diplomatic relations and then normalizing kind of overall relations and this is the first actual opportunity for the two of them to talk to each other about this momentous day on December 17th, 2014, when they went on their respective television stations and addressed their nations and said we are changing our relationship and moving forward towards normal relations.

And so putting the difficulties that have kind of, you know, consolidated over more than 55 years of acrimonious hostility in U.S. policy towards Cuba, kind of in the past, is not an easy thing. it's not something as Obama has said is going to happen overnight, but the fact that Obama himself is willing to discuss these things face to face with Raul Castro is a completely different kind of mode of coexistence. it's a sign of a respectful approach, a civil approach, to Cuba that I think will go a long way towards advancing the interests the United States has in opening up Cuba's economy, more market orientation to addressing the issue of human rights in Cuba and eventually having an impact on the political system there down the line as well.

WHITFIELD: And Peter, those are grand ideas but even as you look at the images there that are being played back over and over again, if we can look at them one more time, I don't know if you're getting the chance to see the return but looking at the body language and looking at the eye contact between President Obama and Raul Castro, and they appear to hold on to this eye contact as the hands continue to be clutched.

We're looking at a still image but it really does speak volumes, does it not, of just how amicable it looks between these two men?

KORNBLUH: You have to give credit to the President of the United States. He really has gone out of his way, both privately and publicly, to make it clear that the United States wants a new beginning with Cuba. In his first public remarks here in panama yesterday, made at the hotel where I'm staying, the Panama Hotel. He said, I am glad to have Cuba at this summit and, of course, it's been the United States for over 20 years since the summit process began in the early 1990s that has excluded Cuba from the summit.

So this summit marks a historical turning point, a point where Cuba is formally reincorporated into the American system and when the United States drops its opposition to try to isolate Cuba because in the end we've only ended up isolating ourselves in the region, I think the body language is important.

WHITFIELD: Significant.

KORNBLUH: Obama is a head taller than Raul Castro, he's always looking down on him as you see in the pictures, but I think when there's --

WHITFIELD: But there's a little smile from Raul Castro a couple of times there too.

KORNBLUH: Absolutely. And of course, when they met last night at this kind of reception function at the summit, they were kind of shepherded together there with the U.N. council and lots of presidents from the countries around and, you know, it's clearly a turning point for the region, for the United States and for Cuba here in Panama.

WHITFIELD: Wow. Incredible. I love your perspective. Thank you so much, Peter Kornbluh. you put us in the room there. Appreciate it.

We'll have much more right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:31:19] WHITFIELD: Happening right now in the News Room, a caught on tape, Christian family band members in an all out brawl with police that turned deadly.

The family of eight is seen in a fight with police officers in a Walmart parking lot as police use Tasers, pepper spray, even tackled them and then shots are fired, plus...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Holy --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I look out the window and I saw and it was -- it was huge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The massive cleanup after the devastation from those giant tornadoes in Illinois.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who do you think will be here to help pick up?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And attack on a plane?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLIVER MINATEL, ATTACKED ON PLANE: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With what?

MINATEL: With a -- I don't know, a rope or something that he has.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A soccer player taking a nap on a pre-game flight to Atlanta says he wakes up to a complete stranger trying to strangle him.

News Room continues right now.

All right. Good morning again, everyone. Thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Video of Officer Slager's, Michael Slager's actions moments after the shooting in South Carolina raises even more troubling question. Slager is seen apparently dropping something near Walter Scott's body. This is North Charleston last Saturday. Was that routine or was Officer Slager trying to plant evidence to justify the shooting.

Kyung Lah reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Officer Michael Slager shooting Walter Scott is shocking enough, but it is this moment, says Los Angeles Defense Attorney Darren Kavinoky, that is something he's never seen.

DARREN KAVINOKY, LOS ANGELES DEFENSE ATTORNEY: It looks like the officer is dropping an object. We see him drop the taser there or what appears to be a taser. I've never have the kind of corroborating evidence that this particular piece of tape represents, but I've heard the complaints over and over and over again. It's a common experience.

LAH: Frequent claims by suspects alleging police planting evidence have been difficult to prove. In the late 1990s, more than 70 officers in the LAPD's Rampart division were implicated in tampering with and planting evidence in thousands of cases. Officers were fired or prosecuted but the public never saw the LAPD planting evidence. With more smartphones, more cameras and policing, there's more video capturing how police engage with the public.

Earliar this year, dashcam video captures a police stop in suburban Detroit. Inkster police officer William Melendez approaches, gun drawn. 57-year-old Floyd Dent opens his car door and is dragged out. The police officer then repeatedly punches Dent in the head.

