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New Day

Mansion Murders Suspect Captured; ISIS Seizes Last Syria-Iraq Border Crossing; Warriors Deny Rockets a Win in Game 2. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired May 22, 2015 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:32:44] MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking overnight: police in Washington are able to arrest the man they say killed four people in an upscale Washington home a week ago. Daron Dylon Wint taken into custody late Thursday in D.C., along with five others after leaving a hotel. Authorities say they narrowly missed capturing Wint earlier in Brooklyn. He is suspected of killing his former employer, his wife, their young son and the family housekeeper.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: ISIS making dramatic gains, taking over the last Syria-Iraq border crossing that had been controlled by Syrian troops. The terror group also tightening its grip on the ancient Syrian desert town of Palmyra seizing more territory around that city, including a military station after Syrian government forces fled the area.

PEREIRA: An Alabama federal judge once again striking down the state's ban on same-sex marriage. The judge however has put the ruling on hold until the Supreme Court decides the issue this summer. U.S. district judge said Thursday that Alabama's gay marriage ban is illegal. The latest ruling came in a class action lawsuit by same-sex couples.

CAMEROTA: And former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, now president of the Boy Scouts of America, says the ban on gay scout leaders is unsustainable and needs to end. Gates telling scout leadership, quote, "We must deal with the world as it is not as we might wish it to be."

The defense secretary helped repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

So, that's a real sea change right there.

PEREIRA: Absolutely.

CAMEROTA: What's your take on this? We'd love to hear it. Tweet us using #NewDayCNN, or post your comment on Facebook.com/NewDay. We will read your comment.

PEREIRA: Times are a changing. We see NSA. We see you getting into sports.

So, let's talk about your favorite subject. The Golden State Warriors now leading the Houston Rockets 2-0 after another nail-biter at Oracle Arena.

CAMEROTA: Andy Scholes has more in this bleacher report. Not that I need it. I know everything about --

PEREIRA: She's quite knowledgeable these days.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: You know, guys, usually, I say good morning at this point, but I'm a Rockets fan.

PEREIRA: I know. Sorry, buddy. You OK?

SCHOLES: Not a very good morning for me. Yes, not really.

But this was just a brutal loss for Houston. And it was the final play of the game last night that has everyone talking this morning. Down one, the Rockets got the rebound with eight seconds left. Instead of calling a time out, they let James Harden go for the win, he passes to Dwight Howard, gets it back but then Steph Curry and Klay Thompson trapped him.

[06:35:03] The Rockets don't even get a shot off. The Warriors escape with a 99-98 win. They're now up 2-0 in the series.

Now, Harden, he had an amazing game, 38 points. But afterwards, he was clearly frustrated. Game three of that series going to be Saturday night in Houston.

Tonight, you got game two of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Hawks and Cavs. Tipoff set for 8:30 Eastern on TNT.

Brewers and Braves last night in Atlanta. In the seventh inning, Braves manager Freddie Gonzalez comes out and tells the umps that Brewers pitcher Will Smith has a mysterious substance on his arm. Well, they checked and sure enough, Smith did. That's a no-no.

He was immediately ejected from the game, and Smith not happy about it. He started yelling back towards the Braves dugout. And after the game he said he had put rosin and sunscreen on his arm while warming up. And just forgot to wipe it off.

All right. Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly weighing in on Deflategate. He says that Tom Brady definitely knew what was going on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP

JIM KELLY, NFL HALL OF FAMER: No doubt. You really think about it. There's no we way that an equipment manager and the National Football League going to do something to the football without the greatest quarterback ever to play knowing that, hey, I did something to his football, but he doesn't know about it. He knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: There you go, guys. Of course, we're still waiting to hear from Tom Brady himself. And hear what he has to say what happened during the big Deflategate.

PEREIRA: Interesting perspective. The football guy I have at home says things don't happen in a vacuum. People know these things. They know what's going on, right?

SCHOLES: Yes.

PEREIRA: All right. Andy, thanks so much. And we send our best regards to your Rockets.

Ahead here, a Baltimore grand jury returning indictments for all six of the officers linked to Freddie Gray's death. What does it mean for the prosecution and for the defense going forward? We put that to our legal panel and we'll have a discussion.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[06:41:04] MARILYN MOSBY, BALTIMORE STATE'S ATTORNEY: Additional information has been discovered. And as is often the case during an ongoing investigation charges can and should be revised based upon the evidence. These past two weeks my team has been presenting evidence to a grand jury that returned indictments against all six officers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: All right. Well, that was Baltimore state's attorney, Marilyn Mosby, announcing the indictment of all six police officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray.

Joining us to debate this is HLN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney, Joey Jackson, and CNN legal analyst and criminal defense attorney, Danny Cevallos.

