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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Death Recommended for John Allen Muhammad; Medicare Overhaul: Bill Headed for Final Vote
Aired November 24, 2003 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST (voice-over): The jury has decided. Death for sniper mastermind John Allen Muhammad.
New details about the relationship between Michael Jackson and his accuser.
Casualties of war: why are some U.S. troops committing suicide?
A face lift for Medicare. How will changes affect your health care?
And, think the men in your life aren't hearing you? Listen up. A new study says you might be right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COOPER: Good evening. Thanks for joining us on 360.
Right now in the U.S. Senate, a debate is going on. A debate that could change the way Medicare is delivered in the United States. We are going to have a lot about that coming up in the next hour.
But first, our top story tonight. A jury recommends the death sentence for convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad. Now, some jurors called the decision simply agonizing. Here's Jeanne Meserve.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Death, the recommended penalty for a season of murder and terror.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until then, just follow the body bags.
MESERVE: Death for the 10 lives lost and numerous others forever changed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My wife's been shot.
PAUL EBERT, PROSECUTOR: The death penalty is reserved for the worst of the worst, and we think Mr. Muhammad fell in that category and the jury agreed.
MESERVE: Though video of John Muhammad playing with his children and questions about the death penalty itself made the decision a tough one for some jurors, the accumulation of evidence eventually led them all to the same conclusion: Muhammad should die for his crimes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's the collective nature of the crimes, the vileness. The violence was there across the board, and the lack of remorse.
MESERVE: Muhammad betrayed no reaction in the courtroom, but his attorney said they were bitterly disappointed.
PETER GREENSPUN, MUHAMMAD DEFENSE ATTORNEY: There's been much pain and devastation. The sanction of yet another death by the government is not likely to come of any benefit to anyone.
MESERVE: Dean Meyers was, by all accounts, a generous man. His shooting at a Manassas, Virginia gas station was the centerpiece of this trial. And for his family, there is, with this verdict, some measure of closure.
BOB MEYERS, BROTHER OF DEAN MEYERS: This isn't a revenge thing, not in any way. Just feel like what was done was right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And Jeanne Meserve joins us now. Jeanne, what impact, if any, is this going to have on his alleged accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo?
MESERVE: Well, theoretically, none, because the jurors there are not supposed to be watching television, reading newspapers or listening to radio. But even if they saw a headline, it might not have much impact because the attorneys in the Malvo case are not disputing that their client played a role in the crimes. What they are saying is that he did so under the direction and influence of John Muhammad, and that is an issue that was barely explored at this trial that finished here today.
COOPER: All right. Jeanne Meserve covering both trials for us. Coming up, we're going to talk with the brother of a man killed in the sniper shootings for his reaction to today's decision.
Now to Iraq, where it has turned ugly in the northern city of Mosul. Today, gunmen ambushed U.S. soldiers with a roadside bomb and then opened fire. One soldier was wounded. The attack, of course, came a day after that chilling death of two U.S. soldiers also in Mosul. The soldiers were dragged through the streets after it was confirmed today they were shot to death.
CNN's Baghdad bureau chief Jane Arraf reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): In a city that's been a military success story, two killings so disturbing the Army is having trouble talking about them.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, DEPUTY CHIEF OF OPERATIONS: It is our policy that we do not go into the specific details on injuries sustained by soldiers. And just as a matter of good taste, we would suggest that the media does the same.
ARRAF: There's no question these two soldiers were shot on Sunday afternoon in the center of Mosul. The question is, what happened afterwards?
Witnesses say their throats were slashed as they lay bleeding. Many hours later, an Army official denied it, saying there were so stab wounds or slash marks on the bodies. But military sources acknowledged something almost equally horrifying. They were dragged from their vehicle after they were shot and their bodies looted by a crowd.
None of the bystanders would talk on camera, but off camera they gave detailed descriptions of the swarm of children and adults taking anything they could, including watches, and even a hand grenade. The 101st Airborne says the soldiers were traveling in a convoy from one compound to another, in uniform, but in a civilian vehicle. The Army won't say where the other troops in the convoy were when the soldiers were dragged from the car.
For such a big city, Mosul had been relatively stable since the end of the war. And the Army takes some credit for that. In the last month, however, attacks on U.S. targets have risen sharply. Many soldiers here felt that, to make a difference, they had to get close to the people. That may now be too dangerous.
Jane Arraf, CNN, Mosul, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, the shootings in Mosul bear tragic resemblance, of course, to another incident of war. And that is our flashback tonight.
Somalia, 1993: Special Forces in Mogadishu trying to capture a rebel leader are cut off, ambushed. Eighteen Army rangers, more than 300 Somalis are killed. The body of one U.S. soldier is dragged through the streets in front of cameras. President Clinton pulled troops out of the region soon after the incident and promised to take a more "political approach" to the region's problems.
Moving on tonight to Capitol Hill, where there is a showdown in the Senate over plans to revamp Medicare. A bill that would, for the first time, create prescription drug benefits for seniors is headed toward a final vote, but not before a tough fight, mostly from Democrats.
CNN's congressional correspondent Jonathan Karl reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Republicans steamrolled every Democratic effort to block the Medicare bill, making final passage of a prescription drug benefit for seniors a virtual certainty.
SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), MAJORITY LEADER: Today is a momentous day and an historic day.
KARL: But Democrats are going down with a fight, saying they will bring the battle right into next year's presidential election.
SEN. TED KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: It is the beginning of the unwinding of Medicare, the replacing of Medicare with the private sector and privatizing the Medicare system. Make no mistake about it.
SEN. ORRIN HATCH (R), UTAH: I guess he wants us to spend another 15 years trying to reform Medicare or trying to improve Medicare or trying to find a prescription drug benefit program. My gosh, we're putting up $400 billion over 10 years.
KARL: But some of the loudest complaints came from prominent conservative Republicans who say the bill adds a costly new benefit to a program that is already going broke.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is a massive tax increase being placed on working young Americans and Americans who haven't yet been born, in order to support a drug benefit for retired Americans and Americans who are about to retire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KARL: The prescription drug benefit won't take affect until the year 2006. When it does, here's a look at what benefit seniors can expect to get.
For a monthly premium of $35 a month, they will have a $250 deductible. Above that, 75 percent of drug costs are covered until $2,250 worth of drug costs. There is no coverage, however, for costs between $2,250 and $5,100. Above that, there's catastrophic coverage. Ninety-five percent of all drug costs over $5,100 would be covered.
So that's a look at the benefit. The final vote, Anderson, we are expecting tonight in the U.S. Senate at about 11:30.
COOPER: All right. The debate goes on right now. Jonathan Karl, thanks.
We're following a number of other stories right now "Cross Country." Let's take a look.
East Rutherford, New Jersey: calling it quits. With his kidney ailment worsening, New Jersey Nets star Alonzo Mourning retires from the NBA. After sitting out last year, Mourning played in 12 games this season. But during that period, his condition deteriorated. Now, doctors say he now needs a new kidney, and a search is under way for a prospective donor.
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma: famed pitcher dead. Baseball hall of famer Warren Spahn is dead at the age of 82. Playing for the Braves in Boston and then Milwaukee, Spahn won 363 games, more than any other left-hander in major league history.
Hartford, Connecticut: appeal filed. Attorneys for Michael Skakel -- wrong video -- there we go -- asked the Connecticut Supreme Court to overturn his conviction, citing numerous grounds. The Kennedy cousin was found guilty last year of murdering a 15-year-old neighbor back in 1975.
And New York City: back on track. For the first time since the 9/11 attacks, trains are serving New York's World Trade Center Station. And it will remain named that, by the way. The rebuilt transit station reopened yesterday. Today was the first day it greeted rush hour crowds.
And that is a look at stories "Cross Country" tonight.
Michael Jackson on the PR offensive with a little help from his friends. We're going to get the latest on the investigation.
Also tonight, a 30-year mystery solved in the jungles of Laos and Southeast Asia. The long-lost brother of presidential candidate Howard Dean finally comes home. We'll take you live to the Laotian capital.
And suicides on the front lines. Find out what's being done to reach out to soldiers in crisis in Iraq.
First, let's take a look "Inside the Box" at the top stories on tonight's network newscasts.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: On now to the Michael Jackson saga. The pop superstar and his supporters have launched a counterattack, if you will, denying allegations the entertainer molested a 12-year-old boy. National correspondent Frank Buckley has the latest from outside Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, California -- Frank.
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anderson, Michael Jackson has issued statements in the past, but today he actually came up on the Internet with a new Web site. It is called mjnews.us. It has the only authorized information from the Jackson camp, according to his spokesman.
It is a chance, this spokesman says, to get information out immediately to the fans and to the news media. He says he is receiving phone calls every two minutes from news media around the world.
Today, Michael Jackson issued a signed statement on the site that reads in part, "As you know, the charges recently directed at me are terribly serious. They are, however, predicated on a big lie. This will be shown in court, and we will be able to put this terrible time behind us."
"Because the charges are so serious, I hope you all will understand, on the advice of my attorneys, I will be limited in what I can say about the situation. There will be times when I cannot comment at all. No doubt, this will be frustrating for all of us."
