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O.J. Simpson a Suspected in Las Vegas Robbery; Jena-6 Conviction Overturned; Warren Jeffs Trial Continues; FBI Wants Whitey Bulger's Capture

Aired September 15, 2007 - 10:00   ET

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

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, from the CNN Center this is Saturday, September 15th, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. It is 10 a.m. here in Atlanta; 7 a.m. in Las Vegas, we'll get to that in just a moment. So in the meantime, good morning everybody, I'm Betty Nguyen.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Why'd you mention Vegas? Is anything going on in Vegas?

NGUYEN: You're going to be talking about Vegas, right now, in fact, T.J.

HOLMES: Hello there folks, I'm T.J. Holmes and, yes, what happens in Vegas is now all over the world. Right now, police are sorting out the facts to see if O.J. Simpson is really a suspect.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This population of amputees is not satisfied with some crutches and a wheelchair and "have a nice day." It's not the right answer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You go on this thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Soldiers still in the fight of their lives. A brand new facility will help and we have that story just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's a (inaudible).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where does wind come from?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Alright, all you dads out there, just how do you answer some of those seemingly simple but still really, really tough questions? One man's quest is coming up this hour.

NGUYEN: But first, O.J. Simpson is back in the legal spotlight today. Police in Las Vegas looking into his possible involvement in an alleged armed robbery there; sports memorabilia - the suspected loot, and CNN's Ted Rowlands talked with both O.J. Simpson and one of the alleged victims. He joins us now live from Las Vegas. First up, what did O.J. tell you on the phone?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Betty, two different stories from the two different parties. O.J. basically says that he got wind that some of his personal items were being sold, so he setup a "sting" operation, if you will, at the Palace Station Hotel and Casino here in Las Vegas.

He said that he found out that things like photographs of him as a child, family photographs, he even said that some of his ex-wife's, Nicole's, photographs were being sold at auction or sold to a private buyer. So he got one of his friends to pretend to be a buyer. They went into the hotel room, he said he walked in.

He noticed that the people that were selling the items were people that he knew from 15 years back. He says that he yelled at them, he got his stuff that he says it belonged to him and he left. He says there were no guns involved, he said there was no altercation involved. It was just simply a matter of him getting his stuff back.

You talk to the other side, the alleged victims in this case and they tell a much different story.

Here's part of what they said happened when O.J. came into the room.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRUCE FROMONG, SPORTS MEMORABILIA DEALER: It was just like a home invasion, they came in quick, they came in fast, and people moved into where they should be. I mean...

ROWLANDS: And O.J. was there.

FROMONG: And O.J. And the last person coming in was O.J. yelling. And he stopped for a second when he saw me, I mean; he literally stopped for a second. And, you could see it in his face, you know, this wasn't what O.J. was expecting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: Now what he's referring to, Bruce Fromong, is that he believes that O.J. didn't think that his friends were the ones who were actually selling the items, but he said he went through with it anyway, he claims that O.J.'s friends, two of them, had guns out, were pointing the guns at the memorabilia sellers, forcing them to gather the stuff, to gather, he said then O.J. and his friends grabbed all the stuff and walked out.

Now what are police doing? They're looking at surveillance tapes, they're talking to everybody involved, they're trying to identify those other people that were allegedly with O.J. Simpson. They have talked to O.J. Simpson on two separate occasions. First off, they said he was very cooperative. The second meeting, they said they did speak to him for a short period of time, but then it got to the point where O.J. needed a lawyer, so they're waiting to talk to him again with his lawyer and they're trying to get to the bottom of this to see if there will be any charges filed. At this point, though, O.J. Simpson is being characterized as a potential suspect in a potential armed robbery -- Betty?

NGUYEN: Well Ted, let me ask you this. In speaking with O.J. Simpson, did he ever say why maybe he didn't approach the authorities or a lawyer or maybe even a judge, as to getting these items back before he went into that room to take them himself?

ROWLANDS: That's a good question. You know, the bottom line here of this whole thing is underhanded. It seems seedy, you got people in the hotel room selling potentially stolen merchandise, O.J. claiming it was stolen merchandise. These guys even said, "Yeah, some of that stuff at one time was O.J.'s., I bought it sort of on the black market," if you will, there's a lot of seedy things they've got to work out here.

But the bottom line is, if you want to get something that you think is yours, you can't use a handgun to go get it and that's what O.J. Simpson is facing, if indeed, there were guns involved. That's the key here. He claims absolutely there were no guns; it's up to the police to figure it out.

NGUYEN: Yeah, there's still a lot of questions, like you said, a lot of deals that apparently went down that just don't seem right, so, hopefully the authorities will sort it out and we'll have more answers. Ted Rowlands, thank you so much.

HOLMES: And, this incident coming in the same week as O.J. Simpson's book, "If I Did It," went on sale. The Goldman family, however, gained rights to release that book and right now, that book is in fact number one on amazon.com's best seller list.

