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At This Hour

Robert Durst Arrest Based on Letter, Not HBO Recording; Israelis Head to Polls as Netanyahu Fights for Police Life; Durst Attorneys Speaking Out on Durst's New Orleans Arrest; Tropical Cyclone Pam Devastates Vanuatu; Political Gridlock Holds Up Attorney General Confirmation. Aired 11:30a-12p

Aired March 17, 2015 - 11:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

<11:32:12> JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Just a few moments ago, Robert Durst, the millionaire real estate heir now charged with murder, was in a New Orleans courtroom. Another hearing set for Monday. The 71 year old is facing charges after police found him in a hotel with a .38 caliber revolver and marijuana. This morning, a federal source with knowledge of the investigation tells CNN it was this, it was similarities in handwriting on a letter that Durst wrote -- similarities between that and a letter written to Susan Berman's -- from Susan Berman's killer. The handwriting similarities led to his arrest and not the recording you heard so many times.

This is the moment the HBO film, "The Jinx" where Durst could not tell the difference in that handwriting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you tell me which one you didn't write?

ROBERT DURST, REAL ESTATE HEIR: No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: One of those letters he wrote. The other he said earlier must have been written by the killer. He couldn't tell the difference between the two.

There are also new questions today about what sounded like a murder confession caught on a hot microphone during the filming of the documentary.

Let's discuss all of this and these new developments with George Freeman, executive director of the Media Law Resource Center and also former assistant general counsel for "The New York Times."

George, thank you so much for being here.

This is an interesting -- this is an interesting aspect of the overall murder case now against Robert Durst. I want -- I have a question for you. I want to play what the filmmaker says in terms of when they decided, how they decided that it was time for them to go to law enforcement with the information they gathered. He spoke to "Good Morning, America." Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW JARECKI, FILMMAKER: We talked a lot about it with our legal advisers. If we go to the authorities now, we're missing the opportunity to get the real story from him. It may take years. As filmmakers we have freedom to do things that law enforcement authorities wouldn't have. At the same time, we didn't want to hold it back if it was going to take forever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Interesting to hear his take on it. I want to get your take. Where is the legal obligation if there is one at all?

GEORGE FREEMAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MEDIA LAW RESOURCE CENTER & FORMER ASSISTANT GENERAL COUNSEL, THE NEW YORK TIMES: I don't think on the part of an independent filmmaker there's a legal obligation. But I think the ethics are far more complicated and far vaguer.

To me, there's a big distinction between whether the words he said indicate he's going to commit a future crime, in which case the obligation on going to the authorities is pretty high, or it simply was some comment, which it seems to be, on past events. Evidence perhaps of a trial at that point there was no trial even forthcoming, in which case the ethical standard is much lower.

<11:35:05> BERMAN: He said I killed them all as opposed to saying I'll kill more people. Someone could say back to you. If this guy really did all that, clearly he is a killer. Who knows if he'll kill again? He's a danger and threat to society.

FREEMAN: The fact that he's a danger and threat to society was fairly evident without this film, without this particular tape. I don't think that this particular quote put a huge onus on the filmmakers to go to authorities immediately. There was no immediate threat that was heightened because of those words. On the other hand, they eventually did go to the authorities. Exactly when, I don't think we know. I'm curious if they gave authorities the film. I think they did. But I don't think we know that for sure.

BOLDUAN: There's a lot of details surrounding that. They since said since this came out yesterday that they're not commenting anymore because they may be called as witnesses. It's kind of assumed and understood they handed over this new letter. These letters seem to be the new evidence that the LAPD had in order to bring the murder charge. The recording --

(CROSSTALK)

FREEMAN: The spelling of "Beverly" was somehow misspelled in both letters.

(CROSSTALK) BOLDUAN: Both spelled the wrong way. Exactly. But when you take all of that in context, then you've got Durst's attorney saying outside of the courtroom yesterday, they say the filmmaker didn't tell Durst during filming they could go to law enforcement with any information they gathered.

FREEMAN: I don't think that's duplicitous at all. I think what's more important, from the defense point of view, is they'll try to taint the filmmakers as somehow being in cahoots with the government. I don't think there's any evidence at all that they were at the time of the filming.

