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California Declares State of Emergency Over Wildfires; California Police Search Home Next to Garrido's House; Health Care Battle Returns to Washington

Aired August 30, 2009 - 18:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: A state of emergency in California, wildfires growing, mandatory evacuations, and a stern warning from the governor, "Obey orders to leave or you will get burned."

New details emerging about kidnap victim Jaycee Dugard's time in captivity. She had access to e-mail and she held a job.

Missing at sea for a week now back on solid ground. Tonight, these three fishermen have an incredible store of survival.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We shot them. They were looters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: And vigilante justice in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina -- blunt and shocking admissions from residents in New Orleans.

Saving Detroit one song at a time. Detroit's bad boy Kid Rock becomes the voice of the struggling city.

Good evening to you. I'm Brianna Keilar, in tonight for Don Lemon.

Our top story, a state of emergency declared in southern California as wildfires force thousands from their homes. So far, three people have ignored those orders and suffered severe burns as a consequence. The growing wildfires are now threatening even more homes.

And CNN's Kara Finnstrom is joining is live from La Canada Flintridge, California, with the very latest.

Hi, Kara. What can you tell us?

KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Brianna.

Just over my shoulder here on this hillside, you can see one of the latest thrusts of this fire. You can see that line just moving down that hillside. Just below it, another neighborhood here in La Canada is now on alert, concern about this fire moving down.

But if we pan over, I'm going to show you where this fire raced through overnight. Take a look at this hillside over here. You can see that it's completely charred. Within about 24 hours, this fire more than quadrupled in size and overnight, it actually burned right up to the edges of these neighborhoods.

Families here are feeling very relieved that the fire didn't burn into these neighborhoods, but, Brianna, still very concerned because there continues to be hot spots on all of these hillsides and this fire does continue to burn on all sides. The good news is that it does seem to be moving primarily to the north away from neighborhoods and firefighters are hoping to keep it moving in that direction.

Earlier today, Governor Schwarzenegger came to this area. And here's a little bit about what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: Yesterday night, because of the briefings that I've gotten from my staff and from the fire officials throughout the day of Friday and Saturday, I felt that as soon as the burial was over in Washington of Senator Kennedy, to immediate leave the site and go to the airport and fly back home. And so, I think it was a wise decision because these fires are still totally out of control.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FINNSTROM: And what you're looking at here is one of the many cars that we see parked completely loaded up ready to go if need be here in the La Canada area. Just up this street, there are mandatory evacuation orders in effect. So, we've seen lots of neighbors kind of gathering around, supporting each other, watching this fire from the areas where they can, and, Brianna, just kind of waiting and hoping that this fire doesn't burn into these neighborhoods.

KEILAR: Kara Finnstrom for us right there at the station fire, thank you, Kara.

And let's check in now with Jacqui Jeras. She's in the CNN weather center.

Jacqui, the firefighters there are facing some really -- a lot of heat and a lack of humidity.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, down in the single digits for percentages, Brianna. So, that is just extremely low, just about as bad as it can possibly get. We've got a heat area of low pressure basically bringing in these offshore winds today. So, when you combine temperatures in the upper 90s to lower triple digits, as well as that low humidity, winds are pretty light, only about 10 miles per hour but we're getting some gusts today. And there are a couple problems that we're dealing with because of those gusts.

I want to show you an animation here of a fire and what can happen when those winds start to blow the fire line uphill. It can really accelerate the rate of the fire as it goes up the hill and then in addition to that, it can create some spotty -- where little fires will then get kicked out in advance of it due to some embers, then start new fires which could be downhill or another area. We're also watching the Mount Wilson Observatory which is within about two miles of the fire line. And that's being threatened. That is home to multimillion-dollar telescopes. And this is a tower cam of it. We'll continue to monitor that situation as well -- Brianna?

KEILAR: All right, Jacqui. We'll be checking back in with you. Thanks for that.

Now, in Antioch, California, police have brought cadaver dogs to search the property next door to where a kidnapped girl was held captive for 18 years.

CNN's Dan Simon is at the scene with the latest on the investigation -- Dan?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Brianna. We are getting a more complete picture and perhaps even more disturbing look at this case.

I spoke to the victim Jaycee Dugard's step-father earlier today. And one of the things he told me is that it's become increasingly clear to the family that over a period of years, Jaycee Dugard developed quite a very close bond with the suspect Phillip Garrido. And perhaps that helps explain why Jaycee, at least in recent years, never attempted to escape from this home behind me.

