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Clinton Refuses to Debate Sanders; Iraqi Army's Tough Battle against ISIS for Fallujah; Search Continues for EgyptAir, Black Boxes; Obama Gives Speech in Vietnam; Different Groups in Coalition Fighting to Retake Fallujah Have Common Enemy ISIS; Freddie Gray Family, Officer, Praise Judge's Decision; Greece Moves Migrants Out of Camp at Macedonia Border; Rescue Efforts on Mt. Everest. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired May 24, 2016 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:32] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the word. I'm Rosemary Church.

ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Good to be with you, Rosemary.

Hey, everyone. I'm Errol Barnett. Thanks for joining us. Our two- hour block of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.

A new national poll shows Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in a statistical dead heat in the presidential race. Take a look at this. An NBC News/"Wall Street Journal" survey, Clinton stands at 46 percent to Trump's 43 percent. That is within the margin of error. But in a Washington Post/ABC News poll, Trump came out on top with 46 percent to Hillary's 44 percent.

CHURCH: Trump may be the presumptive nominee, but Washington State's Republican convention awarded 40 out of 41 delegates to former candidate, Ted Cruz, even though he's no longer in the race. But the move is unlikely to be a game-changer since delegates are bound by the results of Tuesday's primary in Washington State.

CHURCH: Meanwhile, Clinton says she will not debate Democratic rival, Bernie Sanders, in California. That's ahead of the state's primary in June. Sanders says he's disappointed but not surprised.

CNN's senior Washington correspondent, Jeff Zeleny, is in Los Angeles with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Hillary Clinton is still trying to shake Bernie Sanders.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: We are coming to the end of the Democratic primaries. ZELENY: But when those primaries do end, the bigger question is

whether his supporters will come aboard. At a speech in Detroit today, Clinton extending her hand, stopping just short of thanking Sanders for shaping the race.

CLINTON: I applaud Senator Sanders and his supporters for challenging us, and we are going to unify the Democratic Party and stop Donald Trump.

(CHEERING)

ZELENY: But speaking to union workers, Clinton making clear she's pivoted to Trump.

CLINTON: The only thing standing between Donald Trump and the Oval Office is all of us.

ZELENY: And of course, Sanders. He's squarely focused on Trump too, campaigning today in California.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS, (I), VERMONT & DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If the Democrats want to be absolutely certain as we must be that Donald Trump never becomes president, our campaign is the strongest campaign.

(CHEERING)

ZELENY: A string of new polls showing a tight Clinton/Trump race is fueling Sanders' argument that he's the stronger general election candidate.

SANDERS: Every poll that I have seen in the last couple of months, including a poll just yesterday, have us way, way ahead.

ZELENY: The Democratic race, mathematically speaking, seems over. With Clinton holding an insurmountable lead in pledged and super delegates.

CLINTON: We are going to win in November.

ZELENY: But she's underwater with Sanders' supporters. 41 percent view her in a negative light while only 38 percent view her positively according to the new "Wall Street Journal"/NBC poll. And only two- thirds of Sanders' supporters say they would vote for her against Trump compared to 88 percent of Clinton's supporters who say they would back Sanders.

Their odd couple relationship a punch line on "Saturday Night Live."

KATE MCKINNEN, COMEDIAN: Do you mind if I just have one more drink with my old, very old, kind of dangerously old friend, Bernie?

(LAUGHTER)

LARRY DAVID COMEDIAN: I'll have a beer, a new brand that people are flocking to. (LAUGHTER)

MCKINNEN: And I'll have whatever beer no one likes but gets the job done.

ZELENY: On the campaign trail today, Clinton was laser-focused on Trump.

CLINTON: He could bankrupt America like he's bankrupted his companies. How can anybody lose money running a casino, really?

ZELENY: Bill Clinton is weighing in, too, taking aim at slogan.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Make America great really means, hey, I'll make it the way it used to be. You'll be better off, and if not, at least you'll have somebody else to look down on.

