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New Day

Four Dead, Including Child, in Mass Shooting at California Office Complex; Body Cam Video Captures George Floyd's Deadly Encounter with Police; Virginia Expands Access to Ballot Box, Dozens of States Move to Limit It. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired April 01, 2021 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN NEW DAY: We will go live to the scene with what we know.

JOHN AVLON, CNN NEW DAY: And more traumatic testimony from witnesses at the Derek Chauvin trial. In the final moments of George Floyd's life, for the first time, jurors saw police body cam video of George Floyd struggle with officers trying to arrest him and they heard Chauvin's justification for putting his knee on Floyd's neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds. We will have all the trial developments in a moment.

But we begin with CNN's Kyung Lah live in Orange, California, in America's latest mass shooting.

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, John. We've seen police here throughout these overnight hours here in Orange, California, law enforcement going in and out of this business part that you see right over my shoulder. There are about six businesses here. We don't know the exact involvement of these businesses. That's part of the questions of the investigators as they've been here trying to collect all of the evidence from the number of people who have been shot here in Orange.

What we do know is that there are a number of houses and apartments all up and down this street, and at about dinnertime last night, people started to hear the sound of gunfire, rapid gunfire. Shortly after that, police officers arriving, the sound of sirens. And then right after that, more gun fire. That gunfire, law enforcement tells us, was the exchange of gunshots between the first responding officers and the suspect. The suspect was wounded and taken to the hospital.

But then as police entered this business park, they found four people dead, among them, a child. We don't know if it's a boy or a girl. A fifth woman who was injured, taken to the hospital in critical condition. At this point, police say they are still seeking a motive. Take a listen to the lieutenant here on the scene.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. JENNIFER AMAT, ORANGE POLICE DEPARTMENT: Over the next hours, days, and weeks, we will be attempting to determine and get as much information on the victims, our suspect and the relationship between those, as well as the type of business, which is (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH: The relationship between all these people, that is going to be the critical question.

Police did say that they recovered one weapon. And a little perspective on how these last couple of weeks have been, John, since the Atlanta spa shootings, there have been 20 -- 20 shootings where four people have been casualties, either killed or wounded just in these last weeks. John?

AVLON: We can't get numb to it. Thank you so much for your reporting, Kyung Lah.

All right, in just a few hours, prosecutors will resume their case in the Derek Chauvin murder trial after an emotional day of testimony. For the first time, jurors saw body cam video of George Floyd's deadly encounter with the police and they heard Chauvin's reaction after Floyd was taken away in an ambulance.

CNN's Josh Campbell live at the courthouse in Minneapolis with more. Josh?

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONENT: Yes, good morning, John. Jurors continue to hear new evidence in the murder trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin. It was an emotional day in court yesterday as witnesses to the final moments of George Floyd's life recounted and relived that experience.

One thing is clear. Each new piece of evidence that's been admitted is taking its toll on those who have been called to testify.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMPBELL (voice over): More emotional testimony in the Derek Chauvin trial Wednesday from eyewitnesses who were feet away from the final moments of George Floyd's life, like 61-year-old Charles McMillian who took the stand and broke down in tears as the prosecution played this body cam video.

CHARLES MCMILLIAN, WITNESS: I feel helpless. I don't have a moment but I just (INAUDIBLE) him.

CAMPBELL: McMillian, who frequently walks in that Minneapolis neighborhood happened upon the scene and testified he saw officers arresting Floyd. He's heard urging Floyd to cooperate with police as they try to get him in the squad car.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So were you trying to just help him to --

MCMILLIAN: Make the situation easy.

CAMPBELL: On Wednesday, the jury was presented body cam footage from all four officers, much of it had never before been made public. The prosecution presented nearly every moment of interaction between the four officers and Floyd from several angles, including the initial moment when two officers approached Floyd while he was inside his car. Officer Lane draws a gun on Floyd.

Officers then removed him from his vehicle. Floyd is cuffed and walked to the police car. Chauvin's body cam footage shows his first interaction with Floyd before his body camera falls to the ground.

[07:05:03]

A struggle ensues between Floyd and the officers. Chauvin, the man wearing black gloves, places his hands around Floyd's neck as another officer tries to restrain him. You hear Chauvin's voice for the first time.

DEREK CHAUVIN, FORMER MINNEAPOLIS POLICE OFFICER: We've got to control control this guy because he's a sizable guy. It looks like he's probably on something.

CAMPBELL: It takes several minutes before you hear officer raise concerns.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Should we roll him on his side?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just worry about the excited delirium or whatever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's why we have an ambulance coming.

