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Tragedy in Tucson

Aired January 09, 2011 - 14:26   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Doctors say Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is in a medically-induced coma -- why doctors remain encouraged by her condition and better explain her gunshot injury.

And CNN's chief medical correspondent and neurologist, Sanjay Gupta, talks to us about Giffords' treatment and the prospects for her recovery.

And the 22-year-old shooting suspect is about to be formally charged. Who is Jared Lee Loughner and what was his alleged motive? We'll take a look at his disturbing writings on the Internet.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

More than 24 hours after the tragedy in Tucson, Arizona, we're learning more about the victims, the suspect, and exactly what happened.

Six people were killed when a gunman opened fire at a meet-and- greet with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. She was the most critically injured of the 14 people who were wounded, and she's the only one still in intensive care.

Doctors at the University Medical Center say she was shot through the left side of her brain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MICHAEL LEMOLE, CHIEF OF NEUROSURGERY, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA: The things that are most concerning to us are if the bullet crosses from one hemisphere to the other, one side to the other, if the bullet crosses through the geometric center of the brain. And I'm happy to say that those were not the case in this instance. And because of that, Congresswoman Giffords is able to communicate with us this morning through following of simple commands, and we're very encouraged by that.

We are still in critical condition. Brain swelling at any time can take a turn for the worse. But I am cautiously optimistic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The suspected shooter was tackled by people at yesterday's political event and quickly arrested. Twenty-two-year-old Jared Lee Loughner is now in federal custody. Here is what the FBI director had to say just last hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT MUELLER, FBI DIRECTOR: And given this tragedy, all logical precautions are in place to best ensure the safety of other public officials. But I will say and will emphasize, there is no information at this time to suggest any specific threat remains.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Our national correspondent, Susan Candiotti, is in Tucson following the investigation.

So when might these charges be filed?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, FBI Director Robert Mueller tells us that, in fact, they are expecting to file formal charges some time later today. And, in fact, he is suggesting what those charges might be against Mr. Loughner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MUELLER: I do believe he will be charged with the assault on the congresswoman, with the killing of Judge Roll, and the assault on the other staffers. And, again, these are preliminary charges. As the investigation goes on, there may will be additional charges that will be filed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Now, Fredricka, we have learned some brand-new information, a brand-new development in this case.

We are learning that investigators are now talking with a second person in connection with the Safeway shootings. And, in fact, we don't know whether this person is the same one that authorities released a photo of from a security camera earlier this day.

This is a man they said they were interested in speaking with, someone they described who was white, about 40 to 50 years old, who was wearing a dark shirt and blue jeans, and that, they said, was in the same proximity, in the same grocery store at the same time as the suspected shooter in this case before he left the store and is accused now, or will shortly be accused, of shooting all the victims. Now, we don't know, again, whether the person they are interviewing at this time is that same person or someone else.

We don't know exactly what the possible connection might be. In fact, there may be no connection at all to Mr. Loughner, but this person is being questioned in connection with the shootings in some way. As soon as we get more information about that, of course, we'll pass it on to you.

In the meantime, Fred, we have learned the exact location where the suspect in this case purchased the 9 millimeter Glock semiautomatic handgun allegedly used in this case. It came from a store here in Tucson. The name is Sportsman's Warehouse and, in fact, Director Mueller says that purchase was made last November.

We know that he got off several rounds before people were able to tackle him. Authorities have also said they recovered another magazine that was filled with another 30 rounds. But for the actions of a couple of witnesses who were able to tackle him to the ground and the malfunction of a spring in that magazine, he was unable to get that gun reloaded again. Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Meantime, Susan, behind you it looks like there's an area that has been set aside for flowers, presumably for the many victims of this shooting.

CANDIOTTI: That's correct. As well as the people injured in the shooting, of course. We know that Congresswoman Giffords is the only one who remains in critical condition, but, of course, six people lost their lives, including a federal judge from here in Arizona as well as a 9-year-old child who coincidentally was born on 9/11.

There are a lot of people who have been coming by leaving flowers, leaving mementos. In fact one message card read fight, Gabby, fight. Gabby is the nickname by which many people know Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

And so a lot of people are pulling not only for her, but for all of the people who are still to recover from their injuries. Of course, most of them less serious than hers.

WHITFIELD: All right, Susan Candiotti in Tucson, thank you so much. As the congresswoman fights for her life and so many others there at the hospital, let's take a moment now to remember the six people killed.

At 76, Dorwin Stoddard was a construction worker. Witnesses say he was shot trying to shield his wife from the gunman yesterday. John Roll was the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for Arizona. Also killed were Dorthy Morris and Phyllis Scheck, and at 9 years old, you heard Susan mention her, Christina Green was the youngest victim. And Gabe Zimmerman, who's 30 years old, was an aide to the congresswoman who was working in that Tucson office.