BERMAN: But that's important, why in a legal case. Usually, you're defending the media, not the government here. But in this case, the government wouldn't want to be in cahoots with the filmmakers because it would differ from evidentiary rules, correct?

FREEMAN: Sure. The independent filmmaker doesn't have the same legal obligations the government has with respect to Miranda warnings and a right of privacy and things like that.

BOLDUAN: There's also a lot of reason this came up quick, final button, is the timing of the arrest happened as the final episode was airing. Both the filmmaker and LAPD have said this was not coordinated in any way, shape or form. But it has a lot of people raising eyebrows.

FREEMAN: The timing is strange. If, as we think, the filmmakers went to authorities a few months ago in the summer, why did they just do the arrest now as the last episode was airing certainly seems strange. That's a problem for LAPD and not for --

BOLDUAN: Not for the filmmakers.

FREEMAN: Not for the filmmakers.

BERMAN: Very interesting.

FREEMAN: I have a special interest in this because I own a house on Lake Truesdale, and that's apparently where the body of the first wife who was killed may well have been buried.

(CROSSTALK)

FREEMAN: So when I swim there, I always wonder what's underneath me.

BOLDUAN: Oh, my goodness. She's been declared legally dead. Her body has never been found.

FREEMAN: Right.

BOLDUAN: George Freeman, thank you so much.

FREEMAN: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: Ahead AT THIS HOUR, millions of Israelis are headed to the polls right now and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's political life is on the line. Will a last-ditch effort save his leadership? We'll go live to Israel next.

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<11:41:17) BOLDUAN: A surprising new move in Benjamin Netanyahu's final push to save his political career. The Israeli prime minister is urging voters to turn out to vote right now because he says leftists are bussing huge amounts of Arabs to the polls to cast ballots against his Likud Party president.

BERMAN: His statement has been condemned by some of his political opponents. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted it a short time ago on his Facebook page. It comes on the heels over a major policy reversal, a major policy reversal and promise to the United States in which he now rules out the possibility of a Palestinian state if he wins re-election.

Mr. Netanyahu's main challenger, Isaac Herzog, of the Zionist Union, says he backs the two-state solution and has promised to try to restart talks with the Palestinians.

David Horowitz joins us live from Jerusalem.

About four hours left in voting.

David, I should say, is the founding editor of "The Times of Israel."

We're getting statements from the prime minister with hours left to go in the polls. He says his opponents are bussing in Arabs. It seems like inflammatory rhetoric.

DAVID HOROWITZ, FOUNDING EDITOR, THE TIMES OF ISRAEL: Well, I just heard the Arab judge, who is supervising these elections, saying if someone files a complaint about that statement, he'll investigate it. What you're hearing here is the final hours of a campaign that, however it plays out, certainly didn't go the way Netanyahu would have wished because he called these elections. He went back to the public more than two years earlier than he needed to. I think he thought he would have an easier time than he's having in getting re-elected.

BOLDUAN: David, you interviewed Netanyahu late last week. What's your impression? What's your biggest takeaway? What is he saying about if he wins the impact and damage maybe or the impact that this has already had and his controversial speech before the American Congress on the relationship with the American government?

HOROWITZ: In terms of substance, that's an area where a change of leader would make a difference. Herzog, the rival candidate, would certainly try to heal ties with the states, wouldn't have come to Washington and spoke to Congress, opposes any deal that will get Iran close to the bomb but wouldn't have confronted the administration quite so robustly, shall we say. I don't think that there will be a massive shift in many other areas. And the one area really where I came away from Netanyahu, interestingly, is that he sees -- poll after poll that shows more Israelis want him than Herzog as prime minister. There's no doubt about that. But there's this split on the right. There's all kinds of parties led by people who used to work for Netanyahu now running against him. He's trying to get all of those right wing votes behind his Likud Party because otherwise he fears he won't get the chance to try to build the next coalition.

BERMAN: David, Kate and I cover American elections. We don't cover Israeli elections. How does statements like the one the prime minister made over the last 24 hours, how do they tend to play in final moments of an election, reversing yourself on two-state solution and making accusations about essentially stuffing ballot boxes and bussing Arabs to the polls? How does that play with typical Israeli voters?

