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Police: Faulty Tire May Have Led To Deadly Bus Crash; 911 Call: "We've Got A Pilot In Our House, And He Says He Got Ejected"; Soon: Biden Unveils Office Of Gun Violence Prevention; "Waiting For JFK: Report From The Fringe" Airs Sunday at 8PM. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired September 22, 2023 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TROOPER JASON LEWIS, NEW YORK STATE POLICE: They were crying. They were asking for their parents.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And look, in total, two people were killed here, five others critical, and many more wounded or injured, I should say here, though minor injuries as we understand.
The two that were killed, one of them, her name was Gina Pellettiere. She was 43 years old from Massapequa, New York. But also the band director at Farmingdale High School, which is where those students were coming from.
And then also Beatrice Ferrari, otherwise known as Bea. She was described as the heart and soul of this marching program. Again, they were on their way to a band camp, something we understand is an annual event.
Bottom line, something that was supposed to be fun, a fun weekend for these students to, again, relate to each other, play music at that particular camp. It's something that changed in just a matter of moments.
School was open today, as we understand from the school district. The other buses took students back home to reunite with families and parents.
They did say counselling services were open to some of those students as, again, they try to process what happened in just a matter of moments -- Boris?
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Omar Jimenez, live from Middletown, New York. Thanks so much, Omar.
Jim?
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: For the first time, we are hearing the 911 call following the crash of that F-35 fighter jet that was missing for a while. Its pilot ejected, parachuted into a South Carolina backyard.
On the call, we hear from both the home's resident and the pilot himself, who requested an ambulance and says he is unsure exactly where that $100 million plane ended up.
Have a listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO FEED)
UNIDENTIFIED PILOT: I'm the pilot. We need to get rescue rolling. I'm not sure where the airplane is. It would have crash-landed somewhere. I ejected.
911 OPERATOR: What caused the fall?
UNIDENTIFIED PILOT: An aircraft failure.
911 OPERATOR: What part of the body was injured?
UNIDENTIFIED PILOT: Ma'am, I'm a pilot in the military aircraft and I ejected, so I just rode a parachute down to the ground. Can you please send an ambulance?
(END AUDIO FEED)
SCIUTTO: "Can you please send an ambulance."
CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us from the Pentagon.
Oren, quite a moment to hear there, the pilot saying, what do you do, the plane landed somewhere else, I'm not sure where it is, I'm OK, please send an ambulance.
Are we learning what brought it down? Does the Pentagon know any more?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Not yet. The exact cause of the downing or the ejection of the pilot from the Marine Corps F- 35B is still under investigation. According to the Marines, that investigation could take several months.
As you noted, the pilot does say an aircraft failure. But what that failure was or why it happened, that's exactly what remains under investigation.
Take a look at this rough timeline. The plane crashes after the pilot ejected Sunday afternoon just northwest or so of Charleston, South Carolina. It crashes some 60 miles, or two hours, rather, north of Joint Base Charleston.
Shortly after that, the commandant of the Marine Corps, General Eric Smith, orders a two-day pause in flight operations across all Marine Corps aviation operations.
Not specifically the F-35B but across all Marine Corps aviation operations. That's because of a number of other crashes that happened in recent weeks. He essentially just wants that time for aviation units in the Marine
Corps to stand down, to review safety procedures, to review flight ops and everything else that goes into making a Marine Corps aircraft fly and to operate them safely.
That is a precautionary measure to make sure everyone here is on the same page.
We have learned a little bit more about the flight. The Marine Corps pilot was operating at about a thousand feet, according to a Marine official, when he was forced to eject.
What made the aircraft so difficult to find is one of the key questions here.
First, it flew for some time. According to a Marine statement, that's because, even after an ejection, the plane is designed to try to seek 1G, normal, stabilized flight. That may explain why it kept flying after the ejection.
But after the ejection, according to the Marines, the plane is designed to wipe all of its secure data and emit an unclassified signal for tracking. But that signal can be disrupted by weather and there were thunderstorms in the area as well as radar coverage.
So, Jim, all of that goes into why it took some 24 hours to find this downed Marine Corps jet.
SCIUTTO: A thousand=foot altitude, there's nothing wrong with that altitude in terms of being too low. No indication there was something unsafe about the flight path?
LIEBERMANN: No reason to believe that at this point. Partially, that's because the F-35B is designed to take on a close air support mission, which involves flying low.
SCIUTTO: Understood.
Oren Liebermann, at the Pentagon, thanks so much.
Boris?
