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Legal View with Ashleigh Banfield

Dallas Police Shootings; Dallas Eyewitness Account. Aired 12- 12:30p ET

Aired July 08, 2016 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hours and days.

Thanks so much for joining us AT THIS HOUR. "Legal View" with Ashleigh Banfield starts right now.

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Ashleigh Banfield.

We're continuing our breaking news that comes out of Dallas. And the facts and information are pouring into CNN, all of this amid immense sorrow and grieving in not only Dallas but right across this country.

Let me get you the facts as we know them. Right now, the families of five police officers who were murdered, shot in cold blood last night on the streets of Dallas, those families are in shock. Not only that, seven other officers treated for their bullet injuries after being fired upon by what we believe to be one person, Micah Xavier Johnson. This, the first victim - the first victim to be identified with a photograph as well.

It's quite remarkable, just the carnage that was able to be exacted on the streets of Dallas last night. But the police there and officials believe it may just be the work of that one person, Micah Xavier Johnson. And what we are learning about that murderer is startling. This is the photograph that we have been able to find. It comes via his FaceBook page. And we've also been told by those who live near him that this is, in fact, him.

But the details about him and his life are sketchy and they are rare as well to find. What we can tell you is that he lived with his mother in a nice neighborhood, an outskirt of Dallas, Mesquite, Texas. And he has a background that might lead you to believe he was a hero. He's one of our nation's veterans. And he was in Afghanistan.

I want to take you to our justice correspondent, Evan Perez, who's been digging up this background information.

BANFIELD: I - when you reported that, I thought I misheard you, that this is one of America's veterans. He fought in Afghanistan. And there's more of a background to him. Take me through what we know, Evan.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Ashleigh.

Barbara Starr was able to confirm with military sources that he did serve in the Army Reserves. And we don't know at this points whether or not he still is in the Army Reserves. It appears that he was a junior officer. He did not rise to the level of an officer. But he did have, obviously, from being in the military, he did have some training with weapons. And that might explain certainly what the suspicion was last night when he was able to kill all those officers. It appears that he is the only gunman.

Last night, as you know, the police there in Dallas thought that they were dealing with two or perhaps more gunmen. That's certainly what witnesses thought. You could understand with the chaos and with the sound of gunshots bouncing off those tall buildings there in downtown Dallas that that's what they thought they were dealing with. But after several hours of where he was holed up on this - at this community college garage, right there at the scene of the shooting where he - where he killed all those officers, after several hours of talking to police negotiators, they were able to draw out some of his motivations, or at least what he claimed what he was trying to do there. He said that he had some kind of vendetta against white people, certainly against white police officers. He said he was angry about the Black Lives Matter movement. He claimed he wasn't at all affiliated with that movement or with any others and he talked -

BANFIELD: Evan, actually, I'm going to interrupt you only for a moment. You mentioned that he was angry with the Black Lives Matter movement, but then went on to say that he was angry about those black lives that have been lost in these recent police shootings.

And, in fact, I want to go live right now, some pictures we're getting out of Dallas, Texas. There is a prayer meeting of sorts. It's organized by the people who organized the march last night. I believe this may be Pastor Dominic Alexander with the Next Generation Action Network. They called this hastily organized news conference. Let's listen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But, however, we will do our part with authorities to ensure that a proper investigation is conducted.

We extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims affected yesterday, in addition to the families of the victims of everyone in America that have experienced the loss of a loved one that do not deserve to die. As we always stated, that the time has come to find solutions. Together we can work to heal America.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, we're not going to be taking any questions. (INAUDIBLE). Thank you very much.

REV. DR. JEFF HOOD: My name is Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood. That's r-e-v-d- r-j-e-f-f-h-o-o-d

[12:05:00] I was one of the primary organizers of the protest yesterday. I can tell you that 40 hours ago, when we decided to go out on a limb and see if we couldn't get a protest together to respond to Baton Rouge and St. Paul, never in our wildest dreams would we have imagined, first of all, the type of crowd that showed up last night. Second of all, never in our wildest dreams would we have imagined that five police officers would be dead this morning. I can tell you what my experience was. I can tell you that when we

showed up to Belo (ph) Garden, we were trying to figure out how to put an event together for a very large group of people. We were consulting different people on different routes to take during the march. Ultimately what we settled on was consulting with the Dallas Police Department to determine where we were going and we were in constant contact with them.

As for the rally, we were interested in creating a space where anger could be let out. We were interested in creating a space where people could grieve. We were interested in creating a space where people could network, to face head-on the problem of police brutality in our country.

We believe that there is no question that that rally did those things. We left that rally in a non-violent fashion. The rally was non- violent. There was never a moment where I felt like there was even a hint of violence.

