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Afghanistan Investigation; Man Charged in Georgia Slayings; California Wildfires Determined Arson
Aired September 05, 2009 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: The Georgia man who called 911 to report his entire family killed in their mobile home is now charged with their murders.
And firefighters are making progress battling that massive California wildfire burning north of Los Angeles.
You're in the CNN NEWSROOM where the news unfolds live this Saturday, September 5th. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
From police tipster to accused mass murderer: last Saturday, 22-year- old Guy Heinze called 911 to report the brutal crime scene -- eight people killed in his home. Most of the victims were his relatives. But last night, police was jailed and charged Heinze for the slaying. CNN Sean Callebs is in Brunswick, Georgia with the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: Most of the victims in the brutal slaying here in Brunswick, Georgia are going to be laid to rest today. Seven caskets were in a funeral home last night. Family members wanted our cameras there. They wanted to show the community to remind the killer that they thought the killer was out there, quote, "a monster" and they wanted the person responsible arrested.
There was an arrest late Friday night. Police chief here in Glynn County Matt Doering said he had significant new evidence, a couple pieces of evidence that came to light late Friday. He wouldn't say what they were and he won't talk about a possible motive.
But we know that 22-year-old Guy Heinze, Jr., the person who made a very passionate 911 call after finding the victims is the one arrested and charged with these killings. He's accused of not only killing his father but five other family members and two family friends as well.
Doering says this is a particularly vicious crime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT DOERING, POLICE CHIEF, GLYNN COUNTY: ... the most heinous crime we have had in the community. I think we all know that. And I think that speaks for itself.
Much more than that, I don't want to comment, I don't want to say anything that would be inappropriate. There's still a lot going on right now. The family is going through that grieving process, and I just want to leave it alone right there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CALLEBS: Police Chief Doering says that Heinze Jr. wasn't a suspect until Friday, and indeed he had been let out of prison on a $20,000 bond late Friday only to be arrested an hour and a half later.
Family members say they found out that Heinze Jr. had been charged with the crime while they were at the visitation. They say they were simply floored, simply shocked, and it's something that's going to take a long time to recover from.
Sean Callebs, CNN, Brunswick, Georgia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Quote, "Anything is possible with this guy." That's what police in Nevada are saying as they look into unsolved kidnapping and where there is any connection to Phillip Garrido. Garrido is the man accused of abducting a girl from a bus top in California and holding her for 18 years.
Meantime, police towed away a van from Garrido's backyard yesterday. Garrido and his wife are accused of holding Jaycee Dugard in tents and sheds behind his house.
Police say Garrido fathered two children with his captive. The couple is being held without bail.
And friends of Jaycee Dugard had said when she was just 11 years old, they were actually amazed when they learned she had been discovered 18 years later. As CNN's Kara Finnstrom reports, Dugard's disappearance nearly two decades ago had a huge impact on her small mountain community.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMELIA EDWARDS, DUGARD'S FORMER CLASSMATE: Kind of like the feeling you need to pinch yourself to see if it's real. It felt like a dream, almost.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Amelia Edwards has been overwhelmed with emotions since finding out her childhood friend Jaycee Dugard is alive. Watching her own young daughter on this trampoline, she says 18 years ago it was her jumping here with Jaycee.
EDWARDS: Actually, I jumped with Jacyee on my trampoline the day before she went missing.
FINNSTROM (on camera): What was she like?
EDWARDS: Pretty much a normal, 11-year-old girl in South Lake Tahoe. Very laid back, very open and spirited.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): That was the last time she saw her friend. The next morning, Jacyee Dugard left home for the school bus she took every day.
FINNSTROM (on camera): But she never made it to the bus stop. It was about here that police believe Phillip and Nancy Garrido pulled Jaycee into their car and vanished.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): Neighbors in this tight community, who used to leave doors unlocked, say everything changed that day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All the parents now, most of us take our kids to school by car, unfortunately. And there's just that fear in us.
FINNSTROM: That fear even more real for Edwards. The week before Dugard disappeared, Edwards says she told her parents a car with a man and woman followed her home from the bus stop.