ZELENY (on camera): Bernie Sanders already getting some concessions from the Democratic National Committee. They are allowing him five seats party's platform committee, the Clinton campaign gets six. It's one way of trying to smooth things over before the convention this summer, but Bernie Sanders is not getting out of this race yet. He's eyeing the California primary and those 475 delegates he believes he can win.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joining us now, CNN political commentators, Tara Setmeyer and Peter Beinart. Tara has also been a communications director for Congressional Republicans and helps train Republicans who want to run for public office.

[02:05:09] BARNETT: Peter Beinart is also a contributor at "The Atlantic" is the author of "The Good Fight, Why Liberals and Only Liberals Can Win the War on Terror and Make America Great Again."

That's a phrase we've all heard before.

Great to have you both with us.

This first question is for you both.

But, Tara, we'll have you go first.

Even though Trump and Clinton are tied in the current polls we're looking at, which are very difficult at predicting the eventual winner in November, Trump does face an uphill battle in must-win states and more. How are you feeling about Republican chances come the election?

TARA SETMEYER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I mean the polling that came out now shows that it really is a 50/50 shot for Trump, which should be terrifying for the Hillary Clinton campaign considering only just about a month and a half ago, polls showed that it would be a blowout. So I think that Republicans are not going to get their hopes up, but it is a 50/50 shot, which is good news for them considering that it didn't look so rosy a few months ago with Trump as the presumptive nominee. But again it's May, which is an absolute eternity away from the election in November. I mean a million things could happen between now and then. And polling in May is notoriously inaccurate to predict what's going to happen in November. I mean in 1988, Michael Dukakis was up 10 points against George Bush, and that ended up being a complete blowout. So this is just a snapshot in time now. Next week it could be something different, and in the fall after maybe the first debate, it could be very different from now.

CHURCH: And, Peter, the Democrats must be panicking at this stage. When you look at the numbers and just got in one of the polls there, certainly for NBC/"Wall Street Journal," they're saying she's at 46 percent. Trump at 43 percent. There was an 11-point margin before. She's lost a lot of ground, and we're also learning that a third of Bernie Sanders' supporters say if she were nominated, they could not get on board with her. So there must be panic right at the heart of the Democratic Party right now.

PETER BEINART, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think there's definitely concern that the polls are this close, and Tara is right. The polls have closed significantly. But what seems to have happened is that Trump has managed to consolidate the Republican vote, and that's a significant accomplishment. I don't think -- I think there are many people, including myself, who had questioned about whether he could do that. But Hillary Clinton probably will be able to consolidate the Democratic vote more than she has so far once Bernie Sanders does drop out. It's true that there are polls that say that Bernie Sanders' supporters won't vote for Hillary Clinton, but if you compare this moment to the moment in 2008, for instance, what they ask Hillary Clinton supporters if they would support Barack Obama, there was actually an even smaller percentage. The point being that, in this hyper-partisan environment that we live in, voters tend to rally around the nominee of their party. We're seeing that Benefiting Trump. Once that effect plays itself out for Hillary Clinton as I think it will, I think she will probably re-establish a lead although, I agree, not a big enough lead perhaps to give Democrats the sense of comfort that they really would like.

BARNETT: One thing that really has shocked everyone is the enthusiasm Donald Trump supporters have shown through the primary and caucus process. The general election is much different.

But, Tara, to you, where is the proof that Donald Trump can expand his appeal beyond working-class whites, middle class and upper class? You know, the proof that Arizona is kind of a toss-up state between Clinton and Trump when it's consistently gone for Republicans must be a warning to Trump that his alienation of Hispanics could be his -- could be fatal for him.

