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Freddie Gray Not Wearing Seat Belt; Stage Collapse in Indiana; Clinton Foundation to Conduct Voluntary External Review of Tax Returns; Dr. Oz Fires Back at Critics; "High Profits" Looks at Marijuana Growing in Colorado. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired April 24, 2015 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00] JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): At trial, Officer Leake, who drove the police van testified, "I did not seat belt him" because she thought "he had a full bladder." She denied purposefully giving him a "rough ride," a tactic some charge is used against difficult prisoners. The Johnson family won a wrongful death verdict and was awarded $7.4 million. But on appeal, it was reduced to just $500,000. Now the Gray family is wondering if these two eerily similar cases are more than just coincidence.

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JOHNS (on camera): The Baltimore Police commissioner has been quoted as saying flatly that Freddie Gray was not wearing a seat belt. If that is true, the question is whether it may be a violation of a recently instituted Baltimore Police Department policy. Some police departments around the country do not require seat belting and certain officers say it's impractical in certain circumstances.

Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Joe Johns reporting live from Baltimore this morning.

Let's talk more about this. I'm joined by criminal defense attorney Brian Claypool and the Maryland House of Delegates Deputy Majority Whip Keith Haynes, who will be with us shortly.

Welcome, Brian.

BRIAN CLAYPOOL, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Hi, Carol.

COSTELLO: We know that Freddie Gray was put into the police vehicle in handcuffs originally. Then, at some point during the trip to the police station, police stopped the van and put leg shackles on him, yet did not -

CLAYPOOL: Right.

COSTELLO: Restrain him in any, you know, seat belt him any way in the back of that van. So it's becoming increasingly apparent, isn't it, that that's how his injuries might have arisen? CLAYPOOL: Well, Carol, I'm not so sure of that and I'll tell you why.

The videotape of Freddie Gray only started when he was on the ground. We don't really know what transpired exactly with the police officers leading up to him being on the ground. His spine was 80 percent severed. His voice box was crushed. I find it hard to believe that that would happen in a van. And some of the police officers had their - it looked like they had their knees in his back.

And, Carol, go back to that video. When they picked up Freddie Gray, it looked like he had trouble even walking on his own. They were carrying him. It looked like they were throwing a slab of meat into a freezer. So I'm not even sure it happened inside the van.

But let's talk about inside the van. First of all, police officers, before they even put him in the van, have a constitutional duty to call for medical aid if a suspect is injured. I've handled about ten death cases in the last decade and I have dealt with this issue. They should have called the paramedics before he was even thrown in the van, Carol. He was screaming and yelling in pain.

Once he's in the van, he needs to be seat belted. And, Carol, why is nobody talking about the failure to have video cameras inside the jailhouse van? Wouldn't we know then, really, if anything in the van caused this as well?

And then we have a 30-minute gap. Why didn't somebody call for paramedics during that 30-minute window as well. And I'm sure he was booked as well in the jail - in the jailhouse. Why didn't somebody when they talked to him, when he first arrived, say, hey, wait a minute, this guy's not well, let's call for help?

COSTELLO: I don't know. Everybody wants answers to those very questions.

Keith Haynes, by the way, is joining us now.

Delegate Haynes, the longer we wait to know what went on in the back of that van, the angrier the community gets. Politicians are insisting they're transparent, yet we still have so very little information.

KEITH HAYNES, DEPUTY MAJORITY WHIP, MARYLAND HOUSE OF DELEGATES: You're absolutely correct. And I think that the community is concerned and they're anticipating answers from the investigations that are ongoing at this point. And there are approximately four concurrent investigations that are going forward. And people want answers. And we are seeing an increase in the number of protests consistently throughout the week.

COSTELLO: Are you satisfied, sir, with those - with how those investigations are going and the amount of information that's coming out?

HAYNES: Well, I think that as we look at this situation, what we want to be sure of is that everything is considered. And that takes time. That the medical examiner's report is going to be very crucial. And that takes time. So we don't want any mistakes. I think that as we go through this process, though, the public really

needs to hear updates consistently on what is ongoing. And it is that window of silence which people are concerned about.

COSTELLO: Brian, back to you. There was a former Baltimore Police detective on "New Day" this morning. His name was Joseph Crystal. He told us he was actually harassed by fellow officers, you know, when he was with the Baltimore Police Department, when he reported a case of police brutality. Listen.

[09:35:07] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE CRYSTAL, FORMER BALTIMORE PD DETECTIVE: To a supervisor within my division to report the incident. And when I did that, I was told simply, if I were to snitch or - that basically I would be - my career would be over. His exact words to me were, if you snitch, your career is done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So, Brian, this is concerning, right, because this could enter into this case as well?