EDWARDS: I remember hearing the tire tracks pull onto the dirt road behind me. And it freaked me out, and I remember walking faster, hearing the tires go faster. It made me even more scared. And so I ran home.
STEPHANIE TARPEY, AMELIA EDWARDS' MOTHER: We thought it was a 10- year-old being overly dramatic and didn't believe her, actually. And then when we got the news that Myers elementary school was in lockdown, it really hit home.
FINNSTROM: Edwards says, at the time, she immediately recognized sketches of the car and woman on the news.
EDWARDS: At 11 years old, it was my worst nightmare coming true. My mom stated it was the boogie man coming to life.
FINNSTROM: Edwards needed to do something.
EDWARDS: This is one of the original pink ribbons.
FINNSTROM: She started what became a massive pink ribbon campaign. For 18 years the pink ribbon spread on trees, on cars, on charm bracelets like hers.
EDWARDS: My very first charm that a connected to this bracelet was this pink ribbon here for Jaycee.
FINNSTROM: Now Edwards and her neighbors are putting up more of those pink ribbons, this time to say they represent not hope, but celebration.
In South Lake Tahoe, Kara Finnstrom for CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: So the Dugard case brings up the question, how do you protect your child from predators? Our Josh Levs looked into that, and here is what he found.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: More and more people are turning to the Internet to protect their children from predators that may be out there out there. And there are some websites that are getting a lot of traffic.
I want to show them to you. I'm going to show you several. You don't need to write them down as we go because there is one place I'll show you at the end where we have listed all of them, you can just click.
This is the first one I want you to see. This is "Family Safety Report." It's initially free, then a $30 a month charge to stay on it. They post an example of the kind of report they send you if there's a registered sex offender that moves into your area.
Here is a free one. This is familywatchdog.us. I typed in an address here, and everywhere there's a red square is the home of a convicted offender. They provide you information, they show a picture of what the person looks like.
There's also a sight from the government. I want to show you that now because anyone in any state is able to use that. Zoom in, this is it right here. At the FBI's Web site it talks about crimes against children. It lists every state. You just click on the state.
I randomly as an example clicked on Oklahoma. I typed in "Oklahoma City." It gives a list of people in the city. You can click on them and get information about them, including photos.
I mentioned there's one place to go and see all of this, just click on it. It's on the "Newsroom" blog, CNN.com/josh. I have put links to all the websites I just told you about.
And we would love to hear from you. Here is how you get in touch, CNN.com/josh, also Facebook and twitter. Let us know, have you used the sites? Did they work well for you? Did they not work well for you? Are there other sites that work particularly well. We'll share information and keep a close eye on that and share some of it here right here.
Back to you.
WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, josh.
Out west, some good news for fire crews battling that massive blaze near Los Angeles.
Plus, how arson investigators plan to find enough clues to build a murder case.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: California firefighters are making headway against the massive station wildfire burning outside of Los Angeles. Fire crews have the western edge of the blaze that scorched more than 150,000 acres under control, and they are trying to hold fire lines to the north, south and east.
The fire has destroyed more than 70 homes so far. Right now, it's about 50 percent contained. And forestry officials say it could be fully contained by September 15. Investigators are trying to zoom in on who started this blaze. California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is offering a $100,000 reward for information on the suspected arsonist.
In Los Angeles, people are honoring the firefighters, Ted Hall and Arnie Quinones, who died battling the station fire. Our Brian Todd explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The remains of a fallen firefighter are driven past his saluting colleagues. His death and that of another firefighter mean the biggest wildfire in Los Angeles history is now a homicide case. That's because investigators are now calling this arson. The incident commander adds another phrase.
CHIEF MIKE DIETRICH, INCIDENT COMMANDER: For any act of arson in the wild this is domestic terrorism. That's my personal opinion. I believe that other folks have said that, because it affects communities, citizens, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and what else could it be?
TODD: This could be ground zero, mile marker 29 on the Angeles Crest highway in the Angeles National Forest. Veteran investigators tell us it's likely they believe this is the point of origin.