SETMEYER: Yeah, it's true, not only Hispanics but his unfavorables with women, his unfavorables with African-Americans. I mean for the most part, he has -- well, his unfavorables in general are really high, but so are Hillary Clinton's. But in those key demographics, he's got a lot of work to do, Donald Trump does. And we've never seen anyone overcome the obstacles that he has right now with his unfavorables. Clinton is running a close second, particularly with women. I mean Donald Trump is at 74 percent unfavorable with women, and women outvote women and have since the 1960s. So this is an area -- this is part of the problem for the Republicans, and they're concerned with Donald Trump as a nominee. They're kind of, you know, holding their nose and supporting him for a variety of reasons. But his unfavorables in all these demographics are considerable. Even in the polling that came out recently, 58 percent of people said that Donald Trump is unqualified to be president of the United States. That's not a great number. So -- in that same poll, 63 percent said Hillary Clinton is qualified to be president. So there are a lot of metrics and a lot of hurdles for Donald Trump to have to overcome in order to be successful. But Hillary has similar hurdles as well because her unfavorables with white men are quite low also.

[02:10:19] CHURCH: Yeah, a lot of hurdles for both of them. The problem is that nobody seems to like them or a large portion of the voting population out there.

Tara Setmeyer and Peter Beinart, a pleasure to talk with you both.

BARNETT: Thanks, guys.

SETMEYER: Thank you.

BARNETT: Now to some other big stories we're following for you. Iraqi government forces are taking on ISIS in a key city west of Baghdad. They're battling the militants on the southern outskirts of Fallujah. CNN has obtained this exclusive footage of some of the Iraqi Fallujah was one of the first Iraqi cities ISIS captured more than two years ago.

CHURCH: ISIS just released this propaganda video as proof it's fighting back, but Iraq's prime minister insists his military will be victorious.

There's also intense fighting in Syria. ISIS is claiming responsibility for as many as nine explosions in two Syrian towns. Activists say at least 150 people were killed.

BARNETT: Both targeted cities are government strongholds, and you can see -- or I should tell you that they are both close to the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa.

CHURCH: Let's discuss all of this with CNN military analyst, retired Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona.

Always good to talk with you, sir.

We know, of course, that ISIS has been in Fallujah for two years now. So it will be a tough mission for Iraq's Army to seize Fallujah back. How is this likely to play out, and what do they need to do militarily to make this happen?

LT. COL. RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, they're doing what they need to do militarily. We've seen this before. They're going to use the model they used in Tikrit and successfully in Ramadi. But I have to tell you at what cost? This is going to cause tremendous damage to this city, and there will be a lot of collateral damage because there's no easy way to go into these cities. They're just rabbit Warrens. They're packed in on top of each other. As you said, ISIS has had two years to prepare the battlefield that is taking place right now as the Iraqi forces move closer in, they're going to face hundreds of booby traps, IEDs, suicide bombers. This is the same playbook we saw in Ramadi. Eventually the weight of the Iraqi military, what they're able to bring to bear, will win. But it's going to be at a tremendous price. We saw this in Tikrit where a small group of ISIS fighters, committed ISIS fighters were able to hold off huge numbers of Iraqi forces. And we're also seeing the Iraqis bring in the right troops. They're bringing in the national police, the Special Forces. But they're also again using these very capable Iranian-trained Shia militia.

CHURCH: Now, Britain's foreign secretary insists Iraq's army is showing an increase in its capability. From what you're saying there, it sounds like you would agree with that assessment.

FRANCONA: There better, Rosemary. They're getting better, but they are nowhere near what they're going to need to be to march up the Tigress Valley and liberate Mosul. That's going to be a long way off. They've got to take these smaller battles incrementally. Fallujah is important. It's very strategic, close to Baghdad. I imagine a lot of these bombs that we've been seeing in Baghdad have been staged from Fallujah. So they've got to clean ISIS out of that area. That pretty much eliminates most of them in the Anbar Province. Then they can pivot to the north and focus on the real liberation that has to take place, and that's Mosul.