[14:34:44]
SANCHEZ: Just minutes from now, the White House is going to unveil the first-ever Officed of Gun Violence Prevention. But will it help turn the tide on an American epidemic? A Parkland father, the father of a victim killed at Parkland, joins us in a moment to discuss.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Any minute now, President Biden is set to announce new actions to combat gun violence. Last year, he signed into law one of the most significant pieces of gun safety legislation passed by Congress since the early 1990s. But not everyone was satisfied. During a White House event celebrating
its passage, the father of a Parkland shooting victim interrupted the president, demanding he do more with one specific call to action.
Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Because make no mistake -- sit down, you'll hear what I have to say.
MANUEL OLIVER, ACTIVIST & FATHER OF PARKLAND SHOOTING VICTIM, JOAQUIN "GUAC" OLIVER: (INAUDIBLE)
(CROSSTALK)
OLIVER: (INAUDIBLE)
(APPLAUSE)
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[14:40:10]
SANCHEZ: Joining us now is that activist, Manuel Oliver.
We should let our viewers know Manuel lost his son, Joaquin "Guac" Oliver, in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting back in 2018.
Manuel, thank you so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us.
You called on President Biden at that moment to open an office to address gun violence at the White House. That is happening today. I'm wondering how you feel about it.
OLIVER: I feel very happy this is finally something that is going to happen. I'm not the only one. I want to be very clear that I'm not the only one that has been demanding this office for the last few years.
But, yes, I was the one that interrupted President Biden that day with that specific call. And that caused me a lot of sympathy from others, too.
But we're all celebrating. I'm not in the White House for reasons that we all know. I think once you're ejected from the White House, you should not go back again.
But I am very happy, along with my wife, watching the news.
SANCHEZ: Manuel, last hour, we spoke with the new head of that office. She said their priorities include making sure the latest bipartisan legislation is fully implemented and looking for creative opportunities within existing law. In your mind, is that enough?
OLIVER: No, it's not enough. I had a conversation with Stefanie and I also saw today part of the intentions of the office coming from her. We're here to support each other, all of us.
But it's not enough. Of course, it's not enough. Today a hundred or more Americans will die from gun violence. And those bills have been there for a while.
So I guess that the most important thing here is that now we have an entity where we can address our frustrations, where we can address our demands. And that was not there before.
I have the feeling that this administration is now actually really prioritizing gun violence prevention.
SANCHEZ: That's interesting, because I know you've been frustrated many times and you've been outspoken in your frustration.
We've shown the video of you at the White House. You mentioned you believe that's part of the reason you weren't invited today. You've been arrested during hearings on Capitol Hill. You've demonstrated publicly multiple times that has gotten you in some measure of trouble.
What are you hoping to hear from President Biden today that confirms your belief that this is now a very high priority?
OLIVER: Well, the fact that the office is opening, it's for the moment good. It's good news.
But again, you have to understand that since that day in the White House, we have done thousands of things. We have been traveling all around the nation looking at this issue in a very close way and trying to understand what's going on.
I haven't been just waiting here in my house for this office to be open. We, the movement behind the gun violence prevention, we, the fathers, the mothers of the victims, have been very active.
We just want that leading voice. And President Biden is showing that today.
And, yes, I try to not stay on the political map, but I have to give a lot of credit today to the president, to the White House, to the administration itself.
SANCHEZ: You mentioned not wanting to get political. However, there is an important election coming up next year.
And one of the frustrations for a long time among parents like yourself who have lost loved ones to gun violence has loves ones to gun violence has been inaction in Congress.
We saw a gun bill passed last year after the shooting in Uvalde. Many felt it didn't go far enough, banning assault-style weapons, et cetera.
What's your message to voters ahead of next year's election?
OLIVER: That's exactly what I mean with my way of looking at the political map. As we've been talking through the whole interview, I've been demanding actions to the White House, the White House that I voted for.
So the sympathy or ideology that we might have with a party or not is secondary reason to ask for answers.
So next year, we have to look at the profile and intentions of anyone that is running for office and make sure they prioritize the life of Americans, the life of our kids over the gun manufacturers or the gun industry.
[14:45:00]
SANCHEZ: Manuel Oliver, we know you'll be watching this event at the White House closely.
We appreciate your sharing your time with us.
OLIVER: Thank you very much. Have a great day.
SANCHEZ: Of course. You do the same.
Jim?
SCIUTTO: Great to hear from him.
Now to some of the other headlines we are watching this hour.
Residents of Lahaina, Hawaii, will be allowed back into their homes or what remains of them for the first time since the devastating fires hit Maui last month.
Hawaii's governor says people will be allowed back in on Monday. The governor says they will have to wear gear to protect themselves from toxic ashes and that it might take three months for everyone to see what's left.