Officials are not commenting on a "Los Angeles Times" report that incendiary material was found here. The source for that information didn't specify what material that is.
Tom Fee, a former Pomona fire chief who's investigated thousands of wildfires around the U.S. said it could be a range of things.
TOM FEE, WILDFIRE INVESTIGATOR: Probably they either found the match that was left there, the lighter that was left there, the incendiary device that was left there, the road flare that was used to start the fire.
TODD: Fee takes us through the CSI of wildfire investigations. Clues, he says, are everywhere.
FEE: Paper on the ground like this also become good indicators.
TODD: These, he says, are indicators of the direction the fire burned in at the point of origin. An investigator on the scene elaborates.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Indicators can be things such as burned rocks. It can be soil that's been damaged.
TODD: Fee says while these clues reveal the direction, arson is revealed by anything form something on the ground to a confession. But another key question --
TODD (on camera): -- in a territory the size of a major city, burned acreage, not only finding the point of origin, but determining it's arson really, fairly quickly, in a matter of a few days. How do they get to that point in a few days?
FEE: Each fire is a little bit different. But the things we use are early on aerial photographs, sometimes satellite photographs, witness statements.
The firefighters that first arrived, they will know what the area involved was at the time they arrived.
TODD: And with those methods, they can narrow down the point of origin to an acre or less, maybe even a manmade object like this burned out bottle. They comb through the area with anything from sifters to dogs, and then they look for witnesses.
Brian Todd, CNN, Tujunga Canyon, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(WEATHER BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Why would the leaders of the world's richest economy want to slash the salaries of big bank executives? Would you believe to actually help our bottom line?
CNN's Richard Quest is live from London where a summit of G-20 finance ministers is wrapping up. Hello to you, Richard. This is interesting because a lot of folks in the U.S. have been talking about the bank bonuses, but come to find out that is something else that we have in common with the other G-20, or the other 19 countries at this summit.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. And it has been the horror and speed, if you like, with which so many bankers have gone back to paying bonuses that has the G-20 up in arms.
The issue at today's meeting, preparing for the Pittsburgh summit in three weeks time, is how to get agreement between those countries that want a radical reform, caps on bonuses, and those like the United States that prefer more modest proposals by basically want to change the way things are done.
After the G-20 reached their agreement, I got an exclusive interview with Tim Geithner, the U.S. treasure secretary, and he said it didn't really matter which way forward, there was going to be change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIMOTHY GEITHNER, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: There's no risk that we will -- can afford and will allow conditions to go back to what they were in the peak of the boom.
QUEST: But the speed in which they have gone back to those sort of...
GEITHNER: They haven't gone back yet.
QUEST: On the way?
GEITHNER: No, haven't gone back yet. And I think it's important that it not happen again.
You are going to see very significant reforms and compensation across the major financial centers. And one thing we did today, which is very important, is reach an agreement on a common framework and commit ourselves to make sure that we're going to apply those standards on an even basis across our countries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: So, for instance, there will be no more general bonuses. Bonuses will be paid under these new rules over several years.
And crucially, there will be the opportunity to claw back bonuses if companies substantially don't do well.
On the wider issue, Fredricka, of the economic recovery, you might be tempted to think things are going well, the stock market is rising. But again, the G-20 reminded us, as Tim Geithner told me, we are not out of this, yet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEITHNER: We have brought the world economy back from the edge of the abyss, and you are starting to see the necessary conditions for a recovery.
But, we don't have recovery, yet. We have growth on the way, but we don't have the conditions for a self-sustaining recovery led by private demand, which is what we are all committed to achieve.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Fredricka, those words, "self-sustaining recovery," they sound rather technical and extremely jargonistic. But basically it means the only thing propping us all up at the moment, government stimulus cash.
WHITFIELD: Interesting stuff. So we may see more of it in some corners?
QUEST: The feeling is there's probably enough washing around the world at the moment. The key question, and remember you heard it here -- exit strategy. At what point will the federal government start pulling back its spending, reducing that 13 percent budget deficit that's currently running?