CLAYPOOL: Carol, this happens all the time. I have dealt with this for the past ten years. There is a flat out categorical code of silence within police departments. You've got to stick with your team. You can't say anything negative or adverse against other police officers or else you will face retribution, you will face retaliation, you will be harassed by other police officers as well, Carol.

And if I may comment, too, one other thing that I'm concerned about in this case is, this is unlike a lot of other death cases at the hand of law enforcement, like Mike Brown. We didn't really know what transpired. We needed forensics. We needed DNA. We needed to see whether there was a scuffle. Here, Carol, we have flat out, uncontroverted facts that Freddie Gray was physically, perfectly fine before he was detained without any probable cause and 40 minutes later he had a severed spine and a crushed voice box. And he was only at the hands of police custody. So we already have a lot of questions answered, and it should not take long to indict some or all of these police officers.

COSTELLO: Well, we'll see what happens in the days to come. There is a news conference scheduled for next hour. Of course we'll be following that. My thanks to both of you, Delegate Keith Haynes and Brian Claypool.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, chaos after a stage collapses during a high school performance. Ryan Young in Indiana this morning.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, and you can see the video of the students falling some 10 feet after that stage collapsed. Parents rushing to the aid of their own. We'll have that story coming up in a live report.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [09:40:50] COSTELLO: Several high school students are recovering this morning in Indiana after the stage they were performing on collapsed.

Nearly two dozen performers were hurt, several had serious injuries and had to go to the hospital. Terrified onlookers are now speaking out. So let's head to Westfield High School where Ryan Young has reaction.

Good morning.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

What a scary situation that these students and parents had to experience. That parent in the front row with her camera recording as she sees her son and everyone else drop down about 10 feet when this stage collapsed. And I'll tell you the critical student, the one who was injured the most, we're told is now in stable condition. The school is actually open and the principal has decided to address everyone here at school.

This was a sold out performance. Everything was going well until that terrifying eight seconds that you saw on tape. But the good news, of course, everyone will be OK.

But the investigation has started to figure out exactly what happened with that stage collapse. We talked to some of the students and parents about exactly what happened just last night.

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BLAKE RICE, PERFORMING ON STAGE WHEN IT COLLAPSED: I mean, it was, you know, it was - for me it was just like any other performance right up until the incident actually occurred. And then it was - you know, I could tell everybody down there was afraid. And, I mean, I was afraid. I was a few feet from falling in myself. So, you know, I definitely wasn't out of the line of danger by any means. And it -- it was honestly just shocking, you know? I have - never would have seen anything like that happening.

SARA CAMDEN, MOTHER OF STUDENT ON STAGE: It was like a dog pile down in the pit and just, you know, the cover for it was - was pinning students underneath. And so there was a lot of men that got up there right away and were trying to free the students that were caught up underneath debris and, you know, there was definitely a lot - a lot of kind of pandemonium panic going on there for a little bit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: And, Carol, you certainly will understand, as I talked to one father who talked about the helpless moments, the four or five seconds where everybody was worried about where their students had fallen. And as he looked over, he said he took a deep breath when he realized that his kid was OK and that everything would be worked out once the hospital and the ambulance and everything else was worked out. They said they are glad that this has worked out so calmly and nobody got seriously injured. COSTELLO: That is a good thing. Ryan Young, thanks so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the Clinton Foundation conducting a review of several years of tax filings, but says all donations were accounted for properly. But will the questions about the charity overshadow Hillary Clinton's bid for the White House? We'll talk about that next.

[09:43:32]

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COSTELLO: This morning, we have word that the Clinton Foundation will conduct, quote, "a voluntary external review of tax returns" from 2010 through 2012 and expects to refile them due to grants being reported incorrectly. Foundation officials tell CNN that no overall revenue or expenses will change as a result, but that review comes as the Hillary Clinton for America campaign is once again slamming a book questioning foreign donations to the Foundation.

New talking points from the campaign telling allies the accusations are, quote, "devoid of evidence". And now Chelsea Clinton is wading into the controversy, defending the charity's past actions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHELSEA CLINTON, VICE CHAIRMAN, THE CLINTON FOUNDATION: So what the Clinton Foundation has said is that we will be even more transparent. I very much believe that that's the right policy, that we'll be even more transparent, that to eliminate any questions while we're in this time, we won't take new government funding, but that the work will continue as it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Senior Washington correspondent, Jeff Zeleny, joins me now from Washington with more on this. Good morning.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. You're right, it's the end of the second week of the campaign here but it's hardly how they expected to launch. What Chelsea Clinton was talking about there was these new rules that the Foundation is imposing on foreign government contributions, and this is coming in the wake of these new reports about whether any preferential treatment that was given to some companies who were giving money to the Foundation.

