Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Suspect In The Kidnapping And Sexual Assault Of DoorDash Driver Was Apprehended; Release Of Former Police Convicted Of Killing Daunte Wright; After Building Was Deemed Unsafe, Residents In South Florida Condos Are Required To Leave; Car Rams On Crowd In A Busy Jerusalem Market, Injuring Five People; Car Ramming Incident In Jerusalem Described As "Terror Attack" By Netanyahu; Ed Sheeran Accused Of Violating Copyright To A Song By Marvin Gaye. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired April 24, 2023 - 10:30:00   ET

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

[10:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN NEWS CENTRAL CO-ANCHOR: President Biden is expected to announce his re-election campaign tomorrow. He returned to the White House late last night after a weekend at Camp David finalizing plans for his re-election bid. New polling from NBC suggests only a quarter of Americans think that the president should run for a second term, while 70 percent of Americans say he should not. Nearly half of those who oppose a 2024 Biden run say that his age is a major reason for that field (ph). Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN NEWS CENTRAL CO-ANCHOR: In Florida, a 38-year-old man is behind bars, accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a DoorDash delivery driver. Police in Tampa say the drive was attempting to deliver food to a hotel when the suspect, Joseph Killins, forced the victim back into her car at gun point and attacked her.

CNN's Carlos Suarez is live in Miami with the very latest on this. Carlos, tell us how the police were able to figure out who this was and tracked him down?

CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, really, it's an incredible out of the City of Tampa. According to the authorities there, the victim was wearing headphones when she was making this food delivery, and she was on the phone with a girlfriend. When the girlfriend quickly realized that something was going terribly wrong, the 38-year-old, as you said, has been identified as Joseph Killins.

Now, according to police, he forced the victim back into her car, drove her some six miles and that is where he sexually assaulted. Now, the victim's girlfriend was able to get in contact with that woman's family. They were tracking her phone this entire time. So, they showed up to the location where she was being held. Now, according to authorities, when the accused here noticed that her family was trying to rescue her, according to police, he opened fire, striking one of the family members.

Now, police, they don't get their break in this case until a day later, and that's because we're told that the accused robbed a woman in the same area, and while they were investigating that crime, that's when they were able to link him to the sexual assault as well as the kidnapping of this DoorDash driver. Sara.

SIDNER: All right. Appreciate your time. Thank you there Carlos Suarez in Miami for us.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN NEWS CENTRAL CO-ANCHOR: This morning, a former Minnesota police officer is out of prison. Kim Potter is the former officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright when she mistook her handgun for a taser. She was -- she served about 16 months of her two-year long sentence.

Let's get more on this. CNN's Adrienne Broaddus is joining me now with the very latest. What more are you learning about her release, Adrienne?

ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, Potter will be on supervised release for the remaining third of her sentence which expires in December. She served 16 months of that two-year sentence. Meanwhile, during this time, she will not be allowed to purchase any firearms or dangerous weapons. She can't possess any ammunition.

Now, the state law says that she is required to stay in the State of Minnesota unless she receives written approval saying she can serve the remainder of the sentence elsewhere. Potter has been approved to serve the remainder of her sentence in Wisconsin. Her attorney told me by phone that she has no plans to return to Minnesota.

And for those of you who don't remember, Kim Potter is the former police Brooklyn Center police officer who grabbed her gun instead of the taser during a traffic stop and she killed Daunte Wright. She was released in the 4:00 central -- 4:00 a.m. central hour this morning. The Department of Correction says she was released at that time out of an abundance of caution. Kate.

BOLDUAN: Adrienne, you spoke with Daunte Wright's mother. What is she telling you?

BROADDUS: I talked to his mom, Katie Wright. She and her husband and other family members are still struggling to find peace. I wanted to read something that she said during our conversation. She says, she grabbed -- excuse me, she says, some say I should forgive and be at peace, but how can I? I am so angry. She is going to be able to watch her kids have kids. I can't even touch my son.

She said that she is afraid of forgetting the voice of her son, Daunte. But what does give her peace, she says, she will never be able to hurt anybody as a police officer again. One thing notable that I also want to underscore, Katie Wright told me, her family hasn't been able to grieve together.

[10:35:00] They've been fighting for what they call and pushing for justice and changing the laws in Minnesota around traffic stops since the killing of her son, Daunte. Kate.

BOLDUAN: Adrienne, thank you for the update.

John.

BERMAN: So, new this morning, alarmed residents of a South Florida condo building have been told to leave their home by tomorrow. The evacuation order was issued because the building in North Bay Village, which is near Miami, was deemed unsafe after the building failed inspection. The report cited sagging floors and termite damage in the 60-year-old building.

