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Gulf Coast Storm Preps; The President & Veterans; Mayor Injured in Crime Fight; New York's Crowded Skies; Serial Killer in Rocky Mount?
Aired August 16, 2009 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: This weekend is the 40th anniversary of the Woodstock Music Festival. Half-a-million people descended on a muddy field in New York State for a little peace, love and rock 'n' roll. Thirty-two bands performed during the 4-day event.
"Rolling Stone" has called Woodstock the most famous event in rock history.
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(PAUL MCCARTNEY PERFORMING IN ATLANTA)
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LEMON: It is about as close to real Beatlemania as many of us post- boomers will get. How do you know I'm a post-boomer? I could be a boomer, you never know.
About 40,000 people got the chance to see and hear Paul McCartney last night in Atlanta. He played about 2 1/2 hours, did a bunch of Beatle songs, Wings songs and solo stuff as well and didn't let a little rain slow him down. The show is a benefit for the Piedmont Park Conservancy.
The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM begins right now.
Tropical storm Claudette right now menacing Florida's Gulf Coast and poised to be the first tropical storm to hit the United States Mainland this year.
CNN's meteorologist Jacqui Jeras tracking it all in the CNN Severe Weather Center; she's also keeping tabs on another tropical storm that may be our first named hurricane of the Atlantic season.
Jacqui, take it away.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Really busy, Don.
We'll start out with Claudette because conditions have really been deteriorating on Florida's Panhandle. As those winds strengthen the waves begin to kick off and the rainfall is coming down very heavy, along with a threat of tornados. Claudette is a tropical storm. Maximum sustained winds right now, 50 miles per hour, gusting up to 65. It's just less than 40 miles away from landfall. We think that's going to happen in the next couple of hours.
Let's show you the radar picture now and show you where these bands are, and it's covering a lot of the southeast. Look at this. This is going all the way up to Atlanta, up towards the Birmingham area; the heaviest of rainfall though just right around Apalachicola.
We'll zoom in a little closer and show and you can get a better idea where the center of this storm is. We're estimating right now it's somewhere in this vicinity. It's moving up to the north and to the west. So we're anticipating landfall to likely be somewhere near Destin-ish. Could be a little to the west of there, could be a little bit to the east of there.
But our biggest concern is these bands come in, they're going to bring in that heavy rain and the threat of tornados. We could see anywhere between maybe 3 to 6 inches of rainfall with locally heavier amounts.
The wind reports have been very heavy. These are sustained winds as opposed to the gusts. It looks like we're starting to lose some of our data out of here -- there we go, some 21 miles for our winds. Apalachicola had 47 miles per hour for one of those gusts.
Let's go ahead and show a beach cam that we have. This is from the Panama City Beach, the Holiday Inn SunSpree has a nice rooftop cam there. You can see the waves beginning to come in and increase the threat of rip currents, really high too. You don't want to get out into this water if you don't have to.
We're expecting landfall a few hours from now. And then we'll watch the storm move into Alabama overnight and into tomorrow morning and continue to bring that heavy rain.
Ana has been reduced to a tropical depression. But it's still something we want to watch, Don, because it could regenerate as it heads towards the Gulf of Mexico.
Then last not least, we have tropical storm Bill which has been strengthening and will likely become a hurricane late tonight or tomorrow. This is still a week out yet, Don, as to whether or not this will be impacting the United States.
LEMON: All right, Jacqui is going to update us throughout the hour. Jacqui thank you very much.
Florida's emergency management officials were saying they expect heavy rainfalls east of the storm and less on the western or backside. Let's see if that theory is holding true in Pensacola where Bill Pearson from CNN affiliate WEAR join us live now with an update -- Bill.
BILL PEARSON, CNN AFFILIATE WEAR: Well, good afternoon, Don. This is a pretty typical Sunday afternoon on Pensacola beach; very little evidence of tropical storm Claudette moving through the Florida Panhandle.
The storm is many miles to our east here. But from where we stand on the beach, you cannot really see any signs. You can see the surf. That is about what you'd typically see here on a very calm day.
The head lifeguard out here on Pensacola Beach, Dave Greenwood (ph), tells me these are what they consider to be yellow flag conditions. That means nothing really out of the ordinary. Unsafe for people who are not good swimmers, but for the rest of us who are used to being out in these waters it's about what you'd normally expect.
The evidence that we have seen though of Tropical Storm Claudette is moved already to our west, towards Alabama. You can see here past the pier, the dark storm clouds -- that's really all we've seen.
It's just the clouds and the wind that's gone with it. We've not seen any rain. We've seen a little bit of lightning to our north as the storm front moved through. But for right now we've not really seen a lot of things to make people concerned.
I spoke with several people who were out there at the beach throughout the day. When they first heard that a tropical storm was moving into the region, there was some concern about how safe they'd be throughout the day today, but it turns out here in west Florida, it's been pretty good.
