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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees

Interview with Parents of Terri Schiavo, Robert and Mary Schindler; A look at Political Turmoil in Beirut

Aired March 18, 2005 - 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.


HEIDI COLLINS, HOST: Good evening from New York, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. Anderson Cooper will join us in just a moment.
Breaking news from Florida in the case of a missing 9-year-old.

360 starts now.

She hasn't spoken in years -- brain-damaged, and her life hanging in the balance. Tonight, Terri Schiavo's parents' frenzied efforts to keep her alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB SCHINDLER, TERRI SCHIAVO'S FATHER: It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: And her husband's determination not to prolong her life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL SCHIAVO, TERRI SCHIAVO'S HUSBAND: This is Terri's wish. And I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A possible break in the case of a missing 9-year-old girl who disappeared from her own bed. A convicted sex offender allegedly makes a confession.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS COUNTY, FLORIDA: John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Living under dictatorship, secret police and tight government control. Anderson Cooper with an exclusive look inside Syria. Find out what the people really think when the cameras are turned off. And two twister-chasers high on the thrill of chasing the power of Mother Nature's fury. Coming up, find out about their extraordinary adventures and what drives them to go into the heart of the storms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A sense of fascination and a little bit of fear.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is a special edition of ANDERSON COOPER 360 with Anderson Cooper in Beirut, Lebanon, and Heidi Collins in New York.

COLLINS: Breaking news tonight here at home and overseas.

A major break in the case of a 9-year-old girl who disappeared from her bed in Florida. Police right now are focusing on a convicted sex offender who was staying across the street from Jessica Lunsford.

Here's what they said in a press conference just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAWSY: John Couey was polygraphed today, and at the end of the polygraph, he says, You don't need to tell me the results. I already know what they are. Could I have the investigators come back in? And the investigators came back in.

He apologized to the investigators for wasting their time. And I'm now going to use the word that you probably waited for me to use. John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: We will have more on that story.

Plus, out of Beirut, Lebanon, where Anderson Cooper has been reporting from all week, there's been another bombing in the capital, in a predominantly Christian area on the east side the city.

Anderson's on the phone now from the scene. Anderson, what can you tell us?

ANDERSON COOPER, HOST (on phone): Heidi, the scene is pretty chaotic right now. Investigators have cordoned off the area. I'm standing about 10 feet away from what is very clearly a -- once was a car. It is now believed it was a car bomb. The vehicle in which the bomb was in has been completely destroyed. It is completely black. You can barely tell it is a car at all.

It was blown about 20 to 30 feet to where it rests right now. It was parked in front of an office building. The bomb detonated (ph) about an hour ago. It has completely decimated the first several floors of an office building, and in surrounding buildings, the windows have been blown out.

There were reports -- Reuters reporting six injuries early on the scene, but right now I'm seeing people rushing to the wreckage, medical (ph) crews (ph) bringing a stretcher. It -- there may be someone else either alive or dead inside the wreckage.

This is happening right now as we're speaking. People are rushing to the scene, leaving behind the car bomb. There are police still investigating the actual vehicle, looking for any evidence, any trace evidence about what kind of an explosive device was used. It's not believed that anybody -- it's not believed that anyone was in the car bomb at the time. The car was said to be empty.

It is not clear, either, why this building was targeted, what these offices signify. The bomb blast about an hour ago, heard all the way in downtown Beirut, about five miles away.

I'll have a lot more later on 360, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Anderson, thanks so much. We will, of course, check back in just a little bit later on tonight.

For now, though, we move on.

Morality, religion, and politics, all in play tonight in the battle over Terri Schiavo. Shortly after 1:00 p.m. Eastern, the feeding tube keeping the severely brain-damaged woman alive was removed. If it stays disconnected, she will die.

Her husband says that is her wish. Her family says her wish is to live. Their tug-of-war has touched a nerve nationwide.

And now, members of Congress are stepping in.

CNN's Carol Lin on the woman at the center of the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Terri Schiavo -- her given name is Theresa Marie -- weighed about 110 pounds when she reached her 26th birthday in December 1989. But the thin Terri in these pictures was quite different from the one who had graduated from high school a decade earlier. Then, she was nearly 100 pounds heavier.

Weight had always been a problem, losing, gaining, and losing again. In February of 1990, when she collapsed, gasping, on the floor of her home, weight was still a problem, and bulimia her demon.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO, TERRI SCHIAVO'S HUSBAND: Bulimia is, from what I learned over the years, is a very secretive disease. Terri's electrolyte balance in her body that day -- she had a 2.0 potassium. Now, potassium feeds your heart.

LIN: Terri's heart had failed. The episode left her with serious brain damage.

For the next three years, she was moved in and out of various treatment centers and was awarded more than a million dollars in malpractice claims. But by 1993, Michael, and Terri's parents and brother and sister, were in serious disagreement over the course of her care and the nature of her condition.

ROBERT SCHINDLER, JR., TERRI SCHIAVO'S BROTHER: I am totally convinced that Terri is very aware of what we're saying. And, you know, we understand, Terri has a disability. She's profoundly disabled, but can be helped.

LIN: Yet her husband contends it was never her wish to live this way, that she would want to die.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is Terri's wish, and I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri. I love Terri deeply, and I'm going to follow it out for Terri.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terri, can you look at me?

LIN: And for the last decade, the dispute over whether to continue care or end it has involved state and federal courts, the State of Florida, and the U.S. Congress, and has galvanized both so- called right-to-life and right-to-die groups.

REP. TOM DELAY (R), TEXAS: Terri Schiavo is alive. She's not just barely alive. She's not being kept alive. She is alive as you and I. And as such, we have a moral obligation to protect and defend her from the fate premeditated by the Florida courts. This is not over...

GEORGE PELOS, MICHAEL SCHIAVO'S ATTORNEY: She has become a pawn in a political football game between different elements in this country. And at this point, she unfortunately is nothing -- I believe, nothing more than a cause for certain elements to prove their political prowess and political power.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: So the House of Representatives today, Heidi, issued a subpoena here stopping the tube from being removed, the feeding tube from being removed from Terri Schiavo, saying that Congress wanted to actually see this woman for themselves. Therefore, they had to see her in person.

Well, a circuit court judge here disagreed, saying Congress had no business in a local matter, and if they intervened here, they could intervene in virtually anyone's healthcare across the country.

So the circuit judge said, No, the feeding tube must be disconnected. It was, some time after 1:45 this afternoon.

The family says it's not over yet. They're hoping for an 11th- hour appeal, an emergency session by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals over the weekend. And they have filed a federal suit of their own against Michael Schiavo, the husband, as well as the circuit court judge here in Pinellas County, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Carol Lin for us, reporting tonight from Clearwater. Thanks so much, Carol Lin.

And Terri Schiavo's husband, Michael, has tried for years now to have her feeding tube removed. He insists he's only following her wish. Michael Schiavo spoke with Larry King in 2003 and began that interview talking about the last time his wife, Terri, spoke to him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE," October 27, 2003)

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Terri and I were trying to have children. We were back and forth to a doctor for a year or so, trying to find out why we weren't getting pregnant. Climbed into bed, Terri said good night to me, gave me a kiss. She woke up, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), gave me a kiss. I gave her a kiss back.

I'd say about 4:30 in the morning, I was for some reason getting out of bed, and I heard a thud in the hall. I raced out there, and Terri was laying in the hall. I went down to get her, thought maybe, Well, she just tripped or whatever. I rolled her over, and she was lifeless. And it was almost seems like she had this last breath.

So I held her in my arms, and I'm trying to shake her up. I ran over, I called 911. Her brother happened to live in the same complex as we did. I called him. Then I went back to Terri. And from there, six, seven minutes later, the paramedics showed pup.

LARRY KING, HOST: And the way she is now is the way she was that night?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: That night, she was totally unconscious.

KING: And later, what developed? She opened -- her eyes opened?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Probably about a month later, she opened her eyes.

KING: What was the diagnosis? What happened to her?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: What we can fathom right now is, her potassium level was very low. More than likely, bulimia. Her potassium was very, very low, she had a 2.0, which caused cardiac arrest.

KING: Was she a bulimic?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: I -- when I was with her, when we were together, Terri would eat and eat and eat.

KING: Meaning -- bulimia (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Bulimia's a very...

KING: ... throwing up her meals?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right. Bulimia is, from what I've learned over the years, is a very secretive disease. Terri's electrolyte balance in her body that day -- she had a 2.0 potassium. That potassium feeds your heart, makes your heart pump.

Terri is in a chronic persistent vegetative state.

KING: Meaning she has...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: She has no awareness, no consciousness. She's in a contracted state. Her hands, her arms, her legs are contracted.