Now of course, we're going to continue to monitor the investigation of that shooting and where it goes from here and, of course, the status of the congresswoman and others who were injured in the shooting.

Meantime, another focus in the southeast in particular of this country, we are talking about potentially dangerous weather on the way in the form of snow and ice. Jacqui Jeras keeping a close watch on things.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, Fredricka. This is a really big storm and this is going to impacting millions of people, not just today, not just tomorrow, but potentially this storm could eventually make its way up the northeast coast and cause more problems there. So everybody needs to pay attention because this is going to be a major issue when it comes to travel and we're talking about life threatening situations here if you get yourself on the roadways when that freezing rain starts to come down.

All right, here you can see that moisture in place across parts of the deep south. The cold air already there. We're starting to see the snow coming down now in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. We're getting reports between one and three inches near the state line up here as it heads on up towards Arkansas.

We've got some pictures to show you out of Frisco, Texas. This is just north of the Dallas area and you can see that snow coming down, having a little bit of fun in it. You don't get snow every day in this part of Texas most certainly. We could see several inches before all is said and done.

Now what's a greater concern along this I-20 corridor and in northern parts of Louisiana and into Mississippi we're getting reports of freezing rain, as much as maybe a tenth of an inch starting to accumulate. Lots of accidents in Vicksburg, Mississippi earlier this morning, and so freezing rain is liquid precipitation that might come down and it freezes on contact because we're so cold at the surface and that makes an ice skating rink on all the roadways.

So travelers really not advised in this area and this is pushing into parts of Alabama as well as into Georgia and eventually into the Carolinas and there you can see all the states, the pink is where we're expecting winter storm warnings. This bright purple here is an ice storm warning and we'll likely see some freezing rain even just to the south of that. This is how the system shapes up over the next couple of days.

The snow accumulations will be hard on this one because a lot of you are going to start as snow with this system and then change over to the freezing rain, but this is our best estimate of where we expect that rain and freezing rain and snow line to be. We'll have more specifics and talk about those totals again when I see you in another couple minutes. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Jacqui. Meantime, we're going to also talk more about the Tucson shooting and the ramifications. The elected officials and the new fear factor what it will take to help Congress feel safe after that Tucson rampage.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Much of the discussion on the Sunday talk shows this morning focused on the chilling effect of the Tucson killings and how that might impact public servants and what they do. Here now is Representative Steny Hoyer on CBS' "Face The Nation."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPRESENTATIVE STENY HOYER, (D) MINORITY WHIP: I don't think there's any doubt, but my colleagues are very concerned about the environment in which they are now operating. It's been a much angrier, confrontational environment over the last two or three years than we have experienced in the past and I think there is worry about that. I will tell you, also, that the staffers, we should not forget that a staff member was lost here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The attack on Representative Giffords is sending shock waves through Congress. In fact, flags are flying at half-staff on the House side of the Capitol today in honor of her staff member who was killed as Mr. Hoyer was talking about there.

Let's get right to our congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar who joins us now from Capitol Hill. So, Brianna, what are the signs of any potential security changes or concerns as a result of yesterday?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There is actually one coming up here in just a few minutes. The sergeant at arms as well as United States Capitol Police are organizing a conference call. This has actually been put on by Democrats. It's a bipartisan conference call.

And it's going to be addressing some of the security concerns and you know, we heard earlier, Fred, from the FBI director that there are precautions that are in place. There are things that are being considered to make sure that members of Congress are safe, and I think a lot of people might be surprised to learn that for rank and file members of Congress like Congresswoman Giffords, there is no security detail.

For leaders, Democrats and Republicans in Congress, there certainly is security measures, security details, that they have and they have those precautions, but when it comes to someone like Congresswoman Giffords. It's completely normal for these people to go back to their home district and to do constituent outreach events.

And generally speaking to not worry too much about it, Fred, and just go about it with their normal staff there. What I can tell you, and we don't have specifics about the kind of measures that would be provided to these members of Congress because law enforcement is playing it pretty close to the vest, but generally speaking if there is some kind of specific threat then a member of Congress can ask either their local law enforcement if they're back in their district.

They can ask U.S. Capitol Police here in Washington for some help, for some security, and that will be certainly granted on a case- by-case basis. We heard from the sheriff in Tucson that had Congresswoman Giffords asked for that it would have been provided by local law enforcement.

But certainly, it's something that's kind of determined if there is a specific threat when it comes to rank and file members, Fred.

WHITFIELD: OK, and then I also wonder, you know, this has been clearly very sobering, how it may have impacted the political climate overall there in Washington, Brianna?

