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Dangerous Weather for Millions of Americans; St. Louis Rams Cut Michael Sam; Tony Stewart Returns to Race Track; ISIS Militants Suffer Blow; Ukraine: Crisis Nearing "Full-Scale War"; Report: Worst Summer For Movies Since 1997; Parents Pull Son From Hospital Arrested; Girl Killed When Sand Collapses at Beach

Aired August 31, 2014 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Thanks so much for spending your holiday weekend with us.

First up, lawless in Libya. New amateur video appears to show Libyan militia fighters jumping into the swimming pool at the U.S. embassy compound in Tripoli. What the U.S. ambassador to Libya is saying about the bizarre scene.

And a siege broken in Iraq. Thousands of people freed from the brutal grip of ISIS. We'll tell you how the U.S. and its allies pulled together to push back the terrorist group.

And a 5-year-old cancer patient is removed from a British hospital by his parents prompting a massive international search. The family is found and now the parents are under arrest. Find out why this hour.

First up, we begin with the threat of dangerous weather conditions for millions of Americans today. People in the Plains States and Midwest in particular are facing a threat of hail and damaging winds, even a few tornadoes are possible. In the south, they've already seen some very nasty weather. There was flooding in Louisiana especially around the Lake Charles area where they broke a rainfall record. Streets, cars and even a bus were flooded.

Jennifer Gray is in the CNN severe weather center. So Jennifer, that's a lot of water. You actually warned of that yesterday.

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. We were talking about it yesterday morning. They broke a daily rainfall record in Lake Charles, 7.87 inches of rain in one day. That's a lot of rain. And this is how it played out.

The bulk of the rain fell over the Lake Charles area. We did see isolated amounts around central Louisiana about three to five inches. Isolated amounts even four inches and even right outside of New Orleans picked up four inches. So depending on where you are, yes, a lot of rain in south Louisiana.

Already starting to fire up once again right around Houston. This wall pushed to the east. We have a lot of moisture that's working its way up from the Gulf of Mexico. That is actually going to feed a lot of these showers and storms that we're going to be watching in the Midwest.

Yes. That's where our main threat is this afternoon. We're going to be watching Minneapolis, Omaha, late afternoon hours into the evening hours. Not much happening yet. A few showers right around Omaha. Lightning strikes there.

We're also seeing some scattered showers in the northeast and not to D.C. and New York yet. Still hanging back to the west but we are seeing some showers around Pittsburgh and Columbus earlier that are now starting to die off just a little bit.

But your main threat today is going to be in the Midwest. And that's large hail, damaging winds, slight possibility of an isolated tornado. So places like Minneapolis, Des Moines, Omaha, you're included in that today.

The threat moves to the east tomorrow including Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Kansas city. And timing this all out late this evening we are going to see showers and storms fire up in the Midwest like we mentioned some could be severe. It will move to the east tomorrow. By tomorrow afternoon and into the evening hours, could see some of those storms pop up around Chicago. But we're also going to see those showers and storms possibly right around New York, Boston area as well.

But just a quick peek at some of our cities for labor day Monday. If you happen to have the day off, we are going to see stormy weather in places like Chicago, Houston, and even in New York city and Boston. But we are going to see nice weather in the west, even the pacific northwest.

WHITFIELD: OK, not too bad. Let's contrast that if we can because if we head to the beach in some of these places, they're not seeing the kind of rain that you show everywhere else.

Hey, let's go to seaside heights, New Jersey, first. Doesn't that look great. Still as many people today as we saw yesterday, right?

GRAY: Yes. It's been jam packed. And it is probably going to be same again tomorrow. Just watch out for some of those showers because we could see some storms late today into tomorrow as well.

WHITFIELD: Santa Monica, California, still sunny. Look at that.

GRAY: Can you beat it? I don't think so. Gorgeous.

WHITFIELD: Earlier in the week they had serious waves.

GRAY: Yes. It's all died down now. Rip currents have been a problem and some offshore seas is pretty high but nothing else.

WHITFIELD: And then back to the east coast. The lovely myrtle beach, South Carolina.

GRAY: Yes. A couple showers there but that's about it. Looking good though right now. WHITFIELD: All right. It's been a while since I've been to Myrtle

Beach. So I don't remember that kind of boardwalk structure. I guess that's an indicator of how long it's been for me.

GRAY: It's time. You should go back.