But later on this evening, we're going to be heading east towards the Destin-Okaloosa Island area of Okaloosa County. We're going to take a look and see how it's doing there, see if we can see more storm surge there in that area.
But for now, that's the way it is from Pensacola, Florida.
For CNN, reporting live, I'm Bill Pearson. Back to you.
LEMON: All right Bill. Let us know what you uncover.
Thank you very much.
Let's go 50 miles east of Pensacola now to the vacation getaway destination Destin, Florida. The city's mayor, Craig Barker, joins us now live on the phone for an update.
Mayor, how's it looking where you are?
MAYOR CRAIG BARKER, DESTIN, FLORIDA: Well, Don, thank you for having me on.
It's actually not been too bad so far today. We've had a few of the tropical bands that have come through already earlier. And that has brought a lot of rain, some gusts. But it's starting to get a little darker now. We are expecting to have sustained winds up to 50 knots and with gusts somewhat higher than that, so we are getting prepared for it.
LEMON: All right. We hope you guys are safe and please keep it safe and hope there's no destruction there because I plan on being there in September with my family so...
BARKER: Well, we look forward to having you.
LEMON: Thank you very much.
Would you believe today's weather forecast for parts of California included the term scattered smoke? Here's why: there are currently 11 wildfires burning up and down the Florida (SIC) coast all in varying degrees of containment.
The most serious may be this one; it's the Lockheed fire. It has already charred some 10 square miles of Santa Cruz County which is under a state of emergency.
And besides the dry and windy condition, fire crews are having to deal with tough mountainous terrain. Thousands of people have fled their homes.
Let's turn now to health care. It is dominating debate across the country as members of Congress meet with their constituents all month long and with good reason. As we all know, costs are skyrocketing for all of us.
By one estimate, the U.S. spends four times more money on health care than on national defense. And more than 45 million people don't have health insurance. A sad fact that one study says led to 27,000 deaths in the U.S. in 2006.
Numbers like that are why most Democrats say there needs to be a so- called public option to compete with private insurers and offer insurance to everyone. The White House today signaled it might compromise on this issue. But some House members are standing firm.
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REP. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON (D) TEXAS: It would be very, very difficult because without the public option we'll have the same number of people uninsured. If the insurance companies wanted to insure these people, now, they'd be insured.
The only way that we can be sure that very low-income people and persons who work for companies that don't offer insurance can have access to it is through an option that would give the private insurance companies a little competition. The private insurance companies, they've been in charge so long, that I think they feel nobody else ought to be able to do it.
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LEMON: The Republicans call the public option a deal-breaker and they insist it would put private insurers out of business.
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SEN. ORRIN HATCH (R), UTAH: I still think we should have a bipartisan solution. But what I can't tolerate is a government plan -- and there's no way you can make it co-equal, have a government -- be on an equal playing field because the government basically -- if we turn over this country's health care to a government plan and we open up a government plan, the Lewin Group, one of the best analytical groups in health care in the country, if not the best, said up to 119.1 million people would transfer from private insurance into the government plan.
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LEMON: One possible road to compromise on the public option debate, nonprofit cooperatives which could compete with private insurers but would not be run by the government.
When it comes to health care, there's so much out there, so much to cover, we simply can't get to it all in the short time that we have on the air sometimes. So we want you to check out CNN.com/healthcare; CNN.com/healthcare.
We feature ongoing coverage of the health care debate, a list of town hall meetings from across the country and how health care reform might affect you no matter where you live.
The president veered off the health care stump for a few hours of private time with his family -- well, private time if you don't count the cameras there.
Here's a few snapshots -- here are a few snapshots I should say of the Obamas at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. They were there yesterday. And before heading back to Washington today, the first family visited the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Looks like a fun time.
President Obama will speak to military veterans tomorrow in Arizona. He'll be in Phoenix at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention -- VFW Convention.
Our Ed Henry is traveling with the President. Hey, Ed, I know that some of these questions probably about health care reform are going to come up. I don't know if you heard my conversation with the two Congressmen. I couldn't get a word in edgewise. And I imagine many Americans probably feel the same way and they're frustrated about it.
ED HENRY, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: You're right Don. I mean most of the President's focus has been on domestic priorities especially health care in recent days. And when I sat down with some veterans today, they did have health care on their mind, especially Medicare and the future of Medicare, whether it's going to be safe and secure. But they also were very eager to hear the President talk about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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HENRY (voice-over): Four American develops, two voted for the President, two for John McCain, but they share a brotherhood and a feeling that many Americans do not appreciate the sacrifice of U.S. troops dying in two wars. A feeling so painful it brings one of these men to tears. ROLAND ROCHESTER, VETERAN: I know that they are tough. I know they're strong. I have a hard feeling for those that are over there. But I'm a Marine. And I will stand up for our Chief of Staff and our soldiers everywhere they go.
