Return to Transcripts main page

Don Lemon Tonight

Department Of Justice Launches Investigation Of Minneapolis Police Department One Day After Derek Chauvin Convicted Of Murdering George Floyd; Tomorrow's Daunte Wright's Funeral; Chauvin In Isolated Prison Unit As He Awaits Sentencing; President Biden Will Address Floyd Police Reform Bill During Joint Session; Interview With Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ); Fox Host Tucker Carlson Melts Down Over Chauvin's Guilty Verdict; Biden Touts 200 Million COVID Vaccinations Since Taking Office. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired April 21, 2021 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST (on camera): One day after Derek Chauvin's conviction in the murder of George Floyd, the Justice Department launching a federal investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department's policies, training, supervision, and use of force. CNN analysis of department data shows police still using force against black people at a disproportionate rate.

No curfew tonight in nearby Brooklyn Center, Minnesota on the eve of Daunte Wright's funeral, he was shot to death by a police officer. And tension on the rise in Columbus, Ohio, as police release bodycam video of an officer fatally shooting a 16-year-old girl who threaten to young women with a knife. Officials urging the community to await the facts.

I want to start though with CNN's Sara Sidner live for us in Minneapolis as she has been our lead story in so many evenings this entire year, really for an entire year. Sara, good evening to you. Thank you for joining us for another evening. The Justice Department is launching an investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department. What are you hearing about this?

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Look, they can look into many, many different things. But we did hear from the Justice Department. There was an announcement. This comes one day by the way after, as you know, a jury found the officer, the former officer, Derek Chauvin guilty of second degree murder and third degree murder and manslaughter in the killing of George Floyd.

And now you have the DOJ saying, we're going to look at the Minneapolis Police Department. We're going to look to see if they have patterns and practices that are unconstitutional, or that are unlawful policing. And they're going to do a thorough investigation, according to the Department of Justice.

And we should mention, there is already an investigation going on. The federal criminal investigation of the killing of George Floyd is still outstanding. Now the DOJ is looking at something that is even bigger than what just happened with George Floyd. Looking at the department itself, to see if its pattern and practices have been unconstitutional beyond that. And this tends to be a very big investigation.

You will remember, Don, back when Michael Brown was killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, that caused unrest there for more than six months of protests. And in that case, the DOJ looked at the patterns and practices and saw a lot of things that they thought were illegal.

And so we are going to be in the weeks and months ahead, we're going to be waiting to see exactly what that looks like. I should mention, that the brass of the police department has said that they are going to cooperate fully with this investigation. The city council here in Minneapolis said they welcome this investigation into the police department's patterns and practices.

And so you do have cooperation from the places that are going to have to be giving information to the DOJ, they will talk to many, many, many people as they did in Ferguson, which is the last time we really had a case where everyone heard this idea of the DOJ coming in and looking at patterns and practices.

So it is a big deal. It is something that could have an impact on the police department and frankly the community. But we will have to wait and see what the DOJ finds in this extensive investigation here, Don.

LEMON: Look. Let's talk about what has essentially become your second home there in Minneapolis. And you have been speaking to people there in the area. I know that many people are feeling relief after this verdict. But do you think it's going to be short-lived because Daunte Wright Wright's funeral is tomorrow?

SIDNER: Look. His wake was today. And a lot of people who were out in the streets for George Floyd, were in -- at the wake, saying, you know, celebrating Daunte Wright's life. And tomorrow, they're going to be saying their final good-byes. Any time you have a scenario like this, which is, I mean, think about what this city has gone through.

And then just 10 miles away in Brooklyn Center, this happens while we are waiting for a decision by the jury and for this trial to come to its conclusion in another case involving an officer killing a black person in this country.

[23:05:04]

I mean, it couldn't have been worse timing in some ways. Because there was already an extreme amount of tension here. And now they're laying to rest a young man, 20 years old, who had a young child. Was in the car with his girlfriend. He got out of the car, he, police, you know, made a move to try and detain him. He got out of that, jumped in the car, and an officer screamed taser, taser, but she was holding her gun.

Someone that has been in the department for 26 years. And a lot of people say, if she's the person that is the veteran on the scene and she is the person that trains other officers and was training another officer, then there's something very wrong with policing. And we are already going through this trial.