At what point will it start to basically say we now need to get back to business as usual. What Tim Geithner was telling us, that time is not now. What he wouldn't tell me is when U.S. jobless numbers would actually start to turn around. He said change was in the offering, but it's still a way to go.
WHITFIELD: Everyone wishes they had that in their crystal ball. Richard Quest, thanks so much from London, appreciate that.
What the president of the United States wants to do to fatten your 401(k) ASAP.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now.
More unrest in China's troubled city of Urumquy. State run media says the city's Communist Party chief was fired this morning. No reason was given for his dismissal.
The city has been a hotbed of racial tensions for weeks between Han Chinese and the native Muslim minority of Uighurs who the Han blame for a string of hypodermic needle attack.
And police in southern Illinois say they solved a nearly two year old child abduction case. With the arrest of Shannon Wilfong, the mother of a missing six-year-old boy, police say they found both Wilfong and the child hiding in a secret, specially built room inside the grandmother's house. The boy was the subject of a hard-fought custody dispute.
And President Obama says he wants to make it easier for Americans to save for retirement. During his weekly address the president said the federal government is taking steps to allow people to have their federal tax refund sent as savings bonds.
Another initiative automatically enrolls employees into employer run savings plans unless the individual opts out. We'll get another check at top stories in about 20 minutes from now.
A NATO air strike with civilian casualties in Afghanistan, what America's top commander there is saying about the incident and the investigation.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: They were targeting steel tankers that were hijacked by the Taliban. Instead, Afghan civilians were hit in a deadly NATO air strike. CNN's Atia Abawi is live in Kabul with the latest on this investigation -- Atia?
ATIA ABAWI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, investigations are still under way in northern Afghanistan where that NATO air strike hit the two tankers that were hijacked by Taliban fighters. And in the end, Afghan officials are saying 90 people have been killed, dozens of civilians as well as dozens of Taliban fighters.
The investigation is underway with ISAF, International Security Assistant Force, as well as the Afghan government. Let's listen to what top NATO commander here in Air Force has to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL, COMMANDER, NATO FORCES IN AFGHANISTAN: It is important to me that we be as honest with the Afghan people and with people around the world as possible. Of course, you don't know all the facts until an investigation is complete. And I clearly don't know all the facts now and would not want to affect a potential investigation by saying -- making a conclusion that would be inappropriate.
But from what I have seen today and going to the hospital, it's clear to me there were some civilians who were harmed at that site.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABAWI: General Stanley McCrystal actually issued a new directive back in July to make sure that NATO forces do not target any militants that are in the vicinity of civilians, hoping to prevent civilian casualties to gain more Afghan support for coalition troops, had begun to fade away when there were more and more air strikes and more civilians dying.
What's going to be interesting here is that you have one investigation with ISAF forces and another with the Afghan government, President Hamid Karzai sending his own envoy up there. We are waiting for results from both investigations.
But what we have learned from the past, you very hear different numbers coming from both sides. We will have to wait and see what went on and how to move past it the coalition forces want to move on in the war here in Afghanistan -- Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: Atia Abawi, thanks so much from Kabul.
And something you don't want to miss. Starting Monday, an "AC 360" Special Report. Anderson Cooper takes us inside Afghanistan live from the battle zone. It begins Monday night, 10:00 Eastern on CNN.
The White House goes on the defensive over President Obama's back to school speech.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: President Obama has a huge week ahead of him. First, he's preparing to give a big speech to Congress and the nation. And now CNN has learned the White House is actually working to draft its own health care legislation.
CNN's Kate Bolduan is at the White House. So Kate, what is this all about?
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Fredricka.
Well, CNN has learned the White House is quietly talking about drafting its own health care bill, a sort of contingency legislation if talks fall apart on Capitol Hill.
The move is a possible reversal in course for a White House that has long left it solely to Congress to write this health care reform legislation. The White House late Friday stressed that no final language has been written, a White House spokesperson in a statement saying quote "The president has been reviewing all various legislative proposals, but no decision has been made about whether formal legislation will be presented."
Sources close to the process say the plan is still unclear. But it is a sign, Fredricka, that the president, in addition to Wednesday's speech, as you noted, is ready to get more involved in the negotiations and the debate.