We can tell you that clearly she had the opportunity to do so. She had access to a telephone, had access to a computer and e-mail.

Phillip Garrido, the 58-year-old suspect operated a printing business out of this home. And we have talked to a few customers of that business. And they told us that Jaycee in some ways was their main point of contact. She was the graphics designer for this business, accommodated all of their requests. At one point, she actually met privately with a customer outside of the home.

So suffice to say that if there was an opportunity to escape, she did not -- she did not exercise it. And given the fact that she had access to the computer and the phone, clearly she did so.

KEILAR: I know it's really hard to understand, Dan, and we'll be getting some answers from a psychologist, hopefully a little later. But talk to us a little bit about the investigation because police are not just focusing on the Garrido house, right? They're looking next door as well?

SIMON: Right. Well, they're looking at the Garrido house as well as the home next door. They've been out here for a few days now. And what they're looking for is to see if Phillip Garrido might be tied to some other crimes that have taken place in the area over the years, including about 10 murders that took place in the 1990s.

So, we are told they'll be wrapped up with this search some time this evening. We did see a police officer emerge from the house a few hours ago holding what appeared to be a couple of large bags of evidence. No word yet if they have found anything. A spokesperson tells us they're still early in term of the investigation.

In terms of why they're searching the neighbor's house, we've been told that at some point in 2006, Phillip Garrido had access to the property next door. He apparently was the caretaker for that house when a prior tenant lived there. And so, that's why authorities are searching that home as well, Brianna.

KEILAR: All right. Dan Simon for us in Antioch -- thanks, Dan.

And, of course, the break in this case, it came on Wednesday on the campus of U.C. Berkeley. A university policewoman became suspicious of Garrido and the behavior of the two young girls who were with him. CNN's Anderson Cooper spoke to her about this fateful encounter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The youngest girl was intently staring at me and smiling in a very eerie way. The older daughter was looking at Mr. Garrido and not looking at us, not making eye contact with us and her eyes were darting around at the ceiling and would give really quick, clipped one-word answers and would glance at us and back up at him.

ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, "AC 360": And, Lisa, it's got to be frustrating because clearly, you know something's not right but you don't really have enough to, you know, detain this guy, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly. Monday when he first came in, I knew something wasn't right. Once we got the preliminary information on his background, we were just praying that our worst suspicions weren't confirmed.

COOPER: And Ally, so they finally -- they leave the meeting. Is it -- was it a gut intuition or a mother's intuition -- was it a police intuition or a mom's intuition?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was a little bit of both. My police intuition was kicking in but I would say it's more of a mother's intuition. I was worried for these little girls. I knew something wasn't right, I could see it in their eyes although I didn't know what it was. Just being a protective mom that I am, my reaction was to try and do what I could to help them.

COOPER: And, you know, and again, what's so great about what you did -- both of you did -- is that, you know, a lot of people would have left with that and said, "Oh, that's a weird, and you know, a weird guy." You took the next step. You didn't have to do this. You took the next step. You called up the parole officer for this guy, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's right.

COOPER: And he was stunned that he had two kids. I mean, this -- he didn't even know that there were children in this guy's life, right?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I mentioned that he came in and he was being very animated and so forth, and that he brought his two daughters in and he stopped me dead in my tracks and he said, "He doesn't have daughters." And that's when my heart kind of sunk down into my stomach.

And I said, "Well, he introduced them as his daughters. They have his blue eyes. They were calling him dad. They even mentioned an older sister at home. So I had no reason to believe they were anything but his daughters."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Now, as a criminal case, the abduction of Jaycee Dugard is both fascinating and appalling. So, later this hour, we'll speak with forensic psychiatrist Clay Watson about it. Certainly, an interview you're not going to want to miss.

And if you've been following this story, you know that Phillip Garrido spent a decade in federal prison for kidnapping and assaulting another woman many years ago. She will tell her story tomorrow night in an exclusive interview with CNN's Larry King.

Let's take a look at some live pictures. This is at Andrews Air Force Base -- President Obama coming back from his vacation in Martha's Vineyard. He will be having really a lot on his plate as he returns. Item number one, of course, going to be health care reform and really waiting to see where Congress stands with that and whether there can be some sort of bipartisan solution to that.

