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Theater Shooting in Lafayette, Louisiana, Shooter I.D.; Obama Expressed Frustration on Guns Before Shooting; Louisiana State Rep. Terry Landry Calls for Stricter Gun Control; Sandra Bland Death Ruled Suicide; News Briefing on Louisiana Theater Shooting. Aired 11:30-12p ET

Aired July 24, 2015 - 11:30   ET

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

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[11:30:00] JIM CRAFT, CHIEF, LAFAYETTE, LOUISIANA, POLICE DEPARTMENT: This is such a senseless, tragic act, why would you come here and do something like this?

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KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Question everyone is asking. A senseless tragic act, that's how the police chief of Lafayette, Louisiana, as you saw right there is describing what happened inside a crowded movie theater last night.

Investigators are now trying to piece it altogether. Trying to find out what caused this man right here, 59-year-old drifter as he's described from Alabama to open fire in an evening screening of a comedy "train wreck" it's called before killing himself when police closed in. We have just learned that this man, the gunman, John Houser, treated for mental health issues five or six years ago and that he was denied a concealed carry person in 2006 in Alabama because he had a conviction of arson. Police say he fired at least 13 shots, 13 rounds with a handgun in this theater and right here you are looking at the young victims, they're 21-year-old Mayci Breaux and 33- year-old Jillian Johnson. Another victim, other victims in the hospital. One of them is in critical condition still this morning.

A LinkedIn page of the shooter says he has a law degree from Faulkner University and a man with that name posted extensively on the website's political forum leaving hundreds of messages espousing anti- government and anti-media views.

Just hours before shots rang out inside that theater, President Obama, he was expressing his own frustration over what he feels is a lack of sufficient gun safety laws in the United States. Again, this was before all of this happened. Take a listen here.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The one area where I feel that I have been most frustrated and must stymied, it is the fact that the United States of America is the one advanced nation on earth in which we do not have sufficient, common sense gun safety laws. Even in the face of repeated mass killings. And, you know, if you look at the number of Americans killed since 9/11 by terrorism, it's less than 100. If you look at the number that have been killed by gun violence, it's in the tens of thousands.

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BOLDUAN: The president speaking there just before leaving for his trip to Kenya.

CNN's Michelle Kosinski is in the country of Nairobi where the will be landing very shortly.

Michelle, he made the comments before the horrific tragedy happened. What are you told about when the president was briefed of what happened in la l and what are you hearing from the White House now?

MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: On the way over here, it is a very long flight, so he found out early on and he's been briefed since then. But, you know, here in Kenya, people none too pleased the world was focused on potential security issues here, during the president's trip. But what happened was on his way here yet another violent attack in the U.S. on innocent people in a public place. And we've been hearing from the president on this lately. Just the other day, he tweeted out that people in America are killed by violence at a rate by a population that's 33 times that of Israel. Almost 50 times that in France.

So by saying that in that tweet, he seems to be saying that the problem isn't necessarily the guns themselves. Other countries have high rates of gun ownership or pretty liberal gun laws, implying that the problem is maybe access issues or that ever thorny problem of mental health and how to incorporate that into access to guns. But the president's been very outspoken on the issue lately because he's had to be after the Charleston shootings in the church, the Chattanooga shootings, members of the military.

Here's some of what he's said over the years on this.

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[11:35:05] OBAMA: My immediate thoughts and prayers are with the wounded.

So at this time, I ask all Americans to join me and Michelle in keeping all the victims and their families including gabby in our thoughts and prayers.

I'm sure that many of you who are parents here had the same reaction that I did when I heard this news.

As a country, we have been through this too many times, whether it's an elementary school in Newtown or a shopping mall in Oregon.

These are men and women who were going to work, doing their job, protecting all of us.

We're heartbroken that something like this might have happened again.

I've had to make statements like this too many times.

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KOSINSKI: So in the interview last night, even before the shootings happened, he expressed frustration but said that's not going to stop him from trying to do something more likely through executive action. We don't know what or when the White House will act on this but we expect him to attempt something. Surely, though, he'll face opposition of Congress as he has in the past.

Back to you.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. Again, why he's expressing the frustration and something he continues to talk about the conversation reignites once again with the senseless shooting in Louisiana.

Michelle, thank you so much.

Now let's go back live to Lafayette, Louisiana, continue out coverage of where that shooting, where the shootings took place at that movie theater in that city.

Louisiana State Representative Terry Landry is joining us now.