HENRY: All four said they want to hear more specifics from the President about the days ahead in Afghanistan in particular. What's interesting is Gary Malone, an Obama voter from Arkansas, is deeply concerned the President is sending more troops into a quagmire.
GARY MALONE, VETERAN: We lost 58,000 -- over 58,000 in Vietnam. And I said this should not turn into another Vietnam. It's turning into another Vietnam.
HENRY: But a different view from Bud Cowley of Arkansas.
BUCK COWLEY, VETERAN: I was in the World War II, Korea, and I served in Vietnam.
HENRY: Cowley is a McCain voter but gives Mr. Obama high marks for sending more troops to Afghanistan.
COWLEY: Classification (ph) never got anybody anywhere.
HENRY: The talk of another Vietnam stirs Lewis Wood, a McCain voter from Arizona, who thinks Mr. Obama has been weak.
LEWIS WOOD, VETERAN: I also don't want to see it turn into a situation where they just up and pull the troops out and then have the public of the United States say, "Oh, well, you know, here we are we lost the war in Afghanistan or Iraq." Just -- you know, because that's the feeling that people have about the war in Vietnam that we lost that war.
And I'll say it right here and now that we was winning in Vietnam when I left there. The politicians lost that war.
HENRY: But Wood says he will support the President now and is inspired that for the first time ever an African-American commander- in-chief will address the VFW.
WOOD: I'm proud of the United States, you bet you.
HENRY: And so is Roland Rochester of North Carolina, whose heartaches for the men and women dying overseas. He voted for Mr. Obama and is confident he will handle both wars well.
ROCHESTER: He is my commander-in-chief and I'm proud of him.
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HENRY: White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs says while the president will thank U.S. troops he's not planning to get into specifics about Afghanistan because the commanding general is still conducting a review there. That may disappoint some of these veterans but I can tell you even the McCain voters told me they respect the commander-in- chief and they want to give him more time to get it right -- Don.
LEMON: All right, very good, Ed Henry, thank you. Beautiful backdrop too, the mountains behind you, very nice.
HENRY: It is.
LEMON: All right Ed. We look forward to your reports from there.
We're keeping our eye on the Gulf Coast for you. Tropical storm Claudette about to make landfall tonight; our Jacqui Jeras is tracking the storm right now for you. She is in the CNN Severe Weather Center or at CNN Hurricane Headquarters.
The mayor of Milwaukee, beaten in the head with a metal pipe. What happened? And how is he doing? Plus --
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The one place I never worried about dying was church. I never worried about them being at church. And to get a phone call that just somebody got shot coming out of church, it was just unbelievable.
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LEMON: The stories are unbelievable. They're riveting. Shot and killed on Chicago's deadly streets. Sadly that man's son's case wasn't the exception, far from it.
As always, we want to know what's on your mind tonight as well. Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com, especially if you're down in the Florida Coast -- iReports, make sure you stay safe and send them to us.
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LEMON: Well, the Mayor of Milwaukee turned into a crime fighter last nigh when he heard a woman screaming for help outside a state fair. But it seems no good deed goes unpunished.
Mayor Tom Barrett was attacked by a man with a metal pipe when he tried to help out. He is hospitalized, now in stable condition with head and hand injuries.
Police say Barrett was leaving the fair with his children and niece when he saw a man attacking a woman. But when he called 911, the attacker changed target coming after the mayor instead and beating him with a metal pipe.
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KIM ZAJA, WITNESS: So we see the guy -- one guy down on the sidewalk in a pool of blood. And then -- the other guy jumped over the fence and headed that way. It was a domestic thing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he was the Mayor of Milwaukee. ZAJA: Yes, I didn't know that at the time. That's a shock.
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JOHN BARRETT, MILWAUKEE MAYOR'S BROTHER: Tom stepped up and did the right thing. He called 911 and tried to calm the situation; protect a grandmother and her grandchild. As a result of his actions, Tom was attacked and struck repeatedly with a metal object.
Tom's efforts protected the woman and the child. His efforts also protected members of our family as well. We're extremely proud of Tom's selflessness and his courage.
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LEMON: Well, police did get the suspect this morning and they don't think he knew that Barrett was Milwaukee's mayor.
A week after a fatal collision over New York's Hudson River, it's business as usual for the area's helicopter tour companies.
CNN's Susan Candiotti spoke with one chopper pilot about New York City's crowded sky.
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SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Flying over the Hudson River. Pilots better have razor-sharp vision and focus; it's a busy high-way in the air.
ERIC ROSS, HELICOPTER PILOT: A helicopter. See him?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I see him.
CANDIOTTI: Another chopper suddenly pulls alongside while a small plane zips by just out of camera range.
