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Michigan Governor Admits "Disaster", Won't Resign; Who Killed Freddie Gray?; The Many Faces of Bernie Sanders. Aired 10:30-11a ET
Aired January 19, 2016 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:29:37] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Two current students and one former student were found dead on Sunday at the State University of New York in Geneseo. Police say it looks like it was a murder- suicide. The former student may have stabbed his ex-girlfriend and another student after their three-year relationship ended.
Five soldiers training in the French Alps have been killed in an avalanche. Four other soldiers were injured when they were swept away. They were part of a group of 50 soldiers training in the Alps. The accident comes only four days after another deadly avalanche killed three other people.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM: the toxic tap water in Flint, Michigan. Protests grow, anger builds but worried residents say they're not hearing any solutions. The sound and the fury -- when we come back.
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COSTELLO: Michigan's embattled governor says the Flint water crisis is nothing short of a disaster and even accepts the chilling assessment of his critics. He's now confronting his own Hurricane Katrina. At least 100 protesters march outside of his home, braving subzero wind chills and calling for the governor -- Governor Snyder to resign or even face arrest.
It could be a pivotal day in the crisis. More protests are planned, more lawsuits due to be announced and new details on how to fix the staggering health threat.
[10:35:01] And here's a sobering look at the problem from a video posted on Twitter. That murky, foul-looking brew spewing from a fire hydrant is the city's water supply that comes straight out of the tap.
CNN Jean Casarez is live in Flint this morning with more. Good morning.
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning -- Carol. It's a big day all across the state. And I want to show you right behind me, that's the Flint River -- that's the water that was going into the pipes that this community says had lead in it from the pipes that they drank, they bathed in, they cooked with, and they washed their clothes in.
Now, at 1:00, we're expecting a big announcement. More civil suits of class actions are to be filed from people in this community saying that their health is affected and they believe the future of their health is affected. Also, property values they say, have gone down.
Now, following that, take you to the state capital -- the state capital steps, actually. Different organizations, we believe, are going to hold rallies in defiance of the governor's state of the state address tonight.
Now, the protesters really say, and according to the civil class action suit already filed, they're not saying that the governor actually made the decision to use the Flint River as the drinking water. But they say that his knowledge and his lack of action contributed.
Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It just got to the point where we said enough is enough. Let's do something here. He should have paid attention to the experts. He should have -- he should have switched it back over to Detroit water as soon as he knew of the contamination.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Now, the fact is last October, this community was switched back over to Detroit water, but they are also saying that since the copper and lead was already coming from the pipes into the water, you can't stop that, even with a good water supply.
The governor is saying that once he had knowledge of what was happening, he immediately took action. He declared a state of disaster and emergency. He called in the National Guard. They are now handing out bottles of water, test kits, and filters to everyone in this community.
And Carol, the community wants answers. They want to know what do we do now? And who is going to pay for the changes? That's why all eyes are on the state capital of Lansing tonight for that state of the state address.
COSTELLO: All right. Jean Casarez reporting live from Flint, Michigan this morning. You heard Jean say at least one class action suit already filed. Two more expected to be announced in just a couple of hours. And it's believed the governor will be named in those two new suits.
Mel Robbins is a CNN legal analyst. She joins me now with more on this. Good morning.
MEL ROBBINS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: Good morning, Mel. So is it fair to blame the governor, because after all, he appointed the administrators who decided to change the water source? ROBBINS: You know, a couple of things, Carol. First of all, the
legal issues in this case are as murky as the water in Flint. Because generally, it's nearly impossible to sue government officials for the course of their everyday conduct unless you can prove that they were grossly negligent.
And Flint is a really difficult case. Let me tell you why. The city of Flint has just taken it on the teeth for a long time. It's a mill town. It has been part of the auto industry for years. Plants started closing 20 years ago. It never fully recovered.
This is a city of only 100,000 residents. 40 percent of them are below the poverty line -- Carol. And so this is a community that has taken blow after blow, and in fact, they don't have a mayor. They have a state-appointed supervisor that's running the city because they're in such a state of financial crisis.
And so whether or not they're going to be able to pin this on anybody, because I think what a lot of people are going to say is wait, we weren't grossly negligent. We made a mistake. And we're trying our best to fix it.
COSTELLO: But here's the thing. A lot of people in that community say the Flint River -- come on? We have known the Flint River was polluted for a very, very long time. They were against changing the water source in the first place, but state administrators did that, and look what happened.
ROBBINS: That's right, Carol. But state administrators did that in order to save $19 million, and they immediately retrofitted --
COSTELLO: But you can't save a buck at the expense of the health of your citizens.
ROBBINS: Look, you know, Carol, I don't disagree with you. I'm from Michigan. I think that this is absolutely horrendous that this went down. It's horrendous that these folks had horrible, polluted, toxic water coming out of their pipes not for a week but for a year and that nobody did anything.