But President Obama with his wife Michelle, first lady Michelle Obama, and his daughters Malia and Sasha, getting on board there -- Marine One en route to the White House. We will, of course, bring you more information on what is ahead for him as he returns from vacation.

Now, police in South Georgia have arrested a man who they say tipped them off to a mass killing at a trailer park. Police say 22-year-old Guy Heinze Jr. is jailed on charges of drug possession, evidence tampering and lying to officers, but they would not say whether he is a suspect in the killings.

Heinze is related to one of the seven people found killed in this mobile home Saturday in Brunswick, which is near the Georgia coast. Two others were found there in critical condition. Heinze says he discovered the bodies when he returned home.

Autopsies are underway now. But police are not divulging details in this case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF MATT DOERING, GLYNN COUNTY POLICE: It would be a fair assumption at this point to say that there's somebody out there we're looking for. We just don't know who that person is. And I can't tell you if it's a single individual or more, but there was at least one. There's no question in our mind that if the person that was involved is not one of the victims. There's nine victims in this and we're comfortable that none of those nine were involved with this assault.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KEILAR: The chief went on to say they have tentatively identified the victims who he described as ranging from children to middle-aged adults.

As we told you, vacation now over. Now back to work for President Obama. On the top of his list: health care reform and the fight waiting for him on Capitol Hill.

Also, vigilante justice in the streets of New Orleans in the days after Hurricane Katrina. It's a story you really have to see to believe.

And Don's not with us right now, but we still want to know what's on your mind. So, log on to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com, and join our conversation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Less than 12 hours after Ted Kennedy was buried, his gravesite is open now for public viewing at Arlington National Cemetery. This site features a 2 1/2-foot cross, a marble cross and a marble marker. A temporary rope line has been set up so that people can approach Kennedy's gravesite and there are plans to build a permanent walkway in the future.

Senator Kennedy championed health care reform. And his presence -- well, it isn't likely to be forgotten as the debate returns to Washington. As Kate Bolduan tell us, the next round of this raging health care battle may have a gentler tone in honor of the lost "Liberal Lion."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama is returning from a week's vacation, and Congress will soon follow suit -- all heading back to Washington having made limited progress this summer in the debate over health care reform.

Already, one key Democrat is calling for a change of mood.

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: Put behind us the blistering days of August and to enter the cool days of September and start acting like senators again. We respect each other.

BOLDUAN: Sunday, following the burial of Senator Edward Kennedy, a champion of health care reform, Democratic lawmakers hoped Kennedy's memory will inspire passage of the sweeping health care overhaul.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I hope it means that people are going to sort of step back, take a deep breath, and try to figure out how we can have a good, open discussion and get away from politics.

BOLDUAN: But what of the government-run public option -- the centerpiece of the House Democratic proposal, and an issue that has left negotiations in the Senate stalled?

The now-senior senator from Massachusetts suggests that Democrats may need to follow Senator Kennedy's legacy of compromise.

KERRY: He would fight for it. But if he didn't see the ability to be able to get it done, he would not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

BOLDUAN: Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, a close friend of Kennedy's, says his absence will be felt as major issues, like cost, continue to divide both parties and chambers of Congress.

SEN. ORRIN HATCH (R), UTAH: In the long run, it's better to have a bipartisan compromise situation than it is to have one side just ram their own ideas through without any consideration for the other side. And, you know, we're talking about one-sixth of the American economy. That's pretty doggone important and you just can't do it in a partisan way.

BOLDUAN (on camera): President Obama will be in Washington Monday and Tuesday. He then leaves for the presidential retreat at Camp David for the rest of the week. Congress returns to once again take up the health care debate after Labor Day.

Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: It seems former Vice President Dick Cheney isn't holding anything back when talking about the current president or the last one. He told "FOX News Sunday" that he often disagreed with his old boss, President George W. Bush. Cheney says he would have taken military action against Iran's nuclear program if it were up to him, but he was overruled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, FROM "FOX NEWS SUNDAY")

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS: In 2007 and 2008, was it a mistake not to take out their program?

DICK CHENEY, FMR. U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: I think it was very important that the military option be on the table. I thought that negotiations couldn't possibly succeed unless the Iranians really believed we were prepared to use military force. And today, of course, they're still proceeding with their nuclear program and the matter's not yet been resolved. We can speculate about what might have happened if we'd followed a different course of action.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: But Cheney saved his harshest criticism for President Obama. He's accusing the commander-in-chief of playing politics with the probe of the CIA's harsh interrogation tactics of suspected terrorists.

