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Police Release New 911 Call Audio of Kentucky Bank Shooting; Video Shows Massacre in Kentucky Bank Lasted About a Minute; Biden Departs Joint Base Andrews for Trip to U.K., Ireland. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired April 11, 2023 - 10:00   ET

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

[10:00:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: It lasted about one minute, new video now revealing what happened in real time as the gunman killed five coworkers at that bank in Louisville, and new reporting about a voicemail left by the shooter. We're set to get a new update on the investigation from officials in Kentucky at 11:30 this morning.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A Florida state lawmaker is now walking back his words after comparing transgender people to demons.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Will President Biden make any new remarks before he leaves the U.S. for Northern Ireland? We're watching as Air Force One prepares to take off just moments from now. These stories and more right here on CNN News Central.

BOLDUAN: First on CNN, investigators say that new video shows the massacre inside the Louisville bank lasted for only about one minute. This is according to a review of the Instagram video that the gunman live streamed as he carried out this attack. We should also be learning even more new details very soon. Officials are planning to offer the public an update on the investigation next hour. We will bring that to you live when it begins.

Moments ago, CNN obtained brand new dispatch audio from the Louisville Police Department. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 25-year-old white male, Connor Sturgeon, 6"4'. He's texted a friend, called a friend, left a voicemail. He's going to kill everyone at the bank, feeling suicidal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: CNN's Adrienne Broaddus is in Louisville, Kentucky, for us, joining me once again. Adrienne, what more are you learning?

ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, that video is chilling. Members of law enforcement were able to view that video and shared with us what they were able to see.

Now, we know the 25-year-old shooter live streamed his attack via Instagram. On the video, according to a member of law enforcement, a woman who worked here at the bank could be heard saying good morning to the shooter. And that's when the shooter told the woman you need to get out of here.

Law enforcement tells us that 25-year-old tried to shoot the woman in the back but quickly realized the safety was on the gun and the firearm also needed to be loaded. So, the shooter loaded the weapon and removed the safety and shot that person in the back. Her condition is unknown.

Investigators also say the attack continued for about one minute. We know this 25-year-old shot and killed five people. After that one minute rampage, it appears, according to members of law enforcement, the shooter returned to the lobby of the bank here in Downtown Louisville, where he waited about 90 seconds, a minute-and-a-half, for members of law enforcement to arrive on scene. We know, according to investigators, police were able to stop the threat by shooting and killing that 25-year-old.

Chilling details. These are images for those who were able to see that will be cemented. In their minds forever, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Adrienne Broaddus, thank you so much. Again, we're going to learn more with an update from officials there on the ground in the next hour. Sara?

SIDNER: Thank you, Kate.

With us now to talk all about this is Keith Taylor. He is back with us, adjunct assistant professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Thank you for coming back to talk to us, because now we're seeing some new details.

So, we heard the 911 audio where you hear the dispatcher saying he wants to kill everyone in the bank. Really disturbing. What does it tell you about his intentions? I mean, it sounds very simple what he was planning to do.

KEITH TAYLOR, ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, JOHN JAYCOLLEGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE: It appears that he felt aggrieved and to the point that he wanted to take his own life, but, as can happen in these cases, wanted to take the individuals who he felt responsible for his situation. He wanted to kill them first before he killed himself.

SIDNER: Would this kind of be -- I hate to call it typical, but, sadly, these things are becoming so common, but this one is a little different than we've seen in the past. We had a lot of mass school shootings. This is a workplace violence. Would this kind of be sort of a typical response when someone is going to perpetrate workplace violence?

TAYLOR: It is one of different types of responses that individuals can have. Sometimes the workplace violence is in regard to a domestic situation. Sometimes the offender wants the purpose of the activities to engage the officers in order to get killed.

[10:05:06]

SIDNER: Suicide by cop?

TAYLOR: Suicide by cop, exactly.

And in this situation, he waited a minute-and-a-half. He did not go to kill other people. He simply waited in the lobby for the police to arrive and engaged in gunfire with them.

SIDNER: That they've just noticed that he sat down and they figured that out because he was live streaming this on Instagram, which is something we are seeing in some of these mass shootings. So, that really gives you a look right into his mindset that he was not planning on surviving this.

