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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Prince William's First Interview as a Dad; Princess Diana Murder Claim; Facing Down a Wall of Flames in Idaho; Egypt Security Forces Make Big Arrest; Pistorius Charged With Premeditated Murder; Widow Convicted Of Perjury In Husband's Death
Aired August 19, 2013 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: Erin, thanks.
Good evening, everyone. Tonight, Prince William's first interview as a new father.
And Scotland Yard investigates new allegations that his mother, Diana, was killed by members of British security forces, a conspiracy theory the police are actually investigating.
Also tonight, the wall of fire sweeping across the western mountains right now in the United States, where up close with the men and women fighting to save some of the most beautiful and valuable acres on earth.
And later the tears of a killer. Olympic sensation Oscar Pistorius breaking down in court. He killed his girlfriend, now officially he has been charged with murder.
We begin with the newest addition to the British royal family. Prince George and the first interview with his father, Prince William, and a freshly revived conspiracy theory about the death of William's mother and George's grandmother, Princess Diana.
First, young George. The royal family releasing a pair of family photographs, one of baby, Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. The other your basic photo album classic, the family, a cocker spaniel, Lupo, getting in on the act there. Both were taken in the garden of the Middleton family home in the town of Bucklebury. Both were actually taken by Michael Middleton, he's Catherine's father.
Meantime his son-in-law, William, just sat down for his first on- camera interview as a new father.
CNN's Max Foster met with the prince at Kensington Palace. They talked about fatherhood, being new parents and that -- and that moment when he and his wife Catherine brought their son out of the hospital and into a media frenzy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PRINCE WILLIAM, DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE: I think more shock and dauntingness was the feeling I felt but it was -- the thing is, it's -- I think I was on such a high anyway and so was Catherine about George that really we were happy to show him off to whoever wanted to see him, as any new parent knows. You're only too happy to show off your new child and, you know, pretend that he's the best looking or the best everything.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: There's the baby. The new royal heir in the United Kingdom.
You were comfortable there?
PRINCE WILLIAM: Yes. I thought -- again, it's not somewhere I enjoy being but I know that in the position I'm in that's what's required of me to do and I think it's -- you know, it's one of those things and I -- you know, it's nice that people want to see George. So, you know, I'm just glad he wasn't screaming his head off the whole way through.
FOSTER: That moment when you came out with the car seat, I mean, we had some warning that you might be doing that.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Yes.
FOSTER: Fathers around the planet will be cursing you for doing it so easily.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Believe me, it wasn't my first time, and I know there's been speculation about that. I had to practice. I really did. I was terrified that I was going to do some -- you know, it was going to fall off or it wasn't going to close properly.
FOSTER: Yes.
PRINCE WILLIAM: So I had actually practice with that seat once before.
FOSTER: And your decision to drive off, I remember that moment as well. That was the most nerve wracking thing for me, having the family in the car. But that was something that you were clearly determined to do.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Where I can be, I'm as independent as I want to be. And same as Catherine and Harry. We've all grown up, you know, differently than other generations and I very much feel if I can do it myself, I want to do it myself. And there are times where you can't do it yourself and the system takes over where it's always appropriate. So doing things differently.
But I think driving your son and your wife away from the hospital was really important to me and I don't like (INAUDIBLE). It's much easier to do it yourself.
FOSTER: And you didn't stall?
PRINCE WILLIAM: I didn't -- well, it's automatic so it's all right. FOSTER: The interpretation of the imagery we saw around the world was that this was a modern monarchy and a new way of monarchy. But was it that? Are we reading too much into it? Is that just you doing it your way? You and your wife doing it your own way?
PRINCE WILLIAM: I think so. And I'm just doing it the way I know and it's -- you know, if it's the right way, then brilliant. If it's not wrong -- if it's the wrong way, then well, try to do it better. But you know, I just -- I have quite some -- I'm reasonably headstrong about what I believe it and I go for and I've got fantastic people around me who give great support and advice.
FOSTER (voice-over): The prince says baby George is already quite a character.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Well, yes, he's a little bit of a rascal, I'll put it that way. So yes, he reminds me of my brother or me when I was younger. I'm not sure. But he's doing really well at the moment. He does like to keep his nappy changed and --
FOSTER (on camera): You did the first nappy change?
PRINCE WILLIAM: I did the first nappy, yes.
FOSTER: It was actually a badge of honor.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Badge of honor actually. I was allowed to get away with that. I had every midwife staring, saying, you do it, you do it. He's a little -- he's growing quite quick actually. But he's a little feisty. He kind of -- he wriggles around quite a lot and doesn't want to go to sleep that much which is a little bit of a problem. But he's --
FOSTER: So you're up a lot at night?
