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CNN Newsnight Aaron Brown

Justice Under Fire

Aired March 11, 2005 - 22:00   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.


AARON BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening again. The program tonight deals with a principle of justice even more fundamental than the presumption of innocence. Without it, justice would cease to be. It's the presumption that justice cannot be bought or bullied or shot at, not ever.
Yet, around the country tonight, justice is under fire, under fire quite literally in Atlanta, where a courtroom becomes a crime scene and a judge and two others are murdered, under fire in Chicago, where a judge's husband and mother become a gunman's target in their own home, and under fire in Baltimore, where a hip-hop video sends a chilling message to young eyewitnesses: Keep quiet or else. Lie or die.

Witness intimidation, up to and including murder, is a growing national concern. The program tonight deals with all that, but we begin with the shooting at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. It made a killing ground of that courthouse. It threw the city into virtual lockdown. Tonight, police are searching near and far, but the gunman could be anywhere. That's the bottom line at the moment.

We begin at the beginning, with CNN's David Mattingly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On trial for the alleged rape and kidnapping of his ex-girlfriend, 33-year-old Brian Nichols knew that a guilty verdict could send him to prison for a very long time. Last week, his case ended in a hung jury. And in this new trial, he had been watching the jury carefully.

But unknown to everyone, Nichols wasn't going to wait for this jury's decision. Police say he made his desperate move around 9: 00 a. m. in the Fulton County Courthouse.

DEPUTY SHERIFF ALAN DREHER, ATLANTA POLICE: The suspect was on his way to the courtroom. It appears that he overwhelmed a deputy sheriff on his way to court. And it appears that he took possession of her handgun.

MATTINGLY: Critically wounding the deputy, Nichols, instead of escaping, then strangely entered the courtroom where his trial was being held. Witnesses say he briefly held hostage the entire room, then shot and killed Superior Court Judge Roland Barns and a court reporter. Within seconds of firing those fatal shots, Nichols was on the run. And a busy, crowded courthouse erupted in confusion and fear. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were whisked out of the courthouse.

MATTINGLY: Dashing down a stairwell and making his way outside, witnesses say Nichols immediately shot and killed another deputy, the gunshots ringing out in this busy downtown section of Atlanta.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Deputies were running around, saying get out of the courthouse. Get out of the courthouse.

MATTINGLY: Nichols then, apparently bent on a fast get away, committed several carjackings trying to confuse police. At one point Nichols even stole a tow truck.

DERONTA FRANKLIN, TOW TRUCK DRIVER: He came out of the parking lot, pointed a gun at me and told me to get out of the truck. I told him you can have the truck. I backed up and walked away.

MATTINGLY: One of the carjacking victims, a local newspaper reporter, was pistol whipped, but managed to run away when Nichols ordered him to get into the trunk of his car.

DON O'BRIANT, "THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION": And he said, give me your keys or I'll kill you. I give him the keys. He opened the trunk and he said, get in the trunk. And I said, no.

MATTINGLY: It was a decision that may have saved his life. And as Nichols' rampage spread through the streets of Atlanta, local news reports set the city of 4 million on edge.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everybody off the sidewalk.

MATTINGLY: Nichols was last reported to be seen driving the reporter's green Honda, seen here on the security camera exiting the parking deck. The manhunt widened by the minute. But exactly where Nichols went is unclear.

MYRON FREEMAN, FULTON COUNTY SHERIFF: Mr. Nichols is considered armed and extremely dangerous. Do not -- I repeat - do not approach this suspect under any circumstances.

MATTINGLY: Some local schools were ordered to lock down. Police alerts were posted on busy interstates. But transportation personnel monitoring highway cameras didn't spot anything suspicious.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Traffic is going 25 miles an hour.

MATTINGLY: Police converge on Nichols' most recent address, but he's not there. They reportedly take his former girlfriend into protective custody. And as precious hours tick by, the hunt intensifies. News choppers chase authorities as they chase down multiple tips.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four of these state troopers just took off at a high rate of speed.

MATTINGLY: And by late afternoon, authorities in neighboring states were also on alert for a murder suspect on the run who may well believe he has nothing to lose.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: The Atlanta Police chief holding a news conference about 30 minutes ago with nothing new to report. The suspect still on the loose, still very dangerous. He was trying to reassure people, saying that police are going every square mile of the city, patrolling, looking for that green Honda -- Aaron.

BROWN: David, a couple quick questions. As far as we know, was he being escorted by just the one deputy?

MATTINGLY: Yes. That is the case. He was being escorted by one female deputy who was substantially smaller than the suspect. And they believe that's where the real breach in security occurred. That's when he -- overcome his one lone deputy guard and then went on his rampage.

BROWN: And have there been in the course of this day -- and much of this has unfolded as people have watched it -- have there been any solid leads along the way?

MATTINGLY: Police say they are getting tips, nothing that they've actually termed a solid lead. But what they are -- they're doing this by the book. They're focusing on the locations and on the individuals that he was known to associate with, and that's why -- that's what they're doing tonight. They have no evidence that he's actually left the city. But, at the same time, they have no idea where he might be.

BROWN: David, thank you. David Mattingly in Atlanta tonight.

As David reported, Brian Nichols was on trial -- accused of rape, among other charges. It was, in fact, the second trial on those charges. The first ended in a hung jury, about half the jurors not sure that Mr. Nichols was guilty as charged.

But, guilty or innocent, jurors in both cases describe a man with a menacing look and a desperate tone. And, tonight there's a $60,000 reward and a massive manhunt, but no sign yet of where he is.

Here's what we know about the man behind the mug shot, reported by CNN's Tony Harris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREHER: We're not going to rest until we have him in custody.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's talking about Brian Nichols. Take a close look at the mug shot. Then listen to two jurors from the two Nichols trials describe his eyes. First, a juror from this week's retrial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every time -- every time when he just looked up, we saw him looking at our reactions, and he made us a little nervous. We always kind of looked the other way. HARRIS: Then this from a jury member in the Nichols' first trial, which ended in a hung jury.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Brian Nichols was desperate to not be convicted of these crimes. So, he ignored his own defense attorney and sat there and looked us all in the eye and told his story.

HARRIS: What was he on trial for?

PAUL HOWARD, FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: It involved a case that involved his ex-girlfriend. He broke into the ex-girlfriend's house. She was bound with duct tape. Once she was bound with duct tape, he actually brought a cooler into her place. And the cooler was stocked with food. And he told her that he was going to be there and assault her for three days until her birthday.

One of the things that he also brought in with him was a loaded machine gun. He -- he did, in fact, assault her. He repeatedly threatened her family. He repeatedly threatened her. And he repeatedly threatened her new boyfriend. So, we have no doubt that he is dangerous.

HARRIS: Nichols' own defense attorney saw how things were going for his client.

BARRY HAZEN, ATTORNEY FOR NICHOLS: I don't think it was going very well. And I thought they had -- they were presenting a much more muscular case than they had presented the first time.

GAYLE ABRAMSON, FULTON COUNTY ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY: I do think that, in his mind, he knew he was going to be convicted this time. And, so, I think that he was just seeking revenge on the criminal justice system.

HARRIS: It was, for Brian Nichols, his first serious brush with the law. The charges had been brought by the woman with whom he had had a seven-year relationship. She had even bought a condo for him to live in; 33 years old, Nichols is a big man, once a linebacker for his college football team. He had worked most recently as a computer technician for a division of UPS.

HAZEN: I didn't get the sense that he could be violent until Thursday morning, when we were told by Judge Barnes that Mr. Nichols had secreted two metal objects in his shoes.

HARRIS: But Barry Hazen, who was late to court this morning, says the talk of security was apparently just that.

HAZEN: After Judge Barnes said there would be beefed up security in the courtroom, there was one additional female deputy in the courtroom. That was all.

HARRIS: And what about the judge? Was there anything that could have provoked Nichols? Barry Hazen says Nichols is very, very smart. And one more thing.

HAZEN: He's not my client anymore.

HARRIS: Tony Harris, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: As events played out in front of the courthouse, a woman stood by the steps in tears. She was clinging to what hope, a slim hope, she said, the hope that her friend, a court reporter, was not one of those involved. She suspected, however, that it was. And, sadly, she was right.

