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CDC H1N1 News Briefing; Swine Flu Fear Spreading; Republicans Attempt to Reshape Image; Cuban-American Restrictions Travel Loosened; Pennsylvania Teens Murder Acquittal
Aired May 02, 2009 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Lots going on this hour. Of course, we're going to talk more about H1N1, the very latest on that and we're waiting for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to actually update us on efforts to combat the outbreak of this virus. It's also been known as swine flu, but now we're all being conditioned to refer to it as H1N1. That briefing starts any minute now and of course, we'll bring that live to you.
The World Health Organization, as well, has confirmed now 615 cases of H1N1 in 15 countries. And of those infected, 17 people have died. Most of the cases are in Mexico.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. MICHAEL RYAN, WHO DIR OF GLOBAL ALERT & RESPONSE: We are seeing disease across all age groups and certainly Mexico is -- is the country which has the most developed epidemic and we certainly see half the case, if you want to put it very simply, about half of the cases are under 21, half of the cases are over 21 and are spread across the different age groups.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: In the United States, at least 141 flu cases are confirmed, the one death in the U.S., a toddler from Mexico.
Pretty extraordinary precautions being taken in Hong Kong after a guest from Mexico gets sick. Tests confirm that he has H1N1, so Chinese authorities have joined the Metro Park Hotel quarantined. That means no one can go in. And the 300 guests and staff inside cannot leave for at least a week. So, it is the big Labor Day holiday weekend in Mexico when the streets are normally packed with people. Well, not this year.
Many are staying home since the government shut down all of the essential services for five days. It is trying to curb the spread of the virus. Mexico's health minister says 443 people have been infected so far, 16 people in that country have died.
So here in the U.S., President Obama is keeping a close eye on the flu outbreak. Today in his weekly address he explained why his administration is taking the threat of the H1N1 virus so seriously.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Over the last week, my administration has taken several precautions to address the challenge posed by the 2009 H1N1 flu virus. Today, I'd like to take a few minutes to explain why. This is a new strain of the flu virus and because we haven't developed immunity to it, it has more potential to cause us harm. Unlike the various strains of animal flu that have emerged in the past, it's a flu that's spreading from human to human. This creates the potential for a pandemic which is why we are acting quickly and aggressively.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And one thing spreading faster than the flu itself is the fear of contracting it and the nation's hospitals and emergency rooms are on the front lines of both battles. CNN's Susan Candiotti takes us to an E.R. in New York City.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): On average, St. Vincent's emergency room sees about 170 people daily. These days, some are worried they might have swine flu. At least 50 cases are confirmed in New York.
(voice-over): There is some fear out there in the community, uh- oh, are we about to get hit with this. Some of your staff must wonder that, too.
DR. ERIC LEGOME, ST. VINCENT CATHOLIC MEDICAL CTR: They do. I think if you work in the emergency department long enough, you've seen everything, you've heard everything, you've been through everything.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): If any New York City hospitals are familiar with handling emergencies, at St. Vincent's. As the only trauma center in downtown Manhattan, it was closest to the World Trade Center attack, and last December's miracle plane landing in the Hudson River, but a possible widespread deadly swine flu outbreak?
LEGOME: What we worry about is with patients who are coughing. Patients who have anything that we call get into the air usually within six to eight feet, it can get -- it can be transmitted to someone who comes in who is not protected. They're also known as duck bills essentially, and they look like a duck bill.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): And this will prevent anything that I might be emitting?
LEGOME: Right.
CANDIOTTI: From infecting the health caregiver.
LEGOME: Right.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Suspected flu patients are isolated for examination. LEGOME: I'm going to show you the negative pressure room. And essentially it looks like any other room. You won't see a difference. It looks like any other private hospital room. We have oxygen on the wall. We have suction. We have bags and masks.
CANDIOTTI: But in a negative pressure room, the air exits through the ceiling. About 10 people a day rush to St. Vincent's E.R. wondering whether they might have swine flu. The hospital says they're rarely tested, unless they're part of a cluster, or in a high- risk group with severe symptoms. Most are diagnosed with a cold or regular flu. Treatments Tamiflu and Relenza are in stock but rarely prescribed.
LEGOME: More important, from a health standpoint, is you want to conserve it so if it becomes worse, if it gets more severe, it becomes a more wider outbreak it's available.
CANDIOTTI: In the so-called fast-track room, nurses try to soothe rattled nerves.
ERIKA PERSILY, EMERGENCY ROOM NURSE: I'm hearing a lot of nervousness. I'm hearing people come in, who have been crying, upset about what's going on.
CANDIOTTI: So far, no swine flu cases here.
LEGOME: I have a sense that we're going to see worse than we have now. I don't think the worst will happen. And I hope that stays true.
Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And as promised, I want to take you straight to the Centers for Disease Control. That's Anne Schuchet, right now, speaking for the latest update.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
ANNE SCHUCHET, CDC: I wanted to keep my remarks fairly short and just focus on questions. I think, as you know, we've been thanking a lot of people over the days behind us. We've been thanking the media for your help in getting the story out. Thanking the incredible public health workers who are at the front line helping respond to this challenge. Thanking the CDC workforce for the night and days that they're putting.
So, today we would like, on behalf of the CDC workforce to thank the families of the CDC workforce who we haven't gotten to see very much, but who are really keeping their spirits up while we are here. So with that, I'd like to answer questions that you have. OK. We'll start over here? Yeah.
CICI CONNELLY, WASHINGTON POST: Hi. Cici Connolly from the "Washington Post." I know that you've spoken in recent days about how there will be local decisions with respect to things like school closings, but along those same lines, do you have guidance for, say, businesses, government offices that may have cases and is there any reason -- I notice schools are now talking about closing for 14 days. Is there thinking that children carry the virus longer? That seems like a long period of time.
SCHUCHET: Yeah. Thank you. The guidance -- we have been updating our guidance regularly and in addition to guidance for schools we're trying to make sure there's information for other circumstances. So, the situation with the business community or other workplaces is one that we're attuned to. We've been actually doing outreach calls to the business sector. I think we had several hundred business organizations on a call the other day, reaching out to them about the questions their members had and how we could better reach their constituencies.
We think the basics apply to those circumstances, keeping -- staying home when you're ill with respiratory symptoms, and I think even the president called for permissive leave policies to help us manage this particular concern.
The school guidance that was updated to suggest a 14-day period, that was reflecting information about the duration that a child might be or continue to be infectious. The shedding of influenza viruses is longer in young children than it is in adults. Now, the information for high school-aged children may not be that complete, but with an abundance of caution, the idea was 14 days might be more prudent.
I want to say that all of our guidance, particularly that for schools, school dismissals, we really want to respect the local jurisdictions, the local authorities who understand the circumstances on the ground and the challenges of these interventions.
Our goal is for interventions to be evidence based and to be no more harmful than the virus. We want to make sure that we are having a net benefit and so issues such as the school dismissals are ones that we're actively reevaluating as we get more information about this particular influenza virus.
OK. Yeah -- Mike.
MIKE STOBBE, ASSOCIATED PRESS: Thanks, good morning, Doctor. Mike Stobbe from the A.P. Two questions. Two days ago when Dr. Besser was up there he said there might be more information on a couple of topics and one of them was E.R. visits. Did you end up getting more information on it? I have a follow-up, too.
SCHUCHET: Sure, yeah, we have been looking at our, you know, we have some systems and the state and locals have some systems and we do see an increase in baseline in visits to some emergency rooms for influenza-like illness. That's through our Biosense surveillance system. So we do see some of that.
It's difficult to interpret whether that is illness or the so- called "worried well" and that's something we're trying to look into a little bit more. With the help of the media, a lot of people know this is going on and are wondering is that cold or cough something I need to take seriously? So, we have seen a few, not every emergency room that we're tracking, but we have seen in a number of sites an increase over the baseline for this year in influenza-like visits.
STOBBE: Can you quantify that?
SCHUCHET: No. It's more that, you know, I would say many of our biosense sites, but not the majority of them, are seeing an increase, but I don't have numbers. I'm just looking at the map on my gestalt, it's many individual sites.
STOBBE: My follow-up was about the new case count, today.
SCHUCHET: Right.
STOBBE: Do you have -- what are the two new states and do you have hospitalization numbers and also, do you have any more information on how many of the cases had had been to Mexico?
SCHUCHET: The two new states, I'm going to have to refer you to the Web site, it is on that or maybe by the end of this weekend, you can check on that. The Mexico connection, for cases that we have good information on which is a moving target, it's about a third of them.
The majority of cases -- the important point is the majority of cases don't have direct contact with Mexico. They didn't travel to Mexico. It is much more likely that people are getting this particular infection now from somebody who has -- from somebody within their own communities. You know, we do thank there is sustained transmission here in the U.S., in several areas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can we go to the phone?
SCHUCHET: Oh yeah, I'm sorry. Can we go to the phone for the next question?
As a reminder on the phone, star one to ask a question. Our first question comes from Jeffrey Weiss, the "Dallas Morning News." your line is open.
JEFFREY WEISS, DALLAS MORNING NEWS: Yeah, here in north Texas we've had some fairly different responses from the local health departments. In Dallas County, some events that were planned for today are going on, in Tarrant County and Ft. Worth, right just to our west, at the advice of the local health authority, some events have been closed down. What can you say...
WHITFIELD: All right. You're listening to a press conference underway in Atlanta at the CDC, the Centers for Disease Control. That's Dr. Ann Schuchet there as they listen to that audio. What she said at the beginning of the press conference is something we want to air for you because you were unable to hear it live as it happened. But, let's take a listen now to Dr. Anne Schuchet, earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SCHUCHET: Well, reports from Mexico appear to be encouraging and some are cautiously optimistic. We can't afford to let down our vigilance. We have information that this novel virus continues to spread with increasing cases and increased states affected and we are asking as President Obama said this morning, actively and aggressively. Our highest priority is the health and safety of the American population and we really want to make sure that we're staying ahead of things.