Now that they have a guilty verdict, they're looking to this case. And I'll tell you something, I talked to Jesse Jackson yesterday. He was in George Floyd square, people were clapping for him as he walked in, and he said his piece and he went and prayed at the site where George Floyd died. And I asked him, you know, what do you think about what has happened here, and how people are reacting?

Because people were in a celebratory mood. And he said, you know what, they're celebrating too early. There's a lot of work to do. And I think that is the sentiment here. Is that, yes, we need to let ourselves have some relief and reprieve and take a deep breath and say, OK, this is justice in our eyes. Justice happened and we need to be thankful for that.

But really, there's a lot of sorrow and there is so much more work to be done. The relationship between police and black folks in this country has to be dealt with. And use of force has to be dealt with, Don.

LEMON: Yeah. This is the beginning. Thank you so much, Sara. I appreciate it. Thanks.

Joining me now is Minnesota State Representative John Thompson. He is a friend of Philando Castile who was fatally shot by police officers during a traffic stop it was outside Minneapolis in 2016. John, good to see you again. How are you doing?

STATE REP. JOHN THOMPSON, MINNESOTA: Good to see you. I'm good. I'm doing fine. Thanks for having me.

LEMON: Give me your reaction to the verdict. So few police officers have been convicted in the past, including the officer who killed your friend Philando. So what do you think? Turning point?

THOMPSON: I think, Don, as soon as we were celebrating guilty, guilty, guilt guilty, just like the same with Daunte's funeral, we are celebrating guilty, guilty, guilty and then someone runs up and says, they did it again in Ohio. We were celebrating the life of Justin (inaudible), who was murdered by St. Paul police, and while we're celebrating his birthday, someone runs up to me like two Sundays ago.

John, they just did it in Brooklyn Center. They just killed somebody. So these victories are short-lived. It's going to happen again. It's going to happen again in this state, unless we get some reform and put in the legislation, in accountability pieces.

LEMON: Justice may have been served in the legal system. But you know, of course, real justice would be Gianna Floyd growing up with her father alive, right. How does one reconcile that?

THOMPSON: Don, I'm so tired of ingesting this in my body. I don't know if people know that. But it's traumatic for an African-American male and mom to keep ingesting, even though these aren't our children. But they are, there is no such thing as somebody else's kid, these are our kids that are dying.

These are our future lawyers, doctors, future Barack Obamas, you know, and they're dying at the hands of the people who are supposed to protect us. I understand that they said, some people say we're making law enforcement's job hard, but law enforcement's making it hard to be black in America.

LEMON (on camera): This is what you said in a press conference after Daunte Wright was killed. This was last week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMPSON: You fit the description. You fit the description, I fit the description. You fit the description of pretty much 90 percent of those calls coming across the radio. So, I'm saying, I don't want to fail another young man. We failed George Floyd, we failed Daunte, we failed Philando. I don't want to fail anybody else this summer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON (on camera): So, why does that keep happening in your community?

THOMPSON: Because we keep having our law enforcement and also the chiefs' association, the Minnesota peace officers' association, they run these organizations like criminally organized gangs, almost. You look at the -- just pull up some of the complaints of some of these officers. You look at Officer Chauvin's list of service complaints, he was involved in four other police-involved killings. These lawsuits, these complaints, nothing happens.

I think if 56 people complain on a law or peace officer, at least six of them should be looked into. But out of 56 complaints, nothing happens. Not even an oral reprimand or you know, not even a smack on the wrist. So, there's no fear of this progressive ladder of discipline that should be happening to this peace officers.

[23:10:12]

And also we have the PPP here in Minnesota, the politicians being pumped by these police unions. You know, a lot of these, I'm sitting here looking at the screen now this guy is defending qualified immunity. Nobody should have qualified immunity. That's just too much power to have. And the world is saying we have a police problem. Not just the city of Minneapolis. The world, the entire world is saying that we have had enough police involved shootings.

