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Another 7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Nepal; NFL Suspends Tom Brady, Slams Patriots with $1 Million Fine; U.S. Intel: ISIS Leader Still in Charge; George Zimmerman Involved in Road Rage Shooting. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired May 12, 2015 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:01] CAMEROTA: That's wonderful.

CUOMO: And rare.

PEREIRA: Yes. Very rare.

CAMEROTA: That's a great story.

CUOMO: Legally and ethically rare.

CAMEROTA: Nice.

PEREIRA: All right. Let's carry on with the day. It's time for "NEWSROOM" and Carol Costello.

Good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Have a great day.

NEWSROOM starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Happening now in the NEWSROOM, not again. Another powerful earthquake hits Nepal. This is what it looked like the moment the 7.3 quake hit. We're monitoring the situation on the ground.

Also, someone shot at George Zimmerman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said, I do not have a phone, I have a gun, I shot George Zimmerman, please call 911. I shot George Zimmerman.

COSTELLO: A bullet hole through his truck. The former neighborhood watch man injured by flying glass. What is up with this?

Plus, suspending a superstar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is the greatest of all-time. Are you kidding me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's too much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just -- it's wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that's a little bit excessive.

COSTELLO: Pats' fans sound off after learning QB Tom Brady will not start the season, suspended for four games over deflategate.

CONAN O'BRIEN, HOST, "CONAN": They're going to punish him by making him stay at home in his mansion with his supermodel wife -- and think about what he did wrong.

COSTELLO: Do you think the punishment is fair?

Let's talk. Live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And good morning, I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

Another powerful earthquake rocks Nepal. The 7.3 magnitude quake striking some 11 miles deep, this time near the border with China. Panic in Katmandu. People flooding the streets as the violent shaking began. One man was giving a speech in parliament at the time, terrified audience members seen fleeing the building.

It's only been three weeks since the quake killed 8,000 people across the region. At least 39 have died today in Nepal and neighboring India.

Our senior international correspondent Ivan Watson is in Hong Kong with more.

Good morning.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. This is really sad news to have to report. Just a little bit more than two weeks ago Nepal had the deadliest earthquake it has seen in generations and now a little bit more than two weeks later, boom, a 7.3 magnitude earthquake hitting this impoverished mountainous country. The -- the Nepalese government says that now it's about eight hours since the earthquake hit and they've already counted at least 36 dead, some 1100 or more wounded.

Now I was there two weeks ago. I saw how frightened people were. They were all sleeping outdoors in makeshift tents. Whenever there'd be an aftershock you'd hear the entire city of Katmandu screaming in fear. So people had just started to get a little bit more comfortable. They just started to trust their homes and buildings again, and boom, this thing hits. It has brought down buildings that were already damaged and made vulnerable by the initial earthquake.

There have already been a series of frightening aftershocks and it has triggered landslides and avalanches, but there's maybe a silver lining here and that is that the search and rescue teams were already mobilized. There was help from other countries. The U.S. Marines are there. The Indian Air Force has helicopters there. They have already begun evacuating some of the wounded from surrounding towns and villages. And there's a lot of disaster relief material that's already there to help Nepal through this real time of crisis -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Ivan Watson reporting for us. Thank you so much.

Now to the secretary general of the Norwegian Red Cross, Asne Havnelid. She is in Nepal right now.

Welcome.

ASNE HAVNELID, SECRETARY GENERAL, NORWEGIAN RED CROSS: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Asne, tell us what it's like on the ground there.

HAVNELID: I am now in the field hospital for the Norwegian Red Cross in the small city, about two miles from the epicenter. And the people here are in shock. The population here at the hospital, it's been rough, a lot of injured people coming in all the time. We have taken more than 50 patients today. And in this city the buildings have collapsed. The building that (INAUDIBLE) collapsed. And people are really afraid and scared. They have no place to go, so we have also people camped outside the hospital. We have people that is not hurt, can be take (sic) tonight.

COSTELLO: Ivan Watson says there is help on the ground. Is there enough help, Asne?

HAVNELID: Well, the Red Cross had (INAUDIBLE) nations we can hear. There is a lot of people that need help and the helicopters are flying in with wounded people to the hospital, so our doctors and nurses, they work and try to treat as many as possible. But it's important that we help the Nepalese people not only now and then release them, and they will need help for a long time.

[09:05:32] COSTELLO: Asne Havnelid from the Norwegian Red Cross, thank you so much and thank you for your fine work on the ground.

To find out how you can help victims of both earthquakes in Nepal, head to CNN.com/impact.