CNN's Leyla Santiago is outside this building for us in Florida. And, of course, Leyla, I was at surfside for nearly a week after that condo collapse. That has to be on people's minds. What's the latest?

LEYLA SANTIAGO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That absolutely is on a lot of folks' minds. I mean, listen, Surfside where that building collapsed is less than five miles from where I'm standing right now. And yet, what I'm getting from at least on homeowner that I spoke to is a sense of frustration over how this has all played out.

So, let me show you what this looks like right now because we are less than 24 hours away from when these residents have to be out of this building, 36 units, 55 residents. And we have seen all morning long, folks coming out, filling up U-Haul trucks, and quite frankly having a sense of frustration of not getting enough notice and also, not really knowing exactly what is next. What the plan is? Where they will go? When they can return? What is available in terms of assistance, something that the mayor promises will be there for them.

Now, let's back up a little bit, John. Let's talk about how we got here, right? This is a building that was built in the 1960s. And so, it was up for that 60-year-old building recertification. And so, they have the inspection as part of that just 10 days ago, April 14th, and it didn't go well for them. As you mentioned, they're talking about sagging floors, termite damage, there was a leak that caused a partial ceiling collapse and impacted quite a few of the condos in there.

And so, as a result, the mayor said that this is deemed unsafe and gave that deadline of tomorrow that they have to be out of the building. But as I mentioned, I had a conversation with one of the homeowners and it was an overwhelming frustration on his part. Even questioning outside of interests here. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CEZAR SANTANA, EVACUEE: Moving on a super short notice, that's what I am doing today.

SANTIAGO: How many days did you have?

SANTANA: I had -- we had since Friday, I guess. But I'm a musician, so I work on the weekends. I was working Friday, I was working Saturday, I was working yesterday. And I didn't have too much time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANTIAGO: Again, it is that feeling of being overwhelmed that I'm getting from the residents here. Important to mention that context the of we're five miles away from Surfside. So, there is a lot of sensitivity to that, and the resident I spoke to acknowledged that, but he did not like the way that the city is handling this. The mayor saying that there will be resources available to help these residents out.

BERMAN: They feel helpless. Leyla Santiago for us in North Bay Village, Florida. Leyla, thank you very much.

SANTIAGO: Yes.

BERMAN: Sara.

SIDNER: Still ahead, a car has crashed near a popular Jerusalem market, injuring five people there. Our crew is live at the scene as police investigate the accident.

And, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will meet with the United Nations' chief today. More on that meeting just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:40:00]

BERMAN: This morning, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is at the United Nations where he will preside over the Security Council meeting today. U.S. official say, the sister of Paul Whelan, an American who has been detained in Russia for more than four years, will attend that meeting in hopes of spotlighting one of the many ways that Russia violates international norms.

Thousands of migrants are on the move, heading from Southern Mexico north to Mexico City. They are demanding free transit throughout that country. They also want justice for 40 migrants killed in a fire that broke out in an immigration center.

And back to the big leagues, or bigger leagues. Actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney along with jubilant fans celebrated, Saturday, after Wrexham -- the Wrexham soccer club gained promotion after 15 years. Wrexham will now compete next season in league two which is actually the fourth tier of English football.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: This just in to CNN, five people were injured in central Jerusalem after an out of control car crashed near a popular market. Israeli police say that the driver has been, "Neutralized," but they, so far, have now described the event as a terror attack.

CNN's Hadas Gold is on the scene for us and she has more on this. Hadas what are you -- Hadas, what are you learning there? HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kate, actually in just the last few minutes, we have heard from the Israeli police and Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, calling what happened here a terror attack. Now, they've just opened up the scene behind us.

But in the last few minutes, we actually saw the car that was allegedly used in this attack being towed out of the scene, this intersection behind me. We are right by one of the main markets in Jerusalem, the Machane Yehuda market. It's incredibly popular with both locals and tourists.

And so, at the time of this attack, it was incredibly busy right here. And now, from what we understand, it appears some sort of SUV drove into pedestrians. It's not clear that if they drove into them while they were crossing the street or what happened.

[10:45:00]

We know that at least five people were injured. One of them was seriously injured. And Israeli police say, a citizen, a civilian who was on the scene and happened to be armed, they said, shot and killed the driver. We do not know yet from authorities the identity of the driver, but police and the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are calling this a terrorist attack.

There has not been an attack like this in the, sort of, central, really popular area of Jerusalem in quite some time. But just in the last -- actually the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was not far from here during the time of the attack. He was attending a memorial service for Israel soldiers because starting tonight and tomorrow, it is Memorial Day here.