KING: We see now there, you can -- we see the eyes open, a smile. It looks like a smile.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: No, now, you got to remember here, too, when the Schindler's show their little snippets of Terri, there's four and a half hours of tape, OK?

KING: Is (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is edited. This is a tape where they snuck in against a court order after the judge said, Do not photograph her anymore.

KING: But she looks like -- (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right.

KING: ... she doesn't look -- she's not in a coma.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right. But you're missing half -- you're missing three-quarters of the other tape, where her mother does the same thing and she does nothing.

Now, Terri makes those same noises for the last 14 years. She's made those same facial expressions. She blinks her eyes. She has normal sleep-wake cycles. Now, the nurses have even testified in the trial that Terri makes those noises when nobody is in the room. This is Terri...

KING: Why did you want the feeding tube removed?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is Terri's wish, and I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri. I love Terri deeply. And I'm going to follow it out for Terri.

KING: How old was she when this happened?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Twenty-five.

KING: A 25-year-old said to you, If I die, if I'm in this kind of state -- Most 25-year-olds wouldn't think of something like that.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: It was a comment from watching certain programs. She said -- we were watching some programs, and she says, I don't want to -- I don't want anything artificial like that. I don't want any tubes. Don't let me live like that. I don't want to be a burden to anybody. She's also made comments to other people about different stories.

KING: OK. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: And that has been -- that has been tried over and over and over again, and 19 judges has come -- have come to the conclusion that that was Terri's wish.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: That was Terri Schiavo's husband.

A little later in this show, we will hear from her parents as well, who continue to fight for her life.

And there are a lot of questions tonight about Terri Schiavo's condition, and what happens now that the feeding tube has been removed.

For answers, 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta is joining us now live from Atlanta.

Good evening to you, Sanjay.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good evening.

COLLINS: We heard Michael Schiavo right there in that snippet from Larry King's program use that term, the persistent vegetative state. It's been commonly used with the Schiavo case, in fact. How does it differ from a coma or life-support states?

GUPTA: Yes, you know, terms are important here, Heidi, when it comes to this sort of thing. A persistent or permanent vegetative state typically means someone who has lost all of their upper brain functions, their ability to actually speak, their ability to understand. But they haven't lost their brainstem function, more primitive reflexes.

As you heard mentioned there, you can have sleep-wake cycles. You may open your eyes spontaneously. You may even respond. For example, if someone was to make a loud noise, really loud noise, on your right side, someone in a persistent vegetative state in some cases might even turn their head slightly towards that noise.

So there are some responses, there is some interaction, it appears, a little bit, in that sense, but there's no upper brain function, no ability to actually think.

In a coma situation, to answer your question, a coma typically no -- someone has no response at all to their external stimuli, they don't open their eyes, they have no movement. And that's their sort of picture, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, so then, what exactly does a feeding tube do? I mean, how does this work?

GUPTA: Well, you know, when you're in a persistent vegetative state, or permanent vegetative state, you can't eat. You're not going to be able to swallow on your own. Swallowing is a complicated reflex. Can't do that on their own.

So actually a feeding tube -- and I have one here, I think, this actually demonstrates a little bit. The actual feeding tube is actually placed directly through the skin, and then into the stomach, like this. So it actually goes straight through the skin and into the stomach and sits there.

And now you can see here, Heidi, at the end of this, you actually have -- it's a tubing, and you can actually hook up some actual food, in this case, a tube feeding, that goes into this tube and then directly into the stomach.

It is my understanding that is what has happened today and what has happened in the past is this tube has actually been closed off. No more tube feeding is going through. And so that no further nutrition is being given to Terri, Heidi.

COLLINS: And just to clarify, too, Sanjay, Terri Schiavo can swallow, correct?

GUPTA: Yes, I think she can swallow, but I think that she's probably not able to swallow enough to get nutrition or take actually take feedings regularly.

COLLINS: OK. OK. And on that note, you say that it's a lack of nutrients and water that ultimately lead to death. Terri's husband says after removing this feeding tube, she will peacefully drift away. But her parents are saying something different. They say that this is cruel, painful starvation.

GUPTA: This is a difficult area, Heidi. It's difficult to know, because the people that oftentimes have their tube feedings taken away are people who are in a persistent vegetative state and cannot communicate. So let me preface by saying that.

Having said that, there are other people who have been in end-of- life situations who are able to talk. Some studies have been done, and studies have shown that actually near the end of life, in an end- of-life situation, hunger and thirst actually goes away.

Now, we don't know what's going to happen specifically in terms of if there's starvation sort of pains, or what happens. But oftentimes comfort measures are given. And what that typically means, Heidi, is that in addition to tube feeds going away, some pain medications or something like that are given to ensure that someone's comfortable.

COLLINS: 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta tonight on such a tough, tough case. Thanks, Sanjay.

GUPTA: Thank you.

COLLINS: 360 next, a possible break in the case of a missing 9- year-old girl who disappeared from her own bed. A convicted sex offender allegedly makes a confession.

Plus, living under dictatorship, secret police, and tight government control. Anderson Cooper joins us live with an exclusive look inside Syria. Find out what the people really say when the cameras are off.

Also tonight, "Twister Sisters." They race to the eye of the storm as others evacuate. Find out what's driving them to document destruction.

But first, your picks, the most popular stories on CNN.com right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: More now on the breaking news we told you at the top of the show tonight, an apparent tragic ending to the heart-wrenching case of missing 9-year-old Florida girl Jessica Lunsford.

Just a short while ago, police announced that convicted sex offender John Couey admitted to abducting and killing Jessica.

CNN's Susan Candiotti is live now in Augusta, Georgia, with the very latest on this. Susan, good evening.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.

Yes, in the words of Sheriff Dawsy down in Florida. who has been investigating this case, "I've got my man."

It is the news that Jessica Lunsford's family has been dreading the most. Police say they now have a confession from the convicted sex offender they had been calling a person of interest in this case, John Couey. He's the one who had been living in a house diagonally located across the street from Jessica Lunsford's home.

She has been missing since February the 23rd. And then Couey left town before police had a chance to find him. Eventually they did, here in Georgia.

Investigators have been talking to Couey for two days here in jail after they picked him up on a probation violation charge. They spent over 11 hours with him. And after a while, late this afternoon, investigators said this is what happened when they were talking with Couey, who had been cooperating with them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAWSY: John Couey was polygraphed today. And at the end of the polygraph, he said, You don't need to tell me the results, I already know what they are. Could I have the investigators come back in. And the investigators came back in. He apologized to the investigators for wasting their time and I'm now going to use the word that you've probably waited for me to use. John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Authorities are now obtaining a search warrant. They plan, they say, to execute it at that house. Law enforcement sources tell us that Couey told them that he buried Jessica's body behind the house. There is no verification of that at this time.

There is, finally, some chilling video we wanted to briefly show you, shot apparently over the weekend by a local television station here in Augusta before John Couey was arrested. They happened to be doing a story about people smoking in bars, and they caught him on videotape, John Couey himself, before he was arrested.

Lastly, we want to tell you this. According to investigators who left here a little while ago, the ones who were talking to John Couey, he said after he told them what he had done, according to police, he broke down and cried. Heidi, back to you.

COLLINS: Susan, that video is amazing. What a coincidence there. All right. Susan Candiotti tonight, thanks so much.

And now, for the rest of the day's headlines, let's check in with Erica Hill from HEADLINE NEWS. Hi, Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS: Hi, Heidi.

Well, it turns out President Bush is calling in the big guns to help pitch his plan to overhaul Social Security -- his mom. Barbara Bush joined her son in Florida today to stress to the senior set that creating private Social Security accounts would not affect their benefits. Recent polls show a growing concern among Americans about the president's plan, which allows younger workers to invest some of their payroll taxes into private accounts.

Former Connecticut Governor John Rowland will report to prison April 1. The three-term Republican was sentenced today to one year and one day in federal prison for corruption. After that, he'll have four months of home confinement and three years of supervised release. Rowland cut a plea deal in December, admitting he ran up more than $100,000 in chartered flights and used state money to pay for construction on his lakeside home.

New government crash tests show the Chevrolet Astro and GMC Safari fared worst among minivans. A GM spokesman says both vehicles meet federal safety standards, and also notes those tests were done in '99. During rollover tests, the Ford E-150 van received the worst rating. Five minivans received a top rating in both frontal and side impact tests. They include the Mazda MPV, Dodge Grand Caravan, and Chrysler Town and Country.

The judge in the Martha Stewart case will have a chance to reconsider Stewart's sentence. A federal appeals court is sending the sentencing portion of the case back to a lower court. Now, the remand is not unusual in criminal cases. It doesn't mean that Stewart will be released early from her home detention.

