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New Day Sunday

Ferguson Police Officer Shot; Obama Addresses Michael Brown Killing; Air War Against ISIS Expands; Volcano Erupts, Dozens Feared Dead

Aired September 28, 2014 - 08:00   ET

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

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to your Sunday, I'm Christi Paul. We're so glad to have you.

JOE JOHNS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Joe Johns in for Victor Blackwell. It's 8:00 in the east.

We begin this morning with breaking news and a new flashpoint of violence in Ferguson, Missouri, where a white police officer has been shot during what has been described as a patrol stop. Police tell CNN the suspect is African-American, the officer is recovering from a gunshot wound to the arm.

PAUL: Then, just three hours later, an off-duty officer in nearby St. Louis was sprayed with gunfire as he drove his personal vehicle near the airport, again this was a personal vehicle, he was not in uniform. The officer wasn't hit either and we do not have description of the suspects.

JOHNS: At this point, authorities say neither incident appears to be tied to the continuing unrest in Ferguson over the shooting death last month of black teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer.

Our George Howell has been following the latest developments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tense moments overnight in Ferguson, Missouri, after two separate shootings that happened within a span of hours.

First, a Ferguson police officer was shot in the arm while on patrol. Authorities say he went in to do a building check and saw someone run away. When the officer got out of his car to chase, police say the suspect turned around and shot the officer.

The incident drew crowds and raised nerves in a city already on edge from weeks of unrest. And the question many people were asking --

REPORTER: Is this in any way related to the protest, the Michael Brown protest? CHIEF JON BELMAR, ST. LOUIS COUNTY, MISSOURI POLICE: I don't

think it is. It didn't happen within the proximity of the protest area. This is an area that's fairly secluded and I wouldn't have any reason to believe right now that it was linked in any way, shape, manner, or form with the protest.

HOWELL: The shooting happened near the Ferguson community center. The officer survived. The wound said to be nonlife threatening. Exactly three hours later, another shooting took place this time a drive by on Interstate 70 near the St. Louis airport.

Police say someone opened fire on an off duty officer in his personal vehicle. The officer survived with a few minor injuries from broken glass and did not return fire. It's still unclear whether he was targeted or the victim of a random act of violence.

Earlier in the night, Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson tried to speak to the crowds hoping to diffuse any possible confrontations.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you got to say?

CAPT. RON JOHNSON, MISSOURI HIGHWAY PATROL: What I got say, a police officer was shot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?

JOHNSON: A police officer has been shot tonight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who else got shot?

JOHNSON: That's the only person that got shot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes, right.

JOHNSON: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The police told me someone else got shot.

JOHNSON: I'm going to ask you to leave but I'm only going to ask you one time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are our streets. These are our streets. These ain't your streets. These are our streets.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: So, you listen to that sound bite there at the end the piece, and some people would look at that as disrespect to the police officer. And there are those in the community though that would say look it's a community that has been disrespected for a long time, people are frustrated with the type of service they've gotten with the Ferguson Police Department but the one thing is certain, you have these two separate incidents, the officer is saying none of them related to the protests that we've seen in recent weeks. But still, it just takes a little to really spark a lot of protests. PAUL: Very good point.

JOHNS: What's really interesting here is so many times when you have these national media events that attract so much attention after a few weeks it all goes away. In a situation like this, though, suddenly we have the media right back, the spotlight right back, and it just goes to show that Ferguson is still being watched by the country.

HOWELL: Absolutely. Absolutely.

And here's the other thing: we're waiting to see what happens with Officer Darren Wilson. Many people expected to hear what would happen to him by mid-October. Now, we know that that won't happen. We won't hear whether he's removed from the department, what-have-you, until next year.

PAUL: All righty. Thank you so much, George Howell. We appreciate it.

HOWELL: Yes.

JOHNS: We want to look ahead to what may be next for Ferguson.

Joining us now is Mary Ellen O'Toole. She's a former senior profiler and special agent with the FBI.

Mary, we just saw Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson telling the protesters all this hate has got to stop. After that, Johnson talked with CNN, he said some protesters have actually made vague threats to, quote, "take the lives" of a police officer.

How does law enforcement operate in an environment like that?

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER SENIOR FBI PROFILER: Well, the law enforcement will be very much on guard, not only there in Missouri but all over the country, to be aware that there are this small faction of individuals who have, in fact, decided that they are going to possibly target law enforcement. Of course at the same time that this statement was made, we see the incident up in Pennsylvania where that, in fact, was true.

Whether or not the two are connected I'm not suggesting that, but the reality is law enforcement will have to be on guard again but only because of a very small faction of individuals who have made that -- who have made that threat.

JOHNS: You can make the case that law enforcement may have even taken its guard down just a little bit last week when Ferguson's Police Chief Tom Jackson made that very public apology for the Michael Brown death and for the actions of some of his officers. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF TOM JACKSON, FERGUON, MISSOURI POLICE: All I got to say is this (EXPLETIVE DELETED) tragedy. We all know that. And I'm sorry, and I said that (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

You don't have to accept that. That came from my heart. I had to get that off my chest that's been sitting there for two months.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: So, what's your sense of what that apology might have done in the community? Did it hurt? Did it help? Did it make any difference?