LEMON: You know, I want to talk if you will, go back to something you said earlier, when you talked about that you're tired of feeling this in your body, or what black men feel around these things, and the stress that takes place. But those who don't know, the police killing of your friend Philando Castile, that's what inspired you to get involved in politics. What kinds of reforms are needed to prevent others from dealing with this kind of grief that you've experienced? THOMPSON: Because you know, Don, at some point, you know how you go to

the dentist, you have a rotten tooth, they dig the decay out, and then they fill it with some filling. And you know, we have to look at the root problems, the under investments in our African-American community, it contributes to a lot of the crime that we see in our communities. Thus the need for policing. And some instance our communities are over policed. Son, can I give you the example.

LEMON: Yes.

THOMPSON: You have a young lady stealing a coat out of a store, and you take her to jail, you haven't solved the problem, because when she gets out, she's still cold. You know, I watched the homeless be (inaudible) from our society here in the state. And so, I just want to make sure that we understand, that we have root problems.

We talk about you know, state appropriations in the African-American and immigrant community throughout this state. I'm waiting for them to make solid investments in things that make sense for our communities. You know, and our state had -- I mean, if you look at the disparities we have here in the state of Minnesota, we're, like, the worst when it comes to everything in this state.

And I know that legislation helped create a lot of the disparities that we see here in this state. And legislation can help fix them. But we keep getting met by our Republican colleagues who don't believe that this stuff is existing because it doesn't exist in their neighborhood.

LEMON: Yes.

THOMPSON: And I want to say one more thing. Just because my reality is not your reality, it doesn't necessarily like eliminate my reality as false. So I'm just rhetoric.

LEMON: It doesn't make it not a thing. Because your reality doesn't match mine. Thank you, John Thompson. I appreciate it.

THOMPSON: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you very much.

THOMPSON: Thank you.

LEMON: Now I want to bring in Democratic Senator Cory Booker. He is a co-author of the George Floyd justice in policing act. Really important stuff. Senator, thank you for joining. Good evening to you.

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ) (on camera): Good evening to you. Thanks for having me on.

LEMON: I want to start with the verdict. What was your reaction when you heard the news?

BOOKER: I don't know why, I felt relief, and then sadness. It is the right verdict. But George Floyd is dead. And so my heart just feel broke for the family. For his daughter. And so I -- the right thing happened in the verdict. It was absolutely the right thing.

But we still have to confront that we have a society in which that can happen in the first place. So -- we all have to take responsibility for ending the culture that creates the possibility for that kind of heinous acts to happen with such unfortunately chilling regularity.

LEMON: pardon me, I thought you were finish with your thought, and we have a delay. So, my apologies. So, the president is pushing the Senate to pass your policing act. Do you think the Chauvin verdict will help galvanize support to get this pass before the anniversary of Floyd's death, next month?

BOOKER: So, let me just be plain as possible about all of this. The president and his team have been amazing. They haven't been pushing as much as partnering. They're really in the weeds. And I appreciate the extraordinary leadership. You know, Kamala Harris was my co-author in the Senate. And this is going to come down to a negotiation and a discovery. I'm deep in those conversations right now with somebody who is a legitimate friend, and an honest broker.

You know, we have very different opinion on a lot of things, but Tim Scott and I have passed a number of bills together. And we're going to try to work something out that is substantive enough for me to get behind, and I hope my Senate colleagues get behind it as well. Because we've seen all kinds of reforms over the decades from racial sensitivity training, to community policing, but it hasn't directly gotten at the deaths of Tamir Rice. The deaths of Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor. The names you and I both know.

[23:15:03]

And so what I'm hoping is we can get a bill done that creates real accountability, transparency, so more Americans can see what is going on down to the racial breakdown of traffic stops and more. This kind of accountability will help people hold their departments accountable. And I want to see certain practices banned like what killed Eric Garner with a choke hold, to what killed Breonna Taylor, a needless, senseless no-knock warrants.

A no-knock warrant that had them entering her house in the first place. So, there's a lot of things in this bill that are worth fighting for. And I'm negotiating now in good faith. And I'm hoping we can get it to a point where it is a step to make progress. Because Americans deserve for their federal government to own up to the crisis we're in and do something real to make a difference.

LEMON: The Republican Senator Tim Scott is proposing a compromise to get this passed. He's asked for the burden of responsibility in court to be shifted from individual officers to police departments. Would you accept that?