Heidi... COLLINS: All right.

HILL: ... turn it back over to you.

COLLINS: Erica Hill, see you again in 30 minutes. Thanks so much.

And we'll be back right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Major developments this week in Beirut, as Syrian troops began a pullout that will end 30 years of occupation there. Can the Lebanese democracy movement actually win out? And will the Syrians really leave?

We get some answers now from the Syrian side. Anderson went there yesterday. Here's what he found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Driving into Syria from Lebanon, you see pretty quick who's the boss. Dotting the highway, billboards of Syrian President Bashar Assad and his late father, Hafez, who ruled Syria for nearly 30 years.

Bashar Assad, like his dad, maintains power through a vast intelligence network. Dissent isn't tolerated. The press is tightly controlled.

(on camera): The first thing you have to do when you get into Damascus as a journalist is go to the ministry of information and pick up your government minder.

Could we tell them that we don't need a minder?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's try that, Anderson, shall we? Let's try that. We'll be asked to leave. It's as simple as that. We just -- you know, we do what we have to do, OK?

COOPER (voice-over): Our minder was a friendly young man who explained he was there to help us. Of course, he would also monitor what we did, whom we talked to, and what they told us.

(on camera): It's amazing, even here in a marketplace, everywhere you'll find pictures of Syria's president. The problem he now faces, if he pulls his troops out of Lebanon, it'll be seen as an unmistakable sign of weakness, and it could have a major impact, not only on Syria's standing in the Arab world, but on the Syrian president's ability to hold onto power.

(voice-over): Of course, people on the street won't say that. Everyone here is very aware they're being watched.

"Separating Lebanon from Syria is like separating the soul from the body," she says. "They'll stay together because the Lebanese can't make it on their own."

This man insists Israel is behind anti-Syria demonstrations in Lebanon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Israel is behind all these dirty games that is going on in politics. You know, and every other journalist, and all the other media in the United States is owned by Jews, it's pro- Jewish.

COOPER (on camera): But when you hear Americans or the President Bush talking about democracy in the Middle East, what do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said like director, shame on you, Bush.

COOPER: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I don't like Bush, because it's very racist.

COOPER: He's very racist?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is the democracy in Iraq?

COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just -- I want to show you...

COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the point of view. Where is this democracy in Iraq when killed a lot of people, Iraqi people? And where is this democracy in Abu Ghraib jails, for example?

COOPER (voice-over): While Bashar Assad rules with absolute authority and can't be voted out of power, Syria says it's a democracy. And not surprisingly, everyone on the street seems to agree.

(on camera): You really believe that Syria is more Democratic than the United States?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes, I believe -- I believe in...

COOPER (voice-over): Yes, yes, she says, Syria has more democracy than any other country in the world.

COOPER (on camera): Really, so if you said something against the government here, you wouldn't be worried?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

COOPER (voice-over): No, she says. With all my heart and emotion I salute President Bashar. He's a wonderful leader.

The people we talked to said they could criticize the president if they wanted to, it's just he's so good there's nothing to criticize.

(on camera): What do you think about the government here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they're doing well.

COOPER: No complaints?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no complaints.

COOPER: When you talk to Syrians on the street, they all tell you pretty much the same thing. When the cameras are rolling, they say, we love our president, we have no complaints. When the cameras are gone, however, and the government minder is not around, they'll tell you a very different story.

One man just said to us, I can't say what I really think on camera. We live in a dictatorship. If I said that, the secret police would come and pay me a visit.

(voice-over): That of course is how it used to be in Iraq under Saddam Hussein. And until a few months ago, Lebanese were afraid to speak out against Syria. Change has already come to those countries. The question now is, when will it come here and how?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: She hasn't spoken in years -- brain damaged and her life hanging in the balance. Tonight, Terri Schiavo's' parents frenzied efforts to keep her alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

B. SCHINDLER: It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: And two twister chasers high on the thrill of chasing the power of mother nature's fury. Coming up, find out about their extraordinary adventures and what drives them to go into the heart of storms. 360 continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We return now to our top story: the battle over Terri Schiavo. Despite a last-ditch effort from members of Congress to keep her alive, her feeding tube was disconnected earlier this afternoon.

Schiavo's husband says it is the right thing to do. Her parents believe it is murder.

For Bob and Mary Schindler, their daughter did not have a death wish. And with therapy say she can get better. They shared their feelings last month in an interview with CNN's John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) B. SCHINDLER: It's hard to believe that this ever happened. It's hard -- I'm being very candid. It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her. There's no reason for her to die.

And I just cannot believe that the judicial system, the courts, would execute her for no reason other than hearsay evidence. It just -- I cannot understand it. And I view it as frontier justice and amongst many other things. Judge Roy Bean, all those characters. It's just -- it's uncalled for. You don't want to kill someone like her. My lord, there's no reason for it.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mary?

MARY SCHINDLER, MOTHER: Well, it's just that I feel that every time -- it just seems like every time we get so close, that the person that intravenous the most is God. And last time, I mean, he waited -- he waited a while, but he came through.

And he's my strength and my power and, you know, he knows. Terri is such a fighter. She just -- if she wanted to die, believe me, she would have died a long time ago. The Lord doesn't want her yet. He has her here for a purpose.

ZARRELLA: You have, since '93 gone to Michael Schiavo, written him letters and you've said, listen -- well, tell us what you've said. You can have everything, right? Just give us our daughter, right?

M. SCHINDLER: That's all. You have a life -- you have your life now, which is great. You have a live-in. You have two children. Just give my daughter back to me. That's all. You know, I just want to take care of her.

B. SCHINDLER: See, in 1993...

M. SCHINDLER: And he keeps saying no.

ZARRELLA: I was going to ask you.

B. SCHINDLER: He doesn't say no. He doesn't acknowledge.

M. SCHINDLER: He doesn't even respond to the letters, no, nothing. Nothing.

B. SCHINDLER: We hear nothing.

ZARRELLA: And, obviously, it has to be horribly frustrating not to understand -- or do you understand what the motivations are?

M. SCHINDLER: I don't. I really don't. I don't have a clue other than he keeps saying this is her wishes -- alleged wishes, OK. He keeps saying this is Terri's alleged wishes. But how can you starve somebody to death? I mean, you know, I just don't understand. He just has no answer.

ZARRELLA: You got to see her today after the press conference. B. SCHINDLER: Yes.

ZARRELLA: How did she look, Mary?

M. SCHINDLER: She looks great. She looked wonderful. She was sitting in her chair.

And like I said, I was telling the people in the room there that I walked in and she was sound asleep in her chair. And I walked in and I said, you going wake up? And she started opening her eyes. And I said, it's me, it's mommy. And her eyes got like saucers. And she started -- she starts laughing.

And that's what I can see. When she does that and when she starts trying to talk to me, you know -- I don't understand her, I can see those things on that MRI just flashing back and forth knowing that she's got some cognitive level in her and that something can help her.

ZARRELLA: You've never believed that she was in a persistent vegetative state, have you?

M. SCHINDLER: I never believed she wasn't -- she's not a houseplant either.

B. SCHINDLER: Refers to it as a houseplant.

M. SCHILDNER: No, she's not in PVS and not a houseplant.

B. SCHINDLER: People lose sight of the fact -- there must be two dozen medical professionals that are on record now with the courts stating she's not in a persistent vegetative state. And they're being ignored by everyone.

I think Mr. Randal Terry inferred as much, like give her a chance. But no ones ever -- not only have they not give her a rehabilitation chance. They haven't even given her a chance with the public.

She's perceived as being hooked up on all kinds of devices, that she's in a coma, she's a flat line and there's nothing there and it's quite the contrary. So that -- and it -- as I mentioned, there's affidavits coming up the ying-yang that state from unpaid professionals, neurologists stating that she's not in PVS.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And Terri Schiavo's parents, sister and husband will all be Larry King's guest tonight on LARRY KING LIVE. That comes your way 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

360 next, the man who made the Schiavo decision. The judge at the center of the case, now the target of death threats.

Also, instead of running away from tornadoes, they run toward them. We'll introduce you to the twister sisters.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Much of the anger over the decision to remove Terri Schiavo's breathing tube is directed at the judge who issued that order. There have been calls for his impeachment, even death threats. CNN's John Zarrella goes beyond the headlines for more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ZARRELLA: Judge George Greer has over the past couple of years become accustomed to having the finger pointed at him.

REP. TOM DELAY, (R) MAJORITY LEADER: This judge in Florida wants to pull her feeding tube and let her starve for two weeks. That is barbaric.

