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Cop Who Tackled James Blake Had Prior Complaints; James Blake Speaks Out About Incident; Police: Munoz "Isn't Prime Suspect" In Phoenix Shootings; Republicans Debate On CNN Wednesday; Baltimore Pays $6.4M To Freddie Gray's Family; Donald Trump Pokes Fun At Himself; Rick Perry Suspends Presidential Campaign; Late Night Campaigning; Brave Rescue from Floodwaters. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired September 12, 2015 - 12:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:00:11] FREDERICKA WHITFIELD: All right, happening right now in the NEWSROOM, tackled and thrown to the ground. Tennis star, James Blake, talks about what happened when an NYPD officer threw him to the sidewalk in a violent arrest.

Police are questioning a person of interest in a rash of shootings on a Phoenix highway. We'll have the latest details on that investigation.

Four days before the CNN Republican debate, candidates hit the campaign trail hard today. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Hello again, everyone. Thanks so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

New details about the officer involved in the violent take down and wrongful arrest of former tennis star, James Blake. New York police released new surveillance video of the incident. We're learning that the officer involved has a history of excessive force complaints.

You can see in the video Blake was standing outside a hotel before making appearance at U.S. Open when that plain clothes officer seen in the white shirt rushes in, throws Blake face down on the sidewalk and handcuffing him there.

New York police say this was a sting operation gone wrong. The police commissioner and mayor have since apologized to James Blake. James Blake we'd love to hear from him on what's next.

He's joining us along with CNN's Don Lemon live will there in New York. So Don, what is James have to say about what has happened?

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: A lot I'm sure. We're going to learn right now. James Blake, thank you so much for joining me. I saw you looking at video. Is it hard to look at?

JAMES BLAKE, FORMER TENNIS STAR: I've seen it a few times now. They talk about being sensitized when you see something a lot. I'm still not at that point. It strikes an ore to see how vulnerable I was and what he did. To be a police officer you're given a lot of rights and certain powers and then to abuse them is just wrong in my opinion.

LEMON: Do you relive it?

BLAKE: I have relived it quite a few times. Just thinking about what could have happened, what I could have done differently, what I should have done, what I'm glad I didn't do. I'm very glad I looked at it as an instance I thought it was someone coming up rushing to give me a hug or something positive.

That left me completely passive because I'm scared. I think about what could have happened and I think about how scary it would have been had I put my arms up and done the normal reaction someone coming at me to defend myself.

It seemed this person had an agenda with how this was going to go down. If I had any sort of resistance, I wonder what could have happened. Instead of having a bump and bruise, I could have broken bones or concussion or even worse.

LEMON: You may not be here. That's a scary reality.

[12:05:02] BLAKE: That to me that makes me feel like a negative situation, but I'm trying to think about a lot of the positives and one of those is that I completely didn't resist. I said I'm 100 percent cooperating. That was to put my hands behind my back and do whatever he said.

LEMON: Did you do that because of what you've seen in the media because we talk about this so much?

BLAKE: Yes, and I was aware of that in the media that a lot of times the reason for things going wrong, the claim is there's miscommunication. They thought someone was resisting, reaching for something. They thought something was going on and just a complete miscommunication. I made sure there was no miscommunication. I'm cooperating whatever you say.

LEMON: Having dealt with the situation similar to that, you're in shock. It's so shocking because at first you thought you were getting a hug. I had a situation I thought I was getting mugged. People say these things happen. They don't happen very often. Do you think they happen more often than we think they do?

BLAKE: I think sadly they do. I think it's minority of the police force. I think there's the majority that are doing great police work that are public servants, keeping the public safe doing the job the way they're supposed to.

Unfortunately the media attention is given to this dangerous minority out there with a badge using that as a shield to do whatever they want. I think it happens more often because this never would have been filed as a report if I hadn't gone to press.

His officers wouldn't have known anything went on. That is scary. You wonder how many times it happened without anyone knowing.

LEMON: You don't know. Again, we don't know how often it happens. I think even though the records are not clear, it still happens to black and brown people more than any other. Statistically, proportionate. Not because people commit more crimes. It happens to black and brown more than anyone else. The police commissioner doesn't believe it has to do with race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL BRATTON, NYPD POLICE COMMISSIONER: Sorry. Race has nothing at all to do with it. If you look at photograph of the suspects, it looks like the twin brother of Mr. Blake. That's put that non sense to rest. Race has nothing to do with this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So he says race has nothing to do with it. Your mom says I'm glad he took the path of least resistance. It could have gotten really ugly. You don't think about them being black until this thing throws it back on you. She thinks it has to do with race. Do you?