Separately, Elizabeth Taylor, his long-time friend, also issued a statement on Michael Jackson's behalf in support of Michael Jackson. Ms. Taylor says she believes Jackson is innocent. She also criticized some of the news media coverage of Jackson.
She said, "I thought the law was innocent until proven guilty. I know he is innocent and I hope they all eat crow."
Anderson, meanwhile, Michael Jackson remains in seclusion. It may be that the next time we see him in public will be January 9 for his arraignment -- Anderson.
COOPER: Frank, do we know where he is? I mean, I guess the last I saw video he was in Las Vegas. If he's still there, what's going on at the Neverland Ranch these days? Is there still a lot of activity there?
BUCKLEY: There's some news media activity. We haven't seen any investigative activity here at all. The number of news media, frankly, dwindling here than what we've seen in the past.
Where is Michael Jackson? We don't know for sure. One source telling us that he is not here at Neverland, as you say. The last sighting of Michael Jackson was in Nevada, but, frankly, no one really knows where Michael Jackson is tonight.
COOPER: All right. Frank Buckley, thanks very much.
How will Jackson's PR and legal strategies play out? Our 360 legal analyst Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom is going to join us in just a little bit with a closer look at the case.
Moving on, though, with the Iowa presidential caucuses less than two months away, the Democrats held a debate in Des Moines today. Now, with Iowa frontrunners Howard Dean and Richard Gephardt exchanging sharp jabs, our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, had a ringside seat -- Candy.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Anderson. They certainly did go at it with a little help, I should add, from John Kerry, who, when he could, joined Richard Gephardt in opposition to a number of positions that Howard Dean took as governor of Vermont. Gephardt also went after Dean in what is a continuation of a conversation they are having in dueling ads here. And that is, Dean's attack of Gephardt's vote for the war and for the $87 billion to fund the effort now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RICHARD GEPHARDT (D-MO), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Howard, I think you are all over the lot on this issue. First of all, at the time the resolutions were on the floor, you said you favored the Biden-Lugar resolution, which in effect was the same thing that we passed on the floor. It was very much like it.
Secondly, you said when the $87 billion was asked about, that we had no choice but to support our troops and put the $87 billion there.
Finally, you said you wouldn't make this a campaign issue. You have every right to run any ad you want, but you're running ads now here in Iowa criticizing what I did. And I think in the main you agreed with what I did.
If we're going to beat George Bush, we have got to take a position of leadership on these issues and stick with them. We can't be all over the lot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CROWLEY: Well, Anderson, not sure why I thought of you at this, but in sort of the bizarro realm, the Dean campaign during the debate handed out a number of spin press releases, as all of them do. However, the Dean campaign handed them out with Michael Jackson themes.
One of them here from Dean: "ABC, easy as one, two, three. Message to Wesley C., don't send our tech jobs overseas." Make of that what you want. Back to you.
COOPER: Wow. That is truly bizarre. And I appreciate the fact that you think of me when you think of bizarro. Basically, though, it sounds like a lot of jabs thrown. Any knockouts?
CROWLEY: No, not really. I mean, this is like the fifth debate that the Democratic Party has sponsored. Trust me, they've been to about four times that many. They know each other's schtick, they know what they're going to say. So they don't cover new ground.
But what you see here is just the tension level as the caucuses and the primary season gets near. The tension level just goes up. And so now it's the theater. You know, it's the who is jabbing harder, who got who? But very difficult to land any big blows.
What you try to do is just stay alive and not make any big mistakes. They all did that.
COOPER: Well, the fight is going to get tougher. Candy Crowley, thanks very much.
There are almost 1,900 Americans still missing after the Vietnam War; today, that number dropped by three. One of the missing, that man right there, who has now been found, is the brother of Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean, who you just saw. But as Dean's family awaits the arrival of his remains, Tom Mintier reports from Vientiane, Laos that time is running out for those still left behind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TOM MINTIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty-eight years after the end of the war, a U.S. C-130 Hercules taxies at a Laotian airfield that used to be home to Soviet MiGs and Russian transport planes. Charles Dean was a young man when he came to Laos in 1974. In 2003, if military investigators are correct, he is returning home in an aluminum casket.
U.S. military search teams think they found the graves of Dean and his Australian friend, Neil Sharman, captured and killed by (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Lao soldiers in 1974. Both Dean and Sharman were civilians, but both were listed as missing in action by the U.S. military. The military supplied these pictures.
At a ceremony at Vientiane's International Airport, Laos authorities turn over the two bodies with recovered remains of two other U.S. military MIAs. The Americans have been searching for the missing in Laos for more than 10 years.
DOUGLAS HARTWICK, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO LAOS: The clock is ticking. We know that. Witnesses are getting older. They are dying. Evidence is slowly disappearing.
MINTIER: U.S. search teams are working against the clock, solving as many cases as they can before the evidence is either gone, or those old enough to remember what happened are dead. Remains removed from the battlefield and flown back to the United States could take years to identify.
HARTWICK: Some of them will probably never be found.
MINTIER: That blunt assessment runs counter to the U.S. military motto of, until they are home. But at some point, the questions no longer have answers. The evidence, if there ever was any, simply faded with the passage of time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MINTIER: No one is saying with absolute certainty that the body being flown back is that of Charles Dean, but they do say that there were some personnel effects found in the grave site that indicate the body they took out was Dean. It will require dental testing, forensic testing. That could take weeks or months. But if they have to go to DNA, they say it could take years before they are sure the body brought home was indeed that of Charles Dean -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right. Tom Mintier, in Vientiane, Laos. Thanks, Tom.
Let's get you up to the minute on a couple of other stories happening overseas right now. Here's the "UpLink."
In the mountains of Colombia, hostage released. Guerrillas freed two of seven hostages, a German woman and a Spanish man. You see them right there. They were turned over to a humanitarian delegation that sought their release. Five other foreign nationals are still being held. They've been captive now for more than 10 weeks. Moscow, Russia: a fatal dorm fire. Thirty-six young people, and mainly foreign born students from Asia and Africa, died at a university as the late-night fire destroyed their dormitory. More than 180 others were injured. An investigation is under way right now to find the cause of the blaze.
Near the South Pole an eclipse. Take a look. It's summer in Antarctica and the sun stays up for months. Not yesterday.
It disappeared in a total solar eclipse. You see it right there. A Japanese camera crew caught the two minutes of total darkness from a Russian base located above the polar circle.
And Barcelona, Spain: death at the zoo. A much beloved albino gorilla named Snowflake died at the Barcelona Zoo early this morning. He was thought to be between 38 and 40 years old, and he outlived a wild gorilla's normal life span by at least 10 years. Snowflake died of skin cancer.
And that is tonight's "UpLink."
Men, women and the listening gap. That's next. Find out why the guy in your life may have a good excuse for tuning you out.
Plus, trouble in Neverland. The legal battle still ahead for Michael Jackson. We'll talk about that.
And a little later: a convicted sniper sentenced to die. We'll talk to the brother of one of his victims.
And here's today's "Buzz." Is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now: cnn.com/360. The results at the end of the program.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They never listen. They never listen. Why don't they ever listen?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Why don't they ever listen? Now the battle of the sexes and the age-old question women ask: why don't men listen? The reason, says one author, may be in men's brains. And he has some advice about how best to talk with your husband or boyfriend or even your male co- workers.
Michael Gurian is the author of "What Could He Be Thinking: How A Man's Mind Really Works." He joins us now from Spokane, Washington tonight.
Michael, thanks for being with us. I'm sorry I mauled your name.
MICHAEL GURIAN, AUTHOR: Oh, that's all right, Anderson. How are you?
COOPER: I'm doing well. I don't know what I was thinking, frankly.
You know, men are constantly being accused of not listening. You say there may be a biological reason for this?
GURIAN: Oh, yes, definitely. Our brains are set up differently. There are different chromosomal markers before we're born. So on the genome for male and female. And then while we're carried in the womb we get different bombardments of hormones.
So our brains come out different. And one of the ways they come out different is in hearing. And so it manifests itself as men don't listen, but actually men are trying very hard to listen. It just maybe how we're talking to them, where they are at, you know.
COOPER: And they have fewer receptors, you're saying? I mean, that basically women are more verbal, more communicative?
GURIAN: Well, see, yes. There are a number of differences. One is, in verbal centers, men don't have as many verbal centers in the brain on average. So when women talk, men are not taking in everything they're saying.
Men also don't hear as well. So our auditory cortex doesn't generally work as well. There are exceptions to that. But generally.
So if it's coming in words, we're not processing it as quickly. And just general hearing, we're not doing as much.
And then the third thing that's really interesting is we don't have as many neural pathways on average between the emotive centers of the brain and the hearing -- I mean, and the speaking centers. So let's say that there's a lot of emotional stuff going on in a conversation and with a couple. Well, a lot of what she's saying that is emotion-laden, he's not taking in as emotional.
He's not able to process it as emotional as quickly as she is. So at all those levels, it's a different brain.