In the police report, Melendez says he was only protectin himself. After seeing the video, the judge dismissed resisting arrest and assault charges against Dent. The video also captures Officer Melendez handling what appears to be a plastic bag. He says he retrieved it from underneath the passenger seat but Dent's lawyer alleges the police planted drugs and charged Dent with possession of crack cocaine.

Officer Melendez is now on paid administrative duties while the city and state investigates.

HARRY HOUCK, RETIRED NYPD DETECTIVE: Does it happen? Yes, it happens. Does it happen often? No. It's very, very rare like something like that does occur.

LAH: Harry Houck is a retired NYPD detective. When he was an officer, he worked for the department's internal affairs. He says just like there are bad people, there are bad cops. What haunts Houck now, a fired officer's video appearance in court.

[11:35:07] HOUCK: What really caught my eyes is the stoic look on his face. I saw no emotion. Here was a man standing here who just murdered a man as a police officer, standing there with no emotion at all. I thought that was very, very telling to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: As far as whether or not there has been any sort of effort to track this nationally, we couldn't find anything comprehensive done, not by any governmental agency or an outside agency. Now, defense attorneys and activist have long held the belief that this may be predominantly affecting poor minority communities, But there's just no data to support that.

Kyung Lah, CNN Los Angeles.

WHITFIELD: And the road to 2016, the reintroduction of Hillary Clinton, why we could see a different side of a candidate who's expected to announce her bid for the White House tomorrow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Robust would be one way to describe Dr. Ellsworth Wareham. The 100-year-old retired heart surgeon occasionally does his own yard work, he walks regularly, still drives.

GUPTA: You drove here today?

DR. ELLSWORTH WAREHAM, CENTURION: Driving is nothing. I worked till I was 95, assisting, mind you.

GUPTA: Yes.

WAREHAM: I could have done heart surgery, but it wouldn't have been fair to the patient because sometimes you need reserve strength. And if you gave me something to memorize, I would memorize it just as quickly now as I would when I was 20.

GUPTA: How is your health?

WAREHAM: Oh, superb. I haven't got an acre or a pain.

GUPTA: The great-grandfather believes his plant-based diet plays a big part in all this.

WAREHAM: If your blood cholesterol is under 150, your chances of having a heart attack are pretty small. Now my blood cholesterol is 117. There's no chance of me having a heart attack.

GUPTA: So you're heart attack proof?

WAREHAM: Well let us say I'm dealing in an area which I understand.

[11:40:01] GUPTA: Perhaps another key to Wareham's longevity, not letting problems weigh him down.

How big a role does stress play in your life and...

WAREHAM: You asked the wrong person. I have a philosophy, you do the best you can and the things you can't do anything about, don't give any thought to them.

GUPTA: What motivates you nowadays?

WAREHAM: I feel that if I have to make a contribution. When I was doing surgery, I made it by operating. Now I try to make it by speaking about preventive medicine.

GUPTA: And showing people just what 100 years old can look like.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHTIFIELD: All right. That's incredible inspiration. All right, well tomorrow, politics takes a new turn, Hillary Clinton expected to make that huge announcement that she is going to be doing via social media. Sources say the former Secretary of State, senator, and First Lady will be launching her bid for the White House via online video. CNN's Sunlen Serfaty, live for us right now in Washington.

So, Sunlen, what's first on the agenda for the candidate as she makes this roll out.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, first up, Fred will be the video announcement which will be released at some point tomorrow, then she's expected to get ride out on the campaign show, hitting the early states, making her first stop in Iowa. But look out for at the start of this roll out, for Clinton to be placed in smaller, more intimate settings. This will be an attempt by the campaign to try to highlight her softer side to re-introduce her to the American voters.

But she is no doubt coming into this campaign, Fred, bruised. There's been all these controversy over her private e-mail server while she was Secretary of State, and her issue of trustworthiness has also taken a big hit in the poles. Republicans have already been pouncing. Today, Republicans pushing Jeb Bush and Senator Ted Cruz, they've already set fundraising e-mails to supporters trying to raise money off of her roll out.

And yesterday, an NRA convention was brought out on nearly every potential Republican contender. We saw a preview of the kinds of arguments they'll make.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR TED CRUZ, (R) REPRESENTATIVE CANDIDATE: Is this the ready- for-Hillary gathering? You know, we had good news ready for Hillary had their first hire, the head of e-mail security.