O'TOOLE: I think it would depend on who's listening to it. There may be some and I'm sure there are who said that came too late and it was too little too late. There would be other people that would say finally the chief has come forward and has said something.

So, it's not going to be received the same way by all people, and then there will be some who say not enough. We still want more.

So, the circle of people and what they want and what they need to hear is really going to be very different depending on who they are and their investment in this situation.

JOHNS: And what a lot of people want to hear about is what the federal investigators are doing. There's that civil rights investigation that the Department of Justice launched. Could you expect to hear developments on that case any time soon? And a related question is whether you think Eric Holder's departure could have any effect on all of this?

O'TOOLE: I would expect the civil rights investigation is going to take longer. Those cases do typically take a long time, so I suspect that those results or those findings will come after the grand jury's findings. I think with Eric Holder's departure I think he will still have a very vested interest in this case, that something very dear to him and despite the fact that he is stepping down, his interest and his commitment to that, I don't think, will wane. So, I think it will still be there.

JOHNS: Eric Holder actually went on out to Ferguson and talked to people there. The president of the United States himself talking about that just last night at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.

Mary Ellen O'Toole, thanks so much for that. Good to see you.

O'TOOLE: Thank you. You're welcome.

JOHNS: Christi?

PAUL: Yes. Let's talk about that a little bit more. President Obama speaking last night and he really focused on the root of unrest that's gripped Ferguson since Michael Brown was killed. Michael Brown's family was in the audience and he addressed as Joe said a Congressional Black Caucus event and a crowd that included as I said Brown's parents. Listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The anger and the emotion that followed his death awakened our nation once again to the reality that people in this room have long understood, which is in too many communities around the country a gulf of mistrust exists between local residents and law enforcement. Too many young men of color feel targeted by law enforcement, guilty of walking while black, or driving while black, judged by stereotypes that fuel fear, resentment and hopelessness.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: President Obama called on members of Congress and others to complete the, quote, "unfinished work" of equalizing opportunities across society from the criminal justice system to the workplace.

JOHNS: We could see more air strikes on ISIS targets around a besieged town in northern Syria. The U.S. military has just released a video showing a U.S. missile taking out an ISIS compound near that town yesterday as the first time coalition airstrikes have gotten so close to the Turkish border.

PAUL: CNN's Phil Black is at the Turkish Syrian border. And we want to get to him now.

Phil, we know Turkey obviously is a NATO ally. When it comes to these air strikes though, it's really been on the sidelines. Is there any chance or indication that you've seen that that could change?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christi, Joe, good morning.

At the moment you're right, Turkey supports this international coalition that's taking military action against is but it's not a direct participant in it yet.

There's a couple of key factors that are weighing heavily on Turkey's considerations here. Firstly, the influx of refugees from Syria. Over three and a half years touring this Syrian civil conflict Turkey as a result has 1.5 million refugees from that country now on its territory, and they're coming over by the thousands every day, just in the last week a couple hundred thousand there as well.

It's an enormous drain on resources including its military as well. And there's another sensitivity, too, that the Turkish government has to consider and that is its proximity, the fact that Turkey effectively borders ISIS-controlled territory. So, what that means is that Turkey gets indirectly involved in the fight, Turkey is vulnerable to retaliation in a way that other members of this coalition are not because they are simply located so far away.

The border here is pretty porous, a lot of traffic going both ways, the security risks to Turkey under those circumstances would be intense but Turkey is definitely engaged in efforts against ISIS but not at that military level yet. The Turkish government says it is engaging with the United States on this on pretty much a daily basis -- Christi. PAUL: All righty. Phil Black, we appreciate it. Stay safe,

thank you.

JOHNS: Dozens of people are now feared dead after a volcano erupts in Japan. CNN's Will Ripley is live at the base of the active volcano. We'll check in with him, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHNS: There are a lot of fears this morning that dozens of people were killed in a massive volcano eruption in Japan. Dozens more may be trapped or buried underneath the ash.

PAUL: Yes, there is a rescue effort for survivors under way right now at Mt. Ontake, but officials -- they don't have any idea how many people are missing exactly or where they might be. And here's what's more. The volcano is still active. It is unleashing clouds of ash as we sit here and speak.

JOHNS: CNN's Will Ripley is live at the base of that volcano -- Will.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Joe. Hey, Christi, the rescue activities have wrapped up for this evening but you can see there's still an active road block behind me.

This is one of three ways that you can actually get up to the mountain, and we are told that crews who started before dawn, worked all day and into the evening until there was absolutely no light left. They will be back out again before dawn trying to get up the mountain, crossing that road block behind me to see if they can find anybody who survived the disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY (voice-over): One by one, they're carried off the mountain. More than 30 people with no pulse in a state of cardiac arrest. All of them near the summit when Mount Ontake erupted.

Home video shows a giant plume of gas and ash surrounding and blinding these hikers in seconds. Security cameras captured Mount Ontake rumbling to life Saturday, its first major eruption in 35 years. More than 200 climbers came to Japan's second highest volcano for the peak of autumn viewing.