TAYLOR: Yes, and also the fact that he was publicizing it on social media. Oftentimes individuals that want to a get a manifesto or get some information out about their beliefs or that they will publicize it in this manner.

SIDNER: So, he did, and we're learning this from CNN sources. He left a voicemail saying that he was going to do this. What does that tell you about his mindset as he is going forward with this? Because sometimes you might think, look, he sent this email to family members and a friend, he mentioned suicide and he mentioned, you know, wanting to go and shoot people. You have to wonder if he was almost trying to warn someone to stop him or am I reading too much into this?

TAYLOR: Or it could have been a goodbye. The investigation is going to get further information, and in particular, they're going to look at past things that might have either contributed or that he might have stated online leading to his course of action.

SIDNER: We talked about this a bit earlier, this being the 16th mass shooting since what we saw happen, the horror in the Covenant Elementary School in Nashville, and there's another number that's really disturbing. There have been more mass shootings than there have been days of the year. We're on 101st day of the year today, Tuesday, and there have been 146-plus mass shootings. We will see this again. Will this ever stop? Will this always be a part of our American society?

TAYLOR: I am hopeful that Americans of goodwill, regardless of their political affiliation, will get together for some common sense, effective evidence-based solutions that they can agree upon, are fair for everyone and are supported by a majority of Americans, as seen in surveys.

SIDNER: We are going to listen in. President Biden is speaking at this moment before he takes this trip to Ireland. Let's listen in.

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: -- yesterday. We missed calls. I called him yesterday. We missed calls. I'm going to try it from the plane.

REPORTER: You're trying from the plane?

BIDEN: Yes.

REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) family?

BIDEN: Yes.

REPORTER: Anything you can say about his case?

BIDEN: Well, you know, we're making it real clear that it's totally illegal what's happening, and we declared itself changes the dynamic.

REPORTER: What's your top priority on this trip, sir?

BIDEN: Make sure the Irish Accords and the Winter Agreement stay in place, keep the peace. That's the main thing. And it looks like we're going to keep your fingers crossed.

REPORTER: Is your family coming with you for the trip?

BIDEN: Just two of my family members. It hadn't been everything.

REPORTER: And on the abortion pill ruling, what are your thoughts?

BIDEN: My thoughts are completely out of bounds what the judge did. Thank you.

SIDNER: So, we just heard President Biden there. He's talking about keeping the peace, but he's talking about Ireland. And it just strikes me because of what is happening here in this country. We did not hear him speak or be asked questions about the shooting.

Keith Taylor, thank you so much for joining us, giving us some insight. You're looking at President Biden three going up the stairs of Air Force One on his way to Ireland. John?

BERMAN: And as the president does depart the United States, our focus is on Kentucky and what happened in Louisville. I'm joined now by Kentucky State Representative Keturah Herron. Representative, thank you so much for being with us.

We have learned horrible new details this morning about the shooting that took place at this bank, which I know is just a few miles from your home. Details like there was a voicemail from the shooter, saying he was going to kill everyone at the bank. Your reaction to all of this, this morning?

STATE REP. KETURAH HERRON (D-KY): Yes. First off, thank you for having me this morning. Some of the details I have learned while I have been on here on set waiting to come on. And so it's just very heart-wrenching and our community is hurting here in Louisville. It's not the first time that we have been plagued by gun violence in our city. Gun violence is a thing that we often see on a daily basis here. And so our community is hurting today.

[10:10:01]

My thoughts go out to the families who have been impacted but we are also ready to get to work and change some policies.

BERMAN: And I do know you're hurting and know that we are and the entire country is thinking of you.

Kentucky has some of the most permissive gun safety laws in the country, including recently removing background checks to carry concealed weapons. How likely is that to change?

HERRON: I mean, it's not likely from our current makeup in the general assembly. I mean, this year, we also passed House Bill 153 that basically said that if the federal government makes any type of gun restrictions, that we would not follow that. I don't believe that that law is constitutional. And so, you know, we would have to fight that in court down the line.

But, you know, there are people who are ready to get to work. I myself have filed two pieces of policies that would help with issues related to gun violence. And we've also seen some red flag laws found here in the state. So, we have work to do and, you know, I urge my colleagues from both sides that we get together and we work together in order to make Kentucky safe for everyone.