Last night on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE," Nicole Brown's sister, Denise Brown, talked about the new accusations against O.J. Simpson.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENISE BROWN, NICOLE BROWN SIMPSON'S SISTER: If there was a gun involved, or something like that, wouldn't it be ironic that he can get away with murdering two people but yet he might be put into jail for burglary because there was a gun involved. I mean, crazier things have happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And, coming up a little later in this hour, we'll ask the experts about what may be next for O.J. Simpson in this case. Attorneys Avery Friedman and Richard Herman, join us at 10:30 eastern for our "Legal Roundtable."

Also happening this morning, reaction from Jena, Louisiana after a major reversal in a case that has split a community along racial lines; the "Jena-6," black teenagers in Louisiana, charged with beating a white student last December. Now, the conviction of one of those young men has been tossed out.

Here now, a look back at how we got to this point.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: The chain of events began under this tree at Jena High School, like the town itself, the school is mostly white. The unwritten rule was that the tree was a meeting place for white students only. But last year, several black students sat under the tree. The next day, three nooses hung from the branches. To the black community, the message was clear.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was very offended, because that's a racial slur against us.

HOLMES: But some white residents said it was no big deal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think a couple boys made a mistake. I think it's all being blown out of proportion.

HOLMES: From there, tension between white and black students escalated. Then in December, a white student, Justin Barker was knocked unconscious and kicked as he lay on the ground. Some said Barker provoked the fight but his parents told us Justin didn't do anything and they believe he could have been killed.

KELLI BARKER, MOTHER OF JUSTIN BARKER: Several lacerations in both sides, both ears were really damaged, and both eyes, his right eye was the worst. It had blood clots in it.

HOLMES: This is the picture taken by police at the hospital. Justin was released the same day and attended a school ceremony later that night. A few days later, six black classmates were charged with attempted murder, Carwyn Jones, Bryant Purvis, Robert Bailey Jr., and Theodore Shaw, are all faced the prospect of life in prison. A fifth teenager, whose name hasn't been released, was also charged with attempted murder as a juvenile. Charges against Jones and Shaw were later reduced to aggravated second-degree battery and conspiracy to commit battery which could mean 20 years in prison.

In June, Mychal Bell, the first to go on trial, was found guilty of the same charges. He was supposed to be sentenced on September 20th. It had taken an all-white jury three hours to reach the verdict. Now, however, a Louisiana appeals court has ruled that he should have been tried as a juvenile and his adult convictions have been thrown out.

BOB NOEL, MYCHAL BELL'S ATTORNEY: We're happy right now, but tomorrow is another day. We're prepared for any contingency that may arise in this case. The first step was to get the conviction reversed. Now we have other hurdles that we have to go through in this particular case.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: District Attorney Reed Walters now has the option of filing the same charges against Bell in juvenile court. In the meantime, Bell remains locked up in jail where he has been since the attack at the school last December.

NGUYEN: And our Sean Callebs is in Jena, Louisiana, and joins us by phone. Sean, you met with Mychal's mother and attorney last night. What's the reaction to this ruling?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the attorney is thrilled. They said clearly, this is the first step that needed to be done in their effort to free this young man who was 16 when he was sentenced as an adult. Mychal Bell's mother, Melissa, was a lot more subdued. It's been a long difficult time for her, in talking with her.

She met yesterday with her son, who also was apparently very stoic in hearing this information. The way the Bells look at it, they're going to be a lot more excited once the doors to the jail swing open and he is allowed to leave.

What we heard from the attorney last night is Mychal Bell could easily spend at least the next two weeks in jail and they fully expected the district attorney will re-file charges. There's also the possibility the D.A. could try and bump up the charges and pursue charges against Mychal Bell as an adult.

NGUYEN: So they don't see the D.A. backing down at all in this case. This case pretty much is still going to go forward just in juvenile court.

CALLEBS: Exactly. It doesn't have to go forward in juvenile court but that is where everybody is looking right now. The D.A. is certainly digging his heels in and the D.A. also points out -- he's basically characterized Mychal Bell as someone who wasn't a choir boy. He had four convictions already as a juvenile and that was one of the reasons apparently the D.A. decided to pursue charges against Mychal Bell and four others now called the Jena-6 as adults.

NGUYEN: Alright, in light of the fact that the charges were thrown out, a civil rights protest was planned for next Thursday. Is that still expected to happen?

CALLEBS: Yes, it is. We talked with Al Sharpton's office yesterday, also Jesse Jackson by phone and Martin Luther King III, apparently, is going to be here as well. They're expecting a huge turnout, 30,000 people descending on the town of Jena. Now let's put this in perspective, Jena is a very small town. Four stoplights, a Wal-Mart, a McDonald's, about 2900 people.