PRINCE WILLIAM: A little bit. Not as much as Catherine but, you know, she's doing a fantastic job.
FOSTER: How is she? OK?
PRINCE WILLIAM: Yes, very well. For me, Catherine and now little George are my priorities, and Lupo and so --
(CROSSTALK)
FOSTER: How is Lupo coping?
PRINCE WILLIAM: He's coping all right, actually. I mean, as a lot of people, who've got dogs and bringing a newborn, they take a little bit time to adapt. But he's all right so far. He's been slobbering sort of around the house a bit. So he's perfectly happy.
FOSTER: And how long have you got going back to work?
PRINCE WILLIAM: Well, as a few fathers might know, I'm actually quite looking forward to going back to work right now. FOSTER: Get some sleep.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Get some sleep. Actually yes. So I'm just hoping the few first shifts I don't have any night jobs.
FOSTER (voice-over): One of Prince William's great passions is saving endangered species in Africa. He wants his son to experience the same Africa that he saw as a boy and as a young man, to spark in his son a passion for preserving the rarest wild animals, much as his father did with him.
(On camera): You talked about your father possibly whispering in your ear.
PRINCE WILLIAM: Yes. Sweet nothings.
(CROSSTALK)
FOSTER: As a young boy. Are you going to do the same to Prince George? It's such a cause that you care so deeply about. Would you like him to pick up on it?
PRINCE WILLIAM: Probably. At this rate I'll probably whisper sweet nothings in his ear and have toy elephants or rhinos around the room, cover in sort of, you know, lots of bushes and make him grow up as if he's in a bush.
FOSTER (voice-over): He says the possibility of his son carrying on the royal family's legacy in Africa isn't his immediate concern.
PRINCE WILLIAM: At the moment, the only legacy I want to pass on to him is to sleep more and maybe not change a nappy quite (INAUDIBLE) does.
FOSTER: Like any new mother or father, parenthood has surprised and amazed Prince William.
PRINCE WILLIAM: I think the last few weeks for me have been just a very different emotional experience. Something I never thought I would feel myself. And I find, again, it's only been a short period but a lot of things affect me differently now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And Max Foster joins us now.
It's really a fascinating interview and really a very human side of him you really see. I find it interesting where he says he -- that he didn't really think -- he doesn't think about it sort of as the next generation. I mean, it's not so sort of conscious on his part. It's just the way he does things.
FOSTER: Yes. And this is how he often copes with what's around him. He decides he's not going to be told what to do and he's going to do things in his own way. So putting the car seat in and driving off, he wanted to do that. He wants to be the one changing the diapers, the nappies, and he wanted -- he wants to get up at night. Kate is getting up at night.
I mean, they are doing it all on their own at the moment. The question is, how long it will last?
COOPER: Right.
FOSTER: I mean, he does have this support network he can lean on if he needs to.
COOPER: Yes. And also this official portrait that's now been released.
FOSTER: Yes.
COOPER: It's interesting that it's not done by an official photographer. But done by Kate Middleton's father.
FOSTER: And this is absolutely a first. But I think this is their back garden, the Middletons' back garden in Bucklebury and I -- it was done around the time of the interview and I just don't think they wanted to have an invasion of their privacy there. A lot of criticism in the UK. The paper is just coming out about the quality of these pictures from the fact --
COOPER: But I think -- I think it's very relatable. I mean, it's like everybody else --
FOSTER: It's charming, they're saying. But they're outfocused, they're into the light and these are really historic pictures because these are the first official pictures of George, and when he grows up, will he want a picture like that necessarily? I mean, they are charming and they -- you know, he gets away with it because he's granddad.
COOPER: I think those are good pictures to have. I don't know.
Anyway, great interview, Max. Thank you so much. Really fascinating.
Now the new allegations about the death of William's mother and her boyfriend Dodi Al-Fayed in a car crash in Parish back 1997. Several linked the investigations, one British, one French, put the blame squarely on their drunken chauffeur and the pack of photographs chasing them. However, to some, the case is still not close. Conspiracy theorists keep popping up and now Britain's Scotland Yard appears to be giving one of them actually a closer look.
This claim published by a number of British media outlets accuses members of Britain's elite Special Air Service -- essentially their special forces of assassinating the Princess of Wales. It's a convoluted story. The allegation coming, according to a British paper, the "Sunday People," in a letter from the parents-in-law of a British Special Forces sniper who had testified in another soldier's court-martial.
Erin McLaughlin joins us tonight to try to make sense out of this confusion.
Erin, what do we know about this letter sent to authorities and the soldier who made these claims?