WHITFIELD: I think so. Thank you, Jennifer Gray. Appreciate that.

WHITFIELD: All right. Onto Alaska now, the problem wasn't the weather but an earthquake that rumbled through overnight. A magnitude 5.1 quake was centered near the Fairbanks area. It rattled for about ten seconds but then there were no reports of injuries or serious damage, thankfully. This follows a smaller earthquake that did hit the state earlier this month.

And now new images overseas from Libya. It appeared to show militia members inside the empty U.S. embassy compound. CNN cannot authenticate this video posted on You Tube. But it appears to show militia members diving into the embassy pool and having a pretty good time doing it. The U.S. embassy was evacuated last month as militia fighting intensified.

The U.S. ambassador to Libya, Deborah Jones, says the images to appear to show a residential annex in the U.S. embassy compound. Jones tweeting this. It's lawless in Libya now. Many evacuated homes have been looted by militias. But she adds, the U.S. embassy compound is now being safeguarded and has not been ransacked.

All right. Now to Iraq where there have been some significant gains in the battle against ISIS terrorists. Last night U.S. aircraft launched strikes against ISIS militants who have been surrounding ethnic minorities in the town of (INAUDIBLE) and more than two months now this has been going on.

A retired Iraqi general says the attack helped Iraqi troops and volunteer forces break the ISIS siege. It also allowed U.S., European and Australian aircraft to carry out humanitarian aid drops to the town. About 20,000 Shiite Turkmen civilians have been facing severe food and water shortages since the siege began back in June.

Our Anna Coren joins us now from Erbil, Iraq. So Anna, some residents were evacuated and we saw dramatic images from the Iraqi ministry of defense showing that civilians rushing up to the helicopters really in desperation. Describe the scene there.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Absolute desperation. That's been the case for the past couple of weeks if not months. As you say, that siege has been under way for two months. Hard to really believe. Then that call from the United Nations special representative for Iraq a week ago pleading for international assistance, pleading for Iraqi military to really kick into gear and rescue these people.

The Turkmen Shia less than 20,000 of them who have been living without water, power supplies now for weeks. We understand that food and medical supplies are extremely low. So really desperate scenes. Obviously, the Iraqi military able to get in there late this afternoon

thanks to U.S. air strikes overnight taking out those key ISIS positions. Those humanitarian aid drops as well, you know, a huge relief. But certainly I think the Iraqi military getting in there, opening up the town, freeing them of the siege that they have been under for weeks now just such a huge relief for these people. And testament to, Fredricka, of what can happen when the Iraqis work together with the Americans and international community to really try and get rid of ISIS, I should say.

WHITFIELD: So I guess the hope is there are likely to be, I guess, newer examples of this kind of cooperation as long as there are U.S. air strikes that will help embolden the Iraqi troops?

COREN: Yes, definitely. I think that this serves as a blueprint moving forward. But you know, the township of Emili (ph) is a small place in comparison with, let's say, the city of Mosul, which is city of 1.5 million. Iraq's second largest city which ISIS siege back in June. Same goes with Tikrit (ph) which is the birth place of Saddam Hussein. These are the major cities under the control of ISIS, the same with Fallujah.

It's going to be a lot harder to move ISIS out of these urban areas because of the people, because of just the makeup of the city. The United States just can't come along and conduct air strikes where it is out in the open in these, you know, the planes and deserts, it's a lot easier to take out vehicles, convoys, artillery.

Urban situations is a completely different story and they know that. That is why they need to not just to get Iraqi military involved, but they also need to get the Sunni Arabs and Sunni tribes within these townships that allowed ISIS to come in to actually rise up against the ISIS militants.

We're getting reports too, Fredricka, that people are getting sick and tired of ISIS. We are hearing that coming out of Mosul. They are tired of the brutal conditions they are live under. We're getting reports that there's a shortage of food, of power. You know, women obviously being forced to wear the Hijab, the full veil. People are getting sick and tired. But from the residents we've spoken to, it's one thing to be frustrated and sick and tired of this. It's another thing to rise up. So you know, they need to be that military support to push out is.

WHITFIELD: All right. Anna Coren, thanks so much in Erbil. Appreciate that.