CHURCH: And of course, Iraq's prime minister is urging civilians to get out of Fallujah and travel to safe areas. How are they supposed to do that given ISIS is preventing them from leaving, and how bad could this get for those thousands of civilians that can't escape?

FRANCONA: Yeah, and this is the collateral damage we're going to face. I don't understand what he wanted them to do. They dropped leaflets and said if you can, please leave. And if you can't, put a white flag on your house. That's just telling ISIS where they are. So I don't think we're going to see much of that. I think many of them are going to try and just survive and that the battle spares them. I hate to say this, but there will be civilian casualties and there will be crossfires. No one likes to do this but the Iraqis have got to go in there. And when they go in there, ISIS is going to use them as human shields or just outright kill them.

CHURCH: Rick Francona, we always like to get your perspective on this. We appreciate it. Thanks for joining us.

FRANCONA: Nice to talk to you.

BARNETT: U.S. officials say Taliban leader, Mullah Mansour, was planning new attacks on U.S. targets before his death on Saturday. He was killed by a strike in Pakistan near the Afghanistan border. The Taliban were reportedly going to hit U.S. and coalition forces in the Afghan capitol, Kabul. It's the first time officials have cited new threats to American personnel in the city in some time. Media reports and sources close to the Taliban leader say that leader of an al Qaeda affiliate will likely replace Mansour.

[02:15:16] CHURCH: U.S. President Barack Obama says the U.S. and Vietnam have come a long way since the Vietnam War. His reflections on war and the progress that's been made since then, just ahead.

BARNETT: Plus, we'll take a look at the challenges searchers face trying to find EgyptAir's so-called black boxes in the Mediterranean.

We're back in a moment.

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(SPORTS REPORT)

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CHURCH: Egypt is gathering all the help it can in the search for EgyptAir flight 804. Authorities have asked for plane's departure from Paris and transcripts of air traffic control calls with Greece.

BARNETT: France is also providing equipment in the search for the so- called black boxes.

Here's Nic Robertson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[02:19:48] NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, Egyptian authorities now have two submarines at their disposal. They are their own one that can reach a depth of about 3,000 meters, and French officials say they now have a patrol boat out there helping Egyptian authorities on board, they say, two specialist divers, a submarine that can go to a depth of a thousand meters and acoustic detecting devices. These devices are very helpful because the French officials say they can be used to help find the black boxes. The black boxes have transmitters attached to them. When they hit the water, the transmitters start sending out pings. The acoustic detectors can listen for those pings. However, what the French authorities here are not able to use their submarine yet. Why? They still have to narrow and refine the area of search. They're still looking for debris. Once they've done that, then they can deploy the submarine and the acoustic detectors. This gives us an indication that the search can take days or even weeks is what they're warning about. Not quite clear how the Egyptian authorities are using their submarine at this time. Of course, the depth of the sea out there, 5,000 meters in some of its deepest places, way beyond the scope of either of these submarines. Egyptian authorities here saying absolutely important to recover the bodies as soon as possible, find the black boxes. That is their priority at the moment, help give some solace to all the grieving families waiting for whatever information the authorities here can give them.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Alexandria, Egypt.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: U.S. President Barack Obama reflected on the Vietnam War while addressing a crowd in Hanoi in just the last hour, saying he's mindful of the past but focused on the future. He also noted the very wall that divided the U.S. and Vietnam became a source for healing.

CHURCH: Mr. Obama touted Vietnam's progress in a number of areas, including the economy and education, and he emphasized that the U.S. and Vietnam remain committed to working together.

CNN's Alexandra Field joins us now.

