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Justice Department to Hold News Conference in Chicago; London Tube a Copycat of San Bernardino? Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired December 07, 2015 - 10:00   ET

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

[10:00:12] PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Pamela Brown in for Carol Costello. Thank you so much for being here with us on this Monday.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch is set to hold a news conference any minute now. She's expected to announce a federal problem into the Chicago Police Department. This comes after the city released disturbing dash cam video of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald being fatally shot 16 times. Newly released police reports from that night contradict the police video saying McDonald was swinging a knife in an aggressive manner. The reports even say McDonald tried to get back up after being shot and that officers feared for their lives.

CNN's Ryan Young joins us from Chicago.

Ryan, we have this press conference about to happen in D.C. And also the mayor in Chicago will hold a news conference this afternoon. What can you tell us?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're also told that Anita Alvarez, the state's attorney here will also hold a news conference. So it looks like there's going to be a lot of movement today here in Chicago.

Look, a lot of people asking questions about what else is going to come out here. When we saw the video, in fact, you saw Laquan McDonald get shot 16 times, 14 of which were after he was on the ground, just six seconds after the officer got out of his car. But when we have the details from this police report, and I'll read some of them to you, you can see there's quite a different tale being told in those police reports. In fact Officer Van Dyke talks about McDonald raised a knife across his chest and over his shoulder, pointing the knife at Van Dyke, and attempted to kill Van Dyke.

And then it goes on to say that -- he talked about having to backpedal and being in fear of his life and using his handgun to stop the attack. Well, when you watch the video, and you see that, it looked like McDonald was trying to walk away, it doesn't appear that the knife ever crossed his body. So now there are questions within the city already, people are outraged about what they saw in that video, about exactly what happened and about what these other officers are backing up.

I have one community leader asked me the other day, will the other officers in this case be charged? Because obviously everyone sort of went along with this official account. And all this was caught on tape. So there are really questions about what will happen next, what will the practices here in the Chicago Police Department change from all the outside scrutiny that's now being placed on this police department.

BROWN: That's right. And we are expecting DOJ to announce today that it is launching an investigation into the patterns and practices of that police department.

Ryan Young, thank you so much. Keep us posted.

And President Obama vowing to destroy ISIS thugs and killers during a rare primetime address from the Oval Office. His goal, to try to ease fears after that ISIS-inspired killing spree in San Bernardino. But the president's speech isn't quieting critics. Many now blasting him for not going far enough.

All this as a new CNN-ORC poll revealing 60 percent of Americans disapprove of the president's handling of terrorism. And a majority of Americans think the U.S. should send ground troops to Iraq or Syria.

It's important to point out, though, that these poll numbers were taken before the president's speech. Last night President Obama doubled down on his strategy and told the American people the U.S. will beat ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The threat from terrorism is real, but we will overcome it. We will destroy ISIL and any other organization that tries to harm us. Our success won't depend on tough talk or abandoning our values or giving into fear. That's what groups like ISIL are hoping for. Instead, we will prevail by being strong and smart. Resilient and relentless. And by drawing upon every aspect of American power.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So let's bring in CNN senior White House correspondent Joe Johns for more.

So, Joe, do you get the sense that the White House accomplished what it had hoped to accomplish with this speech?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, it certainly seems that the president did not want to jump out there too far. And he did want to stick to common themes. And that's mostly what he did, Pamela, sticking to themes we've heard before. A very measured approach. Not doing anything new. Not doing anything dramatic in terms of policy initiatives to fight ISIS, which has really put his critics in the position of saying the administration isn't going far enough. Listen to part of what the president said last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) OBAMA: The strategy that we are using now, airstrikes, special forces, and working with local forces, who are fighting to regain control of their own country, that is how we'll achieve a more sustainable victory. And it won't require us sending a new generation of Americans overseas to fight and die for another decade on foreign soil. Here's what else we cannot do. We cannot turn against one another by letting this fight be defined as a war between America and Islam. That, too, is what groups like ISIL want.