Representative Landry, thank you very much for your time.

Of course, it goes without saying you could never imagine, you would never, ever hope something like this would happen at all, especially in your district. Tell me, though, what went through your mind when you heard about this senseless tragedy?

STATE REP. TERRY LANDRY, (D), LOUISIANA: Well, we certainly were appalled and taken back. We know that this community is better than this. We believe that America is better than this. I took and shared the president's sentiments that we have these conversations too often and it's just appalling to me that all the violence we have had in this country at the hands of people that are mentally deranged in the name of terrorism or anti-government is appalling and really senseless that innocent people are dying because we will not have a sensible conversation about sensible gun restrictions.

I'm a proponent of the Second Amendment with certain restrictions. This state released, had liberal laws. Two years ago, we passed a strict scrutiny law to give exclusive gun, saying it's exclusive right. This is really appalling. We are not doing our community, we're not doing our children any good when the kids were murdered and slaughtered in sandy hook, that didn't move this nation to really have a conversation about the violence. We have four unsolved murders in the district I live in. There's not an outcry. We have to stop and have a conversation about stopping the violence in this country and permeating and causing us grief and pain. BOLDUAN: Representative, one of the things obviously that's

happening in regards with this shooting in the hours just after it is trying to figure out who this man is and why this senseless act happens in Lafayette at that movie theater. A thing we are learning from Alabama is that the man had mental health issues. Are you learning more about that? You mentioned mentally deranged a moment ago. Are you hearing more about what those mental issues were with this gunman?

LANDRY: Well, in our last briefing by the department of -- by the way, the law enforcement in this community and this state have been remarkable in their response and containing this situation, ensuring that no one else are injured. But the loophole is a common discussion about the gun laws and how people can go to a gun show and purchase a gun without having a check of mental health capacity. But the briefing I have with the gentleman was -- had been treated for mental capacities. To the extent and the degree, I don't have a clue. But it tells me we have a loophole in the laws to be addressed. Incumbent on Congress and local legislators to decide how are we going to solve these mass killings and these killings in the community that's happening every day? Across America, people are killing, Chicago, I can go on and on and on. It's the way of life in some people. It is ridiculous and shame on us if we don't fix this situation.

BOLDUAN: Yeah. One of the big questions right now and I don't think we have gotten a good answer is how the man got the gun, legally or illegally? We note he was denied a concealed carry permit at least in Alabama. Lingering questions. I know you have or are demanding the same answers that everyone else is.

State Representative Terry Landry, thank you very much.

LANDRY: You're welcome.

[11:40:05] BOLDUAN: Of course.

We're going to have more on our breaking news coming up out of Louisiana.

Plus this. As a Texas jail remains under investigation, Sandra Bland's fellow inmate is talking to CNN about what happened moments before Bland was found dead inside her cell. You want to hear this conversation.

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BOLDUAN: No obvious signs of struggle. New findings in the case of Sandra Bland, who died in a Texas jail cell. Prosecutors preliminary autopsy results show that Bland's death has been ruled a suicide by hanging.

Well, this comes as Bland's fellow inmate speaks out for the first time to CNN. She describes what she saw and what she heard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ALEXANDRIA DYE, FELLOW JAIL INMATE OF SANDRA BLAND: At first,

she was just internalizing it. She was very quiet. Didn't talk to anybody. And then once they magistrated her, or whatever, and she talked to the judge, she realized how much her bond was and then nobody -- and then after, you know, the guards kept on letting her make calls and no one was answering, she just broke down. And she was just crying and crying. She was like I said before, she was distraught.

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BOLDUAN: Joining me now, CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney, Mark O'Mara.

Mark, it's great to see you.

MARK O'MARA, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: There's still a lot of outstanding questions with this horrible case out of Texas. The county prosecutor there he says that despite the autopsy results told me that he says their work isn't done, the case is not closed and just said that to me. What information in your mind could still be out there that they're waiting for?

[11:44:52] O'MARA: Well, we now know seemingly what happened and it seems like she may well have taken her own life by suicide. Alternative of some nefarious conduct of police doesn't seem to make sense. What's really important, the initial stop. Why it turned into what it turned into because of a refusal to put out a cigarette. That's what the prosecutor is looking at. Two, how that then turns with dragging out of the car and then on the ground. And then it turns into an arrest. And then we have the look at why that turns into a felony charge with a $5,000 bond and nobody looking at the case to look at it and say, wait a second, this woman failed to use a blinker. Now she's in jail. This whole idea of trying to ratchet down by the police is what I think the county prosecutor's looking at with the cop himself.