So as we proceed forth from Belo Gardens, we went up Main Street. We took a right on what I believe is Accert (ph). We came back around right there on Main Street Garden Park and came back down, all the way down to the courthouse. We turned around there at the courthouse after a couple of people said a few words, a couple of ministers. And the whole time I'm sitting there with one of the police sergeants and we're talking about how great of a protest this has been, how non- violent this protest has been. And we keep pushing and we pass Austin Street. And I might have gotten 15 or 20 feet past the intersection of Austin Street when I heard, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. Intercession (ph).

Immediately, when I heard the shots, I looked up and I saw what I believed were two police officers that went down. I - I didn't know what to do. The first thing I did was I grabbed my - my shirt, because I was close - I felt like I might have been shot. So I was feeling around.

The sergeant ran towards the shooting. I ran the opposite direction. I was concerned about the 700 or 800 people behind me. I was screaming, "run, run, active shooter, active shooter, run, run!" And I was trying to get folks out as fast as I could. I had a cross in my hand. That cross very quickly became a shepherd's crook, a shepherd's staff, and I was getting folks out.

During that moment, I lost track of my wife. I didn't find her again for three and a half hours. There were a lot of people who had similar stories last night. Ultimately, I spent those three hours talking to people, asking the question, why? Why? Why is this happening?

[12:10:00] The only answer I know now and the only answer I knew then was, turn to love. We've got to turn to love. We've got to stop shooting. We have got to turn to love. I ended the night by myself in tears devastated that there were five families that weren't going to find their loved one.

This is a devastating time for the city of Dallas. It's a devastating time for us as activists and organizers. We cannot bring about justice through violence. We cannot bring about love through violence. If we continue to turn to violence, we are going to continue to see heartache and devastation.

We know that the eyes of our nation and perhaps even the world are upon Dallas at this very moment. This is a city of love. This is a city where people learn to stand up for each other. And our words from here on out will be what it has always been, teaching people to love each other and pursue justice for the rest of their days.

I'm going to be open to taking questions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No questions.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

HOOD: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No questions.

HOOD: I would like to - I would like to - I already said I would take - I already said I would take -

BANFIELD: All right, I want to take you up to Washington, D.C., right away, where the attorney general, Loretta Lynch, is about to address the instance in Dallas. Let's listen.

LORETTA LYNCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL: At least five police officers were shot and killed. Several more were injured, along with two civilians, as they sought to protect a peaceful protest in Dallas, Texas. Our thoughts and our prayers and condolences go out to the families of those who have lost loved ones.

The Department of Justice, including the FBI, ATF, the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Attorney's Office on the scene is working closely with our state and local counterparts and we intend to provide any assistance that we can to investigate this attack and also to heal a community that has been severely shaken and deeply scarred by an unfathomable tragedy.

This is an unfolding situation. We will be providing additional information when it is available and appropriate.

But more so, this has been a week of profound grief and heartbreaking lost. The peaceful protest that was planned in Dallas last night was organized in response to the tragic deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota. Now, we've opened a civil rights investigation in Louisiana and we are providing assistance to local authorities in Minnesota who are leading the investigation there.

And today, we are feeling the devastating loss of Dallas area Rapid Transit Officer Brent Thompson and four other fallen whose names remain unreleased as we await notification to all of the families.

Now, after the events of this week, Americans across our country are feeling a sense of helplessness, of uncertainty and of fear. These feelings are understandable and they are justified. But the answer must not be violence. The answer is never violence. Rather, the answer, our answer, all our answer must be action. Calm, peaceful, collaborative and determined action.

We must continue working to build trust between communities and law enforcement. We must continue working to guarantee every person in this country equal justice under the law. And we must take a hard look at the ease with which wrongdoers can get their hands on deadly weapons and the frequency with which they use them. And we must reflect on the kind of country that we want to build and the kind of society that we are choosing to pass on to our children.

Above all, we must reject the easy impulses of bitterness and rancor and embrace the difficult work, but the important work, the vital work of finding a path forward together. And above everything, we must remind ourselves that we're all Americans, and that as Americans, we share not just a common land but a common life. Not just common goals, but a common heart and soul.

And those we've lost this week have come from different backgrounds, different neighborhoods. But today, they're mourned by officers, by residents, by family and friends, by men and women and children who loved them, who needed them and who will miss them always. They are mourned by all of us.

To the families of all who've lost their lives in this series of tragedies, we share your pain and your loss. To our brothers and sisters who wear the badge, I want you to know that I am deeply grateful for the difficult and dangerous work you do every day to keep our streets safe and our nation secure. Our hearts are broken by this loss. The Department of Justice will do all we can to support you in the days ahead.

To those who seek to improve our country through peaceful protest and protective speech, I want you to know that your voice is important. Do not be discouraged by those that would use your lawful actions as a cover for their heinous violence. We will continue to safeguard your constitutional rights and to work with you in the difficult mission of building a better nation and a brighter future.