COOPER: Someone on the street -- a lot of people on the street asking questions, wanting to ask questions to you. We have a video from a woman named Erin who had this question. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was just wondering, why it seems like men have shorter attention spans than women do?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Is that true? Do men have shorter attention spans?
GURIAN: Now that depends on what we're talking about. What she's probably referring to is the same reason that most ADHD or ADD -- you know, that's Attention Deficit Disorder -- are male. The male brain isn't set up as well for certain kinds of attention.
And one of the reason that learning for males and that doing -- one of the reasons males do so much is they are keeping themselves stimulated so they can learn, and they stay very task focused. There are a lot of other things we're not going to attend to as well.
COOPER: So you have some pointers for how women can communicate a little bit better with men. And a lot of it has to sort of do with timing that they attempt this.
GURIAN: Yes. One of the things you probably have there is timing.
A man and woman, let's say they both come back from work. They are a couple. They work 10-hour days. They're both very tired.
She's got a lot on her mind. She wants to talk to him at that time. That's probably the wrong time, especially if it's emotion- laden.
COOPER: And you also say use less words or fewer words?
GURIAN: You know, it's something -- it depends on where. What I'm asking people mainly to do is educate themselves on where they fit on the brain spectrum for male-female.
If it's a woman who uses a lot of words, and she's married to a man on the brain spectrum who doesn't have a lot of verbal centers, then yes, effective communication would require her to use less words, be more pointed in her conversation.
COOPER: And my favorite is compliment first and then criticize second. It's sort of like saying, oh, yes, how about that football game? By the way, I hate you?
GURIAN: Well, obviously I'm not saying that. What could he be thinking is saying, look, if you figure this guy out, you'll know what to do. And you'll know what he's fragile on, what his ego is fragile on.
And this is good for men to do with women, too. This is the same for men and women. We have got to be less critical of each other. We have to expect less perfection of each other. And we have to compliment first, especially if we want people to listen to us.
COOPER: All right. Michael Gurian, appreciate you joining us. It was an interesting discussion. Thanks.
GURIAN: Thank you.
COOPER: Coming up, we're going to have more on the legal battle with Michael Jackson about what his defense strategy might be.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COOPER: Time for "The Reset." Some of today's top stories.
Washington, D.C. You are going to look right now, we are going to show you this live picture. The debate going on in the U.S. Senate, tonight, over adding a prescription drug benefit to Medicare. The proposed change would then biggest revamped Medicare ever. Democrats are fighting the change because they say it actually threatens Medicare by putting it in competition with private insurance companies. It's expected to pass. The vote expected later on tonight.
Virginia Beach, Virginia now -- death sentence. The jury that convicted John Allen Muhammad in the Washington area sniper case has recommended the death penalty. It was largely because of his apparent lack of remorse. The trial of Muhammad's alleged accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo continued today in nearby Chesapeake, Virginia. We're going to talk more about this coming up.
To Fort Carson, Colorado -- presidential tribute. Heading to his Texas ranch for Thanksgiving, President Bush stopped at a Colorado army base to speak to family and friends of troops stationed in Iraq. He said, U.S. troops stationed there are making America safer. Earlier in Washington, the president signed a record $401 billion defense bill.
And Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prisoner release. U.S. Officials say 20 terror suspects being held at Guantanamo Bay have been freed, bringing the total number of release detainees to 80. The number of detainees remains near 660 because about 20 new prisoners were flown in over the weekend.
That is a quick look at "The Reset" tonight.
Now, more on the Michael Jackson investigation. Authorities who are preparing child molestation charges against the entertainer have said the alleged victim is willing to testify. Tonight, there is more information about that alleged victim. Miguel Marquez reports on what he's learned.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): According to a source close to the family pressing charges against Michael Jackson, the accuser is a boy from the Martin Bashir documentary that aired last February on ABC. The boy was 12 when the documentary was shot. Another source close to Jackson also confirms this.
Last June, the boy's family went to see Los Angeles Attorney Larry Feldman. Feldman took the boy to a therapist and after therapy referred the case to the Santa Barbara district attorney's office.
According to the source close to the family bringing the charges, Feldman has been retained as their attorney. Feldman will neither confirm nor deny it.
In 1993, Larry Feldman represented a family of another underage boy who alleged sexual misconduct against Jackson. That case ended with an out of court financial settlement.
CNN spoke to the attorney representing the father of the boy bringing the current charges. The boy's parents are estranged, in the middle of a custody battle. His attorney says he is making no allegations against Jackson.
H. RUSSELL HALPERN, ATTORNEY FOR ACCUSER'S FATHER: And he finds it difficult to believe that Mr. Jackson could have done these acts, because his impression of Mr. Jackson is he's a sincere, benevolent, good person.
MARQUEZ: A source close to Michael Jackson calls reporting about the case before formal charges have been brought to be speculation and totally irresponsible. Jackson's spokesperson, Stuart Backerman, says Jackson's team is getting their ducks lined up for a counterattack to set the record straight. He says Jackson is launching a Web site to get information out regarding the issues of this case. The spokesperson says Jackson faces great personal opposition from the likes of Santa Barbara District Attorney Thomas Sneddon, who, he says, wants to see Michael Jackson destroyed.
(on camera): District Attorney Sneddon said at a press conference last week, any suggestion that he has a personal vendetta against Jackson is "B.S."
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Los Olivos, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Well, now justice serve. And we continue our look at the ongoing investigation into Michael Jackson. 360 legal analyst Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom joins us from San Francisco. Kimberly good to see you.
CNN, as we talked about in that report, has confirmed the boy apparently making these accusations, was 12 years old at the time is the same boy who appeared in that documentary that much of the world saw.
Is that likely to find its way in court if this ever gets to court?
KIMBERLY GUILFOYLE NEWSOM, 360 LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely. The defense would be smart to submit that as evidence to contradict any statement that this young boy makes about Jackson. There is a disconnect here between what the boy is saying looking at Michael adoringly and basicly saying what a wonderful person Michael Jackson is from what we are hearing. What is going to be key is, is this alleged abuse something that had taken place after that tape was made?
Because if it's something that occurred during the time prior to the making of that videotape, prosecutors are going to have a very difficult hurdle to overcome.
COOPER: How aggressively, in a case like this, does the defense go after this young boy? I mean, in many cases you hear about them sort of attacking the alleged victim or the accuser. It's a tricky thing to do, though, with someone so young.
NEWSOM: Absolutely. Especially this does proceed to a jury trial. You have to be careful how you handle a young child, a vulnerable witness like this. But don't be surprised if you don't see attacks against the family or mother in general if any evidence is born out to suggest she motivated this or this was not motivated for the right reason. That's something the defense will go after strongly in this case. They've made statements these charges are completely false and without any factual basis whatsoever.
COOPER: Some sort of custody battle seems to be going on between the parents of this child. I suppose that will have some sort of impact. I guess it's impossible to say at this point.
At this point, do you think the defense has -- I mean, have they already hired private investigators?
Are they already all over this thing?
NEWSOM: Yes, the defense, actually sources close to the defense say there are investigators who have been working around the clock and prior to these charges being announced and the arrest warrant being filed in this case. So, we'll see. I'm sure they'll uncover a lot of information. I'm sure they have quite a bit of resources at their disposal. They'll show these are unfounded and without merit.
COOPER: All right, Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom, thank you.
More justice served now. To the D.C. sniper trials. With the end of the John Allen Muhammad trial, the court has released the 911 tapes made by the suspects. The voice on the tape is calm. The words are chilling in their matter of factness. "We are the people that are causing the killing in your area."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look on the tarot card. It says, call me god. Do not release the threat. We have called you three times before trying to set up negotiations. We have gotten no response. People have died.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Montgomery County police hotline. We're not investigating the crime. Would you like the number?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: When the jury in Virginia decided to sentence Muhammad to death today, all eyes turned to the families of the victims.
With us tonight from Washington, D.C. Is Vijay Walekar, whose brother Prem was killed as he was pumping gas into his cab. Vijay, we appreciate you joining us tonight. Was justice served today?
VIJAY WALEKAR, VICTIM'S BROTHER: Yes, I think justice was served.
COOPER: Earlier you said, I believe, on October 28th that you had no anger towards this man Muhammad.
How can that be?
Is that still true?
WALEKAR: No, it's not true anymore. Back then, I was like, you know, I remember talking, but that was based on my religious beliefs and all of that. But later on, you know, as I kept attending the courts and I saw the way he was. I didn't see no remorse in him. And he would just sit there like a stone-faced person with no emotions and all of that, everything changed. I mean, I said like, to just have nothing against him like, you know...
COOPER: So it was attending the trial that really sort of changed your opinion toward this case, toward this man?
WALEKAR: Yeah, attending the trial, and you know, I got to meet most of the relatives coming up there and staying in Virginia Beach, and talking with them, getting to know them personally and all that.
COOPER: You want him to die?
WALEKAR: Yes, I do.
COOPER: And how do you -- do you see Lee Boyd Malvo in the same way? His trial is ongoing right now. Are you going to attend that trial?
WALEKAR: Yeah, I've been attending his trial, too. I had -- twice I had a chance to go to his trial. And I think he should get the same thing. He should get the death penalty.