All right, back in this country as Ferguson, Missouri, continues to cope with the shooting death of Michael Brown, another family and community are mourning a similar loss of yet another unarmed young black man. A funeral service was held in Los Angeles yesterday for Ezell Ford. He was shot and killed by police on August 11th after allegedly trying to grab an officer's gun. A witness, however, says Ford had his hands up and was wrestled to the ground by officers who then shot him. Several people in Ford's neighborhood say he had a mental disability. But the family's lawyer refuses to clarify if this is true. The family's lawyer says he plans to file a federal civil wrongful death lawsuit against the LAPD.

Meanwhile, in Missouri, more than 1,000 people took part in the national march on Ferguson rally yesterday. They called for justice for Michael Brown and demanded officer Daren Wilson be arrested for killing him. According to our affiliate, KTLR, the march was peaceful but some demonstrators did yell and curse at police. One man was arrested. Protesters say they plan to halt traffic across St. Louis on labor day as an act of civil disobedience.

All right, the St. Louis Rams took a chance on an openly gay player but now they let him go. What's behind the decision to drop Michael Sam?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The NFL'S first openly gay player is out of the league at least for now. The St. Louis Rams cut Michael Sam yesterday, just eight days before the team's home opener. The all-American defensive end made history when he was drafted by the team earlier in the year. But the odds were against him from the start because the Rams already had strong players at that position. Rams head coach Jeff Fisher says he was pulling for Sam but it just didn't work out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF FISHER, ST. LOUIS RAMS' HEAD COACH: This is a football decision. Mike fit in very, very well. He was fun to be around. He was a good teammate. There was no issue there. And again as I said earlier, I was pulling for him and it didn't work out. It just didn't work out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, joining me right now on the phone, CNN's Rachel Nichols, host of "UNGUARDED." So Rachel, this doesn't necessarily mean the end of Sam's professional career, right? He could still be picked up by another team or ends up on perhaps a practice squad soon?

RACHEL NICHOLS, CNN ANCHOR, UNGUARDED WITH RACHEL NICHOLS (via phone): Absolutely, Fred. And look, he had until noon today to clear waivers. That means that every team in the NFL had a chance to pick him up but had to guarantee he would make the team. That didn't happen, it looks like, by noon now. So now he becomes a free agent. And that means, he could be playing at any team in the NFL, any team could sign him to their practice squad. The Rams could sign him to their practice squad. That means if through the season if one of their players gets hurt, often times teams being pull up players from the practice squad. So it is an avenue to get more coaching and be with a team and possibly then get pulled up to that team to the rest of the season.

And just (INAUDIBLE), you just heard him say that he was pulling for him. He also in the press conference really made note and this meant, it wasn't for the media or for fans. I think it was to other team, GM's around the league, so there was no distraction. If someone perceive or thought there was a distraction, they weren't in the building. And that was (INAUDIBLE). You should give Michael Sam a chance if you think he can fit in with your team. Don't worry about the other issues that surround him. He won't cause you any kind of negative reaction inside or outside of the building. In fact, Jeff Fisher went so far to say what a positive impact Michael Sam had on their team which is great to hear throughout the league.

WHITFIELD: That's an interesting distinction. So you know, I know you haven't had chance to talk with Michael Sam. Nobody has right now. But I'm wondering, you know, would this be a case where he would be devastated or is this the kind of likely scenario that all rookies are told could happen?

NICHOLS: Absolutely. Look, he knew what he was getting into. He knew that it would be hard to make a team. He knew when he was drafted, as you know, the Rams were pretty stacked at his position and he was trying to break into a tough club there. But I think also he is a guy who has been underestimated his entire career. He has gone out and accomplished things that a lot of people didn't think he could accomplish coming out of high school, coming out of college. He built himself into a better football player and people thought for his size he would be a leader that people didn't expect him to be. He's a doer in every sense of the word. And I think he knew this is something he could try to succeed at.

After he was cut, he wrote on twitter quote "the most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy. This is a lesson I have always known. The journey continues." I don't think that Michael Sam is bearing his tightening his hands. I think he's trying to get another job somewhere else and I certainly expect him to, at least, succeed somewhere on other team.

WHITFIELD: All right, fascinating stuff. Rachel Nichols, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

Let's now talk NASCAR because in just a few hours, Tony Stewart will be back on the racetrack after striking and killing another driver during a dirt race through weeks ago. Stewart said this tragedy will affect his life forever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY STEWART, DRIVER: This has been one of the toughest tragedies I've ever had to deal with both professionally and personally. This is something that will definitely affect my life forever. This is a sadness and pain that I hope no one ever has to experience in their life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's sports Andy Scholes is at the Atlanta Motor speedway.