Also, on a flight today to California, a dear friend of Judge Barnes didn't even have the temporary comfort of hope. She knew. CNN's Nancy Grace talked about her friend, the judge, with Ted Rowlands tonight on "LARRY KING LIVE."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE")

NANCY GRACE, FORMER PROSECUTOR: When I think of Rowland Barnes, Ted, I think of him taking a big swing with a metal softball bat. We played softball with each other and against each other, the public defenders vs. the district attorneys vs. the court administrators.

And he was one of those people, Ted -- you know what I think about a lot of judges, that we all said thank God Barnes has made it to the Superior Court bench. You know, I've sat in that courtroom many a'times sitting up in the jury box, sitting at the prosecutor's table, going up behind the bench, trying to get documents or the law books that the judge keeps behind him on the bench.

We never -- you would think a defendant would try to flee and avoid arrest. Instead, this guy made it his business. And he had just been found with two shanks, which are homemade knives, from the jail a couple of days before. And I'm just stunned that he would risk his own escape to go back and seek vengeance on this judge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Nancy Grace a short time ago on "LARRY KING LIVE."

Any workplace functions as an extended family, courthouses more so than most. These truly are deaths in the family. In the days ahead, we'll get a fuller picture of who the other victims were, the lives they led, the people who knew them. For now, there are only names and the barest of details.

Julie Brandau, the court reporter fatally wounded in Judge Barnes' courtroom today, Sergeant Hoyt Teasley shot and killed when he confronted the gunman outside the courthouse, and another deputy, Cynthia Hall, in critical condition tonight. Doctors say she has wounds consistent with a bullet grazing the skull, but not penetrating it. And, she, thankfully, is expected to recover.

We have much more tonight on this special edition of NEWSNIGHT, starting with the people without whom the criminal justice cannot operate, witnesses. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDGE JOHN M. GLYNN, BALTIMORE CITY COURT: Witness intimidation is chronic. It's endemic. It arises in most of the cases I try.

BROWN: (voice-over): More and more, witnesses are finding that what they saw can kill them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ann Hewell (ph) was trying to run up the steps. And then she was shot once in the back and twice in the back of the head.

BROWN: A routine traffic stop may prove the key to a murder of a judge's family. Tonight, you'll hear from the police officer who thought something was suspicious.

Another courthouse shooting caught on television two years ago. What happened to the lawyer who was the target? Where is the shooter?

From New York and around the world, a special edition of NEWSNIGHT, "Justice Under Fire."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Continuing our special report tonight, "Justice Under Fire," we'll turn in a moment to the problem of witness intimidation -- how in trials across the country, bad guys go free because good guys are too scared to testify. And you'll meet a woman who has good reason not to blame them.

But there was other news today. And for that, we turn briefly to CNN's Erica Hill, who joins us again from Atlanta.

Good evening.

ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Aaron. Just about 15 minutes past the hour now.

We start with a new move here. The United States putting its money where its mouth is in an attempt to get Iran to abandon its nuclear program. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the U.S. will offer economic incentives to go get Iran to comply. And the U.S. is dropping its opposition to Iran's application for membership in the World Trade Organization, a move Europe had pressed for.

In Chicago, investigators are searching Judge Joan Lefkow's home for the weapon they believe was used to kill her husband and mother. Police say the .22-caliber gun may have been thrown on the roof. A man who shot himself Wednesday left a suicide note claiming responsibility for the killings. Police say he included details in the note only the killer would know.

If you're one of the many who has decided to ditch the land line and stick with your cell, some good news for you. A federal court up held the bulk of FCC rules that allow consumers to keep their phone numbers when switching providers. We should point out, though, smaller traditional companies are exempt from honoring consumer requests to switch their land line number to their cell phone.

In California, an exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium titled Vanishing Wildlife is earning its name. A great white shark, who has been in captivity there for six months, has killed two soupfin sharks over the past two weeks. It is the longest a great white has ever been held in captivity. And animal rights groups say it's a sign great whites should not be held captive.

And that's the latest from the Headline News studio in Atlanta. I'm Erica Hill.

Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Erica, thank you.

On we go tonight.

Judges may be the most public targets, but they're not the only ones under fire. A witness to a crime is essential to the justice system. Without their testimony, criminals go free. We're taught as kids we should bear witness to wrong. But, increasingly, telling a jury what you saw can mean putting your life at risk.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN (voice-over): Leroy Brown was 8-years-old when he died. They called him B.J. And he was murdered inside this home in Bridgeport, Connecticut, shot to prevent him testifying in a murder trial. His killer was the defendant's brother. The jury found the killer innocent of capital murder. He got 20 years in prison for conspiracy.

CAROL GRIM, MOTHER OF SLAIN WITNESS: You never get over it. It doesn't matter how old or how young they are. Your child is your child.

BROWN: Carol Grim's daughter, Angela (ph), the brunette on the right, saw a murder six years ago in Prince George's County, just outside Washington, D.C. She told police and she was murdered before she could testify.

GRIM: She was shot once in the back and twice in the back of the head and was killed instantly.

BROWN: Judges and prosecutors say intimidation of witnesses, from threats to outright violence, is growing. And some of it is not subtle in the least.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To all you rats and snitches lucky enough to cop one of these DVDs, I hope you catch AIDS in your mouth and your lip's the first thing to die. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: This is a DVD made by a filmmaker in Baltimore. He asked some street toughs to say what was on their minds.

RODNEY BETHEA, FILMMAKER: As we started to gather their footage and we were looking back at it, everyone was pretty much talking about the snitching topic.

GLYNN: Witness intimidation is chronic. It's endemic. It arises in most of the cases I try, which are mostly murders and attempted murders. There's probably -- in 70 percent or 75 percent of the cases, there are serious problems with witness cooperation and witness intimidation.

BROWN: The list is long and seems to be growing longer. Earlier this week, a jury in the District of Columbia convicted two men for a total of 28 murders from 1989 through 1999. Prosecutors say the two were responsible for killing drug gang rivals and potential witnesses. The gang leader received 26 consecutive life sentences.

In Las Vegas, prosecutors say they're having trouble finding witnesses willing to testify in important criminal cases involving gangs and drugs. In Florida, associates of the Gambino crime family, once led by John Gotti, have been convicted of witness tampering and intimidation.

As for the gangs themselves, the FBI says juvenile gang homicides have gone up 25 percent in the last four years. And witnesses, if there are any, are terrified.

PATRICIA JESSAMY, STATE'S ATTORNEY FOR BALTIMORE: Witnesses either go underground because they've been threatened and intimidated and are afraid or they come to court and they recant their prior statements. This must not continue.

BROWN: It is not uncommon, of course, for jurors in high-profile criminal cases to be identified only by number, not by name, with images of jurors prohibited outside the court. Authorities say they don't have enough money to protect all the witnesses who need protecting, but doing the right thing does still count.

Carol Grim, for one, remains proud of her child.

GRIM: For standing up for her rights, for not being afraid, for telling the police what he did and at least getting him and a couple other ones off the street.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Which brings us to Bobby Gibson. Bobby Gibson's story will break your heart.

He was 21 when he saw a friend murdered in one of the grittier parts of New York City. He told a grand jury what he saw, who the killer was, and was prepared to tell a jury that story as well. But he never got to the courthouse.

We talked to his mother, Sylvia Gibson, a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Your son knew that there was risk in deciding to testify, didn't he?

SYLVIA GIBSON, MOTHER OF SLAIN WITNESS: Yes, he did.

BROWN: How did he know that?

GIBSON: Because he -- the people that -- the people that did the shooting were alleged gang members that he had heard about, and he knew that there were some risks.

BROWN: Were there attempts to convince him not to testify?

GIBSON: He was approached by other witnesses. And he was told that some people wanted to speak with him about testifying.

BROWN: Did he tell the prosecutors, and did he tell the police that people -- that he felt in fear of his life?

GIBSON: Well, he definitely told the prosecutors. I don't know about police. He didn't tell the police. He told the prosecutors, the DA's office.

BROWN: And, to your knowledge, did the DA's office take those threats seriously?

GIBSON: No. They didn't.

BROWN: What did they do?

GIBSON: They didn't do anything.

BROWN: What did he want from them?

GIBSON: He wanted them to give him some kind of protection. I mean, they told him once when he went into the DA's office for him to put a hood over his face. Why -- if you're telling him to put a hood over his face, obviously, you must figure that there's some kind of danger. Why they wouldn't pick him up. They told him to get down to the DA's office the best that he could.

BROWN: So, basically, your son was, what, 21 at the time?

GIBSON: Twenty-one, yes.

BROWN: Twenty-one-year-old kid is sort of left out on his own to get to court.