If they get 30,000 people there, the sheriff has already taken steps to try and declare the area an emergency zone so people could bring in more law enforcement officers. Everyone certainly expects this demonstration will be peaceful but the sheriff wants to make sure there's enough law enforcement personnel on the ground to deal with what could be just a huge, huge crowd in this small town. NGUYEN: Yeah, we will be watching, definitely. Sean Callebs joining us live on the phone from Jena, Louisiana this morning. Thank you for that, Sean.

HOLMES: Well, new this morning in England, Madeleine McCann's family stepping up efforts to find the missing 4-year-old. About two hours ago, Madeleine's uncle announced the family will use some of the funds from public donations to launch a new ad campaign. It will consist of billboards and other media aimed at keeping the search a priority.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN MCCANN, MADELEINE'S UNCLE: I would just like to remind people again of the fund. It is to leave no stone unturned in the search for Madeleine. Okay? We want to refocus on that main objective. To that end, I've made a proposal to the other directors of the fund and I've had agreement in principle that we are going to announce we will finance a broad range of advertisements to remind everyone that Madeleine is still missing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Coming up at the half hour, we'll have a live report from the McCann's home down in Rothley, England

NGUYEN: A key witness in the Warren Jeffs trial, that being a former child-bride who spoke of feeling dirty and used after sex with her husband. Sect leader Jeffs is charged with rape as an accomplice and coercing the girl into marriage. Now, defense attorneys contend Jeffs never commanded his followers to submit to sex, but the now 21- year-old woman testified Jeffs directed the teenage couple, to quote, "go forth and replenish the earth."

HOLMES: A major automaker and the United Auto Workers Union are in crucial contract negotiations right now and the talks resume today between the union and General Motors. Workers were poised for a possible strike but the two sides agreed to keep talking after midnight when the UAW contract was set to expire. This is also seen as crucial to the U.S. Auto Industry. GM, Ford and Chrysler lost $15 billion last year; the central issue in the negotiations is the soaring cost of health care.

NGUYEN: Honda says it is recalling more than 180,000 Civics from the 2006 to 2007 model year. Now, the automaker says it needs to fix a wheel bearing seal that could leak and lead to a wheel falling off.

And we want to show you this, fighting another wildfire out west. Campers in a national forest forced to evacuate. The latest on that is just ahead.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Where is this thing headed? How long is it going to last? I'm going to let you know coming up in a moments, plus we'll have your complete weekend forecast. Stay tuned. HOLMES: Alright, thank you, Reynolds. We'll see you here shortly. Also, He is one of the FBI's ten most wanted. Not that guy, that guy. The FBI wants to know "Where's Whitey?" You can cash in on a cool million if you can help answer that question. James "Whitey" Bulger, exactly where is he? That story is coming up next in the 'NEWSROOM."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Check it out. Parts of southeast Texas are cleaning up today from damage left by Hurricane Humberto, the hurricane hit High Island, Texas, with 85 miles an hour winds on Thursday. When it did, it was bad. It destroyed several homes and knocked out power to more than 100,000 home and businesses in Texas, as well as, Southwest Louisiana. Power companies say some customers across the region might not get electricity back until early next week. Now, remnants of Humberto caused damage in Central Alabama and dumped rain as far north as the Carolinas.

HOLMES: We turn now to Mr. Reynolds Wolf standing by in the hurricane headquarters. What's home girl's name? Ingrid?

WOLF: Ingrid. What a name, what a name, going from Humberto to Ingrid. Humberto is a silent H. So you didn't get your H's worth when it comes to the alphabet.

NGUYEN: That's true. Maybe we should revisit that next year.

WOLF: Maybe it will be more pronounced.

Here's what we have with Ingrid. Continues to spin, not a well defined storm at all and is expected to weaken over the next couple of hours. By tomorrow morning, the storm should be a depression. As it stands now it is a tropical storm and barely so with winds at 40 miles an hour, some gusts have been stronger.

The storm is expected to move to the northwest and become weaker over the next couple of days. No threat to land at this point, certainly some good news there. We have had some scattered showers this morning, most of those limited to the east coast, in fact off the Outer Banks up towards New York and Long island will be seeing the rainfall in Boston. Farther back towards Southbridge you're seeing a little bit of a precipitation, nothing too heavy at this point, but certainly going to keep your morning damp to say the least.

Meanwhile, in parts of the Great Lakes, dealing with cool temperatures this morning, Marquette, you're waking up with 41 degrees, Detroit, 50; 48 in Flint; 51 in Grand Rapids, and Chicago, 48 degrees. That is a look at your forecast across the nation.

We're going to have more coming up throughout the day. Let's send it back to you at the news desk.

NGUYEN: We'll be watching. Thank you.