So Andy, you know, why did Tony Stewart decide to return to racing this weekend and really for NASCAR to give the green light for him to race this weekend before the investigation into Kevin Ward, Jr.'s death is really even over?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, Tony Stewart said on Friday that he took three weeks off out of respect for Kevin Ward, Jr., and his family. Also, to grieve his own way, he decided to come back this weekend here in Atlanta because, Fred, you know, he doesn't have a wife. He doesn't have any kids. Stewart Race team is his family he and the entire Stewart-race family think getting back into a car right now for Tony Stewart would help him through this difficult time.

WHITFIELD: And then how about fans and other drivers? How are they reacting? I mean, this has been a big race weekend. I see, you know, the stands behind you are still empty because racing starts hours from now. But overall is there a reaction from people?

SCHOLES: Yes. There definitely has been. During qualifying, Tony Stewart received a lot of cheers from fans and he received a lot of hugs from people, he hasn't seen while away from the track. And fellow drivers, when we heard from them, they were all very happy to see him back in the car. Here is what they had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To have Tony back obviously, you know, to be able to communicate with him and talk to him about racing and just seeing him, you know, start that first step of getting back to normal as his friend is exciting to me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm glad to see fans are happy. That's the most important thing. Tony is a strong guy. He'll figure it out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: And Fredricka, Tony Stewart will start 12th in tonight's race. He needs to win either tonight or in next week's final regular race in the season to make NASCAR's version of the playoffs. So as you said earlier, all eyes tonight in Atlanta will be on Tony Stewart.

WHITFIELD: Will indeed. Thanks so much, And Scholes. Appreciate that at the Atlanta Motor speedway.

All right. Coming up, back overseas, ISIS militants suffer a blow in Iraq after U.S. air strikes help retake a town and rescue civilians. Will the Iraqis now be able to combat ISIS on its own?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Iraqi security forces and volunteers have now broken the siege and retaken a town of Amereli (ph), it is in central Iraq between Mosul to the north and Baghdad to the south. ISIS militants had held the town for two months and the people there were desperate for food, water and medical supplies. American air strikes helped pave the way for Iraqi troops to retake the town.

Global affairs analyst and "Daily Beast" contributor Kimberly Dozier joining me now from Washington.

Good to see you, Kimberly. So does this strengthen power of the Iraqi forces kind of exemplify that maybe indeed, they can combat ISIS? KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: You know, this is a win.

This is a start. But it's just that. This was a combination of Iraqi military Shiite militia groups that were backed by Iran. So that was a bit of a switch for the U.S. to helped them out. And Kurdish Peshmerga working together. So, a s a ground force they did well. but they did have the help of the U.S. air force, U.S. drones, softening up the target before they went there. And they also had U.S. intelligence. You really can't underrate that. They have joint operation center in Baghdad itself and up north in Erbil and that feeds information to the troops on the ground to focus their attacks.

WHITFIELD: So certainly you're underscoring that the difference here is there's been a coalition at play and that helps, you know, emboldened Iraqi forces. So then the question is for how long can the Iraqi forces, you know, count on that? If that's what it takes for them to move onto the next town and try to defeat ISIS, they've got to have the cooperation of a lot of other forces including the U.S. and the Peshmerga as you're putting it.

DOZIER: Yes. I think you are seeing a presence building their of both American troops and intelligence that is going to be there for at least a year, probably more. You can see the White House trying to build a coalition with other European nations so that they don't bear the brunt of this alone. But with ISIS operating in Iraq and also in neighboring Syria, which is hard for the U.S. to get into right now because they haven't even figured out the legal basis on which they would carry out air strikes in Syria or anything else. This becomes the foundation for fighting a group that is sworn to carry out attacks in the U.S. even though they are preoccupied on the ground and it will be a while before they will be able to do that.

WHITFIELD: So working out those kinds of details that you just spelled out, is that something the president might have on his agenda or somewhere on its calendar particularly this week as he heads to this NATO summit might be, you know, the basis of some conversations with the NATO allies?

DOZIER: Absolutely. He has got to get other people willing to commit resources inside Syria both intelligence and possibly eventually military resources. He also needs his European allies to put pressure on the free Syrian army and other militia groups inside Syria and to try to really get them to build themselves into something that could effectively govern and fill the gaps if ISIS gets defeated.