Today's case counts, 160 confirmed U.S. cases, they occur in 21 states. The individual state case counts are on our Web site every day at 11:00 in the morning you can check for the details, there. Median age of cases remains fairly young at 17 years of age with a range of one to 81. The majority of the cases are younger than 20. The most recent known onset is April 28. So cases are continuing and the counts continue to go up.
As we've all been seeing, we're focusing a lot less on the individual numbers than on the patterns and what we see is continued illness in contacts of people who have been ill, some clusters in schools that you've heard about. We continue to ask the question about how severe this particular strain of H1N1 influenza virus is and will evolve to be here in the U.S. Those are important questions that we continue to look at.
The response continues with the focus on making sure people who are sick stay home, that people don't fly or use public transit when they are ill, but that it's totally fine to be out and about when you aren't ill with respiratory symptoms. We're thrilled people are washing their hands more and we don't want them to lose their vigilance about that because that continues to be important.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Dr. Anne Schuchet there earlier updating us on what's taking place and you can look, of course, still live there on CNN.com/live as the press conference continues.
She's mentioning that there are 160 confirmed cases in the U.S. now, now affecting 21 states. And if you go to CDC.gov you will see the newest posting of all of those states from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York -- which has the most cases thus far -- Ohio, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia. So again, 21 states now affected with 160 confirmed cases in the U.S. involving H1N1.
And of course, you may want to learn more about the swine flu or the H1N1's global impact and learn how to protect yourself from the virus. Check out CNNhealth.com and be sure to tune in today, right here at CNN at 4:00 Eastern Time, as we answer your questions about precautions, what new measures are being taken, what school districts are preparing for, perhaps for the following week and share your comments on the H1N1 outbreak. We'll have experts on hand to answer your questions directly. E-mail us at weekends@CNN.com, also on Facebook, Fredricka Whitfield, CNN. All right, a makeover for the grand ole party awaits: image, politics and voters.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Republicans are kicking off a campaign to reshape their image. Party members are gathering today in northern Virginia for a series of town hall meetings. Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia says it's an opportunity for office holders, like himself to reconnect with the voters. Joining me is CNN's deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser.
All right, good to see you. All right, why are the Republicans doing this?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well Fred, I think there's a good reason, the Democrats have been very successful in the last couple of months as painting the Republicans as the "party of no." Remember not one Republican in Congress voted for the president's budget, only three voted for the stimulus. And Democrats are saying all of the Republicans are doing is saying no to the president, but not offering any new ideas and they're fighting back against that.
But, take a look at this poll that we did at CNN and the Research Corporation did and you can see the favorable opinions of the Democrats, 51 percent, the Republicans, only 39 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion. So, they've kicked off this, what they call is the "National Council for a New America." And they had their first meeting today,
You were just talking about it, it was across the river from here in Arlington, Virginia, they were in an Italian restaurant. Jed Bush on the left, the former governor of Florida, Eric Cantor, as you mentioned, he was moderating today's event, he is the No. 2 House Republican, and Mitt Romney also seated there, right to the right of Cantor. Of course, Mitt Romney ran for president the last time around and may do it again. We'll see.
And Fred, they spoke to the crowd. There was an overflow crowd, maybe around 100 people and they wanted to hear what people were interested in because they want to come up with new ideas and show that they are a party of ideas -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, and obviously absent from that meeting would be former Republican Arleen Specter, senior senator, now a Democrat, but I wonder if that's at the root of what the big arguments might be now among the Republicans or is there something else at issue?
STEINHAUSER: No, it's a really good point, because Arlen Specter was a moderate Republican, there are not many moderate Republicans left in Congress. The Republican party after defeats in the 2000 midterm elections and again they lost the White House and they lost even more seats in Congress this past November. They've got two ways to go, really, concentrate on energizing the base again, the conservatives, or try to reach out to moderate voters, independent voters. And that's the struggle here, which way do they go? The Republican Party is trying to figure that out. These events like today's is one way to figure it out -- Fred.
WHITFIELD: I guess, are they also trying to figure out who are the star Republicans? Who's the up and coming to help reenergize that base.
STEINHAUSER: Exactly, and our John King was in today's event and I know he spoke to Mitt Romney and Eric Cantor, we'll hear a lot more about that tomorrow on the "STATE OF THE UNION."
WHITFIELD: We'll all be watching, of course. Paul Steinhauser, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: All right, and how about this? A possible first step toward better relations with Cuba. The Obama administration loosened restrictions on travel by Cuban-Americans heading back home.