BLAKE: I don't think it's appropriate for this incident because I think this incident needs to be more about the force and fact that this can't be used and these office areas can't be back on the streets.

The issue of race is a bigger one for a different issue. I don't want to muddy this incident that really needs to create change in the police brutality in the accountability of these police officers with the racial issue.

I think there's probably -- there probably is a gray area with Bill Bratton being so clear one way and my mom so clear the other way. I'm sure there's a gray area in the middle we could talk about. I think that's for a different discussion.

LEMON: Do you think it's excessive force? The main issue when it comes to this. The officer has been investigated several times for excessive force and lawsuits have been filed. Are you planning to file a lawsuit?

BLAKE: We haven't decided. I have an attorney. We haven't decided how we'll go about it. The plan is to speak with Commissioner Bratton and Mayor De Blasio and really do it on civil terms and make sure we're trying to make a positive change.

If we come up with solutions, then we don't need to take it to court. If we're not happy with what they're proposing, if we don't think they're doing must have to make this right, we may have to consider a lawsuit. We haven't made that decision yet.

LEMON: The former police commissioner, Ray Kelly, was on a show today talking about the procedure and protocol when it comes to identity theft or for cell phones or what have you. Here's what he said. Listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAY KELLY, FORMER POLICE COMMISSIONER, NYPD: Quite frankly I'm perplexed by it. This is the credit card fraud you go up and introduce yourself to the individual you're going to talk to or arrest. The four other police officers, I don't see the rest of the team. I mean, it looks -- it is what it is. It seems to be overreaction.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So he's saying -- he's a former police commissioner saying it's overreaction. The current police department is says that's how you do it. What do you think? They're saying $29 million they said to try to help in situations like this. What do you think?

[12:10:03] BLAKE: I think Ray Kelly isn't looking to keep his job anymore. He's gone so he can people speak the truth. I think that's the truth. Anyone can see the video and see that doesn't make sense when you're investigating a non-violent crime. Supposed non-violent criminal that isn't running, isn't showing any sign of resisting.

It really is completely unnecessary. I don't know why Commissioner Bratton or anyone would spin it any other way. I don't see the value in protecting someone that does wrong. That tarnishes the image of the badge. I have upmost respect for the police department. Most of them are heroes in my mind.

If you have someone out there having this type of rogue justice, they're tarnishing that image. They don't deserve to be in the same sentence with the heroes of the NYPD and they don't deserve to have that badge.

LEMON: At no point does he say I'm a New York City police officer. I'm detaining you for this.

BLAKE: I was detained 10 to 15 minutes and at no point was the word police uttered, officer, NYPD, nothing. I had no idea to the point where after I was done and I was calling someone else. I told them what happened. They said you should change your credit cards, get them cancelled.

I might have been a victim of identity theft because someone just took advantage of me. They never said that they were law enforcement or showed me a badge or identify themselves.

I never got a name or badge number. It made me think, did I just get scammed out of this because I had never heard the word police from any of them.

LEMON: There's a certain degree of comfort and confidence with which one walks through society. When I walk out of this building, I'm a American citizen. I'm safe. Police are here to protect me. Has that changed at all for you?

BLAKE: It's still pretty new. I definitely feel cautious now. I definitely for the most part of my life felt like the police were public servants and here to help and keep you safe. I don't want this to ruin it. Right now it's still raw. I'm thinking about it a lot, running it in my head at night.

So of course, I'm going to be a little more hesitant, but I hope it doesn't change my opinion, by the commissioner, by the mayor, by the police force doing the right thing getting this guy off the street. Making positive change to make sure the force is held accountable. I think will slowly restore my faith in every police officer.

LEMON: You got an apology from the police commissioner, the mayor of the city. Imagine the people this happens to. We know it does happen to other people. They don't get that.

BLAKE: I respect that gesture, appreciate it. It's very nice of them. It's really nice to get a call from the mayor of New York City on your cell phone looking to apologize. It's really nice, but this guy has five civilian complaints as well.