ROSS: See him? Did he announce?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't hear him. But he might be on with the tower.
ROSS: All right, where's my helicopter? He's right near me ok.
CANDIOTTI: One week after a fatal midair collision between a sightseeing helicopter and small plane that took nine lives. We flew with Pegasus pilot Eric Ross, whose customers, despite the recent accident, still clamor to see Manhattan's skyline.
For now, visual sight rules still apply for up to 1,000 feet above the water. That means over the Hudson, pilots watch out for each other. It's see-and-avoid.
ROSS: Do I announce my intentions? So I don't just say where I am, I'm telling them what I'm going to do. Now, we say it's just like driving. I stay to the north, northbound. I stay to the right, Southbound.
CANDIOTTE: Pilots can't let their guard down for a moment.
ROSS: He's on the backside?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what he said.
ROSS: Yes, is he coming around? Right turn?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm looking.
CANDIOTTI: We saw one helicopter come around then seem to disappear.
ROSS: Oh, I got you down low. Got you there
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Down low.
ROSS: I got him. If we didn't talk to each other I wouldn't have seen him until it could have been too late.
CANDIOTTI: When airspace becomes crowded over the Hudson, air traffic control radar warning systems can be going off repeatedly.
RAY ADAMS, NATIONAL AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS ASSOCIATION: It -- constantly alerts and that really becomes part of the background noise to an air traffic controller. It becomes a distraction to his operations so he tunes it out.
CANDIOTTI: Before that midair crash, the NTSB says that air traffic controller did try to reach the small plane at least two times but got no answer. Moving with uncharacteristic speed The FAA just formed a group to recommend possible changes and they're not wasting time.
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LEMON: CNN's Susan Candiotti joins us from the Hudson River. It looks like a beautiful evening in New York City much like a week ago when this horrific crash happened, Susan.
What sort of changes are authorities talking about? And do they have a good chance of going through with these changes?
CANDIOTTI: Well, Don, some of the things they're talking about include this -- the possibility of creating in effect two lanes of traffic; one for helicopters, one more small planes. And then you know that air frequency that you talked about on the radio we've all heard about that's currently voluntary? Well, they're talking about making that mandatory.
And they're saying that there's a pretty good chance that something's going to happen. I know the FAA wants to get some recommendations back in two weeks but not sure how long it might take to implement or even accept them.
LEMON: All right, CNN's Susan Candiotti. Susan thank you very much for that.
Tiger Woods going for his 15th major title; we'll tell you if he held on to the win in the PGA Championship.
And he is back. We're talking about Michael Vick. Some of you are thrilled; others, well, not so much.
We'll talk.
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LEMON: Tonight in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, people fear a serial killer is on the prowl ready to strike again. All of the suspected victims are women, their bodies dumped along a desolate stretch of rural road.
CNN's David Mattingly takes us there.
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DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If someone were looking for a place to get away with murder in North Carolina, Edgecombe County's Seven Bridges Road might be the place to go.
(on camera): Nothing, nothing but trees and pastures.
(voice-over): Since 2005, the remains of five women, all African- American and suspected prostitutes, have been found here among miles of woods and crops.
(on camera): There are any number of places you can pull off here like this spot right here. You can just drive off and disappear into the woods in a matter of seconds.
(voice-over): Sadly, that's what's been happening to these women. They disappear, never to be seen alive again. Is this the work of a serial killer?
MICHAEL TEAGUE, FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Yes, I believe it is. Yes, I think the fact that the bodies have been found close together really would argue for serial killer.
MATTINGLY: Michael Teague was once the state's top forensic psychologist and believes the killer is someone who could have a lot in common with his victims.
TEAGUE: Their economic level, their background, again, the same race, so I think it's a person that would fit very easily within the environment.
MATTINGLY: All of the victims were last seen in the Town of Rocky Mount. We went to where they came from, an area where prostitutes work neighborhood streets.
ANDRE KNIGHT, ROCKY MOUNT CITY COUNCIL: Typically this is the area. MATTINGLY: But we found the streets deserted, cleared by fear. Prostitutes are easy targets for killers, living fragile lives on society's fringes. Still, Councilman Andre Knight says it shouldn't have taken years for the town to take notice.
(on camera): Is it just a matter of race or is it possibly because of what they do for a living?
ANDRE KNIGHT, ROCKY MOUNT CITY COUNCIL: I think it's a combination of both. Because even what a person does they still have human rights.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): A turning point in public awareness and the investigation itself was the fifth victim. Jarnice Hargrove (ph), known to her friends as "Sunshine." Friends and family publicly demanded justice. Local authorities asked the FBI to assist. Like the other victims, Hargrove disappeared from Rocky Mount. Her body was found in June off Seven Bridges Road.
