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Protests, Arrests in St. Louis, Missouri; Couple Dies Hiking in New Mexico, Son Lives; Terror Attack at U.S. Consulate in Turkey; Did Shakespeare Smoke Pot. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired August 10, 2015 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:30:00] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Ed Lavandera, thank you so much.
Steve Rogers, thank you so much, sir.
STEVE ROGERS, RETIRED DETECTIVE, NUTLEY, NEW JERSEY, POLICE DEPARTMENT: You're welcome.
BALDWIN: Coming up next on CNN, French tourist found dead in one of America's most beautiful yet most dangerous national parks especially at this time of the summer. What these two victims did to save their young son who was found alive by rescuers. Plus, arrests under way in Ferguson at the courthouse in St. Louis as
protesters gather there after a night of violence.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:34:52] BALDWIN: All right. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.
Guys, tell me if these are live pictures out of St. Louis? Yes, they are.
These are live pictures. What we're looking at here, I know it's sort of difficult to follow this, but there are currently people being arrested outside of this courthouse. Let me step back. Not too far away from St. Louis you have the city of Ferguson and that was just a year ago that Michael Brown was shot and killed by that police officer, Darren Wilson.
Darren Wilson was not indicted in that whole case but it was certainly a situation that sparked massive protests, the Black Lives Matter protest really sparked there, in and of itself, becoming its own civil rights movement so people were there for the one year honoring Michael Brown's death and calling to action how they feel about community/police relations. Now we're seeing these arrests one day after people gathered and it turned violent in Ferguson.
I have Ryan Reilly on the phone with me. He's a justice reporter for "Huffington Post."
If you can hear me, where exactly are you as we look at these pictures that looks like quite a crowd gathered outside of the courthouse there. RYAN REILLY, JUSTICE REPORTER, HUFFINGTON POST (voice-over): Yeah,
we're at the federal courthouse at the U.S. attorney's office and teamed up with the Justice Department and Civil Rights Division there, investigating the St. Louis county police -- I'm sorry, the Ferguson Police Department and some of the practices that they have there, finding evidence of racist e-mails and a court system designed to take money out of people's pockets rather than bring about public safety.
So what we have here is a number of demonstrators who hopped over the fence and some of them sat in, there was chanting and there was some drums and at first the response was from the police officers who guard federal protective service officers, court security, that sort of thing, who were responding to this. At some point, we saw a large, massive group of police officers from the city move in and that's when the arrests starting taking place. And as people went through, they were being processed and we had the St. Louis police chief on the scene here. At one point, we had some reporters who received permission to go to security and get a better view and when the police chief showed up, we left. Now we have a dozen people who have been taken into custody and it's unclear how long they will be in custody and who exactly they will be taking charges from because there's a potential that there will be a federal misdemeanor charge.
BALDWIN: That's right. Dozens in custody, by your eyeball estimate. Let me back up a second. When you say they hopped the fence, what do you mean?
REILLY: Security gate here, sort of the thing that you see, the extra level of security outside the White House, very similar gates to that and people just sort of went over them. They sat in this area right immediately in front of the courthouse here. We had a number of people sitting in and some were standing up and they had their hands up at one point and everyone was taken into custody.
BALDWIN: Can you tell me -- I don't know how long you have been there amongst some of these people but who are they? Are these similar protesters at Ferguson last night? And what exactly are they saying?
REILLY: I think this is more of a mix. The people who showed up at this event are protesters. These are all protesters. You're not going to have any mixed in. I think what we've seen in the last couple of nights are kids who were mixed in with the crowd, not dedicated protesters. This is a mix of people locally and people who saw what happened and came here to bear witness to that and become part of this movement and brought a bunch of change over the past year.
BALDWIN: So the fact that they are being arrested, the fact that they are hopping over the security fence, what sort of statement do you think they are trying to make? What is their message?
REILLY: Two of the most prominent protesters, Netta and Duray, this is the first time they've been arrested and they've been doing this for a year. I didn't get to speak with them before any of this took place but this is obviously organized action and I think they knew that arrest was certainly a risk to be taken. And so I think this is certainly something that they expected to happen in this situation.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Ryan, I really appreciate you jumping on the phone. Ryan Reilly, from the "Huffington Post." Report dozens of people taken into custody I St. Louis. Ryan, thank you so much. We'll stay in touch with you.