ZARRELLA: For the past seven years, Judge Greer has presided over a case, Schindler vs. Schiavo, that has divided family and even the nation.

Because he ruled three times now that Terri Schiavo's feeding tube be removed, the 63-year-old Pinellas County judge has been the target of right-to-life activists. Protests have been staged on the steps of the Clearwater Courthouse. In front of the hospice where Schiavo lies, a van drove by, covered in messages to Judge Greer. For many of the people here, like Wes Thompson, this county judge is playing God.

WES THOMPSON, PROTESTER: I believe the judge has overstepped his bounds and is now standing above God in the way he's making his decisions.

ZARRELLA: Greer has always been steadfast in saying he rules by the letter of the law.

JUDGE GEORGE GREER, PINELLAS CO. CIRCUIT COURT: I mean, it's not a popularity contest on how I rule on things. It's -- I'm supposed to rule on the law. That's the oath I took and that's what I try to do.

ZARRELLA: It's unfair the way Greer is being portrayed says Mary Repper, a one-time political consultant and longtime friend of the judge.

MARY REPPER, FRM. POLITICAL CONSULTANT: Anybody that knows George Greer knows what an honorable, decent man he is.

ZARRELLA: Repper ran Greer's successful campaign for county commission before he became a judge.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Integrity.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You look for George Greer.

ZARRELLA: Repper says the case is weighing heavily on Judge Greer and taking its toll. These days he needs police protection.

Repper says his life has been threatened. And he worries constantly about his family. Greer is anything but a villain, says his friend.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If they made a movie about George Greer, they would probably get Gary Cooper to play the movie, because he just doesn't walk away from controversy. He's the kind of guy who believes in what he does and he doesn't run.

ZARRELLA: Greer, who declined to be interviewed for this report, has chosen to take it on the chin and suffer, his friends say, for the most part, in silence.

John Zarrella, CNN, Clearwater, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: A major break in the case of a missing 9-year-old girl. Erica Hill joins us now with the headlines. Hello once again, Erica.

HILL: Hi. Yes, I have some heartbreaking news for Jessica's family. Authorities say a convicted sex offender has now confessed to kidnapping and murdering Jessica Lunsford. John Couey was arrested in Georgia yesterday on an unrelated charge. He had been living with relatives across the street from the 9-year-old girl. Investigators now believe he kidnapped the girl about three weeks ago.

Wal-Mart will pay $11 million in fines as part of a settlement into its hiring practices, but the retailer won't face criminal sanctions from the long-running federal probe. The investigation focused on the hiring of illegal workers by Wal-Mart's cleaning contractors. Investigators also uncovered cases of some illegal workers working seven days a week without overtime pay.

And a St. Louis Congressman is trying to take Mark McGwire's name off a stretch of Interstate 70. The Mark McGwire Highway was dedicated after the former Cardinal slugger hit 70 home runs in one season. Missouri Democrat William Lacy Clay, though, tells the Associated Press, McGwire has not been cooperative enough in a Congressional steroid investigation, and in his estimation no longer deserves the honor.

And Heidi, that's the latest from HEADLINE NEWS. Back to you.

COLLINS: All right, Erica, thanks so much for that. See you back in 30 minutes.

360 next now, two sisters putting their lives now in danger to chase tornadoes. What makes them do it, you'll find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We're just two days away from the start of spring, and that signals the start of this, tornado season. It's a busy time for the two women we're going to tell you about tonight. They call themselves the "Twister Sisters." And they spent a good part of their lives running towards tornadoes, hunting them down and describing every detail. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS (voice-over): For the "Twister Sisters," this is just another day on the job. For the past four years, Peggy Willenberg and Melanie Metz, not actually sisters, leave their families behind and team up to track down tornadoes, driving across the country in their tricked-out truck.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This shape is looking fairly nice.

COLLINS: Two among dozens who get their thrills forecasting, then finding the perfect storm, documenting the destruction, then selling the footage to the media. But why would two seemingly reasonable women risk their lives chasing tornadoes?

MELANIE METZ, TWISTER SISTER: Just a sense of fascination and a little bit of fear and combined, it makes it a very exhilarating experience to watch this powerful force.

COLLINS: Especially exhilarating when it all works out just right and they see the storm from the very start.

PEGGY WILLENBERG, TWISTER SISTER: This tornado formed right in front of us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God -- tornado.

WILLENBERG: If you want to call it the birth of a tornado, however, now we are about 30 seconds into it and let's watch what happens. Became a very large, powerful tornado.

COLLINS: That power was most apparent for the Twister Sisters in 2004. They were tracking a tornado in Nebraska that took out an entire town, flattening farmhouses, totaling trucks, leaving a 52 mile path of destruction in its wake. That day the Twister Sisters helped save three lives.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was nothing recognizable as a house but yet we knew there were three people under that pile of debris. So that was our goal, to get those people out of there before the house blew up.

COLLINS: There are an average of 800 tornadoes in the United States every season, resulting in around 80 deaths. But these intrepid hunters say despite the destruction, they are still astonished every time they see a twister's terrible beauty.

The geometry, the perfection, how much has to happen to create this just brief moment of perfection. And it's just a power -- something that you can't put your hands around. It's awesome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Their exploits are being featured in a special on the National Geographic Channel called "Thrill Zone: Tornado Hunters" which airs tomorrow night.

Well, go ahead and find out what's happening on PAULA ZAHN NOW coming up a little later tonight. Paula, hi.

PAULA ZAHN, HOST, PAULA ZAHN NOW: At the top of the hour we will continue following this hour's breaking story. Authorities are now saying a convicted sex offender has confessed to abducting and killing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, after a three-week search. We will be talking with close friends of the Lunsford family an Ed Smart, whose own daughter was abducted.

We'll bring you all the latest developments. I hope to see you at the top of the hour. Not the ending we were all praying for.

COLLINS: That's for sure. All right, Paula, thanks.

360 next. Massive crowds, a powerful rally for freedom and Anderson was in the middle of it all. His perspective as his week in Beirut nears an end.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Anderson Cooper's been live in Beirut all week witnessing history in the making and joins us once again.

What a week it's been, huh, Anderson?

COOPER: Yes, Heidi. It's been a peaceful month here since the bomb blast which killed the former Lebanese prime minister. Tonight, however, that peace was shattered. A car bomb exploded just a short time ago, about five miles from where I'm standing right now. I was at the scene of the car bomb. Let's take a look at some of the video we rolled on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: There's been a report of a bomb planted in a car that went off a short time ago in East Beirut. We're walking to the scene right now. It appears as if this vehicle might have been thrown over here. The bomb went off just a short time ago. We're in Christian East Beirut right now.

(UNINTELLIGIBLE) somewhere?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, it was on the corner (UNINTELLIGIBLE). And then it blew up and it came here.

COOPER: So this is the vehicle that the bomb was inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes...

COOPER: So it actually blew up.

(CROSSTALK)

COOPER: The bomb went off in front of an office complex. It pretty much destroyed the first floor and wrecked two or three floors above it. Windows have been blown out. Even on nearby buildings the windows have been blown up. People are already trying to clean up the glass.

The size of the blast, clearly it was not as big as the one that killed the former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, more than a month ago. It decimated this office building, really, the top three or four floors. The first floor of the office building is just completely destroyed. Some of the other stories have also received damage.

There are people still looking through the wreckage, still trying to see if there is anyone else left alive inside. Reports of -- there are no reports of fatalities at this point, but it is very early at this point. There were reports of six injuries, but we don't have any confirmation on the exact number. A number of ambulances have already left the scene and there are many rescue personnel here searching the rubble looking for anyone else who might be inside.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: A sad way to end our week, here, in Beirut. It has been an extraordinary week, an extraordinary time in this county and this region. Democracy -- the calls for democracy here, echoing loud and clear on Monday.

A massive demonstration, the largest not only in Lebanese history, but according to CNN's Beirut bureau chief, the largest he's ever seen in the Middle East. Well over a 500,000, maybe even close to a million people. That would be on quarter of the population of Lebanon, poured into the downtown streets of Beirut, demanding that Syria withdraw its forces, and its intelligence agents from this country, a country they have occupied since the late 1970's. That call is being echoed by the United States, being echoed by Europe and the U.N. who have all called for Syria to get out.

And we bring you now, this broadcast from the Martyr's Square, this the scene where protesters continue to man a 24-hour vigil demanding that Syria get out.

It's been a pleasure to be here with you from Lebanon all week. Thanks very much for watching.

Coming up next, PAULA ZAHN NOW -- Paula.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired March 18, 2005 - 19:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, HOST: Good evening from New York, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. Anderson Cooper will join us in just a moment.
Breaking news from Florida in the case of a missing 9-year-old.