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Anderson. Well, according to the British newspaper, the "Sunday People," this letter is seven pages long, handwritten by the estranged in-laws of a former British Special Forces sniper.
In that letter, they allege that this sniper told his wife or boasted to his wife that the British SAS was behind the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Al-Fayed. Now this information, according to the Sunday people was introduced as evidence in a trial, the court- martialing of this unnamed sniper former's roommate.
He apparently was a witness in this trial. Unclear that if British military officials knew of this information in 2011, why it's just reaching Scotland Yard now. Scotland Yard, at the moment, is not commenting -- Anderson.
COOPER: I mean, it all seems really dubious to me. It's like the estranged family of this person said that, the ex-wife said this and the roommate -- I mean, how seriously are British authority is actually taking this?
MCLAUGHLIN: Well, at the moment, it's unclear, although they're obviously taking it seriously enough to assess. Over the weekend Scotland Yard releasing a statement saying that they are scoping this information, assessing its relevance and credibility.
This is also the first information that they are looking at in this way since the conclusion of the inquest into Princess Diana's death.
COOPER: You know, there are -- there have been other conspiracy theories in the past surrounding Princess Diana's death?
MCLAUGHLIN: Absolutely. In fact there was an entire investigation called Operation Pageant here in the UK. It lasted two years long. It looked specifically into conspiracy theories surrounding Princess Diana's death. In addition to that, there was a separate investigation in France as well as an exhaustive inquest.
All three point to the same conclusion that Princess Diana died as a result of the gross negligence of her driver as well as the paparazzi, that tragic night in Paris.
COOPER: All right. Erin, thanks very much for joining us.
Joining us now is Katie Nicholl, CNN's royal commentator and royal correspondent for Britain's "Sunday Mail," and Lana Marks, a close friend of Diana, Princess of Wales.
Katie, what are your sources inside Buckingham Palace saying about this Diana news because -- I mean I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist This whole thing just sounds kind of ridiculous to me. KATIE NICHOLL, CNN ROYAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think ridiculous, to be honest, Anderson, is the word being used at Buckingham Palace, at Clarence House, at Kensington Palace. I've spoken to a couple of sources today who just said don't read too much into this.
Look at the timing days away before the 16th anniversary of Diana's death. Has this being done to maximize some level of publicity? It's just extraordinary. And actually, all the reports in the papers here in the UK are saying don't read too much into it, frankly.
COOPER: And I mean, it's interesting to me how much coverage it's gotten her in the United States, and as Erin just reported, this is not certainly the first conspiracy theory surrounding Diana's death and over the years, I mean ,they've all basically been shown to be false. What motivations have people bandied about for some wanting to even murder? I don't even understand the theoretical motivations?
NICHOLL: You know, I think a lot of it is that Diana was such an iconic woman that for many it's not enough that she just died tragically in a terrible accident. People want reasons. They want conspiracy theories, they want something with all the drama that I suppose accompanied Diana's life.
COOPER: Lana, I mean, for you as her friend, go ahead.
LANA MARKS, FRIEND OF THE LATE PRINCESS DIANA: You know, Anderson, I was supposed to be with Diana on vacation at this very time. We planned a four-day vacation in Milan and Lake Cuomo and only due to the sudden passing of my father did I have to cancel with Diana at the very last minute and fly out to South Africa to my father's funeral.
And when you think of what circumstances would prevail, that one would cancel a personal vacation with the Princess of Wales, it would be -- have to be something extraordinary like that. And only at the very, very last minute -- she was -- you know had four days free and at the very, very last minute did she go back with Dodi and this most unfortunate accident happened and so last minute and so changing of, you know, going on vacation with me, then going with Dodi and it's so just unfortunate that William and Harry, who've shown immense dignity and decorum, through all this awful stuff they have to go through all the time once again to have to go through this rehash of some publicity seekers again.
COOPER: And Lana, do you think --
MARKS: It's so sad.
COOPER: Do you think it is just that? Publicity seekers or do you think that some of the traction it's gotten is, as Katie was saying, people who, you know, can't believe that somebody who was so special died in such a tragic way and there's not more to it?
MARKS: Yes. I think because of who Diana was, it's so immensely difficult to believe that she was in a regular accident and a horrible accident. And you know, it's hard for people to accept that.
COOPER: Yes. I want to turn to Prince William.
Katie, you thought the idea that these new photos were taken by Kate Middleton's father instead of an official royal photographer, as has been the tradition, kind of underlines this idea of William as a new -- part of a new generation.
