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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

10 Killed in Mass Shooting in Boulder, Colorado Supermarket; Boulder Suspect in Custody, Being Treated for Injuries; Germany Imposes Strict Lockdown for Easter as COVID Cases Rise; Biden's Move on ACA Attracts More Than 200K New Signups. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired March 23, 2021 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is EARLY START, I'm Laura Jarrett.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christine Romans. It's Tuesday, March 23rd, it's 4:00 a.m. in New York. And we begin with the breaking news from Boulder, Colorado this morning.

Authorities now say ten people including a police officer were shot and killed at the Kings Scooper supermarket. A suspect was taken into custody as is being treated for injuries. So far police have not determined a motive. Now witnesses at the scene describe a harrowing attack as gunfire sent shoppers running for their lives. One person recorded this moment inside the store.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't know if there is a shooter, active shooter somewhere. Could be in the store.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He just went in there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He went in the store?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is still here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god. Guys, we have people down inside King's Soopers. Look, there's -- holy (BLEEP). (BLEEP).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Other witnesses and family members told CNN's Don Lemon what happened inside the store.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN BOROWSKI, KING SOOPERS ATTACK WITNESS: The first shot was confusing, maybe it was somebody dropped something. Second shot came and then after that it was bam, bam, bam, and I was running, and I heard maybe eight shots. Somebody else said 13, but who is really counting at that point. I don't remember anyone screaming, I don't remember anybody hysterically yelling, it was just go, go, go, get out of there.

STEVEN MCHUGH, FAMILY WAS AT KING SOOPERS DURING SHOOTING: They were right there from the first shot to the last and Paul was in line to go get a COVID shot. Third person in line and that's when at least one shooter came in and killed the woman at the front of the line in front of him. I think thankfully the girls didn't see that. They were on the phone, with their other grandmother, and they all then -- eight shots in a row. There may have been as many as 50 or 60 shots according to my son-in-law.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And so your son-in-law quickly scooped up the girls and they ran upstairs to a closet and they hid.

MCHUGH: Thank God. You know, and then when Paul would come out to try to silence phones and didn't know who was coming up the stairs next. A lot of the action was right below them at the pharmacy. Extraordinarily terrifying. Of course, the little ones saying, yes, you know, the coats weren't long enough to hide our feet as they were standing behind the coats in the closet.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Officials have been working to identify the other victims as quickly as possible. The Boulder Police Department named 51-year-old Eric Talley as the officer that was killed in that shooting.

ROMANS: A procession was held to honor the fallen officer, a father of seven, who the Boulder Police chief described as a hero.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF MARIS HEROLD, BOULDER POLICE: Our hearts of this community go out to the victims of this horrific incident. We know of ten fatalities at this scene, including one of our Boulder PD officers by the name of Eric Talley who has been on the Boulder Police Department since 2010. He served in numerous roles supporting the Boulder Police Department and the community of Boulder. And I have to tell you the heroic action of this officer when he responded to this scene at 14:30 hours the Boulder Police Department began receiving phone calls of shots fired in the area and a phone call about a possible person with a patrol rifle. Officer Talley responded to the scene, was the first on the scene and he was fatally shot.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: CNN's Lucy Kafanov starts us off this morning on the ground in Boulder for us -- Lucy.

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and Laura, Boulder is still reeling from the tragedy that took place here. Ten people losing their lives, one of them 51-year-old Boulder Police Department officer Eric Talley.

[04:05:00]

We understand from authorities that at around 2:30 p.m. local time they started getting frantic 911 calls reporting an active shooter in the area. He was described as someone with a patrol rifle.

We understand that officers responded to the scene, Eric Talley, again, was one of the first, he was shot, he lost his life. There is no one who is injured except for the suspect who is in custody, that's according to officials. We understand that the suspect is in custody, he was taken to hospital for those injuries and that's really all we know. We know nothing about motive or what exactly let to the events that took place today.

The district attorney described this as a terrible and horrific mass shooting. He said this is going to be a painstaking investigation. We also understand from the Boulder police chief that this is a complex investigation that's going to take no less than five days to complete. And we did hear from Governor Jared Polis of Colorado, who said --

The families of these victims, and I quote, our fellow Coloradoans, my neighbors, are hearing the devastating news that their loved one who simply woke up and went to work this morning or ran out to pick up eggs won't be coming home. Today we saw the face of evil. I'm grieving with my community and all Coloradoans.

We do expect more details throughout the day on Tuesday about the victims and potentially the suspect who is in custody, but this is just the beginning of what's likely to be a long investigation. Christine, Laura, back to you.

So Colorado sports franchises reacting to the deadly supermarket shooting. The NBA's Denver Nuggets tweeting a statement --

We are all deeply saddened by the events in Boulder today. Our thoughts are with all of those impacted by this terrible act.

The Denver Broncos -- we are grateful for the law enforcement and medical professionals who bravely responded to yet another senseless tragedy.

JARRETT: And this from baseball's Colorado Rockies.

Our heart breaks for the lives needlessly lost and our thoughts are with everyone affected by this shooting.