<11:44:35> HOROWITZ: You know what? I think all of these kinds of statements they play to your home crowd maybe and they alienate people who weren't going to vote for you any way. In other words, on the Israeli right, in Netanyahu's natural territory, if you like, he's concerned that there are three or four other parties in much the same part of the spectrum who are getting votes that he wants for his own Likud Party. When he says too many Israeli Arabs are voting relatively speaking to Israeli Jews, when he says I won't establish a Palestinian state if re-elected, that won't move anyone from the center or left to Netanyahu but maybe he thinks it bolsters support for his Likud. And in our complicated electoral system here where you have 11 parties that might get seats in parliament and there's a second electorate, party leaders who will go to the state president and recommend to him who he chooses to form a coalition, that's when Netanyahu is really directing these kinds of comments. He's trying to bring right-wing voters home to his Likud so he gets the chance to build the next coalition.

BOLDUAN: Hugely complex system. You said it well yourself.

David Horowitz, thank you so much.

Hours left in the polls and then we'll see how things pan out.

BERMAN: Four hours left. Stay with CNN as those results start to come in. Exit poll information we'll be able to give you a sense of that after 4:00 p.m. today. It will be fascinating.

45 minutes after the hour.

Death, destruction, and now a struggle to survive for those left behind. We'll take you to the South Pacific island that was slammed by Tropical Cyclone Pam and we'll show you remarkable pictures of the devastation left behind.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: Breaking news for you. We're going to listen in. This is outside of a New Orleans courtroom where Robert Durst, the heir to real estate fortune who is facing murder charges, his attorneys are speaking right now. Listen.

UNIDENTIFIED ATTORNEY FOR ROBERT DURST: -- here in Louisiana because of the Louisiana authorities determining to file charges against Bob here. We want to contest the basis for his arrest because I think it's not based on facts. It's based on ratings. So we will continue to fight for Bob. We want to get to California as quickly as we can so we can get into a court of law and try this case where it needs to be tried. We'll contest the facts there and we'll try to contest them here. Thank you.

(CROSSTALK)

BERMAN: A quick news conference for attorneys for Robert Durst. What's happening is he's being held right now in Louisiana, official weapons charges, a .38 --

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: Weapons and marijuana charges.

BERMAN: -- and a marijuana charge. He wasn't allowed to carry a weapon because he is a convicted felon in that state. Louisiana looking at those charges. He's being held there. Attorneys for Robert Durst want him extradited to California right now to face the murder charges that he now faces there because that's where they want to take their legal stand.

BOLDUAN: They said they're ready to cut through rumors and speculation and they want to get this to a trial because, as you just heard him say, they want to fight the basis of this arrest. They think it's not based on facts. They think it's based on ratings. Of course, they are talking about "The Jinx," the HBO documentary that this is all about his lives and deaths that happened surrounding his life, of Robert Durst, and all of the strange twists and turns that that documentary took and the new evidence that came through that we've seen in that final episode. So now we've heard from his attorneys. We'll see what happens next.

Coming up for us, an island in the South Pacific is still trying to come to terms with the damage done by Tropical Cyclone Pam. The storm killed 11 people and destroyed thousands of homes and many are stranded in a hospital with few supplies and very much damaged equipment.

BERMAN: CNN's senior international correspondent, Ivan Watson, has more -- Ivan?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

<11:49:19> IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The only way to be able to reach the Vanuatu island of Tanna is by plane. And the locals tell me they've been completely cut off from the outside world since Friday night when Cyclone Pam struck this island.

Having come from the capital city today, Port Vila, I can say, anecdotally, far more houses look like they've been destroyed by those 155-mile-an-hour winds that ripped through here.

I'm outside the only hospital really on this island. You can see some of the damage behind me here. Half of the hospital basically made inoperable by the rain that broke in through windows. There is only one doctor here. He says he has not been able to communicate with the capital, with the outside world for four days now, and has just been writing up a note on paper that I gave him to try to send back to his colleagues to try to talk about the need for equipment to test blood that has been damaged in the storm. The need to evacuate a 9-year-old girl suffering from serious head trauma as a result of a roof that fell on her. And they simply don't have the logistics, the equipment here to take care of that girl. I saw a 1-day-old baby boy who's in a hospital ward that was flooded by water from the rain.