HOLMES: Thanks, Reynolds. Well, a wildfire has been burning out of control this morning in California, San Bernardino national forest. This fire already has burned 200 acres and forced the evacuation of several camp grounds. More than 200 firefighters are using water drops from helicopters to help them battle this fire. Officials say it is being fanned by nearly 30 mile per hour winds. Meantime, another fire that's burned more than 2,000 acres east of San Diego is now about 50% contained.

NGUYEN: Well the FBI may have a tip in tracking a gangster on its ten most wanted list. But it is asking for the public's help.

CNN's Justice Correspondent, Kelli Arena, explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Where is Whitey? It's a game the FBI is sick of playing. The latest possible sighting of South Boston's most notorious gangster and his mol, of all places, Sicily, birthplace of the Mafia. James "Whitey" Bulger is the alleged former boss of the Winter Hill Mob and he's linked to 21 murders.

WARREN BAMFORD, FBI, BOSTON: What we want is for the public to take a look at the video and the photo and help us identify these people.

ARENA: The FBI says the video was shot back in April. Facial recognition tests were inconclusive. So agents want to talk to anyone who may have seen or spoken with the couple.

BAMFORD: We have some people who have said this absolutely is Bulger, and others who have said. "No, we're really not sure, we don't think so."

ARENA: Is it the same man? Well, here's his picture from the FBI's most wanted list, right under Osama Bin Laden. If it is Bulger, chances are he's already long gone. Officials say when he blew town, back in 1995, Bulger, who is now 78, had stashed away a bundle of cash in safe deposit boxes around the world. Since then, the FBI believes that he and his girlfriend, Katherine Greek, have been traveling around the U.S. and Europe. The Washington Post called them "Bonnie and Clyde on Geritol."

BAMFORD: This is a career criminal, he's been a very violent offender throughout his life. And so, I would say he poses a significant danger regardless of age.

ARENA: Surprise for the winner of "Where's Whitey" is a cool million dollars. That's the bounty on his snowy white head.

Kelli Arena, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Well, The missing Madeleine case, this morning, a new effort by the little girl's family to refocus on that search we've a live report coming up. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN SMEATON, CNN HERO: It really does bewilder me why everybody thinks I've done such a big thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And, he did do such a big thing there, Betty. A humble hero, he springs into action during a terror attack. His story in his own accented words, that's next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: In late June, terrorists rammed a car into a building in Scotland, that vehicle then burst into flames.

NGUYEN: But what happened next turned a baggage handler into a CNN hero. Here's his story in his words.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN SMEATON, GLASGOW HERO: Well, I seen a 4 by 4. Well it crashed into the side of the door in the terminal building. And, I'm thinking to myself, well that's a bad accident.

HOLMES: We have breaking news. A car on fire has been driven into the Glasgow airport in Scotland.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is being treated as a terrorist incident. And all I could think of was going to help.

SMEATON: It was just, ah, that couldn't be. It was unfathomable. I was in this area here. And I seen a gentleman coming from the passenger side of the vehicle. And the police officer came from across the road. And the guy just started punching the policeman. And all I could think of doing was going to help. I ran up and I try to kick the guy. And a man, Michael, he did the exact same thing as me.

MICHAEL: I couldn't just stand there so I just went and punched and kicked him. I ended up breaking my leg in the rumble.

SMEATON: He was lying on the ground. I was really worried about an explosion from the vehicle. And I thought we need to get Michael and myself away from the situation.

MICHAEL: I could see the flames in the car and as I'm sitting here, the driver of the car he throws out petrol. And that's when John Smeaton starts pulling me back. John Smeaton saved my life.

SMEATON: This is me here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Isn't that?

SMEATON: My life has changed from one extreme to another. I enjoy a quiet, mundane, happy life. This my uniform, this is my T- shirt, my trousers. I am a supervisor in the baggage sortation area. When you check your bag in, I'm on the other end of the conveyor belt.

You know, It really does bewilder me why everybody thinks I've done such a big thing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was brave of you.

SMEATON: No, not so, not so.

But at that time, I just thought it was my duty. Democracy's all about compromise and getting on with things. You should be brought up to treat people as they come. And if these people think they're going to keep the British people down, then they've got another thing coming.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: John Smeaton is just one example of an everyday hero, people who's acts of courage change lives and to check out other incredible story, all you have to do is visit CNN.com/heroes where you also can nominate a hero of your own.

HOLMES: But you need to remember, you have until September 30th to get those nominations in and the selected winners will be honored during a special live global broadcast on December 6th hosted by Anderson Cooper.

Meanwhile, a media blitz for a missing little girl. Madeleine McCann's family making a new push to find the child, the latest details live, that's straight ahead.

NGUYEN: And, flying the dangerous skies. Crash deaths at air races out in Nevada. That story ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, let's check out some stories happening right now. Conviction tossed, a Louisiana judge has thrown out a second degree battery conviction against Mychal Bell, one of the Jena Six. The African-Americans were initially charged with attempted murder in the school yard beating of a white student.