I'm sure those people that have complained against him haven't gotten that same call. I think there needs to be active an apology to all those people that don't have the voice that I have. That's why I feel this is so necessary for me to talk about because I have this voice.

So many people that this happens to they don't get that. I've gotten e-mails and texts from people that have told me this happened to me. This happened to my friend, my father, my brother. None of them get public apologies like that. They all deserve to get the same treatment I'm getting.

LEMON: You said I'm determined to use my voice to turn this unfortunate incident into a catalyst for change in the relationship between the police and the public they serve. If that's not through a lawsuit or maybe it is, how does that work?

BLAKE: Like I said, I want to see change. I want to see this not happen. That was my first reaction once I realized that I needed to step up about this. I can't imagine this happening to someone I care about. I don't want to go through this again.

I don't want to go through it personally or see it happen around me. I know there are a lot of people out there that feels the same way. So we need to find a way to stop this from happening.

I'm sure it won't be overnight. I'm sure tomorrow this will happen somewhere. I don't want that to be the case. I don't want this to be swept under the rug and say this happens once in a while. I don't want a lawsuit that says here's $5 million.

Go away. We're not going to talk about this again. I want to talk about this, open dialogue with Commissioner Bratton, with Mayor De Blasio, about real solutions, accountability, about making sure that this isn't going to happen. These types of police officers are no longer able to do this.

LEMON: What do you say to that officer if he is sitting right here where I am?

BLAKE: First thing I'd say is you took advantage of me in a very vulnerable situation. In doing so, you hurt my family. I want you to know, this isn't just hurting me. Every time he's done this or would do this, it hurts the whole family and that's not fair.

That's not fair to use your badge to do that because you've got the badge and you're supposed to treat that with respect and with honor the way we are supposed to respect and honor it. I don't think he deserves to ever have that badge again.

LEMON: You think he should lose his job?

[12:15:06] BLAKE: I do think he should lose his job over this because I don't think this is the right job for him with him to have that kind of agenda to take that kind of tone and attitude towards this situation, a non-violent criminal.

If I had been the criminal, I still think this is excessive and shouldn't have happened the way it did. I don't think that's the right position for him to be in. He's abusing that power that he has.

LEMON: James Blake, it's a pleasure.

BLAKE: Thank you.

LEMON: Best of luck to you and your family and your mom.

BLAKE: Thanks.

LEMON: Fred, there you have it. The news in this is he's not sure about a lawsuit. If he files a lawsuit, that will be used to help other people that possibly happens to and also he thinks the officer should lose his job. He doesn't deserve to wear the badge of a New York City police officer.

WHITFIELD: Right. Powerful messages, powerful promise, and of course, we know this is maybe the first or second chapter. There's more after this. Thanks so much, Don Lemon and James Blake, appreciate it.

All right, stick around because we're also going to take a look at the legal side of this case including what action that officer could indeed face and NYPD's reaction. What's next for it after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, just moments ago you heard the powerful words and the firsthand account from James Blake, tennis star, taken down by NYPD.

[12:20:03] Now we're really looking closely at this new video, shocking video of that violent take down. James Blake on a busy street there right outside of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan. Just standing there casually then taken down by this officer, face down. We just heard James Blake who said not sure if he's going to sue but certainly vowed this is not over. He promises to help promote some change by way of his experience.

Let's talk more by CNN legal analyst, Danny Cevallos, is with us now. What kind of legal case potentially are we talking about? He and his attorneys are trying to weigh the options. What needs to be considered here?

DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Likely false arrest. There may be problems in a case like this where it appears the police clearly made a mistake. False arrest requires that the contact, confinement be non-privileged. What does that mean?

In the case of police arrests, if that arrest was not supported by probable cause, then you have a chance at a false arrest claim. If there was probable cause to make the arrest, the false arrest claim loses.

In the case of misidentification, it's not the mere fact there was a misidentification, but rather if the police's reliance upon that false information, that mistaken belief, if it was reasonable and in good faith, then even then the police can potentially avoid liability for false arrest in a case like this.

So it will turn critically. You heard sound earlier that it was suggested that Blake looks very similar to a suspect. I think it's really going to turn on how much does he look like the suspect? And what was the totality of the circumstances that led to that conclusion that there was probable cause to make this arrest?

WHITFIELD: It's more than mistaken identity. We're talking about the technique in which James Blake was brought down. If police argue he looks so similar to images of the other suspect that they were looking for, what merits that kind of take down when he's standing there.

