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Legal View with Ashleigh Banfield

Labor Day Weather; Tragic End for 27 Year Cold Case; Trump Supporter Pastor Mark Burns Facing Questions. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired September 05, 2016 - 12:30   ET

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

[12:30:01] BRYNN GINGRAS, NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And you can't go on in the beach and enjoy it. So we're seeing a lot of people either going home a little earlier or even just coming out here and taking pictures and taking in the sites of what it left of Hermine, Christine.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Certainly, I hope the small business owners are getting a little bit of their cash anyway if they're not out in the water still spending some money on Labor Day. Thanks for that.

Chad, where do we expect the storm to track from here?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's still getting closer to land and that's kind of the rub and it's going to be out there for at least four more high tide cycles and as it moves a little bit, it's going to adjust its wind direction.

Right now, the wind direction pretty much in from the northeast, not piling water like if it was blowing in this direction. There is water piling into the Cape Cod area, yes, into Boston Harbor, sure. But as this continues to slide down here, Christine, this wind will shift and begin to increase those high tides, at least a foot or two from where we are right now.

The rain is also on the way. As the storm gets 100 or 200 miles per hour -- closer, 100 miles closer, that's when we will be able to see the increase in those waves, the increase in the surge and still the possibility of the winds at about 30 or 40 miles per hour and that's why there are tropical storm warnings.

Now, we have a 14-foot wave action surge coming in. Every wave could be over every surfers head. And we have watched these waves all the way from North Carolina on up even into Massachusetts. They are all that big. And as they crash on shore, there will be significant beach erosion, but also the real risk of those rip currents just taking you out into the ocean for a very long time and then you have to try to swim and back.

Here is where the storm is forecast to go, only about 40 or 50 miles south of Nantucket. This is the coastal region here still going to turn to the right and away eventually, but that is on Thursday. This is a long, long-term event. We're still going to be in the water making these waves, making these winds for a long time. Here is where the low is right now. I'm going to show you the spaghetti models and how this all kind of happened. The spaghettis did a really great job before you got off North Carolina, they were doing really great and then all of the sudden you got into the ocean and the spaghetti didn't know what to do with this storm.

The models are just doing horribly. Some all the way close to New Jersey, some onshore. There's a possibility still that they could be on shore. The storm could, the eye of the center of the storm could still come onshore somewhere in Rhode Island, maybe the way down to Montauk. We'll have to see.

This is still -- now, think about this. This is now still Thursday or Friday before it finally exits and we say crashing into my cart over there, finally and how this thing sits in the water and not losing strength, really not much at all, 50 or 60 miles per hours for the next, about 72 hours.

ROMANS: All right, we'll take that. That is a messy bowl of spaghetti. Chad Myers, thank you very much. I talk to you very, very soon. You know, you keep it (ph) for us.

All right coming up, the story of Minnesota boy's remains finally found 27 years after he disappear. This is a tragic story that, you know, many people have known about. They have talked about their entire lives, the kidnapping, the heartbroken family, the investigation into what happened to Jacob Wetterling, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:37:38] ROMANS: A cold case mystery that garnered worldwide attention has come to a tragic end. It was in 1989 that 11-yeal old Jacob Wetterling was abducted by a mask man from a rural Minnesota road.

The Wetterling case was featured on CNN, "THE HUNT WITH JOHN WALSH," even led to changes in sex offender registration laws. 27 years after that incident, authorities confirm they have found Jacob's remains.

According to unnamed sources who spoke with CNN affiliate WCCO and the Minneapolis Star Tribune, a child pornography suspect, Danny Heinrich, who was questioned in the Wetterling case years ago, gave information more recently that led investigators to this find. The sheriff officer says they are evaluating the evidence and expect to provide detailed information in the days to come.

Joining us with more on this is Mayor Jeff Thompson of Paynesville, Minnesota. That is the community on a farm there where Jacob's remains were discovered. Thank you for joining us.

I know this is something that, I mean for many people in your community, your children's age, for example, their entire lives this has been something that's been hanging over their heads. How is your community handling this?

MAYOR JEFF THOMPSON, PAYNESVILLE, MINNESOTA: Well, first of all, there is, of course, that deep sense of sadness, but there's also a sense of relief that Jacob's remains have been found and there can be not necessarily closure, but at least some bit of that for the Wetterling family and all those involved.

ROMANS: For all those years your community and others kept their porch lights on. People kept their porch lights on case Jacob came home so he could see his way home. This is something that really permeated your town and towns around you.

THOMPSON: We're all neighbors here. You know, small town in America, we need to get along and live with each other and we share each others happiness's or burdens and losses. So this has affected many of us in this area.

ROMANS: Mayor Thompson, Patty Wetterling, Jacob's mom has -- since reacted to this news. She tells CNN, "Our hearts are broken. There are no words." As a parent, I guess what's your reaction to this most recent news?

THOMPSON: My reaction is that as sad a story as this has become, it has opened the eyes of many people as to a lot of the abuse that goes on, a lot of the cases of missing children.