CNN's Jim Acosta went along with some of those who are taking advantage of these loosened new travel rules.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Meet the only Americans who can now legally visit Cuba just about whenever they want. They are Cuban-Americans taking advantage of a new Obama administration policy that allows them to visit relatives in the communist country with almost no restriction.
MERCEDES TORRES, CUBAN-AMERICAN TRAVELER: I have to say thank you to the president, to the United States, because we can go to Cuba to visit our family whatever time that we want.
ACOSTA: Mercedes Torres and other passengers are waiting to hop a U.S. authorized one-hour chartered flight from Miami to Cuba. She's taking bundles of food, clothing, and even toys back to her brother and sister on the island?
(on camera): You bring toys.
TORRES: Yes. They don't know Christmas. They don't a Santa Claus, and we bring Santa to them.
ACOSTA: Here we go.
Charter flights are so popular among Cuban-Americans the planes are often full, and we're flying on a 767. One of the charter officials told us this is a light day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the city of Havana. ACOSTA (voice-over): Most Cuban-Americans, this new-found freedom to see their homeland is part of a White House strategy to get a diplomatic conversation going, first Cuban to Cuban-American, then maybe nation-to-nation.
At Cuba's May Day parade, 50 years after Fidel Castro's rise to power, hundreds of thousands cheered the revolution, but they were not shaking their fists at the man in the White House.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Well, he's doing a good job now, but we'll have to wait and see.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Well, we're going to move forward now.
ACOSTA: Even Castro may be softening just a touch. Take a look at this recent photo of Castro standing with California congresswoman, Laura Richardson. He's wearing two lapel pin, featuring the Cuban and U.S. flags.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And our Jim Acosta joins us live now from Havana.
So, we heard a couple of folks in your piece, Cubans who say all right, jury is still out, we're watching the Obama administration to see if we really indeed like him, but overall are people enthusiastic about the idea of Cuban-Americans coming to their country to deliver goods? To relatives?
ACOSTA: Absolutely, Fredricka. They're not only ecstatic about Cuban-Americans coming to this island, they are very hopeful about the prospect of Americans, non-Cuban-Americans coming to this island. We talked to a number of Cubans over the last couple of days and, you know, they're just waiting for the United States to change its mind when it comes to this policy.
The 47-year embargo on Cuba has really had an effect here as many Cubans will tell you. They really rely on those dollars and that come from Cuban-Americans and they feel that if other Americans were allowed to come down here that perhaps the economic situation might improve here and, you know, from our vantage point everything that we've seen so far, it seems like that kind of assistance is desperately need. Obviously, there are strong feelings on both sides.
In the United States there are Cuban-American exiles who feel that that should not be considered, but what the Obama administration is trying to do is let Cuban-Americans be sort of the first American diplomats, go down here and get the conversation going and if there's sort of a receptive atmosphere down here, the White House may take further steps. They also want to see some gestures from the Castro government. They would like to see more political freedoms down here, so at this point it's really sort of a dance that's going on between these two governments -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, Jim Acosta, thanks so much from Havana, appreciate it.
All right, back now in this country, a Mexican immigrant killed in a brutal brawl with teenagers. A jury in Pennsylvania says it wasn't a hate crime, nor it was murder. What our legal guys have to say about this controversial verdict right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Prosecutors called the killing of a Mexican immigrant, here in the U.S., a hate crime. A jury disagreed. Two teenagers were acquitted yesterday of murder in a Pennsylvania courtroom. Instead, Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak were convicted off simple assault in the beating death, last summer, of Luis Ramirez. A spokesman for the Mexican-American group was upset with the verdict. The defense called the trial "difficult."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDERICK FANELLI, PIEKARSKY'S ATTY: It was a long process. We've been fighting this case for lots of months. It was highly charged, obviously, by all these cameras. The week of trial was very difficult and we're just delighted that it ended the way it did.
GLADYS LIMON, MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE: The acts were egregious in nature and I -- it's just outrageous and very difficult to understand how any juror could have had reasonable doubt, especially as to the aggravated assault charge, the recklessly endangering another person charges. It was just an outrage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: So, prosecutors said the teenagers bated Ramirez into a fight in the rural mining town of Shenandoah. So, let's check in with our legal guys here. Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor.
Good to see you.
AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Hi Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And Richard Herman is New York criminal defense attorney and law professor.
Good to see you, as well.
RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Hi Fred.
WHITFIELD: OK Richard, let me begin with you, because allegedly Piekarsky, one of the defendants, actually gave the fatal kick to the head of Ramirez. So, was this a case that the evidence just simply wasn't there to render a conviction of murder?
HERMAN: The evidence apparently wasn't there to render a conviction of murder, aggravated assault or ethnic intimidation, because they were acquitted on the three major charges here, and whether this gentleman delivered the final blow which resulted in the death and the autopsy said blunt force trauma to the head cause of death -- there was conflicting testimony on that as well, Fred.
So you had a jury of six white males and six white females hearing this racially-charged case in a small town, Shenandoah in the Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. And you know, you got acquittals here, I think we can agree, and Avery will agree with me on this, whether you're in small town United States, or big city United States, alcohol and teens not a good recipe.