As you see on the screen, someone else right there is being handcuffed and taken away.
Let's move on for now. New Mexico rangers find a woman's body on this isolated desert trail at White Sands National Monument, but little did these deputies know that this woman's husband was dead nearby, both overcome with extreme heat and dehydration, and next to the husband, the 9-year-old son, dehydrated but alive. And it seems this couple had likely saved his life by giving him two sips of water for every one of theirs.
Joining me now, I have Marie Sauter, the superintendent at the White Sands National Monument.
Marie, thank you so much for joining me.
How absolutely horrible. Your staff are the ones who found these bodies and this little boy. Let me begin with him. How is this young boy doing?
[14:40:47] MARIE SAUTER, SUPERINTENDENT, WHITE SANDS NATIONAL MONUMENT (voice-over): Well, I don't have information about him at this time. I do know that he's back with his family in France and I think that's important for everyone to know. And he's doing well.
BALDWIN: How did this happen?
SAUTER: We do know that the family came in sort of midday and were determined to hike on the trail. It's a five-mile trail, about eight kilometers long. They did go out on the trail during one of the hotter times of the day. The temperature that day went up to 101.
BALDWIN: 101 degrees. I was reading about it. You all recommend people, if you're out in the heat of the day, you're supposed to be drinking at least a gallon of water. I know this family had two 20- ounce water bottles. Can you go into more how dangerous the conditions are?
SAUTER: One thing that's really important for everyone to remember is it is a desert. This is a desert park and we're in the heat of the summer right now. We put out as much information as possible for visitors to have and the main point is absolutely a minimum of a gallon or maybe -- and translated, maybe a liter and a half to two liters of visitors per day. Stay covered up. Wear the long-sleeve shirt and put sun block on, sunglasses, a hat, and take snacks with you. There's no water in the back of the park so you want to fill up before you go out, and make sure you have those good safety precautions in place. BALDWIN: French couple passed away because of how entirely hot and
difficult these conditions are. The little boy is OK, at least physically speaking.
Marie Sauter, thank you so much, with the White Sands National Monument.
Coming up next, with U.S. F-16 warplanes arriving in Turkey for the first time. This is for the fight against ISIS. CNN is live with a rare close-up look at the Assad regime. We'll take you live there, next.
Also, we're watching the situation unfolding with a reporter there outside of the federal courthouse in St. Louis, Missouri, not too far from Ferguson. Protesters are gathering. The reporter we spoke with said dozens of people, so far, have been arrested. The latest here coming up on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:47:42] BALDWIN: Word today of a new terror attack inside Turkey at the United States consulate in Istanbul was targeted earlier today by two women armed with long-range weapons.
Let me bring in our senior international correspondent, Fred Pleitgen, live in Damascus, Syria.
Fred, just beginning with that news, that we know the U.S. deployed six fighter jets to Turkey, what more do we know about that attack?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you said, it was carried out by two women. One was apprehended at the scene. The other one, there is a manhunt going on for her. The interesting thing is the group that these two women were affiliated with. This is according to the Turkish government. They say it's a Marxist left-wing extremist group that in 2013 claimed responsibility for an attack on the U.S. embassy and also has called the U.S. the archenemy of those in the Middle East. This comes at a very important time of the U.S. and Turkish relations. The Turks are ramping up their efforts against the PPK as well.
BALDWIN: Fred, you are joining me live from Damascus in Syria. I'm wondering, now that ISIS is getting closer to the city, what are people in Damascus telling you about that?
PLEITGEN: It's been one and a half years since we've been allowed to report here in Syria and the mood is a lot more cautious and skeptical and concerned than it was at that time. Back then, they couldn't fathom that ISIS would come close to Syria. They lost the town of Palmyra and a couple months ago they were spotted here in a district in Syria. People are very, very concerned about what is going on and, at the same time, of course, more and more they are feeling the pinch of the civil war. It takes an hour to fill up your car with gas and there are shortages in things like food. So people are a lot more concerned than they were one and a half years ago -- Brooke?
[14:50:18] BALDWIN: Incredible perspective.
Just shy of 10:00 in the evening. Fred Pleitgen, live in Damascus, Syria, thank you so much.