New Orleans after the storm. A scene of vigilante justice as residents who stayed behind were armed and apparently dangerous. This is really a story that you're going to have to see to believe.

Also, a scene of mayhem in South Africa.

And missing at sea for more than a week, three fishermen are rescued from the Gulf of Mexico.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Separate bombings in Pakistan today killed at least 15 people and set a number of NATO refueling vehicles afire. The latest attack happened near a NATO fuel ferry. It said at least seven of the vehicles ablaze, causing a massive backup near the Afghan border crossing.

Meantime, in the Swat Valley town of Mingora, police say a suicide bomber targeting a police station blew himself up and killed 15 police cadets. Mingora has been a key area of fighting between government security forces and Taliban insurgents.

And more controversy in the case of the Lockerbie bomber freed from prison in Scotland over U.S. objections. Abdelbasset al Megrahi won a compassionate medical release 10 days ago and was sent home to Libya. But today, in a Tripoli hospital bed, he would not answer the question that is sweeping through the United Kingdom. Was he freed from prison as a part of a secret oil deal with the British government?

A U.K. newspaper reports such an agreement was brokered that would allow a British energy company drilling rights in Libya. But U.K. Justice Minister Jack Straw calls this report, quote, "wholly untrue."

When police officers start shooting at soldiers, you're almost guaranteed those soldiers will retaliate. That's exactly what happened in South Africa this week when more than 1,000 soldiers protested about their pay and police were told to go after them.

Police were shooting rubber bullets and tear gas, and both sides sustained injuries. The soldiers say they will continue the protests until they get a decent wage offer. The government is threatening to fire the soldiers.

A state of emergency in California, wildfires there growing, mandatory evacuations in place, and a stern warning from the governor, "Obey orders to leave or you will get burned."

Also, Phillip Garrido's jailhouse interview -- you have to hear it to believe it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: It's a worsening situation in the hills above Los Angeles where the so-called station fire is threatening more homes, prompting more evacuations. More than 35,000 acres have burned so far and flames are now threatening about 10,000 homes. Three people have been burned -- Governor Schwarzenegger saying that's because they did not heed the evacuation orders. He has now declared California in a state of emergency.

And meantime, firefighters are hoping the cooler temperatures and more manpower, maybe some lighter winds, will help them gain control.

So, let's check in now with CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras -- to see if maybe those firefighters are going to get what they're hoping for, Jacqui.

JERAS: Yes. We're not going to get a help -- a lot of help in any of those categories. In fact, right now as we speak, Brianna, this is the most critical time of the day when we start to see the highest temperature and the strongest of the wind gusts. I want to go ahead and show you what the conditions are like in this area right now. And you can see Glendale about 94 degrees; over here in Pomona, looking at around 101. So, it's really starting to get extremely warm. And we're going to be getting some of those wind gusts approaching, you know, 20-plus miles per hour.

Photos that we've been seeing from this have just been absolutely incredible. We want to remind our iReporter that we're thankful for your pictures, but please stay safe and make sure you're in an OK location.

Now, this one was taken in the early morning hours, over night's night -- last night, rather, and this was from Tammy Alsterland. And she said she was just amazed by the orange glow that she saw.

Also, check out some of this video here. This is from Marie Sager. If could take a look at the next one. There you can see just the billowing clouds. And this was taken yesterday from Murray. It just kind of shows you how light those winds are. And that allows the smoke plume just to really go high up into the air and also make that air quality really, really poor because it just kind of lingers across the whole area.

Now, what we really need is a little bit of relief. And unfortunately, it doesn't look like we're going to get that. You know, temperatures are going to cool down a little bit.

But some folks were hoping that maybe our hurricane here in the Pacific could bring some moisture to California. Right now, it doesn't look that way, maybe into Arizona, New Mexico, we'll watch that down the line.

But this is a very powerful hurricane, it's a category four storm. The forecast track does potentially bring its way on to the shore into Baja, California, as a category 4 storm. This won't be until Tuesday, maybe into Wednesday. Certainly, something we'll be watching around the Cabo San Lucas area, winds 140 miles per hour.

Jimena is the name of the storm and we'll continue to track that one for you as well -- Brianna?