(on camera): From the streets of Rocky Mount, it's only about a 15 minute drive to get to places just like this. For all practical purposes, it's the middle of nowhere. And this is where investigators say that the victims are being killed. They won't give us a lot of detail about what they're finding but they do tell us that two of the victims were strangled, one was stabbed and beaten.
Three other Rocky Mount women who police say are not prostitutes are currently missing. The sheriff of Edgecombe County calls this a critical time in the investigation, leading many to hope that this lonely country road will soon lead to a killer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: CNN's David Mattingly joins us now.
David, is it -- all these women are turning up missing, but is it really a serial killer? Do police know what they have on their hands here?
MATTINGLY: They're not using that word "serial killer." That's just something that unusual about this case. Even though the experts are looking at this saying it has all the markings of a serial killer case, the authorities who are investigating are not willing to take that step and say that publicly.
They're saying that because they don't believe they have all the facts that they need to say, "Yes, there's one person responsible for all these murders."
LEMON: But they're all being found in a remote area. Do they know why this area?
MATTINGLY: This area is known as a place where prostitutes take their customers. It's only about 10, 15 minutes outside of town. They go out there, they're looking for privacy to conduct their business and this is the place where these women are being murdered.
LEMON: Ok. Critical time -- why do they keep saying critical time in the investigation?
MATTINGLY: The sheriff is calling it a critical time in the investigation. He says that is a reason why he doesn't want to put out any more information about what they have and don't have in this case.
But they say they do have leads and they're following up on those. This is something they might not have been able to say just a few weeks ago.
LEMON: Well, CNN's David Mattingly, thank you very much for this story. Thank you.
It is not a hurricane, but Claudette could shake things up on the Florida Panhandle tonight. Jacquie Jeras will have the very latest on its position and where the storm may make landfall.
Plus are people in the path of the storm ready? Why some may be ignoring advice to be prepared.
Plus, losing a child to violence.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Someone went out there and took away his ability to make his mark on the world. And the only way that anybody who never met him is ever going to know him is through me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So that is all she has left of her son; the unbearable reality for parents touched by gun violence. We'll take you to Chicago's deadly streets.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Our Jacqui Jeras is busy here today. And for good reason, people down in Florida, they are worried. And they should be.
It's a tropical storm. There are a lot of threats with this storm compared to a hurricane. One of the things we've been worried about is the threat of tornadoes. Heavy rain as well as flash flooding. And as long as the storm stays over the waters, we could still see some strengthening. Winds maximum sustained right now 50 miles per hour.
Let's go ahead and show you the radar picture now and show you some of those outer bands which have been continuing to push across much of Florida. And some of the heaviest of bands are beginning to lead into the area as we speak. Especially around the Apalachicola just to the west of here, around Oak Grove, port of St. Joe, up towards Mexico Beach and take a look at how heavy that rainfall is.
You know, off shore, we've seen a lot of reports of water spouts as well as, as much as seven inches of rainfall. And now this out leading the edge of these heavier showers and thundershowers. So the risk of flash flooding is really increasing here now over the next two-plus hours or so. We want to talk a little bit about the winds. Because they have been on the strong side as well. We've been getting wind reports with gusts pushing near 15 miles per hour. We'll take some of our true viewers (ph) and give you just some of the estimates of some of the sustained winds that we've seen across the area.
And keep in mind as you get some of the thunderstorms that roll on through, those wind gusts will start to increase. No tornado warnings in effect as we speak. But those water spouts, once they start making their way on shore, they do become tornados so we'll be watching that in the upcoming hours as well. This storm is moving northwesterly.
I want to zoom in one more time and kind of give you an idea of where we think that landfall's going to be. It's just couple of hours from now and we think it's going to be between Panama City Beach and Destin. And it really doesn't matter exactly where it's making landfall but something to keep in mind, if you're on that right side of the storm, that's where you're going to see more of the rain and more of that tornado threat throughout the day as well.
When you wake up tomorrow morning, we're going to see this thing over land. But we'll see that heavy rains and still some gusty winds even as far north as the Birmingham area. Here you can see a picture from Panama City Beach off the top of the Holiday Inn in (INAUDIBLE). We've been watching these waves progressively get better. One thing to know here is that storm surge, not a huge issue. We think it's going to be maybe two to four feet above the average tide.
We want your i-reports. So send us those pictures coming in at i- report.com. As always, stay safe. And we'll keep you up to date, Don. By the way, we've got a new advisory coming in before the top of the hour. Any big changes, we'll let you know.
LEMON: All right. Thank you, Jacqui. You know, I want to go now to Florida and John Cherry. He is with the division of emergency management there. Thank you very much. Listen, in and around Tallahassee right, are people sort of battening down the hatches there all over the area?