And after the university of Colorado lost in the NCAA tournament last night the team's head coach addressed the tragedy in Boulder.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAD BOYLE, COLORADO MEN'S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH: It puts basketball in its proper place and win or lose tonight I just -- I felt an emptiness in my stomach, another senseless act of violence that we've experienced as a country many, many times.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ROMANS: So Boulder now the second deadly mass shooting in one week. In Atlanta police have still not announce add motive for the massacre at three spas that left eight people dead, including six Asian women. More from CNN's Ryan Young.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning Christine. This still remains an active investigation. We did learn though from the Cherokee County Sheriff's Department that they would no longer be sharing any information before this moves to court. We're not even sure when the first court appearance will be for the suspected shooter. But we did talk to a man who was actually inside the spa when the shooting started. He survived and he believes his massage therapist saved his life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was by the door, that's when I jumped behind the bed. And then once she opened up that door, I heard that third gunshot and she actually dropped and I'm pretty sure she got shot in her head.

YOUNG: You can understand why Marcus Lyon feels like the therapist stepping out in the hallway ended up saving him. Is a lot of questions in terms of what happens next with this investigation, but we do know that there are at least four investigations ongoing as we speak -- Laura and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Ryan Young, thank you.

Authorities in Boulder, Colorado, asking for the public's patience, still searching for a motive and answers to so many questions about what happened and why. Stay with us.

[04:10:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JARRETT: All right, we're following all the breaking news out of Boulder, Colorado this morning where a shooting left 10 people dead at a supermarket, including a police officer. Boulder's police chief calls the investigation, quote, very complex, and says it will take at least five days to complete.

Let's bring in CNN law enforcement analyst, Jonathan Wackrow. Jonathan thank you so much for getting up for us this morning. Always great to get your analysis.

Explain what makes an investigation like this so complex. I thought it was interesting that she put that five-day timeline on this.

JONATHAN WACKROW, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well first you have to think about, you know, from the investigation, we have a suspect, we have a suspect in custody. We want to try to ascertain the motive, right. We want to understand is this person connected to a larger group or did they act by themselves? Now the suspect may be talking, may be providing information to law enforcement. But most likely is probably not.

So what is law enforcement going to do now? They're going to look at everything that's connected to this individual from friends and groups. They're going to look for early warning signs and threat indicators from the environment around this individual. They're going to review the social media and that's going to give them some insight into the shooters personality. They're going to be able to see, was social media an outlet that express rage. They're going to try to understand whether or not this individual had passed behavioral issues or mental health concerns. That's the individual. So they're going to go down that path.

But remember we have a massive crime scene that has to be processed. Items of evidentiary value have to be processed very carefully. That is a painstaking process that law enforcement has to undertake that, you know, right now they've preserved the scene and investigators will start going through that scene very systematically. It starts outside. It's not just the inside of the building. You know, how did the individual get to that location, the vehicle, their residence. So there may be multiple crime scenes that they have to process at once. The five-day time frame sets the level of expectation of when information is going to come out. And actually I appreciate them setting that time frame.

ROMANS: And of course, they are mourning one of their own, law enforcement lost a 51-year-old police officer, a veteran of that Boulder force. Just a tragedy. Responding to this scene. And the union that represents the 32 workers who work at this King Sooper sent us this.

[04:15:00]

For the last year, our members and the associates have fought an invisible enemy, COVID-19, but today several innocent souls were killed by an evil human.

I mean, this is unfortunately an American cancer that is all too familiar here. So how does law enforcement move forward here when we have such a body of recent history of these sorts of things happening?

WACKROW: Yes, I mean, first of all, you know, this whole incident underscores the dynamic and unpredictable nature of these horrific shooting incidents. We've seen time and time again that the causes really vary as to why they occurred, but tragically the outcomes are often consistent, you know, and we're seeing that again here.

I just want to touch back with the loss of Officer Talley and why that's really, really important right now because he was a hero. And let me explain why. Law enforcement is trained now because of the nature and the frequency of these mass shooting incidents, law enforcement is trained in their policies for the first responding officers, the responsibility is to go to the threat and stop the attack in progress and stop the killing. So what happens is solo entry by law enforcement. This isn't waiting.

They've learned from, you know, past incidents, law enforcement cannot wait to enter into a building. So that first officer it's called solo entry. Once they enter into an environment it's extremely dangerous. However, the reason why they do it, it's a proven action. Over 75 percent of the time the direct action by a solo officer eventually stops the attacker either by killing the assailant or taking them into custody. That's why the actions of Officer Eric Talley is heroic in this incidence. We don't know how many lives he saved.

ROMANS: Jonathan, can I ask you a quick question about Officer Talley. You know, if you're on the other side of an AR-15, a suspect with murderous intent and an AR-15 is that insurmountable for a police officer who is responding alone at the first time?

WACKROW: Listen, what they knew and from some of the radio reports that we had heard, they did know that there was a rifle at the scene. What they didn't know was how many suspects there were, they didn't understand the position they were. That's why this is such a heroic act. Law enforcement is running into a location where they know that there's active gunfire, they're probably walking by victims and that's what they have to do. They can't stop and render aid. They have to utilize their training, tactics and experience to go to the threat and put that down.