NICHOLL: Well, I do, actually. And I think the pictures are gorgeous but they're not professional pictures. Some might say they're slightly overexposed on the right hand side of Kate's face. They're not completely in focus, but for me, that's the absolute charms of these pictures.
These are taken by Michael Middleton, Kate's father, in their back garden of their manor house in Bucklebury. The same manor house where they moved to immediately after the birth of Price George. And have spent the last couple of weeks with Kate's family.
It's completely novel. It's wonderfully fresh and the two of them look so very happy and one suspects that's probably because they've been allowed to enjoy this freedom, this time together.
COOPER: Yes. I mean, if you truly, the next generation, he would Instagram a selfie of him, the baby and his wife. But maybe we'll have to wait for that until the next generation.
But, Lana, I got to say watching the interview, I just kept thinking, he sounds like a normal dad. A very likable guy. A very normal dad. Do you think that is part of his mother's legacy to him? Did you -- do you see a lot of her in him?
MARKS: I see so much of Diana in William and one of the things she -- she told me is that she so much wanted William to have a normal life with his family in the future with whoever he wed and had children with and all of her dreams have come true and her legacy is coming true and all of the read, and you know, had children with and all of her dreams have come true. And her legacy is coming true.
And all the influence she's had on William and all of the normalcy is showing through so greatly now. She would be immensely happy.
COOPER: Yes. She lives on in her children.
Thank you so much, Lana, for being with us. Lana Marks.
And Katie Nicholl as well. Thank you.
Well, let me know what you think. You can follow me on Twitter @Andersoncooper.
Coming up next, a very dangerous day on the fire line. We'll take you to one of the worst wildfires burning for an up close progress report. And later, breaking news tonight with Egypt's old dictator possibly getting out of jail, a leader of the people who drove him from power has just been arrested. The leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is now in custody. We have late details ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Welcome back. If you're almost anywhere in the west, chances are there is a wildfire somewhere within driving distance and for tens of thousands of people, the flames are a whole lot closer than that.
Take a look. Dozens of wildfires consuming hundreds and thousands of acres. Each of those flames on the map represents a fire, obvious. The big pink area running from Southern California up into the northern tier, red flag warnings, conditions ideal for new fires to spread and spread they have.
This is the Beaver Creek Fire consuming more than 100,000 acres in Idaho's Sun Valley area. Less than 10 percent contained right now. More than 2,000 homes under evacuation orders. Some of those dwellings, vacation spots for some pretty big names. Tom Hanks, Bruce William. Richard Dreyfuss' family, hails from Ketchum, Idaho, which is under siege.
More than 1,000 hot shots moved jumpers and other cruise on that fire alarm alone.
Gary Tuchman spent today with some of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The amount of land that has been in flames is an area larger than many big cities, over 100,000 acres. But as dangerous and concerning as the Beaver Creek Fire in Idaho has been, there is this gratifying fact. There have been no deaths or serious injuries so far.
TRACI WEAVER, GREAT BASIN INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM: People in this whole valley have been really listening to the warnings, evacuating when they're asked to. Some of them even evacuating before they had to and not trying to stay home and be a hero, trying to save their own house which, you know, is a high risk. A one-inch garden hose is not going to save your house.
TUCHMAN: Choppers swooped down to the ground to pick up retardant and drop it on the flames. Those efforts and the efforts of firefighters across the U.S. have succeeded in dramatically improving the situation on the ground as this week begins.
WEAVER: Well, the weather is helping us out a little bit and we have the resources we need, which is -- has been crucial. Just the little bit of cloud cover we have today has made all of the difference in the world in how things look out there right now.
TUCHMAN (on camera): The mountainous terrain here is very dangerous. Many gulches and ravines. There are more than 1,050 firefighters on the scene now including 12 Hotshot crews. There are also 15 helicopters, and according to authorities, there are more than 10,000 homes, businesses, and other types of buildings that are officially considered threatened.
(Voice-over): But amazingly, almost all of those structures remain undamaged. At least one house and several other buildings have been destroyed and it's possible others have also on areas that have not been reached yet, but as of now the people in this part of Idaho, while still nervous, are hoping they've seen the worst.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Gary Tuchman now joins us from Hailey, Idaho.
Gary, you mentioned in your piece there are over 1,000 fire personnel out there fighting the fire. Some of them are actually private firefighters, right, who were hired?
TUCHMAN: Well, that's right. When you get your insurance for your home in this day and age, you can buy a rider that includes private fire protection for your home. And well fueled areas like Sun Valley, Idaho, we have a lot of celebrities and successful businessmen. What they do is they pay the extra money and then train firemen who are hired by the insurance companies come to your house and they guard it.