COOPER: You know, Vijay, what his defense is basically arguing is that he was under the spell of this older man, Muhammad. Do you buy any of that?
WALEKAR: No. I see the way he behaves in the court. I don't see nothing wrong with him. You know, he comes in the courtroom and plays around and jokes with his lawyers and all that stuff. And then, you know, he looks at -- like you know, he turns around. I used to sit right behind him and he's trying to look at me straight, with no feelings or nothing there.
COOPER: I hope this isn't inappropriate. What is it like being so close to a person who you believe killed your brother?
WALEKAR: It's -- it's like, you know, when you see them the way, you know, you don't see no feelings in them, with Malvo, I see no feelings in him. He's just taking it so light. And I think he's done -- he's committed all these crimes, he and Muhammad. So I think age don't have nothing to do with that, you know, whether he's 17 or whatever. He should get the same punishment as Muhammad.
COOPER: Well, Vijay Walekar, we appreciate you joining us tonight. Thank you very much.
WALEKAR: You're welcome.
COOPER: And we want to hear from you. Today's buzz is this: Is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now, cnn.com/360. We'll have the results at the end of the program.
Well, in addition to the dangers from attacks, suicide among the troops in Iraq. Are the numbers higher than average? The Army was concerned enough to send in a team of experts. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: We take you back now to Iraq, where the U.S. military is worried about more than ambushes and reconstruction efforts. The top U.S. commander is also concerned about the number of U.S. troops committing suicide while on duty. He's ordered a mental health assessment team to Iraq to investigate. We get more from CNN's Pentagon correspondent Chris Plante.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With 15 Army soldiers and two Marines known to have committed suicide in Iraq since the beginning of the war, and an unknown number of questionable deaths still under investigation, a team of Pentagon experts dispatched to Iraq to assess the living conditions and stress factors is preparing a report on the suicide rate that is due to be released sometime after Thanksgiving, according to the Pentagon.
The report is being prepared at the request of the commander of ground troops in Iraq, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez. What is clear is that the Army is concerned enough to be examining the situation in an effort to bring the number of suicides down.
What is less clear is whether the statistics should be cause for serious alarm, or whether the numbers are statistically in line with what would be expected of a predominantly male population, largely between the ages of 18 and 25. That is the same category of people that has the highest suicide rate among the general population in the United States.
(on camera): Add to that the stress of war, the fact that many of these young troops are away from home for the first time, with a rifle in their hands 24 hours a day. Many experts say this can create a volatile mix that can make it all too easy for these young troops to take their own lives.
Chris Plante, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: More from the Pentagon. James Turner, Defense Department spokesman tells 360, and I quote, "one suicide is one death too many. We are doing everything that we can to stop that. We have very active programs in the military to help deal with this problem, but it is an issue that we all have to face in our society, and the military is no different."
Joining me from Tampa, Florida, tonight to talk more about this is retired Army chaplain Richard Stiliha. He is also a major contributor to the U.S. Army's manual on suicide prevention. Appreciate you being with us, Richard.
The U.S. Army basically says no overall spike, and yet you look at the number of suicides in the Army -- so far this year, a total of 58 Army officers committed suicide -- soldiers, I should say, committed suicide, compared to some 50 last year, 63 in 2001. Of course, the year so far is not over.
Does the number of suicides, particularly in Iraq, 17, concern you?
RICHARD STILIHA, RETIRED U.S. ARMY CHAPLAIN: It is a growing number, and it's a concern. I don't know that it's an alarming concern, when you consider that during the Gulf War years, let's say '91, '92, '93, the suicide rate was about 14 per 100,000. If you factor in the rate per 100,000 at this time, it's probably around 12.
That's still too many. And, of course, the stresses that the troops are facing, the accumulated stresses, other factors, this is something to be concerned about.
COOPER: How much is it, I mean stresses like, you know, sniping and sort of not knowing who is around you, and how much of it is more traditional, I guess, concerns or things that lead to -- lead to a soldier to take their life. You know, receiving a letter from home that has bad news?
STILIHA: Sure, there are some warning signs. Such things as legal problems, financial problems, what we call a "Dear John" letter. These are problems that -- and concerns.
However, there are also risk factors that have to be labeled in there. Such things as depression, because two-thirds of people who do commit suicide, whether they are in the military or not, have a serious problem with depression. And these combat stress teams, which compose of chaplains and social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, are doing an excellent job in trying to screen and take care of those needs. We know this because some 400 people have been already evacuated who are psychological casualties, and so they have been identified.
COOPER: And, of course, holidays are a tough time for anyone, especially anyone suffering from any form of depression. No doubt it's no different when you're separated as far away as many of these young men and women are. STILIHA: Yes.
COOPER: They are more connected in a way, I mean, through e-mail and the ability to phone, I think, than soldiers in other wars, or Marines in other wars. But that's sort of a double-edged sword, isn't it?
STILIHA: It is. You could get good news or bad news over the phone or over e-mail, and distance is always a problem and a factor. The fact that there are chaplains in every unit that are trying to monitor the morale of the soldiers, you've got close links with the chain of command, the chain of command trying to provide morale activities and off-time things for them to do. More and more PX and commissary things are available, more entertainment things are available to the troops. Religious services during the holidays and so forth.
This is a plus. This is a help for the morale.
COOPER: Richard Stiliha, we appreciate you joining us with your perspective. Thank you.
STILIHA: Thank you.
COOPER: Coming up next, the prayer vigils around the globe, not to end world hunger or fight AIDS. No, these are prayer vigils for Michael Jackson. We'll show you some of them.
And the movie described by one critic as, quote, "a vulgar, uninspired lump of poisoned eye candy" -- clearly moviegoers don't always listen to the critics. We'll look at how "The Cat in the Hat" did at the box office, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, the Michael Jackson faithful lead off tonight's check of the pop culture "Current."
Meet the citizens of planet Jacko. These are some of the die- hard fans in France. One of the cities -- I guess in Paris, where Michael Jackson vigils sprang up in all their strangeness this weekend. One distraught Michael fan says she hasn't eaten or slept in three days. Her problem was later diagnosed as she was suffering from a serious lack of perspective.
President Bush pardoned Stars the turkey today, as young onlookers flocked to the luckiest bird in America and thought, mmm, Stars, he looks delicious. From now on, Stars will be chilling like a villain at Frying Pan Park in Virginia, a constant reminder of how close he came to death in the fiery pits of a 350-degree oven. No, kids, he's not to be eaten.
Now, being the prime minister of the United Kingdom is one thing, but you know you have really arrived when you get a guest spot on "The Simpsons." Prime Minister Tony Blair himself could be heard on "The Simpsons" last night. A crowning moment, we're sure, for the venerable prime minister.
And the critics despised it, no doubt about that, but did it matter at all for "The Cat in the Hat"? Oh, no, no, sir, fine, ladies and gents. Americans went and spent and spent. $40 million all told. Number one through the land. Studio honchos say let the critics be damned.
And that's the check of tonight's "Current."
Coming up -- celebrity muggings to "The Nth Degree." Why the celebrity mugshot is the great equalizer.
Plus, tomorrow, American POWs from the first Gulf War. Why the U.S. doesn't want them to collect the settlement they won for the torture they suffered.
First, tonight's buzz, is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now, at cnn.com/360. Results when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Time now for "The Buzz." We asked you, is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? Seventy-six percent of you said yes; 24 percent voted no. Not a scientific poll, just viewer buzz.
Tonight, celebrity muggings to "The Nth Degree." These days the celebrity is a specimen not like the rest of us. They're buffed, waxed, plucked, nipped, tucked and botoxed. There is a stylist at every turn, a minion keeping them constantly hydrated, and a lightning guide to bathe them in that special star-kissed glow.
There is, perhaps, only one place where we can still see the celebrity in the cold, harsh glare of reality. I speak, of course, about the celebrity mugshot.
Now, is it just me, or were you riveted to this image? Now, compared to other celebrity mugshots, Michael Jackson's looks like the star put some effort into it. Eyebrows carefully arched, eyeliner, lipstick firmly in place.
Other stars weren't so prepared. Nick Nolte looks part crazy clown, part Jimmy Buffett.
Then there's this recent mugshot of Wynonna Judd. Yes, that is Wynonna Judd, not some stressed out suburban soccer mom.
Paul Reubens, once blubbed his Pee-Wee Herman, looks more like some middle-aged guy with a mullet. And Hugh Grant doesn't look here like he's about to deliver any of that snappy British wit or cute guy charm, does he?
Of course, I didn't look so great either during my tiny brush with the law back in the swinging '70s. All right, truth be told, I made that picture up. But seriously, why do these pictures always fascinate? Perhaps it's because real life and all its messiness isn't the stuff that's captured by folks like Annie Leibovitz in the pages of "Vanity Fair" magazine. In a world where celebrity is usually seen through a rose- colored lens, the mugshot is a reminder that the rich and famous are mere mortals, bad hair and all. Their money may buy them better lawyers, but in a mugshot, and hopefully in the eyes of the law, everyone is equal.