James Blake himself, saying he was in a vulnerable situation? Nowhere during this process was the police officer even identifying himself as a police officer.

It didn't seem according to James Blake's account there was really any precursor to this kind of violent take down, this aggression for potential credit card fraud investigation. How do you defend the officer?

CEVALLOS: It's always important to consider the use of force. What's the reasonable amount of force for the police to affect an arrest? Force can escalate if a suspect resists arrest, which you can see from the video, there doesn't appear to be any resisting arrest.

Depending on the facts -- what information they had about this other suspect -- that would definitely factor in to whether or not this use of force was reasonable.

WHITFIELD: You're meaning whether that suspect had a weapon, something to that effect? CEVALLOS: In the case of credit card fraud, that alone doesn't give inference about danger. What if the suspect is suspected of credit card fraud and known to carry around a Glock, and he's known to walk around with a butcher knife. Those are examples.

Those are hypotheticals where police may have a heightened sense of danger thus warranting this fast break take him down quickly type of arrest.

We'll have to look at totality of circumstances leading up to that police contact and ask the question why in the case of a credit card fraud suspect was this immediate take down employed rather than something lower on the force continuum?

WHITFIELD: All right, Danny Cevallos, thank you so much. Disturbing images no matter which way you look at it. All right, thanks so much.

Still to come, after a string of highway shooting incident in Arizona, police now say they have spoken to a quote, "person of interest."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, a new development today in the hunt for the Arizona freeway shooter. In just the last hour, a police spokesman emphasized to CNN that the person of interest detained yesterday is not a prime suspect in the investigation.

The 19-year-old Oscar Dela Torre Munoz was taken into custody in the last 24 hours and charged with possession of marijuana. He's not charged in connection with the shootings. CNN's Sara Sidner has more on this investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After nearly two weeks with at least 11 vehicles hit with bullets of projectiles along an 8- mile stretch of Interstate 10, DPS troopers have detained and/or now questioning a man in connection with the shootings.

BART GRAVES, DPS SPOKESMAN: We are calling him a person of interest, but we really wanted to talk to him about a lot of things. So it's fair to say this will probably come up, but we'd be basically want to spend some time with him and find out what he knows.

SIDNER: The man along with the woman was detained of a traffic stop. Investigators released the woman, but continued questioning the man.

(on camera): What can you tell me about what the circumstances were that led you to tip-related or was this something investigators figured out?

GRAVES: It's reasonable to say it's a combination of the two.

SIDNER (voice-over): But no one has been arrested and police are still asking for citizens to call in tips. This as two other incidents, one along Highway 17, and another off Interstate 10, are being investigated to determine whether they are linked to the recent shooting spree.

Interstate 10 has been a target zone for a serial shooter or shooters. Cars to big rigs have been hit during all times of the day and night with no apparent pattern.

Tremain Jackson is one many DPS troopers driving the shooting zone. He says the department is adding numerous resources to the investigation.

TREMAIN JACKSON, PATROLMAN: It's never a one-man -- one-man situation and that is from the -- from the troopers to the police department to the citizens. It's a total team effort.

SIDNER: This is not the first time police and the public here have had to deal with serial roadway shootings. A decade ago, eight people were killed as two gunmen stalked the roadways in Phoenix and that case took more than a year to solve. The man heading the current investigation was a lieutenant working at the Phoenix Police Department during those shootings.

[12:30:09] COLONEL FRANK MISTEAD, DIRECTOR, ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: That was what they call the serial shooter case. And they were literally driving down roads. And with a 14-Caliber shotgun, they were shooting people walking down the street and killing them.

SIDNER: And that was a terrible time. Eight people killed back then. This time, police are very, very adamant in saying that this case is definitely not closed. And the person that they detained and began questioning about the I-10 shootings, Oscar Munoz, 19-years-old is not being even called a suspect, only a person of interest at this time. He was arrested on a much, much lesser charge that has nothing to do with the shootings, arrested on a charge of possession with marijuana. Fred.

WHITFIELD,OR: All right. Sarah Sidner thanks so much. Keep us posted on that.

All right, still to come, just days before the CNN Republican Presidential Debate, Rick Perry suspends his presidential campaign, while the other candidates prepare to debate the Donald.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, we're just four days now from the CNN GOP Presidential Debate. And the final stage is set with front runner Donald Trump in the center position there.