Now they have to work in cooperation with the city, county, and state officials. But it's not only to the benefit of the homeowner. It's also to the benefit of the insurance company because by spending a few thousand dollars to save an $800,000, million, $2 million house, the insurance companies can save a lot of money and meanwhile the homeowners can save money if they have that private protection right there, and that's indeed what we're seeing in this area -- Anderson.
COOPER: Wow. It's like the old fire patrols that used to exist in America.
Gary, thanks very much.
Back east, the problem is too much rain. A massive storm system lingering. Flood watches and warnings up from the Alabama Gulf Coast and Florida panhandle all the way into South Carolina. Take a look. Gulfport, Mississippi, yesterday, floodwaters receding there but with more rain in the forecast. They may rise yet again. Tracking all of it for us tonight Chad Myers in the Weather Center.
What's the latest, Chad?
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Anderson, when you have a stationary front, like a stationary bike, things don't move. You can pedal that bike all you want, it's not going anywhere. These storms aren't going anywhere. So what is raining now was raining an hour ago and what was raining this weekend is pretty much still raining at this point. Look at these five-day rainfall totals. This is from Friday afternoon until now. Twelve and a half inches at Inlet Beach, Florida. That is a beach. Not much of a beach vacation. Panama City, a popular place, 10 inches of rainfall over the weekend. And everywhere that you see red, that's six inches. And purple higher than that, and the 10-inch bulls eyes, right through here.
Ten inches of rainfall in 48 to 72 hours. Macon, Georgia, right now has 25 more inches on the ground than they should have. So when it rains, it floods. There's no place for the water to soak in. And it's been like that now for days and days and days, and the rain continues.
I can tell you, there are very few happy people in Atlanta with that kind of (INAUDIBLE) right now. Thinking to me, you know, can I go to a baseball game? It's raining every day, literally, Anderson.
COOPER: Any idea how long it's going to go for?
MYERS: Well, yes, until this thing moves out and I don't see that happening. Even with the front that's going to come through and dry out Chicago, dry out Buffalo, and all that by Thursday, Friday. It never gets far enough south to push the rain away. It's going to get down to Georgia, it's going to stop again, and we're going to start this all over next week.
COOPER: Wow. All right. Chad, thanks very much. We'll keep following it. For more on the story you can go to CNN.com right now.
Up next, breaking news out of Egypt. Reports of a big arrest made and a rising death toll. Latest developments ahead.
Also, South African Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius in court today indicted in the Valentine's Day shooting death of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: There is breaking news tonight in Egypt. State television is reporting that security forces have arrested the spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood. That's him right there. The picture just out on state-run Nile TV.
Now this developments comes in a new round of deadly violence. And I want to warn you, the next video we're about to show you is graphic. State TV reports that 25 soldiers were ambushed and killed by armed militants. This morning, the Sinai peninsula. The Sinai is generally considered a lawless region.
Now since last Wednesday, violent clashes between Egypt's military and supporters of the ousted president, Mohamed Morsy, have killed around 900 people. Morsy has not been seen publicly since he was forcibly removed from office on July 3rd.
Today prosecutors extended his detention for 15 more days while they continue their investigation of him and today a criminal court in Cairo acquitted Egypt's former leader, Hosni Mubarak, in a corruption case and ordered his release. However, he's still in custody tonight.
Meanwhile, there are growing calls for the Obama administration to cut off aid to Egypt. A lot of ground to cover.
Nick Paton Walsh joins us now from Cairo.
So the arrested leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, what more do we know about him, Nick?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, state media saying he was picked up in a residential apartment in Nasr City, not far from the Rabaa al-Adawiyah mosque where that large sit-in protest by the Brotherhood was disrupted five days ago. Causing a significant number of dead.
They've been showing pictures of him on state television. A little disheveled in a lengthy white shirt. Next to him, in fact a man guarding him with an AK-47. These images very much part of the government's narrative over the past few days that they are fighting terrorism and that's obviously their word now for the Muslim Brotherhood.
Now, the key figure here, Mohammed el-Badie in their custody. He's been wanted for a number of charges. A whole scope of things the Brotherhood are accused of, well encompassing terrorism in their remit. But this, of course, will feed in to the fears that now the Brotherhood are going to be pushed underground.
There's no scope for negotiation. That's been off the cards for a number of days, if not weeks. We've seen the violence in the past week and now we have the majority of their leaders in state custody and these images which are frankly him on parade. The army, the interim administration, making it quite clearly that they have the upper hand, Anderson.
COOPER: Calls do seem to be growing for the U.S. to cut off military and economic aid. What is the latest on that?