JOHN CHERRY, FLORIDA DIVISION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: The area is a little bit further inland. And mainly what we're seeing in Tallahassee is outer rain bands from the center of the storm to our west right now. The main impacts at least what we're seeing right now are that along the coastal areas, in Wacola Bay, Gulf and Franklin counties.
LEMON: You know, Jacqui Jeras is talking about Panama City and Destin, really just two of the most beautiful beaches there in the country, white sand, beautiful blue water, and just after, you know, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita came through, I would hope, sir, that people take these warnings seriously and then more serious each time. Do you feel that they're doing it this time?
CHERRY: We feel that there's been a real good response. I think one of the things here in Florida that people are really familiar with this is a couple days of ago, we had the anniversary of Hurricane Charlie. And that storm proved that these things can rapidly intensify at times. And their emotion can be erratic. So we really feel that the lessons learned here in Florida that make Floridians more prepared than ever.
LEMON: OK. Well, we certainly hope that is the case and we really hope it's not that bad for you. But again, it's going to make landfall sometime soon and we're going to be here covering it for you. And John Cherry will update us with the Florida Division of Emergency Management if need be throughout the evening here on CNN. Thank you, sir.
CHERRY: Thank you.
LEMON: After nearly two years behind bars, Michael Vick is back in pro football. Does he deserve it? What do you think? Log on to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, i-report.com, tell me, tell me. I want to know, we'll put it on the air. But first -
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I think back to what kind of child I had, it hurts me so bad, hurts so bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Oh, man, the heartbreaking reality for families dealing with the loss of a child. We'll take you to Chicago's deadly streets.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The list of people facing mass trial in Iran is getting longer in the wake of June's disputed presidential election. 25 more opposition supporters were named defendants today. They are among more than 1,000 people arrested in post-election crackdowns. All are accused in the violent unrest that erupted after the vote that gave President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad another term. the defendants include a former Iranian vice president, diplomats, reporters, academics and a teenager.
The trial comes as President Ahmadinejad presses ahead, preparing for his next term. Well, today, he announced that three women will join his cabinet. The first female ministers in the country since the 1970s. If approved by parliament, a gynecologist will take over as minister of health. And a law maker will be the new minister of welfare and social security. Well, the third minister has yet to be named. And the U.S. has some new breathing room in Pakistan.
Because the progress in fighting the Taliban. That is according to Washington special envoy Richard Holbrooke who says the White House is ready to focus on other aspects of its relationship with Islamabad like the economy. This comes as hundreds of thousands of refugees return to the Swat Valley after a three-month offensive apparently released the Taliban's grip on the area.
Shootings happen everywhere in the U.S., but right now in Chicago there is a problem that we cannot ignore. I traveled there this week and met Dave, who lives in a neighborhood known as K-town. That's short for killer town. Of course, Dave isn't his real name but because of what he does dealing drugs, he asked that we keep his identity private. Listen to what he told me.
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LEMON (on camera): This neighborhood, what do they call it, K-town, killer town?
DAVE, CHICAGO DRUG DEALER: K-town. Some do still call it. A lot of (bleep) happens, I'm not going to lie to you. Like I told you, my brother - 18 holes -- by god's will he's still here.
LEMON: Your brother's been shot 18 times?
DAVE: No, hit about 18 holes - about four different - 18 holes in - or about -
LEMON: What's the violence for? What's the whole reason for shooting? Why do so many people get shot?
DAVE: Some - (INAUDIBLE) I'm keeping it real with you. Some be about (bleep) and (bleep)and get more money than me. (bleep) then that traffic flow my way, all about the mighty dollar.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: More than 250 people have died by the gun in Chicago just this year. Many of them sadly are teenagers. Some of them are innocent bystanders caught in the cross fire. As a matter of fact, while we were there, there was a shooting as we were interviewing the city's choice to try to help out with this problem. All of these people have names. I sat down with their parents whose pain never seems to ease.
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LEMON (on camera): Is he right, it takes you back, is it always raw pain?
ANNETTE NANCE-HOLT, BLAIR HOLT'S MOTHER: Every time we talk about what happened that day it breaks me down all the time.
RICHARD HOLD, BLAIR HOLT'S FATHER: I'm just as numb as that night. that afternoon, Annette, called me, and she told me that Blair had been shot. You talk about the worst feeling in the world. Instant trauma to the emotions.
ANNETTE NANCE-HOLT: And you know, when I think back to what kind of child i had, it hurts me so bad, hurts so bad.
LEMON: Most of you are carrying some sort of memento or something. What are you guys carrying?
MARIA RAMIREZ, MATTHEW RAMIREZ'S MOTHER: My son was killed 3 1/2 years ago. As you can see, I still have his cell phone on. I just can't bear to turn it off because I keep having that stupid little thought in the back of my head when he walks back through the door, if he doesn't have a phone, he's just going to die.
LEMON: Does it ever ring?