That wraps up our program tonight. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
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Aired November 24, 2003 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST (voice-over): The jury has decided. Death for sniper mastermind John Allen Muhammad.
New details about the relationship between Michael Jackson and his accuser.
Casualties of war: why are some U.S. troops committing suicide?
A face lift for Medicare. How will changes affect your health care?
And, think the men in your life aren't hearing you? Listen up. A new study says you might be right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.
COOPER: Good evening. Thanks for joining us on 360.
Right now in the U.S. Senate, a debate is going on. A debate that could change the way Medicare is delivered in the United States. We are going to have a lot about that coming up in the next hour.
But first, our top story tonight. A jury recommends the death sentence for convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad. Now, some jurors called the decision simply agonizing. Here's Jeanne Meserve.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Death, the recommended penalty for a season of murder and terror.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until then, just follow the body bags.
MESERVE: Death for the 10 lives lost and numerous others forever changed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My wife's been shot.
PAUL EBERT, PROSECUTOR: The death penalty is reserved for the worst of the worst, and we think Mr. Muhammad fell in that category and the jury agreed.
MESERVE: Though video of John Muhammad playing with his children and questions about the death penalty itself made the decision a tough one for some jurors, the accumulation of evidence eventually led them all to the same conclusion: Muhammad should die for his crimes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's the collective nature of the crimes, the vileness. The violence was there across the board, and the lack of remorse.
MESERVE: Muhammad betrayed no reaction in the courtroom, but his attorney said they were bitterly disappointed.
PETER GREENSPUN, MUHAMMAD DEFENSE ATTORNEY: There's been much pain and devastation. The sanction of yet another death by the government is not likely to come of any benefit to anyone.
MESERVE: Dean Meyers was, by all accounts, a generous man. His shooting at a Manassas, Virginia gas station was the centerpiece of this trial. And for his family, there is, with this verdict, some measure of closure.
BOB MEYERS, BROTHER OF DEAN MEYERS: This isn't a revenge thing, not in any way. Just feel like what was done was right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And Jeanne Meserve joins us now. Jeanne, what impact, if any, is this going to have on his alleged accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo?
MESERVE: Well, theoretically, none, because the jurors there are not supposed to be watching television, reading newspapers or listening to radio. But even if they saw a headline, it might not have much impact because the attorneys in the Malvo case are not disputing that their client played a role in the crimes. What they are saying is that he did so under the direction and influence of John Muhammad, and that is an issue that was barely explored at this trial that finished here today.
COOPER: All right. Jeanne Meserve covering both trials for us. Coming up, we're going to talk with the brother of a man killed in the sniper shootings for his reaction to today's decision.
Now to Iraq, where it has turned ugly in the northern city of Mosul. Today, gunmen ambushed U.S. soldiers with a roadside bomb and then opened fire. One soldier was wounded. The attack, of course, came a day after that chilling death of two U.S. soldiers also in Mosul. The soldiers were dragged through the streets after it was confirmed today they were shot to death.
CNN's Baghdad bureau chief Jane Arraf reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): In a city that's been a military success story, two killings so disturbing the Army is having trouble talking about them.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, DEPUTY CHIEF OF OPERATIONS: It is our policy that we do not go into the specific details on injuries sustained by soldiers. And just as a matter of good taste, we would suggest that the media does the same.
ARRAF: There's no question these two soldiers were shot on Sunday afternoon in the center of Mosul. The question is, what happened afterwards?
Witnesses say their throats were slashed as they lay bleeding. Many hours later, an Army official denied it, saying there were so stab wounds or slash marks on the bodies. But military sources acknowledged something almost equally horrifying. They were dragged from their vehicle after they were shot and their bodies looted by a crowd.
None of the bystanders would talk on camera, but off camera they gave detailed descriptions of the swarm of children and adults taking anything they could, including watches, and even a hand grenade. The 101st Airborne says the soldiers were traveling in a convoy from one compound to another, in uniform, but in a civilian vehicle. The Army won't say where the other troops in the convoy were when the soldiers were dragged from the car.
For such a big city, Mosul had been relatively stable since the end of the war. And the Army takes some credit for that. In the last month, however, attacks on U.S. targets have risen sharply. Many soldiers here felt that, to make a difference, they had to get close to the people. That may now be too dangerous.
Jane Arraf, CNN, Mosul, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, the shootings in Mosul bear tragic resemblance, of course, to another incident of war. And that is our flashback tonight.
Somalia, 1993: Special Forces in Mogadishu trying to capture a rebel leader are cut off, ambushed. Eighteen Army rangers, more than 300 Somalis are killed. The body of one U.S. soldier is dragged through the streets in front of cameras. President Clinton pulled troops out of the region soon after the incident and promised to take a more "political approach" to the region's problems.
Moving on tonight to Capitol Hill, where there is a showdown in the Senate over plans to revamp Medicare. A bill that would, for the first time, create prescription drug benefits for seniors is headed toward a final vote, but not before a tough fight, mostly from Democrats.
CNN's congressional correspondent Jonathan Karl reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Republicans steamrolled every Democratic effort to block the Medicare bill, making final passage of a prescription drug benefit for seniors a virtual certainty.
SEN. BILL FRIST (R-TN), MAJORITY LEADER: Today is a momentous day and an historic day.
KARL: But Democrats are going down with a fight, saying they will bring the battle right into next year's presidential election.
SEN. TED KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: It is the beginning of the unwinding of Medicare, the replacing of Medicare with the private sector and privatizing the Medicare system. Make no mistake about it.
SEN. ORRIN HATCH (R), UTAH: I guess he wants us to spend another 15 years trying to reform Medicare or trying to improve Medicare or trying to find a prescription drug benefit program. My gosh, we're putting up $400 billion over 10 years.
KARL: But some of the loudest complaints came from prominent conservative Republicans who say the bill adds a costly new benefit to a program that is already going broke.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is a massive tax increase being placed on working young Americans and Americans who haven't yet been born, in order to support a drug benefit for retired Americans and Americans who are about to retire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KARL: The prescription drug benefit won't take affect until the year 2006. When it does, here's a look at what benefit seniors can expect to get.
For a monthly premium of $35 a month, they will have a $250 deductible. Above that, 75 percent of drug costs are covered until $2,250 worth of drug costs. There is no coverage, however, for costs between $2,250 and $5,100. Above that, there's catastrophic coverage. Ninety-five percent of all drug costs over $5,100 would be covered.
So that's a look at the benefit. The final vote, Anderson, we are expecting tonight in the U.S. Senate at about 11:30.
COOPER: All right. The debate goes on right now. Jonathan Karl, thanks.
We're following a number of other stories right now "Cross Country." Let's take a look.
East Rutherford, New Jersey: calling it quits. With his kidney ailment worsening, New Jersey Nets star Alonzo Mourning retires from the NBA. After sitting out last year, Mourning played in 12 games this season. But during that period, his condition deteriorated. Now, doctors say he now needs a new kidney, and a search is under way for a prospective donor.
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma: famed pitcher dead. Baseball hall of famer Warren Spahn is dead at the age of 82. Playing for the Braves in Boston and then Milwaukee, Spahn won 363 games, more than any other left-hander in major league history.
Hartford, Connecticut: appeal filed. Attorneys for Michael Skakel -- wrong video -- there we go -- asked the Connecticut Supreme Court to overturn his conviction, citing numerous grounds. The Kennedy cousin was found guilty last year of murdering a 15-year-old neighbor back in 1975.
And New York City: back on track. For the first time since the 9/11 attacks, trains are serving New York's World Trade Center Station. And it will remain named that, by the way. The rebuilt transit station reopened yesterday. Today was the first day it greeted rush hour crowds.
And that is a look at stories "Cross Country" tonight.
Michael Jackson on the PR offensive with a little help from his friends. We're going to get the latest on the investigation.
Also tonight, a 30-year mystery solved in the jungles of Laos and Southeast Asia. The long-lost brother of presidential candidate Howard Dean finally comes home. We'll take you live to the Laotian capital.
And suicides on the front lines. Find out what's being done to reach out to soldiers in crisis in Iraq.
First, let's take a look "Inside the Box" at the top stories on tonight's network newscasts.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: On now to the Michael Jackson saga. The pop superstar and his supporters have launched a counterattack, if you will, denying allegations the entertainer molested a 12-year-old boy. National correspondent Frank Buckley has the latest from outside Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, California -- Frank.
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anderson, Michael Jackson has issued statements in the past, but today he actually came up on the Internet with a new Web site. It is called mjnews.us. It has the only authorized information from the Jackson camp, according to his spokesman.
It is a chance, this spokesman says, to get information out immediately to the fans and to the news media. He says he is receiving phone calls every two minutes from news media around the world.
Today, Michael Jackson issued a signed statement on the site that reads in part, "As you know, the charges recently directed at me are terribly serious. They are, however, predicated on a big lie. This will be shown in court, and we will be able to put this terrible time behind us."
"Because the charges are so serious, I hope you all will understand, on the advice of my attorneys, I will be limited in what I can say about the situation. There will be times when I cannot comment at all. No doubt, this will be frustrating for all of us."