WHITFIELD: Any idea exactly what might be in this proposal?
BOLDUAN: Clearly, a lot of moving parts, and it's definitely not set in stone, yet. But we are hearing the key to this is the White House is leaning against including the public option in their draft and leaning more toward something like a trigger option.
This is an idea that moderate Republican Senator Olympia Snowe has long pushed for, which is a public option would not kick or be triggered unless insurance companies neglected to make necessary reforms, reforms including stopping the insurance industry practice of using preexisting conditions to deny coverage.
And CNN has also learned the Obama administration could send such a plan to the Hill sometime after the president's speech next week.
And Fredricka, one point there, just one additional point, I just received an email from Moveon.org, the liberal activist group, who emailed it's members asking them to contact the White House to say no to the trigger option.
So you see he's also already getting pressure from the left if the White House is moving away from the public option.
WHITFIELD: Kate Bolduan, thanks so much. Appreciate that from Washington.
The president resets his strategy on health care reform next week. He's addressing Congress Wednesday night. And of course you can watch it here on CNN, following analysis from the best political team on television. It's Wednesday, 8:00 p.m. eastern here on CNN.
Another speech that is igniting controversy is the president's scheduled address on Tuesday urging students to stay in school. But many conservative parents say they think it's a forum for the president to push his political agenda.
The White House is now planning to release a transcript of the speech Monday. Some say it's a positive message, while others are planning on pulling their kids out of school.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE GUTMANN, JR., LAW GOVERNMENT TEACHER: It's the president talking to students. You know, the embrace of technology as a young student, I would have been so excited as a kid to have the president talk to me. So, I think it's a great opportunity for our students and we're going to embrace it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Trying to bring his views all into the school, and, you know, with the school kids and things. So no, I don't think it's a good idea for him to do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Well, you can watch the president's full address to the nation's schoolchildren Tuesday starting at noon eastern, 9:00 a.m. pacific. And you can see it here on CNN.
Shaping up to be a very busy week for the president as you heard. So how important is it? Andy Barr covers all the goings on in Washington for Politico.com. He's joining us right now. Good to see you.
ANDY BARR, REPORTER, POLITICO.COM: Good to see you.
WHITFIELD: Let's start off with this school speech, the president making an address to schoolchildren across the country. There's been expressed concerned he's pushing his political agenda. Historically, have we ever seen that from a president when they address a classroom?
BARR: You know, it's funny, we have seen many president's address classrooms. The White House says all they are going to be putting forward is telling students to work hard, focus on education.
I think this uproar is really a sign of how contentious and divided this past August was, what we saw with those town halls. We saw uproar over the health care. That is definitely carrying in and bleeding into September here.
WHITFIELD: And you believe this uproar, whether we saw it over health care, you think that is the same machine that is fueling this kind of contention against the president speaking to students?
BARR: I think that certainly a lot of those players are involved in this. Something to keep in mind, though, is you had a lot of people very angry over the past month.
You really have things ramped up in the White House because the president was on vacation, because Congress was out, wasn't really putting up an opposing message. Really you just had this fervor out against it. I think that's bleeding into now. And that's something you are seeing with this speech, and that's something...
WHITFIELD: So is it really about concerns about what the president may say, whether he is to say something inappropriate for an audience of schoolchildren, or is this really about something else?
BARR: You know, it's kind of hard what they would think the president would say that would be so negative that would impact the kids this way, especially when they're saying this.
I think it's a smart move on the White House's part to release the transcript Monday, trying to reassure parents and school boards that it's not going to be political in nature.
Obviously other times when politicians spoke to students, parents who were opposed were not so thrilled about it. But at the same time, the White House is saying this is not political in nature.
WHITFIELD: All of this on the heels of health care, as you mentioned, talk about stimulus, whether it's necessary, et cetera, and now we're talking, what, seven, eight months into his presidency, and his approval ratings are dipping quite considerably.
Let's take a look at some of the numbers we have here. How is Obama handling his job as president? Approval, 53 percent, disapprove, 45 percent.