BERMAN: You know, I guess the question does arise, especially when you look at Tennessee and what just happened in the Tennessee state legislature. How far are you willing to go? You say you want to get to work, but in terms of protests or maybe action to draw focus to your cause. I spoke to Justin Pearson last night, one of the state representatives who was expelled, he will probably be reinstated as soon as tomorrow. And I asked him once he is reinstated, would he be willing to break the decorum rules he broke before again to make a point? This is what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Would you break the rules of decorum again to make that point?

FMR. STATE REP. JUSTIN J. PEARSON (D-TN): Sometimes rules have to be broken in order for the people who've been pushed to the periphery to be brought to the center of the conversation. Sometimes rules have to be broken in order for the voices that have been marginalized and told that they are voiceless to be heard. Sometimes rules have to be broken in order for us to create justice. And if that is what is necessary for justice to happen, then that is what is necessary. And as you see, District 86 and our community, we're willing to risk it all for people to be safe. We're willing to risk it all for justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream and we will not stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Representative Herron, I could see you nodding as you were listening to that. Why?

HERRON: Absolutely. Yes, I mean, absolutely. I mean, we were here in the streets in Louisville, and in Kentucky in 2020 after the murder and the death of Breonna Taylor. And so we were in the streets and we fought to get no-knock warrants banned in the city.

We fought and we advocated to get that done statewide. And we will do the same thing to make sure that our people are safe, that we do not have to come back and talk about a mass shooting, but not only that, that we are not losing lives on a day-to-day basis, as we have been doing here in the city of Louisville. Last year alone, we lost over 60 young people under the age of 18 to gun violence.

And so one thing that I want people to know and understand is that when we're talking about gun violence, and we're talking about what we need to do, we have to stop talking about it in silos. We can't just say, oh, it was a mass shooting. Oh, it was just workplace violence. It's gun violence, period.

And so I am here to work with my colleagues. I'm here to work with my colleagues across the nation, advocates, survivors to make sure that not only folks in the commonwealth of Kentucky are safe but folks in our nation are safe.

BERMAN: And I know you advocate speaking about gun violence as an epidemic. Representative Herron, we do appreciate your time. Again, we're thinking about you and your community. Thank you for being with us.

You know, one more state legislature, Kate, now facing this almost everyday occurrence.

BOLDUAN: And you've been pointing out that she was talking about -- they were talking about survivors of gun violence. Everyone is becoming a survivor of gun violence. Look no further than what we heard from the governor just yesterday.

And we're going to learn more in that investigation. We're going to bring that to you in the next hour.

We also have this ahead for us. With the fate of medication abortions in legal limbo, we're going to speak to one of the attorneys -- to the attorney for one of the two American companies that makes the abortion pill, Mifepristone.

And also just days after being voted out of the Tennessee statehouse, one lawmaker is back on the job. His message and his mission now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:15:00]

BERMAN: On the radar this morning, Tennessee Lawmaker Justin Jones says he will keep calling for common sense gun legislation after being reinstated to a seat. Jones and another black Democratic lawmaker were expelled by their Republican colleagues last week for protesting on the statehouse floor for stronger gun safety measures following that deadly mass shooting at a Nashville school.

Letters from a friend of the gunman in the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting show he was planning the massacre for years. In some letters sent between 2013 and 2017, the gunman referred to a, quote, project that would occur in multiple cities across the United States. In one letter, just months before the shooting, the friend expressed worry that innocent people could be hurt because of the shooter's anger. 58 people were killed in that attack.

And Whole Foods is temporarily closing its flagship store in San Francisco after rampant crime and concerns for the safety of its staff. Property crimes have risen by 23 percent between 2020 and 2022. That's according to police data. And the announcement comes just days after Bob Lee, the founder of Cash App, was killed after an apparent stabbing.

[10:20:00]

Sara?

SIDNER: Just moments ago, President Biden said that his goal in Ireland was to keep the peace. The president will take off from Joint Base Andrews and head to Northern Ireland. And once there, he will mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, which and decades of sectarian violence that left thousands of people dead.

After visiting Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, the president heads to Ireland, where, among other things, he'll visit his ancestral hometown.