Alexandra, President Obama addressed the people of Vietnam last hour. What were the other critical points that came out of this speech, and how was he received overall?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Reporter: well, Rosemary, it was an incredibly wide ranging speech hitting on security to climate change to trade deals to the past relationship between these two countries and to the future. This speech was made in front of about 2,000 people. It was an audience that was made up of government officials, diplomats, business people, also students. But he really spent a good deal of the speech talking about the history of these two nations. In fact, Obama is not the first U.S. president to visit Vietnam. He is the first president to grow up in a post-war area. He talked about the heavy price both countries paid in that war and also about the remarkable progress that's been made in healing relations between the nations. He gave the credit for that work to the veterans, the people who actually served in this war. He specifically mentioned Senator John McCain from the United States, of course, and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. But he gave credit to the people in Vietnam and the U.S. for doing decades of work to get to a place where relations could be fully normalized as he's been calling it. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: At a time when many conflicts seem intractable, seem as if they will never end, we have shown that hearts can change and that a different future is possible when we refuse to be past. We've shown how peace can be better than war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FIELD: President Obama also spent a good deal of time reflecting on the progress that Vietnam has made in the decades since the war, particularly highlighting economic growth, pointing out that this is one of the fastest growing economies in Asia, pointing out trade deals, foreign investment, and also technological advances here, Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Alexandra Field following the president's trip there in Vietnam. Many thanks to you for joining us from Ho Chi Minh City.

BARNETT: There was a short moment of fun as well. Mr. Obama took a quick break from diplomacy for a culinary detour on Monday. Anthony Bourdain sent out this tweet, including a picture of a meal he shared with the president. I thought it was worth a re-tweet. Their meeting will be featured on Bourdain's show here on CNN. If you're curious, the total cost of that meal, $6. And apparently, Bourdain says it was his treat.

That was very good of him.

CHURCH: Well, Austria has chosen a new president in a cliff-hanger runoff election. Former green party leader, Alexander Vander Belen, won a narrow victory decided by absentee ballots. The 72-year-old economist ran as an independent.

BARNETT: His challenger, Norbert Hofer, was hoping to become the European Union's first far-right head of state.

CHURCH: All right. Manchester United have sacked their manager just two days after winning the F.A. Cup, its first trophy in three years.

[02:25:07] BARNETT: And reportedly, Jose Marineio (ph) is set to take his place. Marineio (ph) last managed Chelsea, but that team fired him back in December.

FIFA's secretary general is out of a job. Soccer's governing body announced the dismissal effective immediately on Monday. An internal investigation found breaches in fiduciary responsibilities. Reports say it involved a secret bonus scheme.

CHURCH: CNN's new show, "State of the Race" with Kate Bolduan is just ahead for our viewers in Asia.

BARNETT: For viewers elsewhere, stay with us. How the not-guilty verdict in the latest Freddie Gray case could affect the next officers' trials.

CHURCH: And later, the NFL responds to charges that it tried to influence research on concussions.

Back in a moment.

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[02:30:50] BARNETT: This is CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Errol Barnett.

CHURCH: And I'm Rosemary Church.

Time to check the main stories we've been following this hour.

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BARNETT: As we discussed at the top of this hour, fighting is under way on the outskirts of Fallujah. This is a coalition of Iraqi forces trying to retake the city from ISIS. CNN acquired exclusive video of troops battling the terror group.

CHURCH: Civilians are trying to flee, but ISIS is stopping many of them from getting out.

The Iraqi defense minister expressed his confidence in the operation. He says the battle won't last long.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KHALED AL OBEIDI, IRAQI DEFENSE MINISTER (through translation): The operation is going very well, more than expected. The enemy is completely collapsing. Our troops' spirit is very high because of their victories and due to all of that, we think that the battle of Fallujah will be sealed soon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: The coalition fighting to retake Fallujah is made up of a number of different groups. In ISIS, they have a common enemy.

Our Ben Wedeman has reported on the various forces involved in this fight. He joins us live from Rome to discuss what's taking place.

