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Football Coach Facing Charges; New Epstein Photos Released. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired December 12, 2025 - 13:00   ET

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"CNN NEWS CENTRAL" starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: A trove of photos from the Epstein files just dropped, House Democrats releasing pictures showing high-profile individuals in the late sex trafficker's orbits. We're going to break down with the images show.

Plus: At any minute, the University of Michigan's former head football coach expected to appear before a judge after his firing and arrest. We're following the latest in the case.

Plus: It's the FDA's most serious warning for a prescription drug, and now CNN is learning the agency is finalizing plans to put a black box label on COVID-19 vaccines. What's behind this move?

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

We start this hour with new charges filed against Sherrone Moore, the recently fired head football coach at the University of Michigan. This is happening right now. These are live images of his arraignment. At any moment, he is scheduled to hear directly from a judge.

CNN has learned that the 39-year-old is now charged with felony home invasion and three misdemeanors related to his arrest. This appearance today in court is going to cap off a stunning few days for the storied football program and its former head coach.

On Wednesday, Moore was fired for what school officials say was credible evidence that he was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member soon after he was arrested and accused of assault.

Let's listen in. It appears that we don't have audio from inside the courtroom, but we, of course, are gathering the latest details as this transpires.

Let's go to CNN's Whitney Wild, who's been following these developments.

Whitney, bring us up to speed on where things stand as we watch this arraignment unfold.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, this is what we had been waiting for since Sherrone Moore was arrested Wednesday. He has been in custody in this building right behind me in Washtenaw County Jail since Wednesday evening.

Here's how we got here. Wednesday afternoon, the news of the University of Michigan firing their head coach rocked Ann Arbor, rocked the University of Michigan community, rocked this storied football program. Then we know, hours later, he was arrested on an alleged assault that is, as you point out, that is not what he ended up being charged with.

He is being charged with home invasion, breaking and entering and stalking, those -- that arrest happening around 4:00 on Wednesday afternoon. He was later booked here around 10:30. So he has been sitting in custody for nearly 48 hours now.

There are many questions about what the university knew and when they knew it. We have set a detailed list of questions to the University of Michigan. When did they know about any problems with Sherrone Moore? When did this investigation begin? Will it ever be made public?

And then what was it that happened this week that prompted the university to take such decisive action? The university is saying very little, frankly, just saying this is a personnel matter, they can't comment any further, although the university's official communications make clear that there was an appropriate relationship with a staff member.

That was what an investigation showed. And the university found that that behavior was a clear violation of the university policy, and they say they have zero tolerance for such behavior. That is not where the questions end for the school.

What we know now, according to CNN's Dana O'Neil, is that there is an outside law firm that is going to be investigating both the university's handling of the investigation into Sherrone Moore and then also the firing.

So, as we move forward...

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Whitney, so sorry to interrupt you. We can actually hear what's happening in the courtroom right now. So let's listen in to the arraignment of Sherrone Moore.

[13:05:07]

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

KATI REZMIERSKI, WASHTENAW COUNTY, MICHIGAN, PROSECUTOR: ... cooperated in some form of investigation there.

As we all now know, the defendant was, at some point on Wednesday afternoon, fired from his employment. He then, at some point soon thereafter, came to her apartment in the address that is alleged in the complaint, barged his way into that apartment, immediately then proceeded to a kitchen drawer, grabbed several butter knives and a pair of kitchen scissors, and began to threaten his own life.

"I'm going to kill myself. I'm going to make you watch. My blood is on your hands. You ruined my life, and a series of very, very threatening, intimidating, terrifying, quite frankly, statements and behaviors there in that apartment." It was only then, Your Honor, when the victim, she called her attorney and then at some point indicated she was going to call the police and then he left.

And so, Your Honor, while I understand that there isn't evidence to suggest that he directly threatened the victim with any of those implements that I have indicated, the totality of the behavior is highly threatening and highly intimidating.

She was terrorized, Your Honor. And in light of the totality of all of those circumstances, we consider the defendant to be a risk to public safety, a risk to this victim, and it is for those reasons that we are asking for those specific conditions.

I'm more than happy to answer any other questions that the court may have or give you further information, and I appreciate the opportunity. Thank you, Your Honor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Simon (INAUDIBLE)

JOE SIMON, ATTORNEY FOR SHERRONE MOORE: Your Honor, let me start at the end where the people ended.

In terms of risk to public safety, my client's 39 years old with zero prior criminal history, zero prior contact with the criminal justice system in any case. The threat to public safety argument by these charges, maybe that's the point, but there's no evidence to suggest that he's a threat to public safety.

The next thing is that the people referenced the court rule that I want to come back to that you can't deny behind the situation like this, and they referenced something else that I want to come back to, which is the fact that they reviewed thoroughly the police report, and they reviewed thoroughly the bodycam.