To all Americans, I ask you, I implore you, do not let this week precipitate a new normal in this country. I ask you to turn to each other, not against each other, as we move forward. Let us support one another. Let us help heal one another. I urge you to remember today and every day, we are one nation, we are one people and we stand together.

May God bless the families and the loved ones of all who were taken from us this week and comfort their grief with his everlasting grace. May God bless the United States of America.

Thank you.

[12:15:38] BANFIELD: The attorney general of the United States of America, Loretta Lynch, with a brief statement to the nation about what happened in Dallas last night. It should be known this is a woman who heads a Department of Justice that is currently investigating police officers and departments around the country for civil rights violations and accusations as such.

And all of this comes together with what happened last night and what happened in the last few days as well. Let me just remind you, she mentioned Alton Sterling's death in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, an African-American who was shot by two white police officers, and then, of course, she mentioned Philando Castile in Minnesota, a black motorist who was shot by an officer who has yet to be identified, but there are racial undertones it has been alleged in that shooting as well. And then the Dallas Police, who indicated to us through their chief, that the murderer last night, who trained his weapon on not only seven officers who are dead today - or five officers who are dead today, but seven officers who are injured, and two civilians who are injured, that that person, Micah Xavier Johnson, told them he did it for several reasons. He told them he was upset about Black Lives Matter, about recent police shootings, that he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers. He was - told that he wasn't affiliated with any groups and that he did this alone.

The house on your screen right now is in a suburb of Dallas, Texas, about 20 minutes' drive up the freeway in Mesquite -- Mesquite, Texas. By all accounts from what you're seeing, a pretty nice neighborhood. This is the home of Micah Xavier Johnson. Neighbors saying he lived there with his mother. Neighbors also saying he seemed like a bit of a recluse. That they would see him sometimes at the post office or the mailbox, but that he kept to himself mostly. And yet another neighbor at least suggesting that he had seen Micah Johnson with other white people at other times. But certainly the indications from the man on the left-hand side of your screen to the officers who were negotiating with him before he was taken out, before he was killed, that his intention was entirely racially motivated, to take out white police officers in particular and white people.

It should also be noted there was a technique that was used to actually neutralize this mass murder. And it was a technique that many of us have never heard of before and to our knowledge has never been used before. A robot was dispatched with an extended arm and ordinance on the end of it to blow up Micah Johnson and end his life before he could end any others.

I'm going to go back to Evan Perez, our justice correspondent, standing by.

Just like you to unpack a little bit about what we just heard from the DOJ, from the head of the DOJ, from the Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Evan.

PEREZ: You know, Ashleigh, she has really been trying to strike a balance, frankly, because as you mentioned, her department, the Justice Department and the FBI, have been doing these investigations around the country of police departments that are - that allegedly discriminate in their policing tactics. And you have all these shootings, these police involved shootings, that they've been investigating, including the one just this past week that they launched into the shooting there in Baton Rouge. And now they're also assisting with the one outside of St. Paul, Minnesota.

[12:20:16] At the same time, she's been going around the country, Loretta Lynch has been visiting police departments, trying to highlight police departments that in the view of the Justice Department are doing the good thing, are doing the right thing. By all accounts, Dallas is one of those cities that is doing the right thing. It's an irony here that this man, this shooter, decided to target police officers in Dallas because we're told that they're actually a great example of community policing, a police department that reflects racially and ethnically - it reflects the community it protects and serves. And she's gone around in 13 cities. She just wrapped up that tour. She's been trying to highlight that stuff simply because she knows that there is this tone surrounding some of these police involved shootings around the county. She's been very, very worried out it. I think - I think people at the Justice Department and at the FBI have been very concerned that certainly the Justice Department is not only doing investigations of police, but also highlighting the positive things about policing.

Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: Evan, if you could stand by for one moment. There's still - you know, there are a lot of people who are still waking up across this county. It's 9:2 1 a.m. on the West Coast and finding out what happened in the wee hours of the morning last night. By all accounts, there was utter chaos on the streets of Dallas.

And I want to now talk with someone who was right in the middle of it, at the scene, with her children, taking part in those peaceful protests on the streets of Dallas before it went horribly awry and shots rang out.

Sharay Santora is live with me now from Dallas.

Sharay, you're a former Marine. You're a mother of two. And you were there in what I've heard you describe as a loving, peaceful protest where police were walking along side of protesters and that it's exactly the way it should have been. Take me from that moment.

SHARAY SANTORA, WITNESS TO DALLAS SHOOTING: One thing that you learn in the Navy is no not panic in moments of sudden things happening. And from the beginning, when we - when my children and I made it to downtown Dallas to join the rally, there was nothing but love. The cops lined the street. They were taking selfies and hugs and, you know, hand shaking people who were involved in the rally. And it took us nearly 45 minutes to park to be able to join.