Ben, Iranian-trained Shiite militias are assisting in this. They're known as popular mobilization units. The government reports they've already helped some 30 families get out, but just how risky is to use them considering the sectarian differences that exist?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the risks are quite high, and we've seen in the past in areas like Diyala Province where these militias were really playing the leadership role in the military operations against is, that there are a lot of reprisal killings. That there was looting. That there were crimes committed against the civilian population that really have raise concerns. Now, for instance, we were in Tikrit after these forces, the PMU, went in. And they also were really one of the strongest components of the Israeli forces in the battle of Tikrit last spring. We also saw that they did engage in some instances in looting and burning houses, and there are reported fairly well documented that they did, in fact, engage in revenge killings against some members of the civilian population. Now, the Iraqi government clearly wants to avoid a repeat of what happened in Diyala and to a lesser extent in Tikrit. The plan at least according to the Iraqi government is to leave the PMU on the outskirts of the city, to sort of secure the surrounding areas. But those forces that will actually go into Fallujah will be Sunni tribesmen who have been armed and trained by the Iraqi government. Iraqi police units and what's known as the golden brigade, which is the elite anti-terrorism unit of the Iraqi Army. And this is all intended to avoid the sort of consequences that we saw elsewhere -- Errol?

BARNETT: And we still have the possibility that this will be a long and messy fight. What are the chances ISIS militants will use the safe package cards, all these leaflets dropped by Iraqi forces to allow residents to flee, what are the chances ISIS may use it as cover for themselves to get out? [02:35:13] WEDEMAN: In fact, we've seen in the past they did. If I

just go back to the battle for Tikrit which we covered last spring, there were instructions according to radio communications monitored by the Iraqi Army to ISIS fighters within the city to shave off their beards, to put on ordinary civilian clothing, and to try to sneak out with civilians who were leaving. So obviously, those civilians who do leave and go through government checkpoints are going to come under quite a lot of scrutiny. We understand, however, that many of the ISIS fighters in Fallujah are, in fact, natives of Fallujah. So the chances that this is going to be a protracted battle are quite high. Keep in mind that ISIS has been in control of Fallujah since January 2014. That's the first major Iraqi city they took control of. So, yes, some may try to get out with the civilians. But we can also expect a fair level of resistance, a lot of booby traps and other deadly surprises for the Iraqi forces -- Errol?

BARNETT: They've had more than two years to dig in.

Ben Wedeman, live for us in Rome this morning. Ben, thanks.

BARNETT: We'll take a short break here. But still to come, a stunning verdict in the case of a police officer charged in the death of Freddie Gray. Find out how both sides, Gray's family, and the officer, are praising the judge's decision.

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[02:40:05] BARNETT: In a new report, U.S. congressional Democrats accused the National Football League of inappropriately trying to influence new concussion research. The NFL is funding a $30 million study on brain injuries, but the National Institutes of Health decided who would receive the grants. The investigation began with an ESPN article in December alleging the NFL was with holding funding because critical researchers from Boston University were involved. The NFL rejected those allegations. The NIH says the process was not inappropriately influenced by outside forces.

CHURCH: There is a verdict in a case that gripped the U.S. city of Baltimore and put a focus on the treatment of African-Americans by police. A judge has found Baltimore Police Officer Edward Nero not guilty in the death of Freddie Gray, a young African-American man. Gray died from spinal injuries last year, which prosecutors say were caused when he was transported in a police van without a seat belt. Nero is the second of six police officers to be tried in Gray's death.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SHOUTING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Greeted by protests as he left the courthouse following the verdict, CNN's Miguel Marquez has more on the verdict and the reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The judge in this case read the verdict, not guilty on all counts, Officer Edward Nero at first put his head back, took in a deep breath, and then put his head down and began to sob. Great, great emotion shown. His father even saying that he wept tears of joy.

His lawyer, a short time after that verdict, released a statement saying in part, "The states attorney for Baltimore City rushed to charge him as well as the other five officers, completely disregarding the facts of the case and the applicable law. His hope is the states attorney will re-evaluate the remaining five officers' cases and dismiss their charges."