WALSH: What is remarkable is we keep hearing these calls and we keep hearing the U.S. saying it's reviewing its aid, but the State Department is quite clear today have not made any change to the economic assistance, the $1.3 billion worth of military aid. That is still under review. There's been no significant change. But each time the Washington makes hint at this, we hear from Arab backers who quite explicitly said today that if the E.U. or U.S. cut any of their aid to Egypt, they will make up the difference and that, of course, is going to insulate for any action, but part of the relationship is about prestige. So the Egyptian army will be unwilling I think to jeopardize that.
ANDERSON: Amidst all of this turmoil, has there been a lot of reaction or any reaction to the idea that Hosni Mubarak would be a free man any day now?
WALSH: That came from his lawyer. It was his lawyer saying as many attorneys would do for their client that he thinks he can be out in a few weeks because the corruption charges against him were dropped. There are still accusations that he committed violence in 2011. We saw a lot of noise in the state media about potential for him to be released, but in reality that's far off. This is a distraction from the problems on the street and the administration really has to get the rein and potentially making them seen as more viable.
COOPER: Nick Paton Walsh live for us in Cairo. Stay safe, Nick. Thank you.
Let's get caught up in some of the other stories we're following. Susan Hendricks is here with the 360 Bulletin -- Susan.
SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, investigators from the United Nations are in Syria to determine if chemical weapons have been used in the long-running civil war. The Obama administration says that Syria's government has used them, but Syria claims those weapons have been used by opposition fighters.
Journalist Glenn Greenwald who broke the story about NSA leaker Edward Snowden is vowing to write aggressive stories about Britain's espionage program. This after his partner David Miranda was detained for nine hours by authorities at London's Heathrow Airport. His laptop and phone were confiscated.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed a bill that outlaws gay conversion therapy for minors. The therapy is highly controversial. Supporters claimed gay people can change their orientation through counseling. But Chris Christie sided with opponents who say it is harmful.
You've got to see this. The Obamas have a new dog. She's a little more than a year old. Her name is Sunny and she arrived at the White House today. She's a Portuguese waterdog and it looks like Bo is happy.
COOPER: All right, thanks a lot. Appreciate it, Susan.
Just ahead, to his fans, Oscar Pistorius is a hero and role model. He's now also an accused murderer of the trial date set for March. We'll show you what happened at his indictment today and what his girlfriend's killing has exposed about his past.
Also ahead, Lindsey Lohan sat down with Oprah Winfrey. She is vowing things will be different this time. The reason she gave might be surprise you ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: A terrifying car accident of a TV legend. Details when we continue.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Crime and punishment now. South African sprinter, Oscar Pistorius, was charged today with the premeditated murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. If convicted, he faces a mandatory life sentence. The formal indictment comes six months after Steenkamp's death of what would have been her 30th birthday. Her family was not in the court. Pistorius has never denied he killed Steenkamp, but claimed it was an accident.
Before the charges were read, the double amputee athlete held hands with his sister and brother and appeared to be praying. Pistorius then wiped away tears. He's revered by many as role model for disabled athletes. Many of his fans are standing by him as he faces the legal battle of his life, but troubling details of the athlete are also now emerging. Drew Griffin reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a scene most South Africans still have trouble comprehending. The paraplegic blade runner who dazzled the world with his Olympic quest now standing accused of murder. Charming, smiling, seemingly a perfect ambassador for his country and for the disabled worldwide, but those who knew him, like Professional Soccer Player Marc Batchelor, say Pistorius had a dark side.
MARC BATCHELOR, SOCCER PLAYER: He would have a trip switch and get violent and he'd fight with people and cause a lot of problems. That's what happened with me.
GRIFFIN: Since his arrest, there's been talk about angry outbursts, accidental gun firings, boating accidents, car wrecks, all with details conspicuously left out of the press says South African sports journalist, Graeme Joffe. Oscar Pistorius' lifestyle was covered up or, more accurately, covered very little by an adoring news media.
(on camera): On record, there really isn't a problem.
GRAEME JOFFE, SPORTS JOURNALIST: That's the thing. So many incidents have happened. They have been well documented. Five or six years with Oscar Pistorius and these kind of cases have disappeared.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): That is, until now. Beloved or not, hero or not, South Africans are having a hard time understanding that this tale on a February night a scared Oscar Pistorius shot through the closed door of his own bathroom not knowing who or what was on the other side.
(on camera): That doesn't sound like what you would advocate as responsible gun ownership?
ADNAAN JACOBS, SOUTH AFRICAN SHOOTING ASSOCIATION: Sir, I'm going to be very honest and very frank to you. It was very tragic that this happened but in South African Practical Shooting Association, if you do not see a target, do not engage it. Bottom line, so shooting for Oscar to shoot through a door, what do we know what you are shooting at?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You sort of wake up in the morning expect Reeva to give a phone call.