[10:05:03] ISIL does not speak for Islam. They are thugs and killers, part of a cult of death. And they account for a tiny fraction of a more than a billion Muslims around the world, including millions of patriotic Muslim-Americans who reject their hateful ideology.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: The president also said he wants a closer look at programs that allow people to come into this country with or without visas. Of course, that is one of the issues that has come up at the center of the San Bernardino shootings -- Pamela.

BROWN: OK. Joe Johns, thank you so much.

And on the heels of Obama's address on terror, the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson announcing that his department will unveil a new national alert system to reflect the, quote, "new phase of the terror threat." Johnson said the system will reflect the current reality of when not having a specific credible piece of intelligence specifying a plot isn't the end of the story.

Joining me now to discuss, CNN military analyst, Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, and CNN national security analyst, Peter Bergen.

Peter, why now? Why have this terror system now, which we've had in the past several years ago, right?

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, you know, we're seeing unprecedented levels of concern, Pam, as you know, amongst American citizens about the You've seen several levels amongst American citizens about the terrorist threat between San Bernardino and Paris and the taking down of the Russian Metrojet airliner. You know, it's the most lethal attack on American soil since 9/11, the most lethal attack in the West in Paris for more than a decade, and most lethal attack on commercial aviation since 9/11. So the government is probably trying to assure Americans it is doing everything it can.

And sometimes, you know, the threat environment, you don't have particularly, you know, streams of intelligence that points to something, but you do want to say something to the public about needing to take, you know, extra precautions.

BROWN: And going to the president's speech last night, Lieutenant General, President Obama made it clear that the U.S. is going to stay on its current course. He didn't announce any new policy changes. In your opinion, are airstrikes and special forces enough in Iraq and Syria, given how ISIS is spreading to other places, like Libya and the Sinai Peninsula and elsewhere?

LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I think he also said, Pamela, that he was going to use special operation forces wherever terrorist activity is occurring. And truthfully, that's what's been happening over the last 10 years. I was in the Pentagon when 9/11 happened. And Joint Special Operations Command, JSOC, strikes a lot of different places that the American public knows nothing about.

The focus is certainly on Syria and Iraq right now. And they are upping their game there. They are increasing the number of special operators in those two countries. But you're going to see strikes against the other groups who are now attempting to coordinate with ISIS, you know, we're talking Boko Haram, Ansar al-Sharia, the whole belly of terrorist organizations that are out there that suddenly believe that they can get a branding by joining ISIS.

Well, that's one of the things that I think SOCOM and Joint Special Operations Command is going to continue to attack. The bombing in Syria, specifically, is going to continue. I think you're seeing some better targeting now that we have better intelligence on the ground and also some better techniques that are occurring because of the inclusion of the British and the French in that territory.

BROWN: Peter, to you, you've noticed -- you've noted that when Obama first took office it took 90,000 U.S. soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan to blunt the momentum of the Taliban. I was speaking to someone last night, actually, who said the more, though, that you take away the safe haven overseas, in some ways these groups become desperate and they'll take anyone in the U.S. or elsewhere to do their bidding for them. What do you think about that theory?

BERGEN: Well, I think it's true. I mean, if there isn't a physical caliphate, people aren't going to be flocking to it. But I mean that's the big problem --

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: OK. Peter, I'm sorry to interrupt you. Loretta Lynch is speaking now about the police department in Chicago. Let's listen in.

LORETTA LYNCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL: OK. Well, good morning, all, and thank you all for being here. I am joined today by Vinita Gupta, head of the Department's Civil Rights Division and Zachary Fardon, the United States attorney for the northern district of Illinois.

The Department of Justice is committed to uphold in the highest standards of law enforcement throughout the United States. Every American expects and deserves the protection of law enforcement that is effective, that is responsive, that is respectful and, most importantly, constitutional. And each day, thanks to the tireless dedication of men and women who wear the badge, citizens from coast to coast receive just that.