BOOKER: I'm not going to negotiate this publicly. I'm going to negotiate with him and there are so many different components to this. I will say that qualified immunity is astonishing to me. That you can violate someone's civil rights, and that person has have no claim in civil court against you. And so for me, I think we should get rid of qualified immunity. We've

seen conservative organizations like the (inaudible) institute, call for getting rid of qualified immunity. We've seen Republican Senators like Braun, he put up a bill to severely limit qualified immunity.

So, again, I don't want to negotiate this over through TV interviews. I want to sit down with somebody that I trust, and that we may have come at it in from different perspectives, but I'm hoping we can land at a place that in some way changes qualified immunity in a substantive enough manner.

LEMON: Listen. I completely understand that. If you can get the work dine, do the work -- if it is certainly understandable, fair enough. So over and over again, Senator, we see black people ending up dead after being stopped by police for small things like an expired plate, the counterfeit bill in George Floyd's case or allegedly selling loose cigarettes. How do we stop this cycle and figure out a better way to handle these small infractions?

BOOKER: So, I just want to be blunt with you. I don't know if there's a black man in America that doesn't have painful stories with the police, myself included. Tim Scott gave a moving speech on the Senate floor about his experiences with police officers. I've had guns drawn on me, been accused of stealing the car I was driving.

And so you ask, how do we end this? It's a nightmare that we have to teach our children, my elders, as early as the seventh or eighth grade, I have grown over six feet, 6'3 tall, and I grew up in a predominantly white community, but my black elders had to teach me lessons that my peers were not being taught.

They told me I could not do things, the other folks were doing for fear of my life. And so we all have to take responsibility for changing a system in which generations of black people are teaching young black boys survival instincts, because of fear of these kinds of interactions.

LEMON: Senator, always a pleasure. Thank you so much. Good luck with the bill.

BOOKER: Thank you. Thank you very much.

LEMON: George Floyd's family finally getting accountability with the Chauvin verdict. But you might not know that if you were watching the Fox propaganda network. One Fox host's incredible verdict meltdown. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:20:00]

LEMON (on camera): George Floyd's brother Philonise tells CNN, Derek Chauvin's conviction is historic. Attorney Ben Crump calls it a victory for equal justice. But that's not what Fox viewers heard from Tucker Carlson. He had a massive meltdown over the verdict, accusing jurors of caving, afraid riots would break out at the acquitted Chauvin. Seriously. Here's CNN's chief media correspondent, Brian Stelter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TUCKER CARLSON, FOX HOST: Please don't hurt us.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Tucker Carlson inviting new outrage with his assumptions about what motivated the jury in Minneapolis.

CARLSON: The jurors spoke for many in this country. Everyone understood perfectly well the consequences of an acquittal in this case.

STELTER: Carlson invoking mobs that quote destroy our cities and claiming politicians intimidated jurors in the Derek Chauvin case. Stoking fear while suggesting the jury was fearing rioting.

CARLSON: I'm kind of worried about the rest of the country which thanks to police inaction, in case you haven't noticed is like boarded up.

(LAUGHTER)

That's more of my concern.

STELTER: But Carlson and then cutting off his guest.

CARLSON: Nope, done.

STELTER: Social media commentator said Carlson was melting down, and even started debates on sports TV.

UNKNOWN: These are the kinds of things that make people shake and make people shiver.

UNKNOWN: It's indefensible.

STELTER: Carlson was leading a right-wing media narrative about riots. With website media saying on Wednesday that Fox News is fixating on post Chauvin verdict violence that never happened. Including by running old footage of last year's fires and looting in Minneapolis. This as a TV producing technique sometimes denounced as riot porn.

UNKNOWN: To be very brutally honest about this.

STELTER: In D.C., GOP lawmaker Marjorie Taylor Greene getting what she wanted, attention, with this lie that D.C. was quote, completely dead Tuesday night. People scared to go out fearing riots. Hundreds of residents corrected her, laughed at her, with the Washington Post saying her imaginary D.C. sounds like a scary place, which was the point.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[23:25:04] LEMON (on camera): Brian Stelter joins me now. Brian, I mean, you just

showed us how Tucker Carlson react to the Chauvin verdict. I mean, it's really a total alternate reality over there, or alternative universe over there. What is going on?