CNN's Phil Mattingly is live in Belfast with details for us. Phil, this visit clearly more than just about Ireland and what is happening there, he also has a very personal connection. Tell us more.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Sara, there's no question about that. Before that, though, the president, as you noted, speaking to reporters before he boarded Air Force One for his trip here to Belfast, weighing in for the first time publicly on that decision by a federal judge to put a hold on or potentially strike down the ability of individuals to access medicated abortion pills, saying it was completely out of bounds. Obviously, his administration has already appealed that.

And also weighing in on the detention of Wall Street Journal Correspondent Evan Gershkovich, the administration has labeled him as wrongfully detained, setting up a new process to try and get his release. The president is saying on this trip, he is trying to speak with The Wall Street Journal reporter's family. But it's when the president arrives here in Belfast that you will get a good sense of what he said to reporters before he departed was his top priority, and that's maintaining the peace and really trying to build upon the 25- year-old now Good Friday Agreement.

And it was an agreement that was really kind of given a curveball by the Brexit vote that occurred on a number of years ago, and what that meant for whether the hard border or trade relations between the U.K. and Ireland potentially lighting a flame for an issue that had certainly brought a level of peace and stability that had not existed before the Good Friday Agreement, but has always remained tenuous. In particular, the president is going to focus on the economic side of things. He will give a speech tomorrow at Ulster University, making a point of not meeting at the place of government, which has been stalled out over the course of the last several years repeatedly off and on as the party sharing agreement really hasn't necessarily come to fruition, but instead meeting with younger people, students trying to underscore that there are real possibilities, real efforts here underway to expand upon what was signed into law in such a historic manner 25 years ago.

But as you noted, it's not just the Northern Ireland piece of this, although that will be critical, when he arrives here in Belfast. It will be those deep familial connections. You're going to hear a lot about poets, like Haney and Yates. If you listen to the president ever, you hear a lot quoting those poets. You'll also hear a lot about familial connections, whether it be the Finnegans or the Bluets (ph).

This is a personal visit for the president. It's one that I think has been circled on his calendar since he took office. It's a visit he took as vice president, but one he'll be taking again. And I think you'll see that personal connection through the trips the president takes but also what the president brings from the U.S. as his role not just as somebody with Irish ancestral heritage but also somebody who wants to utilize this relationship between the two countries going forward, Sara.

SIDNER: Phil Mattingly, thank you. You also see it in the shops with the signs that are put out welcoming President Biden. I appreciate it, live there from Belfast, Northern Ireland.

All right, let's dig deeper into what exactly the Good Friday Agreement accomplished. At its core, it is a peace deal, which the U.S. helped broker to bring an end to decades of sectarian violence known then as The Troubles. The Troubles led to more than 3,500 deaths and even more casualties.

Horrific terrorist attacks were carried out by members of armed groups on both sides of the divide, one of which wanted to see Northern Ireland stay within the U.K. while the other wanted to see it become part of the Republic of Ireland.

The peace agreement, which was signed in 1998, set up a new government in Northern Ireland. It represented both nationalists and unionists. It acknowledges that Northern Ireland is part of the U.K. but also gives citizens the flexibility of being able to identify fully as Irish or British.

While this agreement has held for decades, Brexit added a new strain. After Brexit, Northern Ireland became the only part of the U.K. to have a land border with an E.U. country, in this case, Ireland. That led to new disagreements and tensions between the two countries. But despite those concerns, the Good Friday Agreement is still in place. But it is being tested like it hasn't been a very long time. Kate?

BOLDUAN: it's going to be interesting to see what happens over the next few days while President Biden is there. So, there is a last ditch effort to keep abortion medication pills on the shelf after a federal judge's ruling in Texas. The Justice Department is stepping in and appealing. I'm going to to speak to the attorney for one of the two American companies that makes the abortion pill, Mifepristone.

And three months after her son shot his teacher, a Virginia mother is now facing charges as that investigation continues.

[10:25:02]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: Welcome back to CNN News Central. First, on CNN this morning, an Instagram live stream shows the Louisville mass shooting lasted just one minute. A city official who saw the video says it shows a co- worker saying good morning to the gunman before he tells her to get out of here.

[10:30:05]