Separately, Elizabeth Taylor, his long-time friend, also issued a statement on Michael Jackson's behalf in support of Michael Jackson. Ms. Taylor says she believes Jackson is innocent. She also criticized some of the news media coverage of Jackson.
She said, "I thought the law was innocent until proven guilty. I know he is innocent and I hope they all eat crow."
Anderson, meanwhile, Michael Jackson remains in seclusion. It may be that the next time we see him in public will be January 9 for his arraignment -- Anderson.
COOPER: Frank, do we know where he is? I mean, I guess the last I saw video he was in Las Vegas. If he's still there, what's going on at the Neverland Ranch these days? Is there still a lot of activity there?
BUCKLEY: There's some news media activity. We haven't seen any investigative activity here at all. The number of news media, frankly, dwindling here than what we've seen in the past.
Where is Michael Jackson? We don't know for sure. One source telling us that he is not here at Neverland, as you say. The last sighting of Michael Jackson was in Nevada, but, frankly, no one really knows where Michael Jackson is tonight.
COOPER: All right. Frank Buckley, thanks very much.
How will Jackson's PR and legal strategies play out? Our 360 legal analyst Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom is going to join us in just a little bit with a closer look at the case.
Moving on, though, with the Iowa presidential caucuses less than two months away, the Democrats held a debate in Des Moines today. Now, with Iowa frontrunners Howard Dean and Richard Gephardt exchanging sharp jabs, our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, had a ringside seat -- Candy.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Anderson. They certainly did go at it with a little help, I should add, from John Kerry, who, when he could, joined Richard Gephardt in opposition to a number of positions that Howard Dean took as governor of Vermont. Gephardt also went after Dean in what is a continuation of a conversation they are having in dueling ads here. And that is, Dean's attack of Gephardt's vote for the war and for the $87 billion to fund the effort now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RICHARD GEPHARDT (D-MO), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Howard, I think you are all over the lot on this issue. First of all, at the time the resolutions were on the floor, you said you favored the Biden-Lugar resolution, which in effect was the same thing that we passed on the floor. It was very much like it.
Secondly, you said when the $87 billion was asked about, that we had no choice but to support our troops and put the $87 billion there.
Finally, you said you wouldn't make this a campaign issue. You have every right to run any ad you want, but you're running ads now here in Iowa criticizing what I did. And I think in the main you agreed with what I did.
If we're going to beat George Bush, we have got to take a position of leadership on these issues and stick with them. We can't be all over the lot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CROWLEY: Well, Anderson, not sure why I thought of you at this, but in sort of the bizarro realm, the Dean campaign during the debate handed out a number of spin press releases, as all of them do. However, the Dean campaign handed them out with Michael Jackson themes.
One of them here from Dean: "ABC, easy as one, two, three. Message to Wesley C., don't send our tech jobs overseas." Make of that what you want. Back to you.
COOPER: Wow. That is truly bizarre. And I appreciate the fact that you think of me when you think of bizarro. Basically, though, it sounds like a lot of jabs thrown. Any knockouts?
CROWLEY: No, not really. I mean, this is like the fifth debate that the Democratic Party has sponsored. Trust me, they've been to about four times that many. They know each other's schtick, they know what they're going to say. So they don't cover new ground.
But what you see here is just the tension level as the caucuses and the primary season gets near. The tension level just goes up. And so now it's the theater. You know, it's the who is jabbing harder, who got who? But very difficult to land any big blows.
What you try to do is just stay alive and not make any big mistakes. They all did that.
COOPER: Well, the fight is going to get tougher. Candy Crowley, thanks very much.
There are almost 1,900 Americans still missing after the Vietnam War; today, that number dropped by three. One of the missing, that man right there, who has now been found, is the brother of Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean, who you just saw. But as Dean's family awaits the arrival of his remains, Tom Mintier reports from Vientiane, Laos that time is running out for those still left behind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TOM MINTIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty-eight years after the end of the war, a U.S. C-130 Hercules taxies at a Laotian airfield that used to be home to Soviet MiGs and Russian transport planes. Charles Dean was a young man when he came to Laos in 1974. In 2003, if military investigators are correct, he is returning home in an aluminum casket.
U.S. military search teams think they found the graves of Dean and his Australian friend, Neil Sharman, captured and killed by (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Lao soldiers in 1974. Both Dean and Sharman were civilians, but both were listed as missing in action by the U.S. military. The military supplied these pictures.
At a ceremony at Vientiane's International Airport, Laos authorities turn over the two bodies with recovered remains of two other U.S. military MIAs. The Americans have been searching for the missing in Laos for more than 10 years.
DOUGLAS HARTWICK, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO LAOS: The clock is ticking. We know that. Witnesses are getting older. They are dying. Evidence is slowly disappearing.
MINTIER: U.S. search teams are working against the clock, solving as many cases as they can before the evidence is either gone, or those old enough to remember what happened are dead. Remains removed from the battlefield and flown back to the United States could take years to identify.
HARTWICK: Some of them will probably never be found.
MINTIER: That blunt assessment runs counter to the U.S. military motto of, until they are home. But at some point, the questions no longer have answers. The evidence, if there ever was any, simply faded with the passage of time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MINTIER: No one is saying with absolute certainty that the body being flown back is that of Charles Dean, but they do say that there were some personnel effects found in the grave site that indicate the body they took out was Dean. It will require dental testing, forensic testing. That could take weeks or months. But if they have to go to DNA, they say it could take years before they are sure the body brought home was indeed that of Charles Dean -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right. Tom Mintier, in Vientiane, Laos. Thanks, Tom.
Let's get you up to the minute on a couple of other stories happening overseas right now. Here's the "UpLink."
In the mountains of Colombia, hostage released. Guerrillas freed two of seven hostages, a German woman and a Spanish man. You see them right there. They were turned over to a humanitarian delegation that sought their release. Five other foreign nationals are still being held. They've been captive now for more than 10 weeks. Moscow, Russia: a fatal dorm fire. Thirty-six young people, and mainly foreign born students from Asia and Africa, died at a university as the late-night fire destroyed their dormitory. More than 180 others were injured. An investigation is under way right now to find the cause of the blaze.
Near the South Pole an eclipse. Take a look. It's summer in Antarctica and the sun stays up for months. Not yesterday.
It disappeared in a total solar eclipse. You see it right there. A Japanese camera crew caught the two minutes of total darkness from a Russian base located above the polar circle.
And Barcelona, Spain: death at the zoo. A much beloved albino gorilla named Snowflake died at the Barcelona Zoo early this morning. He was thought to be between 38 and 40 years old, and he outlived a wild gorilla's normal life span by at least 10 years. Snowflake died of skin cancer.
And that is tonight's "UpLink."
Men, women and the listening gap. That's next. Find out why the guy in your life may have a good excuse for tuning you out.
Plus, trouble in Neverland. The legal battle still ahead for Michael Jackson. We'll talk about that.
And a little later: a convicted sniper sentenced to die. We'll talk to the brother of one of his victims.
And here's today's "Buzz." Is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now: cnn.com/360. The results at the end of the program.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They never listen. They never listen. Why don't they ever listen?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Why don't they ever listen? Now the battle of the sexes and the age-old question women ask: why don't men listen? The reason, says one author, may be in men's brains. And he has some advice about how best to talk with your husband or boyfriend or even your male co- workers.
Michael Gurian is the author of "What Could He Be Thinking: How A Man's Mind Really Works." He joins us now from Spokane, Washington tonight.
Michael, thanks for being with us. I'm sorry I mauled your name.
MICHAEL GURIAN, AUTHOR: Oh, that's all right, Anderson. How are you?
COOPER: I'm doing well. I don't know what I was thinking, frankly.
You know, men are constantly being accused of not listening. You say there may be a biological reason for this?
GURIAN: Oh, yes, definitely. Our brains are set up differently. There are different chromosomal markers before we're born. So on the genome for male and female. And then while we're carried in the womb we get different bombardments of hormones.
So our brains come out different. And one of the ways they come out different is in hearing. And so it manifests itself as men don't listen, but actually men are trying very hard to listen. It just maybe how we're talking to them, where they are at, you know.
COOPER: And they have fewer receptors, you're saying? I mean, that basically women are more verbal, more communicative?
GURIAN: Well, see, yes. There are a number of differences. One is, in verbal centers, men don't have as many verbal centers in the brain on average. So when women talk, men are not taking in everything they're saying.
Men also don't hear as well. So our auditory cortex doesn't generally work as well. There are exceptions to that. But generally.
So if it's coming in words, we're not processing it as quickly. And just general hearing, we're not doing as much.
And then the third thing that's really interesting is we don't have as many neural pathways on average between the emotive centers of the brain and the hearing -- I mean, and the speaking centers. So let's say that there's a lot of emotional stuff going on in a conversation and with a couple. Well, a lot of what she's saying that is emotion-laden, he's not taking in as emotional.
He's not able to process it as emotional as quickly as she is. So at all those levels, it's a different brain.
COOPER: Someone on the street -- a lot of people on the street asking questions, wanting to ask questions to you. We have a video from a woman named Erin who had this question. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was just wondering, why it seems like men have shorter attention spans than women do?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Is that true? Do men have shorter attention spans?