360 starts now.

She hasn't spoken in years -- brain-damaged, and her life hanging in the balance. Tonight, Terri Schiavo's parents' frenzied efforts to keep her alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB SCHINDLER, TERRI SCHIAVO'S FATHER: It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: And her husband's determination not to prolong her life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL SCHIAVO, TERRI SCHIAVO'S HUSBAND: This is Terri's wish. And I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A possible break in the case of a missing 9-year-old girl who disappeared from her own bed. A convicted sex offender allegedly makes a confession.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS COUNTY, FLORIDA: John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Living under dictatorship, secret police and tight government control. Anderson Cooper with an exclusive look inside Syria. Find out what the people really think when the cameras are turned off. And two twister-chasers high on the thrill of chasing the power of Mother Nature's fury. Coming up, find out about their extraordinary adventures and what drives them to go into the heart of the storms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A sense of fascination and a little bit of fear.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is a special edition of ANDERSON COOPER 360 with Anderson Cooper in Beirut, Lebanon, and Heidi Collins in New York.

COLLINS: Breaking news tonight here at home and overseas.

A major break in the case of a 9-year-old girl who disappeared from her bed in Florida. Police right now are focusing on a convicted sex offender who was staying across the street from Jessica Lunsford.

Here's what they said in a press conference just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAWSY: John Couey was polygraphed today, and at the end of the polygraph, he says, You don't need to tell me the results. I already know what they are. Could I have the investigators come back in? And the investigators came back in.

He apologized to the investigators for wasting their time. And I'm now going to use the word that you probably waited for me to use. John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: We will have more on that story.

Plus, out of Beirut, Lebanon, where Anderson Cooper has been reporting from all week, there's been another bombing in the capital, in a predominantly Christian area on the east side the city.

Anderson's on the phone now from the scene. Anderson, what can you tell us?

ANDERSON COOPER, HOST (on phone): Heidi, the scene is pretty chaotic right now. Investigators have cordoned off the area. I'm standing about 10 feet away from what is very clearly a -- once was a car. It is now believed it was a car bomb. The vehicle in which the bomb was in has been completely destroyed. It is completely black. You can barely tell it is a car at all.

It was blown about 20 to 30 feet to where it rests right now. It was parked in front of an office building. The bomb detonated (ph) about an hour ago. It has completely decimated the first several floors of an office building, and in surrounding buildings, the windows have been blown out.

There were reports -- Reuters reporting six injuries early on the scene, but right now I'm seeing people rushing to the wreckage, medical (ph) crews (ph) bringing a stretcher. It -- there may be someone else either alive or dead inside the wreckage.

This is happening right now as we're speaking. People are rushing to the scene, leaving behind the car bomb. There are police still investigating the actual vehicle, looking for any evidence, any trace evidence about what kind of an explosive device was used. It's not believed that anybody -- it's not believed that anyone was in the car bomb at the time. The car was said to be empty.

It is not clear, either, why this building was targeted, what these offices signify. The bomb blast about an hour ago, heard all the way in downtown Beirut, about five miles away.

I'll have a lot more later on 360, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Anderson, thanks so much. We will, of course, check back in just a little bit later on tonight.

For now, though, we move on.

Morality, religion, and politics, all in play tonight in the battle over Terri Schiavo. Shortly after 1:00 p.m. Eastern, the feeding tube keeping the severely brain-damaged woman alive was removed. If it stays disconnected, she will die.

Her husband says that is her wish. Her family says her wish is to live. Their tug-of-war has touched a nerve nationwide.

And now, members of Congress are stepping in.

CNN's Carol Lin on the woman at the center of the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Terri Schiavo -- her given name is Theresa Marie -- weighed about 110 pounds when she reached her 26th birthday in December 1989. But the thin Terri in these pictures was quite different from the one who had graduated from high school a decade earlier. Then, she was nearly 100 pounds heavier.

Weight had always been a problem, losing, gaining, and losing again. In February of 1990, when she collapsed, gasping, on the floor of her home, weight was still a problem, and bulimia her demon.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO, TERRI SCHIAVO'S HUSBAND: Bulimia is, from what I learned over the years, is a very secretive disease. Terri's electrolyte balance in her body that day -- she had a 2.0 potassium. Now, potassium feeds your heart.

LIN: Terri's heart had failed. The episode left her with serious brain damage.

For the next three years, she was moved in and out of various treatment centers and was awarded more than a million dollars in malpractice claims. But by 1993, Michael, and Terri's parents and brother and sister, were in serious disagreement over the course of her care and the nature of her condition.

ROBERT SCHINDLER, JR., TERRI SCHIAVO'S BROTHER: I am totally convinced that Terri is very aware of what we're saying. And, you know, we understand, Terri has a disability. She's profoundly disabled, but can be helped.

LIN: Yet her husband contends it was never her wish to live this way, that she would want to die.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is Terri's wish, and I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri. I love Terri deeply, and I'm going to follow it out for Terri.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Terri, can you look at me?

LIN: And for the last decade, the dispute over whether to continue care or end it has involved state and federal courts, the State of Florida, and the U.S. Congress, and has galvanized both so- called right-to-life and right-to-die groups.

REP. TOM DELAY (R), TEXAS: Terri Schiavo is alive. She's not just barely alive. She's not being kept alive. She is alive as you and I. And as such, we have a moral obligation to protect and defend her from the fate premeditated by the Florida courts. This is not over...

GEORGE PELOS, MICHAEL SCHIAVO'S ATTORNEY: She has become a pawn in a political football game between different elements in this country. And at this point, she unfortunately is nothing -- I believe, nothing more than a cause for certain elements to prove their political prowess and political power.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: So the House of Representatives today, Heidi, issued a subpoena here stopping the tube from being removed, the feeding tube from being removed from Terri Schiavo, saying that Congress wanted to actually see this woman for themselves. Therefore, they had to see her in person.

Well, a circuit court judge here disagreed, saying Congress had no business in a local matter, and if they intervened here, they could intervene in virtually anyone's healthcare across the country.

So the circuit judge said, No, the feeding tube must be disconnected. It was, some time after 1:45 this afternoon.

The family says it's not over yet. They're hoping for an 11th- hour appeal, an emergency session by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals over the weekend. And they have filed a federal suit of their own against Michael Schiavo, the husband, as well as the circuit court judge here in Pinellas County, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, Carol Lin for us, reporting tonight from Clearwater. Thanks so much, Carol Lin.

And Terri Schiavo's husband, Michael, has tried for years now to have her feeding tube removed. He insists he's only following her wish. Michael Schiavo spoke with Larry King in 2003 and began that interview talking about the last time his wife, Terri, spoke to him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE," October 27, 2003)

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Terri and I were trying to have children. We were back and forth to a doctor for a year or so, trying to find out why we weren't getting pregnant. Climbed into bed, Terri said good night to me, gave me a kiss. She woke up, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), gave me a kiss. I gave her a kiss back.

I'd say about 4:30 in the morning, I was for some reason getting out of bed, and I heard a thud in the hall. I raced out there, and Terri was laying in the hall. I went down to get her, thought maybe, Well, she just tripped or whatever. I rolled her over, and she was lifeless. And it was almost seems like she had this last breath.

So I held her in my arms, and I'm trying to shake her up. I ran over, I called 911. Her brother happened to live in the same complex as we did. I called him. Then I went back to Terri. And from there, six, seven minutes later, the paramedics showed pup.

LARRY KING, HOST: And the way she is now is the way she was that night?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: That night, she was totally unconscious.

KING: And later, what developed? She opened -- her eyes opened?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Probably about a month later, she opened her eyes.

KING: What was the diagnosis? What happened to her?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: What we can fathom right now is, her potassium level was very low. More than likely, bulimia. Her potassium was very, very low, she had a 2.0, which caused cardiac arrest.

KING: Was she a bulimic?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: I -- when I was with her, when we were together, Terri would eat and eat and eat.

KING: Meaning -- bulimia (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Bulimia's a very...

KING: ... throwing up her meals?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right. Bulimia is, from what I've learned over the years, is a very secretive disease. Terri's electrolyte balance in her body that day -- she had a 2.0 potassium. That potassium feeds your heart, makes your heart pump.

Terri is in a chronic persistent vegetative state.

KING: Meaning she has...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: She has no awareness, no consciousness. She's in a contracted state. Her hands, her arms, her legs are contracted.

KING: We see now there, you can -- we see the eyes open, a smile. It looks like a smile.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: No, now, you got to remember here, too, when the Schindler's show their little snippets of Terri, there's four and a half hours of tape, OK?