CNN Political Commentator Errol Louis, joining me now from New York.

All right, Errol, good to see you.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good to see you too, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. So, before we talk about what these candidates might say or do during this debate, let's talk about some of these latest polling numbers where, you know, Trump is expanding his leads, but less than half the Republican voters polls are enthusiastic about him.

Let's take a look because, you know, Ben Carson is leading there at 43%, Trump is second at 40%, followed by Cruz, Rubio, Bush, and Walker. But this is where it gets a little perplexing because when asked if they would be satisfied with Donald Trump winning the nomination, overwhelmingly 67 percent say yes. So you got 40 percent of Republicans enthusiastic about Trump as a potential nominee when we see the other names in the race. But then he wins 67 percent, you know, of some satisfaction if he is the nominee.

[12:35:10] So what does all of this mean?

LOUIS: Well, it suggests that the voters haven't entirely made up their mind. I mean -- and it's -- frankly, it's not that unusual, Fredricka, to see this kind of a thing.

You ask voters, "Would you like to have a beer with somebody? Would you like to spend thanksgiving dinner with them?" You get one answer. And then he asked them, "Would you be willing to have this person in charge of the Armed Forces of the United States?" And they can give you a different answer.

So I mean what I read on these polls is that Republican voters at least and overall general voters tend to track this as well, they think that Donald Trump is a strong leader. That they could see him in the White House, and they could see him leading the armed forces and so forth. That's not the same. I was saying that they are ready to vote for him.

And when the question is asking the polls, it's usually if the vote were held today, who would be your preference? And one way to look at it is, yes, Donald trump is ahead with 32 percent. Another way to look at it is that 68 percent of Republican voters don't want Donald Trump.

So, both of those things could be true at the same time.

WHITFIELD: And then Trump is not the preferred candidate if you look at GOP establishment. Why not? He's the front runner. But what is it that you're afraid of? What makes them nervous? Is it just that he's unedited and you never know what he's going to say? Or is there something else?

LOUIS: Well, he's unedited. And frankly, he's been attacking them. He's been attacking them pretty directly. When he says there are stupid people leading the country, he's not just talking about the current occupant of the White House. He's talking about the Republican leadership in Congress. He's attacked many of them by name.

WHITFIELD: Professional politicians.

LOUIS: Professional politicians. When he attacks Jeb Bush, in particular, I mean the Bush family is somewhat revered in Republican leadership circles. They've had two presidents, three presidencies, you know, in the last generation. It's not as if those people who worked for Bush's have all just gone away. They're governor now, they're senators, they're -- a lot of them are wealthy donors. WHITFIELD: Yeah.

LOUIS: And they don't necessarily like Donald Trump calling all of them stupid. And then frankly, the tone and tenor of the campaign, which is Donald Trump's responsibility for his own words, is really sunk pretty low.

And there are a lot of people, I think, in the leadership who didn't want politics to be this way. They didn't devote their lives to leading this country for a debate of this kind to turn into a series petty and personal insults.

WHITFIELD: Yeah. And we're going to see if there's more of that when the gloves come off during the debate. Errol Louis, thank you so much.

LOUIS: You got it.

WHITFIELD: All right just a subtle reminder, the CNN will be airing this debate this Wednesday, the Republican Presidential Debate starting at 6:00 P.M. Eastern right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:41:16] WHITFIELD: All right, the city of Baltimore will pay $6.4 million to the family of Freddie Gray.

Gray was the man who died while in police custody this past April. He suffered a severe spinal cord injury while in a police transport van.

Six officers are now charged in his death. The deal settles all civil lawsuits in this case but there still of course that's the criminal case.

Let's bring in legal guys, Avery Friedman, Civil Rights Attorney and Law Professor in Cleveland. Good to see you. And Richard Herman, a New York, Criminal Defense Attorney and Law Professor, joining us form Las Vegas. Good to see you as well.

OK, so, Avery you first. You know, this come in a week where the judge says no change no change of venue. The officers will have, you know, their separate trials, the Baltimore mayor announced that she is not seeking re-election. So, what's the inference that comes with this settlement before criminal trials?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well that's the big question Fredericka. In the resolution of this case, the new city is going to be paying millions of dollars, over $6 million.

So the concern is from the officer's perspective, is that going to wind up as part of the evidence in the criminal case? In the simple answer is no. There'll be most...