The move comes after many Hawaiians were angry that tourists might be allowed back in Lahaina ahead of residents.
Also, a new tropical storm has just formed in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Ophelia is forecast to make landfall in North Carolina tomorrow, then sweep north to Maryland and the Jersey shore before moving inland.
Ophelia is expected to bring powerful gusts of wind, soaking rains and dangerous storm surge as well.
And the Biden administration is taking steps to make sure unpaid medical bills do not hurt your credit score. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says the proposals are meant
to make sure creditors are not relying on data that can often be riddled with inaccuracies.
Along with stopping coercive debt-collection tactics. The White House says roughly one in three Americans is now carrying medical debt.
SANCHEZ: So JFK and his son are alive and in hiding and ready to come back. At least that's what some fringe groups believe. CNN's Donie O'Sullivan spent the last year investigating these devoted followers. And we have his findings when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:51:16]
SCIUTTO: For the past year, CNN's Donie O'Sullivan has been investigating a group, which some call a cult, that believes that Kennedy and his son, John F. Kennedy Jr, are alive and in hiding.
This Sunday, on "THE WHOLE STORY" with Anderson Cooper, O'Sullivan takes us on a journey across the country to meet the believers, confront their QAnon conspiracist leader, and spend time with the frustrated families, like the Richters, who's loved one, Claus, never came home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Claus stayed in Dallas and began traveling the country with Michael Protzman's group, going to a series of Trump rallies.
Photos and videos suggest he was having a good time, like here, dancing in front of Protzman.
But his sister, Carmen, says, at one point, he began to express concerns.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He goes, something is not right here. And I go -- I go, what are you going to do? Do you want to get -- let's get you out. He was like -- he goes, just give me a day or two.
O'SULLIVAN: But Claus Richter never did leave the group. On April 14, 2022, his sister, Carmen, got a call from Michael Protzman.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There was an accident and Claus is in the hospital. And I'm like, what?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Donie joins us now with more on this report.
Donie, you investigated this accident. On the accident, first, what did you find out? What do you believe really happened here?
O'SULLIVAN: Yes, so as you saw in that clip, the man, Michael Protzman, was the leader of this group. It's kind of a QAnon offshoot group that believes that JFK or JFK Jr. is alive, working with Trump somehow, you know, to save America.
A few years ago, people -- he brought people, people showed up in Dallas at the Grassy Knoll expecting one or both of the JFKs to come back. And a few hundred people showed up. When the Kennedys didn't show up, most went home. But some people stayed. They didn't go home.
In this case of Claus Richter, he never got to come home. He was involved in a car accident while he was in this group. His family didn't learn about it until 42 or 78 hours after the accident itself and they never got to speak to their -- to Claus alive again.
The accident happened in Alabama. A grand jury ruled that it was no foul play and, you know, refused to bring any criminal charges.
SCIUTTO: Explain, if you can, the motivation, what fuels this cult. This is an assassination that took place 60-some years ago, on film, right?
O'SULLIVAN: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Repeatedly investigated by the Senate.
What fuels this? And along with, of course, John F. Kennedy Jr., who died in that plane crash some 20, 25 years ago.
O'SULLIVAN: Yes. I mean, look, obviously, this is a conspiracy theory that is totally irrational, very far out there. And, you know, I think it's easy for us to get distracted by the conspiracy theory itself.
What we really wanted to do with this CNN special was talk to people like Claus Richter's family and to other families who have had loved ones who have been pulled into this, right?
Because, you know, this is an irrational belief. But really what we're trying to find out is why. What has drawn these people to that.
Oftentimes, what we've heard from relatives is something has happened in somebody's life.
[14:54:59:]
I mean, a lot of members of this group weren't always lifetime quacks or anything like that. They were normal productive members of society that got drawn into this, whether it's through loneliness or anything else.
SCIUTTO: It's interesting because it's often a pattern that folks have seen with folks who join terror groups, that they have some sort of personal tragedy, look for cause, some feeling of belonging.
O'SULLIVAN: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Donie O'Sullivan, thanks so much for covering it. And be sure to tune in to an all-new episode of "THE WHOLE STORY" with
Anderson Cooper. That airs Sunday 8:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, only on CNN.
Boris?
SANCHEZ: So we are still monitoring that event at the White House. We are preparing to hear from President Biden directly on this new office charged with tackling the gun violence epidemic in this country. We will bring you that live.
Plus, still ahead, charged with bribery. Democratic Senator Bob Menendez and his wife accused of accepting cash, bars of gold, a luxury car and more in exchange for the Senator's influence. A sweeping indictment. And the response from Menendez when we come back.
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