A lot of U.S. officials I have spoken to are worried about so we take out ISIS, what fills the gap, al-Nusra? Al-Nusra is loyal to Al Qaeda and Ayman al-Zawahiri, they want to kill us too. You can't just go into Syria and have military operations there without an outcome in mind.

WHITFIELD: All right. Kimberly Dozier, thanks for your insight. Appreciate it from Washington.

DOZIER: Thanks you.

WHITFIELD: When we come back, a live report from another global hot spot, Ukraine. The country's president now warning the standoff with Russia is getting closer to the point of no return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Now to Ukraine where leaders are giving an ominous assessment of where the standoff with Russia is heading. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says the crisis is inching closer to a full scale war with Russia.

He warns the situation has gotten worse and claims thousands of Russian troops have moved into Eastern Ukrainian towns to back pro- Russian rebels in their fight against Ukrainian forces.

Our Reza Sayah joins us live now from the Ukrainian capital of Kiev. So Reza some Ukrainian troops abandoned their positions in one embattled town all in the effort to protect that southern port city that we talked about yesterday of Mariupol. So tell us more about this.

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fred, this is another sign of a pro-Russian rebels and separatists are gaining significant momentum in territory and another sign that Ukrainian troops are in deep trouble.

The focal point of this conflict is shifting to this all important port city of Mariupol right along the coastline and the Sea of Asof (ph) where you have just to the east pro-Russian rebels bearing down ready to move west and take this town although they haven't decided to do that yet.

It was on Thursday when in a very surprising and sudden move pro- Russian rebels bearing down seemingly ready to move west and take this town although they haven't decided to do that yet.

Remember it was on Thursday when in a very surprising and sudden move, the pro-Russian rebels opened up a new front in this region and they started moving west. At this hour, they're about 10 to 15 miles east of the city and the outskirts of the city, you have Ukrainian troops that are building fortifications.

Hunkering down preparing for the fight and behind that line you have the city itself where you have residents very scared, very concerned, hunkering down. Some have left the city. If indeed the rebels move west and take this city, the next stop along the coastline is the Crimean Peninsula.

This is the territory, of course, that Russia annexed back in March. If they make it all of the way there, essentially the rebels will have established a contiguous land link all the way from the Russian border to the Crimean Peninsula.

And north of this region, you have rebels making progress pushing down and taking territory and Ukrainian troops retreating, 28 retreated yesterday, 16 today. Our CNN crews in that region, Fred, saw more Ukrainian troops retreat seemingly looking defeated and dejected.

WHITFIELD: All right, Reza Sayah, thank you so much. Have you been to the movies lately? If your answer is no, guess what? You're not alone. A lot of folks have not been to the theaters all summer long and it's reportedly costing the movie industry billions.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Why aren't people going to the movies anymore? That's exactly what movie execs are asking. This summer reportedly has been the worst for the industry in 17 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not afraid.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then come out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then you'll be afraid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Even with the success of this movie "Maleficent," which is on the top ten summer movies list, ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada still dropped 15 percent. Let's take a look at some of the movies on the Box Office mojos top ten list.

"Guardians of the Galaxy" number one, bringing in $256 millions. "Transformers Age of Extinction" brought in nearly $244 million. Number three, "Maleficent" bringing in almost $238 million and then you have "X-Men Dawn of the Planet of the Apes," "The Amazing Spiderman 2," and "Godzilla," they all brought in big numbers. But ultimately the industry fell short this summer.

Joining me now to discuss all of this is Gil Robertson. Good to see you, Gil. The co-founder and president of the African-American Film Critics Association.

OK, so Gil, there was some expectation that there might be a drop in movie going because of online streaming, big TV events like the World Cup, but this was a really big dent in movie going. What happened?

GIL ROBERTSON, PRESIDENT, AFRICAN-AMERICAN FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION: Well, like you said, Fredricka, there certainly was a lot more competition that studios have to contend with domestically.

You had World Cup this year, which was an enormous event that took a lot of people away from the theaters. You also have things like online streaming. You have Netflix. You have Hulu.

You know, the cost of movies have certainly risen, which is giving people pause and making them reconsider perhaps where they're going to spend their money. So there are a number of factors that have contributed to, you know, the decline in ticket sales this year.