"So many people were near the summit", says this hiker. "Everyone started running but some were hurt and couldn't move."

The volcano's rising plume is disrupting air travel. Volcanic ash is raining down on hundreds of rescuers below. They face danger from nearly continuous seismic activity and the looming threat of another big eruption possible in the coming days.

"Please help us", says (INAUDIBLE) Tukoro. His son and his girlfriend reached the summit just minutes before noon Saturday, just when Ontake blew its top. Both are still missing. Now, Tukoro (ph) sits on the floor of this evacuation center waiting.

"All I can do is beg for your help to get us information," he says. "Please?"

As each hour passes, desperation grows. Families are waiting for word on their loved ones who were dangerously close to a sleeping volcano that suddenly woke up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY: You can imagine the agony those families are going through tonight. Lot of them are staying in evacuation centers sleeping on the floor as they're waiting for updates on their loved ones. They found more than 30 people who were very close to the summit of the volcano in what authorities are calling cardiac arrest, meaning they weren't breathing, they had no pulse and they've been in that situation now for more than 24 hours.

But they still haven't brought all of them down from the mountain yet. They have to carry them three kilometers. The summit is 10,000 feet up. It will be a grueling arduous process. Rescues are risking their own safety because as you mentioned the volcano is still active. We've seen a series of small eruptions and there are warnings we could see another big one within the next six days.

PAUL: You and the crew take good care there and, certainly, our thoughts going to all those families there. That just rips you up seeing that poor man. Thank you so much, Will Ripley, we appreciate it.

We do want to get a check of some of the other top story this is morning as well.

Police telling CNN charges against Alton Nolen will be presented tomorrow. This was a gruesome incident happened Thursday at a food processing plant.

JOHNS: Investigators interviewed Nolan in the hospital, but aren't saying what he told them. They say he'll be hauled to jail once he's released from the hospital. A check of Nolen's Facebook page showed nothing about the planed attack and included several postings about Islam and quotations from the Koran.

PAUL: Take a look at this video. It's from earlier on the streets of Hong Kong, tens of thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators in a tense standoff with police there. Activists are trying to pressure China into giving the city full universal voting rights.

Now, according to Ivan Watson who is on the ground there, police fired tear gas earlier to try to control those crowds.

JOHNS: A short time ago, Pope Benedict XVI arrived at the Vatican. It's his third public appearance since he resigned in 2013. These images are from an outdoor mass. You can see the Pope walking around the steps of St. Peter's Basilica, a Vatican spokesman says the mass is going to focus on the importance of grandparents and the elderly in society.

You know you've made it when you get impersonated on "Saturday Night Live."

(LAUGHTER)

PAUL: Coming up, we're going to tell you which CNN anchor made an appearance on the late night comedy show. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Moved to tears. That's how the head of the National Domestic Violence Hotline described the reaction from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell yesterday, during Goodell's visit to the hotline headquarters in Austin, he heard stories from advocates about the physical violence so many women face and in recent weeks. He's been heavily criticized over his handling of domestic violence cases within the NFL.

I know you've also been paying attention to the headlines and you know it's been a bad couple weeks for the NFL. Some of the controversies such as the Ray Rice scandal, they forced the league to go into damage control.

JOHNS: So, no surprise football came up on "Saturday Night Live" last night. One of our own, CNN's Candy Crowley even made a cameo well, sort of cameo. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AIDY BRYANT, SNL: Welcome to "State of the Union." I'm Candy Crowley.

Tonight, the NFL in crisis. Recent incidences of abuse from Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson have taken a toll on the league.

Now, I'll confess, I don't know a lot about football. My Sundays are reserved for candy time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

PAUL: And we have the pleasure and distinct honor of talking with the real Candy Crowley, will she please stand up? CNN's chief political correspondent -- and I know, Candy, Aidy Bryant did a great job but you would never say incidences.

JOHNS: No. Would you critique the impression of you?

PAUL: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN HOST, STATE OF THE UNION: I really like her outfit. PAUL: Yes. Very nice. Look at that. Very nice.

JOHNS: Well, that's putting it diplomatically. If you're not going to say anything more about that, the about big stories.

CROWLEY: Look, I love "SNL." Here's my problem with it, it's too late in the night on Saturday for me to be able to get up at 3:30 on Sunday.

PAUL: I'm with you.

CROWLEY: But I woke up and my Twitter account had exploded.

JOHNS: That's amazing.

CROWLEY: That's how I know about it.

JOHNS: All right. So, what have you got this week?

CROWLEY: So, you know, what we have is ISIS we're going to bring on a former general Richard Myers. We're going to bring on former diplomat Nick Burns as well as the sitting senator to say to them what's the long haul look like? How are we going to be doing, what does winning look like. But we're also going to be talking about Ebola.

JOHNS: Great. All right. Looking for you next. Candy Crowley, thanks.

CROWLEY: Thanks, guys.

PAUL: Thank you so much, Candy.

Stay here with her for STATE OF THE UNION with Candy Crowley, at the top of the hour, 9:00 a.m. Eastern here on CNN.

Make some great memories today.