GOVERNOR BOBBY JINDAL, (R) LOUISIANA: But, you know, I understand Hillary's about to announce her candidacy this weekend. I wonder what her slogan's going to be? I suspect it won't be fore four more years...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: And polls show that Clinton enters this race with a big lead over possible democratic challengers, one of those being potentially former Democratic Governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley. In Iowa last night, he told reporters he believe Clinton is not unbreakable.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTON O'MALLEY, FORMER MARYLAND GOVERNOR: I seen that happen before in the state, history's full of examples where the inevitable front runner was inevitable right up until she does not longer or he was no longer inevitable. And the challenger emerges very often times here in Iowa. And so that's why Iowa's such and important state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: And it's this issue of inevitability that is one of the big reasons that we're seeing Clinton come out and make this sort of tailored low key announcement tomorrow, Fred.

WHITFEILD: OK. It's going to be something to watch, Hillary Clinton's campaign announcement. Thanks so much, Sunlen.

It will be the focus of a special two-hour edition of state of the union, and that all starts Sunday noon, Eastern time.

Also, still ahead, we're getting our first take -- first look rather at a violent brawl outside a Walmart in Arizona. A fight breaking up between police and eight members of the same family, then shots are fired. Details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:46:21] WHITFIELD: Right now, for a look at some other top stories making news, families are beginning to return home after a train derails in South Carolina. It happened Friday night near Trenton. According to reports, 39 cars derailed, one of them spilling ammonia nitrate. Thankfully, no injuries have been reported. And officials will continue to clean up today. The cause of the derailment is still under investigation.

And the U.S. has lending its voice to an outcry for China to release five women's right activist. In a statement Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry told China to, "support them, not silence them". The women have been held for a month on suspicion of picking corals and provoking troubles. Those are the charges. Prosecutors must decide by Monday if they will be formally arrested.

And take me out to the ball game, but wake me up when it's over. Last night's, or should I say this morning, Yankees-Red Sox game lasted 19 innings, taking the game well in to 2:00 a.m., a partial power outage and extra innings didn't help matter. In the end, sleepy Sox fans we're happy that they did stay up for it, busted outlasted New York, 6 to 5. The teams face off again this afternoon if they can keep their eyes open.

All right. A napping passenger on an Atlanta-bound plain says he was jolted awake by a man trying to strangle him. The victim is a professional soccer player from Brazil who was traveling with his teammates. And witnesses, including a CNN reporter who was on that plane, say the suspect was sitting behind the victim, when suddenly he wrapped the chord of his earphones around the man's neck.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC DOS SANTOS, HEAD COACH, OTTOWA FURY: We're going from Toronto to Atlanta to play a game in Atlanta and we were in the plane, very quiet. Everything seemed OK, you know, guys were watching some videos and others were playing cards together. And suddenly everybody gets up a little bit screaming, you know.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He actually tried to strangle you?

MINATEL: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With what?

MINATEL: With a -- I don't know, a rope or something that he has.

DOS SANTOS: What he had said, he was sitting behind him and he just, he just went after him and tried to choke him.

MINATEL: I forced it down and then other people came to help and then I went out, and the he started saying, "We were here to kill them," and stuff.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And you have no indication that there was a problem with...

MINATEL: No. No. I was sleeping.

KEVIN KERR, PASSENGER: It's not what you really expect when you're on a business trip like this.

DOS SANTOS: It was like a movie, you know. It's -- we don't expect that when we just come to train and play and play a soccer game.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:50:13] WHITFIELD: Unbelievable. The FBI says the man was escorted off the plane when it landed and was taken for medical and mental evaluation.

All right, Arizona Police have just released dash cam video that shows a brawl between police and a family, some of whom are members in a Christian music band. It happened in a Walmart parking lot late last month. And now one man is dead, seven others are injured, and a police officer was also shot.

Report Pete Suratos of CNN affiliate KNXV has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to separate these folks and talk to them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, you're not going to get -- you're not going to separate...

PETE SURATOS, ABC15 NEWS: It's our first look at the intense brawl between Cottonwood police and a family of eight. That family attacking officers in this Walmart parking lot back in March after they were accused of assaulting a Walmart employee just moments before

Officers try to subdue the family, repeatedly tasing them, spraying pepper spray, and even tackling them.

They had help from a Walmart worker and two other, but they had little luck. The family finding different ways to continually attack these officers, rolling on the ground when tased and wiping away that pepper spray.

CHIEF JODY FANNING, COTTONWWOD, ARIZONA POLICE: Firstly, I've never seen that tactic applied so I'm not certain where they learned it. Obviously, somebody has taught them that.