I have had none of that opportunity. It's too early for that in the proceedings, so when people come in and make factual representations, although I trust Ms. Rezmierski very much as an officer of the court, I have no ability to respond to those factual representations.

So here's what I'm going to ask the court. The monetary bond component, the two considerations by court rule are, my client will appear. Let me speak to that. He's got a home here. His family is here. He's got ties to our community.

He's retained a local counsel here. The second thing is that my client is not otherwise a danger to the public or danger to the complainant. There are other -- that is why monetary components are requested, but there are other measures to address them, for example, the request for a GPS tether.

That was an expected request. My client will gladly comply with that request. The second thing is, my client having no contact (AUDIO GAP) revoked. In terms of surrendering the transport -- or passport, Your Honor, there's no really indication that he is a flight risk. My client has those established ties that I talked about. But, in

addition to that, Your Honor, he would have an order from the court like everyone else does that there would be no leaving the state, let alone the country, without permission of the court, and he would certainly abide by that.

Your Honor, with respect to the request for a mental health evaluation, I will represent a few things that are my understanding, again, without being privileged to have reviewed discovery yet. My understanding is that, following his arrest, my client was taken to the San Joseph Mercy Health System for an evaluation, a mental health evaluation.

My understanding is, following that evaluation, he was not turned over for a commitment, but instead turned back over to law enforcement for lodging. That's where he's been, at the Washtenaw County Jail, since.

I can also tell the court that the community mental health department saw my client yesterday for an evaluation as well without any further recommendation. If you make that a condition of bond, I can tell the court -- that he get a mental health evaluation -- he will absolutely comply and follow any aftercare recommendation.

Lastly, Your Honor, with respect to the bond amount -- oh, I forgot to explain about all weapons. He has no weapons, but he will surrender -- If you order that he surrender any weapons that he doesn't have, he will be glad to comply with that condition.

[13:10:14]

With respect to the bond amount, Your Honor, in a case like this, with charges like this, in a normal circumstance, we'd be requesting a personal recognizance bond, and, frankly, expecting the court to order that. We all know this is not an ordinary circumstance.

It's not an insignificant amount of money to anyone. And I ask that the court set the bond amount to the principles not of my client's bank account, but to the principles of the charges and to the principles of the court rule.

Therefore, I'm requesting that, if the court orders a monetary component at all, that it be with a $25,000 10 percent privilege. And also, Your Honor, if my client is ordered to a GPS tether, things have to happen pretty significantly to try to get that in place in time for what we'd have to be using this day. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Moore, could you state your name, please?

SHERRONE MOORE, DEFENDANT: Sherrone Moore.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir, you are not to use alcohol, marijuana, or any other controlled substance that is not prescribed to you.

You are not to possess or purchase a firearm or any other dangerous weapon. You are not to engage in criminal conduct of any kind whatsoever. You may not leave the state of Michigan without permission of the court.

Prior to your release, you will be placed on a GPS tether. You will not be released before that GPS tether is placed upon you. You must continue all mental health treatment as a condition of your bond.

The named victim in this case will not be placed on the record. You may not have contact with that individual. That means no calling, no writing, no video chatting, no texting, no e-mailing, or any other form of contact the human mind can possibly fathom.

No one in the world thinks that this person is going to reach out to you. Should they do so -- and, again, no one thinks that they're going to -- you may not reply in any form or fashion. The named victim's address will not be placed on the record.

You may not go to that location for any reason whatsoever. Are we understood on the no contact and no go to, sir?

MOORE: Yes, Your Honor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have any questions about that, you have a good attorney. Simply ask them. You understand?

MOORE: Yes Your Honor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bond will be set in the amount of $25,000 cash surety, as requested by the prosecution's office. This court does not determine innocence or guilt. This court determines flight risk and community safety. The court finds, with these conditions in place, it has been met.

Mr. Simon, we are setting probable cause conference at this time for January 8, due to the holidays and scheduling. Is that a good court date for you?

SIMON: Your Honor, my client will waive...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It has been met.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Simon, we are setting probable cause conference at this time for January 8 due to the holidays and scheduling. Is that a good court date for you?

SIMON: Your Honor, my client will waive is right to have that next court experience within 14 days. I have discussed that with him. I also tried to coordinate calendars with Mr. Rezmierski.

In support of that, I think we're both available on January 22, if the court would order that. And I will add one more thing for the record in support of that. I understand that there is continuing investigation.

So, in addition to the discovery I don't yet have, there may be even more. So...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, it will be January 26, 2020. SIMON: Twenty-second.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Twenty-second, 15, 22nd...