KEILAR: It seems like Cabo always in the eye of the storm there certainly.

JERAS: They tend to get it.

KEILAR: Yes. Jacqui Jeras for us in the weather center -- thanks for that.

Well, the sudden reappearance of Jaycee Dugard 18 years after she was kidnapped, this made headlines around the world. But it could just be the beginning of a long and very bizarre crime saga. Police in Antioch, California, are now searching the property next door to the home of Dugard's alleged kidnapper, Phillip Garrido. Garrido is also believed to have fathered Dugard's two daughters.

Police say Garrido used to live on the next door property and they want to know if any bodies or other evidence are buried there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY LEE, CONTRA COSTA CO. SHERIFF'S OFFICE: I'm going to confirm those are our cadaver dogs. We're going to have them go through the backyard at 1450 and that's part of the overall investigation. It's too early to say what we're looking for. I mean, anything that may be linked to some open cases that we have. At this point, we're going thoroughly through both backyards. And it's just too early to say, you know, what we might come up with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Investigators are looking for any evidence that could link Garrido to other crimes in the area, including unsolved murders of prostitutes in the 1990s. Police have been interviewing Garrido's neighbors. We actually talked to some of them as well.

And here's what a couple of them had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE ROGERS, NEIGHBOR: They would be partying next door, be drinking and carrying on. There would be a bunch of guys back there. They always had a bonfire going. They'd be high-fiving each other and just going crazy.

DALE WHITE, NEIGHBOR: Laughing, and you never heard any kids having more fun than that. And also, an adult lady, you know? And she was just cracking up, like, you know, they were horse-playing in the pool or something.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Phillip Garrido was in custody only a short time before he granted a jailhouse interview to a local TV reporter. In effect, he said, you haven't seen anything yet.

GARRIDO: Wait till you read that document. I -- my life has been straightened out. Wait till you hear this story of what took place at this house. And you're going to be absolutely impressed that this is a disgusting thing that took place in the beginning. But I turned my life completely around -- to be able to understand that you have to (INAUDIBLE).

KEILAR: Mental health experts expect that Jaycee Dugard and her daughters will need a lifetime of therapy to deal with what happened to them.

Dr. Clarence Watson is a forensic psychiatrist and is an expert in mental disorders, a faculty member of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Psychiatry, joining us now from Philadelphia.

Dr. Watson, you have all of this experience with disorders, for instance, schizophrenia. When you listen to this jailhouse interview that Garrido gave this reporter, it's rambling. It's very strange. It doesn't seem to be coming from someone with a sound mind. Can you glean anything from maybe what disorder perhaps Garrido may have when you listen to this?

DR. CLARENCE WATSON, FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL OF PSYCHIATRY: Well, I certainly wouldn't be able to say whether or not -- what specific disorder or even if he had a disorder. But there are quite a few things that were concerning about his interview. Certainly, he was talking about some important documents going to the FBI. A number of other things that showed that he wasn't really understanding reality as it is. If you think about what he was saying about this turning out to be a heartwarming story, it really sort of goes against what we know this entire situation to be.

KEILAR: If he's saying, Dr. Watson, this is going to be -- you'll see -- he said this over and over to the reporter. You will see this is going to be a heartwarming story. I mean, I don't think anyone could agree with that. Is that someone who is in touch with reality at all if they're saying that?

WATSON: It doesn't seem so at all. He'll have to undergo official and formal mental status examinations by professionals who actually will sit and evaluate him. But certainly that gives you a tipoff that he may not be totally in touch with reality.

KEILAR: Dr. Watson, one of the really interesting things that we've learned here over the last day is that Jaycee Dugard actually had access to e-mail. She may have had access to a phone. And yet she didn't try to escape. We've seen this before. You know, be it Elizabeth Smart or Patty Hearst. But just make some sense of this for us.

WATSON: It certainly is counterintuitive. You would think a person being held against their will try anything they could possibly do to get out of captivity. Now, there is a syndrome that is called Stockholm syndrome. And I don't know if this is something that this young lady faced or not or dealt with, but Stockholm syndrome, in essence, is a psychological reaction that people who may be held in captivity either through kidnapping or as hostages, they begin to have a positive feelings or attachments towards their captors. And they may pass up opportunities to escape. They may have feelings for their captors. They may even feel sympathy for their captors well after they've been released out of captivity. Some think that this is actually a survival mechanism allowing the person to cope with the idea of being in captivity and the stress of being in captivity, and really is a way to ensure survival in the long run.