STELTER (on camera): Yes. And fear is the common denominator, whether we are talking about Marjorie Taylor Greene, or Tucker Carlson, or other commentators on Fox. Whether it's GOP lawmakers or Fox stars. Fear is the common theme, fear is the common thread, fear of the changing diversify in America.

LEMON: We have been following a guy called Tucker Carlson for a while, watching him stoke division and spread white supremacy ideas to millions of people for sometime now. Do you think that he is filling a void now that Trump is out of office?

STELTER: I think that's exactly the right way to view this. Donald Trump is mostly offstage, only occasionally appearing in right-wing media. Tucker Carlson is on every single night speaking to an audience of millions. And sharing the kind of radical ideas, of fringe ideas that were not heard on television up until now.

We are seeing a form of radicalization in the GOP, and he's leading the way. You know, Democratic strategists and CNN regular (inaudible) -- have been provocative to The New York Times today that I though was interesting in this regard.

He said, as white power diminishes, white supremacy intensifies. Meaning, the attempt of certain types of white Americans to hold on to power is getting more and more intense in this multi cultural diversifying country. I know Carlson denies any interest in white supremacy. He rejects all those claims against them. But it's interesting to think about his show as a broadcast version of the whitelash.

LEMON: Do you think though people are -- and maybe us, do you think were over thinking this? Do you think this is just a rating grift that he knows Trump is not on the scene? And so therefore, someone has to fill that void? And even whether he has a political -- what, you know, he wants to be in political office or not? If that's his intention? Maybe he is juts -- it's a ratings grift that he sees the -- he's filling the void, and he knows he is going to get people to watch him.

(CROSSTALK)

STELTER: (Inaudible) Carlson 2024, however, his friends say it feels like he's more powerful now today than he would be in (inaudible).

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I don't buy the political aspirations thing. I just think this just about wanting more ratings and more power in television. But you know, I could be wrong. I just think it's a ratings grift. That's it.

STELTER: I see what you're saying. I look at the numbers every day. Carlson has become the number one show on Fox. It used to be Hannity, it used to be others. Carlson is building an audience with these white replacement theory type ideas. It is something that is finding the -- it's like a magnet, and it's bringing in an audience.

LEMON: Yes. Brian Stelter, much appreciated, sir, as always. Thank you very much.

There are raw emotions all across the country after the guilty verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial in several police involved shootings, people of color. Is this a moment to bring the country together?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The conviction of ex-Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin for George Floyd's murder emerging as a complicated moment in American's long history -- America's long history of racial injustice. How as a nation do we move forward from here? And how do we do it together? I'm so happy about this.

Joining me now is Bishop T.D. Jakes, the author of "Don't Drop the Mic: The Power of Your Words Can Change the World." Bishop, it is good to see you. Because of you, of all the chaos that's going on in the world, I feel girded, I feel girded.

T.D. JAKES, BISHOP, AUTHOR: It's a pleasure to be with you tonight, Don. Thank you for having me.

LEMON: You know that is one of your recent sermons. I listen to you. I take my hour walk every morning and you are my inspiration. So thank you for that, bishop.

JAKES: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you.

JAKES: Thank you very much.

LEMON: So, as a faith leader, a man of God, give me your thoughts when you listen to that verdict. Do you think justice was served, bishop?

JAKES: I think that justice was served. More importantly, I think that the whole trial teaches us a very powerful message.

The 12 jurors, six of which were white, four were African-American, and two were biracial, that in spite of the differences and the different backgrounds and histories, that when we are exposed to the same truth and the information in the same way and don't have it diluted and polluted, whether by social media or picking the news that you would most likely hear, that we come up with the same conclusions.

And I think that that is a point of optimism, that it is possible for diverse people to come up with one truth and not the truth that you want to hear. And so I am encouraged by that and I am encouraged by the fact that what was obvious an atrocity and a misappropriation of justice, not to exonerate George Floyd for anything he may have done wrong, but to try him on the sidewalk and execute a fatal sentence against him just because you choose to, is not the way justice works in America.

[23:35:04]

LEMON: You know, it feels like a lot of elements really had to come together to make this verdict possible: the horrifying video, the protests, the fact that so many were home to follow the trial because of the pandemic.