And a lot of allegations here. So far there aren't any specific, concrete examples that any companies or foreign governments received special treatment, but so many questions about the donations. And you mentioned the review of those tax filings. That is because $2.35 million that were given to the Foundation, they were never disclosed by the Foundation as Secretary Clinton agreed to do when she became Secretary of State. So that is one of the key questions here that has to be answered. But as the campaign is pushing back, "The New York Times" has an

editorial this morning saying that there are tough questions that need to be asked. And this is what they said. Let's take a look. They said, "The increasing scrutiny of the Foundation has raised several points that need to be addressed by Mrs. Clinton and the former president. These relate most importantly to the flow of multi- millions in donations from foreigners and others to the Foundation, how Mrs. Clinton dealt with the potential conflicts as Secretary of State, and how she intends to guard against such conflicts should she win the White House."

So Carol, that is really the question here going forward. Will they answer anymore of these questions? And so far she hasn't talked about this hardly at all.

COSTELLO: Jeff Zeleny, reporting live for us this morning. Thanks so much. I'll be right back.

[09:49:53]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Dr. Oz turning the tables on his critics, spending a large portion of his show yesterday not just defending his credibility but also shaming the critics who question him, digging up their pasts and calling them out one by one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MEHMENT OZ, TV PERSONALITY: The ten doctors who attacked me got what they intended since they show headlines and sound bites. I've long believed that doctors should never fight their battles, or each other, in public. But now I believe I must.

Some of them have their conflict of interest issues and some integrity ones also.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: With me now, senior media correspondent and host of "RELIABLE SOURCES", Brian Stelter Oh come on.

(LAUGHTER)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: You're laughing.

COSTELLO: They should only fight their battles in private so nobody could hear?

STELTER: Maybe that's some sort of doctor code we didn't know about or something.

But he sure did fight in public this time, and the doctors fought back yesterday. Two of the ten doctors that initially called for him to resign from Columbia wrote statements saying wwhy is Dr. Oz making this personal? We're trying to talk about his medicine. The weirdest thing he said in this PR blitz is that he doesn't think his medical show is a medical show, that the Dr. Oz show is not a medical show.

COSTELLO: He's a doctor!

STELTER: That's kind of ridiculous. It's a show about wellness; it's a show about health. That's for sure.

But this PR blitz does seem to be putting his critics on the defense, so maybe it's working.

COSTELLO: Do you think it was effective? I'm sure you watched the show.

STELTER: For sure. I mean, it was so strange for him. It made him into the victim. But that's sometimes an effective strategy when you're on the ropes like this. He said on the "Today" show this morning he's not going anywhere, his show will survive. And that's true.

[09:55:00] It does well in syndication; it's got strong ratings. But I do think this criticism hopefully well make he and his show better.

And he said that as well this morning. He said this new letter from -- you have those eight faculty members at Columbia now speaking out, saying we're not so sure about Dr. Oz. He says that kind of criticism does make him better.

COSTELLO: Brian Stelter, thanks as always. I appreciate it.

STELTER: Thanks.

COSTELLO: CNN's newest series, "HIGH PROFITS", takes a look at the budding recreational marijuana industry in Colorado. And the complications that come with trying to grow new business.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My name is Nick Madeline (ph) and I grow marijuana for a living.

This is my office.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nick, he's our head grower. He's our head garden manager. First and foremost, we need to have weed. And that's what we lacked for four years. We had great customer service, we had other people's products on our shelf, but we never had any of our own.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In this room, we probably have about 20, 25 different strains in here right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nick joined with us about a year ago. He was trained in house and he was become our weed genius.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here at the BCC, we grow a nice, good quality, dense buds. They're very flavorful. Probably one of the best organic buds you're going to see around.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to be able to take advantage, while margins are high, while prices are high, and we can afford a few hiccups but not problems like we had during medical marijuana.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The difficulties in growing marijuana is they're very picky. You over-water them once, they produce half as much. You under-water them, they could die. It's hard because with different strains, each one of them are individual.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nick does a really good job in the garden. He takes very good care of his plants. He pays attention to detail, and he does everything on time, which is really important with the plants. But the new garden that Nick's managing, when it's fully built out, will be ten times the size of the garden in Breckenridge.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: The green rush on "HIGH PROFITS" this Sunday, 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

The next hour of NEWSROOM after a break.

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