RAMIREZ: I leave it on for his friends. For them to text him, they text him a lot.
LEMON: What are some of the text messages? Do you get the text message?
RAMIREZ: Just, you know poems -
LEMON: Can you read it?
RAMIREZ: Just I miss you. Things like that.
LEMON: You can read it. You want to read it.
RAMIREZ: I don't want to lose anybody else. This hurts a lot. I love you.
LEMON: You brought something of your -
MICHELLE LINTON-DELASHMENT, KERMIT DELASHMENT, JR.'S MOTHER: I brought - program, the obituary, and also the newspaper article. Because he told me he would be in the paper.
LEMON: This is how he's in the paper?
LINTON-DELASHMENT: Yes.
LEMON: College student is city's 500th homicide of the year. This isn't how you expected your son to be in the paper.
LINTON-DELASHMENT: Huh-uh.
LEMON: Tell me your story.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Terrell was a base player, a gospel base player. He was at a church. Coming out to help his friend get drums out of the car. Somebody came and shot Terrell.
TOMMIE BOSLEY, TERRELL BOSLEY'S FATHER: I drove him to high school for four years. I drove him every day so he wouldn't have to take public transportation. The one place I never worried about was church. I never worried about him being at church. And to get a phone call that your son got shot, coming out of church, it was just unbelievable.
CYNTHIA WATERS, CHRISTINA WATERS' MOTHER: I get a call from a complete stranger. Her and her friend were coming from a church function. And I get a call, you know, on my cell phone. It has her name. You know, calling to get an update, how's your afternoon going, it's 5:00 in the afternoon. A complete stranger. Telling me my daughter is laying, bleeding. JAMIE ROSE, CHRISTINA WATERS' FATHER: We almost lost Christina. I feel very lucky that we still have her.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If I could say anything to that parent whose child cost my child to lose his life, I hope you never feel like I feel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, it's clear something has to stop. So, next week, we're going to take you in depth, into Chicago's deadly streets. You'll hear more from families affected by this violence. We'll talk to a member of this community, both local and national officials who say they have had enough. And we're going beyond the headlines here, right here, on CNN, 10:00 p.m. Eastern, next Saturday, 10:00 p.m. Eastern, to Chicago's deadly streets. What are the solutions?
CNN, of course, is your extreme weather headquarters. And it is busy in the weather office tonight. Three storms are on the radar. We'll get another update from our Jacqui Jeras on which of these storms is headed toward the U.S..
Also, Michael Vick, retakes the field. This time, as a Philadelphia Eagle. But should he get a second chance? Did he get off easy? Rick Horrow here to break it down. Rick, let's talk about it.
RICK HORROW, CNN SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST: OK.
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LEMON: OK. Tiger Woods has never lost a major tournament when he was leading at the start of the final round until today. Just minutes ago, South Korean Y.E. Yang beat Tiger by three strokes to win the PGA championship. Before today, Tiger Woods was undefeated, 14-0 when he had the lead on Sunday in a major tournament. Yang is a relative unknown in this country. But he has beaten Woods once before, three years ago at a tournament in China.
Michael Vick's two years away from the NFL hasn't hurt his throwing ability. He took to the field this weekend for the first time to practice with his new team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Philadelphia. The 29-year-old quarterback still sports the number seven jersey as he did with his days with the Atlanta falcons. That was before a dog fighting conviction, of course, landed him in federal prison. Vick says he now wants to move on.
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MICHAEL VICK, PHILADEPHIA EAGLES QUARTERBACK: In the past I made mistakes and I've done some terrible things. I made a horrible mistake. And now I want to be part of the solution and not the problem.
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LEMON: Reaction to his return, as can you imagine, mixed. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think he should be out of the NFL altogether.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it is awesome! Awesome! I'm really looking forward to it. We're going to get season tickets now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love it. We can't wait. We need you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, I think your football second. It's a privilege to play ball. You know? There is a lot of talented people out there that don't get a chance to play ball. This man, I think he messed up his chances. You know? He had it all.
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LEMON: All right. Well, with his legal problems behind him, Michael Vick now faces a challenge of rebuilding his career, a career that once placed him in the NFL's $100 million quarterback club. He has taken a pay cut, but he is back in the league.
Joining us to talk about all of this, Vick and the other big headlines this week, sports business analyst, Mr. Rick Horrow. He's been a consultant to the NFL working directly with the commissioner Roger Goodell. OK. And remember, before we talk about Michael Vick, there is no a in the middle of Philadelphia.
HORROW: It's Philadelphia.
You said that pretty well off camera. So I know you lived. So we have some questions about the Eagle fans.
LEMON: Philadelphia and water. Water is worter.
OK. You know, this is really a big win for Michael Vick financially. And plus, you know, he gets a second chance as it has been said.