KEILAR: I think what you have are Republicans and Democrats really saying it's time to pull politics aside. You look at just what we had going on with the week ahead of us. This was going to be a very big week on Capitol Hill.

We are going to see a vote in the House Of Representatives led by Republicans to repeal health care reform. Everything that was on the calendar has been shelved at this point and these political issues are being put aside, postponed, until this issue of the security concerns, the status of Congresswoman Giffords can be dealt with.

WHITFIELD: OK, Brianna Keilar, thanks so much. And we're also just learning from the White House that President Obama will call for a moment of silence tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time, is my understanding, 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time tomorrow, a moment of silence, one that he is encouraging to be recognized nationwide.

Of course, another big story we're following today, a major winter storm that could paralyze the south. We'll get the latest on which areas will be hit the hardest potentially.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: More ice, more snow coming to the south. A lot of folks were celebrating a White Christmas just a couple of weeks ago. I'm not so sure people are going to celebrate this next path of stormy weather, Jacqui Jeras.

JERAS: Another snowman? This one is serious and here is why. First of all, it's a very tricky forecast because there's a very fine line between the snow and the freezing rain. And snow, most of the south can handle a couple inches of snow. You stay home. No big deal. You'll get through it. It's the weekend, right?

But you start to get this freezing rain and that is ice accumulating on power lines, on trees, and that can cause power outages. Remember the Super Bowl? Remember Super Bowl Sunday January 2000? Come on, work with me.

WHITFIELD: My gosh. You're asking me to think back to 2000? No, I don't remember it. Help me out.

JERAS: Literally hundreds of thousands of people in Atlanta without power for about three days. There is the potential for something along those lines, I think, in the south Atlanta metro. In addition to places in Alabama as well as Mississippi and Louisiana and that's the big concern with this storm is this ice because you get ice on the roadways and you absolutely can't travel.

So make sure you have a three-day supply of food and water. Make sure you have daycare coverage for your kids tomorrow if you are an essential employee and you have to get to work because pretty sure thing here a lot of kids are not going to be in school tomorrow and that could linger into Tuesday especially if you're over here, Atlanta towards Columbia, even into Raleigh/Durham. This is the extent and how far stretching this storm is for today and into tomorrow and then potentially we could be talking about parts of the mid-Atlantic and the northeast. Yes, this could possibly turn into a nor'easter. The model is not syncing up on this. This will be Tuesday/Wednesday.

So those of you who live up there or have travel plans, you know, be aware that could be coming. Let's take a look at what's going on in Dallas right now. This is from our affiliate KDAF-TV. There you can see barely, but the snow is coming down. We've got accumulations of the north, over an inch already.

We could be talking about a good three inches maybe for people in Dallas. So, yes, a little bit of that southern snow out there. Here is the forecast. The computer models are not all green, but this gives you a good idea of what I think we're going to be expecting in terms of the ice accumulation. A quarter of an inch is kind of that magic number when we start to see power outages.

A half of an inch certainly could be crippling for those of you in that area and you get about a tenth of an inch on the roadways and that's enough. If you remember what happened in Atlanta just about a couple weeks ago --

WHITFIELD: I remember 2000 now. It's all coming back to me. Now I remember. My husband remembers much better than I do.

JERAS: Have dry wood ready to go to help keep you warm. Generators stay outside because carbon monoxide is released from generators so you don't want that in your house. Watch those heaters if you have battery operated make sure all the batteries are in there for you for things like your flashlights, for your NOAA weather radio to help you through the storm.

No heat, not fun. It will stay below freezing for a good part of the week across the deep south. That arctic oscillation stays in place. So don't expect to warm up anytime soon. All right, we'll have more continuing coverage on this winter storm throughout the day. We're going to take a break and the NEWSROOM will be back in just a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Twenty people were hit in yesterday's unthinkable shooting in Tucson. Among the six killed in the attack Federal Judge John Roll. The 63-year-old U.S. District Court chief judge had served the legal system for nearly 40 years.

He was a father of three and had five grandchildren. The Pima County sheriff says Roll was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is being remembered as a selfless, dedicated jurist.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUDGE REBECCA WHITE BERCH, CHIEF JUSTICE, ARIZONA SUPREME COURT (via telephone): He was well loved in the Arizona legal community. He was one of those judges who is always thoughtful and wise and patient and kind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Also killed one of the staffers of injured Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, 30-year-old Gabe Zimmerman. He was in charge of community outreach in Giffords' Tucson office and he was engaged to be married. House Speaker John Boehner talked about the tragedy today from his home state of Ohio.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPRESENTATIVE JOHN BOEHNER, (R-OH), HOUSE SPEAKER: Among the fallen is Gabe Zimmerman, a member of Congresswoman Giffords' staff. I've directed that flags on the House side of the Capitol be flown at half-mast in honor of Gabe's death in the line of duty.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The youngest victim in the Tucson tragedy was 9 years old, Christina Taylor Green, who wanted to learn more about politics. That's why she was at Congresswoman Giffords' event at that Safeway store.