FRIEDMAN: Oh, I don't think it's alcohol and teens at all. I think this is -- we got Luis Ramirez, he's dead and he's dead because he's Mexican and I think this is jury nullification. I think you had overwhelming evidence. The chief witness for the prosecution had already pled guilty, testified, guilty in federal courts about civil rights violations. This is very, very troubling. Very troubling.
WHITFIELD: And there's Luis Ramirez right here. So are we talking about an appeal because, you know, if they were found guilty of the actual assault then, clearly, the evidence was there that this young man was beaten by these two defendants, but the injuries then led to his death, so how in the world do you separate the two -- Avery.
FRIEDMAN: Well, and that's what the jury did. I mean, it would be impossible, actually, to separate the two. And frankly, that's a wonderful question, Fredricka, because there is no appeal, unfortunately. The fact is that is the function of the jury. This case is done.
WHITFIELD: OK.
FRIEDMAN: At least on the criminal end.
WHITFIELD: Yes, all right. Let's talk about the U.S. Supreme Court now and how things are about to shift ...
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: ...quite considerably and Avery, I know you're kind of chomping at the bit at this. Both of you commented last week about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had made a comment already saying you know, it's getting lonely on the bench being the only woman.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And also kind of intimating that there's going to be a change. Well, she knew, I guess, she and Justice Souter clearly have pretty good conversations, right, Avery. I mean, are we looking at this administration perhaps feeling the pressure that Justice Ginsburg says it's lonely. Might the administration be leaning toward maybe a woman?
FRIEDMAN: Well, I think if you've got an XY chromosome, you're not heading to the Supreme Court. I think that's exactly right. I think there are some extraordinary judges sitting in both the Federal Courts of Appeals and the Federal District Courts that although the White House denies, there's a short list. The fact is there are a couple of really strong leading contenders, including the newest solicitor general, the former dean of Harvard Law School.
WHITFIELD: Yes, and so Richard, do you believe that there wouldn't be a short list? I mean, I would think that this administration even before being sworn into office was already starting to talk about, all right, here are the big things that can happen in our purview. A Supreme Court Justice seating would be one of them. They probably got the ball rolling a long time ago, wouldn't you think?
HERMAN: Absolutely, Fred. They have a short list. The short list is one person. It's Judge Sonia Sotomayor from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She's going to be appointed by President Obama and you know, Souter, 19 years on the bench, appointed by first President George Bush. You know, you'd think he would be conservative ...
WHITFIELD: Seems young, too.
HERMAN: Young man, he was not conservative, he befuddeled a lot of the Republicans and the conservatives and now, President Obama's going to have his opportunity. Judge Sonia Sotomayor. Take it to the bank.
FRIEDMAN: They're very excited, very excited.
WHITFIELD: OK, I'm going to write that down, mark the calendar so that we're able to say, Richard, remember on this date, May 2nd, you said.
All right, thanks so much, guys. We're going to talk to you again because we've got many other legal cases we want to delve into. And these are -- those are some of the pictures of those whose names are being tossed around as that possible nominee, but Avery and Richard, we'll see you again in a moment.
FRIEDMAN: Right.
WHITFIELD: All right, Chrysler declaring bankruptcy, but does that mean car owners are at a dead end for servicing? The car coach explains in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Thirty-six minutes after the hour. Happening right now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has just confirmed 160 confirmed cases of the 2009 H1N1 flu virus in 21 states now. That's up from Friday's count of 141 cases in 19 states.
The victims' relatives are outraged by a jury's decision against convicting two teenagers of the most serious charges in a case that Pennsylvania prosecutors called a hate crime. You just heard our legal guys discuss the case of Brandon Piekarsky and Derrick Donchak, they were convicted of simple assault in the beating death last summer of Luis Ramirez.
And Republicans kick off a campaign to reshape their party's image. They're in Northern Virginia for a series of town hall meetings this afternoon. Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia says it's an opportunity to reconnect with voters.
All right. Now that Chrysler has filed for bankruptcy, should you be concerned about buying one of their cars? Should you be concerned about whether you have a Chrysler right now? What about your current warranty? To help us answer some of those questions, we're joined by automotive expert Lauren Fix, live from Buffalo, New York. Good to see you.
LAUREN FIX, AUTHOR, "LAUREN FIX'S GUIDE TO LOVING YOUR CAR": Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, if I have a Chrysler and I hear bankruptcy, I'm getting a little concerned now about whether I have a new car warranty or used car warranty or whether I'm going to be able to get my car fixed in the long term. How should I be thinking?
FIX: Well, I wouldn't think that the company's going to go out of business in the next five minutes. I mean, what's really going to happen is once they go through bankruptcy court, the company is going through different articles right now of the bankruptcy court in order to get funds to keep the company running, keep the dealers going, keep the flow of cars going to the dealers.