CAMPBELL: The jury also saw surveillance video from inside the Cup Foods showing George Floyd shortly before he was detained. Floyd was suspected of paying for cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill.

CHRISTOPHER MARTIN, WITNESS, CUP FOODS CASHIER: When I saw the bill, I noticed that it had a blue pigment to it kind of how a $100 bill had. And I thought that was odd, so I assumed it was fake.

CAMPBELL: The cashier, 19-year-old Christopher Martin, told his manager of his suspicions and they tried unsuccessfully to bring Floyd back into the store. When that failed, one of his co-workers called police.

Martin testified he feels guilty about what happened that day, a common theme felt by many of the eyewitnesses this week.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why guilt?

MARTIN: If I would have just not taken the bill, this could have been avoided.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMPBELL (on camera): And, again, that has been this theme from so many of these witnesses expressing regret and remorse, just hoping this would have ended differently. And it's striking when you compare that to that now infamous video of former Officer Derek Chauvin stoically kneeling down on Floyd's neck as bystanders are clearly distraught, that obviously manifesting itself in court as we hear from those who were there on that day.

We don't yet know if Chauvin will be testifying in his own defense, whether he will be expressing any regret of his own. The trial will continues here later on today. I will be in the courtroom. We will continue, of course, to bring you the latest. Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Okay. Josh, we appreciate that. Thank you very much. Joining us now is CNN Legal Analyst and Criminal Defense Attorney Joey Jackson. Also with us, Ayesha Bell Hardaway, she's an assistant professor of law and the co-director of the Social Justice Institute at Case Western Reserve University. Great to have both of you here.

And, Joey, let's zero in on that, what josh just told us. So you now have all of these witnesses testifying to their very real human emotion of guilt and remorse. So, I mean, all of these people from, as you just heard, the store clerk, he feels guilty. He wishes he had paid for those cigarettes himself. You heard the teenage witness who took the infamous cell phone video. She feels guilty at night. She wishes that she could have done something. You heard the retired -- no, off duty firefighter, EMT, she is remorseful. She wishes that she could have done something. How can you have the only person in the courtroom who is not expressing remorse and guilt be Derek Chauvin? Don't you have to put him on the stand to give him an opportunity to express that same remorse?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, it certainly is looking more and more like that. Good morning, Alisyn, John, and Professor. The reality here is that it is so problematic, and let's go back. The issues that the defense has at this point are plentiful. You go to the Cup Foods store itself and you would expect or anticipate if you're teeing up this self-defense, you see this wild and crazy person in the store causing issues, causing drama, combative, none of the above. You see him in addition to the patrons who were there milling (ph) about just having a standard day in the community. So that's the first problem.

The second problem is now you go out and you look at the interaction between the officers initially. They did not show him a modicum of respect. He could have been gum on their shoe. Gun drawn right away, he complied completely. And then you get to the issue of the compliance, right, because you're going to argue this self-defense, that he was combative. He indicated he had claustrophobia and had anxiety. And so all he wanted was a little bit of understanding of what he was going through. That was not shown to him.

And the reason I point this out, Alisyn, is because they go to the basic issue of sympathy, the basic issue of humanity. And so when you get to an issue like that and then you see how they treated him and how he's pleading for his mom and how he forecasted, I'm going to die, and he did, now, it becomes additionally problematic. And so in full circle and briefly, yes, it's looking more and more like Chauvin has to explain himself, but, quite frankly, I don't know that there's any explanation in light of the fact that what we see that could justify the actions that was taken against Mr. Floyd. He should not be dead.

AVLON: Well, Professor Hardaway, regardless of whether Derek Chauvin takes the stand, we heard yesterday something close to a real-time explanation via body cam footage. I want to play it for you and get your response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But I (INAUDIBLE).

[07:10:00]

CHAUVIN: That's one person's opinion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

CHAUVIN: We've got to control this guy because he's a sizable guy. It looks like he's probably on something.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AVLON: So that's close to real-time, Derek Chauvin saying he's a sizable guy. And that presumably justified the continued use and escalation of force for nine minutes and 29 seconds on his neck despite George Floyd being down on the ground. What does that say to you about the mental state of Derek Chauvin and what it represents?

AYESHA BELL HARDAWAY: Yes. And I think it obviously is in stark contrast to the care, compassion and the reflective remorse that, you know, the witnesses who have taken the stand so far have expressed, those who happened upon the last minutes of George Floyd's life. But the business is exactly what Eric Nelson forecasted in his opening statements. And I agree with Joey Jackson, this is an uphill battle right now for the defense. They forecasted this issue of the size and the concealment of illegal substances in opening statements.