And he said -- and I'll read part of what he said at this -- at the event. He said, this was another attempt to murder Israeli civilians. This is a terrorist attack in this place, at this time. It reminds us that the land of Israel and the state of Israel are acquired through many trials and tribulations. It's obviously been a very tense time here in the region now for more than a year. And this just goes further to show you that although the last week has been calm, really, any day here anything like this can happen. Kate.

BOLDUAN: That's -- that is an -- this being exactly that kind of reminder. Hadas, thank you very much. Hadas Gold in Jerusalem for us.

Sara.

SIDNER: Coming up, Ed Sheeran is accused of copying a Marvin Gaye classic for one of his biggest hits. The copyright trial begins today and will let you listen to the song in question.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:50:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ED SHEERAN, SINGER: And I'm thinking about how people fall in love in mysterious ways. Maybe just the touch of a hand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: This 2014 smash hit and artist Ed Sheeran head to court today as jury selection is expected to get under way in the copyright lawsuit pitting the four-time Grammy award winning musician and the estate of Ed Townsend who co-wrote, "Let's get it on". You may have an inkling of what song jurors are about to compare this to. It's this classic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARVIN GAYE, SINGER: Let's get it on, sugar. Let's get it on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: You can't help but bop to that. Jurors will hear those comparisons, undoubtedly, over and over and over again. But their focus will have to be very specific. CNN Entertainment Reporter Chloe Melas is here with the laser focus on what the issue is here. How will this play out?

CHLOE MELAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: I've got my notes.

SIDNER: You're ready.

MELAS: OK. So, the biggest thing is that, yes, you know, we are thinking the jurors are going to be listening to snippets of both songs. And what are they going to be looking for? They're going to be looking for melody, harmony and rhythm similarities. So, they're supposed to, sort of, disregard the lyrics.

SIDNER: Right.

MELAS: OK. And disregard all the other fun songs -- parts of the songs that are frills and fun and all those, you know, fun technical parts that they will have to really decide that part of it. Now, like you said, Sara, this is not Marvin Gaye's estate suing Ed Sheeran. So, the song rose to the top of the charts in 2014, in 2016 you saw the producer's family suing.

So, you're going to see Ben Crump in the court room, he actually represents Catherine (ph) Townsend. And you know, and they have been fighting this since 2016. Meanwhile, you have said -- seen Ed Sheeran in and out of court with different copyright infringements over the years.

SIDNER: That is the truth. And I do want to ask you, Chloe, just quickly, you know, as they're going through this, you know, it's not really the first time. What was the other song?

MELAS: Yes, so, "Shape -- "

SIDNER: I don't remember it.

MELAS: -- "Shape of You". So, another one of his biggest hits. So, he actually won that lawsuit last year, and he spoke out about it on Instagram and he talks about how there are so many notes to choose from when writing a song. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHEERAN: There are so many notes and very few chords used in pop music and there is bound to happen if 60,000 songs have been released every day on Spotify, that's 22 million songs a year and there's only 12 notes available. That are available.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MELAS: So, we are expecting that he will likely testify as he has taken the stand before to defend his music. And one the things and points of contention from the Townsend side at the center of this, is a performance that Ed Sheeran did in 2014 in Zurich. Where he gets on stage, he performs his song and then he goes as far as performing, "Let's Get It On" and then he switches back. It has hundreds of thousands views on YouTube and that is, sort of, the legal side saying, look. See, he knows their similarities. He played both songs.

But Ed Sheeran's legal team, they do not want that played because they feel like it's going to, you know, poison the jury pool, you know. And that, yes, there are similarities but that he didn't have that song in mind when writing the song.

So, it's going to be interesting, like, look, you have seen so many artists, Sara. I think we're talked about this before.

SIDNER: Yes.

MELAS: From, you know, Led Zeppelin, Taylor Swift. You've seen Arianna Grande, stars have to take the stand, go to trial, and sometimes, usually, they tend to settle out of court before you even see it make it to this point.

SIDNER: But he is ready to fight this one as well. We will have to see. Legally speaking, don't mess with Marvin Gaye, that is all I have to say.

MELAS: And we can have a verdict as early as Friday. So, this might happen rather quickly.

SIDNER: Very quickly. Chloe Melas, thank you so much.

melas: Thank you.

SIDNER: John.

BERMAN: As thousands flee the violence in Sudan, several countries are trying to help their diplomats and citizens' escape.

[10:55:00]

Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaking moments ago about the situation there, we have the latest. President Biden, ready to make it official. What we have learned about his expected re-election campaign launch set for tomorrow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: The U.N. chief declaring, we must do all in our power to pull Sudan back from the abyss as the race is on to flee escalating violence there. U.S. diplomats and their families were airlifted out from the U.S. embassy but there are still an estimated 16,000 Americans there. So, what is the plan?

[11:00:00]