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: January 22 then, January 22, 2026, 9:00 a.m., 14- A1 district court, Courtroom C. That will be in person.

Sir, do not violate these bond conditions. Follow all orders of the court. Stay in contact with your lawyer.

That concludes this hearing.

SIMON: Thank you, Your Honor.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Very much.

[13:15:02]

SANCHEZ: We have been watching the arraignment of ex-Michigan head football coach Sherrone Moore, now charged with felony home invasion and three misdemeanors related to his arrest, a judge determining that he is not a flight risk nor a danger to the community should he follow the conditions that were set out as part of his release.

Bond is set for him at $25,000. The prosecution argued that, hours after he was fired, Moore barged into the victim's home, went into her kitchen drawer, grabbed knives and scissors, and then threatened his own life, allegedly saying: "You ruined my life. My blood is on your hands."

Apparently, at that point, the victim called police and Moore left. The totality of the behavior, prosecutors argued, is highly threatening. The judge there siding with the defense that made the case that there is no evidence that he's a threat to public safety.

We have Whitney Wild with us, who's been tracking the details of this case, as well as former state attorney for Palm Beach County Dave Aronberg.

We will get the legal perspective in just a moment, Dave.

But, Whitney, your takeaways from this arraignment.

WILD: This is the first real detail we have about any of this that occurred 48 hours ago, Boris.

Again, we just dipped into it, but, again, I will just catch our viewers up to speed. As you said, it certainly sounds like this was Sherrone Moore's reaction to having been fired hours after he was fired. And we know that it was because he had an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

He barged into a victim's home. Again, he was -- according to the prosecutors, his behavior was highly threatening. It was highly intimidating. He told the victim, "You're ruining my life," indicated that he said something to the effect of "I'm going to kill myself."

After the victim called her attorney and then indicated that she would call police, according to the prosecutor, he then left. What the prosecutor was saying to the judge in trying to get the most stringent bond restrictions possible here is that the totality of the behavior is highly threatening, highly intimidating.

And the word the prosecutor used was, she was terrorized. The prosecutors did consider the defendant a risk a public safety. And so, again, they were asking for specific conditions here, the defense arguing that he has a family here. He has a home here. He has no criminal record, no contact with law enforcement, no contact with the criminal justice system, and so really poses -- this was a specific incident, poses no further risk to the community.

And the judge laying out very specifically the conditions of the bond, no contact with the victim. Even if the victim attempts to contact Sherrone Moore, he is not to respond. He is now going to be placed on a GPS monitor, as you said, $25,000 bond.

His next court appearance is January 22. We will see if more court records come out. We have requested 911 calls. We have requested a more detailed police report that may give an even more detailed narrative about what happened.

But, so far, Boris, these are answers that I think everybody has been waiting for over the last two days once news broke that Sherrone Moore was fired and that he was later arrested -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, really a stunning turnaround if these allegations turn out to be true.

Whitney, please stand by.

Let's go to Dave Aronberg.

Dave, what is your reaction to hearing this? Obviously, outside of the fact that he had such a high-profile job and that so many -- our producers are telling me that his attorneys are coming out and speaking to reporters. Let's listen in.

SIMON: I'm just going to not answer that question, but he will be in the community.

QUESTION: Tell us about this. What's the mood of your client right now?

SIMON: Listen, that is something that I will also not comment on, but I will say you heard that there was a condition of bond for him to have mental health counseling and we expect that too, OK?

QUESTION: Do you have any comments on the allegations?

SIMON: None. None. And I'm -- I said in court, I have not seen a police report. I have not seen any other discovery. It would be irresponsible to comment, so I won't. QUESTION: How he is doing mentally? Is he (OFF-MIKE)

SIMON: Yes.

So, I'm, again, not going to comment on that. Thank you very much, but I do need to get through you guys. Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Joe Simon there, the defense attorney for Sherrone Moore, choosing not to comment on a number of questions specifically about the well-being of his client, saying that he won't dig into the details, but as part of his release, the condition is that he will continue with mental health counseling, notable given some of the allegations about suicidal remarks.

David, just stepping back, as I was saying a moment ago, remove from the equation the fact that this is a high-profile individual whose firing was obviously newsworthy. Do you think that the stipulations set forward by the judge, this $25,000 bond, as well as these conditions, are appropriate for the charges that he's facing?

DAVE ARONBERG, FORMER PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA, STATE ATTORNEY: I do, Boris. It's pretty normal.

These are serious charges. One of them is a felony, but he's a first- time offender. He is really not much of a flight risk. I mean, he's pretty well-known. He has ties to the community. He's more of a threat to himself than to others.

[13:20:02]

And so I do think that the bond conditions are appropriate. We need to make sure he is nowhere near the victim, does not try to communicate with her. And if he does, he will be locked up immediately pending trial.