WHITFIELD: So are some of those factors also kind of the content of the movies that were available? You know, was it a little too much fantasy? Too many sequels this summer? ROBERTSON: You know, perhaps that's a good point. Perhaps it's time for the studio system to recognize the baby boomer generation and begin to show more diversity in the types of stories that they are platforming out there and also more pictures with women.

The "Twilight" franchise and "Frozen" have all done well with leading female protagonists. So you know, that certainly would be something that studio executives should consider.

WHITFIELD: So how concerned is the movie industry?

ROBERTSON: Not really. Not in a significant way. I mean, this is real cyclical. You have good years and you have bad, all in all --

WHITFIELD: So this is just a bad year. This is not a new trend? This isn't the new reality that people don't want to go to the theater?

ROBERTSON: I don't think so. I don't think so. Of course, when you factor in international, you know, a lot of films that you mentioned did phenomenal business. You know, for example, "The Transformers" although it only did about $250 million domestically, it grossed over $800 million overseas --

WHITFIELD: So it says something about the American audience then?

ROBERTSON: Well, it just says that the American audience is dealing with a lot more. There's a lot more competition. There's a lot more coming at the American consumer. So Hollywood is going to have to get a lot more creative in terms of delivering product that Americans want to consume and want to pay big dollars for.

I think the average price for a movie ticket is almost $15 in some markets. That's a lot of money when you factor in popcorn and everything that comes with going to the movies.

WHITFIELD: I know. It's tough for families to go to a movie and experience it all together because you go to a movie and you want snacks. The kids want snacks.

ROBERTSON: Absolutely. Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: It all tallies up. All right, Gil Robertson, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

ROBERTSON: Thank you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, do parents have the right to choose where their children get medical care? One couple is arrested after moving their cancer stricken son from one hospital to another out of country. That's next in the NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel amazing. I'm still speechless. Still in shock. UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That was Cici Bellis on Tuesday after becoming the youngest player in 18 years to win a first round match at the U.S. Open. With that, the 15-year-old from San Francisco with a bubbly personality became the talk of the tournament.

CICI BELLIS, TENNIS PLAYER: I love when people watch me and support me like that. It really helped me a lot. This whole experience has been unbelievable, mind-blowing. It's been crazy. It's been the best couple of days of my life.

UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: On Thursday, Bellis played before a packed house. Though she lost the match, it didn't prevent fans from thinking she could be the future of U.S. women's tennis.

BELLIS: That's what I wanted to be since I was a little kid. I think definitely that makes me want to work really hard and try to become that. This is what I want to do. If it is what I'm supposed to do, that will be even better.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: An update now on Joan Rivers. We just received a statement from her daughter, Melissa, about her mother's well-being there in the hospital in New York saying this. Quote, "Thank you for your continued love and support. We're keeping our finger crossed," end quote.

Joan Rivers apparently suffered cardiac arrest during a procedure at a clinic on Thursday. Police tells us she stopped breathing. Melissa Rivers had said her mother remains in serious condition.

Do parents have the right to move their sick children from one hospital to another? It might sound like a simple situation, but for a British couple, it has turned into something a lot more complicated. They are now under arrest.

Brett King and his wife took their 5-year-old son who has brain cancer from the U.K. to France and then to a hospital in Spain. Then Interpol issued a missing person notice. The father then posted a message on YouTube.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are most disturbed today to find that his face is all over the internet and newspapers and we've been labeled as kidnappers and putting his life at risk, neglect.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So CNN's international desk editor, Azadeh Ansari, is here. So the parents, they were arrested after that video was picked up. Because charges or allegation is they shouldn't be moving a terminally sick child from one hospital to another without the doctor's consent. Is that what it boils down to? AZADEH ANSARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK NEWS EDITOR: Correct. So it's a lot of he said/she said, and back and forth. There is many sides to this story. The investigators are looking into this. The medical professionals have their perspective and the parents have as much say in all of this.

But the people who are working on the case, medical professionals and the detectives are saying the kid is ill. He has a medical condition. He can't be moved and he requires constant care and doing this --

WHITFIELD: Is this a case where the parents say we don't like the attention, medical attention he's getting so we want to move to another place to get what they are hoping is going to be better medical attention?

ANZARI: That's exactly what they're saying. They wanted their son to receive a treatment that wasn't allowed to them or granted to them at that hospital according to what parents are saying.

They felt they needed to move their son outside of the country to receive that treatment though medical professionals in Britain are saying we went through some of the options. We just didn't think that treatment would have been helpful given the kind of cancer that this 5-year-old child had.