GURIAN: Now that depends on what we're talking about. What she's probably referring to is the same reason that most ADHD or ADD -- you know, that's Attention Deficit Disorder -- are male. The male brain isn't set up as well for certain kinds of attention.
And one of the reason that learning for males and that doing -- one of the reasons males do so much is they are keeping themselves stimulated so they can learn, and they stay very task focused. There are a lot of other things we're not going to attend to as well.
COOPER: So you have some pointers for how women can communicate a little bit better with men. And a lot of it has to sort of do with timing that they attempt this.
GURIAN: Yes. One of the things you probably have there is timing.
A man and woman, let's say they both come back from work. They are a couple. They work 10-hour days. They're both very tired.
She's got a lot on her mind. She wants to talk to him at that time. That's probably the wrong time, especially if it's emotion- laden.
COOPER: And you also say use less words or fewer words?
GURIAN: You know, it's something -- it depends on where. What I'm asking people mainly to do is educate themselves on where they fit on the brain spectrum for male-female.
If it's a woman who uses a lot of words, and she's married to a man on the brain spectrum who doesn't have a lot of verbal centers, then yes, effective communication would require her to use less words, be more pointed in her conversation.
COOPER: And my favorite is compliment first and then criticize second. It's sort of like saying, oh, yes, how about that football game? By the way, I hate you?
GURIAN: Well, obviously I'm not saying that. What could he be thinking is saying, look, if you figure this guy out, you'll know what to do. And you'll know what he's fragile on, what his ego is fragile on.
And this is good for men to do with women, too. This is the same for men and women. We have got to be less critical of each other. We have to expect less perfection of each other. And we have to compliment first, especially if we want people to listen to us.
COOPER: All right. Michael Gurian, appreciate you joining us. It was an interesting discussion. Thanks.
GURIAN: Thank you.
COOPER: Coming up, we're going to have more on the legal battle with Michael Jackson about what his defense strategy might be.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COOPER: Time for "The Reset." Some of today's top stories.
Washington, D.C. You are going to look right now, we are going to show you this live picture. The debate going on in the U.S. Senate, tonight, over adding a prescription drug benefit to Medicare. The proposed change would then biggest revamped Medicare ever. Democrats are fighting the change because they say it actually threatens Medicare by putting it in competition with private insurance companies. It's expected to pass. The vote expected later on tonight.
Virginia Beach, Virginia now -- death sentence. The jury that convicted John Allen Muhammad in the Washington area sniper case has recommended the death penalty. It was largely because of his apparent lack of remorse. The trial of Muhammad's alleged accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo continued today in nearby Chesapeake, Virginia. We're going to talk more about this coming up.
To Fort Carson, Colorado -- presidential tribute. Heading to his Texas ranch for Thanksgiving, President Bush stopped at a Colorado army base to speak to family and friends of troops stationed in Iraq. He said, U.S. troops stationed there are making America safer. Earlier in Washington, the president signed a record $401 billion defense bill.
And Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prisoner release. U.S. Officials say 20 terror suspects being held at Guantanamo Bay have been freed, bringing the total number of release detainees to 80. The number of detainees remains near 660 because about 20 new prisoners were flown in over the weekend.
That is a quick look at "The Reset" tonight.
Now, more on the Michael Jackson investigation. Authorities who are preparing child molestation charges against the entertainer have said the alleged victim is willing to testify. Tonight, there is more information about that alleged victim. Miguel Marquez reports on what he's learned.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): According to a source close to the family pressing charges against Michael Jackson, the accuser is a boy from the Martin Bashir documentary that aired last February on ABC. The boy was 12 when the documentary was shot. Another source close to Jackson also confirms this.
Last June, the boy's family went to see Los Angeles Attorney Larry Feldman. Feldman took the boy to a therapist and after therapy referred the case to the Santa Barbara district attorney's office.
According to the source close to the family bringing the charges, Feldman has been retained as their attorney. Feldman will neither confirm nor deny it.
In 1993, Larry Feldman represented a family of another underage boy who alleged sexual misconduct against Jackson. That case ended with an out of court financial settlement.
CNN spoke to the attorney representing the father of the boy bringing the current charges. The boy's parents are estranged, in the middle of a custody battle. His attorney says he is making no allegations against Jackson.
H. RUSSELL HALPERN, ATTORNEY FOR ACCUSER'S FATHER: And he finds it difficult to believe that Mr. Jackson could have done these acts, because his impression of Mr. Jackson is he's a sincere, benevolent, good person.
MARQUEZ: A source close to Michael Jackson calls reporting about the case before formal charges have been brought to be speculation and totally irresponsible. Jackson's spokesperson, Stuart Backerman, says Jackson's team is getting their ducks lined up for a counterattack to set the record straight. He says Jackson is launching a Web site to get information out regarding the issues of this case. The spokesperson says Jackson faces great personal opposition from the likes of Santa Barbara District Attorney Thomas Sneddon, who, he says, wants to see Michael Jackson destroyed.
(on camera): District Attorney Sneddon said at a press conference last week, any suggestion that he has a personal vendetta against Jackson is "B.S."
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Los Olivos, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Well, now justice serve. And we continue our look at the ongoing investigation into Michael Jackson. 360 legal analyst Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom joins us from San Francisco. Kimberly good to see you.
CNN, as we talked about in that report, has confirmed the boy apparently making these accusations, was 12 years old at the time is the same boy who appeared in that documentary that much of the world saw.
Is that likely to find its way in court if this ever gets to court?
KIMBERLY GUILFOYLE NEWSOM, 360 LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely. The defense would be smart to submit that as evidence to contradict any statement that this young boy makes about Jackson. There is a disconnect here between what the boy is saying looking at Michael adoringly and basicly saying what a wonderful person Michael Jackson is from what we are hearing. What is going to be key is, is this alleged abuse something that had taken place after that tape was made?
Because if it's something that occurred during the time prior to the making of that videotape, prosecutors are going to have a very difficult hurdle to overcome.
COOPER: How aggressively, in a case like this, does the defense go after this young boy? I mean, in many cases you hear about them sort of attacking the alleged victim or the accuser. It's a tricky thing to do, though, with someone so young.
NEWSOM: Absolutely. Especially this does proceed to a jury trial. You have to be careful how you handle a young child, a vulnerable witness like this. But don't be surprised if you don't see attacks against the family or mother in general if any evidence is born out to suggest she motivated this or this was not motivated for the right reason. That's something the defense will go after strongly in this case. They've made statements these charges are completely false and without any factual basis whatsoever.
COOPER: Some sort of custody battle seems to be going on between the parents of this child. I suppose that will have some sort of impact. I guess it's impossible to say at this point.
At this point, do you think the defense has -- I mean, have they already hired private investigators?
Are they already all over this thing?
NEWSOM: Yes, the defense, actually sources close to the defense say there are investigators who have been working around the clock and prior to these charges being announced and the arrest warrant being filed in this case. So, we'll see. I'm sure they'll uncover a lot of information. I'm sure they have quite a bit of resources at their disposal. They'll show these are unfounded and without merit.
COOPER: All right, Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom, thank you.
More justice served now. To the D.C. sniper trials. With the end of the John Allen Muhammad trial, the court has released the 911 tapes made by the suspects. The voice on the tape is calm. The words are chilling in their matter of factness. "We are the people that are causing the killing in your area."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look on the tarot card. It says, call me god. Do not release the threat. We have called you three times before trying to set up negotiations. We have gotten no response. People have died.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Montgomery County police hotline. We're not investigating the crime. Would you like the number?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: When the jury in Virginia decided to sentence Muhammad to death today, all eyes turned to the families of the victims.
With us tonight from Washington, D.C. Is Vijay Walekar, whose brother Prem was killed as he was pumping gas into his cab. Vijay, we appreciate you joining us tonight. Was justice served today?
VIJAY WALEKAR, VICTIM'S BROTHER: Yes, I think justice was served.
COOPER: Earlier you said, I believe, on October 28th that you had no anger towards this man Muhammad.
How can that be?
Is that still true?
WALEKAR: No, it's not true anymore. Back then, I was like, you know, I remember talking, but that was based on my religious beliefs and all of that. But later on, you know, as I kept attending the courts and I saw the way he was. I didn't see no remorse in him. And he would just sit there like a stone-faced person with no emotions and all of that, everything changed. I mean, I said like, to just have nothing against him like, you know...
COOPER: So it was attending the trial that really sort of changed your opinion toward this case, toward this man?
WALEKAR: Yeah, attending the trial, and you know, I got to meet most of the relatives coming up there and staying in Virginia Beach, and talking with them, getting to know them personally and all that.
COOPER: You want him to die?
WALEKAR: Yes, I do.
COOPER: And how do you -- do you see Lee Boyd Malvo in the same way? His trial is ongoing right now. Are you going to attend that trial?
WALEKAR: Yeah, I've been attending his trial, too. I had -- twice I had a chance to go to his trial. And I think he should get the same thing. He should get the death penalty.
COOPER: You know, Vijay, what his defense is basically arguing is that he was under the spell of this older man, Muhammad. Do you buy any of that?