WHITFIELD: Why - how is that? How would that not be influential? Well FRIEDMAN: Well because if the jury hears that millions of dollars have been paid by the defendants, the inference drown from that is that they must be guilty.

So it would be highly prejudicial. It's not going to get in. In is a matter of fact the states lawyer Freddie Gray's states lawyer have agreed that it's not going to be a part of it. It shouldn't be part of it. Its apples and oranges and therefore the jury will never hear about the settlement.

WHITFIELD: Wait a minute so Richard. I mean jurors the potential jury pool is privy to all of this right now. So, they are knowledgeable of this settlement. How would this not be influential if they are selective for this criminal case?

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yeah, we have to be real. Fred we have to be real we try to be real every week here. Everybody in the City of Baltimore knows that the city just admitted guilt and agreed to pay $6.4 million before summons a complaint was even served.

It's unheard of to sue a city and get settlement before you even file litigation papers. What happens Fred if during the course of the criminal trial we learn and I don't know if this to be true but what else have we learn Freddie Gray had history of injuring himself that to get personal injury awards?

And what have we learn by the person inside the truck with him that Freddy was intentionally hurting himself?

What if that comes out in the criminal trial and the city has paid $6.4 million in a civil wrongful death case for action. That was not perceivable? This is outrageous Fred it's beyond belief.

WHITFIELD: So Avery, how do you argue against Richard here?

FRIEDMAN: Well, first of all the agreement prohibits introduction of any evidence related for the settlement.

(CROSSTALK)

FRIEDMAN: ... part of the agreement. Secondly, the prejudice that would result if someone tried to get it at the end would frankly poison the jury pool. It would it is impermissible to get in. But frankly has nothing to do -- it has nothing to with the criminal conduct in this case.

So you argue both prejudicial in there is an agreement it shouldn't get in it has no place in the criminal case at all.

WHITFIELD: Wow. OK. We'll going to leave it there. We know just this is just the beginning however.

HERMAN: ... $6 million. They acknowledged they were wrong Fred. That's the message.

FRIEDMAN: No.

HERMAN: Everybody in Baltimore knows this.

WHITFIELD: OK. Well we are going to find out just how influential when they do select from that jury pool.

[12:45:00] All right thank you so much Avery, Richard, always good to see you, thank you so much, always too short. I tell you.

All right still to come, Donald Trump talks to Jimmy Fallon dressed as Donald Trump. It was very funny. And Fallon even made jokes at Trump's expense. Who's laughing?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Oh, the fun side of politic several presidential candidates making rounds on late night talk shows this week.

Jeb Bush made a visit to Colbert but he kept it pretty calm and didn't play an instrument or doing sketches like some of his rivals did.

Hillary Clinton, however say a little lighter tone as she went day side with Ellen DeGeneres there in New York. And who could forget her Nae Nae?

WHITFIELD: That's cute. Almost looks like maybe a hula dance. I don't know.

All right, late last night Donald Trump poke a little fun at himself on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY FALLON, TONIGHT SHOW: The only one qualified to interview me is me.

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Me interviewing me, that's what I call a great idea.

[12:50:03] FALLON: Of course it's a great idea. We thought of it.

OK, interview time. Question one. Are you ready for the Republican debate next week?

TRUMP: You know, the truth is, I'm always ready. It's really going to be a big debate, but I'm always ready.

FALLON: It's not just big, it's huge, huge, huge, huge, huge, huge, huge, huge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Also huge is running for president, certainly a serious matter.

Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter joining me now from New York.

So Brian, you know, wow this mirror sketch it was very funny. But how do you suppose it came to be? Do you think Jimmy Fallon his people, what Jimmy said we've got this great idea and Trump said "No way" or Trump said "Yeah, I'm diving right in let's do this." BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: There was some negotiating happening behind the scenes we know Trump is a great negotiator, that's what he always says in his speeches and rallies.

I was over at 30 Rock for this yesterday. And you could see the queue cards on the set. This man in the mirror sketch was scripted of course. But the interview portion was not. We did see some interesting moments during the interview with Trump and Fallon there.

And this mere sketch, I do think it's the highlight because it shows Trump coming close to making fun of himself, you know, he's an egotistical guy. Not always the most self deprecating person. But he was willing to show a little more of himself with Fallon.