GIBSON: Yes. Yes, best way you can.

BROWN: To live his life best way he can. And these are some pretty mean streets that he's coming from, aren't they?

GIBSON: Yes. They are, very.

BROWN: So, how did they get to him?

GIBSON: He went out one night. And, on his way home, they shot him in his back.

BROWN: And how did you find out?

You're doing fine.

GIBSON: The cops called us and told us to come down to (UNINTELLIGIBLE) hospital.

BROWN: And did you know right away? Did you believe right away that it was related to what he had seen and what he had told the grand jury and what he was prepared to tell the court?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: In the end, he did testify on tape, right?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: Was that this grand jury testimony?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: And what happened to the people that -- first of all, what happened to the people he testified against?

GIBSON: He was convicted.

BROWN: And what happened to the people who killed him?

GIBSON: The shooter was convicted.

BROWN: And sentenced?

GIBSON: Yes. He was sentenced to 25 years to life.

BROWN: And what do you think of the criminal justice system and how they treated your son?

GIBSON: They just -- they treated him like he was nothing, a nobody, like -- the impression that they gave me, that they didn't care anything about him. All they wanted was his testimony. And that was it.

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: And if you were a kid in Bedford-Stuyvesant and you knew what happened to your son and you witnessed a murder or another crime, would you testify?

GIBSON: No. I don't think I would. I really don't believe I would.

BROWN: Thank you for coming in tonight.

GIBSON: You're welcome.

BROWN: Appreciate it very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: That's the problem right there.

Coming up ahead, we'll meet a judge who takes her security personally.

We'll take a break first. This is a special edition of NEWSNIGHT on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: There's nothing surprising about walking through a metal detector to get into a courthouse these days. Keeping guns out is the reason they're there. And two weeks ago at a courthouse in Tyler, Texas, the security, it seems, worked. But it's not something all judges there take for granted.

Here's CNN's Sean Callebs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Smith County Courthouse surveillance tape, deputies rushing to confront a gunman who has already killed. While the shoot-out played out in the town square, chaos on the second floor -- a capital murder trial interrupted by the unmistakable pop of weapons firing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down. Stay down.

CALLEBS: Deputies, guns drawn, prepare for the worst. In the back of the courtroom, Judge Cynthia Stevens Kent is ushered to safety. For the first time in recent years, the judge realizes she has left something important in her car.

JUDGE CYNTHIA STEVENS KENT: I carry a Smith and Wesson .38 revolver. A lot of the judges do carry personal protection. Of course, this is Texas, OK? And in Texas, I'm a Second Amendment gal. I like the revolver.

CALLEBS: On this day, Stevens Kent says it's probably a blessing she chose not to exercise the right to bear arms. She wasn't tempted to get involved.

The judge and sheriff's deputies believe a wealth of officers and building security kept David Arroyo at bay.

LT. CHARLIE BAKER, SMITH COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: As officers taking up positions here, if we did not have these measures in place, I believe that Mr. Arroyo would have came inside the courthouse to carry out his plan.

CALLEBS (voice-over): The security precautions in Tyler have been in place since 1992. They went in after a gunman pulled a weapon in Judge John Hill's courtroom that same year. Hellacious screams, rapid gunfire, words, used by workers inside the old Tarrant County Courthouse when shots rang out.

JUDGE JOHN G. HILL, RETIRED: I said, you know, Was that an explosion? And kind of started to stand up. Well, about that time, I felt a sting in this shoulder right here. And I thought, No, that's not an explosion. I know what that is.

CALLEBS: He was shot by .9-millimeter pistol. Two others in the courtroom died that day.

STEVENS KENT: Taking the defendant to the ground. They pull their guns and keep him secure.

CALLEBS: After watching the drama play out in her town, Judge Stevens Kent has a warning for cities and towns where courthouses remain vulnerable, with no visible security.

STEVENS KENT: It really is a wakeup call for a lot of communities that feel very safe.

CALLEBS: With an automatic weapon, 200 rounds of ammo, officials in Tyler say David Arroyo was ready for war, a battle the killer was able to take to the streets, but not into the halls of justice.

Sean Callebs, CNN, Tyler, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Two years ago, a shooting outside a courthouse in California was caught on television. The cameras there were rolling to cover a hearing in the Robert Blake murder trial. The shooting had nothing to do with that. The target was a lawyer, Gerald Curry.

Tonight, in our anniversary series "Then and Now," we look back at that terrifying day in his life and where he is today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a shocking sideshow captured by TV crews gathered at the L.A. County Courthouse to cover the Robert Blake hearing in 2003. Attorney Gerald Curry was at the courthouse for an unrelated case when William Strier approached him, asked his name and opened fire. Strier then calmly walked away. He was apparently angry that Curry was representing Strier's sister in a dispute over a trust fund.

Curry was shot in the neck, both arms and shoulder, and taken to the scene by paramedics. Curry survived, recovered completely and still lives and practices law in Southern California.

GERALD CURRY, ATTORNEY: When I leave the office, when I go to the court, when I go to parking structure, I tend to keep my eyes open, look around.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a gun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Curry's shooter, William Strier, was ruled mentally unfit to stand trial and remains in a state hospital. Curry says he doesn't harbor any bad feelings for Strier.

CURRY: The odds of this happening were probably one in a million. And, so, therefore, I try to not let it affect my life or not have any bitterness. And I try to maintain a positive and optimistic outlook.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Throughout the year, we'll revisit the stories that have stood out over the last 25 years, as we celebrate a quarter-century of broadcasting the news to you, a look back and an update on where the newsmakers are today.

Still to come on this special edition of NEWSNIGHT tonight, in the murder of a family of a federal judge in Chicago, a bit of luck and keen observation may have broken the case. You'll hear from the cop who had the hunch.

This is a NEWSNIGHT special.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Investigators in Illinois and Wisconsin are working tonight to retrace the steps of Bart Ross, a man who allegedly murdered the husband and the mother of a federal judge in Chicago.

Two nights ago, Mr. Ross killed himself outside Milwaukee. His DNA has now been matched to a cigarette butt found at the murder scene. The night he committed suicide, some 300 detectives and federal agents were working the case 90 miles south in Chicago. But the break in the investigation came down to the actions of a young cop who had a hunch -- and that's all it was -- which led to a routine traffic stop.

Here's CNN's Keith Oppenheim.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICK ORLOWSKI, WEST ALLIS POLICE DEPARTMENT: I knew, obviously, that the murders had happened. And, other than that, I really didn't know too much about it.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On Wednesday evening, when officer Rick Orlowski made a turn on this street...

ORLOWSKI: This is -- he was sitting right here.

OPPENHEIM: ... the West Allis, Wisconsin, patrolman was not thinking about the murders of federal Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow's husband and mother. He was wondering why this minivan with out-of- state plates was parked on this suburban Milwaukee side street with the driver just sitting. Orlowski drove by the car several times.

(on camera): It seems to me you almost had, that there was a hunch, that there was something more just sort of bugging you in your mind.

ORLOWSKI: Right. Yes. It was really bothering me in my head, more or less. He wasn't really doing anything wrong, but just -- something didn't seem right.

OPPENHEIM (voice-over): After Orlowski's third pass, the minivan moved. Orlowski followed, noticed the car's taillights were out, pulled it over and approached.

ORLOWSKI: Just as I started bringing my head forward, that's when the round came off. I heard a pop, felt it. Glass kind of hit me in the face. I stepped back. That's when I drew down and took a couple more steps back.

OPPENHEIM (on camera): OK.

ORLOWSKI: Waited for either another round or for him to come out. It never did. I turned around and ran back to my car, got to the rear and then I looked through the window, and I could see that he was kind of laying on his side.

OPPENHEIM (voice-over): Orlowski said he couldn't be sure if the driver was only playing dead. He called for backup.

ORLOWSKI: He just shot a gun at me. Where is he at?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven-one Grant (ph). Shots fired.

OPPENHEIM: It turned out the one shot Bart Ross fired was to end his own life.

ORLOWSKI: I was scared. I mean, I wasn't crying or anything, but he scared me. I didn't know what was going to happen next. And I'm glad it turned out the way it did.

OPPENHEIM: Only shards of glass in the street remain at the scene where investigators search for evidence.

ORLOWSKI: They went around the rear of the car and came up from the side and busted out a side window.

OPPENHEIM: By later that evening, a suicide note was found and an apparent connection to the Lefkow murders made.

With morning, it dawns on Orlowski his traffic stop, one that could have cost him his life, was the clincher in a huge case.