HOLMES: Also ground patrol is going out in Nevada today to search for Steve Fossett. The aviator has been missing for nearly two weeks now. He was last seen leaving on a short flight.

NGUYEN: GM and the UAW expected to resume talks sometime today. A strike deadline passed after midnight with negotiations still going on and workers still on the job.

HOLMES: Also new this morning -- the family of little Madeleine McCann announcing stepped up efforts to find her. Live now to CNN's Emily Chang in the family's home town of Rothley, England. What are these methods that they are stepping up in the search?

EMILY CHANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, today an announcement coming from Glasgow from John McCann, Gerry McCann's brother that the family is revving up its search to find Madeleine by launching a massive new ad campaign.

The ads will run in newspapers and on billboards to remind everyone that Madeleine is still missing. It's estimated it will cost up to $160,000 and it will be launched in the next two weeks. The money of course is coming from the Find Madeleine Fund which has raised over $2 million since she disappeared.

Now this announcement comes after days of what seems to be growing speculation in the press about how Madeleine disappeared. Today just in "The Daily Express," Madeleine, body thrown in the sea. Again, none of these headlines are independently verified by CNN, but they do remind us of the growing interest in this case, despite the fact that Portuguese police aren't talking. Now Kate and Gerry McCann have said they don't want to comment on that speculation. However John McCann said today that all of this is just rumor and they want the truth. Betty?

NGUYEN: All right, Emily Chang joining us live from England this morning with the latest on the search for Madeleine McCann. Thank you for that.

And I do want to remind you that you can join Anderson Cooper Monday night at 10 Eastern as he brings us the latest on the Madeleine McCann mystery. That's on "A.C. 360."

HOLMES: Three fatal crashes in four days, but the National Championship Air Races, on track to resume in Reno, Nevada today. Two pilots were killed in accidents Tuesday and Thursday. Then two planes collided yesterday, killing one pilot and killing another. Competition was suspended after yesterday's accident. During the races, the planes flying an oval path over the airport runway, some describe it pretty much as a car race in the sky.

NGUYEN: And there she goes. Some people in Rochester, New York, awakened this morning with a big bang. Another building was imploded at the Kodak Complex there. It's the third one this year so far. And the people at Kodak are clearing room because there are plans to implode as many as 13 more buildings this year. Hopefully we'll be able to show you each and every one of them because you know we love implosions on this show. And as soon as they come into us, we'll bring them straight to you.

NGUYEN: All right, O.J. Simpson talking to Las Vegas detectives. They're investigating an alleged armed robbery of sports memorabilia. It happened at the Palace Station Casino Hotel. The alleged victim says O.J. Simpson and at least one armed acquaintance took the items. Simpson who was reached by phone by CNN said, quote, "I just wanted to get my stuff back."

Now it's up to the Las Vegas police to decide what really happened here. Well let's get more on the legal issues here. Joining me now from New York, criminal defense attorney Richard Herman and in Cleveland, attorney Avery Friedman.

I will start with you, Richard. If you were advising O.J. Simpson, is the first thing you would say is shut up? RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: I would say stay out of white Broncos and shut up, O.J. Vigilante justice does not stay in Las Vegas. The metro police department, the Clark County attorney's office, these are real, legitimate law enforcement agencies, not like bumbly Mark Fuhrman and Marcia Clark out in California. If they bring charges against him, he's in big trouble. These are felonies. Armed robbery is a felony, brings a 10-year sentence.

HOLMES: But Avery, do you see the police right now haven't quite determined if a crime was committed. Are they still trying to figure that out?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, LAW PROFESSOR: Well, I think they have figured it out, T.J. What they're being extremely careful so the mistakes we saw back in 1994 and 1995 will never happen. They have evidence right now of a crime. You and Betty love implosions. O.J. -- this is an implosion, man. This is the legal equivalent of eating too many onions. This a guy who is in a world of trouble because after the police said, think about this, T.J.

HOLMES: Yeah.

FRIEDMAN: After the police said well, you went in there to get your stuff, show us the stuff. O.J. goes, I don't know where it is.

HOLMES: Richard, no matter if his stuff or not. If the stuff was stolen. If he can prove it was stolen, still he has a problem. You can't just thug your way up into a hotel room, gun or not, and try to get your stolen stuff back, can you?

HERMAN: You know about that, huh? Let me tell you something, that is irrelevant whether it's stolen. It's irrelevant if it's his stuff. If this guy came in with a group of thugs and guns were brandished in order to get this stuff, he is in big trouble, T.J., these are felonies.

HOLMES: How much more serious is it if there was a gun involved? How much more serious?

HERMAN: That kicks another five years to the charge in most jurisdictions.