[12:40:03] There are still 34 in the state of Minnesota that needs to be resolved. And hopefully, you know, what Mr. Heinrich has done to come forward now and show where they -- or tell where the body is, that others, you know, will feel the same amount of remorse or guilt and hopefully some of these others can be solved also.

ROMANS: Authorities are being very careful how they characterize Mr. Heinrich. He is in custody in a child pornography investigation, as you say authorities say he led them to that farm in your community, a farm where his family had lived years ago, decades ago. Give me a sense of how it feels to know obviously there was a child predator in your midst?

THOMPSON: Well, it's, you know, that the community is very resilient. It had been suspect for some time. It's finally great to know that this has probably come to an end. You know, we all live with, you know, our bad seeds, I guess and you just need to be aware.

If you see something, say something. If you hear something, say something. A lot of these instances could be prevented if we just talk amongst ourselves and keep an eye on each other.

ROMANS: What I think is remarkable, Mayor, is that, you know, in the last 30 years or so, so much, I mean, almost the hard work of so many of these grieving families or these, you know, families who, you know, their children are missing in a cold case like this, they have really changed the laws and made a real difference in how we think of these things in a way, you know, maybe a generation ago, you could ride your bike without fear but parents let their kids ride a bike without fear. But, you know, today, we're much smarter about protecting our kids.

THOMPSON: We are and attitudes have changed a lot too. It used to be boys will be boys and girls will be girls, but now we're much more aware of our surroundings and how our actions can affect others in bad ways and in good ways too. Like I say, we need to look out for each other, talk amongst ourselves, be neighbors.

ROMANS: Be neighbors and I know that many of you have been over the past 27 years. Mayor Jeff Thompson, thank you so much for spending your time with us this morning. And, again, our hearts and thoughts and prayers are with the Wetterling family this morning.

All right coming up, the small town southern pastor who has become a prominent and controversial backer for Donald Trump. He is new to national politics and now there are serious concerns about his past. So when our Victor Blackwell sat down to ask those questions. Things got awkward.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:46:54] ROMANS: His fiery speech at the Republican National Convention quickly made him one of Donald Trump's go-to supporters. But lately, South Carolina pastor, Mark Burns, has been facing more questions about himself than about the candidate he is supporting.

Just last week, he had to apologize for a tweet showing Hillary Clinton in black face. And now, it is his resume that is raising questions. CNN's Victor Blackwell has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PASTOR MARK BURNS, TRUMP SUPPORTER: We need a warrior. We need a champion. We need a winner and that is Donald.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He is the small town preacher who has become a major surrogate for Donald Trump's campaign for president.

BURNS: The last thing I want to do is to draw attention away from Mr. Trump's policy.

BLACKWELL: Pastor Mark Burns, frequent cable news guest, the crowd favorite at Trump rallies, even a speaker at the Republican National Convention.

BURNS: From the great stake of South Carolina.

BLACKWELL: But before the campaign, he was virtually unknown.

BURNS: I think Donald Trump is a great judge of character. You know, you would think he would just choose the greatest names. But Donald Trump values character more so than popularity or name and I think that I fall in that category.

BLACKWELL: Pastor Burns is Harvest Praise & Worship Center in Easley, South Carolina, is a small operation. The church just a few folding chairs, tables and cameras for his tell evangelism.

BURNS: That was to receive the wisdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. BLACKWELL: After attending Trump's November meeting with black pastors in New York, Burns says former Campaign Manager Corey Lewandowski asked him to speak on Trump's behalf at Bob Jones University. He has been a favorite of the campaign ever since.

DAMON DAVIS, KAPPA ALPHA PSI MEMBER: He just came out of the blue.

BLACKWELL: Virginia Beach Navy veteran, Damon Davis says he's a Republican, but it never heard of the fiery southern pastor, neither had his friends.

DAVIS: So they looked him up and he had web pages up and they saw one of the claims was that he was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi.

BLACKWELL: Davis who is a member of the predominantly African-American fraternity says he first saw the claim in Pastor Burns' bio on his church's web site. Davis says he captured this screen grab in July, just days after Burns spoke at the RNC then he started investigating.

And what did you find?

DAVIS: There is no person named Mark Burns, John Mark Burns or any variation thereof in the fraternity ever.

BLACKWELL: Davis says he contacted Pastor Burns. Soon after, Davis says the web page disappeared. Well, CNN called Kappa headquarters too. They have no record of him. So when we sat down with Burns, we asked about that.

BURNS: I did without question say that I had crossed -- I'm not crossed, but I have started the process of being a part of that organization, but that's the furthest that I've got.

BLACKWELL: Is that the bio from your web site?

BURNS: It is, but it is not the -- it is the bio, but this is not an accurate depiction of the bio. I mean, information has obviously been added. I mean, I'm pretty -- I own up to any mistakes that I made like I did with my tweet. But, obviously in this case that's not ...

BLACKWELL: So this is not from your page?

[12:50:02] BURNS: Look, this is from my page, but what I'm saying is, obviously this has been manipulated or either hacked or added.