But when community members feel that they are not receiving that kind of policing, when they feel ignored, let down or mistreated by public safety officials, there are profound consequences for the well-being of their communities, the profound consequences for law, and for the countless law enforcement police officers who fulfill their duties with professionalism and integrity.

[10:10:01] Today I'm here to announce that the Department of Justice has opened an investigation into whether the Chicago Police Department has engaged in a pattern or practice of violations of the Constitution or federal law, specifically we will examine a number of issues related to the Chicago Police Department's use of force, including its use of deadly force, racial, ethnic and other disparities in its use of force and its accountability mechanisms such as its disciplinary actions and its handling of allegations of misconduct.

This investigation has been requested by a number of state and local officials and community leaders, but has been opened only after a preliminary review and careful consideration of how the Justice Department can best use our tools and our resources to meet Chicago's needs. In the coming months this investigation will be conducted by career attorneys from the Civil Rights Division with the assistance of the United States Attorney's Office for the northern district of Illinois.

They will conduct a thorough, impartial and independent review of the allegations and the team will meet with a broad cross-section of community members, city officials and law enforcement command staff and officers to both explain our process and to hear from anyone who wishes to share information relevant to this investigation. We will examine with our experts policies, practices and data.

And at the end of our investigation, we will issue a report of our findings. And if we discover unconstitutional patterns or practices, the Department of justice will announce them publicly. We will seek a court-enforceable agreement with the Chicago Police Department and work with the city to implement appropriate reforms.

Our goal in this investigation, as in all of our pattern or practice investigations, is not to focus on individuals, but to improve systems. To ensure that officer are being provided with the tools that they need, including training, policy guidance and equipment to be more effective, to partner with civilians and to strengthen public safety. We understand that the same systems that fail community members also fail conscientious officers by creating mistrust between law enforcement and the citizens that we are sworn to serve and protect.

This mistrust from members of the community makes it more difficult to gain help from the public, and for victims to speak up and to fulfill the most basic responsibilities of public safety officials. And when suspicion and hostility to fester it can erupt into unrest. Building trust between law enforcement officers and the communities that we serve is one of my highest priorities as attorney general.

The Department of Justice intends to do everything that we can to foster those bonds and to create safer and fairer communities across the country. And regardless of the ultimate findings of this investigation, we will seek to work with local officials, with residents and law enforcement officers alike to ensure that the people of Chicago have the world class police department that they deserve.

Thank you so much. At this time I'm happy to take a few questions.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Should the investigation expand to include the Cook County State's Attorney since so few officers have actually been charged in shootings?

LYNCH: Our investigation is focused on use of force and the accountability within the police department. We'll be looking at how force, including deadly force, is handled, investigated and how officers are held accountable for that. So that's our focus right now.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Madame Attorney General, could you please tell us, (INAUDIBLE), and maybe if he wants to join in, we're very interested in Chicago knowing the status of the joint state federal investigation that's taken quite a while and would like to know the reaction to the Lieutenant McDonald video document released by the city, if you're aware of them, and the potential of some people are wondering if you'll be looking into a cover-up. Two questions there, if you could take them, I'd appreciate it.

LYNCH: OK. With respect to the investigation of Mr. Laquan McDonald, as has been -- as has been announced earlier, that investigation is ongoing. It's being conducted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois. And as with --

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: I think it would be (INAUDIBLE).

LYNCH: And as all of our investigations into whether or not there's been a civil rights violation, particularly when there's been a death resulting from police interaction, those investigations are thorough, they are independent, they are impartial. We review the relevant federal statutes, which are of course a different set of statutes from what the state's attorney has at their disposal. And we are thorough and efficient in ours. We don't predict the timing of any of those investigations. So I'm not able to give you that particular answer.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: And what about the documents that came out that talk about how the police account of what happened is different from what the video shows? Anything to say on that?