So, there will be service, there will be warranty, there will be parts, however, the U.S. government claims they're going to back the warranty if for some reason, Chrysler goes chapter 7, which scares me because I figure that means nine to 12 weeks before you get your money back after you pay for it up front. So, I mean, my concern is if Chrysler goes chapter 7, which is highly unlikely, then that would be the case.
Right now, we're at the point where there's not going to be any more cars produced. Every single employee that is either getting some form of pay, whether they be white collar or blue collar, are going through the bankruptcy process, which I promise you, will be more than 60 days.
WHITFIELD: OK, and you mentioned car dealerships. All right, I'm going to take my Chrysler to the dealer to get repaired, to try to make good on my warranty, oh, but wait a minute, some dealerships are going to be getting that phone call and may be closing down. So, my options are being limited here.
FIX: That's true. And the nice thing about any car manufacturer, whether you buy a VW, a Chrysler, a Ford, a GM, a Toyota is wherever you buy that brand, you can go to that brand's dealer. So, if there's another Chrysler or Dodge dealer in your area, you can go to that dealership and not feel any sort of restrictions of the fact that the car won't be backed because it will be backed. In some cases, if you live in very small town America, you may need to go to the next town which is an inconvenience to the consumer.
WHITFIELD: All right. Talk to me about this potential safety net, Fiat. If the Italian carmakers says we want a little piece of the action here, Chrysler, is that good?
FIX: Well, I -- that's a good question because right now, they're being promised 20 percent of Chrysler if they meet three different criteria, they'll gain five percent more of Chrysler ownership, up to 35 percent. But if that happens, we're going to be bringing Fiat product. You're not going to see that for 18 months, and they'll probably be hot and like the Fiat 500, whether Fiat sells well in this country, we don't know. Its reputation here in the U.S. never was that wonderful.
WHITFIELD: Right.
FIX: In Europe, it's OK, although the president of the company does really know what he's doing, so let's hope he can use our distribution network of Chrysler and Dodge dealers to really try to help Chrysler get back on its feet. I'd really like to see it stay here in the U.S. and make good, but we don't know that yet. And right now, the bankruptcy courts are really going to be something I'll be watching very closely in the next few days.
WHITFIELD: Yes, and Fiats, they can be really cute and they can also be pretty gorgeous, you think about the Alfa Romeo. But ...
FIX: Oh yes.
WHITFIELD: ...folks I know who had an Alfa, they were constantly in the shop, so.
FIX: Right.
WHITFIELD: You're right, not a good track record.
FIX: And they own Ferrari, too. They own Ferrari, too. I wouldn't mind having one of those in my garage.
WHITFIELD: Yes, well, I wouldn't mind that. I'll take that one, sorry.
FIX: Can't afford it, but I'd like to have one.
WHITFIELD: Right, you and me both. All right, Lauren Fix, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
FIX: Thank you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, well, with layoffs announced almost every week, landing a job these days, we all know, it's getting tougher, but one state is offering an incentive to both employers and jobless workers and it doesn't cost either a dime.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD (voice-over): Among the more than six million Americans out of work ...
MARCOS GUZMAN, AUDITIONING FOR JOB: Two white and two powder blue?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
WHITFIELD: ...Marcos Guzman is confidently auditioning for a full-time job with a Decatur, Georgia uniforms sales company.
GUZMAN: No jitters whatsoever.
WHITFIELD: Not the case initially when laid off in January.
GUZMAN: When you first hear it and it's unexpected, you know, it's not a good feeling at all.
WHITFIELD: Guzman took the common next step.
GUZMAN: I went down to, you know, the unemployment office and while I was in there, and they were going through the different -- telling you the information about different things and you apply for your unemployment and all of that.
WHITFIELD: But he overheard a conversation about the so-called Georgia Works program, an eight-week job audition of sorts with a select group of employers.
GUZMAN: It sounded interesting because I've never heard of a program through the Department of Labor to where they actually put you somewhere.
WHITFIELD: This is how it works. The unemployed, on audition, for two months don't receive a single paycheck from the companies, but still draw unemployment checks from the state.
GUZMAN: It's kind of like a training period, just kind of -- to see if you will fit, and if you do, I mean, you'll end up being hired.
WHITFIELD: Finding the right store manager was the primary focus for Rosie Cecil, owner of Domaro Uniform Service. She said the State Labor Department's program relieved her of a lot of stress.
ROSIE CECIL, OWNER, DOMARO UNIFORM SERVICE: Georgia Works is really good because they will kind of screen through those resumes that they get and they'll submit the ones that they think are pertinent to you and your position.
WHITFIELD: This audition for a job concept is the brainchild of Georgia Department of Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond, who started it more than five years ago. But in the last year, the recession has increased its popularity in state.
MICHAEL THURMOND, GEORGIA LABOR COMMISSIONER: The crisis has deepened, job seekers are feeling more desperate and there's this desire to get a foot in the door anywhere, so that I will have an opportunity to interview and to demonstrate my skills and abilities.