Now at the jail, I don't care if there was two different statements about suicidal or not. If you have an indication of suicidal ideation, I don't care, they're in charge of the woman while she is in their care. And if they're negligent in that regard and allowed her to take her own life while in their care, then while it may be her responsibility to a certain extent, it's their responsibility. And the reality is when you have a woman fighting some slight depression, it seems like it's put in a situation gone from having a job, great, good life coming up, thrown in jail, kept in jail, $5,000 bond, can't get a hold of her family to get her out. This is a situation that allowed her to be in the position where she felt so seemingly helpless that she would consider the ultimate of a suicide attempt and success.

BOLDUAN: So, Mark, do you think in the end, when you take all of this into consideration, you think of things from the pulling over to the arrest, to how she was dealt with in jail, do you think that the county or the jail could be held responsible in some regard now that obviously she is dead?

O'MARA: The problem is that law enforcement rightfully so is very immune from liability for what they do. We charge officers with enforcing the law. We charge jails with keeping hold of inmates and they're very immune. It is sovereign immunity. We can't go after them unless they're so outside of the standard of care they're not given the protection of that statute.

Having said that, we know it's happening much too often that situations that should be deescalated are being escalated and quite honestly we can't deny the fact it's happening more with the black population than any other segment of the population. We have to look at cops, train them better, pay them better and hold them to the high standard we now do and no question Ms. Bland is dead today because she failed to use a turn signal. Part of that may have been her responsibility. But most of it has to rely on the professionals that we give authority and responsibility to law enforcement and they have to understand that de-escalation should be the regular way to handle a situation, not escalation.

BOLDUAN: Yeah. Mark, thanks so much. You make excellent points on this one. I really appreciate it.

Coming up next, we return to our breaking news out of Louisiana. A gunman opening fire inside a crowded movie theater, two women killed. Right now, we are getting new details about the shooter's past and his plan to escape.

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[11:50:06] BOLDUAN: Going to take you back to Louisiana where there's a new conference and an update on that horrific mass shooting at the movie theater over night. Let's listen in.

CRAFT: -- will be pursuing those leads.

As we continue to process this crime scene, we have determined, once we got some theater employees back into the building, there were approximately 300 people in the building at different movie theaters at the time this incident occurred. We know that 25 tickets had been sold for the particular movie that the shooter was in. And out of those 300 folks, we interviewed 116 people who may or may not have had information that we felt was important to in investigation.

Our crime scene investigators continue to process the scene. They are being deliberately slow and methodical so that we don't miss the slightest bit of evidence. We will continue that probably throughout this afternoon. Our investigators are following up the additional leads that have been developed as a result of us publicizing the name of the shooter and we are working closely with the Louisiana State Police.

And I will ask Colonel Edmonson to speak about the Fusion Center and how we are coordinating our efforts with his group.

COL. MICHAEL EDMONSON, LOUISIANA STATE POLICE: Again, thank you all for being here.

A couple of comments to bring you up to date since I spoke to you all last time. I had the opportunity to brief over 100 members of the Louisiana legislature, the speaker, the president, we have two members of the local legislature from this area with us available to answer your question you might have for their part but it's important from Homeland Security but also all the legislators around the state know exactly what's happened here and what we're doing as an agency to support the Lafayette Police Department and Chief Jim Craft and his people are doing an incredible job in very, very difficult situation.

The State Police Fusion Center, which is a compilation of law enforcement across the state of Louisiana Sheriff's Department, police department, Homeland Security, FBI, DEA, Secret Service. What we've done with that -- you all provide a lot of that information. You're getting into where the bloggers are. I think you saw some of the stuff that this gentleman was in anything from a Tea Party to a blogger to an individual that was commenting on things that happened within the federal government and state and local government, simply a blogger. We're following up on every single one of those.

Please keep in mind -- and I don't have to tell you this -- just because it's on the Internet, doesn't mean it's true. We're tasked in the situation here to determine what's factual.

We cannot lose sight of the fact that a 21-year-old and a 33- year-old beautiful young lady lost their lives last night. I said this earlier, they had a face, they had a name, and it wasn't to die in this theater. So certainly the chief and myself have to look at everything we can to find pieces of that puzzle that we can put together. Certainly, it exists out there that we may not find a motive. That's not our goal. Everything is about trying to find a motive, trying to find something that says is why he did walk in that theater. Why did he fire at least 13 times, why did he leave his car outside with his keys on top of a tire, why was he living in a Motel 8? Why did he have wigs and glasses and those types of things? Any little thing. That's what the DNA scientists are doing inside that theater right now trying to make sure. We know he led it had gun one more time before he put the bullet in himself.