HOLMES: OK and Avery, you kind of alluded to this. But the Las Vegas PD, sure, they've heard of O.J. Simpson. Maybe they heard that he had a run-in with the law in the past. I'm sure. So how much of that play into this case? How much are they keeping that in mind?

FRIEDMAN: It's everything, T.J. If I'm the prosecutor in Las Vegas County, I want to make sure everything is tight and clean. And you know what? My first witness, if the judge says Mr. Friedman, call your first witness. It's going to be Ted Rowlands. The admission he made to CNN is so profoundly legally significant, I don't know how he gets out of it, he's talking and he's not talking to a lawyer.

HOLMES: So are you telling me this is done and O.J. has confessed and he's pretty much convicted himself? FRIEDMAN: I think he has.

HERMAN: No, no, he's not convicted himself. There's no guns. They haven't found any guns yet. There's a question of how many people came into the room.

FRIEDMAN: Wait a minute, he's got other crimes. He's got trespass, he's got aiding and abetting. He's got robbery.

HOLMES: Avery, they said he met someone in the lobby who brought him up to the room there. But there's surveillance. Vegas is the most surveilled city in the world.

We'll know how many people came, maybe we'll see guns and that. If we see guns in that, it's over. I think he's in big trouble. If the video surveillance leading into that room shows any of those people having a gun in their hand, I think O.J. is in deep, deep trouble in this case.

HOLMES: All right, like you said, it's the most surveilled city out there. We've always probably been surveilled a bit in Vegas before doing something or the other. Richard Herman, Avery Friedman, always a pleasure, gentlemen, thank you so much. Enjoy the rest of your Saturday.

HERMAN: Have a good day.

FRIEDMAN: Take care, T.J.

NGUYEN: Well still to come on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where does wind come from?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The sky.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wind from what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Upper atmosphere.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The clouds?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Different parts of the world, depending upon the weather.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Winds come from God.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Don't you just love it when kids ask you those questions? Well sometimes dads get asked questions they cannot answer apparently as you heard some of those. We'll hear from a man who's written a book that can help all you dads out.

HOLMES: Also, not every dog can do this. NGUYEN: How did he get up there?

HOLMES: What's the dog's name.

NGUYEN: Cody.

HOLMES: No the dog, the superdog? Underdog.

NGUYEN: I don't see a cape though.

HOLMES: He didn't fly up in the tree, but this a tree climbing pooch. That could be one for the record books. That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

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ERIK TORKELLS, EDITOR, BUDGET TRAVEL: Delay or lost luggage can really put a damper on your trip. So what can you do to ensure that your bag arrives with you. Take digital photos of the bag and its contents. If it bag does get lost, you'll be able to show the airline staff what it looks like.

It's also put a good idea to put a copy of your itinerary and contact info inside the bag. So if it's delayed, they can track you down. Tie a bright ribbon to your bag or place a bumper sticker on it. It's easy to accidentally take someone else's black wheelie bag. Even if you think you know your bag, the person across the way might not be as smart as you.

When it's clear your bag didn't make the flight, file a report with the airline and ask for compensation. Most airlines reimburse up to a certain amount for essentials purchased in the first day or two. So save your receipts. If your suitcase is completely lost, the most an airline is required to pay is $3,000 for domestic flights. However the claims process is cumbersome and getting full reimbursement is unlikely.

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NGUYEN: Now, that's a little unfair, but questions like that one that you just saw about police and donuts are what kids ask every day. And parents, many times, you really don't know the answer. But one dad had the ambition to track down and write those answers so every parent would have them. Wendell Jamieson is the author of "Father Knows Less or Can I Cook My Sister?" We'll get to that in a minute, but he joins us first now from Chicago. Good morning, thanks you for being with us.

WENDELL JAMIESON, AUTHOR: Good morning, thank you for having me.

NGUYEN: This a fabulous book. And it really started when your little boy started asking questions and mind you, some of them quite crazy, like can I cook my sister? So what made you want to put all of this down and find answers to them. JAMIESON: Well the first question that stuck in my head was what would hurt more, getting run over by a car or getting stung by a jellyfish? I wrote it down thinking that in 20 years, he'd get a kick out of me reading his question back. But the more I thought about it, I started wondering what would hurt more, getting run over by a car or getting stuck by a jellyfish? And I went to the head of the division of pain management at New York Hospital, who gave me an hour-long in- depth answer. It's the jellyfish by the way, if you're interested.

NGUYEN: That's surprising, because I would have said getting run over by the far.

JAMIESON: The car too, but the jellyfish in some cases would be nerve pain, which could be even worse. The more questions I got, the more answers I tried to get, and something sort of wonderful happened with all these adults from around the world explaining things to children and talking about their own experiences.

I have a lot of experts, but I also have people who actually lived the answer to the question. For example, Yoko Ono answered why did the Beatles break up?

NGUYEN: And her answer was?