KEILAR: And maybe a preservation technique. But I think one of the things that a lot of people wonder when looking at Jaycee Dugard and her two daughters, what kind of chance do they have to acclimate to this new world they're coming into?

WATSON: This is a very unusual case as it is. If you think about it, this young lady has spent the majority, the vast majority of her life in captivity and isolated, more time with her captor than she has with her biological family. So some of the challenges that she will face will be, first, becoming reacquainted with her family members. Also, having her children deal with the idea that now their father that they've always known, was actually their mother's captor. And also re-introducing her or introducing her children for the first time to their family. This is something that's very difficult given their whole life of being in isolation.

Jaycee will certainly need some professional assistance to help herself and her children adjust.

KEILAR: And hopefully, she'll be getting that. So many questions here.

Dr. Clarence Watson, thank you for answering the ones that are on top of our mind. We appreciate it.

WATSON: Any time, thank you.

KEILAR: What about Jaycee's two young daughters? At the ages of 11 and 15, they have known no other life. How can they begin to heal? We'll discuss their outlook with a child psychologist coming up in our 7:00 p.m. hour.

Coming up tonight at 10:00 p.m. eastern to talk about the Dugard case, Marc Klaas. You'll recall he lost his 12-year-old daughter Polly in 1993 to a man who kidnapped her from a slumber party. Since then Klaas has become a highly visible advocate to protect children from sexual predators.

If you've been following this story, you know that Phillip Garrido spent a decade in federal prison for assaulting a woman many years ago. She'll tell her story tomorrow night in an exclusive interview with CNN's Larry King.

Vigilante justice in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We shot them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were looters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Blunt and shocking admissions from residents in New Orleans ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KEILAR: Four years ago, Hurricane Katrina bludgeoned the gulf coast, killing more than 1400 people in New Orleans alone. This weekend, the city paused to remember.

Those ringing bells recalling the moment the first levee broke letting loose a deadly flood that left much of the city under water. Mayor Ray Nagin was at the ceremony yesterday thanking city residents for their resilience.

And while Hurricane Katrina was sweeping into New Orleans, law and order appears to be sweeping out. The FBI investigating report of several shootings by vigilantes.

Our Gary Tuchman tracked down this story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Listen to these shocking comments made by Hurricane Katrina survivors days after the storm.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We shot them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were looters.

TUCHMAN: Is this true? We came to New Orleans to find the people in this documentary shot by Danish filmmakers and to talk to this man who says, three nights after Katrina, he saw three armed white men, one of whom pointed his gun at him.

DENNELLY (ph) HARRINGTON, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT: He said (EXPLETIVE DELETED), I'm going to get you.

TUCHMAN: Dennelly (ph) Harrington, who said he was merely walking to a ferry boat, through the mostly white neighborhood of Algiers Point, was shot in the neck. But it wasn't over.

HARRINGTON: I managed to get up to my feet and the guy let off another shot. And he hit me in my back. And I fell and hit the ground again.

TUCHMAN: His life was saved by this surgeon, who says his hospital typically gets one or two gunshot victims over a 30-day period.

But in the few days following Katrina...

(on camera): How many gun shot wounds?

DR. CHARLES THOMAS, WEST JEFFERSON MEDICAL CENTER: Six to ten.

TUCHMAN: So that's unusual?

THOMAS: Yes.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): The doctor says about half died. Clearly, people were taking matters into their own hands. There was no shortage of panic, paranoia and lawlessness in New Orleans. There were many in Algiers Point who took extreme measures, measures, they say, had nothing to do with race, but security.

(on camera): Is it fair to say, in your neighborhood, you organized a private militia.

VINNIE PERVEL, ALGIERS POINT RESIDENT: Private militia, neighborhood watch.

TUCHMAN: But a private watch with dozens and scores of guns?

PERVEL: Yes.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Vinnie Pervel says he doesn't know who shot Dennelly (ph) Harrington, but told me, he and his numbers had a huge number of weapons at the ready to keep criminals away, and that some of his neighbors had been firing shots.

PERVEL: I used the Second Amendment. I beared arms to protect myself. I'll do it again.

TUCHMAN: Algiers Point residents were very blunt in the documentary.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was our sign down the street we had, 12 gauge shotgun.