WHITFIELD: He says eight other states, but won't reveal which ones, have called for advice. THURMOND: Well, they say Michael Thurmond, tell me about this job auditioning programs you got down there in Georgia. It's different, it's out of the box, but we're at a critical time. I don't think that we can afford to just do what we've always done. We need new ideas, new strategies, new solutions.
WHITFIELD: The success rate: impressive. The commissioner says 60 percent of the trainees get hired. Still, he understands skeptics' points of view.
THURMOND: So, wait a minute now, I can train this person for a job, right? At no cost to me, you pay the unemployment insurance benefits and then at the end of eight weeks, I can make a decision about whether or not I'm going to hire them. They think that it's too good to be true, but it's not.
WHITFIELD: Back at the uniform shop, early signs of a good fit.
CECIL: He goes back, he looks at some of the historical things that we've done and then, he will think about it and project on perhaps we should consider doing things just a little bit differently and that's working out well.
GUZMAN: My mindset is taking a business and making it bigger than what it was. You know, everywhere I've gone, I've done that and I'm anxious to do it here.
WHITFIELD: Within days, this small business owner and this recently-laid off big corporate loan company employee hope to meet somewhere in the middle.
CECIL: I'm looking forward to Marcos being with us for quite some time.
WHITFIELD: Helping an enterprise grow, while assisting one man get back on his feet.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the Georgia Works program is only available to people who are currently collecting unemployment benefits in the state and to be eligible, jobless workers have to have at least 14 weeks of unemployment insurance benefits left.
All right, a 72-year-old insurance adjuster could be one of this country's worst serial killers. Our legal guys will be back to discuss this one.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, our legal guys are back, Avery Friedman and Richard Herman. All right, guys, we're going to talk first about the 72-year-old man in California who is now a suspected serial killer. His name is John Floyd Thomas and apparently, he preyed on older women, strangled them and raped them. This all taking place in the '70s, but Avery, it took some time catching up with this suspect, but why is this going to be difficult or perhaps a little different for prosecutors to try to advance?
FRIEDMAN: Well, because it's a cold case, Fredricka. The difficulty is that this particular individual LAPD has had an eye on this fellow for over 30 years and primarily because of DNA, they broke the cold case. The fact is that while there are going to be difficulties, hooray for the cold case guys at the LAPD, they might have the right guy here.
HERMAN: Fred ...
WHITFIELD: And so, Richard, he was a state insurance adjuster. He certainly had a lot of contact with people and so, this really comes as a surprise to people who have been quoted as saying that they knew him, yet at the same time, we're talking about an alleged serial killer, death penalty is not a possibility for prosecutors. Why not?
HERMAN: In California, I guess because of the time lapse on this and whether or not the evidence is going to be strong enough, but Fred, they've got DNA on this guy. He's a registered sex offender. He had to give random samples. The sample he gave in October was run on updated databases. They think this guy potentially could be responsible for 30 murders.
FRIEDMAN: Well -- but let me mention -- let me mention this is kind of important, the reason he's not going to face the death penalty, Richard and Fredricka, is that during the period of the alleged murders, California had a moratorium. They didn't reinstate the death penalty until after the last crime was committed.
HERMAN: Fred ...
WHITFIELD: And of course, he hasn't even been convicted yet. We're talking about ...
FRIEDMAN: Right. Allegations, of course.
WHITFIELD: ...he is still a suspect, the case hasn't been tried. Richard, do you see that this is going to be difficult or do you think because of the evidence that we've learned about thus far really will pave the way for a most certain trial?
HERMAN: You know, Fred, juries are mesmerized by this -- by "Cold Case" and by "CSI" ...
FRIEDMAN: Right.
HERMAN: ...and all these TV shows and they're going to get into this and if the DNA is evidence strong, this guy's going down.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: All right, Ivan Demjanjuk now, he may soon be getting a knock on the door because ... FRIEDMAN: Right.
WHITFIELD: ...the way has been cleared for deportation -- Richard?
HERMAN: Yes, the judge ruled that there's no chance of irreparable injury and that was the requirement to have the stay and precluding him from being transferred to Germany, it's not going to be deemed torture -- torture was the word they used -- transfer him to Germany. I wouldn't be surprised if, any day now, we hear they shipped him off.
FRIEDMAN: Yes, any hour, actually.
HERMAN: Yes.
FRIEDMAN: I think what you're looking at -- Michael Tiger, by the way, one of the best lawyers in America and one of the all-time worst briefs I've ever read, made the argument, three judges considered it, yesterday they rejected it. Ivan's going to say hello, Munich.
WHITFIELD: Oh, OK.
HERMAN: He still has appellate rights, there are still appeal rights for this guy.
FRIEDMAN: No stay, Richard.
HERMAN: No stay, though.
FRIEDMAN: I think he's on his way. I agree with you on that.