SURATOS: Time and time again, the family put their hands up pretending to surrender but they never do.

And then during this fight, shots were fired. The first shot, according to police, is one of the suspect shooting the officer in the leg. Another shot is an officer shooting the suspect who is now deceased. And on the topic of civilians, how close is too close. This is a Walmart employee, Eric Fields, helping police fighting off the family. I asked if this is something regular folks just steer clear from instead of jumping in.

FANNING: We are very familiar with Mr. Fields from Walmart because of our interactions with him at lost prevention at Walmart, so the officers are very familiar with him. The other two gentlemen that approached, they were very non-threatening.

SURATOS: Six of the family members were arrested, two of them juvenile, facing a variety of charges, including assaults of an officer and resisting arrest. That injured officer has been released from the hospital and is recovering from his injuries.

This case is still under investigation with DPS.

In Cottonwood, Pete Suratos, ABC15 News.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Pete Suratos, thank you so much. We'll talk more about that next hour.

Also, still ahead, parts of Northern Illinois are cleaning up from the destruction cost by deadly tornadoes. CNN's Nick Valencia is live for us in Fairdale which was one of the hard-hit areas, Nick.

NICK VALENCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Fred. We're hearing incredible stories of survival and people helping during tragedy.

I'm Nick Valencia in Fairdale, Illionois. We'll share with you one of those silver lining stories right after the break. You're watching the CNN News ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:56:51: WHITFIELD: Residents in Northern Illinois have a huge task ahead as they clean up from several tornadoes Thursday night. The twister that devastated the small town of Fairdale has been initially rated now an EF4 by the National Weather Services, that's the second most powerful rating with winds of up to 200 miles an hour. Two women who were neighbors died in their homes and dozens of other homes were destroyed or severely damaged. CNN's Nick Valencia is in Fairdale. So, Nick, you actually met a woman who lost her home and Facebook ended really being her salvation in what way?

VALENCIA: Yeah, the salvation of social media. Loryn Hintzsche thought she lost everything, so the next morning on Friday, right after that tornado hit, she took to social media not only to vent her frustrations but also to ask for help And Fred, what she learned is that even in tragedy, there's always someone willing to lend a helping hand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have a friend's camper coming...

VALENCIA: A day after her home was destroyed, Loryn Hintzsche found help.

LORYN HINTZSCHE, TONADO SURVIVOR: Family, friends, I'm a school teacher so a lot of school teachers came out for us today.

VALENCIA: On Friday morning, word quickly spread on social media that her home in Lindenwood, Illinois was one of dozens leveled by an EF4 tornado.

HINTZSCHE: I just put it out on Facebook, and just said, "Hey, we're fine but this is what we need," and, you know, people just came out this morning.

VALENCIA: One by one, neighbors, family and friends all showed up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're just thankful to be here helping up. It's a wonderful thing, and all of these people coming up.

VALENCIA: Some, with gifts.

HINTZSCHE: You know, I had a porta-potty here before I knew it. I had containers and trailers.

VALENCIA: Others, to help her pick up priceless possessions.

HINTZSCHE: Oh, I know. My heart (inaudible). I was so -- I saw it down in the garage, I'm like, "Oh please, be OK. Please be OK." Between that and my running shoes, that's what I was worried about.

VALENCIA: Everyone seemed to show up with something.

HINTZSCHE: Tons of foods donated, so if you're hungry please stop and get something.

VALENCIA: Her small farmhouse maybe uninhabitable for now, but even still she has plans to rebuild.

HINTZSCHE: Well, it's probably OK kind of for now because obviously that's still -- the roof is still -- I mean there is something over the top of that... VALENCIA: Hintzsche wasn't at home at the time of the tornado, but her husband was...

How long have you been here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About 17 years. 18 years, I guess.

VALENCIA: Long enough to form some pretty strong bonds with people who want to help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pretty neat, really.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: Back here on this block in Fairdale, residents are slowly showing up to salvage what little there is left. You see those gentlemen here. This is probably one of the worst structures that was damaged, Fredricka. This is a wielding shop, also an apartment on top. And you see that gentleman in the green sweater that just lifted up that piece of debris, he was actually in that white truck when that EF4 tornado hit. He took refuge with his family in that car. We're going to try to get him on in the 1:00 p.m. Easter hour of the CNN News Room to hear his incredible story of surviving.

Fred?

[1:59:59] WHITFIELD: Incredible indeed. Look forward to -- thanks so much, Nick Valencia in Fairdale.

And we have so much more straight ahead in the News Room and it all starts right now.