KING: Is (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is edited. This is a tape where they snuck in against a court order after the judge said, Do not photograph her anymore.

KING: But she looks like -- (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right.

KING: ... she doesn't look -- she's not in a coma.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Right. But you're missing half -- you're missing three-quarters of the other tape, where her mother does the same thing and she does nothing.

Now, Terri makes those same noises for the last 14 years. She's made those same facial expressions. She blinks her eyes. She has normal sleep-wake cycles. Now, the nurses have even testified in the trial that Terri makes those noises when nobody is in the room. This is Terri...

KING: Why did you want the feeding tube removed?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: This is Terri's wish, and I'm going to follow that wish (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's the last thing I can do for Terri. I love Terri deeply. And I'm going to follow it out for Terri.

KING: How old was she when this happened?

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: Twenty-five.

KING: A 25-year-old said to you, If I die, if I'm in this kind of state -- Most 25-year-olds wouldn't think of something like that.

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: It was a comment from watching certain programs. She said -- we were watching some programs, and she says, I don't want to -- I don't want anything artificial like that. I don't want any tubes. Don't let me live like that. I don't want to be a burden to anybody. She's also made comments to other people about different stories.

KING: OK. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

MICHAEL SCHIAVO: And that has been -- that has been tried over and over and over again, and 19 judges has come -- have come to the conclusion that that was Terri's wish.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: That was Terri Schiavo's husband.

A little later in this show, we will hear from her parents as well, who continue to fight for her life.

And there are a lot of questions tonight about Terri Schiavo's condition, and what happens now that the feeding tube has been removed.

For answers, 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta is joining us now live from Atlanta.

Good evening to you, Sanjay.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good evening.

COLLINS: We heard Michael Schiavo right there in that snippet from Larry King's program use that term, the persistent vegetative state. It's been commonly used with the Schiavo case, in fact. How does it differ from a coma or life-support states?

GUPTA: Yes, you know, terms are important here, Heidi, when it comes to this sort of thing. A persistent or permanent vegetative state typically means someone who has lost all of their upper brain functions, their ability to actually speak, their ability to understand. But they haven't lost their brainstem function, more primitive reflexes.

As you heard mentioned there, you can have sleep-wake cycles. You may open your eyes spontaneously. You may even respond. For example, if someone was to make a loud noise, really loud noise, on your right side, someone in a persistent vegetative state in some cases might even turn their head slightly towards that noise.

So there are some responses, there is some interaction, it appears, a little bit, in that sense, but there's no upper brain function, no ability to actually think.

In a coma situation, to answer your question, a coma typically no -- someone has no response at all to their external stimuli, they don't open their eyes, they have no movement. And that's their sort of picture, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right, so then, what exactly does a feeding tube do? I mean, how does this work?

GUPTA: Well, you know, when you're in a persistent vegetative state, or permanent vegetative state, you can't eat. You're not going to be able to swallow on your own. Swallowing is a complicated reflex. Can't do that on their own.

So actually a feeding tube -- and I have one here, I think, this actually demonstrates a little bit. The actual feeding tube is actually placed directly through the skin, and then into the stomach, like this. So it actually goes straight through the skin and into the stomach and sits there.

And now you can see here, Heidi, at the end of this, you actually have -- it's a tubing, and you can actually hook up some actual food, in this case, a tube feeding, that goes into this tube and then directly into the stomach.

It is my understanding that is what has happened today and what has happened in the past is this tube has actually been closed off. No more tube feeding is going through. And so that no further nutrition is being given to Terri, Heidi.

COLLINS: And just to clarify, too, Sanjay, Terri Schiavo can swallow, correct?

GUPTA: Yes, I think she can swallow, but I think that she's probably not able to swallow enough to get nutrition or take actually take feedings regularly.

COLLINS: OK. OK. And on that note, you say that it's a lack of nutrients and water that ultimately lead to death. Terri's husband says after removing this feeding tube, she will peacefully drift away. But her parents are saying something different. They say that this is cruel, painful starvation.

GUPTA: This is a difficult area, Heidi. It's difficult to know, because the people that oftentimes have their tube feedings taken away are people who are in a persistent vegetative state and cannot communicate. So let me preface by saying that.

Having said that, there are other people who have been in end-of- life situations who are able to talk. Some studies have been done, and studies have shown that actually near the end of life, in an end- of-life situation, hunger and thirst actually goes away.

Now, we don't know what's going to happen specifically in terms of if there's starvation sort of pains, or what happens. But oftentimes comfort measures are given. And what that typically means, Heidi, is that in addition to tube feeds going away, some pain medications or something like that are given to ensure that someone's comfortable.

COLLINS: 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta tonight on such a tough, tough case. Thanks, Sanjay.

GUPTA: Thank you.

COLLINS: 360 next, a possible break in the case of a missing 9- year-old girl who disappeared from her own bed. A convicted sex offender allegedly makes a confession.

Plus, living under dictatorship, secret police, and tight government control. Anderson Cooper joins us live with an exclusive look inside Syria. Find out what the people really say when the cameras are off.

Also tonight, "Twister Sisters." They race to the eye of the storm as others evacuate. Find out what's driving them to document destruction.

But first, your picks, the most popular stories on CNN.com right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: More now on the breaking news we told you at the top of the show tonight, an apparent tragic ending to the heart-wrenching case of missing 9-year-old Florida girl Jessica Lunsford.

Just a short while ago, police announced that convicted sex offender John Couey admitted to abducting and killing Jessica.

CNN's Susan Candiotti is live now in Augusta, Georgia, with the very latest on this. Susan, good evening.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Heidi.

Yes, in the words of Sheriff Dawsy down in Florida. who has been investigating this case, "I've got my man."

It is the news that Jessica Lunsford's family has been dreading the most. Police say they now have a confession from the convicted sex offender they had been calling a person of interest in this case, John Couey. He's the one who had been living in a house diagonally located across the street from Jessica Lunsford's home.

She has been missing since February the 23rd. And then Couey left town before police had a chance to find him. Eventually they did, here in Georgia.

Investigators have been talking to Couey for two days here in jail after they picked him up on a probation violation charge. They spent over 11 hours with him. And after a while, late this afternoon, investigators said this is what happened when they were talking with Couey, who had been cooperating with them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAWSY: John Couey was polygraphed today. And at the end of the polygraph, he said, You don't need to tell me the results, I already know what they are. Could I have the investigators come back in. And the investigators came back in. He apologized to the investigators for wasting their time and I'm now going to use the word that you've probably waited for me to use. John Couey admitted to abducting Jessica and subsequently taking her life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Authorities are now obtaining a search warrant. They plan, they say, to execute it at that house. Law enforcement sources tell us that Couey told them that he buried Jessica's body behind the house. There is no verification of that at this time.

There is, finally, some chilling video we wanted to briefly show you, shot apparently over the weekend by a local television station here in Augusta before John Couey was arrested. They happened to be doing a story about people smoking in bars, and they caught him on videotape, John Couey himself, before he was arrested.

Lastly, we want to tell you this. According to investigators who left here a little while ago, the ones who were talking to John Couey, he said after he told them what he had done, according to police, he broke down and cried. Heidi, back to you.

COLLINS: Susan, that video is amazing. What a coincidence there. All right. Susan Candiotti tonight, thanks so much.

And now, for the rest of the day's headlines, let's check in with Erica Hill from HEADLINE NEWS. Hi, Erica.

ERICA HILL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS: Hi, Heidi.

Well, it turns out President Bush is calling in the big guns to help pitch his plan to overhaul Social Security -- his mom. Barbara Bush joined her son in Florida today to stress to the senior set that creating private Social Security accounts would not affect their benefits. Recent polls show a growing concern among Americans about the president's plan, which allows younger workers to invest some of their payroll taxes into private accounts.

Former Connecticut Governor John Rowland will report to prison April 1. The three-term Republican was sentenced today to one year and one day in federal prison for corruption. After that, he'll have four months of home confinement and three years of supervised release. Rowland cut a plea deal in December, admitting he ran up more than $100,000 in chartered flights and used state money to pay for construction on his lakeside home.

New government crash tests show the Chevrolet Astro and GMC Safari fared worst among minivans. A GM spokesman says both vehicles meet federal safety standards, and also notes those tests were done in '99. During rollover tests, the Ford E-150 van received the worst rating. Five minivans received a top rating in both frontal and side impact tests. They include the Mazda MPV, Dodge Grand Caravan, and Chrysler Town and Country.

The judge in the Martha Stewart case will have a chance to reconsider Stewart's sentence. A federal appeals court is sending the sentencing portion of the case back to a lower court. Now, the remand is not unusual in criminal cases. It doesn't mean that Stewart will be released early from her home detention.