But will it mean -- do you think all of that -- because, you know, you talked about this sort of post truth, post reality world that we're living in. Do you think this is going to mean real change in how Black people are treated by police in the justice system moving forward?

JAKES: Incrementally, we are seeing changes. When you look at certain areas like -- certain cities like Camden and Newark have already begun to introduce different ways of policing and we've seen a drop in crime in the areas where they have re-allocated resources so that when it's a mental health issue, you don't have a person out there with a gun.

The old adage says that when the only tool a carpenter has is a hammer, everything he sees is a nail. When you send people out with guns, all they see is a criminal. But we have a lot of people who have emotional, mental problems, substance abuse problems, things like that. The solution is not always a gun.

Growing up in West Virginia, I have seen people resist the police, drunk in bars and clubs and everywhere else, and they didn't choke them to death on the sidewalk. So there are alternative ways to responding to inappropriate behavior without choking the life out of people.

And I think that the whole world thought it was obnoxious and they responded. It's a shame it took the whole world to get what other people get without having to protest all over the world. But it is a start. And I'm hopeful that we can have a more perfect union as we go along the way.

And I think it's also notable that there were many police who testified against Chauvin. And so the notion that if you are against bad police, you are against good police, is eradicated by the police themselves, who saw no favor in allowing this to go un-judged.

So the police, Black and white, all came together in concert, fired him from his job, renounced his behavior as not appropriate, and they all stood in agreement.

And so those outliers who are still in disagreement do it against the advice of the police and against the advice of the judicial system with all its flaws and against the will of America and countries everywhere, who saw it as outrageous. The final thing I want to say that I think is very important, we cannot continue to be the police of the world and talk about inhumane treatment of their citizens if we allow inhumane treatment of our own citizens. The integrity of our message is polluted by the behavior of our own criminal justice system.

LEMON: Mm-hmm. Listen, just a moment ago, you mentioned Newark. I think I just interviewed Ras Baraka. We have a lot to learn from what Ras Baraka has done with the police department in Newark, New Jersey and the changes that he has put into place. You are right about that.

You mentioned the police department here, but I also -- the police officers who testified against Derek Chauvin. Can we talk about what I call the angels out there, the people who played this remarkable role from the community, people from the community, witnesses to George Floyd's murder, come together, tell the truth about what they saw?

The prosecutor, Jerry Blackwell, called them a bouquet of humanity. What did you think of them and the power of their words, their witness, their testimony?

JAKES: I think it's a powerful message and it is the catalyst to which I wrote this book. Don't drop the mic suggests that it is all of our responsibilities to continue the legacy of John Lewis and others to fight the good fight of justice, and not only it relate to justice but to move into a position of leadership.

You're never too young. You're never too unknown. Some of the biggest changes in the world have come from people who weren't famous at all, but decided to take the mic and take the responsibility and take charge.

Just a moment ago, we were talking about how easy it would have been for the young lady to cut her camera off and give way to the pressure of the police that were chiding her for filming. But she held on to it. She didn't drop it. She persisted in it. If it had not been for her efforts and the efforts of others who called the police on the police and so forth and so on, we would not have reached the point that we reached now.

[23:40:05]

JAKES: Everybody doesn't have the luxury of having that surrounding, this kind of coverage, that kind of photography to aid them in getting justice.

And so, therefore, for every George Floyd that finally is acknowledged with some level of justice, real justice would be for him to still be alive, there's a thousand more that are slipping off of our radar that never get the attention, the footage or the press that is necessary to generate the kind of inspection that forces us to live up to our highest ideals as a just and civil society.

LEMON: Well, you mentioned -- I was going to mention your book, but you mentioned it. Your book is "Don't Drop the Mic." "Don't Drop the Mic" by T.D. Jakes. Go out and buy it. This is the man that is in -- well, when I'm making decisions about life, you're always in my head. But you're in my head every single morning. My inspiration after my hot cup of water. I head out and listen to T.D. Jakes. It's so weird to have you on this show --

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: -- and have that relationship with you. Bishop, it's always a pleasure. God bless you. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

JAKES: Thank you. God bless you. Keep on doing what you're doing.