GRIFFIN (voice-over): For Reeva Steenkamp's family, most are determined not to attend any trial. Last spring her uncle, Mike Steenkamp and her cousin, Kim Martin, told CNN, the less they hear about the details, the better.
MIKE STEENKAMP, REEVA STEENKAMP'S UNCLE: None of us are going to be represented at the court or the trial. None of the family will go up. We won't be present. I can tell you that now. And for that reason, it's not about the court case. It's about Reeva. I would like to be face-to-face with him and forgive him.
GRIFFIN (on camera): You would forgive him, Mike?
STEENKAMP: Yes.
GRIFFIN: Whether this was a tragic accident or --
STEENKAMP: Whatever the outcome, I feel, my belief and if Christ could forgive when he died on that cross, why can't I?
GRIFFIN (voice-over): The trial is now scheduled to begin next March. The formal accusation of premeditated murder filed today came on what would have been Reeva Steenkamp's 30th birthday. Drew Griffin, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: As we said, if convicted of the charges filed today, Pistorius faces a mandatory life sentence. Let's dig deeper now. I'm joined by CNN senior analyst, Jeffrey Toobin and Kelly Phelps, a law professor at the University of Cape Town. Kelly, you say the prosecution is being too aggressive. How so?
KELLY PHELPS, LAW PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN: Well, they keep saying this charge of premeditated murder and they've taken that line from the very beginning of bail and from bail right up until now it doesn't seem to be any significant evidence that would support that version of events.
COOPER: Jeff, do you think it's an uphill climb for the prosecution?
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: It's hard to know. The piece of information that we had not had before is the government's claim -- and it's only a claim at this point -- that there was evidence of an argument first. Because that would be very significant, if they could prove that there was an argument first, that would certainly --
COOPER: If neighbors heard a woman screaming before the shooting that contradicts his story?
TOOBIN: And that's a new claim in the indictment. Obviously we'll see whether they can back that up. But if they can, then I'm not sure if it's such an uphill claim. Also, remember, he did shoot repeatedly behind a closed door. What they did is a lesser included offense. The idea of recklessly shooting anyone behind a door is criminal behavior and that's what they are trying to do is essentially cover their basis.
COOPER: All along though, Jeff, you've said his story is beyond belief?
TOOBIN: I think his story is pretty incredible. There's a lot we don't know. In South African law, they list the witnesses. There are almost 100 witnesses listed. I'm not sure they will call all of those people at trial. But that suggests that the prosecution has a full story to tell and I still think it's a very difficult claim for the defense for Pistorius that he took all these shots just on the off chance there was some intruder in his house without knowing anything more.
COOPER: Also, Kelly, the whole notion that he thought she was still in the bed, that he would have gotten out of bed without even looking to see if this woman is still sleeping next to him when he thinks there's an intruder in the house that seems hard to imagine.
PHELPS: I actually take a slightly different view on this in the same sense from a cultural perspective in South Africa. Cases similar to the events that Pistorius is putting forward have happened before fairly frequently. You have to remember that we are living in an environment where people are paranoid about violent crime and in fact about house breaking in particular.
And they have been many other cases where a person has been killed having been mistaken for an intruder with regard to the issue of him not checking when he got out of bed, we have to go back to what his original affidavit was at the bail hearing. According to that affidavit, he originally got out of bed to go out on to the balcony and bring in a fan and then close the balcony door and it was at that point that he claims he heard a noise in the bathroom.
He didn't have his prosthetics on, was filled with a sense of terror. It was dark and then according to his version this tragic accident occurred. So he wouldn't have necessarily checked for Steenkamp in the bad when he first got out because, according to his version of events, he wasn't fearful of an intruder at that point.
TOOBIN: It still raises a question of how do you notice someone in bed with you? It's one bed. That's a pretty difficult claim to sustain.
COOPER: At this point, we don't know much about the forensics and that can be -- that's obviously going to be a huge thing.
TOOBIN: Very important, the angle of the bullets. If he didn't have his prosthetics on or he didn't -- his version is he didn't. Where does the angle of the bullet relate?
TOOBIN: And the other issue that I find interesting here is that South Africa, like a lot of other formal British colonies, it won't necessarily work. So I just think that the issue of judge only trials presents a complexity to what would be different than here.
COOPER: Jeff, thanks very much. Kelly Phelps, thank you so much.
PHELPS: Thank you.