Here in the United States families continue sifting through debris following a deadly tornado outbreak. In all five people died and dozens more were injured over the weekend. Two of those deaths were here in Van, Texas. The twister damaging more than 30 percent of the homes in this tight-knit community. Three people who have been unaccounted for, though, have been found alive.

On to football now. Sidelined and slapped with a million dollar fine. The New England Patriots standing by star quarterback Tom Brady after the NFL decides to issue a four-game suspension over the deflategate controversy. In addition to that $1 million penalty, the Patriots will forfeit their first-round draft pick next year. Brady's agency already blasting the decision, calling it ridiculous with no legitimate basis.

Let's bring our CNN sports correspondent Coy Wire with more on this.

Good morning, Coy.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Yes, the NFL is hitting Tom Brady with this unprecedented suspension, and the league says that, among other reasons, they're handing down this harsh punishment because they must protect the integrity of the game.

In a letter to Brady, an NFL executive vice president of Football Operations, Troy Vincent, said that Brady's actions, as they were described in the Wells report, were considered conduct detrimental to the integrity of the game of football.

Now Brady's agent Don Yee said they plan to appeal the suspension. He said in a statement, "The discipline is ridiculous and has not legitimate basis. The NFL lacks standards or protocols with respect to its handling of footballs prior to games. This is not the fault of Tom or the Patriots. We will appeal."

Now Vincent's letter to the Patriots mentioned the team's prior record, meaning spy-gate scandal in 2007. That was a factor in determining the discipline. But this time the punishment is much harsher.

Here's how the deflategate compares to spygate. The Patriots are the only franchise since 1980 to be stripped of a first-round pick, and now it's happened to them twice. The NFL quadrupled the fine to the Patriots this time around.

Now it's obvious that Patriots owner Robert Kraft will not be getting that apology from the NFL that he asked for before the Super Bowl and he's not happy. He released a statement last night condemning the league's action, saying, "Today's punishment far exceeded any reasonable expectation. It was based completely on circumstantial rather than hard or conclusive evidence. Tom Brady has our unconditional support. Our belief in him has not wavered."

Now reaction to Brady's suspension has been mixed on social media. Patriots running back teammate Lee Garrett Blunt backed Brady up. "This is absolutely ridiculous. Shaking my head. Pats nation, stand up." But one of the league's best defenders, Cardinals' cornerback Patrick Peterson backed the league, tweeting, "Well done, NFL."

And Giants punter, Steve Weatherford, questioned some of the rhetoric surrounding the suspension. "Tom Brady suspended four games, that's just ridiculous. They are comparing it to steroid use. Preposterous." A lot of strong opinions out there and one thing is for certain with Brady's agent coming out yesterday saying that Brady will appeal the suspension.

This conversation isn't going anywhere -- Carol.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: All right. Quickly now. What can we expect out of this appeals process? WIRE: Well, his agent Don Yee and Brady have three days to appeal so

we could see that happen today, but the big question is about, who will oversee the appeals process? Will it be Goodell, known to be a friend of owner Robert Kraft, who's also one of the 32 men that employ and pay Goodell's salary? Or will it be a neutral arbitrator, likely a federal judge, who will look into the findings of the Wells report, the punishments that were given out and likely consider any challenges to that investigation.

I know we have David Cornwell coming on and I can't wait to hear his perspective and insight about how this process will go down.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. Coy Wire, many thanks to you. I appreciate it.

Let's just say a lot of Patriots fans are wicked mad over the NFL's decision, many of them already taking to Twitter to defend Brady saying this penalty goes way too far.

Online the #noBradynobanner has gone viral, the message do not raise the championship banner at Gillette Stadium until Brady is back on the field. You can't blame them. Come on, would you want to take a chance on Jimmy Garoppolo? He's expected to be the team's starting quarterback in Brady's absence.

Of course Pats fans aren't the only ones weighing in. New York Giants quarterback, Eli Manning, says while he is not happy to see Brady suspended the NFL has a responsibility to uphold the integrity of the game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELI MANNING, QUARTERBACK, NEW YORK GIANTS: You know, the football, I think it is about integrity and you have to follow the rules, and so if someone is breaking the rules, I understand you -- you're going to get punished for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:10:24] COSTELLO: Joining me now, someone who thinks the suspension goes way too far. Former New England Patriots linebacker Chad Brown. I'm also joined by sports attorney, David Cornwell. He's in Atlanta.