ORLOWSKI: I got lucky. It was partly dumb luck.

OPPENHEIM: But Orlowski resists being called a hero. He says he's thinking about Judge Lefkow and that his actions might give her the answers to her terrible loss. ORLOWSKI: And let her know that we do care, that I care, that I was able to help her in her crisis.

Keith Oppenheim, CNN, West Allis, Wisconsin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Ahead on NEWSNIGHT on this Friday, another corner of the justice system under fire, when civil matters turn deadly.

This is a NEWSNIGHT special.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: In a moment, a man who knows better than most what days like this one in Atlanta are like. He survived one.

First, the latest on the manhunt for Brian Nichols and some of the day's other news. Erica Hill joins us again from Atlanta -- Erica.

HILL: Hi, Aaron, just about 15 minutes until the hour now.

There is a $60,000 reward for information leading to the capture of the suspect who allegedly shot and killed Superior Court Judge Rowland Barnes and two other people. A multistate dragnet continues for this man, Brian Nichols. He is the suspect in today's shooting at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Police say Nichols, on trial for rape, grabbed a deputy's gun and used it to kill the judge, a court reporter and another deputy.

CNN has just otained pictures of the deputies involved. Sergeant Hoyt Teasley was killed. He was a 19-year veteran. The female deputy, Cynthia Hall, whose gun was taken, was wounded. She remains in critical condition. And this is video of the court reporter who was killed, Julie Brandau. Officers say the suspect is considered to be armed and dangerous. Police say they will not stop until they get their man.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD PENNINGTON, ATLANTA POLICE CHIEF: This manhunt will continue until he's apprehended. He's a very dangerous person in our community. And we want the public to know that. If anyone has any information about this individual, please call us, because we're not going to stop looking until we apprehend this person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Now, police are searching for a green Honda Accord with a Georgia license plate 6584 YN. And, again, the suspect is armed and dangerous. If you see him, call police, but do not approach him.

I'm Erica Hill in Atlanta -- Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Erica, thank you. We have for the most part tonight dealt with violence and intimidation relating to the criminal justice system, which is not to say the civil side doesn't also produce its share of mayhem. Passions can run high in civil cases as well. And occasionally, the boil over.

Two years ago in Minneapolis, an angry litigant shot attorney Rick Hendrickson and his client. The client died. Mr. Hendrickson joins us tonight.

Rick, it's nice to see you. Before we get to the particulars, I guess, of your case, what ran through your mind today when you heard about the Atlanta news?

RICHARD HENDRICKSON, ATTORNEY: Basically, again, it's a continuation of ongoing violence that takes place more and more in the legal setting.

I'm thinking of the judge, the murders of the judge's husband and her mother, the whole shootings that you have already discussed in your program. There seems to be a growing sense of violence in courthouses.

BROWN: Yes.

When you go to court, I mean, you were in a situation where a client of yours was chased into a bathroom and murdered.

HENDRICKSON: Yes.

BROWN: You're lucky to be alive, as it turns out. Do you walk into court today thinking, something horrible could happen here?

HENDRICKSON: You think of that, but you can't go through life with that kind of a fear. After all, we all know you can get run over by a car. You have to move on.

I think, as Mr. Curry said in one of your earlier pieces, the chances of me getting shot again are infinitesimal. It's possible, but the fear is not just me. The fear is that other people, members of the public, our judicial staff, the judges, all of those are susceptible to some form of violence, be it shootings, be it knifings, etcetera.

I think our society is just plain more violent than it was 20, 30 years ago. And we have to basically accept that and take reasonable measures to make sure that our courthouses are secure, so that people can feel that they, indeed, get the justice that they deserve.

BROWN: Just on the subject of precautions, as I recall the case that you were involved in, I don't know if warnings is the right word, but certainly there were suspicions. There were indications that the woman who ultimately committed the murder might do something crazy.

HENDRICKSON: Yes.

Matter of fact, in our situation, my client was deathly afraid of her cousin. And the day before the hearing, I called the court, and I asked for security. And they told me the process for having security to appear at court, which we followed. So, we had a security officer with us. In Hennepin County at that time, and maybe still today, the term security is different than a deputy sheriff.

A security person does not have a sidearm. And so, when the deputy -- or when the security person saw the shooter walk towards him, he turned and, as apparently he was instructed to do, he fled. He didn't give my client any warning.

BROWN: Wow.

HENDRICKSON: And so, my client was unaware. Then her cousin walked into the restroom and shot her four times.

BROWN: Hennepin County, that's Minneapolis.

HENDRICKSON: That's right.

BROWN: Has it changed since then? Is it still that way?

HENDRICKSON: I think what happened to me and what happened to my client were the catalyst that started the security process. Matter of fact, on Monday, Hennepin County is starting its first day of general metal screening.

So, it's taken about a year, a year and a half, since I was shot, but finally they're implementing that. And I think I, the other judges -- or I, the judges, the court staff, everyone is looking forward to finally this kind of security. This is a good thing.

BROWN: It is a necessary thing. It's pretty clear.

HENDRICKSON: Very necessary. Yes.

BROWN: Rick, it's good to see you. Thanks for joining us tonight.

HENDRICKSON: Thank you.

BROWN: Rick Hendrickson in Minneapolis tonight.

We'll check newspaper headlines after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(ROOSTER CROWING)

BROWN: OK. Time to check morning papers from around the country and around the world.

We'll start with "The International Herald Tribune," because it's just a reminder of something I think kind of odd about the news business. Had events in Atlanta not taken place the way they had today, there's no doubt we would have spent a lot of time, or at least some time, on this story today. "A Divided Spain Remembers." This is the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attack in Madrid. What, 200 people died that day? I don't remember; 191 people died, Madrid a year ago. And we, no doubt, would have revisited that. But because of the news of the day, it barely gets a mention.

"The Washington Times" gets an interview with Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state, and therefore leads. I think the headline is kind of an odd lead, but, hey, it's not my paper. "Rice Plans No Apology to North Korea." Of all the things she said, that's the headline? I guess it is. "2008 Run, Abortion Engage Her Politically." The secretary of state describes herself as mildly pro choice. And we can all try and figure out what that means. Anyway, she refuses to dispel the idea, she might want to be president.

The courthouse shooting gets prominence just about in every other paper that we looked at today. "Man Kills Judge, Two Others at Courthouse in Atlanta. On Trial For Rape, He Steals Deputy's Gun, Opens Fire, Then Flees." "The Dallas Morning News." Anything else there? No. Well, yes, but you know what I mean.

"San Antonio Express" -- how would you know what I meant? "Carnage at Atlanta Court. Rape Suspect Goes on Rampage," also on the front page.

This is just a really interesting placement to me. "The Philadelphia Inquirer." "Three Slain at Georgia Court. Hunt Creates Chaos. Officers Swarmed. Atlanta's Gunman Still at Large. Buildings Locked Down." Go down to the corner here, OK? "Jury Deadlocks in Murder Trial of Reputed Philadelphia Drug Dealer." What is he on trial for? Having a witness murdered. "Felix Summers," says the lead, "the suspected South Philadelphia drug dealer who a prosecutor contends has used fear and intimidation to beat the system, has won another day in court."

"Boston Herald." "Killer on the Loose," pretty straight-ahead lead out of a tabloid. "Courthouse Madman Slays Judge and Two Others."

We'll end it, as we do, with "The Chicago Sun-Times." "Killer Left Trail in Judge's Home." This is the Bart Ross story, told you about earlier. And because we ought to update this one, "A Tough Week For Boeing CEO. On Monday, Harry Stonecipher Loses Job Over Affair With Colleague. On Friday, His Wife Files For Divorce." Duh.

Weather tomorrow in Chicago...

(CHIMES)

BROWN: "Hostile."

We'll wrap it up in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: We end tonight with the people who have dominated this day. Atlanta District Court Judge Rowland Barnes. He was described by a defense attorney today as the people's judge. Julie Ann Brandau was his court reporter. She would, if a trial, a jury trial, was in session, bake something for the jurors. Sergeant Hoyt Teasley, father of two, shot and killed when he confronted the gunman outside the courthouse. And another deputy, Cynthia Hall, in critical condition tonight. She was shot in the head escorting the man to court. She is expected to survive.

And a manhunt on tonight for Brian Nichols, a $60,000 reward, and counts of murder.

That's our special report. Have a good weekend. We'll see you again on Monday. Until then, good night for all of us.