My biggest takeaway was learning that, when he got the knife, he did not use it to threaten the victim. He used it to threaten himself. That's why you don't see more serious charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon or more aggravated home invasion charges. This is just third-degree home invasion, which is, even though it's serious, it's the lowest-level felony.

And it could be punished for about five years in prison, but he is a first-time offender. So he would likely get nowhere near that.

SANCHEZ: What do you imagine the defense is going to argue on his behalf? Do you think it's likely that perhaps they come to some arrangement with prosecutors and this thing never goes to trial?

ARONBERG: Yes, very possibly.

First-time offender, someone who has mental health issues, someone who threatened himself, not another person, that's key. And I think that if the victim agrees that you could see a plea deal where he has probation and mental health treatment and ends up serving no time in jail or prison. I think that's actually a possibility. So we will see how it plays out. But, right now, he's a subject of

worldwide ridicule of humiliation, which is punishment in itself. But, ultimately, I think the victim's wishes will be important here, because she's the one who allegedly has been stalked and has been perhaps threatened in the past.

And she needs to tell the prosecutors which way to go on this.

SANCHEZ: To that point, the school has been investigating this alleged inappropriate relationship, or what they say is a confirmed inappropriate relationship since October.

And its investigation into the handling of this relationship is currently being done by an outside law firm. In other words, it's still possible that more details may come forward related to this relationship and his firing. Do you see that as potentially impacting this case in the form of new charges, perhaps?

ARONBERG: I think where it's impactful, Boris, is in a potential civil lawsuit against the University of Michigan.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

ARONBERG: How long did they know about these issues? According to reports, they were notified back in September that this affair had happened, and they allegedly slow-walked it.

They waited to fire him until after the commitment date was over, the national letter of intent date, where high school students commit to the University of Michigan. And so were they waiting until the season was over until they found out if he would beat Ohio State in football?

SANCHEZ: Wow.

ARONBERG: Because if it's true that they knew about this months in advance, and if they knew had severe mental health issues and then fired him as soon as the national commitment day was over and just fired him without counselors there, just let him out into the wilderness, then they could really be hit with some serious lawsuits.

SANCHEZ: Yes, it would be significant, also considering some of the scandals that Michigan football has faced in recent years, some of them involving Sherrone Moore.

We have to leave the conversation there. Dave Aronberg and Whitney Wild, thank you both so much.

We will, of course, stay on top of this and bring you any new developments as we get them.

Also still to come: a catastrophic situation unfolding right now in the Pacific Northwest, historic flooding trapping families, washing out roads, and forcing evacuations. We're going to take you there live.

And, later, the Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador returned to the U.S., only to be detained for months again, is now a free man. Attorneys for Kilmar Abrego Garcia say his fight, though, is far from over.

Stay with CNN NEWS CENTRAL. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:28:10]

SANCHEZ: House Oversight Democrats just released images from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein, and they show power players at the highest level, Presidents Trump and Clinton among them.

One picture shows President Trump posing with multiple women whose faces are redacted. Another photo shows Trump with Epstein and another woman whose face is not covered. Notably, none of the released images depict any sexual misconduct, nor are believed to depict underage girls.

It's also not immediately clear when or where they were taken or by whom. Neither Presidents Trump nor Clinton have ever been accused of wrongdoing in this matter. Along with the former presidents, other VIPs seen include billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.

Gates has repeatedly denied that Epstein ever worked for him and regretted their meeting. Summers also expressed regrets over his relationship with Epstein. Oversight Committee Democrats say that more is to come, adding that these are just some of the 95,000 photos they have received.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ROBERT GARCIA (D-CA): These pictures, some of these photos are really disturbing, and I know we have put some out today. There are many others, and some of the other photos that we did not put out today are incredibly disturbing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Republicans on the committee accuse the Democrats of -- quote -- "cherry-picking" which images were released.

And joining us now to discuss is Sarah Fitzpatrick, a staff writer at "The Atlantic" who's covered Epstein extensively.

Sarah, thanks so much for being with us.

What do you make of these photos?

SARAH FITZPATRICK, STAFF WRITER, "THE ATLANTIC": I think it's a very significant disclosure.

Of course, the photos themselves, there are only 19 of them. They come from the Epstein estate, and there's no indication -- the estate has demonstrated -- had said to Congress that they believe that they are authentic photos.

And what you see here are -- I think it's important for two reasons. One, the public has heard the discussions of all these VIPs that were in Epstein's -- and they have heard about e-mails, and they have heard about documents.

But actually seeing the photos firsthand -- and if you see these photos, it's very, very clear that the closeness between Epstein and these men is far beyond kind of what has been suggested.