WHITFIELD: And so what does this do for a candidate? What does this do for Donald Trump, you know, to go on late night or, you know, in Hillary Clinton's case to go, you know, Daytime T.V. to kind of be cooler, hipper, funnier. How does that translate, you know, into being more popular among voters? Where's the...

STELTER: Yeah with Fallon, the goal is younger viewers and then hopefully younger voters.

We saw on the overnight ratings Fallon easily beating Stephen Colbert yesterday, thanks to the Trump bump in ratings.

Going on Ellen is play for female voters, for female viewers, those daytime talk shows tend to skew more heavenly women than men.

So you see the candidates seeking out to the forums. But, you know, Colbert and Fallon have both been seeking Trump actually seeking Clinton too for months, ever since the late spring, early summer.

Now finally Trump is starting to say yes. He's going to be on Colbert in a couple of weeks. And Clinton is going to be on Fallon in one week.

So you're seeing more and more politicians showing up on these late night shows, looking for somewhat softer forum to speak to voters.

And by the way, you know, we saw Joe Biden you mentioned as well the other day on Colbert not getting into the race, but showing a very personal side of himself in that interview.

WHITFIELD: Oh, OK, it almost seems like it's a prerequisite now. If you're going to run for something, you better get on one of these shows.

Brian Stelter, thank you so much. Always good to see you, I appreciate it.

STELTER: You too.

WHITFIELD: All right, still to come, two very brave officers rescue an elderly man and his grandson from rushing flood waters. And it's all caught on body cam. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[12:57:15] SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: We're just a week away now from the Nautica Malibu Triathlon. And the team is ready.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE/FEMALE: Vacation.

GUPTA: They spent the last eight months swimming biking and running, all in preparation for this day.

Julia and Eugene Smookler are first married couple to participate, say they're ready to cross that finish line together

JULIA SMOOKLER, FIT NATION PARTICIPANT: Overall the experience has been amazing. You know, eating habits and try help each other out with that, meal planning, to be able to give each other the time.

GUPTA: 67-year-old Linda Garrett has overcome a knee injury.

LINDA GARRETT, FIT NATION PARTICIPANT: It's a setback, it's an ongoing setback.

GUPTA: And while it still hurts, she's adapting to get the job done.

GARRETT: I'll finish the race. I'll finish the race.

GUPTA: Robert Lara, is still loving the ride, and he's learning cook healthier food.

ROBERT LARA, FIT NATION PARTICIPANT: It's still a working progress. But nothing is burned down, so that's good point.

GUPTA: 36-year-old Erica Moore has dropped weight, stopped drinking and has already signing up for more triathlons.

ERICA MOORE, FIT NATION PARTICIPANT: I really got in the zone and I really feel like I wakened the triathlete within myself.

GUPTA: And last but certainly not least.

CHIP GREENIDGE, FIT NATION PARTICIPANT: 20 pounds, 20 pounds, 20 pounds, 20 pounds.

GUPTA: PHD candidate Chip Greenidge says despite the challenges and time management, he's determined to get to the finish line.

GREENIDGE: I'm going to do it. That's why I put my mind to do it. And anything I put my mind to do I do.

GUPTA: All in all, the team is looking good. So I'll see you guys at the starting line.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Awesome. I'll see you at the starting line as well a week away.

All right, checking our top stories now. A small plane carrying crew members from a new Tom Cruise film crashed in Colombia killing two people.

Universal Pictures say that the crew had just wrapped up filming.

Pilot Alan Purwin is confirmed as one of the people dead. Purwin was known for his incredible sweeping aerial shots in many Hollywood films.

He had appeared in cameo roles as a pilot in movies like "Jurassic World" and "Zero Dark Thirty."

And an officer's body camera capturing a pretty brave - very brave rescue in Texas, and you can see a minivan submerged under water at the end of the street there.

The two officers don't waste any time taking off gear and jumping right in. They were able to pull an elderly man and his grandson safely out of the car.

Police say the man was trying to navigate through a flooded overpass, and the water was just simply too other high.

And in Saudi Arabia, at least 107 are dead after a crane crashed through the roof of the Mecca's grand mosque. It was very crowded as this happened during the days leading up to the annual Muslim pilgrimage known as the Hajj. Over 200 people were also injured.

[13:00:04] Officials believe powerful winds from a storm blew that crane down.

And we have so much more in the NEWSROOM and it all starts right now.