Yes, it puts them in a position oftentimes in a position of disadvantage, but that's why it's so heroic because they're putting themselves beyond the threat, they're going to it for the good of the public.

JARRETT: Just terrifying to imagine running into the actual eye of the storm there. Jonathan, you know, we learned from police that the suspect is obviously in custody, we are not sure about the extent of his injuries. How soon do you think he could be questioned obviously depends on how injured he is, but how soon do you think he could be questioned? And how important is it actually to question him?

WACKROW: Well I mean, law enforcement, you know, oftentimes in these situations we don't have a suspect that's alive that's taken into custody. These incidents, you know, end with either a suspect taking their own lives or dying at the hands of police officers in a gun fight. So here there is an advantage, and we can try to -- if, you know, permitting, the individual is willing to talk, you know, we can garner a lot of information as to the motive.

But, again, the profile and motive of mass shooters oftentimes takes a very, you know, systematic pattern. The Secret Service has looked at this for years. The National Threat Assessment Center has looked at mass shooting situation and they assess that nearly half of the time individuals were motivated by some sort of personal grievance. Whether it's, you know, at the residence, in a workplace or with some other issue.

And that every single suspect that the Secret Service had looked at in mass shooting incidents, every single one had a significant stressor in their life. Whether it was relationship stressors, personal issues, issues at work and here is the most concerning thing that the Secret Service had found, in over three quarters of the incidents the individual, the attacker, made some sort of overt concerning communication prior to the attack. Those are the things that we want to look at as well because even if the individual isn't talking, we may be able to find out from other -- others that he communicated or telegraphed his actions to.

ROMANS: There is another common denominator and that's easy access to a big gun for a little disturbed person and that is something we have seen again and again in Aurora and Columbine.

[04:20:00]

I mean, that is the other common denominator. It must be so frustrating for law enforcement, you know, that you're just facing in these soft targets a school, a movie theater, a supermarket in the middle of the afternoon. It's just incredibly frustrating I'm sure for everyone investigating that today. Jonathan Wackrow, thank you. Go ahead, finish your thought.

WACKROW: But no, I was going to say, listen, you're absolutely right, Christine and time and time again I sit in this chair, we talk about in the wake of these tragedies that common denominator and those things have to be addressed. You're 100 percent correct.

JARRETT: Thanks, Jonathan.

ROMANS: All right, thank you.

The White House urging states now to slow down relaxation of restrictions. Officials worried people are growing impatient and want life to return to normal too soon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JARRETT: Welcome back. An escalating conflict now in Europe between Britain and the European Union over exports of coronavirus vaccines. While in Germany a rise in case is leading to a strict five-day lockdown for the Easter holiday. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is live in Berlin with the latest for us. Fred, here we go again, another lockdown. What's happening this time?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think you're absolutely right, Laura. I think it's definitely a case of here we go again. I was checking the numbers today, and new coronavirus infections are about 7,500 for a single day, that's around 2,000 on the same day of last week. So the cases certainly are very much on the rise.

At the same time in Germany like in any other places in the European Union there simply isn't enough vaccine to go around. That's why the European Union has had that row with the United Kingdom. Where the EU has said, look, we might block some exports of Britain's AstraZeneca vaccines to the U.K. Whereas the U.K. said, look, the whole world is watching.

[04:25:00]

EU prides itself on free trade. This is simply something that should happen.

Also the market is very much interconnected. Because there are some raw materials for those vaccines that actually come from the United Kingdom. So the Germans now really not much at their disposal with not enough vaccine to go around. New lockdown measures very strict around Easter with even supermarkets on most days going to be closed. And then also the lockdown measures have been extended until April 18th as Germany is trying to get out of that third wave of the coronavirus infections. But, again, without enough vaccine to go around they say right now they simply don't have any other measures that they can put in place except further and even more strict lockdowns -- Laura.

JARRETT: All right, Fred Pleitgen, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

ROMANS: All right, the Affordable Care Act marks its 11th anniversary today and President Biden working quickly to strengthen it. More than 206,000 Americans signed up for coverage in the first two weeks of a special open enrollment period, that's nearly triple the number during the same time last year when access was more restricted.

Even as the Supreme Court is considering a Republican-led challenge that could gut the law. At least two GOP states, Alabama and Wyoming, are looking whether to accept new incentives in the American Rescue Plan to expand Medicaid to more low become adults. Under the Democrats relief package, more Americans can qualify for help paying for Affordable Care Act policies for two years. Lower income enrollees can have premiums completely eliminated for two years.

Americans receiving unemployment benefits can signup for coverage with no premiums in 2021. The rise in signups shows Americans still need coverage after many lost insurance during the pandemic. It's unclear how many uninsured Americans will ultimately decide to buy policies. One of those parts of the -- this new big rescue plan, Laura, that's pretty importing here as it's shoring up and subsidizing of this American -- the ACA here.

JARRETT: Yes, really important there. All right, we are following breaking news this morning. Ten people dead, including a police officer in a shooting at a Colorado supermarket. The suspect in custody. What we're learning next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)