COOPER: Up next, new developments in the case of a doctor accused of prescribing chemotherapy for patients who didn't even have cancer.
Plus scary moments on the California freeway when a television legend's car goes up in flames, how Dick Van Dyke got out alive.
And in a revealing interview, actress, Lindsey Lohan admits she's a drug addict. Hear it in her own words.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Black bear attacks a 12-year-old girl during an evening jog. She survives. Her story is ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Let's get caught up on some of the other stories we're following tonight. Susan Hendricks is back with the 360 Bulletin -- Susan.
HENDRICKS: Anderson, a Georgia woman charged in connection with her husband's 2010 murder was convicted today of perjury and several other counts as well. Prosecutors say Andrea Snyderman lied to investigators because she was having an affair with her former boss who a year ago was found guilty in the murder.
A 360 follow, a Michigan cancer doctor charged with intentionally misdiagnosing patients with cancer and then prescribing then unnecessary chemotherapy pleaded not guilty today. Dr. Farid Satah is being held at $9 million bond. He's accused of milking Medicare of $35 million.
And a 12-year-old Michigan girl is one of seven people in five states who have been attacked by bears since Thursday. Abby suffered deep cuts in her thigh when a black bear ambushed her while she was jogging.
Lindsey Lohan says she's ready to rebuild her career after her sixth stint in rehab. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, the 27- year-old actress talked about her demons and why things will be different this time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OPRAH WINFREY, MEDIA MOGUL: Are you an addict?
LINDSEY LOHAN, ACTRESS: Yes.
WINFREY: And what is it you are addicted to? What is your drug of choice or drugs of choice?
LOHAN: Alcohol.
WINFREY: Alcohol?
LOHAN: Yes. Because that's -- and that's -- that in the past was a gateway to other things for me.
WINFREY: What's going to be different this time?
LOHAN: Not taking Adderall. That's a big deal.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENDRICKS: Oprah says she hopes she wins that battle this time. And a close call for actor Dick Van Dyke who was pulled from his burning sports car today after it caught on fire at a California freeway. His wife tweeted this video of the scorched wreckage and said her husband is fine -- Anderson.
COOPER: We wish him well. Thanks very much, Susan. "The Ridiculist" is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Time now for "The Ridiculist." Tonight, we're adding Connecticut cable junkies. Here's what happened. Last night the cable went out in Fairfield, Connecticut. It's something that we deal with from time to time. What did some people do in Fairfield? Naturally they called the police. That's right. Not only did several people call the police department's nonemergency line and I think even nonemergency is an over statement for a cable outage but one person even called 911.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: Fairfield 911.
UNIDENTIFIED CALLER: Hi, I'm just trying to figure out what is going on. We have no TV.
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: Ma'am, 911 is for a life-threatening emergency.
UNIDENTIFIED CALLER: I know that. I know that.
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: Is this a life-threatening emergency?
UNIDENTIFIED CALLER: No, we're just trying to find out what is going on?
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: I suggest that you call cablevision or whoever your provider is. Have a good night.
(END VIDEOTAPE) COOPER: Unbelievable. All right, so here's what I think happened. Apparently there were comments on social media that lined up with this. I think this was all about my favorite program "Breaking Bad." It's the final season. Last night was the second episode of the final season and all of you fans could not handle missing out on your fix. I get that.
I love "Breaking Bad" but seriously people, you have to call the police when your cable goes out? Give me a break. You probably tweeted about it, too. OK, fine. That was my tweet actually. It's fine. I'm a big "Breaking Bad" fan. I might have even considered calling 911 for a split second if my cable went out last night or at least I would have invited myself over to Blitzer's house to watch on his TV.
Now Fairfield authorities were understandably annoyed about last night's calls and as "Ridiculist" knows well, this is not the first time that people called 911 for less than urgent reasons.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think we're dying.
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: How much did you guys have?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. We made brownies and we think we're dead. Time is going by really, really slow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: In case you realized, that guy was really stoned and I'm guessing that guy is still waiting for the Red Wings to score. But it's not even sports or special brownies that prompt people to call 911. Nothing gets people fired up quite like a food fight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED OPERATOR: What do you need the police department for?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm eating at this restaurant all you can eat fish. I just asked for some more fish. They gave me four pieces and they refused to give me any more fish. And it's right out on the sign in front of the building, all you can eat fish fry.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: I assume your cable is back on now and I would appreciate you not wanting to miss "Breaking Bad," I understand that. Next time your cable is out, leave the 911 operators alone and just call us on "The Ridiculist."
That does it for us. We'll see you again one hour from now at 10 p.m. Eastern. Thanks for watching. "PIERS MORGAN LIVE" starts now.