TUCHMAN: In the documentary, they appear to be drinking beer while making these comments.

This is Wayne Janik.

WAYNE JANIK, ALGIERS PIONT RESIDENT: Like pheasant season in South Dakota. If it moved, you shot it.

TUCHMAN: Four years later, we found Wayne Janik at his home.

(on camera): You said it was like pheasant season in South Dakota. If it moved, you shot it.

JANIK: Taken completely out of context. First of all, they said what was the noise like over here? I said I grew up in South Dakota. I said the first day of pheasant season everybody shoots at anything that's moving.

TUCHMAN: But the inference was that you shot at somebody here.

JANIK: Right, which is totally untrue.

TUCHMAN: But did you say that because you were drunk?

JANIK: I don't know. I don't remember the interview.

TUCHMAN: Were you bragging or...

JANIK: Probably.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Nathan Roper was also interviewed in the documentary.

NATHAN ROPER, ALGIERS POINT RESIDENT: You had to do what you had to do. If you had to shoot somebody, you had to shoot somebody.

TUCHMAN: We happened to run into Nathan Roper in an Algiers Point bar.

ROPER: They never asked me if I shot anyone.

TUCHMAN (on camera): I don't think you said you shot somebody. You said if you had to, you would do it.

ROPER: If I had to, if they were polka dot, green, yellow, white, black. If they were on my property causing harm to my property, food -- I gave plenty of food away.

TUCHMAN: You would have shot someone that came on your property?

ROPER: If they was coming to harm, absolutely.

TUCHMAN: But that didn't happen?

ROPER: No, that didn't happen.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Vinnie Pervel, who wasn't in the Danish documentary, said he almost fired at somebody.

PERVEL: There was one that I actually forewarned him. I said, look, I know you're there. I'm going to count to three, and I'm going to shoot. One, two, and I hear, "Don't shoot." And you hear footsteps just running off.

TUCHMAN: Police and the military were nowhere to be seen in those chaotic days. So what you're about to hear from the man who was shot is simply stunning.

(on camera): How many times have the New Orleans police talked to you about this case?

HARRINGTON: Zero. None.

TUCHMAN: Never?

HARRINGTON: Never.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): A.C. Thompson a journalist for a news organization called ProPublica. He's been investigating the case about two years and wrote about it in "The Nation" magazine.

A.C. THOMPSON, REPORTER, PROPUBLICA: Across the city people did gunshot wounded on violence. It seems that there was no real effort by law enforcement to figure out what happened to these people. TUCHMAN: After Thompson's article this past December, police said they would look into the allegations. But when CNN contacted them, they declined to make any comment. Now the FBI is on the case, interviewing Dennelly (ph) Harrington and people who stayed behind in Algiers Point.

PERVEL: At the time, at the storm I thought, I guess, we could be considered like a neighborhood hero. When the FBI contacted me, I felt like a vigilante, a thug.

TUCHMAN (on camera): What are you?

PERVEL: I'm somebody that's going to protect my home. I don't care what it takes. I'm going to protect my home.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Dennelly (ph) Harrington doesn't know who attacked him.

HARRINGTON: I believe that they were those guys were hunting black people.

TUCHMAN: And he believes there are people in this tight-knit community who do know.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Ahead, a story with a happy conclusion. Missing at sea for more than a week, three fishermen are rescued from the Gulf of Mexico.

And Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is in charge of protecting your money. But apparently, someone needs to protect his.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Three fishing buddies survive for more than a week lost at sea living on bubblegum, crackers and certainly some willpower and courage. The Texas men stepped back on dry land early today after spending eight days clinging to their capsized catamaran in the Gulf of. James Phillips, Curtis Hall and Tressel Hawkins were spotted by a boater yesterday, one day after the Coast Guard stopped searching for them.

Our Fredricka Whitfield spoke with one of the fishermen who describes the struggle to survive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRESSEL HAWKINS, LOST AT SEA SURVIVOR: We were trying to go out and catch swordfish and marlin. So we decided to go 100 miles south from Matagorda, which is an oil rig called Tequila. And we made it down there in good time, had a good time, set up camp. And we were ready to fish Saturday morning. And during that night, I guess it was around 11:00, 11:30, the water extractor on one side of the pontoon was not extracting the water as we were sleeping. It became a rude awakening when I was moving around on a bean bag and it started floating out from up under me. I really didn't think anything of it because I thought I was on a boat and it's just shaking around. Once I put my leg down and the water actually reached up to my knee, I kind of -- I just kind of jumped up and tried to wake everybody else up. By that time, the water level had gotten, you know, pretty serious in had gotten pretty serious in there. So we were trying to extract the water.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It's very dark at this point, so clearly you are trying to wake them up verbally? How are you getting each other's attention? And how do you have the wherewithal to keep in contact with one another because, now you got to figure out how it to help keep each other alive in all of this.