And so I guess they decided to go with Derek Chauvin's immediate response after Mr. Floyd was taken away in the ambulance, but I do not believe that it is carrying the day in contrast from what we're seeing on the stand from the eyewitnesses.

CAMEROTA: Joey, I know you're not a cop, but you deal with cops in your career. It sounds to me -- I mean, I'm just interpreting it from what Derek Chauvin says, he's a sizeable guy and has to be controlled, he was scared. Derek Chauvin, who has a badge and a gun, was scared. And I think that your point of what we see in the convenience store, none of those folks around George Floyd are scared. They describe him as affable, they're all talking, they're kind of laughing. It's just interesting to hear that that's Derek Chauvin's first take.

JACKSON: Without question. And so back to the point, right, consistent with what you're asking me about having to testify and justify to that. Now, we know we have his testimony that he's a sizable guy. He's sizable guy, sir, but there were other officers there, is that correct? It wasn't just you dealing with him. Could we agree to that, sir?

He was in cuffs. We can also agree to that. There was a time you had him on the ground. Is that fair? Yes. And when he was on the ground, was he kicking you, was he biting you, was he doing anything which would indicate to you that he represented a danger or a threat to you, sir? He would be savaged in cross-examination in addition to anything in his background.

When he was on the ground, you were fearful he wasn't complying. After a minute, did you kind of reassess, did you kind of take a look and see if he was okay? After a minute and a half, after two minutes, what was he representing that posed a danger to you such that it justified you doing what you did? And so I think that that's really difficult.

Last point, Alisyn, and that's this. There's been all these cueing up about the crowd and the distraction. The body cam, the only thing I can hear with the officers is get on the sidewalk and don't do drugs. What? I mean, you're talking about the officers being so distracted by the crowd, that justifies what they did. Where in the body cam was a voicing of that concern? Any theory posed by the defense has to be consistent with the other evidence. Today it is not. That's a big problem for them.

AVLON: Professor Hardaway, there's so much about this case that is riveting to the nation, most importantly because of the videotape that we are confronting as a country what many people have not seen in the white community but what is, in fact, a black lived experience. And we've seen the trauma raining out through witnesses in the court.

And I want to get your thoughts on how that reality is being brought home to a broader group of Americans than before, what it represents in terms of reckoning and reconciliation perhaps, eventually.

HARDAWAY: Yes, thank you. That's a really important question and I'm glad that you asked it. I have to say I always am concerned and feel a great sense of regret at the fact that black pain and trauma has to be put on display like this for those who don't share their lived experience in order to understand what it is like to be black in America. That is first and foremost.

Secondly, looking at this video, I have to say, as a black woman watching this, it seemed like the opposite of what Eric Nelson promised us. To Joey Jackson's point, this wasn't an angry crowd. This was a community that was going about its day. Mr. Floyd was, at times, dancing, I would imagine, to whatever music was playing inside the store, while he was inside of it, right? And then on the outside, you see community members really concerned about the care and state of Mr. Floyd, right, a community member there in front of them.

[07:15:11]

And so for those, you know, who may have heard the whistles, Eric Nelson, in terms of the angry crowd and the dangerous community, I think this video all angles at multiple vantage points shows that the evidence is not going to bear that out. If he wants to take the video beyond the nine minutes or set the stage for more than nine minutes and 29 seconds, the prosecution just put it on full display for him, and it doesn't -- it doesn't -- it rings very, very hollow, let me say it that way.

CAMEROTA: Ayesha Bell Hardaway, Joey Jackson, thank you both very much for all of your insights, really helpful this morning.

JACKSON: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: So, more than 40 state legislatures are trying to rollback voting rights, but one governor is going it alone to increase access. We'll talk with him about that strategy, next.

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[07:20:00]

AVLON: 72 of the nation's most prominent black business owners just signed a letter calling on companies to push back against a wave of states trying to restrict voting rights. More than 40 states legislators consider such bills, one state went the opposite direction by expanding access to the ballot box.

And joining me now is Virginia's Democratic Governor Ralph Northam. Governor Northam, thanks for joining us on New Day. Tell us what the contents of this bill is and why you felt compelled to push it forward.

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM (D-VA): Good morning, and I hope you and your viewers are doing well. And just as you mentioned, a lot of states are trying to make it more difficult to vote. We know that voting is really the foundation, the strength of our democracy. And so we signed some laws over the last couple of years. I just signed another law most recently opening up voting, making it less cumbersome, having 45 days of no excuse absentee voting. We have drop boxes.