Welcome to both of you. So --

DAVID CORNWELL, SPORTS ATTORNEY: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, Chad, you're a Patriots guy. Of course you think this penalty goes too far.

CHAD BROWN, FORMER NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS LINEBACKER: No, I'm not saying the Patriots (INAUDIBLE), or in the sense that I think this is an absurd punishment. I understand the league has to do something when the team and Tom has not fully cooperated with the investigation. This punishment isn't so much about the inflation or deflation of footballs, this punishment is the fact that when Roger Goodell calls you to the principal's office in New York, you are supposed to go, and if you don't go, then you are interfering with the integrity of the league.

COSTELLO: So what do you think should have been a fair punishment, Chad?

BROWN: I'm thinking that after the appeal process, if Tom does appeal, which I am expecting him to do, and he goes up there and admits or has some sort of admission, that the suspension would be brought down to about two games, which seems about right for the circumstance.

COSTELLO: So, David, let's pretend for a moment that you're Tom Brady's agent. What's your next step?

CORNWELL: Well, certainly you filed an appeal, and you make the point that, listen, I understand the importance of the integrity of the game, but I didn't do this. The problem is that Tom didn't cooperate, so Don Yee can challenge the integrity of the process and call people names all that he wants, but until Tom comes forward with the information that Ted Wells asked him to during the investigation, then no one in the league office really is going to pay much attention to Don Yee stomping his feet and holding his breath.

Tom deserves a fair hearing on appeal. But when he does -- when he comes on his appeal, he has to give the information that controverts or rebuts the circumstantial evidence that suggests that he was involved.

COSTELLO: So in other words, David, Tom Brady should turn over his texts, right? Why didn't he just do that? And then my -- the second part of that is who should be in charge of that appeals process, that hearing?

CORNWELL: Well, I think they'll spend some good time talking about finding the right person to hear the appeal so that the integrity of the appeal process is protected just as Troy protected the integrity of the game. But Tom says, I didn't do it, and Ted Wells says, let me see your text messages, I think those are important. Tom doesn't turn them over. The presumption is until he does, that those text messages are incriminating. So the first thing he has to do is either turn over the text messages, or I think he is going to have to take his medicine.

COSTELLO: Chad Brown and David Cornwell, thanks to both of you. I appreciate it.

Still --

CORNWELL: Thank you.

COSTELLO: You're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, was the head of ISIS injured in an airstrike? There are reports out there suggesting he was terribly injured, but was he? We'll talk about that next.

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[09:16:32] COSTELLO: For weeks rumors have been circulating that the leader of ISIS was seriously injured in an air strike. "The Guardian" was first to report Abu Bakr al Baghdadi was hit with shrapnel and suffered spinal damage back in March, but U.S. officials say the reclusive leader remains firmly in charge of ISIS.

Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us now with more on this. Good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. This all really has gotten our attention because these reports keep circulating in the media, circulating online, and the ground truth may be difficult to determine. But we spent time talking to a number of U.S. officials, and here is what they tell us.

Right now, they say, they have no intelligence in the U.S. intelligence community that al Baghdadi is injured. The rumor has been he was hurt in an air strike in March, but U.S. officials say they just have no information to back that up. What they do say, however, is they have current intelligence showing them that al Baghdadi remains very much in charge of ISIS, that he is issuing orders, that he is ordering operations, that he is in charge day-to- day, that he is the key player in ISIS.

But there is an interesting wrinkle here, as there always is. Look at the picture of these four men. These are the men that, a few days ago, the U.S. government put a bounty on their heads. Millions of dollars in rewards. These are top ISIS operatives, top ISIS planners and leaders. Any one of these guys might someday be the successor to al Baghdadi if he is taken out in a U.S. or coalition air strike. Carol.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live from the Penatgon. Thank you.

Saudi-led air strikes continue to pound rebel held cities across Yemen in the hours before a humanitarian cease-fire kicks in. A five- daybreak from the bloodshed expected to begin in about seven hours, but there are reports that a rocket strike in the country's capital killed 90 people overnight. "The New York Times" reports that more than 1,400 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since Saudi Arabia began air strikes in March. All sides warn they will retaliate if that truce is broken.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just shot George Zimmerman. Please call 911. Really. I'm like, what?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: George Zimmerman shot at. The man who pulled the trigger, next.