But from a legal standpoint -- not a moral standpoint -- from a legal standpoint, it's going to be hard. You're going to have to prove that individual employees were grossly negligent.
[10:39:58] There are reports coming out that there were e-mails that certain employees knew about the high levels of lead in Flint residents and went on television, had local addresses where they actually said there was no danger. If that's the case, it's a much stronger legal argument.
But everybody needs to understand that just because you bring a lawsuit against a city it's very difficult because cities, municipalities actually have a lot of immunity in performing their day to day government functions.
They're going to have to prove gross negligence. Do we have it here? Maybe, but it's going to be more than just pointing fingers and saying, there's something outrageous about the brown water. And of course, you can't just do cost savings and stick polluted water on people. But it will take time. One good thing about the lawsuits, whether they're successful or not from a class action standpoint is it's gotten the attention that Flint needs and that these residents need to put the pressure on officials to do something and to do something now.
COSTELLO: All right. Mel Robbins, thanks for your insight.
All right, this just in to CNN. We will not learn whether affluenza teenager Ethan Couch's case will be moved out of juvenile core and into adult court. There was supposed to be this hearing today around that issue, but it had to be rescheduled due to a legal technicality. The judge says the hearing cannot proceed because Couch's parents were not notified about the proceeding. We'll keep you posted.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, his death sparks national outrage, the controversy as Baltimore tries to uncover who killed Freddie Gray.
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[10:45:48] COSTELLO: Freddie Gray's death while in custody sparked intense protests in Baltimore unleashing anger and unrest the city hadn't seen since the 1960s. Tonight, CNN is teaming up with the "Baltimore Sun" for a special investigation into gray's controversial death. Here's a look.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we want to do is show you the video.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Police are under intense pressure to complete an investigation in weeks that would normally take months with scores of questions to answer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was there any evidence of use of force? Was there any broken bones? On Mr. Gray. Was there any evidence of kicking, punching, strikes of any type upon his body?
JUSTIN GEORGE, BALTIMORE SUN CRIME REPORTER: The stakes for this investigation were as high as I have ever seen.
MARQUEZ: "Baltimore Sun" crime reporter Justin George obtains exclusive access to the investigation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll get started.
MARQUEZ: They had basically a two-week window in order to investigate this.
GEORGE: The main question the police task force was trying to answer is what exactly happened to Freddie Gray.
MARQUEZ: To piece the puzzle together, investigators gather surveillance footage. Canvas the neighborhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anyone in your household that may have information or know anything?
MARQUEZ: Re-create the van route and deconstruct officers' actions. Like the leg lace used to restrain Gray during his arrest. It is soon clear that the investigation creates as many questions as it answers. For starters, why were police chasing Gray?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not clear probable cause. Wasn't out shooting somebody on the corner. Wasn't a drug kingpin or breaking into a house.
MARQUEZ: And why did they arrest him? The police report says he fled unprovoked and had a knife in his pocket, but charging documents say they didn't know about the knife until they caught him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So here to talk about tonight's special is CNN's Miguel Marquez. One of the reasons this is so fascinating is because it's truly a behind the scenes look.
MARQUEZ: Because we were able to work with the Baltimore sun on this, it provides us material and you know, I covered a lot in Baltimore, but even watching this documentary at the end of it, and all of the work that our team did and then having access to the "Baltimore Sun" and all of their, just vast knowledge of the city and of covering this story, greatly improved our understanding of everything that happened up until his death.
COSTELLO: Just going behind the scenes of the police investigating, being in that room while police were deciding how they would investigate Freddie Gray's death, seeing the police officer go door to door. Those are things we usually don't see in real life.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE; This is unseen. This was, I think, for the Baltimore police very difficult to do, to allow a reporter access into it. It has complicated things for the police, and for the trial of these six officers to some degree. But it gives us a look into the death of Freddie Gray that we have never seen.
COSTELLO: The city of Baltimore today, you know, these trials have yet to take place, right? Because the one that was supposed to take place has been postponed. So what is the mood like in the city?
MARQUEZ: Unsettled. I think people are in some ways waiting for the other shoe to drop. I think that the six officers who are still up now, the first ended in a mistrial. The second one has been delayed. I think that people in the streets, people who lived in Freddie Gray's neighborhood feel that justice has already failed.
The treatment that these officers received is different than any of them would have received. So they don't see it as necessarily justice. I think they want to see a result. But no one is expecting all guilty or all innocent. COSTELLO: You have spent an enormous amount of time reporting on
Baltimore -- investigating what happened. What's your takeaway from doing this documentary?