HORROW: Well, let's remember that he spent 23 months in incarceration. He lost $40 million or so, Don in, endorsements and contract salaries. On the other hand, what he did was heinous, unforgivable, premeditated. So he says he's paid his dues. He said five times in the press conference this is the country of second chances. And Philadelphia may be a city of second chances. We'll see how well he plays.
LEMON: It really is, I think, you know, people - Philly is a tough town. But it's also a very forgiving town. So you're right on about that. You know, I've got to ask you, everyone is talking about Michael Vick. But what about the risk, the financial risk, business risk for the team, for the Eagles?
HORROW: Well, you know, I know Jeff Laurie very well. Luckily he is an amazing owner, a great entrepreneur. The franchise is worth over $1 billion. It's now in the top five in the NFL. And there is a significant risk that he didn't take lightly. He met with Michael Vick. We know that a number of times. And it's a judge of character, he is giving him a second chance.
And there is a $400 million stadium with suites to sell, corporate advertising to take advantage of. Listen if, he plays well and he wins, maybe all is forgiven. It's going to be a little bit of a time where he is weaned out of those 23 months of arrest and weaned on to the field. We'll see how long it takes. Really, there is a suspension as well.
LEMON: Yes, it's going to be a while. Because, you know, Philly fans, they're going to throw batteries or whatever. They've been known to do that. Let's move on and talk - I want to go from Philly to Louisville, specifically the University of Louisville and we're talking about Rick Pitino, the basketball coach there. Let's take a listen Rick and I'll talk to you.
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RICK PITINO, UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE, COACH: I love the game. I love my players. I love this university as well as this community. I want to coach nowhere else. I don't believe in anything as much as I believe in this university and this state. So as long as they'll have me as long as they'll have me, I'm going to coach here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. So the Phillies, you know, standing by Michael Vick. The university there standing by Rick Pitino it looks like. What does this mean for the university? At what cost to them as I asked you about the Eagles.
HORROW: Well, you know, he had an issue of a cover-up of a woman he said he paid for the insurance surrounding an abortion and not the abortion itself. That will all blow over. And they do have him. They have him until 2013. He makes about $2 million a year now. He has a loyalty clause in his contract, to make sure he stays. He also does major endorsements around the Louisville area. He wrote a book called "Success is a choice" 10 years ago. So he is a highly sought after motivational speaker. He should probably get through this now and focus on coaching basketball.
LEMON: Yes, I don't know him personally. I mean but he does look like conciliatory. It looks like he was upset and he meant it when he made that apology. So let's hope things work out for him and for everyone. We wish everyone well.
Not so much so for Tiger Woods today though, right?
HORROW: Well, but here's the thing. Here's the story. You know, Y.E. Yang won the Honda Classic right here on Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, excuse me, this year. And this is the first major an Asian golfer has ever won. Korea 50 million, South Korea 50 million people in the country, four of the top women golfers plus this new major winner. So maybe not that big for Tiger Woods. But it is sure big for the golf explosion in China, Asia, Korea, Thailand, everywhere else and it couldn't have happened at a better time, by the way.
LEMON: All right. Rick, I need some goodies. So, come see me. All right.
HORROW: Yes, you got some goodies. I got a whole lot of stuff for you. I'll see you in a couple of weeks.
LEMON: Free tickets.
HORROW: Free everything.
LEMON: I can't believe I'm on TV asking you.
HORROW: Yes, I know.
I've driven you to a new low.
LEMON: Hey, keep it real, right? All right. Thank you, Rick. Always good to see you.
HORROW: All right. Next week.
LEMON: We're keeping an eye on all the storms in the gulf. Jacqui Jeras, specifically, you're not going to miss any of it. She's in the weather center right now checking it for you.
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LEMON: Jacqui Jeras, I see the radar there spinning behind you. What's going on?
JERAS: Well, we got an update now on Claudette and the location is a little bit closer towards land now. 93 miles away from Pensacola. Let's go ahead and take a look at the radar picture. Because some of the most intense rain bands are beginning to move in now into the cape area. And they're going to continue to stay strong over the next couple of hours. We could see a good three to six inches of rainfall here.
I want to point out that the center of circulation now is somewhere in this neighborhood and it's moving northwesterly. So we're just a couple of hours away from land fall now. It has slowed down just a little bit in forward speed. So it's moving about 12 miles per hour. And so that's part of the reason why we're backing off a little bit at this time. It will be moving on shore. So watch out for that threat continuing tonight. Now is the time, Don. You want to stay put and not move out and about.
LEMON: All right. You want to stay tuned right here to CNN. Because we'll have all the information for you. Our Jacqui Jeras working on this story. We're back here at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
Right now, Christiane Amanpour's "Generation Islam" is next. She reveals the struggles for the hearts and minds of the next generation of Muslims. We'll see you at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