JAMIESON: Because they all grew up, wanted to do their own thing, and they did.

NGUYEN: Well let's go through some of the other questions, because it's not just your son Dean who had questions, but some of his friends as well. Another one coming from Devaughn (ph) I believe, saying how and why do our ears make earwax?

JAMIESON: That's right. I had always thought it was to keep bugs out or something like but it's actually to clear the skin out of your ears. A little disgusting I know, but children are fascinated by disgusting or weird things.

NGUYEN: Oh, they love it when it's disgusting.

JAMIESON: The more disgusting the better.

NGUYEN: And then Edie (ph) had this question. Is a rainbow hot or cold? You know, I never thought of it like that. But you actually went to find an answer to this.

JAMIESON: That's right and we think it would be cool is the best way to describe it.

NGUYEN: All right, so when you look back at Dean's questions, besides some of the ones that we have gone through, what are some of the other ones that stuck out in your mind that you look back on and you just kind of have to chuckle?

JAMIESON: Why do policemen like donuts? I got the police chief from Miami to answer that question. He explained that they're easy to eat in your squad car and you can toss them out when you get a job. What does it feel like to get stabbed? A little dark, I know, but still interesting. If your plane flies over a volcano, what happens? I got the captain of a 747 who flew over a volcano and watched as all of the engines of his plane shut down.

NGUYEN: Really.

JAMIESON: Yes.

NGUYEN: Note to self--don't fly over a volcano.

JAMIESON: Don't fly over a volcano. The more questions I got from him and other children, the more questions I thought that I had when I was growing up. And so I wrote about my childhood also. It's sort of a memoir and a story of Dean and me as we went on the hunt to get answers to his questions.

NGUYEN: Well you know, let's not forget about your daughter, a little 3-year-old as well. Has she started asking you some of these questions that you still don't have answers for?

JAMIESON: Paulina? Yes, she has started asking more and more. She seems not quite as many questions as her brother. She feels to feel that if she doesn't know it already, there's no reason to know it, maybe there's no reason for her to know it. She's very self- assured, but she started asking me at the end of the book, why do deer sleep during the day? I'm still trying to get her an answer for that one. Maybe she'll be more featured in the sequel.

NGUYEN: Yes, dad, you better get on that. Now I'm sure you feel a little bit better prepared for all of these questions now that you've done all this research.

JAMIESON: I have and I've met so many fascinating people from around the world, including a doctor of archaeology from England who answered Dean's question, why can't we just cook our sister? Which was my fault, I guess I talk about how tasty she looks.

NGUYEN: That's just wrong, Wendell.

JAMIESON: I know, but she does look tasty. I can't deny it. Among the 70 known species of mammals that do eat their own species.

NGUYEN: Humans are not among them, right?

JAMIESON: Nor would any of those ever eat their own siblings. Not your own.

NGUYEN: This is true. Wendell Jamieson, you are hilarious, I love the book. Some really good answers in there. We appreciate your time today and make sure he doesn't cook his sister, OK?

JAMIESON: He won't.

NGUYEN: Thank you.

JAMIESON: Thank you.

HOLMES: Maybe he should have answered this question for us.

NGUYEN: Which is?

HOLMES: Why did the chicken cross the road?

NGUYEN: To get to the other side, right?

HOLMES: Oh, is that the answer? I thought there was a Starbucks across the street or something.

NGUYEN: But in this case the question is -- exactly. Why did the dog climb the tree?

HOLMES: Good question.

NGUYEN: Well, a pooch with you an unusual perch is just minutes away.

JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And it just isn't a Saturday morning without adorable animal video, is it guys? You've got to love this stuff. This kind of thing is also working its way into the viewer e-mail, this morning. But newsier stuff too. Coming up, what have you to say about O.J., smart cars and some of the other big issues of the day. That's from the dot.com desk here on CNN.

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HOLMES: Oh, Betty, of course. Many CNN viewers apparently watch and check e-mails at the same time.

NGUYEN: Multitasking.

HOLMES: We appreciate that, because often you don't waste much time firing off your opinions what you've seen up here.

NGUYEN: Hopefully. Well one of Josh Levs' many duties is to sort through your e-mails that you've sent to us. And he joins us now with this morning's west.

LEVS: They are ADD, because they're writing us e-mails while they're watching this show and they're writing us new e-mails about the new story.

HOLMES: Should you call them ADD? That sounds a little insulting.

LEVS: It's a good thing. I'm ADD because I do a lot of stuff. Is that one OK? OK, let me just get to these e-mails. O.J. Simpson, whose latest brush with the law is the hottest topic this morning. A lot of you weighing in on that.

Here's just a sampling of the feedback this morning.

First from Elaine Schweinsberg: "I can't understand why O.J. would go through the trouble of getting his stuff back. It will end up in the hands of the Goldmans, and be for sale."