WHITFIELD: All right, real quickly, we've got about 30 seconds left. "Maersk Alabama" making news most recently. You know, a few weeks ago because of the piracy in the Indian Ocean. Well now, a crew member is saying, you know what? I'm suing the ship owner. These were unsafe conditions and you know, I want to make a statement in court now.
Avery, what kind of chances does this man have?
FRIEDMAN: Arg! Dismissed, dismissed.
HERMAN: Oh, I don't think it's dismissed. He -- if they knew they were throwing him in pirate-infested waters and had no way to protect him, which they didn't and it was a monetary consideration only not to put guns on that ship, Fred, I think he's got a case.
WHITFIELD: You do?
HERMAN: Yes.
FRIEDMAN: Hey, we'll put money on that one.
WHITFIELD: Because everyone knows it's been going on for a long time, this piracy on the high seas ...
FRIEDMAN: Right.
WHITFIELD: ...in the Indian Ocean, there should be no surprise to anyone who decided to get the waves (ph) out there.
FRIEDMAN: Yes, he was really surprised to run into Blue Beard, yes.
HERMAN: Just because there's no surprise doesn't mean there wasn't negligence here. I'm telling you, it's not going away.
FRIEDMAN: No, admiralty -- admiralty laws not going to permit a negligence claim. It's not going to permit a negligence claim. I disagree.
HERMAN: OK.
FRIEDMAN: All right.
WHITFIELD: All right, I'm sure we'll be revisiting that case ...
FRIEDMAN: Absolutely.
HERMAN: Hey, Fred.
WHITFIELD: ...to see if it actually becomes ones. Yes?
HERMAN: Alfa Romeo, I thought you would a Bentley or a Rolls.
WHITFIELD: I like sports cars, like ...
FRIEDMAN: No, that's now, Richard.
WHITFIELD: ...you know, I don't discriminate. I like the Italian sports cars.
FRIEDMAN: Listen to that.
WHITFIELD: I like the British ones, too.
FRIEDMAN: Yes.
WHITFIELD: If we want to call a Rolls a sports car, I don't know -- a luxury liner.
HERMAN: There you go.
WHITFIELD: I like nice cars, too.
All right, thanks so much, Richard and Avery.
FRIEDMAN: See you.
HERMAN: Take care.
WHITFIELD: Good to see you. See you all later.
Much more of the NEWSROOM right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The Kentucky Derby doesn't even start for a few hours, but already an upset. One of the field's early favorites, I Want Revenge, has been scratched from the lineup. His owners say the horse has inflammation around the ankle. The track is expected to be wet during post time, and I Want Revenge's trainer didn't want to take any chances on the three-year-old colt. It certainly could have hurt itself.
All right, vacations, very carefully, two operative words with swine flu or H1N1 here, crimping so many travel plans. CNN's Melissa Long keeps you "On the Go."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA LONG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before you travel, do your homework.
SARAH KANTROWITZ, TRAVEL + LEISURE: Check what immunizations may be needed in the destination that you're headed to. A few great resources are travel.state.gov and the cdc.gov/travel. Check your current health insurance policy to see if you're covered while you're traveling. If you're not, you may want to consider additional insurance, such as Travel Guard or Travelex.
LONG: Check in with your doctor at least a month before your trip. It may be necessary to bring along antibiotics or now an antiviral, such as Tamiflu.
DR. ANNE SCHUCHAT, CENTER FOR DISEASE CONTROL: Now, the flu shot is a good thing to get in general for seasonal influenza. At this point, we don't have evidence that it protects against the swine flu strain that we're seeing.
LONG: But there are ways to play it safe with swine flu.
DR. DAMON T. ARNOLD, ILLINOIS DEPT. OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Make sure that you wash your hands and keep your hands clean at all times. If you have recently traveled to one of the affected areas, you should pay close attention to your health for seven days, which is the incubation period for the virus.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: New information, rather, just coming in, according to the U.S. military. We understand that two U.S. soldiers have been killed and three wounded in Iraq in an incident involving a man wearing an Iraqi security force uniform, according to U.S. officials. However, it's unclear whether this man was indeed a member of the force or whether that person was an insurgent. It happened just south of the northern city of Mosul in Iraq.
Meantime, we want you to stay with us throughout the day for continued updates on the H1N1 virus and, of course, at the 4:00 Eastern hour, we're going to focus the entire hour on a discussion about the H1N1 virus: what you need to know, how to protect yourself, what kind of measures school districts are taking, and what you need to know to protect your entire family. And how about if you are going to be traveling overseas? What measures should you be taking?
E-mail us some of your questions at weekends@CNN.com. And also, we're on Facebook: Fredricka Whitfield CNN, as well as Josh Levs CNN. We'll be bringing your questions to a panel of experts that we will have here in the 4:00 Eastern hour. We'll give you the latest information on the H1N1 virus.
Much more straight ahead. "YOUR MONEY" begins right now.