[10:15:07] LYNCH: What I can tell you is that all the information will be factored into the federal investigation. We don't comment on the evidence while that investigation is ongoing for obvious reasons, but all of that information is factored into that and I'm not able to give you any more comments on that at this time. Thanks.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: A question -- I'm sorry. I was curious, Chicago is one of the largest police departments in the country, how does the size affect the ability to find pervasive sweeping civil rights cases because I imagine that you look into a department with that many officers you're going to find some bad apples but you're also going to find plenty of, you know, outstanding good police officers. Because obviously 10 times or however many times it's bigger than Ferguson. So I'm just curious, you know, how much that complicates your efforts?

LYNCH: You know, I think it's important to note that when we do a pattern of practice investigation, particularly when we focus on the systems involving use of force, deadly force and accountability, what we're looking at to see is how does the Chicago Police Department track and treat those types of actions. So a lot of the review that we do is of the systems of the Chicago Police Department. And of course, that will entail a review of how they've handled specific matters.

But what we are looking at is to see whether or not the police department as a systematic matter has engaged in constitutional violations of policing. This involves review, as you note, of a host of evidence. But because this case will be worked in conjunction with the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Illinois, we feel confident that we'll be able to cover that. And this gentleman had a question.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The evidence in this case found its way into the corporation counsel in the city of Chicago. Will city hall -- will officials at city hall be part of this review?

And secondly, a question to Mr. Fardon. Will you be considering obstruction of justice charges against any police officer who may have been on the scene that night?

LYNCH: With respect to your first question, then I'll turn to Mr. Fardon for the scope of his investigation. With respect to your first question, what we will be looking at, again, is the Chicago Police Department's method and manner of dealing with use of force, particularly deadly force, and whether or not we find racial, ethnic and other disparities in how they handle those force allegations.

It will encompass a number of things, including how officers are disciplined and the disciplinary systems. We will be working with city officials, but the matters that you're talking about seem to relate to a different issue. What I will say is that we will take information from all interested parties. We are particularly interested in hearing from community groups and community members. We are particularly interested in hearing from the rank-and-file police department.

And obviously, we do have contact with city hall, as we do this investigation. But our investigation is independent. It is not tied to either the findings or the actions of other entities.

And with respect to your second question, I believe you had a question about the specific McDonald investigation.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The police investigation consider obstruction of justice charges, possibly, against other officers in the Chicago Police Department?

LYNCH: So, at this point in time, we're not predicting what charges, if any, will be brought --

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: He can't speak?

LYNCH: I'll let him speak. But I will tell you that as a general matter, when we have an open investigation, we do not discuss what specific charges may be brought until the resolution of that investigation.

ZACHARY FARDON, U.S. ATTORNEY: What she said. I will -- thank you, Attorney General. I will only add that I do think it's important as the attorney general was explaining to understand that the pattern and practice investigation that is being launched today, which is very important and positive, I think, for the city of Chicago, is -- I do understand --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The people that live in the greater Chicagoland region are concerned about that, given recent reports that there are differing versions of what happened out there and they don't seem to jibe, if you will, with what we see on the video.

FARDON: I completely understand your question. I do think it's important to recognize that today's pattern and practice investigation, the launch of this investigation, is related to but separable from what you're speaking about, which is the Laquan McDonald incident. And we do not comment on pending investigations other than to reiterate what the attorney general has already said, which is we do what we do independently.

We do it with vigor. We look at all relevant aspects and options as we pursue a case. And it is not unique to this case. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago has a great history of doing that, and proving that it is both independent and appropriately aggressive when it comes to ferreting out criminal conduct. But I'm not going to comment on specifics as to this particular investigation.

BROWN: And we heard from Zachary Fardon, the U.S. attorney in Chicago as well as the attorney general, Loretta Lynch, announcing that the Justice Department will be launching a pattern of practice investigation with the Chicago Police Department, specifically looking at use of force and particularly deadly force, as well as disciplinary actions and the handling of allegations of misconduct.