JOEY JACKSON, HLN LEGAL ANALYST: Sure. Good morning.

CAMEROTA: So, Joey, are the acquisitions -- I mean, does this put to rest the idea she overreached and went overboard in charging these six officers with manslaughter?

JACKSON: Well, you know, a trial will put it to rest, but this certainly goes a long way certainly corroborating what her theory of the case is, although there were some alterations on it. Understand it's not a surprise really three reasons. One of course is the standard of proof here simply is there reasonable cause to believe that a crime was committed and B, that did these officers commit it. The second thing is that, certainly, she controls the manner and method of the grand jury, no defense attorney in there, no judge in there.

And then, of course, we have to remember with 23 members of the grand jury, Alisyn, only 12 of which need to be, you know, really convinced that there was something amiss here. It's no surprise. But this certainly corroborates her theory to this point. A trial will certainly see whether or not she's correct.

CAMEROTA: OK. Danny, do you agree this was no surprise?

DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: It's not a surprise because it is exceedingly easy as we have said many times in many other cases, it is easy for a grand jury to indict if that's what the prosecutor wants, because it is as always a one-sided affair. The actual charges, there is much information to be gleaned.

We no longer have false imprisonment and now they've simply added reckless endangerment. Why is that critical? Because the absence of false imprisonment now calls into question what was the original reason for the stop and the arrest.

And as I've said from the beginning, much of this case will turn on this mysterious knife whether it was illegal or whether it was legal under either Maryland law or Baltimore City code. And that will be much of this case in the end, because that initial arrest was in fact legal --

(CROSSTALK)

JACKSON: But I think what happened, Danny, in my view, I think that that becomes less significant. Why? Because what the prosecutor's done is altered that debate. There is no longer about the legality or the basis of the arrest. That would have been predicated, Alisyn, upon a false imprisonment charge, because she was then --

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: So, the grand jury changed that.

JACKSON: Exactly. So, now, what happens is the issue becomes reckless endangerment. Did you engage in behavior that caused an injury or that substantially was the basis for the injury to Freddie Gray? It changes the whole equation, the whole dynamic, and it avoids the issue of is the knife legal, is it illegal? Irrelevant in accordance with these charges.

CAMEROTA: OK. Danny --

CEVALLOS: Mr. Jackson, I agree with you. Mr. Jackson, I agree with you, sir, but you're wrong. And here's why.

JACKSON: OK.

CEVALLOS: It absolutely depends on the knife because police officers are different than regular civilians. They are permitted to lay their hands on you and seize you during a lawful arrest. And constitutionally, the burden that the plaintiff must show once a person is an arrestee and before they are convicted is a much higher standard. In other words, while transporting him to the station, there is a much higher standard that a plaintiff has to show to hold these officers liable.

(CROSSTALK)

JACKSON: Let's be clear reality is if you have a false imprisonment charge, the knife becomes critical because what the county attorney would be saying is, is that the arrest was improper, the arrest is illegal.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

JACKSON: Now, there is no such charge. The issue concerning the knife is not debatable. We're not here. The prosecutor's going to remind that jury about the knife and the legality of arrest.

[06:45:00] We're here to talk about the treatment that the officers engaged in as to Freddie Gray when they did arrest him. And that's why the knife issue in accordance with these new charges becomes insignificant. No matter how much the defense wants to pound the table, which I would do too.

CEVALLOS: I just going to say --

CAMEROTA: Quickly, Danny.

CEVALLOS: I got to say, in a case like this where the prosecutor said, facts are evolving, I don't know what facts have evolved, but they have yet to articulate what exactly the duty was that these officers failed to follow, especially, Joey, in the context of depraved heart murder, which as you know from the case law requires that somebody did something so awful that even if they didn't intend someone to die, those actions like shooting a gun into a crowd of people are just so substantially likely to cause death that they might as well have intended death. And that is such a high burden.

JACKSON: But, of course --

CEVALLOS: They may have overcharged and bitten off more than they can chew.

JACKSON: Danny, of course, they articulated it because what they're suggesting is, is that they knew he was in distress, knew he needed medical attention, knew that he was in dire straits and continued to ignore him.

As to the issue of depravity, why is it significant as to the driver? Because what they're suggesting is that the driver knowing that he was in a bad way and knowing he was likely to die took 40 minutes to get to a precinct that should have been taken two.

And what did the driver do in accordance with the depraved murder charge? Didn't stop to get him help, didn't go directly, but stopped to get another passenger. That the prosecution will argue shows a deprave heart. Shows you don't care. And shows knowing he's likely to die, you ignored it anyway.

CAMEROTA: OK.