Next from David Hibbard: "Once again, O.J. has taken something which no longer belongs to him. Why is it that he is not in jail? Were it anyone else, where else would they be? This man should be held accountable for his actions. We are tired of his special treatment by law enforcement because of who they think he is."

And a recurring theme from Liz Grange: "We've OD'd on OJ. Enough is enough, OK?"

Got it, Liz. OD, OJ, OK, moving on. An e-mail now from Leah Davidson, about our report on the tiny smart cars, how T.J. said he could fit at least two into his car.

HOLMES: At least.

LEVS: Maybe three. I've seen that minivan.

"We have had Smartcars in Canada for two years now and they seem to be making a great name for themselves."

So thanks to her.

All right finally, you know this photo of a monkey and a pigeon.

NGUYEN: Yes, the one that we love so much.

LEVS: Everyone keeps talking about this because it's really sweet. Well Jeff Molloy (ph) wrote about this e-mail from China. He wrote: "I agree. We should be concerned about the relationship with the monkey and a bird. We have a chance of avoiding a situation that happened in 1939. How easily we forget."

NGUYEN: What is he talking about?

LEVS: Let's take a look at what we're talking about. We're supposed to be able to show you what he's talking about.

NGUYEN: The power of television.

LEVS: Come on. You're ruining the punch line.

NGUYEN: Are you messing it up back there in the control room?

LEVS: What was supposed to happen here.

NGUYEN: Would you like to draw it for us?

LEVS: The flying monkeys from "The Wizard of Oz." It was his idea that's what happens when you cross a monkey and a bird. That's what you were supposed to see.

HOLMES: It worked well. That worked real well.

LEVS: Thanks for the sarcasm. But to be fair to him, it wasn't his fault. It was his idea. He did send it. It was very clever. NGUYEN: It was very clever.

LEVS: We appreciate your humor.

NGUYEN: And we just messed it all up for you.

LEVS: Your responses and everything. We'll do better next time.

NGUYEN: Well speaking of doing better with animal stories, how about this one? It's a dog with a rare talent. Nevermind chasing a stick. He'll chase the whole tree to the top. The 7-year-old pooch named Cody has no trouble scaling a 40-foot blue spruce.

HOLMES: Cody's owner says the dog climbs trees every single day, rain or shine. He's been trying to get Cody into the Guinness Record Book. No success, but Plan B is to possibly get Cody on the "Letterman Show."

NGUYEN: And we're still trying to figure out if Cody is a she or a he.

HOLMES: I don't know.

NGUYEN: The script said both.

HOLMES: Did it really?

NGUYEN: Investigators are on the phone right now.

Up next though, we do have an uplifting story for you.

HOLMES: Yes. Wounded vets, this is a great story. Wounded vets taking giants steps at a new rehab facility. You've got to see this one. You will love this story. Stick around here with us in the NEWSROOM.

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NGUYEN: O.J. Simpson, back in the news today and maybe back in trouble with the law. CNN's Ted Rowlands is live in Nevada with a report next hour.

HOLMES: Also, a different type of controversy to tell you about here. This video featuring same sex parents was designed to teach diversity but it has divided a community instead. All that and a whole lot more, that's just minutes away.

NGUYEN: But right now, soldier amputees aiming for life beyond the wheelchair.

HOLMES: CNN's Barbara Starr shows us a state of the art rehab facility and three top of the line vets.

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BARBARA STARR, PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This new facility at Walter Reed Army Medical Center is more than just rehabilitation. This is military training. Major David Rozelle lost a leg in Iraq. He has organized the center. He is an unwavering advocate for keeping wounded troops on duty.

MAJ. DAVID ROZELLE, U.S. ARMY AMPUTEE: This population of amputees is not satisfied with some crutches and a wheelchair and have a nice day. It's not the right answer.

STARR: The Army already under fire for the care it has given troops, spent $10 million on this state-of-the-art center, even though all of Walter Reed is scheduled to shut down.

ROZELLE: Do we wait, do we say let's wait four years before with give you a world class facility? The answer is no.

STARR: Specialist Marco Robledo was injured by an IED in May and now his brother Jose helps him into a harness that is marking Marco towards independence.

SPEC. MARCO ROBLEDO, U.S. ARMY AMPUTEE: I was scared to walk by myself. After this, I'm going to leave the wheelchair a little bit and walk on my own.

STARR: Before this center an amputee could walk just for a few steps. Now this harness moves on a circular track in the ceiling. Marco can walk for as long as he wants.

How high do you go on this thing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll go all the way to the top.

STARR: Sergeant First Class Jake Keesler (ph), who has lost both his legs, is now doing what he loves, rock climbing. This is the kind of place, he says, amputees need to move out of that wheelchair.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It gives you confidence in your ability to do things.

STARR: Confidence to face a mountain and the future.

Barbara Starr, CNN, Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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