HAWKINS: Right. After the yelling and screaming and everybody's awake and aware of what's going on, we tried to extract the water out as fast as we could. And once we tried to start the boat up and just move it to have the water surge out the back. Five seconds, it started tilting and just rolled right over. And that was it. We jumped ship. Next thing we know, everything is floating in the water. And we were just trying to salvage what we could and go from there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: The Coast Guard says the men weathered the ordeal pretty well, all things considered. All three of them actually turned down medical attention once they were plucked to safety. Just unbelievable.

Well, if you think identity theft can't happen to you, think again. Even the chairman of the Federal Reserve is at risk.

And saving Detroit one song at a time. Detroit's bad boy, Kid Rock, becomes the voice of the struggling city.

(EDGE OF DISCOVERY)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: He may be the chairman of the Federal Reserve, but even Ben Bernanke isn't immune from identity theft. Police in Washington say Bernanke's personal bank account was targeted after his wife's purse was stolen at a Capitol Hill Starbucks last summer. Someone started cashing checks on the Bernanke's account just days after the purse was taken. Prosecutors say Bernanke was among hundreds of victims of an identity fraud ring that stole more than $2 million from consumers and financial institutions across the country.

Perhaps no American city has been hit harder by this recession and the decline of the auto industry than Detroit. But a rock star from the Motor City is doing what he can to try to turn things around.

CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM (voice-over): This is no ordinary concert. It's Kid Rock performing at his biggest headline show ever bringing 80,000 people to his hometown of Detroit. Talk about a city that needs an economic stimulus like that.

(SINGING)

HARLOW: Detroit has never seen times like these. But the people of this city have an unexpected patron in Kid Rock. The bad boy from Detroit has become the voice of a city in peril about.

(on camera): How long have you had this?

KID ROCK, MUSICIAN: This? Oh, geez. Probably ten years.

HARLOW: You won't leave, will you?

KID ROCK: No, I'll never leave.

We've got one more song for you.

HARLOW (voice-over): The down fall of the auto industry hits home for Kid Rock whose father made a living selling American cars.

KID ROCK: It's mind blowing. It's mind-blowing to everybody in this town.

God bless you all.

HARLOW: And in this peril husband time, this self-proclaimed son of Detroit is working on more than just his music.

KID ROCK: As I've gotten older, I've become more in tune with that and realize how much the stuff that I'm doing can help people.

RON ADAMS, DEROIT RESIDENT): You look at the impact that he's having here in Detroit in terms of a foundation at Wayne State University, trying to fund muz he can scholarships for kid there is, I think he's had a major positive impact on Detroit, which is something this economy needs right now.

HARLOW: Kid Rock's music scholarship is funded by T-shirt sales from the apparel company he bought out of bankruptcy made in Detroit. And believe it or not, his recently launched American Bad Ass Beer, well, that can be thanked for creating jobs in the state. More than 400 jobs he says.

KID ROCK: There's in way to get love back or get respect if you don't if I have it first, so I've always tried to do that give everything I have to this city.

HARLOW: But battling rampant unemployment, Detroit has problems much bigger than even this larger-than-life rocker can solve.

KID ROCK: It's got to get cleaned up. They got to bring -- we just almost need an angel. (SINGING)

HARLOW: In Detroit, Poppy Harlow, CNNMoney.com.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Now some tweets that we want to show that you have been coming in.

4earth says, "Nobody is asking, none of them has been to school, how will they ever make it in the world with to education?"

These are answers to the question about how Jaycee Dugard, that girl kidnapped 18 years ago, how she and her children will acclimate to their new life.

Misskenjohnson says, "Is it possible for Jaycee to make a full psychological recovery in this ordeal or will she always be haunted by this?"

We'll actually be talking to a child psychologist in the next hour so keep your questions coming so we can ask our expert that. You can log on to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com. Tell me what you're thinking.