LEMON: Thank you. Bishop T.D. Jakes, everyone. "Don't Drop the Mic."

So much of the push to get justice for George Floyd coming down to the critical cell phone video shot by that teenage girl. We're going to see it. We're going to talk about that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON (on camera): When a teenager named Darnella Frazier hit "record" on her cellphone camera nearly a year ago last May as George Floyd was gasping for breath outside Cup Foods in Minneapolis, little did she know the impact or actions and the video would ultimately have.

Randi Kaye has more. First, a warning, though. Some of the video is graphic and maybe difficult to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

DARNELLA FRAZIER, RECORDED FLOYD MURDER ON CELLPHONE (voice-over): I heard George Floyd saying, I can't breathe, please get off of me, I can't breathe. He cried for his mom. He was in pain.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That's the voice of Darnella Frazier, testifying in the murder trial of former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin. The cellphone video she took at the scene and then posted online was seen by millions around the globe. The world needed to see what I was seeing, she told the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis at the time.

Darnella kept recording for 10 minutes. Derek Chauvin with his knee to George Floyd's neck, Darnella kept recording. George Floyd pleading for help and taking his final breath, Darnella kept recording, remarkable composure for a high school student who was just 17.

Yet, there she stood on the corner of 38th street in Chicago Avenue south in her blue pants, hoodie, and flip-flops. She hit "record" because, as she told the Star Tribune, stuff like this happens in silence too many times. At the trial, Darnella would not be silenced as she and her video became star witnesses.

UNKNOWN: Did you observe Mr. Floyd do anything that you felt was threatening to any of the police officers?

FRAZIER (voice-over): No.

KAYE (voice-over): Unlike the officer she had videotaped, this teenager knew the difference between right and wrong.

FRAZIER (voice-over): It wasn't right.

KAYE (voice-over): Her video changed the narrative and torpedoed the Minneapolis Police Department's initial and misleading statement about George Floyd's death being the result of a medical incident during police interaction.

GEORGE FLOYD, ARRESTED AND KILLED WHILE IN POLICE CUSTODY: Please. Please, I can't breathe!

KAYE (voice-over): After Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder, Darnella took to Facebook overcome with emotion. I just cried so hard, she wrote, adding, George Floyd we did it, justice has been served.

Her bravery inspired Pen America, a non-profit focused on freedom of expression, to give her an award for her courage. Anita Hill, who took on then Supreme Court justice nominee Clarence Thomas, praised her.

ANITA HILL, LAWYER, PROFESSOR: Your quick thinking and bravery under immense pressure has made the world safer and more just.

FRAZIER: I never would imagine out of my whole 17 years of living that this would be me.

KAYE (voice-over): The NAACP in North Carolina where George Floyd was born released a statement, saying, Darnella Frazier's video will go down in history, comparing it to a film which capture the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Despite all the attention and praise for Darnella Frazier, hitting the "record" button wasn't just for George Floyd. In him, she saw those she loved.

FRAZIER (voice-over): I have a Black father. I have a Black brother. I have Black friends. And I look at that and I look at how that could have been one of them.

KAYE (voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, Palm Beach County, Florida.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON (on camera): Randi, thank you so much.

A huge milestone in the fight against COVID. President Joe Biden saying the number of vaccines in arms is now double his initial promise.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON (on camera): Before we leave you tonight, I want to take a moment to give you some good news. There hasn't been a whole lot of that lately, but this is really good. America is hitting a huge milestone in the battle against COVID-19. President Biden touting 200 million doses of vaccine in arms since he took office.

[23:54:53]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: When tomorrow's vaccine -- vaccination numbers come out, it will show that, today, we did it. Today, we hit 200 million shots in the 92nd day in office. Two hundred million shots in 100 days -- in under 100 days, actually.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON (on camera): So, that's double the number the president initially promised would be administered in the first 100 days, incredibly in just a couple of weeks. Vaccine supply may outstrip demand in this country.

The president is saying that we're on track to celebrate the fourth of July in a way that's at least closer to normal as long as we keep masking up and staying vigilant.

Thanks, everybody, for watching. Our coverage continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening. We begin tonight with the picture that to many will look like justice.