Heidi... COLLINS: All right.

HILL: ... turn it back over to you.

COLLINS: Erica Hill, see you again in 30 minutes. Thanks so much.

And we'll be back right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Major developments this week in Beirut, as Syrian troops began a pullout that will end 30 years of occupation there. Can the Lebanese democracy movement actually win out? And will the Syrians really leave?

We get some answers now from the Syrian side. Anderson went there yesterday. Here's what he found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Driving into Syria from Lebanon, you see pretty quick who's the boss. Dotting the highway, billboards of Syrian President Bashar Assad and his late father, Hafez, who ruled Syria for nearly 30 years.

Bashar Assad, like his dad, maintains power through a vast intelligence network. Dissent isn't tolerated. The press is tightly controlled.

(on camera): The first thing you have to do when you get into Damascus as a journalist is go to the ministry of information and pick up your government minder.

Could we tell them that we don't need a minder?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's try that, Anderson, shall we? Let's try that. We'll be asked to leave. It's as simple as that. We just -- you know, we do what we have to do, OK?

COOPER (voice-over): Our minder was a friendly young man who explained he was there to help us. Of course, he would also monitor what we did, whom we talked to, and what they told us.

(on camera): It's amazing, even here in a marketplace, everywhere you'll find pictures of Syria's president. The problem he now faces, if he pulls his troops out of Lebanon, it'll be seen as an unmistakable sign of weakness, and it could have a major impact, not only on Syria's standing in the Arab world, but on the Syrian president's ability to hold onto power.

(voice-over): Of course, people on the street won't say that. Everyone here is very aware they're being watched.

"Separating Lebanon from Syria is like separating the soul from the body," she says. "They'll stay together because the Lebanese can't make it on their own."

This man insists Israel is behind anti-Syria demonstrations in Lebanon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Israel is behind all these dirty games that is going on in politics. You know, and every other journalist, and all the other media in the United States is owned by Jews, it's pro- Jewish.

COOPER (on camera): But when you hear Americans or the President Bush talking about democracy in the Middle East, what do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said like director, shame on you, Bush.

COOPER: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I don't like Bush, because it's very racist.

COOPER: He's very racist?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is the democracy in Iraq?

COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just -- I want to show you...

COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the point of view. Where is this democracy in Iraq when killed a lot of people, Iraqi people? And where is this democracy in Abu Ghraib jails, for example?

COOPER (voice-over): While Bashar Assad rules with absolute authority and can't be voted out of power, Syria says it's a democracy. And not surprisingly, everyone on the street seems to agree.

(on camera): You really believe that Syria is more Democratic than the United States?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes, I believe -- I believe in...

COOPER (voice-over): Yes, yes, she says, Syria has more democracy than any other country in the world.

COOPER (on camera): Really, so if you said something against the government here, you wouldn't be worried?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

COOPER (voice-over): No, she says. With all my heart and emotion I salute President Bashar. He's a wonderful leader.

The people we talked to said they could criticize the president if they wanted to, it's just he's so good there's nothing to criticize.

(on camera): What do you think about the government here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they're doing well.

COOPER: No complaints?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no complaints.

COOPER: When you talk to Syrians on the street, they all tell you pretty much the same thing. When the cameras are rolling, they say, we love our president, we have no complaints. When the cameras are gone, however, and the government minder is not around, they'll tell you a very different story.

One man just said to us, I can't say what I really think on camera. We live in a dictatorship. If I said that, the secret police would come and pay me a visit.

(voice-over): That of course is how it used to be in Iraq under Saddam Hussein. And until a few months ago, Lebanese were afraid to speak out against Syria. Change has already come to those countries. The question now is, when will it come here and how?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: She hasn't spoken in years -- brain damaged and her life hanging in the balance. Tonight, Terri Schiavo's' parents frenzied efforts to keep her alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

B. SCHINDLER: It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: And two twister chasers high on the thrill of chasing the power of mother nature's fury. Coming up, find out about their extraordinary adventures and what drives them to go into the heart of storms. 360 continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We return now to our top story: the battle over Terri Schiavo. Despite a last-ditch effort from members of Congress to keep her alive, her feeding tube was disconnected earlier this afternoon.

Schiavo's husband says it is the right thing to do. Her parents believe it is murder.

For Bob and Mary Schindler, their daughter did not have a death wish. And with therapy say she can get better. They shared their feelings last month in an interview with CNN's John Zarrella.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) B. SCHINDLER: It's hard to believe that this ever happened. It's hard -- I'm being very candid. It's hard for me to believe that they're trying to kill Terri. There's nothing wrong with her. There's no reason for her to die.

And I just cannot believe that the judicial system, the courts, would execute her for no reason other than hearsay evidence. It just -- I cannot understand it. And I view it as frontier justice and amongst many other things. Judge Roy Bean, all those characters. It's just -- it's uncalled for. You don't want to kill someone like her. My lord, there's no reason for it.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mary?

MARY SCHINDLER, MOTHER: Well, it's just that I feel that every time -- it just seems like every time we get so close, that the person that intravenous the most is God. And last time, I mean, he waited -- he waited a while, but he came through.

And he's my strength and my power and, you know, he knows. Terri is such a fighter. She just -- if she wanted to die, believe me, she would have died a long time ago. The Lord doesn't want her yet. He has her here for a purpose.

ZARRELLA: You have, since '93 gone to Michael Schiavo, written him letters and you've said, listen -- well, tell us what you've said. You can have everything, right? Just give us our daughter, right?

M. SCHINDLER: That's all. You have a life -- you have your life now, which is great. You have a live-in. You have two children. Just give my daughter back to me. That's all. You know, I just want to take care of her.

B. SCHINDLER: See, in 1993...

M. SCHINDLER: And he keeps saying no.

ZARRELLA: I was going to ask you.

B. SCHINDLER: He doesn't say no. He doesn't acknowledge.

M. SCHINDLER: He doesn't even respond to the letters, no, nothing. Nothing.

B. SCHINDLER: We hear nothing.

ZARRELLA: And, obviously, it has to be horribly frustrating not to understand -- or do you understand what the motivations are?

M. SCHINDLER: I don't. I really don't. I don't have a clue other than he keeps saying this is her wishes -- alleged wishes, OK. He keeps saying this is Terri's alleged wishes. But how can you starve somebody to death? I mean, you know, I just don't understand. He just has no answer.

ZARRELLA: You got to see her today after the press conference. B. SCHINDLER: Yes.

ZARRELLA: How did she look, Mary?

M. SCHINDLER: She looks great. She looked wonderful. She was sitting in her chair.

And like I said, I was telling the people in the room there that I walked in and she was sound asleep in her chair. And I walked in and I said, you going wake up? And she started opening her eyes. And I said, it's me, it's mommy. And her eyes got like saucers. And she started -- she starts laughing.

And that's what I can see. When she does that and when she starts trying to talk to me, you know -- I don't understand her, I can see those things on that MRI just flashing back and forth knowing that she's got some cognitive level in her and that something can help her.

ZARRELLA: You've never believed that she was in a persistent vegetative state, have you?

M. SCHINDLER: I never believed she wasn't -- she's not a houseplant either.

B. SCHINDLER: Refers to it as a houseplant.

M. SCHILDNER: No, she's not in PVS and not a houseplant.

B. SCHINDLER: People lose sight of the fact -- there must be two dozen medical professionals that are on record now with the courts stating she's not in a persistent vegetative state. And they're being ignored by everyone.

I think Mr. Randal Terry inferred as much, like give her a chance. But no ones ever -- not only have they not give her a rehabilitation chance. They haven't even given her a chance with the public.

She's perceived as being hooked up on all kinds of devices, that she's in a coma, she's a flat line and there's nothing there and it's quite the contrary. So that -- and it -- as I mentioned, there's affidavits coming up the ying-yang that state from unpaid professionals, neurologists stating that she's not in PVS.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And Terri Schiavo's parents, sister and husband will all be Larry King's guest tonight on LARRY KING LIVE. That comes your way 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

360 next, the man who made the Schiavo decision. The judge at the center of the case, now the target of death threats.

Also, instead of running away from tornadoes, they run toward them. We'll introduce you to the twister sisters.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Much of the anger over the decision to remove Terri Schiavo's breathing tube is directed at the judge who issued that order. There have been calls for his impeachment, even death threats. CNN's John Zarrella goes beyond the headlines for more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ZARRELLA: Judge George Greer has over the past couple of years become accustomed to having the finger pointed at him.