JACKSON: And that's the articulable facts. Not that it could be proven. Maybe it could be proven, maybe it could not. That's what she's pinning her hat on in terms of a conviction.

CAMEROTA: Danny, last word.

CEVALLOS: I didn't think I'd even get a last word. But, you know, as much as I agree with Joey Jackson in theory, in fact, these defendants are going to call experts to say factually, arrestees always complain of medical injuries. Again, Joey, yes, if there was some obvious need of medical attention. But what was that? And can they articulate that any reasonable person would have said this individual arrestee needs medical attention and needs it immediately, as to each of these officers individually.

JACKSON: That shouldn't be a cop's determination. It should be a medical determination.

CAMEROTA: Hey, I said last word.

JACKSON: We could go all day.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: Joey, Danny --

CEVALLOS: Turn off his mic.

CAMEROTA: I have a lot of questions. But I just sat back and watched you guys do your thing. Impressive.

Thanks, gentlemen.

JACKSON: Thank you.

PEREIRA: Y'all are in trouble. You made her tear up her notes. That is not good, fellas.

All right. ISIS continuing its push through Syria and making major gains in Iraq. Now that the terror group has control of Ramadi, is Baghdad next? We'll discuss that, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:51:22] PEREIRA: The fall of two key cities to ISIS this week, Palmyra in Syria and Ramadi in Iraq, raising big questions about the U.S. strategy and the resolve of the Iraqi military.

If the terrorists continue their move and go towards Baghdad and take Baghdad, can the Iraqis protect it?

We want to discuss this all with Philip Mudd, our CNN counterterrorism analyst and former CIA counterterrorism official, and Lieutenant Colonel James Reese, CNN global affairs analyst, retired U.S. Delta Force commander.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for joining us on this Friday.

PHILIP MUDD, CNN COUNTERTERRORISM ANALYST: Good morning.

PEREIRA: Certainly a lot for us to get to. This is such a concern I think for so many as we watch this move in advancement of ISIS, Colonel Reese. What happens if ISIS begins this serious advance towards the capital of Baghdad?

LT. COL. JAMES REESE, U.S. DELTA FORCE COMMANDER (RET): Well, Michaela, one thing people need to know is Baghdad has a lot of police and military surrounding it. And internally throughout the city they call it the Baghdad shield throughout all four areas, the cardinal directions come in. There are checkpoints all over the city.

Something interesting about two months ago, you had a curfew in Baghdad. There was actually lifted by the government so that curfew's been lifted. But I think it's a far stretch right now that ISIS thinks they're going to go after Baghdad.

CAMEROTA: Do you agree, Phil, that it's a far stretch? Are you concerned about Baghdad?

MUDD: I am not concerned that Baghdad will fall. I agree with Colonel Reese.

But let's not assume the adversary thinks like we do regardless of the fact they might get murdered by the thousands in Baghdad.

Look, there's a reason they want to see people die in Baghdad. We got a lot of Shia in Baghdad as well, so they're not moving through a Sunni province, they're moving into a city with a huge Shia population that will fight them. The more they create a divide between Sunni and Shia, the more they can portray themselves as the defenders of the Sunnis.

So, we might think on the surface it makes no sense to go into a city that by definition because the Shia population they cannot -- they cannot take. In their minds not only are they divinely inspired to fight, but by killing more Shia, they're going to tell the villagers in Sunni areas, hey, there's a fight between Sunni and Shia, you can't side with the government -- the government Shia, you got to side with us. More fighting is better for ISIS.

PEREIRA: Do you think, Phil, we're going to have to change our policy, the U.S. policy's going to have to change? Are we going to have to put boots on the ground? We heard Senator Graham calling for 10,000 ground troops in there. Do you think it is going to require support from U.S. military?

MUDD: No, I don't, for a couple of reasons. First, when you look at counterinsurgency theory, you find over the course of many insurgencies that if the local government believes that a foreign government -- in this case, the United States will carry the weight, the local government eventually pulls back and their ability to win the insurgency declines.

PEREIRA: OK.

MUDD: The second thing, Michaela, this is not a military issue. We're talking about tactical military gains for ISIS in places like Palmyra, Ramadi, it's political. Does the Iraqi government officer autonomy, ministry positions, money to the Sunni? That's the question here.

PEREIRA: OK. We'll explore that further. I want to drill in a little bit to Ramadi and the fall of Ramadi. Colonel Reese, we've talked about this before. We heard now from the president who told "The Atlantic" that he doesn't think we're losing. "I don't think we're losing," quote.

He also called the fall of Ramadi a setback. But the fact is, ISIS is on the offensive. You mentioned to me yesterday on the air that this is sort of the regular ebb and flow sadly of war. But they are gaining ground, are they not?