[10:20:16] I want to bring in Ryan Young who is in Chicago.

Ryan, we have heard from protesters for weeks now saying they want this DOJ investigation. Now it is happening. What is the reaction there?

YOUNG: Well, you know, that's one of the things we'll be reaching out for the next five minutes or so, just talking to some of the people that we've made contact with over the last few weeks. But I want to point something out here. There's a lot of people in this community who feel like this never would have happened if that video wasn't released. The idea that there was one journalist who kept fighting to get this video released. And now that everyone has seen this video, there's this domino effect

that has happened. Throughout the community we heard over and over again that they believe the police department had two different sort of police departments. One for one side of the town and one for another side of the town. There's been over 200 police-involved shootings here over the last two years. There have been big settlements given out to families.

But there's a neighborhood, especially in the black community, where they're saying, hey, we are not getting a chance to have some of these investigated the way we would like to see them investigated. And they were calling for the DOJ to step in and to actually look inside and to see what was going on here.

Just in the last two cases that we're talking about, there is no audio on the videotape. People were glad there's videotape, but they're wondering why the audio doesn't work in these cases. They're say there's a practice here of covering things up.

When the statements came out with the Laquan McDonald case and it shows what the officers said happened and then shows what the videotape shows what happened, there's a lot of people who are saying this happens all the time in Chicago. They're very upset about this. We have people who are passionate, screaming in the middle of the streets, who were saying they needed to see the change.

And of course, Pamela, they are happy to see this happening. And in fact they were calling for the step down of the mayor and for the state's attorney here in Chicago because they believe the only way change can happen is there's change at the top.

BROWN: All right, Ryan Young in Chicago for us. Thank you so much.

We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:26:14] LYNCH: I always talk about when I meet with parents of a variety of communities is to ask them if they know what their children are doing online. And as many of you will doubtless agree, it is very difficult to get a handle on that. And so there's a number of areas in which we think that the Muslim-American community can be very effective and proactive in helping resolve these issues.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) Thank you. I'd like to ask you and --

BROWN: And there was Attorney General Loretta Lynch responding to questions about ISIS in the wake of the terrorist attack in San Bernardino. And after these stunning revelations just out of London in this last hour, prosecutors say images of California-San Bernardino rampage were found on the cell phone of this recent apparent knife attacker.

Officials now describing that attack at the Tube as an act of terror, this as dramatic new video of his takedown surfaces. Witnesses say shouts of, "This is for Syria," could be heard during that attack.

Frederik Pleitgen is in London with the very latest.

Frederik, is this being looked at as a copycat attack?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it certainly is in some ways being looked at as a copycat attack. And one of the reasons is that they did find apparently some ISIS imagery on the man's cell phone as well as you just mentioned, some images of the San Bernardino attack. But also the Paris attacks as well. And the authorities here, earlier today when this man was in court, also gave some more details as to what actually happened.

And one of the reasons why they are charging him with attempted murder and treating this as a terrorist attack apparently all this happened on Friday -- on Saturday night at around 7:00 p.m. on the subway here, when he attacked a 56-year-old man, beat the man down to the ground and then took the man's neck and started cutting it in what many people described as a sawing motion, Pam.

At some point, he then let -- however he left a gushing wound of about 12 centimeters, or five inches that later required five hours of surgery to save this man's life. He then threatened some other people before, what we saw on that video happened. The three police officers came in. They tasered the man who was apparently only the third shot but actually took him down and then managed to subdue him. So he's being tried for attempted murder but again the authorities very much treating this as a terror-related incident -- Pam.

BROWN: Really disturbing. Frederik Pleitgen, thank you.

And take a look. You're looking at live pictures now from California. Any moment we're expecting a presser with new details of the -- at the San Bernardino attack, the aftermath of that. County workers back to work this morning for the first time today following the attack.

And we'll be right back.

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