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 11, 2005 - 22:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
AARON BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening again. The program tonight deals with a principle of justice even more fundamental than the presumption of innocence. Without it, justice would cease to be. It's the presumption that justice cannot be bought or bullied or shot at, not ever.
Yet, around the country tonight, justice is under fire, under fire quite literally in Atlanta, where a courtroom becomes a crime scene and a judge and two others are murdered, under fire in Chicago, where a judge's husband and mother become a gunman's target in their own home, and under fire in Baltimore, where a hip-hop video sends a chilling message to young eyewitnesses: Keep quiet or else. Lie or die.

Witness intimidation, up to and including murder, is a growing national concern. The program tonight deals with all that, but we begin with the shooting at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. It made a killing ground of that courthouse. It threw the city into virtual lockdown. Tonight, police are searching near and far, but the gunman could be anywhere. That's the bottom line at the moment.

We begin at the beginning, with CNN's David Mattingly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On trial for the alleged rape and kidnapping of his ex-girlfriend, 33-year-old Brian Nichols knew that a guilty verdict could send him to prison for a very long time. Last week, his case ended in a hung jury. And in this new trial, he had been watching the jury carefully.

But unknown to everyone, Nichols wasn't going to wait for this jury's decision. Police say he made his desperate move around 9: 00 a. m. in the Fulton County Courthouse.

DEPUTY SHERIFF ALAN DREHER, ATLANTA POLICE: The suspect was on his way to the courtroom. It appears that he overwhelmed a deputy sheriff on his way to court. And it appears that he took possession of her handgun.

MATTINGLY: Critically wounding the deputy, Nichols, instead of escaping, then strangely entered the courtroom where his trial was being held. Witnesses say he briefly held hostage the entire room, then shot and killed Superior Court Judge Roland Barns and a court reporter. Within seconds of firing those fatal shots, Nichols was on the run. And a busy, crowded courthouse erupted in confusion and fear. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were whisked out of the courthouse.

MATTINGLY: Dashing down a stairwell and making his way outside, witnesses say Nichols immediately shot and killed another deputy, the gunshots ringing out in this busy downtown section of Atlanta.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Deputies were running around, saying get out of the courthouse. Get out of the courthouse.

MATTINGLY: Nichols then, apparently bent on a fast get away, committed several carjackings trying to confuse police. At one point Nichols even stole a tow truck.

DERONTA FRANKLIN, TOW TRUCK DRIVER: He came out of the parking lot, pointed a gun at me and told me to get out of the truck. I told him you can have the truck. I backed up and walked away.

MATTINGLY: One of the carjacking victims, a local newspaper reporter, was pistol whipped, but managed to run away when Nichols ordered him to get into the trunk of his car.

DON O'BRIANT, "THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION": And he said, give me your keys or I'll kill you. I give him the keys. He opened the trunk and he said, get in the trunk. And I said, no.

MATTINGLY: It was a decision that may have saved his life. And as Nichols' rampage spread through the streets of Atlanta, local news reports set the city of 4 million on edge.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everybody off the sidewalk.

MATTINGLY: Nichols was last reported to be seen driving the reporter's green Honda, seen here on the security camera exiting the parking deck. The manhunt widened by the minute. But exactly where Nichols went is unclear.

MYRON FREEMAN, FULTON COUNTY SHERIFF: Mr. Nichols is considered armed and extremely dangerous. Do not -- I repeat - do not approach this suspect under any circumstances.

MATTINGLY: Some local schools were ordered to lock down. Police alerts were posted on busy interstates. But transportation personnel monitoring highway cameras didn't spot anything suspicious.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Traffic is going 25 miles an hour.

MATTINGLY: Police converge on Nichols' most recent address, but he's not there. They reportedly take his former girlfriend into protective custody. And as precious hours tick by, the hunt intensifies. News choppers chase authorities as they chase down multiple tips.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Four of these state troopers just took off at a high rate of speed.

MATTINGLY: And by late afternoon, authorities in neighboring states were also on alert for a murder suspect on the run who may well believe he has nothing to lose.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: The Atlanta Police chief holding a news conference about 30 minutes ago with nothing new to report. The suspect still on the loose, still very dangerous. He was trying to reassure people, saying that police are going every square mile of the city, patrolling, looking for that green Honda -- Aaron.

BROWN: David, a couple quick questions. As far as we know, was he being escorted by just the one deputy?

MATTINGLY: Yes. That is the case. He was being escorted by one female deputy who was substantially smaller than the suspect. And they believe that's where the real breach in security occurred. That's when he -- overcome his one lone deputy guard and then went on his rampage.

BROWN: And have there been in the course of this day -- and much of this has unfolded as people have watched it -- have there been any solid leads along the way?

MATTINGLY: Police say they are getting tips, nothing that they've actually termed a solid lead. But what they are -- they're doing this by the book. They're focusing on the locations and on the individuals that he was known to associate with, and that's why -- that's what they're doing tonight. They have no evidence that he's actually left the city. But, at the same time, they have no idea where he might be.

BROWN: David, thank you. David Mattingly in Atlanta tonight.

As David reported, Brian Nichols was on trial -- accused of rape, among other charges. It was, in fact, the second trial on those charges. The first ended in a hung jury, about half the jurors not sure that Mr. Nichols was guilty as charged.

But, guilty or innocent, jurors in both cases describe a man with a menacing look and a desperate tone. And, tonight there's a $60,000 reward and a massive manhunt, but no sign yet of where he is.

Here's what we know about the man behind the mug shot, reported by CNN's Tony Harris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREHER: We're not going to rest until we have him in custody.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's talking about Brian Nichols. Take a close look at the mug shot. Then listen to two jurors from the two Nichols trials describe his eyes. First, a juror from this week's retrial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every time -- every time when he just looked up, we saw him looking at our reactions, and he made us a little nervous. We always kind of looked the other way. HARRIS: Then this from a jury member in the Nichols' first trial, which ended in a hung jury.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Brian Nichols was desperate to not be convicted of these crimes. So, he ignored his own defense attorney and sat there and looked us all in the eye and told his story.

HARRIS: What was he on trial for?

PAUL HOWARD, FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: It involved a case that involved his ex-girlfriend. He broke into the ex-girlfriend's house. She was bound with duct tape. Once she was bound with duct tape, he actually brought a cooler into her place. And the cooler was stocked with food. And he told her that he was going to be there and assault her for three days until her birthday.

One of the things that he also brought in with him was a loaded machine gun. He -- he did, in fact, assault her. He repeatedly threatened her family. He repeatedly threatened her. And he repeatedly threatened her new boyfriend. So, we have no doubt that he is dangerous.

HARRIS: Nichols' own defense attorney saw how things were going for his client.

BARRY HAZEN, ATTORNEY FOR NICHOLS: I don't think it was going very well. And I thought they had -- they were presenting a much more muscular case than they had presented the first time.

GAYLE ABRAMSON, FULTON COUNTY ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY: I do think that, in his mind, he knew he was going to be convicted this time. And, so, I think that he was just seeking revenge on the criminal justice system.

HARRIS: It was, for Brian Nichols, his first serious brush with the law. The charges had been brought by the woman with whom he had had a seven-year relationship. She had even bought a condo for him to live in; 33 years old, Nichols is a big man, once a linebacker for his college football team. He had worked most recently as a computer technician for a division of UPS.

HAZEN: I didn't get the sense that he could be violent until Thursday morning, when we were told by Judge Barnes that Mr. Nichols had secreted two metal objects in his shoes.

HARRIS: But Barry Hazen, who was late to court this morning, says the talk of security was apparently just that.

HAZEN: After Judge Barnes said there would be beefed up security in the courtroom, there was one additional female deputy in the courtroom. That was all.

HARRIS: And what about the judge? Was there anything that could have provoked Nichols? Barry Hazen says Nichols is very, very smart. And one more thing.

HAZEN: He's not my client anymore.

HARRIS: Tony Harris, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: As events played out in front of the courthouse, a woman stood by the steps in tears. She was clinging to what hope, a slim hope, she said, the hope that her friend, a court reporter, was not one of those involved. She suspected, however, that it was. And, sadly, she was right.

Also, on a flight today to California, a dear friend of Judge Barnes didn't even have the temporary comfort of hope. She knew. CNN's Nancy Grace talked about her friend, the judge, with Ted Rowlands tonight on "LARRY KING LIVE."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE")

NANCY GRACE, FORMER PROSECUTOR: When I think of Rowland Barnes, Ted, I think of him taking a big swing with a metal softball bat. We played softball with each other and against each other, the public defenders vs. the district attorneys vs. the court administrators.