Still ahead, we're keeping our eyes on the St. Louis federal courthouse here. You're seeing a number of people -- our reporter there on the ground estimated about several dozen people being arrested. A live report straight ahead here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:54:55] BALDWIN: This may be much to do about nothing, but a new study reports that pipes, like the kind that you smoke out of, dug out of William Shakespeare's garden in England, found, quote, "indications of cannabis." The man behind this report -- this is actually the South African Journal of Science, they speculate cannabis -- marijuana, people -- could have inspired some of his works. He points out this line from Sonnet 76 when Shakespeare writes, quote, "Invention in a noted weed." So did the bard like to get baked?
With me now, the Shakespeare scholar from the Public Theater in New York, James Shapiro.
It is such a pleasure and honor to have you on talking Shakespeare. Did Shakespeare like to get stoned?
JAMES SHAPIRO, SHAKESPEARE SCHOLAR, PUBLIC THEATER, NEW YORK CITY: Did Shakespeare inhale?
BALDWIN: Exactly.
SHAPIRO: I hate to disappoint stoners everywhere, but there's no evidence whatsoever that Shakespeare smoked pot. Just none.
BALDWIN: So the bit about the residue in the pipes, you're not buying it? What's that about?
SHAPIRO: If Shakespeare wanted to know about cannabis, he would have opened up a book, and you see those familiar leaves and you see the description. It tells you two things, it's good for an earache, and if you want your chicken to lay more eggs, feed them the seed. Nothing about getting high.
BALDWIN: Let's read more Shakespeare just because I enjoy it and was in Macbeth, once upon a time, as a man, mind you. Quote -- this is Sonnet 24 -- "Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed, the dear repose for limits with travel tired, but then begins a journey in my head to work my mind when my body's work expired." Nothing?
SHAPIRO: I'll tell you the most remarkable thing about Shakespeare. It's not what he smoked or drank. It's what he didn't do. Here's a guy who spent his morning rehearsing plays, and performed them in the afternoon, and when actors went off to do whatever they do in the evening, Shakespeare sat down and turned to his imagination and wrote late into the night. This was before either tea or coffee had been introduced into England. BALDWIN: This is pure, sober imaginative genius?
SHAPIRO: Right. If you ask me what Shakespeare's greatest accomplishment is, it's writing 35 to 40 plays without a double espresso. Nothing to stimulate him except his imagination. He didn't need pot, he didn't have coffee. It didn't work like that. He worked up here and was an incredibly hardworking poet.
BALDWIN: How many years have you studied him?
SHAPIRO: I've been writing Shakespeare biographies for the past 25 years. Next one out, this fall. I love when new stuff is found out about Shakespeare but --
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: You have to enjoy it. We're talking about Shakespeare on CNN.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Even though you are debunking it and saying no way the bard got wasted.
SHAPIRO: When I want to learn something about Shakespeare, I go to see the theater tonight in Central Park, opening night tonight. Tell everybody, go see great plays across this country. Shakespeare lives on stage.
BALDWIN: Beyond the fact that he never needed that double espresso for his genius, what is the most fascinating piece about him to you?
SHAPIRO: For me, that he was able to create new plays again and again. Never the same play. Always challenging himself. Always figuring out, how can I write something that I haven't written before.
BALDWIN: James Shapiro, thank you so much for swinging by.
SHAPIRO: I'm sorry I missed you in Macbeth.
BALDWIN: Macbeth, burning wood. I can't even remember anymore. I played a male figure. I got to have a sword and I played a witch. So there you go.
(CROSSTALK)
BALDWIN: Clearly, I did not -- I missed my calling.
SHAPIRO: Maybe I'll see you the next time.
BALDWIN: Deal.
James Shapiro, thank you so much.
Now this.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
BALDWIN: Top of the hour here. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.
We begin near Ferguson, Missouri, where more protesters and arrests are happening. New pictures into CNN. You hear these officers saying, go home. Showing multiple arrests happening just in the last few minutes. We are also now hearing that this may be just one of dozens of arrests. Again, more pictures we're getting. This is the federal courthouse in St. Louis where these protests and arrests are happening.
But let's just step back a bit because this is significant, given the fact that not too far from St. Louis is Ferguson, Missouri. This was a city that was, you know, truly rocked by a number of people who were upset and some violence as well.
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[14:59:58] BALDWIN: A barrage of bullets overnight forcing peaceful protesters to run for cover one year after Michael Brown was shot and killed. It sparked a national movement to protest police treatment of African-Americans, specifically here.