WALEKAR: No. I see the way he behaves in the court. I don't see nothing wrong with him. You know, he comes in the courtroom and plays around and jokes with his lawyers and all that stuff. And then, you know, he looks at -- like you know, he turns around. I used to sit right behind him and he's trying to look at me straight, with no feelings or nothing there.
COOPER: I hope this isn't inappropriate. What is it like being so close to a person who you believe killed your brother?
WALEKAR: It's -- it's like, you know, when you see them the way, you know, you don't see no feelings in them, with Malvo, I see no feelings in him. He's just taking it so light. And I think he's done -- he's committed all these crimes, he and Muhammad. So I think age don't have nothing to do with that, you know, whether he's 17 or whatever. He should get the same punishment as Muhammad.
COOPER: Well, Vijay Walekar, we appreciate you joining us tonight. Thank you very much.
WALEKAR: You're welcome.
COOPER: And we want to hear from you. Today's buzz is this: Is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now, cnn.com/360. We'll have the results at the end of the program.
Well, in addition to the dangers from attacks, suicide among the troops in Iraq. Are the numbers higher than average? The Army was concerned enough to send in a team of experts. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: We take you back now to Iraq, where the U.S. military is worried about more than ambushes and reconstruction efforts. The top U.S. commander is also concerned about the number of U.S. troops committing suicide while on duty. He's ordered a mental health assessment team to Iraq to investigate. We get more from CNN's Pentagon correspondent Chris Plante.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With 15 Army soldiers and two Marines known to have committed suicide in Iraq since the beginning of the war, and an unknown number of questionable deaths still under investigation, a team of Pentagon experts dispatched to Iraq to assess the living conditions and stress factors is preparing a report on the suicide rate that is due to be released sometime after Thanksgiving, according to the Pentagon.
The report is being prepared at the request of the commander of ground troops in Iraq, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez. What is clear is that the Army is concerned enough to be examining the situation in an effort to bring the number of suicides down.
What is less clear is whether the statistics should be cause for serious alarm, or whether the numbers are statistically in line with what would be expected of a predominantly male population, largely between the ages of 18 and 25. That is the same category of people that has the highest suicide rate among the general population in the United States.
(on camera): Add to that the stress of war, the fact that many of these young troops are away from home for the first time, with a rifle in their hands 24 hours a day. Many experts say this can create a volatile mix that can make it all too easy for these young troops to take their own lives.
Chris Plante, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: More from the Pentagon. James Turner, Defense Department spokesman tells 360, and I quote, "one suicide is one death too many. We are doing everything that we can to stop that. We have very active programs in the military to help deal with this problem, but it is an issue that we all have to face in our society, and the military is no different."
Joining me from Tampa, Florida, tonight to talk more about this is retired Army chaplain Richard Stiliha. He is also a major contributor to the U.S. Army's manual on suicide prevention. Appreciate you being with us, Richard.
The U.S. Army basically says no overall spike, and yet you look at the number of suicides in the Army -- so far this year, a total of 58 Army officers committed suicide -- soldiers, I should say, committed suicide, compared to some 50 last year, 63 in 2001. Of course, the year so far is not over.
Does the number of suicides, particularly in Iraq, 17, concern you?
RICHARD STILIHA, RETIRED U.S. ARMY CHAPLAIN: It is a growing number, and it's a concern. I don't know that it's an alarming concern, when you consider that during the Gulf War years, let's say '91, '92, '93, the suicide rate was about 14 per 100,000. If you factor in the rate per 100,000 at this time, it's probably around 12.
That's still too many. And, of course, the stresses that the troops are facing, the accumulated stresses, other factors, this is something to be concerned about.
COOPER: How much is it, I mean stresses like, you know, sniping and sort of not knowing who is around you, and how much of it is more traditional, I guess, concerns or things that lead to -- lead to a soldier to take their life. You know, receiving a letter from home that has bad news?
STILIHA: Sure, there are some warning signs. Such things as legal problems, financial problems, what we call a "Dear John" letter. These are problems that -- and concerns.
However, there are also risk factors that have to be labeled in there. Such things as depression, because two-thirds of people who do commit suicide, whether they are in the military or not, have a serious problem with depression. And these combat stress teams, which compose of chaplains and social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, are doing an excellent job in trying to screen and take care of those needs. We know this because some 400 people have been already evacuated who are psychological casualties, and so they have been identified.
COOPER: And, of course, holidays are a tough time for anyone, especially anyone suffering from any form of depression. No doubt it's no different when you're separated as far away as many of these young men and women are. STILIHA: Yes.
COOPER: They are more connected in a way, I mean, through e-mail and the ability to phone, I think, than soldiers in other wars, or Marines in other wars. But that's sort of a double-edged sword, isn't it?
STILIHA: It is. You could get good news or bad news over the phone or over e-mail, and distance is always a problem and a factor. The fact that there are chaplains in every unit that are trying to monitor the morale of the soldiers, you've got close links with the chain of command, the chain of command trying to provide morale activities and off-time things for them to do. More and more PX and commissary things are available, more entertainment things are available to the troops. Religious services during the holidays and so forth.
This is a plus. This is a help for the morale.
COOPER: Richard Stiliha, we appreciate you joining us with your perspective. Thank you.
STILIHA: Thank you.
COOPER: Coming up next, the prayer vigils around the globe, not to end world hunger or fight AIDS. No, these are prayer vigils for Michael Jackson. We'll show you some of them.
And the movie described by one critic as, quote, "a vulgar, uninspired lump of poisoned eye candy" -- clearly moviegoers don't always listen to the critics. We'll look at how "The Cat in the Hat" did at the box office, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, the Michael Jackson faithful lead off tonight's check of the pop culture "Current."
Meet the citizens of planet Jacko. These are some of the die- hard fans in France. One of the cities -- I guess in Paris, where Michael Jackson vigils sprang up in all their strangeness this weekend. One distraught Michael fan says she hasn't eaten or slept in three days. Her problem was later diagnosed as she was suffering from a serious lack of perspective.
President Bush pardoned Stars the turkey today, as young onlookers flocked to the luckiest bird in America and thought, mmm, Stars, he looks delicious. From now on, Stars will be chilling like a villain at Frying Pan Park in Virginia, a constant reminder of how close he came to death in the fiery pits of a 350-degree oven. No, kids, he's not to be eaten.
Now, being the prime minister of the United Kingdom is one thing, but you know you have really arrived when you get a guest spot on "The Simpsons." Prime Minister Tony Blair himself could be heard on "The Simpsons" last night. A crowning moment, we're sure, for the venerable prime minister.
And the critics despised it, no doubt about that, but did it matter at all for "The Cat in the Hat"? Oh, no, no, sir, fine, ladies and gents. Americans went and spent and spent. $40 million all told. Number one through the land. Studio honchos say let the critics be damned.
And that's the check of tonight's "Current."
Coming up -- celebrity muggings to "The Nth Degree." Why the celebrity mugshot is the great equalizer.
Plus, tomorrow, American POWs from the first Gulf War. Why the U.S. doesn't want them to collect the settlement they won for the torture they suffered.
First, tonight's buzz, is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? What do you think? Vote now, at cnn.com/360. Results when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Time now for "The Buzz." We asked you, is justice served by giving John Allen Muhammad the death penalty? Seventy-six percent of you said yes; 24 percent voted no. Not a scientific poll, just viewer buzz.
Tonight, celebrity muggings to "The Nth Degree." These days the celebrity is a specimen not like the rest of us. They're buffed, waxed, plucked, nipped, tucked and botoxed. There is a stylist at every turn, a minion keeping them constantly hydrated, and a lightning guide to bathe them in that special star-kissed glow.
There is, perhaps, only one place where we can still see the celebrity in the cold, harsh glare of reality. I speak, of course, about the celebrity mugshot.
Now, is it just me, or were you riveted to this image? Now, compared to other celebrity mugshots, Michael Jackson's looks like the star put some effort into it. Eyebrows carefully arched, eyeliner, lipstick firmly in place.
Other stars weren't so prepared. Nick Nolte looks part crazy clown, part Jimmy Buffett.
Then there's this recent mugshot of Wynonna Judd. Yes, that is Wynonna Judd, not some stressed out suburban soccer mom.
Paul Reubens, once blubbed his Pee-Wee Herman, looks more like some middle-aged guy with a mullet. And Hugh Grant doesn't look here like he's about to deliver any of that snappy British wit or cute guy charm, does he?
Of course, I didn't look so great either during my tiny brush with the law back in the swinging '70s. All right, truth be told, I made that picture up. But seriously, why do these pictures always fascinate? Perhaps it's because real life and all its messiness isn't the stuff that's captured by folks like Annie Leibovitz in the pages of "Vanity Fair" magazine. In a world where celebrity is usually seen through a rose- colored lens, the mugshot is a reminder that the rich and famous are mere mortals, bad hair and all. Their money may buy them better lawyers, but in a mugshot, and hopefully in the eyes of the law, everyone is equal.
That wraps up our program tonight. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."
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Overhaul: Bill Headed for Final Vote>