So, Virginia has taken the approach that we want to make it less cumbersome. And this is a business issue, just as you just mentioned, and I would remind businesses, take a look what we're doing in Virginia. We are open for business. That's one of the reasons why Virginia is the number one state in this country in which to do business and businesses recognize that, and I say, welcome to Virginia, and I want to introduce you to the most talented workforce in America.

AVLON: Well, it's important because you're taking the opposite step, expanding access, prohibiting discrimination and restrictions, and it's a powerful counterexample, particularly from a southern governor.

Obviously, yesterday, Joe Biden in Pennsylvania, outside Pittsburgh, laying out his massive, more than $2 trillion infrastructure plan. And you recently did an event with Transportation Secretary Buttigieg about the infrastructure investment highlighting the impact of increased rail particularly for Virginia.

Look, Americans love their cars, I know Virginians do. There's always a question outside the northeast how much folks will use their public transportation and the rail lines. Tell us what impact that could have on improving people's lives and business climate in Virginia if it goes forward?

NORTHAM: Well, first of all, John, it's great to have a partner in Washington that believes in infrastructure and transportation and really takes care of their words with actions. And we've been working on this for a number of years. Again, we know that it's very important to our business community.

And so we made an announcement with Secretary Pete two days ago where we really opened up rail, expanded rail through a public/private relationship with Amtrak and CSX. There's a bridge coming across the Potomac River called the long bridge, where all the rail traffic up and down the east coast has to go. It's a bottleneck. So we're adding new tracks to that area. We're separating freight from passenger rail. And, again, this will really open things up.

And the reality is that, yes, people do love their cars, but we need to have other options. We can't pour concrete out of our transportation problems. So we need to get people off the roads into other means of transportation. And this was a really exciting day for Virginia. And I think that our president sees rail as a priority is really going to help as well.

AVLON: Let me talk about something else here, pushing forward an amendment to move up the date where marijuana would be legalized in the state of Virginia. This is something happening across the country. There are 15 states now legalizing recreational marijuana.

But given Virginia's proximity to D.C. and so much of the federal government taking place in Virginia, I'm wondering what you think about this contradiction between federal law and state law when it comes to marijuana legalization. Because, currently, marijuana is still classified as a scheduled one narcotic along with heroin, and that creates kind of legal jeopardy for folks who might be trying to exercise their rights in Virginia. What's your take on that, and, Governor, should that federal classification be changed?

NORTHAM: Well, absolutely, it should be. But Virginia will be the 16th state to legalize recreational use of marijuana. As a physician, this is something that we started working on two years ago by expanding the medicinal use of marijuana. Last year, we decriminalized marijuana. We did two very thorough studies over the last year, and we know the time is right and we want to do it right in Virginia, and we can. So we'll be the 16th state to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

And it's an equity issue for Virginia among other things. We know that blacks and whites use marijuana at the same rate, but blacks are three to four times more likely to be arrested and convicted. So this is wrong, and we're going to right a wrong and take that step in Virginia. [07:25:04]

AVLON: Governor, before we go, two years ago, you were being inundated with calls for your resignation after decades' old photos of black face were discovered. You apologized, you refused to resign, and you've gone on to pass some very significant legislation as governor with high approval ratings. I'm wondering what political lessons you learned from that experience and whether they should apply, in your opinion, to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

NORTHAM: Well, that was a difficult time for Virginia, and I took accountability for what happened. I said that I'm going to bring good from this. I listened to a lot of people. I learned a lot. And as I tell people, John, the more I know, the more I can do. And we have turned a lot of what I've learned about into action, whether it be criminal justice reform, police reform, ending the death penalty, doing things like making sure that people don't have their driver's license taken away because they can't pay their court fines.

So I'm proud that Virginia stuck with me, and, again, I think we could be able to bring a lot of good from this.

AVLON: To be clear though, do you think that Governor Cuomo should follow your playbook, as some are calling on him to do, or do you think he should resign because of the allegations put forward?

NORTHAM: Well, these allegations are serious, and I do believe they need to be investigated. But as far as what happens with Governor Cuomo, that's up to the people of New York.

AVLON: Governor Ralph Northam from Virginia, thank you very much for joining us on New Day.

NORTHAM: Yes, so thank you.

AVLON: All right. New York prosecutors are stepping up their investigation into former President Trump's finances. We've got details on the subpoenas just issued. New York Times' Maggie Haberman has all the new reporting, that's next.

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