We have to try to find some type of closure for that family, for this community, for the men and women that worked in that theater. That alarm was pulled last night. Some teachers were involved but employees had presence of mind to pull those fire alarms to alert individuals of what was going on inside that theater. We're trying to put every single piece of that together to try to find a motive and we believe in talking to the family, talking to the friends, trying to look at his writings on the Internet. And putting some parts and pieces together, maybe we can figure out what caused them to do it.

The main thing is, the mess we've gotten, what the chief has been saying is it's not an ongoing threat. There's nothing to lead us that's any indication that he had any accomplice, that anybody's out there trying to do what he's doing or trying to follow up on him, whether he had any type of friends that would possibly do that. His mom had loaned him some money. He was going to get his life

together, he told her. We're hearing all the different stuff about 2008. We saw on there, there was a restraining order put against him that his wife was fearful of him, his daughter was fearful of him. We have to put facts to that. Just because it's written that it happened or those people said that, so we have to find that out, provide that information from a Fusion Center perspective back to the police department where they can follow up.

As you're sitting here, the chief has investigators here in the Lafayette area, over in Lake Charles, around the state. FBI is in multiple states interviewing and talking to people. Every single thing that you all provide us, that the public provides us and what we've been able to locate on the media and the Internet, we're putting those things together trying to find some type of closure. It's going to take a while. This is not a hundred-yard dash, it's a marathon. And we believe we have to do every single thing because you know what? It happened here for a reason. Lafayette, Louisiana, right near -- stone's throw from a major university in the middle of the neighborhood. I think we owe it to those families to try to find some type of closure or put those pieces together that would give us answers.

So thank you for working with us and certainly -- do you want to say anything?

[11:56:28] CRAFT: The law enforcement aspect is one that's critical of what's happening but the healing aspect is something else that's important for our community. As we out upon you, we thank you for spreading the words worldwide to let the people know about Lafayette, how strong we are, how together we are and how important it is we come together. We've received literally tens of thousands of well wishes and people wanting to get a memorial under way right now. It's with little doubt that is going to happen. We respect our fallen loved ones and we respect those are hurting.

We've had folks who wanted to come here, we would ask you not do that. We did receive some outreach from our Lady of Fatima Pass or the, Father Michael Russo, who is making his church available just down the road at the statue for those who want to place flowers or notes or well wishes to the family to help us continue the healing process. The law enforcement process is a marathon, the healing process is a marathon, but we're out of the blocks. We're out of the starting gate.

We thank you for your help. Please help us come together into our community. Thank you so much for respecting this crime scene, for respecting your neighbors and for respecting the job of these first responders.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: State Representative Terry Landry.

LANDRY: I want to applaud and congratulate and just commend how great a job the leadership and the Lafayette Police Department, Louisiana State Police, how the quick response -- these men and women are trained to do what they did. They did it magnificent. I think I'm in a position where I can evaluate and give a true evaluation having been head of the state police and working with these guys but it shouldn't go unnoted how all the leadership and how these groups have worked together. They are out near do a job. They do it very well.

It's our job as legislature to close the loopholes in these gun laws. When a person that has a mental capacity or not mentally stable can wreak havoc on our community, it tells us we have to have a serious conversation. We have to have serious repeals in some of these languages of gun restrictions in our community. If not we'll be meeting somewhere another day, another time.

CRAFT: Any questions?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Chief, two questions, is there any more visibility of why he was in Lafayette and can you tell us more about the magazines he had. Whether which they were on his person.

CRAFT: We know they had at least one additional magazine, which he dropped in the lobby. He reinserted, reloaded and returned back into the theater, at which point we fired one additional round and that was to himself. Recording the information we're just starting to receive now, now that we've publicized his identity and his picture, some local area businesses are calling to say, "We had interaction with this guy. We received a call from Lake Charles a while ago. So anything outside the city, state police is following up on, and anything outside the state, FBI is dispatching investigators to those locations. And some people are not sure if it was the guy or not but they may have video so that's another process we have to go through with. And we're receiving information as quickly as our crime scene processor cans get it to us but they have to be, as I said, very slow and deliberate and so that information is slow in coming. So we really get into the nuts and --