And he was one of those people, Ted -- you know what I think about a lot of judges, that we all said thank God Barnes has made it to the Superior Court bench. You know, I've sat in that courtroom many a'times sitting up in the jury box, sitting at the prosecutor's table, going up behind the bench, trying to get documents or the law books that the judge keeps behind him on the bench.

We never -- you would think a defendant would try to flee and avoid arrest. Instead, this guy made it his business. And he had just been found with two shanks, which are homemade knives, from the jail a couple of days before. And I'm just stunned that he would risk his own escape to go back and seek vengeance on this judge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Nancy Grace a short time ago on "LARRY KING LIVE."

Any workplace functions as an extended family, courthouses more so than most. These truly are deaths in the family. In the days ahead, we'll get a fuller picture of who the other victims were, the lives they led, the people who knew them. For now, there are only names and the barest of details.

Julie Brandau, the court reporter fatally wounded in Judge Barnes' courtroom today, Sergeant Hoyt Teasley shot and killed when he confronted the gunman outside the courthouse, and another deputy, Cynthia Hall, in critical condition tonight. Doctors say she has wounds consistent with a bullet grazing the skull, but not penetrating it. And, she, thankfully, is expected to recover.

We have much more tonight on this special edition of NEWSNIGHT, starting with the people without whom the criminal justice cannot operate, witnesses. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDGE JOHN M. GLYNN, BALTIMORE CITY COURT: Witness intimidation is chronic. It's endemic. It arises in most of the cases I try.

BROWN: (voice-over): More and more, witnesses are finding that what they saw can kill them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ann Hewell (ph) was trying to run up the steps. And then she was shot once in the back and twice in the back of the head.

BROWN: A routine traffic stop may prove the key to a murder of a judge's family. Tonight, you'll hear from the police officer who thought something was suspicious.

Another courthouse shooting caught on television two years ago. What happened to the lawyer who was the target? Where is the shooter?

From New York and around the world, a special edition of NEWSNIGHT, "Justice Under Fire."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Continuing our special report tonight, "Justice Under Fire," we'll turn in a moment to the problem of witness intimidation -- how in trials across the country, bad guys go free because good guys are too scared to testify. And you'll meet a woman who has good reason not to blame them.

But there was other news today. And for that, we turn briefly to CNN's Erica Hill, who joins us again from Atlanta.

Good evening.

ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Aaron. Just about 15 minutes past the hour now.

We start with a new move here. The United States putting its money where its mouth is in an attempt to get Iran to abandon its nuclear program. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the U.S. will offer economic incentives to go get Iran to comply. And the U.S. is dropping its opposition to Iran's application for membership in the World Trade Organization, a move Europe had pressed for.

In Chicago, investigators are searching Judge Joan Lefkow's home for the weapon they believe was used to kill her husband and mother. Police say the .22-caliber gun may have been thrown on the roof. A man who shot himself Wednesday left a suicide note claiming responsibility for the killings. Police say he included details in the note only the killer would know.

If you're one of the many who has decided to ditch the land line and stick with your cell, some good news for you. A federal court up held the bulk of FCC rules that allow consumers to keep their phone numbers when switching providers. We should point out, though, smaller traditional companies are exempt from honoring consumer requests to switch their land line number to their cell phone.

In California, an exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium titled Vanishing Wildlife is earning its name. A great white shark, who has been in captivity there for six months, has killed two soupfin sharks over the past two weeks. It is the longest a great white has ever been held in captivity. And animal rights groups say it's a sign great whites should not be held captive.

And that's the latest from the Headline News studio in Atlanta. I'm Erica Hill.

Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Erica, thank you.

On we go tonight.

Judges may be the most public targets, but they're not the only ones under fire. A witness to a crime is essential to the justice system. Without their testimony, criminals go free. We're taught as kids we should bear witness to wrong. But, increasingly, telling a jury what you saw can mean putting your life at risk.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN (voice-over): Leroy Brown was 8-years-old when he died. They called him B.J. And he was murdered inside this home in Bridgeport, Connecticut, shot to prevent him testifying in a murder trial. His killer was the defendant's brother. The jury found the killer innocent of capital murder. He got 20 years in prison for conspiracy.

CAROL GRIM, MOTHER OF SLAIN WITNESS: You never get over it. It doesn't matter how old or how young they are. Your child is your child.

BROWN: Carol Grim's daughter, Angela (ph), the brunette on the right, saw a murder six years ago in Prince George's County, just outside Washington, D.C. She told police and she was murdered before she could testify.

GRIM: She was shot once in the back and twice in the back of the head and was killed instantly.

BROWN: Judges and prosecutors say intimidation of witnesses, from threats to outright violence, is growing. And some of it is not subtle in the least.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To all you rats and snitches lucky enough to cop one of these DVDs, I hope you catch AIDS in your mouth and your lip's the first thing to die. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: This is a DVD made by a filmmaker in Baltimore. He asked some street toughs to say what was on their minds.

RODNEY BETHEA, FILMMAKER: As we started to gather their footage and we were looking back at it, everyone was pretty much talking about the snitching topic.

GLYNN: Witness intimidation is chronic. It's endemic. It arises in most of the cases I try, which are mostly murders and attempted murders. There's probably -- in 70 percent or 75 percent of the cases, there are serious problems with witness cooperation and witness intimidation.

BROWN: The list is long and seems to be growing longer. Earlier this week, a jury in the District of Columbia convicted two men for a total of 28 murders from 1989 through 1999. Prosecutors say the two were responsible for killing drug gang rivals and potential witnesses. The gang leader received 26 consecutive life sentences.

In Las Vegas, prosecutors say they're having trouble finding witnesses willing to testify in important criminal cases involving gangs and drugs. In Florida, associates of the Gambino crime family, once led by John Gotti, have been convicted of witness tampering and intimidation.

As for the gangs themselves, the FBI says juvenile gang homicides have gone up 25 percent in the last four years. And witnesses, if there are any, are terrified.

PATRICIA JESSAMY, STATE'S ATTORNEY FOR BALTIMORE: Witnesses either go underground because they've been threatened and intimidated and are afraid or they come to court and they recant their prior statements. This must not continue.

BROWN: It is not uncommon, of course, for jurors in high-profile criminal cases to be identified only by number, not by name, with images of jurors prohibited outside the court. Authorities say they don't have enough money to protect all the witnesses who need protecting, but doing the right thing does still count.

Carol Grim, for one, remains proud of her child.

GRIM: For standing up for her rights, for not being afraid, for telling the police what he did and at least getting him and a couple other ones off the street.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Which brings us to Bobby Gibson. Bobby Gibson's story will break your heart.

He was 21 when he saw a friend murdered in one of the grittier parts of New York City. He told a grand jury what he saw, who the killer was, and was prepared to tell a jury that story as well. But he never got to the courthouse.

We talked to his mother, Sylvia Gibson, a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Your son knew that there was risk in deciding to testify, didn't he?

SYLVIA GIBSON, MOTHER OF SLAIN WITNESS: Yes, he did.

BROWN: How did he know that?

GIBSON: Because he -- the people that -- the people that did the shooting were alleged gang members that he had heard about, and he knew that there were some risks.

BROWN: Were there attempts to convince him not to testify?

GIBSON: He was approached by other witnesses. And he was told that some people wanted to speak with him about testifying.

BROWN: Did he tell the prosecutors, and did he tell the police that people -- that he felt in fear of his life?

GIBSON: Well, he definitely told the prosecutors. I don't know about police. He didn't tell the police. He told the prosecutors, the DA's office.

BROWN: And, to your knowledge, did the DA's office take those threats seriously?

GIBSON: No. They didn't.

BROWN: What did they do?

GIBSON: They didn't do anything.

BROWN: What did he want from them?

GIBSON: He wanted them to give him some kind of protection. I mean, they told him once when he went into the DA's office for him to put a hood over his face. Why -- if you're telling him to put a hood over his face, obviously, you must figure that there's some kind of danger. Why they wouldn't pick him up. They told him to get down to the DA's office the best that he could.

BROWN: So, basically, your son was, what, 21 at the time?

GIBSON: Twenty-one, yes.

BROWN: Twenty-one-year-old kid is sort of left out on his own to get to court.

GIBSON: Yes. Yes, best way you can.

BROWN: To live his life best way he can. And these are some pretty mean streets that he's coming from, aren't they?