This case completely revolved around whether or not the arrest -- not the detention. The initial detention of Freddie Gray, says both the prosecutors and the defense, was lawful, but it was the official arrest shortly thereafter and whether or not that was lawful or not. This is something that happens every single day in Baltimore.

Freddie Gray's family responded to the judge's acquittal today saying this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I found no problem with the judge's reasoning. Of course. the outcome of how he weighs the evidence is strictly up to him and not to us. I commend Judge Williams because he is one of those rare judges that disregarded public opinion. There was enormous pressure from the African-American community to get a conviction.

MARQUEZ: An African-American judge, you're saying?

MURPHY: Yes, and he did not bend to that pressure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: And it is not over for Baltimore. The next police officer to be before a judge is Caesar Goodson. He was the van driver. The van is where Mr. Gray suffered those injuries that eventually killed him. The officer, William Porter, who earlier this year went through a trial that ended in a hung jury, or mistrial, he will be back in court later this year.

Miguel Marquez, CNN, Baltimore.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: Joining me now is Page Pate. He's a criminal defense attorney and constitutional attorney. He's been watching this case closely, as we all have really.

Thanks for coming in, Mr. Pate.

Six officers were initially charged in this. The trial for the first ended in a mistrial, for William Porter. Now the second to face trial, Edward Nero, he was found not guilty. What does that tell us about what's to come, if anything?

PAGE PATE, CRIMINAL DEFENSE & CONSTITUTIONAL ATTORNEY: Well, I think a lot of the officers are feeling pretty good right now because this was not a strong start for the state. But in the state's defense, this was really not their best case. Officer Nero was probably the lease involved of the officers. The case against him rested o the state's theory that simply by arresting Freddie Gray without probable cause, he committed a crime. And I think the judge had a lot of problem -- or problems with that theory, and he said so during his questioning of the prosecutors.

BARNETT: Now, there were a few dozen people outside protesting today on what they say is they're concerned about the line of questioning from Judge Barry Williams, not linking that arrest without probable cause to criminal assault. Should that have been expected, then, and if so, what do you expect to happen when the driver stands trial?

PATE: Well, I think that should have been expected. In fact, I think the prosecutor probably was too aggressive, probably jumped to conclusions early on in the case and was trying a novel legal theory because there's not a lot of precedent for charging a police officer with a crime simply for making an arrest when there was an absence of probable cause down the line. That was just a weak theory to begin with.

BARNETT: That was a big moment, though. The states attorney, Marilyn Mosby, she was praised and criticized for charging all six officers while protests were still happening on the streets of Baltimore. Then to charge them all with the most serious crime, hoping that it would at least stick for some of them?

[02:45:12] PATE: Absolutely. Another part of that, and wee see this in criminal cases in America all the time, is that a prosecutor will charge everyone in the hope and expectation that someone will cut a deal. Someone will come in, plead guilty to a lesser charge, and then testify against the other officers. But in this case, every single officer stood firm and said, we're not going to cooperate. We're all going to go to trial. And so then the prosecutor was left without any critical witnesses who were there at the time of the incident.

BARNETT: What do you make the decision by Edward Nero to be tried by the judge and not a jury? Of course this is an emotionally and racially charged case even though some of the officers charged are African-American. But each person charged does have that choice to make, right?

PATE: Absolutely. But in this case, Officer Nero's lawyer said this case is so weak, the evidence is just not there. We don't want to risk the case with a jury, who may have an emotional reaction to the incident. We want to go in front of this judge, who has a lot of experience, who will hopefully -- and he did -- see through the state's theory and return a not guilty verdict.

BARNETT: And also very unique that the police union and even Freddie Gray's family praised the judge in this decision making saying, look, if the evidence isn't there, you cannot charge that individual. PATE: That's right. I think Gray's family recognizes they're going

to need this judge going forward as the stronger cases come to trial, the driver and the other officers. I think they're reluctant to criticize the judge at this point.

BARNETT: Pretty fascinating. Thanks for your time and insight today.