[10:49:59] MARQUEZ: It's a very complicated city. You know it well. It is heartbreaking to see the level of just watching the documentary -- it makes me a little emotional.
It's heartbreaking to see the level of disparity between rich and poor in that city and the lack of access and just sort of these institutional barriers to people getting out of these places. You know, part of it, this Kevin Moore character, he broke down and cried talking about him not thinking that he would live to see his kids grow up. It was just an incredibly powerful moment. And an insight for me being from New Mexico. I'm very happy to have.
COSTELLO: Yes, and I'm glad you're doing this because the frustrating part to me after living in Baltimore for so many years is it's right on the cusp of being this great city.
MARQUEZ: Yes. You feel it there.
COSTELLO: Yes. You do. Miguel Marquez -- thanks.
CNN special report, "WHO KILLED FREDDIE GRAY", airs tonight, 9:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN.
Still to come, you can say a lot without opening your mouth. Just ask Bernie Sanders.
And be sure to join our CNN family as we share the people who made us who we are today. Watch "THE PERSON WHO CHANGED MY LIFE", Sunday night, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: My son helped make me change.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These people changed lives.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you believe we're back here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Join the familiar faces of CNN as they share their special someone with you.
MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN HOST: The voyage that your suggestions sent me on --
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: But I learned this from you. You have to ask important questions on the most important issues of the day.
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN HOST: Without my mom, I am certain I would not be where I am.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: If you were to ask them how important is a mentor, and if they told you not that important, it probably means they never had a great mentor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that the letter?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is the letter.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You found it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: From this little bag.
DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Very few people will tell you the truth. You do that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anderson Cooper and Michaela Pereira host "THE PERSON WHO CHANGED MY LIFE", Sunday at 8:00 on CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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[10:56:26] COSTELLO: Checking some top stories for you at 56 minute past. Actress Janet Hubert who played Aunt Viv on the hit '90s shows "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" is slamming Jada Pinkett Smith for announcing she plans to boycott the Oscars because of a lack of racial diversity among the nominees.
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JANET HUBERT, ACTRESS: I find it ironic that somebody who has made their living, made their living and made millions and millions of dollars from the very people that you talk about boycotting because you didn't get a nomination, because you didn't win. That's not the way life works, baby.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Filmmaker Spike Lee says he plans to boycott, too. This is the second year in a row no black actors were nominated in any of the four acting categories.
Starting tomorrow, for the first time in ten years you'll be able to see five planets all at once with your naked eye. Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter are expected to align in a digital line right before sunrise. Weather permitting, scientists say they will be visible until mid-February, so you have time.
Bernie Sanders stumping in Iowa this morning. He's taking on a Trumpian tone lately, reading out poll numbers at rallies. And moments ago, Sanders says he is the candidate to take down Trump.
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SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: From the bottom of my heart, above and beyond ideas, if you want somebody who is going to beat Donald Trump, who is going to beat the other Republicans, I think Bernie Sanders is that candidate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Sanders is also competing with Trump in another way -- his expressive face. Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You can't deny it, Bernie.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: To get the Affordable Care Act passed.
MOOS: Your reactions to Hillary were written all over your face, in your head shaking, in your smile. As "Politico" put it, Bernie was making faces.
He made the one that vent viral while Clinton was accusing Sanders of dissing President Obama.
CLINTON: Senator Sanders called him weak, disappointing.
MOOS: It was variously described as the evil eye, side eye, the stink eye.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I see this guy over at the pizza box, he's giving me the stink eye.
MOOS: Someone tweeted that Sanders is like your grandpa who yells and makes funny faces at the dinner table. At one point, he exhaled like a horse.
CLINTON: He voted for what we call the Charleston loophole.
MOOS: Blowback to the infamous Al Gore sigh.
GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT: That's what a governor gets to do. There is differences.
MOOS: But you know who Sanders faces reminded people of? Bernie, you're probably not going to like this.
Bernie Sanders is channeling his inner Donald Trump with those faces tweeted one progressive.
JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He gets his foreign policy experience from the shows.
MOOS: Though, the Donald is more dismissive and more explosive.
BUSH: But he's a chaos candidate.
MOOS: The die-hard capitalist and the Democratic socialist share the wealth when it comes to facial expresses.
But when CNN fact-checked what Hillary was saying while Bernie was making all those faces, it turned out what Hillary was saying was judged to be mostly true. CLINTON: He voted to let guns go on to Amtrak, guns go into
national parks.
MOOS: The fact-checking didn't stop Hillary detractors from enjoying the sweet smell of stink eye. "Exactly, Bernie, we feel the same way when Hillary speaks."
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Thanks for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.
"AT THIS HOUR" with Berman and Bolduan starts now.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Just moments from now, Donald Trump speaks live in Iowa, teasing a major announcement and a special guest is the frontrunner --