Is this alarming in your view considering the numbers have changed considerably over time? Now, 53 percent, July, 3 percent higher, and in June was 61 percent.
BARR: Right. I think the thing that's really concerning for the White House is they were expecting there was going to be a drop. There was always going to be an end to the honeymoon.
The scary thing for them is that it seems like his numbers have been in free fall since the beginning of the summer, where, remember, back in June, as you were pointing out, his numbers well into the 60s.
WHITFIELD: Is there a way to gauge why?
BARR: They would have known and told you that when you take on issues like health care, some of the big picture things that they are trying to take on that a lot of people have various views on it, you are going to take some hits. They have certainly taken theirs.
Whether they have negotiated that and navigated that path well or not is another thing. But anytime you take on an issue like health care where it's so personal to people, you are going to divide the country.
WHITFIELD: And now with the president crafting or at least other members of the White House trying to craft the health care reform proposal as opposed to leaving it up to Congress and a bipartisan effort for lawmakers to come up with a proposal and all the infighting that's since ensued, now the president says we're going to craft our own, and even make some modifications on the whole school speech or the lesson plans that was being asked of the students, does that in some way reflect that the White House is very conscientious of the approval ratings and is trying to shift gears, make decisions to better reach, I guess, those who are not happy with the way he is doing his job?
BARR: It definitely shows that they are trying to switch gears. It also shows the urgency they feel. They know that they need to gain control of this debate now. They saw it get out of their hands in August. They know that this is really crucial. If they are going to get it done, they need to in the next few weeks.
Remember, we don't have much time left on this legislative session, and there's still a lot on the docket.
WHITFIELD: Andy Barr, thanks so much, at Politico.com. Have a great weekend.
BARR: Thanks.
WHITFIELD: The search for a missing Pennsylvania boy coming to a tragic end.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories now.
A week after 22-year-old Guy Heinze alerted police to his family's brutal slaughter, police in Brunswick, Georgia, charged him with eight counts of murder. Seven of the victims are being buried today.
And the search of a four-year-old boy who went missing last night in Pennsylvania has not come to a terrible end. Police say they found his Wyatt Thomas Smitsky's body in the neighbor's septic tank. Police originally thought that he wondered away from home and got lost last night. A suspect is in now custody, but charges have not been filed.
The rising death toll in Indonesia. Four days after a devastating earthquake shook the island of Java, 65 people were killed, and rescue crews are still searching for 32 people possibly trapped in the rubble of collapsed homes. More than 400 others were hurt.
Indonesia's president says he'll make $500,000 available to help. The U.S. is chipping in $100,000.
(WEATHER BREAK)
WHITFIELD: The battle of the sexes heats up in the bedroom when we ask the question, who gets more sleep, men or women?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Most people have a hard time functioning well without sleep. And for women, in particular, getting older makes it harder to get enough zs. Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has some help in today's "Help for Her" segment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Val Holford is a new mom, which means she doesn't get much sleep.
VALERIE HOLFORD, SLEEPLESS MOM: My friend told me when I was pregnant that I'd never sleep as soundly as I did before I became a mom. And I didn't believe her at the time, but she was so right.
COHEN: With her son Tristan in the teething stage, she says she hasn't had a full eight hours of sleep in months.
Like most moms, she feels her child's needs come first and she neglects her sleep, and that's the problem.
DR. THOMAS LORUSSO, NORTH VIRGINIA SLEEP DIAGNOSTIC: When you don't sleep well, you generally don't feel well.
COHEN: According to sleep experts, although American women average more sleep per night than men, their quality of shuteye isn't as good. That's because many suffer from broken sleep and insomnia. And as women age, sleep becomes an even bigger problem.
LORUSSO: Part of this is related to some of the unique things that occur in a woman's lifetime. For example, their childbearing age when they are pregnant. And then we have the menstrual cycle that obviously causes problems with sleep.
COHEN: New babies disrupt sleep patterns. In some cases, those sleep patterns can stay with mothers even after their little ones are sleeping soundly.
LORUSSO: There's something called psycho-physiologic insomnia which often will be triggered by some initial poor sleep habits. This pattern becomes established and it's very difficult to break.