WHITFIELD: So then now what? Parents under arrest. Are they in custody? Are they with their child? Are they facing charges? What's happening?

ANZARI: So right now according to what we've heard from Malaga Police in Spain, the British police are in Spain about to question the parents and then also the Spanish news agency has come out saying that the parents are set to appear before Spain's high court in Malaga tomorrow on Monday.

So in terms of the specific charges, authorities have not detailed those as of yet, but there could be anything according to what the Spanish news agency is saying potentially cruelty but who knows. At this point, it's speculation. We don't have those specific facts to go off of right now.

WHITFIELD: Azadeh, I'm sorry. It's a remarkable story. I think a lot of people can really relate and put themselves in the family's shoes to figure out, you know, what's the right thing to do here.

ANZARI: Absolutely. If you look at it from both sides, both sides are trying to be pro-active and they are trying to help. I think that's the thing. It's for the good of the child, but they have two different ways of wanting to do that.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks for bringing that to us. Keep us posted. Appreciate it.

All right, several other big stories that we're watching that are crossing the CNN news desk right now. A tragic start to the Labor Day weekend at a beach in Oregon. A 9-year-old girl was killed when a hole that she was digging caved in.

Isabelle Grace Franks was playing with her siblings when the accident happened on Friday. People frantically tried to dig her out, but sand kept collapsing into the hole. Witnesses say the hole was several feet deep.

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TRACEY DUDLEY, WITNESS: We heard screaming coming from the beach. At first, we thought it was just kids. It was screaming and screaming and screaming.

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WHITFIELD: My goodness. Mourners left flowers and candles near the hole that is now filled in.

The United States Senate wants to know why many U.S. airlines are racking up huge profits. "The Washington Post" reports a Senate panel has launched an inquiry into how airlines are making their profits and if consumers need more protection.

Senators will be looking at fees and other ways airlines are making money. For example, American Airlines was in bankruptcy last year, but took in a record quarterly profit of $1.5 billion this year.

And just three days after the NFL announced tougher penalties for domestic violence incidents, a player is now facing charges. San Francisco 49ers Ray McDonald was arrested early this morning for an incident overnight at his home in San Jose, California.

Police aren't releasing any details. The league says the first incident will now result in a six-game suspension. The second could result in a lifetime ban.

And for one pair of athletes, a dream came true. How an 8-year-old boy helped his 6-year-old disabled brother become a triathlete.

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WHITFIELD: An 8-year-old boy might well be called brother and athlete of the year for finishing a triathlon with his disabled brother. This inspiring story of brotherly love has taken off on Twitter and YouTube with more than 72,000 views. Maggie O'Mara from our affiliate, KTVB, has more.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're a very active family. We love to run and bike and stuff and we want him to be a part of that.

MAGGIE O'MARA, KTVB REPORTER (voice-over): The Aldrich family heard about the YMCA Kids Club Program and a kids triathlon and that's when Noah had an idea.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Can I do that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He said I want to do this with my brother. That's where the idea was born and after that I think the next day we started training.

NOAH ALDRICH, 8, PULLED, PUSHED 6-YEAR-OLD BROTHER, LUCAS: We're in the triathlon club.

O'MARA: Running, biking and swimming together to get ready. The 8- year-old Noah pushing and pulling his brother right along with him.

ALDRICH: He's going to be happy that he did the race.

O'MARA: When the big day game, Team Lucas house was ready to roll. Noah was nervous.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They'll start with a 200 meter swim.

ALDRICH: We have this cord thing that goes around me and snaps to a raft that Lucas is in and I just swim.

O'MARA: And swim he did as hard as he could with his brother in tow.

ALDRICH: Then we bike and I'm going to be pulling Lucas.

O'MARA: Noah pulled his brother for three miles. No easy feat for an 8-year-old.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And then they'll transition for the run.

ALDRICH: I'm going to be pushing Lucas in the white.

O'MARA: It was exhausting. An incredible show of strength and love for his little brother and then it the part everyone was waiting for, the finish line.

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Extraordinary!

O'MARA: Noah and Lucas felt the thrill of that finish. And so did this emotional mom and dad.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good job, Noah. I'm so proud of you.

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WHITFIELD: Wow. He is a brother and athlete of the year. Our thanks to Maggie O'Mara from our affiliate, KTVB, for that story. Our next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.