Christina was the granddaughter of Dallas Green, the former manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. The little girl's father is John Green, a scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Earlier her father spoke to CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN GREEN, FATHER OF 9-YEAR-OLD VICTIM: She was born on 9/11, so she came in on a tragedy and now she's gone on a tragedy, but the nine years in between were very special. We're all going to miss you, Christina. All I can say is that we're going to be strong, strong for each other, and we're going to honor Christina.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: There were many heroic acts of bravery when the bullets started flying in Tucson. One of those acts by 76-year-old Dorwin Stoddard. He used his body to shield his wife, who was wounded in the shooting, but Mr. Stoddard didn't make it. Just ahead, we'll hear from someone who knew Stoddard very well, his pastor.

As we mentioned, the reverberations have been ongoing from this heinous crime yesterday. Right now live pictures of a press conference taking place involving the Democratic leadership, this is Representative Larson in Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REPRESENTATIVE JOHN LARSON, DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS CHAIRMAN: And some other colleagues injured and of course the tragic loss of life of the judge, a little girl, and certainly the condition of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords as has been said by so many and expressed on this conference call such an incredible, gifted, talented, sincere, gracious, incredibly gifted individual.

Certainly, this is the kind of senseless thing that leaves everyone aghast and wondering why. I especially want to commend the leadership of our Speaker Boehner in taking all appropriate action and working with Leader Pelosi who I spoke with Mark Kelly today and his words and her conveying that to the members of Congress are certainly extraordinarily helpful.

Also to hear from Gabrielle Giffords' chief of staff who is out there in Arizona and we felt appropriate as well to make sure we had staff members who are such an integral part of our daily life and someone who gave his life in the line of duty and service of their country, gives us all pause and reflection. We did hear from Sergeant of Arms Livingood and Chief Morris and we also heard from the attending physician's office. We heard from Dr. Christina Malekiani, who talked in technical terms medically.

We will be having Representative Cantor and -- Majority Leader Cantor and Hoyer went over the schedule for this week and we, again, appreciate the great sensitivity involved in dealing with this issue and the expression and concern there won't be votes this week. There certainly will be tributes that will be put forward for those who have lost their lives and the continued hope and fervent prayers and well wishes for Gabrielle and all the victims as well with regard to their recovery.

We will be holding a joint caucus conference on Wednesday that the speaker has called for and, again, we thank him in this great time of need for the house, the people of Arizona and the country. And I think all members on the phone conservatives and subsequently hopefully out of this tragic circumstance.

The discourse that takes place all across this country and camaraderie that we hope will ensue in a way that we're all in this together to improve the lives of the people we're sworn to serve. With that, I'll take a few questions and then we'll go.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Representative Larson, can you tell us about what the sergeant in arms said on the call about security when everyone gets back here?

LARSON: Well, the sergeant of arms went through and we're going to have -- there were bulletins that were released. Some problems in getting some of the e-mails were discussed, but he very specifically went over some concerns.

Those concerns will be both -- again, we have more than 800 people on the phone call. We did have some technical difficulty initially on so we'll be putting those -- printing those out. Again, those will be reviewed at the combined conference. One of the things we are especially concerned about are spouses to make sure that they get the information and also we have quite a few number of new members to Congress who were not here during the anthrax scares or 9/11 circumstance. So we want to make sure that spouses know how to connect. The sergeant of arms did a good job in talking about coordination with local security entities and how we should go about that. We heard from the -- Chief Morris as well with very specific recommendations for members what to do. That will be outlined in detail for them and, again, passed out on Wednesday.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are some of the specific recommendations that you brought up?

LARSON: Well, the primary -- the primary thing here is to make sure all members are coordinating their efforts with local police officials, which members do routinely but designating as we do because of the procedures as with regard to evacuation since September 11th, every office has a specific coordinator for that.

One of the suggestions and more will emanate. They did for members and from leadership about specific suggestions as to what we can do. The speaker has called for and enjoined by all leadership on both sides for a more thorough review of all of these measures and obviously we will take those up on Wednesday.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, the chairman of the Democratic caucus, Representative John Larson there, underscoring the need for all Americans to come together regardless of party affiliation and also talking about a renewed commitment as it pertains to security and elected officials. Much more of the NEWSROOM right after this.