COHEN: As women get older, their metabolism slows down, sometimes causing weight gain. Those extra pounds can lead to sleepless nights.
LORUSSO: Weight-gain in particular is a real problem with sleep apnea.
COHEN: And hormonal changes can cause disruption in sleep.
LORUSSO: When women reach 50 and their progesterone levels drop, there's a significant increase in frequent awakenings during the night and the sleep becomes fragmented.
COHEN: For better sleep, doctors recommend women limit food and drink, especially alcohol, a few hours before they go to bed, and add exercise, preferably in the morning, to your routine.
For new mothers like Val, try to eliminate stress and get back into a regular sleep pattern as the baby begins to sleep through the night.
Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And the school year is only just beginning, yet we are already seeing cases of students coming down with the H1N1 virus. Hoping to prevent an outbreak, some school buildings have actually been scrubbed inside and out, and that includes St. Francis prep school in New York where the swine flu first surfaced last spring. But is that enough?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BROTHER LEONARD CONWAY, PRINCIPAL, ST. FRANCIS PREP.: I am worried. Some of the experts are saying since so many kids had the flu here that they probably built up an immunity to it.
MARY PAPPAS, SCHOOL NURSE, ST. FRANCIS PREP: My biggest fear is it would maybe be in a school where there was no nurse and it would be chaos for those kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Coming up at 4:00 eastern we're devoting an entire hour to the swine flu, H1N1. E-mail us your questions and concerns to my Facebook page or at weekends@CNN.com. You can also leave a comment on my blog, CNN.com/fredricka.
We'll have a family that has volunteered to be part of a clinical trial of the H1N1 vaccine. Perhaps you have a question or two for them as well.
A game from your childhood is making a comeback. For grownups, a look at who is getting a kick out of kickball these days.
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WHITFIELD: So do you remember the exhilaration of running around the schoolyard playing kickball? If you are in fifth grade, that may have been yesterday. But a growing number of adults are actually playing the game now.
As our Larry Smith explains, if you are all grown up but still young at heart, this might be for you.
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LARRY SMITH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you follow the bouncing ball, you might think this is recess at elementary school. But this is no group of children. This is Chipwits Nation.
They are just one of an estimated 3,000 teens playing organized kickball across 30 states in the World Adult Kickball Association.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Most people are like, isn't that a grade school game? But the truth is when you're all adults, everyone plays it pretty competitively, but also to have fun. It's a good mix.
SMITH (on camera): When was the last time you played kick ball?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fourth of fifth grade and I was small back then. I could never kick a homerun, but now that I'm grown it's a lot more fun.
SMITH: Wilson Chow has played from San Francisco to Central Park.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I told myself I would quit kickball when I turned 30. But obviously it hasn't happened. I just turned 30.
SMITH: On this day he is tucked discretely beneath New York's 59th Street bridge with trams overhead and cars oblivious to the action below. It's just one of the odder places to find the game. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who would think in New York City you'll have fields to play kick ball? My friends are like this is crazy.
SMITH: The idea, crazy yet simple, came in 1988 as a dawn of the internet age and spread quickly.
JOHNNY LAHANE, WORLD ADULT KICKBALL FOUNDATION: It was instant, "are you kidding?" And then it's "I haven't plaid since fifth grade." The memories are right there, and that's one of the big things were we knew we were on to something.
SMITH: Johnny Lahane was one of three friends sitting in a Washington D.C. bar when the league was born. It was an appropriate birthplace since the other half of its appeal seem to be the postgame partying.
LAHANE: There are as many women as there are men in the league. Sometimes I call it 45 minutes of kick ball and three hours of socializing.
TERESA LEVIN, KICKBALL PLAYER: They might be looking for their future boyfriend, husband. I guess it's really social.
LAHANE: We can definitely boast lots and lots of kickball marriages and even a few dozen kickball babies out of it. It just seems that if you are willing to be a little silly and play kickball, that you also happen to be a fun person to hang out with. So we end up with a great social group.
SMITH: Must be true, because recess never ended in a bar.
Larry Smith, CNN.
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