PATE: Thank you, Errol.

BARNETT: We're getting some information just in to CNN that Greece has reportedly begun moving migrants out of the camp that's on its border with Macedonia.

Journalist Elinda Labropoulou joins me from Athens with more on this.

Elinda, why is the government deciding to do this now, and exactly where are these thousands of migrants and refugee supposed to go?

ELINDA LABROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: It's something that the Greek government has been talking about for a long time. But the infrastructure wasn't there until now to try and move the migrants. The government is now saying they built the right facilities, the kind of organized camps that people need. So they have started this evacuation process today. So far there has been no resistance. Many have already gotten on buses, and these are the same people that we watched for months living by the border under very squalid conditions, usually in small tents, often in heavy rain and through the cold. But really refusing to move because this is what they have been perceiving as their last hope to get across. This is the same border that shut very suddenly for them and stopped their travel, their route into Europe. So they've been refusing to move. This is not the first time that the Greek government has been trying to move them. But it's only now that it actually has the right infrastructure to really persuade people that it is time to move on. And of course, as time passes, also the hope that the border will reopen is getting slowly lost. In all the times I've been there in the beginning, the question was, when will the border reopen. Now the question is, will the border reopen. The government has decided that now is the time people are ready to move on.

BARNETT: It's estimated there are some 8,000 of those migrants and refugees there. The government says they can move them all within 10 days. We'll continue to watch this closely.

Elinda Labropoulou, live in Athens.

CHURCH: We're going to take a quick break here. On the other side of that break, a dangerous climb to the world's highest peak ends in tragedy. The rescue effort on Mt. Everest. That's next.

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[02:50:] BARNETT: Right now, rescuers are searching for two Indian climbers missing on Mt. Everest.

CHURCH: It comes after a deadly weekend on the world's highest peak.

Sumnima Udas has the story.

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SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the ultimate achievement, scaling the top of the world, Mt. Everest, at 8,848 meters, almost 30,000 feet. But the deaths of four climbers in as many days has shaken the mountaineering community. Phurba Sherpa (ph) fell to his death while fixing the route. Dutch climber, Eric Arnold, a triathlete, died from a suspected heart attack. He was on his way down after a successful summit. Australian national, Maria Stridem (ph), died from altitude sickness at Base Camp Four, the final stop and on Sunday. Indian climber Sabarsh Paul (ph) also died.

Danger is inherent here. More than 250 mountaineers have died since the first official ascent in 1953. Still, hundreds every year are drawn to it willing to take the risk. The air is so thin, the oxygen level is a third of what's available at sea level. The wind is vicious, the weather erratic and the terrain deadly.

Kenten Cool (ph) is a guide who has climbed Everest 12 times.

KENTEN COOL (ph), MOUNTAINEER: Winds are very brutal on Everest, and they can make what would be a relatively amenable summit day into something quite the opposite.

UDAS: Climbing had been halted for the past two years after a deadly avalanche in 2014 that killed 16 Sherpas and a devastating earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015.

A lot was riding on this year's climbing season. The Nepali government hoping to revive tourism in a country still reeling from the earthquake.

Authorities say some 400 climbers summitted Everest this year. But this is a tragic end to yet another climbing season.

COOL (ph): It's not considerably dangerous. It is very, very dangerous. And you do need the depth of experience. You do need the understanding and the skill set to be able to operate and even survive at such altitudes.

UDAS: A reminder of just how dangerous scaling the highest mountain in the world can be.

Sumnima Udas, CNN.

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[02:55:25] CHURCH: So spectacular, but so daunting for so many in this situation.

BARNETT: Very true, very true. CHURCH: All the top stories from around the world in the next hour of

CNN NEWSROOM.

BARNETT: That's right. We'll take you live to Cairo for the latest on the search for that EgyptAir jet.

Plus, many of the day's other stories as they develop. Do stay with us here on CNN.

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