BLACKWELL: CNN asked the site's host, weeks about the possibility that someone could have tampered with the church's web site. The company tells CNN there is no evidence of a hack. And CNN obtained the pastor's full bio from the church's web site through an internet archive.

You also claimed that you served six years in the Army Reserves, is that accurate?

BURNS: Yes, it is.

BLACKWELL: OK, we called the army and they said that you had no active army or Army Reserve service.

BURNS: I was never part of it. No, no, I was part of the South Carolina National Guard.

BLACKWELL: OK, I just asked you about Army Reserves. That was my question. You in this bio claim six years in the Army Reserves.

BURNS: Which is it is reserve. It is the army of South Carolina National Guard is reserves.

BLACKWELL: In a statement to CNN, the U.S. Army said Burns served in the South Carolina National Guard from 2001 to 2005, was discharged in 2008. He has no active army or Army Reserve service time.

Did you attend North Greenville University?

BURNS: I did attend North Greenville University.

BLACKWELL: Did you graduate from North Greenville University?

BURNS: No, I didn't complete the degree at North Greenville University.

BLACKWELL: In fact, the university tells CNN he was here one semester.

Again, the bio that's on your web site claims that you earned a Bachelor of Science degree. Did you make that claim?

BURNS: I actually, just a moment ago, as we were just opened up this -- first of all, I said that we were off the record.

BLACKWELL: I didn't agree with that.

BURNS: Yeah, but I did.

BLACKWELL: We're still rolling. I'm still asking you questions on the record. Did you make that claim? Did you make that claim that you graduated from North Greenville University?

BURNS: I'm off the record because I think this is not fair that you -- this is not fair at all. This is not what I -- we talked about. We were doing a profile and all of a sudden, you're here to try to destroy my character.

BLACKWELL: I'm not coming here to destroy your character. These are claims that were made on your web site that was live while you were speaking at the Republican National Convention. My question is, are those claims accurate?

BURNS: I understand this is what media does and I understand that when you find someone that is speaking out their heart and speaking out their desire to bring people together and to get past the political correctness of society that the job of that investigative journalist or, you know, in this case is to try to destroy the character of the individual so that voice is silenced. What I'm saying is this, in reference to my web site, if there's inaccurate information on there that can easily be manipulated by other people, and it can be manipulated by hackers. People can do and say and do and create whatever they want to create.

BLACKWELL: Again, the web site's host says there is no evidence of a hack.

BURNS: I don't feel comfortable at all. This is not ...

BLACKWELL: You also claim to be studying at the Andersonville Theological Seminary.

BURNS: Yes, I did.

BLACKWELL: Currently working on his Master of Theology and Pastoral Leadership, according to the church's website.

We called them. You're not enrolled there. And you enrolled in 2008 and never advanced.

BURNS: Right, but you know how old this is? This is gas been up -- but I think there's an updated profile on me that's on the web site.

BLACKWELL: So is it old or is it tampered?

BURNS: These are old information. This is extremely old information.

BLACKWELL: Seconds later ...

BURNS: This is a -- thank you. Thank you so much. I really appreciate you coming. You just take this.

BLACKWELL: Pastor Burns walked out, leaving us in his church.

Victor Blackwell, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: In response to our story, Pastor Mark Burns said this, "As a young man starting my church in Greenville, South Carolina, I overstated several details of my biography because I was worried I wouldn't be taken seriously as a new pastor.

This was wrong. I wasn't truthful then and I have to take full responsibility for my actions. Since that time I should have taken steps to correct any misrepresentation of my background. We all make mistakes and I hope that the measure of my character and the quality of my works speak for what kind of person I am.

I do also want to set the record straight about why this attack is happening because I'm a black man supporting Donald Trump for president. For too long, African-American votes have been taken for granted by Democratic politicians and enough is enough.

It's a shame that the political insiders and the media choose to attack me because I'm not going to stay silent about Hillary Clinton's pandering to our community. Instead, I'm going to tell people that there is another option, an option that represents a positive vision that will unify our country. That's why I have and will continue to tirelessly support Mr. Trump."

We also want to note CNN submitted questions to the Trump campaign about its vetting process, particularly in the case of Pastor Burns. We have not received a reply. However, Pastor Burns told CNN that he is now -- that he was not vetted by the Trump campaign, they simply like and approve his message.

[12:55:08] Coming up, former Republican presidential candidate turned Donald Trump advisers. Dr. Ben Carson joins my colleague Wolf Blitzer on Trumps outreach to African-American voters. Wolf starts after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Wolf Blitzer. It's 1:00 p.m. here in Washington, 6:00 p.m. in Paris, already midnight Tuesday in Laos, wherever you're watching from around the world. Thanks very much for joining us.

It's Labor Day here in the United States and the presidential candidates, they are working hard to reaching out to voters with just under 64 days to go until the U.S. presidential election.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton both have events in Ohio. That's a key swing state. While the Vice-President Joe Biden and the vice- presidential candidate, Tim Kaine, they spent the morning in Pennsylvania.