[09:19:02]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: George Zimmerman, I am sure more than one person is out there asking, what is up with him? This time, a blood feud coupled with road rage and a gun sent Zimmerman to the hospital. It started on a road in Lake Mary, Florida. The alleged shooter Matthew Apperson told police Zimmerman drove up next to him and waved a gun. Apperson pulled his own gun and blew a hole through Zimmerman's window, the bullet whizzing by Zimmerman's head.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEN CORNELL, WITNESS: Phone. I have a gun. I short George Zimmerman. Please call 911. I short George Zimmerman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Well, Apperson actually missed, but he's still miffed. That's his blowing cigarette smoke into a camera. In the meantime, Zimmerman's lawyer says his client is totally innocent.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DON WEST, ATTORNEY FOR GEORGE ZIMMERMAN: This fellow was taunting and yelling at him and calling him names. "You gonna shoot me now" kind of thing. And I don't know where that came from, but in any event, when George recognized him, realized who he was and what he was saying, he rolled his window up, decided to get away, not to provoke it whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right, joining me now to talk about this, legal analyst Joey Jackson. Hi Joey.

JOEY JACKSON, HLN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: So --

JACKSON: You're not surprised we are talking about this, are you?

COSTELLO: No, I'm not surprised, because George Zimmerman has been in a lot of trouble of late.

JACKSON: Yes, he has. But interestingly enough, although he's had all these brushes with the law before, and we were talking about them before, and I have them here -- July 2013, stopped for speeding in Texas. Gun found, not charged. September 2013, domestic incident with ex-wife. Look, all the stuff you see on the screen here.

But the issue is going to be if he's charged, could it be used in the case? And here's the point. The point is that a person is judged, Carol, from what they did today. Not what you did yesterday, the day before. Character evidence is generally not admissible to show that I did what I'm accused of doing now. You have to prove on the merits that I really did what I did.

So what'll be important is not so much those old cases, which his lawyers seek to exclude, not charged. But if he is, but what will be important is what happened here? Was there a background? Was there a past? And that's important because it goes to the issue of state of mind. In the event that this other person, Apperson, fired a shot, we want to know why? Did he really feel that he was imminently in fear? And if we have a past history, it just may show that I was in imminent fear.

[09:25:00] COSTELLO: Yes, but Apperson is saying Zimmerman waved a gun. So if that's true, couldn't Apperson use "stand your ground" as a defense, which would be totally ironic?

JACKSON: Yes, indeed. It would be very ironic. Now this is going to be interesting because of course it will depend upon was there a gun found, because if you are making a claim there was a gun being waved, there would clearly have to be a gun that was there, unless of course he threw it away or something else.

But the waving of the gun alone is not really going to carry the day; it's whether or not you imminently feared that he would use that gun against you. And so was he menacing him in a way that he felt threatened? And so the state of mind is going to be very critical. And based upon him shooting into that car, was he justified, was he not? We shall see moving forward.

COSTELLO: It's just -- I don't know, it boggles the mind, because George Zimmerman, previous to the Trayvon Martin trial, right, he was never in any trouble. So what happened? I mean, have you ever represented a client like that?

JACKSON: It's a very fair point. Sometimes -- not quite like this. To be fair, not quite like George Zimmerman. Sometimes when people -- I have represented clients who, by the grace of whatever, they end up getting acquitted. And they feel because they are acquitted they have a license and they can come back to you and they could ask you to get them out of trouble again. And then ask you to get them out of trouble again. When sometimes, with your skill, that may do it, and other times it's just happen-circumstance that may do it, having nothing to do at all with your skill as a lawyer. And so we just hope that he behaves, he doesn't engage in actions like this, and we're not here talking about it.

COSTELLO: It's just disturbing that there's gun play on a public roadway, and whether George Zimmerman was threatening this guy or not, he shot through -- allegedly -- shot through a car window on an open road.

JACKSON: It's a big deal. And we see the bullet hole. When you look at that actual van that he had, or the truck that he had, you see a bullet hole. Now it's not clear whether the window was rolled down or what level it was, but clearly when that window's rolled up, you see the hole, and it could have been so much worse than what it was. So what I'd like to know is when they piece it together -- they being the authorities -- who gets charged? Does Apperson get charged for firing the gun? Does George Zimmerman get charged for waving a gun, thereby causing Apperson to fend for himself and fire at him? And so this will all need to be sorted out and will yet to be seen who's charged, if anyone, in this particular case.

COSTELLO: All right, Joey Jackson, many thanks. I appreciate it.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, under review and on edge. Will a Wisconsin police officer face charges today in the killing of an unarmed teenager? CNN's Ryan Young live in Madison.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And for months, people wanted to know what this investigation would reveal, the shooting happening just behind us. I can tell you protesters are already getting ready. We'll have the story coming up in a live report.

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