It was very peaceful. It was very loving. We congregated in front of the courthouse. A few people said words. And it - it was so much love involved and so much solidarity involved that what happened literally a minute later was so unsuspecting. It was so sudden. And it was very tragic. We - my children and I were at the front of the crow. I decided to slow down a little bit and let us hover toward the middle of the group.

When the first shots rang out was during a moment of quiet and everyone got still and kind of looked around because it sounded like fireworks. And then the second reports came and we knew something was wrong. We saw the minister running back down the street with his cross yelling, you know, move out of the way, run, there's an active shooter. No, don't stop, don't look, there's an active shooter, run. And we cleared the area.

And we were clearing the area, Dallas P.D. was running toward the shots that were being fired. The cops were coming down the street. And I just feel so blessed to have made it through this. And it's just such a tragic thing to happen in such a moment that was going so well and there was such a great stand for Dallas.

BANFIELD: Sharay, can I - can I ask you as a - a veteran yourself, as a former Marine, a distinguished service member, how the news is falling on you that the murder, whose carnage you witnessed last night, is a fellow serviceman?

SANTORA: When I heard that news, it was a bit shocking and not shocking in the same moment. We're at a time right now where people are angry and they don't know what to do. And we've been dealing with this anger for a very long time. Thankfully, the people who joined together last night, we came together in love. And we didn't know where to begin, but we knew if we just began by filling a space and letting people know that we're here, we're loved, we're upset, we're angry, we're hurt, that was a very good and positive way to show people how to grieve and giving people an outlet. But for those people who are angry and don't know what to do and who are fed up, things happen. I don't condone it. I won't say I fully understand it. But it happened and now we have to deal with it.

[12:25:25] BANFIELD: And I guess to that message, Sharay, the - the message that you, as one of your protesters, and all your fellow marchers last night had was a peaceful message to try to come to some sort of consensus about communication between the black community and policing authorities around the country. I think everybody is in understanding that there needs to be a solution on both sides. And then that message is obliterated by a man who murders five people and shoots nine others and says to the negotiating police that he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers. Do you feel as though your message was obliterated last night? And is there a lot of repair that needs to be done so that the equal messages can still have voice?

SANTORA: Though there is a lot of work that needs to be done, the message still stands. If you were there, you got to see people, black, white, brown, yellow, we saw people of what we assume of Middle Eastern dissent who were in full garb with, you know, with their heads wrapped. We saw old people, young people. We saw couples. We saw disabled people. And we all came together to fight and to show love for one cause. And we deal with negativity every single day, but that doesn't stop what we stand for and what we fight for. And as sad as it is, and my heart reaches out to those families. And so many of us were saying in that moment, not only were we praying for everyone involved, praying for our safety and the safety of the officers who were protecting us, many of us said immediately, they were here for us, we're going to be for them. My children and I, we're going to be at those funerals because they were there to protect me and my children. They lost their lives protecting me and my children. And we need people to understand that bad things that happen shouldn't stop the love and it shouldn't stop us moving forward and trying to find an answer to everything that's wrong right now.

BANFIELD: Just one last question for you, Sharay. It's a personal question. Since you were there last night with your children, how are they today?

SANTORA: They are shaken. They are upset. They are frustrated. My son doesn't really know how to feel. Unfortunately, we've gone through this multiple times in the past few years. The Trayvon Martin situation really hit close to home for us. And since then, he has been more watchful of things that are going on around us, and so has my daughter. We went home last night. We had a family discussion. And they watched cartoons until they fell asleep just in order to get a sense of their childhood back and to be at peace and to be able to fall asleep with something other than the sounds of gunshots and sirens in their ears.

BANFIELD: Yes, I - I think we all feel that way. I mean, honestly, we all want a different sense of normalcy back.

Sharay Santora, thank you very much for your time. Thank you also for your military service to this country. And God bless as you try to heal in that community.

SANTORA: Thank you.

BANFIELD: Sharay Santora joining us from Dallas, one of the marchers in the peaceful protest last night that erupted into gunfire and death.

Coming up next, drastic situations call for drastic measures. When negotiations with the gunman brought down, officers used a robot armed that was armed with explosives, and they took him out before he could kill again. We're going to talk more about that extreme tactic in just a moment.

And we're also showing you - going to show you a live picture right now of the White House, where the president has ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff. We're also awaiting additional words from the president. He is not there right now. He is overseas. He traveled for a NATO meeting. He's in Warsaw, Poland. And in the wee hours of the morning, about 5:00 this morning Eastern Time, he gave a live news conference and addressed the carnage in Dallas right away. This on the heels of an address yesterday where he also talked about the killings of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota. The flag over the White House lowered to half-staff.

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