REP. TOM DELAY, (R) MAJORITY LEADER: This judge in Florida wants to pull her feeding tube and let her starve for two weeks. That is barbaric.

ZARRELLA: For the past seven years, Judge Greer has presided over a case, Schindler vs. Schiavo, that has divided family and even the nation.

Because he ruled three times now that Terri Schiavo's feeding tube be removed, the 63-year-old Pinellas County judge has been the target of right-to-life activists. Protests have been staged on the steps of the Clearwater Courthouse. In front of the hospice where Schiavo lies, a van drove by, covered in messages to Judge Greer. For many of the people here, like Wes Thompson, this county judge is playing God.

WES THOMPSON, PROTESTER: I believe the judge has overstepped his bounds and is now standing above God in the way he's making his decisions.

ZARRELLA: Greer has always been steadfast in saying he rules by the letter of the law.

JUDGE GEORGE GREER, PINELLAS CO. CIRCUIT COURT: I mean, it's not a popularity contest on how I rule on things. It's -- I'm supposed to rule on the law. That's the oath I took and that's what I try to do.

ZARRELLA: It's unfair the way Greer is being portrayed says Mary Repper, a one-time political consultant and longtime friend of the judge.

MARY REPPER, FRM. POLITICAL CONSULTANT: Anybody that knows George Greer knows what an honorable, decent man he is.

ZARRELLA: Repper ran Greer's successful campaign for county commission before he became a judge.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Integrity.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You look for George Greer.

ZARRELLA: Repper says the case is weighing heavily on Judge Greer and taking its toll. These days he needs police protection.

Repper says his life has been threatened. And he worries constantly about his family. Greer is anything but a villain, says his friend.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If they made a movie about George Greer, they would probably get Gary Cooper to play the movie, because he just doesn't walk away from controversy. He's the kind of guy who believes in what he does and he doesn't run.

ZARRELLA: Greer, who declined to be interviewed for this report, has chosen to take it on the chin and suffer, his friends say, for the most part, in silence.

John Zarrella, CNN, Clearwater, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: A major break in the case of a missing 9-year-old girl. Erica Hill joins us now with the headlines. Hello once again, Erica.

HILL: Hi. Yes, I have some heartbreaking news for Jessica's family. Authorities say a convicted sex offender has now confessed to kidnapping and murdering Jessica Lunsford. John Couey was arrested in Georgia yesterday on an unrelated charge. He had been living with relatives across the street from the 9-year-old girl. Investigators now believe he kidnapped the girl about three weeks ago.

Wal-Mart will pay $11 million in fines as part of a settlement into its hiring practices, but the retailer won't face criminal sanctions from the long-running federal probe. The investigation focused on the hiring of illegal workers by Wal-Mart's cleaning contractors. Investigators also uncovered cases of some illegal workers working seven days a week without overtime pay.

And a St. Louis Congressman is trying to take Mark McGwire's name off a stretch of Interstate 70. The Mark McGwire Highway was dedicated after the former Cardinal slugger hit 70 home runs in one season. Missouri Democrat William Lacy Clay, though, tells the Associated Press, McGwire has not been cooperative enough in a Congressional steroid investigation, and in his estimation no longer deserves the honor.

And Heidi, that's the latest from HEADLINE NEWS. Back to you.

COLLINS: All right, Erica, thanks so much for that. See you back in 30 minutes.

360 next now, two sisters putting their lives now in danger to chase tornadoes. What makes them do it, you'll find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We're just two days away from the start of spring, and that signals the start of this, tornado season. It's a busy time for the two women we're going to tell you about tonight. They call themselves the "Twister Sisters." And they spent a good part of their lives running towards tornadoes, hunting them down and describing every detail. Check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS (voice-over): For the "Twister Sisters," this is just another day on the job. For the past four years, Peggy Willenberg and Melanie Metz, not actually sisters, leave their families behind and team up to track down tornadoes, driving across the country in their tricked-out truck.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This shape is looking fairly nice.

COLLINS: Two among dozens who get their thrills forecasting, then finding the perfect storm, documenting the destruction, then selling the footage to the media. But why would two seemingly reasonable women risk their lives chasing tornadoes?

MELANIE METZ, TWISTER SISTER: Just a sense of fascination and a little bit of fear and combined, it makes it a very exhilarating experience to watch this powerful force.

COLLINS: Especially exhilarating when it all works out just right and they see the storm from the very start.

PEGGY WILLENBERG, TWISTER SISTER: This tornado formed right in front of us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God -- tornado.

WILLENBERG: If you want to call it the birth of a tornado, however, now we are about 30 seconds into it and let's watch what happens. Became a very large, powerful tornado.

COLLINS: That power was most apparent for the Twister Sisters in 2004. They were tracking a tornado in Nebraska that took out an entire town, flattening farmhouses, totaling trucks, leaving a 52 mile path of destruction in its wake. That day the Twister Sisters helped save three lives.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was nothing recognizable as a house but yet we knew there were three people under that pile of debris. So that was our goal, to get those people out of there before the house blew up.

COLLINS: There are an average of 800 tornadoes in the United States every season, resulting in around 80 deaths. But these intrepid hunters say despite the destruction, they are still astonished every time they see a twister's terrible beauty.

The geometry, the perfection, how much has to happen to create this just brief moment of perfection. And it's just a power -- something that you can't put your hands around. It's awesome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Their exploits are being featured in a special on the National Geographic Channel called "Thrill Zone: Tornado Hunters" which airs tomorrow night.

Well, go ahead and find out what's happening on PAULA ZAHN NOW coming up a little later tonight. Paula, hi.

PAULA ZAHN, HOST, PAULA ZAHN NOW: At the top of the hour we will continue following this hour's breaking story. Authorities are now saying a convicted sex offender has confessed to abducting and killing 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, after a three-week search. We will be talking with close friends of the Lunsford family an Ed Smart, whose own daughter was abducted.

We'll bring you all the latest developments. I hope to see you at the top of the hour. Not the ending we were all praying for.

COLLINS: That's for sure. All right, Paula, thanks.

360 next. Massive crowds, a powerful rally for freedom and Anderson was in the middle of it all. His perspective as his week in Beirut nears an end.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Anderson Cooper's been live in Beirut all week witnessing history in the making and joins us once again.

What a week it's been, huh, Anderson?

COOPER: Yes, Heidi. It's been a peaceful month here since the bomb blast which killed the former Lebanese prime minister. Tonight, however, that peace was shattered. A car bomb exploded just a short time ago, about five miles from where I'm standing right now. I was at the scene of the car bomb. Let's take a look at some of the video we rolled on.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: There's been a report of a bomb planted in a car that went off a short time ago in East Beirut. We're walking to the scene right now. It appears as if this vehicle might have been thrown over here. The bomb went off just a short time ago. We're in Christian East Beirut right now.

(UNINTELLIGIBLE) somewhere?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, it was on the corner (UNINTELLIGIBLE). And then it blew up and it came here.

COOPER: So this is the vehicle that the bomb was inside.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes...

COOPER: So it actually blew up.

(CROSSTALK)

COOPER: The bomb went off in front of an office complex. It pretty much destroyed the first floor and wrecked two or three floors above it. Windows have been blown out. Even on nearby buildings the windows have been blown up. People are already trying to clean up the glass.

The size of the blast, clearly it was not as big as the one that killed the former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, more than a month ago. It decimated this office building, really, the top three or four floors. The first floor of the office building is just completely destroyed. Some of the other stories have also received damage.

There are people still looking through the wreckage, still trying to see if there is anyone else left alive inside. Reports of -- there are no reports of fatalities at this point, but it is very early at this point. There were reports of six injuries, but we don't have any confirmation on the exact number. A number of ambulances have already left the scene and there are many rescue personnel here searching the rubble looking for anyone else who might be inside.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: A sad way to end our week, here, in Beirut. It has been an extraordinary week, an extraordinary time in this county and this region. Democracy -- the calls for democracy here, echoing loud and clear on Monday.

A massive demonstration, the largest not only in Lebanese history, but according to CNN's Beirut bureau chief, the largest he's ever seen in the Middle East. Well over a 500,000, maybe even close to a million people. That would be on quarter of the population of Lebanon, poured into the downtown streets of Beirut, demanding that Syria withdraw its forces, and its intelligence agents from this country, a country they have occupied since the late 1970's. That call is being echoed by the United States, being echoed by Europe and the U.N. who have all called for Syria to get out.

And we bring you now, this broadcast from the Martyr's Square, this the scene where protesters continue to man a 24-hour vigil demanding that Syria get out.

It's been a pleasure to be here with you from Lebanon all week. Thanks very much for watching.

Coming up next, PAULA ZAHN NOW -- Paula.

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