REESE: Well, they have made some advances in some locations, Michaela. The problem is everyone's looking at this through a straw. They're just looking at Ramadi.

PEREIRA: Interesting.

[06:55:00] REESE: Iraq is a big country. If you look up north and Mosul and look at the line of supplies that runs west out to Syria, we have pretty much shut down that entire supply line. And Mosul is surrounded in three areas, and just kind of waiting for the attack up there which will come who knows?

Then, as you come down south you've got Baiji taken back by the Iraqis, Tikrit taken. So, we're looking at this through a straw. Yes, it was a setback but I believe that Anbar will eventually avail with the Iraqis.

PEREIRA: Interesting phrase, I like that, looking through a straw.

Let's look at Baghdad here once again, because we know the president in the same article with the Atlantic said -- he essentially blamed the poor training of the Iraqi military, Phil. But then also called for increased training and commitment to the Iraqi military that is going to be called onto protect the capital.

Do you think that's a fair assessment? And do you really feel the Iraqis have it in them?

MUDD: I don't think training is a key aspect of this. I think it's important. I mentioned earlier that insurgencies, counter insurgencies fail when the local government feels they can depend on somebody else. On the flip side, if you pull out foreign support for an army like the Iraqis, that increases the likelihood they will feel isolated and might lose more territory.

I think training is fine, but the question here at the end of the day I completely, I hate to agree with the military, but Colonel Reese is right. We're looking at gains week by week. The question here over the course of time is not only whether the Iraqi government brings in Sunnis.

So far, they have not been able to drain the swamp for ISIS by bringing in Sunni villagers. But also whether the military has the will to fight, I'm not sure they do.

So we can get around the margins with things like equipment, with things like training, sort of provide modest support. But the real questions are a lot bigger. That's do they have the will to fight and do they have the stomach to offer political concessions to people that are Sunnis they think are their opposition.

PEREIRA: When I look at the map something hard to stomach as we have about 30 seconds left in our segment, look at places in the Middle East and around the world that ISIS has a presence, Colonel Reese. We know there's three dozen jihadist groups across several nations that have pledged allegiance. We hear of more cells popping up even as far as India, et cetera.

Most of these are small, but is there a concern that this is going to only grow and grow?

MUDD: Sure. You know, it's a philosophy that some of these other transnational elements have caught onto. And, yes, it becomes a problem because the information age goes, the money starts flowing to these people. And if you take away one safe haven, we have -- and Phil's talked about it for several weeks, you've got other hot spots whether it's Libya, whether it's the Horn of Africa and Somalia. It becomes a whack a mole piece and something we have to looking at from the philosophy aspect of these guys.

PEREIRA: Colonel Reese, Philip Mudd, you guys work hard for us again today. We appreciate it. Thanks so much and even some consensus between the two of you. I mark this day on my calendar.

MUDD: A rare day.

PEREIRA: A rare day indeed. Have a great weekend.

We're following a whole lot of news, so let's get to it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: The man suspected in the murders of four people at that upscale home in Washington, D.C. was captured.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We worked almost straight through for the last 48 hours until we had him in custody.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does not appear that this was just a random crime.

PEREIRA: Key provisions of the Patriot Act that is set to expire June 1.

SEN. MIKE LEE (R), UTAH: People working at the NSA right now have nothing but our best interests at heart.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is as a level of dysfunction even I haven't seen.

CAMEROTA: ISIS making advances.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They just recently managed to take over the last border crossing between Iraq and Syria.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now they seem to control all of that between Syria and Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

PEREIRA: Good morning. Welcome back to your NEW DAY. Our Chris Cuomo is off this morning.

An accused killer off the streets of our nation's capital, a week after police say he killed four people in an upscale Washington home.

CAMEROTA: Daron Dylon Wint captured last night after a manhunt that took police from D.C. to New York and back again. Police arresting the suspect along with his brother. And now, we're hearing from the victim's family for the first time.

Our coverage begins with CNN's senior Washington correspondent Joe Johns.

Tell us the latest, Joe.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Over the last 48 hours, it's been a real cat and mouse game for authorities to bring this suspect in to custody. They tracked him from here, the Washington, D.C. area, all the way to Brooklyn apparently by his cell phone. They lost the trail then picked him back up around College Park, Maryland, arresting him around 11:00 p.m. last night in Northeast Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were able to take him down and arrest him.

JOHNS (voice-over): Breaking overnight, the multi-state manhunt is over. Police arresting six people, including 34-year-old Daron Wint in what they call a great takedown in D.C. around 11:00 p.m. It's unknown who's being arrested here. Wint, on the run for a week charged for the slayings of a prominent CEO, his wife, their young son and housekeeper, allegedly torturing the 10-year-old, killing all four of them before setting the house located in an upscale D.C. neighborhood on fire.