Now, the chief of the community here tells me that one of the big concerns in the weeks to come will be simply food because people here rely on farming, on sweet potatoes to feed their families. And they fear those little farms will have been destroyed by the rain and the foliage that has come down which will cause their crops to rot. So this is a stricken community that's already hard at work at trying to recover.

But you just get a sense from this island, it really highlights how difficult it is for this island nation to communicate with the other islands. If somebody is hurt, they need a propeller plane or a ship to try to get them to the main island, to the main city where there is some electricity. Again, communities that are accustomed to severe storms, but again and again, you hear from people this was, by far, the worst cyclone they have ever seen.

Ivan Watson, CNN, reporting from the island of Tanna in Vanuatu.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Our thanks to Ivan Watson experiencing firsthand the devastation of that typhoon. And they're still learning how bad it is. They're just reaching some of the outlying islands.

Ahead for us AT THIS HOUR, she was initially considered a shoo-in for the job of attorney general, so why is Loretta Lynch's nomination being held up in the Senate? New developments ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

<11:46:09> BOLDUAN: President Obama is speaking out about the letter sent by GOP Senators to Iran's leaders, an open letter about the ongoing nuclear talks. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm embarrassed for them because it's not how America does business for them to address a letter to the ayatollah, the supreme leader of Iran, who they claim is our mortal enemy. And their basic argument to them is, don't deal with our president because you can't trust him to follow through on an agreement. That's close to unprecedented.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BOLDUAN: According to a new CNN/ORC poll, take a look at these numbers. 49 percent say Republican Senators went too far by sending the letter warning that any agreement with the Obama administration would require Senate approval. 39 percent think that it was appropriate, that it was an appropriate response to the way negotiations over the nuclear program have been held.

Another interesting set of numbers in this CNN/ORC poll, 68 percent of those polled said they favored those negotiations with Iran as opposed to 29 percent. So 68-29 percent. 29 percent saying they're opposed to the negotiations with Iran.

(CROSSTALK)

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

BERMAN: Political gridlock this morning holding up the confirmation of attorney general nominee. Neither side giving an inch right now.

BOLDUAN: Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, says he won't schedule a vote for Loretta Lynch's confirmation until a human trafficking bill passes that chamber. That bill has been stalled because most Democrats oppose a provision in the bill regarding abortion.

Let's get to Dana Bash on Capitol Hill.

Dana, as always, it's not exactly what it seems. There's a lot of politics at play here. Lay it out.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There are. And there are so many layers to the politics here, maybe even more than usual. First, I should say that there was a vote that ended just a few minutes ago on the Senate floor to try to overcome the Democrats' filibuster to this human trafficking bill. It fell short but it was pretty close. Four Democrats broke ranks with their own leadership and voted with Republicans to move on, to move towards a debate. And that is noteworthy not only for this very bipartisan bill at its core, to have new legislation to stop human trafficking, but also about what you talked about, getting to the nomination of Loretta Lynch to be attorney general.

As we speak, Democrats are holding a press conference demanding that Loretta Lynch get a vote. As you said, Mitch McConnell told us on Sunday that he is not going to allow a vote until human trafficking is done. So as to the politics of it, Republicans feel that they have leverage because a bill to combat human trafficking is bipartisan. They feel that they're going to hold that up until they can get movement on Loretta Lynch.

Now, the flip side, you might be asking, why would they be holding up an attorney general nominee to replace Eric Holder, who has not been the most popular man in the world when it comes to Republicans at all? They've been trying to get him out for years. And the answer is, again, another layer of politics. When she was first nominated back in November, you had a lot of Republicans saying they thought she was a very good candidate. Since then, the president announced an immigration plan, which Republicans call amnesty. As you can imagine, his attorney general nominee supports that, so Republicans are getting pressure from their base to oppose her for that reason.

All of those pieces of politics and layers of it are wrapped into this delay, which is pretty unprecedented when you look at the timing of Loretta Lynch and the fact that she's been hanging out there for a long time.

<11:49:58> BERMAN: So as we sit here, no new attorney general, no human trafficking bill, no way forward as far as we know.

(CROSSTALK)

BERMAN: Dana Bash, thanks so much.

BOLDUAN: And thanks so much for all of you for joining us AT THIS HOUR.

BERMAN: "LEGAL VIEW" with Ashleigh Banfield starts right now.