GIBSON: Yes. They are, very.

BROWN: So, how did they get to him?

GIBSON: He went out one night. And, on his way home, they shot him in his back.

BROWN: And how did you find out?

You're doing fine.

GIBSON: The cops called us and told us to come down to (UNINTELLIGIBLE) hospital.

BROWN: And did you know right away? Did you believe right away that it was related to what he had seen and what he had told the grand jury and what he was prepared to tell the court?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: In the end, he did testify on tape, right?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: Was that this grand jury testimony?

GIBSON: Yes.

BROWN: And what happened to the people that -- first of all, what happened to the people he testified against?

GIBSON: He was convicted.

BROWN: And what happened to the people who killed him?

GIBSON: The shooter was convicted.

BROWN: And sentenced?

GIBSON: Yes. He was sentenced to 25 years to life.

BROWN: And what do you think of the criminal justice system and how they treated your son?

GIBSON: They just -- they treated him like he was nothing, a nobody, like -- the impression that they gave me, that they didn't care anything about him. All they wanted was his testimony. And that was it.

(CROSSTALK)

BROWN: And if you were a kid in Bedford-Stuyvesant and you knew what happened to your son and you witnessed a murder or another crime, would you testify?

GIBSON: No. I don't think I would. I really don't believe I would.

BROWN: Thank you for coming in tonight.

GIBSON: You're welcome.

BROWN: Appreciate it very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: That's the problem right there.

Coming up ahead, we'll meet a judge who takes her security personally.

We'll take a break first. This is a special edition of NEWSNIGHT on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: There's nothing surprising about walking through a metal detector to get into a courthouse these days. Keeping guns out is the reason they're there. And two weeks ago at a courthouse in Tyler, Texas, the security, it seems, worked. But it's not something all judges there take for granted.

Here's CNN's Sean Callebs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Smith County Courthouse surveillance tape, deputies rushing to confront a gunman who has already killed. While the shoot-out played out in the town square, chaos on the second floor -- a capital murder trial interrupted by the unmistakable pop of weapons firing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get down. Stay down.

CALLEBS: Deputies, guns drawn, prepare for the worst. In the back of the courtroom, Judge Cynthia Stevens Kent is ushered to safety. For the first time in recent years, the judge realizes she has left something important in her car.

JUDGE CYNTHIA STEVENS KENT: I carry a Smith and Wesson .38 revolver. A lot of the judges do carry personal protection. Of course, this is Texas, OK? And in Texas, I'm a Second Amendment gal. I like the revolver.

CALLEBS: On this day, Stevens Kent says it's probably a blessing she chose not to exercise the right to bear arms. She wasn't tempted to get involved.

The judge and sheriff's deputies believe a wealth of officers and building security kept David Arroyo at bay.

LT. CHARLIE BAKER, SMITH COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: As officers taking up positions here, if we did not have these measures in place, I believe that Mr. Arroyo would have came inside the courthouse to carry out his plan.

CALLEBS (voice-over): The security precautions in Tyler have been in place since 1992. They went in after a gunman pulled a weapon in Judge John Hill's courtroom that same year. Hellacious screams, rapid gunfire, words, used by workers inside the old Tarrant County Courthouse when shots rang out.

JUDGE JOHN G. HILL, RETIRED: I said, you know, Was that an explosion? And kind of started to stand up. Well, about that time, I felt a sting in this shoulder right here. And I thought, No, that's not an explosion. I know what that is.

CALLEBS: He was shot by .9-millimeter pistol. Two others in the courtroom died that day.

STEVENS KENT: Taking the defendant to the ground. They pull their guns and keep him secure.

CALLEBS: After watching the drama play out in her town, Judge Stevens Kent has a warning for cities and towns where courthouses remain vulnerable, with no visible security.

STEVENS KENT: It really is a wakeup call for a lot of communities that feel very safe.

CALLEBS: With an automatic weapon, 200 rounds of ammo, officials in Tyler say David Arroyo was ready for war, a battle the killer was able to take to the streets, but not into the halls of justice.

Sean Callebs, CNN, Tyler, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Two years ago, a shooting outside a courthouse in California was caught on television. The cameras there were rolling to cover a hearing in the Robert Blake murder trial. The shooting had nothing to do with that. The target was a lawyer, Gerald Curry.

Tonight, in our anniversary series "Then and Now," we look back at that terrifying day in his life and where he is today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a shocking sideshow captured by TV crews gathered at the L.A. County Courthouse to cover the Robert Blake hearing in 2003. Attorney Gerald Curry was at the courthouse for an unrelated case when William Strier approached him, asked his name and opened fire. Strier then calmly walked away. He was apparently angry that Curry was representing Strier's sister in a dispute over a trust fund.

Curry was shot in the neck, both arms and shoulder, and taken to the scene by paramedics. Curry survived, recovered completely and still lives and practices law in Southern California.

GERALD CURRY, ATTORNEY: When I leave the office, when I go to the court, when I go to parking structure, I tend to keep my eyes open, look around.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a gun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Curry's shooter, William Strier, was ruled mentally unfit to stand trial and remains in a state hospital. Curry says he doesn't harbor any bad feelings for Strier.

CURRY: The odds of this happening were probably one in a million. And, so, therefore, I try to not let it affect my life or not have any bitterness. And I try to maintain a positive and optimistic outlook.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Throughout the year, we'll revisit the stories that have stood out over the last 25 years, as we celebrate a quarter-century of broadcasting the news to you, a look back and an update on where the newsmakers are today.

Still to come on this special edition of NEWSNIGHT tonight, in the murder of a family of a federal judge in Chicago, a bit of luck and keen observation may have broken the case. You'll hear from the cop who had the hunch.

This is a NEWSNIGHT special.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Investigators in Illinois and Wisconsin are working tonight to retrace the steps of Bart Ross, a man who allegedly murdered the husband and the mother of a federal judge in Chicago.

Two nights ago, Mr. Ross killed himself outside Milwaukee. His DNA has now been matched to a cigarette butt found at the murder scene. The night he committed suicide, some 300 detectives and federal agents were working the case 90 miles south in Chicago. But the break in the investigation came down to the actions of a young cop who had a hunch -- and that's all it was -- which led to a routine traffic stop.

Here's CNN's Keith Oppenheim.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICK ORLOWSKI, WEST ALLIS POLICE DEPARTMENT: I knew, obviously, that the murders had happened. And, other than that, I really didn't know too much about it.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On Wednesday evening, when officer Rick Orlowski made a turn on this street...

ORLOWSKI: This is -- he was sitting right here.

OPPENHEIM: ... the West Allis, Wisconsin, patrolman was not thinking about the murders of federal Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow's husband and mother. He was wondering why this minivan with out-of- state plates was parked on this suburban Milwaukee side street with the driver just sitting. Orlowski drove by the car several times.

(on camera): It seems to me you almost had, that there was a hunch, that there was something more just sort of bugging you in your mind.

ORLOWSKI: Right. Yes. It was really bothering me in my head, more or less. He wasn't really doing anything wrong, but just -- something didn't seem right.

OPPENHEIM (voice-over): After Orlowski's third pass, the minivan moved. Orlowski followed, noticed the car's taillights were out, pulled it over and approached.

ORLOWSKI: Just as I started bringing my head forward, that's when the round came off. I heard a pop, felt it. Glass kind of hit me in the face. I stepped back. That's when I drew down and took a couple more steps back.

OPPENHEIM (on camera): OK.

ORLOWSKI: Waited for either another round or for him to come out. It never did. I turned around and ran back to my car, got to the rear and then I looked through the window, and I could see that he was kind of laying on his side.

OPPENHEIM (voice-over): Orlowski said he couldn't be sure if the driver was only playing dead. He called for backup.

ORLOWSKI: He just shot a gun at me. Where is he at?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven-one Grant (ph). Shots fired.

OPPENHEIM: It turned out the one shot Bart Ross fired was to end his own life.

ORLOWSKI: I was scared. I mean, I wasn't crying or anything, but he scared me. I didn't know what was going to happen next. And I'm glad it turned out the way it did.

OPPENHEIM: Only shards of glass in the street remain at the scene where investigators search for evidence.

ORLOWSKI: They went around the rear of the car and came up from the side and busted out a side window.

OPPENHEIM: By later that evening, a suicide note was found and an apparent connection to the Lefkow murders made.

With morning, it dawns on Orlowski his traffic stop, one that could have cost him his life, was the clincher in a huge case.

ORLOWSKI: I got lucky. It was partly dumb luck.

OPPENHEIM: But Orlowski resists being called a hero. He says he's thinking about Judge Lefkow and that his actions might give her the answers to her terrible loss. ORLOWSKI: And let her know that we do care, that I care, that I was able to help her in her crisis.

Keith Oppenheim, CNN, West Allis, Wisconsin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Ahead on NEWSNIGHT on this Friday, another corner of the justice system under fire, when civil matters turn deadly.

This is a NEWSNIGHT special.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: In a moment, a man who knows better than most what days like this one in Atlanta are like. He survived one.

First, the latest on the manhunt for Brian Nichols and some of the day's other news. Erica Hill joins us again from Atlanta -- Erica.

HILL: Hi, Aaron, just about 15 minutes until the hour now.

There is a $60,000 reward for information leading to the capture of the suspect who allegedly shot and killed Superior Court Judge Rowland Barnes and two other people. A multistate dragnet continues for this man, Brian Nichols. He is the suspect in today's shooting at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. Police say Nichols, on trial for rape, grabbed a deputy's gun and used it to kill the judge, a court reporter and another deputy.

CNN has just otained pictures of the deputies involved. Sergeant Hoyt Teasley was killed. He was a 19-year veteran. The female deputy, Cynthia Hall, whose gun was taken, was wounded. She remains in critical condition. And this is video of the court reporter who was killed, Julie Brandau. Officers say the suspect is considered to be armed and dangerous. Police say they will not stop until they get their man.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD PENNINGTON, ATLANTA POLICE CHIEF: This manhunt will continue until he's apprehended. He's a very dangerous person in our community. And we want the public to know that. If anyone has any information about this individual, please call us, because we're not going to stop looking until we apprehend this person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Now, police are searching for a green Honda Accord with a Georgia license plate 6584 YN. And, again, the suspect is armed and dangerous. If you see him, call police, but do not approach him.

I'm Erica Hill in Atlanta -- Aaron, back to you.

BROWN: Erica, thank you. We have for the most part tonight dealt with violence and intimidation relating to the criminal justice system, which is not to say the civil side doesn't also produce its share of mayhem. Passions can run high in civil cases as well. And occasionally, the boil over.

Two years ago in Minneapolis, an angry litigant shot attorney Rick Hendrickson and his client. The client died. Mr. Hendrickson joins us tonight.

Rick, it's nice to see you. Before we get to the particulars, I guess, of your case, what ran through your mind today when you heard about the Atlanta news?

RICHARD HENDRICKSON, ATTORNEY: Basically, again, it's a continuation of ongoing violence that takes place more and more in the legal setting.

I'm thinking of the judge, the murders of the judge's husband and her mother, the whole shootings that you have already discussed in your program. There seems to be a growing sense of violence in courthouses.

BROWN: Yes.

When you go to court, I mean, you were in a situation where a client of yours was chased into a bathroom and murdered.

HENDRICKSON: Yes.

BROWN: You're lucky to be alive, as it turns out. Do you walk into court today thinking, something horrible could happen here?

HENDRICKSON: You think of that, but you can't go through life with that kind of a fear. After all, we all know you can get run over by a car. You have to move on.

I think, as Mr. Curry said in one of your earlier pieces, the chances of me getting shot again are infinitesimal. It's possible, but the fear is not just me. The fear is that other people, members of the public, our judicial staff, the judges, all of those are susceptible to some form of violence, be it shootings, be it knifings, etcetera.

I think our society is just plain more violent than it was 20, 30 years ago. And we have to basically accept that and take reasonable measures to make sure that our courthouses are secure, so that people can feel that they, indeed, get the justice that they deserve.

BROWN: Just on the subject of precautions, as I recall the case that you were involved in, I don't know if warnings is the right word, but certainly there were suspicions. There were indications that the woman who ultimately committed the murder might do something crazy.

HENDRICKSON: Yes.

Matter of fact, in our situation, my client was deathly afraid of her cousin. And the day before the hearing, I called the court, and I asked for security. And they told me the process for having security to appear at court, which we followed. So, we had a security officer with us. In Hennepin County at that time, and maybe still today, the term security is different than a deputy sheriff.

A security person does not have a sidearm. And so, when the deputy -- or when the security person saw the shooter walk towards him, he turned and, as apparently he was instructed to do, he fled. He didn't give my client any warning.

BROWN: Wow.

HENDRICKSON: And so, my client was unaware. Then her cousin walked into the restroom and shot her four times.

BROWN: Hennepin County, that's Minneapolis.

HENDRICKSON: That's right.

BROWN: Has it changed since then? Is it still that way?

HENDRICKSON: I think what happened to me and what happened to my client were the catalyst that started the security process. Matter of fact, on Monday, Hennepin County is starting its first day of general metal screening.

So, it's taken about a year, a year and a half, since I was shot, but finally they're implementing that. And I think I, the other judges -- or I, the judges, the court staff, everyone is looking forward to finally this kind of security. This is a good thing.

BROWN: It is a necessary thing. It's pretty clear.

HENDRICKSON: Very necessary. Yes.

BROWN: Rick, it's good to see you. Thanks for joining us tonight.

HENDRICKSON: Thank you.

BROWN: Rick Hendrickson in Minneapolis tonight.

We'll check newspaper headlines after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(ROOSTER CROWING)

BROWN: OK. Time to check morning papers from around the country and around the world.

We'll start with "The International Herald Tribune," because it's just a reminder of something I think kind of odd about the news business. Had events in Atlanta not taken place the way they had today, there's no doubt we would have spent a lot of time, or at least some time, on this story today. "A Divided Spain Remembers." This is the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attack in Madrid. What, 200 people died that day? I don't remember; 191 people died, Madrid a year ago. And we, no doubt, would have revisited that. But because of the news of the day, it barely gets a mention.

"The Washington Times" gets an interview with Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state, and therefore leads. I think the headline is kind of an odd lead, but, hey, it's not my paper. "Rice Plans No Apology to North Korea." Of all the things she said, that's the headline? I guess it is. "2008 Run, Abortion Engage Her Politically." The secretary of state describes herself as mildly pro choice. And we can all try and figure out what that means. Anyway, she refuses to dispel the idea, she might want to be president.

The courthouse shooting gets prominence just about in every other paper that we looked at today. "Man Kills Judge, Two Others at Courthouse in Atlanta. On Trial For Rape, He Steals Deputy's Gun, Opens Fire, Then Flees." "The Dallas Morning News." Anything else there? No. Well, yes, but you know what I mean.

"San Antonio Express" -- how would you know what I meant? "Carnage at Atlanta Court. Rape Suspect Goes on Rampage," also on the front page.

This is just a really interesting placement to me. "The Philadelphia Inquirer." "Three Slain at Georgia Court. Hunt Creates Chaos. Officers Swarmed. Atlanta's Gunman Still at Large. Buildings Locked Down." Go down to the corner here, OK? "Jury Deadlocks in Murder Trial of Reputed Philadelphia Drug Dealer." What is he on trial for? Having a witness murdered. "Felix Summers," says the lead, "the suspected South Philadelphia drug dealer who a prosecutor contends has used fear and intimidation to beat the system, has won another day in court."

"Boston Herald." "Killer on the Loose," pretty straight-ahead lead out of a tabloid. "Courthouse Madman Slays Judge and Two Others."

We'll end it, as we do, with "The Chicago Sun-Times." "Killer Left Trail in Judge's Home." This is the Bart Ross story, told you about earlier. And because we ought to update this one, "A Tough Week For Boeing CEO. On Monday, Harry Stonecipher Loses Job Over Affair With Colleague. On Friday, His Wife Files For Divorce." Duh.

Weather tomorrow in Chicago...

(CHIMES)

BROWN: "Hostile."

We'll wrap it up in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: We end tonight with the people who have dominated this day. Atlanta District Court Judge Rowland Barnes. He was described by a defense attorney today as the people's judge. Julie Ann Brandau was his court reporter. She would, if a trial, a jury trial, was in session, bake something for the jurors. Sergeant Hoyt Teasley, father of two, shot and killed when he confronted the gunman outside the courthouse. And another deputy, Cynthia Hall, in critical condition tonight. She was shot in the head escorting the man to court. She is expected to survive.

And a manhunt on tonight for Brian Nichols, a $60,000 reward, and counts of murder.

That's our special report. Have a good weekend. We'll see you again on Monday. Until then, good night for all of us.

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